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ENCYCLOPiEDIA BRIT ANNIC A.
HUME.
Hume,
David.
HUME, David, one of the most celebrated historians
and philosophers of Great Britain, has already been
twice noticed in the Preliminary Dissertations, where the
principal doctrines of his metaphysics have been considered
by Stewart, and those of his ethics by Mackintosh. This,
happily, exempts the writer of the present article from touch¬
ing on the same topics, except incidentally. But as the life
and character of other celebrated men, no less prominent in
the Dissertations, have been formally treated in the body of
this work, it seemed due to the memory of Hume to give his
biography a little more fully than in the few paragraphs dedi¬
cated to him in the previous editions; and the following
sketch has therefore been inserted. It will be restricted to
a brief account of his life and genius, an estimate of his
merits as a writer, and probably a glance at one or two of
such of his philosophical opinions as were too remote from
the design of either Dissertation to challenge notice there,
but yet may seem of sufficient importance to be referred to.
Hume has left us a very short autobiographic sketch of
his own life ; it is too scanty, too bare of details, to in¬
spire the interest which belongs to some similar memoirs,
that of Gibbon for example. But though it is little more
than a catalogue of dates and facts, the author offers a good
apology for his conciseness :—“ It is difficult, he says, for
a man to speak long of himself without vanity. Heassuies
the reader that the notice shall contain little more than the
history of his writings, and he has kept his word. From
all danger of vanity in treating such topics—however de¬
licate for an author—he flattered himself he had security
in his eax\y failures “ The first success of my writings,”
says he, “was not such as to be an object of vanity.” Yet ^
the acerbity with which at that so distant day he remem¬
bers and records the slow steps by which he had emerged
from obscurity into fame, and which all that fame had not
been able to soothe, would seem to indicate that the philo¬
sopher had not quite so effectually mortified his vanity as
he imagined. The tardy homage which the public paid
to his merits is a theme to which he never tired of le-
curring, though, as will be seen in the sequel, not very rea¬
sonably.1 TT. _ ,
He was born at Edinburgh, April 26, 1711. His father
was a scion of the house of the Earl of Home, or Hume, as
the name was often spelt, and as our philosopher, in opposition
to his brother’s orthographic heterodoxy, always persisted in
spelling it. His mother was daughter of Sir David Fal¬
coner, president of the College of Justice. His father died
when he was a child; his mother, of whom he speaks in
the fondest terms, was long spared to him, and well deserved
the tribute of affection he pays her. “ Though young and
handsome, she devoted herself entirely to the rearing and
education of her children.” At the age of fifteen he was
sent to the University of Edinburgh, and he tells us,
what none will doubt,’ that he passed through the usual
“ course of education with success ;” though his reading was
marked at that time—and as regards the classics, was
always marked—rather by extent than by accurate scholar¬
ship. Even at that early age he was possessed with an in¬
tense love of literature, and by that ambition of literary dis-
Hume,
David.
1 « Every new edition wa, only an acknowledgment of the njua ce which had been done h.m and a P»o .""ment of hm ^
. . . Hime at last wore out the patience of hi. very publi.h.r” (Ed. Rm.. Jan. 1847) ^ to “e*P7“!“0"0rty ’»„ guide, 1 do
blockheads who call themselves the public,” thus he writes (1757) “ and whom a bookseller, a lord, a priest, or party can g ,
most heartily despise it.” ^
VOL. XII.
Plume,
David.
tinction which was the ruling passion, not to say the only
passion, of his life. Seldom, if ever, has the propensity to
— a studious life developed itself so early or so exclusively, or
asserted its claims so imperiously. From the very firsthand
all along, it overmastered everything in the shape of plea¬
sure or interest that could be brought into competition with
it. As a younger brother, and a younger brotherof no opulent
house, he w^as, of course, to carve out his own fortunes in
the world. “ My patrimony,” he says, “ after the manner
of my country, was but slender yet no lures, no exio-en-
cies could induce him to seek fortune at the expense of
literature. In this case, the phlegm of the young philoso¬
pher seemed, in its way, as immovable as the enthusiasm
of a young poet frequently proves; he could not, as the
world would say, calculate consequences. To add to the
wonder, Hume was most creditably anxious for indepen¬
dence, and resolved, at whatever costs of economy, to possess
it. Nay, as his after-life showed, our philosopher was by
no means insensible to the advantages of wealth; never¬
theless, he was unwilling to adopt any course to attain
i idles at the expense of those literary pursuits which much
more frequenUy conduct to penury. Thus all the schemes
Ins friends formed on his behalf were frustrated by this one
passion. His “ studious habits, sobriety, and industry, led
them to wish that he should devote himself to the law,” in
which surely these qualities, in conjunction with his sur¬
passing acuteness and subtilty, might have easily won dis¬
tinction ; but while “ they fancied he was poring over Voet
and v inmus Cicero and Virgil were the authors he was
secretly devouring.” An experiment in mercantile life
was equally unsuccessful. In 1734 he went to Bristol with
introducUons to “ eminent merchants” in that city, but he
found this “ scene utterly unsuitable.” He then exiled
himself to France; and first at Rheims, then at La Fleche
devoted himself, in studious solitude, to literature and phi-
losophy. During this time he made a “ rigid frugality sup¬
ply the deficiencies of fortune” (a course to which he re¬
solutely adhered till the dawn of better days); and with
singular decision of character, and obedience to the rulino-
passion, “ regarded every object as contemptible except the
improvement of his talents for literature.” In this interval
ie meditated and composed his Treatise of Human Nature.
I his work was completed by his twenty-fifth year, and, as
the production of so young a mind, must certainly be re¬
garded as a prodigy of metaphysical acuteness. Indeed
there is reason to believe that the results of his speculation
(if scepticism allow the term) must have been arrived at
Jong before, even from his boyish days. In the account he
gives of himself in that remarkable letter, first published by
Mr Burton vol. i, pp. 31-39), in which he anonymously
consults a physician in relation to some singular but very
prolonged hypochondrical affection (itself, probably, both
symptom and effect of an overwrought mind), he discloses a
style of thought and points to a method of speculation which
strongly remind us of the conditions of mind under which
escartes commenced philosopher. Were there any proofs
(as iere are certainly none) of his acquaintance with Des-
cartes writings at this early age, it would have seemed almost
on thT u 1 ]S mC,th?d !>f P]lllosoP]iizmg was sheer imitation ;
other ha"d, i this letter had been written after his
residence at La Fleche, where Descartes felt so similarly, the
same conclusion would have been inevitable. From this let-
SLa, •£\CUe t0 fudl in thf character of his mind and its
a P’ iT °f ltSi ti,ndencies t0 morbid speculation at
a veiy eaily date, we shall presently give some extracts.
Hume to London with his Treatise on
Human Nature; m the next year published it. “ Never
iterary attempt, he says, “ was more unfortunate ; it fell
dead-born from the press, without reaching such distinction
as even to excite a murmur.” He declares, however hat
being naturally of a cheerful temper, he soon recovered
HUME.
fiom this and similar subsequent disappointments. Yet it
is clear from the details in Burton’s Life, that the equani¬
mity of our philosopher was sorely tried ; that he had, with
the exaggerations natural in a young author, been expect¬
ing that the world would have little to do for a time, ex-
cept to read his lucubrations ! He tells his friend Ramsay,
that he would not aim at anything until he could judge of
ms success in his grand undertaking, and see upon what foot¬
ing he w-as to stand in the world;” and as the day of pub¬
lication drew near, confesses to being perturbed at “ the
nearness and greatness of the event.” Yet it is certain that
he bore the disappointment of his hopes on this occasion
much better than he did some far lighter failures of the
same kind. Cheerful as might be his temper, buoyant as
were his hopes, his mortifications of this sort, and espe¬
cially that which befell him when he published the first
volume of his History, were keenly felt and remembered,
and engendered prejudices against the Public,” which little
became a philosopher, and utterly prevented him from doinp-
the said “ Public” justice. Properly speaking, he never
forgave its early neglect, and could not see that he had
not been a very ill-used man, even when fame and com¬
petency had rewarded his at first unpromising labours* In
the case of the Treatise of Human Nature, however, he
himself admits, that in fact the public was in the right;
which, indeed, any one would naturally expect, seeing that
the philosopher was but five-and-twenty, and his philoso¬
phy the product of that mature age ! That he was not in¬
sensible that his failure in the first instance was more attri¬
butable to himself than to the world is significantly shown by
his acknowledgment of indiscretion in going to press so early.
f bad always,” he says, “entertained a notion, that my want
of success in publishing the Treatise of Human Nature, had
proceeded more from the manner than the matter” (equally
from both, the public would say), “ and that I had been
guilty^of a very usual indiscretion in going to the press too
early. He tells us, he “ set about remedying its defects.”
He cast the first part of it entirely anew in the Enquiry
concerning Human Understanding, published 1747; but
this, he confesses, had little more success than the former.
In fact, he was still but serving his apprenticeship to fame—
which many a man, as great, has had to do for a much longer
period. In 1742, he published the first part of his Essays.
Ihese, which were buoyed up by large intermixture of
more attractive topics than those of the Treatise, and were
recommended by the fascinations of a far more finished
style, met with a better reception, and they have since been
ahvays popular. 1 he second edition, however, did not o-q
off rapidly enough to satisfy the exacting temper of the
author.—After publishing the Treatise, he lived for some
time with his brother in Scotland, still ardently pursuing
his literary occupations. I his mode of life was not very
agreeably diversified by the temporary charge of the half-
mad, or at least wholly hypochondriacal Earl of Annandale
(1745). M hether tutor or keeper be the more proper
term for our philosopher during a year of very humiliating
servitude, it seems hard to say. His next post (1747) was
that of secretary to General St Clair, whom he accompanied
rp in. military embassy to the courts of Vienna and
1 unn. He was introduced, he tells us, as aid-de-camp to
the general, and wore the uniform of an officer,—a droll
transformation for our ungainly philosopher. Two years were
thus spent, almost the only years of his life, he declares, in
which he was “ estranged from literature.” Total estrange¬
ment can hardly be supposed, nor does one see any reason
for it. If it were so, the military uniform in his case must
have done more than even the active duties of a soldier’s life
could do in that of Gibbon, in whom the passion for litera¬
ture was, however, still more ardent than in Hume. Gib¬
bon s account, in X\\s, Journal, of the absolute possession which
history had taken of him, of the enthusiasm with which
Hume,
David.
II u
Hume, he indulged dreams of literary ambition and pursued his
David, studies even in his tent, affords a striking instanee of the
“ rulinp- passion.” But if Hume’s occupations estranged
him for*a while from literature, the emoluments of his office
were not to be despised; they so materially aided his very
limited resources, that he sometimes pleasantly talked to
his smiling friends of having achieved independent for¬
tune : “ I was now,” says he, “master of near a thousand
pounds!”
In 1749, he again repaired to his brother’s house, where
he took up his abode for two years. He spent his leisure
in composing the second part of his essays, which he called
Political Discourses, and his Enquiry concerning the Prin¬
ciples of Morals. His publisher now' told him, that his
writings, “all but the unfortunate Treatise, were beginning
to be asked for and talked about.” “ It was a hopeful
symptom too,” he tells us, “ that answers by reverends and
right reverends came out two or three in a year;” and that
he “ found, by Dr Warburton’s railing, that the books were
beginning to be esteemed in good company.”
In 1751, he removed from the country to Edinburgh,
under the notion that the “ capital was the true scene for a
man of letters;” and in the following year he published the
Political Discourses; “ the only work of mine,” says he,
“ that was successful on the first publication.” It is difficult
to say what is the criterion of success in the estimate of un¬
reasonable expectation ; but Hume was still a young writer,
and he certainly had no reason to complain of the reception
of the first part of his Essays. Conscious of power, he was
too impatient for fame, and forgot that fame is a thing of
slow growth; he wished to see the oak rise immediately
from the acorn. Meantime, grumble as he might, his sap¬
lings, in the estimate of any sober judge, would be thought
to be doing well enough.
In the same year, he published in London, his Enquiry
concerning the Principles of Morals, of which he hesitates
not to say, that “ of all his writings, philosophical, literary,
or historical, it is incomparably the best.”
Hume wondered that Rousseau should prefer his Emile
to his Heloise, and compares it to Milton’s preference of his
Paradise Regained to his Paradise Lost. Whether Hume
himself be not another instance of a similar delusion, many
readers will have their doubts. But much will depend on
what is meant by “best.” If Hume meant by “best,”
that the Enquiry was the most original and acute of his
writings, that which displayed most poioer, posterity will
hardly affirm his verdict; if by “ best,” he meant, that of all
his writings, it is most free from paradox and error, it will
probably be granted. Sir James Mackintosh has observed,
that “ it is creditable to him that he deliberately pre¬
ferred the treatise which is least tainted with paradox,
though the least original of all his writings.” Sir James
contends, however, for its pre-eminent excellence of style.
For a very able criticism of its merits and defects, the
reader is referred to the second Dissertation.
In 1752, Hume was appointed librarian to the Faculty
of Advocates. The chief immediate value of the office, to
which little or no emolument was attached, consisted in the
access it afforded to a large library ; indirectly, it was of
greater advantage, as this last circumstance encouraged, if it
did not suggest, his writing the History of England. Terri¬
fied, however, with the magnitude of the task, dreading, as
he well might, to begin, after the orthodox manner, with the
landing of Julius Caesar, he commenced with the accession
of the Stuarts, “ an epoch,” he thought, “ when the mis¬
representations began chiefly to take place;” but which, let
ME. 3
them be what they would, could hardly transcend his own. Hume,
His anticipations of success were, as in former cases, san- David,
guine, and he was doomed, for a while, to see the usual
frustration of his hopes. “ Miserable,” says he, “ was my
disappointment; I was assailed by one cry of reproach, dis¬
appointment, and even execration. English, Scotch, and
Irish; Whig and Tory, churchman and sectary, freethinker
and religionist, united in their rage against the one man
who had presumed to shed a generous tear for the fate of
Charles I. and the Earl of Strafford.” Hume’s indignation
makes a droll mis-estimate of his own enormous delin¬
quencies. If he had exercised common justice and impar¬
tiality, to say nothing of “ generosity,” in other cases, the
few “ generous tears” which the unwontedly sentimental
sceptic could have managed to distil for Strafford or Charles,
would never have given such mortal offence. It was yet
more mortifying to the author, that the furious storm which
greeted the first appearance of the work, subsided into a
more vexatious calm ; for what man would not sooner be
railed at than forgotten ? The History seemed doomed to
oblivion. The publisher assured Hume, that “ in a year he
sold but forty-five copies.” Hume himself confesses, that
with two “ odd exceptions,”—the Primates of England and
Ireland,—he scarcely heard of any man of rank or letters
who “ could endure the book;” and that had it not been
for the breaking out of the war with France (in spite of
the “ cheerful temper” with which he would have us be¬
lieve his philosophy took such things!), he would have
sought an asylum there, and changing his name, for ever
renounced his country !1 As it was, his country was spared
this dire infliction. Meantime, Hume persevered, and his
second volume which appeared two years afterwards had
somewhat better success.
In 1759, he published, according to the retrograde course
in which he had commenced, the history of the House ot
Tudor, which also was received with a storm of disappro¬
bation. But if we may trust his own averment, he was
now “ callous against the impression of public folly;” and
gave the early history in two more volumes in 1761, “ with
tolerable, and but tolerable, success.”
But that his complaints of want of success >. vre, on the
whole, unreasonable, is evident from his own statement,
namely, that in spite of all “ public folly,” “ the copy-money
given him by the booksellers much exceeded anything fbx--
merly known in England.” In fact he had been, as usual,
too impatient of success. But even when he had become,
and in a large degree from his literary labours, “ not only
independent, but-opulent” according to his truly philoso¬
phical scale of riches,—he never forgave the “ public folly”
for not instantaneously recognising his merits.
Though his History had grievous defects, which he took care,
n the indulgence of his prejudices (continually strengthen¬
ing with opposition;, to aggravate in every successive edition,
it had also singular merits, and was secure of the popularity
which the impatience of its author thought so tardy. It
was nearly the first modern example of history treated in a
philosophical spirit, while the charms of its unrivalled style
would alone have insured its success.
In the interval between the first and second volumes of
his History he published his Natural History of Religion ;
of which he says “ the public entry was obscure;” its con¬
tents, acute as the treatise is, need not leave us in any won¬
der at that. For this neglect, however, he assures us he
received consolation, in the shape of “ a pamphlet by Dr
Hurd, written with all the illiberal petulance, arrogance, and
scurrility, which distinguish the Warburtonian school.”
1 On a subsequent occasion, when complaining of the tardiness of his political patrons, Hume repeated this sort of threat.—“ The fuming
incense,” says the critic id the Ed. Review (1847), “ which the Parisians were offering him as a sort of male Goddess of Reason must
have intoxicated him, or he never would have closed a letter with the formal notice,—‘ I have been accustomed to meet with nothing hut
insults and indignities from my native country ; hut if it continue so, ‘ ingrata patria, ne ossa quidem hahehis.' ”
4
HUME.
Hume, 1 he consolation, from this mode of speaking of it, would
David. not seem very soothing.
—Hume was now (1761) fifty years of age, and meditated
a philosophical retreat in Edinburgh for the rest of his days ;
but on receiving an invitation from Lord Hertford to attend
him in his embassy to Paris, with the prospect of secretary¬
ship to the embassy, he, after some hesitation, consented.
He was soon appointed secretary, and in 1765, when Lord
Hertford was made lord-lieutenant of Ireland, was left at
Paris as Charge cTAffaires till the new ambassador, the
Duke of Richmond, arrived. In 1766 he returned to Edin¬
burgh, “ not richer? he pleasantly says, “ hut with much
more money”
During his residence in Paris, he was not only welcome,
he was the rage. In spite of his philosophic shyness, his
destitution of all personal graces and charm of manner, and
even in spite of his French—French which only French po¬
liteness could have heard without laughing—he was over¬
whelmed with the most flattering attentions of combined
rank and genius, youth and beauty. “ The more I resiled
from these excessive civilities,” says he, “the more I was
loaded with them.” It is evident, nevertheless, from many
expressions, that this homage was not a little soothing to our
philosopher’s complacency, and often excited a flutter of
vanity which his philosophy would hardly have approved;
and he would as certainly have been cured of it, had he
been duly conscious of the ridiculous position in which his
worshippers often placed him. “ From what has been al¬
ready said of him,” says Lord Charlemont, “ it is apparent
that his conversation to strangers, and particularly to French¬
men, could be little delightful, and still more particularly,
one would suppose, to French women; and yet no lady’s
toilette was complete without Hume’s attendance. At the
opera his broad unmeaning face was usually seen entre deux
jolis minois. The ladies in France gave the ton, and the
ton was deism ; a species of philosophy ill suited to the
softer sex, in whose delicate frame weakness is interesting,
and timidity a charm. . . How my friend Hume was
able to endure the encounter of these French female Ti¬
tans, I know not.”1 Some of the scenes in which fashion¬
able society doomed him to enact a part, must have been
exquisitely comic; and had his friends intended to ridi¬
cule, not to honour him, they could hardly have devised any
thing better adapted to the purpose. The scene described
so vividly by Madame D’Epinay, must surely have been
abundantly trying. We have hardly space for the passage,
but it is so graphic, and indeed so instructive, that we can¬
not resist the temptation to give an abridged translation
below.2 On another occasion, still more trying to his gra¬
vity, if not to his modesty, he was compelled to listen to
complimentary harangues from the Dauphin’s children,—
the youngest of the child-orators unhappily breaking down in
the middle of his address; we shall give the scene in Hume’s
own vein of quiet pleasantry. It is clear that, however flat- Hume,
teied by the homage he received, as other expressions in his Ravid.
letters prove, he was by no means insensible to the absur- »
dity of the situation in which the extravagance of adula¬
tion sometimes placed him. “ Do you ask me,” says he,
about my course of life ? I can only say that I eat no¬
thing but ambrosia, drink nothing but nectar, breathe no¬
thing but incense, and tread on nothing but flowers. Every
man I meet, and still more, every lady, would think they
were wanting in the most indispensable duty, if they did not
make a long and elaborate harangue in my praise. What
happened last week, when I had the honour of being pre¬
sented to the D n’s children, at Versailles, is one of the
most curious scenes I have yet passed through. The Due
de B., the eldest, a boy of ten years old, stepped forth and
told me how many friends and admirers I had in this coun¬
try, and that he reckoned himself in the number, from the
pleasure he had received from the reading of many pas¬
sages in my works. When he had finished, his brother, the
Count de P., who is two years younger, began his discourse,
and informed me that I had been long and impatiently ex¬
pected in France; and that he himself expected soon to
have great satisfaction from the reading of my fine History.
But what is more curious, when I was carried thence to the
Count D’A., who is but four years of age, I heard him mum¬
ble something which, though he had forgot in the way, I
conjectured from some scattered words, to have been also a
panegyric dictated to him. Nothing could more surprise
my friends, the Parisian philosophers, than this incident.”3
The French of Hume could scarcely have been so bad as
the malicious wit of Horace Walpole has represented it;
if it was, it is hard to believe that, however prone may have
been the French just at that moment to admire, he should
have been able to get on in the saloons of Paris at all. Even
French civility could hardly have kept its countenance.
That it did not refrain from sarcasm we have some proofs,
while Hume’s English acquaintance exercised it abun¬
dantly. “ The French,” says Walpole with his customary
cynicism, “ believe in Mr Hume ; the only thing in the
world that they believe implicitly; for I defy them to un¬
derstand any language which he speaks.” And in a letter
first published in the Suffolk Correspondence, he says, with
still more reckless causticity, “ as every thing English is in
fashion, our bad French is accepted into the bargain. Many
of us are received everywhere. Mr Hume is fashion itself,
although his French is almost as unintelligible as his Eng¬
lish.” It is not Walpole only, however, that makes himself
merry with the philosopher’s French. One of Rousseau’s
suspicions of Hume was founded on a few w ords of French
which he uttered in his sleep. Hume remarked that he was
not aware that he dreamt in French; “ He could not,”
quietly said M. Morellet.
Of his quarrel with Rousseau, which made so much noise
v a pn 7 P; 223. To which we may add the following from Grimm’s Correspondance
s’est plus dans W soci^^ nw plalS™t’A ^ ^ 86 le 8°nt arrach6’ et <lue le Sros pMosophe Ecossais
fois aveTsel moWn narle Z ^ "T ? Tu’ ^ Y i ’ U 6St naturellement serein, il entend tinement, il dit quelque-
loisa ec sei, quoiqu il parle peu; mais il est lourd, il n’a m chaleur, m grace, ni agrgment dans 1’esprit ni rien aui snit nronre a
S a21« The celebralpri iT cJai;mantes Petites machines qu’on appelle jolies femmes. 0 que nous sommes un dr die de peuple V’—Ibid.
sociallmusements for which aT6’ ^ ^ known/nd deemed for his writings, has not equal talents for the
They1 had'destined him to art le FT7 ™Cn ^ dve<;lded hlm to,be fit- He made his debd‘ at the house of Madame de T .
h n, finding Ihem inexorable hePart f a saltan seated bet^efn two slaves, employing all his eloquence to make them fall in love with
Paris he looks at them aSentivelv b ^ T'6 f l611, ob?tlnacy 5 he is Placed on a sofa between the two prettiest women in
< Eh bien' mes demoTenes Fh wepS- StrlklnS hl3 hands on bls stomach and knaeS, and finds nothing else to say to them than
a men. mes demoisel es . . Eh bien ! vous voila done ! . . . Eh bien ! vous voila . . . vous voila ici This lasted for a ouarter
: .">» i-paWly. • . . Sine, then he h.. W to X p«
rathe^forpMlosophidis'rdTvTfo^hplF11^ fattered- \D ^ tke part he here is most a'n using. Unfortunately for him, or
atner lor pmiosoptuc dignity (for he seems to accommodate himself very well to this mode of life), there was no rulinn- mania in this
he^ YurtrtowaTdrhir ^lUhl p^ttCirCUm8tanCeS ^ Up°n aS a neW'f-nd and the enThusiastf oTour young
eads turned towards him. All the pretty women are mad about him ; he is at all the fine suppers, and there is no nood fdte without
p 284) ‘ Well mtht awrifeFin the Iff' ^ GeneVaSe are t0 me” i^ires et CorZpondance de Madame d’ZpInay, vol. iii.,
a 1-fours and hi™ mistrer; dinF on hh back^hT ^ ^ exhibition of the old of Aristotle in love-down upon
portrait ’of 110^ ^ M^m^ °f ^ ^ ^
5
HUME.
Hume, at the time of its occurrence both in England and France,
David. Hume, in the little sketch of his life, which comes up to
within a short period of his death, says not one syllable.
It certainly was not from thinking it of no importance, for
it gave him a world of vexation ; indeed he confessed it was
one of the most painful, as well as the most extraordinary
that had ever happened to him. It was perhaps partly
from unpleasant remembrances, that he passed it by ; but
also probably from a more creditable motive. Angry,
and justly angry as he had felt at Rousseau’s ingrati¬
tude and absurdity—unphilosophically virulent as his lan¬
guage1 had sometimes been, he doubtless felt inclined as
time rolled on, to acquiesce in the view since generally
taken, namely, that the French philosopher’s “egotism”
and “ sentimentality” were not seldom undistinguishable
from madness; and whether they had produced it or resulted
from it might be a fair question. Of the whole quarrel,
a most copious and interesting account will be found in
Burton’s Life of Hume ; and it is no more than just to say
that Hume comes out of it in a manner highly creditable
not only to his honour but to his benevolence. His friends
in France had forewarned him what a monster of intractable
caprice and infinite egotism he was patronizing ;—all which
he found out when it was too late. Surely the scene which
he himself paints with so much vividness, in which Rous¬
seau, after fantastically misinterpreting an act of kindness
into the most villainous malignity, suddenly relents, pops
down into the surprised philosopher’s lap, and sobs and blub¬
bers out his momentary repentance amidst tears and kisses,
—repentance soon to be followed by a relapse into as capri¬
cious resentment,—presents a picture of Rousseau, of which
it is hard to say whether it be more pitiable or ludicrous;
while we may easily conceive that to one of so “ unsenti¬
mental” a nature as Hume, his involuntary ro/e in so ridi¬
culously “ tender a scene” must have been profoundly mor¬
tifying.
“ I endeavoured,” says Hume, “ to pacify you, and to
divert the discourse, but to no purpose. You sat sullen,
and was either silent, or made me very peevish answers. At
last you rose up and took a turn or two about the room,
when all of a sudden, and to my great surprise, you clapped
yourself on my knee, threw your arms about my neck, kissed
me with seeming ardour, and bedewed my face with tears.
 I was very much affected, I own ; and I
believe a very tender scene passed between us.” The de¬
scription of Rousseau is, as may be expected, still richer.2
After about two more years (1767-1769) of political ser¬
vice as under-secretary, a post to which he was preferred by
General Conway, Hume finally retired to Edinburgh, and
there anticipated a calm philosophic evening of life in the
midst of his favourite society. To use his own words he
was “ very opulent,” having a revenue of L.1000 a-year.
His society was much courted by men of the highest lite¬
rary reputation, and of the widest diversity of opinions, both
political and religious. Freed from literary and all other
cares, he entertained, “ though somewhat stricken in years,
the prospect of enjoying long his ease, and seeing the in¬
crease of his reputation.”
These hopes were fallacious. In 1775 appeared the first
symptoms of that long decay which terminated in his death,
August 1776.
It is but justice to say that all concurrent testimony
proves him to have borne this slow and harassing, though,
it seems, by no means painful illness, not only with exem¬
plary fortitude and patience, but with much sweetness of
temper, and to have contemplated the great change with
undiminished serenity. Convinced that his disease was in¬
curable long before his friends would believe it, he refused Hume,
to listen to false predictions of returning health. When Dr David-
Dundas intimated that he should tell his friend Colonel
Elphinstone that he “ was much better, and in a fair way
of recovery,” Hume replied, “ Doctor, as I believe you
would not choose to tell anything but the truth, you had
better tell him that I am dying as fast as my worst enemies,
if I have any, could wish, and as easily as my best friends
could desire.”
Sometimes, it is true, he regarded the approach of the
last moment with a hilarity strangely unbecoming his situ¬
ation, whether as a philosopher or a man ; and his ill-timed
pleasantry about Charon’s boat might well have been
spared. John Foster, in his review of Ritchie’s Xj/e of the
philosopher, has observed, that even on the hypothesis
that death is an extinction of our being, much more on
that of Hume’s scepticism, which left it uncertain whether
death might not reveal the truth of what he had been
doubting all his life long, anything bordering on levity in
such an hour is utterly out of place. It is as though a
man should laugh and caper in the cave of Trophonius.
But, in other respects, it cannot be denied that Hume’s
last hours exhibit a serenity which, though often exempli¬
fied by religion, has rarely been exhibited by philosophy,
and still more rarely by a sceptical philosophy.
Foolish inferences have been founded on what cannot
without gross disingenuousness be denied—the philosophic
fortitude and tranquillityof Hume’s death,—and equally fool¬
ish attempts made to prove all that fortitude and tranquillity
affectation. Experience ought to convince us that nothing
can be inferred as to the adaptation of this or that system
of philosophy or religion to produce calmness in a dying
hour, from the phenomena of any individual death-bed.
The best men have often encountered the great enemy
with dismay, and the worst with tranquillity. We can as
little infer from their conduct what death is to disclose, as
we could infer what is at the bottom of a deep abyss, if we
saw that, of a thousand men who were compelled to leap
into it, some madly laughed, and some pusillanimously
wept on the brink, before making the inevitable plunge.
It should be sufficient to vindicate the superiority of at least
a Christian’s faith to every form of scepticism, that if he
has really lived in accordance with his hopes and convic¬
tions, the natural tendency of his sentiments and conduct
is to produce tranquillity at the last hour, whether, from
physical causes, he attains that tranquillity or not; and that
his “ immortal hopes”—even if they were to prove delu¬
sions—are as naturally connected with a peaceful close of
the great strife as any other cause with its effect. Nothing
can be more true than the pointed declaration of Lord
Byron : “ Indisputably the firm believers in the Gospel have
a great advantage over all others, for this simple reason,
that, if true, they will have their reward hereafter; and, if
there be no hereafter, they can be but with the infidel in
his eternal sleep, having had the assistance of an exalted
hope, through life, without subsequent disappointment,
since (at the worst for them) £ out of nothing nothing can
arise, not even sorrow.’ ”
On the other hand, even the least candid of sceptics will
acknowledge that there is nothing in scepticism itself—
least of all in such radical, devastating scepticism as that
of Hume—naturally calculated to soothe a dying hour.
Though a sceptic may meet it with tranquillity, from frigi¬
dity of temperament or hardihood of character, or fixed
aversion to look at the future, or from a too complacent
estimate of his own worth,3 or a deficient moral sensibility,
or from many other reasons, assuredly there is nothing in
1 In the celebrated introduction to the letter to Baron d’Holbach. in which Hume first explodes in wrath, he says, “ Mon cher Baron,
Jean Jacques est un scelerat.” 2 Burton, vol. ii., p. 342.
3 Hume certainly pronounces his own eloge with sutficient confidence : “ My friends,” says he in his autobiography, “ never had
6
H U M E.
Hume, the native tendency of a sceptic’s sentiments to render a
David, death-bed more tolerable.
And that such is the natural impotence of sceptical philo¬
sophy for all such purposes, would seem to be indicated by the
frequent appeal of sceptics to this “ instantia solitaria” of
Hume’s death-bed. The rarity of the phenomenon neutralizes
it as an argument; if, like the calm or triumphant deaths of
consistently religious men, such a phenomenon were too com¬
mon to be specially noted at all, it would be something to the
purpose.
For Hume’s scepticism, charity, we think, may blamelessly
make ampler excuse than the generality of readers have
been disposed to make. One may suspect, considering its
remarkably early, uniform, and inveterate character, that it
had to do profoundly with the very structure of his intellect,
and was ab origine far more involuntary than is generally
the case. It may, in our opinion, be even surmised that it
was connected with that singular morbid condition from
which he suffered so much at so early an age. The very
curious document in which he discloses so freely the symp¬
toms which oppressed him has been already referred to,
and the brief citations we proposed to give will be
found below; but the whole letter, first published in Bur¬
ton s Life, is well worthy of perusal in extenso. It reveals a
condition of mind, considering the writer’s extreme youth,
at least as unhealthy as that of the body. At an age when
other youths are for the most part only too credulous he was
entertaining universal doubt; and when others are full of
nothing but poetry and love, he was presumptuously ex¬
ploring the deepest problems that can engage the human
intellect, and declaring that nothing certain was yet estab¬
lished in philosophy or morals ! At the very time that he
was labouring under the cloud of hypochondriacal depres¬
sion, referred to in the letter from which we give extracts
below, he was intensely excogitating his philosophy. His
whole state was unnatural.1
At the early age of twenty-two or twenty-three, his phi¬
losophical opinions were already nearly complete—that
is, when he had hardly advanced beyond boyhood. His
sceptical tendencies,—thus deeply radicated, and indulged at
an age so portentously early,—everything in his nature tended
to confii m, and nothing in his experience and subsequent his¬
tory tended to correct. He was of a naturally frigid tem¬
perament, entirely without enthusiasm,—with little sym¬
pathy for the lofty or heroic in sentiment or character. Nor,
in his after life, was there anything to develope any latent
germs of such qualities; he never passed through those
agitating scenes of absorbing love, or joy, or sorrow, or hope,
or fear, which form the discipline of life, and so often pro¬
foundly modify, and even revolutionize, the human charac¬
ter ; which often develope qualities not suspected to exist,
or shiver into atoms the sentiments and opinions formed in
youthful inexperience. With only one dominant passion, as
he himself admits,—that ambition of literary distinction,which
tended rather to inflame than correct his early love of daz¬
zling paradox,—he passed life in respectable epicurean tran¬
quillity. A most commendable frugality made him content
in youth with very little; he saw, as years rolled on,
increasing prosperity in every desirable form,—an income
which his moderation counted wealth, a steadily increasino-
reputation, “troops of friends,” flatteries, uninterrupted
health, and, in a word, everything that could lay to sleep
(as prosperity very generally does) the susceptibilities and
emotions of man’s spiritual nature. His bark sailed on a
smooth sea, and encountered none of those shocks or tem¬
pests which, more than most things, make the voyager of
life consider whether his ship is constructed and equipped
as well for the storm as for the calm. It may be added,
that so habitually deficient is Hume in the sentiment of
veneration,—so unnatural the apathy with which he regards
religious phenomena,—so easy, apparently, the entire ex¬
trusion of the subject from his thoughts,—so frightfully
contented does he seem with his scepticism,—that, though
this state of mind was encouraged, no doubt, by the too con¬
genial atmosphere of his age, and the French society he
loved, it is difficult not to infer some abnormality in the very
original structure of his moral nature ; and it is the kindest
apology that can be made for him.
On any other hypothesis, he cannot be too severely cen¬
sured for the indolent facility with which he seems to have ac-
Hume,
David.
occasion to vindicate any one circumstance of my character and conduct.” If by this he meant to claim exemption only from flagrant
vice there are few decent characters in life who could not say as much; but, with a deeper self-knowledge and profounder moral sen¬
sibility, most men would own that they were conscious of too many failings which men knew not, and which God only knew, to permit
them to plume themselves on any such grounds. But of the ordinary infirmities of man, and especially of the subtle spiritual
vices of pride, vain glory, presumption, and prejudice, the biography and character of Hume present as little lack as those of
other men.
1 “ Bvery one who is acquainted either with the philosophers or critics knows thatthere is nothing yet established in either of these two
sciences, and that they contain little more than endless disputes, even in the most fundamental articles. Upon examination of these I
found a certain boldness of temper growing in me, which was not inclined to submit to any authority in these subjects, but led me to
seek out some new medium by which truth might be established. After much study and reflection on this, at last, when I was about
eighteen years of age, there seemed to be opened up to me a new scene of thought, which transported me beyond measure, and made
me, with an ardour natural to young men, throw up every other pleasure or business to apply entirely to it. . . . I was infinitely
happy in this course of life for some months ; till at last, about the beginning of September 1729, all my ardour seemed in a moment
to be extinguished, and I could no longer raise my mind to that pitch which formerly gave me such excessive pleasure In
this condition I remained for nine months very uneasy to myself, as you may well imagine, but without growing any worse, which was
a miracle. .... Though I was sorry to find myself engaged with so tedious a distemper, yet the knowledge of it set me very
much at ease, by satisfying me that my former coldness proceeded not from any defect of temper or genius, but from a disease to which
any one may be subject I believe it is a certain fact, that most of the philosophers who have gone before us have been
overthrown by the greatness of their genius, and that little more is required to make a man succeed in this study, than to throw off all
prejudices either for his own opinions or for those of others. At least this is all I have to depend on for the truth of my reasonings
which I have multiplied to such a degree, that within these three years I find I have scribbled many a quire of paper in which there is
nothing contained but my own inventions. This, with the reading most of the celebrated books in Latin, French, and English, and
acquiring the Italian, you may think a sufficient business for one in perfect health, and so it would, had it been done to any purpose •
but my disease was a cruel encumbrance on me. I found that I was not able to follow out any train of thought by one continued stretch
oi view, but by repeated interruptions, and by refreshing my eye from time to time upon other objects. . . . • I have noticed in
the writings of the French mystics, and in those of our fanatics here, that when they give a history of the situation of their souls they
mention a coldness and desertion of the spirit which frequently returns; and some of them at the beginning have been tormented with ^
it many years As this kind of devotion depends entirely on the force of passion, and consequently of the animal spirits, I have often
tnought that their case and mine were pretty parallel, and that their rapturous admirations might discompose the fabric of the nerves
and brain, as much as profound reflections, and that warmth or enthusiasm which is inseparable from them.
However this may be, I have not come out of the cloud so well as they commonly tell us they have done, or rather begin to despair
of ever recovering.  The questions I would humbly propose to you are : Whether, among all those scholars you have
been acquainted with, you have ever known any affected in this manner? Whether I can ever hope for a recovery ? Whether I must
long wait for it ? Whether my recovery will ever be perfect, and my spirits regain their former spring and vigour, so as to endure the
fatigue of deep and abstruse thinking ?” (Burton, vol i., p. 31-38.)
€
H U M E.
Hume, quiesced, in after life, in his first early conclusions—the very
David, immaturity of which might well have awakened suspicion.
There is no proof that, when he became a man in intellect,
he ever seriously revolved them again. He must also be
blamed for the resolute way in which he evaded or silenced
every attempt to turn his mind to the reconsideration of
his opinions. A remarkable instance of this disposition to
get rid of expostulation occurs in one of his letters to Blair,
cited by Mr Burton :—“ Whenever,” says Hume, “ I have
had the pleasure to be in your company, if the discourse
turned on any common subject of literature or reasoning, I
always parted from you both entertained and instructed.
But, when the conversation was diverted by you from this
channel towards the subject of your profession—though I
doubt not but your intentions were friendly towards me—I
own I never received the same satisfaction : I was apt to be
tired, and you to be angry. I would therefore wish, for the
future, whenever my good fortune throws me in your way,
that these topics should be forborne between us. I have
long since done with all inquiries on such subjects, and am
become incapable of receiving instruction?
Blair’s letter, by the way, shows that Hume’s Scottish
clerical admirers did not hesitate to embrace opportunities
of faithful expostulation as far as Hume’s repellent humour
permitted, and proves how unjust and uncharitable the sus¬
picions which were sometimes founded on the intimacy be¬
tween him and them. A man’s Christianity would be
equivocally evinced by renouncing all intercourse with such
as renounce it; such conduct would suggest to those thus re¬
pelled a strange idea of the charity which professed to seek
their spiritual welfare ! It were rather to be desired that every
Hume or Gibbon might have for his bosom friend a Bishop
Butler or a Robert Hall.
Of the personal and social elements of Hume’s character
it is unnecessary to say anything, as the subject has been
so admirably touched by Sir James Mackintosh, in his pre¬
liminary Dissertation. That he was very amiable, and well
merited the admiration of his friends, cannot be doubted;
though the eulogy of Adam Smith, uttered in the first
freshness of grief at his loss is, as Sir James observes,
“ an affectionate exaggeration.” “ Such a praise,” he
justly says, “can never be earned without passing through
either of the extremes of fortune, without standing the
test of temptations, dangers, and sacrifices. It may be
said, with truth, the private character of Mr Hume exhi¬
bited all the virtues which a man of reputable station, under
a mild government, in the quiet times of a civilized country,
has often the opportunity to practise.”
In certain respects,. Hume presented rather a curious
contrast. He was by no means the impassive person his
general coldness of temperament would lead us to conclude,
and by no means the unprejudiced person which a sceptical
philosophy may be presumed to have a tendency to form,
and which he would fain be thought. Where his solitary
7
passion—literary ambition—was in question, his vanity is as Hume,
impatient, exacting, and querulous as that of any mortal; I)avld-
in spite of constantly brightening prospects and widening v'—nt**'
fame, he is perpetually harping about imaginary neglect
and imaginary persecution. Similarly as to prejudice; his
bitterness against the English1 will just match, and no
more than match, with Johnson’s bitterness against the
Scotch. In these two men, the two nations may justly con¬
sider themselves quits; and fortunately are never likely
to have any more such absurd accounts to settle between
them. It is the happiness of our age that Englishmen would
as little tolerate the prejudices of Johnson as Scotchmen
would thoseof Hume.—But it is in his historical writings that
Hume’s intense capacity of prejudice appears most signally.
He who was the most sceptical of philosophers became, in
fact, the most bigoted of historians ; with this aggravation
of his bigotry, however,—that all the acts and opinions of
which, in his history, he was so keen an apologist, were in
direct defiance of the general strain of his political senti¬
ments and speculations, as disclosed in his Political Essays.
As to his character as a philosopher, his genius will pro¬
bably be more appreciated, and its achievements less va¬
lued, by successive generations of readers. His capacity
cannot be well exaggerated. That such a work as the
Treatise of Human Nature, or the Essays, should have pro¬
ceeded from so young a man, gives an impression of subtlety,
acuteness, and ingenuity, seldom, if ever, surpassed. But
these productions are chiefly remarkable as proofs of his
genius, and for the searching investigations to which they
led on the part of others ; not for their intrinsic value. Sys¬
tem, as both Stewart and Mackintosh observe, he had none ;
he is constantly shifting his ground, and contradictions with¬
out number may be detected in his writings. The fact is,
that provided he coidd find any arguments to support the
paradox of scepticism which happened to be the theme of
one essay, he did not care how it might be opposed to some
other paradox of scepticism which was defended in another
essay. Thus, while speculatively arguing that neither “ in¬
tuition,” “demonstration,” “experience,” nor any other con¬
ceivable reason, really authorizes us to conclude that any one
sequence will follow any one antecedent rather than another,
or that the future will resemble the past, he, in his Essay on
Miracles, declares all “ miracles” utterly incredible,2 because
they would contradict the uniformity of nature as ascertained
by experience f3 ambitious to outdo Berkeleybyannihilating
not only matter but mind, and reducing every thing in the
universe to “ impressions and ideas,” he abundantly contra¬
dicts himself (but here, to be sure, he could not help it) by
saying in the same breath, that of the existence of these
“impressions and ideas” even scepticism cannot doubt, since
we—that is, the doubted conscious unity, Mind—cannot but
be conscious of them : similarly, while affirming, consis¬
tently enough in words all his lite long, his belief in an in¬
telligent First Cause (and it is the only determinate religious
1 Thus he speaks of the English in 1764, “ That nation are relapsing fast into the deepest stupidity and ignorance. The taste for
literature is neither decayed nor depraved here as with the barbarians on the banks of the Thames. . . . Can you seriously talk
of my continuing an Englishman ? Am I, or are you, an Englishman? Do they not treat with derision our pretensions to that name,
and with hatred our just pretensions to surpass and govern them ? . . (1775) I have a reluctance to think of settling among the
factious barbarians of London, who will hate me because I am a Scotsman, and am not a Whig, and despise me because 1 am a man of
letters. . . (1776) It is lamentable to think how much that nation has declined in literature in our time.”
2 This inconsistency with his speculative principles is the least defect in that acute but sophistical performance. But its fallacies
have been too often pointed out to need being mentioned here.
3 “ For all inferences from experience suppose, as their foundation, that the future will resemble the past, and that similar powers
will be conjoined with similar sensible qualities. If there be any suspicion that the course of nature may change, and that the past
may be no rule for the future, all experience becomes useless, and can give rise to no inference or conclusion. It is impossible, there¬
fore, that any arguments from experience can prove this resemblance of the past to the future ; since all these arguments are founded
on the supposition of that resemblance. Let the course of things be allowed hitherto ever so regular, that alone, without some new
argument or inference, proves not that for the future it will continue so. In vain do you pretend to have learned the nature of bodies
from your past experience” {Essays, vol. ii., Sceptical Boults'). “ A wise man, therefore, proportions his belief to the evidence. In such
conclusions as are founded on an infallible experience, he expects the event with the last degree of assurance, and regards his past ex¬
perience as a full proof of the future existence of that event” (Essays, vol. ii., Miracles).
8 HU
Hume, tenet which he seems to have maintained), nearly all his
David, speculative reasonings—especially his theory of causation
—tend to show that of that primal truth there cannot be
satisfactory proof, and he has even furnished atheism with
a novel paradox in its support, founded on the world’s be¬
ing a “ singular effectindignantly repelling, as a per¬
version of his meaning, the notion that he “ had ever as¬
serted so absurd a proposition as that any thing might arise
without a cause,” he has yet so expressed himself, that (as has
been well said by one of his most acute critics) the entire
metaphysical world has shared in the mistake! Magnani¬
mously declaring at one time that the philosopher must
abide by truth, even though it were proved pernicious to
mankind,—quite in the \ofty fiatjustitia mat ccelum style,—
he, at another, advises (and it is a deep blot on his character)
a sceptical friend to accept church preferment, and preach
what he did not believe ; affirming that “ to pique oneself on
sincerity in such matters is to put too great a respect on the
vulgar and their superstitions !” Well may one of his most
charitable critics proclaim himself “ ashamed to print” the
philosopher’s words ! Again, while in his Essay on Poly¬
gamy and Divorce he sees so clearly and illustrates so well
the infinite importance of preserving the domestic relations
pure, he speaks, in his Inquiry into the Principles of Morals,
in an apologetic tone of vices which, if freely indulged, would
soon dissolve society—an inconsistency which has called
forth the just animadversion of Sir James Mackintosh.
In a word, there is no end to the incoherencies of Hume’s
statements, and which are only concealed so long as one
essay is not collated with another. He wrote, as it were,
with the old Roman stylus—a sharp pen at one end, and an
instrument of erasure at the other.
His fame as a philosopher, therefore, will rest rather on
what he was capable of than on what he achieved ; and it
may be said, by a somewhat similar paradox, that his fame
as an historian will rest much more on his manner than
on his matter. His work is everywhere disfigured with
gross defects, inaccuracies, and prejudices, as Hallam, Bro-
die, and many others, have abundantly shown ; but the
charm of his style embalms and perfumes his errors, and
men will still be willing to read him—though they disbelieve.
Not, indeed, that even his style as an historian is wholly
free from defects. It is cold—that might be expected from
the frigid temperament of the man. It is wanting in imagi¬
nativeness, and consequently in animation, and the perfection
of graphic skill. This fault again is often aggravated by
superficial knowledge of his materials ; for a full mastery of
details is the only thing which can render precise state¬
ment safe. Thus Hume often omits names and dates
where they ought to be inserted, and conceals the neces¬
sity of definite statement in convenient vagueness. His
assertions are often so general and so adroitly balanced and
qualified, that they seem to betray a consciousness that he
is standing on delicate ground, and that he had better not
commit himself to too much exactness, lest some critic of
greater knowledge of details should convict him of inaccu¬
racy. These artifices he employs no doubt with great dex¬
terity, but one would greatly have preferred that there
should have been no occasion for them. Still, in spite of
all these deductions, the narrative is so lucid, the grouping
M E.
so admirable, the reflections so unforced and natural, and Hume,
the style flows on in such a stream of tranquil beauty— Joseph,
combining so much both of flexile grace and natural dignity,
that his work will ever stand high in the estimate of every
cultivated taste. It is an instance of the importance of
style, as Sir J. Mackintosh remarked of Butler. That pro¬
found thinker has been often undervalued for want of a style
worthy of his thoughts: the work of Hume, in spite of its
defects, has been raised into one of the most familiar manuals
of history, because it has one. So senseless is that cry which
one sometimes hears—that style is of little consequence, if
facts be but stated ! When was human nature ever got to
disregard the medium and the manner in which truth was
presented ? So little is this to be expected, that though
Hume’s inaccuracies have been exposed a thousand times,
he still maintains, in virtue of his style alone, the place of
a classic of English history.
The same qualities of style are, if possible, more manifest
in Hume’s Philosophical Essays. Amidst that absence of
all generous enthusiasm which we should expect in so com¬
plete a Pyrrhonist, and a prodigal use of subtle and inge¬
nious sophistry that would seem to have had no other
object than to confound and perplex the intellect of the
reader, they abound in passages which, considered simply
as composition, are exquisite specimens of refined simplicity
—of that severe Attic grace which it is evident he had care¬
fully studied and cultivated, as well as of a very quiet but
most elegant pleasantry. And amongst such passages few
are more striking than those in which the sceptic acknow¬
ledges the vanity of scepticism.1
The fullest and most authentic account of Hume’s Life
and Writings will be found in Burton’s recent Life, 2 vols.
8vo, Edin. 1846; to which we willingly confess our obli¬
gations. (h. k.)
Hume, Joseph, an eminent political reformer of the nine¬
teenth century, was born in 1777, of humble parents in Mon¬
trose. After such an education as the grammar school of his
native place then afforded, he was apprenticed to a surgeon,
and in 1793 began a course of medical study at the Univer¬
sity of Edinburgh. After graduation he sailed for India,
where he was attached as surgeon to a regiment; and his
knowledge of the native tongues (which he took care to mas¬
ter immediately on landing), and his capacity for business,
threw open to him the lucrative offices of interpreter and
commissary-general. While still in the prime of life he was
enabled to return home with a well-earned fortune. His first
care on arriving in England was to study thoroughly the
country and its resources, and in the various journeys which he
made to see with his own eyes the actual state of the people
and the practical operation of the laws, he amassed that
stock of useful knowledge which was the real secret of his
subsequent success in parliament. In 1812 he took his seat
for the borough of Weymouth and Melcomb Regis, but was
soon after obliged to resign it, when it was discovered by
his Tory patron that he had had the audacity to talk of re¬
form. Six years elapsed before he again entered the House,
and during that interval he had made the acquaintance and
imbibed the doctrines of James Mill and the philosophical
reformers of the school of Bentham. In 1819, soon after
his marriage, he re-entered parliament, and began unaided
Nothing can be happier than the pleasantry in some of Hume’s familiar letters, and it makes us regret that we have not more of
them. "We would willingly exchange for them portions either of his Essays or his History, bulk for bulk. Light and trivial in com¬
parison no doubt they would be, but one might find consolation in thinking that elegant triviality was at least as good as grave error or
pernicious paradox. How graceful is the following badinage',—I live still, and must for a twelvemonth, in my old house in St James’s
Court, which is very cheerful, and even elegant, but too small to display my great talent for cookery—the science to which I intend
to addict the remaining years of my life ! I have just now lying on the table before me a receipt for making sowpe d la reine, copied
with my own hand. Tor beef and cabbage (a charming dish), and old mutton, and old claret, nobody excels me. I make also sheep’s-
head broth, in a manner that Mr Keith speaks of it for eight days after ; and the Due de Nivernois would bind himself apprentice to
my lass to learn it! I have already sent a challenge to David Moncrief; you wdll see that in a twelvemonth he will take to the writing
of history (the field I have deserted), for, as to giving of dinners, he can now have no further pretensions. I should have made a very
bad use of my abode in Paris, if I could not get the better of a mere provincial like him.”
H U N
II U N
9
Humerpoor and alone that career of reform in which he persevered to his
|| death. Free-trade, financial reform, parliamentary reform,
Hungary. and Indian reform, were the elements in which he lived.
At first despised and ridiculed, afterwards dreaded as the
justum et tenacem propositi virum, he ended by gaining the
respect of friends and foes, and the confidence of the whole
nation. It was not by the force of a commanding intellect
or the fascinations of a brilliant oratory that he achieved
this end. The breadth of his action, his singleness of aim,
his perfect independence of all party or personal considera¬
tions, and an almost heroic earnestness and self-denial in
carrying out his views, were the secrets of his influence.
Himself as incorruptible as Aristides, he made it a special
duty to hunt out and expose political corruption under what¬
ever guise it lurked, and the whole army of place-hunters
and jobbers found in him their most indefatigable and in¬
exorable foe. There were many abler, but there was no
more useful member in the House during the greater por¬
tion of his parliamentary career. His death, which took
place Feb. 20, 1855, was regretted by his countrymen as
a national loss.
HUMERPOOIl, a considerable town of Hindustan,
situate on the right bank of the Jumna, at a spot where the
river has a stream running in a channel half a mile in breadth
with a rapidity of three or four miles an hour. The district
of which this town is the chief place, has an area of 2240
square miles, with a population of 452,091, of whom 419,683
are Hindus, and the remainder Mohammedans. The town
is situate 110 miles N.W. of Allahabad, in Lat. 25.58.,
Long. 80. 14.
HUMILIATI, a monastic order founded in 1134 by
several Italian noblemen who had been sent as prisoners to
Germany by Lothar II., and w'ere released on account of
their humility. In 1151 they were embraced under the
rule of St Benedict, and the order was confirmed by Inno¬
cent III. half a century later. They ultimately spread so
widely as to have 98 houses under the jurisdiction of their
order; but they were suppressed by Pius V. in 1576 on
account of their luxury and cruelty. A female order insti¬
tuted by the ladies of the original Humiliati have still some
representatives in Italy.
PIUMPHREY, Laurence, a learned English divine,
was born at Newport-Pagnell, Buckinghamshire, about the
year 1527. He received his school education at Cambridge,
and afterwards became a fellow of Magdalen College, Ox¬
ford, where he took his degree as master of arts in 1552.
In 1555 he retired, with other Protestant refugees, to Zu-
Hundred
II
Hungary.
rich, in Switzerland, where he resided tor some time; but
after the death of Queen Mary he* returned to England,
where he was restored to his fellowship in Magdalen Col¬
lege, from which he had been expelled, and in 1560 ap¬
pointed queen’s professor of divinity at Oxford. In 1570
lie was made dean of Gloucester ; in 1580 he was removed
to the deanery of Winchester; and, if he had not been
disaffected towards the Church of England, in other words,
a moderate and conscientious Nonconformist, he would pro¬
bably have been raised to the episcopal bench. Humphrey
was considered as a great and general scholar, an able lin¬
guist, a profound theologian, and, for his time, an excellent
writer. He died early in 1590, leaving a wife who had
brought him twelve children. His works are, Epistola de
Greeds Uteris, et Homeri lectione et imitatione, Basil, 1558 ;
De Religionis conservatione et reformatione, deque primatu
Regum, Basil, 1559; De Ratione interpretandi auctores,
Basil, 1559 ; Optimates, sive de Nohilitate, ejusque antiqua
origine, Basil, 1560; Joannis Juelli Angli, Episcopi Sa-
risburiensis, Vita et Mors, London, 1573 ; two Latin Ora¬
tions spoken before Queen Elizabeth, one in 1572, and the
other in 1575; Sermons; and some Latin pieces against
the Papists, particularly Campian.
HUNDRED, Hundredum, or Centuria, a part or di¬
vision of a county, and anciently so called from its contain¬
ing a hundred families, though the term was also applied
to much larger county-divisions, as to the wapentakes of the
northern counties. The jurisdiction of the hundred was
vested in a sheriff, and he or his deputy held both a court-
baron and a court-leet; sometimes this jurisdiction was by
special crown grant vested in private persons. When da¬
mage was done within their district, the hundred were re¬
sponsible unless they produced the felon. Sub-divisions of
shires have existed since the time of Alfred, and hundreds
are mentioned in records of still earlier date.
H U N G A R Y.
Geography. The kingdom of Hungary consists of Hungary Proper, Scla-
vonia, Croatia, Hungarian Dalmatia on the sea coast, Transyl¬
vania, and the Military Frontier. It is situated between 46° and
50° N. Lat., and between 15° and 25° E. Long. It is bounded
on the N. by Galicia, on the E. by the Danubian Principalities,
on the S. by Servia, Bosnia, and the Adriatic, and on the W. by
Styria, Lower Austria, Moravia, and Silesia. The north-eastern
frontiers are formed by the Carpathians, which jut out m dif¬
ferent branches towards the banks of the Danube, and inclose
Transylvania in the form of a double crescent. A no less na¬
tural boundary is the Danube, separating Southern Hungary
from the Turkish Provinces. The least marked frontier is the
western, separating Hungary from Lower Austria : it is in
part formed by the small March River.
The exact extent of Hungary and its dependencies has not
yet been precisely ascertained. According to the Austrian
official statistics published by Czornig, the superficial area
amounts to 125,037 English square miles ; more recent Aus¬
trian tables reduce that number, -whereas the Hungarian sta¬
tist, Alexius Fenyes, reckons the superficial area at 130,910
English square miles, of which Transylvania occupies about
one-sixth, or upwards of 20,000 miles. The Hungarian king¬
dom is thus larger than Great Britain and Ireland by about
10,000, and than Prussia by 20,000 square miles.
The physical aspect of Hungary Proper is sharply marked
by the contrast between the northern Carpathians, forming
large plateaus, and the vast level land intersected by the
Danube, Theiss, and Marosh ; while in Transylvania,. where
the Alpine character predominates, the sudden diminution
VOL. XII.
of the mountains allows only of undulating table-land, alter¬
nating with narrow valleys. The greatest part of Croatia, and
part of Sclavonia, likewise consists of mountainous land, formed
by the outliers of the Alps, the level land in the latter lying to
the north. M .
Rising like a rampart between Hungary, and Moravia,M0UntainSi
Silesia, Galicia, and the Bukowina, the Carpathians, after
running round Transylvania, extend to Orsova on the Danube.
They form no connected chain, and are generally divided into
frontier and central mountains. The frontier Carpathians,
which are of less height than the latter, begin at Presburg.
One group of these extends between the rivers Waag and
March, and afterwards enters Moravia at the Strang Pass.
The other group, known by the name of Beskid, runs between
Hungary and Silesia, Galicia, and the Bukowina, and after
traversing Moldavia appears as the frontier mountain of Tran¬
sylvania. The inner or central Carpathians, which occupy much
less ground than the frontier ones, are also divided into dif¬
ferent chains or groups, among which the Tatra group in the
north forms the most imposing mass. The whole granite pla¬
teau of this group is about 5l) miles long and 15 miles broad.
Its highest crests are the Lomnitzer, 8370, the Eisthaler,
8320, °and the Ivrivan, 8230 feet high. The south-western
branch of the Tatra extends to the mineral mountains. These,
like a few other groups, are classified with the midland moun¬
tains, which are considered distinct from the central Carpa¬
thians. The Matza group in the county of Heves, the Buk,
and Vine hills, where the tokay grows, are comprised in the
northern chain. The eastern chain begins from the banks of
B
10
H U N G A B Y.
Rivers.
Hungary, the Bodrog, and extends over the greater part of Transyl-
vania. The western branches of this chain pass into southern
Hungary or the Banat, and then gradually sink into hills.
As in Transylvania the highest chain is the southern er Fagaros
mountain range, rising near Cronstadt, the summit of which
measures 8515 feet high. The low western mountains of Hun¬
gary which come from Croatia and Sclavonia belong to the
Styrian and Julian Alps, and are connected with the Carpa¬
thians by the midland mountains.
The great Hungarian plain, which is the largest in Europe,
begins at the Matra group in the north, and extending over
Southern Hungary, ends at the confluence of the Save and the
Danube at Semlin. It is through this plain, called the Eastern
Plain, presenting the richest soil, alternating with large barren
sandy wastes, and which is hardly 140 feet above the level of
the sea, that the Theiss pursues her meandering course towards
the Danube. This plain is quite treeless and affords nothing to
vary the monotonous scene except the mirage or Fata-Morgana
(in Hungarian deli-bab). The smaller or western plain is sepa¬
rated from the former by the Bakonywood and its branches.
The frontier Carpathians consist mostly of sandstone forma¬
tions, while the central or primitive mountains are of a granitic
character, and contain strata of gneiss or beds of quartz, clay-
slate, grauwacke, basalt, and diorite. The calcareous formations
are particularly rich in iron and copper, whereas the porphy-
ritic and granite rocks contain much gold and silver. The
sandstone and other secondary strata abound in coal beds.
The level land, rich in salt springs, is also impregnated with
nitre and carbonate of soda.
Turning to the hydrographic survey of the country, the
Danube, the largest European river next to the Volga, first
claims notice. Reaching the Hungarian territory at Presburg
where the Carpathians begin to rise on its left bank, the Danube
pursues a south-easterly course, dividing into three branches
which receive the waters of the Layta, Raab, and the Waag,
embracing moreover the two Schiitt islands about Comorn, and
then the St Andrew Island at Waitzen, after which its direc¬
tion becomes more southerly, and after leaving Buda and the
Osepel Island it rolls along the Hungarian plain and the
Banat; its right banks reaching the Turkish territory at
Semlin. There, where its course becomes retarded by the
Servian mountains, it receives the waters of the Save, leav¬
ing the kingdom at Orsova, after forcing its impetuous waves
through the Iron Gate. The breadth of the Danube varies in
different parts, being about Presburg 900 feet, at Foldvar 1800
feet, between the former and Vanek4000 feet, at Petervardein
3500 feet, at Belgrade508 feet, and at the Iron Gate betweenl58
and 80 feet. The depth varies between 20, 40, 60, and 120 feet.
The greatest tributary of the Danube, the Theiss (Tibiscum),
rises from a double source in the county of Marmaros near Ga¬
licia, reaches the level land at Nagy Szoles, and winds its course
through the large plain as far as Titel, where it flows into the
bed of the Danube. The chief tributaries of the Theiss, re¬
markable for richness in fish, are the Hernad, Sajo, Bodrog,
Szamos, Koros, and the Marosh, which is the chief river in
Transylvania. The Drave, which rises in the Tyrol, flows
through Styria into Croatia, and dividing it from Hungary,
falls into the Danube near Essek. The Save, rising in Carinola,
winds its course through Croatia, is fed by the Unna and Kulpa,
forms part of the frontier towards Bosnia and Servia, and falls
into the Danube at Belgrade. The Marosh, which ranks next to
the Theiss, falls into the latter at Szegedin, after having re¬
ceived the Aranyos, famous for its gold washings, and the
Kokel or Kukiilo. The Alt or Aluta rises likewise in the
Transylvanian mountains, entering Wallachia through the
Red-Tower Pass.
All the Hungarian rivers flow into the Black Sea, with the
exception of the Popard, which rises in the Zips from the
Kongsberg, and flows into the Vistula.
Among the lakes the largest is the Flatten see or Balaton,
situated between the counties of Zala and Schumeg. Its length
is about 50 miles and its breadth between 8 and 9 miles ; and
with the surrounding marshes, it occupies above 500 square
miles. Its principal feeder is the Zala, and its only outlet is
the marsh Sio. The Neusiedler-see in Hungarian Ferto, be¬
tween the counties of Wieselburg and Oedenburg, fed by the
Vulka, is 70 miles long and 10 miles broad ; its shallow waters
are impregnated with salt, and exhibit an ebb and flow, as yet
unexplained. The Palver-see is, properly speaking, a marsh
Lakes
resembling many which are formed by the Theiss and Lower Hungary.
Danube. TheSar-ret in Bihar, the Ecseder in Szathmar, the v ^ i
Feketels in the Banat, are the largest marshes, The marshes
covered with aquatic plants, such as Ecseder, are generally
distinguished by the name of laip.
The only canal of importance is that in the county of Bacs,
called the Francis Canal, cut from Monoster to Foldvar, and
uniting the Danube with the Theiss. It is about sixty miles
long, and shortens the passage by about 200 miles. The Bega
Canal, near Temesvar, is rather a river than a canal.
The Adriatic touches only the south-western extremity of
the Hungarian kingdom, the sea-coast being variously called
Hungarian Dalmatia or Illyria, the principal ports being
Fiume, a flourishing town inhabited chiefly by Italians, Buc-
cari, Porte-re-Zengg, St George, Tablonz, and Carlopago.
The whole coast is mountainous, and in some parts steep, and
exposed to violent south winds.
As regards natural curiosities the numerous ossiferous Caverns,
caverns, amid the northern limestone mountains, deserve par¬
ticular mention. The Agtelek Cave in Gomor, 16 feet high
and about 50 feet broad, extending in a straight line to about
900 feet, contains fossil bones of the elephant, rhinoceros,
and other large animals. Apertures in its sides open into
recesses communicating with each other, and these as well
as the main body of the cave contain springs. Of a simi¬
lar description is the cave of Domeny-falva in Liptau, con¬
taining glacial masses, and not far distant from it is the
Okno and Vadi. The Czerva or Black Cave exhibits colum¬
nar concretions, and the same formations are found in the deep
F unatta Cave in Bihar, which is divided into five separate fis¬
sures or chambers filled with ossiferous fossils. In the Banat
is the Veterani Cavern near the Danube, containing a cistern
and a powder magazine, once forming an important military
post. The most remarkable, however, is perhaps the Almas
Cavern in the Szekler district of Transylvania. This spacious
cavern presents, besides a labyrinth of precipices and chasms,
marshes with floating beds or aquatic plants, and a rushing
brook. No less curious is a small turbid stream near the
Tatra group, looked upon by the people as a blood-sucker.
As may be inferred from its geographical position, Hungary
contains the usual European quadrupeds, and its soil is pro¬
ductive of great varieties of vegetable life. It may be added
that the Carpathians harbour the wolf, the bear, and cha¬
mois ; and that if Hungary is not the land where the citron
grows, it is superior to Italy in vines, and to all Europe in its
exquisite melons. Fiired, near the Balatan Lake, and Bartfeld, ■
on the Galician frontier, watering-places much frequented in
the summer season, have chalybeate springs, while Teplitz in
Trenchin, and Mehadia in the Banat, have sulphurous springs.
Parad in Borsad, and Borszek in Transylvania, have acidulous
wells. No less famed are the hot springs of Buda.
The climate of Hungary varies greatly. In the counties of Climate.
Arva, Liptau, Zips, and Marmaros, winter continues for fully
six months, whereas in Southern Hungary the trees blossom
as early as March, and in June the heat becomes burdensome,
reaching its culminating point in July. From the partial
meteorological observations that have been made, it appears
that the highest temperature in Buda is 30O-6 R., and in Klau-
senburg (in Transylvania) 320,6; and the mean is, in Buda
150,19, and in Klausenburg 53°. This, however, is far from
giving an idea of the climate in the different parts of the coun¬
try, and especially in the level land in the south, or the larger
plain, where at mid-day the heat is at times almost African ;
and yet in those very parts, as a geographer observes, even
quicksilver was frozen in the unusually severe winter of 1816.
The heat of the smaller or western plain is much tempered by
the Bakonywood. The first half of January marks the mini¬
mum, and the second half of July the maximum of the tem¬
perature ; whilst April and the first part of October coincide
with the mean temperature. Blasts and the falling of hail hap¬
pen most frequently among the Carpathians.
The population of Hungary and its dependencies contains a Races,
great variety of races, some of which form but insignificant
numbers ; the four principal races are the Magyars, the con¬
querors and founders of the kingdom, the Sclavonians, the
Wallachians, and the Germans. The ancient home of the
Magyars or Ugri is Central Asia or ancient Scythia. Pressed
by other tribes, they moved gradually round the Caspian Sea
and the Euxine, till, at the end of the ninth century, they
HUNGARY.
11
reached the Carpathians. Their leader Almus and his son
Arpad, as the chroniclers say, in advancing to these mountains,
burned to find out the fertile land of Attila, the king of the
Huns, upon whom they looked as their ancestor. Hence, per¬
haps, may be explained the origin of the word Hungary and
Hungarians, though some wish to derive that name from the
term Ugari applied to the Magyars by the Sclaves. The Mag¬
yar population comprises several tribes distinguished as the
Szekler, the Cumans, and the Jasiges. The Szekler, or Siculi,
were the followers of Attila. After the dismemberment of the
Hunnish empire, in the 6th century, they retreated to the
eastern mountains of Transylvania, where they continued
to live till the arrival of their kindred. The Cumans and
Jasiges, on the other hand, repeatedly entered Hungary during
the 12th and 13th centuries in the character of invaders, till at
length they settled as friends. The entire Magyar population
speaks the same language with some ditferences in pronunciation,
and some provincialisms, as is the case in England, France,
and almost every country. The Sclavonic population consists
of several branches, speaking different dialects, the chief of
which are the Slovaks, Ruthens or Russniaks, Rascians or
Serbs (in German Raitzen), and Croats, the insignificant tribe
of the Bulgarians, the Wends, Schokutz, and Montenegrins.
The Slovaks and Russniaks belong to the northern Sclavonic
stock, wThich comprises the Poles and the Czeches of Bohemia,
while the Rascians and Croats belong to the southern Sclavonic
family, the greater portion of which inhabits Turkey. All these
Sclavonic races, with the exception of the Rascians, inhabited
Hungary before the arrival of the Magyars. The Rascians
came from Turkey about the year 1690, at the time of the vic¬
tories of Eugene over the Ottomans The German settlers
called Saxons came to Hungary first, in the year 1143, having
been invited by King Geysa II., by whom they were endowed
with privileges and lands in Transylvania, and in more recent
times, during the reign of Maria Theresa and Joseph I., though
there were, no doubt, small numbers of them in Hungary pre¬
vious to the Magyar conquest. The Wallachians or Roumins,
who greatly resemble the Italians in physiognomy and lan¬
guage, were formerly known by the name of Petshengers, the
inhabitants of Dacia, of which Transylvania formed a part.
In the times of the Roman emperor Trajan, they became inter¬
mixed with the Roman colonists located beside the Danube,
and hence their present language. The whole population of
Hungary may thus be divided into four distinct races; the
Eastern, comprising,—besides the Magyars, Jews, Armenians,
and that most singular people, the Gypsies,—the Sclavonian,
the Wallachian, and the Teutonic race.
At the end of the great war in the beginning of the present
century, the population of Hungary, Transylvania included,
was 12,000,000, and, according to the last census, before the late
war of 1848, it amounted to about 14,500,000. Of this num¬
ber, 2,200,000, belong to Transylvania, and 490,267 to Croatia;
the population of the military frontier being estimated at more
than 1,000,000. With regard to the different races, the pro¬
portion is as follows :—
Magyars 5,418,773
Slovaks 1,722,003
Ilascians 1,293,995
Croats  943,995
Rusniaks  459,870
Wallachians 2,686,492
Germans 1,273,677
Jews  
Wends 
Bulgarians.
French 
MINOR NATIONALITIES.
244,000
40,000
12,000
6,000
Greeks 
Armenians 
Montenegrins.
Clementines...
5,000
3,000
2,000
1,600
The number of the Gypsies is variously estimated at 40,000
and 60,000. The different confessions are represented in the
following approximate numbers:—
Roman Catholics 6,500,000
Greek Catholics  890,000
Non-United Greeks...1,800,000
Calvinists 1,700,000
Lutherans  829,000
IN TRANSYLVANIA.
Roman Catholics 221,400
Greek Catholics 605,300
Non-United Greeks 725,700
Calvinists 358,300
Lutherans 220,400
Unitarians  44,600
With regard to the relation of the races to the confessions, Hungary,
it may be observed that the Calvinists consist chiefly of the i
Magyars; the Lutherans, of the Slovaks and Germans; the
orthodox and united Greeks, of the Rascians and Wallachs ;
the Roman Catholics, of about half of the Magyars and the rest
of the Slavonic population and Germans.
The town population is estimated to form one-eighth of the
inhabitants, a circumstance sufficiently proving the backward
state of the country. The total number of towns in Hungary
and Transylvania is 146 ; of boroughs, 881; and of villages,
16,450.
The character of the races is as different as their origin.
The Magyars, both nobles and peasants, are marked by their
Oriental pride and nobleness; by their love of liberty, hospi¬
table customs, conviviality, and warlike spirit. Clinging with
filial love to his superiors, the peasant—a gentleman in lan¬
guage and bearing—is, at the same time, alive to the sense of
his own worth. In field labour and horsemanship, the Mag¬
yars surpass all the rest. The Sclavonians of North-western
Hungary are mild, frugal, and industrious. The southern
Sclavonians or Raitzen are, in character, very much like the
Greeks, being, moreover, merry, warlike, and of a fierce dis¬
position. The Croats partake more of the character of the
Raitzen, than of that of the north-western Sclavonians; and
as to the Germans, they preserve their usual traits of industry
and peaceableness. The most neglected race is, perhaps, the
Wallachians. Strongly resembling in physiognomy the Ita¬
lians, a fact clearly verifying their intermixture with the
Romans, they, like the Sclavonians, are bony, and of a tall
stature, and are considered as one of the least active races.
The population in the principal towns and boroughs was
in 1851 as follows :—
Pesth  106,379
Buda (united to Pesth by
a suspension bridge)... 50,127
Debreczin  60,906
Presburg  42,178
Szegedin  50,244
Vasarhely  33,090
Kecskemet  32,308
Kronstadt (Transylvania) 24,401
Csoba  23,049
Mako  22,611
Temeswar  21,381
Grosswardein  21,221
Arad  19,564
Klausenburg (in Tran¬
sylvania)  19,346
Komorn  19,113
The relation in which the different classes of the population
stand to each other will be noticed hereafter in connection
with the constitution at large.
The history of Hungary begins with the conquest of the Hist0I7-
Magyars, who united ancient Pannonia, Croatia, Sclavonia,
and Transylvania into one kingdom. Previous to their arrival
these countries were ruled over by petty princes, and inhabited
chiefly by Sclavonians, Bulgarians, Wallachs or Roumins,
and a few Germans, all of whom soon submitted to their new
conquerors. The prevailing opinion assumes the Magyars to
be the descendants of the ancient Scythians, and to belong to
the Tartar-Mogulian stock; the ingenuity of antiquarians,
however, has not been remiss in bringing up evidences of
their relationship to the Parthians, Turks, and Finns. Some
go even so far as to trace the pedigree of the Magyars to
Japhet, confounding the word Magyarok (the plural of Magyar)
with Magog. The Magyars are said to have wandered from
the Ural Mountains to the Caspian Sea, and thence to Kiov
possessed by the Russians, who succeeded in getting rid of their
new masters by representing to them the fertility and beauty
of Pannonia, the land of Attila. Divided into seven tribes,
they arrived at the frontiers of Hungary in the year 889, under
the leadership of Almus. At this juncture Almus died, and
the chiefs of the tribes elected his son Arpad successor. From
the foot of the Carpathians the followers of Arpad rapidly
spread along the plains of the Theiss, crossing the Danube and
occupying the banks of the Drave. From the date of the con¬
quest to the year 1000, Hungary was ruled by dukes, royalty
having been introduced simultaneously with Christianity a
year afterwards.
The following is a chronological table of the Arpad dynasty
which ruled over Hungary for upwards of three centuries:—
DUKES.
Arpad the Conqueror. I Taksony.
Zoltan. | Geysa.
KINGS.
HUNGARY.
Years.
Stephan (St) 1000 -1038
Aba and Peter
(counter kings) 1038-1047
Andrew 1 1047-1061
Bela I. 1061-1063
Solomon 1063-1074
Geysa 1 1075-1077
Ladislaus I. 1077-1095
Coloman  1095-1114
Stephan II 1114-1131
Bela II 1131-1141
Years.
Geysa II 1141-1161
Stephan III... 1161—1174
Bela III 1174-1196
Ladislaus II.
(counter king) 
Emeric  1196-1204
Andrew II 1205-1235
Bela IV 1235-1270
Stephan IV 1270-1272
Laudislaus III 1272-1290
Andrew III 1290-1301
The following were the princes of the Houses that ruled
Hungary from the extinction of the native dynasty to the
commencement of the Hapsburg period :—
Years.
Charles Robert
(Anjou) 1308-1342
Louis I. (Anjou) 1342-1382
Maria & Sigismund...1382-1437
Albert of Austria 1438-1439
Elizabeth 1438-1442
Uladislaus 1442-1444
Years.
John Hunyadi (Gu-
hernator) 1446-1452
Ladislaus Posthumus 1452-1457
Matthias Hunyadi or
Corvinus 1458-1490
Uladislaus II 1490-1516
Louis 1516-1526
The first century spent by the Magyars in Europe, then
in its most enervated condition, was chiefly marked by their
predatory expeditions. The shores of the Baltic, France, and
Italy, all experienced the devastations of these swift horsemen,
formidable for their archery and irresistible prowess. They
received a check at the hands of Otho the Great, who defeated
them before the walls of Augsburg in 955. A gradual change
to a more peaceful life commenced during the reign of Geysa,
who prepared the way for the introduction of Christianity by
entrusting the education of his son Vaik to Adalbert, Bishop
of Prague. On succeeding his father, Vaik determined upon
assuming the regal title, and applied to Pope Sylvester II. for
his consecration and benediction. His petition was granted,
and he was crowned under the name of Stephan. It is to this
first king that Hungary owed most of those institutions which
survived down to the year 1848. Besides giving the country
an ecclesiastical organization, Stephan divided it into counties,
and laid the foundation of its municipal institutions. He also
created a national council, consisting of the lords temporal and
spiritual, and the milites or middle class nobility, and from
this the subsequent Diets took their shape. The most im¬
portant statutes enacted under his reign are contained in the
Decrete of 1010. Stephan married Gisela, daughter of the
emperor Henry II., an alliance which proved the source of
much trouble after his death. Leaving no heir, as his only
son Emeric preceded his father to the grave, the queen, assisted
by the emperor, endeavoured to gain the throne for her cousin
Peter, while Apa or Aba, an Arpadian prince, was proclaimed
king by a part of the nobles. Both these princes having
perished during the ivar, Andrew I. succeeded to the throne,
but was soon compelled to yield it to his brother Bela I.
Neither the reign of this king, nor that of his two immediate
successors, offers anything worthy of remark. The reign of
Ladislaus is remarkable in many respects. Besides repelling
a Tartar invasion and vanquishing the Cumans, Ladislaus
subdued Dalmatia and Croatia, and annexed them to the
Hungarian kingdom (1078). Ladislaus was notorious for his
religious zeal, which procured him the title of Saint. A ruler
of much more talent was his successor Coloman, whose reign
was contemporaneous with the first Crusades. But for the
valour of this king, Hungary might have experienced the fate
that befell the empire of the Palaeologi, and been parcelled
out among the Godfreys and Baldwins. Coloman issued seve¬
ral edicts, chiefly concerning the discipline of the clergy; and
carried on a successful war against Venice for the possession
of Dalmatia. Coloman died in 1114, leaving the throne to his
son Stephen II., whose reign, like that of all those of the
twelfth century, is barren of interest. The reign of Andrew II.,
called the Hierosolomitan, is famous for those wars of the
nobles with the crown, which resulted in the grant, by the king,
of the Golden Bull, the Magna Charta of Hungary. The chief
provisions of this charter were as follows :•—1st, That the
states were henceforth to be annually convoked, either under
the presidency of the king or the palatine; 2d, That no noble¬
man was to be arrested without being previously tried and
legally sentenced; 3d, That no contribution or tax was to be
levied on the property of the nobles; 4th, That if called to Hungary.
military service beyond the frontiers of the country they were v ^  /
to bo paid by the king ; 5th, That high offices should neither
be made hereditary nor given to foreigners without the consent
of the Diet. The most important point, however, was article
31st, which conferred on the nobles the right of appealing to
arms in case of any violation of the laws by the crown. The
other provisions contained in this charter refer to the exemption
of the lower clergy from the payment of taxes and tolls, and to
the determination of the tithes to be paid by the cultivators of
the soil.
This Golden Bull was sworn to by all the subsequent kings
of Hungary, including the fourteen of the Hapsburg house, but
the 31st article was cancelled on the accession of Joseph, son of
the emperor Leopold. It was promulgated by Andrew in 1222,
shortly after his arrival from the Holy Land. He was suc¬
ceeded by his son Bela IV., during whose reign Hungary was
visited with the invasion of the Tartars under Batu Khan,
who literally turned the country into a wilderness. The reigns
of Stephan IV. and Ladislaus were chiefly marked by the
wars waged against Ottoacer of Bohemia, who was engaged in
hostilities with Rudolph, the founder of the House of Austria.
With the assistance of Ladislaus, Rudolph defeated the Bo¬
hemian king at the battle of Lea in 1275. Amid fierce in¬
ternal dissensions, caused by the Cumans, Ladislaus died, and
was succeeded by Andrew III., the last of the Arpads. This
prince had to turn his arms against the emperor Albert, who,
irritated at Andrew’s refusal to marry his daughter Agnes,
had declared war against Hungary; and after defeating his
adversary, ended by espousing the slighted Austrian princess.
In 1301 Andrew died, leaving no issue, and there thus arose
fresh and complicated wars.
The first phases of Hungarian history are thus obviously
parallel to the contemporaneous annals of other countries,
marked by internal dissensions between the dominant elements
of society, or the claimants to the throne, and by religious wars.
In social institutions, Hungary undoubtedly stood above
the other states of Europe; and the only peculiar disadvan¬
tage under which it laboured consisted in the diversity of its
population, and the great power which the clerical order had
acquired.
After the death of Andrew III. three candidates aspired to
the crown of St Stephan—Charles Anjou, nephew of Charles
of Naples, and of Arpadian blood by his mother, who was
daughter of Stephan IV.; Vencelaus, son of the king of Poland
and Bohemia; and Otho, prince of Bavaria. Through the in¬
fluence of Pope Boniface VIII. and the bishops, Charles Anjou
or Carobert was raised to the throne. Under the reign of this
prince, and especially of his son, Hungary made great progress
in general culture, and extended its influence abroad; and
while the blessings of peace were felt at home, the Hungarian
sword held in subjection Bulgaria, Bosnia, Servia, Moldavia, and
Wallachia. To this vast power, Louis, surnamed the Great,
the son of Charles, added the crown of Poland, so that under
his reign Hungary was the most formidable state of Europe.
But by a strange fatality so strongly discernible in the annals
of this country, this grandeur suddenly vanished, in consequence
of the extinction of the male Anjou line. From a reverence
to her father, the States, contrary to the rule, resolved upon
raising Mary, daughter of Louis, to the throne, and, with her,
her consort Sigismund of Brandenburg, son of the emperor
Charles IV.'—a determination pregnant with portentous events.
It was soon after his succession to the throne that the Sultan
Bajazet began to infest the provinces subject to the Hungarian
crown, and to threaten Hungary Proper.
After gaining some victories over the Turks, Sigismund was
completely routed at Nicopolis (1395), and obliged to fly the
kingdom. During his absence, a party, headed by the palatine
Gara, raised the standard of rebellion, and took him prisoner
after his return. Scarcely was he released when he met
with troubles in another quarter; having found a rival in
Wladislaus, king of Poland, who had married Hedvig, the
second daughter of Louis the Great. The circumstance of his
having pawned the sixteen towns of the north called the Zips
occasioned fresh discontent, and made them transfer their alle¬
giance to his rival. After being elected Emperor of Germany and
King of Bohemia, instead of providing for the safety of the
country, Sigismund employed his time and resources in war¬
ring with the Hussites, and in presiding over the Council of
H U N G A R Y.
13
Hungary. Constance'—satiating his impious zeal by condemning John
i ^ j Huss and Jerome to the flames. The learned Sigismund
ended his inglorious reign in 1437, leaving a daughter of the
name of Elizabeth, married to Albert, archduke of Austria.
After some misgivings the States proclaimed Albert king of
Hungary, compelling him to confirm the privileges and rights
of the country in a special manifesto resembling the Golden
Bull. This Hapsburg king suddenly died, after a reign of
three years. The States thereupon offered the crown to
Wladislaus of Poland, and shortly afterwards the queen-
dowager, the widow of Albert, was delivered of a son, called
Ladislaus Posthumus. This was fresh cause for civil dissen¬
sion, and, to add to the evil, Amurath prepared for another
general invasion. The party of Wladislaus having triumphed
and secured his coronation, he turned his arms against the
Turks, already masters of the Danubian Principalities ; and it
was at this juncture that John Hunyadi, alias Corvinus,
began to display those military talents which stamped him
the first hero of the age.
The origin of Hunyadi is shrouded in mystery. The pre¬
vailing opinion is, that he was of Wallachian extraction, and
the son of George Hunyadi, vayvod of Wallachia during the
reign of Sigismund. As to his surname Corvinus, some derive
it from his estate, Piatra di Corvo; others, from his ancestry.
Having been nominated vayvod of Transylvania by Wladislaus,
John Hunyadi met Amurath on the plains ofWallachia, and
routing his army, compelled the Sultan to retreat. The Sultan
then overran Servia ; but here again the Janissaries were over¬
powered by the arm of brave Hunyadi. From Servia the Hun¬
garians advanced into Bulgaria, conquered Nissa, and gained a
signal victory before the walls of Sophia (1443). These vic¬
tories inspired Pope Eugene IV. with the hopes of seeing the
Turks chased from Europe ; and, to accomplish the great work
■without delay, he formed a league with the King of Hungary,
the Emperor John Palaeologus, and the famous Scanderbeg,
son of George Castriot, Prince of Epirus. The forces of these
princes were, moreover, to be supported by a fleet, under the
command of the Cardinal-Admiral Albert of Florence, destined
to prevent the transportation of the Asiatic Turkish troops
across the Hellespont. Apprised of these preparations, the
Sultan sent ambassadors to the camp of Hunyadi with offers of
peace; and, at the intercession of George, despot of Servia,
peace was actually concluded for the term of ten years (1444).
The Sultan, besides acknowledging the sovereignty of Hungary
over Wallachia, bound himself to evacuate Bulgaria, and to
restore all the Christian prisoners. The observance of the
treaty, so advantageous and so needful to Hungary, was sworn
to on the Gospel and the Koran. The Papal legate, Cardinal
Julian, however, took care to have it turned into an immediate
war. Besides representing the vast preparations made by the
league, and the folly of losing the most favourable opportunity
for entirely destroying the infidels (representations in them¬
selves sufficient to shake the youthful and ambitious Wladis¬
laus), the cardinal argued that the peace, inasmuch as it con¬
cerned all Christendom, and had been concluded without the
consent of the Pope, was null and void ; and, moreover, that
no obligations could bind Christians to keep faith with the in¬
fidels. The cardinal’s harangue produced the desired effect.
Wladislaus bound himself by a solemn oath to begin the cru¬
sade the very same year. Hunyadi and Dracul, the vayvod of
Wallachia, are said to have dissuaded the king from the expe¬
dition, but in vain.
Despite the advanced state of the season, and the disband¬
ment of part of his Polish and Hungarian legions, Wladislaus
took the field, and marched into Bulgaria towards Widdin.
Here he awaited the Greek troops and Scanderbeg, as well as
the arrival of the Italian fleet before Gallipoli. Abandoned
by his allies, while, despite the fleet, Amurath safely landed
his Janissaries at Gallipoli, Wladislaus determined upon a
retrograde march, and encamped before Varna, which had
been previously taken from the Turks. The rapid advance of
Amurath having rendered farther retreat impossible, Cardinal
Julian advised him to await the enemy within the walls of
Varna; while Hunyadi, to whom the maintenance of a siege
seemed impossible in consequence of the want of provisions and
amunition, advised the acceptance of battle on the plain before
the walls of the stronghold. The counsel of the vayvod pre¬
vailed. For three consecutive days and nights did the hostile
forces combat each other without any decisive result. On the
fourth day (the 10th November), Hunyadi, charging with his Hungary,
horse, twice put to flight the Janissaries. On this assault,
Amurath, chafing with rage and terror, turned his back to the
followers of the Cross, but was stopped in his retreat by one of
his subordinates seizing the bridle of his charger. Meamvhile,
two of the Hungarian bishops, as well as the king himself, de¬
spising the orders of Hunyadi, whose undisputed laurels they
envied, left their position and rashly pursued the flying enemy,
a movement which turned the day in favour of the Crescent.
Wladislaus paid the penalty of his rashness with sudden death,
having been cut down by the sabres of the Janissaries ; and his
death at once became the signal of panic and ruin to his army.
Hunyadi alone, with a few followers, escaped the carnage.
Cardinal Julian, the author of this perfidy, was also among
the slain.
The battle of Varna made the Sultan sole master of Servia
and Wallachia, while the surrounding powers contrived to
profit by the misfortunes of deceived Hungary. Venice at¬
tempted to conquer Dalmatia and Croatia; the Poles invaded
Moldavia; the emperor Frederick III., the guardian of La¬
dislaus Posthumus, ravaged the provinces adjoining Austria.
Frederick even refused to give up his ward to the Hungarians
to be acknowledged king, and to hand over the crown of St
Stephan, which had been left with him for safety. Amid these
troubles the States proclaimed Hunyadi governor of Hungary.
The first task of the governor was to wrest the young prince
from the hands of the emperor by force of arms ; but the incur¬
sions of the Turks rendered this undertaking for a time im¬
possible. Pope Nicholaus, through his legate Cardinal St
Angelo, repeated the promises of his predecessor ; but Hun¬
yadi was too sagacious implicitly to confide in the support
of the Roman see. Having, with the aid of the Papal le¬
gate, concluded a truce of two years with Frederick III., he
turned with all his energy against the Turks ; but his expecta¬
tions of victory were disappointed by the treachery of George,
despot of Servia, who went over to the camp of the Mussul¬
mans. It was in consequence of this defection that Hunyadi
lost, in 1450, the battle of Kossova (Campo Merulas), in which
8000 Hungarians and 34,000 Turks are said to have fallen.
It need hardly be observed that the Papal promises proved an
idle phantom. Pope Nicholas attempted to palliate his inac¬
tion on the ground that the Greeks, most concerned in the
war, had refused to subscribe to the union-scheme prepared at
the Congress of Ferrara.
In 1452 the emperor at last agreed to release Ladislaus
Posthumus, who was greeted by the general acclamations of the
Hungarians. Hunyadi, having resigned his office of governor,
was nominated generalissimo by the king. The terror that
seized Europe after the capture of Constantinople by Moham¬
med II. seemed to convince both the Pope and emperor of the
necessity of assisting Hungary; and while the former issued an
indulgence to crusaders, the latter convoked the German States
at Regensburg, where 10,000 horse and 32,0l!0 foot were voted
against the common foe ; a number more numerous than Hun¬
yadi had expected. The Pope’s indulgences, however, wrere
too cheaply estimated ; and the German levy did not go beyond
the written resolutions. Exhausted Hungary was again left
alone to fight the battles of Christendom. Slighting now his
triumph over Bysanz, Mohammed set about preparing for the
conquest of Hungary, and in 1456 he appeared before the walls
of Belgrade with an army of 150,000 men. The garrison, under
the command of Michael Orszag, numbered but a fewthousands;
the Papal indulgences, promised to every one who should serve
for six months, proved for the most part fruitless ; and, in addi¬
tion to this, the king, admonished by Hunyadi to make speedy
preparations, fled in dismay to Vienna. The generalissimo, left
to his own resources, raised a force of 10,000 troops at his own
expense; and to these were added a few thousand men that fol¬
lowed the cross of John Capistran, a Mennonite monk. It was
chiefly with these forces that Hunyadi hastened to the relief of
Belgrade. It is not here the place to dwell on a defence on
which the fate of Europe hung; it is enough briefly to state
that, after a siege of several weeks, the haughty Ottoman
conqueror, after leaving about 24,000 slain, saw, on August 4,
1456, his lines broken and his soldiers flying precipitately to
Adrianople. Excessive fatigue brought on the hero, imme¬
diately after this victory, an illness from which he died at
Semlin on the 10th of September. He left to his country two
sons, Ladislaus and Matthias, the former of whom was cruelly
14 II U N G A R Y.
Hungary, executed by tbe orders of King Ladislaus Postburaus, while the
latter was destined to reach honours and fame higher even than
those of his father.
After the victory of Belgrade, the king returned from Vienna,
and soon afterwards died at Prague. The subjugation of the
Turks now became the common ground on which the rival
princes built their hopes of the vacant throne. The three great
rivals were the impotent Emperor Frederick, who held in
his hands the crown of St Stephan ; Casmir of Saxony, brother-
in-law to the late king; and the King of Poland. Each
of these candidates found adherents among the reckless and
corrupt oligarchs, but they became the especial support
of the Hapsburg emperor. At the head of his party stood
Dionisius, archbishop of Gran ; the palatine Gara, a sworn
enemy to the Hunyadis; and Nicholas Ujlak, vayvod of
Transylvania. The more patriotic of the nobles, longing for
a native ruler, spontaneously turned their eyes to Matthias,
the younger son of John Hunyadi, who had marvellously escaped
the fate of his elder brother. Treacherously carried away from
Buda to Vienna by Ladislaus Posthumus, Matthias, but four¬
teen years old, was conveyed to Prague, where he arrived
just at the death of the Hungarian king. At this juncture he
was rescued by Podiebrad, who was about to ascend the throne
of Bohemia, and, as afterwards appeared, aimed at making the
young Hunyadi his son-in-law.
The party of Frederick were masters of the fortress of Buda,
and in their confidence issued writs for the assembling of the
diet. The Hunyadi party found an able leader in Michael
Szilagy, uncle to the young Matthias, and an army of40,000 men
stood ready before Pesth to support the cause of the young king.
A sudden severe frost which covered the Danube with a thick
sheet of ice, and thus facilitated the approach of Buda, turned
the scale against the Hapsburg emperor. On the 24th of
January 1458, the diet proclaimed Matthias king of Hungary,
and declared Szilagy governor during his minority. A depu¬
tation immediately repaired in great pomp to Bohemia, and
recovered Matthias from the hands of Podiebrad, who was pre¬
sented with 60,000 ducats, and had the satisfaction of seeing
his favourite marriage scheme realized.
All chroniclers agree in describing the tumultuous joy that
was manifested in Buda-Pesth at the arrival of the boy-king.
Though but fifteen years of age, Matthias spoke—besides
Hungarian—Sclavonic, Bulgarian, German, and Latin, and un¬
derstood almost every other European language. His father
used to employ him as his interpreter and secretary, having
been famous when a boy for his excellent writing at a time when
(as a German historian of Hungary, whom we now follow, says)
the vayvods and other high officials could hardly sign their
names. To these accomplishments, and an acquaintance with
the classics, Matthias added the talents of an impressive orator,
and also of an able general. Simply in consequence of the
hopes entertained of him as a warrior, the papal legate in
Hungary, John of St Angelo, exerted his influence in favour
of the Hunyadi party.
The Emperor Frederick,determined to dispute the Hungarian
throne with Matthias, openly assumed the title of King of
Hungary (1459) ; but after being defeated by the Hungarians,
he agreed to an armistice, which Matthias employed in march¬
ing against the Turks, who were ravaging the Danubian Prin¬
cipalities, Bosnia, and Servia. Having compelled Mohammed
II. to evacuate those provinces, Matthias again turned his arms
against the emperor, and compelled him to conclude a peace in
1463, renouncing all claim to the dominion of Hungary, and
delivering up to the Hungarians the crown of St Stephan. One
of the conditions of this peace is said to have been, that in case
of Matthias dying without issue, the right of succession should
revert to the emperor, or his son Maximilian.
After this peace, Matthias again turned his arms against the
Turks, having previously reorganized the military system of
the kingdom. In room of the privileged commanders of the
fortresses, he appointed men experienced in the art of war ;
and in place of the somewhat lawless irregular horse, he deter¬
mined to make the foot soldiers the pivot of his strength,
and among these the most famous were the Armigeri, alias the
Black Legion. From the irregular horse he formed the hussars,
a species of light cavalry, subsequently enrolled in almost every
European state. All these troops were drilled by the king in
person, inspired with a feeling of honour, and assured of meet¬
ing with due distinction. The Armigeri, as it appears, were
in his camp what the tenth legion was in that of Caesar, a sue- Hungary,,
cour for the archers. These changes being effected in the mili- v. , •
tary system, Matthias began to turn his attention to the state
of education. He founded a university at Buda calculated to
afford accommodation for 40,000 students, and provided with
a library of 55,000 volumes, bearing the name of Corvina, and
possessed of many valuable manuscripts bought from Greek
scholars who had fled from Constantinople, or such as were
copied in different parts of Italy. To this was soon added a
typographical establishment. But amid these occupations the
hero king was summoned to the field.
Mohammed, who vowed to unfurl the banner of the prophet
on the ramparts of Belgrade, invaded Moldavia in 1466, after
having come to a secret understanding with the vayvod Ste¬
phan ; but here too the Hungarian arms were triumphant. Mo¬
hammed now sent ambassadors with offers of peace, while the
papal legate was endeavouring to persuade Matthias to a war
against Podiebrad and the Hussites. When it was deliber¬
ated in the diet, whether the continuation of the Turkish war
or a war against the Bohemians was preferable, the prelates
pronounced for the latter, and so did the king. Matthias thus
undertook a war against Podiebrad, his former father-in-law,
already excommunicated by the pope, announcing, however,
in his proclamations, that he took up arms only to defend
the rights of the Catholics against the Hussites. The Em¬
peror Frederick secretly designing to secure the Hunga¬
rian throne for his son Maximilian, fanned the ambition of
Matthias, whose armies marched from victory to victory, and in
a few weeks conquered three kingdoms. Accordingly, in May
1469, Matthias caused himself to be proclaimed, at Olmutz,
King of Bohemia and Moravia, and received, a few days after¬
wards, the homage of the Silesians at Breslau. Meanwhile, the
Turks repeated undisturbed their incursions in Bosnia and Croa¬
tia, a circumstance which created in Hungary a party against
the king, who was opposed in Bohemia by the king of Poland.
Returning to his kingdom, and restoring order within, Mat¬
thias again marched to gain fresh laurels in conflict with his
old foe. A most bloody battle was fought in Transylvania,
on the banks of the Marosh, in 1479, where about 100,000
Turks, under Ali Beg, were defeated by Stephan Batory and
Paul Kinisy. The victors, says a chronicler, celebrated a
great feast on the battle-field—Paul Kinisy, a man of prodi¬
gious strength, having danced while holding a slain Turk be¬
tween his teeth. Amid these victories Matthias celebrated
his second nuptials, having married Beatrix, daughter of Fer¬
dinand of Naples. The death of Mohammed, which happened
in 1481, was an event calculated to relieve Hungary from all
apprehensions, and to re-establish general peace, when the war
with the emperor, encouraged by Pope Sixtus II., was rekindled.
To this pope, who counteracted his designs on Veglia, in Dal¬
matia, and raised a rival to the bishop of Mordusch, nomi¬
nated by himself, Matthias had the courage to threaten that
Hungaria would exchange the double cross with the triple
one, or that it would nominate a patriarch to herself. Pope
Innocent VIII. Matthias defied by keeping in prison the
Archbishop Varda. With the renewal of hostilities the Haps¬
burg monarch was destined to undergo most unexpected mis¬
fortunes.
After a siege of four months, Vienna opened its gates to
Matthias (June 1485), and the emperor was obliged to roam
in disguise from village to village. Matthias entered the capi¬
tal of the Hapsburgs at the head of 8000 troops. The con¬
quest of Austria so much heightened the credit of Matthias
with the Turks, that Sultan Bajazet despatched to him an em¬
bassy, bearing the congratulations of their master, and followed
by ten camels laden with presents.
Despite all the efforts of Frederick and his German allies,
Matthias made Vienna for five years the seat of his govern¬
ment, and died there on the 22d of April 1490, in the forty-
fourth year of his age, and thirty-third of his reign. Besides
the Italian Galeotti, this powerful monarch of Hungary found
hispanygerist in Bonfinius, the author of Decades IV. Rerum
Ungaricarum, both of whom have recorded many an anecdote
and trait of private life, highly characteristic of their hero.
During his reign Buda was the seat of many men of letters,
whom he distinguished by peculiar favours, and who were
mostly members of the two Hungarian learned societies esta¬
blished under his care.
At the death of Matthias the competitors for the Hunga-
HUNGARY.
15
Hungary, rian crown were John Corvinus, a natural son of Matthias,
the Emperor Frederick, his son Maximilian, and Wladislaus
II. of Poland. The States declared for the last, whose inglo¬
rious reign is worthy of mention for the collection then made
of the laws of the realm, and their sanction by the king and
the States in loll. This code is known as the Tripartium
Opus Juris Consuetudinarii inclyti Regni Ungarice. Some
supplements were made to it in 1628, all of which were after¬
wards merged in the Corpus Juris.
After his death Wladislaus was succeeded by his son Louis,
under whose short reign Hungary hastened fast towards de¬
struction. The ambition of the oligarchs, no less than the
carelessness of the king, left the frontiers unprotected, and that
at a juncture when Soliman the Magnificent, the most power¬
ful of Ottoman emperors, commenced his career. Having cap¬
tured Belgrade and Petervardein, Soliman advanced at the
head of 200,000 men into the interior of the country. This
formidable force the weak king, idly confiding in the assistance
of his brothers-in-law, the Emperor Charles Y. and Ferdi¬
nand, had the rashness to meet with 25,000 men. The Turks
lay encamped on the plain of Mohacs, near a town of that
name, situated between the Danube and the Drave. After
three days’ skirmishing the archbishop of Kolosa, Paul Tomory,
urged a general attack, and within an hour and a half the
kingdom of Hungary lay in the dust. The king, two arch¬
bishops, five bishops, 500 of the higher nobles, and almost the
whole army, perished in the carnage. This battle took place
on the 29th of August 1526. After this victory Soliman
marched onwards, captured Buda, where all that told of the
fame of Matthias Hunyadi fell a prey to the blind rage of
the Janissaries, and turning homewards, dragged in his train
tens of thousands of prisoners.
We have now arrived at the point when the quasi Haps-
burg reign commenced in Hungary, an event which proved
the cause of wars for nearly two centuries. Before pro¬
ceeding in our narrative, however, we shall briefly refer to the
constitutional part of the history; and to preserve unity, we
shall also add the fundamental laws enacted during the subse¬
quent, or Hapsburg period.
Constitu- Like the constitution of England, that of Hungary is the
tion. work of ages, the aggregate mass of consuetudinary and writ¬
ten laws or acts of parliament.
The right of succession belonged, from the very establish¬
ment of the Arpad dynasty, to the male line, though with the
extinction of that line, and the accession of the Anjous, the
States departed from the rule which excluded females from the
throne. In the year 1687, the Emperor Leopold, under gene¬
ral terror, exacted from the States an acknowledgment of the
right of both male branches of the House of Austria. In 1723
the Emperor Charles, who had no male issue, carried the point
still farther, having brought the diet to acknowledge the here¬
ditary right of the female line, and thus secured the Hunga¬
rian throne to his daughter Maria Theresa, and her descend¬
ants, in the order of primogeniture and lineal succession.
The exclusive privileges of the king are the right of nomi¬
nation to the offices of state, of conferring titles of nobility,
and convoking and closing the diet. The king, moreover, no¬
minates the archbishops, bishops, and abbots ; he may establish
and endow new bishoprics, and appropriate to the regal chan¬
cery the revenues of vacant sees, dispose of Church pro¬
perty, abolish convents, and fix the number of the friars. He
has the right of superintending the schools and nominating
the teachers to the Catholic schools. By the jus placeti the
king is empowered to regulate the intercourse of the prelates
with the See of Home, he regulates their oath of allegiance to
the pope, and without his consent no bulls or briefs can be pub¬
lished. The legislative power is common to the king and the
States, viz., the prelates, titled nobility, high officials, and the
nobles. Among the barons of the realm the first in rank is
the palatine, the second, the chief judge or judex curiae, the
third, the ban of Croatia, the fourth, the chancellor. By the
concordat concluded in August 1855, the Emperor Francis
Joseph surrendered to the pope the most essential privileges
of the Church. This concordat transferred to the pope the
right of nominating the archbishops, of forming new and
changing existing sees, of administrating the estates of the
Church, of superintending the schools through the bishops, and
finally, authorized the direct communication of the bishops,
clergy, and people with the papal chair.
The functions of the palatine, whose office dates from the Hungary,
earliest days of Hungarian history, are as follows :•—He is the ^ ■- Y - *
judge or mediator between the king and the people, the guar¬
dian of the minor kings, and regent during their minority and
absence, president of the house of lords and the chancellery,
commander-in-chief of the army, lord-lieutenant of the county
ofPesth, and judge of the Cumans and Jaziges, a privileged
portion of the Magyars. In 1608 it was enacted that, at each
election of a palatine, the king must propose four candidates,
two Catholics and two Protestants, from which the election is
to be made by the diet. By another article of 1711, the
office of the palatine can not remain vacant for longer than
a year.
The Judex curiae is the first member of the Septemvir Court
and the Court of Chancery, and is president of the Upper House
in the absence of the palatine.
The Ban is the hereditary chief of the border regiments (the
borderers in general having a special commander), and president
of the Banat court.
The Chancellor is member of the Septemvir Court, and pre¬
sides over the Upper House in the absence of the palatine and
judex curice. The barons immediate in rank are the two
keepers of the crown. The other members composing the
States, ordines regni, are the Roman Catholic prelates, and,
since 1792, the bishops of the non-united Greeks; the lord-
lieutenants of the counties, the magnates, the lower nobles,
and the royal towns, each of which is equivalent to one noble.
By the law of 1791, confirmed in 1827, the diet must be
convoked at least once every three years.
In former days the diet used to be held mostly on the plain
of Rakos, near Pesth, or in Weissenburg, where the former
kings used to be crowned. But since the accession of Ferdinand
of Austria in 1527, Presburg was chosen as the seat of the diet,
because, on account of its proximity to the Austrian frontiers,
it offered the greatest security to the Austrian party. It was
about that time that the legislative body became divided into
two Houses, or, as they are commonly called, two Tables.
The bishops, high officials, magnates, and barons compose
the Upper House; the lower nobility, who form the Lower
House, do not attend in person, but are represented by their
deputies, elected in the respective counties, which are fifty-two
in number, each county sending two deputies to the diet. The
free towns had also each a deputy at the diet, but their influ¬
ence was merely nominal. The three Croatian counties in¬
cluded in the above number, however, chose, according to
custom, their representatives, three in number, in a common
congress. Of these one is sent to the Upper, and the other two
to the Lower House. Transylvania has its own diet.
The initiative belongs partly to the king, and partly to the
Lower House, though the royal proposals usually take the pre¬
cedence. The Upper House has only the privilege of the veto
or rejection, and in case of a lengthened disagreement between
the two bodies both Houses meet together. Since the end of
the last century the deputies of the four districts, into which
Hungary is divided, used to meet separately in what was
termed circular sittings, for the preliminary discussion of the
questions, till by degrees all came to meet together, thus ascer¬
taining beforehand the fate of every motion. Some writers
have erroneously mistaken these circular sittings for separate
chambers.
The diet of Transylvania (which, as may be seen from our
narrative, maintained its independence against the Austrians
till the end of the seventeenth century) is formed on the same
model. As in Hungary, so here, the peasantry, consisting
chiefly of the Wallachs, were excluded from all participation
in the legislature, the diet having been composed of the Mag¬
yars, the Saxons, and the Szekler or the Magyar borderers.
This abuse was here, as in Hungary, removed in 1848.
Much more efficacious than the diet against the usurpations
of the crown was the internal organization of the counties, re¬
sembling, in many respects, the Swiss cantons. Next to the
lord-lieutenant, the nominee of the crown, each county was
governed by two sheriffs, elected by the nobles for the term of
three years, and who, in the absence of the lord-lieutenant—a
common occurrence—alone managed the public affairs. Be¬
sides preserving public order and administering justice, the
sheriff or vice-lord-lieutenant presides over the county meetings,
which are convoked several times a-year, and are of especial
importance during the sittings of the general diet. The
16
HUNGARY.
Hungary, grievances of the county are here debated with more freedom
y ^ > than in the diet; and here are also prepared the instructions
sent to the members of the diet, who, if not fulfilling their
trust, are recalled. The most important feature in the county
institutions, however, was the vis inertice, or the privilege of
passive resistance to illegal orders, sent by the chancery or the
other high courts of administration. It was this inert power
that, till 184:8, often proved the sheet-anchor of the Hungarian
constitutions.
Next to the counties, and besides the royal towns, which are
independent of the counties with regard to their internal ad¬
ministration, there are several privileged districts, _ whose in¬
habitants are exempted from all those burdens which, to the
year 1848, were borne solely by the peasants. The military
frontier, or that narrow tongue of land which extends along the
Turkish frontier, as may easily be conceived, has an organiza¬
tion of its own, to which we shall return when speaking of the
military force of Hungary.
Above all these political and civil subdivisions there were
two central courts at Buda, and a separate chancellery at Vienna,
whose sphere extended over the political, ecclesiastic, and finan¬
cial and administrative departments at large. The evil effects
of these irresponsible organs of general administration having
of late years become more and more deeply felt, the final con¬
sequence was, that in 1848 King Ferdinand V. was obliged to
comply with the wishes of the diet, and nominate an indepen¬
dent responsible Hungarian ministry. This compliance on the
part of the Hapsburgs (as it will be found in its proper place)
gave rise to instant war, which, after having been brought to
an end by Russian intervention, resulted in the entire subver¬
sion of the fundamental laws of Hungary. To return to the
political and social description.
The feudal privileges having exempted the nobles from par¬
ticipation in the public burdens, the whole weight consequently
fell on the peasantry, the misera plebs contribuens. Besides
the feudal labour called robat which he had to perform to his
master, the peasant had to pay the military-tax, to supply the
house-tax, from which the expenses of the administration of
the counties were defrayed, to repair the roads and bridges,
to give quarters to the soldiers, to convey, for a nominal price,
the county officials or military officers, to pay the ministers
and schoolmasters, and lastly, to give one-ninth of his pro¬
duce to his landlord, and tithes to the Catholic clergy, even
although a Protestant. An earnest cry against this evil was
raised only within the last twenty-five years, and in 1848 the
liberal party at last triumphed, both the court and prelates
having felt obliged to sanction the abolition of feudalism.
Churches. As regards the ecclesiastical institutions, they may chiefly
be divided into three distinct parts—the Roman Catholic, the
Protestant, and the Non-United Greek.
The Roman Catholic Church counts three archbishops and
seventeen bishoprics. The foremost among the prelates is the
archbishop of Gran, the primate of Hungary. Since 1452 he
has borne the title of legatus natus to the see of Rome, and
since 1715 that of prince, and is moreover by right the lord-
chancellor of Hungary, and lord-lieutenant of the county of
Gran. It is his privilege to crown the kings of Hungary, while
the archbishop of Vesprim claims the right of crowning the
queens. In influence, however, the Roman Catholic bishop
of Transylvania comes next to the primate. The united Greeks
form one body with the Roman Catholics, and have four bishops.
Each bishop has his own consistorium.
The Protestant or Lutheran Church is divided into four su¬
perintendencies, consisting of several seniorates or sections of
a certain number of communities, and these in turn have each
their inspector, and the right of electing their own pastors.
Besides the ecclesiastical superintendent or principal, each su¬
perintendency has its lay-curator. The annual meetings of the
Protestants are held at Pesth, under the presidency of a chief
inspector. The internal organization of the Calvinists is with
slight ditferences, and those also rather nominal, similar to that
of the Lutherans. * Since the end of the late war the Austrian
government deprived both the Protestant churches of their
liberties.
The head of the Non-United or Orthodox Greek Church is
the archbishop and metropolitan of Carlovitz, who is chosen
in a congress, and whose election must be confirmed by the
king. This church counts seven bishoprics, viz., at Temes-
var, Yerscez, Arad, Old Buda, Neusatz, Pakratz, and Karlstad.
The number of the ministers of the different confessions was, Hungary,
according to the latest census, as follows :—
Homan Catholics  9734 Calvinists   1812
United Greeks  890 Lutherans  648
Non-United Greeks  2830
According to ancient usage and laws, the military force of Army.
Hungary consisted of three ditferent elements—1. The bor¬
derers, who date from the earliest days of Hungary, and who
were again reorganized during the reign of Ferdinand I. ; 2.
The regular army ; and 3. The levy of the nobles, who in times
of danger took the field en masse, which was known by the
name of insurrectio. The organization of the borderers, where
every man is a soldier, is mixed up with a sort of patriarchal
rule. Each family, though consisting of several members, oc¬
cupies what is called one border-house, to which a small tract
of land is allotted, and the management of which is carried on
by the paterfamilias, no longer fit for military service. Every
borderer is liable to be called to duty wherever the king pleases,
though in general the service is confined to the cordon or the
watching of the frontiers. And in such cases the borderer
must be fed and clothed by his own family, in consideration oi
which it is entitled to an annual deduction of twelve florins
from the taxes. The whole force consists of fifteen infantry
and one cavalry regiment, besides a battalion of pontooners,
called chaikists, and makes in times of peace a total of 46,000
men. On a war footing this force was capable of considerable
increase. The number of men constantly employed at the cor¬
don and quarantine averages between 4000 and 6000.
The regular military force of Hungary consists of thirteen
(infantry) regiments of the line, besides the two Transylvanian
and eleven hussar regiments, each infantry regiment number¬
ing above 3000, and each cavalry regiment about 1800 men.
The total military force is thus above 100,000.
In process of time the regular military force of Hungary be¬
came entirely merged in, and assimilated to, the Austrian army,
the States contenting themselves with exercising the right of
voting recruits, and fixing the term of service, which since
1830 was limited to ten years. Their^ gross and palpable ne¬
glect is shown in the fact that they quietly allowed Austria to
carry on that subtle game by which the Hungarian troops were
carried abroad, and foreign regiments introduced. The reforms
of 1848 have done away with this antiquated abuse. The most
important fortresses are Comorn, on the Danube, between
Pesth and Presburg, Petervardein, also on the Danube, Arad
on the Marosh, Temesvar, Ejsek, and lastly Buda, strong by
nature. The most important fortress in Transylvania is Karls-
burg. Transylvania forms a fortress in itself, and. only a few
narrow passes afford a passage through its mountain ramparts
to an invading army. The principal passes are the Bozza,
which leads to the Bukowina, the Ojtos, leading to Moldavia,
the Tdrzburg, Tombs, and Red Tower passes, which communi¬
cate with Wallaehia. It was through these last-named passes
that the Russians penetrated in 1849. Mention must be made
of the Dukla pass, leading from Galicia into the north of
Hungary, and through which Prince Paskiewitsch came with
the guns of the Russian army.
Having thus described the constitutions of the country, we Resources,
shall now rapidly survey its resources.
The fertility of the Hungarian soil, and the variety of its
produce, are universally known. Besides the different species
of corn and maize, raised in great quantities, Hungary
produces hemp and flax, various kinds of delicious apples,
pears, and plums ; two sorts of melons, rich crops of tobacco,
and lastly, a great variety of wines; while the vast pastures and
oak woods afford ample sustenance to herds of horned cattle,
sheep, and swine. It is assumed, that with the aid of modern
improvements in agriculture, and a little more industry, it
could abundantly sustain a population twice as large as it ac¬
tually possesses. The badness of the roads,the neglected state
of the rivers, which, besides being closed to navigation, en¬
tail great losses by annual inundations, no less than the feudal
institutions, and prohibitive system of Austria, all contributed
to keep agriculture in a backward state, so that the vast pro¬
duce may be said to come from the hand of nature alone. The
home of the wheat is the Banat, and the counties of Bacs,
Baranya, Simia, Arad, and Borsod. Rye is raised chiefly in
the north among the Slovaks; barley, oats, and maize, in dif¬
ferent parts. The last occupies an important place in the Hun¬
garian harvest. With some of the Sclavonian population, such
HUNGARY.
17
H arv as the Croats and Rascians, and the Wallachs, maize bread is
t g > a great favourite.
Melons are raised in gardens and the open field, occupying
sometimes continuous tracts of land of 100 acres. Of the
water-melons the most famous are those of Heves, of more than
two feet in diameter. The yellow or sugar melons are gene¬
rally of a much smaller size. Tobacco grows almost every¬
where, and greatly varies in flavour ; the Csetneker of the
county of Gdmdr, the Yerpeleter and Debroer of Heves being
the most highly prized. The annual crop is upwards of650,000
cwts. Potatoes form but a secondary article in Hungarian
economy.
Among the vine hills and gardens, cultivated since the
thirteenth century, and which occupy no inconsiderable part
of the Hungarian soil, the most valuable is the Hegy-alja, or
southern promontory of the Carpathians, and which compre¬
hends the Tokay mountains situated round the town of that
name. The whole promontory occupies above 50 English
square miles, of which only one-third is under cultivation.
The Tokay wine is of a crystalline yellow, and sometimes
greenish colour, and is known under two names, the Ausbruch,
the stronger, containing more of the essence, and the Maslas.
The whole annual produce is 180,000 gallons. Next in rank
to the Tokay is the Menes, a red wine of the county of Arad ;
and inferior to it, though by no means inferior to Burgundy,
are the red wines of Erlau, Szeksard, Villany, and Buda.
Among the yellow table-wines, particular mention may be made
of the Nesmeler, Somloer, Badacsoner, and Ermeleker. The
county of Simia is, moreover, particularly famous for its red
wines, the most known of which is found on the Fruska Gora
mountain. No less famous are some of the Croatian wines,
marked by a spirituous flavour, as well as the wines of Transyl¬
vania. The total produce of wine, Transylvania not included,
is estimated at 328,748,000 gallons.
Animals. The animal kingdom exhibits no less abundance. The Hun¬
garian oxen are the largest breed in Europe. They have a
grayish white skin and long straight horns. The largest herds
graze on the wide pastures situated between the Theiss and
the Danube. The original Hungarian horse, marked by its
middle size, broad neck, and compact build, is now only to be
found in some parts of Transylvania. The introduction of
English full-blood stallions by several of the magnates, has of
late years ennobled the breed, and the general improvement
has been hastened by the royal studs at Mezo-hegyes and
Babolna. Of late years much progress has been made in the
breeding of sheep, though the first step dates from the reign
of Maria Theresa, vrlien the Merino was, for the first time,
imported into Hungary. The oak-woods pasture large herds of
swine, part of which arrive annually from Servia, Bosnia, and
the Danubian Principalities, for the purpose of being fattened,
and thereafter exported to Austria. Mules, asses, buffaloes,
and goats, are only to be found in very small numbers. As
the war of 1848 made a great havoc in the animal kingdom,
the census of 1850 cannot afford a fair representation of the
capabilities of the country. We shall therefore give here the
statistics of the year 1840, which stood as follows :—Horses,
1,000,000; homed cattle, 4,260,000; sheep, 17,000,000; hogs,
4,000,000. In Transylvania, the numbers were these:—Horses,
397,388; horned cattle, 800,000 ; sheep, 2,000,000 ; hogs,
350,000. To this abundance must be added a great number
of domesticated fowl, especially geese and turkeys, and a va¬
riety of game, such as ducks, partridges, pheasants, &c. The
rivers abound in carp, pike, and sturgeon—the Theiss being
reckoned the richest; the peculiar Hungarian fish called fogas,
is only found in the Balaton Lake, or Platton-see. Some of the
waters yield trout, and large quantities of leeches.
The approximate amount of the productive soil, both in
Hungary and Transylvania, in the latter of which the forests
form more than one-half, is, according to the Austrian official
tables, 40,200,000 joch, or 57,204,600 English acres, of which
10,131,760 belong to Transylvania. The relative division is
as follows, in English acres :—
Acres.
Soil under tillage.... 22,651,438
Vineyards  1,659,962
Meadows  5,711,773
Pastures  5,662,299
Forests  15,880,680
In the above numbers is not included the military frontier,
the productive soil of which occupies about 6,000,000 acres;
VOL. XII.
the forests forming one-third. The produce in corn is—Hun- Hungary,
gary,281,000,000bushels; Transylvania, 30,000,000; military v ^
frontiers, 12,000,000 ; total, 323,000,000 English bushels. The
value of the natural products is estimated at L.29,000,000,
while the value of the crops in England and Wales is esti¬
mated by M‘Culloch to be only L.83,656,071.
Let us now glance at the mineral kingdom. The mountains, Minerals,
which are partly worked by the government and partly by pri¬
vate enterprise, contain metals of almost every kind, viz., gold,
silver, iron, copper, lead, antimony, zinc, alum, orpiment, tel¬
lurium, and many other minerals, besides coal and salt. In
the neglected state in which the gold mines are kept, the pro¬
duce is only about 2400 marks. The silver mines yield 65,000
marks. Of great importance are the copper mines in the
Banat; the richest vein, however, is at Schmolnitz. Those in
Transylvania, at Damokos and Deva, yield 1200 cwts. The
produce of lead is estimated at 26,000 cwts. The iron mines
are found chiefly in the counties of Gomor, Sohl, Ung, and
Zips ; the average produce of the former being 250,000 cwts.
The richest rock-salt mines are in the county of Marmoros, and
the total produce amounts to upwards of 800,000 cwts., a
quantity which, however great, is far from sufficient for the
wants of the country. Several places yield also soda, saltpetre,
alum, and potash. Pit coals, which, till very lately, and be¬
fore the introduction of railways, had been entirely neglected,
lie in deep formations almost unwrought. The total produce is
1,000,000 cwts. The value of the mineral produce in Hungary
is L.872,000, that of Transylvania, L.169,000 ; the military
frontiers yield almost nothing in this respect. It must be
added, that Hungary possesses also precious stones and marble
of various descriptions.
The chief articles of manufacture are cloth, linen, and silk Manufac-
stuffs, carpets, leather, iron wares, and chemical products, in-tures.
eluding alum, saltpetre, and potash manufactures. All these
are as yet in an incipient state, especially cloth manufacture,
if it be considered that in wool Hungary is the richest country
in Europe. Linens are chiefly manufactured in the north.
The county of Zips produces about 6,000,000 yards. The
largest silk manufacture is at Pesth, giving employment to
between 400 and 500 men. Of greater extent are the leather
manufactures; but even of this article much is imported. The
most productive iron works are in the county of Gomor, among
which are particularly distinguished the manufactories of Poho-
rela, and Yorosko, belonging to the Prince Saxe-Coburg. The
whole iron produce of Hungary is estimated at 500,000 cwts.
per annum, half of which belongs to Gomor. In several coun¬
ties there are potteries and glass-works, as well as powder-
mills ; and also clay-pipe works, some of which, as at Debrec-
zin and Papa, produce 20,000 bowls weekly. Soap is chiefly
manufactured in Szegedin, Kecskemet, and Debreczin, the last
of which produces 7000 cwts. annually. The distilleries are
mostly in the north among the Sclavonic population ; and the
breweries, 300 in number, are situated round the large towns
of mixed population, as beer is no favourite drink with the
Magyars. Sugar refineries have also of late risen in several
parts of the country ; but this article also requires importation.
The cigar manufactories, introduced within a very recent
period, had imparted a new impetus to the cultivation of to¬
bacco ; but the introduction of the tobacco monopoly at the
end of the late war, at once extinguished this branch of in¬
dustry.
The inferiority of the roads, only compensated to some ex- Trade,
tent by two railway lines, and steam navigation on the Dan¬
ube and Theiss, but especially the restrictive commercial sys¬
tem of Austria, sufficiently account for the insignificance of
Hungarian commerce, both foreign and internal." The centre
of commerce is the capital, Pesth, situated on the banks of the
mighty artery of the kingdom, the Danube. The chief feature
of internal trade is the exchange of products between the
northern and southern districts ; the former sending to the
south minerals and timber, and the latter carrying to the north
grain and cattle, an intercourse facilitated by the great number
of rivers navigable to vessels and boats of small freight. The
annual fairs held at Pesth mark the culminating points of com¬
mercial activity, the chief marketable article being wool, of
which, according to Fenyes, upwards of 120,000 cwts. are sold
annually. The other towns of commercial importance are—in
the south, Becse exporting to Austria ; Fiume, the Hungarian
littorale, and Semlin, communicating with the Turkish pro-
c
,
18
HUNGARY.
Hungary, vinces: in the west, Waitzen and Presburg; in the north,
. Koshau and Eperies.
■p The following details, collected by Fenyes, will give a gene-
J 1 ral idea of the extent and progress of the foreign commerce
during the five years immediately preceding the late war:
Exports in 1840.
Cwts.
Wheat  1,313,626
Rye   190,770
Barley  201,194
Oats  488,639
Wool  237,740
Tobacco   336,473
Exports in 1845.
Cwts.
Wheat 2,408,118
Rye   942,013
Barley    364,614
Oats  782,812
Wool  214,446
Tobacco   211,625
The number of exported cattle in 1845 was 106,230, that of
hogs, 352,440. The total value of exports that year was esti¬
mated at 71,735,683 florins, which, at the rate of ten florins
to a pound, is equal to L.7,173,568.
Imports. rflie value of imports, both from Austria and other countries,
was, in the same year, 68,514,437 florins, or L.6,851,443.
Foreign countries, it must be added, enter only for one-fourth
of this intercourse, the rest belongs entirely to the Austrian
dominions. Since the end of the late war the custom-duties
between Hungary and Austria have been abolished. In how
far this change has hitherto affected the commerce of the for¬
mer would, in consequence of its abnormal political state, be
difficult to decipher, even if the requisite data had been made
public. As difficult would it be to form a sure estimate of the
revenue and expenditure of Hungary since the late war, as
both rest on momentary arbitrary measures undertaken either
as precautions against revolution or in consequence of the perio¬
dical sickness of the Austrian finances. Ample data, however,
are extant as to the public revenue and expenditure of Hun¬
gary before 1848. The chief sources of revenue up to that
date were—the house-tax, war-tax, the toll duties, the crown
and fiscal domains, and salt revenues, which, with the minor
sources of income, such as the lottery, the post-office, and the
mines, yielded, according to Fenyes, L.3,400,000, a sum less
than that of Lombardy, but more than sufficient to cover pub¬
lic expenses, in consequence of the internal organization of the
counties, where the salaries of the constitutional officials were
but nominal. In the new regime a not unimportant item in
the public revenue is the tobacco monopoly introduced into
the Hungarian dominions by an imperial edict of November
1850. By this edict no one may cultivate tobacco, except by
previous permission, specifying the place and mode of cultiva¬
tion, each owner being obliged to deliver up his produce to
the government, which determines its value. The monopoly
in itself, no less than the domiciliary visits to which it gave
rise, greatly injured this thriving branch of Hungarian indus¬
try. A great many, indeed, have in consequence of this given
up its cultivation, dispensing even with its use.
Education. Education, which has likewise undergone great changes
since the war of 1848, has within late years made greater
progress than general industry. The existence of feudality,
we need hardly say, was incompatible with the education of
the lowest and most numerous class of the population, the
peasants; nor could much be expected from a bourgeoisie just
starting on the road of activity and wealth. Mental culfure
thus became chiefly restricted to the nobles. They sent their
sons to the colleges to acquire that knowledge and attain those
degrees without which they could have made no figure in pub¬
lic life. Hence the vast number of advocates in Hungary, of
whom only a small fraction make their appearance at the bar.
Among the Protestants, who had enjoyed complete independ¬
ence with regard to their ecclesiastical affairs and instruction,
elementary schools had been established in almost every vil¬
lage, so that the rising generation of that confession surpass at
least their parents in the knowledge of reading and writing.
Among the Roman Catholic and Greek Catholic population the
number of elementary schools is comparatively very small,
and the case is the same with the Non-United Greeks, who,
like the Protestants, are in this respect independent of the
government.
The higher schools of both confessions have generally each
a fund, derived mostly from landed property, though the
Catholic schools are much richer, and, as already observed,
stand under the immediate control of the government. Hun¬
gary numbers one university (at Pesth), 21 lyceums, 28 theo¬
logical and 17 philosophical schools, 95 gymnasiums, and 2293
elementary or reading schools. This number does not include Hungary,
Transylvania, which possesses 25 gymnasiums and 286 read- v JT v-^
ing schools, besides 8 lyceums and 10 seminaries, where theo¬
logical and philosophical courses are given. The difference
between the lyceums and philosophical schools is, that in some
of the former the philosophical studies are but preparatory,
though in general, and especially in those that are Protestant,
they embrace also chemistry and law. The university of Pesth,
where instruction is gratis, counts 45 professors, besides extra¬
ordinary lecturers. Of these 8 occupy the theological, 6 the
juridical, 18 the medical, 14 the philosophical chairs, and 1
fills the chair of mathematics. The philosophical course lasts
for two, law for three, theology for four, and the medical
course for five years. The last entitles to the degree of M.D.
The students of surgery do not, like those of medicine, in a
wider sense, require to have previously passed the philosophi¬
cal course, Most of the lectures at this university are delivered
in Latin, although of late years some of the professors began
to employ the Magyar language. The university boasts of a
rare collection of natural curiosities, a large library, and a
spacious botanical garden. In the year 1847 there were at
the university 65 theological, 214 juridical, 559 medical, 253
philosophical, and 43 mathematical students ; total, 1134.
The number of children attending the elementary schools
was estimated at 230,617- A deadly blow was inflicted on
both public and private education by the concordat already
referred to, by which the schools are placed under the direct
surveillance of the bishops. Even the Protestant schools must
restrict themselves to the use of the books selected by the papal
censors ; and we find that even Cicero and Demosthenes have
been placed on the list of proscribed authors. Amongst the
most promising institutions are thePhysical Society, established
in 1841, and the Assembly of Naturalists, annually held in
different parts of the country. The Hungarian Learned
Society or Academy of Sciences is the supreme representative
of the national culture. This society, first constituted with
royal sanction in 1830, consists of 212 regular, and a large
number of corresponding members, a certain number of the
former participating in a small annuity. The programme of
the society is rather ambitious, being divided into six sections,
viz., philology, philosophy, history, mathematics, jurispru¬
dence, and natural philosophy. Two of these sections, history
and jurisprudence, enter but nominally into their labours, being
virtually proscribed by the Austrian government.
The national museum at Pesth, founded by Francis Sze-
cheny, father of the famous Stephan Szecheny, deserves parti¬
cular mention. The collections in the museum, both in the nu¬
mismatic and natural departments, are varied, and of the most
precious kind, and so, especially in a national point of view, is
the library department, comprising, besides a great number of
rare books, many valuable manuscripts. The department of
art vies in excellence and rarity with the rest, and its value
was considerably increased by the munificent present of 300
pictures, made by Ladislaus Pyrker, archbishop of Erlau. The
massive edifice, situated in the centre of the town, in a free
open square, is in good keeping with the rich treasures it con¬
tains.
Knowing the Asiatic origin of the Magyars, it is hardly Literature,
necessary to say that their language is also Asiatic, though it
has by no means hitherto been exactly determined to which
great class it belongs, According to Balbi, who divides the
known languages into five classes, the Magyar belongs to the
Oural stock, comprising the Finnish, Lapland, and Permean
languages, and which as such are contradistinguished from the
Asiatic stock in which the Samoied and Tartar languages are
comprehended. The Hungarian antiquarians, on the other
hand, while likewise classifying the Magyar among the Oural
tongues, include in this classification, besides the Finnish, also
the Mogul, Tartar, Samoied, and Turkish languages, and thus
make it a strictly Asiatic idiom. Recent travellers have pretty
safely established the correctness of the latter opinion. The
Magyar language is sonorous and mellow, rich in inflexions,
copious in expression, and most logical in its derivatives. The
literature of Hungary has suffered severely from the exclusive
worship long paid to the Latin, a circumstance due to the in¬
fluence which the foreign monks naturally acquired on the con¬
version of Hungary to Christianity, and her simultaneous
transformation into a monarchy on a European model. Raised
by King Stephan to the peerage and the highest offices, the
Hungary.
HUNGARY.
19
ecclesiastical order, at first the sole lawgivers, and for centuries
the only class possessed of European knowledge, became the
means of establishing the Latin at court, of introducing it into
the administration, and, from their ignorance of the Magyar
language, of introducing it exclusively into public worship.
Having thus become the language of the higher classes, or the
ordines regni, the Latin continued, despite the Reformation,
to monopolize the field of literature till the close of the eigh¬
teenth century.
The earliest publications in Latin worthy of particular men¬
tion, are the Chronicle by the anonymous notary of King
Bela II., of the middle of the twelfth century, which describes the
first ages of Hungarian history in connection with the Huns ;
the Chronicle of Simon Keza, a writerof the thirteenth century;
the Chronicon Budense, and the Chronicon Rerum Hungari-
carum of Johan Thurocius. A great stimulus was imparted
to literature by Matthias Hunyadi, or Corvinus. Most of the
beaux esprits that crowded to his magnificent court at Buda were
Italians, invited to Hungary partly by Beatrix of Naples, the
second wife of Matthias, though there were also several of the
natives who earned well-deserved fame. The foremost among
the Italians is Bonfinius, reader to the Queen Beatrix. His prin¬
cipal work is Decades IV. Rerum Hungaricarum, which com¬
prises the Hungarian history from the earliest times to the
death of King Matthias. Departing from the rule of the other
Hungarian chroniclers, Bonfinius diversifies his narrative with
a mass of legendary gossip ; and though his attempt to imitate
Livy failed, his history is highly instructive, and the most read¬
able of all the historical productions of the time. The best
edition of the Decades was published, by Sambucus, his con-
tinuator, at Basel in 1568. Galleotti, the principal librarian
of King Matthias, wrote De ejus Dictis ac Factis, while the
Neapolitan envoy at Buda, Peter Ramzan, composed a brief
epitome Rerum Hungaricarum. The Tuscan Callimach pro¬
cured himself a name by his three books on the reign of
Wladislaus as well as his Attila. Among the natives the
most prominent place belongs to Csinige alias Janus Panno¬
nius, a famous Greek and Latin scholar in his age, and who in
his youth went in search of knowledge to Italy, having spent
fourteen years at Ferrara alone. Besides translations into
Latin from Homer and Plutarch, Pannonius composed in
Latin, epigrams, panegyrics, and a few epic poems, the greatest
part of which is comprised in the Delicice Poetarum Hungari¬
carum, published at Frankfurt in 1619. Contemporaneous
critics all agree in lauding the classical learning and poetic
genius of Pannonius, comparing him now with 8caliger, and
now with Erasmus. But however that may be, it must appear
a matter of some surprise that the example of Dante and Pe¬
trarch should not have inclined his muse to sing in the lan¬
guage of the living.
As regards the native, or the Magyar idiom, up to the six¬
teenth century, all that is known of it consists in MSS. of a few
legends of the saints, some fragments of historical rhymes, and
translations of the Scriptures. Ladislaus Batory, a Pauline
monk, was the first who performed the task of translating the
Bible. This translation, which was executed in the middle of
the 15th century, is preserved, but in an imperfect state.
Relics of another kind belonging to this period, are the oath
which John Hunyadi took when elected governor of Hungary,
and a few verses sung by the children at Pesth, at the corona¬
tion of his son Matthias. As in other countries, so in Hungary
also, the cultivation of the native idiom received a stimulus
from the Reformation, though the melancholy days that com¬
menced with the sixteenth century, and continued for two hun¬
dred years, afforded no general seat for the muses. Among
the poets who wrote in the Magyar language, the best known
are Baczai, Temesvari, Bogali, Yalkai, and Tinodi, who were
ambitious enough in pretending to sing the exploits and glories
of the two Hunyadis, and the deeds of Soliman, and the prin¬
cipal Turkish generals, and whose strains it would be difficult
to rank above the level of rhymed chronicles. Kakony sang
the deeds of Cyrus; and Csaktorny, improving upon Homer,
rechanted Ajax and Ulysses. Of a higher order than these
poetasters were Balassa and Rima, who belong to the second
half of the sixteenth century. Much more important were the
labours of the translators of these days. These were Komyati
and Pisti, who produced a Magyar version of the Neiv Testa¬
ment (1536) among the Catholics ; and John Erdosi and Heltai
among the Protestants, who translated the entire Scriptures.
A new translation of the Bible for the Catholic confession was Hungary,
prepared in 1626 by George Kaldi, while the Protestant ver- ^
sion was corrected and republished by Albert Molnar, the most
learned of the Calvinist ministers. A few of the Latin classics
were rendered into Hungarian by Decsi and Benko, and Heltai
translated the laws or Tripartium, compiled by Verboczy, and
the Decades of Bonfin. A writer of considerable merit and
great erudition, is John Sambucus, who studied medicine as a
profession, and cultivated the study of history and the classics
from pleasure, having spent more than twenty years at the
universities of Italy, France, and Germany. Besides translat¬
ing into Latin from Plato, Hesiod, and Hippolytus, editing
several Latin authors, which procured him great contempora¬
neous fame, and composing several treatises on theology, Sam¬
bucus continued Bonfin’s Decades, to the reign of Ferdinand of
Austria. The patronage he enjoyed at the hand of Maximilian
was little calculated to favour his reputation as a historian.
The seventeenth century, marked by the persecuting spirit of
the reigns of Rudolph, Ferdinand, and Leopold, is but little
better than the former, though it can boast of a few names
which, in history, poetry, and theological controversy, have ac¬
quired for themselves a lasting celebrity in Hungarian annals.
Nicholas Isvanfi, the locum tenens, or vice-palatine, in the
reign of Rudolph, wrote, in classic Latinity, the History of
Hungary from the death of Matthias Corvinus to Matthias
II. of Austria, a work of great merit, though too grossly biassed
in favour of the Austrian party. The Calvinist minister,
Albert Molnar, already mentioned, distinguished himself by
his philological labours, and especially by the composition of
a Greek, German, Latin, and Hungarian dictionary; while
the Jesuit Peter Pazman, afterwards primate and cardinal, en¬
riched the national language with religious productions of a po¬
lemical nature. As regards poetry, a new era commenced with
the appearance of Nicholas Zrinyi, grandson of Zrinyi the
heroic defender of Sziget against Soliman in 1566. The
noblest production of his lyre is the Zriniad, or the Siege and
Fall of Sziget. Gongybsi sung the deeds of Maria Szechy, the
defender of the fortress Murany against the Austrians. In the
eighteenth century, a period of peace, Hungary seemed sunk
into a state of torpor, which, in the reign of Maria Theresa,
was assuming, as far as the magnates were concerned, a dena¬
tionalizing tendency, and producing a complete neglect of the
native idiom. From this letharg}', the nation only recovered
during the reign of Joseph, in consequence of his violent mea¬
sures for the Germanization of Hungary. Societies for the
cultivation of the language were now simultaneously formed
in different parts of the kingdom, periodicals were started, and
the language submitted to severe investigation, to be purged
from foreign expressions, rendered more fixed in grammar,
and to undergo a total reform. These linguistic efforts, begun
by Revay, were carried on with unremitting zeal and signal
success by Francis Kazinczy. The adversaries of the linguis¬
tic reform attempted to throw ridicule on the labours of Kaz¬
inczy by publishing a lampoon entitled Mondolat; but they
were soon obliged tacitly to respect a man who, actuated by
patriotic feelings, laboured unweariedly to remove the mental
inactivity and torpor that lay heavily upon the national body,
and who felt convinced that, with the revival and culture of
the sonorous native idiom, the people would regain that self-
esteem, buoyancy, and openness which once formed the chief
features in their character. Kazinczy was far from being an
original or powerful thinker. His powers mainly lay in his
aptitude for adapting to the taste and opinions of his own
country the ideas and general knowledge which he culled from
foreign literature. The attractive and popular manner in
which he advanced new rules and theories, was the chief se¬
cret of his success; and, though placed in circumstances in¬
comparably more disadvantageous, Kazinczy may be said to
have done for Hungarian literature what Herder had already
accomplished for Germany. (See Hungary, Past and Pre¬
sent, chap, viii., by Emeric Szabad.) His patriotism cost him,
like a few of his contemporaries, several years’ imprisonment,
but on his release he renewed his labours with redoubled vig¬
our. The more prominent authors and poets of that time are
Dugonics, Csokonay, Dayka, Virag, and Alexander Kisfaludy,
among whom the last attained the greatest popularity. Kis¬
faludy excited great attention by his long lyrical poem, The
Love of Himfy, published in 1801. He also wrote several
historical dramas of comparatively little merit, and highly in-
20
HUNGARY.
Hungary, teresting tales of ancient Hungarian life. A few glowing odes
i ^ y flowed from the pen of Daniel Bersenyi; Dobrentei and Vit-
kovics excelled in popular songs ; while Charles Kisfaludy sur¬
passed his brother in the drama. An author of higher parts
than any of these was Francis Kolcsey, whose articles in
the periodical Elet es Literatura (Life and Literature) are
beyond doubt the finest specimens of Hungarian aesthetical
criticism. Kolcsey was also great as an orator, and next to
Count Szeibeny, the most influential leader of the reform party.
Before proceeding further it is necessary to remark, that about
the end of the eighteenth, and the beginning of the nineteenth
century, much was done in historical writing. The two Jesu-
ites Pray and Katona have each, with much research, written
in Latin the history of Hungary, from the earliest period to
the reign of Maria Theresa ; while Engel and Fessler have
performed the same task in the German language. A brief
history reaching only to the fourteenth century was composed
in the Hungarian language by Yirag.
Michael Yorosmarty may be called the father of the more
recent and more genuine Hungarian poetry. The first fruit
of his lyre which attracted general attention was a historical
tragedy, King Solomon, published in 1821, which, though
deficient in dramatic effect, is distinguished, like his other pro¬
ductions, by the beauties of a chastely figurative language and
noble sentiment. Three years afterwards Yorosmarty gave
forth an epic, The Flight of Zalan, embodying an episode of
the conquest of the Magyars, which was followed by a roman¬
tic poem, and another epic, Gserhalom, having for its burden
the victories of the Magyars over the Cumans. He wrote nu¬
merous exquisite lyrical pieces. He also translated several of
Shakspeare’s plays, and, as a member of the Academy, contri¬
buted much to the philological department. Next to him in
rank are Bajza, Czuczor, and Garay, the last of whom acquired
unusual popularity by his series of ballads relating to the
Arpad period. More recently Alexander Vachot, John Erde-
lyi, Francis Csasar, and a few others, earned a high name
as poets ; and in 1842 Hungary received the first fruits of
Alexander Petofy, destined soon to become the most popular
of her bards. His most successful pieces are those descriptive
of country life. Petofy disappeared amid the carnage of battle
in 1849, and since then nothing has transpired as to his real
fate. Tompa, another popular poet, is in some respects supe¬
rior to Petofy; and Arany gained a sudden popularity in the
field of epic poetry. As a humorist, the palm belongs to Sa-
rossy ; his Golden Trumpet, descriptive of the late war, being
a very singular production. The most promising of the recent
minstrels are Hiador, Szasz, Gulay, and Levay.
Baron Josika may be said to have done for prose what Va-
rosmarty did for poetry, having been the first to produce genu¬
ine novels. The most popular works of this prolific author,
now an exile in Belgium, are,—The Bohemians in Hungary,
in which Matthias Corvinus appears on the scene; The Last
of the Batorys ; and Abaft, Prince of Translyvania. Baron
Oetvos, better known as apolitician, earned celebrity as a writer
of political novels; while Kuthy, an author more original, and
possessed of a richer fancy than either of the preceding, en¬
riched the literature with several works of fiction, chiefly de¬
scriptive of Hungarian life and scenery. The familiar prose
writers belonging to a more recent date are Baron Kemeny,
Charles Berczy, and Moritz Jokay. This last author is as pro¬
ductive as he is popular. Political writing dates from Count
Stephan Szechenyi ; his first production, The Credit, em¬
bodying a series of proposed reforms, not a little startling to
the feudal lords, was published in 1830. It soon called into
action the pen of Count Joseph Dessefy, and several other con¬
servatives ; and was followed by another work, The Light (A
Vilag), and the Stadium. In the last the Count particularly
expounds the necessity of means of communication, and of re¬
forms in the laws of credit, as well as the importance of capi¬
tal for the promotion of industrial activity. At the appear¬
ance of Kossuth on the field of journalism in 1841, Szechenyi
came forth with his People of the East (Kelet Nepe), a most re¬
markable mixture of polemics and prophecy, and which called
forth a separate answer from the powerful and popular editor of
the Pesti Hirlap. Szechenyi’s last work, Political Fragments,
was issued on the eve of the war of 1848. Of considerable in¬
fluence were the political writings of Baron Oetvbs and Szalay,
who superseded Kossuth in the editorship of the Pesti Hirlap.
Szalay also contributed short biographical sketches of modern
English and French statesmen; as a sort of supplement to Hungary,
which, there lately appeared, under the editorship of Csen- ^ ^ ;
gery, sketches of Hungarian politicians; and since the late war
he has written also a History of Hungary, The most valu¬
able contribution in the field of literature is Count Joseph Te-
leky’s voluminous history of the Hunyadi period (A Hunya-
diak Kora). The noble author, formerly governor of Tran¬
sylvania, dedicated upwards of twenty years to the composition
of this work. In antiquarian research and natural sciences the
most prominent names are Stephan Horvat, Fejer Koller, and
Schedius. In Peter Vajda, distinguished as a poet, who was car¬
ried away by premature death, Hungary lost one of its most ori¬
ginal philosophic writers. Since the end of the late war, lite¬
rature has assumed a more scientific and abstract tone, as is
shown by the increasing number of text books of natural
science published within the last few years. The approxi¬
mate number of books that appeared in 1853 was 230, and in
1854 this number was more than doubled. The effects of
the censorship are best seen in the diminution of newspapers,
which (in Magyar) averaged in 1854 between 10 and 15. Of
this number only one belongs to Translyvania, The Neiv Mag¬
yar Museum, edited monthly by Francis Toldy, secretary to
the Academy of Sciences. This indefatigable savant is en¬
gaged with the republication of the authors of the last three
centuries.
Having thus surveyed the present political and social condi- Later his-
tions of Hungary, we shall resume the thread of history, tory.
which we left at the battle of Mohacs (1526), when the throne
became vacant by the death of Louis II., brother-in-law to
Ferdinand of Austria.
It is the fashion with some foreign writers here to stop short,
and henceforth to merge Hungarian history into the annals of
the House of Austria, a course utterly unwarranted by the
nature of events. As well might a historian ignore the War of
Independence of the Netherlands, and treat it incidentally in
the general history of Spain.
Before entering upon this so-called Hapsburg period, we shall
premise a list both of the kings of Hungary and the princes of
Transylvania. The latter country maintained its independence
till the end of the seventeenth century :—
Hungary.
Years.
Ferdinand I. (rival, John
Zapolya)   1527-1564
Maximilian (Segis. Za¬
polya)   1564-1576
Rudolph 1  1577-1608
Matthias II  1608-1619
Ferdinand II  1619-1637
Ferdinand III  1637-1657
Leopold 1  1657-1705
Years.
Joseph 1  1705-1711
Charles III 1711-1740
Maria Theresa  1740-1780
Joseph II  1780-1790
Leopold II  1790-1792
Francis 1  1792-1835
Ferdinand V  1835-1848
Francis Joseph (present Emperor).
Stephan Bathari
Stephan Bocskay
Gabrial Bathari.
Bethlen Gabor...
Transylvania.
1564-1576
1577-1608
1608-1619
1619-1637
George Rakoczy 1  1637-1657
Emerik Tbkoli, Abafi ... 1657-1705
Francis Rakoczy  1705-1711
The general consternation caused by the victory of the
Turks at Mohacs had barely subsided, when the majority of
the nobles proclaimed John Zapolya, vayvod of Transylvania,
king of Hungary ; and he underwent, in the usual forms, the
ceremony of coronation at Weissenburg. Several of the mag¬
nates, influenced partly by envy to the vayvod, partly by the
prospect of the favours and distinctions of a foreign court,
rallied round Ferdinand of Austria, brother of the emperor
Charles V., who, in addition to the family alliance upon which
he grounded his right, urged the claims arising from his com¬
pact with his brother-in-law, Louis II. A year later Ferdi¬
nand likewise received the royal unction, and war accord¬
ingly commenced. Assisted by his brother Charles, and the
hereditary States, Ferdinand sent an army into Hungary, be¬
fore which his over-confident rival was soon compelled to
retire. Zapolya took refuge for a time in Poland, whence he
solicited aid both from Soliman and Francis I. of France. The
French king, then at war with the emperor Charles Y., could
hardly do more for Zapolya than send an ambassador to Hun¬
gary laden with fair promises. But the powerful Sultan,
though equally importuned by Ferdinand, determined to aid
the native king. A large Ottoman army, led by Soliman in per¬
son, entered Hungary in 1529, and drove the Austrians before
them to the gates of Vienna. An attempt to take that capital
having failed, the Sultan retraced his steps. After the conclu-
HUNGARY.
Hungary, sion of an armistice between Ferdinand and Zapolya, the
v _ b J'j war Was renewed, and at last peace was concluded at Gross-
wardein in 1538. The basis of this peace was the partition
of Hungary—Zapolya retaining Transylvania and several
counties on the Theiss, and Ferdinand Western Hungary,
Croatia, and Sclavonia. After the death of Zapolya the whole
kingdom was to revert to Ferdinand. An additional clause
provided for a future alliance between the offspring of the two
rivals. Two years afterwards Zapolya died, leaving a son
called Sigismund. The queen dowager Elizabeth, backed by
a strong party, and guided by the councils of George Mar-
tinussus (who, from the position of a monk, was raised by the
deceased king to the rank of bishop), determined to gain the
throne for her infant, who was actually proclaimed King of
Hungary. The war with Ferdinand was forthwith renewed,
and occasioned the second intervention of the Turks in 1541;
the Sultan, Soliman, having vowed to protect the interests of
the infant Magyar king against the Austrians. From this
point till the close of the seventeenth century, the Ottomans
maintained the possession of the greater part of Hungary.
In 1547 Ferdinand and the emperor Charles at last suc¬
ceeded in buying from the Sultan a truce for the term of five
years, in consideration of an annual tribute of 30,000 ducats,
the young Zapolya now depending entirely on the pleasure of
his Ottoman protector. With the expiry of the truce the Turks
again took the field, and, on the grant of a new annual tribute
promised by Ferdinand, concluded a further truce for eight
years in 1562. In the meantime Ferdinand died, and was suc¬
ceeded in 1564 by his son Maximilian. The irregular pay¬
ment of the tribute having kindled the fury of Soliman, the
Janissaries were anew set in motion, to be arrested at the for¬
tress of Sziget, not by the numerous armies of the imperialists,
who wisely remained at a distance, but by a handful of Hun¬
garians, commanded by Nicholas Zrinyi. With a garrison of
but 3000 men, Zrinyi defended Sziget against the whole
Mussulman host long after its walls had been demolished ; and
when ail hope was gone, and his band was reduced to sixty
men, he threw open the gates, rushed with his followers upon
the thick masses of the besiegers, and met death sword in
hand. This event, the most remarkable in the history of
modern sieges, happened in 1566.
Meanwhile, the Reformation made rapid progress, especially
among the higher classes, who, with the exception of three
families, embraced the new creed—the Socinians gaining many
adherents in Transylvania, where they W'ere favoured by the
young Sigismund Zapolya. To preserve the Catholic Church
from annihilation, the archbishop Olah invoked the aid of the
Jesuits, the most renowned among whom was one named Peter
Canisius, commonly called Canis Austriacus. In 1576 Maxi¬
milian died, and was succeeded by his dreamy, bigoted son,
Rudolph, with whom the days of religious persecution com¬
menced. In Transylvania religious liberty found a protector in
Stephan Bathory, who was elected prince, with the consent of
the Sultan Selim, in 1571. The efforts of the Jesuits to kindle
the resentment of this prince, who subsequently became so
greatly distinguished as king of Poland, completely failed. A
well-known saying of his was, “ that God reserved exclusively
to himself three things—to create something out of nothing ;
to know the future; and to rule over conscience.”
The persecutions commenced in Hungary Proper against the
Protestants, under the legal sanction of a dietal enactment
passed in 1604, gave rise to fresh war. Stephan Bocskay, the
leader of the Protestants, protected by the Porte, after having
gained several victories over the imperialists, and penetrated
into Austria, soon cooled the fanaticism of Rudolph, and
a peace was concluded at Vienna in 1606. With Matthias
II., brother of Rudolph, the dawn of happier days was
ushered in. His reign, however, lasted but a few years, and
Hungary was destined soon to experience the fanaticism of
Ferdinand II., the hero of the “ Thirty Years’ War.”
The accession of Ferdinand II. to the throne was signalized by
the rise of the Protestants of Bohemia, and the renewal of per¬
secutions in Hungary. The latter were fomented by the Jesuit
primate Peter Pazman, the most learned of the Hungarian
prelates. In this emergency Hungary found a defender in
Gabriel Bethlen, prince of Transylvania, a zealous Protes¬
tant. Bethlen entered into an alliance with the Porte, with
the Protestants of Austria, and with the Bohemians. The
Bohemians had elected as their prince, Frederick of the Pfalz,
21
son-in-law of James I. of England. The revolutions in the Hungary,
seraglio at Constantinople, and.the dastardly conduct of Frede- ^
rick, content to abandon his subjects and save himself by flight,
destroyed in embryo this combination. Notwithstanding, the
Transylvanian prince, after having gained several advan¬
tages over the imperialists, led by Bouguoi, forced Ferdinand
to a peace, which was concluded at Nikolsburg in 1621. . By
the terms of this treaty, Ferdinand engaged to observe strictly
all the laws of the country, and maintain inviolate the pri¬
vileges of the Protestants ; and Bethlen was acknowledged
prince of Transylvania and of seven counties, of Hungary
Proper, and promised the possession of the duchies of Oppeln
and Ratisbon, in Silesia. The infraction of this treaty on
the part of the emperor led to a second war, which terminated
in another peace, concluded in 1628 at Presburg. And now,
when the Protestant party were about to receive a formidable
defender in Gustavus Adolphus, Bethlen suddenly died. Mean¬
while, the Jesuits succeeded in regaining to the Roman Church
many of the most powerful of the aristocracy, who carried
along with them their numerous serfs. Ferdinand dying in
1637, and the religious persecutions being continued during
the reign of his son and successor, Ferdinand III., the country
was again exposed to the horrors of war, and in the present
instance also the national cause found a defender in the prince
of Transylvania, George Rakoczy, who extorted the peace of
Lintz, concluded in 1645. His elder son having preceded
Ferdinand III. to the grave, he was succeeded by his second
son, Leopold, whose reign forms the most tragic page in Hun¬
garian annals.
At his coronation this prince engaged himself to maintain
the lawrs of the country in a diploma containing the important
provision, that without the consent of the diet no war should
be proclaimed, nor foreign troops introduced into the country.
Despite these promises, however, Leopold ordered fresh troops
to enter Hungary, ostensibly for the purpose of protecting his
partisan, Kemeny, in Transylvania, against Abafi, the de¬
signated prince of the Porte, but actually for the suppression
of the heretics. Hereupon the Grand Vizier led his forces up
the Danube, but, aided by a corps sent by Louis XIV. of
France, the imperialists gained the battle of St Gotthard (1664),
a victory which Leopold availed himself of for signing a hasty
peace with the infidels, in order the more easily to check the
heretics. Persecutions, as well as depredations, which fell
equally heavy on the Catholics, now followed each other in rapid
succession, and the result was, that the most devoted magnates
of the House of Austria conspired to save the nation from ruin.
The heads of this conspiracy were the palatines Vesselenyi,
Peter Zriny, the ban of Croatia, and the chief-justice Nadasdy.
The plot having been prematurely discovered, these leaders
were partly seized and partly decoyed to Vienna, placed be¬
fore a foreign tribunal, and executed. The consternation be¬
came general, and the archbishop Szelepcseny established a tri¬
bunal at Presburg, before which upwards of 200 Lutheran and
75 Calvinist ministers were compelled to appear. The mad zeal
went so far as to sell many of those victims as galley-slaves,
some of whom recovered their liberty (at Naples, whither they
had been conveyed), by the intercession of the Dutch admiral,
John de Haen. The Protestants, in despair, rose inarms, and
found an intrepid leader in Emeric Tokoli (1678). The Mar¬
quis de Bethune, the ambassador of Louis XIV. in Poland,
greatly encouraged the Hungarians, and concluded a treaty
with Tokoli, from which much was expected, but which re¬
mained unfulfilled in consequence of the conclusion of the peace
of Nimeguen. No other ally was thus left to Hungary except
the Porte, not a very reliable friend in hours of extreme dan¬
ger. The grand vizier, Kara Mustapha, who, despite the re¬
monstrances of Tokoli, marched straight forward to Vienna
(1683), was, as is well known, compelled to raise the siege, and
then routed, by the valour of Sobiesky, king of Poland. The
misfortunes that henceforth overtook the Turks in Hungary, the
alliance with Tokoli, and the fate of the malcontents, were but
little thought of at Constantinople, then ruled over by imbecile
Sultans. Nor did the court of Vienna neglect to attempt ren¬
dering Tokoli an object of suspicion to the Porte, in conse¬
quence of which he was thrown into chains and carried prisoner
to Constantinople. Leopold now took revenge upon Hun¬
gary. A scaffold wTas erected in the market-place of Eperies,
in the month of March 1687, and kept standing to the end of
the year. For nine long months the Hungarians beheld their
22 HUNGARY.
Hungary, countrymen dragged to open butchery, and if contemporary
historians are to be believed, the executioners were weary of
sacrificing the multitude of victims, which were without much
distinction delivered up to them. These massacres, perpetrated
under the auspices of General CarafFa, are known in the Hun¬
garian annals by the name of the Butcheries of Eperies. The
scaffolds were yet standing when the emperor caused the diet
to proclaim the crown of Hungary hereditary, and to crown his
son Joseph. After these massacres Tdkoli, now released from
imprisonment, again called the people to arms, resting his hopes
of success on fresh engagements with the Porte. But the vic¬
tories of Prince Eugene, which resulted in the Peace of Carlo-
witz in 1699, gradually dissipated all hopes, and the patriotic
leader, with his followers, had no other chance left but to seek
refuge in the Turkish territory at Nicomedia.
The oppressive rule was persevered in even after the total
destruction of the national party ; but by an almost incredible
vitality, the nation at large was, three years after the peace of
Carlowitz, enabled again to make a gigantic effort for inde¬
pendence. The victory of the Austrians under Prince Eugene,
which led to the peace of Carlowitz, was gained in 1697, at
Zenta, a village on the Theiss. By this peace the Porte aban¬
doned Hungary and Transylvania to the emperor, but was con¬
firmed in the possession of the Banat. The relinquishing of
this fertile province to the Turks, as well as the fact that the
emperor concluded that peace without the knowledge of the
States, was sufficient to create the indignation even of the Aus¬
trian party, which largely affected their subsequent success.
The leader in this fresh war, which lasted from 1703-1711,
was Francis Raykoczy, prince of Transylvania. Its issue
greatly depended on the great European war then carried
on between France on the one hand, and England, Holland,
and Austria on the other. Louis XIV. too well felt how fa¬
vourable a diversion the war in Hungary created for his inte¬
rests not to encourage and negotiate with Prince Raykoczy;
while on the other hand, England and Holland were equally
anxious to render him inclined to accept peace.
Through the mediation of the envoys of these two countries
a temporary armistice was concluded, and deliberations for a
final settlement of disputes were in course, when the victories
of Eugene and Marlborough rendered all appearance of mo¬
deration on the part of Austria superfluous. Hostilities thus
recommenced, and were at first in favour of the Hungarians,
who assembled in Onod (1707), and declared the Hapsburg
dynasty dethroned. But the favourable turn which affairs
took on the Rhine enabled the Emperor Joseph to send rein¬
forcements to the Danube, and the cause of the confederates
began rapidly to decline. Raykoczy, discouraged and deceived
in his expectations with regard to France and Charles XII. of
Sweden, left the battle-field for Poland, under the pretence of
seeking aid, and in his absence peace was concluded (1711) by
Karoly, the chief of the Hungarian generals. At this juncture
Joseph I. died, and was succeeded by his brother Charles VI.
h rom this time no serious disturbance or open war took
place between Hungary and her Hapsburg rulers until 1848.
Charles secured the establishment of the right of succession in
the female line. This right, known by the name of “ Prag¬
matic Sanction,” he obtained at the diet of 1722. In the year
1740 Charles died, leaving his throne to his daughter Maria
Theresa, after having exasperated the minds of the nation by
the issue of the war made in common with Anne, empress of
Russia, upon the Porte, and which ended in abandoning to the
i ur^s the fortress of Belgrade, and several other districts that
belonged to the Hungarian crown.
Ihe share which Hungary had in saving the Austrian em¬
pire from complete dissolution, during the reign of Maria
Iheresa, is too familiar to be here described. Threatened by
Prussia, Bavaria, and France, and appearing at Presburg as a
fugitive, she had to appeal but once to the magnanimity and
compassion of the States to make all of them shout with tears
in their eyes, Moriamur pro recje nostro, and to make them
immediately effect the insurrectio, or the general rise of the
nobles. This tragico-dramatic scene took place on the 11th of
September 1/41, the young sovereign addressing in Latin the
ordines regni with her infant Joseph—but six months old—
in her trembling arms.
The chief merit of Maria Theresa lay in alleviating the con¬
dition of the serfs by the salutary changes which she effected
m the feudal system. These reforms are known by the name of
Urbarium. Transylvania was raised into a principality ; the Hungary.
Banat, which had been governed separately since its recovery i B <
from the Turks, was incorporated anew into the mother coun¬
try, while the littorale, or the district of Fiume, likewise re¬
ceived a Hungarian government. Besides the establishing of
the Theresianum in Vienna, Maria Theresa enlarged the uni¬
versity at Tyrnau, which in 1777 was transferred to Buda—es¬
tablished military schools for the nobles in Waitzen and Klau-
senburg, four academies at Tyrnau, Raab, Agram, and Kashau,
and regulated the whole system of instruction. In short, her
repeated and long stays at Buda, her measures in favour of
commerce, and the creation of a Hungarian guard, were all
calculated to gain for her the affections of the nation, though
her consent to the repeated persecutions of the Protestants,
instigated by the Jesuits and some of the prelates, does not re¬
dound to her honour. One of the Hungarian bishops, Martin
Biro, went so far in his zeal as to publish a pamphlet in
which, to save the credit of the Church of Rome for blood¬
shed, he strongly advised the burning of the heretics. Even
Frederick the Great, at a distance, felt shocked at the pro¬
cedure of that sanguinary prelate, of which the queen-em¬
press took no cognizance at all. In 1780 Maria Theresa
died, and was succeeded by her son Joseph, the last of the
male line in the Hapsburg family.
The reign of this philosophic monarch produced events of a
different character. Hurried away by his zeal for reform,
Joseph, whose Edict of Toleration shocked all bigoted minds,
and who aspired at transforming the Austrian States into a
uniform monarchy, thought it better to dispense with diets,
and so pay no regard whatever to ancient usages, and conse¬
quently began to govern Hungary by edicts. Not content
with this, he enjoined the exclusive use of the German lan¬
guage in the schools, courts of justice, and administration, and
imprudently carried the crown of St Stephan to Vienna. To
crown all, the exorbitant taxes which he raised for the prose¬
cution of a war against Turkey, in conjunction with Catherine
II. of Russia, produced new discontent. The whole country
was thus on the eve of a general war, when the king-emperor
recalled all his edicts, promised redress, and suddenly died
(1790). His brother and successor, Leopold, was obliged to
confirm the liberties and rights of Hungary in a more explicit
manner than any of his predecessors had done.
Leopold was succeeded by his son Francis at a time when
all the dynasties of Europe were meditating the destruction of
revolutionary France. Francis swore to the laws of Hungary
as readily as the other Hapsburgs had been in the habit of
doing ; and the States of Hungary contented themselves with
furnishing the Viennese court with men and money. The king
had but to mention the dangers with which the throne and the
“glorious privileges” of the feudal lords were threatened by the
French Revolution, and levy followed levy en masse. The
feudal lords of the Danube were not even impelled by a feeling
of curiosity to think a while of what happened on the Seine.
One abbot, Martinovich, and a few others, who pondered over
the Declaration of ihe Rights of Men, paid for their curi¬
osity with their lives.
No other Hapsburg king of Hungary convoked the States so
regularly and at such short intervals as Francis I. did, from the
commencement of the Great War to the period when (as the
phrase ran), to save Europe, he sacrificed his daughter Maria
Louise; and at no other period were the Hungarian nobles
more lavish in sacrificing their lives and treasures. In the
year 1809 alone 50,000 nobles took the field, and their equip¬
ment entailed an outlay of more than 14,000,000 florins, be¬
sides the armaments of the counties. At the same time Hun¬
gary became inundated with bad coin and paper money, and
was made to feel deeply the effects of the Austrian state bank¬
ruptcy. The States then began to approach the throne with
loud complaints ; but the close of the Great War led the em¬
peror to choose, for the sake of avoiding useless recrimination,
the easy method of altogether discontinuing the holding of the
diets. This system was persevered in amid loud manifesta¬
tions of discontent, till the year 1825, when the convening of
the States and the exculpatory speech of the monarch again
restored harmony between him and his subjects. It is to this
date that the reform movement in Hungary, resulting in 1848
in the abolition of feudality, must be traced. The reconcilia¬
tion of the Viennese court, where Prince Metternich, the per¬
sonal friend of the emperor, possessed the greatest influence,
Hungary.
HUNGARY. 23
to the idea of constitutionalism in Hungary, was no doubt
much owing to the unsettled state of Europe, and in particu¬
lar to the war of independence of the Greeks, which reacted
on all the Christian provinces of the Ottoman empire.
Upon the whole, the diet of 1825 was of a retrospective cha¬
racter, but it remained immovable from the appearance of
Count Stephan Szechenyi. The young count, then a captain
in a hussar regiment, startled the lords spiritual and temporal,
who strictly adhered to the use of Latin, by delivering his
speech in the Magyar tongue ; and on that occasion he, more
than any other magnate, contributed to the establishment of a
Hungarian academy, or learned society, otfering towards this
object his income of one year. This diet being ended, he left
the army, and boldly assuming the task of a reformer, began
to apply himself to political writing. He advocated the re¬
dress of some grievances connected with feudal tenure, reform
in the laws relating to credit, and an increase and improve¬
ment of the means of internal communication. The effects
produced by his writings were shown in the spirit of the
diet of 1832, when earnest appeals were made by the liberals
in favour of the peasantry, and when the antiquated privi¬
leges of the nobles began to be called by their right names.
A loud cry was also raised on behalf of Poland, then suffering
all the horrors of a vanquished people. The results of that
diet, however, were futile, although the progress which the
idea of reform made in public opinion had by that time be¬
come palpable enough. Next to Szechenyi—engaged with the
creation of clubs, the introduction of horse-racing, and plans
for the regulation of the rivers, and for railway lines and
other public works—the pioneers in the path of progress were
Francis Kolesey, the most classical of Hungarian authors;
Stephan Bezeredi, who may be styled the Wilberforce of the
Hungarian serfs; Francis Deak; Gabriel Klauzal; and Eu¬
gene Bocthy. The last—who, after a stay of a few years in
Britain, died in 1854 an exile in Hamburgh—was remarkable
for his wit and his extempore harangues, and contributed
much to the progress made in matters pertaining to religion.
The Viennese court, to intimidate public discussion, resolved
to visit a few of the liberals with imprisonment,'—a fate which
fell also to the lot of Louis Kossuth. But this arbitrary con¬
duct served only to render more animated the diet of 1840.
On this occasion, too, when the question of the liberty of speech
came under debate,the voice of Szechenyi made itself be heard
with more freedom than that of any other nobleman, unequi¬
vocally stating the difficulty of a true union between constitu¬
tional Hungary and absolute Austria. The noble orator, in
hinting to the court of Vienna to abandon its denationalizing
measures, exclaimed—“ We may perhaps be murdered, but
w e can never be fused into the Austrian dominions ; nay, it is
a question whether we can even be murdered—I at least do
not believe it.” The results of this diet were also nugatory.
Public discussion, however, entered into a new phase, in con¬
sequence of the appearance of the political journal (Pesti-
Hirlap) edited by Louis Kossuth. The effects of his leading
articles were rapid and unexampled, exciting the attention of
the most benighted and most apathetic. At this juncture
Szechenyi stepped in to oppose his schemes, in a pamphlet
called The People of the East, which served to add to the
importance of the Pesti-Hirlap. Another adversary that
rose against Kossuth was Count Dessefy Aurel, who became
the editor of a conservative journal.
Despite the influence of Kossuth’s labours as a journalist,
and the stimulus given to public opinion by the liberal ten¬
dency of the literature, then in its most flourishing state, all
that the diet of 1843 accomplished was an enactment confer¬
ring on the serfs the right to purchase their complete inde¬
pendence by paying a sum equivalent to the value of the land
they possessed. Marriages between Roman Catholics and
Protestants, solemnized by Protestant clergymen, were de¬
clared to be legal, and provision was made for enabling Roman
Catholics to make a legal transfer of their profession from the
Popish to a Protestant creed.
With reference to the use of the native idiom, or the Mag¬
yar, it was enacted,—ls£, That it shall henceforth supersede the
Latin in the speeches from and the addresses to the throne ;
2d, That it should be used in the central courts of administra¬
tion and in the public schools, as well as in the diet. Croatia
was exempted from the general rule, and left free to use Latin
as its own tongue in the courts and assemblies. With regard
to the diet, however, the Croatian members were exempted Hungary,
from using the Hungarian language only for the term of the ^
next six years. Howrever reasonable it was to substitute in
the dietal debates a living idiom for the Latin, and however
true it was that no other idiom except the Hungarian or
Magyar could have been made the parliamentary or diplomatic
language, these measures gave rise to a feeling of animosity
in Croatia, which produced melancholy results. The question
that was followed by a complete failure in the diet of 1843,
was that which related to the commercial interest of Hungary.
Hungarian commerce having long been obstructed by toll and
custom duties established between Hungary and Austria, the
liberal party now determined to remedy the evil by a radical
change. In this their efforts proved unavailing, though an
experiment was afterwards made to encourage home industry
by way of association,—an idea conceived by Kossuth, and
readily supported by Count Casmir Batthanyi. Meanwhile a
new step of the court of Vienna served greatly to increase the
political excitement of the country. As observed in the proper
place, the counties which alone were able to withstand the en¬
croachments of the Viennese court were governed by sheriffs,
nominated by election for the term of three years,while the no¬
minal head of each county was the lord-lieutenant—a dignity,
in some instances a hereditary privilege of some families, but in
the main conferred by the crown, and anything but lucrative.
To render ineffectual the passive resistance of the county muni¬
cipalities, Metternich hit upon the scheme of introducing a new
class of officials, called administrators, both in counties where
the office of lord-lieutenantcy was vacant, and in some in¬
stances despite the actual lord-lieutenant. This measure
alarmed all who wrere in favour of constitutional government.
The county assemblies and the daily press echoed with this
question, and the liberals were soon split into two parties.
The Kossuth party urged the re-affirmation of the county in¬
stitutions, while a newer party, called the centralists, insisted
on the nomination of a responsible ministry. The leaders of
the latter party were Baron Oetvbs, Ladislaus Szalay, who
followed Kossuth in the editing of the Pesti-Hirlap, and af¬
terwards also M. Szcmere, who in 1848 became minister of
home affairs. On the approach of the elections for the diet of
1847, both liberal parties coalesced, having published their
political creed in a programme.
In this important document, in declaring that they will avail
themselves of all the means allowable to an opposition in a con¬
stitutional country, the liberals laid down the following points,
to carry out which they promised to devote all their energies
at the next session:—1. Reform in the feudal system. 2. The
due representation of the towns. 3. Equality before the law.
4. General taxation for all classes, nobles and commoners. 5.
Publicity in the courts. 6. The reunion of Transylvania with
the mother country. 7. Liberty of the press ; and, finally,
a responsible ministry. They particularly appealed in this
document to the laws of 1790, sanctioned by Leopold II., which
distinctly declare that in its administration Hungary is an
independent country, having nothing in common with the laws
and institutions of the other parts composing the Austrian
empire ; and declared, moreover, that, while thus striving after
reform, they by no means intended to place the interests of
Hungary in opposition, to those of the entire monarchy. An
additional feature of this programme was the intimation, that,
had the hereditary provinces of Austria continued to enjoy their
former liberties, or, if a constitutional existence were granted to
those provinces, then there would be no difficulty whatever in
reconciling the interests of Hungary with those of the whole
monarchy.
On the ilth of November 1847 the diet was opened by King
Ferdinand V. in person, the business having, according to
usage, commenced with debates on the proposals of the crown.
The first duty was the election of a palatine in the person of
the Archduke Stephan, who was appointed to the office. In the
address to the throne, particular stress was laid, along with
the mention of other gravamina or grievances, on the recent
change introduced into the county administration. The final
solution of the reform questions, especially opposed by the
upper table or the House of Lords, was quickened by the un¬
expected February revolution of Paris. A numerous deputa¬
tion conveyed the demands of the diet to Vienna. The troubled
state of Lombardo-Venetia, and the revolutionary aspect of
the capital, followed by the flight of Metternich, allowed the
24 HUNGARY.
Hungary, court but short time for equivocation ; and Count Louis Bat-
thanyi, who had latterly served the cause of reform, was
entrusted by his majesty with the formation of a Hungarian
responsible ministry. Its members were :—Home atfairs,
M. Szemere ; foreign affairs, Prince Paul Esterhazy ; finance,
Kossuth; justice, Leak ; public works, Count Szechenyi; pub¬
lic instruction, Baron Oetvos; commerce, Klauzal; and war,
Meszaras, then colonel in the army of Radetzky in Italy. The
principal laws passed were,—The abolition of feudality ; gene¬
ral taxation for all classes ; the extension of the franchise to
commoners, including also those occupying the military fron¬
tiers ; the equality of all received religions, including the Uni¬
tarians ; the reunion of Transylvania with the mother country ;
liberty of the press ; and trial by jury. On the 11th of April
King Ferdinand repaired to Presburg, and closed the diet amid
the enthusiastic acclamations of the people.
As it afterwards became manifest, the court of Vienna, far
from readily acquiescing in these reforms, rather meant them
as a bait for drawing large supplies from Hungary against the
Italian provinces, having immediately conceived the unenvi¬
able idea of preventing the consolidation of the new state of
affairs by fanning internal discord. This was easily accom¬
plished. The Rascians, who chiefly inhabit the Banat, and
the Croats, demanded separate rights and separate administra¬
tion, and instantly commenced to arm. The Rascians, who
first unsheathed the sword of civil war, and many of whom
were military borderers inured to arms, soon gained the as¬
cendancy over the Magyars and Germans that inhabited the
same districts, while their large supplies of arms and ammuni¬
tion clearly indicated that they were receiving external assist¬
ance. Nor was it long before it became evident that Austrian
officers were in their camps, directing their plans of attack.
This state of things could not but hasten a collision between
the Hungarian ministry and the court of Vienna with regard to
a most sensitive question,—the army,—the former having ne¬
cessarily urged the recall of the Hungarian regiments. With¬
out complying with this demand, the Viennese court—which
as yet feigned surprise at what happened in Southern Hungary,
and stigmatized the Rascians and Croats as rebels—placed at
the disposal of the Hungarian ministry a few foreign regiments,
the commanders of which were soon found to be acting accord¬
ing to secret orders. The ranks of the Rascians were also
swelled by levies openly made in Servia by the Austrian con¬
sul. While the Banat was thus all but a smouldering flame,
Transylvania was becoming the theatre of a no less savage
conflict. The Wallachs, that fine but neglected race, inflamed
against their former feudal lords, and furnished with arms,
destroyed Magyars, and everything that belonged to Magyars,
with indiscriminate fury. The Saxons, flattered with hopes of
great separate privileges, though preferring to keep within the
walls of their towns, likewise contributed to the carnage; and,
in addition to this general distress, Baron Jellaehich (lately
nominated Ban of Croatia) undisguisedly prepared an expe¬
dition against Pesth. The ministers turned to the fountain of
justice, and King Ferdinand readily issued proclamations ad¬
monishing the “ rebels ” to peace and obedience; while the
“rebels,” in strange mockery, were boasting at that very mo¬
ment of fighting for the king and his throne.
Amid this slaughter and devastation, the court of Vienna,
directing its conduct in Hungary according to the state of
the war in Lombardo-Venetia, went a step further in its dis¬
simulation. The diet was convoked at Pesth with the avowed
object of providing for the defence of the country (July 5). In
the speech from the throne, the palatine, who opened the diet
as vice-regent, declared the determination of the king to pro¬
tect the integrity of the Hungarian throne. The secret ob¬
ject in view of the imperial dynasty in convoking the diet,
as it appeared, was to obtain fresh levies for Italy, an idea
sufficiently extravagant. The parliamentary deliberations
on that head were however cut short by the approach of
the Ban Jellachich. Count Batthanyi resigned, and Kossuth
determined to proceed to the country and" call the people to
arms. The terror of the Croatian invasion soon proved a
farce. Having advanced till within 25 miles from Pesth, the
Ban was defeated in an engagement which took place at
Paakozd, and fled toward the Austrian frontiers during a
three days’ armistice that was granted to him. A few days
afterwards, his rear, consisting of 10,000 men, was compelled
to a surrender. The court now prepared for a regular in¬
vasion of Hungary, while the diet was equipping the levy of Hungary.
200,000 men formerly decreed, and from which decree royal v -l -
sanction had been withheld. Meanwhile a dynastic revolution
was accomplished. The weak Ferdinand was made to resign and
to give place to his cousin, the Archduke Francis Joseph, son
of Francis Charles, the heir-apparent to the throne. The new
emperor proclaimed his ascension in a manifesto, announcing,
among the primary things, the reduction of Hungary, while
at. the same time the diet declared this dynastic change uncon¬
stitutional and illegal. The real intentions of the court had
been shortly before divulged by the interception of the cor¬
respondence of Count Latour, the Austrian minister of war,
and the seizure of the papers of the palatine, who had fled to
Vienna when he was supposed to be repairing to the camp
to take the lead of the Hungarian troops.
Having dispersed a Slavonic congress held at Prague, and
reduced the capital to obedience, Prince Windischgratz, joined
by the troops of the ban, began marching against Pesth. A
part of the Hungarian national army, or the Honveds, which
opposed his progress, were commanded by Gorgei, lately a
subaltern officer in the Austrian army. Without meeting
much opposition, the Austrians advanced, in the beginning of
1849, to the vicinity of Pesth, which they occupied, after the
diet and the committee of public defence had determined to
transfer their seat to Debreczin, a town situated on the
upper side of the Theiss. The heavy falls of snow, the se¬
verity of the season, the badness of the roads, naturally en¬
joined on the Austrian commander the necessity of a short
respite, and during that interval the national government
gained time for effecting a concentration of troops, and for
procuring the materiel of war. With regard to the latter,
the efforts and inventive powers of Kossuth surpassed every
expectation.
On the advance of the Austrians in February 1849, the
first engagement which took place at Kapolna proved decisive
for neither party ; but, a few days afterwards, a Hungarian
corps, withdrawn from the Lower Danube, and commanded by
Damyanics, one of the most valiant of officers, routed the
Austrians at Szolnok. In the meantime, the Gorgei corps,
which, at the taking of Pesth by the Austrians, made a flank
movement to the north, made its way amid numerous priva¬
tions and difficulties through the Carpathians to join the army
on the Theiss ; while in Transylvania the war entered into
quite a new phasis. After the Hungarians, led by the intre-
'pid Bern, a general known as a Polish hero since 1830, had
defeated both the Austrians commanded by General Puchner,
and the Wallachs, application was made to Russia, and Ge¬
neral Luders, the Russian commander in the Danubian
Principalities, forthwith penetrated into Transylvania, occu¬
pying Hermanstadt and Cronstadt, two towns inhabited by
the Saxons. Even this foreign aid proved ineffectual. The
victorious national legions led by Bern, took Hermanstadt by
storm, and compelled both the Russians and Austrians to seek
safety in the territories of the Porte.
By this time a large national army was ready on the Theiss
to commence the offensive against Windischgratz. The com¬
mand was given to Gorgei, and the different corps were led by
Damyanics, Klapka, and Aulich. After crossing the Theiss,
the Hungarians, in a high pitch of enthusiasm, advanced
on the road leading to Pesth, meeting with the first serious
resistance at the mountains of Godold. After an obstinate
battle the Austrians were driven from their positions, and
successively defeated in four other pitched battles, the bloodiest
of which was that of Isaszeg, fought on the 6th of April.
Windischgratz, abandoning the capital to the rebels, hastened
to recross the Danube, leaving behind a small garrison at
Buda.
Amid these victories, Kossuth, the president of the commit¬
tee of public safety, proposed in the diet the dethronement of
the Hapsburg dynasty, and the proposal was carried by accla¬
mation. Hatred to the Austrian dynasty was much increased,
both in consequence of its having called in the Russians, and
by the new constitution promulgated (March 4) by the emperor
Francis Joseph, which made & tabula rasa of all the ancient
laws of Hungary. The substance of the act of independence,
passed on the 14th of April, runs to the following effect:—That
the House of Hapsburg having treacherously levied war against
the nation, broken up the integrity of the kingdom, and called
in the aid of a foreign power to accomplish its aims, has by
HUNGARY.
25
Hungary.
these facts destroyed all the treaties that bound it to Hungary,
and is therefore declared for ever excluded from the throne of
the Hungarian kingdom. The future form of government was
to be fixed afterwards, and in the meantime Kossuth was no¬
minated governor, and a new responsible ministry formed.
The legislators at Debreczin little suspected that that very
moment couriers between Vienna and Petersburg were pre¬
paring a second Russian invasion, and that Europe would raise
no voice against such an act. The English and French go¬
vernments refused even to admit into their presence the Hun¬
garian envoys. Though the warlike preparations of Russia
were now immense, the Hungarians, under Damyanics, gained
(April 18) the battle of Nagy Sarlo, which, if followed up, would
have placed in their hands the Austrian capital, and thus have
rendered them secure against Russian power. The commander-
in-chief, Gorgei, however, instead of advancing, led the army
back to Buda, which, after a three weeks’ siege, was taken
by assault on the 21st of May; the divisions of Generals
Nagy and Kmety having been the first to scale the ram¬
parts. The Russians meanwhile concentrated their forces in
Poland, while the Hungarian government, not to ofi'end
European diplomacy, proved its forbearance, by refusing to
order the corps of observation in the north to advance into
Galicia, and thus anticipate the Russian invasion. Neither
Russia nor the Western powers showed any sense of this mo¬
deration.
The Russians, commanded by Paskiewitsch, began to pour in
upon the Hungarian territory in June. As is evident from
the official Russian statement, Paskiewitsch’s army consisted of
168 battalions of infantry, 138 squadrons of cavalry, besides 52
of Cossacks ; with 68 generals, 359 staff officers, and 528 guns.
The army commanded by Luders, which invaded Transylva¬
nia, numbered 28 infantry battalions, 16 squadrons of cavalry,
18 of Cossacks, with 56 guns ; 11 generals, and 58 staff officers.
The whole invading army thus amounted to upwards of
200,000 men. The Austrians were now placed under the com¬
mand of Haynau, who was at Presburg, joined by a Russian
corps under General Panutin. The fact alone, that no pro¬
test was made, no word raised against the Russian invasion,
served greatly to discourage both the people and the national
troops. The combined armies of the two emperors reaped no
small advantages from the refractoriness of Gorgei, who, jea¬
lous of his comrades, prevented a speedy concentration of the
troops. Obliged for the second time to abandon the capital,
the diet and government repaired now to Szegedin, a town
situated on the Theiss. After occupying Pesth, Haynau and
the Russian corps joined to his army advanced towards the
new seat of the diet; and at the same time the main body of
the Russians advanced in two columns upon Miskolcz and
Debreczin, The diet then transferred its seat to Arad, the
fortress of which, like Comorn and Petervardein, wTas in the
hands of the nation, and now the great struggle was drawing
to its melancholy close. In Transylvania, the army under
Bern was finally overpowered and routed ; and in H ungary,
Haynau and the Russian corps first drove the Hungarians,
commanded by Dembensky, from their position at Szegedin,
and then gained a signal victory near Temesvar (August 9).
It was two days after this latter defeat that Gdrgei, after a
flank movement, undertaken at his own suggestion, arrived at
Arad, where a pitched battle was to have been fought with
concentrated forces ; but this plan was naturally much affected
by the defeat of Temesvar. At this juncture Kossuth resigned
(August 11), having, in concert with those ministers that were
present, nominated Gorgei dictator of Hungary, and soon after¬
wards left Arad. The new dictator, who for some time back
had been negotiating with the Russians, no sooner entered
upon his office, than he at once settled with the Russian
commander-in-chief the conditions of a surrender. This was
soon accomplished on the 13th of August at Vilagos, a place
near Arad ; 24,000 men laid down their arms, and delivered
140 guns to the Russian General Rudiger. Bodies of troops
that were in the immediate vicinity were compelled to do the
same, and the fortress of Arad also opened its gates to the Hungary.
Russians. The belief of many among the Hungarian army,
it may be observed, was, that the Grand Duke Constantine was
to be the king of Hungary, and that he promised to give a
constitution.
A few thousand men followed Bern and Guyon to Turkey,
whither Kossuth and several others of the principal leaders
had retreated, while all the prisoners of war were delivered by
the Russians to General Haynau; and by the 2d of October
the last rock of hope disappeared in the capitulation of Co-
morn, governed by General Klapka. “ Hungary jay now en¬
tirely prostrate. The Russians began to take their backward
route to the north and east, the Servians returned to the
south, only the Austrians remaining with their commander
Haynau, surrounded by bloody tribunals and hangmen. In
almost every town of importance sat these foreign judges, to
whom Francis Joseph confided the complete pacification of
Hungary. Arad and Pesth, however, were the centres of
these judicial proceedings. By an inexorable decree of Hay¬
nau, all the officers below the rank of a general, if not con¬
signed to prison, were pressed as privates into the Austrian
service, while the generals were sentenced to perish by the
rope.” The following eleven generals perished on the gal¬
lows at Arad on the 6th of October :—Kiss, Torok, Aulich,
Lahner, Schweidel, Lemingen, Yecsey, Knezich, Nagy Sander,
and Damyanics. The last, the Hector of the Hungarian army,
was dragged to the scaffold, despite his fractured leg. On the
same day were executed at Pesth with the bullet, Count
Louis Batthanyi, Baron Prenyi, and several others, whose
memory is endeared to the nation.
Despite the fact, that the constitution promulgated by the
emperor in March 1849, meant to give equal rights to all the
parts of the monarchy, was subsequently declared inappli¬
cable, the new regime in Hungary was based on the ruins of
all the ancient institutions. The office of the palatine, the
county municipalities, the rights and privileges of the Protes¬
tant churches, all were swept away by periodical organic laws
or ordinances. A treacherous hand dug up the crown of St
Stephan, to deliver it to the emperor. But Francis Joseph,
too glad of its possession, hitherto declined to undergo the
ceremonies of coronation. From a kingdom, Hungary thus
sunk into a province, broken up into three parts, viz., two
crown lands (the whole empire being divided into 20 crown
lands), and a vayvodship. This latter province, comprising
the Banat, consists of the counties Bacs, Krasso, Temes, To-
rontal, and part of Syrmia. The three Croatian counties,
Agram, Kreutz, and Yarasdin, and the three Sclavonian coun¬
ties, Posega, Verdze, and Syrmia, along with the Hungarian
littorale, were erected into a crown land ; the rest of the king¬
dom, divided into six districts, forms the other crown land.
Transylvania is divided into five districts.
That the people feel the loss of their political rights, and
look with anything but contentment upon the tabula rasa,
feeding a host of foreign officials, and the infinitely less plea¬
sant secret spies, may easily be understood. The exorbitant
taxes which have already ruined part of the county gentle¬
men, however, would alone suffice to keep up those feelings
which the court of Vienna flatters itself have disappeared. It
is no secret, that the 119 million florins which Hungary con¬
tributed in 1854, to the well-known voluntary loan of 500
million, was, in the proper sense, a compulsory tax, levied with
the voice of command and intimidation. As if willing still
more to brave the feelings of Hungary, the emperor surren¬
dered to the pope the privileges of the Hungarian king by
the concordat concluded in August 1855. The progress that
is being made in the improvement of the means of communica¬
tion, and the reforms introduced in several departments of
judicature, are advantages well worth mentioning. Nor ought
it to be forgotten, that, however violent the changes intro¬
duced, and however at the mercy of a few civil and military
officials, Hungary remains in possession of the noblest act of
the revolution—the liberation of the serfs. (e. s—d.)
YOL. XII.
D
26 HUN
Hungary- Hungary- Water, a distilled water prepared from the
Water t0pS 0f flowers of rosemary, and so denominated from a
TT II queen of Hungary, for whose use it was first made.
John1’’ HUNGER. See Dietetics, and Physiology.
V  • HUNGERFORD, a market-town of England, Berk-
” shire, on the Kennet, 27 miles W.S.W. of Reading. It
consists chiefly of one long street, in the centre of which
stands the market-house. It has no manufactures of im¬
portance, but carries on a considerable trade in agricultural
produce, by means of the Kennet and Avon Canal. It is
also connected, by a branch, with the Great Western Rail¬
way. There is a free grammar school in the town.
Market-day, Wednesday. Pop. (1851) 2255.
HUNNI, or Chuni, in English, Huns, the collective
name of several nomadic Scythian tribes, who contributed
powerfully to the overthrow of the Roman empire of the
West in the first half of the fifth century. Their early
history is very obscure. They seem to have belonged un¬
doubtedly to the Mongolian family, and their habits, ap¬
pearance, and physical characteristics, as described by their
contemporaries, confirm the idea. The great plains of
Tartary, on the confines of China, are assigned as the
cradle of the race, which, long before the Christian Era, had
grown strong enough to keep its neighbours in constant
alarm. The Chinese, who had suffered particularly, are
said to have built the Great Wall (about 200 b,c.) to secure
themselves from their incessant attacks. Driven back on
this side, the Huns now directed their course to the West,
and about the middle of the fourth century are found settled
in the country lying between the Caspian Sea and the
River Dniester. For about sixty years from this date they
were chiefly occupied in defending their new settlements
from the attacks of the neighbouring tribes. The most
formidable of these, the Alani, a tribe of kindred blood to
the Huns themselves, were, after many sanguinary contests,
nearly annihilated. Such of them as survived the war
were incorporated with the conquerors. About the year
376, the Huns, pursuing their westward course, attacked
the Gothic tribes on the northern side of the Danube. The
Visigoths, to the number of 200,000, took refuge in the Ro¬
man territories, where lands were allotted to them ; and the
Gruthungi, or Ostrogoths, soon followed their example.
Reinforcing their ranks from the other hordes that joined
them, and for a time making common cause with the Goths,
the Huns next attacked the Romans, and, in a great battle
near Adrianople, slew the emperor Valens. Their power
continued steadily to increase till about the middle of the
fifth century, when it culminated under Attila. (See
Attila, and Roman History.) After his death, the
various tribes which his genius had amalgamated into one
people became broken up and dispersed, and, being
attacked in detail by the Goths, who hated and feared
them as much as the Romans did, they were driven back
across the Don. Some of them settled in Pannonia, and
left an enduring trace of their presence in the name of the
country now called Hungary. A branch of the Hun family,
known as the Nephthalitae or White Huns (whose physical
characteristics were in many respects different from those
of the Huns Proper), are found invading Persia in the reign
of Firoze, but before the middle of the sixth century they
cease to be mentioned in history, and were practically
extinct. (See Ammianus Marcellinus; Priscus; Gibbon;
De Guignes’ Histoire des Huns ; Neumann’s Die Volker
des Siidichen Russlands ; and R. G. Latham in Smith’s
Diet, of Geog.)
HUNTER, John, an eminent surgeon, naturalist, and
anatomist, the brother of Dr William Hunter, was the
youngest son of John Hunter, a Scottish yeoman, and born
aboutFebruary 14,1728, at Long Calderwood, a small family
estate in the parish of Kilbride East, county of Lanark.
His mother was the daughter of a citizen of Glasgow,
HUN
named Paul, who held the office of treasurer of the corpo¬
ration. His father died when he was ten years of age, and
being, in consequence, left much to his own guidance, he
preferred country sports and occupations to literary pur¬
suits. He had a brother-in-law, a cabinetmaker in Glas¬
gow, named Buchanan, who had married his sister Agnes;
and when about seventeen years of age he went to Glas-
gpw, and stayed with Buchanan with the hope of being
able to assist in freeing him from the pecuniary difficulties
into which his convivial habits and inattention to business
had led him. It is probable that it was here, as a cabinet¬
maker, that he acquired some of the manual dexterity he
afterwards displayed, and it was this visit which probably
gave origin to the statement of his biographer Foot, that he
had served an apprenticeship to a millwright or carpenter.
When in his twentieth year John Hunter went to Lon¬
don to join his brother William, He was struck while at
Glasgow by the report of his brother’s success, and receiv¬
ing a cordial invitation to join him, he set off on horseback
in September 1748. His anatomical dexterity satisfied
his brother, who employed him in his dissecting-room
during the following winter session, and obtained leave
for him to attend the practice at the Chelsea Hospital,
under Cheselden, during the following summer. Chesel-
den was now more than sixty years of age, and had retired
in a great degree from professional life, with the highest
professional honours. It was under this great surgeon that
John Hunter received his first instruction in surgery. He
continued to attend regularly at Chelsea during the sum¬
mers of 1749 and 1750, but in the following year Chesel¬
den was obliged to withdraw from his duties in consequence
of an attack of paralysis, and Hunter entered as surgeon’s
pupil, under Pott, at St Bartholomew’s.
John Hunter was now a medical student, and seems to
have been under little restraint as to his general conduct.
He was known by the convivial and low associates with
whom he mixed as “ Jack Hunter,” a nick-name he never
wholly lost.. He was employed by his brother to provide
subjects for the dissecting-room, and became intimate with
the bold, dissolute class of men who stole bodies from the
grave, and known under the cant phrase of “ resurrection-
men.” One of the amusements in which he took particular
pleasure was to mingle with the rabble in the shilling gal¬
lery of the theatres, for the purpose of assisting to damn
the productions placed on the stage—an office in which he
is said to have displayed peculiar tact and vigour. This
taint of coarseness and vulgarity was never eradicated dur¬
ing his subsequent life.
In the summer of 1752, John Hunter went into Scot¬
land, and brought back his sister, Mrs Buchanan, now a
widow; and in 1753 he was entered as gentleman com¬
moner at St Mary’s, Oxford. This attempt on the part of
his brother William to elevate and refine his mind was un¬
successful, for in speaking of the circumstance afterwards
to Sir Anthony Carlisle, when the latter was a student, he
said, “ They wanted to make an old woman of me ; or that
I should stuff Latin and Greek at the university; but,”
added he, significantly pressing his thumb-nail on the table,
“ these schemes I cracked like so many vermin, as they
came before me.”
Having decided upon being a surgeon, John Hunter
entered, in 1754, as surgeon’s pupil at St George’s Hospi¬
tal, and continued to follow the plan of assisting in the dis¬
secting-room during the winter session, and attending hos¬
pital practice during the summer. Two years afterwards
he served the office of house-surgeon to the hospital, the
duties of which are such as particularly give the holder an
insight into practical surgery.
In May 1754, John Hunter made the dissection upon
which he laid claim to the discovery of the mode of con¬
nection between the uterus and placenta. Dr Mackenzie,
Hunter,
John.
 , '
HUNTER.
Hunter, then an assistant with Dr Smellie, had been very success-
John. ful in injecting the arteries and veins of the uterus in a
woman who had died pregnant, and applied to John Hun¬
ter for his assistance in dissecting it. This he rendered,
made anatomical preparations of the parts, and showed the
results to his brother William, who at first doubted his in¬
ferences, but afterwards acknowledged their accuracy.
Twenty years afterwards, when Dr Hunter published his
work on the Anatomy of the Human Gravid Uterus, he
gave no special credit to his brother John for the discovery,
an omission which led to a quarrel and entire severance of
their friendship.
In the year 1755 John Hunter entered into partnership
with his brother in the anatomical school, and had to de¬
liver a proportion of the lectures. He was not, however,
qualified for this position, for he had always great difficulty
in speaking extempore, an acquirement absolutely essential
to success in a teacher of anatomy. Hence, notwithstand¬
ing his thorough knowledge of his subject, he never gained
a popular style. He now turned his mind to anatomical
research in conjunction with his brother, and engaged with
him in those disputes as to priority of discovery which con¬
stantly arise from time to time amongst scientific investi¬
gators. William carried on the warfare with his pen while
John worked with the scalpel. Two of these disputes were
with the Monros—one, as to the first successful conjecture
of the tubuli testis with mercury, the other as to the func¬
tions of the lymphatics. It is generally allowed that as to
the latter the doctrine of the two Hunters was the correct
doctrine. Another dispute was with the great surgeon
Pott, whom William Hunter accused of stealing, without
acknowledgment, from himself and his brother the anatomy
of congenital hernia. Pott denied the accusation ; but, in
fact, Haller had already anticipated the Hunters. In one
particular point of the subject the credit of priority is due
to John Hunter, for he was undoubtedly the first to ex¬
plain the cause and mode of descent of the testis in the
foetus.
About this time John Hunter traced the anatomy of the
first pair of nerves within his nose. He subsequently pub¬
lished engravings in his Animal Economy, executed from
his anatomical preparations of the parts. In 1758 he com¬
pleted a series of experiments, instituted with the object of
determining the accuracy of the doctrine that the veins are
the only absorbents, and came to the conclusion that ab¬
sorption was carried on through the lymphatics and lacteals
exclusively. Modern research has shown that both are ab¬
sorbents in the vertebrata, but that in the invertebrata no
lacteals exist, and absorption takes place through the blood¬
vessels.
After having studied human anatomy for ten years, John
Hunter began the pursuit of comparative anatomy, and it
was therefore at this period of his life he laid the foundation
of his future distinction. His health, however, had began
to suffer, and in the spring of 1759 an attack of inflamma¬
tion of the lungs ended in a state of health which threatened
pulmonary disease of a phthisical character. It was, there¬
fore, thought necessary that he should leave London, and
seek a more genial climate. With this object in view, he
applied to Adair, the Inspector-General of Hospitals, for
a medical appointment in the army, who immediately made
him a staff-surgeon. John Hunter embarked early in 1761
with the armament sent to lay siege to Belleisle, during
which, although short, he had ample opportunities for treat¬
ing gun-shot wounds. In 1762 he proceeded to Portugal,
where he remained till the end of the year. In 1763 peace
was proclaimed, and John Hunter was put on half-pay.
While with the army, John Hunter studied comparative
anatomy and physiology. He made experiments on lizards
and snakes to ascertain whether digestion was carried on
during hybernation, and he instituted inquiries into the fa-
27
culty of hearing in fishes. It was during these campaigns Hunter,
that he made the greater number of his observations on John,
gun-shot wounds, and that many of his peculiar views on
inflammation were suggested.
Hewson had succeeded John Hunter in the anatomical
school; so that the latter had to decide upon his course of
life when he returned to London on half-pay. He deter¬
mined to commence practice there as a surgeon, and en¬
tered into competition with Pott, Sir Caesar Hawkins,
Bromfield, Samuel Sharp, and Warner. Although his
natural talents and professional knowledge were much in
his favour, he laboured under a great disadvantage in his
want of gentlemanly bearing and tact. “ The stone had
need be rich that is set without foil,” is a remark of the
great father of the inductive philosophy. It was long,
therefore, before John Hunter obtained a large share of
practice. As a means of increasing his income he com¬
menced to give lectures on anatomy and surgery to a pri¬
vate class; but so far were his views and talents from ex¬
citing the attention he might have reasonably expected, his
hearers never numbered twenty.
John Hunter occupied this period of forced leisure from
the labours of professional life by unremitting researches
into comparative anatomy. He got the carcases of animals
from the Tower or from itinerant zoological collections, and
would purchase rare animals for these menageries on the
condition that when they died the dead body was to be re¬
stored to him. Sir Everard Home used to state that as
soon as he had accumulated fees to the amount of ten
guineas, he always purchased some addition to his collec¬
tion. Indeed, he was sometimes quite ready to borrow
from his friends when his own cash was run out, and the
temptation great;—“ Pray, George,” said he one day to
Nicol the bookseller, with whom he was very intimate,
“ have you got any money in your pocket?” Nicol replied
in the affirmative. “ Have you got five guineas ? because,
if you have, and will lend it to me, you shall go halves.”
“ Halves in what?” inquired his friend. “Why halves in
a magnificent tiger, which is now dying in Castle Street.”
Nicol lent the money, and John Hunter got the tiger.
John LIunter had by this time fully entered into the
great business of his life, namely, the building up of human
physiology and pathology from the sure foundations of natu¬
ral history and comparative anatomy, and he pursued it with
characteristic energy and enthusiasm. As many of the inquir¬
ies and experiments he wished to make were impracticable in
a town, he purchased a piece of ground at Brompton, called
Earl’s Court, and built a small house on it. Here he had a
menagerie, and here he pursued most of the researches
which were communicated to the Royal Society, or published
in his work on the Animal Economy. It was his greatest
pleasure to attack the animals playfully, and excite them to
put into action their various instinctive methods of self-de¬
fence. On one of these occasions, a little bull, which the
queen had given to him, and with which he had been wrest¬
ling, threw him down, and would have injured him seriously,
if one of his servants had not come to his rescue. He had
also an awkward adventure with two leopards which had
broken their chains, and got amongst the dogs. The ani¬
mals had a fierce encounter, and Hunter hastened to separ¬
ate them by leading the two leopards back to their den.
When the danger was over, he became so agitated at the
recollection of it, that he fainted.
In 1767 John Hunter was elected a fellow of the Royal
Society, before his brother William, who had been ten years
longer in London. In this year he ruptured his tendo
Achillis while dancing. In 1768 he was appointed to the
office of surgeon to St George’s Hospital, and soon after be¬
came a member of the Corporation of Surgeons. He now
began to take pupils, having with each a fee of 500 guineas.
Jenner, in 1770, was one of these; but all his pupils were
HUNTER.
28
Hunter, distinguished in their profession. Hunter subsequently kept
John. Up an intimate correspondence with Jenner at Berkeley, with
wdiom he had a community of pursuits in the study of na¬
tural history. Anything curious “ either in the fish or flesh
way” was always acceptable from Jenner, who forwarded to
him hedge-hogs, fossils, salmon-spawn, bats, a porpesse,
crows’ nests, and the like.
In May 1771 Hunter published the first part of his
Treatise on the Teeth ; the second part did not appear until
1778. In 1771 he was married to Miss Home, the daughter
of a surgeon in the army. Her brother Everard was Hun¬
ter’s pupil, and was subsequently made a baronet. In 1772
he communicated to the Royal Society the results of his ob¬
servations on the post mortem digestion of the stomach by
the gastric juice. In the spring of 1773 he had an alarm¬
ing attack of spasm—the first indication of that disease of
the heart which was ultimately fatal. It seemed to have
been closely connected with his gouty predisposition, and to
have been immediately induced by severe mental emotion.
In the autumn of the same year, he commenced his first dis¬
tinct course of lectures on surgery. To him lecturing was
so irksome a task, that he never commenced his course
without taking laudanum to relieve his uneasy sensations ;
yet he continued the practice for many years. His Re¬
searches on the Torpedo were published this year. In 1774
two of his papers were published in the Transactions of the
Royal Society; one on the air-receptacles of birds, the
other on the stomach of the gillaroo trout. His professional
success was now sure, but this year was the first in which his
income exceeded L.1000. All this time his museum had
been enlarging, and his opportunities for research extend¬
ing, until it was necessary to have special help. He, there¬
fore, engaged Mr Bell for ten years as his assistant, but
he ultimately remained with him fourteen.
In 1775 Hunter entertained thoughts of founding a
School of Natural History, and sought the co-operation of
Jenner, premising that it was necessary that the latter should
be “able and willing to lay down 1000 guineas.” Jenner
declined, and the project fell through. In this year he com¬
municated to the Royal Society a paper on the heat of
animals and vegetables.
The appointment of surgeon-extraordinary to the king
was conferred upon John Hunter in 1776. In the course
of the same year, he drewr up, at the request of the Royal
Humane Society, a memoir on the means to be employed
in the recovery of drowned persons, which was published
in the Philosophical Transactions. He also commenced this
year a series of six Croonian lectures on muscular motion.
In the spring of 1777, Hunter was attacked with a cere¬
bral affection, characterized by constant vertigo and morbid
acuteness of the organs of sense ; and in the autumn of the
same year he went to Bath for three months for the benefit
of his health. Jenner saw him there, and his diagnosis of
Hunter’s disease was, that it was angina pectoris, a serious
and very painful affection of the heart.
In 1778 he presented to the Royal Society his second
memoir on the heat of vegetables and animals, and in 1779
his memoir on the hermaphrodite black cattle, orfree-mar-
tin. In 1780 he sent to the same society a paper on
the structure of the placenta, in which he claimed for him¬
self the discovery of the true mode of union between the
uterus and that organ. Five years previously, William
Hunter had claimed the same discovery in his work on the
Gravid Uterus, and it could hardly be expected that he
would allow John’s claim to pass uncontradicted. The re¬
sult of the affair was a complete estrangement on the part
of the two brothers. Three years after this, when William
was on his death-bed, John requested permission to see him,
which was granted, and he continued to attend him until
his death, and occasionally passing the catheter for him.
In March 1781 Hunter appeared as a witness in the cele¬
brated trial of Captain Donellan for the murder of his bro- Hunter,
ther-in-law, Sir Theodosius Boughton. In the same year John,
he was elected a fellow of the Royal Society of Belles Let-
tres at Gottenberg. In 1782 he completed his Croonian
lectures. In 1783 he was elected a member of the Royal
Academy of Surgery and the Royal Society of Medicine at
Paris. In the same year he began to build his museum in
Leicester Square, which was not completed until 1785.
He also, in conjunction with Dr Fordyce and others, took
an active part in 1783 in establishing the “ Society for the
Improvement of Medical and Chirurgical Knowledge.”
His paper on inflammation of the veins was published in
the first volume of the Transactions of this society.
In 1785 his cardiac affection assumed a new form, com¬
ing on in spring after the cessation of some slight symp¬
toms of gout, and continuing to recur paroxysmally during
the rest of his life, whenever he had any unusual exertion
to make or mental anxiety to suffer. He again sought
health and rest at Bath. It was after his return that he
practised the new method of tying the artery for popliteal
aneurism.
In 1786 he was appointed deputy-surgeon-general to
the army. Early in the same year he published his work on
the Venereal Disease,and. towards the close, his Animal Eco¬
nomy, which consisted chiefly of his most important papers
from the Philosophical Transactions. In 1787 his me¬
moirs on the specific identity of the wolf, jackal, and dog,
and on the structure and economy of whales, were printed
in the Philosophical Transactions. In this year, also, he
received the Copley Medal from the Royal Society, and
was elected a member of the American Philosophical So¬
ciety. He had added in 1783 the skeleton of Byrne or
O’Brien, the Irish giant, to his museum, at the cost of five
hundred pounds, and, having in all respects completed its
arrangements, he threw it open to the public during the
months of May and October in each year.
In December 1789 Hunter experienced a sudden and
entire loss of memory for half an hour, a state of the brain
evidently in intimate dependence on the state of the heart.
The spasms about the prsecordia were now so readily in¬
duced by any mental excitement that he was accustomed
to say his life “ was in the hands of any rascal who chose
to annoy and tease him.”
In 1792 he contributed his last paper to the Philosophi¬
cal Transactions, being the results of his observations on
the hive-bee for twenty years. His fondness for bees was
always great, and he had several hives in his conservatory
at Earl’s Court. In this year he resigned his lectureship
on surgery in favour of his brother-in-law Home, princi¬
pally with the view of completing his treatise on Inflamma¬
tion. He did not live, however, to see the entire work
through the press. On the 16th of October 1792, he
attended a board meeting at St George’s Hospital, with the
view of obtaining a modification of a bye-law recently
passed regulating the admission of pupils, in favour of twro
of his countrymen just come to London. In the course off
his remarks he made some statements which one of his
colleagues thought it necessary instantly and flatly to con¬
tradict. Hunter immediately ceased speaking, and hurried
into the adjoining room, where he instantly fell lifeless
into the arms of Dr Robertson, one of the physicians to the
hospital. His body was examined to ascertain the cause
of death. The carotid arteries and their branches within
the skull were in fact thickened and ossified. The result
of his pulmonary attack in 1759 was found in the form of
firm adhesions between the left lung and costal pleura; in
addition to thickening of the pericardium, the coronary ar¬
teries and tricuspid and mitral valves were much ossified.
The aortal valves were also thickened and rigid. John Hun¬
ter died in his sixty-fifth year. His body was interred in the
church of St Martin in the Fields.
HUN
Hunter, Dr In person, John Hunter has been described as about the
William, middle stature, of a vigorous and robust frame, with high
v'—shoulders and short neck. His features were rather large
and strongly marked ; his eyebrows projecting, his eyes of
a light colour, his cheeks high, his mouth somewhat under¬
hung. In mental character he was a genius, and one of a
family in which talent was hereditary. Joanna Baillie and
Dr Baillie were the children of a sister; and, besides his
brother William, another brother of the family, whose
career was cut short by death, manifested considerable
mental talent. He had a large power of induction, acute
powers of observation, a vivid and fertile imagination, and
unwearied energy. He wanted a natural refinement of
feeling; he had never been taught self-control; he had had no
literary culture. He was therefore often coarse in his lan¬
guage, violent in his temper, quarrelsome, selfish, and ego¬
tistical. Of religious sentiment he made no profession.
John Hunter’s museum was purchased in 1799 by the
nation, and placed in the keeping of the College of Surgeons
of London. The occasion was seized for securing a new
charter for the College, containing the grant of the prefix
Royal to its title, and permission to examine for its diplomas.
From this event a new era in British surgery may be dated ;
and in connection with the name of John Hunter, the “Hun¬
terian Museum” is one of the national institutions. Unfor¬
tunately, in 1812, his brother-in-law (afterwards Sir
Everard Home) took away the ten folio volumes of minutes
of dissections which John Hunter had left, along with many
other valuable papers, without permission being had from
the trustees, but with the alleged intention of preparing
from them a catalogue of the museum. Time passed on ;
no catalogue was forthcoming ; and at last, after repeated
inquiries, Home acknowledged that he had burnt the whole,
pretending that in doing so he had acted in accordance
with the directions of John Hunter. The allegation was
altogether incredible ; but another and more probable cause
was surmised, namely, that these volumes would, on exami¬
nation, have been found to have supplied the substance of
the papers which Sir Everard Home contributed to the
Royal Society in greater number than any other single
member of that distinguished body had contributed since
its foundation. (t. l.)
Hunter, Dr William, an eminent anatomist and physi¬
cian, was born on the 23d of May 1718, at Long Calder-
wood, in the parish of Kilbride East, county of Lanark,
Scotland. He was an elder brother of John Hunter, and
the seventh child of the family. His paternal great-grand¬
father was a younger son of Hunter of Hunterston, chief
of the family of that name. At the age of fourteen he
went to study at the University of Glasgow, where he re¬
mained five years. His father had designed him for the
church, but he had an insuperable aversion to theological
pursuits, and having the reputation of a good scholar, he
sought to obtain the appointment of parochial schoolmaster
in his native parish. To his great disappointment he was
unsuccessful in his application. At this time, however, he
formed an acquaintance with Cullen, afterwards the distin¬
guished professor of Edinburgh, but who was then just
established as a medical practitioner at Hamilton, and being
thereby induced to enter the medical profession, went in
1737 to reside with him. After remaining with Cullen
three years, it was agreed that they should enter into part¬
nership, and Hunter should take the surgical part of the
practice. Previously to completing this arrangement, Hun¬
ter was to study in London and Edinburgh, and on his re¬
turn to take the entire charge of the practice, so as to afford
Cullen similar advantages. A very different career was,
however, marked out for them in the metropolis of the
North and of England.
In pursuance of the plan laid down, William Hunter
attended the lectures given in the medical faculty of the
TER. 29
university during the session of 1740-41. Amongst the Hunter, Dr
courses was that of Dr Alexander Monro. In the sum- William,
mer of 1741 he went to London, and took up his residence ^
at the house of Dr Smellie, then an apothecary in Pall
Mall. He brought with him a letter of introduction to Dr
James Douglas from Mr Foulis, the famous printer of Glas¬
gow, who had been useful to Hunter in procuring for him
different editions of Horace’s works. Douglas was then en¬
gaged on a work on the bones (which, however, he did not
live to complete), and was seeking for a suitable person to
employ as a dissector. Being pleased with William Hunter,
he invited him to enter his family as tutor to his son, and
assistant to himself. This invitation was accepted, and at
the same time, by Douglas’s friendly assistance, he entered
as surgeon’s pupil at St George’s Hospital" under Mr James
Wilkie, and as a dissecting pupil under Dr Frank Nichols,
who was then one of the best anatomists of the day, and had
formerly taught anatomy at Oxford. He likewise attended a
course of experimental philosophy, delivered by Desaguliers.
Before many months had elapsed William Hunter lost
his friend and patron Douglas, who died in 1742, but he
still continued to reside in the family, and act as tutor to
the son. Before the death of Douglas he had made so
much progress in his dissections that the former had had
drawings of several of his preparations engraved. In the
year following (1743) he communicated to the Royal So¬
ciety an essay on the structure and diseases of articulat¬
ing cartilages. To teach anatomy was now his plan of
life, and he therefore began to collect preparations and take
other steps to fit himself for the pursuit. It was at this
time the foundation of his museum was laid. An opportunity
of commencing the teaching of anatomy shortly offered.
A society of naval surgeons had an apartment in Covent
Garden, where they had engaged Sharpe, the eminent sur¬
geon, to deliver a course of lectures on operative surgery.
Sharpe continued to repeat the course until, finding it in¬
convenient, he declined the task in favour of William Hun¬
ter, who gave his hearers so much satisfaction that they
engaged him to teach them anatomy.
William Hunter’s first anatomical course was delivered
to this society in 1746. Mr Watson, one of his earliest
pupils, accompanied him home after the trying moment of
his introductory discourse. He had just received seventy
guineas as admission-fees, which he carried in a bag under
liis cloak, and remarked on the way to Watson that it was
a larger sum than he had ever before possessed. The pro¬
fits of his two first courses were considerable; but in con¬
sequence of too liberally relieving the wants of some friends,
he had not money sufficient to defray the expense of the
usual advertisements of the third course, and was obliged
to defer the commencement of it for a fortnight. This
embarrassment was an impressive lesson to him, and pro¬
bably was one of the remote causes of the large fortune he
accumulated.
In 1747 he was admitted a member of the Corporation of
Surgeons of London ; ’and in the spring of 1748 accom¬
panied his pupil Douglas on a tour through Holland and
France, returning in the autumn to commence his usual course
of lectures. At Leyden he visited Albinus, whose beautiful
injections of the blood-vessels strongly attracted his atten¬
tion, and excited his emulation. In the autumn of this
year his brother John came to him. William Hunter at
first practised both surgery and midwifery; but, like his
patron Douglas, he gave the preference to the latter de¬
partment: consequently, in 1748, he took the appointment
of surgeon-accoucher to the Middlesex Hospital, and, in
1749, to the British Lying-in Hospital. In 1750 he seems
to have resolved to abandon the practice of surgery alto¬
gether, for in that year he became a graduate of the Uni¬
versity of Glasgow. Previously to this he had left the family
of Mrs Douglas, and taken a house in Jermyn Street.
30
HUNTER.
Hunter, Dr This was the crisis of William Hunter’s career, and
William, fortune aided his first commencement of practice. His
rivals were moving away, or unable to compete with him
for public favour. Smellie was unpleasing in his person
and manners; William Hunter was his equal in acquire¬
ments, his superior in person and deportment. Sir Rich¬
ard Manningham, one of the most eminent accoucheurs of
the day, also died about this time; and Dr Sandys, who di¬
vided with him the practice of the fashionable world, retired
within a few years to the country. William Hunter sub¬
sequently secured Sandys’ large collection of anatomical
preparations by purchase from Mr Bromfield for L.200.
In 1751 we find him devoting the whole of his energies
to his professional labours and pursuits, and forming plans
of great and varied extent and importance. In a letter to
Cullen, he says, “ I want to tell you many things about
colleges, hospitals, professorships, chariots, wives, &c., &c.
I’m busy in forming a plan for being an author. In short,
my head is full of—a thousand things.” His plans as to
marriage were amongst those which he never completed.
In this year he paid his first and only visit to his native
country, where he found Cullen established at Glasgow,
and in rising reputation both as a practitioner and lecturer,
so that the two friends could congratulate each other on
their mutual prosperity. In 1752 he demonstrated to his
class his method of injecting the testis with mercury. In
1753 he had a long illness—“a strange sort of eruptive
fever,” as he describes it in a letter to Cullen. In 1754 he
was elected a member of the Medical Society of London,
and took his brother John into partnership; and in 1755
he succeeded Dr Layard as physician to the British Lying-
in Hospital. In 1756 he was admitted a licentiate of the
Royal College of Physicians in London. In 1757 his first
contribution to the Medical Observations and Inquiries
appeared in the first volume of that work ; it was “ The
History of an Aneurism of the Aorta.” Various papers on
practical subjects from his pen appear in successive volumes
of this work, i.e., in the 2d, a history of an emphysema,
and in the 4th, 5th, and 6th essays on varicose and other
aneurisms, displacements of the uterus, and malconforma-
tions of the heart, the last illustrated by plates.
John Hunter having left his brother in 1759 to join the
army, the latter engaged that distinguished anatomist, Wil¬
liam Hewson, to take his place both as assistant and part¬
ner. The connexion between the two brothers had not
been a happy one; William was irascible—John quarrel¬
some and vulgar. Indeed, the only inducement which led
to its continuance on the part of William Hunter were his
brother’s extraordinary skill as a dissector, and the valuable
contributions he was constantly making to the museum.
In 1762 Dr Hunter was consulted by the queen, then
pregnant, and on the 12th August he writes to Cullen to
announce the birth of the Duke of Cornwall. “ I owe it
to you,” he adds, “ and thank you from my heart for the
great honour I now have, and have had for some time,
though very few know anything of it,—I mean having the
sole direction of her majesty’s health, as a child-bearing
lady.” Two years afterwards he was appointed physician-
extraordinary to the queen. In this year, also, he pub¬
lished the first part of his Medical Commentaries, pro¬
posing that the second should be constituted by his work
on the Human Gravid Uterus. In this work he gave a
summary ot his controversy with the Monros in 1757—
carried on at first in the pages of the Critical Review;
and asserted his prior claim to the method of injecting the
testis with mercury, and to the discovery of the uses of the
lymphatics. He also endeavoured to set himself right as
to his controversy with Pott, and defends his brother’s views
on congenital hernia.
When William Hunter began to practise midwifery, he
was desirous of acquiring a fortune sufficient to place him
in easy and independent circumstances. Before many Hunter, Dr
years had elapsed, he found himself in possession of a sum William,
adequate to his wishes in this respect; and this he set apart
as a final resource whenever age or infirmities should oblige
him to retire from business. As his wealth continued to
accumulate, he formed a design of engaging in some scheme
of public utility, and at first had it in contemplation to found
an anatomical school in the metropolis. For this purpose,
about the year 1765, during the administration of Mr Gren¬
ville, he presented a memorial to that minister, in which he
requested the grant of a piece of ground in the Mews, for
the site of an anatomical theatre. Dr Hunter undertook
to expend L.7000 on the building, and to endow a profes¬
sorship of anatomy in perpetuity. This scheme did not
meet with the reception it deserved. In a conversation on
this subject, which he had soon afterwards with the Earl of
Shelburne, his lordship expressed a wish that the plan might
be carried into execution by subscription, and very gener¬
ously requested to have his name set down for 1000
guineas. Dr Hunter’s feelings would not allow him to
adopt this proposal. He chose rather to execute it at his
own expense, and accordingly purchased a spot of ground
in Great Windmill Street, where he erected a spacious
house, to which, in 1768, he removed from Jermyn Street.
In this building, besides a handsome amphitheatre and
other convenient apartments for his lectures and dissec¬
tions, there was one magnificent room appropriately fitted
up as a museum. The cost of the whole was above L.8000.
Of the magnitude and value of his anatomical collection
some idea may be formed, when we consider the number
of years he employed in making the anatomical prepar¬
ations and in the dissection of morbid bodies, and the eager¬
ness with which he procured additions from the collec¬
tions of Sandys, Hewson, Falconer, Blackall, and others,
that were at different times offered for sale in London.
His specimens of rare diseases were likewise frequently
increased by presents from his medical friends and pupils ;
who, when anything of this sort occurred to them, very
justly thought they could not dispose of it more properly
than by placing it in Dr Hunter’s museum. Speaking
of an acquisition in this way in one of his publications,
he says, “ I look upon everything of this kind which is
given to me, as a present to the public; and consider my¬
self as thereby called upon to serve the public with more
diligence.”
Before his removal to Windmill Street, his collection
chiefly illustrated human and comparative anatomy, and
pathology; but now he extended his views to fossils, and
to the promotion of classic and polite literature. In a
short space of time he became possessed of a most mag¬
nificent collection of Greek and Latin books. A cabinet
of ancient medals contributed likewise much to the rich¬
ness of his museum. A description of part of the coins in
this collection, struck by the Greek free cities, was after¬
wards published by his friend Mr Combe. In the preface
some account is given of the progress of the collection,
which had been formed since the year 1770, with singular
taste, and at the expense of upwards of L.20,000. In
1781, the museum received a valuable addition of shells,
corals, and other illustrations of natural history, which had
been collected by the late Dr Fothergill, who gave direc¬
tions by his will, that his collection should be appraised
after his death, and that Dr Hunter should have the refusal
of it at L.500 under the valuation. This was accordingly
done, and Dr Hunter purchased it for the sum of L,1200.
By William Hunter’s will, the use of his museum, under
the direction of trustees, devolved to his nephew Dr Mat¬
thew Baillie, and in case of his death, to Mr Cruikshank,
for the term of thirty years; at the end of which period
the whole collection was bequeathed, with L.8000, to the
university of Glasgow, where it is now deposited.
HUN
HUN
31
Hunter, Dr In 1767 William Hunter was elected a fellow of the
William n0yai Society, and in the year following communicated to
„ N. its Transactions Observations on the Bones found on the
umting^ banks of the Ohio River. In 1768 he became a fellow
of the Society of Antiquaries, and in the same year was
appointed by the king to be professor of anatomy to the
Royal Academy of Arts, which he had recently founded.
Hunter performed the duties of the new professorship with
remarkable tact. The originality and soundness of his
teaching, and his application of anatomical knowledge to
painting and sculpture, evinced the greatness and versatility
of his mind.
In 1770 the connection of William Hunter with Hewson
ceased, in consequence of some disputes, and the latter was
succeeded by Cruikshank, a name deservedly celebrated
amongst anatomists. The Anatomy of the Human Gravid,
Uterus appeared in 1775, a work of classical value and im¬
portance, and which as such has lately been one of the
works selected for republication by the Sydenham Society,
Ten of the thirty-four plates which it contains had been
completed so early as 1751 ; but the publication was re¬
tarded by Hunter’s anxiety to render his work as perfect as
possible. In the preface he fully acknowledges the assist¬
ance he had derived from his brother John in making the
necessary dissections, thanking him for it, and passing a
graceful compliment upon his skill. Five years afterwards
(1780), John presented a paper to the Royal Society on the
structure of the placenta, in which he claimed for himself
the honour of discovering the true mode of union between
this organ and the uterus,—a discovery which William
Hunter claims as his own in this work. This led to a com¬
plete estrangement between the brothers, which continued
until William was on his death-bed. A reconciliation then
took place, but the latter did not, in consequence, alter that
portion of his will by which he left the family estate in
Scotland (he having succeeded to it) to his nephew, Dr
Baillie, to the exclusion of his brother.
The engraver Strange (famous for his delicate execution)
engraved two of the finest plates in the volume; and some
of the others are remarkable for their beauty. William
Hunter did not live to publish a work designed to illustrate
the engravings and descriptive anatomy of the gravid uterus ;
but he left very ample materials for the purpose, which
were edited in 1795 by Dr Baillie, and published in a thin
quarto volume.
Dr John Fothergill having died, William Hunter suc¬
ceeded him in January 1781, as president of the Medical
Society. In the preceding year he had been elected one
of the foreign associates of the Royal Medical Society of
Paris; and in 1782 he received a similar mark of distinc- Hunter, Dr
tion from the Royal Academy of Sciences of Paris. In the William
following year he died. xj . e a Hunting.
About ten years before his death, William Hunter found v b,
his health so much impaired, that he proposed to recruit it
by residing in Scotland, and was about to complete the pur¬
chase of a considerable estate, when the project was aban¬
doned in consequence of a defect in the title. This ended
his rural plans, and he thenceforth remained in London,
suffering from repeated attacks of gout; it was this disease
which terminated his life, notwithstanding his abstemious
regimen. On Saturday the I5th of March 1783, after hav¬
ing for several days experienced a return of a wandering
gout, he complained of great headache and nausea. In this
state he went to bed, and for several days felt more pain
than usual, both in his stomach and limbs. On the Thurs¬
day following he found himself so much recovered, that he
determined to give the introductory lecture to the opera¬
tions of surgery. It was to no purpose that his friends
urged on him the impropriety of such an attempt. He was
determined to make the experiment, and accordingly de¬
livered the lecture; but towards the conclusion his strength
was so exhausted that he fainted away, and was obliged to
be carried to bed by two servants. During the night and
the following day his symptoms were such as indicated
danger; and on Saturday morning, Mr Combe, who made
him an early visit, wras alarmed on being told by Dr Hunter
himself, that during the night he had certainly had a para¬
lytic stroke. As neither his speech nor his pulse were
affected, and he w^as able to raise himself in bed, Mr Combe
encouraged him to hope that he was mistaken. But the
event proved that Hunter’s idea of his own complaint was
but too well founded. He died on Sunday the 30th of
March 1783. Turning to his friend Combe in his latter
moments, he observed, “ If I had strength enough to hold
a pen, I would write how easy and pleasant a thing it is to
die.”
William Hunter is described as being regularly shaped,
slender, and rather below the middle height. He was an
early riser, courteous, prudent, and economical. When
he invited his younger friends to his table, they were sel¬
dom regaled with more than two dishes; when alone he
rarely sat down to more than one ; he would say, a man
who cannot dine on this deserves to have no dinner. After
the meal his servant (who was also the porter at the ana¬
tomical theatre), used to hand a single glass of wine to each
of the guests. It was by the aid of such habits that Wil¬
liam Hunter was enabled to devote L.70,000 to the ad¬
vancement of medical science, (T*L-)
HUNTING.
One of the greatest compliments paid to the chase is, its
having been considered as a theme worthy the pens of the
ablest writers of the most refined periods of the world.
Whilst Greece was the nursery and residence of every
branch of polite literature, and of all the arts and sciences
then known to mankind; whilst every study that depends
on the powers of the imagination, or the faculties of the un¬
derstanding, was there carried to the very summit of per¬
fection, we find Xenophon composing his Kw^yeri/cos,
treating of every description of field-sports. He, according
to the custom of the times, opens the subject with fable,
and tells us that hunting, which he calls the gift of the gods,
and the use of dogs, originated with Apollo and Diana, and
that the invention was made a present of to Chiron, who
took pupils in the art, each of whom was, in his turn, hon¬
oured by the gods (aTro tfeoiv eTiyqOrj). His real object,
however, was to encourage in the youth of his country a
taste for the pleasures of the chase, and other manly pas¬
times, as the best preparation for war, the senate, and the
world. Whilst he condemns the effeminate man as shame¬
fully useless to his country, he represents the well-trained
sportsman as not only mighty in war, but ready to sacrifice
his person and his wealth to the public good. As a prepa¬
ration for war, and particularly the higher branches of the
soldier’s profession, we need not the testimony of Xeno¬
phon ; for our own experience has shown us that, speaking
generally, no man takes a view of a country, at first sight,
with equal facility to a sportsman, particularly a sportsman
who has been accustomed to follow hounds. Indeed, un¬
less he have what is called in the field “ a good eye to a
country,” he cannot ride with judgment after hounds in our
inclosed or woodland districts ; and when the chase is con¬
cluded, it is surprising to witness the rapidity with which
an experienced fox-hunter sees the points of a country in
32
Hunting.
which he is a stranger, that must lead him towards his
wished-for home. With respect to the other advantages
alluded to by Xenophon, he had very good authority for
what he asserted of them. The Olympic games were esta¬
blished by the Greeks for two distinct purposes: first, to
inspire their youth with a love of glory, as well as a taste for
manly and invigorating exercises, conducive to contempt
of danger, and coolness when exposed to it; and, secondly,
with a view of drawing together the leading men of the
different states of Greece, which gave them an opportunity
of deliberating upon matters of general concern. As re¬
garded the other various occupations of life which a gentle¬
man is called upon to fulfil and do honour to, we may re¬
mark, that an irreproachable moral character was a neces¬
sary qualification for a competitor at those games or sports.
Drawing something like a parallel here, then, we may add,
that neither is a sportsman in our own country esteemed,
how skilful soever he may be, if his character be tainted
with fraud; and we are not unmindful of the advantages
derived from the mixture of society in the hunting-field, or
of the many valuable and lasting friendships that may be
dated from accidental meetings by the cover side. But
Xenophon wrote in praise of hunting rather perhaps as a
soldier than a philosopher, giving it as his opinion, that the
exercise of the chase formed the best soldiers in the world.;
that it habituated men to cold, heat, and fatigue; that it
kindled courage, elevated the soul, and invigorated the
body ; that it retarded the effects of age, and rendered the
senses more acute ; and, finally, that the pleasure it afforded
was a sovereign remedy against all mental uneasiness ; in
which latter sentiment he is seconded by a modern author
of celebrity, who says that u the chase fortifies the heart as
well as the body.” Nor is Xenophon the only eminent
soldier or philosopher of his renowned country who has
written in commendation of hunting. Aristotle wrote a
treatise on field-sports, by order of Alexander the Great;
and Polybius, one of the greatest soldiers of any age, re¬
lates that Maximus restored discipline in the Roman legions,
by often exercising them in hunting; and he even goes so
far as to celebrate one individual sportsman, Ptolemy Epi~
phanes, for his dexterity in killing a wild bull. Amongst
the poets of Greece, Oppian distinguished himself highly
by his poems on hunting. So excellent, indeed, were they
considered by his emperor, that he is said to have presented
him with a piece of gold for every verse they contained,
and thus they acquired the honourable appellation of “ the
golden verses of Oppian.” Several of the most splendid
similes of Homer are taken from hounds in chase, and in
the manly disposition of Achilles wre see the formation of the
heroic character by the pursuits of the chase.
The Romans at one time discouraged hunting amongst
the upper orders of society, from the fear of its becoming a
passion which might divert them from their essential duties.
But here they committed an error; for, aware of its bene¬
ficial effects in forming their people for war, they substituted
public exhibitions of animals destroying each other in an
amphitheatre, which could only have hardened the heart,
without advantage to either body or mind. Yet we find
many of their emperors encouraging hunting, and many of
their best writers extolling it. The learned and polished
Hadrian was so passionately addicted to hunting, and also
to horses and dogs, that he erected monuments to the me¬
mory of the latter, and built a city on the spot on which he
had killed a wild boar, after a desperate encounter with
him, and which he called by a word which, being inter¬
preted, signifies Hadrian’s chase. Amongst the celebrated
writers of the Augustan age, we may mention two, who,
not being themselves sportsmen, could only have made
sporting a subject for their pens from a sense of the bene¬
fits arising from it. Virgil makes his young Ascanius a
sportsman as soon as he is able to sit his horse ; and he also
HUNTING.
makes him, at a very early age, the first in the fight (pri- y ^
mum hello), as he had been the first in the field. In the
speech addressed to him by the bold Numanus, which cost
that hero his life, we have the fittest contrast of the evils
of effeminate habits with the benefits of manly pursuits, that
the pen of a satirist could produce. The words, O veree
Phrygice, iieque enim Phryges ! “ Oh, worse than women
in the shape of men,” convey the severest rebuke a nation
could receive for having made themselves contemptible to
their enemies, by the effects of an effeminate life, and pur¬
suits unworthy of men ; whereas the advantages of the
manly exercises of youth are finely set forth in the vaunt¬
ing exclamation of this hardy Rutulian. Neither is Horace
behind his contemporary poet in his disgust of an effeminate
youth. In the twenty-fourth ode of his third book, he
beautifully contrasts those softening pleasures which emas¬
culate the mind and enervate the body, with the opposite
effects of manly sports and exercises ; and in his justly cele¬
brated Epistle to Lollius, he recommends the chase, not
only as a noble exercise, but as contributing to health and
peace of mind. His Carmen Sceculare was also written in
honour of manly exercises ; and in another of his odes we
find him upbraiding a young Roman for giving up the
manly exercise of riding; and glancing at the destruction
of Troy, and the feminine education of Achilles, seems
to insinuate, that effeminacy was likely to destroy the ener¬
gies of his own countrymen, as it had those of others. That
his apprehensions were not unfounded, a few centuries
proved; for the Romans, after the conquest of Persia and
other distant kingdoms, participating in their luxurious ha¬
bits, became as easy a prey to the Goths and Vandals, as
the Grecians and other nations had before been to them¬
selves ; and, in the decline of the republic, the few victories
which they gained were achieved but by the terror of their
name. Minor poets have also made sporting their theme.
Gratius wrote a poem on coursing. He was contemporary
with Ovid, and a sportsman, as the knowledge of his sub¬
ject denotes. Nemesianus also, three centuries afterwards,
wrote some poems on hunting, though they have not been
so highly esteemed. But the sports of the field are alluded
to by innumerable classic writers, and made the ground¬
work of their most beautiful allegories and fables, both in
verse and prose; and perhaps, after all, the greatest com¬
pliment that can be paid to them, as well as the best an¬
swer to the assertion that any man can make a sportsman,
is to be found in the latter department of literature. We
allude to the letters of that accomplished country gentleman
and scholar, Pliny the consul, in which he speaks of his
prowess in the chase. In one addressed to Tacitus the his¬
torian, boasting of a famous day’s sport he had been enjoy¬
ing, he also boasts of the good effect it had had on his mind,
telling him that Minerva accompanied Diana on the hills ;
and in the eighteenth letter of the fifth book he goes a
point beyond this : “ As for myself,” says he to his friend
Macer, “ I am employed at my Tuscan villa in hunting and
studying, sometimes alternately, and sometimes both to¬
gether ; but 1 am not yet able to determine in which of those
pursuits it is most difficult to succeed.”
It is not surprising that hunting should have been the
theme of poets, as poetry then ceases to be the language of
fiction ; neither can the subject itself be deemed unpoetical,
as it affords an opportunity to expatiate, not merely on the
beauties, but also on the endowments of nature. That the
feelings of nature have more of rapture in them than those
which are excited through the medium of science, is a fact
which cannot, we think, be denied ; and thus do we account
for the exhilarating passion of the chase. To describe a
chase, however, is a task of no small difficulty, and perhaps
more so in prose than in verse, as the imagination must be
powerfully excited by the transporting scenes on which it
has dwelt, and cannot well be restrained in a mere recital
HUNTING.
33
Hunting.
of facts. When the noise of the battle is over, powerful
must be the pen that could revive the clang of arms. “ The
chase is done,” sings Ossian; “ and nothing is heard on
Ardven but the torrent’s roar.”
Somerville’s poem of The Chase will live to the end of
time ; for although it was not faultless in the eyes of the
perhaps too rigid Johnson, it is written with the spirit and
fire his subject demanded; and many of the instructions it
conveys, when stripped of their poetical dress, are esteemed
by sportsmen of the present day. “ Manners,” says Lord
Karnes, “ are never painted to the life by any one to whom
they are not familiarneither could a man have written
the poeni we speak of unless he had been himselt a sports¬
man. Indeed his descriptions of hunting the hare, the stag,
and the fox, place the objects clearly and beautifully before
our eyes, and show that the poet had often witnessed with
rapture the scenes to which he devoted his muse. I he fol¬
lowing passage, descriptive of the feelings of a master of
hounds on a hunting morning, is not merely truly natural,
but at the same time highly poetical:—
“ Hail, gentle dawn ! mild, blushing goddess, hail;
Rejoic’d I see thy purple mantle spread
O’er half the skies ; gems pave thy radiant way,
And orient pearls from every shrub depend.
Farewell, Cleora! here, deep sunk in down,
Slumber secure, with happy dreams amused.
. . . . Me other joys invite;
The horn sonorous calls, the pack awak d
Their matins chaunt, nor brook my long delay :
My courser hears their voice ;—See there ! with ears
And tail erect, neighing, he paws the ground :
Fierce rapture kindles in his redd’ning eyes,
And boils in ev’ry vein.”
Although hunting songs are a species of ancient lyrics,
of which the specimens are rare, and in our own country
“ the songs of the chase” do not appear to include any earlier
than the middle of the seventeenth century, we have some
of a more modern date that have been highly popular with
the public, and no doubt have given the original impulse to
many a good sportsman. The power and force of national
songs have never been disputed in any age; and he who
said that if he were allowed to compose the ballads of a
nation, he would soon alter its form of government, Tittered
a boast not altogether unfounded in the principles of human
nature. Compositions of this kind, then, that tend to en¬
courage a love of manly pursuits and pastimes, and give a
relish to a country life, should by no means be thought
lightly of by a people who, like ourselves, have ever been
conspicuous for our excellence in the one, and our fondness
for the other; but which, in the opinion of some, appear to
be on the wane, as the natural consequence of our present
state of almost excessive refinement. This would be a real
cause for regret. The fondness for rural life amongst the
higher order of the English has hitherto had a great and
salutary effect upon the natural character of their country;
and there cannot be found a finer race of men than the
country gentlemen of Great Britain. Instead of the soft¬
ness and effeminacy which characterize the men of rank of
most other nations, they exhibit a union of natural elegance
and strength, a robustness of frame and freshness of com¬
plexion, which are to be attributed to their living so much
in the open air, and pursuing so eagerly the invigorating
recreations of a country life. Their hard exercise produces
a healthy tone of mind and spirits, as well as of body, ac¬
companied with a manliness and simplicity of manners,
which even the follies of a town cannot easily pervert, and
can never entirely destroy. Let us, however, hope that the
fears on this head are groundless; let us hope that what
Horace sighed for, what Cato, Plato, and Cicero recom¬
mended, what Bion eulogized, what all the best poets of
antiquity sang the praises of (according to the poets, the
golden age was spent in the country), and for which kings
VOL. XII.
and emperors quitted their thrones, will never be ill suited
to, or considered as beneath, the taste of a British country
gentleman, in what circle soever he may move. I hat the
sports of the field are classical, the authority of all ages will
vouch for; neither is the man of fashion, or haut ton, by
any means incompatible with the country gentleman and
sportsman. On the contrary, how has the character of
Paris been handed down to us by the poets ? Was he not
the finest gentleman, the greatest favourite of the female
sex, the greatest beau of his day ? Such he is represented
to have been; but, although a prince, he had been bred a
shepherd; and from the robust habits he had acquired in
his youth, he was the only man who could stand up against
the powerful arm of Dares, the great champion of his day.
What was the all-accomplished Pliny, or Lollius, whose
education Horace had superintended ?
Again; on the score of health, the chief felicity of man,
were it not for the sports of the field, the softness and effe¬
minacy of modern manners, in the higher walks of life,
would soon exhibit their pernicious effects on forthcoming
generations, by depriving them of their natural defence
against diseases incident to our climate, by subjecting
them to that morbid debility and sensibility of the nervous
system which lays the foundation of most diseases, as also
depriving them of the courage to support them. And who
enjoys the blessing of health equally with the country gen¬
tleman and sportsman ? Somerville says,
Hunting.
“ In vain malignant steams and winter fogs
Load the dull air, and hover round our coasts;
The huntsman, ever gay, robust, and bold,
Defies the noxious vapour, and confides
In this delightful exercise to raise
His drooping head, and cheer his heart with joy.”
Certain is it, the rough sports of the country have been
known not only to cure diseases of long standing in the
human frame ; but the exercise of hunting, with the tempe¬
rance it enjoins, absolutely steels the constitution, as the
poet expresses himself, against the attacks of the most com¬
mon of the diseases peculiar to this variable climate. Its
effect on the mind, which he also alludes to, is of no less
value; for, from the very exhilarating nature of the amuse¬
ment, it relieves it from dwelling upon its anxieties, from
which few persons are free ; and it is one of the best cures
for the heartache, or any of those shocks which our flesh is
heir to:—
“ Dona cano divum, lostas venantibus artes,
Auspicio, Diana, tuo,”
sang the poet Gratius; and Horace’s description of a sports¬
man’s return to his family, after the toils and perils of the
day, is a true picture of a country life, replete with every
possible enjoyment.
Objections have been made to encouraging youth in a
love of our national field-sports, on the score of their en¬
grossing too much of their time and attention, to the ne¬
glect of more necessary attainments. “ It is true,” says a
Roman historian, “ the masters in every branch of learning,
whom the accomplished father of Commodus provided for
his son, were heard with inattention and disgust; whilst
the lessons of the Parthian, or the Moor, in the arts of the
javelin and the bow, could not be too often repeated.” But
where is the pursuit that may not be carried to excess ?
and yet without zeal no person ever succeeded in field-
sports of any kind, much less in hunting. “ Whatever thy
hand findeth to do, do it with all thy might,” said Solomon;
and had not Providence implanted this zeal in man’s nature,
he never would have been what man now is, but, compara¬
tively a useless being. Objections are again made, that
the sports of the field, hunting animals with dogs especially,
are cruel; but the charge, if proved, does not altogether lie
against man. The beasts and birds of the field have been
given to him, as well as the way to procure them pointed
E
H U N T I N G.
34
Hunting, out to him ; or wherefore the almost unsearchable faculties
of the dog ? Some persons, however, have thought other¬
wise: “ Is it a labour worthy of man,” says a very celebrated
English writer, “ to watch from day to day, from night to
night, the haunts of our fellow animals, that we may destroy
them ? To triumph over a poor mangled hare or hind,
after we have harassed them up and down the country for
many hours together with an army of dogs and men ? Is
it an exercise becoming the majesty of a rational spirit to
run yawling with a parcel of hounds, perhaps a whole day
together, after some timorous animal ?” In answer to this
it may be urged, that we knew no other method of availing
ourselves of them when first they were given for our use ;
and it may be strongly urged, that the destruction of wild
animals was never so speedily, and therefore humanely ac¬
complished, as it is at the present day. A century or two
ago, the fox lingered all night in a trap, and then too often
was subjected to a lingering, if not an agonizing death. He
is now killed by hounds, generally in a short time, if he can¬
not escape from what may be deemed his lawful pursuers.
The buck in the forest of the king, or in the park of the
nobleman, is now no longer hunted down by the slow but
sure blood-hound, a race nearly extinct, but the unerring
eye of the rifle-shot seals his doom on the spot. We agree
with the poet, that
“ Poor is the triumph o?er the timid hare
but she was given for our use, and must be taken, as Esau
took the venison, by hunting her ; and here likewise is an
improvement. A hundred years back she was trailed up
to her form, the operation perhaps of an hour, with the ter¬
ror-striking notes of the hounds all that time in her ear;
and then pursued for at least two hours more, by animals
with not half her speed, but with a power of following her
by the foot, which it was nearly impossible to evade. At
the present day she is whipped out of her form, twenty mi¬
nutes generally deciding her fate; and, in consequence of
her being now pursued in the forenoon, instead of, as be¬
fore, just on her return from her walk, she escapes oftener
than she is killed. Animals destined to fall by the gun are
now nearly certain of meeting with instant death. In addi¬
tion to the increased skill of our marksmen, the improved
formation of the gun enables it to carry destruction with a
much surer hand, owing to the force and precision with
which it carries its shot. Thus, if the game be stricken,
it is stricken to instant death, not wounded and mangled
by weak scattered shot. Another consideration presents
itself in the discussion of this subject. Life is said to be
“ sweetbut strip it of intellectual enjoyment, and its
sweetness is very considerably abated. But we will go
one step farther. The natural death of wild animals must
generally be lingering, and often painful in the extreme ;
they have no relief to fly to, but perish as it were by inches.
This being admitted, perhaps the hand that instantly de¬
prives them of life may be deemed the hand of a friend.
No great satisfaction would arise from a reference to
the practices of the ancients in the field, who, it appears
from Virgil, hunted anything, from the wild ass to the
stag; but, we have reason to believe, without much sys¬
tem, as far as their dogs had to do with it. We conceive
the ancient Germans and Gauls to have been the best
early sportsmen upon system ; and the ancient Britons,
who came originally from Gaul, and, according to Caesar
and Tacitus, were one of the widely-extended Celtic tribes,
introduced, or rather brought with them from Gaul, that
ardent passion for the chase for which Great Britain has
ever since been remarkable. The Anglo-Norman and
early English monarchs likewise all appear to have had a
passion for the chase; and although a code of laws rela¬
tive to hunting was formed by one of the Welsh princes
in the twelfth century, containing a list of animals, climb¬
ing ones for example, which does not accord with the pre- Hunting,
sent idea of hunting, we hear nothing of fox-hounds joer se, v ^
till we find them in the kennel of Edward L, and an item in
his wardrobe book of L.21, 6s. as the annual expenses of his
pack, consisting of six couples. Soon after this period, at
all events in the course of the next king’s reign, the diver¬
sion of hunting in England may be said to have been first
reduced to something like a science; treatises having been
written on the subject for the instruction of young sports¬
men, as well as rules laid down for the observation and con¬
duct of those who filled the various offices, in the forest,
the kennel, and the stable. One of the most curious of
these performances, is a manuscript written in the beginning
of the fourteeth century, in Norman French, by William
Twice, huntsman to Edward II., an ancient translation of
which occurs amongst the Cottonian manuscripts. In it
are enumerated and described the different beasts that were
then objects of the chase in England; and, in the manner
of a dialogue, the huntsman is informed how he should blow
his horn at the different points of a chase. But the generally
rude system of hunting in the earlier days of England had
previously been in some measure improved and amended
by William the Conqueror, of whom Somerville thus
writes:—
“ Victorious William to more decent rules
Subdued our Saxon fathers; taught to speak
The proper dialect; with horn and voice
To cheer the busy hound, whose well-known cry
His list’ning peers approve with joint acclaim.
From him successive huntsmen learn’d to join
In bloody social leagues, the multitude
Dispers’d ; to size, to sort, their warrior tribes,
To rear, feed, hunt, and discipline the pack.”
Edward III. was a great stag-hunter; and even at the
time he was engaged in war with France, and resident in
that country, he had with him, attached to his army, sixty
couples of stag-hounds, and an equal number of hare-
hounds. We also learn from Froissart, that the Earl of
Foix, a foreign nobleman, contemporary with King Ed¬
ward, had 150 couples of hounds in his castle. But it does
not appear that the fox was much in esteem for the chase
by any of the Anglo-Norman sportsmen ; for in Twice’s
Treatise on the Craft of Hunting, he is classed last of all
the beasts of venery, excepting the martern and the roe;
nor does Somerville in his poem treat him with the respect
that he pays to the stag or the hare. The first public no¬
tice of him occurs in the reign of Richard II., who gave
permission, by charter, to the Abbot of Peterborough, to
hunt him. Hunting, however, in all its branches, appears
to have advanced steadily till the last century, when it
flourished greatly by the encouragement given to it by
George III.; and as time improves every art, it has at
length, we believe, attained perfection.
Whatever pastime mankind indulge in, their first en¬
deavour should be to make themselves acquainted with
the best means of pursuing it, which will greatly increase
the pleasure derived from it. But as the philosopher was
laughed at for his offer of teaching Alexander the Great
the art of war, so the theory of no pastime is worth any¬
thing unless it be based on practice. And, perhaps, of all
sports invented by reason for the use and amusement of
mankind, there is none to which theory would avail so
little as the noble and popular one of hunting. Indeed,
the practical part of hunting, notwithstanding its popu¬
larity, is but little known, at least but little understood,
from the perplexing difficulties that accompany it; and
there is reason to believe it was still less understood before
the appearance of a work in which the whole system is
minutely and accurately detailed by an eminent sportsman,
and master of fox-hounds, of the early part of this cen¬
tury. It is scarcely necessary to observe, that the work
alluded to is Beckford’s Thoughts upon Hunting, in a series
HUNTING.
35
Hunting, of familiar Letters to a Friend; of which it has been said,
v—v~~' “ they are so truly the effusions of sound judgment, and so
replete with the useful remarks of an experienced sports¬
man, that there is no room for anything new or additional
to be introduced upon the subject.” It is true, this has
been considered, and will continue to be considered, as a
standard work amongst sportsmen ; but as systems and
habits change with time, and many of both have been ma¬
terially changed since Beckford’s day, another work on fox¬
hunting, also from a practical pen, made its appearance in
1826, and was well received by the sporting world, viz.,
Observations on Fox-Hunting, and the Management of
Hounds in the Kennel and the Field, by Colonel Cook,
several years a master of fox-hounds, hunting various Eng¬
lish counties, but principally the Roothings ot Essex, cele¬
brated for the stoutness of its foxes.
It is only within a very short space of time that sports¬
men have been given to communicate their thoughts, or
the result of their experience in the field, to the public,
unless under fictitious signatures. In proof, however, ot
the benefit derived from such contributions to the stock of
sporting science, if such a term will be allowed; and like¬
wise in confirmation of what has been advanced on the
subject of change of systems and habits that occurs in the
course of time, we will make a few comments on the prac¬
tices of one of the most conspicuous sportsmen England
ever gave birth to, the unrivalled Hugo Meynell, Esq. of
Quorndon Hall, Leicestershire, and made partially known
through the medium of a small pamphlet, entitled, The
Meynellian Science, or Fox-Hunting upon System, by the
late John Hawkes, Esq., a personal Ifiend of Mr Meynell’s.
That Mr Meynell studied fox-hunting as a science, we
believe no one will deny; and that his master-mind was
quite equal to the task he imposed upon himself, is also an
admitted fact; for he was a man of more than ordinary
acuteness, coupled with a close and accurate observation ot
everything that passed under his eye; and all this with
the benefit of an education perfected beyond the usual
extent of that bestowed upon, or, perhaps we may say, sub¬
mitted to, by young gentlemen of large fortune in his day,
having studied nearly three years under a private tutor after
he became of age. That he shone beyond all others who
had preceded him, in the breeding and management of
hounds, is a fact universally admitted, producing, as Mr
Hawkes says of them, “ the steadiest, best, and handsomest
pack of fox-hounds in the kingdomadding also the em¬
phatic remark, that his object was to combine strength with
beauty, and steadiness with high mettle. His ideaot perfect
shape was, short backs, open bosoms, straight legs, and
compact feet; and the first qualities of hounds he considered
to be fine noses and stout runners, opinions which all found
to hold good.
But there were peculiarities in Mr Meynell’s system of
hunting, to which, as detailed by Mr Hawkes, we scarcely
know how to reconcile ourselves. For example, he tells
us that his young hounds were broken in to hare in the
spring of the year, “ to find out their propensities, which,
when at all flagrant, they early discovered, and he drafted
them according to their defects and in the same page he
adds, “ after hare-hunting, they were, the remaining part
of summer, daily walked amongst riot.” Now we cannot
approve of entering hounds to an animal they are not in¬
tended to hunt, and are at a loss to comprehend what is
here meant by the word “ riot,” unless it be hares (as the
term generally implies) or deer (which were never found
wild in his country), which they had been previously in¬
structed to hunt. Their “ propensities,” also, by which is
here generally understood their steadiness or unsteadiness,
must, under such circumstances, have been rather difficult
to pronounce an opinion upon, with the exception of their
promising to be true to the line, and not given to skirt.
The goodness or badness of nose could of course have been Hunting,
discernible when hunting their own game (the fox), to which, >
in our opinion, all fox-hounds should be entered. Beckfbrd,
we remember, speaks of his huntsman letting his puppies
enter to a cat; but we cannot approve of such a practice.
Early in the autumn Mr Meynell hunted his woodlands,
Charnwood Forest chiefly, with his whole pack, and^ then
divided them into “ the old” and “ the young pack; but,
to show the disadvantage of this system, Mr Hawkes says,
the young hounds were hunted twice a-week, as much in
woodlands as possible, and in the most unpopular districts.”
The present plan of mixing young and old hounds together
is far preferable to this, not only as they can then take their
turn in the good and popular “ districts,” but, by having the
assistance of older hounds in chase, the younger ones are
less likely to do wrong.
Mr Meynell’s idea of perfection in hounds, in chase, Mr
Hawkes says, “ consisted of their being true guiders in hard
running, and close and patient hunters in a cold scent, to-
o-ether with stoutness. Their imperfections, over-running
the scent, and babbling, were considered their greatest
faults.” To all this every sportsman must assent.
The following passage contains perhaps rather more of
enthusiasm than of fact', although a qualification is given to
it in the concluding sentence. “ Mr MeynelPs hounds,”
says Mr Hawkes, “ were criticised by himself and his friends
in the most minute manner. Every hound had his pecu¬
liar talents, and was sure to have a fair opportunity of dis¬
playing them (!) Some had the remarkable faculty of find¬
ing a fox, which they would do, almost invariably, notwith¬
standing twenty or thirty couple were out in the same covert.
Some had the propensity to hunt the doubles and short
turns. Some were inclined to be hard runners. Some had
a remarkable faculty of hunting the drag of a fox, which
they would do very late in the day. And sometimes the
hardest runners were the best hunters; and fortunate was
the year when such excellencies prevailed.”
“ Mr Meynell,” continues Mr Hawkes, “ prided himself
on the steadiness of his hounds, and their hunting through
sheep and hares, which they did in a very superior manner.
He seldom or never attempted to lift his hounds through
sheep ; and from habit, and the great flocks the hounds
were accustomed to, they carried the scent on most cor¬
rectly and expeditiously, much sooner than any lifting could
accomplish.” We are far from advocates for lifting hounds
when it can be avoided ; but knowing the so often insur¬
mountable difficulties occasioned by flocks of sheep and
herds of cattle in the country Mr Meynell hunted, in addi¬
tion to a crowd of horsemen pressing upon the heels ot the
pack, we consider that if, under such circumstances, hounds
do not almost instantly recover the scent, the assistance of
the huntsman is called for. The “ steadiness and docility”
of Mr Meynell’s pack, we have reason to believe, were re¬
markable, and are vouched for by other authority than Mr
Hawkes’. “ A most extraordinary instance of discipline
in hounds,” says Colonel Cook (p. 202), “occurs to me,
which I ought to have mentioned when speaking of that
unrivalled sportsman, the late Mr Meynell. He met in the
Market-Harborough (Leicestershire) country, at a small
patch of gorse on the side of a hill, in a very large pasture
field: the hounds feathered as they went in, and found in¬
stantly. The covert being only about two acres, and open,^
Mr Meynell immediately saw that the fox was in danger of
being chopped ; he therefore called out to Jack Raven, the
huntsman, “ Jack, take the hounds away ;” and at one of
his usual rates, every hound stopped, and the pack were
taken to the hedge side, when Mr Meynell called out three
steady hounds, and threw them into the cover. The fox
was so loath to break, that the three hounds kept hunting
him for ten minutes, in the hearing of all the pack, who lay
perfectly quiet at Raven’s horse’s feet, till the fox went
HUNTING.
36
Hunting, awav over the finest part of the country ; and the moment
Mr Meynell gave his most energetic, thrilling holloo (Mr
Hawkes speaks of the power of Mr Meynell s cheering
holloa, which, he says, “ thrilled through the heart and nerve
of every hearer”), every hound flew to him; the burst was
the finest that any sportsman ever beheld, and after an hour
and ten minutes they killed their fox. Ihis is doubtless
an astonishing instance of command of hounds with a scent
before them, particularly so to those persons who are aware
of the generally uncontrollable power of the impulse given
to them by nature at that particular time ; and were it not
for the high reputation of the pack alluded to, we should,
as we cannot doubt the fact, be inclined to say, it savoured
a little of slackness, or, at all events, of a too severe dis¬
cipline, bordering upon the annihilation of the distinguish¬
ing natural properties of the fox-hound, namely, high mettle
and dash.
“ Mr Meynell,” adds Mr Hawkes, “ was not fond of cast¬
ing hounds ; when once they were laid upon the line of
scent he left it to them ; he only encouraged them to take
pains, and kept aloof, so that the steam of the horses could
not interfere with the scent. It is true, hounds should not
be cast, if they can do the work themselves ; and if the au¬
thority of Mr Meynell could restrain a Leicestershire field
of horsemen to keep aloof when his hounds were at check,
more time may have been given them to make their own
cast; but it must be recollected, that when the hounds are
at fault, the fox is not.” Again, “ when his hounds came
to a check, every encouragement was given to them to
recover the scent, without the huntsman getting amongst
them, or whippers-in driving them about, which is the
common practice of most packs. The hounds were holloa’d
back to the place where they brought the scent, and en¬
couraged to try round in their own way, which they gene¬
rally did successfully, avoiding the time lost in the mistaken
practice of casting hounds at the heels of the huntsman.
When the hounds were cast, it was in two or three different
lots, by Mr Meynell, his huntsman, and whipper-in; and
not driven together in a body, like a flock of sheep. They
were allowed to spread, and use their own sagacity, at a very
gentle pace ; and not hurried about in a blustering manner.
It was Mr Meynell’s opinion, that a great noise, and scold¬
ing of hounds, made them wild. Correcting them in a quiet
way was the most judicious method. Whippers-in also
should turn hounds quietly, and not call after them in a noisy,
disagreeable manner.” In all the foregoing remarks we
coincide with the opinions of these two celebrated sports¬
men. We think a huntsman should never be nearer than
from 60 to 100 yards of his hounds when they first check ;
nor can a whipper-in execute his office of turning or stop¬
ping a hound at this moment too quietly and discreetly ; but
no general line of conduct for either the one or the other
can be laid down. Some hounds, and especially if they
have been pressed upon by horsemen, will not turn to either
horn or holloa, without a smack of the whip, or at all events
a rate; nor will the body of the pack, if a little blown, or
excited by a previous holloa, always try for their fox so well
and quickly as they should do, if left quite to “ themselves ;
or, as Mr Hawkes so properly expresses himself, if left to
“ their own sagacity.” That a great noise makes hounds
wild no one doubts, and the system of holloaing is every
year on the decrease. As for the division of the pack into
three lots when at fault, that perhaps originated with Mr
Meynell: indeed we believe it did; but the practice is
now become not uncommon, of its being divided into two,
namely, one lot with the huntsman, and the other with the
first whipper-in.
“ When hounds are going to the cry,” writes Mr Hawkes,
“ they should be encouraged in a pleasant way : not driven
and rated, as if discord was a necessary ingredient in the
sport and music of a fine cry of hounds. Whippers-in are
too apt to think their own importance and consequence
consist in shouting, holloaing, and unnecessary activity.
When hounds can hear the cry, they get together sooner
than any whipper-in can drive them. If any hound is con¬
ceited, and disinclined to go to cry, he should immediately
be drafted.”
On the subject of blood, that is, killing and eating foxes,
we entirely assent to the following remarks: “ Blood was
a thing Mr Meynell was more indifferent about than most
masters of hounds. The wildest packs of hounds were
known to kill the most foxes in cover, but very seldom
showed good runs over a country. Hounds chopping foxes
in cover is more a vice than a proof of their being good
cover-hounds. Murdering foxes is a most absurd prodi¬
gality. Seasoned foxes are as necessary to sport as experi¬
enced hounds.” Our own opinion of the value of blood to
hounds perfectly accords with that which, it appears, wTas
entertained by Mr Meynell; namely, that it is far from a
sine qua non to the well-doing of fox-hounds, or any other
hounds, as is apparent at once from the modern system of
hunting the stag. If it be possible, the pack are not per¬
mitted to break his skin, much more to devour him; still,
despite of the rating and flogging they get to prevent their
injuring the object they are pursuing, they do pursue it to
the last with all their might and main. But let it not be
supposed that we set no value on what may be termed well-
carried blood. On the contrary, we think the flesh and
blood of a fox well found, and handsomely killed, by hounds
in the moments of high excitement, must be very beneficial
to them. But when chopped in a cover (generally the
effect of accident, and not, as Mr Hawkes supposed, of vici¬
ous propensity in any individual hound), we consider a round
of beef would be a more acceptable present to them ; nor
is the case much altered when a fox is dug out of an earth,
after perhaps an hour’s delay. We remember to have heard
Mr Osbaldeston assert, that the best week’s sport he ever
had in Leicestershire when he hunted it, was after his
hounds had been out nine days in succession without tasting
a fox.
“ Mr Meynell’s natural taste,” continues Mr Hawkes,
“ led him to admire large hounds ; but his experience con¬
vinced him that small ones were generally the stoutest,
soundest, and in every respect the most executive. His
hounds had more good runs than any pack of his day. Two
very extraordinary ones happened of a very rare descrip¬
tion. One was a run of one hour and twenty minutes with¬
out a check, and killed their fox. The other was two hours
and fifty minutes without a cast, and killed. The hounds
in the first run kept well together, and only two horses per¬
formed it; the rest of the field were unequal to its fleetness.
The other run alluded to was performed by the whole of
the pack ; and though all were up at the death, two or three
slackened in their pace just at the last. One horse only
went the whole of it.”
Mr Hawkes thus speaks of the necessary qualifications of
hounds to show sport:—“ To obtain a good run, hounds
should not only have good abilities, but they should be ex¬
perienced, and well acquainted with each other. To guide
a scent well over a country for a length of time, and through
all the difficulties usually encountered, requires the best and
most experienced abilities. A faulty hound, or injudicious
rider, by one improper step, may defeat the most promising
run.” It is evident, from the above judicious observations,
that an old established pack of hounds must have great ad¬
vantages over one of an opposite character.
We shall finish our extracts from this little pamphlet,
which was merely circulated privately amongst the author’s
friends, but valued as from the pen of so eminent a sports¬
man as the late Mr Hawkes proved himself to be, both in the
field and on the race-course, where he shone conspicu¬
ously as one of the best gentleman jockeys ofhis day, with
HUNTING. 37
Hunting, his judicious remark on the conduct of sportsmen who fol-
' low hounds. “ Gentlemen, and every person who makes
hunting his pursuit,” says he, “should learn to ride judi¬
ciously to hounds. It is a contemplative amusement; and
much good diversion might be promoted by a few regular
precautions. The principal thing to attend to is, not to ride
too near the hounds, and always as much as possible antici¬
pate a check. By which means the leading men will pull
their horses up in time, and afford the hounds fair opportu¬
nity to keep the line of scent unbroken. Sheep, cattle,
teams at plough, and arable land, are all causes of checks.
Thoughtless sportsmen are apt to press too much on hounds,
particularly down a road. Every one should consider that
every check operates against the hounds, and that scent is
of a fleeting nature, soon lost, never again to be recovered.”
The following is the concluding paragraph, affording a
o-ood specimen of the writer’s enthusiastic love of fox-hunt-
mg, as also of a cultivated mind :—“ Fox-hunting,” he
asserts, “ is a manly and fine exercise, affording health to the
body, and matter and food for a contemplative mind. In
no situation are the faculties of man more displayed. For¬
titude, good sense, and collectiveness of mind, have a wide
field for exercise ; and a sensible sportsman would be a re¬
spectable character in any situation in life. The field is
a most agreeable coffee-house, and there is more real society
to be met with there than in any other situation in life. It
links all classes together, from the peer to the peasant.
It is the Englishman’s peculiar privilege. It is not to be
found in any other part of the globe, but in England’s true
land of liberty ; and may it flourish to the end of time !’’
There is perhaps no part of the material of fox-hunting
more interesting than the management of hounds in the
kennel, which, we do not hesitate in saying, presents one of
the most curious scenes that are anywhere displayed in the
whole circle of the transactions of mankind with the inferior
animal creation. TLo see sixty couples of those animals, all
hungry as tigers, standing aloof in their yard (as is the
practice in some kennels), and, without even hearing, much
less feeling, the whip, not daring to move until the order is
o-iven to them to move. And what is the order given ?
why, at the words, “ Come over, Bitches," or, “ Come over,
Dogs" every hound of each individual sex comes forward,
as the sex it belongs to may be called for, leaving those of
the other sex in their places; and then the act of drawing
them to the feeding troughs is an exceedingly interesting
sight. Often, with the door wide open, and the savoury
meat in their view, the huntsman has no use for his whip,
having nothing to do but to call each hound by his name,
which&of course he readily answers to. The expression of
countenance, too, at this time, is well worthy of notice;
and that of earnest solicitation, of entreaty, we might almost
say of importunity, cannot be more forcibly displayed than
in the face of a hungry hound awaiting his turn to be drawn.
He appears absolutely to watch the lips of the huntsman,
anticipating his own name. A view of a pack of fox-hounds
likewise in their lodging-rooms, is a most agreeable sight
to those who love to see animals in a high state of enjoy¬
ment, which no doubt hounds are when reposing on their
well littered-down benches after a hard day’s work, and
with their bellies well filled. They absolutely appear to
feel for each other’s comforts, in placing themselves in
situations that enable their fellow-creatures to repose parts
of their bodies upon their own, to render their position for
sleep and rest more agreeable to them.
The system of fox-hunting has been much changed since
that sport commenced. Almost all foxes were once found
by the drag, and the first challenge was loudly cheered in
days when the game was scarce. A long drag, however,
although a great test of nose, is by no means desirable, as,
if it happens to be down wind, the fox takes the hint, and
is off long before the hounds can hunt up to his kennel.
It was nevertheless a fine feature in the sport, as the gra- Hunting,
dual increase of cry, the cheering holloas ol the spoilsmen, v v 1 J
and the crash when the fox was unkennelled, conti ibuted
greatly to ennoble the scene, and created, as it were, two
climaxes in a chase, when it ended in blood. But another
disadvantage attended it. Hounds could not be depended
upon, taking the average of scent, to hunt a drag that had
become cold; so they were obliged to be out very early in
the morning, which was not only disagreeable, as encroach¬
ing upon the sportsman’s rest, but was coupled with the
disadvantage, at all events with the risk, of finding a gorged
fox, too full to run far, much less to run fast. Ihe modern
system does not require the drag, as woodland covers are
comparatively small to what they used to be; gorse covers
made for the purpose of holding foxes are easily accessible
to hounds accustomed to draw them; and the game is in
most countries so plentiful, that if a fox be not found in
one cover, he is almost certain to be found in another, and
that not far off. The consequence is, no more time is now
lost in drawing two or three gorse covers, than the drag
of one fox formerly occupied; neither did that always lead
to a find. Moreover, at the present hour of finding, there
is but little chance of unkennelling a gorged fox.
It is by some asserted, that what are called woodland
foxes are stouter runners than those bred in the artificial
gorse and other covers, and we have good reason to believe
they are so. But the great objection to large woodlands is
the uncertainty of getting a run, from the difficulty of
making foxes break from them, as they naturally hang to
places which appear to afford them security; and it often
happens that hounds, and the horses of the servants, have
done a fair day’s work before the run begins. On the
other hand, we admit that a fox found in a wood of con¬
siderable extent is more likely to show a decidedly good
day’s sport, than one found in an artificial coyer, and for
this reason: he slips away unperceived, eight times out of
ten, and consequently has time to look about him, and make
his points, ere the chase commences: whereas a fox viewed
away from a small gorse cover, within sight of a hundred
or two of horsemen, is bullied, frightened, and soon blown,
which occasions him to run short: and, of course, if the
scent serves, and the hounds are good, he cannot live long,
half an hour being as much as can be calculated upon under
such circumstances. Gorse covers, however, if not too
small,—not under three or four acres,—are indispensable
in a hunting country, as foxes are very fond of them for
their security against anything but fox-hounds; and an¬
other great advantage attending them is, that they can be
placed wherever it may be thought desirable to place them.
The making of gorse covers requires no small attention,
we had nearly said skill. The ground is all the better for
being trenched to the depth of from a foot to a foot and a
half, and it should be made as clean and in as good con¬
dition as if it were to be the seed-bed of turnips. The
seed should be minutely examined, as it often fails from
having lost its germinating properties; and it should be
drilled in the ground, and hoed, after the manner of a
turnip crop. By keeping it clean by the hoe, it will, if the
seed be good, and the land dry, often hold a fox in the
second year, but will seldom fail in the third. Some writers,
Colonel Cook among the number, speak of broom being
sown amongst gorse. This should never be, as all hunts¬
men who draw, or run through, broom covers, can vouch
for their being decidedly inimical to scent. A novel de¬
scription of fox-cover came into fashion a few years back
in Leicestershire, but is not highly approved of, from the
difficulty hounds experience in drawing it. Strong black
thorn stakes are driven into the ground endways, at a small
distance apart, and the rank grass and weeds growing ra¬
pidly over, and entwining with them, form a strong cover
the first year; and it is found proof against a fall of snow,
r
38 HUNTING.
Hunting, which gorse covers are not, and are often forsaken by foxes
on that account. All artificially-made covers should be not
nearer than half a mile at the least to any house or village;
and if on a gently sloping bank, facing the south, foxes
will like them better.
Some sportsmen object to many rides being cut through
covers, as they are so often the cause of foxes being headed
by the horsemen. The objection in part holds good; but
ascertain number of rides are necessary in all large covers,
to enable the servants to get near their hounds, who might
otherwise be disposed to run riot, as they soon discover
when they are out of the reach of either rate or whip.
Woodlands, with rides in them, are essential to the making
of young hounds in all countries; and the finest in Eng¬
land are those of the Duke of Buccleuch, near Keltering,
in Northamptonshire, within the limits of the Pytchley
Hunt, with rides, or, speaking more properly, avenues in
them, to the extent of upwards of fifty miles.
When speaking of the disadvantages of large woods, in
which foxes are apt to “ hang” or dwell, Colonel Cook recom¬
mends killing a fox, and letting the hounds eat him, in the
middle of them; which we believe will generally have the
desired effect. On the other hand, should a fox be killed
in a small cover, he should, if possible, be carried out of it
before the hounds break him up. One of the best gorse
covers in the D unchurch country did not hold for two or
three seasons, because a dead fox was left in it.
The arrangement of earths, and the stopping of them,
are matters of no small importance. Artificial ones are
reckoned unhealthy for foxes; and the best are those made
by badgers, which can always be commanded at pleasure,
by turning out those animals in pairs. There are various
methods of stopping earths, but none more secure than by
a bunch of gorse, or furze, crammed well into the mouth of
them, with the stalks pushed inwards, When earths are
only slightly stopped, a fox will scratch his way into them ;
and as this very often happens, it shows the necessity of a
careful and experienced earth-stopper; and it is better to
pay for each day’s stopping rather than annually in the
lump, reserving the power to withhold payment in case of
evident neglect. The expense of earth-stopping varies
according to the nature of the soil, covers, &c.; but in cer¬
tain countries it amounts to as much as L.200 per annum.
It may also surprise some persons to hear, that the rent
paid for covers in the Quorn Hunt amounts to upwards of
L.2000 per annum. The multiplication of small artificial
gorse covers has, however, sadly spoilt the breed of foxes,
and converted many of them into mere “ ringerswhile
the cross with the small cowardly French fox has also done
much towards destroying their dash. The only way to re¬
cruit a country is to bring cubs from Ireland or the High¬
lands, where the greyhound fox is still to be found in high
perfection.
The following calculations of the expenses of a pack of
fox-hounds are given by Colonel Cook, and admitted to be
very near the mark ; making allowance for the difference in
the price of markets at the time he made them, and at others.
For Hounds hunting twice a-week :—
Six horses, including groom and helpers L.300
Hounds’ food, for 25 couples   150
Firing  30
Taxes  80
Whipper-in and feeder  140
Earth-stopping  50
Saddlery  40
Farriery, shoeing, medicine, &c  50
Young hounds purchased, and expenses at walks  60
Casualties    100
L.1000
A second whipper-in, and two horses in addition  170
Total  L.1170
Expenses for three times a-week :— Hunting,
Twelve horses, groom, helpers, &c L.600
Food for forty couples of hounds  220
Firing  40
Taxes   100
Two whippers-in and feeder   210
Earth-stopping   65
Saddlery  80
Farriery, shoeing, &c  80
Young hounds purchased, and expenses at walks  80
Casualties   150
Total  L.1625
Expenses for four times a-week :—
Fourteen horses, &c L.700
Hounds’food for fifty couples  275
Firing  50
Taxes  120
Two whippers-in and feeder   210
Earth-stopping  80
Saddlery  100
Farriery, shoeing, &c  100
Young hounds purchased, and expenses at walks  100
Casualties   200
Total  L.1935
“ If you do not attend to the kennel department your¬
self,” adds the Colonel, “ but keep a huntsman, the expense
will be at least L.300 more.”
The only remark we have to offer on the foregoing cal¬
culations is, that the author does not allow a sufficient num¬
ber of hounds for the several days’ hunting in the week.
For example, we venture to say, that no country could be
hunted four times a-week with fifty couples of hounds; at
all events, fifty couples of hounds equal to that work are
very rarely to be found. We agree with the writer, that
either four times a-week, or even twice, are preferable to
three, for keeping hounds in regular work, when sound.
But on the subject of expenses we have a word or two
more to say. Knowing, as we do, that they generally, we
believe we may say always, exceed the calculations made
by Colonel Cook, and in some instances by double, we con¬
sider it rather inconceivable that either noblemen or private
gentlemen should be expected or permitted to bear all the
charge of hunting a country themselves, knowing, as we do,
the great sacrifices of property and income that have already
been made to a perseverance in keeping fox-hounds, un¬
assisted by a subscription. The late Sir Richard Sutton,
for instance, is supposed to have spent about L.8000 a-year
over his stud and kennel, when he hunted the whole of the
Quorn country at his own expense, with the exception of
the rents of the covers. Hunting men are in fact becoming
more and more anxious to have their sport at a master’s
expense; and too many do not subscribe at all, or what is
worse, forget to pay up when they have put their names
down. But this cannot go on much longer; nor indeed is
it, with some exceptions, fit that it should; and, in support
of our assertions, we will quote the sentiments of a writer
on this subject, admirably well expressed, in an old number
of the JVew Sporting Magazine, which equally applies to
the present day.
After hinting at the probable decline of a sport, from
this cause alone, which Mr Burke described as “ one of the
balances of the constitution,” he thus proceeds:—“ As to
the total abolition of the sport, we anticipate no such event.
It is the favourite sport of Englishmen; and that which a
man likes best he will relinquish last. Still, with the ex¬
ception of countries that boast their Clevelands, their Yar¬
boroughs and Suttons, their Graftons, Beauforts, Rutlands,
Fitzwilliams, Segraves, Middletons (his lordship is since
dead), and Harewoods—their great and sporting noblemen,
in fact—we feel assured that, unless something be speedily
arranged, half the packs in England must either be cur¬
tailed of their fair proportion of sport, or abolished alto¬
gether. This is not as it should be. Men are as fond of
HUNT
Hunting, hunting, at least of riding to hounds, as ever; but though
v—we feel that we may be telling a disagreeable truth to many,
the fact is, that most men want to hunt for nothing. The
day for this, however, is fast drawing to a close. The
breed of country gentlemen who keep hounds—the Ralph
Lambtons, the Farquharsons, the Assheton Smiths, the
Villebois, and Osbaldestons—are fast disappearing, in all
probability never to be renewed. True that it is a fine, a
proud sight, to see an English country gentleman spending
his income on his native soil, and affording happiness and
amusement to his neighbours, receiving their respect and
esteem in return ; but we cannot help feeling, that unless a
man has one of those overwhelming incomes that are more
frequently read of than enjoyed, it is hardly fair that the
expenses of a sport which affords health and recreation to
hundreds should fall upon his individual shoulders. Heirs
at law will not be hindered by the remoteness of relation¬
ship from impugning the conduct of their ancestors; nor
will it be any consolation to a son, on coming into posses¬
sion of an overburdened estate, to know that the difficulties
which oppress him were incurred for the purpose of keep¬
ing a pack of fox-hounds, by which his father afforded
amusement to the country.”
Fox-hunting is a sort of prescriptive right, which Eng¬
land has claimed from a very early period; and, more than
this, it has long been considered that the common law al¬
lowed persons to enter the lands of another in pursuit of a
fox, the destruction of which was presumed to be a public
benefit. This opinion was founded on the celebrated case
Grundy v. Feltham (1, Term. Reports, p. 334); but in
that of Earl of Essex v. Capel, Summer Assizes, 1809, the
legality of hunting foxes over the land of another is rendered
very questionable. This being the case, it is a great com¬
pliment to the sport, as no doubt injury of land to a certain
amount, though small, is occasioned by it, that it is per¬
mitted to the extent to which we see it, in every county in
Great Britain ; and that an action of trespass is an unusual
occurrence, must be considered as still more creditable to
the yeomanry and tenantry who live by the occupation of
land. On the other hand, however, it must be remembered,
that the produce of land is very considerably enhanced by
the great demand, as well as extra prices given, for hay,
corn, and straw, as likewise by the encouragement to breed¬
ing horses; and that, wherever there is a colony of fox-
hunters, it is accompanied by a great influx of money,
which is expended in the immediate neighbourhood. Cecil,
in his admirable Records of the Chase, gives it as his opinion
that about 15,300 hunters are kept in England and Wales
alone, and that, taking the average for the keep of each
horse at LAO, no less than L. 120,000 is circulated through
the medium of horse and hound annually. The United
Kingdom contains about 105 packs of fox and stag hounds,
and about 90 of harriers, otter-hounds, and beagles. By
far the largest number of packs is kept in Devonshire, but
although every one there goes a hunting, it is the worst
hunting ground in England, not excepting the Craven,
where John W^arde considered that 44 he was sent as a
punishment for his sins.”
There were formerly three established classes of hunt¬
ing in Great Britain, each of which had advocates, as it
may have been suitable to situation, fortune, time of life,
&c.; and although the struggle for superiority has ended
in favour of that of the fox, we have reason to believe, that
since what are termed “packs of hounds have been esta¬
blished, hunting the stag or buck claims precedence of the
hare ; the hare of the fox ; the otter, perhaps, of all. We
will then offer a few more remarks upon them, as we have
ranked them here.
Since the stag has ceased to be drawn for, and found in
his native majesty, and hunted as a wild animal, “ stag¬
hunting” has lost all its interest with the sportsman; and
L' I N G. 39
when we say that the chase of no other animal is, after all, Hunting.^
from first to last, so full of interest as that of the stag, the V ^ v
sportsman has some cause for regret. But wild-stag hunt¬
ing could not have remained one of the popular diversions
of Great Britain, for two sufficient reasons, t irst, from the
country being so generally cleared of wood there would
have been a great scarcity of game ; and, secondly, from
the circumstance of the stag being, by his nature, unfit to
be hunted during some of the months that sportsmen like
to be on the field. The act of harbouring the deer, how¬
ever, must be considered as amongst the very highest
branches of the sportsman’s art, and one which none but a
well-practised sportsman could perform. Neither was the
hunting to death of the wild stag by any means so easy a
task as might be supposed, from the bulk of the animal,
which it must be proportionally difficult for him to conceal.
On the contrary, like the harts of Meandros, flying from
the terrible cry of Diana’s hounds, the “ wise hart,” or cerf
sage, as he is termed in ancient hunting, knows how to foil
hounds perhaps as well as, or better than, most other wild
animals, and is allowed to consult the wind in his course
more than any of them. It is also said of him, that he will,
when pursued, rouse other deer from their lair, to induce
the hounds to run counter, or change; and his device of
taking soil, with nothing but the nose to be seen above the
water, or, running down a stream, and seeking for a hard and
dry road when pressed, are facts too well established to
require comment. There is not a nobler sight in nature
than that of a full-headed stag roused from his lair by hounds,
and majestically trotting before them, snuffing the air as he
goes, and appearing to care little for his pursuers, from con¬
fidence in his natural powers. That these powers are great,
all modern stag-hunters are satisfied of; and those of en¬
durance, when chased, are allegorized in the fable of the
Maenalaean stag, the running down of which is said to have
occupied Hercules for a year, and was in consequence
counted amongst the labours of that hero. That deer are
superiorly winded animals, is apparent by the immense
height they can leap, just before they die from bodily ex¬
haustion. A popular error has attributed this to the exist¬
ence of the fossa lacrymalis, which was supposed to furnish
a breathing place at the corner of each eye. Oppian must
have supposed, by the following line, that they had Jour ;
{< iriffvgis orva/jio'/ ^tccuXoi,”
which was a mistake of the sporting bard; and some writers
have made Aristotle say, that goats breathed at their ears,
whereas he directly asserts the contrary. The classic
writers, however, as well as our own poets, have taken some
of their most beautiful similes from the chase of the deer;
for example, Virgil’s comparing the flight of Turnus to a
stag trying to escape from the toils; and the death of the
favourite hind by the hand of the young lulus, a master¬
piece of pastoral poetry. But the death of the stag has
been a favourite theme of our own poets; and both Shak-
speare and Thomson have been equally happy in their de¬
scription of the last moments of the antlered monarch of
the forest; the latter particularly:
 “ He stands at bay,
And puts his last weak refuge in despair.
The big round tears run down his dappled face :
He groans in anguish ; whilst the growling pack,
Blood-happy, hang at his fair jutting chest,
And mark his beauteous chequer’d sides with gore.”
A kind of technological dictionary is required to almost
all sports of flood and field. Of the technical terms in
deer-hunting Nimrod thus speaks :—“ What we fox-hun¬
ters call the ball or pad of a fox on foot, they term the
‘ slot.’ We drag up to a fox; they draw on the slot, or
walk up a deer. We find, or unkennel a fox; they rouse, or
unharbour a deer. A fox runs up and down a cover; a
40 H U N r
Hunting, deer beats up or down a covert, or a stream. With us, a
fox is headed (turned back, or driven from his point); with
them, a deer is blanched. W e say, a fox stops or hangs in a
cover, in a run ; they say, their game sinks. We recover
our fox; they fresh find their deer. We run into (kill)
our fox; they set up the deer. The fox is worried ; the
deer is broken up. The fox goes a clicketing; the deer
goes to rut. The fox barks ; the stag bellows. The bil-
liting (excrement) of the one is termed the feument or
feumishing of the other. The brush of the fox is the single
of the deer. The mask of the fox is the snout or nose of
the deer. The view, the foil, the tally-ho, and who-whoop,
are common, I believe, to all; but ‘ currant jelly’ and ‘ sweet
sauce’ are not in the fox-hunter’s vocabulary.” “ There
are some expressions here,” continues Nimrod, “ which re¬
quire farther explanation than I am able to afford them;
and it is almost presumptuous in me, without any assistance
at hand, to attempt giving an opinion on the subject. The
word £ harbour,’ however, is one of common acceptation,
and implies a place of refuge. To unharbour a deer has
long since been settled by Phny,—‘ Excutere feram cubili.’
The expression is clear, and falls smoothly on the ear. Not
so with ‘ taking soil:’ it savours of filth, and is only appli¬
cable, in this sense, to a hog delighting, in the summer
months, to wallow in mud or dirty water, previously to going
to his bed. To ‘ beat up and down’ is only another way of
expressing to run to and fro, and is found in Terence, in
the word cursito. The deer being ‘ set up,’ can only be
in allusion to his having his throat cut; for Cicero speaks
of a man being ‘ set up’ to have that pleasant operation per¬
formed,—‘In cervicibus imponere dominum.’ The stag
roused from his lair has certainly a great superiority over
unkennelling the fox. The latter is tame and puny, whereas
the former is bold and classical, and quite in association
with the wildness of the forest, of which this animal is the
monarch. The lair is but another word for the den ; as we
read in Virgil’s celebrated contrast of a town and country
life, in which he so beautifully describes the manly pursuits
of the latter; and likewise in the hunting scene with Dido
and iEneas. The word feument I never heard before, but
conclude it is derived from the Greek word (ftyp/xa, recre-
mentum”
The following is Nimrod’s description of a full-headed
deer:—“ A perfect head, I find, consists of brow, bay, tray,
and three on top of each horn; but some have brow, bay,
tray, and five on each horn, though these are rare.”
Of the powers of endurance of a deer before hounds, as
also of his subtlety in foiling them, the same writer thus
speaks:—“ When we reflect on the powers of a stag, and
look at his qualities for speed, we cannot be surprised that,
when not overladen with flesh, or a ‘ heavy deer,’ as he is
then called in Devonshire, he should afford some extraor¬
dinary chases. The following well-authenticated facts will
speak to their powers of locomotion: ‘ When Sir Thomas
Acland kept the hounds, a farmer in the neighbourhood of
Holnicote House, saw a stag one evening in his fields, with
a particular spot on his side. The next morning he met this
same stag running in great distress, with the hounds close
at his haunches, and he soon afterwards sank before them.
On his asking Sir Thomas where he had found him, he
learnt that it was 25 miles, as the crow flies, from the place
where he was killed. He must therefore have travelled
that distance in the course of the previous night.’ ” Again,
on the power of leaping, which we have already noticed,
and particularly in allusion to their wind, when otherwise
much distressed, we find the following remark:—“ On my
return from hunting on the preceding Tuesday’s hunting,”
says Nimrod, “ I was shown a leap, in Lord Fortescue’s
park, which a hind had taken last season before this pack,
after a long run, and not ten minutes before she sank be¬
fore them. What makes it more extraordinary is, that, on
' I N G.
being paunched, a calf was taken from her almost able to Hunting
stand. The fence was a stone wall, with a rail on the top
of it, not to be broken ; and your readers may judge of its
height from the following statement, having had no other
means of measuring it: My own height is 5 feet 9 inches;
the horse I rode is 15 hands 2 inches high; the top of the
fence was upwards of 2 feet above the crown of my hat;
and it was up a steep bank that she approached it. The
stag we ran went up to this fence, but did not attempt to
leap it.”
From the adverse circumstances attending it in a country
like Great Britain, so generally free from large tracts of
woodlands, which the red deer delights in, and also so much
intersected with streams, real stag-hunting can never be
again reckoned amongst the popular diversions in England,
a good substitute for it is found in the turning out deer be¬
fore fox-hounds in the neighbourhood of the metropolis,
which has the advantage of affording a certainty of some¬
thing in the shape of a run, and frequently very long ones,
to persons whose time is precious, as well as the opportunity
of, in a great measure, selecting the country best suited to
the habits and propensities of the game. There are a num¬
ber of stag-hunting establishments in England, and there
has been a royal establishment of this nature throughout
several successive reigns. In that of George III. stag¬
hunting was in high repute amongst the nobility and gentry
forming the court, as well as of others residing in its neigh¬
bourhood. Mr Beckfbrd said little about it, because he
knew little : the reason he himself gives ; but the following
expression in his book relating to it made a deep impression
on fox-hunters, who reluctantly acknowledge its truth:—
“ Could a fox-hound,” says Mr Beckford, “ distinguish a
hunted fox, as the deer-hound does the deer that is blown,
fox-hunting would be complete.”
The roe-buck has partaken of the same respite from the
chase as the wild red deer, although by the old laws of the
forest he was not considered as venison until hunted; and,
according to Caesar, the Britons did not eat this animal at
all. The fact is, the roe-buck runs so short, after the first
ring, that he is said to hunt the hounds, instead of the
hounds hunting him; an artifice by which he hopes to elude
his pursuers, as, of course, it must produce a confusion of
scents. Neither does his cunning end here. When closely
pursued in a thick wood, he will bound to one side of a path
by a sudden spring, and, lying close down upon his belly,
permit the hounds to pass by him without offering to stir.
But the beauty of form and elegance of motion of the “ fa¬
vourite roe” ought to protect it from the chase. There has
been only one pack of roe-buck hounds kept in Great Bri¬
tain, and that was by a gentleman of the name of Pleydell,
of Whatcombe House, near Blandford, Dorsetshire, lately
deceased, in whose covers these animals abounded, as they
also do in various parts of Scotland.
Hunting the ottei' was a sport much thought of in Eng¬
land, and is of very early date, chiefly perhaps for the great
value set on fresh-water fish. The system of hunting the
otter is this: The sportsmen go on each side of the river,
beating the banks and sedges with the hounds. If there
be an otter near, his “ seal” (foot) is soon traced on the
shore; and, when found, he is attacked by the sportsmen
with spears, when he “ vents,” that is, comes to the surface of
the water to breathe. If he be not soon found by the river
side, it is conjectured he is gone to “ couch” inland, for he
will occasionally go some distance from his river to feed.
He is traced by the foot, as the deer is; and when found,
and wounded in the water, he makes directly for the shore,
where he maintains an obstinate defence. He bites most
severely, and does not readily quit his hold; on the con¬
trary, if he seizes a dog in the water, he will dive with him
to the bottom of the river, and will never yield to him
whilst he has life. This sport is still pursued in the few
HUNTING.
Hunting, fenny and watery districts that now remain in England, and
whas for a long time been confined principally to those parts
where, from local circumstances, the other more noble and
exhilarating distinctions of the chase cannot be conveniently
enjoyed. An attempt, however, was at one time made to
revive it, by an Oxfordshire sportsman, Mr Peyton, only
son of Sir Henry Peyton, Bart., of which an account may
be found in the Oxford Journal. By this, two facts were
established; the one, that otter-hunting spiritedly pursued
is not a tame diversion ; and the other, that the charge
against this animal of destroying young lambs and poultry,
is not altogether unfounded.
The otter-hound is not a distinct kind of hound, the
strong rough-haired harrier answering the purpose best,
provided he will hunt a low scent, as the game shows no
small sagacity, as well as circumspection, in guarding against
assault from man or dog. In 1796, on the River Worse, near
Bridgenorth, Shropshire, four otters were killed, one of which
stood three, another four hours before the hounds; and in
1804 the otter-hounds of Mr Coleman of Leominster, Here¬
fordshire, killed an otter in a mill pond, which is said to have
weighed thirty-four pounds and a half; supposed to have
been eight years old, and to have consumed a ton of fish or
flesh annually, for the last five years. They often destroy
much more than they consume, for they will go on killing
when their prey is plentiful, eating only a small portion of
each fish. Mr John Dixon lately imported some Durham
otter-hounds to Canada, and we hear that they are generally
considered to be better adapted for bear-hunting than any
description of dog which has yet been sent over.
Hare-hunting claims precedence of fox-hunting in the
sporting chronology of Great Britain, and we believe of
all other countries, inasmuch as a hare has always been
esteemed excellent eating, and a fox the rankest of carrion.
We gather from Xenophon that it was practised before his
day, and he wrote fully upon it above three centuries before
Christ; both hounds and nets being then used in the pursuit.
Neither can we marvel at hare-hunting being the favourite
diversion in all nations given to sporting where the use of
the horse in the field had not become common. But we
will go a point farther than this, and assert that, how inferior
soever may be the estimation in which hunting the hare is
held in comparison with hunting the fox, no animal of the
chase affords so much true hunting as she does, which was
the opinion of the renowned Mr Beckford.
In our description of the modern harrier (see article
Hound), we have termed him the fox-hound in miniature;
and we may apply the simile to hare-hunting, which now,
as long as the chase lasts, greatly resembles fox-hunting,
only on a minor scale. In the modern system there is no
tracking to the seat with the one, any more than dragging
up to the kennel with the other; but both animals are now
chiefly stumbled upon by accident, and instantly fly for their
lives. With the system of hunting also has the kind of hound
been altered; there being now no longer occasion for that
nice distinction of scent which was wanting to be a match
for the windings and doublings a hare was able to make in
her course when hunted by the slow and fastidious southern
hound, and which was essential to the finding her at all, in
countries where hares were scarce, by the perplexing means
of a very cold trail.
In proof of our assertion, that there is more of true hunt¬
ing with harriers than with any other description of hounds,
w'e shall point out a few of the difficulties which they have to
overcome. In the first place, a hare, when found, generally
describes a circle in her course, which is in itself not only
more difficult to follow, but it naturally brings her upon her
foil, which is the greatest trial for hounds. Secondly, the
scent of the hare is weaker than that of any other animal we
hunt; and, unlike some, it is always the worse the nearer
she is to her end; which accounts for its being better, and
VOL. XII.
lasting longer, when going to her seat, than when running Hunting^
There is scarcely any scent from a hare until she is in mo-
tion; therefore hounds constantly draw over her; and, of
course, according to the length of time she has been gone
to her seat after feeding, will be the difficulty of hunting her
by the trail. In fact, at the most distant part of her previous
night or morning’s walk, the most tender-nosed hound in a
pack will be scarcely able to own the scent at all. But the
grand puzzler of all is, when hounds get upon the counter
trail, about the middle of a hare’s work, and the scent lies
so equal that it is most difficult to distinguish heel from
chase. No such difficulty as this can occur in any other
description of hunting, and can only be obviated by the skill
and experience of the huntsman in his notice of the working
of his hounds. But although this difficulty is alluded to by
almost all writers on the chase, we know not where to look
for directions to the huntsman at the critical moment. It
is true, Mr Daniel, in his Rural Sports, says, “ To find out
this, see if your hounds challenge counter; if they double
and carry it on counter, they will soon signify their error by
opening singly.” We conceive there is some reason in this
remark, but it will not always avail. Hounds, harriers in
particular, are fond of a scent; and if they cannot carry it
forward, they will turn and hunt it heel; and here it is that
the judgment of a huntsman turns to account. One with a
keen eye, and a perfect knowledge of Ins hounds, may be
able to unravel this mystery perhaps six times out of ten;
but it is in no man’s power to be sure of doing it. His chief
guide is in the cry of his pack at this time, which will slacken
instead of getting fuller if the scent be heel, as the experi¬
ence of old hounds adds to their natural instinct the faculty
of judging whether it is leading them to their prey or from it.
The great perfection of modern harriers is the head they
carry over a country, the result of the pains now taken in
breeding them of the same size and character; whereas,
upon the old system, which was all for the pot, the chief de¬
pendence was upon a few couples out of the whole pack,
the rest being wheresoever they liked or were able to be in
the chase. On the other hand, it may be said modern har¬
riers have not the nose and patience of the old sort, which
perhaps they have not; but what they may lose in those
respects they more than gain in another, viz., by being
nearer to their game in chase, and, by pressing her, not
allowing her to make more than halt the work she was able
to do when pursued by slow hounds. In fact, the want of
speed, and tedious exactness, of the southern hound, ren¬
dered the warmest scent, after a short time, cold; which
may be proved from the fact of an hour being the average
time of killing a hare, in former days, with a good scent;
and from three to four with what is called a “ fair,” a “ hold¬
ing,” or a “ half scent.” For our own part, speaking as fox-
hunters, yet abandoning all prejudices against a sport it is
too much the fashion to hold cheap, we consider that, to
any man who is a real lover of hunting, that is, of seeing
hounds do their work, and do that work well, a twenty
minutes burst over a good country, with a well-bred pack
of harriers of Dae present stamp and fashion, affords a high
treat. To see them to advantage, however, it should be
over a country in which the fields are large, and the fences
stone walls, like those of Oxfordshire or Gloucestershire ;
for harriers, being for the most part obliged to meuse,
strong hedges prevent their carrying a head in chase, which
is the chief beauty in all hunting.
Somerville has these appropriate lines on the adaptation
of hounds to their game :—
“ A different hound for every chase
Select with judgment; nor the timorous hare
O’ermatched, destroy; hut leave that vile offence
To the mean, murderous, coursing crew, intent on blood and
spoil.”
Harriers should not be too large, certainly not more than
F
HUNTING.
42
Hunting. 18 inches high, or, by their speed, and, if good withal, they
^ will much overmatch their game ; but in a good and open
country there should never be less than from eighteen to
twenty couples in the field. A strong pack not only adds
to the respectability of the thing (at all events, a small one
greatly detracts from it), but, in our opinion, more hounds
are wanting to pursue an animal that runs short, than one
which, like the fox, generally makes for a distant point.
The opinion of Mr Beckford is in opposition to us here.
He says, “ the fewer hounds you have, the less you foil
the ground, which you will find a great hindrance to your
huntingbut it must here be remarked, that in the pre-
cedino- sentence this eminent sportsman speaks of the diffi¬
culty'of getting a strong pack of harriers to run well to¬
gether, a'difficulty which no doubt existed in his day, but
is totally overcome in the best hare-hunting establishments
of ours. Indeed, we once heard a sportsman declare, and
he was a sportsman who had hunted in all the best countries
in England, that he had never seen a chase quite complete
from end to end, not a single hound being out of place, until
he saw it with a pack of harriers over the Cotswold Hills.
The following passage from Beckford is worthy of his
pen, and should be strictly observed by all masters of har¬
riers ;—“ Harriers, to be good, must be kept to their own
game. If you run fox with them, you spoil them. Hounds
cannot be perfect unless used to one scent and to one style
of hunting. Harriers run fox in so different a style from
hare, that it is of great disservice to them when they re¬
turn to hare again. It makes them wild, and teaches them
to skirt. The high scent which a fox leaves, the straight¬
ness of his running, the eagerness of the pursuit, and the
noise that generally accompanies it, all contribute to spoil a
harrier.” We conclude that the writer here alludes to
hunting wild foxes, which is now very rarely done with a
pack of harriers, at least in a country near to which fox¬
hounds are kept. No master of harriers would do it, who
wishes his pack to be perfect: and there are other reasons
for his not doing it, which it is unnecessary to mention.
But the very best understanding now generally exists be¬
tween masters of fox-hounds and masters of harriers; and
it is a common practice of such of the latter as reside in a
fox-hunting district, to await the publishing of the fox¬
hunting fixtures before they make their own.
The following hints may be useful in hunting the hare.
First, respecting the hare herself:—Hares breed from Feb¬
ruary to the end of harvest, and are said to live seven
years. The buck affords the best sport, particularly in the
spring, when, after one or two rings, he often goes straight
on end for several miles. Hence the proverb, “ as wild as
a March hare.” Some persons pretend to distinguish the
sex upon the seat; at all events, the head of the buck is
shorter', the shoulders redder, and the ears redder, than
those of a doe; he is also larger, and his hind parts are of
a lighter colour. If the claws are smooth and sharp, and
the ears tear easily, the hare is young.
The difficulty of finding a hare by the eye is well known.
It is an art greatly facilitated by experience, although not
one person in ten who attempts it succeeds in it. But
here we recognise the Hand that furnished her with such
means for her security; as, from the delicacy of her flesh,
she is the prey of every carnivorous animal, and her means
of defence are confined only to her flight. In going to her
form, she consults the weather, especially the wind, lying
always, when she can, with her head to face it. After har¬
vest, hares are found in all situations; in stubble fields,
hedgerows, woods, and brakes; but when the leaves fall,
they prefer lying upon open ground, and particularly on a
stale fallow, that is, one which has been some time ploughed;
as likewise after frost, and towards the spring of the year.
In furze or gorse, they lie so close as to allow themselves
nearly to be trodden upon, rather than quit their form.
The down or upland bred hare shows best sport; that Hunting,
bred in a wet, marshy district, the worst, although the scent
from the latter may be the stronger. If a hare, when not
viewed away, runs slowly at first, it is generally a sign that
she is an old one, and likely to afford sport; but hares
never run so well as when they do not know where they
are. Thus, trapped hares, turned out before hounds, almost
invariably run straight on end, and generally till they can
run no longer; and they generally go straight in a fog.
The chase of the hare has been altered, and rendered
less difficult in some degree, by the improvement of the
hound used in it. In the first place, she is now so pressed
by the pace at which she is hunted, that she has not time,
when first started, to visit the works of the preceding night;
nor is she, from the same cause, so likely to run her foil.
But when making out her foil, hounds are not let to puz¬
zle over it now as formerly, but, if it be not quickly done,
are rated forward by a whipper-in, to make good the head,
and if that do not succeed, to make it good round the
fences. Formerly, when hounds were at fault, the cast
was made in a small circle to begin with, and then their
huntsman tried wide ; whereas they now generally, and
especially if the game is supposed to be not far before them,
make a wide cast at first, and then contract the circle if
the wide cast fails. There is reason in this ; for if the hare
is on, the wide cast will cross her; and if she is not, she
has most likely squatted. The old system was, “ avoid a
view, if possible.” The modern one rather encourages a
view, but no halloaing: for as hares regulate their speed
in great measure by the cry of hounds, they are less apt to
have recourse to shifts when the cry bursts upon them at
once. In fact, to suit the taste of the day, which is to have
every thing that moves fast, it was necessary that the
greater part of the system of hunting the hare should be
changed. It used to be insisted upon, that harriers should
never be lifted as long as they can possibly carry a scent;
and Beckford says, “ a hare is not fairly hunted unless the
pack be left almost entirely to themselves ; that they should
follow her every step she takes, as well over greasy fallows
as through large flocks of sheep; nor should they be cast
but when nothing can be done without it.” This may
have been all very well when gentlemen followed hounds
on foot, or were content to be some hours killing one hare;
or for Mr Beckford himself, who (although he admits hav¬
ing bred an infinity of harriers before he could get a pack
to please him) thought hare-hunting should be taken as a
ride after breakfast, to get an appetite to dinner.
But we have reason to believe, if a master of harriers of
the present day wished to show his pack to advantage, and
could have a choice of a run to display them, he would
say, “ Give me twenty-five minutes in all; the first fifteen
a severe burst; then a fault, well hit off; and the remain¬
ing ten without a turn.” But, it may be asked, wherefore
the fault? We reply, because, although the speed of
well-bred harriers, for a certain time, if not quite equal to
that of fox-hounds, is too much for most hares, as well as
for most horses that follow them, yet, after that certain
time, say fifteen minutes, wind and power begin to fail, and
a short check is useful. Besides, the ability of a pack, in
quickly recovering a fault, is more than a counterbalance
to their coming to a fault at all, which, with a short run¬
ning animal, as the hare is, it is often difficult to avoid, nay,
rather to be looked for indeed in every field.
The difference in the terms used in hare-hunting and
fox-hunting is comprised in a few words:—Harriers are
cast off in the morning ; fox-hounds throw off. The hare
is found by the quest or trail; the fox by the drag. The
hare is on her form or seat; the fox in his kennel. The
young hare is a leveret; a fox a year old is a cub. The
view holloa of the hare is, “ Gone away ;” of a fox “ Tally-
ho.” The hare doubles in chase; the fox heads back, or
HUNTING. 43
Hunting, is headed. The harrier is at fault; the fox-hound at check.
. The iiare is pricked by the foot; the fox is balled or padded.
The hare squats; the fox lies down, stops, or hangs in
cover ; the “ who-whoop” signifies the death of each.
Our ideas of a complete pack of fox-hounds are very
soon expressed. For four days’ hunting in the week there
should be not much less than sixty couples of working
hounds; nor do we think more are necessary, as hounds,
like horses, are always better and sounder when in regular
work. For three days in the week, forty couples are
enough. They should have at their head not only a hunts¬
man, but also a master, each of whom knows his business,
and one clever whipper-in, and another as clever as you
can get him. It is not necessary, because it is not feasi¬
ble, that they should all be good drawers of covers ; but it
is absolutely necessary to perfection that they should all
get to work as soon as a fox is found, and prove themselves
true on the line their game has gone. As to their being
quite free from riot on all days, and on all occasions, the
man is not yet born who can say with truth, “ my hounds
never run riot.” Nature is seldom extinguished; and as
iEsop’s damsel, turned to a woman from a cat, behaved
herself very well till the mouse appeared, so will hounds
occasionally break away upon riot, particularly when out of
sight of the servants, in large covers, or when disappointed
by a long blank draw. We conceive a pack of fox-hounds
entitled to be called “ steady from riot,” if they will bear
being put to the following test:—If, when at fault for their
fox, in the middle of a large field, a hare gets up in view,
and not a hound stirs, nor attempts to break away after
her; and this without a word being said to caution them.
But it is in chase, with only a holding scent, that a pack of
fox-hounds display their excellence. In such a case as
this there must be checks; and it being ten to one
against their fox running straight, because they cannot press
him, now is the time to see them work. Do they carry a
good head when the scent is a-head, and serves them well ?
Are they cautious when it does not? And do they turn
short when the game has turned right or left, or is gone
back? Are they careful not to overrun the scent, and
will they stand pressing to a certain degree by the horse¬
men ? But having overrun it, do they stop directly, and
make their own cast? Should that fail, do they come
quickly to horn or holloa—to their huntsman’s cast ? Do
they fling for a scent when their huntsman lifts them to
points, and not attempt to Jlash, or break away, without a
scent? When the scent serves well, do they not only
carry a good head over a country, but, as their game is
sinking, does the head become better ? If they do all this,
and have speed and stoutness withal, they are equal to any
fox in any country, and are worth a thousand sovereigns to'
a sportsman.
The number of fox-hounds taken into the field depends
chiefly upon country; more being required in that which
is woodland, than for an open champaign, or for our in¬
closed grass districts, such as Leicestershire. Eighteen
couples are generally considered as sufficient for the latter;
and the strongest woodlands do not require more than from
twenty-two to twenty-five couples ; and we consider the
latter the more common number, in the field, of any pack
in any country.
The average speed of fox-hounds is estimated at ten
miles, point blank, over a country, with a good scent, in one
hour ; that is to say, making allowance for deviations from
the straight line, hounds seldom go more than ten miles,
from point to point, in that space of time. Mr Beckford
has a very judicious remark on this part of his subject.
“ That pack,” he writes, “ may be said to go the fastest that
can run ten miles the soonest, notwithstanding the hounds
separately may not run so fast as many others. A pack of
hounds, considered in a collective body, go fast in propor¬
tion to the excellence of their noses and the head they Hunting,
carry ; as that traveller gets soonest to his journey’s end
who stops least upon the road. Some hounds that I have
hunted with would creep all through the same hole, though
they might have leaped the hedge ; and would follow one
another in a string, as true as a team of cart-horses. I had
rather see them, like the horses of the sun, all abreast.”
There is nothing in the history of our domestic sports
and pastimes to inform us correctly as to the date of the
first regularly-established pack of fox-hounds kept in Eng¬
land. Neither the holy prioress of St Alban’s, Dame Ju¬
liana Berners, Markham, nor any of the very old writers on
such subjects, are able to satisfy us on this point; but, on
the authority of the Rev. William Chafin, in his Anecdotes
respecting Cranbourn Chase, the first real steady pack of
fox-hounds established in the western part of England was
by Thomas Fownes, Esq. of Stepleton, in Dorsetshire, about
the year 1730. “ They were,” says the author, who wrote
in 1818, “as handsome, and fully as complete in every
respect, as the most celebrated packs of the present day.
The owner, meeting with some worldly disappointments,
was obliged to dispose of them; and they were sold to Mr
Bowes, in Yorkshire, the father of the late Lady Strath¬
more, at an immense price for those days. This pack was
probably the progenitors of the very fine ones now in the
north. Before this pack was raised in Dorsetshire, the
hounds which hunted in the chase hunted all the animals
promiscuously, except the deer, from which they were ne¬
cessarily made steady, otherwise they would not have been
suffered to hunt at all in it.” Lord Yarborough’s fox¬
hounds, at Brocklesby Hall, Lincolnshire, have been esta¬
blished for upwards of 170 years, and the Smitts have
hunted them for several generations.
The Fox.
The fox makes a conspicuous figure in the natural history
of animals; still, in some 1'espects, his character has been
overrated and exaggerated. He is a native of all temper¬
ate regions; and although we read of the cur, the grey¬
hound, and the mastiff fox, we consider a fox as a fox, the
difference in size, colour, &c., being dependent on either
climate or food. It is true, they are larger in some particu¬
lar parts of England than in others; and it is generally be¬
lieved, that such as are what sportsmen call “ stub-bred
foxes,” that is, bred above, and not below ground, are the
largest. It is in this sole instance that the habits of the
fox differ from those of the wolf, to whose genus he belongs ;
the she wolf never bringing forth her young, as the fox
does, under ground. But although the general conforma¬
tion of the fox is the same as that of the wolf, his external
form has a greater resemblance to the dog, with whose cha¬
racter also he closely assimilates, when domesticated, in ex¬
pressions of affection, of anger, or of fear. When minutely
examined, and particularly in relation to his predatory life,
and, consequently, the dangers to which he is exposed, he
will be found to be abundantly endowed by nature with the
instinctive faculties requisite for such a life, in addition to
the most elegant form an animal of his size is capable of.
Foxes copulate in the winter months, and of course bring
forth in the spring, on an average perhaps half a dozen cubs
at a littei’, born blind like the dog; but the period of each
depends on the mildness or severity of the winter. Ex¬
cepting during the season of sexual desire, the fox is a soli¬
tary, not a gregarious animal, for the most part passing the
day in sleep, and the night in prowling after food.
The food of the fox is extremely variable ; indeed, very
few things that have or have had life come amiss to him ;
but we have reason to believe that rabbits, hares, poultry,
partridges, and pheasants, with their eggs, are his favourite
repasts; and when these are not to be had, he contents
44
HUNTING.
Hunting, himself with field-mice, black-bettles, snails, and frogs.
' That he can even exist solely on the latter, was proved a
few years ago, bv the circumstance of a iox-hound and a
fox having been found at the bottom of a dry well, into
which they had fallen ; the hound had perished from hunger,
but the fox had supported his life on frogs. Of those ani¬
mals and birds which we call game they are without doubt
destroyers—of pheasants, it is asserted, twenty-five per
cent.; but how it happens that they have been charged
with’feeding on grapes, we are, as far as our own experi¬
ence directs us, quite at a loss to determine. The tact,
however, is stated by several accredited writers, and has
o-iven birth to the fable of the fox and the grapes, the mo¬
ral of which is a severe rebuke to an envious person who
“ hates the excellence he cannot reach.” Aristophanes, in
his Equites, compares soldiers devastating a country to foxes
destroying a vineyard ; and Galen (Z)e Aliment., lib. hi., c.
2) tells us, that hunters ate the flesh of foxes in autumn,
because they were grown fat with feeding on grapes. I here
are also two lines in Theocritus {Idyl. E. v. 112) which
admit of the following version :—
T hate those brush-tailed foxes, that each night
Spoil Micon’s vineyards with their deadly bite.
He is likewise accused of eating human flesh, and, we have
reason to believe, accused justly. In addition to the sen¬
tence pronounced by David, in the sixty-third psalm, that
the enemies of God and himself should be a portion for
foxes,” we have the following interesting historical anec¬
dote. When the famous Messenian general Aristomenes
was thrown into the Caeadas (a deep chasm into which cri¬
minals were hurled) by the Lacedaemonians, his life is said
to have been preserved by following a fox that was feeding
on a dead body, to the aperture at which he had entered,
and through which, after enlarging it with his hands, he
himself escaped.
But although the subtlety of the fox has been proverbial
from the earliest times ; so much so, that our Saviour him¬
self called the tetrarch Herod “a fox,” by way of signify¬
ing the refinement of his policy; we do not perceive that,
with the exception of a timid prudence on breaking cover,
he shows more sagacity in his endeavours to baffle his pur¬
suers than the hare is known to do, if indeed so much. To
“ catch a weasel asleep,” is a typical designation of an im-
possiblity ; but foxes are frequently surprised in their naps
by hounds drawing upon them, up wind, particularly when
gorged with food. In the faculty of natural instinct, how¬
ever, they are equal to the dog; there being well-attested
instances of their being sent, marked, upwards of fifty miles
in a bag, and, having escaped being killed by hounds before
which they were turned out, being retaken in their native
woods. One was marked and sent down from Whittlebury
Forest behind the venison-cart, when the Duke of Grafton s
hounds were kept at Croydon, and it found his way back
the seventy miles, no less than three times, before it was
run into. But it is in his last moments, when seized by
hounds, that the superiority of character in the fox over the
hare exhibits itself. He dies in silence; but he sells his
life dearly; for, revengefully seizing upon the first hound
that approaches him, he only relinquishes his hold with the
last gasp.
When first the fox was hunted in Great Britain, he was
considered merely as a beast of prey, and killed in any way
in which he could be got at, generally by being caught in
nets and pitfalls, or killed at earth by terriers; his scent
not being considered favourable to hounds by our forefa¬
thers. Although they admitted it to be hotter at hand
than that of the hare, their favourite object of pursuit, they
believed it to be sooner dissipated ; but perhaps the real
cause of their objection was, in the general inequality of
speed and endurance in the hounds of their days and in a
really wild fox; and foxes then were undoubtedly stouter,
and able to run much greater distances from point to point,
than they now do, when they have comparatively so short
a distance to travel for their food, as well as being often
over-fed. These animals, then, being always destroyed
when an opportunity offered, were of course generally
scarce; which, added to the great extent of woods and
other fastnesses with which England then abounded, ac¬
counts for the fact of hunting the fox, unless as a beast of
prey, not being in vogue until these objections were re¬
moved. But the fox was ever considered as a mischievous
animal, and, in one signal instance, is said to have been
made an engine of mischief to a vast extent, in carrying
fire and flame into the standing corn of the rebellious Phi-
Hunting.
listines.
As the preservation of the fox is now more an object in
Great Britain than his destruction, it may not be amiss to
observe, that a few links of an iron chain, such as an old
plough-trace, or a small piece of red cloth, suspended near
to the spot on which a hen-pheasant sits, is a certain pro¬
tection from foxes, of herself, her eggs, or her brood, inde¬
pendently of her losing her scent, by a wise provision of
Providence, during the incubation.
It is also asserted by sportsmen of experience, that the
scent of foxes varies with the animal; and that a vixen fox
which has laid up (brought forth) her cubs is nearly devoid
of scent.
Huntsman.
“ A good huntsman,” says Beckford, “ should be young,
strong, active, and bold ; fond of the diversion, and inde¬
fatigable in the pursuit of it; he should be sensible and
good tempered; he ought also to be sober; he should be
exact, civil, and cleanly; he should be a good horseman,
and a good groom; his voice should be strong and clear,
and he should have an eye so quick as to perceive which of
his hounds carries the scent, when all are running; and
should have so excellent an ear, as always to distinguish the
foremost hounds when he does not see them. He should
be quiet, patient, and without conceit. He should let his
hounds alone when they can hunt, and he should have
genius to assist them when they cannot. It is scaicely
necessary to observe, that Mr Beckford is here speaking of
a huntsman to fox-hounds, his demands on the hare-hunter
being somewhat more moderate; and yet the difficulties he
has to combat with are more than obscurely acknowledged.
Aware that practice is the key to excellence in eveiy art,
and that experience is the great mistress of all human know¬
ledge, he requires age, with its experience, to fit the hare-
huntsman for his office, and to be a match for the wiles of
the hare ; very ludicrously adding, that, for patience, he
should be a very Grizzel.”
We do not think we exaggerate when we say, that the
picture here drawn of a clever huntsman may, in one de¬
gree (of bodily endowments at least), be termed a near ap¬
proach to human perfection ; nor do we hesitate in adding
our conviction, that if to the attributes here given him are
joined a comprehensive mind and a humane heart, nothing
is wanting to make it complete. As the chase is said to be
the image of war, “ but without its guilt,” let us suppose
Mr Beckford had been drawing the character of a soldier,
and not a huntsman. Could he have given him higher
qualifications than a clear head, nice observation, a good
constitution, undaunted courage, a powerful voice, an accu¬
rate ear, and a lynx’s eye, together with a quick perception,
endowed with quick impulses for acting, so necessary to
each ? That he should be “ fond of his profession,” and
“ indefatigable in the pursuit of it;” “sober ” and “ exact,”
“ sensible and good tempered T It is not necessary that
either a huntsman or a soldier should be a man of letters ;
some of the best among the former have been scarcely
HUNTING.
Hunting, able to read; and there have been but few Caesars who
could fight and write; but a good understanding is put to
the test by both the one and the other; and although we do
not mean to place the servile situation of a huntsman on a
level with the honourable profession of the soldier, each
requires, in a high degree, a good, sound understanding,
and a manly exertion of talent.
But the office of huntsman to fox-hounds is not always
intrusted to servile hands. It has long been the ambition
of masters of packs to hunt their own hounds ; and although
the fashion has become more prevalent within the last thirty
years than it was in the earlier days of fox-hunting, yet we
could bring forward some instances of what are called gentle-
men-huntsmen of pretty long standing. His Grace the
Duke of Cleveland, and Sir Richard Puleston, Bart., each
hunted his own hounds for nearly forty years ; and the late
William Leche, Esq. of Carden-Hall, Cheshire, was his
own huntsman for an equally long period. Coming next
to them in chronological order, stand Messrs Ralf Lambton,
Musters, Thomas Assheton Smith, Lord Fitzhardinge, Sir
Bellingham Graham, Bart., Mr Osbaldeston, Mr Nicoll, the
Earl of Kintore, Mr Smith, late of the Craven, Sir Richard
Sutton, Mr Baker, Mr Arkwright, the Honourable Grant-
ley Berkeley, and several others. There can be no doubt
that no man enjoys hunting to perfection equally with him
who hunts his own hounds; nor can there be any reason
assigned why an educated gentleman should not excel, in
any ardent and highly scientific pursuit, an uneducated ser¬
vant ; nevertheless, we do not think that, throughout the
fox-hunting world in general, gentlemen huntsmen have
been so popular as might have been expected ; and in some
countries that are hunted by subscription, an exception is
taken against the master of the pack being the huntsman.
That it is a very laborious office when efficiently executed,
both in the kennel and the field, is well known to those
who have filled it; but, labor ipse voluptas, we have seen
a painstaking zeal displayed in the master which we have
too often seen wanting in the servant; and we could name
a nobleman who used frequently to tell his huntsman, when
drawing for his second fox, that he was “ thinking more of
his dinner than of hunting.”
In the earliest days of English hunting, gentlemen hunts¬
men were in high estimation ; and a reference to Domesday
Book will show that Waleran, huntsman to William the
Conqueror, possessed no less than fifteen manors in Wilt¬
shire, eight in Dorsetshire, together with several in Hamp¬
shire ; and his name occurs on the list of tenants in capite
in other counties. The same venerable record of antiquity
describes the extensive possessions of other huntsmen, bear¬
ing the names of Croc, Godwin, Willielmus, gentlemen of
consideration in those times, in which, according to Frois¬
sart, the ardour of the chase was carried to a pitch since
unequalled by the Norman lords, some of them having
kept sixteen hundred dogs, and a proportionable number of
horses for the chase.1 But we may go still farther back, to
a very barbarous age, for the respect in which huntsmen
have been held by kings and legislators. The temperate
but brave Agesilaus, and even the luxury-destroying Ly-
curgus, provided for the bountiful entertainment of their
huntsmen on their return from the chase ; a pursuit which
they believed to be so agreeable to the gods, that they
offered the first fruits of their sports to Diana.
The Duties of a Huntsman.
The situation of huntsman to a pack of fox-hounds is
one of great responsibility, and, if the breeding as well as
hunting of them be left to him, a very arduous undertak-
45
ing. Nor does it end here. There is great call for judg- Hunting,
ment in feeding hounds to answer every purpose, such as
long draws, severe days, and at the same time to go the
pace without showing distress, and to come home at night
with their sterns up, and looking fresh. Here variety of
constitution increases the difficulty ; for, to please the eye,
hounds should look level in their condition, as well as even
in point of size. One hound will not bear to have his belly
more than half filled ; another will not fill his when he may ;
and still each must be made equal in strength and wind to
the other, to stand hard work and go the pace without dis¬
tress. A huntsman must have a very watchful eye over
their condition, which will be effected by work and wea¬
ther ; and he must be pathologist enough to foresee and
provide against the alterations which such circumstances
produce. He has need also to be a physiologist, to enable
him to exercise a sound judgment in breeding his hounds
after a certain form and fashion, which are absolutely essen¬
tial to their doing well, and at the same time pleasing the
eye. Then look at him in the field, with a hundred eyes
upon him, and a hundred tongues to canvass all his acts.
Here he should be a philosopher.
In the Field.
A huntsman is expected to bring his hounds to the cover
side in a high state of condition, at all seasons of the year.
They should be seen quietly grouped about his horse’s
heels, when he is waiting for the hour of throwing off,
without a whip stirring, or even an angry word said to
them. This is a time when they are often subject to the
inspection of strangers, and a first impression goes a great
way. When the master gives the word to draw, they
should approach the cover at a gentle trot, one whipper-in
riding in their front; and when within about a stone’s
throw, they may dash into it with as much spirit as they
like. Not a word need be said by way of caution, unless
it appears to be especially called for, when “ gently, there,”
by the first whipper-in, and one smack of his whip, will ge¬
nerally have the desired effect. But we like to see the
huntsman alive at this moment, as well as his hounds.
Homer compares hounds cheered by their huntsman, to
troops encouraged by a skilful general; and doubtless
there is a similarity in the effect. Putting hounds out of
the question, there is something very cheering to the field
in the “ cheering holloa” of a huntsman, when encouraging
his hounds to draw ; and it also answers two good purposes.
Should a hound get wide off the pack, or hang behind in
the cover, or should any of the field be at a loss, which
often happens in woodlands, the “pipe” of the huntsman is
an unerring guide to all. How necessary is it, then, at all
events how desirable, that, like Ajax, he should be @or)v
ayaOo's, “ renowned for the strength of his voice,” and, we
may add, for the melodiousness of it. He should likewise
blow a horn well; and if he varies the blast, to make him¬
self more intelligible to his hounds, he will find his advan¬
tage in it. We wonder this is not more practised than it
is. Independently of the common recheat, why not have
the “ view horn” as well as the “ view holloa?” But too
much horn, like vox et prceterea nihil, is bad, making
hounds apt to disregard it; yet a huntsman would be sadly
at a loss without it, not only in getting hounds away from
cover and in chase, but in drawing large covers, in which
they will occasionally get wide. Here a twang of the horn
saves a huntsman’s voice in bringing them over to him.
One short blast is sufficient.
. . . . “ He gave his bugle-horn a blast,
That through the woodlands echoed far and wide.”
1 See Froissart, tom. iv.} c. 27.
46
HUNTING.
Hunting. The following observations on holloaing are from the
pen of an old sportsman. They contain hints that it won d
often be advisable to profit by ; and they apply not only to
huntsmen, but to the field. “ A general rule as to hallooing
is, never to halloo unless you can give a good reason
for so doing. A constant and indiscriminate use of the
voice is blameable in a huntsman ; his hounds, by con¬
stantly hearing his voice, will soon learn to pay no more
attention to it than they do to the singing of the lark, and
they will not come to him when they are called, borne
huntsmen, in making a cast, try that part of the ground
where they can most conveniently ride, instead of that
where it is most likely the fox is gone. Others ride on
hallooing, without regarding their hounds, while making
their cast; their own noise then prevents them from hear¬
ing their hounds, who often take the scent without their
being aware of it.”
“ No person should halloo that is not wrell forward. It
signifies little what words you use, as a hound’s knowledge
of language is confined to a view halloo, a call, and a late ,
it is the tone of the voice, and not the words, that they
understand; and hounds will always draw to the voice, if
it be not a rate. This shows the impropriety of hallooing
behind hounds. In running with good scent, if you are
up with the pack, a cheering halloo does no harm ; the
hounds will not attend to it, and it is expressive of the
pleasure of the hallooer. Never cap hounds with loud hal-
loos to a bad scent; capping makes them wild and eager,
and should never be done but when the scent is high.
Hounds should be brought up gently to a cold scent.”
Holloaing to hounds is often necessary, and highly^useful
when done with judgment; but the word “ tallyho loses
many a good run ; as, unless a fox is gone clear away from
his cover, it occasions him to turn back often into the
mouth of the hounds.
Dog Language.
It is true, no correspondence can subsist between beings
whose natures are separated by a chasm so wide as that be¬
tween rational and irrational animals ; and it is with a view
of adapting our meaning to the level of their understand¬
ings, that we generally address or converse with brutes in
a silly unmeaning manner; which gave rise to the remark,
that children, or men who act like children, have animals
more immediately under their control than the philosopher
who is replete with wisdom. But we may look farther into
the subject than this. If the Almighty had not manifested
some portion of his attributes by means which are on a
level with the capacity of the human race, man must have
remained for ever ignorant of his Maker. The power of
language, however, between man and man, is prodigiously
increased by the tone in which it is conveyed. The va¬
grant when he begs, the soldier when he gives the word of
command, the senator when he delivers an oration, and the
lover when he whispers a gentle tale to his mistress, all dif¬
fer in the key in which they speak; and it is thus that
huntsmen and whippers-in make themselves intelligible to
hounds. They do not speak to them in an unmeaning
manner, or after the manner of children ; but in short and
pithy sentences, every word of which is law. The method
of doing this, however, admits of several degrees of excel¬
lence ; but the huntsman who is endowed by nature with
a clear, sonorous voice, in a well-pitched key, and knows
when to use it with effect, contributes greatly to the enthu¬
siasm of fox-hunting, and no doubt to the success of it.
Gelert, in his Hounds of England, speaks of the master of
Langilly hounds (Mr J. Williams) as one whose “ dog lan¬
guage in cover-drawing is particularly good and melodious
and it is notorious that there is a wonderful difference be¬
tween huntsmen in this respect.
Without entering again into the wide range of hunting, Hunting,
we cannot do more than add a few maxims which may be v-*--
observed by a huntsmen in the field. In drawing for your
fox, don’t be persuaded always to draw up wind. In the
first place, you are in danger of chopping him ; secondly,
he is sure then to go down wind at starting; and, thirdly,
you may drive him into a worse country, or from his point.
When found, get after him as quickly as possible if you
have a body of hounds with you; if not, you will have a
better chance of sport if you can wait till the body come
up. This is easily done by a twang of the horn, or a
false holloa, if hounds are under good command, and the
convenient opportunity be seized upon. Keep near to
them in chase, with your eye on the body of the pack, as
well as on such hounds as may be leading; the body are
more certain to be right. Next to knowing where a fox is
gone, is knowing where he is not gone ; therefore, in your
cast, always make good the head. This you will do for your
satisfaction ; but hounds are seldom at fault for the scent
a-head, when the chase has been at all warm, that is, on a fair
scenting day ; for if the fox be gone forward, wherefore the
fault ? Good hounds will seldom or never leave a scent a-
head, unless the ground be stained by sheep or cattle, or
when the chase leads over dry ploughed land, hard and dry
roads, &c. It is high odds that your fox has turned to the
right or to the left; but although his point may be back,
he cannot well run his foil, from the number of horsemen
that are generally in the rear of fox-hounds. Recollect
your first check is generally the most fatal to sport, and
for these reasons: Your hounds are fresh, and perchance
a little eager; they may have overrun the scent for some
distance, owing to their being pressed by the horses, which
are also at this time fresh; nor will they always get their
heads down as soon as they should do, from the same ex¬
citing causes. Again, your check now generally arises
from a short turn, the fox having been previously driven
from his point, which he now resolves to make ; and he will
make it at all hazard at certain times. When your hounds
first “ throw up” (<'. e. check), leave them alone if they can
hunt; but, disregarding what the “ old ones” say on this
subject, as inapplicable to these fast times, don’t be long
before you take hold of them, and assist them, if they can¬
not. We would not go from scent to view; yet hounds
in these days that will not bear lifting are not worth having.
But do all this quietly as well as quickly. Turn your
horse’s head towards the line you think your fox is gone;
and the first moment you see all their heads up, that is, it
they do not hit him off, put your horn to your mouth for
one blast or two, and trot away to still more likely points.
If your pack will divide when casting, so much the better ;
but if they are good for anything, they will be making their
own cast whilst you are making yours, by not keeping at
your horse’s heels, but spreading as they go.
When you have hit upon his point, if a single hound goes
off with a good scent, get the body to him as quickly as
you can ; but not so if the scent be not warm. In the
latter case, your hounds will be in expectation of a fresh
fox, and will be in a hurry ; the hound that is forward will
be lifted, and in all probability you will have to seek for
the scent again. Go gently, and your hounds, if steady,
settle to it. Likewise, if, when at check, you are hol¬
loaed to a spot where a fox has been viewed, stand still,
and say nothing at the moment the first two or three
hounds throw their tongues. If you hurry the body on im¬
mediately, the scent will often be lost if the fox has been a
few minutes gone. If it can be done, give your hounds
the wind at a crisis like this. Again, when a fox has been
viewed, and you go directly to holloa, do not take your
hounds to the extreme distant point at which he was viewed,
but a hundred yards behind it; and for this reason : If you
take them to the extreme point, and they do not take up
HUNTING.
47
Hunting, the scent at once, you have then to make your cast at a ven-
v ^ ) ture ; whereas, if you lay them on at that distance behind
it, you have somewhat of a guide to that extent, as to the
line towards which you should draw them.
The following further hints may be serviceable, or at all
events they relate to hounds at check. In trying backy
hounds have this advantage. It is evident the fox has come
the line, up to the point where the check occurred ; and
he must be gone either to the right or the left of it, or back.
We make this observation, because so much has been said
about the straight running of foxes, which is far from true ;
and the necessity of persevering in the cast a-head with
the fox, and back, on the foil, with the hare. The more
hounds spread, within reason, in this backward cast, the
better will be the chance of making the check a short one.
Again, if at check on a road, or foot-path (the latter not
often run over by foxes), when you observe some of your
best hounds failing to make it good, on one side of either,
it is reasonable to suppose the fox is gone on the other. It
your hounds check in a cover in the middle of a run, and
the fox is viewed away from it, try and get your hounds
together as much as you can in the short time that can be
allowed for it, before you cap them to the scent. It gene¬
rally ensures a good finish, from two obvious causes : First,
hounds get fresh wind; and, secondly, they will have a
better chance to carry a good head, which generally ends
in blood, and in blood well earned; for the fox is more
likely to stand longer, and go straighter, for not having been
viewed by hounds when he broke. But the most difficult
point for a huntsman to decide upon promptly is, when his
pack divides, which division is on the hunted fox. If it
happen in cover, his ear is his surest guide, as the cry is
louder and stronger on a fresh found fox, than on one
which has been for some time on foot. If when out of
cover your pack should split on two separate scents, you
should get as near as you can to what you imagine to be
the chase, giving view holloas every yard you go ; also
sending one of your whippers-in to stop the other hounds.
Your choice will doubtless be directed by several circum¬
stances. You will first look for your truest and best line¬
hunting hounds, and next, to the points your first fox would
be likely to make for; and if your choice fall upon the lot
that are going furthest up the wind, the other will be more
likely to hear them running; and, should they come to a
check, to join cry again perhaps before a whipper-in can
get to stop them.
It was once justly observed, that those who seek pleasure
from the chase must ask permission of heaven ; and the case
still remains the same. Hounds without a scent resemble
a man running in the dark; neither can make head against
such fearful obstructions; and on stormy days, with a very
high wind, if you have influence with your master, persuade
him to let you go home after the first failure. It is not
generally known what mischief even one such day does to
some hounds. Don’t set too high a value on blood, unless
well earned; it is the result of want of reflection alone that
has set any value whatever upon it, when otherwise ob¬
tained. Mob a bad fox in a cover if you like; but never
dig out a good one, unless your hounds have almost viewed
him into a spout, and you can bolt him before the excite¬
ment subsides. Never break ground in a country belonging
to another pack of hounds, nor dig for a fox in a moin earth
in your own. Many a bitch fox, heavy with young, has
been killed by this means in the spring, instead of the one
that was hunted and marked to ground; and be assured
that sportsmen in general do not estimate the goodness of
a pack of hounds by the noses nailed against the kennel Hunting,
door. Lastly, keep your field back from pressing on your's*
hounds in chase, and still more so when in difficulties, as
well as you can; but don’t suffer your zeal to carry you too
far on this point. Remember the apostolic precept, “ Be
COURTEOUS.”
The modern annals of sporting contain the names and
characters of several very eminent huntsmen, whose con¬
duct and abilities would have done credit to any other situ¬
ation of life to which it might have been their lot to have
been called. Considering the responsibility of their office,
the severity of their work, and the risks they run, they are
not supposed to be too highly paid in wages, say on the
average L.160 per annum, besides their board; hut, from
perquisites, such as annual presents from gentlemen who
attend the hounds which they hunt, and drafted hounds sold
to other packs, they may realize the like sum in addition.
The office of whipper-in is, in our opinion, thought more
lightly of by the sporting world in general than it deserves
to be; and, as we shall show, we have the great Beckford on
our side. We never saw a steady pack of hounds without at
least one good whipper-in, and we are quite sure we never
shall; but we have seen many of these red-coated youths
who might have been better employed at the plough-tail—
who, like Cicero’s lawyer, belonged rather to the profession
than the science. “ If he has genius,” says Beckford, “ he
may show it in various ways; he may clap forward to any
great earth that may by chance be open; he may sink the
wind to halloo, or mob a fox when the scent fails ; he may
keep him off his foil; he may stop the tail hounds, and get
them forward; and has it frequently in his power to assist
the hounds without doing them any hurt, provided he has
sense to distinguish where he is wanted most. Besides, the
most essential part of fox hunting, the making and keeping
the pack steady, depends entirely upon him, as a huntsman
should seldom rate, and never flog a hound. In short, I
consider the first whipper-in as a second huntsman; and,
to be perfect, he should be as capable of hunting the
hounds as the huntsman himself. He should not be con¬
ceited, but contented to act an under part, except when
circumstances may require that he should act otherwise;
and the moment they cease, he must not fail to resume his
former station.”
To the above excellent remarks we have very little to
add. We only recommend, when a huntsman is casting
his hounds, that a whipper-in should turn them to him al¬
ways as gently as he can, and with little noise; by which
means they will draw towards him, trying for the scent as
they go; whereas loud and repeated rates and cracks of the
whip make hounds fly to their huntsman at this time with
their heads up. When they are drawing properly towards
him, not a word should be said; a whipper-in riding outside
of them will be sufficient.
It is scarcely necessary to say, a whipper-in, to be per¬
fect, should be an accomplished horseman, as nothing re¬
quires a much firmer and nicer hand than the act of follow¬
ing a hound over open ground to flog him. A whipper-in,
however, should always hit a hound first, and rate him after¬
wards, and be able to hit hard when occasion requires it.
A riotous fox-hound cannot be trifled with, if he is to be
cured of his evil ways ; and let the lash fall heavily when ne¬
cessary, but at no other time. Above all, let the whipper-in
have an eye to a skirter: skirting is the least pardonable fault
a hound can possess, because he is then deviating from his
nature, and has not the force of impulse to plead, which the
hound that runs riot has. (c. A.) (w. H. L—Y.)
48
Hunting¬
don
Hunting¬
donshire.
HUN
HUNTINGDON, Selina, Countess of, was the
daughter of Washington Shirley, Earl of Ferrers, and was
born in 1707. At the age of twenty-one she was married
to Theophilus Hastings, Earl of Huntingdon a man of dis¬
tinguished piety and religious zeal. With him she lived
a happy and useful life till his death, which took place very
suddenly in 1746. Of the numerous family which she bore
her husband, four died in the bloom of youth. It was about
this time that the religious revival set on foot by Wes ey,
and taken up by Whitfield, had begun to influence English
society. Until about the year 1748 the revivalists had acted
in unity, but after that date the tenets of Whitfield becom¬
ing daily more Calvinistic, and those of Wesley more Ar-
minian, they separated, and Whitfield became private chap¬
lain to the Countess of Huntingdon. By his advice she
assumed a sort of leadership of the Calvinistic Methodists
of England, or as they came to be called from her “ the
Countess of Huntingdon’s connexion.” As her means were
large and her personal expenses very small she was able to
devote large sums of money to the maintenance and pro¬
pagation of her views. She built chapels, and engaged
preachers to officiate in them, and established a college at
Trevecca, in South Wales, for the education of Calvinistic
preachers. After her death, which took place, June 17,
1791, the college was removed by her trustees from Tre¬
vecca to Cheshunt in Herts, where it now is. The num¬
ber of chapels mentioned in the census of 1851 as belong¬
ing to the Countess of Huntingdon’s connexion was 109,
accommodating 38,727 hearers. Although the name of
“ connexion” is still in use among this sect, there is no com¬
bined or federal form of church government. The congre¬
gational polity is practically adopted; and of late years
several of the congregations have become, in name as well
as virtually, congregational churches.
HUNTINGDON, a municipal and parliamentary bo¬
rough and market-town of England, and capital of Hunting¬
donshire, stands on the left bank of the Ouse, on the line
of the Great Northern Railway, 58 miles N. of London.
It is connected with the old borough of Godmanchester,
on the right bank of the river, by a causeway with three
bridges, the largest of which has six arches. The town con-
sists& of a long street with lanes branching off. Of 15
churches that were once in Huntingdon, there now remain
only two, with three Dissenting chapels. There are two pub¬
lic schools, with a grammar and green-coat school. The com¬
merce is inconsiderable; the chief articles of trade being
wool and grain, and of manufacture, bricks and tiles. It is
governed by a mayor, four aldermen, and a common council.
Two members are returned to parliament by the united
boroughs of Huntingdon and Godmanchester. It was here
that Oliver Cromwell was born, April 25, 1599, and his
grandfather’s house, Hinchinbrook, is about a mile distant
from the town. Pop. (1851) 3882.
HUNTINGDONSHIRE, an inland county of Eng¬
land, bounded on the N. and E. by Cambridgeshire, on the
N.W. by Northamptonshire, and on the S. by Bedfordshire,
with two outlying parishes, viz., Swinestead in Bedfordshire,
and Everton, between Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire.
The county is 29 miles long from N. to S., and 23 miles
broad from E. to W. In size it is the third smallest of the
English counties ; Rutland and Middlesex being the least.
The county is divided into 4 hundreds, and 107 parishes,
and forms an archdeaconry in the diocese of Ely.
The surface of the county is generally flat. There are,
however, two low ridges of hills, one entering the county
from the S. near Potton Beds, and terminating in the Ouse
Valley near Huntingdon; the other, coming E. from the
borders of Cambridgeshire, crosses the county by Hun¬
tingdon to Wansford. Along the banks of the Ouse and
the Nen, there are beautiful and fertile meadows ; in the
S.E. is an extensive plain of rich meadow-land ; the centre
HUN
and upland part of the country is highly cultivated, though Hunting-
much of it is still uninclosed. The latter was anciently a donshire.
forest tract, appropriated to the chase. It was disforested,
however, by Henry II. and Edward L, and is now very bare
of trees, few being grown in the hedgerows, while woods
and coppices are very rare. The north-eastern part of Hun¬
tingdonshire, comprising 50,000 acres, or one-fifth of its
whole extent, belongs to the great “ Fen” district, extend¬
ing throughout the counties of Cambridge, Lincoln, North¬
ampton, Norfolk, and Suffolk. See Bedford Level.
In Huntingdon, as well as in the other counties, these
marshes are intersected by numerous artificial channels, by
means of which they have been effectually drained and con¬
verted into a fertile region. Willows too have been planted
of late years in this part of the county, and have been of
considerable use in absorbing the superabundant moisture,
and consolidating the soil. Situated in the Huntingdon Fen
are three sheets of water, respectively named, Whittlesea,
Karnsey, and Ugg-meres. The first is 1550 acres in
extent, and the second is about half as large. Projects have
been formed for draining both, as the water is shallow and
the soil very rich.
Whittlesea-mere was a favourite resort of sportsmen,
both fish and wild fowl being abundant. The water of the
low parts of the shire, although plentiful, is not generally
good for drinking. The climate, it need scarcely be added,
is not very good where there is so much fenny land and
so little pure water. Consumption and other diseases of
the respiratory organs are common causes of death amongst
the inhabitants.
The upper substratum of the county is formed of a bed of
Oxford clay nearly 700 feet thick. The south-eastern dis¬
trict is occupied by ferruginous sand which rises into low hills,
and is covered with the diluvial debris of the neighbouring
chalk range. The high ground overhanging the valley of
the Nen, on the borders of Northamptonshire, is composed
of stone brash or forest marble. The rest of the county,
with the exception of the Fens, is occupied by the Oxford
clay. The soil lies in patches of gravel, sand, and clay ; the
latter, which predominates, is intermixed with muddy allu¬
vial earth. Peat exists in many parts of the county, and is
used for fuel.
The rivers of the county are the Ouse and the Nen, with
their tributaries. The Ouse enters the county from Bedford¬
shire, near St Neots, and flows by Huntingdon and St Ives
into Cambridgeshire, on its way to the Wash. It is navi¬
gable for barges in its whole course through Huntingdon¬
shire, and thus forms an important means of communication
for the agricultural produce of the county. The Nen
divides the northern part of the county from Northampton¬
shire, and quits it at Peterborough; it is also navigable.
The river has changed its bed, and the waters in the old
channel run into Whittlesea and Ugg-meres. The other
means of navigation in the county are a navigable cut from
the old channel of the Nen at Standground sluice to the
navigable channel of the Nen at Ramsey ; and Vermui-
den’s, or the Forty-foot Drain, a cut from the old Nen
near Ramsey to the Old Bedford River in Cambridgeshire.
The Great Northern Railway traverses the county through¬
out its whole length, while it is connected with the Eastern
Counties’ Railway by a branch line from St Ives to Hunt¬
ingdon.
Agriculture is the only pursuit in the county; and the
chief trade is that in corn, cattle, and wool. The main
produce of the county is wheat, oats, and beans, with some
barley, hemp, mustard seed, and hops; rape is also grown
in the Fens, and turnips in the drier soils. The len lands
have been much over-cropped, and, in consequence, the
average produce of the county is low. A large number of
horses are bred for sale in the Fens, though they are not
generally good.
HUN
Hunting- The sheep of the county are a mixed race, composed
denshire. 0f crosses of the Lincolnshire and Leicestershire breeds
with the native kinds. They are without horns, and of very
imperfect shape, but are found profitable from the quantity
of wool they produce, their fleeces usually weighing from
seven to eight pounds each. The sheep of the original
race of the county are much inferior to those produced by
the crossing with the better kinds; many of these are still
found in the open commons, and their fleeces seldom ex¬
ceed four pounds in weight. The cattle, like the sheep,
are a mixed breed, being in great measure the refuse of the
Lancashire, Leicestershire, and Derbyshire races. The
dairy cows are mostly Durham and Yorkshire short-horns;
but dairy farming is not much followed ; and though Stilton,
in tins county, has given a name to the celebrated cheese,
that is now made exclusively in the counties of Lincoln
and Leicester. Instead of using the milk for churning, a
large number of calves are reared to supply the metropolis
with veal. The farms are generally large, although,
for the most part, they are inconveniently situated, sites
having been chosen more with regard to dryness than the
economy of labour. Of persons connected with agri¬
culture in the county there were in 1851—961 farmers,
15 corn merchants, 102 brewers, and 36 maltsters. The
only other trade of the shire is brick and tile making,
commenced a few years ago. Of persons engaged in the
manufacture of clay there were 235 in 1851.
Huntingdon was originally inhabited by the British tribe
Iceni, and during the Roman occupation was included in
the province of Flavia Caesariensis. The Saxons called the
county Hunlandunscyre, and in their time it first formed
part of East Anglia, and afterwards of Mercia. Hunting¬
donshire has given the title of earl since the days of William
the Conqueror ; this title, originally conferred on Waltheof,
brother-in-law of William, passed to David, king of Scot¬
land, and is now borne by a member of the Hastings family.
There is also a popular tradition that the outlaw Robin
Hood was Earl of Huntingdon.
The antiquities of the county are neither numerous nor
remarkable. It was traversed by two Roman roads, the
Ermin Street and the Via Devana. Traces of ancient
encampments remain at Dornford, Stangrund, and St
Neots, and some Roman pottery at Holywell, near St Ives.
Kimbolton Castle, the seat of the dukes of Manchester, was
the residence of Catherine of Aragon after her divorce
from Henry VIII. A great part of the county having be¬
longed to the monks, they erected abbeys at Ramsey and
Sacotry, and priories at Huntingdon, St Ives, St Neots, and
Hinchinbrook. A ruined gateway at Ramsey, a rich speci¬
men of decorated English architecture, and a dove-house
and barn at St Ives, are the only remarkable remains of
these edifices.
Huntingdonshire returns four members to parliament,
two for the county and two for the boroughs of Huntingdon.
The polling places for the county are Stilton and Hunting¬
don, the number of electors being 3047. Owing to the
small size of the county, it is associated with Cambridge¬
shire in the choice of high sheriff, and is required to supply
that officer only once in three years. 1 he county courts
are held at Huntingdon and St Neots.
There were in Huntingdonshire in 1851, 91 Established
ministers, and 37 Dissenting ministers. According to the
religious census of the same year there were 196 churches
in the county ; 96 of these belong to the Church of Eng¬
land ; 46 to the Methodists ; 30 to the Baptists; 7 to the
Independents; and 17 to various minor denominations.
. The educational census gives 95 public day schools, with
6631 scholars; and 135 private day schools, with 2552
scholars.
The population of the county was in 1821, 48,946 ;
1831,53,192; 1841,58,549; 1851, 64,183. Oftownswith
H U R
49
Hurdwar.
more than 2000 inhabitants there were in 1851—Hunting- Huntly
don, 3882 ; St Ives, 3522; St Neots, 2951 ; Ramsey,
2641; Godmanchester, 2337. The area of Huntingdon¬
shire is, in statute acres, 230,865.
HUNTLY, a burgh of barony and market-town of Scot¬
land, Aberdeenshire, near the junction of the rivers Bogie
and Deveron, and 39 miles N.W. of Aberdeen, with which
it is connected by railway. It consists of two principal
streets, crossing each other at right angles, with a market¬
place at the point of intersection. An ancient bridge of a
single arch crosses the Deveron, and a modern one of three
arches spans the Bogie. Besides the parish church, there
is a Free Church, and chapels for United Presbyterians,
Independents, Episcopalians, and Roman Catholics. In the
neighbourhood are the ruins of Huntly Castle (destroyed
in 1594), and Huntly Lodge, the seat of the Duke of Rich¬
mond. Pop. (1851) 3131.
HURD, Richard, D.D., bishop of Worcester, and the
friend and biographer of Warburton, was born inf1720, at
Congreve, in the parish of Penkrich, Staffordshire. He was
the second son of John and Hannah Hurd, whom he de¬
scribes as “ plain, honest, and good people, farmers, but of
a turn of mind that might have honoured any rank and any
condition.” Their farm was not far from the grammar^
school of Brerewood, at that time one of the best conducted
schools in the midland counties of England. At this semi*
nary their son was trained with such ability and skill, that
at the age of fifteen he was ready for the university. En¬
tering Emmanuel College, Cambridge, he took the usual
degrees in their ordinary course, and in 1742 was chosen a
fellow of his college. He continued to reside at Cambridge
till 1756, occupying his time in literary labour, of which the
results were given to the public from time to time. In one
of his works—a Commentary on the Ars Poetica of Horace
—he had alluded in flattering terms to Warburton; and,
though he is not believed to have had any selfish aim in
view when he did so, he could not have devised a moie ef¬
fectual means for advancing his interests. In 1756 he was
appointed rector of Thurcaston, where he resided for eight
years, and where he wrote his Dialogues, his Letters on
Chivalry and Romance, and some of those controversial
pamphlets in which he was constantly vindicating the opi¬
nions and character of his idol Warburton. In 1 ^65 he
was chosen preacher of Lincoln’s Inn ; and, two years later,
was promoted to the archdeaconry of Gloucester, of which
Warburton was bishop. In 1775 he was promoted, by
Lord Mansfield, to the bishopric of Lichfield and Coventry ;
whence, in 1781, he was transferred to that of Worcester.
Two years later, on the death of Dr Cornwallis, he was
offered the see of Canterbury, which, however, he declined,
as “ a charge not suited to his temper and talents, and much
too heavy for him to sustain in these times.” The remainder
of his life he spent in studious retirement. He died in 1808,
in the eighty-ninth year of his age.
HURD WAR, or Haredwara, a town of Hindustan,
in the Bri tish district of Saharumpore, under the lieutenant-
governorship of the N.W. provinces ; a great mart of com¬
merce, and a celebrated place of Hindu pilgrimage, situated
on the W. side of the Ganges, where it issues from the
northern hills. The town is not large, having only one^
street about 15 feet in breadth, and one furlong and a half
in length. Pilgrims of both sexes resort annually thither1
from all parts of India to perform their ablutions in the
sacred Ganges. The month of April is the time appointed
for this concourse of pilgrims; and great numbers of mer¬
chants also attending, one of the largest fairs known in.'
Hindustan is held here. It is calculated that in general
about 300,000 persons are collected on this occasion ; but,
once in twelve years, when particular ceremonies are ob¬
served, the number is increased to a million. In April
1809, it was computed that two millions of strangers were
VOL. XII.
50
H U R
Huron assembled. The chief articles brought thither for sale are
II horses, mules, camels, tobacco, antimony, assafoetida; dned
Husband fruits from Cabul, Candahar, Moultan, and the Punjab;
and Wife. shawjSj cloaks> &c > from Cashmere and Amritsir; spotted
K turbans, looking-glasses, toys, with various manufactuies in
brass and ivory, from Jeypoor; shields from Rohilcund,
Lucknow, and Silhet; bows and arrows from Moultan
and the Doab; rock-salt from Lahore ; baftas and piece-
goods from Rahn, a large city in the Punjab ; many camels,
and a species of flannel, from the Marwar country ; and
from the Company’s provinces, Kharwa muslins, sarsnet,
cocoa-nuts, and woollen cloths of a coarse quality. The
merchants who frequent this fair travel in large caravans,
and are frequently infested on the roads by freebooters,
who watch their opportunity, and cut off” stragglers. During
the Mahratta dominion, a poll tax and heavy duties were
imposed on all the cattle. But these have all been repealed
by the British, and every encouragement is now held out
to merchants. In such a vast concourse of people from all
quarters, disputes were formerly very frequent But owing
to the strict police maintained by the British, these fairs
have lately ended without bloodshed, to the surprise and
satisfaction of the vast multitude, who were accustomed to
see bloody quarrels at the Hurdwar fair. The stream
divides itself into three channels at Hurdwar, the principal
of which is on the western side, running along a bank
named Chandnee Ghaut. The travelling distance from
Calcutta by Moorshedabad is 1080 miles, by Birbhoom
975 miles, from Delhi 117 miles, and from Lucknow 311
miles. E. Long. 78. 14., N. Lat. 29. 57. (e. t.)
HURON, Lake. See Canada.
HURREEANAH, a British district in Hindustan,
within the jurisdiction of the lieutenant-governor of the
N.W. provinces; comprehending an area of 3300 square
miles, with a comparatively scanty amount of population,
consisting of Hindus and Mohammedans. The district is
intersected by the canal originally constructed by Feroz
Toghluk, the renowned king of Delhi. This watercourse
having become nearly obliterated, was cleared out about
thirty years ago, by order of the British government, and
made available for the purposes of irrigation. Towards the
close of the last century, George Thomas, an Irish adven¬
turer, made a bold attempt to establish an independent
principality in Hurreeanah under his own rule. He fortifled
the principal town, collected troops, cast cannon, and coined
money bearing his own name; but being attacked by a
superior native force under the command of the French
adventurer Perron, he was overpowered and forced to retire.
The principal towns are Hissar and Hansee. (e. t.)
HURRUR, or Harrar, a large commercial town of
Eastern Africa, said to be about 192 miles E. of Ankobar,
and 150 S.S.W. of Zeyla. It is surrounded by a mud-and-
stone wall, 12 feet high and 3 feet thick, and is about two
hours quiet walking in circumference. The wall is in good
repair, and has five gates. There are many large and
well-built houses of mud and stone, but the majority of the
people live in huts made of mats and reeds, with a thorn
fence round them. The soil in the vicinity is very rich,
producing coffee, wheat, barley, jowarie, &c., in great pro¬
fusion. Coffee is the most important export. The seaport
is Zeyla. The inhabitants are rigid Mohammedans, and
Christians are strictly prohibited from entering the town.
(London Geographical Journal, vols. xviii., xix., &c.)
HUSBAND AND WIFE. In civilized countries
some solemnities are usually employed to mark the consti¬
tution of this relationship. The Council of Trent made it
a religious ceremony. In Lord Stowell’s opinion it was not
necessarily so in England prior to the Act of Geo. II.; and
it certainly has not necessarily been so in Scotland since
the Reformation. Into the past history of the subject we
do not propose to enter. At present the marriage law of
HUS
England is regulated chiefly by two statutes—the 4th Geo. Husband
IV. c. 76, and 6th and 7th Will. IV. c. 85. By the last andWife.
of these it is enacted, that after the 1st March 1837, all the
rules prescribed by the Rubrick should continue to be duly
observed by every person in holy orders of the Church of
England who should solemnize any marriage in England
(the right of the Archbishop of Canterbury, or other person
having authority to grant licences to marry at any conve¬
nient time and place, being reserved) ; while Quakers and
Jews are allowed to contract marriage according to their
respective usages, provided both the contracting parties be
Quakers, or both profess the Jewish religion. One of the
parties must give notice of their intention to the superin¬
tendent registrar of the district within which they have dwelt
for seven preceding days, or if they have dwelt in the dis¬
tricts of different superintendent registrars, the like notice
must be given to each. These officers are then required to
preserve and enter a copy of the notices in the “ marriage
notice book,” which is open to the public without charge;
and after seven days, if the marriage is to be solemnized by
licence, or after twenty-one days, if without licence, a cer¬
tificate is issued authorizing the marriage, one of the parties
having first made oath or affirmation of belief that there is
not any lawful hindrance, and that the statements contained
in the notice are correct.
Any person, duly authorized, may forbid the issue of the
certificate by writing the word “forbidden” opposite the
entry in the marriage notice book; in which event the su¬
perintendent registrar can issue no certificate until he be
satisfied that the objection is unfounded. If he have doubt,
the matter is referred to the registrar-general, who has
power to decide; or if the superintendent refuses to grant
licence, there is an appeal to the registrar-general, who either
confirms the refusal, or directs the licence to be issued.
Without attention to these particulars no marriage can
be solemnized in England. If not celebrated within three
months after the notice, the notice, entry, and certificate
must be renewed. The certificate of the superintendent,
or where the parties live in different districts, the certificate
of the superintendent of each, is delivered to the officiating
minister if the marriage is to be solemnized according to
the rites of the Church of England; or to the registering
officer of the Quakers, or officer of a synagogue, who may
solemnize the marriage in the registered building mentioned
in the notice. When parties choose, they may dispense wuth
a clergyman, and be married according to any form they
please, provided the marriage take place between 8 and 12
o’clock in the forenoon, in presence of a registrar and wit¬
nesses, and provided each of the parties in some part of the
ceremony declare that they do not know any impediment
to their union, and expressly call upon the persons present
to witness the proceedings. The parties may also be mar¬
ried in this manner, after the proper notice and certificate,
in the office and presence of the superintendent registrar;
and they have always the option of the parish church of either
of them. It is further enacted that “every person who
shall knowingly and wilfully solemnize any marriage in
England, except by special licence, in any other place than
a church or chapel in which marriages may be solemnized
according to the rites of the Church of England, or than the
registered building or office specified in the notice and cer¬
tificate as aforesaid, shall be guilty of felony” (except in the
case of a marriage between two Quakers, or two persons
of the Jewish religion); “and every person who, in any
such registered building or office, shall knowingly and wil¬
fully solemnize any marriage in the absence of a registrar
of the district in which such registered building or office is
situated, shall be guilty of felony; and every person who
shall knowingly and wilfully solemnize any marriage in
England (except by licence) within twenty-one days after
the entry of the notice to the superintendent registrar, as
HUSBAND AND WIFE.
51
Husband
and Wife.
aforesaid, or if the marriage is by licence within seven
days after such entry, or after three calendar months after
such entry, shall be guilty of felony.” And any marriage
solemnized in disregard of the statute is null and void ; and
in the case of a fraudulent marriage, the guilty party forfeits
all the property that would otherwise have accrued to such
party by the marriage. Alter the ceremony the marriage
must be registered.
In Scotland, since the Reformation, a regular marriage
is constituted by a proclamation of banns in the churches
of the parishes in which the parties reside, of which a register
is kept, and by the acceptance by the parties of each other
before a clergyman, who pronounces the nuptial benedic¬
tion in presence of witnesses. Till comparatively a late
period, none but the Episcopal clergy, by 10th Anne, c. 7,
could celebrate a marriage in Scotland, other than a minis¬
ter of the Established Church. By 4th and 5th Will. IV.
c. 28, this privilege was extended to “any person in holy
orders, of whatever communion he may be,” after procla¬
mation of banns. If any other party celebrate a marriage, or
if a clergyman do so without proclamation of banns, unless
he appear to have been deceived, he is liable by the act
1661, c. 34, to banishment from Scotland, and by 1698,
c. 6, to fine and imprisonment. Parties may go before a
justice of peace to effect a marriage, but he is only en¬
titled to certify that they declared themselves in his pre¬
sence to be married ; if he proceed further, and assume the
ministerial office by pronouncing the nuptial benediction, he
is liable in the penalties of the statute. By the statute 17th
and 18th Viet., c. 80, it is provided that in all cases of regular
marriage, the certificates of proclamation of banns, accom¬
panied by a copy of a schedule given in the statute, shall
be delivered to the officiating minister, or person solemnizing
a marriage according to the rites of Jews and Quakers, to
be filled up with the particulars required for registration,
and signed by the contracting parties, minister or other per¬
son officiating, and witnesses ; and within three days after¬
wards this schedule must be transmitted, under a penalty,
for registration to the registrar of the parish within which
the marriage was solemnized. If requested, the registrar is
bound, on payment of a small fee, to attend at any place
within his parish, for the purpose of making the entries, or
seeing that they are properly made; and the marriage may
be celebrated by the minister or pastor of a Christian con¬
gregation of any denomination. There is a provision in the
statute for registering a marriage in the case of persons con¬
victed before any justice of peace or magistrate of having
contracted an irregular one ; as well as a marriage de¬
clared by the sentence of any competent court, such regis¬
tration being made in the parish where the conviction oc¬
curs, or of the domicile of the parties; but by an omission
the act makes no provision for the registration of those
irregular marriages, numerous in Scotland, of which there is
neither any conviction before a magistrate, nor any decree
of declarator.
As this statute expressly declares that the Scotch law of
marriage shall not be affected by it, it is necessary to notice
as briefly as possible what is essential to the constitution of
marriage in Scotland. In doing so we may premise, that
in order to be binding, and to secure all the rights of a legal
marriage, it is not necessary that it should be what is called
a regular one. By a long unbroken series of decisions con¬
firmed by the House of Peers, it is established that the
simple acceptance of the parties as husband and wife, with¬
out the prescribed ecclesiastical solemnities, and without any
ceremony whatever, constitutes a legal marriage. 1 hat
acceptance may be proved in various ways ; 1. By express
words ; 2. By a promise to marry, followed by sexual inter¬
course; or, 3. By conjugal cohabitation and acknowledgment.
The acceptance must be given seriously and voluntarily
by legally qualified persons. Pupils (that is, boys under 14,
and girls under 12 years of age), idiots, and persons in a
state of intoxication, are incapable of giving consent; per¬
sons within the forbidden degrees, impotent, or bound by a
previous and existing marriage, are legally disqualified ; and
the most express acceptance, though followed by consum¬
mation, if extorted by force or fear, is unavailing. Even
when consent is apparently free from all objections, and
expressed in the most regular manner, the law still views
it in connection with every circumstance in the conduct
of the parties which may explain or throw light on its
true meaning. Accordingly, the acceptance contained in
an antenuptial contract of marriage, wherever it is accom¬
panied by the usual clause binding the parties to solemnize
the marriage jn a formal mannerj is construed as amount¬
ing only to a promise which cannot be enforced, though it
may be the foundation of an action of damages. Some ob¬
jections, well founded at the time, may be removed by sub¬
sequent voluntary cohabitation. For example, parties going
through a form of marriage in pupilarity, or under compul¬
sion, will be bound by it if they voluntarily continue the
cohabitation after passing pupilarity, or regaining unrestrain¬
ed freedom. The subsequent discovery of previous profli¬
gacy, or error as to rank, name, temper, legitimacy, religion,
or deception as to fortune, or non-consent of parents or
guardians, will not invalidate a Scotch marriage. Indeed,
nothing short of an absolute mistake as to identity will
have that effect; and even then, cohabitation after the mis¬
take is discovered will render the marriage irrevocable.
In regard to the evidence that a de preesenti consent
was interchanged, we may observe—
1. That it may be proved directly—(1.) by witnesses
swearing to the formal and serious verbal acceptance before
a clergyman or friends ; or by deliberate and explicit verbal
acknowledgment of the parties that they were at some former
period married to each other. (2.) It may be proved by
writing, followed by delivery, provided the writing be
either holograph of the parties, or be executed before
witnesses, like other important documents; or at least that
it be proved that the writing or subscription is genuine.
And, (3.) It may be proved judicially, by the one party
referring to the oath of the other, who either fails to
deny it, or declines to swear. And it is of no consequence
that the consent was secretly exchanged, if there be no¬
thing else to discredit it. In some Scotch burghs the dis¬
creditable practice exists of presenting a complaint to the
magistrates, praying that the parties be fined for having
contracted an irregular marriage. The parties (who are
the collusive promoters of the complaint) then confess the
charge, and are fined in a nominal sum ; and this procedure
forms legal evidence that they were married. The equally
discreditable Gretna Green marriage rests on the same ac¬
knowledgment.
As showing how completely the mere interchange of
present consent, without any particular ceremony, consti¬
tutes in Scotland a valid marriage, we may mention that
in a Scotch case, holograph and signed documents, “I here¬
by declare that Johanna Gordon is my lawful wife,” and
“ I hereby acknowledge John Dalrymple as my lawful hus¬
band,” were sustained in the House of Peers; Lord Stowell
declaring that such a contract, without consummation, “ does
ipso facto et ipso jure constitute the relation of man and
wife.” As the most explicit declaration of marriage must
be mutual, a document found in the repositories of either
to which the other was no party is obviously worthless, un¬
less connected with other circumstances. Thus a letter,
containing on its envelope, “ not to be opened till after the
decease of George Fullarton,” found in his repositories after
his death, was disregarded, in respect that it was revocable
while undelivered. A similar letter delivered to a third
party, and connected with other circumstances implying
the woman’s recognition of it in her husband’s lifetime, was
Husband
and Wife.
52 HUSBAND
Husband sustained, the delivery being held to have been for her be-
and Wife. boof. A course of letters between the parties, which com-
menced “ dear wife,” and “ dear husband, and ended your
affectionate husband,” or “ wife,” although they contained no
explicit declaration of marriage, were found by the House
of Peers to be equally conclusive. In the case of 31 Adam,
affirmed in the House of Peers in 1809, it was found suffi¬
cient, that the man called four servants and declared to
them verbally that the woman was his wife, and that his
children by her were legitimate; on which she gave him
her hand, and curtsied; though in a few hours afterwards he
committed suicide. As there was no evidence of insanity,
Lord Eldon remarked that no subsequent repentance, how¬
ever bitter, could affect a marriage once constituted. A
different judgment is given wherever circumstances warrant
the opinion expressed by the House of Peers in the case of
Taylor, 1787, that what the parties did “ was not intended,
or understood to be final,” as was most remarkably illustrated
in the case of McGregor and Jolly, where the House of
Peers disregarded a formal ceremony of marriage before a
clergyman, on the ground that, looking to all the circum¬
stances in “ the conduct of the parties, both before and after
the 23d May 1816” (the date of the ceremony), they did
not “voluntarily and deliberately express that real and mu¬
tual consent,” which is required. Some of these circum¬
stances were, that M‘Gregor never claimed the woman as his
wife till many years afterwards, when she succeeded to a
fortune, he having in the interval approved of her marriage
with another, by whom she had children, and visited and
acknowledged them as husband and wife.
2. The requisite consent may be proved inferentially—
by a promise to marry, followed by sexual intercourse.
Intercourse may be proved by witnesses, but the promise
can only be proved by “ writ or oath.” It was at one time
held that circumstances inferring that a promise had been
given—such as an open courtship—might be proved by wit¬
nesses; but that doctrine is now exploded, and nothing short
of a distinct promise can be founded on. Most conditions
added to a promise—such as, “ I will marry you when my
circumstances permit ’’—are held to be discharged by the
subsequent intercourse. The general rule is, that conditions
of such a nature as cannot be fulfilled until after the copula,—
as, for example, “ I promise to marry you, provided an heir
be born of our connexion,”—will not constitute marriage;
while, if they might be fulfilled before the copula,—as “ I
promise to marry you when I am rich enough,”—the law
will presume that they were either fulfilled or discharged at
the date of the copula. Either party may pursue an action
to have such a marriage declared. It is no objection to it
that the intercourse existed prior as well as subsequent to the
promise; because a party may have resolved to discontinue
an unlawful course of life, and so have obtained the pro¬
mise. Undoubtedly, if the interval between it and the
subsequent intercourse be very long, or if circumstances
indicate that the promise was renounced (such as the un¬
chaste conduct with others of the party founding on it), it
will be disregarded; and, generally speaking, whatever is
sufficient to warrant a dissolution of a regular marriage, will
elide a presumptive one. It has been found by the House
of Peers that a woman’s ignorance of the fact that the in¬
tercourse following on a promise constituted marriage, did
not destroy her legal rights. Such a marriage is unques¬
tionably valid, if circumstances do not create a sufficient
presumption against it. Lord Karnes, in his Elucidations,
inquires whether it should be sustained in competition with
a subsequent regular marriage ? In an old case, the late
Commissary Court of Scotland decided that question in
the negative, but it was not carried to the higher court,
and it is regarded as an erroneous judgment. No doubt
parties contracting a regular marriage are exposed to most
fearful and obvious hazards from collusion and perjury;
AND WIFE.
and it may well be asked, if that judgment be erroneous, Husband
whether there is any use in going through a regular mar- and Wife
riage after proclamation of banns. But while the prin-
ciple of the law that the prior marriage, however informally
contracted, is preferred to the most regular subsequent one,
it will in most cases be held that any presumption in its
favour is destroyed by the still stronger presumption arising
from the conduct of parties and its undue concealment.
But wherever there is no doubt of the promise, and of the
intercourse following on it, if there be nothing to warrant
the presumption that the promise was disregarded, a mar¬
riage so constituted is sustained.
3. The requisite consent may be proved inferentially—by
conjugal cohabitation, and being reputed married persons
by friends and neighbours. This is supposed to have been
first introduced by the Scotch statute 1503, which declared
that where a woman was reputed to be the wife till the
man’s death, she should be entitled to her rights as his
widow till it be proved that she was not his wife. Where
the cohabitation was of considerable duration, and the parties
openly mingled in society as acknowledged married parties
(for both cohabitation and repute must co-exist), the pre¬
sumption that the requisite consent, which the law allows to
be given secretly, was really interchanged, is not an unrea¬
sonable one. But wherever it appears that such cohabitation
was assumed merely from respect to public decency, the
effect of it is destroyed. In judging of its true character,
therefore, it is of importance not merely to ascertain w hether
it occurred within the natural sphere of the parties, but also
how it commenced. Lord Eldon said, that “ wherever it
clearly appeared that it was at first illicit, it was likely to
continue illicit;” and Lord Redesdale concurring, said,
“ that to raise the presumption of marriage, the repute must
be general, and not such as might be created by statements
or conduct designed to induce lodging-keepers to admit the
parties into houses of respectability.” The complaint of a
woman claiming the rank of a wife, that the man had taken
advantage of her by not introducing her to his friends, led
another judge to remark, that “ that complaint destroyed the
very foundation of a plea of repute; and that wherever the
connection was originally illicit, the law required some de¬
cided and unequivocal act to mark the change.” This desi¬
deratum was supplied in Madam’s case by what passed
before his servants; and it was also supplied in another case,
after some length of illicit cohabitation, by a meeting ot
friends being purposely called, at which the parties were
drank to and bedded as married persons.
We may here observe, as applicable to all sorts of mar¬
riage recognised by the law of Scotland, that the circum¬
stances inferring its constitution must occur either in Scot¬
land or in a country where the same inference would be
drawn from the like circumstances. This rests on the prin¬
ciple that the conduct of parties must be tried according to
the law of the country where it occurred. In the case of
the Countess of Strathmore in 1750, a proof ot matrimonial
cohabitation and repute in a foreign country was allowed,
because a marriage was understood to be so constituted in
that country ; while, in another case, in 1811, an offer to
prove that a promise and subsequent copula occurred in
England, was disregarded, because no such mode ot consti¬
tuting marriage was then recognised in England. It makes
no differencein such cases that the parties are Scotch by
birth. These rules of judgment are followed in England
even in the case of English parties. Lord Stowel said, “ the
validity of Miss Gordon’s marriage rights must be tried by
reference to the laws of the country where, if they exist at
all, they had their origin.” The same principle received
effect in England in 1748, where, in reference to a marriage
of English parties contracted in France, Lord Hardwick
said, “ that a marriage established by the sentence of a fo¬
reign court, having proper jurisdiction, is conclusive by the
HUSBAND AND WIFE.
53
Husband
and Wife.
law of nations ” In 1819, such a judgment was repeated
in England with reference to a marriage of English parties
On the marriage being constituted the parties are bound
to adhere with fidelity to each other; and the husband
must support his wife according to his circumstances, un¬
less she have property of her own sufficient for her support,
with which her husband cannot interfere. The moveable
property of both, including the fruits of the wife’s heritable
subjects, the interests of her bonds, and even the profits of
her personal labour and skill, become the property of the
husband. The marriage operates like a deed of assignation,
so that the husband can sue for the recovery of these rights
of his wife in his own name and without her concurrence;
and any attempt on her part to defeat him, occurring after
the proclamation of banns, is held to be fraudulent. Ihe
common moveable property of the parties is sometimes
called the goods in communion; and yet the wife during the
marriage has truly only the hope of getting a share of it—
her rio-ht in it not being indefeasible till the death of her
husband. The husband’s right is called his>s mariti. In
virtue of this right he may sell, gift, or waste the common
property at his pleasure, and his creditors may attach it for
his debts. The wife’s paraphernalia, comprehending her
personal attire and ornaments, and such ai tides of a kind
used by either party as the husband may have gifted to her
before the marriage, are excepted. Besides having this
right to her moveables, the husband on the marriage be¬
comes her legal guardian. He may, however, i enounce
both his jus mariti and his right of administration ; and
where he does so, the wife can act in reference to hei own
estate independently of her husband, and altogether as fully
and freely as if she were unmarried—leasing, feuing, selling,
or burdening her property, or appointing factors to manage
it, though in opposition to her husband’s will. But the hus¬
band may renounce hisjus mariti and yet retain his cuia-
torial powers, in which last case she can only act with his
concurrence. Third parties may convey property to a wife
conditionally, and so as to exclude all the rights both of the
husband and his creditors ; as, by declaring the conveyance
to be purely alimentary, and exclusive of these rights; or by
conveying to trustees for her behoof, with a similar exclusion
of the husband and his creditors. A wife, by her own
antenuptial contract, may reserve all the rights which she
possessed as a single woman. After, however, a. maniage
is entered into, a husband cannot renounce his jus mariti
to the prejudice of his creditors : and even when the renun¬
ciation is not to their prejudice, it seems to be in the nature
of donations between husband and wife, which are revoc¬
able at pleasure during the existence of the marriage. In
law the husband is liable, so long as she remains alive, for
all the personal debts contracted by his wife prior to the
marriage; but this liability terminates on her death, unless
his estate were attached by “complete legal diligence,”
during the marriage ; or unless he was a gainer by the
marriage to the extent of something beyond a reasonable
tocher. Even when made liable, on the ground of having
received some excessive advantage, it is only in the event
of the wife’s separate estate being found insufficient, that he
becomes personally liable. If he be imprisoned for a prior
debt of his wife, for which his own separate estate has not
been attached, and if she die, he is no longer liable in pay-
ment. During the marriage the husband and not the wife
is liable for all domestic furnishings which she may order ;
and such furnishings may be proved against him by her
attestation or evidence. In other respects she is not re¬
ceived in evidence against her husband, except in the case
of assault committed by him against herself. For furnish¬
ings unsuitable to his condition in life made on the order of
a wife, the husband is not liable; neither is he liable for any
fine in which she may be subjected by a court of law as the
punishment of her crimes. In this last case, however, so HusW
entirely is a wife’s person exempted from imprisonment
during marriage (except in a few instances now to be v
noticed), that where a fine is awarded against her on account
of her crimes, it cannot be enforced by her imprisonment
until the death of her husband. Indeed, even for her ap¬
parent crimes she maybe relieved of all consequences, if it
clearly appear that she acted under the compulsion o icr
husband. When, however, she voluntarily acts on her own
account, or in concert with him, in the commission of crime,
she is liable in criminal punishment.
In England, as Justice Coleridge remarked, a husband
may compel his wife to cohabit with him ; adding, however,
that the moment compulsion becomes unnecessary ^ “ for
keeping her in the path of duty, it becomes illegal.” In
Scotland the same end is generally effected by the hus¬
band being entitled to w-ithhold all alimentary support if
she withdraw from his society, unless on sufficient cause.
It has been found that a husband may, without any reason,
debar his wife from his house, and assign her a separate, if
it be not an unsuitable, residence. She takes his rank and
precedence, unless these are merely official. She cannot
sue at law, either in England or Scotland, without his con¬
currence, unless he have renounced all his rights, including
that of guardianship; neither can she be sued in civil ac¬
tions, unless her husband be called as a defender. All
voluntary deeds of separation are revocable at pleasure,
unless it appear that the revocation is merely for the purpose
of obtaining an increase of aliment. Ihe bills, bonds, and
cautionary obligations of a married woman are null, so that
she cannot be sued on them even after her husband s death ;
yet, like a minor, she may insist on other parties, who may
have contracted with her in the knowledge that she was a
married woman, fulfilling their contracts with her, where-
ever it is her interest to do so, provided she is ready to
perform the counter part incumbent on her. Contracts,
however, gone into by a married woman, are binding against
her separate estate wherever they are clearly beneficial,
such as for improvements on her separate property, just as
the expense of managing or recovering her separate estate
forms a good charge against it. Necessary furnishings for
clothing, or aliment for herself, as well as for the domestic
consumption, do not form the ground of a charge against
her, but only against her husband. If a married woman
fraudulently holds herself out as a single woman, and de¬
ceives parties into contracts with her, her separate estate
will be liable in all consequences. Where a husband be¬
comes insane, the disabilities under which a wife lies, equally
with his curatorial powers or guardianship, are at an end,
and she is entitled to manage, and probably to alienate, her
estate, and do every act of a rational character; though even
then it is not understood that she can be imprisoned for
civil debts. If the married pair be judicially separated, a
wife’s creditors may attach her allowance for necessary fur¬
nishings made to her. Where the husband is abroad, a
wife’s "obligations for necessaries are effectual; and if, in
order to procure a livelihood while her husband is abroad,
she engage in trade, she then becomes, even during his
life, liable to imprisonment for her debts. There is nothing
to prevent a married woman making a settlement of her
separate estate, without the consent of her husband, to take
effect after her death; and there is no reason why, if she
please, the party to be benefited by such a deed should not
be her husband. She is also liable to be imprisoned in
order to compel her to subscribe necessary deeds which the
Court has found her to be under a legal obligation to grant.
Where she pursues an action at law, she must have her
husband's concurrence, unless he have renounced his jus
mariti and right of guardianship; and if he improperly
withhold his concurrence, the Court will appoint a curator
to her for the occasion. When an action is raised against
54 H U S B A N D A N D W I F E.
Husband ])er, the husband must be called for his interest; and if he
and \\ ife. refuse (0 appear, which he may when the action may have
a prejudicial effect on himself, the Court, on being satis¬
fied of the propriety of doing so, will appoint a curator for
her, to aid her in the defence.
The law of England and of Scotland are alike to the dis¬
advantage of the wife, in this respect, that marriage operates
like a formal deed of assignation to the husband of all the
wife’s moveable estate, unless she is protected by an ante¬
nuptial contract, or by special clauses in conveyances by
third parties for her behoof. She cannot otherwise acquire
and hold money, or other moveable property. The husband
is no doubt bound, as the holder of the goods in commu¬
nion, to give to her a reasonable sum for her support; but
then he may give that sum actually out of the proceeds of
her own labour, as an author or an actress, a trader, or a
needlewoman, and spend or misspend the surplus accord¬
ing to his own pleasure. The laws of both countries cer¬
tainly relieve the wife from all responsibility, even for
the necessary furnishings required for her own consump¬
tion ; and where her personal gains are less than what is re¬
quired by both her and her husband, she may have nothing
to complain of. But when a husband altogether fails to
support his wife, and squanders his time and means in
utter profligacy, leaving to her only the alternative of la¬
bour or starvation, it is well worth the consideration of par¬
liament whether the law should permit him to keep his
wife constantly in poverty, by periodically pouncing on the
fruits of her industry, and dishonestly wasting it, without
even paying to her out of it what is required for her sup¬
port. If this cannot be restrained, as we think on a hus¬
band’s failure to do his duty it easily might, it may well be
questioned whether a wife does not purchase exemption
from personal responsibility at too great a price.
Marriage is dissolved by divorce or death. In Scotland
there are two grounds of divorce—malicious desertion, and
adultery. Neither of these necessarily dissolve the mar¬
riage, but only afford a plea, which may either be aban¬
doned or rendered available by an action at law. If either
party die during the dependence of the action, and before
final judgment of divorce is pronounced, the rights of the
survivor and of the heirs of the deceased must be tried on
the footing of the marriage having been dissolved only by
death.
]. Desertion.—By the Scotch statute 1573, c. 55, it is
enacted, that where any of the “ spouses shall divert frae
the other without sufficient grounds, and shall remain in his
or her malicious obstinacy for four years,” the injured party
may take certain steps to bring about a dissolution of the
marriage. The first is the action of adherence, which may
be raised after one year’s desertion. If the desertion have
not lasted for a year, or if it occurred in the course of ne¬
cessary and lawful business, this action is useless as a step
in the divorce. If the defender have broken up his Scotch
domicile, and withdrawn himself from the jurisdiction of
the courts of Scotland, leaving his wife behind, it seems
hard to deprive her of her legal remedy by his own unlaw¬
ful act; and therefore such an action in Scotland, provided
the husband received notice of it, has been often sustained,
though the legality of doing so is now seriously questioned.
Where the wife is the deserter, and the husband remains
in Scotland, there is no difficulty, as her domicile is in law-
held to be that of her husband. The action of adherence
will be sustained in the face of an agreement to separate,
because such an agreement is contrary to the first duty of
marriage. Maltreatment or adultery furnishes a good defence
against this action. On the decree of adherence being pro¬
nounced, the next step is to raise letters of horning and
charge the defender to adhere. If recusant, the defender
is denounced rebel, and application is made to the presby¬
tery to admonish, and, if necessary, to excommunicate.. In
practice, presbyteries decline to interfere, whereupon the Husband
pursuer protests for remedy at law, and, on the expiry of and Wife,
four years from the desertion, raises the action of divorce,
It is then too late for the defender to offer to adhere. On
its appearing that the steps now alluded to were regularly
gone through, decree of divorce is pronounced. The act
1573, c. 55, provides that the defender shall “ tyne and
lose” the tocher and the donationes propter nuptias, by
which is understood all provisions, either by law or paction.
If the husband be the offending party, he must restore the
tocher, and pay to the wife all the provisions in her favour,
legal or conventional; and if the wife be the offending
party, she forfeits the tocher and all the right that would
have belonged to her if she had survived, such as terce,jus
relictce, See. If the offending wife be an heiress, the hus¬
band has right to the courtesy of her estate, if there were
an heir of their marriage. An estatedevolving to either party
subsequent to a divorce, is free from all claim at the instance
of the other party, as the divorce terminates all relationship
between them. It is an error to suppose that any deser¬
tion, however protracted, by either of the married pair, un¬
less followed by a decree of divorce, will warrant the other
in entering into a second marriage in the lifetime of the
party who deserted, or furnish a defence against a criminal
prosecution.
2. Adultery.—By the canon law adultery entitled the
innocent party only to separation from bed and board. By
the Scotch law, it does not dissolve marriage unless the
aggrieved party shall bring the proper action requiring the
dissolution ; and the offender may be pardoned at the plea¬
sure of the injured party. Pardon, which may be inferred
from the conduct of the parties, or being accessory to the
defender’s guilt, is a bar to divorce. When divorce is pro¬
nounced, both parties are free to marry, as if they had never
been married to each other, with this exception, that by the
statute 1600, c. 20, the guilty party is prohibited from
marrying the person with whom the adultery was committed.
The prohibition, however, fails if the person with whom the
adultery was committed be not judicially ascertained and
named in the decree of divorce, or if the divorce were pro¬
nounced by a foreign judicature, as the statute refers only
to divorces pronounced by the “ ordinar judge,” meaning a
judge in Scotland. On raising the action, the pursuer must
swear that it is believed to be well founded, and that it was
not raised, either directly or indirectly, in collusion with the
defender. Both the date of the marriage and of the guilt of
the defender must then be proved, so that it may be ascer¬
tained that the latter did not occur prior to the former.
Sometimes it is pleaded in defence that the domicile of the
defender is beyond the jurisdiction of the Scotch courts.
Some years ago this defence was disregarded wherever the
marriage was Scotch, and the defender was cited edictally.
It is now otherwise. Where the wife is the defender, and
her husband is domiciled in Scotland, she is held, on being
cited edictally, and getting notarial intimation of the action,
to be amenable to the Scotch court wherever she is resi¬
dent, on the ground that her husband’s domicile is hers.
As against the husband, however, there must either be, at
the date of the action, his actual domicile in Scotland, or
the presumption of such a domicile, founded on residence
of forty days within Scotland. When such domicile on the
part of the husband exists, an action will be sustained against
either party, even though English by birth, and though the
marriage was contracted in England ; and it will be sus¬
tained against the wife even although she be still resident
there. This has led to a painful collision with the law of
England. In the case of Lolly, the husband had contracted
an English marriage, and he was divorced by the Scotch
court on the ground of adultery committed while on a visit
to Scotland of a duration sufficient to found jurisdiction.
He then returned to England, and having there married
HUSBAND AND WIFE.
55
Husband another woman, he was tried at the Lancaster assies for
and Wife, bigamy, and received sentence of transportation—not be-
v'-^' cause of insufficiency of the residence in Scotland to sub-
iect him to the law of Scotland, but because an English
marriage being indissoluble in England, except by act of
parliament, it was held that it could not be disturbed by
the law of another country, to which the parties could not
be supposed to have had reference at the time of their mar¬
riage. The sentence of transportation against Lolly has
had no effect whatever in altering the Scotch practice in
this particular ; and there can be no doubt that if Lolly had
remained and married in Scotland, even the House of Peers
would have sustained the validity of his second marriage, to
the effect of finding its issue entitled to succeed to his pro¬
perty in Scotland. Another question yet remains. While
domicile creates jurisdiction, must the Scotch court decide
all questions arisingfrom marriage, according to the law of the
place where the marriage was contracted, and thus refuse
divorce to parties domiciled in Scotland who were married
where such a mode of dissolution is not permitted ? This
question is in Scotland uniformly answered in the negative,
otherwise the supremacy of the law of Scotland within its
own territory would be compromised. 1 he legality of the
marriage itself, however, like all other contracts, is deter¬
mined according to the law of the place where it is said to
have been contracted. Analogous to this is the rule existing
both in England and Scotland by which the goods in com¬
munion are divided according to the law of the domicile,
without regard to the place of the marriage. In the com¬
paratively recent case of Duntz, 1816, the parties weie
English by birth, and married in England in 1810. In 1813
the°husband came with his wife to Scotland, where his domi¬
cile was established, after which he raised an action of divorce.
In the course of the process the opinions of the Judges of the
Court of Session were taken on this question, “ Is it a valid
defence against an action of divorce in Scotland on account
of adultery committed there, that the marriage had been
celebrated in England ?” and they unanimously concurred
in saying that it is not. In a similar case, Edmonston,
1816, with this variation, that the parties were Scotch, the
defence was urged that the action should be restricted to
separation from bed and board, but it met the same fate.
On this subject Lord Robertson expressed with great clear¬
ness views which were recognised as correct by Mr Justice
Storey, when he said, “ marriage is merely a personal con¬
sensual contractand it may be “ thought that the lex loci
must be resorted to in expounding every question that arises
relative to itbut it “ is a contract sui generis? and ‘ it
differs from other contracts in this, that the rights, obliga¬
tions, or duties, arising from it, are not entirely left to be
regulated by the agreement of parties, but are to a certain
extent matters of municipal regulation, over which the par-
ties have no control. It confers the status of legitimacy, &c.
Unlike other contracts it cannot, in general amongst civi¬
lized nations, be dissolved by mutual consent, and subsists
in full force even though one of the parties should be lor
ever rendered incapable, as in the case of incurable insanity
or the like, from performing his partol the mutual contract.
It is no defence after domicile is established that the adul-
•tery is committed only out of Scotland ; but it is a. goo
defence to either party in an English marriage that it was
committed abroad, before the Scotch domicile was acquired.
The followino- seem to be the results of the above and some
other decisions:—!. Adultery abroad, where the law does
not on that account dissolve marriage, and prior to the Scotch
domicile, will not warrant a divorce in Scotland. 2. But
the instant that a forty days’ domicile is acquired by the
husband in Scotland, divorce will be pronounced by the
Scotch court against either husband or wife on account ot
adultery committed anywhere after or in the course ot ac¬
quiring such domicile, no matter where the marriage was
contracted, or where the parties have been born. 3 If Husband
before the action of divorce is raised, tile husband have left ,   ,
Scotland and established a foreign domicile, the comts o
Scotland cease to have jurisdiction. 4. I he circumstance
of both or either of the parties being Scotch by birth, or
having estates in Scotland, will not, independent o tie
husband’s domicile, confer jurisdiction on the Scotch court.
These results rest on the principle that when parties hie^k
up their old domicile, and enter and acquire a domicile in
a new territory, they voluntarily subject their future con¬
duct to its laws. _ .
In regard to the defences against an action ot divorce
1. Collusion, if proved, between the parties, affords to the
repentant defender a good defence against divorce; but
though it should appear that the defender intentionally
gave ground for the suit so openly that detection was in¬
evitable, and expressly to provoke the other party to bring
the suit, divorce will be granted, if the pursuer was not ac¬
cessory to the misconduct.
2. Forgiveness, or the plea of remissio injuria, as it is
called, when established, is fatal to the divorce. As adul¬
tery operates only as a plea for divorce on the necessary
action being raised, it follows that the injuied party ma^
fin-give, or abstain from suing for redress. The forgiveness
may be proved directly, by words or writing, or inferential!y,
from cohabitation after the guilt is known. As, generally
speaking, a wife cannot so easily withdraw from the hus¬
band as the husband from the wife, Lord Stowell remarked,
“ that though the husband is bound to take prompt notice
of the infidelity of the wife, yet this doctrine is not to be
pressed against a wife, except in particular circumstances.
It is a plea in bar of process, but to be successful it must
apply to the specific guilt charged, and not to other offences
which may not have been either known or pardoned. Facts
inferring forgiveness can only be regarded when it appears
that the guilt was certainly knowm. The raising of the
suit infers certain knowledge ; but not the conducting of a
preliminary precognition. It may be proved by a refer¬
ence to oath. A written discharge of all and any offences
committed prior to a certain date is available.
3. Lenocinium, or a party’s either directly or indirectly
encouraging, countenancing, or instigating the othei s guilt,
or purposely throwing temptation in the way, affords an
available defence ; as no one is entitled to take advantage
of his own improper conduct.
4. Recrimination, or the plea that the pursuer has been
guilty as well as the defender, seems at one time in Scot¬
land to have been an available defence; but it is not so
now. If the defender bring a counter action, and both
parties are successful in proving each others guilt, mutual
divorces will be pronounced, producing patrimonial con¬
sequences. , ..
5. Further, it is a good defence against decree of divorce
being finally pronounced that either party have died in the
course of the process, no matter how plainly the guilt may
have been proved in the lifetime; and the guilty party, or
the heirs of the guilty party, cannot then be deprived of those
patrimonial rights which may open on the dissolution by
death.
It is competent to creditors interested to prevent a de¬
cree of divorce going out against their debtor, to sist them¬
selves as defenders, and propone all defences competent to
their debtor ; as, for example, that the guilt was pardoned ;
or that the action is carried on collusively, to injure the
defender’s civil rights, and defeat the chance of the credi¬
tors recovering their claims. It has been decided by the
House of Peers that it is too late for the trustee for the
husband’s creditor to appear and offer to prove collusion
after the pursuer had both deponed that there was none,
and had also proved her husband’s guilt.
In regard to the proof, the only general rule that can be
56 HUSBAND
Husband ]ai(J down is, that the circumstances in evidence must be
and \\ ife. as lead the discretion of reasonable men to the con-
elusion of guilt. The paramour is not bound to criminate
himself; but his declining to answer is not to be overlooked
in considering the other evidence, though by itself it is of
no consequence.
1. As to the consequences of the dissolution of mar¬
riage by death. We shall advert to these as they stand, irre¬
spective of the recent statute 18th Viet., c. 23 ; and then
mention the changes introduced by that statute. Where
marriage subsists for a year and day, or where a living
child has been born, the surviving wife succeeds to her
terce, being the liferent of the third of her husband’s heri¬
tage (excluding burgage property) in which he died in-
feft, and to the half or third of the goods in communion,
called jus reliette, according as- a child has or has not sur¬
vived ; or otherwise, where she has conventional claims,
sometimes granted in lieu of her legal rights, these conven¬
tional rights are secured to her. In regard to the hus¬
band, if he survive, and the marriage have subsisted for
a year and day, he becomes the irrevocable proprietor of
the tocher, and of the half of the goods in communion, or
two-thirds if children be alive, subject to their claim of
legitim. His conventional rights are secured to him. If
a child of the marriage was heard to cry, the husband suc¬
ceeds to his courtesy, being the liferent of the deceased
wife’s heritage, which fell to her by succession, and in
which she died infeft. If the wife had a living child by a
former marriage, who succeeds to her heritage, the last and
surviving husband has no right to the courtesy. If the
marriage be dissolved within a year and day, without there
having been a living child, the parties are reinstated in the
condition in which they were before the marriage, in so far
as practicable, and the tocher must be returned, in so far
as unconsumed. The surviving party, whether husband
or wife, loses all right in the other’s estate. Even contracts
between the parties are annulled, unless they contain a
provision to the contrary. If there be no children born of
an irregular marriage, the year and day are counted from
the date of the acknowledgment. Where children were
previously born it draws back to the birth.
It must now be kept in view, that by the recent statute,
18th Viet., c. 23, §6, it is enacted, “ that where a wife
shall predecease her husband, the next of kin, executors, or
other representative of such wife, whether testate or intes¬
tate, shall have no right to any share of the goods in com¬
munion ; nor shall any legacy or bequest, or testamentary
disposition thereof, by such wife, affect or attach to the said
goods or any portion thereof.” And farther, by § 7, that
“ where a marriage shall be dissolved before the lapse of a
year and day from its date, by the death of one of the
spouses, the whole right of the survivor, and of the repre¬
sentatives of the predecessor, shall be the same as if the
marriage had subsisted for the ■period aforesaidand by
the 3d and 4th sections of that statute, it is provided that
where any person dying intestate shall predecease his father,
without leaving lawful issue, his father shall have right to
one-half of his moveable estate ; and where such person
dying intestate, whose father has predeceased him, shall be
survived by his mother, she shall have right to one-third of
his moveable estate. These, it is believed, are the only
alterations of the prior law of Scotland introduced by that
statute, affecting the dissolution of marriage by death.
2. As to the consequences of the dissolution of marriage by
divorce on the ground of adultery. If the wife be the di¬
vorced party, she is considered, in reference to all patrimonial
rights, to be dead, and therefore can claim no provision of
any sort, either legal or conventional; and the husband
has right to the courtesy. If she made a donation to her
husband during the subsistence of the marriage, she can
now no longer revoke it; and no right can pass to those
AND WIFE.
who would have been her executors for a share of the goods Husband
in communion. If the husband be the divorced party, the an<t Wife,
wife has immediate right, exactly as if he were dead, to her
terce andjw^ rehetee, or to her jointure; in a word, to all her
rights, legal, or conventional, as if he were naturally dead.
All rights in the husband flowing from the wife, and all his
power of administration of her estate are at an end. He
forfeits his right of courtesy. He can no longer draw his
wife s rents, or revoke gifts which he may have made to her.
He is not, however, called on to restore the tocher; for
justice does not require that the woman should be placed
in a better situation by the divorce than she would have
been by the husband’s death. Neither party has any in¬
terest in the rights which may accrue to the other after di¬
vorce. This last point was fixed by a judgment in a case
at the instance of the Earl of Elgin in 1827.
Where a ceremony of marriage has been gone through
by parties disqualified to marry, such as idiots, impotent
persons, or persons already married, the action of divorce
is inapplicable. The proper remedy is an action conclud¬
ing for a decree, declaring the ceremony void and null,, and
that the defender has no interest in the pursuer’s estate. In
some circumstances the defender may be liable in damages
to the pursuer, as if, for example, where the defender had
previously been married to a party alive at the date of the
second ceremony.
In the direct line marriage is forbidden in infinitum.
hirst cousins, and all of remoter degrees, may lawfully marry.
A man after his wife’s death cannot marry any of her kindred
nearer in blood to her, than he may of his own, nor vice
versa ; but as relationship by affinity properly exists only
between the husband and the wife’s relations, or between
the wife and the husband’s relations, there is nothing to
hinder brothers from marrying sisters, or a father and son
from marrying a mother and (laugher.
Though maltreatment is not a ground of divorce, it war¬
rants a decree of separation. By maltreatment, less than
personal violence is meant. If a man, particularly in the
better ranks, ill uses his wife by threats, degrading re¬
straints, and licentious conduct, a decree of separation will
be pronounced. Lord Stowell remarked in an English case—
Evans, 1790—that, in general, when married people “under¬
stand that they must live together, except for a very few
reasons known to the law, they learn to soften by mutual
accommodation that yoke which they know they cannot
shake off.” “ Mere austerity of temper, petulance of man¬
ners, rudeness of language, want of civil attention, even oc¬
casional sallies of passion, if they do not threaten bodily
harm, do not amount to legal cruelty.” “ There must be
proof of a reasonable apprehension of bodily hurt. I say
an apprehension, because assuredly the court will not wait
till the hurt is actually done; but the apprehension must be
reasonable. It must not be an apprehension arising merely
from an exquisite and diseased sensibility.” In the case of
Waring, in 18] 3, Lord Stowell said, it must be kept in view
“ that a wife may, by provocations, have brought upon her¬
self the ill treatment complained of. When that appears
she is not entitled to demand relief.” “ It is a difficult task
to return blows, let them come from where they may, with
words only. Force may be opposed, and in some cases
must be opposed, with force.” The adultery of either party
entitles the other, by the laws of England and Scotland, to
a separation ; and even for maltreatment it will be awarded
in favour of the husband as well as the wife, though it
will require stronger grounds. This kind of action draws
after it none of the consequences resulting from death or
divorce.. It only entitles the wife to obtain from a husband
a suitable allow'ance for her separate support during their
joint lives, a right which she possesses, even where the se¬
paration has been decreed against her at his insiance; in
respect that he is the possessor and administrator of the
HUS
Husband a-oods in communion. But the grounds of such an action,
and Wife, and the decree itself may be discharged by the pursuer at
v ^ ^ > pleasure. Where there are children, if the mother be the
successful pursuer, she is allowed to have the custody of
female children till twelve, and males till seven years of
age, with a suitable allowance for them. The court has a
discretionary power to dispose of the children, according to
circumstances, but it is not exercised except in extreme
cases. After the parties are judicially separated, the hus¬
band is no longer liable for the debts which the wife may
contract, provided he pay to her the sum awarded by the
court for her support.
From what has been stated above, it will be seen that the
leading differences between the law' of England and Scot¬
land on the subject of marriage, are to be found both in its
constitution and dissolution. Certain forms are required in
England in order to constitute marriage, which are not es¬
sential in Scotland, provided the consent of parties is given
clearly and seriously. To avoid the strictness of England,
her subjects sometimes cross the border to contract an irre¬
gular marriage, which may be effected in Scotland in a few
minutes. This may be prevented by the legislature en¬
acting that such a marriage should not be binding, unless
preceded by the residence for a certain length of time of
the English parties in Scotland; and a bill is at present be¬
fore parliament to accomplish that object, which will be ad¬
verted to in conclusion, if it be passed into a law before the
publication of this volume. In regard to the dissolution of
marriage by divorce, a woman cannot, except in extraordi¬
nary circumstances, sue in England for such a remedy ;
and even the husband cannot, in that country, obtain it,
except on the single ground of his wife’s infidelity, nor until
he obtain a verdict for damages against her seducer; after
which he may procure an act of parliament dissolving the
marriage. The expense of this procedure is so great as to
exclude the remedy of divorce from husbands in the lower
ranks of England. The practical exclusion of the English
wife from such a remedy, rests on the ground that her hus¬
band’s infidelity does not involve a family in calamities so
great as those occasioned by the infidelity of the wife. In
Scotland, malicious and obstinately continued desertion is
regarded equally with infidelity as a violation of the mar¬
riage vow ; and the husband, as well as the wife, having un¬
dertaken that vow, is equally with her liable in the conse¬
quences of its violation; while the remedy of divorce can
be obtained by all ranks, even as a matter of right, and in
forma pauperis if necessary. Marriage may thus be said
to be more easily constituted, and more easily dissolved in
Scotland than in England; and yet Scotland is not parti¬
cularly remarkable for rash and inconsiderate marriages;
neither do the number of divorces pronounced in that
country lead to the inference, that the facility with which
they are obtained tends to increase their number. Indeed,
the number of Scotch divorces is very small; those at the
instance of the wife not exceeding twenty annually; show¬
ing that divorce is a remedy not usually sought for by a
wife, until her wrongs have become intolerable.
The Bill referred to in the last paragraph has now been
passed into a law ; by which it is enacted that after the 31st
day of December 1856, no irregular marriages contracted
in Scotland shall be valid, unless one of the parties had
at the date thereof his or her usual place of residence there,
or had lived in Scotland for twenty-one days next preceding
such marriage ; while, if any parties contracting an irregular
marriage shall, within three months thereafter, present a
joint application for a warrant to register such marriage
to the sheriff, the sheriff shall, on evidence, direct it to be
registered, provided that one of the parties had lived in
Scotland for twenty-one days next preceding such marriage,
or had his or her usual residence in Scotland at the date
thereof; and it is now no longer lawful to convict any
HUS 57
parties of having irregularly contracted marriage, unless Huskisson
there shall be adduced sufficient proof other than the ac-
knowledgment of such parties, that one of them had at the v ^ .
date thereof his or her usual residence in Scotland, or had
lived in Scotland for twenty-one days next preceding such
marriage. See Parent and Child. (m. l.)
HUSKISSON, William, an able financier and states¬
man, was born in 1770, at Birch-Moreton, in Worcester¬
shire. After an excellent education at home, he went to
Paris to study medicine, which he had chosen as his profes¬
sion. Accident, however, made him acquainted with Lord
Gower, English ambassador in that city, and Huskisson,
abandoning medicine, became his private secretary. Con¬
necting himself on his return to England with the I ory
party, he held various offices under government, to which
he made himself valuable, and indeed indispensable, from
his knowledge of business, especially in the department of
finance. After the death of Pitt he attached himself to the
party of Canning, and distinguished himself by the part he
took in the celebrated Bullion Committee, in which he sup¬
ported and enforced the views of Horner for an immediate
resumption of cash-payments by the banks. In 1822 he
succeeded Canning as secretary of state. For the remain¬
der of his public history see art. Britain. His death,
which took place September 15, 1830, was accidental. At
the opening of the Manchester and Liverpool Railway, he
was run over by a train, and so severely injured, that he
survived but a very short time. A collective edition of his
speeches appeared in 1831. They do not exhibit any great
eloquence strictly so called; but are distinguished for clear
statement, lucid order, close reasoning, and a great mastery
of details. The views, without being new or brilliant, are
sound and comprehensive, and evidently the result of ma¬
ture thought and study. The conscientious fulness of the
details makes them both instructive and interesting, even
to readers of the present day.
HUSS, John, the Bohemian reformer, was born at a
village called Hussinecz, situated in that part of Bohemia
which borders on Bavaria, on the 6th of July 1369. His
parents were in humble circumstances, and he was in early
life subjected to both toil and privation—a discipline which
was probably not without its use in preparing him for his
subsequent career. After passing through the initiatory
branches of education, he entered the university of Prague,
where he studied philosophy and theology under Stanislaus
of Znaim, a man of liberal tendencies, and from whom Huss
probably received the first impulse towards those opinions
and efforts to which he owes his fame and his place in the
history of the Church. Huss took his master’s degree in
1396, and in 1398 he began to lecture. In 1400 he was
appointed confessor to Sophia, queen of Bohemia ; in 1401
he became president of the theological faculty in the uni¬
versity; and in 1402 he was selected to fill the office of
preacher at the Bethlehem Chapel, an edifice which had
been erected and endowed by John of Milheim, one of the
royal councillors, and a wealthy citizen of Prague named
Creutz, for the express purpose of facilitating the preach¬
ing to the people in the Bohemian tongue (verbum Dei
communi populo civitatis in vulgari Bohemico ad prsedican-
dum.) These appointments show in what respect Huss,
though as yet but a young man, was held. His chap¬
laincy at the Bethlehem was especially important to him,
as it afforded scope for the exercise of those peculiar
powers of popular address which he possessed, and gave
him opportunity of employing these in the promotion
of those measures of reform on which his heart was al¬
ready set.
Whilst yet a student at the university, Huss’s earnest
and religious mind had been grieved by the prevailing levity
and immorality of the clergy, as well as the gross supersti¬
tion, ignorance, and vice of the body of the people. I he
H
VOL. XII.
58 HU
Huss. times in which he appeared were those of the deepest me-
diaeval darkness, when boundless corruption reigned through¬
out the Church, when anarchy and discord were threaten¬
ing her with ruin, and when almost every man in whose
bosom a regard for the interests of religion and moiality re¬
mained, was compelled to assume the position ot a censurer
and a reformer. Mosheim observes, that i no teacher or
writer of any eminence in this century (the fifteenth), can
be named, who does not plainly and greatly lament the
miserable state of the Christian Church, and anticipate its
ruin, unless God should interpose for its rescue.”1 Several
had already appeared in Bohemia, who had uttered ener¬
getic testimony against the prevailing corruptions. Milicz
of Kremsia, Conrad of Waldhausen, John of Steikna, and
Matthias of Janow, had formed a succession of witnesses
whose unwearied and vehement denunciations alike of the
misconduct of the clergy and the corruptions of the popu¬
lace, had been gradually leavening the minds of the com¬
munity with sentiments favourable to a better state of
things. In the footsteps of these men, Huss, deeply imbued
with their spirit, and familiar with their opinions, enthusias¬
tically followed, and by his eloquent, empassioned, and fear¬
less discourses at the Bethlehem Chapel, greatly extended
the movement they had commenced. At first, indeed, he
confined himself to topics affecting only the laity, but from
these he advanced boldly to attack the sensual and vicious
habits of the clergy. The result was, that he drew around
him a small but attached and congenial community from
among the former, while he incurred the bitter hatred and
opposition of the latter.
It is true, that at first his efforts for reform seemed to be
conducted under the sanction of his ecclesiastical superiors.
A young nobleman, Sbynko, or Zbynek, of Hasenburg, was
at that time archbishop of Prague; and being disposed to
introduce order into his diocese, and to discourage the gross
superstitions that were bewildering the people, he availed
himself of the knowledge, influence, and zeal of Huss for
this purpose. For some time, therefore, the latter worked
under the protection and with the approval of his diocesan;
but the motives, designs, and the spirit of the two men were
so different, that it was not possible they should continue
very long to pursue a common course. Zbynek was a man
of the world, whose tastes were more for military operations
than for ecclesiastical or spiritual functions, and whose de¬
sire for reform in his diocese was kindled by no higher
feeling than that which prompts a general to enforce order
among his soldiers. Huss was a man fired with religious
zeal, caring little for secular interests, devoted to the service
of morality and piety, and whom nothing could satisfy but
a return to such a state of things as the high standard of
spiritual Christianity sanctioned. Between two such men
there was hardly anything in common ; and though peculiar
circumstances might impel them in a common direction for a
season, no sooner wrould the influence of these be removed,
than their paths must necessarily diverge ever more and
more widely from each other. As it happened, hardly seven
years had elapsed when their relations were completely
changed; the patron had become the persecutor, and the
humble priest was agitating a reform which not only roused
the indignation of the archbishop of Prague, but occupied
the attention, and perplexed the counsels of the supreme
Pontiff himself.
Several circumstances conspired to push Huss forward in
the career on which he had entered. Already imbued with
principles derived from the study of the sacred Scriptures,
the writings of Augustine, and those of Milicz and Matthias
of Janow, his mind received a still more decisive impulse
in the direction of reform from the perusal of the writings
s s.
of Wycliffe. With some of these he had become acquainted Huss.
as early as 1391 ; but it would appear that it was not till a i
later period that he experienced the full amount of their
influence on his mind. By the perusal of them he was
completely won over to the views of the Realists in philo¬
sophy ; and though he did not embrace all Wycliffe’s theo¬
logical opinions, he undoubtedly owed to him much spiritual
enlightenment,—a benefit which he was prompt publicly to
acknowledge whilst preaching, commending them to the
people as full of truth, and frequently declaring that he
wished his soul after death to go to the same place whither
that of Wycliffe had gone.2 It was as a defender of Wycliffe
that Huss first came into collision with Archbishop Zbynek.
In 1406, the latter began to institute proceedings for the sup¬
pression of the Wycliffite heresy in his diocese, and even
went the length of banishing or committing to the flames
some who refused to recant the opinions they had embraced
from the teaching of the English reformer. Against this
cruelty Huss, though not himself prepared to concur in all
the opinions for which these men suffered, indignantly pro¬
tested. “ What sort of thing is this,” he wrote to the arch¬
bishop, “that men guilty of incest and every kind of crime
pass with impunity, whilst humble priests, plucking out the
thorns of sin, fulfilling their duty, well affected towards
your rule, not following avarice, but gratuitously, for God’s
sake, labouring in the gospel, are cast into prison as heretics,
and suffer banishment for preaching the gospel itself?”3
To these remonstrances Zbynek seems at first to have
listened ; at least he did not at this time pursue his perse¬
cution of the Wycliffites, nor does Huss appear to have in¬
curred his displeasure by the zeal he had shown on their
behalf. A more serious cause of quarrel arose out of the
part which Huss took in the disputes which were then agi¬
tating Christendom, in consequence of the Papal schism.
The archbishop had espoused the side of Gregory XII. in
opposition to Wenceslaus, the king of Bohemia, and Huss,
taking the same side as the king, employed his influence in
securing support for his cause. Not long before this an
event had occurred, very much through Huss’s efforts,
which greatly increased his power of serving the king
in such an emergency. The university of Prague had
hitherto numbered among its students a large body of Ger¬
mans, who indeed formed the majority, and to whom had
been conceded the privilege of three votes in all questions
affecting the interests of the university, whilst the native
Bohemians possessed only one. Against this, as an act of
injustice, Huss, supported by his friend Jerome of Prague,
and by the patriotic feeling of many of their countrymen,
had at length successfully struggled: by an edict of the
king in 1409, the relative weight of the parties was reversed,
three votes being given to the Bohemians, and only one to
the Germans. In consequence of this the latter seceded
in a body, to the number, according to the lowest estimate,
of 5000. Huss was immediately after elevated to the post
of rector of the university ; but whilst he was thus enabled
to serve the side of the king in his contest with the arch¬
bishop and clergy more efficiently, the part he had taken
in the measures which resulted in the secession of the
Germans, materially contributed to his own subsequent in¬
jury. He had thereby not only given mortal offence to the
archbishop and the clergy of Bohemia, but he had multi¬
plied enemies in every place to which the dispersed students
and professors betook themselves; whilst, at home, the loss
occasioned to the city by the withdrawal of so large a num¬
ber of its inhabitants turned from him the favour of the
citizens, and facilitated the attempts of his enemies to stir
up a party against him.
The archbishop now resolved to proceed vigorously for
1 Cent. 15, ch. 2. 2 JEnece Sylvii Hist. Bohem., c. 35 ; Herr von der Hardt, Act. Cone, iv., 314.
3 Palacky Gesch. von Bohemia, bd. iii., § 223, cited by Neander, vol. ix., p. 341, Torrey’s Transl.
H U
the suppression of the reformers. In 1410 he procured
from the pope, Alexander V., full powers to prohibit
preaching in private chapels, and to consign the writings of
Wycliffe to the flames. Huss, in the face of this, boldly
continued to preach as before at the Bethlehem Chapel,
where he was still listened to by admiring crowds. This
provoked the archbishop to accuse him to the pope of heresy;
in consequence of which he was summoned to appear at
Bologna, before Cardinal Otto of Colonna, to answer for
himself; and, on his failing to appear, was excommunicated.
This sentence was renewed by Cardinal Brancas, to whom
the case had been referred for reconsideration ; but, though
Zbynek endeavoured to carry it into effect, the influence of
Huss with the king and the people of Bohemia was still so
great that he was compelled to relinquish the attempt, and
even to recal his accusation of heresy, and request the pope
to remove the ban under which Huss had been laid.
Archbishop Zbynek died in 1411, and was succeeded by
Alric of Unitzow, a man wholly uninterested in religious
disputes, and devoted to the interests of the king. Under
his sway Huss might have remained unmolested, had it not
been that events occurred which compelled him to assume
even a still more decided posture of opposition to the cor¬
ruptions of the Papacy than he had hitherto assumed. In
1412 the pope issued a bull commanding a crusade against
King Ladislaus of Naples, and proclaiming full indulgence
to all who should take arms in this crusade, or furnish mo¬
ney for carrying it on. This roused Huss’s indignation,
and he attacked the bull both with voice and pen. In this
he was seconded only too zealously by his friend Jerome,
who, not content with exerting his fiery eloquence on the
subject, proceeded to parade the papal rescript through the
streets suspended to the neck of a common strumpet, after
which it was publicly burnt. These proceedings called
forth, as might be expected, the anger of the pope; they
were even too much for the king; and, accordingly, when
Huss was again placed under the papal ban he was obliged
to yield. He left Prague in 1413, and retired to Hussinecz,
having first appealed from the pope to Christ himself, and
defended his views in a work entitled De Ecclesia. At
Hussinecz he employed himself in writing letters to his
friends, in composing some additional expositions of his
opinions, and in occasionally preaching to the peasantry in
the open fields.
In the meanwhile his enemies had not forgotten him, or
relinquished their determination to destroy him. In 1414
the council of Constance was opened, and thither Huss was
summoned by the Emperor Sigismund to answer on a charge
of heresy. Though knowing that he was about to appear
before “ numerous and mortal enemies,” he went without
fear, having confided himself wholly to God and to his Sa¬
viour, from whom he besought wisdom and prudence, that
he might answer his accusers, and stand firm for the
truth.1 Before leaving Prague, however, he sought to
fortify his innocence by submitting to an examination be¬
fore the papal inquisitor, who gave him a certificate that he
found nothing heretical in him. He also secured from the
emperor a letter of safe-conduct, and from the pope the
strongest assurances of protection. Accompanied by seve¬
ral Bohemian noblemen, he left Prague on the 11th of
October, and reached Constance on the 3d of November.
For the first four weeks after his arrival nothing was done
or said touching his case. Expecting to be allowed to ad¬
dress the council, he employed the interval in preparing
his defence. But his enemies had no intention of allowing
him such an advantage. On the 28th of November he was
seized and imprisoned in a loathsome dungeon. In conse¬
quence of the interference of the emperor, he was some
weeks after transferred thence to a more salubrious apart-
S S. 59
ment, where he remained a close prisoner till the 24th of Huss.
March. After this he was, in spite of the remonstrances of '
the Bohemian barons, removed to the Castle of Gottleben,
where he was treated with the utmost severity, under which
his health, already greatly enfeebled, completely sank. At
length, emaciated by sickness and exhausted by suffering,
he was brought before the council, but it was only to be
treated as one already condemned. At his first appearance,
which took place on the 5th of June, whenever he attempted
to speak in his own defence, he was assailed by violent out¬
cries, amidst which not a syllable he uttered could be heard.
At his second and third hearing, which took place on the
7th and 8th of June, the presence of the emperor prevented
the tumultuous proceedings which had disgraced the former
assembly, but Huss was still rather harassed by his assail¬
ants than allowed freely and fairly to answer for himself.
The council persisted in imputing to him errors which he
repeatedly declared he never held, and they would hear of
nothing but that he should solemnly recant and abjure them.
In vain did he ask “ How can I abjure what I never held ?”
The council was inexorable, and he was remanded to pri¬
son, there to make up his mind between recantation and
death. Repeated efforts were made by emissaries of the
council to induce him to the former; but the spirit of the
martyr rose within him as he saw his end approaching, and
he stedfastly refused to swerve from the path of consistency
and truth. “ I write this,” says he in a letter to his friends
at Prague, “ in prison and in chains, expecting to-morrow
to receive sentence of death, full of hope in God that I
shall not swerve from the truth, nor abjure errors imputed
to me by false witnesses.” The sentence he expected was
pronounced on him on the 6th July, in the presence of the
emperor and the council. When it was read to him he
fell on his knees and said, “ Lord Jesus! forgive my ene¬
mies ; as Thou knowest that I have been falsely accused
by them, and that they have used against me false testimony
and calumnies; forgive them for the sake of Thy great
mercy.” Loud laughter rang through the hall, from the
assembled prelates, as this prayer went up for them to hea¬
ven. They then proceeded to degrade Huss from his
sacerdotal rank. For this purpose he was dressed in the
robes of a priest, the different parts of which were then
successively taken off him, with set forms of expression.
When this was over, and the tonsure had been obliterated
from him, a cap painted with figures of demons was placed
on his head, and the bishops said, “ Now we devote thy soul
to the infernal devils.” “ But I,” exclaimed Huss, raising his
eyes to heaven, “commend my soul, redeemed by Thee, into
Thy hands, O Lord Jesus Christ!” He was then led to
the place of execution. When fastened to the stake he
said, “ I willingly wear these chains for Christ’s sake, who
wore still more grievous ones.” Once more he was ad¬
monished to recant, but his reply was, “ What error should
I recant when I am conscious of none ? The chief aim of
my preaching was to teach men repentance and the forgive¬
ness of sins, according to the truth of the gospel of Jesus
Christ, and the expositions of the holy fathers; therefore
am I prepared to die with a joyful heart.” The fire was then
kindled. As its smoke and flames rose around him, Huss
began to shout, “Jesus, son of the living God, have mercy
on me.” Twice did he utter this, but before he could finish
it a third time, his voice was stifled in the flames which the
wind drove towards him. Still his lips moved as in prayer,
and the calm bearing of the dauntless confessor of Christ
continued to mark his countenance to the last. When the
flames had done their office, his ashes were collected and
cast into the Rhine, that no relics of him might remain.
“ But the miserable precaution was without any effect, since
his disciples tore up the earth from the spot of his martyr-
1 See his letter addressed to the Bohemians before commencing his journey. Bonnechose Lettres de Jean Hus, p. 82.
60 HUS
Hussars dom, and adored it with the same reverence, and moistened
II it wdth those same tears, which would otherwise have sanc-
Hutchin- tified his sepUlchre.” Waddington’s Hist, of the Church,
son* vol. iii., p. 192. See also Neander’s Church Hist., vol.
ix., pp. 319-506; Gieseler’s Church Hist., vol. v., pp.
103-122; Bonnechose Reformateurs avant la Reforme,
&c., 2 vols. (w* L*A’)
HUSSARS, a name given to the national cavalry of
Hungary and Croatia. They were first raised in 1458,
and received their name either from the method in which
they were called out, or from the Tartar uswar, which
sio-nifies cavalry. In the armies of modern Europe hussars
are light horse, and differ from light dragoons only in some
peculiarities of dress and equipment.
HUSTINGS (from the Saxon word huslinge, house of
trial), a court annually held in Guildhall before the lord
mayor and aldermen of London. Its antiquity appears
from the laws of Edward the Confessor. Some other cities
have likewise had a court bearing the same name, as Win¬
chester and York. This term is now applied to those tem¬
porary structures where elections are conducted.
HUTCHESON, Francis, the father, or at least the re¬
viver, of speculative philosophy in Scotland, was born,
August 8, 1694, in Ireland, but in what part of that coun¬
try is unknown. His father was a minister of the Presby¬
terian Church, and Hutcheson himself studied theology in
Glasgow with the view of following out his father’s career.
On taking licence he became pastor of a Presbyterian con¬
gregation in the synod of Ulster, and while there published
his Inquiry into the Original of our Ideas on Beauty and
Virtue, a work which made his name widely known, and
introduced him to the notice of King, the archbishop of
Dublin, himself well known in his day as a writer on ethi¬
cal subjects. In 1728 Hutcheson published his essay on
the Nature and Conduct of the Passions and Affections,
in virtue of which he was in the following year promoted
to the chair of moral philosophy in Glasgow. His next
works were mere text-books for the use of his classes, and
were respectively entitled Synopsis Metaphysicce Ontolo-
giam et Pneumatologiam Complectens; and Philosophies
Moralis institutio Compendiaria, Ethices et Jurispru-
dentiee Naturalis principia Complectens. The work on
which his chief fame as an ethical writer depends, how¬
ever, did not appear till after his death, which took place
at Glasgow in 1747. It was published in 2 vols. 4to, under
the title of System of Moral Philosophy, by his son Dr F.
Hutcheson, and was prefaced with an excellent biographical
sketch of the author by Dr Leechman. For analyses of
Hutcheson’s system, and the place it holds in the history
of speculative philosophy, see Preliminary Dissertations
I. and II. prefixed to this work, by Dugald Stewart and Sir
James Mackintosh respectively.
HUTCHINSON, John, a philosophical and theological
writer of the last century, was born in 1674 at Spenni-
thorne, in Yorkshire. He received an excellent education
from a gentleman who lodged with his father, and after
leaving the paternal roof served as steward in several fami¬
lies of rank and wealth. His best friend, however, was the
Duke of Somerset, who, when he was himself made Mas¬
ter of the Horse, appointed Hutchinson his riding purveyor.
This office afforded him great facilities for his favourite
study of natural history, and enabled him to make a large
and valuable collection of fossils. These, along with his
M.S. notes on them, he made over to Dr Woodward, the
duke’s physician, to arrange and publish. Woodward,
however, bequeathed both the fossils and their collector’s
injunctions to the university of Cambridge. Hutchinson
construed this act into an attempt to deprive him of his
fame as a geologist, and did his best to expose Woodward’s
conduct in his Moses' Principia, of which the first part saw
the light in 1724. In this strange work the author, after
HUT
giving his version of the Woodward affair, gravely set Hutchin-
about disproving the Newtonian doctrine of gravitation. 8on-
Three years later he published the second part, in which
he followed up his attack on Newton, and quoted Scripture in
proof of the existence of a plenum in opposition to the doc¬
trine of a vacuum, on which the Newtonian philosophy is
based. From this time till his death he continued to pub¬
lish at intervals volume after volume in defence of his views.
He died August 28, 1737. Eleven years after his death
his collective works were published in 12 vols. 8vo, under
the title of The Philosophical and Theological Worhs of
the late truly learned John Hutchinson, Esq. In the pre¬
face to this edition there is an elaborate defence of Hutch¬
inson, and an exposition of his views by Spearman and
Bate, the literary executors of the author. A good sum¬
mary of these views will also be found in a little book
called Thoughts Concerning Religion, published at Edin¬
burgh in 1743. The gist of these is that in the Bible is
contained a complete and infallible system of natural his¬
tory and philosophy as well as of religion and theology.
This, however, is to be gathered not from the ordinary
translations of the Bible, but from the Hebrew original.
That language, according to Hutchinson, is the only com¬
plete and perfect form of human speech, and was on that
account chosen by the Almighty as his instrument of com¬
munication with man. But it is not to be interpreted ac¬
cording to the literal meaning of the words. The true is
the typical sense, which can only be reached by a deep ac¬
quaintance with the etymology of Hebrew. Every root of
that tongue, on the Hutchinsonian theory, contains hidden
meanings, and symbolizes some intellectual object. This
elastic machinery put into his hands the means of wringing
from the Hebrew text interpretations that harmonized per¬
fectly with his system. An illustration will show more
clearly what is meant. “ The hawk,” says Hutchinson,
“ is eminent for seeing ; so hawk and seeing are the same
word; and the same idea may be in two things in other
respects quite different—e.g., the atoms of light move in a
line, like marbles in a groove; so do the storkened masses
of air which are darkness, they are continuous in a line ;
the first impels the second, and so on that the motion of
the first mass or grain puts the whole line into motion ;
and this motion gives the same idea when you consider the
coagulated grains of air thus following each other, as when
the atoms of light follow and drive forward each other ; and
so a word may be translated, as is often the case, to signify
direct contraries, as irradiate is made to do in Hebrew.”
On this principle Hutchinson evolves his system, in which,
rejecting the received doctrines of gravitation, attraction,
magnetism, and electricity, and denying the existence of a
vacuum, he maintains that the operations of nature are car¬
ried on by the three agents of fire, light, and spirit. Now
these three agents, which are in themselves only a modifi¬
cation of one and the same substance—the air—Hutchinson
holds to typify the three persons of one and the same es¬
sence—to wit, the Trinity. Carrying out this principle of
symbolism, he maintained that all the ceremonies enjoined
on the Old Testament Jews were adumbrations of the life
and sufferings of the Saviour, and that the Jews, in know¬
ledge of this, observed these rites in the same manner and
spirit as the followers of Christ afterwards obeyed the
commands and precepts that fell from the lips of their Lord.
Though Hutchinson can scarcely be regarded as having
founded a distinct sect, yet many able men since his days
have been found to accept and maintain these doctrines.
Even now, though their numbers are small, they are not
extinct. In the list of those who openly defended them
are found the names of Robert Spearman and Julius Bate,
who superintended the third edition of Hutchinson’s works;
Dr Horne, bishop of Norwich, who afterwards, however, be¬
came a convert to the received views ; William Jones, the
H U T
Hutton, biographer of the bishop ; Lee, the author of Nature's Cha-
Charles. racterislics of Truth ; Hodges, at one time provost of
V'-"-'' Oriel College, Oxford ; Parkhurst, the lexicographer;
and several distinguished divines of the Episcopal and
Presbyterian churches of England and Scotland.
HUTTON, Charles, a celebrated English mathema¬
tician, was born at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Aug. 14, 1737.
His father, who to other duties added that of an inspector
of mines, gave him such an education as his means allowed ;
but the school to which he sent his son was a bad one, and
the young Hutton soon distanced his teacher. Hi& know¬
ledge of the higher mathematics he acquired without help
from any one. At the age of eighteen he obtained an
ushership in a school at Jesmond, and when his principal
was promoted to a living in the church, Hutton was ap¬
pointed to succeed him. Among his pupils at this place
was John Scott, afterwards Lord Eldon, chancellor of Eng¬
land. In 1760 he married, and began the work of tuition
on a larger scale in Newcastle, eking out his income by con¬
tributions to the Ladies Diary, the Gentlemans Magazine,
and other works of that class. His first acknowledged work,
however, is his Practical Treatise on Arithmetic and Booh-
Keeping—the work of a master-hand, which threw into the
shade all previous treatises on these subjects. Next ap¬
peared, in 1771, his Theoretical and Practical Treatise on
Mensuration. In this year the bridge at Newcastle hap¬
pened to be destroyed by an unusually heavy flood. Hut¬
ton drew up a plan, providing against the recurrence of such
a calamity, which in the ensuing year he enlarged and pub¬
lished under the title of Principles of Bridges, and the
Mathematical Demonstration of the Laics of Arches. In
1773, after a severe competitive trial, he was chosen profes¬
sor of mathematics in the Royal Military Academy of Wool¬
wich. Made a fellow of the Royal Society in 1774, he ful¬
filled the duties of foreign secretary to that learned body
from 1779 to 1783. During this period the Royal Society
bad nearly been dissolved from the discontent called forth
by the conduct of Sir Joseph Banks, the president. He
was accused of introducing into the body ignorant men of
rank and wealth, and overlooking those whose claims to the
honour were founded only on real scientific, especially ma¬
thematical, genius. Hutton found himself accused of ne¬
glecting his duties of foreign secretary, and indignantly re¬
signed. He drew up a defence of his conduct, however,
which was fully sustained by the vote of the society. (A
detailed account of this unhappy affair is given in Kippis’
Observations on the late Contests in the Royal Society,
Lond. 1784.) The treatment of Hutton was peculiarly un¬
gracious, especially if account be taken of the solid services
which he rendered to the society. Besides contributing a
large number of papers to its Transactions, he had gone
through the enormous labour of making all the mathemati¬
cal calculations for Maskelyne’s experiments at Schehallion,
in Perthshire, for determining the mean density of the
earth. These labours were fully appreciated by the savans
of Edinburgh, who in 1779 procured for Hutton the degree
of LL.D. from the university of that city. For the next
six or seven years, Hutton’s works were almost entirely
mathematical in their character, comprising his Mathema¬
tical Tables ; Tables of the Product and Power of Num¬
bers, &c., which he followed up in 1795 with his Mathe¬
matical and Philosophical Dictionary, the most valuable
contribution to scientific biography that has yet appeared
in England. Perhaps the most laborious of all Hutton’s
works was that which he next undertook, viz., his abridge¬
ment of the Philosophical Transactions. In this he was
assisted by Drs Shaw and Pearson, who relieved him of the
historic and literary parts of the task, while he reserved to
himself the mathematical and scientific portions. This un¬
dertaking was completed in 1809, and filled 18 volumes in
4to. Hutton received L.6000 for the share he had taken
HUY 61
in it. Soon after this lie found himself obliged by bad Hutton,
health to resign the appointment he had so long and ably ames
held at Woolwich. A retiring pension of L.500 a-year as- H(Jsum
sured him that his services had been duly appreciated by .
the Board of Ordnance. In 1819-20 he began a cone-
spondence with Laplace to vindicate his claim to notice in
that philosopher’s account of the experiments on the density
of the earth; and in the Connaissance des lemps for 1823
he had the pleasure of seeing that his labours on that diffi¬
cult problem were amply acknowledged by the great trench
philosopher. Hutton had reached his eighty-sixth year,
when he died Jan. 27, 1823.
All the biographical notices of Hutton are unanimous in
describing him as one of the most skilful of teachers, and
the most amiable of men. His modesty and simplicity were
as remarkable as his intellectual gifts. To his friends and
pupils he exhibited a warmth of personal affection that at¬
tached both to him in a very rare degree. It was also with
him a sacred duty to seek out the poor and unbefriended
student of science, and promote and otherwise assist him to
the best of his power.
Hutton wrote many other works besides these mentioned
above ; but we need only add to the list his Conic Sections,
and his English version of Montucla’s Recreations in Ma¬
thematics and Natural Philosophy. A catalogue raisonne
of his works will be found in the Biog. Univers., and in his
Life by Olinthus Gregory, his successor at Woolwich.
Hutton, James, M.D., the author of the Huttonian theory
of the earth, was born at Edinburgh, June 3, 1726, and died
in 1797. After passing through the ordinary courses at
the High School and University of his native city, he be¬
gan the study of the law, but soon exchanged it for the
more congenial pursuits of natural science. He studied
medicine for three years at Edinburgh, then for two in
Paris, and finally graduated at Leyden. Returning to Lon¬
don in 1749, he began to practise as a physician, but with
such small success that in the following year he removed
to Scotland, where, inheriting his father’s estate, he devoted
himself to agriculture. A residence in England, and after¬
wards in the Low Countries, perfected him in that art as
then understood, and enabled him to introduce those im¬
provements into the husbandry of Scotland that have made
the agricultural system of that country the most perfect
now in use. The last thirty years of his life were devoted
chiefly to those geological and meteorological studies of
which he embodied the results in his Theory of the Larth,
and his Theory of Rain. The illustrations of these works
by Playfair are justly regarded as among the finest speci¬
mens of philosophical writing that the English tongue has
to show. The value of Hutton’s contributions to natural
science, and his place in the history of that branch of phi¬
losophy, are discussed in the sixth Preliminary Dissertation
to this work by Professor Forbes, par. 591. Hutton’s
Life has been written by his friend Playfair, in Edin. Trans¬
actions, vol. V.
HUY, a strongly fortified town of Belgium, capital of a
cognominal arrondissement in the province of Liege, 17
miles S.W. of the town of that name. It stands on both
sides of the Meuse, its two parts being connected by an
ancient stone bridge. It has a strong citadel, cathedral,
collegiate church, and town-hall. The chief manufactures
are linen, paper, leather, and cast iron. It has also a consi¬
derable trade in corn, coal, iron, wine, &c. Pop. 9000.
HUYGENS, Christian. See historical part of art.
Astronomy ; and the fourth and fifth Preliminary Disser¬
tations to this work.
HUYSUM, Jan van, one of the greatest fruit and
flower painters, was born at Amsterdam in 1682. He
learned his art from his father Justus van Huysum, a painter
of very considerable merit, but whose fame has been com¬
pletely lost in that of his son. After thoroughly mastering
62 II Y B
Hyberna- the technicalities of his art, and the styles of the greatest
tion. masters of that branch of it in which he himself became un-
rivalled, Van Huysum betook himself to the study of nature.
He sounded her most secret depths, and reproduced the
brightest tints of her brightest ornaments with a skill and
truthfulness that sometimes deceived the keenest eyes. He
always chose the most gorgeous flowers to paint from, and
was careful to watch the hour of the day at which their lustre
was most brilliant. He heightened the effect of his flower-
groups by placing them in vases of the most graceful shape,
and working out the ornaments traced on them with the
same exquisite finish as he put upon the flowers themselves.
When his fame was fairly established he received almost
fabulous prices for his works ; and was thus enabled to be¬
stow upon them the highest amount of care and finish. He
was very jealous of his fame, and would allow no one to
enter his studio while he was at work. It was believed that
he had some secret in the mixing of his colours, which ena¬
bled him to preserve the brilliancy of his tints; but this,
if it ever existed, perished with him. There are some very
good specimens of Van Huysum in English galleries, and
his pieces always fetch very high prices in the market. Van
Huysum died in England in 1749.
HYBERNATION, the term employed by naturalists
to denote that state in which certain animals pass a portion
of each year in a more or less complete suspension of their
active functions ; and as this state has most frequently been
observed during the rigour of winter, it has been designated
Hybernation, from the Latin word hyberna.
The continued application of cold to such animals will
induce a suspension of their active faculties, and artificial
heat will dissolve their hybernation : yet this state cannot
be altogether the consequence of a low temperature; for
hybernation is observed, in tropical climates, in some insec¬
tivorous mammals and reptiles, when the dry heats of those
regions abridge the supply of suitable food. These facts
would show that hybernation is also caused, and perhaps
chiefly so, by the want of due aliment to keep up or reno¬
vate the irritability of the vital organs. Without some such
law, the existence of insectivorous animals, both in high lati¬
tudes and in tropical climates, would have been impossible ;
and we must regard hybernation as one of those admirable
adaptations of special means to an important end, which the
history of animated nature so frequently presents.
In the most complete hybernation the animals, on the
approach of that season, retreat to their places of temporary
concealment, their vital functions begin to be more slowly
performed, they cease to eat, breathe more slowly, and finally
their respiration would appear to be totally suspended, while
the movements of the heart become more languid, and are
performed at much longer intervals of time ; the animal
heat is much diminished, and finally, insensibility is pro¬
found. In such cases the small degree of oxygenation ne¬
cessary to maintain sufficient irritability in the muscles of
the heart to prevent their absolute rest is probably supplied
by the dermoid surface of the animal.
In our climates the bat and the hedgehog present the
best known instances of hybernation among mammals. In
them all the vital functions, except a very languid circula¬
tion of the blood, appears to be totally suspended at that
season, when a want of insect food would condemn them to
starvation. In some other European mammals the hyber¬
nation, though somewhat analogous, is less complete. This
is the case with certain frugivorous species that lay up stores
of vegetable food in their winter domiciles; as the dor¬
mouse, the squirrel, and the marmot. In them the insen¬
sibility would appear to be less profound, and the respira¬
tion never wholly suspended, though much diminished in
frequency. A good observer of the habits of the Alpine
marmot, Professor Mangili, calculates that during its six
months of torpidity, this animal only makes 71,000 inspira-
H Y B
tions ; while, in its active state, it makes no less than 72,000 Hybla
in 48 hours. The large collection of dried grass which the ^ «- v-»
marmot lays up in its hybernaculum is probably intended
for consumption in its occasional revivals during its long
hybernation ; although Schinz supposes that this ample store
of food is untouched until its full restoration to activity on
the return of warm weather in April, which he supposes to
take place before the new grass is sufficient for its wants.
It is certain, however, that tame marmots, when awakened
by artificial heat, eat whenever they are roused up. Mam¬
mals of other countries, that lay up similar stores of food,
have similar habits and hybernations ; as various genera of
the family Mm,—Merion canadensis, and M. labradorius;
Aricola ceconomica, or economic mouse ; Cricetus vulgaris,
or hamster, &c. These animals probably have the same
kind of hybernation as the marmot. The common bear,
the teeth of which prove it to be chiefly a vegetable feeder,
passes a considerable portion of the winter without food, and
in profound sleep. All these animals become fat in autumn,
which seems to be intended to supply the waste of the sys¬
tem during their hybernation.
In hot climates certain mammals also undergo hyberna¬
tion. Thus the three species of Centenes or tenrec of Ma¬
dagascar, which have much analogy with our hedgehog,
being like it furnished with a spiny covering, and living
on insects, sustain a torpidity of three months, according
to Brugiere, at the season when the dry heats of that cli¬
mate cut off their supply of insect food.
Insectivorous birds are less subject to hybernation than
mammals in cold climates, because they possess the power
of an easy migration to regions where insect food is easily
procured. Such birds are migratory; as are many of our
land birds. Yet the writer of this article has known in¬
stances in these islands of the hybernation of Rallus crex,
or land rail, and the swallow. Cuvier not only mentions
the hybernation of Hirundo riparia or sand martin, but
expresses his belief of that bird being found hybernating
below the surface of water in marshes.
The hybernation of many cold-blooded animals is with
us very complete. Snakes, lizards, toads, and frogs lie in
a state of complete torpor during the winter months, while
the lips of the latter are glued together, and they are buried
in mud at the bottom of stagnant water at that season.
They cannot breathe during that process ; but probably the
small quantity of oxygenation required by their system is
sufficiently obtained through their skin.
In North America, as with us, snakes are hybernating
animals, though in warmer regions they are active through¬
out the year. The same takes place with lizards. In these
cases, hybernation seems rather, however, the consequence
of the wrant of due nutriment than of mere cold. A fact men¬
tioned by Von Humboldt confirms this. The largest spe¬
cies of serpent, the Boa murina, during the long rains
that inundate the immense deserts of Central South Ame¬
rica, remains buried in the soil until the mud, dried by the
heats which invariably succeed the rainy season, cracks,
and emancipates the imprisoned monster from his earthy
tomb. Yet in Surinam and Brazil, this boa, like other ser¬
pents there, passed the whole year in uninterrupted acti¬
vity. (t. s. t.)
HYBLA, in Ancient Geography, the name of several
cities of Sicily. Two of these places were of considerable
note. The most important of them was distinguished by
the epithet Magna or Major. It stood on the southern
side of Mount iEtna, in a district of great fertility. The
only event of interest in its history was its revolt from the
Romans in the second Punic War, and its speedy recapture
by that people. Its site has not yet been fixed with posi¬
tive certainty. Cluverius places it at Paterno, about 12
miles from Catania, and his conjecture has been followed
by the best modern geographers. Hybla the Little was
H Y B
Hybrid, identical with the Greek colony of Megara, which was thence
called Megara Hyblaea. It stood on the sea-coast in the
territory of the Greater Hybla. In its neighbourhood
were the Hyblaei Colles, which produced great quanti¬
ties of honey of proverbial excellence. The town itself
was destroyed by Gelon of Syracuse, after an existence of
about two centuries and a half, and its inhabitants were
dispersed. In the second Punic War it again appears in
history as making common cause with the Syracusans
against Marcellus, by whom it was taken and destroyed.
The ruins of this Hybla were visible till within a compara¬
tively recent period at the mouth of a small stream called
the Alabus, now the Cantaro. Near the site of the old
town is the modern village of Melilli, which is said to take
its name from the honey for which the surrounding hills
were once so famous.
HYBRID, a term derived from the Greek a mule,
is used by naturalists to denote the offspring of two animals
or plants of different species. Of these the best known and
most useful is the progeny of the horse and the ass, which
has from remote antiquity been largely employed in the
East as a beast of burden, and is well known in Europe as
the most sure-footed of domestic quadrupeds. The male
parent may belong to either species ; but the offspring of
the mare and the he-ass is superior in size and strength to
that of the stallion and the she-ass. To the former Buffon
restricts the name of mulct or mule, and names the latter
bardeau. Hybrids have also been produced between the
dog, the wolf, the jackal, and the fox ; between the lion and
the tiger; between the sheep and the goat. These may
be considered as hybrids between allied species, or may be
termed specific hybrids. But hybrids are known also be¬
tween the stallion and the cow, the cow and the stag, the
antelope and the goat; and even between the bull and the
sheep, animals belonging to different genera, which may be
termed generic hybrids.
Other classes of animals afford instances of hybrid pro¬
geny. Specific hybrids occur among birds ; as between the
hooded and carrion crows, the goldfinch and the canary,
the latter and the linnet, the w'ood-grouse and the black¬
cock, the goose and the swan; and it is said that generic
hybrids have occurred between the pheasant and the Tringa
pugnax or reeve. Among fishes, hybrids might have been
supposed to be more common than among the classes al¬
ready noticed; because their spawn must be fiequently
mixed; yet such are not very common, though they are
found among Salmonidce, Cyprini, and a few other genera.
Among reptiles, hybrids have occurred between the toad
and the frog; but Spallanzani was unable to obtain them
between the frog and the newt, or between the latter and
the toad. In the division of insects, hybrids, both specific
and generic, are not unknown; as among different species
oi'Papilionidce and Chrysomelidce; and they are said to have
arisen from the congress of Melalonthci agricola with Geto-
nia histci, of Cantharis melanura with Eluter niger.
In the vegetable kingdom, although the well-known ex¬
periment of grafting different plants on the same stock,
when each produces its own fruit, would show that the food
of plants is nearly similar; and although the pollen of one
flower is apt to be carried to the pistil of a different flower
by the winds, or by insects, yet hybrid plants are rarer in a
state of nature than we might have expected. But in our
conservatories, where many different plants are in juxtaposi¬
tion, and more especially if artificial impregnation be adopted,
hybrid plants are produced. I his is well known to florists,
who have thus obtained varieties of the rose, calceolaria, &c.
But the comparative rarity of hybrids among native plants
shows that there is some natural impediment to the pro¬
duction of hybrids in the vegetable kingdom.
With regard to animals, nothing is better established
than that individuals of different species, when left to them-
H Y D
63
Hyde,
Edward.
selves, do not voluntarily copulate. Thus, the stallion will Hydaspes
not cover the ass if a mare be present; and to effect copu¬
lation of the mare with the he-ass, she must be blindfolded.
Yet we have seen the stallion without repugnance cover ^
the female mule when in heat, and the she-mule readily
receive the ass. The hybrids between the zebia and the
ass are readily produced also, if the natural mates of either
be not present. The curious experiments of Buffon prove,
that individuals of different species are not naturally in¬
clined to copulate. He reared in the same kennel the
young of both sexes of the dog, the fox, and the wolf; and
when young they played familiarly together ; but the fe¬
males of each species, when in heat, exhibited insurmount¬
able repugnance to receive the males of the other species;
and mortal combats, instead of copulation, took place be¬
tween different sexes of the different species. John Hun¬
ter also found that when he had a she-wolf lined by a grey¬
hound, it was necessary to hold her fast; and, although
during copulation she remained pretty quiet, immediately
after she attempted to attack the greyhound.
It is well known, that hybrid animals are generally bar¬
ren ; and this seems a provision of nature to prevent the
confusion of species. There are a few instances on record
of common mules producing young. Both the male and
female mule have perfect generative organs, and are un¬
commonly salacious; yet their congress with each other is
almost always sterile. It has, however, been long known,
that the mule can engender with the mare, as is mentioned
by Aristotle, who states also, that the she-mule conceives,
but very seldom brings her foetus to perfection. We have
once seen a foal that was dropt by a female mule; but the
circumstance is very rare. The fertility of certain other
hybrids with males of the pure species is noticed by Buffon,
in his Dissertation on Mules, and in the celebrated experi¬
ments of John Hunter. Hunter submitted the female hy¬
brid between a jackal and a dog to a male terrier, and the
hybrid between a dog and a wolf to a male greyhound ; and
puppies in both instances were produced. Hence he in¬
ferred, that the dog, the jackal, and the wolf, belong to the
same species. This conclusion is perhaps not so decisive
as that great anatomist supposed : for may it not be merely
the effort of nature to return to the pure breed ? Yet this
argument, with the total want of any wild prototype of the
domestic dog, unless we derive it from the wolf, the jackal,
or the fox, would favour the idea of their original identity.
The difference in form and size is not a strong objection to
this view ; for it is certainly not greater than between the
mastiff and the greyhound, the water-spaniel and the lap-
dog ; of the specific identity of which we entertain no
doubts. In a state of nature, however, hybrids are seldom if
ever produced in the animal kingdom, even among nearly
allied species, and nature seems to abhor such intermix¬
tures. (T's-T’)
HYDASPES, now the Jelum, one of the five rivers of
the Punjab. See Punjab.
H YDE, Edward (afterwards Earl of Clarendon), was
born at Dinton, in the county of Wilts, on the 18th of
February 1609. He was the third son of Henry Hyde,
the descendant of a family of that name, which had resided
from a remote period at Norbury, in Cheshire. Edward,
after receiving his first education under his father’s roof,
was sent, at the age of thirteen, to Magdalen Hall, at
Oxford. He was originally intended for the church ; but,
in consequence of the death of his last surviving elder
brother, his destination was changed, whilst he was at the
university, from the profession of the church to that of
law, and in 1625 he was entered at the Middle Temple.
A severe ague with which he was attacked that year caused
a suspension of his studies, and temporary removal from the
Middle Temple, to which he returned in 1626. In 1628,
when riding the Norfolk summer circuit with his uncle,
64 H Y
Hyde, Sir Nicholas Hyde, chief-justice of the King’s-Bench, who
Edward, died in 1631, he caught the small-pox ; and his legal studies
^ were again for a long time interrupted. He married, in
1629, a daughter of Sir George Ayliffe, but she died of the
small-pox six months afterwards. He married a second
time in 1632, in which year he lost his father. His se¬
cond wife was a daughter of Sir Thomas Aylesbury, Bart.,
master of requests ; and by her he had several children.
Hyde now applied himself to the study of the law with
a diligence which he had not shown before, and his suc¬
cess soon surpassed the expectations of his contempora¬
ries. Meanwhile he lived little with lawyers; but he had
many associates of political and literary celebrity—Lord
Falkland, Selden, Chillingworth, Waller the poet, Ben
Jonson, May the historian, Hales, Sheldon, Earles, and
Morley. To these may be added a few men of high rank,
as the Marquis of Hamilton, the Earls of Pembroke, Hol¬
land, and Manchester, and Lord Coventry. In 1635,
through an accidental circumstance, he also obtained the
notice of Archbishop Laud. In the course of an inquiry
into the state of the customs instituted by the primate in
his capacity of commissioner of the treasury, Hyde was
mentioned to him as one who had been much consulted
by some aggrieved merchants, and could afford the infor¬
mation desired. From this time Laud saw him frequently,
employed him upon many occasions, and caused him to be
noticed and employed by others. From 1635 till 1640
may be regarded as the most fortunate period of Hyde’s
life. He was successful in his profession, possessed a com¬
petent private fortune, and was happily married. In 1640
he was elected member of parliament for Wootton-Basset
and for Shaftesbury, and took his seat for the former. The
parliament met on the 13th of April, and was dissolved on
the 5th of May. Hyde’s first brief parliamentary career
was characterized by activity and an honest zeal in the cor¬
rection of abuses, from which not all the friendship of Laud
and the favour of the court was able to divert him. In
his first speech he denounced the earl-marshal’s court,
which, in its protection of the privileges of the titled classes,
had been intolerably vexatious and oppressive ; and he
showed himself a true and practical friend of rational free¬
dom. During this very short session, he served in seven
committees. He foresaw the evil consequences of the
hasty dissolution, and endeavoured in vain to prevail on
Laud to employ his influence with the king to prevent it.
In the next parliament, which met in November 1640,
Hyde sat for Saltash. He recommenced his proceedings
against the earl-marshal’s court, of which he procured the
suppression. He was also chairman of a committee of in¬
quiry into the abuses of the Council of York, and the court
of the Council of the Marches ; and he conducted the im¬
peachment of three of the barons of the exchequer for ille¬
gal exactions at the bidding of the crown. But Hyde,
though zealous for the redress of grievances, was opposed
to the encroachments of parliamentary authority, which
began to assume a formidable aspect. Strongly attached
to Episcopacy, he also disliked the attempts of the parlia¬
ment to remodel the government of the church ; and boasts
that, as chairman of the committee on that question, he in¬
terposed so many delays that the project was suspended.
He vehemently protested against the Commons’ remon¬
strance, his opposition to which was the occasion of his first
introduction to Charles I. He had written an answer to
it, which he showed in confidence to Lord Digby. Digby
made it known to the king, who sent for Hyde, requested
the paper, approved and published it as the reply of the
king with the advice of his council. Soon afterwards the
king offered to Hyde the office of solicitor-general, which
the latter declined, alleging that he could better serve his
sovereign in an unofficial capacity. To this the king as¬
sented ; and meanwhile committed to him, to Lord Falk-
D E.
land, and to Sir John Colepepper, the entire management Hyde,
of his affairs in the House of Commons, assuring them that Hdward,
he would take no step therein without their concurrence.
Notwithstanding this assurance, Charles, without apprizing
these chosen councillors, not long afterwards had recourse
to the ill-timed measure of attempting to seize the five
members in the House of Commons. Though the conse¬
quences of this rash act were irretrievable, and the royal
cause was almost hopeless, Hyde continued courageously
to support it. During many months he was secretly em¬
ployed in writing answers for the king to the declarations
of the parliament, and had frequent interviews with him by
stealth; but he was at length suspected, and narrowly
escaped committal to the Tower by flying to the king at
York. Though Hyde had thus become openly an adherent
of the king, he long refused office. He declined the prof¬
fered post of secretary of state ; and it was not till March
1643 that, on the promotion of Sir John Colepepper to the
mastership of the rolls, he accepted the chancellorship of
the exchequer. He was one of the commissioners at the
negotiations at Uxbridge, where, as on other occasions,
he fruitlessly laboured to effect peace between king and
parliament, as far as was compatible with a preservation of
the royal prerogative and the rights of the established
church.
In 1644, after the battle of Naseby, Hyde was appointed,
together with Sir John Colepepper and Lords Capel and
Hopton, to form a council to attend, watch over, and direct
the Prince of Wales. After hopelessly witnessing for many
months a course of disastrous and ill-conducted warfare in
the west, they fled with him, first to Scilly, and thence to
Jersey; from which, at the entreaty of the queen, but
against the opinion of Hyde and others of the council, the
prince, in 1646, repaired to his mother at Paris, attended
only by Sir John Colepepper, and leaving Hyde at Jersey.
In this retreat Hyde remained till the spring of 1648, en¬
gaged in the composition of his History of the Rebellion,
He also wrote, during this period, an answer to a declara¬
tion of the parliament, in which they charged the king with
all the evils which had happened, and justified the discon¬
tinuance of all further addresses to him. In May 1648, he
was summoned to attend the prince, who, at the head of a
fleet which had espoused the royal cause, was blockading
the Thames. Hyde, after encountering sundry difficulties,
and amongst others seizure by privateers off" Ostend, did
not meet the prince till his return to the Hague, about the
end of August, from his fruitless expedition. Hyde found
dissensions in the prince’s little court at the Hague, espe¬
cially between Prince Ilupert and Lord Colepepper. The
news of the death of Charles I. for a while afflicted and
appalled them ; but their animosities soon broke out afresh,
and disturbed the councils of the new sovereign. In 1649,
at the suggestion of Lord Cottington, Hyde and that noble¬
man were sent as ambassadors to the court of Spain for the
purpose of soliciting its assistance. They were coolly re¬
ceived, and had the mortification of perceiving that the
Spanish court was more inclined to cultivate the friendship
of the commonwealth of England ; and to the memorial
which they presented to the king of Spain in a private
audience, they obtained only a cold and ambiguous reply.
The treatment they experienced from the Spanish govern¬
ment was meanly time-serving, and varied with the fortune
of Charles’s affairs. On his determining to proceed to Scot¬
land, upon the invitation of the Scotch council and parlia¬
ment, the ambassadors were treated with more regard. Upon
the news of Cromwell’s victory over Argyll’s army, they
were desired to depart. Accordingly, Hyde quitted Spain,
unaccompanied by his colleague Lord Cottington, who chose
to remain as a private person, though not permitted to reside
at Madrid. On Hyde’s return from Spain in 1651, he met
at Paris the king, returned from the ill-fated expedition
HYDE.
G5
Hyde,
Edward.
which terminated in his defeat at Worcester; which rash
interference, and the king’s negotiation with the Scotch,
and acceptance of the covenant, Hyde severely censured.
He found himself exposed to the enmity of many, especially
of the queen. Sundry calumnies were circulated against
him, and two petitions were prepared—one from Presbyte¬
rians, the other from Papists—praying his removal from
Charles’s councils. But Charles’s confidence in Hyde was
not shaken by these intrigues ; and he appears to have seen
their groundlessness, and properly appreciated the valuable
services of so honest, able, and zealous a minister. Extreme
poverty was amongst the evils which, in a greater or less
degree, since Hyde’s departure from Jersey, he and his
family had been compelled to bear. His family resided
principally at Antwerp, and he and they were almost re¬
duced to want the most common necessaries of life; yet
his courage and integrity never faltered, and he would not
even (as many had done) compound for his estates in Eng¬
land, lest thereby he should seem to acknowledge the ex¬
isting government. Year after year, too, the hope of relief
to the royalist party from foreign aid was waning away ; and
neither foreign war nor domestic conspiracy seemed to avail
against the power of Cromwell. In 1658 Cromwell died,
but the protectorate passed, like an inheritance, into the
hands of his son; and though the hopes of the royalists
were naturally excited, the prospects of restoration were
still found to be dark, vague, and distant. Hyde, who was
now lord chancellor, corresponded much with those whom
the weakness of Richard Cromwell and the distracted state
of England had rendered favourable to the royal cause, and
proved instrumental in forwarding that Restoration which
was at length more ostensibly effected by the powerful
agency of Monk.
The period immediately following the Restoration was
that of Hyde’s greatest power. He was the first minister,
presiding over a cabinet in which the principal offices were
filled by his friends (for such were Sir Edward Nicholas,
the Earl of Southampton, and the Marquis of Ormonde), and
the principal measures of the government were peculiarly
his. The first great measure of his administration was the
act of indemnity. This was in accordance with the king’s
declaration from Breda, in which he promised pardon to
all his subjects, save such as should be excepted by parlia¬
ment. by which was intended the exclusion of those who
had been instrumental in his father’s death. Ihe lord
chancellor was on the side of mercy, and urged the speedy
adoption of this healing measure on a reluctant and vindic¬
tive parliament. In the settlement of property under the
act of indemnity some apparent injustice was unavoidably
committed, by the necessity of dealing differently, not ac¬
cording to the merits of persons, but the nature of the
property to be dealt with, and the title by which it was held.
Transactions between individuals could not be reached;
but grants to or purchases by individuals from the usurping
state became subject to revision from defect of title ; and
crown and church lands were recovered from their holders,
whilst the impoverished royalist who had sold his property
to support the cause of the king was doomed to see the
sale confirmed, and himself debarred from compensation.
The royalists consequently murmured loudly. They called
the statute an act of “ indemnity for the king’s enemies,
and of oblivion for his friendsand they hated the chan¬
cellor for the part he took in framing this act, and his steady
adherence to the principles of it. 1 he next important mea¬
sure was the settlement of the revenue. It is asserted by
several authorities, that the chancellor might have obtained
for the king from the parliament, in the first fervour of th^ir
revived loyalty, an annual revenue of L,2,000,000. But it
was not his wish to render the sovereign independent of
the aid of his parliament, and he therefore sought for him
only L.1,200,000, a sum scarcely sufficient for the exigen-
VOL. XII.
cies of the state, unless administered with due economy. Hyde,
This sum the parliament readily granted. Military tenures, Edward,
and the oppressive privileges of wardship, purveyance, and s v *
pre-emption, were abolished, and the excise on liquors was
granted in their stead. The restoration of the bishops to
the House of Lords, the statute against tumultuous peti¬
tioning, the vesting of the supreme command of the militia
solely in the crown, and the repeal of the triennial acts, were
measures promoted by the chancellor for the purpose of
strengthening the prerogative of the crown. In the regu¬
lation of the judicature he deserved high praise. He showed
a rare impartiality and discernment in his appointments, and
eminent integrity and diligence in the administration of his
own office. His conduct in ecclesiastical matters was less
liberal and judicious. He believed Episcopacy to be the only
form of church government suitable to monarchy, and was
too little tolerant towards other sects. Under his administra¬
tion several oppressive acts were passed ; the act of uni¬
formity, compelling clergymen, on pain of abandoning their
livings, to subscribe to the forms of the Church of England,
and to the doctrine of passive obedience, by which two
thousand were ejected; the act against conventicles, im¬
posing fines on all present at any meeting for religious wor¬
ship at which five assisted besides the family; and the five-
mile act, by which dissenting teachers who had not taken
the oath of passive obedience were forbidden to approach
within five miles of a place where they had preached since
the act of indemnity. But the sin of such oppressions lay
chiefly with the parliament. In that which succeeded the
convention-parliament there were a great majority of high-
churchmen. Venners’ insurrection had strengthened the
prejudices against sectarians; and it is by no means certain
that Clarendon could have stemmed the torrent of intoler¬
ance, even if he had wished or attempted to do so.
In 1660, on the 3d of September, his daughter Anne was
secretly married to the Duke of \ ork; an union which,
after much opposition from the mother and sister of the
duke, and the calumnies of profligate courtiers, was acknow¬
ledged about the end of the year. The discovery was re¬
ceived by the chancellor with violent demonstrations of in¬
dignation and grief. He seems to have been solicitous to
repel the imputation of having secretly promoted an alliance
so flattering to his ambition, and to have dreaded the efiects
of the jealousy it might excite. He had in the following
year a share in negotiating a marriage for the king with
Catherine of Portugal; a marriage which, when it proved
unfruitful, was groundlessly supposed to have been promo¬
ted by Clarendon under that expectation, and with a. view
that his son-in-law or his descendants might inherit the
throne. Such suppositions would have been far fetched,
even if an incapacity in the princess to bear children had
really existed ; and it must fall to the ground when the con¬
trary is known. Difference of religion was the only obvi¬
ous objection to this alliance; but there was no Protestant
princess to whom Charles would ally himself ; and amongst
Catholics the princess of Portugal was perhaps least objec¬
tionable, and conferred the advantages of a dowry of
L.500,000, Tangiers, Bombay, and free trade with Portu¬
gal and its colonies. The profligacy of Charles, and the
malign influence of Lady Castlemaine, afterwards Duchess
of Geveland, which Clarendon vainly endeavoured to resist,
were the main causes of the unhappiness of this marriage.
Hyde showed no avidity for emoluments or distinctions.
After the Restoration, when Monk was created a duke, and
Montague an earl, Hyde declined a proffered peerage, rest¬
ing his refusal on unwillingness to excite disaffection amongst
the new supporters of monarchy by an apparent eagerness
on the part of the king to load with honours his old adher¬
ents. When the marriage of his daughter with the Duke
of York became known, this objection ceased; a public
mark of the king’s unaltered regard became desirable, and
66
HYDE.
Hyde, Hyde accepted the barony of Hindoo. A further elevation
Edward, took place in 1661, at the coronation, on the request of the
' Duke of York; and the chancellor was created Earl of
Clarendon, and took his seat as such on the 11th of May.
At the time when he was made a baron he accepted a pre¬
sent of L.20,000 from the king ; but he had declined at an
earlier period the more valuable grant of ten thousand acres
of crown land, which Charles was willing to bestow.
One of the measures of his administration which has ex¬
posed him to most reproach, was the sale of Dunkirk in
1662. Yet it cannot be shown that the motive was cor¬
rupt, or the measure indefensible. Money was wanted ;
large arrears had been due to the army ; and large sums
had been necessarily expended in military and naval stores.
The revenue settled by the parliament was insufficient in
amount, and with difficulty collected; and subsidies were
granted by the parliament in 1661 as an additional aid.
The wants of the state were still urgent. Dunkirk was a
source of expense to the yearly amount of L. 120,000.
France was willing to purchase ; and after much negotia¬
tion between Clarendon and D’Estrades, Dunkirk was sold
to France for 5,000,000 livres. A more truly censurable
act of Clarendon’s administration was sanctioning the ac¬
ceptance of money for Charles from Louis XIV., though
he had the honesty to refuse it for himself, and laying the
foundation of that secret correspondence which at length
rendered the king of England almost the pensioned servant
of France. The sale of Dunkirk tended to weaken the po¬
pularity of Clarendon with the nation. He soon began to
lose the favour of the king, by his opposition, in July 1663,
to a measure Charles had much at heart, namely, a bill to
invest the king with a discretionary power of dispensing,
for a fine, penal laws against all sects, by which Charles
hoped to favour the Catholics, though this purpose was ne¬
cessarily cloaked under a promise of toleration, including all
Protestant dissenters. Clarendon, who knew and disap¬
proved of the motive, vehemently opposed this bill, and
caused it to be laid aside ; and Charles from that time be¬
gan to entertain a dislike of his minister, which the ene¬
mies of Clarendon sedulously fostered. The Duke of Buck¬
ingham and other chosen associates of the king tried to
undermine the influence of Clarendon by mimicry and
taunts, representing him as a churlish pedagogue, and incit¬
ing the king to emancipate himself from restraint. His in¬
fluence as a minister was also lessened by the substitution
of Bennet for his firm friend Sir Edward Nicholas, and by
the reviving power of Coventry and Ashley. He also paid
the penalty of power, in bearing the load of whatever cala¬
mities befel the nation. Even the plague, and the fire of
London, and the disastrous issue of the Dutch war (a war
to which the public was favourable, and he was adverse),
concurred to weaken his popularity. The defenceless state
of the Thames, which enabled the Dutch to invade it suc¬
cessfully, and the conclusion of a peace which the people
disliked, were imputed to the chancellor. Anxious to pur¬
sue a middle course, and careless of the public favour, he
had gained the friendship of no party alike able and willing
to support him. The Protestant dissenters disliked him as
the promoter of the measures against Nonconformists ; the
Catholics as having frustrated the king’s endeavour to grant
them indulgence ; the Royalists as the supporter of the act
of indemnity and oblivion ; the populace because he had
built a large house, which, it was already rumoured, was the
ostentatious result of secret bribes from France or Holland.
1 he profligate and ambitious court disliked him as a re¬
prover of their license, and an obstacle to their advance¬
ment ; and Charles, who, aided by the high-church party,
might have supported him against these assailants, had re¬
cently entertained a fresh ground of dislike. He knew that
Clarendon opposed his infamous plan of obtaining a divorce ;
and he believed him to have promoted the marriage of Miss
Stewart, whom, after obtaining such divorce, Charles
had intended to espouse. The discontented nation cla¬
moured for a victim ; and the ungrateful king was glad to
sacrifice to popular vengeance the minister whose stub¬
born honesty was opposed to the gratification of his will.
He sent a message to Clarendon, then in affliction from the
recent death of his wife, advising him to resign, with a view
of saving himself from impeachment. Clarendon refused
to take so humiliating a step; and Charles deprived him of
the Great Seal on the 13th of August 1667. Clarendon,
whom the impeachment preferred by Lord Bristol four
years before had left unshaken, was now again exposed to
this attack under circumstances which rendered it more
powerful against him. Urged by the dukes of Bucking¬
ham and Albemarle, the Commons drew up, on the 6th of
November, an impeachment, consisting of seventeen arti¬
cles, which, after several days’ debate, was on the 12th
carried up to the Lords. He was accused of designing to
govern by a standing army, and advising the king to dis¬
continue parliaments; of saying that the king was in his
heart a Papist; of receiving money for illegal patents ; of
imprisoning in remote garrisons ; of unjust sale of offices ;
of corruptly procuring the customs to be farmed at low
rates ; of pretended debts to be paid by the king ; of receiv¬
ing sums from the vintners to afford them undue advantages;
of procuring grants to be made to himself and his relations ;
of introducing arbitrary government in the colonies; of frus¬
trating a proposal for the preservation of Nevis and St Chris¬
topher’s ; of advising and effecting the sale of Dunkirk ; of
unduly causing the king’s letters-patent to Dr Croucher to
be altered ; of arbitrary conduct in the council; of having
caused quo warrantos to be issued against corporations,
with the intent of extorting money; of having corruptly
procured the bill of settlement for Ireland; of having de¬
ceived the king in his administration of foreign affairs, and
betrayed his councils to the enemy; and of having coun¬
selled the division of the fleet in June 1666. To these
flimsy charges Lord Clarendon replied by the mouth of his
son, that if any one was proved, he would submit to the
rest. His accusers were ashamed to make any one of them
the specific ground of an impeachment; and accordingly
he was impeached of high treason in general terms, and his
imprisonment demanded, until the Commons, “ in conve¬
nient time,” shall exhibit “ articles against him.” The
Lords refused to imprison him on this general accusation.
Much controversy ensued between the two Houses, during
which, in compliance with the entreaties of his friends, and
the intimated wishes of the king, Clarendon closed the dis¬
pute by withdrawing himself from the kingdom on the 29th
of November 1667, and retiring to France. He left on
his departure a vindication of his conduct, addressed to the
House of Lords, which address was communicated to the
Commons, by whom it was voted that it was scandalous
and seditious, and should be burned by the hangman. The
Commons then attemped to obtain his attainder, but were
opposed by the Lords; and the two Houses finally con¬
curred in an act of banishment and incapacity, unless he
appeared and took his trial before the 1st of February, which
act was passed on the 18th of December 1667. Fresh
persecutions awaited Clarendon. The court of France, in
order to gain the favour of England, wished to expel him
from their dominions; and it was not till their hopes of
alliance were dispelled by the triple league, that they showed
kindness to the distinguished exile, and Clarendon received
a special permission to reside in any part of France. He
abode principally at Montpellier, where, resuming his lite¬
rary labours, he completed his celebrated History, and the
Memoir of his own Life. From thence he repaired to
Rouen, where, in the year 1674, he addressed to Charles
II. a fruitless prayer for permission to spend the short re¬
mainder of his life in England. A few months afterwards
Hyde,
Edward.
H Y D
Hyde, he died at Rouen, on the 9th of December 1674, in the
Thomas. sixty-fifth year of his age.
Xhe character of Lord Clarendon has been much ex¬
posed to undeserved extremes of praise and of censure.
He has been made the idol of the high-church party, and
bitterly assailed by their opponents. As a minister he ap¬
pears to have been incorrupt, indefatigable, zealous for the
public service, and anxious to hold an even balance between
the liberties of the subject and the privileges of the crown,
and to secure to the restored king only the constitutional
powers of limited monarchy. His chief faults were harsh¬
ness towards the Nonconformists, and acquiescence in the
king’s clandestine acceptance of pecuniary aid from France.
His merits cannot be fairly estimated, without considering
the difficulties of his position, the profligacy and corruption
of the times in which he lived, to which he boldly and
honourably opposed himself, and comparing his administra¬
tion with the disgraceful epoch by which it was succeeded.
He was upright and uncompromising, and neglectful of the
arts of popularity, both towards men of high and of humble
station. His abilities were very great, but consisted per¬
haps rather in quickness than in depth and comprehensive¬
ness of mind. He was ready and powerful as an orator, and
prompt and able in the despatch of business, of which, in
spite of frequent illness, he bore by far the greatest share
during the period of his administration. In private life he
was unimpeachable. As a writer he will ever occupy a
high place. His history, as characterized by a distinguished
modern historian, is “ a monument of powerful ability and
impressive eloquence.” Its remarkable beauties are its mas¬
terly delineation of celebrated characters, the occasional elo¬
quence of its descriptive passages, and the frequent inter-
spersion of luminous reflections. Its chief faults are dif¬
fuseness of style, and the want of accuracy and arrangement.
Its fidelity as a history cannot be upheld; a defect attribut¬
able partly to the circumstance of his having trusted much
to recollection in the absence of requisite materials, partly
to that desire to render it serviceable to the cause of the
royalists, with which he professed to have commenced it.
His principal works are, his History of the Rehellion ; A short
View of the State of Ireland ; and The Life of Edward Earl of Cla¬
rendon, in which is included a Continuation of his History of the
Grand Rebellion. Of these three works, a complete edition, con¬
taining the passages suppressed by former editors, was published
for the first time at Oxford in 1826. Brief View and Survey of the
Dangerous and Pernicious Errors to Church and State in Mr Hobbes’
Book entitled the Leviathan, Oxford, 1676; A Collection of Tracts,
fol. London, 1727, containing—A Vindication of Himself; Reflec¬
tions on several Christian Duties, Divine and Moral, by way of
Essays ; Contemplations and Reflections upon the Psalms of David ;
A Dialogue of the Want of Respect due to Age; and a Dialogue
concerning Education.
(See Life of Clarendon, by himself, and his History of the Rebel¬
lion ; Clarendon’s State Papers ; Wood’s Athence Oxonienses ; White-
locke’s Memorials ; Burnet’s History of his Own Times; Memoirs of
James II.; Pepys’s Diary; Evelyn’s Diary ; Parliamentary His¬
tory ; State Trials; Life of Clarendon, by Thomas Henry Lister; and
Macaulay’s History of England, &c. (t. H. L.)
Hyde, Thomas, one of the most learned of English orien¬
talists, was born in 1636, at Billingsley, near Bridgenorth
in Yorkshire. He inherited his taste for linguistic studies
from his father, who was rector of that parish. At the age of
sixteen he entered King’s College, Cambridge, and under
Wheeloch, the famous professor of Arabic, made great and
rapid progress in the Eastern tongues. After spending a
year at that university, Hyde removed to London, where
he was engaged to aid Walton in his edition of the Polyglot
Bible. Besides correcting the Arabic, Syriac, and Persian
texts, he transcribed in Persian characters the Persian trans¬
lation of the Pentateuch that had been printed in Hebrew
shortly before at Constantinople, and appended a Latin ver¬
sion of his own. The success with which he accomplished
these difficult tasks met the acknowledgments of the most
H Y D 67
learned men of the age. In 1658 Hyde entered Queen’s Hyde
College, Oxford, to which he was shortly after made He- !!
brew reader. In the following year, after graduating as H*^®ra'
M.A., he was chosen under-keeper, and finally librarian-in- t ^ a ^ t
chief of the Bodleian library. In 1660 he was made a canon
of Salisbury ; in 1678 archdeacon of Gloucester; and four
years later took his degree of D.D. I he death of Pococke
in 1691 opened up to him the Laud.an professorship of Ara¬
bic ; and soon after, on the deprivation of Altham, he be¬
came regius professor of Hebrew, and canon of Christ
Church. Worn out by his unremitting labours, he resigned
his librarianship in 1701, and died two years later, February
18, 1703.
The range of Hyde’s erudition in Oriental matters was
vast. There was hardly an Eastern tongue to be learned
with which he was not familiar. He even knew Chinese—
a language which very few Europeans of that day could
hoast of knowing. He learned it from Chin-fo-coung, a
learned young Chinese brought to this country by the
Jesuits. His mastery of the more accessible languages of
the East—such as Turkish, Arabic, Persian, Hebrew, Ar¬
menian, &c.—is proved by his numerous and still valuable
works. The best of these is his Veterum Persarum et
Magorum religionis Historia, in which, for the first time,
an attempt is made to correct from Oriental authorities the
errors of the Greek and Latin historians who have described
the religion of the ancient Persians. Of his other works
may be mentioned his Tabulce Long, ac Latit. Stellarum
Fixarum ex observatione Ulugh Beighi, &c., to which Hyde
has appended a learned commentary exhibiting the different
names of the stars among the Orientals and the Greeks,
and endeavouring to trace them to a common origin ; Qua-
tuor Evangelia et Acta Apostolorum Lingud Malaicd carac-
teribus Europceis, Oxford, 1677 ; Epistola de Mensuns et
Ponderibus Serum sive tiinensium, appended to Bernard’s
treatise De Mensuris et Ponderibus ; BeLudisOrientalibus,
libri ii., Oxford, 1694. The whole of Hyde’s works, except
that on the Religion of the Ancient Persians, were reprinted
by Granville Sharp, under the title of Syntagma Disserta-
tionum quas olim D. Thomas Hyde, separatim edidit, Ox¬
ford, 1767. In this edition, Sharp incorporated a number
of other works of Hyde’s which had been left in MS. 1 he
Hist. Relig. Vet. Pers. was not included in Sharp’s edition, as
it had been republished shortly before by Hunt and Costard.
HYDE, a manufacturing town of England, county of
Chester, 7£ miles E.S.E. of Manchester. The town owes
its importance to the cotton manufacture, which affords
employment to nearly the whole population. There are
extensive coal mines in the vicinity. Pop. (1851) 10,051.
HYDER ALL See Hindustan.
HYDERABAD, an extensive province of Hindustan, in
the Deccan, which is situated principally between the 16th
and 22d degrees of N. Lat. The name is now applied ge¬
nerally to all the territories of the Nizam. This territory
composed a considerable portion of the ancient Telingana.
The country is hilly, but not mountainous, being for the
most part an elevated table-land, in consequence of which
the climate is colder than might be expected from the lati¬
tude. In the vicinity of the city of Hyderabad, the mean
temperature in the house, according to observations made at
sunrise, at 2 o’clock in the afternoon, and at sunset, for one
year, was—in January 74°, February 76°, March 84°,
April 91°, May 93°, June 88°, July 81°, August 80 ,
September 79°, October 80°, November 76°, December
74°; giving as an annual mean, 81^°. The S.W. monsoon
commences about the beginning of June, and terminates
about the beginning of October. After it has ceased, vari¬
able weather continues for a few weeks, and this is followed
by the N.E. monsoon. At midwinter the variation of tem¬
perature in the northern part of the territory is very great
and sudden. The mornings are very cold, and ice is formed,
68 II Y D E K
Hydera- but the days are hot. Numerous rivers intersect the terri-
bad. tory, the principal of which are the Godavery, the Wurda,
and the Kistna, with their numerous tributaries. I he
country is consequently fertile, and, under proper manage¬
ment, would yield abundantly. But the whole territory is
principally rented to powerful zemindars, or is granted in
jaghires to the officers of government. This distribution of
the landed property, which, with the exception of some
portions set aside for charitable purposes, and the estates of
the Nizam and the different branches of his family, is in the
hands of a few individuals, is supposed to be injurious to
agriculture, and of course to the interests of the revenue.
The- cultivators are wretchedly poor, and are much op¬
pressed by their superiors the holders, who are subject to
little or no restraint from their nominal sovereign. Where
they are properly cultivated, the fields yield excellent crops
of wheat, which is transported by the inland carriers to the
sea-coast, whence salt is brought in return. At present,
the principal trade carried on between the Nizam’s dominions
and those under the British government, consists in the
exportation of cotton to Berar and to the Northern Circars,
and also to the markets at Vellore, Arnee, and the vicinity.
They bring back salt and salted fish, cloths manufactured
in the Northern Circars, Arnee muslins, and European
manufactures; the latter principally for the supply of the
British forces subsidized by the Nizam, and for clothing his
army. The chief towns of this kingdom are Hyderabad,
Golcondah, Warangole, Secunderabad, Beder, and Ellich-
pore. The majority of the people are Hindus : but having
been long the seat of a Mohammedan government, a con¬
siderable portion of the inhabitants are of that religion. The
revenue of the Nizam is returned at L.1,150,000. In addi¬
tion to the subsidiary force maintained by the British go¬
vernment in Hyderabad, in accordance with the treaty of
1800, the Nizam has a large military force, consisting of
cavalry, infantry, and artillery, besides a body of irregular
troops, composed of Arabs, Scindees, Moguls, and Seiks.
This country was formerly subject to the rajahs of Te-
lingana and Bijanagur ; but being afterwards conquered by
the Mohammedans, was formed into a separate kingdom in
the year 1512, under the name of Golcondah, by Moham¬
med Kooly, originally a Turkish adventurer. In 1687, it
was brought under the dominion of Aurungzebe, and was
converted into one of the provinces of the Mogul empire,
and, with the other five southern provinces, was formed into
a viceroyalty, under an officer appointed by the court of
Delhi, called the soobahdar of theDeccan. In 1719, a Mogul
officer, Cheen Khilij Khan, being appointed to this govern¬
ment, with the title of Nizam al Moolk, or superintendent
of the kingdom, collected a large army, and got possession
of all the strongholds of the Deccan ; and setting up for
independence, he overawed the emperor Mohammed Shah
and his ministers. After the invasion of Nadir Shah in
1739, he left to the Mogul nothing but the name of sove¬
reign ; and he, having made Aurungabad his capital, died
at Boorhanpore in the year 1748, aged 104 years. He was
succeeded by his second son, who was assassinated in 1750,
and succeeded by his nephew Muzuffer Jung, who was as¬
sassinated the following year, and succeeded by his cousin
Salabut Jung. This weak prince was dethroned by his
youngest brother Nizam Ali, who for nearly twenty years
was engaged in wars with Hyder Ali, the British, and the
Mahrattas, during which his territories were greatly con¬
tracted. In 1766, Nizam Ali concluded a treaty with the
East India Company, under which they engaged to have a
body of troops ready to settle the affairs of his highness’s
government in everything that was right and proper. Sub¬
sequently Nizam Ali united his forces with those of Hyder
Ali, but the alliance proving unprosperous, he concluded a
new treaty with the East India Company in 1768. In the
following year, on the breaking out of the war with Tippoo,
A B A D.
a treaty was concluded between the Nizam, the Peishwa, Hydera-
and the British government. Tippoo purchased peace at had.
the sacrifice of half his dominions, and the Nizam had no
reason to be dissatisfied with his share of the spoil. At a
later period the Nizam claimed the assistance of the Bri¬
tish government against the Mahrattas, which being refused,
he sought safety in the entertainment of a body of French
troops, who, however, were dismissed in accordance with
the provisions of a treaty concluded in 1798. On the fall
of Tippoo, and the annihilation of the state of Seringapa-
tam, the Nizam participated largely in the division of the
territory; and in 1800 he concluded a treaty offensive and
defensive, by which he became a dependant and ally of the
British. He agreed to receive into his territories a British
force of 8000 infantry and 1000 cavalry; to relinquish to
the British the management of all his foreign relations ; and,
for the regular payment of the troops stationed in his coun¬
try, to cede certain portions of territory to tfie British. By
a commercial treaty concluded in 1802 with the British, it
was agreed, in lieu of all local duties, that a duty of five per
cent, should be levied on all articles respectively imported
into the territories of each. In 1804, after the conclusion
of the war with Scindia and the rajah of Nagpoor, the Nizam
acquired a large accession of territory. Nizam Ali died
in 1803. He was succeeded by Secander Jab, who died in
1829. Under the successor of this prince the misgovern-
ment of the country greatly increased, and the debt of the
state was allowed to accumulate to an enormous extent, the
British government being creditors for arrears amounting to
half a million sterling. The claim was pressed on the notice
of the Nizam’s government, and its settlement was at length
effected by a territorial cession, the revenues of which were
made applicable to the reduction of the debt and the main¬
tenance of the Nizam’s military contingent. The territory
of the Nizam may be estimated at 420 miles in length by
220 miles in breadth, and contains 10,000,000 of inhabitants.
Hyderabad, the capital of the above-mentioned province
of Hyderabad, and of the Nizam’s dominions, is situated
on the south side of the Musa River, which runs rapidly
during the rains, but in the dry season has scarcely two feet
of water. It is said to have been founded about the year
1586 by Sultan Mohammed Kootub Shah, who, thinking
the air of Golcondah did not agree with his constitution,
gave orders for building a new city, which continued to be
the residence of the Kootub Shah dynasty till the year 1687,
when it was taken by Aurungzebe. The late Nizam Ali
Mas the first of the Nizams who made it his residence, and he
spent considerable sums in improving it. It is now a large
and populous place, about 7 miles in circumference, and is
surrounded by a stone wall, with towers at the angles and
gates, which, though incapable of defence against artillery,
is a good protection against the incursions of cavalry. It
contains two palaces and some elegant mosques, this having
long been the seat of Mohammedanism in the Deccan ; and
between it and Golcondah there are some handsome tombs.
There is a considerable suburb on the opposite side of the
river, and in this quarter is situate the British residency, the
communication between it and the city and palace being
maintained by a handsome stone bridge. The elevation of
the town above the sea is 1800 feet. At present it is esti¬
mated to contain 200,000 inhabitants, including the suburbs.
The travelling distance from Calcutta by the Northern
Circars is 902 miles, by Nagpoor 1043 miles, from Madras
352, from Bombay 480, from Delhi 923, from Poonah 387,
from Seringapatam 406. E. Long. 78° 32', N. Lat. 17° 22*.
Hyderabad, a city of Hindustan, in the province of Scinde,
of which it is the capital. The fortress of Hyderabad,
which, previously to the annexation of the country to the
British empire, was appropriated solely to the residence of
the princes and their families, is situated on a rock the foot
of which is washed by a branch of the River Indus, here
Hydera¬
bad.
H Y D
named the Fulalee. It is of an irregular pentagonal figure,
suited to the natural form of the rock, and is defended by
round towers, and a high brick wall perforated with loop¬
holes. The situation is remarkably strong; the sides of
the hill being in many places so steep as to render the
accent to the fortress difficult, even though a breach were
made in the walls. The weakest point is towards the south¬
east, opposite a break in the rock from the Fulalee. A diy
ditch twelve feet broad protects the northern side. The po¬
sition is good, and the fortifications adequate to resist any
attack of native troops. Hyderabad is situated 130 miles
from the sea, on the eastern side of the main stream of the
Indus, with which it is connected by the Fulalee at the dis¬
tance of 3 miles. Sir Charles Napier entered the place
on the 20th February 1843, having previously received the
submission of six of the ameers of Scinde. On the 24th he
marched out to give battle to Sheer Mohammed, of Meerpore,
who yet remained in arms, and was posted in gieat ibrce
behind a neighbouring watercourse, which had been parti¬
ally fortified. The ameer was, however, attacked and de¬
feated, the British force being thus enabled to march upon
Meerpore. The country around Hyderabad rises into hills,
although it is level till within a few miles of that city. The
Indus ^is a perpetual source of fertility, affording an inex¬
haustible supplv of water for the irrigation of the fields.
The flat country of Scinde is intersected by branches from
the main stream, and by canals ; and the transition fiom the
H Y D
69
Hydr
parched deserts of Cutch to such a scene of fertility is de¬
scribed by Dr Burnes as affording a very striking contrast. ^
The Fulalee in the month of August is from two and a ha |icg
to three fathoms deep at Hyderabad, and is covered wit i
boats laden with heavy goods. The population is 24,000. ^
E. Long. 68. 28., N. Lat. 25. 22. u A , . .
HYDRA, a rocky island in the Grecian Archipelago,
6 miles off the coast of Argolis. It is 12 miles in length,
from N.N.E. to S.S.W., by 3 in breadth. The surface
presents scarcely a speck of vegetation, and the inhabitants
are entirely dependent on trade and commerce. ts in
sular position and facilities for trade pointed it out as a
suitable place of refuge from the oppression of the lujks.
At the commencement of the war of independence it hat
no fewer than 150 vessels, while the bravery of the people,
and their efficiency as seamen, contributed in no small de-
oree to the successful issue of that contest. 1 he town o
Hydra, which, with the exception of two adjacent villages,
is the only inhabited part of the island, is situated on the
N.W. side, and rises abruptly from the harbour in succes¬
sive tiers in the form of an amphitheatre. 1 he harbour is
a deep bay, neither spacious nor secure. In 1825 the po¬
pulation of the island was estimated at 40,000 ; but at pre¬
sent it does not amount to more than half that number.
HYDRAOTES, in Sanscrit, Irayati, modified into the
present appellation the Ravee, one of the five rivers of the
Punjab. See Punjab.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Definition. 1. TTYDRODYNAMICS, from 0»e, “ water,” and
11 hwun, “ power,” is properly that science which
treats of the power of water, whether it acts by pressure
or by impulse. In its more enlarged acceptation, how¬
ever, it treats of the pressure, equilibrium, cohesion, and
motion of fluids, and of the machines by w ncn wa er
is raised, or in which that fluid is employed as the first
mover. Hydrodynamics is divided into two branches,
Hydrostatics and Hydraulics. Hydrostatics comprehends
the pressure, equilibrium, and cohesion of fluids, and Hy¬
draulics their motion, together with the machines in which
they are chiefly concerned.
HISTORY.
Hvdrody- 2. The science of hydrodynamics was cultivated with
namics in less success among the ancients than any ot icr ranc i o
some re- mechanical philosophy. When the human mind had made
spects a cons;derable progress in the other departments ot physical
n,odern science, the doctrine of fluids had not begun to occupy the
SC‘enLe' attention of philosophers ; and, if we except a few proposi¬
tions on the pressure and equilibrium of water, hydrodyna¬
mics must be regarded as a modern science, which owes its
existence and improvement to those great men who adornet
the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.
Discoveries 3. Those general principles of hydrostatics which are to
of Archi- tins day employed as the foundation of that part ot the^
medes . science were first given by Archimedes in his_ work Hcpi
A. C. 250. > or j)e Insidentibus Humido, about 2o0 years be¬
fore the birth of Christ, and were afterwards applied to ex¬
periments by Marinus Ghetaldus in his Archimedes Ho-
motus. Archimedes maintained that each particle of a
fluid mass, when in equilibrio, is equally pressed in every
direction ; and he inquired into the conditions, according
to which a solid body floating in a fluid should assume
and preserve a position of equilibrium. We are also in¬
debted to the philosopher of Syracuse for that ingenious
hydrostatic process by which the purity of the precious
metals can be ascertained, and for the screw engine which
goes by his name, the theory of which has lately exer¬
cised the ingenuity of some of our greatest mathemati-
cians. ,
4. In the Greek school at Alexandria which flourished
under the auspices of the Ptolemies, the first attempts
were made at the construction of hydraulic machinery.
About 120 years after the birth of Christ, the fountain of Inventions
compression, the syphon, and the forcing pump, were in-ofCtesibius
vented by Ctesibius and Hero ; and though these machines
operated by the elasticity and weight of the air, yet their
inventors had no distinct notions of these preliminary
branches of pneumatical science. 4 he syphon is a simple,
instrument which is employed to empty vessels full of
water or spirituous liquors, and is of great utility in the
arts. The forcing pump, on the contrary, is a complicated Forcing
and abstruse invention, which could scarcely have been1 umP*
expected in the infancy of hydraulics. It was probably
suggested to Ctesibius by the Egyptian wheel or Noria, Egyptian
which was common at that time, and which was a kind of wheel-
chain pump, consisting of a number of earthern pots car¬
ried round by a wheel. In some of these machines the
pots have a valve in their bottom which enables them to
descend without much resistance, and diminishes greatly
the load upon the wheel; and if we suppose that this
valve was introduced so early as the time of Ctesibius,
it is not difficult to perceive how such a machine might
have led this philosopher to the invention of the forcing
pump. ,
5. Notwithstanding these inventions of the Alexandrian Labours ot
school, its attention does not seem to have been directed Sextus Ju-
to the motion of fluids. The first attempt to investigate nus in hy_
this subject was made by Sextus Julius Frontinus, inspec- ^j-auiics.
tor of the public fountains at Rome in the reigns of NervaA. D. 110.
and Trajan ; and we may justly suppose that his work en¬
titled De Aquceductibus urbis Rornce Commentarius con¬
tains all the hydraulic knowledge of the ancients. Alter
70
II Y D R O I) Y N A MI C S.
History.
The Ro¬
mans ac¬
quainted
with the
art of con¬
ducting
water in
pipes.
Labours of
Galileo.
Rnrn 15G4,
died IG41.
describing the ninex great Roman aqueducts, to which he
himself added Jive more, and mentioning the date0, ot their
erection, he considers the methods which were at that time
employed for ascertaining the quantity of water discharged
from adjutages, and the mode of distributing the waters of
an aqueduct or a fountain. He justly remarks that the
expense of water from an orifice, depended not only on
the magnitude of the orifice itself, but also on the height
of the water in the reservoir ; and that a pipe employed to
carry off a portion of water from an aqueduct, should, as
circumstances required, have a position more or less in¬
clined to the original direction of the current. But as he
was unacquainted with the true law of the velocities of
running water as depending upon the depth of the orifice,
wre can scarcely be surprised at the want of precision which
appears in his results.
It has generally been supposed that the Romans were
ignorant of the art of conducting and raising water by
means of pipes ; but it can scarcely be doubted, from the
statement of Pliny and other authors, that they not only
were acquainted with the hydrostatical principle, but that
they actually used leaden pipes for the purpose. Pliny
asserts that water will always rise to the height of its source,
and he also adds that, in order to raise water up to an emi¬
nence, leaden pipes must be employed.2
6. The labours of the ancients in the science of hydro¬
dynamics terminated with the life of Frontinus. The
sciences had already begun to decline, and that night of
ignorance and barbarism was advancing apace, which for
more than a thousand years brooded over the nations of
Europe. During this lengthened period of mental dege¬
neracy, when less abstruse studies ceased to attract the no¬
tice, and rouse the energies of men, the human mind could
not be supposed capable of that vigorous exertion, and
patient industry, which are so indispensable in physical re¬
searches. Poetry and the fine arts, accordingly, had made
considerable progress under the patronage of the family of
Medici, before Galileo began to extend the boundaries of
science. This great man, who deserves to be called the
father and restorer of physics, does not appear to have di¬
rected his attention to the doctrine of fluids : but his dis¬
covery of the uniform acceleration of gravity, laid the foun¬
dation of its future progress, and contributed in no small
degree to aid the exertions of genius in several branches of
OfCastelli. 7- Castelli and Torricelli, two of the disciples of Galileo,
Rorn 1577, applied the discoveries of their master to the science of
died 1644. hydrodynamics. In 1628 Castelli published a small work,
Della Misura dell ’acque correnti, in w hich he gave a very
satisfactory explanation of several phenomena in the motion
of fluids, in rivers and canals. But he committed a great
paralogism in supposing the velocity of the water propor¬
tional to the depth of the orifice below the surface of the
vessel. Torricelli observing that in a jet d’eau where the
water rushed through a small adjutage, it rose to nearly
died1! 64 7^ ^ same with the reservoir from which it was sup-
16 '* plied, imagined that it ought to move with the same velo¬
city as if it had fallen through that height by the force of
gravity. And hence he deduced this beautiful and im¬
portant proposition, that the velocities of fluids are as the
square roots of the pressures, abstracting from the resist¬
ance of the air and the friction of the orifice. This theo¬
rem was published in 1643, at the end of his treatise De
Motu Gravium naturaliter accelerato. It was aftenvards
confirmed by the experiments of Raphael Magiotti, on
Of Torri¬
celli.
the quantities of water discharged from different adjutages History
under different pressures ; and though it is true only in
small orifices, it gave a newr turn to the science of hydraulics.
8. After the death of the celebrated Pascal, who dis-Of Pascal,
covered the pressure of the atmosphere, a treatise on the Rorn 1623,
equilibrium of fluids (Sur VEqailibre des Liqueurs), was ^1C(i lct>2.
found among his manuscripts, and was given to the public
in 1663. In the hands of Pascal, hydrostatics assumed
the dignity of a science. The laws of the equilibrium of
fluids were demonstrated in the most perspicuous and sim¬
ple manner, and amply confirmed by experiments. Tht
discovery of Torricelli, it may be supposed, would have
incited Pascal to the study of hydraulics. But as he has
not treated this subject in the work which has been men¬
tioned, it was probably composed before that discovery had
been made public.
9. The theorem of Torricelli was employed by manyofMari-
succeeding writers, but particularly by the celebrated Ma-otte.
riotte, whose labours in this department of physics deserve Died lc84*
to be recorded. His Traite du Mouvement des Eaux, which
was published after his death in the year 1686, is founded
on a great variety of well-conducted experiments on the
motion of fluids, performed at Versailles and Chantilly. In
the discussion of some points he has committed considerable
mistakes. Others he has treated very superficially, and in
none of his experiments does he seem to have attended to
the diminution of efflux arising from the contraction of the
fluid vein, when the orifice is merely a perforation in a thin
plate ; but he appears to have been the first who attempted
to ascribe the discrepancy between theory and experiment
to the retardation of the water’s velocity arising from fric¬
tion. His cotemporary Guglielmini, who was inspector of
the rivers and canals in the Milanese, had ascribed this di¬
minution of velocity in rivers, to transverse motions arising
from inequalities in their bottom. But as Mariotte ob¬
served similar obstructions even in glass pipes, where no
transverse currents could exist, the cause assigned by
Guglielmini seemed destitute of foundation. The French
philosopher, therefore, regarded these obstructions as the
effects of friction. He supposes that the filaments of water
which graze along the sides of the pipe lose a portion of
their velocity; that the contiguous filaments having on this
account a greater velocity, rub upon the former, and suft'er
a diminution of their celerity ; and that the other filaments
are affected with similar retardations proportional to their
distance from the axis of the pipe. In this way the medium
velocity of the current may be diminished, and consequent¬
ly the quantity of water discharged in a given time, must,
from the effects of friction, be considerably less than that
which is computed from theory.
10. That part of the science of hydrodynamics which The mo-
relates to the motion of rivers seems to have originated intion of
Italy. This fertile country receives from the Apennines r'vers
a great number of torrents, which traverse several princi-
palities before they mingle their waters with those of the
Po, into which the greater part of them fall. To defend
themselves from the inundations with which they were
threatened, it became necessary for the inhabitants to
change the course of their rivers ; and while they thus
drove them from their own territories, they let them loose
on those of their neighbours. Hence arose the continual
quarrels which once raged between the Bolognese and the
inhabitants of Modena and Ferrara. The attention of the
Italian engineers was necessarily directed to this branch
of science; and from this cause a greater number of works
1 These nine aqueducts delivered every day 14,000 quinaria, or about 50,000,000 cubic feet of water, or about 50 cubic feet for
the daily consumption of each inhabitant, supposing the population of Rome to have been a million. According to Professor Leslie,
the supply in modern Rome is forty cubic feet per person, in London three cubic feet, and in Paris one-half a cubic foot. See
Elements of Nat. Phil, p, 419.
2 Phn. xxxvL 7- See also Palladius De lie Rustica ix. 11, &c., and Horace Epist. I. x. 20, Ovid Met. iv. 120.
HYDRO DYN AM IC S.
71
Theory of
Gugliel-
mini.
Discove-
History. were written on the subject in Italy than in all the rest of
Europe.
11. Guglielmini was the first who attended to the mo¬
tion of water in rivers and open canals.1 Embracing the
theorem of Torricelli, which had been confirmed by repeated
experiments, Guglielmini concluded that each particle in
the perpendicular section of a current has a tendency to
move with the same velocity as if it issued from an orifice
at the same depth from the surface. The consequences
deducible from this theory of running waters are in every
respect repugnant to experience, and it is really surprising
that it should have been so hastily adopted by succeed¬
ing writers. Guglielmini himself was sufficiently sensible
that his parabolic theory was contrary to fact, and endea¬
voured to reconcile them by supposing the motion of rivers
to be obstructed by transverse currents arising from irregu¬
larities in their bed. The solution of this difficulty, as
given by Mariotte, was more satisfactory, and was after¬
wards adopted by Guglielmini, who maintained also that
the viscidity of water had a considerable share in retarding
its motion.
12. The effects of friction and viscidity in diminishing
ries of Sir the velocity of running water were noticed in the Principia
Isaac New-0f gir Isaac Newton, who has thrown much light upon seve-
1‘)I1' ral branches of hydrodynamics. At a time when the Car-
diedAT^. tesian system of vortices universally prevailed, this great
’ man found it necessary to investigate that absurd hypo¬
thesis, and in the course of his investigations he has shewn
that the velocity of any stratum of the vortex is an arith¬
metical mean between the velocities of the strata which
enclosed it; and from this it evidently follows, that the
velocity of a filament of water moving in a pipe is an arith¬
metical mean between the velocities of the filaments which
surround it. Taking advantage of these results, it was
afterwards shewn by M. Pitot, that the retardations arising
from friction are inversely as the diameters of the pipes in
which the fluid moves. The attention of Newton was also
directed to the discharge of water from orifices in the bot¬
tom of vessels. He supposed a cylindrical vessel full of
water to be perforated in its bottom with a small hole by
which the water escaped, and the vessel to be supplied with
water in such a manner that it always remained full at the
same height. He then supposed this cylindrical column of
water to be divided into two parts ; the first, which he calls
the cataract, being a hyperboloid generated by the revolu¬
tion of a hyperbola of the fifth degree around the axis of
the cylinder which should pass through the orifice ; and the
second the remainder of the water in the cylindrical vessel.
He considered the horizontal strata of this hyperboloid as
always in motion, while the remainder of the water was in
a state of rest; and imagined that there was a kind of ca¬
taract in the middle of the fluid. When the results of this
theory were compared with the quantity of water actually
discharged, Newton concluded that the velocity with which
the water issued from the orifice was equal to that which a
falling body would receive by descending through half the
height of water in the reservoir. This conclusion, how¬
ever, is absolutely irreconcilable with the known fact, that
jets of water rise nearly to the same height as their reser¬
voirs, and Newton seems to have been aware of this objec¬
tion. In the second edition of his Principia, accordingly,
which appeared in 1714, Sir Isaac has reconsidered his
theory. He had discovered a contraction in the vein of
fluid (vena contracta), which issued from the orifice, and
found that, at the distance of about a diameter of the aper¬
ture, the section of the vein was contracted in the sub¬
duplicate ratio of two to one. He regarded, therefore, the
section of the contracted vein as the true orifice from which
the discharge of water ought to be deduced, and the velo¬
city of the effluent water as due to the whole height of History.
water in the reservoir; and by this means his theory be- ^ v '
came more conformable to the results of experience. I his
theory, however, is still liable to serious objections. I he
formation of a cataract is by no means agreeable to the
laws of hydrostatics; for when a vessel is emptied by the
efflux of water through an orifice in its bottom, all the par¬
ticles of the fluid direct themselves toward this orifice, ami
therefore no part of it can be considered as in a state ot
repose.
13. The subject of the oscillation of waves, one of the The oscil-
most difficult in the science of hydrodynamics, was first lation of
investigated by Sir Isaac Newton. In the forty-fourth pro-
position of the second book of his Principia, he has furnished ^ j^ew-
us with a method of ascertaining the velocity of the waves ofton-
the sea, by observing the time in which they rise and fall.
If the two vertical branches of a syphon, which communi¬
cate by means of a horizontal branch, be filled with a fluid
of known density, the two fluid columns, when in a state
of rest, will be in equihbrio and their surfaces horizontal.
But if the one column is raised above the level of the other,
and left to itself, it will descend below that level, and raise
the other column above it, and, after a few oscillations,
they will return to a state of repose. Newton occupied
himself in determining the duration of these oscillations,
or the length of a pendulum isochronous to their duration ;
and he found, by a simple process of reasoning, that, ab¬
stracting from the effects of friction, the length of a syn¬
chronous pendulum is equal to one-half of the length of the
syphon, that is, of the two vertical branches and the hori¬
zontal one, and hence he deduced the isochronism of these
oscillations. From this Newton concluded, that the velo¬
city of waves formed on the surface of water, either by the
wind or by means of a stone, was in the subduplicate ratio
of their size. When their velocity, therefore, is measured,
which can be easily done, the size of the waves will be de¬
termined by taking a pendulum which oscillates in the time
that a wave takes to rise and fall.
14. In the year 1718, the Marquis Poleni published, Labours oi
at Padua, his work De Castellis per qua; derivantur Flu- the Mar-
viorum aqua;, &c. He found, from a great number of * °'
experiments, that if A be the aperture of the orifice,
and D its depth below the surface of the reservoir, the^ie(j
quantity of water discharged in a given time will be as
2 AD X while it ought to be as 2 AD, if the velo¬
city of the issuing fluid was equal to that acquired by fall¬
ing through D. By adapting to a circular orifice through
which the water escaped, a cylindrical tube of the same
diameter, the Marquis found that the quantity discharged
in a determinate time was considerably greater than when
it issued from the circular orifice itself; and this happened
whether the water descended perpendicularly or issued in
a horizontal direction.
15. Such was the state of hydrodynamics in 1738, when Daniel
Daniel Bernouilli published his Hydrodynamica, seu efew-Bernouil-
ribus et motibus Fluidorum Commentarii. His theory of^J^™™
the motion of fluids was founded on two suppositions, which ”ion1of 10'
appeared to him conformable to experience. He supposed ^ui(js
that the surface of a fluid, contained in a vessel which was Born 1700.
emptying itself by an orifice, remains always horizontal; Died 1702.
and if the fluid mass is conceived to be divided into an in¬
finite number of horizontal strata of the same bulk, that
these strata remain contiguous to each other, and that all
their points descend vertically, with velocities inversely pro¬
portional to their breadth, or to the horizontal sections of
the reservoir. In order to determine the motion of each
stratum, he employed the principle of the conservatio viri-
1 See his principal work, entitled La Misura dell' acque correnti.
72
HYDRODYNAMICS.
History, um vivarum, and obtained very elegant solutions. In the
opinion of the Abbe Bossut, his work was one of the finest
productions of mathematical genius.1
Objected 16. The uncertainty of the principle employed by Daniel
toby Mac-Bernouilli, which has never been demonstrated in a gene-
laurin, raj manner> deprived his results of that confidence which
diednifi” tnev would otherwise have deserved ; and rendered it de-
and John’” sirable to have a theory more certain, and depending solely
Bernouilli, on the fundamental laws of mechanics. Maclaurin and
Born 1667, John Bernouilli, who were of this opinion, resolved the
died 1748. problem by more direct methods, the one in his Fluxions,
published in 1742; and the other in his Hydraulica nunc
primum detecta, et directe demonstrata ex principiis pure
mechanicis, which forms the fourth volume of his works.
The method employed by Maclaurin has been thought not
sufficiently rigorous ; and that of John Bernouilli is, in the
opinion of La Grange, defective in perspicuity and precision.
17. The theory of Daniel Bernouilli was opposed also
D’Alem- by the celebrated D’Alembert. When generalising James
bert ap- Bernouilli’s Theory of Pendulums, he discovered a prin-
plies his cjp]e 0f dynamics so simple and general, that it reduced the
oFdvna ^aws moti°ns of bodies to that of their equilibrium,
mics to the He applied this principle to the motion of fluids, and gave
motion of a specimen of its application at the end of his Dynamics
fluids, in 1743. It was more fully developed in his Traite des
Born 1717. Fluides, which was published in 1744, where he has re¬
solved, in the most simple and elegant manner, all the pro¬
blems which relate to the equilibrium and motion of fluids.
Fie makes use of the very same suppositions as Daniel Ber¬
nouilli, though his calculus is established in a very different
manner. He considers, at every instant, the actual motion
of a stratum, as composed of a motion which it had in the
preceding instant, and of a motion which it has lost. The
laws of equilibrium between the motions lost, furnish him
with equations which represent the motion of the fluid. Al¬
though the science of hydrodynamics had then made con¬
siderable progress, yet it was chiefly founded on hypothe¬
sis. It remained a desideratum to express by equations
the motion of a particle of the fluid in any assigned direc¬
tion. These equations were found by D’Alembert, from
two principles, that a rectangular canal, taken in a mass of
fluid in equilibrio, is itself in equilibrio ; and that a portion
of the fluid, in passing from one place to another, preserves
the same volume when the fluid is incompressible, or dilates
itself according to a given law when the fluid is elastic. His
very ingenious method was published in 1752, in his Essai
sur la resistance des jluides. It was brought to perfection
in his Opuscules Mathematiques, and has been adopted by
the celebrated Euler.
Before the time of D’Alembert, it was the great object
of philosophers to submit the motion of fluids to general
formulae, independent of all hypothesis. Their attempts,
however, were altogether fruitless ; for the method of flux¬
ions, which produced such important changes in the phy¬
sical sciences, was but a feeble auxiliary in the science of
hydraulics. For the resolution of the questions concerning
the motion of fluids, we are indebted to the method of par¬
tial differences, a new calculus, with which Euler enriched
the sciences. This great discovery was first applied to the
motion of water by the celebrated D’Alembert, and enabled
both him and Euler to represent the theory of fluids in
formulae restricted by no particular hypothesis.
Experi- 18. An immense number of experiments on the motion
ments of 0f water in pipes and canals was made by Professor Miche-
lottf16" lotti °f Turin’ at the expense of the sovereign. In these
A D. 1704.experiments the water issued from holes of different sizes,
under pressures of from 5 to 22 feet, from a tower con¬
structed of the finest masonry. Basins (one of which was History.
289 feet square) built of masonry, and lined with stucco,
received the effluent water, which was conveyed in canals
of brickwork, lined with stucco, of various forms and decli¬
vities. The whole of Michelotti’s experiments were con¬
ducted with the utmost accuracy ; and his results, which
are in every respect entitled to our confidence, were pub¬
lished in 1774 in his Sperienze Idrauliche.
19. The experiments of the Abbe Bossut, whose labours Of the
in this department of science have been very assiduous and Abbe Bos-
successful, have, in as far as they coincide, afforded thesut-
same results as those of Michelotti. Though performed on
a smaller scale, they are equally entitled to our confidence,
and have the merit of being made in cases which are most
likely to occur in practice. In order to determine what
were the motions of the fluid particles in the interior of a
vessel emptying itself by an orifice, M. Bossut employed a
glass cylinder, to the bottom of which different adjutages
were fitted; and he found that all the particles descend at
first vertically, but that at a certain distance from the ori¬
fice they turn from their first direction towards the aper¬
ture. In consequence of these oblique motions, the fluid
vein forms a kind of truncated conoid, whose greatest base
is the orifice itself, having its altitude equal to the radius
of the orifice, and its bases in the ratio of 3 to 2.—It ap¬
pears also, from the experiments of Bossut, that when wa¬
ter issues through an orifice made in a thin plate, the ex¬
pense of water, as deduced from theory, is to the real ex¬
pense as 16 to 10, or as 8 to 5 ; and, when the fluid issues
through an additional tube, two or three inches long, and
follows the sides* of the tube, as 16 to 13 In analyzing
the effects of friction, he found, 1. That small orifices gave
less water in proportion than great ones, on account of fric¬
tion ; and, 2. That when the height of the reservoir was
augmented, the contraction of the fluid vein was also in¬
creased, and the expense of water diminished; and by
means of these two laws he was enabled to determine the
quantity of water discharged, with all the precision he could
wish. In his experiments on the motion of water in canals
and tubes, he found that there was a sensible difference be¬
tween the motion of water in the former and in the latter.
Under the same height of reservoir, the same quantity of
water always flows in a canal, whatever be its length and
declivity; whereas, in a tube, a difference in length and
declivity has a very considerable influence on the quantity
of water discharged. According to the theory of the re¬
sistance of fluids, the impulse upon a plane surface is as
the product of its area multiplied by the square of the
fluid’s velocity, and the square of the sine of the angle of
incidence. The experiments of Bossut, made in conjunc¬
tion with D’Alembert and Condorcet, prove, that this is
sensibly true when the impulse is perpendicular ; but that
the aberrations from theory increase with the angle of im¬
pulsion. They found, that when the angle of impulsion
wras between 50° and 90°, the ordinary theory may be em¬
ployed, that the resistances thus found will be a little less
than they ought to be, and the more so as the angles recede
from 90°. The attention of Bossut was directed to a va¬
riety of other interesting points, which we cannot stop to
notice, but for which we must refer the reader to the works
of that ingenious author.
20. The oscillation of waves, which was first discussed Inquiries
by Sir Isaac Newton, and afterwards by D’Alembert, in °f Flauger-
the article Ondes in the French Encyclopaedia, was now Sues. con‘
revived by M. Flaugergues, who attempted to overthrowtheosal-
the opinions of these philosophers. He maintained, that a iati0n of
vrave is not the effect of a motion in the particles of water, waves.
* The germ of Daniel Bernouilli’s theory was first published in his memoir entitled Theoria Nova de Motu Aquarumper Canales
quocunque Fluentes, which he had communicated to the Academy of St Petersburg as early as 1726.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
73
History, by which they rise and fall alternately, in a serpentine line,
vy wlien moving from the centre where they commenced; but
that it is a kind of intumescence, formed by a depression
at the place where the impulse is first made, which propa¬
gates itself in a circular manner when removing from the
point of impulse. A portion of the water, thus elevated,
he imagines, flows from all sides into the hollow formed at
the centre of impulse, so that the water being, as it were,
heaped up, produces another intumescence, which propa¬
gates itself as formerly. From this theory M. Flaugergues
concludes, and he has’ confirmed the conclusion by experi¬
ment, that all waves, whether great or small, have the same
velocity.
And of M. 21. This difficult subject has also been discussed by M.
Lagrange. Lagrange, in his Mecanique Analytique. He found
Born 1730, j}ie velocity of waves in a canal, is equal to that which
died 1813. & heavy bo(]y wouid acquire by falling through a height
equal to half the depth of the water in the canal. If this
depth, therefore, be one foot, the velocity of the waves will
be 5-945 feet in a second; and if the depth is greater or
less than this, their velocity will vary in the subduplicate
ratio of the depth, provided it is not very considerable. If
we suppose that, in the formation of waves, the water is
agitated but to a very small depth, the theory of Lagrange
may be employed, whatever be the depth of the water and
the figure of its bottom. This supposition, which is very
plausible, when we consider the tenacity and adhesion of
the particles of water, has also been confirmed by experi¬
ence.
Expert- 22. The most successful labourer in the science of hydro-
ments and dynamics was the Chevalier Dubuat, engineer in ordinary to
theory of the King of France. Following in the steps of the Abbe
the Cheva- Lossut, he prosecuted the inquiries of that philosopher with
Dubuat uncommon ingenuity ; and in the year 1786 he published,
l7U79Ua ’ in two volumes, his Principes d'Hydrahque,1 which con¬
tains a satisfactory theory of the motion of fluids, founded
solely upon experiments. The Chevalier Dubuat consi¬
dered that if water were a perfect fluid, and the channels
in which it flowed infinitely smooth, its motion would be
continually accelerated, like that of bodies descending in
an inclined plane. But as the motion of rivers is not con¬
tinually accelerated, and soon arrives at a state of unifor¬
mity, it is evident that the viscidity of the water, and the
friction of the channel in which it descends, must equal
the accelerating force. M. Dubuat, therefore, assumes it as
a proposition of fundamental importance, that when water
flows in any channel or bed, the accelerating force, which
obliges it to move, is equal to the sum of all the resistances
which it meets with, whether they arise from its own vis¬
cidity or from the friction of its bed. This principle was
employed by M. Dubuat, in the first edition of his work,
which appeared in 1779; but the theory contained in that
edition was founded on the experiments of others. He
soon saw, however, that a theory so new, and leading to
results so different from the ordinary theory, should be
founded on new experiments more direct than the former,
and he was employed in the performance of these from
1780 to 1783. The experiments of Bossut having been
made only on pipes of a moderate declivity, M. Dubuat found
it necessary to supply this defect. He used declivities of
every kind, from the smallest to the greatest; and made
his experiments upon channels, from a line and a hall in
diameter, to seven or eight square toises.
Researches 23. M. Venturi, Professor of Natural Philosophy in the
of M. Ven-University of Modena, succeeded in bringing to light some
tori, 1798. curious facts respecting the motion of water, in his work
on the Lateral Communication of Motion in Fluids.
He observed, that if a current of water is introduced with
a certain velocity into a vessel filled with the same fluid at History,
rest, and if this current, passing through a portion of the v v J
fluid, is received in a curvilineal channel, the bottom of
which gradually rises till it passes over the rim of the ves¬
sel itseltj it will carry along with it the fluid contained in
the vessel; so that after a short time has elapsed, there re¬
mains only the portion of the fluid which was originally
below the aperture at which the current entered. 1 his
phenomenon has been called by Venturi, the lateral com¬
munication of motion in fluids; and, by its assistance, he
has endeavoured to explain many important facts in hy¬
draulics. He has not attempted to explain this principle ;
but has shown that the mutual action of the fluid particles
does not afford a satisfactory explanation of it. The work
of Venturi contains many other interesting discussions,
which are worthy of the attention of every reader.
24. Although the Chevalier Dubuat had shown much sa- Discover-
gacity in classifying the different kinds of resistances which 168
are exhibited in the motion of fluids, yet it was reserved forlom ’
Coulomb to express the sum of them by a rational function
of the velocity. By a series of interesting experiments on
the successive diminution of the oscillation of disks, arising
from the resistance of the water in which they oscillated,
he was led to the conclusion, that the pressure sustained by
the moving disk is represented by two terms, one of which
varies with the simple velocity, and the other with its square.
When the motions are very slow, the part of the resistance
proportional to the square of the velocity is insensible, and
hence the resistance is proportional to the simple velocity.
M. Coulomb found also, that the resistance is not percepti¬
bly increased by increasing the depth of the oscillating disk
in the fluid; and by coating the disk successively with fine
and coarse sand, he’ found that the resistance arises solely
from the mutual cohesion of the fluid particles, and from
their adhering to the surface of the moving body.
25. The law of resistance discovered by Coulomb, wasExperi-
first applied to the determination of the velocity of running ments of M.
water by M. Girard, who considers the resistance as repre- irar
sented by a constant quantity, multiplied by the sum of the
first and second powers of the velocity. He regards the
water which moves over the wetted sides of the channel as
at first retarded by its viscidity, and he concludes that the
water will, from this cause, suffer a retardation proportional
to the simple velocity. A second retardation, analogous to
that of friction in solids, he ascribes to the roughness of the
channel, and he represents it by the second power of the
velocity, as it must be in the compound ratio of the force
and the number of impulsions which the asperities receive in
a given time. He then expresses the resistance due to co¬
hesion by a constant quantity, to be determined experi¬
mentally, multiplied into the product of the velocity of the
perimeter of the section of the fluid.
26. The influence of heat in promoting fluidity was known
to the ancients ;2 but M. Dubuat was the first person who 1814.
investigated the subject experimentally. His results, how¬
ever, were far from being satisfactory; and it was left to
M. Girard to ascertain the exact effect of temperature on
the motion of water in capillary tubes. When the length
of the capillary tube is great, the velocity is quadrupled by
an increase of heat from 0° to 85° centig.; but when its
length is small, a change of temperature exercises little or
no influence on the velocity. He found also, that, in ordi¬
nary conduit pipes, a variation of temperature exercises
scarcely any influence over the velocity.
27. The theory of running water was greatly advanced Investiga-
by the researches of M. Prony. From a collection of the of M-
best experiments by Couplet, Bossut, and Dubuat, he se-
lected 82, of which 51 were made on the velocity of water
1 A third volume of this work was published in 1816, entitled Principes d'Hydraulique et Pyrodynamique, relating chiefly to the sub¬
ject of heat and elastic fluids. 2 Qu&st. Nat.
VOL. XII. K
74
hydrodynamics.
History.
Researches
of M. Ey-
telwein of
Berlin,
1801.
in conduit pipes, and 31 on its velocity in open canals; and
by discussing these on physical and mechanical piinciples,
he succeeded in drawing up general formulae, which afford
a simple expression of the velocity of running water.
28. M. Eytelwein of Berlin published, in 1801, a valu¬
able compendium of Hydraulics, entitled Jin it dh itch dev
Mechanik und dev Hydraulik, which contains an account
of many new' and valuable experiments made by himself.^
His work is divided into 24 chapters, the most important of
which are the 7th, which treats of the motion of water in
rivers, and the 9th, which treats of the motion of water in
pipes. He has shown that the mean velocity of water in a
second in a river or canal flowing in an equable channel, is
|^ths of a mean proportional between the fall in two Eng¬
lish miles, and the hydraulic mean depth; and that the
superficial velocity of a river is nearly a mean proportional
between the hydraulic mean depth and the fall in two
English miles.
The following are some of the other important results
which are given in his work:—The contraction of the fluid
area is 0'64, the coefficient for additional pipes 065, the co¬
efficient for a conical tube similar to the curve of contrac¬
tion 098. For the whole velocity due to the height, the
coefficient by its square must be multiplied by 8'0458.
For an orifice, the coefficient must be multiplied by 7-8;
for wide openings in bridges, sluices, &c., by 6’9 ; for short
pipes, 6'6; and for openings in sluices without side walls,
5T. Our author investigates the subject of the discharge
of water by compound pipes, the motions of jets, and their
impulses against plane and oblique surfaces, and he shows
theoretically, that a water wheel will have its effect a maxi¬
mum when its circumference moves with half the velocity
of the stream.
Mallet and 29. A series of interesting hydraulic experiments was
Yici, 1809. ma(]e at Rome in 1809, by MM. Mallet and Vici.1 They
found that a pipe, whose gauge was five ounces French
measure (or 0-03059 French kilolitres), furnished one-seventh
more water than five pipes of one ounce, an effect arising
from the velocity being diminished by friction in the ratio
of the perimeters of the orifices as compared with their areas.
Researches Notwithstanding the investigations of Newton, D’Alem-
of M. Pols- bertj an(j Lagrange, the problem of waves was still unsolved;
son, 1816. an[j the jnstitute 0f France was induced to propose, as the
subject of its annual prize for 1816, “The Theory of Waves
on the Surface of a heavy Fluid of indefinite Depth.” M.
Poisson had previously studied this difficult subject, and he
lodged his first memoir in the bureau of the Institute on the
2d October 1815, at the expiration of the period allowed
for competition. M. Poisson supposes the waves to be pro¬
duced in the following manner :—A body of the form of an
elliptic paraboloid is immersed a little in the fluid, with its
axis vertical and its vertex downwards. After being left in
this position till the equilibrium of the fluid is restored, the
body is suddenly withdrawn, and waves are formed round
the place which it occupied. This first memoir contains
the general formula for waves propagated with a uniformly
accelerated motion ; but in a second memoir, read in De¬
cember, he gives the theory of waves propagated w ith a con¬
stant velocity. This last class of waves are much more sen¬
sible than the first, and are those which are seen to spread
in circles round any disturbance made at the surface of
water. In determining the superficial as well as the inter¬
nal propagation of these waves, he considers only the case
when the disturbance of the water is so small, that the se¬
cond and the higher powers of the velocity of the oscillating
particles may be neglected; and he assumes, that a fluid
particle which is at any instant at the surface, continues
there during the whole of the motion, a supposition which
the condition of the continuity of the fluid renders neces¬
sary. He supposes the depth of the water constant through- History,
out its whole extent, the bottom being considered as a
fixed horizontal plane at a given distance beneath its na¬
tural surface. He then treats, /zrstf, the case in which the
motion takes place in a canal of uniform width, over which
obstruction is made of the horizontal dimension of the fluid;
and, secondly, the case in which the fluid is considered in
its true dimensions.
30. The prize offered by the Institute was gained by M. Researches
Augustin Louis Cauchy, then a young mathematician oi
the highest promise. In his memoir, which was published
in the third volume of the Memoires des Scavans, he treats
only of the first kind of waves above mentioned ; and his
investigation claims to be more complete than that in the
first memoir of Poisson, in so far as it leaves entirely arbi¬
trary the form of the function relative to the initial form of
the fluid surface, and, therefore, allows the analysis to be
applied when bodies of different forms are used to produce
the initial disturbance. From his analysis, M. Cauchy
concludes, “ that the heights and velocities of the different
waves produced by the immersion of a cylindrical or pris¬
matic body, depend not only on the width and height of
the part immersed, but also on the form of the surface which
bounds this part.” He is also of opinion, that the number
of the waves produced may depend on the form of the im¬
mersed body, and the depth of immersion.
31. The following abstract of the principal results ob- Results of
tained by theory, respecting the nature of waves, has been the°i'y re*
given by Mr Challis :— waves. ^
“ With respect first to the canal of uniform width, the
law of the velocity of propagation found by Lagrange, is
confirmed by Poisson’s theory when the depth is small, but
not otherwise.
“ When the canal is of unlimited depth, the following
are the chief results:—
“ 1. An impulse given to any point of the surface, affects
instantaneously the whole extent of the fluid mass.
“ The theory determines the magnitude and direction of
the initial velocity of each particle resulting from a given
impulse.
“ 2. The summit of each wave moves with a uniformly
accelerated motion.
“ This must be understood to refer to a series of very
small waves, called by M. Poisson dents, which perform
their movements, as it were, on the surface of the larger
waves, which he calls ‘ les ondes dentelees! Each wave of
the series is found to have its proper velocity, independent
of the primitive impulse.
“ 3. At considerable distances from the place of disturb¬
ance, there are waves of much more sensible magnitude than
the preceding.
“ Their summits are propagated with a uniform velocity,
which varies as the square root of the breadth, d fieurd’eau
of the fluid originally disturbed. Yet the different waves
which are formed in succession, are propagated with diffe¬
rent velocities; the foremost travels swiftest. The ampli¬
tudes of oscillations of equal duration, are reciprocally pro¬
portional to the square root of the distances from the point
of disturbance.
“ 4. The vertical excursions of the particles situated
directly below the primitive impulse, vary according to the
inverse ratio of the depth below the surface. This law of
decrease is not so rapid but that the motion will be very
sensible at very considerable depths ; it will not be the true
law, as the theory proves, when the original disturbance
extends over the whole surface of the water, for the de¬
crease of motion in this case will be much more rapid.
“ The results of the theory, when the three dimensions
of the fluid are considered, are analogous to the preceding,
1 See Mallet, Notices Historiques, Paris, 1830.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
75
History.
Experi¬
ments of
Weber and
Bidone,
1825.
Investiga¬
tions of M
Bidone,
1826-7.
I, 2, 3, 4, and may be stated in the same terms, excepting
that the amplitudes of the oscillations are inversely as the
distances from the origin of disturbance, and the vertical
excursions of the particles situated directly below the dis¬
turbance vary inversely as the square of the depth.”
32. M. Hachette, in the year 1816, presented to the
National Institute a memoir containing the results of expe¬
riments which he had made on the spouting of fluids, and
the discharge of vessels. The objects he had in view were
to measure the contracted part of a fluid vein; to examine
the phenomena attendant on additional tubes ; and to inves¬
tigate and describe the figure of the fluid vein, and the
results which take place when different forms of orifices are
employed. M. Hachette showed in the second part of his
memoir, that greater or lesser volumes of water will be dis¬
charged in the same time through tubes of different figures,
the apertures in all having the same dimensions. He also
gave several curious results respecting other fluids issuing
out of orifices into air or a vacuum.
33. Several very interesting experiments on the propaga¬
tion of waves, have been made by M. Weber and by M.
Bidone. Although Weber’s1 experiments were not made
in exact conformity with the condition which the theory
required, yet they, generally speaking, harmonize with it;
and they particularly establish the existence of the small
accelerated waves near the place of disturbance, and of a
perceptible motion of the particles of the fluid at consider¬
able depths below the surface. When an elliptic paraboloid
is used to produce the waves, with its axis vertical, and its
vertex downwards, and when, of course, the section of the
solid in the plane of the surface of the water is an ellipse,
the velocity of propagation is, according to the theory,
greater in the direction of the major axis than in that of the
minor, in the ratio of the square root of the one to the square
root of the other; but this result is not confirmed by
Weber’s experiments.
In 1826 M. Bidone,2 besides his experiments on waves,
made a series on the velocity of running water at the
hydraulic establishment of the University of Turin, and he
published an account of them in 1829.3 After giving a
description of his apparatus and method of experimenting,
he gives the figures obtained from fluid veins, sections of
which were taken at different distances from the orifice, and
the results, which are extremely curious, are illustrated by
diagrams.
34. Towards the end of last, and the beginning of the
present century, several hydraulic engines were invented,
which have proved of great service to the arts. The Bramah
press was patented by its inventor in 1796. Like all in¬
ventions of the first class, it has received little if any im¬
provement since it left Bramah’s hand. It derives its great
power from the principle of fluids transmitting pressure in
every direction. In the year 1775 Mr Whitehurst devised
a machine for elevating water, the principle of its action
being the momentum of the water itself. This machine was
in 1798 much improved by Mr Boulton ; it is now, however,
replaced by the more scientific invention known as Mont¬
golfier's hydraulic ram, which is recognised by some as
an independent invention, but by others as an improvement
on Whitehurst’s. About the year 1817, Hcdl’s machines
began to be revived and greatly improved by M. lleichen-
bach ; in his hands they were transformed into the elegant
yet powerful water-column machines, so extensively em¬
ployed in the German and French mines.
35. M. Poisson’s first memoir on the Theory of Capillary
Attraction, was read before the National Institute, Novem¬
ber 1828, in which his object was to form the equations of
equilibrium of fluids on physical principles, that is, by sup- History,
posing that a fluid mass is made up of distinct molecules,
separated from each other by spaces excessively small, and
void of ponderable matter. His second memoir, entitled
Nouvelle Theorie de VAction Capillaire, was published in
May 1834. The principal object which Poisson had in
view in this treatise was to bring the theory of capillary
attraction to the greatest degree of perfection that the power
of analysis and the knowledge of facts would admit. La¬
place’s theory of capillarity, however, is still used to explain
the phenomena of the subject.
36. A series of useful experiments was made in 1827 and Experi-
1828, under the sanction of the French government, byments of
MM. Poncelet and Lesbros,4at the Military School of Metz.
The apparatus which they used consisted of four basins. bros J
The first had an area of 25,000 sq. met.; the second one of 1827-28.
1500 sq. met., and a depth of 3*70 met., and was so con¬
trived, by means of sluices, as to have a complete command
of the level of the water during the experiment; the third
basin, which communicated directly with the second basin,
was 3‘68 met. long and 3 wide, to receive the water dis¬
charged by the orifices; and the fourth basin was a gauge
capable of containing 24,000 litres. In carrying on the
experiments, the opening of the orifices, the height or
charge of the fluid in the reservoir, as well as the level of
the water in the gauge basin relative to,. each discharge of
fluid, were measured to the tenth of a millimetre, so that
the approximation was at least ^J^th of the whole result.
These experiments were made on rectangular vertical
orifices 20 centimetres wide, pierced in a thin plane
wall, and completely isolated both from the sides and bot¬
tom of the vessel. The special object which Poncelet and
Lesbros had in view was to determine the laws of escape of
water from such orifices, limited towards the upper edge by
a moveable flood-gate:—1. In the hypothesis of thin plates,
where, on the water escaping freely into the air, the orifice
is completely isolated from the side walls and bottom of the
reservoir ; 2. In the hypothesis where the orifice is more or
less near the bottom and sides, and disposed perpendicu¬
larly or obliquely with respect to the plate containing it;
3. In the hypothesis of thick walls, where the water would
be immediately received into a course or canal of short
length, open at the upper edge ; and, 4. To study the phy¬
sical or mathematical laws of each phenomenon, and to in¬
quire into the causes why the results of experiment differ
from those of theory. The experimenters never lost sight
of the application of these laws to practice.
In the year 1827 M. Poncelet published a Memoire sur
les Roues Hydrauliques a Aubes Courbes, containing his
experiments on the undershot wheel with curved palettes,
which he had invented in the year 1824. The best under¬
shot previous to the introduction of the Poncelet wheel,
never developed more than 0'25 of the work of the water,
whereas this utilized 0*60 of that work, which is nearly equi¬
valent to the maximum effect of the breast wheel. The
principle on which the Poncelet wheel acts, and that which
makes it utilize so much of the work of the water, is that
the water on entering any curved palette, enters it with¬
out any shock, and continues in this state, till at last, when
about to quit the palette, it does so without any sensible
velocity. This under-shot wheel is much used in France.
Previous to the year 1827, the wheels required in the
mills and manufactories of Germany and France were gene¬
rally those which worked with the axis horizontal, or the tub
and spoon wheels with the axis vertical; but in that year
a young mechanician named Fourneyron introduced a wheel
working with the axis vertical, yet wholly different from the
1 Wellenlehre auf Experimente gegrundet, Leipzig, 1825. 2 Turin Memoirs, vol. xxv.
3 Experiences sur la forme et sur la direction des Veines et des Courans d'Eau, lands par diverses ouvertures, 1832.
4 Experiences Hydrauliques sur les Lois de VEcoulement de VEau, etc., 1832.
76
HYDRODYNAMICS.
History.
Mr George
Rennie,
1830.
Mr Jar-
dine.
Improve¬
ment in
theory of
fluids, by
Prof. Airy,
1830.
Researches
of Prof.
Mosely,
1830.
Researches
of Mr
Challis.
latter kind. Instead of introducing this horizontal wheel
within, as was at that time done, he placed it without the
cylinder, opposite its lower part, and separated from it by a
small space. In order to put the wheel in motion, water
was introduced into the cylinder from above, and escaped
by a circular opening at its lower part opposite the wheel.
As the cylinder is always kept full of water, the palettes are
conveniently struck, and all at once. From this simple ar¬
rangement, it results that this hydraulic engine, or turbine,
as it has been called, is the best in use. Shortly after the
invention was made public, M. Fourneyron was awarded the
prize of 6000 francs, which was offered by the Society for
the Encouragement of National Industry. These turbine
wheels are mostly used on the Continent; they utilize be¬
tween 75 and 85 per cent, of the work expended by the water.
37. In the year 1830, Mr George Rennie undertook a
series of experiments on the friction of water against revolv¬
ing cylinders and disks,on the direct resistances to globes and
disks revolving in air and water alternately, on the coeffi¬
cients of contraction, andon the expenditure of water through
orifices, additional tubes, and pipes of different lengths.
Mr J. Scott Russel’s experiments on the motion of vessels
and on waves, and the consequences he deduces therefrom,
are to be seen in his Researches in Hydrodynamics, 1837.
The late Mr Jardine made several experiments on the
discharge of water from long pipes. The waste actually
given by the supply pipe from Comiston to the reservoir on
the Castle Hill, Edinburgh, was compared with the volume
as given by the formulae of Eytelwein, Gerard, Dubuat, and
Prony, and he found that the two were nearly coincident.
38. An improvement on the common theory of fluids was
lately suggested by Professor Airy, in his lectures at Cam¬
bridge. It had been usual to assume the law of equal pres¬
sure as a datum of observation. Professor Airy, however,
has shown that this property may be deduced from another
more simple, and equally given by observation; namely, that
the division of a perfect fluid may be effected without the
application of sensible force ; and hence, it immediately
follows, that the state of equilibrium or motion of a mass of
fluid, is not altered by a mere separation of its parts by an
indefinitely thin partition. Professor Miller has given a
definition of fluids founded on this principle, and a proof of
the law of equal pressure, at the beginning of his Elements
of Hydrostatics, &c., published at Cambridge in 1831. Ur
Thomas Young had employed an equivalent principle to
that of Mr Airy in determining the manner of the reflection
of waves of water and Mr Challis considers it as neces¬
sary in the solution of some hydrostatical and hydrodyna-
mical problems.
There are certain cases in the analytical theory of Hydro¬
dynamics which require a more simple analysis than others ;
such, for example, as those of steady motion, or of motion
which has arrived at a permanent state, so that the velocity
is constant in quantity and direction at the same point.
Equations applicable to this kind of motion seem to have
been first given by Professor Mosely, in his Elementary
Treatise on Hydrostatics and Hydrodynamics. The fol¬
lowing is the principle from which he has derived them.
When the motion is steady, each particle, in passing from
one point to another, passes successively through the states
of motion of all the particles which at any instant lie in its
path. This general principle is applicable to all kinds of
fluids, and is true, whether or not the effect of heat is taken
into account, provided the condition of steadiness remains.
As it enables us to consider the motion of a single particle
in place of that of a number, it readily affords the equations
of motion.
39. As it was desirable to know how the same equation
might be obtained from the general equations of fluid mo¬
tion, Mr Challis undertook this inquiry, and published the History,
results of it in the Transactions of the Cambridge Philoso-
phical Society? In this paper, he has given a method of
doing this both for incompressible and elastic fluids, and he
has shown that a term in the general formulae which occa¬
sions the complexity in most hydrodynamical questions,
disappears in cases of steady motion. Mr Challis is of
opinion that these equations may be employed in very in¬
teresting researches, and he mentions, as instances, the mo¬
tion of the atmosphere as affected by the rotation of the earth,
and a given distribution of temperature due to solar heat.
40. The science of Hydrodynamics has of late years been Experi-
cultivated by M. Eytelwein of Berlin, by Dr Matthew ments of
Young, who has explained the cause of the increased velo-M\Eytel"
city of efflux through additional tubes, by Mr Vince, Dr T. wt?in an
Young, Coulomb, and Don George Juan.
The subject of waves has occupied the attention of Mr
Green, Professor Kelland, Mr Earnshaw, and more espe¬
cially Mr Airy, the astronomer-royal, who has given much
valuable and original matter in his excellent treatise on
Tides and Waves. Our knowledge of the flow of water
through orifices and over weirs has been much extended by
the experiments of MM. Daubisson and Castel, undertaken
between the years 1830 and 1838. Mr Provis, in 1838,
experimented on the flow of water through small pipes.
About the year 1840, M. V. Regnault instituted a series of
interesting experiments, by order of the minister of public
works, and at the request of the central commission of
steam engines, for the purpose of determining the princi¬
pal laws and numerical data which enter into the calcula¬
tion of steam engines. The nature of his investigations
necessarily led him to determine the compressibility of
water and mercury, and his results may be considered as
very accurate. The experiments are detailed at great length
in the Memoires de Vlnstitut for 1847.
Professor Magnus of Berlin, in 1848, made several experi¬
ments on the motion of fluids ; they were intended to re¬
fute the notion of Venturi, who, in his Lateral Communi¬
cation of Motion in Fluids, asserts that if any very mobile
body be caused to approach a jet of water, the body will be
carried forward by the air, to which a motion has been im¬
parted by the jet. He next shows that the action of a jet
on a plane, the jet and plane being under the surface of
water, increases with the distance from the orifice ; and,
lastly, he attempted to ascertain the manner in which the
water of the jet mixes with that into which it is projected.
Professor Challis has considered the Principles of Hydro¬
dynamics, in the new series of the Philosophical Magazine,
1851. Mr T. E. Blackwell made in 1851 a very extensive
and practically useful seriesof experiments on weirs. The last
matter that we shall mention in this history of the subject, is
the centrifugal pump, improved by Mr Appold. Bramah
and Dietz long ago attempted to produce machines work¬
ing by a continuous movement of rotation. Dietz’ centri¬
fugal pump has been a considerable time in use ; it is far
surpassed by Appold!s Centrifugal Pump. Mr Appold re¬
ceived for his invention the council medal at the Great
Exhibition of 1851. Mr Appold was the first who success¬
fully applied curved vanes to the centrifugal pump. It ap¬
pears, however, that so far back as 1839, curved vanes were
adopted in pumps erected in the United States, but for some
reason or other, they were replaced by plain straight fins,
and therefore of less efficiency. Gwinne, Bessemer, and
several others, have made improvements on the centrifugal
pump.
We refer the reader to M. Ch. Combe’s Sur les Roues
d Reaction ou d Tuyaux, 1843; and to a historical review
of the Centrifugal Pump in the Practical Mechanic's Maga¬
zine for 1851.
1 Nat. Phil., vol. ii., p. 64.
2 Vol. iii., part iv.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
77
PART L—HYDROSTATICS.
Hydrosta¬
tics.
41. Hydrostatics is that branch of the science of hy¬
drodynamics which comprehends the pressure and equili¬
brium of non-elastic fluids, as water, oil, mercury, &c.; the
method of determining the specific gravities of substances,
the equilibrium of floating bodies, and the phenomena of
capillary attraction.
definitions and preliminary observations.
42. A fluid is a collection of very minute particles, co¬
hering so little among themselves, that they yield to the
smallest force, and are easily moved among one another.
43. Fluids have been divided into perfect and imperfect.
In perfect fluids the constituent particles are supposed to
be endowed with no cohesive force, and to be moved among
one another by a pressure infinitely small. But, in imper¬
fect or viscous fluids, the mutual cohesion of their particles
is very sensible, as in oil, varnish, melted glass, &c.; and
this tenacity prevents them from yielding to the smallest
pressure. Although water, mercury, alcohol, &c. have been
classed among perfect fluids, yet it is evident that neither
these nor any other liquid is possessed of perfect fluidity.
When a glass vessel is filled with water above the brim, it
assumes a convex surface ; and when a quantity of it is
thrown on the floor, it is dispersed into a variety of little
globules, which can scarcely be separated from one another.
Even mercury, the most perfect of all the fluids, is endowed
with such a cohesive force among its particles, that if a
glass tube, with a small bore, is immersed in a vessel full
of this fluid, the mercury will be lower in the tube than
the surface of the surrounding fluid ;—if a small quantity of
it be put in a glass vessel, with a gentle rising in the mid¬
dle of its bottom, the mercury will desert the middle, and
form itself into a ring, considerably rounded at the edges ;
or if several drops of mercury be placed upon a piece of
flat glass, they will assume a spherical form ; and if brought
within certain limits, they will conglobulate and form a
single drop. Now, all these phenomena concur to prove,
that the particles of water have a mutual attraction for each
other ; that the particles of mercury have a greater attrac¬
tion for one another, than for the particles of glass ; and,
consequently, that these substances are not entitled to the
appellation of perfect fluids.
44. It was universally believed, till within the last seven¬
ty years, that water, mercury, and other fluids of a similar
kind, could not be made to occupy a smaller space, by the
application of any external force. This opinion was founded
on an experiment made by Lord Bacon, who inclosed a
quantity of water in a leaden globe, and by applying a great
force attempted to compress the water into a less space
than it occupied at first: The water, however, made its
way through the pores of the metal, and stood on its sur¬
face like dew. The same experiment was afterwards re¬
peated at Florence by the Academy del Cimento, who filled
a silver globe with water, and hammered it with such force
as to alter its form, and drive the water through the pores
of the metal. Though these experiments were generally
reckoned decisive proofs of incompressibility, yet Bacon
himself seems to have drawn from his experiment a very
different conclusion ; for after giving an account of it, he
immediately adds, that he computed into how much less
space the water was driven by this violent pressure.} This Hydrosta-
passage from Lord Bacon does not seem to have been no- tics-
ticed by any writer on hydrostatics, and appears a complete ^
proof that the compressibility of water was fairly deducible
from the issue of his experiment. In consequence of the
reliance which was universally placed on the result of the
Florentine experiment, fluids have generally been divided
into compressible and incompressible, or elastic and non¬
elastic fluids : water, oil, alcohol, and mercury, being re¬
garded as incompressible and non-elastic ; and air, steam,
and other aeriform fluids, as compressible or elastic.
45. About the year 1761, the ingenious Mr Canton be¬
gan to consider this subject with attention, and distrusting
the result obtained by the Academy del Cimento, resolved
to bring the question to a decisive issue.1 2 Having pro¬
cured a small glass tube, about two feet long, with a ball at
one end, an inch and a quarter in diameter, he filled the
ball and part of the tube with mercury, and brought it to
the temperature of 50° of Fahrenheit. The mercury then
stood six inches and a half above the ball; but after it had
been raised to the top of the tube by heat, and the tube
sealed hermetically, then, upon bringing the mercury to its
former temperature of 50°, it stood T30%th of an inch higher
in the tube than it did before. By repeating the same ex¬
periment with water exhausted of air, instead of mercury,
the water stood y^th of an inch higher in the tube than
it did at first. Hence, it is evident, that when the weight
of the atmosphere was removed, the water and mercury
expanded, and that the water expanded ^th of an inch
more than the mercury. By placing the apparatus in the
receiver of a condensing engine, and condensing the air
in the receiver, he increased the pressure upon the water,
and found that it descended in the tube. Having thus
ascertained the fact, that water and mercury are compres¬
sible, he subjected other fluids to similar experiments, and
obtained the results in the following table :
Millionth Parts. Specific Gravity.
Compression of Mercury,  3 13.595
Sea-Water, 40 1.028
Rain- Water, 46 1.000
Oil of Olives, 48 0.918
Spirit of Wine,...66 0.846
Lest it should be imagined that this small degree of com¬
pressibility arose from air imprisoned in the water, Mr
Canton made the experiment on some water which had
imbibed a considerable quantity of air, and found that its
compressibility was not in the least augmented. By in¬
specting the preceding table, it will be seen that the com¬
pressibility of the different fluids is nearly in the inverse
ratio of their specific gravities.
46. The experiments of Mr Canton have been since
confirmed by Professor Zimmerman. He found that sea¬
water was compressed ^gth part of its bulk, when inclosed
in the cavity of a strong iron cylinder, and under the in¬
fluence of a force equal to a column of sea-water 1000 feet
in height. From these facts, it is obvious that fluids are sus¬
ceptible of contraction and dilatation, and that there is no
foundation in nature for their being divided into compres¬
sible and incompressible. If fluids are compressible, they
will also be elastic ; for when the compressing force is re¬
moved, they will recover their former magnitude; and
1 Bacon's Works, by Shaw, vol. ii. p. 521; Novum Organum, part. ii. sect. 2. alph. 45. § 222.
* See the Philosophical Transactions for 1762 and 1764, vols. lii. and Uv.
T7
78
Pressure,
&c., of
Fluids.
hydrodynamics.
hence their division into elastic and non-elastic is equally
improper. ,
A series of very valuable experiments on the compressi¬
bility of water has since that time been made by Professor
Oersted of Copenhagen. At the temperature at which
water has a maximum density, which, according to 1 ro-
fessor Stampfer of Vienna, is at 38 75 Fahrenheit, Pro¬
fessor Oersted found the true compressibility of water by
one atmosphere (or 336 French lines of mercury) to be 46-1
millionths of the volume ; the difference between the true
and the apparent compressibility arising from the effect of
the heat developed by the compression, by which the liquid
and the bottle are dilated. He found also that the differ¬
ences of volume in the compressed water are propor¬
tional to the compressing power; and that this law holds
as far as the pressure of 65 atmospheres, and probably much
farther ; but how far he was not able to determine, as his
apparatus could not resist a greater pressure. He re¬
peated Canton’s experiments with great care, and verified
his results. Oersted confirms Canton’s result that water is
less compressible during summer than during winter. (See
Report of Third Meeting of British Association.)
Mr Perkins proved the compressibility of water by sub¬
jecting that fluid to mechanical pressure: for a description
of his apparatus, see Philosophical Transactions for 1820.
Colladon and Sturm have made experiments on the com¬
pressibility of different liquids, and under a pressure of one
atmosphere they assign the following:—Water, 0‘0000496;
alcohol, 0-0000916; mercury, 0-00000338, each of its own
volume.
These results are somewhat different from those of Oer¬
sted, but this may be owing to the compression of the
tubes or vessels.
M. Regnault1 made (in 1854) very accurate experiments
on the compressibility of fluids with an apparatus a little
different from that which Oersted used ; he found the fol¬
lowing results:—The volume of a mass of water subjected
to pressure diminishes by 0-000048 of its volume for every
atmosphere; i.e., if a mass of water having a volume of a
million litres, when its surface is subjected to no compress¬
ing force, comes to be subjected to a pressure of 1, 2, 3, 4,
&c., atmospheres, its volume will diminish by 48 litres, twice
48 litres, thrice 48 litres, four times 48 litres, &c., respec¬
tively. When mercury is the fluid pressed, then it dimin¬
ishes by 0-0000035 of its volume for every atmosphere in¬
cumbent on its surface.
47. The doctrines of hydrostatics have been deduced by
different philosophers from different properties of fluids.
Euler has founded his analysis on the following property,
‘‘that when fluids are subjected to any pressure, that pres¬
sure is so diffused throughout the mass, that when it re¬
mains in equilibrio all its parts are equally pressed in every
direction.”2 D’Alembert at first3 deduced the principles of
hydrostatics from the property w'hich fluids have of rising to
the same altitude in any number of communicating vessels ;
but he afterwards4 adopted the same property as Euler, from
the foundation which it furnishes for an algebraical calculus.
The same property has been employed by Bossuet, Prony,
and other writers, and will form the first proposition of the
following chapter.
Pressure,
&c., of
Fluids.
CHAPTER I.—ON THE PRESSURE AND EQUILIBRIUM OF FLUIDS.
48. Prop. I.—When a pressure acts on the surface of a per¬
fect fluid which is without weight, and at rest, it is
equally pressed in every direction.
As it is the distinguishing property of fluids that their
particles yield to the smallest pressure, and are easily moved
among themselves (26), it necessarily follows, that if any
particle is more pressed towards one side than towards
another, it will move to that side where the pressure is least;
and the equilibrium of the fluid mass will be instantly de¬
stroyed. But by the hypothesis the fluid is in equilibrio,
consequently the particle cannot move tow-ards one side, and
must therefore be equally pressed in every direction.
In order to illustrate this general law, let EF (fig. 1) be a
vessel full of any liquid, and let
mn, op be two orifices at equal
depths below its surface; then,
in order to prevent the water
from escaping, it will be neces¬
sary to apply two pistons, A and
B, to the orifices mn, op with
the same force, whether the ori¬
fice be horizontal or vertical, or
in any degree inclined to the
horizon ; so that the pressure to
which the fluid mass is sub¬
ject, which in this case is its own gravity, must be dis¬
tributed in every direction. But if the fluid has no weight,
then the pressure exerted against the fluid at the orifice
op, by means of the piston B, will propagate itself through
every part of the circular vessel EF, so that if the orifices
mn, tu are shut, and rs open, the fluid would rush through
this aperture, in the same manner as it would rush through
mn or tu, were all the other orifices shut. This proposi¬
tion, however, is true only in the case of perfect fluids ; for
when there is a sensible cohesion between the particles, as
in water, an equilibrium may exist even when a particle is
less pressed in one direction than in another; but this in¬
equality of pressure is so exceedingly trifling, that the pro¬
position may be considered as true, even in cases of im¬
perfect fluidity.
49. Prop. II.—If to the equal orifices mn, tu, op, rs, of Fig. 1.
a vessel, containing a fluid destitute of weight, be
applied equal powers A, B, C, D, in a perpendicular
direction, or if the orifices mn, &c., be unequal, a.nd
the powers A, B, &c., which are respectively applied
to them be proportional to the orifices, these powers
will be in equilibrio.
It is evident from the last proposition, that the pressure
exerted by the power B is transmitted equally to the ori¬
fices mn, rs, tu, that the pressure of the power C is trans¬
mitted equally to the orifices mn, op, tu, and so on with all
other powers. Every orifice, then, is influenced with the
same pressure, and, consequently, none of the powers A,
B, C, D can yield to the action of the rest. The fluid
mass, therefore, will neither change its form nor its situa¬
tion, and the powers A, B, C, D will be in equilibrio. If
the powers A, B, C, D are not equal to one another, nor
the orifices mn, op, rs, tu; but if A : B = mn : op, and
so on with the rest, the fluid will still be in equilibrio. Let
A be greater than B, then mn will be greater than op ;
and whatever number of times B is contained in A, so
many times will op be contained in mn. If A = 2 B,
then mn = 2 op, and since the orifice mn is double of op,
the pressure upon it must also be double; and, in order to
resist that pressure, the power A must also be double of B ;
but, by hypothesis, A = 2 B, consequently the pressures
upon the orifices, or the powers A, B, will be in equilibrio.
If the power A is any other multiple of B, it may be shown
in the same way that the fluid will be in equilibrio.
The application of the principle contained in this propo-
1 Mem. de Vlnst. 1854. 2 Nov. Comment. Petropol., tom. xiii., p. 305. 3 Melanges de Litterature, d'Histoire, et Philosophy.
4 Traiti des Fluides, § 20.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
79
Fluids.
Fig. 2.
Pressure, sition in the case of the Bramah press, constitutes that ma-
&c., of chine one of the most perfect instruments with which we
™ "J~ are acquainted; for the power exerted by one man may be
employed to balance several thousand tons.
50. Prop. III.—The surface of a fluid of small extent at
rest, and subject to gravity, is horizontal.
The truth of the proposition is a necessary consequence
of gravity acting on the fluid particles. For the attraction
of gravity being supposed to be lodged in
the centre of the earth, and a surface of
small extent being incomparable with re¬
spect to the distance of the attracting
centre, we may suppose, without sensible
error, that the particles on this surface
of small extent are all pulled with the
same intensity, and, therefore, they must
all be in the same plane, which will be
horizontal. For if the plane be not hori¬
zontal, let fig. 2 be a section of the mass,
with its surface BSA; take A and B, par¬
ticles of its surface, and BC, AD, vertical columns of liquid
molecules, C and D being in the same horizontal line. Now,
neglecting the atmospheric column, the pressures at A and
B are nothing, but at D and C they are equivalent to
the weight of two liquid cylinders AD and BC, having
equal bases. Hence, since there is a difference of
weights in the columns, A and B cannot be on the same
level, and, therefore, the surface BSA of the fluid cannot
be in equilibrium. Again, a particle as S would seek its
lowest level, and so all others similarly situated, until the
whole surface particles over a small extent would be in the
same plane; and the pressure at all points of the surface of
a fluid being the same, the fluid is in equilibrium, and there¬
fore a fluid surface of small extent will be horizontal.
The principle of the proposition is applied in the art of
levelling.
51. As the direction of gravity is in lines which meet
near the centre of the earth ; and as it appears from this
proposition, that the surface of fluids is perpendicular to
that direction, their surface will be a portion of a spheroid
similar to the earth. When the surface has no great ex¬
tent, it may be safely considered as a plane ; but when it
is pretty large, the curvature of the earth must be taken
into account.
52. Prop. IV.—Fluids rise to the same level throughout
a system of communicating vessels.
Suppose that there were alongside of each other several
vessels, A, C, E, G, I (fig. 3), of different forms and capaci¬
ties, cylindrical, spiral, conical, or spherical, containing fluid,
and communicating with one another by means of a com¬
mon vessel P. Now, if water be poured into this vessel, it
follows from Prop. III. (50), that the fluid will stand at a
common level in each of the vessels A, C, E, G, I; and if
a line be drawn parallel to one surface, it will be parallel to
all the surfaces, and it will also be parallel to the horizontal
plane. Therefore, also, if we remove the different shaped
vessels from the common reservoir, and introduce into the Pressure,
vessel ABEF solid bodies, T, GFH, UK, &c., then, after <&c., of
each immersion, the surface will still be horizontal; and F1uids.
when all the solids have been immersed, we shall have, as
it were, a system of communicating vessels in which the
surface of the fluid will necessarily be horizontal.
53. When the communicating vessels are so small, that
they may be regarded as capillary tubes, the surface of the
fluid will not be horizontal, as will afterwards be shown.
(See Capillary Attraction, art. 114.)
54. This proposition explains the reason why the surface
of small pools in the vicinity of rivers is always on a level
with the surface of the rivers themselves, when there is any
subterraneous communication between the river and the
pool. The river and the pool may be considered as com¬
municating vessels.
55. The practical application of the preceding proposition
is finely shown in the methods employed for supplying
towns with water. The ancients built aqueducts for this
purpose, perhaps not so much from ignorance of the princi¬
ple that water always seeks its own level, as from the diffi¬
culty of making their pipes water-tight at the joints. In
modern times, pipes carefully jointed and secured are al¬
most invariably used. The New River Water-works, how¬
ever, which supply part of London with water, embrace both
aqueducts and pipes.
56. Prop. V.—The pressure at any point below the sur¬
face of a fluid subject to gravity and at rest, varies
as its depth.
Let point B (fig. 4) be immediately under the surface at a
depth AB. The series of particles in the column AB is at
rest,and maybe supposed separated from the
rest of the fluid mass, and lodged in a tube,
not capillary, or the whole may be supposed
rigid or solid like ice. Now, every particle
of the column has weight, and so the upper
will press upon those lower, and these again
on the lowest particles; hence, the pressure
on the point B will be equal to the aggregate
weight of all the liquid particles; and hence,
also, the pressure will vary as the depth of
the point below the surface.
Similarly, also, let the point subject to Fig.4.
pressure be C (fig. 5), not directly under the surface. Take
ED a vertical from the surface, and
draw DC horizontal; then we may
consider the series of particles DC as
a solid mass. Now, as the pressure is
the same at all points along the line
DC, and as the pressure at D is equi¬
valent to a weight of fluid particles
DE, so also is the pressure at C of the
same value. Therefore, DE being
equal to FC, the pressure at C varies Fig. 5.
as its depth below the surface of the fluid.
57. Prop. V.— I o find the pressure on a line sunk in a
fluid subject to gravity.
Let the line be parallel to the surface of the fluid, and
the portion of it the pressure on which is required be the
unit of length. Let MN (fig. 4) be this portion of the
given line at the depth AM. There may be now supposed
to be a solidified mass of particles, with base MN and
height AM, resting on MN, each particle of which has
weight, and wholly separate from the rest of the mass. If,
then, a unit of bulk weigh gp, where g expresses the action of
gravity on one particle, and p the density of the fluid; and
80
Pressure, if z be the depth of the line, or the number of units in the
&c., of depth over the unit of length, the weight of the whole co-
Fluids. iumn wiH be expressed by gpz. But this weight is the
same as the pressure to which the unit of length is exposed ;
let this be p, therefore p=g-p-z- .
The same will be the result, if the portion MN were
lying oblique to the horizontal surface, the mean depth
being z.
58. Cor—Hence, if we have A units of length, or a
portion of a line of which the length is A, then if its depth
be z, the pressure will be p . A =gpz . A = P.
The quantity p is the same for the same fluid, but
different for different fluids. Further, in problems of a
practical nature, the pressure of the atmosphere on any line
or area, equal to that sunk in the fluid, must be added on
to the weight of the fluid, so as to obtain the true pressure.
hydrodynamics.
than the contained fluid, and the pressure on AB of y is Pressure,
a column ABDC, which is lighter than the contained fluid. &c., of
& Fluids.
CD
59. Prop. VI.—If a surface be sunk in a fluid subject to
gravity, find the pressure upon it, or on the surface
of the vessel containing fluid.
Let the given area be A, and suppose it broken up into
an infinity of small areas, a, ax, a2, a3, See. the mean
depths of which under the surface let be, z, zv z2, z3, Sic....
zH, then the different pressures on these partial areas will
be (Prop. V.) respectively, gpza, gpzyax, gpz2av gpz3a3, Sic.
....gpznan; therefore, the total pressure on the surface =
gpza + gpzla1+gpz2a2+gpz.ia3+ ... +gpznan. But if Z
be the depth of the centre of gravity below the surface, and
S the area of the plane, then, by a property of the centre of
gravity (see Mechanics), we have #pSZ = gpza + gpzlai
+gpz2a2 + gpz3a3 + ... + gpznan. Bui gpSZ is evidently
the weight of a column of fluid, of which the height is Z
and base is S.
Wherefore, the pressure of a fluid on any surface is the
weight of a column of the fluid, the base of which is the
area of the surface pressed, and the height, the depth of the
centre of gravity of the area below the surface of the fluid.
60. Cor. 1.—From this proposition it follows, that the
whole pressure on the sides of a vessel which are perpen¬
dicular to its base, is equal to the weight of a rectangular
prism of the fluid, whose altitude is that of the fluid, and
whose base is a parallelogram, one side of which is equal to
the altitude of the fluid, and the other to half the perimeter
of the vessel.
Cor. 2.—The pressure on the surface of a hemispherical
vessel full of fluid, is equal to the product of its surface
multiplied by its radius.
Cor. 3.—In a cubical vessel the pressure against one
side is equal to half the pressure against the bottom ; and
the pressure against the sides and bottom together, is to
that against the bottom alone, as three to one. Hence, as
the pressure against the bottom is equal to the weight of
the fluid in the vessel, the pressure against both the sides
and bottom will be equal to three times that weight.
Cor. 4.—’The pressure sustained by different parts of the
side of a vessel are as the squares of their depths below
the surface; and if these depths are made the abscissae of
a parabola, its ordinates will indicate the corresponding
pressures.
61. Prop. VII.—To find the pressure on the bottom of a
vessel of any form containing fluid.
Pig. 6.
If the vessel be as (3, then a pressure, P, arising from the re¬
sistance of the side at a point o, will act perpendicularly in¬
ward, with a force proportioned to the depth of o; and the
same will be the case for the several pressures at the dif¬
ferent points of the inclining sides ; but these pressures, as
P, may each be resolved into vertical, as S, and horizontal,
as R, components, of which all the horizontal ones for every
section balance, whereas the vertical components acting
downwards and parallel will have a single resultant, which
will be an amount of additional fluid, as it were, pressing on
the base. On the other hand, in y, of fig. 6, the pressures,
as P in points, as o, of the sides acting perpendicularly out¬
wards, may be resolved into vertical and horizontal com¬
ponents : the latter destroy each other at every section;
the former, acting upwards or downwards, according to the
position of o, have a single resultant, acting in opposition to
the general weight of the fluid, which is the same as if a
quantity of fluid were removed from the vessel. Hence, if
the bases be all equal, and the fluid at the same height in
each vessel, whatever be their forms, the pressure on base
will be equal to the weight of a column of fluid, having for
its base that of the vessel, and for its height the depth of
the base below the surface of the fluid.
62. In order to illustrate the preceding propositions, let
there be four vessels, A, B, C, D (fig. 7), having bottoms aU
of the same area, and closed by plates E, F, G, H, of the
same weight. Let the plates also be kept in their places by
means of strings passing over pullies, and acted on by the
equal weights W, W', W", W"'. These weights will mea¬
sure the pressure of water on the plates, i.e., on the bases
of the vessels. For if water be poured into each vessel till
there be just enough to balance the weight, or when the
plates are about to descend, it will be found that the water
will be at the same height in each vessel. 1 he same will
be the case, whatever be the shape of the vessels, even
although one may be a thousand times more capacious than
annthpr.
If the walls of the vessel be vertical as a (fig. 6), and its
base parallel to the surface, it is clear that the pressure
on the bottom will be equal to the whole weight of fluid
contained in a. But if the containing vessels be as (3
and y of fig. 6, then the pressure on the base AB in the
former case is greater than the weight of the fluid, while
the latter is less than that weight. For the pressure on AB
of j6, is the weight of a column ABDC, which is heavier
63. Definition.—The centre of pressure is that point of a
surface exposed to the pressure of a fluid, to which, if the
total pressure were applied, the effect upon the plane would
be the same as when the pressure was distributed over the
whole surface : Or, it is that point to which, if a force equal
to the total pressure were applied in a contrary direction,
the one would exactly balance the other or, in other words,
HYDRODYNAMICS.
81
Pressure, the force applied and the total pressure would be in equi-
&c., of librio.
Fluids.
If any point of the surface ABC coincide with the Pressure,
surface, then 1=0,
To find the
centre of
pressure.
Fig. 8.
64. Prop. VIII.—To find the centre of pressure of any
plane surface immersed in a fluid to any depth.
Let ABC (fig. 8) be a plane surface sunk in a fluid, and in¬
clined at an angle, 6, to the sur¬
face of the fluid which it meets,
when produced, in HI. Let/
= AG be the distance of point
A from the water-line, or HI,
measured along GA:c drawn at
right angles to HI in the plane
of ABC; let A be the origin
of rectangular co-ordinates to
which ABC is referred, GAa?
the axis of x, and \y, parallel to
HI, that of y. EF is an elemen¬
tal area of the surface ABC.
Take Y and X as the rectan¬
gular co-ordinates of the centre of pressure.
Now the pressure at every point equals the height of a
column of particles, and this being so, we may take all the
pressures on ABC as parallel forces. Hence, from Sta¬
tics, we have,
X. pressure on ABC = moment of pressure on ABC (1), and,
Y. pressure on AB C = moment of pressure on AB C (2).
If we suppose area ABC to be broken up into a series of
very small surfaces as Eh, of which dx and dy are the di¬
mensions, it is evident that the pressure on the whole sur¬
face ABC will be the sum of the pressures on these small
elements. But the pressure on the area EF =p .dx .dy =
<7P x the perpendicular from EF to lAl .dx.dy=gp (# + /)
. sin 9 dx .dy •, where x is the absciss of the infinitely small
area EF:
The whole pressure on ABC=£^p . dx.dy
=99 • sin + /) dx.dy.
If we multiply this last by x, it will give us the moment
about Ay, and if by y, it will give us the moment about
Ax. Wherefore, moment of pressure on ABC about Ay
=gp sin x .dx .dy ;
and, moment of pressure on ABC about Ax
=gp sin •If' x + l)y, dx. dy.
Substitute now in (1) and (2) the values thus found,
X .gp sin eSfx ■\-V) dx dy=gp sin + /) xdxdy;
Y. gp sin x + l) dx dy=gp sin eff(x + l)y dx dy ;
or> xIf( x + l) dx + t) x dx dy (3) ;
Y^y^a? + /) dx fy-J'J'A + 0 // dx dy (4).
Since equations (3) and (4) will give a value for X and
Y respectively, the centre of pressure is known. If the
surface be curved, and its curvature known, then, on inte¬
grating, we have,
X^(« + /) y \x + l) x y dx
'lJ(?:*l)ydx=J(x+l)/-dx
very important formulae.
VOL. XII.
y2 dx
&c., of
Fluids.
which are
x y dx=J'xly dx, and ^^J*x d dx
If the surface be sunk to a great depth, or /= infinity =
X, then will the centre of gravity coincide with the centre
of pressure; for, from (3) and (4), since the infinite parts
must be equal,
\l^J(lx dy = x dx dy; or, xA dx =fx y dx ;
Ylffdxdy=tffy dx dy; or’ xSy dx=ify'
But the values of X and Y, determined from these last
equations, are the co-ordinates of the centre of gravity of
a plane area bounded by a plane curve. Hence, under
such a condition, the centre of pressure is the same as the
centre of gravity.
65. Cor. 1.—A physical plane, one side of which is ex-L°rolla-
posed to the pressure of a fluid, may be kept at rest by aries-
single force, equal and opposite to the pressure of the fluid
applied at its centre of pressure.
C0R- 2.—Where a plane lamina of a very small uniform
thickness is moveable round its Y axis, the values of X and
Y will be those of the co-ordinates of its centre of percussion.
Cor. 3.—The centre of pressure of a triangle, the base of
which coincides with the level of the water, is at a distance
of one-third the height of the triangle from its base. If
the summit coincide with the surface, then the centre of
pressure will be at two-thirds the height, measuring from
the summit. . .
66. The application of the preceding proposition is of the
utmost consequence in the case of flood-gates, sea-walls,
dykes, brewers’ vats, and the like.
SECTION II. INSTRUMENTS FOR ILLUSTRATING THE PRESSURE
OF FLUIDS.
67. We have already seen from arts. 59, 61, 62, that the Machine
pressure on the bottom of a vessel of any form, does not de- tra(.in(T tjie
pend on the quantity of fluid contained therein, but on the hydrosta-
area of the base and the depth of the fluid. I he hydrostatic tic para-
hellows is an excellent instrument for showing this principle, dox.
A and B (fig. 9) are two strong boards, united together by
means of leather, so as to form a sort of bellows, but per¬
fectly water-tight, C is a vertical tube communicating with
the interior of the bellows. If
water, or any other fluid, be
poured down the tube C by the
funnel F, it will enter the bel¬
lows AB, and raise the upper
board A, even though loaded
with a heavy weight W. The up¬
per board A will continue to be
forced up till either the bellows
be full or the tube be filled
throughout its whole length.
Suppose that an equilibrium
subsists between the water in
the tube and bellows, and let
DE be the height of the column
of water in the tube above the
surface of water in the bellows.
Then the weight of this column
DE will be that which supports
the whole weight raised; for
the fluid DC in the tube is in
equilibrium with that in the bellows, and hence the pres¬
sure at the surface of the fluid in the bellows is in equili¬
brium with the column DE.
Fig. 9.
82
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Pressure,
&c., of
Fluids.
68. Suppose that the whole vreight raised is W, which in¬
cludes the load, the weight of the upper board and of the
leather, let S be the area of the upper board A, s the sec¬
tional area of the tube ; let also p be the unit of pressuie
on a unit of surface transmitted fiom the surface at D by
the column DE ; then, since fluids press equally in every
direction, the upward pressure on the board A will —p . S,
which balances the downward pressure of the weight W.
Hence ^.S = W. Now, the whole pressure at D=p.^;
wherefore we have W=p . S, and pressure at D=p. s.
.*. W : pressure at D=p.S :p.s = § : s.
W = weight raised = -^. pressure at D,
= — . weight of a column DE.
s °
Hence the weight which can be raised will be increased if
we increase the area of the upper board, or if we diminish
the sectional area of the tube, or if we increase the pres¬
sure of the column, i.e., if we lengthen the tube.
S
69. In a theoretical point of view the ratio — may become
infinitely large; hence any quantity of fluid, however
small, may be so employed as to sustain any weight however
large.
The same instrument may be employed for the same
purpose when air or any gas is blown or forced in at the
funnel F, and condensed in the bellows. In which case
a very heavy weight may be raised by means of a small
vertical tube. Hence, a person standing on the hydro¬
static bellows might raise himself by blowing into the tube.
Hence, also, a small vertical pipe like that in fig. 9,
fitted into a barrel full of water or other fluid, may, when
filled with water or other fluid, be a means of bursting the
barrel.
Similarly, also, it is highly probable, that the sudden
formation of inland lakes is due to this pressure of water.
For, suppose that a considerable extent of water-tight stra¬
tum forms the roof of a subterranean lake, and that this
water, and therefore the roof, is subject to the pressure of a
column several hundred feet high ; it is clear that, as soon
as the upward pressure of the column exceeds the strength
of the material forming the roof, the latter will break up
and a lake will be formed.
The siphon. ?a The siphon is a bent tube, ABCDE (fig. 10), having
two legs, one
shorter than the
other, wherewith
when the shorter
end is plunged
into a vessel con¬
taining fluid, it
may be emptied
intoanotherwith-
out there being
any communica¬
tion between the
vessels. Before
a transference of Fig. to.
the liquid takes place the tube is previously filled with fluid,
and its ends stopped by the fingers, then inverted, and the
shorter end placed into the vessel which is to be emptied ;
the other end being left free, the water escapes by it, and
will continue to escape until the level of the water in the
vessel be in the same plane as the mouth of the short leg.
71. In order to explain the flow of water through the
tube, let us suppose that the end A, after the siphon has
been filled, is made water-tight by means of a moveable
piston, and that the surface of M is open to the atmo¬
sphere. The inner and outer surfaces of the piston will be
exposed to pressure, so also will the surface of fluid in M ; Pressure,
the latter, as also the fluid in the short leg, will be subject &c>>.
to the atmospheric pressure, but the former will have the Fluids-
pressure on the outer face constant, while that on the inner
face will depend on its position in the long leg. As the
piston rises from A in the siphon leg, the pressure on the
inner face of the piston gradually diminishes. If the piston
be at F, or in the horizontal part C, its outer face will be
subject to the atmospheric pressure, but its inner face to
that pressure exercised on the fluid surface of M, less the
weight of a column of fluid, the height of which is the ver¬
tical distance of the inner face of the piston above the sur¬
face of the fluid in M. Let the piston be gradually drawn
downwards, and the pressure on the inner face increases,
since, on arriving at B, which is on the same level as
the fluid surface in M, it equals that of the atmosphere.
Hence, if the siphon were of the form BFCD, and B and
D in the same horizontal line, no water would flow out at
B, simply because the pressure at B is the same as that
at D. Let, now, the piston be lower than B, then is its
inner face pressed not only by the atmosphere on the
fluid surface of M, but also by the weight of a fluid
column of a height equal to the distance between it
and B. The water will then flow out by this leg. The
lower, therefore, the piston is, the greater will be the ex¬
cess of the pressure on the inner over that on the outer
face; and when it comes to the mouth of the tube at A
this excess will be a maximum ; hence, as soon as the pis¬
ton has been withdrawn, a flow of water will take place by
the mouth A, with a velocity equal to that with which a
body, falling freely from B, would have on reaching A.
The velocity of escape, however, will not be accurately the
above, owing to the bending of the tube, and also to the
friction of the water in passing along the siphon.
72. The pressure of the atmosphere is then a very im¬
portant matter in the action of the siphon, since without this
element the fluid would not rise in the shorter leg. If a
prepared siphon, i.e., filled with fluid, and its ends tempora¬
rily stopped, were set to act under the exhausted receiver,
the fluid would divide itself into two portions ; that in the
long leg would fall out on one side, while that in the short
leg would fall back into the fluid in the vessel. Again, if
the siphon should have, between the surface of the fluid to
be emptied and its bend, a distance of more than 32 feet,
then it will not work ; if nearly 32 feet, its action will be
very sluggish.
73. The filling of the siphon with fluid so as to prepare it
for working, is not the best method ; generally a small tube
rises vertically from near A, as shown by the dotted lines
(fig. 10). The air is drawn out of the siphon by means of this
small tube, and as the air is more and more rarified, the water
rises to the top of the short leg, then, flowing along the hori¬
zontal portion, if any, enters the long leg and passes out.
It is in this way that tuns of wine and other spirits are
emptied, without requiring to pierce a hole in the lower
end, the bung hole being open; it will suffice if a white-
iron siphon be introduced into the bung hole, and the space
around the plunged leg be free that the pressure of the at¬
mosphere may be allowed to act.
74. The application of the principle of the siphon in na¬
ture is finely shown in the action of reciprocating, or in¬
termitting springs, that is, of those which flow and cease at
regular or irregular periods. A large subterraneous ca¬
vern, or porous bed, may be regarded as a reservoir collect¬
ing water by narrow pipes or channels ; and the only
outlet to this collected water will be by natural or artificial
pipes rising to the surface, forming, in every respect, a na¬
tural siphon. The reservoir will evidently be drained by
the latter pipes, whenever a sufficient head or pressure is
upon the collected water. Hence, also, Artesian Wells
are but natural siphons.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
83
Flotation.
CHAPTER II.—ON FLOTATION AND SPECIFIC GRAVITIES.
Flotation.
SECTION I.—FLOTATION.
75. The consideration of floating bodies enables us to
determine the conditions of rest or motion when placed in
a fluid; if at rest, whether their position will be stable or
unstable, and if in motion, the circumstances under which
they rise or sink in the fluid.
76. Prop. I.—A body at rest and immersed in a fluid, is
forced upwards by a pressure equal to the weight
of the fluid displaced.
Proposition Let us suppose first of all, that
of Archi' we iiave in the vessel of fluid
modes. n) a cubiCal mass M.
When the surface ef is horizon¬
tal, the fluid is at rest, and so
also is M. The vertical faces
of M are pressed equally, and
the forces are balanced among
themselves ; but the lower and
upper face sustain different pres¬
sures ; the excess lies on the for¬
mer, and is equal to the weight of
a cubical mass, M, of fluid. Now,
since M, which we may suppose Fig. ii.
to be a mass of the fluid solidified, is at rest, its weight will
act downwards, and the supporting fluid will exert, as it
wrere, a pressure forcing it upwards ; and as M is in equili¬
brium, the downward and upward pressures will be equal
to each other. Suppose now that we remove the fluid mass
M, and introduce a body of a different material, such that
the equilibrium shall still be unchanged, it is evident that
wre shall have the same upward force of the supporting fluid,
and downward force of the body, balancing each other.
If the weight of the body immersed be equal to that of the
fluid displaced, as will then be the case, the body will be
at rest; if the former weight should exceed the latter the
body will sink, if the latter the former, the body will float
on the surface.
77. Again, the body immersed and at rest in the fluid
may be supposed to be of any form as N (fig. 11); then
it will be supported in the same way as a similarly condi¬
tioned mass of the fluid would be, that is, the upward and
downward pressure of the supporting fluid and body re¬
spectively will be the same. Hence the truth of the pro¬
position. t
This proposition is known as the principle of Archimedes,
having been first discovered by him.
78. Definition.—When a body floats in a fluid, the
plane passing through the body, and coinciding with the
surface plane of the fluid, is called the plane of flotation.
79. Prop. II.—When a body floats in a fluid, the weight
of the volume which it displaces is equal to the
weight of the body, and the downward force of the
body, as also the upward force of the fluid, is equal
to the weight of fluid displaced.
Let S be a body floating in the vessel (fig. 11), a mass
M" being above, and M' being below' the plane of flotation,
so that the whole mass, say M = M' + M". Now, evidently,
when S floats, it is buoyed up by some under pressure, and
before immersion took place, a volume of fluid was sus¬
tained in the same manner ; as we have then an upward pres¬
sure supporting at one time a volume M' of fluid, and again
a body, a mass of which M' is immersed, it follows that the
weight of the floating body and that of the volume of fluid
displaced are equal to each other.
Again, if we take any point of the surface of the mass
below the plane of flotation, then the pressure at this point
of the body will be the weight of a fluid column of a height
equal to the depth of that point below the surface ; and the
same holds true for all the other pressures on the other
points of the mass immersed, i.e., the weights of the several
fluid columns. But the weight of all the fluid columns
equals that of the fluid displaced, hence the downward
pressure of the body and the upward pressure of the sus¬
taining fluid each equals the weight of the fluid displaced.
Call V the volume of the floating body, p its density,
then its weight is (M' + M") g=^pg. Call V' the volume
of M', and p the density of the fluid, then weight of dis¬
placed fluid = V'p'^; .'. Xpg=Vpg, ox Vp = V'p'. Ifp=p
then V = V', and the body will be wholly under the fluid.
80. Cor.—From this proposition, we learn that a float- Corollary,
ing body is buoyed up by a force equal to the weight of the
fluid displaced. This follows from the principle of Archi¬
medes, and means that a body either floating or wholly im¬
mersed, loses as much of its weight as equals that of the fluid
displaced. Hence a bucket full of water placed in its own
medium is lighter than when surrounded by air.
The application of the preceding proposition is finely
shown in Green’s Canal Lifts, whereby laden barges may
be transferred vertically from one level to another of a
canal; for an account of which we refer to the Trans. Inst.
Civ. Engin. 4to, vol. ii., p. 185.
81. When a body is not at rest in a fluid, it will ascend
or descend with a moving force equal to the difference be¬
tween the weight of the solid, or part of the solid immersed,
and the weight of an equal volume of the fluid. It is on
this principle that the Camel is explained. Two large
boxes or chests, with a number of separate compartments
in each, are filled with water, and sunk one on each side of
a sunken vessel which is to be raised, the chests being made
fast to the keel by straps passing underneath it. The
water is now pumped out, and the buoyant power of the
chests raises the vessel. This is also the principle on which
life-preservers act. Fish also owe their equilibrium to the
same principle, since on rising or sinking the weight of the
column of water diminishes or increases and so expands or
contracts their body.
82. Definition.—Metacentre.—Let the body be slightly Metacentre,
disturbed through a small angle, then by the metacentre is
meant, the point of intersection of the vertical line through
the centre of gravity of the fluid displaced, and the vertical
line through the centre of gravity of the body when at rest.
83. Prop. III.—If a body float in a fluid, the line joining
the centres of gravity of the body, and the fluid dis¬
placed is in the same vertical.
The floating body, we have seen, presses downwards,
and the fluid presses upwards with an equal force ; we may
therefore reckon these pressures as forces acting respec¬
tively at the centre of gravity of the body, downwards, and
at the centre of gravity of the fluid displaced, upwards.
Hence, the body cannot be at rest, unless these forces be
equal and opposite, i.e., unless the line joining the centres
of gravity of the body and of the fluid displaced be in the
same vertical.
84. Cor.—In all other positions the forces will consti- or
tute what is called a statical couple, which admits of no
single resultant of the two components.
i
84
Flotation.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
85. We can now determine the conditions under which
a floating body will remain at rest: these are
ls£, That the weight of the body be equal to that of the
fluid displaced; and
2d, That the centre of gravity of the body, and the cen¬
tre of gravity of the fluid displaced, be in the same vei-
tlC86. In all cases of the equilibrium of floating bodies
these conditions must obtain. They are insufficient, how¬
ever to determine the nature of the equilibrium, but refer
to a motion of translation upwards, downwards, or forwards,
not to a motion of rotation. Thus, suppose a body floating
in a fluid to be at rest, and let it be struck obliquely, then
the body will move under the influence of two motions—
one of translation, the other of rotation. By the first, the
body will oscillate backwards and forwards, till, after a time,
it will resume its original position. By the second, the
motion will differ with the nature of the floating body ;
but these motions may be referred to three classes :—1^,
When the body oscillates about its original position, and at
last returns to it. 2d, When, after passing through a cer¬
tain angle, the body remains at rest, without recovering its
first position, ‘id, When it has no tendency whatever to
come back to its first position, but continues to recede the
farther from it.
87. In these three cases we have the nature of the equi¬
librium of floating bodies. Hence the first gives us an
equilibrium of stability, the second one of neutrality or in¬
difference, and the third, one of instability.
A floating body, therefore, is said to be in stable equili¬
brium, when, on suffering a slight displacement, or being
made to revolve through a certain angle, it returns to its
first position.
A floating body is said to be in neutral or indifferent
equilibrium, when, on being slightly disturbed, it will rest
in any position.
A floating body is said to be in unstable equilibrium,
when, on receiving a slight disturbance, it continually de¬
parts from its first position.
88. The nature of the equilibrium of a floating body is
a very important matter, more especially in ship-building,
and in the distribution of the cargo, as also of the ballast
of a vessel.
89. Prop. IV.—To determine when the equilibrium is
stable, unstable, or neutral.
Let AB (fig. 12) be a body floating in a fluid, g the centre
of gravity of the body, mg the di¬
rection of gravity when the body was
at rest, as in the dotted figure, but
which, when the body has been dis¬
placed, lies in gw; g the centre of
gravity of the fluid displaced. Pass
a vertical through g, meeting gm
in m \ m xs, called the metacentre
ot the body. Now, the weight of
the body at g acting down, and the
pressure of the fluid at g acting up, w
tend to bring the body back to its Pig. 12.
position of rest. Hence, when m is above g, the equili¬
brium is stable. This is the case when the body is loaded
at the lowest parts, and it is clear that the action of each
will be to bring g to the lowest position it can take.
When m is below g, then, the fluid pressing upwards,
and the weight acting downwards, will each tend to move
the body farther and farther from its first position, so that
the equilibrium is unstable.
When m coincides with g, then the forces being equal
and opposite, and acting at the same point, the body will
rest in that position, and the equilibrium will be neutral Flotation,
or indifferent.
90, Cor.—Hence the necessity of having the heavier Corollary,
goods of a ship’s cargo stowed away at the bottom of the
vessel, and of having the ship properly ballasted, or the keel
well laden. For the masts and rigging may tend to raise
the centre of gravity of the ship above the metacentre, in
which case the vessel would be thrown on her beam ends.
Similarly, also, it is much more safe to sit in a small boat
than to stand upright, for the centre of gravity of the craft
is low in the former, but high in the latter case.
SECTION II.—SPECIFIC GRAVITIES.
91. Definition.—By the specific gravity of a substance is Specific
meant the ratio subsisting between the weights of equal gravities,
volumes of that substance and some other known substance
taken as a standard.
92. It has been agreed among philosophers to take as the
standard of comparison the purest distilled water, at a tem¬
perature of 60° Fahr., and when the barometer is at 30
inches; the values or quotients of the ratios expressing the
specific gravities of different substances, being all set down
in a table of specific gravities. Thus the weight of a cubic
foot of pure platinais 19,500 ounces, but the weight of a cubic
foot of standard water is 1000 ounces ; therefore the ratio be¬
tween the former and latter numbers, or —=19*5 =
the specific gravity of pure platina—that is to say, since all
matter is equally heavy, that there are 19^ times more mat¬
ter in a cubic foot of platina than there is in a cubic foot
of pure distilled water. If, then, unity or 1 be taken as the
specific gravity of water, 19-5 will be that of pure pla¬
tina, or we have only in the table to count off from right
to left three places, so as to obtain the specific gravity of
the several substances there set down.
93. With respect to the specific gravities of the gases,
on the other hand, they may be reckoned in terms of water
or atmospheric air ; in either case we shall have the same
results. Biot and Arago have deduced from very accurate
experiments, that when the temperature was at 59° Fahr.,
air was 800 times lighter than water, and when at the freez¬
ing point, it was 770 times lighter. The weight of a cubic
foot of air, then, being taken as 1 ounce, 1000 such volumes
will weigh 1000 ounces. But it is found that 1000 cubic
feet of hydriodic acid weighs 4300 ounces. Hence the
specific gravity of hydriodic acid is the ratio between the
latter and the former numbers, or = 4*3.
94. Prop. V.—The densities of different substances are
as their specific gravities.
Let A and B be the bodies, having volumes V and V',
and densities p and p, respectively; then, A weighs Vp^,
while B weighs V'p'iy. If the substances be compared
with the standard fluid, the density of which, like the spe¬
cific gravity, is unity, the weights of volumes V and V of
it will be Vg and \'g ; therefore,
Sp. gr. of A = and sp. gr. of B = ;
or, Sp. gr. of A : sp. gr. of B = = P : p'-
95. Cor.—The specific gravity of different substances Corollary,
will be as the weights of equal bulks of the substances.
96. Prop. VI.—If a body be immersed in a fluid, the
weight lost is to the weight of the body, as the specific
gravity of the fluid is to the specific gravity of the body.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
85
Specific Suppose that W is the weight of the body, and W that
Gravities. ]ost by immersion ; then W-W' is the weight by which
it sinks, since W' is the weight of the fluid displaced. Let
V be the volume of the body, p and p the density of the
body and fluid respectively ; then
W = Vp(/, and W' = Vp'/7-
/. W' : W = Yp'g : Ypg = p P- But (by Prop. V.)
= Specific gr. of fluid : specific gr. of body.
97. Prop. VII.—To find the specific gravity of a
substance.
Let W be the weight of the body in air, W' its weight
in water; then weight lost = W - W' = weight of fluid dis¬
placed, and the volume displaced = that of the body. Hence
W - W' is the weight of a volume of fluid equal to the
volume of the body. Therefore, by def. 92,
W
Specific gravity of substance = - ^ .
Let the body be lighter than water; then, in order to
make it sink, let a different body be attached to it, the
weight of which is W1 in air, and W2 in water. Let also
W' be the weight of both bodies in the water. Then, W
being weight of body,
Weight of water equal in volume to both bodies =W + W,—W'
Weightof water equal in volume to attached body =W1 — W2
Weight of water equal in volume to the body the
specific gravity of which is required=W1 + W2 — W/
by subtraction;
W
.-. Specific gravity of body=^—
If the body be soluble, as sugar, &c., in water, it must
be inclosed in wax or some other envelope, and a process
similar to the last case will determine its specific gravity.
98. Prop. VIII.—To find the specific gravity of a com¬
pound body. All bodies of the same material have
always the same specific gravity; but a compound body
has a specific gravity different from that of either of its
components.
Let V and V' be the volumes of the components, p and p
their densities, p that of the compound; then
(v+v‘) p = vp+yp; or, (v+v)£=ve.+v£-
P'2 Pi, ' P2
where p2 = unity or 1 ; or, (V + V') S'' = VS + V'S', since
specific gravities are as their densities (94) ;
Specific gravity of compound = S" = ^.
99. It is said that Hiero, king of Syracuse, gave a gold¬
smith a quantity of pure gold to be made into a crown. On
the crown being brought to him and examined, Hiero sus¬
pected that the goldsmith had adulterated the pure metal;
he therefore inquired at Archimedes if his suspicions could
be verified or disproved without injuring the crown. Ar¬
chimedes, shortly after, showed Hiero that the crown was
alloyed with a base metal. The adulteration must have
been detected by the principles already explained.
100. Prop. IX.—To find the specific gravity of a fluid.
Let a vessel be filled with the fluid, and, being weighed
in air, let its weight be W, and let W' be the weight of
the vessel when empty; let also the same vessel when filled
with pure distilled water, and weighed in air, be W" ; if care
be taken, the volumes of the fluid and of the water will be
the same. Now the volume of the fluid weighs W — W,
while an equal volume of water weighs W" — W';
.\ Specific gravity of fluid = ^
101. Cor.—After the same manner the specific gravity of
atmospheric air, or any of the gases, or even fine powders,
may be obtained.
Specific
Gravities.
102. Prop. X.—The specific gravities of two fluids may
be compared by weighing the same solid in each.
Let the body weigh W in air, Wj when immersed in
the first fluid, W2 in the second ; then,
Weight of first fluid displaced = W — Wj and
Weight of second fluid displaced = W — W2.
But each of these expressions is the weight of equal
volumes of different substances ; therefore (Cor. 95) if S!
and S2 be the specific gravities of the first and second fluid ;
Sp. gr. of first fluid : sp. gr. of second fluid=W —: W —W2;
or, Sl : S,=W-W, : W-Wa:
103. Prop. XL—When several fluids are thrown together
into the same vessel, they will either become a com¬
pound fluid, or remain unmixed, and superposed
above each other, their surfaces being horizontal.
Let the fluids have volumes V1? V2, V3, &c....Vn, re¬
spectively, and corresponding specific gravities, Sj, S2, S>3,
&c....S„; then, when the fluids mix together, the specific
gravity of the new fluid will be found by art. 98 to be
s = v,s, H- v,s,+ v,s, + ... + VA
v1 +v2 + v3 + ... + Vn
104. If the fluids do not mix, then they will range them¬
selves according to their specific gravi- M
ties, and equilibrium will be attained
when the common surface of any two of
them is horizontal. For suppose that we
have a vessel M (fig. 13), containing say
two fluids, the heavier AB lowest, and its
surface assuming the outline AB, and a
lighter fluid above it. Take CAEandDBF,
vertical lines, C and D being points in the
horizontal surface of the lighter fluid, A P>g-13-
and B points on the surface of the heavier, E and F hori¬
zontal points in the depth of the same fluid. Now, it is
evident, that at points C and D, on the horizontal surface
of the upper fluid, the pressures are equal; and if the same
fluid had filled the vessel, those at E and F would also have
been equal, being caused by the weight of a column extend¬
ing from F or E to the surface. But the pressures at A
and B of the heavier fluid are unequal, the former being
pressed by a lighter column than the latter ; and although
the cylindrical columns DF, CE are of the same dimensions
throughout, yet in the latter there is a greater quantity of the
heavier fluid than in the former; the difference of weights
of the columns cannot be compensated by the less heavy
fluid, and consequently the pressures at the points E and F
are unequal. Hence equilibrium cannot obtain ; for before
an equilibrium can subsist, it is necessary and sufficient that
the points in the same horizontal plane should be pressed
equally ; this can only obtain when the surface A B is truly
horizontal. It is not necessary that the differently dense
and immiscible fluids should range themselves in the vessel
according to their weights. It is quite possible for a heavy
fluid to be uniformly distributed over the surface of a
lighter fluid, hut in such a position, the equilibrium would
be unstable, and the slightest displacement of the vessel
from one side to the other would cause the heavy fluid to de¬
scend and assume the lowest position in the vessel.
If, then, several fluids of different densities, and which
do not mix, be thrown into a vessel, and the vessel shaken
for any length of time, and then allowed to stand, the fluid
86
HYDRODYNAMICS.
F -
Of Specific particles of the same kind will gradually settle in the order
Gravities. 0f fliejr specific gravities, and with plane horizontal surfaces.
SECTION III.—ON THE HYDROMETER.
105. In order to determine with expedition the strength
of spirituous liquors, which are inversely proportional to
their specific gravities, an instrument more simple, though
less accurate, than the hydrostatic balance, has been gene¬
rally employed. This instrument is called a hydrometer,
sometimes an areometer and gravimeter, and very errone¬
ously a hygrometer by some foreign authors. It seems to
have been invented by Hypatia, the daughter of Theon
Alexandrinus, who flourished about the end of the fourth
century ; though there is some foundation for the opinion
that the invention is due to Archimedes.
106. The Common Hydrometer was invented by Fahren¬
heit, and is the simplest of this class of in¬
struments. It consists of two hollow spheres,
C and D (fig. 14); BFE is a delicate cylindri¬
cal stem, nicely graduated; and D is loaded
with mercury or lead, that the centre of
gravity of the instrument may be below that
of the fluid displaced.
Let V = volume of this Common Hy¬
drometer and k the section of the gradu¬
ated stem. Let the instrument be placed
in a fluid A of a density p, and let it sink
to a depth E, while in another fluid, B, of a
density p', it sinks to F; let also the depths
of E and F from the zero point, or top
of the stem, be x and y divisions respec¬
tively. Then, volume of fluid displaced of
A = (V — xh), and volume of flu id displaced of
B = (V — yk) ; the weights of which are
respectively (V — xk)gp, and (V - yk)gp.
But as the weight of the fluid displaced
is equal to the weight of the body immersed, we have
(Y-xk) gp = (V - yk) gp ; or, (V - xk) : (V - yk) =
p : p= specific gravity of B : specific gravity of A (94).
Specific gravity of’A = specific gravity of B . ^ ~
\ — xk
~ ^ since B is regarded as the standard fluid of which
the specific gravity is unity or 1.
Jones’s hy- 107. Jones's Hydrometer (fig. 16) is a simple and accu-
drometer. rate instrument, requiring only three weights to
discover the strengths of spirituous liquors from
alcohol to water. It is adjusted to the tempera¬
ture of 60° Fahr., and has an attached thermo¬
meter, so as to make due allowance for a varia¬
tion of the temperature.
In fig. 16, the whole instrument is repre¬
sented with the thermometer attached to it. Its
length, AB, isabout9^inches; the ball C is made
of hard brass, and nearly
oval, having its conjugatefoJ
diameter about 1^ inches. V^/
The stem AD is a parallele¬
piped, on the four sides of
which the different strengths
of spirits are engraved: the
three sides which do not ap¬
pear in fig. 16 are repre¬
sented in fig. 15, with the
three weights numbered 1,
2, 3, corresponding with the
sides similarly marked at
the top. If the instrument,
when placed in the spirits,
sinks to the divisions on uie stem without a Eig. ie.
weight, their strength will be shown on the side AD marked
Fig.14.
0 at the top, and any degree of strength from 74 gallons in the Of Specific
100 to 47 in the 100 above proof will thus be indicated. Gravities.
If the hydrometer does not sink to the divisions without a
weight, it must be loaded with any of the weights 1,2, 3, till
the ball C is completely immersed. If the weight No. 1 is
the necessary, the side marked 1 will show the strength of
spirits, from 46 to 13 gallons in the 100 above proof. If
the weight No. 2 is employed, the corresponding side will
indicate the remainder of over proof to proof, marked P in
the instrument, and likewise every gallon in 100 under proof,
down to 29. When the weight No. 3 is used, the side
similarly marked will show any strength from 30 gallons in
the 100 under proof, down to water, which is marked W in
the scale. The small figures, as 4 at 66, 3|- at 61, 2^ at 48
(fig. 16) indicate the diminution of bulk which takes place
when water is mixed with spirits of wine in order to reduce it
to proof: thus, if the spirit be 61 gallons in the lOOover proof,
and if 61 gallons of water are added in order to render it
proof, the magnitude of the mixture will be 3^ gallons less
than the sum of the magnitudes of the ingredients; that is,
instead of being 161 it will be only 157^ gallons. The
thermometer F connected with the hydrometer, has four
columns engraved upon it, two on one side as seen in the
figure, and two on the other side. When any of the scales
upon the hydrometer, marked 0, 1,2, 3, are employed, the
column of the thermometer similarly marked must be used,
and the number at which the mercury stands carefully ob¬
served. The divisions commence at the middle of each
column which is marked 0, and is equivalent to a temper¬
ature of 60° of Fahrenheit; then, whatever number of di¬
visions the mercury stands above the zero of the scale, the
same number of gallons in the 100 must the spirit be reck¬
oned weaker than the hydrometer indicates, and whatever
number of divisions the mercury stands below the zero,
so many gallons in the 100 must the spirit be reckoned
stronger.
108. Nicholson's Hydrometer (fig. 17) serves to deter- jiieholgQirs
mine the specific gravity of both solids hydrome-
and fluids. A hollow light body, A, is ^ c ^ ter.
pierced by a graduated delicate stem D,
carrying a dish, C, for weights, and a cup,
B, loaded so as to insure a stable equili¬
brium in the instrument. The instrument
is always sunk to the same depth by
weights placed in the upper dish.
1. To find the specific gravity of a body
with this instrument, let W be the weight
of the hydrometer, W' weight of fluid
displaced when the stem is at D, w that
weight placed in the dish so as to sink it
to this depth. Let also X be the weight
ot the body, the specific gravity of which
is required, and Y the weight of a corre¬
sponding volume of fluid equal to the
bulk of the body. Then,
X
Specific gravity of solid =^.
Let the body be put first in the upper
cup, and let w be the weight required to Fig. 17
sink the instrument to D, then, when the body is not put
on C, we have W'=-W + iv, but the body beintj on C, we
have also W' = W + XW; .'.X = w-w.
INow, let the body be placed in the lower cup B,
and let a weight w" sink the instrument to D ; then again,
W + Y = W + X + w", from which if we subtract
W = W + X + w, gives us Y = w" - tv ;
.’. Specific gravity of body = ^ = ——
2. In order to compare the specific gravity of two fluids with
this instrument, let again W be its weight, and w that re-
Of Specific
Gravities.
Barometri¬
cal areome¬
ter.
Say’s ste¬
reometer.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
87
W +10
an instrument
quired to sink the stem to D in the fluid A, and w in the
fluid B. Then,
Weight of the displaced fluid of A = W + w and
Weight of the displaced fluid of B = W + w'.
But these two weights being the same, and the specific
gravities of two fluids being as the ratio of equal bulks of
them ; Sp. gr. of A : sp. gr. of B = W + w: W + w. Let
• * c \ "W ZU
B be the standard fluid, and specific gravity of A =
109. The Barometrical Areometer is
which is more useful for the purposes
of illustration than of measurement. If
two immiscible liquids are poured into a
two-branched tube ACB, the one into
the branch BC, and the other into the
branch AC, till they balance each other,
their specific gravities will be to one ano¬
ther inversely as the heights of each column.
Thus, if we pour in mercury at A, and wa¬
ter at B, so that when the surface of the
mercury is at D, that of the water is at E,
we shall find that if the column of mercury
DF is two inches, that of the water EG
will be 27 inches, and their specific gravi¬
ties will be as 27 to 2, or as 13^ to 1. If
we pour in at B linseed oil in place of wa¬
ter, the height EG will be 29 inches, and
the specific gravity of the oil 0'931 ; be¬
cause 27 ft. : 2 in.= 13^ : 0’931. By thus
using mercury as the balancing column, the
specific gravities of all fluids that do not mix
with it, or act upon it, may be readily as- Fig. is.
certained. The results thus obtained are not affected by
the admission of the air at the open ends A and B, because
the same weight of air presses upon the two balancing co¬
lumns. But if we pour in mercury at A till the bent tube
ACB contains above thirty inches of it, and close up the
end A, and remove the air from above the mercury in AC,
the column of mercury, being no longer pressed down by
the air in AC, will be pressed up to near the top of the tube
A by the pressure of the column of air in BC, and the in¬
strument becomes a barometer, a column of air balancing
a column of mercury. In this case, the tube BI
becomes unnecessary, and the mercury may be
inclosed in a glass ball at I, with an opening to
admit the air.
110. Saifs Stereometer (fig. 19) is for the pur¬
pose of determining the volumes, and from these
the specific gravity of liquid bodies, soft bodies,
porous bodies, and powders, as also solids. The
instrument consists of a glass tube of uniform
bore, ending in a cup PE, the mouth being
ground truly plane, and capable of being ren¬
dered air-tight by the plate of glass E. The
cup PE contains the substance B, the volume
of which is wanted. Take off the covering
plate E, and immerse the tube PC in a vessel
D of mercury till the mercury reaches P.
Now cover the cup with the plate E, and raise
PC till the mercury is at M, and its level in
D at C ; the height of the mercurial column in
PC is now CM.
As there is still so much air in PE, let its
volume be u before B was put in, and v that
of the solid in the cup, k the horizontal section
of PC, h the altitude of the mercurial column
in PC, and p the density of mercury. When
the column reached P, the volume of air =
u — v, and'its pressure=; when again it
0
= u-v + k . PM, and its pressure=grp (A-CM). Since, Of Specific
then, the pressure of the air varies inversely as the space it Gravities,
we have u — v k. MP u — v — h : /t — CM ;
/< -MC,
V—U —
occupies,
MC
-k. PM.
staktome-
ter.
Fig. 19.
So also u may be found, the cup being empty: k will
be found by weighing the mercury filling a certain por¬
tion of the tube. Thus, since a cubic inch of mercury
weighs at 16° Fahr. 34291 grains nearly; therefore, if
the mercurial column in PC be a inches, and its weight
be w grains, w = 3429J . (volume of mercury in PC) =
(3429'5) xk . a, where k is an area or square inches.
If then the solid B be a weight = tt>, its specific gra-
W
vity = —•
v
The specific gravity of powders and soluble substances
may be found in the same manner.
111. The Staktometer, or Drop-measurer, is shown inBrewster
fig. 20, where ABC is a glass vessel four or five —
inches long, having a hollow bulb, B, about half
an inch in diameter. The instrument is filled by
suction, and the fluid is discharged at C till it
stands nearly at the point m, the zero of the
scale. The fluid is then allowed to discharge
itself at C by drops, and the number of them is
counted till the surface of the fluid descends to
another fixed point n. The experiment is then
carefully repeated at different temperatures, till
the number of drops of distilled water occupied
by the cavity between m and n is accurately de¬
termined for various temperatures. The same
experiment is made with alcohol. Ihus, if N is
the number of drops of distilled water whose
specific gravity is S(, and n the number of drops 'c
of alcohol whose specific gravity is s, and d the Fig.20.
number of drops of any other mixture of alcohol and
water contained in the same cavity mn, we shall have
(tf-N) (S-s)
w-N ;
and therefore
g (d-N) (S-s)
« — N
will be the specific gravity of the mixture required.
With a small instrument, the number of drops of ivater
between m and n was 724, whereas the number of drops of
ordinary proof spirits was 2117 at 60° Fahr. Now, as the
specific gravity of the spirits was ’920, and that of water
I'OOO, we have a scale of 1393 drops for measuring all spe¬
cific gravities between *920 and 1000, an unit in the fourth
place of decimals corresponding to a variation of about two
drops. From this experiment it follows that the bulk of a
drop of water will be about 2‘93 times as large
as the bulk of a drop of the spirits.
] 12. Sikes’ Hydrometer (fig. 21) is used in Up gikes’ hy-
the collection of the revenue of the United drometer.
Kingdom ; it determines the relative quantity
of alcohol and water which wine and spiritu¬
ous liquors contain. If in the spirit to be tested
there be more water than alcohol, the hydro¬
meter will show that it is below proof; if the
contrary, above proof. The only difference be¬
tween Sikes’ and the common hydrometer is that
the stem of this is thin and flat; it has besides
eight small weights which may be placed on the
lower stem, D, so as to increase the weight of
the instrument, since the specific gravity of light
fluids would prevent it from sinking without the
addition of one or more of these weights to the
•N : S-s= d-N:
O
D
Fig. 21.
was at M, and in D at C, the air in EPM occupied a space lowest division on the graduated stem in a heavy fluid.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
88
Of Specific Let V = volume of the instrument, W its weight, K
Gravities, the area of a section of CE. When placed in the fluid A
let X be the weight at C, and P the surface of the fluid;
when it floats in B, let Y be the weight at C, and Q the
surface of the fluid, and let II, S be the respective volumes
of X and Y ; then,
Weight of fluid A displaced = W +X, and
B ... =W +Y
Volume of fluid A displaced = V + R - K . CP, and
... B ... = V + S — K. CQ;
/. W + X = specific gravity of A x (V + R — K . CP),
W + Y = specific gravity of B x (V + S - K . CQ) ;
Specific gravity of A : specific gravity of B =
(W +X)(V + S - K. CQ): (W + Y) (V + R-K.CP);
.•. Specific gravity of A = specific gravity of B x
(W + X) (V + S-K.CQ)
(W + Y) (V + R-K .CP)
(W + X) (V + S-K.CQ)
“(W+Y) (V + R-K.CP’
the standard fluid being B.
SECTION IY. ON TABLES OF SPECIFIC GRAVITIES.
113. As the knowledge of the specific gravities of bodies Tables of
is of great use in all the branches of mechanical philosophy, specific
we have given the following table, computed by Mr Tod, gravities,
civil engineer, and published in the second edition of his
excellent work, entitled Series of Tables, and which ought
to be in the hands of every engineer, architect, and country
gentleman :—
Of Specific
Gravities.
The Specific Gravity of Bodies calculated to Avoirdupois Weight.
>
Name of Bodies.
Metals.
Antimony, cast
Zinc, cast 
Iron, cast  
Tin, cast 
Tin, hardened..
Pewter 
Iron, bar 
Cobalt, cast  
Steel, hard 
Steel, soft 
Iron, meteoric
hammered
Nickel, cast.
Brass, cast 
Brass, wire 
Nickel, hammered.
Gun metal 
Copper, cast 
Copper, wire.......
Copper, coin  
Bismuth, cast........
Silver, hammered.
Silver, coin 
Silver, pure, cast.
Rhodium 
Lead, cast 
Palladium 
ic, |
Weight of a Cubic foot
in ozs. and lbs.
Mercury (quicksil- 1
ver), common.... J
Mercury (do.), pure...
Gold, trinket 
Gold, coin 
Gold, pure, cast 
Gold, hammered 
Platinum, pure 
Platinum, hammered
Platinum, wire 
Platinum, laminated
Iridium, hammered..
Earth, Stones, &c.
Amber 
Coal 
Sand 
Brick 
Sulphur, native 
Opal 
Clay 
Gypsum    
Porcelain, Limoyes..
Porcelain, China 
Stone, paving 
6702
7190
7207
7291
7299
7471
7788
7811
7816
7833
7965
8279
8395
8544
8666
8784
8788
8878
8915
9822
10510
10534
10744
11000
11352
11800
13568
14000
15709
17647
19258
19316
19500
20336
21041
22069
23000
1078
1250
1500
2000
2033
2114
2160
2280
2341
2385
2416
lbs.
418-8750
449- 3750
450- 4375
455- 6875
456- 1875
466-9375
486-7500
488-1875
488- 5000
489- 5625
497-8125
517-4375
524-6875
534-0000
541-6250
549-0000
549-2500
554-8750
557-1875
613-8750
656-8750
658-3750
671-5000
687-5000
709-5000
737-5000
848-0000
875-0000
981-8125
1102-9375
1203-6250
12100625
1218-7500
1271-0000
1315-0625
1379-3125
1437-5000
67-3750
78-7500
93-7500
125-0000
127-0625
132 1250
135-0000
142-5000
146- 3125
147- 2500
151-4000
Weight of a Number of
Cubic inch Cubic inches
in ozs. ' in a lb.
3- 8748
4- 1608
4-1707
4-2193
4-2239
4-3234
4-5069
4-5202
4-5231
4-5329
4-6093
4-7910
4-8582
4- 9444
5- 0150
5-0833
5-0856
5-1377
5-1591
5- 6840
60821
6- 0960
6-2175
6-3657
6-3694
6- 8287
7- 8518
8- 1018
9-0908
10- 2123
11- 1446
11-2042
11-2847
11- 7685
121765
12- 7714
13- 3101
0-62384
0-72337
0-86803
1-15740
1-17650
1-22337
1-25000
1-31944
1-35474
1-38020
1-39814
Cubic ins.
3-8866
3-8431
3-8364
3-7920
3-7878
3-7007
3-5500
3-5396
3-5373
3-5296
3-4792
3-3395
3-2933
3-2359
3-1903
3-1476
3-1461
3-1140
3-0959
2-8149
2-6306
2-6246
2-5733
2-5134
2-4355
2-5134
2-0377
1-9748
1-7600
1-6124
1-4356
1-4280
1-4178
1-3595
1-3140
1-2528
1-2021
25-6474
21-9428
18-4320
13-8240
13-5996
130785
12-8000
12-1263
11-8103
11-7351
11-4437
Name of Bodies.
Earths, Stones, &c.
Stone, common 
Flint  
Spar 
Pebble, English 
Granite, Aberdeen ...
Quartz 
Glass, green 
Crystal, rock 
Granite, redEgyptian
Granite, Cornish 
Marble, Egyptian ....
Slate  
Coral 
Pearl, Oriental 
Glass, bottle  
Marble, green Cam- 1
panian J
Emerald of Peru 
Chalk, British 
Marble, Parian
Basalt, Giants
Causeway
Glass, white.
Limestone 
Asbestos 
Hornblende 
White lead   
Glass, British flint...
Diamond, average 
Beryl, Oriental 
Garnet, common 
Topaz, average 
Sapphire, Oriental....
Garnet, precious 
Ruby, Oriental 
Jargon of Ceylon 
Spar, heavy 
Loadstone 
The earth, or mean 1
of the globe J
Resins, Gums, &c.
Gunpowder, loose 1
heap J
Living men 
Wax   
Ice   
Gunpowder, close I
shaken J
Tallow  .
Butter 
Bees-wax 
Sodium 
Weight of a Cubic foot
in ozs. and lbs.
Weight of a j Number of
Cubic inch Cubic inches
in ozs. I in a lb.
2520
2594
2594
2619
2625
2640
2642
2653
2654
2662
2668
2672
2680
2684
2733
2742
2775
2784
2837
2864
2892
2950
2996
3000
3160
3329
3536
3549
3576
3800
3994
4230
4283
4416
4430
4930
5210
836
891
897
930
937
942
942
956
972
lbs.
157-5000
1621250
162- 1250
163- 6875
164- 0625
165- 0000
165-1250
165-8125
165- 8750
166- 3750
166- 7500
167- 0000
167-5000
167-7500
170- 8125
171- 3750
173- 4375
174- 0000
177-3125
179- 0000
180- 7500
184-3750
187-2500
187-5000
197-5000
208-0625
221-0000
221-8125
223-5000
237-5000
243-3750
264-3750
267-6875
276-0000
276-8750
308-1250
325-6250
52-2500
55-6875
56 0625
58-1250
58-5625
58-8750
58- 8750
59- 7500
60- 7500
1-45833
1-50115
1-50115
1-51562
1-51909
1-52777
1-52893
1-53530
1-53587
1-53935
1-54976
1-54629
1-55092
1-55324
1-58159
1-58735
1-60590
1-61111
1-64178
1-65740
1-67361
1-70717
1-73379
1-73611
1-82870
1- 92650
2- 04629
205381
206944
2-19907
2-25347
2-44791
2-47858
2-55555
2-56365
2- 85300
3- 01504
0-48379
0-51562
0-51909
0-53819
0-54224
0-54513
0-54513
0-55324
0-56250
Cubic ins.
10-9714
10-6584
10-6584
10-5566
10-5325
10-4727
10-4648
10-4214
10-4175
10-3861
10-3628
10-3473
10-3164
10-3010
10-1163
10-0831
9-3632
9-9310
9-7455
9-6536
9-5601
9-3721
9-2283
9-2160
8-7493
8-3052
7-8190
7-7903
7-7315
7-2800
7-1001
6-5361
6-4590
6-2608
6-2410
5-6081
5-3067
33-0717
31-0303
30-8227
29-7293
29-5069
29-3503
29.2993
28-9205
28-4444
89
Of Specific
Gravities.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
The Specific Gravity of Bodies calculated by Avoirdupois Weight.—Continued.
Of Specific
Gravities.
Name of Bodies.
Resins, Gums, &c.
Camphor 
Rosin  
Pitch 
Opium 
Gum Arabic 
Honey  
Bone of an Ox 
Bone, dry 
Phosphorus 
Alum 
Gunpowder, solid...
Nitre (saltpetre) 
Ivory  
Woods.
Cork 
Poplar 
Larch  
Fir, North of England
Mahogany, Honduras
Cedar, American..
Poon 
Willow 
Cedar  
Cypress  
Elm 
Pitch Pine  
Pear-tree 
Walnut 
Mar Forest Fir ...
Elder-tree  
Orange-tree  
Cherry-tree 
Teak  
Riga Fir 
Maple  
Oak, Dantzic 
Yew, Dutch .......
Apple-tree  
Yew, Spanish 
Ash 
Beech 
Oak, Canadian ....
Logwood 
Oak, English 
Weight of a Cubic foot
in ozs. and lbs.
989
1100
1150
1337
1452
1456
1659
1660
1714
1714
1745
1900
1917
240
383
544
556
560
561
579
585
596
598
600
660
661
681
694
695
705
715
745
750
755
760
788
793
807
845
852
872
913
970
lbs.
61-8125
68-7000
71-8750
83-5625
90- 7500
91- 0000
103-6875
103-7500
107-1250
107-1250
109-0625
118- 7500
119- 8125
15-0000
23-9375
34-0000
34- 7500
35- 0000
35- 0625
36- 1875
36- 5625
37- 2500
37-3750
37-5000
41-2500
41- 3125
42- 5625
43- 3750
43- 4375
44- 0625
44-6875
46-5625
46- 8750
47- 1857
47-5000
49-2500
49- 5625
50- 4375
52- 8125
53- 2500
54- 5000
57-0625
60-6250
Weight of a
Cubic inch
in ozs.
Number of
Cubic inches
in a lb.
0-56655
0-63657
0-66550
0-77372
0-84027
0-84259
0-96006
0-96064
0-99184
0-99184
1-00983
1 09953
1-10937
0 13888
0-22164
0-31481
0-32175
0-32407
0-32465
0-33506
0-33854
0-34490
0-34664
0-34722
0-38194
0-38252
0-39467
0-40162
0-40219
0-40798
0-41377
0-43113
0-43402
0-43692
0-43981
0-45590
0-45891
0-46701
0-48900
0-49305
0-50694
0-53125
0-56134
Cubic ins.
27-9555
25-0909
24-0417
20-6791
19-0413
18-9890
16-6654
16-6554
16-1307
161307
15-8441
14-5515
14-4422
115-2000
71-7660
50-8235
497266
49-3714
49-2833
47-7512
47-2615
46-3892
46-2341
46-0800
41-8909
41-8275
40-5991
39-8386
39-7812
39-2170
38-6685
371114
36-8640
36-6198
36-3789
35-0862
34-8656
34-2602
32-7195
32-4507
31-7064
30-2825
28-5030
Name of Bodies.
Woods.
Box, French 
Brazil Wood, red
Mahogany, Spanish...
Oak, English, 60
years old 
Ebony, American ....
Lignum-vitae 
Liquids.
Ether, sulphuric 
Alcohol, absolute..
Brandy  
Bitumen, liquid...
Turpentine, oil of....
Ether, muriatic...
Olive oil 
Moselle wine 
Whale oil 
Proof spirit  
Linseed oil 
Castor oil  
Wine, red Port....
Wine of Burgundy...
Wine of Bordeaux ..
Wine, white Cham-1
PaSne  I
Water, distilled  
Tar  
Vinegar  
Sea-water 
Milk 
Ale, the average of..
Blood, human 
Muriatic acid of)
commerce J
Aqua regia 
Water of the Dead 1
Sea  /
Nitrous acid  
Nitric acid,or aqua- 1
fortis J
Boracic acid  
Sulphuric acid 
Quicksilver. (See the
metals.)
Weight of a Cubic foot
in ozs. and lbs.
Weight of a
Cubic inch
1030
1031
1063
1170
1331
1333
720
796
837
848
870
874
915
916
923
930
940
970
990
991
994
997
1000
1015
1026
1028
1030
1035
1045
1218
1234
1240
1452
1500
1830
1848
lbs.
64-3750
64-3125
66-4250
73-1250
83-1875
83-3125
45-0000
49-7500
52-3125
530000
54-3750
54-6250
57-1875
57-2500
57- 6875
58- 1250
58-7500
60- 6250
61- 8750
61- 9375
62- 1250
62-3125
62- 5000
63- 4375
64- 1250
64-2500
64-3750
64- 6875
65- 3125
76- 1250
77- 1250
77-5000
90-7500
93-7500
114-3750
1280000
Number of
Cubic inches
in a lb,
0-59606
0-59664
0-61516
0-67708
0-77025
0-77141
0-41666
0-46064
0-48437
0-49074
0-50347
0-50578
0-52951
0-53009
0-53414
0-53819
0-54398
0-56134
0-57291
0-57349
0-57523
0-57696
0-57870
0-58738
0-59375
0-59490
0-59606
0-59895
0-60474
0-70486
0-71412
0-71759
0-84024
C-86805
1-05902
1-06944
Cubic ins.
26-8427
26-8680
26-0143
23-6307
20-7723
20-7411
38-4000
34-7487
33-0322
32-6037
31-9632
31-6338
30-2163
30 1834
29-9544
29-7290
29-4127
28-5030
27-9272
27-8990
27-8148
27-7311
27-6480
27-2396
26-9473
26-8949
26-8427
26-7130
26-4574
22-6995
22-4051
22-2580
19-0082
18-4000
15-1081
13-5000
Name of Bodies.
Gases.
Hydrogen 
Ammonia  
Nitrogen   
Olefiant 
Atmospheric air
Nitrous 
Oxygen  
Muriatic acid ..
Carbonic acid ..
Cyanogen  
Sulphurous acid
Chlorine  
Fluosilicic acid..
Hydriodic acid..
Weight of a Cubic Foot in
ozs. and lbs.
0-069
0-590
0-972
0-982
1-000
1-042
1-111
1-280
1-524
1- 805
2- 222
2- 444
3- 611
4- 300
lbs.
•0043125
•0368750
•0607500
•0613750
•0625000
•0651250
•0694375
•0800000
•0952500
•1128125
•1388750
•1527500
•2256875
•2687500
Weight of a Cu¬
bic inch in ozs.
•0000399
•0003414
•0005625
•0005682
•0005787
•0006030
•0006429
•0007407
•0008819
•0010445
•0012858
•0014143
•0020896
•0024884
Number of
Cubic inches in
a lb.
Cubic ins.
400695-6
46861-0
28444-4
28154-7
27648-0
26533-5
24885-6
21600-0
18141-7
15317-4
12442-8
11312-6
7656-6
6429-7
Number of
Cubic feet in a
lb.
Cubic feet.
231-8840
27-1186
16-4609
16-2932
160000
15-3550
14-4014
12-5000
10-4986
8-8642
7-2007
6-5466
4-4309
3-7209
YOL. XII.
M
HYDRODYNAMICS.
90
Capillary
Attraction,
&c.
CHAPTER III.—ON CAPILLARY ATTRACTION AND THE COHESION OF FLUIDS.
Capillary
Attraction,
&c.
114. We have already seen, when discussing the equili¬
brium of fluids, that when water or any other fluid is poured
into a vessel, or any number of communicating vessels, its
surface will be horizontal, or it will rise to the same height
in each vessel, whatever be its form or position. This pro¬
position, however, only holds true when the diameter of
these vessels or tubes exceeds the fifteenth of an inch: for
if a system of communicating vessels be composed of tubes
of various diameters, the fluid will rise to a level surface in
all the tubes which exceed one fifteenth of an inch in dia¬
meter ; but in the tubes of a smaller bore, it will rise above
that level to altitudes inversely proportional to the dia¬
meters of the tubes. The power by which the fluid is
raised above its natural level is called capillary attraction,
and the glass tubes which are employed to exhibit its phe¬
nomena are named capillary tubes. These appellations
derive their origin from the Latin word capillus, signifying
a hair, because the bores of these tubes have the fineness
of a hair.
115. When we bring a piece of clean glass in contact
with water or any other fluid, except mercury and fused
metals, and withdraw it gently from its surface, a portion
of the fluid will not only adhere to the glass, but a small
force is necessary to detach this glass from the fluid mass,
which resists any separation of its parts. Hence it is ob¬
vious that there is an attraction of cohesion between glass
and water, and that the constituent particles of water have
also an attraction for each other. The suspension of a
drop of water from the lower side of a plate of glass is a
more palpable illustration of the first of these truths; and
the following experiment will completely verify the second.
Place two large drops of water on a smooth metallic surface,
their distance being about the tenth of an inch. With the
point of a pin unite these drops by two parallel canals, and
the drops will instantly rush to each other through these
canals, and fill the dry space that intervenes. This expe¬
riment shows that in capillary attraction there enters an at¬
tractive as well as a cohesive force.
116. Upon these principles many attempts have been
made to account for the elevation of water in capillary
tubes; but most of the explanations which have hitherto
been offered, are founded upon hypothesis, and are very
far from being satisfactory. Without presuming to substi¬
tute a better explanation in the room of those which have
been already given, and so frequently repeated, we shall
endeavour to illustrate that explanation of the phenomena
of capillary attraction wdiich seems liable to the fewest ob¬
jections. For this purpose let a drop of water be laid
upon a horizontal glass plate. Every particle of the glass
immediately below that drop exerts an attractive force
upon the particles of water. This force will produce the
same effect upon the drop as a pressure
in the opposite direction ; the pressure of
a column of air, for instance, on the upper
surface of the drop. The effect of the
attractive force, therefore, tending to press
the drop to the glass will be an enlarge¬
ment of its size, and the water will occupy
a larger space; this increase of its dimen¬
sions will take place when the surface
AB is held downwards; and that it does
not arise from atmospheric pressure may
be shown by performing the experiment
in vacuo. Now, let AB (fig. 22) be a
section of a plate of glass, which is held
vertically, part of the water will de- Fig. 22.
scend by its gravity, and form a drop B, wdiile a small film
of the fluid will be supported at m by the attraction of the
glass. Bring a similar plate of glass CD, into a position
parallel to AB. and make them approach nearer and nearer
each other. When the drops B and D come in contact,
they will rush together ifom their mutual attraction, and will
fill the space op. The gravity of the drops B and D being
thus diminished, the films of water at m and n, which were
prevented from rising by their gravity, will move upwards.
As the plates of glass continue to approximate, the space
between them will fill with water, and the films at m and n
being no longer prevented from yielding to the action of
the glass immediately below them (by the gravity of the
water at op, which is diminished by the mutual action of
the fluid particles), will rise higher in proportion to the ap¬
proach of the plates. Hence it may be easily understood
how the water rises in capillary tubes, and how its alti¬
tude is inversely as their internal diameters. For let A, a
be the altitudes of the fluid in two tubes of different dia¬
meters, D, d', and let C,c be the two cylinders of fluid which
are raised by virtue of the attraction of the glass. Now, as
the force which raises the fluid must be as the number of
attracting particles, that is, as the surface of the tube in
contact with the water, that is, as the diameter of the tubes;
and as this same force must be proportional to its effects on
the cylinder of water raised, we shall have D : d=C : c.
But (Geometry, sect, viii., theor. xi. ; sect, ix., theor.
ii.) C : e = D2A : <T’a, therefore D2A : d1a = T) : d; hence
D2A d=dla D, and DA — > or’ DA = rfa, that is,
D : d—a: A ; or the altitudes of the water are inversely as
the diameters of the tubes. Since DA = c?a, the product
of the diameter by the altitude of the water will always be
a constant quantity. In a tube whose diameter is OOl,
or 100th of an inch, the water has been found to reach
the altitude of 5-3 inches; hence the constant quantity
5'3 x 0T=0'053 may fitly represent the attraction of glass
for water. According to the experiments of Muschen-
broek, the constant quantity is 0-039; according to Weit-
brecht, 0,0428 ; according to Monge, 0f042 ; and according
to Atwood, O'OSSO. When a glass tube was immersed in
melted lead, Gellert found the depression multiplied by the
bore to be 0’0054.
117. Having thus attempted to explain the causes of
capillary action, we shall now proceed to consider some of
its more interesting phenomena. In fig. 23, MN is a ves¬
sel of water in which tubes of various forms are immersed.
The water will rise in the tubes A, B, C, to different alti¬
tudes, m, n, 0, inversely proportional to their diameters.
If the tube B is broken at a, the water will not rise to the
very top of it at a, but will stand at b, a little below the
HYDRODYNAMICS.
91
Capillary top, whatever be the length of the tube, or the diameter of
Attraction, its bore. If the tube be taken from the fluid and laid in a
&c- horizontal position, the water will recede Irom the end that
was immersed.
118. If a tube D, composed of two cylindrical tubes of
different bores, be immersed in water with the widest part
downwards, the water will rise to the altitur'e/>, and if an¬
other tube E of the same size and form be plunged in the
fluid with the smaller end downwards, the water will rise
to the same height q as it did in the tube D. This experi¬
ment seems to be a complete refutation of the opinion of
Dr Jurin, that the water is raised by the action of the an¬
nulus of glass above the fluid column ; for since the annu¬
lar surface is the same at q as at p, the same quantity of
fluid ought to be supported in both tubes, whereas the tube
E evidently raises much less water than D. But if we ad¬
mit the supposition in art. 116, that the fluid is supported
by the whole surface of glass in contact with the water, the
phenomenon receives a complete explanation ; for since the
surface of glass in contact with the fluid in the tube E is
much less than the surface in contact with it in the tube D,
the quantity of fluid sustained in the former ought to be
much less than the quantity supported in the latter.
119. When a vessel, Yvtv (fig. 23), is plunged in water,
and the lower part, tumv, filled by suction till the fluid enter
the part Ftf, the water will rise to the same height as it
does in the capillary tube G, whose bore is equal to the
bore of the part F£. In this experiment the portions of
water tvx and uxw on each side of the column Fa? are sup¬
ported by the pressure of the atmosphere on the surface of
the water in the vessel MN ; for if this vessel be placed in
the exhausted receiver of an air-pump, these portions of
water will not be sustained.
120. The preceding experiment completely overturns
the hypothesis of Dr Hamilton and Dr Matthew Young,
that the fluid was sustained in the tube by the lower ring
of glass contiguous to the bottom of the tube, that this ring
raises the portion of water immediately below it, and then
other portions successively till the portion of water thus
raised be in equilibrium with the attraction of the annulus in
question.
121. Various experiments on the ascent of fluids in ca¬
pillary tubes have been made by MM. Weitbrecht, Gel-
lert, Lord Charles Cavendish, MM. Haiiy and Tremery,
Sir David Brewster, and M. Gay Lussac.
The following are the results obtained by M. Weitbrecht
in the ascent of water :—
Diameter of the tube Height of ascent Constant
in English inches. in inches. quantity.
0-065 0-72 0-0432
0-045 0-95 0-0427
0-08 0-53 00424
0-025 1-72 0-043
Mean 0-04282
122. The most accurate experiments on the depression of
mercury in capillary tubes are those made by Lord Charles
Cavendish:—
Interior diameter
of tube.
0-6 inches.
0-5
0-4
0-3
0-2
0-1
Mercury in one
inch of tube.
972 grains.
675
432
243
108
27
Depression of the
mercury.
0-005 inches.
0-007
0-015
0-036
0-067
0-140
The constant quantity deduced by Dr Thomas Young from
the preceding experiments is OOlo.
123. The very great discrepancy in the preceding results,
obtained by very accurate and skilful observers, induced Sir
David Brewster to repeat the experiments with an instru¬
ment constructed for the purpose, and to take such precau¬
tions, that he could always obtain the same results after re¬
peated trials.
Having obtained a glass tube 7'9 inches long, and of a Capillary
uniform circular bore, he took a wire of a less diameter Attraction,
than the bore of the tube, and formed a small hook at one &c-
of its ends. This hook was fastened to the middle of a v-—'
worsted thread, of such a size as, when doubled, to fill the
bore of the tube. The wire was then passed through the
tube, and the worsted thread drawn after it; and when the
whole was plunged in an alkaline solution, the worsted
thread was fixed at one end, and the tube was drawn back¬
wards and forwards till it was completely deprived, by its
friction on the thread, of any grease or foreign matter
which might have adhered to it. The tube and thread
were then taken to clean water, and the same operation
was repeated.
When the tube was thus perfectly cleaned, it was fixed
vertically, by means of a level, in the axis of a piece of
wood D (fig. 24), supported by the arm AD, fixed upon
Fig. 24. Fig. 25.
a stand AB ; and it was also furnished with an index mn,
which was moveable to and from the extremity b. On the
arm CE, moveable in a vertical direction by the nut C, was
placed a glass vessel F, containing the fluid, and nearly
filled with it. The nut C was then turned till the extremi¬
ty b of the tube touched the surface of the fluid, which was
indicated by the sudden rise of the liquor round its sides.
The fluid then rose in the tube till it remained stationary,
and the index mn was moved till its extremity n pointed
out the exact position of the upper surface of the fluid. In
this situation, the distance nb was a measure of the ascent
of the liquid above its level in the vessel F. In order to
ascertain, however, whether the fluid was stationary, in
consequence of any obstruction in the tube, or of an equi¬
librium of the attracting forces, the vessel with the fluid
was raised a little higher than its former position, by means
of the nut C, and then depressed below it. If the fluid
now rose a little above n, and afterwards sunk a little below
it, so as always to rise and fall with facility and uniformity
along with the surface of the fluid in the vessel, it was ob¬
vious that it suffered no obstruction in the tube, and that
nb was the accurate measure of its height. By separating
the extremity b of the tube from the surface of the fluid,
the fluid always rises above n; but upon again bringing
them into contact, the fluid resumes its position at n. If
there should be any portion of fluid at the end b of the tube,
when it is again brought in contact with the fluid surface
the water would rise around it before it had reached the
92
hydrodynamics.
Capillary general level, and therefore the height of the fluid ob-
Attraction, tained by measuring from the end of the tube would be too
&c- small.
^m~> In order to avoid this source of error, the index should
have a projecting arm mn (fig. 25), carrying a screw st,
whose sharp point t can be easily brought on a level with
the end b of the tube. When the extremity t, therefore,
which can always be kept dry, comes in contact with the
fluid surface PQ, the extremity b must also be exactly
on the same level, even though the fluid had already risen
around it. The tube was then cleaned, as formerly, for a
subsequent observation. The results which were thus ob¬
tained for a great variety of fluids, and with a tube 0-0561
of an inch in diameter, are given in the following table:—
Names of Fluids.
Height of ascent Constant
in inches. quantity.
Experiments with Water.
Diameter of
the tube.
1-29441 millim.
1-90381
Height of ascent
above lowest point of
concavity.
23-1634 millim.
15-5861
Temp, of fluid.
Centigrade.
8°-5
Capillary
Attraction,
&c.
The constant quantity in English inches, as deduced from
these two experiments, is 0-04622.
Experiments with Alcohol.
Diameter of
the tube.
1-29441 millim.
1-90381
1-29441
1-29441
3 10-508
Height of ascent
above lowest point of
concavity.
9-18235 millim.
6-08397
9-30079
9-99727
0-3835
Density of alcohol.
0-81961
0-81961
0-8595
0-94153
0-81347
Water  0-587
Very hot water  0-537
Muriatic acid  0-442
Oil of boxwood   0-427
5 Oil of cassia   0-420
Nitrous acid  0-413
Oil of rapeseed   0-404
Castor oil   0-403
Nitric acid  0-395
10 Oil of spermaceti  0-392
Oil of almonds  0-387
Oil of olives   0-387
Balsam of Peru  0"377
Muriate of antimony  0-373
15 Oil of rhodium  0-366
Oil of pimento  0-361
Cajeput oil  0-357
Balsam of capivi  0-357
Oil of pennyroyal  0-355
20 Oil of thyme   0-354
Oil of bricks distilled ) n-asa
from spermaceti oil /
Oil of caraway seeds  0-353
Oil of rhue   0-353
Oil of spearmint  0-351
25 Balsam of sulphur  0-349
Oil of sweet fennel seeds   0-349
Oil of hyssop  0-349
Oil of rosemary  0-344
Oil of bergamot  0"343
30 Oil of amber  0-343
Oil of anise seeds   0-342
Oil of Barbadoes tar  0-341
Laudanum  0-340
Oil of cloves  0-334
35 Oil of turpentine  0 333
Oil of lemon  0-333
Oil of lavender    0-328
Oil of camomile  0-327
Oil of peppermint  0-327
40 Oil of sassafras   0-327
Highland whisky   0-327
Brandy   0-326
Oil of wormwood   0-326
Oil of dill seed   0-324
45 Oil of ambergrease  0-323
Genuine oil of juniper  0-321
Oil of nutmeg   0‘320
Alcohol1  0-317
Oil of savine  0-310
50 ./Ether  0-285
Oil of wine  0-273
Sulphuric acid  0-200
00327
00301
0-0248
0-0240
0-0236
00232
0-0227
0-0226
0-0222
0-0220
0-0217
0-0215
0-0212
0-0209
0-0205
0-0203
0-0200
0-0200
00199
00199
00199
0-0198
0-0198
0-0197
0-0196
0-0195
0-0195
0-0193
0-0192
0-0192
0-0192
0-0191
0-0191
00187
00187
00187
0-0184
0-0184
0-0184
0-0184
0-0184
0-0183
0-0183
0-0182
0-0181
0 0180
0-0180
0-0178
0-0174
0-0160
0-0153
0-0112
124. By means of an instrument similar in principle to
the one above described,2 M. Gay Lussac made a series of
accurate experiments on the ascent of water and alcohol in
capillary tubes. In these experiments the tubes were well
wetted with the fluid.
The temperature of the alcohol was 8°-5 centig., and the
constant quantity for the two first experiments, reduced to
English inches, is 0 01815, which agrees remarkably with
0'0178, the constant quantity in Sir David Brewster’s ex¬
periments.
Experiments ivith Oil of Turpentine.
Diameter of tube. Height of fluid. Density.
1-29441 millim. 9-95159 0-869458
This result also coincides very nearly with that of Sir
David Brewster.
125. The following table contains a general view of the
results obtained by different philosophers, from the ascent
of water in capillary tubes.
Names of observers.
Constant quantity, in
English inches.
Sir Isaac Newton,4  0-020
MM. Haiiy and Tremery  0-021
M. Carre, mean of three observations  0-022
M. Hallstrom   0"026
Sir David Brewster  0 033
Muschenbroek  0-039
M. Weitbrecht, average of his results   0-042
M. Gay Lussac, average of two observations... 0-046
Benjamin Martin  0-048
Mr Atwood  0-053
James Bernouilli  0-064
Throwing aside the measure of James Bernouilli as ob¬
viously erroneous, we obtain 0-035 as the general average
result of the preceding means; but the difference between
this and the extreme measures of Newton and Atwood is
so great, that there must be some cause, different from an
error of observation, to which it is owing. The difference
between the results obtained by Sir David Brewster and
M. Gay Lussac, made with nice instruments founded on
the same principle, leads to the same conclusion. Laplace
indeed has ascribed, and we think justly, these differences
to the greater or less degree of humidity on the sides of the
tubes; and he informs us that Gay Lussac made his ex¬
periments with tubes very much ivetted. Here, then, we
have at once the cause of the difference above mentioned,
because the experiments of Sir David Brewster were made
with a tube carefully cleaned and dried after each experi¬
ment. A dry tube must necessarily raise the water to a
less height than a wet one, and the difference must increase
as the diameter of the tube employed is diminished. If we
conceive a tube, indeed, with an exceedingly small bore,
wetted over the whole of its interior, in the slightest degree,
the two inner surfaces of the film would nearly meet in the
axis, and the height of ascent would be infinite, or as high
as the tube was long.
1 L>r Young found the height of ascent of water and diluted spirit of wine to be as 100 to 64. 2 See Biot’s Traite de Physique.
3 This is a mean of five experiments. 4 Optics, p. 366, 3d edition.
Capillary 126. From these observations, the reader will be already
Attraction, prepared to draw the conclusion, that the ascent of fluids in
&c> glass tubes is a very equivocal measure of the force of ca-
pillary attraction, independent of its being applicable only
to the single substance of glass.
With the view of removing this objection, Sir David
Brewster long ago constructed an instrument, tbe object of
which was to measure, upon an optical principle, the dia¬
meter of the circle of fluid which any cylindrical solid raises
by capillary attraction above its general level. Thus, let MN
(fig. 26) be the plan of a vessel filled with fluid, and A the
section of a vertical cylinder of well cleaned and well dried
glass, or any other substance not porous. This solid, A,
will raise the fluid to a certain height around it, elevating
a circular portion, CD, of the fluid above the general level;
and it is manifest that the diameter CD of this elevated
portion will be proportioned to the height of the fluid round
the sides of the cylinder, or to the capillary force by which
it is raised. In order to
measure the diameter of
this circle of fluid, a mi¬
crometer carries a small
vertical frame along the M
edge FG of the vessel.
HYDRODYNAMICS. 93
distance by another piece of wax W, so that their interior Capillary
surfaces, whose common intersection is the line Eh, may Attraction,
form a small angle. When this apparatus is immersed in a
vessel, MN, full of water, the fluid will rise in such a manner
between the glass planes as to form the curve Y)qom¥,
which represents the surface of the elevated water. By
measuring the ordinates mn, op, &c., of this curve, and
also its abscissae Era, Ejo, &c., Mr Hawksbee found it to be
the common Apollonian hyperbola, having for its assymp-
totes the surface DE of the fluid, and EF the common in¬
tersection of the two planes. The following are the re-
A
Fie:. 26.
Along this frame are
stretched two fine paral¬
lel wires, whose images
can be seen by reflection from the surface of the fluid, by
an eye on the side PQ of the vessel, aided by a microscope
with a distant focus. When the image of these wires is
seen by reflection from any part of the fluid surface without
the circle CD, it will suffer no change of form ; but when
it is seen by reflection from any portion of the elevated por¬
tion CD, the fibres will appear disturbed, and will indicate,
by their return to the rectilineal form of accurate parallelism,
the apparent termination of the circle CD. The same ob¬
servation is made on the other side of A, at the boundary
D, and a measure is thus obtained of the diameter of the
circle CD, by means of the micrometer screw, by which the
microscope on the side PQ, and the wire frame on the side
FG, are moved (being fixed to the same frame) along the
sides of the vessel. In this way solids of all kinds may be
used, and their exterior or acting surfaces may be easily
cleared from grease and other adhering substances.
This apparatus may be improved by using two cylinders,
A, B, in place of one, and by moving one of them, suppose
B, from the other, A, till the two elevated circular portions
CD, DE disturb the images of the wires, seen by reflection
from the intermediate point at D. A telescope may be ad¬
vantageously used to observe the disturbance of any image
seen reflected from the fluid surface.
127. When water is made to pass through a capillary
tube of such a bore that the fluid is discharged only by suc¬
cessive drops, the tube, when electrified, will furnish a
constant and accelerated stream, and the acceleration is
proportional to the smallness of the bore. A similar effect
may be produced by employing warm water. Sir John
Leslie found that a jet of warm water rose to a much greater
height than a jet of cold water, though the water in both
cases moved through the same aperture, and was influenced
by the same pressure. A siphon also, which discharged
cold water only by drops, furnished warm water in an un¬
interrupted stream.
128. Such are the leading phenomena of capillary tubes.
The rise of fluids between two plates of glass remains to be
considered ; and while it furnishes us with a very beautiful
experiment, it confirms the reasoning by which we have
accounted for the elevation of fluids in cylindrical canals.
Let ABEF and CDEF (fig. 27) be two planes of plate glass
with smooth and clean surfaces, having their sides EF joined
together with wax, and their sides AB, CD kept at a little
suits which he obtained when the inclination of the planes
was 20':—
Distances from the touching
ends of the planes.
13 inches 
9  
7  
5  
3  
If  
U ... •i 
1  
Heights of the water at the
preceding distances.
  1
  2
  3
  5
  9
  12
  18
  271
  35
  50
  76
By repeating these observations at inclinations of 40', and
at various other angles, Mr Hawksbee found that the curve
was an exact hyperbola in all directions of the planes. To
the very same conclusion we are led by the principles already
laid down ; for as the distance between the plates diminishes
at every point of the curve DqomF from D towards F, the
water ought to rise higher at o than at q, still higher at m,
and highest of all at F, where the distance between the
plates is a minimum. To illustrate this more clearly, let
ABEF and CDEF (fig. 28) be the same plates of glass (in¬
clined at a greater angle for the sake of distinctness), and
let FmqD, and FosB be the curves which bound the sur¬
face of the elevated fluid. Then, since the altitudes of the
water in capillary tubes are
inversely as their diameters,
or the distances of their op¬
posite sides, the altitudes of
the water between two glass
plates should at any given
point be inversely as the
distances of the plates at
that point. Now, the dis¬
tance of the plates at the
point m is obviously mo, or
its equal ra/?,and the distance
at q is qs or rt; and since ram
is the altitude of the water
at m, and qr its altitude at Fig. 28.
q, we have mn : qr=rt: np ; but (Geometry, Sect. IV.
94
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Capillary Theor. xvii.) Ew: YuT=np : rt; therefore mn: qr = \^,r: E«,
Attracticn, tliat is, the altitudes of the fluid at the points m, q, which
&c- are equal to the abscissae Ew, Er (fijt. 27), are proportional
to the ordinates qr, mn, equal to the abscissae Er, Era, in
fi<r. 27. But in the Apollonian hyperbola the ordinates are
inversely proportional to their respective abscissae, therefore
the curve Y)qmF is the common hyperbola.
129. Mr Hawksbee extended his experiments to plates
of glass placed parallel to each other, and separated to dif¬
ferent distances, and he obtained the following results :—
Distance of plates. Height of ascent. Constant quantity.
0 0625 of an inch. 0-166 of an inch. 0 0104
0-03125 ... 0-333 ... 0-0104
0015625 ... 0-666 ... 00104
0-007802 ... 1-333 ... 0-0104
The following experiments on the same subject have been
more recently made by M. Monge, MM. Haiiy and Tremery,
and M. Gay Lussac.
In those made by M. Monge, the plates were first cleaned
with caustic alkali, and well washed. Their degree of sepa¬
ration was ascertained by silver wires of different thick¬
nesses, and the fluid used was the filtered water of the Seine.
The following were the results :—
Distance of plates in Height of Constant
parts of a line. ascent. quantity.
■3*3 or 0-0101 inch. 15-5 lines. 0-1565
0-0068 33-5 0-2278
0-0030 74 0-222
The following result was obtained by MM. Haiiy and Tre¬
mery :—
Distance of plate. Height of ascent. Const, quantity.
1 millimetre 6-5 millimetres. 6-5
The following measures were obtained by M. Gay Lussac,
with plates of glass ground perfectly flat:—
Height of ascent
Distance of plates. above lowest point Temp, centig.
of concavity.
1-069 millimetre. 13-574 16°
Here the constant quantity is 14-51, or 0-02251, when re¬
duced to English inches for a distance of yjhyth °f an inch.
130. The phenomena which we have been considering
are all referrible to one simple fact, that the particles of
glass have a stronger attraction for the particles of water
than the particles of water have for each other. This is the
case with almost all other fluids except mercury, the parti¬
cles of which have a stronger attraction for each other than
for glass. When capillary tubes, therefore, are plunged in
this fluid, a new series of pheno¬
mena present themselves to our
consideration. Let MN (fig. 29)
be a vessel full of mercury.
Plunge into the fluid the capil¬
lary tube CD, and the mercury,
instead of rising in the tube, will
remain stationary at E, its de- ^
pression below the level surface"
AB being inversely proportional
to the diameter of the bore.
This was formerly ascribed to a *'ig- '&■
repulsive force supposed to exist between mercury and glass,
but we shall presently see that it is owing to a very different
cause.
131. That the particles of mercury have a very strong
attraction for each other, appears from the globular form
which a small portion of that fluid assumes, and from the
resistance which it opposes to any separation of its parts.
If a quantity of mercury is separated into a number of mi¬
nute parts, all these parts will be spherical ; and if two of
these spheres be brought into contact, they will instantly
rush together, and form a single drop of the same form.
There is also a very small degree of attraction existing be¬
tween glass and mercury ; for a globule of tbe latter very
readily adheres to the lower surface of a plate of glass.
&c.
Fig. 30.
Fig. 32.
Now, suppose a drop of water laid upon a surface anointed Capillary
with grease, to prevent the attraction of cohesion from re- Attraction,
ducing it to a film of fluid, this drop, if very small, will be
spherical. If its size is considerable, the gravity of its parts
will make it spheroidal, and as the drop increases in magni¬
tude, it will become more and more flattened at its poles,
like AB in fig. 30. The drop, how¬
ever, will still retain its convexity at
the circumference, however oblate be ^
the spheroid into which it is moulded ‘
by the force of gravity. Let two pieces
of glass oAra*, joBra, be now brought in
contact with the circumference of the drop ; the mutual at¬
traction between the particles of water which enabled it to
preserve the convexity of its circumference, will yield to
their superior attraction for glass ; the space mnop will
be immediately filled ; and the water will rise on the sides
of the glass, and the drop will have the appearance of AB
in fig. 31. If the drop AB (fig. 30) be
now supposed mercury instead of water,
it will also, by the gravity of its parts,
assume the form of an oblate spheroid ;
but when the pieces of glass oA/ra, pV>n llg-ol-
are brought close to its periphery, their attractive force upon
the mercurial particles is not sufficient to counteract the
mutual attraction of these particles ; the mercury, therefore,
retains its convexity at the circumference, and assumes the
form exhibited in fig. 32. The small
spaces o, p (fig. 30) being filled by the
pressure of the superincumbent fluid,
while the spaces below m, n still re¬
main between the glass and the mer¬
cury. Now if the two plates of glass A, B be made to ap¬
proach each other, the depressions rag ra will still continue,
and when the distance of the plates is so small that these
depressions or indentations meet, the mercury will sink be¬
tween the plates, and its descent will continue as the pieces
of glass approach. Hence the depression ol the mercury in
capillary tubes becomes very intelligible. If two glass
planes forming a small angle, as in fig. 27, be immersed in
a vessel of mercury, the fluid will sink below the surface of
the mercury in the vessel, and form an Apollonian hyper¬
bola like DoF, having for its asymptotes the common in¬
tersection of the planes and the surface of mercury in the
vessel.
132. The depression of mercury in capillary tubes is
evidently owing to the greater attraction which the par¬
ticles of mercury have for each other than for glass. The
difference between these two attractions, however, arises
from an imperfect contact between the mercury and the
capillary tube, occasioned by the interposition of a thin
coating of water which generally lines the interior surface
of the tube, and weakens the mutual action of the glass and^
mercury ; for this action always increases as the thickness of
the interposed film is diminished by boiling. In the experi¬
ments which were made by Laplace and Lavoisier on baro¬
meters, by boiling the mercury in them for a long time,
the convexity of the interior surface of the mercury was
often made to disappear. They even succeeded in render¬
ing it concave, but could always restore the convexity by
introducing a drop of water into the tube. When the ebulli¬
tion of the mercury is sufficiently strong to expel all foreign
particles, it often rises to the level of the surrounding
fluid, and the depression is even converted into an elevation..
133. Between mercury and water there is likely to b.i
some fluid in which the attraction of the glass for its parti¬
cles is nearly equal to half the attraction of the fluid lor
itself. Sir David Brewster has observed that iodine dis¬
solved in chloride of sulphur approximates to this condition;
but not having the chloride by itself, he could not observe
whether or not the effect is produced or influenced by the
HYDRODYNAMICS.
95
Capillary iodine. If it is, then a solution may be obtained in which
Attraction, the above condition is perfect. The solution of the iodine
&c- already mentioned scarcely rises on the sides of the glass
^ ball which contains it.
134. As most philosophers seem to agree in thinking that
all the capillary phenomena are referable to the cohesive
attraction of the superficial particles only of the fluid, a va¬
riety of experiments has been made in order to determine
the force required to raise a horizontal solid surface from the
surface of a fluid. Mr Achard found that a disc of glass, 1^
French inches in diameter, required a weight of 91 French
grains to raise it from the surface of the water at 69° of Fah¬
renheit, which is only 37 English grains for each square
inch. At 44^° of Fahrenheit the force was j^th greater, or 39^
grains, the difference being Tig for each degree of Fahren¬
heit. From these experiments Dr Young concludes that
the height of ascent in a tube of a given bore, which varies
in the duplicate ratio of the height of adhesion, is diminished
about y^th for every degree of Fahrenheit that the tempera¬
ture is raised above 50° ; and he conjectures that there
must have been some considerable source of error in Ach-
ard’s experiments, as he never found this diminution to ex¬
ceed
135. According to the experiments of Morveau, the force
necessary to elevate a circular inch of gold from the surface
of mercury is 446 grains; a circular inch of silver, 429
grains ; a circular inch of tin, 418 grains; a circular inch of
lead, 397 grains ; a circular inch of bismuth, 372 grains ; a
circular inch of zinc, 204 grains; a circular inch of copper,
142 grains; acircular inch of metallic antimony, 126 grains ; a
circular inch of iron, 115 grains ; and a similar surface of co¬
balt required 8 grains. The order in which these metals are
arranged is the very order in which they are most easily
amalgamated with mercury.
The most recent experiments on the adhesion of surfaces
to fluids have been made by M. Gay Lussac, who obtained
the following results with a circular plate of glass 118’366
millimetres in diameter:—
Weight necessary to
Names of fluids. raise the plate .from Specific gravity,
the glass.
Water  59'40 grammes. I’OOO
Alcohol  31-08 ... 0-8196
Alcohol    32'87 ... 0'8595
Oil of turpentine  37,152 ... 0‘9415
With a copper disc, 116-604 millimetres in diameter, the
weight necessary to raise it from water, at the temperature
of 180-5 centigrade, was 57*945 grammes, differing very
little, if at all, from glass ; for the diminution of weight may
be explained by the circumstance of the copper disc being
nearly tivo millimetres less in diameter than the glass. In
these experiments the discs were suspended from the scale
of a balance, and the weights in the other scale successively
increased till the force of adhesion was overcome at the in¬
stant when the disc detached itself from the fluid surface.
136. The approach of two floating bodies has been as¬
cribed by some to their mutual attraction, and by others to
the attraction of the portions of fluid that are raised round
each by the attraction of cohesion. Dr Young, however,
observes, that the approach of the two floating bodies is
produced by the excess of the atmospheric pressure on the
remote sides of the solids, above its pressure on their neigh¬
bouring sides; or, if the experiments are performed in a
vacuum, by the equivalent hydrostatic pressure or suction
derived from the weight and immediate cohesion ot the in¬
tervening fluid. This force varies alternately in the inverse
ratio of the square of the distance ; for when the two bodies
approach each other, the altitude of the fluid betw een them
is increased in the simple inverse ratio of the distance ;
and the mean action, or the negative pressure of the fluid
on each particle of the surface, is also increased in the same
ratio. When the floating bodies are sui’rounded by a de¬
pression, the same law prevails, and its demonstration is
still more simple and obvious.
137. A different view of the subject has been given by
Monge, who made a number of accurate experiments on the
subject, and deduced from them the following laws :
1^. If two floating bodies, capable of being wetted with
the fluid on which they float, are placed near each other,
they will approach as if mutually attracted.
In order to explain this law, let AB, CD (fig. 33) be two
suspended plates of glass, placed at such distance that the
Capillary
Attraction,
&c.
point H, where the two portions of elevated fluid meet, is on
a level with the rest of the water, the two plates w ill remain
stationary and in perfect equilibrium. But if they are
brought nearer one another, as in fig. 34, the water will
rise between them to a point H above the level, and by a
nearer approximation, to the point G. The water thus ele¬
vated, acting like a curved chain hung to the two plates,
attracts the sides of the plates, and brings them together in
a horizontal direction. The very same thing takes place
with the floating bodies A, B, placed at such a distance
that the water rises be¬
tween them above its level,
and hence these bodies will
approach by the attraction
of the fluid on their inner
sides.
2d. When the two floating bodies A, B (fig. 36), are not
capable of being wetted,
they will approach each
other as if mutually attrac¬
ted, when they are placed
near one another. Fis-36-
In this case the fluid is depressed between them below
its natural level H, and the two bodies are pressed inwards
or towards each other, which pressure being greater than
the pressure outivards of the fluid between them, they will
approach each other by the action of the difference of these
pressures.
3d If one of the bodies, A,
is capable of being wetted,
and the other, B, not, as shown
in the fig. 37, they wall recede
from each other as if mu¬
tually repelled.
As the fluid rises round A, and is depressed round B, the
depression round B will not be equal all round, and hence
the body B, being placed as if on an inclined plane, will
move to the right hand where the pressure is the least.
In this last case, Laplace was led by theory to believe
A B
Fig. 37.
A B
Fig. 35.
96
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Capillary that when 13 is placed very near A, the repulsion will be
Attraction, converted into attraction. M. Haiiy tried this experiment
&c- with planes of ivory and talc, the former being incapable
of being wetted witli water and the latter not; and he found,
in conformity with Laplace’s prediction, that at a certain
short distance the talc moved suddenly into contact with
the ivory.
138. The phenomena of attraction and repulsion exhi¬
bited between small lighted wicks, swimming in a basin of
oil, and the motions of floating evaporable substances like
camphor, and also of potassium and light substances, such
as cork, impregnated with ether, have been sometimes
treated under this head. The first of these classes of phe¬
nomena arise from an unbalanced pressure upon the float¬
ing wick, arising from a difference of temperature of dif¬
ferent parts of the oil; and the movements of the second
class arise from the reaction of the currents of vapour
which flow from the floating substances. A full account
of these phenomena will be found in the Edinburgh Trans¬
actions (vol. iv., p. 44), in the Memoires 'presentees d ITn-
stitut (tom. i., p. 125), and the more recent observations of
Matteucci, in the Annales de Chimie (June 1833, tom. liii.,
p. 216-219).
Theory of Capillary Attraction.
139. Dr Hook was one of the earliest speculators in ca¬
pillary attraction. He believed that the phenomena were
due to a diminution of pressure within the tube by reason
of friction against its inner surface. Hawksbee, by means
of the air-pump, showed that this was erroneous. Hawks¬
bee was the first who made an approximation to the true
theory of capillarity, by ascribing it to the attraction of the
tube or plate. Dr Jurin corrected one of Hawksbee’s ex¬
periments, together with its explanation. Newton also seems
to have been in some measure acquainted wuth capillary at¬
traction, if we may judge from the 31st query of the last
edition of his Optics. But before Clairaut took up the
subject, the prevalent theories on capillarity were defective
in two respects ; they contained no calculation founded on
the hypothesis of an attraction, sensible only at insensible
distances from the attracting centres, although Newton had
then shown the existence of such forces ; and no account
of the cohesive attraction of the parts of the fluid for each
other were recognised. Clairaut, then, was the first to see
the necessity of taking into account the action of the fluid
on itself; he was the first mathematician who attempted to
analyze the forces which contribute to the ascent of fluids
in capillary tubes.1 After pointing out the insufficiency of
preceding theories, he gives an analysis of the different
forces which contribute to the suspension of fluids in ca¬
pillary tubes.
Mg. 38. Let ABCDEFGH (fig. 38) be the section of a capillary
tube, MNP the surface of the water in the vessel, li the
height of its ascent, viz., the concave surface of the fluid
column, and IKLM an indefinitely small column of fluid
reaching to the surface at M. Now the column ML is so¬
licited by the force of gravity which acts through the whole
extent of the column, and by the reciprocal attraction of
the moleculae, which, though they act the same in all the
points of the column, only exhibit their effects towards the
extremity M. If any particle e is taken at a less distance
from the surface than the distance at which the attraction
of the liquid generally terminates, and if mn is a plane pa¬
rallel to MN, and at the same distance from the particle e,
then this particle will be equally attracted by the water be¬
tween the planes MN, mn. The water, however, below
mn, will attract the particle downwards, and this effect will
take place as far as the distance where the attraction ceases.
The column IK, on the other hand, which is in a state Capillary
of equilibrium with ML, is acted upon by the force of gra- Attraction,
vity through the whole extent of the column, also by other &c<
forces at the upper and lower extremities of the tube. The
forces exerted at the upper part of the column are, the at-
Fig. 38.
traction of the tube upon the particles of water, and the
reciprocal attraction of these particles ; but as every particle
is as much drawn upwards as downwards by the first of
these forces, the consideration of it may be dropped. In
order to estimate the other force, let a horizontal plane, VX,
touch the concavity at I, a particle p, situated infinitely
near to I, is attracted by all the particles above VX, and
by all below it whose sphere of activity comprehends that
particle; and as the particles above p are fewer than those
below it, the result of these forces must be a force acting
downwards.
In order to estimate the value of the forces which act at
the lower end O of the tube, let us suppose that the tube
has a prolongation to the bottom of the vessel, formed of
matter of the same density as the water. Let a particle R,
be situated a little above the extremity of the tube, and
another Q, as much below that extremity, they will be
equally acted upon by the water above that plane, and by
the water between the fictitious prolongation of the tube,
and therefore these forces will destroy one another.
By applying to the case of the particle R the same rea¬
soning that was used for the particle e, it will appear that
the result of its attraction by the tube is an attraction up¬
wards. The particle R is likewise attracted downwards by
the supposed prolongation of the tube, and the difference
between these is the real effect. The other particle Q is also
drawn upwards by the tube with the same force as R, since,
by the hypothesis, it is as far distant from the points D, G,
as the particle R is from the points d, g, where, with re¬
spect to it, the real attraction of the tube commences. The
particle Q is attracted also downwards, by the supposed
prolongation of the tube, and the difference of these actions
is the real effect. Hence the double of this force is the
sum of all the forces that act at the lower part of the tube.
These forces, when combined with those exerted at the top
of the tube, and with the force of gravity, give the total
expression, which should be combined with that of the forces
with which the column ML is actuated.
The formula obtained by Clairaut for the altitude \i
(fig. 38) is
\i=
(2Q Q) ^J^dx \J->. xj tA [*’
P
in which Q is the intensity of the attraction of the glass,
Q' the intensity of the attraction of the water, b the interior
radius of the tube, and p the force of gravity.
Clairaut then observes, that there is an infinitude of pos-
1 Thfrorie de la Figure de la Terre, chap. x. Paris, 1743, 1808.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
97
&c.
Fig. 39.
Segner,
Capillary sible laws of attraction which will give a sensible quantity
Attraction, for the elevation of the fluid li above the level MN, when
the diameter of the tube is very small, and a quantity next
to nothing when the diameter is considerable; and he re¬
marks, that we may select the law which gives the inverse
ratio between the diameter of the tube and the height of
the liquid, conformable to experiment.
140. It follows from the preceding formula, that if any solid,
AB (fig. 39), possesses half the attracting power of the fluid
CD, the surface of the fluid will re¬
main horizontal ; for the attraction
being represented by DA, DE, and
DC, DAand DE maybe combined
into DB, and DB and DC into
DF, which is vertical. The water
will therefore not be raised, since
the surface of a fluid at rest must
be perpendicular to the resulting
direction of all the forces which act upon it.
When the attracting power of the solid is more than
half as great, the resultant of the
forces will be GF (fig. 40), and
therefore the fluid must rise towards
the solid, in order to be perpendi¬
cular to GF. When the attractive
power of the solid is less than that
of the fluid, the resultant will be
HF ; and therefore, as in the case
of mercury, the surface must be de¬
pressed, in order to be perpendicular to the force.
141. In 1751, Segner, without having seen any of Clai-
Monge, and rant’s published memoirs, attempted theoretically the de-
Dr Young’s termination of the form of the surface of a water-drop rest-
views on jngp on a horizontal plane, assuming that the particles of the
capillarity, have an attraction for each other. The nature of this
problem is the same as that of determining the form of tbe
upper surface of a fluid column sustained in a capillary
tube: neither of these problems had engaged the attention
of mathematicians. Segner proposed a theory, but he
owned that it is defective.
Monge, in 1787, attempted an explanation of the appa¬
rent attraction and repulsion of small bodies floating on
fluids : the principle on which he grounds his explanations
is the same as the more exact interpretations or the same
phenomena by Young, Laplace, and Poisson. Monge did
not follow up his investigations by analysis.
Dr Young’s Essay on the Cohesion of Fluids, contain¬
ing his theory of capillary attraction, was read before the
Royal Society, December 1804. His views of the subject
are similar to those of Segner and Monge. He refers the
phenomena observed in capillary tubes to the cohesive at¬
traction of the superficial particles of the fluid, in so far as
it gives rise to a uniform tension of the surface. In sup¬
port of his theory, he makes two assumptions—\.st, that the
tension of the fluid surface is known ; 2d, that at the juncture
of a fluid surface with the surface of a solid, there is an
appropriate angle of contact between the two surfaces.
This angle for glass and water is nearly evanescent, where¬
as for glass and mercury it is about 140°: on these two
assumptions, he thinks that a theory of capillary attraction
can be satisfactorily built. In the latter part of his essay,
he shows how his assumptions may be derived from ulterior
physical principles.
The subject of capillary attraction has more recently oc¬
cupied the attention of the Marquis de Laplace, who pub¬
lished his theory in 1806. In 1807 he published a supple¬
ment to his theory, in which he compares his formula with
the experiments of Gay Lussac and others.
Account of In the first treatise published by M. Laplace, his method
Laplace’s of considering the phenomena was founded on the form of
theory. the surface of the fluid in capillary spaces, and on the con-
VOL. XII.
ditions of equilibrium of this fluid in an infinitely narrow Capillary
canal, resting by one of its extremities upon this surface, Attraction,
and by the other on the horizontal surfaces of an indefinite v ^ y
fluid, in which the capillary tube was immersed. In his
supplement to that treatise, he has examined the subject
in a much more popular point of view, by considering di¬
rectly the forces which elevate and depress the fluid in this
space. By this means, he is conducted easily to several
general results, which it would have been difficult to obtain
directly by his former method.
142. Let AB (fig. 41) be a vertical tube whose sides are
perpendicular to its base, and which is immersed in a fluid Analygig
that rises in the interior of the 0f the ca-
tube above its natural level. A pillary
thin film of fluid is first raised ,\ forces,
by the action of the sides of the
tube ; this film raises a second
film, and this second film a third
film, till tbe weight of the vo¬
lume of fluid raised exactly ba¬
lances all the forces by which it
is actuated. Hence it is ob¬
vious, that the elevation of the
column is produced by the at- fig. h.
traction of the tube upon the
fluid, and the attraction of the fluid for itself. Let us sup¬
pose that the inner surface of the tube AB is prolonged to
E, and after bending itself horizontally in the direction ED,
that it assumes a vertical direction DC; and let us suppose
the sides of this tube to be so extremely thin, or to be
formed of a film of ice, so as to have no action on the fluid
which it contains, and not to prevent the reciprocal action
which takes place between the particles of the first tube
AB and the particles of the fluid. Now, since the fluid in
the tubes AE, CD is in equilibrio, it is obvious that the
excess of pressure of the fluid in AE is destroyed by the
vertical attraction of the tube and of the fluid upon the
fluid contained in AB. In analyzing these ditt’erent attrac¬
tions, Laplace considered first those which take place under
the tube AB. The fluid column BE is attracted, \st, by
itself; 2d, by the fluid surrounding the tube BE. But
these two attractions are destroyed by the similar attractions
experienced by the fluid contained in the branch DC, so
that they may be entirely neglected. The fluid in BE is
also attracted vertically by the fluid in AB; but this at¬
traction is destroyed by the attraction which it exercises in
the opposite direction upon the fluid in BE, so that these
balanced attractions may likewise be neglected. The fluid
in BE is likewise attracted vertically upwards by the tube
AB, with a force which we shall call Q, and which contri¬
butes to destroy the excess of pressure exerted upon it by
the column BE raised in the tube above its natural level.
Now, the fluid in the lower part of the round tube AB
is attracted, 1. By itself; but as the reciprocal attractions
of a body do not communicate to it any motion if it is solid,
we may, without disturbing the equilibrium, conceive the
fluid in AB frozen. 2. The fluid in the lower part of AB
is attracted by the interior fluid of the tube BE, but as the
latter is attracted upwards by the same force, these two
actions may be neglected as balancing each other. 3. The
fluid in the lower part of BE is attracted by the fluid which
surrounds the ideal tube BE, and the result of this attrac¬
tion is a vertical force acting downwards, which we may
call — Q', the contrary sign being applied, as the force is here
opposite to the other force Q. As it is highly probable
that the attractive forces exercised by the glass and the
water vary according to the same function of the distance,
so as to differ only in their intensities, we may employ the
constant coefficients p, p as measures of their intensity, so
that the forces Q and — Q' will be proportional to p, p ; for
the interior surface of the fluid which surrounds the tube
1
98
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Capillary js sarne as t}ie interior surface of the tube AB.
Consequently, the two masses, viz., the glass in AB, and
v round BE, differ only in their thickness; but as
the attraction of both these masses is insensible at sensible
distances, the difference of their thicknesses, provided their
thicknesses be sensible, will produce no difference in the
attractions. 4. The fluid in the tube AB is also acted
upon by another force, namely, by the sides of the tube A B
in which it is inclosed. If we conceive the column FB
divided into an infinite number of elementary vertical
columns, and if at the upper extremity of one of these
columns we draw a horizontal plane, the portion of the tube
comprehended between the plane and the level surface BC
of the fluid will not produce any vertical force upon the
column ; consequently, the only active vertical force is that
which is produced by the ring of the tube immediately above
the horizontal plane.. Now, the vertical attraction of this
part of the tube upon BE, will be equal to that of the en¬
tire tube upon the column BE, which is equal in diameter,
and similarly placed. This new force will therefore be re¬
presented by + Q. In combining these different forces, it
is manifest that the fluid column BF is attracted upwards
by the two forces + Q, + Q, and downwards by the force
-Q'; consequently the force with which it is raised up¬
wards will be 2Q — Q'. If we represent by V the volume
of the column BE, by D its density, and byp' the force of
gravity, then V will represent the weight of the elevated
column; but as this weight is in equilibrio with the forces
by which it is elevated, we have the following equation :—
<7DV = 2Q-Q'.
If the force 2Q is less than Q', then V will be negative,
and the fluid will sink in the tube; but as long as 2Q is
greater than Q', V will be positive, and the fluid will rise
above its natural level; as was long before shown by M-
Clairaut.
Since the attractive forces, both of the glass and the fluid,
are insensible at sensible distances, the surface of the tube
AB will act sensibly only on the column of fluid imme¬
diately in contact with it. We may therefore neglect the
consideration of the curvature, and consider the inner sur-
; face as developed upon a plane. The force Q will there¬
fore be proportional to the width of this plane, or what is
the same thing, to the interior circumference of the tube.
Calling e, therefore, the circumference of the tube, we shall
have Q =p c; p being a constant .quantity, representing the
intensity of the attraction of the tube AB upon the fluid,
in the case where the attractions of different bodies are
expressed by the same function of the distance. In every
case, however, p expresses a quantity dependent on the
attraction of the matter of the tube, and independent of its
figure and magnitude. In like manner we shall have
Q=p c; p' expressing the same thing with regard to the
attraction of the fluid for itself, that p expressed with re¬
gard to the attraction of the tube for the fluid. By sub¬
stituting these values of Q, Q', in the preceding equation,
we have
gT)V — c(2p — p).
If we now substitute, in this general formula, the value
of c in terms of the radius if it is a capillary tube, or in
terms of the sides if the section is a rectangle, and the
value of V in terms of the radius and altitude of the fluid
column, we shall obtain an equation by which the heights
of ascent may be calculated for tubes of all diameters, after
the height, belonging to any given diameter, has been ascer-
Applica- ■ tail?^ b7 di;'ect experiment.
tion of the . t‘ie case of a cylindrical tube, let tt represent the
formula to ratio of the circumference to the diameter, h the height of
cylindrical the fluid column reckoned from the lower point of the me-
tnbes; niscus, q the mean height to which the fluid rises, or the
height at which the fluid would stand if the meniscus were Capillary
to fall down and assume a level surface, then we have ttt3 Attraction,
for the solid content of a cylinder of the same height and &c*
radius as the meniscus ; and as the meniscus, added to the
solid contents of the hemisphere of the same radius, must
be equal to ttt3, we have w3 - or for the so¬
lid content of the meniscus,
follows that the meniscus
base is tt/-2, and altitude
7T/
But since — =irr2 x
O
3’
it
-g- is equal to a cylinder whose
. Hence, we have
7 r
?=/<+T;
or what is the same thing, the mean altitude <7 in a cylin¬
der is always equal to the altitude h of the lower point of
the concavity of the meniscus increased by one-third of the
radius, or one-sixth of the diameter of the capillary tube.
Now, since the contour c of the tube = 27rp, and since the
volume V of water raised is equal to <7 x Trr2, we have, by
substituting these values in the general formula,
gDqTrr =2Trr (2p-p). (No. 1.)
and dividing by Trr and ^D, we have,
rq=2 —P p and q = 2 -p ~P x —
gD 7 gD r
(No. 2.)
144. In applying this formula to Gay Lussac’s experiments, Applica-
we have the constant quantity, tion of the
formula
2 q = r ^ ='647205 x 23T634 «l-0'215735 = 15*1311, Lussac’s
^ experi-
for Gay Lussac’s first experiment. In order to find the ments on
height of the fluid in his second tube by means of this con- water;
stant quantity, we have
15*1311
0*951095
1 90381 nn-inner a P 1
r= —^ =0*951905, and 2 —- - x «-= a =
4 gu 3 7
= 15*8956, from which, if we subtract one-sixth of the dia¬
meter, or 0*3173, we have 15*5783 for the altitude h of the
lower point of the concavity of the meniscus, which differs
only 0*0078 from 15*861, the observed altitude.
If we apply the same formula to Gay Lussac’s experi- to Gay
ments on alcohol, we shall find the constant quantityLussac 8
2p - p J experi-
2—^—=6*0825 as deduced from the first experiment, ments on
9U alcohol;
and k = 6*0725, which differs only by 0*0100 from 6*08397,
the altitude observed.
From these comparisons, it is obvious that the mean
altitudes, or the values of q, are very nearly reciprocally
proportional to the diameters of the tubes ; for, in the expe¬
riments on water, the value of q deduced from this ratio is
15*895, which differs little from 15*9034, the value found
from experiment; and that, in accurate experiments, the
correction made by the addition of the sixth part of the
diameter of the tube is indispensably requisite.
145. If the section of the pipe in which the fluid ascends to ,rectai1'
is a rectangle, whose greater side is a, and its lesser side d, pi^ry
then the base of the elevated column will be = arf, and spaces,
its perimeter c = 2a + 2d. Hence, the value of the me¬
niscus will be
ae?2
IT
cnrd2
ad2
2
- ^>that is 2=£ + !^l_Z^.
Hence, if in the general equation No. 1 we substitute for
c its equal 2a + 2rf, and for V its equal adq, we have
v; . gY)qad=2p —p x2a-\-2d,
Capillary
Attraction,
&c.
experi¬
ments.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
_ , nn^tivp and the fluid tends to rise, and consequently to
and dividing by a and by g D, we have remove’from this state which is not stable. In a similar
manner it will be seen, that the third state is stable, the
tourth unstable, and so on.
99
dq = 2
2p-p
gv
Capillary
Attraction,
&c.
x 1 + and
a
< = 2
2p-p
gu
X 1 +
d
In applying this formula to the elevation of water be¬
tween two glass plates, the side a is very great compared
with d, and therefore the quantity being almost insen¬
sible, may be safely neglected,
comes
Hence the formula be-
q = 2^x
Compari¬
son of the
formula
with Gay
Lussac’s
By comparing this formula with the formula No. 2, it is
obvious that water will rise to the same height between
plates of glass as in a tube, provided the distance d be¬
tween the two plates of glass is equal to r, or half the dia¬
meter of the tube. This result was obtained by Newton,
and has been confirmed by the experiments of succeeding
writers. 2p — p
As the constant quantity 2 “ is the same as already
found for capillary tubes, we may take its value, viz., 15-1311,
and substitute it in the preceding equation, we then have
9 =
15-1311
1-060
= 14'1544 ; and since
h = q- ^ , subtracting
^ =0-1147, we have
Fluids may
be in a state
of stable
and unsta¬
ble equili¬
brium in
the same
tube.
/? = 14-0397, which differs very little from 13*574, the ob¬
served altitude, and d~ TOGO.
It will be seen from the formula No. 2, that of all tubes
that have a prismatic form, the hollow cylinder is the one
in which the volume of fluid raised is the least possible, as
it has the smallest perimeter. It appears, also, that if the
section of the tube is a regular polygon, the altitudes of the
fluid will be reciprocally proportional to the homologous
lines of the similar base' a result which, as we have seen,
M. Gellert obtained from direct experiment. Hence, in
all prismatic tubes whose sections are polygons inscribed
in the same circle, the fluid will rise to the same mean
height. If one of the two bases is, for example, a square,
and the other an equilateral triangle, the altitudes will be
as 2:3|, or very nearly as 7 : 8.
146. M. Laplace has remarked that there may be se¬
veral states of equilibrium in the same tube, provided its
width is not uniform. If we suppose two capillary tubes com¬
municating with one another, so that the smallest is placed
above the greatest, we may then conceive their diameters
and lengths to be such that the fluid is at first in equili¬
brium above its level in the widest tube, and that in pour¬
ing in some of the same fluid, so as to reach the smallei^
tube, and fill part of it, the fluid will still maintain itself
in equilibrio. When the diameter of a capillary tube di¬
minishes by insensible gradations, the different states of
equilibrium are alternately stable and unstable. At first
the fluid tends to raise itself in the tube, and this tendency
diminishing, becomes nothing in a state of equilibrium.
Beyond this it becomes negative, and consequently the
fluid tends to descend. Thus the first equilibrium is sta¬
ble, since the fluid, being a little removed from this state,
tends to return to it. In continuing to raise the fluid, its
tendency to descend diminishes, and becomes nothing in
the second state of equilibrium. Beyond this it becomes
147 Although the preceding method of considering the
phenomena of capillary attraction is extremely simp e and
accurate, yet it does not indicate the connexion which sub¬
sists between the elevation and depression of the fluid and
the concavity or convexity of the surface which every ui,
assumes in capillary spaces. The object of M. Laplace s
first method, contained in his first supplement, is to deter¬
mine this connexion.
By means of the methods for calculating the attraction
of spheroids, he determines the action of a mass of fluid
terminated by a spherical surface, concave or convex, upon
a column of fluid contained in an infinitely narrow canal,
directed towards the centre of this surface. By this action
Laplace means the pressure which the fluid contained in
the canal would exercise, in virtue of the attraction of its
entire mass upon a plane base situated in the interior of
the canal, and perpendicular to its sides, at any sensible
distance from the surface, this base being taken for unity.
He then shows that this action is smaller when the surface
is concave than when it is plane, and greater when the
surface is convex. The analytical expression of this action
is composed of two terms. The first of these terms, which
is much greater than the second, expresses the action of
the mass terminated by a plane surface ; and the second
term expresses the part of the action due to the sphericity
of the surface, or, in other words, the action of the menis¬
cus comprehended between this surface and the plane
which touches it. This action is either additive to the pre¬
ceding, or subtractive from it, according as the surface is
convex or concave. It is reciprocally proportional to the
radius of the spherical surface; for the smaller that this
radius is, the meniscus is the nearer to the point of contact.
From these results relative to bodies terminated by sen¬
sible segments of a spherical surface, Laplace deduces
this general theorem: “ In all the laws which render the
attraction insensible at sensible distances, the action of a
body terminated by a curve surface upon an interior canal
infinitely narrow, perpendicular to this surface in any point,
is equal to half the sum of the actions upon the same canal
of two spheres, which have for their radii the greatest and
the smallest of the radii of the osculating circle of the sur¬
face at this point.” , , , „ , ,
148. By means of this theorem, and the laws of hydro¬
statics,’ Laplace has determined the figure which a mass of
fluid ought to take when acted upon by gravity, or con¬
tained in a vessel of a given figure. The nature of the
surface is expressed by an equation of partial differences
of the second order, which cannot be integrated by any
known method. If the figure of the surface is one of re¬
volution, the equation is reduced to one of ordinary dif¬
ferences, and is capable of being integrated by approxima¬
tion, when the surface is very small. Laplace next shows,
that a very narrow tube approaches the more to that of a
spherical segment as the diameter of the tube becomes
smaller. If these segments are similar in different tubes of
the same substance, the radii of their surfaces will be in¬
versely as the diameter of the tubes. This similarity of
the spherical segments will appear evident, if we considti
that the distance at which the action of the tube ceases to
be sensible is imperceptible; so that if, by means of a very
powerful microscope, this distance should be found equal to
a millimetre, it is probable that the same magnifying power
would give to the diameter of the tube an apparent diame¬
ter of several metres. The surface of the tube may there¬
fore be considered as very nearly plane, in a radius equal to
that of the sphere of sensible activity ; the fluid in this in¬
terval will therefore descend, or rise from this surface very
Connexion
between
the rise of
fluids and
the curva¬
ture of
their sur¬
face.
100
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Capillary nearly as if it were plane. Beyond this, the fluid being sub-
.Attraction, jectefl only to the action of gravity and the mutual action
v &c~ of its own particles, the surface will be very nearly that of
a spherical segment of which the extreme planes, being
those of the fluid surface, at the limits of the sphere of the
sensible activity of the tube, will be very nearly in differ¬
ent tubes equally inclined to their sides. Hence it follows
that all the segments will be similar.
149. The approximation of these results gives the true
cause of the ascent or descent of fluids in capillary tubes in
the inverse ratio of their diameter. If in the axis of a glass
tube we conceive a canal infinitely narrow, which bends
Tig. 41. round like the tube ABEDC in fig. 41, the action of the
water in the tube in this narrow canal will be less, on ac¬
count of the concavity of its surface, than the action of the
water in the vessel on the same canal. The fluid will
therefore rise in the tube to compensate for this difference
of action; and as the concavity is inversely proportional to
the diameter of the tube, the height of the fluid will be
also inversely proportional to that diameter. If the sur¬
face of the interior fluid is convex, which is the case with
mercury in a glass tube, the action of this fluid on the canal
will be greater than that of the fluid in the vessel, and
therefore the fluid will descend in the tube in the ratio of
their difference, and consequently in the inverse ratio of the
diameter of the tube.
In this manner of viewing the subject, the attraction of
capillary tubes has no influence upon the ascent or depres¬
sion of the fluids which they contain, but in determining the
inclination of the first planes of the surface of the interior
fluid extremely near the sides of the tube, and upon this
inclination depends the concavity or convexity of the sur¬
face, and the length of its radius. The friction of the fluid
against the sides of the tube may augment or diminish a
little the curvature of its surface, of which we see frequent
examples in the barometer. In this case thecapillary effects
will increase or diminish in the same ratio.
The differential equation of the surfaces of fluids inclosed
in capillary spaces of revolution, conducts Laplace to the
following general result: That if into a cylindrical tube we
introduce a cylinder which has the same axis as that of the
tube, and which is such that the space comprehended be¬
tween its surface and the interior surface of the tube has
very little width, the fluid will rise in this space to the same
height as in a tube whose radius is equal to this width. If
we suppose the radii of the tube and of the cylinder infinite,
we have the case of a tube included between two parallel
and vertical planes, very near each other. This result has
been confirmed, as we have already seen, by the experi¬
ments of Newton, Haiiy, and Gay Lussac. Laplace then
applies his theory to the phenomena presented by a drop
of fluid, either in motion or suspended in equilibrio either
in a conical capillary tube, or between two plates, and in¬
clined to each other, as discovered by Mr Hawksbee ; to
the mutual approximation of two parallel and vertical discs
immersed in a fluid ; to the phenomena which take place
when two plates of glass are inclined to each other at a small
angle ; and to the determination of the figure of a large drop
of mercury laid upon a horizontal plate of glass.
M. Gauss's 1^0. Laplace has failed in giving a satisfactory proof of
correction the constancy of the angle of contact, or that angle which
of La¬
place's
theory.
the free surface of the fluid makes with its surface of con¬
tact. Gauss, in 1830, endeavoured to rectify the defect by
forming his equations of equilibrium on the principle of
virtual velocities (see Mechanics) which he applies to the
whole mass of fluid, and not to a differential element, as La¬
grange has done. By this method he obtains a sextuple
integral, which extends to the whole mass, and which is to
be a minimum ; if the fluid be supposed homogeneous and
incompressible, the integral becomes quadruple. Further,
the integral may become single, if the only forces acting be
gravity and the molecular attractions of the fluid and con- Capillary
taining solid, and if the sphere of activity of the two attrac- Attraction,
tions be insensible. He also arrived at two equations, one &c-
relative to the free surface, and which is Laplace’s funda-
mental equation ; the other relative to the angle of contact,
and which corresponded with Dr Young’s result.
151. Poisson’s first memoir on the theory of capillary at-Poisson’s
traction was read before the Paris Academy, November theory of
1828. In it his object is to form the equations of equili-caPillary
brium of fluids on physical principles, i.e., by assuming that ^^actlon>
a mass of fluid is made up of distinct molecules, separated moir
one from another by spaces excessively small, and void of
ponderable matter.
As a preliminary to the discussion, the magnitude of these
molecules, as also the spaces between them, are assumed to
be so small, that a line which may be supposed to be a great
multiple of them is of insensible magnitude. The mole¬
cules are attractive of each other, and at the same time are
repulsive, owing to their proper heat: their action and re¬
action are equal; the force decreases rapidly as the distance
increases, and it is only sensible at insensible distances.
The influence of these attractive centres is felt at distances
very great when compared with the molecular spaces, and
the rapid decrease to commence only at distances which are
large multiples of these small intervals.
By molecular action is to be understood the excess of
the repulsion over the attraction of the molecules, and this
force is supposed to be different for different points of any
two molecules. The mean value is called the principal
force, and the secondary force is the variation from this nor¬
mal value, according as different points of the molecules
are directed towards each other. The secondary force is
important in solids, inasmuch as it gives rise to their rigi¬
dity and resistance to the lateral motion of their molecules ;
the want of this force in fluids causes their particles to
be very mobile. It is thus that a fluid is distinguished by
Poisson from a solid : If a point be taken anywhere in the
interior of a fluid mass, and a straight line of insensible
length, but a great multiple of the mean intervals between
the molecules, be drawn in any direction from that point,
the mean interval between the molecules that lie in the
line is constant, though the particles may be irregularly dis¬
posed along it.
Reasoning on the ground of these suppositions, Poisson
forms equations relative to the pressure in the interior of a
fluid mass, which are the same as if he had started from the
supposition of the equality of pressure in every direction.
His reasoning on the above suppositions leads him to the
explanation of a known fact; but for all this, his assumptions
cannot be declared true until they satisfy all the facts which
are known to depend on the intimate constitution of fluids.
He afterwards finds the equations of equilibrium relative to
the surface of separation of two fluids incumbent on one
another, and one of the fluids being suppressed, the equa¬
tion of the free surface of a single fluid. His first memoir
closes with this principal conclusion : Capillary phenomena
are due to the molecular action resulting from the calorific
repulsion, and an attractive force, and modified not only by
the form of the surfaces, as in Laplace’s theory, but, more¬
over, by a particular state of compression of the fluid at its
superficies. He shows that the variation of density near
the surface is extremely rapid, and also that the molecular
attractions in fluids as well as in solids extends farther than
the calorific repulsion.
152. In the year 1834, Poisson confirmed the above Poisson’s
conclusion, and the consequences which flow from it withsecond m<!*
respect to capillary phenomena, in his Nouvelle Theorie demo^r'
VAction Capillaire, published in L'Institut for May that
year. The object of Poisson in this treatise, is to bring the
theory of capillary attraction to the greatest degree of per¬
fection that the power of analysis, and the knowledge of
HYDRODYNAMICS.
101
Capillary facts will admit. In the first chapter it is proved that if the
Attraction, rapid variation of density near the surface were neglected,
&c- the fluid within the tube would be horizontal, and there
" would be neither elevation nor depression. He shows also
that we must take account of the variable compression to
which the fluid is subject near the surface of the tube, and
reaching to the extent of the action due to the solid. From
this it would appear that Laplace’s theory is somewhat de¬
fective, although it explains phenomena. When the fluid
is supposed to be incompressible, he finds the equation for
the angle of contact to be of the same value as what Dr
Young found for it, as also Gauss from the theory of La¬
place. If, however, the variation of density be taken into
account, the equation will no longer hold.
He next finds the equation of the free surface of a fluid
in equilibrium in a capillary space, by taking into account
any variation of density that may exist at the fluid surface,
although the exact law of variation be unknown ; and af¬
terwards he determines on the same principles the equation
relative to the contour of the capillary surface.
Compari- 153. jn this theory of Poisson are two principal equations
8°n of . which are the same in form as those of Laplace’s theory,
experi.Wlth an(l which lead to like results. Generally, however, Poisson
ment. has carried his analysis farther than Laplace had done, and
so has obtained results more conformable with experiment.
Thus, Gay Lussac showed by experiment that the eleva¬
tion of the lowest point of the capillary surtace in a tube
1*9038 mill. (=*075 in.) in diameter, is 15*o861 mill.; on
Poisson’s theory, it is 15*5829 mill.; and on that of Laplace,
15*5787 mill. In investigating the case where two fluids are
superincumbent the one on the other in the same tube, the
formulae of Laplace and Poisson agree, and they are applied
to the solution of a curious phenomenon observed by Dr
Young. Into a capillary tube containing water, a drop of
oil was inserted, when Dr Young saw that the superior sur¬
face of the oil depressed itself below the original height of
the water. The depression, doubtless, refers to the centre
of the capillary surface where it cuts the axis of the tube.
If it be assumed that the oil in descending moistened
the tube, and that the water did not wet it originally
throughout its whole extent, Poisson’s theory accounts for
the fact.
154. The pressure of fluids modified by capillary action
receives considerable attention ; he determines both vertical
and horizontal pressures on a solid partly immersed in a
fluid ; and from the calculation of the latter it appears, that
when a plate which has its two parallel faces of different
substances is the solid immersed, the horizontal pressures on
the opposite faces counterbalance each other, and so the
solid can have no motion of translation.
155. Various problems which had engaged the attention
of previous mathematicians receive m©re correct solutions
by means of Poisson’s theory, and are more carefully com¬
pared with experiment. The following is one of these re¬
sults :—When two plates having parallel surfaces are im¬
mersed in a fluid, which rises against the surface of one,
and is depressed near that of the other, it is found that the
fluid surface between them may assume two different forms
when the plates are near each other. 1 here is a point of
inflection in one which is retained, however near the plates
be brought to each other, and in this case they are mutu¬
ally repulsive, the force being independent of the interval
between them ; the other is the form noted by Laplace,
which contains no inflection, and when it subsists the re¬
pulsive changes to an attractive force on making the plates
approximate. Poisson explains this by saying, that the
first form obtains when the plates, originally at a great
distance, are gradually brought near each other ; and that
the second takes place when, one plate having been pre¬
viously immersed, the other is inserted into the curved Capillary
portion of the fluid contiguous to it. ttraction,
156. Besides the usual problems which this theory solves, v ^ _ y
Poisson has given the solutions of two which no former
mathematician ever attempted; one relates to the form of Poisson
fluid poured upon another fluid of greater specific gravity ; solves two
the other has reference to the adhesion of the base of a capil-
lary solid cylinder to a fluid, from which it is raised with its
axis vertical. This is perhaps similar to the adhesion of
a fluid to a disc, but requiring a different analytical treat¬
ment.
157. The last chapter of the treatise contains notes, ad¬
ditions, and a comparison of new experiments. In it are
contained the author’s views respecting the interior consti¬
tution of bodies, particularly fluids, and the nature of mo¬
lecular forces ; as also the treatment of the general equa¬
tions of the equilibrium of fluids. In this same chapter are
several notices of other subjects which are worthy of atten¬
tion. Thus, the depression of mercury in the barometer
cannot be conveniently calculated by the theory unless the
ratio of the radius of the tube to one of the constants be
either small or great. In other cases the method of Qua¬
dratures must be resorted to.
Casbois, professor of physics at Metz, pointed out a
method of making barometers with plane or concave sur¬
faces, having observed that, by boiling mercury, the con¬
vexity of its capillary surface was diminished, and, by con¬
tinuing the boiling a sufficient length of time, the mercurial
surface in the capillary tube might become concave. Du-
long explains this phenomenon. When the mercury is
boiling, the surface layer in contact with the air is oxidized,
and, mingling with the whole mass, changes its properties
so that the action of the particles of mercury on each other,
and on those of the tube, or rather on the particles of a thin
coating of water which is always interposed between the
mercury and the tube, is not the same as before, the change
being greater in proportion to the greater quantity of metal
oxidized, i.e., in proportion to the boiling (132).
158. Poisson lastly applies his theory to explain the phe-
nomenon of endosmose. He supposes that the two fluids
meet without mixing in the capillary tubes which permeate
the membrane, and, by the relation of the molecular forces
at their common surface of separation, one prevails over the
other, and so passes through to the opposite side of the
membrane. But the corresponding phenomenon of exos¬
mose is unaccounted for (163).
159. With respect to the theories of Laplace and Poisson, Prof. Chal-
Professor Challis says that M. Poisson’s theory will engage lis’s esti-
the attention of the speculative philosopher, and the simpler ^
theory of Laplace will be made the vehicle of conveying to Laplace
the younger students of science, in an elementary form, the an(i p0js.
explanation of a numerous and interesting class of pheno- son.
mena. The same distinguished philosopher makes the fol¬
lowing statement in his Report of the British Association
for 1836, respecting the views of Laplace and Poisson on
capillary phenomena. It does not appear that any exception
can be taken to the reasoning in any part of Laplace’s
theory. The principles may indeed be objected to on the
ground that Poisson takes up, viz., that if the molecular
constitution of bodies be admitted, there must be a superfi¬
cial variation of density which that theory takes no account
of; as, however, experiment has not yet detected any such
variation, and we have no means of assigning the amount
of its influence, it would be premature to reject the theory
on that ground, especially as the probability is, that the
effects which this consideration has on the numerical results j . j,
of the calculations will at all events be small. periments
160. In the year 1834 M. Link made several exPer'_ 0n capil-
ments on capillarity.1 His object was to determine the iarity.
* Annalcn dcr Phvsik und Chemie, bd. xxix., 1833, p. 404.
*■4/,. 7?//
102
HYDRODYNAMICS.
&c.
Capillary comparative ascents of different fluids by capillary attrac-
Attraction, t;on> Jnstead of using tubes, he employed plates, as in fig.
27, inclined at a small angle with the line of junction vertical,
and so arranged the same two plates that they could be
dipped and dried, and again placed in the different fluids,
and the ascents of the rectangular hyperbola taken. M.
Link found that when he used distilled water, nitric acid, a
solution of Kali causticum, spirit of wine, sulphuric ether, and
rectified sulphuric acid, the ascents were equal between the
same two plates. This gentleman in 1836 published in the
Annalen experiments which were made on the same sub¬
ject, but not coinciding with the former, for it was found
that different fluids did not ascend to equal heights be¬
tween the same two plates, and the experiments only par¬
tially confirmed the law to which theory leads, of equal
ascents of the same fluid between plates of different mate¬
rial well moistened.
161. About the same time Dr Frankenheim of Breslau
made experiments on the ascents of fluids in capillary glass
tubes, to determine the synaphia, or cohesion of fluid
bodies. Let A = height of ascent, r = radius of tube, then
the specific synaphia varies as r (A + £ rf.
Franken-
heim’s ex¬
periments.
Illustrations of Capillary Attraction.
Examples 162. Many natural phenomena are due to capillary at-
ofApiUary traction, as, e.g., if the foundation of a building be moist,
rac ion. the moisture wjij ascencJ t]le fine capjl|ary tubes 0f t]le
stones and mortar, and cause the walls to be damp. So
also if a tract of sand or shingle have a hard impermeable
base, the rain will, unless drained off, render the district
damp and marshy. An excellent illustration of the fact is
to be found in the expansion of wood by water. Thus, in
the south of France, a large cylinder of freestone, of a proper
diameter, and several feet in length, has a number of circu¬
lar grooves made round its surface ; into these grooves
wedges of dry wood are driven, and then well soaked with
water. After a few hours, the solid cylinder breaks up into
rough millstones, which require very little labour to ren¬
der them fit for the market. Again/it is well known that
on a line of rail the rails are secured to the sleepers by
means of chairs, and a wooden key binds both rail and
chair firmly together. The key must remain immoveable
in its position; and in order to do this it is first thoroughly
steamed, then subjected to a pressure of 12 lbs. on the
square inch. The key is now kept in the drying-house
till required, when it is easily driven into its cavity,
while the moisture, entering its capillary tubes, causes it
to expand, and hold rail and chair together with great
tenacity. This expansive power of the key has been known
to burst asunder its iron chair. Similarly also tight ropes
may be rendered still tighter by water being thrown upon
them, and consequently may become very serviceable in the
arts.
annexes-0 i ^.ut one beautiful application of the principle is to
mose. be found in the ascent and descent of sap in trees and plants.
M. Dutrochet has named this inward and outward move¬
ment endosmose (evSov, inwards, and wapos, impulsion), and
exosmose (e^w, outwards), respectively. All plants and
tiees possess cells, which contain liquids of different densi-
ties, and which are continually interchanging their contents.
When the walls of the cells are thin, the fluid is drunk up
VyU r?P1^ Y’ The fluids on either side of the membrane
i er horn each other in density, but have some affinity for
t ie membrane between them as well as for each other. By
the endosmotic process, then, a thin liquid passes rapidly
upwards in considerable quantity, mixing in its progress with
liquids of a denser sort, while, by the exosmotic movement,
the latter liquids pass outwards with a slower motion, and in
smaller quantity than the former enters. These movements
take place in both the living and dead tissue, and they are
influenced by the nature of the fluids and of the membrane ;
they are nicely shown in the case of a unicellular plant
Ihus, when one of the cells of the Yeast plant is placed in
a dense liquid, it rapidly loses, by an outward movement,
its liquid contents, since the cell becomes more or less col¬
lapsed ; but if in a thin liquid, that liquid will rush up the
cell and swell it. It is supposed that the bursting of the
seed-vessels of several plants is due to the distention of the
cells by endosmose, which causes a curvature in the parts,
and ultimately rupture. Endosmose, however, is modified
in the living plant by the vital actions going on within the
cells, and to these actions are due the continued move¬
ments of fluids through the cell walls.
164. The whole process of the endosmotic and exosmotic
movement may be shown by the following experiment.
Take a glass vessel filled with alcohol, having its open end
covered tight with a bladder, which has been previously
well soaked in water, and is now in close contact with the
alcohol. Let this apparatus be immersed in a vessel con¬
taining water, the bladder being under the surface. At the
end of a few hours, it will be found that so much water has
penetrated the bladder-covering and mixed with the alco¬
hol, while a smaller quantity of the latter has made its
escape and mingled with the water. On taking up the
glass vessel, the surface of the bladder, instead of being flat,
will now be puffed outwards and highly convex, so that, if
pricked with a needle, a fine column of liquid will be seen
ascending to a height of several feet. The ascent of the
one is partly caused by capillary attraction, partly also by
the chemical affinity of the two fluids, while the greater
penetration of the water is owing to the less powerful at¬
traction of the capillary tubes of the bladder on that fluid.
The alcohol, being more strongly attracted by the tubes of
the bladder, flows out less readily.
1 he principle may also be illustrated with two dif¬
ferent gases; thus, take a common glass tumbler full of air,
and tie carefully over its open end an india-rubber covering.
Place it now under a large bell-glass full of hydrogen, and
resting in a dish of water, and it will be found that the hy¬
drogen will gradually penetrate the rubber covering, and
mix with the confined air. Such a quantity of hydrogen
will mix with the air that the rubber will be much distended,
and at last burst. If we reverse the experiment, and put
hydrogen in the tumbler, surrounded by air, the rubber
will become concave instead of convex.
We may have an idea of the intensity of the forces which
take place during these endosmotic and exosmotic move¬
ments from the simple fact, that if a glass or porcelain vessel,
capable of resisting a pressure of 700 lbs. on the square
inch, have its neck well stoppled with a dry piece of wood,
and if the projecting end be allowed to dip into water, the
liquid will rush up the capillary tubes of the wood, and in a
short time break the vessel to pieces. Dutrochet esti¬
mated that with a vessel filled with fluid of a density P3,
and placed in water, the endosmotic force would be equal
to a pressure of 4^ atmospheres.
Capillary
Attraction,
&c.
Experi¬
ment with
two fluids.
Experi¬
ment with
two gases.
Intensity
of the
forces.
On the Form of Drops.
165. It was observed by M. Monge, that when drops of on
alcohol fall upon a surface of the same fluid, they do not form
at first mix with it, but roll over its surface, impinge against of drops,
each other, and are reflected like billiard balls. He ob¬
served also an analogous phenomenon in the drops of water
which fall from the oars during the rowing of a boat, and
during the condensation of the vapour of warm fluids.
In repeating the experiments of Monge, Sir David
Brewster found that the phenomena were most beautiful
when the capillary tube discharged the drops upon the in¬
clined plane of fluid which is elevated by the attraction of
the edge of the cup. They ran down the inclined plane
HYDRODYNAMICS.
103
Capillary with great velocity, and sometimes even ascended the simi-
Attraction, Jar plane on the opposite side ot the vessel. W hen the
&c- drop was discharged at the distance of one or two tenths of
^ an inch from the surface of the water, they had always the
same magnitude when the tube was held in the same posi¬
tion ; but when the point of the tube was brought within
a tenth of an inch of the surface of the spirit of wine, this
surface, instead of attracting the drop to it instantly, as
Saussure would have predicted, actually resisted the gra¬
vity or weight of the drop, and allowed it to attain a diameter
nearly twice as great as it would have had, if it had been
discharged in the ordinary manner. This swollen globule
floated upon the surface in the same manner as the smaller
drops, surrounded with a depression of the fluid surface
similar to what is produced by a glass globule floating on
mercury, or by the feet of particular insects, that have the
power of running upon the surface of water. The floating
globules are often produced even when they are discharged
from a height of three or four inches ; and by letting them
fall upon the inclined plane of the fluid formerly mentioned,
they will often rebound from the surface, and fall over the
sides of the cup.
166. In a phenomenon the very reverse of the formation
a fluid^ ^ of a drop, which was first noticed by Sir David Brewster,
film. the cohesion of fluids is shown in a very interesting manner.
If we take a phial, with a wide mouth, half filled with
Canada balsam, and allow the balsam to flow to the mouth
of the phial and fill it up, then when the phial is placed on
its bottom, a fine transparent film of balsam will be seen
extending over the mouth of the phial. If we now take a
piece of slender wire, and touch the film near the middle,
so as to tear aw^ay a little part of it, the remaining part of
the film which has been elevated by this force will descend
to its level position, and the ragged aperture from which
the balsam has been torn will be seen to assume a form
perfectly circular, having its edge in a slight degree thick¬
ened, like a circle with a raised margin turned out of a
piece of wood. This fine circular aperture grows wider
and wider, and continues to preserve its circular form till
the mouth of the phial is again opened.
167. We shall now conclude the subject of capillary
mentby attraction with an account of an experiment made by Sir
Sir d/ David Brewster, and intimately connected with the sub-
Brewster. ject. Above a vessel MNOP (fig. 42), nearly filled with
water, a convex lens, LL, was placed at the distance of the Capillary
tenth of an inch, and rays R, R, R, were incident upon its Attraction,
upper surface. The focus of
these rays was at F, a little
beyond the bottom of the
vessel, so that a circular
image of the luminous ob¬
ject was seen on the bottom
of the vessel, having AB for
its diameter. If the lens is
now made to descend gra¬
dually towards the surface of
the water, and the eye kept
steadily upon the luminous
image AB, a dark spot will
be seen at D in the centre
of AB, a little while before
the lens attracts and elevates
the water MN. Sometimes
this spot may be seen playing
backwards and forwards by
the slight motion of the hand,
so that the lens can even be
withdrawn from the fluid
surface without having actu¬
ally touched it. In general,
however, the sudden rise of
the water to the lens follows the appearance of the black
spot. When the water is in contact with the glass, the
focus of the rays R, R, is now transferred to /, and the cir¬
cular image on the bottom is now ab, and the intensity of
the light in this circle is to that in the circle AB, as AB2:
ab2. Now it is obvious, that the darkish spot at D is just
the commencement of the transference of the focus from F
to/; or when the dark spot is produced, the progress of the
rays is the same as if the focus were transferred to /. This
remarkable effect may arise from two causes. Istf. The ap¬
proach of the lens to the surface MN, may occasion a de¬
pression mon in the surface of the fluid of the same curva¬
ture as L/L, which would have the effect of transferring
the focus from F to/. 2d. The transference of the focus
from F to/may arise from the optical contact of the glass
and water taking place at a greater distance from the lens
than that at which capillary attraction commences.
PART IL—HYDRAULICS.
168. Hydraulics is that branch of the science of Hy- mass, or rising perpendicularly in jets deaux from the pres-
drodynamics which relates to fluids in motion. It compre- sure of the atmosphere; whether moving in pipes and canals,
hends the theory of running water, whether issuing from or rolling in the beds of rivers. It comprehends also the resist-
orifices in reservoirs by the pressure of the superincumbent ance or the percussion of fluids, and the oscillation of waves.
CHAPTER I.—THEORY OF FLUIDS ISSUING FROM ORIFICES IN RESERVOIRS, EITHER IN A LATERAL
OR A VERTICAL DIRECTION.
Prelimina- 169, ^ water issues from aT1 office either in the bottom
ry observa- or s'^e a reservoir, the surface of the fluid in the reser-
tions. voir is always horizontal till it reaches within a little of the
bottom. When a vessel, therefore, is emptying itself, the
particles of the fluid descend in vertical lines, as is repre¬
sented in fig. 43 ; but when they have reached within
three or four inches of the orifice mn, the particles which
are not immediately above it change the direction of their
motion, and make for the orifice in directions of different
degrees of obliquity. The velocities of these particles may
be decomposed into two others, one in a horizontal direc¬
tion, by which they move parallel to the orifice, and the
other in a vertical direction, by which they approach that
orifice. Now, as the particles about C and D move with
greater obliquity than those nearer E, their horizontal ve¬
locities must also be greater, and their
vertical velocities less. But the particles
near E move with so little obliquity that A
their vertical are much greater than their
horizontal velocities, and very little less
than their absolute ones. The different ^
particles of the fluid, therefore, will rush
through the orifice mn with very different
velocities, and in various directions, and
will arrive at a certain distance from the c
orifice in different times. On account of
the mutual adhesion of the fluid particles,
however, those which have the greatest
Cause of
the vena
contractu.
104
—T
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Motion of velocity drag the rest along with them ; and as the former
Fluids, &c. move through the centre of the orifice, the breadth of the
issuing column of fluid w:ill be less at op than the width of
the orifice mn.
170. That the preceding phenomena really exist when
a vessel of water is discharging its contents through an
aperture, experience sufficiently testifies. If some small
substances specifically heavier than water be thrown into
the fluid when the vessel is emptying itself, they will at first
descend vertically, and when they come within a few inches
of the bottom they will deviate from this direction, and
describe oblique curves similar to those in the figure. The
contraction of the vein or column of fluid at op is also ma¬
nifest from observation. It was first discovered by Sir
Isaac Newton, and denominated the vena contractu.
171. When the orifice is in a thin plate this will be the
case, and the contracted part being outside the reservoir
may be clearly seen and accurately measured. When the
orifice is circular, the vein having attained its least section
continues cylindrical in form and has a velocity nearly equal
to that due to the charge. Hence the discharge will be
the product of the contracted section into the velocity, so
that the effect of the contraction is limited to the reduction
of the value of the section which enters into the expression
of the discharge. The flow will take place as if the real
circular opening in the vessel were replaced by one the
diameter of which would be equal to the section of contrac¬
tion, but in which imaginary opening no contraction takes
place in the vein issuing out of it. But if to the circular
orifice we attach a cylindrical pipe the fluid threads con¬
verge on arriving at the junction of the pipe and the wall
of the vessel, and so the section of contraction takes place
at the entrance of the pipe. But now beyond this section
of contraction the sides of the tube attract, and therefore
cause the fluid threads to dilate on all sides ; and these is¬
suing parallel to each other and to the axis of the pipe,
wholly fill the tube, so that the section of the vein equals
at its exit the orifice in the vessel’s side, but the velocity
is not that due to the charge. Were the flow produced
solely by the pressure of the fluid, then the velocity at the
section of contraction would be that due to the charge, and
would diminish in proportion as the fluid vein enlarged it¬
self in virtue of the hydraulic axiom,—that when an incom¬
pressible fluid in motion forms a continuous mass, the
velocity at all its diverse sections is inversely proportional
to the area of the section ; the velocity then would cease to
diminish when the diverging vein had reached the sides of
the tube. Again, when the orifice is at the lowest part of
the vertical side of a vessel, the lower edge coinciding with
the floor of the vessel, the contraction is then destroyed on
that side, and the discharge is somewhat increased. If, in¬
stead of a cylindrical adjutage, we make use of a conical
mouth-piece, or one converging to a point exterior to the
side of the reservoir, then there will be two distinct con¬
tractions of the vein, one at the entrance of the adjutage,
which will necessarily diminish the velocity due to the charge,
and the other at a small distance beyond the issue, the
breadth of which will be less than that of the external
mouth. Such an adjutage is very regular, throws the wa¬
ter to a greater distance or height, and has a greater flow
than that through an orifice in a thin plate. These conical
or truncated pyramidal adjutages are frequently used in large
manufactories for discharging water upon mill-wheels. The
case of the adjutage having its narrow mouth fitted into the
side of the reservoir, gives us the largest flow from any kind
of tube : it will necessarily have one contracted part at the
orifice.
This last kind of adjutage was known to the ancient
Romans ; several citizens had been granted the privilege of
drawing a certain volume of water irom the public reser¬
voirs, but as they increased their supply by using this kind
of tube, the fraud was detected, and the use of these tubes Motion of
legally forbidden except at a distance of 52 feet or upwards Fluids, &c.
from the reservoir.
172. Since the direction and velocity of the fluid particles porm of
constituting a vein are symmetrical around the parts of the contracted
circular orifice, the contracted vein must also be symmetrical vein.
in form, and therefore some solid of revolution ; it is found
to be a conoidal figure. It is actually so, as we shall after¬
wards see, from observations that have been made upon it.
Beyond op (fig. 43), the narrowest section of contraction,
this contraction ceases, and the vein continues sensibly cy¬
lindrical for some distance till the resistance of the air and
the weight of each particle, together with other causes, en¬
tirely destroys the form of the curve.
173. The three principal parts of the vein were early in¬
vestigated, and their ratios determined. Thus the diameters
mn and op, and the length mo, are in the fatio of the num¬
bers BOO : 0-79 : 0‘39, i.e., on this supposition the distance
of the contracted vein is about one-half the diameter of the
smaller section, and 0’39 of the orifice. But Michelotti,
from a mean of more recent experiments, has ranked them
in the ratio of TOO : 0-787 : 0’498, which D’Aubuisson
follows. The ratio, then, of mn to op being as TOO : 0,787,
the sectional areas of each will be l2: (0,787),2=12 : '619.
The distance also of the contracted vein from the orifice
will be a very little more than half the diameter of the ori¬
fice, or mo = V-~ nearly : If s, now,be the contracted section,
and S that of the orifice, ^ = 0'619 S.
174. We proceed now to find the ratio subsisting between
the velocities of the particles in the vessel and at the orifice.
We may suppose that the mass of fluid is divided into
infinitely small horizontal laminae or layers, as NMgh
(fig. 43), each particle in the same section having the
same “Velocity, and all descending parallel to each other.
Let each particle in the vessel have a velocity v; Y, the
velocity of escape ; A, the horizontal section of the vessel;
S or mS, that of the orifice at the bottom, where m is the
coefficient of contraction. During a time, t, a volume will
escape = mS . V. but during this same time, the fluid sur¬
face of the water will descend through a space M^, say
= velocity of particles into time = «.£, and the correspond¬
ing volume will be A . v. *, which must be the same volume
as that discharged at the orifice during time t. Therefore
A.u.<=mS . V|. t\ or A.v=wSV, i.e., v : V = mS : A ; or
the velocities are inversely as the sections. Hence, it the
areamS of the orifice be infinitely small with respect to the
area A of the horizontal section of the laminae, the mean
velocity of escape will be infinitely greater than that of the
laminae; that is, while the velocity at the orifice is finite,
that of the laminae will be infinitely small.
175. Before applying these principles to the theory of
hydraulics, it may be proper to observe, that several dis¬
tinguished philosophers have founded the science upon the
same general law from which we have deduced the princi¬
ples of hydrostatics (48). In this way they have represented
the motion of fluids in general formulae; but these formulae
are so complicated from the very nature of the theory, and
the calculations are so intricate, and sometimes impractica¬
ble from their length, that they can afford no assistance to
the practical engineer.
176. Definition.—If the water issue at m n with the F-(r_
same velocity V, that a heavy body would acquire by falling °
freely through a given height H, this velocity is said to be
due to the height H, and inversely the height H is said to
be due to the velocity V. The quantity H is also termed
the head or charge under which the flow takes place.
177. Prop. I.—The velocity with which a fluid escapes
from a small orifice in the bottom or side of a ves¬
sel kept constantly full, equals that attained by a
HYDRODYNAMICS.
105
Motion of heavy body falling freely from the surface of the
Fluids, &c. fluid to the orifice.
It will be proved in Mechanics, that, when a heavy body
is projected obliquely upwards, the composition of the ac¬
celerating force of gravity, and the uniform velocity V of
projection, will cause the body, during a time, t, to move in
a curve called a 'parabola, the equation to which is found
to be ?/2= Ahx, where h = height due to velocity, x the
absciss in the direction of gravity, y the ordinate parallel to
the direction of projection, or x and y are the co-ordinates
for any point of the curve.
Now, this is true, whatever be the nature of the body;
and, therefore, also for a jet of water issuing from an orifice.
Let the orifice be opened in the side at A (fig. 44), then
Fig. 44.
the jet will assume the form AMD. The equation y‘1 =
Ahx gives us A = = height due to velocity of exit. This
value of h may be easily calculated by placing a vertical
graduated stick alongside the vessel, and having its zero
point at the centre of the orifice, with another moving at
right angles, and also graduated; this last will give us any
ordinate, as PM or CD; and therefore, also, the correspond¬
ing abscissa AP or AC. Wherefore, by measuring the
ordinate and its corresponding absciss, the height h due to
the velocity of exit may be determined from the equation
to the parabola. But the velocity which a body (by me¬
chanics) falling freely attains, after passing through a cer¬
tain height h, is represented by V = >j2gh. Therefore, the
velocity of issue at the orifice is that due to the height BA.
If tbe orifice be at the bottom, the velocity will be that
due to a fall from the surface to the orifice.
178. Cor. 1.—As fluids press equally in all directions,
the preceding proposition will hold true when the orifices
are at the sides of vessels, and when they are formed to
throw the fluid upwards, either in a vertical or an inclined
direction, provided that the orifices are in these several cases
at an equal distance from the upper surface of the fluid.
Cor. 2.—When the fluid issues vertically, it will rise to
a height equal to the perpendicular distance of the ori¬
fice from the surface of the fluid ; owing to the resistance
of the air, however, and the friction of the issuing fluid
upon the sides of the orifice, jets of water do not exactly
rise to this height.
179. If H be the height from which a falling body, is
dropped, then the velocity which it acquires after a certain
time, will be equal to that of any particle of the fluid as it
issues from an orifice, or V = \l2g\{, where <7 = the velocity,
which a body falling freely would attain at the end of a
unit of time. If the mean velocity of all the particles be
that due to a charge H, then the theoretic velocity is V =
V2gH. Supposing, then, that the fluid threads issue from
the orifice parallel to each other, and knowing the velocity
of the charge of one particle, the theoretic discharge, or
that volume which escapes in a unit of time, will evidently
be the volume of a prism, having for its base that of the
orifice, and that velocity for height. Calling then S the
area of the orifice, S . V represents the theoretic discharge,
or S . V = S V2gH.
VOL. XII.
But the actual discharge is always less than that theoreti- Motion of
cally determined; and in order to have an exact idea of Fluids, &c.
this, take a perpendicular section of the fluid vein at a small
distance from the orifice ; then since the discharge is mani¬
festly equal to the sectional area into the mean velocity of
any thread at the instant it is crossing that section, it is
clear that if this section were equal to that of the orifice,
and if the velocity were that due to the charge, then the
actual would be equal to the theoretic discharge. But,
whether from the section of the vein being less than that
of the orifice, as in the case of a flow through a thin plate,
or from the velocity being less than that due to the charge,
as in cylindrical pipes; or from a diminution in both sec¬
tion and velocity, as in the case of conical adjutages, the
result always is, that the actual is less than the theoretic
discharge, and so the latter must always be multiplied by
some fractional number, so as to obtain the former. Let
this fractional number be m, the coefficient of contraction,
then the actual volume discharged = mS\l2gH.
180. The reader will probably be surprised when he finds
in some of our elementary works on hydrostatics, that the
velocity of the water at the orifice is only equal to that
which a heavy body would acquire by falling through half
the height of the fluid above the orifice. This was first
maintained by Sir Isaac Newton, who found that the dia¬
meter of the vena contracta was to that of the orifice as 21
to 25. The area therefore of the one was to the area of the
other as 212 to 2o2, which is nearly the ratio of 1 to s! 2.
But by measuring the quantity of water discharged in a
given time, and also the area of the vena contracta, Sir
Isaac found that the velocity at the vena contracta was that
which was due to the whole altitude of the fluid above the
orifice. He therefore concluded, that since the velocity at
the orifice was to that at the vena contracta as 1: 2, and
the latter velocity was that which was due to the whole al¬
titude of the fluid, the former velocity, or that at the ori¬
fice, must be that which is due to only half that altitude,
the velocities being as the square roots of the heights.
Now the difference between this theory and that contained
in the preceding proposition may be thus explained. The
velocity found by the preceding proposition is evidently the
vertical velocity of the filaments at any point, which being
immediately above the centre of the aperture are not
diverted from their course, and have therefore their verti¬
cal equal to their absolute velocity. But the vertical velo¬
city of the particles below and above the former is
much less than their absolute velocity, on account of the
obliquity of their motion, and also on account of their fric¬
tion on the sides of the orifice. The mean vertical velocity,
consequently, of the issuing fluid will be much less than the
vertical velocity of the first particle, that is, than the velo¬
city found by the above proposition, or that due to the
full height. Now the velocity found by Sir Isaac Newton
from measuring the quantity of water discharged, was evi¬
dently the mean velocity, which ought to be less than the
velocity given by the preceding proposition; the two velo¬
cities being as 1 : V 2, or as 1 : L414. The theorem of
Newton therefore may be considered as giving the mean
velocity at the orifice, while the proposition gives the ve¬
locity of the particles at the surface, or the velocity at the
vena contracta.
181. Prop. II.—To find the volume discharged from a
very small orifice in the side or bottom of a reser¬
voir kept constantly full, the time of discharge and
the altitude of the fluid being given.
Let S = area of orifice, Q' = volume discharged in time
T, and call H the height of the fluid, or the constant charge
due to the constant height. Then, since the actual dis-
charge in a unit of time or one second, is Q =mS V 2^H
o
106
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Motion of (179), therefore, the volume discharged during T units
^ds- &c* or seconds, will be QT, or Q' = w ST V 2^H.
^ Wherefore, Q', m, S, T or H, may be easily determined,
all the others being given.
The diminution of discharge conceived as arising from
the sectional area or velocity diminishing, is always a con¬
sequence of the contraction of the vein in passing through
the orifice. It is the variation in the actual, from the theo¬
retical discharge, that gives rise to m, the coefficient of
contraction, equal to the ratio of the actual to the theoreti¬
cal discharge. It is a very important number, for, on its
exactness depends the accuracy of formulae when practically
applied to the flow of water ; m is always determined ex¬
perimentally.
182. It is supposed in the preceding proposition that the
orifice in the side of the vessel is so small, that every part
of it is equally distant from the surface of
the fluid. But when the orifice is large,
like M (fig. 45), the depths of different B
parts of the orifice below the surface of
the fluid are very different, and conse¬
quently the preceding formula will not
give very accurate results. If we sup¬
pose the orifice M divided into a number
of smaller orifices, a, b, c, it is evident that
the water will issue at a with a velocity
due to the height Da, the water at b,
with a velocity due to the height E&, and
the water at c, with a velocity due to the
height Fc. When the whole orifice, therefore, is opened,
the fluid will issue with different velocities at different parts
of its section. Consequently, in order to find new formulm
expressing the quantity of water discharged, we must con¬
ceive the orifice to be divided into an infinite number of
areas or portions by horizontal planes ; and by considering
each area as an orifice, and finding the quantity which it
will discharge in a given time, the sum of all these quanti¬
ties will be the quantity discharged by the whole orifice M.
Fig. 4a.
183. Prop. III.—To find the volume discharged by a rect¬
angular slit in the vertical side of a vessel, kept con¬
stantly full.
Let M (fig. 46) be the vessel, of a vertical height AB,
equal to the depth, and / the width of the slit. If now we
have a series of elementary rectangular orifices placed verti¬
cally in the side of M, then if the lowest be at a depth AB
or H, below the fluid surface, the velocity with which the fluid
issues from this orifice will be Now we may make
BG equal to this
quantity, and this or¬
dinate will represent
the velocity, while
the absciss does the
depth ; so also we
may take any other
point C, at a depth
C or AC = x, and
the velocity of issue
will be represented
by CD=y=f2^;
the same will be the
case for all other
points in AB, and,
evidently, if we join
all the ordinate
points as C, D, &c,,
we shall have a pa- Fis-i6-
bolic curve; and as y- = 2gx, where 2g or 64-4 feet is the
parameter, we shall have the velocity of a fluid thread issu¬
ing from a reservoir at any point equal to the ordinate of a
parabola, the parameter of which is twice the measure of the Motion of
accelerating force of gravity, with a depth under the sur- Fluids, &c.
face as the abscissa.
Suppose now that all the rectangular orifices in the depth
AB were opened, making a rectangular slit ABPR, with
a width of l units, the discharge through this opening
may thus be obtained. Since the surface of the jet has
been proved to be parabolic, we shall evidently have a
volume of water which shall be the frustum of a paraboloid,
the side of which will be ABGDA, and width l; and since
the area of a parabola = §ds of the rectangle contained by
AB and BG, and AB. BG = H . v/2^r.H, therefore the
volume, or the discharge for the rectangular opening, is
= §. /.H.V2^H = f /. H Vti.sf^g.
184. Prop. IV.—To find the volume discharged from a
rectangular orifice.
This volume may be deduced from the last. Let the
rectangular orifice have a width equal to /, and a depth,
= OB; call AO = ^, therefore, the volume of discharge
by the frustal paraboloid AOUA = § /. A . v^A, or =
§ / . A . VA . V2g. Hence the discharge by the rect¬
angular orifice OBPN = the discharge by ABPR, less
that by_ AONR = f /. H. VH . V2^-f l.h. VTi. V2^=
f l.V2g (H Vti-h Vh).
185. Prop. V.—To determine the mean velocity from the
above slit (Prop. III.)
The mean velocity of the fluid from the rectangular open¬
ing ABPR, may be thus obtained. Let K be the point
from which would issue a fluid thread with the mean velo¬
city ; and making the depth AK = 2, the mean velocity for
this thread will be = f2gz, which, multiplied by the area or
/. H, will give the volume discharged with the mean velo-
cityfrom the opening ABPR, = LH.\/2<y . fz. Butwe have
already seen, that the total discharge from the opening itself
= § /. H . VH . \/2g;
.'. i. H . \/2g. fz = § /. H f H . */2g ;
or, \/z=j VH, or z = fi H. Consequently, since the mean
velocity, which call V, = f 2gz ;
v=V2^4JH=f
that is to say, that the mean velocity is fds that with which
the lowermost fillet issues ; and so KW, which represents
the former velocity, will be fds of BG, which represents the
latter.
186. Prop. VI.—To determine the mean velocity of the
rectangular orifice OBPN of last figure.
The mean velocity of the fluid from the rectangular orifice
OBPN, the depth being (H —A), and width /, may also be
found. Call z the depth of that point from which would issue a
fluid thread with the mean velocity; then the discharge from
OBPN with the mean velocity = (H - A) .l.ij2gz ; but the
total velocity from this orifice is § /. s!2g (H f H —hf A) .
.-. (H - A) .1. J2j = s/2g (H fH- A VA) ;
or, (H — A) vV = | (H \/H — A \/A) ;
, „ /hvF-aVa\2
■ z-% \ h-A /
187. We have hitherto supposed that the fluid surface has
always been maintained at the same level, but suppose now
that the vessel receives no supply, or receives less than it
discharges by an orifice in the bottom, it is clear that the
fluid will gradually near the bottom of the tank and empty
itself. The laws of discharge then will be somewhat dif¬
ferent from those previously considered. The vessels con-
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Motion of taining the fluid may be either prismatic, or the sides may
Fluids, &c. slope at a known inclination.
188. Prop. VII.—Find the height due to the velocity of
the fluid at its point of discharge, when the fluid sur¬
face is not maintained always at the same level.
Here V is dependent on a constantly varying height,
and on v, the velocity acquired in the descent of the layers.
Let then ^ be the generating height due to the velocity
V of the fluid at the point of discharge, and H always the
actual height in the vessel; hence,
H1 = H+—=H+- .a2" ^ 1 '4) —H + Hj —^-2- ;
H1=H + H1^,orH1(l-^f!) = H,and H, is
known, m. S is generally small when compared with A,
so also much smaller will m2. S2 be in comparison with A2,
m2 S2
and therefore - may be neglected ; hence, H^H, i.e.,
A
the velocity of escape at any given instant is that due to the
actual height of water in the vessel at that moment; a re¬
sult similar to that arrived at when the fluid surface was
maintained at a constant level. But the above is true only
in the case of those layers or sections which are supposed
to remain parallel during their descent. As soon as the
parallel laminae come within the sphere of action of the
orifice, the nature of the motion is very complicated, and
indeed unknown.
189. Prop. VIII.—To determine the nature of the mo¬
tion which goes on within a vessel emptying itself.
d'
. V
Let AD (fig. 47) be a vessel filled with fluid to the
brim AB, having an orifice D X.
in the side BD ; suppose BD
to be divided into equal parts,
Ba, ab) be, &c.; also let P be
taken opposite the centre of the
orifice, and take a vertical line,
PH = BD, dividing it into the
same number of equal parts as
BD. Now, that a body be pro¬
jected from P vertically so as
to reach H, it must have the same
velocity impressed upon it as
the body would acquire on arriving at P, when dropped
freely from H, for the velocity which the body has at P
in ascending, is the same as it has when descending from H.
Hence, on arriving at the points d, U, c, &c., the veloci¬
ties will be respectively V^r. Ud, *j2g . H&', d2g A\c...
&C...0; or as JHd, dhlb1, dhic ••’^c...O. Wherefore,
also, as the surface AB passes the points a, b, c, &c.,
the velocities of escape at the orifice will be proportional to
dDa, >jDb, JDc...8ic....O; that is, as the corresponding
equal velocities A/Ha', a/H6', VHe',...&c....O. Hence, as
the vessel empties itself, the velocity of discharge gradually
decreases from a maximum, d2g.DB, to a minimum as zero,
following the same law as does a body when thrown verti¬
cally upwards. Each is an example of uniformly retarded
motion : the velocity of escape is governed by the same law.
190. Cor. 1.—As the velocities of falling bodies are as
the square roots of the heights through which they fall (see
Mechanics), the velocities of fluids issuing from a very
small orifice are as the square roots of the altitude of the
water above these orifices. As the quantities of fluids dis¬
charged are as the velocities, they will also be as the square
roots of the altitude of the fluid. This corollary holds
true of fluids of different specific gravities, although Be-
lidor (Architect. Hydrant., tom. i., p. 187) has maintained
the contrary ; for though a column of mercury presses with
fourteen times the force of a similar column of water, yet
the column of mercury which is pushed out is also fourteen
times as heavy as a similar column of water; and as the
resistance bears the same proportion to the moving force,
the velocities must be equal.
191. Cor. 2.—When a vessel is emptying itself, if the
area of the laminae into which we may suppose it divided,
be everywhere the same, the velocity with which the sur¬
face of the fluid descends, and also the velocity of efflux,
will be uniformly retarded. For as the velocity V with
which the surface descends is to the velocity v at the ori¬
fice, as the area a of the orifee to the area A of the sur¬
face, then V : v = a : A ; but the ratio of a : A is constant,
therefore V varies as v, that is, Y : = v: v ; but, v:v
= dh : >Jd, h being the height of the surface above the
orifice, therefore V : = : *//*■ But this is the pro¬
perty of a body projected vertically from the earth’s surface,
and as the retarding force is uniform in the one case (see
Mechanics), it must also be uniform in the other.
192. With respect to the volume discharged, we know
from mechanics that when a body starts with a certain ve¬
locity which is gradually lost altogether, it describes one-
half the space only that it would have described in the same
time had it continued to move uniformly with the velocity
with which it began. Similarly, also, the volume of fluid
in the vessel may be looked upon as a cylindrical or pris¬
matic mass, having its base equal to the dimensions of the
orifice, and its height, the space which the first issuing
particle would describe with a motion uniformly retarded,
and identical with that by which the discharge takes place ;
if, now, the particle had retained its first velocity it would
have doubled its space, or the height of the cylindrical or
prismatic mass would have been doubled, and therefore also
the volume of discharge from the orifice would have been
doubled. Hence, then, it appears that the volume of fluid
passing through an orifice at the bottom of a prismatic
or cylindrical vessel, the surface of which is gradually
nearing the orifice till the vessel empties itselfj having
received no supply, is equal to one-half that which would
be given during the time of complete discharge, if the flow
had taken place under a constant charge equal to the pri¬
mary.
193. Cor. 3.—If a cylindrical vessel be kept constantly
full, twice the quantity contained in the vessel will run out
during the time in which the vessel would have emptied
itself. For the space through which the surface of the fluid
at L would descend if its velocity continued uniform, being
2 LM, double of LM, the space which it actually describes
in the time it empties itself, the quantity discharged in the
former case will also be double the quantity discharged in
the latter; because the quantity discharged when the ves¬
sel is kept full, may be measured by what the descent of
the surface would be, if it could descend with its first velo¬
city,—M being regarded as the only orifice in and at the
bottom of the vessel (fig. 47).
194. Prop. IX.—To find the time required to empty a
vessel.
Suppose that H is its charge, A the horizontal sec¬
tion of the vessel, and T the time of complete discharge.
The volume of water contained in the vessel above the
orifice, and therefore the whole quantity discharged during
the time, will be A.H. But (by 392) the volume which
would have been discharged in the same time under the
constant charge H would have been 2A.H. This same
volume of discharge during time T equals m&T s!2gR,
where again S or mS is the area of the orifice ; whence
2A.FI = mSlV%H; or,
107
Motion of
108
Motion of
Fluids, &c.
T =
HYDRODYNAMICS.
2A.H A /2H = 2
mS nJ2g'ti g ’ m'S 2g’
195. Cor.—If’ T be the time that the volume A.H
would take to flow out, when the head H was constant,
then (by 181),
  A.H A /W
A.H=*mSTV^H; T = AA a/
^ * mb»j2gH mS v 2g
. from the above T = 2T'; that is, the time which a pris¬
matic vessel takes to be completely discharged, is double
that in which the same volume would flow out, if the head
had remained constantly the same as it was at the com¬
mencement of the discharge.
196. Prop. X.—To find the time that the fluid surface
takes to pass through a given depth.
Let t be this time for the level to descend a vertical
depth a. Now we have already seen that the time during
2A /H
which the whole volume will discharge itself =
the charge at the beginning of the flow being H ; and by
putting H -a = /j for the charge or head at the end of the
time t, the time during which the volume hA. would be en¬
tirely discharged Now, we have the time in
which the whole volume with a head H, and that in which
a head equal to h or (H — a), will be discharged ; therefore
the time in which a head equal to a will be discharged, is
the difference between these two times; or,
_2A /H_2A / h _
2A 1
mSv 2g mSv 2g mS V‘2g V/i).
197. Cor.—The quantity of fluid discharged in the given
time t may be found by measuring the contents of the vessel
between the planes, the descent of the surface, or the depth
a, being known.
198. Prop. XI.—To find the volume discharged in a
given time, and the depth that the level reaches
after a certain time.
From the last expression for the time required to empty
a vessel, we have —= -v/H - VA; or,
^2A ^•\-llSh = VH, and, by squaring each side,
+ 2 (^l^)
/ tm§V2g\
V 2A / V 2A
... tm^9 ('^i+ v'f) = H-A=a=the depth
that the level reaches in a certain time.
If now we multiply this depth by A, the horizontal sec¬
tion of the vessel, we shall have the volume discharged in
the time t-, volume discharged, say,
Q' = (H-A)A = ^SV,2^•
199. Prop. XII.—To find the mean hydraulic charge.
The prismatic vessel fig.
48 receives no supply, but dis¬
charges water through an ori¬
fice, the area of which is S;
the water at the commence¬
ment of the flow has a head
H, and at the end of the time
T has a head equal to h; the
mean hydraulic charge H' is
required, by which, ceteris
paribus, the same volume of
water would have been dis¬
charged.
The volume with this mean head H' will, in time T, be Motion of
Q =mSTv/2$r — A) A; and the time in which this Ffui(i8> &c.
took place was T = m^*/2g “■ VA). Substitute this
value of T in the above expression for the volume, then,
2A
Q' = mSV2g
^=(VH-VA)VH' = (H-A)A;
\ V H' -
H~A _VH + VA
2V H — Vh)
200. Cor.—If A = 0 .-. H' = ~
4
Dr Young made use of this proposition in determining
by experiment the coefficient of contraction at an orifice.
See his experiments (383).
201. Prop. XIII.—If a prismatic vessel receive a constant
supply, less however than that discharged, to find
the time that the surface will take to fall through a
given height.
Let the letters stand for the same things as before, and fur¬
ther, let the volume of water entering the basin in one second
be q, and x the height through which the water descends in
a given time t, then dx will be the height in the infinitely
small time dt, and Adx would represent the volume during
the time dt if the vessel received no supply; but since in
one second it receives a supply q, it will in time dt receive
qdt of a supply. Therefore the actual discharge during
time dt = Adx + qdt •, but this same volume (by 181) is
expressed by mSdt tJ2g(tt. - x); hence
Adx + qdt=mSdt V2g(Yi — x) ; let H —x = h,
then —dx = dh, since H is constant. Wherefore,
, , „ .  — Adh — Adh
qdt — Adh = mSdtV2qVh ; .'. dt~  ,
__ mSV2gVh-q V
where m$V2gVh —q=y: by differentiating, we have,
wiS\/ 2g dy
— — ; or, dh-
dh
2\/h. dy
__ 2dy / y + q \ _
2\^h dh mS\/2g mS\/2g\mS\/2g/ ’
,. dt=z^+3)= -z±.(dy+jlA
m2S2<7 y.m2h2g m2S2g\ y J
Therefore,
A =^/(-+*7); +« hw- ‘"e- +c-
Since when ^ = 0, x = 0, and so H will = A;
A
C= (y + q hyp. log.y), and by substitution
2 A
m2 SV/v
(mS,V2gj2 ^ mSV'%VH - ? + 9- hyp. log. (mSv'2SrVH - 9) };
Therefore t =
2A
imS\/ 2g)i
2A
»SV^r)2
2A
Pig. 48.
^mSV2g\/h — q + q hyp. log. (mS-v/2g\/A — 9)^
^m'&\/2g\/il — q+q hyp. log. (mS-v/^VH —9)^
- —^7=^ ( mSV%(A/ lT- Vh-) + 9 hyp .log/
(t»sV-9)2 \ -v ;-r9 yp *\msV2gVh_qJ)-
Make 9 = 0, then the expression becomes identical with
196.
202. If the converse question were required, viz., given
the time, to find the height to which the level of the
water would descend; we should be doing the same thing
as if we were to determine the charge A at the end of the
given time, and deduct it from H, the head at the beginning
of the charge. In order to find A, successive values of it,
i.e., H—x, must be substituted in the above equation, and
by the process of trial and error, that value which satisfies
the equation will be the one required.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
109
Motion of 203. Prop. XIV.—To find the time of discharge from a
Fluids, &c. vessel other than prismatic.
The determination of the time in this case is much more
complicated than for any other form of vessel, and it is
sometimes impossible. The fundamental equation, how¬
ever, for this purpose is
,  A . dx
K.dx— mSdt\l2g (H — a?) ; r. dt=^j==~-'
The form of the vessel, or a horizontal section a of its area,
is variable. In order, therefore, that the above value for
dt may be integrable, a must be known in terms of x, which
can only be the case when the interior curvature of the
basin is given. If this cannot be ascertained, we must
proceed by approximations and by parts. For this pur¬
pose, the basin must be divided into horizontal sections
of small depth, each of which is to be regarded as a prism,
and the time determined that any one of these takes to pass
out, making use of the above-mentioned formulae. The sum
of all these partial times will give the required time that
the surface takes to descend a height equal to the sum of
the heights of the prisms.
204. Prop. XV.—Water is discharged from one reservoir
into another, find the volume discharged and the
time required to fill up to different levels in one of
the reservoirs.
Three cases will require to be considered.
First Case.—Suppose the orifice covered with water on
both sides or faces, the levels
in the reservoirs M and N
(fig. 49) remaining constant;
then, since the charge is H —
h, where H is the charge for
M, and h that for N, the vo¬
lume discharged will be the
same as if it had issued out
into the open air with a velo¬
city equal to the difference of
the charges on each face.
Hence, volume discharged in
one unit, as a second, is Q= Fis-49-
»*S\/2<7 (H — A), where again S or mS is the area of the
orifice.
Second Case.—Let the level in M, the upper basin, be
constant, while the lower basin N of a given area receives it
without any loss, to determine the time that the level of N
will reach the level of the upper basin, or a given height.
This problem is the converse of 196, where the discharge
took place in air, and the surface of the water above the
orifice descended with a uniformly retarded motion. Here,
however, the surface of the basin is urged from below up¬
wards by a force equal to the difference between the levels
of the two basins, decreasing in the same proportion as the
charge decreased in the former case, but at the same time,
rises with a motion uniformly retarded, and it will require
the same time to traverse the same space, under these
similar pressures.
Suppose, then, that H is the pressure or charge AC, at
the commencement, and h the charge at the end of the
time t; let also A be the horizontal section of the vessel
being filled up, and m and S as before. In order, therefore,
that the water may fill N up to DE, if =
2 A
<VH-VA);
m Sv^
and for the time up to AF, the level of M, we have T =
2A
H. These formulae are important, more especially
in determining the time in which canal locks, &c., may be
filled ; and also for assigning the area of sluice-way required
to fill in a given time.
K
B
N
Third Case.—Suppose that the level of the water is vari- Motion of
able in each vessel. This case is that of two reservoirs fluids, &c.
of different levels, A
in communication
with each other,
each limited in M
area and receiving
no supply, so that
as one surface falls
the other rises.
Let K and L (fig. rig- so-
50) be two such tanks, communicating with each other by
the wide pipe EF, a cock or sluice-door being at G. Let
the cock G be unopened, then the level of K is AB, and
that of L is CO. Suppose now, that G is open, then, at the
end of a certain time, AB has fallen to MN, while the corre¬
sponding rise in L is PQ. We want, then, to determine the
relation between the two heights at a given time, and, con¬
versely, from the given difference of height in the two ves¬
sels, to deduce the time corresponding to a given discharge.
Lett be the time, BE = H, CF = /i, NE = #, PF =_y,
while the horizontal sections of K, L, and the communicat¬
ing pipe, are respectively denoted by A, B, and s, and the
coefficient of contraction, together with the resistance of
the water passing through the pipe EF, are represented by
m. Now, while during the very small time dt, the level of
K has lowered by the quantity dx, and that of L has risen
by dy; and since as x diminishes while y and t increase,
we have Adx= —B.dy; Adx= —ms. dt. >J'2g {x—y)
(by 181); the one being positive while the other is ne¬
gative ; hence dt= ~v ^ence also^Aefcr =
-/
ms*J'2g('X—y')
B.dy, or Ax + By = AH + B^, since in the limit
A {H-x)
x = H, and y=h;
B
+ h. Let this value
for y be substituted in the value for dt, and we have dt=
Adx AV I* dx
sV 2c
( *"
AH + BA —AaA ms\/2g\^(S> +A^x—Ati. —
2AVB
  ,  | y/B (H-A)-VYA + B) a—AH —BA [
ms V 2g (A + B) l v J -r ; )
by integration ; since a? = H in the limit, and £ = 0.
Let the time required be now that in which the levels of
K and L form a straight line, then x=y;
AH + BA
(A + B)*=:(A + B)2/=:AH + BA; or, x=y=-
A + B
and if this value of x be substituted in the value of t, we
, 2ABVH^1
have t= .=•. Hence, for the same value of
msj2g(A + B)
(H — A), t is the same whether A be the horizontal section
of the basin that lowers, and B that of the other, the sur¬
face of which rises, or vice versa, B that which falls, and A
that which rises.
205. Prop. XVI.—To find the velocity and volume dis¬
charged, of water issuing from an orifice in the side
of a vessel, when the fluid has an antecedent velo¬
city.
When water is continuously poured into a vessel contain¬
ing fluid, or if the water in the vessel be moving in the
direction of the orifice, then, the particles will approach to
and issue from the orifice in virtue of the pressure of the
fluid mass above it, together with the additional velocity
that they had while they entered into the sphere of action
of the orifice. Therefore, the additional velocity will be
that arising from the height of a column, which would exert
the same effect as that which the fluid previously had. Let
110
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Ijl
Motion of jjjjg velocity be equal to u. which is -—, or that due to the
Fluids, &c. J 1 2g
height of a column li; call the depth of the fluid A, then
the velocity of efflux for one particle or thread will be that
due to the vertical height h + K. Hence, velocity of escape is
V = s]2g {h + h) = \J2g (ji + = >j2gh + ii\
Call S, or w . S, the area of orifice, then volume discharged
in a unit of time is   
Q — mSs/2gh + ui =/n S\X ^ + '
the volume discharged in T units of time will be,
Q.F, or Q'=mST. a/2g(h +~).
206. Cor.—Take A'= 34 feet, or a water column
which would balance the atmospheric column, then
V = (A + 34), which expresses the velocity with which
water is projected into a vacuum, the column being A.
207. Prop. XVII.—If two cylindrical vessels be filled with
water, the times in which the fluid surfaces will fall
through given heights will be directly as the com¬
pound ratio of their bases, and the difference between
the square roots of the altitudes of each surface at
the beginning and end of its motion, and inversely
as the areas of the orifices.
Let A and A' be the areas of the cylindrical vessels, a
and d the spaces passed through by the fluid surfaces in the
corresponding times T and T', a being = H — A; a' = H' — A';
where H, H' and A, A' are the heights of the fluid surfaces
respectively at the beginning and end of the times ; S and S'
or mS and mS' the areas of the orifices of A and A', the co¬
efficients being regarded as equal: then, by Prop. X. 196,
T=?4- -7= (VH-VA), and T'=-^4(*/H'- a/A);
wS *J 2g mh n
Wh hUH’ ~ v'/°
= ^-(VH - Jh) = ^ (VH' - V/.'j.
208. Cor.—Hence the time in which two cylindrical ves¬
sels full of water will empty themselves, will be directly as
the compound ratio of their bases, and the square roots of
their altitudes, and inversely as the areas of their orifices.
For, in the last article, VA = VA'=0, therefore,
T:T' = 4VH
O O
which is the same ratio as would have been obtained had
we used the formula of Prop. IX. 194.
209. Prop. XVIII.—To find the horizontal distance to
which water will spout from an orifice made in the
side of a vessel, when projected horizontally.
Let AC be the vessel full of fluid ; suppose that N is an
orifice in its side, at a depth BN below AB ; NT the path of
the jet. Let also v be the velocity with which water issues
from N, and t the time of its falling down the perpendicular
distance NC. Then
 ^ /2. NC Motion of
v=J2g. BN (Prop. I. 177), and t=W ~—• Fluids, &c.
But the time that the body takes to move in the parabolic ^ -r
path NT, is the same as its falling down through NC; hence
CT=p.<=V2^.BN. \/^p=2 VBN.NC.
Now, if we describe a semicircle on SC as diameter, we have
(by Euc. III. 35) BN . NC = NG2, where NG is perpendicu¬
lar to SC; wherefore CT = 2 NG; that is, the horizontal dis¬
tance or range is twice GN, the ordinate of the semicircle.
210. Cor. 1.—The horizontal range will evidently be a
maximum when the orifice is at the middle point Q of the
diameter; and, therefore, the range will in this case be
equal to the height of the vessel, or BC = CT.
211. Cor. 2.—If the orifice should be at n, and Sra = NC,
then the jet will assume the path nT, and its range will be
CT, the same as when the orifice was at N.
212. Cor. 3.—If the orifice be at C, and the direction of
projection be CG, inclined to the horizon at an angle of 45°,
then we shall have the greatest range, CK, that the fluid
vein can possibly take when projected under the charge SC.
213. Cor. 4.—If the direction of projection be Cg> in¬
clined at an angle of 75° to the horizon, its range will also
be CK.
214. If the inclination be either less or more than 45° or
75° respectively, the ranges will be less than CK; resistances
and all retarding causes whatsoever being neglected.
R and r are called the greatest heights of the paths CrK,
and CRK respectively, being the middle points of these
paths.
215. Prop. XIX.—If water flow through a pipe which is
kept constantly full, then the velocities of the fluid
particles in different sections will vary inversely as
the areas of these sections.
It is presumed that each particle in the same transverse
section has the same velocity. Let then Q = volume of
fluid passing through any portion of the pipe in one second,
and v = the velocity of water in the same time while pass¬
ing through that section of the pipe the area of which is a.
Hencea.v=Q; .'. v=— x —, since the volume passing
a a
through every second is constant.
216. Cor.—The volume which passes through the pipe in
a time T = a. v. T.
217. Prop. XX.—To determine the pressure exerted upon
pipes by the water which flows through them.
Let us suppose the column of fluid CD divided into an in- Fig. 52.
finite number of laminae EF,/e. Then friction being ab¬
stracted, every particle of each lamina will move with the
same velocity when the pipe CD is horizontal. Now, the
velocity at the vena contructa, inn, may be expressed by
^A, A being the altitude of the fluid in the reservoir.
But the velocity at the vena contracta is to the velocity in
the pipe as the area of the latter is to the area of the for-
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Ill
Motion of mer. Therefore, S being the diameter of the vena eon-
Fluids, &c. tracta, and d that of the pipe CD, the area of the one will
be to the area of the other, as S2: d1 (Geometry, Sect.
VI. Prop. IV.), consequently we shall have d1: S2=^/A :
g2 ./A
, the velocity of the water in the pipe. But since
the velocity a/ A is due to the altitude A, the velocity
SVA t j 84A
- will be due to the altitude —tt—. Now, as each
a2 a1
particle of fluid which successively reaches the extremity
DH of the pipe, has a tendency to move with the velocity
JA, while it moves only with the velocity , the ex¬
tremity D« of the pipe will sustain a pressure equal to the
difference of the pressures produced by the velocities VA
, SVA , . , . 84A A
and - ^ —, that is, by a pressure A A represent¬
ing the pressure which produces the velocity VA, and
S4A , i • u i . . . SVA
the pressure which produces the velocity —^—.
But this pressure is distributed through every part of the
pipe CD, consequently the pressure sustained by the sides
S4A
of the pipe will be A — -^r.
218. Cor. 1.—If a very small aperture be made in the side
of the pipe, the water will issue with a velocity due to the
S4A
When the diameter 8 of the orifice is Fluids, &c.
height A — ^
equal to the diameter d of the pipe, the altitude becomes
A — A or nothing; and if the orifice is in this case below
the pipe, the water will descend through it by drops.
Hence we see the mistake of those who have maintained,
that when a lateral orifice is pierced in the side of a pipe,
the water will rise to a height due to the velocity of the
included water.
219. Cor. 2.—Since the quantities of water, discharged
by the same orifice, are proportional to the square roots of
the altitudes of the reservoir, or to the pressures exerted at
the orifice, the quantity of water discharged by a lateral ori¬
fice may be easily found. Let W be the quantity of water dis¬
charged in a given time by the proposed aperture under the
pressure A, and let w be the quantity discharged under the
. 8lA w /A /~ ^A.
pressure A— ihen W : w = \'A : y A 
consequently, w x
dx
VA — W x sj A - and w =
Wx JA-
8‘A
. A — = W —-jr—-. Therefore, since W may
VA dl ' i
be determined by the experiments in the following chapter,
w is known.
CHAPTER II.—ACCOUNT OF EXPERIMENTS ON THE MOTION OF FLUIDS DISCHARGED
FROM VESSELS, EITHER BY ORIFICES OR BY ADDITIONAL TUBES, OR RUNNING IN
PIPES OR OPEN CANALS OR RIVERS.
220. We have already seen in our theoretical part (from
169 to 214), that the reservoir, out of which issues the
water, may be always maintained at the same level; or, re¬
ceiving no supply, may be exhausted ; or, lastly, the escape,
instead of taking place in air, may do so into another reser¬
voir more or less full. These are the three principal cases
to which experimenters on this subject have generally turned
their attention.
Before detailing any experiments, let the following im¬
portant definitions be remembered :—
221. Water may escape from a vessel, reservoir, or tank,
by a horizontal opening in the bottom or in one of its late¬
ral sides ; when the latter is the case, the opening is known
as an orifice. The orifice is frequently said to be in a thin
plate or wall, that is, in a wall the thickness of which is
scarcely one-half the least dimension of the opening ; it is
also at times furnished with an adjutage, or short pipe,
either cylindrical, or conical, converging towards, or diverg¬
ing from, the basin. It is clear that an orifice in a thin wall,
but furnished with a pipe, would be equivalent to an orifice
in a thick wall. When the upper border is away, and the
issuing fluid is in contact with the containing vessel on three
sides only, the orifice is then said to be a deversoir, a
notch, a weir, or waste-board; such are the waste-boards
of canals and reservoirs, and weirs in rivers, which may be
seen stretched across their course, so that the water being
intercepted by them, must rise and flow over the crest or
summit. A fluid vein in passing through a complete open¬
ing suffers a contraction, the phenomena of which will be
fully explained in the following pages. The vertical dis¬
tance of the fluid surface in the vessel above the centre of
gravity of the orifice, is called the height of the reservoir,
or the charge of water over the orifice, or it is that charge
under which the escape takes place.
The waste, or real effective waste of an orifice, is that vol¬
ume of fluid discharged in one unit of time, as a second. The
theoretical waste is that volume per unit of time which theory
assigns. The former is always less than the latter. The
quotient or ratio of the real to the theoretical waste is termed
the coefficient of contraction, or that fractional number
which multiplies the theoretical to obtain the real waste.
222. Mariotte, 150 years ago, showed that in the case offluids
the velocities are as the square roots of the charges (Cor. 1.
Prop. VIII.) Many succeeding experiments have proved
the same principle, and although it is not rigidly true, it may
still be admitted.
The following table of results will exhibit the propor¬
tionality. The charges are as 1 :200 and more, and the
section of the orifices are as 1 : 500, still in each the velocity
has followed the square root of the charge ; minute errors,
causing small differences, arise, but these may be neglected.
Such experiments have for their object the determination of the
waste per unit of time; but it is clear that so long as the orifice
remains of the same area the discharge or waste is exactly
proportional to the velocity; and, therefore, a column denot¬
ing the relations of the one, must also give those of the other.
Observes.
Diameter of
orifice in
metres.
Charge
above
orifice
Series of
Roots of
charges.
Wastes or
velocities.
Daubisson and Castel.
Bossut 
Michelotti.
Poncelet and Lesbros..
0-01
0-027
0081
0-162
} Square of
20 cent!-,
metres...
1-000
1-074
1-241
1-386
1-509
1-000
1-500
1-713
1-000
1-305
1-738
1-000
1-316
1-000
1-323
1-581
1- 803
2- 000
1-000
1-064
1-244
1-393
1-524
1-000
1-497
1-707
1-000
1-301
1-692
1-000
1-315
1000
1-230
1-590
1-806
2000
112
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Motion of 223. It has been shown by experiment that the princi-
Fluids, &c. pie bolds for all fluids whatever, as mercury, oils, See., and
even for aeriform gases; so that any one of them issuing
from an orifice will do so with a velocity independent of
the nature and density of the substance ; it will only de¬
pend on the charge. The same principle has also been de¬
tected in the case of discharges in vacuo, as well as in the at¬
mosphere ; the velocity will always be the same with the
same head, whatever be the pressure on the free surface ot
the fluid, provided only that the jet at the orifice is also sub¬
jected to an equal exterior pressure. But if these pressures
be unequal, then the velocities differ.
224. We have seen (in 173) the relation of the several
parts of the contracted vein to each other ; it may be inter¬
esting to know the values which the older experimenters gave
for the same parts. Newton concluded that the ratio of
the contracted section op (fig. 43), and the area of the ori¬
fice mn, was 1 : V 2, and consequently that the diameters of
these sections respectively were as 0841 : TO. If mn be
1, Poleni found that ojo would be 0’79; Borda, 0,804;
Michelotti, 0‘792 ; Bossut, fromO‘812 to 0*817 ; Eytelwein,
0*80; Venturi, 0*798 ; Brunacci, 0*78. The mean of all
these values for the same thing, op, is 0*80. But from a
mean of more recent experiments by Ignazio Michelotti, the
son of F. D. Michelotti, we have the relation of 1 to 0*787
as the ratio of the area of the orifice and that of the contrac¬
ted section. Since the latter experiments are regarded as
very accurate, Daubisson has followed the ratio 1 : 0*787.
225. Were the velocity at the contracted section really
that due to the height of the reservoir, and were the escape
to take place through an adjutage of the same form as the
contracted vein, then on introducing into the expression
for the waste the area S of the exterior orifice of this adju¬
tage, the calculated would be equal to the actual waste, and
the ratio of the coefficients would be 1. Michelotti,1 in one
of his experiments, employed a cycloidal adjutage, and
obtained a coefficient of 0*984. In all probability he w*ould
have arrived at 1, if the walls of the adjutage had been more
accurately adapted to the form of the fluid vein, and if the
resistance of these walls, and also that of the air, had not
somewhat retarded the motion.
226. The coefficient, or the ratio mentioned above, is not
always a constant quantity. It varies with the form and
position of the orifice, with the thickness of the plate in
which the orifice is made, as well as the form of the vessel
and the weight of the superincumbent fluid. This variable
quantity, therefore, must not be neglected in practice.
SECTION I. ON THE VOLUME OF WATER DISCHARGED FROM
VESSELS KEPT CONSTANTLY FULL, BY ORIFICES IN THIN
PLATES.
(a.) Flow of Water through an Orifice in a Thin Plate.
227. We proceed now to determine directly that frac¬
tional number, or coefficient, which will enable us to reduce
the theoretical to the actual waste. As this is a mere ten¬
tative process, we must gauge with care the volume of
water flowing out of a given orifice, under a constant
charge, and in a given time, from which is found the vol¬
ume in one second, or the real waste for that time; on di¬
viding this by the volume which theory gives as issuing from
the same orifice, and under the same circumstances, we
find the coefficient required. Thus, let the orifice be 3*185
inches in diameter, then the head of 4*012 feet of water
issues out of it with a velocity of 16*07 feet per second.
Now, area of orifice = 7r.r2 = (3*1416) (T5925)2 «= 7*97
square inches, which, if multiplied into the velocity of
each particle of water, or 4*012, gives the volume of a Motion of
prism or cylinder equal to that of the water discharged, or Fluids, &c.
. (16*07) = *8894 cubic feet per second. But the real ^
discharge in 1^ minutes was found to be 49*68 cubic feet,
which is at the rate of *552 cubic feet per second ; hence,
0*552
coefficient 7^ = 0*620. A considerable number of
0*8894
experimental philosophers since the time of Newton have
endeavoured to determine its true value. Daubisson, in his
Traite d'Hydraulique d Vusage des Ingenieurs, 1840, gives
a table containing the principal results which several emi¬
nent experimenters have arrived at. They include circu¬
lar, square, and rectangular orifices :—
Circular Orifices.
Observer.
Mariotte...
Do. ...
Castel 
Do 
Do 
Do 
Eytelwein
Bossut 
Michelotti
Castel 
Venturi....
Bossut 
Michelotti
Do. ...
Do. ...
Do. ...
Do. ...
Do. ...
Dia¬
meter.
Metres.
0-0068
0-0068
o-oi
0-01
0-015
0-015
0-261
0-271
0-0271
003
0-041
0-054
0-054
0-081
0081
0-081
0-162
0-162
Charge.
Metres.
1-79
7-90
0-65
0-31
0-138
0-30
0-723
1- 30
2- 23
0-168
0-88
3- 81
2-20
2- 24
3- 81
6-76
211
3-66
Coeffi¬
cient.
0-692
0692
0 673
0-654
0-632
0*617
0-618
0-619
0-618
0-629
0-622
0-618
0-607
0-613
0-612
0-597
0-619
0-619
Square Orifices.
Castel..
Bossut..
Michelotti
Do. ...
Bossut 
Michelotti
Do. ...
Do. ...
Do. ...
Do. ...
Do. ...
Side of
square.
Metres
001
0-027
0-027
0-027
0-054
0-054
0-054
0 054
0082
0-081
0-081
Charge.
Metres.
0-05
3-81
3-81
6-83
3-81
224
3-83
6-78
2-26
3-83
6-82
Coeffi¬
cient.
0*655
0-616
0-607
0-606
0-618
0-603
0-603
0-602
0-616
0-619
0-616
Rectangular Orifices.
(Bidone.)
Rectangle.
Height, Base,
0 0092
0-0092
0-0092
0-0092
0-0185
0-0370
0-0739
0-1478
Charge.
0-33
0-33
0-33
033
Coeffi¬
cient.
0*620
0-620
0-621
0-626
The most remarkable of these experiments, of which the
above table is the result, were those of the elder Michelotti,
performed in the year 1764, at about 3 miles from Turin.
The internal dimension of the reservoir was a square of
0*97 met., and 8 met. in height; it was supplied with water
from the River Dora by a canal of derivation. On one of the
faces of this reservoir w as arranged a series of adjutages at
different, yet convenient depths; on the surface of the
ground, also, were arranged different vessels for measuring
the actual discharges. Ignazio Michelotti performed these
same experiments in 1784, the results of which—the five
last—are tabulated as above. It will be observed from the
table that the coefficients from the large orifices are higher
than the others, although contrary to the rule that would
be deduced from the experiments in general; some parti¬
cular circumstance must have produced this anomaly.2 With
respect to the experiments of M. Castel, engineer to the
Water-works of Toulouse, they were carried on by him in
company with M. Daubisson at Toulouse, and in spite of
all the care which they took in their operations, the small¬
ness of the orifices would only permit them to come within
-jJ^th of the value of the coefficient. They principally
occupied themselves on the orifice 0*01 met., as being in a
manner the starting point in a distribution of water, made
after the metrical system of weights and measures.
228. In the year 1782, the engineer Lespinasse made
several experiments in the canal of Languedoc, in order to
to determine the coefficient when water issues from a
sluice-gate. The width of the sluice was 1*3 met., the area
1 Memoire Physico-Mathematique contenant les resultats d'experiences Hydrauliques. Pans les Mlmoires de VAcademie des Sciences de
Turin, 1784-1785. 2 Sperimenti Idraulici, <tc., de F. D. Michelotti, Torino, 1/67 et 1771.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
113
Motion of of the opening varied from 0-7194 to 0-6240 sq. met., and
Fluids, &c. the height from 0"55 to 0-48 met., the charge over the
centre being from 4-436 to 1-975 met., and the form of the
orifice was not exactly rectangular; the mean results of all
the coefficients was 0-625, which has been regarded as
large; but it is accounted for from the fact that the escape
did not take place in a thin wall or plate, and that the con¬
traction on some point was suppressed ; the wood work
around the opening of the sluice was 0-27 met. thick, and on
the lower edge it was even 0*54 met. Further, the coeffi¬
cient, which was 0-641 met. for an opening of 0-46 met., rose
to 0-803 met. when the paddle over the opening was raised
0-12 met. Six years after, M. Pin, engineer on the same
canal, performed a series of similar experiments, with similar
results, and which may be seen in the Anciens Memoires de
VAcademic des Sciences de Toulouse, tom. ii., 1784 ; see also
Histoire du Canal du Midi ou de Languedoc, par le Gene¬
ral Andreossy, tom. i., p. 251. A coefficient of the above
value was found from an experiment on the sluice-gate of
the basin of Havre (see Architecture Hydraidique, par
Belidor et Navier, tom. i., p. 289).
229. But the most remarkable fact connected with the
experiments of Lespinasse and Pin, is that when two equal
openings are made, one in each of the wings of a sluice¬
gate, the waste of the first diminishes on the second com¬
mencing to flow, and the combined volume of discharge
for both orifices during a certain time, is less than double
the volume escaping by one of the openings in hah that
time; consequently, also, the coefficient lor each case
must be different, for different discharges are given. The
distance between the openings was 2-92
met., and their plane formed an angle
of 60° with the direction of the canal.
The difference in the discharges was
about one-eighth, and the difference in
the coefficients will be seen from the
annexed table.
This was regarded as true till 1836,
when Daubisson and Castel showed its
falsity. They had, from one side and
another of a sluice-gate, three rectan¬
gular orifices of 0-10 met. in width, and —
O'Ol met. in height, separated byO’Ol met. The volume dis¬
charged by the middle orifice was first obtained, then the vo¬
lume from two, and lastly, the discharge from the whole three.
The mean results are contained in the following table:
Coefficient,
With one
opening.
0-641
0-689
0-616
0-594
0-621
With two
openings.
0-550
0-555
0-554
0-526
0-555
Mean.
0-632 I 0-548
Charge
on
orifice.
Met.
0-02
0-03
004
0-05
0-06
Waste of middle orifice.
Middle single
opening.
Middle, with
one side opening.
Cub. met.
0-000455
0-000551
0-000635
0-000707
0-000771
Cub. met.
0-000455
0 000551
0-000636
0-000707
0-000769
Middle with two
side openings.
Cub. met.
0-000457
0-000550
0-000637
0-728
0-720
0-719
0-715
0-710
produced under a constant charge of 0T07 met. above the Motion of
centre, and the coefficients of contraction were as under Flmds, &c.
r the middle 0-6198 ^
One orifice open i that on the right 0-6193
V that on the left 0-6194
f the right and left 0-6205
Two orifices open < middle and right 0-6205
t middle and left 0-6207
The whole three orifices open 0-6230
We here see that as more of the orifices were opened,
the coefficients increased instead of diminished in value.
As it belongs to a particular cause, a greater velocity ot
water in the canal, followed by a greater waste, M. Castel
inferred that although new orifices should be made by the
side of an already existing orifice, whether in a sluice-gate,
reservoir, or stopped-up course of water, no diminution of
waste will take place on this account.
230. It was supposed, however, that although this was
shown to hold good in the case of orifices in a plane wall
or plate, yet a difference would be found in those of planes
making a certain angle, as in the case of flood-gates. M.
Castel has also fully resolved this question. He joined two
planes, making an angle of 120°, a flood-gate being 10° more
open, and in each he made two rectangular orifices of 0T0
by 0-06 met.—one at 0T2, the other at 0*28 met. distance
from the plane of junction ; this kind
of barrier was erected at the extremity
of a canal, and the escape took place
under a charge of 0T4 met. Each of
the orifices was successively opened at
first; then two at a time, combining
them in different ways; then three simi¬
larly combined; and last of all, the
whole four. The annexed table shows the mean results.
M. Castel also adapted on his experimental apparatus, de¬
scribed in 253, two orifices of
0'05 by 0-03 met., and found the
following results, from which it
will be seen that the same co¬
efficient is always found with an
insignificant augmentation, due to
the number of open orifices.
231. The following table contains the results obtained
by Michelotti when the orifices were vertical, and of a
square or circular form, the altitude of the head of water
varying from 6 to about 22 feet:—
No. of
orifices.
Coeffi¬
cients.
0-618
0-619
0-620
0-622
Charge.
Metres.
1
tres. f
03 1
2-04
No. of
orifices.
Coeffi¬
cients.
0-621
0-622
0-619
0-621
As these resulting coefficients were considerably larger
than those of Lespinasse and Pin, Daubisson and Castel
thought that the difference was owing to the too small
distance separating one orifice from another; this difference
was now made five times greater, and yet the coefficients
remained constant. As the difference was still matter ot
surprise, M. Daubisson, in 1836, requested M. Castel to
undertake a series of experiments on a more extensive scale
than they had previously done. For this purpose M. Castel
stopped up a canal in width 0'74 met. by a thin copper plate,
in which he opened three rectangular orifices on the same
horizontal base, each 0T0 met. wide, and 0-06 high, and
the distance betwixt each was 0'08 met. The escape was
Height of water
above centre of
orifice.
Size and form of
orifice.
Time
of
flow.
Ft. in. lin. pts.
7 4 3 j
8 1 6 f square of 3 inches
8 3 6 J
7 6 0 1 square of 2 f
5 3 7 / inches \
9 10 1 square of 1 j
6 1 0 J inch \
8 4 0 1 circular, 3 inches f
7 4 0 J diameter \
9 5 0 1 circular, 2 inches |
diameter
6
11
21
6
21
6
21
6
21
6
21 10 10
6 10 6
22 0 2
2}
2}
circular, 1 inch
diameter
Minutes.
10
5
15
10
30
60
15
8
30
20
60
60
Volume discharged.
Ft. in. lin.
463
516
415
329
385
158
562 11
542 10
521 3
488
575
247
444
3
5
3
8
0
7
4
6
7
3
10
3
5
YOL. XII.
The mean coefficient from Michelotti’s experiments is 0625.
232. Messrs Brindley and Smeaton found that 20 cubic
feet of water were discharged from orifices I inch square, in
the following times, varying with the height of the water:—•
Height of water Time of discharging
in feet. 20 cubic feet.
1 562 seconds.
3 320
5 254
When the height of the water was 6 feet, and the orifice
p
114
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
^ an inch square, 20 cubic feet were discharged in 17 mi¬
nutes 33 seconds. The coefficient obtained from these ex¬
periments is 0'63.
233. In the following experiments by the Abbe Bossut,
which were frequently repeated, the orifice was pierced in
a plate of copper about halt a line thick :—
Quantity of Water discharged in one minute, by Orifices
differing in form and position.
Altitude of
the fluid
above the
centre of the
orifice.
Ft. in. lin,
11 8 10
9 0 0
4 0 0
Form and position of the orifice.
Circular and Horizontal ...
Circular and Horizontal
Horizontal and Square .
Horizontal and Square .
Lateral and Circular 
Lateral and Circular 
Lateral and Circular 
Lateral and Circular 
I No. of cub.
The orifice’s ! in. dis
diameter. charged in
a minute.
1 inch
2 inches
1 inch, side
2 inch, side
6 lines
1 inch
6 lines
1 inch
9281
37203
11817
47361
2018
8135
1353
5436
234. From the results contained in the preceding table,
we may draw the following conclusions :—
1. That the quantities of water discharged in equal times
by different apertures, the altitudes of the fluid being the
same, are very nearly as the areas of the orifices. That is,
if A and a represent the areas of the orifices, and W, w the
quantities of water discharged,
W iw~ A.: a.
2. The quantities discharged in equal times by the same
aperture, the altitude of the fluid being different, are to one
another very nearly as the square roots of the altitudes of
the water in the reservoir, reckoning from the centres of
the orifices. That is, if H, h be the different altitudes of
traction of the vein of fluid undergoes, in proportion as the Experi-
altitude of the water in the reservoir augments, the quantity ments on
discharged ought also to diminish a little as that altitude the ^Iotion
increases. of 1 luids.
By attending to the preceding observations, the results
of theory may be so corrected, that the quantities of water
discharged in a given time may be determined with the
greatest accuracy possible.
23o. The Abbe Bossut has given the following table, con¬
taining a comparison of the theoretical with the real dis¬
charges, for an orifice one inch in diameter, and for different
altitudes of the fluid in the reservoir. The real discharges
were not found immediately by experiment, but were deter¬
mined by the precautions pointed out in the preceding
articles, and may be regarded to be as accurate as if direct
experiments had been employed :—
Comparison of the Theoretic with the Real Discharges
from an Orifice one inch in diameter (from Prony’s
Arch. Hydraul. i., 369).
Constant alti¬
tude of the
water in the re¬
servoir above
the centre of
the orifice.
Paris feet.
1
3
5
7
9
11
13
15
Theoretical
discharges
through a cir¬
cular orifice
one inch in
diameter.
IReal discharges
Iin the same time
through the
same orifice.
Cubic inches.
4381
7589
9797
11592
13144
14530
15797
16968
Cubic inches.
2722
4710
6075
7183
8135
8990
9764
10472
Ratio of the theoretical
to the real discharges.
1 to 0-62133
1 to 0-62064
1 to 0-62010
1 to 0-61965
1 to 0-61892
1 to 0-61873
1 to 0-61810
1 to 0-61716
the fluid, we shall have W: tv = VH : \/h.
3. Hence we may conclude in general, that the quanti¬
ties discharged in the same time by different apertures, and
under different altitudes in the reservoir, are in the com¬
pound ratio of the areas of the orifices, and the square roots
of the altitudes. Thus, if W, w be the quantities discharged
in the same time from the orifices A, a, under the same
altitude of water; and if W', w be the quantities discharged
in the same time by the same aperture a, under different
altitudes, H, h : then, by the first of the two preceding
articles,
W : w = A : a, and by the second
: W' = a/H : V^. Multiplying these analo¬
gies together, gives us—
Ww : Ww= AVW : aVh, and by dividing by vj,
W : W' =AVH:aVA.
This rule is sufficiently correct in practice ; but when great
accuracy is required, the following remarks must be attend¬
ed to.
4. Small orifices discharge less water in proportion than
great ones, the altitude of the fluid being the same. The
circumferences of the small orifices being greater in pro¬
portion to the issuing column of fluid than the circumfer¬
ences of greater ones, the friction, which increases with the
area of the rubbing surfaces, will also be greater, and will
therefore diminish the velocity, and consequently the quan¬
tity discharged.
5. Hence of several orifices whose areas are equal, that
which has the smallest circumference will discharge more
water than the rest under the same altitude of fluid in the
reservoir, because in this case the friction will be least.
Circular orifices, therefore, are the most advantageous of
all, for the circumference of a circle is the shortest of all
lines that can be employed to inclose a given space.
6. In consequence of a small increase which the con-
236. It is evident from the preceding table, that the
theoretical, as well as the real discharges, are nearly pro¬
portional to the square roots of the altitudes of the fluid in
the reservoir.
The fourth column of the preceding table also shows us
that the theoretical are to the real discharges nearly in the
ratio of 1 to 0*62, or more accurately, as 1 to 0*61938;
therefore 0-62 is the number by which we must multiply
the discharges as found by the formulae in the preceding
chapter, in order to have the quantities of w-ater actually
discharged.
237. In order to find the quantities of fluid discharged
by orifices of different sizes, and under different altitudes
of water in the reservoir, we must use the table in the fol¬
lowing manner :—Let it be required, for example, to find
the quantity of water furnished by an orifice three inches
in diameter, the altitude of the water in the reservoir being
30 feet. As the real discharges are in the compound ratio
of the area of the orifices, and the square roots of the alti¬
tudes of the fluid (art. 234, No. 3), and as the theoretical
quantity of water discharged by an orifice one inch in dia¬
meter, is, by the second column of the table, 16968 cubic-
inches in a minute, we shall have this analogy,— iVlo :
9V30= 16968 : 215961 cubic inches, the quantity required.
This quantity being diminished in the ratio of 1 to *62,
being the ratio of the theoretical to the actual discharges,
gives 133896 for the real quantity of water discharged by
the given orifice. But (by No. 5 of art. 234), the quantity
discharged ought to be a little greater than 133896, be¬
cause greater orifices discharge more than small ones ; and
by No. 6 the quantity ought to be less than 133896, be¬
cause the altitude of the fluid is double that in the table.
These two causes therefore having a tendency to increase
and diminish the quantity deduced from the preceding
table, w e may regard 133896 as very near the truth. Had
the orifice been less than one inch, or the altitude less than
HYDRODYNAMICS.
115
Experi- 15 feet, it would have been necessary to diminish thepre-
ments on ceding answer by a few cubic inches. Since the velocities
the Motion 0f tpe issuing fluid are as the quantities discharged, the
of Fluids. prece(png results may be employed also to find the real
velocities from those which are deduced from theory.
238. As the velocity of falling bodies is 16’087 feet
per second, the velocity due to IG'OST feet will be 32'174
feet per second; and as the velocities are as the square
roots of the height, we shall have -v/I 6-087 : Vn =
32-174 : V, the velocity due to any other height; conse¬
quently V =
32-174VH 32-174VH
V16-087 ~ 4'011
= 8-016'V/H, so that
8"016 is the coefficient by which we must always multiplv
the altitude of the fluid in order to have its theoretical
velocity.
We have already seen that the jet takes a/raraSoftc path,
and that the abscissae and ordinates of its various points
can be determined (177). Both Bossut and Michelotti
took special care in obtaining true values for these lines so
as to find the value of the height due to the velocity of
exit (h = ~) (177); and for this velocity we have v =
's/2gh : from which relations we may compare the real with
the theoretical velocity, and h with H the charge. The
following table from Michelotti’s experiments will let us see
the near comcidence of these quantities :—
Curve of jet.
Absc.=x. Ordi.=2/
Met.
6-28
4-66
1-41
Met.
7- 53
8- 45
6-25
Height
due to
velocity
of exit.
2'257
3-83
6-92
Charge.
229
3-93
7-19
Velocity.
Real. Theoretical,
Min.
6-65
8-67
11-67
Difference
betwixt
third and
fourth col,
Min.
6-70
8-78
11-88
0-033
0-100
0-17
From the above it appears that the difference between
the third and fourth columns increases with the charge, the
cause of this difference being the resistance of the air in¬
creasing as the square of the velocity, and consequently
nearly as the charge. Were it not for this, the difference
would be very nearly equal to zero, and the velocity at the
contracted section would have been equal to that due to
the charge. Hence it may be said that water escaping
through an orifice in a thin plate issues with a velocity
which is very nearly equal to that due to the height of the
reservoir or charge, and is not sensibly diminished by the
contraction.
SECTION II. ON THE QUANTITY OF WATER DISCHARGED
FROM VESSELS CONSTANTLY FULL, BY SMALL TUBES
ADAPTED TO CIRCULAR ORIFICE^.
(/?.) Floiv through Cylindrical Adjutages.
in diameter, be inserted in the reservoir, and if this orifice Experi-
be stopped by a piston till the reservoir is filled with water, ments on
the fluid, when permitted to escape, will not follow the sides ^ ^°t‘un
of the tube, that is, the tube will not be filled with water, ° tu
and the contraction in the vein of fluid will take place in
the same manner as if the orifice were pierced in a thin
plate. When the cylindrical tube was 1 inch in diameter
and 2 inches long, the water followed the sides of the tube,
and the vein of fluid ceased to contract. While M. Bossut
was repeating this experiment, he prevented the escape of
the fluid by placing the instrument MN (see fig. 55), con¬
sisting of a handle and a circular head, upon the interior
extremity of the tube, and found, to his great surprise, that
when he withdrew the instrument MN, to give passage to
the water, it sometimes followed the sides of the tube, and
sometimes detached itself from them, and produced a con¬
traction in the fluid vein similar to that which took place
when the first tube was employed. After a little practice,
he could produce either of these effects at pleasure. The
same phenomenon was exhibited when the length of the
tube was diminished to 1 inch 6 lines; only it was more
difficult to make the fluid follow the circumference of the
tube. This effect was still more difficult to produce when
its length was reduced to 1 inch ; and when it was so small
as half an inch, the water uniformly detached itself from
its circumference, and formed the vena contractu.
241. The coefficient of reduction of the theoretical to the
actual waste, with such small tubes, will be found in the
following table. It will be seen that the additional tube, that
is, & cylindrical adjutage, does not cause much variation:—
Castel 
Do 
Do 
Do 
Do 
Bossut 
Do 
Eytelwein..
Bossut 
Do 
Do 
Venturi....
Michelotti
Do.
Do.
Adjutage.
Diameter.
Metres.
0-0155
00155
0-0155
00155
0-0155
0-023
0-023
0-026
0-027
0-027
0-027
0-041
0081
Square.
0-081
0-081
Length.
Metros.
0-040
0-040
0040
0-040
0-040
0-054
0-054
0-078
0-041
0 054
0-103
0-128
0-216
0-216
0-216
Charge.
Metres.
0-20
0-48
0-99
2-00
303
0-65
1- 24
0-72
3-85
3-87
3-92
0-88
2- 18
3-80
6-71
Coefficient.
0-827
0-829
0-829
0-829
0-830
0-788
0-787
0-821
0-804
0-804
0-804
0-822
0-815
0-803
0-803
Bossut’s two first observations are looked upon as ano¬
malous, but the mean of all the others is 0-817, and may be
regarded as 0"82.
242. Quantities of Water discharged by Cylindrical Tubes
one inch in diameter with different lengths.
239. The difference between the actual discharges, and
those deduced from theory, arises from the contraction of
the fluid vein, and from the friction of the water against
the circumference of the orifice. If the operation of any
of these causes could be prevented, the quantities of water
actually discharged would approach nearer the theoretical
discharges. There is no probability of diminishing friction
in the present case by the application of unguents; but, if
a short cylindrical tube be inserted in the orifice of the ves¬
sel, the water will follow the sides of the tube, the con¬
traction of the fluid vein will be in a great measure pre¬
vented, and the actual discharges will approximate much
nearer to those deduced from theory than when the fluid
issues through a simple orifice.
240. If a cylindrical tube, 2 inches long and 2 inches
Constant altitude
of the fluid above
the superior edge
of the tube being
11 feet 8 inches
and 10 lines.
Variable length of the tubes
expressed in lines.
The tube being filled
with the issuing fluid
led f
l
The tube not filled
with the issuing fluid
18
Cubic inches
discharged in
a minute.
12274
12188
12168
9282
The experiments in the preceding table were made with
tubes inserted in the bottom of the vessel. When the tubes
were fixed horizontally in the side of the reservoir, they
furnished the very same quantities of fluid, their dimensions
and the altitude of the fluid remaining the same.
\
116
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Experi- It appears, from the preceding results, that the quantities
ments on of water discharged increase with the length of the tube, and
th® ^j0*10n that these quantities are very nearly as the square roots of
0 Ulds' the altitudes of the fluid above the interior orifice of the
v v"*-7 vertical tube.
We have already seen that the theoretical are to the real
discharges as 1 to 0-62, or nearly as 16-1 to 10. But, by
comparing the two last experiments in the preceding table,
it appears that the quantity of fluid discharged by a cylin¬
drical tube where the water follows its sides, is to the quan¬
tity discharged by the same tube when the vena contracta
is formed, as 13 to 10; and since the same quantity must
be discharged by the latter method as by a simple orifice,
we may conclude that the quantity discharged according to
theory, and that which is discharged by a cylindrical tube
and by a simple orifice, are to one another very nearly as
the numbers 16, 13, 10. Though the water, therefore, fol¬
lows the sides of the cylindrical tube, the contraction of the
fluid vein is not wholly destroyed; for the difference be¬
tween the quantity discharged in this case, and that deduced
from theory, is too great to be ascribed to the increase of
friction which arises from the water following the circum¬
ference of the tube.
243. In order to determine the effects of tubes of different
diameters, under different altitudes of water in the reservoir,
M. Bossut instituted the experiments the results of which
are exhibited in the following table :—
Quantities of Water discharged by Cylindrical Tubes
two inches long, with different Diameters.
Constant altitude
of the water above
the orifice.
Diameter of the Tube.
Quantity of water
discharged in a
minute.
Feet. Inches.
10
The tube being filled
with the issuing fluid.
The tube not filled
with the issuing fluid.
Lines.
u
6
10
The tube being filled f
with the issuing fluid, j
The tube not filled
with the issuing fluid.
Cubic inches.
1689
4703
1293
3598
1222
3402
935
2603
244. By comparing the different numbers in this table,
we may conclude,—
1. That the quantities of water discharged by different cy¬
lindrical tubes of the same length, the altitude of the fluid
remaining the same, are nearly as the areas of the orifices,
or the squares of their diameters.
2. That the quantities discharged by cylindrical tubes of
the same diameter and length are nearly as the square roots
of the altitude of the fluid in the reservoir.
3. Hence the quantities discharged during the same time,
by tubes of different diameters, under different altitudes of
fluid in the reservoir, are nearly in the compound ratio of
the squares of the diameters of the tube, and the square
roots of the altitudes of the water in the reservoir.
4. By comparing these results with those which were de¬
duced from the experiments with simple orifices, it will be
seen that the discharges follow the same laws in cylindrical
tubes as in simple orifices.
24.5. The following table is deduced from the foregoing ex¬
periments, and contains a comparative view of the quantities
of water discharged by a simple orifice, according to theory,
and those discharged by a cylindrical tube of the same dia¬
meter under different altitudes of water. The numbers
might have been more accurate by attending to some of the
preceding remarks; but they are sufficiently exact for any
practical purpose. The fourth column, containing the ratio
between the theoretical and actual discharges, was com¬
puted by M. P> ony :—
Comparison of the Theoretical with the Real Discharges Experi-
from a Cylindrical Tube one inch in Diameter, and, ments on
two inches lonq. t*le Motion
of Fluids.
Constant alti¬
tude of the wa¬
ter in the re¬
servoir above
the centre of
the orifice.
Paris feet.
1
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
1
Theoretical
discharges
through a cir¬
cular orifice
one inch in
diameter.
Cubic inches
4381
6196
8763
10732
12392
13855
15180
16393
2
Real discharges
in the same time
by a cylindrical
tube one inch in
diameter and two
inches long.
Cubic inches.
3539
5002
7070
8654
9975
11151
12205
13177
3
Ratio of the
theoretical to
the real dis¬
charges.
1 to 0-81781
1 to 0-80729
1 to 0-80881
1 to 0-80638
1 to 0-80496
1 to 0-80483
1 to 0-80403
1 to 0-80382
4
By comparing the preceding table with that in art. 235,
we shall find that cylindrical tubes discharge a much greater
quantity of water than simple orifices of the same diameter,
and that the quantities discharged are as 81 to 62 nearly.
This is a curious phenomenon, and will be afterwards
explained.
246. The application of this table to other additional
tubes under different altitudes of the fluid not contained in
the first column, is very simple. Let it be required, for
example, to find the quantity of water discharged by a cylin¬
drical tube 4 inches in diameter and 8 inches long, the alti¬
tude of the fluid in the reservoir being 25 feet. In order
to resolve this question, find (by art. 237) the theoretical
quantity discharged, which in the present instance will be
350490 cubic inches, and this number diminished in the
ratio of 1 to 0'81 will give 284773 for the quantity required.
The length of the tube in this example was made 8 inches,
because, when the length of the tube is less than twice its
diameter, the water does not easily follow its interior circum¬
ference. If the tube were longer than 8 inches, the quan¬
tity of fluid discharged would have been greater, because
it uniformly increases with the length of the tube; the
greatest length of the tube being always small, in compari¬
son with the altitude of the fluid in the reservoir.
247. When the cylindrical tube is two inches long, and
its diameter one, the water will fill the tube, and issue in
threads parallel to the axis of the orifice ; the vein also will
cease to contract, and the diminution of the discharge can
only take place from a diminution of the velocity ; the ratio,
then, of the actual to the theoretic discharge will be the same
as that of the actual to the theoretic velocity. The follow¬
ing table lets us see this :—-
Observer.
Jet.
Absciss. Ordin
Velocity.
Real.
Theo¬
retic.
Coefficient
Of Ve- Of
locity. Waste.
Venturi,
Castel..,,
Castel....
Met.
1-462
0-546
1-140
Met.
1-868
0-673
1-769
Met.
3-415
2- 017
3- 669
Met.
4-154
2-426
4-414
0-824
0-832
0-832
0-822
0-827
0-829
From the above table we see that the coefficients of dis¬
charge and velocity are sensibly equal. It appears, also,
that the velocity of a jet issuing from a cylindrical adjutage
is equal to 082 of that due to the charge or height of the
reservoir ; and that the height due to the velocity of exit
is only (•82)2 = '6724 of the last; since the heights of the
charges are as the squares of the velocities.
248. The coefficient, it will be perceived, has risen from
062 to 0*82, the cause of which, together with the increased
HYDRODYNAMICS.
117
Experi- waste, are probably due to the following circumstances,
ments on The fluid vein, after its contraction, on entering the addi-
the Motion tional adjutage, tends to assume and preserve a cylindrical
of Fluids. form t]ie section of which will be that of the contracted
vein,’ and consequently it tends to issue without touching
the walls of the cylindrical tube. Some fillet threads, how¬
ever, move towards these walls, owing either to some diver¬
gence in their direction, or to some attractive force, or to
both combined. When a contact of fluid particles takes
place at the walls, then they are strongly held by molecular
attraction; and the same force causes particle to cling to
particle, even over the whole vein, which issues from a full
pipe, and passes quickly by the contracted section. The
immediate cause, however, is contact, and eveiy circum¬
stance which favours that will tend to produce an augmen¬
tation in the value of the coefficient and volume discharged.
The principal of these circumstances are :—1. The length
of the tube ; the longer it is the greater is the tendency to
contact; the less it is the less is that tendency. 2. A
feeble velocity ; the fluid threads will then be drawn with
oreater facility towards the walls. 3. The affinity of the
matter of the tube for the fluid, or rather its disposition to
be more easily wetted.
249. Venturi made several ingenious experiments on cy¬
lindrical adjutages, piercing the thin plate of a reservoir, the
orifice of which was in diameter 0-0406 met. ; and under a
charge of 0‘88 met. he obtained a volume of 0-137 cub. met. of
water in 41 seconds, fo this simple orifice he next adap¬
ted a cylindrical pipe, not continued beyond the narrowest
part of the vein, and having a form very nearly the same ;
the diameter of the contraction being 0-032 i met., and its
distance from the orifice 0"02o ; and under the same charge
be obtained the same volume, but now in 42 seconds. To
this first pipe he added a continuation beyond the conti acted
part, of the same dimensions as the orifice, and to obtain the
same volume under the same head, the time required was
only 31 seconds. Lastly, to the orifice he fitted on a uni¬
form pipe of the same length as in last experiment, and the
volume escaped in 31 seconds was 0-137 cub. met.
It appears, then, that the introduction of a cylindrical ad¬
jutage does not diminish the contraction, but makes the
fluid5 pass by the contracted section with a greater velocity
in the ratio of 31 :41 or 42 ; and hence the augmentation
of the waste. Venturi attributed the cause of the above to
an excess of the atmospheric pressure on the fluid surface
contained in the reservoir, an excess arising from a void in
that part of the adjutage where the greatest contraction
takes place. He endeavoured to prove this by many very
interesting experiments, but his results have been too much
generalized.
Two of the most beautiful experiments of Venturi are
explanatory of what he termed the lateral communication
of motion in fluids}
(y.) Flow through Converging Conical Adjutages.
250. The investigations on pipes of this kind were up to
1838 very inexact and imperfect. Four experiments made
on this subject by the Marquis Poleni, are recorded in his
I)e Castellis per quce derivantur Fluviorum Aqua (1 i 18),
and cited by Bossut in his Hydrodynamique. Their ac¬
curacy, however, was doubted by Daubisson, and this cir¬
cumstance, together with the paucity of results on converg¬
ing conical adjutages, determined him, along with Castel,
to project a series of experiments which we shall notice pre¬
sently. With respect, however, to very large conical adju¬
tages, or rather pyramidal nozzles, employed for the pur¬
pose of putting hydraulic wheels in motion (458), we have
three very accurate experiments of the engineer Lespin-
asse on the mills of the canal of Languedoc.1 2 The nozzles the Motjon
in these experiments were frusta of a rectangular pyramid, 0f fluids,
having a length of 2-923 met, the greater base 0-731 by 0-975
met., the smaller base 0T35 by 0-190 met. The opposite
faces were respectively inclined at angles of 11 38 and 15
18 , and the charge was 2*923 met. 1 he two first experiments,
of which the results are here given
in a tabular form, were made on a
mill with two millstones, furnished
each with a separate wheel. In the
first experiment the water was only
given to a single wheel, but in the
second it was given to both at once.
Such adjutages were found to di¬
minish the waste very little, the real differing from the
theoretic waste by between 100th and 200ths of the latter.
251. As in this adjutage there are two contractions (171),
the formula given in Prop. II. (181), to calculate the waste
for a single contraction is inapplicable in the present case.
Let n be the exterior contraction, or the ratio of the con¬
tracted section of the fluid to that of the orifice, and n the
coefficient of the velocity, or the ratio of the real to the
theoretic velocity, mi will be the coefficient of the waste,
or the ratio of the real to the theoretic waste. Let S re¬
present the sectional area of the orifice, V the velocity due
to the charge, the real waste will be expressed by the formula
rcS . w V = m/SV = wn'SV2s-H (Prop. II. 181). The quan¬
tities n and ri are found by experiment. The coefficients of
velocity and discharge find a very important application in the
case of jets of water, as in fire-engines (517) and fountains.
252. To determine these coefficients, and specially to de¬
termine the angle of convergence which would cause the
greatest discharge, a variety of adjutages were submitted to
experiment by M. Castel, in each of which the diameter of the
orifice of issue and the length of adjutage remained constant;
but the diameter of entrance, and consequently the angle of
convergence, gradually increased. The flow was produced
under different charges for each adjutage. At every ex¬
periment the real waste was determined by direct gauging,
and the velocity of escape by the method of the parabola
(Prop. I. 177). The waste divided by SV gave nn ; and
the observed velocity divided by V ( = ^/2^H) gave ri. The
series of numbers for nri showed the waste corresponding
to each angle of convergence, and consequently the angle
of maximum waste; and the series of numbers for ri indi¬
cated the progression by which the velocities increased.
253. So early as 1831, M. Castel had, with a very small
apparatus, and under feeble charges, made a series of ex¬
periments on adjutages of this nature. The results were
detailed in the Annales des Mines for 1833. In 1837 he
renewed his experiments, and considerably extended his
labours by means of the beautiful experimental apparatus
at the Water-house of Toulouse.
254. This apparatus consisted of a rectangular metal chest,
0-41 met. long, 0-41 broad, and 0-82 deep, communicating
by a pipe with a reservoir kept constantly full, and 9 met.
above the chest; the different adjutages were fitted into one
of the walls of the latter vessel. A rectangular opening was
made, and pipes were so arranged round its sides, that
charges of 0-20, 0-50, PO, 1-50, 2-00, and 3 met. above the
experimental adjutage, could easily be procured. The adju¬
tages were of two kinds; the diameter of one set was 0-0155
met., and about 0-040 met. in length; andthediameter of the
other was 0"020 met. and 0-050 met. in length. For the pur¬
pose of determining very exactly the velocity of issue from
the adjutage, M. Castel set up a horizontal plate or floor, in
the centre of which was a groove 0T0 met. wide, into which
Coefficient.
Cub. met.
0-1916
0-1895
01901
0-987
0-976
0-979
1 See Recherches Experimentales sur la Communication Laterale du Mouvement dans les Fluides, 1797.
2 Anciens Memoires d VAcademic dc Toulouse, tom. ii., 1784.
118
hxperi- the jet passed ; its range was measured by means of a gra-
^uatec^ ru^e fixe(l to, and very near the plate. This power
of Fluids" Was ^le orfl‘nate of the path described by the jet; 1*140
v. met* the absciss ; and from these two co-ordinates the
velocity of projection was deduced by 177.
255. The same adjutage, under charges which varied from
0*21 to 3*03 met., gave wastes proportional to ^/H, and
consefjuently coefficients which were sensibly the same. A
slight increase will be observed under the charge of 3 met.: 
II Y D Ti O D Y N A M I c S.
Adjutage of 00155 met.
Charge.
Met.
0-215
0-483
0-992
1-492
2006
3-030
Coefficient of
Waste.
0-946
0-946
0-946
0-947
0-946
0-947
Velocity.
0-963
0 966
0-963
0-966
0-956
Adjutage of 0-020 met.
Charge.
Met.
0.211
0-483
0-995
1- 498
2- 008
3-030
Coefficient of
Waste.
0-956
0-957
0-955
0-956
0-956
0-957
Velocity.
0-966
0-968
0-965
0 962
0-959
The higher charges are given in the tables for each series
of diameters which have furnished the maximum waste.
With respect to the coefficients of the velocity, they
would have also been sensibly the same had it not been for
the resistance of the air. As this resistance diminishes
the throw or range of the jet, and increases as the charge
increases, we should expect in the calculated coefficients a
diminution varying w-ith the charge, although in reality there
was no actual diminution in the velocity with which the
fluid issued or tended to issue. In the following table
we compare the coefficients both of the waste and of the
velocit\7, obtained by the same series of adjutages, which
differed only in their angle of convergence. Five or
six different coefficients obtained from five or six different
charges, very nearly the same, have been taken so as to
determine a mean coefficient:—
Adjutage, 0-0155 met.in diameter. Adjutage, 0-0200met. in diameter.
Angle of
Convergence,
Deg. min.
0
36
10
10
26
52
8 58
10 20
12 4
13 24
14 28
16 36
19 28
21 0
23 0
29 58
40 20
48 50
Coefficient of
Waste. Velocity.
0-829
0-866
0-895
0-912
0-924
0-929
0-934
0-938
0-942
0-946
0-941
0 938
0-924
0-918
0-913
0-896
0-869
0-847
0-830
0-866
0-894
0-910
0-920
0 931
0-942
0-950
0-955
0-962
0-966
0-971
0-970
0-971
0-974
0-975
0-980
0-984
Angle of
Convergence.
Deg. min.
2 50
5 26
6 54
10 30
12 10
13 40
15 2
18' 10
23 4
33 52
Coefficient of
Waste. Velocity.
0-914
0-930
0-938
0-945
0-949
0-956
0-949
0-939
0-930
0-920
0-906
0-928
0-938
0-953
0-957
0-964
0-967
0-970
0-973
0-979
256. From the facts here tabulated it follows,—!. That
oi one and the same orifice of issue, and under the same
charge, beginning with 0-83 of the theoretical waste, the
actual waste gradually increases in proportion as the an^le
of convergence increases, but only up to 131°, where the
coefficient is 0*95. Beyond this angle it diminishes, slowly
at first, like all variables about the maximum ; at 20° the
coefficient is about 0*92 or 0*93. But after this the di¬
minution becomes more and more rapid, and terminates as Expert,
low as 0‘65, which is the coefficient for an orifice in a thin ments on
p ate, this last being the limiting position of converging t*16 Motion
adjutages, that, namely, in which the angle of convergence Flmds.
has attained its maximum value of 180°. Hence, then, the
maximum waste will be obtained with a converging adjut¬
age of from 13° to 14°.
257. The explanation of this is probably the following: —
In conical adjutages the theoretical waste is altered by the
attraction of the walls, which tends to augment, and the con¬
traction which tends to diminish it, by diminishing the sec¬
tion of the vein a little below the issue. From the experi¬
ments of Venturi, it would appear that the fluid vein, at its
entry into^the adjutage, preserves its natural form of a co¬
noid of 18° to 20°; so that the more the angle of adjutage
approaches this value, and the nearer the walls are to the
vein when, after experiencing its greatest contraction, it
tends to dilate itself, and w hen it is wholly under the attrac¬
tive action of the walls, the greater will be the waste, and
the maximum of counter action will give the maximum of
waste. But, again, at 10° of convergence, the exterior con¬
traction begins to be sensible, and causes a diminution of
the waste; it has already reduced it by five per cent, at
18 , and thus the angle of maximum waste should naturally
be expected between these two values, or about 14°.
The adjutages of 0-020 met. diameter of issue, gave co¬
efficients from T^oth to yfo^ls greater than the adjutages of
0*0155 met. An error of -j^th of a millimetre at least in esti¬
mating the diameter of the first would, in a great measure,
account for this difference ; and the difference very likely
arose from an error of this kind. The diameters of the
second adjutages, however, were very correctly measured.
2. In regard to the coefficients for the velocity, we find
them increasing from the angle of 0°, like those of the dis¬
charge, up to the convergence of 10° : beyond that point
they increase more rapidly ; and when beyond the angle of
maximum waste, whilst the waste diminishes the coefficients
of velocity go on increasing and approach their limit 1.
They are already nearly equal to 1 at 50°, and not far from
it at 40°. Conical adjutages may, by their diverse con¬
vergence, form a progression, the first term of which is
the cylindrical adjutage, and the last the orifice in a thin
plate; the velocity of projection, increasing with the con¬
vergence, varies then from that of the tube additional up
to that of a simple orifice, that is, from 0*82a/2^H up to
*/2gH.
3. Comparing the coefficients of waste with those of ve¬
locity, or the successive values of n ri and ri, and dividing
the first by the second, we obtain the values for w, or the
coefficients of the exterior contraction. As the angle in¬
creases from 0° up to 10°, the values of n are sensibly = 1,
and consequently there is no contraction ; "
and notwithstanding the convergence of
the walls, the fluid molecules issued paral¬
lel to the axis. But beyond 10° the con¬
traction shows itself; it reduces more and
more the section of the vein, and termi¬
nates by reducing it to an equality with
that of the orifice in a thin plate, as is
shown in the annexed table.
An gle.
8°
15
20
30
40
50
180
1-00
0-98
0-95
0-92
0-89
0-85
0-65
Experiment having shown that cylindrical adjutages pro¬
duce their full and entire effect as respects waste, when
their length is equal to 2J times at least their diameter, M.
Castel fixed the length of the conical adjutage at about 2^-
times the diameter of issue ; thus it was 0-040 met. for those
of 0-0155, and 0*050 met. for those of 0*020, in order, as
far as possible, not to complicate the results with the fric¬
tion of the water against the walls. In order, however, to
determine the effect of elongation, he projected two other
series for the adjutages of 0*0155 met.; in one the com¬
mon length was 0"03 met., and reckoned the minimum ; in
HYDRODYNAMICS.
119
Experi- the other it was O'10 met., a very useful practical dimension,
ments on These he did not complete. He had already, however,
the Motion maf]e gome approximations to them : thus, for adjutages of
of Fluids. q.o]55 met., he took five of the length of 0'0S5 met., and
the result was 0’938 as the coefficient of waste; whereas
with a length of 0,04 met. the coefficient was 0'936 : another
adjutage, in length 0-03 met., gave 0,941 instead of 0-938 ;
and one of0-024 met. in length gave 0'931 in place of 0-926;
thus a diminution of the length has a slight tendency to aug¬
ment the waste. But, on the other hand, with adjutages of
0’020 met. the waste increases with the length ; thus, in
lengths varying from 0*50 met. to 0*10 met., and angles
under 11° 52', he had a coefficient of 0-965 ; under angles
of 14° 12', one of 0"958 ; and under 16° 34', one of 0-950.
It thus appears that the effect of the lengths of adjutages is
far from being ascertained, and new experiments require to Experi-
be undertaken to determine its full extent.
the Motion
of Fluids.
(S.) Flow through Conical Diverging Adjutages.
258. W e have seen (in 172) that this adjutage was known to
the ancient Romans, and that by it we obtain a larger flow in
a given time than from any other pipe. Bernouilli studied
the effects of these adjutages and subjected them to calcula¬
tion, and in one of his experiments found that the real velocity
at the entry of the adjutage w as greater than the theoretical
velocity in the ratio of 100 : 108; but it is to Venturi that
we are principally indebted for the knowledge which we
possess of the results which these adjutages give. The
following is a table of results from Venturi’s experiments :—
Quantities of Water discharged from Orifices of various forms, the constant Altitude of the Fluid being 32 "5
French, or 34"642 English inches.
No.
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Nature and Dimensions of the Tubes and Orifices.
A simple circular orifice in a thin plate, the diameter of the aperture being l-6
inches
A cylindrical tube 1-6 inches in diameter, and 4’8 inches long 
A tube similar to B (fig. 55), which differs from the preceding only in having the
contraction in the shape of the natural contracted vein 
The short conical adjutage A (fig. 55), being the first conical part of the preceding
tube.
The tube D (fig. 55) being a cylindrical tube adapted to the small conical end A,
mn being 3-2 inches long 
The same adjutage, mn being 12‘8 inches   
The same adjutage, mn being 25-6 inches 
The tube C consisting of the cylindrical tube of Exp. 2, placed over the conical
part of A 
The double conical pipe E, a6r=ac=l-6 inches, cd=0'977 inches, e/=l-376 inches,
and the length ce of the outer cone :=4-351 inches 
The tube F, consisting of a cylindrical tube 3‘2 inches long, and 1-376 inches in
diameter, interposed between the two conical parts of the preceding 
Time in which
4 Paris cubic feet
were discharged.
Paris cubic
inches discharged
in a minute.
Seconds.
41
31
31
42
42-5
45
48
32-5
27- 5
28- 5
Inches.
10115
13378
13378
9874
9758
9216
8640
12760
15081
14516
259. It appears from these experiments of Venturi that
when water is conveyed through a straight cylindrical pipe
of an unlimited length, the discharge of water can be in¬
creased only by altering the form of the terminations of the
pipe ; that is, by making the end of the pipe A (fig. 53), of
Fig. 53.
the same form as the vena contracta, and by forming the
other extremity BC into a truncated cone, having its
length BC about nine times the diameter of the cylindrical
tube AB, and the aperture at C to that at B, as 18 to 10.
By giving this form to the pipe, it will discharge more than
twice as much water in a given time, the quantity discharged
by the cylindrical pipe being to the quantity discharged by
the pipe of the form ABC, as 10 to 24.
260. M. Venturi also found that the quantities of water
discharged out of a straight tube, a curved tube forming a
quadrantal arc, and an elbowed tube with an angle of 90°,
each branch having a horizontal position, are to one an¬
other nearly as the numbers 70, 50, 45. Hence we see the
disadvantages of sinuosities and bendings in conduit pipes.
In the construction of hydraulic machines, any variation in
the internal diameter of the pipe ought to be carefully
avoided, excepting those alterations at the extremities
which we have recommended in the preceding paragraph.
261. In one of his experiments Venturi employed a
mouthpiece identical to that in fig. 53, and not unlike
the form of the contracted vein ; the diameter of the orifice
in the plate was 0-0406 met., that of the contracted section
0-0338 met., and the body of the adjutage, beyond this last,
varied in length and expansion, the latter element being
measured by the angle comprised between the sides pro¬
longed inwards. These adjutages were adapted to a reser¬
voir kept constantly full; the flow took place under a con¬
stant charge of 0-88 met., and he observed the time required
to fill a vessel the capacity of which was 0-137 cub. met.
The following table contains the results of his principal
observations, the time corresponding to the theoretical
velocity being 25s *49:—
Adjutage.
Expansion. Length
Deg. min.
3 30
38
38
38
44
44
10 16
10 16
14 14
Met.
o-lll
0-334
0-460
0-460
0-176
0-059
0-264
0 045
0-045
Time
of
Escape.
Sec.
27- 5
210
21-0
190
25 0
31-0
28- 0
28-0
42-0
Co¬
efficient.
0-93
1-21
1-21
1-34
1-02
0-82
0-91
0-91
0-61
Venturi concludes, from his experiments, that the adju¬
tage of maximum waste should have a length of nine times
the diameter of the smaller base, and an angle of diver¬
gence or expansion of 5° 6'. Such an adapted adjutage
would give a waste 2‘4 times greater than an orifice in a
thin plate, and T46 times greater than the theoretical waste.
The dimensions also should vary with the charge.
120
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Experi- 262. Venturi’s Lateral Communication of Motion in
ments on Fluids (249) may be explained by one of his own ex-
th® MQtion pennants. Let a pipe AC (fig. 54), about half an inch in
of lluids. (jiameter an(j a f00t iong? proceeding from the reservoir AB,
and having its extremity bent into the form CD, be inserted
into the vessel CDG, whose side DG gradually rises till it
passes over the rim of the vessel. Fill this vessel with
water, and pour the same fluid into the reservoir AB, till,
running down the pipe AC, it forms the stream EGH. In
a short time the water in the vessel CDG will be carried
off by the current EG, which communicates its motion to
the adjacent fluid. In the same way, when a stream of
water runs through air, it drags the air along with it, and
produces wind. Hence we have the water-blowing ma¬
chine, which conveys a blast to furnaces (art. 540), and
which will be described in a future part of this article. The
lateral communication of motion, whether the surrounding
fluid be air or water, is well illustrated by the following
beautiful experiments of Venturi’s. In the side of the
D
Fig. 54.
reservoir AB (fig. 54), insert the horizontal pipe P, about
an inch and a half in diameter, and five inches long. At
the point o of this pipe, about seven-tenths of an inch from
the reservoir, fasten the bent glass tube onm, whose ca¬
vity communicates with that of the pipe, whilst its other
extremity is immersed in coloured water contained in the
small vessel F. When water is poured into the reservoir
AB, having no connection with the pipe C, so that it may
issue from the horizontal pipe, the red liquor will rise to¬
wards m in the incurvated tube onm. If the descending
leg of this glass siphon be six inches and a half longer
than the other, the red liquor will rise to the very top of
the siphon, enter the pipe P, and running out with the
other water, will in a short time leave the vessel F empty.
Now, the cause of this phenomenon is evidently this:
When the water begins to flow from the pipe P, it com¬
municates with the air in the siphon onm, and drags a
portion along with it. The air in the siphon is therefore
rarefied, and this process of rarefaction is constantly going
on as long as the water runs through the horizontal pipe.
The equilibrium between the external air pressing upon
the fluid in the vessel F, and that included in the siphon,
being thus destroyed, the red liquor will rise in the siphon,
till it communicates with the issuing fluid, and is dragged
along with it through the orifice of the pipe P, till the ves¬
sel F is emptied (421).
263. Another beautiful experiment of Venturi, and simi¬
lar to the above, was made in the following manner. He
added three cylindrical tubes to the lower side of a conical
diverging adjutage like that in fig. 53, and which would give
OT37 cub. met. in 25s, the first pipe being at the contracted
section, the second distant by one-third the length of the ad¬
jutage, and the third pipe at a distance of two-thirds the same
length. These tubes were dipped into a vessel of mercury, Experl-
and while the flow was taking place, the mercury rose in the ments on
respective tubes to heights of 0T20, O046, and 0*0158 met.; the Motion
if water had been in the vessel these heights would have ° U1 8*
been 1*63, 0*63, and 0*125 mets. respectively. From the the-
ory of Bernoulli!, the pressure in this experiment at the point
of greatest contraction is expressed by — 1*60 met.; observa¬
tion gave it as — 1*63 met.
264. Eytelwein also made several experiments on di¬
verging adjutages; as these bear directly on the practical
application of the subject, we shall briefly mention them.
He took a series of cylindrical pipes of different lengths,
and 0*026 met. in diameter, which w ere successively fitted on
to a vase full of water; at first singly, then carrying at its
anterior extremity a mouth-piece like A in fig. 53, which
had nearly the form of the contracted vein ; afterwards,
carrying at its other extremity an adjutage B (in fig. 53),
of the form recommended by Venturi; and lastly, furnished
at once both with mouth-piece and adjutage. The flow
took place under a mean charge of 0*730 met., and the fol¬
lowing table gives the principal results :—
Length of
pipe.
Metres.
0001
0-026
0-078
0-314
0-628
0-942
1-255
1-569
Coefficient of Waste
of single pipe from
Experi¬
ment.
0-62
0-62
0-82
0-77
0-73
0-68
0-63
0-60
Formula of
pipes,
0-99
0-97
0-95
0-86
0-77
0-70
0-65
0-61
Waste of single pipe.
With
mouth¬
piece.
1-56
115
113
1-10
1-09
1-09
1-08
With ad¬
jutage.
1-35
1-27
1-24
1-23
1-21
1-17
The above table shows—1st, The ratio according to
which the length of the pipes diminishes the waste; 2d, That
the increase of the waste arising from the divergence which
the mouth has at the entry of the pipes, diminishes in propor¬
tion as their lengths increase ; M, The effect of divergence
diminishes the waste, and that more rapidly as the pipes
increase in length. Eytelwein took a pipe 6*28 met. long,
and 0*26 in diameter, and found no difference in the waste,
whether he employed or not a diverging adjutage. When
this adjutage was fitted on to the reservoir, the waste was
1*18, the theoretical being 1. On adapting it to the mouth¬
piece, but without the intermediate tube, it rose to T55;
the mouth-piece alone gave only 0*92. Thus, the effect of
the adjutage B (fig. 53), fitted on to the mouth-piece A of
the same figure, augments the waste in the ratio of 0*92 to
1*55, or 1 : 1*69.
265. M. Venturi was induced
to institute a set of experi¬
ments, in which he employed
tubes of the various forms ex¬
hibited in fig. 55. The results
of his researches are contained
in the table of 258, for which
we have computed the column
containing the number of cubic
inches discharged in 1 minute.
The constant altitude of the
water in the reservoir was 32 5
French inches, or 34*642 Eng¬
lish inches. The quantity of
water which flowed out of the
vessel in the times contained
in the first column was4 French
cubic feet, or 4*845 English
cubic feet. The measures in the table are all English.
«
HYDRODYNAMICS.
121
Experi- 266. When a cylindrical tube is applied to an orifice,
merits on the oblique motion of the particles which enter it is dimi-
the Motion nisiiecl; the vertical velocity of the particles, therefore, is
of Fluids. increasecj) ancl consequently the quantity of water discharged.
M. Venturi maintains that the pressure of the atmosphere
increases the discharge of water through a simple cylindrical
tube, and that in conical tubes the pressure of the atmo¬
sphere increases the expenditure in the ratio of the exte¬
rior section of the tube to the section of the contracted
vein, whatever be the position of the tube.
SECTION III.—ON THE FLOW OF WATER OYER WEIRS, OYER-
FALLS, OR DEVERSOIRS.
267. If we make a rectangular opening with a horizontal
base in the upper part of the side of a vessel, the top edge
being removed, the water, when maintained at a constant
level, will flow out of this opening in the form of a sheet,
and constitute an over-fall or weir.
The flow of water over weirs is very important. To deter¬
mine the nature of the results arising from the use of such
an orifice, we have to look principally to foreign hydrauli-
cians. Dubuat in 1779 made several experiments on over-
falls 18f inches wide, and 6f inches deep ; those of Ponce-
let and Lesbros (388), 36 in number, were very carefully per¬
formed at Metz; the head, or charge of water, varied from
£ of an inch up to 8 inches; and the width was constantly
about 7f inches. Messrs Smeaton and Brindley conducted
a set of experiments, made over a waste-board 6 inches
wide, and from 1 to 6 inches deep. Dr Robison made se¬
veral experiments on the same subject. In 1834 MM.
Daubisson and Castel made a series of very accurate ex¬
periments, at Toulouse water-works, on overfalls discharg¬
ing water from a rectangular canal 29f inches wide, and of
a variable depth. The widths of the apertures ranged up¬
wards to the full width, and the bead varied from about 1 to
8 inches. Mr Ballard made a set on weirs, on the River Se¬
vern, at Powick, near Worcester, in September 1836. But
the most recent experiments on weirs are a first series by
Mr Thomas Evans Blackwell, performed on the Kennet and
Avon Canal in July 1850, and a second series by Messrs
Blackwell and Simpson, made at Chew Magna, Somerset,
during the summer of the same year.
268. If we look attentively at a waste-board B (fig. 56),
we shall find that the water at a short distance C above it
assumes a curved form CD, so that its height immediately
over the weir is not equal to AB but only to DB. Now, in the
common theory the fluid particles are supposed to have
the same velocity on their arrival at D, as if they had
fallen freely down AD ; and so on, all the particles in the
vertical section, DB, are assumed to flow out with velocities
due to their heights below A: so that as respects the velo¬
city of exit, and the number of the fluid threads, and also
as respects the discharge, the case of a weir on such a sup¬
position would be identical with a rectangular orifice closed
at D, and in which the water level extended without any
curvature up to A. Call, then, Q the volume discharged or
waste escaped in one second, l the breadth of the weir, H
and h the charge on the lower and upper edge respectively,
m the coefficient of reduction of the theoretic to the real
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
waste, then have we (by Prop. IV., 184), Q — § ltj2g. m
x(HVH-*V4>
269. However natural such a supposition might be, MM.
Daubisson and Castel deduce from their experiments facts
which show that the wastes are more exactly given by sup¬
posing that the escape took place as if from the whole
height AB, the fluid being supposed without curvature up
to A. On such a supposition, we have h = 0, and
Q = y2g. ml H^IT= 5*35 . mlRfU. (Prop. III. 183).
In the articles on Weirs, g is given in feet.
Hence the escape over weirs is only a particular case
of the flow by orifices in general, that, viz., where the charge
on the upper edge is nothing. Both Bidone (404) and
Poncelet (388) had already shown that this was the case, and
that the coefficients which serve ordinary orifices can be
adapted to weirs also, when the flow is made under analo¬
gous circumstances.
270. In the formulae given above, it has been supposed
that the fluid above the sill was in repose, or rather above
that point where the surface begins to be curved towards
the sill. But this is not really the case, for before arriving
at this point the water has received an initial velocity,
which must be taken into account, as we have already done
in Prop. XVI. 203. We must now add on to the head due
to the velocity in the case where the water is in repose, and
which is now only ^ H (Prop. V. 185), the head which
would generate that velocity with which it arrives. Let this
velocity be u, and h the charge due to it; then, since h =
u2
— = 0 01552 x u2, we shall have the real velocity of issue
^9       
= a/2g (|H + 0-01552 x^) = 5-35a/h + 0-03494 x u2;
.•. Q = 5'35 x m/ . H . a/H + 0-03494 x u1. u denotes the
mean velocity of the section of the water which approaches
the weir; its exact determination is well nigh impossible;
butas its value differs little from that of the velocity at the sur¬
face, the equality may be admitted, and will modify the value
of the coefficient which is to be determined experimentally.
Call, then, this new coefficient to', and tv the velocity of
the surface of the water; then,
Q = 5-35 x to' /HA/H +0-03494 x to2.
271. In the following experiments M. Castel1 has put these
formulae to the test. We must remember, however, that the
expression for the waste has two variables—the width of
the weir, and a function of the velocity or charge. Now, in
order that the formulae should have claim to be well-founded,
it is necessary that the waste should be exactly proportional
to each, in which case, the coefficient to' would be constant:
if this should happen with the coefficient, it will be a test of
the accuracy of the formulae.
272. M. Castel in 1835 and 1836 made numerous ex¬
periments on this subject, and with extraordinary care, at the
Water-works of Toulouse. The principal apparatus which
he employed was a wooden rectangular canal or trough,
6 met. long, 074 wide, and 0*55 deep: at one extremity
he received a supply of water, and the other was so arranged
that he could fit on thin copper plates in which the weirs
were cut. The breadth of the overfalls varied from 0"01 to
0-74 met.; the sill or base was always 0-17 met. above the floor
of the canal. The waste was received at pleasure and dur¬
ing a given time, into a zinc-plated cistern of 3-20 cub. met.
capacity; this vessel was the gauge basin ; it was therefore
graduated vertically with the greatest care. The time that
VOL. XII.
1 Memoires de VAcademic des Sciences de Toulouse, tom. iv., 1837.
Q
122
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
the water took to rise a certain height was noted by a
chronometer indicating quarter seconds.
273. The charges or heights of water above the sill of
the weir were gradually increased from 003 to OTO and
even to 0'24 met., for narrow overfalls. The most important,
and, at the same time, the most difficult matter was to deter¬
mine exactly the measure of the charges. In order to do
this very correctly, M. Castel placed over the middle of the
canal, and parallel to its length, a bar or rule EF (fig. 56), and
which carried, at distances of O’Oo met., JO vertical pointed
brass rods a, b, c, d, e,f, g, h, i, k, graduated into millimetres,
and capable of sliding up and down; on the edge of the
guides was a vernier graduated into lOths of a millimetre.
Whenever he wished to make an experiment, the requisite
amount of water was admitted into the canal, and the
regime or regulation for the proper supply being duly at- Experi-
tended to, he let down the system of 1.0 rods, and put their ments on
points as accurately as possible in contact with the curved the Mo^on
surface of the water. On subtracting, then, the reading Flinds.
of each rod from the vertical distance between the horizon-
tal bar EF and the sill B, he obtained the values of the or¬
dinates of the curve which the fluid particles described, as
they advanced to the centre of the overfall B. These ordi¬
nates increased as they became more distant from B : at
0'2 or 0'3 or 0'4 met., the increase was sensible; the greatest
ordinate was the true charge H, while the smallest was the
charge immediately over the sill or H — A= the thickness of
the sheet of water over the base B. The mean results
of these experiments are to be seen in the following
table:—
Canal, 0'74 metres wide.
Charge
upon the
Sill, in
metres.
0-24
0-22
0-20
0-18
0-16
014
0-12
0-10
0-08
0-06
0-05
004
0-03
Coefficients, the Length of the Overfall being, in metres,
0-662
0-662
0-662
0-662
0-663
0-657
0-656
0-656
0-656
0-656
0-660
0-G0
0-644
0-644
0-645
0-644
0-645
0-651
0-631
0-632
0-632
0-633
0-636
0-642
0-621
0-621
0-620
0-622
0-626
0-632
0-636
0-603
0-604
0-604
0-606
0-610
0-616
0-623
0-631
0-596
0-595
0-595
0-593
0-592
0-593
0-595
0-604
0-611
0-619
0 624
0-10
0-595
0-594
0-594
0-594
0-592
0-592
0-591
0-591
0-592
0-595
0-597
0-604
0-618
0-05
0-615
0-614
0-614
0-613
0-613
0-612
0-612
0-612
0-612
0-612
0-613
0-614
0-629
0-628
0-628
0-628
0-628
0-627
0-627
0-628
0-629
0-02
0-639
0-639
0-640
0-641
0-642
0-643
0-645
0-648
0-652
0-658
0-663
0-669
0-670
0-672
0-674
0-675
0-678
0-687
0-698
0-713
274. After having in great measure exhausted the obser¬
vations on the above canal, M. Castel experimented on one
0361 met. wide, narrowing up the former by two partition
boards 2‘24 met. long. At the entrance of this small canal,
which was placed in the centre of the larger, there was formed
under large discharges a minute fall, which would have in¬
troduced some slight modifications into the results obtained
had the partitions been extended up to the extremity of the
larger canal. M. Caste!, both on this and the former
canal, performed in all 494 experiments, each being re¬
peated twice. In each case the values of Q, l, and H,
being given immediately by experiment, the coefficient m
was deduced from the formula Q = 5‘35 w/H (269).
The mean values of the experiments on the second canal
are set down in the following table. In this and the former
table where blanks occur no observations were made:—
Charge
upon the
Sill, in
metres.
Canal, 0-361 metres wide.
Coefficients, the Length of the Overfall being, in metres,
0-10
0-079
0-05
0-03
0-02
0-01
0-24
0-22
0-20
0-18
0-16
0-14
0-12
0-10
0-08
0-06
0-05
0-04
0-03
0-700
0-684
0-672
0-669
0-667
0-668
0-670
0-678
0-666
0-656
0-652
0-652
0-653
0-653
0-665
0-633
0-628
0-624
0-620
0-617
0-616
0-617
0 620
0-624
0-632
0-619
0-615
0-611
0-608
0-605
0-603
0-600
0-598
0-599
0-600
0-605
0-613
0-628
0-613
0-608
0-606
0-603
0-601
0-599
0-598
0-597
0-597
0-604
0-611
0-625
0-617
0-614
0-610
0-608
0-605
0-603
0-600
0-599
0-600
0-624
0-620
0-618
0-616
0-615
0-614
0-614
0-614
0-613
0-613
0-614
0-613
0-629
0-627
0-626
0-626
0-625
0-624
0-623
0-624
0-624
6-626
0-647
0-646
0-645
0-644
0-644
0-644
0-646
0-648
0-654
666
667
668
674
275. After having tabulated these results, M. Castel ap¬
plies thejfimple and common formula Q = 5'35x/H
3C H^FI, and first shows that the wastes Q are propor¬
tional to the function of the charge H */H7 For this pur¬
pose he takes the twenty-two series of wastes obtained, each
with the same width of weir, but under different charges;
he reduces the discharges of each series to that which they
would have been, if one of them, e.g., that under (FOB met.,
had been taken for unity or 1 ; he reduces also the series of
HYDRODYNAMICS.
123
Experi- vaiues 0f H^H, and places them side by side, as in columns
,me»ft\°n 1, 2, 3 of the following table :—
the Motion ’ ’ °
canal 0-36 wide, with an overfall 0-05 met. long. The con¬
clusions, then, derived from a comparison of the twenty-two
series of wastes with each other, and with those derived from
the function H H are—
1^, That, on exceeding the charge 0-06 or even 0-05 met.,
some higher charges being excepted, the difference between
the numbers of the same horizontal line are very small; they
rise only by a 100th or so ; and thus, in a practical point of
view, the difference may be taken as nothing; so that the
relation between the wastes may be regarded as_the same
as that between the corresponding values of H
2d, That for charges of O’Oo metand below it, the wastes
decrease in a ratio less than II /^H, and much less as the
charge becomes more feeble, but only with the mean
lengths; for when they are very small, or when they approach
the width of the canal, the equality is again produced.
3t/, In some higher charges, especially with wide over-
falls, the wastes increase in a less ratio than H VH. I his
result, which was scarcely perceptible in a canal of 0-74 met.,
became very prominent in one of 036 met., where the water
with these charges and with these widths, arrived at the over-
fall with considerable velocity. Now, in these cases, and they
always present themselves when the fluid section £. H at
the passage of the weir exceeds the fifth part of the section
of the current in the canal, the wastes ought not to increase
as H but as H VH + 003194 x so that the for¬
mula as given in 270 must now be used. Hence, in limit¬
ing the subject to overfalls, properly so called, that is, those
in which the water has an initial velocity of arrival, Q will
be very nearly proportional to H VH.
276. The formula, however, is no longer so coincident
with experiment when the
widths of the overfall vary.
Beginning with the width of the
basin the wastes diminish with
the width of the overfall, but
more rapidly up to a certain
point, beyond which they dimi¬
nish, less rapidly. The follow¬
ing table will show this. The
canalofO^dmet. has 12 widths,
which areas the numbers in the
first column; the second column
shows the progress in which the
corresponding wastes diminish,
which were obtained under
charges varying from 0-06 to
0T0 met. In the case of the canal of 0-36 met., where ten
Canal of
0'74 Metres.
0‘36 Metres.
Width. Waste
1000
919
811
676
540
405
270
135
68
40
27
13
1000
911
788
645
507
371
243
121
62
40
27
14
Width. Waste
1000
831
554
277
138
1000
807
507
246
125
of Fluids.
widths were employed, those only are set down which were Experi-
nearly analogous to those of the other canal. 1 his series of ®ie”ts °n
relations indicates that in both canals the wastes follow one e 0 10n
and the same law with respect to the widths of the over-
falls ; to the relative widths, however, of the respective
canals, and not to the absolute widths.
277. Since for one and the same width of overfall, and
on neglecting extreme cases, the wastes are proportional to
H a/H, the coefficients should be nearly equal, and tables of
273 and 274 show us that they are so. Strictly speaking,
however, the coefficients of any vertical column, beginning
with the higher charges, decrease, generally very slowly,
down to a certain charge, beyond which they rapidy in¬
crease ; this charge, which is about 0T0 met., will be a mini¬
mum. Further, the charges remaining the same, the wastes
at first decrease more and afterwards less rapidly than the
widths of the overfalls; it follows that under the same charge,
beginning with the width of the channel, the coefficients
go on diminishing up to a certain point, and then beyond
this increase. At this point, then, there will also be a
minimum, which takes place when the width of the over-
fall is nearly one-fourth that of the channel of supply.
Thus, in the horizontal as well as in the vertical columns
of 273 and 274, there is a minimum, and hence there is a
common minimum. In its immediate neighbourhood the
coefficients on each side of it are very little different from
one another ; the variation is small, and so may be regarded
as constant. But beyond this distance, the differences be¬
come considerable ; they exceed an 8th in the values; and
hence the waste by overfalls cannot be properly given with
a constant numerical coefficient in the expression ZH/s/H,
for, mathematically speaking, the expression would not be
admissible. In practice, then, we would require the assist¬
ance of a very extended table of coefficients deduced from
hundreds of experiments. But the nature of the motion
which the coefficients follow, when properly looked at, will
enable us to avoid this labour, and to deduce a few simple
rules suitable to the different cases which present them¬
selves.
278. From what has been said in 275, the formula
ZH^/H is not applicable, on the one hand, when the
charges are under O06 met.; nor, on the other, when the
product of the transverse area and the width of the overfall
exceeds the fifth part of the section of water in the supply¬
ing canal. Between these limiting values the above ex¬
pression may be very well employed when combined with
a coefficient depending on the width of the overfall.
Reckoning from the width of the canal itself, the coeffi¬
cients diminish with the width of the overfall, until it has
reached the fourth part of that of the channel; they still in¬
crease although the widths continually diminish; and what
is rather remarkable, the coefficients, when diminishing,
follow the relative widths of the overfall with respect to
that of the canal, whereas, when they are increasing, which
occurs afterwards, they depend on the absolute widths.
Such being the case, there will be four cases to distin¬
guish relative to the coefficient to be employed in actual
practice.
1^, In the neighbourhood of the common minimum
already mentioned, the coefficients vary very little from
each other. From the experiments of M. Castel at Toulouse,
from a width of overfall nearly equal to one-third of that of
the canal, supposed to exceed O30 met., down to an abso¬
lute width of 0’05 met., the coefficients only varied from 0‘59
to 061, the mean of which is 0*60. Therefore the variable
coefficient in this case to multiply/FWH will be 5’35 x
0,60 = 3-21. Hence, between the limits, we have Q=3,21
x i hx/h; a formula which is well adapted for gauging
small streams of water.
124
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Zd, When the width of the overfall is a maximum, that
is, equal to the whole breadth of the canal, in which case it
will be a weir or waste-board proper, the coefficients have
a remarkable constancy. M. Castel, in his experiments with
a barrier O'17 met. high, found no difference betw-een the co-
efficientsobtainedfromehargesvaryingfrom 0'03 to0*08met.
With an overfall 0*225 met. high the coefficients varied
only from 0*664 to 0*666, the charges varying from 0*031 to
0*074 met; when he took the mean it was 0*665. Hence, since
5*35 x 0*665 = 3*55775, and calling L the width of the canal
or length of the barrier, we have Q = 3*558 x LH^/ H, a for¬
mula which may be used advantageously in gauging large
courses of water, and with charges varying from 0*04 to
0*03 met. ; but for accuracy it is necessary that the charge
be less than one-third the height of the barrier.
3d, For widths of overfalls comprised between that of the
channel and the fourth part of the same, the coefficient of
the expression 5*35 x will vary with the relative
width, or the ratio of the width of the overfall to that of the
canal. The annexed table of coefficients is the result.
These coefficients have been
found, not by direct experi¬
ment, but by taking propor¬
tional parts between the co¬
efficients deduced from expe¬
riment, and those from the
tables given in 273 and that
of 274. The coefficients for
both canals were separately
determined by observation, in
order to show that the same
relative width has correspond¬
ing coefficients sensibly the
same, although the real value
of the width was in one canal nearly double that of the
other, which was a clear proof, that above 0*25 met., or a
fourth part of the width of the channel, the coefficients de¬
pend for their value on the relative, not on the absolute
widths of the overfall.
A.th, It is otherwise, however, when this width falls below
a fourth that of the canal. Then, and when at the same time
it is less than 0*08, or 0*06 met., the width of the canal has
no further effect, and each absolute width of the overfall has
its proper coefficient. Thus, on the canal of 0*36 met., as on
that of 0*74, the widths of 0*05, 0*03, 0*02, 0*01 met., gave
in both coefficients of 0*61, 0*63, 0*65, and 0*67 respec¬
tively.
279. With respect to the formulagiven in 268, or Q = 5*35
x -WA), where A = AD (fig. 56), the last column
of the table in art. 275 lets us^see that although the series
of values tabulated for (Hv^H —hsjK) differs little from
those of the corresponding wastes, yet it follows them less
closely than does the series of values for H\/H. Hence,
on this account, the second formula is less trustworthy than
the first. Its application, besides, is made more difficult,
for it has a term A\/h, the exact determination of which is
very difficult.
280. In the formula, however, involving a term which is
a function of the velocity with which the water flowing in
the canal arrives at the overfall, this is scarcely the case.
1 his formula is for the case of a high velocity, where the
water makes its escape in virtue both of the charge H, and
thiit due to a previously acquired velocity; it is expressed by
Q = 5'35 xml H\/ H + 0*03194 x w2, which leads to 270.
M. Castel has deduced from his experiments values for
the coefficient m. In these experiments he did not mea¬
sure the velocity w of the surface current in the canal, but
it may be determined from the mean velocity, which in this
case is Q~v L (II +o), where L is in this case the width
Relative
width.
Coefficient for
Canal of
0-74 Met. 0-36 Met
1-00
0-90
0-80
0*70
0*60
0*50
0*40
0*30
0*25
0*662
0*656
0*644
0*635
0-626
0*617
0-607
0-598
0-595
0-667
0-659
0-648
0-635
0-623
0-613
0-609
0-600
0-598
of the channel of supply, a the height of the sill above the Experi-
bottom of the channel, and H the charge. merits on
The velocity of surface water will be shown in 331the AI°tion
to be a 4th part higher than the mean velocity ; hence we v°^l luids*
have, ?c=T25 x T- .5^ .. With this value of w, which
L(H + a)
is the highest that can be assumed, the coefficient m! differs
only from m of the common formula when the velocity in
the canal has a value sufficiently great that 0*03494 x ?/r,
which causes the difference between the two formulae, is
comparable with H. Since 0*03494 x wl is very small, and
under the square root, it will influence the quantity m by
little more than half its amount relative to H ; if it be, for
example, 2, 4, or 6 hundredths of H, the coefficients, every¬
thing else being the same, will only differ from each other by
1, 2, or 3 hundredths. In these three cases the section l H
of the fluid sheet at the overfall is found to be respectively
0*1724, 0*244, and 0*3 times the section of the supplying
canal, or L (H + a) ; wherefore, when the first of these two
sections is less than the 5th part of the second, m and ni
will be within °f each other. This was the case with
two overfalls experimented on by M. Castel, where the
width was less by one-half than that of the channel of supply.
When it was greater, the term 0*03494 x w3 had more in¬
fluence, and the difference between the coefficients became
greater. But although this term has been employed, it
has not reduced to equality the coefficients m and m for
different widths of overfall; it has not reduced by one-half
the differences which the values of m present, so that
neither of the expressions Q = 5*35 x m^H\/H, Q = 5*35 x
m' l H\/H + 0*03494 x w1 can be employed with a con¬
stant coefficient, except where the width of the overfall is
the same as that of the canal of supply.
In order then to determine this constant coefficient, M.
Castel dammed up a canal of 0*74 met. by copper barriers, the
heightof which gradually decreased from 0*225 to0*032 met.;
and he found coefficients as noted in the following table :—
Height of
barrier.
Met.
0-225
0-170
0-130
0-093
0-075
0-041
0032
Coefficients m', the charge being
Met.
0-08
0-651
0-640
0 650
0-635
0-647
0-667
0-676
Met.
0-06
0-655
0-647
0-649
0-642
0-652
0-664
0-676
Met.
0-05
0-657
0-650
0-652
0-646
0 655
0-665
0-676
Met.
0-04
0-660
0-654
0-656
0-650
0-660
0-668
0-680
Those of the first five barriers are nearly the same, although
otherwise they do not present the same regularity as ordi¬
nary overfalls : the mean term may be taken as 0*650. With
respect to the last two barriers of 0*041 and 0*032 met.,
they are in a distinct class ; they were very low, and the
charges much exceeded their height; so that the case was
as much one of a course of water flowing in an ordinary chan¬
nel as when it passed over a waste-board. Since there was a
near equality between the coefficients for one and the same
barrier, the formula which was employed for their determi¬
nation is in a manner confirmed. The experiments again
on the canal of 0*36 with a barrier of 0*17 met. high, gave
coefficients the mean of which was 0*654. Let the mean
between those two means be taken, or 0*652, then since
5*35 x 0*652 = 3*488,
.*. Q = 3*488 x LHvTl + 0*0349 x w\
where w is to be determined by direct observation.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
125
Experi- We have been very particular with these experiments of
ments on M. Caste!, and Daubisson’s remarks upon them, owing to
the Motion t]ie importance of the subject ; for further information,
of Fluids see v0|ume already mentioned. Sometimes channels are
adapted to overfalls, in which case the water discharged will
be confined, and be resisted by the friction of the bot¬
tom and sides ; this retardation must react on the water
and diminish the discharge. Into this case, however, we
need not enter.
281. There is still a particular case of an overfall to be
considered ; it is that which Dubuat has termed a demi-
deversoir or deversoir incomplet; we call such overfalls
drotvned weirs. A drowned weir, then, is when the tail of
the water rises above the level of the waste board sill. Du¬
buat divided the height AC (fig. 57), the level of the canal
Fig. 57.
above that of the sill C, into two parts, Kb and bC; the
flow from the first he considered as from an ordinary over-
fall where Kb ( = H) would be the charge, and the volume
of escape by it would be Q = 3‘488 x / H V H + O’OSdQ x w2.
In the second part he regarded the flow as taking place out
of a rectangular orifice, the height of which was bC, and the
charge equal to the difference of level Kb, between the sur¬
face of the upper and that of the lower course. The height
of this lower surface above the sill is bC; and this height 5C
will be equal to n —y, representing n and y respectively by
Z>D and CD. To the charge Kb or H must be added, as
in the case of closed orifices, the height due to the velocity
u of the water in the canal, and then the velocity of issue
will be s/'Zg (H +001553 x if), or = \/2 <7 (H +0,01 x id1),
where w = \‘2o x u (280). Hence for the volume discharged
by this part we have
Q = TOG xl (n —y) y/li + 0 01 x w2.
Let the two partial discharges be added together so as
to obtain the total waste Q' ;
.*. Q' = 3-488 x l H\/H + 0-0349 xw2
j + 4*96 x l (n—y) H + 0-01 x w2.
282. Mr Smeaton made several experiments on weirs.
He conducted his observations by noting the time in which
a vessel of 20 cubic feet would be filled with water flowing
over a notch 6 inches wide, of various
depths, and with different charges, as
given in the table.
The annexed table will show his
results. We have thus a method of
determining the coefficients. Thus,
let the head, as in table 287, be
0-1042 feet, then from formula Q
= %inV¥gYi = % x 0-05 x 0-1042
x 8-024 x V0-1042 = 0-08995 cubic
feet per second: but the experiment
gave 20 cubic feet in 326 seconds;
hence, we have in one second 0"06135 cubic feet;
Depth of
notch in
inches.
Time of dis¬
charging 20
cubic feet.
1
^ 3
Gy
5
H
H
54
Sec.
436
295
139
93
30
46
326
230
47
.-. 0 08995 : 0-06135=1 : 0"682 = coefficient.
283. In September 1836, Mr S. Ballard made a series of
experiments on the flow of water over weirs on the Severn
at Powick, near Worcester. The experiments were made
on a weir 2 feet long, which stood perpendicularly across
a trough, and the results are exhibited in the following Expen-
o ’ ments or
table:—
Depth of wa
tor flowing
over weir, in
inches.
Cubic feet
per minute,
over 1 foot of
weir.
1
H
14
2
2i
24
2f
3
3J
34
3f
5-88
7-14
9-55
12-37
14-93
18-29
23-07
27-69
3214
34-61
37-81
41-47
Depth of wa¬
ter flowing
over weir, in
inches.
4
4i
44
4|
5
5i
54
5f
6
7
8
Cubic feet
per minute,
over 1 foot of
weir.
46-87
49-45
54-87
59-60
63-38
66-17
73-17
77-58
82-56
102-27
126-76
At the commencement of these experiments the results
could not be rendered satisfactory owing to the difficulty
of observing the exact depth of water on the weir, the
gauge on the side being rendered inaccurate by the action
of capillarity. The method then adopted was to attach two
needles, one a very little larger than the other, to the lower
end of a nicely graduated gauge, so that on the water being
admitted by a sluice, regulated by a screw, its level was
adjusted until it just touched the longer needle, and occa¬
sionally by its uneven motions the shorter one, which thus
gave the exact height of the water above the weir. I he
gauge tank was graduated vertically and capable of contain¬
ing 300 cubic feet. It was thought that the perpendicular
position of the board forming the weir might lessen the
volume passing over it, and, to avoid this, a sloping board
was substituted, inclining on the upper side from the top of
the weir downwards. Under this new arrangement the
volume discharged w'as increased, with 1 inch depth of
water, from 5-88 cubic feet per minute to 6‘76 cubic feet
in the same time, or about 15 per cent. Experiments
were afterwards made on a weir 1 foot long, and the volume
discharged was found to be less than with the 2-feet weirs.
This was attributed to the contracted stream caused by
the direction of the course of water at the sides of the
weir. Experiments were also tried with oblique and circular
weirs, and the volume of discharge was found uniformly to
increase with the length of the weir. See Civil Engineer
and Architects' Journal, vol. xiv., p. 647.
284. The experiments on overfalls by Mr T. E. Black-
well, being conducted on a much larger scale, may, for prac¬
tical purposes, be regarded as furnishing results even more
trustworthy and valuable than those of Dubuat, MM. Dau-
bisson, and Castel. The first set of experiments was made in
July 1850, in a side pond of the Kennet and Avon Canal,
the area of which measured 106,200 square feet. It was
guarded by a lock at each end, so that no current disturbed
the surface. The supply reservoir, which was distinct from
the experimental one, did not furnish a supply equal to the
volume that escaped. The deficiency was made up three
or four times a-day from the upper lock. This, how¬
ever, would make no appreciable difference in the result
when the reservoir was so large and the time required so
small. The subsidence of the water due to even the largest
volume of 444 cubic feet discharged, would only be about
0'00418 feet over the whole surface, so that the mean fall
would be no more than 0,00209 feet. At some small
distance above the overfall, the depth of water was some-
wdiat reduced by a submerged course of masonry which
rose to within 18 or 20 inches of the surface ; and the over-
fall was placed on the outer line of the dam, and not
exactly in the line of one of the sides of the reservoir.
From the measurements given of the head, taken at still
water, and the corresponding depth of the sheet of water flow-
126
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Expert- jng off, it appeared that some degree of resistance opposed
the^Motion t^ie rnot*on the water up to the overfall. Every care was
of Fluids” taken to determine the correct head of water, or the total
i ^ > depth from the surface of the water to the crest of the bar
or overfall. The bar itself was about 12 feet long and 2
feet deep, and was arranged to rise or fall at pleasure, and
the crest of the bar was made as level as possible. The
gauging tank had a capacity of 444‘39 cubic feet; whatever
leakage took place during an experiment was carefully mea¬
sured in a separate vessel. The plate forming the overfall
bar was of iron, i^th inch thick.
285. The second set of experiments, in which he was as¬
sisted by Mr Simpson, were performed during the summer
of 1850, at Chew Magna, Somersetshire ; the reservoir em¬
ployed was a very small one, and kept constantly supplied
by a pipe 2 feet in diameter, discharging from an upper tank
under a head of 19 feet. As the distance between the ex¬
perimental and supply reservoir was only 100 feet, it was
presumed that the water arrived at the overfall with some
part of the velocity due to so great a head ; this was per¬
ceptible to the eye in heads above 5 or 6 inches, but the
peculiar form of the reservoir prevented the amount from
being accurately determined,—a circumstance which so far
casts uncertainty on the results. The overfall reservoir had
wings placed at an angle of 45°, and the overfall bar was a
cast-iron plate r\th inch thick, with a square top. The
heads were measured on a bar 4 feet long, and placed dia¬
gonally that its zero point was just level with the overfall
top, and its upper end raised one foot above ; it was divided
and subdivided so that T\th of an inch could be easily read.
The gauging tank had a capacity of 400 cubic feet, but for
the purposes of experiment it only contained SSO’TO cubic
feet.
Experiments on Overfalls, Rennet and Avon Canal.
Overfall.
O 0) o
73 © o
|^.5
'S »-.5
j ©
> S a>
. >■ 1.
Thin plate 3 ft. f
long. \
Thin plate 10
long.
Plank 2 in. wide, !
3 ft. long. j
Plank 2 in.thick,
6 ft. long.
Plank 2 in.thick,
10 ft. long.
Plank 2 in. wide, f
10 ft. long. \
Crest 3 ft. wide,
3 ft. long,
slope 1 in 12.
Crest 3 ft. wide,
3 ft. long,
slope 1 in 18.
Crest 10 ft. long, (
3 ft. wide, </
slope 1 in 18. f
Crest 3 ft. wide, f
3 ft. long, level. \
Crest 3 ft. wide, f
level, 6 ft. long. \
Crest 3 ft. wide, f
10 ft.long,level. \
1
6
1
5
9
1
3
6
10
lto*f
3
6
10
11
1
4
7
9
12
5
1
1
9
l to 1
EH ®
176^
1311
1771
471
24
737
159
13t£
59J
487J
184
641
m
191
230
671
321
231
15i
451
190
2541
Sol
2181
86
282
30
2651
895
2221
291
3391
24
Waste.
Total
quan¬
tity.
45-97
441- 77
183-90
442- 03
441- 99
137-91
183-90
443- 07
442- 99
171-23
439- 61
442- 72
443- 03
443-60
152-62
436-53
440- 01
441- 16
442- 29
44211
183-90
45-97
412-26
45-97
442-24
169-80
442-89
45-97
442-15
438-52
443-21
166-93
443-] 9
•260
3-366
1-038
9-355
18-416
•181
1-157
3-370
7-445
•354
2389
6-890
12- 950
22-477
•665
6-491
13- 780
18-575
28-529
9-664
0-968
•181
5-188
•210
5143
•603
14-761
•173
4-926
1-973
15-030
•032
18-467
•260
3-366
1-038
9-355
18- 416
•180
1- 138
3-363
7-492
•354
2- 396
6-890
13-156
22-183
•563
6-192
13-720
19- 417
28-526
•181
5-188
•210
5-127
603
14-761
•173
4-926
1-971
14-965
■492
18-467
w.. *
£<2.5
•087
1-122
•104
•935
1- 842
•060
•376
1-121
2- 497
•059
•399
1- 150
2- 193
3- 697
•056
•619
1-372
1- 942
2- 853
0-966
0-97
•060
1-729
•070
1-709
•060
1-476
■058
1-642
•329
2-495
■049
1-847
Coeffi¬
cients.
•087 1
•076 /
•104 1
•083 >
•069 J
•060
•072
•076
•079
•059
•077
•074
•069 I
•071 J
•056
•077
•074
•072 I
•069 j
■086
•097 .
•300
•064
•060 "1
•066 J
■063 1
060 )
Mean of
Coeffi¬
cients.
086
286. The tabulated results give observations on the Experi-
flow of water—over a plank 2 inches thick, with square ments on
edges; over a thin plate ; over a crest, resembling the top t^.eJ^0.t!on
of a weir, of which the breadth was 3 feet, the position of °
the surfaces horizontal; and also at inclinations downwards, "
of 1 in 18, and 1 in 12 respectively. These main divisions
were observed throughout, and the lengths of the weirs
were severally 3 feet, 6 feet, and 10 feet. The formula
which has been compared with experiments, so as to de¬
termine the coefficient m, is Q = m l H and the for¬
mula in use among English engineers for the discharge, or
D = A. /. H \/H = 5T xHf, where D is the volume of
waste per minute for every foot in width of the overfall, H
the head in inches, and 5*1 a constant coefficient of reduc¬
tion. Mr Blackwell has set down in the tables the value
of the variable coefficient h.
The preceding table is taken from twelve different tables,
containing the result of 243 experiments on overfalls where
the reservoir was large in proportion to the overfall, and the
water was still. The mean coefficient of each table is set
down.
The following table is the result of seventy experiments
on an overfall 10 feet long and 2 inches wide, with a reser¬
voir of5717 square feet, kept constantly full:—
Experiments on Overfalls.
(Overfall bar, 10 feet long, 2 inches wide.)
Per
second.
•690
2-900
4-115
4-700
7- 620
8- 900
8-870
11-290
14-150
14-500
19-450
23-380
27-550
Average
per
second.
•690
2-900
4-115
4-700
7- 680
8- 770
9- 017
11-290
14-150
14-030
19-610
23-380
27-550
Per
second
for 1 foot
in
width.
•069
•290
•412
•470
•768
•877
•902
1-129
1-415
1-443
1- 961
2- 338
2-755
Coefficients.
•394
•455
•437
•469
•497
•507
•500
•520
•499
•499
•478
-535
•521
Mean... -480
The results in the table of the first set of experiments
represent the case of the discharge of water by an overfall
from a large still reservoir. In the second set the dis¬
charges are analogous to the case of a weir in a river or in
a running stream.
287. Mr Blackwell deduces from his experiments seve¬
ral important facts. In thin plates the coefficient is highest
at the smallest head observed ; it reaches the mean at a head
of about 3 inches, but beyond this point it decreases as the
head increases. With a plank 2 inches thick, and a head
of I inch, the coefficient is less than the mean ; the mean
is earlier reached as the length of the weir becomes greater ;
the mean head is about 3 inches, the coefficient continues
to rise higher than the mean till the head reaches about 9
inches, but after this it is depressed below it. He found
that a head of about 4 inches gave a smaller outflow
than could be obtained by interpolating the results with
heads of 3 and 5 inches. It is difficult to explain the rea¬
son of the depression.
Mr Blackwell also made several experiments to deter¬
mine the effect of converging wing walls, noting the results
on a weir 10 feet long, with and without wings, the wings
HYDRODYNAMICS.
127
Experi- making an angle of 54°. The mean coefficient for that
merits on without wings was -371, while that with wings was -409.
the Motion coefficients in the second table, up to a head of 3 inches,
of Fluids. are ke]ow tjie mean, above that head they fluctuate con-
^ siderably; but generally they keep above the main line.
These anomalies are difficult to be accounted for, since
every care was taken in the experiments. They remain to ^jotjon
be elucidated by further investigations. of Fluids.
The following table, compiled from various sources, gives
at one view the results of different experimenters :
Experiments on Overfalls.
Overfall O'5 feet long. Smeaton and Brindley.
Heads 
Coefficients.
•083
•713
■1042
•681
•1146
•654
•1354
•638
•1927
•636
•2604
•602
•4166
•609
•4687
•571
•5417
•633
Overfall 1'533 feet long. Dubuat.
Heads 
Coefficients.
•1482
•648
•2666
•624
■3887
•627
•5627
•630
Overfall 0'656/ee« long. Daubisson and Castel.
Heads 
Coefficients.
•098
•632
•131
•624
•164
•620
•196
•617
•262
•616
•328
•617
•393
•620
•459
•624
•524
•628
•590
•633
Overfall 0-6548 feet long. Poncelet and Lesbros.
Heads 
Coefficients.
•033
•626
•066
■625
•099
•618
•1332
■611
•1998
•601
•2664
•595
•333
•592
•50
•590
•666
•585
•75
•577
Overfall 3 feet long and 10 feet long. Blackwell.
Heads 
Coefficients.
•083
•742
•166
•738
•25
■636
•33
•635
•416
•625
•50
•592
•583
•666
•580
•75
•529
Overfall 10 feet long. Simpson and Blackwell.
Heads 
Coefficients..
•083
•166
608 -682
■25
•725
•33
•745
■416
•50
780 -749
■583
•772
•666
•802
•75
•781
288. According to Mr Beardmore, in his Hydraulic and
Tide Tables, the best mode of gauging weirs is by means
of a post with a smooth head, level with the edge of the
waste-board or sill, and driven firmly in some part ot the
pond above the weir, which has still water. A common
rule can then be used for ascertaining the depth, or a gauge,
showing at sight the depth of water passing over, may be
nailed on, with its zero at the level of the sill of the weir.
Among practical engineers, gauging by a weir has been
always justly held to afford the most certain and efficient re¬
sult, especially for ascertaining the comparative discharges
of streams. For correct gauging, the effects of wind and cur¬
rent must be destroyed, a thin-edged waste-board must be
used, and a weir not so long in proportion to the width above
it as to wire-draw the stream, else the water will arrive at the
weir with an initial velocity due to a fall which is not estimated
in the gauging, and the result will be most probably too
small. A weir, for correct gauging, should always have
a free fall over; but there are sometimes cases where mea¬
surements are required with drowned weirs—so called when
the tail has risen above the level of the sill. In this case
we have two conditions which have been already stated in
281. Mr Beardmore’s Hydraulic Tables for overfalls pro¬
per, gives the discharge for one foot of length.
SECTION IV.—EXPERIMENTS ON THE EXHAUSTION OF VESSELS.
289 It is almost impossible to determine the exact time
in which any vessel of water is completely emptied.
When the surface of the fluid has descended within a few
inches of the orifice, a kind of conoidal funnel, of which the
air occupies the middle part, is formed immediately above
the orifice. The pressure of the superincumbent column
being therefore removed, the time of exhaustion is prolonged.
The water falls in drops ; and it is next to impossible to de¬
termine the moment when the vessel is empty. Instead,
therefore, of endeavouring to ascertain the time in which
vessels are completely exhausted, the Abbe Bossut has de¬
termined the times in which the upper surface of the fluid
descends through a certain height:—
128
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
Times in which Vessels are parti// exhausted.
Original
altitude of
the water
in the
vessel.
H
Paris feet.
11-6666
Constant
area of a
horizonal
section of
the vessel.
Diameter of
the circular
orifice.
Depression
of the upper
surface
of the fluid.
H — 7t = a
Feet.
4
4
9
9
Time in
which this
depression
takes
place.
Min. sec.
7 25J
1 52
20 24£
5 6
Comparison of the Results of Theory with those of
Experiment.
Diameter
of the
circular
orifice.
Inches.
1
2
1
2
Depression
of the up¬
per surface
of the
fluid.
Feet.
4
4
9
9
Time of the
depression of
the surface
by experiment.
Min. sec.
7 25£
1 52
20 24J
5 6
Time of the
depression of
the surface
by the for¬
mula.
Min. sec.
7 22-36
1 50-59
20 16
5 4
Difference
between the
theory and
the experi¬
ments.
Seconds.
3-14
1- 41
8-50
2- 00
It appears from this table also that the times of discharge,
by experiment, differ very little from those deduced from the
corrected formula; and that the latter always err in defect.
When the orifices are in the sides of the reservoir, the alti¬
tudes H, h of the surface may be reckoned from the centre
of gravity of the orifice, unless when it is very large.
290. In order to compare these experimental results with
those deduced from theory, we must employ the formula of
Prop. X. 196, where the expression for the surface de¬
scending through any space a in a given time is
T = 2^=(VH-n/A).
mSv 2g
Let there be, for example, a prismatic vessel, the hori¬
zontal section of which is a square of O’97o met. to the side,
the orifice in the bottom being 0-027l met. in diameter ; the
depth of water in itoverthe centre of the orifice is 3*79 met.;
in what time will the surface fall through a depth of 1‘30 met.,
reckoning from the orifice ?
Here A = (0*975 met.)2 = 0*9506 sq. met., S = 7r (0*0135)2
= 0*000577 sq. met, H = 3*79, A = 3*79 - 1*30 = 2*49 met,
and m say 0*61 ;
.*. T= 2x0 9506 (V SYtT-V 2A9)=450s=7m 30s.
0-61xO-000577xV 2<y
Bossut, however, when operating with these data, found the
time actually required to be 7m 25s*5, g being given in metres.
291. Healso made three experiments with the same appara¬
tus, the results of which, theoretical and practical, are noted
in the following table :—
Diameter of
orifice.
Diminution
of surface.
Time of diminution from
Experiment.
Formula.
Metres.
0-0271
00541
0-0541
Metres.
2-92
2-92
1-30
Min. sec.
20 25
5 6
1 52
Min. sec.
20 41
5 10
1 52
The calculated time is slightly in excess of the observed
result, but this being small may be neglected; the differ¬
ence probably arose from some error of observation, To
exemplify the expression in 198 for the fluid surface fall¬
ing down a certain depth, let the upper surface of a basin
which is sensibly prismatic, have an area of 1000 sq. met.;
the water issues by a sluice opening 0*65 met. broad by
0*085 met. deep. The vessel, when the sluice rises, is
filled to a height of 2*70 met. above this opening ; find the
depth through which the surface will pass in one hour ?
Since a of 198 is also =
A \ 4 A /
.*. Depth required =
3600 x 0*70 x 0*05525 x 4*43
1000
Experi- |
ments on ,
the Motion i
/a/octa 3600 x 0’70 x 0*05525 x 4*43^
V 4x1000 ) =0'9182 met-
where the value of g is taken in metres, and m = 0‘70.
Hence, volume escaped in the course of the hour= 1000
x 0*9182 = 918*2 cub. met.
SECTION IV. EXPERIMENTS ON THE ESCAPE OF WATER
PASSING FROM ONE RESERVOIR INTO ANOTHER.
292. When a reservoir contains water, an escape may
take place by an orifice in the bottom or side, not only in
the open air, but also into another vessel partly full of water.
If the escape be considered under this latter point of view,
the three cases which will occur have already been men¬
tioned under Prop. XV. (204).
As an application of the second case of Prop. XV., we
may take the canal of Languedoc. General Andreossy,
in his history of this canal, gives in mean terms—•
The length of the lock from one gate to the other... 35-08 met.
... Breadth of the lock (bulging in the middle)
from 6 50 met. to  11-04
... Fall from the upper to the lower course  2-274
... Horizontal section of the lock 325-6 sq. met.
... Section of one opening  0-6286 ...
... Height of the upper course above the centre of
one opening  T949 met.
... Depth of the same centre to the level of the
lower course   0-325
... Coefficient of contraction when two openings of
the gate are open at the same time may be
taken as (229)    0-548
We may consider at first, the part of the lock which is
below the centre of the orifice. The time of its filling, as
determined by the rule of escapes in the open air (181),
will, taking two openings, equal to
 325*6 x 0*325
0*548 x 2 x 0*6286 x \/%V 1*949
= 24s *85.
For the part now which is above the centre of the orifice,
we shall have, by the formula 204, g being in metres,
2 x 325*6 x i\/l*949 onos nos tu ^ ^
 =2988 = 4m 585. Thus the time
0*548 x 2 x 0f6286 xV 2g
required to fill the entire lock will be the sum of these two
times, or 323s = 5m 23s. But General Andreossy says that
the time required to fill it was between 5m and 6m ; the mean
of which isS^SO8, which differs very little from the theory.
293. Experiments have also been made on a sluice-gate of
the canal of Bromberg in Germany ; Eytelwein cites them
in his Manuel de Mecanique et d'Hy dr antique. The lock
was 49*59 met. long, its breadth was from 6*59 met. to 9*10
met., and its section was 422 sq. met.; the height of one of the
openings was 0*4185 met., and that of the other 0*5623
met., the breadth of each was 0*6277 met. The escape took
place first by the one then by the other, so that there were
two sets of experiments. In each the water was previously
left to rise in the lock to 0*06 met. above the upper edge cf
the opening ; then the edge of the first opening was below
the level of the upper course by 2*223 met., and that of the
second by 2*197 met. The time that the water took to
raise itself a certain space, or till the vessel was full, was
reckoned in seconds. The results are given in the follow¬
ing table:—
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
Number of
opening.
Volume of water
elevated.
Metres.
0-6277
0-6277
0-6277
0-3399
2-2230
HYDRODYNAMICS.
SECTION V.—EXPERIMENTS ON VERTICAL AND OBLIQUE JETS
129
Time of elevation from
Calculation. Experiment.
Sec.
260
319
458
667
1704
Sec.
263
327
491
682
1763
0-31385
0-31385
0-31385
0-31385
0-31385
0-31385
0-31385
2-197
93
102
112
128
151
197
476
1259
90
102
114
128
149
197
454
1234
The time of the partial elevations has been found by the
formula t = —r -= {^/H — (196), where m may be
t =
■0-24
= 137s = 2m 17s.
Experi¬
ments on
296. We have already seen that, according to theory, the Motion
vertical jets should rise to the same altitude as that of the of Fluids,
reservoirs from which they are supplied. It will appear, J
however, from the following experiments of Bossut, that
jets do not rise exactly to this height. 1 his arises from
the friction at the orifice, the resistance of the air, and
other causes which shall afterwards be explained.
Altitudes to which Jets rise through Adjutages of different
forms, the Altitude of the Ileservoir being Eleven Feet,
reckoning from the upper surface of the horizontal Tubes,
mnV, o/)R.
taken as 062o. The value of H in each of these partial
experiments is the sum of the elevations noted in the second
column, and reckoned from the bottom of the column, com¬
prising an elevation corresponding to the time indicated
against it; 4 is the same sum, but without comprehending
this elevation : thus, for the second of the experiments noted
in the table, H = 0-3399+ 06277+0-6277= 1-5953, and
h = 0"3399 + 0-6277 = 0-9676. By comparing then the two
last columns, the results of experiments are found to agree
very closely with those of calculation. If the difference
were large, it would only indicate the great difficulty in
determining the exact time when the water ceased to rise
in the lock, the elevation about the end of the time taking
place by infinitely small degrees.
294. As an example of the third case of Prop. XV., we
may consider the two contiguous locks in the double sluice¬
gate of a canal. When a boat which ascends a canal has
entered into the lower lock by its lower gate, it is shut in ;
the flood-gates, however, separating it from the upper lock
rise; the water therefore falls in the latter, but rises in the
former, and continues to do so until a common level has
been attained; the gate of separation is now opened, and
the boat is introduced into the upper lock. Take for in¬
stance the double sluice-gate of Bayard, near Toulouse.1
Let the time be reckoned from the moment at which the
water, on reaching the lower lock, has attained the centre
of the opening of the flood-gate. H being =4-14 met.,
4 = 0"24 met., A = 205 sq. met., 13=215 sq. met., s= 1*249
sq. met. (for the two openings), and m. -0-548; then the
time elapsing from the moment of the rising of the flood¬
gate till the water has attained the same level in both locks,
will, g being taken in metres, be expressed by
2 x 205 x 215 x V+Tt
Diameter of
the hori¬
zontal tubes
»iP, oR,
each being
six feet long.
Inch, lines.
3 8
9i{
Si-
Form of the
orifices.
Simple
orifice
Conical
tube
Cylindri¬
cal tube
Simple
orifice
n
Refer¬
ences to
Fig. 74.
Diameter
of the
orifice.
Altitude of
the jet when
rising verti¬
cally, reckon¬
ing from m.
Lines.
2
4
8
94 by 70
4 by 70
Ft. in. lin
10 0 10
10 5 10
10 6 6
9 6 4
9 16
9 11 0
9 7 10
7 10 0
Altitude of
the jet when
inclined a
little to the
vertical.
Ft. in. lin
10 4 6
10 7 6
10 8 0
9 8 6
7 3 6
297. It appears, from the first three experiments of the
preceding table, that great jets rise higher than small ones ;
0-548 x 1*249 x J2g y. 420
But observation shows us that this time is 2m 29s. The
difference of 12s indicates that the flood-gates were not
fully raised when the water reached the centre of their
openings, and the formula supposes that this was the case.
295. The consideration of vessels divided into different
compartments by partitions, or diaphrams pierced by orifices,
present, during the escape of the fluid which they contain,
divers phenomena which have given rise to interesting ma¬
thematical results ; for an account of which we refer the
reader to Daniel Bernouilli’s Hydrodynamique, sect, viii.,
and to Bossut’s work on the same.
Fig. 58.
and from the last three experiments, that small jets rise
higher than great ones when the horizontal tube is very
narrow. There is, therefore, a certain proportion between
the diameter of the horizontal tube and that of the adju¬
tage or orifice, which will give a maximum height to the
jet. This proportion may be found in the following manner.
Let D (fig. 58) be the diameter of the tube, d that of the
adjutage, a the altitude B m of the reservoir, b the velocity
along the tube; and as the velocity at the adjutage is con¬
stant, it may be expressed by Va. Now the velocity in
the tube is to the velocity at the adjutage as the area of
their respective sections, that is, as the square of the dia¬
meter of the one is to the square of the diameter of the
other. Therefore, Va : 4 =D2 : d2, and, consequently,
d^Va
b = ^ . If there is another tube and another adjutage,
the corresponding quantities may be taken as At 8, a, /?,
and we shall have the equation /3 = ^ ^a. If we wish,
therefore, that the two jets be furnished in the same man-
YOL. XII.
1 Histoire du Canal du Midi, par le Gen. Andreossy.
R
130
IIYDKODYNAM1CS.
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
ner, then if the velocity in the first tube leaves to the first
jet all the height possible, the velocity in the second tube
leaves also to the second jet all the height possible, and we
d2 Va & Va TJ 2
shall have & = /3, or —= -7—• Hence D : A —
D2
A-
dd\/a : 5 that is, the squares of the diameters of the
horizontal tubes ought to be to one another in the compound
ratio of the squares of the diameters of the adjutages, and
the square roots of the altitudes of the reservoir. Now, it ap¬
pears from the experiments of Mariotte {Trade du Mouve-
mentdes Eaux), that when the altitude of the reservoir is 16
feet, and the diameter of the adjutage 6 lines, the diame¬
ter of the horizontal tube ought to be 28^- lines. By taking
this as a standard, therefore, the diameters of the horizontal
tube may be easily found by the preceding rule, whatever
be the altitude of the reservoir and the diameter of the
adjutage.
It results from the last three experiments, that the jets
rise to the smaller height when the adjutage is a cylindrical
tube (see D, fig. 08), that a conical adjutage throws the
fluid very much higher, and that when the adjutage is a
simple orifice the jet rises highest of all.
298. From a comparison of the fifth and sixth columns
of the table, it appears that a small inclination of the jet to
a vertical line makes it rise higher than when it ascends
exactly vertical. Bossut, for example, gave a very slight in¬
clination to a jet which rose vertically to a height of
3*42 met., and found the height increased to 3*47 met.;1 but
even then it still falls short of the height of the reservoir.
When the water first escapes from the adjutage, it generally
springs higher than the reservoir; but this effect is merely
momentary, as the jet instantly subsides, and continues at
the altitudes exhibited in the foregoing tables. Ihe great
size of the jet at its first formation, audits subsequent dimi¬
nution, have been ascribed to the elasticity of the air which
follows the water in its passage through the orifice; but it
is obvious that this air, which moves along with the fluid,
can never give it an impulsive force. In order to explain
this phenomenon, let us suppose the adjutage to be stopped,
the air which the water drags along with it will lodge itself
at the extremity of the adjutage, so that there will be no
water contiguous to the body which covers the orifice. As
soon as the cover is removed from the adjutage, the impri¬
soned air escapes; the water immediately behind it rushes
into the space which it leaves, and thus acquires in the tube
a certain velocity which increases at the orifice in the ratio
of the area of the section of the tube to the area of the
section of the orifice. When the orifice is small in compa¬
rison with the tube, the velocity of the issuing fluid must
be considerable, and will raise it higher than the reservoir.
But as the jet is resisted by the air, and retarded by the
descending fluid, its altitude diminishes, and the simple
pressure of the fluid becomes the only permanent source of
its velocity. The preceding phenomenon was first noticed
by Toricellius.2
299. The following table exhibits all that is necessary
in the formation of jets. The first two columns are taken
from Mariotte,3 and show the altitude of the reservoir re¬
quisite to producing a jet of a certain height. The third
column contains, in Paris pints, 36 of which are equal to a
cubic foot, the quantity of water discharged in a minute by
an orifice 6 lines in diameter. The fourth column, com¬
puted from the hypothesis in art. 296, contains the diame¬
ters of the horizontal tubes for an adjutage 6 lines in dia¬
meter, relative to the altitudes in the second column. The
thickness of the horizontal tubes will be determined in a
subsequent section :—
Altitudes of Reservoirs, the Diameters of the Horizontal
Tubes, &jc.,for Jets of different Heights.
Altitude of
the jet.
Paris feet.
5
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Altitude of the
reservoir.
Quantity of water dis¬
charged in a minute
from an adjutage six
lines in diameter.
Feet, inches.
5 1
10
21
33
45
58
72
86
101
117
133
Paris pints.
32
45
65
81
95
108
120
131
142
152
163
Diameters of the
horizontal tubes
suited to the two
preceding columns.
Lines.
21
26
31
34
37
39
41
43
45
47
49
Experi¬
ments or;
the Motion
of Fluids.
300. We have already seen that jets do not rise to the
heights of their reservoirs, and have remarked that the dif¬
ference between theory and experiment arises from the
friction at the orifice, and the resistance of the air. The
diminution of velocity produced by friction is very small,
and the resistance of the air is a very inconsiderable source
of retardation, unless when the jet rises to a great altitude.
We must seek, therefore, for another cause of obstruction
to the rising jet, which, when combined with these, may be
adequate to the effect produced. Wolfius has very properly
ascribed the diminution in the altitude of the jet to the
gravity of the falling water. When the velocity of the
foremost particles is completely spent, those immediately
behind, by impinging against them, lose their velocity, and,
in consequence of this constant struggle between the
ascending and descending fluid, the jet continues at an
altitude less than that of the reservoir. Hence we may
discover the reason why an inclination of the jet increases
its altitude; for the descending fluid falling a little to one
side does not encounter the rising particles, and therefore
permits them to reach a greater altitude than when their
ascension is in a vertical line. Wolfius observes, in proof
of his remark, that the diminution is occasioned also by the
weight of the ascending fluid, that mercury rises to a less
height than water ; but this cannot be owing to the greater
specific gravity of mercury; for though the weight of the
mercurial particles is greater than that of water, yet the
momentum with which they ascend is proportionally greater,
and therefore the resistance which opposes their tendency
downwards, has the same relation to their gravity, as the
resistance in the case of water has to the weight of the
aqueous particles.
301. The two following experiments on oblique jets are
given by Bossut. When the height NS of the reservoir
AB (fig. 59) was 9 feet, and the diameter of the adjutage
Fig. 59.
at N, 6 lines, a vertical abscissa CN of 4 feet 3 inches and
7 lines, answered to a horizontal ordinate CT of 11 feet 3
inches and 3 lines. When the altitude NS of the reservoir
1 This was also observed by Wolfitis {Opera Mathematica, tom, i., p. 802, schol. iv).
2 De Motu Projectorum ; Oper. Geometr., p. 192. 3 Traite du Mouvement des Eaux, part iv., disc. 1., p. 303.
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
HYDRODYNAMICS
131
was 4 feet, the adjutage remaining the same, a vertical
abscissa CN of 4 feet 3 inches and 7 lines, corresponded
with a horizontal ordinate CT of 8 feet 2 inches and 8
lines. The real amplitudes, therefore, are less than those
deduced from theory; and both are very nearly as the
square roots of the altitudes of the reservoirs. Hence, to
find the amplitude of a jet when the height of the reser¬
voir is 10 feet, and the vertical abscissa the same, we have
feet: ^16 feet= 11 feet 3 inches 3 lines: 15 feet 4 lines,
the amplitude of the jet required. This, rule, however, will
apply only to small reservoirs; for when the jets enlatge,
the curve which they describe cannot be determined by
theory, and therefore the relation between the amplitudes
and the heights of the reservoirs must be uncertain.
302. The following experiments on oblique jets were
performed by MM. Michelotti and Venturi. When the
height of the adjutage above a horizontal plane was 19-33
inches, the amplitude of projection, according to Michelotti,
was 23-2 inches, with a simple orifice, and 20 inches with
an additional tube. Venturi found that when the height
of the water in the reservoir was 32^ inches, and that at
the adjutage above a horizontal plane o4 inches, the am¬
plitude of projection was 81| inches with a simple orifice,
and 69 inches with an additional tube.
303. The most recent experiments on the height and
discharge of jets are those lately made by the Southwark
Water Company in January 1844, and those by the Pres¬
ton Water Company in March of the same year. One set
of experiments of the first company was made in Union
Street through stand pipes, hose, and jets—there being six
stand pipes, each 360 feet apart, and connected
  a 7-inch main, 2,400 feet long.
The head was carried on through a 9-inch ... 1,500
12-inch ... 600
15-inch ... 1,650
20-inch ... 10,350
The total distance, then, from the head at Battersea, where
the pressure was 120 feet, was 16,500 feet, or a distance
of nearly 3^- miles.
The second set of experiments of the same company was
made in Tooley Street, where the stand pipes were con¬
nected—
  a 9-inch main, 4,200 feet long.
The head was carried on through a 15-inch ... 3,000
a 20-inch ... 12,750
So that the total distance from the head at Battersea under
the above pressure, was 19,950 feet, or nearly 4 miles.
i l. Experi-
In both experiments every service pipe, or other outlet, ments on
was kept shut. The stand pipes employed were 2^ inches the Motion
diameter, and the length of the hose varied. of Iluids.
The pipes marked a are through 600 feet ol 5-inch
main, but a 4-inch main was fitted on close to the 5-inch
main ; those marked b are through 600 feet of 5-inch main,
and 600 feet of 4-inch main, both in addition to the 19,9o0
feet of main already mentioned.
304. The experiments by the Preston Company were
made, first, on a 6-inch main, under a pressure of 110 feet;
and, second, on a 6-inch main, under a pressure of 46 feet.
The results for the first are,—
Height. Discharge in cubic feet.
With 1 jet f-inches, 57 feet, 12-5 per minute by day.
... 1  64 ... 14-4 ... by night.
... 2 jets ... 56 ... 12-5 ... by day.
... 2   62 ... 14 0 ... by night.
The results of the second are :—
Height.
With 1 jet f-inch, 24 feet,
... 1  28 ...
... 2 lets ... 20 ...
... 2 .  25 ...
Discharge in cubic feet.
4- 8 per minute by day.
5- 6 ... by night.
4-5 ... by day.
4-8 ... by night.
305. At Leeds jets may be thrown from 60 to 70 feet
high, and in the lower part of the town from 40 to 50 feet
high, the pressure being 180 feet, and services in full
draught. At New York the height of the water is 115
feet above high water, 105 feet above the lowest, and 60
feet above the highest streets : the distributing reservoir
is distant 4 miles, and communicates with the city by a 36-
inch main; yet the city fountains throw from 60 to 70
feet high. At Harlaem, River Valley, a ^th-inch pipe and
a ^th-inch jet, throw the water to a height of 110 feet. At
Philadelphia the surface of water in the reservoirs is 98 feet
above high water, 55 feet above the highest, and 93 feet
above the lowest points of the city. The distance from the
reservoir to the extreme point of mains and pipes is 6
miles, by a main from 20 to 22 inches in diameter. \ et the
water will rise by night to a height of from 40 to 50 feet,
while by day to a height of 25 feet.
SECTION VI. EXPERIMENTS ON THE MOTION OF WATER IN
CONDUIT PIPES.
Experiments on the Height and Discharge of Jets, made by
the Southwark Water Company in January 1844.
Stand pipes
used.
No.
1
2
3
4
5
6
1
1
1
Length of
hose.
Feet.
40
40
40
40
40
40
80
160
40
40
40
40
40
40
40
40
40
Diameter
of jet.
Inches.
2£
Height of
jet.
Feet.
50
45
40
35
30
27
40
40
31
34
23
60
60
45
40
Volume per
minute.
Cubic feet.
15-7
16-6
16-0
421
13T7
10- 90
11- 98
9-30
17-15
14-90
13-80
306. It must be evident to every reader, that, when
water is conducted from a reservoir by means of a long
horizontal pipe, the velocity with which the water enters
the pipe will be much greater than the velocity with which
it issues from its farther extremity; and that, if the pipe
has various flexures or bendings, the velocity with which
the water leaves the pipe will be still farther diminished.
The difference, therefore, between the initial velocity of the
water, and the velocity with which it issues, will increase
with the length of the pipe and the number of its flexures.
By means of the theory, corrected by the preceding experi¬
ments, it is easy to determine with great accuracy the initial
velocity of the water, or that with which it enters the pipe ;
but on the obstructions which the fluid experiences in its
progress through the pipe, and on the causes of these
obstructions, theory throws but a feeble light. The
experiments of Bossut afford much instruction on this
subject; and it is from them that we have arranged
the following table, containing the quantities of water
discharged by pipes of different lengths and diameters,
compared with the quantities discharged from additional
tubes:—
132
HYDRODYNAMICS.
ST™ °f Water hy Crfuit PjPeS °f diIer‘nt Lenytl>s and Dialers compared with the Quantities
the Motion discharged from additional 1 ubes inserted in the same Reservoir.
of Fluids.
Constant al¬
titude of the
water in the
reservoir
above the
axis of the
tube.
Lengtli of
the conduit
pipes.
Feet.
30
90
180
30
90
180
Quantity of
water
discharged in a
minute by an
additional
tube.
Quantity of
water dis¬
charged by
the conduit
pipe in a
minute.
Tube and pipe 16 lines diam.
Cubic inches.
6330
6330
6330
8939
8939
8939
Cubic inches.
2778
1587
1052
4066
2352
1583
Ratio between
the quantities of
water furnished
by the tube and
the pipe of 16
lines diameter.
Quantity of
water dis¬
charged by
an additional
tube in a
minute.
Quantity of
water dis¬
charged by
the conduit
pipe in a
minute.
1 to -4389
1 to -2507
to
1 to
1 to
to
•1662
•4548
■2631
1770
Tube and pipe 24 lines diam.
Cubic inches.
Cubic inches.
Ratio between
the quantities of
water furnished
by the tube and
the pipe of 24
lines diameter.
7680
4534
3119
11219
6812
4710
to -5392
to ‘3183
to -2190
to -5578
to -3387
to -2341
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
307. 1 lie third column of the preceding table contains
the quantity of water discharged through an additional
cylindrical tube 16 lines in diameter, or the quantity dis¬
charged from the reservoir into a conduit pipe of the same
diameter; and the fourth column contains the quantity
discharged by the conduit pipe. The fifth column, there¬
fore, which contains the ratio between these quantities, will
also contain the ratio between the velocity of the water at
its entrance into the conduit pipe, which we shall afterwards
call its initial velocity, and its velocity when it issues from
the pipe, which shall be denominated its final velocity ; for
the velocities are as the quantities discharged, when the
orifices are the same. The same may be said of the 6th, 7th,
and 8th columns, with this difference only, that they apply
to a cylindrical tube and a conduit pipe 24 lines in diameter.
308. By examining some of the experiments in the fore¬
going table, it will appear that the water sometimes loses
X^ths of its initial velocity. The velocity thus lost is con¬
sumed by the friction of the water on the sides of the pipe,
as the quantities discharged, and consequently the veloci¬
ties, diminish when the length of the pipe is increased. In
simple orifices, the friction is in the inverse ratio of their
diameter; and it appears from the table, that the velocity
of the water is more retarded in the pipe 16 lines in dia¬
meter, than in the other which has a diameter of 24 lines.
But though the velocity decreases when the length of the
tube is increased, it by no means decreases in a regular
arithmetical progression, as some authors have maintained.
1 his is obvious from the table, from which it appears, that
the difi’erences between the quantities discharged, which
represent also the differences between the velocities, always
decrease, whereas the differences would have been equal,
bid the velocities decreased in an arithmetical progression.
ie same truth is capable of a physical explanation. If
every filament of the fluid rubbed against the sides of the
conduit pipe, then, since in equal times they all experience
t le same degree of friction, the velocities must diminish in
tie direct ratio of the lengths of the tubes, and will form a
regular arithmetical progression, of which the first term will
be the final, and the last the initial velocity of the water,
ut it is only the lateral filaments that are exposed to fric-
, lls retar^s their motion ; and the adjacent filaments
which do not touch the pipe, by the adhesion to those
winch do touch it, experience also a retardation, but in a
less degree, and go on with the rest, each filament sustain¬
ing a diminution of velocity inversely proportional to its dis¬
tance from the sides of the pipe. The lateral filaments
alone, therefore, provided they always remain in contact
wdth the sides of the pipe, will have their velocities dimi¬
nished in arithmetical progression, while the velocities of
the central filaments will not decrease in a much slower
progression ; consequently, the mean velocity of the fluid,
oi that to which the quantities discharged are proportional,
will decrease less rapidly than the terms of an arithmetical
progression.
309. Bossut made the following experiment to show, that,
in open channels and pipes, even where there is a consider¬
able slope, the flow very soon becomes uniform. He con¬
structed a wooden canal 650 feet long, with a slope of 1 in
10, and having divided it into equal spaces of 108 feet
each, found that the water traversed all the other spaces
except the first in equal times.
310. But besides the resistance which the water expe¬
riences from the walls of the pipe, and which is the most
considerable, there is also the resistance arising from con¬
traction, as Eytelwein first showed. If the bores be large
this resistance is insensible, but if small it is too appreciable
to be neglected. Further, if the pipe have one or more
bends in its length, a third kind of resistance will arise ;
the loss by this resistance will evidently be greater in the
case of an angular than in that of a uniformly curved
tube. Bossut, for example, took a straight pipe 0-027 met. in
diameter, and 16‘24 in length, and under a charge of 0325
met. obtained 0-02084cub. met. of a volume in one minute.
He now coiled the same pipe six times round, and obtained
a volume of 0-02040 cub. met. (Bossut, Hyd. § 659). Ren¬
nie (410) also, after the same manner, took a straight pipe
half-an-inch in diameter, and 15 feetlong,and havingadapted
it to a reservoir under a charge of one foot, obtained a
volume of T9 cub. feet in 1 min. But having bent the same
pipe so as to produce a series of concavities and convexi¬
ties in a semicircle of a radius 3‘25 in., and having fixed it
to the same reservoir, he found a volume of T7 cub.feet in the
same time. Urns the 14 bends diminished the waste in
the ratio of 100: 89; when the charge was quadrupled, the
ratio was 100: 88. Venturi long ago showed the bad
effect of bends by a series of experiments on three tubes
O’SS met. in length and 0‘033 in diameter; one was
straight, the second was rounded at an angle of 90°,
and the third was right-angled. The charge employed
was one of 0'88 met., and a vessel of capacity OT37
cub. met. was filled by them respectively, in 45s, 50s, and
/0s. In illustration of the same fact, Rennie took a pipe
15 feet in length and one inch in diameter, and under a
charge of 4 feet, found the following volumes discharged
per minute:—
1 Phil. Trans, of Royal Society of London, 1831.
Experi- With a straight pipe
ments on ... 15 semicircular bends
;he Motion ... 1 right angle
of Fluids. ... 24
HYDIiODYNAMICS.
of *, above dimension,.. 0-4175 cubic fee. Quantities of Water discharged ^taineaUn^ Ourcr
. ben(js  0-3676 ... lineal Leaden Pipes, 50 jeet long, ana i men v
133
0-3318
0-1511
diameter.
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
311. These retarding or resisting forces in the case of
fluids, go by the name of friction, the word being taken
from the consideration of solid bodies rubbing or sliding
upon each other. As there are laws of friction for the lat¬
ter, so there are also laws of friction or resistance for the
former. In the case of fluids, then, passing through straight
pipes, as deduced from experiments, the resistance is—1.
Independent of the pressure : thus water moving in a pipe
under a head of 100 feet, experiences as great a resistance
as if the head were 50 feet. Dubuat showed this law from
experiments on the oscillation of water in siphons. In
connection with this, see, under River, the experiment
in which two vessels are connected by a siphon. 2. I he
resistance is, at any one velocity, proportional to the sur¬
face exposed to the action of the flowing water. 3. The
resistance varies directly as the square of the velocity
nearly, the border being constant. The third law is
more nearly expressed by adding the simple power of the
velocity.
312. When a pipe is inclined to the horizon, as CDE
(fig. 60), the water will move with a greater velocity than in
the horizontal tube CT)hf. In the former case, the relative
gravity of the water, which is to its absolute gravity as \\f
to Cf or as the height of the inclined plane to its length,
accelerates its motion along the tube. But this accelera¬
tion takes place only when the inclination is considerable ;
for if the angle which the direction of the pipe forms with
the horizon were no more than one degree, the retardation
of friction would completely counterbalance the acceleration
of gravity. Thus when the pipe CF, 16 lines in diameter,
was 177 feet, and was divided into three equal parts in the
points D and E, so that CD was 59 feet, CE 118 feet; and
when CF was to F/as 2124 to 241, the quantity of water
discharged at F was 5795 cubic inches in a minute, the quan¬
tity discharged at E was 5801 cubic inches in a minute, and
the*quantitv at D 5808 cubic inches. The quantities dis¬
charged therefore, and consequently the velocities, decreased
from C to F; whereas if there had been no friction, and no
adhesion between the aqueous particles, the velocities would
have increased along the line CF in the subduplicate ratio
of the altitudes CB, Dm, Ew, and Fo; AB being the sur¬
face of the water in the reservoir. The preceding numbers,
representing the quantities discharged at F, E, and D de¬
crease very slowly; consequently, by increasing the relative
gravity of the water, that is, by inclining the tube more to
the horizon, the effects of friction may be exactly counter¬
balanced. This happens when the angle ,/CF is about
6° 31', or when F/is the eighth or ninth part of CF. The
quantities discharged at C, D, E, and F will then be equal, and
friction will have consumed the velocity arising from the
relative gravity of the included water.
313. In order to determine the effects produced by flex¬
ures or sinuosities in conduit pipes, M. Bossut made the
following experiments:—•
Altitude of
the water
in the re¬
servoir.
Feet, inches.
0 4
Form of the Conduit Pipes.—See Figures
61 and 62.
^Quantities of
j water dis¬
charged in a
minute.
The rectilineal tube MN placed hori¬
zontally   
The same tube similarly placed 
The same tube bent into the curvili-
neal form ABC, fig. 61, each flexure
lying flat on a horizontal plane,
ABC being a horizontal section 
The same tube similarly placed 
The same tube placed as in fig. 62,
where ABCD is a vertical section,
the parts A, B, C, D rising above
a horizontal plane, and the parts
a, b, c lying upon it  
The same tube similarly placed 
j Cubic inches.j
576
1050
540
1030
520
1028
314. 1. The two first experiments of the preceding table
show that the quantities of water discharged diminish as the
altitude of the reservoir. This arises from an increase of
velocity, which produces an increase of friction.
2. The four first experiments show, that a curvilineal
pipe, in which the flexures lie horizontally, discharges less
water than a rectilineal pipe of the same length. I he fric¬
tion being the same in both cases, this difference must arise
from the impulse of the fluid against the angles of the tube;
for if the tube formed an accurate curve, the curvature
would not diminish the velocity of the water.
3. By comparing the 1st and 5th, and the 2d and 6th
experiments, it appears that, when the flexures are vertical,
the quantity discharged is diminished. This also arises
from the imperfection of curvature.
4. It appears, from a comparison of the 3d and 5th with
the 4th and 6th experiments, that when the flexures are
vertical, the quantity discharged is less than when they are
horizontal. In the former case, the motion of the fluid
arises from the central impulsion of the water, retarded by
its gravity in the ascending parts of the pipe, and accele¬
rated in the descending parts; whereas the motion in the
latter case arises wholly from the central impulsion of the
fluid. To these points of difference the diminution of velo¬
city may somehow or other be owing.
When a large pipe has a number of contrary flexures,
the air sometimes mixes with the water, and occupies the
highest parts of each flexure, as at B and C, fig. 62. By
this means the velocity of the fluid is greatly retarded, and
the quantities discharged much diminished. This ought to
be prevented by placing small tubes at B and C, having a
small valve at their top.
315. A set of valuable experiments were made by M.
Couplet, and a detailed account of them given in the Me¬
moirs of the Academy for 1732, in his paper entitled Des
Kecherches sur le Mouvement des Eaux dans les Tuyaux
de conduite. These experiments are combined with those
of the Abbe Bossut in the following table :—
134
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
iWfe of the Experiments of Couplet andBossul on Conduit Pipes, differing in Form, Length, Diameter, and
in the Matermls of whxh they are composed,-under different Altitudes of Water in the Reservoir.
Altitude of the
water in the
reservoir.
Ft. in. lin.
13
6
0
1
2
12
12
4
20
20 11
1 9
2 7
0 3
0 11
1 4
4 8
8 4
9 0
Length of
the conduit
pipe.
Feet.
50
50
50
50
50
50
180
180
180
180
177
118
159
1,782
1,782
1,782
1,710
1,710
7,020
7,020
7,020
7,020
7,020
3,600
3,600
4,740
14,040
Diameter
of the
conduit
pipes.
Lines.
12
12
12
12
12
12
16
16
24
24
16
16
16
48
48
48
72
72
60
60
60
60
60
144
216
216
144
NATURE, POSITION, AND FORM OF THE CONDUIT PIPES.
Rectilineal and horizontal pipe of lead.. 
The same pipe similarly placed 
The same pipe with several horizontal flexures
Same pipe 
The same pipe with several vertical flexures ...........
Same pipe 
Rectilineal and horizontal pipe of white iron 
Same pipe 
Rectilineal and horizontal pipe of white iron
Same pipe 
Rectilineal pipe of white iron, and inclined so that CF (ftz. 60) is to Ff
as 2124 is to 241      _  
Rectilineal pipe of white iron, and inclined like the last
Rectilineal pipe of white iron, and inclined like the last  !...
Conduit pipe almost entirely of iron, with several flexures both horizontal
and vertical   
Same pipe 
Same pipe 
Conduit pipe almost entirely of iron, with several flexures both horizontal
and vertical  ^
Same pipe 
Conduit pipe, partly stone and partly lead, with several flexures both
horizontal and vertical. 
Same pipe 
Same pipe 
Same pipe   
Same pipe 
Conduit pipe of iron, with flexures both horizontal and vertical  
Conduit pipe of iron, with several flexures both horizontal and vertical...
Conduit pipe of iron, with several flexures both horizontal and vertical...
Conduit pipe of iron, with several flexures both horizontal and vertical...
Ratio between the
quantities which
would he discharged
if the fluid experi¬
enced no resistance
in the pipes, and the
quantities actually
discharged; or the
ratio between the
initial and the final
velocities of the
fluid.
to 0-2810
to 0-3050
to 0-2640
to 0-2910
to 0-2540
to 0-2900
to 0-1660
to 0-1770
to 0-2180
to 0-2340
1 to 0-2000
1 to 0-2500
1 to 0-3540
1 to 0-3500
1 to 0-0376
1 to 0-0387
1 to 0-0809
1 to 0-0878
to 0-0432
to 0-0476
to 0-0513
to 0 0532
to 0-0541
to 0-0992
to 0-1653
to 0-0989
to 0-0517
316. In order to show the application of the preceding
results, let us suppose that a spring, or a number of springs
combined, furnishes 40,000 cubic" inches of water in one
minute ; and that it is required to conduct it to a given
place 4 feet below the level of the spring, and so situated
that the length of the pipe must be 2400 feet. It appears
from the table in art. 245, that the quantity of water fur¬
nished in a minute by a short cylindrical tube, when the
altitude of the fluid in the reservoir is 4 feet, is 7070 cubic
inches ; and since the quantities furnished by two cylindri¬
cal pipes under the same altitude of water are as the squares
of their diameters, we shall have by the following analogy
the diameter of the tube necessary for discharging 40,000
cubic inches in a minute; ^7070 : ^40000=12 lines
or 1 inch : 28£ lines, the diameter required. But by com¬
paring some of the experiments in the preceding table, it
appears that, when the length of the pipe is nearly 2400
feet, it will admit only about one-eighth of the water, that
is, about 5000 cubic inches. That the pipe, however, may
tiansmit the whole 40,000 cubic inches, its diameter must
be inci eased. The following analogy, therefore, will fur¬
nish us with this new diameter; V5000 : V40000 = 28-54
lines: 80 /3 lines, or 6 inches 8^ lines, the diameter of
the pipe which will discharge 40,000 cubic inches of water
when its length is 2400 feet.
317. The following experiments on the quantities of
water ^charged by different pipes of various lengths, and
with different adjutages, were made by M. Bossut at the pub¬
lic and private fountains of Mezieres in October 1779: 
Head of
water.
Ft. in.
24
23
19
19
19 10
29 1
8 0
24 7
32 7
30 5
26 3
27 0
30 0
10 5
10 11
10 0
Length
of pipe.
Feet.
161
192
193
188
146
187
1069
278
314
446
506
668
812
194
462
420
Diame¬
ter of
pipe.
Size of orifice.
Lines.
12
12
12
12
12
15
18
15
15
18
18
18
18
12
12
15
Lines.
n
h
64
64
24 by 7
74 by 54
Two adju¬
tages, each
6 lines
34
Two adju¬
tages, having
each 5 lines
2 by 64
4
54
11
5
54
7
Ratio of
the real
to the
theoreti¬
cal dis¬
charges.
0045
0-075
0-068
0061
0-089
0-105
0-435
0-396
0-227
0-037
0-447
0-301
0-048
0-377
0-332
0-163
Ratio of
the
height
due to
the ve¬
locity to
the head
of water.
0-002
0-006
0-005
0 004
0-008
0-011
0-189
0-157
0-052
0-001
0-200
0-091
0-002
0-139
0-109
0-028
Cubic
inches
of wa¬
ter dis¬
charged
in a
minute.
242
230
222
237
168
S'SS
1686
458
1232
636
696
900
600
576
576
483
318. Dubuat undertook a series of experiments to de¬
termine the laws of resistance of bends, and their intensity.
In order to this he employed different pipes, first straight,
and measured the charge necessary to obtain a certain vo-
Experi-
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
135
Experi- lame in a certain time ; then bent into different forms, such
merits on that the central fillet would make a ceitain number of an-
the Motion anc] 0f a certain size ; and anew verified the charge
of Fluids. yn(jgr which the same volume would be obtained from the
bent pipes in the same time. The difference between the
two charges for the same pipe, now straight, then bent, was
evidently the charge due to the bends, and, consequently,
the measure of their resistance. The experiments were 25
in number, the most important of which are set down in the
following table:—
Pipe.
Diameter.
Length.
Metres.
00271.
0,0271
0-0271
0-0271
0-0271
0 0271
0-0271
0-0271
0-0511
0-0541
0-0541
Metres.
3-167
3-167
3-167
3-167
3167
3-749
3-749
19-95
6-910
6-910
6-910
Angles.
Num¬
ber.
1
2
3
4
10
4
4
4
4
4
6
5
1
Value.
Deg.
33
36
36
24-57
36
36
36
36
36
36
24-57
36-00
56-23
Velocity
of water
Metres.
2-300
2-300
2-300
2-300
1-939
1- 572
0-794
0-776
2- 336
1- 590
2- 336
Resist¬
ance due
to bends.
Metres.
00203
0-0406
0-0674
00406
0-1598
00444
0-0111
0-0106
0-0785
00360
0-2339
Coeffi¬
cient.
0-0111
0-0111
0-0123
0-0111
0-0123
0-0130
0-0127
0-0127
00099
0-0103
0-0124
Dubuat concludes from these experiments that the re¬
sistance of bends is proportional to the square of the velo¬
city of the fluid, to the number of bends, and to the square
of the sine of the angle which the bends make with the
straight line of direction. Mr Beardmore, in his Hy¬
draulic and Tide Tables, has added, inversely as the hy¬
draulic mean depth. Experimenters, however, are not
agreed on this point (414).
SECTION VII. EXPERIMENTS ON THE PRESSURE EXERTED
UPON PIPES BY THE WATER WHICH FLOWS THROUGH
THEM.
319. The pressure exerted upon the sides of conduit
pipes by the included water has been already investigated
theoretically in Prop. XX., Part II. The only way of ascer¬
taining by experiment the magnitude of this lateral pres¬
sure, is to make an orifice in the side of the pipe, and find
the quantity of water which it discharges in a given time.
The lateral pressure is the force which impels the water
through the orifice ; and therefore the quantity discharged,
or the effect produced, must be always proportional to that
pressure as its producing cause, and may be employed to
represent it. The following table is founded on the experi¬
ments of Bossut:—
Quantities discharged by a Lateral Orifice, or the Press¬
ures on the Sides of Pipes, according to Theory and
Experiment.
Altitude
of the
water in
the re¬
servoir.
Feet.
1
1
1
2
2
2
Length of the
conduit pipe.
Feet.
30
90
180
30
90
180
Quantities of
water dis¬
charged in
1 minute ac¬
cording to
theory.
Cubic inches.
176
190
193
244
264
269
Quantities of
water dis¬
charged in
1 minute ac¬
cording to
experiment.
Cubic inches.
171
190
194
240
261
266
It appears from the preceding table, that the real lateral Experi.
pressure in conduit pipes differs very little from that which ™^sJon
is computed from the formula; but in order that this ac- of Pluidg_
cordance may take place, the orifice must be so pci foi ate ,
that its circumference is exactly perpendicular to the direc¬
tion of the water, otherwise a portion of the water dis¬
charged would be owing to the direct motion of the in¬
cluded fluid. . ,
320. It is found by experiment that, for pipes under
pressure, a velocity of 200 feet per minute is very good
for working with, giving perhaps a better proportional dis¬
charge than if the pipe had a greater inclination, and con¬
sequently the water a greater speed. A velocity of 150
feet per minute will prevent depositions of mud, &c., in
pipes and sewers. . .
321. At the West Middlesex Water*works, it is found
that the friction of the pipes reduces the head of water be¬
tween one-fourth and one-fifth. The Grand Junction
Water Company’s new engine, at Kew, works against a
head of 205 feet, while the gauge on the other side of the
stand, which indicates the "back pressure from London,
gives only 170 feet; showing a loss of head equal to 35
feet, by the draught on the great 45-inch main. At Phila¬
delphia the friction of the pipes causes a diminution of 25
feet of head when the city is drawing water. We see from
the above that in towns supplied with water there is a con¬
siderable loss of head.
322. In towns there cannot but occur a great number of
bends in the supply pipes. These bends taking place, as
they actually do in many cases, in a vertical plane, are sub¬
ject to two disturbances in the discharge. I he first is an
accumulation of air at the top of the bends, and which can
only be liberated by valves self-acting, or worked by hand
at stated times, since much air enters the pipes with the par¬
ticles of water. The second is, that the diameter of the pipe
over its whole length should be duly proportioned, so that
it may discharge the volume due to its diameter. 1 hus, at
a distance x, from the fountain head or reservoir y, the na¬
ture of the locality may be such, that the pipe at # will be a
very little above the situation y, in which case the requisite
volume of water will not pass out by the pipe z, lower situ¬
ated than x, or that volume due to a fall from y to z
Neither can the pipe be fully effective at x, since it is not
completely filled. It is clear then, that for the requisite
volume to be discharged at z, the pipe from y to x must be
of larger dimensions than that from x to z. The neglect
of providing against these impediments has led to much in
convenience and serious disappointment. It is said that
when Edinburgh was supplied with water from Comiston
about 1740, Maclaurin, from calculation, promised eleven
times, and Desaguliers six times, more than the inhabitants
received ; the latter gentleman, however, erected air vessels
or chests at different distances along the main, and the city
was well supplied. When the Edinburgh City Water-works
were extended, about 30 years ago, and the main pipe made
of iron, every precaution was taken by Mr Jardine, the en¬
gineer, to secure the proper supply. The first 18,300 feet
of the main had a fall of 1 in 282, the diameter of the
main being at the reservoir 20 inches, and at the end of
the above distance 18 inches; the remaining distance of
27,900 feet had a fall of 1 in 97, and the diameter of
the discharging main at the Castlehill is 15 inches. On
the whole, the actual discharge is not greater than that
which would be given by a pipe of a diameter equal to 15
inches, and of a uniform slope over the entire distance. Mr
Jardine erected, at 14 different points, cast-iron vessels to
receive the compressed air as it collected ; by opening a
cock at each point, every three or four days the air is libe¬
rated. This was one of the earliest works in iron on a
great scale, and it is reckoned a model of its kind; the cost
of the works at the present price of iron would only be
136
Experi¬
ments on
about that which was paid. We may judge, however
the Motion t,?e.efficient nature of the iron main, when it is stated
of Fluids. . at 11 . cost notlling f°r repairs since the time of its erec-
v j t*on> ar,d it has not ceased to deliver a daily supply.
323. Mr W. A. Provis, M. Inst. C. E., undertook seve¬
ral experiments in the year 1838, on the flow of ivater
through small pipes. The pipes employed were leaden If
inches in diameter, drawn to a length of 15 feet, and sol¬
dered together with great care. The united pipe was
stretched on a wooden beam, resting on upright posts in
such a manner that it could be depressed or W horizon¬
tal over its whole length towards the discharging end. A
stop-cock was inserted into the upper end of the pipe- the
lower end fitted into a cistern 2 feet square in the bottom
and 3 feet high, graduated upwards from the centre of the
bore of the cock. There was a second cistern above this
last which, by means of a pipe and cock, supplied the lower
with water. To the lower end of the pipe was attached, by
a universal joint, an open trunk or spout by means of
which the water from the pipe could be turned at pleasure
into or outside a receiver, the capacity of which was 4
cubic feet. By means of a valve at the bottom of the re¬
ceiver the water could be discharged. When an experi¬
ment was to be made, the highest cistern at the upper end
of the pipe was filled with water, and the graduated one
below it was also filled to the proper height. An assistant
kept the latter vessel at the constant required level, by a
continued supply from the upper one; a second assistant
turned the cock which discharged into the pipe at the given
signal. 1 he lower end of the spout was held by a third
assistant, who turned the stream into the receiver when
ordered. Before taking the result of an experiment, the
water was allowed to run for some time, but after a uniform
and steady motion had been acquired in the water, and the
signal given, the discharge for the time was determined.
, . was fmmd that considerable difference prevailed in the
time required for the run of the water through the pipe
owing to the dryness or moisture of the inner surface, and
also by the accumulation of air inside when the pipe was
level or slightly inclined. When the pipe was level and
its interior nearly dry, as was the case on commencing in
the morning, the time required for the water to pass throuo-h
the pipe was nearly 50 per cent, more than after the tube
lad been thoroughly wetted. In all the experiments where
the pipe was level, or nearly so, and more especially in the
longer lengths, there were frequent regurgitations of the
water, owing to the accumulation of air within the pipe; the
experiments, however, on the time in filling the receiver
were not begun till the stream had become regular and
equable. In order to guard against error, duplicate results
were taken, and if any discrepancy took place in the first
two results, a third was added.
The mean results of these experiments are given in the
following table, which showsus—1. Thatwhen the pipes were
level, the volumes discharged were nearly inversely as the
square roots of their lengths. 2. In comparing the dis¬
charge with that passed through the 100-feet pipe, the de-
3"r0m c on rr]e aPPears greatest in the case of the
oi t pipes of 20 feet length, when under the pressure of
the gieatest head of water. With a head of 6 inches, the
rWW°Ui oglVt aaOU]o10°th rnore than the obserred dis-
charge ; with ahead of 35 inches, the rule would give about
a 9th more than the actual discharge. The intermediate
heads show intermediate differences. 3. By givino- the
pipes a regular and uniform descent, the discharge Is in¬
creased through the long pipes in a greater ratio than
through the short ones. 4. By increasing the head of water
pressing at the upper ends of the pipes, the increase of
IhttTengJ? in ll’e long and
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Fall of Pipe.
Level.
1 in 112
2 in 112
3 in 112
Lengths of Pipe.
100 feet.
80 feet.
60 feet. I 40 feet. 20 feet.
Bead of Water =35 inches.
(Volume discharged in one minute.)
4-528
4-776
4- 949
5- 217
Head of Water=30 inches.
Level.
1 in 112
2 in 112
3 in 112
1-991
2-264
2-594
2- 909
3- 179
2-594
2- 891
3- 221
3-428
3-178
3-404
3-735
3-951
4-138
4-363
4-486
4-802
Level.
1 in 112
2 in 112
3 in 112
Head of Water=24 inches.
1-745
2-008
2-353
2-673
2-926
2-302
2-637
2- 927
3- 2
2- 823
3- 096
3-428
3-582
3-664
3- 95
4- 138
4-326
Head of Water=18 inches.
Level.
1 in 112
2 in 112
3 in 112
1-476
1- 684 | 1-959
2- 106 2-324
2-461 2-637
2-774 2-944
2-394
2- 711
3- 019
3-276
3-116
3-428
3-636
3-809
Head of Water =12 inches.
. 32/' As pipes are exposed to forces besides those aris¬
ing from the included water, they must be made much
stronger than the preceding^ experiments would seem to
require. Ihe thicknesses of iron and leaden pipes used
table^1106 m 1 ^ time ^°SSUt’ are given in the following
Diameter
Iron Pipes.
Thickness.
Inches.
1
2
4
6
8
10
12
Lines.
1
3
4
5
6
7
8
Leaden Pipes.
Diameter.
Inches.
1
1*
2
3
4*
6
7
Thickness.
Lines.
3
4
5
6
7
8
SECTION. VIII.-
-EXPERIMENTS ON THE MOTION OF WATER
IN CANALS.
-o. By a canal is meant a regularly constructed water¬
course or channel, having a uniform bed with the same in¬
clination at every part, and containing the same volume of
water over its whole length. Let a horizontal plane or right
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Experi- line ab, be drawn through anypointff, of the bed of a canal, and
ments on a vertical cb, corresporfding to any other point c, of the bed,
the Motion t]ien the inclination for the length ac of the canal will he
of Fluids. represented by = length ac x sine of inclination Lac. Call,
then, L the length of a portion of a regular canal, D the
difference of levels between the two extremities of L, then
the sine of inclination of canal will always be expressed
Call, again, S the section of the canal perpendicular to
the axis of the current; then if the canal be rectangular,
l its breadth, and h its height, or depth of water, S = Ih ; if
the canal be trapezoidal, l the breadth of the bottom, and
also n the slope of the lateral sides, S = (/ + nK) h =
(/+^.cosa)^, where a is the inclination of the walls to
the horizon.
Let also c be the perimeter of the section, then for a rect¬
angular canal c = l-\-2h’, if it be trapezoidal,
c = / + 2/V+ 1 = ^ + .
sin a
The ratio of S : c, Dubuat calls the mean radius (341).
326. When water flows in a canal, gravity is a force
continually acting upon its particles. If the water be in
repose, the tendency of gravity to put the water in motion
is destroyed, and the surface is horizontal. But when the
surface is inclined, then motion takes place among the par¬
ticles, and hence the hydraulic axiom that motion will take
place among the fluid molecules of a course of water when¬
ever the surface is inclined. The inclination will apparently
be the immediate cause of movement, but it is the gravity
of the particles which produces it.
327. This action of gravity on the particles will be
illustrated in the following cases. Let both the bed and
surface of the canal be parallel, then we shall have, as it
were, the case of a body sliding down an inclined plane, the
particles being not only that layer in immediate contact with
the bed, but those also of all the upper layers. Hence,
since in this case gravity cannot act with its full intensity,
so much of its effect will be lost, and the particle will slide
down the bed with an intensity expressed by g sin/, where
g is the accelerating force of gravity, and/the inclination
of the surface to the horizontal plane. This is the condi¬
tion of all the molecules on such a canal. Let now the
surface be no longer parallel to the bed, but let the former
be more inclined than the latter, any fluid molecule what¬
soever traversing a length parallel to the bed will be subject
to the action of gravity, together with that due to the in¬
equality of pressure at the two extremities of the length.
But these two forces are together equal to g sin/. Let,
again, the bed be horizontal, and the surface inclined, then
the particles in contact with the bottom will have their ac¬
tion destroyed by the resistance of the bed, but every other
particle not in contact with the bottom will have a moving
force represented by g sin f where / is the inclination of
the surface to the horizon. Let, lastly, the bed slope up¬
wards, then the particles covering the bed will be impelled
upwards along the bottom, while all others will be urged
downwards with a force equal to the difference between the
pressures of two columns, one of which is the depth of the
particle under the surface, and the other the distance from
the surface of any point on the horizontal plane passing
through the former particle. This difference will again be
expressed by g sin / w'hich will be the moving force on the
particle.
328. We see, then, that in all the above cases, each par¬
ticle, on traversing a line of any layer, is urged by a force
equal to g sin f or this is the final velocity of a particle, or
the accelerating force at the end of a unit of time as a se¬
cond. It evidently varies as the inclination, for g is con¬
stant. Let A be sin /, then the accelerating force will be
VOL. XII.
137
g A. Now, were this accelerating force the only one acting Experi-
on a fluid moving in a canal, it is evident that the motion ments on
or velocity would never become uniform; for, if so, then ^
equal volumes would pass through each section in equal ^ 1S^
times. But experiment and observation show us, that ^
after a certain time, the accelerating force is imperceptible,
and the water flows on with a uniform motion. Bossut,
[Hydrod. § § 797, &c.), in order to prove this, took a wooden
canal 200 met. long, with an inclination of 1 in 10, and di¬
vided the length into spaces of 33 met.; he found that,
with the exception of the first space, the water passed over
all the others in the same time. It is evident, then, that
some retarding force exists whereby the accelerating force
is destroyed at every instant. Whenever, therefore, this
accelerating force has been destroyed, the water will move
onwards with the velocity which it had at the first moment
of escape. The retarding force mentioned above may be
regarded as arising from the resistance of the bed.
But besides this retarding force, there is another of con¬
siderable intensity; it is that arising from the resistance or
friction of the sides, which is not to be neglected. Eytel-
wein, to show this, took a pipe 0‘63 met. long., and at the
end of 100 sec. it discharged 0T48 cub. met.; having now
doubled its length, 1*26 met., the same volume was obtained
in 117 sec. Hence, we have another hydraulic axiom,—when
the mean velocity is uniform, the accelerating force is equal
to the retarding forces.
329. We shall have an idea of the nature of these resis¬
tances by observing the motion of a stream of water; as
soon as it enters its course the water spreads over, wets
and clings to the surface of the bed, and the same is the
case with the walls; it is over this watery coating that the
whole fluid mass passes, each of its particles being affected
by the first coating, and by each rubbing on another.
Hence the mass takes a mean velocity. Dubuat, from a
considerable number of experiments, showed that this re¬
sistance between the bed of a canal and the water passing
through it, is altogether different from the friction of a solid
body on another, for his results show that, in the case of
fluids, the resistance of friction is independent of the pres¬
sure (311). His experiments seem to have been performed
with great care and ingenuity; he tried the flow of water
over glass, lead, pewter, iron, wood, and different kinds of
earths, and found no variation in the friction. (Principes
d’Hydraul. § § 34 36.) This inference of Dubuat is ge¬
nerally set down, in books on hydraulics, as the first law of
friction in fluids. Daubisson, however, questions the
truth of the law, stating that the adherence of the water is
equivalent to a single force, and which may be measured,
like all other forces, by a weight. He cites also one of
Dubuat’s owm experiments, where a piece of white iron put
in contact with a tranquil surface of water, required a force
of between 4*70 and 5'07 kil. on the square metre, to
withdraw it from the water. He also mentions as an objec¬
tion to it, the fundamental experiment which served Ven¬
turi to establish his principle of the lateral communication
of fluids mentioned in 262.
330. The movement of water in canals is similar to that
of water in pipes, the only difference being, that the one has
an exposed surface, while the other has not. The fact of
canals having an exposed surface offers a third cause of re¬
tardation, for the surface layer of fluid particles rubs against
the lower layer of atmospheric particles. Hence, the liquid
threads are not all animated with the same velocity ; those
which are most distant from the walls will move quickest,
and thus we should expect the particles on the surface in the
middle of the canal to have the greatest velocity. This is
not, however, the case; the particles moving with the
greatest velocity are actually found to be a little under the
surface, as we shall see, in 359, in the experiments to de¬
termine the velocity of rivers. The loss of this velocity
s
138
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Experi- arises from the friction of the fluid particles with those of
ments on the atmosphere. Hence, also, the particles in a perpendi-
Fluids1 cu^ar sect‘on °f a canal have not the same velocity, but if a
niean °f all these different velocities be taken, we shall have
the mean velocity of this section. Call v the mean velocity,
and s the perpendicular section, then the volume discharged,
or waste, in a unit of time, is Q = sv.
331. It is a matter of great importance in a practical point
of view to determine the ratio of the mean velocity to the
velocity of the surface. A knowledge of this relation has
always been considered of great value by hydraulicians, and
many experiments have been undertaken for the purpose.
Dubuat is to be trusted on this head. He made thirty-
eight experiments on two wooden canals, 43 metres long;
the form of one was rectangular, and 0-487 metres broad,
the section of the other was a trapezium, the least base of
which was 0-156 met., and the sides inclined at an angle of
36° 20 to the horizon : the depth of the water varied only from
0"054 metres to 0"273 metres, and the velocity was from 0"16
to 1-30 metres. The deductions of Dubuat from these ex¬
periments are, that the relation of the velocity of the surface
to that of the bottom is greatest when the mean velocity is
least; that the ratio is wholly independent of the depth ;
the same velocity of surface always corresponds to the same
velocity of the bed. He observed, also, that the mean velo¬
city is a mean proportional between the velocity of the sur¬
face and that of the bottom. Call v the mean velocity, u
the velocity of the bottom, and V that of the surface, then
Dubuat’s results may be represented by the equations, u =
(V V - 0-165)2, and (V + M) = (\/y-0-082)2 +000677.
M. Prony has discussed Dubuat’s observations, and has
adopted the formula v=V-3o •
V "f- o* 1 uo
The corresponding
0-25
0-50
1-00
1- 50
2- 00
0-77xV
0’79x V
0-81xV
0-83xV
0-85xV
values of V and v are set down in the
annexed table. M. Prony takes a
mean term, and for practice makes
?; = 0-8 x V, so that, for the mean velo¬
city of a current, it will suffice to
diminish the surface velocity by one-
fifth. Hence, the mean velocity of
water flowing in a current is equal to
four-fifths the superficial velocity.1
332. When the surface of a current flowing into a lon£
and regular canal takes at last a constant inclination, whicl
is the same as that of the bed, in which case they will botl
be parallel, then all the transverse sections will be equal,
and the mean velocity will be the same in each. The watei
moving in a canal under such circumstances is said to have
a uniform motion. But when the inclination of the sur¬
face varies from one point to another, the surface is no
longer parallel to the bottom, and so at divers points of the
canal the transverse sections, and, consequently, the veloci¬
ties also will vary. Nevertheless, since the volume of water
entering the canal, and taken at any point, remains the same,
the section of the fluid mass will be constant, and the velo¬
city will have at all times the same value. Everything, in¬
deed, will be unchanged, and although we shall not have a
uniform, there will at least be a permanent motion.
333. A canal, with the exception of canals employed in
inland navigation, may receive supply at its head from a
reservoir, basin, or portion of a river, the level of which is
raised for this purpose by dikes or banks. When the head ol
the canal, at the point where it receives the supply, isopen.
it is called a canal with a free entrance ; when it is fur¬
nished with a sluice, it is termed a sluiced canal.
334. In the case of a canal with a free entrance, the water
on entering forms a fall; its level lowers, then gradually rises
by gentle undulations ; beyond the influence of which it as¬
sumes a form nearly plane and parallel to the bed, the in- Experi-
clinations being regarded as constant. The velocity accel- ments on
erates during the lowering of the fall, retards while it is ris- t*ie Motion
ing from the surface, and at last becomes sensibly uniform. of I'luids-
Dubuat found that when the motion became uniformly
regular, the velocity of the surface was nearly that due to the
entire height of the fall, and that the height due to the mean
velocity is equal to the difference between the height of the
reservoir and that of the uniform section. {Principes d'Hy-
draul., §§ 177 et 178.) The fall which is formed at the en¬
trance of a canal diminishes the depth of the uniform sec¬
tion, and lessens the volume of discharge. Hence, if a
canal receive all the water that it is destined to convey, the
fall must disappear.
Dubuat also infers from his experiments on this subject,
that the velocity and the uniform section establish them¬
selves at a certain distance from the reservoir, in the same
manner as if uniformity commenced at the beginning of
the canal. {Principes, § 177.)
335. The force of a current necessary to move a machine
depends not only on the volume of water which it conveys,
but also on the height from which it may fall. This force
will be measured by the product of the volume and the
height of the fall. The greater inclination that is given to
a canal, and the more we augment the volume, a factor of
the above product, the other factor, the fall, will be dimin¬
ished for the same time ; so that the product, increasing at
first with the inclination, will diminish when the inclination
is increased. There will thus be a maximum force, which it
is very important to determine, and to put in practice. Thus,
a volume of water equal to 1T86 cub. met. issues from a
canal having a fall of 4-50 met., the effective fall being 4"06
met.; the product of these two quantities is 48" 15, the corre¬
sponding inclination being 0’001045. But when the inclina¬
tions 0-0015,0"002, 0-0025, and 0*003 met. are tried, the cor¬
responding products will be 52-65, 54-68, 54-93, and 54-01.
The fall of 0*003 met. has already given a diminution ; and
if the fall of0-0026 met. be tried, the corresponding product
is 54"88 met. Wherefore, the maximum effect in this case
will lie between the inclinations of 0-0025 and 0-0026 met.
336. When a canal (333), furnished with a sluice, re¬
ceives water by the opening which is established at its
head, it happens either that the upper edge of the opening
is not completely and permanently covered by the water
passing into the canal, or that it is so. If the charge over the
centre of the orifice be greater than twice or thrice the
height of the orifice, the upper edge will not be covered by
the water, and the waste will be the same as if the canal
did not exist. Bossut, for example, fitted on to a reservoir,
having an orifice near the bottom, of dimensions 0 027
met. high, and 0-135 met. broad, a horizontal canal of
the same sectional area, but 34 met. in length ; the charges
under which the escape took place were 3*80 met., 2-50
met., and T20 met., and he received at the extremity
of the canal the same volume of water which it had taken in
as when the canal was away altogether. {Hydrod., § 750.)
The reason of this equality is, that when the water is forced
along by means of a strong charge, and consequently with
great velocity, the tendency of the vein to contract beyond
the plane of the orifice renders the section smaller, and thus,
on issuing from the orifice, it touches neither the sides nor
the bottom of the canal; it is thus, as it were, projected into
air, and the discharge remains the same as if this really took
place. But beyond the contracted section, the fluid vein
expands, and the resistance which it receives when coming
in contact with the walls causes a diminution of flow. Where
the contact of the walls takes place, however, the distance
is too great from the orifice to react against the passing
vein, and no reduction will arise in the waste. The dis-
1 See Prony’s Jaugeage des Eaux Courantes, 1802.
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
139
charge will always be expressed by the formula already
given in 183, ml'Uw 2gH, where l' and K are the
breadth and height respectively of the opening; m having
the same values as for orifices in a thin plate.
337. When, again, the charge is feeble, the opening is
covered, and the water issuing from the sluice comes in con¬
tact with the walls of the canal, and suffers a retardation which
it communicates to the fluid as it passes the opening. The
waste, and therefore also its coefficient, are less in this than
in the previous case. It sometimes happens, that when the
charge is small, the sluice has no sensible effect, and the same
volume may be given either when the sluice is wholly raised,
or when it is plunged a little into the water. If, however,
the depth at which it is plunged be considerable, and if the
fluid vein on issuing be entirely covered by still water (as
in fig. 49), the height due to the velocity wfill be the differ¬
ence between the elevation of the two fluid surfaces. The
depth at the sluicergate is found by taking the height of the
water in the canal when the movement has become very
regular, the depth close to the sluice-gate being very small.
If then h be the depth of water in the canal, H' the height at
least of the sluice-gate above the sill of the entrance, the waste
of the opening of the sluice-gate, and, consequently, that of
the canal, will be expressed by Q = mlK\f ‘lg (IT — K) ; but
the expression for the discharge when the velocity has be¬
come sensibly uniform is
(7
2736^-0033
c
)
where S and c area s above, and p the sine of inclination
maVsTODD.') = S (2736 ^ -0-033) ,
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
which is the general equation relative to canals furnished
with a sluice-gate at their head.
338. The experiments of the Abbe Bossut were made on
a rectangular canal 105 feet long, 5 inches broad at the bot¬
tom, and from 8 to 9 inches deep. The orifice which
transmitted the water from the reservoir into the canal was
rectangular, having its horizontal base constantly five inches,
and its vertical height sometimes half an inch, and at other
times an inch. The sides of this orifice were made of cop¬
per, and rising perpendicularly from the side of the reser¬
voir, they formed two vertical planes parallel to each other.
This projecting orifice was fitted into the canal, which was
divided into 5 equal parts of 21 feet each, and also into 3
equal parts of 35, and the time was noted which the water
took to reach these points of division. The arrival of the
water at these points was indicated by the motion of a very
small water-wheel placed at each, and impelled by the
stream. When the canal was horizontal, the following re¬
sults were obtained
Velocity of Water in a Rectangular Horizontal Canal 105 feet long, under different Altitudes of Fluid in the
Reservoir.
Altitude of the water in the re¬
servoir    
Ft.
11
Ft.
7
Vertical breadth of the orifice ' J inch.
Time in which the number of
feet in column seventh are<
run through by the water...
Sec.
2
5-
10-
16-
23 +
£ inch.
Sec.
3-
7
13-
20-
28 +
Ft,
3
J inch.
Sec.
3 +
9
17 +
27 +
38 +
Ft. in.
11 8
1 inch.
Sec.
2
4
7
11
16*
Ft. in.
7 8
1 inch.
Sec.
2 +
5
9
14
20
Ft. in.
3 8
1 inch.
Sec.
3-
6 +
11 +
18 +
26
Space run
through by
the water.
Feet.
21
42
63
84
105
339. It appears from column 1st, that the times succes¬
sively employed to run through spaces of 21 feet each, are
as the numbers 2, 3-, 5, 6, 7 + , which form nearly an
arithmetical progression, whose terms differ nearly by 1, so
that by continuing the progression we may determine very
nearly the time in which the fluid would run through any
number of feet not contained in the 7th column. The same
may be done with the other columns of the table.
If we compute theoretically the time which the water
should employ in running through the whole length of the
canal, or 105 feet, we shall find, that under the circum¬
stances for each column of the preceding table the times,
reckoning from the first column, are 6‘350, 7‘834, 11 ’330,
6‘350, 7‘834, 11*330 sec. It appears, therefore, by compar¬
ing these times with those found by experiment, that the
velocity of the stream is very much retarded by friction,
and that this retardation is less as the breadth of the orifice
is increased; for since a greater quantity of water issues in
this case from the reservoir, it has more power to overcome
the obstacles which obstruct its progress. The signs + and
- affixed to the numbers in the preceding table, indicate
that these numbers are a little too great or too small.
340. It is of the utmost importance to determine the
form of canal which will convey the greatest possible vo¬
lume of water under a given area of transverse section. In
order to this it must be remembered, that the volume con¬
veyed along the canal is greatest when the transverse sec¬
tion of the fluid mass is greatest, and the wetted perimeter
least. A figure, therefore, must be selected, which, under
the same perimeter, presents the greatest surface. By
geometry, we know the regular polygons fall under this class
of figures; and as a circle is nothing else than a polygon
with an infinite number of sides, circular and semi-circular
channels are also included in it. But when a semi-poly¬
gonal figure is chosen for the channel, the utility diminishes
as the sides of the polygon diminish. The most easily exe¬
cuted are the regular semi-hexagon, the semi-pentagon,
and the semi-square.
341. The question of figure then for canals which will
convey the greatest volume of water, is reduced to taking,
among all the trapeziums with sides of a determinate slope,
that one which has the greatest section for a given wetted
perimeter; or (which is the same thing), that which has the
greatest hydraulic mean depth. We shall find that this
section is a semi-hexagon. The transverse area, there¬
fore, or S = (^ + nhfh (see 325). This expression is to be a
maximum, and, consequently, its differential will be zero;
dS , , dl _ .
.% -jj =l-\-h-~jj-\'2nh^=0'i
dk dh
or, h .dl + l.dh-lt-2nh .dh = 0.
But (325) c=l-\-2h\/«2+ 1 is to be differentiated, and c is
a constant;
.*. = 0 = ^ + 2\/ra2 + 1; or, 0 = <7/ + 2 . c/A . aA*2 +1 »
dh dh
and on substituting the value of dl from the former in the
140
HYDRODYNAMICS.
the maximum discharging
ments^n ^ltter eclliation> we Jlave /=2A (\/ rf+l —n)-, giving / also
theMotion *ts va^ue in ^ie expression for the transverse section, we
of Fluids, have S = A2 (2\/rc2 + 1 -w) ; so also c = 4/<\/ri1 + ] —2nh.
_ S _ h2 (2\f ril + 1 -n) _hL_
c 2//(2\/«‘2+1 — n) 2
hydraulic mean depth (325) ; wherefore, in all trape¬
zoidal channels of the best form with certain given slopes
and area, the hydraulic mean depth is one-half the depth of
the w'ater.
The transverse section of
channel may be thus ob¬
tained. Suppose that ABCD
(fig. 63) is the regular chan¬
nel required, draw EB, EC,
dividing the section into tri¬
angles, of which AEB, EDC
are equal in every respect; and
let EP, ER, EQ be perpen¬
diculars upon AB, DC, and
BC from E. Then we have
S 4 „
c=2’°rS =
= AB
EP
2
EP
+ DC
ER
+ BC
^=(AB + BC + CD)|;
EP h
or (AB + BC + DC)—=(AB + BC + CD)£;
—; or, /< = EP. A circle, then, with E as centre,
and radii equal to EP, EQ, or ER, will pass through P, Q,
and R. Generally, therefore, to find the maximum dis¬
charging section, describe a circle with any radius, draw a
tangent to serve as the base of the section parallel to the
horizontal diameter, and from the extreme points of the
base draw two tangents of the requisite inclination till they
meet the horizontal line ; the figure comprised by the three
tangents will be the transverse section required. The
dotted tangents mo, rp, and the base po, mark another sec¬
tion for the same thing, but with the sides sloping at a dif¬
ferent angle. Mr Neville gives this construction in his
Hydraulic Tables, p. 129.
342. Canals for inland navigation, aqueducts, and wooden
canals or courses for conveying water to manufactories, are
invariably made of a rectangular form, owing to the sim¬
plicity, facility, and economy of their construction ; but the
semi-hexagonal section is that which conveys the greatest
volume of water.
343. M. Genieys, in his Essais sur les Moyens de Con-
duire, d'Elever, et de Distribuer les Eaux, pays particular
attention to the inclination of canals and aqueducts. He
endeavours to find that velocity which best suits the nature
of the soil, but specially one that w’ould maintain the salu¬
brity of the water. He gives 35 centimetres, or 13*75
inches per second, for the minimum velocity. M. Girard,
in his Rapport sur le projet general du Canal de VOurcq,
adopts a less velocity; he proposed at first to regulate the
inclination of the Canal de 1’Ourcq according to the law
represented by the co-ordinates of the funicular polygon
(see Mechanics) ; but the inclinations per metre for the
upper (0*0000625 met.) and lower (0*0001236 met.) part of
the canal w'ere found insufficient. Dubuat thought that the
smallest inclination capable of maintaining the mobility of
water is 1 in 1,000,000; the motion is scarcely perceptible
at 1 in 500,000. W hile experimenting on an artificial canal
set to 1 in 9288, he found the mean velocity to be nearly
6 inches per second, and < inches per second in a drain
near Conde inclined at 1 in 27,000.
The most recent observations on the ancient aqueducts
show that the inclination varied from 1 in 432 to 1 in 648.
The fall of the new river or canal which conveys water
to London is only 0*25 feet per mile, or 1 in 21,120; its
motion, about one-half mile per hour, is too small, since Experi-
during summer the temperature of the water is raised. ments on
344. The practical application of a fluid such as water^°^on
flowing through orifices in the sides or bottoms of vessels, ° u^ds,y
in pipes, and open canals, or over weirs, is of the utmost *
importance. Besides those instances which have already
been mentioned for the purpose of illustration, we may state
the following. An example, on a large scale, of water issu¬
ing through an orifice is to be found in the sluices con¬
structed in tidal harbours for sweeping away at low water
the deposit that generally accumulates there. Were it not
for some effectual remedy of this kind, many of the most
important tidal harbours on the English coast would have
been long ere now completely silted up. Smeaton intro¬
duced these sluices into Britain from the low countries. He
threw an embankment across some part which was wholly
covered at high water, so that at the ebbing of the tide a
considerable volume of water might be caught in a reser¬
voir. At low water the sluices in the bank w ere drawn up,
and the water allowed to escape among the mud. But this
method soon fell into disrepute, as the area of the back¬
water itself soon became silted up. Smeaton, however, im¬
proved upon his original plan, by erecting a second bank
altogether or nearly perpendicular to the first, by which the
back-water was divided into two areas, each of which was
made to cleanse the other, while both kept the harbour
clear. The harbours of Ramsgate, Dover, and Hartlepool,
are familiar illustrations of this method. (See Smeaton’s
Reports, vol. ii., pp, 202-209; and Sir John Rennie On
Harbours.)
Other examples are seen in the filling of canal locks, and
in the supplying of manufactories and other works from city
pipes. In the latter case, a very small orifice is generally
perforated in a disc, which is closed up so as to secure it
from any unfair interference.
But perhaps one of the best instances of water flowing
through orifices is to be found in districts watered by means
of canals. Many examples of this kind are to be found in
Captain Baird Smith’s w'ork on Italian Irrigation. In the
irrigated districts of Italy it was long a matter of import¬
ance to determine the unit of volume of water, and some
means of regulating the due supply to each proprietor; so
that, on the one hand, neither the government nor landlords
might be defrauded, nor, on the other, occupants of lands
suffer any injustice. The earlier units were at first only ori¬
fices of a fixed area in the side of the canal, without any
reference to the head or charge under which the issue took
place; but the variations of the water-level in the canal,
afterwards made it necessary that a constant pressure be
maintained. The unit on the canal of Caluso was called
ruote or wheel, and was defined as a square, the side of
which is equivalent to 1*6702 feet: the upper edge of the
outlet is locally said to be a jior di acqua, or level with the
surface of the canal or reservoir, the discharge hence tak¬
ing place under no pressure. The modulo, or volume per
second discharged by Xheruota, was 11*83 cubic feet. The
volume measured by this ruote, w hich was introduced by F.
D. Michelotti, was afterwards reduced to 10*84 cubic feet by
his son Ignazio. Another of these units is the oncia magis-
£ra/eof Milan; it is 0*655 feet high, 0*3426feet broad, and has
a constant pressure of 0*32944 feet over the upper edge of
the outlet. The orifice is cut in a single stone slab, and
that it may not be unfairly made use of, is girded by an
iron ring. The modulo or volume of the oncia magistrate,
as applied upon the Naviglio Grande, distributes 1851 cubic
feet per second over a course of 31 miles. The honour of
its discovery is due to Soldati of Milan, about the year
1571. It appears that for summer irrigation each cubic
foot of water distributed per second suffices to water 61*8
acres, and that the annual rent for this volume is equivalent
to L.13*25.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
141
Ex i- 345. Great improvements have taken place in these out-
ments on lets since they were first applied. One of the simplest and
the Motion most beautiful is that founded on the effect of the double
of Fluids. cistern. It is identical with fig. 49 of Prop. XV., the only
' clifference being that in the vertical side of FE, an orfice
in that side discharges in the open air.
346. Captain B. Smith gives us, in the case of the Grand
Ganges Canal, an example on a very magnificent scale, of
water flowing through an orifice. This canal, which was
lately opened, has a course of 898 miles, is navigable
throughout, and waters a district of country equal in area
to 5,400,000 acres. The inclination of this canal is 1 in
3520, its depth is 10 feet, the breadth of its bed over the
whole length is 140 feet, and it is intended to convey 6750
cubic feet per second. The slopes are not mentioned, but at
from P5 to 1, calculation would give a volume of 7316
cubic feet. The inclination of this canal may, from its
vast dimensions, be regarded as considerable, and such that
the resisting velocity would wear down its sides, but it is
supposed that this is prevented, and consequently the
velocity diminished, by the rapid growth of aquatic plants
on its bed, which is a serious impediment on all canal works.
347. M. Girard feared that the growth of plants would
be an element in retarding the velocity of the water flow-
in the Canal de 1’Ourcq, and adopted the inclination of
0‘0000305 met., or 1 in 947.
348. As an example of water flowing in pipes, we need
only mention the supplying of cities by mains and culverts
or tunnels. The Croton Water-works supply the city of
New York by a culvert, the section of which is not unlike
the dotted fig. of 341 ; it is covered over its entire length,
which is a means of preserving the water pure, and of a
low temperature; its fall is 13^ inches, or 1T25 feet per
mile; the waste is 60,000,000 gallons every 24 hours, or
11T1 cubic feet per second.
349. The projected supply from Loch Katrine for the
city of Glasgow is to be conveyed by means of a culvert
8 feet in diameter, and inclined at l in 6336. The valleys
which intervene are to be passed by a 48-inch cast-iron
main ; the fall over the whole length will be 1 in 1000, or
5‘28 feet per mile.
350. It is a very important matter also to have, both for
cities, manufactories, and for irrigating purposes, a constant in¬
variable discharge. The late Mr Thom, hydraulic engineer to
the Gorbals Water-works, near Glasgow, devised an apparatus
by which a constant discharge might be maintained through
an orifice with a constantly varying charge over its centre.
351. The application of the subject to the case of weirs
may be seen in the waste-boards thrown across rivers and
streams. When weirs are seen in rivers, salmon-gaps are
always made in the board, so that the fish may get up the
stream. A very ingenious application of weirs is to be seen
on the Manchester Water-works. The reservoirs are there
supplied in part by the mountain streams, which, in rainy
weather, carry down mud and filth, rendering the water
unfit for domestic use. Hence the necessity of construct¬
ing weirs across several of these streams, to carry away the
turbid water. In fine weather these supplying streams con¬
vey clear water, and discharge it by a weir at the top of a
stone wall, which is a side of a reservoir open at the top.
The opposite side of this reservoir is built at such a dis¬
tance from the former that, in rainy weather, when the
stream comes down with violence, its velocity urges it
across the reservoir altogether, and all the dirty water is
then conveyed to a compensation-pond, which supplies the
mills of manufactories. Before and after its greatest velo¬
city much muddy water would enter the reservoir, did not
a man attend and put on a cover over the top.
SECTION IX.-—FLOW OF WATER IN RIVERS.
352. It is only recently that the motions of rivers have
been made the subject of scientific study ; it may be said Experi-
to date only from the year 1665, when the celebrated con- ments on
gress of philosophers met by appointment of the Roman the Motion
and Florentine governments, to put an end to the quarrels ° ^ u1^ ,
which had taken place among the inhabitants bordering the
Yal de Chiana (the ancient Chesina Palus). Ihe Chiana,
lying between the Tiber and Arno had been alternately
pushed backwards and forwards, till at last the district had
become a noxious marsh. It was this same river which
gave rise to the famous controversy in the Roman senate,
when it was proposed to prevent the inundations of the
Tiber, by throwing the Chiana into the Arno. What was
once a marsh, however, is now one of the most fertile dis¬
tricts in Italy (10).
353. On the resistance of irregular forms and slopes of
river beds, Dubuat made several experiments which are
worthy of notice. He took different kinds of earths, sands,
and stones, and placed them successively on the bottom of
a wooden canal; on inclining the canal at different angles
he varied the velocity of the water, and, therefore, also ob¬
tained a measure of the material set in motion.
Metres.
For white clay the measure was  0’08
... fine sand  0-16
... gravel of the Seine, size of a pea  0-19
... gravel of the Seine, size of a bean   0-32
... sea pebbles, an inch in diameter   0-65
... flint stones, size of a hen’s egg  LOO
He afterwards covered the bottom of the canal with a
layer of sand, and the sand moved with the water under a
velocity of 03 met. After some time, the sand presented
a series of beautiful undulations or ridges 0T2 met. broad.
The grains of sand, forced on by the current, rose to the
tops of the ridges, and after falling down by their own
weight to the base of the next ridge, were again lifted to its
summit. He found that half an hour was required for a par¬
ticle to traverse a complete ridge, so that the rate of motion
would be about 6 met. in twenty-four hours. It is in
this way that the grains of sand move over the Dunes by
the impulsion of the winds.
354. The effect of the velocity of the water in carrying
away particles from the bed of a river will depend on their
tenacity and size. With respect to the size, the volumes or
weights of similar bodies decrease faster than their areas;
and the pressure or force urging a body down a stream
being proportional to the transverse section, is relatively
greater the less is the volume ; hence, the smaller the par¬
ticles the less is the velocity required to move them. Mr
Beardmore gives in his Hydraulic Tables the limit of bot¬
tom velocities in different materials.
30 feet in 1 minute will not disturb clay with sand and stones.
40 feet in 1 minute will move along coarse sand.
60 feet in 1 minute will move along fine gravel.
120 feet in 1 minute will move along rounded pebbles.
180 feet in 1 minute will move along angular stones.
When the beds of rivers, however, are protected by
aquatic plants, they will bear higher velocities than those
just now mentioned.
355. When the bed of a river is broad and deep, and
the water moves slowly, the surface of the fluid will be
nearly horizontal; but under a rapid current, in places
where the river contracts, the surface assumes a very de¬
cided inclination. In a very decided slope of the surface
to the horizon, the fluid surface becomes convex ; it is con¬
cave when the inclination towards the horizon has dimin¬
ished very much. Were the bed horizontal, and its out¬
line constant, there would be an accelerated motion corre¬
sponding to the whole convexity of the surface ; and a re¬
tarded one for the concavity. Were the bed uniformly in¬
clined, there would only be an accelerated motion so long
as the successive values of the inclination of the surface to
the horizon were greater than that of the bed ; otherwise,
142
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
the motion would be re
notwithstanding the convexity
tarded.
356. The inequalities of the bottom have some influence
on the form of the surface of the current. In general, the
inequality at the surface will be smaller compared with that
at the bottom, as the water is deeper and the velocity
greater. Sometimes, also, in times of great inundations, when
dikes about 8 feet high are covered, the surface is equal
and the water passes over without any sensible depression.
357. The transverse section, then, of the surface of a
river, presents the appearance generally of a convex curve,
the summit thread being that which may be considered as
having the greatest velocity. On each side of this fluid fila¬
ment, the level lowers as the sides are approached by a
quantity sometimes equal, sometimes unequal. The velo¬
city also of the different parts of the current is large, and
their respective elevation is considerable.
According to Dubuat, the principle which is exempli¬
fied in such a form of fluid surface, is as follows :—If, from
any cause whatsoever, a fluid column comprised in an in¬
definite fluid, or contained between solid walls, should move
with a given velocity, the pressure which it exercises Jate-
rally by its own motion against the surrounding fluid, or
against the solid wall, will diminish that pressure which is
due to the velocity with which it moves. (Principes, §
453.) Consequently, the molecules of the fluid threads, as
also the surrounding ones, moving more quickly than those
near the borders, exercise against them a feebler pressure,
and a very large number or a higher column of them would
be required to make an equilibrium. On this principle,
however, philosophers are not generally agreed.
358. \ arious methods have been devised by different
experimenters for measuring the velocity of running water,
either at or under the surface. The velocity of the sur¬
face may be simply and directly found by means of a float,
made of any substance the specific gravity of which is the
same or a little heavier than that of water. No part of the
body must, if accuracy is required, be exposed to the at¬
mosphere. If the current flows regularly for a considerable
distance, the float will be carried uniformly with the stream ;
and if we count the number of seconds elapsing between
the float passing the extreme points of the interval, we
know at once the rate of velocity per second, from the ex¬
pression for uniform motion.
359. If to this float, which is supposed to be under the
surface, we attach by a silken string a body specifically
lighter than water, as a ball of pith of elder, part of the sur¬
face of which will be exposed to the atmosphere, and place
both bodies in the middle of a current, it will be found that
the pith-of-elder ball will be a little behind the one under
the surface; which shows that the threads of fluid that flow
fastest are not on the surface, but at a small distance, or
rather immediately under it. This velocity, however, may
be called that of the surface.
360. Bossut’s ivheel {Traite d’Hydrodynamique, § 665),
similar to that in fig. 64, will also enable us to determine
the surface velocity of running water. It is not, however,
so correct an instrument as the float already described
(358), for the friction of the screw, the resistance of the at¬
mosphere, and the weight of the wheel, enter as elements
of resistance. I he small wheel WW should be formed of
the lightest materials. It should be about 10 or 12 inches
in diameter, and furnished with 14 or 16 float-boards. This
wheel moves upon a delicate screw aB, passing through
it» axle B5; and when impelled by the stream it will gra¬
dually approach towards D, each revolution of the wheel
corresponding with a thread of the screw. The number of
revolutions performed in a given time are determined upon
the scale ma, by means of the index Oh fixed at O, and
moveable with the wheel, each division of the scale bein"
equal to the breadth of a thread of the screw, and the ex^
tremity h of the index Oh coinciding with the beginning
Fig. Cl.
of the scale, when the shoulder h of the wheel is screwed
close to a. The parts of a revolution are indicated by the
bent index mn, pointing to the periphery of the wheel,
which is divided into 100 parts. When this instrument is
to be used, take it by the handles C, D, or when great ac¬
curacy is. required, make the handles, regarded now as pivots,
rest in grooves properly supported; and screw the shoul¬
der h of the wheel close to a, so that the indices may both
point to 0, the commencement of the scales. Then, by
means of a stop-watch or pendulum, find how many revolu¬
tions of the wheel are performed in a given time. Multiply
the mean circumference of the wheel (or the circumference
deduced from the mean radius, which is equal to the dis¬
tance of the centre of impulsion or impression from the axis
&B), by the number of revolutions, and the product will be
the number of feet through which the water moves in the
given time. (Ferguson’s Zec^res.) Dubuat used a fir wheel
of this kind very successfully. (See his Hydraul, § 441.)
361. Another instrument by which we can determine
the surface velocity of water is the pendulum, which con¬
sists of an ivory or hollow metal ball fixed to a thread, the
other end of the thread being tied to a graduated quadrant.
Ihe quadrant is placed above the surface, but the ball is
under the water; the force of the current drags the ball
with it, and the string receives a certain inclination, the
fixity of the machine itself balancing the force of the cur¬
rent. The surface velocity, as deduced by this instrument,
is equal to the product of the square root of the tangent of
inclination, and a constant, or v = n\/tan i, where v is the
velocity required, n the constant, and i the inclination of
the thread to the vertical. Venturoli mentions this and
other pendulums. Zendrini1 showed with this pendulum
that the velocities in different parts of the section of the
River Po were as the square roots of the heights, when the
velocities are not very great. This has been confirmed by
many succeeding experimenters.
362. I o measure the velocity of running water below the
surface, the tube of Pitot is the simplest instrument.2 Pitot’s
tube is one ot glass, bent nearly at right angles, and expand¬
ing in a funnel-shape at the lower end, which is to be plunged
into the water to the required depth. If the water be in a
state of rest when the instrument is plunged into the water,
the orifice being right against the current, then the level
within and without the tube will be the same ; but if there
be a current in the water, a column of fluid will ascend the
vertical part ot the tube, and be a counterpoise to the force of
the stream, which impels the column upward. It is natural
to suppose that if the depth of the layer the velocity of
which is required, be h the fluid column, the velocity will
be expressed by v = */2gh. But this is not the case, for
the pressure exercised on a body plunged in water is de¬
pendent on its form, and further, the pressures of the divers
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
1 Leggi, Fenomeni, Regolazioni ed Usi delli Acque Correnti.
Aquarum Fluentium Mansur a, lib. iv.
HYDRODYNAMICS. 143
Experi- fluid fillets around the central one diminish from the centre
ments on to the circumference of the vein. Hence the necessity of
the Motion iso]ating, if possible, the central fillet at any depth, so as
of Flmds- to determine its velocity. Dubuat, from these considera-
tions, gave the tube a funnel-shape at its lower end, and
closed up this orifice by means of a plate, piercing only its
centre by a small hole. When the tube thus arranged was
plunged to any depth in water, it was found that two-thirds
only of the elevated column in the tube was the height
due to the velocity, and not as above the whole height; or
v = s/'lg .yi — 6‘55 \/ k feet. (Bossut’s Hydrant, \ 572.)
363. Brlinnings devised a kind of balance which he
named a Tachometer, or a measurer of velocity. The water
at the required depth impinges on a vertical plate fixed to a
horizontal rod, the extremity of which has attached to it a
string passing upwards, and tied to a rod above the surface.
This latter rod is kept in the horizontal position by means
of a moveable weight, which, from its position on its arm,
measures the velocity.
364. But of all instruments for measuring the velocity of
a current at any depth, the most accurate is regarded as the
Mill of Woltmann, which was described and made use of
by him in 1790. The instrument, represented in fig. 65,
consists of a small wheel with 2, 3, or 5 plane fins of consider¬
able breadth, fixed by their radii to the main axis M, of the
instrument. The beam M, carrying the wheel, is placed
parallel to, or right against the direction of the stream ; and
the fins of the wheel are obliquely set with respect to the
water; so that, as soon as the water impinges against the
fins, the wheel will begin to rotate, and that more rapidly
as the velocity of the stream increases. The number of
turns that the wheel makes in a given time will enable us
to determine the force of the current at any depth. In order,
however, to obtain such a result, the beam M has an end¬
less screw G, under which is a toothed wheel, which works
into the screw. To the left of the toothed wheel is
another, put in motion by a pinion fixed to the first,
but moving much more slowly than it. The axes of both
wheels B, B, have their extremities fitted into a piece C,
moveable round its left end, but a rod E is employed to
elevate or depress the right extremity of this sort of lever,
in order to put the toothed wheel in communication with
the endless screw G, or remove it. When the rod E is
not pulled upwards, the lever-beam C lowers itself under
the action of a spring F, whereof the upper part is attached
to the frame of the apparatus ; the toothed wheels B, B, also,
and at the same time, lower themselves, and are caught by
two projecting pieces A, A, which insert themselves into
their teeth, and so prevent the wheels from turning round.
The whole apparatus, by means of the ring N, slides down Experi-
a long pole to the required depth, and is there fixed by the merits on
screw S ; the pole D being made fast in the river. The ^0*\on
long rod D being then in the river, and the mill fixed at the v° 8)
proper part of its length, and the beam in the direction of the ~~ V~^J
stream, the water will in the course of a few seconds produce
a uniform motion of the fins, and no sooner has this taken
place than the rod E is drawn up, which necessarily lifts
the toothed wheels, and places one of them in connection
with the endless screw of the beam, i.e., with the fins. The
apparatus is now allowed to be at work for a certain definite
time, as one second, when the rod E is then let down, and
the toothed wheels necessarily fall, and are caught by the
projecting pieces A, A, which prevent them from turning
after the communication has been stopped. The instru¬
ment is then drawn up, and the positions noted that the
points A, A hold on the wheels, which will denote the num¬
ber of teeth that the wheel to the right has turned round
during the time of the experiment; and this number will
indicate the turns that the wheel has made ; for, as the
beam turns round once, so does the screw, and one turn of
the screw is equivalent to one tooth of the wheel passed over.
If we neglect the small amount of friction in this appara¬
tus, the velocity of the stream is proportional to the velo¬
city of the fins, and this last to the number n of turns
which the wheel makes in a unit of time ; or to N, the re¬
volutions it makes in T seconds of time,
N
v = a . n = a — ;
T
where a is a constant coefficient for the same mill, and to
be determined by experiment. We can determine a, by
counting the number of turns which the wheel makes in a
given time when it is placed in a current of a known or
uniform velocity, or by moving the instrument with a given
velocity through a mass of still water ; then, on dividing
the number of turns by the time, we obtain the number of
turns in a unit of time, and this being the divisor of the
known or uniform velocity, will give o. Since a is thus
known, and is a constant quantity for the same mill, it will
suffice to count the number of turns the mill makes to di¬
vide it by the time taken in revolving, and let this quo¬
tient be multiplied by a, the product of which will give the
velocity required.
The rapidity with which the mill turns under the action
of a current, the velocity of which is 1 metre per second,
depends on the dimensions and disposition of the fin. The
palettes are generally thin, square copper plates, 0*025 met.
in the side, and their radii 0*05 met. in length; the angle
which their plane makes with the axis M is 45°.
365. These stream-measurers show us the curious fact,
that the velocities vary at different points in the same trans¬
verse section; that the velocity diminishes, as we have
already said (330), on approaching the bed, and its sides.
The law of this diminution must be stated. The doctrine,
however, was only taken up by philosophers after the year
1730; for, previous to that time, the common belief was
that advanced by Guglielmini (in his work entitled La
Misura dell' Acque Correnli, published about 1695), who
supposed that the velocity at any depth of a river was as
the square root of that depth. He regarded every point in
a fluid mass as tending to move with the same velocity as it
would do on issuing from an orifice; and, therefore, he
inferred that the layer which has the greatest velocity must
be that at the bed or bottom, and the layer of least velocity
that at the surface, besides a continual acceleration from
the river as it moves. But Pitot, in 1730, from a series of
experiments on the River Seine, which he had made with
his tube (362), showed that the velocities followed a
law the very opposite of that advanced by Guglielmini; that
they diminished from the surface on nearing the bed.1
1 Memoires de VAca.dtm.ie des Sciences dc Paris, 1732.
144
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
Briinnings, in 1789 and 1790, Ximenes, and other hy-
draulicians, undertook series of experiments to determine
the law of diminution of the velocity. Briinnings’ were con¬
fined to branches of the Rhine traversing Holland; at
each station he took, by the Tachometer which he had
constructed for this purpose, the velocity at the depth of
every foot. From these results—‘which may be seen in the
following: table—
Names of Rivers.
Depth.
Velocity of
Surface. Mean.
Ratio of
mean to
surface
velocity.
Waal 
Waal 
Lower Rhine....
Lower Rhine....
Higher Rhine,..
Issel 
Issel  
Lower Rhine 
Waal 
Lower Rhine 
Higher Rhine...
Lower Rhine 
Lower Rhine 
Lower Rhine....
Lower Rhine....
Waal 
Waal 
Higher Rhine ..
Met.
1-57
1- 57
1-88
2,ol
2- 51
2-82
2-82
282
3- 45
3-45
376
3-76
3- 76
376
4- 08
4-39
4-39
4-39
Met.
0-670
0-708
0-874
1-001
1-097
1-283
1-289
1-307
1-025
1-379
1-307
1-397
1-416
1-433
1-484
1-184
1-226
1-467
Met.
0-627
0-664
0-779
0-926
1-058
1-218
1-243
1-259
0-938
1-320
1-220
1-286
1-361
1-369
1-341
1-068
1-131
1-332
0-934
0-938
0-892
0-925
0-965
0-965
0-965
0-963
0-915
0-957
0-936
0-921
0-962
0-954
0-934
0-902
0-923
0-908
Woltmann inferred that on reckoning from the surface
the velocities diminished as the ordinates of a reversed para¬
bola. Funk, considering the same table, supposed that the
velocities followed the logarithmic curve, that is to say,
that as the depths increase in arithmetical progression, the
velocities diminish in geometrical progression. But M.
Raucourt, from a series of experiments on the Neva, at St
Petersburg!], has represented the velocities on the same
vertical by the ordinates of an ellipse, the smaller axis being
vertical, the lower extremity being under the bottom, and the
upper a little under the surface.1 M. Defontaine, however,
from experiments on the Rhine with Woltmann’s mill,
gives the law of the diminution of velocities in the following
terms:—In general, and in proportion to the depth under
the surface, in a river, the velocity of the water gradually
diminishes, at first insensibly, then more and more percep¬
tibly, and increases very rapidly on nearing
the bottom, where the velocity is almost
always more than half the velocity at the
surface. The curve may be easily repre¬
sented by laying off on a vertical, lengths
proportional to the depths, and horizontal
lines proportional to the corresponding
velocities of the table. The curve ap¬
proaches nearly to an arc of the para¬
bola, the ordinates of which are the velo¬
cities, diminishing by a constant quantity.2
366. These experiments of M. Raucourt on the Neva,
and those of M. Defontaine on the Rhine and its affluents, are
among the most important made on rivers in modern times.
The object of M. Raucourt was to ascertain how far the
law of velocities of water in pipes coincided with that in
open channels, when a river, for example, was frozen, and
when free from ice. During the winter, therefore, of 1824,
when the Neva was frozen, a part of it was chosen, which
was 900 feet wide, and 63 feet deep, with a section very
regular, so that this part of the river was, as it were, an
immense pipe. Several holes were now made in the ice
till the water was reached, and an instrument like the com-
Depth.
Met.
0-00
0-20
0-40
0-60
0-80
1-00
1-20
1-40
Velocity.
1-226
1-218
1-198
1-167
1-125
1-057
0-950
0-880
mon ship’s log sent down; the maximum velocity was found to
be a little below the centre of each vertical, and diminished
as either bank was neared. After repeated trials, the relative1
velocities were found to differ only by ^th from each other.
The greatest velocity was found to be a little below the
centre of the deepest vertical, and = 2 ft. 7 in. per second ;
Velocity near the top, =1 ... 11
Velocity near the bottom, =1 ... 8
During the summer of 1826 Raucourt commenced anew
his experiments on the same river, both in calm and windy
weather: when calm, the maximum velocity was the same
as the surface velocity ; when windy, the acceleration was
greater or less. Detrem and Henry give, in the Journal
des Votes de Communication for 1826, an account of the
experiments which they undertook for the purpose of veri¬
fying the results of Raucourt. They found that the ratio
of the mean to the superficial velocity was as 0-715 : 0-903 ;
that the maximum velocity diminished from the upper to
the lower part of the river from l-79 to FOlo met.; and
that the volume of the Neva per second was 3284-54 cub.
met. The inclination also was found to be 1 in 37078.
367. Tlie object of M. Defbntaine’s experiments was the
execution of certain works which were intended to restrain
and regulate the course of that part of the Rhine adjoining
the French territory. That part of the Rhine to which
Defontaine mainly directed his attention, is comprised be¬
tween Basle and Neubourg. The river here is very irregular
in its motion, owing to the islands and sand-banks; its in¬
clination also is very variable. The greatest slope is near
Basle, at low water, owing to the rocks : during times of
floods, the inclination decreases by four-fifths its value.
In the mean state of the Upper Rhine the inclination is
1 in 1037; while at the frontier below the confluence of
the Lauter, after a course of 224-460 met. along the Fi’ench
shore, it is 1 in 2534, or nearly a third part of the former.
The total fall being taken at 143’935 met., the mean in¬
clination is 1 in 1545, which is nearly that of the river at
Brisack and Sponeck. Besides the valuable information re¬
specting this river which is to be found in Defbntaine’s
work, Travaux du Rhin, we have the velocities of the
river at different parts of it course.
The following table shows that the decrease of velocities
is irregular, and that they do not follow the law of the
square roots of the inclinations :—
Names of Places.
Basle 
Huningen  
In the angle of Krembs 
... ... Schalampe.
Opposite Vieux Brisach....
At Sponeck 
At Artolsheim 
At Rhinau 
At Guerstheim 
At the Bridge of Kehl 
At Offendorff 
At Drusenheim 
At Beinheim 
Limit of Bavarian frontier.
At Mannheim 
Velocities per second.
Low
Water.
Metres.
1-65
1- 70
1-88
2- 67
1-81
1-52
1- 97
2- 51
2-19
1-50
1-40
1-49
1-24
0-97
0-70
Mean
Water.
Metres.
2-25
2-75
2-62
2-79
2-15
2-87
213
2-25
1-97
1-73
1-56
1-20
High
Water.
Metres.
416
3-60
2 85
2-30
368. M. Defontaine made also a series of experiments
with Woltmann’s mill on the velocities of the Rhine in dif¬
ferent sections ; in the determination of which an extent of
60 met. was traversed, and a float was used, so suspended
that its specific gravity did not exceed that of the water.
The results are seen in the following table:—
Experi-
ments on
'he Motion
of Fluids.
1 Annales des Fonts et Chaussees, tom. iv., p. i., 1832.
2 16., tom. vi., 1833.
145
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
Experiments on the Velocities of the Rhine in different Sections.
Velocities at different parts
of the section.
At the surface 
Metres.
At 0‘10 below surface
... 0-20
... 0-30
... 0-40
... 0-50
... 0-60
... 0-70
... 0-80
... 0'8347 intersection
of the two divisions
... ODO below surface 
... 1-00  
... 1-10   1
or from bottom J
At bottom 
No. of
turns of
instru¬
ment in
30 seconds.
68
67^
65|
63$
62
61A
59
58
52$
49$
44
Space passed
through in
30 seconds.
Met.
29-308
29020
28-111
27-345
27-024
26-291
25-429
24-998
22-682
21-281
18-964
Velocity per
second.
Met.
1-0000
0-9769
0-9673
0-9370
0-9115
0-9008
0-8764
0-8476
0-8333
0-7563
0-7094
0-6321
Mean
velocity per
second.
Surface of the
section of
motion of the
different strata.
Met.
0-9959
0-9769
0-9578
0-9388
0-9198
0-9008
0-8817
0-8627
0-8437
0-8371
0-7867
0-7094
0-6321
0-5548
Met.
1-0131117
Mean
velocity per
second.
0-84426
Mean velo¬
city deduced
after for¬
mula of that
of surface.
Min.
0-81189
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
Defontaine deduces from these results,—Is/, That the
greatest velocity is at the surface; 2d, That the velocity,
diminishing at first insensibly, decreases rapidly towards the
bottom, in a ratio dependent on the nature of the bed; 3c?,
That supposing two right lines to pass through the extre¬
mities of four ordinates, determined by experiment, and
conveniently chosen in the curve, which should pass through
all the points obtained, the ordinates of these right lines,
corresponding to the velocities observed in the other points,
will differ little in the numerical expression of these veloci¬
ties ; 4//i, That the point of intersection of two right lines,
which each partial surface of partial motion circumscribes,
has for its ordinate a numerical value, which differs very
little from the mean velocity expressed by the quotient of
the surface of motions, divided by the depth of water; 6th,
That the mean velocities resulting from the preceding ob¬
servations are greater than the mean velocities adduced
from the velocity of the surface by means of the formula
adopted for gauging streams ; Qth, That the position of the
ordinates, which expresses the mean velocity of each surface
of partial motion, is nearer the bottom than the surface, or fds
of the depth, reckoning from the surface, and half the depth
when the bottom is very regular (Rennie’s Reports').
369. It appears from Briinnings’ table (365) that there
is a gradual though small diminution (about iVh) between
the surface and mean velocity; the relation ranges be¬
tween 0’93 and 0‘96. Ximenes found this relation from
his experiments on the Arno to be 0’92 ; and Defontaine,
from his experiments on the Rhine, about 0’87. For great
rivers, however, the relation is a little above 0‘90. In all
the preceding tables, which contain the mean and sur¬
face or maximum velocity, the former will be found to be
nearly equal to f ths of the latter ; and conversely, by adding
^th or so of the mean to itself we find the surface velocity.
370. In gauging a river, a station is selected, and sound¬
ings of the vertical transverse section at that point are
taken. The transverse area is divided into partial areas,
each of which is calculated. Then by means of a boat and
Woltmann’s mill, the mean velocity at each of the places
where soundings are taken is deduced from five, six, or
seven direct experiments. The mean of these mean velo¬
cities gives the mean velocity of the river, which, multiplied
by the sum of the partial areas, or the whole area of the tra¬
pezium, will give the waste of the river.
In order to find an approximate gauge a station may be
selected on the river, the bed of which, for some hundred
yards, is very regular. From a few soundings the area of
a transverse section is determined. By means of a float, the
VOL. XII.
velocity of the fluid thread in the length taken is found, and
consequently of that in the measured section. M. Prony’s
formula (331) furnishes us with the mean velocity of
the section, the product of which, with the area, will be the
discharge required.
371. The following table illustrates pretty correctly, by
its velocities and inclinations, the nature of the rivers of
Great Britain, which frequently in their course embrace
nearly all the eight descriptions :—
Velocity in feet Inclination in
Characteristics of Rivers. per minute. inches per mile.
1. Channels where the resistance from
the bed and other obstacles equal
the current acquired from the de¬
clivity, so that the waters would
stagnate were it not for the im¬
pulse of back water  50 to 120 2-00 to 5-28
2. Rivers in low flat countries, full of
turnings and windings, and of
a very slow current, subject to
frequent and lasting inundations 60 12"18
3. Artificial canals in the Dutch and
Austrian Netherlands   30 to 40 2-00 to 9-05
4. Rivers in most countries that are
a mean between flat and hilly,
which have good currents, but are
subject to overflow ; also the up¬
per parts of rivers in flat coun¬
tries   90 15,84
5. Rivers in hilly countries, with a
strong current, and seldom sub¬
ject to inundations ; also all rivers
near their sources have this decli¬
vity and velocity, and often much
more  130 19'8
6. Rivers in mountainous countries,
having a rapid current, and
straight course, and very rarely
overflowing  180 24-37
7. Rivers in their descent from among
mountains down into the plains
below, where they run torrent-
wise   300 31-68
8. Absolute torrents among moun¬
tains    480 37'27
SECTION X.—ON THE INFLUENCE OF HEAT ON THE MOTION
OF FLUIDS.
372. In all the experiments related in this chapter, and
in those of the Chevalier Dubuat, which are given in the ar¬
ticle Water-works, the temperature of the water em¬
ployed has never been taken into consideration. That the
T
146
Experi- fluidity of water is increased by heat can scarcely admit of
the Motion 8 Plutarch informs us that the clepsydrae or vvater-
of Fluids. c^ochs went slower in winter than in summer, and he seems
v ^ > to attribute this retardation to a diminution of fluidity. It
is therefore obvious, that warm water will issue from an
aperture with greater velocity than cold water, and that the
quantities of fluid discharged from the same orifice, and
under the same pressure, will increase with the temperature
of the fluid. Hence we may discover the cause of the
great discrepancy between the experiments of different
philosophers, performed in different climates and at different
seasons of the year.
373. M. Dubuat and M. Girard are the only persons
who have made experiments on this interesting subject.
M. Dubuat employed tubes of a large diameter, and hence
the effects of heat were not very conspicuous. The fol¬
lowing table contains the results which he obtained :—
Experiments on the Motion of different Fluids, at different
degrees of Temperature, in Tubes of Glass.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Names of the
fluids.
Rain water
Salt water
Salt water
Salt water
Alcohol ...
Mercury...
Mercury...
Mercury..
Rain water
Rain water
Rain water
Rain water
Alcohol...
Alcohol...
Mercury..
Mercury..
Mercury..
Mercury..
Alcohol ....j
Diameter and
length of the
pipe.
Head of
water
above the
top of the
tube.
Horizontal
tube 2-9 lines,
or 0'24166 of
an inch in
diameter, and
36'25 inches
long 
Horizontal
tube 2 lines,
or 0-16666 of
an inch in
diameter, and
36'25 inches
long 
Horizontal
tube line
in diameter,
and 34-16666
inches long...
2-0833
20833
2-0833
4- 9166
5- 0000
0-8124
0-9166
2-1944
8-875
15-2916
15-2916
15-2916
5-292
5-875
1- 125
2- 7082
5-1666
0-0555
9-292
Height
of the ex¬
panse in
a minute
expressed
in inches.
5-2777
5-1666
5- 2222
9-25
7-5833
3-75
40833
6- 6111
5- 2777
6- 9166
7- 0833
7-2013
2- 50
3- 8338
1-75
3- 00
4- 25
0-0000
1125
Velocity
in a se¬
cond in
inches.
13-057
12-7823
12- 9197
22-8845
18- 7611
9-2775
10-1021
16-3558
27-455
35- 980
36- 847
37- 461
13- 005
19- 941
9-103
15-606
22-108
0-000
10-402
Degrees
of heat
above the
freezing
point.
3
3
11
10 to 11
12
10 to 12
10 to 12
10 to 12
55
30
36
56
12
12
10 to 12
10 to 12
10 to 12
10 to 12
12
Hence our author concludes that the velocity of water
diminishes as its temperature approaches to that of the
freezing point, and vice versa ; that salt water has a less
velocity than rain water, that alcohol runs slower than wa¬
ter, and mercury more rapidly.
374. I he general result of M. Girard’s experiments has
been already given in the History of Hydrodynamics.
His experiments were made with copper tubes of exactly
the same internal diameter, and drawn upon steel mandrils ;
and he employed two sets of these tubes of different dia¬
meters. I he first set consisted of tubes whose length was
tivo decimetres, and diameter 2*96 millimetres, and they
screwed into each other so as to form tubes of various
lengths, from 20 to 222 centimetres. The second set con¬
sisted of smaller tubes, whose diameter was 1'83 millime-
ties. rhese tubes were then fixed horizontally in the
sides of a reservoir, which was a cylinder of white iron 25
centimetres in diameter, and 5 decimetres high. The re-
seivoii was kept full by the usual contrivances; and the
water discharged by the tube subjected to trial was re¬
ceived into a copper vessel horizontally, whose capacity
had been accurately ascertained. The filling of the vessel
was indicated by the instant when the water which it con¬
tained had wetted equally a plate of glass which covered
almost the whole of its surface, and the time employed to Experi-
fill this vessel was measured with great accuracy. The merits on
temperature of the water was also carefully noted. The Motion
results thus obtained amounted to 1200, and were arranged Huid8.
by M. Girard into thirty-four tables, according to the differ-
ent circumstances of the experiment. When the capillary
tube has such a length, that the term proportional to the
square of the velocity disappears in the general formula,
the velocity with which the fluid is discharged is affected
in a very singular manner by a variation of temperature.
D the velocity is expressed by 10 when the temperature is
0 of the centigrade thermometer, the velocity will be so
great as 42, or increased more than four times, when the
temperature amounts to 85° centigrade. When the length
of the capillary tube is below the above mentioned limif, a
variation of temperature exercises but a slight influence
upon the velocity of the issuing fluid. If the length of the
adjutage, for example, is 55 millimetres, and if the velocity
is represented by 10 at 5° of the centigrade thermometer,
it will be represented only by 12 at a temperature of 87°.
In conduit pipes of the ordinary diameter, a change of tem¬
perature produces almost no perceptible change in the ve¬
locity of efflux. M. Girard also found, that the quantity of
water discharged by capillary tubes, varied not only with
the fluids which were used, but with the nature of the solid
substance of which the tubes were composed.
SECTION XI. INDIVIDUAL EXPERIMENTS.
1. Experiments of M. Hachette.
375. 1 he experiments of M. Hachette were communi¬
cated to the National Institute in 1816. The first thing
that engaged his attention was to determine what effect the
figure of the orifice in a wall or plate had upon the waste
in a given time. Making trial of circular, triangular, and
elliptic apertures, and one formed of a circular arc and two
straight lines, he found that when the areas of the opening
and pressure are constant, the volume discharged is the
same: but when he made use of an aperture with re¬
entrant angles, the waste was either in excess or defect.
He found, also, that when the plane in which the aperture
is pierced is not horizontal, the issuing fluid vein describes
a curve, which is a parabola corresponding to a certain
initial velocity.
376. The ratio of the contracted area to that of the ori¬
fice was particularly attended to. It appears that the
smallest contraction observed, and which answered to the
smallest aperture, was 0-78 of the orifice. The diameter
of the orifice was 0-039 of an inch ; but for diameters in
excess of 0'39 of an inch, the contracted section was
nearly constant, ranging between 0-60 and 0-63. The con¬
traction varied a little with the altitude of the fluid, but
was independent of the direction of the jet.
Another result reached by M. Hachette was that, all
things remaining the same, the waste is a minimum when
the surface in contact with the fluid is convex; when the sur¬
face is plane it increases, and is a maximum when the sur¬
face is concave. The waste was found to vary about ^th,
according as one or other side of the plano-convex copper
disc containing the orifice was turned towards the fluid ;
sometimes it was greater.
377. With respect to the form of the fluid vein when
the aperture was a regular polygon, each side of the poly¬
gon became a base, not of a plane but of a surface,
convex externally from the orifice to the contracted sec¬
tion. I he concavity of the surface, after having reached a
maximum, diminishes near the contracted section ; beyond
which it changes, in consequence of the velocity acquired,
into a sensible convexity, so as to show a salient edge where
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Experi- before there was a hollow. The hollow and the salient edge
ments on succeeding it are produced on the middle of the side, and
the Motion are situated in a perpendicular plane. If the orifice present
of Fluids. jn jtg outline a re-entrant angle, an edge, hollow at first and
then convex, passes by the summit of this angle.
378. M. Hachette next made experiments on additional
tubes, that is, on tubes fitted into the orifice. These were
to explain the fact of cylindrical tubes in orifices giving a
greater discharge than through a simple orifice. His object
was to show that the attraction of the sides of the pipe was the
principal if not the main element in producing this. The
fluid employed was mercury, and the pipe of iron. When the
mercury was pure, the flow took place as through a simple
orifice, for the iron had no affinity for the fluid ; but when
impure, the discharge increased, for the walls were wetted.
Again, when he greased or waxed the interior of the pipe,
the flow was as through a simple orifice. When the dis¬
charge, however, was continued for some time, the wax got
wet, the water filled the tube, and the discharge increased.
379. The phenomena respecting the discharge of a fluid
into a vacuum was observed by this experimenter. From
his experiments on this subject under the exhausted re¬
ceiver, it appears that no increase in the discharge by pipes
takes place. In order to show this, a full stream flowed
through a tube under the receiver of an air-pump ; when
the pressure of the remaining air was reduced to 23 centi¬
metres, the external pressure being 76 centimetres, the fluid
vein was seen to detach itself from the sides of the tube.
As the air within was more and more rarified, the effect of
the external pressure increased, and, at the same time, was
transmitted to the pipe by means of the fluid contained in
the vessels, add to which also the pressure of the fluid itself.
But on repeating the experiment in air, he required over
the orifice a column of water equal to 22-8 met. high, to
detach the vein from the sides of the tube; the external
pressure being still 76 centimetres. Hence, the difference,
as measured by water, between the superior and inferior
pressure was 22‘8 — 1033 = 12‘47 met., or equivalent to 91
centimetres of mercury.
If in this rarified state of the receiver, the external air
be re-admitted within it, the water does not begin to flow
again in a full stream as it did at first; the detachment of
the vein from the sides of the pipe continues, as it did under
the exhausted receiver, although the full pressure of the at¬
mosphere is now acting on the water.
From experiments of this nature Hachette concluded
that adhesion of the fluid to the sides of the tube takes place
only at the commencement of the motion, before the fluid
has acquired a sensible velocity in a direction which sepa¬
rates it from the side. He verified this in the following
manner:—He allowed water to flow in a full stream bya pipe
outside the receiver of an air-pump, when on making a small
hole in the pipe near the orifice, the external air entered the
pipe, interposed itself between the fluid and the sides of the
pipe, the contraction took place inside the tube, and the
water ceased to flow in a full stream. The little hole was
now shut, but the adhesion of the water and the pipe was
not again produced, the flow taking place as if the pipe had
been removed.
380. Besides making experiments on long and short tubes
emanating from the side of a reservoir, he took the case of
a pipe penetrating the orifice inside the vessel containing
fluid; and found that when the inserted end of the pipe
was very thin, the effect was the same as when the orifice
was made in a plate convex towards the inside of the vessel,
the waste by such a pipe necessarily diminishing.
381. In order to show that the contraction of the vein
diminished with the height of the fluid, he made an orifice
27 millimetres in diameter, and, under a pressure of 15
centimetres, obtained a contraction of about 0'40, or a
contracted section of 0-60; while the same orifice, under
147
a pressure of 16 millimetres, gave only a contraction of Experi-
0-31. Hence, since the vein contracts as the pressure {
increases, the vein in passing through a pipe may be made ^ Fluids!
to detach itself altogether from the sides of the pipe, as has . r_ ^ j
been already stated.
382. When the pressure or head of water over the orifice
is very small, the fluid vein assumes a particular form, very
different from what it had before, and Hachette came to the
conclusion that it was independent of the outline of the orifice.
He observed these particular forms with orifices and pipes of
all figures and sizes ; they go by the name of secondary veins.
383. Besides experimenting on water, Hachette employed
other fluids passing out of orifices and pipes. The pheno¬
mena of mercury he found to be the same with those of
water. Alcohol, a more volatile fluid than water, flows
out more readily; and, consequently, a smaller pressure
is required to detach its particles from the walls of the
pipe than for those of water. When oil was used, its vis¬
cosity increases very considerably the duration of flow
through small orifices. In the case of an orifice 1 milli¬
metre broad, the time of flow was three times greater than
for water. The discharge, indeed, by a fine tube a milli¬
metre broad, and 5 centimetres long, was, with oil, drop by
drop, but when water passed through the same pipe there
was a fine stream. The head of oil was 1 met. high.
384. Hachette also made experiments to show the effect
of the medium in which the experiments were made ; how
it modified the pressures on the orifice when a flow took
place ; and how it opposed a certain resistance to the dis¬
charge or motion of the fluid. He also experimented on
the impediment to the motion of water arising from the
fluid vein impinging on fixed planes, placed at different dis¬
tances from the orifice. A vein issued out of a large vessel
by a circular horizontal opening 20 millimetres in diame¬
ter, and was received in a vessel at some distance from the
orifice. The level of the fluid in the vessel was depressed
about 6 decimetres in 10ra 20s. The plane face of an obsta¬
cle at different distances from the orifice was then pre¬
sented to the jet impinging perpendicularly.
The distances in millim. were 128, 80, 50, 24, 4 ; the
times in sinking six decim. were respectively 10m218, 10m
25s, 10™ 263, ilm 13s, 15“ 24s; which shows that, at the
distance of 128 millimetres, or 5 inches, the obstacle pre¬
sents no sensible effect; but at 4 millimetres, or 0'157 of
an inch, the time is increased rather more than one-half.
2. Experiments of Dr Matthew Young relative to the dis¬
charge of fluid through additional tubes.
385. Dr Young’s paper containing an account of these
experiments will be found in the 7th volume of the Tran¬
sactions of the Royal Irish Academy. The most interest¬
ing part of the memoir is that relating to the increased dis¬
charge through additional tubes. They were performed
about the year 1798.
When a tube, mnrs (fig. 66), is in¬
serted into the vessel A BCD, it is
found that the velocity is increased
nearly in the subduplicate ratio of the
length of the pipe when the tubes are
short; and that it approaches nearer to
that subduplicate ratio, according as the
length of the pipe is increased. The
explanation of this increase of velocity
is somewhat difficult, since the water
cannot issue at rs with a greater ve¬
locity than it enters the tube at mn;
and it does not appear how the velocity
of the fluid can be increased by the in¬
sertion of a tube in its bottom. In order to explain this,
we must consider that the weight pressing down the plate
HYDRODYNAMICS.
148
Experi- mn is the weight of a fluid column emvf, together with
ments on the atmospheric column of the same sectional area, while
|.|le UpWar[| pressure on the plate mn is a corresponding
° U1_ column of air, less the weight of a fluid column mnsr; hence
” v-*- [he plate mn is pressed down by the weight of a fluid co¬
lumn efsr. The velocity, then, with which the fluid lamina
mn will issue through the orifice mn, will be the same as
through the orifice rs in the vessel A&cD ; or that which a
heavy body would acquire in falling down through the verti¬
cal height er ; and the same will be the case for all the lami¬
nae between mn and rs; for they cannot descend faster, since
otherwise a vacuum would be left in the tube, which cannot
take place owing to the upward pressure of the atmosphere.
The velocity of escape will be the same, whatever be the
pressure of the atmosphere, provided only that the weight of
a column of air, of a base rs, and a height equal to that of
the atmosphere, be either greater than or equal to the weight
of the fluid cylinder mnrs. This might be proved expe¬
rimentally by inserting a pipe in the bottom of a vessel of
water or mercury, and the whole placed under the exhausted
receiver. Let x be the defect of the measure from the
standard altitude, it will determine the pressure of the air
on the mercurial surface ; let also y be the height of the mer¬
cury in the vessel above the upper orifice of the pipe, and l
the length of the pipe, then the whole downward pressure
on the plate of mercury which is immediately in the upper
orifice of the pipe, is x+y, and the upward force pressing
the same plate or layer of mercury is x — h the difference
between these two quantities or forces equals the absolute
force pressing that plate downwards, and will be expressed
by y + / so long as x is greater than /; if ar = /, then x — l=0,
and the force pressing the plate downwards is x+y = l+y',
hence, therefore, no variation in the time of efflux will be
perceived while the height of the mercury in the gauge or
measure is equal to or less than the difference between the
length of the pipe and the standard altitude. Let x be less
than l, then there is no upward force; and as before the
force pressing the plate downward is x-\-y, which varies as
x when y is constant, and which will therefore decrease as
x decreases ; if x vanish or is equal to nothing, or when
the receiver is absolutely exhausted, the force is y, and the
time of efflux will be the same as if the pipe had not been
inserted in the bottom of the vessel.
386. In order to test his theory, Dr Young inserted a
tube 7'8 inches long, in a cylindrical vessel, closed the ori¬
fice of the pipe, and filled the vessel to a depth of 6 inches
with mercury ; he then placed the whole apparatus under
the receiver of an air-pump, the barometer being at 30 in.,
and the gauge at 28‘5 ; the time of efflux was found to be
26 seconds: when the experiment was repeated under the
same circumstances, but in the open air, the time of efflux
was found to be 19 seconds. Now, since the gauge stood
at 28’5 inches, the defect a: was 30 —28*5 = 1*5 ; and as the
pressure on the mercurial plate was 6+ 1#5 = 7'5, but in the
open air was 6 + 7'8 = 13'8, therefore the ratio of the velocity
of efflux in both cases, which is the same as the inverse ratio
of the times, was as VLd : a/13:8 = 2-73 : 3-71 = 19 : 26
nearly. rl he times of efflux were the same in the open air and
under the exhausted receiver, except when the gauge stood
higher than 22,o inches ; i.e., unless the height of mercury
in the gauge exceeded the difference between the length of
the pipe and standard altitude. In another experiment
which he made, the gauge standing at 27‘9, and the baro¬
meter at 29'9 inches, the defect was found equal to 2, and
the pressure was 8. But Vs = 2-828, and = 3-71,
now 2-828 : 3"7 = 19 : 24 nearly; by experiment the time of
efflux was found to be 23 seconds. When the efflux is made
in vacuo, the pipe is not filled during the efflux, as it is
while the discharge is made in the open air.
Since the water column in pipe mnsr adds to the
pressure which the plate mn sustains, by diminishing the up- Experi-
ward pressure of the air through the pipe, it appears that it ments on
produces this increase of pressure in the plate mn alone, t^le ^°^on
without producing any lateral pressure in the water on a
level with mn; for, by inserting a pipe in the side or
mC, the velocity of escape would not be affected, and,
therefore, the plate mn, immediately over the orifice of the
pipe, is the only one on the same level the tendency of
which downwards is increased by the insertion of the pipe.
Wherefore, the fluid particles of the edge of the aperture
w’ill issue through the orifice mn perpendicularly, since they
have their vertical pressure increased by the weight of a
column mnsr, while the lateral pressure is unchanged;
the sides also of the tube mnsr will prevent the converg¬
ing tendency of the particles, and, therefore, on both ac¬
counts, the volume of water discharged through a pipe thus
inserted, will exceed that discharged through a simple
orifice in a ratio greater than the subduplicate of the
height of the w'ater. If the pipe be lengthened, the ratio
of the volume actually discharged to that determined by
theory, will also increase, since the ratio of the perpendicular
to the horizontal pressure increases in the ratio of the sum
of the depth of the vessel, and length of pipe to the depth
of the vessel. Hence in experiments of this sort, results
will more nearly coincide with those of theory than when
made with a simple orifice, except when the tube is so long
that the friction of its sides will retard the fluid; or when
so short that the particles have not acquired a vertical di¬
rection. All this agrees with the experiments of Mr Vince,
an account of which is given in the Phil. Trans, for 1795.
Mr Vince, e.g., inserted a tube a fourth of an inch long
into a cylindrical vessel twelve inches deep, and found that
the velocity did not sensibly differ from that through the
orifice ; the cause of which was that the stream did not fill
the pipe, but that the vein contracted as if it flowed through
a simple orifice ; when the pipe was half an inch long and
inserted into a vessel of the same depth, the velocity from
this pipe and from the orifice was in the ratio of 4 : 3 nearly;
whereas, by theory, it is \/l2-5 : \/12 = 49 : 48 nearly.
Now, if 49 : 48 be increased in the ratio of 7 : 6, since the
latter is the ratio of the diminution of velocity, and the
contraction either nearly or entirely vanishes in a pipe, it
will give the ratio of 3’57: 3. When the pipe was one
inch long, the ratio of the velocity from the pipe and from
the orifice was as 4 : 3 nearly ; whereas, by theory it is ex¬
pressed by -\/l3 : \/l2 = 26 : 25 ; and if 26: 25 be in¬
creased in the ratio of 7 : 6, we have the ratio of 3*64 : 3.
When Mr Vince employed longer pipes, the velocity of
efflux by experiment approached nearer to that which
ought to have been discharged by theory ; hence, in long
pipes, he says, the difference between theory and experi¬
ment was not greater than what might have been expected
from the friction of the pipes, and other retarding causes.
On inserting a pipe of the same diameter with the aperture
which terminated in a truncated cone fixed in the orifice,
he expected from this arrangement, that the volume dis¬
charged in a given time would be less than otherwise, since
the water issuing through the orifice would have room in
the enlarging cone to form the vena contracta; but the
result was, that the same volume was discharged as if the
pipe had continued throughout of the same diameter with
the orifice. The reason of this is, that the pressure of the
air will not allow the truncated cone to remain partly
empty, as it would if the vena contracta were formed;
hence, it continues full, and, therefore, the water will pass
through it in the same manner as if the water in the cone
surrounding the pipe were congealed.
387. Mr Vince next inserted into the bottom of the vessel
a perpendicular pipe in the form of a truncated cone, the
narrow end being in the orifice, and found that the efflux
HYDRODYNAMICS.
149
Experi- increased more than if he had inserted a cylindrical pipe of
ments on the same length, the diameter of which was equal to the
the Motion narrowest section of the conical tube. Mr Vince explains
of Fluids. j.pjs on t|ie came principle as that by which we account for
the swelling of the diameter of a vertical fluid vein, flowing
through a simple orifice with a considerable velocity. For
when a vertical pipe is inserted, the velocity of discharge
beino- increased, the resistance from the air will be so also,
and thus the diameter of the vein tends to enlarge itself.
Now, the truncated cone pipe, the wide end outwards, is
just a pipe to admit of this thickening or swelling of the
vein ; and the water in escaping discharges a larger volume,
and with an increased velocity than when through a straight
pipe; whereas, in the cylindrical pipe, the fluid cannot
enlarge itself, and, thus confined, the efflux must be re¬
tarded, and the volume discharged in a given time dimin¬
ished. Accordingly, under the receiver of the air-pump,
with even a moderate degree of exhaustion, there is no
difference observed between the velocities with which a
fluid is discharged through a conical or cylindrical pipe.
Dr Young made also several experiments on the con¬
traction of veins, for an account of which see vol. ii. of the
Irish Academy.
3. Experiments of Poncelet and Lesbros.
388. The experiments of Poncelet and Lesbros were
made at Metz, in the years 1827 and 1828. The series
was a very extensive one on the expenditure of water
through rectangular orifices of considerable dimensions;
and as they were undertaken by order of the French go¬
vernment, no expense was spared in making them as com¬
plete as possible. The objects which the experimenters
had principally in view, were to ascertain the exact measure
of the coefficient of contraction, and to determine the forms
of the fluid veins under different charges and areas.
389. In order to get a correct form of the vein, several
veins were projected on the plane of the orifice. T hese
projections were taken by means of an iron rod, having,
over nearly its whole surface, threads of a screw, and end¬
ing at its lower extremity in a delicate point, which was put
successively in contact with every point of the exterior
surface of the jet. The screw worked perpendicularly into
a wooden nut, and which, when the screw was acting,
glided along one side of a rectangular or octagonal frame
of wood, placed between the orifice and the vena contracta.
The orifice that especially claimed their attention while
taking these projections, was a square of 02 met. in the
side, and the mean charge over the centre was P68 met.
This orifice was selected, because the jet spouted with
much stability, its dimensions were such as to admit of
manipulating very accurately, and because of its distinctness.
Projections, then, of the jet from this orifice were taken
first of all at a distance of 005 met. from the plane of the
orifice ; but they confined themselves to the space between
0-064 met. and 0-50 met, since the former was too near,
and the latter was just at the limit where the chances of
error begin to multiply. At
the distance of 0-05 met.,
however, the jet was perfectly
stable. The error in taking
the projections did not exceed
a millimetre. Two of those
veins projected are represented
in fig. 67. ACEG is the
square orifice of 0'20 met. in
the side, and under the charge
P68 met.; at the distance of
0-15 met. from the orifice,
the section of the vein was
abcdefgh', but at the distance of 0’30 met. the jet had the
form represented by abcdef gh. This last, of all the nine Experi-
proiections taken, had the least section; its area was to that of
the orifice as 0-562: 1, while the ratio of the real to the ^Motion
theoretic waste was 0'605 : 1 ; they would have been equal, v ^
if the velocity at this the least section had been that due to
the height of the reservoir. The particles b, d!,f, h, in the
plane of the section of the vein, are those which issue from
the middle points, B, D, F, H, of the side of the square.
The section, also, of the vein is apparently a kind of square,
the angles of which correspond to the middle points of the
sides of the orifice, or that it has turned round part of a
revolution. The vein dUd’f 'Ji made an eighth of a re¬
volution. A phenomenon of this kind taking place in a
vein issuing from an orifice not circular, is known by the
renversement, the turning or inversion, of the fluid vein.
390. In the course of experiment it was observed, that
as the height of the fluid in the reservoir diminished, the
phenomenon of the vein turning also diminished ; that is to
say, that the mass of particles all round the central axis
gradually approached that axis, more so on the upper part
of the vein, for gravity acting on all the fluid particles of
the vein bends the whole mass, especially the horizontal
sheets. Poncelet and Lesbros could not observe, as Ha-
chette and other experimenters had done, spiral fluid threads
crossing each other at certain angles on the surface of the
vein, nor the successive swellings and shrinkings of Savart
and Bidone. The former they attributed to very fine ridges
on the lower edge of the orifice; and the reason why the
latter were not seen was owing to the small extent of vein
observed.
391. With respect to rectangular orifices, where the
breadth exceeds the height, the turning of the vein was
less distinct than for the square orifice, and still less when
the height of the reservoir decreased. In the case of an
orifice of a centimetre of an opening, the angles and jutting
parts were scarcely perceptible, which shows that the
greatest contraction tends to take place at a great distance
from the orifice. This vein presented the appearance of a
very thin liquid plate, which continually shrunk in its hori¬
zontal, but thickened in its vertical direction, indicating
that the liquid masses belonging to the angles bordering
the outline of the orifice, tend here naturally to reunite into
one and the same mass.
In order to explain this turning of the vein, they sup¬
pose that those particles which in the plane of the orifice
form the centre of the vein, come principally from parts of
the reservoir bordering the prolongation of the horizontal
axis of this orifice, and describe paths sensibly parallel to
this axis; while those particles belonging to the other parts
of the orifice come from points of the reservoir as distant
from this axis as they belong to points more remote from
its centre; and hence the particles not only come into the
plane of the orifice under inclinations greater and greater
with respect to the axis of the vein, but they come in greater
abundance.
392. The following table will show the contractions which
a vein experienced at different distances from the plane of
the orifice, the areas of the different sections being deduced
by means of Simpson’s Method of Quadratures. The ori¬
fice was a square of twenty centimetres, under a charge of
1-68 met. It appears from the table, that the maximum of
contraction of the section takes place at nearly thirty centi¬
metres’ distance from the orifice, or nearly F5 times the
side of the orifice ; but beyond this distance the contraction
continually diminishes, either because the vein dilates over
its whole extent, or because its profile becomes more and
more oblique with respect to the central thread. The
amount of error does not exceed the 150th of the true
value, and hence the maximum contraction may be taken
equal to 0"437 of the area of the orifice, and the correspond¬
ing coefficient as 0‘563. This coefficient is sensibly equal
1
150
jxpen- to |M = (|)2 ; that is to say, that this section may be taken
theMotion aS e(iuivalent to a square, the side of which is equal to fths
of Fluids. tliat of' the orifice.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Horizontal
distance of
section from
plane of
orifice in
centimetres.
00
6-4
11-0
150
20-0
25-0
30'0
350
40-0
500
Surface of
section in
square
centimetres.
400-00
252-05
245-12
237-46
233-01
23204
225-06
239-48
243- 62
244- 27
Absolute
contraction
of section in
square
centimetres.
0-00
147-95
154- 88
162-54
166- 99
167- 96
174-94
160-52
156-38
155- 73
Ratio of
absolute
contraction
to area of
orifice.
0-000
0-370
0-387
0-406
0-417
0-420
0-437
0-401
0-391
0-389
Coefficient
of natural
contraction,
or ratio of
section to
orifice.
1-000
0-630
0-613
0-594
0-583
0-580
0-563
0-599
0-609
0-615
^£3; In order to show the variation in the value of the
coefficient for different charges and for different orifices,
cuives were traced wherein the coefficients were regarded
as ordinates, and the charges as abscissae of a curve con¬
structed for each orifice, and by its aid the ordinates were
determined; that is, the coefficients intermediate to those
directly determined by experiment. These curves followed,
in general, a very regular motion, although distinct for each
orifice; and their continuity was somewhat perfect, for they
weie subjected to pass through points deduced from ex¬
periment. The nature of these curves was shown by
Lesbros to be one of a parabolic kind,—the real wastes,
however, instead of the coefficients, being substituted for
the ordinates, and the charges as the abscissae. Les-
bros found also the common and equilateral hyperbola on
varying the quantities representing the ordinates and ab- Experl,
scissae. I he curves relative to orifices of 20, 10, 5, and merits on
3 centim. always presented their concavity to the axis ofthe Motion
abscissae, and had one ordinate a maximum; whereas for Fluids,
those ol 2 and 1 centim. of an opening, the maximum point
apparently disappeared. Some of the curves presented a
very remarkable appearance, indicating a peculiarity in the
law ol the coefficients for the orifices of 3 and 5 centim.
Other curves, again, presented points of inflection, which
were not seen in those of the orifices of 10 and 20 centim.,
showing again that the law of coefficients was different
from those of 10 and 20 centim. of an orifice. The law,
then, of the coefficients is peculiar when points of inflection
enter the lines, for the degree of curvature necessarily
increases with the numerous and sudden alterations of
curvature. The curves also indefinitely approach the axis
of abscissae, which will thus be an asymptote.
394. The interpretation of the curves contains the sub¬
stance of all the experiments, for they served to construct,
by interpolation, a general table of the values of the
coefficients, from formulae of the theoretical waste for
charges over the orifices, increasing from the smallest
charge of 0-0046 met. to the greatest of 3 met.
395. The following is an abstract from this general table
of coefficients as drawn up by Poncelet and Lesbros. It will
give one an idea of the labour and care which they bestowed
upon the experiments. The coefficients were determined
by the usual formula for the discharge (179), the data
given being portions of the curves corresponding to the
weaker and stronger charges in the reservoir; but those
not thus obtained are separated from the others by a trans¬
verse line. The values of the quantities D and D' are the
same as in 398 following:—
Orifices shut at the upper part.
Charges
on the
summit
of
orifices
in
metres.
0-0000
00046
0-0091
0-02
0-08
0-18
0-60
1-20
1-40
1-90
200
3-00
The height of the level of the water being measured
From the orifice to a point where the fluid is perfectly stagnant.
Coefficients of formula D, for heights
of orifice of
20 cent.dO cent.
0-572
0-589
0-597
0-604
0-604
0-603
0-601
0-601
0-601
0-596
0-610
0-615
0-617
0-614
0-612
0-608
0-607
0-603
5 cent.
0-606
0-616
0-628
0-631
0-627
0-623
0-621
0-614
0-613
0-606
3 cent.
0-639
0-638
0-634
0-630
0-625
0-622
0-614
0-613
0-607
2 cent.
0-660
0-656
0-651
0-638
0-627
0-622
0-614
0-613
0-608
0-706
0-695
0-671
0-657
0-641
0-623
0-619
0-613
0-613
0-609
Coefficients of formula TV, for heights
of orifice of
20 cent.
0-592
0-599
0-601
0-604
0-604
0-603
0-601
0-601
0-601
lOcent.
0-611
0-614
0-617
0-617
0-614
0-612
0-608
0-607
0-603
5 cent.
0-622
0-625
0-630
0-631
0-627
0-623
0-621
0-614
0-613
0-606
3 cent.
0-644
0-639
0-634
0-630
0-625
0-622
0-614
0-613
0-607
0-663
0-656
0-651
0-638
0-627
0-622
1 cent.
0-715
0-696
0-671
0-657
0-641
0-623
0-619
0-614
0-613
0-608
0-613
0-613
0-609
Immediately above the orifice.
Coefficients of formula D, for heights
of orifice of
0-615
0-594
0-594
0-598
0-604
0-604
0-603
0-601
0-601
0-601
396. It appears from the above table that the coefficients
increase as the charges become greater, but only up to a
certain point, for they then begin to diminish, although the
charge he increased. In the general table it is seen that
the coefficients approach an equality in each column as the
charge increases.
397. Besides numerous experiments which they made on
weirs, Poncelet and Lesbros endeavoured to determine the
limiting case, or the point of natural transition between a
closed and an open orifice ; that is, between a simple orifice
and a weir. In one of their experiments on weirs, where
the charge over the base of the orifice was 0-217 met., the
con esponding coefficient was very near that for a simple
orifice. But, in order to determine it experimentally, they
lowered very gently the level of the water in the reservoir,
beginning at the instant when the summit of the orifice was
0-660
0-708
0-618
0-614
0-616
0-617
0-614
0-612
0-608
0-607
0-603
0-638
0-634
0-631
0-627
0-623
0-621
0-614
0-613
0-606
3 cent,
0-769
0-665
0-643
0-635
0-630
0-625
0-622
0-614
0-613
0-607
0-839
0-690
0-660
0-651
0-638
0-627
0-622
0-614
0-613
0-608
0-978
0-719
0-674
0-658
0-641
0-623
0-619
0-613
0-613
0-609
entirely covered with water; they then opened the sluice
of their canal a little more than was requisite, in order that
the total quantity of water spent by this sluice and by the
orifice, might be exactly equal to that which flowed into
the reservoir. In this manner they easily determined the
precise instant when the fluid was detached from the sum¬
mit of the orifice. The operation being repeated at various
times, always gave a total charge of 0‘2205 met. over the
base ol the orifice; when the charge exceeded this, the
water ceased to adhere to the upper wall in a manner suf¬
ficiently stable to obtain accurately the waste. The charge
of 0-217 met. over an orifice will thus correspond to the
same instant when the adherence of the water to this wall
is overcome, and when the orifice tends to form itself into
a weir.
398. Before closing what we have to say on the experi-
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
merits of Poncelet and Lesbros, we append the following
table, which contains several results of the experiments on
an orifice 20 centim. of a base, and of various heights:
we give it not only to show the care with which they con¬
ducted their labours, but also to exhibit at one view several
of the tabulated results. We have selected two—the first
and the last—from each of the six tables in the Experiences
Hi/drauliques sur les lots de VEcoulement de UEau, &c.
The headings over each of the columns refer to the follow¬
ing quantities :—l = 0*20 met. = horizontal length common
to all the orifices; h = charge of fluid on the lower fixed
border ; K that on the upper variable edge ; QJ = h-/i = the
height of the orifice ; D = the theoretical waste, or volume
escaped in a certain time relative to the velocity V;
D =the theoretical waste on taking into account the in¬
fluence of the opening; E the actual waste as determined
by observation, H = mean charge over centre of orifice
= 1(4 +A')-
degrees
centig.
18*5 19*3
18-5 18*5
The height of the level of the water in the reservoir being measured
From 3’50 met. above the orifice.
O |1
ts !•<
3wU
oK
? d 0)
•-S .a
1-4720
0-1220
7'36 5-3738 214-952
0-61 1-5470 61-880
3 o
129-527
35-37^
|n
0-6026
0-5717
Mean value for
each charge of
coefficient.
0-6026 0-6028
0-5732 0-5928
Immediately above the orifice.
1-4718
0-1136
Sal®1
7-36 5-3734
0-57 1-4928
win s
E a '3
o .2 °
£ 2 ~
214-936
59-712
0-6026
0-5925
Mean value tor
each charge of
coefficient.
0-6026
0-5941
Definite values of coefficients
on taking account of the va¬
riations that the temperature
experiences at the height of
the orifice, the charge of the
fluid in the reservoir being
measured—
0-6028
0-6186
From 3-50 met.
above the
orifice.
Immediately
above the
orifice.
(h'ifice 10 centimetres high, 20 centimetres wide.
17-0 19-0 1
17-0 13-8 11
1-5554
0-0630
15-55 5-5239 110-478
0-63 1-1117 22-234
67-568 0-6116 0-6111 0-61121 1-5553
13-191 0-5933 0-5926 0-61131 0-0525
15-55
0-53
5-5238
1-0148
110-476
20-296
0-6116
0-6499
0-6111 0-6112
0-6491 0-6622
0-6109 0-6110 0-6109 0-6110
0-5919 0-6106 0-6484 0-6615
Orifice 5 centimetres high, 20 centimetres wide.
17- 0 17-5 1
18- 0 24-0 26
1-6901 33-80 5-7581 57-581 35-596 0-6182 0-6175 0-6175 1-69006 33-80 5-7581
0-0363 0-73 0-8439 8-439 5-137 0-6087 0-6088 0-6225 0-0310 0-62 0-7798
57-581 0-6182 0-6175 0-6175 0-6168
7-798 0-6588 0-6589 0 6805 0-6093
0-6168 0-6168 0-6168
0-6230 0-6594 0-6810
Orifice 3 centimetres high, 20 centimetres wide.
17-2 20-0 1
19-0 19-7 17
1-3810
0-0201
46-03
0-67
5-2049
0-6280
31-229
3-768
19-469 I 0-6234
2-370 i 0-6290
0-6229
06262
0-6229
0-6433
1-38096
0-0128
46-03
0-43
5-2049
0-5011
31-229
3-007
0-6234
0-7882
0-6229
0-7847
0-6229
0-6224
0-6261
0-6224
0-6433
0-6224
0-7849
Orifice 2 centimetres high, 20 centimetres wide.
18-0 20-8 1
18-0 20-8 12
1-4002
0-0203
70-01 5-2411 20-964 13-033
1-02 0-6311 2-524 1-664
0-6217 0-6217 0 6217 1-4001
0-6593 0-6605 0-6676 0-0160
70-01 5-2409
0-80 0-56025
20-964 0-6217 0-6217
2-241 0-7425 0-7439
0-6217
0-7574
0-6216 0-6216 0-6216 0-6216
0-6604 0-6675 0-7438 0-7573
Orifice 1 centimetre high, 20 centimetres wide.
17-2 20-0 1
19-0 24-0 17
1-4020 140-20 5-2444 10-489
0 0174 1-74 0-5843 1-169
6-507 0-6204 0-6204 0-6204 1-40197 140-20 5-2444
0-814 0-6963 0-6955 0-6980 0-01461 1-46 0-5354
10-489 0-6204 0-6204 ! 0-6204 0-6189 0-6189 i 0-6189 0-6189
1-071 0-7600 0-7591 0-7630 06992 0-7017 0-7632 0-7671
399. The principal results from the experiments of
Poncelet and Lesbros may be reduced to the following :—
That with an orifice 20 centim. square, the coefficient is
O'GOl under altitudes of T68 met. But when the altitude
is reduced to 4 or 5 times the opening of the orifice, the
coefficient is increased to 0’60o, then falls rapidly to
0,593 as the altitude decreases ; that with orifices of smaller
dimensions, as a square of 10 or 5 centim., the coefficients
observe the same law, being 0-611, O’GIS, and O’Gl 1
for the first, and 0-618, 0*631, and 0-623 for the second ; for
orifices of lesser dimensions, the coefficients rose gradually to
0‘698. In the case of weirs, the mean coefficient was 0-400.
4. Miscellaneous experiments of—(a.) Savart, (j3.) Eorda,
(•y.) Bidone.
400. (a.) M. Savart, in his book De la Constitution des
Veines Liquides lances par des Orifices Circulaires en
mince Paroi, 1833, gives some curious information on
drops relative to fluid veins. We have already seen that,
when a fluid issues by an orifice from the bottom of a vessel, a
vein is produced. Now this vein is not, as might be supposed,
a uniform cylindrical mass of fluid; it is nearly a solid cylin¬
der between the orifice and the contracted section, but at
a small distance beyond this section, a series of successive
swellings and shrinkings take place, which are nicely seen
by a strong light; and at last the swellings end in drops
and detached masses. Savart observed that these drops
were alternately big and little, that between each drop there
was a space eight or ten times their mean diameter, and
their form oscillated betwixt a prolate and an oblate sphe¬
roid. He found that the clear, limpid, untroubled part of
the vein, as well as the swellings of the troubled part, were
proportional to the diameter of the orifice and to the charge.
With respect to the drops which become detached from
the troubled part, their formation is not, as in descending
jets, an effect of acceleration due to gravity; for the drops
are detached in the same manner from a vein when it is
directed upward. Savart attributed the effect to an oscil¬
lation in the fluid of the reservoir, whereby the molecules
of the fluid, being pressed sometimes more or less in issu¬
ing from the orifice, moved with a velocity more or less
great. These movements may be seen very nicely in ex¬
periments on the resistance that the air experiences in pipes:
the air may then be seen advancing irregularly as if by un¬
dulations ; the waves, on propagating themselves, accelerate
and retard the velocity.
401. M. Savart, moreover, found that the waves or un¬
dulations of the atmosphere had a very singular effect on
the fluid vein. When the troubled part of the vein is re¬
ceived on the bottom of a vessel, the sound arising from the
shocks of the successive drops can easily be heard; and if
this sound be in unison with a musical instrument sounding
at a small distance from the vein, immediately the clear,
untroubled part of the jet shortens, and sometimes disap¬
pears ; the swellings of the troubled part increase, shorten,
and the space separating them is greater also.
These vibrations of the atmosphere have considerable
influence on a descending jet, but less effect on an ascend¬
ing one; for in the latter case the transverse section in¬
creases instead of diminishes in proportion as it recedes
from the contracted section, which is never so small that
the effect of these vibrations may become sensible.
402. Besides these peculiarities connected with a fluid
vein, Savart investigated the action of a jet against an
immovable plane, and also of two directly opposing jets.
When a jet is directed against a vertical plane surface, the
151
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
152
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Expen- surface receiving the jet must he considerably larger than
the^Iotion the ma8nitude of tlle orifice. Were it less than this, then
of Fluids. evidently t,ie water would turn over the edges of the plane ;
v , hut that this be not the case, the area of the plane surface
must be about eight times that of the orifice. It will now
be seen that the liquid threads from the vein will spread
out in all directions on the surface till they be parallel to it.
As soon as they have attained their parallelism, the pressure
of the jet against the plane is at a maximum, and can easily
be measured.
If the plane be oblique upward, the water will spread it¬
self moie on the upper part than on the lower c the jet also
does not press with so much intensity on the plate as in the
last case.
When two equally powerful and equally broad jets directly
meet each other, so that both will form a straight line, the
water at the section of opposition forms a most beautiful
tianspaient disc, which is surrounded by a circular rim,
having watery spikes radiating from it in all directions.
403. (/?.) Borda completely realized the case when a pipe
with thin sides and entirely penetrating the wall of a reser¬
voir, is employed for the purposes of discharge. Having
taken a white-iron tube, 0-135 met. long, and 0-032 in dia¬
meter, and wholly placed within the reservoir, he produced,
under a charge of 0-25 met., a fluid vein which was alto¬
gether detached from the walls of the tube, and the actual
was only O'olo of the theoretic waste. Various considera¬
tions led Borda to think that it might even be reduced
to 0-50, or one-half of the theoretical discharge.1
404. (y.) George Bidone of Experiences sur
la Forme et la Direction des Veines et Conrans d'Eau lances
par diverses Ouvertures, 1829, gives us something very in¬
teresting on the phenomena of a fluid vein. Among his
numerous experiments, he took a regular pentagonal orifice
0-014 met. in the side, pierced in a thin vertical copper¬
plate : the escape took place under a charge of 1-97 met. At
a distance of 0"012 met. from the orifice, the transverse sec¬
tion, perpendicular to the axis of the vein, was a very regular
decagon. The greatest contracted section, or first shrink¬
ing, was distant from the orifice by 0-030 met. Beyond
this, however, the vein entirely changed its form ; it pre¬
sented, at a distance of 0-095 met. from the orifice, a system
of five fluid radial blades, or spokes, symmetrically disposed
around the axis of the vein ; the breadth of these spokes in¬
creased up to the swelling of the vein, then it diminished,
and the spokes reunited anew so as to form a second shrink-
ing at a distance of 0"86 met. Beyond this the vein con¬
tinued round but shapeless.
Besides a rectilineal pentagon, he successively substituted
orifices which were regular pentagons, but in a convex and
a. concave disc, and also with salient and re-entrant angles
like a star with five radiations, and the vein preserved^al-
ways the same form, together with the same five radial
blades or spokes.
When the orifice had 6 and 8 sides, the number of blades
was 6 and 8 ; and the turning or inversion (389) of the vein
was a 12th and a 16th of the circumference. When
the opening was a narrow rectangle, but prolonged hori¬
zontally, at a certain distance the vein had no longer a
bioad vertical blade,—the turning appeared complete.
405. V\ ith respect to the phenomena of the troubled
part of the vein, we see sometimes, beyond the second
shrinking, the vein dilating itself anew, and dividing itself
a second time into the same number of blades. These
) ades increase in breadth up to a second swelling, and
then diminish so as to form a third shrinking, beyond
which a third dilatation ensues, or a third swelling is formed,
then a fourth shrinking. Eytelwein, in his German trans¬
lation of Michelotti s Spenmenti Idraulici, gives a descrip¬
tion and representation of the different forms of these
swellings and shrinkings.
406. The main cause of the forms and turnings of veins
is the oblique direction which the fluid fillets take on ap¬
proaching the orifice, and this direction tends to urge them
beyond the orifice. The action of these fillets on the forms
of the veins is greater when the fluid issues out of a very
acute angular opening; the latter opening compresses the
vein more strongly than do other orifices, and hence the
blades form at parts intermediate to those where they ex¬
ercise their action. Lastly, the resistance of the air, and
the mutual attraction of the particles, contribute to contract
the blades, and to form a second shrinking.
407. Bidone, also, by numerous experiments at the
Water-works of Turin, endeavoured to solve the question
of augmented waste when the contracted vein was sup¬
pressed on one side. This suppression has been noticed
already in 171. The following table gives the result of
experiments to determine this point:—
Expert-
raents on
the Motion
of Fluids,
The contraction heing suppressed on
No side  
One small side 
One large side 
One large and one small side
Two small and one large side
Two large and one small side
Portion
of orifice
without
contrac¬
tion.
0
Coefficient.
Ratio of
increase.
0'608
0-620
0-637
0-659
0-680
0-692
1-000
1-020
1 049
1-085
1-119
1-139
The figure of the orifice was confined to the rec¬
tangular form, the base of which was 0-054 met., and
height 0-027. The plates, which were attached some¬
times on one side, sometimes on another, and some¬
times on two or three of the sides, were 0-067 met.
long ; that is, they advanced thus much into the reservoir.
1 he flow took place under charges of from 2 to 6*88
met. I he coefficients are noted in the table, wherein
the last column indicates that unity has been taken
a-6-0 ^ie. or*dce *s entirely free; as the column of co¬
efficients increase, so also it appears that a corresponding
increase takes place in the discharge column. M. Bidone
has deduced from his results the general expression
1 +0-152 x—, in which n is the length of the part of the
perimeter where the contraction is suppressed, and p the
whole perimeter of the orifice. Since this expression gives
as its maximum error a 39th part only, the formula repre¬
senting the waste by a rectangular orifice, when one part
of the contraction is suppressed, will be represented by
Q = ^S^/2^H x ^1+0-152 x-\
408. Bidone made also experiments on circular orifices,
one of which was 0"04 met. in dia¬
meter; and, by the aid of plates
curved cylindrically, first 1 - eighth
of the contracted perimeter was de¬
stroyed, then, successively, 2, 3, 4, 5,
6, and 7 eighths. The annexed table
shows the results obtained. By it we
see that the numbers of the last co¬
lumn increase less rapidly than in the
case of rectangular orifices, and the
general expression is now only
Coeffi¬
cient.
0-597
0-603
0-615
0.625
0-639
0-649
0-664
0-670
Ratio of
increase.
1-000
1-011
1-032
1-048
1-072
1-087
1-112
1-123
1+0T28X-.
p
409. After having destroyed 7-eighths of the contracted
section, Bidone, to destroy it entirely, introduced within
1 Memoires de VAcademie des Sciences de Paris, 1766.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
153
Experi- the reservoir 0'067 met. of cylindrical pipe, 0-04 met. in dia¬
ments on meter. The coefficient which he now obtained was
the Motion o-767, and 1-285 for the ratio of increase. From the ex-
of Fluids. pressjon mentioned above, this number would be 1T28,
where the augmentation is not one-half that really obtained.
He concluded, therefore, that the phenomena of interior
additional tubes, in the case where the contracted section
is wholly suppressed at the exterior edges of the orifice, is
not of the same nature as when the contraction is only de¬
stroyed in part, however great that part may be: there is
no intermediate case between them.1
M. Bidone experimented also on Weirs; and the remarks
which he made on this subject were among the first worthy
of notice. See his Experiences sur la Depense des Rever-
soirs, 1824.
5. Experiments of Mr George Rennie.
410. Mr Rennie, in the year 1830, experimented on the
waste by orifices and tubes of different diameters and
lengths, and at different altitudes. The area, length, and
altitude were the three main elements that entered into
these experiments. The apparatus consisted of a wooden
cistern 2 feet square in the base, and 4£d feet high. The
water was maintained at a constant height by means of a
regulating cock; a float with an index indicated the exact
height at which the water stood in the cistern above the
centre of the orifice. The orifices were in brass discs,
about a 60th of an inch thick; the discs were fitted into a
hole in the wall of the cistern, and closed by a valve of
brass, ground truly to each of the plates. A lever opened
the valve, and a chronometer noted the time. The fol¬
lowing table contains the wastes from different-sized ori¬
fices, the vessel being kept constantly full, and at different
heights:—
Circular orifice in brass plate 1 inch diameter, -^Gth inch
thick.
Height
or
charge
over
centre
of ori¬
fice.
Feet.
4
3
2
1
Real time
in dis¬
charging
one cubic
foot.
Seconds.
19-5
210
26-0
360
Theoreti¬
cal time in
discharg¬
ing one cu¬
bic foot.
Seconds.
11-4
13-2
16-1
22'8
Ratio of theo¬
retical to real
waste.
1:0-584
1 :0-628
1 :0-619
1:0-633
Vena contracta.
Not accurately mea¬
sured.
Circular orifice in brass plate 0-75 inch diameter, -J^th inch
thick.
33
37
44
63
20-3
23-4
28-7
40-6
1 :0-614
1 :0-632
1:0-652
1:0-644
AtT65th inch from
orifice the diame¬
ter contracted to
0-685.
Circular orifice in brass plate 0-5 inch diameter, ^th inch
thick.
73
83
104
144
45-7
52-8
64-6
91-4
1:0-626
1:0-636
1 :0-621
1:0-634
At 0-5 inch beyond
orifice the diameter
contracted to 0-37
inch.
Circular orifice in brass plate 0-25 inch diameter, -J^th inch
thick.
276
320
396
545
182-9
211-3
258-6
365-7
1:0-662
1 :0-660
1 :0-653
1:0-671
At 0-25 inch beyond
orifice, the diameter
contracted to ^ inch
less than the orifice.
Experiments on the Wastes from rectangular and triangular orifices
in brass plates, £vth inch thick, and of equal areas, from a vessel
kept constantly full, and at different heights.
Equilateral triangular orifice 1 inch, apex uppermost.
Charge
over
centre
of
orifice.
Time in
discharg
ing 1 cubic
foot.
Theoreti¬
cal time
in dis¬
charging
1 cubic
foot.
Ratio of real
to theoretical
discharge.
Form of orifice.
Feet.
4
3
2
1
Seconds.
15
18
22
30
Seconds.
8-9
10-3
12-7
17-9
1:0-593
1:0-572
1:0-577
1: 0-596
Vena contracta about
i inch beyond ori¬
fice ; but
the jet with
angles re¬
versed, and
taking the sides of
the triangle, the jet
then expanded and
lost its form.
Equilateral triangular orifice as before, apex downwards.
15
8-9
1:0-593
Vena contracta same
as before, but the
jet having its angle
upwards, being the
reverse of the former
experiments.
Rectangular orifice 1 inch square.
15
17
20
29
8-9
10-3
12-7
17-9
1: 0-593
1:0-606
1: 0-635
1:0-617
Vena contracta 0-75
inch beyond orifice,
when each angle of
the jet took the
place of a side, and
dissipated its spray.
Rectangular orifice 2 inches by i inch, long side horizontal.
15
17
20
29
8-9
10-3
12-7
17-9
: 0-593
: 0-606
: 0-635
: 0-617
Vena contracta as be¬
fore ; each angle of
the jet took the place
of a side.
Rectangular orifice 1-5 inch by 0*625 inch, placed as before.
15
17
19
27
8-9
10-3
12-7
17-9
1:0-593
1 :0-606
1:0-668
1:0-663
Vena contracta as be¬
fore ; and figure as
in that immediately
above.
From the above table it appears that, with equal areas,
the waste by different orifices, whether circular, triangular,
or rectangular, is nearly the same, the increase being with
rectangular orifices.
411. The next table contains the waste by cylindrical
glass orifices and tubes, from 1 inch to 1 foot in length,
and of different diameters, from a vessel kept constantly
full, and at different heights.
It appears—ls£, That the wastes in equal times from ori¬
fices and additional tubes, are as the areas of the orifices;
2d, That the wastes in equal times by the same additional
tubes and orifices, under different heads, are nearly as the
square roots of the corresponding heights; 3d, That the
wastes in equal times by different additional tubes and ori-
Experi-
ments on
theMotion
of Fluids.
VOL. XII
1 Recherches Experimentales et Theoriques sur les Contractions Partielles des Veines d'Eau, etc., 1836.
U
154
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
fices, under different heights, are to each other in the com¬
pound ratio of the areas of the apertures, and of the square
roots of the heights.
Constant
charge
over
orifice.
Feet.
4
3
2
1
Time in discharging 1 cubic foot.
1 inch. 0'75 inch. 0*5 inch. 0-25 inch
Seconds.
11-5
150
17-5
25'0
Seconds.
24-5
28-5
350
53-0
Seconds.
55
63
77
110
Seconds.
145
157
205
297
Glass tubes 1 foot long.
14-0
17-0
21-5
30-0
30
33
40
58
63
73
88
130
200
227
283
410
412. From the preceding experiments, the mean coeffi¬
cient for
Altitudes of 4 feet with circular orifices is 0-621
But with altitudes of 1 foot, the coefficient is 0,645
With triangular orifices at 4 feet altitude 0'593
1 foot  0-596
With rectangular orifices at 4 feet    0-593
1 foot  0-616
413. Mr Rennie has also made experiments on the volume
discharged by leaden pipes of different diameters and lengths,
from a vessel kept constantly full, and at different altitudes.
The time in discharging 1 cubic foot is nearly double
the time occupied by glass tubes of equal lengths and areas.
Straight pipes 15 feet long.
Constant
height
over
centre of
pipe.
Feet.
4
3
2
1
Time in discharging 1 cubic foot.
1 inch. | inch. h inch.
Seconds.
28
33
41-25
61-25
Seconds.
54
63
79
117
Seconds.
143
164
208
312
The following table shows the wastes from leaden pipes 0*5
inch of bore, the lengths varying from 1 foot to 30 feet:—
Glass tubes
1 inch long,
0-5 inch in
diameter.
Feet.
4
3
2
1
Sec.
55
63
77
110
Brass
bore,-5
in. in
diam.
Sec.
73
83
104
144
1 foot
long.
Sec.
55
63
93
133
3| feet
i g.
Sec.
78
92
113
170
71 feet
long.
Sec.
102
120
151
226
111 feet
long.
Sec.
122
145
184
278
15 feet
long.
Sec.
143
164
208
312
30 feet
long
203
240
303
450
The ratio of the waste by glass tubes with pipes 30 feet
long is as 1:4) ,
And with brass orifices, is as 1 : 3) neai
Hence the expenditure of water through pipes of equal
diameters, but different in length, and under different alti¬
tudes, will be as follows :—
The length being as 30 :1, the wastes are as 3-7:1
8:1,   2-6:1
4:1,   2-0:1
2:1,   1-4:1
The wastes by leaden and glass tubes are nearly the same.
The length of a pipe may be increased from 3 to 4 feet,
without diminishing the discharge, as compared with the
plate orifices.
414. 1 he experiments on leaden pipes in order to show
the effect of bends, are very interesting. Mr Rennie took
the straight pipe, ’5 inch of bore, on which the former ex^
periments were made, and
carefully bent it into one, two,
and fourteen semicircular
bends respectively, each bend
being 7‘5 inches in the semi¬
diameter, and two of the fourth
part of a circle of 3'25 inches
radius. The results are shown
in the annexed table.
This table shows us that,
with one semicircular and two
quadrantal bends, when com¬
pared with a straight pipe of
equal length and bore, the re¬
sistance is greater than that of
the straight pipe by a 36th to
a 70th of the latter. With
fourteen semicircular and two
^th circle bends, the increased
resistance varies from a 19th to a 39th of that of the straight
pipe. The increased number of bends also does not in¬
crease the resistance in the ratio of the number of the
Pipe 15 feet long, -5 incli bore,
with 1 semicircular and two £th
circle bends.
Constant
height
over
centre of
orifice.
Feet.
4
3
2
1
Time for 1
cubic foot
from pipe
with 3
bends.
Sec.
147
175
213
316
Time for 1
cubic foot
from
straight
pipe.
Sec.
143
164
208
312
Pipe 15 feet long,-5 inch bore,
with 14 semicircular and two ith
circle bends.
162
200
247
351
143
164
208
312
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
bends, but only shows an increase of resistance, as com¬
pared with the four bends, of a 15th to a 35th.
415. In the case, again, where the bends are rectangu¬
lar, the same dimensions of a pipe were employed, and the
bends were in the form of right-angled elbows, each side
being 6‘75 inches long. The number of elbows varied
from 1 to 24. The experiments in the following table show
us that in the first three the waste diminishes as 2*5 : 1 ; and
in the last, as 3: 1 nearly. The whole number, however,
indicate that with one right-angled pipe the waste differs
only from that given by a pipe with twenty-four right angles,
as 2:1, however natural it might be to infer that the diminu¬
tion of waste would be greater as the number of right
angles increased:—
Height
over the
centre of
orifice.
1 right
angle 8-5
in. from
end of pipe.
Straight
pipe 15 feet
long.
24 right
angles.
Feet.
4
3
2
1
Secon ds.
180
214
246
371
Seconds.
143
164
208
312
Seconds.
395
465
584
872
6. Professor Magnus's Experiments.
416. In the year 1848, Professor Magnus of Berlin com¬
municated to the Royal Academy of that city the results
of his experiments on the motion of fluids. He was led to
the subject by doubting the truth of an inference at which
Venturi had arrived in one of his experiments relative to
the lateral communication of fluids. The two main proofs
in support of Venturi’s opinion are those already mentioned
in 262 ; and, as a consequence of the first experiment, he
asserts that if any very mobile body—a light feather for ex¬
ample—be brought near a jet of water spouting in the at¬
mosphere, the jet will impart a motion to it, and the body
will be carried forward by the air. Professor Magnus ap¬
plied to such a jet as delicate a test as he could conceive:
he held the flame of a candle to the transparent portion of
the vein, but was unable to detect the slightest motion. But
on applying it to the second or third of the swellings of the
vein, the flame became slightly disturbed ; and at that part
where the jet is broken up into detached masses it was
violently agitated, and at last put out by the spray. This
was the case when the jet was regular and steady; but if it
oscillated under the vibrations of the air, then the flame was
carried forward at an anterior part of the jet.
Now it is clear that, if the air were, in consequence of its
HYDRODYNAMICS.
155
Experi- adhering to the jet, carried along by the water, this action
ments on must be strongest where the velocity of the fluid particles is
the Motion greatest, that is, near the vena contracta. But as this is
of Fluids. not ^ cage> ag t]ie flame begins to oscillate only at the time
when the jet begins to be unsteady, it is very probable
that if this motion in the jet were to cease, the irregularity
in the flame would also vanish.
417. The other experiment of Venturi, mentioned in 262,
was ingeniously modified by Professor Feilitzsch (Poggen-
dorff’s Annalen, vol. Ixiii., p. 216). He took a rectan¬
gular vessel EDGF, divided into two parts by a partition
HI. A cylin- ^
drical pipe ABC,
2'o inches in dia¬
meter, and 8 in- K
dies long, with
both ends open,
and close to the
bottom EF, was
a means of com- Fig. 68.
municating with both divisions. The supply pipe, about 6
feet long, is, by hb, bent horizontally at b, and having in
this extremity a jet tube ab, which spouts within ABC near
BC. Suppose, then, the water to be at the same level in
both divisions of DF, say to the opening K, and let the jet
begin to work into the pipe ABC, then the level of the
water in the part FGHI begins to sink.
418. It was while repeating this experiment that Pro¬
fessor Magnus observed the water in GI lowering to the
pipe ABC, and air was found to enter that pipe along with
the stream. Since this was the case, it occurred to him,
that a jet projected horizontally with considerable velocity
against the orifice of a vessel full of water, would prevent
that water from flowing out. In order to show this, he had
a reservoir kept con¬
stantly full, from the
bottom of which a
right-angular tube ghf,
proceeded, gh being 7
feet long; the hori¬
zontal jet entered a
tube de, communicat¬
ing with the vessel A, 8 inches wide and 10 high. The
tube de did not exceed 6 inches, / was distant from c by 6
inches, and the diameters of /and e were as 1:4. Under
such conditions, the jet from/ raised the surface of A to a
height of 10 inches, without a single drop escaping from e;
but when e had its diameter increased, a small portion of
water flowed out from e ere the above height was attained.
During the experiment a violent foaming took place within
the tube de, which caused a vibratory motion in A.
He modified the above experiment by making the orifice
of the vessel in the bottom, and projecting the jet verti¬
cally upwards, the diameters of tube and orifice being
as 1 : 2. This diminution of the orifice was necessary from
the fact, that the motion of the fluid exerts here a more disturb¬
ing influence than in the experiment with the horizontal tube.
419. After performing M. Savart’s experiments of jets
impinging on fixed
planes, and against each
other, the jet was di¬
rected against the in¬
terior surface of a hol¬
low hemisphere of 24
mill, diameter. The jet
issued from an orifice 3
mill, in diameter, and
under a pressure of 2"3
met.; the hemisphere
was at right angles to f’is-70-
the jet, and at a distance from the orifice of 0-o met. The
water, on leaving the hemisphere, directs itself to a point Experi-
in the jet, but here it meets the coming stream, and so ments on
causes a peculiar foaming and streaming of the water, as ^Motion
represented in fig. 70. . i _ i
When the jet wasdirected against the same hemisphere, ob-
liquely situated with
respect to the hori¬
zon, then the re¬
flected water seeks
to unite at a point be¬
low the line of jet,
forming a figure si¬
milar to the preced¬
ing. The meeting
point of the reflected Fig.71.
water would be at a point above the jet were the hemi¬
sphere turned the other way.
420. These last two experiments are very important in
the case where a jet, as we have seen, projected against an
orifice prevents a flow from taking place ; for the whole of
the reflected water converges to a point in the jet, and, thus
arrested, it must be thrown back so as to form a new sur¬
face. Hence, also, we can understand how a small jet can
keep back a flow from a wide orifice, and also how a large
surface cannot be formed, for it is broken up into a great
number of little masses constituting foam.
421. In order to show this very clearly, Professor Magnus
modified the experiment, by fixing on the horizontal tube
de, fig. 72, a vertical part nm, the whole appearing like a
T reversed (jJ.
The experiment
was so arranged
that k, the point
where the jet met
the water from A,
lay between d
and m; water Fig. 72.
was then poured in by the tube nm, but none of it escaped
by e, for the whole was driven into A. The point k evi¬
dently depends on the pressure of A when / is constant;
hence an increase of pressure throws k nearer to e.
He next inserted tightly a tube on n, passing under one
side of the jet into a large empty bottle having a double
head; a bent tube passed from the other head of this
bottle into a jar, the open end of the former dipping into a
coloured liquid or mercury. On the jet being set a-working,
its action drew out the air from the new tubes by nm, and
accordingly the coloured fluid or mercury rose from its
vessel.
422. When the jet meets the water in de, a foaming
takes place, and the air inclosed in the foam enters the ves¬
sel A. That this is the case may very easily be seen when
A is a glass vessel; bubbles of air will then stream up to
the surface-opening of A. Savart had previously noticed
this same thing, but thought it of no consequence ; Prof.
Magnus, on the contrary, thinks it highly important. Al¬
most every individual has noticed, of a morning, bubbles of
air clinging to the sides of the tumbler ; how have these
obtained entrance ? Prof. Magnus thinks he can account
for it, and the explanation of it brings him a second time to
refute Venturi’s assertion that light bodies are carried along
with the jet. For if this were the case, then air would en¬
ter the vessel A by the friction of the air and jet; but this
is impossible, for the air cannot be put in circulation by a
jet spouting perpendicularly from a vessel by a long tube,
its mouth being distant from the surface of the water im¬
pinged on by 1 mill., as was shown by Prof. Magnus.
But the phenomenon appears to be caused in the follow¬
ing manner : When a jet strikes the water a hollow is im¬
mediately formed on the surface ; this closes in very quickly,
as soon as the least motion is imparted to the surface, and
156
Experi- while closing up, so much air is carried downwards. When
the jet is continuous, these hollows, which are distinctly
of Fluids? yhsible, are so speedily formed and so quickly closed up, that
v ; h is almost impossible to detect how the air gets introduced.
Prof. Magnus, however, found that when a jet falls on a
tranquil surface placed at a small distance from the orifice,
and before it has attained its greatest contraction, a consi¬
derable concavity may be seen around the jet without any
air entering ; let the surface now be slightly disturbed by
a few drops falling upon it from a height of a few inches,
and at a small distance from the jet. The drops do not of
themselves carry any air downwards; but W’henever they
meet the suiface, a peculiar sound proceeds from the part
of the surface impinged on by the jet, and at the same in¬
stant air-bubbles form which carry air downwards.
423. I rof. Magnus now directed his attention to the
HYDRODYNAMICS.
action which a jet has on a body placed in a fluid, or to Experi-
etermine experimentally if the resistance varies with the ments on
distance from the orifice. In order to render the results asthe Motion
complete as possible, experiments w ere first made in air, to of
ascertain how far it is necessary that the plates used should
be flat; and to render the results independent of the gra¬
vity of the water, a horizontal stream was applied. The re¬
sistance was in each instance measured by a kind of balance
to which the plate was attached. Smooth flat plates and
hollow hemispheres were preferred. The diameter of the
plates varied from 100 to 200 mill. The plates were placed
in a vessel of water, first vertically at a certain distance from
the orifice of a horizontal jet, and second, horizontally or
parallel with the surface, and subject to a vertical jet. The
tables, as under, will show the results of the several expe¬
riments. 1
HORIZONTAL JET.
Orifice.
In thin plate, dia¬
meter 3 mill.
In thin plate, dia¬
meter 3 mill.
In brass 1 mill,
thick, diameter
3 mill.
Small glass tube,
10 mill, long,
diameter 3 mill,
nearly.
Small glass tube
20 mill, long,
diameter a little
under 3 mill.
a
^ .5
2145
2145
100
150
2-229
2-229
2-229
P o
Sla
Weight in grammes
necessary to bring the
plate to its place.
20
50
100
150
200
No. l.
20-0
210
21-5
21-5
21-
No. 2.
20-0
21-0
21-5
21-5
20-5
200
20
50
100
150
200
250
300
No. 4.
20
50
100
150
200
250
150
150
20-0
21-0
22-0
230
23-0
230
22-5
No. 5.
20-0
21-0
22- 5
23- 5
23-5
23-0
22-5
No. 3.
200
20- 75
21- 5
21-5
20-5
No. 6.
18-0
190
20-0
20-0
210
210
20-5
No. 7.
16-0
16- 7
18-0
18-0
18-0
17- 5
No. 8.
16-2
16- 7
18-0
18-0
18-0
17- 7
20
50
100
150
200
250
20
50
100
150
200
No. 9.
21-0
21-6
23-2
23-3
23-3
23-2
No. 10.
14-3
14- 9
15- 2
15-4
15-2
VERTICAL JET.
Orifice.
In thin plate, dia¬
meter 3 mill.
The same.
The jet made an
angle of 10°
with the verti¬
cal.
Glass tube 10 mill,
long, diameter
nearly 3 mill.
Glass tube 65 mill,
long, 6 mill, dia¬
meter ; smelted
at the lower end
to a width of 3
mill, nearly.
Glass tube 65
mill, long, hav¬
ing everywhere
a diameter of
3-3 mill.
2-772 200
I a
5s
o «
£1
|ad
5la
2-772
2-772 200
200
2-772
2-772
200
200
50
100
150
200
50
100
150
200
20
30
50
100
150
200
20
50
100
150
200
20
50
100
150
200
Weight in gram¬
mes necessary
to bring the
plate to its
place.
No. 11.
29- 5
30- 5
310
30-5
No. 12.
29- 0
30- 5
31- 0
30-5
No. 13.
290
30- 7
31- 0
30-5
No. 14.
26-0
26- 5
27- 5
28- 5
29- 0
28-5
No. 15.
23-5
25- 5
26- 5
26-5
26-0
No. 16.
28- 5
29- 5
30- 8
31- 3
30-9
424. In determining the above results, it was found that,
the distance from the orifice remaining constant, the force
lequisite to produce an equilibrium increased with the mag¬
nitude of the plate up to a certain limit, beyond which the
force was constant. In the case of the horizontal jet, the
pressure on the plate, up to a length of 150 mill., increased
with the distance from the orifice. None of the experi¬
ments showed a decrease within the distance of 100 mill.
But the increase was not always equal, and this was owing
to the imperfect nature of the apparatus.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
157
Experi- A similar increase was shown in the case of the vertical
mfints on jet, both when it struck the centre of the plate vertically,
the Motion an(j when at an angle of 10°.
of Fluids. 425. The last thing that Prof. Magnus endeavoured to
resolve in these experiments, was the important one of how
a jet of water mixes with the water of a vessel into which
it is projected. He first of all introduced into a large tank,
nearly full of water, various bodies, as Semen lycopodii and
milk ; but on the jet playing into the vessel, the motion of
the fluid was unsteady and violent, so that nothing could
be determined. A very curious phenomenon, however, was
observed ; no sooner had the jet begun to play in the vessel,
at a distance of 2 inches under the surface, than the fluid
surface immediately over the jet was more or less depressed,
according to the greater or less power of the jet. Sometimes
the surface was a little above, sometimes a little below the
jet; at the jet the surface was very uneven and wavy. The
backward and forward motion of the water under the action
of the jet, showed that a considerable portion of the motion¬
less water must be carried forward by the jet; this causes a
whirling motion in the water, which, owing to its opacity,
prevents the nature of the action from being known.
The next process which he adopted so as to arrive at a
knowledge of what he wanted, was to cause water, free from
salt and hydrochloric acid, to spout into a vessel contain¬
ing water, into which was dissolved about 1 per cent,
of salt. The exact amount of salt in the mass was accu¬
rately determined by a solution of nitrate of silver. In order
then to take water from the jet streaming into and below
the surface of this solution, he took a long bent tube such
that one extremity was in the water and opposite the jet,
while the other extremity rose above the surface of water,
and emptied into a tumbler any water that flowed through
it. If now a jet spout into the vessel, and one extremity
of the bent tube be applied at certain distances from, and
in opposition to the jet, so much fluid will enter the tube
and pass into the tumbler; by the proper test the amount
of salt in the tumbler may easily be detected. When the
distance between the tube and the orifice of the jet was
considerable, the fluid received by the tube into the tum¬
bler was the same as that in the vessel. Three separate
portions were taken in the glass and examined, and when
the second and third were of the same composition, the re¬
sult was considered as correct. As the jet continued to
spout in, the water in the vessel was more and more diluted,
but before each experiment the fluid was always tested.
It was of the utmost importance to know whether the
salt solution penetrated the middle of the flowing jet; and
to this end the tube was accurately fixed in direction with
the jet while the vessel was empty. The following table
will show the results of the several experiments.
The Tube Point in the middle of the Jet.
Number
of expe¬
riments
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
Diamet.
of orifice
through
which
water
entered,
in mill.
u 0.2
10
20
20
10
20
20
30
30
30
30
30
50
Quantity
of salt con¬
tained in
vessel be¬
fore expe¬
riment.
per cent.
0-92
0-90
0-78
0-89
093
0-98
0-93
0-90
0-88
0-82
0'99
0-98
Quantity
of salt in
fluid ob¬
tained
through
tube.
per cent.
0-50
0-54
0-46
0-03
0-14
0'16
0-27
0'27
0-23
0-19
0-22
0-44
The fluid obtained
through tube con¬
sisted of
Salt
solution.
per cent.
54-4
60-0
59-0
3-4
15- 1
16- 4
290
30-0
26-2
23'2
22-0
dl-Q
Water,
per cent.
45-6
40- 0
41- 0
96-6
84-9
83-6
710
70-0
73-8
76-8
78 0
55-1
When the point of the tube was brought close up to
the orifice, the pure water of the jet flowed by the tube
into the tumbler, and the test showed not the smallest trace
of salt. The results, however, were different when the
tube point was slightly inclined to the direction ot the jet.
These results are shown in the following table:—
Experi¬
ments on
the Motion
of Fluids.
The Tube Point inclined to the Jet.
2 s
S'C
3 ©
° S g
lii s
10
10
10
20
20
20
30
30
30
The tube was
situate
In the middle.
l°-75 sidewards.
S0' sidewards.
In the middle.
l°-75 sidewards.
2°-5 sidewards.
In the middle.
l°'7o sidewards.
2°'5 sidewards.
Quantity
of salt in
vessel be¬
fore expe¬
riment.
per cent.
0-89
1-08
0-94
0-98
1-06
0-99
0-99
0-97
Quantity
of salt re¬
ceived
through
tube.
per cent.
003
0-23
0-42
0-16
0-40
0-45
0-22
The fluid obtained
through tube con¬
sisted of
45-5
Water.
per cent.
96-6
78-7
55-3
83-6
62-3
54-5
78-0
K9.fi
This table lets us see that the amount of salt in the
drawn off fluid, increases considerably as the deviation from
the direction of the jet increases.
426. In order to explain the preceding phenomena, sup¬
pose that a jet enters an indefinite mass of fluid, by an ori¬
fice at a depth below the fluid surface, then the velocity of
the jet will decrease as its distance from the orifice in¬
creases, and its dimensions will also increase. Take the
volume which will enter the mass in a unit of time; then
this volume expands in a direction perpendicular to the
axis of the jet, and its dimension in the direction of the jet
must diminish. If the velocity decrease in such a manner,
that both velocity and thickness are inversely as the cross
section during the same time, then the same mass will pass
through all planes perpendicular to the axis of the jet in
the same space of time; but, in such a case, the force im¬
parting motion to the water must decrease as the velocity
decreases. The moving force, however, cannot be de¬
stroyed, since the resistance to motion from the sides of the
indefinite fluid mass is nothing, and the surface is supposed
to continue horizontal. The jet, doubtless, is resisted by
the particles of the indefinite mass, but since that is due to
the inertia of the mobile particles, the moving force in the
direction of the jet is unaltered ; and hence, as soon as the
motion has attained a degree of permanency, the same
amount of force is exerted during the unit of time in all
planes perpendicular to the axis of the jet. If, when the
jet widened, the volume underwent a change of shape, such
that its cross section became greater while the velocity
remained unchanged, the time occupied by the mass in
passing through the different cross sections would be less
and less as the width increased. Were this the case, the
different layers of the jet must either separate, or their
density must change. If care be taken that the same mass
alone expands, and no addition be made to it, then a de¬
crease of pressure, without a change of density taking place,
will be the result. But again, since the mass moves in a
fluid of the same kind, an increase of volume will take place
from the lateral communication of the jet and surrounding
fluid. This increase of mass diminishes the velocity; but
the moving force being constant, a greater volume of fluid
will pass through a distant section in a certain time, than
through one nearer the orifice.
We shall see presently that the pressure of a moving
fluid is less than if it were still; and therefore to say that no
portion of the moving force is lost when the jet is in action
might seem somewhat inconsistent, since part of this force
158
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Experi- would seem necessary to balance the difference of pressure
ments on in liquids. But there is no inconsistency in this, for the
tIlf pIo^on diminution of pressure is caused by the forward portions of
° U1 3‘ the fluid passing through a cross section of the jet quicker
/ than those which follow. If, then, the difference of pres¬
sure lessens the velocity of the original mass, it also sets
the fluid at each side in motion, and in this way is the loss
of force compensated.
The consequences which follow from the above are,—
1. That a jet streaming into a fluid, similar to itself, sends
more water, in the same time, through across section situate
at a distance from the orifice, than through one nearer the
same.
2. That in consequence of this, the pressure of the fluid
when in motion is less than when in a state of rest.
I hese two propositions will explain the preceding pheno¬
mena. In the experiment stated in 262, more water
passes through a cross section of the current EG, than
passes in the same time through the tube ACD ; where¬
fore a portion of the water must be carried off from the
vessel CDG. So also (fig. 68), more water passes through
the communicating tube ABC, than through the narrow
tube a; and as no lateral motion takes place, a portion of
the water in HF will pass along ABC, and its level falls.
If the surface in HF should sink, while the overplus of
water in HE flows out by K, or if there be a constant level
in HE, then the jet is affected by the pressure due to the
difference of level, and the moving force is diminished, so
that it is less at a cross section of ABC at A, than in the
jet tube a. rl herefore, the volume of fluid which passes in
a unit of time through A will decrease, and the fluid sur¬
face in HF will continue to sink, until the volume of fluid
passing through a section of A in a unit of time, be equal
to a volume which, during the same time, passes through A.
The difference of level will enable us to determine the
pressure.
If, on the fluid surface of HF reaching the lower face of
ABC, it happen that the above condition of equality of
volumes be not fulfilled, then the water in the tube is less
pressed in the direction from A to B than from B to A, al¬
though the statical pressure in the latter direction is that due
to the atmosphere, while in the former it is the atmospheric
pressure plus the weight of a column the height of which
is that due to the difference of levels. This excess of press¬
ure at B causes the air to enter the tube in bubbles.
427. The same is the explanation of the phenomena at¬
tendant on the experiment (fig. 69) where a thin jet pre¬
vented the flow of water from an orifice in a vessel: the air
entered the water through that tube, and it continued to do
so till the fluid in the vessel attained such a height, that the
pressures at each end of the tube were equal. If the
inner pressure be in excess, the water flows out by the orifice.
428. In conducting these experiments, he found that the
pressure of a moving fluid was less than that of a fluid
at rest. Ihus, when the fluid is stopped by the plate,
the water, being resisted in its progress, now moves along
parallel to the plate, which, when of a proper magnitude,
must diminish the pressure against the plate. Therefore,
necessarily, since fluids press equally in all directions (art.
48), the pressure from behind the plate must be greater than
on that side facing the jet. This difference will increase if
we increase the velocity of the jet and the magnitude of the
plate. If the plate be brought nearer the orifice, the velo¬
city of the jet will be greater upon the plate, for then the
vein has not had time to widen, and consequently the space
through which the water has to pass parallel to the plate
is increased. Hence, the nearer that the plate is to the
orifice, the greater is the difference of pressure before and
behind, and the less will be the force required to bring the
plate back to its position of equilibrium. This result con¬
tinues till the difference of pressure vanishes. This fact
may be shown experimentally, by having one plate parallel Experi.
to another, both vertical, one fixed and having an orifice, meats on
the other free and connected with a balance; then when a potion
jet is sent through the former, the difference of pressure on °
the latter will force it nearer to the fixed plate. The same
thing will take place when a column of air is made to act
on a plate similarly circumstanced as the above.
429. The whirling motion stated in article 425 is due to
the lateral motion imparted to the water by a strong jet.
If the orifice be not too small and expanded vertically, and
it the water have a sufficient velocity, funnel-shaped con¬
cavities are formed; for the water within these small whirl¬
pools continually streams towards their outer rim, and so
the pressure at the centre is diminished. Many other phe¬
nomena are dependent on this lateral motion.
7. Experiments of M. V Regnault.
430. In the Memoires de VInstitut for 1847, M. Reg-
nault gives an account of his experiments, which were un¬
dertaken for the purpose of determining the principal laws
and numerical data which enter into the calculation of
steam-engines. The nature of his investigations necessarily
led him to experiment on the compressibility of water and
mercury, and his deductions on this subject may be consi¬
dered as very accurate. The process which Oersted, Col-
ladon and Sturm, and Aime adopted was very simple, and,
generally speaking, may be described as follows :—A liquid
is placed in a kind of thermometer or vessel of considerable
capacity surmounted by a graduated capillary tube, open at
the top, the divisions being for finding the ratio of the volume
between any two divisions, and that of the vessel. This ap¬
paratus or piezometer, is placed in an experimenting glass
vessel, with strong walls, and furnished with a metal cover¬
ing, which communicates on one side with a forcing-pump,
and on the other with a manometer. The latter strong
vessel is filled with water, and as soon as the pump begins to
work, a pressure, more or less great, is exercised on the
sides of the vessel; at the same time the internal and ex¬
ternal walls of the piezometer are subjected to compression,
and the liquid acted on is diminished in volume. The level
of the liquid in the graduated tube now falls, it may be,
through several divisions; but this will be a means of cal¬
culating the diminution of volume that the liquid, subject
to pressure, as measured by the manometer, has experi¬
enced. It is only, however, the apparent, not the absolute
compressibility, owing to the change of dimension of the
piezometer during the operation. Oersted supposed that
no change took place.
431. M. Regnault’s apparatus consisted also of a piezometer,
but so disposed that he obtained at once the compressibility
of the liquid, and that of the envelope containing it. He
employed air to exercise the compression, because it pre¬
sents greater advantages than when water is pumped in ;
the pressures, eg., are always constant, and they may be
measured with great precision. The piezometers he used
were most carefully constructed, being first made into he¬
mispheres, and then soldered together. The following
table will show us the mean results obtained :—
Envelope or
Piezometer.
Spherical, cop- )
Per i
Spherical, brass
Cylindrical, 1
glass }
Cylindrical, 1
glass J
Pressure in atmo¬
spheres varying from
2 8033 to 7-8220
1- 5842 to 9-1206
2- 5387 to 10-3528
3- 3368 to 9-5408
Compressibility of water.
Apparent.
0-000046392
0-000046847
0000044304
Compressibility
0-000001234
Theoretical.
0-000047709
0-000048288
0-000046677
of Mercury.
0-000003517
The tabulated results of M. Regnault, of which the first
on the table is the mean, show that as the pressure in-
HYDRODYNAMICS.
159
On the creased, the compressibility of the water sensibly diminished,
Resistance anc] that of the envelope was irregular ; this was owing to
of Fluids. tjie high malleable and low elastic power of the copper.
The results of those tables, of which the second and the
third are the mean, did not show this diminution, owing,
perhaps, to the high elastic power of the brass and glass,
and the low malleable nature of the former. Hence, when
water is subjected to a pressure of 15 lbs. on the square
inch, or one atmosphere, it is diminished by 48 volumes in
one million of the same; i.e., if there be a million cubic
inches of water, then if the mass be subjected to a pressure On the
of 1, 2. 3, 4, &c., atmospheres, the diminution of its volume Resistance
will be 1 x 48, 2 x 48, 3 x 48, 4 x 48, &c., cubic inches. ofFluids.
When mercury was subjected to pressure, the tabulated “v J
results, of which the fourth is the mean, showed that the
apparent differed much from the theoretical compressibility,
owing probably to the difficulty of the operation. J he
liquid, however, is regarded as compressible to the extent
of 35 volumes in every 10 million, for each compressing
atmosphere.
CHAPTER III.—ON THE RESISTANCE OF FLUIDS.
432. The celebrated Coulomb has very successfully em¬
ployed the principle of torsion, to determine the cohesion
of fluids, and the laws of their resistance in very slow mo¬
tions. When a body is struck by a fluid with a velocity
exceeding eight or nine inches per second, the resistance
has been found proportional to the square of the velocity,
whether the body in motion strikes the fluid at rest, or the
body is struck by the moving fluid. But when the velo¬
city is so slow as not to exceed four-tenths of an inch in a
second, the resistance is represented by two terms, one of
which is proportional to the simple velocity, and the other
to the square of the velocity. The first of these sources of
resistance arises from the cohesion of the fluid particles
which separate from one another, the number of particles
thus separated being proportional to the velocity of the
body. The other cause of resistance is the inertia of the
particles, which, when struck by the fluid, acquire a certain
degree of velocity proportional to the velocity of the body;
and as the number of these particles is also proportional to
that velocity, the resistance generated by their inertia must
be proportional to the square of the velocity.
When the body in motion, therefore, meets the fluid at
rest, Sir Isaac Newton, Daniel Bernouilli,and M.Gravesende
maintained that the formula which represents the resist¬
ance of fluids consists of two terms, one of which is as
the square of the velocity, and the other constant. The
experiments of Coulomb, however, incontestably prove
that the pressure which the moving body in this case sus¬
tains, is represented by two terms, one proportional to the
simple velocity, and the other to its square, and that if
there is a constant quantity, it is such as escapes detection.
433. In order to apply the principle of torsion to the re¬
sistance of fluids, M. Coulomb made use of the apparatus
represented in fig. 73. On the horizontal arm LK, which
fastened, by means of a screw, the brass wire ag, whose
force of torsion is to be compared with the resistance of the
fluid; and its lower extremity is fixed in the same wray
into a cylinder of copper gd, whose diameter is about four-
tenths of an inch. The cylinder gd is perpendicular to the
disk DS, whose circumference is divided into 480 equal
parts. When this horizontal disk is at rest, which happens
when the torsion of the brass wire is nothing, the fixed index
RS is placed upon the point 0, the zero of the circular scale.
The small rule Rm may be elevated or depressed at plea¬
sure round its axis n, and the stand CH which supports it
may be brought into any position round the horizontal disk.
The lower extremity of the cylinder gd is immersed about
two inches in the vessel of water MNOP, and to the ex¬
tremity d is attached the planes, or the bodies whose re¬
sistance is to be determined when they oscillate in the fluid
by the torsion of the brass wire. In order to produce these
oscillations, the disk DS, supported by both hands, must be
turned gently round to a certain distance from the index,
without deranging the vertical position of the suspended
wire. The disk is then left to itself; the force of torsion
causes it to oscillate, and the successive diminutions of
these oscillations are carefully observed.
434. The method employed by Coulomb, in reducing
his experiments, is similar to that adopted by Newton and
other mathematicians, when they wished to determine the
resistance of fluids, from the successive diminutions of the
oscillations of a pendulum moving in a resisting medium ;
but is much better fitted for detecting the small quantities
which are to be estimated in such researches. When the
pendulum is employed, the specific gravity of the body, re¬
lative to that of the fluid, must be determined; and the
least error in this point leads to very uncertain results.
When the pendulum is in different points of the arc in
which it oscillates, the wire or pendulum rod is plunged
more or less in the fluid; and the alterations which may
result from this are frequently more considerable than the
small quantities which are the object of research. It is
only in small oscillations too, that the force which brings
the pendulum from the vertical, is proportional to the angle
which the pendulum rod, in different positions, forms with
this vertical line; a condition which is necessary before the
formulae can be applied. But small oscillations are attend¬
ed with great disadvantages; and their successive diminu¬
tions cannot be determined but by quantities which it is
difficult to estimate exactly, and which are changed by the
smallest motion either of the fluid in the vessel, or of the
air in the chamber. In small velocities, the pendulum rod
experiences a greater resistance at the point of flotation
than at any other part. This resistance too, is very
changeable; for the water rises from its level along the
pendulum rod to greater or less heights, according to the
velocity of the pendulum.
435. These and other inconveniences which might be
mentioned, are so inseparable from the use of the pendu¬
lum, that Newton and Bernouilli have not been able to
determine the laws of the resistance of fluids in very slow
motions. When the resistance of fluids is compared with
1
160 HYDRODYNAMICS.
On the the force of torsion, these disadvantages do not exist. The
Resistance boc|y is jn case entirely immersed in the fluid ; and as
of Minds. every p0int Gf its surfaCe oscillates in a horizontal plane,
the relation between the densities of the fluid and the oscil¬
lating body has no influence whatever on the moving force.
One or two circles of amplitude may be given to the os¬
cillations; and their duration may be increased at plea¬
sure, either by diminishing the diameter of the wire, or in¬
creasing its length ; or, which may be more convenient, by
augmenting the momentum of the horizontal disk. Cou¬
lomb, however, found that when each oscillation was so
long as to continue about 100 seconds, the least motion of
the fluid, or the tremor occasioned by the passing of a car¬
riage, produced a sensible alteration on the results. The
oscillations best fitted for experiments of this kind con¬
tinued from 20 to 30 seconds, and the amplitude of those
that gave the most regular results was comprehended be¬
tween 480 degrees, the entire division of the disk, and 8
or 10 divisions reckoned from the zero of the scale. From
these observations, it will be readily seen, that it is only in
very slow motions that an oscillating body can be employ¬
ed for determining the resistance of fluids. In small oscil¬
lations, or in quick circular motions, the fluid struck by the
body is continually in motion ; and when the oscillating
body returns to its former position, its velocity is either in¬
creased or retarded by the motion communicated to the
fluid, and not extinguished.
436. In the first set of experiments made by Coulomb,
he attached to the lower extremity of the cylinder gd a
circular plate of white iron, about 195 mill, in diameter,
and made it move so slowly that the part of the resistance
proportional to the square of the velocity wholly disappeared.
For if, in any particular case, the portion of the resistance
proportional to the simple velocity should be equal to the
portion that is proportional to the square of the velocity
when the body has a velocity of one-tenth of an inch per
second, then, when the velocity is 100-tenths of an inch
per second, the part proportional to the square of the ve¬
locity will be a hundred times greater than that proportional
to the simple velocity; but if the velocity is only the
hundredth part of the tenth of an inch per second, then the
part proportional to the simple velocity will be 100 times
greater than the part proportional to the square of the ve¬
locity,
437. When the oscillations of the white-iron plate were
so slow, that the part of the resistance which varies with
the second power of the velocity was greatly inferior to the
other part, he found, from a variety of experiments, that
the resistance which diminished the oscillations of the hori¬
zontal plate was uniformly proportional to the simple velo¬
city ; and that the other part of the resistance, which fol¬
lows the ratio of the square of the velocity, produced no
sensible change upon the motion of the white-iron disk.
He also found, in conformity with theory, that the mo¬
menta of resistance in different circular plates moving round
their centre in a fluid, are as the fourth power of the dia¬
meters of these circles; and that, when a circle of 195
mill. (7'677 English inches) in diameter, moved round its
centre in water, so that its circumference had a velocity of
140 mill. (5'512 English inches) per second, the momentum
of resistance which the fluid opposed to its circular motion
was equal to one-tenth of a gramme (1*544 English troy
grains) placed at the end of a lever 143 mill. (5*63 English
inches) in length.
438. M. Coulomb repeated the same experiments in a
vessel of clarified oil, at the temperature of 16 degrees of
Reaumur. He found, as before, that the momenta of the
resistance of different circular disks, moving round their
centre in the plane of their superficies, were0as the fourth
power of their diameters; and that the difficulty with which
the same horizontal plate, moving with the same velocity,
separated the particles of oil, was to the difficulty with On the
which it separated the particles of water, as 17*5 to 1, Resistance
which is therefore the ratio that the mutual cohesion of the of Fluids,
particles of oil has to the mutual cohesion of the particles
of water.
439. In order to ascertain whether or not the resistance
of a body moving in a fluid was influenced by the nature
of its surface, M. Coulomb anointed the surface of the
white-iron plate with tallow, and wiped it partly away, so
that the thickness of the plate might not be sensibly in¬
creased. The plate was then made to oscillate in water,
and the oscillations were found to diminish in the same
manner as before the application of the unguent. Over
the surface of the tallow upon the plate, he afterwards scat¬
tered, by means of a sieve, a quantity of coarse sand which
adhered to the greasy surface; but when the plate, thus
prepared, was caused to oscillate, the augmentation of re¬
sistance was so small that it could scarcely be appreciated.
We may therefore conclude, that the part of the resistance
which is proportional to the simple velocity, is owing to the
mutual adhesion of the particles of the fluid, and not to the
adhesion of these particles to the surface of the body.
440. If the part of the resistance varying with the simple
velocity were increased when the white-iron plate was im¬
mersed at greater depths in the water, we might suppose
it to be owing to the friction of the water on the horizontal
surface, which, like the friction of solid bodies, should be
proportional to the superincumbent pressure. In order
to settle this point, M. Coulomb made the white-iron plate
oscillate at the depth of two centimetres (*787 English
inches), and also at the depth of 50 centimetres (19*6855
English inches), and found no difference in the resistance;
but as the surface of the water was loaded with the whole
weight of the atmosphere, and as an additional load of 50
centimetres of water could scarcely produce a perceptible
augmentation of the resistance, M. Coulomb employed an¬
other method of deciding the question. Having placed a
vessel full of water under the receiver of an air-pump, the
receiver being furnished with a rod and collar of leather at
its top, he fixed to the hook, at the end of the rod, a harp¬
sichord wire, number 7 in commerce, and suspended to
it a cylinder of copper, like gd, fig. 89, which plunged in
the water of the vessel, and under this cylinder he fixed a
circular plane, whose diameter was 101 millimetres (3*976
English inches). When the oscillations were finished, and
consequently the force of torsion nothing, the zero of tor¬
sion was marked by the aid of an index fixed to the cylin¬
der. The rod was then made to turn quickly round through
a complete circle, which gave to the wire a complete circle
of torsion, and the successive diminutions of the oscillations
were carefully observed. The diminution for a complete
circle of torsion w*as found to be nearly a fourth part of the
circle for the first oscillation, but always the same whether
the experiment was made in a vacuum or in the atmosphere.
A small pallet 50 millimetres long (1*969 English inches)
and 10 millimetres broad (0*3937 English inches), which
struck the water perpendicular to its plane, furnished a
similar result. We may therefore conclude, that when a
submerged body moves in a fluid, the pressure which it
sustains, measured by the altitude of the superior fluid,
does not perceptibly increase the resistance; and, conse¬
quently, that the part of this resistance proportional to the
simple velocity, can in no respect be compared with the
friction of solid bodies, which is always proportional to the
pressure.
441. The next object of M. Coulomb was to ascertain
the resistance experienced by cylinders that moved very
slowly, and perpendicular to their axis; but as the particles
of fluid struck by the cylinder necessarily partook of its
motion, it was impossible to neglect the part of the resist¬
ance proportional to the square of the velocity, and there-
HYDKODYNAMICS.
161
On the fore he was obliged to perform the experiments in such a
Resistance manner that both parts of the resistance might be computed,
of Fluids, 'pjjg three cylinders which he employed were 249 mill.
(O'SOSl English inches) long. The first cylinder was 0-87
mill. (00342 English inches, or-^g-th of an inch) in circum¬
ference, the second 1T2 mill. (0-4409 English inches), and
the third 21-1 mill. (-83070 English inches). They were
fixed by their middle under the cylindrical piece Dg, so as
to form two horizontal radii, whose length was 124-5 mill.
(4-9015 English inches) or half the length of each cylin¬
der. After making the necessary experiments and compu¬
tations, he found that the part of the resistance proportional
to the simple velocity, which, to avoid circumlocution, we
shall call r, did not vary with the circumferences of the
cylinders. The circumferences of the first and third cylin¬
ders were to one another as 24: 1, whereas the resistances
were in the ratio of 3:1. The same conclusion w-as de¬
duced by comparing the experiments made with the first
and second cylinder.
442. In order to explain these results, M. Coulomb very
justly supposes, that, in consequence of the mutual adhe¬
sion of the particles of water, the motion of the cylinder is
communicated to the particles at a small distance from it.
The particles which touch the cylinder have the same velo¬
city as the cylinder, those at a greater distance have a less
velocity, and at the distance of about one-tenth of an inch the
velocity ceases entirely, so that it is only at that distance
from the cylinder that the mutual adhesion of the fluid
molecules ceases to influence the resistance. The resist¬
ance r, therefore, should not be proportional to the circum¬
ference of the real cylinder, but to the circumference of
a cylinder whose radius is greater than the real cylinder
by one-tenth of an inch. It consequently becomes a matter
of importance to determine with accuracy the quantity
which must be added to the real cylinder in order to have
the radius of the cylinder to which the resistance r is pro¬
portional, and from which it must be computed. Coulomb
found the quantity by which the radius should be increased
to be 1*5 mill, (x^tu^8 an English inch), so that the
diameter of the augmented cylinder will exceed the dia¬
meter of the real cylinder by double that quantity, or xVVo^18
of an inch.
443. The part of the resistance varying with the square
of the velocity, or that arising from the inertia of the fluid,
which we shall call R, was likewise not proportional to the
circumferences of the cylinder; but the augmentation of
the radii amounts in this case only to x^ott^s of an inch,
which is only one-fifth of the augmentation necessary for
finding the resistance r. The reason of this difference is
obvious; all the particles of the fluid when they are sepa¬
rated from each other oppose the same resistance, what¬
ever be their velocity; consequently, as the value of r de¬
pends only on the adhesion of the particles, the resistances
due to this adhesion will reach to the distance from the
cylinder where the velocity of the particles is 0. In com¬
paring the different values of R, the part of the resistance
which varies as the square of the velocity, all the particles
are supposed to have a velocity equal to that of the cylin¬
der ; but as it is only the particles which touch the cylinder
that have this velocity, it follows that the augmentation of
the diameter necessary for finding R must be less than the
augmentation necessary for finding r.
444. In determining experimentally the part of the mo¬
mentum of resistance proportional to the velocity, by two
cylinders of the same diameter, but of different lengths, M.
Coulomb found that this momentum was proportional to
the third power of their lengths. The same result may be
deduced from theory; for supposing each cylinder divided
into any number of parts, the length of each part will be
proportional to the whole length. The velocity of the cor¬
responding parts M ill be as these lengths, and also as the
VOL. XII.
distance of the same parts from the centre of rotation. The On the
theory likewise proves that the momentum of resistance Resistance
depending on the square of the velocity, in two cylinders of ° y
the same diameter but of different lengths, is proportional
to the fourth power of the length of the cylinder.
445. When the cylinder, 9-8031 inches in length, and
0"4409 inches in circumference, was made to oscillate in
the fluid with a velocity of 5*51 inches per second, the part
of the resistance r was equal to 58 milligrammes, or "8948
Troy grains. And when the velocity was 0"3937 inches
per second, the resistance r was 0-00414 grammes, or -0638
Troy grains.
446. The preceding experiments were also made in the
oil formerly mentioned; and it likewise appeared, from their
results, that the mutual adhesion of the particles of oil was
to the mutual adhesion of the particles of water as 17 to 1.
But though this be the case, M. Coulomb discovered that
the quantity by which the radii of the cylinder must be
augmented in order to have the resistance r, is the very
same as when the cylinder oscillated in water. This result
was very unexpected, as the greater adhesion between the
particles of oil might have led us to anticipate a much
greater augmentation. When the cylinders oscillated both
in oil and water with the same velocity, the part of the re¬
sistance R produced by the inertia of the fluid particles
which the cylinder put in motion, was almost the same in
both. As this part of the resistance depends on the quan¬
tity of particles put in motion, and not on their adhesion,
the resistances due to the inertia of the particles will be in
different fluids as their densities.
447. The subject of the resistance of fluids has been
treated by Dr Hutton of Woolwich. His experiments
were made in air with bodies of various forms, moving with
different velocities, and inclined at various angles to the
direction of their motion, and the following conclusions were
deduced from them:—1. That the resistance is nearly pro¬
portional to the surfaces, a small increase taking place when
the surfaces and the velocities are great. 2. The resist¬
ance to the same surface moving with different velocities,
is nearly as the square of the velocity ; but it appears that
the exponent increases with the velocity. 3. The round
and sharp ends of solids sustain a greater resistance than
the flat ends of the same diameter. 4. The resistance to
the base of the hemisphere is to the resistance on the con¬
vex side, or the whole sphere, as 2^ to 1, instead of 2 to 1,
as given by theory. 5. The resistance on the base of the
cone is to the resistance on the vertex nearly as 2T^ to 1;
and in the same ratio is radius to the sine of half the angle
at the vertex. Hence in this case the resistance is directly
as the sine of the angle of incidence, the transverse section
being the same. 6. The resistance of the base of a hemi¬
sphere, the base of a cone, and the base of a cylinder, are
all different, though these bases be exactly equal and
similar.
448. The experiments of Mr Vince were made with
bodies at a considerable depth below the surface of water;
and he determined the resistance which they experienced,
both when they moved in the fluid at rest, and M-hen they
received the impulse of the moving fluid. In the experi¬
ments contained in the following table, the body moved
in the fluid with a velocity of 0-66 feet in a second. The
angles at which the planes struck the fluid are contained in
the first column. The second column shows the resistance
by experiment in the direction of their motion in Troy
ounces. The third column exhibits the resistance by
theory, the perpendicular distance being supposed the same
as by experiment. The fourth column shows the power
of the sine of the angle to which the resistance is propor¬
tional, and was computed in the following manner :—Let s
be the sine of the angle, radius being 1, and r the resist¬
ance at that angle. Suppose r to vary as then we have
162
On the
Resistance ^
of Fluids.
HYDKODYNAMICS.
sm=0‘2Z2\ : r; hence
s =
and therefore
0-2321’
log. r — log. 0-2321 , , , .
~ log. r —log. s ’ ant* substituting their corre¬
sponding values, instead of r and s we shall have the values
of m or the numbers in the fourth column.
Resistance of a Plane Surface moving in a Fluid, and placed
at different angles to the path of its motion.
Angle of
inclination.
Degrees.
10
30
50
70
90
Resistance by
experiment.
Troy ounces.
00112
00769
01552
0-2125
0-2321
Resistance by
theory.
Troy ounces.
0-0012
00290
01043
0-1926
0-2321
Power of the sine
of the angle to
which the resistance
is proportional.
Experiments.
1‘73
1-54
1-51
1-42
44& According to the theory the resistance should vary
as the cube of the sine, whereas from an angle of 90° it
decreases in a less ratio, but not as any constant power, nor On th
resLIc'Tr °f the Sin,e a"d C0Si"e- He"“ ‘he actual Resistance
stance always exceeds that which is deduced from of Fluids.
theoiy, assuming the perpendicular resistance to be the
same. ie cause of this difference is partly owing to our
theory neglecting that part of the force which after resolu-
ion acts parallel to the plane, but which, according to ex-
plaue entS’ 18 rea y a Part °f the force which acts uPon t,le
450. Mr Vince made also a number of experiments on
the resistance of hemispheres, globes, and cylinders, which
moved with a velocity of 0-542 feet per second. He found
!'fc fthe.resistance t0 the spherical side of a hemisphere
,as , t,le resistance on its base as 0-034 is to 0-08339•
that the resistance of the flat side of a hemisphere was to
the resistance of a cylinder of the same diameter, and mov¬
ing with the same velocity, as 0-08339 is to 0-07998; and
that the resistance to a complete globe is to the resistance
a cylinder of the same diameter, and with the same ve-
locity, as 1 i 2*23*
When the plane was struck by the moving fluid, Dr
ince found that the resistance was one-fifth greater than
when the plane moved in the fluid. In both these cases
t e actual effect on the plane must be the same, and there-
foie the difference in the resistance can arise only from the
action of the fluid behind the body in the former case.
CHAPTER IV. ON THE OSCILLATION OF FLUIDS, AND THE UNDULATION OF WAVES.
451. Prop. I.—-The oscillations of water in a siphon, con¬
sisting of two vertical branches and a horizontal one,
are isochronous, and have the same duration as the
oscillations of a pendulum whose length is equal to
half the length of the oscillating column of water.
Into the tube MNOP (fig. 74), having its internal dia¬
meter everywhere the same, intro¬
duce a quantity of water. When
the water is in equilibrio, the two
surfaces AB, CD will be in the same E
horizontal line AD. If this equili¬
brium be disturbed by making the
siphon oscillate round the point g, K
the water will rise and fall alternately
in the vertical branches after the
siphon is at rest. Suppose the water
to rise to EF in the branch MO, it
will evidently fall to GH in the other
branch, so that CG is equal to AE.
Then it is evident, that the force
which makes the water oscillate, is Fig. 74.
t ie weight of the column EFKL, which is double the
co umn ABF ; and that this force is to the whole weight
of the water, as 2 AE is to
AOPD. Now, let P (fig. 75)
be a pendulum whose length
is equal to half the length
of the oscillating column
AOPD, and which describes
to the lowest point S arcs
PS, equal to AE ; then
2 AE : AOPD = AE : QP,
because AE is one-half of
2 AE, and QP one-half of
AOPD. Consequently, since
AOPD is a constant quantity,
the force which makes the
water oscillate is always pro- rig- 75-
portional to the space which it runs through, and its oscil
lations are therefore isochronous. The force which makes
the pendulum describe the arc PS, is to the weight of
*e pendulum “s PS is to PQ or as AE is to PQ, since
• 7 V, 5 - ^ the force whlch makes the water oscillate
is to the weight of the whole water in the same ratio ; con¬
sequently, since the pendulum P, and the column AOPD
are influenced by the very same force, their oscillations
must be performed m the same time. Q. E. D.
452. Cor.—As the oscillations of water and of pendulums
are regulated by the same laws, if the oscillating column
of water is increased or diminished, the time in which the
oscillations are performed will increase or diminish in the
subduphcate ratio of the length of the pendulum.
453.
Prop. II. The undulations of waves are performed
in the same time as the oscillations of a pendulum
whose length is equal to the breadth of a wave, or
to the distance between two neighbouring cavities
or eminences.
A c E
Fig. 76.
In the waves ABCDEF (fig. 76), the undulations are per¬
formed in such a manner, that the highest parts ACE be¬
come the lowest; and as the force which depresses the emi¬
nences A, C, E is always the weight of water contained in
these emmences, it is obvious, that the undulations of waves
are of the same kind as the undulations or oscillations of
water in a siphon. It follows, therefore, from Prop. L,
that if we take a pendulum, whose length is one-half BM,
or half the distance between the highest and lowest parts
of the wave, the highest parts of each wave will descend to
the lowest parts during one oscillation of the pendulum,
and in the time of another oscillation will again become the
highest parts. The pendulum, therefore, will perform two
oscillations in the time that each wave performs one undu-
ation, that is, in the time that each wave describes the
space AC or BD, between two neighbouring eminences or
HYDRODYNAMICS.
On Water- cavities, which is called the breadth of the wave Now, if
Wheels. a pendulum whose length is one-half BM perform two
v—' oscillations in the above time, it will require a pendulum
four times that length to perform only one oscillation in the
same time, that is, a pendulum whose length is AL or BL>,
since 4 x ^ BM = 2 BM = AC or BD. Q, E. D.
163
On Water-
Wheels.
PART III.—ON HYDRAULIC MACHINERY.
454. To describe the various machines in which water
is the impelling power, would be an endless and unprofit¬
able task. Those machines which can be driven by wind,
steam, and the force of men or horses, as well as they can
be driven by water, do not properly belong to the science
of hydraulics. By hydraulic machinery, therefore, we are
to understand those various contrivances by which water
can be employed as the impelling power of machinery ; and
those machines which are employed to raise water, or which
could not operate without the assistance of that fluid.
455. A Hydraulic Machine will thus be one composed of a
number of pieces, levers, or wheel-work, made up in such a
way, that the movement impressed by water-power transmits
itself from one part to another, and produces a certain re-
sult. _
Hydraulic machines are of two kinds,—Machines
having a motion of rotation ; and, 2d, Machines having an al¬
ternate motion. Under the first are comprehended hydraulic
wheels, with turbines and reacting machines ; and the second
comprises water-column machines, and the hydraulic ram.
456. When a mover, as water, acts on a machine, it ex¬
ercises on the part impinged on a pressure or effort: the
immediate effect of this effort will be to make the part
struck move in the direction of the power, or in some con¬
strained direction ; in either case space will be passed
through by the part. Let a = the effect in lbs., and ^ =
the space passed through, then a.s = the sum of all the
partial efforts developed by the machine, or the quantity of
action developed by the mover in the operation; by some
writers it is termed the mechanical work, or the work done.
Again, the dynamical force, or the force of a movei, will
be the quantity of action developed in a unit or second of
time ; it will thus be the product of the effort and velocity,
or, a.s = a.v, since in 1 second s—v.
457. Before, however, the force impressed on the pa¬
lettes of a wheel can transmit its effect to the machinery
to be set in motion, it experiences resistance from the
pivots and from the air, friction from the teeth of wheels,
and shocks of the teeth against the spindles. These re¬
sistances combined, make up a force which necessarily di¬
minishes that originally derived from the mover. Hence,
it is this diminished force that turns the machinery of a
mill, and surmounts the resistance that the corn, for ex¬
ample, opposes to the grinding. The force necessary to
overcome this resistance is named the useful effect; Mont-
o-olfier’s definition of the same thing is—the active force is
that which pays itself. There are, again, as it were inheient
resistances connected with various pieces of the apparatus,
which are called the passive resistances of the machine, the
useful effect being taken for the active resistance sur¬
mounted. The total action of the passive resistances, to¬
gether with the useful effect produced, make up the dyna¬
mical effect. It is clear, also, that the mechanical axiom,
what is gained in power is lost in time or velocity, will hold
good in hydraulics. Lastly, the total effect produced is
'equal to the force impressed on the machine.
CHAPTER I.*—MACHINES HAYING A MOTION OF ROTATION.
Water-wheels have either a vertical or horizontal axis,
and named respectively Horizontal and Vertical Wheels.
The following table is a classification of machines having a
motion of rotation
course
( rectilineal. Undershot Wheels.
| circular.
, indefinite fluid. Suspended Wheels.
Poncelet Wheels.
(with ( plane, (
palettes / in a < '
I , Ul
V curved.
" I buckets ( at t^ie summit. Overshot Wheels.
1 receiving \ under the summit. Breast Wheels.
1 water V
_w ( struck by an isolated vein.
•2 | with J pjace(j a cylinder. Tub or Spoon Mills.
o I Palettes ( out 0f a cylinder. Turbines of Fourneyron.
'S l with passages. Burdin's Turbine.
\B (with reaction. Segner's Wheel or Barker s Mill; Euler, ate.
SECTION I. VERTICAL WHEELS, AXIS HORIZONTAL.
( a.) Undershot Wheels vjith plain Palettes.
458. Wheels with plain palettes are very simple in their
parts and also in their construction. They generally con¬
sist of a horizontal axis, an inner and outer circle, on
the latter of which perpendicular palettes or flat boardo
are fixed, and radii unite the several parts to the hori¬
zontal axis. Such a wheel (fig. 77) is set in motion by
water conveyed to it by a course, which may be rectilineal
or circular. In the former case, there is a flood-gate close
to the wheel, collecting a head of water which is distributed
by the gate when a very little uplifted, so that the water
may just strike the lower palettes, and not pass between
their edge and the course. In the latter we may have a
course curved like that in fig. 77. The fall in that
answers the same purpose as the flood-gate a little uplifted.
When a flood-gate is used, it should be set as near the
wheel as possible, in order that the water might lose none
of its velocity from the resistance of the bottom or side-
walls of the course. The opening of the flood-gate should
be so disposed that the contraction of the water might be
reduced to its least value; and the flood-gate itself should
be inclined, which is the same thing as if the opening were
brought nearer the wheel. It has been found that in a flood¬
gate inclined at an angle of 63° to the horizon, having
1 for base and 2 for height, the coefficient of contraction is
0-75 ; under an inclination of 45 the coefficient is 0 80,
having 1 for base and 1 for height; and when the gate is
vertical, in the same circumstances, it is about 0-70.
459. The course should be slightly inclined towards the
wheel; its breadth should be determined by the volume of
water which it is to convey ; and the thickness of the fluid
sheet escaping from under the flood-gate should never
exceed 0-820^ ft., nor be less than 0-492 ft. When it is
smaller than this, so much water passes between the lower
edge of the palettes and course, without producing any
eftect, thus diminishing the work of the water. The space
between the walls of the course and the palettes should be
from 0*032 ft. to 0-065 ft. The course should never be
purely rectilineal; it should be somewhat inclined before
reaching the flood-gate, where the water ought to strike
the second palette at least from the vertical; then it must
be concentrical with the exterior border of the palettes, and
immediately after a palette has become vertical, the course
should suddenly fall 3’93 inches at least; the water may
then be conveyed away according to the locality. I he
164 HYDRODYNAMICS.
On Water- breadth of the course before reaching the palettes is a little
Wheels. narrower than the breadth of the wheel, but now it widens,
' and just embraces the wheel.
460. The breadth of the palettes will depend on that of
the course, and on the magnitude of the intervals; their
height will be about three times the thickness of the sheet
issuing from under the flood-gate, never exceeding 2‘13 ft.
The distance between one board and another, measured
on the periphery of the wheel, is a little less than their height.
The number of palette-boards will depend on the diameter or
circumference of the wheel. The dynamical effect of the
wheel is not dependent on the diameter; it takes account
of the velocity of the boards, or rather on the number of turns
that the wheel makes in a certain time, so that the useful
effect may be communicated to the machinery set in motion.
Let u be the velocity per second of the extremity of
the boards, n the number of turns in one minute; then 1
turn will be effected in the nth. part of 1 min., or the
00
diameter will be expressed by —— = 19-1 It has
it .n n
been found that, for a good effect, m=L7 x \/h ; and so
32
the diameter of the wheel will be — x \/h, where H is
the total fall of water. Generally, the diameter is never less
than 13 ft., and never in excess of 26 ft.
With respect to the number of palettes, artificers gene¬
rally adopt the rule, that—
Under a diameter of 13-1 ft. the number of boards is 28
16-4 ... ... ... 32
19-7 ... ... ... 36
23 0 ... ... ... 40
and so on. Four boards being added for every 3 feet of
breadth to the diameter of the wheel.
461. It is not advantageous to have the palettes inclined
to the direction of the radius, when the water is conveyed by
a course, for Bossut found that when he inclined the boards
at angles of 0°, 8°, 12°, and 16°, the effects were respec¬
tively as the numbers 1, 0-949, 0-956, 0-998. Inclined
paddles are very useful when plunged in an indefinite fluid.
462. In order that such a wheel may be put in motion,
the water leaves the opening under the flood-gate with a velo¬
city due to the head pent up behind the flood-gate; this
water impinging on the palettes with a considerable pres¬
sure, imparts a movement of rotation to the wheel. But
this velocity depends on the resistance to be overcome, so
that if the resistance be considerable, the velocity will be
lessened. Again the pressure exercised by the water on
the boards, is not the same when they are moving as when
they are at rest, for the pressure is feebler in proportion as
the wheel moves quicker. Hence, therefore, the wheel
must take a particular velocity by overcoming a given re¬
sistance, that the pressure on the boards may correspond
with this resistance. The wheel, however, may be made
to take any velocity, by regulating the resistance which it
has to overcome ; but the amount of work given to the wheel
by the water will not always be the same unless the wheel
turn with a certain velocity. This velocity must be
neither too great nor too small; it must be such that the
work done by the wheel will exceed that which it would
produce with any other velocity. Experiment has shown
that this maximum work is attained when the velocity of
the wheel, measured by its circumference, is 045 times
that of the water on arriving at the palette boards. When
the wheel has this velocity, it is found that the work done
by it does not exceed 025 the work of the water, so that
nearly 0-75 of this latter work is lost.
463. It is very important, for those especially who em¬
ploy water-wheel power, to know the work which their
wheels are capable of giving out. The general equation
for tins kind of wheel is the followingLet a constant
stream impinge perpendicularly on the boards of a water¬
wheel moving with a certain velocity, W being the weight
of a current thrown on the paddle-board every second;
V, and V the velocity of the water on striking and on
caving the board ; and V' that of the moving board; then
the velocity lost will be V — V', and the work lost by impact
=|(v-vt;
and the work which the stream is capable of giving out
W. V2 W , W r f
-2^V-V)2=^{V2-(V-V')2} =
P +
%
W.V"2
*9
which last = the useful work + the work
re¬
maining in the water after leaving the paddle.
On Water-'
Wheels.
464. In the case of this Undershot wheel, P = —(V _ V'W'
for V only is variable and = V"; if V' = 0, the wheel
does no useful work, and so also when V = V'; also V' can
nevei exceed V. Ihus the effect increases as the velocity
of the wheel, starting from zero, increases, but only up to a
certain point, for it evidently diminishes when it approaches
V. Hence, there is a maximum effect between these two
extremes, that is to say, (V — V') V' is to be a maximum ;
.\V.dV-2\'.dV=0- or V'=l.V;
or an undershot wheel produces its utmost effect when its
velocity is one-half that of the current.
Borda first showed the truth of the above result; it has
been fully confirmed by the experiments of Smeaton, Bos¬
sut, and others.
465. Many experiments have been made on undershot
wheels. Smeaton has given the results which he obtained
in the Royal Society Trans, for 1759. It is supposed that
his model wheel was of too small dimensions to give very
accurate results for practice. The value which Smeaton al¬
lowed for the velocity of the wheel, or V', was V' = 0-40 x V.
Bo&sut reckoned it of the same value. More recent expe¬
riments, however, regard it as = 045xV for the case of
the maximum effect. The coefficient also for reducing
the theoretical to the real effect may be taken as = 0"6.
Smeaton’s was 0-64. It is necessary, therefore, to multiply
the expression P=^(V-V')Y' by w, the coefficient, to
obtain the true result.
466. When an undershot wheel has a fall, the float-
boards disposed on its circumference receive the impulse
of the water conveyed to the lowest point of the wheel by
an inclined canal. It is represented in fig. 77, where WW
is the water-wheel, and ABDFHKMV the canal or mill-
fig. 77.
course, which conveys the water to K, where it strikes the
plane float-boards no, See., and makes the wheel revolve
about its axis.
467. In order to construct the mill-course to the great¬
est advantage, we must give but a very small declivity to
the canal which conducts the water from the river. It will
HYDRODYNAMICS.
165
c„ Water- be sufficient to make AB slope about one inch in 200 yards,
Wheels, making the declivity, however, about half an inch for the
V—v—^ first 48 yards, in order that the water may have sufficient
velocity to prevent it from falling back into the river. The
inclination of the fall, represented by the angle GCR, should
be 25° 50', or CR, the radius, should be to GR, the tan¬
gent of this angle, as 100 to 48, or as 25 to 12; and since
the surface of the water S6 is bent from ab into ac before
it is precipitated down the fall, it will be necessaiy to in-
curvate the upper part BCD of the course into BD, that
the water in the bottom may move parallel to the water at
the surface of the stream. For this purpose, take the
points B, D, about 12 inches distance from C, and raise the
perpendiculars BE, DE. The point of intersection E will be
the centre from which the arc BD is to be described; the
radius being about lO^th inches. Now, in order that the
water may act more advantageously upon the float-boards
of the wheel WW, it must assume a horizontal direction,
with the same velocity which it would have acquired when
it came to the point G. But, if the water were allowed to
fall from C to G, it would dash upon the horizontal part
HG, and thus lose a great part of its velocity. It will be
necessary, therefore, to make it move along tH, an arc
of a circle to which DF and KH are tangents in the points
F and H. For this purpose make GF and GH each equal
to three feet; and raise the perpendiculars HI, FI, which
will intersect one another in the point I, distant about 4
feet 9 inches from the points F and H, and the
of the arc FH will be determined. The distance Hk,
through which the water runs before it acts upon the
wheel, should not be less than 2 or 3 feet, in order that the
different filaments of the fluid may have attained a hori¬
zontal direction. If HK were too large, the stream would
suffer a diminution of velocity by its friction on the bottom
of the course. That no water may escape between the
bottom of the course KH and the extremities of the float-
boards, KL should be about 3 inches, and the extremity
o of the float-board no ought to reach below the line HR-*-’
sufficient room being left between o and M for the play ot
the wheel; or KLM may be formed into the arc of a
circle KM, concentric with the wheel. The line EM V,
which has been called the course of impulsion, should be
prolonged so as to support the water as long as it can act
upon the float-boards, and should be about 9 inches distant
from OP, a horizontal line passing through O the lowest
point of the fall; for, if OL were much less than 9 inches,
the water, having spent the greatest part of its force in im¬
pelling the float-board, would accumulate below the wheel,
and retard its motion. For the same reason another course,
which has been called the course of discharge, should be
connected with LMV by the curve YN, to preserve the
remaining velocity of the water, which would otherwise be
discharged by falling perpendicularly from V to N. 1 he
course of discharge which is represented by the line VZ,
sloping from the point O, should be about 16 yards long,
having an inch of declivity for every 2 yards Ihe canal
which reconducts the water from the course of discharge to
the river should slope about 4 inches in the first 200 yards,
3 inches in the second 200 yards, decreasing gradually till
it terminates in the river. But if the river to which the
water is conveyed should, when swollen by the rains, force
the water back upon the wheel, the canal must have a
greater declivity to prevent this from taking place. Hence
it is evident that very accurate levelling is requisite to the
proper formation of the mill-course.
so far to the right, that the extreme edges of its boards On Water-
when turning round, will all but graze the circular part of vvneeis.
the course, and if the walls of the passage box in the ^ v ““
wheel so that no water will escape between the palette
edges and the passage, or at the side walls, we shall have
a Breast or Side wheel These breast-wheels are divided
into High Breast or Low Breast, according as they receive
the water above or below their horizontal diameter. I he
breast-wheel, fig. 78, is driven partly by the impulse, but
chiefly by the weight of the water. The water may be re¬
ceived on the palettes, as in fig. 77, or by means of a flood-
Fig. 78.
gate, or by means of a vertical passage communicating with
a reservoir at a height above the wheel; in either case the
water will be delivered on the plane-boards of the wheel.
In fig. 78 the water passes through an iron grating ab,
and its admission is regulated by two shutters c, d, the lowest
of which is adjusted till a sufficient volume of water passes
over it; and the other shutter, c, is made to descend by ma¬
chinery when the wheel is to be stopped, and the water
retained in the reservoir R. When the water enters on any
board, it is generally retained there till it arrives at the
lowest part of the wheel, and is discharged into the course.
469. Mr Lambert, of the Academy of Sciences of Berlin,
experimented on these wheels, and observes, that a breast-
wheel should be used when the fall of water is above four
feet high and below ten.1 M. Morin has recently made ex¬
periments on this wheel, which may be seen in his Experi¬
ences sur les Roues Hydrauliques, &c. It appears from
experiment that the diameter of these breast-wheels should
vary from 16 to 23 ft. The number of palettes is found from
art. 460, and generally they are a little inclined to the radius.
470. In determining the formula for wheels having a
fall of water, we have to take into account the additional
height that the water descends with the wheel, where, con¬
sequently, an additional amount of work will be performed.
Let this amount of work be that due to the vertical space
h, through which the water falls. Then, work applied to
the wheel in one second = 7^ | V2 - (V - V )2 j + WA
= the useful work P performed by the wheel + that due to
the water on leaving the wheel. Let V be the velocity
of the water on leaving the board ; its effective work will
W . V"2
be
2<7
,*.P +
(/3.) Breast or Side Wheels, icith plain Palettes.
468. If we suppose that the wheel of fig. 77 is moved
W . V"2
29
=— ( V2 - (V - V')21 +W.A;
2*? I J
r)P = W.A + ^|2VV'-V*-V"!j:
* Nouv. Mem* de VA.cadc'fni^ da T>crliny 1/75.
166
HYDRODYNAMICS.
On Water- which is the general equation for the effective work of a
Wheels. water-wheel when the water has a fall.
In the case, therefore, of the Breast-wheel, h is the ver¬
tical height of the fall where the water meets the paddle,
and V" = V';
...P = W |/; + ^(V-V')V'
The latter member is to be multiplied by the coefficient,
which, according to M. Morin, is 0-74.
This wheel may be wrought very efficiently with velo¬
cities varying from £ V to § V.
471. Suspended wheels are such as work in an indefinite
course of water. The plane palettes are plunged in the
current of a river, the force of which acting on the im¬
mersed boards, communicates a rotatory motion to the
wheel. They are generally to be seen established on the
sides of boats, or other supports properly fixed. The dia¬
meter of these wheels never exceeds 16 ft. The palette-
boards may number 12, 18, or even with advantage 24;
their height may be about the 4th part or more of the entire
radius of the wheel, and the breadth from 8 to 16 ft.1
From experiments on this kind of wheel, it appears that the
velocity of the palettes, at the middle of their height, should
be, for the greatest possible effect, 0-40 that of the water.
(y.) Undershot Wheels tvith curved Palettes—Poncelet
Wheel.
472. The undershot wheel already mentioned in art. 458
loses a considerable amount of the force impressed upon it
by water, and so the useful effect is much reduced. It was
of importance to have a wheel possessing the conveniences
of the undershot wheel, but avoiding the loss of force which
is always incident to the use of it. Such a wheel is the
Poncelet wheel, devised by M. Poncelet in 1824. This
wheel, represented in fig. 79, is an undershot wheel, but,
Fig. 79.
unlike that in fig. 78, has curved palettes; the curves are
tangents to the exterior rim of the wheel; the lower ele¬
ment of curvature is horizontal, the upper vertical. It is
with boards so disposed that the work transmitted by the
water to the wheel exceeds that given out by plain
boards.
473. The course, till arriving at the lowest part of the
wheel, is here inclined at about 1 in 10, so that the water
might regain the velocity which it lost by the friction of the
sides and bottom of the course: the inclination may be
lessened, when the sheet of water is considerable that issues
fiom under the flood-gate. The course also is uniform,
and where it embraces the wheel is a little narrower than
its breadth. In order that the wheel may work in a course
nanower than itself, the lower parts of the upright sides of
the course are hollowed out, so that the projecting curved
boards of the wheel might w'ork in them. At the lowest
pai t of the wheel the course is suddenly depressed, in order
that the back-water might not affect the working of the
machine. With respect to the head of water pent up
behind the flood-gate, the latter is very much inclined,
so that the sheet of escaping water might just issue with¬
out losing any of its velocity by the resistance of the
course.
474. If we suppose that water is admitted by the open¬
ing on the curved boards, it will take a velocity, say V, and
enter horizontally on the lower element of the curve. The
water now glides along this curve, rises, and gradually, by
the action of gravity, loses its velocity of entering, till, at
the highest part of its course, V is lost altogether, that is,
V2
when it has attained a height = 7-- = 0*051 met. x V2. The
2g
water now begins to fall down the curve, and, acquiring an
increased velocity as it reaches the horizontal or lowest part
of the curve, quits the palette with the same velocity as it
entered upon it. Let the uniform velocity of the perime¬
ter of the wheel be V, then V — V' is the relative velocity
with which the water rises through the length of the curve,
,/v-vv
and = 0*051 met. x (V - V)2 = the height
to
which it will rise on the curve; and at last, on quitting the
horizontal part of the board, will have a velocity = V — V'.
But the lower part of the curve works with a velocity V'
in the opposite direction; .*. V — V'— V' = V — 2V'= the
absolute velocity of the water as it leaves the wheel. If we
wish to have a maximum effect, V — 2V' = 0, or V' = iy;
that is to say, were the wheel to take one-half the velocity
of the current on its arrival at the board, the absolute
velocity of the water on quitting the boards would be
nothing.
Wherefore we have a current mover, experiencing nei¬
ther shock nor loss of velocity at the moment of its enter¬
ing on the wheel, and which possesses none at the moment
of leaving it; the current then spends its whole motion,
and communicates its whole force to the wheel. These
two conditions suffice to produce the greatest possible effect.
For this let W be the weight of fluid furnished by the cur¬
rent in 1 second, and h = height due to velocity, the effect will
be expressed by WA. This is true for a single fillet, but not
for a sheet of water of a definite thickness; for the mole¬
cules strike the boards at an angle more or less great with
respect to the parts struck, and consequently there is a loss
of force and velocity. This mass of water, when it quits
the boards, does not move exactly in a direction opposite to
the boards ; and again, since so much water is lost by every
course, without producing any effect, the real effect will be
something less than W/<.
475. M. Poncelet, in his Memoire sur les Roues Hydrau-
hques Verticales a Aubes Courbes, mentions all the experi¬
ments which he made on this wheel. The practical results
which Poncelet deduced from these experiments are—IaV.
That the velocity of the wheel which gives a maximum effect
is 0*55 of the velocity of the current; it may vary from
0*50 to 0*60. 2d. That the dynamical effect is not under
0*75 x W/t for small falls with large openings at the bottom
of the flood-gate, and 0*65 for small openings and deep
falls. 3<7. That this same effect, compared with the full
force of the mover, is 0*60; and for small openings it will
reach 0*50.
476. For the case which generally occurs in practice,
when properly arranged wheels have a velocity not differ¬
ing much from 0*55 that of the current, we may take the
dynamical effect - 0*75 x WA, and also = 0*60 x WH, the
passive resistances being taken into account. H is the total
fall of water.
With an opening under the flood-gate of from 0*100
On Waten
Wheels.
1 Essai sur la Construction des Roues Hydrauliques, etc., par M. Fabre.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
167
On Water'
Wheels.
met. to 0-304 met., h will vary from 1-43 to I'26 met., and H
from 1'59 met. to 1-52 met.; and the we.ght o water W,
furnished by the current in 1 second, would be, foi the
first onenino- 279 kilogr., and for the second 809 kilogr.
The coefficient which multiplies the quantity WA, is fully
double that obtained from wheels with plain palettes,
which is sufficient to make us dispense with plain palette-
wheels, and substitute for them wheels with curved
Pal477S’ln the construction of these wheels with curved
..alettes—1^. The number of palettes will be double that
required in wheels with plain palettes. 2d. Their height, m
the direction of the radius, or the distance between the
inner and outer circumference of the wheel, must be in ex¬
cess of a fourth of the effective fall: if the fall be 1 40 met.
it will be a third of this; for falls under this last it will be a
half ?>d The lower element of the curve, which makes an
aneie nothing, or nearly so, with the outer circumference,
will when the sheet of water is extremely thin, make an angle
with it of 24°, 30°, and generally greater as the thickness
of the moving sheet increases. The curves may be thus
obtained:—From point A (fig. 79), where the fluid sheet
BA meets the outer circumference, raise a vertical AK,
and from point C, where it cuts the inner circumference,
describe, from centre C, with radius CA, an arc AL ; an
so on for all the others. And \th, Immediately under the
vertical diameter, the bottom of the course must be sud¬
denly lowered, so that the back-water might not interrupt
the working of the wheel. . ,
478. The work done then by the water entering on the
Poncelet wheel = work done on the wlieel + that done by the
water on leaving the paddle, or = P + 2^(V -2V ^
P = ——(V - V') V ;
9
and we have seen that the work done by this wheel is nearly
double that performed by the undershot wheel with plain
palettes ; the value of P being as in art. 470.
(8.) Overshot Wheels, or Bucket Wheels.
479. An overshot or bucket wheel is so disposed, that the
water, as the motive power, is received on its upper part;
it is represented in fig. 80, where ABC is the circumference
of the wheel furnished with a number of buckets. The
canal MN conveys the water into the second bucket from
the ton Aa The equilibrium of the wheel is therefore On Water-
destroyed r and the power of the bucket Au to turn the
wheel round its centre of motion O, is the same as if the '
weight of the water in the bucket were suspended at w,
theS extremity of the lever Om; c being the cen re of
gravity of the bucket, and Om a perpendicular let fall from
the fulcrum O to the direction cm, in which the force iS
exerted. In consequence of this destruction of equdibnum
the wheel will move round in the direction AB, the hue et
Aa will be at d, and the empty bucket b will take the place
of Aa, and receive water from the spout JN. Ihe torce
acting on the wheel is now the water in the bucket d, act¬
ing with a lever nO, and the water in the bucket Aa act-
in*-- with a lever mO. The velocity of the wheel will there¬
fore increase with the number of loaded buckets, and with
their distance from the vertex of the wheel; tor the lever
by which they tend to turn the wheel about its axis in¬
creases as the buckets approach to c, where their power,
represented by eO, is a maximum. After the buckets
have passed c, the lever by which they act gradually dimi¬
nishes, they lose by degrees a small portion of their water,
and as soon as they reach P, it is completely discharged.
When the wheel begins to move, its velocity will increase
rapidly till the quadrant of buckets be is completely filled.
While these buckets are descending through the infenoi
quadrant eP, and the buckets on the left hand of b are re¬
ceiving water from the spout, the velocity of the wheel wd
still increase; but the increments of velocity will be small¬
er and smaller, since the levers by which the inferior buck¬
ets act are gradually diminishing. As soon as the highest
bucket Ac has reached the point B, where it is emptied,
nearly the whole semi-circumference of the wheel is loaded
with water; and when the bucket at B is discharging its
contents, the bucket at A is filling, so that the load in the
buckets, by which the wheel is impelled, will be always
the same, and the velocity of the wheel will become
uniform s
480. In order to determine the best form of the buckets,
we must consider that the power of the wheel would be a
maximum if the whole of its semi-circumference were
loaded with water. This effect would be obtained if t e
buckets had the shape shown in fig. 81, where ABC is the
form of the bucket, AB being
a continuation of the radius, and
BC part of the circumference of
the wheel, and nearly equal to
AD. But as a small aperture
at CE will neither admit nor
discharge the water, the form
shown in fig. 82 has been pro¬
posed by Sir David Brewster as /
the best. In this construction, Fig-si. _ J^8/82,
BC is made a little larger than BE, and AB is diminished
so as to make the angle ABC a little greater than 90 .
The angles at B should be rounded off, so as to make ABC
a curve, as indicated by the dotted line. 1 he aperture at
dE must be sufficient for the introduction and discharge of
the water, and the side BE of the bucket should be as
smooth and even as possible. .
481. The distance of one bucket from another is about
one foot. But the wheel is sometimes divided into four
parts, and a whole number of buckets placed in each, so
that the number of buckets will be proportional to the
diameter. In forming the buckets, the space e?E, fig. 82,
must evidently be a little wider than the fluid sheet, so that
the proper volume of water may be admitted. The angle
also which the side AB makes with BE, is from 110
to 118°, according as the wheels are from about 13
39 feet in diameter; the angle then which BE makes with
the circumference, is about 31°; it should never exceed
33°. The depth of the bucket is DE, where E is a point
168
HYDRODYNAMICS.
On Water-of the circumference, fig. 81. AB is frequently taken as
Wheels. a thirci 0f J)E, sometimes as a half. The buckets may
receive water either by the method shown in fig. 80; or
the water, without fall of any kind, may come in the oppo¬
site direction by a canal closed up at the end next the
wheel, where one or two openings in the bottom of the
course admit the water into the buckets. This principle
is in very general use in Great Britain.
482. The breadth of the bucket is determined by the
volume of water which it receives and carries. Let Q be the
volume issuing in one second from the reservoir by which
MN is supplied. V' the velocity of the circumference, d the
distance, reckoned along AB (fig. 80), of one bucket from
V'
another; then in one second a number of buckets = —
d
will pass before the mouth of MN, and each will carry away
a volume = Q divided by^-=^?. Now, in order to be
effective, the bucket must not only carry this, but a volume
three times greater. Let 1= the breadth of a bucket, s —
the transverse section, then the capacity of the bucket or
volume of water contained = s/. Now, let m be the num¬
ber of buckets on the wheel, and n the revolutions of the
wheel in one minute, or 60 seconds; then as the volume
si of water must be = 3Q^ = 180 ; for m. c7=circum-
V m. 71
ference, and 60 . V' = w x circumference ;
s/=I80.-^—; or /=180 . - Q =
m. n m .n .s
breadth of wheel given by the work. The volume Q is
that which the wheel spends so as to produce its whole
effect.
483. In the work performed by an overshot wheel, the
mean vertical height h is nearly equal to the diameter of the
wheel, and also V" = V', for the velocity of the water on
leaving the paddle is the same as that of the paddle.
P = WA + ^|2VV'-V'2-V'2 j
= W |4+I(V_V')V'J .
The latter member is to be multiplied by its coefficient.
484. Smeaton, in 1759, experimented on overshot wheels,
and the principal results of his observations are—[st. That,
relative to the effect produced, the fall should be divided
into two parts; one equal to the diameter, the other a
little above it. 2d. Since the action of the upper part of
the fall is feeble, Smeaton sought a relation between the
effect and the lower part of the fall ; this was constantly
0-80 x W x diameter. 3c?. When the fall exceeded the dia¬
meter by only a small quantity, he had 072 x W x total
fall. And, 4^/i. That the velocity of a bucket-wheel should
range from 3 feet to 6 feet per sec. In these observations he
was guided mainly by the old principle, that a bucket-
wheel gives most effect w’hen it turns slowly, as was shown
in the experiments of Deparcieux. Smeaton also concluded,
from a series of experiments, that the higher the wheel is
in proportion to the whole descent, the greater will be the
effect.
water expended were the least; but that it was as four to On Water-
two, when the height of the fall and the quantities dis- Wheels,
charged were the greatest. By taking a mean between 's«—
these ratios, we may conclude, in general, that in overshot
wheels the power is to the effect as three to two. In this
case the power is supposed to be computed from the whole
height of the fall; because the water must be raised to that
height in order to be in a condition of producing the same
effect a second time. When the power of the water is esti¬
mated only from the height of the wheel, the ratio of the
power to the effect was more constant, being nearly as
five to four. According to Smeaton, the effect of a wheel
driven in this manner is equal to the effect of an undershot
wheel (458), whose head of water is equal to the differ¬
ence of level between the surface of water in the reservoir,
and the point where it strikes the wheel, added to that of
an overshot (479), whose height is equal to the difference
of level between the point where it strikes the wheel and
the level of the tail water.
485. We have hitherto supposed the float-boards, though
inclined to the radius, to be perpendicular to the plane of
the wheel. LTndershot wheels, however, have sometimes
been constructed with float-boards inclined to the plane of
the wheel. A wheel of this kind is represented in fig. 83,
where AB is the wheel, and C, D, E, F, G, H, the oblique
float-boards. The horizontal current MN is delivered on
the float-boards, so as to strike them perpendicularly. On
account of the size of the float-boards, every filament of the
water contributes to turn the wheel ; and therefore its effect
will be greater than in undershot wheels of the common
form. Albert Euler imagines that the effect will be twice
as great, and observes, that in order to produce such an
Fig. 83.
effect, the velocity of the centre of impression should be to
the velocity of the water, as radius is to triple the sine of
the angle by which the float-boards are inclined to the plane
of the wheel. If this inclination, therefore, be 60°, the
velocity of the wheel at the centre of impression ought to
be to the velocity of the impelling fluid as 1 to
—v^, that is,
2
as 5 to 13 nearly, because sin 60° = ^. When the incli¬
nation is 30°, the ratio of the velocities will be found to be
as 2 to 3.
Among other philosophers who have experimented on
overshot wheels, we may mention the Chevalier D’Arcy, who
showed that the less the velocity the greater is the effect
produced; Borda, who showed that the maximum effect
will be produced when the diameter equals the height of
fall; and Bossut, Albert Euler, Lambert, Poncelet. Smea¬
ton also showed, that when the work performed was a
maximum, the ratio of the power to the effect was as four
to three, when the height of the fall and the quantities of
SECTION II.—HORIZONTAL WHEELS, AXIS YERTICAL.
(a.) Wheels receiving an isolated Vein.
486. Horizontal water-wheels have been much used on
the Continent, and are strongly recommended to our notice
by the simplicity of their construction. In fig. 84, AB is
the large water-wheel which moves horizontally upon its
HYDRODYNAMICS.
169
Horizontal arbor CD. This arbor passes through the immoveable mill¬
wheels. stone EF at D, and being
fixed to the upper one GH,
carries it once round for every
revolution of the great wheel.
The mill-course is construct¬
ed in the same manner for  
horizontal as for vertical E1""--1' 
wheels ; it must be circular
and concentric with the rim
of the wheel, sufficient room
being left between it and the
tips of the float-boards for tbe
play of the wheel. In thisA
construction, where the water
moves in a horizontal direc¬
tion before it strikes the
wheel, the float-boards should
be inclined about 25° to the plane of the wheel, and the
same number of degrees to the radius, so that the lowest
and outermost sides of the float-boards may be farthest
up the stream.
(/?.) Tub or Spoon Wheels.
487. In many parts of the south of France, wheels are to
be seen working in a cylindrical tub or hole of small depth,
or into a conical hollow. Fig. 85 will show the nature of
one of these wheels. It is constructed in the form of an
inverted cone AB, with spiral palettes on its surface. The
Fig. 84.
when the machine was put in action, the effective work Horizontal
produced was 0-80 that of the water. The surprise was Wheels,
not diminished when it was found that the new wheel worked
as well under as above water. Since their invention, tur¬
bines have been extensively adopted, especially in trance
and Germany.
c
Fig. 85i
wheel moves on a vertical axis AB, and is driven chiefly by
the impulse of water conveyed by the canal C, and falling
obliquely on the float-boards at the place of impact: the
spent w’ater is carried away by the channel M in the solid
walls D, D. But in the best constructed cylindrical tub-
wheels the water issues from a canal in the walls, in a direc¬
tion tangential to the circumference. In thus impinging
on the float-boards, it preserves its gyratory motion, and
makes the wheel whirl round. The useful effect of these
wheels is never above 0-25 of the work given by the water.
>Sjp0Oft-wheels are so named because their narrow, yet
long, radial curved palettes, have a shape like a spoon.
(y.) Turbine of M. Fourneyron.
488. Within the last 30 years wheels with vertical axes
have been so much improved, that now they rank among
the most perfect hydraulic machines which exist. They
are termed Turbines, and were invented in 1827 by a young
French mechanician named Fourneyron. During that
year, Fourneyron erected one a few inches in diameter, of
six horse-power, in Franche-Compte. To the surprise of all,
VOL. XII.
Fig. 86.
489. A turbine consists of
three principal parts ; the tur¬
bine proper DD (fig. 86),
with its axis FF ; the cylinder
wCCy, with its bottom CC
and the apparatus mn which
carries it; and the cylindrical
flood-gate aa. The whole ap¬
paratus is made of metal.
Turbines are of two kinds
—those which work below,
and those which work above,
the surface of the water.
490. With respect to the first kind, or those immersed in
water, in fig. 86 we have A A the upper or supplying canal,
the water from which enters freely the cylinder BB, and
finding no way of escape save by the circular lateral open¬
ing CC, issues by it and precipitates itself in every direc¬
tion in a sheet upon the palette boards of the circular wheel
DD. It thus puts the wheel in motion, and then loses it¬
self in the lower water-course. The wheel DD is annular,
and disposed horizontally all round the opening CC, such
that the fluid sheet might impinge upon it. We shall have
a proper idea of the disposition of the wheel DD if the
Poncelet wheel, instead of working vertically, work hori¬
zontally ; we have a section of it, however, in fig. 87.
A kind of metal cap EE, binds the wheel to the central re¬
volving axis FF, passing freely through a pipe in the mid¬
dle of the cylinder. The wheel DD is in the present case
wholly immersed in the lower water-course, the level of
which is GG. The axial beam FF of the machine is ter¬
minated at its lower part by a pivot resting on a point of
a lever HK, of which the fulcrum is K. A rod L is jointed
to H the extremity of the lever, and the end of that rod
works into a nut; on turning the nut, we may raise or lower
at pleasure the axial beam, and therefore also the wheel
which it carries, so that the latter may be brought exactly
in opposition to the circular opening of the cylinder in order
to receive the due supply of water.
Fig. 87.
Y
170
Horizontal
Wheels.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Although the wheel is immersed in the lower water-course,
yet this does not prevent the water of the higher couise,
i.e., of the cylinder, from passing through the opening
CC, and acting on the boards of the wheel, the flow being
due to the difference of the levels of the two water-courses.
Again, there must be some arrangement within the cylin¬
drical reservoir, so that the water which flows in may flow
out in a uniform equable sheet; if this were not attended
to, the escape would take place at different points, and would
therefore be irregular; and, further, the water would not
strike the boards of the wheel in the most effective manner.
In order, therefore, to obviate this irregularity of the flow,
M. Fourneyron disposed within the cylinder curved upright
partitions B, as in fig. 87, which is the projection of the in¬
terior of the cylinder on its bottom ; at a small distance
from this, and disconnected with it, is the working wheel
D, with its curved boards disposed opposite to the curved
partitions of B. The water enters and fills the chambers
of B, and the consequence is, that the water, on issuing from
the reservoir, moves everywhere obliquely to the surface of
the same, encounters the boards of the wheel which offer
an opposition to its motion, and exercises on the palettes,
pressures which tend to turn the wheel in the direction of
the arrow. Within the reservoir is a cylindrical flood-gate
aa (fig. 86), which serves to widen or narrow the circular
opening CC. This is done by raising or lowering the ver¬
tical rods b, b, their upper parts working into nuts which may
be turned at pleasure, The flood-gate aa is of consider¬
able thickness, and round, so as to widen the orifice of
escape.
It would appear that the curved boards of the wheels
presenting their surfaces nearly perpendicularly to the issu¬
ing water, ought to receive a shock from part of the liquid,
but this entirely disappears when the wheel is moving in a
proper manner. It must be observed, however, that these
boards moving round a centre, are differently circumstanced
than if they had been at rest. Whenever the water issues out
of the reservoir it strikes on the boards, but no sooner does
this take place than the wheel flies before the water; the
palette boards are only acted upon in virtue of the relative
velocity which the water possesses with respect to the boards.
Now the boards are so disposed, that when the turbine
assumes the velocity that it ought to take, the relative velo¬
city of the water with respect to the wheel is directed tan¬
gentially to its inner edge; the result is that the water enters
on the wheel without producing any shock. The water
moves along the whole length of the wheel boards, entering
at the inner and passing out by the exterior part of the
board, and exercising a pressure at every point, whereby
the velocity is constantly changing its direction. The
water also, on leaving the wheel, leaves it with a relative
velocity, and moves in a direction contrary to that of the
boards. It is possible, then, that the turbine may be made
to have a motion such that the velocity of the exterior cir¬
cumference may be precisely the same as the relative velo¬
city of the water. If this condition be fulfilled, the water,
on its leaving the wheel, will only be animated by an insen¬
sible motion, and will thus become associated with that in
the midst of which the wheel is plunged: the water will
thus be deposited, so to speak, without velocity from the
boards, which fly away without being retarded.
We see also that the water, acting at the same time on
all the boards of the wheel, produces on these, horizontal
pressures which tend in no ways to throw the axis of the
wheel to one side or another; the consequence of which
will be that the pressures cause no friction of the beam on
its pivot, nor on the bodies which touch it at different parts
of its height, and which tend to keep it in an exact vertical
position. These conditions, which no wheel with axis hori¬
zontal can fulfil, enables the turbine to give results far more
valuable than those of Poncelet’s wheel.
From the various experiments which have been made on Horizontal
turbines, the greatest amount of work done equals O'To, and heels,
in some cases 0*85 of that expended by the water.
491. The Fourneyron turbine has several advantages of
the most valuable kind. It may work when immersed, as we
have seen, in the middle of the lower course, and thus dis¬
posed, it operates during the time of floods as well as when
the water is very low, for otherwise it would be disturbed
by the greater or lesser height of the level of the water in
the lower course; the total height of fall is also rendered
useful, which could not be the case were the wheel to be
placed above the level of the lower water-course; and that
the machine can work during hard frost, since the water sel¬
dom freezes in a rapid running stream. Another advantage
which this machine has, consists in this, that we may make
its velocity vary within sufficiently extensive limits, by
means of the velocity which corresponds to the maximum
effect, without which the ratio of work done to the work
which the quantity of water expended represents, would
diminish very much. This result is of great importance for
the case in which a turbine ought to move with a uniform
velocity, and where the height of the falling water varies.
But the velocity of a turbine which corresponds to the
maximum effect, depends on the height of the fall; it aug¬
ments or diminishes according to this height. If a turbine
move always with the same velocity under different heights
of fall, it will not have a constant velocity capable of pro¬
ducing the maximum effect. It is then a very important
matter that the machine, acting with a velocity different
from the particular velocity, should furnish results nearly
equal to the maximum effect.
The turbine may be adapted for all sorts of fall, provided
that we adapt it to'the quantity of water, more or less great,
which ought to act upon it, and to the rapidity of motion
which it ought to take, We have an idea of the value of
a properly constructed turbine, when one erected in 1837
by M. Fourneyron, at St Blaisq, in the^Black Forest of
Baden, moved by a column of water 1 feet, did work
equivalent to 56 horse-power, and gave a useful effect of
between 0-70 and 0*75 of that of the water ; the wheel, to¬
gether with the cylinder, which is 20 inches in diameter,
weighedonly 1051bs. An¬
other at the same place has
a fall of 354 feet; the dia¬
meter of the wheel is 13
inches ; it expends a vol¬
ume nearly of 1 cubic foot
per second, and makes
from 2200 to 2300 revolu¬
tions per minute; its use¬
ful effect is from 80 to 85
per cent, of the work
derived by the water,
This machine sets in mo¬
tion 8000 water spindles,
with roving, carding en?
gines, cleansers, &c. A
turbine erected at Gisors,
under a fall of 3*7 feet,
utilized 0’75 the work of
the fall. When the fall
was 2 feet, the useful work
was 66 per cent, of the
fall, and when the fall was
I'll feet, it was 60 per
cent.
492. The second kind
of turbines, or those which
work out of the water,
Fig. 88.
       7 is represented in fig. 88, where
B is the entire cylinder ; C is that part of it which joins on
to the supplying pipe D, conveying the water from an ele-
H Y D R O D "5
Horizontal vated reservoir or canal; AA is the turbine or wheel; o,
Wheels. js t}ie circu]ar flood-gate, which may be lowered or elevated
by the rods b,b. .. . . ^
493. With all the advantages, however, which the hour-
neyrori turbine has, there is one thing which causes so much
loss of work in the machine ; the sheet of water issuing from
the circular opening at the lower side of the reservoir, has
a thickness more or less great, according to the contraction
of the flood-gate ; on this account the water does not always
fill the wheel in its whole height. The upper part of the
space comprised between the boards of the wheel is not,
however, empty; but the water there does not possess the
same velocity as that issuing from the reservoir ; this occa¬
sions eddies, accompanied by a loss of velocity, which must
therefore produce a diminution of useful effect. It was to
remedy this waste that Fourneyron divided his wheel into
several compartments, by means of horizontal partitions.
But these partitions do not recover the whole, though a
part, of the loss to the machine.
M. Gallon endeavoured, by the following method, to re¬
store the full effect of the machine. To this end he sub¬
stituted for the single circular flood-gate within the reser¬
voir of Fourneyron, a considerable number of partial flood¬
gates, all touching each other, and placed around the inside
of the cylinder, several being open that the water might
issue upon the wheel. By this means, the quantity of water
flowing from the reservoir may be diminished without di¬
minishing the thickness of the sheet; those of the flood¬
gates which are open and shut being uniformly distributed
around the circumference. The disadvantage of Fourney-
ron’s turbine is thus removed, but another is originated in
the fact, that the different portions of the wheel are carried
round successively before the open and before the shut
flood-gates. At the time when the interval of two boards
comes opposite a shut gate, the water which is there con¬
tained, and which has a considerable velocity, will only con¬
tinue to move on producing a void behind it, which will
necessarily occasion a sharp diminution in its velocity, and,
therefore, also will entail a loss of work.
494. Fontaine's turbine differs from that of Fourneyron’s
in having the circular opening not in the side near the bot¬
tom, as in the latter, but in the bottom of the cylinder it¬
self, with the wheel right under the same. The circular
opening is not wholly open, but it consists of a considera-
able number of distinct orifices, each of which is furnished
with a special flood-gate, by the aid of which the orifice
may be more or less shut. This disposition of the machine
does away in great part with the loss which takes place in
Fourneyron’s turbine.
495. The turbines which have been mentioned hitherto
are difficult to repair, both when immersed, and when at a
small distance above the lower water-course. 1 he method
of doing so is by raising a strong temporary barricade around
the turbine, and pumping the wrater out so as to isolate it,
the cylinder remaining full, while the flood-gate is firmly
secured to prevent escape. But this method is inconvenient.
A turbine, therefore, was invented by M. Jonval, and con¬
structed and improved by M. Koechlin for the special pur¬
pose of remedying this inconvenience. Koechlin’s turbine
is somewhat peculiar. Let us suppose a hollow vertical
cylinder open at both ends, and the upper and lower water¬
courses communicating with each other by means of this
cylinder; the water which passes through this cylinder may
be rendered useful by placing a turbine wheel within it,
and at any part of its height; provided only that the water,
on leaving the wheel, and traversing afterwards that portion
of the cylinder lying between the bottom of the wheel and
the surface of the lower water-course, is not in direct con¬
tact with the atmosphere till it arrives at the surface of the
lower water-course. Now, it is clear that if the turbine be
placed too high in the cylinder, the difference of level be-
r N A M I C S. 171
tween the upper course and the wheel will be small, and so Horizontal
much force will be lost; but to make up for the loss, a gain Wheels,
is effected by the drawing or sucking, which takes place V''—
in the lower part of the cylinder under the wheel; this draw¬
ing effect being, very curiously, greatest when the wheel is
highest above the surface of the lower water-course. \\ e
see, then, that the position which the machine now has, al¬
lows a workman to enter the cylinder from below, and re¬
pair the wheel.
For an account of the best observations and experiments
on the turbine, see Morin’s Experiences sur les Roues Hy-
drauliques Appelees Turbines, 1838 ; Comptes Rendus, for
July 1838; and the Notice on Vortex Water-Wheels in the
British Association Reports for 1852.
(S.) Wheels with Passages.
496. Under wheels of this kind we may mention the
Danaide of M. Manouri d’Ectot. The principal piece of
this machine is a tun or small tub of white iron, having a
hole pierced in its bottom, through which passes the axis of
rotation, and by which the water escapes. The axis turns
with the trough upon a pivot, and is fixed above to a
collar.
A drum of tin plate, closed above and below, is fixed upon
the axis of, and placed within the trough, so as to be con¬
centric with it, and to leave only between the outer circum¬
ference of the drum and the inner circumference of the
trough, an annular space not exceeding 1£ inches. This
annular space communicates with a space less than 1^
inches, left between the bottom of the drum and the bot¬
tom of the trough, and divided into compartments by dia¬
phragms fixed upon the bottom of the trough, and proceed¬
ing from the circumference to the central hole in the bot¬
tom of the trough.
The water comes from a reservoir above by one or two
pipes, and makes its way into this annular space between
the trough and drum. The bottom of these pipes corre¬
sponds with the level of the water in the trough, and they
are directed horizontally, and as tangents to the mean cir¬
cumference between that of the trough and of the drum.
The velocity which the water has acquired by its fall along
these pipes, makes the machine move round its axis, and
this motion accelerates by degrees, till the velocity of the
water in the space between the trough and drum equals
that of the water from the reservoir; so that no sensible
shock is perceived of the affluent water upon that which is
contained in the machine.
This circular motion communicates to the w7ater between
the trough and drum a centrifugal force, in consequence of
which it presses against the sides of the trough. This cen¬
trifugal force acts equally upon the water contained in the
compartments at the bottom of the trough, but it acts less
and less as this water approaches the centre.
The whole water, then, is animated by two opposite
forces, viz., gravity, and the centrifugal force. The first
tends to make the water run out at the hole at the bottom
of the trough; the second, to drive the wrater from that
hole.
To these two forces are joined a third, viz., friction,
which acts here an important and singular part, as it pro¬
motes the efficacy of the machine, while in other machines
it always diminishes that efficacy. Here, on the contrary,
the effect wTould be nothing were it not for the friction, which
acts as a tangent to the sides of the trough and drum.
By the combination of these three forces, there ought to
result a more or less rapid flow from the hole at the bottom of
the trough ; and the less force the water has as it issues out,
the more it will have employed in moving the machine, and
of course in producing the useful effect for which it is
destined.
172
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Horizontal The moving power is the weight of the water running in
Wheels, multiplied by the height of the reservoir frorn which it flows
above the bottom of the trough ; and the useful effect is the
same product diminished by half the force which the water
retains when it issues out of the orifice below.
In order to ascertain, by direct experiment, the magnitude
of this effect, MM. Prony and Carnot fixed a cord to the axis
of the machine, which passing over a pulley, raised a weight
by the motion of the machine. By this means, the effect was
found to be /sths of the power, and often approached
without reckoning the friction of the pulleys, which has no¬
thing to do with the machine. This effect exceeds that of
the best overshot wheels. See the Report of the Institute,
23d August 1813; ox Thomson's Annals of Philosophy,
vol. ii., p. 412.
M. Burdin, in 1833, invented a Danaide with axis ver¬
tical, which may be seen described in the Annales des
Mines for 1836. D’Ectot’s may be seen in the Journal des
Mines, tom. 34.
(e.) Reacting Machines, or Wheels of Recoil.
497. We have hitherto considered the mechanical effects
of water as the impelling power of machinery, when it acts
either by its impulse or by its gravity. The reaction of
water may be employed to communicate motion to ma¬
chinery ; and it is believed that a given quantity of water,
falling through a given height, will produce greater eftects
by its reaction than by its impulse or its weight.
Barker's Mill, or the Wheel of Recoil.
498 This machine, which is sometimes called Parent’s
mill, is represented in fig. 89, where MN is the canal that
conveys the water into the
upright tube TT, which com¬
municates with the horizon¬
tal arm AB. The water will
therefore descend through
the upright tube into this
arm, and will exert upon the
inside of it a pressure pro¬
portioned to the height of
the fall. But if two orifices,
A and B, be perforated at
the extremities of the arm,
and on contrary sides, the
pressure upon these orifices
will be removed by the
efflux of the water, and the
unbalanced pressure upon
the opposite sides of the arm
will make the tube and the
horizontal arm revolve upon
the spindle D as an axis.
This will be more easily un
Fig. 89.
derstood, if we suppose the orifices to be shut tip, and con¬
sider the pressure upon a circular inch of the arm opposite
to the orifice, the orifice being of the same size. I he
pressure upon this circular inch will be equal to a cylinder
of water whose base is one inch in diameter, and whose
altitude is the height of the fall; and the same force is
exerted upon the shut-up orifice. These two pressures,
therefore, being equal and opposite, the arm A will re¬
main at rest. But as soon as the orifice is opened, the
water will issue with a velocity due to the height of the
fall; the pressure upon the orifice will of consequence be
removed; and as the pressure upon the circular inch op¬
posite to the orifice still continues, the equilibrium will be
destroyed, the arm will move in a retrograde direction.
499. The upright spindle D, on which the arm revolves, Horizontal
is fixed in the bottom of the arm, and screwed to it below Wheels,
by a nut. It is fixed to the upright tube by two cross bars,
so as to move along with it. If a corn-mill is to be driven,
the top of the spindle is fixed into the upper millstone nu
The lower quiescent millstone n rests upon the floor K, in
which is a hole, to let the meal pass into a trough below.
The bridgetree ah, which supports the millstone tube, &c\,
is moveable on a pin at a, and its other end is supported by
an iron rod fixed into it, the top of the rod going through
the fixed bracket O, furnished with a nut c. By screwing
this nut, the millstone may be raised or lowered at pleasure.
If any other kind of machinery is to be driven, the spindle
D must be prolonged above the hopper H, and a small
wheel fixed to its extremity, which will communicate its
motion to any species of mechanism.
500. Barker’s Mill, or Segner’s Wheel, as it is sometimes
called, has not been extensively used in moving machinery,
owing chiefly to the lower pivot D being made to bear the
whole weight of the water in the cylinder, besides the weight
of the apparatus. The considerable resistance, however,
arising from this cause has been ingeniously set aside by
Althans of Sayn, who has so arranged the machine that the
water enters the horizontal cylinder D T from below. Such
a mill may be had by removing the apparatus HK, the hori¬
zontal cylinder AB being above, and N T below. But in
such an arrangement, the upright cylinder T 1 is now stable,
and AB only rotates round a pivot, and the friction also is
very much reduced, the weight of the wheel, and all that is
fastened to it, being entirely supported by the column of
water. An advantage is derived by having a rotating cylin¬
der similar to an S, placed thus c/2; for water issuing fiom
the orifices of a straight cylinder issues from it with a cer¬
tain velocity, but in passing through a cylinder with curved
arms, it gradually loses its impetus, till at last it falls from
the orifices with no velocity whatever.
In several parts of Scotland these Barker s mills are known
as Scotch Turbines.
(£.) Albert Euler's Reacting Machine.
501. This machine was first described in the Memoires^
de l'Academic de Berlin for the year 1/54: it consists ot
two parts, GH the upper (fig. 90), and EF the lower. The
upper portion is immoveable,
and forms a cylindrical and
annular reservoir, receiving
w'ater within the annulus PP,
from the canal R; at its
low'er part I, I, are a set of
straight pipes, but inclined
at an angle determined by
calculation, so that the water
may descend with proper ob¬
liquity into the lower vessel.
These pipes are represented
by the lines I i. The lower
part is moveable round theF
common axis 00, and has
also an annular trough EE,
from the bottom of which, in¬
side the vessel, pipes descend
and discharge from a rectangular end F, the water which
passes through them. The velocity with which the water
issues is that due to the height EF ; and a rotary and re¬
trograde motion takes place in the lower half of the machine.
M. Burdin gives an account of a reacting turbine o us
own invention, along with his experiments on it, m the
Annales des Mines for 1828.
Fig. 90.
173
HYDRODYNAMICS.
CHAPTER IL—MACHINES HAYING AN ALTERNATE MOTION.
Machines 502. The second kind of wheels which we come to de¬
having an scribe, are those having an alternate motion; ot these, two
Alternate on]y are known in the arts,—the Water-column Machine,
Motion. an(j jy[ontgolJier’s Hydraulic Ram.
(a.) Water-column Machines.
503. The water-column machine consists of a cylinder
or great body of a pump, in which a piston is driven back¬
wards and forwards by the weight of a high column of
water contained in an upright pipe. To the piston-rod is
adapted a working beam, which transmits a motion to the
common pumps; sometimes also the up and down motion
is transformed into a motion of rotation. The first ma¬
chines of this kind were constructed in 1745 by Haell, and
were known as Hall Machines. They were used at that
time in the mines of Hungary, and in different parts of
Germany; but were not very effective. It was only about
1817 that Reichenbach made them what they now are.
One of these engines, as improved by him, was constructed
at Illsang, which raised a column of salt water to a height
of lldS'G feet. One of the best of these machines is that
which works at a depth of 410 feet below the surface in
the mines of Huelgoat, in Bretagne, a description of which,
by M. Junker the engineer, is given in the Annales des
Mines, 1835 ; and in M. Theodore Fischer’s Handhuch der
Hydraulik, 1835.
(/?.) Whitehurst's Machine, and the Hydraulic Ram.
504. Mr Whitehurst gives, in the Phil. Trans. 1775,
an account of a machine for raising water to a considerable
height by means of its momentum. This machine con¬
Fig. 91.
sisted of a reservoir AM, (fig. 91), having its surface M on a
level with the bottom of another reservoir BN. The main
AE is about 200 yards long; and F is 16 feet below MB,
The valve-box D has a valve a, and into the air-vessel C are
inserted the extremities mn of the main pipe, bent down¬
wards to prevent the air being driven out when the water
is forced into it. Now, from the distance of F below MB,
as soon as the cock F is opened, a column of water 200
yards long is put in motion ; and if the cock F be suddenly
shut, the water rushes through the valve a and condenses
the air in C. Since this condensation of the air must take
place every time that F is suddenly stopped, the air in C
will react on the water and force it up into the reservoir
BN, by the pipe CB.
505. The Hydraulic Ram of Montgolfier is based on
this same principle. Although this engine is evidently
an improvement on Whitehurst's Machine, yet Montgolfier
afterwards claimed the entire merit of the invention.1
The pipe A, or body of the Ram, conveys water from an
elevated reservoir, not represented in fig. 92, to the work¬
ing part of the machine, or head of the Ram. This head
consists of the short pipe at B, opening upwards, where B Machines
is a valve connected with a kind of stirrup surmounting the having an
Fig. 92.
opening. When B is at its highest, the water enters the
air-vessel C, and is forced from it into an outer air-vessel
F, whence it is expelled into the ascension pipe G to the
required height.
Suppose now, that the water is moving along the pipe A,
and that B is at its lowest; then as B is in its way, and as
it has no passage except by the circular sides of B, the valve
B will be thus gradually forced upwards, till at last the
water cannot escape by this opening. The head of waiter
is now forced along the pipe with an increased velocity,
exerting a pressure on the walls, and escaping by the
valves E, E, the only yielding parts; a volume will there¬
fore be poured into the vessel F, which, by the condensa¬
tion of the air, will be forced up the ascension pipe G.
When the valves E, E open, the velocity of the water in A
immediately diminishes, and after a very short time, these
valves close, for the water has now lost all its impetus. B
also, which is no longer pressed upward, gradually falls to its
original position, and then prepares anew for a second stroke.
The pressure of the air in C plays a very important part
in the machine. When the water is sharply arrested from
escaping, by the valve B closing, it produces a violent shock,
in virtue of which the valves E, E open so as to admit water
into the vessel F. But the air in C meeting this shock,
produces the greatest amount of work ; and when, by the
agency of the air in C, the water has lost all its velocity, this
air, in virtue of its elasticity, repels the water back into the
pipe A. The valves E, E will then shut as soon as the
pressure of the air and water of F inwards on E, E exceeds
that outward pressure of C on E, E. The backward motion
also of the water, in consequence of its acquired velocity,
continues even though the pressure has been reduced to
that due to the height of the fall; that is to say, although
the pressure in C is less than that of the atmosphere, the
water continues to move backwards in the pipe A. It is
owing to this interior sucking that the valve B falls to
prepare for a second stroke.
The air again in the vessel F has also to play an im¬
portant part. It is of use in maintaining a uniform and
continuous motion in the ascension of the water by the
pipe G. When the valves E, E open, the water entering,
compresses the air in F, but is not itself immediately forced
up the pipe G, as it would be were there no air in F.
The suppression of the air, therefore, in F, would require
a greater force to raise a high column of water from a state
1 See the Journal des Mines, vol. xiii., No. 73.
174
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Machines of rest, and the valves E, E would remain open a shorter
having an time at each stroke of the ram; and, consequently, also,
Alternate WOuld throw in a smaller volume of water.
Motion. jt jg ^^58^ therefore, that the air in the vessels C
and F be carefully supplied. Each volume of water, no
doubt, brings along with it so much air; but as each is ex¬
pelled, more air is carried out than is introduced. A small
pipe H, then, havinga valve opening inwards, and right under
E, throws in a volume of air at the time when the back¬
ward motion of the water is taking place in pipe A, the
pressure of the rarified air in C being less than that of the
atmosphere. The vessel C being now full of air, then as soon
as a new stroke of the ram takes place, the valves E, E open
and introduce a volume of air into F. The water which passes
over the valve B is conveyed away by the channel D.
506. The effect in this machine is the water raised a cer- Machines
tain height during a certain given time. Let p = the h^ving an
weight and h = height to which the water is raised, the A^t®I?ate
effect will be measured by ph. Let P be the correspond- v
ing force or weight of water furnished in the same time,
and H = the height of the fall, the value of this effect
= PH. Let also q — volume of water raised, and Q =
volume of waste.
/. Since Q : <7 = P : ja, we have
ph
PH
qh
QH
the ratio of the volume raised to that used. This effect at
a maximum is between 60 and 66 per cent, of the volume
employed. The number of pulsations or strokes vary from
50 to 70 per minute.
CHAPTER HI.—MACHINES FOR RAISING WATER.
507. Themachinesfor raising water are—(a.) Pumps; (/3.)
Screw of Archimedes ; and, (y-) Pail or Bucket Machines.
(a.) Pumps.
508. Pumps have for their object the raising of water to
any height. A pump consists of a cylinder or body of the
pump, in which an upward and downward movement takes
place by means of a cork or piston, which is closely fitted
to the walls of the cylinder. By the intervention of valves,
a communication is established between the cylinder and
the various pipes necessary for the throw of the pump.
There are two pipes especially to be attended to ; the lower
is the sucking pipe, the upper is the forcing pipe.
Pumps are divided into three classes, and named accord¬
ing to the circumstances in which the piston acts,—(a.) Suck¬
ing Pumps. (b.) Forcing Pumps, {c.) Sucking and Forcing
Pumps.
(a.) 1. The Sucking Pump.
509. The common sucking pump consists of the cylinder
DCCD (fig. 93), and the suction
pipe BAAB of smaller diameter.
These two parts are united by flan-^
ges E, F, tightened by bolts C, C.
The level of the water in which the
pump is plunged is ZY, and A A has
a grating across it to prevent filth
from entering the pump. OPM is
a conical air-tight piston, and A' its
rod; the mouth-piece, by which the
water issues, may be at V or at X.
The valves opening upwards are H
and N : and R joins piston and rod.
In order to explain the action of the
common pump, suppose that the pis¬
ton is at the top of the barrel, or at
TS, then the top of the piston-rod is
at its highest; let also the valves H
and N be shut. Now, as the piston-
rod A descends, there is a tendency
of the air within the barrel to be
compressed; the valve N must ne¬
cessarily fly open upward, whereby
the air escapes. When the piston
M has reached GE, or the bottom
of the cylinder, the valves are closed
and a volume of air has escaped by
N equal to the capacity of the bar¬
rel. Were the valve H permanently
fixed, and were the piston to rise,
then a vacuum would be formed
between H and the bottom of
the piston; but as H is hinged, immediately on M rising, the
elastic force of the air between H and YZ forces up
that valve, and the cylinder will now be filled with rarified air
from pipe B, when the piston is again at the top. Let the
piston redescend, and that volume of air will also be ex¬
pelled, and so on. But it is clear, that as more and more
air is withdrawn, the pressure of the rarified air is less and
less able to balance the atmospheric pressure on the surface
YZ of the water, and the elastic force being proportional
to the density, the water will rush up and fill the barrel.
Suppose now that the air is completely exhausted, and
that M as well as the water is at H ; then on M rising to D,
the atmospheric pressure at YZ will force the water from
the suction pipe into the barrel so as to fill it; but on M
descending, since it cannot penetrate without displacing the
water, the valve H must close, and N open, so that the
whole volume of water which was below will now be above
M. As the piston is again raised it will turn all the volume
of water above it into the reservoir VX, so that it may be
emptied by a mouth-piece in the side ; the barrel is again
filled, however, and must be discharged as before.
This is the action of the common suction pump. Before
the time of Galileo, or rather before Torricelli showed ex¬
perimentally the pressure of the atmosphere, it was believed
that the water was sucked up in the pipe HA, owing to the
abhorrence of nature to a vacuum. But as Torricelli showed
that an atmospheric column, extending through the whole
height of the atmosphere, would balance a column of water
32 feet high of the same sectional area, it follows that, in
order to raise water by the common pump, the valve H must
on no account be more than 32 feet above the surface YZ of
the water. If it exceed that height no water will be raised.
With respect to the pressures which the faces of the pis¬
ton experience, we see that on M descending, when the
barrel is full, the pressure on the upper and lower face is
not exactly the same, for the faces are not of the same
depth, and the water is slightly resisted while passing
through the valve H, which shows us that this opening
should be as large as possible. As the difference, however,
is excessively small, the piston may be regarded as having
no resistance to overcome in passing from D to C. It is
otherwise when the piston is rising. It then acts as
a full piston, and has to support different pressures on its
two faces. . The upper face supports the atmospheric and
the fluid column, while the lower face is only pressed by
the atmosphere, less a fluid column extending from the
bottom of the piston to the level YZ of the water. The
difference of these pressures may be regarded as the pres¬
sure of a fluid column, having a section of the piston for
its base, and its depth the vertical distance between the
mouth-piece, say V and YZ. The descent and ascent of
the piston constitute one stroke of the pump.
510. In the common pump, let A = area of piston ; 1=
length of stroke ; h = vertical height of the bottom of the
H Y D R 0 D Y
Machines barrel above the surface of the water to be raised; // = A + /=
for Raising vertical height of the pipe by which the water is discharged
Water. from the water to be raised ; = the weight of a cubic loot
of water; P = the work applied at each double stroke;
m — the ratio of the work dong to the work applied, or the
relative efficiency of the pump. Then work in raising
water into the barrel (A + J/), and work in raising
water from the barrels Mw . L
Total work = Alw (A + ^ + Alio I— Ahv .(h + l);
, r/iP
hence mV = Alio (h + l) = Ahoh', and 1= r-p—•
v Anw
2. Self’s Pump, with Suction Air Chamber.
511. In the agricultural department of the Great Exhi¬
bition of 1851, Mr Self exhibited a pump with suction air
chamber. The peculiarity in the construction of this pump
consists in its having an air chamber connected with a com¬
mon suction pump, the air chamber communicating with
the suction pipe immediately below the barrel. When work¬
ing the common pump, a sudden jerk given at the begin¬
ning of the stroke, sometimes separates the piston from the
water in the barrel, causing a vacuum into which the air
will find its way. Selfs suction chamber is an arrangement
calculated to remedy the defect, and save the labour accu¬
mulated in the water. Professor Mosely, in his report, says
of this machine;—“ It is immaterial in what proportions
the work is distributed over the stroke, or under what vary¬
ing degrees of pressure it is generated, provided that the
pressure nev£r exceeds that of the atmosphere on the sur¬
face of the piston. If this pressure be exceeded, the piston
may separate itself from the water beneath it in the barrel,
the pump drawing air ; and this is more likely to occur at
the commencement than at any other period of the stroke,
the motion of the water at that point being necessarily slow.
To communicate a finite velocity to the water at the
commencement of the stroke, or while the space described
by the piston is still exceedingly small, requires a much
greater pressure than afterwards; and the greater, as the
section of the suction pipe is less as compared with that of
the barrel, and as the lift is greater, Thus, at the com¬
mencement of the stroke, a finite velocity of the piston
can only be obtained by an extraordinary effort of the mo¬
tive power associated with the chance of drawing air and of
a shock, if the pressure be suddenly applied. A remedy
for some of these evils in the working of a pump has been
sought in the application to it of a second air vessel, comr
municating with the suction pipe immediately below the
barrel, or with the top of the suction pipe and the bottom
of the barrel. The commencement of each stroke is eased
by a supply of water from this air chamber to the space be¬
neath it. The influx of the water into that space is aided
by the pressure of the condensed air in the air chamber,
and when the stroke is completed, the state of the conden¬
sation of this air is, by the momentum of the water in the
suction pipe, restored, causing it to rush through the pas¬
sage by which that pipe communicates with the air cham¬
ber. Thus, by this contrivance, the surplus work which
remains in the water of the suction pipe at the conclusion
of each stroke, is stored up in the compressed air of the air-
chamber, and helps to begin the next stroke of the piston.
The nature of this action will be best understood from
that of the hydraulic ram (505). The contrivance consti¬
tutes, indeed, in some respects, a union of the action of
the ram with that of the pump ; and, besides accomplish¬
ing the object for which it was applied, appears to have the
effect of considerably economizing the power employed in
working pumps.1
N A M I C S. 175
3. The Lifting Pump. Machines
for Raising
512. The object of the lifting pump is to raise water to Water.
greater height than the common
sucking pump can do. It is therefore
nothing else than the common pump
a little modified. ACDB (fig. 94) is
the working barrel of the pump, with
a side pipe AEGHF flanged, and ter¬
minating in a main or rising pipe IK,
with a valve L, The top of the barrel
is now shut by a strong plate MN; the
piston rod Q works through the water¬
tight part OP. The piston valve is
ft; the barrel and suction pipe are
firmly bolted at D, C, and XV is the
level of the water. The water first
of all passes through the sucking valve
T, opens the piston valve R, and fills
the barrel BC; then when the piston-
rod is drawn up, the water is neces-:
sarily lifted and driven through the
forcing valve L into the escape pipe
IK.
The action of the lifting pump is
very simple. Suppose that the piston
R is at T, that all the valves are shut,
and that the air in the barrel and
suction pipe is highly rarified, then
immediately on the piston rod Q rising,
the suction valve T will be forced
open by the upward pressure of the
water, and the piston valve R will necessarily be closed, for
it drives out the remaining air from the barrel; conse¬
quently the valve L will keep open. When the piston R
has reached NM, the water has entirely filled the barrel,
and the valve L is shut by the atmospheric pressure. Again,
when the piston rod descends, the valve R opens and T
shuts; and when R is again at T, having completed one
stroke, all the water will be above the piston and fill the
barrel. Hence, on R being a second time pulled up, it has
now to lift a weight equal to a fluid column BC, together
with the atmospheric column in pipe IK, for the valve L is
pushed open; on R reaching AB, a volume of water has
been sent into the pipe IK equal to that which filled the
barrel. But the barrel BC is again filled, and when the
piston R descends, the fluid column in IK shuts L, the
piston valve R opens and T shuts. When the piston R rises
a third time, it has now to lift the water in the barrel, to¬
gether with that in the pipe IK ; and hence it is clear that
water may be raised to any height, provided only that the
barrel be strong enough to sustain the weight of the super¬
incumbent column in IK,—which must be raised before the
valve L can open,—and the force necessary to work the
common suction pump.
The distance of DC from XV must not exceed 32 feet,
but IK may be of any length. The piston rod is always
drawn upwards, and consequently the rod Q is subjected to
a longitudinal strain. A slim rod will suffice for this pur¬
pose, since there is no compressing force. The whole force
which has to be overcome by the working lever or handle
of the machine is,—1st, the weight of a fluid column extend¬
ing from the level XV to the level of water in pipe IK, the
base being that of the piston, a weight which acts at the
piston rod where it joins the short arm of the handle ; and,
2d, the passive resistances caused by the motion of the water
and of the solid walls of the pump.
Sometimes a small pipe (furnished with a cock) projects
from the side of IK. When the pump is in action, and if
1 Mosely’s Report.
CBraar.-.i i
176
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Machines the cock be turned, the water will escape by the small pipe,
or Raising so that in this condition the lifting pump becomes a com-
Water. mon pUtnp.
(b.) 1. The Forcing Pump.
513. The Forcing pump consists of a working bariel*
ABCD (fig. 95), a suction pipe o
CDEF, and an ascension pipe,
ONML. The part GHKI may
be said to belong to the barrel;
the second part IKLM is united
to it, and the part LMNO is pro¬
perly the ascension pipe. The
clack or forcing valve is S, and m
RN is the suction valve. The
object of the forcing pump is to
raise water to a greater eleva¬
tion than can be obtained by
either of the former pumps.
In the forcing pump the barrel
AB is open to the atmosphere,
the piston QVT is solid, and Q
is a strong rod of iron. Suppose
that the piston is being pushed
down to R, then the valve S
opens, and a volume of air
equal to the capacity of the bar¬
rel is expelled by ON ; let VT
now rise, and R, which before
was kept shut by the pressure,
opens; S also shuts, and a vol¬
ume of air from the suction pipe
enters, and, expanding, fills the
barrel. As the rarified air
is more and more expelled, the
water gradually rises in the Fig. 95.
suction pipe. Suppose that the piston VT and the water
are at R, then, on VT rising, the water enters, and when
VT reaches AB, the whole barrel is filled; the water has
thus been sucked into the barrel. When VT begins to
move down, R closes, and S opens; but it requires a
forcing down of the piston to make it pass through the valve
S into the pipe OL ; the whole will be forced into this pipe
as soon as VT is at R. A new volume will enter by R on the
rising of VT, and S will be shut by the weight of the column
in O L ; an additional force, therefore, will be required to ex¬
pel this second volume, owing to the column in OL.
A small force is required to lift the piston-rod, but the
force requisite to overcome the resistance in pushing it
down, is that which would balance a column of water of a
height equal to the distance between the level of water in
pipe OL and the bottom of the piston, the sectional area
being that of the piston. Since a great pressure is necessary
to force the water into the pipe OL, the rod Q must be
strong to resist the compression.
514. In the case of the forcing pump, let H be the ver¬
tical height of the nozzle by which the water is discharged
from the bottom of the barrel, then work produced by
downward stroke = A/w; (# —^Z), where the quantities are
the same, as in the former pump;
Total work = Alw {h + |Z) + Alio {H - \l)
= Alw (h + H) = P; or mP ; and Z =
also of the Bramah press. If, therefore, pistons are to fit ac- Machines
, , , i. i «s for Raicirw
where m is the coefficient.
Aw{]i + //)
2. The Plunger Pole Pump.
Fig. 96.
515. It is very difficult at times to make the pistons move
water-tight in their casings, especially where dirty water is
to be pumped up, as in the drainage of mines, and in the case
curately, they must be solid, as
in fig. 96, where O is a solid
piston, nicely turned and po¬
lished, its diameter being a lit¬
tle less than that of the cylinder
CAGD, and working through a
water-tight collar or stuffing-
box DC. The small cistern
XY, around the head of the
pump, is kept full of water, for
the purpose of keeping moist
the air-tight collar. The small
pipe R SZ in this cistern, is that,
when the plunger O is at M,
water may be poured into it by
the cock S, so that the barrel
AD may just be full. The
piston-rod works through four
rings T, of soft leather; HIGA
are bolts binding the parts to¬
gether. Suppose, now, that
the plunger-pole O is at M,
that water has been admitted
by RSZ, and that the cock S
is shut, then, on the plunger
being drawn up, the air from
pipe B will force up M, ex¬
pand, and fill the barrel, to¬
gether with so much water,
while N is kept shut by the pressure of the atmosphere.
When O descends, it drives the water before it, forcing
down M, opening N, and expels a volume of water and air
by LK. But on O reaching M, then N closes. There is
still so much air in the barrel, but a few strokes of the pump
will expel it, so that afterwards water only fills the barrel.
One great advantage which this pump has, is that it does
away with the necessity of boring and polishing large cy¬
linders accurately true, which ot itself was a task of extreme
difficulty ; and even though it be done, yet the constant
rubbing of the piston on the sides of the cylinder would
soon reduce the diameter of the piston, necessitating there¬
fore its frequent removal and renewal. The only wear,
however, in the case of the Plunger-pole pump, so called
because it plunges into the barrel, is the rubbing of the pole
on the leather casing, and also the piston-rod Y through
T; but these collars can be replaced at little expense.
Although the air may generally be said to be expelled
shortly after the pump has made several strokes, yet to
secure the utmost effect of the machine, a small right-an¬
gular channel is cut in the pole, one end communicating
with the cylinder, and the other at the top of the pole,
where there is a cock. If any air should accumulate at the
top of the barrel, the cock is opened, and it is forced out.
3. The Mining or Draining Pump.
516. In draining the water from a mine with a single
forcing pump, it is clear that there would be a column of
several hundred feet, and a piston-rod ol the same length.
The working of such a pump would evidently require to
fulfil conditions which would be impossible. In order, thei e-
fore, to drain mines, the method sometimes adopted is
to divide the whole length of the shaft into several equal
parts, at each of which a pump is established. The princi¬
pal rod extends from the top to the bottom of the mine,
carrying at equable distances heavy plunger-pole pistons,
which work up and down in the cylinders of their respec¬
tive pumps, guided all at the same time by the upward am
downward movement given to the principal rod by t e
steam-engine at the mouth of the mine. There are ascen-
for Raising
Water.
HYDRODYNAMICS.
177
Machines sion pipes of equal length on each side of the main rod;
for Raising the lower end of each dips into its respective open reser-
Water. voir> the upper end of each empties its water into the
reservoir immediately over the former. Each ot these
pipes has two valves opening upwards, the one below, the
other above its communication with the body of the pump.
When the pistons rise, the upper valves close and the
lower open ; the atmospheric pressure now acting on the
surface of the several reservoirs, forces the water up into the
side pipes by suction, so that on the pistons descending,
the upper valves are driven open by the ascending water
which is emptied into a reservoir, and the lower shut. In
this way all the pumps of a Mining pump act.
(c.) 1. The Fire Engine.
517. The pump used for extinguishing fires is a double
forcing pump, and is called the Fire engine. The pipe by
which the water is thrown upon the fire is very flexible, so
that it may be directed at pleasure to any part of the confla¬
gration, whilst the pump is acting. The height of the jet
will thus be variable, and if the pipe be held in a hori¬
zontal position it will be nothing. But the object required
in the working of the machine is not so much to send the
water to the extremity of the flexible pipe, as to give the
water a considerable velocity when the jet issues from it.
A jet is thus produced of great range, which can easily be
directed to distant parts, where the fire is to be arrested.
In order to effect this, the jet which issues from the pipe
should escape with a uniform velocity. Hence, for this
purpose, we have on both sides of the machine a forcing
pump, each moving alternately during the same time, and
by their united action constituting a pump of double effect.
The pistons S, R, of the pumps WX, TU (fig. 97), move at
the same time, but in contrary directions; when one is up the
other is down, and vice versa. The water introduces itself
into the interior of the pumps by the valves O, G; when a
Fig. 97.
pump is full, the piston descending, shuts G and opens K,
and the same with the other ; the water is thus thrown into
the reservoir abed, into which is plunged the ascension pipe
fe, forming part of the flexible pipe. Although there
are two forcing pumps employed for throwing water into the
reservoir, yet this arrangement does not ensure that regula¬
rity of velocity of escape which might be expected, since a
marked irregularity or a retardation of the water takes place
every time that each piston changes the direction of its mo¬
tion. The velocity of the water, however, is regulated by
VOL. XII.
a volume of air lodged above YZ in the top of the air re- Machines
servoir ac. This air is completely inclosed ; it puts itself in for Ramng
equilibrium with the pressure of water under it» and its ^ t
elastic force, acting on the surface of the water YZ, forces
the water up the pipe fe to the stop-cock eg, whence it
passes to tube h attached to the leathern tube or hose. By
means of the air vessel, then, the irregularities which the
volume of water entering by I, K presents, are mainly lelt in
the reservoir ac into which they open, and are removed by
the oscillations of the water which rise and fall alternately.
It results from this, that the variations are very small, yet
sensible in the velocity with which the water spouts out at
the extremity of the hose. The long pipe or hose is of con¬
siderable transverse dimensions, but contracted to a narrow
point at its nozzle. The water passes gently from/along
the hose, and it is only on entering the narrow portion that
it receives a considerable velocity of escape. The height,
then, to which the water will be thrown depends on the con¬
densation of the air in the air vessel, and on the elevation of
the extremity of the pipe above the level of the water in/.
The fire-engine is made long and narrow ; a section of its
breadth is ABCD in fig. 97; the principal use of the length,
is to support a frame-work which is balanced on a horizon¬
tal axis, of which g is the projection, parallel to the length,
and right over the reservoir ac. At each end of this axis is
a lever a/3, united at a and /3 by two long handles, of which
the projections are a and /?. Several men, standing on both
sides of the engine, gripe the handles so as to work the
pump’s pistons R, S, to which they are united by vertical
rods. The long body of the engine serves likewise as a
cistern into which pails of water may be poured, if there be
not a convenient supply from a pipe F communicating with
the cistern of the engine and the town mains.
2. Delahire's Pump.
518. Delahire’s pump consists of a working barrel AB,
shut at both ends A and B (fig. 98). C is the piston, and its
rod O passes through a leather collar A. Communicating
with the barrel, by the passages m and
n which are near the top and bottom
of the barrel, are two pipes H and K.
The valves F and G open upward, D
and E are similarly circumstanced.
The action of the pump is evident.
Suppose that the air has been with¬
drawn, that the water is at D, and the
piston C close to n, when the piston-
rod O is drawn up, all the valves will
be shut except F and D, the latter of
which must open first by the pressure ot
the water ; the barrel, therefore, will
be full when C is at A. If C de¬
scends, a volume of water must be ex¬
pelled by E, which immediately opens
on the descent of C, while D shuts.
But as C is forced down to expel the
water under it, the valve F instantly
opens by the force of the water, and
fills up the vacant space above C, the
valve G falling by the pressure of the
atmosphere. Now, the first volume of water was expelled
by the pipe H, and it is just rising in that pipe while C has
reached n ; but as soon as C begins to rise again, the valve
G is forced open by the water above C, and F shuts ; the
valve E is also closed by the fluid column above it, and D
opens to fill the barrel under C. Hence we see that two
barrels of water are expelled by the common pipe L at each
stroke of the pump, so that the stream is continuous, or
nearly so. There is, however, an awkward jar or shock at
each change of the action ; but this is entirely removed by
Fig. 98.
178
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Machines using an air vessel similar to that of the hydraulic ram.
for Raising Thjs pump is extensively used for supplying air to furnaces,
Water. an[j jt jg (;jien cai]e(j tiie double-acting air-pump. (See
Hist, et Mem. de I'Acad., 1716; Belidor’s Architecture
Hydraulique ; and Leopold’s Theatrum Machinarum Hy-
draulicarum.
3. The Bramah Press.
519. The principle on which the Bramah press depends
for its efficiency, is the equable distribution of pressure in
fluids. Fig. 99 represents the machine, while fig. 100 is a
Fig. 100.
section of it. A A is a very strong cylinder inclosing a plunger
piston B, having on its top a plate C. The piston, wrought
by means of water, rises with its plate, and presses with great
force any substance upon it against the roof plate D firmly
bound to the pillars EE. The water is introduced into the
cylinder A by means of the injecting pump F. This inject¬
ing or plunger pump is worked by a lever GH, of the second
kind, moving round H, the power being applied at the han¬
dle G. As the handle receives an upward and downward
movement, the plunger piston I ascends and descends, and
transmits pressure against the bottom of the piston B by
means of the water. The movement of the piston I is
guided by the circular hole K, in which the free end of the
piston-rod moves ; the piston-rod of I is connected with the
lever GH. At every stroke, then, of this piston, water is
sucked up by the valve M from a reservoir placed under
this pump, and is driven into the pipe L communicating
with the cylinder A. M and N are two valves, which esta¬
blish and intercept alternately the communication of the
body of the pump A with the sucking pipe at M, and the
connecting pipe L. The forcing valve is N, and the sucker
valve M.
It is of the utmost importance that the surface of the
pistons with the walls of the respective cylinders should be
as close as possible, especially at the tops of the cylinder,
and that the packing between them should be perfectly
water-tight; for if there be the smallest leakage, a volume
of water would inevitably escape. A leak, however, near or
about I, is of less moment than at some part of A. For were
Fig. xoi.
the motion of the injecting piston I somewhat rapid, all the Machines
water would not have time to pass out by the leak at A, and for Raising
therefore a portion of the water would always be effective. Water.
Special attention is always paid by engineers to the secure 's*v^
packing of the collars of the piston A, so that the pressure
may be transmitted from one cylinder to another unchanged.
On every descent of the piston I, a volume of water is forced
through the valve at N. This valve closes the instant the
piston has made its complete downward motion, and pre¬
vents the water from returning. The water thus thrown in,
must be either compressed or must occupy a larger space.
Practically speaking, water may be regarded as incompres¬
sible, and thus the water forced into the cylinder A must
increase at every stroke, and the cylinder being too strong
to yield, the piston B with its loaded plate must ascend.
The piston will thus rise through a small space for every
additional volume of water thrown in. As soon as the re¬
quired effect has been produced, the pressure is immediately
relieved by opening the discharge valve R, when the water
returns to the cistern ; and the piston B descends by its own
gravity.
The packing of the piston B is too ingenious and im¬
portant a matter to be passed over without notice. Lej
fig. 101 be a section of part of the main
cylinder and piston, where A is the cylin¬
der, KB the piston. KB is about 9 inches,
DE is a recess in the former, about one-
half inch deep ; the collar FG is a double
leather turned over a metal ring H, placed
in this recess. Bramah, in order to prepare
the collar, took an annular piece of leather
and steeped it in a solution for some time.
Having softened the leather, he next
placed it over the top of the metal ring
H. Now, when the water is pumped into
the cylinder, it enters the narrow space between the walls
of the cylinder A and piston B, then into the recess DE,
and acting on the under surfaces of the turned-over leather
on both sides of the ring H, forces the faces on the sides of
the piston and on the back of the recess. The more water
then that is pumped in, and as the piston begins to rise,
the pressure on the inner leather face is increased, so that
the piston and cylinder being perfectly air-tight by means
of the firmly pressed leather, no water can insinuate itself
between the edges F, G, and escape. The greater the
pressure on the leather, the tighter will the packing be¬
come, provided only that the leathers be sound. When the
machine is begun to be worked, the leather gradually rises
up to the top of the recess by the mere pressure of the
water, and even before the piston has commenced rising.
The leather packing will thus assume the form as in fig. 102.
As soon as the discharge valve
R is open, so that the pressure fll Q fh
may be removed, the leather is
free and no longer pressed, and Flg’ 102‘
both it and the ring will slide down to the bottom of the
recess. The edges of the leather are not so low as the
lower edge of the ring H, in order to prevent the leather
edge at F from coming between the cylinder and piston.
520. A similar contrivance renders the injecting pump
water-tight. Fig. 103 represents the barrel mm, and n the
plunger piston ; aa is a copper ring lying horizontally be¬
tween leather packing, which are the dark pieces. The
ring has its upper and under surface scored, so that on the
plunger being put in, and the piece bb screwed down,
having a hole pierced in its mass to allow the working of
the cylinder, the ring and the leather are in close contact,
and the pressure squeezes out the leather on the side next
the piston, and on the side next the barrel, thus prevent¬
ing the water from escaping. The barrel is slightly curved
as at cc, so that the water may get behind the leather,
HYDRODYNAMICS.
‘S'
Machines press it against the side of the piston, and allow no es-
for Raising cape between the piston and the leather.
Water. When the pressure is more than three
tons on the circular inch, the leathers
wear very fast, and new ones must be
put in.
When the machine begins to act, so
as to compress a body between the roof
and the plate, the pressure exercised is
feeble; but as the body is more and more
pressed, the resistance becomes so great,
that a large power is required to overcome
it. In such a case we remove the fulcrum
of the lever GH from H to H', by the
insertion of a pin, the bolt( at H being
afterwards removed. If HH. be half the  
former arm, then the former power will Fig.ios.
press the body with a greater force than before, and
hence, also, a greater force will be transmitted through the
water.
In order that the pressure transmitted by the water
may not be too severe for the several paits
of the machine, a safety valve P (fig. 104),
is introduced near the pump F. A coni¬
cal valve O intercepts a channel, by which
the water may pass out with a force suffi¬
cient to overcome the weight P at the ex¬
tremity of the lever of the valve, when the pressure be¬
comes too great, i.e., when the pressure exceeds the limit
beyond which we do not want it to pass.
A screw R, the lower extremity of which forms a valve,
closes effectually another channel, by which the interior
water might be prevented from communicating with the
water cistern, during the working of the machine. When
the action of the press is to be stopped, the screw R is
turned in a convenient direction, and a communication is
opened with the water cistern, into which the water flows
from the cylinder AA, the piston of which, now no longer
subject to pressure, gradually falls within its cylinder.
This valve, connected with R, is called the discharge
valve. , , . . .
521. Given the force applied at the injecting pump-
handle, to determine the pressure on the base of the work¬
ing cylinder. . . f
Let S be the area of the working piston s base, s that ot
the plunger pump, P the force applied at the injecting
pump-handle, L the arm by which P acts at G, and £ that
by which acts Q, the resistance to be overcome by the in¬
jecting piston. Then, as the lever is one of the second
kind, Q.Z=P . L; .\ = resistance to be over-
W-P
w r * r ^
Fig. 104.
I
come. But the pressure exerted is proportional to the
area pressed; and whatever be the pressure on a unit of
surface of the injecting piston’s base, the same pressure is
transmitted to every other such area on the bottom ot the
working piston. Hence, action on base of B : action on
base of I = base surface of B : base surface of 1 = S : s ;
S
Action on base of B = — x action on base of I
_S P.L
~s’ l ’
This expression is equivalent to the pressure to which any
substance placed between the plates C and D is subject;
it is the same also as the weight raised, which call ,
Is
But the areas of circles are as the squares of their radii,
hence - =~, where R and r are radii of the base of the
s r1
pistons B and I respectively ;
Wherefore, the efficiency of the press will be increased, by
• • X, L R
increasing either of the quantities I, ^ , or ^.
R
Since the value of the ratio may be increased to an
almost indefinite extent, it is clear that the press may be
said to have no limit to the pressure exerted, except the
strength of the materials. But, in a practical point of view,
the indefinite value of —• may be said to be inapplicable ;
r
for when — is in value very large, the volume of water
T
introduced at every stroke of the pump would be so small
that the piston would ascend too slow for all practical purposes.
As it is desirable to save time in working with this press,
and as one workman can easily work the instrument at the
commencement, there are generally two injecting pumps,
a large and a small one, standing side by side, and both
communicating with the forcing valve. It the diametei of
the piston of the large injecting pump be double that of the
smaller, and their barrels of the same length, then the vo¬
lume of water forced in at every stroke by the former will
be four times greater than that of the latter. Hence the
first pump will raise, at each stroke, the working piston
through any space quicker by four times than that of the
second piston. Again, since the pressure is proportional
to the area, a man at the large injecting pump would only
require to exert a force one-fourth that which he would
require to employ at the small injecting pump, supposing
their levers to be of the same length. Wherefore, for the
sake of speed, the large pump is worked first; and, when
the effort required becomes too great, the small one. The
effect evidently is the same as the shifting of the fulcrum
point of the lever.
Further, in order to guard against accident, as, e.g-, if
the forcing valve N should be prevented from working by
the intervention of dirt sucked up by M when the plunger
I has made its descent, a hole is drilled in the bottom of
the piston I, and communicating with another on the side
at a small distance above, as represented by the dotted
line (fig. 103). Now when the pump is worked properly,
the horizontal orifice never rises above the leathers; but,
if the plunger be raised a little higher, then the water will
find its way between the metal surfaces of the plunger and
barrel, and immediately the pressure on the base of the
working piston will be diminished.
522. The Bramah press is perhaps the most perfect
hydraulic machine with which we are acquainted. It is
subject to little or no friction, nor to the rapid wear of its
metal surfaces in contact; the only repairs that it may re¬
quire are the renovation of the leathers, and yet these, under
ordinary pressures, will last several years. I his hydraulic
press is used in almost every department of industry. It
is used for throwing light articles into small bulk; for ex¬
tracting oil from hides previous to tanning; for pressing
cloth; for extracting moisture from paper. It is used in
the manufacture of gunpowder, sugar, wax-candles, ver¬
micelli, &c. It is peculiarly adapted for testing the strength
of cables and masses of metal; for extracting old piles, and
uprooting trees; for raising or sustaining a building that has
sunk a little ; and also for quarrying purposes. The printer
and chemist know its value ; and recently the engineer suc¬
cessfully accomplished, by means of the Bramah press, the
179
Machines
for Raising
Water.
elevation of the Menai Tubular Bridge.
4. The Centrifugal Pump.
523. Mechanicians have endeavoured to replace the up-
180
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Machines ward and downward action of the piston in machines for
for Raising rajsing water into a rotatory, or a motion always in the
^ Water. same direction. Bramah, in England, and Dietz in France,
attempted to produce a machine which would work in this
manner. That which the latter invented is represented in
fig. 105.
Machines of this description are known as Centrifugal
pumps: attention has been directed within these few years
past to these engines on account of their great efficiency.
The principle of their action will be understood from the
following description,
within a fixed onePQ,
in the annular space
BB, each having the
same axis. In the ro¬
tating cylinder are four
plates or pieces C, C,
C, C, which extend
nearly, but not quite
to the fixed cylinder;
these plates are insert¬
ed in corresponding
openings on the ex¬
terior surface of the
rotating cylinder, and
the space BB is divided into four compartments, each sepa¬
rated from the other. The exterior and interior edges of the
plates are not parts of the exterior and interior surface of AA,
although they move with it; these edges, which are equidis¬
tant from each other, approach when towards the right the
centre O of the ring AA, such that the exterior edge of
each plate in turn comes to form part of the outer sur¬
face of AA, while in other parts they form part of its inner
surface. It is the form of the space BB which causes the
plates C, C to glide into the slits of AA, and to near and
go from alternately the axis of rotation. Hence, the four
compartments are not always of the same capacity ; their
magnitude increases as the plates are distant from, but de¬
creases as they approach, the axis of rotation. There are two
openings in the fixed cylinder, each protected by a bent
surface or opening valve, attached at one end to the fixed
cylinder, while the other end is free ; the one communicates
with the suction pipe M, the other with the forcing pipe N.
As the cylinder AA turns, one compartment is presented
to M ; it increases its capacity, sucks in water from that pipe,
and becomes filled at the moment of its greatest dimen¬
sion. This space diminishes on whirling round to the
opening of the forcing pipe N, and a centrifugal force being
imparted to it, drives the water forward, and compels it to
discharge its contents into that pipe, and so on with all
the others. We see, then, that this centrifugal pump acts
at once as a sucking and a forcing pump; and fulfils,
moreover, the conditions of a pump of double effect, since
the movement given to the water in both pipes is con¬
tinuous.
When the pump is set in motion the air from M is sucked
out, and being carried round empties itself into N, so that
the machine acts also as an air pump.
524. Mr Appold exhibited at the Crystal Palace in 1851
the form of a centrifugal pump, for which he was adju¬
dicated the council medal. In Appold’s pump the water
enters by a circular opening, 6 inches wide, surrounding
the axis with which the fan is connected. The fan-blades
are 3 inches wide, and revolve within a fixed cylinder 12
inches diameter. I he fan-blades consist of six curved arms.
These curved fins are so disposed that the extremities at the
fixed cylinder move tangentially, while the other extremi¬
ties are fixed on to the rotating cylinder; the blades them¬
selves pass through a stuffing-box in the side of the casing,
working between two circular cheeks, and running close to
them, but without actual contact. The outer revolving
ylinuer A A (hg. 105), revolves
Q
Fig. 105.
surfaces are thus shielded from the water, to which a free Machines
ingress is given, and a large space is left all round the for Raising
circumference of the fan, to facilitate the escape of the dis- Water,
charged water.
Mr Appold showed the decided advantage of curved fins
over straight ones. When the curved fins were used, the
jury found, from the experiments, that with a lift of 19^ feet,
and a velocity of 788 revolutions a minute, and a circum¬
ferential velocity of 2476 feet per minute, the discharge
was 1236 gallons a minute, and the useful effect was 0‘68
of the power. With nearly the same lift, a fan having
straight inclined arms, and rotating at the rate of 690 revo¬
lutions a minute, and a circumferential velocity of 2168 feet
in the same time, the discharge was 736 gallons; the use¬
ful effect was only 0’43 of the power. With straight
radial arms, and nearly the same velocity, the discharge
was 474 gallons, and the useful effect only 0-24 of the
power.
But Appold’s machine is supposed to have a useful effect
of 0’72 of the power, with a circumferential velocity of 1627
feet a minute, precautions being adopted which could not
be employed in the experiments made at the Great Exhi¬
bition. The largest pump of this kind as yet constructed,
is that at Whittlesea Mere for draining purposes. The
wheel is 4‘5 feet in diameter, and its average velocity is
90 revolutions, or 1250 feet per minute; it is driven by
steam with 40 lb. on the square inch, and raises 15,000
gallons to a height of 4 or 5 feet in one minute. The
centrifugal pump is most advantageous for low lifts, espe¬
cially for those below 20 feet. Its best application is as
a tidal pump, where the height of the lift is continually
varying.
525. In the Centrifugal pump we have the same princi¬
ple as will be seen in Barker’s mill; the object of each,
however, is different. In the latter, a fall of water through
a hollow upright cylinder, with an axis passing through it,
gives a rotatory motion to that vertical axis; while in
the former, a rotatory motion is given to a vertical axis,
in order to raise a column of water. Let P = the work
in one second, applied in giving motion to the ver¬
tical axis; /i = height to which the machine raises a
column ; v = absolute velocity of water after discharge;
V = velocity due to height; P'=useful work per se¬
cond ; then, as in the reaction wheel, »work done
at efflux = work due to the centrifugal force, less the
work spent in raising the water; hence v= — 2gh
= velocity of water due to the pressure in the vertical
pipe, as w'ell as that which is due to the centrifugal force ;
w = the weight of a volume discharged in one second;
t/ = VV2 - 2gh — V. So also the work applied = work in
raising the water + work in w ater after efflux ;
...P=^ + ^ = ^(V_VV^2P)V,
which, by expansion, gives, when V is infinitely increased,
P' = wh. The effective nature of the machine will be ex¬
pressed by
o _z: 
^ P (V-VV'-2yA)
The maximum effect of the machine, or Q, will take place
when V = infinity.
Professor Mosely, in his Report, observes, respecting Mr
Appold’s centrifugal pump, that if the vanes be straight, it
is evident that whatever may be the velocity of the water in
the direction of a radius, when it leaves the wheel, its velocity
in the direction of a tangent will be that of the circum¬
ference of the wheel, so that the greater the velocity of the
wheel, the greater will be the amount of vis viva remaining
in the water when discharged, and the greater the amount
of power uselessly expended to create that vis viva.
hydrodynamics.
181
, i.*nac If however, the vanes be curved backwards as regards
^Raising the motion of the wheel, so as to have nearly the direction
Water. 0f a tangent to the circumference of the wheel at the points
^—' where they intersect it, then the velocity due to the centri¬
fugal force of the water carrying it over the surface ot the
vein in the opposite direction to that in which the wheel is
movino1, and nearly in the direction of a tangent to the cir¬
cumference, will, if this velocity of the water over the vane
in the one direction be equal to that in which the vane is
itself moving in the other, produce a state of absolute rest
in the water, and entire exhaustion of vis viva. And in
whatever degree the equality of these two motions—ot the
water in one direction over the vane, and of the vane itself
in the opposite direction—is attained, in that same degiee
will the water be delivered in a state approaching to one
of rest. The expedient of curved vanes is adopted in Mr
Appold’s pump. , i ..
With regard to the admission of water to the wheel, it
is obvious that it should pass directly from the suction-pipe
into the wheel without the intervention of any reservoir in
which the vis viva of the influent stream—communicated
in the act of rising through the pipe may expend itse ,
and that such space should be allowed at the centre as not
to alter the dimensions of the influent stream. It would
further seem expedient, by means of properly constructed
channels, to divide the water into separate streams, and to
give to these divergent streams such curvatures Jvou
facilitate their entrance upon the channels formed by the
vanes, as in the Turbine or Reaction Wheels.
It is obvious that the tendency of the centrifugal force
continually to increase the velocity of the water over t/ie
vanes as it recedes from the centre, cannot take effect in
respect to all the particles of water in the same section, un¬
less the sections of the channels diminish. It they do
not, some of the particles of water in each section must e
continually retarded, and power be uselessly expended in
producing this retardation ; whilst the current cannot bu
suffer from it a disturbance destructive of its vis viva.
This diminution of the sections of the channels might
probably best be effected by giving to the sides of the wheel
the forms of conical disks ; an expedient which is adopted
in Mr Lloyd’s blowing machines, and in Mr Ressemers
centrifugal pump.
The communication of motion to the water of the reser¬
voir in which the wheel revolves, and into which the water
is discharged, should by every practicable expedient be
avoided; and for this object the water should be kept as
much as possible from the sides of the wheel, ihis is
effected in Mr Appold’s pump by fixing the wheel between
two cheeks which project from opposite sides of the reser¬
voir. The velocity with which the wheel must be driven
depends upon the height to which the water is to be raised.
Beyond a certain height this velocity is practically unat¬
tainable. But long before this limit is reached it becomes
inconsistent with an economical application of the power
which drives the pump. It is probably therefore only in
comparatively small lifts, where a large quantity o water is
to be discharged, that the centrifugal pump will be found
useful.1
The Screw-Engine of Archimedes.
526. The screw-engine invented by Archimedes is re¬
presented in fig. 106, where AB is a cylinder with a flexible
pipe, CEHOGF, wrapped round its circumference like a
screw. The cylinder is inclined to the horizon, and sup¬
ported at one extremity by the bent pillar IR, while its
other extremity, furnished with a pivot, is immersed in the
water. When, by means of the handle K the cylinder is
made to revolve upon its axis, the water winch enters the Water *
Fig. 106.
lower orifice of the flexible pipe is raised to the top, and
discharged at D. On some occasions, when the water to be
raised moves with a considerable velocity, the engine is
put in motion by a number of float-boards fixed at L, and
impelled by the current; and if the water is to be raised
to a great height, another cylinder is immersed in the ves¬
sel D, which receives the water from the first cylinder, and
is driven by a pinion fixed at I. In this way, by having a
succession of screw-engines, and a succession of reservoirs,
water may be raised to any altitude. An engine of this
kind is described in Ferguson’s Lectures, vol. ii., p. 113. _
527. In order to explain the reason w hy the water rises in
the spiral tube, let AB (fig. 107) be a section of the engine,
BCdDE the spiral tube, a.
BF a horizontal line or
the surface of the stag¬
nant water which is to
be raised, and ABF the
angle which the axis of
the cylinder makes with
the horizon. Then, the
water which enters the
extremity B of the spiral
tube will descend to C,
and remain there as long
as the cylinder is at rest.
But if a motion of rota¬
tion be communicated to the cylinder, so that the lowest
part C of the spiral BCD moves towards B, and the points
d, D, E towards C, and become successively the lowest
parts of the spiral, the water must occupy successively the
points d, D, E, and therefore rise in the tube; or, which
is the same thing, when the point C moves to e, the point
d will be at C ; and as the water at C cannot rise along with
the point C to c, on account of the inclination of Cc to the
horizon, it must occupy the point d of the spiral, when C
has moved to c; that is, the water has a tendency to occu¬
py the lower parts of the spiral, and the rotatory motion
withdraws this part of the spiral from the w'ater, and causes
it to ascend to the top of the tube. By wrapping a cord
round a cylinder, and inclining it to the horizon, so that
the angle ABC may be greater than the angle ABF, and
then making it revolve upon its axis, the preceding remarks
will be clearly illustrated.—If the direction of the spiral
BC should be horizontal, that is, if it should coincide with
the line BF, the water will have no tendency to move to¬
wards C, and therefore cannot be raised in the tube, tor
a similar reason, it will not rise when the point C is above
Fig. 107.
1 Mosely’s Report.
182
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Machines the horizontal line BF. Consequently, in the construction
^°Water enS‘ne’ ^ie an^e ABC, which the spiral forms with
v ‘ the side of the cylinder, must always be greater than the
vangle ABF, at which the cylinder is inclined to the hori¬
zon. In practice, the angle of inclination ABF should
generally be about 50°, and the angle ABC about 65°.
528. The screw of Archimedes is now generally construct¬
ed as shown in the annexed figure, where AB is the axis
of the screw, having a flat plate of wood or thin iron coiled,
Fig. 108.
as it were, round the axis, like a spiral, or the threads of a
screw. The plane of this plate is perpendicular to the sur¬
face of the cylindrical axis AB, but is inclined to the direc¬
tion of the axis at an angle which must always be greater
than the angle which the axis AB forms with the horizon
when in use. This spiral plate, which is nothing more
than a wooden screw with a very deep and narrow thread,
is fixed in a cylindrical box CDEF, so as to form a
spiral groove, as it were running up the tube from B to A,
which is exactly the same thing as if a pipe of lead or
leather had been wrapped round the cylindrical axis, as
in fig. 108. If the outer case CDEF is fixed so that the
screw revolves within it, the engine is called a water screiv-
engine. In the common screw-engine, Eytelwein has
shown that the screw should be placed in such a manner
that only one-half of a convolution may be filled at each
revolution. When this condition, however, cannot be ful¬
filled, from the height of the water being variable, he gives
a preference to the water screw, notwithstanding that in
this case one-third of the water generally runs back, and
the screw is apt to become clogged by impurities or weeds.
529. In a screw-engine erected at the Hurlet Alum
W orks, for raising the alum liquor, the length of the screw
is 127 feet, its inclination to the horizon 37° 36'; the height
to which it raises the liquor 76 feet 9 inches, the octagonal
axis of the screw 8 inches in diameter, the diameter of the
spiral 22 inches, the thickness of the covering 2 inches,
the distance of the threads 9 inches, the number of the
threads 168, the thickness of the spiral 2 inches, the width
and depth of the spiral tube 7 inches each. The screw is
sustained upon five sets of pivots or rollers, each set con¬
sisting of two rollers. The engine is driven by a water¬
wheel, which performs one revolution while the screw per¬
forms two. The quantity of liquor raised is 70 wine gal¬
lons ; and as its specific gravity is T065, the quantity dis¬
charged in an hour is 17 tons. The screw is built wholly
ot wood, as the alum liquor acts upon iron.
530. The theory of this engine is treated at great length
by Hennery in his Dissertation sur la vis d’Archimede,
Berlin, 1 / 6* ; by Pitot, in the Memoirs of the French Aca¬
demy ; and by Euler, in the Nov. Comment. Petr op., tom. v.
An account of Pitot s investigations may be seen in Gre¬
gory s Mechanics, vol. ii., p. 348. See also Eytelwein’s
Handbuch der Mechanick, ch. xxi.; and Journal des Mines,
tom. xxxviii., p. 321.
The Spiral Pump, or Zurich Machine.
531. The Zurich machine consists of a cylindrical or
spiral pipe, having one extremity dipping into the water to be
elevated, and its other end communicating with an ascen¬
sion pipe, whereby the w-ater is discharged. This machine
was devised, in 1746, by an ingenious pewterer of Zurich,
named Wirtz, and its theory has been investigated by
Bernouilli, Eytelwein, Robison, and others. When the
machine was first erected, and its capabilities tested, it was
used successfully at Florence and in Russia. It is now
scarcely to be found out of Holland, where a considerable
number are to be seen driven by means of windmills. Fig.
109 will give us an idea of this machine and its manner
Machines
for liaising
Water.
of working. The dipping extremity of the pipe is scooped
like a spoon or horn, and capable of taking in a volume of
water which will fill half a coil.
532. After the scoop has emerged, the water passes along
the spiral by the motion of it round the axis, and drives the
air before it into the rising-pipe, where it escapes. In the
meantime, air comes in at the mouth of the scoop; and
when the scoop again dips into the water, it again takes in
a similar quantity. Thus there is now a part filled with
water and a part filled with air. Continuing this motion, we
shall receive a second round of water and another of air.
The water in any turn of the spiral will have its two ends
on a level; and the air between the successive columns of
water will be in its natural state; for since the passage into
the rising pipe or main is open, there is nothing to force
the water and air into any other position. But since the
spires gradually diminish in their length, it is plain that the
column of water will gradually occupy more and more of
the circumference of each. At last it will occupy a com¬
plete turn of some spiral that is near the centre; and wdien
sent farther in, by the continuance of the motion, some of
it will run back over the top of the succeeding spiral.
Therefore it will push the water backwards, and raise its
other end, so that it also will run over backwards before the
next turn be completed. And this change of disposition
will at last reach the first or outermost spiral, and some
water will run over into the horn and scoop, and finally into
the cistern.
533. But as soon as water gets into the rising pipe, and
rises a little in it, it stops the escape of the air when the
next scoop of water is taken in. Here are now two columns
of water acting against each other by hydrostatic pressure
and the intervening column of air. They must compress
the air between them, and the water and air columns will
now be unequal. This will have a general tendency to
keep the whole water back, and cause it to be higher on the
left or rising side of each spire than on the right descending
side. The excess of height will be just such as produces
the compression of the air between that and the preceding
column of water. This will go on increasing as the wrater
HYDRODYNAMICS.
183
Machines
•or Raising
Water.
Blowing
Machine.
mounts in the rising pipe; for the air next to the rising pipe
is compressed at its inner end with the weight of the whole
column in the main. It must be as much compressed at its
outer end This must be done by the water column with¬
out it; and this column exerts this pressure partly by reason
that its outer end is higher than its inner end, and partly
bv the transmission of the pressure on its outer end by air,
which is similarly compressed from without. And thus it
will happen that each column of water, being higher at its
outer than at its inner end, compresses the air on the water
column beyond or within it, which transmits this pressure to
the air beyond it, adding to it the pressure arising from its
own want of level at the ends. Therefore, the greatest com¬
pression, viz., that of the air next the mam, is produced by
the sum of all the transmitted pressures; and these are the
sum of all the differences between the elevations of the inner
ends of the water columns above their outer ends ; and the
height to which the water will rise in the main will be just
equal to this sum.
(a.) TheChapelet ; (/3.) The Chain Pump ;(y.) The Norm ;
(8) The Elevating Palette Wheel; (e.) The Elevating
Bucket Wheel; (£.) The Tympanum.
534 (a.) The Chapelet consists of an endless chain or rope,
on which, at equal distances, are flat disks of wood or iron
fixed perpendicularly to the rope which passes through the
centres of the flat disks. This chain passes over an upper
and an under wheel, both of the same diameter. I he
lower is below the surface of the water to be raised ; and
these disks, in rising, pass through the interior of a hollow
pipe, the breadth and length of which are the same as that of
the disk. Every time, therefore, that a disk passes through
this pipe, it isolates a volume of water, and empties it into
the reservoir at a certain height above the water to be raised.
Again, this chain may be laid obliquely to the horizon,
and ^water may be raised to a less elevation, but in less
quantity, as when it is working vertically.
535 (/3.) If in the chapelet we remove the disks, anti tor
the upper radiating wheel substitute a solid circular disk,
and for the lower a small pulley, and let a piece of loose tow
or hair chain work up and down, then the rope in passing
through the water will carry up so much with it; and as it
passes over, the upper wheel will be compressed, and there¬
fore force the water out of it into a reservoir. Ibis ma¬
chine is known as the Chain Pump.
Water.
Blowing
Machine.
536. (y.) If instead of disks in the chapelet we substitute Machines
buckets or pails, each connected with an endless rope, then fo^lalsrinS
water may be raised to any elevation. Every time that a
bucket enters the water it emerges full, and when it has
reached its highest turning point, the bucket is emptied into ^
the reservoir. This is the Noria or Bucket Machine.
These macliines are commonly used for draining and
irrigating purposes.
537. (S.) If we conceive the wheel of art. 466 to be close
to the circular course and turning in the opposite direction,
and if we suppose the lower water-course the current of
supply, then we shall have water raised to a height not ex¬
ceeding half the diameter of the wheel. The machine is
driven°by a windmill or by steam, through the intervention
of a toothed wheel acting on the teeth of the inner circum¬
ference of the wheel. By this arrangement the axis of the
palette wheel is not much charged by the weight of water
elevated, and consequently the friction of the wheel is much
reduced. This is the Elevating Palette Wheel.
It is evident that this wheel is nothing else than an un¬
dershot or breast wheel, acting opposite to their mode of
working.
538. (e.) The Elevating Bucket Wheel may be regarded
as an overshot wheel working in the opposite direction. The
buckets, or water compartments, begin to empty themselves
by holes in the inner circumference of the wheel when near
their highest turning point. All the water is received ere
the wheel has passed its highest point.
539. (£.) The Tympanum is also an elevating wheel, but
much more efficient than either of the two former. It con¬
sists of a hollow circular drum, in which are four or more
curved or spiral partitions, united to as many rectangular
beams of a small height, of the same breadth as the dium,
and proceeding from a revolving axis; the outei ends of
these partitions are tangents to the drum. A crown wheel
passes round the external circumference of the wheel, while
a small crown wheel, turned by an engine, works into the
teeth of the former wheel, and sets the whole apparatus in
motion. Hence, as the mouths of the passages dip into
the water a volume enters, which is carried by the motion
of the wheel to seek the lowest point of the passage, which
is at the axis of the wheel, where, finding a small opening,
it empties itself into the reservoir. The friction of this
wheel is inconsiderable. _
These three last machines are much used in France for
irrigating purposes.
CHAPTER IV.—ON THE BLOWING MACHINE OR WATER-BELLOWS.
The Trompe, or Water-Bellows.
540 Professor Magnus, at the close of his experiments
on the motion of fluids, already detailed, gives an account
of this piece of mechanism, the principle of which he thinks
is to be referred to the penetration of a fluid by air. it is
the so-called trompe, or water-bellows, which, according to
Grignon,1 was discovered in Italy about the year 1640 I he
instrument is represented in fig. 109, drawn from the de¬
scription given by Richard in his Etudes sur l Art d extraire
immediatement le Fer de ses Minerals, p. 169.
B is a water-holder, kept always full by means of the
canal Z. A, A are two tubes or hollowed beams about
thirteen feet long, one of which is shown in the section.
CC is a wooden cistern or barrel rendered air-tight; the
tubes A, A widen toward the top ; two boards^, p, inclined
towards each other, are introduced above into each tube,
thus forming a funnel-shaped narrowing of the orifice; the
boards are kept asunder by the pieces of wood t, t. Below
these pieces a number of apertures e, e, are made in t le
tube, through which air can enter. Similar apertures e, e
were made in Richard's instrument about half way up the
tubes; from these water sometimes escapes, as Richard him¬
self has found, and for this reason it would be better to
omit them altogether. When the conical stopper of the
funnel-shaped orifice p, p is drawn upwards, the water falls
through the tube, and at the same time air is sucked in at
the orifices e, e ; as this is carried downwards by the water
into the cistern, the air in the latter increases, and passing
into the tube H, streams out of the opening b. At g, in
the bottom of CC, an opening is made through which the
descending water can escape; the magnitude of the open-
ino- is so arranged that the water can never sink down to it.
A^second trough is generally placed before the opening, in
which the water must first ascend to escape over the edge.
Instead of air being sucked in by ee, we may have, in
place of the boards p, p, two wooden funnels high enough
to reach over the surface of the water. The water flows
through the space between the funnels; this causes the
fluid within them to sink and the air to enter.
moires de Physique, p. 196.
■
184
HYDRODYNAMICS.
Blowing
Machine.
541. The water-bellows is used in some departments of
the south of France, and more immediately in the extrac¬
tion of iron from its ores. In the year 1838 it was em¬
ployed, with one or two exceptions, in the Department de
TAriege.
542. Much has been written about the water-bellows;
but the real cause
of the descent o
the air into the
machine has never
been properly ex¬
plained, and it is
yet totally un¬
known. Justi as¬
serted lastcentury
that the water is
changed by the
violent motion in¬
to air.1 Venturi
again2referred the
origin of the bub¬
bles to the lateral
motion imparted
to the air by the
moving stream.
This would imply
that a force of at¬
traction exists be¬
tween the air and
water, sufficient to
carry the former
far beneath the
surface, which is
scarcely conceiv¬
able. One of Pro¬
fessor Magnus’ex¬
periments refutes
this notion (422).
543. In order
that the pheno¬
mena might be ob¬
served with the
utmost accuracy,
Professor Magnus
constructed a mo¬
del glass water-
bellows (fig. Ill),
where N is the
water-holder, in
which, by means
of a cork, the tube
ab, 6 inches long,
is fastened. The
lower end of ab
dips above into
Fig. 110.
the tube cd, which is 6'5 feet long, and has an inner diameter
of fths of an inch ; at it pierces a cork which closes the
bottle AB, and it ends at g about two inches above the
bottom of the bottle. Through the cork d two other tubes
are introduced—de which can be closed by the cock e, and
hik which serves as a manometer, and is filled with mercury
to k. J
544. When the tube ab had an opening at its lower end
of 0 4 of an inch in diameter, as the water flowed through
it downwards, a considerable portion of air was carried along
with it into the bottle AB. The pressure increased, and as
the mercury ascended in k the water rose in the tube cdg.
By means of the cocks e and D, the escape of the air and
water was so regulated that the water height in cdg re¬
mained constant. When this height was about three feet Blowing
over the surface of water in the bottle, the opening being Machine.
0'4 of an inch, a multitude of small bubbles were seen to
descend with the water through the entire breadth of the
tube. When the diameter was greater, the motion was
quicker, so that the course of the bubbles could not be ex¬
actly followed. When, on the con¬
trary, the opening b was smaller,
e.g., 02 of an inch in diameter, the
air bubbles were observed at/, but
they could not penetrate to the
lower end of the tube ; as soon as
they had attained a certain depth,
they rose again in consequence of
their small specific gravity. Small
isolated bubbles only were able to
penetrate to a depth of 24 inches.
545. It is evident that the bub¬
bles are formed at the point where
the falling water meets the surface
f‘, here they are quite inclosed by
the water, and carried with it down¬
wards. If the force which causes
this motion be so great that the
bubbles descend more quickly than
they would arise in consequence of
their small specific gravity; then
they will reach the bottle AB.
This, however, can only take place
when the water falls from a suffi¬
cient height, and when the opening
b bears a sensible ratio to the dia¬
meter of the tube cdg. If this
ratio be small, the motion of the
water in the latter is feeble, and
the bubbles move more quickly
upwards than downwards. If the
opening be not much smaller than
the tube cdg, the falling water
closes up the latter, even when the
tube, instead of reaching to g, ends
immediately under the cork rf. The
water then stands at a height within
the tube corresponding to the air-
pressure in the bottle underneath;
and, in general, exactly the same
effects are observed as when the
tube cd penetrates the surface of
the water. Hence, in the case of
the water-bellows it is unnecessary
that the tubes A, A (fig. 110),
should reach under the surface of
water in the drum CC.
546. It will be observed that the
action which takes place here is
similar to that which is observed
Fig. 111.
  when water is poured
into a glass, in which case also bubbles are carried down¬
wards. The phenomena are so far explained by Prof. Mag¬
nus in his experiments on the motion of fluids (416).
547. We have an example of a trompe on a large scale in
the method sometimes pursued after an explosion in a mine.
The nearest rivulet being allowed to flow down the shaft,
a considerable volume of fresh air enters with the water,
and renders practicable a descent into the mine to suc¬
cour the injured miners. (See Commerce of Arts ; Wolfii
Opera Mathematica ; RichesseMinerale, tom. \\\.‘, Manuel
de la Metallurgie du Fer, by M. Karsten, tom. ii. ; Annales
des Mmes, tom. ix., 1824 ; xi., 1825 ; Nicholson’s Journal,
vols. ii. and xii.) (d. b.)
1 Exhibition of Arts and Manufactures, vol. ii., p. 97.
2 Gilbert’s Annalen, vol. iii., p. 125.
H Y D
Hydro- HYDROMETER, an instrument for measuring the
meter gravity, &c., of fluids. See Hydrodynamics.
II HYDROPHOBIA, dread of water (from f'Swp, water, and
Hydro- (f)of30t;} fear), though a symptom occurring in several diseases
P 0 1 ' y of the nervous system, is now very generally restricted to that
disease which results from the bite of a mad dog, wolf, or
cat. This disease has been known from the earliest anti¬
quity, and was styled by the Greeks Xvaa-a, by the Latins
rabies, and the French rage. The disease is essentially a
convulsive one, resembling tetanus, but is characterized by
the inability to swallow fluids, the very sight of which in¬
duces convulsive spasms of the muscles of the mouth and
pharynx, which extend more or less to the whole body.
This disease in man is invariably caused by the bite of
some animal of the dog or cat kind, though it has been
asserted, without proof, that the bites of other animals have
induced the malady. The disease seems to originate in
the different species of the genera canis (dog), and felis
(cat), and is capable of being transmitted to man and all ani¬
mals by the saliva of these animals being introduced into
the system by means of a wound or bite. It has been lately
endeavoured to be proved that only those animals in whom
the disease originates can communicate it to others, and
that the saliva of the animal which has had the disease com¬
municated to it through means of a bite is incapable of com¬
municating hydrophobia to the person or animal it bites.
Many lives are lost annually through hydrophobia. In
France 48 persons died from this malady in 1852, 25 in
England during 1851, 15 in 1852, and 11 in 1853—the last
year of which the causes of death are published. From recent
investigations in France, it appears that of 136 cases of hy¬
drophobia in the human subject (the particulars of which
were investigated by a commission appointed in 1852 by
government), 105 followed the bite of a dog, 20 the bite of
a wolf, 8 the bite of a cat, while of 5 the particular animal
whose bite caused the malady was not ascertained. The
persons were of all ages, from the infant at the breast to
the old man of ninety. The period of the year when the
bite which caused the disease was received was ascertained
in 90 cases. In 25 of the persons the bite was received
during the months of March, April, and May; in 42 cases,
during June, July, and August; in 13 cases, during Sep¬
tember, October, and November; and in 17 cases, during
December, January, and February. The disease does not
appear in man till some time after the receipt of the bite.
Thus, in 69 cases where the exact date of the appearance of
hydrophobia after the bite was ascertained, it appeared that
in 14 cases the disease appeared within the month after the
bite; in 41 cases, from the end of one month to the end of
the third month ; in 8 cases, from the beginning of the fourth
to the end of the sixth month; and in 6 cases, from the
seventh to the twelfth month. No case occurred in which
the disease had appeared after more than one year elapsed
from the date of the bite. The exact duration of the dis¬
ease from its first appearance to its termination in death
was ascertained in 78 cases. Of these 3 died the first day
of the disease, 8 the second day, 28 the third day, 21 the
fourth day, 4 the fifth day, 4 the sixth day, and the remain¬
ing 10 from the seventh to the twentieth day. This shows
the frightful rapidity of the disease. The disease, when
once it manifests itself, is quite incurable. Every means
must therefore be taken to prevent the disease originating
in the person bitten, and many means of cure have been
recommended for this purpose; only, as it is known that
but a very few of those bitten by a rabid animal take the
disease (supposed not to exceed 1 in 20), it is not certainly
known whether the subsequent freedom from the disease is
to be ascribed to the means resorted to, or to natural causes.
The bitten part should be instantly washed, and fluid
caustic, or nitric acid, or probably still better, caustic am¬
monia solution, freely applied to the wounded surface, care
being taken that the caustic reaches the bottom of the
VOL. xn.
H Y G 185
tooth-wounds. Many recommend, in addition, to dress the Hydrosta-
wounds till they heal with red precipitate of mercury oint- tics
ment, and to take internally sufficient mercury slightly to Jj
affect the system. Decoction of sarsaparilla and guaiac in- v yginusj
ternally, and occasional hot or vapour baths, have, in addition
to these remedies, been highly recommended, (j. s—k.)
HYDROSTATICS. See Hydrodynamics.
HYDRUNTUM, or Hydros, now Otranto, in An¬
cient Geography, a sea-coast town of Calabria, at the mouth
of the Adriatic, and the most easterly point of the heel of
Italy. Of its early history little is known; but it seems
to have been either a Greek city, or to have been at one
time inhabited chiefly by Greeks. Till the rise of Brun-
dusium, it was a place of considerable importance. The
great Roman highway, the Via Appia, terminated there,
pouring into the town all the traffic between Rome and
Greece, to which it was the nearest Italian port. Pas¬
sengers, however, afterwards came to prefer the Brundusian
route as safer, though somewhat longer. In the time of
Strabo, Hydruntum had dwindled down into an insignificant
spot; but in the fourth century it once more became the
favourite route to Greece, retaining its importance till the
final overthrow of the Western Empire. The modern
Otranto, though the see of a bishop, is a small decayed
town, and seems never to have recovered from its siege and
capture by the Turks in 1480. The antique remains re¬
covered from its ruins are too trifling to require special
notice. Under the French empire it gave the title of duke
to Fouche, Napoleon’s famous minister of police. Its present
population is rather above 5000.
HYERES, or Hieres (anciently Area and Hieros), a
town of France, department of Var, and arrondissement of
Toulon, on the S. declivity of a hill, 3 miles from the Medi¬
terranean, and 10 miles E. of Toulon. The town itself,
which is ill-built and dirty, commands a fine prospect of the
surrounding district. The streets are steep, narrow, wind¬
ing, and badly paved. In the principal square there is a
column surmounted by a fine marble bust of Massillon, who
was born here, June 24, 1663. Pop. 9000.
Hyeres, Isles of (anciently Stcechades), a group of small
islands in the Mediterranean, about 10 miles S.E. of Hyeres.
They are rocky and almost bare, but are strongly fortified.
Porquerolles is 5 miles in length by 2 in breadth.
HYGINUS, Caius Julius, a celebrated Roman gram¬
marian, was a native of Spain, or, according to others, of
Alexandria, in Egypt. Fie seems to have been at one time
a slave, and to have been manumitted by Augustus, who
made him keeper of the Palatine library. His master was
the famous Alexander, surnamed Polyhistor, whom he is
said to have imitated closely in his writings. Suetonius
mentions that in his old age he fell into poverty, and was
supported chiefly by the generosity of a rich consular named
Licinius, who, with the poet Ovid, had been his most inti¬
mate friend in early life. The dates of his birth and death
are alike unknown. Hyginus is frequently mentioned by
Pliny and Aulus Gellius, and always with respect. Not one
of his works has come down to us, and even of the titles only
the following are known :—De Urhibus Italicis ; De Pro-
prietatibus Deorum; De Virgilio Liber ; De Familiis Tro-
janis ; De Agricultura. Another Hyginus, who has been
quite unwarrantably identified with this one, has transmitted
to us two works, entitled respectively, Fabularum Liber,
and Poeticon Astronomicon, libri iv. The first of these is
a collection of legends from the old mythology, some of
which are presented under new forms; the title of the se¬
cond sufficiently explains its purport. Both of these works
are written in a style so impure as to savour of the iron age ;
but who their author was, or when he flourished, has been
very much disputed. Some critics even declare that they are
merely translated from the Greek. To this Hyginus also are
attributed treatises De Castrametatione, and De Limitibus
Constituendis, which have been several times reprinted.
2 A
186
HYGEOMETEY.
rrygro-
metry.
A vast number of substances, such as sugar, flour, bread,
&c., possess the property of absorbing moisture, the amount
of which varies according to the circumstances in which
they are placed. Atmospheric air also, and most gases,
absorb and retain aqueous vapour, so that in all experi¬
ments regarding the composition of bodies it is necessary
to ascertain their state as to dampness. The values of
many commodities are greatly influenced by the quantity
of moisture which they hold, and hence the utility of hav¬
ing some means of ascertaining this quantity.
The word hygrometry (from vypos, moist, and /xerpov,
a measure) signifies the measurement of dampness, and
therefore serves to denote the assemblage of processes,
by help of which we attempt to measure the humidity oi
bodies. But the word is commonly restricted to atmosphe¬
ric hygrometry; and, indeed, is the only department which
has received adequate attention from natural philosophers.
When a substance capable of absorbing moisture is placed
in damp air, it becomes gradually more and more humid,
until a kind of equilibrium be established; that is, until
the affinity of the air be so augmented, and that of the
substance be so reduced, that no farther action goes on ; and,
conversely, when a moist body is placed in dry air, the air
abstracts the moisture until a hygrometric equilibrium re¬
sult. The humidity of the substance becomes thus an in¬
dex to the dampness of the air in which it is placed.
By taking advantage of this circumstance} and of the
changes which certain substances undergo when moistened,
several experimenters have attempted to construct hygrome¬
ters ; but, as yet, no instrument of this kind has been con¬
trived which deserves a higher appellation than hygroscope,
or indicator of dampness, and very few of them deserve
even this name.
Humidity, while it augments the weights of bodies, is
observed also to change their volumes and forms. Thus, a
sheet of paper expands very considerably on being moist¬
ened, and contracts again on being dried. Hence, in order
to stretch a sheet of paper, we first moisten it thoroughly,
and then paste it down, or glue down its edges, in order
that when dry it may become tense. The varying length
of a slip of paper would thus serve to indicate the dampness
of the adjacent air, were it not that paper undergoes a per¬
manent change when much moistened, and that there is
reason to think that the dust which penetrates its pores
tends to alter its hygrometric properties.
The variability of paper renders it very unfit for accurate
plans; but no substitute has been found for it. The varia¬
tion in length from extreme dryness to extreme dampness,
is about 1 in 42, but is different in papers of different makes.
Every species of wood is liable to hygrometric changes,
a circumstance which gives great trouble in carpentry.
The change length-ways is small; but across the grain ot
the wood the expansion caused by moisture is very great.
Generally, the change in the breadth of planks cut radially
from the tree is much less than that of planks cut tan¬
gentially. This is shown by the manner in which the
trunks of trees rend on being dried; the radial fibres
contracting much more than the circular ones, and hence
producing only radial rents.
On account of this great lateral contraction the pannels
of doors are fitted into grooves so as to allow of some
shrink; for if secured at the edges they would be liable to
split.
All organic substances contain pores expressly for the
conveyance of their juices, and are influenced by the acces¬
sion of moisture, some of them very remarkably ; and at¬
tempts have been made to render the changes which they
undergo subservient to the measurement ot humidity ; but,
unfortunately, these changes are very precarious as to their
amounts, while repeated fluctuations are found gradually to
impair the sensibility of the materials.
The hygrometer of Saussure is formed of a hair from
which the oily matter has been removed by a gentle boiling
in water containing one per cent, of the sulphate of soda.
One end of the hair is fixed by pincers to an adjusting
screw, and the other end to the periphery of a small pulley
carrying an index, so that a minute change in the length
of the hair may produce a perceptible motion in the index :
a counterpoise is appended for the purpose of keeping the
hair gently stretched.
The whalebone hygrometer of Deluc is constructed on
the same principle, but the sub¬
stance employed is a slip of whale¬
bone cut across the fibres. The
instrument is shown in fig. 1.
A slender spring keeps the whale¬
bone stretched.
Captain Kater used the twdsted
Indian grass called Oobeena
Hooloo, which possesses the re¬
markable property of twining and
untwining according to the damp¬
ness of the air.
The manner of graduating these,
and all hygrometers of this class,
is to expose them for some time
to air thoroughly dried, and then
to air thoroughly humid, and to
mark the two extremes of the
scale, which is usually divided
into 100 degrees. For the zero
of the scale the air may be dried
by means of concentrated sulphu¬
ric acid, fused chloride of lime,
or any substance having a great
affinity for moisture; and for the
other extreme it may be moisten¬
ed by suspending linen rags well
soaked in water inside of the re¬
ceiver, taking the precaution to
wet its sides, and to place a sau¬
cer of water in it.
None of these instruments,
however, give consistent re¬
sults ; so that the whole of them
have fallen into disuse as accu¬
rate measurers, although they
do serve to give a rough idea of
the state of the air in regard to
moisture.
It is well known that the temperature of a wet body is
lower than that of a dry one exposed to the influence of
the same air. Leslie applied this depression of tempera¬
ture to measure the dryness of the air; for this purpose he
placed two delicate thermometers near each other, the bulb
of the one being covered with moistened linen or paper,
and that of the other being dry; the difference between
the two was an index to the drying power of the air. The
original instrument which he used was composed of two
thermometers jointed together, and provided with three
slender feet; it is in the possession of the writer of this
article. Afterwards Leslie applied the far more delicate
Hygro¬
metry.
Fig. 1.
HYGROMETRY.
187
Hygro-
metry.
Fig. 2.
differential thermometer (fig. 2) to the same purpose; and
his hygrometer is, perhaps, the most delicate instrument which
f we possess for indicating the humidity of the air. This in¬
strument is formed by uniting two
tubes having a ball blown on the
end of each, and having a little
tinged sulphuric acid previously
introduced. The united tube is
then recurved, as shown in the fi¬
gure, and by a little management
the end of the column of acid is
brought near to the upper end of
one of the tubes. When both balls
are at one temperature the instru¬
ment indicates zero ; and when one
of them is covered with wet paper
the instrument indicates the de¬
pression of temperature. Leslie
graduated his hygrometers to show
tenths of a centigrade degree.
The indications of this instru¬
ment are very precise, and give
definite information as to the state
of the air; but it is evident that as
it merely shows the amount of cold
produced by evaporation, it is not
strictly a hygrometer. The read¬
ings of the thermometer and baro¬
meter must also be taken before
the quantity of moisture contained
in the air can be computed.
It has been proposed, as an improvement on Leslie’s hy¬
grometer, to place two thermometers side by side, the bulb
of one of them being kept moist by capillary action ; this
is only a return to the ruder and less delicate form of the
instrument.
Warm air is capable of holding in solution more mois¬
ture than cold air can, and hence, in order to ascertain the
quantity of moisture corresponding to the reading of a Les¬
lie s hygrometer, we must observe the temperature of the
ah, and deduct from the total quantity of moisture which
air at that temperature is capable of holding, the deficiency
made apparent by the degree of cooling.
If, then, warm damp air be cooled sufficiently, it may be
made to deposit its moisture: as soon as the air reaches
that temperature, the moisture which it contains begins to
be deposited on the surfaces of surrounding bodies, and
dew is formed. Of this we have a familiar example in the
dew which is formed on the surface of a jar containing cold
water when it is brought into a warm apartment, particu¬
larly if the air of the room have been moistened by the
breaths of a numerous company; and also in the water
which trickles down the insides of our window-panes du¬
ring a cold night.
Advantage is taken of this circumstance in the construc¬
tion of Daniell’s hygrometer or dew-point instrument. In
its first form this hygrometer consisted of a widish tube ex¬
panded into a ball at each end ; a quantity of ether was in¬
troduced previous to the closing of the tube, which was so
bent that the whole of the ether might rest in either ball:
a small thermometer also was previously inserted, having
its bulb half immersed in the ether when in one of the balls.
The liquid was then made to boil, so as to expel all the air,
and in this state the tube was closed. By this means a
Wollaston’s cryophorous, on the small scale, was formed.
On bringing all the ether into the one ball, and cooling,
by any means, the other ball, the temperature of the ether
could be reduced ; and if the cooling were carried sufficiently
ar, dew was formed on the outer surface of the glass. The
indication of the inclosed thermometer then gave the dew¬
point. 45
The general principle of this hygrometer is excellent 5
but some little defects in the detail of the operations ren¬
dered it somewhat uncertain. In order to produce a suffi¬
cient degree of cold, the empty ball was covered with a
piece of linen or silk, on which was poured a quantity of
ether, and the observer had to watch the instant when the
dew began to be deposited on the glass. In this way time
could not be allowed for the glass, ether, and thermometer
bulb to come all to one temperature, and the indication of
the thermometer was therefore influenced by the rapidity
or slowness of the cooling.
Dr Gumming, Professor Connell, and M. Regnault seve¬
rally made contrivances for remedying this inconvenience ;
these are all founded on the same principle, and as that of
M. Regnault seems best to accomplish the desired effect,
we shall confine our observations to it.
M. Regnault’s condenser hygrometer (fig. 3), as it is called,
consists of a cy¬
linder or thimble,
made of very thin
silver, and highly
polished, 2 inches
deep and ^ths of
an inch in dia¬
meter. This is
fitted tightly on a
glass tube, cd,
open at both ends.
The tube has a
small lateral tubu-
lure,<, near the up¬
per end. The up¬
per end of the tube
is closed by a cork,
through the centre
of which the stem
of a very sensible
thermometer is
passed. The bulb
of the thermome¬
ter is in the centre
of the silver thim¬
ble. A very thin
glass tube, fg,
open at both ends,
passes through the
cork, and descends
almost to the bot¬
tom of the thimble.
Ether is poured into the tube cd as high as to mm, and the
tubulure t is placed in communication with an aspirator jar,
six or eight pints in capacity, or with a small circular ex¬
hausting bellows, by means of the upright supporting pillar H
and the flexible tube /, which is furnished with a stop-cock.
On allowing water to run from the aspirator jar, or on
opening the bellows, air passes down the tube gf, and rises
in bubbles through the ether, which is cooled by the induced
evaporation. The refrigeration is the more rapid the more
freely the air is made to pass, and the whole mass of ether
is of a uniform temperature as it is briskly agitated by the
passage of the bubbles of air. The temperature is suffi¬
ciently lowered, in less than a minute, to cause an abundant
deposition of dew.
By regulating the supply of air, the thermometer may be
kept readily at any required temperature less than that of
the external air. Now the object of the observer is to dis¬
cover at what exact temperature the dew begins just to be
formed. When, therefore, he has obtained a copious depo¬
sition on the bright surface of the silver, he reduces the
supply of air so as to allow the thimble to be warmed and
the dew to disappear; he then augments the supply of air
Hygro-
metry.
188
H Y M
Hvmettus again to cool the silver cautiously till the dew reappear. In
|| this way he can ascertain the dew-point true to the tenth
Hymn, part of a degree of Fahrenheit’s thermometer. T he obsei ver
 / must remain at a distance from the apparatus, in order that
the warmth of his body, and the humidity of perspiration,
may not derange the results ; a small telescope or opeia-
glass may be used to read off the degiees.
Less ether is needed with this instrument than with the
original form of Daniell’s hygrometer, and, unless when
the’air is very dry, the ether may be replaced by alcohol.
In order to measure the temperature of the air, another
apparatus exactly similar, but containing no ether, is placed
under the influence of the aspirator.
These two, the wet-bulb and the dew-point hygrometers,
are the only instruments which have yet been contrived
for giving definite information as to the humidity of the
atmosphere ; but neither of them indicates per se the
quantity of moisture contained in a given volume of air;
that quantity can only be ascertained by help of carefully
conducted experiments.
Our knowledge of this branch of the subject is extremely
limited, and the attention of scientific men is at present
directed to the law which connects the indications of the
dew-point and wet-bulb hygrometers.
H Y M
For this purpose the simultaneous readings of the two
instruments, of the thermometer and barometer, are all ob¬
served under as great a variety of circumstances as possible.
It is to be regretted, however, that in making these com¬
parisons an attempt is made to discover the ratio between
the depressions of the dew-point and ot the wet-bulb below
the temperature of the air; a formula of the form
T-t=f(T-t')
being used, in which T is the temperature of the air, t that
of the dew-point, and i that of the wet-bulb ; f being a
coefficient, the values of which corresponding to different
values of T are sought to be ascertained. Now one may
easily see that when the air is nearly saturated with mois¬
ture both of the depressions T —t and T —t must be small;
but it does not follow that they are proportional to each
other ; for if we imagine the air to be nearly dry, the wet-
bulb hygrometer will be nearly at its maximum reading,
while the dew-point instrument has, so to speak, no maxi¬
mum, since, when the air is perfectly dry, no conceivable
lowering of temperature can ever cause it to deposit mois-
ture.
The discussion of these matters, however, belong to the
subjects of Meteorology and Evaporation, to which ar¬
ticles the reader is referred for further information, (e. s.)
Hymn.
HYMETTUS, a celebrated mountain, or rather amoun-
tain range of Attica, forming the S.E. boundary of the
Athenian plain. It consists of two separate parts, the north¬
ern or Greater Hymettus, now called Telo-Vuni, a.nd the
southern or Lesser Hymettus, described by the ancients as
Anhydrus, or the Waterless, and now called Mavro- Vuni.
The highest point of Hymettus is 3506 feet above the level
of the sea. The honey of Hymettus was regarded by the
ancients as only inferior to that of Hybla; and the classics
abound in allusions to the excellence and beauty of its
marble. (See Attica.)
HYMN, a sacred ode, adapted in its original design to re¬
ligious services of a public character. T he primary idea of
the hymn was adoration ; but its specific meaning and pur¬
pose have been gradually extended, till the name has come to
be applied to all classes of devotional compositions treated in
the shorter metrical forms. Hymns were an important
feature in the religious festivals of the ancient world. The
classic mythology, that wonderful product of the legends of
an imaginative people, yielded rich materials for poetical
treatment; and numerous specimens of the lyric ode, sung
in temple and theatre amidst music and choral dances—the
exulting paean, and shrill, maddening dithyramb—are pre¬
served in Greek and Roman literature.
These ancient hymns are of three kinds—The theurgic
or religious, as the so-called hymns of Orpheus, which weie
chanted by the initiated in the mysteries ; the poetic oi
popular, which celebrated the fabulous adventures of gods
and heroes, as the hymns of Homer and Callimachus, Pin¬
dar and Horace ; and the philosophic, in which the esoteric
tenets ofthe schools were presented under religious symbols
the homage of speculative intellect to popular belief. The
hymn of Cleanthes is a lofty theosophic prayer to Zeus for
light and wisdom, in the style of Milton’s invocation to
Urania.
But it is in the sacred poetry of the Hebrews that we
find the perfect development of the hymn. In the odes of
Moses and Deborah, there is a higher and purer inspiration
than that of Aonian mount and Castalian spring. Daily, in
the temple of Jerusalem, bands of priests and Levites with
alternate voices chanted psalms in which saintly genius
had been consecrated to the noblest ends. These psalms,
chiefly composed by David, continued to be employed in
the more spiritual worship of the Christian Church. They
formed the language of its earliest praise, as they found in
its faith their clear and full interpretation; and on this an¬
cient and sacred basis has the whole superstructure of
Christian hymnology been raised.
At what period hymns distinctively Christian were intro¬
duced into evangelical worship cannot be exactly asceitained.
The apostolic writings speak of “ psalms and hymns and
spiritual songs;” and the last of these expressions has been
supposed to refer to the doxologies or fervent strains of
thanksgiving uttered by those who possessed spiiitual gifts.^
We learn from Philo (De Vit. Contemplate that hymns ot
their own composition were used by the Essenes or fhera-
peutse, a sect of Jewish ascetics, in their religious assemblies.
Michaelis and others think they discover fragments ot apos¬
tolic hymns in such passages as Eph. v. 14; 1 Tim. in. 1,
16; 2 Tim. ii. 11, which have a kind of rhythmical flow.
We have the testimony of Pliny, in the famous letter to
Trajan, early in the second century, that the Christians
“ repeated hymns among themselves to Christ, as to a god.
An early Christian writer remarks, that “the praises of
Christ, the Word of God, were set forth in psalms and hymns
of the brethren, written at the beginning” {Eusebius, \\b.
vii. c. 28). Three ancient Greek hymns, transmitted to
us in the Apostolic Constitution, are supposed by Bun¬
sen, a competent authority, to be the sole authentic speci¬
mens we possess of the ante-Nicene psalmody and hymn-
olooy. The first of these, the Gloria in Excelsis, com¬
monly termed the “ Morning Hymn,” forms part ot the
communion service of the Anglican Church. Another, a
Hamn at the Lighting of the Evening Lamp ( Y/xvos tov
AuyvikoS), is an interesting relic of the simple devotion ot
the early Christian household. The first writer known to
have composed hymns for the worship of the Western
Church is Hilary, bishop of Poitiers, who died a.d. 5bS.
About the same time Ambrose introduced choral singing
into the church of Milan, and wrote the Te Deum--* mag¬
nificent composition, moving in the majestic cadences o
the Hebrew psalm. But both hymns and choir-song had
existed from a much earlier period in the Eastern Churcti.
A specimen of the Greek hymn, the earliest known, is found
in the writings of Clement of Alexanaria, whoflounsie in
the beginning of the third century {Paedag. lib. in., ad Jin.)
Gregory of Nazianzus, towards the end of this century,
acquired reputation as a writer of hymns. 1 he genera
189
H Y
Hymn, diffusion and influence of the earlier hymns may be inferred
from the fact of the heretical sects availing themselves of the
popular taste in order to disseminate error. Arius wrote
songs “ for the sea, and the mill, and the highway, and set
them to music.” These rude chants materially promoted
the spread of his doctrine. Chrysostom found Arian can¬
ticles in great esteem at Constantinople, and combated their
tendencies by counter-hymns in defence of the Catholic
doctrine. The Gnostic Bardesanes imitated the Psalms of
David, not only in style and structure, but in number. He
composed 150mystical hymns; in these pseudo-psalms “pre¬
senting to simple souls,” says Ephraem Syrus “ the cup of
poison tempered with seductive sweetness.” This false coin¬
age shows the currency of the genuine metal; and Jerome
tells us that in his day “ you could not go into the fields,
but you might hear the ploughman at his hallelujahs, the
mower at his hymns, and the vine-dresser singing David’s
Psalms.”
In the 4th Council of Toledo, a.d. 633, the use of hymns
was formally sanctioned by the Western Church. Most of
the hymns for the festivals of saints and martyrs had been
written at a much earlier period by Prudentius. We find
some great names of the Latin Church in the list of its
sacred minstrels;—Popes Gelasius and Gregory, Paulinus,
Venantius Fortunatus, Bernard, Anselme, Bede, &c. The
famous hymn of Thomas Aquinas—Pange, lingua, gloriosi—
fixes the epoch of transubstantiation, the point at which
the rhetoric of the pulpits froze into the logic of the schools—
“ Verbum caro, panem verum
Verbo carnem efficit;
Fitque sanguis Christi merum,
Et si sensus deficit
Ad firmandum cor sincerum
Sola fides sufficit.”
The great harvest of hymns was produced from the eleventh
to the thirteenth centuries in the Gallican and German clois¬
ters. Many a monk employed himself, in the interval of inditing
palimpsests and illuminating missals, with stringing together
leonine triplets and sextains. The constant perusal of the
Fathers strengthened this tendency. In the prose of Au¬
gustine we are struck by the frequent recurrence of rhyth¬
mical cadence and balanced antithesis. It was the delight
of the monkish versifiers to compress hard theological for¬
mulae into pithy epigrams, and set them to a rough jingling
music. The learned Benedictines of the congregation of
St Maur specially laboured in this vocation, and weeded
the service-books of many puerile and barbarous ditties
(vide Leysser, Polycarp. Hist. Poet, et Poem, medii cevi).
Some of the best Latin hymns are anonymous, as the
Coelestis urbs Jerusalem, long a favourite in Scotland (“ O
mother dear Jerusalem”), though the original maybe found
in Augustine’s Meditations ; In abysso Deitatis, and Veni
Creator Spiritus, translated by Dryden. The Dies Irce
was composed by Thomas von Celano, a Minorite friar, and
the Stabat Mater is ascribed to Jacopone.
The Reformation was accompanied by an outburst of
song on the part of the people throughout Christendom.
The altar-screen which fenced the priestly caste from laic
intrusion was broken down. Instead of canons or friars in¬
toning drowsy antiphons in the choir at the hours of prime,
sext, and compline, the Reformed congregations, young men
and maidens, old men and children, were heard with loud
voices praising God. Translations of the Psalms prepared
the way for hymns which popularized the tenets of the
Evangelical Confessions, and became to the religious life
of the Protestant communities what the ballads of a nation,
according to Fletcher’s maxim, are to its political life. In
Luther’s hand “ the thing became a trumpet.” His hymn
Em’ feste Burg ist unser Gott, has been called by Heine
the Marseillaise of the Reformation.
In striking contrast with the number of hymns elicited
M N.
by the great religious awakening on the Continent, is their Hymn,
comparative scarceness in the early Protestant literature of y^»-
England and Scotland. We know that in both countries
religious canticles were adapted to old and favourite tunes,
and widely diffused, but they were never so thoroughly
assimilated with the religious life of the people, and incor¬
porated with its ritual, as in Germany. The sublime poetry
of the Bible satisfied the popular heart, while it nourished
the intellect and imagination ; and the psalms of the Jewish
temple were sung with clearer emphasis and fuller response
in the Christian sanctuary. The hymnology of British Pro¬
testantism may be said to be the growth of the last century
and a half, before which period Germany possessed a classic
literature of sacred song. The rude English version of the
Psalms by Sternhold and Hopkins was superseded by that
of Brady and Tate—a sacrifice of rugged strength to in¬
sipid smoothness and inflated verbosity. Milton’s attempts
at translation only show that his strong arm could not bend
the bow of Ulysses. The Scottish version, though in re¬
ality the work of an English Puritan, has, with all its rough¬
ness and dissonance, preserved more of the vital spirit, the
rich and pure aroma of the Hebrew original.
The sacred poems of Herbert, Quarles, Vaughan, and
other writers of that period, cannot be accepted in the strict
sense as hymns. A few written by Mason, who died in 1694,
more justly deserve the name. They are often quaint and
harsh in diction, but compact with thought, and luminous
with imagery. The hymns we have from Addison’s pen
are marked by elegance and refinement, and devoutness of
feeling, though his muse stands in the outer court of the
temple. Tried by the test of popularity—here a true cri¬
terion of excellence—one of the highest places must be
assigned to those of Watts. He is our most voluminous
writer, and though his effusions are occasionally deformed
by conceits and false ornament, they are often lofty, im¬
passioned, and felicitous in expression, while, above all, the
living spirit of devotion breathes in every line. More
simple and spontaneous are the hymns of Doddridge, with
the same sacred warmth and glow. The numerous hymns
of Charles Wesley are distinguished by the predominance
of the subjective and emotional elements. Everywhere
they are stamped with a fervid individuality, which verges
at times upon vagueness and mysticism of the Moravian
type. The hymns of Toplady, the great antagonist of the
Wesleyan theology, are often charged with dogmatic state¬
ment to a degree of prosaic stiffness and austerity; but some
of them, in their simple energy and fulness, and a kindling
ardour which reminds us of Wesley, have obtained general
currency. One of the most popular collections is that
known as the Olney Hymns, the joint production of Cowper
and John Newton. Newton’s hymns are sound, vigorous,
and sensible presentations of Christian truth, penetrated
and vivified by deep Christian experience; while those of
Cowper, by their tenderness and truth, their touching per¬
sonal allusions, solemn saintliness, and sweet imagery, have
made their way to the universal Christian heart. Two of
Logan’s hymns in the Scottish Paraphrases take rank with
the finest in the language. Among more recent writers
may be mentioned the names of Beddom, Steele, Jane
Taylor, and, above all, James Montgomery, who exhibits
some of the highest excellencies of a sacred lyrist. His
lines on prayer are household words. The Christian
Year, by Keble, may be noticed as having contributed,
equally with the Tracts for the Times, to the success of the
Anglo-Catholic reaction in the Church of England. In
these pensive, dreamy, soothing strains, we have the logic
of the Oxford schools turned into rhetoric. The academic
cloister and the Gothic aisle are the “haunt and main region”
of his song. 1 he white Levitical vestment is his singing-
robe, and you listen in the dim religious light to a music
like the lulling chime of church-bells.
190 H Y M
Hymn. The Lutheran Church may be proud of her hymnolc^ty.
Those who wish to see the flexibility, compass, and amu-
ence of the noble German speech may look foi it there.
Her singers have swept every string ot the many-choided
]yre _sounded the full diapason from heights of aerial rap¬
ture’ to depths of penitential sorrow. Most of her great
writers have cast their shekel into the temple-treasury.
Goethe in his last days regretted having made no contribu¬
tion to her sacred song; but his was the loss, not hers.
The Reformation period, and that immediately succeeding,
are illustrated by the names of Luther, Justus Jonas, Nico¬
laus Decius, Herberger, Schalling, Nicolai, and many
others. The Thirty Years’ War gave birth to the Kreuz-
und Trost-Lieder, songs of trial and comfort, by men like
Neumark, Albinus, Joachim Neander, Paul Fleming, and
Paul Gerhardt. Her later poets have not attained to the
rank of the first, though names like those of Tersteegen,
Zinzendorf, Gellert, and Klopstock, have inscribed themselves
indelibly on her annals. During the period when Rational¬
ism ruled in her schools and pulpits, an attempt was made
to tone down the rich evangelic colouring of the Gesang-
buch to the dead neutral tint of the dominant Neology. This
process of dilution was known as “ Gesangbuchs Yerwasse-
rung,”—hymn-book watering,—but it did not succeed, and
the sound doctrine and fervid devotion of the old hymns
remained to protest against, not seldom to counteract, the
petrified theology of the pulpit. Among modern writers
may be mentioned the names of Novalis, Arndt, Hiller,
Spitta, Knapp, &c.
The comparative poverty of the classic literature of
France in hymns is striking when contrasted with its rich¬
ness and fecundity in other departments. The Gallican
Church continues to intone its praises in the old sacred lan¬
guage of the Vulgate and the Breviary,—the Sanscrit of the
Western ritual;—while the Reformed Church has for the
most part remained faithful to its simple version of the Ca¬
nonical Psalms. 1 he first translation of the Psalms by
Clement Marot in the earlier half of the sixteenth century
marked an epoch in the religious history of France. Ihe
sacred words wedded to native melodies found an echo in
the heart of the nation. The king hummed them as he
rode to the chase. The burghers of Paris sung them in
crowds in the Pre aux Clercs; and the sweet music was
heard in the vineyards of Provence, and among the mar¬
ket-boats of the Loire and Rhone. This famous version,
retouched and completed by Beza, made a way through
France for the triumphal progress of the Reformed theology.
The sacred compositions of Mad. Guyon are well known to
English readers through Cowper’s translation. Though a
member of the Romish communion, her writings are sin¬
gularly free from its peculiar tone and bias. We find in
them deep Christian feeling, aspiring fervour, and chastened
emotion ; often a sweet and tender simplicity, illumined
with a pure, still fire of contemplative devotion. It is the
pious, but too introverted spirit of Thomas a Kempis flow¬
ing into the poetic mould, and, as in the Imitation, the
thought often shines dimly through a soft warm haze of
sentiment. The keen scent of the Jesuits (odora canum
vis) soon detected in these effusions the taint of Quietism—
that vague suspicion which threw a shadow on the reputa¬
tion even of Fenelon. In later times, the Catholic mis¬
sionaries have availed themselves of the influence of vernacu¬
lar hymns among the common people, and combated Pro¬
testantism with one of its own weapons. Simple rhymes
or cantiques in honour of the Virgin and the saints are a
distinctive feature of these missions, and hold the same place
in France as the laudi spirituali in Italy.
Among hymn writers of the Reformed Church the most
voluminous and best known is Caesar Malan of Geneva.
To the higher qualities of the poet this writer makes no
pretence, but his hymns are characterized by ardent utter-
II Y P
ance of devout feeling, and clearness of doctrinal statement, Hypatia,
in fluent and unaffected verse. The list of her sacred
lyrists, though small, includes the great name of Vinet.
He has written little, but left on his hymns the stamp of
his powerful intellect, genial heart, and all-pervasive spiri¬
tuality. After all it may be doubted whether the genius of
the French language, with all its grace and pliancy, lends
itself with such facility as the sister tongues of Germany
and England to the grave and simple measures of the hymn.
(See Bunsen’s Versuch eines allgemeinen Gesang-und Ge-
betbuchs.) A full collection of Latin mediaeval hymns has
been recently published at Freiburg, in Baden, by M. Mone,
librarian at Carlsruhe. (J* D* Bi)
HYPATIA is one of those whose names are glorified
rather by wrongs than by merits; and had she not died,
few would now know, and fewer care, whether she ever
lived.
The facts which remain concerning her are these, as far,
at least, as we can trust an age in which historians, philoso¬
phers, and priests, were equally careless of facts.
In the year a.d. 415 (or more probably 413) there was
at Alexandria a maiden, beautiful, eloquent, and a great
mathematician, according to the standard of those times.
She seems also to have been possessed of some political
genius, for Orestes, the prefect of Alexandria, did nothing
without consulting her. She was the reigning star of the
then Alexandrian school of Neo-Platonism, and was possibly
the instructress of Syrianus, who, after the victory of the
Christians, migrated to Athens, and became the spiritual
father of the famous Proclus.
Proclus, then, may be considered as the ultimate develop¬
ment of Hypatia’s teaching: what it was in itself, we know^
not. As an orator, she seems to have been the outcome of
that school of Neo-Platonism in which, under the Emperor
Julian, Maximus, Libanius, and their contemporaries, tried
without effect the force of preaching as an antidote to the
popular and powerful sermons of the Christians. As a com¬
mentator on the geometry of Apollonius and Diophantus, she
may have had leanings toward that earlier and finally victorious
school, which attempted, under the teaching oflamblichus,
to discover in a priori physical science a symbolism which
might express a priori spiritual truths. A similar movement
among men of feminine minds arose in the seventeenth cen¬
tury, when Bohmen, Van Helmont, Eugenius Philalethes,
and other theosophists, attempted at once to justify their
mysticism (far purer and nobler than that of the Neo-Plato-
nists) by proving its analogy with the supposed laws of the
material universe, and to preserve the already decaying a
priori science of the middle ages. In both cases the at¬
tempt was a sign of approaching and inevitable death to the
systems of thought which it advocated, whether physical or
spiritual. Doubtless there is an analogy between the phy¬
sical and the spiritual worlds. The instincts of all ages and
races, whether materialist or spiritualist, have assumed and
acted on the postulate. It remains for some future age, if
not to discover, at least to prove by experiment, that the
analogy must be worked out by investigating the spiritual
world, on the only method henceforward allowable in the
physical one, namely, on the inductive method.
Whatsoever, therefore, Hypatia’s opinions may have been,
her work in the world must have been very insignificant, ex¬
cept in as far as a chaste and high-minded woman, however
illogical, is certain to instil into her hearers something ot
her own purity and loftiness. To this influence of hers we
should attribute the intense veneration which Synesius,
bishop of Cyrene, evidently felt for her. In his most amusing
letters, there are some six addressed to her. I hey are, or
the most part stilted and artificial, as written to a person ot
artificial character, self-conscious herself (as were all her
school), and demanding self-consciousness in others; despis¬
ing simple nature, and requiring art as the token of supra-
HYP
Hypatia, human education. But one or two really pathetic passages
in them show that Hypatia was one to whom (if merely in
virtue of her woman’s heart) Synesius could pour out his
most real and human sorrows, sure of sympathy, if not of
comfort. These letters, indeed, with the tone of chivalrous
admiration which they breathe, are among the most interest¬
ing documents of the age ; and indicate, with the JEthiopics
of Heliodorus, and even the Pastorals of Longus, that there
were men here and there, among the ancient and dying
races of the South, who were approaching, for good and
evil, the mediaeval form of thought as to the relation of the
sexes. Hypatia herself, however (if we are to credit Suidas),
carried to an extreme the Manichaean disgust of sex com¬
mon to Neo-Platonists and to monks. Her method of riddino-
herself of a certain unfortunate lover is probable enough,
but too gross to quote. Those who may read it in the ori¬
ginal will do well to remark (unless the histories of Popish
saints have already taught them) how near the limits of
sentimental prudery are to those of shameless cynicism.
The story of Hypatia’s having been married to Isidorus
seems an utter mistake of Suidas. He cannot mean Isi¬
dorus of Gaza; the man who became head of the Athe¬
nian school after Proclus and Marinus must have been born
after Hypatia’s death ; for she died a.d. 413 or 415, ac¬
cording to Socrates; and Proclus (if Marinus, his pupil,
may be trusted) was born a.d. 412. Photius merely says
that Isidore surpassed Hypatia, “as a man a woman.” The
assertion that he was her husband is a mere note of the edi¬
tion of 1620-30. But the chief argument against her mar¬
riage is to be found in Synesius’ letters, in which he re¬
peatedly begs to be remembered lovingly to her father
Iheotecnus (not Theon, as he is usually called), to her
brother Athanasius, and to other friends ; but makes no
mention either of a husband, or of any Isidorus. And the
known tendencies of the school make it most improbable
that such a woman should have degraded herself in her own
eyes so far as to become a wife.
Her tragedy is well known by the account of Gibbon,
diawn from Socrates, bk. vii., § 15 ; and from Theodoret,
who asserts Cyril’s complicity. Theodoret knew Cyril well
enough to suspect him of anything; at least, to say of him,
after his death, that “ the only fear was that hell would find
him too unpleasant a guest, and send him back to earth.”
And certainly all we know of him justifies the sneer; at
least, it seems certain that Cyril protected her murderers.
Hypatia’s death seems to have happened thus:—The
minds of the Nitrian monks, and of the Alexandrian populace,
had been inflamed by her intimacy with Orestes, the prefect,
who was at open war with Cyril. Hating her both as what
she was, the championess of an eclectic Polytheism ; and as
what she was not, a profligate woman, they laid wait for her
at the door of that lecture-room in the Mouseion, where (to
the envy of Cyril) her admirers’ chariots and slaves were
wont to wait. She was seized, stript naked, dragged into
the Kaisareion (then a Christian church), and torn piece¬
meal, with fragments of shells and pottery. The flesh was
scraped from the bones, and what remained burned in the
Kinaron.
Thus ended, or seems to have ended, the last noble wo¬
man whom Greek paganism produced. Her letter to Cyril,
regretting Nestorius’ banishment, must be considered as a
mrgery ; for Nestorius was not banished till a.d. 436, and
Socrates gives too detailed and honest an account of her
death to be far wrong. But, indeed, Hypatia is at best but
a myth and a shade ; and two centuries more saw her trans¬
figured into the famous Saint Catharine of Alexandria ; the
Christians whom she opposed into pagan philosophers
confuted; Cyril into Maxentius the persecutor; the pot¬
sherds of the Kinaron into the toothed wheels miraculously
broken by lightning from heaven ; and Hypatia installed for
a thousand years to come as one of the four virgin saints
HYP
191
of Christendom. So does the whirligig of Time bring round Hyperbola
its revenges; and every noble soul, even under a feigned II
name and circumstance, has its nobleness acknowledged, IIyPerbole-
and does—not the work which it intended, but the work
of which it was really capable. (c. K.)
HYPERBOLA, a curve formed by cutting a cone in a
direction parallel to its axis. See Conic Sections.
HYPERBOLE, a figure of speech of very frequent oc¬
currence both in written and oral discourse. As its etymon
implies, it signifies a shooting or throwing beyond or over
the mark. Popularly, it denotes an over-shooting of the
truth in the description of anything by exaggerating qua¬
lities that really do exist in it without introducing new ones.
Bolingbroke cleverly alludes to it as a figure that lies with¬
out deceiving. Hyperboles diminish as well as exaggerate ;
but though there are many good instances of diminishing
hyperboles, most writers succeed better in those of the op¬
posite kind. A good illustration of a diminishing hyper¬
bole is that quoted by Longinus from a comic poet who de¬
scribes a character in one of his plays as “ possessing an
estate smaller than a laconic despatch.” Talking of a&thin
man, Shakspeare describes him as “ so gaunt, the case of a
flagellet was a mansion for him.” Swift, describing a lion
of more than ordinary fierceness, says of him :—
He roared so loud, and looked so very grim,
That his own shadow durst not follow him ! ”
Hyperbole is a favourite figure with the poets of all times
and nations. In the specimens of ancient Oriental prose that
have reached us, we find numerous examples. In the Tal¬
mud, for instance, a man hewing wood beside the pool of
the Jordan, is asked if the water is deep there. “ So deep,”
he said, “ that an axe-head of mine which slipped in there
seven years ago has not yet reached the bottom.” The
poetry, and even the ordinary conversation of Oriental na¬
tions are, for the most part, mere tissues of hyperbole. To
the less warm imaginations of the West, they sound bom
bastic and even absurd; and if taken literally, they un¬
doubtedly are so. When analyzed, however, they are found
to be hardly more extravagant than those that pass current
among moderns without creating the least surprise. Our
most ordinary compliments are, in this way, as truly hyper¬
bolic as the highflown civilities of the East.
How far hyperbole may be carried cannot be fixed by
any precise rule. Good sense, and a refined taste, will
best determine beyond what point it becomes absurd. Lon¬
ginus compares a hyperbole carried too far, to a bow-string
w'hich relaxes by overstraining, and produces an effect op¬
posite to what is intended. Few English writers err so
much in this respect, and seemingly in mere wantonness,
as Shakspeare:—
“ Three times they breathed, and three times did they drink,
Upon agreement, of swift Severn’s flood ;
Who then affrighted with their bloody looks,
Ran fearfully among the trembling reeds,
And hid his crisp-head in the hollow bank,
Blood-stained with these valiant combatants.”
And again:—
“ His brandish’d sword did blind men with its beams ;
His arms spread wider than a dragon’s wings ;
His sparkling eyes replete with awful fire,
More dazzled, and drove back his enemies,
Than mid-day sun fierce bent against their faces.”
Milton is often as guilty of the same offence: 
“ Me miserable ! which way shall I fly
Infinite wrath, and infinite despair ?
Which way I fly is hell! myself am hell!
And in the lowest deep a lower deep
Still threatening to devour me opens wide
To which the hell I suffer seems a heaven.”
Pope himself sometimes forgets his good taste
“ • • • • Swift Camilla scours the plain ;
Flies o er the unbending corn, and skims along the main.”
HYP
Probably, however, there never was a writer who did not
occasionally lapse into hyperbole. As a general rule, to ,
•x. TTlf.v i1p s"ait\ t]iat every parable, proverb, epigram, oi bon
mot to say nothing of the utterances that form what has
been called the “ small change” ot books and social life, is
HYPERIDES, a celebrated Athenian orator, one of the
ten comprised in the Alexandrian Canon, was the contem¬
porary, and sometimes the friend, sometimes the enemy of
Twisthenes The date of his birth is not accurately
known; but it probably fell within the first decade of the
fourth century b.C. After studying philosophy under
Plato and oratory under Isocrates, he began his public
career as an advocate in the Athenian courts of justice.
When it became necessary for him to choose a pohtica
creed he joined the patriotic party, at that time led by De¬
mosthenes and Lycurgus. To this choice he clung throng
life, reckless of the hardships it entailed. In proof of his
sincerity he fitted out two triremes at his own expense for
the Eubcean expedition of b.C. 358. His whole public life,
for the next twenty years, was spent in devising means ot re¬
sistance to the growing power of Macedonia. In b.C. 358,
when the disastrous fight of Chmronea laid Greece at the
mercy of the victorious Philip, Hypendes proposed that the
citizens should rise en masse, send their wives and children
to places of security, and fight it out to the last.
Though this desperate advice was not taken, the genu¬
ine patriotism of the advice was appreciated and rewarded
by his countrymen. When the death of Philip revived
the hopes of the anti-Macedonian faction, Hyperides pro¬
moted the alliance with Thebes; and after the destruction
of that city by Alexander, was one ot the orators demanded
of the Athenians by the young victor. Alexander, how¬
ever, did not press his demand, and Hyperides continued to
oppose the Macedonian influence as strongly as ever. 1 he
arrival in Athens of Harpalus, the run-away treasurer of
Alexander, then absent on his eastern conquests, disturbed
the friendly relations that had hitherto subsisted between
Hvperides and Demosthenes. Harpalus had embezzled
some 5000 talents of the public money, with which he en¬
deavoured to organize a party for himself among the Athe¬
nians. It was believed, that among others, Demosthenes
had yielded to his bribes and specious stories, and Dypen-
des, who had shown himself proof to these temptations,
either voluntered, or (as is more likely) was selected to
prosecute his ancient friend. This, as was natural, led to
a rupture between them which was not healed for some
time. In the Lamian War, which followed the death of
Alexander, Hyperides took a leading part; and when it
was brought to a close, spoke the funeral oration over his
countrymen who had perished in battle. ,11S orf'10n’
of which considerable fragments are preserved in btobaeus,
was looked upon as a masterpiece by the ancients them¬
selves. The following year (b.C. 322) saw the hopes of
Athens finally crushed at the battle of Crannon. Ihe
chiefs of the patriotic party sought safety in flight. Hy¬
perides was overtaken at Angina by the minions ot An¬
tipater and cruelly put to death. Seventy-five orations
were attributed to Hyperides; but a third of these wei e
rejected as spurious by the ancients themselves. Westei-
mann has preserved the titles of sixty-one of these in his
History of Greek Oratory. Hopes have been entertained
at comparatively recent periods of recovering the bulk of
the authentic speeches. In the beginning of the seventeenth
century, a German scholar professed to have seen a com¬
plete copy of Hyperides in the library of the Hungarian
king Matthias Corvinus at Ofen. Taylor, the editor of
Demosthenes, gave out that he had been similarly fortu¬
nate ; but as neither of these scholars turned their good
luck to account, it has been concluded that they were both
mistaken. In 1847, however, the hopes of the learned
II Y S
were revived by the tidings that the famous speech against Hyphasis
Demosthenes, or, at least, very considerable fragments of II
it, had been discovered. It turned out that Mr A. C. Har- ^ •
ris, an English gentleman resident in Alexandria, when in- “ v'*-
quiring at Thebes, in Upper Egypt, in the spring of 1847,
for Tahidic fragments, had been shown some broken Gree
papyri by a dealer in antiquities, and had purchased them.
The papyri themselves were of the better kind, and were
pronounced by the able scholars to whom they were sub¬
mitted, to date from a very remote antiquity. The evi¬
dence seemed complete that they could not be later than
the third century of the Christian era, while there was a
strong probability in favour of a still greater age. ie
Cambridge editor, Mr C. Babington, inclines to the belief
that they may be referred to the age of the Ptolemies. What
the value of the oration itself may be, it is possibly some¬
what premature to pronounce. It certainly contains the
bulk of the evidence on which Demosthenes was banished
from his country, but the question of the great orator s
guilt is one on which Droysen and Niebuhr, Mitford and
Thirlwall, have come to opposite conclusions; and though t e
recovered oration is a valuable contribution to the history o
the time, as well as to Greek philology, it is still too mu¬
tilated to be finally decisive. How the MS. came to be
found in Thebes, is itself, at first sight, somewhat of a mys¬
tery. It is believed that its Arab discoverer found it
among the tombs in that city, and that it had been burie
there with a mummy. Mr Harris, however, states that the
MS. “ is unique among the contents of the tombs ot
Thebes ;” but endeavours to account for its existence there
bv saving, that “when we reflect on the numbers of rhe¬
toricians, philosophers, and literary men, who used to flock
from Greece as well as Rome to the banks of the Nile,
and notice a practice that prevailed in that country of
burying writings with the dead, our wonder ceases ; and
we begin to entertain legitimate hopes that the discovery
of this oration may be followed by that of portions, at least,
of many of the lost works of antiquity.” These hopes,
however, have not, in the meantime, been realized, (bee
The Oration of Hyperides against Demosthenes respecting
the Treasure of Harpalus, by Churchill Babington, M.A.,
London, 1850. There is also a good German edition ot
the oration by Schneidewin, Gottingen, 1853.)
HYPHASIS, now the Sutledge, one of the five rivers
of the Punjab. See Punjab.
HYPOCHONDRIASIS, may be described as an ex¬
treme sensibility of the nervous system, usually attended
with symptoms of dyspepsia, as flatulence, eructation, a
sense of uneasiness in the region of the stomach, and hy¬
pochondria, and almost always with lowness of spirits, which
makes the patient believe himself to be much worse than
he really is. The morbid feelings of the hypochondriac are
real depending on physical disturbances of the system;
but the nervous apprehension of the patient causes him to
dwell on them, and magnify them into undue importance.
Attention to diet and exercise is the most important part
of the treatment of hypochondriasis, together with with¬
drawal from those studies, pursuits, or habits, which appear
to have led to the formation and development of the disease.
Occasional gentle laxatives and tonics may also be required,
but these should only be taken under medical advice.
HYSTERIA, from varepa, the womb, though common y
applied to those violent fits which attack women, and which
are attended with convulsions, a sense of choking, and in¬
voluntary laughing and crying, is strictly applicable to a
laro-e proportion of those chronic, so-called nervous, disorders
to which females are subject. Of these the fit or convul¬
sion is but the occasional and prominent symptom. Ihe ht
itself is usually preceded by a general uneasiness and feeling
of oppression, a tight sensation about the throat, headache,
cramps, and the sensation of a ball rising from the stomach
HYP
Hypostasis, to the throat (globus hystericus). A temporary loss of sense
' and consciousness, with general convulsions, screaming, tear¬
ing the hair, beating the breast, or otherwise attempting to
injure the person, follows this, and the paroxysm passes off in
a fit of laughter, or alternate laughter and crying, or a flood
of tears. It is of great consequence to distinguish this dis¬
ease from epilepsy, with which it may be confounded. In
epilepsy there is no premonitory symptom, as a sensation of
ball rising to the throat; a sharp cry or shriek always imme¬
diately precedes the convulsions, and on the convulsions
passing off the patient falls into a deep sleep of shorter or
longer duration. Uterine and gastro-intestinal irritation
or irregularity are the principal causes of hysterical affec¬
tions. They are consequently almost alone met with in
females; but one or two well authenticated cases have
been seen in males of highly susceptible nervous tempera¬
ment. During the fit the attendants should take care that the
patient does not injure herself, but further than this they
should exert no restraint upon the person. To prevent
her injuring herself with her teeth, several folds of a towel
or napkin may be put between the jaws. If there be much
determination of blood to the head, the applying cold
wetted cloths to the head, and sprinkling cold water on the
face and throat, are recommended as useful; and in slighter
cases, cold water sprinkled over the face, and applying
smelling-salts to the nose, are thought to shorten the fit.
Between the paroxysms means should be used to remove
the cause of the disorder; and tonics, particularly prepara¬
tions of iron and quinine, regulation of the bowels and the
secretions, and attention to diet and exercise, are the mea¬
sures most likely to restore health when the complaint, as
it usually is, is attended with various degrees of debility.
Assafoetida, valerian, ammonia, and other antispasmodics
are also useful in preventing the recurrence of the con¬
vulsions.
HYPOSTASIS, in Theology, a word employed to de¬
note the personality of the Second Person of the Trinity.
The word employed by the Greek fathers to denote the
Godhead, without reference to the distinction of persons,
was ovaia (essentia). Substantia was, by the Latins, used
in the same way, though Hilary makes it equivalent to
hypostasis, when he speaks of three substantia in the
Godhead. But there was still another term, the ambiguity
of which produced continual controversies in the early
church. This was the word subsistentia, which was at
times used synonymously with ovcna, and at other times
synonymously with hypostasis. Hence the Roman and
African churches, in 347, at the synod of Sardes, pro¬
nounced the belief of three hypostases in the Godhead to
be heresy. Athanasius expressly declares that hypostasis
is exactly the same thing as ovaia (essentia). Yet it
had been determined against the Sabellians at the synod
held at Alexandria in 319, that there was one oucria
H Y T 193
(essentia), and three hypostases in the Godhead. The Hypothesis
confusion was in a great measure remedied by the discus- „ L
sion at Alexandria, a.d. 362, at which Athanasius presided, y, y ^‘ y
To his discretion the favourable result was mainly owing.
It was now agreed that hypostasis should be taken in the
stricter sense, so that, while there was one ovaia (essentia)
in the Godhead, there were three hypostases, or persons.
HYPOTHESIS, a temporary principle put forth in or¬
der to help in reducing our knowledge to system. A hypo¬
thesis, as such, is a temporary explanation of a phenomenon,
and is subject to certain conditions;—1. The fact for the
explanation of which the hypothesis is framed must be
known to be a fact. 2. Before any one hypothesis be re¬
sorted to, it must be ascertained that no other hypothesis
will answer equally well with the one chosen. The value
of a hypothesis depends—1st, on its internal consistency, and
external accordance with things known to be true; 2d, on
the completeness with which it explains the phenomena in
question; and ‘id, on the extent to which it is independent
of other hypotheses.
HYRCANIA, in Ancient Geography, a district of Asia,
of which the limits appear to have been very different at dif¬
ferent times. In its most limited sense it corresponded very
nearly to the modern province of Mazaunderan. In its more
extended application it comprised, besides that province,
those of Khorassan,Dahistan, and Dabistan, and was bounded
on the N. by the Caspian or Hyrcanian Sea, W. by the Cha-
rindas, which separated it from Media, S. by the Labuta
range, which separated it from Parthia, and W. by the
Charindas, which separated it from Media. The cham¬
paign country of Hyrcania was marshy, but in many places
produced considerable quantities of corn and wine. Its
mountain districts were densely wooded, and famous for
their countless swarms of bees. The capital of the country
was indifferently called Carta or Zadra-carta. Very little
was known by the ancients about Hyrcania or its inhabi¬
tants. When its name occurs it is generally used as a
synonym for anything more than ordinarily wild and in¬
hospitable.
HYTHE, a municipal and parliamentary borough, and
market-town of England, county of Kent, 15 miles S. of
Canterbury. It stands at the foot of a steep hill or cliff, near
the E. extremity of Romney Marsh, and consists chiefly
of one long street, running parallel to the coast, from which
it is about half a mile distant. The church, on the slope
of the hill above the town, is an elegant cruciform struc¬
ture in the early English style. Hythe is much frequented
during the bathing season. The municipal borough is go¬
verned by a mayor, four aldermen, and twelve councillors;
and contained, in 1851,2857 inhabitants. The parliament¬
ary borough includes Folkestone and several smaller places,
and contained, in 1851, 13,164 inhabitants. It returns one
member to parliament.
2 B
VOL. XII.
194
I.
I T or i, the ninth letter and third vowel of the alphabet,
|| ^ is pronounced by throwing the breath suddenly against
lambli- tile palate, as it comes out of the larynx, with a small hollow-
chus. jng 0p t]ie tongue, and nearly the same opening of the lips
as in pronouncing a or e. Its sound varies ; in some words
it is long, as high, mind ; in others short, as bid, hid, sin ;
in others, again, it is pronounced like y, as in collier, onion ;
and in a few it sounds like ee, as in machine, magazine, and
the like. No English word ends in i, e being either added
to it, or else the i turned into y. But, besides the vowel,
there is the jod consonant, which, because of its different
pronunciation, has likewise a different form, thus, J, j. In
English it has the soft sound of g ; nor is it used excepting
when g soft is required before vowels, where g is usually hard.
Thus we s&y jack, jet, join, instead of gack,get, gain, which
would be contrary to the genius of the English language.
I, used as a numeral, signifies one, and stands for as
many units as it is times repeated; thus I. one, II. two,
III. three; and when put before a higher numeral it sub¬
tracts itself, as IV. four, IX. nine, and so on. But when
placed after it, as many are added to the higher numeral
as there are Ts added. Thus, VI. is 5 + 1, or six; VII.
5 + 2, or seven; VIII. 5 + 3, or eight. The ancient
Romans likewise used 13 for 500, CIO for 1000, 133
for 5000, CCI33 for 10,000. Further than this they did
not go in their notation, but, when necessary, repeated
the last number, as CCCI333>CCCI333> for 200,000;
CCCI333>CCCI333>CCCI333> for 300,000; and so
on. The ancients sometimes changed i into u ; as decumus
for decimus, maxumus for maximus, and so on. According
to Plato, the vowel i is proper to express delicate but humble
things, as in the verse of Virgil:—
“ Accipiunfc inimicum imbrem, rimisque fatiscunt.”
I, used as an abbreviature, is often substituted for the word
Iesus, of which it is the first letter.
IAMBLICHUS, the Syrian Neo-Platonist, enjoyed
considerable fame during his lifetime, which ended some¬
where in the first half of the fourth century; and he rose
again into high repute at the restoration of Greek literature,
Ficinus having edited and translated his most important
work, De Mysteriis, as early as 1483. Gale, in 1678,
published at Oxford an edition, which may be considered
as our standard one, and should be known to every student
of human thought. The prolix biography of Eunapius
gives us very little valuable information as to lamblichus.
He seems to have been, like the majority of the Neo-
Platonists, an aristocrat, of an illustrious and powerful
family of Chalchis, in Ccele-Syria. He assembled round him
a school of disciples, whom we find with him sometimes at
Alexandria, and sometimes at his favourite haunt, the baths
of Gadara. We may regret the less, however, that so few
facts have been preserved by them, when we look at
those which remain. We can dispense with the testimony
of men who assure us (and in one case, says Eunapius, as
actual eye-witnesses) that he evoked the two genii of the
fountains of Eros and Anteros, who came as two cupids to
embrace him in their arms; that he worked miracles and
prodigies; was surrounded at times by a golden glory ; and
in one case was raised nine feet off the ground by an ec¬
stasy of prayer. Some of these latter tales he denied, but
in a tone (if Eunapius is to be believed) which shows that
he would not have been sorry had they been true. “ He
who deceived you,” says he, “ was 4 6W adapts ’—not with¬
out elegance of imagination.”
These few hints, combined with the works of his which
remain, give us a key to his thoughts, of which something v c us‘
has already been said in the article on Hypatia. Under "
Plotinus, and Porphyry (the tutor and afterwards the op¬
ponent of lamblichus), the object of the Neo-Platonist
mystic had been the same as that of the middle-age mystic,
viz., to raise himself to communion with, and ultimately to
absorption into, Deity, by that strongest exercise of the
rational will which results in its self-annihilation, and in a
state of absolute passivity. Plotinus and Porphyry were said
to have succeeded in this effort several times during their
lives: but, on the whole, the majority of those who tried
the experiment must have failed; and in proportion as
it was found difficult for man to rise directly to God,
the desire was reawakened of bringing the gods down to
men, and so filling the dark void of secret unbelief. lam¬
blichus, as a native of Syria, the especial home of conjurors
and gross superstitions, as well as of Gnostic mysticism, was
a fit man to make this attempt; and from him dates a series
of efforts to adapt to the mystic philosophy of the East as
many of the old polytheistic forms of worship as were not
absolutely impure. For this purpose it was necessary to
explain the relation between the physical and the spiritual,
not merely (as with Plotinus) in the case of Deity and of
man, but in the case of Deity and all nature. Hence lam¬
blichus was especially attracted by the symbolic nature-
worship of the Egyptians and Chaldeans, which he (or some
disciple of his) defends against the cavils of Porphyry in the
famous letter of Abamnon the priest. Hence, too, he was
attracted by the Pythagorean dreams as to the sacredness
of numbers. We find among his works (or rather his com¬
pilations from early Pythagoreans) explanations of the sym¬
bols of that school; and the title of one lost work {The Theo¬
logical Principles of Arithmetic) sufficiently explains both
itself and the cast of its writer’s mind.
Connected with this habit of mind is, it would seem, his
denial of Plotinus’s dogma, that reason in the human soul
is without passivity. He requires a theory which will enable
him to explain how the spiritual (whether human or divine)
can be affected by incantations, ceremonies, suffumigations,
sacrifices; and, above all, how the Deity adjured shall not
only appear to, but inspire and possess the soul of the ini¬
tiated or priestly man, independently of any human will;
and he has therefore to assume (perhaps not wrongly), a
capability in the soul of being influenced passively and in¬
voluntarily ab extra. If this be the true explanation, the
question between Plotinus and lamblichus is none other
but the insoluble one between the advocates of grace de
congruo and those of grace preevenient. But lamblichus
fell into that degraded form of the latter belief which tempts
to an altogether magical view of the efficacy of symbols and
of ceremonies, and which tempts likewise to a modified poly¬
theism, in his case taking the form of a host of demons, heroes,
and gods, besides angels, principalities, and souls; each
rank of which depended mysteriously on the one above it
(some remnant, probably, of the old notion of successive
emanations, borrowed from the earlier Syrian Gnosis).
These beings confer on man gifts corresponding with their
own natures; and they appear in forms, and with accom¬
paniments, symbolic of their rank and power. In sketching
these various apparitions, lamblichus shows a clumsy turn
for symbolic fancy, contrasting strongly with the great
acuteness with which he specially pleads in behalf of these
follies. His greatest difficulty is, of course, Porphyry s
objection, that the incantations, and even threats and insults,
used by the priests to make the gods appear, were at once
I A M
I B E
195
Iambus, immoral and unphilosophical. The gods could not be the
jr -mJ passive puppets of men, of herbs, of incense, of talismans.
lamblichus answers, with much ingenuity, that the threat¬
ening words are only anthropomorphic adaptations, as are
all assertions that the gods are angry or alienated ; and that
the ceremonies used do not act by altering the will of the
Deity, but by virtue of secret affinities which run through
all natural and spiritual beings, linking each heavenly being
to some earthly one,—as Phoibos to the laurel, and Asclepios
to the cock; so that “ immaterial things are immaterially
present in material things.” Nay, there is even a “ pure
and divine matter” in sacred objects underlying the
gross appearance, and akin to the Deity, to which it is
consecrate; which, if it be employed in the making of
statues or of temples, or in holy x'ites, attracts and calls out
the gods, by mystic sympathy, to show themselves to the
worshipper.
It may be easily seen from these few hints what a door
to superstition of the lowest kind lamblichus was re-open¬
ing, by thus justifying to the educated classes that mate¬
rialist idolatry which still lingered among the lower. From
his time forth, Neo-Platonism followed, if not smoothly,
still surely, the downhill path which he had pointed out;
and which, perhaps, was the only one possible for it, and
for the old mythologies which it tried to rehabilitate. But
his book (if it be his) is most worthy of careful study, alike
to the theologian and the philosopher, who will find it
full of significance for us and to every age. lamblichus
may be considered to have said all which can be said on be¬
half of the magical theory of ceremonial and sacramentary
worship; and the metaphysic by which he justified the
old polytheism was virtually that which the more mystic
section of the Eastern Church justified in after ages their
own idolatry. The Latin mediaeval church, forming itself
among nations of a more practical and objective habit of
mind, adopted the results of such a form of thought, dogma¬
tically, in a coarse and literal shape, without asking for a
philosophic justification of them ; and the mystic develop¬
ments of mediaeval Germany were rather of the Platonist
than of the lamblichan school,—protests against surround¬
ing idolatry, and not excuses for it. But there are now
signs of a desire to connect the Roman popular belief with
the spiritualist philosophy of Germany; which, though
tokens of old age and decay, may yet give a new galvanic
life, for centuries to come, to the mediaeval Pantheon. In
such a case lamblichus may regain the honour in which he
was held by the Neo-Platonists of the sixteenth century, and
even be once more (as he was by his contemporaries) pre¬
ferred to Plato himself. In any case, all which can be said
in favour of such a movement lies virtually and half de¬
veloped in the Letter of Abamnon; the spiritual want is
the same as that of his day; the method of patching the
rent, and of putting new wine into old bottles, will pro¬
bably be the same also. “ The thing which has been,
it is that which shall be; and there is no new thing under
the sun.” (c. k..)
IAMBUS, one of the commonest feet in Greek and Latin
prosody. It consists of two syllables, of which the first is
short, and the second long, as Horace says,—
“ Syllaba longa brevi subjecta vocatur iambus
Pes citus.”
The iambic metre was originally employed in satirical
. poetry called iambi, of which the laws were first fixed by
Archilochus. Before his time, the trochaic tetrameter had
been the popular measure in poetry of this class ; but when
the rapidity of dialogue and theatrical action came to be
duly studied, nature herself pointed out the iambic as the
most suitable metre; for, as Aristotle remarks, it is the
most colloquial of metres, as may be seen by one who
chooses to remark that ordinary conversation often falls into
iambic verse, and never into any of the more formal metres’
—the hexameter, for instance.
The most common form of iambic verse is that known as
the lambic Trimeter Acatalectic, or Tragic Senarius, as it
is called, from being the favourite metre of the Greek tra¬
gedians. It consists of three measures of two feet each,
and has no catalectic syllable. The feet admissible in the
various places are given in the subjoined table:—
lapodes
II
Iberus.
2.
v— VJ — v— v/— v —
\J \J \J U U V UVV UUU U V V
— u u
u u —
In the case of proper names, an anapaest may be admitted
into any place except the sixth, which must always be an
iambus. But for the anapaest to be thus admitted, it is
necessary that it be completed within one word, and leave
no syllable or syllables over to be carried on to the next
place. In the comic trimeter a dactyl may be used in the
fifth place, and an anapaest in any of the first five.
Great care was bestowed by the Greek tragedians on the
caesural pauses, on the proper distribution of which depends
much of the beauty of the iambic metre. The two principal
caesuras are the penthemimeral and the hephthemimeral;
the first falling (as its name denotes) on the fifth half-foot,
and the other on the seventh half-foot. The penthemimeral
is by far the most common of these two.
Penth. v rixva Kcc^]fj,ov rou <raXou vsa r/toipv
Hepth. ixrvgitis xXa%oi\triv sgsa-rs/Lt^sviw.
In certain cases the seventh syllable is a word so inti¬
mately connected in sense with that which goes before it,
as practically to form part of it. Enclitics, or particles which
cannot themselves begin a verse, are the class of words that
come under this rule. Sometimes this seventh syllable be¬
longs to the succeeding words, as in the line—
aA.A.’ av irruytT, <rv rip-ritriis raftki.
In such cases it would be better to consider the stop which
occurs after the sixth syllable as equivalent to the caesura.
Porson, and after him most grammarians, have called this
the quasi-ccesura.
Sometimes, when the poet desired to produce a particular
effect, he violated all these laws ; and the instances are nu¬
merous in which the caesura is neglected altogether, and
that without any division in the verse as an equivalent, and
even without an elision. In the iambic trimeter the third
and fourth feet seem to have been seldom comprised in the
same word; instances of it are very rare.
lambic verses are not connected; each is complete in
itself, and independent both of that which goes before and
of that which follows it. Cases sometimes occur, though
rarely, in which one verse is connected with another, either
by elision, or by a close union between the final word of the
first, and the first word of the succeeding verse. (Hermann’s
Elem. Doctr. Metr ; Tate’s Introduction to the Principal
Gr. Tragic and Comic Metres; Linwood’s Treatise on
Greek Tragic Metres, Lond., 1855.
IAPODES, or Iapydes, a tribe of Illyria. See Illyria.
IBERUS (now the Ebro), in Ancient Geographg, a
great river of Spain, rising in the Cantabrian Pyrenees, in
the country of the Autricones. Flowing in a S.E. direction,
it drains the N.E. corner of the peninsula, and falls into the
Mediterranean after a course of about 350 miles. On its
left bank it receives the Cinga, the Sicoris (Segre), and the
Gallicus or Gallego; and on its right the Salo (Xalono).
It is a much disputed point whether the Iberus gave its
name to the Iberi, or took its name from them. That people
appear to have occupied, at a very remote period, the whole
south of Europe from the Rhone westwards. When the
Celts crossed the Pyrenees, they amalgamated to some ex-
196 I B I
Ibis tent with the holders of the soil, and the result was a race
II known in history as the Celtiberi. W. von Humboldt,
Ice-Trade. ma;ntaining that the people gave name to the river, asserts
that remains of their language are to be found in the Basque
still spoken in the Biscayan provinces of Spain, and proves,
by philological affinities, the identity between many of their
proper names and those of the islands of the western IVledi-
terranean, and many parts of Spain and Southern France.
The name of Iberia was also applied to a district of Asia,
corresponding to part of modern Georgia. It was first in¬
vaded by the Romans under Lucullus, and seems to have
paid a kind of homage to some of the emperors, though it
was never fairly incorporated with the Roman dominions.
An incidental notice of Strabo describes the country as
tolerably well cultivated, and its inhabitants as more civi¬
lized than most of the surrounding tribes.
IBIS. See Ornithology.
IBRAHIM or IBRAHEEM Pasha. See Egypt,
end of Section II.
IBRAIL. See Brahilow.
IBYCUS, a Greek lyric poet of the sixth century B.C.,
was a native of Rhegium, in Italy. Almost nothing is known
of his personal history beyond the fact that he spent the
greater part of his life at the court of Polycrates, the tyrant
of Samos. A curious legend is told of the manner of his
death. Travelling through Greece, he was waylaid by
robbers in the neighbourhood of Corinth, and barbarously
murdered. As he lay mortally wounded on the ground he
looked up, and seeing a flock of cranes flying overhead, he
called upon them to avenge his death. The murderers
betook themselves to Corinth, and while sitting in the theatre
there saw the cranes hovering about. One of them, in a
paroxysm of fear, cried out “ Behold the avengers of Iby-
cus,” and thus gave the clue to the detection of the crime.
The “ Cranes of Ibycus ” became a favourite proverb with
the Greeks ever after. Only a few fragments of Ibycus
have come down to us, but these afford sufficient traces of
the passionate nature for which Ibycus was famed beyond
nearly all the erotic poets of Greece. He also attempted
heroic and mythical subjects, but with less success. Ihe
best edition of the fragments of Ibycus is that of Schneide-
win, Gottingen, 1835.
ICE, is the name applied to water which has been con¬
verted into a solid state by the action of cold. For the
different ways in which this may be effected, see § Con¬
gelation, under art. Cold.
ICE-i/oMse. For small quantities of ice a wrapper of
straw is sufficient, provided it be kept above the ground,
and in a place free of moisture. But when vast quantities
have to be kept for a considerable time, and in a hot cli¬
mate, ice-houses become indispensable. In this case the
ice is placed in a cellar, surrounded with thick walls, and
either arched over or supplied with a conical wooden roof.
What thaws may either be removed by means of a drain
beneath the cellar, or may be drawn off by a pump. For
very hot climates the roof of the cellar may be covered
with earth to any required extent. Air should be excluded
from the cellar. The best soil for an ice-house is chalk, as
it lets the thaw and moisture ooze through. The immense
erections used in America in the ice trade are above ground,
and resemble huge barns, 200 feet long. About fifty of
these great structures surround Frest Pond, in Massachu¬
setts.
\CY.-Trade. It is only within the last five and twenty
years that the ice-trade has become so important, and every
year it is rapidly increasing. Ice was used as an article of
export for the first time in 1806 by Mr Tudor of Boston,
the persevering originator of the trade. For a quarter of a
century he continued to devote his attention to the trade ;
and, after numerous misfortunes, he has established it as
one of the most lucrative and promising in the United
I C E
States. The following table will show how rapidly the Icebergs,
trade has arisen. It refers to the exports from Boston alone :
Years.
1832.
1845.
Tons.
4,352
48,422
Years. Tons.
1853 100,000
1854 156,540
The quantity thus stored was distributed as follows:—
Tons.
Southern States  110,000
Consumed at home   60,000
Brazil and West Indies...31,361
Tons.
East Indies   14,284
England   895
Total 216,540
The small quantity shipped for Britain is owing to com¬
petitors nearer hand, viz., from Norway, perhaps the only
other country which carries on an ice trade.
The amount stored up in New York during 1855, was
305,000 tons, of which 20,000 were for exportation.
The process of cutting and storing up the ice may be
thus described:—During the time that the ice is forming in
December and January, it is kept as free of snow as pos¬
sible. Occasionally holes are pierced in the forming ice, to
enable the water to overflow, as thus the formation of ice
is accelerated. Before cutting the ice, its surface is syste¬
matically cleared of snow with wooden scrapers. An iron
scraper then removes the snow-ice, and the field is ready
for being marked off into squares of about 5 feet each by
an iron plough. Next follow the cutters in the tracks
marked off by the preceding instrument, cutter, plough,
and scrapers being each drawn by a horse. By hand-saws
the square pieces are now disengaged, and are ready for
being floated to the shore. Thence they may be carted to
ice-houses;—400 tons can be cut and stowed away by
forty men and twelve horses in a single day. The wooden
store-house of the Wenham Lake Company has room for
20,000 tons of ice. Steam has been applied for the pur¬
pose of elevating, lowering, and stowing away the ice. 1 he
ice thus stored is to be taken to all parts of the world, to
be used for cooling wines and all kinds of beverages, pre¬
serving meat, in ice-creams, confections, &c.
The ice-trade is highly important in opening up an ex¬
tensive field of labour for the working classes at a period
of the year when all ordinary avocations are suspended,
and during which poverty entails distress. About 2500
persons are employed in the Boston district alone, and
throughout the States of the Union, about 9000. The cost of
transit by railway in the Boston trade is estimated at nearly
L.20,000, and by sea at about L.l 00,000. 1 he number
of vessels employed was 520. The value of the ice faims
of New York and Massachusetts is considered equal to that
of the rice crop of Georgia. The whole capital invested in
the trade is about a million and a half sterling. (Hunt s
Merchant^ Magazine, for August 1855 ; Knight s Industry
of all Nations, &c.)
ICEBERGS. The accumulation upon elevated situations
of frozen snow, produces those moving masses of ice called
glaciers, (See Glacier.) In the Alps, and in Norway,
these glaciers coming down to a mild region melt away;
but in the arctic regions, they often flow into the sea and
produce icebergs. While floating about, these masses may
increase indefinitely in size, from receiving fresh accessions
of snow, or by the freezing of the water continually splashed
against them, as well as by the sudden freezing of the water
which falls as rain. They are of all sizes, fiom nier6
fragments to upwards of half a mile in diameter, and of
all weights, from a few pounds to a hundred thousand
tons. They rise sometimes 150 feet above the water, and
this is but an eighth of the whole mass. They float about
in hundreds, and are often driven by winds far into t le
ocean, and become exceedingly dangerous to navigation.
Icebergs from each pole have approached nearer the equator
than 40°. N. and S. Lat.; they have been met with in the
neighbourhood of the Cape of Good Hope. Many of these
icebergs, originating on land, present the same phenomena
ICE
ICE
197
as glaciers. Hence, upon near inspection, they are found
to be loaded with the debris which, as glaciers, they scraped
off the mountain sides, past which they flowed to the sea.
This debris contains masses of greenstone, clay-slate, gneiss,
granite, &c. In the polar circle, where the floating masses
reach to many hundreds of miles in length, they are called
ice islands. When two of these approach each other, any
vessel which happens to be between them is almost certain
to be crushed to pieces. The larger of the twro, by its greater
momentum, urges itself beneath the smaller, which is thus
tilted up on the shoulders of the larger, whose mass it goes
to increase. The iceblink is an appearance produced on
the horizon by these ice islands when stationary, and which
indicates the existence of an ice island before it is itself
visible.
ICELAND, one of the largest islands in Europe (being
little inferior, in point of superficial extent, to Ireland), is
situated in the north part of the Atlantic Ocean, between
N. Eat. 63.23. 30., and 66. 32.; and Wr. Long. 13. 32. 14.,
and 24. 34. 14. ; the N. point being thus very near to
the arctic circle, but not passing beyond it, as all maps but
a recent authoritative one have represented it. Its extreme
length from E. to W. is about 280 miles, and its breadth
from N. to S. varies from 180 to 200.
The precise period at which this island was discovered
and first colonized is unknown ; but, from the Landnama-
bok, an ancient Icelandic chronicle, and a work generally
relied upon as authentic, we learn that the Norwegians
were the first settlers upon its coasts. Naddodr, a famous
pirate of that adventurous nation, was, on his return to the
Faroe Islands from a predatory excursion, about the year
860, driven by a tempest upon the coast of Iceland. He
ascended to the summit of a mountain, but observing
around him neither the vestige of a human residence, nor
aught else than vast and tractless fields of snow, he imme¬
diately abandoned it. Probably aware of this discovery,
Gardar Svarfarson, a Swede, followed the same tract a
few years afterwards, and succeeding in circumnavigating
the country, discovered it to be an island. He there spent
the winter, but finding little inducement to make it a per¬
manent residence, he in the following spring returned to
Norway. The third adventurer on this coast was one
Floki, another celebrated Norwegian pirate, who, during
two seasons, explored a considerable portion of the southern
and western coasts. His attempt at forming a permanent
settlement proved, however, like that of his predecessor, a
failure; his cattle died, his expected crops were ruined,
and, after experiencing numerous distresses and hardships
from the inclemency of the weather, he determined to re¬
pair to a warmer region, and gave to the island at his de¬
parture the name by which it has ever since been known.
That this name, and the report which he spread on his re¬
turn of the inhospitable nature of the island, were princi¬
pally the effect of prejudice and disappointment, is evident
from the contradictory account given of it by his com¬
panions, one of whom thought he could only convey an
adequate idea of its richness and fertility by declaring that
butter dropped from every plant.
These expeditions, though affording a slight knowledge
of the country, wrould probably not have led to its coloni¬
zation, had not disturbances in Norway induced some of
the inhabitants of that country to quit their native soil.
Harold Harfagra having subdued most of the petty princes
of that country, put an end to the system of liberty and
independence which the inhabitants of Norway had hitherto
enjoyed; and thus drove many, even of its nobility, with
their families and dependents, from their homes. A body
of these voluntary exiles, under the conduct of Ingolf, one
of the discontented subjects, sailed from Norway, a.d. 874,
from which year the Icelanders date the occupation of their
island. When Ingolf approached the coast of Iceland, we
are informed that he threw into the sea the wooden door Iceland,
of his former habitation in Norway; and finding it some
time afterwards cast upon the shore at Reikiavik, he fixed
his abode on the spot where the capital of the island now
stands. Fie was followed by several others, and in a short
time considerable portions of the southern and eastern dis¬
tricts of the island were taken possession of. Harold, it
appears, did not at first oppose the emigration of his sub¬
jects ; but afterwards finding it carried on to a great ex¬
tent, he imposed a fine of four ounces of fine silver upon
every person who should leave Norway to settle in Ice¬
land. The Landnamabok already mentioned, whose ob¬
ject was to afford a picture of the colonization of the island,
describes with singular minuteness the arrival and spreading
of the different settlers, and records, together with those of
the Norwegians, the names of many Danes and Swedes, and
even some Scotch and Irish, who at this period selected
Iceland as their place of residence. The natural conse¬
quence of progressive colonization under the feudal tenure
which was thus produced, was frequent contention be¬
tween the new comers and those who had already settled
in the country. To obviate these, a chief was named,
under whose guidance and direction the concerns, inte¬
rests, and feelings of the yet separate communities might be
regulated and assimilated. This beneficial change was
effected a.d. 928, and a republican form of government
was thus established, well calculated to provide for the
emergencies which gave it birth. We say a republican
form of government; because, though there was only one
supreme magistrate, who decided all disputes, and pre¬
sided at the allthing, or great general assembly of the
nation, still he was elected to this office by the free choice
of the people, and retained it no longer than while he pre¬
served their confidence. This state of liberty the Ice¬
landers enjoyed with uninterrupted harmony for the space
of nearly 400 years. During this period, education, lite¬
rature, and even the refinements of poetical fancy, flou¬
rished amongst them; and the well-known sagas or tales
of the country, the most remarkable literary productions of
that dark age, were principally penned prior to the four¬
teenth century.
The ancient Icelanders possessed, as is still the case
with their posterity, few of the luxuries or refinements of
life; and were occasionally exposed to severe privations,
from the nature of their soil, and the climate under which
they lived. There is reason, however, to believe, though
the fact cannot with perfect accuracy be ascertained, that
the climate of Iceland was once less austere than it now is,
and that only trees and shrubs, but even corn, were grown
upon tbe island. Of the ancient existence of the former
the trunks occasionally discovered in the bogs afford pretty
satisfactory evidence. Corn of any description is not now
a native of the island; and a few birches, not rising much
more than a yard in height, afford the only approach to¬
wards timber. Like the present inhabitants, the ancient
Icelanders were much dispersed over the country, their
habitations being seldom grouped together, but placed
wherever the situation and nature of the soil appeared
suitable. Their occupations and modes of life appear also to
have borne much similitude. The produce of the farm, and
the capture of fish, afforded them, as they do the present
inhabitants, the principal means of subsistence; and their
traffic with foreign countries made a valuable addition to
their domestic comforts. The moral habits of the people
were good, though prior to the introduction of Christianity,
in the year 1000, they were blended with superstition and
some unnatural customs, such as the exposure of their in¬
fants. The putting down of heathenism is not the least
remarkable event in the early history of Iceland. Frederic,
a bishop of' Saxony, was the first who preached Christian
doctrines in this distant land. The propagation of his
198
Iceland.
ICELAND.
tenets, however, met with every species of opposition , but
the numbers who adopted them gradually increased so con¬
siderably, that the national assembly which met at ihing-
valla, in the year 1000, took the matter into consideration.
Whilst the question was warmly debated, the story told is,
that a messenger hurried into the assembly and announced
that fire had burst from the earth in a southern part of
the country, and was carrying destruction before it. The
heathen party instantly exclaimed that this was the ven¬
geance of the gods against the presumption of their op¬
ponents. But Snorro, who was a zealous advocate for the
Christian cause, immediately demanded, “ For what rea¬
son was the anger of your gods kindled, when the very
rock was burning on which we stand?”—Thingvalla being
in the midst of a volcanic country, and precipitous cliffs
of lava surrounding the place of public assembly. 1 he
prompitude of the reply had the desired effect, and ulti¬
mately procured a decision in favour of the Christians.
On the promulgation of Christianity, religious contests
were at an end ; the whole people espoused the new faith ;
and a church establishment was soon afterwards formed.
The Icelanders appear to have equalled the blindest of their
fellow Catholics in their attachment to the hierarchy ; and
it was not till 1551 that the Reformation, under Chris¬
tian III. of Denmark, found its way into the island. Since
that period the form and ceremonies of the Icelandic church
have been strictly Lutheran, though, from the poverty of the
country, their churches are in general extremely wretched,
and the pittances allotted to their clergy still more so.
But to return to earlier periods. We are indebted to
the enterprise of the ancient inhabitants of Iceland for the
discovery both of Greenland and Newfoundland. A mari¬
ner named Eric accidentally approached the former of these
countries about the year 972, and was so delighted with his
discovery, that he gave it the name which it still bears.
His flattering accounts of the country had the desired effect
of alluring his countrymen to its shores ; and in this he so
far succeeded, as in a short time to form an extensive and
thriving settlement. he colonists maintained a constant
commercial intercourse with Iceland and Norway ; and the
records of the settlement come down uninterruptedly to the
beginning of the fifteenth century, when at once eveiy
trace and vestige of it was lost. The causes of this singular
fact have never yet been fully ascertained, although the
most probable supposition is, that an accumulation of ice
took place about this time on the Greenland coast, which
prevented the access to it by sea. Ihe breadth of the sea
between the two countries does not exceed 100 miles ; and
yet the fate of this ancient colony, commonly called by
distinction Old Greenland, is quite unknown. I he north¬
ern shores of America were first known from Biono He-
riolforn, a native of Iceland, who was driven upon them
during a voyage to Greenland in 1001. Attracted by the
account of this discovery, Leif, another enterprising navi¬
gator, pursued the same route considerably farther south¬
wards, and finding an agreeable and pleasant country, he
wintered there, giving it, from the circumstance of wild
vines growing on it, the appellation of Vinland. This was
subsequently, to a partial extent, colonized by the Iceland¬
ers ; but few particulars are known of their progress, and
what ultimately became of the colony is now a mere matter
of speculation.
The independent and happy state of Iceland was not
destined to be uninterrupted. About the year 1250, party
disputes and internal feuds arose, which the ambition of the
mother country enabled Haco, the then king of Norway,
to foment. In 1261 a formal proposal was consequently
made in the national council, to submit to that sceptre ; but
in doing so, the Icelanders stipulated that they should be
allowed to retain their ancient laws and privileges, that they
should be exempt from taxes, and that the annual importa¬
tion of the most necessary articles of foreign produce should Iceland,
be secured to them. For upwards of a century Iceland was
under the dominion of Norway, without any occurrence
taking place of the slightest importance; and when in 1380
that country became subject to Denmark, the island was
transferred to the same power, without tumult or opposition.
The change in the constitution of the island, from its an¬
nexation to a European monarchy, naturally produced a
corresponding change in the character and habits of the
people. Not that the foreign yoke was a tyrannical one,
otherwise a portion at least of the ancient vigour and acti¬
vity of the inhabitants would have displayed itself in occa¬
sional acts of insurrection. On the contrary, the Danish
monarchs not only exercised their sway with a lenient and
forbearing hand, but paid much attention to the welfare and
the wants of this remote part of their dominions ; and thus
repose and security succeeding to internal broils, produced
a state of comparative apathy and indolence. Rank and
property became more nearly equalized, and the trade of
the country was gradually transferred to the natives of other
kingdoms. A plague which devastated the island in 1402,
and carried off, it is said, nearly two-thirds ot the whole
population, tended still further to depress the spirit of the
people, and destroy the strength and prosperity ot the
country. The reformation of religion, which, as above
stated, took place in Iceland in the year 1551, was the first
dawn of an improvement amongst the natives, which the
introduction of printing and the establishment of a press
about the same period aided greatly in extending. The
recent history of Iceland is principally characterized as a
record of physical calamities, which from 1 /07, when the
ravages of the small pox carried off sixteen thousand of its
inhabitants, down to 1753 and 1759, when the inclemency
of the seasons created the most dreadful and distressing
famines, and lastly, the memorable year 1783, when the
great eruption from the Skaptaa \ okull took place, have
rarely ceased in one form or another to devastate the island.
The scene of this last-mentioned eruption is amongst lofty
mountains in the interior of the island, known only to the
natives by the remote view of their snow-clad summits.
From this desolate and unfrequented region, Sir George
Mackenzie remarks, vast torrents of lava issued forth, over¬
whelming all before them, and filling up the beds ot great
rivers in their progress towards the sea. For more than a
year, a dense cloud of smoke and volcanic ashes covered the
whole of Iceland, extending its effects even to the northern
parts of continental Europe ; the cattle, sheep, and horses
of the country were destroyed ; a famine, with its attendant
distresses, broke out amongst the inhabitants; and the
small-pox invaded the island at the same time, with its
former virulent and fatal effects. From these combined
causes, more than eleven thousand people perished during
the period of a few years ; an extent of calamity which can
only be understood, by considering that this number forms
nearly a fifth part of the whole population of the country.
The destruction of the fishery upon the southern coasts ot
the island by these volcanic eruptions was another more
permanent source of distress, and one which is not even now
fully removed.
The government of Iceland is committed to an officer Govern
appointed by the crown of Denmark, who is occasionally a ment
native of the island, but more frequently a Dane by birth. a >
This supreme magistrate has the title of Stiftamtman, and
is intrusted with a general superintendence of every depart¬
ment. Under him are the amtmen or provincial governors,
each of whom rules one of the four provinces of the island,
and possesses a similar jurisdiction over his respective (Fial‘
ter, as his superior officer does over the whole island. Each
province again is divided into syssels or shires, over which
the sysselmen preside. This office is likewise in the ap¬
pointment of the crown ; and, on account of its importance,
ICELAND.
199
Iceland, it is always given to one of the most respectable landed
^ ; proprietors within the district. The rank of sysselman cor¬
responds in some degree to that of sheriff in this country.
The hreopstiore is a subordinate parochial officer, whose
duty it is to attend to the condition of the poor, and to assist
the sysselman in the preservation of the peace. He is
usually chosen from among the farmers; whilst the forlik-
unarmen are those appointed as arbiters for the decision of
disputes among the parishioners. The laws of Iceland, like
the general form of government as established nearly six
hundred years ago, have undergone little important altera¬
tion ; but the judicial changes have been more considerable,
and the forms of justice in most respects now resemble those
of Denmark. The residence of the governor is at Reikia-
vik, in the S.W. angle of the island, the only place ap¬
proaching the character of a town in Iceland. There like¬
wise the althing or parliament meets once in two years to
make laws for the island, under correction of the Danish
crown.
The revenue of the island, arising from crown property,
commercial charges, a small tax on transference of property,
&c., amounted in the year ending 31st March 1854, to
27,949 rix-dollars (L.3119), while the expenditure for offi¬
cers’ salaries, education, the clergy, and other items, was
56,743 rix-dollars, or more than double the income, the
excess being supplied by the central government. The
income, however, appears to be increasing in proportion.
Crimes are rare ; the gentle and peaceable disposition of
the natives, their moral and religious education and sober
habits, act as preventives of such as are of a flagrant de¬
scription. Small thefts, especially of sheep, are the most
frequent; but the high court has seldom to decide more
than six or eight cases annually. The whip is the only
punishment applied in the country, excepting fines ; those
who are punished with hard labour or banishment being
sent to Copenhagen.
There are about 194 parishes or livings on the island;
but the clergy number at least 300, as many of the parishes
have two churches, the great distance and the danger of
travelling, particularly in winter, when the rugged fields of
lava are covered with snow, making it frequently impos¬
sible for all the peasantry of the same parish to attend at
one church. The clergy are partly supported by a species
of tithes, which are mostly paid in kind. These stipends,
however, are extremely miserable ; the largest in the island
not exceeding 185 dollars, and the average being little
above 35 dollars, or L.6 sterling per annum. They must
therefore depend almost entirely for subsistence on their
glebe land and their stock of cattle, and a small pittance
they are entitled to for the few baptisms, marriages, and
funerals that occur among their parishioners. “ The clergy,”
observes Mr Barrow, “ almost universally submit to every
species of drudgery from necessity. Their incomes are too
small to allow them to hire and feed labourers ; and nothing
is more common than to find the parish priest in a coarse
woollen jacket and trousers, or skin boots, digging peat,
mowing grass, and assisting in all the operations of hay¬
making. They are all blacksmiths also from necessity, and
the best shoers of horses on the island. The feet of an
Iceland horse would be cut to pieces over the sharp rock
and lava if not well shod. The great resort of the pea¬
santry is the church; and should any of the numerous
horses have lost a shoe, or be likely to do so, the priest puts
on his apron, lights his little charcoal fire in his smithy (one
of which is always attached to every parsonage), and sets
the animal on his legs again.” The bishop has a neat
mansion in the neighbourhood of Reikiavik, and his cathe¬
dral within the town is a handsome structure, furnished
with a good organ, and possessing a beautiful marble bap¬
tismal font, the work of Thorvaldsen, who sent it as a pre¬
sent, in consideration of his being of Icelandic descent.
The clergyman of the parish having to undergo the
same toils and hardships as the most humble ot his flock,
and enjoying no superior comforts or refinements, must
feel that it is by his intellectual attainments only he can
retain that station, and command that respect from his
parishioners, which it is so necessary for him to possess.
Literary pursuits are therefore the principal occupation of
the clergy during the long and dreary period of winter;
and, considering the difficulties in their way, the progress
most of them have made is astonishing. The history and
literature of the more refined nations of Europe now form
a part of their studies. The English language, in which
they find so many words of their own, and so many bor¬
rowed from the Latin, is cultivated by many of the clergy.
The German they find still more easy; the Danish or Nor¬
wegian language is only the modern form of their own ; and
many of the choicest works in these dialects have been
translated into Icelandic. The present state of literature
in Iceland thus appears to be of a different description
from what it was in ancient times. Its supposed decline is
the subject of general complaint, though in point of fact it
has only changed its character from the heroic and romantic
to the useful and intelligible. A traveller found in 1855
two monthly newspapers published at Reikiavik. In the
printing office there the master was putting through the
press a translation of the Odyssey into Icelandic, and he
showed a considerable stock of smaller works. A public
library of two or three thousand volumes, accessible at a
moderate rate, serves to introduce the inhabitants to the
best productions of continental and English talent.
There are no public hospitals or charitable institutions
of that description on the island; the sick and the poor
being almost wholly supported by their own families. In¬
deed a sort of disgrace attaches to those who send them
away to be taken care of by strangers, even though main¬
tained at their own expense. Owing to the dispersedness
of the population, there are no juvenile schools in Iceland:
the system of juvenile education may be described as tra¬
ditional ; that is, each father teaches his own children. Not¬
withstanding the imperfection of this system, there are few
who cannot both read and write well. It is remarkable that
even in Reikiavik, which has a population approaching 1000,
there is not a single school for children. It possesses, how¬
ever, a kind of gymnasium or inferior college, well endowed
by the government, where the youth designed for professions
are educated. This establishment occupies a large and
goodly building, containing a suite of school-rooms, and
accommodation for a portion of the scholars, who are usually
in all about sixty. There are three masters, the one, pro¬
fessor of theology, instructs the pupils in Hebrew and Greek,
as far as the Greek Testament and Xenophon ; the second
teaches Latin, history, mathematics, and arithmetic; and
the third the Danish, Norwegian, German, and Icelandic
languages. There is also a teacher of the English lan¬
guage. The attendance of the pupils is constant from Oc¬
tober to May, the intermediate months being the period of
vacation, when they go to their homes.
Property is held either of the crown or in fee simple ;
the crown lands and many others are let to farmers, on what
may almost be called perpetual leases. The rent is paid
in two parts ; the land rent, fixed at an old valuation, which
it has not been found necessary to alter, and a rent for the
number of cattle which it is calculated the farm is able to
support; and these are transferred from one tenant to ano¬
ther, each succeeding one taking them, and leaving a simi¬
lar number on quitting the farm. This, however, does not
prevent a farmer keeping as much stock as he can main¬
tain, without paying an additional rent. The tenant is for
life, provided he does not injure the farm ; but he may quit
whenever he pleases, on giving six months’ notice. His
rent is generally paid in produce ; on the coast in fish ; in the
Iceland.
200 I C E L
Iceland, interior in wool, tallow, butter, sheep, &c., or, according to
'wv—' agreement, in money. Individuals who cultivate their own
properties, and tenants who are in easy circumstances, gene¬
rally employ one or more labourers, w'ho, besides board and
lodging, have from ten to twelve dollars of annual wages.
In Iceland, as in Norway, there is no such thing as entailed
property, and the law of descent excludes primogeniture.
If an individual die intestate, his estate is sold or valued,
and divided amongst the children, so as to give equal shares
to the sons, and half shares to the daughters. If, however,
any of the brothers can pay the shares to his brothers and
sisters, it is generally arranged that the freehold estate be
made over to him, in order to retain it in the family.
Population. The popidation of Iceland has undergone considerable
vicissitudes through the operation of epidemics. At 50,444
in 1703, it had sunk in 1769 to 46,201, nor did it rise much
above this point throughout the remainder of the century.
In 1850, it was 59,157. This is small for an island whose
surface is to that of Ireland as four to five ; but that sur¬
face both from its own nature, and the character of the
climate, is perhaps as unfavourable as any which exists be¬
tween the limits of the two arctic circles. Deducting the
areas of the numerous fiords with which it is intersected, the
square contents of the land may be calculated at 37,388 sta¬
tute miles ; but as the centre of the island consists entirely
of snowy and uninhabited mountains, the peopled portion
cannot be considered more than 25,000 square miles ; and
the population therefore wdll not much exceed two persons
on each square mile. At present the population must be
increasing with greater rapidity, if we may judge from the
proportion of births to deaths, the respective numbers in
1852 being 2435 (of which 333 illegitimate) and 1437. The
whole population is employed either in farming, which oc¬
cupies about three fourths* of them, or in fishing. Other
employments do not exist, nor is there any other class of
people or townsmen, save the small number of merchants
in Reikiavik and the other trading establishments. Every
branch of industry is therefore domestic, and confined chiefly
to articles of clothing, such as coarse cloth, gloves, mittens,
and stockings. The peasantry are generally ingenious, and
manufacture such simple pieces of furniture as their cot¬
tages require ; some also aspire to make trinkets of silver,
and articles from the walrus tusks. The trade of Iceland
has never, till the present time, been managed in what mo¬
dern science points out as the most advantageous way.
The Danish government long had a monopoly of the busi¬
ness of this remote dependency. For many years, while this
was abolished, Danish merchants had a preference in trad¬
ing, by virtue of higher dues exacted from those of other
countries. It was not till 1856 that the foreign merchant
was encouraged to come to Iceland by a perfect equality
of terms. The only place in the island entitled to be
considered as a port is Reikiavik: only a few trading sta¬
tions exist elsewhere. There is an annual export of from
1,000,000 to 1,200,000 pounds of raw wool, besides about
200,000 pairs of knitted stockings, and 300,000 mittens, or
gloves without fingers. The Iceland sheep have remark¬
ably fine fleeces of wool, which the farmers in the spring of
the year take off whole; their weight being usually from
four to five pounds. The other principal branch of indus¬
try in Iceland is fishing, which must be considered as in a
thriving state. The fishing banks around the island abound
in cod and other species, and the number of boats engaged in
the business in 1853 amounted to 3506, being an advance
of nearly 50 per cent, in 20 years. Fish-oil, whale-blubber,
skins, eider-down, feathers, and the Lichen Islandicus for
medicinal purposes, may also be included amongst their list
of exports. These the natives dispose of to the Danish
merchants in exchange for coffee, sugar, tobacco, snuff, a
small quantity of brandy, rye and rye-bread, biscuit, wheaten
flour, salt, soap, and such other small articles as are in con-
AND.
stant use for domestic purposes. Those who can afford it Iceland,
purchase a supply of linens and cottons, which of late years
have become of more common use, and which must tend
greatly to cleanliness, and the prevention of those diseases
which woollen clothing worn next the skin tends to engen¬
der. The traffic thus occasioned takes place in the early
part of summer, and whilst it lasts creates a kind of fair,
with no little bustle and business, in the capital. All the
articles brought from the interior for sale at the sea-ports,
and all those taken back for winter consumption, are trans¬
ported on pack-horses. There is not, in fact, in all Iceland
such a machine as a wheel-carriage; before any such can
be used, there must be roads, of which up to the present
time none exist. The lines of transit along the country are
mere tracks, cut deep by use where the ground is soft, and
encumbered by blocks where it is hard. Yet, full as these
paths are of difficulties, it is surprising at what a pace the
small hardy sure-footed horses of the country will proceed.
For foot-travelling they are in general impracticable.
The Icelanders are generally middle-sized and well made,
though not very strong. Their manners are exceedingly
simple, and they are very respectful as well as obliging to
strangers. Though their poverty disables them from imi¬
tating the hospitality of their ancestors in all respects, yet
they cheerfully give away the little they have to spare, and
express the utmost satisfaction if the gift shall have proved
acceptable. They possess but few peculiar customs, and
those not of particular interest. Their sole occupation
during summer is to provide means of subsistence for the
winter season; and when confined during the dreariness of an
arctic winter to their huts, their great source of amusement
is the tales of olden times, when the learning of their coun¬
try rendered it renowned in every quarter of Europe.
“ Being of quiet and harmless dispositions,” says Sir George
Mackenzie, “ having nothing to rouse them into a state of
activity, nothing to inspire emulation, no object of ambition,
the Icelanders may be said merely to live. But they pos¬
sess innate good qualities, which, independently of the con¬
sciousness of their former importance, have preserved their
general character as an amiable community. They have
indeed become negligent with respect to the cleanliness of
their persons and dwellings, but they deserve a high place
in the scale of morality and religion. To religious duties
they are strictly attentive; and though the clergy are not
generally raised above the level of the peasantry in any re¬
spect but in their sacred office, yet they have been able to
preserve the regard due to those wdio are considered as pe¬
culiarly the servants of the Supreme Being.” The poor
Icelander, too, is strongly attached to his native soil, and,
like the Swiss, has been known to throw up lucrative ap¬
pointments which he held elsewhere, for the sake of rejoin¬
ing his family and friends on the island, being nevei so
happy as when he sees a prospect of returning to it.
Few countries in the world present a more forbidding Topogra-
aspect, or have less apparently to invite the approach either phy.
of the traveller or the merchant, than Iceland. The inte¬
rior is composed, as already mentioned, of lofty mountains,
many of them volcanoes, nearly the whole being a pathless
wilderness of snow. The circle of lower ground round the
coast, where alone there is any population, is generally bare,
rocky, and desolate, with only an admixture of green spaces
where man and the domestic animals may find a subsis¬
tence. Nowhere does a tree rise to vary or soften the ri¬
gorous landscape. A bae ox farm-stead is usually a cluster
of low semi-subterranean hovels, covered thick witn sod,
and with few apertures to admit the light; there, as much
as possible, the whole family, parents, children, and servants,
eat and sleep in one room for the sake of warmth. At the
fishing villages on the coast there is often a merchant s
house of somewhat more roomy and elegant accommoda¬
tions. The town of Reikiavik is mainly a mercantile esta-
I C E I
Iceland, blishment; and, accordingly, its few short regular streets
contain a considerable number of roomy wooden buildings,
resembling those of Norway, and furnished with many of
the comforts of life ; there the merchant usually has a large
miscellaneous shop and stores for goods on the ground
floor, and a tolerable suite of apartments for his family
above. Standing a little apart, and in strong contrast, is
the fishermen’s village, consisting of a cluster of the veriest
hovels; there, according to the description of a traveller,
—“ A window is a luxury ; a cask or barrel, with the two
ends knocked out, answers the purpose of a chimney ; but
the smoke is frequently allowed to escape through a hole in
the roof.”
The surface of the country is for the most part highly
mountainous and rugged ; some of the yokuls or snow¬
capped eminences, as the Snaefell, the Skaptaa, Kateja
Torsa, and Hecla, rising to the height of from 4000 to
6000 feet above the sea. The centre of the island, how¬
ever, is traversed by considerable plains, some of which are
covered with tolerable pasture, whilst others form extensive
wastes, morasses, and fields of lava. It is also watered by
a number of large rivers, which, from the rapid melting of
the snows in summer, present a turbid, and some of them
so white an appearance, that they are denominated from that
circumstance. The smaller streams which rise in the lower
grounds are transparent, and are celebrated for the abun¬
dance and beauty of the salmon which frequent them.
There are also a number of lakes, of which the principal are
Thingvalla Vatn, an expanse of water from 10 to 15 miles
in length, and 6 to 8 in width, on whose banks the great
assemblies of the nation used to be held ; Myvatn, in the
north-eastern extremity of the island; and Fiskevatn, a
lake so designated from the fine fish it affords to the inha¬
bitants of the midland districts.
T-he coast, like that of Norway, is in every direction
deeply indented with creeks and arms of the sea; few of
them, however, afford safe anchorage ; and along the south¬
ern coast, eastward from where the great river Elvas emp¬
ties itself into the sea, there are extensive shoals, formed
partly, no doubt, by the depositions of the rivers proceeding
from the great range of yokuls to the eastward of Mount
Hecla, but principally from the remains of volcanoes, which,
like the Sabrina and Graham Islands, have at one period
appeared above the surface, but from the action of the
waves have subsequently sunk below it. No part of the
globe presents such a number of volcanic mountains, so
many boiling springs, or such immense tracts of lava. The
frequent and long-continued eruptions of its volcanoes are
all on record in the historical annals of the island; their
number since the year 1004 is stated at sixty-five. Of
Hecla no less than sixteen great eruptions are mentioned ;
but, with the exception of those in 1818 and 1846, this
celebrated mountain has been in a quiescent state since the
middle of last century. By far the most dreadful occur¬
rence of this description was that already mentioned, which
took place from the great range of the Skaptaafell Yokul in
the year 1783,—an eruption which devastated the finest
portion of the island, and produced famine and disease
amongst its inhabitants to an extent scarcely credible.
The boiling springs of Iceland have long attracted the
attention of scientific men, and they are assuredly amongst
the most curious and most remarkable phenomena which it
presents. These are very numerous in many quarters of
the island. One group, called the Geysers of Haukadalr,
situated at the distance of two days’ ride (about 70 miles)
from Reikiavik, has attracted special attention. It occupies
a space of a quarter or third of a mile square, on the slope
of a small hill of trap rock, overlooking a valley connected
with that of the River Hvita, or White River. In thq
lower part, amidst grassy ground, are the various hot-water
wells and openings now in activity, each surrounded by
VOL. XII.
AND. 201
more or less of silicious incrustations; in the upper and Iceland,
steeper part, immediately under the cliffs forming the top
of the hill, are great banks composed of the debris of the
incrustations of ancient and now nearly extinct geysers.
The district of the active springs is constantly covered with
steam proceeding from the various openings, and a sulphu¬
reous smell pervades it. The springs are very various in
size and action ; many being small, and a few large; some
being constantly full to the brim and at rest, while others
are at full boil; and a few are subject to occasional water-
eruptions. The most remarkable are the Great Geyser,
the Great and Little Strokr; and two large but quiet wells,
noted for the beautiful blue tint of the water.
The Great Geyser presents itself, in its calm moments,
as a circular pool, 72 feet in diameter, and 4 feet deep;
placed on the summit of a mount wholly composed of sili¬
cious matter, and from 10 to 20 feet high, according to the
side on which it is measured, the ground here making a
rapid inclination. In the centre of the saucer-like basin
containing the pool is a well, above 10 feet in diameter and
83 feet deep. Water at a high temperature is continually
rising through this well, and filling and overflowing the
basin, at the outer edge of which the writer found it to be
at 188° Fahrenheit. Every few hours, however, a rumbling
noise is heard underground, and the water heaves up in the
centre a few feet above the general level, and overflows the
basin in unusual quantity. Once a-day, at an average, an erup¬
tion takes place,—a spectacle of the utmost grandeur. “ The
prominent object before me,” says a late tourist, “ the ground
of the spectacle, as an artist might call it, was the vast effu¬
sion of steam covering the place, and rolling away under
a varying wind. It was only on coming pretty near and
getting to windward, that I caught the sight of a multitude
of jets of water darting in outward curves, as from a centre,
through amidst this steam-cloud, glittering in the sunshine
for a moment, and then falling in heavy plash all over the
incrusted mount. It seemed to me, though the circum¬
stances are certainly not favourable for an accurate esti¬
mate. that these jets rose about 60 or 70 feet above the
basin.” An eruption generally lasts a few minutes, and at
its close the water is found to have shrunk a few feet down
the well, leaving the basin dry. Sir George Mackenzie spe¬
culated on these outbursts being produced by pressure on
the air contained in cavernous recesses under the ground;
but Professor Bunsen has lately announced a chemical theory
much more likely to be accepted. He points to the fact
that water, after being long subjected to heat, loses much
of the air contained in it, has the cohesion of its molecules
much increased, and requires a higher temperature to bring
it to the boil, at which moment, however, the production
of vapour becomes so great and so instantaneous as to cause
explosion. The bursting of furnace boilers is often attri¬
butable to this cause. Now, the water at the bottom of the
well of the Great Geyser is found to be of a constantly in¬
creasing temperature up to the moment of an eruption, when
on one occasion it was as high as 261° Fahrenheit. Pro¬
fessor Bunsen’s idea is, that, on reaching some unknown
point above that temperature, ebullition takes place, vapour
is suddenly generated in enormous quantity, and an eruption
of the superior column of water is the consequence.
The Great Strokr (strokr means a churn in Icelandic),
situated about 100 yards from the Great Geyser, is a pit
of silicious matter, of irregular form, but approaching the
appearance of a well, and having only a tendency to the
formation of a basin at the top. Usually, the water is
heard fretting about a dozen feet down; but at intervals of
half a day or so, eruptions take place, resembling those of
the Great Geyser, I he visitor can here command an
eruption, by throwing in a barrowful of turf, or any similar
stuff. I he appearance and phenomena of the Little Strokr
are precisely similar, only on a smaller scale. It appears that
2 c
202
ICELAND.
Iceland.
the blue holes above —Ge^
and were styled by a g becoming tranquillized
that tlm presenVGreat Stro^r began Its outrageous Ptae-
and notw.thstandmg the^ the infusion of foreign
cooking, or ev , ^ b j g ]jtt]e more than a thousandth
matter is extremely small g ^ statement
K^ck regkrdlnTa quantity of JO.OOO grains (about
one-sixth of a gallon):
Iceland.
a a.   0 95
Alumina  0^8
Silica  S'40
Muriate of soda  2,46
Dry sulphate of soda... 1'46
Total 10-75
Small as is this proportion of silica, it has been enough
• timp to form the thick incrustations around the geysers,
Ind evei the mount on which the Great Geyser is situated
These "ncrustatlons are usually of a dull colour and great
i i e- their surfaces being efflorescent, like the top of
SX’web wheTevS the water falls in a plash, in other
places smooth. oniy to glance at the geysers con-
Uur space emu j * These have cauSed, m
the'superior"part of the slope, several deposits of various
colTh: —^ °v!:e
hot spritTol Iceland, out of the materials presented by
rnPrks°of the country, offers the most curious subjects
the rocks o / of these products there is one
ffsZercommercid importance, and which calls for special
of some comme . 1 Tf. nroduced in large quantities
attention v^ulphur. - Foduced^ Kra.
S"lfa h£%l’d«l°efb"'a
deposiuofredand^ ^
a" a? to tta o d”arytomng water. The hot springs
?ushin ° through these deposits form the sulphur in crystals
S in layers, requiring very little refin,ng to prepare ,t for
USThe mud volcano of Reykialid, near Myvatn, occupies
the crater of Mount Krabla, one of the principal volcanoe
mtcXd,and is thus described by Henderson whomade
b’tmmof a° dfep 'g«»v llyra cirVularp'ool of Mack liquid
SeSrSg'onlhe Lt propulsions of the liquid to about
twelve feet, 2nd continuing to ascend, “w^’ yard7of
till they gain the highest elevation, which is upwaras oi
thirty feet when they again abate much more rapidly thai
SeTrise!’ a" d after the spouting ceases, the situation of the
aperture is rendered visible only by a gentle ebulhUon,
which distinguishes it from the general surface of the pool,
the eruptions take place every five minutes, and last about
two minutes and a half.” In the same vicinity are the hot
springs of Husavik, which, though they bear no comparison m
magnificence to those of Skalholt, are extremely interesting
in many respects. The pipe of one of them, the Oxahver,
which is said to have derived its name from the cncu -
stance of an ox having fallen into it, is about eight feet in
diameter, is surrounded with a strongly mcrusted brim, anu
shortly below the surface trends to one side, and becomes
quite irregular. Its jets rarely exceed twenty feet in height,
but according to Henderson’s account, they are conducted
with the utmost regularity in point of time. It was amongs
the beautiful incrustations formed around the basin of this
spring that Mr Rose of Edinburgh, during his mineralogical
excursion a few years ago, observed that variety of apo-
phyllite, to which the synonyme of Oxahvente was subse-
qU Thoughlrcannot be denied that these springs have some
communication with the volcanoes which abound m he
island, yet it is a remarkable fact that they are seldom found
very near them, although dispersed throughout the who e
country. When their situation suits, they are turned to
good account by the inhabitants, both as bathing quarters,
and for various culinary purposes, m boillIJg ^b’ e ai °
in2 sea-water, and the like. At Reikholt there is a cele¬
brated bath of this description, which was constructe six
hundred years ago by the famous Snorro Sturleson. It is
fourteen feet in diameter and six feet deep, being supplied,
by means of covered conduits, both with hot and cold water,
from springs about a hundred yards distant, so that any de¬
sired temperature might be obtained.  
Iceland is one mass of igneous rocks, of two classes fi =t,
traps and tuffs arranged in beds generally bttle ^hned and
presenting in some places sectional cliffs of fiom thiee to
four thousand feet in height; second, trachytes in huge
irregular masses, constituting the principal mountains of the
interior. Different as they are in general appearance, a con-
“lotion can be established between them by the dearest
intermediate steps, exhibiting a progress in time from t
formation of the traps under a superincumbent ocean, to the
tremendous subaerial volcanic operations which produce
the trachytes, and which cannot yet be said to be at an e .
The traps are intersected by numerous veins and cuiious
appearances are presented where these have alone survived
t he disintegrating forces. The surfaces of some of the lavas
which Sir George Mackenzie observed in ^eland he e-
scribes as not unlike coils of ropes or crumpled cloth , m
other respects they appear to resemble the kvas of recent
volcanoes elsewhere, being, like those of ARna, thrown up
Into large flattened masses. These, it is well known, are
nroduced by the formation of a crust on the lava during its
course, which, as it accumulates, breaks through the hard¬
ened surface ; and thus, when it cools, leaves a wide ex¬
tended plain of the most rugged and impassable description.
In some places the surface has swelled during the couise
the lava into knobs, from a few feet in diameter to foi y o
fifty, many of which have burst, and disclose caverns lined
with melted matter in the form of stalactites. Of these some
remarkable instances are mentioned amongst the extre ly
ruo-cred lava of Buderstad, in the vicinity ot the bnaeteii
Yokul where several of the caverns extend to the depth o
forty yards. Stappen, in the same part of the island, pre¬
sents Vor the extent of about two miles, the most striking
columnar appearances, both in the cliffs which form the
shore and n the numerous insulated rocks which appear
Sent distances from the land. Amygdaloid forms he
larger portion of the eastern extremity ot the island, and it
is imbedded in this that those splendid specimens of calca¬
reous spar par excellence denominated Iceland-spar are
found This rock is likewise the matrix ot all the differen
varieties of the zeolite tribe, of the magnificent ca cedomes
and in fact of most of the fine minerals which have long
rendered Iceland so celebrated among collectors. FoS)Sll^ed
woodTs found in several places; that variety termed Sur
turbrand is peculiar to the north-eastern volcanic district.
It is remarkable that the specimens hitherto brought bo™e
of Sis last substance appear to be oak ^b-ns -th tae,
and can be cut and shaped like jet; but from
does not admit of being"sliced into shavings
sidian and other volcanic minerals appear in great y
in manydistricts of the island, particularly near Hecla, and
t0 Therels Me remarkable in the zoology of Iceland.
ICE
I C H
203
Iceland. The only wild animals are foxes, which in some parts of it
 > are very numerous, and do much damage to the farmers in
destroying their lambs and other produce. Reindeer were
introduced from Sweden about the middle of last century,
and have since increased and run wild. The Iceland horse
is small, but hardy, active, and capable of sustaining con¬
siderable fatigue. Dogs and cats they have in abundance,
and rats and mice are proportionally numerous. The float¬
ing ice occasionally transports a polar bear or two from the
Greenland coasts during spring, which, however, are no
sooner heard of than the neighbouring country are up in
arms to kill them, and they are consequently hunted down
and destroyed without mercy. The skins of the foxes, par¬
ticularly those of the blue species, are valued as an article
of commerce.
Amongst the land birds of the island are the sea-eagle or
erne, a very destructive bird among the eider-ducks; the
falcon, which used formerly to be a valuable item in the ex¬
ports of the island ; and the raven, which is a larger and more
powerful bird than those of Britain, frequently pouncing upon
and carrying off young lambs, and destroying poultry ; it is
met with in great numbers, particularly on the cliffs near the
sea-coast. The ptarmigan, snipe, golden plover, wagtail,
and curlew, are well known. Water-fowl of every descrip¬
tion, common to northern latitudes, are met with on the
coasts and in the lakes. Of these the most valuable to the
inhabitants is the eider-duck, which is strictly preserved, a
penalty of half a dollar being exigible for shooting one of
these birds. From this circumstance they become so re¬
markably tame, especially in the breeding season, that they
frequently make their nests close to the houses, and in spots
which have been prepared by ridges of stones artificially built
up for them; and in such places, during the process of in¬
cubation, it is not unusual for the female to remain on the
nest, and suffer herself to be fondled. The lining of their
nests, being the downy substance plucked off their own
breasts, is taken away, even a second and third time, until
the poor bird has plucked herself nearly naked. Their eggs,
too, are removed once or twice, and are eaten in the same
manner as plovers’ eggs. Swans are very numerous in some
of the lakes of the central part of the island, where they re¬
main unmolested until the ice sets in, when they betake
themselves to the sea-shore. The eggs, the feathers, and
the down of this fine bird, like those of the eider-duck, sup¬
ply the peasantry with an article of food, and also of com¬
merce.
The vegetable productions of the island, as already stated,
are the reverse of luxuriant. With the exception of a few
stunted birch, and some dwarf willows, in the southern and
eastern districts, nothing in the shape of a tree occurs ; and,
even in the sheltered situations afforded by the gardens
surrounding the merchants’ houses near Reikiavik, all at¬
tempts to raise the most common culinary vegetables occa¬
sionally fail. Even in good years, Dr Hooker remarks that
in many of these little inclosures the cabbages were so lan¬
guid and small that a half-crown piece would have covered
the whole of the plant. It is a curious fact, however, that
timber has in former periods grown in more abundance, as
is evident from the logs so frequently met with in the mo¬
rasses and peat-bogs of the country. These the peasants
are in the habit of extracting and using for firewood.
The scanty produce of the land is, however, to a great
degree compensated for by the abundance of fine fish which
occurs on the coast. In several parts of the island, par¬
ticularly on the north and north-west, the shark fishery is
a regular occupation. Strong hooks fastened to chains are
baited and anchored a little way out to sea, and the fish
when caught are thus towed to shore. Of the skin shoes
are made, a considerable quantity of oil is extracted, and
some parts of the flesh are occasionally smoked and used
by the natives for food. The cod is very plentiful; the
haddock grows to a large size; ling, skate, flounders, and
halibut aie likewise very common; the herring, too, fre¬
quents the fords in vast shoals, but this branch of the fishery
has hitherto been little attended to. The salmon in the
rivers are said to be very fine, and no country in the world
produces them in greater quantity. Seals are particularly
numerous on the shores of the Breide-fiord and the western
coast.
Such is a rapid sketch of the most remarkable features
of Iceland. The ardour, however, with which the sciences
of natural history and geology are now pursued in Britain,
coupled with the increasing facility every year afforded by
means of steam navigation, will, no doubt, in the course of
a very few summers, present us with more minute and
more accurate information respecting the truly extraordi¬
nary natural productions of this wild but wonderful island.
(See Letters on Iceland, by Von Troil, in 1772 ; Travels
in Iceland, by Sir George Mackenzie, in 1810; Journal of
a Residence in Iceland during the Years 1814 and 1815,
by Ebenezer Henderson ; Visit to Iceland in the Summer
of 1834, by John Barrow, Esq., jun.; and Tracings of Ice¬
land and the Faroe Islands, by R. Chambers, 1856.
(t. a—l—n.) (r. ch—s.)
Iceland Moss. See Botany, Nat. Order 273.
ICENI, in Ancient Geography, a warlike tribe of Britain,
inhabiting a part of the island nearly corresponding with
the counties of Norfolk and Suffolk. The exact limits of
their country are very difficult to settle, and as the point is
one of some importance for rightly understanding the cam¬
paign of Ostorius, it has caused a good deal of controversy.
The only way of escaping the difficulty is to believe that
the Iceni occupied a considerably larger surface of country
than is usually assigned to them, and extending their fron¬
tiers to the confines of Essex and Hertfordshire. The great
event in the history of this tribe is their rebellion from the
Roman yoke under their queen Boadicea. See Boadicea.
ICHNEUMON. See Entomology and Mammalia.
Iceland
Moss
Ichneu¬
mon.
204
ICHTHYOLOGY.1 2
INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER.
SECTION I. DEFINITION AND GENERAL OBSERVATIONS. THE
PRINCIPAL EPOCHS IN THE SCIENCE OF ICHTHYOLOGY.
VERTEBRALS.
Fishes may be technically defined as vertebrated animals
with red blood, breathing through the medium of water by
means of branchice or gills. dhis definition, as Baron
Cuvier has remarked, is the result of observation; it is a
product of analysis, or what is termed in physics an em¬
pirical formula; but its accuracy is demonstrable by the
inverse method, for, when once duly perceived, we may,
in a great measure, deduce from it a knowledge of the
entire nature of the beings to which it is applied. Being
vertebrated, they must be possessed of an internal skeleton;
of a brain and spinal marrow, inclosed in a vertebral
column ; of muscles exterior to the bones ; of four extre¬
mities only; and of the organs ot the first four senses,
situate in the cavities of the head; with other relations not
necessary to be here named.
The greater portion of the surface of the earth is covered
by the waters of the translucent sea; and wherever conti¬
nents and the larger islands protrude their rocky bulk, we
find them coursed by flowing rivers, or intersected by la es
and marshes. These present in their aggregate an enor¬
mous mass of waters, and afford protection and nourishment
to myriads of living creatures, probably superior in number
and in no way inferior in beauty, to those which inhabit
the earth. On land, the matter susceptible of life is mainly
employed in the construction and continuance of vegetable
species ; from these, herbivorous animals draw their nourish¬
ment ; and this being animalized by assimilation, becomes
an appropriate food for the carnivorous kinds, which
scarcely amount to more than one-half of the terrestrial
creatures of all classes. But in the liquid element, and
more especially among the saline waters of the ocean,
where the vegetable kingdom is so much more restricted,
almost all organized substances are pervaded by animal
life, and each lives at the expense of some smaller or feebler
foe.’ There we meet not only with the greatest and most
wonderful variety of forms, but also with the extremes in
respect to size,—from the myriads of microscopic monads,
which, but for artificial means, must have remained for
ever invisible and unknown, to the ponderous whale, which
surpasses, by twenty times, the bulk of the largest elephant.
There, too, we may discover the majority of those magni¬
ficent combinations of organic structure, on the relations
of which naturalists have established the distinction of
classes, or great primary groups; in other words, the sea
may be said to contain representatives of each; for, even
among birds, those aerial creatures which usually inhabit
so light an element, we find species so constructed as to
dwell almost for ever on its waves. The mammiferous
class is still more fully represented in the numerous tribes Introduc
of seals, morses, manaties, and whales, all of which require 10“*
a moist abode, and some of which immediately perish
when deprived of it. Most reptiles are aquatic, many in¬
sects are so, more particularly in their larva state; and al¬
most all the Mollusca, the Annelides, the Crustacea, and
Zoophytes, four great classes, which on terra firma are few
and far between, exist in countless numbers m the waters
of the ocean. Hence that ancient dictum recorded by
Pliny, “ Quicquid nascatur in parte naturae ulla, et in man
esse ; praeterque multa quae nusquam alibi.
But amongst all the teeming wonders which vivify the
vast expanse and liquid depth of waters, none so predo¬
minate, or are so truly characteristic, as the subjects of our
present treatise; nor are any more worthy of our careful
consideration, whether we regard the beauty or eccentri¬
city of their forms, the metallic splendour of their colours,
or the innumerable benefits which, through the foiesig t
of Providence, they confer upon the human race. We
therefore deem it incumbent upon us to exhibit an ample
view of the present condition of Systematic Ichthyology,
but before doing so, we shall endeavour to add to the in¬
terest of the subject by a few general observations.
We may state, in the first place, that we here intention¬
ally refrain from any bibliographical inquiry, or historical
exposition of the progress of Ichthyology. If such were
complete, or even ample, it would occupy too much of
that space which we deem more usefully devoted to the
actual condition of the science; and we more willingly
set that department aside, when we consider how per¬
fectly it has been presented by Baron Cuvier.“ vv e shall,
however, briefly allude to what may be regarded as the
principal epoch in the progress of Ichthyology During
many remote ages it consisted, in common with all the
kindred branches of human knowledge, of nothing more
than a few partial and disjointed observations. Aristotle,
about 350 years before the Christian era, made some pro¬
gress towards connecting these together as a body of doc¬
trine ; but still it was a feeble body, reposing upon truths
(perceived indeed with surprising skill when we consider
the scanty data) as yet obscurely known and vaguely ex¬
pressed owing to the entire absence of all proper standards
for the distinction of species. For more than eighteen
hundred years ensuing, the writers on natural history can
scarcely be regarded in any other light than as either
copiers or commentators of Aristotle; but about the mid¬
dle of the sixteenth century, Belon, Rondelet, and Salyiam,
the true founders of modern Ichthyology, made their ap¬
pearance (we mean as authors), by a singular coincidence,
almost precisely at the same tune,—the first m loo3> the
second from 1554 to 1555, and the third from 1554 to
1558. Differing from their compiling predecessors, they
saw and examined for themselves, and made drawings from
nature, if not with the elegant accuracy of modern days, at
least with a recognisable exactness. \ et, true to the ge-
1 From a/«/!., and Xoysj, a discowm. _ . ,v . ;n thp first volume of the great though
2 See the Tableau Historique des Progres de Vhhtyologie, depute son engine jusqu a noe f , buvon(i our predecessors in ency-
unfortunately uncompleted work, the Hietoire Naturelle des Poissons. \\ e deem ourse ^ albout enter, the volumes of Baron
clopaedic labour, in having as a guide in so difficult a subject as that on w,hic^ 1 have availed ourselves of the labours of its
Cuvier’s and M. Valenciennes’ signal publication. As far as this great work extends . . s ampiy as our limits w'ould
authors, and have endeavoured to present the general and miscellaneous information sea er^ g^ ’ P ^ the present revisal
permit, and in a form and sequence the most advantageous to those unacquainted with the Comparative Anatomy and Phy
!,f this treatise we have also borrowed freely from the writings of our British Cuvier, whose “al eiinlmy of fishes, and
siology of Fishes, forming part of his Hunterian Lectures, gives the fullest and most accurat /a(,knowledgments toVr Couch, the
most philosophical account of the skeleton, that have hitheiYo appeared We beg al^o to r' ^ t Qn BrJsh Fishes is facileprinceps
acute discoverer and desenber of new species frequenting the Cornish coasts, and Mi i airen, wnose
among works illustrative of local Ichthyology.
ICHTHYOLOGY. 205
Introduc- nius of their time, they continued to attach much more
tion. importance to the ascertainment of the names which
the species bore in the classical pages of antiquity, than
to the composition of their history, as it were afresh, by
the light of nature and their own knowledge. Never¬
theless, they rectified as well as extended the observations
of Aristotle, and laid a positive foundation of the subject,
by figures and descriptions of a certain number of well-
determined species. About the close of the seventeenth
century, Willughby, and his illustrious friend John Ray,
gave for the first time a history of fishes, in which the
species were not only clearly described from nature, but
distributed in accordance with characters drawn solely from
their structure, and in which we are no longer unneces¬
sarily burdened with inapplicable passages from either
Greek or Roman writers. Finally, about the middle of
the eighteenth century, Artedi and Linnaeus completed
what the others had commenced, by establishing well-
defined generic groups, consisting of ascertained species
precisely characterized. From that period it may be said
that no radical defect existed, nor any obstacle in the way
of a gradual perfecting of the system, which could not be
overcome by zeal, accuracy, and perseverance. Never¬
theless, it is to the genius of Baron Cuvier that we owe
the gigantic stride which has been made in our own more
immediate days.
It is only by a profound study of the whole animal struc¬
ture that we can, to the extent of our limited intellect,
correctly appreciate that part of the works of the great
Creator, and get some insight into the branching and anas¬
tomosing affinities by which the almost numberless kinds of
living beings are linked together. Many years spent in
anatomical investigations gave Baron Cuvier such a know¬
ledge of the mutual dependence of the various parts of the
organism of each of the numerous species which came
under his observation, that he was able, from the inspection
of a single bone, to reconstruct, mentally as it were, the
animal to which it had belonged, and to assign the species
its place in the system of nature. This great step in the
history of Zoology placed its discoverer in the first rank of
the cultivators of the science. In none of the greater di¬
visions of the animal kingdom were Cuvier’s labours, in
forming a natural arrangement of the species, of more value
than in the class of Fishes, the lowest of the vertebrata,
or of that division of animals whose proper character
consists in the possession of a central bony axis on which
the soft parts are sustained, and from which the motive
powers diverge. The Latin word used above has been adopt¬
ed into the English scientific language, though by many
the more Anglicised term of “ vertebrals” is used, and we
call the internal chain of bone the vertebral column, while its
several successive component joints are named “ vertebrae.”
The German equivalent of vertebrata is “ wirbelthiere.”
We must remark, at the outset, that neither this term of
Vertebrata, nor any other definition of a group which the
ingenuity of man has hitherto devised, is logically correct.
In Mammals, indeed, the highest class of the division,
the internal bony frame is strong and massive, and fitted to
support the limbs, by which, with the firm earth for a ful¬
crum, the animal moves through a medium greatly lighter
than itself. In Birds, too, constituting the second class of
the division, the bones of denser texture but more slender
form and often hollow, are admirably fitted for sustaining
the powerful muscles exercised in the maintenance of ex¬
tended aerial flight; and in both classes, the turning joints
of the vertebral column, and more especially of the cervical
portion of it, are adapted to the various motions of the ani¬
mal, and for enabling it to rotate its head from side to side, Introduc-
and survey whatever comes within its field of vision. As tI0n‘
we descend to the less highly organized vertebrals, we come
to other and remarkable modifications of the spinal column.
In the third class, or the Reptiles, there is one order,
namely, that of the Ophidia, or Serpents, whose locomotion
is performed by creeping without external limbs, and solely
by the flexibility of the vertebral column and the muscles
attached to it, and to its appendages the ribs. The verte¬
brae are accordingly much more numerous in these animals
than in any others, and their motions on each other more
extensive. In another group of the same class the vertebrae
of the body are soldered together by bone, and power of
motion is preserved only in the neck and short tail. A
third group, named Amphibians, are fishes in their embryo
or tadpole condition, and undergo a kind of metamorphosis
in becoming terrestrial and air-breathing creatures. A
fourth remarkable group, of which only a few species have
been hitherto detected, presents, with much of the piscine
form, the peculiarity of the existence of both gills and lungs,
and a residence in water during life. In the Fishes, the
proper subjects of this treatise, and the lowest class of ver-
tebrated animals, there is a large group named by some
authors Cartilaginei, or Chondropterygii, because the
internal skeleton remains in the state of cartilage, the bony
structure being wholly absent in some species, and in others
only very partially present; and thus the precision of one
part of the character of the vertebrata given above is im¬
paired. In certain of the Cartilaginei the joints of the
column are obsolete, and flexibility is substituted for the
turning motions indicated by the word vertebrae. These
brief notices point at some of the difficulties which beset
the zoologist when he endeavours to convey the knowledge
he has acquired to others, by concise and definite phrases.
Yet however difficult it may be to construct a correct de¬
finition, it is certain that the idea of the type of an animal
group may be conceived in the mind, on the basis of exact
observation and legitimate deduction, in proof whereof the
reader is confidently referred to the works of Professor
Richard Owen of the British Museum, and particularly to
his treatise On the Archetype and Homologies of the Ver¬
tebrate Skeleton.1
The vertebrated animals agree in having a spinal chord
or elongated bundle of nervous filaments running along the
body, and protected by bony arches composed of the neural
apophyses, or processes which rise upwards from the body
or centrum of each vertebra. The anterior expansion of
the spinal chord, named the brain, is most fully developed
in the higher classes of vertebrals, and is comparatively
very small in fishes whose encephalon has the character of
a series of ganglions, or knots of nervous matter, arranged
in single succession or in pairs. In the lowest known form
of fish, the Lancelet, the whole vertebral column is merely
a pulpy nervous chord invested by a membranous sheath ;
and Pallas, the first describer of this animal, ranked it, in
accordance with the progress that science had made in his
time, among the Slugs. In all the vertebrals the vascular
trunks and organs of digestion are protected by the inferior
processes and diverging appendages of the vertebrae; and
the type of this division of animated beings is essentially
tetrapodal (fig. 1), though in some groups one or both pairs
of limbs are either rudimental or absolutely wanting—ex¬
amples of these deviations from the ordinary type being
most frequent in the- classes of Reptiles and Fishes. The
four limbs are produced in lateral pairs; and in fishes the
first pair are named pectoral fins, and the second pair, being
situated on the ventral aspect of the fish, are called ventral
1 On the Archetype and Homologies of the Vertebrate Skeleton, 8vo. London, 1849. Also Report of the British Association, 1846 On the
nature of Limbs ; itichard Owen, &c., 8vo. London, 1849.
206
Introduc- fins, even though their relative position,^ is the ca^m some
tion. kinds of fish, should be in front of t le pe 5
Cheironectes caudimaculatus of the family of Lophiid<e.
obtain technically the name of jugular fins. In the above
woodcut we have a front view of Cheironectes caudimacu¬
latus, belonging to a group of fish which actually walk at
times on their four limbs. The vertical fins of fishes are
a different nature, and the rays which support them, whether
jointed and soft, or hard and spinous, are not parts of the
interior skeleton, but belong properly to the skin or dermal
skeleton. The fins that rise vertically in the mesial plane of
the back, whether one or more, are named dorsal. I hose
from the opposite ventral aspect, situated in all cases pos¬
terior to the vent, and therefore appertaining truly to the
tail, are termed “anals,” and the solitary fin at the end of
the tail is named the “ caudal.” Artedi denominated the fish
which have spinous rays on the back, Acanthopterygians,
and those which have only flexible and jointed rays, Ma-
lacopterygians—other groups having however been previ¬
ously detached by the forms of their branchial apparatus,
or the cartilaginous condition of the skeleton. Among the
Reptiles there are species which have dermal crests on the
back nr tail, supported by rays, and analogous to the verti¬
cal fins of fishes. , , . .
In the great majority of vertebrals a lateral symmetry
exists externally and in the skeleton ; only one group of
•fishes, namely, the Flounder family, presents a remarkable
dissimilarity in the two sides of the fish.
All the vertebrals also agree in the separation of the
sexes, two individuals being required for the reproduction
of the species.
CHTHYOLOGY.
than in other vertebrals, and only in a very few diminutive Introduc-
or almost obsolete. Lubricated by the surrounding medium tion.
it needs no lachrymal gland ; and as the light is tempeied
greatly by a small increase of the depth at which a fish glides
through the water, few species have anything like eyelids
or nictitating membranes. The function of nutrition is
very active, the appetite being very generally voracious,
digestion remarkably rapid, and the growth when suitable
food is abundant, extremely rapid. The reproductive power,
also, is exceedingly great. Destined to pass their whole
lives in a medium whose variations of tempeiature are much
more limited than that of the atmosphere which the other
vertebrals breathe, but whose conducting power is greater
the temperature of fishes exceeds only by a few degrees that
of the water in which they swim, and their blood is cold. A
less vigorous respiration, therefore, suffices to keep up t e
animal heat, and the oxygenation of the blood is accom¬
plished by the agency of the water on certain vascular
organs named gilts. Through these organs venous blood is
propelled by a simple heart, consisting of one auricle and
one ventricle. In these and various other parts of their
organization, fish preserve permanently structures that exist
in the higher vertebrals only in an early stage of their
embryonic development. Palaeontologists have ascertained,
moreover, that fishes were the first of the vertebrals whic
appeared on the theatre of the earth’s history and at an
epoch long antecedent to the deposits in which the remains
of the higher animals are found. These primitive fish,
however, were not types of the lower forms of the class but,
on the contrary, many of them were powerfully built, and
resembled the saurian reptiles m parts of their structure,
so that they were at least on par with the more highly organ¬
ized fishes of the present day. We have not learned that
the remains offish having the embryonic vermiform shape,
have been discovered in the oldest ichthygenous deposits.
The Salmon is a familiar example of one of the more
common forms of a fish, and one frequently quoted as being
pre-eminently qualified for cleaving through the liquid ele¬
ment in which it lives ; but there is a vast variety of shapes
to be found in the class. The common Salmonoid form
t
Fig. 2.
Astronesthes niger (Chauliodus Fieldii, Valenc.'), one of the ScopeZtnce, a gronp
of the Salmon family.
(fig. 2) of the osseous fishes passes in different species, by
onrl oKhrpvintinn. tn the thin vertical disks
SECTION II.—THE EXTERNAL FORM AND CHARACTER OF
FISHES.
By using the comparative terms of highest and low¬
est class of vertebrals, we do not imply that there is
any deficiency in the structure of fishes which constitute
the fundamental group, for every creature was perfectly
organized when called into existence by the fiat of the
Creator for the functions he destined it to perform ; but^
He, having designed the fishes to play a part in the scale of
nature requiring less intelligence, has furnished them with a
simpler nervous system and less sentient organs, a more ob¬
tuse sense of touch, restricted organs of smell and taste, and
an acoustic apparatus shut up within the head, without any
exterior ear or auditory canal for collecting and conveying
the vibrations by which sound is produced and transmitted.
Light being required to enable the fish to discover its prey
or avoid its enemies, the eye is larger in many of them
Fig. 3.
Melichthys vidua, one of the Balistidce, discovered on Cook’s first voyage,
f the Chaetodons or Balistes (fig. 3), or by compression
,nd elongation, into the riband-form of the Gymnetn and
ICHTHYOLOGY.
207
Fig. 4.
Trachypterus falx, an example of the thin elongated Tcenioidei or Riband-
fish family—the Gymnetridce of our table.
Introduc- Leptocephali (fig. 4).
tion.
Totally opposed to these is the
square box-like shape of the cubical Ostracions (fig. 5), the
pyramidal form of others of that tribe, or the round bladder¬
like figure of the inflated Diodons or the hard-scaled
spheroid Monocentris. W e
have examples of a slender
elongated cylindrical form
among the Syngnathidce
or Pipe fish, and among
the Eels (fig. 6), Lam¬
preys, and Sharks. Indeed,
the vermiform type exhi¬
bited by embryos of verte-
brals in their earliest stage,
is persistent in many fishes,
which by the assemblage
of other points of their
structure enter totally different groups. A depressed, dis-
Fig. 5.
Centaurus hoops of the Ostracionidce dis¬
covered on Sir James Clark Ross’s me¬
morable voyage to the Antarctic seas.
Fig. 6.
Channo-murcena vittata of the Mursenoid family of Apodals. In this genus
there are no fins, except a slight vestige of rudimentary rays at the end of
the tail lying in the thick skin.
Flounder family we have nearly the same external form Introduc-
produced by compression, and that lateral dissimilarity al- th¬
ready alluded to. Other forms, curious from their gro-
Fig. 8.
Patcecus fronto, one of the many singular forms which the Lophiidce exhibit.
It was discovered by Governor Sir George Grey in South Australia. The
generic name has reference to the figure-head of an ancient ship.
tesqueness, or from the redundancy of certain parts, are not
uncommon ; and we need not adduce other examples than
those which exist among the Lophiidce, Gobiidce (fig. 8),
Fig. 9.
Choridactylus multibarbus, a member of the Apistes group among the Sclero-
ffenidce, and furnished like the other Apistes with a treacherous spine on
the preorbitar scale bone. The free rays of the pectoral fin are organs of
touch analogous to fingers, and similar to the free rays of the Gurnards,
and many other fish that habitually frequent the bottom of the sea.
Pristidce, Sclerogenidce (fig. 9), Silurida-, or Acanthuridce.
Some of the forms which we have thus noticed in general
terms, and others which the woodcuts exhibit, are ill calcu¬
lated for swift progression, and the small and delicate fins
of the Ostracions, for instance, can serve little more than
the office of rudders to the inflexible scaly case from which
they protrude. The chief organs of locomotion in the rapid
swimming fish is the tail, which, in a majority of such fish,
equals or far exceeds the trunk in length. It sculls a fish
along like an oar worked at the stern of a boat. In the ver¬
miform apodal fishes, and in many Cartilaginei, swift motion
is produced by lateral undulatory strokes of the entire body
and tail. When the body is suspended in an element of
the same or nearly the same specific gravity with itself, it
is moveable by a slight impulse; and we find, accordingly,
that if the limbs exist, they are more tender than the an¬
alogous members of the higher classes, and that the want
of one or both pairs is more common than in other classes.
Before we enter on the consideration of the proper ver¬
tebral skeleton, it may be well to premise that the bones,
or hard parts of fishes, are primarily divisible into those of
the—1. Neuro-skeleton or endo-vertebral series; 2. The
Splanchno-skeleton, for the special protection of certain or¬
gans ; 3. Dermo-skeleton, parts, as the name denotes, of the
cutaneous system, and analogous to the exterior skeletons
of the lower divisions of animals.
SECTION III.—THE OSTEOLOGY OF FISHES.
Fig. 7.
Paia Lemprieri, a Skate from Australia.
cold shape, with the appendage of a whip-like tail, is com¬
mon among the Rays (fig. 7) and their allies; and in the
The structure and growth of bone have been described
elsewhere; and it is sufficient to say here that it consists of
animal matter, with diffused earthy particles, chiefly of
„os ICHTHYOLOGY.
, , r v TiV>i crives it its hardness. Of the and fishes the least; but there is great variety in this re-int^uc
In£r- ^hS mosfShy "after in their bones, spect even in the same class, the bones of each species^
Osteology.
Fi?. 10.
Skeleton of the Perch.
being adapted by their degrees of firmness, and hardness for or of a o* -r^raUs
the shotto they have to sus?in. The difference depends ^ f f defined by the Professor to be
chiefly on the quantity ot fluid matter in the cells an seaments of the endo-sheleton which constitute
of the bone. In a note theZttofSX L pro«c,ing ca.u.ts of fte Ker-
cod, after die fluid portions had bee^evapor ^ aJVMCular trunis. such a segment may also sup-
flufd than those of the other classes of vertebra^ P»^f ^"oT^^^^0*0?^
»teSLtasSucf ofS p ^
mucus, yields no f"“hf" rSf Xofd 0^0"^1. T^orX^
ilnSX^t^tmlaSginousfoun or transverse processes ;± T.oo p'eurapo^ses or costal
o ,  c l—T'Vio unneaifipfl skeleton of
dation of the bones of beasts. The unossified skeleton of
the Lamprey holds only H per cent, of earthy salts. In
the vascular canals, which are permeated by the vessels
that deposit the bone and carry on its circulation, there is
usually some oil, which is composed chiefly of oleine, and
J i • .    4-1 •»✓'vv\ rvr-riHnr'OG n PlP 51 Pin.
processes; 5. Two hcemapophyses, which form, with the
centrum, a canal for lodging the central organ and large
trunks of the vascular system. This canal is on the ventral,
that is, the opposite side of the centrum to the neural one,
and is less regular and more interrupted. 6. A neural
usually some oil, which is composed chiefly of oleine, and ““ ^^^“/ihe neurapophyses, or is interposed
is easily concerted into soap, and P™^nce^j> ^ ^ ^ tl d is very conspicuous in the figure
glycerine, and a minute portion of margaric acid. It has
odour, and for the most part a yellow colour. In the
Belone and Lepidosiren it imparts a deep green colour to
the bones. The bones of fishes continue to grow in size
almost throughout life. , r j * -i ^
The limits of this treatise do not admit of a detailed ac-
spine, which ciuwns a
between their tips, and is very conspicuous in the figure
of the skeleton of the perch, as it is in most fishes. <. A
hcemal spine. 8. Two diapophyses or upper (anterior or
proximal in fishes) transverse processes ot human anato¬
my; and, 9. Two zygapophyses or oblique processes.
In fishes a complete typical vertebra can only be ob-
. „  i. <4^ ✓wOnmn thp hflpma-
The limits of this treatise do not admit of a detailed ac- n s • i ^ , rest Gf t}le column the haema-
count of the skeleton and other parts of the st^cture o a1^ l s Absent or unossified ; their haemal canal
fishes, of all which in connection with reingTrmed by of the parapophyses The
marks on the homologies and analogies of the .everal part g ^ is governed by the number of pairs
of ichthyic structure with the corresponding parts of the ^f^te w1th the spinal chord, and varies
other vertebrals, the student will find a full account in of nerves that unite ^ i ^ numerous in the
Professor Owen’s Lectures on the Comparative Anat°™J 1 0r serpentiform Apod™, and some Plagiostomi,
and Physiology of the Vertebrate Animals. So comj Plectoqnathi. In many species they are
a work, so easy to be procured, renders it unnecessary o and few n ^ of vertebral
introduce more anatomical details here than are absolute y , J . y rmanentiy represented in the lowest
requisite for the understanding of the systematic review o eve \ Lancelet which is at the bottom of the
the class which follows ; and these we shall borrow from e s • ^ vertebral column consists of a gelatino-
work referred to, as being the best authority existing. ’ . , j -t membranous sheath. In the Lam-
The first step in the knowledge of the skeleton of a fish, cellular chord and its membranou.  
1 Chemical composition of bones of the cod after drying 57.29
Phosphate of lime with trace of fluate  4.'90
Carbonate of lime 
Phosphate of magnesia  T,,g
Sulphate, carbonate, and chlorate of soda   
Gluten and chondrin 
Oil  
2-00
100 00
Bibra, Owen's Lectures, &c.
ICHTHYOLOG Y. 209
Introduc- prey, cartilaginous arches and spines are added above the
ntion. “chorda,” in the membranous wall of the neural canal,
Osteology, and in the tail also beneath it. In the Sturgeon and Chi-
Wv*^ mgera the bases of the cartilaginous arches inclose the
“ chorda.” In the Lepidosiren, the neural and haemal arches
and their spines are ossified, but the centrums are still con¬
fluent as a dorsal membrano-gelatinous chord ; and Agassiz
has shown that this was the condition of the vertebrae of
the most ancient fossil fishes—those of the Silurian and
Devonian rocks. In many Sharks and Rays the “ chorda”
is encroached upon by osseous or cartilaginous convergent
lamina;, and by concentric, successively shorter, centri-
petally developed cylinders, and is thus reduced to a string
of gelatinous beads, each bead occupying the interspace
between the opposed concave surfaces of the vertebral
bodies. This moniliform state of the “chorda” is per¬
sistent in most osseous fishes; whilst in some others the
gelatinous biconical segments of the “ chorda” are insulated
by the completed centripetal process of ossification; and
in one genus, the Lepidosteus, they are converted into
osseous balls, fixed to the fore part of each vertebral body,
which plays in the concavity or cup of the vertebra next
in advance. The slightly compressible jelly-bags that fill
the concave opposing articular surfaces of the vertebrae are
admirable contrivances for facilitating the motions of the
fish. The neural and haemal arches and spines are bony in
all osseous fishes; and in all fishes chondrification and ossi¬
fication of the vertebral column commences in these arches.
The skeleton of fishes presents many instances of what
Owen terms “ vegetative repetition of perivertebral parts.”
There being no distinct neck in fishes, we find no peculiar
cervical vertebrae, the series posterior to the head consist¬
ing of abdominals and caudals. With the former the ribs
are connected, and in the latter the haemal canal is formed
by the deflection and union of the parapophyses, as men¬
tioned above. The pleurapophyses, or ribs, are generally
articulated in fishes to the ends of the parapophyses, but in
Platax and Poh/pterus they articulate with the bodies of
the vertebrae. In the Salmon and Dory they continue to be
attached to some of the parapophyses after these are bent
down in the tail to form the haemal canal and haemal spines.
The Diodontidee, Ostracionidce, Fistularidce, Syngnathida,
Cyclopteridce, and Lophiidce, are destitute of ribs.
Slender supplementary ribs often issue from near the
head of the ribs, passing outwards and backwards from be¬
tween the lateral muscles. Professor Owen names them
“ epipleural spines.” They are highly developed in the
Salmonidce, Clupeidce, and Scomheridce. In the common
Herring, dermal bones are connected with the lower ends
of the ribs, and have been called, though erroneously, ster¬
nal bones, since they do not belong to the endo-skeleton.
In osseous fishes, imposed above the proper neural spines,
there is a second row of spines belonging to the dermo-
skeleton, of greater or less extent, and serving to support
the dorsal fin or fins. From their bases other spines of an
inverted shape usually descend into the intervals of the
neural spines, and are hence named by Owen “interneural
spines.” These interneurals are sometimes in lateral pairs,
as in the PleuronectidcB, the Chcetodontidce, Zeidce, and
some other compressed fish.
The modifications of the dorso-interneural and dermal
spines are repeated on the ventral aspect, posterior to the
anus, producing inter-haemal and dermo-haemal spines which
support the anal fin. Each dermal spine or ray is either
readily divisible into two laterally, or presents a furrow in¬
dicative of a tendency to such a division. The caudal fin
‘is extended also on compressed intercalary and dermal
spines, diverging from a few coalescent and abbreviated
. caudal vertebrae. In the base of the caudal formed of these
elements, the haemal spines are more developed than the
neural ones in very many species, as in the Salmonidce, and
YOL. XII.
then they press upwards the short and almost obsolete verte- Introduc-
bral centra which form the tip of the spinal column, and into
which the spinal marrow is not extended. This larger de- v 8 eo °ey/
velopment of the haemal processes elongates the upper lobe v'"-'
of the fin, and gives a very unsymmetrical form to the
caudal of Sharks, Sturgeons, and Elephant fish. Fishes pos-
Fig.H.
Hemiscyllium trispeculare, Australian shark of the family of Scylliidce.
sessing such a caudal are named by M. Agassiz “hetero-
cercal;” and those with a symmetrical caudal fin he deno¬
minates “ homocercal,” including, however, in the latter
group the existing fish wherein the obliqueness of the cau¬
dal vertebrae does not affect, in a decided way, the shape
of the caudal fin, the Sal/nonidce, for instance, being homo-
cercals.
Among the palaeozoic fishes the heterocercal fishes greatly
predominate; all that have been found in the magnesian
limestone, and in older strata, having the superior lobe of
the tail prolonged. The only existing osseous fishes that
are recognised t>y M. Agassiz as heterocercal belong to the
genus Lepidosteus.
The size, number, and shape of the vertical fins depends
on the development and grouping of the accessary and in¬
tercalary spines, the proper neural and haemal spines of the
endo-skeleton showing no direct indication of the existence
or position of those fins; but it is convenient to notice them
in connection with the vertebral column, as the systematic
arrangements of ichthyologists have had much reference to
the number, relative position, and condition of the rays of
those fins, in regard of their being simple and spinous, or
jointed and forked. We have already noticed the terms
Malacopterygian and Acanthopterygian as derived from
these varieties of structure. Species occur among the
Golnidfe and some other families of fish, in which there is
much difficulty in deciding to which of the two groups they
belong. In the Lancelet and Lamprey, the dorsal and cau¬
dal fins are simply cutaneous folds, with scarcely distin¬
guishable soft fibres for rays. Synbranchus gutturalis, and
Channomurcena, have nearly obsolete rays at the tip of the
tail only; and in Gyrnnomurcena the folds as well as rays
are wanting. The interneural and dermal spines seldom
coincide in number with the neural spines. They are often
more numerous, but more frequently less numerous. The
sucking apparatus on the head of the Remora is an assem¬
blage of peculiarly modified and connected dermal spines.
Great development of the dermal spines often renders
Fig. 12.
Centriscus humerosus of the Fistularidce, representing in the Australian seiis
the Mediterranean “ Snipe-fish.”
. ' . ■ ■
them powerful weapons of defence, as in Trachinus. The
Chimcerce, Cestraciom, Piked Dog-fish, and Batistes, are
2 D
c
210
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Introduc- furnished with a stont bony spine at the front of the dor-
tion. sai fin; and the Sticklebacks (fig. 13) have curious sculp-
Osteology.
Fig. 13.
ansterosteus insculptus, discovered by Sir Edward Belcher in the h'gh lati-
t iide of 77°, at the northern outlet of Wellington Sound, when in search o
Sir John Franklin.
tured bony spines in the ventrals as well as in the dorsals.
In most Siluridce the pectorals are supported by a strong
and dangerous spine. Many of the rays have detached
serrated spines on the upper part of the tail; and in palae¬
ontology similar spines, named “ Ichthyodorulitesare
the sole indications remaining of the plagiostomes of for-
are remarkable among bony fishes for these dermal wea¬
pons.
Introduc-
tion.
Osteology,
Fig. 14.
Monocentris Japonica.
mer epochs. The Siluroids and Trigger-fish (Bahstes)
Fig. 15.
Skeleton of a Perch’s Head.
That the skull1 (fig. 15) consists of a series of four vertebrae
modified for containing the cerebral enlargement of the
anterior end of the nervous column, has been most fully
demonstrated by Professor Owen. Each is divided into a
neural arch with which the centrum and parapophyses are
more immediately connected, and a hcemal arch with its
appendages.
A. Beginning next the trunk, the following are the
names of the neural arches in the order of their succession :
—I. Epencephalic arch. II. Mesencephalic arch. III.
Prosencephalic arch. IV. Ilhinencephalic arch.
aa. The haemal arches are,—1. Scapular or scapulo-cora-
coid. 2. Hyoid or stylo-hyoid. 3. Mandibular or tympano-
mandibular. 4. Maxillary or palato-maxillary. The appen¬
dages of the haemal arches are,—1^, The pectoral. 2d,
The branchiostegal. 3c?, The opercular. Ath, The pterygoid.
1 t? ib, 0!,kP of more clearly exhibiting the relations of the different members of the osteological system, and to furnish a key to
i For the sake of more cdeaHy ^ of the of the skeleton as fixed by 0wen, with Cuviers synonyms.
8c!ieZtescentrui; n. neurapophysis ; s. spine; VJ. par apophysis ; pi. pleur apophysis ; h. hypophysis; hs. hamal spine ; d. dzverg-
ing appendage.
The numbers after the French names
have reference to figures 10, 15, 20, and 21.
ENDO-SKELETON.
OCCIPITAL VERTEBRA.
Owens Names.
Basi-occipital
Exoccipital
Supraoccipital
Paroccipital
Supra-scapula
Scapula
Coracoid
Clavicle
Humerus
Ulna
Radius
Carpals
Metacarpo-phalanges
c.
n.
par.
| V1-
Cuvier's Names.
Basilaire
Occipital lateral
Interparietal
Occipital externe
Surscapulaire
Scapulaire
Humeral
5.
10.
9.
8.
46.
47.
48.
Troisieme os de 1’avant bras
Radial
Cubital
Os du carpe
Rayons de la pectorale
52.
51.
64.
65.
PARIETAL
Basi-sphenoid c.
Alisphenoid «.
Columella
Parietal *•
Mastoid par.
Stylohyal pi*
Epihya! ) h
Cerato-hyal J
Basi-hyal S
Glossohyal V ?**•
Urohyal )
Branchiostegal
VERTEBRA.
Sphenoide posterieur 6.
Grande aile du sphenoide 11.
Parietal • •
Mastoidien 12.
Styloide 29.
Grandes pieces laterales 37. 38.
Petites pieces laterales 39. 40.
Os lingual 41.
Queue de 1’os hyoide 42.
Rayon branchiostege 43.
Presphenoid
Entosphenoid
Orbito-sphenoid
Frontal
Post-frontal
Tympanic
Epitympanic
Mesotympanic
Pretympanic
Hypotym panic
Mandible
Articular
Surangular
Angular
Splenial
Dentary
Preopercular
Opercular
Subopercular
Interopercular
Vomer
Pre-frontal
Hasal
Palatine
Maxillary
Pre-maxillary
Entop ter y gold
Pterygoid
FRONTAL VERTEBRA.
}
c.
n.
par.
pi.
h.
hs.
d.
Sphenoide principale
Aile orbitaire
Frontal principal
Frontal posterieur
Temporal
Symplectique
Tympanal
Jugal
Machoire inferieure
Articulaire
Surangulaire
Angulaire
Operculaire
Dentaire
Pre-opercule
Operculaire
Sous-opercule
Inter-opercule
NASAL VERTEBRA.
c. Vomer
n. Frontal anterieur
s. Ethmoide
pi. Palatin
h. Maxillaire superieur
hs. Inter-maxillaire
Pterygoid ien interne
Transverse
5.
14.
1.
4.
23.
31.
27.
26.
35.
36.
37.
34.
30.
28.
32.
33.
16.
2.
3.
22.
18.
17.
25.
24.
ICHTHYOLOGY. 211
Introduc- B. The bones of the Splanchno-skeleton constitute in the
tion. skull,—a. The ear-capsule or petrosal and otolite. b. The
Osteology, eye-capsule or sclerotic and pedicle, c. The nose-capsule
or ethmoid and turbinal. d. The branchial arches.
C. The bones of the Dermo-skeleton belonging to the
skull are,—a. Supra-temporals. /6. Supra-orbitals. y. Sub¬
orbitals. S. Labials.
A. I. The Epencephalic arch consists of the basi-occipital,
on which there is an excavation similar to one on the first
abdominal vertebra, and with which it is articulated through
the intervention of a capsule filled with jelly. This articular
cup varies from a deep conical excavation common to many
fish, to the almost flat surface which it presents in the
Holibut, and, what is extremely rare, to a convex surface as
in Fistularia. In the Carp, the under surface of the basi-
occipital forms a broad triangular plate, on which there is
planted the large upper pharyngeal grinding tooth. This
bone is the centrum of the arch. The ex-occipitals or
neurapophyses are articulated one on each side to the basi-
occipital, and, in most fishes, they expand on the upper
surface of that bone, so as to meet and support the medul¬
lary column; but sometimes a space is left between them, as
in the Lepidosiren, whose basi-occipital completes the fora¬
men magnum of the skull. The par-occipitals form the
upper lateral curve of the arch, and are wedged in between
the ex-occipitals and the supra-occipital, which forms the
key of the arch, and raises a strong compressed crest-like
spine from the whole length of its mesial line ; a transverse
supra-occipital ridge coming from each side of the base of
this spine runs outwards laterally to the external angles of
the bone. The supra-occipital is separated from the fron-
tals in the Salmonoid, Clupeoid, Cyprinoid, Muraenoid, and
Salamandroid families; but, in the majority of fishes, it runs
forward between the parietals to join the frontals. In
Lepidosteus, it is itself divided by a median suture. In
greatly compressed skulls, the occipital spine is usually very
lofty ; and, in Ephippus, its peripheral edge swells out like
the crest of a helmet, whence the fish is named the Light-
horseman. In depressed skulls, on the contrary, the spine
is low and merely projects backwards, as in the Pike and
Salmon ; while in some it is wholly obsolete, as in the
flat-headed Remora. In the unsymmetrical skulls of the
Pleuronectidce, it is pushed from its usual place by the par-
occipitals, and one of its lateral plates is not developed. In
broad depressed skulls the par-occipital forms a strong Introduc-
crest, and exceeds the ex-occipital in size. In Synodus, tion-
Callicthys, and Heterobranchus, the par-occipital is visible Oste°logy-
only at the back part, not on the upper aspect of the skull. v'’"-"
The outer projecting process supports the upper fork of the
first piece of the scapular arch, sometimes, as in Ephippus,
by a distinct articular cavity.
The members of the occipital vertebrae are the parts
which are commonly most completely ossified, and in
Polypterus they are anchylosed into one piece. Both the
par-occipital and the ex-occipital are excavated for lodging
the posterior and external semicircular canal of the enor¬
mous internal organ of hearing, and the acoustic capsule,
or petrous bone, as it is named from its hardness, is interca¬
lated between the par-occipitals and the ali-sphenoids. In
the Carp, a chain of ossicles connects the air-bladder with
the organ of hearing.
II. The Mesencephalic arch has for its centrum the basi-
sphenoid, which is always connate with the pre-sphenoid
(belonging to the next arch), and forms with it a long sub-
triedral bone (basi-pre-sphenoid), usually split or forked
posteriorly, more or less expanded beneath the cranial
cavity, and then continued forwards, along the base of the
inter-orbital space to near the fore part of the roof of the
mouth, where it terminates by a cavity that receives the
pointed end of the vomer. This end of the basi-pre-
sphenoid is twisted up in the Pleuronectidoe. The longer
and narrower the skull, the longer in general is the basi-
pre-sphenoid. Rarely does any portion of it show on the
floor of the cranial cavity, but in the Cod a small part
supports the pituitary sac ; in Fistularia a transverse ridge
of it appears within the cranial cavity, and in some other
fishes it sends a small process up on each side. The ali-
sphenoids or neurapophyses of this arch are articulated
firmly to the sides of the basi-sphenoid, their bases usually
expanding over this bone so as to meet and form part of
the floor of the cranial cavity. In some fishes, as in the
perch and carp, these expanded plates of the bases are
raised from the basi-sphenoid so as to form a sub-cranial
canal which exists in the Salmonoids, Sparoids, Scombe-
roids, and is very remarkable in Ephippus, and most fishes
that have lofty compressed skulls. It exists in some
Clupeoids, but not in the Salamandroid fishes. In deep
and compressed skulls the ali-sphenoids are narrow and
Ectopterygoid
Malar
Squamosal
SPLAXCHNO-SKELETON.
CAPSULES OF ORGANS OF SENSE INTERCALATED WITH THE
CRANIAL BONES.
Otosteal} -^cous^c Rocher 13.
Ethmoid and Ethmo-turbinal Spheno'ide anterieur 15.
Turbinal Nasal 20.
BRANCHIAL ARCHES.
Hypo-branchial Piece interne de partie in-
ferieure de 1’arceau bran-
chiale 57.
Cerato-branchial Piece externe de partie in-
ferieure de 1’arceau bran¬
ch iale 58.
Epi-branchial Partie superieure de I’arceau
branchiale 61.
Pharyngo-branchial Os pharyngien sup6rieur 62.
DERMO-SKELETON.
Supra-orbital scale-bone Sur-orbitaire
Supra-temporal scale-bone Sur-temporal 72.
Sub-orbital scale-bones Sous-orbitaires 19.
Lachrymal Lachrymal 19.
Labial Labial
ENDO-AND EXO-SKELETON
Abdominal vertebras
Caudal vertebrae
OF THE BODY AND TAIL.
Vert&bres abdominales 67. 68.
Vertebres caudales 69.
Centrum
Neurapophysis
Neural spine
Interneural spine
Dermo-neural spine
Zygapophyses
Parapophyses
Haemal canal
Haemal spine
Interhaemal spine
Do., aggregated at base of
caudal fin
Dermo-haemal spine
Spinous rays
Soft-jointed or branching rays
Pleurapophysis or rib
Epipleural spine
Ventral fins, being the haema-
pophysis with diverging
appendage of the last ab¬
dominal vertebra
Pubic bone in fishes ; the re¬
presentatives of thefemoral,
tibial, and tarsal bones, are
wanting
Metatarso-phalangeal jointed
rays
Corps du vertebre 67. 68. 69.
Partie annulaire
Apophyse epineuse c.
Interepineux 74.
Rayons dorsales 75.
Apophyses articulaires
Apophyses transverses
Anneau inferieur
Apophyse epineux inferieur
Interepineux 6.
Plaque triangulaire et ver-
ticale 70.
Rayon de 1’anale et du cau¬
dal inferieur 78.
Rayons epineux ou aiguil-
leus 75.
Rayons articules, mous ou
branchus 71. 75-82.
Cote 72.
Appendice or stylet 73.
Nageoires ventrales abdomi-
naux et subbrachiens.
Un seul os representant
1’os innomine, la cuisse,
la jambe, et le tarse 80.
Rayons mous du nageoire
ventrale 82.
212
Introduc¬
tion.
Osteology.
1 C H T H Y
high plates, while in low and flat heads their longitudinal
axis is the longest. In skulls ot the ordinary form, they are
sub-circular, and are perforated as in the Carp, or this pti-
foration may be replaced by a deep anterior notch, as in the
Cod. Its connections vary with its relative size, and,
according as the petrosal, which interposes between it and
the ex-occipital, is greater or smaller or wholly wanting.
The parietals or spine of this arch are most commonly two
in number. In the Cyprinoid and Salamandroid fishes,
they unite above by a longitudinal suture (the sagittal); in
the Cyprinoid Catastomi a mesial rectangular cartilaginous
plate interposes between the ossified side plates ; in the
Sahnonoids they soon coalesce ; and in some Siluroids they
coalesce with the supra-occipital as well as with each other.
In the Pike, Perch, and Cod, and most osseous fishes, the
parietals are separated from each other by an anterior pro¬
longation of the supra-occipital. The mastoids or parapo-
physes of the parietal vertebra are interposed between the
ali-sphenoids and parietals, and project outwards and back¬
wards farther than the par-occipitals, forming the second
strong transverse process at the side ot the cranium. Ihis
process is developed from the outer margin of the bone.
The inner side of the bone lodges part of one ot the semi¬
circular canals. The great cavity named “otocrane,”
which lodges the proper acoustic capsule or petrosal, whether
osseous or cartilaginous, is formed by the ex-occipital, par-
occipital, ali-sphenoid, mastoid, and sometimes the parietal
and supra-occipital.
III. The Prosencephalic or frontal arch is based on the
pre-sphenoid already described in connection with the
basi-sphenoid. The orhito-sphenoids or neurapophyses of
the frontal vertebra are usually square, but sometimes semi¬
circular or semi-elliptic, as in the Cod; larger in the Mala-
copteri, but very small usually in the Acanthopteri, and
cartilaginous in the Sclerogenidce. The olfactory nerves
pass out of the skull by the superior interspace of the
orbito-sphenoids, and the optic nerves by their inferior
interspace or by a direct perforation. The mid-frontal
bone completes this arch above, and always enters into the
formation of the cranial cavity though its major part foims
the roof of the orbits. It is single, and sends up a median
crest in the Cod, the Ephippus, and some other fishes, but
is more commonly divided along the median line. Each ot
the halves sends up its own crest in the Tunny. In the
Salamandroid fishes, each frontal sends down a vertical
plate to the sphenoid, thus forming a canal through which
the olfactory nerves run. The side walls of this canal
make a double bony partition between the orbits. The
post-frontals or parapophyses of the frontal vertebra partly
underlie the mastoids, and complete their prominent crest.
IV. The Rhinencephalic arch terminates the axis of the
skull anteriorly, and protects the olfactory ganglions and
nerves. The centrum of the nasal vertebra is named the
vomer. Its posterior point is wedged into the under part
of the pre-sphenoid; it expands and becomes thicker, an¬
teriorly, where its lateral angles are articulated to the pre-
frontals. Its upper surface supports the nasal bone, and
its under surface, which enters into the composition of the
roof of the mouth, is in many fishes dentiferous. Ihe
same is often the case with the palatine bones, which abut
against it laterally, and also form part of the root ot the
mouth. The presence or absence of these teeth has been
made much use of for characterizing genera and large
groups of the osseous fishes. In Lepidosteus the vomer is
cleft by a median fissure. In Polypterus it is confluent
with the basi-sphenoid. The pre-frontals or neurapo¬
physes of the nasal vertebra defend and support the ol¬
factory ganglions, bound the orbits anteriorly, give a surface
of suspension to the palatine bones, and through them for
the palato-maxillary arch; and they also give attachment
to the large pre-orbital or lachrymal scale bone when this
0 L 0 G Y.
exists. In the Cyprinoids and most Clupeoids the pre- Introduc-
frontals form part of the interobital septum. In the Con- tion.
geridce we recognise the pre-frontals in the confluent parts ^oiogy.
of the nasal vertebra by the external groove conducting v''*’’''
the olfactory nerves to the nasal capsules, and by the in¬
ferior process from which the palatine bone is suspended.
In the Murcenidec also the pre-frontals are plainly confluent
with the nasal bone, and furnish the well-marked articular
surfaces for the palato-maxillary bone. In the Cod the
palatine arch is chiefly, but not wholly, suspended to the
pre-frontals. The nasal-bone or spine of the most anteiior
arch of the skull is usually single, and terminates forwards
in a thick obtuse extremity. In the Sahnonoids and some
other fishes, it is broad, but not deep; in Istiophorus it is
long and narrow; in the Discoboles and Lophobranchii it
is a short vertical compressed plate, and it is wanting in Lo-
phius and Diodon, or merely membranous. It is articulated
above and behind to the frontals and pre-frontals; and be¬
low, either directly or by cartilage, to the vomer. In the
Flying Gurnard it has no immediate connection with the
vomer; but this is a rare exception. In the Salamandroid
fishes, the nasal is divided by a median suture. 1 he horn¬
like projection from the forehead of JSaseus is formed
Fig. 16.
Naseus longicornis, one of the Theutyidw.
chiefly from the frontal bone, a small nasal being aiticu-
lated beneath. This nasal is trifid anteriorly; its lateral
divisions articulating with the pre-maxillaries, as in Citha-
rinus. The turbinal bone or osseous capsule of the nose,
belonging to the splanchno-skeleton, is situated at the side
of, or above the nasal; the pre-maxillary and maxillary
bones are usually attached to its extremity through the
medium of cartilage. In the Mureenidce, the normal ele¬
ments of the nasal vertebra coalesce into a single bone.
The spine of this vertebra or nasal bone forms the usual
obtuse extremity beneath the skin of the upper part of
the snout, and it is dentiferous, as in the Lepidosiren; it is
intimately confluent anteriorly with the centrum or vomer,
the limits being indicated by the interruption of the median
series of vomerine and nasal teeth.
This completes a compendious view of the neural arches
of the four cranial vertebrae which have for their primary
function the protection of the ganglionic brain, in which
the spinal chord ends anteriorly. From the complete os¬
seous skull of a fish, there are many descending modifica¬
tions, until we come to the vermiform Lancelet, which wants
the cerebral expansion altogether; the gelatinous chorda
dorsalis” being terminated by a tapering end, invested by a
membrane, without any addition of cartilaginous or osseous
b. Sense capsules of the splanchno-skeleton intercalated
with the neural arches. Some of these have been already
noticed. In the Ammoccetes, cartilage is developed for the
protection of the acoustic organ, in a skull, otherwise
mostly fibro-membranous. (a.) The bones entering into
the formation of the otocrane for the lodgement of the
labyrinth have been named above; but it is the petrosal
which is the bone specially designed to form the acoustic
capsule, though in fishes it is less confined to that function
than in the higher vertebrals in which it exclusively enve¬
lopes the labyrinth. Its ossification commences late in the
osseous fishes. It is very small in the Cyprinoids, and in
them Cuvier describes it as a dismemberment of the
ICHTHYOLOGY.
In trod uc- mastoid; but in the Perch, where it is more developed, he
tion. recognises it under its proper name. In the Cod it has a
Osteology, larger size, and the two otocranes are completely sepa-
^ rated from each other.
b. The optic capsule or sclerotic investment of the eye
is cartilaginous in the Chondropterygians and in semi-
osseous fishes, but in most osseous fishes it is bony. An
orbit for lodging the eye-ball is formed by the pre-sphenoid,
orbito-sphenoid, frontal, post-frontal, pre-frontal and pala¬
tine hones; its wide outer opening is often circumscribed
by the chain of sub-orbitals or scale-bones below, and less
frequently by one or more supra-orbitals above. In the
Shads, Erythrinus, Citharinus, Uydrocyon, Cyprinus, and
many other Malacopteri, and in Synbranchus, the orbits
are separated from one another by an osseous septum, but
in general the septum is incomplete or wanting; in Lepi-
dosteus and Polypterus it is double.
c. The nose-capsule is formed by the ethmoidal which
enters into the walls of the cranium, and the turbinal which
belongs to the nose, other bones, as the vomer and nasal,
being accessaries. The whole capsule is cartilaginous in
cartilaginous and semi-osseous fishes, and the ethmoidal
part continues so in many osseous fishes. The cartilaginous
capsules and pituitary expansions are proportionally large
in the Chondropterygii and Lepidosiren, communicating
with each other in the latter by membranous slits; but in
the higher fishes they form a pair. The turbinals in osse¬
ous fishes are generally thin, more or less elongated, scales
situated at the sides of the nasal bone and ascending px-o-
cesses of the pre-maxillaries.
aa. The inferior or haemal arches of the cranial verte¬
brae are essentially four in number in the osseous fishes,
and in most of these have radiating appendages. A special
visceral system of bony arches, called “ branchial,” also
exists in fishes for the support and movement of the gills.
4. Palato-maxillary arch. Of this inverted arch, the
palatine bones are the piers, and their points of suspension
are their attachments to the pre-frontals, the vomerine, and
nasal bones. The arch is completed by the maxillary and
pre-maxillary bones, the symphysis of the latter forming
its apex. The palatine or pleurapophysis of the nasal
vertebra articulates at its peripheral extremity with the
maxillary, to which it affords a more or less moveable joint.
In the Pax-rot fishes and Diodons the articxxlation is analo¬
gous to that of the mandible below, with the tympanic
pedicle. In the Salamandroid fishes it is a fixed suture.
In Mormyrus these ends of the palatines meet and unite
at the mesian line. In fig. 19, representing the jaws of
Alepisaurus, the palatines are seen to be strongly armed,
each of them having two pairs of tall lancet-shaped teeth,
one pair nearly under the nostrils, the second pair not so
tall, further back, and closely followed by ten much shorter
ones. The maxillary or haemapophysis of the nasal verte¬
bra lies between the palatine and pre-maxillary. On the
extent to which these two bones enter severally into the
orifice of the mouth, and on their dentiferous or eden¬
tulous conditions, many divisions of fishes made by ichthy¬
ologists are mainly founded. In the Salmonoids the max¬
illary joins to the lower end of the pre-maxillary, forming,
Fig. 17.
Coilia Playfairii, one of tlie Clupeidce of the China seas.
together with it, the upper half of the border of the mouth,
213
and it supports teeth. The same form prevails with the Introduc-
Clupeoids. In Thrissa and Coilia of this family the tl0"-
pre-maxillary is very small, and the large dentiferous max- s 60 °^'
illary is prolonged beyond the corner of the mouth (fig. 17).
In the Plectognathi the two bones coalesce. In Lepidos-
teus these bones also form a single dentiferous arch, but
they are subdivided into many pieces, a condition which
seems to have prevailed with the ancient Salamandroid
fishes. It is dentiferous and lax-gely developed in Polypterus,
but very diminutive in the Siluroids, and wanting in the
Muraenidce.
The pre-maxillary, or the haemal spine of the nasal ver-
tebra, is more commonly directed transversely than longitu¬
dinally. Its nasal branch, or pedicle, is of unusual length in
fishes with protractile snouts, such as the Menidce, Zeidae,
Emmelichthys nitidus (Erythrichthys Schlegel), from Western Australia.
Epibulus, Emmelichthys, and others. Commonly, its labial
border is beset with teeth; and in many groups of fish
it forms, with its fellow and the mandible, the whole mar¬
gin of the mouth, the maxillaries in that case lying in folds
of skin. This extension of the pre-maxillary is well shown
in the Alepisaurus, a predaceous Sphyroenoid; there it is
closely set by a series of small teeth (fig. 19). The small
bony piece above the maxillary in the Trout, Herring, and
Pike, seems to belong to the series of mucous or scale bones.
The diverging appendage of the palato-maxillary arch
consists of the pterygoid and entopterygoid bones, which
are the less constant parts of the arch. They are connate
with the palatine in most Salmonoids and Eels, while Mu-
raena wants the entopterygoid, and its pterygoid is discon¬
nected from the maxillary arch. Most fishes, however, have
both bones.
3. The tympano-mandibular arch has the true inverted
or haemal character, its apex formed by the epi-tympanics
or pleurapophyses of the fi-ontal vertebra hanging down¬
wards below the vertebral axis of the skull. In most fishes,
its lower end is bifid, and supports two inverted arches,
the mandibular and the hyoidean. The meso-tympanic is
articulated above to the epi-tympanic and pre-opercular,
anteriorly to the pre-tympanic, and by its lower end to the
214
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Introduc- hypo-tympanic, reaching almost to the mandibular trochlea.
tion. jg thg symplectic,? of* Cmvier, and it is confluent in the
Osteology. giiuroia, Munenoid, and some other fishes with the epi-
tympanic. The pre-tympanic “caisse” or “os tympanicum”
of Cuvier, receives, in its posterior margin, the fore part of
the meso-tympanic, and the upper and fore part of the
hypo-tympanic. It is confluent with the lattei in Conger
and Murama, and it does not join either of these bones in
the Lepidosteus. The hypo-tympanic bears the convex
articular trochlea for the lower jaw upon its inferior apex.
The Epibulus presents a remarkable, much elongated,
and slender modification of it, carrying the lower jaw at
an unusual distance from the base of the skull, and al¬
lowing it to swing backwards and forwards on its long
pedicle as on a pendulum. In the Murcenidce the tympanic
pedicle is a strong triangular plate affixed to the cranium
by its base or shorter side, and carrying the mandibular
joint backwards beyond the occiput. The mandible or
lower jaw is the haemapophysis of the frontal vertebra, and
completes the arch below by its ligamentous or bony sym¬
physis with its fellow. Each branch or half consists most
commonly of two pieces, sometimes of three or more,
the one articulated to the suspensary pedicle being the
proper haemapophysis, and the extreme one completing
the arch and supporting the teeth being the haemal spine.
The diverging apparatus of the tympano-mandibular arch
consists of the opercular bones of the gill-cover, which, by
its movements, opens and closes the branchial aperture on
each side of the head, thereby regulating the currents
through the branchial cavity. It may be considered as a
kind of short and broad fin. The first or most anterior,
and the chief medium of attachment of the appendage, is
the pre-opercular, which commonly has a crescentic or
angular form. In the Cod it is forked above, and in the
Sclerogenidce the enormously developed second suborbital
scale bone crosses the cheek to be articulated to it. 1 he
opercular is commonly the largest of the remaining pieces
of this appendage, and is chiefly connected with the poste¬
rior margin of the pre-opercular, but very generally it is
partially attached above to the outer angle ot the epi-tym-
Fig. 20.
Hyoid bone of the Perch.
panic. In the LopJdus, its posterior margin is coasted
a long slender fin ray, and the sub-opercular, which forms introduc-
the posterior and lower angle of the gill-cover, carries out tion.
the resemblance to a fin by its radiated structure. All the Osteology,
framework of this fin has the form of rays in the Plagio-
stomes. The lowermost piece, called the inter-opercular, is
articulated to the pre-opercular above, the sub-opercular
and angle of the opercular behind, and usually to the back
parts of the mandible in front. In conjunction with the
pre-opercular, it is more elongated in the very long head
of Fistularia than the other two pieces of the appendage.
It is wanting in the Siluri, and the sub-opercular is wanting
in the Shad. In Murcena, the small opercular bones are
articulated only to the lower part of the tympanic pedicle.
The smoothness or serratures of the posterior edges of these
bones, more especially of the pre-opercular, and the num¬
bers and situations of the spines which emanate from them,
furnish characters to ichthyologists for the discrimination of
many species and groups of species.
2. The hyoidean arch is suspended in osseous fishes, as
we have already had occasion to say, to the mastoid, through
the medium of a fork of the epi-tympanic bone; and its
bony arch is completed by the two small, cubical basi-
hyals. The anterior part of the arch is formed by the stylo-
hyal, epi-hyal, and cerato-hyal, the first-named being joined
at its upper end by ligament to the epi-tympanic, and the
others descending from it in succession. The cerato-hyal
is the longest and largest, and supports the diverging ap¬
pendix of the hyoidean arch named branchiostegals or gdl-
cover rays, and on which the membrane that closes the
branchial chamber is extended. The number of these rays
varies greatly. They are only three, and these comparatively
broad and flat in the Carps, while in Flops saurus they
amount to more than thirty. They are of very great length
in the Angler, and spread out the gill membrane like a great
bag on each side of the head.
Fig. 21.
Gills of the Perch.
In Pisoodonophis cancrivorus the branchiostegals are
thirty-three in number on each side, very long, and as fine
as hairs, and the curves they make in the branchiostegal
membrane are different on the two sides of the head.
d. The branchial arches, which appertain to the system
of the visceral skeleton, succeed the hyoidean arch, and are
more or less closely connected with its key-stone, the basi-
hyals. Six of these arches are usually developed in em¬
bryo, and five are usually permanent, four of them supporting
the gills, and the fifth circumscribing the opening of the
gullet and beset with teeth. This last is called the pharyn-
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Introduc- geal arch, the rest branchial arches. The arches adhere by
tion. their lower extremities to a chain of ossicles, and curving
Osteology. as they ascend, nearly meet at the base of the cranium, to
which they are attached by ligamentous and cellular tissue.
Each of the first three branchial arches, independent of the
basal key bones, or basi-branchials, consists of three or four
pieces, which have a certain elastic or flexible movement
on each other. The lowest of these pieces is the short
hypo-branchial; the next, the long cerato-branchial, is
grooved on the outside, and supports the dentigerous pro¬
cesses, or tubercles, named rakers. Above this is an epi-
branchial similarly formed. To it, in the second and third
arches, the short, broad, dentiferous epi-branchial is com¬
monly attached. The fourth arch consists of the cerato-
branchial, the epi-branchial, and the pharyngo-branchial
pieces. The fifth arch usually consists simply of the cerato-
branchial element, but in Anabas it supports a pharyngo-
branchial. This last-named bone is often expanded, and
more or less dentiferous: it is termed by Cuvier “ the in¬
ferior pharyngeal bone,” and the upper dentiferous portions
of the arches are called the superior pharyngeal bones.”
In Coitus, these superior bones are blended into one piece.
A peculiar development of the epi-branchial and pharyngo-
branchials of the first two or three arches, serves the office,
in a group of fishes, the Labyrinthibranchii, of retaining
a supply of water for moistening the gills when the fishes
are temporarily out of their proper element.
1. Scapular arch. This inverted cranial arch is attached
to the par-occipital; or to that bone and the mastoid; or to
the same bone and the petrosal, as in the Cod; or to the
par-occipital and basi-occipital, being essentially the haemal
arch of the occipital bone, to which it is constantly attached
wholly or in part. In the Eels it is feebly developed, and
only loosely suspended behind the skull; and in the Pla-
giostomes it is removed further back to a distance from its
proper vertebra. Its superior piece is the supra-scapula, then
follows the scapula, and the arch is completed below by the
union of the frequently very strong and firm coracoid with
its fellow. The coracoids defend and support the heart, and
give attachment to the diaphragm, which separates the
pericardial and abdominal cavities.
The scapular arch usually supports a diverging appendage
on each side, constituting the pectoral fin. The pectoral
fin rays are analogous to the fingers of the higher animals,
the lowest ray, when the fin is laid back to the side of the
fish, answering to the thumb. The bones which support
these rays are homologues of the bones of the fore ex¬
tremities of the higher vertebrals, and have been named
accordingly. In the Cod tribe, and most other fishes, there
is, however, no separate representative of the humerus.
The radius is of enormous size in the Lampris and in
Flying-fish. It is anchylosed to the ulna in Silurus for the
firmer support of the pectoral spine, and in Lophius, both
radius and ulna are extremely small, and connate with the
coracoid. The carpals, usually four or five, but sometimes
only two, progressively increase in length from the ulna to
the radial side. In the Wolf-fish they are broad flat bones.
The metacarpals and phalangeals are in the Cod twenty in
number, all soft-jointed, and sometimes bifurcate at the
distal end.
In the osseous fishes the pectoral fins present a series of
modifications. In the Acanthopterygii the ulnar ray is a
hard unjointed spine. In the Gurnards, Choridactyles,
and several other genera of Sclerogenidce, the three lower
rays are detached and free, and there is reason to believe
that these rays are used like fingers as organs of touch when
215
the animal swims close to the sandy bottom of the sea. Introduc-
The pectoral fins are very largely developed in the Exo- tion>
ccetus; it is also large in Dactylopterus, Trigla, and Prio- 0steology-
notus, as well as in several other forms of the Sclero-
genidoe.
In the Cod and Carp there is a single styliform bone,
named the epi-coracoid, because it is attached to the upper
end of the coracoid. In the Perch, and most other fishes,
it consists of two pieces. In Centriscus scolopax, Argyrei-
osus vomer and Siganus, it is joined by its lower end to its
fellow, thus completing an inverted arch behind the sca¬
pular one. The epi-coracoids are absent or are very slender
spines in the Wolf-fish, Mullet, Goby, Stickleback, Remora,
Cepola, Uranoscopus, the Blennies, Siluroids, and Apodal
fishes. The apodal Sandlance, however, possesses the epi-
coracoids.
Ventral jins. The rays of the ventral fins are supported
by two bones, which are named pubic bones, and represent
the lower part of an inverted haemal arch. In no fish is
this incomplete pelvic arch directly attached to the vertebral
column. In all fossil fishes belonging to deposits anterior
to the chalk, the ventrals are placed towards the posterior
end of the abdomen, and hence, and from the consideration
of the position of the rudiment of the ventral in the em¬
bryo fish, it may be inferred that these pubic bones are the
haemapophyses of the last abdominal vertebra. In Acan-
thopteri the anterior ray of the ventral may be spinous.
In the Malacopteri all the ventral rays are soft, multi-
articulate, and bifurcate. The normal position of the ven¬
tral haemapophysis is under its proper vertebra, but the rela¬
tive length of the pubic bones in different fishes, places them
under the abdomen, or pectoral fins, or gills; hence Lin¬
naeus’s division of the fishes into abdominal, thoracic, and
jugular, and, when the ventrals are want¬
ing, apodal. Cuvier substituted the term
subrachial for thoracic and jugular. The
ventrals are better developed in the Pla-
giostomes than in other fishes, and con¬
nected with this fin, in the male Plagio-
stomes and Chimerce, there is the peculiar
intromittent organ of generation named
the “clasper.” mg.-xi.
In the Gobies (fig. 22) and GW0_ United ventrals of Go-
rhynchus, the ventrals are united to each Chinese fish,
other by a membrane; and in Cyclopterus, Gobiesox, and
Fig. 23.
Lepadogasterpuniceus, a Discobole or Cyclopteroid. A sucking apparatus is
formed round the basis of the ventrals.
Lepadogaster (fig. 23), they so united as to form a suc¬
torial foot, by which these fish can attach themselves to a
rock.
We have allotted more space to the skeleton of fishes
than our limits will permit us to devote to the rest of the
ichthyic structure, because the soft parts and dermal system
cannot be properly apprehended or referred to without a
competent knowledge of the bony or cartilaginous endo-
skeleton by which they are sustained.1
In adopting Professor Owen’s osteological system, we have thought it proper, to avoid mistake,
we could; but as our extracts from his elaborate and exhaustive work are very compendious, and not
his lectures, they are not marked by inverted commas as quotations.
to use his own words as often as
always in the order he pursued in
216
ICHTHYOLOGY.
C. Dermal or Exo-skeleton. To this system the scales be¬
long, each being secreted,
like a tooth, in a depres¬
sion or pocket of the skin,
to which it adheres un¬
der the cuticle. They are
very generally imbricated
with the posterior end ex¬
truded and free, but the
skin usually extends over
the surface of the anterior
end to a greater or less
extent; or the scale may
be entirely imbedded be¬
neath the cuticle. Pro- Fig. 24.
A o-ocsi? rnnsidered A Cycloid scale of Lampanyctes (or Mycto-
tCSSOr Agassiz consiueieu reSpjen(j€ni> one ot the nocturnal
the form of the scales to Scopelince of the great group of Salmo-
bear so strong a relation to ni
the rest of the ichthyic structure and the general economy
of a fish, that he founded upon it his primary divisions of the
class, of which he characterized four. The fish of his Cycloid
order have scales composed of concentric layers ot horn
scales (fig. 28); in others the teeth are more persistent, Introduc-
though the earliest, which are the nearest to the centre tion.
of the disk, are generally the smallest. There are some bermal
Skeleton,
Fig. 28.
Fig. 29.
Fig. 28. Ctenoid scale of Gobius ommatuvus.
... 29. Ctenoid scale of Psettus argenteus, a Clisetodontoid.
scaleless groups associated with Ctenoids. Scales of this
and the preceding order have most commonly grooves ra¬
diating from the centre of the disk over that part which
remains in the cuticular pouch, and crenatures on the basal
Fig. 25.
Scale of a Labroid.
Fig. 30.
Scale from the bead of
Macrourus Australis.
Fig. 31.
Ctenoid scale of Lethrinus cyno-
cheilus.one of tbe Norfolk Island
Sparidas.
or bone, without spinous margins, and not covered by enamel.
He believed that a close relationship existed between the
absence of pungent teeth on the scales, and the want of
spinous rays in the fins, and that
this order has a considerable corre¬
spondence with the Malacopterygii
of former ichthyologists. The Cy-
clo-Labridce, however, and many
Gobiidce, are exceptions to this
correspondence, and others exist. Fig. 26.
Most commonly the Cycloid scales cycloid scale of Gadopsis mar-
axe imbricated ; occasionally they ^fth
are placed side by side, in contact pectorals, it inhabits tbe
but not overlapping; sometimes
they are more remote ; and in Anguilla, the narrow, oblong
cycloid scales are in
groups lying at right
angles to each other, so as
to produce a kind of
lattice-work under the
cuticle. Some genera of
fishes with smooth scale¬
less skins come into this
order. The Ctenoid
order of fish have horny
or unenamelled bony
scales, with spinous teeth
on the posterior edges of
the layers like a comb
(figs. 27, 28, 29, and
Q1 \ A o +I-10 coaloo irronr Ctenoid scale of Scatophagus multifasciatus,
o*-)’ 21S Uie sCcties gxuw one of the Squammipennes or Chcctodontidce
their spinules wear off, from the Australian seas.
and in some species we observe no more than a single
series on the posterior edge of the last formed layer of the
Fig. 27.
edge corresponding with the number of grooves. In both
orders, also, the most common circumscription of the scale
is circular or subcircular ; occasionally they are irregular or
oblique; and the scales in one part of the fish differ from
those in another, in outline, and more frequently in size.
In some Labroids the largest scales are on the base ot the
caudal fin, but in most of the osseous fishes the largest lie
towards the middle of the sides of the body. The Ctenoid
scales are mostly imbricated.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
217
Introduc¬
tion.
Dermal
Skeleton.
In Ganoid fishes the plates or scales are covered by a
Fig. 33.
Scales of Macrourus ccelorhynchus.
thick coat of enamel, and are sometimes of considerable di¬
mensions ; and in many of
the extinct species which
compose the bulk of this
order the enamelled plate is
rhomboidal, with a hook at
its anterior angle, which
assists in retaining it in its
place. The recent species
included by Agassiz in this
order do not form a
natural group.
Fishes of the Placoid
order have the skin covered
with irregular plates of
hard bone, varying greatly
in shape and size. In the
Rays and Monk fish they
form large, rough, or spinous
tubercles ; and in the Dog¬
fish, fine-grained shagreen.
As formed by Agassiz, the Fig. 34.
order corresponds with the Scale of Macrourus trachyrhynchus.
Cariilaginei or (Jhondropterygii of authors, and includes
species with smooth skins. For the arrangement of fossil
fish these divisions were well devised, but, as may be ex¬
pected, a system based on the variable characters of a
Fig. 36.
Scales from different parts of the body of Aleuteres variabilis.
portion of the dermal skeleton fails in defining natural
groups. Used in conjunction, however, with the other
parts of the structure, Agassiz’s discoveries are of great im¬
portance for the purpose of classification.
Along the side of an osseous fish, there isalinerunningffom
VOL. XII.
the head to the caudal fin, or even through the latter, called Introduc¬
tion.
Dermal
Skeleton.
Fig. 37.
Ctenoid scales from the lateral line at the base of the caudal fin of Caranx pa-
rapistes, a Scomberoid from North Australia.
the lateral line. It is nearer the back in some fishes than in
Fig. 38.
Cycloid scale from the lateral line of Labrus laticlavius,
Cyclo-Labroid.
an Australian
others; very generally it runs at mid-height, sometimes it
ceases a long way before
the caudal fin; and in
Chirus there are several
lateral lines, the upper
one coasting the back,
and the lower one the
edge of the belly. This
line is muciferous, being
connected with a series ris
of glands. In theMw^Jt^Z-Cycloid scale from the lateral line of Odax
l(JB tll0 mucous ossicles ti genus closely ullied. to Sc&vus*
lying like the scales under the cuticle are scarcely visible,
and in many scaleless vermiform apodals the line is still less
conspicuous; but in these
slimy fishes the whole skin is
densely studded with glands
and their ducts. The scales
that cover this line, or lie in
immediate contact with it,
above and below, are con¬
structed with a tubular arch
along their middle, or a
simple perforation in the disk,
or with a mere notch on the
edge for the exit of the mu-
coduct (figs. 25, 29, 32, 38, xig.*u.
39, 40, 41, 43, and 44). The a Cycloid scale from the laterallineof
scales are sometimes larger °st^itfand
than the ordinary ones in the Polynesia-
same fish, occasionally they are smaller, and sometimes they
Fig. 41.
Fig. 41. A cycloid scale from the lateral line of Saurus undosquamis, on
the North A ustralian Scopelince.
... 42. Ctenoid scale of Flatycephalus cirrhonasus, one of the Sclerogenidc
Botany Bay. ^
are the only ones, the rest of the body being naked. Very
2 E
218
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Introduc¬
tion.
Dermal
Skeleton.
frequently they have strange irregular forms (fig. 44), and
Fig. 44.
of acutely bent dermal bones, and the Dory has two rows Introduc-
of plates along the belly. In the Ostracionidce and Syn- tion.
gnathidce the fish is wholly or completely encased in scales, bermal
so connected as to admit of few motions of the body. And ^keIet°n.
in the Gurnards, and many other Sclerogenida, some
genera of Siluridce., the great Sudis among the Clupeidce,
and Polypterm among the Ganoids, the cranial and hu¬
meral bones of the endo-skeleton present hard, rough, sha-
greened surfaces exteriorly, in which the soft epidermis is not
perceptible, and the resemblance to the dermal plates of the
Sturgeon is close. In many other fishes, also, the cranial
bones emit processes from their outer surfaces, which serve
as canals for the mucoducts.
Fig. 43.
Fig. 43. Figured Cycloid scale from the lateral line of Hameroccetes acantho-
rhynchus, a Gobioid inhabiting the seas of New Zealand.
... 44. Scale from the lateral line of Trigla pleuracanthica, one of the
Australian Sclerogenidce,
they are in some cases peculiarly armed. The lateral
line may be traced forwards on the head to one or more
little bones named supra-temporals, and thence over the
cheek along the sub-orbital series of bones to the first and
usually largest of the series, named the pre-orbital, as may
be well observed in fig. 8, page 207. All these bones are
constructed so as to protect the muciferous canals, and
in many fishes they are mere osseous pipes. In the
Gadidce and in Macrourus, the pre-orbital and following
bones of the chain are largely developed and fold down,
forming large semi-canals. These bones are strongly armed
in some Acanthopteri, particularly the Sclerogenidce, in
which the second of the sub-orbitar chain emits a spine or
series of spines or tubercles, and is prolonged to articulate
with the pre-opercular. The marginal serratures of the
pre-orbital are conspicuous in Mugil, and furnish charac¬
ters for other genera of Acanthopteri. The supra-
orbitals, though less constant than the sub-orbitals,
belong to the same system. The Carp has one above
each orbit, and the Lepidosteus three. The turbinals are
also considered by Professor Owen to appertain to the der¬
mal system. They are wanting, together with the sub¬
orbitals, in many of the serpentiform apodals; but the tur¬
binals exist, though of very small size, in the Conger.
Of the other dermal bones of fishes our notice must be
very cursory. The head of the Sturgeon is protected by
large dermal plates closely arranged, and the rows continued
along the trunk of the fish are, as we have mentioned above,
examples of the Placoid scales of Agassiz. The sternum,
Fig. 45.
Head of Bovichthys variegatus, one of the Uranoscopidce from Sydney to show
the branching mucoducts. ’
as it has been called, of the Herring, is formed of a series
SECTION IY.—THE MUSCLES AND MUSCULAR MOTIONS OF
FISHES.
The spinal column, composed of numerous articulations
united by cartilages which permit of certain movements,
curves with great facility from side to side ; but the vertical
motion is much more restricted, chiefly in consequence of
the projection of the upper and under spinous processes of
the vertebrae.
The great organ of movement in all fishes is the tail.
The muscles by which it is brought into play extend in
lengthened masses on either side of the vertebral column.
The body being rendered specifically lighter by the dis¬
tention of the swim-bladder when that exists, is impelled
forwards by the rapid flexure of the tail acting laterally
upon the water. The head of fishes exercises but slight
movement, independent of the rest of the body; but the
tympano-mandibular arch, often the maxillary and pre-
maxillaries, the hyoid and branchial apparatus, and occa¬
sionally the scapular arch, have more or less motion. The
finny terminations of the last named appendage and of the
pelvic bones, as well as the vertical fins, are seldom at rest.
SECTION Y. THE NERVOUS SYSTEM AND SENSES OF FISHES.
The spinal chord, which terminates anteriorly in an en¬
largement named the brain, consists of a dorsal and ventral
pair of columns, the former having for its function the re¬
ceiving of impressions made on the peripheral surfaces of
the body by external objects, and the latter, that of direct¬
ing the voluntary muscular movements,— they are the
nervous centres of animal life. Each consists of an inti¬
mate aggregation of nervine matter named ganglions.
From the sensorial and motor columns on each side of the
chord, nervous filaments, more or less in number, proceed,
and being invested by a common membrane, pass out be¬
tween the vertebrae to all parts of the body; one on each
side between every pair of vertebrae, the number of verte¬
brae being in fact regulated primarily by the number of
pairs of spinal nerves. It would be correct to say that the
nerves of motion arise from the motor column, and that
the nerves of sensation terminate in the sensorial one. For,
though the trunks of the nerves lie in a common envelope,
the distribution of the former may be compared to a tree
having one or more roots, with a trunk giving origin to
numerous branches, and innumerable twigs ; while the sen¬
sorial nerves are like streams formed by minute rills,
uniting in a river that terminates by one or by several mouths.
To serve the involuntary muscles, as the heart and arterial
system, and also to supply the viscera that perform the
functions of digestion, assimilation, secretion, or to preside
over organic life there is a separate system of ganglia and
network of nerves that has been named the sympathetic.
Under this general description the nervous systems of all
the vertebrals may be comprehended; but in the higher
classes, the development is much more full than in fishes,
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Introduc¬
tion.
Nervous
System.
and among fishes the Lancelet offers the simplest nervous
system of the whole series of vertebrated animals.
The spinal chord, or the nervous columns, for which, in¬
dependent of its protecting investments, the term myelon
/ has been well devised by Professor Owen, is extremely
short in those fishes whose lumpish shape originates in the
abreviation and coalescence of the posterior vertebrae. In
Orthagoriscus and Lampris, the whole myelon appears to
be a minute ganglionic process of the brain. In Tetrodon
and Diodon it is also very short, or about a twentieth of
the length of the fish ; but the rest of the neural canal is in
them occupied by a bundle of caudal nerves, usually named,
from their resemblance to the tail of a horse, cauda equina.
Lophius has a myelon which reaches the twelfth vertebra;
but its pointed end is concealed by a long cauda equina.
In most fishes there is no cauda equina, and the myelon
runs to the end of the neural canal.
In fishes the brain consists of a few ganglionic masses,
which vary in number in different groups of species, and,
as has been mentioned, are wholly wanting in the lowest
form of the class. It is proportionally larger in the young
fish, and Professor Owen states that, on an average, its
weight is only a three-thousandth part of that of the whole
fish. Cams estimated the brain of the Burbot {Lota) as
forming the seven hundred and twentieth part of the en¬
tire weight; and that of the Pike has been found to be the
thirteen hundred and fifth part.
We mean to mention only the more constant or impor¬
tant encephalic masses, and even these in a very cursory
way. The myelon, on expanding into the brain, assumes
the name of “ epencephalon,” which is protected by
the occipital neural arch of the skull. In proceeding
from the spinal column onwards towards the nose, the
first rounded masses that we observe in the epencephalon
are not constantly present in fishes, nor do they exist in
any other class of vertebrals. They are called “ vagal
lobes,” and are largely developed in the Cyprinidce, and
enormously in the Torpedo, Narcine, and other electric
Rays. In these they supply the large electric nerves.
They are also large in Gymnotus, which, however, does not
receive its electric nerves from these organs. The medulla
oblongata, and cerebellum, are more constant parts of the
occipital division of the brain. Fishes that possess much
muscular energy, and take their prey by the velocity of
their movements, have the largest cerebellum; and the
other extreme of its size is found in the feeble Myxine or
Glutinous Hag which passes its parasitic existence buried in
the flesh of other fishes. It is also a mere fold in Polyp-
terus, and is very small in the sedentary Discoboli, whose
ventral fins are employed as suckers to attach the fish to
the rocks. A mong osseous fishes the cerebellum attains the
largest size in the warmer-blooded, impetuous Tunny ; and
in the cartilaginous Sharks it is still more largely developed.
The next division of the brain, the “ mesencephalon,” pro¬
tected by the neural arch of the parietal vertebra, is usually
larger than the other divisions in osseous fishes. To it be¬
long the two optic lobes, whose function is denoted by their
name. They are hollow in most fishes, and are often
larger than the cerebellum, as in Polypterus and Lepido-
siren, of equal size with that organ in Eels, and smaller in
the Sharks and in Amblyopsis. Their existence at all in
this fish, which is blind, and in the Myxine, which is equally
destitute of sight, shows that they have some other function
than merely communicating with the optic nerves. The
“ prosencephalon,” inclosed in the neural arch of the frontal
vertebra, corresponds to the cerebral hemispheres of the
higher vertebrals. It is smallest in the Myxines, equal to
the cerebellum in the Perch, and exceeds in size that of
the Stickleback, Gurnard, Lepidosteus, Lucioperca, Am-
blyopsis, and Raia. In Polypterus and Lepidosiren it sur¬
passes all the rest of the brain.
219
Nervous
System
The fourth and last division of the brain, protected by Introduc
the nasal neural arch, consists of two lobes, named “ rhinen- tion-
cephala” or “ olfactory lobes,” as they send forwards the
nerves that supply the organ of smell.
Organ of Vision.—The position, direction, and dimen¬
sions of the eyes of fishes vary greatly. In some they have
an upward aspect, and are often very close upon each other;
in others they are lateral, and so wide apart as to be even
directed slightly downwards. But of all anomalies, one of
the most extraordinary which their position presents, is that
of the Pleuronectes (such as Turbot, Flounders, Soles, &c.),
in which the two eyes are placed, as it were, the one above
the other, and both upon the same side of the head. In
certain species of the Eels and Sifuri, they are so small as
to be scarcely visible ; while in other groups, such as Pria-
canthus, Pomatomus, and Orthagoriscus, they surpass in
proportional diameter whatever is known of the same organs
in the higher classes. Some ichthyologists have remarked
that fishes which habitually descend to great depths in the
ocean have large eyes; and in the internal parasites and in
fishes which live in subterranean waters, we have examples
of the most rudimentary form of the organ of vision. In
the Glutinous Hag, and in the Amblyopsis spelceus, the eye
is merely a minute black fold of skin on which a cerebral nerve
terminates. In Apterichthys ccecus, the eye-ball, still rudi¬
mentary, is covered by the skin. It may be said in general
that the eye of fishes is large, and that its pupil especially
is broad and open ; a character probably connected with
the necessity of collecting whatever devious rays of light
may penetrate the obscure depth of waters. Fishes have
no true eyelids. The skin always passes over the eye, to
which it is slightly adherent; and it is for the most part
sufficiently transparent for the passage of the solar rays.
In some species, such as Eels, it passes over without the
slightest fold or duplication. In others, as the well-known
Mackerel and Herring, it forms an adipose fold both before
and behind ; but these folds are fixed, and being unprovided
with muscles, have no mobility. Sharks have one, some¬
what more moveable, on the inferior margin of the orbit.
The globe of the eye itself is very slightly moveable,
although, like that of man, it is furnished with six muscles.
Perhaps the most singular eye presented by the class of
fishes is that of Anableps, which has two corneae, separated
by an opaque line, and two pupils pierced in the same iris,
so that one might deem it double ; but there is only one
retina, and a single vitreous and crystalline humour.
Fig. 4G.
Uranoscopus macropyc/us, an Acantbopterygian fish in which the onlv spi¬
nous ray is one in front of the ventral fin. The points of the pubic bones
are also spinous, and the undeveloped interspinous bones of the first
dorsal lie beneath the skin. The eye-ball is retractile to beneath the edee
of the orbit.
In Uranoscopus macropygus and others of that genus,
the eyes can be elevated and depressed at the will of the fish,
on a cylindrical stem, above or below the plane of the flat
dorsal aspect of the head on which it is situated; and in
the ferocious Zygcena, the eyes are stilted out from the
sides of the head on cartilaginous expansions of the skull.
Fishes, in the range of their vision and acuteness of sight,
are very far inferior to birds, and inferior generally to
reptiles and beasts, yet, at the same time, it is evident that
they perceive their prey from a considerable distance; and
the angler, who knows either how rapidly they seize, or how
Hi
220
ICHTHY OLOGY.
Introduc- cautiously they avoid his lure, and with wdiat discrimination
tioiu they sometimes prefer one colour or kind of artificial tty to
The Senses. another, must be impressed with the belief that the vision,
at least of certain species, is by no means devoid of clearness
and precision.
v r '-,\ Y’'
JS^SUt
‘Mm
Fig. 47.
Shows the large eyes of Sebastes percoides, one of the Sclerogaaidm or Trigli-
dce, a family whose home is at the bottom of the sea, and have very com¬
monly the lower rays of the pectoral fins detached and organized as feelers
We shall not repeat here the notices that we have already
had occasion to take of the organ of hearing. In Sharks, a
canal extends from the interior organ of hearing to the
hinder part of the head, where it is closed by the skin, and
in the rays there is a very minute external orifice to the
canal, closely approximated on the dorsal aspect of the
head to its fellow. In osseous fishes there is no such me¬
chanism, and the sonorous vibrations are conveyed to the
labyrinth through the solid parts; but in the Carp and
certain Siluroids, the air-bladder would appear to be ac¬
cessory to the acoustic organ, as it is connected with it by
a chain of ossicles. The general structure of the organ
of hearing in fishes is doubtless specially adapted for the
sensation of the sonorous undulations of the element in
which they live.
A few lines may now be devoted to the consideration of
the sense of smell. The nostrils of fishes are not so placed
as to be traversed by
the respiratory me¬
dium in its course to
the organs of respi¬
ration. They con¬
sist merely of two
openings, situate on
the muzzle, and
lined by the pitu¬
itary membrane,
which is raised in
extremely regular
folds. Their shape is
sometimes oblong,
sometimes round or
oval. They are
placed either at the
end of the muzzle
or on its sides; some¬
times on its su¬
perior face? and even occasionally, as in Skates (fig. 48),
and Sharks, on its under surface near the angle of the mouth.
In the Lamprey they are approximate on the top of the head,
and open by one common orifice (fig. 49). In the great ma-
distance. These are what are called double nostrils, an Introduo
inaccurate term, in as far as each pair of holes leads only tion.
to a single cavity. The margins of the anterior orifice are The Senses,
often tubular, as in the Eel, and sometimes a single side
of the tubular margin is prolonged into a tentacular
appendage, as in several Siluri. In the genus Lophius the
nostrils are borne upon a little pedicle, so as somewhat to
resemble mushrooms. Various other modifications are
observable in different genera, although not necessary to be
here narrated.
It is certain that fishes possess the faculty of perceiving
odours; that various scents attract or repel them; and
there is no reason to doubt that the seat of that perception
lies in the nostrils. It may be reasonably conjectured that
its strength depends mainly on the degree of development
produced by the number and extent of the interior folds
of the pituitary membrane.
The essential character of the organ of smell in fishes is
that the pituitary sac has one or more external openings not
communicating with the mouth or fauces except in the
Dermopteri, and in these the naso-palatine canal is not
traversed by the water in its course to the gills. In some
Synbranchidce, the posterior nasal aperture is situate on the
white parts, within the edge of the lip, in this respect agree¬
ing with the Lepidosiren. Long debates on the conflicting
claims of the latter to be ranked as a fish or a reptile, have
turned on the position of the posterior nostril. Tetrodon
naritus is an exception to the general rule of double nos¬
trils, in having merely a single wide opening, coextensive
with the dimensions of the pituitary sac, but bordered by
membrane. In other Tetrodons the sac is closed by a thin
membrane, in which there are two small openings close to
each other. The Chromidce also, and the Ctenoid Labridce,
have but one opening to each sac; and in some few fishes
there is a barbel merely, without an aperture, in place of a
nostril.
In regard to the sense of taste in fishes, it is evident that
as, with few exceptions, they swallow their food rapidly and
Fig. 48.
Nostrils of Raid. Lemprieri, an Australian
Skate.
Fig. 50.
Month of Plotosus megastomus, one of the Siluridce. This fish feeds at the
bottom and the barbels developed round the mouth are organs of touch.
Teeth are seated on the inner lips and move with them.
Fig. 49.
Head of Petromyzon mordant, showing the single nostril tube and seven
branchial orifices.
jority of fishes each nostril' opens by two orifices, the one
posterior to the other, and in some cases at a considerable
without mastication, their perception of that faculty must
be in noways acute. The same may be inferred from the
fact of their tongue being almost immoveable, often entirely
osseous, or beset with teeth or dental plates, and from its
receiving very slender nerves, and these but few in number.
Even those species of which the jaws are so armed as to
enable them to cut and bruise their aliment, cannot long
retain the latter in their mouths, on account of the position
and the play of the respiratory organs. No salivary glands
discharge their moisture on the organs of taste. The tongue
itself is not seldom entirely wanting; and even when it
ICHTHYOLOGY. 221
Introduc- exists in its most distinct and apparently fleshy state, it
tion. consists merely of a ligamentous or cellular substance,
Tlie Senses. appiiecj on the surface of the lingual bone. It is never
V"-' furnished with muscles capable of producing any movement
of extension or retraction, as in quadrupeds.
Fishes cannot be said to be more highly favoured in re¬
spect to the organs of touch than those of taste. The faculty
is greatly deadened over the general surface by the coating
of scales, and in the particular members by the inflexibility
of the rays. It is chiefly confined to the lips, and even
these parts in many species are themselves as hard and in¬
sensible as bone. Certain soft and delicate appendages
called barbels, possessed by many species, such as the Cod
and Loach, are supposed to enjoy a more delicate percep¬
tion of the sense of touch; and among the Sderogenidce
there are many species that have one or more rays of the
pectoral detached from the membrane, so as to become
truly delicate, flexible fingers, not for prehension but for
touch. The common Gurnard has been seen in a clear sea
swimming along near a sandy bottom, and exploring it with
these special organs of touch. It is by means of the dermis
that that peculiar matter, so remarkable for its silvery me¬
tallic lustre, and which bestows so much of brilliancy upon
the class, is secreted beneath the scales. It is composed of
of small polished plates resembling burnished silver, and
capable of being removed by washing, either from the skin
itself, or from the inferior surface of the scales. It is this
substance that is used in the formation of false pearls. It
is also secreted by many species in the thickness of the
peritoneum, and in the envelopes supplied by that part to
particular viscera, especially the swimming bladder.
It thus appears that the external senses of fishes convey
to them few lively or distinct impressions; and by what¬
ever scenes in nature they are surrounded, their perceptions
are probably indistinct and dull. Their sexual emotions,
cold as their blood, indicate only individual wants. Few
species pair, or enjoy any connubial gratification, for the
males seek the eggs rather than the females which deposit
them, and neither sex ever recognises its offspring. At
least the exceptions to these general laws are extremely
few, and when they occur they are of the lowest animal
description. A pair of Congers are so dead to external im¬
pressions at the time of sexual congress, and so automati¬
cally, as it were, engaged, that they have been taken
by the hand together out of the water. Sharks and
Pectoral fins and claspers, or introraittent organs of the male Hemiscyllium
trispeculare.
Rays have special organs that make some approach to those
of the two higher classes of vertebrals. We have no means
of knowing much of the loves of a Dog-fish or Skate, but
the prevailing economy of fishes may be said in all these re¬
spects to be exactly the reverse of that of birds. These
gay creatures of the sky have the power of surveying dis- Introduc-
tinctly at a glance an immeasurable extent of horizon; ^on-
their acute perception of hearing appreciates all sounds, TheSense^
and every intonation ; and their glad voices are exquisitely ^
skilled in their production. Though their bills be hard,
and their bodies covered by down and feathers, they are by
no means deficient in the sense of touch. rI hey enjoy all
the delights of conjugal and parental affection, and perform
their incumbent duties with devotedness and courage ; they
cherish and defend their offspring, and will sometimes die
in their defence ; and of all the wonderful labours of instinc¬
tive art, none is so beautiful as the formation of their mossy
dwellings. With what deep and continuous affection does
the female brood over her cherished treasures! how un¬
wearied is the gallant male in his tender assiduities, and in
the rich outpouring of that varied song by which he seeks
to soothe her sedentary task! The same principle of at¬
tachment and discrimination is even made available in a
state of domestication by the skill of all-engrossing man. A
bird acquires a knowledge of its master, and submits to and
obeys that master’s will; and the proud falcon, which in its
natural state
“ Doth dally with the wind, and scorn the sun,”
will wheel in airy circles over a well-trained dog, or stoop
its boldest flight at some familiar urchin’s call. Other
species will even imitate man’s noblest faculty, the power
of speech,—and it is thus with somewhat doubtful feelings
that we deny to them the gift of reason.
But the silent dweller in the deep knows few attachments,
expresses no language, cherishes no affections. Construct¬
ing no dwelling, he merely shelters himself from danger
among the cavernous rocks of the ocean, or beneath the
murky shade of the overhanging banks of rivers ; and the
cravings of hunger seem alone to exercise a frequent or
influential action over his monotonous movements. We
must not, however, suppose that the life of fishes is not one
of enjoyment, for we know that the great Creator “ careth
for all his creaturesand it ought perhaps rather to be
said that we cannot appreciate the nature of their feelings,
than that they are in any way fore-doomed to a negation of
pleasure. Assuredly,^however, the hand of nature has been
most prodigal in bestowing on their external aspect every
variety of adornment. Their special forms are infinite, their
proportions often most elegant, their colours lively and diver¬
sified, and nothing seems wanting in them to excite the
admiration of mankind. Indeed it almost appears as if this
prodigality of beauty was intended solely for such an end.
The brightness of metallic splendour, the sparkling bril¬
liancy of precious gems, the milder effulgence of the hues
of flowers, all combine to signalize fishes as among the most
beautiful objects of creation. When newly withdrawn from
their native element, or still gliding submerged in its liquid
coolness, their colours, fixed or iridescent, are seen mingling
in streaks or bands, or broader flashes, always elegant and
symmetrical; sometimes richly contrasted, sometimes gra¬
dually softened into each other; and in all cases harmoniz¬
ing with a chaste fulness of effect, which Titian or Rubens
might envy, but could never equal. For what reason, then,
it has been asked, has all this adornment been so lavishly
bestowed on creatures which can scarcely perceive each
other amid the dim and perpetual twilight of the deep ?
Shakspeare has already said that there are “ more things in
heaven and earth than are dreamt of in our philosophy
and we fear it is no answer to the foregoing question to
add, that the same observation applies with even greater
truth to the “ waters beneath the earth.”
SECTION VI.—THE NUTRITION, MANDUCATION, AND DEGLU¬
TITION OF FISHES.
The nutritive functions of fishes follow the same order
222
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Introduc- of progression as those of the other vertebrated classes;
tion. they seize, and some divide, their food with their teeth;
Digestive digest it in the stomach, from whence it passes into the
^ System. ^ ;ntestinal cana]; where it receives a supply of bile from the
liver, and frequently a liquid similar to that of the pancreas ;
the nutritive juices, absorbed by vessels analogous to lacteals,
and probably taken up in part also directly by the veins,
are mingled with the venous blood which is flowing towards
the heart, from whence it is pushed to the branchiae, in
which, coming into contact with the water, it is converted
into arterial blood, and then proceeds to the nourishment of
the whole body. As in other animals, also, certain pro-
perties are carried off from the blood by transpiration, the
secreting power of the kidneys, &c.
Fishes in general are extremely voracious, and the rule
of “eat or be eaten” applies to them with unusual force.
They are almost constantly engaged in the pursuit and
capture of their prey; their degree of power in these re¬
spects depending of course on the dimensions of the mouth
and throat, and the strength of the teeth and jaws. If the
teeth are sharp and hooked, they are capable of securing
the slenderest and most agile animals; if they are broad
and strong, they are able to bruise the hardest aliment; if
they are feeble or entirely wanting, they are only service¬
able in procuring some inert or unresisting prey. Fishes
indeed show but little choice in the selection of their food,
and their digestive powers are so strong and rapid as to
suffice to dissolve very speedily all kinds of animal sub¬
stances. They greedily swallow other fishes, notwithstand¬
ing the sharp spines or bony ridges with which they may
be armed; they attack and devour crabs and shell-fish,
gulping them entire if they cannot otherwise attain their
object; they do not object occasionally to swallow the young
even of their own species, and the more powerful kinds
carry their warfare into other kingdoms of nature, and re¬
vel on rats, reptiles, and young ducklings, to say nothing of
the ferocious Shark, which not seldom makes a meal even
of the lord of the creation. The species which live chiefly
on vegetable substances are few in number.
The growth of fishes depends greatly on the nature and
supply of food, and different individuals of the same species
exhibit a great disparity in their respective dimensions.
They grow less rapidly in small ponds or shallow streams,
than in large lakes and deep rivers.1 The growth itself
seems to continue for a great length of time, and we can
scarcely set bounds to, certainly we know not with preci¬
sion, the utmost range of the specific size of fishes. Even
among species in no way remarkable for their dimensions,
we ever and anon meet with ancient individuals, favourably
situated, which vastly exceed the ordinary weight and mea¬
surement of their kind.
The teeth of fishes are more variable in form, structure,
number, and position, than
those of any other class of
animals. They are depressed
prisms of three, four, five, or
six sides in Myletes, Mylioha-
tes or Scams. More generally
they are round and tapering,
varying in length and thick-
ness from the “ short obtuse
cone,” to the “ long conical,”
“ subulate,” “ acicular forms,”
even to such fineness as to be
named “ ciliiform.” Their points may be curved, reflexed,
and bent at right angles, and their bases may be fixed or Introduc.
moveable. In some Gohiidoe their forms and free motion tion.
have caused them to be compared to the keys of a piano, ^'g^tive
When acicular or ciliiform teeth are arranged so closely as to v‘ em-
resemble the pile of velvet, they are said to be “ villiform”
{en velours') ; and when coarser and straight, or with their
points bent back, they are “ card-like,” or “ cardiform,”
or they may be rasp-like or carduliform {en rape ou en
cardes). The Chcetodontidce are named from their seti-
Fig. 52.
Petroscirtes BanTcieri.
Fig. 53.
Head ot Histiopterus recurvirostris, one of the Squamipennes or Chcetodon¬
tidce. The teeth, as in the true Chisetodons, are closely set, but they are
stouter than the “villiform” teeth, and even than those usually named
“ setiform,” having a resemblance to the cylindrical blunt fibres of whale¬
bone in a scrubbing-brush, hence they may be termed coarsely “ brush¬
like” (en brasses). They are somewhat thicker than the strong hairs of an
elephant.
form teeth. In the Sphyrcena we have examples of teeth
exactly resembling the blade of a surgeon’s lancet {vide
fig. 19), and in Sharks ^
the teeth have a variety 'A
of forms, from the long
triaedral dagger or spike-
nail of Oxyrhina and
Odontaspis, to the ser¬
rated or lobed cutting
teeth of Galeocerdo,
Carcharodon, Cacharias,
and other genera, set in a
row so as to make a most
powerful instrument, by
which one of these crea¬
tures is able to divide a
man’s body into two at a Fig_ 54
single bite, down to the Orifices of the mouth and nostrils of-Hcwii-
nnvfwnpnt-likp nr fpsspl- scylliumtrispeculare. The teeth are seated
pavement UKe Ol tesstl in the skin covering the cartilages of the
lated teeth (en paves) of jaws, and, as the skin grows outwards
. ^ r. \ ‘ A (peripheral) like the nails of a man s
the Dog-fish, or t^es- fingers, the teeth as worn drop off, or de-
ncprl fnr prneh- squamate, and are succeeded by others
tracion, used, toi crusn from within, gradually rolling over the
insr. The Carp has a cartilages. Fig. ll gives a full-length
B . * , , i view of this fish.
crushing apparatus at the
entrance of the gullet. In Myliobates, Aetohates, Rhin-
optera, the pavement formed by the broad teeth is of the
most regular and beautiful kind. In Scarus and Hopleg-
nathus or Scarodon, the teeth are so united to the pre-
maxillaries and mandible as to form but a single tooth
in paph iaw. while in Calliodon. the union of the teeth
1 The writer of this treatise kept a minnow little more than half an inch long in a glass tumbler for a period of two years, during
which time there was no perceptible increase in its dimensions. Had it continued in its native stream, subjected to the fattening
influence of a continuous flow of water, and a consequent increase in the quantity and variety of its natural food, its cubic dimensions
would probably have been twenty times greater; yet it must have attained, prior to the lapse of a couple of years, to the usual period
of the adult state. (J. w.)
ICHTHYOLOGY.
223
tion
Digestive
System.
[llntroduc- with the bone is less complete, and their edges rise
above the general surface.
In Diodon, we have the same
kind of single tooth in each
jaw, or rather confluence of
teeth and jaw. In Tetrodon,
the dentiferous jaws are
divided by a mesial suture
so as to present two com¬
pound teeth above and as
many below.
In the Plagiostomes, the
teeth are limited to the maxiU
lari/ and mandibular bones,
while in the genus Ci/prinus
teeth are wanting in the jaws,
but, as mentioned above,
these fish have grinding teeth jaWs of
on the pharyngeals and basi-
occipital. In the Catastomi
of the Cyprinoid family, the
pharyngeal teeth are arranged
on a crescentic bone like the
teeth of a curved comb, the
points being thickened for
grinding. In Scarus, besides the solidly aggregated jaw
Fig. 55,
Hoplegnathus
(Soarodon
Schlegel). The upper jaw is consti¬
tuted by the pre-maxillaries coales-
cent into a single bone, and having
the teeth so intimately incorporated
with their substance as to make a
solid, smooth, gorget-shaped bone;
the forms of the teeth, however,
faintly showing. The same is the
case with the maxillary,the symphy-
sial line being obliterated as com¬
pletely as in the human under jaw.
Jaws of Enchelynassa Bleekeri, one of the Murcenidce. In this genus, teeth
stand round the edge of the nasal bone and down its mesial line ; two small
ones exist on the vomer; two rows on the palatine bones and mandible.
The hinder nostril is funnel-shaped.
Fig. 58.
Teeth of Calliodon chlorolepis, a Scaroid fish from Hong Kong. In this genus
the teeth are less intimately united to the jaw-bones than In Scarus and
Eoplegnathus. In the upper jaw the teeth consist of narrow chisel-shaped
denticles, so grouped as to indicate four teeth with curved crenated edges
on each pre maxillary and limb of the dentary piece of the maxillary. In
the latter the four teeth stand out more distinctly, the one next the
medial line being so intimately coalescent with its fellow as to form merely
one tooth of the same shape as the others, and seated in front of the sym¬
physis. So considered, it is a pairless median tooth, followed on each side
towards the corner of the mouth by three others. There are also two small
subulate canines or buck-teeth on each pre-maxillary. The fish is the
“Scaly King-fisher” of the Chinese, who give it this name because it has
bright celandine-green, orange, and yellow colours.
teeth above mentioned, there are also pharyngeal grinders.
In Crenidens, thin tricuspid teeth placed
in many close rows on the jaws, serve to
cut the tender fuci on which these fishes
feed. In passing through the whole series
of fishes, we find teeth on the nasal bone,
as in Murcena, where they stand in a row
round the edge of the bone, and in one
down the longitudinal mesial line ; on the
pre-maxillary, the maxillary, the palatines, Fig. 57.
the vomer, the hvoid-bones, the branchial Tee.th °f Tetrodon
arches, and especially on their processes, Ostracionidce fam-
named “rakers.” Teeth occur on the slmiiaftot^ose o*f
maxillary only when it enters into the natkus abudt ttufme"
composition of the orifice of the mouth, as smi symphysis of
in the Clupeidce and Sahnonidce. In fngnomcoaiescent^
Pristis, of the Ray tribe, the flat snout, ^^'asIlUgene!
greatly prolonged, and well ossified, is set ric name denotes,
on each side by a series of very strong nail-shaped teeth,
whence its name of Saw-fish among sailors, though it is
in reality a weapon that wounds by repeated blows, not
by cutting longitudinally like a saw. This snout forms a
dangerous sword in the hands of the Polynesians who use it
Jaws of Brachysomophis horridus, one of the Ophisuridce, which have one row
of teeth round the margin of the nasal, one row down the mesial line of
that bone, and one on the vomer; a row on the mandible, and two rows
on the palatines.
well as strong pharyngeals. Commonly the teeth do not
cross the symphysis of the jaw, there being in most cases
a line of division between the pre-maxillaries or at the union
of the limbs of the mandible. Instances to the contrary
have already been mentioned in Scarus, Hoplegnathus, and
Diodon. In Notidanus, Scymnus, and Myliobates, among
the Plagiostomi, we have also examples of this departure
from the dental type of the higher animals.
224
ICHTHYOLOGY.
In the majority of osseous fishes, besides the lips, which,
having no peculiar
Introduc¬
tion.
Digestive muscles, can exert
System^ })ut little strength in
retaining the ali¬
ments, there is gene¬
rally in the inside of
each jaw, behind the
anterior teeth, a kind
of membranous fold
or valve, formed by a
replication of the in¬
terior skin, and di¬
rected backwards, of
which the effect is to
hinder the alimentary
substances, and espe¬
cially the water gulp¬
ed during respiration,
from escaping again
by the mouth. This
structure does not,
as formerly supposed,
constitute a character
Fig. 61.
Labial teeth of Petromyzon mordax.
Fig. 62.
         Pharyngeal teeth of Petromyzon mordax.
restricted to the genus Zeus, but exists in an infinity of
fishes. The food seized by the teeth of the jaws, and
detained by the valve just mentioned, is carried still farther
back by the teeth of the palate and tongue when these
exist, and is at the same time prevented by the rakers of the
branchial arches from penetrating between the intervals of
the branchiae, where it might injure the delicate organs ot
respiration. The movements of the jaws and tongue can thus
send the food only in the direction of the pharynx, where it
undergoes additional action on the part of the teeth of the
pharyngeal bones, which triturate or carry it backwards
into the oesophagus. The last-named part is clothed by a
layer of strong, close-set, muscular fibres, sometimes form¬
ing various bundles, the contractions of which push the
alimentary matter into the stomach, thus completing the
act of deglutition.1
SECTION VII.—THE CIRCULATION OF FISHES.
Fishes, in common with warm-blooded animals, are pro¬
vided with a complete circulation for the body, and with
another equally complete for the organs of respiration, and
with a particular abdominal circulation terminating at the
liver by means of the vena portce ; but their peculiar cha¬
racter consists in this, that the branchial circulation alone
is provided at its base with a muscular apparatus or heart,
corresponding to the right auricle and ventricle of the higher
classes, while nothing of the kind exists at the base of
the circulating system of the body; in other words, the
left auricle and ventricle are entirely wanting—the bran¬
chial veins changing into arteries without any muscular
envelope.
The muscular apparatus of their circulation is composed
of the auricle, the ventricle, and the bulb of the pulmonary
artery, and the auricle itself is preceded by a large sinus, in
which all the veins of the body terminate; thus there
are in a single series four cavities separated by constric¬
tions, into which the blood must flow in its progress from
the body to the branchiae. Their size is small in propor¬
tion to the dimensions of the body, and does not in- Introduce
crease in the same ratio with the growth of the indi- tion.
vidual. Three of these receptacles, the auricle, the heart, ^ ocular
and the bulb, are lodged in a pericardium, which is itself v' ys etn-
placed beneath the pharyngeal bones, between the in-
ferior parts of the branchial arches, and for the most part
protected externally by the scapular arch. Except in
the Plagiostomes, the great venous sinus is not placed in
the pericardium, but between the posterior partition of
that cavity and the membrane which represents the dia¬
phragm, and which is merely the anterior portion of the
peritoneum strengthened by aponeurotic fibres. 1 his sinus
is extended transversely, and receives by several different
trunks the veins of the liver, of the generative organs, of
the kidneys, of the fins, branchiae, and throat; and finally
those of the head, which themselves partly pass by a sinus
at the back of the cranium. The first-mentioned sinus
sends the whole of this blood by a single orifice of its an¬
terior convexity into the auricle, which receives it through
the opening of its anterior portion. I wo thin membranous
valvules protect this communication, and are turned towards
the auricle. The latter organ is placed in the pericardium, in
front of the great sinus, and above the ventricle, that is, on its
dorsal aspect. The ventricle presents very various and
often remarkable configurations. In osseous fishes it is
usually of a tetrahedral form,—in the cartilaginous kinds more
frequently rounded and depressed. It is situate beneath the
auricle, the cavity being so turned as to be almost vertical
next that organ, and horizontal towards the bulb. Its coats
are extremely robust, and furnished internally with power¬
ful fleshy columns, its substance being composed of two
different layers. But it is in the bulb of the branchial ar¬
tery that we find the most vigorous fibres, usually disposed
in a circular form. The prolongation of this bulb issues
from the pericardium, and becomes the branchial artery,
advancing forward beneath the single chain of small bones
which unites the arches of the branchiae. The branchial
artery soon divides, and in such a manner as to send a
branch to each branchia. These branches pass along a
hollow groove on the convexity of each branchial arch,
and more external than the vein which follows the same
track, but in an opposite direction. To the arch are at¬
tached a great number of leaflets, parallel to each other,
usually terminated in a forked point, and sometimes deeply
divided. The principal branch which passes along the
groove of the arch gives a smaller branch to each of the
leaflets; and this branch, after being twice bifurcated,
furnishes an infinity of lesser branchlets, which meander
over the surface of each leaflet, till they finally termi¬
nate in extremely minute veins. These little vessels
meet on each side in a branchial vein, which proceeds along
the internal margin of the lateral lobe of the leaflet, and
the two veins open into the trunk of the great vein of the
branchia.
On passing out of the dorsal side of the branchiae, the
branchial veins assume the structure and functions of arte¬
ries ; even before their arrival at this point, the anterior
have already sent several branches to different portions of
the head; and it is necessary to remark, that the heart and
sevenil parts situate in the chest receive their blood from
a branchial vein, by means of an offset issuing from near
its source, and consequently anterior to its exit from the
branchiae. Nevertheless, it is only by the re-union of the
1 The various notices (as already intimated) of the internal structure of fishes contained in the article Comparative Anatomy o
this work (vol. iii.) absolve us from the necessity of presenting any details regardingthe form and constitution of the intestina cana ,
and of certain other important interior organs of the class. The forms of the stomach, whether “ siphonal” or “ ccecal,” the pancreatic
apparatus passing from slender coecal appendages to the intestinal canal, which secrete a proper fluid but do not admit the food, gra- .
dually increasing in complexity to the pancreatic conglomerate gland of the sturgeon, are parts of structure which the ichthyologis is
required always to pay attention to ; and also to the extension of the inner coats of the intestine by valvular folds, producing a more
extensive secreting surface, and delaying the passage of the food. The two forms of spiral valves in the lower gut of sharks, and in
some of the osseous apodals, require special notice.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
225
Introduc- trunks proceeding from the four branchiae that the great
tion. artery is formed which carries the blood to the viscera and
Vascular a]j t]ie parts of the trunk, and which is by consequence
System. ^ representative of the aorta of the Mammalia,—but of
an aorta which possesses neither auricle nor ventricle at
its base. Thus, according to Cuvier’s views, the left cavi¬
ties of the heart of quadrupeds do not exist in fishes, but
are replaced by a simple vascular apparatus, situate above
the branchiae, in like manner as the right cavities are placed
beneath them.
SECTION VIII.—THE RESPIRATION OF FISHES.
It is by an almost infinite subdivision of the vessels
over the surface of the branchiae or gills, that the blood of
fishes becomes subjected to the influence of the circum¬
ambient water, which is made to flow incessantly between
the branchiae by the movement of the jaws, and of the oper¬
cular and hyoidean apparatus. This mode of respiration is
as necessary to fishes as the direct respiration of air is to
other animals. If the air is expelled by ebullition from the
water, fishes cannot live; and many species are obliged to
rise frequently to the surface for the purpose of breathing
atmospheric air. It is easy to suffocate various kinds, by
keeping them beneath the surface, inclosed in a gauze net.
The absorption of oxygen, however, is comparatively small
among these aquatics, for it has been calculated that a man
consumes fifty thousand times more than is required by a
Tench. When fishes are deprived of water, they perish not
so much for want of oxygen, as because their branchiae be¬
come dry, and unable to perform their functions duly. Hence
the species of which the branchial orifice is small, as the Eel,
or those which possess receptacles for moisture, like Anabas
and Ophicephalus, long survive exposure; while such as
have their gills greatly cleft and open, as the Herring, ex¬
pire almost instantly when withdrawn from their moist
abode. Some fishes, as Amphipnous cuchia, and Sacco-
branchus singio, have a pulmoniform sac for supplying air
to the gills.
SECTION IX.—THE AIR-BLADDER OF FISHES.
One of the most remarkable and characteristic organs of
fishes is the air or swim-bladder. In many genera it has
no opening or external communication, and in these the air
which it contains must be the result of secretion. It is
composed of an extremely fine internal tunic, of another of
a thicker texture and peculiar fibrous structure, remarkable
for producing the finest kind of isinglass, and is inclosed
within the general coating with which the peritoneum in¬
vests the other viscera. It is sometimes simple, as in Perch,
sometimes furnished with more or less numerous append¬
ages, as in some of the Haddock tribe, or branched, as in
certain Scicence. Occasionally we find it divided, as it
were, into two or more parts, by a constriction, as in the
genus Cyprinus, many of the Siluridce, and others. It
is chiefly among the abdominal fishes that we find it com¬
municating by a tube with the intestinal canal, and either
directly with the oesophagus, as in Cyprinus, or with the
base of the stomach, as in the Herring. That of the
Sturgeon opens into the former portion by means of a
large orifice. Professor Owen states generally that the
contents of the air-bladder consist in most fresh-water fishes
of nitrogen, with a very small quantity of oxygen and a
trace of carbonic acid; but that in the air-bladder of sea-
fishes living at great depths, oxygen predominates. Biot
found as much as 87 per cent, of oxygen in the air-bladder
of deep-sea Mediterranean fishes. Dr Davy1 in the air-
bladder of fresh-run Salmon found a trace of carbonic acid,
and 10 per cent, of oxygen, the remainder of the air being
nitrogen. Humboldt found 4 per cent, oxygen, and 96 per
cent, nitrogen, in the air-bladder of Gymnotus. That the
air-bladder is homologous with the lungs of the higher
animals, is the opinion of the best physiologist of the pre¬
sent day. These in their embryo state have gills, the lungs
being developed when needed. In fishes the gills are per¬
sistent, while the air-bladder is simple and embryonic,
having chiefly a mechanical function to perform. In the
Salmandroid Ganoidei, however, various Siluroids, and
Protopteri, the air-bladder shows some pulmoniform com¬
plications. The Lepidosiren of the Gambia remains buried
in the mud during the dry season, and its respiration is per¬
formed by pulmonary air-bladders, which have short, wide
tracheae, kept open by cartilaginous orifices; and all the
oxygenation of the blood required during the torpid con¬
dition of the fish is effected in the blood-vessels ramified
over the air-bladders.
The more obvious use of this organ seems to be to main¬
tain the fish in equilibrium, or to lighten or increase its re¬
lative weight, so as to cause an ascension or a sinking, in
proportion as the bladder is compressed or expanded. This
is probably effected by the contraction or dilatation of the
ribs. At all events it is certain, that when the air-bladder
bursts, the fish remains at the bottom, usually turning up
its belly, and exhibiting other irregularities in its locomo¬
tion. Another curious effect is observable in regard to
fishes which have been suddenly brought from a great
depth by means of a long fishing line, and which having no
time either to compress or partially empty the organ in
question, the air which it contains being no longer pressed
by the heavy weight of water, either expands so as to burst
the bladder, or by its dilation forces the stomach and oeso¬
phagus into the fish’s mouth. When the air-bladder is
pierced artificially, the fish almost immediately turns upon
its back, and sinks to the bottom.
Though of the highest importance in the structure of
such species as possess it (and these are by far the greater
number), yet the air-bladder is not indispensable in the
general economy of the class of fishes.2 In some fishes it is
no bigger than a pea; in several genera (e.g., Pleuronectes)
it is entirely wanting, and the species in such cases gene¬
rally remain at the bottom, and, swimming obliquely on one
side, propel themselves forward by a nearly vertical motion
of the tail. In such cases both eyes are on the same side,
and the whole structure of the fish, especially the skeleton
of the head, presents an unsymmetrical aspect of a very
extraordinary kind.3 In many cartilaginous fishes, such as
Rays (commonly called Skates), the absence of the swimming
bladder seems compensated by the enormous size of the
pectoral fins, which, of all the external organs, are probably
the most efficient in raising the body, as the caudal ex¬
tremity is the power chiefly employed during an onward
course. The Lamprey, which has neither swimming bladder
nor pectoral fins, dwells in the mud. Flat fishes being un¬
provided with swimming bladders, are supposed for that
reason to raise themselves with difficulty to the surface;
and they do not appear to strike the water laterally like
other fishes, but swim rather after the manner of the
Cetacea, by a motion alternately up and down. In all the
other animals of this class the chief organ of progressive
motion is the tail, or prolongation of the body, terminated
by a caudal fin, the position of which, unlike that of the
great aquatic mammalia called whales, is vertical. The
reason of the difference is obviously this: a true fish, pos-
Introduc-
tion.
Vascular
System.
3 ransa^ons of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, xxi., p. 245, 1855. 2 De Aure et Auditu, &c.
n several insects of the genus Blatta we have observed a want of symmetry both in the size and markings of the elytra. We do
* ot mean an accidental variation of one side, but an evidently pre-ordained disparity of form and colour
VAT "V TT A ^
ICHTHYOLOGY.
226
Classifica- sessing the power of extracting air from water by means of
tion. its giHs does not (except at rare intervals) require to mount
' v ' to the surface for the performance of the vital act of respi¬
ration; but all cetaceous animals being furnished with lungs,
which cannot perform their functions except through an
immediate communication with the atmosphere, require
their bodies to be terminated by a horizontal expansion, the
action of which is the most efficient for an ascending course.
It is however, difficult to account for the fact that so con¬
siderable an organ as the swimming-bladder should have
been denied to so many species, not only of the more in¬
dolent kinds, which dwell composedly at the bottom of the
waters, but to many others which yield to none of their
class in the ease and velocity of their movements. Its pre¬
sence or absence does not even accord with the other con¬
ditions of organization; for while it is wanting in the com¬
mon Mackerel, it is found to occur in a closely allied
species, the Scomber pneumatophorus of Laroche. Weber
has pointed out a remarkable connection between the air- Classifica-
bladder and the acoustic organs in the head. tl0n-
We have already alluded to a singular peculiarity con- v~*-/
nected with the organization of certain fishes we mean the
power of conveying electrical shocks. In Torpedos, the
apparatus consists of two organs, built up of membranous
tubes filled with mucous matter, divided by transverse
chambers closely set together, like the cells ol honeycomb,
and disposed in two groups placed on each side of the
head. They receive enormous branches of nerves from
the fifth and eighth pair. In the Gymnotus the electric
organs are four, and occupy the under surface of the body
throughout its entire extent to a considerable thickness. It
is composed of parallel plates separated by thin layers of
mucilage. The effect of this natural galvanic pile will be
detailed in the course of the systematic portion of this article,
when we shall have occasion to mention the electric fishes
in their proper place.
CLASSIFICATION OF FISHES.
A “ natural arrangement” of fishes or of any other class of
animals implies an accurate knowledge of their whole struc¬
ture, internal as well as external, by which they can be
grouped in the order of their affinities, placing those species
together which agree with one another in the greatest
number of important characters. Naturalists have gene¬
rally come to the conclusion that the series of species is
not a linear one ; some have one portion of their frames,
some another, specially organized for the part the species
has to play in the system of nature; and so the affinities
branch off in several directions. The nervous system being
that by which an animal has perception of external objects,
and directs its motions accordingly, and which presides
moreover over those operations of organic life that are not
obedient to the will, would be one important basis of classi¬
fication, but its various modifications of structure in fishes
are still too imperfectly known, and the labour and skill
necessary for the elucidation and discrimination of its parts
and their functions are such that, practically, it has hitherto
been as yet but little referred to in the arrangements of the
systematic ichthyologist. The same is true in a greater
or less degree of the other parts of the organism employed
in nutrition, respiration and circulation, secretion, genera¬
tion, and development; most of the arrangements of fishes
that have hitherto appeared being based on the organs of
locomotion and the external integument, the latter the
most variable certainly that could have been chosen, but
at the same time the least important. We have scaly,
partially scaly, and scaleless species in the same genus o
some particular groups. Agassiz has been labouring assi¬
duously on embryonic development as a basis of ai range-
ment; but as far as we know, has not yet published a system
founded on his researches in this direction. All attempts
at classification of fishes which have hitherto been given to
the world, violate more or less anatomical affinities; the
best on the whole that has been pi’oposed, is that of Pio-
fessor Johannes Muller, which we shall follow, adopting the
modifications of Professor Owen. It would be a great help
to the memory were the divisions of the class of equal rank
to approach to equality also in the number of species that
they embrace, but this cannot be ; though most probably the
disparity in the size of the groups would be considerably
lessened were we acquainted with all the species secluded
in the depths of the sea, and still unknown, as well as with
the forms of the extinct fishes. The Salamandroid Ganoids
which abounded in variety and number in another epoch
of the earth’s history, have only a few existing representa¬
tives ; and of the palaeozoic fishes with soft skins that are
less likely to be preserved than the strongly cuirassed Ga¬
noids, we know absolutely nothing, not even that such were
then created.
In his arrangement of fishes, Muller finds characters
which he considers to be of the highest importance in the
vascular system. The heart of fishes is a venous or bran¬
chial one, consisting of an auricle in which the veins tei-
minate, and a ventricle for transmitting that venous blood
to the gills where it is aerated and whence it circulates
through the body without the intervention of a special pro¬
pelling organ fixe the systematic side of the heart of a
higher animal; but merely through the general contractile
power of the arteries. In most fishes there is a thick
muscular swelling of the commencement of the arterial
system close to the ventricle, and which, in fact, may be
called a third chamber of the heart. The blood is pre¬
vented from regurgitating into the ventricle on the con¬
traction of the bulb by valves; and the number of these
valves, and the presence or absence of the thick muscular
coat of the bulb, furnish characters of groups so constant, that
M filer says he is acquainted with no others, either anatomical
or zoological, which equal them in certainty. The Plagw-
stomi, or cartilaginous fishes, as restricted by the removal of
several groups that were included among them by the older
ichthyologists, have three or more longitudinal rows of valves
within the muscular bulb. A still greater number of valves
are present in the bulb of the existing Ganoids; but in the
laro-e group formed by the osseous fishes after the Ganoids
have been removed from them, two opposite valves are
placed at the origin of the bulb, and no more. This great
group Muller names Teleostei, or perfect osseous fishes ; and
he includes in it the six following orders mentioned in the
subjoined table—Acanthopteri, Anacanthini, Pharyngo-
qnathi, Physostomi, Plectognathi, and Lophobrandm.
The Cyclostomes of Cuvier, or the Suckers, want the
bulbus arteriosus, or thickened muscular tunic, but have
two valves at the origin of the branchial vessel like the
Teleostei; while the Lancelet {Amphioxus) wants the heart
itself, the circulation being carried on by the muscularity
of the entire vascular system. This fish, therefore, he con¬
siders as the type of a sub-class which he names Lejpto-
cardii. Another sub-class, termed includes fishes
which have scales, with both lungs and gdls. In all, he
makes six sub-classes of fish—1. Teleostei; 2. Dipnoi;
3. Ganoidei; 4. Elasmobranchii; 5. Marsipobranchn or
Cyclostomi; 6. Leptocardii. In the subjoined modifica¬
tion of his arrangement by Professor Owen, these su -
classes are not preserved, the class being sub-divided in o
nine orders, and again into sub-orders. A few changes
have been made by us in the termination of the names ot
Classifica-
tion—Der-
mopteri.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
227
families, to reduce them to an uniform nomenclature, and
some groups that have been recently characterized have
been introduced.
CLASS OF FISHES.
Order I.—DERMOPTEROUS FISHES.
Sub-Ordee I.—PHARYNGOBRANCHS.
This order is named from the cutaneous vertical fins, in
which the mucoid rays are extremely soft and delicate, or
altogether imperceptible, and from the want of pectoral
or ventral members. The first two sub-orders are founded
on the different developments of the respiratory organs.
In the first the pharynx itself is organized for respiration,
and two processes having the function of gills project
freely into the cavity of the mouth; the water necessary
for respiration flowing over them by the same canal which
carries the food; there being no lateral gill-openings
through the skin. Of this sub-order the best known
representative is the Amphioxus lanceolatus of Yarrell
{Branchiostoma lubricum, Costa), which was first made
known to the world as a Limax or Slug by Pallas, who
received it from, the Cornish coast. Recently Mr Couch
rediscovered it on the same shores, and Mr Yarrell has
described it in his excellent work on British Fishes, ac¬
cording to its true affinities as a fish, though its want of
a head was puzzling. Its structure has since been in¬
vestigated by Ratke, Johannes Muller, Owen, Goodsir,
Swan, and other first-rate comparative anatomists,—many
specimens having been procured among the gravel and
rocks of the sea-beaches in the south of England, also in
the Irish Channel, on the Norway coast, and in the Medi¬
terranean. The longitudinal slit forming the orifice of its
mouth, resembles, to the unassisted eye, that of a Lamprey,
its jointed labial feelers looking like moveable teeth. It is
a thin semi-transparent creature about an inch and a half
long, without jaws, but having a large buccal cavity into
which the short vascular processes that perform the function
of gills project freely, without cartilaginous supports or
lateral attachments. The buccal cavity communicates
by a small pharyngeal opening with a wide barrel-shaped
oesophagus, which occupies more than a fourth of the whole
length of the fish, and whose interior surface is ciliated
throughout, and organized to assist in respiration. Vessels
that ramify over its vertical ciliated bands communicate
with the dorsal and ventral portions of the vascular trunk
that carries on the circulation, without the intervention of
a central propelling organ. There is, however, beneath
the posterior end of the expanded oesophagus a small
widening of the circumferential vessel which pulsates
rythmically, and which Professor Owen considers to be a
rudimental representation of the branchial heart of the
Myxinoids, the next order of fishes in point of organization.
The peculiarity of shape which distinguishes the Lancelet
from all other fishes, arises from all its nerves of the senses
devolving from the myelon or spinal marrow, without the
production of a ganglionic brain, and consequently, without
the necessary expansion of the protecting integuments
which make the head, and in animals more advanced in the
scale, provide sockets for the sense capsules. The only
cartilaginous part of this fish is a jointed haemal arch which
extends from the anterior end of the spinal chord on the
ventral aspect to the orifice of the pharynx, and serves to
support the oral filaments. It represents the labial arch of
the higher Myxinoids. Though this little creature wants
jaws, it has, as we have just mentioned, a large buccal cavity
which, as in other fishes, admits not only food, but also
aerated water, to the respiratory organs, and an enormous
oesophagus having the double function of deglutition and
respiration. The intestine proceeding from the oesophageal Classifica-
bag is slender, almost straight, and terminates at the anus, tion—Der-
about one-fourth of the whole length of the fish from the m0Pter1^
point of its tail. In its motions, the Lancelet is lively and
active, and shelters itself quickly from observation among the
gravel. In 1853 Sundevall distinguished two American spe¬
cies of Amphioxus or Branchiostoma, the B. caribceum from
the West Indies, and elongatum from Peru; but Professor
Peters on comparing the species found that caribceum was
identical with the European one. Dr Gray has described
a Borneo specimen as a distinct species, so that the genus
probably is not so poor in species as was at first supposed.
CLASS.—PISCES.
Order I.—DERMOPTERI.
Vermiform, abrachial and apodal; endo-skeleton unossified; exo¬
skeleton and vertical fins muco-dermoid; no pancreas; no air-bladder.
The devolopment of the skull in the Dermopterous fishes is ar¬
rested at more or less embryonic stages, but in each genus it pro¬
ceeds in a specific direction ; thus, in the Lancelet, evolving an
articulated labial arch and its numerous filaments; and in the
Myxinoids and Lampreys forming a more complex system of lateral
and labial cartilages; or modifying the palatine, maxillary, and
hyoid rudiments in relation to the suctorial function of the mouth.
The olfactory organ, which is double in all other fishes, is single
in this order ; and the eye is rudimentary, being merely a small
fold of skin coated with a speck of dark pigment. It is probable
that this point is sensitive to light, as the lowest member of the
order, the Lancelet, quickly secludes itself among gravel when ex¬
posed to light. In Ammoccetes and the Myxinoides the cartila¬
ginous capsules of the acoustic organs retain the embryonic posi¬
tion of projecting spheres at the base of the cranium ; these are
less prominent in the Lampreys; in the Plagiostomes they are
imbedded in the walls of the cartilaginous skull; and in the bony
fishes they are walled up by ossification. The oral filaments and
soft integuments of the anterior end of the Lancelet and Myxines
receive many nervous twigs from the fifth pair ; and touch seems to
be the most important sense in these low vertebrals.
Sob-Order I.—PHARYNGOBRANCHII.
Cirrhostomi, aliorum. Gills free, pharyngeal; no heart. A
single genus of few species.
Family I.—AMPHIOXIDJE.
Genus I. Amphioxus, Yarrell. (Branchiostoma, Owen.) Re¬
spiratory processes projecting from above the pharynx into the
large cavity of the mouth. Interior mucous coat of the widely
dilated oesophagus organized for aerating the blood. Mouth eden¬
tate, furnished with exterior labial barbels.
Sub-Order II.—SUCKERS.
Genus Heptatrema, Dum. (Bdellostoma, Miill. Act.
Berol, 1838.) A single species is known, the Petro-
myzon cirrhatus of Forster, who discovered it in Queen
Charlotte’s Sound, on Cook’s second voyage. It has since re¬
ceived the appellations of Heptatremus Dombeyi and Bdel¬
lostoma Forsteri. It is a lively, active fish, inhabits rocky
bottoms, lies in wait for fishes on which to prey, and was
frequently taken by our voyagers adhering to pieces of fish
which had been let down into the sea as bait. It has the
power of emitting an immense quantity of mucus from all
parts of its skin. The New Zealanders roast and eat it.
Myxine, Linn. (Gasterobranchus, Bloch.) The species
best known, Myxine glutinosa, Linn., or Glutinous Hag,
was classed by Linnaeus with the Vermes. The mouth
is a membranous ring, with a single tooth on its superior
part; while the strong teeth of the tongue are arranged
in two rows on each side, so as to give to these animals the
appearance of having lateral jaws, like insects or Nereides ;
but their tongue performs the office of a piston in exhaust¬
ing the mouth so as to enable them to adhere to other
228 ICHTHYOLOGY.
Class! flea- bodies, like the Lamprey. The lips are furnished with eight
tion—Der- cirrhi, and above is a spout-hole communicating with the
mopferi. mout]1. tjie iJOt}y is nearly cylindrical, and terminates in a
fin which surrounds the tail. The intestine is simple, wide,
and straight, as viewed externally, but it is plaited within ;
the liver has two lobes; the eggs grow to a considerable
size. When taken and confined in a large glass jar, a single
fish will pour so much mucus from its lateral pores as to give
the water the appearance of jelly.
Ammoccetes. Body cylindrical, with numerous annular
lines around it, that give it much the appearance of a worm.
It lives in the mud of rivers. Mouth incapable of adhering
by suction to other bodies; fins very shallow; tail sharp at
the tip. The only species is P. branchialis, Shaw (the Pride
of Pennant), which grows to six or eight inches long, and is
as thick as a goose-quill. It inhabits the rivers of Oxford¬
shire, and occurs in various parts of the European continent.
Petromyzon, Dum., or Lamprey. The tongue, acting
like a piston in the circular mouth, is capable of vigorous
motion, and is an essential part of the mechanism by which
the fish is enabled to attach itself firmly to stones, or to
fasten itself to the larger fishes, which it is thus enabled
to suck and devour at its leisure. The dorsal fin is farther
forward than the anus, and a second unites with the tail.
The European species are,—P. marinus, the Greater Lam¬
prey, which grows to the length of more than three feet.
It is considered as a delicate food, and is caught as it
ascends rivers in the end of winter and spring. Colour
yellowish, marbled with brown. First dorsal fin very dis¬
tinct from the second. This fish is common in the Severn,
and in the mouths of many European rivers. Its supposed
hermaphroditism is mentioned by Sir Everard Home.—P.
fiuviatilis, the Lampern, or Nine-eyed Eel. Length
from twelve to eighteen inches ; olive back, silvery below ;
first dorsal distinct from the second. Two thick teeth,
separate, in the top of the maxillary ring. Ascends rivers
from the sea; swarms in the Thames, Severn, and Dee.
Vast quantities taken in England are sold to the Dutch for
the Turbot fishery. It abounds in the rivers on the southern
side of the Baltic. Both these animals are very tenacious
of life, and will live many days out of water.—P. planeri.
About ten inches long; greatly resembles the preceding;
but the two dorsal fins are united. It is also an European
river fish. Figs. 61, 62 show the dentition of Petromyzon
mordax, an Australian species ; the lips and their teeth be¬
ing shaved off in the latter to show the pharyngeal teeth.
Fig. 63.
Fig. 49 represents the lateral gill-openings of the same
species, and fig. 63 the entire fish.
Sub-Oruer II.—MARSIPOBRANCHII.
Cyclostomi, Dum., Cuv. Gills fixed, bursiform, inoperculate,
receiving the respiratory streams by apertures usually numerous
and lateral, distinct from the mouth ; a heart.
These are vermiform fishes whose vertical fins are folds of skin
surrounding the tail, and the rays scarcely to be perceived in any
part, being soft and rudimental. They are the first in the ascend¬
ing series of fishes in which the anterior end of the myelon has
that ganglionic development which constitutes the brain in fishes,
and which have a cartilaginous cranium for its protection. In
Ammoccetes the persistent cranial cartilage resembles the first
appearance of the cartilages in the embryo of the higher fishes. In
the Myxinoids the neural and haemal canals of the spinal column
are formed of layers of the sheath of the gelatinous dorsal chord;
the neural canal extending along the whole upper part of the chord,
and the haemal canal being confined to the tail. In the Petromyzons
cartilaginous plates are developed in the fibrous sheath, which is
the first indication of neural arches. A cartilaginous barrel-shaped Classifka-
basket, homologous with the branchial skeleton of osseous fishes, is tion Der-
provided for the support of the gills and the canals leading to them, mopteri.
This cartilaginous frame-work is termed by Cuvier cotes branchi- <. »
ales ; and he observes, that though it is much developed in the Cy-
clostomes, it is scarcely perceptible in the Rays and Sharks. There
are no other ribs in this order. The Marsipobranchs, however, re¬
semble the Plagiostomes in having an undivided cephalic cartilage,
a spout-hole in the head, and a spiral valve in the intestine. In all
other respects they differ from them, and especially in the complete
absence of gill-arches, want of jaws, in the total absence of a
muscular tunic to the bulbus arteriosus, and in the arterial valves be¬
yond the branchial opening of the ventricle being only two; they
differ further in the genital organs of the one sex having no ovi¬
duct, and in the other no seminal duct.
The gills of Lampreys and Myxines are little bags, each of which
has its proper artery; and its proper orifice in the pharynx through
which the water flows in to pass out on the dermal side by another
hole. These purse-shaped bags are called fixed lungs, in contra¬
distinction to the gills of osseous fishes, whose exterior edges are
free and pectinated ; but Pi’ofessor Owen has observed that if one
side of one of the sacs were adherent to the adjacent side of another,
and then each bag slit open and detached from the outer integu¬
ment, a gill would be formed receiving its blood from two arterial
branches, and resembling, were it pectinated, the gill of an osseous
fish. The genera have been characterized by the number of the
exterior gill-openings.
The teeth in the Marsipobranchs are composed of indurated albu¬
minous matter, and when macerated, flake off in successive hollow
cones. Agassiz, from investigations into the embryology of fishes,
thinks that the Marsipobranchs are not a proper order of fishes, but
merely embryonic forms of the more developed Sharks and Rays
from which they ought not to be dissevered in our systems.
Family I.—AMMOCCETIDjE.
Genus I. Ammoccetes, Dum. Mouth semicircular, edentate,
the posterior lip being transverse, cirrhated within ; gill-bags
seven, each with an external lateral aperture, and receiving streams
of water from the oesophagus without a separate trachea. Olfactory
organ single, opening in the median line of the dorsal surface of
the head, whence a narrow canal, strengthened by cartilaginous
rings, runs to the bottom of the skull, and terminates by a valvular
opening in front of the occipital cartilage. The pituitary lining is
plaited longitudinally.
Agassiz describes a new species, A. borealis.
Family II.—MYXINIDAh
Internal branchial openings oesophageal and equal in number to
the branchial sacs; external ones as many, lateral ; or only one
common to all the gills of a side, and then situated on the ventral
aspect; four barbels on the snout, and two on each side of the mouth
which is circular; one tooth on the roof of the mouth, two rows on
the tongue. Eye as lowly organized as in the Lancelet. Naso-pala-
tine tube having a valve at its opening on the roof of the mouth.
Genus I. Myxine, Lin. KGastrobranchus, Bloch.) Saccular
gill-bags, six on each side, receiving the streams of water from the
oesophagus by as many short tubes. The efferent tubes empty the
water into a common lateral canal which terminates on the ventral
aspect of the fish at the end of the first third of its length. Be¬
tween this aperture and its fellow of the other side, there is a
larger opening rather to the left of the mesial line, which admits
the water into the oesophagus.
Genus II. Heptatrema. Seven lateral branchial apertures.
At the extremity of the snout a depressed opening of a canal lead¬
ing to the gills. Four rostral cirrhi; as many labial ones. Eyes
white lateral points.
Family III.—PETROMYZONTIDAS.
Branchial organ of each side divided by transverse partitions
into seven fixed chambers, which receive the water from a median
canal, distinct from the oesophagus, by as many round holes, and
permit it to flow out by an equal number of lateral cutaneous ori¬
fices ; the median canal lies beneath the oesophagus, opens anteriorly
into the fauces by a doubly valvular orifice, communicates with
the gill-chambers to the right and left, and is closed at the pos¬
terior end. Nostril single; tubular on the top of the head, leading
to a globular nasal sac from a tube that descends to the base, of the
skull and the membrane of the palate, which closes it, leaving no
perforation there. Cuvier compares this tube to a trachea. Mouth
variously armed with teeth.
Genus I. Petromy'zon, auctorum.
Dr Gray has recently proposed a new arrangement of the Lam¬
preys.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
229
Classifiea- («•) SUB-FAMILY.—PETROMYZONINA.
iion—Her- (With distinct teeth and eyes.)
mopteri. Genus I. Petromyzon. Two conical upper pharyngeal teeth
close together; a single crescentic under one ; numerous conical la¬
bial teeth, two fringed lingual ones. P. marinus, and four other species.
Genus II. Lampetra. Upper and under pharyngeal teeth
transversely crescentic ; labial teeth in two rows on the border of
the lips; more interior lateral teeth bigger, irregularly twice or
thrice notched ; lingual teeth pectinate. P. fluviatilis, planeri, and
two other species.
Genus III. Geotria. Upper and under pharyngeal teeth
transversely crescentic, the upper one-lobed; labial teeth nume¬
rous, remote, pointed, the interior ones the biggest; lingual teeth
long, conical, curved. One species. O. australis.
Genus IY. Velasia. Upper and under pharyngeal teeth trans¬
versely crescentic; the upper bilobate ; labial teeth narrow, trun¬
cate, the interior ones the biggest; lingual teeth rather long,
curved. V. chilensis.
Genus V. Caragola. Two upper, three-lobed, pharyngeal teeth,
widely apart; under one crescentic, nine-lobed; labial teeth four-
bundled ; lingual teeth flat. 0. lapicida.
Genus VI. Mordacia. Two upper pharyngeal teeth ; the la¬
teral ones trilobate; nine under conical ones in a curved row;
labial teeth conical, in a single series on the margin of the lip ;
lingual teeth long, conical, curved. P. mordax.
(b.) SUB-FAMILY.—AMMOCCETINA.
(Without teeth and with obscure eyes.)
Genus VII. Ammoccetes. Five species.
Sub-Order III.—RIBBON APODALS.
These delicate, semi-transparent, and scaleless fishes are
inhabitants of all the oceans, and the species are probably
numerous, though it is only in localities where much atten¬
tion is paid to fish that they are likely to be noticed. They
are many, and of considerable variety of form in the
Mediterranean, and one species is occasionally taken by
keen naturalists on the English coasts. Several have been
described that inhabit the Indian seas; and on Sir James
Clark Ross’s antarctic voyage one specimen was obtained in
a high southern latitude. The absence of ossification in the
skeleton, the gelatinous condition of the sheath of the spinal
marrow, which, in the form of a “ chorda dorsalis,” reaches
into the base of the skull; and the persistence of the pri¬
mordial cartilaginous cranium are reasons for placing these
fishes with the Dermopteri.
Sub-Order III.—APODES LEMNISCATI.
Ribbon-shaped, extremely compressed fishes. Gills free, sub-
operculate; no air-bladder. Skeleton cartilaginous; no scales.
Blood colourless ; no spleen.
Family I.—LEPTOCEPHALIDiE, Bon.
Helmichthyidas, Koll. Small, greatly compressed, blade-shaped,
apodal, diaphanous fishes, totally destitute of scales, with a late¬
ral line formed by the intersection of the muscular layers; some
have, some want teeth; and the pectoral fins are also present
in some species, and wanting in others. The anus is placed on
the ventral edge of the fish, before or behind the middle, and the
simple straight gut runs near the ventral edge of the fish. Their
skeleton is very incomplete and cartilaginous, and the myelon is
obscurely visible through it. In most, the anal and dorsal, uniting
at the end of the tail, form a pointed or blunt, but very seldom a
forked caudal, in which the rays are generally discoverable.
Genus I. Esunculus, Kaup. Leptoccphali with small pecto¬
rals and a forked caudal. One species, Italy.
Genus II. Hyprorus, Kbll. Jaws straight, much elongated,
with merely traces of dentition. Hinder nostrils before or over
the eyes; muciferous pores along the jaws and round the eye.
Body elevated and gibbous at the occiput; tail pointed. Pectorals
niinute; rudimentary anus before the middle; caudal not distinct
from the other vertical fins. One species, Messina.
Genus III. Oxystomus, Rafin. (Tilurus, Roll.) Distinguished
from Leptocephalus by the rayless, cutaneous dorsal fin com¬
mencing at the occiput, and by the upper and under transverse
muscular bands not making an angular interruption or break
anteriorly at their intersection; no anal fin; anus far back, near
where the tail is attenuated into a longish filament. Head small; Classifica-
mandible a trifle longer; pointed teeth on both jaws ; gill-openings tion Der-
furnished with distinct opercula, and squeezed together on the mopteri.
throat. Three species. v ,
Genus IV. Leptocephalus, Lin. (Helmichthys, Rnfin.) Dis-
tinguished from Oxystomus by none of the species having the tail
so prolonged into a hair-like point, and by the muscular bands
making a distinct angular intersection anteriorly. Some species
have, others want teeth ; there are species in which the teeth can be
seen only through a microscope, and others whose pointed teeth are
distinctly visible to the naked eye. Most have small pectorals, but
some show not even a trace of these fins. At the end of the gut
there is an anal opening as fine as a hair, which gives exit to the
fluid excrement. Eighteen species.
Genus V. Cheilobranchus, Rich. Form compressed; body
linear-lanceolate. Head very small; snout obtuse; jaws equal.
Mouth small; teeth uniserial, acute, becoming blunt with age,
closely ranged so as to form an incisorial series; lips loose. Anus
before the middle ; dorsal and anal mere cutaneous folds without
rays or interneural hones ; a single interneural at the point of the
tail, which supports seven or nine jointed rays; caudal united with
the cutaneous dorsal and anal; muscular layers forming chevrons,
which have the apex of the angle on the lateral line, and directed
forwards, as in Leptocephalus; abrachial and apodal. Gill-opening
under the throat, a small transverse slit, common to the two side”,
without a division in the middle; the edge of the membrane free;
a cutaneous fold, ending on each side in a minute lobe, forms the
posterior edge of the opening, and seems to be capable of acting
like a valve, with the aid of an interior membranous fold; bran-
chiostegals three; a minute genital papilla; a single pancreatic
caecum was observed; the intestine appeared to be straight, with a
stomachal dilatation. The skin is smooth, but minutely pitted, as
if from microscopical sunken scales. Vertebra; 73, ossified. Two
species—one obtained at Penguin Island, in Lat. 72. S.
Order II.—MALACOPTEROUS FISHES.
Sub-Order I.—SERPENTIFORM APODALS.
In the Lancelets, the only representatives as yet known of
the order of Dermopteri, we have seen that the skeleton is
membranous, that the spinal nervous chord is continued to
the anterior end of the fish without expansion, and that in
conformity with this simplicity of the nervous centre, the
head cannot be distinguished from the body, and may be
said to be wanting,—the only part of the face that is deve¬
loped being the mouth and oral filaments. In the Suckers
the skeleton rises from the soft membranous condition of
that of the Ammocete, to the production of a tendinous
spinal chord filled with gelatine, and partially encompassed
by cartilage ; teeth exist on the palate and lips, though as
yet seated only in the soft parts, and formed of indurated
mucoid matter; while the jaws are wanting. The group we
have now to speak of consists of fishes with a well ossified
skeleton, and a head that is at once recognised as such, but
with the bones of the face less fully developed than in osse¬
ous fishes more highly organized. A single bone represents
the nasal, ethmoid, and vomer, or it may be said that these
three bones have coalesced into one, which is firm and strong.
I he pre-maxillaries and the maxillary are wanting, the pala¬
tines coming in contact with the lips to form the lateral
portions of the upper jaw, which are opposed to the man¬
dible,—the teeth which arm these bones standing in reverse
order with regard to one another; for instance, when they
are biserial, and the inner row is the tallest on the palatines,
the outer row of the mandibulars is the tallest, and is op¬
posed to the lower rank of the palatines. In the mammals
a similar reversal of the sides of the molar teeth may be
noticed in comparing the upper and lower jaws.
This sub-order does not embrace all the fish that want ven¬
tral fins, there being many examples of such in other groups,
but it may be viewed as presenting an analogy to the Ceta-
cei among mammals. Neither does the vermiform type be¬
long exclusively to these Apodals; we shall find it mani¬
fested repeatedly in other parts of the series of fishes.
Ihe table in small type gives the technical characters
230
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifies- of the various divisions and sub-divisions of the order, and
tion—Ma- our iimits wiH not permit us to do more than to notice a
lacopten. pgw op ^ Species tiiat inhabit the British waters, or that
v r ^ are otherwise interesting from some particulars in their
history or economy.
In this order the forms of the teeth vary greatly. In a
few species they are mere grinding machines, in the majo¬
rity, long, slender, and sharp for the retention of their prey;
in others, they are variously lobed, fine-edged, cutting
instruments. On these different kinds of dentition, the
genera and minor groups are, in many instances, founded.
The arrangement of the entire sub-order is that of Dr
J. Kaup of Darmstadt, from whose catalogue, written for
the British Museum, we have borrowed it.
Fig. 64.
Mur ten a pavonina.
The Murama Helena, or Roman Mureena, abounds in the
Mediterranean, andwas introduced by the luxurious Romans
of antiquity, in crystal vases, to the table before being
cooked, that the guests might admire its variegated skin.
This fish is very voracious, and feeds on all sorts of animal
matter. The Romans fed them in ponds, and Pliny has
recorded the atrocities of Vedius Pollio, who used to punish
his offending slaves by throwing them alive to his Mureence.
We have seen this fish repeatedly taken at Gibraltar,
between three and four feet in length. The skin is beauti¬
fully marbled with yellow sub-angular markings on a rich
brown ground. When captured in nets it lives long out of
the water, and is capable of biting very severely, from the
sharpness of its numerous teeth.
A Murry is noticed in the narrative of Cook’s Third
Voyage to the Pacific in these words :—“ Amongst these
were some large eels, beautifully spotted, which, when fol¬
lowed, would raise themselves out of the water, and endea¬
vour, with open mouth, to bite their pursuers.”
Fig. 65.
Sidera pantherina.
The Anguillidee are a family whose members exhibit
little variety of form, and it contains only a single genus.
From the common Eel, however, most of our ideas respect¬
ing the Apodals have originated. Anguilla vulgaris. We
have observed these fish in considerable numbers leaving
fresh-water lakes in the night time, and frequenting mea¬
dows, seemingly for the purpose of preying on slugs and
snails. They easily move on the land, with a motion re¬
sembling that of snakes. The Eel grows to the size of two
or three feet, and is sometimes said to reach five or six feet Classifica-
in length. It abounds in many European rivers. Eels are tion—Ma-
caught in immense numbers in the rivers emptying them- lacoPteri.
selves into the Baltic ; and they form a considerable article
of trade. Two thousand are stated to have been caught at
one sweep in Jutland; and in the Garonne 60,000 were
taken in one day by a single net.
“ That Eels migrate towards brackish water,” observes
Mr J esse, “ in order to deposit their roe, I have but little
doubt, for the following reasons. From the month of
November until the end of January, provided the frost is
not very serious, Eels migrate towards the sea. The Thames
fishermen are so aware of this fact, that they invariably set
their pots or baskets with their mouths up stream during
those months, while later in the spring and summer they
are set down stream. The best time, however, for taking
Eels, is during their passage towards the sea. The Eel-traps,
also, which are set in three different streams near Hampton
Court (the contents of which, at different times, I have had
opportunities of examining), have invariably been supplied
with Eels sufficiently large to be breeders, during the months
I have mentioned. This migratory disposition is not shown
by small Eels; and it may therefore be assumed that they
remain nearly stationary till they are old enough to have
spawn. I have also ascertained that Eels are taken in
greater or lesser numbers during the months of November
or December, all the way down the river to the brackish
water. From thence the young Eels migrate, as soon as
they are sufficiently large and strong to encounter the
several currents of the river, and make their way to the
different contributary streams. I have also been able to
trace the procession of young Eels, or, as it is called here,
the Eel-fair, from the neighbourhood of Blackfriar’s Bridge,
as far up the river as Chertsey, although they probably
make their way as far, or farther than Oxford. So strong,
indeed, is their migratory disposition, that it is well known
few things will prevent their progress, as, even at the locks
at Teddington and Hampton, the young Eels have been
seen to ascend the large posts of the flood-gates, in order
to make their way, when the gates have been shut longer
than usual. Those which die stick to the posts ; others,
which get a little higher, meet with the same fate, until at
last a sufficient layer of them is formed to enable the rest to
overcome the difficulty of the passage. A curious instance
of the means which young Eels will have recourse to, in
order to perform their migrations, is annually proved in the
neighbourhood of Bristol. Near that city there is a large
pond, immediately adjoining which is a stream. On the
bank between these two waters a large tree grows, the
branches of which hang into the pond. By means of these
branches, the young Eels ascend into the tree, and from
thence let themselves drop into the stream below, thus
migrating to far distant waters, where they increase in size,
and become useful and beneficial to man. A friend of
mine, who was a casual witness of this circumstance, in¬
formed me that the tree appeared to be quite alive with
these little animals. The rapid and unsteady motion of the
boughs did not‘appear to impede their progress.”
“ All authors agree,” adds Mr Yarrell, “ that Eels are
extremely averse to cold. There are no Eels in the Arctic
regions, none in the rivers of Siberia, the Wolga, the
Danube, or any of its tributary streams. It is said there
are no Eels in the Caspian or Black Seas, but they abound
in the Mediterranean ; and M. Risso has described eight
species in his work on the Natural History of the Environs
of Nice. There is no doubt, also, that fishes in general,
and Eels more particularly, are able to appreciate even
minute alterations of temperature in the water they inhabit.
The brackish water they seek to remain in during the
colder months of the year, is of a higher temperature than
that of the pure fresh water of the river, or that of the sea.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- It is a well-known law in chemistry, that when two fluids
tion—Ma- of different densities come in contact, the temperature of
lacopteri. t}le mixture is elevated for a time, in proportion to the
difference in density of the two fluids, from the mutual
penetration and condensation. Such a mixture is constantly
taking place in rivers that run into the sea, and the tempe¬
rature of the mixed water is accordingly elevated.” As Eels
are well known to breed in ponds, it may be inferred that
their descent to the brackish water, though customary, is
not indispensable. They sometimes attain a great size.
The species (or variety) called the Sharp-nosed Silver Eel
has been taken near Cambridge of the weight of twenty-
seven pounds.
Order II.—MALACOPTERI.
Physostomi, Mttll. Endo-skeleton ossified; exo-skeleton, in most
as Cycloid, in a few as Ganoid scales. Fins supported by rays, all,
save the first, sometimes in the dorsal or pectoral, soft or jointed
abdominal or apodal. Gills free, operculate; a swim-bladder and
air-duct.
Sub-Order I.—APODES ANGUIFORMES.
Malacopterygii apodes (partim), Cuv. Elongated fish more or
less ajjproaching to vermiform, covered with a thick slimy skin;
the majority scaleless, but in some genera small scales are imbedded
in the skin. No developed ribs in the skeleton. Stomach ca;cal.
Pancreatic caecal appendage to the intestine wanting. The greater
number have a swimming-bladder, which is often very curiously
formed, but never double. Fin rays simple, not jointed.
Section A.—Phaneromycteres.
Labial olfactory organ opening by the posterior nostril on some
part of the head above the mouth, so as to be exposed.
Family I.—SYNBRANCHIDJE, Kaup.
Uni-aperturidas, auct. Both gill-openings enveloped by a border
of the common integument, so as to present externally only a single
medial orifice. Pectorals and other fins wanting, or almost obso¬
lete. Species few, confined to the seas of Asia and South America.
Genus I. Amphipnous, Miill. (Unibranchapertura, Hamilt.
Buch.; Synbranchus, Cuv.; Ophichthys et Pneumabranchus, M'Clell.)
A membranaceous partition separates the branchial efferent
tubes, and is continued to the verge of the common orifice. Four
gills, the third one having short fringes; the fourth, a membrane
with merely faint notches on its extremity. Vomerine teeth strong,
in two rows, eight in each, standing well apart; palatine teeth
small and thin, a little larger on the point of the bone ; mandibular
teeth pluriserial at the symphysis, uniserial towards the corner of
the mouth. On the occiput there is a sac which can be filled with
air, and is connected with the gills. Fine scales form a multitude
of elevated longitudinal lines on the body. The only trace of a
fin is a slight one on the thin tapering end of the tail. One species,
A. cuchia.
Genus II. Ophisternon. (Unibranchapertura, Lacep.; Ophi-
sternon, M'Clell.; Synbranchus, Cant, and Bleek.) Four fringed
branchial arches, which discharge the water that has passed over
them by two tubes divided by a thin partition, inclosed by the
skin of the throat so as to form one transverse oval opening. No
air-bag on the occiput, and no swim-bladder. Branchiostegals six,
bony. Posterior apertures of the nostrils between the eyes; an¬
terior nostrils minute, one on each side of the snout. Teeth fine,
blunt on the upper jaw, almost setaceous, crowded into a triangle
on each side of the symphysis; vomerine teeth larger, in a single
series; mandibular ones somewhat bigger still, and truncated. One
species, 0. bengalensis.
Genus III. Synbranchus, Bloch. Have all the characters of
Ophisternon, but the four fringed gills are not separated under the
throat by a partition, and the solitary gill-opening does not make
the angular inflection that it does in Monopterus, Ophisternon, and
Amphipnous. Hinder nostrils opening above the eyes, and capable
of being shut by a cutaneous flap. Two species, one Indian, the
other South American.
Genus IV. Monopterus, Lacep. Three gills only. No occi¬
pital air-bags. No protruding nasal teeth; the palatine teeth meet
m an angle with the vomerine ones anteriorly, and are there pluri¬
serial, but diminish to two and one row towards the corner of the
mouth; vomerine teeth triserial anteriorly, uniserial posteriorly ;
ranged in two bands, which meet in an acute angle anteriorly, and
231
diverge posteriorly. Like Amphipnous and Ophisternon, the ex- Classifica-
erior gill-opening is angular, and below the outer integument there tion Ma-
is a membranous partition between the gills. One species, M. lacopteri.
javanicus. ^ ^ y
Family II.—MURAlNIDyE, Kaup.
In most of the genera no pectorals. Gill-openings lateral. Skin
smooth and slippery, without scales. Mostly or wholly marine fishes.
(a.) SUB-FAMILY.—MURA2NINA5.
Uniserial teeth on nearly all the dentiferous bones of the mouth.
Genus I. Mur^ENA, Kaup. Uniserial nasal teeth, three on the
mesial line. Twenty-four species. Figure 64 represents Murcena
pavonina.
Genus II. Sidera, Kaup. Only one short conical tooth on the
mesial line; biserial, low, granular teeth on the vomer, the rows
coalescing in a point posteriorly; opening of the jaws not wide.
Skin spotted. Two species. Figure 65 represents Sidera pan-
therina.
(b.) SUB-FAMILY.—THYRS0DEINA3.
Within the outer palatine teeth, a second row that varies much
in the number of teeth which compose it.
Genus III. Enchelynassa, Kaup. Fore nostrils short, infun-
dibuliform, and capable of being closed by a cutaneous tag of its
hinder border ; hinder nostril longish, oval, surrounded by an ele¬
vated cutaneous border, and nearly as large as the eye. Rictus of
the jaws gaping in the middle, owing to the length of the teeth;
nasal teeth, five long ones anteriorly, followed by three or four
smaller ones; in the second row three long moveable teeth standing
near the corner of the eye ; nineteen greater and smaller palatine
teeth, with six more acicular ones in an interior row; on the mesial
line of the nasal, three long moveable teeth ; on the vomer, two
short conical ones; mandibular teeth, twenty-two small ones in the
exterior row, and five long ones in an interior row. One species.
The teeth are shown by figure 58.
Genus IV. Eurymictera, Kaup. Fore-nostril tube projecting
outwards beyond the lip; lips expanding on the upper and under
jaws; hinder nostril over the eye, and encompassed by an infundi-
buliform border. Nasal teeth eleven, with five small intercalary
ones in the posterior part of the row; palatines thirty in the outer
row, five larger ones forming an inner row; from seven to ten on
the vomer, the extreme ones minute; mandibulars twenty-seven of
a side, with five bigger ones near the symphysis in a second row.
Body slim. Jaws deeply cleft. Dorsal fin commencing at the oc¬
ciput. One species.
Genus V. Enchelycore, Kaup. Jaws incapable of shutting
close from the length of the teeth; hinder nostril strikingly large,
longer than broad, and situated before the eye; fore nostril-tube so
unusually short that it does not pass over the edge of the lip, and
it has no lid; eye in the middle of the length of the snout; the thin
outstretched upper jaw curves upwards. Twenty-four slender teeth,
some of them elongated, forming the outer row on the nasal bone;
eight moveable latter ones in a second row; three on the mesial
line; eighteen outer palatines; three moveable bigger ones making
an inner row; about fifteen small, pointed vomerines, and thirty-
seven fine mandibular ones, with two bigger moveable ones at the
symphysis. One species.
Genus VI. Thyrsoidea, Kaup. Murcence in the construction
of the fore and hinder nostrils, and presenting no prominent cha¬
racter whereby they may be distinguished from the Murcence proper,
except that they possess a more or less complete second or inner
row of pointed palatine teeth.
The numerous species (33) may be grouped according to the
number of rows of their vomerine and palatine, and by the patterns
which the colours of their bodies assume;—some are reticulated
others spotted, others again of one uniform colour in the upper, or
both above and below.
Genus VII. Limamurajna, Kaup. Abbreviated Thyrsodeince,
whose hind nostril-tubes project still more than those of Muroma
helena. Ten or twelve nasal teeth, with some scarcely perceptible
ones at their bases : three on the mesial line; palatine teeth biserial
but the inner row of six generally defective, sometimes altogether
wanting; four to six vomerine teeth; mandibulars uniserial, nine
of them taller than the fourteen others.
Head elongated; snout pointed; front nostril-tubes projecting
over the edge of the lip; hinder ones a little exceeding the dia¬
meter of the eye in length. Dorsal fin commencing at the occiput.
One species. r
Genus VIII. Polyuranodon, Kaup. Thyrsodeinm, with three
rows of acute teeth on the palatine bones; fourteen uniserial nasal
teeth; five or six uniserial vomerine teeth, mandibulars quadri-
serial anteriorly, biserial towards the corner of the mouth. One
species.
232
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- Genus IX. Channomuk^sna, Rich. (Tchthyophis seu Netta-
tion—Ma- stoma, Rich., olim.) Nostrils like Murama; face short and de-
lacopteri. pressed, but the gape of the mouth extremely wide and long.
v j Body cylindrical, without any vestige of the fold of the skin which
contains the dorsal rays in Murcena. Tail compressed and thinner
at the tip, where a few caudal rays are faintly perceptible. Teeth
slenderly subulate, in broad, dense, coarsely villiform plates.
One species. It is represented by figure 6.
Genus X. Muiuenoblenna, Lacep. (Ichthyophis, Less., Rich.
partim.) Finless, like Gymnomurcena, but differing wholly in the
teeth which are slenderly subulate, rather tall, and thinly set. Vo-
merines irregularly biserial ; nasals, palatines and mandibulars tri¬
serial.
Genus XI. Pcecilophis, Kaup. Muraenae, with blunt or more
conical teeth; vomerines round, pavement-like. Hinder nostrils
fringed; front ones shortly tubular, not projecting over the lip.
Dorsal and anal fins not distinctly perceptible, and the species are
therefore to be distinguished from Gymnomurcena by the numerous
rows of vomerine teeth. Six species, most of which are much
spotted.
Genus XII. Gymnomur^na, LacSp. Destitute of fins ; blunt,
pavement-like teeth on the border and mesial line of the nasal
bone, crowded into a space shaped like the sole of a shoe. Pala¬
tine bones rudimentary, supporting small teeth in two or three
rows. Body elongated, crossed by white bands. Two species.
Genus XIII. Apthalmichthys, Kaup. Resembling J/orinyua,
but destitute of fins except at the point of the tail, where there is a
trace of rays. Eyes covered by the skin. Lower jaw thick and pro¬
jecting beyond the snout. Nostrils short and tubular, the posterior
ones capable of being shut. Tail nearly equally thick throughout.
Eleven teeth in the upper jaw, the seven nasals being the longest;
five vomerines in one row; ten or twelve mandibulars. One species.
Genus XIV. Uropterygius, Hupp. Both jaws furnished with
two rows of fine teeth; the teeth in the outer row being short,
with reflexed points, those of the inner ones straighter and twice as
high; vomerine teeth uniserial, recurved. The only fin is the cau¬
dal, seated on the dilating tip of the tail. One species.
Genus XV. Apterichthys, Dum. (Ccecilia, Lacep.; Sphage-
branchus, Bloch, Cuv.) No fins. Snout lengthened beyond the
mandible; gill-openings near to one another, as in Sphagebran-
chus; anterior and posterior nostrils tubular. Body much elon¬
gated; tail slender. Teeth acicular and curved, and uniserial on
all the dentiferous bones. One species.
Genus XVI. Prymnothonus, Rich. Founded on a pencil draw¬
ing of Dr Hooker’s; has an acute snout, projecting a little be¬
yond the mandible. Acute subulate uniserial teeth, not closely set.
Anal aperture near the head, a long even anal with some rays shown
posteriorly united to a radiated caudal; a short dorsal fold also
united to the caudal. Gill-openings lateral, a small hole in the axilla
of what seems to be a small pectoral. No specimen of this form has
reached England. It appears to belong to this place.
Genus XVII. Moringua, Gray. Greatly elongated Muroence,
with the mandible longer than the snout. Teeth distinct, acute, and
recurved; vomerines uniserial. The dorsal and anal fins commence
posterior to the anus, and disappear in the middle of their length,
reappearing and becoming higher than before at the end of the tail.
Three species.
Family III.—ANGUILLIDiE.
Teeth card-like or villiform. Gill-openings lateral. Pectoral fins
conspicuous; anal and dorsal fins encompassing the tip of the tail,
the former beginning generally at a considerable distance from the
head; longish oval cycloid scales lying embedded in transverse and
oblique groups in the skin, so as to resemble lattice-work. No
species have as yet been detected that want the pectoral fins, like
the abrachial genera among the MurcenidcB and Synbranchidw. The
Anguillidoe are wholly or mostly anadromous fishes, some of them
remaining always in fresh water.
Genus I. Anguilla. Forty-five species.
Family IV.—CONGERIDA3, Kaup.
A dorsal fin reaching up to the occiput; a naked, scaleless skin ;
and, for the most part, a very long tail running to a point. Pec¬
torals in some present, in others wanting; a cartilage in the lips.
Genus L Mur.enesox, M‘Clell. Snout elongated like that
of a Gavial, whereof the dilated spoon-shaped nasal bone over¬
passes the mandible; the thin lips do not cover the front teeth.
Fore nostrils opening by short tubes near the narrowing of the
nasal bone ; hinder ones often pretty remote from them, placed
beneath the eyes. The large eyes placed nearly over the middle of
the jaws. Dorsal fin extending forwards to the base of the pec¬
torals; vomer elevated with a furrow in which the bigger teeth
stand, and are accompanied by a row of small blunt ones. Sun¬
dry rows of teeth on the palatine and mandibular bones; the Classificn-
longest teeth are on the nasal bone and fore part of the mandible. t;on jqa
Genus II. Conger, Cuv. Anterior nostrils opening by short lacopteri
tubes close to the end of the snout; posterior ones before the large y
eyes. Palatine and vomerine teeth slender, but having chisel- ”
shaped crowns, and arranged in so close a series as to produce an
incisorial edge. Nine species.
Genus III. Congermur^ena, Kaup. Posterior nostril a short
longitudinal slit before and above the large eye, which is over the
corner of the mouth. Teeth flatly rounded in a multitude of rows.
Species three.
Genus IV. Uroconger, Kaup. Anterior nostril not tubular;
posterior ones close before the eye like a small slit. A row of slit¬
like pores on the border of the upper lip. Tail much elongated, slen¬
der towards the end, and tapering to an acute point. Teeth (like
those of Myras') very fine, and disposed in two or three rows ; nasal
and palatine teeth in two rows; front upper jaw teeth boring
through the lips; pectoral small and elongated. Gill-openings very
large, as compared with those of other genera in this family. One
species.
Section B.'—Cryptomycteres.
The olfactory canal, running from the front nostril backwards
through the soft parts to the side of the mouth, opens by the pos¬
terior nostril in the white integument within the border of the lip ;
in this respect resembling Lepidosiren.
Family V.—OPHISURID^E, Kaup.
(a.) sub-family.—ophisurinje.
Tail ending in a conical point, that separates the ends of the ver¬
tical fins; no caudal fin.
Genus I. Leiuranus, Bleek. No vomerine teeth) uniserial
palatine teeth ranged in a crescent; mandibulars also uniserial;
upper jaw elongated like that of a shark ; mandible extraordinarily
short and round. Fore nostrils under the projecting snout; hinder
ones in the lip beneath the eye, which is nearer the corner of the
mouth than to the point of the snout. Pectoral fins scarcely per¬
ceptible. Point of the tail spinous. One species.
Genus II. Centrurophis, Kaup. Vomerine teeth uniserial or
sometimes sub-biserial; nasal teeth beyond the point of the man¬
dible. Pectoral fins pretty well developed. Six species.
Genus III. Pcecilophis, Kaup. Three nasal teeth, not im¬
planted out of reach of the mandible ; three on the mesial line, the
foremost two smaller and side by side. Eleven palatine teeth in a
crescent, whose point touches the last of the mesial nasals; eleven
vomerines ; nineteen mandibulars ; teeth generally pointed, short,
and recurved. No cuticular processes on the upper lip. Head
roundish. Pectoral fins very short; dorsal commencing opposite
their bases. One species.
Genus IV. Microdonophis, Kaup. Very small pointed teeth,
biserial on the nasal and on the symphysial extremity of the man¬
dible. Fins much developed. One species.
Genus V. Ccecilophis, Kaup. Biserial teeth near the symphysis
of the mandible, and not elsewhere. Pectoral fins developed and
longer than the rictus of the mouth. Fore nostrils shortly tubular,
with a short tag on their under border. Dorsal fin commencing
over the points of the pectorals. One species.
Genus VI. Ophisurus, Kaup. Head small; snout slender and
elongated, its point passing beyond the mandible; gape of the
mouth very wide; eyes near the corner of the mouth; fore nostril
in the middle between the eye and end of the snout, indistinct and
without a tube; and the hinder one rather on the outside of the
thin lip. The pectoral fin is about half as long as the mouth.
Nasal teeth, five on the border of the bone, and nine longer ones
on the mesial line ; thirteen short and pointed ones on the vomer;
palatine teeth uniserial, anteriorly, becoming biserial under the
eye. One species.
Genus VII. Herpetoichthys, Kaup. Jaws nearly of equal
length; snout bluntish; gape wide; eyes approximating to the
snout; head depressed, so that the eyes are rather more on the
dorsal than lateral aspect; front nostril-tubes at the end of the
snout, and the hinder ones at the commencement of the outer row
of palatine teeth ; between the two there is a small cutaneous flap
on the border of the lip. Pectoral fins pretty short. Six nasal
teeth; from nine to thirteen vomerine ones. Three species.
Genus VIII. Brachysomophis, Kaup. Eye placed at the end
of the first fifth part of the length of the jaws, or one of its own
diameters from the tip of the snout; fore nostril-tube extraor i-
narily short; the hinder one a short tube on the inner side of the lip
under the eye; gill-openings very large, and approximated to one
another. Pectoral fins comparatively small. Border of the lips warty.
One species, B. horridus, whose jaws are represented by figure
I C H T H Y
Classifica- Genus IX. Elapsopsis, Kaup. Gape of the mouth short; snout
tion jia. elongated, obtuse, stretching beyond the mandible ; the short nasal
lacopteri. tube wider at its external orifice than at its commencement; eye
v , approximating to the corner of the mouth. Pectoral very small hut
v distinctly visible. Body about equal in length to the tail. Nasal
teeth reflex, four in each row, with an odd one in front; vomerine
teeth irregularly uniserial; palatine teeth uniserial anteriorly, be¬
coming biserial and sub-triserial. One species.
Genus X. Mystriophis, Kaup. Snout spoon-shaped, its ex¬
tremity being dilated; fore nasal-tube rudimentary, and in the
middle of the rostral expansion; eyes over the middle of the jaws,
and though the long head is depressed, they are more lateral than
dorsal in their aspect; gill-openings large and near one another.
Two species.
Genus XI. Mur^nopsis, Lesueur. Head oval; snout not much
elongated; hinder nostril rather on the outside of the thin lip.
Pectoral as long, or somewhat longer than the long, straight rictus
of the jaws. Teeth all of equal length. Three species.
Genus XII. Echiopsis, Kaup. Face short; eyes high-placed;
fore nostril-tubes short; jaws deeply cleft. Pectoral fins pretty
short, about half the length of the oral rictus. Nasal teeth seven ;
three on the mesial line being the tallest; two rows of vomerines
uniting at their posterior termination, biserial palatines, interior
row composed of the smallest teeth; two rows on the mandible,
the outer row being the tallest. One species.
Genus XIII. Scytalophis, Kaup. Teeth all nearly of a size,
divergent; anterior nostril-tube distinctly visible. Pectoral pretty
well developed. All the teeth biserial except the nasals. Two
species.
Genus XIV. Leptorhinophis, Kaup. Snout pointed; tubes
of the anterior nostrils dependant; posterior nostrils situated be¬
fore the eyes on the border of the lips; eyes over the middle of the
oral rictus. Pectorals developed;; anal and dorsal fin becoming
higher near their terminations. Two species.
Genus XV. Pisoodonophis, Kaup. Teeth all shortly conical,
more or less blunt; anterior nostril-tube projecting; eye approxi¬
mating to the corner of the mouth. Pectoral more or less fully de¬
veloped. Eighteen species, some of them all of one colour, others
spotted or banded. Eighteen species.
Sub Order II.—APODALS WITH ARTICULATED FIN
RAYS.
Fig. 66.
lihamphichthys Mulleri.
The Gymnotid^e are apodals, but cannot be associated
with the Eels in the sub-orderofSerpentiform Apodals, owing
to the considerable differences of their organization. Their
jaws are complete, they are furnished with ribs, and their
fin rays are jointed or branched, in which respect they differ
from the preceding sub-order, the chief point of agreement
being the want of ventral fins. The Gymnotidce want also
the dorsal; but one of the genera has a curious long ray,
which commonly lies in a furrow along the top of the
rounded back, glued down by mucus. It is named by
German ichthyologists “ peitsche,” or “ the whip,” and is
considered by Dr Kaup to be a representative of the adi¬
pose fin on the tail of the Salmonidce. One of the most
curious parts of their structure is the forward position of the
vent, which in most of the Rhamphichthi is before the eye ;
and in these the anal begins between the gill plates, and
extends along the ventral edge of the fish, while the rounded
back is destitute of a fin. Examples of a similar forward posi¬
tion of the anus occurs in some other families, but they are
very scarce. The Gymnotidce inhabit the rivers and fresh-
VOL. XII.
O L O G Y. 233
water lagoons of the warmer parts of South America, Classifica-
Guiana, Surinam, Cayenne, Demerara, Guyaquil, Ecuador, t>°n—Ma-
lacopteri.
Fig. 67.
Sternarchus Bonapartii.
New Granada, and Brazils. The best known species is
Gymnotus electricus, or the Electric Eel. This animal has
been well described by Dr Garden of Charlestown, by
John Hunter, and by Humboldt. It is remarkable for the
violence of its electric shocks, which are often so powerful
as to stupify a man or a horse. The researches of Hunter
detected an electric organ in the posterior part of this fish
consisting of four longitudinal fasciculi, which occupy one-
half the thickness of the part in which they occur, and
about one-third of the whole animal. The larger pair lie
above, the smaller below. Each fasciculus is composed of
flat partitions or septa, with transverse divisions between
them. The outer edge of the septa appear in nearly parallel
lines in the direction of the longitudinal axis of the body,
and consist of thin membranes, which are easily torn; they
serve the same purpose as the columns in the analogous
organ of the Torpedo, making the walls or abutments for
the perpendicular and transverse dissepiments, which are
exceedingly numerous, and so closely aggregated as to seem
almost in contact. The minute prismatic cells, intercepted
between these two sorts of plates, contain a gelatinous mat¬
ter ; the septa are about one-thirtieth of an inch from each
other, and one inch in length contains a series of 240 cells,
giving an enormous surface to the electric organs. The
whole apparatus is abundantly supplied with nerves from
the myelon ; and these nerves are seen coming out in
pairs from between the vertebrae. In their course they
give out branches to the muscles of the back, and to the
skin of the animal. In the Gymnote, as in the Torpedo, the
nerves supplying the electric organs are much larger than
those bestowed on any part for the purposes of sensation or
movement. Hunter thinks, however, that these nerves are
more considerable in point of size in the Torpedo than in
the Gymnote. These organs are attached loosely to the
muscles of the back which lie between the larger fasciculi,
and they are immediately connected with the skin by a
loose cellular texture. Humboldt has given a very interest¬
ing and lively description of the mode of capturing the elec¬
tric Gymnote, as practised in South America, near the town
of Calabozo.
These fish abound in the stagnant pools of that vicinity.
The Indians are well aware of the danger of encountering
the Gymnote when its powers are unexhausted. They
therefore collect twenty or thirty wild horses, force them
into the pools, and when the fish have exhausted their
electric batteries on the poor horses, they are laid hold of
without difficulty. The horses at first exhibit much agita¬
tion and terror ; they are prevented leaving the pool by an
inclosing band of Indians, who goad them with bamboos
whenever they attempt to escape. “ The Eels,” says Hum¬
boldt, “ stunned and confused by the noise of the horses,
defended themselves by reiterated discharges of their elec¬
tric batteries. For some time they seemed likely to gain
2 G
234
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- the victory over the horses and mules; these were seen in
tion Ma- every direction, stunned by the frequency and force of the
lacopteri. shocks? to disappear under water. Some horses, however,
rose again, and, in spite of the active vigilance of the In¬
dians, gained the shore, exhausted with fatigue; and their
limbs being benumbed by the electric explosions, they
stretched themselves out upon the ground.” “ I remember
the superb picture of a horse entering a cavern, and terri¬
fied at the sight of a lion. The expression of terror is not
there stronger than what we witnessed in this unequal con¬
flict. In less than five minutes two horses were already
drowned. The Eel, more than five feet long, glides under
the belly of the horse or mule ; it then makes a discharge
from the whole extent of its electric organs, which at once
attacks the heart, the viscera, and especially the gastric
plexus of nerves.” “ After this commencement, I was
afraid that the sport might end very tragically. But the
Indians assured us that the fishing would soon be finished,
and that nothing is to be dreaded but the first assault of the
Gymnotus. In fact, whether the galvanic electricity is ac¬
cumulated in repose, or the electric organ ceases to perform
its functions when fatigued by too long-continued use, the
Eels, after a time, resemble discharged batteries. Their
muscular motion is still equally active, but they no longer
have the power of giving energetic shocks. When the
combat had lasted a quarter of an hour, the mules and
horses appeared less affrighted; they no longer bristled up
the mane, and the eye was less expressive of suffering and
of terror. They no longer were seen to fall backwards ; and
the Gymnotes, swimming with the body half out of the
water, and now flying from the horses instead of attacking
them, began themselves in their turn to approach the shore.”
The electric Gymnote is by no means fierce or voracious;
but its electric organs are the instruments by which it pro¬
cures its prey, and defends itself against alligators and other
enemies. It has been several times brought alive to Europe,
and some experiments have been made on its electricity,
which is conducted and insulated by the same substances
as common galvanism. So common is the Gymnotus in
some parts of South America, that, in the neighbourhood
of Uritucu, a route at one time much frequented has been
entirely abandoned, in consequence of the necessity of ford¬
ing a stream, in which many mules were killed every year
by these subaqueous electric shocks.
The genus Sternarchus of Schneider was so denominated
from the anus being near the sternum. The Gymnarchus
niloticus is named in Arabic “ Del e far.”
Sub-Order II.—APODES ARTHROPTERYGII.
Dr Kaup, for the reason stated in the text, has separated Gym~
notus from the Serpentiform Apodals, and associated it with Ster¬
narchus and its allies, forming a group placed by him next the
Malacopteri abdominales, but the want of ventrals necessitates
its separation as a sub-order.
Family I.—GYMNOTIDJE.
Eel-like, the back round, and without fins; pectorals; largely
developed anal fin, extending either to the point of the tail, or leav¬
ing the extremity free; with or without teeth on the pre-maxil-
laries, mandible, and palatines; no teeth on the vomer; scapular
arch attached to the head ; from the fifth vertebra onwards distinct
ribs encompass the belly, and in many species are perceptible
through the skin; stomach caecal; pancreatic caeca ; ovisacs pouch¬
shaped, and their outlets diiFerent from those of the Eels; vent
and the genital papilla behind it on the coracoid bone, or still
farther forward towards the middle of the mandible.
The small fore-bladder under the second, third, and fourth ver¬
tebrae is pyriform or heart-shaped, and is double; the outer one
being thick, white, and easily torn; the inner one transparent,
filled with a gelatinous fluid, and swimming loose in the outer one.
This bladder is attached to the acoustic bones of the skull, and is
connected by a fine chord with the simple posterior or ordinary
swim-bladder, which chord divides, and with its fellow is attached
to the stomach. The anterior double-bladder closely resembles
that of the Catastomi (which is followed by two or three ordinary Classifica-
swim-bladders), belongs to the organ of hearing, and corresponds tion Ma¬
to the membranous labyrinth of the higher mollusks. lacopteri
Genus I. Gymnotus, Linn. Skin entirely soft, and destitute of \ \
scales. Only one species is known, which resembles Carapus in the v
conformation of the head, position of the nostrils, and dentition;
but the anal jin reaches the point of the tail. Head oval, flatly de¬
pressed; mouth not opening quite as far as under the eyes, fur¬
nished with broad lips of equal length ; fore nostril a small tube
in a bell-shaped superficial depression above and towards the end
of the lateral lip; hinder nostril distant about the diameter of the
eye from the first one, behind and above it. Longitudinal and trans¬
verse rows of pores in cup-shaped depressions on the top of the
head ; also a row on the mandible; lateral line indicated by a row
of distant pores.
About fifty pointed teeth on the upper jaw, and sixty on the under
one ; a second row behind the middle of the upper ones of about six
teeth ; along the symphysis of the mandible two short rows, each
with twotoothlets. Vomer, roof of the mouth, and tongue furnished
with lateral, projecting, dentated membranous edgings. Vent be¬
fore the gill-openings; behind it a small orifice and a small, slen¬
der papilla. Pectorals and anal fin enveloped in a thick skin which
conceals the rays. One species.
Genus II. Oarapus, Miill. and Trosch. (Carapus, Guv.partim.)
Broad, depressed, flattish snout; a row of pointed teeth; scales. No
caudal fin. Fore nostril a short tube in a notch near the corner of
the mouth; hinder one before the eye, open and distinct; eyes
shining through the skin ; five broad, flat branchiostegals; anal fin
extending almost to the end of the tail; under lip longer than the
upper one. Scales of the back and lateral line of equal size. Two
species.
Genus III. Sternopygus, Miill. and Trosch. Card-like teeth
in numerous rows ; small mouth. Body and head compressed; head
short; small jaws; occasionally traces of card-like palatine teeth.
Tail slenderly prolonged, without a caudal fin. Scales of the lateral
line mostly larger than the others.
This genus has the aspect of a Fierasfer, Four species.
Fig. 68.
Rhamphichthys Artedi.
Genus IV. Rhamphichthys, Mull, and Trosch. A small
mouth; no teeth; snout more or less tubularly elongated, and
provided with small pores; nostrils not tubular. Head and body
compressed, and with an exception scaly. Anal fin long, but leaving
the end of the tail free.
The species divide themselves into two groups :—
1. Snout short; largely developed genital papilla. Anus behind
the third part of the head ; and anal fin commencing at the point
of the pectoral. Two species.
2. Anus under or before the eye, and the anal commencing before
the gill-opening. Seven species.
Genus V. Sternarchus, Schneid. Having a small normally
formed caudal fin. A crowd of teeth on the pre-maxillaries, and
two rows of recurved ones on the mandible; no tooth on the sym¬
physis. Head and body laterally compressed, the former naked, the
latter scaly. In the middle of the dorsal surface of the tail an elas¬
tic ray, which, in the living fish, lies in a furrow and is kept firmly
there by the dermal mucus (this ray is homologous with the fleshy
fin of the Salmonidce) ; anus before or under the eye ; eye shining
through without a lid. Nostrils like small pores. Four branchi¬
ostegals in the gill membrane. Three species.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica¬
tion—Ma-
iacopteri.
Sub-Order III.—MALACOPTEROUS ABDOMINALS.
CLUPEOIDS OR HERRING FAM.LY.
The species of this family are so numerous, and many of
them are so much alike, that much confusion prevailed
respecting those described by the older authors and the
many nominal ones recently introduced into our lists by
modern ichthyologists who were not in circumstances that
enabled them, to profit by the examination of specimens
preserved in rich museums. M. Valenciennes has thrown
a flood of light into the darkness that previously existed;
and it is on his labours that we almost solely rely in our
notices of the families described in the Histoire des Poissons
subsequent to the death of his illustrious predecessor’
Baron Cuvier. He has made use of the varieties of den¬
tition, so great in this family, to characterize his groups • also
of the position of the ventrals and of the length of the anal,
d he comparative length of the mandible has also been taken
into consideration by him ; in most it projects beyond the
snout; a second group is characterized by the snout, owino-
to the elongation of the nasal, projecting beyond the pre¬
max illaries ; which, then, instead of crossing the upper edge
of the orifice of the mouth transversely, descend on the
sides. In some, the maxillary is prolonged far beyond the
corner of the mouth. I here are diversities also in the fins :
in ceitain species the anal and caudal are united; and in
some, a greater or smaller number of the rays of the pec¬
toral are prolonged into slender-jointed filaments; others
again have the anal and caudal united, while the form of the
mouth varies. We can notice only a few of the species of
this family.
Clupea harengus, Lin. (The Herring.) The investiga¬
tion of the habits of this fish has not received that attention
which its importance as an article of food to the inhabitants
of this country demands; and there are several circum¬
stances respecting its economy which still require farther
examination. It is generally believed that the Herrino- in¬
habits, in winter, the depths of the Arctic Ocean, or other
seas in northern latitudes, and that during the rest of the
year it .makes migrations southwards. In summer and
autumn it appears on the north and west coasts of Europe
in immense shoals, and about the same season it arrives
at some parts of the coast of America and Asia. It has
been supposed that those coming from the north divide into
two detachments, one of which proceeds along Newfound-
Hnd to America, the other along Norway to the south of
Europe ; and that one subdivision of this second detach¬
ment goes up the Baltic, while the other proceeds along
Great Britain, Ireland, Germany, and France, as far as the
western coast of Spain.
This is the description of the annual migrations of the
Herring given by Pennant; but some doubts have been en¬
tertained as to its accuracy, from the circumstances,—\st,
That while in some places the Herrings do not make their
appearance for years, in others they are taken in abundance
all the year round; and, 2d, That they have never been
observed on their return northwards. Other naturalists
suppose that they come merely from the deep into shallow
water during the spawning season, and that in so doing
they do not make any very lengthened journeys. In truth,
we are not as yet furnished with sufficient data to decide
the question; but, in the meantime, we do not feel in¬
clined entirely to reject the generally received opinion,
that the Herrings migrate from north to south in summer
and autumn.
In migrating, the Herrings proceed in vast troops,—so
great, indeed, that the sea is sometimes covered with them
for miles, and that they have even been known to be
stranded or crushed in immense quantities in confined
bays, or when thrown by the wind or by currents upon
235
the shore. The shoals are said to be generally preceded Classifica-
sometimes for days, by one or two males. The largest tion—Ma*
generally go first, to act in some measure as guides; 'and IacoPtei,i-
as they proceed onwards, immense numbers fall an easy
and unresisting prey to rapacious birds, or to their own not
less rapacious kindred of the sea.
It is generally believed that the Herrings captured far
north are larger, fatter, and of a better quality than those
°f the south ; and for this reason, in the month of July, our
fishermen go out to meet the shoals as far as Orkney and
Shetland. The greatest number are taken on the coasts
of Norway and Sweden, in the first of which countries it
is said that about 400 millions are taken in one year, and
sometimes 20 millions in a single fishery. The inhabitants
in the neighbourhood of Gothenburg, in Sweden, take as
many as 700 millions in a year. Herrings are fished also
in great quantity in this country, Germany, France, Hol¬
land, the United States, and Kamtschatka.
The average size of the Herring is stated to be about ten
inches. According to Dr Knox, the females are consider¬
ably larger than the males; the largest female he found on
the east coast of Scotland measuring eleven inches, the
largest male nine inches and a half. It does not appear to
be precisely known at what age they attain their full size.
Considerable doubt has at all times prevailed regarding
the food of the Herring. They were generally stated to
live on small crabs and fishes, and on a minute crustaceous
animal named by Fabricius Astacus harengum. But this
was chiefly matter of supposition ; for most practical fisher¬
men described the stomach of the fish when in good state
as quite empty, or, at most, as containing a little brownish
mucus ; and it has appeared difficult to reconcile the fact,
that it is when the stomach appears thus empty that the
fish is in its best condition, viz., fullest, with the finest fla¬
vour, and most capable of keeping,—with the notion, that
when it appears upon our coasts it has quitted its natural
feeding ground, and has been longer and longer in a state
of starvation the more southern the latitude in which it is
found. Dr Knox’s interesting observation, that the prin¬
cipal food of the Salmon and Vendace consisted of minute
crustaceous animals, led him to examine carefully with the
microscope the brownish matter contained in the alleged
empty stomachs of the Herring; and he then formed the
opinion, that this matter consisted of the debris of a very
minute entomostracous animal.
It is well known that the Herrings caught upon the east
coast of Scotland are much inferior to those taken on the
west coast, and more particularly to those of Loch Fine,
and other lochs of Argyleshire. Dr Knox states that the
Herrings taken near the Firth of Forth in July are foul, or
are engaged in spawning, while those of the west coast, in
the same season, have the organs of reproduction very
slightly developed; and he conjectures that that species
of crustaceous animal which forms their appropriate and
most favourite food may exist abundantly in the bays on
the west coast of Scotland, and either not at all, or not in
sufficient quantities, along our eastern coasts It appears
to be chiefly after these fishes have been absent for some
time from their proper feeding places that they eat marine
worms and small fishes; and when so feeding, they lose
much of their flavour, and run rapidly into putrefaction
after being captured. 1 he time of spawning seems to vary
consideiably, both in the same and in different districts;
so that we may have spring, summer, and autumn herrings,
as we know they have in some parts of the Baltic. Dur¬
ing the spawning season they are seen to rub their bellies
against the rocks or sand. As many as 68,606 e<^gs have
been counted in one female. The young do not accom¬
pany the larger herrings in their migrations. M. Valen¬
ciennes, after reviewing many facts collected by different
ooservers, comes to the conclusion that the Herrings are
236 I C H T H Y
ciassifica- not nice in their selection of a spawning place, depositing
tion—Ma- their eggs at the bottom of the sea, sometimes on sand,
lacopteri. sometimes on naked rocks, occasionally in sub-marine
^ ^ v meadows, in the eddies of currents, at the mouths of rivers,
or in the sea far from the shore where the water is tranquil.
They change their places of resort, occasionally wholly de¬
serting then- former haunts. For a full account of what is
known of the economy and habits of the Herring and its
fisheries, we must refer to the Histoire des Poissons (Cuv.
and Valen.), vol. xx., and to the article on Fisheries in
this Encyclopaedia. The Herring fishery of France, carried
on by the inhabitants of Normandy, dates as far back as a.d.
1030, according to documents still preserved. That of Eng¬
land has been traced to a still higher date ; it is named in the
records of the Monastery of Evesham as a source of revenue
in 709 a.d. ; and in the annals of the Monastery of Bark¬
ing, the tax levied upon it is called Herring-silver. In Ice¬
land the Herring fishery seems to have been so important
at an early age, that the word sild (Herring) enters into the
composition of the names of many mountains in that island.
Harengula sprattus, Valenc., is the Sprat, so abundant on
the English coasts at certain seasons, and from its cheap¬
ness is an aliment that serves to vary the diet of the poorer
classes. It is the Sprcette-sild of the Danes, many of whose
sea-terms and names of fish and implements for fishing, have
been preserved with slight alteration in the north of Eng¬
land and Scottish lowlands. A second species is named
Blanquette by the French in the Mediterranean, and is so
like the Sprat that most ichthyologists have confounded the
two. Rogenia alba, Valenc., is the renowned “ White-
bait” with which our ministry always regale themselves
after winding up their parliamentary labours for the session.
Mr Yarrell’s able account of it exhausts its history, and need
only be referred to here. Alausa vulgaris, L’Alose of the
French, and the Shad of the English. Ausonius of Bor¬
deaux, who flourished a.d. 380, in his poem on the Moselle,
mentions the Shad as the food of the common people—
“ Stridentesque focis opsonia plebis alausas.”
Alausa pilchardus, the Pilchard so plentifully caught in
its season on the Devonshire coast, and consumed by the
inhabitants of that county in pies, in which the heads of the
fish protrude through the crust, to denote the nature of the
contents. It is the Sardinia of the Spanish peninsula and
Mediterranean Sea, and the Ceilan of the French fisher¬
men. Its fishery is important to the inhabitants of the
south of England, Brittany, Portugal, and Gallicia. At
St Yves in Cornwall, 250,000 have been caught in a single
draught, and few who have visited Lisbon but must have
admired the fleets of sharp-built latine-sailed boats, named
“Bean-cods,” issuing from the Tagus, to carry on a fishery
so invaluable to a Roman Catholic population.
Engraulis encrasicholus, the Anchovy, is another cele¬
brated member of this family, very plentiful in the Mediter¬
ranean, and found on the coasts of Greenland, Jutland, and
the Baltic; it is occasionally caught in the Irish Channel,
but is rare on the English side of the British Channel,
though it has been taken, according to Mr Yarrell, on the
Hampshire coast, and on Dagenham Breach below Black-
wall. Formerly it was more abundant in the British seas,
and several acts of parliament passed in the reign of Wil¬
liam and Mary regulated its fisheries. It was also a century
ago plentiful on the coasts of Brittany, though by no means
so now.
Under the head of Fisheries the statistics of the deep-
sea fisheries of Great Britain are fully entered into, and their
great importance as a branch of national industry shown in
detail. There are, however, wide fields for the employment
of British capital in the East, where the supplies are inex¬
haustible, and the demand in the China and other markets
exceedingly great. Coilia Playfairi is represented by fig.
17. The Alausa toli (Cuv. and Val.) is the subject of a
0 L 0 G Y.
very extensive fishery on the coast of Sumatra, for the sake Classifica-
of its roes, which are salted and exported to China, the dried tion—Ma-
fishes themselves being sent into the interior of Sumatra. lac°pteri.
The fish is named “ Trubu” in the Malay tongue, is about
18 inches long, and between fourteen and fifteen millions
are caught annually with very rude tackle.
Another of the Herring tribe, the Engraulis Brownii, is
exceedingly numerous at all seasons in the Straits of Ma¬
lacca, and at the mouths of the Ganges. From it a delicious
condiment named “ Red fish” is prepared by adding vinegar
made of the juice of the Cocoa palm, ginger, black pepper,
and powdered red-rice to the salted fish. Dussumiera
acuta and Clupeonia perforata, also members of this family,
are taken at Penang, and brought to table under the deno¬
mination of “ Sardines.” They are said to have a delicate
flavour; but the Meletta venenosa, which occasionally
visits those seas in shoals, is poisonous, and has produced
death when eaten by mistake for the “ Sardine.” The
poisonous fish has red eyes. These facts are from Dr Cantor,
whose work on the Malayan fishes goes more into detail.
Sub-Order III.—ABDOMINALES.
Family I.—HETEROPYGII.
Tellkampf characterized this family from the blind fish found
in the Mammoth Cave of Kentucky, Amblyopsis spelceus. It is dis¬
tinguished from the other Physostomi abdominales by the position
of the vent on the throat before the ventrals, and small eyes
covered with skin; it possesses no accessory gills, no adipose dor¬
sal ; a simple swim-bladder; a cascal stomach; and pancreatic
casca. The very forward position of the anus occurs in other fa¬
milies, notably in Gymnotidce, also in several of the TasniotdcB, and
Lophiidce. Dr Wyman, on examining the fish, could discover no
ocular speck, but a pretty large optic nerve. Agassiz is inclined
to consider the Amblyopsis as an aberrant form of the Cyprinida,
but until he has investigated its embryology he reserves his deci¬
sion.
Genus I. Amblyopsis. Characters those of the family.
Genus II. Chologaster, Agassiz. Habit that of Amblyopsis,
but it has eyes; it has likewise a guttural anus, but wants the
ventrals wholly. There are two horn-like processes on the snout.
One species, C. cornutus.
Family II.—APHRODEIRID^E, Bon.
This family, founded on a single species, is placed by the Prince
of Canino in the order of Heteropygii, comprising Amblyopsis also.
Both agree in the guttural position of the anus, but M. Valenci¬
ennes places Aphrodederus among his I’ercoids, near Pomotis. The
characters of the family are those of the genus.
Genus I. Aphrodederus, Lesueur. Scaly Acanthopteri, with a
single dorsal on the summit of the fusiform body ; pectorals and
subbrachial or abdominal ventrals ; anus before the pectorals, under
the gill-openings; branchiostegals six. No spine in the ventrals ; a
spinous point to the operculum, and crenatures on the suborbitar
scale bones. Scales ctenoid. Stomach very small, siphonal, gut run¬
ning forward from the anal fin in a canal among the muscles of the
abdomen to the anus, which opens just behind the edge of the bran-
chiostegal membrane. Air-bladder large, simple, with round ends.
Milts communicating with the anal opening by a long canal which
follows the intestine. One species. Lake Pontchartrain.
Family III. CLUPEIDiE, Valenc.
Scaly fishes, without an adipose fin. Body generally elongated
and very much compressed; belly thin and trenchant, frequently
denticulated by the edges or points of a series of dermal bones.
Scales always present on the body, but easily detached. No spinous
rays in the fins ; ventral fins nearly in the middle of the body;
dorsal fin always solitary; moderately long pre-maxillary bones con¬
joined with the maxillaries to form the upper border of the mouth
(this character they possess in common with the Salmonidce); maxil¬
lary composed of three pieces easily separated.
Gill-openings very large; rakers of the branchial arches long, and
projecting towards the mouth; no accessory gills present. Ribs long,
and with their epipleural spines very slender ; the latter diverg¬
ing from the parapophyses and neurapophyses of the vertebras, as
well as from the ribs; points of the ribs connected with the dermal
osseous scales on the edge of the belly. Stomach caecal, often fleshy ;
pyloric caeca numerous and long. Ova (roe) very numerous, and,
ICHTHYOLOGY.
237
Classifica- near spawning time, occupying much space in the belly, as do
tion—Ma- also the male organs (melt). The air-bladder is always large, and
lacopteri has a slender tube by which it communicates with the apex of the
v v , csecal cone of the stomach, or in some species with the dorsal side
v-™1" of the stomach or oesophagus; sometimes the air-bladder divides
into two long conical processes posteriorly, but this is rare; in all,
its anterior end is simple and generally pointed, and does not pass
before the centre of the first spinal vertebra, nor are there any
ossicles intervening between its point and the acoustic capsule, as
in the Carps; neither has the air-bladder of the Clupeidoe any com¬
munication with the interior of the skull.
ANALYTICAL TABLE OF THE CLUPEID^ (Dum.)
Mouth large.
Anal separated from the caudal.
12.
f E
Ventrals conspicuous 1
Ventrals none, or scarcely visible  Odontognathus 14.
Encrasicholtjs
or Engraulis
Anal coalescent with the caudal  COILIA
13.
Clupea
6.
10.
8.
7.
11.
15.
2.
3.
5.
4.
Mouth of moderate size, or small.
Teeth visible on the jaws.
Teeth on all the oral bones  Rogenia
Teeth on the upper jaw and mandible
only 
Teeth on the upper jaw, mandible, and | j£0WALA
Teeth on the tongue only  Meletta
Teeth on the tongue and palatines  Spratella
Teeth on the tongue and pterygoids  Cltjpeonia
No teeth on any of the oral bones.
Dorsal with all the rays connected  Alausa
Dorsal with one isolated ray  Chatoessus
No teeth on the vomer, nor jaws, but on ( r,
,, ,, , > J > l Sardinella
the other bones 
No teeth on the vomer only.
Anal short, far back  Harengula
Anal long.
Ventrals none  Pristigaster
Ventrals present  PellONA
Genus I. Clupea, Cuv. Small pre-maxillary teeth ; crenatures
on the maxillary so fine as to be discoverable rather by the touch
than by the sight; fine teeth also on the symphysial portion of the
mandible which projects farther forward than the upper jaw; a
longitudinal band of larger teeth on the vomer ; a similar one on
the tongue ; two or three very small deciduous teeth on the external
edge of the palatines. Body elongated ; back rounded ; belly more
or less compressed or trenchant according to the size the roe or
melt has attained. Sixteen species.
Genus II. Sardinella, Valenc. Teeth on the palatines, en-
topterygoid, and tongue; none on the vomer, pre-maxillaries,
maxillaries, or mandible. Specific characters derived from the
forms of the gill-cover or other external part. Seven species.
Genus III. Harengula, Valenc. Teeth on the jaws, tongue,
palatines, and entopterygoids ; no vomerine teeth. Ten species.
Genus IV. Pellona, Valenc. Dentition of Harengula. Body
very much compressed. Ventrals before the dorsal; anal long
and low; edge of the belly strongly denticulated. Pectorals pointed,
their first ray strong, though jointed, and long. Sixteen species.
Genus V. Pristigaster, Cuv. Apodal Pellonce. Air-bladder
various : large and forked behind in some species. Four species.
Genus VI. Rogenia, Valenc. Teeth on the vomer, palatines,
entopterygoids, and tongue; teeth also on the jaws, but scarcely
visible.
Genus VII. Clupeonia, Valenc. Teeth on the tongue and en¬
topterygoids only; jaws, vomer, and palatines edentate. Five
species.
Genus VIII. Spratella, Valenc. Teeth on the palatines and
tongue only. Two species.
Genus IX. Kowala, Valenc. Teeth on the jaws and entop¬
terygoids only; none on the tongue, vomer, or palatines. Form
of Spratella. Two species.
Genus X. Meletta, Valenc. A rough band on the tongue;
no other teeth. Ten species.
Genus XI. Alausa, Valenc. Teeth on the jaws deciduous and
very small; no other teeth; a notch in the upper jaw. Air-
bladder simple, pointed at both ends, and not extending before the
third vertebra; air duct entering the conical point of the csecal
stomach. Twenty-two species.
In the preceding genera the mandible is longer than the upper jaw.
Genus XII. Engraulis, Valenc. Mouth large, snout pro¬
jecting. Nasal bone advancing before the jaws, concealing the
small pre-maxillaries ; maxillaries slender, not prolonged behind the
mouth; vomer, palatines, and entopterygoids narrow, sustaining
teeth sometimes very small. Gill-openings large. The species
may be divided into two groups, by the elongation of the upper ray
of the pectoral, or by the absence of that character. Twenty-three
species.
Genus XIII. Coilia, Gray. Maxillaries large, their posterior
ends passing the gill-opening. Dorsal far forward; upper rays of
the pectoral prolonged into slender filaments, and divided nearly
to their base. Tail generally much compressed and tapering to a
point, with a long low anal united to the caudal: there is an ex¬
ception to this character in a species which has the tail abbreviated,
and the caudal wide and rounded. In other respects the genus
corresponds with Engraulis. Six species.
Genus XIV. Odontognathus, Lac. (Gnathobolus^ohn.) Body
greatly compressed ; belly trenchant and very strongly denticu¬
lated, from the throat to the anus. No ventrals; dorsal very small,
far back on the tail; anal very long and low, extending to near the
forked caudal; pectorals moderately long. Mouth small; mandible
passing the upper jaw, which is truncated, with the small pre-max¬
illaries lying transversely; maxillaries long, wide in the middle,
projecting backwards beyond the mandibular joint. Teeth on the
jaws, palatines, entopterygoids, and tongue; none on the vomer.
One species.
Genus XV. Chatoessus, Cuv. Mouth small, edentate; pre-
maxillaries small, with a medial notch which receives the sym¬
physial apex of the mandible and a fibrous lip, that runs backwards
from it along the whole edge of the maxillary, the latter articulated
to the nasal behind the pre-maxillaries; first branchial arch uniting
above the pharynx with its fellow, and sending a curious pectinated
branch forwards beneath the roof of the mouth. Body in general
high, oval, and short; belly strongly denticulated. Pectorals and
ventrals small; first ray of the dorsal frequently prolonged. Sto¬
mach muscular; pyloric caeca very numerous, united by cellular
tissue into a glandular mass, which fills great part of the belly ; ova
not inclosed in a sac, but dropping into the general cavity of the
abdomen. Twelve species.
Genus XVI. Amblogaster, Bleeker. Small pre-maxillaries;
the maxillaries constituting most of the upper half of the mouth.
Body elongated, compressed; belly rounded, without serratures.
No teeth. Head naked above; eyes half covered by a membrane ;
cheeks venous; five branchiostegals. Indian Ocean.
SALMON FAMILY.
The progress of Ichthyology in the last half century has
been rapid, as might be expected of a science which had
been previously greatly neglected, but whose importance
was at length acknowledged. The old generic groups of
fishes were first characterized as families, and afterwards
having, by the discovery of new forms diverging more or less
from the characters of the typical species, and having,
moreover, been found in many instances, by the more
correct investigations into their structure that were insti¬
tuted, to include heterogeneous assemblages, were broken
up into several genera, families, or even into groups of a
higher order. The genus Salmo of Artedi is an example
of this. That ichthyologist included in this group all fish
which have from twelve to nineteen branchiostegals, teeth
on the jaws, and a dorsal standing over the ventrals, with
an adipose fin on the tail. Linnaeus modified this classifi¬
cation somewhat, and at length three great families have
grown out of the single genus Salmo, one including all
the Salmonoids, with the cheeks or the whole head covered
with scaleless integument, being the group comprised in our
table under the name of Salmonidce. The Characini, a
second family of fishes formerly associated with the Salmon,
is characterized by the small number of its branchiostegals,
a very small mouth, great variety of dentition, almost always
in many rows, but rarely with any on the tongue, and with
a divided air-bladder. The Scopelidtz is the third family of
this stock, being distinguished from the others by the
maxillaries not forming part of the orifice of the mouth.
Some smaller detachments have also been made, as the
Erythrinidce and Macrodons.
Salmo, Cuv. The fishes which constitute this genus
are of great importance, and are by far the most esteemed
and valuable of all those which inhabit the fresh waters.
The value of the fisheries, with the number of men en¬
gaged in them, is very great, and the expense of the mate-
Classifica-
tion—Ma-
lacopteri.
238
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- riak which are employed in the capture of one or two
tion—Ma- gpecies is immense. In Britain they are mostly consumed
lacopteri. in the great townS) either in a recent or prepared condition.
ln the north of Europe and America numbers are salted or
otherwise cured for exportation.
The male fish has the nose elongated and the under-jaw
hooked during the breeding season. The silvery colours
chanp-e to gray and red. The species inhabit the sea and
fresh waters. Some migrate at the breeding season; all
spawn in shallow streams, and both sexes assist in forming
the spawning bed. They inhabit Europe, Asia, and Ame¬
rica. At the commencement of the genus stands,—
Salmo solar, or common Salmon, a species which like¬
wise occupies the foremost place in the estimation of both
sportsman and epicure. The Salmon is a fish of great ele¬
gance, combining a form fitted alike for strength and swift¬
ness ; and its depth and thickness, while in good condition,
are so proportioned to its length as at once to convey the
idea of a pleasing symmetry. The body above is of a rich
bluish or greenish gray, changing below to silvery, sprinkled
above the lateral line with rather large sub-cruciform black
spots, a few of which at the shoulders generally extend be¬
low the line. The characters which distinguish it from its
British congeners are the different form of the opercular
bones, which show a rounded outline to the posterior edge
of the gill-covers, the longest diameter of which to the nose
would be in a line through the eye, while in all the other
British migratory species the same line would pass much
below the eye. The black inner surface of the pectoral fin
is nearly a constant mark. The tail is forked in the young
state, but fills up to a nearly square outline in the adult.
The common Salmon inhabits the seas around Great
Britain, and extends to the north of Europe and to Asia.
It generally delays entering the rivers in great numbers
until the streams become somewhat swollen by rains,
although in the larger rivers there may be said to be a
limited daily run. When the flood has fairly mingled with,
and to a certain extent has saturated the estuaries, the rush
of fish is often very great, especially if there has been a
continued tract of dry weather. In the latter case they col¬
lect at the mouths of rivers, and are seen and often taken
in vast numbers ; but they do not then attempt an ascent,
deterred perhaps by the clearness of the stream, or by some
instinctive feeling that the water would yet be deficient to
carry them through. As Refresh approaches, however, an
increased activity may be perceived; and, as far as we can
judge, the change is probably indicated by the nostrils re¬
ceiving a sense of the mixture of the waters, by means of
the large ramification of nerves with which they are sup¬
plied ; and to this same sense may perhaps be attributed
the singular fact of the greater proportion of Salmon return¬
ing to the very streams in which they were spawned. The
fish, on entering the river, rush forward as long as the flood
continues, seldom resting in their course during the time
that the water continues discoloured. From ten to twenty-
five miles daily is the rate, as far as can be ascertained, at Classifica-
which they are supposed to travel. tion—-Ma¬
in their more lengthened courses, where the rivers are lac°pteri.
deeper and the interruptions less frequent, the rate at which
Salmon travel is probably more rapid. Our common kind
{Salmo salar) makes its way by the Elbe into Bohemia, and
through the Loire as far as the environs of Buy, in the an¬
cient Velay. We also know that it works its way up the
Rhine, and visits a portion of the rivers of Switzerland, al¬
though the irresistible torrent of the Falls of Schaffhausen
prevents its ingress to any part of the basin ot the great
Lake of Constance. It is an entire mistake to state its oc¬
currence in the Persian Gulf, and equally absurd to say
that, unrepelled by the gloomy terrors of a subterranean
journey, Salmon from the Gulf, adorned by the fanciful Per-
sians with rings of gold and silver, find their way into the
Caspian. The non-existence of the supposed communica¬
tion, is of itself a pretty sufficient barrier, even did no other
exist in the laws of nature, and were light and atmospheric
air dispensable. M. Valenciennes states that it belongs not
only to France, England, and Germany, but to Schleswig-
Holstein, Mecklenburg, Scandinavia, Iceland, and Green¬
land. It exists also in Labrador and Canada, and down the
American coast to the Connecticut River, in latitude 41^ ;
and either it, or a species so nearly allied to it as not to
be distinguishable except by close comparison, abounds in the
Arctic Seas washing the northern shores of the American
continent. It does not frequent the rivers falling into the
Mediterranean, though Dr Davy informs us, on the autho¬
rity of an intelligent observer, the clerk of the market at
Malta, that a stray Salmon was once caught at that island,
and brought to the market for sale. During nine months
residence at Constantinople Dr Davy paid frequent, almost
daily visits to the well-supplied fish market of that city, but
never saw either Salmon or Trouts among the great variety
of other fish that were there for sale.
In our lower and clearer waters, however, they travel at
a much slower rate than that above alluded to—resting for
some time in the pools by the way, and now and then
taking a regular lie in some chosen spot, which they will
return to daily as long as the river continues unfitted for
their progress. Upon the least accession, however, to the
water, either directly or from some swollen tributary, they
are again upon the alert; and it is often felt by them
several hours before the quickest or most experienced
human eye can perceive a rise upon the river. Having
ascended to a considerable height, they remain more sta¬
tionary, and proceed more slowly with the subsequent floods,
till the spawn increases in size. This increase, it not in¬
fluenced by, is at least so connected with, the commence¬
ment of the colder weather, as then to proceed at a more
rapid rate. As the spawn advances, the symmetry of the
form is disfigured; the female becomes disproportionateh
large, the colours lose the brightness of their silvery tints,
and become dull and gray. The male becomes thin upon
the back, the nose elongates, and the under jaw turns up in
a large and strong hook, which enters a hollow in the nose
before the pre-maxillary bones. The colours and mark¬
ings become brown and red, those on the head and gill-
covers being particularly brilliant, and disposed in lines
almost like the marking of a Sparus. In this full breeding
dress the male and female seek some ford or shallow stream,
and commence to excavate a trench or furrow (chiefly by
the exertions of the female). In this the spawn is depo¬
sited, and impregnated at the same time, and finally covered
with gravel by the exertions of the fish. The furrow is
generally from six to nine inches in depth ; and when the
spawn has appeared to be covered beyond that depth, this
has occurred from some other circumstances—such as the
stream or floods having carried downward additional masses
of gravel, &c. After this great effort has been accomplished,
I C H T H Y
Classifica- both sexes are reduced to a state of remarkable emaciation.
tkm—Ma- The elongated nose, and hooked jaw, and brilliant colours"
lacopteri. are almost immediately lost; the old scales are cast, and
the fish retire to some pool to regain their strength’ and
complete their new clothing. They finally redescend to
the sea by easy stages, where their former condition and
silvery lustre are regained, their strength invigorated, and
all their functions so repaired as to enable them ere Ion0- to
renew their visit to the flowing streams, again to multiply
their race. 1 J
The ova continue covered by the gravel during the win¬
ter, and begin to vivify from about the end of March to
the commencement of April. The fry remove from under
the gravel when nearly an inch in length, with the ovum
still attached; and at this period, if the spawning bed or
furrow be turned up, it will appear in motion. We refer
to the article Fisheries for the details of Mr Shaw’s
observation.s, which prove that the young fish or Parr
may remain a full year in the fresh water. On the eve
0^.1,<?escenc^n» sea’ ^le Pa''r assumes a more
brilliant dress and becomes a Smolt. At this time it
is from font to six inches in length, of a greenish oray
above, silvery below, the scales extremely delicate'and
very deciduous. From the time the Smolts reach the sea,
for two months or ten weeks, we lose sight of them, and
can only infer their growth from the fact, that after the
lapse of that period we find them again ascending the rivers
with a weight of from two and a half to four pounds. They
are then known under the name of Gilse or Grilse; and
theii size, as they ascend from the sea, increases with the
advance of the season. I he Grilse which thus ascend
spawn during the ensuing winter, and are then entitled to
the name of Salmon. Descending in a weak state (as be¬
fore mentioned), they return again in the summer of the
following year, as fish of from ten to fifteen pounds weight,
according to special circumstances. A third year would
still increase their weight, as would several ensuing seasons,
till the attainment of an enormous size. Pennant^ for ex-
ample, mentions a Salmon which weighed seventy-four
pounds; and although we now regard with something of
wonder a fish which weighs even the half of that amount,
yet there is no doubt that not many years ago Salmon of
forty pounds were much more frequent than in these de¬
generate days.^ Ihe absence of Salmon of the largest class
from many of the Scottish rivers, where they formerly
abounded, is in fact owing to the injudicious perfection of
our fisheries, which occasions the constant capture of the
species in the state of Grilse, or other early condition; and
the chances are by consequence greatly against any indi¬
vidual escaping the various dangers by which it is en¬
vironed, for such a succession of years as is likely to admit
of its attaining to its full dimensions. The destruction by
poachers, in the higher parts of the rivers, of the large en¬
feebled Pelts, or fish which have completed their spawning
operations, is also extremely prejudicial; for these indivi¬
duals (almost utterly useless as food at the time alluded to)
would, if allowed to descend to the salubrious sea, ere long
revisit their native streams, greatly increased in size, and
full of health and vigour. A Salmon above fifty pounds
weight was taken, in 1835, at the mouth of the Leven in
Dumbartonshire. The general capture that season was
very great in Scotland. Nearly 800 were taken at one haul
m a bay of the island of Islay; and our calculation, from
accurate data, is, that for some time, about a hundred thou¬
sand Salmon (including Grilse) were then shipped in Scot¬
land xveekly from our eastern ports alone. A friend of our
0Wfi ,lately saw a Salmon of sixty-one pounds weight on
a fishmonger’s stafi in London ; and as these sheets are
before us, we read in the Times of July 15, 1856, that a
O L 0 G Y.
Salmon was caught at Chanonry Point, Moray Firth,
Fortrose, on the 10th, which weighed sixty-two pounds.
It was sent to London, and purchased by Mr Barton, fish¬
monger, of Bishopgate Street. Similar causes have dimi¬
nished the Salmon in the northern parts of the United
States of America. Hudson, in 1609, when sailing up the
river that bears his name, “ saw great store of Salmons.”
Now a solitary Salmon straying thither is a rarity.
Dr Davy has for some years been in the habit of record¬
ing his observations on the Salmonidce, and has made, with
his usual accuracy, a series of important experiments likely
to throw much light on the distribution of species. From
these, he concluded “ that the ova of the Salmon, in an ad¬
vanced stage, can be exposed to the open air, if dry, but a
short time, at ordinary temperatures, without loss of vitality;
but for a considerable time, if the temperature be low and
if the air be moist; the limit in the former case not having
exceeded an hour, whilst in the latter it has exceeded many
hours. I he vitality of the ova was as well preserved in air
saturated with moisture, as it would have been had they
been kept in water. It was also preserved even when the
ova were included in ice, but if they were exposed to a
temperature many degrees below the freezing point, pro¬
bably effecting their congelation, they were deprived of
their vitality. Both the ova and young fish were capable
of bearing a temperature of about 80° or 82° in water for a
moderate time with impunity, but not without a loss of life
at a higher temperature than 84° or 85°. A degree of
saltness of water nearly equal to that of sea-water proved
speedily fatal to the ovum of the Salmon and to the young
fish ; the same effect was produced on the young fish by
brackish water of specific gravity 1016, but in a longer
time; and when the solution is so diluted as to be re¬
duced to the specific gravity of 1007, the advanced ovum
may be hatched in it, and the life of the young fish may be
sustained in it for many days but with diminishing power.”1
From Dr Davy’s excellent paper, the fact of temperature
having a still higher influence on the distribution of species
of fish than on the higher animals is apparent. An anadro-
mous fish must have its range restricted not only by the
temperature and suitableness in other respects of the afflu¬
ents of a river in which it deposits its roe, but also by the
nearness to the equator of the mouth of that river. We
may, therefore, find Salmon in the streams flowing down
the northern side of a great watershed while they do not
exist on the southern side, though the feeders of both river
systems interlock at their sources. This Dr Hooker found
to be the case with the Trouts, which are confined to the
northern face of the Himalaya range. Dr M‘Clelland has
described a species, S. orientalis, which inhabits the afflu¬
ents of the Oxus. The parallel of 45° N. Lat. may be
roughly considered as the southern boundary of the common
Salmon in Europe, overlooking the feeders of the Atlantic
rivers which rise to the southward of that latitude ; and the
parallel of 41° may be taken as the limit in America, advert¬
ing to the fact that the mean annual heat in a given parallel
of the latter continent in the temperate zone, is from 8° to
15° of Fahrenheit lower than the parallel in Europe. The
mean temperature of the year on these parallels lies between
45° and 52° Fahrenheit, and the mean heat of the hottest
month between 60° and 68° Fahrenheit. The heat of the
waters of the rivers frequented by the Salmon will, of course,
vary much less than that of the atmosphere, and fall far
short of the hottest months.
Ausonius, in his poem on the Moselle, which we have
already had occasion to quote, says of the Salmon—
Nec te puniceo rutilantem viscere Salmo transierim,”
contrasting it with the characters of two other members of
1 Phil. Trans., March 1855.
I
239
Classifica¬
tion—Ma-
lacopteri.
240 1 C H T H Y
Classifica- the family, the Fario and Salar, by equally descriptive
tion—Ma- lines which will be quoted when these fish are noticed.
lacopteri. Fario argenteus of Valenciennes, “ Truite de mer on
Truite argentee,” is stated by him to be identical with the
Salmons ^Cumberland of Lacepede, and with the Salmon-
Trout of Yarrell, the S. trutta of British ichthyologists. It
is also according to the last-named author, the “ White
Trout” of Devonshire, Wales, and Ireland, but is more
abundant in the rivers of Scotland, where it is named the
Sea Trout. In the Nith it is taken in quantities, associated
with young of other species, and sold, together with them,
under the name of “ Hirlingbut on attaining the larger
size of several pounds weight, it is distinguished as the Sea
Trout. Its head and dentition are correctly figured in plate
92, fig. 1, A and B of the Fauna Boreali Americana. 1 he
Hirling has been named Salmo albus, and locally, “ W hit-
ling.” In its largest state, or as known under the specific
title of S. trutta, it enters the rivers from two and a half to
six pounds weight in the end of May. It is of an elegant
form, and possesses all the symmetry of the Salmon. 1 he
head is small, the back remarkably broad when viewed from
above ; the tail slightly forked, and wide at the exti’emity
of the web; the colour above greenish, inclining to bluish-
gray, lower parts of the clearest silver ; body above the line
spotted, as in S. eriox, with large, deep-black spots, but
generally much fewer in number. The flesh is pink, richly
flavoured, and much esteemed for the table. It ranks next
to that of the Salmon, and by many is esteemed more deli¬
cate than even that prized species. The S. albus, or smaller
and younger state in which it is found, is very nearly of the
same proportion, form, and colours. They approach the
mouths of the rivers in the end of July and commencement
of August, in immense profusion, and immediately enter
the fresh waters, where an angler may take almost any
quantity without the exercise of great skill. In the North
they form a perquisite to the taxmen or kayners of the Sal¬
mon fisheries—above a thousand being sometimes taken at
a sweep of the net. In the Solway they are taken in equal
abundance in houses of the stake-net, covered for the pur¬
pose with net of a small mesh, and are then carried to the
various country markets, and during the height of the run,
to the villages, in cart-loads, for sale. The flesh of this
smaller fish (whether species or variety, as the case may be)
is also pink, and delicately flavoured. Its food is likewise
the same as that of the larger kind; in the sea small Crus¬
tacea {Talitrus locusta being a favourite and common food) ;
in fresh wrater, aquatic insects, worms, minnows, or other
small fish. They appear also to spawn rather earlier than
the Salmon, and after the same manner. The colours of
both sorts during the breeding season are deep-grayish
black, slightly tinted with brown in the males; and at this
time they offer a most marked contrast (being black and^
lean) to the symmetrical form and brilliant silvery tints of
their perfect condition. It is of this fish that Ausonius, in
his poem on the Moselle, already quoted, says,—
Teque inter species geminas, neutrumque, et utrumque,
Qui necdum Salmo, nec jam Salar, ambiguusque
Amborum medio Fario intercepte sub cevo ?
thus well expressing the doubts still entertained after a
lapse of fifteen hundred years.
Salar griseus aut cinereus, Willughby and Ray. We
have adopted these names as not subject to the same mis¬
apprehension with eriox, which our modern British ichthy¬
ologists have borrowed from Linnaeus, but M. Valenciennes,
after much investigation into the synonyms of the Salmo-
nidcs, says that it is altogether impossible to discover at this
day the species which the Swedish naturalist had in view
when he characterized eriox ; and M. Valenciennes has not
recognised the S. griseus in the French rivers. The Eng¬
lish fish is named the Bull Trout, the Gray Trout, the
O L 0 G Y.
Whitling, and the Round-tail, according to the district in Classiffca-
which it is taken. In Wales it is called the Sewin; and bon—-Ma-
Donovan has given it the specific appellation of Cambnscus, ^cop M’n
but it is often confounded in the markets, and even by fish- “
ermen, with the Fario argenteus. The same thing occurs
in Dumfriesshire, the young of the two species on their first
return from the sea being sold under the name of “ Hir¬
ling.” They come up the river Nith from the Solway Firth
with the tide, and are very plentiful for a short time. The
best flavoured Hirlings of the two are the yearlings of the
Fario argenteus; but the flesh of the Salar griseus is also
red on coming from the sea, and seems to be more juicy
and rich than that of older Bull Trouts. The Salar gri¬
seus reaches a weight of twenty-five pounds. It is thicker
in proportion to its length than the Salmon; the fins are
much more muscular; the tail particularly so, and perfectly
square at the end in all the stages of growth, while the dis¬
tance between the two extremes of the web is smaller pro¬
portionally than in any of the other species. The head is
larger in proportion than that of the Salmon of a similar
weight, and the opercular covering is more lengthened. The
toothing is very strong. The general colours are above,
greenish gray; the lower parts silvery white; the body
above the lateral line being thickly covered with large cru¬
ciform black spots. In the breeding dress they assume a
much blacker tint than the Salmon, and want much of the
red markings. All the under parts, jaws, and cheeks, be¬
come blotched with deep blackish gray. The flesh is of a
yellowish tint, and is coarse, except in the young state ; it
has the least flavour, and is consequently less esteemed in
the market than any of the other species. The hook of the
under jaw of the male does not become so elongated as in
the Salmon. The old fish commence to enter the rivers
about the end of July, and appear to deposit their spawn
and return to the sea about a month earlier than the Sal¬
mon. The young fish, of from two to three pounds weight,
and in this state known as Whitlings, enter the rivers about
the beginning of June. In all its states it is a very power¬
ful fish, and feeds voraciously and indiscriminately. When
hooked it springs repeatedly from the water, and runs (to
use an angler’s expression) with extraordinary vigour to
free itself. The River Tweed and its tributaries, and the
Nith, the Annan, and Esk, which fall into the Solway, are
the principal Scottish localities for this fish.
Salmo hamatus, Cuv., is described at length in the His-
toire des Poissons, and reasons assigned for dissenting from
the opinion of Agassiz who holds that it is the male of
Salmo solar. Salmo hucho is the Salmon of the Danube,
where it attains the weight of 301bs, and it is reported, even
of 601bs. Gesner says that its flesh is white, and less
agreeable than that of the common Salmon ; while Cornide
says that it has a good flavour, but is a little dry. The
hucho spawns in June, in hollows excavated in the gravelly
bottoms ; the male and female working together and hiding
themselves in these hollows from the nets of the fisheimen.
Mr Reissinger has verified these observations in Flungary.
In Galicia this fish is named “ Reo.” It is a mistake to
suppose that it is an inhabitant of the British waters. S.
umbla, a fourth species, is common in the eastern parts of
France, in Switzerland, and the lyrol. It is theX Ombre
chevalier of the French, and M. Valenciennes considers it
to be identical with the Charr ot England, the S. carpio of
the Fauna Danica, and the “ Kebleriksoak of the Green¬
landers and of Otho Fabricius ; and he quotes, with com¬
mendation, Mr Yarrell’s figure of the Northern Charr, as
enabling him to recognize the species. M. Valenciennes
rejects the Linnean name of alpinus, applied by most
English ichthyologists to this species, as he says that re¬
ferred to a different species. He retains, however, the
name of S. salvelinus for the other English Charr, though
that also was differently used by Linnaeus ; but it is the fish
ICHTHYOLOGY. 241
Classifica- so named and figured by Bloch, as he has ascertained by an
tion—Ma- examination of specimens from the same locality where
lacopteri. Bloch procured his.
Salmo umbla is abundant in the English lakes, and in
the greater number of those in the north of Scotland, when
of any considerable extent; but more seldom seen there,
from the absence of the practice of netting, and the general
unwillingness of Charr to take a fly or bait. This fish is of
great repute in the Lake of Geneva, and is also found in
many of the alpine lakes of northern Europe. The com¬
mon Charr reaches a considerable size, being sometimes
taken in Britain above 2 lbs. in weight, although the more
usual weight is under three quarters of a pound. When in
full condition, it is a fish of very great beauty, above of a
grayish green, shading into the most delicate white on the
lower parts, and tinted with a blush which is comparable to
that seen on the breasts of some of the gull tribe when
newly shot in spring. The body is sprinkled over with
pale spots of a considerable size. In this state they re¬
main in the deeper parts of the lakes, and are not frequent¬
ly taken, although we doubt not they might be so were
the practice adopted of hanging a herring-net in the deep
water, instead of trying only the winter practice of hauling
in shore. We ourselves caught them by the former me¬
thod, in their prime silvery state, in Sutherland, during the
month of June. On the approach of the breeding time,
they seek the mouths of the small tributaries, and are
taken in vast numbers at the very period when their pre¬
servation ought to be most strictly attended to, and when,
in truth, they begin to fall off in their condition. At this
season the colour of the upper parts is darkened, the fins
are very rich, and the sides and belly become of a beauti¬
ful and brilliant red, the whole spotted with small marks of
a paler tint.
S. salvelinus occurs in Wales; and we have already
mentioned (in the article Angling of this work) that both
kinds occur in Windermere, to wit, the Charr or Case Charr
{Salmo umbla), and the Torgoch or Red Charr {Salmo sal¬
velinus). These are usually thus distinguished — the
former, by having the first rays of the ventral and anal fins
white; the latter, by having those parts plain, that is, of the
same colour as the other rays. A remarkable distinction
is also observable in their natural habits,—the Case Charr
ascending rivers, and spawning about Michaelmas; the
Red Charr depositing its ova along the shores of the lake,
and not till the end of December, or the beginning of the
year.
The chief feeder, or head stream of Windermere, is com¬
posed of two branches, the Brathay and the Rothay, which
meet a short way above the lake, into which they speedily
pour their united waters. The Brathay is the left-hand
branch (as we ascend from the lake), and draws its sources
from the mountain vales of Langdale, reaching Winder-
mere without any resting-place; while the Rothay has
previously formed and flowed from two consecutive lakes,
Grassmere and Rydal. The Charr, in ascending from
Windermere to spawn, invariably turn to the left, and
ascend the Brathay (though to no great distance), and as
invariably avoid the lake-descended waters of the Rothay.
They also spawn lower down the lake of Windermere, at
the mouth (or a short way upwards) of the stream called
Troutbeck, which is also derived from the flow of mountain
tributaries, without any lesser or intermediate lake.
Although the art of angling is not immediately connected
with the science of Ichthyology; it is, at the same time,
evident that the successful practice of that art necessarily
illustrates the food of fishes, and therefore makes us ac¬
quainted with an important portion of their natural his¬
tory. For this reason we insert the following memoranda,
transmitted to us by Mr John Wilson, jun.:—“ The season
for fishing Charr (with rod and line) in Windermere and
VOL. XII.
Coniston commences about the end of May, and, I should Classifica-
say, is over by the first or second week in July. Trolling tion—Ma-
with a smallish minnow is by far the most successful mode lacopteri.
of angling for this fish. It may, however, be taken with
the artificial fly, the green and gray drake being the fa¬
vourites. I killed three, one day in May last, with a small
red professor. A Bowness fisherman, on the same day,
trolling without intermission from six in the morning till
six in the evening, killed six and twenty, being the great¬
est number that has been taken in Windermere, in a single
day, by one person, for many years. In Coniston, where
this fish is more abundant, I believe it is by no means
uncommon to kill three or four dozen in a day. With re¬
gard to the size of Charr in Windermere, I should say
they average three to the pound. I never saw one that
was a pound. Billy Balmer told me that he once saw
one that was a pound and a quarter, and that it was the
largest ever taken in Windermere.” In relation to the
same subject, in a different locality, we may also add the
following extract from another hand :—“ A small red Charr
is found in Loch Achilty, Ross-shire, on the property of
Sir George Mackenzie. It takes the fly greedily in warm
still weather, and, what is singular, during all the summer
and autumnal months. I have captured eighteen in a fore¬
noon in July—raising many more. My flies were of
various sorts, from a midge to one as large as a sea-trout
fly. The water of Loch Achilty is singularly deep and
transparent; the soil is rich and loamy, and contains large
quantities of imbedded wood—black oak especially. It is
supplied by numbers of minute streams, but has no visible
outlet, being supposed to discharge itself subterraneously.
The Charr found in it average eight or nine inches in length;
we, however, caught one much larger. They rise with less
velocity than the Trout, and on missing the fly, unless in¬
jured, will return to the hook. In Strathglass there is a
Loch Bruiach, where Charr are caught of a much larger
size, but chiefly with the net: except in the month of
October, when, as our informant, the Rev. Mr Chisholm,
told us, they may be taken in the shallows with the rod,
but at no other season.”
On dissecting the Charr which we killed last summer in
Sutherland, with a view to ascertain their food, we found
the stomach usually empty, but the lower part of the in¬
testine filled with green vegetable residuum. This we
found to be the remains of the cases of aquatic larvae
{Phryganidce), a few of which we discovered in a half-
digested state in the upper portion of the intestinal
canal.
The true S. alpinus of Linnaeus is, according to M.
Valenciennes, a Salmon which corresponds perfectly with
the figure of the Roeding by Ascanius, and the only species
that agrees with the description given in the Fauna Suc-
cica. It inhabits the Norwegian and Swedish waters, and
also the rivers of Siberia which fall into Lake Baikal.
For the other species of Salmon we must refer to the
pages of the Histoire des Poissons.
Professor Nilsson of Lund has investigated the Scandi¬
navian Salmon, and compared them with the original spe¬
cimens of Linnaeus, still in the museum at Lund.
I. TrutTjE, “Lachs” Suecis.
(a.) Teeth in the front only of the vomer.
1. Salmo salar, L.; “ Blanklachs” Suecis. (Fauna Bor. Amer.,
pi. 91,/gf. 1. Salmon from the River Urr in Galloway.)
2. Salmo eriox, L.; “ Graulachs” Suecis. (Fauna Bor. Amer.,
pi. 91, fig. 2. Head of a Trout from Glamorganshire, in Mr
YarrelTs possession, said to be the Sewin.)
(b.) Teeth in one row down the mesial line of the vomer.
3. Salmo trutta, of which the following are varieties :—S. ocla,
Nilss.; S. truttula, Nilss.; S. fario, L.; S. punctatus, Nilss.
2 H
1
242
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica¬
tion—Ma-
lacopteri.
II. Salvelini, “ Rothfohren” Suecis; Charr. Anglis.
4. Salmo salvelinus, L.; of which S. pallidus, Nilss., S. alpinus,
L., are varieties.
5. Salmo carbonarius, Str., of which S. ventricosus is a variety.
(Arch, fur Naturg. von Trosch, 1849, 310.)
Fario Lemanus, or the Salmon-Trout of the Lake of
Geneva, is another fine species of this genus, fully described
by M. Valenciennes, and beautifully figured by M. Agassiz.
Fig. 71.
Fario Lemanus.
Salar Ausonii. Under this new appellation, M. Valenci¬
ennes, treats of the well-known Salmo fario of authors, the
river Trout of England, and the burn Trout of Scotland.
Having adopted the word fario for the appellation of a
generic division of the family, he has taken a specific name
from the author who has so briefly, yet so well, character¬
ized the three members of the family that are the most re¬
markable for the frequency of their occurrence in the rivers
of Europe. The propriety, however, of setting aside a
specific name so long established as fario, and so little mis¬
taken, may be questioned.
“ Purpureisque Salar stellatus tergore guttis.”
This line which, with others, from the same author, we
found in the Hisloire des Poissons, and have quoted in
preceding pages, gives a neat description of the Trout. One
of our own poets says :—
“ The springing trout in speckled pride,
The salmon, monarch of the tide,
The ruthless pike intent on war,
The silver eel and mottled parr.”
thus singling out three of the salmon tribe that frequent
the Leven, flowing over its smooth, round-pebbly bed.
This lovely Trout is most extensively distributed over
the whole of Northern Europe, being found in every burn
and tarn, in every lake and river. It may be also said to
be one of the most pleasing in its appearance ; and, when
newly taken in “golden glory” from some translucent stream,
is exquisitely beautiful. The variation of the tints of the
ground colour is infinite ; yellow, however, is the most pre¬
dominant, varying to the most brilliant orange; while at
other times the ground colour of the body runs from a
dark-greenish black to violet, in most instances numerously
spotted with black and red. Sometimes, however, the black
is alone present in the form of large round spots, placed in
a pale circle, but in all cases beautifully relieved, and
breaking up the uniformity of the other colours. In a few
instances the spots have been observed to be wanting alto¬
gether. One cause of the variation in the Trout, is the
difference of food ; and, according to every information we
possess, those which feed on fresh-water shells and Gammari
(screws, or fresh-water shrimps, as they are sometimes
called), are of the most brilliant tint, and also of the finest
flavour, with a decided pinkness in their flesh. Those
feeding on the ordinary water insects are next in brilliancy
and flavour, while such as live chiefly upon aquatic vege¬
tables are dull in colour, and of soft consistence. This is
further confirmed by the I rout in stews being always
finished, or fed off&s it is called, on the foresaid Gammari,
collected often from a distance. It is only in this way also
hat we can account for the variation in the appearance and
flavour of Trout found in two adjoining bays of the same Classifica-
lake. The individuals, in fact, do not appear to stray to tion—Ma-
any distance, but seem to be satisfied with whatever food lac°pteri.
is found within a limited district, and which of course will
be in many instances of a peculiar and local kind. It is
also true, that the colours of Trout accommodate themselves
to the tint of the water, and to the prevailing tone of the
bottom, whether of rock or gravel, or of softer substance;
and so constantly is this the case, that an experienced and
observant angler has little difficulty in accurately predicating
the general aspect of the fish of any lake or river. The
presence of moss, so frequent in alpine districts, has invari¬
ably the effect of deepening the tints, particularly the shades
of green and yellow.
In form this fish, when in perfect condition, may be
said to be nearly symmetrical ; the head only being some¬
times rather large in proportion to the body, when con¬
sidered in relation to what we regard as the beau ideal.
The fins are of moderate strength, those of the body assum¬
ing a variation of form, from a rounded to a lengthened
extremity. The tail is almost always forked ; the fins are
always coloured, that is, never of the transparent whiteness
observable in the migratory species, and their tints are
generally of a paler shade than those of the corresponding
parts of the body. The anal fin is often bordered on its
lower surface with white. The scaling is proportionally less
than in the migratory kinds. The toothing is in general
strong, and very prominent on both the tongue and vomer.
The average growth of the common Trout, taking the
species generally, may be stated at about a pound, and
certainly not more than a pound and a half. In almost all
rivers, fish weighing beyond this may certainly be found ;
but they are comparatively uncommon. Individuals from
two to six pounds weight are occasionally taken, even in
what may be termed a “ wild state.” In ponds or stews,
again, they reach a much greater size, but cannot be said
to be in the natural condition of uninclosed fish. The
Thames Trout seem to reach most frequently the largest
size, being short compared to their length, but of great
thickness and well flavoured. Two were lately taken, the
one of eleven, the other of fifteen pounds weight. The
lakes in the north of England produce Trout of very fine
quality, and which are often passed off for Charr. Loch
Leven, too (of which the barren isle and now dismantled
castle are famous in history as the prison-place of the beau¬
tiful Queen Mary), has long been celebrated for its breed
of Trout. These, however, have fallen off of late consider¬
ably in their general flavour and condition, owing, it is said,
to the partial drainage of the loch having destroyed their
best feeding ground, by exposing the beds of fresh-water
shells, which formed the greater portion of their food.
Farther north (as in Sutherlandshire) the immense multitude
of lochs produce a corresponding abundance and variety of
Trout. Of these, however, only a few are of superior
quality ; but these few may assuredly vie with the Trout of
any country in the world. Another large species, occurring
in the British waters, and not yet distinctly known elsewhere,
is the—
Salar ferox, Jardine. This species reaches a weight of
twenty-eight pounds, and is of very great power compared
with its size. The characters which distinguish this fish
from S. Ausonii are the great size which it attains in a
natural state, the large proportional size of the head, the
square extremity of the tail in all the stages of its growth,
the relative position of the fins, and the number of rays in
the dorsal, which vary from 2-11 to 4-11. The external
skin or covering of the scales is also extremely tough;
and there is a difference in the form of the scales of the
lateral line. In colour the upper parts are generally of a
deep purplish brown, shading into purplish gray, and finally,
on the lower parts, to greenish or grayish yellow, more or
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifina- less tinted with orange. The spotting is large and not
tion—Ma- numerous, and consists of black spots placed in a pale
lacopteri. circ]e> and of large pink spots with a similar light area.
^ These extend over the gill-covers, upper fins, and often
over the tail itself. A variety occurs in Loch Loyal, in
Sutherland; above, purplish brown ; beneath, blackish gray;
the whole body spotted over with dark sepia coloured spots,
of a smaller size on the lower portions. Salmo ferox ap¬
pears to be entirely confined to the lakes, seldom ascending
or descending rivers, or wandering in and out of them, and
never migrating to the sea. When spawning, it ascends
for a short way up the rivers or streams which run into the
lakes, but never, as far as yet known, descends those which
run out of them. It inhabits, among the English lakes,
Ulswater; but does not there reach a size above ten or
eleven pounds. In Ireland, as far as we can yet learn
(specimens having not yet reached us on this side of the
water), it is found in Loch Neagh and some other large
lakes; and in Scotland we have taken it in Loch Awe,
Loch Laggan, the upper end of Loch Shin, and Lochs
Loyal and Assynt. It is a fish of remarkable ferocity, and
as great an enemy to its smaller companions as the Pike.
It may be taken by night lines, or by strong trolling tackle,
baited with a small Trout, and will return a second and third
time to the bait, even after it has been dragged for forty or
fifty yards.
The Salmonidce, though they take so important a place
among the fresh-water fishes of Europe, are still more
abundant in the northern Siberian rivers, and in the great
lakes and rivers of North America. On the Pacific coast,
indeed, of British North America some populous tribes of
natives subsist chiefly throughout the year on the Salmon
and Trout, which they take at the beginning of the spawn¬
ing season, and preserve by drying. Descriptions of some
of the species are given in the Fauna Boreali Americana,
and the Fauna Rossica of Pallas contains accounts of the
numerous interesting Asiatic Salmonidce. The common
Salmon, we have said above, frequents the Atlantic and
Arctic coasts of British North America; but there is a
Trout in the great lakes and interior rivers which equals the
Salmon in size, and is at least equal to it in flavour and ex¬
cellence as an article of diet. This is the Salar namay-
cush (Pennant), which is very commonly taken of a size
varying from twenty to forty pounds, and is reported to
grow to sixty and upwards, though fish of that weight are
as rare as a Salmon equally heavy. The Namaycush is taken
in considerable numbers for the American markets at the
fisheries established on Lakes Huron and Superior for the
capture of another member of the family of still greater ex¬
cellence, the Coregonus sapidus of Agassiz, or the albus
of the Fauna Boreali Americana. This Coregonus, the
well known “ White Fish” of the fur traders, is found in
every lake and river from the United States northwards,
and it descends even to the mouths of the rivers that fall
into the Arctic Sea. In flavour, and all the qualities that
a fish can possess as an article of food, it surpasses, we be-
live, every other, whether fresh-water or marine ; and Euro¬
peans previously accustomed to a sufficient variety of diet,
have lived almost solely upon it for a year or more without
tiring of it. To the native population it is of vital import¬
ance, and it is only in the Buffalo prairies that they can
subsist without its aid ; while to many tribes it forms the
chief food. Within a few years fisheries, employing a large
fleet of ships, chiefly belonging to the United Sates, have
been established for the capture of this fish on Lakes Huron
and Superior. Several other species of Coregonus, known
locally by the name of “Herring Salmons,’’exist in the Ame¬
rican waters, but they are much inferior in quality, and re¬
semble the European species more nearly as articles of diet.
Even they, however, are delicate food, and would be
esteemed were they not so much surpassed by the “ White
243
Fish.” It may be remarked here that M. Agassiz, who is Classifica-
now in a position to investigate the ichthyology of America tion—Ma-
thoroughly, has already perceived that every lake, basin, -Lcopteri.
and river system in that country possesses peculiar species
of fish, though some species are common to several water¬
sheds. He found this to be the case with Lepidosteus and
Coregonus ; and if his observations prove the fact in that
continent, we may expect to perceive that the same law
exists elsewhere, though the European lake and river sys¬
tems, being comparatively very small, it may not be so ap¬
parent with us. M. Valenciennes describes many Euro¬
pean Coregoni. Of the British species, he says that the
Coregonus pollan of Thomson (Yarrell, Supp. 24) is very
similar to his C. sikus, which inhabits Norway, in the
vicinity of the North Cape, but that its head is smaller and
its jaws more equal. The Pollan inhabits Loch Neagh,
and Mr Thomson says that 17,000 were taken thereat
either three or four draughts of the net in September 1834.
It is a fish that is brought in quantities to Belfast market
during its season. Of the Powan (Yarrell), the C. Cepedei
of Parnell, he says that he has found the original descrip¬
tion of Noel de la Mariniere, on which Lacepede founded
his C. clupeoides,, in which the fish is called also “ Span” or
“ Pollock.” Noel had gone to Loch Lomond to see what
were said to be sea Herrings naturalized in the fresh¬
water lake, and thus the species was introduced into our
systems. Pallas had already used the specific name of
Clupeoides for another Coregonus, and the name given by
Dr Parnell will therefore remain as the scientific appella¬
tion of the fish. At Loch Lomond Shelley is one of its
local names. M. Valenciennes thinks that this species has
not yet been discovered on the Continent. C. Pennanti
is the Welsh Gwyniad of Yarrell {Brit. Fish., ii., 85);
but, according to M. Valenciennes, very different from the
fera, with which Pennant confounded it, and equally so
from the Lavaret of Switzerland. The specific name of
Pennanti is therefore employed in the Histoire des Pois¬
sons to distinguish it. The species which inhabits Loch-
maben, a piece of water that bathes the ruins of Bruce’s
Castle, is locally known as the Vangis, Vendace, Ju-
vangis. According to the traditions of the place, it was
originally imported thither from the Continent by Queen
Mary. Sir William Jardine was the first who correctly
described the Lochmaben fish under the name of C.
Willughhii, but recognizing at the same time its close re¬
semblance to the S. albula of Linnaeus. M. Valenciennes,
by a comparison of specimens, has decided it to be in fact
the albula of the Fauna Suecica, and has therefore described
it under that specific name in the Histoire des Poissons. It
it is the Blitka of Lake Siljan in Dalecarlia, and the Vcmme,
or, when its resemblance to the Herring is referred to, the
Land-sild of the inhabitants bordering on Lake Miaes. Ac¬
cording to Bloch, it exists in Silesia, Brandenbourg, Pome¬
rania, and Mecklenbourg; and M. Martens found an ex¬
tremely similar Coregonus, if not actually the same, at
Kamtschatka. Artedi mentions Sih-loja and Strut as its
Swedish names, Blieta as its Silesian one, and Moiku and
Rapis as those by which it is known to the Fins. The
Vendace of Lochmaben, whatever scientific name it may
ultimately receive, is one of the most elegant of the Co¬
regoni, though of a small size, reaching from four to ten
inches in length. The head is of an angular shape, and
small compared with the size and depth of the body. The
crown of the head is very transparent, and the form of the
brain, which is heart-shaped, is seen through the integu¬
ments. This peculiarity is one of the first things pointed out
to the stranger naturalist who visits Lochmaben to see this
species. The eye is large and brilliant; the body rises
gracefully to the back fin, and recedes with a gradual curve
to the tail; the under line is nearly straight from the gills
to the ventral fin. The upper parts are of a delicate greenish-
244
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifies- brown, shading gradually into a clear silvery-white ; the
tion—Ma- bn greenish-brown, the anterior edge much length-
^acop eri.^ an[j p0;nte(j . tbe lower fins all blush-white ; the tail
much forked. They spawn about the commencement of
November. The roe is minute and abundant, and of a
bright orange colour. The flesh is white and rich, and
highly prized as food ; but as it requires almost to be eaten
on the spot, it is not useful as a market commodity when
transmitted to any considerable distance. The lochs of
Lochmaben are the only authentic British habitat for this
species.
The Grayling (Thymalus vulgaris) is a local fish in Eng¬
land, being chiefly found in the Test, the Avon, the Dove,
the Lug, the Wye, the Irvon, the Teme, and the Gun, in
the southern counties ; in the Trent, the Dove, and Dee, in
the midland districts, and in the Wiske, the Wharfe, the
Ure, the Kibble, and the Derwent, in the northern coun¬
ties. In America the Graylings have not been detected
south of the 61st parallel of latitude, but two or more species
abound in the clear affluents of the Mackenzie, issuing from
granitic and other primitive rocks. One, the Thymalus
signifer, is the most beautiful known species; and the Es¬
kimos, seizing on its most characteristic feature, name it
“ Heivlukpowak” or the “fish with the wing-like fin.” It
affords fine sport to the angler, tugging like a bull-dog
when it feels the hook.
Stenodus Mackenzie, the poisson inconnu of the canoe-
men who accompanied Mackenzie in his voyage down the
great river which bears his name, is still so called by the
fur-traders who frequent the district. It ascends the Mac¬
kenzie from the Arctic Sea as high as Great Slave Lake, a
course of 500 miles, but shuns clear water, and has not
hitherto been discovered in any other river than the Mac¬
kenzie. M. Valenciennes, having seen no specimen, has
not introduced it into his great work, but it is nevertheless
a very distinct generic form, not liable to be confounded
with any other. When obtained soon after its ascent from
the Arctic Sea it is agreeable food, but people who feed
solely on it tire of it sooner than either of the “ Namaycush”
or “ White Fish and after it has been for some time in
fresh water its flesh becomes soft and oily. Its weight
varies from five to fifteen pounds, but it has been taken of
a considerably greater size.
The preceding pages contain as full an account as our
limits will permit of the typical Salmonidce with fleshy
cheeks, and, on account of their importance to man, and the
general interest felt in their history, we have devoted more
space to them than we can give to other groups of fishes.
M. Valenciennes has separated the Salmonoids which have
the cheeks cuirassed by an enlargement of the sub-orbitar
scale bones so as to cover, in great part or wholly, the muscles
which move the mandible. These present a great va¬
riety of forms, which he has subdivided into lesser as¬
semblages of genera. The Characini and Scopelini of
Muller nearly comprehend this division, but the group is
not exactly the same.
Some of the genera belonging to this division, and named
in the table, are vegetable eaters, and have long intestines
doubled up in the belly; others are fierce devourers of
flesh. Some of the most curious, from their habits, live
in the great rivers of South America. The Myletes paca,
of Humboldt is said to be a fish of exquisite flavour, but
with its flesh full of ribs. It is an inhabitant of the
Amazon and its affluents. The species of Serrosalmus, so
voracious and so expert in carrying away a mouthful of
flesh, bitten off with their cutting teeth, are dreaded by the
natives of the districts in which they abound. Any animal
falling into the water is immediately attacked and cut in
pieces by swarms of these fish. Known to the Indians by
the names of Caribe or Caribito, on account of their thirst
for blood, they assail bathers the instant they plunge into
the water, and inflict dangerous wounds before the sufferers Classifica-
are able to escape. Their haunt is at the bottoms of the tion—Ma-
rivers, but a single drop of blood thrown into the water will lacopteri.
bring them in thousands to the surface.
A very curious white and translucent fish is the Salanx
JReevesii, known to the Europeans at Canton by the name
of “ Whitebait,” and eaten as a delicacy, served in the same
way that the fish of the same name is cooked at Blackwall.
One group, the Scopolini of authors, is remarkable for the
extreme metallic brilliancy of round spots, placed generally
in rows along the body, or for other brilliant places about
the head and elsewhere ; many are nocturnal, coming to the
surface at night, and some have luminous eminences on the
head visible in the dark. They abound in the Mediter¬
ranean and China seas, but they comparatively rarely appear
in northern latitudes.
Fig. T>.
Scopelus or Myctophum boops.
One species only has been detected on the British shores.
The Scopelus Pennanti was first noticed by the naturalist
whose name it bears, but was mistaken by him for the
Atherine. It has been taken at the island of Sheppy, on
the coast of Flintshire, at Exmouth, and in the Orkneys.
The S. borealis (Nilss.) is a Norwegian fish, different from
the British one. Fig. 24 represents a scale of Scope¬
lus resplendens, an Atlantic fish, and Chauliodus Fieldii is
represented by fig. 2.
Fig. 73.
Saurus undosquamis.
The Saureys are curious from the forms of the teeth ; in
some species long, slender, and barbed at the points. The
dentition of the S. nehereus (Hamilton), S. ophiodon
(Cuvier), is of this kind, and on that account Lesueur pro¬
posed Harpodon as a generic name for it. It is a fish of
voracious habits, and at certain seasons its body is brilliantly
phosphorescent, like some of the Scopelines. It is rich
food, though delicate when newly taken. When salted and
dried it gets the singular appellation of “ Bombay ducks”
in commerce, or of Bummaloti, and is exported in large
quantities from Bombay and the Malabar coast to other
parts of India. Fig. 41 shows the form of a scale from the
lateral line of Saurus undosquamis (Richardson).
Fig. 74.
Galaxias truttaceus.
The Galaxidce, though they want the adipose fin of the
Trouts, yet have much the aspect of these familiar fishes,
and represent them in the southern hemisphere, where no
ICHTHYOLOGY.
245
Classifica- true Trouts are found. They are inhabitants of fresh water,
tion—Ma- and are named “ Trouts” by the settlers of New Zealand
lacopteri. ancj Australia. As an article of food they are softer and
more oily than the northern Salmonoids.
Family IV.—SALMONIDJE, Mull.
Scaly fishes, with an adipose fin. Upper half of the orifice of
the mouth formed by the pre-maxillaries and maxillaries ; numerous
branchiostegals. A large, simple air-bladder, without contractions;
supplementary branchiae, and numerous pyloric caeca. They pos¬
sess most of the characters of a Clupeoid that has not the acute
and denticulated belly. Their teeth are often absent, or small; often
all the pharyngeal bones are armed with them ; they are conical
and in one row, and when they exist on the jaws and palatines
the tongue also is furnished with teeth. The distribution of the
vomerine teeth furnishes M. Valenciennes with generic characters
for the subdivision of this most important but difficult family.
(A.)
Genus I. Salmo, Valenc. A few teeth at the end of the
vomer, but no prolonged row on the mesial line. Body fusiform.
Head moderately large ; throat well armed, often wide; pre-maxil¬
laries short, and rather on the sides of the mouth than across its
upper edge; maxillaries articulated to the ends of the pre-maxil¬
laries, and not compound ; mandible strong, often with the sym¬
physis rising into a small tubercle, but in some species the tubercle is
much developed. Strong conical teeth on the jaws ; a small group
at the end of the vomer ; one row on the palatines, entopterygoids,
and on each side of the tongue; some have two rows on the tongue.
An adipose fin on the tail. Thin small scales covering the body.
A short intestinal canal; a siphonal stomach ; ova, when detached
from the ovary, falling into the cavity of the abdomen before they
are excluded in spawning. A large air-bladder, simple, with thin
coats, and opening anteriorly into the pharynx, almost directly or
without the intervention of an air-tube. With the exception of
the peculiarity of the vomerine dentition, many of these characters
are common also to the two genera which immediately follow.
Twenty-five species.
Genus II. Fario, Valenc. Salmons with a single mesial line
of teeth running down the vomer. Four species.
Genus III. Salar, Valenc. Vomer armed with two rows
of teeth, without any remarkable group on the chevron of the
vomer, as in the preceding two genera. Eight species, besides
about twelve doubtful ones hitherto imperfectly described.
Genus IV. Osmerus, Cuv. Pre-maxillary teeth small and
hooked ; vomerine teeth big, conical, and so far forward that they
appear to belong to the jaws; a row on the outer edge of the pala¬
tines, and one on the internal border of the entopterygoid; big
teeth also on the tongue. In other respects the Spirlings resemble
the other Salmonidce. They have a small adipose fin ; ventrals situ¬
ated under the anterior rays of the dorsal. Gill-openings widely
cleft; air-bladder having within silvery walls, and communicating
with the upper part of the oesophagus. Four species.
Genus V. Mallotus, Cuv. Mouth rather less wddely cleft than
that of Osmerus, armed with very small, slender, or conical teeth
in a single row on the jaws ; more numerous on the palatines and
vomer; small teeth also on the tongue. Eight branchiostegals. In¬
testines of the Trouts. One species.
Genus VI. Argentina, Cuv. Salmonidce, in having an adipose
fin, and the upper half of the orifice of the mouth formed by the
very short pre-maxillaries and the maxillaries. Mouth small; no
teeth on the jaws; on the chevron of the vomer a curved band of
uniform teeth, prolonged on each side by a dental stripe on the
palatines ; lingual teeth of variable size in different species. Gill-
openings wide; branchiostegals six. Stomach moderately large,
caecal; numerous short pyloric caeca; ova falling into the abdominal
cavity as in the Salmons. Air-bladder covered by a coat of silvery
fibres, which tear off, and is used in the fabrication of artificial
pearls. Four species.
Genus VII. Thymalus, Cuv. Mouth small, the orifice horizon¬
tal under the snout; teeth small, conical, uniserial on the jaws,
chevron of the vomer and fore part of the palatines. Intestines
like those of Salar. Air-bladder large, communicating with the
oesophagus by a very small tube. The disposition of the scales
under the throat is peculiar in some species. Eight species.
Genus VIII. Coregonus, Cuv. Pre-maxillaries crossing the
upper part of the mouth, thin, and of variable depth; maxillaries
on the sides of the mouth also thin and attached to the ends of the
pre-maxillaries, generally of an oval or oblong form. Teeth small or
none. Dorsal fin farther forward than the ventrals. Forty
species.
Agassiz retains the name of Coregonus for the species which Classifica-
have the mandible shorter than the upper jaw ; and gives the name tion—Ma-
of Argyrosomus to those which have it longer. lacopteri.
Genus IX. Stenodus, Hich. Pre-maxillaries crossing the
upper part of the mouth, giving a truncated appearance to the
snout, each armed by a narrow linear-lanceolate band of small
raduliform teeth ; maxillaries articulated to the palatine bones,
long andbroadish, with a posterior, ovate, accessory piece as in the
Coregoni, and forming the sides of the mouth; toothless; vomerine
teeth in a transversely oval disk on the chevron (but not down the
mesial line), uniting with the crescentic bands of teeth of the same
kind on the palatines. These palatine bands have the hollow of
the crescent facing the sides of the mouth, and taper to a point
posteriorly. On the tongue, the teeth are rather coarser, and cover
its surface. Mandible rather shorter than the upper jaw, the part
opposed to the pre-maxillaries transverse with a knob at the sym¬
physis, and armed there by a very narrow band of villiform or
raduliform teeth ; limbs of the bone longitudinal, with rather acute
perfectly toothless edges. The whole orifice of the mouth is nearly
quadrangular. In general aspect the Stenodus rather resembles a
Coregonus than a Salmon, but bears no strong likeness to either.
The ventrals are under the anterior part of the dorsal, and the adi¬
pose fin corresponds to the posterior half of the anal, which com¬
mences with the last third of the fish, caudal included, and does
occupy above a ninth of the entire length of the fish. Branchio¬
stegals nine to eleven, often one more in number on the left side.
Stomach but slightly cascal, the upward turn which ends in the
pylorus being short, with the oesophagus longitudinally folded
within. Pyloric caeca numerous, and crowded for an inch below
the pylorus, but after the insertion of the gall-duct confined to one
side of the intestinal tube; lower part of the gut furnished with
valvulae conniventes. Air-bladder communicating with the oeso¬
phagus by a wide tube. Only one species known, the Stenodus
Mackenzii, Richardson (Back’s Voyage down the Great Fish River in
1834 and 1835, p. 521).
(B.)
M. Valenciennes makes a second division of the Salmonoid fishes
by grouping together those in which the sub-orbitar scale bones are
large, and conceal almost the whole, or at least a great part, of the
interval between the orbit and the ascending limb of the preoper¬
culum. This division includes the Charicini and Scopelinas of
Muller; but from the former, M. Valenciennes separates his Erythri-
nidce.
Family V.—CHARACINIDAE.
Char acini, J. Mull. Malacopterygian fishes with abdominal
ventrals ; adipose fin ; scaly bodies ; scaleless head ; no accessory
branchiae ; upper half of the orifice of the mouth formed by the
pre-maxillaries and maxillaries; villiform pharyngeal teeth above
and below; caecal stomach; numerous pancreatic caeca. Air-
bladder divided by a transverse strangulation into two, and con¬
nected with the acoustic organs by a chain of ossicles as in the
Cyprinidce and Siluridce. Branchiostegals four or five ; numerous
pancreatic caeca. South American or African fluviatile fish.
M. Muller includes Erythrinus and Macrodon among his Characini,
but these fish want the adipose fin of the Salmon family, and are
placed by M. Agassiz near the Clupeidce. M. Muller’s genera
Catoprion, Myletes, Myleus, Serrasalmus, Pygocentrus, and Pygopristis,
have the belly serrated. The other genera are Anodus (Curimatus
Valenc.), Hemiodus, Xiphostoma, Xiphoramphus, Hydrolycus, Anosto-
mus, Leporinus, Schizodon, Chilodus, Hydrocyon, Citharinus, Piabuca,
(including Schizodon, Valenc.), Gasteropelecus, Epicyrtus, Raphi-
odon, Pacu (Prochilodus, Agass.), Bistichodus, Exodon, Salminus,
Brycon, Chalceus, Alestes, Tetragonopterus.
ANALYTICAL TABLE OF THE CHAR A C1NIDAE (Dum.)
Teeth, none ( Anodus, M l
( Curimatus, V. J
Teeth, none on the tongue, present elsewhere in the mouth.
Teeth elsewhere uniserial.
Pre-maxillary teeth stronger, fnc«sj>i(L..GASTROPELECUS
Pre-maxillary teeth stronger, conical with canines.
Belly rounded EPICYRTUS
Belly keeled 
Pre-maxillary teeth not stouter.
Dorsal opposed to the ventrals.
Pre-maxillary teeth wide, entire Leporinus
Pre-maxillary teeth fissured ( PIABlCA> Part- }
( Schistodon, M. J
Raphiodon, M. 1
Cynodon, V. J
14.
3.
29.
2.
8.
246
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica¬
tion—Ma-
lacopteri.
Pre-maxillary teeth narrow, f Citharinus, sp. ) „
\ Chilodus, M. J ‘'
27.
7.
8.
6.
15.
5.
}21-
21.
11,
12, 13.
16.
30.
round  \ Chilodus, M.
Pre-maxillary teeth narrow, co- 1 Hydrocyon
nical J
Dorsal not opposed to the ventrals.
Dorsal before the anal  Citharinus
Dorsal above the anal Piabuca
Teeth elsewhere pluriserial.
Dorsal above the ventrals.
Teeth feeble, slender; labial ones bi- ( Pacu
serial  j Prochilodus
Teeth firm, fissured, biserial, Distichodus
Teeth large ; anterior ones conical... j SP‘^r’ j 3.
Dorsal between the ventrals and anal.
Teeth conical, triserial above, biserial 1 „
below      } SALMINUS
Teeth flat, pointed, triserial on the f Chalceus, sp.
mandible   [ Brycon
Teeth flat, pointed, biserial above.
Belly keeled Chalceus
Belly round  
Mandibulars uniserial  { r^ETRAG0N* j
lOPTERUS J
Mandibulars biserial Alestes
Teeth present on the tongue.
Teeth on both jaws.
Palatine teeth, conical, Serial; j XipH0RAMpHUg
Palatine teeth granular, crowded ; ca- I Hydrolycus 29
nines j
Palatine teeth none • Xiphostoma 32.
Teeth on the mandible; none on the up-1 jjEMIOdus 9
per jaw J
Genus I. Curimatus, Yalenc. Resembling the Graylings
(Thymali) in the smallness of their mouth, and feeble dentition,
often wholly absent on the jaws. Mouth toothless; jaws with
trenchant edges, without lips, the superior one notched to receive
a symphysial tubercle of the mandible. Ascending branch of the
stomach thick and muscular. Pyloric caeca numerous (amounting
to eighteen). Branchiostegals four. Species seven.
Genus II. Leporinus, Spix. Body elongated; belly rounded.
Mouth small; lips fleshy ; teeth few in number on the pre-maxil-
laries and mandible; the mesial pair above and bblow longer than
the rest and almost horizontal. Pharyngeal teeth in transverse
bands; each tooth having a long laterally compressed crown, ter¬
minating in two hooked points of unequal length. Branchial
aperture small, from the union of the membrane to the scapula.
Branchiostegals four. Pyloric cseca from ten to eighteen. These
fish are vegetable feeders. Eight species.
Genus III. Epicyrtus, Mull. Conical teeth on the pre-maxil-
laries and maxillaries, some of them projecting from the surface of
the jaw like the canines of some Labroids (Calliodon, for instance,
figure 56). Pyloric caeca, six or seven. Intestines short. Two
species, which include Exodon.
Genus IV. Parodon, Valenc. Teeth planted in the walls
of the upper lip, moveable and slightly curved, their crowns
small triangular disks with denticulated edges ; mandibular teeth
on the side lips only, and not opposed to the pre-maxillary ones of
the upper jaw. Four branchiostegals. One species, unknown to
Muller.
Genus V. Salminus, Agass. Teeth in several rows on the jaws.
Body elongated like that of a Trout, and the mouth also similar, ex¬
cept that the tongue and roof of the mouth are smooth as in most
Characins. Pre-maxillary teeth conical, in two rows ; one row on
the maxillaries; mandibular teeth in two rows, and the interior
ones remarkable for their small size, their equality, and their ob¬
lique insertion into the limbs of the jaw. Five species.
a. M. Valenciennes forms a group of Prochilodus, Citharinus,
Hemiodus, and Piabuca, which have the teeth curiously crenated,
and no denticulated keel to the belly, but with an adipose fin, as
in the other Salmonidce.
Genus VI. Prochilodus, Agass. (Pacw,MiilL) Mouth small, pro¬
tractile, situated at the extremity of the head, and surrounded by very
thick lips, supporting under their edges a row of excessively small
teeth like hairs, which, when viewed under a lens of considerable
power, are seen to have a disk at the extremity, often denticulated or
crenated. Farther back towards the middle of the lips there is a
second series of similar teeth in a crescent with the hollow towards
the interior of the mouth. Body elongated and somewhat com¬
pressed, but dumpish like that of a Carp. Four branchiostegals.
Ascending branch of the stomach fleshy, but not so much so as in
Curimatus. Pyloric caeca very numerous, so as to deter one from Classifi
counting them. Thirteen species. tion—M8"
Genus VII. Citharinus, Cuv. (Including Chilodus, Miill.) Body lacopteri
elevated, compressed, rhomboidal; mouth horizontal at the extre- ^ ^ _ri‘y
mity of the head, the upper arch of the orifice almost entirely formed — v-®-
by the pre-maxillaries, the maxillaries lying behind, but covering
the corner of the mouth; teeth extremely small, implanted in the
lips, and resembling hairs; none within the mouth. Two species,
Xile.
Genus VIII. Piabuca, Cuv. Salmonoids, with uniserial, tren¬
chant, and compressed teeth, denticulated on the cutting edge, im¬
planted in the lip, and very moveable, the row corresponding to the
pre-maxillaries and mandible. It comprises the Schistodons of
Agassiz and Muller. Three species.
Genus IX. Hemiodus, Miill. Small labial teeth, implanted
close to one another in a row on the upper lip; the pre-maxillary
and maxillary teeth moveable to the touch like the keys of a piano.
There are none on the lower lip. Each tooth is compressed,
rounded in front, with denticulated crown or disk. Pre-maxillaries
very small and concealed beneath the lip. Mouth very small; body
elongated; belly rounded. Branchiostegals four to five. Two spe¬
cies.
Genus X. Plecoglossus, Schl. Teeth on the pre-maxillary
six; on each maxillary between the bone and the lip fourteen
moveable ones in one row; they are somewhat compressed and
pointed ; a band of card-like teeth on each palatine, and the tongue
also covered with teeth; three pockets formed by a membrane
attached before the tongue. Branchiostegals four.
Genus XI. Tetragonopterus, Artedi. Body elevated, rhom¬
boidal or orbicular, passing in some species into oval or lengthened
forms. Mouth small; two rows of teeth in the upper jaw, one in
the lower one. Twenty-one species.
Genus XII. Brycinus,Valenc. Separated from Tetragonopterus.
Body elongated as in Chalceus) teeth crenulated and standing close
as in Tetragonopterus. The interval between the two rows is
greater in the upper jaw, and a distinctive character exists in
the presence of a spur on the crown of the teeth, which resemble
those of Chalceus, but may be readily distinguished; dorsal and
anal high. Senegal.
Genus XIII. Piabucina, Valenc. Separated from Tetragonop¬
terus and Piabuca, on account of a combination of characters ; body
elongated like Piabuca, with fixed crenulated teeth as in Tetra¬
gonopterus, but differing from those of the latter in that the double
row is on the mandible ; on the upper jaw there is only one row.
One species resembling Erythrinus. Maracaibo.
Genus XIV. Gasteropelecus, Pall., Gronov. Pre-maxillary
teeth in two rows, tricuspid; maxillary teeth conical, much pointed,
uniserial; pharyngeal teeth villiform, densely crowded. Body exces¬
sively compressed and high in the pectoral region. Dorsal far
back. Gill-openings large; branchiostegals four. Scales. In¬
testine remarkably short; seven pancreatic cseca. Surinam.
Genus XV. Distichodus, Mull. Teeth on both jaws in a
double row; small, close together, with a slightly compressed
forked crown. Body elongated and compressed, belly rounded;
caudals and adipose fin scaly like the rest of the body, naked only
at the border. Stomach long, ascending branch long and very
muscular. Pyloric caeca numerous and elongated like small intes¬
tines, extending along one side of the duodenum. A vegetable
feeder. One species, the nefasch of the Arabs.
Genus XVI. Alestes, Miill. Pre-maxillary teeth in two rows,
those of the exterior row having three trenchant points, while in
the interior row the crowns are more obtuse; but there are some
projecting points among them; no maxillary teeth; mandibular
teeth biserial, the disk channelled, with crenated crowns; behind
the symphysial ones, some small conical ones; pharyngeal teeth
very small. Ten to fourteen pyloric caeca. Voracious insecti¬
vorous fishes. Air-bladder prolonged posteriorly on the right
side of the interhsemal spines, whereas in most other fishes when the
air-bladder is extended back out of the abdomen it is forked, and
sends a horn on each side of these bones. Three species.
Genus XVII. Myletes, Cuv. Pre-maxillary teeth having
truncated crowns and standing in two rows; for the most part
there are only two conical teeth in the inner row behind the sym¬
physis, but in some species there are seven. The teeth are mostly
prismatic with rounded ribs, the crowns of the anterior row being
slender, cutting, and feebly denticulated; in the second row the
posterior edge is more elevated, and the middle somewhat pointed.
Body compressed ; belly keeled and often strongly denticulated.
First interneural of the dorsal lying horizontally, with its spinous
point directed forwards. Intestines long; caecal stomach, with a
short, thick, pyloric branch. Vegetable feeders. Seventeen species.
Genus XVIII. Tometes, Valenc. A row of pre-maxillary
teeth with sloping or chisel-formed cutting crowns like the hu-
ICHTHYOLOGY.
247
Classifica'
tion—Ma
lacopteri.
man incisors; behind which there is a second rank in which the
teeth near symphysis have their crowns somewhat truncated, but
the lateral teeth are all incisorial, the slopes of the two rows
’ being on different sides, so that they form a furrow which receives
the points of the mandibular teeth. At the symjihysis of the
mandible there are two interior, very small, compressed, and
sharply pointed teeth. No maxillary teeth. Three species, un¬
known to Muller.
Genus XIX. Myleus, Mull. Pre-maxillaries armed with two
rows of teeth ; the exterior ones compressed and incisorial • the in¬
terior ones truncated like molars, but with the posterior edge ele¬
vated and cutting; mandibular teeth in one row, pointed and inci¬
sorial on the anterior part of the jaw, but with no conical ones
behind them. Body compressed; belly keeled and denticulated;
these dermal ossicles forming two rows near the anus. Branchial
openings large; pharyngeal teeth villiform ; dorsal with its pointed
interneural spine in front, placed over the interval between the
ventrals and anal. Three species.
Genus XX. Mylesinus, Valenc. Dorsal and anal fins as in
Myleus; pre-maxillary teeth five, sharply cutting, standing closely
side by side, with their crowns a little dilated, and having a little
cusp on each side, so that they may be called tricuspid, though
the middle lobe forms most of the cutting edge; the neck of the
tooth is narrower; a little behind the two mesial teeth, though
in the same row or nearly so, there are three teeth with trun¬
cated or sloping cusps, which are rather notched than tricuspid;
mandibular teeth twelve on each limb, in a single row, tricuspid,
with the middle cusp oval and elongated; no conical teeth forming
a second row' at the mandibular symphysis. Lips thick, fleshy, and
densely papillose. One species.
Genus XXL Chalceus, Cuv. (Brycon, Mull.) Pre-maxillary
teeth triserial, multicuspid; the anterior ones the smallest, and
seeming conical from the smallness of their lateral cusps; man¬
dibular teeth biserial, the front ones large and multicuspid, the
lateral ones and those of the anterior rows conical; behind the
symphysis two stronger conical teeth, as in Myletus. Body elon¬
gated, compressed ; belly rounded like that of a Trout, but covered
with large scales like a Carp. A great number of pyloric casca.
Eleven species.
Genus XXII. Chalcinus, Mull. Pre-maxillary teeth small,
crenulated, multiscupid, biserial; mandibular teeth, biserial like
those of Chalceus, multi cuspid, and strong anteriorly ; two small
conical ones behind the symphysial ones, and an interior lateral
row of very small conical ones towards the angle of the mouth.
Body compressed; edge of the belly trenchant but not serrated.
Dorsal far back ; anal very long ; and pectorals long and pointed.
Three species.
The genus Alysia of Lowe (Zool. Tr. 1839) probably belongs to
some of the preceding genera of Charicini, but the teeth are not de¬
scribed with sufficient minuteness to determine its proper place.
1. M. Valenciennes makes a small group of Serrasalmus, Pygocen-
trus, Pygopristis, and C'atoprion.
Genus XXIII. Serrasalmits, Lacep. Teeth triangular and
trenchant, in a single row on the pre-maxillaries, palatines, and
mandibular; maxillary not entering into the composition of the
orifice of the mouth, but lying under the edge of the pre-orbitar,
and behind the pre-maxillary. Body compressed, for the most part
rhomboidal, the first dorsal and anal ray proceeding from the most
prominent points of the upper and under profile; belly keeled and
serrated with a double rowr of dermal spines before the anus; first
interneural of the dorsal projectingone pungent point anteriorly and
two posteriorly; branchial openings pretty large ; four branchio-
stegals ; stomach a very large conical sac; from thirteen to twenty-
one pyloric caeca. Voracious carnivorous fishes. Ova not dropping
into the cavity of the abdomen.
Genus XXIV. Pygocentrus, Mull. No palatine teeth; pre¬
maxillary and mandibular bones carrying a single row of trian¬
gular, trenchant, feebly-crenulated teeth. Maxillary bone as in
Serrasalmus, almost hidden behind the pre-maxillary. Body com¬
pressed ; belly trenchant and serrated, the points near the anus
being doubled ; branchiostegals four; caecal stomach; caeca vary¬
ing from ten to fifteen; air-bladder divided into a small globular
anterior one, and a very large second one, which communicates
with the oesophagus by a very short canal. Ova not dropping into
the cavity of the abdomen. Four species.
Genus XXV. Pygopristis, Mull. Separated from Pygocen¬
trus by the edentate and smooth roof of the mouth, but the jaw
teeth are crenulated, and strongly denticulated. Two species.
Genus XXVI. Catoprion, Mull, and Trosch. Salmonoids,
W’ith a serrated belly, having two rows of conical pre-maxillary
teeth, and one row of trenchant triangular mandibular ones. One
species.
Genus XXVII. Hydrocyon, Cuv. Salmonoids, with large and
strong teeth implanted in a single row on both jaws; these teeth
are conical, slightly compressed, and have cutting edges; roof of Classifica-
the mouth smooth. Body elongated ; sides flattened in the middle ; tion—Ma-
belly rounded like the back; intestines very short, with a consi- lacopteri.
derable number of pancreatic caeca (thirty-five to forty). Bran¬
chiostegals four. One species.
Genus XXVIII. Cynopotamus, Valenc. Differ from Hydro¬
cyon in having two rows of pointed pre-maxillary teeth, those of
the exterior row very short; interior row containing four large
canines; maxillary on the side of the orifice of the mouth like that
of a trout, edged by a row of very small conical teeth ; mandible
armed at the end by eight canines ; and a second interior row is
composed of very small teeth; palate destitute of both teeth and
granular eminences. Branchiostegals five.
Genus XXIX. Cynodon, Spix. Salmonoids, with granular teeth
on the palate; pre-maxillaries, maxillaries, and mandible armed by
a single row of pointed conical teeth, among which there are enor¬
mous canines, the largest being near the symphysis, those of the
mandible entering corresponding holes in the palate. Body much
compressed at the pectorals; belly frequently compressed ; anal
very long and scaly. Pectorals pointed and laid along the body, de¬
scending to a right angle with the longitudinal axis when they act.
Stomach remarkably large. Carnivorous. Three species. Cyno¬
don scomberoides, Val., is the genus Hydrolycus of Muller.
Genus XXX. Xiphorynchus, Agass. Differs from Cynodon
in having a single row of pointed teeth on the palatines, as well as
on the jaws. Carnivorous fish. Twelve pancreatic Cfeca or there¬
abouts. Five species.
Genus XXXI. Agoniates, Mull. Intermediate between Hy¬
drocyon, which is remarkable for long canines, and Tetragonop-
terus, which has two rows of pre-maxillary teeth, some of them
tricuspid. This dentition distinguishes Agoniates from Cynopo¬
tamus. One species.
Genus XXXII. Xiphostoma, Spix. Snout conical and elon¬
gated by the extension of the pre-maxillaries, palatines, nasal and
prefrontal, and the dorsal aspect of the skull wholly covered by a
granular engraved casque. The elongated pre-maxillaries and the
mandible are furnished with numerous minute teeth, set closely
side by side in a single row, their points recurved like a small fish¬
ing-hook ; palatines wrinkled and rough, with odontoid granula¬
tions. Body slender, elongated, and round. Dorsal very far back
beyond the ventrals. Pancreatic cseca very considerable in number.
Five species.
Genus XXXIII. Salanx, Cuv. (Lewcosoma, Gray.) Body slen¬
derly fusiform, the thin end of the spindle being the anterior one ;
jaws equal, the cleft of the mouth horizontal, slightly arched in the
middle; maxillary curving over the corner of the mouth, and send¬
ing a slip in front of the end of the pre-maxillary, forming a consi¬
derable part of the border of the orifice; pre-maxillaries armed with
a single series of small teeth, with four tall, subulate, recurved
canines among them on each bone, the space nearest the symphysis
have only a row of small ones ; maxillary edged with a pectinated
row of short teeth ; mandibular teeth on the sides of the bone
smaller and more numerous than those of the upper jaw ; tip of the
mandible toothless, but close to it there are three strong teeth, whose
points when the jaws are close pass through a rhomboidal mem¬
branous space near the point of the snout; palatine bones set with
a row of fine teeth, but there are no teeth on the vomer, which does
not project. Ventrals about the middle of the fish; dorsal in the
middle of the posterior half, the anal still nearer the caudal fin, and
the adipose fin corresponding to the posterior part of the anal. One
species.
Genus XXXIV. Hydropardus, Reinh. Teeth on the pre-
maxillaries, elongated maxillaries, and mandible, uniserial, canines
and conical ones intermixed ; the anterior mandibular teeth received
into pits in the palate ; palatine teeth minute, granular; pharyn¬
geal teeth villiform. Body elongated, compressed; belly keeled.
Scales small. Gill-openings extremely large; five branchiostegals ;
internal rakers of the branchial arches having the form of small
osseous tubercles, studded with the finest spines ; ventral fins none ;
dorsal fin over the anal, which is exceedingly long, and has a scaly-
base. (An. 1850.)
Genus XXXV. Gonostoma, Rafin. Pre-maxillaries short, not
passing the eye; the maxillary completing the upper half of
the mouth, as in the Clupeidce or Salmonidce; teeth large, conical,
and sharply pointed, widely set on the jaws, with very small ones
in the intervals; palatines and entopterygoids covered with minute
raduliform teeth, and there are rough spots on the tongue ; pharynx
very narrow, the superior pharyngeal teeth resembling the teeth of
a harrow, in two groups, the anterior group composed of three teeth
larger and longer than the rest; fourteen branchiostegals, sub-
orbitar very delicate ; dorsal placed far back ; free recurved spines
on the sides of the tail. Ovarian sacs shut. One species.
Genus XXXVI. Chauliodus, Bloch. (Astronesthes, Richardson.
Phcenodon, Lowe, Ann. Nat. Hist., x., p. 52.) Mouth formed nearly
248
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Oiassifica- as in Oonostoma, but the dentition differs; the teeth are slender
tion—Ma- pointed, compressed, and curved, adhering to the hone, the mandi-
lacopteri. bular ones being the largest; maxillary teeth arranged in a pec¬
tinated manner on the edge of the bone, inclining backwards;
palatine teeth shorter ; tongue armed on the sides with teeth;
pharyngeal teeth harrow-like. Branchiostegalsfifteen to seventeen;
pectoral fins attached low down; gill-openings large; dorsal far
back, anal still more posterior, its last rays opposite to the thin
adipose fin. Astronesthes niger, R., fig. 2, p. 132.
Mr Ayres, in the Journal of the Boston N. H. Society for 1849,
describes a fish which seems nearly allied to Ghauliodus, but if the
symphysial mandibular barbel and branchiostegals have not been
overlooked, it can not be the same. The generic characters given
of it are as follows:—
Genus XXXVII. Malacosteus, Ayres. Scales small; mouth
very deeply cleft, its upper border chiefly formed by the maxil-
laries; pre-maxillaries short; pre-maxillary and maxillary teeth
small, sharp pointed; mandibular teeth very long, somewhat
curved, smaller ones behind them ; no teeth on the palatines, vomer,
or gill-arches; a double row on the tongue; and a tuft on each
pharyngeal; small fins ; dorsal far back over the anal; gill-cover
membranouswithout ossification, and no branchiostegals perceptible.
All the bones unusually soft. One species, M. niger, found in the
North Atlantic. Could the bones have been softened by spoiled
spirits ?
Genus XXXVIIL Aplochiton, Jenyns. Characterized by a
peculiar fold or longitudinal pouch in the integuments of the belly ;
wholly without scales ; uniserial small teeth on both jaws ; two
rows on the tongue and vomer; none on the palatines; branchio¬
stegals three. Elongated form of a Grayling, but thicker. Magel¬
lan’s Straits.
The last six genera are scarcely members of this family.
Family VI.—SCOPELID^E.
Scopelini, Miill.; Sauridce, Valenc. Scaly or scaleless fishes
with an adipose fin, whose mouth is bounded above from corner to
corner by the pre-maxillary, the maxillary lying behind; acces¬
sory gills. Swim-bladder absent in most, Genus Aulopus, Cuv.;
Saurus, Cuv.; Scopelus, Cuv.; Maurolicus, Cocco; Ichthyococcus,
Bonap.; Chloropthalnus, Bonap.; Odontostomus, Cocco ; Baralepis,
Risso; Sudis, Raf. not Cuv.; Sternoptyx, Herm.; Argyropelecus,
Cocco.
They are separated from the Salmonidoe by the structure of the
mouth, and by the ova being discharged by a proper canal, and not
falling into the general cavity of the abdomen. The maxillaries in
some genera approach the corner of the mouth, and form a portion
of its orifice, and in Argyropelecus they are formed of three pieces,
one of which is dentiferous. This genus and Sternoptyx belong, by
the structure of the mouth, to the Characinidce.
Genus I. Argyropelecus, Coc. Body greatly compressed,
high, with an irregular polygonal outline ; tail narrow at its com¬
mencement, and generally very thin near the caudal fin ; mouth
nearly vertical, formed above by the pre-maxillaries and maxillaries,
the latter in some species occupying but a small part of its orifice,
in others nearly the whole upper half; maxillary composed of three
pieces, one of them dentiferous ; curved, unequal teeth on the jaws;
smaller ones on the palatines; branchiostegals nine; the scapular
chain of bones largely developed ; thin nuchal osseous crest; four
pancreatic caeca. Four species.
Genus II. Sternoptyx, Herm. Body high, compressed,
with long ribs seen through the silvery integument; mouth cleft
almost vertically, bordered above with very short pre-maxillaries,
and on the sides by the maxillaries, as in Salmo or Salar ; pluriserial
teeth on the jaws, the shorter ones placed in an exterior row, and the
larger ones more interiorly; palatines armed with two or three
longer curved teeth anteriorly ; vomer edentate ; branchial arches
and inferior pharyngeals rough with small teeth, but the extremity
of the tongue smooth. The dentition of the jaws is like that of
Saurus, and the palatine teeth resemble those of Chauliodus. Gill-
openings wide; branchiostegals five, of different forms; coracoid
bones forming a keel with an anterior point under the throat;
pubic bones also having a sharp point; a triangular osseous crest
before the dorsal, with one large projecting spinous point. Adipose
fin pretty long. One species.
Genus III. Odontostomus, Coc. Upper half of the mouth
formed entirely by the pre-maxillaries which carry the teeth, the
maxillary lying posteriorly and being toothless; mandible, pala¬
tines, and chevron of the vomer armed with moveable teeth, which
rise by their elasticity when pressed down ; no teeth on the tongue;
eye large, with an adipose fold. One species.
Genus IV. Scopelus, Cuv. (Myctophum, Maurolicus, Lam-
panyctus, Bonap. Upper half of the mouth bordered by the
pre-maxillary, the toothless maxillary supporting it behind; teeth
of the jaws small, and differing little in size; on the palatines the
teeth are minutely raduliform; no teeth on vomer, in which the Classific
genus differs from Odontostomus. Twenty species.
Genus V. Saurus, Cuv. Elongated body, wide mouth, long,
rounded pre-maxillaries, ending in a point; the toothless styloid
maxillary being hidden under the integuments. Teeth numerous,
conical, somewhat curved, and often with a hastate or barbed point,
forming harrow-like bands on the jaws, the palatines, tongue, and
pharyngeals; the small teeth being in the exterior ranks, and the
larger ones interiorly. First rays of the ventrals shorter than the
posterior ones, as in Platycephalus and Oallionymus, and also in the
united ventrals of Gobius. Branchiostegals sixteen ; sub-operculum
large, also frequently the inter-operculum. Caecal stomach large,
with a short pyloric branch; pancreatic caeca few. Ovaries in a
shut sac. No air-bladder. Seven species.
Genus VI. Saurida, Valenc. Differ from Saurus in having
an internal band of acute teeth surrounded by minute ones, as well
as the band of longer palatine teeth which Saums possesses ; inter¬
nal ventral rays not so much prolonged as in that genus. Two
species.
Genus VII. Farionella, Valenc. Resembling a Trout. Dor¬
sal standing over the space between the ventrals and anal; an
adipose fin above the end of the anal; caudal small. Upper half of
the moderate-sized orifice of the mouth formed by the pre-maxil¬
laries, the very small toothless maxillary lying behind. Teeth simple
and conical on the pre-maxillaries, palatines, and mandibular, also
along each side of the tongue. One species.
Genus VIII. Aulopus, Cuv. Maxillary dilated posteriorly,
with supplementary pieces, but bordered in front by the pre-max¬
illaries, which form the upper border of the mouth. Teeth small,
crowded, nearly of equal size, forming a narrow band on both jaws,
on the palatines, and on the chevron of the vomer; two dental plates
of very fine teeth on the entopterygoids, and the pharyngeals above
and below bristle with pretty strong heckle-formed teeth. Large
gill-openings. Bones of the head cavernous, with spinous points
on the hinder part. Thick jointed inferior rays on the pectoral, as
in some Sclerogenidce, with which in other respects the genus pre¬
sents many analogies. It has also somewhat of the external aspect
of a Gadus, hut is allied more closely to Saurus by dentition, and
the presence of an adipose fin. Two species.
Genus IX. Paralepis, Risso. (Sudis, Rafin.) Malacoptery-
gian abdominal fish, with an adipose fin, slender fusiform bodies,
elongated jaws, and the upper half of the orifice of the mouth
formed by the pre-maxillaries, which pass before the maxillaries.
Dorsal and ventrals opposite to each other and very far back; adi¬
pose fin radiated, but the rays not articulated like true rays. Teeth
trenchant, much like those of Sphyrcena. In the Hist, des Poiss.
the first dorsal was considered to be spinous, but Reinhardt has
shown that its rays are articulated, and Muller assigns it a position
tion—M a.
lacopteri.
among the Scopelinidce.
Genus X. Alepisaurus, Lowe. Body elongated, tapering,
much compressed, acute-edged posteriorly above and below. Jaws
elongated, with a wide mouth, which is bordered above from corner
to corner by the pre-maxillaries, armed with small subulate teeth;
lanceolate teeth on the palatines and sides of the mandible, with
long subulate ones on the fore part of the latter bone. The den¬
tition has much resemblance to that of Sphyrcena or Lepidopus, and
the bones have great similarity in structure to those of the Scorn-
beridce. No teeth on the vomer. A long anterior dorsal extending
backwards from the nape ; posterior one adipose; ventrals abdomi¬
nal. Neither air-bladder nor pyloric caeca. Lowe. Three species
in the Atlantic and Australian seas.
Family VII.—GALAXIDHS.
Shape of a Trout, but with no adipose fin, and the dorsal far back.
No scales. Moderate-sized, uniserial pointed teeth on the pre-max¬
illaries and mandible, sometimes three canines at the curve of the
latter; stronger curved styloid teeth in one row on the palatines
and each side of the tongue; pre-maxillaries not reaching the corner
of the mouth, hut the maxillary is excluded from the edge of the
orifice by the thick lip. Inhabit fresh waters in Australia, Van
Diemen’s Land, New Zealand, the Falklands, and Patagonia, where
they represent the Trouts.
Genus I. Galaxias, Cuv. Seven species.
HYODONTS.
This small family group was instituted by M. Valen¬
ciennes to comprehend three genera, which have the greatly
compressed sides of the Herrings, but not the serratures on
the lower edge of the belly exhibited by all the typical
members of that family: the presence of pancreatic caeca se¬
parates them from Chirocentrus with which they would
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- otherwise associate. They are fresh-water fishes, interest-
tion—Ma- ing to ichthyologists from their characters, but of no great
lacopten. importance to man. The Hyodons, from which the group
derives its appellation, are small fishes of North America
known locally by the name of Gold Eye, and having a re¬
semblance to the Trouts in feeding on insects and takin«-
the artificial fly freely. They, as well as Osleoglossum, are
among the fishes which have the interior of the mouth most
fully armed, since they possess strong teeth far back on the
palate as well as on the tongue and jaws.
Family VIII.—HYODONTIDAl.
Hyodontes, Valenc. M. Valenciennes places in this group Osteo-
glossum, Ischnosoma, and Hyodon, which have compressed bodies
and a keeled belly, without denticulations, but with pancreatic
cceca, the presence of which, he says, alone separates them for
Chirocentrus, though the suborbitar scale bones are more developed
than in the latter. Their intestinal canal resembles that of the
Mormyri.
Genus I. Osteoglossum, Fereira. Body and head compressed
like the blade of a sabre; head bony above, and the cheeks pro¬
tected by the suborbitars and opercular pieces ; mouth much cleft •
small conical teeth on the premaxillaries and slender maxillaries,
which move little, and are partially concealed by the preorbitar ;
lower jaw armed like the upper one with two fleshy barbels under
the symphysis; minute crowded teeth cover the vomer, the pala¬
tines, entopterygoids, presphenoid, lingual bone, and body of the
hyoid bone. Gill-openings very large, overlaid by the wide mem¬
branous border of the gill-cover ; branchiostegals ten. Anal long,
but separated from the small caudal; ventrals ending in a filament¬
ous point. Belly trenchant, but without denticuladons; stomach
rounded, without any caecal projection ; two pancreatic caeca; air-
bladder large, simple, without either partitions or horn-like pro¬
longations, but communicating with the upper part of the oesopha¬
gus by a tube having an excessively small mouth. Two species, one
in the Amazon, the other in Borneo.
Genus II. Ischnosoma, Spix. An Osteoglossum, with the anal
and caudal united.
Genus III. Hyodon, Lesu., Rafin. Body scaly, greatly com¬
pressed, thickest above the lateral line ; back acute, belly more
so; profile suboval. Dorsal short, over the long anal. Eye large, pre¬
orbitar scale bones covering the whole of the cheek ; mouth wide,
premaxillaries and maxillaries forming equal portions of its upper
border. These bones have uniserial conical teeth, largest towards
the symphysis; the mandible has two rows with their points in¬
clined backwards, and the interval between the rows covered with
minute teeth ; the vomer is similarly armed, but the dental surface
widens gradually as it approaches the gullet; the palatines are
armed by a single row of conical teeth, with a small oval plate of
very minute ones within the middle of the row; tongue strongly
armed by a marginal row of hooked teeth bigger than the others,
and the rest of the surface covered with minute card-like teeth’
having their points reflexed. Stomach siphonal; one pancreatic
caecum ; air-bladder large, communicating with the oesophagus.
Fresh-water North American fish.
CLUPESOCID^E.
This family was indicated by Muller in his treatise on the
Natural Families of Fish, and was considered by him to be dis¬
tinct from the true Herrings by having no pseudobranchiae,
which the Clupeoids all possess. On subsequently examin¬
ing some examples of the genus Megalops, he found the
pseudobranchiae present, though evanescently small; and he
also discovered that Gnathobolus, a genus closely related to
Notopterus, has pectinated pseudobranchiae. He therefore
ceased to consider the Clupesocidoe as a separate family,
and referring them all to the Clupeidoe, enumerates as mem¬
bers of that family, Clupea, Pristigaster, Alepocephalus,
Gnathobolus, Notopterus, Engraulis, Thryssa, Megalops,
E/ops, Lutodeira, Hyodon, Butirinus, Chirocentrus, iSto-
nnas, Chauliodus, Heterotis, Arapaima and Osteoglossum.
Neither Anna nor Chauliodus have pseudobranchiae. M.
Valenciennes has treated of the genera here enumerated as
intermediate between the Clupeidce and Esocidce, and con¬
siders several of them to be types of distinct families, some
VOL. XII.
249
of which have been named by him. After abstracting these, Classifica-
the remainder are here placed under the head of Clupesocidce, tion M.e'
as a convenient term indicating their position between the lac0Pter1^
natural families of the Herrings and Pikes. When their
anatomy has been more perfectly investigated, they will be
distributed by ichthyologists to their proper places in the
system. One part of the structure of a fish is much attended
to by Muller in his searches after the natural affinities of the
various genera he examines, viz., the investments of the
ovaries, or the organs which hold the roe or eggs. In the
Salmon tribe the eggs are not contained in a separate sac,
but drop off from the ovary as they come to maturity, into
the general cavity of the abdomen, and are expelled from
thence ; in the Galaxidce and in various groups that have
been separated from the Salmonidce, the ovaries are inclosed
in a sac, which has a canal of its own, through which the eggs
pass in the process of spawning. A too rigid adherence to a
single character often separates fish that are connected by
many natural affinities; and some of the Clupesocidce wo\i\di
associate well with the Scopelidce did they possess an adi¬
pose dorsal; the absence or presence of teeth on the palate
has also been occasionally made of too much importance by
systematists.
1 he genus Notopterus is peculiarly interesting to syste¬
matic naturalists on account of the combination of charac¬
ters of very different orders of fish which it presents. With
the compressed body of a Clupeoid, it has the denticula¬
tions of the preorbitars, suboperculum, and mandible, and
the cranial crests observed in several families of Acanthop-
teri, together with a Gobioid union of the ventrals, in which
also it agrees with Gonorhynchus; the dentition, especially
the existence of spheroidal teeth, allies it to Butirinus, while
the armature of the tongue brings it near to the Hyodontidce
or to Mormyrus. The eggs are not shut up in a sac, but
fall freely into the abdominal cavity as in the Salmonidce.
The genus Arapaima, so named by Muller, and since
called Vastres by Valenciennes, was termed Sudis by Cu¬
vier ; but Rafinesque having previously used the word Sudis
to denote a fish of a totally different kind, the name has been
necessarily dropt as an appellation of this genus. The spe¬
cies are of much interest not only from the peculiarities of
structure which they exhibit, and their encasement in strong,
bony, compound scales, but from the great size which they
attain, exceeding that of almost all other fresh-water fishes, and
also from the excellence of their flesh as an article of food,
feii R. Schomburgk mentions, that in the Rio Negro some
are taken which measure fifteen feet in length, and weigh
four hundredweight. They are harpooned, or taken with
a baited hook, and are the objects of considerable fisheries.
They fetch a high price, and are excellent when fresh, espe¬
cially the belly part which is very fat. When salted they
are exported in large quantities to Para, and are there
piefened to the salted fish from the banks of Newfound¬
land.
Butirinus and Heterotis are also interesting, but more
from peculiarities of their structure than from their utility to
man, though, as articles of food they rank among the more
highly prized fishes.
Family IX—CLUPESOCIDAI, Mull.
No adipose fin ; no accessory gills ; premaxillaries bounding the
orifice of the mouth in the middle above, and the maxillaries the
sides. Some have a simple swim-bladder; pyloric caeca in a few
in others absent. Distinguished from the Clupeidoe by the ab¬
sence of accessory gills. They include the following genera:
Stomias, Chirocentrus, Notopterus, Osteoglossum, Heterotis, and Sudis
Cuv. (or Arapaima, Mull.)
These genera were either associated with Esox by M. Valen¬
ciennes, or considered as types of peculiar families ; and at a later
period Muller ceased to consider these fish as forming a proper
family, but we have placed them together until appropriate posi¬
tions are found for them.
2 i
ICHTHYOLOG Y.
250
Classifica- Genus I. StomiaS, Cuv. Elongated scaly fish, having some-
tion Ma- what oftheformof Scomberesox, but with a short high head and a
laconteri. barbel depending between the limbs of the mandible. Dorsal and
v r ; anal opposite near the caudal; ventrals in the posterior quarter of
the fish before the vertical fins. Scales thin, forming hexagonal di¬
visions in the skin, not imbricated. Mouth cleft far past the eye,
which is near the end of the very short snout; upper border of the
mouth formed by the premaxillaries and maxillaries; mandible pro¬
jecting beyond the snout; strong conico-subulate curved teeth on
the premaxillaries and mandible, with very small teeth on the part
of the maxillary, which passes beyond the premaxillary; small
teeth exist between the tall ones ; the tongue is toothed in the same
manner, and the branchial rakers are in the form of long, hooked
teeth. Branchiostegals seventeen ; pretty large gill-openings. Ali¬
mentary canal a long straight tube, without a stomachal dilatation ;
no pancreatic cseca; ovaries, two long sacs ; a long, slender air-blad¬
der. One Mediterranean species.
The want of an adipose fin seems to be the only character that
separates this fish from Chauliodus, and other Scopelini.
Genus II. Microstoma, Valenc. General form of Sfomms, but
less elongated, with a small head and a very small mouth, wholly
anterior to the proportionally enormous eye. The anal behind the
dorsal, and neither of them so far back as in Stomias. Upper half
of the orifice of the mouth formed by the small premaxillaries
and maxillaries, both without teeth ; a few vomerine teeth, none on
the palatines, nor on the tongue or pharyngeals, but the branchial
rakers are long and pointed. Branchiostegals four. Intestine and
air-bladder as in Stomias; pseudobranchiae crested. One Mediter¬
ranean species. The specimen in the Paris Museum is the same
with Risso’s, but the imperfect descriptions of the latter giving it
an adipose fin, led Muller to believe them to be different.
The Chirocentres, says M. Valenciennes, approach Esox, and even
Cyprinus, by the absence of pancreatic caeca, but they depart from
these families to place themselves near the Clupeoids by the junc¬
tion of the premaxillaries and maxillaries. It is a family of only
one species, forming the
Genus III. Chirocentrus, Cuv. Body compressed, elongated ;
belly trenchant, not denticulated. Dorsal far back on the tail, op¬
posite to the anal; pectorals pointed with a long styloid bone in the
axilla covered with scales ; ventrals excessively small. Pharyngeal
teeth strong and curved ; two mesial premaxillary teeth horizontal;
upper jaw formed of small premaxillaries soldered to dentiferous
maxillaries which have two supplementary pieces as in Clupea, one
of them hidden under the preorbitar scale bone, the other extend¬
ing beyond the corner of the mouth ; teeth very fine and short on the
palatines, two pterygoid bones, the tongue, the branchial arches,
and the pharyngeals. Stomach caecal; intestine short, with the in¬
terior mucous coat forming a long spiral valve ; no pancreatic
caeca ; swim-bladder long, slender, with interior imperfect trans¬
verse partitions, and an air-tube going to the stomach. Branchio¬
stegals eight.
Genus IV. Notopterus, Valenc. Body greatly compressed,
very thin towards the tail. Snout obtuse, with little projection, the
nasal bone scarcely passing the turbinal; two small premaxillaries
placed transversely at the extremity of the nasal, and suspending
the free maxillaries, the latter a single bone (not of several as in
the Clupeidos); limbs of the maxillaries having a deep, oblong, dor¬
sal cavity, with two trenchant edges carrying teeth ; jaws armed
with minute raduliform teeth, also the palatines; a small spot
on the end of the vomer, an oval surface on the presphenoid;
and very long crooked ones on the edges of the tongue. The
foremost two suborbital scale bones are serrated on their edges,
and also the edges of a large hollow on the inferior limb of
the preoperculum, which hides entirely the smooth interoper¬
culum ; operculum large, and suboperculum uianting as in the Si-
luri. Large muciferous cavities in the cranium, on which there
are five longitudinal ridges, namely, a mesial interparietal one and
two lateral ones on each side ; the suprascapula is also cavernous,
and pierced for the passage of mucoducts. Dorsal very small; anal
very long and united to a small caudal ; ventrals united to one
another, but scarcely perceptible from their minuteness. A genital
papilla behind the anus. Belly very much compressed, and edged
by a double series of denticulations. Scales small, covering the
body, the gill-covers, and part of the cheeks; lateral line straight.
Branchiostegals seven, erroneously stated in the “Regne Animate ” to
be only one. Stomach compressed, globular, with the cardia and
pylorus in front, one over the other. Ova not shut up in an ovisac,
but dropping into the abdominal cavity. Air-bladder multilocular,
having numerous interior partitions, and some exterior contrac¬
tions, with two long posterior horns; and two little horns that, pro¬
ceeding from the fore-part of the bladder attached to the cranium,
pass under the acoustic sacs which contain the otolite, onwards to the
third tubercle of the brain—a unique circumstance in fishes. Three
species.
Notopterus is considered by M. Valenciennes to be the type of a Classifica-
peculiar family. tion—Ma-
Genus V. Arapaima, Miill. (Sudis, Cuv.; non Rafin.; Vastres, iacopteri.
Valenc.) Body more or less rounded, covered by a mosaic i ^ ^ ^ ,
work of osseous scales, which extend over the vertical fins.
Anal and dorsal short, and far back. Head formed of deeply sculp¬
tured bones, with mucous cells, clothed in a thick skin; large
cheek bones ; mouth pretty large, bordered above by the premax¬
illaries and maxillaries, both carrying teeth, and below by the
mandible, toothed in the same way ; small raduliform teeth cover
the palatines, the pterygoids, the vomer, the presphenoid, the
lingual bone, and all the body of the os hyoides; and there is a plate
of teeth on the internal surface of the mandible; the presphe-
noidal and palatine teeth vary with the species. Air-bladder said
to be cellular like the lungs of a fowl; two valves at the arterial ori¬
fice of the ventricle, and no muscular bulb. About six species in
the rivers of South America.
Genus VI. Heterotis, Ehren. A large cuirassed head,
clothed in mucous skin, and hard mosaic scales on the body, give
this genus a resemblance to Sudis, but the vertical fins are not
scaly. The teeth stand in a single row on the jaws, they are re¬
curved with a rounded point; no teeth on the palatines, vomer, or
presphenoid, but there are groups of straight conical teeth on the
pterygoids and dilated part of the hyoid bone. Two long, thick, pan¬
creatic caeca. A cellular air-bladder enters into rings formed by
the parapophyses of the caudal vertebrae, as in the Exocwti. Two
species, Africa.
Genus VII. Butirinus, Com. (Albula, Gronov.) Has the
general aspect of some of the Indian Cyprinoids. Body regu¬
larly fusiform, with a conical head, and pointed snout, passing the
end of the mandible a little. Dorsal in the middle of the length,
its hinder third opposite the ventrals, the anal half-way between
the latter and the largely-forked caudal. Head naked. Body
covered with large, hard, firm scales; furrows on the cranium per¬
ceptible through the skin. Fine card-like teeth on the jaws,
palatines, front of the vomer, and pharyngeals ; and what is charac¬
teristic of the genus are small, cup-shaped, hemispheric patches of
teeth, covering a part of the presphenoid, and another on each ptery¬
goid. The convex tongue fits into the canal formed by these three
bones, and its surface is also covered with granular teeth. Intes¬
tines like those of the Clupeidce. Stomach large, csecal; pancre¬
atic caeca twenty-two ; hexagonal cells in the mucous coat ot the
rectum; ovarian sacs opening on each side of the anus. A long
air-bladder, having its thin membrane enveloped in an exterior fib¬
rous sac, communicates with the stomach by a short tube. Nine
species.
The Butirines, says M. Valenciennes, are undoubtedly allied to
the Clupeoids by their large air-bladder and numerous pancreatic
caeca, and the want of teeth on the maxillary, but they are kept
apart from that family by the absence of a keeled denticulated
belly.
ERYTHRINIDvE.
A small family established by M. Valenciennes of several
genera whose true place in the system has been much
canvassed. Erythrinus is stated by the ichthyologist just
named, to present in its skeleton a resemblance to the Sal-
monidcB in the adjustment of the bones of the face, to the
Cyprinidce in the size of the lateral occipital foramina, to
the Clupeidce in the parieto-occipital foramina, and intheform
of the basi-occipital, which differs totally from that of the
Cyprinoids in wanting that vaulted dilatation to which the
median pharyngeal plate is attached in that family ; but
again it possesses Cyprinoid characters in the union of the
first vertebrae and in the existence of the Weberian ossicles,
connecting the air-bladder with the auditory organs, though
not exactly in the same way as in the Cyprinidce.
Family X.—ERYTHRINIDA).
Erythrdides, Valenc. Body moderately thick ; back and belly
rounded ; head large ; snout obtuse ; upper arch of the mouth formed
of the small premaxillaries, with the maxillaries articulated to their
extremities, both crowded with small conical teeth, as is also the
mandible. Villiform teeth cover the palatines and pterygoids, and
form an arched plate on the roof of the mouth, separated from its
fellow on the other side by a smooth vomerine line; pharyngeal
teeth also villiform. Entire cheek covered by bony suborbitar
scales, followed by two temporal plates which are characteristic of
the family. Stomach conical, siphonal; pancreatic caeca numerous ;
ICHTHYOLOGY.
251
Clasfifica- ovarian sacs not communicating with the cavity of the abdomen ;
tion—Ma- air-bladders two, united by a neck, the anterior one roundish and
lacopteri. covered by a thick fibrous coat as in the Catastomi and other
- ^ ^ J Cyprinidce, and inserted into the third and fourth vertebral pro¬
cesses, but not communicating with the ear ; the second is subcel-
lular anteriorly, without extensive partitions, but with recesses
formed by longitudinal and transverse bridles in the walls of the
viscus, which project inwardly in thin folds. A tube runs from the
second air-bladder to the top of the oesophagus.
Erythrinus, says Muller, belongs decidedly to the Characini.
Genus I. Erythrinus, Cuv., Mull. Simple, card-like teeth on
the palatines ; the bigger canines among the mandibular teeth are
proportionally short. Swim-bladder cellular. Six species.
Genus II. Macrodon, Mull. A row of bigger conical pala¬
tines in place of the card-like teeth of Erythrinus ; on the mandible
isolated very large canines. Swim-bladder not cellular. Six
species.
Genus III. Lebiasina, Valenc. Having the aspect of a Cyprino-
don and the tricuspid teeth of that family, but with the suborbi-
tars cuirassing the cheek; numerous pancreatic caeca, and a double
air-bladder, partially cellular as in Erythrinus.
Genus IV. Pyrrhulina, Valenc. In some of its characters this
fish approaches the Oyprinidas. A scaly, fusiform fish, with the
mandible projecting, and the upper lobe of the caudal elongated.
Snout very short; eye rather large ; mouth formed above by the
short premaxillaries carrying minute crowded teeth, and on the
side by oval edentate maxillaries, which fit into pits in the man¬
dible ; the mandible has large limbs, with small conical teeth, and
moves after the manner of the jaw of Mugil; the second and third
suborbitar scale bones cover the cheek. Stomach roundish ; six
pancreatic caeca; a double air-bladder, like that of Macrodon
without cellular walls, but with a tube from the posterior conical
half, which communicates with the upper part of the cesophao-us.
One species, Surinam.
Genus V. Umbra, Kram. Small premaxillaries, articulating
at their extremities with the maxillaries, both carrying teeth ; vo¬
mer and palatines also studded with teeth. Branchiostegals five ;
(Esophagus short and globular. Stomach long, cylindrical, siphonal;
no pancreatic caeca ; air-bladder simple, pointed behind, rounded
before, and communicating with the pharynx by a wide opening.
A thickly fusiform fish, with a short-conical, smooth head, large
scales on the body, and a dorsal rather posterior to the middle of
the fish, and opposite to the small ventrals and anal. Caudal fin
cuneate at the end.
This genus is one which ichthyologists find a difficulty in assign¬
ing to any family that has as yet been characterized. It combines
the characters of several groups. Muller remarks that it does not
belong to the Pcecilian genus Cyprinodon, since, in addition to the
premaxillary teeth, it has teeth on the vomer and palate bones;
and a mouth bounded anteriorly by the premaxillaries, and exter¬
nally by the maxillaries, as in Esox, with which it agrees also in
having no caecal projection of the stomach, and in the intestines
and the covered pseudobranchiae. (Arch, fur Naturg.)
Genus VI. Dussumiera, Valen. This fish, having the aspect of a
Clupeoid, but, being without denticulations on the belly, is one of
the species whose combinations of characters mock at our attempts
at arrangement. It has teeth on the jaws, palatines, pterygoids,
and tongue, but the vomer is smooth. There are raduliform patches
of teeth on the palatines and pterygoids as in Elops, but it cannot
enter the Elopidce family, because it wants the sublingual bone of
Elops. It ought to be placed, M. Valenciennes thinks, between
Butirinus and Elops. One species, D. acuta.
Genus VII. Etrumeus, Bleek. Separated from Dussumiera
because it has vomerine teeth. (Clupea micropus, Schlegel.)
three generic ones. It is the only representative of the genus Classifica-
Elops yet discovered, and is one of the few fishes which are tion—Ma_
lacopteri.
Fig. 75.
Elops saurus.
common to the warmer parts of both the Atlantic and Paci¬
fic Oceans. It has been captured at New Orleans, Suri¬
nam, and on the coast of the Brazils; also on the opposite
African coast at Senegal. In the Red Sea also, at the Isle
of France, in the Indian Ocean, and, lastly, on the North
Australian coasts and in the seas of Polynesia, westward to
Japan and China.
There is a likeness between the genera Lutodeira and
Elops, but the great number of branchiostegals which the
latter possesses at once distinguishes them.
Family XL—ELOPID^E.
Elopiens, Valenc. Separated by M. Valenciennes on account of
the presence of a sublingual bone from the Butirinidce, to which
they are nearly allied. This bone exists in Amia, but that genus
has another kind of dentition. These fish are remarkable among
their allies for the number of their branchiostegals, and the median
bone under the branchiostegal membrane, between the limbs of the
mandible, is also an unusual part of their structure. The mouth is,
like that of the Clupeidce, bordered above by small premaxillaries,
and long free maxillaries on the side. Teeth so fine on the pre¬
maxillaries, maxillaries, mandible, palatines, entopterygoids, vo¬
mer, presphenoid, and tongue, that they appear merely to be slight
asperities. Body long and rounded ; no denticulations whatever on
the belly. Dorsal medial, with no prolongation of the last ray. An
enlarged and indurated scale on the dorsal and ventral edge of the
base of the deeply-forked caudal; long scaly appendages in the
axillm of the ventrals and pectorals. Head naked ; a diaphanous,
waxy-looking, adipose eye-membrane. Stomach conical, with an
ascending fleshy branch ; numerous pyloric caeca; a large air-blad¬
der communicating with the digestive canal, and forked ante¬
riorly, but not entering the cranium.
Genus I. Elops, Linn. Character of the family as above. Two
species.
Genus II. Megalops, Commer. Body elongated, of moderate
height and elegant form. Mouth bordered above by the small pre¬
maxillaries, and by the large, moveable, compound maxillaries on
the sides, with the edges of both rough with minute teeth : there
are teeth also on the mandible, the palatines, the pterygoids, the
front of the vomer, the presphenoid, the lingual and hyoid
bones, and on the pharyngeals. Wide gill-openings; branchioste¬
gals numerous (twenty-two to twenty-five). A sublingual bone be¬
tween the limbs of the mandible. An adipose eye-lid to the pretty
large eye. Small dorsal, with the tip of the last ray filamentous
and long. A large conical stomach; numerous slender, filiform,
pancreatic casca; air-bladder large, forked anteriorly, with an
air-pipe from it opening into the pharynx. Three species.
ELOPIDiE.
The existence of a bone between the limbs of the lower
mandible is one of tbe characters of this family, and the
want of’ it in Butirinus (left among the somewhat hetero¬
geneous Clupesocidce) is the reason why M. Valenciennes
did not place that genus with his Elopiens. Amia is an¬
other genus in which this sublingual bone is present, but
Muller has adduced various arguments founded on its struc¬
ture for considering it to be one of the few living Ganoids,
and we shall accordingly mention it under that order along
with the Lepidostidce which are more unequivocal Ganoids.
The figure No. 75, represents the Elops saurus, or Silver-
fish of Garden, a fish which has been introduced into our
systematic works under four different specific names and
MORMYRIDA2.
A small family of fishes which abound in the rivers of
both sides of Africa, the Nile, Senegal, and Congo. They
are timid fish, of nocturnal habits, that frequent rocky ba¬
sins in the rivers, and would be seldom taken but for the
high price they command, which renders the fishermen very
assiduous. They are caught with lines to which many
hooks baited with worms are affixed, and one fisherman
rarely succeeds in taking more than two or three in the
course of the night. Their flesh has an excellent flavour,
and is greatly esteemed by the epicures of Egypt. These
fish seem to have been objects of as great attention to the
ancient Egyptians as they are to the present inhabitants of
that country. In the Egyptian museum of Paris there is a
small bronze representation of one of the sharp-nosed
252
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- Mormyri surmounted by the mythic horned circle emble-
tion—Ma- xnatic of the divinity Athor ; and mumified Mormyri are not
lacopteri. rare g;r Gardner Wilkinson says, that the name of these
flgJx in modern Egypt is Mizdeh ; and in page 250 ot the
second volume of the second series of Ancient Egypt, he
gives two. very recognisable representations of a Mormyrus
taken from bronzes, one of them crowned by the emblem
in question. A third figure is copied from a representation
of the fish in the temple of the Great Oasis, where it is
coupled with the name of the goddess, and shows, Sir Gard¬
ner thinks, that the fable of the metamorphosis of Venus
into a fish was of Egyptian origin. The ancient Egyptians
appear to have made the Mormyrus an object of veneration,
but to have abstained from eating it, according to Plutarch,
because it was one of three different kinds which devoured a
part of the body of Osiris, and which Isis therefore was unable
to recover when she collected the rest of the scattered mem¬
bers of her husband. The Mormyrus longipinnis of Riip-
pell, or M. caschive of Hasselquist and Valenciennes, has
been ascertained to possess electric organs, which probably
exist in other species also, and may be one reason for the
veneration of the whole genus by the ancient Egyptians.
The long-finned species represented by one of the bronzes
figured by Sir Gardner Wilkinson is either this M. caschive
or the M. oxyrhinchus which has also a long dorsal. Muller
found the premaxillaries of the Mormyri to be united so
as to form a single bone.
Family XII.—MORMYRIBiE, Mull.
Mormyri, Cuv. Longish compressed bodies, with a tail slender
at its origin, but swelling out at the attachment of the caudal.
Head encased in a thick, naked skin, which envelopes the gill-
cover and branchiostegals, and leaves only a perpendicular slit for
a gill-opening. Branchiostegals six. Mouth small, and bounded
above mesially by a single bone formed of the coalescent pre¬
maxillaries as in Diodon; laterally the maxillaries enter into the
composition of the orifice. Dentition various. The post-frontal or
temporal apparatus is simpler than in other fish, therein resembling
the Siluridce. The cranium has a peculiar canal closed by the
skin, leading to the interior hollow of the skull, and the acoustic
labyrinth. Accessory gills absent; stomach globular; intestine
long and slender; two pyloric caeca ; swim-bladder simple.
Genus I. Mormyrus, Miill. A row of slender teeth, curved at
the tips on the premaxillaries and mandible, and in the young a
stripe of radulif'orm teeth on the hinder parts of the vomer. 31.
cyprinoides, oxyrhynchus, dorsalis, longipinnis.
Genus II. Mormyrops, Mull. Conical teeth on the jaws in
place of curved tipped ones. M. anguilloides, labiatus.
M. Valenciennes does not adopt these genera of M. Muller, as he
says that conical and slender teeth exist on the jaws of the same
species. He describes twenty species, in two groups, characterized
by the length of the dorsal fin. Since the publication of the Ilis-
toire des Poissons, Peters has discovered six new ones on the Moz¬
ambique coast. Most of the species described by M. Valenciennes
have two minute lateral cusps to the teeth, separated by a notch as
in Crenidens.
CYPRIN0D0NT3.
The typical forms of this family are small fishes, formerly
considered to be Cyprinoids, but, as their name denotes,
differing from the true Carps in possessing teeth, and, more¬
over, in having protractile jaws ; they want also the kind of
pharyngeal grinding apparatus which is peculiar to the
Carps. Species exist both in the Old and New Worlds;
and some inhabit indifferently fresh, brackish, or salt water.
We have seen specimens procured in a brine spring and
salt marsh on the shores of the Dead Sea, on the supposed
site of Sodom, probably from one of the slime pits of Siddim
of which the valley was full in Abraham’s time. In one
member of this family, the Guapucha {Pcecilia bogotensis),
which inhabits the little river of Bogota on the plateau of
Santa Fe, 8840 feet above the sea level, Humboldt found
a double air-bladder; and, on examining the contained air,
ascertained that 93 parts in 100 were azote, the rest being
carbonic acid and oxygen. The Orestias are found at a Classifica-
still greater altitude, being inhabitants of Lake I iticaca tion—Ma-
and other elevated sheets of water on the Cordilleras of acopteiL
Peru and Bolivia, between the 14th and 19th degrees of
latitude, and from 13,000 to 14,000 feet above the sea. 1 he
flesh of these fishes is a great delicacy ; and they are sought
for during the winter season, when they can be transported
without spoiling.
Anableps is a genus which excites the attention of the
dullest of observers by a conformation of the eyes which no
other vertebrated animal possesses, in the cornea being
divided into two somewhat unequal elliptical parts by a
bridle of the conjunctiva, giving to each eye the appearance
of being double. This very peculiar structure has most
likely a connection with the habit the fish has of swimming
with the eyes partly out of the water. Panchax and 1 an-
dellia were considered by M. Valenciennes to have affinities
with Pcecilia, but ow’ing to their possessing teeth on the
palate he places them after Esox. Neither has Dgdopterus
been enumerated among the Cyprinodonts by Muller, but
no other more convenient place for these three genera oc¬
curs than just before the Esocidee.
Family XIII.—CYPRINODONTIDJE, Agass.
Cyprinodontes, Agass. This is a very precise family, with pro¬
minent characters. Its members resemble the Cyprinidce in habit,
but they do not possess the large pharyngeal tooth, nor the bony
process of the basi-occipital. Upper and under pharyngeal teeth
card-like; maxillary as in the Cyprinidce, and the premaxillaries
forming alone the upper half of the mcuth, but they are armed
with teeth ; jaws protractile. Swim-bladder simple, and unfur¬
nished with a chain of acoustic ossicles. No supplementary gills.
Stomach siphonal; no pancreatic caeca. Some are viviparous.
Genus I. Pcecilia, Valenc. Jaws depressed, horizontal and
protractile, the upper border of the mouth formed solely by the
premaxillaries; moveable and curved teeth on both jaws in an
exterior row, with a stripe of villiform teeth behind ; roof ot the
mouth edentate, soft; many rows of hooked teeth on the pharyn-
geals. Five branchiostegals. A single, simple air-bladder. Long,
simple intestines ; viviparous. Eight species.
Genus II. Mollienesia, Lesu. Having the dentition, bran¬
chiostegals, and intestines of Pcecilia, they differ in the position of
the anus, advanced to between ihe ventrals, which are rather far
back. A large and long dorsal and expanded caudal. One species.
Lake Pontchartrain.
Genus HI. Xiphophorus, Heck. Teeth bristly, short, sur¬
rounded by a row of stouter ones. Ventrals as in Mollienesia ; anal
in the male close to the ventrals, the front rays thickened, con¬
nected together by a long plate, whose extremity is used as a
prehensile organ ; the posterior rays very short. Three Mexican
species.
Genus IV. CYPRiNODON.Lacep. (Lebias, Cuv.) Viviparous fishes,
with the jaws rather less depressed than in Pcecilia, the teeth in a
single close row, compressed and tricuspid. Branchiostegals five.
Intestines and air-bladder of Pceciha. Small fishes resembling a
Minnow. Eight species.
Genus V. Fundulus, Lacep. Characterized by the presence of
fine card-like teeth on arched premaxillaries, the upper half of
the orifice of the mouth being semicircular. Head flat beneath;
and the jaws not depressed as in Pcecilia. Branchiostegals five.
Eight species.
Genus VI. Hydrargyra, Lacep. Heeth of Fundulus. Six bran¬
chiostegals. Four species.
Genus VII. Grundulus, Valenc. Body compressed, oval; the
flat upper jaw shorter than the mandible ; numerous teeth on the
jaws. Dorsal far back, opposite to the anal. Branchiostegals five.
Air-bladder double, the posterior one much the largest. One
species, seen only by Baron Humboldt.
Genus VIII. Orestias, Valenc. Thickly fusiform, apodal, scaly
fishes. Dorsal and anal opposite to each other, behind the middle
of the body, on the commencement of the tail. Mouth rather small
at the extremity of a muzzle which bulges beneath by the projec¬
tion of the mandible; teeth fine and hooked ; pharyngeal teeth
card-like. Five branchiostegals. Scales of the fore part of the fish
hard horny bucklers, with occasional intervals of naked skin ;
posteriorly they are ordinary cycloid scales like those of a Carp.
Lower part of the belly destitute of scales, shining and metallic in
lustre. Nine species, Andes.
M. Gervais has instituted a genus which he names Tellia, for an
ICHTHYOLOGY.
253
Classifica- Algei-ine fish which is distinguished from Cyprinodon by the want of
tion—Ma- ventrals. We know it only by a brief notice in the Archiven fur
lacopteri. Naturgeschichte, and are not told in what respect it differs from
y ^ J Orestias.
Genus IX. Anableps, Bloch. Elongated scaly fishes, with a
flattish, rounded back, and depressed head. The maxillaries carry
no teeth, and do not enter into the composition of the border of the
mouth, which is formed above by the premaxillaries alone. On
these there are teeth, the outer row being moveable like those of
Pcecilia, and the inner ones minute, in a crowded band : roof of the
mouth smooth, edentate ; tongue a very small tubercle; pharyn¬
geal teeth two plate^ above and below, conical pointed, villiform
crowded; lips thick ; eyes prominent under a scaly arch, having
the cornea and iris divided by a longitudinal band, so as to give
thorn the appearance of being double. Branchiostegals five. In
the male the excretory canal of the organs of generation, common
also to the urinary bladder, is carried along the front of the anal
beyond the tip of its first ray, in a tapering, scaly appendage,
with the orifice at the extremity. The female is viviparous, but
seldom produces more than seven or eight young at a time. Air-
bladder pretty large, with a pneumatic duct in the foetal state, which
is obliterated as the fish attains maturity. Four or five species.
Genus X. Dipi.opterus, Gray. (Luciocepkalm, Bleeker.) Is
placed by its affinities between Cyprinodon and Esox; the exist¬
ence of vomerine teeth brings it near Panchax, which it resembles
in the position of the ventrals under the pectorals. A single anacan-
thous dorsal opposite the anal. Upper half of the mouth composed
of the very protractile premaxillaries, which have moreover a
tuft of teeth on their ascending pedicels, and uniserial teeth on
their labial limbs; mandibular teeth piuriserial in front; vomer
rough, with minute teeth; four complete branchial arches; no
j3seudobranchias; inferior pharyngeals widely separated, ax-med
with conical teeth. Gill-openings large, coming forward under the
eye. Branchiostegals five. Nostrils two in the preorbitar space.
Scales Ctenoid on the body, Cycloid on the head. Stomach caeca],
intestine short; no pancreatic caeca.
Genus XI. Panchax, Hamilt. Buch. Thickly fusiform scaly
fishes, highest in the middle, and tapering rather more towards the
head than posteriorly. Dorsal far back over the posterior part of
the larger anal; abdominal ventrals before the middle of the fish.
Upper arch of the mouth formed by the premaxillaries, behind
whose descending limbs the maxillary lies and does not touch the
edge of the orifice, which is garnished all round by a narrow band
of teeth as fine as hairs. Teeth on the palatines; branchiosteo-als
five.
Genus XII. Vandellia, Valenc. Body elongated, rounded,
slenderer anteriorly; snout depressed, prominent; mouth small,
situated on the ventral aspect; lips thick, with a fleshy barbel at
the corners of the mouth on each side; teeth on the vomer; none,
or little visible teeth on other parts of the mouth. Ventrals small,
on the posterior third of the body; dorsal standing over the interval
between the ventrals and anal. One species, India.
ESOCIDiE.
By the abstraction of groups formerly included in the
Pike family, only a single genus remains to represent ii,,
and of this there is only one European species, viz.,
Esox lucius, Linn, (the common Pike). During the
earliest stage of its life it is of a greenish hue, but in the
second year it becomes gray with pale spots, the latter
ultimately acquiring a yellowish colour. Its markings,
however, are very variable, and instances have occurred of
its being perfectly white. It is one of the largest of fresh¬
water fishes, and indeed, if the accounts which some writers Classifica-
give are not exaggerated, it occasionally attains a size not tion—Ma*
greatly inferior to the gigantic inhabitants of the ocean. laC0Pteri-
Individuals are recorded as measuring from o to 9 feet
in length. They frequently weigh above 30 lb. in the
lakes of the north of England; and Dr Grierson mentions
one taken in Loch Ken, in Galloway, which weighed
61 lb. Pallas states that the lakes in the government of
Tobolsk in Siberia nourish multitudes of-Pikes which at¬
tain the size of between 30 and 40 lb. In North America,
which seems to be the headquarters of the family, since
not only the common European species, but several others
exist in the great lakes of that country, 30 lb. is con¬
sidered a large size, though doubtless some individuals
attain a greater weight. Most authors have cited the
accounts of one said to have been caught at Kaiserslautern,
near Manheim, in 1497, which, was nearly 19 feet in
length, and weighed'350 lb. The skeleton of this extra¬
ordinary specimen was for a long time preserved, and bore
a brass ring with an inscription to the effect that the fish
was put into a pond by the hands of the Emperor Frederick
II., the 5th of October 1262. From this it is inferred that
it was upwards of 235 years old. M. Valenciennes enters
at some length into a critical examination of the truth of
this story. Gesner, who lived soon after the time assigned
to the capture of this remarkable fish, and who might have
known eye-witnesses of the event, says that it was caught
near Heilbronn, in Suabia; and in 1592 Lehman saw a
painting of the Pike and a sketch of the ring kept in a
tower on the road from Heilbronn to Spires, and the piece
of water whence it was taken was still named Kaisenvag,
or the Emperor’s Lake, in 1612. Thei'e seems to be no
doubt but a fish of great size and great age was taken about
the time mentioned, but there are discrepancies enough in
the various accounts that are given of it by authors to make
the details doubtful; and a celebrated anatomist having
examined the skeleton of the said Pike, then kept in the
Cathedral of Manheim, found the vertebrae to be more nu¬
merous than those of a single Pike, and in fact that the
skeleton had been lengthened to fit the story, which had
itself undergone the same process from that love of the
marvehous which is common to every age. The common
Pike is not only an inhabitant of most of the larger waters
of Europe and northern Asia, but it is certainly one of
th j native fishes of North America. This is a question of
i iterest to those who are engaged in tracing the distribu¬
tion of animals, and some pains were taken to ascertain the
identity of the species in the two hemispheres. A specimen
brought from Lake Huron was examined by Baron Cuvier
and M. Valenciennes, and found to be the same with the
European one ; and Sir John Richardson carefully compared
the European and American fishes with each other without-
detecting any specific difference. Some American ichthyolo¬
gists have questioned the accuracy of these examinations,
but they do not appear to have given sufficient weight to
the fact of there being more than one species in the great
lakes of their country, and the chance of the specimen they
commented on being one of these. E. estor inhabits Lake
Huron, as well as E. lucius, and most likely there are others
in that lake or in the fresh-water seas that communicate
with it. M. Yarrell gives some interesting facts respecting
the value of this fish at different periods of English history.
Edward the First fixed the price of a Pike higher than that
of fresh Salmon, and ten times greater than that of the best
Turbot or Cod; and in the reign of Henry the Eighth a
large one was sold for double the price of house-lamb in
February, and a Pickerel pr young Pike for more than a
fat capon. I hese facts are sufficient to show the error of
some writers on British ichthyology, who have fixed upon
the reign of Henry the Eighth as the epoch of the intro¬
duction of the Pike into the British isles ; which Albin says
254
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifies- was in 1537. Leland mentions that a Pike of great size
tion—Ma- was tafcen \n Ramesmere, Huntingdonshire, in the reign
lacopteri. ()f £c]gart pikes are proverbially voracious. There seems,
indeed, to be no bounds to their gluttony ; for they devour
indiscriminately whatever edible substances they fall in with,
and almost every animal they are able to subdue. “ It is,”
says M. de Lacepede, “ the Shark of the fresh waters; it
reigns there a devastating tyrant, like the shark in the midst
of the ocean ; insatiable in its appetites, it ravages with fear¬
ful rapidity the streams, the lakes, and the fish-ponds that
it inhabits. Blindly ferocious, it does not spare its species,
and even devours its own young ; gluttonous without choice,
it tears and swallows, with a sort of fury, the remains even
of putrified carcasses. This bloodthirsty animal is also one
of those to which nature has accorded the longest duration
of years; for ages it terrifies, agitates, pursues, destroys,
and consumes the feeble inhabitants of the waters which it
infests; and as if, in spite of its insatiable cruelty, it was
meant that it should receive every advantage, it has not
only been gifted with strength, with size, with numerous
weapons, but it has also been adorned with elegance of
form, symmetry of proportions, and variety and richness
of colour.” A singular instance of its voracity is related by
Johnston, who asserts that he saw one killed which con¬
tained in its belly another Pike of large size, and the latter,
on being opened, was found to have swallowed a water-rat!
Its flesh is well flavoured and easy of digestion, and is con¬
sequently much sought after as an article of food, especially
for convalescents, and others of weakly habit. It is most
tender and nutritive in young individuals, but full-grown
Pikes are occasionally found in which the flesh on the back
and near the vertebral column acquires a greenish colour,
which is held in high repute, and often purchased at a great
price. Sibbald, writing in the reign of Charles the Second,
says that the heart of the Pike is a remedy against febrile
paroxysms, that the gall is of much use in affections of the
eyes, that the dried jaws reduced to powder are a remedy
in pleurisy, gravel, and stone in the bladder, and that the
ashes of the fish are used to dress old wounds. These and
the rest of his statements on medical subjects have the
formal approbation of the President and Censor of the
Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh.
Even the names of the Pike is a subject not without its
interest. It is the Lucio or Luzzo of the Italians, an appel¬
lation evidently descended from the Latin lucius. Auso-
nius, in using this term, says that it was a despised fish on
the Moselle, very contrary to the estimation in which it was
held in England ten centuries later—■
Lucius, obscuras ulva camoque lacunas
Obsidet. Hie nullos mensarum lectus ad usus,
Fervet fumosis olido nidore popinis.”
In Sweden it is named Gadda, and in Denmark Giedde,
Gedde, Gede, or Gei, names differing little from the ap¬
pellation of the fish in the lowlands of Scotland, “ Ged,” and
showing, with many other instances of Scandinavian words
relating to maritime affairs and fisheries, the origin of the
population that displaced the Celtic races from the country
lying to the south of the Firth of Forth, and on the east
coast of Scotland still farther north. M. Valenciennes has
printed a long list of the names which the fish bears among
the Sclavonic and Tartar peoples, none of which seem to
have any relation to those by which it is known on the
western coast of Europe. The Scandinavian name had
probably its origin in the sharpness of the teeth of the Pike,
and the consequent danger of injury to those who attempted
to handle it, for we find a similar word, Gede or Geede,
used to designate a goat in Danish (also lowland Scottish
“ Gait”), and Gedehams, to signify a hornet. The English
names Pike and Pickerel are evidently sprung from the
Saxon Piik (sharp-pointed), and the French Canadians
term the Lucioperca of that country the Piccarel, which
it well merits, as its teeth are no less formidable than those Classifica-
of the Esox lucius. tion—Ma-
lacopteri.
Family XIV.—ESOCIDAi, Mull.
Scaly fishes without an adipose fin, and possessing covered glan¬
dular accessory branchiae. Orifice of the mouth formed above in
the middle by the premaxillaries, and on the sides by the max-
illaries. A simple swim-bladder. Diffuse vascular ramifications
exist on the inner surface of the skin, which are peculiar to this
family. Stomach siphonal; no pancreatic caeca. Type of form
the common Pike; inhabitants of fresh waters only, in the northern
hemisphere.
Genus I. Esox, auct.
GONORHYNCHS.
The members of this small family are more interesting
from the peculiarities of structure that they exhibit, and
which are briefly denoted in the generic characters, than
by their importance in an economical point of view. The
Chanos, however, has been named Milk Fish, from its de¬
licacy as an article of food.
Fig. 77.
Chanos or Lutodeira salmonea.
A scale of this fish has been represented on a preceding
page (fig. 40), and the following woodcuts give the portrait
of Gonorhynchus Greyi, a fish of Western Australia, and of
one of its scales.
Fig. 78.
Gonorhynchus Greyi.
Fig. 79.
Scale of Gonorhynchus Greyi.
On the Alepocephalidce, we have no remarks to make.
Family XV.—GONORHYNCHIDA1.
Gonorhynques, Valenc. This small family was constituted by M.
Valenciennes for the reception of two genera which want oral
teeth, and thus have some affinity with the Cyprinidce.
Genus I. Chanos, Lacep. (LwtocZm-c*, Van Hass., Rupp.) The
Chanos have an affinity to the Clupeidm without actually belonging
to that family, and are separated from the characteristic Herrings
by the belly being rounded and not carinated, nor denticulated.
They resemble the Butirinidce and Gonorhynchi in their fatty eye¬
lids, toothless jaws, and scaly appendages in the axillae of the pec¬
torals and ventrals; they have, moreover, a lanceolate scaly fillet
above and below the lateral line on each side, extending longitudi¬
nally over the caudal, dividing the long acute lobes of the forked
caudal from a small central portion. Chanos is further character-
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- ized by a peculiar hollow behind the gill-opening, which commu-
tion—Ma- nicates with the gills through an aperture, and lodges an accessory
lacopteri. gill that has cartilaginous supports. The intestinal canal is very
■ l°ng) being doubled upon itself many times, and in the interior of
the cesophagus there is a complete spiral valve, of numerous turns,
and with fringed edges, which have been observed in no other genus.
Pancreatic caeca numerous. Air-bladder double, communicating
with the oesophagus. Upper half of the mouth formed partly by
the premaxillaries, partly by the maxillaries. General aspect that
of a Coregonus. Species eight.
Genus II. Gonorhynchus, Gronov. (Rhynchcena, Rich.) Body
elongated, with a slenderly conical head, ending in an acute snout,
which has a small median barbel beneath. Dorsal and anal fins
opposite, very far back ; long scaly processes in the axils of the
pectorals and ventrals; branchiostegal membrane uniting with the
surface of the throat, and leaving merely a vertical slit for a gill¬
opening. Branchiostegals four ; lips fringed and lobed. Scales
small, pectinated on the edge by a row of long and strong teeth.
Pharyngeal teeth cylindrical, truncated ; pyloric crnca six to nine;
no air-bladder. Two species.
255
Family XVI.—ALEPOCEPHALID^E, Valenc.
This family consists of a single species, of which M. Valenciennes
says “the genus Alepocephalus is separated from all others, and forms
the type of a peculiar family.:, The upper jaw is that of the Pikes
(Esox), with an alimentary canal like that of the Clupeoids, and a
spiral valve in the rectum like Amia, but with many pancreatic
caeca and no air-bladder, whereas Amia and Chirocentrus have re¬
markable air-bladders and no pancreatic caeca. No denticulations
on the belly like those of the Clupeoids. Body compressed, rounded
beneath ; long scaleless head. Short premaxillaries bearing teeth,
forming the upper half of the mouth; toothless maxillaries lying
behind them ; palatine and mandibular teeth small. Siphonal sto¬
mach with numerous pancreatic caeca; spiral valve in the rectum.
One species.
Genus I. Alepocephalus, Risso.
CYPRINOIDS.
This large family is a very natural one, but the great
conformity of structure exhibited by its very numerous
species is a source ot difficulty to ichthyologists who have
attempted to divide it into genera, and other subordinate
groups. It is wholly a fresh-water family, and among the
least carnivorous in the class of fishes.
Fig. 80.
Cyprinus carpio.
Cyprinus carpio, the common Carp. This well-known
fish is of an olive-green, yellowish beneath, having the
anal and dorsal spines strong and denticulated, and the
barbels short; the pharyngeal teeth are flat and striated
on the crown. It is a native of the central countries of
Europe; but, owing to its value as an article of food, it
was early distributed by human agency over the whole of
that Continent. The ease with which it can be transported
from one place to another, and its speedy growth and pro¬
pagation in ponds and artificial reservoirs, afforded great faci¬
lities for its rapid dispersion. The year 1614 is assigned as
the date of its first introduction into England ; but it w as na¬
turalized in Germany and Sweden nearly half a century be¬
fore that period. It delights in tranquil waters, preferring
such as have a muddy bottom, and the surface partially
shaded with plants. Its food consists of the larva of aqua- Classifica-
tic insects, minute Testacea, worms, and the tender blades tion—Ma-
and shoots of plants. The leaves of lettuce, and other lacoPteri-
succulent plants of a similar kind, are said to be particu-
larly agreeable to them, and to fatten them sooner than
any other food. Although the Carp eats with great vora¬
city when its supply of aliment is abundant—to such a de-
giee, indeed, as sometimes to produce indigestion, which
occasionally proves fatal—it can subsist fbr an astonishing
length of time without nourishment. In the winter, when
the Carps assemble in great numbers, and bury themselves
among the mud and the roots of plants, they often remain
lor many months without eating. They can also be
preserved alive for a considerable length of time out of
the water, especially if care be taken to moisten them oc¬
casionally as they become dry. Advantage is often taken
of this circumstance to transport them alive, by packino-
them among damp herbage, or wet linen; and the opera¬
tion is said to be unattended with any risk to the animal
especially if the precaution be taken to put a piece of bread
in its mouth steeped in brandy! In a similar way the
Dutch preserve them by suspending them from the roof of
a damp apartment in a bag-net filled with moss, which is
continually kept moist, and they are fed with vegetables
and bread steeped in milk a mode of treatment by which
they are not only kept alive, but actually thrive and fatten
The fecundity of these fishes is very great, and their
numbers consequently would soon become excessive but
for the many enemies by which their spawn is destroyed
No fewer than 700,000 eggs have been found in the ovaria
of a single Carp, and that too by no means an individual of
the largest size. Their growth is very rapid, more so per¬
haps than that of any other fresh-water fish, and the size
which they sometimes attain is very considerable. In cer¬
tain lakes in Germany and Prussia, individuals are occa¬
sionally taken weighing thirty or forty pounds; and Pallas
relates that they occur in the Volga five feet in length
and even of greater weight than the examples just alluded
to. 1 he largest of which we have any account is tha
mentioned by Bloch, taken near Frankfort-on-the-Oder
which weighed seventy pounds, and measured nearly nine
feet in length. M. Valenciennes commends the small
figure of the Carp in Mr Yarrell’s British Fishes, as bein-
the very best representation of the fish that he had seen °
Cyprinus auratus (Gold Fish). This beautiful spedes
the most brilliantly adorned of all our fresh-water fishes>
and scarcely surpassed even by the more richly ornamented
inhabitants of the ocean, is well known to be a native of
China, although it is now domesticated, so to speak in
almost every country, both of the old and new world.
Like the Carp, it has the dorsal and anal spines denticu¬
lated. When young it is of a blackish colour, and it gra¬
dually acquires the fine golden red by which it is chamc-
terized; but some examples are of a silvery hue aud
others are variegated with three different shades of colour
Like most other animals that have been long estranged
from their natural habits, and subjected to artificial influ
ences, this species presents a great many varieties extend
ing even to some important parts of structure. Individuals
occur without a dorsal, others with a very large one others
with the caudal greatly enlarged, and divided into three or
four lobes; and in some instances the eyes are enormously
dilated. I he Golden Carp is said to have been originally
confined to a lake near the mountain Tsienking, in the
province of The-kiang, in China, about N. Lat 30 It
bTght t0 Enflanld, in 1691’ but was ve'ry scarce
till 1728, when a considerable number were imported and
they soon became generally known. They do not flourish
in rivers and open ponds, not, however, because such places
are uncongenial to them, but because they are exposed to
many enemies, against which they have no means of de-
——     ^ '
256
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- fence. When kept in confinement they ought t0
tion—Ma- nourished with fine crumbs of bread, small woims, flies,
lacopteri. an(_j ^ 0feggS dried and powdered, and the water ought
to be frequently changed. 1 he ordinary length ot this
species is from four to six inches ; but they have been
sometimes known to reach a foot. Although natives of a
warm climate, they can sustain a great degiee of cold un¬
injured. An individual, which was accidently exposed
during the night, was completely frozen up in the centie
of its glass jar; but as the ice thawed it recovered its vigour,
and seemed to suffer no further inconvenience.
fish), of the Danes. In some parts of Germany it is named Classifica-
Fig. 83.
Leuciscus rutilus.
Rothauge, but in general it is called in that country Roche,
an appellation evidently identical with its English one.
The Chub, named in Cumberland Shelly, is a well
known English fish, and has received its northern appella¬
tion (quasi Scaly) from the size of its scales.
Fig. 81.
Tinea vulgaris.
The Tench (Tinea vulgaris') is of a deep yellowish
brown, sometimes, however, assuming a fine golden colour.
Its usual length is from 12 to 14 inches; but instances
are on record of its having reached 3 feet. It inhabits
stagnant waters with a muddy bottom ; and in the win¬
ter conceals itself among the mud, and seems to undergo
a kind of torpidity. In May and June it deposits its ova
among aquatic plants; these are very minute, of a green
colour, and so numerous that 297,000 have been reckoned
in one female. The Tench is very extensively distributed,
appearing to occur throughout Europe and Northern Asia.
“ Quis non et virides vulgi solatia Tineas norit.”
Atrsoxius.
Its flesh is not much esteemed, as it is soft, insipid, and
difficult of digestion.
Fig. 82.
Leuciscus brama.
The Bream (Leuciscus brama, Valenc.) is common in
slow-flowing rivers and lakes in most European countries.
It sometimes acquires 2^ feet in length, but its ordinary
dimensions may be stated to be about 1 foot. Worms,
confervae, and aquatic plants are its usual food; but like
manv allied species, it often swallows mud, which renders
its flesh unsavoury. “ There exists in the River I rent,
in the neighbourhood of Newark, two species or varieties
of Bream. The common Bream is known there by the
name of Carp Bream, from its yellow colour, and has been
taken of nearly eight pounds weight. The other species
or variety, which I believe to be a nondescript, never ex¬
ceeds a pound in weight. It is of a silvery hue, and goes
by the name of White Bream.”
Leuciscus rutilus (Valenc.) is the Garden of French
fishermen, and the Rodskalle (Red-scale), or Rodjisk (Red-
English ichthyologists have all given it the specific name
of cephalus, but M. Valenciennes remarks that the term
cephalus was applied by Linnaeus to an assemblage of an
ergtkrinus with the tenth species of Artedi, which itself
comprehends several European Cyprini. He therefore
employs the specific name of Jeses, also Linnaean, to de¬
note the Chub of England, which is the Jentling or Brat-
Jisch of the Danube, and the Jeses or Jese of the Oder.
Leuc. phoxinus (common minnow) is familiar to all. It
is the smallest species of the genus found in Europe, the
greatest length which it attains seldom exceeding 3 inches.
It first makes its appearance in March, and disappears in
October, passjng the winter beneath the mud. It is well
known to be a gregarious species, and small shoals are
to be found in almost every shallow stream, especially in
clear weather, as they seem to delight in warmth and sun¬
shine. They usually spawn in the month of June, but
their ova are often found at a much later period. The
flesh of the minnow is delicate and well-flavoured, but its
size is too small to admit of its being of much value as an
article of food. It is principally used as a bait for the
capture of larger kinds.
Family XVII.— CYPRINIDiE.
Cuprinoidei, Agass. A small, soft, toothless oral orifice, the upper
half formed by the pre-maxillaries only, the maxillaries lying be¬
hind them; no teeth except on the bones circumscribing the pos¬
terior aperture of the mouth; under pharyngeals armed with one
large tooth; upper pharyngeal wanting. On the base of the cranium,
or basi-oceipital, and opposed to the under pharyngeals, there is a
projecting process covered for the most part by a horny plate. Most
have scales (Aulopyge, Heck., is an exception). No adipose fin.
Siphonal stomach; no pancreatic caeca; swim-bladder in most
divided into a fore and hinder part, and connected with the acoustic
organs by a chain of ossicles. The presence or absence of supple¬
mentary branchiae varies with the genera. Colitis and Acanthopsis,
having bony coverings to the swim-bladder, ally themselves to the
other Cyprinidce, as Clarias, Heterobranchus, Heteropneustes, and
ICHTHYOLOGY. 257
Classifica- Agcneiosus, which have a bony capsule to the swim-bladder, do to the
tion—Ma- Siluridce. This structure does not exist in all the Cyprinidce allied
lacopteri. to Cobitis; and in Schisturn there is a thick-skinned swim-bladder
v- t ^—y behind the enlargement of the vertebras. Both M. Agassiz and M.
Valenciennes restrict the genus Cobitis to the species which want
teeth.
This great family, as now restricted, comprises fresh-water fishes
only. It contains a great number of species in all parts of the
world, and no one has as yet made a satisfactory arrangement of
them, and characterized the groups so that they can be easily dis¬
tinguished. We follow M. Valenciennes in the primary grouping.
Genus I. Cyprinus, Lacep. A long dorsal, with three stiff pun¬
gent rays, the third and longest one being often denticulated on its
hinder edge, resembling the rays of some Siluroids; anal with two
strong solid rays. The under pharyngeal teeth are five, one being
very large, with curved, seemingly concentric edges, and three
somewhat wavy parallel enamelled ridges, separated into two by a
longitudinal furrow: farther back on each side of this principal
tooth there are two others, not half as big, having flat and worn
crowns; before the large mesial tooth there is another rounded one,
without eminences; and behind all, a fifth very small tooth. This
is the dentition of the Cyprinus carpio, or common Carp, but the
number of teeth varies with the species. Body thick, more or less
high, with flat sides, and thick scales. One group (Cyprinus) has
small barbels at the corners of the mouth; another wants them
(Cyprinopsis, Fitzing.) Twenty species in the Histoire des Poissons.
Genus II. Barbus, Flem. Body fusiform. Dorsal short, with
three small simple rays in front, and a fourth very strong one, like
that of Cyprinus, sometimes denticulated, in other species smooth;
two barbels in front of the maxillary joint, and two labial ones
from the corners of the mouth; four in all. Pharyngeal teeth coni¬
cal, elongated, and a little curved. Sixty-two species, subdivided
by the smooth or denticulated rays, and the proiectinfr or non-
elongated snout. *
Genus III. Labeobarbus, Rupp. Body elongated. Lips thick,
the inferior one having a single symphysial thick barbel, making
five barbels in all, including the pair of maxillary, and pair of
labial ones. A firm ray not denticulated in the dorsal, and a short
anal. Three species.
Genus IV. Schisothorax, Heck. Cyprinoids with a maxillary
and labial barbel on each side. Dorsal and anal short; three dorsal
osseous rays, the third one denticulated. Scales small; a cutaneous
fold on the posterior part of the belly, clothed with larger scales,
concealing the anus and greater part of the base of the anal, like a
slit sheath. Mouth various, giving rise to subdivisions founded on
its several kinds of form. Ten species.
Genus V. Racoma, M'Glell. Differs from Schisothorax in the
projecting maxillaries ; the premaxillaries form a moveable append¬
age to the mouth.
Genus VI. Oreinus, M‘Clell. Head fleshy; mouth vertical;
mandible shorter than the premaxillaries; snout muscular and
projecting. Dorsal preceded by a serrated ray. Scales small. In¬
testinal tube five or six times as long as the body, capacious.
Mountain fish.
Genus VII. Schisopyge, Heck. Separated from Schisothorax,
by the acute cartilaginous-edged mandible, and the bony ray of
the dorsal, standing either before or above the ventrals.
Genus VIII. Dangila, Valenc. Remarkable for the length of
the dorsal, without the anterior osseous ray, differing in the latter
character only from the dorsal of Cyprinus: another peculiar cha¬
racter is the conical papillae on the border of the upper lip, resem¬
bling small teeth; a labial and a maxillary barbel on each side.
Genus IX. Lobocheilos, Bleek. Between Labeo and Barbus.
Border of the mouth threefold; lips smooth, not fringed, the inferior
one forming a square fleshy lobe ; snout prominent, fleshy. Four
maxillary and labial barbels. Ho toothed dorsal or anal spine.
Labeo falcifer, Cuv. and Valenc., and three others.
Genus X. Crossocheilos, Bleek. Mouth inferior, with a three¬
fold border, the orifice a parallelogram ; lips crenated or fimbriated
with papillae ; snout fleshy, very prominent, with two barbels. No
toothed dorsal or anal spine. Labeo oblongus, Cuv. and Valenc.
Genus XI. Devario, Heck. Pharyngeal teeth knife-edged;
mouth subinferior ; lips round. Two barbels at the corners of the
mouth, or none. Dorsal and anal fins elongated, each with a
smooth osseous ray having a flexible tip. Intestine between four
and five times the length of the body. Seven species.
Genus XII. Nuria, Valenc. Cyprinoids with the dorsal far
back like that of a Pike, short and without spines. No maxillary
barbels, but a pair of labial barbels at each corner of the mouth,
keeping up the number four. Thin lips. Two species.
Genus XIII. Rohita, Valenc. Four barbels round the mouth;
thick fleshy lips, with their edges fringed more or less. A thick
fold of skin inclosing the lips, forming above a sort of muzzle; and
below a veil covering the closed mouth. Premaxillaries small,
VOL. XII.
and attached to beneath the point of the nasal, so that the mouth is
protracted like a cupping-glass. When the lips are retracted they
retire within the second lip or fold of skin. Intestinal canal very
long. Herbivorous. Twenty-three species.
Genus XIV. Capoeta, Valenc. Intermediate between Barbus
and Gobio, and containing species with a barbel at each angle of
the mouth, or two in all; some with a denticulated ray in the dor¬
sal; others with a solid ray, not denticulated; and a third group
again with the ray soft.
Genus XV. Cirrhinus, Cuv. Maxillary barbels, two in all;
no labial ones. A moderate-sized dorsal without spines, all the
rays being flexible. Lips thin; snout not elongated beyond the
mouth.
Genus XVI. Gobio, Cuv. Dorsal and anal short, without spines.
Barbels labial, i.e., at the corners of the mouth. Pharyngeal teeth
conical, slightly curved at the tip, and in two rows.
Genus XVII. Tinca, Cuv. Thick and broad body, covered with
small scales, and a labial barbel at each side of the mouth. Pha¬
ryngeal teeth clubbed.
Genus XVIII. Labeo, Cuv. Snout thick and fleshy, projecting
over the mouth, which is furnished with triple lips, one emanating
from the preorbitar and extending over the two others, a second
from the maxillary, and a third the true lip below, detached so as
to make a mandibular velum; a small barbel at the corner of the
maxillary. Anterior dorsal rays slender and simple, the others
branched and very flexible. The Labeos, therefore, are Cyprinoids,
with the dorsal of Gobio or Tinca, but with lips approaching those
of Rohita, and differing merely in their disposition. These fish
belong entirely to the old world.
Heckel makes a group of the Cyprinoids which have these double
or triple rows of lips, which he names Pennochitce; and includes in
it the genera Labeo, Rohita, and three characterized by himself,
Pylognathus, Discognathus, and Cyrene.
The following genera want barbels.
Genus XIX. Leuciscus, Valenc. The length of the anal has
been given as a distinctive character of Abramis, and its short¬
ness of Leuciscus; but M. Valenciennes, finding that there was an
imperceptible gradation in the length of this fin among the species,
ranges them all under Leuciscus, and considers generally as mere
specific characters those derived from the form of the pharyngeal
teeth by which Agassiz, Bonaparte, and Heckel have sought to de¬
fine the numerous groups they have formed. Leuciscus is to be
known, then, chiefly by negative characters. Short dorsal without
spines ; anal short or long, also without spines, and no particular
conformation of the lips. In the Histoire des Poissons one hundred
and forty species are described in eleven groups.
The following genera have been characterized by the authors
whose names are given, and Dr M'Clelland, in his account of the
Indian Cyprinid®, has named and described numerous groups, but
a revision of the entire family is needed before the proper places
of these proposed genera can be found. The Prince of Mu-
signano's Catalogo Metodico dei Cyprinidi d’Europa may be con¬
sulted with advantage by those who wish to master the arrange¬
ment of the Cyprinoids.
Genus XX. Gila, Baird and Girard. Body fusiform, com¬
pressed, with the back more or less arched in the older fish. Head
depressed, uncommonly small, its upper profile concave; snout
elongated; no barbels. Pharyngeal teeth oblique, compressed in
two rows, hooked at the point. Four gills.
Genus XXL Chondrostoma, Agass. A horny cartilaginous
plate covering the lower lip, easily detached in dead fish, but leav¬
ing the soft keel on which it was implanted. Some have labial
barbels, and others maxillary barbels, and there is much variety in
the pharyngeal dentition. Ten species.
Genus XXII. Catla, Agass. Maxillaries dilated, and forming
thin laminae, which advance over the equally thin premaxillaries,
forming a snout shorter than the mandible, whose limbs are like¬
wise so dilated as to encase one another, and give a prominent,
rounded form to the throat; when depressed the lower jaw looks
like the bowl of a large spoon. The lower lips are thick and
fleshy, but without barbels; and the branchial rakers are long and
hair-like, and very flexible, resembling the same organs of a Clu-
peoid rather than of a Cyprinoid. One species.
Genus XXIII. Aspidoparia, Heck. Mouth small; no barbels.
Suborbitar scale-bones covering the cheek. Short base of the
dorsal fin standing over the interval between the ventrals and
longer anal; ventrals with seven divided rays; lateral line much
decurved. (
Genus XXIV. Catastomus, Forster, Lesu. Resembling the
European Barbel in general form, but having neither maxillary noi
labial barbels,and no bony or denticulated rays in the dorsal. Mouth
under the snout, without teeth; lips large, lobed, and variously
2 K /
Classifica¬
tion—Ma-
lacopteri.
258
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- farrowed and papillated according to the species. The pharyngeal
^lassmcd, r r    armPfl with a ncctinated row
tion—Ma>
lacopteri.
lUllAiVYCUL U.11VX 1/iXXt*ovvv».   o A » 1
bones large and semicircular, are armed with a pectinated row
of compressed teeth, whose crowns are wider than their bases ;
and whose size decreases gradually from below upwards. Gill-covers
large. Scales varying in size with the species. The intestine is
long, and the air-bladder is divided into two in some, into three or
even four parts in others, the foremost division having an exterior,
thick, fibrous outer coat, which the others want. Twenty-two
^Gfn'tts XXV. Rhinichthys, Agass. Distinguished from other
Catastomi by the conical elongation of the snout.
Genus XXVI. Sclerognathus, Valenc. Mouth not quite ter¬
minal, but the snout advances less beyond it than in the Catastomi.
The premaxillaries are suspended, as in that genus, under the car¬
tilaginous extremity of the nasal, have long pedicels, and very short
transverse processes, the rest of the orifice being formed by a fibrous
ligament within a thin upper lip. The maxillary is a broad solid
bone, under which the lip retires, and it is itself hidden by the
broad preorbitar. Lower lip narrow and thin. The structure of
the mouth is that of Catastomus, without the fleshy development of
the lips. Mucous pores as in the Catastomi, and also a pectinated row
of pharyngeal teeth, but not so large. Air-bladder divided into
two, with two small lobules behind the second. Two species.
Genus XXVII. Exoglossum, Rafin. Body elongated, little
compressed. Small scales. Anus far back. Head without scales,
flattened beneath; mouth terminal; mandible short, divided into
three or five lobes, and resembling a tongue. Ventrals nine-rayed,
opposite to the dorsal. Pharyngeal teeth hooked, without denticu-
lations, with a small flat crown, and in two rows. No pores on the
head. Species five.
Genus XXVIII. Cobitis, Artedi. Mouth small, edentate, sur¬
rounded by from four to eight barbels ; gill-opening a vertical slit,
high up j branchiostegals three. Preorbitar hidden entirely by the
skin, or in some prolonged into a spine, seldom followed by the
other suborbitars, which are absent in most Cobites. No solid dorsal
ray ; no superior pharyngeals. Scaly fishes like all the Cyprinidm.
M. Agassiz separates the species with spinous preorbitars under
the name of Acanthopsis, and M’Clelland calls the group which have
forked caudals Schistura; but M. Valenciennes does not consider
these divisions as natural or established on important peculiarities
of structure. Forty-six species are described in the Histoire des
Poissons, in four groups.
Genus XXIX. Balitora, Gray. (Platycara, M{Clell.; Ho-
maloptera, Kuhl et Van Hasselt.) Allied to Cobitis by the edentate
mouth, furnished with small barbels, but differing in their flatly de¬
pressed head, and in the size of the pectorals and ventrals, the bones
which sustain these fins forming large plates, from which the fins
spread horizontally like those of Callionymus. Body scaly above,
naked on the ventral aspect. A short, simple, intestinal canal, with
a globular stomach ; no air-bladder. Seven species.
SILUROIDS.
This very large family brings up the rear of the Mala-
copterygians which have an air-tube to their swim-bladder
(Physostomi, Mull.), and in fact some of the rays of their
fins are firmer, stouter, and nearly as hard as the spinous
rays of the Acanthopteri. It is indeed only when the joints
of Malacopterygian rays have much length that they have
great flexibility; and there are gradations of abbreviation
and consolidation until the joints become nearly or wholly
obsolete, and the rays as pungent as the first rays of the
pectorals and dorsal of the Siluroids, which are powerful
bony weapons, often strongly toothed or serrated. Yet
these strong bones (which, in the fossil state, are named
Ichthyodorulites) frequently betray their compound nature
by their tips being soft, flexible, and jointed.
There are many peculiarities in the skeleton of the Silu¬
roids, arising from the absence of some bones, and the greater
development of others. The cavity of the cranium is not
open laterally, as in most osseous fishes, but is closed, as in
the CyprinidcE, by the orbitosphenoids and the ethmoid that
unite with the prefrontals, carrying forward the cranial cavity
to the nasal bone without leaving a membranous septum
between the orbits. The petrosal is often wanting in fishes
of this family, and some do not possess even the parietal.
But the supraoceipital is greatly developed, and in many, the
suprascapula is united by suture to the sides of the cra¬
nium. In numerous members of the family the skull is
enlarged, posteriorlv, to form a kind of helmet which spreads Classifica-
over the nape; the lateral angles of this production are tion—Ma-
formed by the suprascapula;, augmented and fixed by ^acopterL
suture, and the median part is the extension of the supra- v-®-
oecipital, which stretches out to touch or even articulate
with the osseous expansions of the anterior interneurals.
The supraoccipital, which is generally very large, articu¬
lates anteriorly with the frontal, and passing backwards be¬
tween the postfrontals, the parietals, the mastoids, and the
suprascapulse, goes past them all on the nape. 1 he mastoids
interpose between the postfrontals and the parietals, so as
to come in contact with the supraoccipital, and the parie¬
tals, but little developed, are pressed to the back part of
the cranium, and in some instances wholly disappear.
The suprascapula most frequently united to the mastoid
by an immoveable suture, winch includes the parietal when
that bone is present, and extends even to the supraocci¬
pital ; it gives out besides two processes, one of them resting
on the exoccipital and basioecipital, or wredging itself be¬
tween them, and the other going to the first vertebra;
sometimes a plate from the exoccipital supports that same
vertebra. This vertebra, though it presents a pretty con¬
tinuous centrum beneath, is in reality composed of three or
four coalescent vertebrae, as we ascertain by its diapophyses
by the circular elevations of the neural canal and by the
holes for the exit of the pairs of spinal nerves. There is
great variety in the development of the various processes
of the bones we have mentioned, and there is no less in the
magnitude and connexions of the first three interneurals.
In general, in the species which have a strong dorsal
spine, the second and third interneurals unite to form a
single plate, named in the Histoire des Poissons the
“ buckler,” and which is usually more or less crescentic in
shape ; the great spine is articulated to the third interneural,
and there is only the vestige of a spine on the second inter¬
neural in form of a small oval bone, forked below, whose
function is to act as a bolt or fulcrum to the great spine
when the fish wishes to use it as an offensive weapon. The
great spine itself is joined by a ring to a second spine which
belongs to the third interneural. This articulation by ring
exists in Lophius and a few other fishes not of this family.
The first interneural does not carry a ray, and it varies
much in the species whose helmet or casque is continuous
with the buckler, as in many of the Bagri and Pimelodes.
In these cases the supraoccipital, extending backwards,
conceals the first interneural, passing over it to touch with
its point the buckler formed by the second and third inter¬
neurals. In other instances, as in Synodontis and Auchen-
ipterus, the supraoccipital and second interneural, forking
and expanding, inclose and join themselvest o the fiist
interneural, but leave a larger or smaller space in the
middle of the nuchal armour which they contribute to form.
When the point of the supraoccipital does not reach quite
to the second interneural, the first interneural remains free
from connection, and occasionally shows us a narrow plate,
interposed between the other two ; in such a case the helmet
is not continuous with the buckler. 1 he neural spines of the
coalescent centra which form the apparently single first ver¬
tebra, concur also in sustaining the nuchal plate-armour and
the first great dorsal spine ; they carry the interneurals, are
joined to them by suture, and one of them is often inclined
towards the occiput to assist in sustaining the head ; in fact,
this part of the skeleton is constructed to give firm mutual
support. _ .
The scapular chain of the Siluroids is also formed to
give the resistance to the strong weapon with which it is
armed. The suprascapula, as we have said above, is often
united by suture to the cranium, and it obtains support below
by one or two processes that are fixed on the basioccipitais
and exoccipitals, and upon the diapophysis of the first veite-
bra: no scapula is ever present; it is between the two arms
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- 0f the suprascapula that the top of the coracoid is fixed,
tion—Ma- jn most osseous fishes the coracoid completes the lower key
lacopten. tjie scapUiar arch in joining its fellow by suture or syn-
chondrosis without the intervention of the radius ; but in
the Siluroids the radius descends to take part in this joint,
and sometimes even to occupy the half of the suture,
which is not unfrequently constructed of very deep inter¬
locking serratures. The solidity of this base of the pectoral
spine is further augmented by the intimate union of the
radius and ulna, which often extends to junction by suture,
or even to coalescence; and these bones, moreover, give
off two bony arches,—the first, a slender one arising from
the salient edge of the radius near the pectoral fin, and
going to the interior face of the ulna that is applied to the
interior surface of the ascending branch of the coracoid ;
this process is analogous to one in the Cyprinidce where it
is a separate bone: the second and broader supplementary
arch does not exist in the Cyprinidce, and is often perfora¬
ted by a large hole ; it also emanates from the same salient
edge of the radius, but proceeds in an opposite direction
to the inferior edge of the coracoid, a little before the in¬
sertion of the pectoral spine. These two arches give at¬
tachments to the muscles that move this spine; in the
Synodontes and many Bagri, the upper arch remains in a
cartilaginous or ligamentous condition ; while in Malap-
terurus it is the lower arch that does not ossify, but both
are fully formed in the Siluri and many other Siluroids
more closely allied to that typical genus. The epicora-
coid is also wanting in the Siluroids (Nos. 49, 50, figs. 10
and 15.) The pterygoid and entopterygoid (25, 24, id.),
are reduced to a single bone, and so are the epitympanic
and pretympanic : the mesotympanic (31) is wholly wanting,
and the palatine is merely a slender cylindrical bone. The
suboperculum is likewise constantly absent in all the Silu¬
roids. This long anatomical detail has been extracted from
the Histoire des Poissons, because without it descriptions
of this peculiar and interesting family could not have been
understood.
The Siluroids have no true scales, though some of them
(Doras) have the lateral line armed with bony plates, and in
others {Callichthys) these biserial plates are developed so as
to incase the entire body. There are also varieties of external
structure similar to those which occur in other large families
of fishes, such as the different positions of the fins, and even
the entire absence of certain of these members in some
groups. Many of the Siluroids are fresh-water fishes which
attain a great size, and they are what are called ground
fishes, and remain habitually at the bottom of the pieces
of water that they inhabit. In the genus Silurus, as well
as in Pimelodus, the choroid vasoganglia and pseudo¬
branchiae are both absent. Silurus glanis, L., is the largest
of European fresh-water fishes, and the only one of this
extensive genus inhabiting the Continent. It is smooth,
greenish black, spotted with black above, and yellowish-
white beneath. The head is large, with six barbels. It
sometimes attains the length of 12 or 15 feet, and the
weight of 300 or 400 lbs. As this creature is somewhat
unwieldy in its motions, it does not pursue its prey, which
consists of small fishes, but lies concealed among the mud,
and seizes such unwary stragglers as happen to come within
reach. The fishermen of the Spree say that they always
take the largest fish of this kind in a thunder-storm. In¬
sects are the best bait for the younger ones. It has occa¬
sionally been observed in the sea, but always near the
mouths of rivers. Gronovius and Temminck both authen¬
ticate its occasional capture in the salt water. The flesh is
fat and sweet, and its lard has been employed in some places
as a substitute for that of the hog. Sir Robert Sibbald, at
the conclusion of his list of river fishes, adds Silurus sire
Glanis ; from which it has been inferred that this gigantic
species may, at one period, have inhabited the Scottish
259
rivers; but this fish is a stranger to the waters of France, Classifica-
Spain, and Italy, as well as to England, which furnishes a tion—Ma-
strong argument against the conclusion that has been drawn lacoPten-
from the sentence in Sibbald, unsupported as it is by any
reference to accounts of its capture in Scotland. In fact,
it is in the western European rivers that it is common, in
the Elbe to the north, and the Danube on the south, and
in the rivers still further west; and it is one of the fishes
brought to the market at Constantinople. It occurs in the
Scandinavian peninsula but rarely. In the rivers that fall
into the Caspian it is very common, but it is a stranger to
all the Siberian rivers which flow towards the Arctic Ocean.
It is undoubtedly the Glanis of Aristotle.
The Synodonts of all the Siluroids that possess an adi¬
pose fin are the most remarkable for the armature of the
head and nape, as they are also for their peculiar dentition.
They are either destitute of parietals, or these bones at an
early period of the life of the fish coalesce with the supra-
scapulae. The suprascapulae extend to the sides of the
supraoccipital, but this latter bone goes still further back¬
wards to join the second interneural plate; embracing,
in conjunction with it, the plate of the first interneural, as
we have mentioned above. The process of the suprasca¬
pula which rests on the basioccipital descends lower, and
expands into a thin plate, to which the anterior lobe of the
air-bladder is attached. The ossicles of Weber are pre¬
sent in their usual form ; but the first parapophysis of the
compound or coalescent anterior vertebral centra reaches
forward between the suprascapula and exoccipital, and
then sends a thin plate downwards into the air-bladder, in
which it forms a diaphragm. The coracoids and ulno-
radial bones, united below by suture, expand upwards in
form of a vertical plate, which constitutes a bony diaphragm,
dividing the branchial from the abdominal cavity, leaving
a single opening for the passage of the oesophagus. Some
species of Synodontis have been supposed to be the Nile
fishes mentioned by Strabo, under the name of ypipo<s {por¬
ous), which, according to Aristotle, are the only marine fish
that are not deterred by dread of the crocodile from as¬
cending the Nile. This Saurian does not dare to attack
it on account of its strong spines. The Mugils also as¬
cend the river, but it is under the protection of the Syno¬
donts. The species of which Strabo speaks has not yet
been clearly made out, and may possibly be a Siluroid of
a different group.
The Doras of South America have excited attention
by their habit of travelling during the dry season from
a piece of water about to dry up, in quest of a pond of
greater capacity. These journeys are Occasionally of such
a length, that the fish spends whole nights on the way;
and the bands of scaly travellers are sometimes so large,
that the Indians who happen to meet them fill many bas¬
kets of the prey thus placed in their hands. The In¬
dians suppose that the fish carry a supply of water with
them, but they have no special organs like the Anabas, and
can only do so by closing the gill-openings, or by retain¬
ing a little water between the plates of their body, as Mr
Hancock supposes. This gentleman adds, that both the
Doras and Callichthys make regular nests, in which they
cover up their eggs with care, and defend them, male and
female uniting in this parental duty until the eggs are
hatched. The nest is constructed at the beginning of the
rainy season of leaves, and is sometimes placed in a hole
scooped out in the beach. The Callichthys differ in many
parts of their skeleton from other Siluroids, and their cra¬
nium does not owe its breadth to the expansion of the supra-
temporals, but to the development of the three frontals, and
the coalescence of a piece of the mastoid and suprascapula.
These fish, like the Doras, travel in search of water, and
sometimes bury themselves in the mud of wet meadows,
where they are often captured by the natives, who dig them
260 I C H T H Y
Classifica- out. Tiie Callichthys are monogamous, both male and
tion- Ma- fema]e remaining by the side of the nest, and watching it
lacopten. carefu]jy> ^ specimen of the nest, spawn, and fish, exists
in the College of Surgeons of London.
Arges, Brontes, and Astroblepus, are three forms of
Siluroids of exceeding interest. They are some of the
small fishes which issue from tire bowels of the active vol¬
canoes of South America, and are carried into the plains
beneath by the torrents of muddy water, which these moun¬
tains vomit forth. They issue from Cotopaxi, Tungurahua,
Sangay, Imbaburu, and Cargueirazo, a phenomenon first
properly communicated to the scientific world by the illus¬
trious Humboldt. They are expelled from craters or from
lateral openings, always 16,000 or 17,000 feet above the sea,
and the plains themselves into which these clayey streams
descend, lie at least at half that height. Humboldt ascer¬
tained, by consulting the records of the neighbouring towns,
that in 1691 Imbaburu threw out myriads of these fish in
the neighbourhood of the city of Ibarra, and has continued
to do so down to a late period. Cotopaxi also covered the
estate of the Marchese di Salvategre with so large a quan¬
tity of these subterranean Siluroids, that the odour of their
decaying bodies spread far and wide, so much so indeed, that
the pestilential fevers which then prevailed were attributed
to these putrid exhalations. In the eruption of 1698, when
the peak of Cargueirazo fell in, vast quantities of these fish
were brought down by the muddy and smoking streams
which the mountain poured forth. M. Humboldt has pro¬
posed many questions bearing on these facts, without of¬
fering a solution. What streams of water, or what lakes
exist in the cavernous recesses of these mountains ? How
does it happen that water submitted to so high a tempera¬
ture retains air enough to support the life of such multi¬
tudes of fishes ? How do animals with flesh so soft escape
being cooked as they pass far, and for a long time, through
the smoke which envelopes the streams of mud that issue
during the eruption ? These fish are called in the country
prenadillas, a name not confined to a single species. The
one that Humboldt specially described is the Arges cyclo-
pum, originally named by him Pimelodus cyclopum.
In Clarias the nape is not armed, and the development
of the bones of the head is lateral; the suborbitars, which,
in the rest of the family, are mere slender tubes, in this
genus give extension to the helmet, and the supratempo-
rals which, in most fishes are very small, and in the greater
number of Siluroids are imperceptible, here become enor¬
mously large, and coalesce on the sides of the cranium,
with the prefrontal, frontal, postfrontal, and mastoid. An
apparatus for holding water in the vicinity of the branchiae
exists in this genus, and its near allies analogous to that of
the Anabasidce. The Clarias anguillans of Hasselquist
has been by some writers on Egypt considered to be the
Alabes of Strabo, cited by Archestratus, as one of the sa¬
cred fishes of the Nile. It is now known on the banks of
that river by the name of Harmouth, or, as Sir Gardner
Wilkinson writes the word, Karmoot. It was either wor¬
shipped, the latter author says, in the Theba'id, or was con¬
nected with one of the genii of the Egyptian Pantheon,
who appears under a human form, with the head of this
Fig. 85.
Plotosus microceps.
fish in the sculptures of the Diospolite tombs. In Lower
0 L 0 G Y.
Egypt the Karmoot was caught for the table; but there is Classifica-
no evidence of its having been eaten in the Theba'.d, which tion—Ma-
may be an argument in favour of its sacred character. lacopteri.
Plotosus is a genus of the Siluroid family which frequents
the seas of southern Asia and the eastern coasts of Africa,
and from thence southwards to Australia, where there are
several species. One of these, PL microceps, is represented
by the annexed woodcut, and the lips by figure 50.
Aspredo differs greatly from the rest of the Siluroids,
and from other osseous fishes, in the rudimentary and im¬
moveable condition of its gill-flaps, the three pieces that
generally perform the office of a valve to the gill-openings
being mere vestiges confluent with the preoperculum in
such a way, that the opening and closing of the aperture
does not depend on the tympanico-opercular apparatus.
The mouth likewise is peculiar, the premaxillaries being
articulated longitudinally, so that the orifice is a slit in the
axis of the fish, with teeth in its posterior part only. Some
curious sucker-like appendages are formed on the females at
certain times by the expansion of pores and development
of filaments on their edges. These are not found in the
males. Bloch named a species Cotylephorus which had
these organs, and McClelland has characterized a genus
chiefly by their existence. Their presence, however, ap¬
pears to be temporal, and to extend to the females of all
the species.
Malapterurus electricus, Lacep. The electric powers
of this fish were noticed by Adanson in 1756, but in Pur-
chas’ Pilgrims, there is a much earlier account of it ex¬
tracted from the narrative of Baretus and Oviedo, dated
1554. It is there said, that there exists in the Nile a fish
(called by Purchas a torpedo), which, if held in the hands,
causes on the slightest movement a severe pain in all the
arteries, nerves, and joints of the body. In the same work
Richard Jobson is reported to have perceived in the River
Gambia a fish like an English Bream, but thicker, which,
on one of the sailors taking hold of, he instantly cried out
that he had lost the use of his hands and arms. Another
sailor, on touching the fish with his foot, felt his legs be¬
numbed. This was in 1620. As the iffa/flpterwms abounds
in the Nile and in Senegal, and the torpedo has no resem¬
blance to a Bream, the former was doubtless the fish to
which Purchas alluded, notwithstanding his use of the name
Torpedo. Rudolphi1 has given a detailed description, with
figures of the electric organs of this fish. In the great
work on Egypt by Geoffroy (PI. XII., 2), there is the figure
of a Malapterurus opened to show the viscera, but by a
singular inaccuracy the fish is represented as scaly; now
there are no scales whatever on this fish, and no fish known
to possess electric powers has either scales or spines. 1 he
Torpedo, the Gymnotus, and the Malapterurus, have all
naked skins. The Tetrodon electricus is also destitute of
spines on the skin, though all its congeners have skins as
bristly as those of a hedgehog.
M. Valenciennes, examining the electric organs of the Ma¬
lapterurus with a full knowledge of what had been previously
observed by Geoffrey and Rudolphi, describes it as being
composed of a thick layer of spongy cellular tissue, lying im¬
mediately under the skin, and framed of thin interlacing leaf¬
lets, filled with a gelatinous fluid, and lined on its internal
face by a silvery aponeurosis to which it adheres strongly.
This aponeurosis extends from the forehead and the gill-
openings to the posterior end of the anal, and is divided into
lateral halves by a membranous raphe that appears on the
dorsal and ventral aspects. Under this aponeurosis run the
great vascular and nervous trunks, whose branches pass
through it, to be expended on the cellular tissue. 1 hen be¬
neath this aponeurosis there is a peculiar membrane which
forms the subject of Rudolphi’s Memoir. It consists of at
1 Usher den Zitter-wels, Abh. Berl. Acad. vii.
I C H T H Y
Classifica- least six layers, readily separable the one from the other,
tion—Ma- as well as from the subjacent muscles, to which it is attached
lacopteri. mere]y by a loose and scanty cellular tissue. These apo-
neurotic layers extend to the caudal. They are thin, dense
and can be stretched under the finger; their external sur¬
faces become flocculent when they imbibe water. These
flocculi resemble moist cotton, and when examined with a
high microscopic power, present a felt-like interlacement of
extremely minute fibrils. The tunics receive from their
interior sides filaments of the same nerve (joar vagurn, Ru¬
dolph!) which runs under the aponeurosis. There are other
filaments also of extreme tenuity, which penetrate the six
layers to expend themselves on its interior surface ; these
spring from the intercostals. In thus deriving the nervous
energy of its electric organs from the “ vagus ” and from the
“rami ventrales ” of the spinal nerves, as well as in possess¬
ing the cellular apparatus of the Torpedo and the laminated
membranous one of Gymnotus, the Malapterurus com¬
bines the characters of these two genera in its peculiar organ.
In the Edinburgh Philosophical Journal for ISdb^Mr
Murray gives a good figure of a species of this genus from
the Bight of Benin. I he Arabs, fully appreciating the na-
tuie of the benumbing powers of the Malapterurus, name
it Raad or Raasch (thunder). I he fish gives its discharge
when touched on the head, but is powerless when held by
the tail, and in fact the electric organ does not reach the
caudal fin. In giving a shock it moves the tail however,
as it must do when the muscles of the body are acting. A
fish of only seven inches in length can give a vigorous dis¬
charge. The fish is eaten, and it is one of the most esteemed
Siluroids as an article of diet.
M. Valenciennes considers Trichomycterus and Eremo-
philus as forming a link between the Siluroids and the Cy-
pi'inoids, through Cobitis; indeed, he was long in doubt as to
which family they actually belonged, and he has been led
to assign them a place among the Siluroids chiefly by the
absence of subopercula. I he want of an adipose fin weighed
less with him, as this member is wanting also in some Silu¬
roids; neither does he consider the absence of ventrals of
sufficient importance to exclude a genus from a family
group. Trichomycteri were found by Mr Pentland in the
rivulets which fall into that vast alpine sheet of water, Lake
Titicaca, which is frequented by the Cyprinoid Orestias,
also an apodal, and in the affluents of the Apurimac, one of
the sources of the Amazon. He discovered them also in
Rio de Guatanai, Rio de Pontezualo, and in Lake Compu-
cila, on the Andes, to the west of Cuzco, and at an elevation
of 14,000 feet. Eremophilus inhabits the waters of the
Valley of Bogota, 8500 feet above the sea level.
Family XVIII.—SILURID^E, Agass.
Skin naked, or covered with bony shields, without scales. Pre-
maxillaries forming the border of the upper jaw, the maxillaries
being reduced to mere vestiges, or elongated into barbels ; all have
barbels; suboperculum wanting. Epicoracoid wanting, or reduced
to a mere process of the coracoid. The postfrontal or temporal ap¬
paratus has two ossicles less than in most osseous fishes; the pseudo¬
branchiae are wanting. The swim-bladder is present in the majo¬
rity, and is connected by a chain of ossicles with the acoustic organ;
no pancreatic caeca; stomach cascal. In most the first pectoral ray
is very strong and serrated; most have an adipose fin upon the
back. Brauchiostegals nine to eighteen.
ANALYTICAL TABLE OF THE SILURIDjE (Dura.)
Dorsal, single (Siluroides, Dum.)
Dorsal, containing bony rays.
Dorsal extending along the whole back, Clarias 33.
Dorsal short, with
Its spinous ray close to the skull Trachelopterus 24.
Its spinous ray on the back.
Caudal forked Schilbes 2.
Caudal rounded Brontes 31.
0 L 0 G Y. 261
Dorsal sustained by branching rays.
Eyes lateral.
Eyes conspicuous f...SlLURUS
Eyes scarcely visible Cetopsis
Eyes on the dorsal aspect.
Tail slender, tapering, trenchant AspredO
Tail tapering little Saccobranchus
Dorsal on the tail, without bony rays Malapterurus
Dorsals two (Dipteronotes, Dum.)
Second dorsal with bony rays united to the caudal.
Head protected by a bony helmet Chaca
Head clothed with soft skin Plotosus
Second dorsal with one bony ray, not united to the caudal.
Head helmed ; body cuirassed ; barbels...Callichthys
Second dorsal destitute of bony rays ,• body naked.
Snout elongated.
Snout round; lateral line keeled, 1
spinous ! j Doras
Snout broad, flat, arched.
Eyes lateral, level with the nos- ) „
trils  J Platystoma
Eyes depressed below the nostrils...HypophthalmuS 25.
Snout short.
Head covered by a bony helmet.
Dorsal long ; body very long Heterobranchus 34.
Dorsal long; body abbreviated Synodontis 27.
Dorsal short; barbels   Bagrus 4.
Dorsal short; no barbels Silundia 9.
Head naked.
Caudal round at the end Pimelodus 16.
Caudal forked.
Barbels more than four Galeichthys 7.
Barbels two only Diplomystax.
Barbels none Ageneisosus 26.
Obs.—Dumeril includes Arius, No. 13 ; Phractocephalus, No.
5; and Pangasius, No. 8, under the genus Bagrus, No. 4 ; and he
omits from his table Astroblepas, No. 32, and 'Eremophilus, No. 43,
together with several other genera characterized by Valenciennes.
His genus Diplomystax is founded on Ariuspapillosus and A. raninus
of the Histoire des Poissons; and he has instituted a genus Conosto-
mus for the reception of the Pimelodi that have elongated conical
muzzles terminated by a small mouth ; and which have moreover
very small adipose fins. Macrones, another of his genera, embraces
several Bagri with long slender muzzles, and an adipose fiu longer
than the anal, together with a very long scaleless body.
Genus I. Silurus, Linn. Dorsal short on the fore part of the
back, without sensible spines; no adipose fin; a long anal. Raduli-
form or card-like teeth on the jaws, and a band of vomerine ones
behind the premaxillaries. Some have four barbels, and some
only two. Sixteen species.
Genus II. Schilbes. A strong, denticulated dorsal spine, ele¬
vated nape, broad depressed head, greatly compressed body, and
very distinct teeth. Barbels eight. Branchiostegals eight to ten.
Genus III. Cetopsis, Agass. Eyes almost imperceptible, being
nearly covered by skin. Six barbels. One dorsal composed of
soft rays. Convex, obtuse, truncated head ; moderate mouth ; single
row of teeth on the mandible and front of the vomer; a band some¬
times on the premaxillaries. Gill-opening a small hole; branchio¬
stegals ten.
Genus IV. Bagrus, Cuv. and Valenc. (Mystus, Artedi.) A
rayed dorsal with spine, and an adipose one; a pectoral spine. A
band of villiform or card-like teeth on the premaxillaries, behind
which, on the roof of the mouth, there is a second arched villiform !
band, or a single row of teeth, not separated in the middle. They are
divided into groups according to the number of their barbels, and
subdivided by the forms of the head, the lengths of the adipose or
anal, and variations in their dentition. Sixty-one species are de¬
scribed in the Histoire des Poissons. In Bagrus fllamentosus the air-
bladder is divided by a septum, in which there is no opening; and
in other species, the lateral compartments are subdivided by trans¬
verse septa.
Genus V. Phractocephalus, Agass. (Siraraci, Spix.) Incom¬
plete osseous rays, encased in the upper border of the adipose fin.
A flat head, with a deeply sculptured bony casque ; and an expanded
transversely oval shield before the dorsal, free, and altogether de¬
tached from the bones of the skull. Nine branchiostegals; six
barbels round the mouth.
Genus VI. Platystoma, Agass. (Sorubim, Spix.) Snout de¬
pressed. Branchiostegals numerous. A transverse band of teeth,
but more completely divided by the smooth median line of the
vomer into two plates on each side, than in the Bagri. Thirteen
species.
Genus VII. Galeichthys, Valenc. Head rounded, skinny,
Classifica¬
tion—Ma-
1. lacopteri.
37.
35.
40.
38.
36.
29.
28.
2G2
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica¬
tion—Ma-
lacopteri.
and without a conspicuous casque. First dorsal ray elongated into
a flat cutaneous filament. The palatine teeth a narrow band
divided by smooth lines into four patches. Branchiostegals six; four
or six barbels. Five species.
Genus VIII. Pangasius, Valenc. Four short barbels; no
prolongations of the fin rays. Ten hranchiostegals. Air-bladder
divided into four parts by three contractions. One species.
Genus IX. Silundia, Valenc. A small smooth head, like that
of Schilbes. Very small adipose fin; long anal. Only two small
(maxillary) barbels ; teeth of the jaws hooked, and longer than in
other Siluridce; a transverse hand in front of the roof of the mouth,
as in Bagrus. Twelve hranchiostegals. Two species.
Genus X. Sciades, Miill. and Trosch. A cross hand of palatine
teeth, and behind them two clusters.
Genus XI. Ariodes, Mull and Trosch. Palatine teeth forming
two separate patches, and sometimes farther hack a single tuft
only.
Genus XII. Eutropius, Miill. and Trosch. One confluent hand
of teeth on the vomer and palatines. Head small; nape high: the
head and adjoining part of the body compressed near the dorsal
aspect. Tail long and high, strongly compressed. Anal long; adi¬
pose fin very small.
Genus XIII. Arius, Valenc. Teeth on the roof of the mouth
disposed in two widely-separated plates, supported fcr the most
part by the palatines only, but in some species encroaching on the
angles of the vomer. Branchiostegals five to eight, rarely ten to
twelve. The teeth may he villiform or pavement-like, the passage
to the pavement-like teeth being gradual; some species have the
ordinary nuchal armour of a triangular (interparietal, Cuv.) supra-
occipital plate, with the apex truncated, and a small crescentic
interspinal plate; others have a very large separate supraoccipital
disk, and the barbels vary in number. On combinations of these
diversities of structure several groups are established in the Histoire
des Poissons, in which fifty-one species are described. Air-bladder
in some divided lengthwise into two separate sacs.
Genus XIV. Osteogeneiosus, Bleek. A rayed and an adipose
dorsal fin. Conical, acute, curved, crowded teeth on the premax-
illaries, and mandibles in many rows; palatine teeth in two oblong
arched plates in the fore part; the mesial line of the roof of the
mouth smooth; eyes far hack. Two premaxillary barbels, bony
and rigid. Branchiostegals five. Head cuirassed; gill-openings
extremely narrow. Indian Archipelago.
Genus XV. Batrachocephalus, Bleek. Dorsal fins two, the
hinder one adipose. Thick, cylindrical, premaxillary and mandibu¬
lar teeth in many rows; vomer and mesial line of the roof of the
mouth smooth; a few crowded cylindrical teeth on the anterior
angles of the palatine bones; eyes above. Head cuirassed; no
barbels. Five branchiostegals. Indian Archipelago.
Genus XVI. Pimelodus, Lacep. Roof of the mouth smooth,
edentate. Barbels six or eight. Some species want the casque;
others possess it; it is sometimes continuous with the buckler of the
first osseous ray of the dorsal; sometimes distinct and not continu¬
ous. Forty-three species are described in the Histoire des Poissons.
The following two genera have been published since the date of
that work :—-
Genus XVII. Rita, Bleek. Dorsals two, the posterior one
adipose. Conical teeth in the upper jaw pluriserial; mandibular
teeth conical in the anterior rows, granular in the posterior ones;
vomerino-palatine teeth granular, disposed in two oblong patches in
the fore part of the palate. Branchiostegals eight or ten ; barbels
six, fleshy, belonging to the nose, premaxillaries, and mandible.
Ventrals eight-rayed. (Arius rita, Cuv. and Valenc.)
Genus XVIII. Bag arius, Bleek. Dorsals two, the posterior
one adipose. Barbels eight, on the jaws bony, rigid ; upper jaw
teeth pluriserial, acute, placed in a curved quadripartite band;
mandibular teeth biserial, with an interior series of canines at the
symphysis only ; no teeth on the vomer, palatines, or entoptery-
goids. Branchiostegals twelve. Rays of the ventrals six. No air-
bladder.
Genus XIX. Euanemus, Miill. and Trosch. Narrow gill-
openings. Body laterally compressed. Cranium covered with skin.
Card-like teeth in one band on the upper and under jaw; none
on the vomer or palatines. First ray of the dorsal and pectoral
fins spinous; dorsal fin wholly anterior and small; a very small
adipose fin ; rays of the ventrals much more numerous than in other
Siluridce. Eyes covered with skin. Barbels six. One species H.
columbetes.
Genus XX. Ketengus, Bleek. Dorsal fins two, posterior one
adipose. Cuneiform uniserial teeth on the premaxillaries and
mandible; vomer and palatines smooth. Head cuirassed ; eyes
superior. Five branchiostegals; four fleshy barbels. Strait of
Madura.
Genus XXI. Calophysus, Miill. and Trosch. No palatine teeth;
a row of stronger teeth on the upper jaw and mandible, behind
which, on the one or the other, a row of smaller teeth. The end of Classifica-
the first dorsal and pectoral ray simply jointed, not denticulated ; tion—Ma-
a long adipose fin. Six barbels; narrow gill-opening; seven lacoptkrh
branchiostegals. A very small swim-bladder, which is bordered
behind with an elegant fringe of caecal processes. Two species.
Genus XXII. Erethistes, Mull, and Trosch. Narrow gill-
openings. Head big, broad, pointed anteriorly, rough. Besides the
occipital process there is always another like it. The scapular girdle
has a long bony process above the pectoral, and another beneath it;
mouth small. Card-like teeth in the upper and under jaw ; none
on the palatines. A moveable spine forming the first ray of the
dorsal and pectoral fins ; an adipose fin ; anal small.
Genus XXIII. Auchenipterus, Valenc. Siluroid with an
adipose fin. Head small; teeth almost imperceptible. Branchi¬
ostegals five ; no teeth on the roof of the mouth. Dorsal very far
forward, or on the nape. Casque united by suture with the dilated
bucklers of the first and second interspinals covering the nape to
the dorsal, as in Doras and Synodontis. Seven species.
Genus XXIV. Trachelyopterus, Valenc. Ab adipose fin,
yet allied to Schilbes and Pimelodus. Barbels six. Villiform teeth
on the jaws, none on the roof of the mouth. A solid, osseous casque,
united, as in Auchenipterus, and coming near the dorsal, owing to the
shortness of the supraoccipital plate, and the completely obsolete
chevron. Pectorals attached under the throat. One species.
Genus XXV. Hypophthalmus, Valenc. An adipose fin. No
teeth; eyes near the ventral aspect. Fourteen branchiostegals.
Dorsal fin small, well back, with a bony ray ; a strong ray in the
pectoral also; ventrals small; anal long. Six barbels. Three species.
Genus XXVI. Ageneiosus, Lacep. Maxillary barbels only,
and very short; in one species denticulated and resembling horns.
Eyes depressed as in Hypophthalmus. Branchiostegals eleven. A
bony ray in the dorsal and pectoral; a moderately long anal.
Three species.
Genus XXVII. Synodontis, Geoffroy St Hilaire. Remarkable
among the Siluroids having an adipose fin, for the arming of the
head, which shows much affinity with that of Auchenipterus and
Doras. Supraoccipital plate large, united by a long transverse
suture with the greatly dilated interneural buckler, which is further
prolonged along the base of the dorsal by its junction with three
interneural plates; very wide strong pointed coracoids attached to
the suprascapulars which form the lateral angles of the helmet.
Enormous strongly-toothed pectoral spines; a high pointed and
trenchant dorsal spine. Snout short, terminated by the nasal which
supports very small premaxillaries covered with finely villiform
teeth. Mandible composed of two short slender limbs, and carrying
in front a bundle of teeth that, individually, are very thin lancets,
each supported on a stalk as fine as a hair, and terminated by a
small recurved and gold-coloured hook. This dentition resembles
that of Salarias.
Genus XXVIII. Doras, Lacep. Pimelodi with the lateral line
cuirassed by keeled bony plates, each ending in a spine. Head
armed as in Auchenipterus, and the coracoid similarly formed. Ihe
very thick dorsal and pectoral spines are strongly toothed. In some
the snout is depressed, and the mouth at its extremity is furnished
with two broad villiform bands of teeth on the jaws; in others, the
mouth is a round hole under a conical snout, and having small
groups of mandibular teeth only. Ten species.
Genus XXIX. Callichthys, Linn., Gronov. Pimelodt cuirassed
on the lateral line like the Doras, and with an adipose fin; but the
lateral shields are narrow, embrace the whole height of the fish,
and form two rows, somewhat tiled and crossing in the middle. Head
covered with a helmef; mouth small, almost toothless; twobaibels
at each corner of the mouth. Three branchiostegals. Dorsal and
pectoral spines often feeble. No air-bladder ; intestine frequently
doubled back ; stomach globular and small. Ten species.
Genus XXX. Arges, Valenc. Teeth bifid, and slightly curved
at the points, ranged in rows on the jaws and producing a sort of
harrow which no other Siluroid, nor any other fish, is known to
possess. Roof of the mouth smooth and edentate ; two maxillary
barbels, and papillae at the nostrils. First dorsal small, with
a weak ray in front; adipose fin long; ventrals well forward.
Four branchiostegals. Two species.
Genus XXXI. Brontes, Valenc. An Arges without the adi¬
pose fin. No casque. Eyes, two minute points on the top of the
head. Branchiostegals four. One species.
Genus XXXII. x\stroblepus, Humb. An apodal resembling
otherwise, externally, Brontes; having a depressed head; eyes above.
A single dorsal; no adipose fin. First rays ending in filaments.
Four branchiostegals. One species. <
Genus XXXIII. Clarias, Gronov. Helmet extending to the
temples and cheeks; the supraoccipital point more or less rounded,
in some semicircular. Nape exposed; no predorsa uc er.
Teeth on the jaws and arc of the vomer. Head depressed, obtuse.
Body long; caudal truncated. Anal long and low; dorsal without
ICHTHYOLOGY.
263
Classifica¬
tion—Ma-
lacopteri.
a spine running along the whole hack ; its posterior half sometimes
replaced by an adipose fin. Pectoral spine small. Branching ap¬
pendages for holding water attached above the branchiae; air-
bladder divided. Fourteen species.
Genus XXXIV. Heterobranchus, Geoff. Dorsal shorter than
in Clarias, the rest of the back being occupied by an adipose fin;
caudal rounded. Head broad and flat; supraoccipital process of
the helmet rounded. Short, fine, crowded villiform or bristle-like
teeth on the jaws and arc of the vomer; a complex suprabranchial
apparatus. Six barbels. Three species.
Genus XXXV. Saccobranchus, Valenc. Helmet like Clarias
Heterobranchus. Villiform teeth on the jaws, and two arched
dental plates on the vomer ; a complex suprabranchial apparatus.
Small dorsal far forward; long anal. Seven branchiostegals;
the branchial reservoir different in form from that of Clarias ov Hete¬
robranchus. Eight barbels. One species.
Genus XXXVI. Plotosus, Lacep. An elongated body, ending
in a compressed pointed tail. Xo hard helmet, the smooth rounded
depressed skull being covered with soft skin. Lips fleshy; strong
conical teeth on the jaws ; pavement-like teeth on the vomer ; eight
barbels. A short, higher, anterior dorsal, and a long, low, posterior
one, uniting with the long anal at the point of the tail, without a
distinct caudal. Small trenchant, toothed and pointed dorsal and
anal spines; a cauliflower-shaped tubercle in a funnel behind the
anus, of unknown use, existing in addition to the genital tubercle at
the external opening of the seminal deferent canal. Nine species.
Genus XXXVII. Aspredo, Linn. Differ from other fish in the
gill-covers being fixed and without motion, there being merely
vestiges of the three opercular pieces, soldered to the preoperculum.
Mouth peculiar, the premaxillaries being articulated longitudi¬
nally under the snout, and carrying teeth on their posterior edge
only; and the maxillaries ending in barbels, articulated to the nasal
anterior to the premaxillaries. Head flat, anteriorly. Body naked,
wide at the pectoral region, tapering into a long slender tail, tren¬
chant beneath, and terminated by a distinct small caudal. Dorsal
small, high ; strong, flat, serrated pectoral spines ; anal long ; no
adipose fin; cup-shaped suckers on the ventral surface at certain
times. Branchiostegals five. Six species, all American. M‘Clel-
land describes five Indian fish belonging to a genus named Glyp-
tosternon, which does not seem to differ from Aspredo in the cha¬
racters that he assigns to it.
Genus XXXVIII. Chaca, Valenc. Head broad and much de¬
pressed, as wide before as behind, thus being quadrangular; tail ta¬
pering and much compressed at the end. Two dorsals and two anals;
posterior ones uniting to form a caudal at the extremity of the tail,
or it may be said, caudal running forward on the dorsal aspect to
above the front of the anal, and about half as far on the ventral
aspect, in which point of view there would be one anal and one dorsal
near the head, supported by a strong osseous first ray. Serrated pec¬
toral spines. The chin cirrhated by eight filaments. Air-bladder
very large, composed of two lobes separated by the spinal column.
Genus XXXIX. Sisor, Hamilt. Buch. A Hypostomus without
lateral pieces of mail, its skin being soft; remarkable for the size
of its premaxillary barbels, and the prolongation of the upper
caudal ray into a filament as long as the rest of the fish. Body
slender, long; the chevron in front of the dorsal three-lobed. Mouth
edentate, with fourteen barbels in all. Large gill-openings; four
branchiostegals. One species, which attains the length of seven feet.
Genus XL. Malapterurus, Lacep. No anterior dorsal; an
adipose fin near the caudal; ventrals beyond the middle of the fish;
and an anal occupying about half the distance between them and
the rounded caudal; no pectoral spine. Body shaped somewhat
like that of a Cobitis or Galaxias, the tail being thickish, but the
head is conical and ends bluntly. Lips fleshy, with six barbels;
fine villiform teeth on each jaw ; none on the vomer. A short ob¬
lique gill-opening; branchiostegals seven. Stomach small, siphonal;
air-bladder fusiform, pointed posteriorly wTith two globular lobes
in front, in advance of the ossicles of Weber. Its outer coat is
thick and spongy. A double electrical organ.
Genus XLI. Ailia, Gray. A long, greatly compressed, mode¬
rately high fish, with a small head and rounded snout like a Schilbes.
Back naked, except near the tail, where there is a small adipose
fin; a very long, even anal, and forked caudal. Eight barbels.
Teeth on the jaws and roof of the mouth minute.
Genus XLII. Trichomycterus, Valenc. Allied to Malapte¬
rurus by general form, the depression of the head, thinning of the
snout, and construction of the cranium, but distinguished by a
dorsal placed in the middle of the back, the absence of an adipose
fin, and the want of an air-bladder. Branchiostegals eight. Aspect
considerably like that of Cobitis. Six barbels, one at each anterior
nostril, and a pair at the corner of the mouth on each side. Tail
thickish. Fine curved teeth in a band on the jaws; palate smoothed.
Three species.
Genus XLIII. Eremophieus, Humb. Closely resembling
Trichomycterus in general aspect, but apodal; connected like that Classifica-
genus to the Siluroids by the absence of subopercula; and to Cobitis tion—Ma-
by the want of ventrals. Jaws armed by a band of long villiform or lacopteri.
bristle-like teeth. Branchiostegals eight; no scales. Siphonal v ^ ^
stomach and long intestine; no air-bladder.
GONIODONTS.
This family has grown out of the genus Loncaria of
Linnaeus, which, as characterized by him, consisted of
fishes whose bodies were mailed in hard angular plates or
scales, distinguished from Doras and Calhchthys by the
mouth opening under the snout. Muller considers them to
be a separate group of the Siluroid family, and as such they
are described by Valenciennes, in the Histoire des Poissons.
Lacepede divided the Linnaean Loricarice into two groups,
reserving that appellation for the species that have no adi¬
pose fin, and giving the name of Hypostoma to those that
have a kind of adipose fin but one that is preceded by a
hard bony ray. Agassiz, when characterizing and naming
the family, adopted Lacepede’s generic divisions, and added
two others, Rhinelepis and Acanthicus. The premaxillary
and mandibular teeth of the Goniodonts are composed of
albuminous tissue, like the teeth of the Chaetodons, and have
the same elasticity.
In the Loricariee the top of the skull is prolonged hack-
wards by the extension of the supraoccipital, which forms a
kind of first scale, that reaches to the two plates developed
from the points of the interneurals of the first compound
vertebra,—the second of the plates being the chevron, on
which the spine of the dorsal stands and moves. The mas-
toids and suprascapulae enlarge the sides of the skull, and
form the wide osseous vault, which affords the necessary
space and breadth for containing the anterior portion of the
abdominal viscera. The diapophyses of the great compound
vertebra are plates curved like a sabre, and are supported
below by the centra, and above by a styloid process resting
on the vertical occipital crest. The scapular arch is very
strong and shuts up the fore-part of the abdomen by a
bony septum, while the coracoids, in form of the letter V,
give the firmness necessary to sustain the dermal shields
and spines. The eoalescent radius and ulna bent horizon¬
tally support the pectoral plates. There are only eight
abdominal vertebrae, with ribs as fine as bristles, and sixteen
caudal ones.
Family XIX.—GONIODONTIDA3.
Goniodontes, Agass.; Loricarini, aliorum. Related to the Siluridce,
hut differing from them in possessing pseudobranchiae, and in
their intestines. Head and body mailed in hard, angular plates;
orifice of the mouth on the ventral aspect under the snout, and
bounded by the premaxillaries and maxillaries; long, slender, flexi¬
ble teeth ending in hooks on the premaxillaries and mandible,
which are separated at the symphysis ; a broad, circular, cuticular
fold surrounds the mouth. Gill-cover mostly immoveable ; the sty¬
loid epicoracoid absent as in the Siluridce, and represented by a
process of the coracoid. The heart lodges in a bony capsule formed
by the coracoid. No caecal enlargement of the stomach ; intestine
long, frequently bent; no pancreatic caeca. Swim-bladder want¬
ing, in which they differ from the Siluridce. There is much phos¬
phate of lime in the scales.
Genus I. Loricaria, auct. Body depressed, broader than
high. Tail very much compressed. Teeth in both jaws. A single
dorsal and no adipose fin.
Genus II. Hemiodon, Knor. Body very much depressed.
Teeth on the mandible only. Premaxillaries rudimentary ; tooth¬
less.
Genus III. Acestra, Knor. Body elongated, nearly cylindri¬
cal. Teeth in both jaws, furnished with a tranverse radical process.
Dorsal and anal fins opposite.
Genus IV. Rhinelepis, Agass. Osseous plates resembling
scales, imbricated, rough like a file. A short thick body. Lower
lip often dilated into a membranous velum, and fringed with
filaments. Three branchiostegals. Hooked teeth surrounding the
orifice of the mouth in rows; the front ones notched at the point.
A single dorsal. Three species.
I
&
264 ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- Genus V. Acanthicus, Agass. Articulated spines on the
tion—Pha- snout, cheeks, and gill-covers, like those of a hedgehog. Osseous
ryngo- plates on the body, crested and spinous ; distinct squamiform
gnaths. bucklers on the belly. Teeth with a double curvature, arranged
i r ^ like those of Rhinelepis ; mouth encircled by a complete velum. A
single dorsal.
Genus VI. Hypostomus, Lacep. Second dorsal analogous to an
adipose fin, having an osseous ray in front. Body thick and short.
Head especially large. Bony armour, like that of Loricaria, on the
body. A large first dorsal opposed to the ventrals and anal. Pec¬
toral spine rough, long, and strong. Branchiostegals three. Seven
species.
Order III.—PHARYNGOGNATHS.
This order is founded on the character, common to all its
members, of the lower pharyngeals being united to form one
bone. In external aspect there is no similarity between
the families of Scomberesocida and Labridce, which belong
to it.
Order III.—PHARYNGOGNATHI, Mull.
Endo-skeleton ossified; exo-skeleton in some as Cycloid, in others
as Ctenoid scales; inferior pharyngeal bones coalescent. Swim-
bladder without an air-duct. Ventral fins in some on the thorax,
in others on the abdomen.
Sub-Order I.—MALACOPTERYGII.
Fins without spines.
SCOMBERESOCIDA3.
Of this group of Pharyngognaths we may obtain a correct
notion from the Garfish or Greenbones of our coasts, named
also by the fishermen Mackerel Guides, because they an¬
nually come into shallow waters at the time of the Macke¬
rel fisheries. This fish belongs to the genus Belone which
contains many species, and among others B. caudimacula
and B. cancila, which inhabit the fresh waters of the penin¬
sula of Hindostan, and afford an instance, in addition to
many others, that generic assemblages are independent of
habitat, as to the species being marine, lacustrine, or fluvia-
tile. The British seas furnish an example of the genus
Scomberesox, also, in the Saury Pike or Skipper. The lat¬
ter name is given in consequence of the habit these fishes
have of leaping out of the water, which is also practised by
the Belones. Some species of this genus have an air-blad¬
der, while others want it; a remarkable peculiarity in fishes
so similar in aspect, but which also occurs among the
Mackerel.
The Exocceti or Flying Fishes have ever been an object of
great interest to navigators. The monotonous and quiet
voyage of a ship running before the trade-winds is enlivened
by the flights of large bands of these creatures rising before
the bows of the vessel, and like a flight of larks or sand¬
pipers glittering in the sun, and often by a simultaneous
impulse, changing the direct line for one nearly at right
angles, before settling in their native element again. The
muscular force by which this progress through the air is
effected has engaged the attention of Humboldt. This
illustrious and accurate observer states that the Flying Fish
move by myriads constantly in a right line, and in a direc¬
tion opposite to that of the waves. He doubts whether
this flight be generally assumed as a means of escape from
voracious fishes, and with reason. As we have noticed above,
their near allies the Belones and Scomberesoces have the
habit at certain times of leaping frequently from the water,
and we have observed the same thing to occur in the spawn¬
ing season among the shoals of Malloti, which often land
themselves in numbers on the dry beach. There seems to
be something in the constitution of these fishes which im¬
pels them to this movement, and the Exocceti are organized
to carry it to the fullest extent by the size of their pectoral Classifica-
fins and the power of the muscles which move them. There tion—Pha-
are some who assert that the flight of the Exocceti is a mere rynS0-
leap, resembling the ricochet of a stone skimming along the v gDat1*8- ^
surface of the water, but the pectorals are certainly impelled *
against the air in the course of the flight. The bands fre¬
quently undulate in their height above the water before
subsiding into it again; and, as mentioned above, it is not
rare to see them change their direction, though this is not
done till just before the termination of their aerial course.
Their flight is rapid, greatly exceeding that of a ship going
10 miles an hour, and we are not inclined to limit it to a
distance of 500 feet. It is not easy to form a correct judg¬
ment of distance under such circumstances; but having
often watched their flights when in a frigate 120 feet long,
it appeared to us to exceed the length of the ship many
times, and its altitude was such that in the night they fre¬
quently fell on board. Many shoals, consisting entirely of
small ones, from 2 to 3 inches long, showed a smaller
power of sustaining themselves in the air, and more fre¬
quently glanced against the summit of the coming wave,
but the larger kinds rose vigorously into the air.
Family I.—SCOMBERESOCID^E, Mull.
Maxillaries coalescent with or adherent to the elongated pre-
maxillaries at the corner of the mouth, under the nasal, and co¬
vered in part or wholly by the preorbitar scale bone.
Genus I. Belone, Ouv. Upper border of the jaw formed by
the premaxillaries, which, together with the mandible, are elon¬
gated into a long bill; teeth on these hones forming a narrow
stripe, the interior row consisting of taller conical ones; roof of
the mouth smooth (except in the species which frequents the Chan¬
nel) ; two small patches of teeth in the upper pharyngeals, more
pointed than those on the lower pharyngeals, which are short,
conical, inclining to the pavement form. Gill-openings large;
branchiostegals, twelve. A hard helmet, formed of the cranial
hones, is variously sculptured and furrowed. Body elongated.
Scales very thin, like those of Scomber, and not easily perceptible,
except one row of keeled ones on each side. Dorsal and anal op¬
posite each other, and far back. No pyloric caeca; large air-
bladder. Twenty-six species.
Genus II. Scomberesox, Lacep. ; Sairis, Rafin. Jaws con¬
structed nearly as in Belone, but the mandible is always the
longest, and the maxillary, instead of being confluent with the pre¬
maxillary, is merely in apposition; the teeth are extremely small,
and uniserial on the jaws ; none on the roof of the mouth or tongue.
Shape of the body much as in Belone. Dorsal and anal far back,
opposite to one another, and followed by detached finlets of vari¬
able number, according to the species. A scaly keel, as in Belone,
but which becomes obsolete near the anal, and does not reach the
caudal. No pancreatic caeca ; the air-bladder present in some spe¬
cies is wanting in others, as in the species of Scomber. Five spe¬
cies.
Genus III. Hemiramphus, Cuv. The distinctive character of
this genus is expressed by the name, and consists in the edentate,
pointed projection of the mandibular symphysis, producing a kind
of half bill. The upper jaw is formed by the premaxillaries sol¬
dered together, and the maxillaries joined to them at the angle of
the mouth widen and form a spur which is concealed by the pre¬
orbitar. A narrow band of small granular teeth exists in both jaws.
In other respects these fishes resemble Belone, and as in that genus,
the intestinal canal is straight, without pancreatic caeca. The air-
bladder runs the whole length of the abdomen, between the spine
and a tense arch of the peritoneum ; and in the species (three) which
M. Valenciennes examined, he found its structure cellular, similar to
that of Amia. Thirty species.
Genus IV. Exocletus, Linn. (Sub-Family, Exoceetini, Bonap.)
Recognizable at once by the large pectoral fins that are capable of
being used as wings or parachutes. Head and body scaly, with a
scaly keel on each flank. Head flattened above and on the sides.
Dorsal opposite the anal. Eyes large. Premaxillaries without
nasal pedicels, forming the border of the upper jaw; maxillary
not soldered to the premaxillary, but having nearly the same posi¬
tion as in Belone, and gliding under the preorbitar ; jaws armed
with small pointed teeth, composed of osteo-dentine, and the pha¬
ryngeals with crowded teeth, having compressed crowns and several
cusps, like those of Cuprinodon, Acanthurus, and other genera.
Branchiostegals ten to twelve. Intestine straight, without pyloric
ICHTHYOLOGY.
265
Classifica- caecaj upper lobe of the caudal shorter than the other; air-bladder
tjon pha- large) closed. Thirty-three species. Some have barbels, and have
ryno-o- keen made the types of separate genera,
gnaths.
CHROMIDIDiE.
This family is included by Muller among the Pharyngo-
gnaths with spinous rays in the fins. It is not treated ofin
the Histoire dcs Poissons, and the generic characters in the
table are from Cuvier’s Begne Animal, or from Riippell’s
works. The members of this group agree with the Ctenoid
Labroids in having only one nostril to each nasal sac.
large tooth arched backwards, and then follow some more card- Classifica-
like teeth. Branchiostegals, five. tion—Pha-
Genus II. Amphiprion, Schneid. Body oval, compressed, ryngo-
A single dorsal. Lateral line terminating under the end of the gnaths.
dorsal. Head obtuse ; uniserial, small, conical, obtuse teeth on the v >
jaws ; palate edentate. Five branchiostegals. Preoperculum, oper¬
culum, suboperculum, and interoperculum denticulated strongly, and
striated on their surfaces. Air-bladder simple. Sixteen species.
Genus III. Premnas, Cuv. Form that of an Amphiprion, with
interrupted lateral line, and obtuse uniserial teeth, but the oper¬
cular pieces are less strongly toothed, and the suborbitar scale-
bones much more armed, producing under the eye one or two large
spines pointing backwards. A few denticulations exist on the as¬
cending edge of the preoperculum, and on the border of the sub-
Sub-Order II.—ACANTHOPTERYGII.
Family I.—CHR0MIDID2E, Bonap.
Chromides, Mull. Lateral line interrupted. Teeth villiform.
One dorsal. A single nostril to each pituitary sac.
Genus I. Ohromis, Cuv. General aspect of Labrus, with their
lips, protractile premaxillaries, pharyngeal bones, and the filaments
of their dorsal rays ; but the entire caudal and the soft dorsal and
anal to a considerable height are scaly. Their teeth are disposed
in two card-like bands on the jaws and pharynx, with, in front, a
row of conical teeth. Branchiostegals six. Lateral line ceasing
under the dorsal, and not recommencing on a lower level. Stomach
cmcal; two pancreatic cmca. The J]olti of the Nile has no pan¬
creatic caecum, but its stomach is caecal. Its dentition is that of
the Mediterranean species.
Genus II. Cychla, Bloch, Schneid. Have the body more elon¬
gated than Chromis, and their teeth in a broad band, and wholly
villiform. J
Genus III. Sarotherodon, Rupp. General habit of Chromis.
Both jaws armed with an outer row of slender chisel-shaped teeth,
smaller at their insertion, wider at their edges, behind which a
band of brush-like teeth. Palatines and tongue unarmed; at the
pharynx fine brush-like teeth, on a single three-cornered plate be¬
low, and two roundish transverse plates above. Four gills. Oper-
cula without scales ; pretty large scales on the body. Lateral line
interrupted. A dorsal fin extending along the whole back, two-
thirds of it supported by spines ; three spines in the anal; ventrals
behind the pectorals. Guinea coast.
operculum ; but the opercular pieces are not strongly streaked on
the surface, as in Amphiprion. Stomach globular, small; three
pancreatic caeca; large globular air-bladder. Three species.
Genus IV. PoMACENTRUS,Lacep. Form oblong. Head obtuse;
incisorial uniserial teeth. Preoperculum denticulated; operculum
entire on the border, and without spines; suborbitars often toothed.
Lateral line ending under the soft portion of the single dorsal;
four or five branchiostegals. Twenty species.
Genus V. Dascyllus, Cuv. Resembling .Powiaceutrtts, but the
teeth, instead of being trenchant, are in a villiform band, with
stronger conical ones in the outer row. Three species.
Genus VI. Glyphisodon, Lacep. Having a strong resemblance
to Pomacentrus, but the preoperculum is not denticulated. Body
compressed, oval, covered as well as the head with large scales.
Profile rounded. Mouth small ; teeth on the jaws only, uniserial,
close together, narrow and straight, trenchant at the crown, and
often notched. Lateral line ending under the end of the dorsal.
For the most part thirteen dorsal spines (rarely twelve), each with
a membranous filament at its tip; two anal spines (rarely three).
Stomach very large, cmcal; three thick pancreatic cmca; ovaries
discharging by a tube behind the anus. Thirty species.
Genus VII. Etroplus, Valenc. Oval compressed form of Gly¬
phisodon. Eye more elevated than in that genus, and the suborbi¬
tar scale-bone large and not scaly. Snout also destitute of scales.
Dorsal (seventeen or eighteen) and anal spines numerous (eleven to
thirteen). Three species.
Genus \ III. Heliases, Cuv. Resembling Glyphisodon in the
oval compressed body. Small mouth. Entire or smooth-edged pre¬
operculum. Large scales and short lateral line, and in the number
of spines in the dorsal and anal, but having the teeth of Das¬
cyllus. Branchiostegals five, rarely six.
CTENO-LABRHLE.
A small but very natural family separated from the
ScicenidcB by their united pharyngeals, and the want of
muciferous cellular structure of the bones of the skull. They
are denominated in the Histoire des Poissons “ Sciaenoides
a moins de sept rayons branchiaux et a ligne laterale
interrompue; and are there said to be beyond the bounds
of the Linnaean genus Sacena, and to have analogies
with the Labroids. They are small fishes, of a peculiar
rounded oval form, and clothed with large scales, a well-
marked family likeness pervading the several genera. Their
strongly ciliated scales separate them from the true La¬
broids, whose scales are cycloid. They are edible, but they
do not form the objects of special fisheries, not only from
their want of size, but because they do not assemble toge¬
ther in numbers. The Glyphisodons and others of die
family are prettily banded, and show a pleasing combination
and variety of colours.
Family II.—CTENO-LABRIDGE, Mull.
Compressed oval or oblong fishes, with the head forming part of
the general elliptic profile. One dorsal spinous in front; anal
also spinous in front, placed with the dorsal on the posterior curve
of the oval. Tail between the vertical fins short, moderately
high. Scales ctenoid. Air-bladder closed, without appendages.
Ovarium closed, with an excretory duct behind the anus. Cranium
not cavernous in its outer walls. A single nostril to each pituitary
Genus I. Caprodon, Schleg. Teeth card-like on both jaws,
before which a row of bigger ones; the three fore teeth of the pre¬
maxillary on each side being large cutting teeth ; front mandibular
tooth very large, and pointing backwards ; behind it one somewhat
smaller; in the middle of the limb of the mandible there stands a
VOL. XII.
CYCLO-LABROIDS.
The name Labrus applied to a fish is cited by Pliny as
occurring in a passage of Ovid which has not been pre-
/
Fig. 86.
Odax Uneatus.
served, and the kind of fish it was used to designate cannot
now be ascertained. The name was widely and vaguely
applied by modern ichthyologists until Cuvier gave the
piecise characters of the genus which it now distinguishes.
Several species occur in the British seas; none of them
prized as an article of diet. The Tautog {Tautoga nigra)
of New York, however, is a fish in great request for the
table, and sells at the rate of 8 lb. for a dollar. It is tena¬
cious of life, and is kept in stews to fatten. In great
colds it becomes torpid, and will not eat. When the^dog-
wood {Cornusflorida) comes into flower the Black Tautog
is in season.
The Lpibulus seizes insects by suddenly thrusting out
its mouth, and engulphing those that come within the scope
of the elongated tube; at least so says Renard; and the
2 L
266 I C H T H Y
Classifica- accounts of this fish shooting drops of water at its insect
tion—Pha- preyj like the Chelmons, does not appear to be based on cor-
ryng°- rect observation. Scarus was the name given by Forskal
gnaths. t0 a gr0Up Gf fiskeg resembling the Labri in all their cha-
racters except in dentition, their teeth being incorporated
with the substance of their jaws to form convex bones like
those of the Tetraodons. The researches of Cuvier prove
fully that the fish so named by the ancients was truly of
this genus. It was held in high repute either for the ad¬
dress attributed to it of skilfully withdrawing other fishes
from the nets in which they were inclosed, or because
the epicures greatly esteemed its intestines, or on account
of the vast expense incurred in endeavouring to multiply
it on the Italian coasts, that it might administer to the
extravagant luxury of the world’s capital. Aristotle has
several passages respecting its rumination. His assertions
have been repeated by Pliny, yElian, and others, without
examination; and Ovid and Oppian have spoken of it as
a matter beyond doubt, yet no one has verified the obser¬
vation of Aristotle. It passed also among the ancients as
a fish that had a voice; and Saidas says that it produced
sounds by ejecting water in blowing, and that it could not
make itself heard when it was deep in the water. Athe-
naeus, quoting Seleucus as his authority, states that the
Scarus is the only fish that sleeps and is never taken in
the night. .ZElian says that it is the most ardent in love of
all fishes, and that many males may be enticed into the
nets by the pursuit of a female attached to a line. But
still it was the most prudent of fishes, and the most active
in showing friendship for its companions. If one was caught
by a hook, the others endeavoured to cut the line ; or if en¬
trapped in the meshes of a net, they tried to drag it out by
the tail!
“ Sic et Scarus arte sub undis,
Contextam si forte levi de vimine nassam,
Incidit, assumlamque dolo tandem pavet escam.
Non audet radiis obnixa occurere fronte,
Aversus crebro veniens sed verbere caudse,
Laxans subsequetur, tutumque evadit in aequor.”
Ovid.
It was most plentiful and of the best quality in the Car¬
pathian Sea, between Crete and Asia Minor, but was not
unknown even in early times on the Italian coast, though
Columella says that it seldom passed beyond Sicily in his
day. But in the reign of Claudius, according to Pliny,
Optatus Elipertius brought it from the Troad, and intro¬
duced it into the sea between Ostium and Campagna. For
five years all that were caught in the nets were thrown into
the sea again, and from that time it was an abundant fish in
that locality. In the time of Pliny it was considered to be
the first of fishes {Nunc Scaro datur principatus); and the
expense incurred by Elipertius was justified, in the opinion
of the Roman gourmands, by the extreme delicacy of the fish.
It was a fish, said the poets, whose very excrements the
gods themselves were unwilling to reject. Its flesh was
tender, agreeable, sweet, easy of digestion, and quickly as¬
similated ; yet, if it happened to have eaten an Aplysia, it
produced cholera morbus. In short, there is no fish of
which so much has been said by ancient writers. In the
present day the Scarus of the Archipelago is considered to
be a fish of exquisite flavour; and the Greeks still name it
Scaro, and eat it with a sauce made of its liver and intes¬
tines. It feeds on fucus; and M. Valenciennes thinks that
the necessity for masticating its vegetable diet thoroughly,
and the working of it with that intent backwards and for¬
wards in the mouth, may have given rise to the notion of
its being a ruminant; and it is certain that its aliment is
very finely divided when it reaches the stomach. The
adjoining woodcut represents Callyodon chlorolepis, a fish
of the Australian seas, and number 56, gives views of the
teeth of the same species. Woodcut 86 is a representation
o L o G Y.
of Odax lineatus \ and figures 25, 38, and 39, are views of Classifica-
Tig. 87.
Callyodon chlorolepis.
Labroid scales. The family of Ambiotocidce was constituted
by Agassiz for the reception of a single genus of fishes that
frequent the western coasts of North America.
Family III.—CYCLO-LABRID^, Mull.
Oval, elliptical, or oblong scaly fishes, more or less compressed,
generally with a proportionally high parallel-sided tail between the
vertical fins. Scales cycloid. A single dorsal supported in front
by spinous rays, which have frequently membranous processes
behind their points. Jaws covered by fleshy lips ; palate smooth,
toothless. Three pharyngeal bones, viz., two above and one below,
armed with teeth, which are in some species pavement-like, in
others lamellated, and in others pointed. No pancreatic caeca; a
closed, simple air-bladder; shut ovisacs, with an efferent tube
behind the anus.
ANALYTICAL TABLE OF THE CYCLO-LABRIDJE (Dum.)
Cheeks scaly ; preoperculum crenulated.
Dorsal scaly at the base.
Mouth protactile; teeth even Clepticus 7.
Mouth not protractile; teeth unequal ....Cossyphus 2.
Dorsal not scaly.
Mouth protractile.
Dorsal with short soft rays.
Scales very large Epibulus 21.
Scales of ordinary size   Coricus 6.
Dorsal with long filaments Lachnolaimus 8.
Mouth not protractile.
Teeth equal to one another ......CRENILABRUS 3.
Teeth unequal.
Dorsal scaly Acantholabrus 5.
Dorsal not scaly Ctenolabrus 4.
Cheeks scaly; preoperculum not crenulated.
Dorsal very long.
Scales very large; teeth uniserial Cheilinus 18.
Scales of ordinary size.
Suboperculum denticulated Malapterus 12.
Suboperculum very entire Malacanthijs 10.
Dorsal of ordinary length ; rays tasselled Labrus 1.
Cheeks scaleless.
Snout abnormal, like a beak Gomphosus 15.
Teeth unequal, reclining, diverging Anampses 14.
Teeth equally curved Cheilio 11.
Snout ordinary, pointed.
Preorbitar denticulated   Tautoga 9.
Preorbitar smooth-edged Julis 13.
Snout ordinary, smooth and blunt.
Profile curved, convex Xyrichthys 16.
Profile descending, trenchant Novacula 17.
Genus I. Labrus, Linn., Artedi. Lips large, thick, and as if
double. Six branchiostegals. Upper jaw generally considerably
protractile; teeth on the jaws simple, conical in one or more rows.
Pharyngeals cylindrical, smooth, and rounded on the crowns. No
spines on the opercular bones. Lateral line almost straight, con¬
tinuous. Cheek and operculum scaly. Thirty species.
Genus II. Cossyphus, Cuv. and Yalenc. Maxillaries wide and
thick. Behind the exterior row of pointed teeth, small, round, granular
teeth crowded together. Opercular pieces scaly. Vertical fins sheathed
in scales which rise and fall with the rays, but do not form so deep
a sheath as those of the Percoids or Sparoids. Almost all have dis¬
tinct crenatures on the ascending border of the preoperculum, but
in some these appear at the angle of the bone only, and are very
feeble. Fifteen species.
I
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- Genus III. Crenilabrus, Cuv. Upper jaw not protractile; ^ra¬
tion—Pha- operculum deeply toothed; lips thickly fleshy ; teeth conical, uni-
ryngo- serial, without the granular band of Cossyphus, and also without the
gnaths. scaly sheathing of the fins. The continuous lateral line and cycloid
scales distinguish them from Chromis and Cichla. Thirty-six species
Genus IV. Ctenolabrus, Cuv. and Valenc. A band of villi-
form teeth behind the outer row of conical teeth on the jaws.
Other characters those of Crenilabrus, such as the finely denticu¬
lated preoperculum, three anal spines, &c. Ten species.
Genus V. Acantholabrus, Cuv. and Valenc. Dentition of
Ctenolabrus, but with numerous anal spines, representing the Per-
coid Centrarchus. Six species.
Genus VI. Coricus, Cuv. Conical jaw teeth in one row as in
Crenilabrus; jaws greatly protractile, like those of the Menidoe
Premaxillaries with long pedicels, and limbs which are thrust out
when the mandible is depressed. Preoperculum rounded at the
corner, denticulated on the ascending border, but having a smooth
lower one. Pharyngeal teeth small, round grains crowded to¬
gether. Short intestine; stomach siphonal, without dilatation •
no pancreatic caeca. Distinguished from Epibulus by its continuous
lateral line; representing the Menoid Smaris and Gerres. Four
species.
Genus VII. Clepticus, Cuv. Protractile month, withdrawing
beneath the vault of the preorbitars ; denticulated preoperculum •
continuous lateral line. Teeth in one row, few, and very small •
pharyngeal teeth lamellated, the plates serrated. Vertical fins
covered in great part by scales like those of the body. One species.
Genus VIII. Lachnolaimus, Cuv. Resembles Labrus in the
lips; in general form; in the membrane which descends from the
preorbitars ; in the scaly cheeks, and in the filamentous tips of the
dorsal spines; but the tips of the anterior dorsal spines are flexible.
Lateral line continuous. Anterior teeth strong, curved, and standing
forwards, followed by a series of small teeth of even height. The
pharyngeals, instead of being wholly covered with pavement-like
teeth, as in Labrus, are only partially so, the rest of the bone being
clothed with velvety membrane. No pancreatic caeca. Six species.
Genus IX. Tautoga, Mit. Labroids distinguished by a double
row of strong conical teeth on both jaws, and the extent of thick
scaleless integument on the face, which reaches to the operculum]
suboperculum, and interoperculum, and even on the preoperculum
the scales are few. Branchiostegals five. Lateral line continuous
Xine species.
Genus X. MalaCanthus, Cuv. Resembling Coryphcena in the
length of the dorsal and anal, and in the rays of these fins being
nearly as flexible, but allied to Lachnolaimus by scaly cheeks, and
a continued lateral line. The proper generic character is the’long
dorsal, with only three or four simple rays in front, the others
being branched. Body slightly compressed, long. Scales small. Anal
nearly as long as the dorsal. Mouth tolerably large; lips fleshy; a
row of teeth on the jaws ; large, and curved in front, much smaller
towards the angles of the mouth. Palate and tongue smooth-
upper pharyngeal teeth card-like; under pharyngeal teeth in some
species wholly card-like, in others partly so, partly pavement-like.
A pretty strong spine at the angle of the operculum. Stomach siph¬
onal ; no pancreatic caeca. Two species.
t Genus XI. Cheilzo, Comm. Premaxillaries widening inte¬
riorly into a granular osseous plate peculiar to this genus among
the Labroids. Exterior row of teeth triangular, compressed, and
trenchant, like those of some Sphyrcence or Cybiums; the symphysial
pair hooked, and longer than the others, which are of equal height
among themselves, and in the interspaces between all these teeth
there are small conical ones. The lateral line is continuous; and
there are a few scattered scales on the cheeks. Fin rays flexible.
Eight species.
Genus XII. Malapterus, Valenc. Combines many of the
characters of Malacanthus and Cheilio, having the flexible rays of
Cheilio, teeth of Labrus, scaly operculum of Malacanthus, but not
the opercular spine. One species.
Genus XIII. Julis, Cuv. Lateral line continuous; stiff and
pointed spines in the dorsal. Head entirely naked, that is to say
the suborbitar chain, preoperculum, and other bones of the gill-
cover, the under surface of the head, and the jaws, are destitute of
scales. Teeth conical in the outer row, longer and stronger the
nearer the symphyses; within there are some granular teeth, largest
in the old fish, being indications of teeth incorporated with the
bone, as in Cheilio, and more fully shown in Scarus. Some species
have a canine at the corner of the mouth pointing forwards, form¬
ing the genus Halichorus of Riippell. Pharyngeal teeth as in
Labrus. One hundred species.
Genus XIV. Anampses, Cuv. Two teeth on the upper jaw
one on each side of the symphysis, turning from each other, flattened
longitudinally; chisel-shaped at the crown and trenchant; the
mandibular pair more conical, yet a little flattened at the point ;
pharyngeals of Labrus for bruising. Branchiostegals six. General’
267
form that of one of the higher bodied Jules. Head naked. Lateral Classifica-
line continuous. Six species. ^urn Pha-
Genus XV. GoMPHOsus,Lacep. (#<%>«, Comm.) Body oblong, ryngo-
compressed. Scales large. Head quite naked; eye small; nostrils gnaths.
near the orbit; muzzle slender, elongated, cylindrical; orifice of v. /
the mouth formed by the premaxillaries and mandible. Unise- v
rial teeth on the jaws, the anterior ones longer ; pharyngeal teeth
pavement-like, as in Labrus. Gill-covers approaching one another
under the throat; gill-openings narrow. Branchiostegal membrane
adherent to the isthmus ; branchiostegals six. Dorsal and anal but
shghtly elevated, and of uniform height. Lateral line branching
and deflexed near the caudal. Stomach and oesophagus straight;
no pancreatic caeca ; a long, narrow air-bladder. Three species.
Genus XVI. Xyrichthys, Valenc. Form that of a Labrus,
except that the profile of the face is almost vertical, with the eye
high up; this is owing to the growth of the snout directly down¬
wards, while the mandible of ordinary length is horizontal. The
resulting aspect is peculiar. Many characters common to it and
Labrus or Julis. Head naked, and, from compression, trenchant in
the face, which is sustained by the nasal bone. Dorsal long and of
uniform height. Teeth in one row, longest near the symphysis;
Pharyngeal teeth small, pavement-like ; palate and tongue smooth.
Lateral line interrupted generally as in Scarus, but the tubes on
each scale simple. A species of double lip is formed by the edge
of the preorbitar, which descends to the corner of the mouth.
Intestinal tube simple, without any stomachal dilatation, and with¬
out pancreatic caeca; air-bladder large, pointed anteriorly, rounded
behind. Fourteen species. Two species have the three front rays
detached as a separate fin, and form the only instance, except
Novacula, of a Labroid with two dorsals.
Genus XVII. Novacula, Valenc. Preoperculum scaly under
the eye, with the mandible more ascending in other respects, like
Xyrichthys. Generally the first two dorsal rays are somewhat de¬
tached from the others, and connected to them by basal membrane
only. Six species.
Genus XVIII. Cheilinus, Cuv. Lateral line interrupted under
the end of the dorsal. Lips thick; large, uniserial, conical teeth
on the jaws. Large scales on the cheek; scales of the body broad
and thin, advancing on the base of the caudal, but leaving the
dorsal and anal naked as in Labrus. Splanchnology also as in that
genus, but the bones are green in some, if not in all the species,
like those of Belone. Twenty-four species.
Genus XIX. Charges, Rupp. Both jaws armed with similar
tapering stripes of teeth, succeeded posteriorly by small tufts of
teeth ; four stout conical canines in front of each jaw. Thick lips.
Scales of the operculum and preoperculum of moderate size; on
the body the scales are larger. Lateral line interrupted. Spines
of the dorsal and anal strong and pointed. Java.
Genus XX. Cirrhilabrus, Schleg. A toothed preoperculum ;
an interrupted lateral line. Scaly gill-cover. Ventrals prolonged
into filaments. Branchiostegals five.
Genus XXL Epibulus, Cuv. Protractile mouth, the mechanism
of which differs from that of Coricus. The nasal pedicels of the
premaxillaries play in grooves of the skull, and reach back to the
occiput, while the descending branch is attached by a long ligament
to the lower end of the maxillary bone, and, consequently, when the
mouth opens, draws forward that end of the maxillary together with
mandible, which is also connected to the same end of the maxillary.
The hypotympanic and mesotympanic unite to form a lever, and
assist in this movement. The scales are very large, and cover the
cheeks, but are there embedded in the skin, and the face is naked.
The large jaws, with the projection of the hypotympanic and angular
portion of the mandible, give a peculiar aspect to the fish which
otherwise resembles a Glyphisodon. Branchiostegals five. Lateral
line interrupted. One species.
Genus XXII. Scarus, Forsk. Labroids of oblong and rather
massive forms, lateral line interrupted under the end of the dorsal,
and recommencing lower down. Large scales extending to the gill-
covers and cheeks. Jaws resembling those of Tetraodon, each divided
into halves by a median suture. The teeth are incorporated with
the bone, and shine through the glazed surface in crowded quin-
cuncial order ; the oldest form the trenchant border of the jaw, and
as they are worn away they are succeeded by the lower ranks,’new
pulps developing at the base of the jaw to keep up the succession.
In some species the quincuncial surface is even and polished, in
others it is granular from the prominence of the crowns of the teeth,
and in some a few pointed canines protrude from the angle of the
upper jaw, or from other parts of it. Pharyngeal teeth trenchant
and standing up like verticle tiles, producing in the using, narrow,
projecting ellipses of dentine surrounded by enamel; the base of
each tooth is osteodentine, and it is bound to the others by cement.
Each of the superior pharyngeals carries two or three longitudinal
ranges, the number varying with the species; the single under
pharyngeal is fixed by a thin vertical plate in the angle formed by
f
268 I C H T H Y
Classifica- the last pair of branchial arches, and rests upon the lateral processes
tion—Ana- of the coracoid. Its concave surface, studded with compressed teeth
canths. in quincunces, receives and acts against the upper pharyngeal denta
v ^ ! plates ; the length of these plates increases with age. On each side
of the inferior pharyngeal there are two mucous sacs, papillose
within. Stomach without a caecum, and no pancreatic caeca. Gene¬
ral aspect, except in respect of the teeth, that of Cheilinus, generally
with a higher body than Labrus or Julis. Ninety species..
Genus XXIII. Callyodon, Gronov. Scari, whose anterior teeth
are tiled in many rows, the lateral ones of the upper jaw being
pointed and scattered, while within the jaw there is a row of much
smaller ones. Figure 56 represents the teeth of Callyodon chloro-
lepis. Twelve species.
Genus XXIV. Odax, Comm. Head and body elongated; snout
pointed ; lips swollen, and a fold from the cheek and preoperculum
makes a posterior lip as in Labrus. Lateral line continuous, and
composed of simple not branching tubes, as in Labrus. Teeth in¬
corporated with the jaw, but the compound dental pieces thus
formed are thinner than in Scams, the jaws bulging less; pharyn-
geals as in Labrus, with which they have more affinity than with
Scarus. Eight species.
Family IV.—AMBIOTOCID^E, Agass.
The general aspect of the fishes on which this family is founded
is that of Pomotis, or of the higher bodied Sparidce ; they are com¬
pressed and oval, with middle-sized cycloid scales ; opercular pieces
without spines or serratures. Branchiostegals six. Lips moderately
thick ; orifice of the mouth formed above by the premaxillaries,
to the exclusion of the maxillaries; both these bones somewhat
protractile; teeth on the premaxillaries, mandible, and pharyngeals
only, none on the vomer or palatines. By their entire gill-covers,
they are farther removed from the Perch family than from the
Sparoids, but the cycloid scales separate them from the latter, which
have all ctenoid scales. By their thick lips they approach the
Labroids, but differ in the construction of the mouth. M. Agassiz
gives an interesting paper on this family in Troschel’s Arch, fur
Naturg., 1854. The name of Ambiotoca is deduced from the mode
in which the young are produced, analogous to that of the Kan¬
garoos. The designation of Holconoti has also been proposed on ac¬
count of a naked stripe parallel to the hinder basis of the dorsal fin.
Troschel remarks that this family is a peculiar one, nearly allied to
the Labridce cycloidei, but that it cannot enter that group on account
of the unusual structure of the gills.
Genus I. Ambiotoca.
Order IV.—ANACANTHS.
This order was indicated by Muller, and according to the
characters which he assigns to it, as given in the table, the
only difference that exists between it and the Acanthopteri
is the absence of spinous or pungent rays in the fins; but
many of the Gobiidce have also rays wholly flexible, and
that family may be considered as furnishing links between
the orders. Indeed, there are some forms which may, with
almost equal propriety, be placed in either. The ventral
fins, when present, are attached to the thorax or throat.
Fig. 88.
Machcerium subducens.
On the Ophididce we need not dwell, the members of that
family being fishes of small size of little utility to man. The
groups composing it have been investigated by Dr Kaup
of Darmstadt, and our table gives the results of his la¬
bours. Fig. 88 represents the Machcerium subducens, an
Fig. 89.
Gymnelis viridis\
Australian species, and fig. 89 Gymnelis viridis, an inhabi¬
tant of the Arctic seas.
0 L 0 G Y.
Order IV.'—ANACANTHINI, Mull. Classifica-
Endo-skeleton ossified ; exo-skeleton in some as cycloid, in others
aS ctenoid scales. Fins supported by flexible or jointed rays ;ventrals
beneath the pectorals, or none. Swim-bladder without air-duct in
the Gadidce, absent in Ophididce, Echeneidce, Macrouridce, and
Pleuronectidce.
Sub-Order I.—APODES.
Family I.—OPHIDIDiE.
Gadus-\Wz fish without ventrals. Body elongated, more or less
dagger-like posteriorly; the tail surrounded without a break by
the vertical fins.
Genus I. Mach^rium, Rich. Anus at the termination of the
first third part of the length of the fish. Body scaly. Mandible
destitute of a barbel; uniserial, incisorial teeth on the jaws. Dorsal
beginning somewhat behind the pectoral; anal occupying two-
thirds of the length of the body. Six branchiostegals. Lateral line
ceasing under the tenth ray of the dorsal. No swim-bladder. Two
species.
Genus II. Ophidium, Lin. Anns at the termination of the first
third part, or of the half of the length of the fish. Body scaly.
Two pair of barbels attached beneath the point of the glosso-hyal
(or lingual) bone. A swim-bladder. Small sword-shaped fish, with
lowly developed dorsal and anal fins, supported by simple rays
only. Air-bladder large and oviform, with three proper ossicles,
the middle one of which is moved by a peculiar muscle. Six
species.
Genus III. Gymnelis, Reinh. (Cepolophis, Kaup.) Ophidia
without barbels, and destitute of scales; resembling the proper Ophi¬
dia in the blunt head. The vomerine teeth do not project forwards,
but lie deep in the palate. Anus situated in the fore part of the
fish. Pectorals and vertical fins moderately developed. They are
distinguished from Fierasfer in that the anus is not in the pectoral
region, but farther back. The body also is less slim, and the tail
not so much dagger-like. Two species.
Genus IV. Fierasfer, Cuv. (Echiodon, Thomp.; O.vybeles,
Rich., Bleek.) Anus in the pectoral region. Vomer projecting
forwards, with blunt or laterally compressed teeth. Seven branchi¬
ostegals. No scales. Three species.
Genus V. Encheliophis, Miill. Abrachial as well as apodal;
anus behind the gills. Six branchiostegals.
GADOIDS.
This is a most important family, and the fisheries estab¬
lished for the capture of its various members have, more
than any other tribe of fishes, been the means of forming
great numbers of hardy and able seamen. Its members
live in cold or temperate climates, and constitute a very im¬
portant article of fishery. The greater number are consi¬
dered wholesome, and form a light and agreeable food,—
the flesh separating easily by boiling into white flaky layers.
The great sand-bank of Newfoundland is the most famous
station of the Cod fisheries, and is resorted to by English
fishermen, who chiefly use the hook and line. The fish
abound in this place probably on account of the great quan¬
tity of the smaller animals which serve as food, viz., mussels,
clams, &c.
Morrhua vulgaris, the common Cod {la Morue, Fr.;
Kabliau, Germ.), measures from two to three feet in length.
The back is spotted with yellowish brown. It inhabits the
whole Northern Ocean, and occurs in vast profusion. This
fish dwells in salt water only. It is not found nearer the
equator than the 40th degree of latitude. The weight of the
common Cod varies from 12 to 80 or even 100 pounds. It
is extremely voracious, and its digestive powers are seem¬
ingly very great. It feeds upon smaller fishes, such as
Herrings, on Mollusca, Worms, and Crustacea, and even
on the young of its own species. It has a strong, muscular
stomach, and is said to possess the power of rejecting by
the mouth substances, such as wood, &c., which it finds in¬
digestible. In spring it comes nearer the shore in order to
deposit its spawn. This happens in January in England, in
February in Norway, Denmark, and Scotland, and in March
in Newfoundland. One female is said to contain from four
to nine millions of eggs! The most extensive Cod fisheries
ICHTHYOLOGY. 269
Classifica- on our coasts are off the Western and Shetland Isles, but
tion—Ana-they are still greater in more northern countries. The Cod
canths. j^g {jeen fished on the coast of Sweden since the year 1368
by the inhabitants of Amsterdam. The English resorted to
the fisheries of Iceland before the year 1415; and it is
stated that in the year 1792, 200 French vessels, of a bur¬
den of 191,153 tons, were employed in the Cod fishery.
Every year more than 6000 European vessels are engaged
in this fishery.
The flesh of the Cod has a good flavour, and may be
easily preserved. The tongue, salted and dried, has been
considered a great delicacy. The gills are preserved and
used as bait. The liver is eaten, and of late years the oil
it yields has brought a high price owing to its importance
as a medicine. The swimming-bladder affords a very good
isinglass. This important species constitutes a principal
article of food to the inhabitants in some parts of Iceland,
Norway, and other northern countries. In a dried state
it is also much used in some papal kingdoms of the south.
In the neighbourhood of the Isle of Man, and elsewhere,
there is a variety of the Cod named the Red or Rock Cod,
the skin of which is of a brightish vermilion colour. Its
flesh is much esteemed.
Morrhua ceglejinus, the Haddock (FEgreJin, Fr.; Scholl-
Jisch, Germ.), is as well known, and almost as important, as the
Cod in this country ; it is of a smaller size, usually eighteen
inches long. The back is brown, the belly silvery, and the
lateral line black. There is a blackish spot behind the
pectoral fin, which tradition assigns to the impression of St
Peter’s finger and thumb, when he took the tribute money
out of the mouth of a fish, the inventors of the legend never
adverting to the improbability of a marine fish living in the
fresh-water lake of Gennesaret. The Haddock is found,
like the Cod, in the Northern Ocean, but does not enter
the Baltic. It annually approaches the British shores in
February and March, in order to deposit its spawn. The
regularity with which it reappears in some districts, on a
stated day, is quite remarkable. On the coast of York¬
shire, since the year 1766, it has made its annual appear¬
ance on the 10th of December. To this place it comes in
such numbers as to form an immense shoal 3 miles broad,
and extending 80 miles in length—from Flamborough Head
to the mouth of the Tyne. It is in autumn that they visit
the shores of Holland and East Friesland, and the neigh¬
bourhood of Heligoland. The Haddock frequents our
coasts during the greater part of the year, although the
largest are taken in the winter. Its flea, is generally best
in the months of May and June, and is greatly superior on
the east coast of Scotland than when taken in the southern
parts of the English Channel. On the coast of Hampshire
it is a very inferior fish.
Morrhua callarias, the Dorse, is smaller than the Had¬
dock, resembles the Whiting in taste, and is by many con¬
sidered to be the best fish for the table of all this family.
It is in great request on the coasts of the Baltic. It fre¬
quents the mouths of large rivers, and ascends them with
the salt tide in June. The Morrhua lusca and harhata,
Bib and Whiting Pout, are considered by one so well ac¬
quainted with the British fishes as Mr Yarrell, to be but one
species, and are well known on the English coast, being
brought in considerable quantities to the market. They are
in best condition for the table in November and December.
Merlangus vulgaris, Whiting (Merlan, Fr.), is valued on
account of its abundance, and the wholesomeness and fine
flavour of its flesh. Its fishery lasts the whole year, but is
most plentiful in January and February, and is generally
carried on within a mile or two of the shore. Merlangus
carbonarius, Cole-fish {Kohlfisch, Germ.) The flesh of
the young is rather delicate; that of the adult is somewhat
leathery, but it is used when salted and dried, like the Cod.
I his is the Podleg, Silloch, Cuddy, &c., of our coasts. The
young swarm along the British shores, and form a frequent Classifica-
sustenance of the lower orders of the Western Highlands tlon—^na'
On one occasion we killed 33 dozen with the rod in a few canths>
hours, using a line with 6 small flies. By giving the line
one or two additional turns through the water, we frequently
pulled 6 ashore at once. It even constitutes an important
article of exportation from our northern coasts. In Norway
the poor feed upon it; and oil is made from its liver. The
adult fish is taken principally in summer; it deposits its
spawn in this country in February and March. The Coal-
fish is found in the North Atlantic and Pacific Oceans ;
and sometimes, though very rarely, in the Mediterranean
Sea,—for example, near Nice. Merlangus pollachius, the
Pollock or Pollack, about 18 inches long; resembles M.
carbonanus in its general form. Its flesh is considered
better than that of the Coal-fish, and inferior only to that
of the Dorse and Whiting; it inhabits the Atlantic, and
is gregarious. It is commonest on the coasts of Norway
and the north of England, and sometimes occurs in the
Mediterranean in winter. It is easily caught with a white fly.
Of the Merluccius vulgaris, or Common Hake, great
numbers are taken in the ocean, and in the Mediterranean.
On the coasts of the Mediterranean it is called Merlan or
Whiting; and, when dried, it receives in the north the
name of Stock-fish, in the same way as the Cod. It is said
to be very abundant in the Bay of Galway, on the west of
Ireland, and at Penzance in Cornwall. The flesh is white
and flaky, and its liver is considered a delicacy.
The Brosmius vulgaris, Tusk, or Torsk, is common in
the Shetland seas, but seldom comes so far south as the
Firth of Forth. It is a most excellent fish for the table
when newly caught, being far superior to the Cod, but rarely
appears in the southern markets. It cures well. Molva,
or Lota molua, is the only fresh-water fish of this family
which exists in England, and is very local, being confined
to a few rivers mostly of the midland counties. It is named
the Burbot and Coney-fish, and its flesh is said to be good.
One, or perhaps two species frequent the northern waters of
the American continent, but their flesh, though wholesome, is
lightly esteemed in a country which abounds in Coregoni and
Trout of the richest flavour. The roe, which is remarkable
for the smallness of its eggs, makes a substantial bread when
pounded and mixed with a proportion of flour. The Ame¬
rican fish is named Methy, and furnishes names for many
rivers and lakes of that country. It is voracious, and feeds
much on fresh-water Cray-fish.
The Gadoid family is scarcely known near the equator,
but reappears again in the higher southern latitudes in the
same generic forms though differing in species, and doubt¬
less fisheries of these useful fishes will hereafter be esta¬
blished on the Australian coasts, when the submarine sand¬
banks come to be known, and the increase of population
raises a greater demand for fish. The subjoined woodcut
represents the Lota breviuscula from the Bay of Islands,
New Zealand.
Fig. 90.
Lota breviuscula.
Sub-Order II.—THORACICI.
Family I.—GADIDA5.
Body moderately elongated. Scales small, soft. Head naked.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
270
Classifica- No spines in the fins. Jaws and front of the vomer with pointed
tion—Ana- teeth, of unequal height, producing card-like or raduliform patches.
canths. Branchiostegals seven. One or more dorsal fins. Stomach capa-
v. ■> cious, caecal; pancreatic caeca numerous. A large air-bladder with
strong walls, often denticulated at the sides; a large branch of the
caeliac artery perforates the fibrous coat of the air-bladder, and
divides into a dense network inclosing long corpuscles with fine
villiform processes, producing together one of the organs named
vaso-ganglion, which exists in the air-bladders of many other
fishes.
ANALYTICAL TABLE OF THE GADIDJE (Dum.)
Dorsal single.
Vertical fins separate   Brosmius 7.
Vertical fins united  Brotula. 8.
Dorsals several.
Dorsals two.
Barbels three; one rostral  Motella 6.
Barbels one.
Jugulars of many rays  Lota 5.
Jugulars of one forked ray  Phycis 10.
Barbels none; one anal  Merluccius 4.
Dorsals three.
Anals two.
Barbels conspicuous  { c> } 1.
Barbels none  Merlangus 3.
Genus I. Gadus, lAnn.partim. (Morrhua,Qxi\.') Three dorsal
fins; two anals ; a symphysial mandibular barbel.
Genus II. Gadiculus, Guich. Resembles Morrhua in the fins,
but the barbels are wanting, as in Merlangus. Body elongated,
compressed. Head small, scaleless; jaw teeth pointed, ranged in
many rows. Chiefly distinguished by the bigness of the eyes, and
the want of vomerine teeth: the mandible projects a little. Al¬
giers.
Genus III. Merlangus, Cuv. Gadi, without barbels.
Genus IV. Merluccius, Cuv. Two dorsal fins; one anal fin.
No barbels.
Genus V. Lota, Cuv. Two dorsal fins; one anal fin. Barbels.
Genus VI. Motella, Cuv. Number of fins as in Lota, but the
first dorsal scarcely perceptible.
Genus VII. Brosmius, Cuv. A single long dorsal reaching
very near to the caudal.
Genus VIII. Brotula, Cuv. Vertical fins uniting at the end
of the tail to form one pointed fin.
Genus IX. Ateleopus, Schleg. Snout very thick over the
mouth, which is protrusive beneath. A band of card-like teeth
above and below; vomer and palatines toothless. Ventrals on the
throat one-rayed; a small dorsal over the pectorals; anal very long;
caudal small. Japan.
Genus X. Phycis, Artedi, Schneid. Ventrals of a single ray,
which is often forked. Head large. A symphysial mandibular
barbel. Two dorsals, the second one long.
Genus XI. Raniceps, Cuv. Head more depressed than in other
genera of this family. Anterior dorsal almost concealed in the
thickness of the skin.
Genus XII. Bythites, Rein. Body compressed, thicker an¬
teriorly. Profile of head bluntly rounded. Tail ensiform, tapering
to a point. Scales minute, round, imbricated. Lateral line inter¬
rupted over the anus. Teeth acute on the premaxillaries, mandible,
vomer, and palatines. Branchiostegals eight, the membranes uniting
under the isthmus with a free edge; gill-openings very large.
Arentrals jugular, of one filiform ray, each very long; vertical fins
united, without any distinction of the caudal; rays jointed, divided.
A very thick, conical, three-pointed papilla projected backwards
behind the anus. No pneumatic tube to the air-bladder. One
species.
MACROURIDS.
This family consists of a single genus, which stands next
to the Gadoids in the Regne Animal, and certainly has many
portions of structure of a similar character, particularly
the turning down of the edge of the suborbitars, but these
bones are much more developed than in Gadus, and their
reverted plates appear on the surface of the cheek covered
with rough scales. I he Macrourids are inhabitants of deep
water like most of the Gadoids, and have not been disco¬
vered near the equator, though they exist in both the north¬
ern and southern hemispheres, and in the Pacific as well as
Atlantic divisions of the ocean. Figures 30, 32, 33, and Classifica-
34 represent the scales of several Macrouri, remarkable fortion—Ana-
their discal spines, but differing from the ciliated scales canths-
named Ctenoid. The subjoined woodcut represents Ma-
crourus australis.
Fig. 91.
Macrourus australis.
Family II.—MACROURID^E.
Turbinals largely developed, forming, by apposition of their
plates, a thin, high, mesial crest, and a lateral wing-like process on
each side; these, in conjunction with the reverted plate of the pre-
orbitar, support a more or less elongated snout, which is generally,
perhaps always, acute. Body highest and fullest at the pectoral
region, compressed and dagger-shaped posteriorly, or tapering to
an acute point. Ventrals, pectorals, and first dorsal, in a vertical
line; first dorsal short and high; anal and second dorsal long and
even, uniting at the point of the tail without any distinction of
caudal. Anus^in the anterior quarter of the fish. Teeth fine, villi¬
form on the jaws; palatines, vomer, and tongue edentate; mouth
horizontal, inferior behind the projecting snout; premaxillaries
forming the border of the upper jaw, and protractile directly down¬
wards, their long pedicels moving under a vault formed by the
turbinals ; maxillaries behind the premaxillaries, gliding partially
under the reverted edge of the preorbitar. Scales studded with
acute spines, varying in form and number with the species. Eye
large ; head encased by the scaly surfaces of muciferous bones.
Branchiostegals six. Stomach globular; numerous pancreatic
casca.
Genus I. Macrourus, Bloch. (Lepidoleprus, Risso.) Nine
or ten species in the temperate and colder seas of the northern and
southern hemispheres.
REMORA FAMILY.
The Echeneididce stand in Cuvier’s Regne Animal next
to the Discoboles, but Muller has transferred the latter to
Gobiidce, making them a subordinate tribe under the appel¬
lation of Cyclopodi, and associating with them generally the
fishes that have disks which can be used as suckers. Bo¬
naparte places the Echeneides as a group subordinate to his
Gadi. The absence of spinous rays seems to point out the
Anacanthini as their most appropriate order, but the same
reason might bring several Gobioid genera with them. One
species, however, of Echeneis has bony compressed rays in
the pectoral, terminated by a little crenulated disk, and some
have considered the disk on the head in this genus to be
a modified first dorsal fin.
The extraordinary power possessed by this fish {Echeneis
remora), of adhering tenaciously to any flattish surface, was
known to ancient writers, as well as to the curious inquirers
of modern times. Pliny luxuriates upon it with his usual
discursive verbosity, and the reader may possibly be amused
by Philemon Holland’s translation of the passages in ques¬
tion :—“ Having so far proceeded in the discourse of na¬
ture’s historic, that I am now arrived at the very height of
her forces, and come into a world of examples, I cannot
chuse but in the first place consider the power of her ope¬
rations, and the infinitnesse of her secrets, which offer them¬
selves before our eyes in the sea : for in no part else of this
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- universal frame is it possible to observe the like majestic
ti0I1_tifna" °f nature : insomuch> as need not seeke any farther, nay,
cantns. we 0Ugjlt not to more search jnto ]ler divinitie, con-
sidering there cannot be found any thing equall or like unto
this one element, wherein she hath surmounted and gone
beyond her own selfe in a wonderfull number of respects.
For, first and foremost, is there any thing more violent than
the sea; and namely when it is troubled with blustring
winds, whirlepuffs, storms, and tempests; or wherein hath
the wit ot man been more employed (seeke out all parts of
the known world) than in seconding the waves and billows
of the sea, by saile and ore ? Finally, is there ought more
admirable than the inerrable force of the reciprocal! tides
of the sea, ebbing and flowing as it doth, whereby it keep-
eth a current also, as it were the stream of some great
river ? b
The current of the sea is great, the tide much, the
winds vehement and forcible; and more than that, ores
and sailes withall to help forward the rest, are mightie and
power full: and yet there is one little sillie fish, named
Echeneis,. that checketh, scorneth, and arresteth them all.
Let the winds blow as much as they will, rage the storms
and tempests w'hat they can, yet this little fish commaundeth
their furie, restraineth their puissance, and, maugre all their
force, as great as it is, compelleth ships to stand still: a thing
which no cables, be they never so big and able as they will,
can perform. She bridleth the violence and tameth the
greatest rage of this universall world, and that without any
paine that she putteth herselfe unto, without any holding
or putting backe, or any other meanes save only by cleav¬
ing and sticking fast to a vessell: in such a sort as this one
small and poore fish is sufficient to resist and withstand so
great a power both of sea and navie, yea and to stop the
passage of a ship, doe they all what they can possible to the
contrarie. What should our fleets and armadoes at sea
make such turrets in their decks and forecastles? what
should they fortifie their ships in warlike manner, to fight
from them upon the sea, as it were from mure and rampier
on firme land ? See the vanitie of man ! alas, how foolish
are we to make all this adoe ? When one little fish, not
above half a foot long is able to arrest and stay per force,
yea, and hold as prisoners, our goodly tall and proud ships,
so well armed in the beakehead wfith yron pikes and brazen
tines; so offensive and dangerous to bouge and pierce any
enemie ship which they doe encountre. Certes, reported
it is, that in the naval battaile before Actium, wherein An-
tonim, and Cleopatra the queene, were defeited by Augus¬
tus, one of these fishes staied the admirall ship wherein JSA.
Antonius was, at what time as he made all the hast and
meanes he could devise with help of ores to encourage his
people from ship to ship, and could not prevaile, untill he
was forced to abandon the said admirall, and go into ano¬
ther galley. Meanwhile the armada of Augustus Ccesar,
seeing this disorder, charged with greater violence, and
soone invested the fleete of Antonie. Of late daies also,
and within our remembrance, the like happened to the roiall
ship of the Emperor Caius Caligula, at what time as he
rowed backe, and made saile from Astura to Antium ; when
and where this little fish detained his ship, and (as it fell out
afterward) presaged an unfortunate event thereby : for this
was the last time that ever this emperour made his returne
to Rome : and no sooner was he arrived, but his own soul-
diours in a mutinie fell upon him and stabbed him to death.
And yet it was not long ere the cause of this wonderfull
staie of his ship was knowne : for so soon as ever the vessel
(and a galliace it was, furnished with five bankes of ores to
a side) was perceived alone in the fleete to stand still, pre-
sentlie a number of tall fellows leapt out of their ships into
the sea, to search what the reason might be that it stirred
not; and found one of these fishes sticking fast to the very
helme : which being reported unto Caius Caligula, he
fumed and fared as an emperour, taking great indignation
that so small a thing as it should hold him back perforce,
and check the strength of all his mariners, notwithstanding
there were no fewer than foure hundred lustie men in his
galley that laboured at the ore all that ever they could to
the contrarie. But this prince (as it is for certain knowne)
was most astonied at this, namely, that the fish sticking only
to the ship, should hold it fast; and the same being brought
into the ship and there laid, not worke the like effect. They
who at that time and afterward saw the fish, report that it
resembled for all the w'orld a snaile of the greatest making:
but as touching the form and sundrie kinds thereof, many
have written diversly, whose opinions I have set downe in
my treatise of living creatures belonging to the waters, and
namely in the particular discourse of this fish : neither doe
I doubt but all the sorte of fishes are able to doe as much:
for this we are to believe, that Pourcellans also be of the
same veitue, since it was well knowne by a notorious ex¬
ample, that one of them did the like by a ship sent from
Periander to the Cape of Gnidos: in regard whereof, the
inhabitants of Gnidos doe honour and consecrat the said
Porcellane within their temples of Venus. Some of our
Latin writers do call the said fish that thus staieth a ship, by
the name of Remora.”
Another species, Echeneis naucrates, Linn., commonly
called the Indian Remora, has usually twenty-two plates
upon the head. In its habits it resembles the preceding;
but it seems to be more frequent in the seas of India and
America than in those of Europe. The manuscripts of
Commerson, as quoted by Count Lacepede, inform us that
it is common along the coasts of Mosambique, where it is
made use of in a singular way for the purpose of catching
turtles. A ring is first fastened round its tail, and then a
long cord is attached to the ring. When thus accoutred,
the fish, placed in a vessel of sea-water, is carried out in a
boat; and as soon as the fishermen perceive a sleeping
turtle, they row gently towards it, and throw the Remora
into the water, with a sufficient length of cord. It seldom
fails speedily to attach itself to the unconscious turtle, which
by the tenacity of its adherence is immediately drawn to¬
wards the boat and captured.
Family III.—ECHENEIDIDiE, Bonap.
Remarkable and peculiar in having a flat head occupied on the
dorsal aspect by a laminated disk that forms an adhesive sucker by
which the Echeneis can attach itself to ships or other fishes, most
commonly to the large Sharks. Body elongated, tapering much
towards the tail; scaly. Dorsal single, malacopterous opposite to
the anal. Eyes lateral. Mouth small, horizontal; mandible pro¬
jecting; teeth on the premaxillaries and mandible villiform or
fine card-like; a row of hair-like teeth on the edge of the max-
illaries, which form the sides of the upper jaw ; villiform teeth on
the front of the vomer and the surface of that bone, and of the
tongue rough. Branchiostegals eight. Stomach caical, large; a wide,
short intestine ; no air-bladder. The laminae of the disk are spin¬
ous on the edges, the spines being in most species very short and
slender; the number of laminae varies in different species.
Genus I. Echeneis, Linn.
FLOUNDER FAMILY.
Though the Pleuronectidce do not require the same ar¬
maments for deep-sea fishing that the Gadoids do, yet they
are of great importance to our maritime population, and
give employment to large bodies of fishermen at most parts
of the coast. Ihese fish abound in comparatively shallow
water, where the bottom is sandy, though some of the
largest, as the I urbot and Holibut, are taken further out to
sea. As they feed habitually at the bottom, the Flounders
are chiefly captured by trawlers. Mr Yarrell states that
London alone pays L.15,000 a-year to the Danes for lob¬
sters to make sauce for the Turbots brought to the London
271
Classifica¬
tion—Ana-
canths.
272
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- market, which amount, according to the same authority, to
tion— 88,000 in a season. Pennant has particularly described the
Acanthop- extensive Turbot fishery at Scarborough. There are three
Fishe« men in each of the fishing-boats, each man having tlnee
v ^ , HneS) and each line 280 hooks. All the nine lines are fas-
^ v tened to<>-ether, and then extended to about three miles in
length ; they are laid across the current, and are allowed to
remain for six hours before they are hauled in. This fish is
called the Water or Sea Pheasant, by the French common
people, on account of its fine flavour.
Family IV.—PLEURONECTIDA3.
Peculiar among fishes in showing a want of symmetry in the
head, the eyes being turned to that side, which is uppermost when
the animal swims, and is always darker-coloured than the other
side. Body extremely compressed, so that the ventral and dorsal
aspects are mere edges, the sides forming disks, round, oval, ovate,
or elliptical, differently coloured, the paler one simulating the
belly, and being beneath in the usual position of the fish. Dorsal
extending along the whole back, and in some running forwards to
the nostrils ; anal fringing in the sam eway the ventral edge; jaws
and ventrals generally unsymmetrical, being smaller on the pale
side. Branchiostegals six. The presphenoid is twisted to one side,
and the mid-frontal is one of the most distorted bones in the cra¬
nium of these fishes. There is no want of symmetry in the spinal
column and its processes posterior to the scapular arch; the inter-
neural and interhmmal spines are in pairs, supporting one dermo-
neural or dermohaemal spine. No air-bladder.
ANALYTICAL TABLE OF THE PLEURONECTIDJ2 (Dum.)
Body rhomboidal.
Dorsal over the eyes which are dextral.
Teeth broad, trenchant  Platessa 1.
Teeth villiform  Hippoglossus 2.
Dorsal over the upper lip ; eyes sinistral  Rhombus 3.
Body oval, or much elongated.
Pectorals very distinct, on both sides  Solea 4.
Pectorals distinct on one side only  MONOCHIR 5.
Pectorals wanting.
Vertical fins separated  Achirus 6.
Vertical fins united  Plagiusa 7.
Genus I. Platessa, Cuv. Obtuse, trenchant, uniserial teeth on
the jaws; most frequently pavement-like teeth on the pharyngeals.
Dorsal not coming further forward than the centre of the upper
eye ; caudal separated by intervals from the dorsal and anal. Form
rhomboidal. Eyes generally on the right side. Pancreatic cmca
three, small.
Genus II. Hippoglossus, Cuv. Fins of Platessa, with gene¬
rally a more oblong form. Teeth card-like, often strong and
pointed on the jaws and pharyngeals.
Genus III. Rhombus, Cuv. Teeth on the jaws and pharyngeals
villiform, or card-like, as in Hippoglossus, but the dorsal comes
forward to the border of the upper jaw, and extends like the
anal to near the caudal. Eyes for the most part on the left side.
Gknus IV. Solea, Cuv. Mouth curved and turned almost
wholly to the blind side of the head ; teeth situated on that side
only, finely villiform ; form oblong ; snout round, and almost always
advancing before the mouth. Dorsal commencing at the mouth and
extending like the anal to the caudal. Lateral line straight. Blind
side of the head often garnished with cutaneous shreds like villi. In¬
testine long, often doubled ; no pancreatic caeca. In some the caudal
is not distinct from the other two vertical fins. These form the
genus Brachirus of Swainson, or Synaptura of Cantor.
Genus V. Monochir, Cuv. iSWes destitute of a pectoral on the
blind side, or having merely an almost imperceptible vestige of one,
the pectoral on the side of the eyes being very small.
Genus VI. Achirus, Lacep. Abrachial Soles, with the vertical
fins distinct.
Genus VII. Plagusia, Brown. Abrachial Soles, with the ver¬
tical fins united.
Order V.—ACANTHOPTEROUS FISHES.
perature, depth, altitude above the sea, or other circum- Classifica-
stances. There is certainly some connection between the
ciliated scales with which the great majority of fishes of this
order are clothed, and the spinous terminations or serrated FisheS.
edges of many of the bones of the head and shoulder which y
appear on the surface, and assume more or less the condi¬
tions and functions of dermal productions. The ctenoid
scale, however common it may be in the order, is not uni¬
versal, and the first family, the Uranoscopes have chiefly
cycloid scales. The absence of a pneumatic tube to the air-
bladder is perhaps a more constant character, but the viscus
itself is not always present. The ventral fins are, when
they exist, placed, in the majority, near the pectorals-
Order V.—ACANTHOPTERI, Mull.
Endo-skeleton ossified ; exo-skeleton as ctenoid scales. Fins with
one or more of the first rays unjointed or inflexible spines ; ventrals
in most beneath or in advance of the pectorals. Swim-bladder
without air-duct.
URANOSCOPIDiE.
The Uranoscopes are remarkable for their power of raising
their eyeballs out of their sockets, and of retracting them
again within the level of the orbits. I hey frequent the
bottom of the sea, and, like many ground fish, some of them
have organs of touch developed in form ot barbels, and
they have also a peculiar membranous filament under the
tongue, which they can protrude at pleasure. 1 he Medi¬
terranean Uranoscope was named Agnus and Callionymus
by the ancient Romans, and Pliny says that the same fish
was called Callionymus and Vranoscopus. Aristotle re¬
marks correctly that the gall-bladder of this fish is attached
to the right lobe of the liver, and is of greater size than in
other fishes; and the dramatic poets referred to it proverbi¬
ally when alluding to an angry man. Its gall was supposed
to have some power of rendering the sight more clear, of re¬
moving deafness, and ot depressing the fungus growths of
old sores. The species are more numerous in the Australian
seas than in any other quarter of the ocean. Trachinus
has some resemblance in external characters to the Sclero-
genidce, especially in the simplicity and thickness of the
lower pectoral rays, and in the projection of the tips of the
anal rays beyond the membrane, but they are distinguished
by the second suborbitar not crossing the cheek to the pre¬
operculum. The Uranoscopes, indeed, make an approach
to this peculiar structure, but in them the suborbitar articu¬
lates with the upper limb of the preoperculum, and does
not buttress its angle, as in the true Sclerogenids. 1 he pro¬
jecting tips of the anal rays occurring in many ground
fishes are seemingly organs of touch. 1 he family gene¬
rally, as here assembled, corresponds with Cuvier s group
of Jugular Percoids, but we have brought into it Hemero-
ccetes, which is placed at the end of the Gobioids, next Cal¬
lionymus, in the Histoire des Poissons, and also an Aus¬
tralian fresh-water genus Gadopsis not described in that
work. The internal structure of several of the genera must
be investigated before the correctness of this grouping can
be ascertained. None of the family are of importance as
articles of food. The woodcut No. 46 represents Vranosco-
pus macropygus, an Australian species, which has no fiist
dorsal; the head of Bovichthys is represented by No. 45,
drawn to show the branching mucoducts; a scale of Ga¬
dopsis is shown by No. 26; and one from the lateral line
of Hemeroccetes by No. 43.
This order, the most extensive of all for the variety of Family I.—URANOSCOPLILE.
forms and number of species, includes fishes under every - Trachinidce, Bonap. Y^entrals composed of a spine and five
condition that a fish can exist, whether it be with regard to jointed rays, situated before the pectorals (in Trichodon and Sillago a
the freshness or saltness of the water it inhabits, its tern- little behind the pectorals). Scales cycloid, or wanting, acanthoptery-
Fishes.
Classifica- gii. Anus generally before the middle of the fish, and the tail often
tion— considerably longer than the body. One or two dorsals ; edges of the
Acanthop- preorbitar and preopercular pieces entire ; not serrated : sometimes
terous a strong spine from the surface of the operculum or from the
shoulder. Mouth formed above entirely by the premaxillaries
with the maxillaries in the membrane behind them; teeth on the
jaws and vomer; palatine teeth in some present, in others none
liranchiostegals six or seven, rarely five. Abdominal cavity some¬
times prolonged past the anus; no air-bladder; cmcal stomach •
pancreatic caeca three to twelve, or more, sometimes none (Hemero-
Genus I. Trachinus, Linn. Head compressed ; a strong oner-
cular spine. Villiform teeth on the jaws, on the anterior point ofthe
vomer, on the fore end of the palatines, on the entopterygoid on the
pharyngeals, and on the short tubercles of the branchial’arches.
Cranium more or less rough, and the suprascapular finely denti-
culated. A small spinous dorsal far forward, and not connected
to the soft dorsal. Abdominal cavity of small extent Four
species.
Genus II. Percis, Bloch. Trachini, with the head more de¬
pressed and the spinous and soft dorsal joined ; vomerine, but no
palatine teeth; somewhat of a Labroid aspect. Some were described
Labn by Schneider, and Bloch named another Enchehtopus con¬
ceiving it to be a Gadoid fish. Cavity of the abdomen not exten¬
sive. Fifteen species.
Genus III. Pinouipes, Cuv. The Labroid aspect of this
genus is striking. Lips thick, covering the strong, conical, and
somewhat curved teeth. A single dorsal spinous in front, without
a notch between. Vomerine and palatine teeth. Three species
Genus IV. Uranoscopus, Linn. Head large, cubical, bony
rough and sculptured, depressed with the protractile eyes on the
dorsal aspect. Mouth cleft vertically, so that the mandible forms
the extremity when it is closed against the abbreviated snout. Sub-
orbitars large, cuirassing the cheeks,but attached to the temples, and
not forming a fulcrum to the spinous preoperculum as in the Sclero-
genidcB. Scales small, cycloid. Nominally two dorsals, but some
species want the spinous one. A humeral spine, which in some is
large and crenated. Some have a barbel at the symphysis of the
mandible externally, and some have a filament under the tongue
within the mouth. Branchiostegals six. Stomach ceecal; pancrea-
tic caeca numerous (twelve). Seventeen species.
Genus V. Bovichthys. External aspect of Gottu,. Head large,
depressed, rounded, with large eyes near the dorsal plane. Mouth
terminal; villiform teeth on the jaws, vomer, and palatines, the
outer row on the jaws being thicker and taller. No scales. Skin
very porous, mucoducts disposed in branching lines on the head
and strongly prominent along the lateral line. Branchiostegals
seven. Fins large, the two dorsals contiguous; five lower pectoral
rays, and all the anal rays, except the two posterior ones, simple
and projecting beyond the notched membrane; the pectoral re¬
sembling that fin in Oottus, and the anal that of Trachinus. Oper¬
culum ending in a large flat spinous point, clothed with skin ; no
other particular armature of the head; a curved spine from the front
of the operculum being quite hidden by the soft parts.
Genus VI. Percophis, Cuv. A long slender fish resembling
Sphyr&na. Head pointed; mandible prominent; teeth strong,
curved ones in front of villiform bands in the jaws ; teeth also on
the vomer and palatines. Anus at the end of the anterior third of
the whole length. First dorsal posterior to the base of the pectorals
at a little distance fi’om the long soft dorsal; anal longer than the
latter. A small opercular spine. Branchiostegals seven. Scales cili¬
ated. Abdominal cavity prolonged to a considerable distance be¬
yond the anus; stomach csecal. One species.
Genus VII. Hemeroccetes, Cuv. Form elongated, slender,
roundish, tapering but slightly towards the tail, with a long even
dorsal and anal separated from the caudal. Dorsal rays all simple
and jointed ; anal rays branched at the tips, like those of Trachinus ;
ventrals before the pectorals of one spine and five jointed rays.
Head depressed ; eyes large, prominent, partly on the dorsal aspect,
near together ; mouth protractile, and when thrust out the upper
ends of the maxillaries project upwards like spines. Branchioste¬
gals seven. Teeth setaceous, in villiform bands on the premaxil¬
laries, mandible, anterior corners of the vomer, pharyngeals
above and below, and palatines. Tongue and isthmus of the’gills
smooth. Head unarmed, together with the body, scaly. A row of
pores on the preoperculum. Stomach cascal; intestine short, making
but one flexure; no pancreatic casca. One species.
Genus VIII. Gadopsis, Rich. Aspect of Gadus. Scales cycloid
extending to the cheeks and gill-covers. A single dorsal with spin¬
ous rays in front; anal with three spinous rays ; one bifid, jointed
ventral ray without a spine, situated far forward on the’ throat.
Head unarmed. Branchiostegals six. Teeth card-like on the pre-
xnaxxllaries, vomer, palatines, and mandible. A fresh-water Aus¬
tralian fish.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
GenusIX. Aphritis, Cuv. andValenc. Body elongated. Dorsals
two, separated. Mouth rather small; close, short, villiform teeth on
the jaws, palatines, and chevron of the vomer. The absence of
strong-pointed teeth distinguishes this genus from Percophis; the
presence of palatine teeth separates it from Percis, and the two dor¬
sals from Gadopsis ; the scales appearing to be ciliated when viewed
through a lens rather throws a doubt of the propriety of placing the
genus in this group. Branchiostegals six. Stomach caecal; four
pancreatic casca. A fresh-water Tasmanian fish.
Genus X. Tiuchodon, Stel. General aspect of Uranoscopus.
(ive preopercular spines ; operculum ending in a flat point. Head
flat above ; mouth descending almost vertically, and, when shut, hav¬
ing the mandible in front; eyes lateral, not on the dorsal aspect as in
Lraiioscopus. No scales. Ventrals thoracic. Cheek not cuirassed
by the suborbitars ; teeth in card-like bands (individually slender
pointed, and recurved) on the jaws and front of the vomer, but the
palatines are toothless, as is also the tongue. Two dorsals separated
y a short interval; several of the lower pectoral rays simple.
Inve branchiostegals. One species.
Genus XL Sillago,Cuv. Acanthopteri, with along conical head
and rather depressed snout, terminated by the fleshy lips of a
small mouth. Two continuous dorsals, the second long and low
Upper jaw somewhat protractile, and the mandible articulated con¬
siderably before the eye; teeth on the jaws villiform, with an outer
row of conical ones. A villiform band on the front of the vomer •
preoperculum denticulated on the ascending edge, curving over the
throat so as nearly to touch its fellow. Six branchiostegals. Scales
ciliated, covering the opercula, cheeks, and upper part of the head
behind the eyes. Cmcal stomach ; pancreatic caeca from two to
lour ; a large forked air-bladder. Ten species. Cuvier is uncer¬
tain about the proper position of this genus, but thinks that it is
most allied to the Sciatnida: with which it might be placed were it
not for its vomerine teeth. It is put here at the end of the Urano-
scopidce chiefly because no more eligible situation offers.
PERCOIDS.
273
Classifica¬
tion—
Acanthop-
terous
Fishes.
VOL. XII.
Few families of fish have been more fully investigated by
ichthyologists than this one, yet the vast number of spe¬
cies that belong to it is embarrassing to students, and the
strong external characters which many possess have with¬
drawn the attention from the more important varieties
of structure, to slight serratures of the opercular bones,
or the greater or smaller size of the scales on some parts
of the head, and other slight modifications of the sur¬
face, which are obvious to the eye indeed, and therefore
useful for subdividing a genus containing many species,
but are not of themselves sufficient to establish generic
groups or other divisions of higher importance. These
comparatively unimportant external characters have how¬
ever been too generally employed for this purpose, and the
importance of the want of teeth on the roof of the mouth
having been too rigidly insisted upon, as a variety of struc-
tuie of family rank, has caused the wide separation of spe¬
cies nearly connected by aspect, habits, and general confor¬
mation. Many Percoids have been placed with the Sciae-
noids merely because the minute teeth of the palate are
early deciduous. On the other hand, forms have been
brought together by a few technical characters which have
comparatively little natural affinity, and an ichthyologist
who is intimately acquainted with ichthyic anatomy hat a
wide field before him where he may render great 'service
by reducing the at present heterogeneous assemblages to
more fitting order. In the mean time we shall, with a few
exceptions, follow our principal authorities—Muller for the
general arrangement, and the Histoire des Poissons for the
generic groups. We have found it convenient to intro¬
duce into our table, as distinct families, the Percoids of
Cuvier which have more or fewer branchiostegals than
seven; or whose ventrals vary in composition from the
normal number of five articulated rays, or depart from
their usual position in this family under the pectorals. The
useful analytical table given in the Histoire des Poissons,
abbreviated by the removal of these groups, will remain as
follows:—
2 M
274
ICHTHYOLOGY.
table of genera.
Classifica-
Acanthop- Two dorsals, or one dorsal notched to its base.
All the teeth villiform.
Perca Lates, Enoplosus, Diploprion, Niphon,
Labrax, Centropomus, Huron, Grammistes,
Aspro, Ambassis, Apogon, Cnidon, Psammo-
PERCA, PRIOP1S, MlCRO'iCHTHYS, BOGODA, POMA-
TOMUS.
Canine teeth among the others.
Cheilodipterus, Lucioperca, Etelis.
A single dorsal.
Canine teeth among the others.
Serranus, Plectropoma, Diacope, Mesoprion, Ap-
RION.
Teeth all villiform.
Centropristes, Grystes, Polyprion, Pentaceros,
Acerina, Rhypticus, Aulacocephalus, Apsilus,
Glaucosoma.
Fig. 92.
Perca fluviatilis.
The common Perch {Perca jluviatilis, Linn.), one of
the most beautiful of the fresh-water fishes of Europe, is too
familiarly known to require description. It inhabits both
lakes and rivers, but shuns salt water. As an article of
food it is still in some estimation, although the character
given of it in that respect by Ausonius is higher than ac¬
cords with modern views. The female deposits her ova,
united together by a viscid matter, in lengthened stiings,
a peculiarity noted by Aristotle. The number of these
eo-gs sometimes amounts to nearly a million. 1 he Perch
occurs over all Europe, and most of the northern districts
of Asia. Pennant alludes to one said to have been taken in
the Serpentine River, in Hyde Park, which weighed nine
pounds. But even one half of that weight would be re¬
garded as extraordinary, and Pennant reports the fact on
the authority of another.
Fig. 93.
Labrax lupus.
The fish here represented is the Labrax lupus, Basse or
Sea Perch, a fish of a chaste and pleasing aspect, though
destitute of the more Strongly contrasted colours of the
fresh-water species. Its upper parts are gray, with bluish
reflections, which gradually shade away into a silvery
whiteness on the under surface. The pectoral fins are
slightly tinged with red. It occurs along the Dutch and
British shores, but is much more abundant in the Mediter¬
ranean. It is a voracious fish with a remarkably large
stomach, and received from the ancient Romans the appro¬
priate cognomen of lupus. By the Greeks it was highly
esteemed: Archestratus, even termed a large kind taken
near Milet, “offspring of the gods.” They attributed to
the lupus a tender regard for its own safety; and Aristotle Classifica-
says that it is the most cunning of fishes, and that when tion—
surrounded by a net it digs for itself a channel of escape Acanthop-
through the sand.
“ Clausus rete lupus quamvis immanis et acer . ^ , >
Dimotis cauda submissus sidit arenis,
Atque ubi jam transire plagas persentit in auras
Emicat atque doles saltu diludit inultus.”—Ovid.
The Basse sometimes attains the length of 3 feet, though
it is seldom met with much above half that size.
There is little that calls for attention from the other
Percoids with two dorsals. Though interesting from the
variety of forms they display, we must leave these to be
studied in their leading features as given in the annexed
table, and give the space we can allot to species of more
importance, either objects of commerce or of large fisheries,
or from the associations connected with them.
In the Histoire des Poissons, the Percoids with a single
dorsal form a second great division of the family ; and, were
it not for the break in the close affinities between the two
groups that would be caused by making this division a
separate family, the number of species that it contains might
render such a proceeding expedient as a mere matter of
convenience. Cuvier remarks that the Percoids, in which
the spinous portion of the dorsal is connected with the soft
one by a sufficiently even border, is much more numerous
in species than the typical division with two dorsals; and
he found it necessary, therefore, in arranging them, to have
recourse to characters of a sufficiently minute kind. Bloch
drew his from the denticulations of the preoperculum and
the spines of the operculum; but he has frequently used
them without judgment, and we frequently meet in his ar¬
rangement with Labroid and Scimnoid fishes stuck in among
the Percoids. The same errors exist, in greater or smaller
numbers, in the works of his successors, because they at¬
tended more than they ought to have done to external
characters, passing over the more essential conformities of
internal structure. “ Our (Cuvier’s) precautions in separating
fish whose teeth are supported by different parts of the
mouth have saved us from much of this confusion, but yet
there remained a considerable number of species which we
could divide into groups only by employing subordinate cha¬
racters. We characterized the primary divisions by the teeth,
which in some are villiform and of even height, as in Perca
and Labrax ; sometimes interspersed with canines, or teeth
a little higher and more pointed than the rest of the villi¬
form band. Next we looked to the operculum, the edge
of whose bony piece is sometimes smooth or rounded, some¬
times terminated by two or three points more or less acute.
Next we attended to the preoperculum, whose edges may
be either smooth or denticulated, or armed in various ways
with spines. Lastly, the bones of the jaws, smooth or scaly,
furnish the final subdivisions; and to distinguish certain
genera, we take characters from striking configurations of
other parts of the fish.” These are the rules which the
greatest of ichthyologists, whether ancient or modern, framed
for his guidance in the distribution of this portion of the
finny tribes. Since his labours were brought to a close
many new species have been discovered, and not a few new
forms described ; and we have therefore, as intimated above,
relieved the overloaded Percoid group by removing some
of the minor assemblages made by Cuvier himself, and
placing them under distinct family appellations. It must
be kept in mind, however, that the great mass ol Acanthop-
teri, though exceedingly numerous in species, and present¬
ing a great variety of generic forms, vary very little in the
more essential parts of structure; and that the subdivisions
which their numbers have made necessary are not of the
same value in the animal scale as others containing per¬
haps only one or two species in other parts of the table.
The Serrani, called also Sea Perches, are numerous,
Classifica- and many of them very beautiful. They abound in all the
tion— warmer seas. Anthias and Merou are “mere subdivisions
^terouT of the Senus framed on the existence of scales on the jaws
Fishes. and their greater or smaller size. In Esox, and many other
genera, subdivisions, founded on the greater or smaller ex¬
tent of the head covered by scales, would be as numerous
as the species ; but in Sevrcinus some such plan of grouping
is necessary to enable the ichythologist to describe the mul¬
titude of species he has to deal with. Some of the Serrani
were known to the ancients by the name of Perea, and
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Fig. 94.
Serranus altivelis.
still are called by the Roman fishermen by that of Percia,
and by the Venetians by that of Sperga. The Anthias
was more renowned in classical times. Aristotle says that
the fishers of Sponges called it “ sacred,” because no vora¬
cious fishes came to the places which it frequented, and
the diver might descend with safety. Pliny reports a
singular story regarding it: The fishermen of the Cheli-
donian Isles, he says, practise the feeding of this fish, always
presenting themselves in the same dress until its apprehen¬
sions are lulled, and then they introduce a hook into the
paste they had daily given it. As soon, however, as an
Anthias was deceived so as to allow itself to be hooked, its
companions came to its aid, and endeavoured to relieve it by
cutting the line with their dorsal spines, shaped like a saw.
“ Anthias his tergo quas non vidit utitur armis.
Yim spin® novitque suo verso supinus
Corpore lina secat fixumque intercipit hamum.”
Off., Halieut., 46.
The modern Greeks give the name of Anthias to the
Gymnetrus ; and it is probable that the Anthias of yElian
was the Scomberoid alalonga of the modern Italians.
Family II.—PERCIDAS.
Genus Perea, Artedi and Linn. Body oblong, scaly; scales
ctenoid; opercular bones variously armed. Seven branckiostegals.
Teeth on the vomer, and most frequently on the palatines. No bar¬
bels ; cheek not cuirassed. Ventrals of five jointed rays, thoracic or
suhbrachian. Fins always amounting to seven in number, often to
eight. Stomach c®cal, that is, the pyloric opening lateral; pancrea¬
tic cajca few in number and not bulky; intestinal canal little folded.
(«.) Two dorsals, or one dorsal with a notch extending to its
base; all the teeth villiform; no canine teeth.
Genus I. Perga, Guv. Preoperculum denticulated; operculum
spiniferous; suboperculum feebly denticulated. Tongue smooth
Fourteen species.
. Genus H- Lates, Guv. Suborbitar and coracoid strongly den¬
ticulated ; coarse denticulations at the angle and lower border of
the preoperculum. Three species.
Genus III. Cnidon. Miill. and Trosch. Agrees with Lates in
the almost total want of pseudobranchice, but is distinguished there¬
from by the entirely smooth under border of the preoperculum
whose hinder border is toothed and sends out a spine beneath. Nos¬
trils remote from each other. Scapula with only one spine and the
suborbitar scale bone nearly smooth.
Genus IV. Psammoperca, Rich. Body a handsome and regu¬
lar ellipse, the rather small head forming the acute anterior end of
the curve. Ctenoid scales rather large. Dorsal notched nearly to
the base, moving in a scaly sheath. Teeth on the jaws; vomer and pa¬
latine bones crowded, rounded,granular; tongue smooth ; cheeks and
gill-covers scaly; preorbitar entire on its edge, smooth ; angle of the
operculum running out horizontally into a short strong spine,above
which the edge of the bone is set with teeth like a comb; under limb
of the bone smooth ; a small spine on the operculum. Differs from
Perea in the form of the teeth and by the absence of a well-marked
preopercular disk ; from Percolabrax by its smooth tongue and
solitary opercular spine ; and from Lates by the absence of angular
teeth on the lower limb of the preoperculum, and by the perfectly
entire preorbitar. This genus might enter the group having a single
dorsal. One species, Australia. ° o
Genus V. Labrax, Guv. (Percolabrax, Schlegel.) Suborbi-
ars and coracoid not denticulated; two opercular spinous points.
A disk of villiform teeth on the tongue. Eight species.
. enus VI. Gentropomus, Lacep. Operculum without spinous
points. Dorsals separated by a small scaly interval. Preopercu-
ium denticulated on its posterior border, with some teeth in the
raised anterior edge of its disk. One species.
Genus VII. Enoplosus, Guv. Suborbitar denticulated. Pre¬
operculum denticulated and armed by a strong spine; operculum
vatedCOraCOld Wlth°Ut sPines- Body and vertical fins greatly ele-
Genus VIII. Diploprion, Kuhl and Van Hass. Trispinous
operculum ; operculum obtuse at the angle, with a denticulated line
on the surface of its limb and coarse denticulations on its edge; pre-
orbitar entire. One species. *
Genus IX. Grammistes, Bloch. Scales minute, enveloped in
mucoid epidermis. Dorsals near each other. Spinous preoper¬
culum and operculum ; no apparent anal spines. Two species.
Genus X. Aspro, Guv. Body elongated. Dorsals at a little
distance from each other. Snout thick, smooth, and projecting be¬
yond the mouth. Two species. r °
Genus XI. Ambassis, Commer. (G/tanda, Hamilt. Buch.) Both
the anterior and the posterior edges of the preopercular limb denti¬
culated ; a recumbent spine pointing forward in front of the dorsal;
operculum ending in a point; distinguished from Apogon by the
contiguous dorsals, and the recumbent spine before the dorsal fin.
Ao pancreatic c®ca, in which the genus departs from the ordinary
1 ercoid structure. Fourteen species.
Genus *11. Priopis, Kuhl and Van Hass. Frontal border of
the orbit serrated ; in other respects like Ambassis. One species.
Genus XIII. MiCROiCHTYS, Rupp. General aspect and the form
and position ot the fins as in Ambassis. Free border of the preoper¬
culum not denticulated; an acute ridge extending from the eye
dorsal above the scaly operculum. Lateral line commencing under
the first rays of the second dorsal; only two stiff rays in the anal.
andible projecting a little beyond the upper jaw; orifice of the
mouth moderately large, armed by a row of wholly fine teeth; no
eeth visible on the palate. Gill-openings large ; branchiostegals
Sicily Large SCaleS °n the b°dy’ 6aSiIy detached- 0ne species.
Genus XIV. Bogoda, Bleek. Separated from Ambassis by
their entire preorbital scale-bones and conical jaw-teeth, which are
bigger on the fore part of the mandible. Dorsals two, united at
the base; ventrals thoracic. Teeth on the jaws, vomer, and pala¬
tines. A recumbent spine before the dorsal. Branchiostegals six.
Anal spines three. Pseudobranchi®. Six species. Bengal
Genus XV. Niphon, Guv. Strong pointed spine at the' angle
ot the preoperculum; fine denticulations on the vertical limb and
coarse teeth on the horizontal edge of that bone. Three strong s’harn
opercular spines; serrated preorbitar. Long subelliptical’ body
Dorsals connected at the base; three anal spines.
Genus XVL Pomatomus, Risso. Somewhat of the aspect of
Mugil. Lye very large. Two short dorsals near the middle of the
back, separated from each other; anal posterior to the last one, also
short; back a little keeled in front of the dorsal. Scales ciliated
as in the rest of the family, covering the cheeks and gill-covers
Caudal deeply forked. Stomach c®cal; twenty-two pancreatic
c®ca, long, and forming two groups ; air-bladder very large sim¬
ple, with red elliptical granular bodies interiorly. One species
Genus XVII. Apogon, Lacep. Scales large, readily deciduous
Vm^rnTTh °A AUU^S' D°rSaIS tW° Sh0rt) widelY separated.
Villiform teeth. A double preopercular border finely denticulated
Pancreatic c®ca few. J aieu.
(b.) Two dorsals, or one dorsal deeply notched Long
canine teeth accompanying the villiform bands on the
jaws.
Genus XVIII. Cheilodipterus, LacSp. Have the characters
teetifon7he^lth ^ addlt.10,n of long Pointed more or less curved
also on thi v ’ TS 7 the fine villiform bands, which exist
also on the vomer and palatines. Preoperculum with a finely den-
275
Classifica¬
tion—
Acanthop-
terous
Fishes.
276
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifies ticulated line round the fore part of its hmb, as well as serratures
tion- on its hinder edge; operculum entire, without spines. We, readily
Acanthop- deciduous scales, and the dorsals well separated. Stomach large,
terous cgecal; about three pancreatic caeca. Three species.
Fishes. Genus XIX. Lucioperca, Cuv. Some of the teeth on the jaws
v  i i0nrr and pointed. Border of the preoperculum with a single line
^ of denticulations only, which are on the posterior edge of the limb.
Scales rough. Large caecal stomach ; four pancreatic caeca, r ive
Fishes.
species.
G enus XX
u Etelis, Cuv. A single short pungent point on the
operculum ; very minute serratures on the preoperculum. Curved
canine teeth on the jaws, but not on the palatines. Dorsals con¬
tiguous. Scales large. Stomach a large caecal bag ; five pancreatic
caeca; a large air-bladder, with its vasoganglions in little red
stripes.
(c.) A single dorsal; canine teeth among the others.
Genus XXL Serranus, Cuv. Preoperculum rounded at the
anirle, denticulated on the horizonal portion of the curve, as well
as on the ascending one ; two or more spinous points on the oper¬
culum. Jaws not scaly. Twenty-six species.
Genus XXII. Anthias, Bloch. Serrani of small size, and gene¬
rally brilliant colours. Head and jaws scaly, the maxillary being
densely covered with conspicuous scales. Six species.
Genus XXIII. Merou, Cuv. Serrani of larger size generally
than Serranus proper, or Anthias. Operculum with two, or mostly
three, spines. Very small scales on the mandible. One hundred
and forty species.
Genus XXIV. Plectropoma, Cuv. Serratures on the lower
border of the preoperculum turned obliquely forwards, and some¬
what resembling the denticulations of a cock’s comb. Upper border
mostly entire. In other characters Serrani. Operculum spinous.
Sixteen species. . , , , ,
Genus XXV. Diacope, Cuv. Characterized by a rounded
notch above the angle of the preoperculum which receives a small
knob of the interoperculum. In other characters Serrani. I orty
^GknuS XXVI. Mesoprion, Cuv. Serrani in fins, teeth, and
nreopercular denticulations, but with an unarmed operculum, end¬
ing in a smooth point, not spinous, nor pungent. Nearly allied to
Diacope, and many species have even the knob of the interopercu-
lum and corresponding notch in the preoperculum, but never so
distinctly formed. From Dentex, which they resemble in external
form, they are distinguished by their vomerine teeth and denticu¬
lated preoperculum. Fifty-four species. _
Genus XXVII. Aprion, Cuv. Canines on both jaws ; short
villiform teeth on the vomer and palatines. Operculum Wlth two
very small spinous points; but the preoperculum smooth-edged.
It would be almost an Etelis if its dorsal were not single; or a
Grystes, if it wanted the canines. Air-bladder ample. One
species.
(d.) A single dorsal, with villiform teeth only, and no
canines.
Genus XXVIII. Acerina, Cuv. Whole head destitute of scales.
Muciferous excavations in the bones of the cranium ; five or six in
the suborbitar chain, and more on the limbs of the mandible ; small
spinous points with sinuses between, but no serratures on the bor¬
der of the preoperculum. Two anal spines. Two species.
Genus XXIX. Pentaceros, Cuv. Body oval, high. Fre-
orbitars, opercular pieces, cranium, and coracoid, coarsely striate .
Cheek scaly. Blunt conical tuberosities over the eye and on the
occiput. Scales of the body striated and granulated, and strongly
adherent. Villiform teeth on the jaws and front of the vomer.
Ventrals wide apart, their spine very large ; five anal spines. Csecal
stomach ; nine pancreatic caeca; a large air-bladder. One species..
Genus XXX. Centropristis, Cuv. Analogous to the Serrani
in the union of characters derived from a spinous operculum, and
a serrated preoperculum. Differs from Polyprion in the absence of
a denticulated crest on the operculum, and the want of denticula¬
tions on the preorbitar. The snout, jaws, and gill-membranes are
destitute of scales, but the cranium, cheeks, and opercular pieces
are scaly, the scales on the operculum being larger than those of
the cheek. Fourteen species.
Bonneville divides this genus into three groups: Centropristis
proper, having bigger conical teeth mixed with the granular ones
on the jaws, and an interior band of vomerine teeth in a chevron.
It comprehends C. atrarius, tabaccarius, atrobranchus, hirundina-
ceus, and brasiliensis. Homodon (Arripis, Jenyns) has card-like teeth
on the jaws; an oblong, three-cornered group of vomerine teeth,
and a more elongated body. C. truttaceus, georgianus (Australian
fish). Myriodon, all the jaw-teeth equally minute ; vomerine teeth Classifica-
in a chevron. C. seorpenoides. . tion-—
Genus XXXI. Aulacocephalus, Schleg. Three spines on the Acanthop-
operculum; preoperculum strongly serrated on its horizontal bor- terous
der. Caudal fin rounded. One species.
Genus XXXII. Glaucosoma, Schleg., Rich. Aspect Scisenoid. v.
Low spinous part of dorsal, peaked soft part. Head, except e ips
and gill-membrane, densely scaly. Scales on the basal half of the
soft-rayed vertical fins. Technically Centropristis, but having a
very different general appearance. Card-like teeth on the jaws,
vomer, and palate. Scales moderately large, ctenoid. reopercu
lum crenulated; two flat, bony points to the rounded operculum.
Branchiostegals seven, occasionally eight. Two species.
Genus XXXIII. Grystes, Cuv. Centropristis, with a smooth-
edged preoperculum. Scales small, thin, embedded in the skin,
extending over great part of the fins, and covering the gill-rays,
throat, and all parts of the head, except the lips and the foids that
shut up when closed. Notch between the dorsals equal to half their
Genus XXXIV. Apsilus, Cuv. Belonging to the Percoids, with
a single dorsal, but distinguished by the total absence of true spines
or denticulations on the opercular bones, or those of the shoulder.
Teeth very fine villiform, in a narrow band on the jaws and pala¬
tines. Seven branchiostegals. Differs from Centroprzstzs in the
want of denticulations on the preoperculum, and from Grystes in
having no opercular spine. Scales thin.
Genus XXXV. Rhypticus, Cuv. No denticulations on the
operculum or preoperculum, but short spines on both. Head smooth,
without scales. Scales deeply imbedded in a muciferous skin In
other characters much like Serranus. Few spines in the dorsal. A
lono- caecal stomach, pointed at the end; six or seven pancreatic
cseca; air-bladder oval, not large. Two species. i ,
Genus XXXVI. Polyprion, Cuv. Preoperculum strongly and
irregularly denticulated, and the anterior border of its limb rough.
A strong spiny crest traverses the middle of the operculum longi¬
tudinally, and there is a less prominent point below it; the edges
of the suboperculum and interoperculum are finely denticulated
The preorbitar is also slightly crenated, and there are denj£u)*te
crests and tubercular eminences on the upper border of the orbit
and top of the cranium, with serratures on the suprascapulars and
coracoid bones, giving the head some resemblance to that of a Scor-
pcena. Stomach caecal, obtuse ; two pancreatic caeca. One species.
THERAPONIDiE.
The preceding family of Percoids contains the genus
Perea, as sketched out by Artedi and Linnaeus. I he
numerous species discovered subsequent to the days of these
naturalists, and accumulated in the rich Parisian museum,
brought to the knowledge of Cuvier many new Percoid
forms which departed more or less from the typical /W
of the older ichthyologists. In the Histoire des Poissons
these are mostly introduced as appendages to the normal
Percoids, and contain fishes with fewer branchiostegals than
seven, or with more soft ventral rays than five, or with some
other striking external peculiarity bY which they can be
distinguished as minor groups, but which differ little fro -
the true Percoids in essential internal structure. VVe have
separated one large group of these Percoid allies as they
mly be called, to form the family of Therapomda, dis in-
guished from the more typical Percoids by the characters
indicated in the table. But in the family thus brought
together, there are several minor groups very natm al m them
selves, but which do not retain a general family hkenes.,
extending to all the groups. The first three genera are
distinguished from the others by the lower rays of then
pectorals being simple, and formed evidently as orSans o
touch, and the next three genera are American fresh-wate
fish, of much beauty and neatness of aspect. 1liese a
followed by five or six genera, with generally well-armed
opercular bones; then there are several newly proposed
genera, in which a family aspect is less recognisai e, ,
lastly, ie have placed at the end of the famdy
and 'Latilus, two genera associated by Cuvier with the Su®-
noids, but which, notwithstanding the absence of teeth o
the palate in the one, and the wholly toothless mouth of the
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- other, seem to be more nearly allied to certain members of
tion— this group than to any other family in this system.
Acanthop- J
terous
Fishes- Family III.—THERAPONIDiE.
^ ~ v ^ Thoracic scaly fishes. Branchiostegals six. Two dorsals or the
spinous and soft dorsals united to form one fin. Scales ctenoid or
cycloid. Teeth on the jaws, and most generally on the palatines
and vomer. Opercular pieces variously denticulated or spinous, or
some of them unarmed. Five soft rays in the ventrals, with one
spine; lower pectoral rays in some genera unbranched, jointed, and
prolonged beyond the membrane, but in most of the ordinary form.
A rather heterogeneous assemblage of Percoids, brought together by
the single character of six brauchiostegals, but differing in some
having cycloid, others ctenoid scales, and even in the same genus
in the presence or absence of teeth on the palate, the teeth of that
part falling out when the fish is still young.
Genus I. Cirrhites, Comm. Resemble .MMoprfon in their scales
fins, and in having a denticulated preoperculum, and the operculum
ending in a flat, smooth corner, but are distinguished by the lower
pectoral rays being thickened, simple, though jointed, and elon¬
gated beyond the membrane, seemingly to serve as organs of touch,
such as exist in many of the Sderogenidce. The vomer is armed'
with villiform teeth, but there are none on the palatines. Stomach
rather short; pancreatic caeca four ; no air-bladder. Eight species.
Genus II. Aplodactylus, Cuv. Lower pectoral rays thick,
fleshy, jointed, but not branched, and protruding beyond the narrow
membrane at the tips. Teeth thin narrow plates lobed at the crown,
in many rows on the jaws, the outer row taller than the interior
ones, the newest of which are very short, and to the naked eye ra-
duliform. General aspect of Orystes. Scales small, striated on the
edges, covering most of the head and fins. Interoperculum scale¬
less; preoperculum smooth-edged. A small, flat, smooth opercular
point. Branchiostegals six. Ventrals posterior to the pectorals,
in consequence of the elongation of the pubic bones, which are at¬
tached to the coracoids. Stomach small, caecal, with an ascending
pyloric branch exceeding it greatly in size ; two short pancreatic
caeca; a large, simple air-bladder. Three species. Distinguished
from Cirrhites by its teeth, like those of Crenidens.
Genus III. Chironemus, Cuv. Differs from the Sciaenoid Chei-
lodactylus in having vomerine teeth on the fore-part of the bone ;
teeth generally setiform, few and feeble. Scales cycloid ; opercular
pieces and cheeks covered with scales, not greatly smaller than
those of the body. Preorbitar high, like that of a Sparoid. Pre¬
operculum smooth-edged, rounded at the angle; operculum with
two flat points, scarcely pungent. Csecal stomach, pretty large;
four pancreatic caeca. One species.
Genus IV. Centrarchus, Cuv. (ZcAtAeZi's, Rafin.) Oval, com¬
pressed body. A single dorsal. Villiform teeth on the jaws and
front of the vomer; on the palatines in two patches, and on the
base of the tongue; no canines. Preoperculum generally entire ;
angle of the operculum divided into two flat points. Anal spines
from three to nine. Scales ctenoid. Nine species.
Genus V. Pomotis, Cuv. A rounded, skinny, coloured lobe
prolonging the operculum, whose bone ends in an obtuse angle.
Pharyngeal teeth cylindrical, with flat tops, disposed in a pavement¬
like manner; villiform teeth on the jaws, and a row across the
front of the vomer, but none on the tongue. Three anal spines.
Stomach caecal, obtuse; pancreatic caeca six. Ten species.
Genus VI. Bryttus, Cuv. Pomotes with a narrow band of
villiform teeth on the tongue. Three anal spines. One species.
Genus VII. Pomanotis, Guich. Body compressed, oval, high,
covered with ciliated scales. Snout short and conical, but obtuse ;
a moderate-sized mouth ; teeth on the jaws crowded, conical, acute,
the exterior ones somewhat curved. Preoperculum, interoperculum,
suboperculum, serrulated at the corners. Tongue smooth. Opercu¬
lum spinous, without a membranous border. Dorsal single; ven¬
trals thoracic. Branchiostegals six. Fresh water, Aleppo. Near
Centrarchus, Pomotis, and Bryttus.
Genus VIII. Priacanthus, Cuv. Angle of the preoperculum
projecting in form of a flat spine, which is denticulated or crenu-
lated on the edges like the rest of the bone ; resembling Anthias
in the whole snout and jaws being covered with strongly ctenoid
scales, which extend along the median line of the throat. No ca¬
nines, but narrow bands of villiform teeth on the jaws, the chevron
of the vomer, and along the palatines. Mandible projecting at the
chin. Eyes large. Six branchiostegals. Posterior orifice of the nos¬
tril a vertical slit; anterior one a small round hole. Form oval; the
dorsal and anal rounded. Stomach large, ceecal, rounded poste¬
riorly ; five thick pancreatic caeca ; air-bladder of moderate size,
rounded anteriorly, pointed behind. Eighteen species.
Genus IX. Dules, Cuv. Centropristis by external form and in¬
terior structure, but their six branchiostegals have caused us to
277
place them in a separate group. Some have a single dorsal, and Classifica-
three opercular spines ; others a notched dorsal, and only two spines tion 
on the operculum. Vestiges of serratures on the suhorbitar, and Acanthop-
some very fine and little apparent ones on the preoperculum. terous
Teeth coarsely villiform on the jaws, chevron of the vomer, pala- Fishes,
tines, and tongue. Twelve species. v . '
Genus X. Therapon, Cuv. Villiform teeth on the jaws;
denticulated preorbitars ; preoperculum, and often the suprasca¬
pular or coracoid, also denticulated. Six branchiostegals. No
scales on the cranium, snout, or jaws. Spinous part of the dorsal
folding back into a scaly furrow. Air-bladder always divided into
two distinct sacs by a contraction as in the Cyprinidce, the Char-
acini, and Myripristis. The palatine teeth are in some deciduous
at a young age. Some have the outer row of jaw-teeth stronger than
the others. Stomach caecal, pointed ; about twelve pancreatic caeca;
anterior division of the air-bladder globular. Twelve species.
Genus XL Datnia, Cuv., are a group merely subordinate to
Therapon, and differ in having a more elevated body, a straight
or concave profile, a pointed snout, and by the dorsal spines being
stouter, and occupying a greater length of the back, though not
more numerous. The dorsal is slightly notched, and they have
no teeth on the palate. Stomach caecal, rounded behind. Three
species.
Genus XII. Pelates, Cuv., is a third division of Therapon,
and is distinguished by a more even dorsal, less notched, and by the
operculum ending in two feeble points, scarcely to be felt through
the integument. Snout somewhat obtuse; mouth small; jaws
equal; teeth villiform in three or four rows, hut none on the vomer
or palate. Three species.
Genus XIII. Helotes, Cuv. A fourth division of Therapon,
having like the first one a deeply-notched dorsal, and an opercular
spine. Body oblong. Head small; mouth narrow, as in the third
division ; exterior row of teeth minutely tricuspid ; no palatine
teeth. Two species.
Genus XIV. Datnioides, Bleek. Distinguished from Therapon,
Batnia, Pelates, and Helotes, by the suhorbitar scale hones not being
notched, and by a simple swim-bladder. Dorsal fin simple. Premaxil¬
lary and mandibular teeth simple, pluriserial; no canines. Vomer
and palate smooth. Preoperculum denticulated, without larger
spines; suborbitars edentate. Branchiostegals six; lips membra¬
nous, entire, not fimbriated. Head scaly above ; snout scaleless.
Genus XV. Badis, Bleek. Separated from Nandus by the en¬
tire preoperculum and toothless tongue. Dorsal fin single. Teeth on
the jaws, palatines, and entopterygoids ; tongue smooth ; suborbitar
scale bones and preoperculum not toothed. A single opercular
spine. Branchiostegals six. Lateral line interrupted. Upper jaw
protractile; inferior pharyngeals oblong, contiguous, but not united.
Genus XVI. Nandus, Cuv. Mouth protractile; teeth villi¬
form, very close and short on the jaws, palatines, and chevron of
the vomer. Preoperculum and interoperculum finely denticulated
on the edge; opercular spine so small as to be easily overlooked.
Scales smooth, cycloid. Intestines resembling those of a Labroid;
stomach siphonal, with a very short ascending branch; no pan¬
creatic caeca; air-bladder simple. One species.
Genus XVII. Catopra, Bleek. Dorsal solitary. Setaceous
teeth on the jaws, palatines, and vomer; pterygoid and lingual
teeth granular, in an oblong patch. Preorbitar scale bone and pre¬
operculum denticulated ; two flat spines on the operculum. Bran¬
chiostegals six. Lateral line interrupted; upper jaw protractile.
Bleeker makes a family group of this genus and Nandus, and in¬
deed the position of Nandus, with its siphonal stomach, and want
of pancreatic caeca, does not seem to be with Therapon.
Genus XVIII. Anoplus, Schleg. Distinguished from Datnia by
having vomerine teeth ; from Nandus by the want of palatine teeth.
Branchiostegals six. One species, A. banjos.
Genus XIX. Boleosoma, Dekay. Two dorsals. Smooth-edged
preoperculum ; operculum scaly, with a spine. Branchiostegals six.
Nape narrow, compressed. Rivers, New York.
Genus XX. Pileoma, Dekay. Two separated dorsals. Smooth
preoperculum. A flat, weak, opercular spine. Ventrals with five
soft rays. Teeth of equal size. Lake Champlain.
Genus XXL Lepisoma, Dekay. Body and fins scaly. Fleshy
appendages along the lower edge of the head and round the eyes.
One dorsal. Branchiostegals six. Teeth on the jaws, vomer, and
palatines. Ventrals before the pectorals. One species. Florida.
Not having access at present to the works in which Dr Dekay
has described these three fresh-water genera, we merely give the
generic characters, as quoted in the Archiven fiir Naturgeschichte
for 1844 ; and cannot therefore, without more data, fix their proper
place in the system. Along with these genera, ranged in the
family of Theraponida, we place part of the Scisenoids, “with fewer
than six branchiostegals,” described in the Histoire des Poissons.
Their abstraction from the Scimnoids renders the characters of that
group more precise, and they are separated from the Theraponidw
278
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- more by the toothless palate than any difference of form or general
tion  structure.
Acanthop- Genus XXII. Lobotes, Cuv. Branchiostegals six. A single
terous^ dorsal; thoracic ventrals with five soft rays. Body, opercular
Fishes pieces, and cheeks scaly. Snout short; prominent mandible; profile
of face somewhat concave. Very coarse denticulations on the pre¬
operculum. Soft portions of the anal and dorsal prolonged in such
a manner that posteriorly the fish appears to be trilobate, the round¬
ed caudal forming the middle and longest lobe ; entire form oval
and thickish. Spines of the fins strong, and those of the back re¬
clining in a scaly furrow when at rest. Four pores, or four groups
of minute pores towards the end of the mandible. Scales ciliated.
Lateral line continuous. Stomach ccecal, very large, and fleshy ;
three pancreatic caeca ; large oblong air-bladder. Four species.
Genus XXIII. Scolopsides, Ouv. Connected with the Sciae-
noids, and especially with Pristopoma and Liagramma by the den¬
ticulations of the preoperculum ; but there are either no pores on
the end of the mandible or only very minute ones, easily overlooked.
The peculiar generic character consists in the second suborbitar
scale bone ending in a spinous point, close under the orbit, pointing
backwards; and the third bone of the chain frequently sends out
one in the opposite direction which meets it. Body oval or oblong.
Dorsal continuous in outline. Eye large. Mouth moderate. Scales
pretty large, extending to the occiput, opercular pieces, cheeks, and
throat. Dorsal spines reclining on a scaly furrow, and having
their broader sides turned alternately to the right and left, as in
many Sciaenoids and Sparoids. Caudal notched or forked. Stomach
caecal, rounded, very small ; pancreatic caeca six thick, as long as
the stomach ; air-bladder simple. Twenty-two species.
Genus XXIV. Heterognathodon, Bleek. Scaly fishes. Dor¬
sal solitary. Branchiostegals five. Rays of the pectoral entire.
Suborbitar scale bones smooth, without spines. Preoperculum den¬
ticulated ; a solitary opercular spine. Premaxillary teeth bristle¬
shaped, pluriserial, with four canines anteriorly; mandibular teeth
also pluriserial and bristle-shaped, with two canines, and a row of
conical teeth behind. Batavia.
Genus XXV. Macquaria, Cuv. General form Percoid, with
the muciferous excavations of the bones of Acerina. No teeth.
Branchiostegals five. A pit and two small pores beneath the end of
the mandible as in many Sciaenoids. Preoperculum, subopercu¬
lum and interoperculum, suprascapular and coracoid, finely denti¬
culated or serrated ; operculum terminated in two thin, flat, bony
points. Scales rough, ciliated. Stomach caecal; eight pancreatic
caeca; air-bladder either absent or very small. One species.
Genus XXVI. Latilus, Cuv. Forms in the division of Sciae¬
noids, with an undivided dorsal, as given in the Histoire des Poissons,
a genus remarkable for its arched profile descending almost verti¬
cally, the very short snout and large eye, near the profile. Hori¬
zontal mouth reaching the front of the eye, and a general form of
the tapering body, resembling Coryphcena. Teeth, a cross band in
front of the vomer, none on the palatines ; four or five larger curved
teeth in front of the villiform band on the jaws. Branchiostegals
six. Peroperculum very finely denticulated; operculum ending
in a single point. Suprascapular smooth. Dorsal rays slender,
flexible. Scales minutely ciliated. Lateral line straight, continuous.
Stomach caecal; one pancreatic caecum only observed ; air-bladder
simple, large. One species.
POLYNEMIDS.
market weighs upwards of two ounces, and the isinglass is Classifica-
considered to be very good, and fetches from 25 to 30 tion
Spanish dollars the pikul. The prepared air-vessels are Acanthop-
known in eastern commerce by the name or r ish-maws, -piHh<,g
and in 1842 between 12,000 and 13,000 dollars worth were
exported from Prince of Wales Island (Singapore). They
are not obtained exclusively from the Poli/nemus, though its
isinglass is among the best. Dr Cantor, from whom these
particulars are quoted, says that the fishery is carried on in
a very rude manner, chiefly by the Chinese, and might be
almost indefinitely extended by European capital and skill.
Family IV.—P0LYNEMIDA3.
Acanthopterygians with abdominal ventrals, a position re¬
sulting from the elongation of the pubic bones which are suspended
to the coracoids. Teeth on the jaws, front of the vomer, and pala¬
tines, Two dorsals; scaly appendages in the axillae of the pec¬
torals and ventrals. Scales ctenoid, feebly ciliated. Pancreatic
caeca.
Genus I. Polynemus, Linn. Body oblong. Head covered, even
to the branchiostegal membrane, with deciduous scales. Preoper¬
culum denticulated. Villiform teeth on the two jaws, front of the
vomer, and on the palatines; tongue short and broad, smooth.
Wide gill-openings; seven branchiostegals. The two openings of
each nostril near to one another and near the end of the snout.
Dorsals widely separated, the second one being distant also from
the caudal, and corresponding in position with the anal; caudal
forked, generally unequal. Small scales on the three vertical fins,
and on the base of the pectoral; a number (varying with the species)
of the under pectoral rays free, long, and filiform, separated from
the rest of the fin by a scaly space. Anal spines, one, two, or three.
Stomach obtusely csecal; several pancreatic casca (six or more);
air-bladder large, pointed, and entering among the muscles of the
tail ; in some species the air-bladder is wanting, in others that
viscus has many (from twenty to thirty) processes on the ventral sur¬
face. Sixteen species.
With this we associate a Sciaenoid genus, which has had no other
more appropriate place assigned to it as yet, and which has many
characters in common with Polynemus.
Genus II. Cheilodactylus, Lacep. Sciaenoids with an oval
compressed body ; small mouth ; villiform teeth, or conical, scarcely
acute, on the jaws only, and not on the palate. Preorbitars and pre-
opercula without denticulations. Numerous dorsal spines, and ven¬
trals attached under the middle of the pectorals, but with the pubic
bones suspended from the coracoid. Branchiostegals six, more
rarely five only. Stomach caecal; pancreatic caeca two, short; rec¬
tum dilated, muscular. The lower pectoral rays, to the number of
six or seven, are simple, and one of them commonly thicker than
the rest, is elongated into a filiform tip, which often reaches the
end of the anal. Caudal forked. Many have a slight prominence
before the orbit, and in one or two species it rises in a conical
form. Eight species.
Genus III. Latris, Rich. A division of Cheilodactylus, with
generally more-elongated elliptical bodies, and none of the simple
rays of the pectoral passing the membrane. The ascending limb of
the preoperculum is minutely serrated in some, and smooth in others.
Three Australian species.
This small family has relations with the first group of the
Theraponidce, in the existence of long feeler-like rays in the
pectorals. In one species of Polynemus, the long free pecto¬
ral rays have obtained for it the appellation of Paradise-fish,
from the resemblance these filamentous rays bear to the tail-
feathers of a bird of Paradise. Polynemus is also remarkable
as being a genus, otherwise natural, of which the species ex¬
hibit great varieties in the form of the air-bladder. In some,
that viscus is lobed posteriorly, and fringed on the sides with
many pointed processes; in other species, the air-bladder,
though large, is quite simple, and in others there is no air-
bladder at all, just as it is wanting in some species of Scom¬
ber. The Polynemus indicus, which has a large air-bladder
with from twenty-eight to thirty-five of these lateral append¬
ages springing from it, and also a very great number of pan¬
creatic caeca divided into two bundles, furnishes most of the
isinglass that is procured at Penang. The weight of this fish
is commonly from 4 to 6 lb., and seldom exceeds 20 lb. The
air-vessel of a good-sized fish when dried and ready for the
SURMULLET FAMILY.
The fishes of this family were denominated TpiyXr] by the
Greeks, and mullus by the Romans. The Greek name is
said to have originated in the three spawning seasons attri¬
buted to the Surmullets, and they were dedicated to the
tergeminous or tricipitous goddess Hecate. The Latin
name had another origin according to Pliny—a colore mul-
leorum calceumentorum, from the red-coloured shoes or
buskins worn by the kings of Alba, and afterwards by the
consuls, praetors, and curule ediles. By the luxurious
Romans, the Surmullets were held in such repute that they
sought for them far and wide, and without regard to expense.
They seldom exceeded 2 lb. in weight, and the purchase
of a large one, the price augmenting in a greater ratio than
the size, was considered to be an act of magnificence. A
Surmullet of 3 lb. weight was an object of admiration, and
one of 4 lb. entailed ruin on the purchaser.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica¬
tion—
Acanthop-
terous
Fishes.
 “ Mullus tibi quatuor emptus
Libraruin, ccenae pompa caputque fuit,
Exclamare libet, non est hie improbe, non est
Piscis: homo est; hominem, Calliodore voras.”
Martial, 1. x. 31.
Genus III. Acropoma, Schleg. General aspect of Aful/wa, but
distinguished by the want of barbels. Anus nigh the ventrals, at a
wide distance from the anal fin. Jaw-teeth pointed, the foremost
being canines. Branchiostegals seven.
Seneca relates the history of a Surmullet that was presented
to I iberius, and which that emperor, in a fit of economy, HOLOCENTRIDES.
sent to the market. Apicius and Octavius were competi- rp, .
tors for it, and the latter became the purchaser at the cost ^ . sma^ family consists of that division of Cuvier’s
of 5000 sesterces, or upwards of L.40 sterling. Asinius Perco'ds whose members have more than seven branchio-
Celer paid 8000 sesterces for one in the reign of Caligula. ®teSals’ antl wll0se s°rt ventral rays exceed five. The group
The high-priced fish were brought from a distance, as nafura^ one> a^ tj16 species having a common likeness
they did not thrive in ponds, and increased little there in "hich is very recognisable. I hey are the only Acanthop-
weight, though extraordinary pains and expenditure were ^erj which have this unusual number of rays in the ventrals,
employed in the endeavour to rear them. It was one a, are ^s^es remarkable for the brilliancy of their colours,
of the luxuries of a giver of feasts to cause these fishes nea^ness their forms, and their very ctenoid scales,
to swim down streams led through the banqueting room, a^ey are not t*ie objects of any special fishery,
that his guests might enjoy the sight of their brilliant colours
during their repast, or to let them die in glass vessels,
that all the varying hues of the expiring fish might glut
their eyes. Seneca says the fish swim under the very
couches of the guests, and they are caught under the table
that they may be the sooner placed upon it, for no Surmullet
was considered to be fresh unless it expired in the hands of
the guests. They were exposed in vessels of glass, that the
different colours they assume during a slow and painful
agony may be noticed. Nothing was considered to be more
beautiful than a dying Mullet. The struggles of the fish to
escape death bring out the most brilliant scarlet tints, which
are followed by a general paleness ; and in the passage from
life to death these two extreme tints mingle, says the author
from whom we borrow, in the most agreeable manner. The
liver of the Surmullet was considered to be the most deli¬
cious part, and was bruised in wine to make a garum for
the flesh. Even in the present day the Surmullet is consi¬
dered to be one of the best of sea-fishes—its flesh being
white, firm, tender, of an agreeable flavour, and easily
digested because it contains little fat. The scales of the
Surmullets are strongly ciliated.
Fig. 95.
Mullus barbatus.
Family V.—MULLIDJE.
Les Mulles, Cuv. A perfectly natural family, distantly allied to
the Percoids, but readily distinguishable from other Acanthopterygii
by the two dorsals, widely separated from one another, by the
large and easily-detached scales of the head and body, and by the
pair of symphysial barbels of the mandible which retire between
the limbs of that bone when not in use. Body oblong, little com¬
pressed. Fins of moderate spread. Profile more or less convex above
and below. A high narrow preorbitar ; small mouth, with feeble
teeth. Gill-opening wide; four branchiostegals. Mucoducts form¬
ing the lateral line divided into a cluster of branches on each scale.
Siphonal stomach ; numerous pancreatic caeca.
Genus I. Mullus, Linn. No teeth on the upper jaw; a disk
of pavement-like teeth on the front of the vomer. No spine on the
operculum. No air-bladder. Two species.
Genus II. Upeneus, Cuv. Short teeth on both jaws, sometimes
closely villiform (Upeneoides, Bleek.) sometimes distinct and uni¬
serial (Dpmetss, Bleek.) Some have villiform teeth on the palate
or vomer; in most these bones are destitute of teeth. Thirty-eight
species.
Family VI.—HOLOCENTRILLE.
Holocentrini, Bonap. Acanthopterygians, with more than five
branching rays in the ventrals, and seven branchiostegals. A na¬
tural group, recognisable by the large, very strongly-toothed or
serrated scales, the furrows and streaks on many of the bones of
the cranium, face, and gill-cover, the serratures on the edges of the
opercular pieces, and the general stoutness of the spines of the fins.
Cheeks scaly. Dorsals single, or deeply notched, or two contiguous
dorsals. Small spines above and below the caudal; dorsal spines
falling back into a furrow. Otolites large. Air-bladder connected
with the otocrane by an ossicle and a tympanum closing the orifice •
stomach cascal; numerous pancreatic caeca (eight to twenty or
more).
Genus I. Myripristis, Cuv. Somewhat of the aspect ot Apo-
gon. Cranium sculptured. Dorsals two, contiguous, or one deeply
notched. Preoperculum with its border serrated, and also a ser¬
rated line in front of the limb, but no spine at its angle, by which it
is distinguished from Holocentrum. Villiform teeth on the jaws
and front of the vomer, with a few bigger ones in frontof the jaws
of a short obtuse conical form. Tongue smooth. An acute oper¬
cular spine. Stomach caecal, reaching the middle of the cavity of
the abdomen ; nine pancreatic caeca ; a fibrous exterior coat of the
air-bladder, which is large, and divided into two by a contraction.
Fourteen species.
Genus II. Holocentrum, Cuv. Myripristis with a strong spine
at the angle of the preoperculum. Dorsal slightly notched. Third
anal spines generally very large. Otocrane not always connected
with the air-bladder, which is simple and extends the whole length
of the belly, and is not forked anteriorly. Stomach caecal; eight
pancreatic caeca. Twenty species.
Genus III. Beryx, Cuv. Holocentra with a very large eye, but
differing in having a single dorsal, with only slender spinous rays
in front, and without any notch of separation. Anal spines not re¬
markable for size. Stomach caecal, cylindrical, obtuse; ascending
branch fleshy. Long, slender, numerous pancreatic caeca; air-
bladder wide, and running the whole length of the abdomen. Four
species.
Genus IV. Rhynchichthys, Cuv. General habit of tfo/ocen-
trum, but with the cranial crests prolonged anteriorly into an acute
snout, somewhat resembling that of Macrourus. A projecting spine
at the angle of the preoperculum ; strong denticulations on its bor¬
ders, and also round the posterior edge of the operculum, but no
strong spine in the latter. Two species.
MAILED CHEEKS.
The three Linnaean genera, Trigia, Coitus, and Scor-
pema, are the foundations of this numerous family, so re¬
markable for the variety of forms it offers; for the beauty
of some, from the splendour of their colours, the elegant
arrangement of their tints, or the gracefulness of their fins ;
and for the ugliness of others of disagreeable shapes, and
having loose disgusting skins. Few fishes are so handsome,
or more delicate in appearance than Pterois, whose fins
resemble the long feathers of the gayest birds, while Pelor
and Sgnanceia are about as ugly as a fish can be. The fol¬
lowing table of the genera is taken from the Histoire cits
Poissons.
279
Classifica¬
tion—
Acanthop-
terous
Fishes.
280
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica¬
tion—
Acanthop-
terous
Fishes.
TABLE OF GENERA.
No free rays in advance of the dorsal.
Two dorsals.
A parallelepiped head.
Free rays beneath the pectoral.
Trigla, Prionotus. Peristedion.
Long rays beneath the pectorals, united to form great fins
used as wings.
Dactylopterus.
No detached rays under the pectorals.
Cephalacanthus.
A round or depressed head.
Ventrals under the pectorals.
Cottus, Hemitripterus, Bembras, Aspidophorus.
Ventrals behind the pectorals.
Platycephalus.
A single dorsal.
A compressed head.
Villiform teeth on the jaws, vomer, and palatines.
IlEMILEPIDOTUS, BlEPSIAS, APISTES, SCORP.ENA, Se-
BASTES.
Teeth on the jaws and front of the vomer, but not on the
palatines.
Pterois.
Some small teeth on the jaws only.
Agriopus.
A large head; monstrous in appearance; eye on the dorsal
aspect.
Villiform teeth on the jaws and front of the vomer.
■Pelor.
Free spines replacing the first dorsal.
Body scales large and imbricated; eight branchiostegals.
Monocentris.
Body mailed by plates on the lateral line; three branchi¬
ostegals.
Gasterosteus, Spinachia.
Fig. 96.
Trigla pleuracanthica.
The Trigla: or Gurnards are too well known to need a
description ; at the same time they convey a good idea of
the general form of one of the lead¬
ing tribes of the family, and one in
which the characteristic develop¬
ment of the second suborbitar
scale bone is well seen. This bone
in all the Sclerogenoids either
covers the whole cheek, or sends a
process across it to the curve ot
the preoperculum opposite to the
spine at the angle, to which it
serves as a point of resistance
when the spine is used as a wea¬
pon. This elongation of the sub¬
orbitar is often crested by an acute
ridge, and is most commonly armed
with spinous points. The air-blad¬
ders of the Gurnards are variously
lobed, and some of the species have been noticed to emit
a grunting noise when caught, which some observers have
supposed was produced by that organ ; but it is the charac¬
ter of the otdei to have no air-uuct to the swim-bladder.
The flesh of the Gurnard is very white, firm, and wholesome.
The common Dactylopterus or Flying-fish of the Medi-
Fig. 97.
Trigla pleuracan thica
scale from the lateral line.
terranean {Trigla volitans, Linn.), is a species too remark- Classifica-
able for its functions, so opposite to those of its class in gene- tion—
ral, not to have attracted from an early period the attention of Acanthop-
mankind. It is extremely common, and has been men- £e.r?us
tioned by all the authors who have treated of the fishes of v 18 es't
that inland sea. The ardour with which it is pursued by
the Dolphins and Bonitos, the sudden effort which it makes
to escape these predaceous creatures by vaulting into the
air, the newr and probably unthought of dangers which there
await it from gulls and other aquatic birds, render it an
object of the highest interest to the unaccustomed lands¬
man, somewhat wearied with the monotony of a sailor’s
life. “ It is by the extension of the pectoral rays and mem¬
brane that the fish is enabled to raise itself from its proper
element to the regions of the air, though this is by no means
a continual flight, for the utmost it can do is to describe an
arc over the surface of the water extending to a distance
of about 120 feet, and sufficiently elevated for the fish some¬
times to fall on the deck of a large vessel. This power of
flight or momentary suspension would be much greater if
the pectoral membrane could preserve its humidity longer,
but it is soon evaporated in the heat of the tropics; and the
membrane, as it becomes dry, loses its buoyant power, and
the fish falls. They are sometimes so numerous as to afford
much pleasure to the spectator by their repeated flights;
and at particular times, especially on the approach of rough
weather, in the night, numbers of them may be seen, by
the phosphoric light they emit, marking their arched pas¬
sages in apparent streams of fire.” Such is the current
account of the flights of this interesting fish, and of the
causes of it; but it is probable, as has already been ob¬
served of the Exocaiti, that the Flying-fishes do not soar
into the air merely when pursued by their enemies, for this
would only be incidere in Scyllam cupiens vitare Charyb-
dim, but also to subserve some purpose in their economy.
I he Cotti are characteristic members of another group
of the Mailed Cheeks. The fresh-water species of this
genus have the head almost smooth, and only a single spine
to the preopercle. Their first dorsal is very low. The
most common is the river Bull-head {Cottus “gobio, Linn.),
sometimes called the Miller’s Thumb. It is*a small dark-
coloured fish, 4 or 5 inches in length, and frequent in most
of the streams of Europe and the north of Asia. It usually
lies concealed beneath stones, from whence it darts w’ith
great rapidity upon its prey. It is said to be extremely pro¬
lific ; and the female, when with spawn, becomes so greatly
enlarged, that her ovaries protrude like mammae. The Bull¬
head, like the Salmon, has a reddish hue when boiled. It
affords a good and wholesome food, much sought after by
the mountain tribes of several countries.
The ScorpcBiice site found in all seas in considerable num¬
bers, and present a great variety of aspects, some being
nearly as ugly as a Pelor, while others passing, as it were,
into the nearly allied genus Sebastes, have a Percoid neat¬
ness of appearance. The species here figured is an Aus¬
tralian one, Scorpccna Stokesii.
Fig. 98.
Scorpcena Stokesii.
The Platycephali may be considered as elongated and
greatly depressed Scorpavue. The subjoined representation
JZhop. oi P^Vkalus ctrrhonasus will give a good idea of the
terous
Fishes.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Fig. 99.
Platycephalus cirrhonasus.
form of one, which, however, is not so flatly depressed as
many others of the genus. They are common ground-fish
m the southern hemisphere. Fig. 42 gives a view of a
scale from the lateral line of the same species. Synanceia
hornda, as the title implies, exhibits by no means an in-
vitmg aspect. It is named Ikan-swangi, or Sorcerer-fish, bv
the Malays. S. brachio of Cuv. is the species called Fi-fi
or Hideous, by the Negroes of the Isle of France, who hold
it in great abhorrence. In fact, nothing can be conceived
more frightful. At first sight no one would consider it a
nsh, but rather as a mass or unformed lump of corrupted jelly.
“ Totum corpus,” says Commerson, muco squalidum
et quasi ulcerosum.” Its head and members seem en¬
veloped in a sack of thick, soft, spongy skin, warty and
wrinkled like that of a leper, and irregularly blotted over
with various tints of brown and gray. Sometimes it ap¬
pears entirely black; but it is always gluey and disgusting
to the touch. The little eyes are scarcely discernible in
the large cavernous head. This species is said to possess
great tenacity of life, and survives for a long time out of
t,’eJv^ter* rile skin) in fact, forms a little ring like that
of 1 elor above the point of the operculum, through which
the fish can respire at pleasure, leaving the remainder of
the gill-opening closed, and the gills consequently little ex¬
posed to exsiccation. The inhabitants of the Isle of France
regard tin's fish as a reptile, and dread its sting, meaning
the wounds inflicted by its spines, more than that of snakes
or scorpions.
The genus Apistes was so named by Cuvier from the trea¬
cherous way in which these fishes conceal the moveable pre-
orbitar spine, by laying it along the cheek, and on any one
attempting to seize them, raising it suddenly so as to inflict
a disagreeable wound. The Greek word from whence the
name was derived signifies “ perfidious.” Since Cuvier’s time
several species have been discovered possessing this sub-
orbitar weapon, but varying considerably in the rest of their
form from Apistes, as described by him. One of these new
forms is Choridactylus multibar bus, of which a figure (fio-.
9) has been given. Some of these Apisles, having large
pectorals, are able to sustain themselves in the air for a time,
as Flying-fishes. One of the remarkable forms of the family
is represented by fig. 14. It is the Monocentris Japonica.
i he Gasterostei differ from the rest of the family in
having the spines of the dorsal free and detached. The
species are small fishes familiarly known under the name
ot Sticklebacks (Scotice, Benticles), and extremely com¬
mon in all the fresh waters of Europe. Gesner indeed as¬
serted that they did not occur in Switzerland; but the
contrary has been long since ascertained. Our most com¬
mon species is G. aculeatus (Linn.), under which name,
however, it is supposed that more than a single kind has
been confounded. It is an active and greedy little fish
extremely destructive of the fry of other species, and con¬
sequently injurious in ponds where these are sought to be
preserved. Mr Henry Baker informs us that it will sprino-
not less than a foot perpendicularly out of the water and
to a much greater distance in an oblique direction, when it
YOL. XII.
ZOl
desires to overcome any opposing obstacle. “ It is scarcely Classifica-
to be conceived,” he adds, “what damage these little fish tion-
clo, and how greatly detrimental they are to the increase of Acanthop-
a tlle fish in general among which they live ; for it is with t?rous
the utmost industry, sagacity, and greediness that they seek Flshes-
out and destroy all the young fry that come in their way
winch are pursued with the utmost eagerness, and swal¬
lowed down without distinction, provided they are not too
arge; and m proof of this, I must assert that a banstic-
kle which I kept for some time, did, on the 4th of May, de¬
vour, in five hours’ time, seventy-four young dace, which
were about a quarter of an inch long, and of the thickness
of a horse hair. Two days after it swallowed sixty-two •
and would, 1 am persuaded, have eat as many every day’
could I have procured them for it.” The Stickfeback
sometimes swarms in prodigious numbers. Pennant states
that at Spalding, in Lincolnshire, there are once in seven
years amazing shoals, which appear in the Welland, comino-
up the river in the form of a vast column. This concourse
is supposed to arise from the multitudes which have been
washed out of the fens by the floods of several years, and
which collect in deep holes, till, overcharged with numbers
they are obliged to attempt a change of place. The quantity
may perhaps be conceived from the fact, that a man em-
ployed m collecting them, gained for a considerable time
four shillings a-day by selling them at the rate of a half¬
penny a bushel. Some of the Gasterostei live indifferently
in salt or fresh water, and the one represented by figure
13 was taken by Sir Edward Belcher, in the sea at the
north end of Wellington Sound, in Lat. 77° N. M. Coste
who studied the manners of these small fishes in the Me¬
diterranean, relates that on the approach of spawning time,
t le male builds a nest of stalks of grass and other matters
in a hollow of the bottom, a little above three feet wide
and about six inches and a half deep, creeping over the ma¬
terials on his belly and cementing them with the mucus
that exudes from his skin. The bottom of the nest is first
laid, then the sides are raised, and lastly, the top is co¬
vered over. A small hole is left on one side for an entrance.
When the erection is complete, he seeks out a female, and
conducting her, M. Costa says, with many caresses, to the
nest, introduces her by the door into the chamber. In a
few minutes she has laid two or three eggs, after which she
bores a hole on the opposite side of the nest to that by which
she entered and makes her escape. The nest has now two
doors, and the eggs are exposed to the cool stream of water
vvhich entering by one door flows out at the other. Next
day the male goes again in quest of a female, and sometimes
brings back the same, sometimes finds a new mate. This
is repeated until the nest contains a considerable number
e»gs> and each time the male rubs his side against the
female and passes over the eggs. Next the male watches
a whole month over his treasure, defending it stoutly against
all invaders, and especially against his wives, who have a
great desire to look at the eggs. When the young are
hatched and able to do for themselves, his cares cea*e
Mr Lecoq made similar observations at another place but
the Italian society to whom the papers of the two obser¬
vers were transmitted, after inquiring fully into the case
decreed that the right of priority belonged to M. Coste!
{ Archieen fur Naturg.)
Family VJL—SCLEROGENIDAl.
Joues cuirassees, Cuv.; Cataphractoridas, Cant.: Trialidce Bonan •
Cdtaphracn, Heck.; Scleroparei, Buccceloricatoe, &c. ’ P ’
he distinctive character of this group is the prolongation of the
the nrenUb0rbl S.Cal.e;b°ne aCr0SS the cheek to be articulated with
7 c,urve’ s°as to serve f°r a t0 the
CaHahleW L r of that bone. Forms exceedingly
strnns ell laving a amily resemblance in their prevailing mon¬
strous character, feeveral genera have fewer than five rays in the
entrals, an uncommon occurrence among Acanthopteri.
2 N
282
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Genus I TRIGLA, Linn. Cheek wholly covered by the enor¬
mous second suborbitar, which is articulated by an immoveable su¬
ture to the preoperculum, the two moving together; sides of the
lure to xi 1 t Rnrlv scalv Two dorsals. Three free un-
i^neheTarticulated Jys under the pectoral. Snout formed by
the union of the prefrontals, turbinals, and point of the nasal, by su-
ure L preorbitar making a more or less salient projection before
them Branchiostegals seven. Branchial rakers in form of tube -
des • villiform teeth on the jaws and pharyiigeals, but the Palat®
and ’tongue are edentate. Lateral line straight to the caudal, on
whUfnrks • it is variously armed. Stomach cmcal; pancreatic
^cfnlels (right to twelve), dividing into two or three lobes
’"‘e ENtis'l 1. 'pri'mctcS'ouv. Trigla, with very large pectorals
and villiform palatine teeth. Body scaly. Eight species.
Genus III. Peristedion. Lacep. Body clothed in scaly ar¬
mour A long projection of the preorbitar on each side of the snout.
Mouth beneath ; destitute of teeth, as are also the vomer, palatines
and pharyngeals. Under lip bearded. Body octagonal, with tapering
spines on its eight angles. Two free rays under the pectoral. Pan¬
creatic creca seven ; air-bladder pretty large simple. Two species.
Genus IV. Dactylopterus, Cuv. Head flat above, rounded off
into a nearly vertical face ; helmet granulated. Ly e i erj arSe-
very long spine continued from the lower border of the preoperculum.
Sup^pila emitting a long spine ; articulation of the .uhorb.t.r
and preoperculum moveable. Teeth pavement-like on the jaws no
teeth on the vomer or palatines. Branchiostegals six ; foul^ticu-
lated rays only in the ventrals in addition to the spine. Lo free
rays in the pectoral, but the fin is divided into a jailer anterior
part and a posterior very broad and long part with the tip.
rays tming beyond the membrane ; some of the anterior dorsal rays
are See ° Scales of the body hard and firm, those on the flanks
keeled forming, by their close succession, trenchant crests. &ton|ach
cfficalabout thirty pancreatic cseca in two bundles; air-bladder
small deeply bilobate. Two species.
Genus ^Cephalacanthus, Lacep., is a Vacfyiopterus wit -
out the wing-like supplementary pectoral, or a TVigZa without the
free rays. Head and body like Dactylopterus, of which it is said by
Dumeril to be merely the young. An acute and very long spine
from the angle of the preoperculum, and another from the supia-
scapula both serrated. Pectoral divided into two nearly equal lobes
by \ fissure. A pointed caeca! stomach; innumerable pancreatic
cjEca * no air-bladder. On© sp©ciGS. j v. ^
Genus VI. Cottus, Linn. A large rounded or depressed head,
variously armed with spines and tubercles. No scales. Two dor¬
sals Teeth on the fore-part of the vomer ; no teeth on the pala-
SI. sfx branchiostegals! Five, four, or fewer r.ysm the v.ntc.U;
inferior reys of the pectoral unbr.nched as
creatic caeca few in number ; no air-bladder. Thirty-six
Various dismemberments of this genus have been made, and the
fresh-water and marine species have been separated—Urantdea
ing the name given to an American fresh-water species, and Acan-
thoeothus to the marine ones. .
In the fully armed head of a Cottus there are ten spinous points
more or less produced on each side of the head ; one on the turb-
nal • five on the preoperculum, the one at the angle being a long
spine, and°the others angular points of the inferior l-,b; one on
the inferior anterior angle of the suboperculum; a spme at the
point of the operculum, and acute points or spines on the supra
scapula and coracoid. There are also four enunences placed in a
quadrangle on the top of the head, one behind each orbit, and another
on the occiput on each side. In some these are blunt and smooth
in others spinous ; in others rough tubercles, much elevated °r en
branched. In other species many of the spinous points are ob o ete
Genus VII. Trachydermis, Heck. (Centndermichthy., Ki .)
General form that of Cottus-, head less depressed lurbinals,
preoperculum, and inferior angles of the suboperculum spinous
theprincipalpreopercularspine-hooked. Beneath it two acu e spin
and a blunt point; operculum and preorbitar unarmed. \ illiform
teeth on the jaws, palatines, and chevron of the vomer ; pharyngea
teeth rather coarser, the upper ones forming a tuft, on _eac 81 e-
Dorsals contiguous ; pectorals like those of Coitus, \n ith simp e ra} s
below (seven) ; ventrals having four jointed rays and one spine.
Branchiostegals six. Body covered with slender setaceous spines,
each springing from a minute cuticular tubercle. Head, belly, ax¬
illae of the pectorals, and a narrow line along the base of the anal,
smooth. A genital papilla ; pancreatic caeca. Species 2V. ansata,
China. . „
Cottus asper (Fauna Bor. Amer.) seems to be a second species ot
Trachydermis, with the spines on the same bones of the head, but
less prominent, so as to be concealed in the recent fish by the inte¬
guments, and the point of the principal preopercular spine not
hooked. It is the type of the genus Cotopsis, Girard.
Genus VIII. Triglopsis, Gir. Head smooth. Many muci-
Fishes.
ferous canals developed in the bones of the skull and face, as in Classifica-
Acerina. First dorsal shorter and much lower than the second one, tion—
and distant from it. No palatine teeth ; teeth on the chevron of the Acanthop-
vomer, and also down the median line. Four preopercular spines, terous
shorter and more slender than is usual in Coitus. Gill-openings
connected on the throat without an isthmus. Branchiostegals six.
All the pectoral rays undivided. One species, Lake Ontario. .
Genus IX. Phobetor, Kroy. Cotti destitute of vomerine
teeth ; resembling Coitus Scorpius in general aspect. Acute
small turbinal spines. Principal preopercular spine snagged;
three acute points on the bone beneath it; operculum destitute ot
both the usual median rib and spine. A small spine pointing down¬
wards from the lower angle of the suboperculum, and crossed by a
smaller interopercular spine. Suprascapulae unarmed. wo sma
cranial tubercles on each side. No orbital ridges. Lateral line com¬
posed of cutaneous mucoducts. Fins large. . ,
Genus X. Icelus, Kroy. Body somewhat compressed higher
than thick. Head large; destitute of scales; armed with spines
on the snout, preoperculum, and nape. Teeth minute, setaceous
on the jaws, vomer, and palatines. Branchiostegals six. wo or
sals, separated ; ventrals of four rays under the pectorals ; rays of
all the fins undivided. On each side from the nape to the caudal fin
a continuous series of bony shields, running near the dorsals. Ba-
teral line composed of bony tubercles. Ciliated scales on the sides and
belly, few and scattered; the rest of the skin naked. Three species,
/. hamatus, I. bicornis, I. uncinatus. .
Genus XI. Caracanthus, Kroy. Body higher than in other
genera of the family, greatly compressed, oval. Snout very short,
truncated ; small slender teeth on the premaxillanes and mandi¬
ble. Branchiostegals six. Preorbitar scale bone armed ivith a spi¬
nous point anteriorly. Two low dorsal fins; short pectoral fins,
with simple rays; ventrals entirely rudimentary ; two spinous
anal rays, set apart from the soft portion of the fin. ISo scales,
but many cutaneous papillae. One species, Ota.heite. . ..
Genus XII. Podaerus, Rich., 1848. Scaleless. Lateral line
of simple cutaneous mucoducts, arched abruptly oyer the pectorals.
Ventrals of a spine and two soft rays; two dorsals approximate ,
rays of all the fins, except the caudal, unbranched ; none free ' -
liform bands of subulate teeth on the jaws, vomer, and palatines,
and in hemispherical tufts on the pharyngeals, also on the tuber¬
cular rakers. Tongue smooth. No armature on the preorbitar,
suboperculum, or fnteroperculum, nor on the -amum or supra-
scapulse. Slight unevenness of the skull concealed by the soft
paHs. A narrow, thin process projects from above the corner of the
nreoperculum ; and the operculum ends in a thin flexible point,
but°tiwre is no pungent corner, and the „f .he
conceal the second preorbitar as it crosses to the hollo
preoperculum. One species has the aspect of Centropomus, another
of Cottus, both are more compressed than Cottus. Iwo specie ,
ChGENUSSXIIL Aspidophorus, Lacgp. Phalangista, Bloch
Schneid Many of the characters of Cottus, such as the depressed
head simple rays, six branchiostegals, but with the body cuirassed
by a series of large bony scales that extend the headJ° ^
caudal fin, forming a pyramid with many faces. No
^Genl^xIvLPlatycephalus, Bloch. Head very much de¬
pressed • spiny. Body more or less depressed ; elongated , scaly.
Acute teeth on the palatines. Seven branchiostegals. A spine and
five articulated rays in the ventrals, which are under the middle of
the pectorals, and therefore abdominal in position and W1
each other laterally, owing to the of *he Pub.c
bones Dorsals contiguous or approximated. Thirty specie .
Genus XV. Opeichthys, Cuv. Head depressed, and with the
operculum very spinous as in Platycephalus. Body cuirassed as in
Aspidophorus. Ventrals more jugular, and having a spine /
.X0v“ ThSaShhOS, Cnv. Two dorsals, the first on,
lower rays thickened, bat ("^""tdSg'Ih.'cLdri.rin.;
X and ph.ryngeaU in rilli-
of to, but with the dorsals united, and pala-
little crest. Stomach small; pancreatic c*ca five ^
Genus XVIIL BEMBRAS Cuv Head, serrate^
spines, nearly as in Blatycep a us, ^ articulated rays and the
rather before the pectora s, villiform bands of teeth
usual spine, and as in Scorpcena there are vim o
Dorsals separated, as in Cottus.
Acanthop-
terous
Fishes.
Classifica- on the jaws, vomer, and palatines
tion— Two species.
Genus XIX. Scorp.en^, Linn. Resemble the Cotti in manv
particulars, but are distinguished by their single dorsal Head
compressed laterally, and teeth on the palatines as well as on the
vomer and jaws. Head large and very spiny, enveloped generally in
a spongy skin; pungent or spinous points on the side of the head
and gill-cover generally on the same bones as in Cottus, and they
vary in size and acuteness with the species. There are besides a
spinous ridge on the second suborbitar, and crests on the top of The
cranium, more or less prominent and acute. No scales on the head
Seien branchiostegaJs. A scaly body. Cutaneous filaments de-
pendjng from various part of the head and flanks, and simple
though jointed rays in the lower part of the pectorals. Eightor
more pancreatic caeca ; no air-bladder. Thirty species ^
Genus XX. Sebastes, Cuv. Percoids, except for the connec¬
tion of the suborbitar with the operculum and the simple inferior
rays of the pectorals. Scorpasnce, but for the presence of scales on
ptrtsn0ThniEXllia-riiS’ CheekS’ and gill'covers> or on most of these
Genus XXL Pteuois, Cuv. Head compressed and stran-elv
shaped cutaneous filaments on the snout. Preorbitars and pre^
b!inCUTm iimP f’v. \ery l0ng mys in the Pectorals, with the nim¬
bi ane deeply notched; long slender dorsal spines. Teeth on the
jaws and front of the vomer, but none on the palatines Seven
branchiostegals. Small scales on the body and various parts of the
dfble’ VeT TyT°id ?>- Pores Hmbsof the man!
Three Tentrals ^lth five irking soft rays in addition to the spine
species. 6 a Pretty ^ °Val air-b^dder. Ten
Genus XXII T^nianotus, Cuv. Body extremely compressed
diElt™17 r and, UnUed t0 the Cauda1’ from whi«h thianal is
stinct, yentrals under the base of’the pectorals of five soft rays
and one spine. Scales very small. Cutaneous filaments on the orbit
on the orb?/? °f the.®n0ut- SPinous Points on the turbinals, three
on the orbit, two on the cranial crest, one on the suprascapula two
on the creTi VT!' ThT®e teeth on the preoperculum, a small one
on the crest of the second suborbitar. Radiating lines on the pre-
orbitar, and teeth on its edge. ^
nrSTu XnXIT- !5LEPSIAS" Cuv- Allied to Scorpcena by its com-
SmnTe fi6 ’ CU,rassed V the suborbitar, palatine teeth,
s.mple fin-rays, short, and half free in the lower part of the pec-
J? a S- fn1 cutaneous filaments on the snout and mandible; but dis¬
tinguished from that genus by the five branchiostegals and hi^h
f 0r*a ,hdl1Vlded int0 three unequal lobes like that of Hemitripterus :
from the latter genus its compressed head separates it. All the rays
of the fins, including the caudal, unbranched. Obtuse corners on
poXoTrSd.""1 a“te ,urbi“i 'i,ines' ^
Genus XXIV. Aoriopus, Cuv. One of the least armed of the
famuy, and the second suborbitar does not articulate opposite the
HmhTf T iPr0perCTr’ bUt t0 the UPPer Part of the ascending
hmb of that bone. A long single dorsal, with strong spines ad¬
vancing on the cranium to between the orbits, with its anterior
rays flanked by elevated uneven cranial crests. Mouth projecting
small, furnished with scarcely perceptible teeth ; no teeth on the
palate or tongue. Five branchiostegals. Pectorals low down, the
membrane between the lower rays deeply notched; ventrals with
a spine und five soft rays; caudal rays subdivided; rays of all the
o her fins .simple. Skin scaleless, smooth, or finely tuberculated.
Stomach siphonal, without a dilatation to distinguish it from the
oesophagus; no pancreatic ca:ca ; air-bladder oval, occupying half
the length of the abdomen. This genus and Patcecus seem to link
the hclerogemdai and Gobiidce to each other. Four species.
Genus XXV. Apistes, Cuv. Scorpcence, having for their dis¬
tinctive character one long spine on the preorbitar, and another
on the preoperculum, which, from the mobility of these bones can
be raised to a right angle with the long axis of the fish, and become
angerous weapons.. Soft part of the dorsal not separated from the
spinous portion, but in some species rays are detached from the front
and form small separate fins. Some have a naked skin like Cottus,
others are scaly like Scorpcena, and some have one or more free
rays under the pectoral. Cuvier kept these various forms in one
genus, merely giving the name of Minous to those which have some
detached pectoral rays: subsequent ichthyologists have made genera
of the groups that were indicated in the ffistoire des Poissons.
swollen1! tC?nCal; /0Ur- Pancreatic C£Eca ; pretty large air-bladder,
ollen at the.extremities, and somewhat depressed in the middle,
ghteen species, of which three are wholly without scales.
theneTfn X!XVL, Cuv- APistet with one free ray under
the pectorals, and thereby allied to—
ICHTHYOLOGY.
I*-™11- C,I°RIDAPTYLtJS’ R5ch- (Voy. of the Sulphur,
IXIU). This genus combines the characters of various Sclerogenidce ■
in union with the preorbitar spines of Apistes or Minous, it has the
hollow cheeks, prominent orbits, tall, slender dorsal spines, fila-
ments of the fins, three free pectoral rays, and ventrals adnate to
the belly, and composed of five soft rays and a spine, all as in Pelor.
It has not, however, the elongated body, depressed head, and hori-
zontally protruding muzzle, nor the vomerine teeth of Pelor, and
ol the Scorpcence generally ; it is distinguished from Synanceia by
its free pectoral rays, but resembles that genus in general form.
Skin scaleless. Many filaments on the head, mandible, and fins.
One species.
Genus NXVHL Sthenopus, Rich. (lib. supra cit.) Aspect of
elor, with a less extraordinary-shaped, though large head, and
iree ngher rays of the dorsal, advanced to the orbits, but con¬
nected at the base by membrane to the remainder of the fin Only
two soft rays and a spine in the small ventrals, which are under the
base oi the pectorals. No pungent points on the bones of the head
ar? C °thed With S0ft’ thick> loose integuments.
Skin of the body destitute of scales, but covered in many parts,
especially along the lateral line, with small cutaneous filaments,
b -tand alf° the head> pectorals, and dorsal. Pectorals at>-
tached differently from those of Synanceia. Teeth on the jaws and
chevron of the vomer; none on the palatines. The second suborbitar,
w ich traverses the cheek, is a narrow plate that descends from
under the eye to the curve of the preoperculum ; the preorbitar
is subulate with a cartilaginous tip. One species.
Genus XXIX. Pei.or, Cuv. Head as it were broken down
above, with prominent orbits approximated to each other. High
and almost isolated dorsal spines. No scales. Bands of fine villiform
teeth on the jaws and front of the vomer; none on the palatines or
tongue. Two free rays under the pectorals. The large moveable
spine of the preorbitar of Apistes is absent, by which they are
separated from the species of that genus with naked skins, but
there are angular points on the preorbitar, and still more promi¬
nent ones on the preoperculum, operculum, suprascapula, and
coracoul. Stomach caecal; four thick pancreatic c»ca; an air-
bladder scarcely as big as a pea placed near the pylorus. Seven
species. J
GINUu XXX- SYNANCEIA, Bloch., Schneid. Destitute of spines
°n .m16 u which. 18 not niore compressed than that of many
otti. eeth on the jaws, but none on the vomer or palatines : no free
rays under the pectoral, but the tips of some of the rays project
considerably in some species. Mouth vertical as in Uranoscopus, the
manmtde.bemg in front when shut; this form of the mouth, five
soft rays in the ventrals, and the want of vomerine teeth, distin¬
guish the genus from Sthenopus. Skin scaleless, smooth and slippery.
Eyes in some lateral, though high on the head; in S. asteroblepa
very small, and on the dorsal aspect of the head. Stomach oval
cascal; four thick pancreatic cmca ; air-bladder simple, small in the
tore part of the abdomen. Twelve species.
. Synancideum (Mull., Acad. Berl. 1839) is Svnanceia with vome¬
rine teeth. ^ S. trachynis (Rich.) is an Australian species.
Genus XXXT. Aploactis, Schleg. Intermediate among the
otti, Synanceia, Apistes, and Agriopi, resembling Cottus in denti-
lon and in its ventrals, with two soft rays and one spine; Sqnanceia
in the want of armature of the head and general physiognomy •
Apistes m the compressed head and shape of the dorsal; and some
griopi in its skin being studded with bristles springing from small
tubercles. Two species.
Genus XXXII. Monocentris, Lacep. Very different in aspect
from the other members of the family, but having the distinguishing
c mracter of the group in the suborbitar crossing the cheek to the
preoperculum. Body thick and short, cuirassed by enormous rough
angular and keeled scales. Four or five thick spines not connected
with membrane form an anterior dorsal; ventrals having one enor¬
mous spine, and a few small, almost invisible rays in its axilla •
Face bulging. Villiform teeth on the jaws and palatines ; none on
the vomer. Eight branchiostegals. Soft dorsal and anal opposite,
and far back. One species.
Genus XXXHI. Trachichthys, Shaw. (Hoplostethus, Cuv. ;
Vf- iTu' 1V-\47°> and iH” 2290 Form oval, to which the
tail behind the anal is to be added. Face very convex; mouth termi¬
nal, descending obliquely. Eye very large. Top of the head and
cheeks cellular, from the prominence of branching bony crests
which on the cheeks radiate from the suborbitars. Operculum and
disk of the preoperculum striated ; a spine from the angle of the
latter; a small spine terminating a ridge on the upper part of the
operculum ; a flat rough spine on the suprascapula, and one on the
mastoid One dorsal; ventrals under the pectorals of six soft
rays and a spine; the soft rays of all the fins branched. Belly ser¬
rated behind the ventrals. Caudal deeply forked. Two species.
enus XXIV. Chirus, Stel. Pretty long compressed scaly
fishes, with a small unarmed head. Scales ciliated. Cheek traversed
283
Classifica¬
tion—
Acanthop-
terous
Fishes.
284
Classifica¬
tion—
Acanthop-
terous
Fishes.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
by the second suborbitar, as in the other Sclerogenidce; distinguished
by having several (generally five) lateral lines at various heights
Mouth small. Dorsal nearly even, extending all along the back , its
spinous rays slender; ventrals of five rays and a spine. No pan¬
creatic caeca. Frequently a tufted filament on the eye-brows, len
^^he ffemis Stichceus of Reinhardt (Oversigt over det Kongelige,
Danske, Vid. Sels. &c., 1835-6) should come in here, but we have
not at present access to Reinhardt’s paper.
SCRENOIDS.
Several genera have been removed from this family as it
was presented in the Histoire des Poissons, particularly the
groups which have a lateral line broken or inteirupted
under the distal end of the dorsal fin. These form the
Ctenoid Labroids in the order of Pharyngognaths already
treated of. We have also associated the genera that have
fewer branchiostegals than seven with the 77/eraponidee,
and Cheilodactylus with the Pohjnemidee. These being
removed, the remainder present a more perfect family
aspect.
TABLE OF GENERA.
Two dorsals, or one dorsal deeply notched.
No mandibular barbels.
No strong canines.
Denticulated preopercula.
No large smooth rounded teeth.
Snout convex, bulging.
SCIiENA, CORVINA, LeIOSTOMUS, JOHNIUS.
Snout not convex nor high and rounded.
Larimus, Lepipterus
Large pavement-like teeth on the jaws.
Boridia, Conodon.
Preopercula not denticulated.
Nebris, Eleginus.
Strong canine teeth.
Otolithus, Ancylodon.
One or more mandibular barbels.
Umbrina, Lonchurus, Pogonias, Micropogon.
One dorsal only.
H^mulon, Pristipoma, Diagramma.
sound.” Mr Yarrell mentions some subsequent instances Classifica-
_ . . . . - - -r i f irm —
Fig. 100.
Corvina liichardsonii.
Fig. 101.
Air-bladder,
Corvina acoupa.
This woodcut represents a fresh-water Corvina, common
in Lake Huron. We have, however, some suspicion of its
belonging more properly to the Theraponidce than to the
Scicenidce, notwithstanding Cuvier’s weighty authority. It
has only six branchiostegals.
Many members of this family have curious air-bladders
with fringe-like appendages. The subjoined woodcuts re¬
present that of Corvina acoupa, and Ct Pogonias chromis.
One of the most remarkable of the Scicence is the aquila,
called Umbrina by the Romans, and held in high esteem
in the Mediterranean even at the present day. It is very
rare on the British coasts. Dr Patrick Neill records one
instance of its capture off Ugea in Northmavine, Shet¬
land, in November 1819. When first seen, it caught
the attention of the fishermen by its endeavours to elude
the pursuit of a seal. It measured five feet four inches,
and when lifted into the boat made its usual “ purring
of its being taken on the Northumber¬
land and Kentish coasts. It is much
more common in the Mediterranean,
and Paul Jovius says that many were
taken at the mouth of rivers in the
Roman states, along with Sturgeons.
They swim in troops, and are said to
utter at times a low bellowing sound.
On one occasion, the fishermen, guided
by this sound, dropt their net with such
success as to secure twenty fine fish
at a single cast. The noise may be heard
from the depth of twenty fathoms, and
is often very perceptible when the ear
is placed upon the gunwale of the boat.
Its tone seems to vary, as some have
compared it to a dull buzzing, others
to a sharp whistle. Some fishermen
allege that the males alone are musical
during spawning time, and that it is
quite possible to capture them without
any bait, merely by imitating this pe¬
culiar sound. One alluded to by Cu¬
vier as having been entangled in a net spread along the
shore at Dieppe, was at first found sleeping ; but on being
handled it
roused itself
so suddenly,
and with such
violence, as
to precipitate
the fisher¬
man into the
water, and
force him to
call for as¬
sistance be¬
fore he could
become its
master. High,
though of
course ima¬
ginary vir¬
tues, were
formerly at¬
tributed to
the stones
which occur
in the ear of
this, as of
other osseous
fishes. They
were worn on
the neck, set
in gold ; and , _
Belon says they were called colic-stones, being renowned tor
the cure, and even prevention of that complaint. It was
necessary, however, that they should be received as a gitt,
such as were purchased being found to lose their virtue.
The Pogonias grow to a great size, some of them
weighing occasionally above a hundred pounds, and the
singular sounds uttered by them have gained them the
vulgar name o? Drums. Mr John White, an American
lieutenant, who (in 1824) published^ Voyage to the China
Seas, relates, that being at the mouth of the River Cambodia,
himself and crew were greatly astonished by certain extra-
ordinarv sounds, which were heard from around and beneath
the vessel. They resembled a combination of the bass of
an or-an, the sound of bells, and the guttural cries of a
large frog, with certain tones which the imagination might
tion-
Acanthop-
terous
Fishes.
Fig. 102.
Air-bladder, Pogonias chromis.
I C H ^
Classifica- attribute to a gigantic harp. It might almost have been said
Acanthon that the ye^el trembled at those uncertain sounds. For
terous some time they increased, and finally formed a loud and
Fishes. un>versal chorus, the entire length of the vessel, and on
, either side. In proportion as they ascended the river the
mysterious sounds diminished, and finally altogether ceased
The interpreter gave the information that they were pro¬
duced by a troop of fishes of a flattened oval form, which
possess the faculty of adhering firmly to various bodies by
their mouths. A similar phenomenon was noticed by the
illustrious Humboldt in the South Seas, although he was
unable at the time to divine the cause. It would, as Cuvier
has remarked, be an object of curious research to discover
by what organ these sounds are produced. Lieutenant
White need not have left his own country to become
acquainted with the loud noises produced by the “ Drums”
or “ Grunts,” as Pogonias chromis is named in the United
States. This fish, or a species similar to it in appearance
and habits, abounds in the winter and spring on the coasts
of Georgia and Florida, and drums so loudly on the bot¬
toms of vessels that anchor there, as utterly to deprive the
sailors of sleep, until several nights’ use has accustomed
them to the loud and disagreeable noise. The sound is
better expressed by the word drumming than by any other,
and is accompanied by a tremulous motion of the vessel’
We caught several of the fish, and found them excellent
food, but their tails were rejected as being full of parasitic
Jilarm. It appeared to us that the uneasiness produced by
these parasites might cause the fish to beat their tails against
the bottom of the vessel, and that many individuals were
employed in keeping up the sound which continued without
the slightest intermission all the night through. The teeth
of Plectropoma dentex
THYOLOGY.
285
Fig. 103.
Diagramma orientale.
have been shown by fig.
60. Fig. 103 repre¬
sents a Sciaenoid of the
group having a single
dorsal fin. This group
corresponds in external
appearance with the Per-
coids that have a single
dorsal, being seemingly as much allied to them as to the
typical Sciaenoids with the two dorsals, and differing from
the analogous Percoids chiefly by the presence of teeth on
the loof the mouth, and a few pores on the mandible. The
latter character, however, exists in some Percoids also.
Family Vlir.—SCLENID^E.
(Xfa Scicenoides, Cuv.) With many of the exterior characters of
the Perco'ides, such as a spinous or denticulated operculum, a vari¬
ously armed preoperculum, scaly body, a simple or double dorsal,
or one deeply notched, and the same varieties in the combination
of these characters, they have more or less of a peculiar family
physiognomy, and differ from the Percoids in having no teeth on
the vomer or palatines. The bones of the head and face are often
full of muciferous cells or hollows, with external porous openings ;
and the face and snout are frequently gibbous. The vertical fins
and parts of the head are occasionally scaly. Scales ctenoid, gene¬
rally obliquely ranged. In their internal anatomy there is more
variety than in the Percoids, and their air-bladders especially have
branching appendages in many genera. The diagnostic characters
are, denticulations or spines on the opercular pieces; cheeks not
cuirassed by the suborbitar; mouth little protractile; vomer and
palatines toothless; seven branchiostegals.
(a.) Two dorsals, or one deeply notched.
Genus I. Sci^ina, Cuv. Head convex, with cellular bones. Two
dorsals, or one dorsal deeply notched, and the soft part much longer
than the spinous one ; a short anal. Preoperculum denticulated ;
operculum ending in points. Seven branchiostegals. Otolites larger
than in most fishes, and the air-bladders large and complicated.
The proper Sciasnce have feeble spines in the anal, and are destitute
of canines and barbels. Stomach caecal; ten pancreatic caica or
more. Four species.
Genus II. Otolithus, Cuv. Scicence also with feeble anal spines p.no
and no barbels, but having long curved teeth or canines among the . nca‘
others. Air-bladder having a horn-like projection on each side in
front; four pancreatic casca. Fiahteen sr.Pf.Ioa Acanthop-
front; four pancreatic casca. Eighteen species.
Genus III. Ancylodon, Cuv. Otolithes with a very short snout
excessively long canines, and a pointed tail. Two species.
Genus IV. Corvina, Cuv. Scicence with wholly villiform teeth
and no barbels, but differing from Scicena and Otolithus in the
gi eat size of the second anal spine. Nineteen species.
Genus \r. Johnius, Bloch. Considered by Cuvier to be like
orvina and Otolithus, a subdivision of Scicena, and distinguished
chiefly by the second anal spine being weak and shorter than the
sort rays of that fin. Eighteen species.
Genus VI. Leiostomus, Cuv. Johnii in having a small anal
spine or feeble denticulations in the preoperculum; but the teeth
of the jaws so fine as to be with great difficulty seen; pharyngeal
teeth pavement-hke. Scales ciliated. Horns of the air-bladder
smaller and more slender than in Otolithus. Two species.
Genus VII. Larimus, Cuv. One of several anomalous Sciaenoid
torms, which have characters different from those of the foret;ointr
groups. Two dorsals. Villiform teeth. Forehead not arched ; snout
short; preoperculum slightly denticulated. Stomach caecal, narrow-
eleven pancreatic caeca; air-bladder large, simple. Two species. ’
Genus VIII. Kerris, Cuv. Sciaenoids with two dorsals. Villi¬
form teeth Profile nearly straight; snout short; mandible ascend¬
ing Limb of the preoperculum membranous, and merely striated
and the fins all more or less scaly. One species.
Genus IX. Lepipterus, Cuv. Sciamoids with villiform teeth
prolonged snout, profile rather concave, and very scaly vertical
fins. One species. J
Genus X. Boridia. Cuv. Corvince with smooth blunt teeth on
the jaws. One species.
Genus XI. Conodon, Cuv. Sciasnoids distinguished from the
others by having a row of conical teeth on the two jaws. One
species.
Genus XII. Eleginus, Cuv. Sciaenoids with an entire pre¬
operculum, Mouth small. Anal long. Two short conical horns in
the fore part of the air-bladder. Three species.
. Genus XIII. Eques, Bloch. Resemble Scicena, Corvina, Johnius
in their convex snout, scaly throughout, like the rest of the*
head; in the mucous pores and pits of the lower jaw; in the up¬
per jaw being able to retire under the edge of the preorbitar;
in the length of the second dorsal, and the shortness of the anal*
both of them scaly as well as much of the caudal. Teeth villiform’
and not elongated like those of the Chcetodons. In Eques the body
is compressed, and by the convexity of the nape assumes a cunei¬
form outline. Branchiostegals seven. Faint crenatures on the pre¬
operculum; the bony frame of the operculum ends in two flat points.
rlhe first dorsal is high and peaked with mostly flexible rays; second
dorsal low and long; caudal rhomboidal ; ventrals longer than the
pectorals. A small membrane in front of the snout, with a pit on
each side between it and the high preorbitar. A small pore beneath
the mandible on each side of the median line. A large silvery air-
bladder; cascal stomach; four pancreatic caeca. Three species.
Genus XIV. Umbrina, Cuv. Sciaenoids having one barbel un¬
der the mandibular symphysis. Thirteen species.
Genus XV. Lonchurus, Cuv., Bloch. Umbrince with two
mandibular barbels and a pointed caudal. Two species.
Genus XVI. Pogonias, Lacep. Umbrince with many small man¬
dibular barbels. Lower pharyngeal teeth and middle upper ones
large like those of Labrus. Two species.
Genus XVII. Micropogon, Lacep. Sciaenoids with a prominent
nape like Corvina. Moderate-sized anal spine, and very small and
numerous barbels. Distinct denticulations on the ascending limb of
the preoperculum, those at the angle being larger; operculum end¬
ing in two flat points. Membrane at the end of the snout four-lobed.
Mouth moderately protractile; pretty broad bands of villiform
teeth; pharyngeal teeth villiform, the middle ones being larger,
with obtuse summits. Under the mandible at the symphyses two
large pores and three small ones; three or four little barbels
attached to the limb of the mandible. Scales slightly rough and
oblique as in the Sciaenoids in general. Dorsal spines not very
strong; slender ventral spine, and the anal spine shorter than the
soft rays ; caudal nearly even at the end. Three species, America.
(b.) A single dorsal; preoperculum always denticulated.
Genus XVIII. Hasmulon, Cuv. Body oblong, pretty high an-
teriorly, somewhat compressed. Profile descending almost in a
straight line, and forming a snout that projects tolerably. Preor¬
bitar large, but not denticulated, covered with skin and scales,
joining the cheek as in the Scicence in general, and forming a ledge
under which the moderately protractile upper jaw retires. Lips
fleshy. Mandible articulated under the eye, having an oval pit
286
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifies- under the symphysis, and two small pores m advance of it. V Ui-
\-on_ form teeth In the jaws, with some bigger than the rest - the outer
\canthon- row (but much less so than in Dentes, which, moreover, has an en-
terous1 tire preoperculum). Operculum ending in two flat obtuse angular
Fishes projections, which do not show through the membrane; and the gill-
, cover is sometimes quite rounded. Palate without teeth ; tongue
smooth and free. Seven branchiostegals, the last three slender, r o
denticulations on the suprascapula. A triangular scaly appendage
in the axilla of the ventrals; dorsal moderately notched; caudal
forked and covered with small scales like those on the soft parts ot
the dorsal and anal. Scales of the body large, finely ctenoid; none
on the lips or snout before the eyes. Stomach caecal, small, and
pointed ; seven pancreatic caeca ; a long simple air-bladder. Four-
teeGE8NUS1XIX. Prxstipoma, Cuv. Resembling Haimulon in most
characters, and in the mandibular pores, but having a more bulging
snout smaller mouth, less moveable mandible, and no scales on the
dorsal or anal. Operculum ending in a smooth point, hidden under
the skin. Villiform teeth, with the exterior row generally stronger.
(Distinguished from Diagramma by the latter having four or six
large pores on the mandible, and from Lobotes by the presence of
mandibular pores and of seven branchiostegals.) Forty species.
Genus XX. Diagramma, Cuv. Wants the symphysial pit on
the mandible, which exists in Fristipoma, but has the two small
pores, and in addition, two large pores on each limb of the bone.
Fins as in Fristipoma, together with the denticulated preoperculum,
and the operculum destitute of a spine. Twenty-two species.
Genus XXL Prionodus, Jenyns. Aspect of Serranus, but
without the palatine and vomerine teeth. It enters the group of
Hcemulon, Pristipoma, and Diagramma, from all of which it is dis¬
tinguished by the want of pores under the mandibular symphysis.
Genus XXII. Pristipomoides, Bleek. Single, undivided,
dorsal fin. Branchiostegals seven. Dorsal and anal without scales ;
caudal scaly. No conspicuous mandibular pores. Lateral jaw teeth
uniserial; anterior ones pluriserial; the internal ones minute and
setaceous; the external row formed of two to four larger conical
canines. Preoperculum denticulated. Sumatra.
Genus XXHL Cheilotrema, Tschudi. Upper lip protractile,
with eight pores. Mandible with five pores. Operculum toothed;
preoperculum having two spines. Peru.
SPAROIDS.
The Histoire des Poissons contains the following table
of the genera :—
TABLE OF GENERA.
Teeth in part conical or molar.
Checks scfily*
Sargus, Charax, Chrysophrys, Pagrus, Pagellus,
Dentex, Pentapus.
Cheeks scaleless.
Lethrinus.
Teeth wholly villiform.
Cantharus.
Trenchant teeth, no molars.
Box, Oblata, Scatharus, Crenidens.
By their dentition they may be arranged in tribes in the follow-
ing order :—
Tribe I. — Round molars and trenchant front teeth,
Sargus, Charax, Chrysophrys, Pagrus, Pagellus.
Tribe II.— Conical teeth with canines.
Lethrinus, Dentex, Pentapus.
Tribe III.— Teeth all villiform.
Cantharus.
Tribe IV.—Trenchant jaw teeth, with or without villiform
bands.
Box, Oblata.
The Sargi in general feed on shells and the smaller
Crustacea, which they easily crush with their molar teeth,
but Cuvier found fuci in the stomachs of some brought
from the Red Sea and the Atlantic. iElian and Oppian
inform us that the male is polygamous, and fights with great
fury with his own sex for the possession of many females.
The same authors attribute to it a feeling still more extra¬
ordinary,—a lively passion for goats, which it exhibits by
always swimming with great rapidity towards those animals,
and indulging in playful gambols before them. So blind
was this passion, that a fisherman (it was so alleged) might
catch as many as he pleased by disguising himself with the Llassifica-
skin and horns of a goat, and scattering in the water flour
steeped in goats’ broth. terous
The best-known species inhabits the Mediterranean, it j’isiies<
is the S. Rondeletii of Cuv. The American shores pro-
duce several others, one of which (*S'. ovis) is called the
Sheep’s-head by the Americans. Dr Mitchell speaks in the
most eulogistic terms of the superexcellence of its flesh, and
of the high esteem in which it is held at the tables of J. ew
York. It yields in his opinion to few fishes, and is worthy
of being served at the most sumptuous entertainments.
The price varies from a dollar to a dollar and a halt for a
middle-sized individual, and above that size the pi ice langes
even so high as from L.4 to L.7 sterling. I hey sometimes
weigh from 14 to 15 lbs. The fishery of this species forms
an object of importance along the coasts of the state o
New York. It approaches those of Long Island in the hot
season from the month of June till the middle of Septem¬
ber, after which it seems to seek retirement in the deep
abysses of the ocean. As they swim in troops, they may
be advantageously fished for with the net, and many hun¬
dreds are sometimes taken at a single cast. M ith the great
nets used at Rayner Town, and the two islands, thousands
are drawn ashore. They are immediately packed in ice,
and despatched during the cool ot the night to the markets
of New York. It is difficult to take the Sheep’s-head with
a line, because it contrives to snap the very hooks asunder
with its cutting teeth.
The species of Chrysophris are numerous, and extended
through many seas. Those of the Mediterranean are on y
two in number, and are cnWeti Daurades by the French,
no doubt from the Latin Aurata, a term applied to them
by ancient authors. The Greeks named them Chrysophris,
which signifies golden eye-brow, in allusion to the brilliant
spot of gold which the common species bears between its
eyes. That the Aurata of the Latins was identical with
the Chrysophris of the Greeks, may be inferred from a
passage in Pliny, which is obviously borrowed from Aris¬
totle, and where the former word is used as the translation
of the latter. According to Columella, the Aurata was
among the number of the fishes brought up by the Romans
in their vivaria; and the inventor of these vivaria, one ber-
gius Grata, is supposed to have derived his surname from the
fish in question. Adi an tells us that the Chrysophris is the
most timid of all fishes, and that branches of poplars p anted
in the sand so terrified a party of these fishes which had been
carried upwards by the flood, that in the succeeding reflux
they did not dare to pass the poplars, but allowed themselves
to be taken by the hand. The Chrysophris aurata, or Cilt-
head, seldom quits the vicinity of the shore, and grows ex¬
tremely fat in the salt ponds. We owe to Duhamel what¬
ever information we possess regarding its habits. 1 he tish-
ermen informed that author that it agitates the sand forcibly
with its tail, so as to discover the shell-fish which may he
beneath concealed. It is extremely fond of mussels, and its
near presence is sometimes ascertained by the noise winch
Fig. 104.
Crenidens tephrceops.
it makes while breaking their shells with its teeth. It greatly
ICHTHYOLOGY.
287
Classifica- dreads cold, and many were observed to perish daring the
tion— severe winter of 1 766. The Gilt-head is a British species,
Acanthop- but Gf extremely
rare occurrence.
i-n-Y*r\ no * *
f he Dentex vulgaris, a fish of a silvery hue, shaded into
blue upon the back, with reddish pectoral fins, and some¬
times attaining to the weight of 20 lbs., has occurred upon
the Sussex coast. The specimen figured by Donovan
(pi. 73) was obtained in Billingsgate market.
Fig. 31 represents a scale of Lethrinus cynocheilus, and
may give some idea of the general character of a Sparoid
scale, alluded to in the table of genera at the bottom of the
page.
Family IX.—SPARID^).
Sparoid scales; a large elongated scale in the axilla of the pec¬
toral. Gill-cover shining, without proper spines or denticulations.
Maxilla capable of being received in part under the preorbitar
scale bone, which is generally high. Spinous rays of the dorsal
and anal fins bare, mostly lodging in a furrow ; pectoral and ventral
fins sharp pointed; caudal fin notched in an angle at the end. The
Sparoid scales are generally thin, broader than long, and the centre
of growth is near the posterior border, the lines being parallel to
the anterior border, and becoming straight laterally. Their pecu¬
liar structure is described more fully in Agass. Poiss. Foss, i., p. 86,
and in Troschel s Arch, for 1849, p. 382. Snout not projecting nor
protractile, destitute of palatine teeth, and distinguished from the
feciaenoids by the want of any denticulations or armature of the
gill-covers, and of cavernous or cellular structure in the cranium ;
from the Chcetodontidai, by the want of scales on the vertical fins ;
and by the size and nature of the scales from the Scomberidce
(Hist, des Poissons). Branchiostegals generally six, sometimes five,
rarely seven.
and head wholly unarmed. Yentrals consisting of a spine and five Classifica-
soft rays under the pectorals. Scales ctenoid, in some covering all tion 
the head except the disk of the preoperculum, mandible, and lips, Acanthop-
in other species have more or most of the opercular pieces scaleless; terous
narrow vertical bands of scales exist on the fins in some species, Fishes,
but are easily deciduous. Teeth compressed, curved, crenated with i ^ — j
three or more disks, rarely entire, forming two rows on the jaws,
and separated by a furrow from an interior band of minute teeth
appearing to be granular, but when examined with a lens showing
the same forms with the exterior older ones which they are des¬
tined to succeed. Vomer and palate generally toothless. In C.
simplex, a species with entire incisorial teeth, the vomer is furnished
with a patch of minute teeth invisible to the naked eye, and there
is a similar plate on the front of the palatines. Pharyngeal teeth
small, short, subulate, and densely crowded. Branchiostegals six.
Six species.
MA3NOIDS.
This family is distinguished from the Sparoids by the
protractility of the mouth, and by a greater thickness of the
face and of the body generally. The Mediterranean species
were known to the ancients, and their Greek name is La¬
tinized by Pliny to Mce?ta, and adopted by Cuvier as a
generic term. They are mostly small fishes, despised by
the ancients, and held in no great esteem now.
“ Fuisse gerres aut inutiles maenas,
Odor impudicus urcei fatebatur.”
Martial.
The following table of the genera is from the Histoire
des Poissons, the source from which our observations gene¬
rally are drawn:—
(a.) Round molar teeth, with trenchant or conical front ones.
Genus I. Sargus, Cuv. Several rows of molars; incisorial front
teeth. Cheek scaly. Sixteen species.
Genus II. Charax, Itisso. One row of very small molars al¬
most granular; incisorial front teeth. Cheek scaly.
Genus III. Chrysophrys, Cuv. Several rows of rounded
molars ; front teeth conical. Cheek scaly. Twenty-four species.
Genus IV. Pagrus, Cuv. Hounded molars in two rows; front
teeth conical, with a villiform card-like band behind them. Cheek
scaly. Fifteen species.
Genus V. Pagellus, Cuv. Two or more rows of rounded molars;
front teeth villiform. Cheek scaly. Twelve species.
(6.) Teeth conical, with larger ones, or canines.
Genus VI. Lethrinus, Cuv. Teeth villiform, mixed with long
curved ones, and occasionally one or two rounded molars. Cheek
naked (without scales). Twenty-eight species.
Genus VII. Dentex, Cuv. At least four large canines among
villiform or card-like teeth. Cheek scaly. Thirty species.
Genus VIII. Pentapus, Cuv. Cheek scaly. “Teeth villiform,
with only two canines ; mouth small. Caudal more scaly than in
Dentex. Eight species.
(c.) Teeth all villiform.
Genus IX. Cantharus, Cuv. Villiform teeth, the exterior ones
stronger. Twelve species.
(d.) Trenchant teeth without molars, sometimes accompanied
by villiform bands, sometimes without them; no rounded
molars.
Genus X. Box, Cuv. A single row of thin vertical teeth notched
or crenated on the edge. Six species.
Genus XL Oblata, Cuv. Crenated cutting teeth as in Box,
with a villiform band behind them. Two species.
Genus XII. Boxaodon, Guich. Body elongated, roundish,
covered with small scales. Snout short; mouth small, not protrac¬
tile. Xo teeth whatever. Opercular bones not denticulated nor
serrated. Eyes large. Dorsals two, with many free spines between
them ; ventral fins minute, situated on the thorax. Branchial open¬
ings wide ; branchiostegals six. Valparaiso.
Genus XIII. Scatharus, Cuv. Cutting teeth not crenated in
a single row. One species.
Genus XIV. Crenidens, Cuv. (Girella, Gray; Melanichthys,
Schleg. Fauna Jap.) Oval scaly fishes, with a nearly even dorsal
having many spinous rays. Convex profile; terminal small mouth
TABLE OF GENERA.
M^NiDES. Form sparoid, but having occasionally teeth on the
palate, or denticulations on the preoperculum. Mouth in all cases
very protractile.
No scales on the dorsal jin.
MjENA, Smaris.
Scaly dorsal.
CiEsio, Gerres.
The other genera are characterized by ichthyologists who
have written subsequently to the publication of the volume
of the Histoire des Poissons, which contains the Meetiidce.
The genus Emmelichthys is one of those which combines
Fig. 105.
Emmelichthys nitidus
Scale of Emmelichthys nitidus.
the chaiacters of several groups. It has much affinity to
288
Classifica¬
tion—
Acanthop-
terous
Fishes.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Ccesio, but differs in having seven brancluostegals a deeply
and widely notched dorsal, approaching more nearly to two
dorsals than Gerres, scaly sheaths to the vertica fins of a
different character from the scales that invest the fins in
these two genera; and the snout, gill-covers, and maxil-
laries more strongly and more completely scaly. It is not
without a resemblance to several of the genera assembled
under the head of Theraponidce. To Glaucosoma it ap¬
proaches in the extent of scaliness of the head and fins,
but differs greatly in aspect, dentition, branchiostegals, and
especially in its protractile mouth. From the typical Per-
caidce, with which it agrees in having seven gill rays, it
is kept distinct by its unarmed head; the want of mandi¬
bular pores will not allow it to associate with Heemulon, Pris-
tivoma, or Diagramma ; and it bears little resemblance in
its sparoid scales to the oblique-scaled typical Scieznidee,
from which also its elongated face distinguishes it. The
want of teeth is a character which it has in common with
Boxaodon and Macquaria, but the latter has only five bran¬
chiostegals. It is a genus recently discovered in the Japa¬
nese and Australian seas. Fig. 18 shows the protractile
mouth of Emmelichthys nitidus, with the scales on the
maxilla ; Fig. 105 gives a figure of the entiie fish, and Fig.
106 represents one of the scales.
Concerning the Pseudochuomid,e we have almost no¬
thing to say. The genera are not described in the Histoire
des Poissons, and but little is contained in the Begne Ani¬
mal concerning them. Indeed, a brief notice of the names
of the genera composing the family given in the Archiven
fur Naturgeschichte, is our only authority for introducing it
here. In the Begne Animal, Plesiops and ( icldops were
placed among the Labroids, but M. Valenciennes states, in
1839, that having studied at Leyden the fish sent from
Java, by Kuhl and Van Hasselt, be was convinced that the
Plesiops and Cirrhipteri of these naturalists could not re¬
main in the Labroid family. Willughby had already no¬
ticed the existence of two small pancreatic caeca in Chromis
(Sparus chromis, Linn.) ; and M. Valenciennes finds it to
agree so nearly with Pleswps, as not to be generically dis¬
tinct. Their teeth, the interrupted lateral line, constitution
of their scales, and the filaments of the spinous dorsal rays
are alike in both. Cuvier, in stating that the Chromidts
had no pancreatic caeca, had in view the Bolti or Labrus
niloticus, which, in fact, wants these organs. In conclu¬
sion, M. Valenciennes is inclined to place the genera in
question with the Glgphysodons and their allies. Miiller,
finding a coalesced pharyngeal in Chromis, has introduced
it as the type of a family among the Pharyngognaihi, ic-
ferring the Pseudochromidce to the Acanthopteri.
large, deciduous. Veutrals under the anterior third of the pectorals. Classifica-
Twenty species. tion—
Genus V. Emmeuichthys, Rich. (Erythrichthys, Schleg.) Acanthop-
Form of the body that of Smarts or Ccesio. Dorsal more deeply terous
notched than that of Gerres, the last two or three spinous rays being Fishes,
almost detached. Very slender setaceous pharyngeal teeth ; none y t_ ^ ^ >
on the mouth. Jaws moderately protractile directly forwards. Head
and body, and bases of the vertical fins, scaly. Scales ctenoid. No
spines on the head. Preoperculum and suboperculum very minutely
crenulated. Suprascapula irregularly dentate. Branchiostegals
seven. Two species.
Genus VI. Ditrema, Schleg. Jaw teeth minute, pluriserial,
with a few conical ones in front; no vomerine or palatine teeth.
Snout a horizontal protractile tube. Opercular pieces and suborbi-
tar scale bones not denticulated. Dorsal single, low ; anal and
genital apertures apart; anal fin having three spines and numerous
simple rays. Branchiostegals six.
Genus VII. Dipterygonotus, Bleek. No teeth on the maxil-
laries, vomer, or palatines. Opercular bones not denticulated, there
being a single flat spine on the operculum only. A horizontally pro¬
tractile tubular mouth. Dorsal fins two, remote, not scaly. Cheeks
scaly. Branchiostegals seven. Macassar.
Genus VIII. Apogenoides, Bleek. Setaceous maxillary teeth;
no teeth on the vomer or palatines. Opercular bones not toothed ;
no opercular spine. Mouth little protractile. Dorsal two, remote,
not scaly. Branchiostegals six. Macassar.
Genus IX. Mendosoma, Guich. Body oblong,compressed, scaly,
with the aspect of Mcena. Head small ; mouth protractile, with a
very small opening; many conical teeth near the premaxillary
symphysis only, none on the mandible or vomer. Dorsals two, con¬
tiguous, or one fin notched to its base. Ventrals thoracic, destitute
of the long acute scales. Branchiostegals six. Valparaiso.
Genus X. Pentaprion, Bleek. Dorsal solitary. Mouth pro¬
tractile downwards; teeth on the jaws only. Spinous anal rays
five. Branchiostegals six. Batavia.
Genus XI. Velifer, Schleg. Near Ccesio and Gerres. Body
very high and compressed. Dorsal and anal fins excessively large,
and supported by soft, thick, unjointed rays. Japan.
Genus XII. Acharnes, Mull, and Trosch. Distinguished among
the Menidce by the interrupted lateral line. Teeth on the jaws
card-like ; no palatine teeth. Protrusive mouth. Five branchioste¬
gals. Dorsal deeply notched ; dissevered pharyngeals. No arma¬
ture on the gill-cover or properculum ; no accessory gills.
Genus XIII. Aphareus, Cuv. A genus of uncertain affinities,
and placed by the authors of the Histoire des Poissons, after the
Menidce, merely because no more fitting position occurred to them.
They were acquainted only with a dried specimen which seemed to
have some resemblance to Ccesio, but differed from it in having an
obtuse gill-cover and large mouth with an elevated ray at the ends
of the dorsal and anal fins. A very narrow band of villiform teeth
on the jaws. Palate smooth, but the vomer projecting and produc¬
ing two rounded eminences. No scales on the forehead, the lips, or
jaws; but the cheeks, gill-cover, and top of the head scaly. Seven
branchiostegals. Suprascapula denticulated. Ventrals attached a
little behind the base of the pectorals. One species.
Genus XIV. Ch^TOPTERUS. Schleg. Comes nigh to Aphareus
in habit, but is furnished with vomerine teeth, and possesses four
branchiostegals.
Family X.—MENTDiE.
Les Menides, Cuv. Distinguished from the Sparidat, which they
resemble, by the protractility of the mouth. Villiform teeth on the
jaws more or less short. Premaxillary pedicels long, admitting of
the body of the bone being thrust out horizontally when the man¬
dible is long in proportion, but when that bone is abbreviated then
downwards. Some genera want teeth on the palate, others ha>e
small ones on the vomer. Body scaly. Ventrals situated under the
pectorals ; dorsal furnished with very fine scales. Stomach of mo¬
derate size ; pancreatic caeca varying from four to seven ; air-blad¬
der large, simple, and rounded anteriorly, divided for the most part
into two pointed lobes posteriorly.
Genus I. M.ena. Cuv. Aspect of a Sparoid, but occasionally
having teeth on the palate, and a denticulated preoperculum. Mouth
invariably very protractile. Four species.
Genus II. Smaris, Cuv. No scales on the dorsal. Palate tooth¬
less. General form of Mcena. Ten species.
Genus III. C^sio, Cuv. Mouth but little protractile. Dorsal
far back, and in a great part covered with scales. General shape
inclining to fusiform. Twelve species.
Genus IV. Gerres, Cuv. Mouth very protractile, descending
when thrust out. Dorsal capable of being concealed in a basal scaly
sheath. Small villiform teeth on the jaws, none on the palate. Pre¬
operculum finely denticulated. Body compressed, elevated. Scales
Family XI.—PSEUDOCHROMID^E, Mull, and Trosch.
Scaly fishes. Dorsal fin long. Jaw and palatine teeth ; no ar¬
mature of the opercular bones; interrupted lateral line ; double
under pharyngeals and hackle-formed pharyngeal teeth. Six bran¬
chiostegals ; pectinated accessory gills. _
Genus I. Cichlops. Miill.and Trosch. Generic characters of
Pseudochromis, only the card-like (or hackle-formed) teeth of the
palatines are wanting; there is a row of vomerine teeth. The sto¬
mach is csecal, the caecal part short; pancreatic caeca absent; swim-
bladder simple.
Genus II. Plesiofs, Cuv. Aspect of Chromis. Eyes approxi¬
mated. Ventrals very long.
Genus III. Pseudochromis. Riipp.
LABYRINTHIBRANCHS.
The peculiar structure of the pharyngeals in this family,
by which a quantity of water can be retained in their com¬
plicated folds, is compared by Cuvier to the leaflets of a
camel’s paunch. The apparatus is covered by convex gill*
covers that fit closely to the shoulders; so that even when
the fish is out of the water the inclosed liquid cannot eva-
I C II T H Y
Classifica- porate quickly, but remains falling drop by drop on the
tion— branchice, and keeping them sufficiently moist to carry on
A<terousP" tlie oxy&enation tlie blood. In conformity with 'this
Fishes. sPecialty in the form of these organs, is the known habit of
v r_ all the members of the family whose mode of life has been
ascertained of issuing at times from the rivers and ponds,
and travelling overland to considerable distances. We have
mentioned in a preceding page the habit of the Siluroid
Doras of travelling in bands from one pond to another as
they dry up in succession by the heat of the sun, but they
do not possess any peculiar branchial reservoir like the
Labi/rinthibranchs, or Anabasidce, as this family is often
called.
The roundness of the sides of the head caused by the
convexity of the gill-covers, and the breadth necessary for
lodging the branchial apparatus, gives a good deal of the
aspect of a Mullet to this family. This likeness, and the
general character of these curious fishes, was known to the
ancients. Theophrastus, in his treatise Be Piscibus in
sicco viventibus, says that in India there are certain little
fishes which leave the rivers for a time and return to them
again, and that they resemble the fishes named by the Greeks
Fig. 107.
Anabas scandens.
Myxinos, or the Mullets. In 1797, M. de Daldorf, in a
memoir communicated to the Linnean Society of London,
mentions that in 1791 he had himself taken an Anabas in
the act of ascending a palm tree {Borassus flabelliformis)
which grew near a pond. The fish had reached the height
of 5 feet above the water, and was going still higher. In
the effort to do this it held on to the bark of the tree by the
preopercular spines, bent its tail, and stuck in the spines of
the anal; then released its head, and, raising it, took a new
hold with the preoperculum higher up. The fish is named
in the Malay language the “ Tree-Climber.” The fishermen
keep these fishes five or six days in dry vessels, and carry
them more than 150 miles to the Calcutta market. As the
Anabas is often met at a great distance from any water, it
is frequently reported by the natives of India to have fallen
from the sky. The jugglers carry them about to amuse the
people, and another of tlie family is reared for sport in the
kingdom of Siam. It is the Macropodus pugnax of Cantor.
“ When the fish is in a state of quiet its dull colours present
nothing remarkable ; but if two be brought together, or if
one sees its own image in a looking-glass, the little creature
becomes suddenly excited, the raised fins and the whole
body shine with metallic colours of dazzling beauty, while
the projected gill-membrane, waving like a black frill round
the throat, adds something of grotesqueness to the general
appearance. In this state it makes repeated darts at its
real or reflected antagonist. But both, when taken out of
each other’s sight, instantly become quiet. This description
was drawn up in 1840 at Singapore, by a gentleman who
had been presented with several by the King of Siam. They
were kept in glasses of water, fed with larvae of mosquitoes,
and had thus lived for many months. The Siamese are as
infatuated with the combats of these fishes as the Malays
are with their cockfights; and stake on the issue consider¬
able sums, and sometimes their own persons and families.
VOL. XII.
i.
O L O G Y.
The license to exhibit fish-fights is farmed, and brings
a considerable annual revenue to the King of Siam.
I he species abounds in the rivulets at the foot of the hills
of Penang. The inhabitants name it Pla hat, or the
“ Fighting-fish but the kind kept specially for fighting is
an artificial variety cultivated for the purpose” (Cantor).
The Trtchopodus trichopterus is also very pugnacious ; and
the exquisite beauty of its varying iridescent metallic tints
make it a great acquisition to garden tanks. The Tr. no-
bihs inhabits the rivers of Sikkim, in northern Bengal.
Fig. 108.
Osphromenus oljax.
The Osphromenus olfax is well known in Batavia under
the name of Gourami, for its excellent flavour when
brought to table. It attains the size of a large Turbot, and
Commerson relates that he had never eaten anything more
savoury and delicious, neither among fresh-water fish nor
among marine ones. He adds, that the Dutch residents in
Java rear this fish in large jars, renewing the water daily, and
feeding it wholly on river plants, especially the Pistia natans.
But M. Dupetit-Thouars declares that he saw those kept in
a stew crowding to the mouth of a drain to feed on human
excrement. The Ophicephali are very tenacious of life,
and the Chinese bring them to market yet alive, though
their entrails have been removed, and sell them in slices.
When the irritability of the flesh is so much exhausted
that it no longer quivers under the knife, its value is
greatly depreciated. This Chinese practice, however much
it may shock the feelings when described, is not worse than
Fig. 109.
Ophicephalus striatus.
the crimping of Cod on the London fish-stalls. The
Ophicephalus marginatus, Cuv. {gachua of Buchanan) is
often seen travelling among wet grass in the beginning
of the rainy season.
Family XII.—LABYRYNTHIBRANCHID^E.
Poissons a pharyngiens ldbyrinthiform.es, Cuvier; Labyrinthibran-
chii, Owen ; Anabantidce, Cantor. Upper pharyngeal bones fur¬
nished with leaf-like folds, inclosing cavities capable of retaining
water. Gill-covers convex, and fitting tightly to the shoulder.
Scales large, those on the head scarcely inferior in size to those on
the body. Body in most rather elongated, in some an oblong oval.
Mouth, cleft past the eye in one genus only, in most little more than
half way to the eye, in all terminal. Gill-membrane generally shut
up under the scales. Ventrals sometimes without a spine, of from
one to five or six soft rays, generally under the pectorals, sometimes
farther forward. Lateral line interrupted or continuous, curved,
deflexed, or straight.
2 o
289
Classifica¬
tion—
Acanthop-
terous
Fishes.
V
290
Classifica¬
tion—
Acanthop-
terous
Fishes.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
ANALYTICAL TABLE OF THE ANABASIDuE (Tluva.)
Fin-rays much prolonged.
In the ventrals only.
A solitary one.
Dorsal short  
Dorsal long ..Colisa
Several, one of them very long Osphromenus
In all the fins, except the pectorals Macropodus
Fin-rays not elongated.
Palate toothless.
Operculaand subopercula acutely toothed Anabas
Opercula and subopercula not toothed.
Teeth on the lips Helostoma
Teeth on the jaws PoLYACANTHUS
Teeth on the palate.
Dorsal with spinous rays ..  Spirobranchus
Dorsal without spinous rays Ophicephalus
9.
6.
8.
7.
1.
2.
3.
10.
11.
Genus I. Anabas, Cuv. Preorbitar, operculum, suboperculum,
and interoperculum serrated, or strongly denticulated; preopercu¬
lum smooth-edged and not visible, being covered with the suborbi-
tars and scales. Form anteriorly elliptical. Mouth small, terminal.
Maxillary slender, and retiring under the narrow serrated preorbi¬
tar ; the rest of the suborbitars, large and flat, cover the cheek,
temples, and preoperculum. Many pores on the head and mandible.
Villiform teeth on the jaws, the outer ones a little stronger; none
in front of the vomer or on the palatines, but far back on the vo¬
mer among the three superior pharyngeals there is a group of
teeth; pharyngeal teeth crowded, conical, and pretty large. Bran-
chiostegals six. Dorsal and anal nearly of equal height throughout.
Lateral line broken under the last two dorsal spines, recommenc¬
ing two scales lower. Scales large, hard, and strong. Stomach
small; pancreatic caeca few ; air-bladder forked behind, its points
filling recesses on the sides of the tail. Two supplementary upper
pharyngeals, complicated for holding water. One species.
Genus II. Helostoma, Kuhl and Van Hass. Mouth small, com¬
pressed, and protractile, seeming to issue from, and recede under
the preorbitar. Teeth seated in the lips. Branchiostegals five.
Pharyngeal complications very curious.
Genus III. Polyacanthus, Kuhl and Van Hass. Named be¬
cause of the numerous dorsal and anal spines. Distinguished from
Helostoma by the jaws being armed with teeth; from Anabas by
the absence of denticulations on the operculum ; and from Colisa
by the existence of five soft rays in the ventrals. Stomach small,
caeca], placed vertically across the long axis of the fish; pyloric
caeca two; air-bladder of moderate size. Three species.
Genus IV. Ctenopoma, Pet. Gill-cover with two crescentic
notches, and three pectinated toothed lobes. Teeth on the vomer
and palatines. Many spines in the dorsal and anal fins.
Genus V. Betta, Bleek. Teeth on the premaxillaries, maxil-
laries, and mandible. Palate smooth; mouth small. Opercular
pieces and suborbitar scale-bones not serrated nor denticulated.
Branchiostegals six. A small spine in the dorsal, anal, and ven¬
trals ; the other rays jointed, and flexible ; short dorsal opposed to
the long anal; ventrals under the pectorals. Java, 1500 feet above
the sea.
Genus VI, Colisa, Cuv. Body oblong, elliptical, compressed.
Back and belly equally curved. Dorsal and anal long, the soft por¬
tions conical; ventrals before the pectorals, of one long, filiform,
soft ray, without any membrane. Preorbitar pectinately toothed.
Anus situated before the middle of the fish. Branchiostegals five.
Scales ciliated. Stomach small; intestinal canal rolled up in a
spiral; two pancreatic caeca. Ten species.
Genus VII. Macropodus. (Ctenops. M‘Clell.) Pharyngeal appa¬
ratus much as in Colisa and Polyacanthus. Anal long ; its soft part
and the dorsal also ending in a long tapering point; ventrals con¬
sisting of a spine and five articulated rays, the first a long simple
filament, the others branched. Branchiostegals four. Two species.
Genus VIII. Osphromenus, Comm. Distinguished from Po-
lyacanthus and Colisa, chiefly by the shortness of the dorsal and
the more complicated upper pharyngeal leaflets. Ventrals situated
a little behind the pectorals, of a moderate spine, and five articulated
rays, the first of which is simple and very long. Branchiostegals
six. Stomach csecal, shaped like a; retort; pancreatic caeca two,
pretty long ; air-bladder simple. Three species.
Genus IX. Trichopus, Lacep. (TVic/iogaster, Schneid.) Dif¬
fers from Osphromenus in having a more convex profile, and an ab¬
breviated dorsal of five spines only. Lateral line having a slightly
sigmoid curvature. Anal long, with many small scales along its
base ; five ventral rays, one elongated. One species.
Genus X. Spirobranchus, Cuv. The labyrinthiform pharyn¬
geals less complicated than in other genera ; approaching Anabas
in form, and in the comparative fewness of the anal spines, but
leading to Ophicephalvs by its possessing palatine teeth. Stomach Classifica-
caecal; two pancreatic caeca ; no air-bladder. One species. tion—
Genus XI. Ophicephalus, Bloch. Resembling a snake some- Acanthop-
what in their elongation, and in their depressed but rounded head terous
being covered with large scales. Acanthopterygians merely in Fishes,
having an anal spine, the other fins being destitute of spinous
rays. They are distinguished from other Acanthopterygian fish
with thoracic ventrals in the cranium and face being covered, as in
the Mullidce and Anabas, with polygonal scales or plates. Body
elongated, nearly cylindrical anteriorly, somewhat compressed pos¬
teriorly. Head more or less depressed, a little wider than the
body. Dorsal extending far along the back ; caudal rounded.
Lateral line continuous. Jaws, vomer, and palatines furnished with
villiform or card-like teeth, some of them longer than others.
Branchiostegals five. Ventrals with a spine and five soft rays.
Stomach caecal, long, and obtuse ; intestines rather short; pancre¬
atic caeca two. Twenty species.
MUGIL FAMILY.
Tlie English name of Mullet, applied both to the Mulli
and Mugiles, is apt to occasion some misapprehension ; and
we have therefore, in our notice of the Mullida, spoken of
them always as Surmullets, an appellation hitherto proper
to one species only. The two French names of Muges
and Mulles are not so liable to be confounded. Cuvier
traces the name from the Spanish Mugel, where the g
sounds in the Castilian dialect like the Scottish or Irish
aspirated h. This is softened on the shores of Biscay to
Meuille, whence the English Mullet. They are mentioned
by Aristotle and others of the ancient authors by the names
of Chalones or Chelones, Mgxon, Kephalos, Sphcneus,
and Keslreus. Cefalo remains in use at Naples to designate
a species. There has been much confusion among British
ichthyologists with respect to the proper application of the
specific names to the species that frequent the British seas,
but Mr Yarrell has thrown a flood of light on the obscurity
by his excellent figures. Mr Yarrell, say the authors of
the Histoire des Poissons, has given a charming figure of
our Capiton {Mugil capita, Cuv.) on page 200 of his first
volume, under the name of the Grey Mullet; and at page
207 a figure not less good of Mugil chelo; and a third
distinct species of a different aspect, named by him Mugil
curtus.
The Mugilcephalus,or Mediterranean Grey Mullet, is dis¬
tinguished from the English species by its eyes half covered
by two adipose veils adherent one to the anterior and the
other to the posterior margin of the orbit, and by the peculiar
concealment of the maxillary bone, which, when the mouth
is closed, is completely hidden beneath the preorbital. _ The
base of the pectoral fin is surmounted by a long carinated
scale. This is the best and largest of the Mediterranean
kinds. It weighs about 10 or 12 lb., and does not appear
to have been yet detected in the seas or estuaries of
Britain, nor along the oceanic shores of France. It is
very common on the coast of Spain, especially around the
island of Iviqa, where the fishermen are said to recognise
two varieties under the names of Mugil and Lissa. When
surrounded by a net, it endeavours, and often successfully,
to effect its escape, by leaping over the edges into the open
sea.
“ Its hearing is very fine, as has been noticed by Aris¬
totle, and it feeds on worms and small marine animals ; but
it is doubtful, though it has been advanced, that it can live
on vegetable substances. It appears to be of a stupid cha¬
racter, a fact which was known in the time of Pliny, for that
author tells us that there is something ludicrous in the dis¬
position of the Mullets; for if they are afraid they conceal
their heads, and thus imagine they are entirely withdrawn
from the observation of their enemies.
“ When, towards the end of spring and the commence¬
ment of summer, the fishes of this species, excited by the
necessity of living in the fresh water, approach the shores
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- and advance towards the mouths of the rivers, they form
tion— sue], numerous troops that the water, through which they
terous^' are.seen without being clearly distinguished, appears to be
Fishes, bluish. 1 his particularly happens in the Garonne and the
Loire at these periods. The fishermen there adopt the
plan of surrounding these legions of Mullets with nets, the
inclosure of which they gradually contract, taking care to
make a noise to frighten the fish and oblige them to press
together, and heap themselves, as it were, one upon the other.
“ Of the Mullets thus taken, some are eaten fresh, others
are salted and smoke-dried. It is with their eggs salted,
washed, pressed, and dried, that the preparation called bo-
tarcha is made, which is a condiment greatly in request in
Italy and the southern provinces of France. The flesh of
this Mullet is tender, delicate, and of an agreeable flavour;
it is fatter and more in estimation when it is taken in the
fresh water. The ancients, who from the time of Aristotle
were acquainted with this fish, had it in great request; and
the consumption of it is still very considerable in most of
the southern countries of Europe. According to the report
ol Athenaeus, those Mullets were formerly in very hmh
esteem which were taken in the neighbourhood of Sinope
and Abdera; while, as Paulus Jovius informs us, they
were very little prized which had lived in the salt marsh
of Orbitello in luscany, in the lagoons of Ferrara and
Venice, in those of Padua and Chiozza, and such as came
from the neighbourhood of Commachio and Ravenna. All
these places, in fact, are marshy, and the streams by which
they are watered are brackish, and communicate to the fish
which they support the odour and the flavour of the mud.”
A common mode of fishing in the sea for Mullet, practised
at the present time on the shores of the Mediterranean, is to
select a point of rock overhanging a considerable depth of
clear still water. The fish are attracted to this place by
being fed for some time with granulated macaroni, and then
the fisherman in the gentlest manner lets down a small hook
concealed in a pellet of paste and attached to a very fine
line. Skill is exerted in withdrawing the fish, which is
speedily hooked, without disturbing the others, but a prac¬
tised fisher will soon obtain a good load. He must neither
show himself nor permit his shadow to appear on the water.
In the Histoire des Poissons, Tetragonurus is placed at
the end of the Mugilidce, with an intimation that the true
place of the genus in the ichthyic scale has not yet been
ascertained. We shall mention it again when we come to
speak of the Notacanthidce.
Family XIII.—MUGILID^E.
Mugiloides, Cuv. (Mugil, Linn.) Body cylindrical; back broad.
Scales large, and extending to the head like those of the Ophice-
phali. Two dorsals widely separated, the first one having only
four stiff, acute spines; ventrals in general abdominal. Teeth,
when present, so fine as to be almost invisible ; maxillaries small,
and mostly concealed by the thick premaxillary lip that presses
against the preorbitar when the mouth is shut. Mandible shelving
with a small symphysial cutaneous tubercle that fits a notch be¬
tween the premaxillaries. Pharyngeals greatly developed, and
closing the gullet so that only soft and thin matters can enter the
narrow angular opening of the oesophagus. Branchiostegals four,
five, or six, as in the Pharyngobranchs. Stomach csecal like a giz¬
zard, with a thick muscular ascending branch.
Genus I. Mugil, Cuv. Abdominal Acanthopteri, with two
widely separated dorsals. External aspect somewhat like that of
a Dace or Chub. Mouth small, with a transverse opening and a
mesial fold or crest on the under lip which fits a corresponding
notch in the upper one. Teeth excessively slender, often scarcely
to be seen. Preorbitar on the side of the snout finely pectinated,
and receiving a slender maxillary more or less completely be¬
neath it. Gill-covers large and convex, covering a complicated
pharyngeal apparatus, which prevents any coarse matters from
reaching the oesophagus, through the tortuous channel. Stomach
gizzard-like ; gut long and folded ; pancreatic cmca few. Sixty
species.
Genus II. Cestr^us, Cuv. Snout pointed. Mouth cleft longi¬
tudinally. Mandible short, without a mesial tubercle, and toothless ;
rudimentary teeth concealed in the thick lip of the upper jaw ; no
teeth on the roof of the mouth. General form of Mugil, with four
spinous rays in the first dorsal, but with the last ray of the second
dorsal elongated. Teeth in a narrow band on the upper jaw only.
Stomach cmcal, large, not muscular like that of Mugil; two pan¬
creatic caeca; air-bladder simple, with very thin coats. Two
species. Celebes.
Genus III. Dajaus, Cuv. Snout projecting. Mouth a little
more longitudinal than that of Mugil. No symphysial tubercle
on the mandible. Villiform teeth on both jaws, the vomer, and
palatines. Stomach less muscular than that of Mugil, the ascending
branch being reduced to a tube, but little more fleshy than the
caecal portion ; intestinal canal doubled five times ; two pancrea¬
tic caeca. One species, Jamaica and St Domingo.
Tasmania possesses a species intermediate between Dajaus and
Mugil, having the longitudinal mouth of the former, but the rough
plates on the palate and tongue, which most of the Mugils have,
very little coarser than in that genus, and scarcely deserving the
name of teeth. It is the Dajaus Diemensis (Rich.)
Genus IV. Nestis, Cuv. Form of a Cyprinoid Barbel. Head
more compressed than that of Mugil; gill-covers flatter. Preorbi¬
tar not covering the whole maxillary, which is not decurved so as
to show itself below the mandible. Teeth on the two jaws, front
of the vomer, and pharyngeals; none on the palatine bones. Lower
lip very thick, doubled back, callous and trenchant. Stomach
differing from that of Mugil in being wholly membranous and no¬
wise fleshy ; intestine long, six times folded ; pancreatic caeca two ;
air-bladder simple with thin coats. Two species.
ATHERINE FAMILY.
We are obliged, say the authors of the Histoire des Pois¬
sons, to leave isolated among the fishes a group composed of
a single genus, which it is impossible to divide otherwise than
into small tribes, and which does not associate closely with any
other genus or family. Some species have teeth clearly visible
on the jaws, vomer, and palatines, such as Atherina Boieri,
and its allies, which have a large flat head; others, like
A. sauclet have the teeth on the palatines so minute that
they are barely perceptible ; thirdly, there is a large num¬
ber of extra-European species which have the roof of the
mouth perfectly smooth and toothless; these are mostly
American, and have a peculiar physiognomy resulting from
the singular position of the pedicels of the premaxillaries
and the curvature of the maxillaries. The latter bones are
slender, and have a structure very uncommon among fishes,
but which exists usually in the Mugil family, that is, to have
the posterior end of the maxillary more slender than its
anterior or articular end. Another affinity to Mugil may
be found in the small number of rays in the spinous first
dorsal, and in the abdominal position of the ventrals. We
cannot, however, unite them to the Mugil family as Pallas
advises, since none of the anatomical details which distin¬
guish the Mullets from other fishes are found in the Athe-
rines. They have neither the notch between the upper
lips, nor the symphysial prominence of the lower jaw ; nor
the pectinated denticulations of the preorbitar; nor the un¬
usual pharyngeal apparatus; nor the gizzard stomach. The
premaxillary is much more protractile than with the Mullets,
almost as much as in the Menoid Smaris. The teeth re¬
quire to be examined through a lens to be properly seen,
and the pharyngeals, which have the usual form of those of
other fishes, are crowded with minute teeth.
The Atherines live in large shoals in all the localities
that they frequent; and notwithstanding their small size,
rarely more than six inches, they are esteemed as a delicate
food. The young, for some time after they are hatched,
cling together in dense masses, and in numbers almost in¬
credible. d hese are taken and prepared in the lump by
frying or by boiling in milk. The inhabitants of the Me¬
diterranean coasts of I ranee call these newly hatched
Atherines nonnat (unborn). In some places the adult fish
is so abundant that they are employed to feed animals; at
Venice for instance, where they swarm by myriads in the
canals that traverse that city, and are sold in the streets
291
Classifica¬
tion—
Acanthop-
terous
Fishes.
292
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- under the name of Anguela, for cat s meat. 1 he Athenna
tion— 'presbyter is very common on the south coast of England,
Acanthop- an(j jg taken ;n quantities in Portsmouth harbour, and even
tprn"9 in the salt-water ditches of the fortifications. In the mar¬
kets of that place and of Southampton, the Atherines are
sold under the name of Smelts, but they are full of sharp
angular bones, and are very inferior in flavour to the true
Sahnonoid Smelt. They seem to frequent, from choice,
the mouths of drains that convey the putrid washings of a
large city into the sea.
Family XIV.—ATHERINID^E, Bonap.
AtherinoidoB, Cant., sub-family. Dorsals two; ventrals abdo¬
minal. Upper jaw very protractile ; teeth very slender and spare,
sometimes existing also on the palate, in other species the palate is
smooth. Body generally ornamented by a broad silvery band on
the flanks. Stomach siphonal, membranous, a little wider than
the rest of the intestinal canal, which latter is shorter and not so
frequently doubled back as in Mugil; pancreatic caeca none ; peri¬
tonaeum generally lined with a black pigment; ova large; air-
bladder large, often prolonged into a canal formed by the caudal
vertebrae. Vertebrae more than double the number of those of the
Mugils. Thirty species.
NOTACANTHS.
The family of Notacanthidce, says M. Muller, includes
those Acanthopteri, with or without abdominal ventrals,
which have many isolated dorsal spines, and the coracoid
bones suspended to the vertebral column and not to the
head. The same structure exists in Notacanlhus as well
as in Mastacemblus, but it still remains to be ascertained
whether Tetragonurus belongs to this group or not. 1 here
is little to add regarding the family to the facts collected in
the table. The Notacanth or Campylodon of Otho Fabri-
cius and Reinhardt is a Greenland species, and Bloch has been
much blamed for describing it as an Indian fish; but the
fact is, that a very similar species inhabits the Australian
seas, and one of these may have come into Bloch’s hands.
'letragonurus Cuvieri of llisso, the only known species of
the genus, inhabits great depths in the Mediterranean, and
is consequently more rarely seen. It is named Courpata,
has a black colour, and hard scales, deeply chiseled and
ciliated. Its flesh is said to be poisonous. We have seen
no specimen, but think from the structure assigned to the
scales, that it should be compared with the Elopidce or
Amiidce.
Family XV.—NOTACANTHID^E, Mull.
Scales cycloid, covering the head, body, and partially the fins.
Snout prominent; mouth beneath, horizontal; nostrils near the
eye. Branchiostegals seven or eight; gill-openings beneath,
closed directly behind. Head slightly armed ; opercular pieces
nearly concealed by the integument. Body elongated, sword¬
shaped posteriorly. Spinous dorsal not continued by membrane;
soft dorsal in some of one or two rays, or altogether absent, in
others of many rays. Coracoids suspended to the vertebral co¬
lumn as in the Eels, and not to the head as in most osseous fishes.
Ventrals abdominal, or wanting ; when present composed of a spine
and eight soft rays. Stomach caecal; pancreatic caeca few.
Genus I. Hotacanthus, Bloch. Dorsal spines free, with a
divided soft ray in the axilla of the last one ; anterior anal spines
detached, each with a low membrane ; anal joined to a distinctly-
formed caudal. Body much elongated, sword-shaped, and tapering
posteriorly. Snout prominent, obtuse. Small cycloid scales cover¬
ing all parts of the body, head, and face, except the lips. Abdo¬
minal ventrals of two spines and seven articulated rays, united on
the median line by membrane into one continuous fin. Branchios¬
tegals eight; the membrane continuous across the throat with a
free edge. No armature on the head except an acute spine issuing
from the maxillary above its posterior extremity. Teeth slender,
with lanceolate tips uniserial on the upper jaw, whose border is
formed wholly by the premaxillaries; an interior concentric curve
without a break is formed on the vomer and palatines by more subu¬
late teeth, which in one species are pluriserial in front; the man¬
dibular teeth are uniserial or pluriserial; all the teeth curve back- Qjassj£ca
wards. Two species, Greenland and Australia. ^jon 
Genus II. Rhynchobdella, Bloch, Schneider. (Macrognathus, Acanthop.
Lacep.) Body elongated, compressed. Snout pointed, projecting, terous”
fleshy or membranous, flexible and striated underneath, forming Pishes
a proboscis used as an organ of touch. Branchiostegals seven. v 1
Teeth mere scabrosities on the premaxillaries, mandible, and fore v
end of the vomer. No armature on the head. Scales cycloid, cover¬
ing the body, bases of the fins, gill-covers, cheeks, cranium, and
borders of the eyes. Spinous dorsal not continued by membrane;
soft one long and far back; anal corresponding to the soft dorsal,
with two free spines in front. Stomach caecal, obtuse; two pan¬
creatic caeca ; a long narrow air-bladder. One species.
Genus III. Mastacembelus, Kuhl and Van Hass. Rliyn-
chobdelli, but with a less elongated snout, which is merely conical
and not striated beneath. Teeth rather stronger than in Rhynchob¬
della. A few small spines on the rounded corner of the preoper¬
culum. Vertical fins in some species united, in others the caudal
is merely contiguous to the other two. Ten species.
Genus IV. Tetragonurus, Risso. Ventrals a little behind
the pectorals. Body elongated, fusiform. Snout obtuse. Mandible
a little shorter than the premaxillaries. Upper lips thick, giving
the face the aspect of Mugil. Teeth uniserial, conical, and a little
recurved on the premaxillaries; mandibular teeth also uniserial,
more curved, compressed and pointed posteriorly ; vomerine teeth
on the chevron and along the median line; tongue smooth; pha-
ryngeal teeth in cardlike plates. No armature on the head.
Body clothed in hard scales, lying in oblique rows, and exposing
disks which are grooved as in Lutodeira, of the family of Gono-
rhynchidce, to which genus this one has some other external simi¬
larity, especially in the remarkable character of two elevated scaly
keels on the base of the caudal on each side. First dorsal composed
of a series of very short spines, each with its membrane, which
folds into a dorsal groove; soft dorsal more elevated, not long, op¬
posite to an anal of similar height and shape. Stomach very long,
csecal, conical; pyloric casca numerous, ranged along the sides of
the ascending branch of the stomach, and along the duodenum ; no
air-bladder. One species. The proper place of this genus is unde¬
cided. M. Muller thinks it may be here.
SCOMBEROIDS.
In the periodicals of the day we read, that in 1855 the
Herring-fishery of Scotland alone employed very nearly
70,000 people, made up as follows:—40,350 fishermen,
1913 coopers, 21,832 women employed as cleaners and
packers, 3730 labourers, and 1127 fish-curers. What the
Herring-fishery is to the northern nations, the capture of
the Scomberoids is to the maritime population of the Me¬
diterranean, and to the Mackerel boats ot the British Chan¬
nel, and both sides of the Atlantic, down to the 30th pa¬
rallel of latitude. The Tunny, Bonito, and Mackerel fish¬
eries are known, by report at least, to all. These well known
fishes, remark the authors of the Histoire des Poissons., are
easily characterized, if we regard the typical forms only.
In regard to them, the detachment of the posterior rays of
the second dorsal would suffice, but these are merely the
chiefs of numerous genera and sub-genera, in which the
characteristic forms pass by insensible gradations into others
which retain little of the primary types. Scales in general,
very small, and so thin, that they cause the greater part of
the skin to appear quite smooth. Vertical fins without scales ;
gill-covers destitute of spines and denticulations. Numerous
pancreatic cajca;—and behold all is said that can be an¬
nounced ; yet a family aspect is recognisable in all, adhering
to them in every modification, and we cannot subdivide
them into separate families, but merely into groups of less
value.
The following analytical table is not to be considered as
separating the numerous genera into natural groups, but
merely as a means of facilitating the labours of the student
in discovering the generic name of any Scomberoid that
he is investigating. The apodal Phynchobdellus and Mas¬
tacemblus, and the abdominal Notacanthus, have been re¬
moved from the table as presented in the Histoire des
Poissons, to form the family of Notacanthidce.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
TABLE OF GENERA.
Tribe I.
293
Classifica¬
tion—
Acanthop-
terous A continuous first dorsal; rays of the second dorsal and of the
Fishes
_ _ anal
Tail tapering to a narrow end.
detached in form of finlets
Caudal large
An interval between the first and second dorsals.
Scales equally small throughout.
Two little crests on each side of the tail Scomber.
Scales of the thorax larger, forming a corselet Auxis.
First dorsal reaching to the second one.
A corselet.
A keel on each side of the tail.
Teeth small, or moderate-sized,... ) _
crowded j Thynntjs.
Teeth strong, pointed, separated Pelamis.
No corselet.
A keel on each side of the tail.
Teeth compressed, pointed, trenchant..Cybium.
No keel on the tail.
Pointed cutting teeth, the fore ones 1 Thyrsites,
longest j Gempylus.
APPENDIX TO TRIBE I.
A single continuous dorsal ; no scaly armour on ^
the lateral line. No corselet. No keels. I
All or many of the rays of the anal reduced > ^El1ir,OPUS»
to mere small spines. Teeth of Thyrsites and "R1CHIURUS.
Gempylus   I
Group of Sword-fish.
Snout elongated, ensiform, or dagger- l XlPHIAS,
pointed. Keels on the sides of the | Tetrapturus
tail. Teeth close and short, villi- t Makaira,
*orm  J Histiophorus.
Tribe II.
Nirst dorsal represented by isolated spines.
Thoracic ventrals.
A keel on each side of the tail  Nadcrates.
No keel on the tail.
Body elongated Elecate.
Body compressed.
Second dorsal and anal continuous I IjICHIA>
( Trachinotus.
Jugular ventrals   Apolectus.
i*/y/uju- ti to/c Ktvitu scales.
ire of the lateral line, strong and l „
licUOUS  J C-ARANX.
Tribe III.
Lateral line armed with keeled scales.
Armature
conspicuous.
/Olistes, Scyris,
Armature of the lateral line visible merely I Blepharis,
because the other scales are small. / Gallichthys,
Body elevated. Profile trenchant j Argyreyosus,
\Vomer, Hynnis.
Tribe IV.
Ao detached finlets; no isolated dorsal spines; no armature on the
tail.
Body moderately long, more or less compressed.
Two dorsats.
/Seriola, Tem-
Villiform or card-like teeth on the N0D0N> Lacta-
vomer and palatines  \ Rius, Nome us,
" Nauclerus,
yPORTHMEUS.
No vomerine or palatine teeth Psenes.
(Coryph^na,
Lampugus,
Centroeophds,
Astrodermus,
Pteraclis.
DOdy subrhomboid, high. Aspect Scomberoid. Scales small
or none. »
 (p™la;s:us-
v Luvarus.
Two very small thoracic ventrals Sesfrtntt«
. Two jugular ventrals Kurtus.
The fishery of the common Mackerel {Scomber scotnbrus) Classifiea-
,s described in detail, and with much accuracy, by Mr tion—
Yarrell, to whose pages we refer the reader, for we shall Acanthop-
not now make lengthened quotations from a work which is pushes
in the hands of every one who is interested in British Ich- i lS
thyology. We shall merely repeat from him, that on the
30th of June 1821, these fish were so abundant off Lowes-
toffe, that the catch on that day, by sixteen boats, amounted
in value to L.5252, and it is supposed that the owners and
men concerned in the Mackerel fishery on the Sussex coast,
realised altogether L. 14,000. The common Mackerel, though
destitute of an air-bladder, takes a bait readily a few inches
below the surface, and is a general inhabitant of all the
northern seas, from Greenland and the Baltic, through the
North Atlantic, to the Mediterranean, the Black Sea, and
Sea of Azof. Very similar species exist in the Australian
and Austialasian Seas, the Cape of Good Hope, and Seas of
China and Japan. Most of these have air-bladders.
Fig. no.
Thynnus vulgaris.
1 he 1 unny (Th.vulgaris, Cuv.; Scomber thynnus, Linn.),
fig. 110, is one of the largest fishes of the ocean. When
it weighs only a hundred pounds, the Sardinians give it the
name of Scampirro, a diminutive derived from Scomber.
Mhen above that weight, and onwards to three hundred
pounds, it is called Mezzo-tonno, or Half Tunny. The
larger individuals frequently weigh a thousand pounds; and
Cetti asserts that old males are taken occasionally weighing
eighteen hundred pounds. I he fishery of the Tunny dates
from the most remote antiquity; and the city of Byzan¬
tium was more especially enriched by it. The shoals which
entered the Bosphorus were said to meet near Chalcedon
with a white rock, which so terrified them that they turned
into the Gulf of Byzantium, now the port of Constantinople.
It was, according to Cuvier, in consequence of this abund¬
ance of 1 unnies, that the gulf in question received the
name of the Golden Horn ; and the oracle of Apollo desig¬
nated Chalcedon as the City of the Blind, because its
founders did not perceive the inferiority of its site in rela¬
tion to these valued fish. Gibbon, however, tells us that
“ the curve which the gulf describes might be compared to
the horn of a stag, or, as it should seem, with more pro-
piiety, to that of an ox. I he epithet golden was expressive
of the riches which every wind wafted from the most distant
countries into the secure and capacious port of Constan¬
tinople.” 1 he same prodigious quantities of the Tunny are
still seen there as in ancient times. According to Syllius,
twenty vessels might be filled by a single cast of the net;
and they might frequently be taken by the hand without the
aid of nets. When ascending towards the port, they might
be killed with stones; and even women took them in quan¬
tities, merely by suspending a large basket by a cord from
the windows. The Tunny fishery was of still more ancient
practice in the West. The Phoenicians established it at a
■' ery early period on the coasts of Spain, both within and
bejond the columns of Hercules. It is thus that we find
the Tunny on the Phoenician medals of Cadiz and Carteia.
Its salted preparation was known to the Romans as an
esteemed article, under the name of Saltamentum Sar-
dicum. Ihe 1 unny fishery does not seem to be now car-
294 I C H T H Y
Classifica- r;e(] on at Constantinople on a great or systematic scale,
ti°n— p)ut jg concentrated in the interior of the Mediter-
terousP" ranean. The species sometimes wanders along the British
Fishes, shores ; and a fine specimen, measuring 9 feet in length, was
v ^ y killed in the beautiful Gairloch, opposite Greenock, in July
v 1831. It is preserved in the Andei'sonian Museum, Glasgow.
The fish known to navigators under the name ot Bonito
belongs to our present genus. It is the Th. pelamys of
Cuv., and sometimes occurs along the British shores. Re¬
sembling the Tunny in form, it is a great deal smaller,
seldom exceeding the length of 30 inches, and is celebrated
in the tropical seas for its eager pursuit of the Flying-fish.
The Bonito of the Mediterranean, however, is the Auxis
vulgaris.
It is a singular thing, as Cuvier has observed, that a
fish so generally met with as the great Lepidopus argy-
reus of the European seas, so handsome, and so large,
should have remained unknown to naturalists so recently
as the end of the eighteenth century, and that it should
have been afterwards successively described by various
writers, under a new name, and by each in ignorance of
the labours of his predecessor. If we figure to ourselves
a large and broad riband of silver, swimming with a wavy
motion through the water, and casting from it in its pro¬
gress the most beautiful reflections of light, we may form
some notion of the general aspect of this creature in its
living state. Its length, as described by Montagu (under
the name of Zipotheca tetradens), was 5 feet 6 inches, with
a depth at the gills ot 4^ inches ; it gradually decreased from
the vent to the commencement of the anal fin, where it
measured only 2 inches in depth ; at the end of that fin the
form was nearly round, and the diameter only half an inch.
The weight, without the intestines, was about six pounds.
Montagu’s specimen was taken in Salcomb Harbour, on the
coast of South Devon, on the 4th June 1808. It was
swimming with astonishing velocity, with its head above
water, going, as the fishermen said, “ as swift as a bird,”
and was killed by the blow of an oar. It occurs occasionally
on most of the European coasts; is more frequent in some
parts of the Mediterranean ; and has been captured as tar
south as the Cape of Good Hope.
The very singular form, Nemichthys scolopacea (Rich.),
captured in the Southern Atlantic by Mr Adams, sur¬
geon, H.M. ship Samarang, seems to be more nearly allied
to Trichiurus than to any other genus, but as its internal
structure has not been investigated, its proper position in
the system must remain for the present doubtful. It is re¬
markable, above all other fishes, for the extreme length of
its thread-like tail and long jaws, compared to its abbreviated
body, many times shorter than the gape of the mouth. It
is apodal, with the anus on the thorax, a range of spinous
rays, each with a triangular membrane, not connected to the
following one, running along the whole back, and a ventral
equally long, but with taller simple flexible rays, and a more
connected membrane. There is no caudal, though, as the
tip of the tail was slightly damaged, this fact was not fully
O L O G Y.
established. When newly caught the fish had a dull white Classifica-
colour, with brown spots. The editor of the Archiven fur tion—
Naturgeschichte is inclined to place this fish among the -Acanthop-
Tseniidae, but it seems to us to associate better with Tri-
chiurus, and we place it here without inquiring whether
Trichiurus be a real Scomberoid or not.
Naucrates ductor, the famous Pilot-fish of navigators
{fjasterosteus ductor, Linn.), so named from its habit of
keeping company with ships at sea, and frequently swim¬
ming beneath their bows. It would seem, from early indi¬
cations of a similar instinct, to be the Pompilius of the
ancients, described as pointing out the way to dubious or
embarrassed sailors, and as announcing the vicinity of land
by its sudden disappearance. It was thus regarded as a
sacred fish. The other story of its serving as a guide to
the Shark does not appear to have been transmitted to us
from so remote a source. It is not mentioned even by the
ichthyologists of the sixteenth century ; and Cuvier regards
as the first allusion to it, that of Dutertre in his Description
of the Antilles, printed in 1667. Since that period it has
been carefully repeated by all voyagers and compilers ; and
Osbeck even makes it a subject of pious reflection on the
wonderful ways of Providence. We are told by a greater
than Osbeck that “ they that go down to the sea in ships,
that do business in great waters ; these see the works of
the Lord, and his wonders in the deepbut the fact in
the present instance seems reducible to this, that the Pilot
accompanies both ships and Sharks, sometimes swimming
before, sometimes behind, for the sake of preying upon
whatever may be thrown overboard in the one case, or left
uneaten in the other. It is true that the Shark never
attacks it; but it is also true that the hawk does not attack
the swallow ; and in both instances the reason is the same ;
the Pilot being too nimble for the unwieldy Shark in the
water, just as the feebler but more agile bird is too swift
in its movements for falco in the air. It is thus that the
apparent alliance of these dissimilar fishes may be explained
even upon general principles, to say nothing of Bose’s
observation, who assures us that he has seen hundreds of
Pilot-fish, that they always keep at a respectful distance
from the Shark, and swim about swiftly in different direc¬
tions, that they may more certainly avoid it. If any food
be thrown overboard, the Pilot stops to seize it, and aban¬
dons both the Shark and vessel. Geoffroy no doubt tells a
story of two Pilot-fish having been seen to take a great deal
of trouble, swimming to and fro, in order to conduct a
Shark towards a baited hook: but admitting the truth of
the details, it is clear, that whatever advantage might even¬
tually accrue to the conductors, the probable result to the
Shark was a cruel death, and one is consequently the more
inclined to admire how the narrative itself should find
place in a Memoir sur Vajfection mutuelle des quelques
animaux! The Pilot-fish in question is chiefly a Medi¬
terranean species, although it also spreads into distant
oceans, having been found by Daldorf under the equator.
A greta extent of geographical distribution may indeed be
expected in reference to a species which is said to suffer
itself to be led away immense distances in its eager pursuit
of ships. Dutertre records that he saw one which followed
his vessel for more than 500 leagues. Whether he kept
his eye upon it night and day during all that time, or in
what other way he ascertained it to be the same individual
throughout so long a traverse, is what he does not state,
and we therefore cannot explain.
In further illustration of the subject, we shall subjoin a
short extract from a recent publication, Dr Meyen’s Reise
um die Erde: “ The Pilot swims constantly in front of the
Shark ; we ourselves have seen three instances in which the
Shark was led by the Pilot. When the Sea-Angel neared
the ship, the Pilot swam close to the snout, or near one
of the breast fins of the animal; sometimes he darted
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- rapidly forwards or sidewards, as if looking for something,
tion— and constantly went back again to the Shark. When we
-Acanthop- t]irew overboard a piece of bacon fastened on a great hook,
Fishes ^le was ab°ut twenty paces from the ship. With the
; quickness of lightning the Pilot came up, smelt at the dainty,
v and instantly swam back again to the Shark, swimming many
times round his snout, and splashing, as if to give him exact
information as to the bacon. The Shark now began to put
himself in motion, the Pilot showing him the way, and in a
moment he was fast upon the hook. Once we watched a
Pilot for many days, who kept constantly swimming close
before the keel of the ship. The sailors say, as of a thing
well known and familiar, that such a fish so situated has
lost his Shark, and is seeking another. Upon a later occa¬
sion, we observed two Pilots in sedulous attendance on a
Blue Shark, which we caught in the Chinese Sea. It seems
probable that the Pilot feeds on the Shark’s excrements,
keeps his company for that purpose, and directs his opera¬
tions solely from this selfish view.” The reviser of this
article has seen many Sharks caught in the Bight of Benin.
They were frequently accompanied by one or two Pilot-fish,
pretty objects with their light-blue bands, more often by
troops of the disgusting-looking and not seldom
without either of these fishes. The Pilot-fish swam grace¬
fully round the head of the fish, but quickly struck off on
one side when the monster, urged by his voracious appetite,
turned up to take the bait. This bait was approached both
by the Pilot-fish and Remora—by the one with an easy and
elegant motion, by the other with a wriggling of the taper
tail that conveyed the notion of swimming with difficulty.
It seemed to us that both these attendants had no other
object than that of procuring food for themselves. The
Remorse very commonly deserted the Shark, even when it
was not caught, and attached themselves to the ship’s
bottom, darting off when any greasy water was thrown over¬
board by the cook, to pick up the morsels of fat from the clear
blue water, returning again to their resting-place to be borne
through the water without trouble.
The generic term Coryphczna is derived from Kopvcfrr],
vertex, or top of the head, in reference to the height of the
crest of the cranium. This division contains the famous
Dolphin of the Mediterranean [Cor. hippurus, Linn.), so
celebrated for the beauty of its versatile tints.
 “ Parting day
Dies like the Dolphin, whom each pang imbues
With a new colour as it gasps away,
The last still loveliest, till—’tis gone—and all is gray.”
The species are still in some measure indistinctly cha¬
racterized. They occur in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans,
and the Mediterranean Sea, and are remarkable, among
other things, for their keen pursuit of Flying-fish, which, in
the first place, they force to leave their native element,
and then following swiftly in a corresponding track, receive
with open mouth the moment they descend exhausted to
the surface. The Coryphaenae may be regarded as among
the most brilliant inhabitants of the sea. It is necessary,
according to Bose, to have seen them following a vessel in
troops, before we can form a proper estimate of their beauty.
When they swim embodied near the surface, and beneath
the light of a cloudless sky, they seem effulgent with the rich¬
est gold, combined with the sparkling lustre of the topaz,
the emerald, and the sapphire,—and every brilliant hue in
perpetual change, accordant with the vivacity and varied
grace of their movements. It is indeed a spectacle suffi¬
cient anywhere to excite our unfeigned admiration ; and
when seen suddenly amid the waves of the lonely and
monotonous ocean, it comes upon us like a glad surprise.
The beauty of these fishes has in every age attracted the
wonder
“ Of all who on the wide deep wandering are; ”
and it is so far to be regretted, that their fugitive colours
295
have been the chief object of attention,—their more precise Classifica-
description and specific discrimination having been greatly tIon
disregarded. Acanthop-
The Coryphsense are strong, active, and voracious fishes, pighes.
WTiile swimming rapidly, they seem rather as if impelled ^ r ^ , j
or projected forwards by some exterior force, than by any
exertion of their own. But, on attentive examination, a
strong and rapid muscular movement may be detected by
the constant undulation of the long dorsal fin, a movement
which greatly contributes to the throwing off' of those lus¬
trous metallic reflections for which they have so long been
noted. The Mediterranean species, Cor. hippurus, if not the
most beautiful, is the largest known. It sometimes attains
to the length of five feet. Its colours, so far as they are ca¬
pable of description, are silvery blue above, with markings
of a deeper azure, and reflections of pure gold—the lower
parts citron yellow, marked with pale blue. The pectoral
fins are partly lead colour, partly yellow; the ventrals are
yellow on their under surface, and black above; the anal
fin is yellow. The iris of the eye is made of apparent gold.
This description is from the recorded observation of the
living fish by M. Biberon. Another eye-witness, Colonel
Bory St Vincent, describes the back as being of a sea-green
colour, sprinkled with orange spots; the abdomen silvery ;
the lateral line yellow; the dorsal fin celestial blue, with
golden-coloured rays ; the caudal fin surrounded by a green
hue ; the other fins yellow.
One or two other kinds, not so distinctly known, occur
in the Mediterranean, and many others in more distant seas.
The Portuguese name more than one species Dorade,a. term
which, from its similarity to Daurade (a frequent appella¬
tion of our Gilt-head, Chrysophris aurata), has produced
some confusion. Not less ambiguous is the name oi' Dol¬
phin, which appears to have been first misapplied to the
Coryphsenae by the Dutch. It is scarcely necessary to ob¬
serve, that the English word Dolphin, as synonymous with
the Greek AeA.<£is, the Latin Delphinus, and the French
Dauphin, was originally, and is still correctly, applied only
to designate a group of cetaceous animals (allied in struc¬
ture to the Whales), to which the classical Dolphin of anti¬
quity assuredly belonged. But by some conversion, into
the history of which it is not worth while to inquire, the
term has been applied by most modern writers, particularly
poets, to a creature of another class, a genuine fish, of the
genus Coryphcena. No fault, therefore, can be imputed to
the naturalist, if the general misapplication of the term is
now found to occasion any misconception. There is no
doubt, however, that the animal beloved by gods and men,
the Hieros Ichthys of the heroic Greeks, and the revered
symbol of the Delphic Apollo, was nothing more than a
Pellock or Porpoise.
Xiphias (Sword-fish), though by no means uncommon,
are seldom captured, owing to their extreme vigilance. Cap¬
tain Beechy informs us, that while in the Pacific Ocean,
near Easter Island, “ as the line was hauling in, a large
Sword-fish bit at the tin case which contained our thermo¬
meter, but fortunately failed in carrying it off.” Their mode
of capture in the Mediterranean may be likened to Whale¬
fishing in miniature, and is said to be a very amusing and
exciting sport. A watchman placed upon a mast, or
296
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- standing on the summit of a neighbouring rock, gives
Atl0I)~ warning by signal when he sees a fish approach. The
terousP" fishermen then row towards it; and, being so skilful as
Fishes, frequently to strike the fish from a great distance, they
v ^ i throw a harpoon into it attached to a long line. An ardu¬
ous struggle then commences, during which the aggres¬
sors are sometimes pulled about by the fish for many hours
before they can get it into the boat. The sword-like pro¬
longation of the snout in Xiphias is formed of the conflu¬
ent premaxillaries, firmly and immoveably articulated with
the prenasal and maxillary bones as in the Scomberesox.
Fig. ns.
Histiophorus pulchellus-
We cannot give more space to the more remarkable forms
of this large and important family of fishes. The pecu¬
liarities of their structure, such as the loose texture of their
bones, the glandular-like assemblages of pancreatic caeca
which they possess, and the papery-like scales, scarcely to
be distinguished from the smooth skin, with the neat taper¬
ing tail and large crescentic caudal, together with the deli¬
cacy of the cutaneous (bid or membrane, in which the other
two vertical fins are developed, and which, from its early
disappearance, leaves many of the rays detached in form of
finlets, are all prominent characters of the more typical
species, and give such an unity of aspect to the whole
group, that it might rank as an order, and not as a mere
family division. The family is generally distributed in all
districts of the ocean, and the Temnodon saltator is espe¬
cially a cosmopolitan fish, being found in all the temperate
and warmer districts of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
In concluding, we must express our regret that M. Valen¬
ciennes should have adopted the word Rhombus, first used
by Lacepede to distinguish a Scomberoid genus, but which
has been generally employed by ichthyologists to designate
the I urbots among the PleuronectidcE. Cuvier had given
the Scomberoid genus the name of Peprilus in the second
edition of the Regne Animal, and this being also a Lace-
pedian name of this genus, the continuance of it would have
Fig. 114.
Oasterochisma melampus,
avoided the mistakes that are likely to arise from two very
different genera retaining the same appellation.
Fishes.
Family XVI.—SCOMBERID^E. Classifica-
Scales generally small, tender, smooth, seldom extending to the .
vertical fins; bones less solid than in most other osseous fishes. ^an °P*
The tail and caudal fin, generally, very vigorous. Pancreatic caeca rous
numerous, and frequently united in bunches. No armature on the
opercular pieces. In many, the sides of the tail are keeled and
armed with keeled, often acute scales. The posterior rays of the
second dorsal and anal are often detached from the rest of the fin.
Sometimes the spines of the first dorsal are not connected by mem¬
brane. The front anal spines are detached in most; the caudal is
very frequently large. These characters are variously combined,
none being common to all, but they serve to divide this numerous
family into tribes.
Tribe I.—Finlets, and no Armature on the Lateral Line.
First dorsal continuous, the rays of the second detached, forming
finlets. Body fusiform. Caudal large and vigorous. Tail becom¬
ing very slender, and more or less keeled. In some there is an
interval between the first and second dorsal, in others these fins
are contiguous ; in some the scales of the thorax are large, forming
a corselet. Most, or all, have seven branchiostegals.
Genus I. Scomber, Linn. Detached finlets behind the dorsal
and anal; a large interval between the dorsals. Tail with a slight
ridge on each side, but no acute keel. Generally an air-bladder,
though in some species that organ is absent. Fourteen species.
Genus II. Thynnus, Cuv. Mackerels, but with contiguous
dorsals ; the scales of the thorax larger and stronger, forming a
corselet which ends posteriorly in points. Detached finlets more
numerous; no free spine in front of the dorsal. An acute carti¬
laginous projection on the lateral caudal ridge. Thirteen species.
Genus III. Auxis, Cuv. Dorsals separated by an interval.
Tail keeled on the sides ; intermediate between, and connecting the
Mackerels, having widely separated dorsals, to the Tunnies and Bo-
nitos, with small teeth, numerous finlets, keeled tail, and contigu¬
ous dorsals. Three species.
Genus IV. Pelamys, Cuv. Differs from Auxis in having
contiguous dorsals and strong pointed teeth, standing rather widely.
Two species.
Genus V. Cybium, Cuv. No corselet. Compressed lancet-
pointed trenchant teeth. Detached finlets and long first dorsal of
Thynnus. Elongated body, keeled tail, and no pectoral cuirass;
this last character distinguishing them from Pelamys. Very short
villiform teeth on the chevron of the vomer, palatines, tongue, and
branchial arches. Sixteen species.
Genus VI. Thyrsites, Cuv. No lateral caudal keel; no pectoral
corselet. First dorsal contiguous to the second. Body elongated,
much compressed. Small but perfect ventrals. Teeth pointed,
compressed, trenchant; longer and stronger anterior premaxillary
teeth ; palatine teeth small, pointed. Four species.
Genus VII. Gempylus, Cuv. Mj/rsitcs with rudimentary ven¬
trals. No palatine teeth. Two species.
Genus VIII. Rovettus, Bonap. (Ruvetus, Cocco; Tetragonurus,
FiOwe ; Aplurus, Idem.) Body elongated, compressed. Head covered
with a scabrous leathery skin. Belly keeled on the ventral edge.
Tail compressed, without a lateral keel. Head unarmed; snout much
abbreviated. Gill-openings very wide. Mandible shorter than
the premaxillaries. A row of equidistant, compressed, slightly
recurved, serrated teeth on the jaws; some of them long, especially
the premaxillary ones near the symphysis, which are the longest;
a uniserial range of smaller ones on the vomer and palatines. Two
dorsals, with finlets above and below the tail. Caudal forked.
Branchiostegals seven. Many pancreatic cseca ; small air-bladder.
One species.
Appendix to Tribe I.
Genus IX. Lepidopus, Cuv. (Aphanopus, Lowe.) Form of
Gempylus and Thyrsites, even more elongated; but they have no
soft dorsal or finlets. the spinous rays running all along the back.
Vestiges of ventrals in form of a little squamoid appendage, with
the styloid pubic bone felt through the skin. Teeth like those
of Thyrsites on the jaws ; none on the vomer, and very fine ones
on the palatines. Branchiostegals six. A long caecal stomach;
twenty-three pancreatic caeca; air-bladder long and narrow. One
species.
Genus X. Trichiurus, Linn. Head, body, and dentition of
Lepidopus, but without a vestige of ventrals. The dorsal, also,
is spinous throughout like that of Lepidopus ; while the anal con¬
sists of a series of spines that scarcely protrude through the skin,
and the tail ends in a filiform point without a caudal fin. Four
species.
Genus XI. Nemichthys, Rich. (Voy. of the Sulphur,-p\. x.,
1848.) Form greatly elongated, and tapering posteriorly into an
exceedingly long filamentous-looking tail. Head longer than the
Classifica- body. excluding the tail. No ventrals. Elongated jaws formed
tion— as in Scomberesox; the edge of the maxillary touching the angle of
Acanthop- the long gaPe of the mouth, which is bounded by the very slender
terous premaxillaries and mandible. Branchiostegals nine or ten, as fine
Fishes. as a hair- Anus between the small pectorals. Eye large. ’ Dorsal
v j spines isolated, each with a membrane in its axilla, extending from
the occiput to very near the point of the tail, where they can no
longer be traced for their minuteness ; anal fin with more nu
merous and taller spines, and apparently a continuous membrane
disappearing also near the hair-like point of the tail; no caudal’
None of the spines strong enough to be pungent, but none of them
jointed. Teeth arranged in very close, fine, file-like bands on the
premaxillanes and mandibles ; individually, when viewed through
a lens, they appear to be semi-lanceolate with the points turned
backwards. One species. 1
Group of Sword-fish. Muzzle inform of a sword or dagger.
No detached finlets.
Genus XII. Xiphias, Linn. Allied to Thynnus by their very
small scales, the keels on the side of the tail, and interior organ¬
ization. Their distinctive character is the elongation of the beak
composed chiefly of the premaxillaries and vomer, supported at
the base by the frontals, nasal, and maxillaries, and which is a
great offensive weapon. Their branchial laminae are peculiarly
formed. The caudal, having the distinctive form of the family
is a powerful instrument of natation. No ventrals. Branchioste¬
gals seven. Stomach caecal, conical; pancreatic caeca numerous:
air-bladder large. Though the difference between these great
fecomberoids and Nemichthys is so vast, as respects size, they seem
with regard to the structure of the jaws to bear much the same re-
lation to that small fish that Hcmiramphus does to Scomberesox One
species.
Genus XIII. Tetrapturus, Rafin. Scomberoids with elon¬
gated and pointed bill as in Xiphias, but which have ventrals and
instead of a keel on each side of the tail, have little crests as in
Scomber. Two species.
Genus XIV. Makaira, Lacgp. With the pointed bill and the
small lateral caudal crests of Tetrapturus, but without ventrals
One species.
Genus XV. Histiophorus, Lacgp. (Notistium, Herm.) Ap¬
proaches nearly to Xiphias. The bill, and lateral caudal crests of
Tetrapturus, but the dorsal is very high; and their long slender
ventrals are composed of two rays. Branchiostegals seven. Sto¬
mach cascal, a great bag as long as the abdomen; caeca in a mass
like a pancreas. Five species.
Tribe II. Centronoti, Lac^p. Scomberoids, with the first
dorsal composed of isolated spines.
i.e., No continuous membrane to the spinous dorsal; with or
without finlets behind the articulated dorsal or anal; and the late¬
ral caudal keel present in some genera, wanting in others. Ven¬
trals present in almost all.
Genus XVI. Naucrates, Cuv. A fusiform body, small uni¬
form scales, and a keel on the side of the tail as in Thynnus. Two
free spines before the anal, and the above characters of the tribe.
Four species.
Genus XVII. Elecate, Cuv. Naucrates, except that the two
spines before the anal are wanting, also the lateral caudal keel
The head, moreover, is depressed. Five species.
Genus XVIII. Lichia, Cuv. Body oblong, compressed, with¬
out keel or lateral ridges on the tail. Dorsal spines isolated, with
each a membrane in its axilla, and a decumbent spine in front of
all. Four species.
Genus XIX. Paropsis, Jen. Differs from Lichia in the total
want of ventrals.
Genus XX. Chorinemus, Cuv. {Scomberaides, Lacgp.) Lichice
with the rays of the second dorsal or of the anal either wholly iso¬
lated or connected by a low membrane so tender that it disappears
easily. Branchiostegals seven or eight, in some only four or five
Sixteen species.
Genus XXI. Trachinotus, Cuv. Differ from Lichia in having
a more elevated body, and steeper profile before the eye, and in the
anal and dorsal being more acutely falciform anteriorly. Some
American species have the lower bodies of Lichia, and differ from
that genus chiefly in the short, almost truncated snout. Twentv-
lour species. J
Genus XXII. Apolectus, Cuv. Trachinoti with ventrals at¬
tached to the throat. One species.
Genus XXIII. Palinurus, De Kay. Rays of the dorsal not
ree, but connected by a low membrane; a spine before the anal.
VOL. XII.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
297
Preoperculum and operculum serrated. The last-mentioned cha- Classifica-
racter seems to remove this fish from the Scomberidce, with which, tion—
however, its entire habit accords. One species {Trachinotus ar- Acanthop-
yenteus, Storer). terous
Fishes.
Tribe III.—Scomberoids, with a cuirassed lateral line ;
The scaly shields being themselves keeled and acute. This kind
of armour becomes feebler in certain genera, so that it would not be
noticed but for the smallness of the other scales.
Genus XXIV. Caranx, Cuv. Keeled scales on the lateral line
strong and acute. Two separate dorsals. A couchant anterior
spine; two free spines before the anal. No appearance of the
corset of Thynnus. Posterior dorsal and anal rays sometimes very
shghtiy connected, or even forming detached finlets. Seventy-one
species described in the Histoire des Poissons, and there divided
into—
TVaciWs, which have the whole lateral line strongly cuirassed.
Laranx, with only the posterior part of the line cuirassed. Body
lanceolate. Finlets. J
Carangus, low bucklers, low bodies, profiles nearly straight and
no finlets.
Citula, Carangi, with the tips of the dorsal and anal much pro¬
longed. 1
Bleeker subdivides the genus mto—Megalaspis, equivalent nearly
o Laranx ; Lecapterus, of which C. hurra is a type ; and Garanx
the type of which is C. jarra. ' ’
Genus XXV. Carangichthys, Bleek. Premaxillary and man¬
dibular teeth pluriserial; those forming the external row longer
with some canines in front of the mandible ; teeth on the vomer’
palatines, and tongue. Preoperculum denticulated. Lateral line
armed with spinous shields. Branchiostegals seven. Kema.
The genus Caranx is succeeded naturally by small groups of
fecomberoids, having a compressed body and an elevated trenchant
profile leading to Vomer, in which this compression and elevation
are at a maximum. In these the keeled scales of the lateral line
are comparatively feeble.
Genus XXVI. Olistes, Cuv. Resemble the Citulce in their falci¬
form acute dorsals and anals, and have in addition the middle rays
of the dorsal and anal prolonged into long, simple, articulated fila¬
ments. Two species.
Genus XXVII. Scyris, Cuv. Citulce with high trenchant pro¬
files. The first or spinous dorsal concealed beneath the integuments •
its spines lying against the interneurals. Anterior soft rays both
of dorsal and anal prolonged. Two species.
Genus XXVIII. Blepharis, Cuv. Rhomboidal form. Spines
of first dorsal very short; anterior rays of soft dorsal, and corre¬
sponding ones of the anal, prolonged into unbranched articulated
filaments ; long ventrals. A convex trenchant profile of moderate
height. Three species.
Genus XXIX. Gallichthys, Cuv. Differs from Blepharis in
having a higher profile, convex forehead, and vertical face. Body
compressed, high. Ventrals long ; caudal forked ; first dorsal very
low, in some reduced to a series of very short spines; anterior-
rays of the second dorsal and of the anal prolonged. Three species.
Genus XXX. Argyreiosus, Lacep. Profile descending in an
oblique straight line from the occiput; not gibbous on the
forehead. The dorsal line between the nape and the second dorsal
instead of ascending like that of Gallichthys, is almost horizontal
and on its posterior half it supports the first dorsal; the general
form is therefore less rhomboidal. Ventrals, second ray of the first
dorsal, and anterior part of the second dorsal and anal, long and
pointed. Two species. °
Genus XXXI. Vomer, Cuv. Oval form, but the gibbous profile
of the forehead over the eye projects out of the oval, and the face is
rather concave. From the fisrehead to the second dorsal the back is
but slightly convex, being almost horizontal. The ventral curve is
part of a regular ellipse. First dorsal very low and weak, and its
posterior spines not connected by membrane ; second dorsal and
anal low and long, not pointed or falciform. One species.
. Genus XXXII. Hynnis, Cuv. Like Vomer, but without a ves¬
tige of the first dorsal. Branchiostegals eight. Differs much from
Vomer in its skeleton. Stomach siphonal, the pylorus being at the
point of a dilated, compressed, triangular sac; pancreatic cmca
numerous; very large air-bladder prolonged into two conical pro¬
cesses, one on each side of the tail. One species.
Tribe I\. Scomberoids, having no detached finlets, no
isolated dorsal spines, and no lateral armature of
the tail;. divided into genera having two dorsals, and
those which have only one. {a.) Two dorsals.
Genus XXXIII. Seriola, Cuv. Differs from Caranx in wanting
t le armature of the lateral line, and from Lichia in the dorsal spines
2 p
300
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- are alike remarkable for their singular forms and splendid
tion— colours.
Acanthop- The geas of the torrij zone have indeed no cause to envy
Fishes the productions of those famous lands, the shores of which
^ thev have so long bathed with their translucent waters. If
the'equatorial regions of Africa and America possess, among
their feathered tribes, the brilliant Souimangas, the lustrous
Humming-birds, and the gorgeous Chatterers, the interme¬
diate ocean and the Indian seas contain countless thousands
of the finny race which surpass even these in splendour.
The Chsetodons, in particular, form a family on which nature
has bestowed her ornaments with a lavish hand. The deep
purple of the iris, the paler richness of the rose, the azure
blue of the crystalline sky, the darkest velvet black, and
deepest violet tint of the pansy, are seen combined with
metallic radiance on the pearly bodies of this resplendent
group. The eye of man receives the greater pleasure from
their contemplation, in that, being of moderate or small
size, and haunting habitually the coral basins of the trans¬
parent tropical seas, they disport themselves in the beams
of a vertical sun, as if desirous of exhibiting their splendid
liveries to the greatest advantage in the blaze of day.
TABLE OF GENERA.
No palatine teeth.
Brush-like teeth on both jaws. Tribe I.
Preoperculum not spinous.
Dorsal single, wholly scaly.
None of the dorsal spines ending in filaments.
CHiETODON, CHELMON.
. Some of the dorsal spines with filamentous tips.
H^niochus, Zanclus.
Dorsals two, the soft one alone scaly.
Three anal spines; scales large.
Ephippus, Drepane.
Four anal spines ; scales small, imbedded.
SCATOPHAGUS.
Dorsal merely notched.
Taurichthys.
Preoperculum bearing a strong spine.
Holocanthus, Pomacanthus.
Exterior teeth tricuspid ; interior ones villiform.
Platax.
Fine and short villiform teeth on the jaws.
Psettus.
Palatine teeth present.
Trenchant teeth on both jaws. Tribe II.
Pimelepterus, Dipterodon.
Card-like teeth on both jaws. Tribe III.
Brama.
Yilliform teeth.
Pempheris, Toxodon.
These genera are placed in tribes in the Histoire des
Poissons. The first tribe being the Squamipennes with
Fig. 118.
Chxtodon ephippium.
brush-like teeth, forming the Linnaean genus Chcetodon,
whose name is framed to describe this kind of dentition, in Classifica-
which the individual teeth are longer and stouter than tion7_
villiform teeth, and resemble the strong bristles of a clothes-
brush. In fig. 53 the coarse brush-like teeth of Histiop- j^es.
terus recurvirostris are well shown. The tissue of the y ■ ^ '
teeth of most Chaetodonts is albuminous, they have a yel¬
lowish colour, and are flexible and elastic, but when dry
easily broken.
When once a person has seen several typical fishes of
this group, he readily recognises the family character. TheT
dense scaliness of the fins, which gradually taper out of the
thickness of the body, so that one cannot tell without dis¬
section where the one ends and the other begins, is very
different from the small scales which creep on the mem¬
brane or rays of the vertical fins of some Scisenoids, as
Nebris, Lepipteris, See., and these never have the flexible,
bristle-formed teeth of horny texture with which the true
Chsetodons are furnished; and, moreover, show more or
less of the muciferous development of the bones of the head
and face characteristic of Scisenoids, giving them their blunt
facial profile. The Hsemulons come nearer to the Squa¬
mipennes, but the bases of their vertical fins are set on
abruptly on the back and belly, and do not slope off into
the sides. The Chsetodons of the Red Sea were known to
the ancients. Adian speaks of them under the name of
Citharcedus. None of the species come into the seas of
Europe, except the Brama Raii, which wanders occasion¬
ally to the coasts of England. The Chelmons are Chaeto-
dons with a tubular prolongation of the premaxillary and
mandible, in form of a long, slender snout.
Fig. 119.
Chelmon marginalis.
The species here figured was unknown to the authors of
the Histoire des Poissons, but its habits, from the great
similarity of its conformation, may be considered as similar
to that of the two species described in that work. Chelmon
rostratus, or enceladus, is an inhabitant of the sea and rivers
of Java, and has the instinct of throwing a drop of water
from its bill, so as to light upon any insect resting on a leaf
or blade of grass near the stream, and thus make it fall that
it may instantly dart upon it. This was observed recently
by M. Reinwardt, and an account to the same import is con¬
tained in the Philosophical Transactions for 1764. The
Chinese residing in Java keep this fish in jars, and tempt it
to practise its peculiar art for their amusement, by placing
an insect on a rod or thread within range of its shot.
Zanclus cornutus of Cuv. has become, on account pro¬
bably of its singular form and horned front, an object almost
of superstitious reverence among the fishermen of the Mo¬
luccas. It is alleged, that when they happen to capture
one of this species, they immediately salute it by certain
genuflexions, and then cast it into the sea. It is, however,
an excellent table fish, which attains a weight of 15 lbs.,
ICHTHYOLOGY.
SOI
Fig. 120.
Taurichthys varius.
Classifica- and resembles the Turbot in flavour. It is rather widely
tion— diffused, occurring both in the Indian seas and Pacific
Acanthop- Ocean.
Fishes. Baron Cuvier has remarked, that among all the strange
i / and fantastic fishes preserved in the representations of
Ruysch, Renard, and Valentyn, and which have so long
excited the mistrust of naturalists, none seems more likely
to provoke that feeling than the species which these writers
designate by the Malay name of Skankarbauw, or Buffalo-
fish ; and yet it now turns out that none is more accordant
with the truth of nature. Its sharp recurved horns, the pro¬
tuberance above the head, the compressed and unequal
spines, and the singular distribution of colour,—all exist in
a species recently received from the Indian Archipelago.
It has accordingly been named Taurichthys by Cuvier—the
Greek translation of the Malay name. The species here
celebrated for the splendour and singularity of its aspect is Classifica-
that named the Emperor of Japan by the Dutch, and the tion—
ChcBtodon imperator of Bloch, figured in many works. Its Acanthop-
body is deep blue, traversed all over by about two and thirty
narrow bands of orange yellow. The pectoral fins are black, ^ ^ ,
and the entire tail bright yellow. It is a large fish of its kind, "
sornetimes attaining the length of 15 inches, and, as an
article of food, is one of the most esteemed of all the Indian
species, resembling our own much-prized Salmon in flavour.
Another and more recently discovered species is H. semi-
circulatus, Cuv. It occurs both at Timor and New Ireland.
Its colours are white and blue ; its length from 4 to 5 inches.
I he inhabitants of Waigiou call it Mami.
Many fish of this family are remarkable for bony enlarge¬
ments of some part of their skeleton, very often of the in-
terneural bones. In the Ephippus gigas the top of the skull
is swelled out into a solid mass, which hangs forwards like
the crest of a helmet, or like the skull of a Rhamphastos, and
the interhaemal which supports the first two anal spines is also
curiously swollen. Platax arthriticus is another member
of the family which derives its name from these gout-like
figured is T. varius, which is from four to six inches long,
with a height almost equal to its length.
The species of Holocanthus are remarkable for the great
beauty and symmetrical distribution of their colours, and for
their excellence as articles of food. They are numerous
Fig. 121.
Fsettus argenteus.
both in the Indian and American seas. One of the most
Fig. 122.
Scatophagus multifasciatus.
swellings of some of its bones. Psettus argenleus is a
Chinese and Australian species, represented by fig. 116;
and Scatophagus multifasciatus is another handsome fish of
the southern seas.
The Toxotes jaculator (fig. 118) is a small Javanese
species, measuring 6 or 7 inches in length, remarkable for
Fig. 123.
Toxotes jaculator.
possessing the same faculty as that mentioned in our notice
of Chelmon rostratus. When it perceives a fly or other
insect upon an aquatic plant, it dexterously drives it into the
water by a shower of drops. Cuvier received a specimen
from Batavia, the stomach of which was entirely filled with
ants. I his species has been erroneously multiplied in sys¬
tematic works. It is twice described by Shaw under two
T7
302
Classifica¬
tion—
Acanthop-
terous
Fishes.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
different names (Scarus Schlosseri and Labrus jaculator),
neither of which is the right one; and there is no doubt of
its being identical with Hamilton Buchanan’s Coins cha-
tereus, a supposed new species from the Ganges. It seems
pretty widely distributed throughout the Indian Archipelago,
and is known to the Malays by the name of Ikan-sumpit.
Family XVIII.—CHASTODONTIDAS, Bonap.
Squamipennes, Cuv. The most apparent character of this fa¬
mily is the incrustation of the soft portions of the dorsal and anal
fins, and often of the spinous parts also, with scales. Scales strongly
ctenoid. Body generally greatly compressed. Intestines long, and
pyloric caeca numerous. Dentition various, giving rise to generic
subdivisions.
(a.) Ch^todontini, Bonap. Brush-like teeth on the jaws, none
on the palate.
Genus I. Ch^todon, Linn. Preoperculum not spinous. Dor¬
sal single, entirely scaly ; no prolongations of its spinous rays, but
the soft dorsal sometimes ending in a long filament. Muzzle
comparatively short, but more or less projecting. Teeth like long
bristles densely crowded. Pyloric caeca long, slender, and numer¬
ous ; air-bladder strong. Body compressed, elliptical, or nearly
orbicular. Tail short. Caudal truncated. Head small. Branchi-
ostegals six. Spinous rays, in most twelve or thirteen in the dorsal,
and three in the anal. Sixty-five species.
Genus II. Chelmon, Linn. Chcetodons, with a long slender
bill, formed by the elongation of the premaxillaries and mandible.
Maxillary roundish. Mouth very narrow, at the end of the bill;
teeth short, villiform. Body very high. Dorsal and anal high
and scaly ; caudal square. Scales large. Three species.
Genus III. Megaprotodon, Guich. Distinguished from Chce-
todon by a cluster of longer teeth, with hooked points, situated on
the end of the mandible. Algiers.
Genus IV. Heniochus, Cuv. Xo preopercular spines. Spin¬
ous rays of the single dorsal much graduated, the third or fourth
one having a long filamentous tip, like a whip-thong. Body covered
with large scales. Branchiostegals five. Body obliquely rhomboidal,
the apex of the soft anal and the filamentous dorsal spine being
at opposite angles, and the mouth and soft dorsal forming the other
two corners. Profile nearly vertical. Preoperculum serrated.
Five species.
Genus V. Zanclus, Comm. Ko preopercular spines. The fili¬
form-tipped spinous dorsal ray of Heniochus, and nearly the same
form of body, but the scales are extremely small. Muzzle more
tubular and projecting, but not so much as in Ghelmon. Posterior
parts of the soft dorsal and anal low, with a straight inclined out¬
line, so that the mouth and tail are the opposing angles of the
rhomb ; the other two being the long dorsal spine and apex of the
soft anal, as in Heniochus. Stomach caecal, of moderate capacity;
fourteen pancreatic caeca. Two species.
Genus VI. Histiopterus, Schleg. Resembling Heniochus and
Taurichthys in the form of the body. Dorsal fin very tall, with four
strong spines, without scales. Cheeks scaly. Preoperculum, oper¬
culum, and top of the head and snout presenting the granulated
surfaces of the bones. Snout more or less elongated and tubular,
the elongation being chiefly in the nasal, vomer, and lower limb of
the preoperculum and other bones supporting the jaws, which are
at the extremity of the snout. Teeth coarsely bristle-formed, blunt,
crowded, in a wide band on the jaws. Eye large. Three species.
Genus VII. Ephippus, Cuv. No preopercular spines. Dorsal
deeply notched between the spinous and soft portions; the spinous
part being destitute of scales, and capable of folding into a scaly
furrow on the back as in the Sciaenoids. Three anal spines. Body
oval- or nearly orbicular. Ventral profile almost horizontal. Pec-
toiW fins short. Branchiostegals six. Four species.
Genus VIII. Drepane, Cuv. Ephippi, with long pointed pec¬
torals. Bodies high and more rhomboidal, the ventral profile de¬
scending to the soft anal. Branchiostegals six.
Genus IX. Scatophagus, Cuv. Dorsal deeply notched between
the spinous and soft part. No preopercular spines; four anal spines.
Scales small, lost in the epidermis, but ctenoid in structure. Body
a broad oval. Tail between the vertical fins very short. Stomach
siphonal; many pancreatic caeca; air-bladder simple, pretty large.
Six species.
Genus X. Taurichthys, Cuv. Dorsal less deeply notched.
A protuberance on the occiput, and a horn opposite the middle of
each orbit. Ventrals rather large. Form unevenly subrhomboidal,
higher than long. The dorsal apex formed by the fourth or fifth
spinous ray; second anal spine the largest. Preoperculum not
spinous. Face concave. Two species.
Genus XI. Holocanthus, Lacep. Dorsal single, scarcely
notched, or wholly even. A large spine at the angle of the pre- Classifica-
operculum. Body a regular oval. Vertical fins all scaly. Border tion—
of the preoperculum generally serrated. Branchiostegals six. Acanthop-
Twenty-six species.
Genus XII. PomaCANTHUS, Cuv. More elevated than Holocan¬
thus, but still having a nearly oval form. Preorbitar and preoper¬
culum always with entire edges, but with the strong spine at the
angle of the latter. Dorsal spines generally fewer than in Holo¬
canthus (nine, or rarely ten) ; anal spines three or more, deeply im¬
bedded in front of the anal. Teeth furnished with two short la¬
teral points, as in a few Holocanthi. Six species.
Genus XIII. Platax, Cuv. Setiform brush-like teeth, but in
front of them a row of trenchant teeth trilobate at the points, as in
a few Holocanthi, but more evident in this genus. Body very much
compressed and elevated, so that it appears to graduate insensibly
into the dorsal and-anal, which taper to long points ; the entire
height of the fish much exceeding its length ; these fins are scaly,
and the spinous rays (which are few in the dorsal) are buried in
their front edges. Ventrals long and pointed; caudal rounded.
Branchiostegals six. Fourteen species.
Genus XIV. Psettus, Comm. Body compressed. Dorsal and
anal scaly, with the points more or less falciform. Spines almost
concealed ; might form a group in the genus Chcetodon; but the
teeth are rather villiform than setiform. Ventrals reduced to a
single spine, the short rays being obsolete. Branchiostegals six.
Some are more elevated, and others more rounded or oval. Dorsal
spines eight; anal spines three. Three species.
Genus XV. Hypsinotus, Schleg. Ventrals close to the anus ;
soft dorsal low. Height of the body nearly equal to its length.
Branchiostegals six.
Tribe II.—Pimelepterini (Bonap.) Chcetodontidce, with pa¬
latine teeth and with trenchant teeth on the jaws.
Genus XVI. Pimelepterus, Lacep. {Dipterodon and Xysteres,
Lacep.) Distinctive character, uniserial teeth, each having a
trenchant limb rising at a right angle from a horizontal heel.
Body oblong. Head obtuse. Dorsal single. Fins thickish; the
soft rays being densely covered with scales. General aspect much
like that of Crenidens. Head scaly. Ten species.
Genus XVII. Dipterodon, Cuv. Much like PmeZeptmts, but
the dorsal is deeply notched anterior to the soft rays, and the in-
cisorial teeth want the bony heel. Branchiostegals six. One
species.
Tribe III.—Chcetodontidce, with villiform or card-like feeth
on the jaws and palate. Included in Pimelepterini of
Bonap.
Genus XVIII. Brama, Bloch, Schneid. Vertical fins covered
with scales, the articulated dorsal occupying much of the back, and,
as is usual in the family, higher in front, on the border of which
three spinous rays are buried; becoming low posteriorly. Anal
shorter, but similar in form. Mouth nearly vertical when closed.
Teeth card-like on the jaws and palatines. Body compressed, ovate
in outline, obtuse at the facial end, tapering into the tail. Snout
very short and forming part of the obtuse profile. Branchiostegals
seven. Stomach short; pancreatic caeca five. Three species.
Genus XIX. Nemobrama, Valenc. (Polymixia nolilis, Lowe.)
Body oblong, covered with very rough scales. Head small, scaly.
Snout and upper jaw naked. Mandible scaly, with two long sym-
physial barbels. Teeth on the jaws, palatines, vomer, and tongue,
minute, densely crowded, villiform. Opercular bones unarmed
and scaly, except the interoperculum, which is naked and skinny.
Dorsal fins united ; ventrals seven-rayed. Branchiostegals four.
Genus XX. Crius, Valenc. (Leirus, Lowe.) Body compressed,
keeled anteriorly, clothed wholly with smooth scales. Head small,
truncated, scaly. Preoperculum furrowed on the limb, with an
entire margin without spines; operculum, suboperculum, and inter¬
operculum without spines or serratures, but sub-ciliated. A single
series of very small setaceous teeth. Dorsal, anal, and caudal fins
scaly. Branchiostegals six.
Genus XXI. Scorpis, Valenc. Unites the characters of Trachi-
notus and Platax ; and, but for the teeth covering all parts of the
roof of the mouth, might have entered the latter genus. Body
compressed, oval. Muzzle short and rounded, forming part of the
circumference of the oval profile. Broad band of villiform teeth
on the jaws, vomer, and palatines; those on the pterygoid bones
exceedingly minute. Most of the head scaly. Scales strongly ci¬
liated. Ventrals, a spine, and five articulated rays. Two species.
Genus XXII. Pempheris, Cuv. Similar to Brama in outline,
except that the occiput and shoulder are less convex, and the pos¬
terior parts taper more. The teeth are villiform. The short and
Classifica- dorsal is over the posterior half of the
Acanthop- EUt 1lttle °f A® hT l0Dg anal resembles that ofAmmf
I P ye large. Air-bladder double as in Myripristes. Resembles Kur-
ius, but differs in the magnitude of the scales on the fins It,
short dorsal and scaly anal, with the existence of vomerine and
species6 te6th’ SeParate the SeDUS ^ the Sfiaridce- Eight
Genus XXIir. Toxotes, Cuv. A short compressed body, with
the dorsal placed on the posterior half of the back. Very strong
spinous rays; the soft parts and the anal scaly, and onnosite tn
each other. Scales large. Snout depressed, short; mandible ad¬
vancing beyond the premaxillary. Very short, close, villiform teeth
on the jaws, end of the vomer, and palatines; also on the ptery¬
goids and tongue. Minute denticulations on the border of the nre-
orbitar and preoperculum. Stomach short and large ; twelve nan-
Crerl^nfCYYT{rbudder large and thin-coated- One species.
trENUS XXIV. HOPLEGNATHUS. Rich rMarch ISAlS /o
don Schleg. 1844.) Compressed oval Chmtodontoids,0with The
soft dorsal and anal opposite, and scaly - spinous portion of the
dorsal longer, but lower than the soft part; ventrals a little behind
• EPdd dT , Jaw\and teeth of &arus. Scales feebly ctenoid
imbedded deeply in the skin, few on the head, and confined to the
temporal region. Branchiostegals seven. Three or four species.
MB BOX-FISH.
A natural family nearly allied to the Scomberoids, and
having bones of a still looser texture than the Mackerels
in most little more solid than a fibrous net-work. Cuvier
included Lepidopus and Trichiurus in this family, but we
have followed M. Valenciennes in placing these two genera
at the end of the first tribe of Scomberoids, and along with
\hzmNemichthys, whose greatest affinity seems to be with
Imchiurus. M. Valenciennes, however, considers the two
genera m question to be a link between the families, and
to be connected with the elongated Scomberoids by their
strong compressed curved teeth; while they have an equal
relationship to the Taenioids by the presence of ventrals
merdy in a rudimentary condition, or their entire absence.
Ihe first tribe, being the Ribbon-fish, which have small
mouths, includes those to which this family name applies
best, because species exist which are nine or ten feet lono-
rpT aX? n®t Slx inches high, and scarcely an inch thick!
Ihe 1 rachypteri have several rays in the ventrals; the
Lri/mnetri only one or two filamentous rays ; and Sti/lepho-
rus, still imperfectly known, appears to be truly 'apodal,
hew fish of so much interest, from the singularity of their
appearance, and the peculiarities of their structure, are so
imperfectly known. This arises in a great measure from
the delicacy of their texture. They are constructed for in¬
habiting the still waters of great depths, and are seldom
seen except when thrown ashore in tempests. Their tender
fins are easily mutilated, their thin soft flesh rapidly decays,
their bones have too little firmness to keep the skeleton
together when rudely handled, and they almost never come
before a naturalist in a perfect condition. M. Valenciennes
had twenty individuals under examination when he drew
up his history of the family, and he has done much to re¬
move the confusion which the imperfect and contradictory
descriptions of authors, framed on mutilated specimens, had
created. The Trachypteri, he says, are extremely tender,
and their fins brittle, and their entire form can be seen in
very young individuals only. The woodcut fig. 4 repre¬
sents one species, Trachypterus falx, which has 168 rays
mT8 £°uSal ^n’ and Plumes of> rays on the head and tail.
1ms fish shines with the most brilliant silvery tints, and
when moving freely in the water, its varying hues relieved
by three large round black spots on the sides, must render
it one of the prettiest of the many elegant fish that the
seas produce. The anatomy of Trachypterus leiopterus is
given in the Histoire des Poissons, and the stomach is there
described as caecal, long, and narrow, with a very short as-
cending pyloric branch arising from its lower third part,
he pancreatic caeca are almost innumerable, and open
ICHTHYOLOGY.
303
into the intestine by two parallel rows of holes. It had no Classifica-
air-bladder. The Vaagmaer, or Deal-fish, has also been ,tion—
recorded by Dr Fleming as a British species. It is the AcanthoP-
Irachypterus hogmarus of the Pistoire des Poissons, the FishT
Lrymnetrus or Gymnogaster arcticus of previous authors ^ , ..T'
in the Natural History of Iceland, written
ATI • bT Guntlmunsen, a native of that island.
Nilsson includes it among the Norwegian fish, but as one
very rarely seen. The Supplement to Yarrell’s British
f*7^,contains a figure and description of one taken in
Iceland, translated from a memoir by Reinhardt, curator of
the Museum at Copenhagen. The Gymnetrus Hawkinsii
!s another rare British Ribbon-fish. The Stylephorus
chordatus of Shaw was taken in the Gulf of Mexico, and is
known only by a single specimen in possession of the Col-
ege of Surgeons of TondGn, but which is not, unfortunately,
in the best condition. The long filament from which it
derives its name is considered by Blainville to be a pro-
onged ray of the caudal fin, and not a lengthened spine as
n Trichiurus. Ihe Cepola rubescens. Red-band Fish or
Red-snake Fish, belonging to the second tribe of Ribbon-
hsh, though not common on the English coast, is sometimes
taken in numbers, as was the case about twelve years ao-0
in lorbay. J b
Family XIX.—T^ENIID^E.
a J aNITuES F°lSS0NS en Ruban> Cuv. Compressed, elon¬
gated, ribbon-shaped fish. Skin naked and silvery. Loner dorsal
often joined to the caudal; the anal when it exists similarly con¬
nected ; the articulated fin-rays for the most part simple; soft
rays of the ventral never exceeding five, sometimes reduced to one
or two attached to the throat. This character brings them near
r® ^lennies,_ while the small mouth and protractile snout of
Irachypterus indicate some analogy with the Zeiides.
ANALYTICAL TABLE OF THE T^NIIDjE (Bum.)
Dorsal conspicuous, and
Long, without spines Cepola 4
Short, and far bade Lophotes 5
Dorsal none.
Lateral line armed with spinous scales Trachypterus 1
Lateral line not scaly. '
Ventrals uniradiate Gymnetrus 2
Ventrals none Stylephorus 3.
Tribe I. Mouth not wide ; jaw 'protractile.
Genus I. Trachypterus, Cuv. (Bogmarus and Gymnogaster,
auct.) Pectorals of moderate size or small; ventrals often greatly
developed, attached under the axilla of the pectorals, and having
several soft rays (four to seven). Body elongated and compressed
like a ribbon or blade of a sword; skirted along the whole dorsal
edge by the dorsal fin, the anterior part of which, separated by a
notch, rises like a tall slender fan. Mouth extremely protrac¬
tile. Caudal having an upper lobe similar to the first dorsal in
torm and height, and a few very short rays on the lower lobe • be¬
tween these there is a small filament. Lateral line armed ’with
scales, each carrying a hook. Jaws with visible teeth. Skeleton
fibrous, but extremely tender. Fins brittle and wearing down by
age. Branchiostegals six or seven. Six species. J
Genus II. Gymnetrus, Cuv. Ventrals reduced to a single
elongated ray, which is often dilated at the extremity. Branchio¬
stegals four, five, or six. Eight species.
Genus in. Stylephqrus, Shaw. Trachypteri with the point
of the tail prolonged in form of a slender cord twice the length of
the body. Dorsal commencing over the operculum, and extending
to very near the posterior extremity of the fish, on which is the
caudal, placed so as to resemble a second dorsal; the lono- cord which
terminates the tail is the lower ray of this caudal. ° No visible
scales. No visible trace of ventrals. One species.
Tribe 11.- T<xniid<x, with a moderately large mouth.
Genus IV. Cepola, Linn. Head much like that of Amblyopus and
Ophidium, but with a large eye. Body greatly elongated and very
much compressed, with a dorsal reaching from the head to the
caudal, and an anal but little shorter. Caudal pointed; ventrals
304
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- attached under the pectorals. Muzzle ohtuse. Cleft of the mouth
tion- nearly vertical. Teeth acute. Only two or three of the very nu-
Acanthop- merous dorsal rays are simple, and only two on the anal and they
terousP are as flexible as the jointed ones. The only bony and pungent
Fishes, spine is that of the ventrals. Twelve species .
v j gENUs V. Lophotes, Giorna. Head short, surmounted by a
very elevated osseous crest, which inclines forwards beyond the
mouth, and has a long and strong spinous ray articulated to it
bordered behind by membrane. The space between the spine and
the caudal is occupied by a long, low, even dorsal, sustained mostly
by simple rays. Caudal distinct, small; a very short anal close to
the caudal, and just before it the anus, the abdominal cavity occu¬
pying- nearly the whole length of the body; pectorals of moderate
size ; ventrals close behind them, excessively small, composed of a
spine and five soft rays. One species.
Genus VI. Krohnius, Cocco. Snout short. Mouth deeply
cleft. Body elongated. Head blunt; teeth on the jaws ; a barbel
on the chin. Anus near the head. First dorsal short and high,
the second extending along the whole of the back to the end of the
tail; anal similar to the second dorsal, also reaching to the point
of the tail; ventrals tapering into long filaments.
Genus VII. Bibronia, Cocco. Lancet-shaped, compressed. Head
declivous. Jaws toothless. Single dorsal extending forwards and
connected through the caudal with the long anal; rays of the ven¬
trals elongated. .
Genus VIII. Pelori, Cocco. Distinguished from Bibronia by
the dorsal and anal, being separated from the caudal. Teeth on
the jaws. .
Bibronia and Pelori belong to a sub-family of Tamuda;, desig¬
nated Bibronince by Cocco, but whose characters we have not been
able to procure.
TEUTHYOIDS.
Fig. 124.
Acanthurus Delisianus.
This family is entirely strange to the European seas.
Gronovius described the first known genus under the name
of Hepatiis, which Linnaeus afterwards changed to 1 euthyes,
a name unfortunately used also to designate a genus of
Cephalopods, and which on that account has been replaced
in later times by Forskal’s term of Siganus. Hie name
of the family has, however, been preserved in the Histoire
des Poissons, as derived from the Linnaean appellation. 1 he
group is a natural one, having the characters assigned to
it in the table, and a family physiognomy easily recognis¬
able. They are common enough fish in the Indian and
Pacific oceans. One species is known as the “ coral shoe¬
maker” at the Seychelle Islands. They feed on marine
algae, and must be pretty objects in the coral basins that
they frequent, where the clearness of the water allows them
to be distinctly seen. They are not the objects of any
special fishery, and their history can be best studied in the
detailed account of species contained in the Histoire des
Poissons.
No. 16 represents Naseus longicornis.
Family XX.—TEUTHYDID^E, Bonap.
Teuthyes, Cuv. Oval forms, compressed. Small mouth, not pro¬
tractile. Uniserial teeth on both jaws. Palate and tongue tooth¬
less. A single dorsal. Branchiostegals four or five. Scales cycloid.
Pectorals moderate in size. Ventrals under the axillae of the pec¬
torals. Many of the genera have the sides of the tail armed, or a
recumbent spine in front of the dorsal. Phytophagous fishes.
ANALYTICAL TABLE OF THE TEUTHYDIDjE (Dum.)
Sides of the tail armed with—
Several bucklers in one row   PRIONURUS
Two immoveable plates with trenchant edgres....Naseus
A moveable blade in a furrow Acanthurus
A fixed blade, trenchant on both edges AxiNURUS u. -
Sides of the tail unarmed.
Dorsal deeply notched or double Amphacanthus 1.
Dorsal single, spinous in front.
One dorsal spine elongated Keris 7.
Several (five) dorsal spines, of equal height..Priodon 6.
Genus I. Amphacanthus, Bloch. (Buro, Commer.; Siganus,
Forsk.; Centrogaster, Houtt.) The peculiar character of this group
is to have a spine in the ventrals on each side of the articulated rays
which vary from three to five ; in other respects they have the body
oval. Mouth small and but little protractile. Teeth small, denti¬
culated and uniserial. Five branchiostegals, the last one dilated and
concealed in the isthmus. A recumbent spine in front of the dorsal;
numerous spinous rays in the anal. The epicoracoid is cylindrical
or prismatic, and is reflexed so as to be attached to the anterior in-
terhsemals of the anal. The spines of the dorsal are thirteen, and
only accidentally fourteen ; the anal spines seven. Thirty species.
Genus II. Acanthurus, Forsk. A strong moveable trenchant
spine on each side of the tail. Head elevated, compressed. Eye high
up. Five branchiostegals. Teeth uniserial, incisorial, denticulated.
A single dorsal. Skin thick, generally clothed with small scales.
They want the additional spine in the ventrals which distinguishes
Amphacanthus; and the epicoracoid is not developed as in that
genus. Fifty species.
Genus III. Naseus, Commer. Tail armed with two osseous
bucklers carrying trenchant spines, not moveable. Teeth conical,
pointed, without denticulations; a horn-like projection above the
muzzle. Four branchiostegals, more rarely five. Three articulated
rays on the ventrals and a spine ; spines of the dorsal five or six,
and two in the anal; soft rays in both fins numerous. Intestinal
canal extremely long; four pancreatic caica; a pretty large air-
bladder. Fourteen species.
Genus IV. PRIONURUS, Lacep. Teeth crenulated as in Acan¬
thurus, in which the genus differs from Naseus. Tail armed by a
series of horizontal, fixed, trenchant spines; a couchant spine before
the dorsal. Branchiostegals five. Five pancreatic caeca. Two
species. .
Genus V. AxiNURUS, Cuv. et Valenc. Distinguished from Na¬
seus by a more elongated form similar to that of Thynnus. A very
small mouth, and excessively slender teeth. Armature of the
tail consisting of a single blade cut squarely like the edge of a hat¬
chet, and not springing from a buckler. It resembles Naseus in its
general roughness, and in having three soft ventral rays. Bran¬
chiostegals five. Spinous rays of the dorsal four ) of the anal two.
One species.
Genus VI. PRIODON, Cuv. Allied at once to Naseus, Acanthu¬
rus, and Amphacanthus, forming an intermediate link of union be¬
tween them. Branchiostegals three. Spines of dorsal five, and of
anal two. Teeth serrated as in Acanthurus. Ventrals having only
three jointed rays as in Naseus. Forehead a little enlarged before
the orbits, and the tail without armour as in Amjyhacanthus.
Genus VII. Keris, Cuv. The advanced position of the ventrals
before the pectorals and immediately under the eye distinguishes this
genus from the rest of the family ; but it has affinities with them.
The teeth fine, smooth, and pressed one against the other as in
Axinurus. Tail without armature as in Priodon. Spines of the dor¬
sal seven ; of the anal three ; ventrals of five soft rays and a spine.
No scales, but the skin is granulated so as to resemble mosaic.
Classifica¬
tion—
Acanthop-
terous
Fishes.
FLUTE-MOUTHS.
This family, established by Cuvier under the name of
Fistulares or Bouches-en-jiute, is not described in the
Histoire des Poissons, the rich accumulations of species in
the Paris Museum remaining still unpublished; and we are
unable to add anything of moment to the account of the
family contained in the Hegne Animal, ii., p. 26 / . Specimens
of several members of the family are imported in the insect
boxes which the Chinese keep for sale to Europeans, and
which contain many small fishes dried and pinned down like
insects, often of curious forms, that reach our museums in
no other way. . ,
Fig. 12 represents one of the abbreviated forms ot the
family in the Australian Centriscus humerosus.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- Family XXL—AULOSTOMIDyE, Mull.
Hen— Bouches-en-Flute, Cuv.; Aulostomi (Rohrenmauler), Mull • Aulo-
Acantnop- stomatida,, Cant. Characterized by the prolongation of the’ nasal
vomer preopercula, interopercula, pterygoids, and tympanies!
into a long tube, with the mouth at the extremity, formed as usual
of the premaxillaries, maxillaries, palatines, and mandible. The
intestines have no great dilatations nor many folds, and the ribs
are either short or wholly absent.
ANALYTICAL TABLE OF THE AULOSTOMID^J (Hum.)
Dorsal single, and
Preceded by spines Aulostoma 2.
Not preceded by spines Fistularule 1.
Dorsals two.
Conspicuous, the first ray stiff, denticulated Centriscus 4.
Sheathed beneath a kind of shield .....Amphisile 5
Genus I. Fistularia, Linn. Mouth of small extent, placed at
the extremity of the tubular face, having a nearly horizontal gape.
1 he elongated head constitutes a third or fourth part of the entire
length of the fish, which is itself long and slender. Branchiostegals
six or seven. Bony processes stretching from the head give support
to the anterior part of the body. Stomach a straight fleshy tube;
pancreatic casca two. Dorsal single, opposite the anal, and composed
mostly of simple rays. Small teeth on the premaxillaries and man-
dibie. A filament sometimes as long as the body issues from between
the lobes of the caudal. Rostral tube very long and depressed.
An excessively small air-bladder. Invisible scales. Four species
Genus II. Aulostoma, Lac^p. Dorsal preceded by some free
spines Jaws toothless. Body distinctly scaly and less slender than
that of Fistularia ; compressed and higher between the dorsal and
anal. Tail short and finer, terminated by an ordinary caudal
without the filament; the facial tube is also shorter, thicker, and
more compressed than in Fistularia. Air-bladder very large. One
species. J b
Genus III. Polypterichthys, Bleek. Separated from Aulo¬
stoma by possessing mandibular, vomerine, and palatine teeth.
Ternate.
Genus IV. Centriscus, Linn. Body oval or oblong, compressed
and trenchant on the belly. Two or three slender branchiostegals.
A spinous dorsal pretty far back, with a strong first spine. Small
ventrals behind the pectorals. Mouth very small, opening obliquely,
i o pancreatic caeca. Intestine folded three or four times; a consi¬
derable sized air-bladder. Large denticulated plates support the
strong anterior spine of the first dorsal; the rest of the body is
covered with small scales. J
Genus V. Amphisile, Klein. Back cuirassed by large scaly
patches whose summit is crowned by the strong dorsal spine; in
some, scaly pieces arm also the flanks and the spine, and the second
dorsal and anal are crowded towards the base of the tail; in others
the cuirass covers only half the back, and the spine is farther for¬
ward.
305
GOBIOIDS.
Fig. 125.
Oobius lentiginosus.
This family includes many very curious forms, differing
greatly from one another in external aspect, and assembled
together chiefly by the flexible nature of their spinous rays ;
but even that character is not positive, since in some the
spines are pretty pungent. It has been made in some degree
a receptacle for genera that could not be placed in odier
groups, though they exhibited no very marked affinity for the
typical Gobioids. As first conceived by Cuvier, it included
Se Blennies also, but these have been since separated, and
Miiller has added the Discoboli of Cuvier, which cannot, he
thinks, be kept apart from the Gobioids. The Gobioids have
thoracic yentrals, and most of them have these ventrals united
by their interior borders to form an oblique circular, infundi-
buhform disk, the front border of the disk being membranous
VOL. XII.
and lower. This character does not, however, extend to all the Classifica-
genera. The Kobioi of Aristotle were not the Gobies of tion—
the moderns, since he describes his fish as having numerous -Acanthop-
pancreatic caeca, whereas our Gobies are destitute of these
organs. The Goby of Ausonius is a Gudgeon, and reasons v ‘,
are assigned in the Histoire des Poissons for the Kobioi of ^ v-"~
Aristotle and the Kothos of Athenaeus being the Coitus
gobio, and not a Gobioid at all; while the Phukis of Aris¬
totle is considered to be the name given by him to the real
Gobies. He classes these fish with those which frequent
rocky places, and live upon marine algae and crustaceae,
which change colours with the season, and w hich are, accord¬
ing to his observations, the only fishes of the sea which make
a nest of leaves, and deposit their eggs therein. In a preced-
ing page, we have mentioned the Sticklebacks as having also
this habit. M. Mertens relates, in fact, that the Gobius
capita (erroneously considered by him as identical with G.
niger) of the Mediterranean, makes a nest of alga? and zos-
tera ; that the male remains at it to impregnate the eggs of
the females which come to lay there; and that he watches
over the eggs and protects the young after they are hatched.
The Black Goby, Double Spotted Goby, Spotted Goby,
and Slender Goby, are enumerated by Mr Yarrell as British
species. The Chinese waters nourish not only many Gobies
similar to the European species in general aspect, but also
some very peculiar forms. Among these is Trypauchen
vagina, the Hung-lae of the Chinese, of which the generic
character consists in a deep pit on each side of the nape, not
however communicating with the branchial cavity ; and
Amblyopus, a genus of several species, and of a very curious
aspect. The Chinese generic name is Shay-king or
“ Warp-snake king meaning the wrarp of a web of cloth,
evidently referring to its long anguilliform body. The face
is very strangely wrinkled, and the eyes exceedingly small.
I he Periophthalmi and Boleophthalmi are lively fish of
elongated forms, with the united ventrals of the Gobies, and
large, gay dorsal fins spotted like the wings of a butterfly.
1 hey have narrow gill-openings, and spend much of their
time out of water, hopping over the moist sands left by the
retreating tide, and spending a kind of amphibious life, pur¬
suing the Crustaceae which live on the sands, and, when
menaced by a bird of prey, diving into the mud. Their
eyes are protected from injury, when they resort to this
means of escape, by moveable adipose lids. The Boleoph¬
thalmi are named from the power they possess of thrusting
out their eyes when they wish to look around them ; when
the eyes are retracted, the membranous cellular lid swells
over them. The thick double lips of these fish, and their
hunting habits, are expressed by the Chinese name Peih
koiv-koiv, “ Broken-mouth dog.”
Eleotris has not united ventrals, and has the aspect of a
Sciaenoid, but with a smaller depressed head. Like most
of the Gobioid family, organized for living on muddy or
sandy bottoms, the mucigenous functions of the skin are
called largely into action, and numerous mucoducts open
on the surface. This gives them somewhat of the appear¬
ance of Eleginus, and of the Sciaenoid genera that come
nearest to it; also of Bovichthys, a Percoid form belonging
Fig. 126.
Gobiesox tudes.
to the Uranoscopidce, and in fact to the ground-fish of
2 Q
306
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Pishes.
Classifica- several families. Allied to Eleotris and Philypnus, by
tion family aspect, is Notothenia, of which numerous species in-
Acanthop- the higher latitudes of the southern seas—the Falk-
lands, Cape Horn, South Shetland, &c. Gudus JMcic/el-
lanicus of Forster, of which there is a drawing in the British
Museum, is a member of this genus.
In Wiegman’s Archiven (ix., p. 295), Muller has assigned
his reasons for uniting Cuvier’s Cyclopteri to the Gobioids.
Two species of Lepadogaster, a Cyclopterus, and two of
Liparis, are described by Mr Yarrell as British fish. The
Cyclopterus lumpus, or “ Cock-paidle” of the fishermen of
the Frith of Forth, is mentioned with respect for its good
qualities by Sir Walter Scott in his novel of the Antiquary,
and it appears frequently in the Edinburgh fish-market.
It is not very rare on the English shores, but its qualities
are less appreciated there. The appearance of the dorsal
fin, resembling the crest of a cock, is the evident origin of
the first part of its Scottish name, and its mode of swimming
or paddling of the second.
Callionymus is a genus of many species, some of them
very gaily and handsomely coloured, with large dorsal fins,
and bearing a considerable resemblance to the Scleroge-
nidce, from the armature of the preoperculum. They are
considered by M. Valenciennes to possess characters suf¬
ficient to erect them into a separate family; but he has ab¬
stained from doing so until he has studied the peculiari¬
ties of their structure by the examination of a greater
number of species than he had collected at the date of the
publication of the 12th volume of the Histoire des Pois¬
sons in 1837. One species is common enough on our
sandy shores, and the female, which has smaller fins and
duller tints of colour, is often described as a distinct species.
Harpagifer differs from Callionymus in having wider gill-
openings. Comephorus is an apodal fish of Lake Baikal,
of very rare occurrence, since it inhabits the greatest depths
of the lake. It is destitute of scales, has a small stomach,
no pancreatic caeca, and no air-bladder. Its bones are soft
and fibrous. It is obtained only when violent north winds
cast it ashore in the spring time. So oily is its flesh that it
cannot be eaten, and even the carrion crows refuse to touch it.
Chcenichthys is a southern fish, being an inhabitant of the
groves of kelp which skirt the shores of Kerguelen’s Land. It
is a voracious fish that takes the hook readily, and has some-
what of the aspect of a Gurnard, but its cheek is not mailed.
In the structure of its bones it comes nearer to the Lophiidce.
Family XXII.—GOBIIDiE, Cuv.
Spinous rays of the dorsal slender and flexible.
An intestinal
Classifica¬
tion—•
Spinous rays of the dorsal slender andnexioie. ^.u luusanum. ^can^j10
canal of simple structure, having only slight dilatations, and no csecal terous^
Tig. 127.
Chcenichthys rhinoceratus.
Patcecus is another singular form, having somewhat of the
aspect of an Agriopus, but differing in the development of
its suborbitar bones, which do not cuirass the cheeks, and in
the total want of anything like spines or serratures on the
bones of the head and shoulder, from all the Percoid and
Sciaenoid groups, as well as from the Sclerogenids. Its in¬
ternal anatomy is unknown, but, as far as can be seen from
the dried specimen, the bones have little solidity. Its closest
affinities seem to be Gobioids or Blennioids; perhaps it
should stand next Anarrhichas, with which it agrees in be¬
ing apodal. Fig. 8 represents this fish.
23.
10.
9.
11.
expansion of the stomach ; no pancreatic caeca.
The family thus characterized was divided by Cuvier into two
subordinate groups, the Gobies and Blennies, which are considered
merely as sub-families by M. Valenciennes, but as distinct by Miiller
and others. The males of both have a small papilla at the opening
of the seminal etferent tube, and many members of the family are
viviparous, which implies internal impregnation in some way or
other, though no intromittent organ has as yet been described.
The first subdivision or family of Gobiidce have only five branchio-
stegals, and the more typical genera have the ventrals united into
a hollow disk or funnel-shaped fin, more or less oblique, situated
under, or a little behind, the base of the pectorals.
TABLE OF THE GOB1IDJE.
Ventrals united, infundibuliform.
Body sword-shaped.
A cavity on each side of the nape ..Trypauchen 4.
No nuchal cavities AmblYOPUS 5.
Body more or less cylindrical.
Dorsal solitary, and
Notched in the middle Apocryptes 3.
Not notched Gobioides 2.
Dorsals Uuo.
Eyes near one another.
Teeth equal Boleophthalmus 8.
Teeth unequal PeRIOPHTHALMUS 7.
Eyes farther apart Gobius 1.
Ventrals united in a shallow basin SlCYDlUM 6.
Ventrals separated by
A ventral disk, behind the pectorals Platypterus
The ordinary scaly thoracic integument.
Vomerine teeth Philyfnus
No vomerine teeth.
Lateral line continuous Eleotris
Lateral line broken Notothenia
Genus I. Gobius, Linn. Ventrals united a little posterior to
the pectorals, forming a hollow disk ; two dorsals, spines of the
first one flexible, the second one pretty long. Body elongated.
Head of moderate size, rounded. Cheeks convex. Eyes approxi¬
mated. No air-bladder. Villiform or card-like teeth, often with
a stronger exterior row, approaching to canines, tscaly fishes with
or without filaments on the head. One hundred species.
Genus II. Gobioides, Lacep. Differ from Gobius in the spinous
rays and articulated ones on the back being united into one long
low fin, which reaches nearly to the caudal. One species.
Genus III. Apocryptes, Valenc. (Scartelaos, Swains.) Teeth
on the jaws uniserial, the mandibular ones almost horizontal, with
two canines standing more interiorly and close together; in other
respects Gobii with two dorsals. Elongated bodies. A long
pointed caudal. Generally small scales. Five species.
Genus IV. Trypauchen, Valenc. A deep hole on each side of
the nape not communicating with the branchiae ; in general form
like Amblyopus, having a single long dorsal and an anal united to
a caudal with longer rays. One species.
Genus V. Amblyopus, Valenc. Elongated fishes, with the
ventrals of Gobius. Mouth vertical, armed with strong curved
teeth, not covered by the lips. Eyes extremely small. The long
low dorsals united to the caudal. Scales small. Six species.
Genus VI. Sicydium, Valenc. Gobies, with the ventrals form¬
ing a shallow round basin adhering almost equally throughout its
circumference. Teeth on the jaws flexible in a close row, uith
some strong interior ones on the mandible. Four species.
Genus VII. Periophthalmus, Schneid. Head wholly scaly.
Eyes close together, having an inferior eye-lid which can cover
them, Pectorals scaly for more than half their length, giving them
the appearance of having an arm like Lophius. Ventrals united as
in Gobius. Teeth uniserial, more or less vertical. Narrow gill-
openings. Profile descending rapidly, forming with the nape an
angle, on which the pretty large prominent eyes are placed. Scaly
fishes, with the four vertical fins distinct; in some the ventrals are
deeply divided. Eight species. _ .
Genus VIII. Boleophthalmus, Valenc. Periophthalmi, with
teeth analogous to those of Apocryptes; those of the upper jaw
being straight and pretty strong, especially towards the symphysis,
while the mandibular ones are very fine, and disposed horizontally,
with two more interior taller pointed ones. Head more oblong,
and the profile less vertical than in Periophthalmus. Scales small,
in some almost imperceptible. Five rays in the first dorsal. Pec-
terous
Fishes.
Classifica- tora1s not always scaly in the lower part; resembling Perinrththnl
tion— ln their double lips and lower eyelids. Ten species *
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Acanthop- (xENDS I^- Eleotris, Cuv. Separate ventrals, but in general
terous structure Gobu, resembling them in the other fins, intestines and
genital Danilla. Branchinst.porala  ^ ’
 tueiu in tne otner nns, intestinp«? anH
Fishes, gemtal papilla. Branchiostegals six. Colours for the most’part
y dull. Twenty-three species. Part
Genus X. Philypnus, Valenc. Meotrides, with card-like teeth
on the chevron of the vomer, in addition to the larger ones on the
jaws. One species. °
Genus XI Notothenia, Rich. General form of Eleotris, with
tumid reflexed lips. Premaxillaries but little protractile. Scales
dorsll" la^fe- Lateral hne interrupted under the end of the second
o sal. Head unarmed, porous. Branchiostegals six. Teeth on
the jaws acute, crowded, unequal. Tongue and palate toothless
thenfirafSJUfU-larA0^ a SPVne andfive articulated rays; dorsals two •
the first sustained by a few flexible rays; second long, near the
first even ; anal like the second dorsal; the rays of both these fins
divided at the tips as in Trachinus, with a notch in the membrane
Ei«hr„ :1tiMp“'re“,c;
Genus XII. Astkrropteryx, Riipp. Scaly fishes with a com¬
pressed head and body, having considerable resemblance to Eleotris
Scales ciliated. Medium-sized mouth ; teeth curved, conical uni-
serial; vomer and tongue smooth. Gill-openings not approaching
thTfirst r- h ^ran"hi?Stegals three- Two dorsals, Pthe rays of
the first simple, but articulated. Ventrals not united, of six rays
all articulated. No visible lateral line. No genital papilla No
stomachal or caecal dilatation of the intestine ; no pancreatic csca •
no air-bladder observed. One species. « pancreatic caeca,
In this family Muller places the Discoboli of Cuvier, or Gobieso-
cidcB of later ichthyologists.
TABLE OF THE DISCOBOLf.
20.
Form elongated, depressed, or subcylindrical.
Ventral disk single.
Vertical fins united  
Gaudal separated.
Gills four....  Gobiesox 15.
Gills three....Cotylis 16, Sicyases 17, Sicyogaster 18
F„™T uV™0   Lepadogaster 13.'
umpish, thinner on the back; disk single.CYCLOPTERus 19.
Genus XIII. Lepadogaster, Gouan, Ample pectorals which
descend to the throat where their rays are stronger, and where the
two fins are united by a transverse membrane extending forwards
and proceeding from the union of the two ventrals. Body smooth
scaleless Head large and depressed. Mouth projectingfprotrac¬
tile Gill-openings not wide. Branchiostegals four or five. One
dorsal only, consisting of soft rays opposite to an anal fin of like
Sir eS8h0rt- S,ra‘gh‘; °°
. In ,the typical species (Porte-Ecuelle, “ Regne Animal”) there
is a circular concave disk under the pubic bones formed by the
otherwise little developed ventrals ; and a second disk before it
less complete, formed under the coracoid by the pectorals. Eight
or ten species. ^ r
few178 ,XIV- TrachelochismPS, Barn. In this genus, as in
Lepadogaster, there are two ventral disks, by which they are dis¬
tinguished from the allied genera in which there is only one lateral
Ur thev dlS^', Th® SiU-openings join, but in Lepadoqas-
trr they are separated. TV. Gouani, GandoKi, bimaculatus, piger.
Genus XV. Gobiesox, Lacep. Have not the double disks of
Lepadogaster f but the pectorals and ventrals form a single large
disk split on each SIde, and prolonged there by membranes; dorsal
and anal short, and separated from the caudal. Gill-openings
larger. G. dentex. 1
C0TYLIS’ MillL and Trosch- (Chorisochismus, Barn.)
ieethof Gobiesox; a row of conical teeth on the jaws ; behind the
tore bigger ones a mass of smaller ones. They differ from Go-
biesox la having only three gills ; and by the branchiostegal mem¬
brane of both sides being attached to the isthmus, without covering
by an overhanging cuticular mantle or free border of skin. One
species. C. nudus.
Re^lX/!r;. SlCrASKS’ mU- and Trosch- (Tomicodon, Barn.)
lesembles m having only three gills, and in the insertion of
the branchiostega! membrane, but it has only a solitary row of teeth
ral oneJsaW8’-thie m'ddle and biSger ones being incisorial, the late-
s conical. One species. S. sanguineus.
«^bvUth?Vl!u SlCY0«AS1;ER- Barn- Distinguished from Sicy.
ases by the cutting mandibular teeth ; the other teeth are conical
». niarmoratus.
XIX- C.YCL0PTERUS, Linn- Ventrals encircling the pu-
ones united into one by membrane and forming an oval con¬
cave disk, which is used as a sucker by the fish to attach itself to a
,M°nUth larSe- Teeth on the jaws and pharyngeals small,
pointed. Opercula small. Gill-openings closed below. Branchio¬
stegals six. Pectorals very large, and uniting nearly under the
throat to embrace the ventral disk. Skeleton but slightly osseous.
, m vlscous, scaleless, but containing small hard grains. A pretty
St.°mach.; “an/ Pancreatic caeca; a long intestine; a mo-
derate Slzed air-bladder. In the typical species the first dorsal is
™vS • SS VTo e’ Ver> low’ and 59 composed of simple
anal ’ ^ second dorsal. having branching rays, is opposite to the
anal. Body short and thick as well as high.
anefnnLVXA' ^LlPARIS’ Art’ Differ from Cyelopterus in having
an elongated body, compressed posteriorly, and a single pretty long
dorsal with a corresponding anal. Skin smooth. ^ P 7 S
m,;heTeBgh;rCedlng genera f°rm the DiscohoU °f the Regne Ani-
be Ln f H gentra are Said’ in the Histoire des Poissons, to
LL\Lf y T t0the^'^, hut to have characters which
point to their being types of peculiar families.
Genus XXL Callionymus, Linn. Gill-openings reduced to a
small hole on each side of the nape. Ventrals widely separated
throat HeaL ^Ct°T&l\af attachc<i to the ventral surface of the
throat. Head oblong and depressed. Mouth very protractile A
process more or less elongated issuing from the inferior angle of
preoperculum,and terminated by diverging points. Villiform
™vs SLib^™8,’ T6 0,1 the pa,ate- FrrstLLsal elevated, iS
rays flexible and setaceous; second dorsal and anal long. Skin
generally smooth. Stomach not caecal; no air-bladder. L geni-
tal papilla. Twenty-five species. °
Genus XXH Harpagifer, Rich. A Gobioid, with the ven¬
trals of A/Zeot™ differing from Callionymus in having a pretty large
gill-opening, which does not however descend to beneath the throat
Opercuium and suboperculum bearing strong spines, none on the
preoperciHum or interoperculum. Two dorsals, the first sustained
the [ ?exib!e rays- Peeth on the jaws slender, minute ; none on
the palate or tongue. Branchiostegals six. Stomach csecal; pan¬
creatic caeca three ; no air-bladder. Lateral line crossing the
dorsal^0 J°ln 8 fell°W’ ending Under the middle of the second
Genus XXIII. Trichonotus, Bloch, Schneid. Agreeswith <7«Z-
lionymus in the form of the ventrals, and in the simple intestinal
canal, without pancreatic caeca. Body elongated, almost cylindri-
ca!, termmated by a large pointed caudal. Eyes almost touching
te tRh d+ral aSpeCJ °f the sllghtly depressed head. Villiform
teeth on the jaws, palatines, and front of the vomer. Gill-openings
very large, coming forward to beneath the eyes. Branchiostegals
seven. Dorsal single, extending to near the caudal, its front fays
front ’ ScXs t T e!erated ; anal als0 lon^ with simple rays L
ront. Scales Lateral line straight, continuous. Stomach a long
no aTblLr n Pyl°r.US neat' its b0tt0m i no Pancreatic cscca^
no air-bladder. One species. J
Genus XXIV. Pratypterus, Kuhl and Van Has. Two dorsals
eparated to some distance. A triangular horizontal head. Mouth
under the end of the snout. Narrow bands of villiform teeth on
e jaws none on the palate. Large ventrals attached to the under
urface of a flat breasfljifurther back than the pectorals. Branchi¬
ostegals six. Some denticulations at the angle of the preopercu-
lum. A gemtal piipma. S,aies. Intestinal canal a simplTtube
^GenusXXvToX0 Pyl°riC rCa 5 n° air-bladder- One species!
• F0MEPH0RtJS- Lacep. Elongated, scaleless, taper-
ing fish with a short depressed head, and large terminal horizon¬
tal mouth. Very wide gill-openings. Seven branchiostegals. Very
long pectorals and no neutrals. Teeth extremely short, in bands
on the jaws, chevron of the vomer, and palatines. Mandible sliuhtlv
longer than the premaxillaries. Branchiostegals six Eigh C
ible rays on the low first dorsal; second dorsal higher, long Lke
the anal, and terminating with it not far from the forked caudal
leaving a very slender naked part of the tail between the three ver-’
tical fins. Stomach small, pointed, carnal; no pancreatic emea • no
air-bladder. One species. 1 ’ D0
aLEN-?XXXVI- ChA5NICHTHYS, Rich. Head large depressed
but with flat vertical cheeks), wider than the elongated body whict
tapers gradually in all directions to the caudak Snout prodmaL
flat, and wide. A large mouth, bordered above wholly by the pre-’
maxH ary the maxillary, which is articulated to the rmal Iv L
behind ; the angles of the mouth are laterally protractile uivinL
great extent to the gape. Teeth small. c,Jed in crowded bS
on the jaws; few on the pharyngeals; vomer and palatines smooth-
preorbitar rough, radiated, of moderate size, the other suborbitars
small. Cheeks naked. Ventrals situated before the pectorals
composed of a spine and five soft rays, the first three of Thich are
as usuT FvebLLl' ^ thick> the other two branched
as usual. Lye large, lateral. Gill-opening ample extendimr for
NotcaL Lateran llrnbS °f th6 mandible- uLnchiostegals six.
o scales. Lateral line running straight to near the caudal, where
307
Classifica¬
tion—
Acanthop-
terous
Fishes.
308 I C H T H Y
Classifica- it is interrupted, and resumed a little lower down, terminating at
tion— the caudal. It is protected throughout by small scabrous shields,
Acanthop- and there are a few scattered shields on the sides, the rest of t e
terous skin being smooth. Second dorsal long, sustained by simple taper-
Fishes. ing, jointed rays ; anal similar in extent, its rays divided at the tips,
v _A / which project like those of Trachinus; caudal rounded; all the
rays of the pectoral branched. Stomach csecal, ovoid; pancreatic
caeca two; urinary bladder forked; ovaries in a sac, with an ovi¬
duct ; a genital papilla, small in the female. No air-bladder. One
species.
Genus XXVII. Pat^cus, Rich. Very much compressed. Prohle
of the whole fish semi-parabolic; the forehead greatly overhang¬
ing, and the facial line descending obliquely backwards. Mouth
small, almost horizontal. Mandible porous, with minute barbels.
Teeth extremely minute, granular; none on the palate, vomer,
or tongue. Eyes lateral, high up. Preorbitar a sculptured trian¬
gular disk with an ascending process. Suborbitar chain tubular,
slender, running to the temples, not connected with the preoper¬
culum. Cheek naked. No scales. Rays of all the fins simple ; no
ventrals ; pectorals of eight rays, attached very low to the cora¬
coids. Dorsal, like that of Agriopus, commencing before the eyes,
and running backwards to the caudal, to which it is connected by
membrane. Spines in dorsal and anal numerous, flexible, scarcely
to be distinguished from the jointed rays by the naked eye ; rays
of the caudal ten only, not joined to the anal. Lateral line run¬
ning high on the back; vertebras thirty-five; bones of the head
and shoulder showing through the skin, striated, fibrous. One
species. Vide fig. 8.
BLENNIOIDS.
Fig. 128.
Petroscirtes Bankieri.
Mr Yarrell describes four species of the genus Blennius
as having been detecteci on the British shores. The Eng¬
lish seas also produce a species of Pholis. Salarias pre¬
sents a singularity in its dentition, which distinguishes it
from other fishes; its jaw teeth are implanted in the lips,
and are very fine and slender, and so connected with mus¬
cular fibres that each can be raised or lowered independently
of the others, or they can be moved in a mass by the mo¬
tion which the fish imparts to its lips^as in some Sharks.
Clinus is the modern Greek name for the Gobies, and has
been applied by Cuvier to designate a Blennioid group,
which is distinguished from most of the other Blennies by
the large number of its dorsal spines, and other characters
mentioned in the table. It is a viviparous genus, and the
male possesses a pointed tubercle, with an aperture at its
tip, and a bulbous dilatation within the abdomen behind the
rectum, into which a very slender deferent canal from the
milts is seen to enter together with the urethra from the
urinary bladder. This structure has a similarity to a penis,
but it is remarked in the Histoire des Poissons, that it
ought rather to be considered as a modified cloaca than as
an organ homologous with that of the viviparous Vertebrata.
The Tripterygions are found both in the Mediterranean
and in New Zealand, and have the same habit of hopping
over the wet sands which is attributed in a preceding
page to some of the Gobioids.
Bregmaceros is a very interesting fish, whose affinities
seem to be with this family. It was first described by
Dr Thompson in the Annals of Natural History under
that generic name, from a drawing made in the China
seas by Dr Cantor, and again, under a new generic name,
by Sir John Richardson, from two examples of a different
species brought home by Sir Edward Belcher from the
same seas. In its ventrals it differs from all other known
O L 0 G Y.
fish, but as a description will convey but an imperfect idea Classifica-
of their peculiar structure, the reader is referred to the
Fig. 129.
Bregmaceros minis.
ichthyology of the Voyage of the Sulphur, where he
will find a magnified representation of these fins. Ilud-
ccetes and Phucoccetes are two very nearly allied genera,
described by Mr Jenyns in his account of the ichthyology
of the Voyage of the Beagle. They were discovered at
Cape Horn, and specimens have been since procured at the
same locality by Sir James Ross. Gunnellus, owing to its
compressed body, and the parallelism of its dorsal and ven¬
tral profiles, resembles a Ribbon-fish, and its name has a
similar origin to that of Deal-fish, being from gun-wale,
contracted into gunnel, the narrow board that forms the
upper streak of a boat. In some species there is merely a
minute, blunt spinous point to represent both ventrals. One
species occurs on the British coasts abundantly, and there
are others in all parts of the Arctic seas. There is much
resemblance in form between some Gunnelli and the Ophi-
dia, and perhaps a relationship.
The viviparous Blenny {Zoarces viviparus) is a well-
known species, and has been long celebrated for a peculi¬
arity which is chiefly observable among cartilaginous fishes,
that, namely, of producing its young alive. These are so
matured at the time of their birth, that on their first exclu¬
sion they swim about with the utmost agility. No fewer
than 200 or 300 young are sometimes produced by an in¬
dividual, and the abdomen of the mother is so distended
before parturition, that it is impossible to touch it without
causing them to be extruded. Full-grown individuals sel¬
dom exceed 12 inches in length ; the body is slender and
smooth; the colour yellowish olive, pale beneath, and
marked on the upper parts with dusky spots. It is a lit¬
toral fish, and of frequent occurrence under stones. When
boiled, the back-bone acquires a green colour. America
produces a much larger species, which sometimes exceeds
the length of 3 feet. It has been described under the name
of Blennius lahrosus.
Fig. 130.
Lycodes mueosus.
The arctic genus Lycodes, instituted by Professor Rein¬
hardt of Copenhagen, and of which the Greenland seas con¬
tain several species, has much general resemblance to Ao-
ICHTHYOLOGY.
309
Classifica- arces. Sir Edward Belcher obtained some good specimens
tion— in Northumberland Sound to the north of Wellinoton Strait.
AterousP' Notwithstanding the size of Anarrhichas, its thickness,'
Fishes ihe total absence of ventrals, and the extraordinary nature of
its dentition, it is impossible, says M. Valenciennes, to over¬
look the affinity that exists between the genus and Blennius.
The proportions of the several parts, the forms of the head*
the disposition of the fins, the delicacy of the scales, im¬
bedded in the thickness of a slippery mucoid skin, are the
same in both genera. The internal anatomy is also alike:
a short intestine, no pancreatic caeca, no air-bladder, and a
similarity in the skeletons, ally them closely to each other
especially if we take for comparison the large American
Zoarces. The most common species (Anarrhichas lupus)
is of frequent occurrence in most of the northern seas, and is
well known along the coasts of Britain by the names of N<?a-
wolf and Sea-cat. Its ordinary length is from 3 to 4 feet, but
examples sometimes occur of nearly double that size. The
colour is obscure livid brown, with several transverse stripes
or bands of a darker hue. The dorsal fin, as already men¬
tioned, extends along the whole length of the back, and is
composed of seventy-three rays. The fore teeth ’ project
considerably, and diverge a little from each other, forming
a powerful kind of armature, moved by jaws of such stremuh
that the animal has been known to imprint the marks of its
teeth on a bar of iron. The uninviting aspect of this fish
has probably not been without influence in producing a pre¬
judice against it as an article of food. Its flesh, however,
is far from being unsavoury, and bears considerable resem¬
blance to that of the Eel. It is in great request among the
Icelanders, who eat it dry and salted ; while the other parts
of the fish are likewise converted to useful purposes, the
skin forming shagreen, and the gall being used as soap.
The vascular tubes of the teeth are very large in the Wolf¬
fish, and were early recognised as such by anatomists.
Opisthognathus is a genus of which one species has been
found in the Indian Ocean, and another in the Gulf of
Mexico.
Family XXIII.—BLENNIID^E, Mull.
Pars Gobioidarum, Cuv. With much of the structure of Gobies,
the Blenniidce have a character common to most of the genera in the
jugular ventrals composed of two flexible rays, sometimes with a
spine, but more generally without. Stomach thin, without a cmcal
dilatation ; no air-bladder. Body elongated, compressed. One dor¬
sal, composed almost entirely of simple but generally flexible rays.
Skin very muciparous, scaly or naked. A genital papilla.
ANALYTICAL TABLE OF THE BLENNIID^E (Dum.)
Body scaleless.
Head crested.
Gill-openings large.
Teeth numerous, firm Blennius 1.
Teeth labial, moveable  .Salaiuas 6.
Gill-openings narrow.
Teeth regular Chasmodes 5.
Teeth irregular ....Petroscirtes 3.
Head destitute of crests or tentacula.
Borsal spinous CLINUS 8.
Dorsal soft, without spines PllOLlS 2.
Body scaly.
Dorsal solitary and
United to the other two vertical fins.
Continuous without a depression Lycodes
Suddenly depressed near the end of
the tail Zoarces
Isolated.
Ventrals distinct.
Barbels, four of them mandibular ClRRUlBARRis 1.
No barbels; maxilla prolonged OpistognathUS
No barbels; maxilla not prolonged .. .MYXODES
Ventrals none or rudimentary.
Replaced by a spine GUNNELLUS
Apodal; crushing teeth   Anarrhichas
Genus I. Blennius, Linn. Body elongated. Skin soft, muci¬
parous, scaleless. Gill-openings large. Branchiostegals six. Ven- Classifica-
trals attached to the throat consisting of two rays externally, but tion 
the last of the two often divided under the skin ; the flexible rays, Acanthop-
termed spinous, differ little in their structure from the others, being terous
many of them obscurely jointed, though simple and tapering ; dor- Fishes,
sal single, extending along the whole back. Filaments over the eyes. v
Nostrils or nape of various forms. Mouth small; cleft of the jaws Y
a semicircle. Teeth uniserial, strong, simple, crowded, the row
often terminated on each side by a canine. Intestinal canal simple ;
no pancreatic caeca; no air-bladder. Aperture of the ovary be¬
tween the anus and urinary canal; and without a papilla in
the female. A tuft of papillae round the opening of the seminal
duct in the male. Thirty-five species.
Genus II. Pholis, Flem. Blennies destitute of supraorbitar
cirrhi, or fleshy crests. Four species.
Genus III. Petroscirtes, Kiipp. (Blennechis, Valenc.; Omo-
branchus, Ehren.) Blennioids, with the gill-openings closed beneath,
and consisting merely of a small chink above the base of the pec¬
toral; their dentition is a modification of that of Blennius. The
inferior incisorial teeth, attached to the front only of the mandible
in a transverse row, are terminated on each side by a canine, some¬
times enormously large, strongly curved, and fitting into holes in
the roof of the mouth when the jaws are shut. Dorsal undivided ;
cirrhi generally present. Fifteen species.
Genus IV. Blennophis, Valenc. Near Petroscirtes. Body com¬
pressed, scaleless. Head obtuse. Mouth small. Four recurved,
hooked teeth in each jaw near the symphysis. Dorsal single,
notched ; anal like the dorsal, but shorter ; caudal distinct; pecto¬
rals ovate, broad; jugular ventrals two-rayed.
Genus V. Chasmodes, Valen. Gill-openings above the pec¬
torals, as in Petroscirtes. A mouth deeply cleft, armed with teeth
in front only, uniserial, firm, and regular; an even dorsal, extend¬
ing from the top of the head to be united to the base of the caudal;
anal similar, but only half as long, and not connected with the
caudal. Body oval, oblong, destitute of scales. Branchiostegals
six. No cirrhi on the head. Three species.
Genus VI. Salarias, Cuv. Blennies, with uniserial, almost
innumerable, extremely slender, contiguous teeth, moveable to¬
gether by the impulse of the lips, like the keys of a piano or harp¬
sichord. Head strongly compressed above, wide transversely below.
Intestine rolled on itself in a spiral, and longer than that of the
Blennies ; no air-bladder. Thirty-five species.
_ Genus VII. Pseudoblennius, Schleg. vel Pseudoclinus. Dis¬
tinguished from the true Blennii by their general aspect and their
card-like teeth.
Genus VIII. Clinus, Cuv. Blenniidce, with elongated, com¬
pressed, scaly bodies. Exterior teeth conical, pointed, with a
villiform band behind ; teeth on the vomer, and occasionally on
the palatines also. Spinous rays of the dorsal numerous. Snout
less blunt than in Blennius. Stomach larger, and intestine short¬
er. First rays of the dorsal sometimes separated from the others
by a notch, sometimes detached to the head, where they form an
elevated plume; in others, the dorsal is continuous and even.
Two spines in the anal. Branchiostegals six. Twenty-five spe¬
cies, some of which have Labroid lips.
Genus IX. Acanthoclinus, Jen. Distinguished from Clinus
by the larger number of spines in the anal—upwards of twenty;
a longitudinal band of small teeth on the tongue; the position
of the ventrals under the pectorals; and by the existence of three
lateral lines. Branchiostegals six. Three species.
Genus X. Myxodes, Cuv. Scaly fishes intermediate between
Clinus and Gunnellus. Head elongated. Snout pointed, projecting
beyond the mouth. Teeth uniserial, as in Blennius, but without the
canines; the larger teeth nearer the symphyses. Resemble Clinus in
the great number of spinous rays in the dorsal; and differ from
Gunnellus in having some soft rays in that fin. Three species.
Genus XI. Cristiceps. Valenc. Blennioids, with the first three
dorsal rays standing on the occiput, connected by membrane and
forming a separate fin from the long dorsal which begins over the
gill-opening and reaches to near the caudal, the eight posterior
rays being articulated; anal shorter than the dorsal, and having
only two spinous rays. Two species.
Genus XII. Cirrhibarbis, Cuv. Myoxodes, with still more
numerous spines in the dorsal, a few more soft rays ; tentacles
numerous on the snout, mandible, maxillary, and over the orbit.
Teeth villiform as in Clinus. One species.
Genus XIII. Tripterygion, Risso. Distinguished from Clinus
by the dorsal being divided into three portions. Conical teeth in an
exterior row on the jaws, and villiform teeth behind; a small trans¬
verse band of short ones on the front of the vomer. Branchioste¬
gals generally six ; in one species only five. No anal spines. Six
species.
Genus XIV. Bregmaceros, Thomp. {Ann. N. II.) ; Calloptilum,
Rich. {Voy, of Sulphur). Body fusiform. Head short, obtuse. Mouth
310
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- small, edged laterally by the maxillaries, above by the very small
tion— premaxillaries. Minute teeth round the margin of the mouth, move-
Acanthop- able; none on the vomer, palatines, or tongue. Cheeks and gill-
tercus cover scaly ; gill-opening large. A long ray on the occiput; dorsal
Fishes, and anal commencing opposite each other at the anus, and reaching
to near the caudal, both alike, high at first, then reduced to very
short simple rays, and then rising again posteriorly. Caudal
small, forked, on a narrow tail. Scales small, cycloid. Ko accessory
gills. Ventrals very long, of three jointed ones the third one much
and curiously branched. No pyloric casca ; gut straight, without
any distinction of stomach; no swim-bladder. China seas and
Philippines. The complicated structure of the ventrals in this
genus is not in accordance with the form of these members in the
rest of the family. Two species.
Genus NV. Pharopteryx, Rupp. Mouth small, rather oblique,
armed above and below with fine brush-like teeth in a narrow
band. Palate and tongue smooth. A symphysial filamentous barbel
on the mandible. Gill-openings connected with each other above
the isthmus. Four branchiostegals. Head and whole body scaly.
Lateral line interrupted ; body fusiform. Ventrals having five long
simple rays situated before the pectorals, connected with each other
by a short membrane; part of the ventral rays flat, lanceolate, and
clothed with skin; rays of all the fins undivided and perfectly
flexible. Anus not far from the base of the pectorals. Dorsal and
anal long, but separated from the rounded caudal; a notch separates
the first six dorsal rays from the remainder. Mediterranean.
Genus XVI. Iluocjetes, Jen. Body elongated, compressed,
dagger-shaped, scaleless. Snout projecting beyond the mandible.
Teeth acutely conical, uniserial, on the jaws and palatines; two
bigger ones projecting near the premaxillary symphysis; on the
front of the vomer few, aggregated. Eyes large, prominent. Bran¬
chiostegals five; projecting muciferous tubes fringing the mouth,
preorbitar and preoperculum. Ventrals minute, three-rayed, jugu¬
lar ; dorsal and anal fins long and low, uniting with the pointed
caudal. Five branchiostegals. The jaws, suborbitar scale-bones,
and preoperculum encircled by muciferous pipes. One species.
Genus XVII. Phucoc^ETES, Jen. Similar in form to Iluo-
ccetes, but with the mandibular teeth biserial or triserial, and two
or three strong vomerine teeth in front of smaller ones ; uniserial
palatine teeth. Eyes small. Branchial opening very narrow.
Branchiostegals six. Pores on the jaws not tubular, but very con¬
spicuous. Whole skin porous ; vertical fins as in Iluoccetes. One
species. Cape Horn.
Genus XVIII. Gunnellus, Cuv. (Murceno'ides, Lacep.; Cen-
tronotus, Schneid.) Ventrals jugular, very small, almost imper¬
ceptible, often reduced to a single ray. Head very small. Body
compressed, elongated, ensiform. A long low dorsal extending
along the back to the base of the caudal, and wholly sustained by
simple unarticulated rays; anal about half as long, united to the
base of the rounded caudal. Teeth as in Clinus. Intestinal canal
simple, running nearly straight to the anus; no air-bladder, and
no genital papilla. Eighteen species.
Genus XIX. CaRELOPHUS, Kroy. Distinguished from Gunnelhis
by the presence of pancreatic caeca and tentacles. No teeth on the
vomer. Ventrals having one spine and three soft rays. No lateral
line.
Genus XX. Zoarces. Cuv. Jugular ventrals of few rays. Gene¬
ral form and most of the structure of Clinus and Gunnellus, without
spinous rays in the front of the dorsal or anal, but near the end of
the dorsal there are some short spinous rays, followed by articulated
ones which unite with the small caudal; the anal also unites with
the caudal, but its edge is even, without the depression of the dor¬
sal. Conical teeth on the jaws, in several rows near the symphysis,
uniserial towards the corners of the mouth ; palate toothless; vivi¬
parous. No air-bladder. Five species.
Genus XXL Lycodes, Reinh. Body elongated, thick ante¬
riorly. Head conical, obtuse. Body compressed. Tail ensiform.
Scales minute, imbedded in the skin. Stout teeth on the premax¬
illaries, mandibulars, vomer, and palatines. Branchiostegals six.
Membrane united to the isthmus, aperture narrow, posterior.
Ventrals merely a single very short rudimental ray, jugular. Tail
surrounded by the long vertical fins; rays articulated, divided. No
air-bladder. Intermediate between Zoarces and Anarrhichas. Five
species.
Genus XXII. Dictyosoma, Schleg. Distinguished from Gunnellus
and Zoarces by the entire want of ventrals. Branchiostegals six.
Genus XXIII. Anarrhichas, Linn. Blennies, without ventrals;
dorsal sustained entirely by simple unjointed rays, destitute of
stiffness, commencing at the nape and reaching to the base of the
caudal, which is distinct and rounded; anal corresponding nearly
to the posterior half of the dorsal, and also rounded off at the base
of the caudal; pectorals rounded. Skin soft, scaleless, and mucoid.
Jaws, vomer, and palatines, armed with osseous plates, that are
crowned by small enamelled teeth ; the anterior teeth being more
long and conical. Branchiostegals six. A short fleshy stomach, Classifica-
with a very small csecal part; no pancreatic caeca; no air-bladder. tion—
Three species. Acanthop-
Genus XXIV. Opisthognathus, Cuv. Blennioids, with the terous
simple flexible spines of the majority of the family, except the Fishes,
ventral spine which is pungent; ventrals of five soft rays situated v _ /
under the base of the pectorals ; dorsal and anal even, terminating
at a little distance from the rather small rounded caudal. Scales
small. Lateral line distinct. Branchiostegals six. In one species
the maxillary is prolonged beyond the corner of the mouth to the
coracoid bones, in another it scarcely exceeds the usual size, not
passing the border of the preoperculum. Fine card-like teeth on
the jaws. Resembling the Blennies in the lai-ge blunt head, and
cirrhi at the nostrils; but differing in having an air-bladder. Two
species.
Tig. 131.
Cheironectes caudimaculatus. {Vide fig. 1.)
The Lophioids were, from the softness of their bones,
placed among the branchiostegous fishes by Artedi; but
Cuvier recognising the fibrous structure of their skeletons,
brought them back to the Acanthopterygii, and since then
Muller has shown that the Ostracions with which Artedi
had associated them are themselves osseous fishes. In
fact, the whole organization of the Lophioids is that of an
Acanthopterous fish ; their two dorsals, the composition of
the auditory organs, the freedom of the semicircular canals
within the cranium ; the construction of the digestive vis¬
cera ; that of the organs of generation in male and female,
the connections of the premaxillaries and maxillaries, and
of the teeth which they support, as well as the mandibular,
palatine, and vomerine teeth, are all characters of true Acan-
thopteri. The skeleton itself, though not hard, is fibrous;
and this is the case in the common Lophius with respect to
all the cranial bones without exception, those also of the
jaws, gill-covers, scapular chain, the spinal column, the fins,
os hyoides, and gills, all of which have the fibrous structure.
Distinctive characters of the family are to be found in
the almost general absence of scales, which are replaced in
Malthcea by bony tubercles, and in many species of Chei¬
ronectes bv small grains armed with spines; in the elonga¬
tion of the ulna and radius into a kind of arm, whose fingers
are represented by the rays of the pectoral; in the restiic-
tion of the apertures of the gills, and the absence of the
suborbitar bones, on which M. Valenciennes places much
value as a family characteristic. Cuvier, in his memoir on
the Cheironectes, traces their affinity to the Blennioids and
Gobioids as follows :—The advanced position of the first
dorsal exists in Cristiceps; Callionymus has only a sma
gill-opening; Gohius macrocephcdus oi Pallas has the head
depressed and wide ; the Periophthalmi and Boleophthalmi
have the pectorals supported on arms, and these fish walk
and run over the mud in quest of their prey, like the Chei¬
ronectes ; all these facts prove that the Lophioids are
nearly allied to the Gobioids ; most of them have, moreover,
like these last, a simple intestinal canal, without pancreatic
ICHTHYOLOGY.
311
Classifica- caeca. In quoting these remarks from Cuvier, M. Valen-
tion— ciennes adds that Lophius nevertheless has two pancreatic
terousP" C0eca near the Pylorus’ and shows s°me relationship to the
Fishes. Percoids, from which, however, he gathers that in natural
v families there are analogous repetitions or representations
of genera in the several groups. Many wonderful things
have been said of Lophius, or the Fishing-Frog. It has
arts and schemes strange and various; it fishes with a
line; it fishes with a bait; and not content with gather¬
ing a crowd of fish around it by the temptation of its baited
filaments, it engulfs them in its vast branchial bags, which
sacs, sustained by branchiostegals of proportional size,
have no opercular bones, so that, in short, the Lophius is
an isolated genus, differing from all others in organs con¬
nected wdth its respiration. But in truth the Lophius pos¬
sesses exactly the same bones which enter into the compo¬
sition of these parts in other fishes ; the proportion alone
differs, and the enormously large head has given rise to
much of the marvellous in these descriptions. The organ
of smell is that in which the Lophius differs most from
other fishes, whether they are osseous or cartilaginous. It
has two oiifices to its nostril, as is usual, but they are not
easily found, unless sought for at the extremity of the nos¬
tril tube in an uninjured specimen. Xhis organ is sup¬
ported on a membranous stalk, and when one opens its
summit, it spreads out like the cup of a flower. The bot¬
tom of this cup is divided into projecting leaflets, on which
the olfactory nerve is distributed, after traversing the axis
of the foot-stalk. The fish erects these stilted nostrils, and
turns them towards any object whose odour it wishes to
ascertain, much as a Slug elongates its horns. In fishes in
general the plaited pituitary membrane is fixed immoveably
at the bottom of a cavity excavated in the bone. The oper¬
cular bone in this fish is long and strong, is suspended
vertically from the convex epitympanic condyle (as mDiodon
and Anguilla), and has a long slender fin-ray proceeding
from the back part of the joint. The suboperculum is pro¬
duced backwards, and is divided into slender branches to¬
wards its border-like fin-rays, as in the Plagiostomes. The
anterior rays of the dorsal situated on the head are articulated
at their bases by rings, as represented by Mr Yarrell. The
spine is composed of thirty vertebra;, and the myelon ter¬
minates in a point at the twelfth, the rest of the neural
canal being occupied by a long cauda equina, or bundle
of nerves. Except in the Lophobranchs, there is scarcely
another instance among fishes of a similar structure, the
myelon being generally co-extensive with the neural canal.
The Lophius piscatorius is common on the S. coast of
England, and many are taken annually in Portsmouth Har¬
bour. A second species is supposed to exist in the Euro¬
pean seas, and a very similar one abounds in the China seas.
Specimens of the young are generally pinned in alono-
with other small fishes in the insect-boxes exported from
Canton. The Cheironectes are small fishes, of frog-like
aspect, and many of them have the faculty of distending
their large membranous stomach with air, and so swellin<>-
out the body as the Tetraodons and Diodons do. The qua¬
drupedal character which these fishes possess from the posi¬
tion of their pectoral and ventral fins is expressed by fig.
1, p. 206. The small hole in the axilla of the pectoral is
the only gill-opening, and this structure, by retaining the
moisture about their gills, enables these fish to remain long
out of water, and to travel over sea-weed and sand in search
of prey. Commerson considered them to be a kind of Am¬
phibia. Many are curiously coloured, and have strange
cutaneous appendages to the fins and other parts of the
body.
Maltheea is a genus of fish of depressed forms, very wide
in the pectoral region, and they are remarkable as being
the only fishes of this family which possess a suborbitar bone.
Halieutea is still more depressed in the body than Malthcea,
and dried specimens are very common in the Chinese in- Classifica-
sect-boxes. The species named H. stellata, is of an tion—
aurora-red colour above, and bright lake-red beneath. Its Acanthop-
back is curiously muricated. Fishes
Batrachus is a genus of small fishes, of a disagreeable v J
aspect, but which departs less from the ordinary piscine “^
types in outward form than the preceding Lophioids. It
has much the aspect of some Cotti, to which the armature
of its head bears also a resemblance. It differs, however,
widely from the Sclerogenidce, in the cheek not only being
not cuirassed by the suborbitar, but in that bone being
altogether absent. The suboperculum is as large as the
opeiculum, and is likewise armed with strong spines. The
species are divided according to the naked or scaly condi¬
tion of their skin, and by the presence or absence of bar¬
bels round the jaws.
Fig. 132.
Batrachius dubius.
Family XXIV.—LOPHIIDiE, Cuv.
Pectorales pediculees, Cuv. Armflosser of the Germans. Skele¬
ton fibrous, rarely much indurated. Scales almost always wanting,
replaced in Mahhata by osseous tubercles, and in many Cheironectes
by small grains which support spines. Forearm, that is the ulna
and radius supporting the pectoral fin, prolonged, making a kind of
arm. Gill-openings restricted to a round hole or vertical slit be¬
hind the pectoral, and not extending under the border of the sub¬
operculum and operculum. No suborbitar bones.
Genus I. Lophius. Head, in comparison with the rest of the
body, excessively large, broad, depressed, spiniferous. Infundibuli-
form pedicellated nostrils. Very wide mouth. Conical slender teeth
on the jaws, palatines, and most frequently on the chevron of the
vomer, on the superior and inferior pharyngeals, but not on the
tongue. Branchiostegals six ; branchiostegal membrane very exten¬
sive; branchial arches three only. No supplementary gill adhering to
the operculum. The operculum, suboperculum, and interoperculum
concealed by the muscles, but the preoperculum more visible. There
is no suborbitar. Teeth moveable. Dorsals two, some of the rays
of the first one far forwards on the head, detached from the others,
produced into tall filaments which carry a cutaneous tag at their
extremity ; these rays are articulated by a ring to their interneural
bones, a mode of articulation which exists also in the Chcetodontidas,
SiluridcB, and some Cyprini. Nostrils campanulate and pedunculate!
Stomach very large and very muscular; intestine short; two pan¬
creatic caeca. Five species. r
Genus II. Cheironectes, Cuv. Head and body vertically com¬
pressed. Three free rays on the head, sometimes united by mem¬
brane, but not followed by a spinous fin separated from the soft dor¬
sal as in Lophius. Head neither very large nor the gape so enormous
as in that genus. Most have the power of inflating the body by filling
a large membranous stomach with air like a Tetraodon or Diodon.
The relative position of their ventrals and pectorals gives them the
appearance of possessing four feet (see fig. 1, p 206), but it is the ven¬
trals that here represent the anterior limbs. Gill-opening a small
hole concealed in the axilla of the pectoral. Mouth cleft more or less
vertically. Fine slender and pointed teeth crowded in card-like
plates on the premaxillaries, mandible, vomer, palatines, and pha-
ryn»eals- Dyes small and far forward. Opercular bones wholly
concealed by the integuments. Branchiostegals six. Branchial
arches four. Body not tapering posteriorly in the same way with
that of Lophius. Dorsal occupying much of the back; pectoral
312
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica¬
tion—
Plecto-
gnaths.
pedicellated, as in Lophius, by the elongation of the radius and ulna,
which are mostly concealed hy the skin. Twenty-eight species.
Genus III. Malth^a, Cuv. Body anteriorly, and the head
much depressed; very wide at the pectorals, chiefly from expansion
of the subopercula;posteriorlytapering and more or less compressed.
Pectorals pedicellated. Gill-opening a small orifice in the axilla of
the pectoral. Body covered with a tubercular skin ; many cuta-
neousfilaments. Mouth small, opening beneath theprojectingsnout,
horizontal and protractile ; a peculiar pedicel with soft tips at¬
tached to the snout, represents the three free rays of Lophius. This
genus is the only one of the family in which asuborbitar scale-bone
is present. Seven species.
Genus TV. Halieutea, Yalenc. Body very flatly depressed,
orbicular. Snout not prolonged. Palate smooth, toothless. Skin
studded with small conical, acute, bony spines, having radiating
bases. Branchiostegals six. One species.
Genus V. Batrachus, Schneid. A large flat head and wide
mouth, bordered by cutaneous filaments. A very small first dorsal;
pectorals pedicellated on short flat arms j ventrals jugular, of three
rays, the first elongated and lanceolate. Teeth on the jaws, vomer,
and palatines. Six branchiostegals. Gill-openings not extending
quite under the throat. A long and low dorsal and anal. Suboper¬
culum as large as the operculum, and emitting strong spines ; pre¬
operculum unarmed. No suborbitar; no caecal dilatation of the
stomach ; no pancreatic caeca ; air-bladder deeply forked anteriorly ;
and muscular laterally. Seventeen species.
Genus VI. Ceratias, Kroy. Form high and much compressed.
Mouth cleft nearly vertically. Gill-opening below the pectorals,
pretty large, round. Branchiostegals six. Teeth of moderate size,
conical, moveable, slightly curved on the premaxillaries and man¬
dible ; none on the vomer or palatines ; three branchial arches with
two layers; the third pair of arches adherent to the gullet by their
interior border. No ventrals; pectorals very small but supported
on long arms ; anterior dorsal of two free moveable rays, one on
the head, the second near the middle of the back ; posterior dorsal
and anal very short, and close to the caudal fin. Tips of all the
rays free from the connecting membrane, especially those of the
caudal and ventrals, cartilaginous, not jointed, and with soft extre¬
mities. No true scales, but innumerable recurved spines rising
from bony bases. No air-bladder. Two small pyloric cmca. Skele¬
ton soft and cartilaginous. Greenland. C. Holboli.
Genus VII. Ohaunax, Lowe. Body oblong, tetraedral, subin-
flatible, naked ; skin of the belly lax. Tail abruptly attenuated,
subcompressed. Head large, somewhat tetraedral, flat on the dor¬
sal aspect. Mouth very large, transverse. Teeth on the premaxil¬
laries, vomer, and palatines, small granular. Nostrils neither tu¬
bular nor pedicellated. Branchial openings behind the pectorals.
Dorsal solitary; ventrals pedicellated, fleshy, jugular; anal far back.
A single barbel in the internasal pit ; no other elsewhere.
PLECTOGNATIIS.
Artedi constituted an order named Branchiostegi, in
which he included the Plectognaths with the addition of
Cyclopteras and Lophius, attributing to the latter as well
as to Balistes and Ostracion the want of a branchiostegous
membrane. Lophius, however, has as ample branchio¬
stegous membranes as any fish possesses, and six long
branchiostegals; while Balistes and Ostracion have gill-
covers and branchiostegals, though the thickness of the in¬
tegument keeps them concealed. In Diodon, the oper¬
culum is not connected with the preoperculum, but is
suspended to the outer angle of the epitympanic. The real
cause of his assembling these genera into one group would
appear to have been the tardy ossification of their skeletons,
for which reason he placed the order between the osseous
and the cartilaginous fishes. But though the bones of the
Plectognaths differ in some degree from those of the great
mass of osseous fishes, and there are fewer pieces in their
skeletons, they belong to that division of the class by the
fibrous character of their bones, as Cuvier mentions in his
Begne Animal;” and Muller has shown that, they agree
with other osseous fishes, in having two valves at the origin
of the arterial trunk, differing in that respect from the
Chondropterygii or Plagiostomes, and from the Ganoids,
all of which have many valves. The want of mobility in
the upper jaw, through its union by suture with the cranium,
is the character that distinguishes the Plectognaths most
distinctly from the ordinary osseous fishes, though even Classifica-
this character is not universal in the group. rI heir dermal ti°n
productions, scales, spines, roughness, and osseous plates,
differ from ordinary fish scales. By Agassiz, they were on ^
that account considered to be Ganoids, but Cuvier has as¬
signed them a more correct place in our systems.
Fig. 133.
Xanthichthys curassavicus.
The Sclerodermids, or Balistini, are distinguished by
the conical snout, a small terminal mouth, and distinct
but not numerous teeth. In Balistes the first dorsal spine
is articulated by ring and bolt to the broad interneural os¬
seous plate. When the spine is raised, a depression at the
back part of its base receives a corresponding projection
from the contiguous base of the second ray, which fixes it
like the hammer of the gun-lock at full cock, and it cannot
be let down until the small spine has been depressed, as by
pulling at the trigger; it is then received into a groove on
the supporting plate, and offers no impediment to the pro¬
gress of the fish through the water. (Owen.) This trigger-
like fixing of the spine takes place also in the dead fish;
and when a Balistes is removed from a bottle for examina¬
tion, it is generally necessary to release the spine by press¬
ing on the small trigger-ray. The spine of the Balistes is
roughened with ganoid or enamel grains like a file, and the
teeth of this fish consist of true dentine, with a thick
layer of denser tissue that differs little from enamel.
In the Gymnodonts, or Diodontidee, the maxillaries coa¬
lesce wholly or in part with the premaxillaries, and the
teeth are incorporated with the bone of the jaws, so that
the whole looks like one or two great teeth ; but the teeth,
individually small, are developed from pulps, are arranged
in lamellae, and approach the cutting edge of the compound
tooth or jaw as their predecessors are worn away, much as
in Scarus. The dental plates consist of hard or unvascular
dentine. This kind of dentition is adapted to cut and
bruise the food on which these fishes live—fuel and Crus¬
tacea. None of them are used as food for man, and they
are generally considered to be poisonous. An instance
occurred a few years ago at the Cape of Good Hope of two
sailors being poisoned by eating a Tetraodon, and dying
from the effects thereof. A detailed account of the symp¬
toms was drawn up by a surgeon in the Dutch navy, vyho
attended them till they died, which was in less than half an
hour after eating the deleterious fish. The Tetraodons and
Diodons have the power of inflating their bodies by filling
their stomachs with air. Thisviscus is very large, occupying
the whole length of the abdominal cavity, and has very thin
coats. When thus blown up into a globular form, the fins cease
to play, and the fish turns over, and floats belly upwards,
driving before the wind and waves, without being able to
direct its course, until it has resumed its former shape, by
expelling the wind. T.he inflation of the Diodons, how¬
ever, causes the strong spines with which the skin is studded,
and which resemble those of a hedgehog, to radiate on every
side, thus furnishing a good defensive armour. When
taken, the Gymnodonts produce a sound, doubtless by ex¬
pulsion of air from the stomach. Their air-bladder is deeply
bilobate, and their kidneys, placed high up, have been mis¬
taken for lungs. Differing from other fishes in the com¬
paratively short tail, feeble as a locomotive organ, the mye-
lon of the Gymnodonts is particularly short, and instead of
being, as is usual in fishes, nearly as long as the spine, was
found by Professor Owen to be only four lines long in a
Diodon which measured 7 inches. It is still shorter in
Orthagonscus, and the neural canal is chiefly occupied by
a long “ cauda equina.” In this respect they agree with
Lophius, and they resemble that genus also in having only
three branchial arches. In Oi-thagoriscus the processes of
the pair of leaflets forming a gill are alternate, and not op¬
posite as usual. Among the Diodons and Tetraodons
there are genera which have no external openings to the
nostrils, but merely cutaneous tentacles, on which the olfac¬
tory nerve is finally expended. Tetraodon naritus (Rich.)
has only one nostril to each pituitary sac, but it is
nearly as wide as the sac itself, and its membranous border
can expand either in an infundibuliform way, or contract
the orifice. Ihe Tetraodons are remarkably tenacious of
fife, and have a disagreeable odour, which they retain for
several years when preserved in alcohol. The Malays will
not use them even as manure. For the arrangement and
ICHTHYOLOGY.
313
length standing in a semicircle, the middle ones broad and sharp- Classifica-
edfred. hko human 1‘nrGo^v.o d _7  v» /■•i 1 , . . *
edged, like human incisors, as in Pyrodon. Profile arched, with'a
broader forehead. Large scales at the gill-opening. Tail more or
less forked. A canal before the eyes. Two species.
Genus III. Xanthichthys, Kaup. Naked furrows on the face •
two rays in the first dorsal. No shields before the gill-opening!
One species. X. curassavicus. Pig. 127. (Squamation badly shown )
Genus IV. Canthidermis, Swain. A canal before the eyes,
leeth conical; no^ separate corner teeth. Broad forehead; arched
prohie Small shields behind the gill-opening. No spines on the
tail. Second dorsal and anal fins in the older fish very high •
caudal slightly crescentic. Scales in the young very rough, but in
he old there are only traces of roughness in the fore angle of the
rhombs. One species, C. maculatus.
. ?EN,U® V-®ALISTES> Linn., Kaup. Canal before the eye. Shields
behind the gill-opening. Conical, elongated, cutting teeth : no cut¬
ting corner teeth. 6 »
(a.) Two to seven rows of spinules or elevated lines on the tail.
Face scaly, without naked streaks. Caudal round or blunt. Four
species.
(£>.) Face naked, above which a row of scales. Two species.
(c.) A more or less hollow profile ; face scaly. Tail destitute of
rows of spines or raised lines. Second dorsal and anal more or less
falcate. Tail more or less forked. Four species
Genus VI. Balistapus, Tilesius. No furrow before the corner of
the eye. Two or three rows of spines on the tail. Traces of ven-
trals; caudal round or truncated; the second dorsal containing
from twenty-three to twenty-seven rays; the anal from twenty to
twenty-four. Six species. J
SUB-FAMILY II. MONACANTHINI.
tion—
Flecto-
gnaths.
Fig. 134.
Tetraodon solandri.
generic characters of the Diodons, Ostracions, Balistes, and
Lophobranchs, we are indebted to the labours of Dr Kaup.
We refer to the Philosophical Transactions, vol. 76, for
an account of Tetraodon electricus.
\ ery small scales which are scabrous, with stiff bristles as densely
crowded as the pile of velvet. The point of the pubic bone pro-
jects and is spiny as in the Balistini; but there is one spine in the
first dorsal, and it is large and denticulated ; or, if a second spine
exists, it is almost imperceptible. r
• Genus VII. Monacanthus, Cuv. (a.) In one division the pelvis
is very moveable, and is connected to the belly by an extensible
d™P; these havf ?ften strong spines on the side of the tail.
^"other division is distinguished by a tuft of coarse bristles
on the side of the tail.
tuberclesthird ^r°U*) haS the covered with small pedicellated
(d.) The skin in a fourth group is clothed throughout by slender
hairs, which are often branched.
(e.) And there are some which have none of these distinguishing
characters. 0 &
Genus VIII. Aluterius, Cuv. Body elongated; densely and
minutely granular. A single spine in the first dorsal. The pelvic
bones entirely concealed beneath the integument, without any bony
projection. J J
Order VI.—PLECTOGNATHI, Cuv.
Endo-skeleton partially ossified; exo-skeleton as ganoid scales or
spines. Maxillaries and premaxillaries fixed together. Swim-
bladder without an air-duct. No pancreatic cmca ; merely vestiges
of ribs ; and no distinctly developed ventrals.
Genus IX. Triacanthus, Cuv. Profile subtriangular. The first
dorsal placed on one angle, and the tail, which is more slender and
tapering than in others of the family, ending in a second, on which
is the crescentic caudal; while the mouth occupies the third
Scales small, rough, with sharp spinules. Ventrals each consist¬
ing of a strong rough spine. Pubic bones long, narrow, not pro¬
jecting, covered with scales like the rest of the integument. Two
species. Tr. aculeatus. Tr. strigilifer, Cant.
Family I.—BALISTIDiE.
Sclerodermi, Cuv.; Balistini, Mull. Snout conical. Teeth inci-
sorial, more or less conical, and few in number. Skin either with
shield-like scales or with small rough ones. Swim-bladder ovate
strong. ’
SUB-FAMILY I. BALISTINI, Kaup.
Whole body mailed in a cuirass divided into rhomboidal disks by
cross lines, and commonly displaying varying tints of colour
that are generally lost in the preparation of the specimen. First
ray of the anterior dorsal very stout and bony, followed by one or
two small ones, all of them falling into a dorsal furrow; pubic
bones more or less projecting, and carrying the spinules of linear
ventrals.
Genus I. Pyrodon, Rupp. (Xenodon, Rupp.) Profile slightly
convex, with the chin projecting. Four blunt front teeth, whereof
the middle pair are the broadest, and the side ones W'orn away inte¬
riorly ; two longer red-coloured, conical corner teeth in the upper
jaw, and four with notched crowns in the mandible. A canal
before the eyes. Shields behind the gill-opening. No lateral caudal
spines. One species. P. niger.
Genus II. Melichthys, Swain. The front teeth all equal in
VOL. XII.
Family II.—OSTRACIONIDA1.
Ostraciones, Mull.; Ostracioidce, Cant. Teeth ten or twelve, coni¬
cal. Lips fleshy. Body mailed in a tuberculated cuirass, or “ tes¬
sellated quincuncial pavement of dermal scale bones,” out of which
the lips and teeth, the pectorals, and three vertical fins, together
with the tail, protrude. Exteriorly the gill-opening appears as a
slit, bordered by a skinny edge, but interiorly composed of a gill-
cover with six branchiostegals. Ventrals and pelvis wanting. Little
muscular substance ; a large oily liver. Stomach large, membran¬
aceous. Vertebrae mostly coalescent.
Genus I. Cibotion, Kaup. (Ostracion a corps quadrangulaire
sans epines, Cuv. Beg. An.; Ostracion, Swain.) Nostrils in a pit.
No trace of spines. The completely naked tail destitute of shields
or bony rings. Eight species.
Genus II. Doryophrys, Kaup. (Lactophrvs, partim, Swain. ;
Lactophrys, De Kay.) Nostrils on the points of two small projec¬
tions. Cuirass four-cornered, with spines above the eyes and on
the edges of the belly. Three species.
Genus III. Ostracion, Linn. (Bhinosomus and Tetrosomus,
few am.) Body inclosed in a more or less quadrangular cuirass, with
an acute dorsal ridge, which commences near the eyebrow. Nostrils
situated in a flat membrane, also one or two prominences without
apertures. No bony rings on the tail. 1. Some are without long
2 R
ii
314
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Plecto-
gnaths.
Classifica- spines over the eyes on ^
tion spines on Hie end of the ventral edges j) j ^ ^ in 180me
thebodyls almost three-edge,1 owing to the gable-formed elevation
0f GENufiv.^rTcanI' Dr Gray. (Acarana and Platycanthus,
Swain.) Roundish compressed bodies, with a short tail, which is
encompassed by bony plates or rings.
Sub-Genus I. Aracana, Gray. Having three pairs of flat com-
nressed spines on the dorsal aspect (viz., one over each eye, and two
nairs on the edge of the rounded back); one spine on the side, and
Iwo or three on the edge of the compressed belly. Six species.
Sub-Genus II. Capropygia, Kaup. Back and belly elevated in
the middle ; a pair of flat pointed spines on the line which in¬
closes the back ; another pair on the border of the belly before the
anal. The dermal plates very rough, with small radiating tubercles.
One species, A. unistriata. . , ,
Sub-Genus 111. Kentrocapros, Kaup. orbital spines , bac
concave, with two flat pointed spines on the middle of the dorsal
border ; border of the belly rough and denticulated with one spine.
Kaup. No trace of -pines ou ,be
orbit. Body compressed, and acutely sloped on the back and belly
No spines developed on the borders of the back or belly. One
species, A. lenticularis.
Genus V. Centaurus, Kaup. A large rough tapering acu
spine, standing forwards before the large eye; a still longer one
pointing backwards from the end of the cuirass over the caudal
replacing the second dorsal. Two projections from the border of
the back’laterally; four from the border of the belly. One species.
C. hoops, South Shetland, fig 18,
Family III.—DIODONTIDvE.
Gr/mnodontes, Cuv., Mull. Upper and under jaws with which
the teeth are incorporated, without a mesial division, resembling
the beak of a parrot; behind the jaw is transversely ^ked Skin
wholly armed with spines of greater or smaller size. The Diodons
and most of the Tetraodons have the power of inflation.
SUB-FAMILY I. DIODONTINI.
Genus I. Diodon. Linn. One nostril at the base of a leaf-like
cutaneous process, and the other at the point of the same. Spines
subulate, long, thin, and sharp pointed, with two radical processes,
and capable of erection or depression. Nine species.
Genus II. DicotylichtHYS, Kaup. Each tentacle two-lobed.
No nostril. Spines with three radical processes, which prevent
motion ; in the middle of the forehead a spine with two processes.
One species, D. punctuZatws.
Genus III. Cycliciithys, Kaup. Two nostrils, one at the base
of a tentacle, the other at its point. Spines with three fully de¬
veloped radical processes, which prevent all motion. Two species.
Genus IV. Cyaniciithys, Kaup. Nostrils squeezed together
on the forehead in a leaf-like tentacle; one aperture on the inner
border next the forehead; the other one, which is scarcely percep¬
tible, on the border next the eye. Forehead concave without a
spine in the middle. Body armed with short immoveable spines.
One species, G. ccentZews. New Guinea. icm? \ Arns
Genus V. Chilomycterus, Bibr. (W legm. Arch. 1847.) -Nos¬
trils at the extremity of an extended tentacle. Three large radical
processes to the immoveable spines. Body flat. In most instances a
spine on the forehead, and two or three above the eyes. Three
species.
SUB-FAMILY II. TETRAODONTINI.
Tetraodon, Linn., Cuv. Upper and under jaws divided by a me¬
sial suture, so that they appear to have two teeth above and two
below. Spines of the skin much shorter than those of Diodon.
The head and tail are generally smooth, but the rest of the body
is, with a few exceptions, rendered rough by the presence of minute
spines. A species which possesses electric powers is destitute of
spines, in obedience to a law ascertained by observation, that none
of the electric fishes possess scales or spines.
The following groups are indicated in the Regne Animal, and are
likely to receive generic names from the first ichthyologist who
publishes descriptions of all the species.
Genus I. Tetraodon, Cuv.
I. Head short, body inflatible.
1. Body rough throughout.
2. Body smooth throughout.
3. The sides only smooth ; lateral tubercles.
4. The sides smooth ; no lateral tubercles.
II. Head oblong.
1. The sides only smooth.
2. Back and sides smooth ; the belly alone rough.
III. Back keeled.
Muller has proposed the following sub-genera:
Sub-Genus I. Physogaster, Mull. In the nasal depression a hol¬
low papilla, with a nostril that is not lengthened out into a tube.
A dermal keel on the side of the belly from the throat to the tail.
T. oblongus, lunar is.
Sub-Genus II. Chelonodon, Mull. No trace of a nostril, but in place
of it a skinny funnel-shaped tentacle.
Sub-Genus III. Cheilichthys, Mull. A shorter or longer nostril-
tube, and no ventral keel.
Sub-Genus IV. ArotAron, Miill. On each side of the nose solid
tentacles, on which the olfactory nerve is expended ; also a muscular
ring round the eye, and a kind of eyelid.
Classifica¬
tion—
Lopho-
hranchs.
SUB-FAMILY III. ORTHAGORISCINI.
Genus I. Orthagoriscus, Schneid. (Cephalus, Shaw. Sun-
fish.) Jaws of Diodon. Body compressed, generally destitute of
spines and incapable of inflation, and with the tail so short and
high that the fish appears as if its hinder parts were sliced ofl.
Dorsal and anal both high and pointed, and joined to the caudal.
No air-bladder; stomach small, entered directly by the bile-duct.
A gelatinous layer immediately under the skin. The abbreviation
of the tail is accompanied by a very reduced myelon, looking like
a mere ganglionic process of the brain. 0. spinosus has pointed
tubercles on the body.
LOPHOBRANCHS.
Fishes of this order possess an osseous skeleton, and
complete and free jaws, but the ultimate divisions of their
branchiae, instead of being pectinated, are divided into small
tufts, which are ranged by pairs along the branchial arches.
The armour in which these fishes are mailed up, their want
of flesh, and their generally angular forms, give them a
peculiar aspect. The tubular elongated snout is formed
by the nasal, vomer, tympanals, preopercula, and sub-
opercula. The nasal bone is a short compressed vertical
Notwithstanding the odd and stiff appearance of many of
the Sea-horse Fish and other small members of this order,
some have prehensile tails {Hippocampus), like those of an
American monkey (Cebus), and when kept in vases fm-
nished with slender twigs, to which they can suspend them¬
selves, they form pleasing objects of study, i he Hippo¬
campi resemble the Chameleon, in being able to direct one
eye backwards and the other forwards, and Professor Lich¬
tenstein observed a circular movement in the water near their
gill-openings; on the right side the whirl revolved to the
left, and on the left side to the right, the rotation being
symmetrical and constant, like that of a Hotifer. 1 ie
Hippocampi inhabit all parts of the ocean. Others of the
order are remarkable for the singularity of their shapes, or
of their cutaneous appendages, or for the brilliancy of their
colours. The Phyllopteryx foliatus, from the seas between
Australia and New Guinea, yields to no fish in the intensity
of its red and purple tints, and in the variety of the leat-
like lappets that adorn it. A very beautiful drawing, by
Bauer, of the recent fish taken on flinders voyage is m
the possession of Mr Brown.
The most interesting peculiarity, however, in the eco¬
nomy of the Pipe-fishes is that of the males of most
species carrying the eggs about with them until they aie
hatched. Dr Kaup considers that they show an analogy
in this respect to the Marsupials, or the Wandering 1 en-
euin (Aptenodytes Patagonicus), which transports its so i-
tary egg in a fbld of its skin. In some the egg-pouches
are on the breast or belly, in others on the tai > «r t^ie e^s
are merely glued on in rows, and not covered in by mei
brane.
I C H T H Y
Classifica- Order VII.^—LOPHOBRANCHII, Cuv,
Lopho- Endo-skeleton partially ossified; exo-skeleton ganoid. Gills
branchs. tufted 1 opercular aperture small. Swim-bladder without an air-
', duct. Body almost fleshless, protected by bony rings. In most
^ the male carries the eggs till they are hatched.
Family L—SOLENOSTOMIDJE, Kaup.
Breast and belly distinctly separated. Oral aperture at the end
of a long, compressed, leaf-like snout. When the gill-plate is raised
the whole gills are exposed.
Genus I. Solenostomus, Seba, Lacep. Snout sharply edged
on its dorsal and ventral aspects. A sharp denticulated ridge, pass¬
ing from the occiput over the eyes and nostrils, disappears in the
acute rostral crest. Back and breast acutely ridged. Pectorals
broad and short. Belly down to the caudal fin divided into rings
and armed by three longitudinal rows of short spines. First dorsal
very long; the second and the anal rudimentary. Egg-pouch of
the males formed by the union of the inner borders of the ventrals
to the skin of the belly ; the females have free ventrals. One
species.
Family II.—PEGASIDA).
Breast very greatly expanded, much broader than high. Pectoral
fin long, with nine or ten firm spine-like rays. Gill-opening late-
ral; gill-plate flat, depressed to the ventral plane. Mouth inferior,
like that of a Sturgeon, at the base of the rostrum. Body having
three knobbed or spinous rings ; breast ring unusually broad, ex¬
tended between the gill-plates, bispinous. Ventrals two-rayed,
filamentous. Tail flat, quadrangular, spinous. Dorsal and anal
occupying two to four rings; caudal ten-rayed.
Genus I. Pegasus, Linn. Three species.
Fig. 135.
Pegasus natans.
Family III.—SYNGNATHIDAi, Kaup.; Bonap.
The small gill-opening circular and high up. One dorsal only,
near the anus. Form elongated. First dorsal and ventrals want¬
ing ; pectorals in some jiresent, in others absent; anal fin very
small, in some wholly wanting. The males have egg-pouches vary¬
ing in position with the genus. Solenognathus and Phyllopteryx have
no egg-pouches.
SUB-FAMILY I.—HIPPOCAMPINjE, Bonap.
Tail generally prehensile at the tip ; destitute of a fin. Occiput
more or less elevated.
Genus I. Hippocampus, Cuv. Head more or less elevated pos¬
teriorly ; an occipital coronet with spines or knobs. Orbits spiny.
Pectoral ring with two or three spines. Body with ten to thirteen
rings, more or less spiny. Tail-pouch of the male opening at its
commencement only ; tail prehensile. Eighteen species.
Genus II. Acentronura, Kaup. Edge of the back forming
one line with the upper tail-ridge. Gill-opening at the point of
the occiput. No protuberances either on the body or tail. No coro¬
net. Egg-pouch of the male on the tail as in Hippocampus. One
species, A. gracillima.
Genus III. Gasterotokeus, Heck. (Syngnathoid.es.'Rleek. •, So-
legnathus,]5\eek. nec Swains.) The lateral lines forming the edges
of the expanded belly. No nuchal shield. Tail prehensile. Dorsal
standing in a furrow and occupying ten to twelve tail rings. No
coronet. One species, G. biaculeatus.
GenusIV. Solenognathus, Swains. Body laterally compressed,
higher than broad. Lateral line confluent with the upper angle of
the tail, forming an arch. Twenty-two to twenty-six body rings ;
fifty-five to sixty tail rings. Dorsal fin in a furrow occupying ten
to eleven tail rings. Tail prehensile. One species, S. Hard-
wickii.
Genus V. Phyllopteryx, Swains. Body much compressed.
0 L O G Y. 315
Neck elongated, slender; back arched ; belly prominent. Dorsal Classifica-
fin placed on an elevation. Flat denticulated bones, supporting leaf- tion 
like cutaneous appendages on the body and tail. Tail finless, not Lopho-
prehensile. One species, Ph. foliatus. branchs.
SUB-FAMILY II. SYNGNATHIN.E, Kaup.
Males possessing a caudal egg-pouch which is open throughout.
Tail never prehensile.
Genus I. Halicampus, Kaup. Snout thin and short, set with
three rows of small spines and distinctly separated from the high
forehead and elevated spinous orbits. Eyes projecting. Hind-head,
nape, and pectoral shield crested ; pectoral ring broader than the
body. Dorsal fin standing on an elevation formed by three rings only.
Body rough-edged, filamentous. One species, H. conspicillatus.
Genus II. Trachyrkamphus, Kaup. Resembling Halicampus,
but with a longer head ; the snout denticulated on its dorsal aspect
only, and not so distinct from the head. Dorsal fin elevated on five
or six rings, three of which belong to the body. Pectoral ring no
wider than the head ; form more elongated than that of Halicam¬
pus. Three species.
Genus III. Corythoichthys, Kaup. Body tolerably long.
Fins small; caudal diminutive. Snout half the length of the ele¬
vated head. Orbits large. Dorsal fin commencing in a concavity
of the tail over the anus, and not on an elevated base like that of
Hippocampus or Trachyrhynchus. Breadth greatest just behind the
dorsal. Body varied by light cross-bars. Six species.
GenusIV. Ichthyocampus, Kaup. Edges of the concave back
and tail running in the same line to the caudal fin. Head short.
Tail almost as thick as the body, suddenly pointed at the base of
the rudimentary caudal; more tetragonal than Corythoichthys.
Three species.
Genus V. Syngnathus, Linn. No spines on the straight cy¬
lindrical snout. Body heptagonal. Dorsal fin on the plane of the
back, not on an elevated base. Upper border of the back never in
the same line with that of the tail; upper border of the tail either
continuous with the lateral line or ir.terrupted where that line
terminates. Dorsal surface of the body fl it or flatly concave, and
never much compressed or bent into an arch. Body rings never
amounting to twenty-four or twenty-seven. Twenty-two species.
Genus VI. Leptonotus, Kaup. In the females the body is much
compressed, and the back is acute like the edge of a knife. Belly
also acute, and in old fish the height of the body is five times its
breadth, but in the young the body is not so high. Dorsal profile
suddenly rising behind the pectoral fin. Tail nearly twice the
length of the body. Two species.
Genus VII. Siphonostomus, Kafin. Pectoral ring cleft on its
ventral aspect in the middle of its length. Long and pretty thick,
with a greatly compressed snout that projects evenly in the plane of
the forehead. Five species.
Genus VIII. Leptoichthys, Kaup. Snout very long, thin, and
much compressed ; extended in the same plane with the finely sha-
greened head. Body unusually elongated; hexagonal, with a flat
back and belly without intermediate scales. All the fins large,
especially the caudal. Gill-opening longer than usual. One species,
L. fistularius.
Genus IX. Stigmatophora, Kaup. A pectoral fin ; no caudal.
Snout acutely ridged ; prolonged. Mouth turned upwards. Anal
fin three-rayed. Two species.
SUB-FAMILY III.-—-DORYRHAMPHINiE, Kaup.
Males with their egg-pouch on the breast and belly, not on the
tail.
Genus I. Doryrhamphus, Kaup. No pits on the nuchal shield.
Rows of spines on the snout, and two projections on its under part.
All the angles of the body serrated. The border of the egg-pouch
developing two tender membranes which completely cover the eggs.
Tail shorter than the body. One species, D. excisus.
Genus II. Choeroichthys, Kaup. Body short; arched above
and below. Snout without spines or projections beneath; slender
and rising upwards near the mouth. Lateral line unusually pro¬
jecting, and uniting with the under edge of the tail. No pits on
the small nuchal shield. Egg-pouches furnished with a membrane.
Fins not much developed. One species, Ch. Valencienni.
Genus III. Doryichthys, Heck. Snout elongated, compressed,
spineless. Two long thin bones near the gill-cover, joining the
occiput, and bounding a slit-like opening. Tail quadrangular,
shorter than the body ; hexangular to the end of the dorsal. Nine
species.
Genus IV. Hemithylacus, Kaup. Snout exceeding the body
in length, with a two-edged border on its dorsal aspect, rounded
beneath. Body compressed. Egg-pouch of the males reaching
from the pectoral ring to the anus. One species, H. leiaspis.
316 I C H T H Y
Classifica- sub-family iv.—neroi’hinaj.
The eggs distributed in rows on the breast and belly of the males,
a j, h not covered by membrane.
orancns. ^ Genus I. Microphis, Kaup. Body heptangular, composed of
very rough rings, and of ecjual thickness to the setting on of the
elongated tail. Five fins. Two species.
Genus II. Nerophis, Rafin. Neither pectoral nor anal fin.
Body cylindrical without distinct edges. Nine species.
GANOIDS.
Muller remarks that the difference between Cycloid and
Ctenoid scales is slight, and its systematic application is
consequently confined to narrow limits ; but that the case is
very different with regard to Ganoid scales. These are
bony, generally of a rhombic form or quadrangular, seldom
rounded in outline or imbricated in position, and their sur¬
face is always smooth and coated with a layer of enamel;
they are generally arranged in oblique rows, those in each
row being usually united to one another by a hinge-like
prolongation of the anterior angle. The Ganoid scales are
imbedded, like ordinary scales, in depressions of the skin ;
but the epidermis is extremely thin, and adheres closely, so
as to appear wanting. This is the case in Polypterus, but
in Lepidosteus the epidermal covering is more evident.
The living Ganoids have completely bony skeletons, but in
the fossil ones many have had skeletons soft and cartila¬
ginous like those of the Sturgeons. Muller sums up the
Ganoid character in the following words :—Fishes provided
with either tabular and angular or round enamelled scales, or
with bony plates, or a perfectly naked skin. Iheir fins
frequently, but not always covered on their anterior border
with a single or double row of spiny plates or laminae
(fulcra) ; their caudal fin sometimes involving in its upper
fold the extremity of the vertebral column, which may con¬
tinue to the end of that fold ; their nasal apertures double ;
their gills free and lying in an operculated cavity, as in the
osseous fishes. Several have an accessory organ in form of
an opercular gill, which is different from a pseudobranchia,
and may occur at the same time with it; many have also
blowing holes like the Plagioslomi. They have several
valves in the arterial trunk, like the latter; their ova are
conveyed from the abdominal cavity by tubes; their optic
nerves do not decussate, but merely cohere laterally ; their
intestine often contains a spiral valve, like the Plagiostomi ;
they have a swimming bladder with an air-tube, like many
osseous fishes; their skeleton is either bony or partly car¬
tilaginous ; and their ventral fins are abdominal. If, how¬
ever, reference be made to the absolute characters only
which are never absent, the Ganoids are fishes with nu¬
merous valves in the arterial trunk, no decussation of the
optic nerves, free gills and opercula, and with abdominal
ventral fins.
Agassiz included the Sclerodermi, Gymnodontes, Lorica-
rini, Siluridce, and Lophobranchii among the Ganoids ; but,
according to Muller, all these groups belong to the ordinary
osseous series, and have only two valves in the arterial
trunk. The existence of an accessory opercular gill is a
character of the Ganoids and Sturgeons, and does not oc¬
cur in other osseous fishes. Muller further observes that
the Ganoids resemble the Selachii in having a thymus
gland. This organ was described by Dr Simon as it exists
in the Sturgeons, and it is found in the same position in
Polypterus and Lepidosteus ; that is, between the anterior
basibranchials and the sternohyoid muscles. It was con-
•sidered by Retzius to be a sublingual salivary gland, but it
is a vasoganglion ; and Professor Owen is of opinion that
Dr Simon’s view of its homology with the thymus gland is
more in accordance with its nature ; but he also thinks that
Dr Simon has described as a thymus gland in various
osseous fishes the same parts which Muller has called pseudo¬
branchiae in those fishes.
0 L G G Y.
Characters distinguishing the Polypteri from Lepidostei Classifica-
exist in the solitary arrangement of the rays of the vertical tion
fins, the want of accessory gills, and the incompleteness of
the fourth gill, which has only one layer of leaflets, and v ^aDC 8'
wants also the slit behind it. There is only one pancreatic
caecum, whereas the Lepidostei have many; both have
muscular coals to the air-bladder, but in the Lepidostei
that viscus is cellular, and the muscular fibres are in bundles
between the folds of the bladder. The air-tube or trachea
in the Lepidostei is wide, and opens through the dorsal wall
of the tesophagus, its orifice being regulated by a sphincter
muscle. But the Polypteri differ from all other known fishes
in the air-duct entering the beginning of the oesophagus or
gullet on its ventral side. The arteries of the swim-
bladder of the Lepidostei arise in great numbers from the
aorta, and the veins empty themselves into the two sub-
vertebral veins. In this case, therefore, the cellular swim-
bladder cannot be considered as a lung. In the Polypteri
the artery of each of the two air-bladders is formed by the
union of the bloodvessels coming from the last gill, and
therefore carrying blood already oxygenized. The Lepi¬
dostei have sacciform ovaries, with oviducts issuing from
the middles of the sacs. These fish are by no means rare
in the North American waters, and a few years ago the re¬
searches of Agassiz had raised the number described to ten.
It is probable that since then more have been discovered;
as he was of opinion, from what he had then observed, that
every separate river, basin, or watershed,, had its peculiar
species. The Lepidostei frequent shallow, reedy, or grassy
places, and bask in the sun like Pikes.
Polypterus is an African genus. Dr Baikie, in his late
ascent of the Tchadda, obtained specimens of what he thinks
will prove to be a new species, but he has not yet been able
to compare it with the one that exists in the Senegal. The
thymus gland is double in Polypterus; and the spiral in¬
testine valve, which in Lepidosteus is but slightly developed,
attains its maximum size in this genus, extending upwards
to the entrance of the bile-duct.
Amia is a genus of American fishes, existing in the fresh
waters of almost all parts of the United States, but chiefly
abounding in the muddy streams and lakes of Georgia and
Florida. At New Orleans the Amice are named “Mud-fish.”
M. Valenciennes describes the genus among the Malacop-
terygians, and says that it exhibits numerous affinities with
other families of that order, agreeing with the Cyprinidce in
the simplicity of the intestinal canal and want of pyloric caeca,
though no Cyprinoid resembles it in having a spiral valve
in the intestine. Like Elops and Megalops, it possesses a
sublingual buckler. By the large size of its suborbitars, it
is allied to Erythrinus ; in its dentition, and in the structure
of its ovaries, it has marked connections with the Salmonoid
fishes ; lastly, in its general aspect, the length of the dorsal,
the form of the scales, and in the length and flexibility of
the body, it evinces close similarity to Ophicephalus. These
remarks of M. Valenciennes are enough to show that
ichthyologists were at a loss to find the proper place of this
genus when Dr Vogt, in 1845, discovered it to be a Ganoid,
for he found in its arterial trunk two oblique rows of five
or six valves each, and the arterial trunk itself covered with
a well-defined layer of muscular fibres, as in other Ganoids.
It has, moreover, a spiral valve of several turns in the in¬
testine, though it does not ascend so high up as in Polyp¬
terus. But the scales of Amia are not Ganoid, and have
not the slightest resemblance to those of that genus or of
Lepisosteus ; and from this Muller infers that the stiucture
of the scales is not to be trusted as an ordinal character.
The scales of Amia are not osseous plates ; they are flexible
and rounded, and destitute of enamel. Similar scales belong
to the fossil Megalurus and Leptolepis, which are considered
bv Agassiz to be Ganoids. In habit Amia resembles t ic
osseous fishes rather than the Ganoids. As Amia agrees
Classifica- with the other Ganoids in the valves and muscularity of the
tion— arterial trunk, and in the spiral intestinal valve Miiller in-
branchs ferS that 11 will/ be [ound als0 to Possess a chiasma of the
v °Ptlc nerves (no decussation), a thymus gland, and an
uncleft retina. He concludes by saying that it cannot be re¬
ferred either to the Lepidosteini or Polypterini, being sepa¬
rated from the former by the absence ot'fulcra, and from
the latter by not possessing the dorsal polypterv; and he
therefore regards it as the living representative of‘a peculiar
family of Ganoids, and finds analogous genera in the fossil
Megalurus, Leptolepis, Thrissops, and their allies. All of
these have soft scales, an osseous vertebral column, and a
similarity in form of body and structure of fins. Questions
of such interest to ichthyologists have doubtless long a^o
been solved by Agassiz, who has such ready access to many
species of Amia, but the results of his investigations have
not reached us. Cuvier compared the air-bladder of Amia
to the lung of a reptile on account of its great cellular sub¬
division ; and in his list of affinities or analogies above
quoted, M. Valenciennes might have added the similarity
of the air-bladder of the Amice to those of Erythrinus, or
of the Siluroid Bagrus, which have that viscus subdivided
by transverse septa.
The Sturgeons are very abundant in the rivers of Si¬
beria which flow to the southward, and no less so on
both sides of North America. They do not inhabit any
of the rivers of that country which flow into the Arctic
Sea, and consequently are not found to the N. of the
watersheds between the 53d and 54th parallels of lati-
qoVV'tJT6 t,he mean temPerature of the year is about
t o of Fahrenheit s scale. I hey seldom enter clear cold
streams, but in the season ascend the muddy rivers in vast
numbers, so that many populous native tribes subsist wholly
on the Sturgeon fishery during the summer. In most loca¬
lities two forms are readily recognised by the comparative
length and acuteness, and shortness and bluntness, of their
snouts; but every watershed has its own species, varying
in the osseous shields, positions of the rostral barbels, form
of the tail, fins, and other characters.
Order VIII.—GANOIDEI, Miill,
Endo-skeleton in some osseous, in some cartilaginous, in some
partly osseous partly cartilaginous; exo-skeleton ganoid. Fins
usually with the first ray a strong spine. A swim-bladder and
air-duct. Numerous valves in the arterial trunk. No decussation
of the optic nerves. Free gills and opercula, and abdominal ventral
fins.
Family I,—LEPIDOSTEIDiE.
Lepidosteini, Mull. Upper jaw composed of several pieces; the
vomer divided in two by a median cleft; the basisphenoid is’con¬
fluent with the basioccipital ; the nasal bone dentiferous; the
mandible composed of as many pieces as in Reptiles; the’ ver¬
tebras articulated by ball and socket; the olfactory organ, situ¬
ated at the extremity of the greatly elongated jaw, contains the
ordinary nasal folds which are arranged simply; a respiratory
opercular gill is present as well as a pseudobranchia, but no
blowing hole. The gills on the four arches have the perfect bi¬
foliate structure, and behind the last arch and the hyoid bone there
exists, as usual, a fissure. Branchiostegals three, the membrane
passing from side to side like a mantle, and undivided. Anterior
edge of all the fins protected by two rows of spinous scales. Fin-
rays all articulated ; caudal fin abruptly truncate, its rays inserted
partly at the extremity of the vertebral column, partly beneath it.
Stomach not caecal; several pancreatic caeca; no spiral valve in
the intestine; swim-bladder cellular, containing trabeculae earneae
between the cell divisions, and opening by a long slit into the up¬
per wall of the throat. r
Genus I. Lepidosteus, Lacep. An elongated snout varying
in breadth in different species, formed of the-premaxillaries, max-
illaries, palatines, nasal, and vomer ; mandible equal to it in length •
both covered on their surfaces with raduliform teeth and bordered
by a row of long pointed ones. Ten species, American.
Family II.—POLYPTEUID^E.
Polypterini, Mull, The upper jaw is not divided into pieces, the
317
vomer is single, and the mandible and skull generally are constructed Classifica-
as in other osseous fishes. A labial cartilage exists at the corner tion 
of the mouth, supporting the upper and under lips. The fourth gill Sirenoids.
is only unifoliate, and there is no slit behind it.; the opercular gill i < < ,
is wanting, and no pseudobranchia ever occurs; but there is a :
blowing hole on each side, covered by an osseous valve. The in¬
ferior pharyngeal bones are wanting. A series of separate fins
extends along the back, each consisting of a spine and a plume of
articulated rays behind it. The rounded caudal and the anal are
composed of jointed rays, which in the former are inserted above
as well as below the spines; the pectoral has a somewhat elon¬
gated scaly limb. The nostrils are more complicated than in any
other fish. In a large cavity there is a labyrinth of five nasal
passages, each with a gill-like arrangement of folds ; anterior nos¬
tril prolonged into a membranous pipe; the posterior one a small
cleft anterior to the eye. The stomach is caecal, and there is a
pancreatic cfficum. The intestine contains a spiral valve; swim-
bladder double, consisting of two sacs differing in length, and
opening into a short common cavity that communicates with the
ventral floor of the throat by a long fissure.
T :h'dfl03 ^ P0LypteRUS, Geoff. Three species, Nile, Senegal,
Family III.—AMIIDAE.
Genus I. Amia, Linn. Excepting in the absence of lingual
teeth, the mouth of an Amta is that of a Trout. Head covered with
a very thin mucous skin, easily removed, and then the naked cra¬
nium, supratemporals, suborbitar scale bones, and operculum ap¬
pear as sculptured bony plates. The sublingual bone is naked and
furrowed. Upper part of the snout smooth and fleshy ; inferior
lip large^ and thick. Cheek almost wholly covered by the subor-
bitars. Each nostril with two openings, the anterior one a project¬
ing tube like a barbel, the posterior one an aperture near the eye.
Upper arch of the mouth formed by small premaxillaries and large
moveable maxillaries. Teeth on the jaws ; vomer, pterygoids, pala¬
tines, and large double branches of the mandible, mostly in rows
of conical teeth, with small tesselated patches behind; on the pha-
ryngeals the teeth are cardiform, and rough granular patches exist
on the internal face of the operculum, a singular piece of structure
which M. Valenciennes regards as the rudiment of an accessory bran-
chia. The tongue is edentate, thick and fleshy. Large gill-openings.
Branchiostegals eleven to twelve ; broad and flat. Scales of the
body thick, but not osseous. Caudal coming farther forward on the
upper edge of the tail than below; ventrals median ; dorsal long;
anal small. Stomach csecal, with a large pyloric valve. No pan¬
creatic casca; a very large air-bladder, forking anteriorly, and
communicating with the oesophagus ; cellular within, in the upper
and lateral parts, but not below. Ova dropping into the cavity of
the abdomen. Fresh waters of America. Ten species.
Family IV.—STURIONIDiE.
Sturiones, Sturioniens ou Chondropterygiens, abranchies libres, Cuv.
Chondrostei, Mull.; Accipenserini, Miiil.; Accipenseridce, Bonap.
Skeleton partly cartilaginous, vertebral column a soft chorda in¬
stead of vertebrae.
Genus I. Accipenser, Linn. Form squaloid. Body more or
less protected by rows of bony shields. Head cuirassed. Mouth
beneath the snout, small and toothless. The premaxillaries form the
anterior inferior border of the upper jaw; the maxillary is a small
oblong plate articulated to the outer process of the premaxillary,
and by the whole of its inner posterior side to the palatine bone!
The mandible consists principally of a single bony limb, which is
joined to its fellow at the symphysis, and its joint is formed by
a trochlear cartilage attached to the pterygoid process of the pala¬
tine. The mouth thus formed is more protractile than that of the
Sharks. Rostral barbels on the ventral aspect. Labyrinth in form
and position resembling that of the osseous fishes. No vestige of an
external auditory opening. An aperture behind the temples con¬
ducts merely to the gills. Dorsal and anal opposite, behind the
ventrals; caudal encircling the extremity of the spinal column,
the upper lobe the principal one, a smaller and shorter one be¬
neath. Spiral intestinal valve, and conglomerated pancreas as in
the Sharks; a very large swim-bladder communicating with the
oesophagus by a large hole.
Genus II. Polyodon, Lacep. Spatularia, Shaw. Planirostra.
Scaphirhynchus. Technically distinguished from Accipenser by the
naked skin destitute of bony shields; recognisable at once by the
enormous leaf-like expansion of the snout. In general form Stur¬
geons, but the gill-openings are larger, and the membranous tip of
the gill-flap reaches the middle of the body. Mouth very wide with
a multitude of little teeth. A gelatinous chord in the spine like
that of the Lamprey. A spiral intestinal valve; pancreas par-
tially divided into caeca; an air-bladder. Muller says that the
opercula are absent in Polyodon. (Osteol. der Myxin.)
ICHTHYOLOGY.
B18
ICHTHYOLOGY.
SIRENOIDS.
Two distinct species of this order, family, and genus are
known ; one an inhabitant of the River Amazon, whose
structure has not been so fully investigated, and the L. an-
nectans from the Gambia, which has been minutely dis¬
sected by several of the first comparative anatomists of the
day, and been the subject of much scientific controversy as
to its station in the animal scale, whether it ought to be
ranked with the reptiles or fishes. Professor Owen from
the first advocated its ichthyic constitution, and Bischoff
maintained its reptilian character ; but Owen’s reasoning
appears to us to be perfectly conclusive. In a preceding
page we have briefly noticed the habits of the Siluroid
Hassars {Callichthys) in taking shelter in the muddy bot¬
toms of marshes, and when these dry up, digging burrows
for themselves to a considerable depth. 1 hey can live long
out of the water and make overland journeys in quest of it;
but if we understand the accounts given by travellers, they
can, in the event of being cut off from water, pass the dry
season in an inactive state in their burrows, from whence
they are dug out by the natives, who use them for food.
Some moisture will, doubtless, always remain about them in
their subterranean abodes, but still their condition until the
rains commence must be analogous to the hybernation of
animals in higher latitudes; they enjoy but a torpid kind
of existence, and use no exhausting muscular exertion until
the refreshing water flowing in recalls them to an active
employment of all the organs they possess as fishes. I he
conditions of existence of the Lepidosiren annectans must,
as far as regards external circumstances, be similar during
the dry season, though that internal organization which ena¬
bles it to pass much of its life out of water is of a very dif¬
ferent kind. This fish inhabits the Gambia, which in the
rainy season floods extensive tracts ot country. On the
waters retreating after the rains have ceased to fall, the
Lepidosirens that are left behind burrow into the mud,
which a tropical sun soon converts into a hard cake. . An
aperture is left, however, that admits air, and they remain in
their chamber, torpid and clothed in a thick secretion of
mucus, until the water again overflowing the muddy lands,
releases them to the enjoyment of the swimming powers,
which they employ in search of food to allay the ciavings
of a keen appetite. They have beeh brought to this coun¬
try imbedded in clay round the roots of plants imported
from the Gambia, and their presence only became known
after the plants were placed in the stove and well watered.
It is by a modification of the air-bladder rendering it ana¬
logous in function to the lungs ot an Amphibian, and also
by a peculiarity in the gills, that the Lepidosiren is adapted
to the alternate conditions of an active tadpole-like fish,
and an air-breathing dweller on the dry land. Asa geneial
rule, all fishes more highly organized than the Dermopteri
have, in their embryonic stage, five branchial arches and
five branchial arteries. In osseous fishes the anterior 01
hyoid arterial arch developes either a gill ol a single layer
only, or a rudimentary gill consisting of a network of ves¬
sels, or both, or neither. The normal number of branchiae,
with double pectinated lamellae in osseous fishes is four;
most of the Labroids, the genera Coitus, Scorpana, Sebas-
tes, Apistes, Zeus, Cheironectes, Gobiesox, Lepadogaster,
and Polypterus have three bilamellated or biserial gills and
one uniserial one; Lophius, Batrachus, and the Gymno-
donts have three biserial gills; and Malthcea and Lepidosiren
have two biserial gills and one uniserial gill. Two of the
arterial arches, which in other fishes supply a pair of bran¬
chiae, remain undivided in Lepidosiren, and in their primitive
condition of vascular hoops, which end directly (in a man¬
ner analogous to the ductus arteriosus of young mammals)
in arterial trunks going to the air-bladders, and ramified
over their cellular surface. While passing through the
ultimate twigs of these arteries, the blood is sufficiently oxy¬
genized to sustain life during the dry season, supplies of Classifica-
air being introduced into the air-bladders by a trachea whose
oesophageal orifice is kept open by a laryngeal cartilage. ^ .■
Mr Owen sums up in the following words the paiticulars ^
of structure which induced him to consider the Lepidosiren
to be a fish “ It may be presumed,” he says, “ that its ge¬
latinous chorda dorsalis, its vertebral inferior transveise
processes (parapophyses), the normal attachment of the sca¬
pula to the occiput, the branchiostegal covering of the per¬
manent gills, the opercular bones, the absence of a pancreas,
the presence of a spiral intestinal valve, the relative position
of the anus, the extra-oral nasal sacs, the scaly integuments,
the mucous tubes and pores on the head, the ‘ lateral line,
and, in short, the totality of the organization of the Lepi¬
dosiren, will be deemed fully to prove its true ichthyic na¬
ture.” This passage gives, in fewer words than we could
have employed, the reasons for introducing the older of
Sirenoids into our table of the class of fishes.. In a discus¬
sion which took place at a meeting of the British Associa¬
tion soon after the publication of Mr Owen’s paper on the
Lepidosiren in the Transactions of the Linnean Society,
the debate turned much on the presence of a posterior nasal
orifice in the cavity of the mouth, but the Lepidosiren has
an elongated nasal sac, with the biserial pituitary folds usua
in fishes, and two apertures, neither ot which communicate
with the mouth ; and Owen attributes to the position of the
nasal sac in the under part of the thick lip the mistake ot
those naturalists who affirmed that the posterior opening
was within the mouth. We have in a preceding page men¬
tioned an instance in the Synbranchidce of the posterior
nasal opening being as much on the interior side of the
lip as in Lepidosiren. Though the homology of the air-
bladder of Lepidosiren with the lungs of Batrachia is un¬
deniable, and by a legitimate train of reasoning, the air-
bladders of other fishes are also proved to be homologous
with the lungs of the higher classes of vertebrals, there is
no ground, Mr Owen remarks, for asserting that the air-
bladders of fishes in general perform the functions of a lung.
Such oxygenation of the blood as a fish requires is ettected
through the agency of gills, though the relationship of these
organs to the tracheae and lungs of the higher vertebrals is
one of analogy merely. The branchiae of fishes are, how¬
ever, homologous with the persistent or deciduous bran¬
chiae of Balrachia, and with similar organs in embryos.
In Lepidosiren the optic nerves do not cross each other,
agreeing in this respect with the same parts in Polypterus,
the Sturgeons, and the Plagiostomes. In ordinary osseous
fishes the nerves cross, but without an intermixture of ner¬
vous fibrils.
Order IX.—PROTOPTERI, Owen.
Sirenoidei, Mull. Endo-skeleton partly osseous, partly cartilagi¬
nous • exo-skeleton as cycloid scales. Pectorals and ventrals as
flexible filaments. Gills filamentary, free. No pancreas; swim-
bladder as a double lung with an air-duct; intestine with a spiral
valve.
Family I.—SIRENIDA5.
Sirenoidei, Mull. General form resembling that of an Ophidium,
with a more tadpole-like tail. Pectorals and abdominal ventrals
single, slender, tapering barbels, supported internally by a soft
Owen.) Two species, L.
annectans, Gambia; L.paradoxa, Amazon.
Order X.—HOLOCEPHALI.
Endo-skeleton cartilaginous; exo-skeleton as piacmd granule.
Most of the fins with a strong spine for the first ray. _ . sinHe
dominal Gills laminated, attached by their margins, a single
external' gill-aperture. No swim-bladder; intestine with spual
valve. Copula gaudcnt.
Family I.—CHIM-zERID-*®-
Ghimeeroidei. Interiorly five gill-apertures which communicate
ICHTHYOLOGY. 319
Classifica- with a single common passage, having only one external opening.
tion— Itudimentary operculum concealed by the skin. Upper jaw repre-
Chondrop-.sented by the vomer, the palatines, and tympanals, rudimentary
terygians. on the sides of the snout. Hard bony plates supply the place of
vj teeth on the jaws, four above, two below. Snout projecting, with
regular rows of pores; a fleshy club-shaped process with spiny
point between the eyes. First dorsal armed by a strong spine
placed over the pectorals. Claspers of the males trifid ; eggs large,
leathery, with flat velvety borders.
Genus I. Chimera, Cuv. Snout conical. Dorsals contiguous,
the second reaching to the point of the filamentous tail; caudal
like that of the Sharks under the end of the tail.
Genus II. Caluorhynchus, Gronov. Snout ending in a fleshy
hatchet-shaped appendage. Second dorsal commencing over the
ventrals, and ending opposite the beginning of the caudal.
CHONDROPTERYGIANS,
Or Cartilaginous fishes, are called by Cuvier the second
series of the class, and he considers them to be neither in¬
ferior nor superior to the Osseous fishes forming the bulk of
the first series, for many of the genera come near the Rep¬
tiles in the structure of the acoustic organ, and in the geni¬
tal apparatus, whilst others have so simple an organization,
and such imperfect skeletons, that they can scarcely be
classed with confidence as vertebrals. He therefore looks
upon them as a parallel series to the ordinary fishes analo¬
gous to the relationship that exists between the Marsupials
and the ordinary Mammals. It is right to observe, how¬
ever, that the very low organization of some Chondroptery-
gians here alluded to has reference to the Cyclostomi
placed at the commencement of our table, and their exclu¬
sion, leaving only the Sturgeons, Sharks, and Rays, pre¬
sents the organization of the Chondropterygians, as of a
higher and more equable general character, by which
strength is added to Cuvier’s reasoning. Yet there are
many embryonic characters persistent in the Chondroptery¬
gians of which the cartilaginous and confluent vertebrae, as
departing most from the indurated endo-skeleton of thehigh-
est and newest vertebrals, is the most striking. We have
already observed that many of the characters assumed by
the embryos of existing fishes in the progress of their de¬
velopment were the permanent condition of the fossil fishes
found in the oldest fish-bearing strata, and (as will be more
fully explained in the article on Fossil Ichthyology,
which follows) the researches of Agassiz have shown that
as we ascend from the older to the newer deposits there
is a progressive predominance of the endo-skeleton over the
exo-skeleton, so that the Placoids of that author, or the
Plagiostomous Chondropterygians are few in number in the
present day compared to the osseous fishes, and the Gan¬
oids with their heavy armour are much more sparingly repre¬
sented still. During the chalk epoch both Ganoids and
Placoids were in much greater numbers, and they are the
only members of the class of fishes which have been found
in the deposits below the chalk. Mr Owen has some most
instructive sentences bearing on this point in his remarks
on the genesis of fins. The development of fins, he ob¬
serves, is at first restricted to the region of the head, as in
most of the ancient Cephalaspid fishes—Pterichthys and
Pamphractus for instance—in which the cephalic fins pro¬
ject from the opercular region before the nuchal plates, and
there is no trace of true pectoral, ventral, or of vertical fins.
In existing fishes the only thing analogous to these cepha¬
lic fins is the envelopment of the sides of the skull in the
Rays by the fore corners of the pectorals, or in Cephalop-
tera and Ceratoptera, by what Muller calls “ cephalic fins,”
but which he considers to be merely detachments of the
pectorals, though connected with them only by integument,
and not by a continuous succession of fin-rays. In others
of the ancient fossil genera there are two closely approxi¬
mated dorsals and two anal fins, and both are situated near
the end of the tail, which runs into the upper lobe of an un-
symmetrical caudal fin. Now, in the embryos of existing Classifica-
osseous fishes these vertical fins are developed from a single tion—
continuous fold of integument, which is extended round the .Chondrop-
point of the tail from the dorsal to the ventral surface ; a teryslaus-
condition which may be observed in the tadpoles of Ba- v ^ "
trachians, and which is persistent in the Eel and Lepidosi-
ren. The growth of this fold is progressive at certain parts,
and checked at others; and in places where development is
active, the supporting dermal rays make their appearance,
and the transformation into dorsal, caudal, and anal fins is
thus effected. At first the caudal fin is unequally lobed,
and the terminal vertebrae extend into the upper and longer
lobe ; the dorsals and anals are also at first closely approxi¬
mated to each other and to the caudal fin. M. Agassiz has
shown that all these embryonic characters were retained in
many of the extinct fishes of the old red sandstone ; and the
caudal fin did not pass the heterocercal stage in any fish
until after the Jurassic or oolitic epoch. The heterocercal
caudals are the predominating and almost exclusive form
in the existing Sturgeons, Sharks, and Rays, and in most
of these one, or both dorsals when there are two, are situ¬
ated upon the tail, and not rarely near its extremity. The
cutaneous seams without rays and other embryonic condi¬
tions are also common, as may be learnt by consulting the
generic characters in the table.
Cuvier observes that the parts of the skeleton of the
Selachians (under which epithet he comprehends the
Sharks and Rays) do not assume the fibrous structure of
bone ; their interior remaining always cartilaginous, and
the induration of their exterior proceeding from the de¬
position of the earthy matter in a granular state, whence
their characteristic dotted surface. It is on this account he
infers that their calvaria are not divided by sutures, but are
composed of a single shell, modelled, however, in other
respects after the general plan of an ordinary fish-skull; so
that we can distinguish the same regions, similar depressions
and eminences, and the same holes. He gives an analysis
of the vertebral cartilage of Selache maximus. which shows
that water alone forms ninety percent, of the mass, while
nearly seven are oil and other animal matters, and little
more than three of earthy salts.
Owen selects Squatina (the Monk-fish), an intermediate
form between the Sharks and Rays, as a good typical ex¬
ample of the characters of the skull of a Plagiostome. The
cranial end of the “ chorda dorsalis” and its capsule are con¬
verted into firm granular cartilage, which, extending for¬
wards from a prominent median basal-ridge, and also ex¬
panding laterally, constitutes the oblong flattened plate or
base of the cranium. Two convex condyles are formed on
the posterior margin of this “ occipito-sphenoidal ” plate for
articulation with the end of the spine. Two notches on the
side of the basal cartilage define a prominence representing
the sphenoidal arch, which sends off a rudimental ptery¬
goid ; and further forward there is an expansion and groove
forming the point of suspension of the palato-maxillary
arch. Then the cartilage suddenly contracts, and is con¬
tinued forwards to form the vomerine anterior base of the
cranial cavity. The walls of this cavity are as firm and
granular as the base, except at the antero-superior end
which is closed by membrane only. The foramen magnum
posteriorly gives passage to the spinal chord, and there are
perforations for the exit of the cerebral nerves.
The cranial cavity is of larger size than the brain, and
communicates only by nervous and vascular foramina with
the acoustic labyrinth, which is buried in the side of the
cartilage. In the Chimcerce, this insulation of the ear-
capsules, denoting a high grade of development, is much
less complete. 1 he parts of the cranial cartilage, corre¬
sponding to the separate bones of the skull of an osseous
fish, may be recognised by the foramina through which the
several pairs of nerves pass ; but the exterior of the skull
320
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- jg variously and singularly modified in the different Plagio-
tl0n stomous genera.
Chondrop- jn the appen(]e(] arches of the cranium there is a similar
terygians. confluence 0f cartilage. A single strong suspensory pedicel
articulated to the lateral posterior or mastoid process gives
attachment to the hyoid arch by a close joint, and to the
mandibular arches by two ligaments. The maxillary arch
is suspended by a ligament passing from its ascending pala¬
tal process to a notch between the vomerine and the an¬
terior supracranial cartilage. From this point the upper
jaw is continued in one direction forwards and inwards,
completing the arch by a ligamentous symphysis with its
fellow; and in the opposite direction to coalesce with the
outer side of the tympanic pedicel, and form the more im¬
mediate articulation for the lower jaw or mandibular arch.
Each half of the mandible consists of a single cartilage, the
two being united together at the symphyses by ligament.
Two slender labial cartilages are developed on each side
of the maxillary, and one on each side of the mandibular
arch. (The parts described in this paragraph, with the teeth
which they support, are the “ Shark’s jaws” usually brought
home by seamen.)
Four or five short cartilaginous rays, in Squatina, diverge
from the posterior margin of the tympanic pedicle, and sup¬
port a membrane answering to the opercular flap of osseous
fishes; these rays are the skeleton of the diverging appen¬
dage of the tympano-mandibular arch. The hyoid arch in^
the Squatina, as in most other Plagiostomes, consists of
two strong lateral cerato-hyoids, and a median flattened
basi-hyoid. Short cartilaginous rays extend from the back
part of the cerato-hyoid to support the membranous wall of
the branchial sac ; these are the homologues of the bran-
chiostegal rays of osseous fishes.
The Cestracion is not so far advanced in cranial develop¬
ment as the Squatina, and the cartilaginous basioccipital
has a hollow conical articulation with the end of the spine ;
but the Skates and Rays have the skull moveably articu¬
lated by two condyles and an intervening space, as in Squa¬
tina and Zygcena. The skull of the Rays is flat and broad ;
the upper wall membranous to a greater or less extent, ex¬
cept in Narcine, where it is closed by cartilage. 1 he an¬
terior or vomerine part forms a long pyramidal rostrum, to
which are articulated cartilages connecting its extremities
with the radial or anterior angles of the pectoral fin, or
largely expanded hand ; in the space between the pectorals
and skull the TorpedidUe carry their electric batteries. The
tympanic pedicels are short and thick ; the maxillary and
mandibular arches long and wide, stretching across the un¬
der part of the head.
The capsules of the organs of sense are all cartilaginous ;
that of the ear is involved, as we have said above, in the
lateral walls of the cranium ; that of the eye is articulated
by a cartilaginous pedicel with the orbit; and the olfactory
sacs are covered by vaults of the nasal processes. The long
lateral processes supporting the eye-balls of the “ Hammer¬
headed Sharks” have already been alluded to. In Mylio-
bales and Rhinoptera a cartilage is attached to the pro¬
longed anterior angle of the pectoral fin, connecting it with
the internasal cartilage, and supporting a number of branched
and jointed cartilaginous rays. A like series of rays on the
other side of the head meet these before the skull on the
median line, and form what Muller terms, as we have said
in a preceding page, “ cranial fins ;” but Owen considers
them to be merely dismemberments of the pectoral fins,
and thinks that the real cranial fins are the opercular and
branchiostegal appendages of the tympanic and hyoidean
arches.
In tracing the progressive rise of organization of the
spinal column in the Cartilaginous fishes, Owen commences
with the Myxinoid fishes, whose spine is a gelatinous chorda
with fibrous investments. The separation of the upper
layers of the fibro-membranous sheath forms a neural canal, Classifica-
and a haemal canal is produced below in like manner. In ti°n
the Sturgeon there is a continuous central gelatinous chorda, Chondrop-
but the inner layer of the fibrous investment assumes the erygia^9-
texture of tough hyaline cartilage, while distinct, firm, and
opaque cartilages are developed in the outer layer. Above
the coalesced centra these cartilages have a similar arrange¬
ment to the homologous parts of osseous fishes; a neural
canal is formed by two cartilaginous neurapophyses, each in
the young fish formed of two superimposed pieces, and the
arch is crowned by a single short neural spine. There is a
short thick parapophysis on each side, with their bases ex¬
panding below to form a haemal canal in the tail, by their
union beneath the centrum. They include a small inter-
haemal cartilage on each side, and towards the end of the
tail, haemal cartilaginous spines are developed. Short pleura-
pophyses or ribs are articulated to the ends of the parapo-
physes. A beautiful progression, in the development of the
spinal column and of the proper vertebral structure, is traced
out by Muller in his Anatomie der Myxinoiden, and re¬
ferred to by Owen, from whom we quote. In the Basking
Shark (Selache) the vertebral centra are formed of hollow
cones, meeting at their apices in the interior, and having
their cups filled with the remains of the gelatinous chorda.
This semi-fluid, slightly compressible, and very elastic, gives
flexibility to the spine, while it sustains the shocks of violent
inflexions. Strength and lightness are imparted to the
centra by concentric plates of bone, crossed by others radi¬
ating like the spokes of awheel from the apices ot the cones.
The highest stage of vertebral development occurs among
Galei and other Nyctitantes or Sharks, which have a nicti¬
tating eyelid. In them the external surfaces of the centra,
and their internal cones, are covered by a smooth osseous
crust. A few Sharks only, as Carcharias, Heplanchus, and
Alopias, have the ribs connected to the centrum at the base
of the parapophyses; in most they are attached, as in the
Sturgeon, to the ends of these processes.
The gills of the Plagiostomi do not present the pecti¬
nated arrangement of slender tapering processes in a double
row, like the osseous fishes, but consist of folds of membrane
on plane surfaces. A pseudobranchia coexists with a hyoid
uniserial gill in most Plagiostomes, and in those which have
spout-holes it is developed on the anterior wall of these out¬
lets from the branchial cavity. The Plagiostomes have two
or more transverse rows of semilunar valves in the bulbus
arteriosus, or beginning of the arterial system ; Galeus has
two rows of three valves; Sphyrna, Mustelus, Acanthias,
Alopias, Lamna, Rhinobates, Torpedo, and Accipenser
have three rows of valves; Rexanthus, Heptanchus, Gen-
trophorus, and Trygon have four rows of valves ; Scymnus,
Squatina, Myliobates, and Raia batis, or the common Blue
Skate, have five rows. Cephaloptera has a very large
bulbus arteriosus, and presents internally three longitudinal
angular ridges, at the sides of which are small valves dis¬
posed in pairs, and in four or five rows ; besides these there
are three larger valves at the beginning, and three at the
end of the bulb. The optic nerves of the Plagiostomes are
connected by a commissure, but do not decussate as in the
osseous fishes. And in this order the plexus of arteries,
termed a vasoganglion, which lies between the layers of
the choroid coat of the eye of most osseous fishes, does not
exist. Muller found that generally when a fish possessed
pseudobranchiae, it had also the optic vasoganglia; but the
Plagiostomes, Sturgeon, and Lepidosiren are exceptions,
having the pseudobranchiae, but wanting the vasoganglia.
M or my r us, Cobitis, Silurus, Pimelodus, Synodon, Murcena,
and some other genera of the serpentiform apodals, have
neither the pseudobranchiae nor the vasoganglia, but in
most osseous fishes in which they have been soug it or
they have been found existing together.
The only other parts of structure of the Plagiostomes that
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- we think it necessary to mention in the summary that our
tjo"- restricted limits compel us to resort to, are the organs of re-
^ Sharks. ^ prociuction> in tilese flghes tiie secreting organs, or melts,
are of compact oval or oblong form, and their efferent
tubes communicate with the ureters, and terminate upon a
rudimental organ in the cloaca. The claspers are present
in the Chinueridm as well as Plagiostomi, as appendages to
the posterior edges of the anal fins, and have a fissure to¬
wards their ends, leading to a blind subcutaneous sac, which
is well lubricated with mucus. In the Rays a glandular
body adds its secretions to this mucus. The ovaria are
smaller than those of osseous fishes, and the ova compara¬
tively few in number. Some of the genera are viviparous,
others ovo-viviparous, and others again merely oviparous.
SHARKS.
The ScYLi.irDiE or Dog-fishes, have the anal fin situated
either before or beneath or behind the second dorsal, and are
mostly spotted or coloured with lively tints. Their French
names are Rousette or Rocher. The typical genus Scyllium
has two representatives on the British coasts, Sc. canicula
and Sc. catulus, both very common, and constantly taken by
the fishers with bait at all the fishing stations round the
coast, but more plentiful among the Orkney Islands than
elsewhere. They are scarcely ever brought to market, but
the fishermen do not disdain to eat them. Their flesh is
remarkably white, but a little fibrous and dry. In the
Orkneys they are skinned, split up, cleaned, aud then
spread out on the rocks to dry for home consumption. The
skins are used for smoothing down cabinet work. There
is no reason why the fins of these and other Sharks, so ex¬
tensively used in China for making gelatine soups, should
not be applied to the same purpose in this country, or dried
for exportation to the East. Both the British species
exist in the Mediterranean also. Six different species fre¬
quent the seas that wash the Cape of Good Hope, and there
are at least two on the coasts of Japan and China. The
only described species of Pnstiurm is a Mediterranean one,
but individuals sometimes stray northwards to the British
Channel; and one procured by Mr Couch, at Polperro in
Cornwall, is figured by Mr Yarrell under the appellation of
the “ Black-mouthed Dog-fish.” It is known at Madeira
as the “ Leitao de Mar,” but is considered to be extremely
rare. 1 he handsome Hemiscyllia are Australian, and the
Chiloscyllia belong to the Indian Archipelago and Poly¬
nesia. The curious bearded Crossorhynus frequents the
seas of Japan as well as those of Australia, where it was
first discovered, having thus a range extending over many
parallels of latitude. Ginglymostoma has a representative
in the Indian Ocean and Red Sea, and another on the coast
of Cayenne, and Stegostoma belongs wholly to the Eastern
seas. Stegostoma fasciata is one of the most beautiful of
the order, and has been observed of the length of fourteen
or fifteen feet, with a large and blunt head, and tapering
body. A few years ago one of them followed for several
hours a Liverpool East Indiaman off’ Madagascar. It was
elegantly transversely banded with alternate whitish and
dark brown or blackish fasciae; and was further variegated
by ocellated spots or rings on various parts of its body,
which seemed to be about fourteen feet long. Its head ap¬
peared to be four and a half feet across, but the thickest
part of its body did not seem more than two feet in diameter.
It was accompanied by several Pilot-fish, which often swam
before and returned towards it. Several attempts were
made to catch it with large baits of fresh meat, but it never
ventured to seize one of them. The lower jaw was dis¬
tinctly visible whenever it opened its mouth, into which the
accompanying fishes seemed to the spectators to enter and
to leave at pleasure. The Scylliidce generally have the
parts about the nose and mouth more divided into cutaneous
VOL. xn.
321
lobes and barbels, evidently as organs of touch, and in Classifica-
harmony with their habits as Ground Sharks. For they tion—
require some guide to keep them from grazing against the ^arks-
bottom in their rapid pursuit of their prey.
Under the appellation of true Squali (Sguales propre-
ment dits), Cuvier comprehended all the remaining Sharks
except Zygoena and Squatina, which he characterized as
distinct genera. His genus Squalus, therefore, included the
Carchand(e, Galeidce, Lamnidce, Alopeciidce, Rhinodontidce,
and Scymnidce of Muller. In Mr Owen’s table, the Spina-
cidce, Lamnidce, Alopeciidce, and Scymnidce are separated
from the Squali of Cuvier, and the remainder of that group
are denominated, after Muller, which are chiefly,
therefore, Carcharidce and Galeidce. The presence of a nic¬
titating membrane to the eye is accompanied with a greater
induration of the skeleton. This membrane, as it exists in
Galeus, is superadded to a well developed circular palpebral
fold of the skin. A superficial membrane or conjunctiva is
reflected from the circular eyelid over the third eyelid, which
is placed on the nasal side of the orbit. The third or nicti¬
tating eyelid is raised, and the upper part of the circular one
depressed at the same time by muscular action when the
fish wishes to close the eye. In our arrangement of the ge¬
nera. we have generally followed the Plagiostomen of Muller
and Henle, whose generic characters we have abridged,
not having access at present to Muller’s later wmrks.
I he Carcharid^e are armed with teeth which, by their
arrangement in a linear series, make a sharp saw, each tooth
in the majority of species being also serrated on the edge.
The common form of the upper teeth is that of the tip of a
lancet, frequently oblique, one shoulder of the lancet being
more curved than the other. The teeth of the lower jaw
are either similar to the upper ones, or have narrower cusps,
according to the species. Each jaw supports several rows
of teeth, the anterior row on the edge of the jaw being
erected for use, and the posterior ones lying flat in the hollow
ot the cartilage, and coming forward in succession as they
are required by the decay and loss of the front ones. No
animal possesses a more perfect incisorial apparatus than
these massive but powerfully active tyrants of the deep.
They have been know n to divide the body of a man in two
at one bite, as if by the sweep of a sword, and we once had
an opportunity of observing how clean a cut a Shark’s jaws
were capable of making. A piece of salt-beef weighing
about 14 lbs. was hanging over a ship’s stern, suspended by
a strong cord in a net of sinnet. Sinnet is the sea term for
a flat plait of rope yarns, more pliable but equally strong with
rope containing the same quantity of material, and, from its
looseness of texture, capable of stretching more, and less
easily cut. In this instance, the sinnet forming the meshes
of the net w^as of the wideness of two fingers’ breadth. The
beef just dipped below the surface of the water or rose above
it, as the ship’s stern rose and fell with the gentle swell of a
tropical sea. Suddenly a Shark came up from the deep, and
before the spectators could raise the beef on which a hungry
party hoped to make a dinner, the monster turned his mouth
gently upwards, and, without plunge or struggle, carried off
the beef and half the net to the depths into which he imme¬
diately descended. The sinnet was cut evenly across as if
wnth a razor. Had it been torn by the mere weight of the
fish, the rope yarns would have hung out of unequal lengths,
and the seamen considered that on exposure to a simple
strain, the rope by which the net was suspended would have
broken long before the net itself gave way. A Shark killed
near Marseilles, is alleged to have had the entire body of a
man and several fish in its stomach ; and one captured off
Santa Margaretta is said to have contained the carcass of a
horse. Its weight was 1500 pounds. The cartilaginous
jaws of Sharks shrink at least a third in drying, and cannot,
as they lose their moisture, be kept at full stretch without
tearing, yet specimens are not very rare in museums which
2 s
322
ICHTHYOLOGY.
may be slipt over a stout man easily. The widest jaws
usually met with are those of Carcharias, Oxyrhino,, Selache,
and Odontaspis. .
Of the Galeim, or Topes and Hounds, we have two Bri¬
tish examples, one the Goleus cunis, named by the fisher¬
men of different localities “ Penny-dog and “Millers Dog,,
but more generally the “ Tope,” an appellation which Artedi
says is Cornish. Galeocerdo arcticus is a northern species
that frequents the seas of Feroe, Iceland, and Norway ; an¬
other species of the same genus inhabits the Indian Ocean.
The Mustelus leer is, or vulgaris of Muller and Henle, is fre¬
quent enough on the British coast. Its flat pavement-like
teeth indicate crustaceans as its chief food, which they are
adapted for crushing. It gives less trouble to the fishermen
than the other Ground Sharks, which are constantly taking
his bait or driving away the fishes he is desirous of catching.
Its rich diet improves the quality of its flesh, which is con¬
sidered in the Orkneys to be more delicate than that of the
Sea-dogs or Scyllii.
Lamniive. Of this family the Lamna cornubica, so well
known on the southern coast of England, and the only mem¬
ber of its own genus, is an example. It is, from its size and its
dentition, the most formidable of the Sharks of common oc¬
currence in the English Channel. One caught in 1834, oft
the coast of Caithness, and now in the College Museum of
Edinburgh, measured eight and a half feet in length and
four feet eight inches in circumference. Its teeth are
upwards of an inch in length, flatly compressed, thin-edged,
but not serrated; in outline each tooth is triangular, and
the older teeth, have one toothlet sometimes at the base on
each side. In the upper jaw, the tooth which follows the
first two is smaller than them or than the one which succeeds
it. In Oxyrhina the teeth near the symphysis are long and
strong, like spike-nails, tapering to a point and slightly
curved; anteriorly they are flat, and posteriorly convex.
They are the most formidable-looking teeth that any of the
existing Sharks possess, but are calculated rather for holding
and tearing their victims than for sawing or cutting. Selache
maxima is a northern species that frequents the Greenland
and Spitzbergen seas, and descends in the summer to the
coasts of New Jersey on the American side, and to the
British Channel on the European side of the Atlantic. The
teeth are comparatively small, and the habits of the fish, as
far as known, are not remarkable for rapacity. In the
numerous instances in which it has been captured on the
coast of Scotland, nothing has ever been found in its stomach
but fragments of sea-weed. It attains a large size, growing
to thirty-six feet or more, but it is indolent and not very
sensible to slight wounds. It is often seen lying on the
surface of the water with its dorsal fin raised in the air,
whence it has obtained the names of Sail-fish, Sun-fish, and
Basking Shark. While thus reposing, it may be easily
approached by a boat and harpooned. It enters the bays
on the northern shores of Great Britain in the months of
June and July, sometimes in numbers but more commonly
in pairs, and retires on the approach of cold weather. It
is a profitable capture, since eight barrels of fine oil have
been procured from the liver of a full-grown fish. Sir
Everard Home described much of the anatomy of this fish,
with the help of Mr Clift who was the operator, but Sir
Everard was mistaken when he referred the supposed Sea-
snake, driven on shore in the Orkneys in 1808, to be this
species. The enormous length of the Orkney animal, the
smallness of its head and of the adjoining vertebrae, still pre¬
served in the Museum of Edinburgh University, prove it to
have been some great cartilaginous fish yet to be made pro¬
perly known to naturalists. The parts that were saved were
described by Dr Barclay in the Transactions of the Werne¬
rian Society.
The Alopecias vulpes is distinguished from the rest of
the sub-order by the extreme length of the upper lobe of
its tail, exceeding that of the body. It is from the resem- Classifica-
blance of this fin to the long brush of a fox, that Mr Yarrell
ascribes the origin of its appellation of Sea-Fox, a name by ^ ^ ar ^,
which Aristotle makes mention of it, and which has been
handed down to us by JElian and Pliny. It generally re¬
ceives the name of “ Thresher” from seamen, on account
of its attacking the whale, and striking it violent blows with
its tail. Mr Yarrell (i., p. 144) gives a lively account of a
combat of this kind, in which a party of Threshers, assisted
by a Sword-fish, had nearly mastered a whale when the ob¬
server lost sight of them. The species attains the length
of at least fifteen feet; but its jaws are not constructed for
swallowing a prey equal in bulk to that which a Carcharias
of equal length would ingulf.
Cestracions. This family contains only two species, and
perhaps only one, for the difference between the Cestraaon
zebra of Japan and the Cestracion Phillipi of the Australian
seas, hitherto ascertained, are chiefly those of patterns of
colour, which are certainly very dissimilar in fishes taken in
the two localities. Muller and Henle considered them to be
mere varieties of one species, and it is to be wished that
some competent ichthyologist who has an opportunity of
seeing recent specimens from both places, would strictly
compare one with the other. Jhe genus is one of much
interest to geologists, as the fossil teeth of Cestracions are
of older date than those of any other existing genus of
fishes. The Cestracion received the name of the “ Nurse
in Australia, and the Chinese call it “ Cat-Shark or
“ Kitten-Shark.” Specimens of the young are often found
in the Canton insect-boxes.
Hexanchus griseus, one of the Notidamdee, inhabits the
Mediterranean Sea, but occasionally strays to the English
shores. The British Museum possesses one taken off the
Isle of Wight.
The Acanthias vulgaris, the spined Dog-fish, is another
of the Sharks that is confined to no one district of the ocean.
It is found on both sides of the Atlantic, N. and S.,
in the Mediterranean, and in the South seas. It is very
common in the British seas; and, according to Mr Couch,
as quoted by Yarrell, sometimes occurs in almost incredible
numbers, 20,000 having been taken in a scan, at one time,
on the coast of Cornwall. It does much injury to the
fishermen by cutting their lines and carrying off their hooks.
The Hammer-headed Sharks, Zygfence or Sphyrnce, are
very plentiful in the Bight of Benin, and are considered to
be more blindly voracious than others, and therefore more
dangerous. They may be often seen ascending from the
clear blue depths of the ocean like a great cloud. The ex¬
traordinarily elongated orbits are flexible in the early stage
of the fish’s development, and in the foetus are doubled in
upon themselves, so that the head occupies less than half
the space it would otherwise do; neither does the head
attain its final shape till the fish is grown to a considerable
size. These foetal specimens, from their convenient size, of
a foot in length or so, are the most common in museums,
and have given rise to some misapprehension respecting
the true shape of the head of the adult fish; and as the
transverse distance between the eyes becomes proportionally
greater with the age of the fish, several nominal species
have been introduced into our lists. M. Valenciennes
{Mem. duMus.'nsf in a dissertation on this genus, has given
the forms of the heads of several; and in the Supplement to
Mr Yarr ell’s British Fishes, an outline of the head of a young
specimen of Sphyrna Blochii, copied from M. Valenciennes,
and one of an older fish captured by Dr Cantor, are placed
side by side, and show well the remarkable change of form
which age produces, for Sph. Blochii and laticeps are the
same species. A female Sph. Zygcena, measm ing nearly
eleven feet, examined by the active naturalist just named
at Penang, contained thirty-seven living young. 1 his
species is almost cosmopolitan, having been taken in the
Sharks.
Classifica- English Channel, or both sides of the Atlantic, in the Medi-
tion— terranean, Bay of Bengal, Indian Archipelago, and seas of
^ Australia, China, and ,Japan. We have transferred the
family of Zygenidce,, from its place after the Carcharidce in
Miillei and Henle s Plagiostomen, to the neighbourhood of
the Squatinidce, where it stands in Owen’s table.
Order XI.—PLAGIOSTOMI.
Endo-skeleton cartilaginous or partially ossified; exo-skeleton
placoid. Gills with five or more apertures. No swim-bladder.
Scapular arch detached from the head. Ventrals abdominal- in¬
testine with spiral valve. Copula gaudent.
Sub-Order I.—SQUALI.
Plagiostomi, with lateral gill-openings. Free supplementary
eyelids; incomplete scapular arch ; and no naso-pectoral cartilage.
ANALYTICAL TABLE OF THE SQUALI (Dum.)
Pectorals not notched.
Head short, obtuse ; teeth tricuspid ; gill-open- 1
ings over pectorals  | Scyllium.
Spout-holes none.
Forehead abnormal, ivide, eyes laterally stilted....Zi\GM^x.
Forehead of the usual squaloid form.
Gill-openings before the pectorals Lamna.
Gill-openings over the pectorals Carcharias.
Spout-holes present.
Teeth serrated, denticulated.
Dorsals two Galeus.
Dorsal solitary Notidanus.
Teeth not denticulated.
Teeth flat.
Anal distinct.
Dorsal pointed  Mustelus.
Dorsal rounded Cestracion.
Anal wanting; dorsals with spines Spinax.
Teeth not flat.
Teeth trenchant.
Dorsals with spines Centrina.
Dorsals without spines  Scymnus.
Teeth conical, pointed, very numerous Selache.
Pectorals notched in front, affording space for the qill- 1 „
openings     Squatina.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
323
(A.) Sharks, with an anal fin, and the dorsals far back ; the
first being behind the ventrals.
Family L—SCYLLIIDiE.
Scyllia, Mull, and Henle. Spout-holes. No nictitating mem¬
brane. Five gill-openings, the last one over the base of the pec¬
toral fin. A furrow at the corner of the mouth; an upper and
under labial cartilage. Teeth with a pointed medial cusp, and
four or five radical toothlets on either side. Caudal longitudinally
extended, truncated or rounded at the end, with or without a trace
of an under lobe, hut having a notch on the under side near the
end; no caudal pit; oviparous. Eggs resembling those of a Skate;
intestinal valve spiral.
Genus I. Scyllium, Mull, and Henle. First dorsal between
the ventrals and anal; the second between the anal and caudal.
Spout-holes close behind the eyes. Gill-openings equidistant, the
last pair over the pectoral. Snout short, blunt; nostril near the
mouth, connected with it by a furrow, and having a valve. Der¬
mal ossicles or scales tricuspid. Eleven species.
Genus II. Pristiukus, Bonap. Scyllia, but with an elongated
snout. Upper edge of the caudal serrated by a row of flat spine-
lets; a trace of an under caudal lobe; second dorsal over the end
of the anal. Eggs smooth as in Scyllium. One species.
Genus III. Hemiscyllium, Mull, and Henle. Nostrils reach¬
ing to within the mouth; nasal flaps distinct, outer one large,
inner one with a barbel. Spout-holes large, longitudinal under the
hinder half of the eyes. Gill-openings as in Scyllium. Both dorsals
behind the ventrals and before the anal, which latter is close to the
caudal; caudal notched, without an under lobe. Two species, vide
%. 11. 1
Genus IV. Chiloscyllium, Mull, and Henle. A broad cuta¬
neous under lip, with a transverse furrow behind it; the elongated
under fold at the corner of the mouth attached in the middle. Teeth
pointed, with one or two radical toothlets on each side. Spout-
holes longitudinal, close behind the eyes. Fourth and fifth gill-
openings close together. Dorsals placed as in Hemiscyllium. Six
species.
Genus V. Crossorhinus, Miill and Henle. Mouth large, Classifica-
nearer the end of the snout than in most Sharks. Head broad and tion 
flat; many cutaneous tags about the nasal flaps and sides of the Sharks,
head. Teeth trilobate. Spout-holes unusually long, beneath and
somewhat behind the eyes. Gill-openings equidistant, decreasing " v
in size from first to the last, which is over the pectoral. Dorsals
between the ventrals and anal, the latter close to the caudal. One
species.
Genus VI. Ginglymostoma, Miill. and Henle. (Nebrius, Riipp.)
Snout blunt; a long barbel from the inner side of the nostrils;
corner fold of the mouth divided by a deep transverse furrow, the
under portion subdivided by a longitudinal furrow. Teeth very
numerous, in ten successive rows, each having a simple rhomboidal
base, a conical mesial point, and from two to four toothlets on each
side. Fifth gill-opening almost concealed within the fourth. Spout-
holes very small, directly behind the eyes. First dorsal over the ven¬
trals ; caudal very long, having a rudimentary under lobe ; pectorals
long. Two species.
Genus VII. Stegostoma, Mull, and Henle. Mouth small,
quke transverse. Teeth small, tripartite. The skin between the nasal
flaps wider than the flaps, and forming an outer upper lip. A stout
barbel, formed by a prolongation of each nasal flap. Corner folds
of the mouth short, with deeji pits. Head depressed and rounded.
Spout-holes perpendicular slits behind the eyes. Fifth gill-open¬
ing concealed within the fourth ; the last three over the pectoral •
caudal very long, almost of even height throughout, and notched
as usual towards the end. One species.
(B.) Sharks, with two dorsals and an anal; the first dorsal
over the space between the pectorals and ventrals.
nictitating membrane. No spout-holes ; the last two
gill-openings over the pectoral.
Family II.—CARCHA RIDAS.
Carcharice, Mull, and Henle. Nostrils generally small, with a
three-sided flap on their upper border. Pupil perpendicularly
oval. Mouth boldly convex, with a small corner fold. Teeth com¬
pressed, triangular, with an entire or serrated cutting edge. Cau¬
dal always with a short under lobe, and a notch below near the end
of the upper lobe. A pit above and below at the base of the tail.
Intestinal valve rolled longitudinally, not spirally. Scales small.
Skin smoothish.
Genus I. Carcharias, Mull, and Henle. Nostrils midway be¬
tween the mouth and end of the depressed snout. Labial carti¬
lages small or wanting. Yelk-bag connected with a kind of uterine
placenta; oviduct smooth or villous.
Sub-Genus I. Scoliodon. A mesial tooth in the upper jaw, none
in the lower one; cutting edges of the teeth entire, not serrated.
Second dorsal over the anal or its hinder end. Tail-pits distinct.
Upper and lower caudal lobes equal. Scales small, three-keeled.
Oviduct villous. Three species.
Sub-Genus II. Physodon. Teeth like those of Scoliodon, but
thicker and larger, and there are two small teeth on the mandible,
opposed to the single mesial upper tooth. First back fin close be¬
fore the ventrals, the second over the anal. One species.
Sub-Genus HI. Aprion. Teeth not serrated ; upper teeth straight
or slightly inclined outwards; under ones straight, with a small
point on a broader base. Three species.
Sub-Genus IV. Hypoprion. Base of the upper teeth strongly ser¬
rated or jagged on one or both sides ; their cusps smooth ; no ser-
ratures on the bases or points of the lower teeth. Two species.
Sub-Genus V. Prionodon. Teeth in one or both jaws finely ser¬
rated, oblique or straight, three-sided, or with a small cusp on a
broad base; generally a solitary mesial under tooth. Oviduct
smooth. Twenty species.
Genus II. Prionodon, Mull, and Henle. (Leptocarias, Smith.)
Nasal flap broad or prolonged into a barbel. Orbits longitudinal.
Corner folds of the mouth very small. Teeth of Scyllia, small and
numerous, alike in both jaws. Second dorsal and anal opposite, or
nearly so. Caudal as in Carcharias, or as in those ScylliidoB, in which
the under lobe is scarcely perceptible. Scales from three to seven
keeled. Two species.
(C.) Sharks, with two dorsals and an anal; first dorsal
between the pectorals and ventrals. A nictitating mem¬
brane. Spout-holes. The last two gill-openings over
the pectoral.
Family III.—GALEIDJE.
Galei, Mull, and Henle. Nostrils, orbits, mouth, and its corner
folds as in the Carcharidos, but with small labial cartilages. Spout-
324
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- holes small, elongated or round. Teeth alike in both jaws com-
tion- pressed, with cutting edges, and a cusp pointing obliquely out-
Sharks wards ; edges smooth, or serrated on the outside or on both sides,
v ' y Upper caudal lobe with one or two notches near its end. Tail-pits
absent or present. Intestinal valve spiral, or rolled lengthways.
Scales small, three-keeled, with a medial cusp.
Genus I. Galeus, Cuv. Spout-holes longish, half the length
of the orbits behind the eyes; pupil round above, angular below.
Teeth smooth on the inner edge, serrated on the outer one; cusp
smooth, upright; mesial teeth straight, jagged at the base on both
sides, and as large as the others. No tail-pits. A notch on the
upper caudal lobe. Intestinal valve spiral. Two species.
Genus II. Galeocerdo, Mull, and Henle. Spout-holes very
small, half the length of the orbits behind the eyes ; pupils as in
Galeus. Corner-pits of the mouth and labial cartilages indistinct.
Teeth denticulated on both edges; outer edge prolonged in form
of a coarsely jagged base ; a single mesial tooth on both jaws, with
the point turned to a side. Upper caudal lobe long and pointed ;
two notches on the under caudal border, one of them at the end of
the spine. A tail-pit above and below. Gut-valve rolled length¬
ways. Two species.
Genus III. Loxodon, Mull, and Henle. Pupil round. Teeth
alike in both jaws, oblique-edged, not serrated, basal projection on
the outside also entire ; a mesial tooth in the upper jaw, none in
the lower one. Spout-holes small, close behind the eyes. Tail-pits
above and below. A single notch in the upper caudal lobe. One
8I) Genus IV. Thalassorhinus, Valenc. Pupil perpendicularly
oval. Nasal flap very short. Teeth triangular, without a serrated
basal ledge. Spout-holes pretty large. Tail-fin as in Carcharias,
with a single notch ; tail-pits above and below conspicuous. Intes¬
tinal valve rolled lengthways. Two species.
Genus V. Triakis, Mull, and Henle. Head flat, blunt. Nasal
flap broad, moderately long; large pits at the corners of the mouth.
Labial cartilages. Spout-holes of medium size. Teeth and fins as m
Scyllia. Under caudal lobe indistinct. Tail-pits wanting. Scales
three-keeled and three-pronged. One species.
Genus VI. Mustelus, Artedi. Large spout-holes. Long orbits.
Nictitating membrane puffed out from the under eyelid. Teeth
pavement-like, flat, without cusp or cutting edge, resembling those
of the Rays. Labial cartilages at the corners of the mouth, and also
deep pits. Nostril bordered above by a three-sided cutaneous lobe
with a rounded tip and a short blunt lobule on the outside. First
dorsal nearly in the middle between the pectorals and ventrals ;
caudal short. Tail-pits indistinct. Intestinal valve spiral. One
species.
Genus V. Odontaspis, Agass. (Triglochis, Mull, and Henle.) Classifica-
Gill-openings large, wholly before the pectorals. Spout-holes very
small. Transverse folds on the throat; a stout triangular flap above
the nostril; no upper corner fold to the mouth. Second dorsal
and anal large ; upper caudal lobe elongated as in Carcharias.
Tail-pits indistinct or wanting. Fore teeth very long, conical, sim¬
ple, or with one or more very sharp basal toothlets; towards the
corners of the mouth the upper teeth are more incisorial and dimi¬
nish rapidly in size ; the under teeth are similar in form ; roots of
the tooth divided into two branches by a middle hollow. Second
dorsal over the space between the ventrals and anal. Scales three-
keeled, the keels ending in sharp points. Two species,
Family V.—ALOPECIIDA3, Mull, and Henle.
Snout short and conical; spout-holes very small; nostrils small
with a short superior flap; no labial cartilages. Gill-openings
small as in Carcharias ; the last one over the pectoral. Teeth com¬
pressed, not serrated on their cutting edges, alike in both jaws , no
tooth on the mesial line; a smooth crescentic fold of skin behind
the upper teeth. Second dorsal opposite to the anal, very small;
pectorals falcate; upper caudal lobe very long, wuth a pit at its
root. Scales small, three-pronged. Intestinal valve spiral.
Genus I. Alopecias, Mull, and Henle. (Alopias, Kafin.) Teeth
having the outline of a sharp isosceles triangle in both jaw s. Upper
lobe of the tail as long as the body. One species, A. vulpes.
Family VI.—CESTRACIONTIDyE.
Cestraciontes, Miill. and Henle. Mouth at the fore end of
the snout. Nostrils slit to within the mouth. Spout-holes distinctly
visible, rather behind the eye. Gill-openings small, the last one
above the pectorals ; a spine forming the front of each dorsal.
Tail short; its upper lobe notched underneath. Pavement-like
teeth in rounded oblique scrolls, like the spines of some univalves.
Genus I. Cestracion, Cuv. Caudal wide, and strongly notched
below. Two species, Pacific Ocean, from Japan to Australia.
Family VII.—RHINODONTID^E, Mull, and Henle.
Rhinodontes, Miill. and Henle. Head flat. Mouth and nos¬
trils at its extremity ; nasal flap triangular. Teeth extremely small,
and very numerous, card-like, conical. Spout-holes very small.
Gill-openings diminishing in size as they recede from the head ;
the last one above the pectoral. Caudal crescentic, its upper lobe
not notched. Lateral keels on the keel and pits. Intestinal valve
spiral.
riTnxTTTa T PwTwnnnM Smith. One SDecies.
(D.) Sharks, with two dorsals and an anal ,* the first dor¬
sal over the space between the pectorals and ventrals.
Spout-holes, but no nictitating membrane.
Family IV.—LAMNIDiE.
LAMN.E, Mull, and Henle. Gill-openings large, all anterior to
the pectorals. Second dorsal and anal roundish, of equal size, and
opposite to one another. Tail-pits evident. Caudal crescentic.
Tail keeled on the sides. Spout-holes very small. Intestinal valve
^Genus I. Lamna, Cuv. Snout a pointed three-sided pyramid;
nasal flap short, three-sided. Spout-holes very small, far behind
the eyes. Teeth compressed, not serrated, triangular, with an acute
basal toothlet on each side of the older ones ; surface of the base that
rests on the jaw deeply concave ; in place of mesial teeth, a vacant
space above and below. Skin smooth. Scales very small. One
species.
Genus II. Oxyrhina, Agass. Snout, spout-holes, and fins ot
Lamna. Teeth very thick, narrow and long, nail-shaped, cutved,
without basal toothlets; each tooth flat before, convex behind, di¬
minishing rapidly in size towards the corner of the mouth, and
double rooted with a deep notch between the roots; a vacant me¬
dial space on both jaws, and the third tooth of the upper jaw smaller
than its neighbours. Three species.
Genus HI. Carcharodon, Mull, and Henle. Snout, position
of fins and spout-holes, as in Oxyrhina. Teeth of Carcharias, but
straight, equilateral, and without a basal ledge; no mesial tooth ;
the third upper tooth is a little smaller than the adjoining ones.
One species.
Genus IV. Selache, Cuv. Snout short, blunt; spiracles small.
Gill-openings very large, nearly meeting on the throat. Teeth very
small and numerous, conical, without toothlets or lateral notches,
curved backwards. Scales small, with radiating curved points, so
that the skin feels rough to the finger drawn over it in any direc¬
tion. One species. S. maxima.
(E.) Sharks, with one anal and only one dorsal.
Family VHL—NOTIDANHEE, Mull, and Henle.
Galei, without a first dorsal. Upper corner-fold of the mouth
very large, under one small; no nictitating membrane. Spout-
holes vertical, small. Six or seven gill-openings decreasing gradu¬
ally in size, all before the pectorals. A mesial upper tooth; to¬
wards the corners of the mouth the teeth are low and flat; the others
are triangular above, serrated below, the foremost ones crowde
and curved. A small inferior caudal lobe, obliquely truncated and
notched at the end. No tail-pits. Intestinal valve spiral.
Genus I. Hexanchus, Rafin. Six gill-openings. One species.
Genus II. Heptanchus, Rafin. Seven gill-openings. iwo
species.
(F.) Sharks, with spout-holes. Two dorsals; no anal; no
nictitating membrane. Five gill-openings, all before
the pectorals. Intestinal valve spiral.
Family IX.—SPINACID^E, Mull, and Henle.
Each dorsal fronted by a spine.
Genus I. Acanthias, Bonap. Head flat. Large pits at
corner of the mouth. Two labial cartilages. Mouth very flatly
arched. Spout-holes large, behind and rather above the eyes, with
a thick border springing from their fore edges ; orbits long Teeth
on both jaws incisorial, the edge almost horizontal, with the point
directed laterally, and the base keeled interiorly. First dors
over the space between the pectorals and ventrals i second dorsa
between the ventrals and caudal ; upper caudal lobe the bigger
one. An upper tail-pit in some. Male claspers tipped by a move-
able spine. Scales heart-shaped, with a middle cusp and one or
more keels. Four species.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
325
Jlassifica-
tion—
Sharks.
Genus II. Spinax, Bonap. Head arched. Snout blunt; nos¬
trils at the extremity of the snout. Folds at the corner of the
mouth very large, naked; under one encircling the under lip and
uniting with its fellow ; a labial cartilage at the upper corner of
the mouth. Under teeth as in Acanthias, but without keel and
basal apophysis; upper teeth as in Scyllium, but with a longer,
straight, conical, mesial cusp, and two pointed lateral toothlets on
each side. No tail-pits. Claspers not furnished with a prickle.
Curved hairs in place of scales. One species.
Genus III. Centrina, Cuv. Snout short, thick, and flat, with
the nostrils near its edge ; nasal flap quadrilateral. Fold at the
corner of the mouth naked, blending on the mesial line with the rest
of the integument. Spout-holes very large, behind and somewhat
above the eyes, vertical, and crescentic, with a single flap. Upper
teeth slender, conical, straight, and feebly incisorial, connected
with the integument of the front of the jaw, and notched in the
middle of their base; under teeth very nearly straight, broader
and flatter than the upper ones, keenly cutting, sub-equilateral
and finely serrated, with their bases nearly quadrangular; mesial
tooth single, perfectly equilateral. Dorsal spines enveloped in
skin to their points; no under caudal lobe and no notch. Male
claspers soft, spineless. Scales consisting of an upright cusp on a
quadrangular base. One species.
Genus IV. Centrophorus, Mull, and Henle. Head flat. Nos¬
trils near the end of the snout. Folds at the corner of the mouth
naked, large, and deep, with a slit running backwards from them.
Spout-holes behind and above the eyes, furnished with a flap.
Fourth and fifth gill-openings near each other. Teeth of the under
jaw as in Acanthias, and either serrated or entire ; their roots a
middle upright keel with a tranverse exterior lobe; upper teeth
straight, equilateral with quadrangular bases traversed by two
crossing keels, no denticulations, no accessary prongs or toothlets;
no mesial tooth. No tail-pits. Male claspers with an exterior
prickle near their tips. Two species.
Genus V. Centroscyllium, Mull, and Ilenle. Upper and under
teeth similar, straight, pointed with one or two lateral cusps or
toothlets, as in Scyllium. Distinguished from Spinax by the teeth
being alike in both jaws. Scales pointed, with a stellate base. One
species.
Family X.—SCYMNIDJE, Mull, and Henle.
Scymni, Mull, and Henle. Dorsal fins without spines. Upper
teeth pointed ; lower ones trenchant, not denticulated. No tail-pits.
Genus I. Scymnus, Cuv. Head either flat, or compressed on
the sides. Spout-holes far behind the eyes. Teeth of the upper jaw
upright, curved; under teeth broader, with an upright or an in¬
clined edge. Gill-openings small. No tail-pits.
Sub-Genus I. Scymnus, with lancet-shaped under teeth, convex
anteriorly, sharp on the sides, rising from a high base; the me¬
sial tooth below as large as the others, and a bilobed root longer
than the cusp; upper teeth standing straight forwards, with their
sides inclined outwards. Claspers without a prickle. Two species.
Sub-Genus II. Lcemargus, Mull, and Henle. Upper teeth small,
longer than wide, conical, feebly incisorial, without serratures ; an
upright anterior keel, and a notched base; under teeth broader
and longer, with a recumbent edge as in Acanthias, no serratures;
and a long flat root, concave lengthways, and keeled perpendicu¬
larly anteriorly. Male claspers with a prickle. Three species.
Genus II. Echinorhinus, Blain. Goniodus, Agass. Head flat;
corner-pits of the mouth widely apart. Teeth broad and low, with
a nearly horizontal edge ; on the lateral edge, from one to three
small cusps or toothlets ; a space at the symphysis of the under
jaw, with a very small mesial tooth in its centre. First dorsal over
the ventrals; no under caudal lobe. Gill-openings not wide, all
before the pectorals. One species.
Genus III. Pristiophorus, Mull, and Henle. Separated from
Pristis by the want of a naso-pectoral cartilage, the posterior wall
of the nose being in this genus formed by the skull itself. Snout
greatly elongated, beset on both sides with spines, attached to the
skin only. A long barbel from the under surface of the snout.
Mouth transverse. Teeth pavement-like, with a short mesial cusp,
as in the male rays. First dorsal over the space between the pec¬
torals and ventrals. Side of the snout keeled. Fourth and fifth
gill-openings approximating. Two species.
Family XI.—SQUATINIDJE.
Squatince, Mull, and Henle. Body flat above and below. Mouth
at the extremity of the snout. Eyes on the dorsal aspect. Spout-
holes large, behind the eyes. Pectorals large, their expanded roots
interposing between the head and body, but divided from them by
a furrow, in which are situated the closely approximated gill-
openings.
Genus I. Squatina, Dum. Both dorsals on the tail, which is Classifica-
keeled on the sides. Male claspers small and weak. Scales coni- tion 
cal, with a terminal point. Teeth conical, irregular, with inter- Sharks,
spaces. Two species. ^ ^ ^ ^ * y
(G.) Sharks, similar to those of division B, in having a nic¬
titating membrane and no spout-holes, and in the po¬
sition of the spineless dorsals ; but with a lateral exten¬
sion of the skull at the orbits, which is greatest in the
adults.
Family XII.—ZYGAENIDJE.
Sharks, head flat, with the orbits largely extended latterly, and
the snout truncated, or hammer-headed; a form of head not found
in any other group of fishes.
Genus I. Zyg.en.e, Cuv. (Sphyrna, Kafin.) Sphyrnias and
Sphyrna, Rafin. Front of the head transverse to the ends of the
lateral orbital extensions of the skull. Nostrils on the front
border; nasal flap small, triangular on the inner edge of the nos¬
tril. Labial cartilages small. Teeth alike above and below, being
a compressed pyramid, with an entire or serrated exterior basal
ledge ; a mesial tooth in both jaws. First dorsal near the pectorals ■
second one over the anal. Distinct tail-pits. Oviduct villous •
yelk-bag connected to the sides of the ovisac. Four species. ’
Fig. 13G.
Head of Raia Lemprieri.
RAYS.
This sub-order, familiarly known by the name of Skates,
has for the general character of its form the extreme depres-
Fig. 137.
Urolophus ephippiatus, Australia.
sion of its body, and the lateral expansion of the pectoral
326
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica- fins forming a discoid or subrhomboidal body, with an ap- melyn of our own coasts in general form, and fig. 136 shows Classifica-
pended tail, which in the Rhinobatidce is fleshy and taper
ing, and in the Raiidce, Triygonidce, and some other groups,
is cartilaginous and slender, and sometimes elongated like
the thong of a whip. In some a narrow lancet-shaped spine
placed erect on the dorsal surface of this whip-like tail, with
its cutting edges turned sideways, proves a dangerous offen¬
sive weapon, which the fish can use with great effect. The
cartilaginous scapular arch is complete on the ventral sur¬
face, and running forwards at some distance, laterally from
the skull in a crescentic tapering point, gives support to
the long, jointed cartilaginous rays of the pectoral. In the
space between the hinder horns of the scapulo-coracoid
cartilages laterally, and the pelvic cartilages behind, lie the
abdominal viscera; while the branchial apparatus and vascular
centres occupy the posterior part of the spaces between the
anterior cornua of the scapular arch and the narrow skull.
On looking at the skeleton of a Skate, it will be seen that
the skull is comparatively narrow; that the cartilages sup¬
porting the branchial apparatus stand out like wings behind,
and those on which the eyes are placed also project laterally,
exactly like the prominent orbits of the Zygcena, but that
this lateral prominence is concealed in the entire Skate by
being inclosed between the points of the pectorals. Ante¬
riorly the skull is completed by a tapering cartilage whose
tip supports the end of the snout. In the Torpedinidce, a
cellular galvanic battery fills up the wide spaces between
the skull cartilages and the front horns of the pectorals.
Recently a homologous apparatus, but much smaller and
merely rudimentary, has been discovered in the ordinary
Skates—an indication seemingly of a general plan of struc¬
ture in the members of the group, irrespective of function,
which it has pleased the Great Architect of the Universe
to give.
Except in the genera Anacanthus, Aetobates, and Mylio-
bates, we are not aware of any species of Ray that is com¬
mon to both the Atlantic and Pacific districts of the ocean,
but several exist both in the Mediterranean and North seas.
Anacanthus africanus has been taken both in the Red Sea
and in the Gulf of Guinea. Myliobates Nieuhofii exists in
the Mediterranean, and in the Indian and Australian seas,
and Aiitobates narinari frequents the coasts of Brazil, as
well as the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean. Of the range
of species, however, we are not prepared to speak with con¬
fidence. What is at present known on the subject rests
chiefly on specimens in the European museums, examined
by Muller and Henle, whose work on the Plagiostomi is
the only one professing to include all the known species.
The great advances that ichthyology has made since the
publication of that work, and the attention now paid to ana¬
tomical structure in the definitions of species, will enable
future ichthyologists to enter on the inquiry of distribution
of species with great advantages. The Rays found on the
British coasts are Torpedo viarmorata, and T. nobiliana, of
only occasional occurrence, and much more abundant in
the Mediterranean ; Raia radtda, R. clavata, R. radiata,
R. batis, R. marginata, R. fullonica, R. oxyrhyncha, R.
microcellata, R. intermedia, R. lintea, and R. acus; Cepha-
loptera Giorna, Myliobatis aquila, and Trygon pastinaca.
Some of these are of daily occurrence in our markets, as
the R. batis, Blue or Grey Skate, Tinker or True Skate.
The R. oxyrhincha (L.), or miraleta (Yarr. Ed. 2da),
Homelyn, Spotted Ray, or Sand Ray, is stated by Mr
Yarrell to be one of the two commonest Skates brought to
the London market; the other being the R. clavata,
Thornback, Young Maidens, or Maiden Skate. Unlike
most fish, the Skate improves by keeping several days, being
hard and tough when cooked soon after it is caught. It is
one of the fish that the fishmongers are in the habit of
crimping. Figure 7, p. 123, represents the Raia Lemprieri,
an Australian Skate, which somewhat resembles the Ho-
the under surface of its head.
Some of the Cephalopteridce attain an enormous size.
One mentioned by Risso, taken off Messina, weighed 1250
lbs.; the male is usually the smallest. Of a pair spoken of
by this author, the female was first taken, and the male re¬
mained hovering about the boat for three days, and was
afterwards found floating dead on the surface. But the
size here spoken of is greatly surpassed by other fishes of
this order, which have been but imperfectly described, such
as the Raia Ranksii of Lacepede, referred with doubt to
the genus Ceratoptera by Muller and Henle. A fish of this
kind taken at Barbadoes required seven yoke of oxen to
draw it. A sketch of another, which was said to be 20 feet
long, was sent to Lacepede; and Levaillant, in his second
voyage to Africa, speaks of one which swam round the ves¬
sel, and appeared to be about 25 feet long and 30 wide.
Sonnini also mentions one which seemed to him to be longer
and wider than the ship in which he was sailing.
The Torpedinidce all possess electric organs, and it is the
space occupied by these batteries that gives the round or
truncated outline to the fore part of the fish. 1 he batteries
lie one on each side of the head, bounded behind by the sca¬
pular arch, and laterally by the anterior crescentic tips of the
pectoral fins. They consist of a congeries of vertical prisms,
whose ends are in contact with the integuments above and
below ; and each prism is subdivided by delicate transverse
septa, forming cells which contain a fluid, and are lined
within by an epithelium of nucleated corpuscles. Between
this epithelium and the transverse plates and walls of the
prism, there is a layer of tissue, on which the extreme
twigs of the nerves and vessels ramify. Hunter counted
470 prisms in each battery of the Torpedo galvani, and de¬
monstrated the enormous supply of nervous matter which
they receive. Each organ receives one branch of the tri¬
geminal nerve, and four branches of the vagal nerve, the
former and the three anterior branches of the latter being
each as thick as the spinal chord. The fish gives the elec¬
tric shock voluntarily, when excited to do so in self-defence,
or when roused to kill its prey ; but to receive the shock
the object must complete the galvanic circuit by communi¬
cating with the Torpedo at two distinct points, either di¬
rectly or through the medium of some conducting body.
The shock received on handling the fish is described as too
strong to be willingly encountered a second time, and it is
said that a painful sensation may be produced by a discharge
conveyed through the medium of a stream of water.
Sub-Order II.—RALE.
Plagiostomi, with flat bodies, spout-holes. Five slit-like gill-
openings on the ventral aspect before the ventrals and under the
pectorals. Eyes and spout-holes on the dorsal aspect. A complete
scapular arch. Naso-pectoral cartilages. No eyelid, or an adnate
upper one only.
ANALYTICAL TABLE OF THE RAIPE (Bum.)
Tail long, and
Very thick at the root.
Snout prolonged.
Set laterally with teeth Pristis.
With even, thin, smooth edges Rhinobates.
Snout rounded, smooth   Rhina.
Slender
Dorsals two, caudal; disk rhomboidal RAJA.
Dorsal single or wanting.
Eyes on the dorsal aspect.
Teeth small; tail spiniferous TrYGON.
Teeth broad, flat, grinders MYLIOBATES.
Eyes lateral; head truncated, horned..CephalopteRUS.
Tail short; body smooth; electric organs visible Torpedo.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica¬
tion—
Rays.
Familv I.—PRISTIDiE.
Pristides, Mull, and Henle. Form of Sharks, with the gill-open¬
ings on the ventral surface as in the Rays; characterized by a
long flat narrow snout, set on the sides with strong bony spines, or
teeth forming a saw, with two edges; true jaw-teeth like those of
Mustelus.
Genus I. Pkistis. (Pristibatis, Blain.) Six species.
Family II.—RHINOBATIDiE.
Rhinos, Mfill. and Henle. Of an intermediate form between the
typical Rays and the Sharks. Fore part of the body forming a
disk by the conjunction of the pectoral fins with the snout; pecto¬
ral fins quadrangular, divided from the proper head part of the
disk by a furrow, and not reaching back to the ventrals. First
dorsal over the ventrals; caudal bilobate; upper lobe a little
larger ; the keels of the sides continued along the caudal fin. Mar¬
gins of the mouth undulated; three protuberances of the under
jaw fitting corresponding incurvations of the upper one. Nostrils
longitudinal near the mouth, with flaps.
Genus I. Rhina, Bloch, Schneid. Snout broad, rounded.
Spout-holes close behind the eyes. Nasal flaps reaching to the inner
corner of the nostril. Undulations of the jaws bold. Teeth almost
round, not broader than long. One species.
Genus II. Rhynchobates, Miill. and Henle. Snout pointed,
with a mesial tapering keel. Spout-holes close behind the eyes;
nasal flaps not reaching to the inner corner of the nostril, but only
halfway. Undulations of the jaws feeble. Teeth broader than long.
A transverse curved row of pores on the ventral aspect of the sca¬
pular arch. One species.
Genus III. Rhinobatus, Bloch, Schneid. Pectorals blending
imperceptibly with the sides of the snout; the space between them
and the skull cutaneous. Both dorsals on the hinder part of the
tail; ventrals longer than the head, rounded before, pointed be¬
hind; no under caudal lobe. Mouth transverse, straight, or
gently curved. Teeth pavement-like, with a transverse ridge more
or less acute. Spout-holes close behind the eyes. A row of pores
on the scapular girdle. Two sub-genera, Syrrhina and Rhinobatus,
varying in the extent of the nostril flaps. Eighteen species.
Genus IV. Trygonorhina, Mull, and Henle. Rhinobati, but
the nasal flaps uniting with one another to form a single flap,
which hangs over the mouth as in Trygon, leaving a round nasal
aperture on each side. Upper eyelid adnate, crescentic; fore mar¬
gin of the disk with a single incurvature. One species.
Genus V. Platyrhina, Miill. and Henle. Pectorals approaching
one another at the point of the snout, and inclosing the front of the
skull. Tail more slender than in the other Rhinobatidas. All the
fins rounded. Upper nasal flap triangular, extending above the
inner angle of the nostril. Upper eyelid as in Rhinobatus. No
raised edge at the spout-holes. Two species.
Family III.—TORPEDINIDiE.
Les Torpilles, Cuv.; Torpedines, Mull, and Henle. Tail short, less
thick and fleshy than in the Rhinobatidce, depressed, towards the
end cylindrical, keeled on the sides. Disk naked, rounded, without
scales or prickles. Ventrals immediately behind the pectorals;
dorsals none, or one or two on the tail; caudal sub-triano-ular!
Upper eyelid adnate. A quadrilateral flap, with a free edge between
the nostrils, furnishing folds which embrace all the nostril except
its lateral corner ; the flap is connected to the upper lip by a bridle.
Teeth pointed or flat. A galvanic battery occupying the space
bounded by the skull, gills, and pectorals. Teeth flat or cuspidate.
Genus I. Torpedo, Dum. (Narcobatis, Blain.) Two dorsals.
Disk rounded, anteriorly truncated evenly or with a slight incurva¬
ture. Mouth crescentic. Teeth pointed, attached to a jaw cartilage,
and not extending outwards beyond the margin of the lips ; base of
each tooth widest transversely. Spout-holes at a distance from the
eyes, with a cuticular fringe round the orifice. First dorsal bigger
than the second one, and situated over the hinder part of the ven¬
trals; caudal triangular with a straight terminal edge. Four
species.
Genus II. Narcine, Henle. Two dorsals. Disk roundish, ellip¬
tical or angular, rounded in front. Mouth small, surrounded by a
fold of skin which passes on the mesial line above into the bridle
of the nasal flap; this flap is transverse, straight, or with a medial
convexity, so as to become faintly three-lobed on the edge; a labial
cartilage above and below. Teeth in quincuncial order, with a middle
cusp, forming in the aggregate an elliptical plate, not adhering to
the jaw, but moving with the skin; a velum within the upper jaw.
Tail longer than the disk. Edges of the spout-holes not fringed,
r ive species.
Genus III. Astrape, Mull, and Henle. One dorsal. Snout
s ort, without a keel. Mouth as in Narcine. A cylindrical carti-
327
Rays.
lage in the bridle of the nasal flap. Cusps of the teeth on a quad- Classifica-
rangular base; dental plate overpassing the border of the mouth a tion-
little; velum within the mouth, above and below. Spout-holes near
the eyes, with smooth borders. Three species.
Genus IV. Temera, Gray. No dorsal. Mouth, vela, and nostrils
as in Astrape. Tail proportionally short. Spout-holes close behind
the eyes, with smooth borders. Teeth flat. One species.
Genus V. Discopyge, Heck. Disk orbicular. Mouth trans¬
verse, with thick lips at the corners; upper jaw having a dental
lamina, turning outwards, covered with minute teeth, in quincun¬
cial order. Teeth flat, rhomboidal, their hinder angle acute. Nasal
valve truncated, with a notched process in the middle; beneath joined
by a bridle to the circle of the mouth. Spiracles adjacent to the eye,
with naked borders. Ventrals united under the tail; dorsals two,
equal; caudals obliquely ovate.
Genus VI. Hemigaleus, Bleek. Temporal openings minute,
triangular; pupil convex above, narrow beneath. Premaxillary
teeth serrated on their outer edge, smooth internally ; mandibular
teeth slender, with a broad base not serrated. Conspicuous caudal
furrows above and below. Valve of the great intestine rolled up
longitudinally. Batavia. Two species.
Genus VII. Hypnos, Dum. Disk longish, somewhat notched in
the middle of the front border. Spout-holes close to the eyes, sur¬
rounded by a wreath of long and numerous fringes. No labial
cartilages. Mouth crescentic, not protractile. Pointed teeth on the
edge of the jaws, whose whole length they occupy, but do not go
beyond. Bridle of the nasal flap connected with the fore border of
the upper lip. Tail extremely short.
Family IV—RAIID^E.
Disk broad, rhomboidal, the two sides which meet to form the
lateral angle belonging to the pectoral fins; these are attached
posteriorly, as far back as the root of the ventrals, and flank the
point of the snout anteriorly ; dorsals near the tip of the tail. Tail
depressed, with a cuticular keel on the sides. Caudal wanting, or
existing as a mere cuticular seam. Upper eyelid adnate. Spout-
holes separated from the orbits by a slender cutaneous bridge,
smooth-edged. Nasal flap confluent with the upper lip, forming an
even surface, with a free rounded lobe on each side, that folds over
the nasal aperture. Mouth curved, with its convexity towards the
tip of the snout; no labial cartilages. Teeth of the males with a
central cusp in spawning time; an upper velum only. Skin
smooth, or studded with prickles pointed backwards, among which,
chiefly on the dorsal ridge, and on the sides of the tail, there are
often larger spines. In the males, sharp prickles are developed on
the borders of the pectorals in the spawning season. Oviparous.
Genus I. Raia, Cuv. (Dasybatis, Blain.) Snout keeled, with
the interior limits of the pectorals parallel to the keel, but sepa¬
rated from it by a cuticular space. Ventrals deeply notched be¬
hind, hence bilobate; anterior or outer lobe more narrow. Termi¬
nal caudal seam low, and more conspicuous above than below, gene¬
rally interrupted at the point. Thirty species.
Genus II. Sympterygia, Mull, and Henle. Pectoral fins unit¬
ing before the head and forming the point of the disk as in Trygon.
Yentrals not notched, being merely undulated posteriorly; caudal
as in Raia. One species.
Genus III. Uraptera, Mull, and Henle. Snout and ventrals
of Raia; no caudal. One species.
Family V.—TRYGONIDJS.
Trygones, Mull, and Henle. Point of the disk formed by the
pectorals. Upper eye-lid adnate. United nostril flaps free and
fringed, but bound to the upper lip by a slender mesial bridle;
nostrils closely approximated under the flap. Skull higher than
in the Rays. Spout-holes large and close behind the eyes. Teeth
transversely elliptical, with a ridge which is blunt, sharp, or cus¬
pidate. Ventrals not notched. Tail slender, often whip-like, with¬
out lateral keels; naked, or bearing one or more barbed spines.
No caudal. Skin smooth or tuberculated, or prickly. No prickles
are developed on the pectorals of the males, as in the Rays.
Genus I. Anacanthus, Ehrenb. No spine on the tail; which
also wants a fin with rays, but is either naked or furnished with a
cuticular seam merely. Two species.
Genus II. Trygon, Adan. (Trygonobatus, Blain.) Disk oval
or rhomboidal. Tail equal in length to the body, or longer,
bearing one or more spines without cuticular ridges, or with
short ones merely, not reaching the point. Teeth cuspidate, or
transversely ridged with cross furrows; upper velum deeply
fringed with a second crescentic one behind; generally a papilla
behind the under teeth. The species may be divided by the wholly
finless condition of the tail, or the existence of a cuticular seam
below, or of a seam above as well as below. Eighteen species.
328
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Classifica¬
tion—
Rays.
Genus III Pteroplatea, Mull, and Henle. Disk nearly twice
as broad as it is long. Tail for the most part shorter than the
body hearing one or more spines, with low cuticular seams, or quite
naked Mouth crescentic, with the dental plate reaching to its
corners. Teeth having from one to three cusps ; upper velum not
fringed ; no papill* behind the under teeth. Skin smooth or tu-
1)ere illa.ted. Three species. ^ #
Genus IV. T^eniuha, Miill. and Henle. Disk roundish. Tail little
longer than the body, depressed before the spine, which is near its
middle compressed posteriorly, with a high under-fin running from
near the spine to the end, together with a shorter or longer cuti¬
cular hem above, also reaching the point. Nostrils approximating
as in Trygon. Teeth with a transverse ridge or a cusp. Mouth
straight or undulated. Upper velum straight. No papillse below.
Five species.
Genus Y. Urolophus, Mull, and Henle. Disk roundish, egg-
shaped or rhomboidal. Tail destitute of a dorsal, but with a cau¬
dal which has cartilaginous rays, and reaches further forwards
below than above. Teeth and mouth as in Trygon; upper velum
gently scalloped ; under one with five warts. Four species.
Genus VI. Trygonoptera, Miill. and Henle. Tail short, broader
at the end, with a small rayed dorsal immediately before the spine.
Teeth rather acute. Disk as in Trygon. One species.
Genus VII. Aetoplatea, Valenciennes. A Pteroplatea, except
that it has a dorsal before the spine. One species.
Family VI.—MYLIOBATIDAS.
Head more elevated than in Raia, projecting as far as the gills,
beyond the pectoral disk, having no fin-rays on its sides, but a kind
of head fin is developed before the skull, making the point of the
disk. Nasal flaps forming the sides of a quadrangular flap which
reaches to the mouth, and is fringed posteriorly ; nostrils sepa¬
rated by a thin fillet merely, which conies from both angles of the
mouth over the quadrangular flap, and is slightly pointed in the
middle. Mouth transverse ; dental plates reaching far back in the
cavity of the mouth. Teeth large like mosaic pavement, even ;
upper velum very long, with a convex border fringed in the mid¬
dle ; under velum close to the teeth, with only one papilla behind.
Eyes and spout-holes in the sides of the skull; a broad bridge
between the spout-holes and eyes. No eyelids. Tail long, whip¬
like ; a dorsal fin on its root, and a spine behind the dorsal.
Genus I. Myliobates, Cuv. (Aetobates, Blain.) Union of the
antecephalic rays of the pectoral forming a pointed snout; nasal
flaps joined by a straight-edged membrane. Mouth transverse.
Teeth arranged in a mosaic pavement of long hexagonal plates in
the middle, and two or three rows of short quadrangular or hexa¬
gonal pieces on the sides; on the upper jaw the dental surface is
convex both longitudinally and transversely. Five species.
Genus II. Aetobates, Mull, and Henle. Snout pointed, not
notched ; under edge of the coalescent nasal flaps deeply notched;
the nasal bridle papillose. Upper jaw straight-edged; crowns of
the teeth in rows; the dental plates not extending to the sides of
the jaws. Two species.
Genus III. Khinoptera, Ivuhl. Snout deeply notched in the
middle. The antecephalic fin in a lower plane to that of the pec¬
toral, and joined to the inferior base of the latter. Nasal flap straight
posteriorly ; its lateral angles pointed. Jaws straight; teeth occu¬
pying the whole transverse breadth of the jaw, and forming from
three to five rows of transversely long, antero-posterior narrow hex¬
agonal plates, with smaller lateral ones as wide as they are long.
Six species.
Family VII.—CEPHALOPTERID^E.
Head straight transversely in front. The precephalic fins pro¬
ceed from the under edge of the pectorals, and project like ears on
the sides of the head, and curl upwards and inwards. Under edge
of the coalescent nasal flap straight; nostrils near the precephalic
fins, wide laterally. Teeth very small. Eyes on the sides of the
skull immediately before the commencement of the pectorals. Spout-
holes on the dorsal aspect, widely separated from the eyes. Tail
as long, or longer than the body, bearing a dorsal fin, and behind it
a spine.
Genus I. Cephaloptera, Dum. (Dicerobatis, Blain.) Mouth
on the ventral aspect. Teeth of both jaws small, flat, pavement-
like, of diverse forms. Pectoral fin prolonged forwards to a point
beyond the truncated head, looking like a horn; the edge of the
fin from this point to behind the eyes being convex. Four species.
Genus II. Ceratoptera, Mull, and Henle. Mouth at the end
of the snout; upper jaw crescentic on the edge ; under one convex ;
no teeth in the upper jaw ; on the under jaw they are small and
scale-like. Pectorals not passing the front of the head, a rayless
space between the cephalic portion and the body of the fin ; lateral
edge of the fin incurved at the head, and spreading outwards at the Classifica-
third gill-opening. Three species. Uon
In our preceding compendious review of the class of v ,
fishes, we have, as already stated, taken as our almost ex¬
clusive authority, with regard to structure. Professoi Rich¬
ard Owen, late Curator of the Museum of the College of
Surgeons of London, and now Zoological Superintendent
of the British Museum. From his lectures deliveied in
1844 and 1846 before the college our facts have been taken.
The great Histoire des Poissons of Cuvier and Valen¬
ciennes, which closed with the 22d volume in 1849, has
been our text-book for the characters of families and genera
of most of the osseous fishes, as well as for the few remarks
we have made on their species. Several families and gioups
of families not included in that work have been charac¬
terized by the labours of Dr Kaup of Darmstadt; and for
our analysis of the Plagiostomi, we have taken for our sole
text-book the treatise of Muller and Henle on that subject,
published in 1838. Some other works of Johannes Muller
that we wished much to consult, were not to be found in
those public libraries to which we had access, and we have
been unable therefore to give the latest views of that very
distinguished physiologist. We could not within encyclo¬
paedic limits enter into the discussion of disputed points, or
entertain questions respecting priority of names, and we
therefore have with scarcely an exception adopted the Sei|e"
ric names of the authorities we have mentioned, and also
their family groups, occasionally, however, for the sake of uni¬
formity changing the few terminations of the names of the
latter into idee where that had not been previously done,
intending by such uniformity of termination to denote more
readily the rank of the group in the system. The labour of
clearing up the intricate synonyms that have crept into the
science, is one of the greatest, and is certainly the most irk¬
some, that the ichthyologist has to encounter, and one whose
successful results are generally shown by the adoption of a
single word, giving no indication to the uninitiated of the
time, and research, and thought they have cost. It is, how¬
ever, a labour that cannot be lightly passed by ; for without
a correct determination of the species the descriptions are
useless or encumbering to science. Without such careful
preliminary work no one can enter at all upon the subject o
the geographical distribution of species. Yet that branch
of ichthyology, no less than the habits of the species, is o
vast importance to a maritime nation, desirous of extending
her fisheries, and thereby increasing the supply of a most
healthy and nourishing food for her teeming population,
and raising new nurseries for seamen.
However desirous we may be of adding a few words on
the geographical distribution of fish, the time has not yet
arrived for enunciating many observed facts. There is as
yet no general list of species comprising the whole class,
and in local lists our conclusions are universally marred by
the clashing of synonyms, and the superabundance of nomi¬
nal species. A work, however, has been going on for some
vears, silently almost, and without attracting a tithe of the
notice it deserves from scientific zoologists, but which,
when completed, will supply exactly what is l equii e . e
mean the Zoological Catalogues of the British Museum,
now in the course of publication in parts. The enlightened
plan of this catalogue, as conceived by Dr John Gray, the
keeper of the zoological department of the Museum, is to
comprehend descriptions of all known species, of which
specimens are to be found in any of the great European
museums, with a comparison of the actual specimens in
every instance in which that can be effected. In this way,
not only are the species in the British Museum correctly
named and pointed out, so as to relieve future inquirers of
a load of labour; but the species not to be found in the
Museum are also indicated. We know of no work on Na¬
tural History better planned, nor one that is likely to have
Geographi- more effect on the progress of Ichthyology. The Museum
C“ cAatal^ues] ofJhe Serpentiform Apodals, the Lemniscate
v , Apodals, the Mormynda and Balistidce, contain descrip-
tions of a great many species, previously unknown to the
world, and present comprehensive views of these groups no¬
where else to be found. The generic and higher groups
they characterize are embodied in our table. We cannot
enter further on the bibliography of Ichthyology, and must
refer the student to the Bibliographia Zoologica, published
by the Ray Society, where he will find all that he wants in
this respect.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
329
ON THE GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION
OF SPECIES.
This is a wide field for observation and discussion; but
the way for entering upon it with much hope of success has
not as yet been cleared. Systematic Ichthyology is but of
recent date; our acquaintance with the species offish is as
yet limited; our knowledge of their habits and migrations
very imperfect; and we should only lead to error, were we
to attempt to deduce general laws from such scanty data.
We can merely therefore glance at a few circumstances
connected with this department of Ichthyology, which, little
as it has hitherto been considered, will, when the science
has advanced to the proper point, certainly meet with the
attention it so fully merits. Temperature has an acknow¬
ledged influence, both directly and indirectly, on the distri¬
bution of organized beings over the globe. Vegetation
ceases, or nearly so, when we reach the regions of perpe-
tual frost, either by ascending lofty mountains, or sailing to¬
wards the poles; and even the Protococcus nivalis, that pro¬
pagates and flourishes in the snow, must owe its growth to
the action of the sun’s rays, in liquefying a portion of the
snow sufficient to furnish fluid for the extension of the
simple cells of which it consists. The range of phytopha¬
gous animals depends, of course, on that of the plants which
they can eat and assimilate ; and their distribution again in¬
fluences that of the predacious kinds which subsist solely
or mostly on animalized matter. Migration, though not
synonymous with distribution, yet inasmuch as it is an in¬
stinctive movement, having for "its end proper supplies of
food, must furnish many facts that bear on the dissemina¬
tion of species. The extent and character of the migra¬
tion varies with he species. Among Mammals it has been
little noticed, except in the gregarious Ruminants and cer¬
tain Rodents. The American bison roams over the prairies
m quest of fresh grass. When the herbage has gone to
seed in one locality, and the haulms are dried up, the vast
herds travel onwards till they find a younger and greener
vegetation in some district over which a fire has recently
run. This movement, whatever may be the extent of the
journey over these sea-like prairies, scarcely comes under
the term migration. But the reindeer, pressed by some
more recondite instinct, quits the interior where it has fed
in winter, and in herds of greater or smaller size, but in
numberless succession, and all actuated by a common im¬
pulse, hastens to the coasts and islands of Hudson’s Bay,
or of the Arctic Sea, passing rapidly over the intervening
barren districts wherein pasture is scanty; but throughout
the march regularly waited upon by bands of wolves.
Birds, with their greatly superior locomotive powers, per¬
form migrations much more remarkable for the length of
way. Vast numbers of Anatidce, natives of the extreme
capes and islands of Arctic America, assemble in flocks on
the approach of winter, and move southwards to pass that
season on the table-lands of Mexico and of Central Ame¬
rica, lingering on their way only in berry-producing or
marshy districts and coasts, and passing over the others
high in the air, and with great velocity. The annual mi-
VOL. XII.
grations of the Swallows are no less extensive than those of Geographi-
the Natatores, and are as evidently designed to secure an cal Distri-
appropriate succession of food. Every species has its pro- bution-
per range, that of some being of much greater extent both V'—
northwards and southwards than others. Of the Reptilian
class, the algivorous Chelonians resort in numbers to cer¬
tain solitary and sandy shores, for the purpose of depositing
their eggs, but there is, as far as we know, no extensive
migration of any member of that class in search of food.
1 he Pinnotheres, a family of Crustaceans, also assemble
annually in multitudes, descend from their usual places of
abode in the interior, and travel in a straight line to the
sea, to deposit their eggs in the sand of the shore. It is
questionable whether any kind of fish makes long migra¬
tions either to seek for food or to deposit its eggs. Her¬
rings have been said to do so, and to issue from their polar
retreats to visit their proper spawning places on the coasts
ot Scotland; but as regards the length of their journey, this
is probably a mistake, though there can be no doubt that
in common with many other fishes, they seek the shallow
waters at spawning time; and it is true also, that the com¬
mon Herring exists in the arctic seas, but it is precisely in
the spawning months that it has been taken off the arctic
shores of America, as well as in the British friths.
In respect of the power of making long journeys, many
Wishes are as favourably endowed as the swiftest bird,—their
muscular powers are as great or greater, and the medium
in which they move is more nearly equal to their bodies in
gravity. Whoever has seen the Dolphin {Coryphama) nc-
companying for days together a fast-sailing vessel running at
speed before a fresh trade-wind, and occasionally shooting
ahead, or playing round her as if she were at anchor, can have
no doubts about the velocity with which a fish can travel.
It has been calculated, indeed, that the Salmon can travel 20
miles an hour against the stream, and that the Tunny or
Coryphcena would encircle the globe in a few weeks. This
shows us, that unless the diffusion of a species be limited
by other causes, mere distance is no obstacle to very many
fishes. A bird in its migratory flight can soar high, and
take advantage of the upper or lower currents of the air
that may be favourable for its course, while at the same
time it carries along with it the temperature of the colder
regions it has left; the tenuity of the atmosphere being in
fact the limit to its ascent. In the same way a northern
fish might find at a distance from the surface the mean
temperature of the sea (39°-5 Fahr.) ; its descent into the
bosom of the ocean being limited by the pressure it can
bear. 1 his line of mean temperature varies in its depth
with the latitude. Sir James C. Ross found it to be, in S.
Lat. 45 degrees, 3600 feet below the surface; and in the
equatorial and tropical regions 13,000 feet, the surface heat
being in the latter districts 78°. In 70 degrees of south
latitude, the surface heat is 30° Fahr., and the mean heat of
39 -5 has descended 4200 feet.
The obstacles that are likely to arise to a long journey
by any fish, and also to the spread of the species, will vary
with its habits. Ground fish, organized for swimming near
the bottom only, and feeding there, will be stopped by great
depths of the ocean as effectually as a land animal would
be by a high mountain range rising far into the snowy re¬
gions,—they would neither be able to endure the pressure
they would have to encounter at great depths, nor the pri¬
vation of food to which they would be exposed in following
the bottom to a depth to which they were not accustomed
James Forbes, whose early death has deprived Natural’
History of one of its most able and successful cultivators
has shown that marine life diminishes with the depth’
and at length ceases, not perhaps at the limit he was in¬
clined to assign to it, but still in a manner analogous to the
ascent of a mountain. I o favour the spread of ground-
fish, then, a chain of sand banks, submerged to the proper
2 T
330
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Geographi- aepth, would be necessary. While the Scomberoidh an 1
cal Distri- ot}1ier fishes tiiat habitually swim near the sunace would be
bution- , more directly influenced by temperature, both as regulating
'   ' the supplies of food, and as acting immediately on their
0“tciUntben no doubt that species have been framed
to endure certain degrees of temperature only ; that some
which thrive in water, just above the point of congelation,
would perish in the tepid ponds of intertropical regions
and vice versa. Dr Davy has shown that a continued heat
of 80° will addle the egg, and destroy the embryo of the
common Salmon ; the fact of that species being limited to
the countries lying northwards of the 41st parallel of lati¬
tude being most probably dependent on the small power
the species has of resisting heat. On the other hand, the
experiments of Broussonnet show that by using much cau¬
tion, and elevating the temperature gradually, fish of tem¬
perate regions may be brought to endure a heat of 97
Fahr. The Ambassis therrnalis is reported in the His-
toire des Poissons, on the authority of M. Renaud, as ca¬
pable of inhabiting the hot springs of Cannea, near irm-
comalee, in a temperature of 1150,25 Fahr.; but there is
reason to suspect some inaccuracy of observation here.
Dr Davy visited these springs in 1817, when of seven
wells, then existing, the hottest and principal one, and the
one which he thought supplied the others, had a tempera¬
ture of 10o-7op Fahr.; but the heat was said to vary, and
he was told that it occasionally rose to 110°. 1 he coolest
of the seven wells had a heat only of 86° Fahr.; and in one
only, whose temperature was 91°, did he see any Ashes.
Many small fishes, such as the Antennark, and others of
the less active swimmers, dwell in the floating islands of
Sargasso, and most probably spawn among its stems.
Though they find shelter in its mimic groves from the
predacious birds and fishes, yet they must be exposed to a
pretty high temperature under the direct rays of a tropical
sun, against which, however, nature has furnished them
with a protection, in the copious secretion of mucus which
envelops their skins. The Anabas, again, ascends the palm
trees of Bengal, and endures the heat of an atmosphere
rising to 97° in the shade ; while the Callichthys of tropi¬
cal America must be exposed to at least an equal heat m
its overland journeys. Fish constituted to brave such heats
would speedily perish, there is every reason to believe, in
colder regions ; and a review of the whole class leads irre¬
sistibly to the conclusion that many species have been cre¬
ated solely to meet the conditions of existence which cer¬
tain limited localities afford, such as the Amblyopsisoi the
Mammoth Cave of Kentucky, and the Siluroids of the mud
volcanoes of the Andes. . .
The creation of a single pair of each species in certain
spots, and the diffusion of their progeny from thence, has
been of late a favourite subject of speculation ; but this
implies the subsequent calling into existence of the more
predacious kinds, when the others had multiplied, so as o
need a check ; and the simpler supposition, and the one that
is most consistent with the facts that are known, is t at
when the ocean was in a condition to support ichthyic i e
it was peopled by the Great Creator, each species being
placed in sufficient numbers in the district best suited to
its structure and habits, and the purpose it was designed
to serve, while at the same time the balance between re¬
production and supplies of food was provided for by a suf¬
ficient number of the rapacious kinds. And, moreover, that
new species were created when a change in the condition
of the ocean and its boundaries led to the extinction of the
older races, and rendered such an exercise of creative
power necessary.
Our limits will not permit us to stray into further specu¬
lation, and we shall conclude this article by hastily glancing
at a few general facts. The northern seas, which are for
the most part comparatively shallow, nourish many of the Geographi-
Sclerogenidce, which feed at the bottom and frequent s e v- ca^t_.1^n
ing, sandy shores or sandbanks. The majority of these v _
have barbels or portions of the pectoral fins detached or
otherwise organized as fingers or organs of touch. An a -
lied group, the Uranoscopidce or Trachinidce, have often the
tips of the anal rays similarly constituted. The (Varferf®,
also, which have barbels under the chin, are ground feeders ;
and these, with the Cotti and Scorjxena? among the bclero-
genids, and the fresh-water Truttce, and anadromous
mones, are the most characteristic groups of fishes in the
northern seas. The same generic forms of sea-hsh, but
not the same species, reappear in corresponding southern
latitudes ; the Cotti, Scor[Hence, and Gad/dee being also
conspicuous among the South Australian fishes. e
Sclerogenids are not unknown in the middle tropical dis¬
tricts of the ocean, but they are different genencally; the
Cotti and Scorpcence being replaced by Pelors, bynanceia,
and others of a different aspect. There is a general resem¬
blance between the fishes of the northern and southern
extra-tropical seas, so that emigrants to Australia have
very generally bestowed familiar European names on
the sea-fish they found in the country of their adoption.
In like manner there is a similarity of general aspect,
but an almost total difference of species between the hsh
of Behring’s Sea and the Sea of Ochotsk, and those of the
German Ocean—though there are some facts which lead
us to infer that in a higher parallel still there is a zone
in which the same species form a circumpolar ichthyic
fauna. This is different, both generically and specifically,
‘from the fragments of the antarctic circumpolar groups of
fish, which have reached us through Sir James Ross, the
only navigator who has made collections in the hig i
southern latitudes. Some genera, of few species, are the
more remarkable from their occurrence both in the northern
and southern seas, though in form of distinct yet closely
resembling species. Macrourus has two representatives in
the seas of Greenland and Norway ; two in the Mediter¬
ranean ; and two in the Australian seas. Lophius has one
species in the European seas and another in the sea of
China, so much alike that very close comparison is required
to distinguish them. Zeus, also, and the allied genus of
Capros, have each a species in the Mediterranean and tern- •
perate parts of the North Atlantic, as well as in the seas of
Australia. The Greenland and Iceland Notacanthus, also,
or Campilodon of Fabricius, reappears in the seas of South
Australia with exactly the same generic aspect, but some
subordinate difference of details, showing the species to be
distinct, and without having been detected in the interven¬
ing districts of the ocean. No example of the genus, M.
Valenciennes remarks, has ever reached the Pans Museuni
from the Indian Ocean. The true Salmomdce ox Truttce of
some authors are confined, as we have already more than
once remarked, to the northern hemisphere. I hey do not
pass the great Himalayan range. We have seen none from
Africa, nor a figure of any species among the drawings
made at Canton of all the fish brought to that market,
though the Salmonidce are both various and plentiful in
the Kamtschadale seas. The Characinidce, once inclu¬
ded in the Salmon family, because they possess the charac¬
teristic Linnaean mark, an adipose fin, are chiefly South
American; while the Scopelinidcr, another family having
also an adipose fin, are oceanic, being found in all seas from
the German Ocean to the Chinese, Australian and Poly¬
nesian waters, the only large district from which specimens
have not hitherto been brought being the North Pacific
and Behring’s Sea. They are small fish, mostly nocturnal
in their habits, and though many of them carry phosphor¬
escent lamps, they have until lately escaped the observation
of mariners; but when the practice of keeping a trawl
overboard becomes more frequent, it is likely that they
Geographi- will be discovered to be inhabitants of the North Pacific also
cal Distri- Chirm has been found only in the North Pacific, but as low
bution. clown as California, and more abundantly in Behring’s Sea.
One large portion of the ocean, including the°Sand-
wicli Islands and the more southern Chinese seas the In¬
dian Ocean, Red Sea, and Polynesia, down to the5 northern
and eastern coasts of Australia, forms an almost uniform
ichthyic district, from the general diffusion throughout it of
a great majority of the species that exist within its limits—
though there are many local littoral species within its
bounds. The Scomberoid skimmers of the surface are
nearly the same in all parts of this wide sea. As we ap¬
proach its confines, N. and S., there is a gradual in¬
termingling of the forms belonging to the higher latitudes
on each side; and on removing still farther from the equa¬
tor we find the seas of Kerguelen’s Land, South Shetland,
and Cape Horn showing as much identity of species as
those of Norway, Spitzbergen, and Greenland; the Noto-
themce, however, and other predominant forms in the Ant¬
arctic seas being dissimilar to the Arctic ones. In fact,
there is a greater generic dissimilarity between the extreme
Arctic and Antarctic fish than we observe between the fish
of the British Channel and the antipodal species. A Noto-
thenia, we may add, is one of the most southern fish, having
been found to the amount of 28 lbs. in the stomach of a
seal, in S. Lat. 66., on Sir James C. Ross’s voyage ; and an
Ophidium was found by the same distinguished navigator
to the N. of Spitzbergen. Both seek shelter from the
seals in crevices of the ice.
With respect to fresh-water fish, the common Salmon,
as we have more than once mentioned, is identical on both
sides of the North Atlantic down to the 41st parallel, but
does not occur in Behring’s Sea ; and we are not aware of
any other species of Salmo or Trutta being common to the
Old and New Worlds, although the family is even more
abundant both in individual numbers and in variety of spe¬
cific forms than in Europe or Asia. Sturgeons, another
family of fresh-water fishes, containing anadromous mem-
ICHTHYOLOGY.
331
bers have a less high northern range than the Salmon, Geographi-
not being found in rivers that fall into the Icy or Arctic ca^
American seas, but existing abundantly in most of the great bution-
rivers of Siberia and North America that flow southwards,
or laterally, into the Black Sea, North Atlantic, or Northern
Pacific. The genus exists in China, but we have seen
none from the southern hemisphere. This leads us to ob¬
serve, that no living Ganoid fish has as yet been detected
in the southern hemisphere. The Pharyngohranchii are
confined as natives to India and the Cape of Good Hope,
though one or two species have been transported to
Cayenne, and thrive there. Some of the remarkable
genera that occur in the Nile exist also in the Gambia
and Niger, though, as far as we know, not the same species;
and there is a similar likeness between the marine fish of
Western Africa and those of the Red Sea, extending in
one or two instances even to species. The Siluroids have
their headquarters in India and the southern seas, the
species being comparatively few in Europe and North
America. I here are many in South America; and the
Gomodonts are exclusively natives of that country.
1 here are other facts connected with this subject, some of
which we shall simply mention without dwelling on, such as
the influence of the Gulf Stream and other oceanic currents
in bringing fish that are natives of the warmer districts of
the ocean into the higher latitudes. A drift tree or a spar
is seldom met with at sea without its attendant fish, espe¬
cially if it has been long enough afloat to be covered with
fuci and barnacles. It would appear as if these fish stuck
by it in all its wanderings, from their unwillingness to quit
it, even when approached by a boat. And all mariners are
familiar with the fact of certain fish following a ship for
weeks together, until it has entered the colder latitudes.
The beautiful Naucrates, or Pilot-fish, has in this way been
brought to the Cornish shores, and we have known the
Idcheneis. to attach itself in considerable numbers to a ship’s
bottom m the Bight of Benin, and to continue there until the
Azores were passed on the homeward voyage, (j. r k.*)
again; but such p.s,ages of the o/gin.l treat!,/,, .fre .uUable ^^0 beel, inLpoWed inlheT™ ”eCe“a''3' “ Writ<! ‘he °'°r
both, and observed the following ,Jmpton„ A.
was in great distress but still conscious. He complained but with oreat d’iffirnlrv .qul,ck’ small» an? intermittent. The patient
pupils of the eyes moderately dilated, the joints still flexible and the limbs reExe/ On exanXin^tb "f ^ th® llpS Iivid>
cardiac orifice was of a deep purple colour, and minute ramifications of the vessels extended alon/the smaller arch andTo'thpT" ^
<it> the beginninor of the crre&ter urch Thp vaQr*nl£»r*ifw ^_ v , . © rctij unci to the eminence
the first process of digestion, but it was rendered more cons p ic uJ us b y Th e dTrk ^ol ou" of t^bfood^In^he111- duri"«
there was a fibrinous clot and a small quantity of fluid blood • the left ventricle was modem tel v rC t. i ,i v®ntrl^le.ot tlie heart
muscular tissue of the heart was natural, and the muscles of the bodv e-enemllv were flh '1 fiTm ^ • Wltl fluid blood; the
Tetraodon measured from 6 to 8 inches, and it was theC{iver^ordy, m^’exceedhig^/h'wns'in1 vvei^it^that wa^ eaten b^T the* m«n” BP°^e^
332
FOSSIL ICHTHYOLOGY.
Fossil Of all the vertebrated animal creation fishes are by far
Ichthy- the most numerous species, and are the most widely dis-
ology. tributed in the strata composing the crust of our earth.
g0me are found in formations as old as the Silurian, and
become very numerous in all the more recent formations,
even to the Tertiaries containing the remains of mammals.
Fossil fishes, therefore, possess a high geological interest;
and aid us greatly in determining the successive changes
which have affected the surface of our planet.
Our knowledge of Fossil Fishes was, until very lately,
exceedingly imperfect. Indeed, with the exception of
the Iltilithologia Veronese, published in 1796, we had
scarcely a tolerable attempt at the determination of fossil
species, before the appearance of the magnificent and truly
scientific Recherches sur les Poissons Fossiles of M.
Agassiz (1833-43). In the first-mentioned work, however,
fossil species are often confounded with fishes now existing;
although not a single species of the immense accumulation
in Monte Bolca, though evidently belonging to a compara¬
tively recent geological epoch, is identical with any fish
now existing. Good descriptions, it is true, of some fossil
fishes were scattered through various works; but they
were connected by no general classification to unite them
into allied groups, or to exhibit their relations to the
various geological series of formations that compose the
crust of our earth. But the work of Agassiz was a gigantic
undertaking", and the success which has crowned his
labours is "most creditable to the unwearied industry and
great talents of this distinguished naturalist. He has pre¬
sented his readers with full descriptions or notices of about
1000 species of fossil fishes, illustrated by accurate and
exquisite designs, and supplied us with a method of deter¬
mining the species that may be hereafter discovered, with a
certainty and precision that has no parallel in this branch
of natural history. This is the result of the examination of
more than 20,000 specimens of fossil fishes preserved in the
public and private museums of Europe ; and now that he
has taken up his abode in North America, we know that
he pursues this subject with his accustomed energy, and will
no doubt add greatly to our knowledge of this subject, one
of the most interesting branches of geological palaeontology.
In his work on the Fresh Water Fishes of Europe, M.
Agassiz had pointed out the important character to be Fossil
obtained from observing the form and structure of the scales Ichthy-
of fishes ; and this character he successfully employs as the ^ 0 °gy-
distinction of the four orders into which he divides the class ^ r v*™
of fossil fishes. He had before pointed out the constancy
of the structure of the scales in each kind of fish; a charac¬
ter which had been too much overlooked by preceding
naturalists, although this integument is a principal medium
by which external influences reach the internal organization
of the animal. He considers it as a sort of external skele¬
ton, differing widely and invariably in its structure, in each
of the great divisions of this class of animals. The scales
have, too, a peculiar value in fossil ichthyology, from the
perfect manner in which their durable nature has preserved
their minutest features in their stony repositories. Thus,
the examination of a few scales determines the order to
which the specimen should be referred, and often points out
their affinities to existing species.
The orders are divided into Families, chiefly from the
structure and position of the fins, from the form of the bones
of the head, especially of the teeth, and the structure of the
opercula or gill covers ; and a most important character is
obtained, especially in the Placoid order, from the spinous
rays of the several fins, which often are the formidable de¬
fensive weapons of the fish.
In these researches, M. Agassiz has freely acknowledged
the assistance he has received from contemporary naturalists,
and speaks in high terms of the valuable labours of Blain-
ville, Eichwald, Buckland, Sedgwick, Murchison, Miller,
Hibbert, and especially of Richard Owen, whose most
valuable Odontography has thrown so much light on
zoological subjects.
In the following sketch of this new and interesting subject
we shall endeavour to present, as far as the necessary limits of
the work will permit, a general view of the system of Agassiz.
M. Agassiz divides fossil fishes, as he had previously done
their living representatives, into four great ordeis the
Ganoid, Placoid, Ctenoid, and Cycloid—founded on
the form of their scales. This arrangement would compre¬
hend the immense variety of existing fishes, except two
genera, Myxine and Petromyzon, which are totally destitute
of scales.
—Ganoid fishes (figs. 1,2,3), (so designated from yavo?, generally of a rhomboidal form, and imbricated, or applied
splendour) have shining scales, covered with a firm enamel, to each other as the slates on a xoo .
Fossil
Ichthy¬
ology.
II. Placoids (figs. 4, 5), (from 7rAa£, a table) have scales
not imbricated, but approximate
on the skin : they are often ele¬
vated in the middle, and some¬
times have a strong projecting
point or spine from their centre.
The Placoids embrace the genera Fig. 4.
referrible to the families of the shark and ray of Linnams.
III. CtenoIds (figs. 6, 7, 8), (from /crets, a comb) have
Fig. 6.
imbricated scales, generally of a rounded or ovoid form,
cdids extend through all the fossiliferous rock-formations, but
are chiefly found in the
coal, Jurassic, chalk,
and tertiary forma¬
tions ; while not one
species of Ctenoid or
Cycloid fish occurs in
formations older than
the chalk. Fishes be¬
longing to the older
formations differ most
from existing species Fis- 10-
in form and structure ; and Agassiz states that the fishes of
the older geological for¬
mations have smaller
pectoral fins (the re¬
presentatives of the fore
extremities of the higher
classes of animals), and
that they are invariably
placed before the ven¬
tral fins; so that they
belong to the Linnaean
order of Abdominales.
In the formations above
the chalk, the ventral
fins approach nearer to Fjg n
the head; while in those below the chalk, the ventral fins
are always behind the pectorals.
M. Agassiz divides the orders of
fossil fishes into families, genera, and
species, the characters of which are
chiefly derived from the structure of
the bones of their spine, head, oper-
cula, teeth, and the form of their bodies
and position of their fins. It may Fig 12
suffice to state that the fins placed perpendicular to the
plane of the body are, according to position, denominated
the, Dorsal, the Ventral, the Anal, and the Caudal or fin
of the tail. The Pectorals are always a pair of fins, one of
which is on each side of the thorax of the fish; and accord¬
ing as the ventral fin is situated behind, under, or before the
pectoral the fish said to be abdominal, thoracic, or jugular.
When the ventral is wanting, they are said to be apodal.
-The bones, the scales, and the fins being those parts generally
best pi eserved in fossil fishes, they are chiefly relied on
by M. Agassiz, whose intimate knowledge of living species
has enabled him, like another Cuvier, often from a few frag¬
ments, to determine the genus, or even the species, to which
the scattered reliques have belonged.
333
Fossil
Ichthy-
ology.
Fig. 8.
with several teeth or sharp projections on their posterior
margin.
IV.—Cycloids (figs. 9,10, 11,12), (from kvk\o% a circle)
have circular imbri¬
cated scales, without
dentations on their
margins, but with
concentric markings.
Three-fourths of all
known fossil fishes
belong to the two last
orders, and occur in
all formations from the
chalk upwards. The
fishes found in the
older rocks are the 9-
least numerous, and belong chiefly to the first order; the Pla-
Order I.—GANOIDEI.
Scales angular, rhomboidal or polygonal, formed of osse¬
ous plates, covered by enamel.
Family I—LEPIDOSTEI.
Teeth scapular or brush-like, disposed in several rows oi
consisting of a single row of small obtuse teeth. Scales
flat, rhomboidal, parallel to the body, which they wholly
cover. All the genera of this family that have the bones of
the back produced into the upper lobe of the tail, or are
what Agassiz terms heterocerques, occur in strata earlier than
the Jurassic. Those with the regular tail, or the homocerques,
belong to later formations. This family has no represent¬
atives among existing fishes. 1
We shall shortly indicate the rock formations in which
each fish occurs in the tables at the end of this article.
334
Gano’idei.
Lepidostei.
FOSSIL ICHTHYOLOGY.
A. Body fusiform.
Genus I. Acanthodes. Teeth scopular. Scales ex¬
tremely small i dorsal fin opposite to anal \ no ventral i pec¬
torals large; first ray of dorsal, anal, and pectorals thick,
strong, and rough; the succeeding rays, as well as those of
the caudal, very slender, and scarcely distinct. Lower jaw
longer than the upper; mouth very wide. The known
species are—
1. A. Bronnii. 2. A. sulcatus. 3. A. pusillus.
Genus II. Catopterus, v. Dipterus. This is Dipterus
of Sedgwick and Murchison. Dorsal long, opposite to anal,
and both extending nearly to caudal; dorsal seemingly con¬
sists of two portions ; ventral uncertain ; pectorals small.
Scales of middle size.
1. C. macrolepidotus. 2. C. gracilis. 3. C. parvulus. 4. C.
anguilliformis.
Genus III. Amblypterus. All the fins very large, com¬
posed of numerous rays, especially the pectorals ; dorsal op¬
posite to the space between the ventral and anal; no small
rays at the margin of the fins, except in the upper lobe of
the caudal. Scales of middle size.
1. A. macropterus. 2. A. eupterygius. 3. A. lateralis. 4. A.
latus. 5. A. nemopterus. 6. A. punctatus. 7. A. striatus. 8. A.
Agassizii. 9. A. Elforsii.
Genus IV. Paileoniscus. All the fins of middle size,
with small rays at their margins: dorsal opposite to space
between ventral and anal. Scales of middle size there is
always a large scale before the first ray of the dorsal and
anal fins.
1. P. fultus. 2. P. Davernoy. 3. P. minutus. 4. P. angustus.
5 P. Blainvillei. 6. P. Voltzii. 7. P. macropomus. 8. P.Freies-
lebeni. 9. P. raagnus. 10. P. elegans. 11. P. Vratislavensis.
12. P. lepidurus. 13. P. Robisoni. 14. P. striolatus. 15. P. or-
natissimus. 16. P. coraptus. 17. P. glaphyrus. 18. P. microph-
thalmus. 19. P. longissimus. 20. P. carinatus. 21. P. Agassizii.
22. P. macropterus. 23. P. Egertoni. 24. P. Monensis.
Genus V. Osteolepis. Two dorsal fins, the first in the
middle of the back, the second in the middle of the space
between the first and the tail, while the two anals alternate
with the two dorsals, and the second anal extends behind
the second dorsal; the pectorals are large and rounded; the
ventral small, and opposite to the anterior edge of the first
dorsal. Scales larger than in palseoniscus. Mouth large,
armed with small teeth.
1. 0. macrolepidotus. 2. 0. microlepidotus. 3. 0. arenatus.
4. 0. major.
Genus VI. Cheiracanthus. Body covered with small
scales. Pectorals, dorsal, ventral, and anal fins, with a
strong spinous ray; dorsal in the middle of the back, oppo¬
site to the space between the ventral and anal. Jaws armed
with several rows of very small pointed teeth.
1. Ch. Murchisoni. 2. Ch. microlepidotus. 3. Ch. minor.
mated to the anal, which is larger than the ventrals. I he G noidei.
, , . Lepidostei,
only genus known is— ^ _ I
1. C. Bucklandi.
Genus X. Plectrolepis. Not described by Agassiz
The scales are somewhat rounded and pointed, giving a
rough appearance to the skin of the fish.
1. P. rugosus.
B. Body Flattened.
Genus XL Platysomus. Body very broad, or much
elevated, almost trapezoidal, and nearly as high as long,
covered with large scales. Mouth small, with scopular teeth.
Dorsal and anal opposite to each other, and extending from
the middle of the body to the root of the tail, with their
anterior rays the longest.
1. P. gibbosus. 2. P. rhombus. 3. P. striatus. 4. P. macrurus.
5. P. parvus.
Genus XII. Gyrolepis. Chiefly distinguished by the
scales, which have striae or ridges running concentric or
parallel with the edges of the scale; sometimes they are
oblique, or irregularly ramified.
1. G. maximus. 2. G. tenuistriatus. 3. G. Rankinei. 4, G.
Alberti.
Genus XIII. Eurynotus. Dorsal large, occupying the
length of the back, with the anterior rays much elongated;
anal opposite to the posterior part of the dorsal, with its an¬
terior ray longer than the rest; ventral large, placed in the
middle of the abdomen; pectorals still larger, with their
tips reaching to the insertion of the ventrals; caudal less
developed than the other fins. Head large ; mouth with
very small obtuse teeth.
1. Eu. crenatus. 2. Eu. fimbriatus. 3. Eu. tenuiceps.
Genus XIV. Dapemus. Body broad, and rapidly de¬
creasing to the root of the tail, which is thick. Head
rounded. Teeth sloping on their cutting edges. Fins of
middle size; the caudal is the largest; the dorsal extends
from the middle of the back to the root of the tail.
1. D. politus. 2. D. granulatus. 3. D. punctatus. 4. D. Colei.
5. D. orbis. 6. D. micans. 7. D. altivelis. 8. D. arenatus.
Genus XV. Tetragonolepis. Resembles the last in
most respects, but has pointed teeth, instead of the sloping
teeth of Dapedius.
1. T. semicinctus. 2. T. confluens. 3. T. speciosus. 4. T. ra-
diatus. 5. T. pustulatus. 6. T. leiosomos. 7. T. Leachii. 8. T.
heteroderma. 9. T. pholidotus. 10. T. ovalis. II. T. Bouei.
12. T. dorsalis. 13. T. monilifer. 14. T. angulifer. 15. T. Mag-
neville. 16. T. mastodonteus. 17. T. striolatus.
Genus XVI. Amblyurus. Body broad, flattened. A
long dorsal commencing opposite to the ventral; a small,
straight anal; and a wide, truncated caudal. Mouth wide;
jaw narrow, armed with small pointed teeth.
1. A. macrostomus.
Genus VII. Cheirolepis. Body covered with very
minute scales. Fins without the bony ray, but its place
supplied by slender rays laid on each other in an imbricated
manner. Mouth large; teeth small. Dorsal placed pos¬
teriorly to the anal.
1. Ch. Traillii. 2. Ch. uragus. 3. Ch. Cummingia;.
Genus VIII. Diplacanthus. Body cylindric; tail short
and heterocerque. Scales very minute. I wo dorsal fins ;
the first near the head, a little before the pectorals; the
second opposite to the anal: pectorals placed on a strong
thoracic belt, on which are some spines; the anal has a strong
osseous ray, and similar rays are in the other fins, except
the caudal.
1. D. striatus. 2. D. striatulus. 3. D. crassispinus. 4. D. longi-
spinus.
Genus IX. Coccolepis. Body small, covered by uni¬
form minute scales, which are finely granular. Dorsal fin
proportionally very large, and truncated behind, so as to
form an equilateral triangle; ventrals small, and approxi-
C. Body Elongated.
Genus XVII. Semionotus. Body generally of large
size. Head elongated; jaws narrow, with scopular teeth
more or less minute. Dorsal long, commencing opposite
the ventrals, and ending over the anal; pectorals of mean
size; ventrals wide; anal narrow, with its first ray longer
than the rest; caudal forked, with the upper lobe a little
longer than the lower, though the vertebrae do not really
extend into the upper one, as hasty inspection might sup¬
pose.
1. S. leptocephalus. 2. S. Bergeri. 3. S. latus. 4. S. minutus.
5. S. Nilssoni. 6. S. Pentlandi. 7. S. striatus. 8. S. rhombifer.
9. S. pustulifer.
Genus XVIII. Lepidotus. Body the form of a large
Carp. Greatest thickness of the body just behind the
thoracic belt; scales large, rhomboidal. Fins of middle
size ; dorsal over the space between the ventral and anal;
caudal almost square; anal shaped like the dorsal; and
-“^1"have a thick anterior ray; ven,rals and
' ^ * 1r gLgaS; 2' «• sTeraiserrftus- 3- L- Mdatus. 4. L. rugosus.
o. L. fimbriatus. 6. L. ornatus. 7. L. serratulus. 8 L untrui-
culatus. 9. L. laevis. 10. L. palliatus. 11. L. radiatus. ‘ 12 L
notopterus. 13. L. tuberculatus. 14. L. oblongus. 15 L minnr"
16. L. ManteHii. 17. L. Fittoni. 18. L. speciosus. 19 L 3*
vuius. 20 L Striatus 21 L. Maximiliani. 22. L. latimanus.
23. L. pectinatus. 24. L. Cottae. 25. L. punctulatus. 26 L
temnurus. 27. L. Virleti. 28. L. frondosus.
Genus XIX. Phoudophorus. Resembles the Herrino-
but with enamelled rhomboidal scales. Fins as in Lep?’
dotus; caudal deeply cleft, with equal lobes. Jaws with
small scopular teeth.
1. Ph. Bechei. 2. Ph. onychius. 3. Ph. macrocephalus. 4.
Ph. microps. 5. Ph. tenuiserratus. 6. Ph. longiserratus. 7. Ph
stmlans. 8. Ph. latus. 9. Ph. micronyx. 10. Ph. intermedius.
11. 1 h. latimanus. 12. Ph. ornatus. 13. Ph. Flesherii. 14 Ph
limbatus. 15. Ph. Strickland!. 16. Ph. Hastingsias. 17. Ph. an-
gustus. 18. Ph. gracilis. 19. Ph. minor. 20. Ph furcatus 21
Ph. tosali, 22. Ph. lat^cute. 23. Ph. pusiilus Ph
Taxis. 25. Ph. radians. 26. Ph. uraeoides. 27. Ph radionunc-
tatus. 28 Ph maximus. _ 29. Ph. pachysomus. 30. Ph. cLnu-
latus. 31. Ph. Hartmanm. 32. Ph. fusiformis. 33. Ph lepto-
cephalus.
Genus XX. Nothosomus. Scales broader than lone.
Dorsal fins very long. Size small. Like the last genus
except in having two dorsal fins.
1. H. octostychius. 2. IST. laevissimus.
Genus XXL Ophiopsis. Elongated body, covered
with equal scales. Superior lobe of the tail extends a little
obliquely, and the fin forked slightly; pectoral very laum
and long; dorsal very long, but not deep ; with the ventral
opposite to its middle. Head small; but opercula broad
and strong.
1. O. procerus. 2. O. penicillatus. 3. 0. dorsalis. 4 0
Munsten.
Genus XXII. Notagogus. Resembles Pholidophorus
but is of small size, and with two dorsal fins.
1. N. Zeitenii. 2. N. Pentlandi. 3. N. latior. 4. N. denti-
culatus.
Genus XXIII. Propterus. Size small. Two dorsals
with the anterior rays of the first elongated beyond the
rays of the second. Vertebrae are thick and short with
the interapophysal bonelets stout. Scales rhomboidal, and
finely notched on their posterior margin ; anal a little be-
hind the second dorsal; and the ventrals opposite to the
extremity of the first; caudal slender,
1. P. microstomus. 2. P. serratus.
FOSSIL ICHTHYOLOGY.
335
last; but the anal is short and in the centre of the space Ganoidei.
between the ventrals and the caudal fin; and the dorsal Sauro'idei.
less extended than in Pygopterus; ventrals nearer to the
anal than to the pectorals; caudal lobes unequal. Head
thick and short; muzzle pointed; jaws armed with strong,
conical, closely-set teeth. Each scale surmounted by one
or more keels.
1. A. acutirostris. 2. A. asper. 3. A. Sedgwickii.
Genus III. Saurichthys. This genus only known by
ragments of its jaws and teeth. Teeth, short, conical,
sightly compressed at the sides, with the bone supporting
the enamelled point finely longitudinally striated, the point
smooth. I hey have much resemblance to the teeth of
land lizards. The fishes seem to have been of small size
1. S. apicalis. 2. S. Mangeoti. 3. S. acuminatus. 4. S. lon-
gidens. 5 S. semicostatus. 6. S. tenuirostris. 7. S. angustus.
o» costatus.
Genus IV. Diplopterus. Size large; body elongated,
and tapering gradually to the tail. Head large, broad, and
fiat; muzzle rounded; eyes large, close together, and sur¬
rounded with strong scales; jaws strong, with a single row
of closely-set teeth. Two dorsals opposite to two nearly
similar anal fins; two large rounded pectorals placed on
the sides of the throat. Tail heterocerque, with most of
the rays inserted under the elongation of the vertebral
column; caudal fin truncated almost vertically. The
branchiostegous rays are represented by plates below the
neck. Scales on the body rhomboidal and granular.
1. D. macrolepidotus. 2. D. affinis. 3. D. borealis or Agassizii.
4. D. carbonarius. 5. D. Robertsoni.
Genus V. Megalichthys. Size large. Scales rhom¬
boidal, and finely granular; as are the opercula and plates
on the head. The teeth have a furrowed root, and smooth
P°JnU T11^ several larSe appear among many smaller teeth.
I. M. Hibberti. 2. M. maxillaris. 3. M. priscus.
Genus VI. Graptolepis. Imperfectly known. The
scales are finely sculptured. Jaws supposed to be elon¬
gated from the fragments found.
1. G. ornatus.
Genus VII. Orognathus. Known only by fragments
of the jaws which seem to have been straight.
1. 0. conoideus. °
Genus VIII. Pododus. Known only by the form of
its teeth. The only known species was found in the coal
measures at Carluke, in Lanarkshire,
1. P. capitatus.
Family II.—SAUROIDEI.
Pointed conical teeth, alternating with small scopular
teeth. Skeleton osseous. Scales flat, rhomboidal, and
completely investing the body.
. some of the genera, the vertebral column is con¬
tinued into the upper lobe of the tail, a structure which
Agassiz designates heterocerque; other genera have the
tail ip the regular form, which he distinguishes as homo-
cerque. The heterocerques have all lived prior to the
deposition of the Jurassic formation ; the homocerques have
existed at later geological periods. This family has no
living representatives, except in the genera Lepidosteus and
Polypterus.
A. Heterocerques.
Genus I. Pygopterus. Fins extremely developed;
dorsal opposite to the space between ventrals and anal ;
anal much elongated; small rays placed on the anterior
nn-rays.
1. P. Huraboldtii. 2. P. mandibularis. 3. P. Bucklandi. 4.
. Jamesonn. 5. P. Bonnardi. 6. P. Greenockii. 7. P. lucius
P. sculptus.
Genus II. Acrolepis. This genus resembles the
B. Homocerques.
Genus IX. Ptycholepis. Scales with deep furrows
distinguished with difficulty from the divisions of the scales*
which give them an irregular figure, and make the body
appear rough. Head short, with large conical teeth. Tail
slender, and the caudal rays small, which distinguish this
genus from Eugnathus.
1. P. Bollensis.
Genus X. Sauropsis. Vertebrae very short, with the
slender apophyses almost in contact, with small interapo¬
physal bones, and slender ribs, which are longer and less
curved than the apophyses. Scales minute, rhomboidal.
pectorals large, so as almost to touch the ventrals; caudal
equilobed, dilated, and deeply forked. Head short and
thick; jaws with sharp, conical, rather distant teeth.
1. S. latus. 2. S. longimanus. 3. S. mordax.
Genus XL Pachycormus. Body inflated, covered by
very small scales. Caudal fin very broad, with many un-
dmded rays, which, gradually lengthening towards the
middle, give it a rounded form ; dorsal in the middle of the
back, opposite to the space between the ventral and anal;
pectorals very large. Vertebrae very short. Branchios¬
tegous rays numerous, and close-set.
1. P. macropterus. 2. P. curtus. 3. P. macrurus. 4. P. he-
336
Gano'idei.
Sauro'idei.
fossil ichthyology.
5. P. latirostris. 6. P. gracilis. 7. P. latipennis. 8.
9. P. macropomus. 10. P. acutirostris. 11. P. leptos-
terurus.
P. latus,
Genus XII Thrissops. Resembles Sauropsis, but has
larger vertebrae. Pectorals large, straight composed of a
few large rays; ventrals small; anal very large, often ex¬
tending to the root of the tail, and often equalling one-ha f
the length of the body; lobes of the caudal unequal; al
the fin-rays jointed and dichotomous. Head short and
thick; laws slender, with small sharp teeth.
1 T. formosus. 2. T. cephalus. 3. T. micropodius. 4. T. m-
termedius. 5. T. salraoneus. 6. T. subovatus. 7. T. mesogaster.
Genus XIII. Caturus. A large dorsal opposite to the
ventrals; pectorals large; caudal forked. Head large; jaws
very large, with large conical teeth interspersed among
scopular teeth. Spinous apophyses of the caudal vertebrae
strong, inclined, with their bodies approximate.
1. 0. furcatus. 2. C. latus. 3. C. similis. 4. C. pachyurus.
5. C. macrurus. 6. C. maximus. 7. C. angustus. 8. C. micro-
cheirus. 9. C. branchiostegus. 10. C. elongatus. 11-C- macro-
dus. 12. C. Meyeri. 13. C* pleiodus. 14. C. Bucklandi.
Genus XIV. Leptolepis. Scales very thin. Dorsal
opposite to ventral; caudal forked. Mouth wide; teeth
scopular in front of the jaw, and larger behind.
L L. sprattiformis. 2. L. Voithii. 3. L. crassus. 4. L. macro-
lepidotus. 5. L. polyspondylus. 6. Tj. Bronnh. 7. L caudalis.
8. L. Jae^eri. 9. L. longus. 10. L. Knorrii. 11. L. dubius 12.
L. contractus. 13. L. filipennis. 14. L. paucispondylus. 15. h.
pusillus. 16. L. tenellus. 17. L. macrophthalmus. 18. L. latus.
Genus XV. Megalurus. Caudal fin rounded, very
large, with slender, long rays; dorsal opposite to the spa.ce
between the ventral and anal. Head large; jaws with
large conical teeth, intermingled with smaller teeth.
1. M. lepidotus. 2. M. brevicostatus. 3. M. elongatus. 4. M.
parvus.
Genus XVI. Eugnathus. Fins generally large; dorsal
deep and long, with strong rays, opposite to the space be¬
tween ventrals and anal; anal smaller; all have their prin¬
cipal rays furnished with fulcra to their extremities: caudal
has its upper lobe larger than the lower. Scales rhom-
boidal, large, but smaller on the belly, with grooves and
dentations on their posterior margin, which fit into the con¬
tiguous margin of the next scale. 1 eeth unequal; very
large, conical teeth being mingled with smaller, especially
in the middle of the jaw. .
1. Eu.orthostomus. 2. Eu. speciosus. 3. Eu. Thilpotiae. 4. Eu.
chirotes. 5. Eu. minor. 6. Eu. polyodon. 7. Eu. operculans. 8.
Eu. microlepidotus. 9. Eu. giganteus. 10. Eu. tenuidens. 11.
Eu. jaciculatus. 12. Eu. ornatus. 13. Eu. scabriusculus. 14. Eu.
lepidotus. 15. Eu. niandibularis.
Genus XVII. Conodus. Differs from Eugnathus only
in its dentation; as its teeth are all conical, and much moie
equal in size.
1. C. ferox.
Genus XVIII. Amblysemius. Resembles Caturus, but
its form is more slender, and its vertebrae less massive; the
spinous processes more slender, and the end ot the verte¬
bral column is much elevated. Caudal forked; dorsal the
largest fin.
1. A. gracilis.
Genus XIX. Thrissonotus. A genus intermediate be¬
tween Thrissops and Sauropsis, with a general resemblance
to Pachycormus; but its dorsal fin is in the middle ot the
back, with its anal elongated like Thrissops.
1. T. Colei.
Genus XX. Macrosemius. Size small. Dorsal extends
along the whole back, with very large rays ; caudal rounded,
its upper lobe is less powerful than the lower ; ventrals and
anal small. Head thick; mouth small, but teeth strong and
conical.
1. M. rostratus. 2. M. brevirostris.
Genus XXL Saurostomus. Lower jaw elongated, and
has a long row of large triangular teeth, compressed, with Ganoidei.
cutting edges. Muzzle elongated; size large. ^a^cauti,
1. S. esocinus.
Genus XXII. Aspidorhynchus. Body much elon¬
gated, upper jaw prolonged into a beak, extending beyond
the lower, and with teeth in this projection; the upper jaw
receives the teeth of the lower jaw in a groove. Dorsal fin
placed far back, opposite the anal; pectorals and ventral
rounded; caudal forked. Scales large, higher than long,
especially on the middle of the body.
1. A. acutirostris. 2. A. speciosus. 3. A. ornatissimus. 4. A.
mandibularis. 5. A. lepturus. 6. A. Anglicus. 7. A. euodus.
8. A. Walchneri. 9. A. Comptoni.
Genus XXIII. Belonostomus. Differs from Aspido¬
rhynchus, which it much resembles, in having the jaws of
equal length, or nearly so, and in having no groove m the
upper jaw, while the body is more slender. Mouth deep y
cut, with sharp, unequal teeth. Eye large. Skeleton robust.
1. B. sphyrsenoides. 2. B. Munsteri. 3. B. acutus. 4. B. cmc-
tus. 5. B. Anningiae. 6. B. tenuirostris. 7. B. subulatus. 8. B.
Kochii. 9. B. ventralis. 10. B. leptosteus. 11. B. brachysomus.
Family III.—CCELACATs THI.
One of the most remarkable characters of this family is,
that all the rays of the fins, and their bones, are hollow,—a
trait which occurs not in any other ganoid fishes. Another
peculiarity is, that the rays are all stiff, articulated only at
their bases, and are supported on the interapophysal bone-
lets, which takes place in other fishes only with the rays ot
the caudal and anal fins.
Genus I. Ccelacanthus. There are two dorsals; the
first is opposite to the extremity of the pectorals, the second
to the space between the ventrals and the anal, which last
approximates to the caudal; and the caudal comprehends
the cluster of jointed rays that garnish the end of the ver¬
tebral column, and equals the one-third of the length of t e
fish. The scales large, elongated, with their posterior mar¬
gin rounded. Teeth sharp and conical.
1. C. granulosus. 2. C. Phillipsii. 3. C. minor. 4. C. gracilis.
5. C. lepturus. 6. C. Munsteri.
Genus II. Undina. Approximates the last in the fins;
but the teeth resemble a pavement, as in some pycnodonts.
1. U. Kohleri. 2. U. striolaris.
Genus HI. Holoptychius. Size large; scales large
and rugose. Bones of the cranium sculptured like those
of the crocodile. T. he conical teeth exceed those of the
largest saurians. t „, , , „ r. *
1. H. Hibberti. 2. H. sauroides. 3. H. falcatus. 4. H. vort-
lockii. 5. H. Garneri. 6. H. granulatus. 7. H. striatus. 8. H.
minor. 9. H. giganteus. 10. H. Flemingii. 11. H. nobilissimus.
12. H. Andersoni. 13. H. Murchisoni. 14. H. Omahusn.
Genus IV. Hoplopygus. Size small. Tail rather tri¬
lobate than forked, the terminal and principal lobe being
between two other lobes, which last might be mistaken for
a dorsal and an anal fin, were these not distinctly visible a
little before these side lobes, which have another peculi¬
arity in possessing a large spinous ray before their slender
rays. Head very broad. The scales large.
1. H. Binneyi.
Genus V. Glyptosteus, v. Bothriolepis. The scales
sculptured with grooves of various contorted forms, some¬
times presenting isolated hollows, separated by rounded
ridges, somewhat resembling the ripple marks on the sea¬
shore.
1. G. favosus. 2. G. reticulatus. 3. G. ornatus.
Genus VI. Glyptolepis. Body of middle size, as broad
as deep. Scales thin, rounded, much imbricated, covered
by a thin, smooth enamel, with fine radiating striae on their
interior. Fins large; two dorsals opposite to two anals,
approximate to the caudal, ventrals have thin rays sup¬
ported on a series of plates extending along the belly, as in
Crano'idei,
Pycnodon-
tei.
Megalichthys; second anal and second dorsal larger than
the fins before them. Branches of the lower jaw stron0-
and garnished with a single row of small conical teeth. t”
1. G. leptopterus. 2. G. elegans. 3. G. microlepidotus.
Genus VII. Phyllolepis. Scales exceedingly thin, but
of large size : only the scales, or rather plates, known, some
of which are six inches in diameter, of a square form, with
rounded corners, and with concentric wrinkles.
1. Ph. concentricus. 2. Ph. tenuissirnus.
Genus VIII. Platygnathus. Body and tail elongated.
Scales sculptured. Incisive teeth large, isolated, and placed
in compartments apart from the jaw. Fins supported on
soft, flexible rays.
1. P. Jamesonii. 2. P. paucidens.
Genus IX. Dendrodus. This genus was established
by Professor Owen. Teeth full, conical, isolated. Sec¬
tions of the teeth show the medullary interstices branching,
and laterally terminating in basins covered with enamel.
The teeth are conical, with fine external striae.
L D. strigatus. 2. D. latus. 3. D. sigmoidea. 4. D. minor.
5. D. tenuistratus.
Genus X. Lamnodus. Teeth full, laterally compressed,
with the medullary interstices terminating in lateral branches;
point capped with enamel.
1. L. bifurcatus. 2. L. hastatus. 3. L. Panderi.
Genus XI. Cricodus. A single medullary cavity.
Teeth curved back, with a rounded summit, and thick plicae
at the root.
1. C. inourvus.
Genus XII. Asterolepis, v. Chelonichthys. Osse¬
ous plates ornamented with granulations, which
have perforated summits, and a star-formed
base. The fish seems to have been of large
size from its hyoid bones which have been dis¬
covered. One of the most perfect of these
hitherto found is in the Museum of Stromness,
Orkney. The original is six inches long, its
head 2*38 inches.
1. A. Asmusii. 2. A. ornata. 3. A. speciosa. 4.
A. miliaris. 5. A. granulata. 6. A. minor 7. A
Honinghausii. 8. A. Malcolmsoni. 9. A. apicalis. ’
Genus XIII. Psammolepis, v. Psammos-
teus. Scales with fine granulations like sha-
green, and marked by many contorted medullary canals
that form a somewhat elegant net-work, among which is a
hard homogeneous mass, more like dentine than true bone
1. Ps. paradoxus. 2. Ps. meandrinus. 3. Ps. arenatus. 4 Ps*
undulatus.
Genus XIV. Uronemus. A long dorsal fin, extendino-
from near the nape uninterruptedly to the tail, to which also
the anal reaches. Size small.
1. U. lobatus.
Genus XV. Ctenolepis. The scales are distinguished
by a few projecting teeth; in other respects it resembles
the genus Coelacanthus.
Genus XVI. Gyrosteus. Imperfectly known from frag¬
ments, which belong to a very large fish.
1. G. mirabilis. Probably this is the largest of fossil fishes.
Genus XVII. Macropoma. In its heavy form, and
disposition of its fins, as well as its large scales, this genus
much resembles Ccelacanthus; but the structure of the rays
are different, as their edges are bristled with spines, no
doubt as a defence. Skeleton robust. Head thick, and
equal to one-third of the body.
1. M. Mantelli. 2. M. Egertoni.
FOSSIL ICHTHYOLOGY.
337
• ?E^US ^>LA-C0DTJS' I eetb of two kinds, viz., grinders, Ganoidel
with flat crowns paving the interior of the mouth; the Pycnodon-
largest occupy the middle of the dental-plate, with some-
times lateral rows; the incisors, or prehensiles are most
massive teeth, and are less pointed than in other genera;
and those of the upper jaw are implanted in a sort of beak’.
I he anterior prehensile teeth are arranged in two rows
with six in each row.
V P- gigas. 2. P. Andriani. 3. P. Munsteri. 4. P. rostratus.
o. P. impressus.
Genus II. Spilerodus. The teeth are only parts known,
and are always rounded, often hemispheric, from the size of a
pin s head to that of a lentil; the crown smooth, and cover¬
ing the root.
1. Sp. gigas. 2. Sp. annularis. 3. Sp. cinctus. 4. Sp. conicus.
5. Sp. crassus. 6. Sp. depressus. 7. Sp. discus. 8. Sp. lens 9.
Sp. irregularis. 10. Sp. microdon. 11. Sp. parvus. 12 Sp mi-
trula. 13. Sp. Neocomensis. 14. Sp. oculus-serpentis. 15. Sn
truncatus. 16. Sp. minor. 17. Sp. minimus.
Genus III. Pycnodus. Body anteriorly truncated and
puffed out, posteriorly elongated. Tail slightly sloping.
ertebrae massive, short; most species have remarkable
bony pieces behind the nape that obliquely cross the
spinous apophyses. Teeth smooth, with crown slightly
expanded, surfaces more or less convex ; middle or princi¬
pal row of oval teeth transverse, bounded on each side by a
double alternate row of smaller circular teeth.
1. P. platesBus. 2. P. rhombus. 3. P. orbiculari's. 4. P. giffas.
. . P. hucoleti. 6. P. Bucklandi. 7. P. didymus. 8. P. rugulosus.
% VZb°r ?S- I1?' 0Valis- .1L P- Hu^iL 12- p- toliapicus.
13. P. Mantelli. 14. P. Munsteri. 15. P. complanatus. 16. P.
subclavatus. 17. P. cretaceus. 18. P. latirostris. 19. P. obtusus.
2°. P. parvus. 21. P. biserialis. 22. P. discoides. 23. P. angus-
tus. 24. P. elongatus. 25. P. latior. 26. P. depressus. 27 P
marginahs. 28 71 J—! v
31. P. gracilis,
chius.
Genus IV. Gyrodus. Teeth elliptical or circular, with
the summit provided with an umbilicated centre, surrounded
by a circular furrow that divides it into two distinct parts,
the superior jaw, the maxillaries, and intermaxillaries,
P. trigonus. 29. P. latidens. 30. P. priscus.
32. P. minutus. 33. P. minor. 34. P. tristy-
Fig.13.
Family IV.—PYCNODONTEI.
Teeth flattened or rounded, arranged in several rows.
Scales flat, rhomboidal, in rows parallel to the body, which
they entirely cover. Body flat and broad. Skeleton o’sseous.
'VOL. XII.
have a single row of teeth ; the vomer has five longitudinal
rows diminishing in size from behind forward; the lower
jaw has four rows on each side.
V.,?'2. G. frontatus. 3. G. rugosus. 4 G
umbilicus. 5. G Jurassicus. 6. G. Cuvieri. 7. G. punctatus!
19 9'-.o' radiatus- 10- G- lasvior. 11. G. cretaceus.
12. G. Mantelhi. 13. G. minor. 14. G. angustus. 15. G. rugu¬
losus. 16. G. Munsteri. 17. G. runcinatus. 18. G. analis. 19
G circulars. 20. G. platurus. 21. G. punctatissimus. 22. G.
rhomboidahs. 23. G. macropterus. 24. G. mammillaris. 25 G
gibbosus. 26. G. perlatus. 27. G. gracilis.
Genus V. Microdon. The form of the body is nearly
that of Pycnodus. Dorsal and anal very long, opposite to
each other, and prolonged to the caudal, which is much
sloped and forked; pectorals small, with fine rays. The
best character is taken from the teeth, which are smaller
than in Pycnodus ; they are in five rows on the vomer and
one row on each of the superior maxillaries ; in’ the
lower jaw there are four rows on each side of nearly equal
size ; they have a flattened angular form.
1. M. dcguns. 2. M. hexagonus. 3. M. analis. 4. M. radiatus.
5. M. platurus. 6. M. abdominalis.
Genus VI. Globulodus. Teeth small, and pediculated
at the summit, which distinguishes them from all the
Pycnodonts.
1. G. elegans.
Genus VII. Colobodus. The teeth, disposed in irre¬
gular pavements, have their layers very serried, of a size
between that oiMicrodon and Sp/uerodon, have a rounded
or cylmdric base, with their crown bent in the form of a
club, having in its centre a little truncated papilla; all the
surface of the teeth finely vertically striated.
1. C. Hogardi.
2 U
338
Gano'idei.
Schlero-
dermi.
FOSSIL ICHTHYOLOGY.
Genus VIII. Scrobodcs. Body fusiform, which is pe-
culiar to this genus of all the Pycnodonts. The teeth marked
with a distinct furrow.
1. S. jubovatus.
Genus IX. Pisodus. Distinguished by Professor Owen.
Crown of the very dense teeth fusiform or hemispherical,
and scattered over the whole surface of the dental plate.
1. P. Oweni.
Genus X. Gyronchus. Only yet known by its upper
jaw, which resembles that of Pycnodus ; but the middle
Vow of teeth on the vomer is arranged longitudinally, instead
of transversely. Size probably small.
1. Gr. oblongus.
Genus XL Acrotemnus. The molar teeth, instead of
the regular rounding of the crown, have a salient ridge like
a crest.
1. A. faba.
Genus XII. Periodus. Teeth, instead of the general
form of the Pycnodonts, have a deep grove near the crown,
so as to present, in a transverse section, the form of a hat,
with its wide brim turned up.
1. P. Koenigii.
Genus XIII. Phyllodus. Dental plates present a form
like that of a leaf, the posterior part being contracted, as if
for the attachment of a petiole ; the middle row are the
largest. A tooth consists of a mass of united plates, more
or less flattened, in number from four to ten, which are not
more than a quarter of a line in thickness each. Only
known from the teeth.
1. Ph. toliapicus. 2. Ph. planus. 3. Ph. polyodus. 4. Ph.
marginalis. 5 Ph. medius. 6. Ph. irregularis.
Family V.—SCHLERODERMI.
Genus VI. Dercetis. Body and head elongated; beak
narrow; upper jaw longer than the lower ; both armed with
teeth, which are long and conical, and alternating with v ^
smaller teeth. Vertebrae robust, longer than high, expanded
at the articulating surfaces, but more slender in the middle.
Pectorals very large ; ventrals very near pectorals, short,
with few rays; dorsal extends over almost all the back,
reaching from before the ventrals to the tail; anal half the
length of the dorsal. Sides covered with three rows of
osseous shields, like those of the sturgeon, in form like the
ace of hearts, with a granular surface.
1. D. elongatus. 2. D. scutatus.
Genus VII. Rhinellus. Small elongated body, with a
slender beak. Two distinct dorsals, one near the head, the
other near the tail; caudal large and forked. Sides covered
with three rows of shields, like the last genus, from which
it differs in having two dorsals.
1. Rh. furcatus. 2. Rh. nasalis.
Family—VI. ACIPENSERIDEI.
The existence of fossil fishes resembling the sturgeon, in
the Jurassic and tertiary formations, has been proved by
the discovery of their large dermoid plates ; but their bones,
which were chiefly cartilaginous, have disappeared. These
plates have a thin coat of enamel.
Genus I. Acipenser. This genus has much resemblance
to the living Acipenser ruihenus.
1. A. toliapicus.
Genus II. Chondrosteus. This has no living repre¬
sentative, but the form of the plates show that it belongs to
this family.
1. Ch. acipenseroides.
Palatine arch immoveable ; muzzle salient, armed with a
few distinct teeth. Scales flat, in the form of large rhom-
boidal, or polygonal plates, placed obliquely on the body,
which they wholly cover. Ossification of the skeleton, as
if retarded, fibrous.
Genus I. Ostracion. This genus has several living
representatives, but only one fossil species yet known. Body
covered with an osseous case, consisting of plates firmly
united, forming an inflexible covering, so that the fins and
tail are alone moveable. Mouth with small lips, covering
the sockets of the teeth.
1. 0. micrurus.
Genus II. Acanthoderma. Approaches the genus
Batistes among living fishes. The scales or plates appear
from their impressions in the rock to have possessed small
points rising from their surface. Skeleton robust; vertebrae
thick, and short; the spinous apophyses long and strong.
First dorsal fin has a long spinous ray ; the second dorsa
and the anal have only very slender soft rays; caudal
slender, composed of articulated dichotomous rays.
1. A. ovale. 2. A. spinosum.
Genus III. Acanthopleurus. Allied to the Batistes ;
with a dorsal spine, but with a more slender form. Dorsal
spine strong ; two strong spines also to the ventrals. Skin
covered with asperities that leave fine granular impressions
in the rock.
1. A. serratus. 2. A. brevis.
Family VII.—GYMNODONTEI.
The palatine arch is immoveable ; jaws covered with a
case of ivory, formed of united teeth. Scales salient, with
sharp spines placed obliquely to the body, which they wholly
cover. Skeleton fibrous, with imperfect ossification.
Genus I. Diodon. Orbicular body, sometimes elongated,
with numerous sharp spines. Head thick, and obtuse. The
bony plate of the jaws divided into two by a fissure, so as to
represent two teeth in each jaw, as in living Biodons.
1. D. tenuispinua. 2. D. erinaceus. 3. D. Scillae.
Family VIII.—LOPHOBRANCHIATI.
Branchiae united into little rounded tufts. Body elonga¬
ted, angular, covered with angular scales. Skeleton osseous.
Muzzle tubular, terminated with small free jaws.
Genus I. Calostomena. Snout tubular, resembling the
living Hippocampus; but there is a rounded fin at the end
of the tail. Sides have three principal rows of oblong
scales, which are higher than broad, and become smal er
towards the tail; on the belly is a fourth row of small size.
1. C. breviusculum.
Genus II. Syngnathus. One anal, one caudal, and
one dorsal fin; which last is far back.
1. S. opisthopterus, v. typhle.
Genus IV. Glyptocephalus. This large genus dis¬
covered by Kbnig. Head covered with symmetrical rows
of tubercles, which send out rays passing from their centre
to the circumference of each plate.
1. G. radiatus.
Genus V. Blochius. Body very long, like an eel; head
the thickest part of the fish, with a very long beak. Teeth
scopular. Vertebrae very long and slender. Enamelled
scales rhomboidal, with their angles in the longitudinal and
transverse direction of the fish.
1. B. longirostris.
Family IX.—CEPHALASPIDEI.
Vhole body and head covered by a few large shields or
;es which are not imbricated. Tail, which is hetero-
que covered with imbricated scales, without a true
dal ’fin. Instead of pectorals, this family have two long,
IV stilettes. The place of vertebrae is supplied by a
sal cord, like that of embryo fishes and the sturgeons.
Genus I. Pterichthys. No separation between head
l trunk. The lateral anterior plates of the trunk toucn
mesial line. The bony processes representing the
Shalt' pe<fw T l0n?' wau at fiISt suPPose^ to be an in-
Si sect>. bu,t d«termmed to be a fish by M. Agassiz. The
v ”  * species known are—
^ , p P- Mil.leri: 2 P productus. 3. P. latus. 4. P. cornutus.
5. P. testudinanus. 6. P. oblongus. 7. P. cancriformis. 8. P. major
Genus II. Pamphractus. Head and trunk distinct.’
Anterior lateral plates of the trunk separated by a mesial
shield of enormous size, which forms a large portion of the
surface of the carapace, and its anterior margin touches the
head, the plates of which are separated from the carapace
by a transverse line. Pectoral appendages like those of the
last genus. It was at first mistaken for a Pterichthvs.
1. P. hydrophilus.
Genus III. Polyphractus. The only known specimen
of this genus, consisting of plates of the head, was com¬
municated by Professor Traill to M. Agassiz, and is
figured by him in his Poissons Fossiles du Vieux Gres-
Rouge, 1 ab. 27, fig. 1. The head-plates are numerous, and
finely sculptured with concentric lines, presenting the ap¬
pearance of a mosaic. (See fig. 5.)
1. P. platycephalus.
Genus IV. Coccosteus. This genus wants the spi¬
nous processes which distinguish the Pterichthys, and
therefore has no pectoral appendages; it has one anal, and
one dorsal. The anterior of the trunk is covered by a
single large shield. Mouth furnished with small, equal
conical teeth. ’ 4 ’
FOSSIL ICHTHYOLOGY.
339
shark; another sort consists of large rounded plates, with Placoidei.
a loop in the centre, which sometimes terminates in a sharp Ichthyodo-
pnckle or spine rising out of a circular hollow, as in the ralithes.
skate. If this animal be taken as a type of the structure v^—^
of such parts in this order, the circular base is formed of
cartilaginous fibrous tissue, on which the calciferous tubes
radiate from the spine to the margins of the scale, just as
i it were a tooth implanted in a jaw. This structure can¬
not be traced in the minute granulations on the skin of the
shark; but probably the structure is similar in all the
scales of Placoids.
In the magnificent work of M. Agassiz, the spines of
Placoim which were described by Ur Buckland and Mr
Ue la Beche as Ichthyodorulites, were at first mistaken for
the defences of osseous fishes, as the Silurus and Balistes;
but were proved by M. Agassiz to belong to the rays of
the fins of cartilaginous species; a conclusion to which it
appears that Buckland and De la Beche had also arrived
by their own researches. The term has been retained
by Agassiz, to mclude certain genera which we only know
by these osseous rays.
dhe form of Placoi'd scales will be understood from
figs. 4 and 5.
DIVISION I,—ICHTHYODORULITHES.
1. 0. decipiens. 2. C. cuspidatus. 3. C. oblongus. 4 C
maxunus. °
Genus V. Cephalaspis. Head covered by one large
shield-shaped plate, with lateral prolongations extending
some way along the sides of the animal, which seem to be
spines united to the suborbitar bones, as in the Gurnard.
Body narrower than the head, and covered by vertical
rows of scales. No ventral nor pectoral fins; two dorsals,
the first rising just behind the head and reaching nearly
to the middle of the back; the second ends near the root
of the tail; the anterior of the anal is opposite to the
middle of the second dorsal; the first rays of all the fins
only are osseous.
1. C. Lyellii. 2. C. rostratus. 3. C. Lewisii. 4. C. Lloydii.
Order II.—PLACOIDEI.
The order, named from the tabular form of their dermoid
covering, consists of portions of the genera Squalus and
Raja, of the Linnaean system, and is one of the most dif¬
ficult branches of fossil ichthyology, because in most in¬
stances all that remain to us are the spinous appendages
of the animal, the teeth, or a few scales. The spines, how¬
ever, have a character which demonstrates them to have
belonged to cartilaginous fishes. The spines consist of a
single piece, the base of which has a distinct talus, that
has been inserted in the flesh, and not articulated to any
part of the skeleton, as is the case with the defensive spines
of all osseous fishes. They have besides a groove in their
posterior and inferior surface, more or less deep, which is
often carried far into the interior of the spine, and even to
its extremity. Their skeletons having been cartilaginous
have been easily broken up, and have disappeared in the
geological changes of the strata, in which their remains
are imbedded; and it is only by a careful comparison of
the fragments that remain with analogous parts in living
species, that they can be referred to genera and species.
Their skeletons are very rarely preserved; their move-
able teeth are generally detached from the jaws; their fins
little connected with their skeleton, render it difficult to
recognise their position on the animal. The scales of Pla-
COids have great diversity of form and structure. Some¬
times they consist of little scaly plates variously truncated at
their posterior margin, as in the shagreen of the skin of the
They are characterized as the conspicuous osseous fin-
rays which rise from a broad base, forming a talus to the
spine, without the least appearance of the two apophyses that
mark the basal joint of the spinous rays of osseous fishes.
Genus I. Onchus. The spinous rays are of medium
size, the surfaces longitudinally grooved, with rounded ribs
between their channels, more or less broad. Most of the
species have these growing on all their surfaces; but one
species has the posterior surface smooth.
1. 0. Murchisonii. 2. 0. tenuirostris. 3. 0. arenatus. 4. 0.
sulcatus. 5. 0. hamatus. 6. 0. semistriatus.
Genus II. Ctenacanthus. Immense semi-compressed
rays, broad at the base, the posterior cavity rather small
with a few small spines on the posterior surface, and pec¬
tinated longitudinal striae. r
!• ^ maj°r- 2. Ct. tenuistratus. 3. Ct. brevis. 4. Ct. ornatus.
Genus III. Orcanthus. Rays thick, and very broad
at base, with asteroid delineations on the portion above the
flesh; no posterior spines, which distinguishes them from
Asteracanthus, which occurs, not like this genus in the
coal, but in the oolite formation.
1. O. Milleri. 2. 0. pustulosus. 3. 0. minor.
Genus IV. Gyracanthus. Rays have deep grooves
and intervening ridges extending obliquely on the surface,
from the middle of the anterior to the posterior part of the
ray, and abutting those on the mesial line.
1. G. formosus. 2. G. tuberculatus. 3. G. Alnaricensis.
Genes V. Tristychius. Rays with strongly marked lon¬
gitudinal grooves on all the surfaces above the flesh, with
often coalescing striae, while the base is simply finely striated.
On the anterior surface there are three keels, the central*
the most prominent; the two lateral keels divaricate as
they descend; striae between the keels.
1. T. arenatus.
Genus VI. Ptychacanthus. Rays have the form of a
slightly bent sickle, insensibly growing thinner towards the
point, and laterally compressed, with the anterior edge pre¬
senting an obtuse keel; its posterior edge carries teeth; the
surface ornamented with fine thick-set plicae.
1. Ft. sublasvis. 2. Ft. Faujasii. 3. Ft. dubiu's.
Genus VII. Sphenacanthus. Rays with well marked
grooves and ridges, from top to bottom; anterior surface
i ounded; posterior flattened, smooth, with crenelled, but
not toothed edges.
1. S. serrulatus.
I
340
FOSSIL ICHTHYOLOGY.
Ichthyodo-
rulitkes.
Genus VIII. Nemacanthus. Rays laterally compressed
and flattened; anterior edge has a keel surmounted by a
rounded fillet, and divided from the rest of the ray by a
slight channel; on the exterior edge are several rounded
knobs and along the channel minute tooth-like projections ;
except where the knobs exist, the surface is longitudinally
finely striated. The internal cavity is small, extending
only to half the thickness of the ray at the base, and be¬
coming a mere line where the knobs commence.
1. N. monilifer. 2. N. filifer.
Genus IX. Leptacanthus. Dorsal fins beset with small,
flat, ensiform spines, the posterior part of which is armed with
short teeth, and the anterior edge sharp; the rays marked
by numerous fine longitudinal striae.
1. L. tenuispinus. 2. L. semistriatus. 3. L. serratus. 4. L.
longispinus.
Genus X. Asteracanthus. Rays generally large,
slightly arched, rounded anteriorly, and armed with a double
row of close-set teeth on their posterior edge, while their
surface is covered with starry tubercles; base smooth, with
a wide open groove on its posterior part.
1. A. ornatissimus. 2. A. acutus. 3. A. minor. 4. A. serai-
sulcatus.
Genus XI. Pristacanthus. Rays very long, and much
compressed, so that their posterior cavity rather resembles
a delicate fissure than an organic cavity; anterior edge as
sharp as a knife, and so is the posterior, which is provided
with sharp, flat, triangular teeth, like those of a saw.
1. P. securis.
Genus XII. Myriacanthus. Rays rounded, but with
something of a quadrilateral form, from the arrangement of
two series of spines on its posterior side, which are com¬
pressed and sharp, with their points towards the apex of the
ray. The surface between these ranges of spines is finely
longitudinally striated; the anterior face has a row of larger
spines of the same form down its centre.
1. M. paradoxus. 2. M. retrosus. 3. M. granulatus.
Genus XIII. Leiacanthus. Rays slightly curved, one-
third part buried in the flesh, finely striated, with an aper¬
ture posteriorly, which leads into a pulpar cavity, reaching
nearly to the sharp point of the ray; the surface of the ex¬
posed part is marked by longitudinal ridges of a rounded
form, separated by furrows as deep. No teeth on the pos¬
terior side of the ray.
1. L. falcatus.
Genus XIV. Spinax. Of this genus there are living
species; and the rays of the fossil resemble those of the
existing species, but are much larger, proportionally thicker,
straighter, and more rounded.
1. S. major.
Genus XV. Chimera. Dorsal ray like that of Spinax,
but differs in being more flat, and having dentations on its
posterior edge, and also by a projecting anteiior border.
The jaws of four species have been found in the chalk by
Dr Buckland.
1. Oh. Mantelli. 2. Ch. Egertoni. 3. Ch. Agassizn. 4. Lh.
Tessori. 5. Ch. Bucklandi. 6. Ch. Townsendii. 7. Ch. Johnsonii.
8. Ch. brevirostris. 9. Ch. Helvetica. 10. Ch. Dutertrii. 11. Ch.
emarginata. 12. Ch. Dufrenoyi. 13. Ch. Beaumontii. 14. Ch.
Colei. 15. Ch. Owenii. 16. Ch. regulosa. 17. Ch. neglecta. 18.
Ch. curvidens. 19. Ch. Sedgwickii. 20. Ch. falcata. 21. Ch.
psittacina.
Genus XVI. Pleuracanthus. All the surfaces of the
rays rounded, depressed, and armed on each edge towards
the base by a row of arenated teeth ; along the posterior sur¬
face is a deep, wide, round groove.
1. P. lasvissimus.
The remaining genera of PLACO'iDSare chiefly determined
by their teeth, though the two first genera are also well
characterized by the spinous rays of their fins. The labours
of Agassiz on these fishes have been ably assisted by the
researches of the Prince of Musignano, of Muller and
Henle, and above all, by the admirable investigations of Plagio-
Owen in his Odontography, a work that has thrown much
light on the whole zoological Division of the Vertebrata.
Cestracio-
dontei.
DIVISION II.—PLAGIOSTOMI.
Family L—CESTRACIODONTEI.
The living representative of this family is Ceslracion Phil-
ipsii of Australia. The form of the teeth is better adapted
for crushing or grinding to shreds, than for cutting.
Genus I. Hybodus. Besides the teeth of this genus,
we possess some of the osseous rays, and even of their fins.
They possess two dorsals, the osseous rays of which are of
considerable size, with roots equal to one-third of their
whole length concealed in the flesh. The surfaces of these
rays present longitudinal furrows, divided by rounded ridges;
they have a gentle curvature, with a flattened posterior
surface, which is armed with two rows of large, sharp ser-
ratures, gradually approximating, and finally coalescing into
one row. The teeth are peculiar, and are rather thin than
massive; the central projection of each tooth is a length¬
ened cone, subulate or pointed; and on the same base arise
smaller flanking cones, decreasing in size as they recede
from the central cone. These compound teeth sometimes
amount to four in each side of the jaw. The enamel of the
teeth consists of vertical folds, which in some species can
be seen at even the apex of the central cone, fhe first
twenty-two specie_s are chiefly characterized by their osseous
rays, the succeeding species by their teeth.
1. H. dorsalis. 2."H. apicalis. 3. H. marginalis. 4. H. stri-
atulus. 5. H. sulcatus. 6. H. leptodus. 7. H. acutus. 8. H.
pleiodus. 9. H. striatus. 10. H. subcarinatus. 11. H. Isevius-
culus. 12. H. crassus. 13. H. crassispinus. 14. H. minor. 15.
H. curtus. 16. H. reticulatus. 17. H. formosus. 18. H. ensatus.
19. H. carinatus. 20. H. major. 21. H. dimidiatus. 22. H.
tenuis. 23. H. pyramidalis. 24. H. medius. 25. H. grossiconus.
26. H. polyprion. 27. H. obtusus. 28. H. inflatus. 29. H. rari-
costatus. 30. H. dubius. 31. H. undulatus. 32. H. plicatilis. 33. H.
Mougeoti. 34. H. angustus. 35. II. longiconus. 36. H. obliquus.
37. H. polycyphus. 38. H. cuspidatus. 39. H. sublaevis.
Genus II. Ptychodus. Teeth quadrangular, root and
crown divided by a wide shallow groove; root coarse and
porous, flat below, and gradually enlarging towards the
crown, which suddenly expands beyond the root; interiorly
the tooth consists of medullary and calcigerous tubes ar¬
ranged as in Cestraciae, but smaller in size. Dorsal ray
very thick, and differs from that of the rest of the genera in
not consisting of one piece, but seemingly formed of several
layers, intimately soldered together, but perceptible in the
longitudinal furrows; the anterior of the ray has bosses
formed by the intersections of transverse ribs seen on its
sides*
1. Pt. spectabilis. 2. Pt. gibberulus. 3. Pt. arenatus. 4. Pt.
articulatus. 5. Pt. altior. 6. Pt. sulcatus. 7. Pt. concentncus.
8. Pt. decurrens. 9. Pt. acutus. 10. Pt. Knorrii. 11. Pt latissi-
mus. 12. Pt. mammillaris. 13. Pt. Mortoni. 14. Pt. polygrus.
Genus III. Ctenoptychius. Teeth somewhat like those
of Orodus, but more compressed, with the elevated central
ridge dentate. „ . . , ,
1. Ct. apicalis. 2. Ct. pectinatus. 3. Ct. denticulatus.
Genus IV. Orodus. Teeth elongated, with the central
part forming a transverse, obtuse cone, of which the longi¬
tudinal diameter is much the greatest.
1. O. cinctus. 2. O. ramosus.
Genus V. Psammodus. Crown of teeth found formed of
minute vertical tubes, which give the surface the appear¬
ance of being sanded ; they appear to have been in severa
ranges in the jaw.
1. Ps. rugosus. 2. Ps. porosus.
Genus VI. Helodus. Formation of teeth like the last,
with which it was by Agassiz at first confounded, as were
FOSSIL ICHTHYOLOGY.
PI agio- the three following genera also; but in this genus the crown
stomi. of the tooth is perfectly smooth, with a conical elevation in
Sharks01, the centre> and sometimes it has several such, but the cen-
v ^ ’ tral is most elevated.
1. H. simplex. 2. H. laevissimus. 3. H. subteres. 4. H. gib-
berulus. 5. H. turgidus. ’ °
Genus VII. Chomatodus. Teeth like those of Psam-
modus, but the base of each is surrounded with a series of
concentric plicae, more or less salient; they are generally
elongated, with the crown either flat or slightly salient, and
occasionally the edge is sharp.
1. Ch. cinctus. 2. Ch. linearis. 3. Ch. acuminatus.
Genus VIII. Cochliodus. The crown of the teeth
convoluted like a shell, instead of having them disposed in
several rows.
1. C. contortus.
Genus IX. Stkophodus. Teeth elongated, narrow,
truncated at each end, with more or less torsion in the longi¬
tudinal diameter; occasionally they are nearly straight, or
only slightly bent; the crown without projection or ridge.
1. S. longidens. 2. S. reticulatus. 3. S. subreticulatus. 4. S.
magnus. 5. S. tenuis. 6. S. irregularis. 7. S. radiopunctatus.
8. S. angustissimus. 9. S. elytra. 10. S. asper. 11. S. punctatus.
Genus X. Ceratodus. Structure of teeth like Psam-
modus, but they have only been placed in a single row;
one of their sides is straight, the opposite has several strong
projections.
1. C. altus. 2. C. latissimus. 3. C. curvus. 4. C. Kaupii. 5.
C. planus. 6. C. parvus. 7. C. emarginatus. 8. C. gibbus. 9. C.
Daedaleus. 10. C. obtusus. 11. C. disauris. 12. C. Phillipsii.
13. C. serratus. 14. C. heteromorphus.
Genus XI. Ctenodus. These singular teeth look very
like the valve of an echinated cockle; but how fixed in the
jaw is unknown.
1. Ct. alatus. 2. Ct. cristatus. 3. Ct. Robertsoni.
Genus XII. Acrodus. A fragment of a jaw was found
showing teeth like the living Cestracion of Australia. The
enamel covers a granular bony structure. The teeth has
transverse ridges radiating from a longitudinal central one,
not unlike in appearance to a contracted leech, for the petri¬
faction of which the tooth has often passed: in some species
the central ridge is high, especially in the middle.
1. A. nobilis. 2. A. latus. 3. A. gibberculus. 4. A. undulatus.
5. A. leiopleurus. 6. A. minimus. 7. A. acutus. 8. A. Gaillar-
doti. 9. A. lateralis. 10. A. larva. 11. A. Braunii. 12. A.
hirudo. 13. A. rugosus.
Family II.—SQUALI, OR SHARKS.
An elongated body; strong muscular tail; mouth below
the muzzle; breathe through several open spiracles on the
sides of the neck; generally sharp cutting teeth, which are
moveable. Skeleton cartilaginous. From this last circum¬
stance, we seldom find more of them fossilized than the
teeth, and spines of the fins.
Genus I. Notidanus. Single dorsal, opposite to the
space between the ventral and anal fins. Teeth composed
of a series of toothlets, the first of which is crenulated on its
anterior margin; the toothlets become smaller and smaller,
and the last represent a fine serrature on the posterior mar¬
gin of the tooth; the root broad and flat.
1. N. primigenus. 2. N. recurvus. 3. N. microdon. 4. N. pee-
tinatus. 5. N. Munsteri. 6. N. serratissmus.
Genus II. Corax. Teeth solid, and resemble those of
the living Galeus, except in the regularity of the serratures
on the edges of the teeth.
1. C. pristidontus. 2. C. Kaupii. 3. C. falcatus. 4. C. appen-
diculatus. 5. C. affinis. 6. C. Egertoni. 7. C. planus.
Genus III. Gaeeocerdo. Teeth chiefly differ from
those of Galeus by serratures on both edges, and from Corax
by the greater size of those at the base. They are flat ex¬
teriorly, and convex on the inside. Two of this genus are
its living representatives, and five are fossil.
1. G. aduncus. 2. G. latidens. 3. G. minor. 4. G. gibberulus.
5. G. denticulatus.
Genus IV. Sphyrna, v. Zygoena. Unfortunately the
determination of the fossil species is very difficult; for, in
this genus, the teeth in both jaws differ much from each
other; and we even find, in the same jaw of the living
species, teeth with serratures on the edges, and some with¬
out them. The general form of the teeth resembles those
of the sharks termed Prinodon ; but these are more slender.
The species referred by Agassiz to this genus are,—
!• & prisca. 2. S. lata. 3. S. denticulata.
Genus V. Hemipristis. Teeth have smooth points,
but are distinctly serrated towards their base; they are
pyramidal, broad at the base, and sharp pointed, with smooth
enamel.
1. H. serra. 2. H. paucidens.
Genus VI. Carcharias. Teeth triangular, in several
rows, serrated on both margins; enamel perfect; dentine
presents a hollow cone.
1. 0. tenuis. 2. C. acutus.
Genus VII. Glyphis. This genus separated from the
last, because of the lancet form of the teeth, which at the
point resemble a sculptor’s chisel, the root and base of the
crown being a little enlarged.
1. G. hastalis.
Genus VIII. Carcharodon. Teeth chiefly differ from
those of Carcharias by being solid within, and by their vast
size.. The living type is the Lamna of the Prince of Canino.
1. C. megalodon. 2. C. rectidens. 3. C. subauriculatus. 4. C.
productus. 5. C. polygyrus. 6. C. sulcidens. 7. C. auriculatus.
8. C. angustidens. 9. G. turgidus. 10. C. semiserratus. 11. C.
lanceolatus. 12. C. toliapicus. 13. C. heterodon. 14. C. mega-
lotis. 15. C. leptodon. 16. C. disauris. 17. C. subserratus. 18.
C. Escheri.
Genus IX. Otodus. Only known as a fossil. Teeth
differ from Carcharodon by the total want of serratures on
the edges, and being smaller, while they have a conspicuous
collar on each side of the tooth; their form is wide, and
their root large.
1. O. obliquus. 2. 0. lanceolatus. 3. 0. appendiculatus. 4. 0.
latus. 5. 0. crassus. 6. 0. semiplicatus. 7. 0. serratus. 8. 0.
macrodus. 9. 0. tricuspis. 10. 0. subplicatus. 11. 0. trigonatus.
12. 0. recticonus.
Genus X. Oxyrhina. Teeth with the lateral collar of
Otodus, in which they differ also from Lamna. Muzzle sharp.
1. Ox. hastalis. 2. Ox. xiphodon. 3. Ox. trigonodon. 4. Ox.
plicatilis. 5. Ox. Mantellii. 6. Ox. retroflexa. 7. Ox. quadrans.
8. Ox. leptodon. 9. Ox. Desorii. 10. Ox. crassa. 11. Ox. subin-
flata. 12. Zippei. 13. Ox. minuta. 14. Ox. meristodon, v. para-
doxa.
Genus XI. Lamna.. Teeth have the lateral collar, but
it is much less conspicuous than in Otodus; are flat and
lamelliform, but less broad than in the last mentioned; and
they have small lateral cones.
1. L. elegans. 2. L. cuspidata. 3. L. compressa. 4. L. den¬
ticulata. 5. L. acuminata. 6. L. crassidens. 7. L. Hopei. 8. L.
ventralis. 9. L. acutissima. 10. L. contorta. 11. L. dubia. 12.
E. gracilis. 13. L. subulata. 14. E. raphidon. Itk L. Bronnii.
16. L, duplex. 17. L. longidens. 18.. E. plana.
Family III.—RAJA.
Distinguished by their horizontally flattened bodies, with
the mouth placed below their disk, and the enormous deve¬
lopment of their pectoral fins.
Genus I. Myliobates. Known by the extraordinary
size of the transverse dental plates, that supply the place of
teeth in both jaws, but are longer and more flat in the
lower than the upper jaw. The central teeth are elongated,
and are supported on each side by much smaller lateral
teeth, of an irregular hexagonal figure, in three rows. These
341
Plagio-
stomi.
Raja.
342
Plagio-
stomi.
Chimsera.
FOSSIL ICHTHYOLOGY.
teeth or plates are closely applied, and seem to pave the
mouth. The living species are few, but they seem to have
been very numerous in a former geological epoch.
1. M. micropleurus. 2. M. Stokesii. 3. M. geniopleurus. 4. M.
Dixoni. 5. M. Regley. 6. M. striatus. 7. M. toliapicus. 8. M.
punctatus. 9. M. suturalis. 10. M. gyratus. 11. M. heteropleurus.
12 M jugalis. 13. M. Brongniartii. 14. M. nitidus. 15, M. an-
gustus. 16. M. Colei. 17. M. Owenii. 18. M. Sternbergii- 19.
M. Woodwardii. 20. M. canaliculatus. 21. M. lateralis. 22. M.
raarginalis. 23. M. acutus.
Genus II. jEtobates. Differs from Myliobates by the
projection of the lower jaw, and the square truncation of the
upper. Teeth all parallel to each other, and the lateral teeth
are wanting.
1. sulcatus. 2. JE. irregularis. 3. JE. arenatus. 4. M.
subarenatus.
Genus III. Zygobates. The dental plates disposed in
several rows, diminishing gradually in size from the central
to the lateral rows. The living species are found on the
coast of Brazil; the fossil species in the crag formation.
1. Z. Studeri. 2. Z. Woodwardii.
Family IV.—CHIMiERA.
The fossil species were discovered by Dr Buckland, who
recognised the jaws and teeth. The latter are undivided
plates. The family more numerous in former epochs than
now.
Genus I. Chimera, v. Ischyodon. The living species
have but one branchial opening, the upper jaw repre¬
sented only by the vomer ; and this and also the lower jaw
are furnished with hard undivided plates instead of teeth.
1. Ch. Egertoni. 2. Ch. Agassizii. 3. Ch. Tessoni. 4. Ch.
Bucklandi. 5. Ch. Townsendii. 6. Ch. Johnsonii. 7. Ch. brevi-
rostris. 8. Ch. Helvetica. 9. Ch. Dutertrii. 10. Ch. emarginata.
11. Ch. Dufrenoyi. 12. Ch. Beaumontii. 13. Ch. Colei. 14. Ch.
Owenii. 15. Ch. rugulosa. 16. Ch. neglecta. 17. Ch. curvidens.
18. Ch. Mantellii. 19. Ch. Sedgwickii. 20. Ch. falcata. 21. Ch.
psittacina.
Genus II. Elasmodtts. Differs from Chrmcera by the
extreme shortness of the lower jaw, as was first pointed out
by Sir Philip Egerton. The symphysis of the jaw flat, with
dental plate truncated, and sloping backward.
1. E. Greenoughii. 2. E. Hunteri.
Genus III. Edaphrodon. Characterized by Buckland
as having on the superior maxillaries three tubercles of den¬
tine projecting from the bone ; on the interior maxillary are
two smaller tubercles, placed obliquely on the dentaledge.
1. E. Bucklandi. 2. E. leptognathus. 3. E. eurygnathus.
There are some other Placoids which are imperfectly
known from small fragments, described chiefly by the
German naturalists, Count Miinster, MM. Muller, Henle,
and Wagner, which we can here only slightly notice.
Genus I. Janassa. This has much of the character of
the genus of the Myliobates, with teeth somewhat like those
of Zygobates ; they have a tubular structure, and are small¬
est towards the point, placed in three principal ranges, with
small lateral teeth.
1. J. angula. 2. J. Humboldtii. 3. J. bituminosa.
Genus II. Dictea. A nearly complete impression shows
this to have a flattened form, with large rounded pectorals
prolonged on the sides of the head.
1. D. striata.
Genus III. Aellopos. From a specimen in the mu¬
seum at Munich, it has vertebrae like a Galeus, as long as
high, with a smooth surface. The second dorsal fin is large,
of a pyramidal form; the caudal much elongated; the
shagreen of the skin finely and uniformly granular.
1. 2E. Wagneri. 2. iE. elongatus.
The teeth are small, tricuspid, the middle point only cut- Plagio-
ting; the base large, which keeps the lateral points distant
from the cutting one. Jaws dilated at the sides, narrowing ^ imaera
towards the symphysis. ” v^‘
1. S. antiquus.
Genus V. Thyeiaina. Discovered by Count Miinster
in the chalk of Baumberge. Both dorsals are behind the
insertion of the ventrals; the second dorsal is opposite to
the anal, which it exceeds in size. Form that of a true
Scyllium. The inferior angle of all these fins is rounded.
1. Th. angusta. 2. Th. prisca; this last, found in the lias of
Lyme Regis.
Genus VI. Arthropterus. Observed by Agassiz in
the lias of Bristol; only known by its fins, which are five
inches long, composed of articulated, cylindrical rays ; di¬
lated at their ends, and sending off parallel branches to
very distant articulations ; unequal in different parts of the
same ray.
1. A. Rileyi.
Genus VII. Squalo-raja, v. Spinacorhinus. From
the lias of Lyme Regis. The prolongation of the head is
owing to a projection analogous to the saw of a Prist is,
composed of two parallel pieces, of which the larger and
lower receives the other. Around this beak are spines,
like those on the skate. Jaws transverse, and placed be¬
fore and below the orbits, with very small pointed teeth.
1. Sq. polyspondyla.
Genus VIII. Asterodermus. The collection of the Geo¬
logical Society of London possesses a small fish like a ray,
from Solenhofen; but the vertebrae have more the form of
a shark than a ray. All the surface is covered with star-
like spinous scales, the largest of which are in the middle
of the back. It has eight pairs of ribs on the sides of the
pelvic vertebrae, which are long and slender, unlike the
skeleton of a ray. Fins with flat, simple, transversely
articulated rays.
1. A. platypterus.
Genus IX. Cyclarthrus. In the Bristol museum, a fish
which cannot be referred to any known species of ray,
though like them. The rays are cylindrical. Thick and
short towards the base of the fins. The shagreen very
fine.
1. C. micropterus.
Genus X. Euryarthra. Count Munster has a fin from
Solenhofen, of large size, with flat, broad rays, composed of
a few large articulations. Fhe animal seems to have been
very large.
1. Eu. Munsterii.
Genus XL Pristis. The saw of this species, found in
Sheppy, is in the British Museum; and a similar one of
the same genus in Sir P. Egerton’s collection. They be¬
long to a species no longer existing. They have on the
superior surface two grooves. The two osseous plates
composing this beak are supported by vertical pillars, that
lie side by side.
1. P. bisulcatus. 2. P. Hastingsiae.
Genus XII. Trygon. This genus belongs to the Rays,
and the two known species are found at Monte Bolca.
The genus is distinguished by the double dentate spine or
sting, with which the tail is armed. Both species occur at
Monte Bolca.
1. T. Gazzolae. 2. T. oblongus.
Genus XIII. Torpedo. A large fish, with the appear¬
ance of the existing Torpedo, occurs at Monte Bolca. The
disk of the body is nearly circular; the tail short and ro¬
bust.
Genus IV. Scyuliodus. This is contained in the col¬
lections of Lord Enniskillen and Sir Philip Egerton. It
is a Squalus of mean size, found in the Kentish chalk.
1. T. gigantea.
Genus XIV. Narcopterus. In the museum of Padua
is a fish which Agassiz mentions under this name, fiom
FOSSIL ICH
pteno'idei. Monte Bolca. It appears to have considerable resemblance
IPerco'idei. to the last genus, having a very broad muzzle.
1. N. Bolcanus.
Order III.—CTENOIDEI.
This order, unlike the two last, has many living repre¬
sentatives in all its families. The character is, “scales
circular, more or less elongated, formed of osseous plates,
toothed or dentate on their posterior margins.” The fossil
families are nine, and many of the species are found in
excellent preservation.
Family I.—PERCOIDEI.
Body oblong; scales rough; opercula strongly dentate
or spinous. I eeth on the intermaxillaries, the forepart of
the vomer, the lower jaw, and frequently on the palate.
Strong anterior spinous rays on the anterior part of the back,
forming a fin, quite distinct from the soft rays, or uniting
with them in a common membrane. Ventral fins often
thoracic, i.e., anterior to the pectorals.
Genus I. Sphenocephalus. One dorsal, with some
spinous rays only at its anterior margin ; this fin is of small
extent, and scarcely surpasses the size of the anal. Head
wedge-shaped.
1. Sph. fissicaudus.
Genus II. Hoplopteryx. Spinous portion of the dor¬
sal formed of very thick rays, and as large as the soft part;
this fin extends as far as the end of the anal. Bones of
the head dentate.
1. H. antiquus.
Genus III. Beryx. A single dorsal, with a few spinous
rays only in its anterior. Head thick, and very obtuse.
1. B. ornatus. 2. B. radians. 3. B. microcephalus. 4. B.
Zippei. 5. B. Germanus.
Genus IV. Acanus. Spinous portion of the only dorsal
very large, formed of thick rays longer than the soft rays.
Several strong rays before the anal.
1. A. ovalis. 2. A. Regeley. 3. A. oblongus. 4. A. minor.
5. A. arcuatus.
Genus V. Podocys. Lower jaw projecting. Ventrals
much developed, with long rays. Dorsal extending to the
nape.
1. P. minutus.
Genus VI. Acrogaster. Abdominal region large, and
salient. A few spines before the dorsal, which extends not
below the middle of the back; anal as long as the dorsal.
1. A. parvus.
Genus VII. Myripristis. Praeoperculum bristled with
two parallel rows of dentations, but without a spine at its
angle. All the opercula and the bones of the face and
cranium are equally dentate. Two nearly equal dorsals.
1. M. homopterygius. 2. M. leptacanthus.
Genus VIII. Holocentrum. Operculum and praeoper¬
culum equally armed with spines, and the latter has be¬
sides, at its angle, a strong one directed backwards;
cranial bone and the suborbitar bones are also dentate.
Two dorsals; the first of which is formed of large sharp
spines, and is larger than the second.
1* H. pygaeum. 2. H. pygmaeum.
Genus IX. Pristigenys. Suborbiculars strongly den¬
tate. Spinous rays of the dorsal longer than the soft, and
occupying it to a greater extent.
1. P. macrophthalmus.
Genus X. Enoplosus. Broad compressed body. An¬
terior dorsal very high. Ventrals very large.
1. E. pygopterus.
Genus XI. Smerdis. First suborbitar bone strong,
dentate; praeoperculum equally so, but without a spine at
T II Y O L O G Y. 343
its angle; operculum terminates behind by a rounded pro- Ctenoidei.
jection. Two very narrow dorsals ; caudal forked. Sparo'idei.
1. S. micracanthus. 2. S. pygmasus. 3. S. minutus. 4. S. - -r- ^
macrurus. 5. S. ventralis. 6. S. latior.
Genus XII. Perga. Two approximate dorsals. A
strong spine at the angle of the operculum; praeoperculum
dentate, especially below; interoperculum, at its inferior
margin, as well as the suboperculum, less dentate. There
are dentations also at the scapularies and angles of the
humerus.
1. P. lepidota. 2. P. Beaumontii. 3. P. angusta.
Genus XIII. Labrax. Operculum with a double point;
suborbitars, interopercula, and subopercula smooth; prae¬
operculum dentate, rounded at its angle, with large teeth
at its inferior margin; opercular pieces scaly.
I. L. lepidotus. 2. L. schizurus. 3. L. maior.
Genus XIV. Apogon. Two very distinct dorsals. **
Praeoperculum with a double dentate margin. Body short.
Scales large.
1. A. spinosus.
Genus XV. Fates. Praeoperculum dentate, with a
strong spine at its angle, directed backwards; humeral
angle dentate. Fwo dorsals. Tail rounded.
1. L. gracilis. 2. L. gibbus. 3. L. notasus. 4. L. macrurus.
Genus XVI. Cyclopoma. Operculum terminated by a
thick point, very strong and sharp ; praeoperculum strongly
dentate, and the strongest dentations on this bone are at its
inferior margin, and directed forward; humeral angle rounded.
Two dorsals slightly united at their base ; caudal rounded.
1. C. gigas. 2. C. spinosum.
Genus XVII. Dules. Jaws furnished with finely sca¬
pular, or velvet-formed teeth. Opercula spinous; praeoper¬
culum dentate. Six branchiostegous rays. Dorsals united.
1. D. temnopterus. 2. D. medius.
Genus XVIII. Pelates. Operculum terminated by a
strong spine ; praeoperculum dentate. Teeth scopular.
Dorsal has numerous spinous rays, and this part is scarcely
distinguishable from the soft part of the fin.
1. P. quinquedecimalis.
Genus XIX. Serranus. Spinous and soft portions of *
the dorsal united. Jaws with canine teeth, mingled with
scopular teeth. Operculum terminated by two or three flat
spines ; praeoperculum finely dentate. Seven branchioste¬
gous rays. Cranium and opercular pieces scaly.
1. S. microstomus. 2. S. occipitalis. 3. S. ventralis.
Family II.—SPAROIDEI.
The living fishes of this family were involved in much
confusion, until remodelled by Valenciennes. Its fossil
fishes are not numerous. The most ancient occur at Monte
Bolca, and among these there is one extinct genus, Sparodus }
all the other genera have living representatives, though the
species which occur as fossils no longer exist.
The Sparoids are characterized by a mouth not porrectile,
by the absence of palatal teeth, and of spines or dentations
on the opercular bones ; no bulging of the cranial bone, and
no scales on their vertical fins.
Genus I. Dentex. Deep and compressed body. Head
large ; conical teeth in one row on the edges of the inter¬
maxillaries and inferior maxillaries; the anterior teeth
extend in a hooked form beyond the other teeth. Cheeks
scaly.
1. D. leptacanthus. 2. D. microdon. 3. D. wassispinus. 4. D.
breviceps. 5. D. ventralis. 6. D. Faujasii.
Genus II. Pagellus. Two rows of small molar teeth
on the intermaxillaries and maxillaries, in the form of pave¬
ments, with small conical slender teeth in the front of the
jaws.
1. P. microdon. 2. P. leptesteus.
Genus III. Sparnodus. A single row of large, conical,
344
FOSSIL ICHTHYOLOGY.
Cteno'idei. short, and obtuse teeth on the edge of the intermaxillaries
Scienoidei. and inferior maxillaries. On the back and behind the anal fin
are grooves, in which the anal and dorsal fins may lie.
I S. macrophthalmus. 2. S. ovalis. 3. S. altivelis. 4. S.
micracanthus. 5. S. elongatus.
Genus IV. Sargus. Body small, elongated, much com¬
pressed, and deep, especially in the middle. Cutting
incisors in the interior part of the intermaxillaries and inferior
maxillaries.
1. S. Cuvieri.
Family III.—SCIENOIDEI.
This family presents most of the characters of the Per colds,
except that they have no teeth on vomer and palate, which
are always smooth. The head, and especially the muzzle,
is rounded, so that the outline presents an ogee Gothic
* arch. There are but two fossil genera.
Genus I. Pristipoma. The spinous rays of the dorsal
are united to the soft rays ; seven branchiostegous rays.
Muzzle much rounded; mouth small. Operculum obtuse.
1. P. furcatum.
Genus II. Odonteus. Spinous part of dorsal very
high, and separated from the soft rays by a slope. One
row of thick conical teeth, which are short, on the inter¬
maxillaries and maxillaries; pneoperculum finely dentate.
Cavernous bone round the orbits. Six branchiostegous
rays.
1. 0. sparo'ides.
Family IV.—COTTOIDEI.
Head large, depressed, cuirassed, furnished with spines
or tubercles. Two dorsals.
Genus I. Cottus. Head and body at its anterior thick
and broad, tapering to the tail. Head tuberculated or
spinous. Dorsals distinct; the first narrow ; inferior rays
of pectorals simple ; ventrals with few rays. Branchioste¬
gous rays six.
1. C. brevis. 2. C. aries. 3. C. papyraceus.
Genus II. Pterygocephalus. Spinous dorsal rays very
long, separate, and reaching to the head, while the soft part
of this fin occupies all the back. Caudal large, rounded.
Scales carinated.
1. Pt. paradoxus.
Genus III. Callipteryx. Body large, elongated.
Few spinous rays in the anterior of the dorsal, which extends
aiong the whole back ; anal also very extended. No scales
have yet been found. The last caudal vertebra dilated into
a plate, and caudal fin ample.
1. C. speciosus. 2. C. recticaudus.
Family V.—GOBIOIDEI.
Ventral-thoracic fins united by their inner margins so as
to form a sort of funnel more or less open. Dorsal has
simple slender rays, which sometimes mingle with the soft
rays, or form sometimes a distinct fin. Six branchiostegous
rays.
Genus I. Gobius. Two distinct dorsal fins. Ventrals
united. Teeth finely scopular.
1. G. macrurus. 2. G. microcephalus.
Family VI.—TEUTHYS.
An oval compressed body ; a small mouth, not porrectile,
with a single row of teeth in each jaw; none on the palatines
nor tongue. Dorsal single *, caudal nearly square. Head
sloping very rapidly.
Genus I. Acanthurus. Teeth cutting, and dentate on
the edges. A strong, cutting, and mobile spine on each
side of the tail.
1. A. tenuis. 2. A. ovalis.
Genus II. Naseus. Front more or less prominent.
Teeth conical. Four branchiostegous rays,
three soft rays. Tail with fixed spines.
1. N. nuchalis. 2. N. rectifrons.
Ventral has Ctenoidei.
Chaeto-
donta.
Family VII.—AULOSTOMATA.
This family contains several genera which have little
resemblance with each other, except in having the mouth
tubular, or like a flute. Body elongated, but some are
thoracic and others abdominal fishes. The soft dorsal and
anal fins are placed far back. Scales pectinated, as in
Chcetodons.
Genus I. Amphisyle. Back cuirassed with large scaly
plates, with the anterior of which the first spinous ray of
the dorsal is articulated.
1. A. longirostris.
Genus II. Aulostoma. Ventrals abdominal; the soft
dorsal opposite to the anal, and far back ; a few free spines
are before the dorsal. Mouth-tube long and compressed;
jaws without teeth.
1. A. Bolcense.
Genus HI. Fistularia. Mouth-tube very long, and
depressed; small teeth on the intermaxillaries and inferior
maxillaries. A single dorsal opposite to the anal; middle
ray of the caudal filamentous.
1. F. tenuirostris. 2. F. Kcenigii.
Genus IV. Rhamphosus. An immense spinous ray,
dentate on its posterior surface, is inserted in the nape ; a
soft dorsal opposite to the anal fin ; caudal squared. Muzzle
projecting as a nose above the jaws.
1. Rh. aculeatus.
Genus V. Urosphen. Body elongated, cylindrical,
terminated by a large cuneiform fin. Mouth-tube elon¬
gated, as in Fistularia.
1. U. fistularis.
Family VIII.—CHtETODONTA, v. SQUAMIPENNiE.
Body compressed, appearing more or less deep according
to the proportion of the vertical fins, the soft parts of which
have scales on them, so as to render it difficult to see the
beginning of those fins. Some of them have very fine
scopular teeth.
Genus I. Semiophorus. Dorsal very high anteriorly,
and all soft, except the fins, ray, and a few small spines ; it
extends along the whole back; anal much less; ventrals
very long. Profile very perpendicular.
1. S. velifer. 2. S. velicans.
Genus II. Ephippus. Anterior of dorsal formed of very
large spinous rays, which are not covered with scales. A
deep groove exists in all the rays of both spinous and soft.
1. E. longipennis. 2. E. oblongus.
Genus HI. Scatophagus. Two dorsals, of which the
anterior is formed of thick spines, the first the longest; the
anal has four spines. Scales very small.
1. S. frontalis.
Genus. IV. Zanclus. Few spinous rays in the dorsal;
but elongating rapidly, where collected at the very high
anterior of the dorsal. Muzzle very prominent.
1. Z. brevirostris.
Genus V. Macrostoma. Mouth very large. Dorsal
and anal low, but very long.
1. M. altum.
Genus VI. Holacanthus. At the angle of the prae-
operculum is a large needle-formed spine, directed back¬
wards, the surface of which is usually dentate. Spinous
dorsal rays strong, but less high than in Pomacanthm.
1. H. microcephalus.
Genus VII. Pomacanthus. Resembles the last, but
with much longer dorsal spines.
1. P. subarcuatus.
Genus VIII. Platax. Body much compressed, being
scarce distinguishable from the vertical fins, which are very
jteno'idei. high and scaly. Short spinous rays are concealed in the
leuronec- anterior of the dorsal; ventrals very long.
tes- 1. P. altissimus. 2. P. macropterygius. 3. P. papilio 4 P
Woodwardii. r ‘
Genus IX. Pig^eus. Dorsals united, the anterior spinous
part formed of thick rays, the soft part rounded and accu-
mmated by rays a little longer in the middle portion : anal
conformed to the dorsal, but not so long.
i. P gigas 2 P nobUis. 3. P. oblongus. 4. P. dorsalis. 5.
P. nuchahs. 6. P. Coleanus. 7. P. Egertoni. 8. P. gibbus.
Genus X. Toxotes. Dorsal very far back, scaly on its
soft portion, which is lost in the spinous part; anal re¬
sembles the dorsal, to which it is opposite. Lower jaw pro-
jecting. The living type is the T. jaculator of Bengal
which the fossil species much resembles.
1. T. antiquus.
Family XL—PLEURONECTES.
Characterized by want of symmetry between both sides
of the body, the irregularity of the head, the eyes on one
side of the body. Fins of back and abdomen invest also
the head. Scales with rough points at their extremities
Genus I. Rhombus. Body very broad. Dorsal ad¬
vancing to the border of the lower jaw, and prolonged as is
the anal to the caudal.
1. Rh. minimus.
Family XII.—MUGILLOIDEI.
Body nearly cylindrical. Scales large, advancing to the
top of the head. Two distant dorsals, the first consisting
of a few strong spines; ventrals abdominal. Teeth minute.
Genus I. Mugil. Body short, covered with large scales.
First dorsal consists of four spines.
1. M. princeps.
fossil ichthyology.
Order IV.—CYCLOIDEI.
short and slender; vertrebral apophyses stout; those of the
abdomen curving forwards.
1. V. longispinus. 2. V. priscus. 3. V. parvulus.
Genus IV. Zeus. Body squat, compressed. Head large;
muzzle porrectile. Spinous dorsal composed of very long
rays; two anals ; one spinous, the other soft; the soft dorsal
^ i.]1 ana^ are, ^an^et^ by large osseous and spinous
suelds; margin of the ventral has similar shields. Verte¬
bras short; ribs very slender, and partly attached to very
strong inferior apophyses.
1. Z. priscus.
Genus V. Lichia. Body elongated, compressed. First
dorsal composed of free, moveable spines, and of a fixed
one directed forwards; two free spines before the anal.
I eeth scopular.
1. L. prisca.
Genus VI. Trachinotus. Body short, elevated. Pro¬
file much inclined. First dorsal composed of free spines,
leeth scopular. r
1. T, tenuiceps.
Genus VII. Carangus. Body elongated, compressed.
First dorsal consists of free spines, rather long, without the
spine projecting forwards; no free anal spines; second dorsal
opposite to the anal; no finlets. Teeth scopular.
1. C. latior. 2. C. dorsalis. 3. C. analis. 4. C. maximus.
, ,^E1SaDS Amuihstium. Body broad and squat, pro-
i u- , orsai continuous, occupying more than the
naff of the ridge of the back. Anal very large.
1. A. paradoxum. °
Genus IX. Palimphyes. Body squat. Dorsals sepa¬
rate ; pectorals very large. Pedicle of tail broad. Verte¬
brae short and numerous.
1. P. longus. 2. P. brevis. 3. P. latus.
vr ^E^lJS Arches. Body more or less elongated.
V ertebrae long and few; interapophysal bonelets very slender.
1. Ar. Glarisianus. 2. Ar. brevis. J
. They have been defined osseous fishes, with elliptical or
circular scales, formed of horny laminae, without dentations
on their posterior margins. From the varying size of the
laminae composing them, they appear marked with concen-
trical circular rings. This order does not correspond with
any of Cuvier’s divisions, but the structure of the scales is
an excellent character for distinguishing either recent or
fossil fishes. Agassiz subdivides this order into two great
divisions.
DIVISION I.—CYCLOIDEI ACANTHOPTERYGEI.
Family I.—SCOMBEROIDEI.
Body more or less elongated, generally fusiform, rarely
squat. V entrals either thoracic ox jugular ; ventrals without
scales; dorsals either separate or contiguous, with or without
finlets behind the second dorsal or anal fins; opercula with¬
out spines or dentations. Jaws with strong conical teeth,
or with loose scopular teeth. Scales very small. Of all the
Cycloids, the Scomberoids have the greatest number of
living representatives.
Genus I. Gasteronemus. Body compressed; abdomen
very dilated. Thoracic ventrals supported by an immense
pelvic bone, and composed of a long simple ray preceded
by a small bone! et. Dorsal continuous. Head small. Teeth
very small.
1- G. rhombeus. 2. G. oblongus.
Genus II. Acanthonemus. Body squat. Dorsal con¬
tinuous ; spinous rays of the dorsal and anal exceedingly
developed. Muzzle porrectile. Teeth scopular.
1. A. filamentosus. 2. A. Bertrandi.
Genus III. Vomer. Body squat, compressed, wholly
covered with very small scales. Head large, its profile
much inclined. Ventrals thoracic; dorsals separate; fin-rays
VOL. xn.
Genus XL Isurus. Body squat. Head large. Pedicle
of tail very narrow. Skeleton robust.
1. I. macrurus.
Genus XII. Peeionemus. Allied to Isurus, but body
more lengthened. ]
1. P. macrospondylus.
Genus XIII. Ductor. Body elongated and cylindrical.
Fedicle of tail broad. Vertebrae long and few.
1. D. leptosomus.
Genus XIV. Thynnus. Body elongated. Dorsals con¬
tiguous ; false pinnules or finlets behind the dorsal and anal
fins. A corslet of unequal scales around the thorax.
1. Th. propterygius. 2. Th. Bolcensis.
_ Genus XV. Orcynus. Body elongated. Dorsals con¬
tiguous ; finlets behind the dorsal and anal fins; pectorals
very long, which distinguish it from Thynnus.
1. 0. lanceolatus. 2. 0. latior.
Genus XVI. Cybium. Body elongated. Dorsals con¬
tiguous ; finlets as in the last. Teeth large in both jaws.
1. C. speciosum. 2. C. macropomum.
Genus XVII. Goniognathus. Habit of the Coryphame:
but differs in the angular form of the jaws.
1. G. coryphsenoides. 2. G. maxillaris.
Genus XVIII. Enchodus. Teeth strongly developed
bulging on their interior, and flat on their anterior surface’
occupying the whole circumference of the jaws; but there’
are also scopular teeth on the margins of the jaws.
1. H. halcyon. 2. E. Faujasii.
eel-shaped. Head obtuse; jaws armed with strong teeth.
Dorsals continuous; ventrals consist of some long rays.
Vertebrae long and slender; apophysary bonelets are fas¬
tened to the apophyses.
1. A. Glarisianum. 2. A. isopleurum. 3. A. dorsale. 4. A
heteropleurum. 5. A. latum. 6. A. longipenne.
2 x
345
Cyclo'idei
Acanthop-
terygei.
Scombe-
roidei.
346
Cyclo'idei Genus XX. NEMOPTERrx. Body elongated. Caudal
Acanthop-fin rounded; pectorals very large. Strong teeth in the
terygei. jaws. Vertebrae robust.
Xiphoidei. 1 crassus. 2. N. elongatus.
Genus XXI. Xiphopterus. Body very long. Tail
deeply forked. Yentrals thoracic ; anal extends to nearly
two-thirds of the length of the fish. Head small. Ribs long,
and interlaced with the sternal appendages, as in Llupea.
1. X. falcatus.
Genus XXII. Pal^orhynchum. Body much elongated,
or anguilliform. Head small. Jaws equal, and drawn out
into a very long slender beak, without teeth. Dorsal and
anal much developed; caudal fin little forked. Apophysal
bonelets disposed in pairs. _
1. P. longirostre. 2. P. Egertoni. 3. P. Glansianum. 4. 1.
latum. 5. P. medium. 6. P. Colei. 7. P. microspondylum.
Genus XXIII. Hemirhynchus. Body elongated. Up¬
per iaw drawn out into a slender beak, without teeth.
Scales large. Skeleton feeble; spinous apophyses slender;
interapophysal bonelets disposed in pairs.
1. H. Des Hayes.
Family II.—XIPHOIDEI.
This remarkable family has but few fossil representa¬
tives. Body elongated; scales small; upper jaw lengthened
into a thin beak. Ventrals thoracic. Teeth scopular.
Vertebrae long, surmounted by apophyses in the torm o
vertical plates. Articular apophyses large.
Genus I. Tetrapterus. Body elongated. Beak very
prominent. Teeth scopular. Scales long and thin. Dorsal
commences at the nape. Ventrals thoracic. \ ertebrae
very narrow in the middle.
1. T. priscus. 2. T. minor.
Genus II. Ccelorhynchus. Beak extremely slender
and straight, diminishing very gradually, and having a
cavity extending to its point.
1. C. rectus. 2. C. sinuatus.
FOSSIL ICHTHYOLOGY.
Family IV.—•BLENOlDEI.
Family III.-SPHYR^NOIDEI.
Body elongated. Scales large. Jaws with long cutting
teeth. Dorsals separated. Ventrals abdominal. Vertebiae
^'genus I. SphyRjENA. Body slender. Head lengthened.
Intermaxillary, palatal, and lower-jaw teeth strong and cut¬
ting. Spinous dorsal separated from the soft fin. Scales
of middle size. Vertebrae few and long.
1. S. Bolcensis. 2. S. gracilis. 3. S. Amici. 4. S. maxim .
Genus II. Sphyiuenodus. Jaws with very strong but
uniform teeth, conic, and slightly compressed.
1. S. priscus.
Genus III. Hypsodon. Seems to have been very large.
Jaw very thick, and teeth formidable ; those of the upper
jaw placed in several rows.
1. II. Lewisiensis. 2. H. toliapicus. 3. H. oblongus.
Genus IV. Saurocephalus. Teeth straight, very com¬
pressed, and furnished with vertical plicae.
1. S. lanceolatus. 2. S. striatus.
Genus V. Saurodon. Teeth narrower than in the last
genus, compressed, oblique on their summit, and striatec
at their base.
1. S. Leanus.
Genus VI. Cladocyclus. Tube on the scales of the
lateral line branched.
1. C. Lewesensis. 2. C. Gardneri.
Genus VII. Rhamphognathus. Body elongated. Ven¬
trals abdominal. Jaws very slender, with the upper over¬
lapping the lower.
1. Rh. paralepoides.
Genus VIII. Mesogaster. Body elongated. Head
short, obtuse. Jaws equal. Ventrals abdominal.
1. M. sphyrasno'ides.
Cyclo'idei
Malacop-
Body squat; size generally small. Scales small. Ventrals terygei.
jugular; one very long dorsal fin, partly consisting o yP™0*'
spinous and soft rays. Teeth more or less conspicuous. ^ ^ _ t
Genus I. Spin acanthus. First dorsal consists of enor¬
mous spines, equalling in length the body of the fish; and
the anterior spines are dentate at their base; second dor¬
sal slender.
1. S. blennio'ides.
Family V.—L0PH10IDEI.
Pectorals supported on a prolongation of the carpal bones,
which form as it were an arm. Ventrals thoracic. Scales
entirely wanting or replaced by osseous tubercles, or short
spines. Head very large; jaws armed with numerous
sharp teeth, in suborbitar bones.
Genus I. Lophius. Head enormous, depressed; mouth
immense. Two dorsals, the first of which extends to the
head.
1. L. brachysomus.
Family VI.—LABROIDEI.
Form oblong; body scaly. A single dorsal sustained
anteriorly by spinous rays. Jaws covered by fleshy lips.
No palatal teeth; but they are found on the three pharyn¬
geal bones, either as plates or pointed teeth.
Genus I. Labrus. Form squat. Skeleton massive.
Opercular pieces without spines or dentations.
1. L. Valenciennesii. 2. L. Ibbetsoni.
DIVISION II.—CYCLOIDEI MALACOPTERYGEl.
Family VIL—CYPRINOIDEI.
Body oblong. Ventrals abdominal. Inferior pharyngeal
bone armed with several rows of strong teeth, sometimes
conical, sometimes compressed, or crooked; no jaw teeth;
mouth small, with fleshy lips, often carrying beards. Ver-
tebrae strong and few; three branchiostegous rays. Ihe
family are chiefly fresh-water fishes.
Genus I. Acanthopsis. Form very long, and com¬
pressed. Caudal fin truncated and rounded; dorsal placed
a little before the ventrals. Beards short, h irst suborbitar
bone mobile, bifurcated, and terminating in sharp points.
Scales scarcely perceptible.
1. A. angustus. •
Genus II. Cobitis. Form elongated, cylindrical.
Cheeks smooth. Orbiculars immoveable, concealed under
the skin. Scales small. Pharyngeal teeth slender, bevelled.
1. 0. centrochir. 2. C. cephalotes. 3. C. longiceps.
Genus HI. Gobio. Form cylindrical. Dorsals opposite
to two ventrals, with a large simple ray. Scales of medium
size, and very thin.
1. G. analis.
Genus IV. Ting a. Form squat. Fms thick. Scales
small. A single row of pharyngeal teeth, claviform. Large
rounded fins, with very thick rays.
1. T. furcata. 2. T. leptosoma. 3. T. micropygoptera.
Genus V. Leuciscus. Body fusiform, covered with large
scales. Pharyngeal teeth in two rows. Skeleton robust.
1 L. OningLi 2. L. l.tiasculu,. 3. L pus.llus. 4. L.
heterurus. sfr. leptus. 6. L. macrurua. 7. L. papyraceous.
L. cephalon. 9. L. gracilis. 10. L. Hartmanm. 11- •
Genus VI. Apsius. Body elongated, compressed, covered
with large scales, salient at their posterior margin. MouUi
oblique f inferior jaw reaching beyond the upper ; pharyn-
geaUeeth long, in two rows. Dorsal behind the ventrals,
caudal much forked. Skeleton slender.
1. A. gracilis. 2. A. Brongniarti.
FOSSIL ICHTHYOLOGY.
Cycloidei Genus YII. Rhodeus. Form squat, compressed, covered
Malacop- with large, thin scales. No beards. Pharyngeal teeth be-
Cylrino- Velled' Dorsal °PPosite t0 anal 5 caudal forked; all the fins
dontei. smaP- Fishes all very small.
K ^ ^ , 1. Rh. elongatus. 2. Ilh. latior.
Genus VIII. Cyclurus. Dorsal and anal large; caudal
rounded. Vertebral column recurved at its extremity.
Vertebrae thick and short. Scales thick and lono-.
1. C. Yalenciennesii. 2. C. minor.
Family VIIL—CYPRINODONTEI.
Form very regularly oblong. Scales large, though the
fishes are small. Ventrals abdominal. Teeth in both jaws.
More than three branchiostegous rays.
Genus I. Lesbias. Body rather elongated. Jaws hori¬
zontally flattened, and furnished with serrated teeth. Oper-
cula large. Many branchiostegous rays. Dorsal opposite
to the anal.
1. L. cephalotes. 2. L. perpusillus. 3. L. gobio. 4. L. Meyeri.
5. L. crassicaudatus. J
Family IX.—ESOCIDEI.
Body slender, with large scales. Superior maxillaries
without teeth, and placed in a line with the intermaxillaries.
Teeth generally very strong, and conical in the lower jaw,
palatines, and vomer.
Genus I. Esox. Form long, cylindrical. Head large ;
muzzle long, obtuse, depressed; mouth very wide. Pala¬
tine teeth very strong and conical, as are those on the an¬
terior part of the vomer, and on the lower jaw; small teeth
on the intermaxillaries; none on the maxillaries. Numerous
branchiostegous rays. Dorsal and anal approximate to the
caudal, which last is a little sloped. Scales large. Skele¬
ton not robust.
1. E. Otto. 2. E. lepidotus.
Genus II. Holosteus. Form very elongated. Skele¬
ton slender ; ribs very thin ; muscular apophyses numerous
and very large.
1 H. Esocinus.
Genus III. Sphenolepis. Form elongated. Dorsal op¬
posite to ventrals ; caudal scarcely forked. Scales large.
1. Sph. squamosus. 2. Sph. Cuvieri.
Genus IV. Istius. Body elongated. Dorsal stretch¬
ing along almost the whole back ; anal very far back. Scales
large. Vertebrae very short; spinous apophyses very close
together, and more numerous than the apophysal bonelets.
Small teeth in the jaws.
1. I. grandis. 2. I. macrocephalus. 3. I. microcephalus. 4. I
gracilis.
Family X.—HALECOlDEI.
This family includes the Clupece and Salmones. The fish
are very symmetrical, and covered with well-defined scales.
Ventrals abdominal. Superior maxillaries forming partially
the margin of the jaw, often carry teeth, which are conical,
and more or less conspicuous. Skeleton slender, with or
without sternal ribs. Size from small to medium.
Genus I. Mallotus. Body elongated. Skeleton slen¬
der. Dorsal in the middle of the back; anal very large.
Teeth scopular.
1. M. villosus.
Genus II. Osmerus. Body elongated. Dorsal opposite
to ventrals. Teeth strong and conical, in the palatines and
maxillaries.
1. 0. Cordieri. 2. 0. Glarisianus.
Genus III. Osmeroides. Dorsal far forwards. Head
flat; mouth rather small. No sternal ribs.
1. 0. Monasteri. 2. 0. microcephalus. 3. 0. Lewesiensis. 4.
0. granulatus.
347
Genus IV. Acrognathus. Head large, flat, and broad; Cycloidei
1. A. boops. Malacop-
Genus V. Aulolepis. Form approaching to that of
Salmo. Head high ; muzzle pointed; jaws of equal length,
Vertebrae higher than long. Pectorals have long slender >
rays. Scales large, subangular.
1. A. typus.
Genus VI. Alosa. Form symmetrical. Vertebrae very
numerous; ribs sternal. A notch in the middle of the
upper jaw.
1. A. elongata.
Genus VII. Megalops. Resembles alosa; but has a
very large eye. Last dorsal terminates in a filament.
1. M. priscus.
Genus VIII. Clupea. Form symmetrical. No notch
in the middle of the upper jaw. Sternal ribs. Dorsal in
the centre of the back.
1. C. macropoma. 2. C. dentex. 3. C. Beurardi. 4. C. bre-
vissima. 5. C. lata. 6. C. brevis. 7. C. tenuissima. 8. C. mi¬
nima. 9. C. megaptera. 10. C. Sheuchzeri. 11. C. leptostea.
12. C. minuta. 13. C. Goldfussii. 14. C. catapygoptera.
Genus IX. Engraulis. Body elongated. Mouth very
wide ; muzzle pointed, and projecting beyond the lower jaw.
Pectorals very large ; dorsal opposite to the ventrals. No
sternal ribs.
1. E. evolans.
Genus X. Halec. Head very broad and flat. Mouth
very wide. Lower jaw-bone very narrow. No sternal ribs.
1. II. Sternbergii.
Genus XL Platinx. Formeiongated. Dorsal placed
far back; pectorals very long. Vertebral column very
stout. No sternal ribs.
1. P. elongatus. 2. P. gigas.
Genus XII. Ccelogaster. Allied to Platinx, but has
an extended anal fin. Belly appears hollowed.
1. C. analis.
Genus XIII. Not.eus. Body squat. Dorsal extends
over most of the ridge of the back; ventrals abdominal;
caudal rounded. Vertebrae higher than long.
1. IST. laticaudatus.
Family XL—ANGUILLIFORMES.
Body uniformly and greatly elongated. Scales very mi¬
nute. No ventrals, and sometimes no pectorals. Teeth
small, conical, and generally strong.
Genus I. Anguilla. Pectorals near the gills, which
open on each side of the fins; dorsal commences at a cer¬
tain distance from the nape.
1. A. latissima. 2. A. ventralis. 3. A. brevicula. 4. A. multo-
radiata. 5. A. pachyura. 6. A. branchiostegalis. 7. A. inter-
spinalis. 8. A. leptoptera.
Genus II. Enchelyopus. Body much elongated. Dor¬
sal prolonged to the nape. Thoracic cincture very slender.
1. E. tigrinus.
Genus HI. Sphagebranchus. Gill-covers approxi¬
mate under the throat. Vertical fins placed far back.
Muzzle pointed.
1. Sph. formosissimus.
Genus IV. Ophiurus. Differs from Anguilla in having
the termination of the dorsal and anal fins before reaching
the end of the tail, which is thus finless, and terminates in
a point.
1. 0. acuticaudatus.
Genus V. Leptocephalus. Differs from Anguilla in
having the gill-openings before the pectorals, and in having
much more of the ribband form. Head extremely small,
and muzzle pointed. Pectorals scarcely perceptible.
1. L. gracilis. 2. L. medius.
348
FOSSIL ICHTHYOLOGY.
Ganoids.
Lepidoids.
GEOLOGICAL FORMATIONS IN WHICH FOSSIL FISLIES ARE FOUND
Order. I.—GANOIDS.
Ganoids.
Lepidoids.
Family of Lepidoids.
I. In the Devonian or Old Red Formation.
Catopterus tnacrolepidotus, Caithness, Orkney, Widel.
Osteolepis macrolepidotus, Cromarty, Caithness, Orkney.
„ microlepidotus, Caithness, Orkney.
„ arenatus, Gamrie in geodes.
„ major, Lethen-bar.
Acanthodes pusellus, Gordon Castle.
Diplacanthus striatus, Cromarty.
,, striatulus, Lethen-bar.
„ longispinus, Lethen-bar, Cromarty.
„ crassispinus, Caithness.
Cheiracanthus Murchisoni, Gamrie.
„ microlepidotus, Lethen-har, Cromarty.
„ minor, Orkney.
Cheirolepis Traillii, Orkney.
„ uragus, Gamrie.
„ Cummingiae, Lethen-bar, Cromarty.
Cephalaspis Lyelli, Hereford, Brecon, Whitbach.
„ rostratus, Whitbach.
„ Lewisii, Whitbach.
„ Lloydii, Whitbach, Wales.
Pterichthys Milleri, Cromarty.
„ productus, Lethen-bar.
„ latus, Lethen-har.
„ cornutus, Lethen-har.
„ testudinarius, Lethen-har.
„ oblongus, Cromarty, Gamrie.
„ cancriformis, Orkney.
„ hydrophilus, Dura-den, Fifeshire.
Coccosteus decipiens, Orkney, Caithness.
„ oblongus, Lethen-bar.
„ cuspidatus, Cromarty, Gamrie.
II. Coal Formation.
Acanthodes Bronnii, Saarbriick.
„ sulcatus, Newhaven near Edinburgh.
Amblypterus macropterus, Saarbriick.
eupterygius, Saarbriick, Lebach.
latus, Saarbriick, Lehach, St Inghert.
lateralis, Saarbriick, Lebach.
nemopterus, Newhaven, Inchkeith.
punctatus, Newhaven.
striatus, Newhaven.
Palaeoniscus fultus, Massachusetts, Connecticut.
„ Agassizii, New Jersey.
„ macropterus, Massachusetts.
„ Egertoni, Staifordshire.
„ Monensis, Anglesey.
„ Duvernoyi, Appel by Kreutznach
„ minutus, Appel by Kreutznach.
„ Blainvillei, Muse by Autun.
„ Voltzii, Muse by Autun.
„ angustus, Muse by Autun.
„ Robisoni, Burdiehouse by Edinburgh.
„ striolatus, Burdiehouse by Edinburgh.
,, ornatissimus, Burntisland in Fifeshire.
„ carinatus, Newhaven.
„ Vratislavensis, Kuppersdorf, Bohemia.
„ lepidurus, Scharfeneck, Bohemia.
Catopterus gracilis, Connecticut.
„ parvulus, New^ Jersey.
,, anguilliformis, Connecticut.
Eurynotus crenatus, Burdiehouse.
„ fimbriatus, Newhaven.
,, tenuiceps, Massachusetts.
Platysomus parvulus, Leeds.
Gyrolepis Rankenei, Leeds.
Plectrolepis rugosus, Carluke.
III. Zechstein, or Magnesian Limestone Formation
Amblypterus Olfersii, Ceara in Brazil.
Palaeoniscus Freiesleheni, Mansfeld, Hesse.
Palaeoniscus magnus, Mansfeld, Hesse.
Palaeoniscus macropomus, Mansfeld, Ilmenau.
„ elegans, magn. limestone of England.
„ comptus, magn. limestone of England.
,, glaphyrus, magn. limestone of England.
„ longissimus, magn. limestone of England.
,, macrophthalmus, magn. limestone of England.
Platysomws gibbosus, Zechstein of Germany.
„ rhombus, Mansfeld.
„ striatus, magn. limestone of England.
,, macrurus, magn. limestone of England.
„ parvus, magn. limestone of Low Pallion, England.
IV. Trias, or Variegated Sandstone, Muschelkalk, and
Keeper.
Palaeoniscus catopterus, var. sandstone of Tyrone.
Amblypterus Agassizii, muschelkalk of Thuringen.
Gyrolepis Albertii, muschelkalk of Schw'enningen, Luneville.
„ tenuistriatus, muschelkalk of Schwenningen, Axmouth.
,, maximus, muschelkalk of Luneville, Wickwarr.
V. Jurassic Formation.
a. Lias.
Dapedius politus, Lyme Regis.
,, granulatus, Lyme Regis.
,, punctatus, Lyme Regis.
„ Colei, Lyme Regis.
„ orbis, Whitby.
„ arenatus, Lyme Regis.
„ micans, Whitby.
Tetragonolepis semicinctus, Bronn, Neidingen.
confluens, Lyme Regis,
speciosus, Lyme Regis,
pustulatus, Lyme Regis,
radiatus, Lyme Regis,
leiosomus, Lyme Regis.
Leachii, Lyme Regis,
heteroderma, Lyme Regis, Wurtemberg.
pholidotus, Boll, England,
ovalis, Boll, England.
Bovei, Seefeld.
dorsalis, Gloucester,
monilifer, Banwell, Whitby,
angulifer, Stratford-on-Avon,
striatus, Whitby.
Amblyurus macrostomus, Lyme Regis.
Semionotus Leptocephalus, Boll.
„ Bergeri, Koburg.
„ latus, Seefeld.
„ rhombifer, Lyme Regis.
„ Nilssonii, Scania.
„ striatus, Seefeld.
Centrolepis asper, France, Germany, England.
Lepidotus gigas, Lyme Regis.
semiserratus, Whitby, Scarborough,
undatus, Lyme Regis,
rugosus, Lyme Regis, Whitby,
fimbriatus, Lyme Regis, Haring in Tyrol, Coburg,
ornatus, Seefeld.
frondosus, Zell near Boll,
speciosus, Seefeld.
parvulus, Seefeld.
serrulatus, Whitby,
pectinatus, Whitby.
Pholidophorus Bechei, Lyme Regis.
„ onychius, Lyme Regis, Chernock.
,, dorsalis, Seefeld.
„ limhatus, Lyme Regis.
,, Stricklandii, Whitby.
„ Hastings!®, Whitby.
„ latiusculus, Seefeld.
„ pusillus, Seefeld.
„ furcatus, Seefeld.
„ leptocephalus, Street.
„ pachysomus, Lyme Regis.
,, crenulatus, Lyme Regis.
„ Hartmanni, Ohmden.
Nothosomus octostychius, Street.
FOSSIL ICHTHYOLOGY.
Ganoids. b. Jurassic Proper.
Sauro'ids. Tetragonolepis Magneville, lower oolite of Caen.
„ mastodonteus, wealden of Hastings.
Semionotus Pentlandi, Castellamare.
„ minutus, Castellamare.
„ pustulifer, Castellamare.
Lepidotus laevis, Portland-stone of Soleure.
unguiculatus, Solenhofen, Stonesfield.
radiatus, French Jura,
palliatus, Kimmerage clay of Boulogne,
tuberculatus, Stonesfield.
notopterus, Solenhofen.
oblongus, Solenhofen.
minor, Purbeck calc, of Hildesheim.
Fittoni, Hastings sand of Tilgate.
Mantellii, wealden of Tilgate.
latimanus, Oxford clay of Chippenham.
Pholidophorus macrocephalus, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ microps, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ tenuiserratus, calc, of Kehlheim.
„ longiserratus, calc, of Kehlheim.
„ striolaris, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ Taxis, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ latus, calc, of Eichstadt.
„ micronyx, calc, of Kehlheim.
„ intermedins, calc, of Kehlheim.
»> latimanus, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ ornatus, calc, of Purbeck.
„ Flesheri, inferior oolite.
„ angustus, sandstone of Poland.
„ gracilis, calc, of Kehlheim.
„ minor, oolite of Stonesfield.
„ radians, calc, of Solenhofen.
» urseoides, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ radiopunctatus, calc, of Solenhofen.
,, maximus, calc, of Solenhofen.
,, fusiformis, Castellamare.
Nothosomus laevissimus, calc, of Solenhofen.
Ophiopsis penicillatus, calc, of Purbeck.
„ dorsalis, calc, of Purbeck.
„ procerus, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ Miinsteri, calc, of Kehlheim.
Notagus Zietenii, calc, of Solenhofen..
„ Pentlandi, Torre d’Orlando.
„ latior, Torre d’Orlando.
„ denticulatus, calc, of Kehlheim..
Propterus microstomus, calc, of Kehlheim.
Coccolepis Bucklandi, calc, of Solenhofen,
VI. Chalk Formation.,
Lepidotus striatus, Yache Noire in Normandy.
„ punctatus, white chalk of Kent.
„ temnurus, Brazil.
„ Cottas, Hohenstein.
„ Virleti, Modon in Morea.
VII. Tertiary Formation.
Lepidotus Maximiliarii, calc, grossier of Paris.
Family of Sauroids.
I. Devonian, or Old Red Formation.
Diplopterus affinis, Gamrie.
„ Agassizii, v. borealis, Orkney.
„ macrocephalus, Lethen-bar, Printscha..
Platygnathus paucidens, Caithness.
„ Jamesoni, Dura-den.
„ minor, Dura-den.
Dendrodus latus, Morayshire.
„ strigatus, Morayshire, Riga.
,, sigmoideus, Morayshire.
Lamnodus biporcatus, Morayshire, Riga.
„ Panderi, Morayshire, Riga.
Criodus incurvis, Morayshire, Riga.
Megalichthys priscus, Orkney.
II. Coal Formation.
Py!?0pterus Bonnardi, Muse near Autun.
„ Bucklandi, Burdiehouse.
„ lucius, Saarbriick.
„ Jamesoni, Burdiehouse.
,, Greenochii, Newhaven.
349
Megalichthys Hibberti, Glasgow, Carluke.
„ maxillaris, Leeds.
Diplopterus carbonarius, Stafford.
„ Robertsoni, Burdiehouse.
Acrolepis acutirostris, Carluke.
Orognathus conidens, Carluke.
Graptolepis ornatus, Carluke.
Pododus capitatus, Carluke.
HI. Zechstein, or Magnesian Limestone Formation.
Pygopterus Humboldti, Mansfeld, Nendershawen, Rigglesdorf, &c.
„ mandibularis, calc. magn. of East Tricksey, Terryhill.
,, . sculptus, calc. magn. of East Tricksey, Terryhill.
Acrolepis Sedgwickii, calc. magn. of East Tricksey, Terryhill.
„ asper, Mansfeld.
IV. Trias Formation.
Saurichthys apicalis, Laineck, Benk, Gottingen, Hildesheim, Jena,
bonebed at Axmouth ; muschelkalk at Bareuth.
,, Mougeoti, muschelkalk at Luneville, Bareuth.
„ acuminatus, bonebed at Austeliff.
,, longidens, bonebed at AustelifF, Pyrton-on-Severn.
,, semicostatus, muschelkalk of Benk, Laineck, Saxony,
Hanover.
„ tenuirostris, muschelkalk of Bavaria.
„ eostatus, muschelkalk of Benk, Laineck, Bareuth.
„ angustus, muschelkalk.
V. Jura Formation.
a. Lias.
Eugnathus chirotes, Lyme Regis.
orthostomus, Lyme Regis.
Philpotise, Lyme Regis,
minor, Lyme Regis,
opercularis, Lyme Regis,
polyodon, Lyme Regis,
speciosus, Lyme Regis,
fasciculatus, Whitby,
leptodus, Lyme Regis,
mandibularis, Lyme Regis,
ornatus, Lyme Regis,
scabriusculus, Lyme Regis,
tenuidens, Street,
giganteus, lias of Boll.
Ptycholepis Bollensis, lias of Boll, Lyme Regis, Whitby.
Conodus ferox, Lyme Regis.
Pachycormus macropterus, lias of Burgundy.
„ acutirostris, Whitby.
„ curtus, Whitby.
>> gracilis, Whitby, Wurtemberg.
>, heterurus, Lyme Regis.
„ latipennis, Lyme Regis.
„ latirostris, Whitby.
„ latus, Whitby.
„ macrurus, Lyme Regis.
„ leptosteus, Lyme Regis.
Caturus Bucklandi, Lyme Regis.
„ Meyeri, black schist of Western Rawensberg.
Thrissonotus Colei, Lyme Regis.
Sauropsis latus, Lyme Regis, Wurtemberg, Baden.
Leptolepis Bronnii, Lyme Regis, Neidingen, Bareuth, Caen, Baden.
Oberland.
„ Jageri, lias of Boll.
„ longus, lias of Boll.
„ caudalis, Lyme Regis.
„ tenellus, lias of Baden.
„ filipennis, Street.
Aspidorhynchus Anglicus, Whitby.
„ Walchneri, Baden, Oberland.
Belonostomus acutus, Whitby.
„ Anningiae, Lyme Regis.
Saurostomus esocinus, Baden, Oberland.
,, (nondescriptus), Lincolnshire.
b. Jurassic Proper..
Eugnathus microlepidotus, calc, of Solenhofen.
Pachycormus macropomus, Vaches Noires in Normandy.
Caturus furcatus, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ pachyurus, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ macrurus, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ maximus, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ microchirus, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ branchiostegus, calc, of Solenhofen.
350
Ganoids.
Ccelo-
canths.
FOSSIL ICHTHYOLOGY.
Caturus latus, calc, of Solenhofen.
,, elongatus, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ macrodus, calc, of Solenhofen.
pleiodus, oolite of Stonesfield.
„ angustus, Portland-stone of Garsington.
Amhlysemius gracilis, oolite of Northampton.
Sauropsis longimanus, calc, of Solenhofen.
mordax, oolite of Stonesfield.
Thrissops formosus, calc, of Kehlheim.
cephalus, calc, of Solenhofen.
j micropodius (locality unknown).
intermedins, Upper Jura of Wethern.
? salmoneus, calc, of Kehlheim and Solenhofen.
subovatus, calc, of Kehlheim and Solenhofen.
„ mesogastes, calc, of Solenhofen.
Leptolepis sprattiformis, schists of Pappenheim and Solenhofen.
„ Voithii, calc, of Kehlheim.
j, crassus, calc, of Solenhofen.
,, macrolepidotus, calc, of Solenhofen.
>» polyspondylus, calc, of Solenhofen.
,, Knozzii, calc, of Solenhofen.
5, duhius, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ contractus, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ latus, calc, of Eichstadt.
„ paucispondylus, calc, of Kehlheim.
„ pusillus, calc, of Kehlheim.
„ macrophthalmus, Oxford clay of Chippenham.
Aspidorhynchus acutirostris, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ speciosus, calc, of Kehlheim.
„ ornatissimus, calc, of Kehlheim.
J} mandihularis, calc, of Eichstadt.
lepturus, calc, of Kehlheim.
euodus, Oxford clay of Chippenham.
Belonostomus sphyraeoides, calc, of Solenhofen,
„ Miinsteri, lithographic-stone of Bavaria.
„ tenuirostris, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ subulatus, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ ventralis, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ Kochii, calc, of Kehlheim.
,, leptosteus, oolite of Stonesfield.
„ brachysomus, calc, of Solenhofen.
Megalurus lepidotus, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ hrevicostatus, calc, of Kehlheim.
„ elongatus, calc, of Kehlheim.
„ parvus, calc, of Kehlheim.
Macrosemius rostratus, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ brevirostris, oolite of Stonesfield.
VI. Chalk Formation.
Caturus, chalk of Kent and Lewes.
Aspidorhynchus Comptoni, South America.
Belonostomus cinctus, Lewes.
Family of Ccelocanths.
I. Devonian, or Old Red Formation.
Holoptychius giganteus, Elgin, Clashbennie, Gamrie, Glammis.
„ Flemingii, Dura-den, St Petersburg.^
„ nobilissimus, Elgin, Clashbennie, Printscha.
„ Andersoni, Dura-den.
„ Murchisoni, Clashbennie.
,, Osmaliusii, Liege, Namur, Eifel.
Actinolepis tuberculatus, Elgin, St Petersburg.
Platygnathus Jamesoni, Dura-den, St Petersburg.
„ paucidens, Pomona in Orkney.
Glyptosteus favosus, Clashbennie, Elgin, St Petersburg, Ladoga, &c.
„ reticulatus, ornatus, Elgin, Nairn, Ladoga, &c.
Phyllolepis concentricus, Clashbennie.
Glyptolepis leptopterus, Elgin, Lethen-bar, St Petersburg.
„ microlepidotus, Lethen-bar.
,, elegans, Gamrie.
Dendrodus latus, Findhorn in Moray, Riga.
„ strigatus, Elgin, Riga, St Petersburg.
,, sigmoides, Elgin, St Petersburg.
„ tenuistriatus, St Petersburg.
„ minor, Megra.
Lamnodus biporcatus, Elgin, Riga, Cremona, St Petersburg.
„ Panderi, Elgin, Riga, Cremona, St Petersburg.
„ sulcatus, Elgin.
Cricodus incurvus, Elgin, Riga.
Asterolepis Asmusii, Riga, Megra.
,, ornata, Riga, Megra.
„ speciosa, Voronele.
Asterolepis minor, Elgin, Riga, St Petersburg, Caithness, Orkney. Ganoids.
,, granulata, Riga. Pycno-
„ Hoeninghausii, Eifel. donts.
„ Malcomsoni, Riga. ^
„ apicalis, Riga.
Psammosteus meandrinus, Ladoga.
„ paradoxus, Riga.
„ arenatus, Riga.
„ undulatus, Riga.
II. Coal Formation.
Holoptychius Hibberti, Burdiehouse.
„ sauroides, Burdiehouse.
„ falcatus, Greenside by Glasgow.
„ Portlockii, Ireland.
„ Garneri, Lanesfield.
,, granulatus, Manchester.
„ striatus, Great Millston near Edinburgh.
„ minor, North Stafford.
Coelacanthus Phillipsii, Halifax.
„ lepturus, Leeds, Manchester.
„ Munsteri, Lebach in Bavaria.
Phyllolepis tenuissimus, Burdiehouse.
Hoplopygus Binneyi, Manchester.
Uronemus lobatus, Burdiehouse.
HI.—Zechstein Formation.
Ccelacanthus granulatus, magnes. calc, of Durham, E. Tricksey.
„ gracilis, England.
IV.—Trias Formation.
Coelacanthus minor, muschelkalk of Luneville.
V.—Jurassic and Oolite Formation.
Undina striolaris, lithographic-stone of Bavaria.
,, Kohleri, lithographic-stone of Bavaria.
Ctenolepis cyclus, oolite of Stonesfield.
Gyrosteus mirabilis, lias of Whitby and Lyme Regis.
VI.—Chalk Formation.
Macropoma Mantelli, chalk of Lewes, Sussex, Cambridge, Chirnay.
„ Egertoni, gault of Specton,
Family of Pycnodonts.
I.—Zechstein Formation.
Globulodus elegans, Zechstein of Germany.
II—Trias Formation.
Pycnodus priscus, Keuper, Tubingen-AV urtemberg.
Sphaerodus annularis, Keuper, Tubingen-AVurtemberg.
,, minimus, coprolite-breccia of Tubingen-AVurtemberg.
Placodus gigas, muschelkalk of Bamberg, Luneville..
,, Andriani, muschelkalk of Bamberg, Luneville..
„ Munsteri, muschelkalk of Bamberg in Bavaria, and of
Esperstadt in Thuringia.
„ rostratus, muschelkalk of Laineck.
,, impressus, variegated sandstone of Deux-Ponts.
Colobodus Hogardi, muschelkalk of Lundville.
III.—Jurassic Formation.
c. Lias.
Sphaerodus microdon, Lyme Regis.
b. Jura Proper.
Pycnodus rhombus, Torre d’Orlando.
gigas, Portland-stone of Switzerland and Germany.
Nicoleti, Portland-stone of Neufchatel.
Bucklandi, calc, of Stonesfield.
didymus, calc, of Stonesfield.
rugulosus, sandy oolite of Northamptonshire,
umbonatus, forest marble,
ovalis, Stonesfield slate.
Hugii, Portland-stone of Soleure.
Mantelli, forest marble of Tilgate.
latirostris, oolite of Stonesfield.
obtusus, oolite of Stonesfield.
parvus, oolite of Stonesfield.
tristychius, oolite of Stonesfield. t, j
biserialis, oolite of Little Gibraltar near Bedfoid.
rrrtmis nnlit.fi of StOIlGSfiGld*
FOSSIL ICHTHYOLOGY.
351
Ganoids. Pycnodus latidens, Portland-stone of Soleure.
discoides, oolite of Little Gibraltar near Bedford,
gracilis, coral-rag of Hildesheim and Lindenberg,
Hanover.
minutus, coral-rag of Hildesheim and Lindenberg,
Hanover.
Gyronchus oblongus, calc, of Stonesfield.
Scrobodus subovatus, lithographic-stone of Solenhofen.
Microdon elegans, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ hexagon us, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ analis, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ radiatus, calc, of Purbeck.
„ abdominalis, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ platurus, calc, of Solenhofen.
Sphaerodus gigas, Kimmeridge clay.
„ minor, Stonesfield clay.
Gyrodus macrophthalmus, calc, of Kehlheim.
„ frontatus, calc, of Kehlheim.
„ rugosus, calc, of Kehlheim.
,, umbilicus, oolite of Durrheim in Germany.
„ Jurassicus, Portland-stone of Soleure.
„ Cuvieri, Boulogne, Weymouth.
„ punctatus, oolite of Malten.
„ trigonus, calc, of Stonesfield.
„ radiatus, calc, of Caen.
,, Mantelli, calc, of Tilgate.
,, gracilis, calc, of Kehlheim.
„ analis, calc, of Kehlheim.
„ circularis, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ platurus, calc, of Solenhofen.
„ punctatissimus, calc, of Kehlheim.
„ rhomboidalis, calc of Kehlheim.
„ macropterus, calc, of Kehlheim.
„ perlatus, calc, of Stonesfield.
,, gibbosus, calc, of Kehlheim.
Pycno-
donts.
IV.—Chalk Formation.
Pycnodus Miinsteri, greensand of Itatisbon.
„ complanatus, greensand of Ratisbon.
„ subclavatus, chalk of Maestricht.
„ cretaceus, chalk of Kent.
,, angustus, chalk of Kent.
„ elongatus, chalk of Lewes.
„ depressus, greensand of Ghent and Ratisbon.
„ marginalia, chalk of Kent.
„ Couloni, yellowstone of Neufchatel.
,, minor, Speeton clay.
Acrotemnus faba, chalk of Kent.
Sphaerodus crassus, chalk of Maestricht.
„ mitrula, greensand of Ratisbon.
„ Neocomensis, yellowstone of Neufchatel.
Gyrodus cretaceus, chalk of Lewes.
,, angustus, chalk of Maidstone.
„ rugulosus, greensand of Ratisbon.
„ Miinsteri, greensand of Ratisbon.
„ minor, Speeton clay.
„ mammillaris, chalk of Kent.
V. Limestone of Monte Bolca.
Pycnodus platessus, Monte Bolca.
„ orbicularis, Monte Bolca.
VI.—Tertiary Formation.
Pycnodus toliapicus, London clay of Sheppy.
Periodus Kbningii, London clay of Sheppy.
Sphaerodus lens, tertiary beds of Osnabruck.
„ irregularis, tertiary beds of Plienengen.
„ parvus, tertiary beds of Cassel.
,, cinctus, calc, grossier of Styria.
„ truncatus, tertiary beds of Osnabruck.
Gyrodus laevior, London clay of Sheppy.
Phyllodus toliapicus, London clay of Sheppy.
„ planus, London clay of Sheppy.
,, polyodus, London clay of Sheppy.
„ marginalis, London clay of Sheppy.
„ irregularis, London clay of Sheppy.
„ medius, London clay of Sheppy.
Pisodus Owenii, London clay of Sheppy.
Species of which the Geological Position is Doubtful.
Sphaerodus depressus, Salzburg.
„ discus, Algarves in Portugal.
Sphaerodus conicus, Ceylon.
„ oculus serpentis, Algarves.
Gyrodus runcinatus, (?)
Family of Scleroderms.
I.—Chalk Formation.
Acanthoderma ovale, Glaris.
,, spinosum, Glaris.
Acanthopleurus serratus, Glaris.
„ brevis, Glaris.
Dercetis elongatus, Lewes.
„ scutatus, Westphalia.
II.—Limestone of Monte Bolca.
Blochius longirostris, Monte Bolca.
Rhinellus nasalis, Monte Bolca.
Ostracion micrurus, Monte Bolca.
III.—Tertiary Formation.
Glyptocephalus radiatus, London clay of Sheppy.
Doubtful.
Rhinellus furcatus, Mount Lebanon.
Family of Gymnodonts.
Diodon tenuispinus, Monte Bolca.
„ Scillae, Monte Bolca (?)
„ Erinaceus, Monte Bolca (?)
Family of Lophabranchiates.
Calomostoma breviusculum, Monte Bolca.
Syngnathus opisthopterus, Monte Bolca.
Family of Acipenserids.
Acipenser toliapicus, London clay of Sheppy.
Chondrosteus acipenseroides, lias of Lyme Regis.
Placo'ids.
Order II.—PLACOIDS.
I. —Silurian Formation.
Onchus, Murchisoni, Ludlow.
„ tenuistratus, Ludlow.
II. —Devonian Formation.
Onchus arcuatus, Bromyard.
„ semistriatus, Southstone rock.
Ctenacanthus ornatus, Wales.
„ serratulus, Kohlhusen.
Ptychacanthus dubius, Abergavenny.
Ctenoptychius crenatus, Meaga, Russia.
„ priscus, Scotland.
III.—Coal Formation.
Oracanthus Milleri, calc.-carbon of Bristol.
„ frustulosus, calc.-carbon of Bristol.
„ minor, calc.-carbon of Bristol.
„ confluens, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
Onchus sulcatus, calc.-carbon of Bristol.
„ hamatus, calc.-carbon of Bristol.
„ rectus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
,, plicatus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
„ falcatus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
„ subulatus, coal, Rhuabon, Wales.
Clenacanthus major, calc.-carbon of Bristol.
„ tenuistratus, calc.-carbon of Bristol.
„ brevis, calc.-carbon of Bristol.
„ heterogyrus, calc.-carbon of x\rmagh.
„ arculatus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
„ crenulatus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
Gyracanthus formosus, calc.-carbon. of Burdiehouse, Newcastle,
Sunderland, Alnwick, Burntisland.
„ tuberculatus, Sunderland.
„ Alnwicensis, Alnwick Castle.
„ ornatus, coal schists of Wales.
Sphenacathus serratulus, Burdiehouse.
Tristychius arenatus, Greenside near Glasgow.
Orodus cinctus, calc.-carbon of Bristol.
„ ramosus, calc.-carbon of Bristol.
Ctenoptychius apicalis, coal schists Stafford, Manchester.
„ pectinatus, Burdiehouse, Manchester.
„ denticulatus, Burdiehouse, Manchester.
,, cuspidatus, coal of Glasgow.
a
352
FOSSIL ICHTHYOLOGY.
Placo'ids. Ctenoptychius dentatus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
}J serratus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
*~ v )} macrodus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
„ crenatus, coal, Carluke.
Helodus simplex, coal schists of Stafford, Coalbrookedale.
„ Isevissimus, calc.-carbon of Bristol.
„ subteres, calc.-carbon of Bristol.
„ gibberulus, calc.-carbon of Bristol.
„ turgidus, calc.-carbon of Bristol.
„ mitratus, coal, Carluke.
didymus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
„ mammillaris, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
„ planus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
Chomatodus truncatus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
„ cinctus, calc.-carbon of Bristol.
,, linearis, calc.-carbon of Bristol.
Psammodus rugosus, calc.-carbon of Bristol, Esky, Geroldstein.
„ porosus, calc.-carbon of Bristol.
„ cornutus, calc.-carbon of Bristol.
Cochliodus contortus, calc.-carbon of Bristol, Armagh, Clifton.
,, magnus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
„ oblongus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
„ acutus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
„ striatus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
Poecilodus Jonesii, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
„ parallelus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
„ transversus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
„ obliquus, calc.-carbon of Armagh, Carluke.
„ sublaevis, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
„ angustus, coal, Carluke.
Pleurodus affinis, coal schist, Rhuabon, Carluke.
„ Kankinei, coal, Carluke.
Ctenodus cristatus, coal, Tong.
„ Robertsoni, Burdiehouse.
„ alatus, calc, of Ardwick.
Petalodus acuminatus, calc.-carbon of Durham,Yorkshire, Glasgow.
„ Hastingsiae, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
„ psittacinus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
,, laevissimus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
„ rectus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
„ radicans, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
„ marginalis, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
„ sagittatus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
Cladodus mirabilis, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
„ striatus, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
,, marginatue, calc.-carbon of Armagh.
„ Milleri, calc.-carbon of Bristol.
„ <conicus, calc.-carbon of Bristol.
„ acutus, calc.-carbon of Laughgal.
„ Hibberti, Burdiehouse.
„ parvus, Burdiehouse.
Diplodus gibbosus, coal, Carluke.
„ minutus, Burdiehouse.
Carcharopsis prototypus, calc.-carbon of Yorkshire, Armagh.
IV.—.Zechstein Formation.
Gyropristis obliquus, magn. limest. of Belfast.
Hybodus major, muschelkalk of Luneville, Bareuth, Breslau.
„ tenuis, muschelkalk of Luneville, Bareuth.
,, dimidiatus, muschelkalk of Luneville.
„ minor, bonebed of Bristol.
Leiacanthus falcatus, muschelkalk of Luneville, Bareuth.
Nemacanthus monilifer, bonebed of Westbury.
„ filifer, bonebed of Westbury.
granulosus, muschelkalk of Leinech.
,, senticosus, muschelkalk of Leinech.
Hybodus plicatilis, muschelkalk of Schwenningen, Tubingen, Tar-
nowitz, Luneville.
„ Mougeoti, muschelkalk of Schwenningen, Lun6ville.
„ angustus, muschelkalk of Luneville.
„ longiconus, muschelkalk of Luneville, Gisemont.
„ obliquus, muschelkalk of Voges.
„ polycyphus, muschelkalk of Luneville.
„ minor, bonebed of Bristol.
,, cuspidatus, Keuper, Tubingen, Rietheim.
„ sublaevis, Keuper, Tubingen.
„ apicalis, Keuper, Hildesheim.
Strophodus angustissimus, muschelkalk of Luneville, Wilhelmshall.
„ elytra, variegated sandstone of Deux Ponts, Luneville.
Acrodus Gaillardoti, muschelkalk of Luneville, Bareuth, Wilhelms¬
hall.
„ lateralis, muschelkalk of Luneville.
„ Braunii, variegated sandstone of Deux Ponts.
Acrodus minimus, bonebed of Aust Cliff, Lyme Regis.
„ acutus, sandstone of Tubingen.
Ceratodus heteromorphus, muschelkalk of Wilhelmshall, Lun6ville.
„ serratus, Keuper, Argovia.
„ latissimus, bonebed of Aust Cliff.
,, curvus, bonebed of Aust Cliff.
„ planus, bonebed of Aust Cliff.
„ parvus, bonebed of Aust Cliff.
„ emarginatus, bonebed of Aust Cliff.
„ gibbus, bonebed of Aust Cliff.
,, Daedaleus, bonebed of Aust Cliff.
„ altus, bonebed of Aust Cliff.
„ disauris, bonebed of Aust Cliff.
V.—Jurassic Formations.
a. Lias.
Leptacanthus tenuispinus, Lyme Regis.
Myriacanthus paradoxus, Lyme Regis.
„ retrorsus, Lyme Regis.
„ granulatus, Lyme Regis.
Asteracanthus Stutchburgi, Charmouth.
Hybodus curtus, Lyme Regis, Keynsham, V urtemburg,
„ crassispinus, Lyme Regis.
„ reticulatus, Lyme Regis.
„ formosus, Lyme Regis.
„ ensatus, Lyme Regis.
„ laeviusculus, Bristol.
Acrodus nobilis, Lyme Regis.
„ latus, Lyme Regis.
„ gibberulus, Lyme Regis.
„ undulatus, Lyme Regis.
„ Anningiae, Lyme Regis.
Hybodus reticulatus, Lyme Regis.
„ pyramidalis, Lyme Regis.
„ medius, Lyme Regis.
Sphenonchus hamatus, Lyme Regis.
Thyellina prisca, Lyme Regis.
Anthropterus Rileyi, Bristol.
Squaloraja polyspondyla, Lyme Regis.
Cyclarthrus macropterus, Lyme Regis.
Ischyodon Johnsonii, Charmouth.
b. Inferior and Middle Jurassia.
Nemacanthus brevispinus, oolite of Stonesfield.
Leptacanthus longissimus, calc, of Caen.
„ semistriatus, Stonesfield.
„ serratus, Stonesfield.
Asteracanthus acutus, Bedford.
„ minor, England.
„ semisulcatus, Stonesfield, Purbeck (?)
Pristacanthus securis, Caen, Stonesfield.
Hybodus crassus, Towcester, Wasseralfigen.
„ apicalis, Stonesfield, Hastings.
,, dorsalis, Stonesfield, Hastings.
„ marginalis, Stonesfield, Tilgate.
„ leptodus, Oxford clay, Oxford.
„ pleiodus, Frame.
Ceratodus Phillipsii, oolite of Stonesfield.
Strophodus longidens, calc, of Caen.
,, magnus, Stonesfield, Dundry, Ranville.
„ tenuis, Stonesfield, Dundry.
„ irregularis, inf. oolite of Neuenburg.
„ radiato-punctatus, Kelloway.
„ favosus, Stonesfield.
Acrodus leiopteurus, oolite of Bath.
Hybodus grossiconus, Stonesfield, Caen.
„ polyprion, Stonesfield.
„ obtusus, oolite of Caen.
„ inflatus, oolite of Caen.
„ rariostatus, oolite.(?)
Ischyodon Tessonii, Marne, Mont Vohayes, Pfallingen, Oxford.
,, emarginatus, Stonesfield.
Ganodus Colei, Stonesfield.
,, Owenii, Stonesfield.
,, rugulosus, Stonesfield.
„ neglectus, Stonesfield.
Psittacodon falcatus, Stonesfield.
„ psittacinus, Stonesfield.
c. Upper Jurassic.
Asteracanthus ornatissimus, Shotover, Soleure.
Hybodus striatulus, Hastings.
Placoids.
FOSSIL ICHTHYOLOGY.
Placo'ids. Hybodus acutus, Shotover.
v ^ ,, strictus, Portland.
,, subcarinatus, Tilgate.
Strophodus reticulatus, Oxford clay of Shotover.
„ subreticulatus, Portland stone of Soleure.
Acrodon hirude, Tilgate.
Hybodus dubius, Purbeck, Linkfield.
„ undulatus, Purbeck, Linkfield.
Sphenonchus elongatus, Tilgate.
„ Martini, Purbeck, Linkfield.
Aellopos elongatus, Kelheim.
,, Wagneri, Solenhofen.
Asterodermus platypterus, Solenhofen.
Euryarthra Munsteri, Solenhofen.
Notidanus Munsteri, Streitberg, Randen.
Oxyrhina paradoxa, Tilgate, Hildesheim, Rabenstein.
Lamna longidens, liabenstein, Streitberg.
Ischyodon Egertoni, Kimmeridge clay of Shotover.
„ Bucklandi, Portland stone of Soleure.
„ Townsendii, Portland stone of Great Milton, Oxford.
„ Dutertai, Kimmeridge clay of Boulogne.
„ Dupenoyi, Kimmeridge clay of Boulogne.
„ Beaumontii, Kimmeridge clay of Boulogne.
VI.—Chalk Formation.
Ptychodus acutus, Lewes.
„ spectabilis, Lewes.
„ gibberulus, Lewes.
„ arcuatus, Lewes.
„ articulatus, Lewes.
„ mammillaris, England, Belgium, Belluno, Paris, Dela¬
ware.
„ decurrens, Lewes, Rouen, Bockum, Belluno. Ratisbon.
„ altior, Sussex.
» polygyrus, Lewes, Quedlimburg.
,, latissimus, Lewes, Bockum, Bennatack, Belluno.
„ Mortoni, United States.
Hybodus sulcatus, Lewes.
Chimsera Mantellii, Lewes.
Spinax major, Lewes.
Acrodus rugosus, Maestricht.
„ transversus, Sussex.
Strophodus asper, Lewes.
„ punctatus, greensand of Kehlheim.
„ sulcatus, greensand of Maidstone.
Scylliodus antiquus, Kent.
Thyellina angusta, Baumberge near Munster.
Notidanus microdon, Sussex.
,, pectinatus, Sussex.
Corax pristodontus, calc, of Maestricht.
,, Kaupil, marl of Aix-la-Chapelle and Haldem.
„ falcatus, Kent, Sussex, PI. Strehla, Quedlimburg.
„ appendiculatus, calc, of Maestricht, Salzgitter.
„ affinis, calc, of Maestricht.
Galeocerdo gibberulus, marl of Haldem.
„ denticulatus, calc, of Maestricht.
Sphyrna denticulata, PI, Strehla.
Hemipristis serra (?) chalk of Ratisbon, Haldem.
Carcharias tenuis, greensand of Sentis.
„ acutus, marl of Bockum.
Odontus appendicutus, chalk of Sussex, Normandy, Delaware.
,, latus, Maestricht.
„ crassus, greensand of Ratisbon, Kehlheim.
,, semiplicatus, Quedlimburg, PI. Strehla.
„ serratus, Maestricht.
Oxyrhina Mantellii, chalk of Kent and Sussex.
„ subinflata, greensand of Bohemia, Perte-du-Rhone.
„ Zippei, greensand of Ratisbon.
Lamna acuminata, chalk of Kent, Sussex, Yorkshire, Aix-la-Cha¬
pelle, Strehla..
„ gracilis, calc of Neufchatel.
„ subulata, marl of Bognor, Quedlimburg, Ratisbon.
„ Rhaphidion, Lewes, Ratisbon.
„ Bronnii, calc, of Maestricht.
,, plana, chalk of Sentis.
Ischyodon Agassizii, greensand of Maidstone.
,, brevirostris, gault, England.
Psittacodon Mantellii, chalk of Kent.
„ Sedgwickii, Cambridge.
VII.—Tertiary Formation.
Ptychopleurus Faujasii, Paris.
Myliobates Brongniarti, Ghent.
VOL XII.
Myliobates toliapicus, London clay of Sheppy.
„ Sternbergii, Brenta.
„ Owenii, London clay of Sheppy.
„ acutus, London clay of Sheppy.
„ canaliculatus, London clay of Sheppy.
„ lateralis, London clay of Sheppy.
,, marginalis, London clay of Sheppy.
Zygobates Studeri, molasse of Switzerland.
„ Woodwardii, crag of Norfolk.
Gale us Cuvieri, Monte Bolca.
Notidanus serratissimus, London clay of Sheppy.
„ primigenus, molasse of Switzerland.
Corax Egertoni, Maryland.
Galeocerdo aduncus, molasse of Switzerland.
„ minor, molasse of Switzerland.
Hemipristis serra, molasse of Switzerland and Suabia.
Glyphis hastalis, London clay.
Carcharodon megalodon, molasse of Dax, crag in Maryland.
„ rectidens, Noyant.
„ productus, Malta, Alzey, Apt.
,, polygyrus, molasse of Switzerland, Maryland.
„ sulcidens, Castell-Arquato, Soissons.
,, auriculatus, Dax.
„ angustidens, Kressenberg
,, turgidus, Floxheim.
„ lanceolatus, Kressenberg.
„ toliapicus, Sheppy.
„ megalotis, Maryland.
„ disauris, Ghent.
„ subserratus, London clay,
j, Escheri, molasse, Kressenberg.
Otodus obliquus, London clay of Sheppy, Sussex.
,, lanceolatus, Kressenberg.
„ macrotus, Sheppy, calc, grossier of V6teuiL
,, tricuspis, Wilhelmshdle.
„ subplicatus, Biinde.
,, trigonatus, Kressenberg.
„ apiculatus, Veteuil.
Gxyrhina hastalis, molasse.
,, xiphodon, Paris, Dax.
,, trigonodon, Valley of the Rhine.
,, plicatilis, Castell-Arquato.
„ quadrans, molasse, Valley of Rhine.
„ leptodon, Worentop, Flenheim.
„ Desorii, molasse of Wurtemburg, Osnabriick, Biinde.
„ crassa, Valley of the Rhine.
„ minuta, Osnabriick.
Lamna elegans, Sheppy, Paris, Grignon, Dax, Bordeaux, Italy.
„ cuspidata, molasse of Valley of Rhine.
,, compressa, London clay, calc, of Chaumont.
,, denticulata, molasse of Switzerland, Valley of Rhine.
,, crassidens, pisiform iron ore of Maestricht.
„ Hopei, Sheppy.
,, vertical is, Sheppy.
,, contortidens, crag, Thiengen-molasse, Valley of Rhine.
„ dubia, molasse of Switzerland.
Ischyodon Helveticus, molasse of Switzerland, Olten.
Elasmodus Hunteri, Sheppy.
Psaliodus compressus, London clay.
Edaphodon Bucklandi, Bagshot sand.
„ leptognathus, Bagshot sand.
,, eurygnathus, London clay, Sussex.
Passalodon rostratus.
Trygon Gazzolae, Monte Bolca.
„ oblongus, Monte Bolca.
Myliobates toliapicus, London clay.
„ goniophurus, London clay.
„ Dixoni, London clay.
„ striatus, London clay.
,, punctatus, London clay.
„ gyratus, London clay.
„ jugal is, London clay.
„ nitidus, London clay.
„ Colei, London clay.
„ heteropleurus, London clay.
,, Regleyi, Brussels.
„ angustus, Eckelsheim.
Aetobates irregularis, London clay of Sheppy, Sussex.
„ subarcuatus, London clay of Sheppy, Bartin.
,, arenatus, Swiss molasse.
Zygobates Studeri, Swiss molasse.
„ Woodwardii, crag of England.
Raja antiqua, crag.
„ ornata, Piacenza.
2 Y
353
Placo'ids.
354
FOSSIL ICHTHYOLOGY.
Cteno'ids.
yin,—Uncertain Formations.
Ceratodus Kaupii.
Notidanus recurvus, tertiary (?)
Corax planus, chalk (?)
Galeocerdo latidens, tertiary (?)
Sphyrna prisca, chalk (?)
„ dubia, molasse (?)
„ lata (?)
Hemipristis pavidens, molasse (?)
Carcharodon subauriculatus, Maestricht (?)
(J seiniserratus, Malta (?)
„ heterodon, Normandy (?)
„ leptodon, tertiary (?)
Otodus recticonus, Malta (?)
Oxyrhina retroflexa, tertiary (?)
Lamna acutissima, tertiary (?)
„ duplex, tertiary (?)
Ganodus curvidens(?)
Elasmodus Greenoughii (?)
Myliohates micropleurus (?)
„ Stokesii (?)
„ suturalis (?)
Aetohates sulcatus (?)
Order III.—CTENOIDS, ARRANGED ACCORDING TO
GEOLOGICAL POSITION.
I.—Chalk Formation.
Sphenocephalus fissicaudus, quaderstein of Westphalia.
Acrogaster parvus.
Hoptopteryx antiquus.
Beryx Zippei, flag-stone of Bohemia.
„ ornatus, chalk, Sussex.
„ radians, chalk, Sussex.
„ microcephalus, chalk, Sussex.
„ Germanus, quadersandstein of Westphalia.
Rhacolepis latus, chalk of Brazil.
,, buccalis, chalk of Brazil.
„ Olfersii, chalk of Brazil.
II.—Schists of Glaris.
Acanus ovalis.
„ Regleyi.
„ arcuatus.
„ oblong us.
„ minor.
Podocys minutus.
Fistularia Koenigii.
III.—Monte Bolca and Lebanon.
Pristigenys macrophthalmus, Monte Bolca.
Myripristis homopterygius, Monte Bolca.
Holocentum pygaeum, Monte Bolca.
„ pigmaeum, Monte Bolca.
Cyclopoma gigas, Monte Bolca.
„ spinosum, Monte Bolca.
Lates gracilis, Monte Bolca.
,, gibbus, Monte Bolca.
„ notceus, Monte Bolca.
Apogon spinosus, Monte Bolca.
Labrax lepidotus, Monte Bolca.
,, schizurus, Monte Bolca.
Smerdis miracanthus, Monte Bolca.
„ pygmaeus, Monte Bolca.
Enoplosus pygopterus, Monte Bolca.
Dules temnopterus, Monte Bolca.
„ medius, Monte Bolca.
Pelates quinquedecimalis, Monte Bolca.
Serranna microstomus, Monte Bolca.
„ occipitalis, Monte Bolca.
,, ventralis, Monte Bolca.
Sparnodus macrophthalmus, Monte Bolca.
„ ovalis, Monte Bolca.
„ altivelis, Monte Bolca.
„ micracanthus, Monte Bolca.
„ elongatus, Monte Bolca.
Pagellus microdon, Monte Bolca.
„ leptosteus, Lebanon.
Dentex leptacanthus, Monte Bolca.
„ crassispinus, Monte Bolca.
„ breviceps, Monte Bolca.
,, microdon, Monte Bolca.
ventralis, Monte Bolca.
Pristepoma furcatum, Monte Bolca.
Odonteus sparo'ides, Monte Bolca.
Pterygocephalus paradoxus, Monte Bolca.
Callipteryx speciosus. Monte Bolca.
,, recticaudus, Monte Bolca.
Gobius macrurus, Monte Bolca.
„ microcephalus, Monte Bolca.
Acanthurus tenuis, Monte Bolca.
,, ovalis, Monte Bolca.
Naseus nuchalis, Monte Bolca.
„ rectifrons, Monte Bolca.
Semiophorus velifer, Monte Bolca.
„ velicans, Monte Bolca.
Ephippus longipennis, Monte Bolca.
„ oblongus, Monte Bolca.
Scatophagus frontalis, Monte Bolca.
Zanclus brevirostris, Monte Bolca.
Pomacanthus subarenatus, Monte Bolca.
Platax altissimus, Monte Bolca.
„ macropterygius, Monte Bolca.
„ papilio, Monte Bolca.
Pygaeus gigas, Monte Bolca.
„ nobilis, Monte Bolca.
,, oblongus, Monte Bolca.
„ dorsalis, .Monte Bolca.
„ nuchalis, Monte Bolca.
„ Coleanus,Monte Bolca.
„ Egertoni, Monte Bolca.
„ gibbus, Monte Bolca.
Toxotes antiquus, Monte Bolca.
Fistularia tenuirostris, Monte Bolca.
Aulostoma Bolcense, Monte Bolca.
Urosphen fistularis, Monte Bolca.
Amphisyle longirostris, Monte Bolca.
Rhamphosus aculeatus, Monte Bolca.
Rhombus minimus, Monte Bolca.
IV,—Tertiary Formation.
Lates macrurus, calc, grossier of Sevres.
Labrax major, calc, grossier of Passy.
Smerdis ventralis, gyps, of Montmartre.
„ macrurus, lignite of Apt.
„ minutus, gyps, of Aix in Provence.
Perea lepidota, fresh-water calc, of Oeningen.
„ angusta, lignite of Menat.
„ Beaumontii, gyps, of Aix in Provence.
Dentex Faujasii, calc, grossier, Nanterre.
Sargus Cuvieri, gyps, of Montmartre.
Cottus brevis, fresh-water calc, of Oeningen.
„ aries, gyps, of Aix, Provence.
>» papyraceus, lignite of Monte-Viale, in Vicentine.
Macrostoma altum, calc, grossier of Nanterre.
Holacanthus microcephalus, calc, grossier of Chatillon.
Platax Woodwardi, crag of Suffolk.
Sciaenurus Bowerbankii, London clay of Sheppy.
„ crassior, London clay of Sheppy.
Mugil princeps, gyps, of Aix in Provence.
V.—Formation Unknown.
Smerdis latior (?)
Order IV.—CYCLOIDS ARRANGED ACCORDING TO
GEOLOGICAL POSITION.
I.—Chalk Formation.
Enchodus halocyon, chalk of Lewes.
„ Faujasii, chalk of Maestricht.
Istieus grandis, greensand of Westphalia.
„ macrocephalus, greensand of Westphalia. .
3, microcephalus, greensand of Westphalia.
„ gracilis, greensand of Westphalia.
Osmerus Cordieri, greensand of Ibbenbusen.
Osmeroides Monasterii, greensand of Ringenrode, near Munster.
,3 Lewesiensis, chalk of Lewes.
„ granulatus, chalk of Lewes.
Acrognathus bobps, chalk of Lewes.
Aulolepis typus, chalk of Lewes.
Tetrapterus minor, chalk of Lewes.
Hypsodon Lewesiensis, chalk of Lewes.
Saurocephalus lanciformis, chalk of New Jersey.
„ striatus, chalk of England.
Saurodon Leanus, chalk of Lewes.
Cycloids.
V—
FOSSIL
Cyclo'iils. Cladocyclus Lewesiensis, chalk of Lewes,
i ^ — J „ Gardner!, chalk of Brazil.
Calamopleurus cylindricus, chalk of Brazil.
Halec Sternbergii, flagstone of Bohemia.
IT.—Schists of Glaris.
Palaeorhynchum longirostre.
„ Egertoni.
,. Glarisianum.
,, latum.
„ medium.
„ Colei.
„ microspondylum.
Palimphyes longus.
,, brevis.
„ latus.
Archaeus Glarisianus.
„ brevis.
Isurus macrurus.
Pleionemus macrospondylus.
Elopides Couloni.
-Anenchelum Glarisianum.
„ isopleurum.
„ dorsal e.
„ heteropleurum.
„ latum.
„ longipenne.
Neompteryx crassus.
„ elongatus.
Osmerus Glarisianus.
Clupea brevis.
„ megaptera.
„ Scheuchzeri.
Uropteryx elongatus.
Microspondylus Escheri.
III. —Monte Bolca and Lebanon.
Gasteronemus rhombeus, Monte Bolca.
„ oblongus, Monte Bolca.
Acanthonemus filamentosus, Monte Bolca.
Vomer longispinus, Monte Bolca.
Lichia prisca, Monte Bolca.
Trachinotus tenuiceps, Monte Bolca.
Vomer parvulus, Lebanon.
Carangopsis latior, Monte Bolca.
„ dorsalis, Monte Bolca.
„ analis, Monte Bolca.
„ maxim us, Monte Bolca.
Amphistium paradoxum, Monte Bolca.
Ductor leptosomus, Monte Bolca.
Thynnus propterygius, Monte Bolca,
„ Bolcensis, Monte Bolca.
Orcynus lanceolatus, Monte Bolca.
„ latior, Monte Bolca.
Cybium speciosum, Monte Bolca.
Xiphopterus falcatus, Monte Bolca.
Holosteus esocinus, Monte Bolca.
Engraulis evolans, Monte Bolca.
Sphyrsena Bolcensis, Monte Bolca,
„ gracilis, Monte Bolca.
„ Amici, Monte Bolca.
„ maxima, Monte Bolca.
Rhamphognathus paralepoides, Monte Bolca.
Mesogaster sphyraenoides, Monte Bolca.
Spinacanthus blennioides, Monte Bolca.
Labrus Valenciennesii, Monte Bolca.
Lophius brachysomus, Monte Bolca.
Atherina macrocephala, Monte Bolca.
„ minutissima, Monte Bolca.
Clupea macropoma, Monte Bolca.
„ dentex, Murazzo Struttiano.
„ Beurardi, Lebanon, Acre.
„ brevissima, schist of Lebanon.
,, lata, schist of Lebanon.
„ tenuissima, Radusa and Mondrino near Rimini.
„ minima, schist of Lebanon.
,, leptostea, Monte Bolca.
„ catopterygia, Monte Bolca.
„ minuta, Monte Bolca.
Platinx elongatus, Monte Bolca.
„ gigas, Monte Bolca.
Caelogaster analis, Monte Bolca.
ICHTHYOLOGY.
Clupeina macrocephala, Monte Bolca.
Anguilla latispina, Monte Bolca.
,, ventralis, Monte Bolca.
„ brevicula, Monte Bolca.
„ branchiostegalis, Monte Bolca.
„ interspinalis, Monte Bolca.
„ leptoptera, Monte Bolca.
Enchelyopus tigrinus, Monte Bolca.
Sphagebranchus formosissimus, Monte Bolca.
Ophiurus acuticaudiis, Monte Bolca.
Leptocephalus tamia, Monte Bolca.
„ gracilis, Monte Bolca.
„ medius, Monte Bolca.
IV.—Tertiary Formation.
Acanthopsis angustus, fresh-water limestone of Oeningen.
Cobites centrochir, fresh-water limestone of Oeningen.
„ cephalotes, fresh-water limestone of Oeningen.
Gobio analis, fresh-water limestone of Oeningen.
Tinea furcata, fresh-water limestone of Oeningen.
„ leptosoma, fresh-water limestone of Oeningen.
„ micropygoptera, fresh-water limestone of Steinheim.
Leuciscus Oeningensis, fresh-water limestone of Oeningen.
„ latiusculus, fresh-water limestone of Oeningen.
„ pusillus, fresh-water limestone of Oeningen.
,, heterurus, fresh-water limestone of Oeningen.
„ leptus, tripoli of Siebengebirge.
„ macrurus, lignite of Bonn and Stochen.
» papyraceus, lignite of Bilin.
,, cephalon, lignite.
„ Hartmanni, calc. tert. of Steinheim.
„ gracilis, calc, of Steinheim.
brevis, (?)
Aspius gracilis, fresh-water calc, of Oeningen.
„ Brongniarti, lignite of Menat.
Rhodeus elongatus, fresh-water calc, of Oeningen.
„ latior, fresh-water calc, of Oeningen.
Cyclurus Valenciennesi, lignite of Menat.
„ minor, fresh-water calc, of Oeningen.
Lebiras cephalotes, tertiaries of Aix, Provence.
,, gobio, lignite of Sensen, Fichtelgebirge.
„ Meyeri, near Frankfort.
„ crassicaudus, clay of Pezaros, marl of Gesso, St Angelo.
„ perpusillus, fresh-water calc, of Oeningen.
Esox Otto, diluvial marl of Silesia.
,, lepidotus, fresh-water calc, of Oeningen.
Sphenolepis squamosus, Aix in Provence.
„ Cuvieri, plaster quarries of Montmartre.
Mallotus villosus, coast of Iceland.
Alosa elongata, tripoli of Oran.
Coelocephalus salmoneus, London clay of Sheppy.
Megalops priscus, London clay of Sheppy.
Notceus laticaudus, gyps, of Montmartre.
Halecopsis laevis, London clay of Sheppy.
Clupea Goldfussii, environs of Bingen.
Anguilla multiradiata, calc, of Aix.
„ pachyura, fresh-water calc, of Oeningen.
Labrus Ibbetsoni, Swiss molasse.
Acanthonemus Bertrandi, Schio in Vincentine.
Zeus priscus, ?
Hemirhynchus Des Hayes, calc, grossier of Paris.
Cybium macropoma, London clay of Sheppy.
Goniognathus coryphcenoides, London clay of Sheppy.
„ maxillaris, London clay of Sheppy.
Tetropterus priscus, London clay of Sheppy.
Coelorhynchus rectus, London clay of Sheppy.
„ sinuatus, London clay of Sheppy.
Sphyraenodus priscus, London clay of Sheppy.
„ crassidens, London clay of Sheppy.
Hypsodon toliapicus, London clay of Sheppy.
„ oblongus, London clay of Sheppy.
Coelopoma Colei, London clay of Sheppy.
„ laeve, London clay of Sheppy.
Brachygnathus tenuiceps, London clay of Sheppy.
Rhynchorinus branchialis, London clay of Sheppy.
Pachycephalus cristatus, London clay of Sheppy.
Podocephalus nitidus, London clay of Sheppy.
Bothrosteus latus, London clay of Sheppy.
„ brevifrons, Loudon clay of Sheppy.
Rhinocephalus planiceps, London clay of Sheppy.
Ampheristus toliapicus, London clay of Sheppy.
Ptychocephalus radiatus, London clay of Sheppy.
(T. S. T.)
355
Cycloids.
356 ICO
Iconium ICONIUM, a town of Asia Minor, formerly the capital
II of Lycaonia, as it is now, by the name of Konieh, of Kara-
Ictinus. manja; }n Asia Minor. It lay at the foot of Mount Taurus,
V'—on the shores of the Lake Trogitis, about 120 miles inland
from the Mediterranean. Till about the beginning of the
Christian era, it was aplace of little interest or importance ;
but by the time of Pliny, it had become large and populous,
and its territory formed a tetrarehy, embracing fourteen
cities, some of them of considerable size. It was visited by
St. Paul in AJ). 45, and again in A.r>. 51. The church
planted by the apostle continued to flourish, until, by the
persecutions of the Saracens, and afterwards of the Selju-
kians, it was nearly extinguished. Under the empire, Ico¬
nium claimed, though on no good grounds, to be regarded
as a Roman colony. At a later period it was wrested from
the Emperors of the East, first by the Saracens and after¬
wards by the Turks. The adjacent provinces, which at this
time fell into the hands of that people, were constituted into
a kingdom, of which Iconium was made the capital. The
kings took the title of Sultans of Iconium. But it was in the
time of the crusades that the city reached the culminating
point of its glory. See Konieh.
ICONOCLASTS, a term which came into use in the
eighth century, and signifies breakers of images. There ex¬
isted at that time a fierce controversy between the Eastern
and Western Churches about the lawfulness of using images
in churches. Leo the Isaurian received the epithet of
Iconoclast from passing an edict (a.d. 726) for the violent
destruction of images. The disturbances to which the exe¬
cution of this law gave rise settled down into a civil war
which ultimately extended to Asia and Italy. In 730 Ger-
manus, Patriarch of Constantinople, was degraded for his
partiality to images by the council assembled by Leo. All
the images, except that of the crucifixion, were ordered to
be burned, and those who worshipped them to be punished.
Copronymus, also called the Iconoclast, got an act passed
condemnatory of images at the council which assembled in
754. Leo IV., who became Emperor in 775, had recourse
to penal measures against image worshippers ; but he was
poisoned in 780 by his wife Irene,, who mounted the throne,
and at the second Nicene Council (a.d. 786) not only
procured the revocation of all the previous edicts against
images, but issued decrees against all who should main¬
tain that God was the sole object of adoration. rI he
tide, however, was turned by Leo the Armenian, in 814,
and the same policy was pursued by his successors, Michael
and Theophilus. But in 842 Theodora procured the re¬
enactment of the edicts which had been passed by Irene in
favour of idolatry.
The Iconoclasts in the beginning of the eighth century
were zealously opposed by the Pontiffs Gregory I. and IL
Hence as there were Iconoclastce or Iconomachi, those who
broke or opposed images, so there were Iconoduli and
Iconolatrce, or those who offered adoration to images. The
question finally produced a schism between the churches
of the East and the West. The Latins held that images
might be allowed to aid the memory, and the Eastern
Church allowed pictures for the same purpose.. The Latins,
however, soon proceeded to increase their veneration for the
images of saints, till at last they worshipped them. In 823
Claudius, Bishop of Turin, cast all the images, and even the
cross, out of the churches. The Albigenses and Walden-
ses disapproved of image worship. Charlemagne engaged
in the controversy, and four books which he published against
the worship of images were approved of by the council of
300 bishops assembled at Frankfort-on-the-Maine in 794.
ICTINUS, a celebrated Greek architect, who flourished
in the fifth century b.c. He was the contemporary of Per¬
icles, under whose administration he planned, and built the
famous Parthenon at Athens. This temple, which was of
the Doric order, was completed in b.c. 438, seven years
IDO
before the breaking out of the Peloponnesian War. To Ida
Ictinus was due the hardly less famous and splendid temple II
of Apollo Epicurius, at Phigalia in Arcadia, and the shrine J olatry.
of Eleusis, in which the mystic rites of Ceres were celebra-
ted. Noneofthe details oflctinus’personal history are known.
IDA, in ancient geography, a mountain, or rather a
mountain range of Asia Minor, an offshoot of the great Tau¬
rus range. It intersects the whole of Mysia, and some of
its peaks attain a very considerable elevation. Gargarus,
the highest, is about 4700 feet above the level of the sea;
while Cotylus, the next in height, is about 3500. The other
peaks, Dicte and Pytna, are considerably lower. A spur
of the principal Idaean range, enclosing Troy in a kind of
semicircle, formed the Troad. The whole range is de¬
scribed by the ancients as covered with woods which har¬
boured great numbers of wild beasts ; and as giving birth
to a large number of small but famous streams, such as the
Esepus, Granicus, Simois, Scamander, and Caresus.
There was another mountain of this same name in Crete.
It was the highest peak of the range that traverses the
whole island, and is now called Psiloriti. It is with the
Cretan Ida that the legends of the early life of Jupiter are
associated; and the Dactyli Idaei, the earliest workers in
metals, are sometimes referred to this Ida, and sometimes
to its Mysian namesake. See Dactyli Idjei.
IDEALISM is that scheme in philosophy, which, car¬
ried to its legitimate results as was done by Bishop Berkeley,
regards all external phenomena as having no existence apart
from a thinking subject. See Metaphysics.
IDES (Lat. Idus). See Calendar.
IDOLATRY. Traces of the existence of idolatry are
found in the oldest books which we possess, e.g., the Pen¬
tateuch and Job. It has been supposed that idolatry was
conveyed from Egypt to India in the seventeenth century
B.c., and in a modified form from India to the north¬
ern parts of Europe in the sixth century b.c. Ido¬
latrous worship extended to all beings in heaven and
earth, animate or inanimate, visible or invisible, and also
the representations or images of these made by men them¬
selves. One of the earliest forms of idolatrous worship was
probably that of the sun, moon, and stars—the heavenly
host. It rapidly extended however to other objects, and
assumed more degrading aspects, as in Egypt, where beetles,
bulls, &c., were worshipped; hence the sneer of Juvenal
that Egypt was quite overrun with gods. For the corre¬
spondingly tow species of modern idolatry called Fetichism
see Congo. The heathen gods and goddesses of antiquity,
together with the attendant circumstances of their worship,
will be referred to under the names of Jupiter, Bacchus,
&c. It is generally considered that idolatry originated
in a deification of the unseen powers of nature, in conse¬
quence of which the more splendid objects of nature were
worshipped, as the abodes or manifestations of these unseen
powers. Perhaps, however, nearly coeval with this was the
development of the notion which conceives of the Deity in
human form and with human attributes. In the Roman em¬
pire idolatry was abolished by Honorius in a.d. 404.
Constantine had ordered the demolition of idolatrous tem¬
ples in 330.,
In the first ages of Christianity images were neither wor¬
shipped nor used in the churches. The attempts of Romish
writers to prove the contrary are by no means satisfactory.
Baronius {ad Ann. 102) refers to a decree said to have
been passed at Antioch by the apostles themselves, com¬
manding believers to make images of Christ. But the first
actual notice of such a decree is not to be found till seven
centuries later. Tertullian {De Pudicitia, c. 10), as quoted
by Bellarmine, speaks of chalices or cups on which was re¬
presented the parable of the good shepherd. But lertul-
lian and others of the Fathers held even painting and en¬
graving to be forbidden by the second commandment. The
IDO
Idomeneus passage quoted only proves the use of emblematical figures.
II As to the two brass statues referred to by Eusebius (Eccl.
Idumea, book vii. 18), representing our Saviour performing a
miracle, it is to be remembered that Eusebius considers the
woman who erected the statues a pagan. Towards the
close of the fourth century pictures of saints and martyrs
were admitted into churches. Images followed in the next
century, and out of pictures and images a species of Chris¬
tian symbolism was built up, which represented visibly the
leading facts and features of Christianity. Whatever may
be said of the utility of images and pictures as thus the
books of the poor, Biblia Pauperum, a means of instruc¬
tion, the following centuries exhibit images of the Virgin,
saints, martyrs, &c., honoured with observances substan¬
tially the same as those of the pagans to their false gods.
Lights were burned before them, incense and prayers were
offered, and hymns were sung to them, as well as miracles
ascribed to them. The worship of images, which had thus
gradually crept in, was interrupted by the great controversy
which began to rage in the eighth century. (See Iconoclasts.)
At the period of the Reformation, the Protestant churches
condemned and abolished the use of images. The Moham¬
medans all along have done the same. The Council of
Trent gave its deliverance in its twenty-fifth session on the
subject of images, and declared that the images of Christ,
the Virgin, saints, &c., were to be kept in the churches, and
to receive due honour and veneration, not as though any¬
thing divine resided in them, but that by means of them
the prototypes might be adored. This differs but slightly
from the sentiments of the ancient pagans, for while many
of them believed that the statues were inhabited by the gods
whom the statues represented, others again, such as Plato,
Seneca, &c., considered the statues as no more than blocks
of wood or marble, by means of which the prototypes might
be adored.
IDOMENEUS, one of the bravest of the Greeks in
the Trojan War. He was the son of Deucalion, and
was called Lyctius or Cnossius, from the Cretan towns of
Lyctus and Cnossus, of which he is described as a native.
Along with his nephew Meriones, he contributed eighty
ships to the Grecian fleet, which was sailing against Troy.
In the war itself he greatly distinguished himself, and when
it came to a close returned home in safety. Other tradi¬
tions say that being overtaken by a storm he vowed that he
would sacrifice to Neptune the first living thing that met him
on his reaching land. Under this rash vow he had to sa¬
crifice his own son, and for this cruel act he was banished
hy his subjects. Sailing to Italy he landed in Calabria,
where he built a temple in honour of Minerva. From Ca¬
labria he removed to Colophon, on the Asiatic coast, where
he found a permanent abode. Dying there, he was buried
on Mount Cercaphus.
IDRIA, an important mining town in Austrian Illyria,
duchy of Carniota, and circle of Adelsberg, in an alpine
valley, on a small river of the same name, and 23 miles
W.S.W. of Laybach. The quicksilver mines of Idria,
and those of Almaden in Spain, are the richest in Eu¬
rope. They afford employment to 600 or 700 persons, of
whom about 500 are miners.. They have a regular uni¬
form, and are enrolled in a corps. The annual product
of the mines is restricted by government to 150 tons,
The descent is by 757 steps cut out of the solid rock, and
the greatest depth attained is about 140 fathoms. For¬
merly the labour of the mines was a punishment decreed on
state prisoners, but now the occupation is eagerly coveted.
Medical advice and medicines are furnished to the work¬
men gratis, and when disabled, they are provided for by
government. The widows and orphans of miners are en¬
titled to a pension. Pop. about 4000.
IDUMEA (in Gr. ’iSoep.aia, in Hebrew Edom). The
name is derived from Isaac’s son Edom, or Esau, the elder
I D u 357
twin-brother of Jacob. It signifies red, and seems first to Idumea,
have been suggested by his appearance at his birth, when v ^ ^
“ he came out all red” (i.e., covered with red hair), and was
afterwards more formally and permanently imposed on him
on account of his unworthy disposal of his birth-right for a
mess of red lentiles. The region which came to bear his
name, is the mountainous tract on the E. side of the great
valleys El Ghor and El Araba, extending between the Dead
Sea and the Elanitic Gulf of the Red Sea. Before the
time of Esau this district had been called Mount Seir, a
name indeed which it never entirely lost. The word seir
means hairy, and, when applied to a country, rugged,
mountainous ; and so Josephus says that “ Esau named the
country ‘ Roughness’ from his own hairy roughness.” But
another etymon derives the word from Seir, an earlier oc¬
cupant of the place.
The first mention made of Mount Seir in Scripture is in
Gen. xiv. 6, where Chedorlaomer and his confederates are
said to have smitten “ the Horim in their Mount Seir.”
Among the earliest human habitations were caves, either
formed by nature or easily excavated, and for the construc¬
tion of these the mountains of Edom afforded peculiar faci¬
lities. Hence the designation given to the aboriginal inhabi¬
tants—Horim, i.e., cave-dwellers, an epithet of similar im¬
port with the Greek Troglodytes. The extirpation of the
Horim by the Esauites was, like that of the Canaanites by
Israel, very gradual and slow. This much, however, we
there learn of the political constitution of the Seirite abo¬
rigines, that, like the Esauites and Israelites, these Horim
were divided into tribes, and these tribes were subdivided
into families—the very polity which still obtains among the
Arabs by whom Idumea is now peopled. Each tribe had
its own Alluf, or leader. The primitive and pastoral cha¬
racter of the people is incidentally brought out by the cir¬
cumstance that one of these chiefs was in the habit of tend¬
ing asses.
Esau first married into two Canaanitish families of the
Hittite and Hivite tribes; but anxious to propitiate his
offended parents, he next formed a matrimonial alliance
with one of the race of Abraham, viz., Mahalath, otherwise
called Bashemath, daughter of Ishmael, and sister of Ne-
baioth, whose descendants, the Nabathaeans, by a singular
coincidence, obtained in after times possession of the land
of Edom. Esau’s first-born (by Adah or Bashemath, of the
daughters of Heth) was Eliphaz, whose son Teman gave
name to a district of the country. The Temanites were
renowned for their wisdom. The chief speaker in the Book
of Job is another Eliphaz, a Temanite—which is one of the
circumstances that have led many to place the scene of that
story in the land of Edom. The name of Teman was pre¬
served to the days of Eusebius in that of Thaiman, a small
town five Roman miles from Petra.
As a modern Arab sheikh is often found to exercise in¬
fluence far beyond the sphere of his hereditary domain, so
in the list of the Edomite preserved by Moses we
have perhaps only the names of the more distinguished in¬
dividuals who acquired more or less authority over all the
tribes. This oligarchy appears gradually to have changed
into a monarchy, for, in addition to the above-mentioned
lists, both of Horite and Esauite leaders, we have, at Gen.
xxxvi. 31, a catalogue of eight kings (Bela, Jobab, Husham,
Hadad, Samlah, Saul, Baal-hanan, Hadar or Hadad) who
“ reigned in the land of Edom before there reigned any
king over the children of Israel.”1 The period when this
change to regal government took place in Idumaea can only
be matter of conjecture. In the Song of Moses it is said
that at the tidings of Israel’s triumphant passage of the
Red Sea the rulers or princes {Alluf) of Edom trembled
with affright, but when, some forty years afterwards, appli¬
cation had to be made by the Israelites for leave to traverse
the land of Edom, it was to the king {Melek) that the re-
358 IDUMEA.
Idumea, quest was addressed. The road by which it was sought to
penetrate the country was termed “the kings highway,
supposed by Robinson to be the Wady el-Ghuweir, for it
is almost the only valley that affords a direct and easy pas¬
sage through those mountains. It further appears that the
monarchy was not hereditary, but elective (for no one is
spoken of as the son or relative of his predecessor) ; or pro¬
bably that chieftain was acknowledged as sovereign who
was best able to vindicate his claim by force of arms. Every
successive king appears to have selected his own seat of
government: the places mentioned as having enjoyed that
distinction are Dinhabah, Avith, Pagu or Pai. Even fo¬
reigners were not excluded from the throne, for the suc¬
cessor of Samlah of Masrekah was Saul, or Shaul, “ of Re-
choboth, on the river.”
The unbrotherly feud which arose between Esau and
Jacob was prolonged for ages between their posterity. Hie
Israelites, indeed, were commanded “not to abhor an Edo¬
mite, for he was their brotherbut a variety of circum¬
stances occurred to provoke and perpetuate the hostility.
The first time they were brought into direct collision was
when the Edomites, though entreated by their “ brother
Israel,” refused the latter a passage through their territo¬
ries ; and they had consequently to make a retrograde and
toilsome march to the Gulf of Elath, whence they had to
“ compass the land of Edom” by the mountain desert on
the east. We do not again hear of the Edomites till the
days of Saul, who w arred against them with partial success ;
but their entire subjugation was reserved for David, who
first signally vanquished them in the Valley of Salt (sup¬
posed to be in the Ghor, beside Usdum, the Mountain of
Salt); and, finally, placed garrisons in all their country.
Solomon created a naval station at Ezion-geber, at the head
of the Gulf of Elath, the modern Akaba. Towards the
close of his reign an attempt was made to restore the inde¬
pendence of the country by the Idumaean prince, Hadad,
who, wdien a child, had been carried into Egypt at the time
of David’s invasion, and had there married the sister of
Tahpanhes the queen. If Edom then succeeded in shaking
off the yoke, it w^as only for a season, since in the days of
Jehoshaphat, the fourth Jewish monarch from Solomon, it is
said, “ there was no king in Edom; a deputy was king
i.e,, he acted as viceroy for the king of Judah. For that
the latter was still master of the country is evident from
the fact of his having fitted out, like Solomon, a fleet at
Ezion-geber. Yet there seems to have been a partial re¬
volt of the Edomites, or at least of the mountaineers of
Seir, even in the reign of Jehoshaphat; and under his suc¬
cessor, Jehoram, they wholly rebelled, and “made a king
over themselves.” It is probable that, after this date, the
Jewish dominion was never completely restored. Amaziah,
indeed, invaded the country, and took the chief city, Selah or
Petra, and his successor, Uzziah, retained possession of
Elath. But in the reign of Ahaz, hordes of Edomites made
incursions into Judah, and carried away captives (2 Chron.
xxviii. 17). About the same period Rezin, king of Syria,
expelled the Jews from Elath, which was thenceforth occu¬
pied by the Edomites. It appears from various incidental
expressions in the later prophets, that the Edomites em¬
ployed their recovered power in the enlargement of their
territory in all directions. They spread as far south as
Dedan in Arabia, and northward to Bozrah in the Hhauran.
When the Chaldseans invaded Judah, under Nebuchad¬
nezzar, the Edomites became their willing auxiliaries, and
triumphed with fiendish malignity over the ruin of their
kinsmen the Jews, of whose desolated land they hoped to
obtain a large portion to themselves. Their hereditary
hatred of the Jews was kindled in greater fury than ever,
and many dire denunciations of the “ daughter of Edom”
were made from heaven through the lips of the Hebrew
prophets. From the language of Malachi, and also from
the accounts preserved by Josephus, it would seem that Idumea,
the Edomites did not wholly escape the Chaldaean scourge ;
but instead of being carried captive, like the Jews, they not
only retained possession of their own territory, but became
masters of the south of Judah, as far as Hebron. Here,
however, they were, in course of time, successfully attacked
by the Maccabees, and about B.C. 125, were finally sub¬
dued by John Hyreanus, who compelled them to submit
to circumcision and other Jewish rites, with a view to in¬
corporate them with the nation. The amalgamation, how¬
ever, of the two races seems never to have been effected,
for we afterwards hear of Antipater, an Idumaean by birth,
being made by Caesar procurator of all Judaea ; and his son,
commonly called Herod the Great, was at the time of Christ’s
birth, king of Judaea, including Idumaea ; and hence Roman
writers often speak of all Palestine under that name. Not
long before the siege of Jerusalem by Titus 20,000 Idu-
maeans were called in to the defence of the city by the
Zealots ; but both parties gave themselves up to rapine and
murder. This is the last mention made of the Edomites
in history. The author of a work on Job, once ascribed to
Origen, says that their name and language had perished,
and that, like the Ammonites and Moabites, they had all
become Arabs. In the second century Ptolemy limits the
name Idumaea to the country west of the Jordan.
From the era of the Crusades down to the present cen¬
tury the land of Esau was, to Europeans, a terra incognita.
Its situation was laid down on the best maps more than
100 miles from the true position, and as if lying in a direc¬
tion where it is now known there is nothing but a vast ex¬
panse of desert. Volney had his attention drawn towards
it, when at Gaza, by the vague reports of the Arabs, and
in 1807 the unfortunate Seetzen penetrated a certain wTay
into the country, and heard of the wonders of the W ady
Musa ; but the first modern traveller who “ passed through
the Land of Edom” was Burckhardt, in the year 1812.
And it has been well remarked by Dr Robinson (Arner.
Bib. Reposit., vol. hi., p. 250), that “ had he accomplished
nothing but his researches in these regions, his journey
would have been worth all the labour and cost expended
on it, although his discoveries thus shed their strongest
light upon subjects which were not comprehended in the
plan or purpose either of himself or his employers.” Burck¬
hardt entered Idumaea from the north, and in the year 1818
he was followed in the same direction by Messrs Legh,
Bankes, Irby, and Mangles. In 1828 Laborde and Linant
found access from the south ; and since then it has been
visited and described by so many that the names of its loca¬
lities have become familiar as household words.
The limit of the wanderings of the Israelites in the desert
was the brook Zered, after crossing which they found them¬
selves in the territory of Moab (Dent, ii., 13-18). This
brook is supposed to be identical with the Wady el-Ahsy,
which, rising near the Castle el-Ahsy, on the route to Mecca
of the Syrian caravan upon the high eastern desert, pene¬
trates through the whole chain of mountains to near the
S.E. corner 'of the Dead Sea. It was thus the southern
border of Moab and the northern of Edom, whence the
latter region extended southwards as far as to Elath, on the
Red Sea. The valley which runs between the two seas
consists first of El-Ghor, which is comparatively low, but
gradually rises into the more elevated plain of El-Arabah
to the south. The country lying east of this great valley
is the land of Idumaea. It is a mountain tract, consisting
at the base of low hills of limestone or of argillaceous rock,
then lofty mountains of porphyry forming the body of the
range; above these, sandstone, broken up into irregu¬
lar ridges and grotesque groups of cliffs; and again, far¬
ther back, and higher than all, long elevated ridges cf hme*
stone without precipices. East of all these stretches oft
indefinitely the high plateau oi the great eastem deseit.
I D U
Idumea. Kobinson and Smith estimated the height of the porphyry
cliffs at about 2000 feet above the Arabah ; the elevation
of Wady Musa above the same is, perhaps, 2000 or 2200
feet, while the limestone ridges further back probably do
not fall short of 3000 feet. The whole breadth of the
mountainous tract between the Arabah and the eastern
desert does not exceed 15 or 20 geographical miles. Of
these mountains the most remarkable is Mount Hor, near
the Wady Musa. While the mountains on the west of the
Arabah, though less elevated, are wholly barren, those of
Idumaea seem to enjoy a sufficiency of rain, and are covered
with tufts of herbs and occasional trees. The wadys, too,
are full of trees and shrubs and flowers, while the eastern
and higher parts are extensively cultivated, and yield good
crops. Hence Robinson thinks its appearance fulfils the
promise made to Esau (Gen. xxvii. 39), “ Thy dwellim1-
shall be the fatness of the earth and of the dew of heaven
from above.” Yet many critics are of opinion (e.^r., Vater,
De Wette, Geddes, Von Bohlen), that should
there be rendered “ from,” i.e., “ far away from, or desti¬
tute of,” the fatness of the earth, &c.; and it is immediately
added, “ for thou shalt live by thy sword ;” and it does not
appear that Idumaea was ever particularly noted for its fer¬
tility. This mountainous region is at present divided into
two districts. The northern bears the name of Jebdl, i.e.,
“ The Mountain,” the Gebal of the Hebrews (Ps. Ixxxiii.
7), and the Gebalene of the Greeks and Romans. Com¬
mencing at Wady el-Ahsy, it terminates, according to
Burckhardt, at Wady el-Ghuweir, the largest place in it
being Tufileh, perhaps the Tophel of Dent. i. ]. The
southern district is Esh-Sherah, extending as far as Akabah,
and including Shobak, Wady Musa, Maan, &c. Burck¬
hardt mentions a third district, Jebal Hesma ; but Robin¬
son says that though there is a sandy tract, el-Hismah, with
mountains around it, on the east of Akabah, it does not con¬
stitute a separate division.
The whole of this region is at present occupied by va¬
rious tribes of Bedouin Arabs. The chief tribe in the Je¬
bal is the Hejaya, with a branch of the Kaabineh, while in
Esh-Sherah they are all of the numerous and powerful tribe
of the Haweitat, with a few independent allies. The Be¬
douins in Idumaea have of late years been partially subject
to the Pasha of Egypt, paying an annual tribute, which, in
the case of the Beni Sukhr, is one camel for two tents.
The fellahin, or peasants, are half Bedouin, inhabiting the
few villages, but dwelling also in tents ; they too pay tribute
to the Egyptian government, and furnish supplies of grain.
Could the scene of the Book of Job be with certainty
fixed in Idumaea, we should then possess much curious and
valuable information respecting both the country and people
soon after it had been colonized by the descendants of
Esau. (See Mason Good, Wemyss, and others, upon Job.)
But all that we learn directly of the ancient Edomites from
the historical books of Scripture represents them as not,
indeed, neglecting agriculture or trade, yet, on the whole,
as a warlike and predatory race, who, according to the pre¬
diction of their progenitor Isaac, “lived by their sword.”
The situation of the country afforded peculiar facilities for
commerce, which seems to have been prosecuted from a
very early period. “ Bordering,” says Volney, “ upon
Arabia on the E. and S., and Egypt on the S.W., and
forming, from N. to S., the most commodious channel of
communication between Jerusalem and her dependencies
on the Red Sea, through the continuous valleys of El-Ghor
and El-Araba, Idumaea may be said to have long formed
the emporium of the commerce of the East.” The era of
its greatest prosperity was after the Nabathaeans had be¬
come masters of the country, and founded the kingdom of
Arabia Petraea, of which the renowned metropolis was
Petra. The religion of the early Edomites was, perhaps,
comparatively pure; but in process of time they embraced
I G L 359
idolatry. In 2 Chron. xxv. 20, we read of the “ gods of Idyll
Edom,” one of whom, according to Josephus (Antiq. xv. 7, I!
9), was called Kotze. With respect to the striking fulfil-
ment of the prophetic denunciations upon Edom, we need ''-“'v''"'*-''
only refer the reader to the well-known work of Keith, who
perhaps errs, however, in straining the sense of prophecy
beyond its legitimate import, as well as in seeking out too
literally minute an accomplishment. (On Idumaea gene¬
rally, see C. B. Michaelis’ Diss. de Antiquiss. Idumceor.
Hist, in Pott and Ruperti’s Sylloge Comment. Theologic.,
part vi., p. 121 ; J. 1). Michaelis’ Comment, de Troglo-
dytis Seiritis, in the Syntagma Commentt., part i., p. 194;
but especially, Sketches of Idumea and its present Inhabit¬
ants, by Dr E. Robinson, in the Amer. Bib. Repository
for April 1833, p. 247; and the Bib. Researches of the
same writer, vol. ii., p. 551.)
IDYLL (Gr. eiSuAAiov, Lat. Idyllium, or Edyllium),
a short highly-wrought descriptive poem, treating chiefly
of the appearances and phases of external nature, and the
sentiments and incidents of rural and especially of pastoral
life. In its widest sense, the idyll comprehends, according
to Wordsworth, in addition to bucolic poetry, strictly so
called, the epitaph, the inscription, the sonnet, and most of
the epistles of poets writing in their own persons. Idyllic
writing was cultivated among the Greeks, but to no great
extent; though the extant works of Theocritus, Bion, and
Moschus, show that the Hellenic tongue was as well adapted
for this as for the higher kinds of composition. Among the
Latins, Virgil and Ausonius both wrote idylls; but the
term, as used by them, comprised, as it now does, a much
wider range of subject than the Greek idyll. In modern
times the idyll was re-introduced as a species of poetry by
the proven^al poets, among whom Givaud Riquier was pre¬
eminent in this style. His fame was eclipsed, at a later
age, by that of Marot, Ronsard, and Vauquelin. One of
the best idylls of this age is that of Grotius, entitled Myrti-
lus, sire Idyllium Nauticum. The names of Racine, j. B.
Rousseau, and Fontenelle, are found among those who
affected the idyll in France. In Italy, Aquilano, Spagnuoli
(surnamed the “Mantuan”), and Sannazario, all wrote
good Latin idylls, and were followed by Bernard Tasso,
Sammartino, Franco, Calino, and Rota, who employed tncir
vernacular as the vehicle of their thoughts. At the close
of the eighteenth century Bertola appeared, and was ranked
by his countrymen with Gessner. Among the Spaniards,
Garcilasso de la Vega alone is now esteemed as a pastoral
poet. The. fame of Cervantes and Vincent Espinel as
idyll writers is lost in the glory of their success in other
walks of literature. English literature, rich in other kinds
ot poetry, is poor in pastorals of genuine poetic merit.
Spenser’s Shepherd's Calendar was called by Dryden “ the
most excellent work of the kind that has been composed since
Virgil.” Excepting several of Milton’s minor poems,—such
as the Lycidas, 11 Be riser oso, IJ Allegro, and the Arcades ;
Pope’s Windsor Forest; Thomson’s Seasons; Allan Ram¬
say’s Gentle Shepherd ; Goldsmith’s Deserted Village, and a
few others,—most of the expressly pastoral poetry of England
is not worth reading. In Switzerland the name of Gessner
is supreme in the department of the idyll; while in Germany
those of Kleist and Voss were, till the appearance of Goethe,
the acknowledged chiefs in that walk of literature.
IF, a small island off the S. coast of France, department
of Bouches-du-Rhone, before the harbour of Marseilles. It
is a naked rock, rising about 50 feet above the sea, and is
wholly occupied by a strong fort.
IGLAU, a town, capital of a cognominal circle, in Mo¬
ravia, Austria, on the River Iglawa, 49 miles W.N.W. of
Brunn. It consists of the town proper, which is walled,
and of three suburbs. Manufactures, woollen cloth, linen,
paper, potash, &c., and an extensive transit trade. Pop.
about 14,000.
360
Iglesias
II
Ignatius.
I G L
IGLESIAS, a town of the island of Sardinia, 32 miles
W.N.W. of Cagliari. It is finely situated amongst lime-
sto'ne hills, and abundantly watered by various springs. The
surrounding country is highly productive of corn, wine, and
fruits. Iglesias is the see of a bishop, and has a handsome
episcopal°palace, several convents, and a Jesuits’ college.
Pop. about 5000.
IGNATIUS LOYOLA. See Jesuitism.
Ignatius, St, one of the apostolical fathers, and Bishop
of Antioch, was a Syrian, but the place and time of his
birth is uncertain. He is called Theophorvs, or Deifer,
a name by some supposed to have been given him be¬
cause he was the child whom our Lord took in his arms
when correcting the ambitious views of his disciples (Mark
ix. 36); but Ignatius himself gives the true meaning of the
appellative as “ one that has Christ in his heart; ” and it is
stated by Chrysostom that this father never saw Jesus
Christ. By some he has been called a disciple of Peter,
but the authority of the Mcvrtyrium Ignatii makes him,
along with Polycarp, a hearer of St John. Little is known
of his history, either before or during his episcopate, except
that we gather from his works that he was filled with high
conceptions of the dignity of his office, and, from the Mar-
tyrium, that he was anxious for the stedfastness of his flock
during the persecution of Domitian, and indefatigable in
promoting their edification. On the breaking out of the
persecution under Trajan, Ignatius took no pains to avoid
its fury, but seems rather to have courted the crown of
martyrdom, and was brought before the emperor at Antioch.
The conference or trial ended in his being sentenced to be
thrown to wild beasts at Rome ; a fate which he boldly met
on the 20th December, on what was called “ the feast of
the'thirteenth,” i.e., the thirteenth before the kalends of
January ; but the exact year is not known, various writers
placing it at as wide intervals as a.d. 107, and a.d. 116.
His remains were interred at Antioch, and his tomb was
shown there in the time of Jerome.
But the principal interest in the name of Ignatius is
gathered round his works, which, short as they are, have
excited much controversy from an early period in the his¬
tory of the revival of letters. In his way from Antioch to
Rome, he is said to have written seven epistles, which are
enumerated by Eusebius and Jerome ; but there are extant
fifteen letters ascribed to him, though only seven are con¬
sidered genuine. Of these there are two copies, one
shorter than the other, and criticism has generally given
its verdict in favour of the least diffuse edition. The whole
of the letters have been considered as spurious by some
writers, but learned men have generally admitted the
genuineness of the seven. The decisive testimony borne to
episcopacy, and to our Lords divinity, by these ancient
documents, caused them to be closely scrutinized ; and from
the Reformation to the present day the controversy as to what
Ignatius wrote, and what his expressions mean it admitted as
genuine, has been carried on with some acrimony. I he au¬
thor of the Centurice Magdeburgenses first gave utterance
to some doubts on the subject; Calvin followed more posi¬
tively, and on subjective grounds declared the letters apo¬
cryphal, calling them ncenice and larvx. In 1644 Arch¬
bishop Usher published his edition of the epistles, and con¬
tended for the genuineness of six of them; he added a
valuable introduction and notes. Vossius followed, printing
the text from a Medicean M.S. In 1666 Daille fiercely
attacked the whole collection, and this gave rise to Bishop
Pearson’s Vindicice Ignatiance, which, for the time, put an
end to the controversy.
The treasures of Syriac literature brought from Egypt to
this country by Dr Tattam have revived the interest felt
in the writings of Ignatius, and led to their renewed criti¬
cism. Among the MSS. purchased of the monks in the
Desert of Nitria was found a Syriac copy of the Epistles to
ILF
Polycarp, the Romans, and the Ephesians only ; and these Ignis
were edited and published, with notes, by the Rev. W. ||
Cureton, in 1845. These translations are much shorter ™:ombe'
than the supposed Greek originals; and it is remarkable y
that some of the omitted or wanting portions are those
which relate to episcopal authority, and the deity of Christ,
and these are supposed by Mr Cureton to have been intro¬
duced into the Greek text as bearing on the Arian and
Aerian heresies. That gentleman has since more folly con¬
sidered the whole literature of the subject in his Corpus
Ignatianum, and is a strenuous advocate for the genuine¬
ness of the Syriac or shorter recension. But, although this
dictum has not yet been very strongly opposed, it is far from
being generally submitted to, and it is probable the grounds
of Mr Cure ton’s conclusions may yet be warmly contested.
Further researches into the Syriac translations of theological
works furnish evidence of a custom of abridging or marking
compends of the original treatises, and it is far from unlikely
that this plan was pursued in making the version of the
Epistles of Ignatius. It should be said, Iwwever, that pre¬
vious to the discovery of this version, many critics as
Beausobre, Lardner, and Priestly—had expressed their
conviction that the Greek copies had been largely interpo¬
lated. (h- b.)
IGNIS FATUUS,alight supposed to proceedfiom phos-
phuretted hydrogen, appearing frequently in mines, church¬
yards, marshy places, and near stagnant waters. It was for¬
merly thought to have something ominous in its nature, and
to presage death or misfortunes. There have been instances
of people being decoyed by these lights into marshy places,
where they perished ; and hence the names of Ignis fatuus,
Will-with-a-wisp, and Jack-with-a-lanthorn, as if this ap¬
pearance were an evil spirit whiclr took delight in doing mis¬
chief. The general opinion is, that this light is produced
by the decomposition of animal or vegetable matters, or by
the evolution of gases which spontaneously inflame in the
atmosphere. See Physical Geography.
IGUALADA (the ancient Aquce Latce), a town of
Spain, province of Barcelona, on the left bank of the Noya,
34 miles N.W. of Barcelona. The streets of the old town
are narrow and irregular, but those of the new, or modern
portion, are generally regular and spacious. Among the
public buildings are an ancient Gothic church, a town-hall,
two convents, a clerical college, hospital, cavalry barracks,^
and a small theatre. Igualada formerly ranked as one of
the wealthiest and most industrious cities of Spain, but of
late years it has greatly declined. Its manufactures, which
are still very considerable, comprise cotton and woollen
stuffs, leather, hats, fire-arms, &c. Pop. 10,095.
ILCHESTER (formerly Ivelchester, from the River Ivel
or Yeo, on which it stands), a market-town of Somersetshire,
33 miles S.S.W. of Bath. Under the Romans it was an
important military station, and bore the name of Ischalis.
Traces of its fortifications may still lie seen, and numerous
coins, urns, &c., have been discovered. It formerly re¬
turned two members to Parliament, but was disfranchised
by the Reform Act. Ilchester was the birth-place of Roger
Bacon.
ILDEFONSO, San, a town of Segovia, Spam, and 6
miles S.E. of Segovia. It stands on the northern slope of
the Sierra de Guadarrama, at a height of 3840 feet above
the level of the sea. Its royal palace of La Granja is the
usual residence of the court during several of the hottest
months. San Ildefbnso is noted for its royal glass manu¬
factory- Pop. about 3000.
1LERDA. See Lerida.
ILE-DE-FRANCE, an old province of France, the ca¬
pital of which was Paris. It now forms the departments ot
Seine, and Seine-et-Oise, and parts of those ot Seine-et-
Marne, Aisne, and Oise.
ILFRACOMBE, a seaport-town of Devonshire, on the
I L I
Ilissus Biistol Channel, 43 miles N.W. of Exeter. The harbour
is endosed by rocky clifi, and is also' protected by a pier
850 feet in length. It affords secure anchorage to vessels of
230 tons and has at the entrance a lighthouse and battery.
Ilfracombe is in summer frequented for sea-bathing The
S^PoMiStLTr611 in fishing and the
ILlIS?Ui’ [nAncieLnt^ographi/, one of the small streams
on which the city of Athens stood. It was not so large
and important as the Cephissus, and differed from it in
being wholly dried up under the scorching heat of summer,
which the Cephissus does not seem to have ever been. It
consisted of two principal streams, the larger of which rose
on the northern slope of Hymettus, and flowing towards
the city was there joined by the smaller, which, under the
name of the Endanus, rose on the western slope of Hv-
mettus at a place now called Syriani. The combined
stream then traversed the southern portion of the city and
n WmrPi’ T afterTheavy rains> discharged itself into the
Bay of Phalerum. In summer its channel now, as in ancient
times, is quite dried up.
ILLE-ET-VILAINE, a department on the N.W. coast
of France, lying between N. Eat. 47. 38. and 48. 37., and
W. Long. 1. and 2.14. bounded N. by the sea and the de¬
partment of Manche, E. by Mayenne, S. by Loire Infe-
neure. aud W. by Morbihan an] Cte-du-N^contain-
ing an area of 2597£ square miles. It is traversed E. and
W by a range o low hills, which decline on the one side
to the English Channel, and on the other to the Bay of
Jiiscay. Its principal rivers are the Ille and Vilaine. The
former joins the Vilaine at Rennes, after a course of 18
miles through the department, and the latter which rises in
Mayenne, flows past the towns of Vitre, Rennes, and Redon.
I his stream is tidal up to the port of Redon, and is navi¬
gable for barges as far as Rennes. The country, in many
parts, is flat and marshy, with a number of stagnant lakes
a circumstance that renders the atmosphere very humid’
while the prevalence of westerly winds keeps the tem-
imild- ItS S0.’1 1S thin and n°t very fertile. Of
980 An1 aSeS qo^So ed in the dePartment> there are
on2 arable> 327,262 waste (marsh, lakes, roads, &c.)
18h’?o9a raSS’ 135,f61 wood> 33,132 gardens and orchards’
a"d \° ? VlT and,tobacco- The areals consist of rye
oats, barley, flax, and hemp, none of which are raised to great
extent. I he annual amount of grain is about 1,200,500
quarters, or 2 quarters to each individual, a sum so small
that importation must be carried on from the more fertile
districts around. Both apples and pears are grown in large
quantities, and make excellent cider or perry. Tobacco
is raised at St Halo, and the vine is seen here and there
throughout the country. It has been generally remarked,
that agriculture is here in a very low state, from the small¬
ness of the farms, few of which exceed 60 acres, while the
average extent is 18 acres. The manufactures of the
department are confined to linen, canvass, and cordage;
the former is spun into excellent thread. The minerals of
the department are few; granite, slate, and glass-quartz
form the most profitable articles of mining, while iron is
worked but with little success.
The cattle and horse trade is, perhaps, the most lucra¬
tive and extensive in the department, and both the oxen
and horses of the country are justly celebrated. They be¬
long to the small Breton breeds. The former are fat¬
tened in Normandy for the Paris market, where they re-
ahze high prices. From the coast also, large supplies of
ueep-sea fish, lobsters, crabs, and oysters, are despatched to
he metropo.is and other towns. Cheese, said to equal
.. ruyere, is made in considerable quantities. Communica¬
tion with the coast and interior is effected by means of the
ivers, a canal, and the railway to Paris. The Ille-et-Rance
anal, supplied with water from the former stream, con-
VOL. 2£II«
ILL
nects the town of Rennes with those of Dinan and St
Halo; and the Paris railway crosses the department by
Vitre and Rennes. The population of the country is of
Celtic origin, and speaks a mixed dialect of Gaelic and
French, known by the name of the Breton dialect. The
chief towns are Rennes, the capital in the centre of the
department, and St Halo, an ancient and still flourishing
seaport on the English Channel. Ille-et-Vilaine is divided
into the six following arrondissements, with their respective
populations:—
Arrondissements. Cantons.
Rennes   iq
St Malo  9
Fongeres   6
Vitre  6
Redon  7
Montfort  5
361
Illinois.
Pop. 1851.
139,471
123,585
85,151
83,509
82,287
60,615
Total  43 574,618
ILLINOIS, one of the United States of North Ame-
nca, is bounded N. by Wisconsin, E. by Lake Michigan
and Indiana, from which it is separated for a third of its
length by the Wabash River, S. by the Ohio, which sepa¬
rates it from Kentucky, and W. by the Mississippi. It lies
between N. Lat. 37. and 42. 30., and between W. Long.
87.49. and 91.28. Greatest length from N. to S., 378 miles;
greatest breadth, 212 miles ; average breadth, 140 miles.
Its area is estimated at 55,409 square miles, being only
about 3000 square miles less than that of England and
W ales. According to the census of 1850, little more than
a sixth part of the state was under cultivation.
Ulinois is one of the most level states in the Union.
With the exception of a range of low hills in the S., and
a good deal of broken land in the N.W., as well as a few
elevations near the Illinois, and some lofty bluffs along the
Mississippi, the state may be regarded as an extensive
table-land, gently inclining towards the S.W. At the
mouth of the Ohio the soil is only about 340 feet above
tide-water in the Gulf of Mexico, and the highest eleva¬
tion in the whole state does not exceed 800 feet above that
standard. Its surface is occupied almost entirely by prairies,
which are popularly distinguished by the names, “ wet” and
dl y>. alluvial and “ rolling.” The wet prairies are
peaty, indicating that they have once been morasses. Those
of an alluvial nature are dry, with a rich black loam, and
exceedingly fertile. They are covered with a coarse kind
of grass, which grows to an enormous size. The soil of the
high and “rolling” prairies is, in general, only of second-
rate quality, and abounds in springs. Grape-vines are
abundant. I he prairies furnish an inexhaustible summer
range for cattle. From the exceeding flatness of some of
the plains, the rains that fall are allowed to stagnate, and
thus render the situation unhealthy. The Grand Prairie
which is the largest tract of this description, is probably the
highest table-land between the Mississippi and the Wabash.
It extends from the county of Jackson, in a N.E. direction,
to the Irroquois county, and varies in breadth from 1 to
upwards of 12 miles. Although passing under one name,
it does not consist of one single tract of land, but is broken
up into several reaches of prairie ground, with stripes of
wood running between them. It is rich and fertile, and
several settlements have been located on its border which
is everywhere skirted with wood. The prairies, generally,
are not plentifully supplied with timber, most of them be¬
ing only interspersed with groups of trees, or skirted with
stripes of forest. Much of the young wood is destroyed by
the annual winter burning of the coarse grass, which covers
at least two-thirds of the prairie land. In spring the prairies
again become profusely decked with the greatest variety of
beautiful and delicate flowers of every hue.
Illinois is distant from the sea, but is well provided with
rivers. Nearly three-fourths of its boundary is formed by
2 z
362
ILLINOIS.
nr • navigable rivers: and on the N.E. it has Lake Michigan for
"Sds of 60 miles- The Mississippi which forms xts entme
 7  western, and the Ohio, which forms the southern boundary,
mve commercial access to those valleys which bear then
names. The Wabash, a noble stream which bounds the state
on the E. for more than 100 miles, is navigable for more than
that distance. For internal communication, the Illinois,
which belongs entirely to this state, is navigable at all seasons
for steamboats for 260 miles, to La Salle, where navigation
is stopped occasionally by the little rapids and where a canal
branches off, connecting the river with Lake Michigan. The
principal tributaries of the Illinois, which is ^self formed
bv the junction of the Kankakee and the Des Plaines, are
the Fox River, which rises in Huron territory, and has a
course of 200 miles before it joins the Illinois; the V ermi-
lion River, which falls into it from the S.E.; the Sangamon
from the E., the Mackinaw from the N.E., and the Spoon
River from the N.W. These are almost all navigable for
considerable distances. The Sangamon is navigable for
140 miles. The Little Wabash and the Embarrass, which
flow into the Wabash, are likewise navigable for upwards
of 150 miles. The Rock River, which rises in Wisconsin,
and falls into the Mississippi, after a course of about dOO
miles, is navigable for some distance, but its upper course
is impeded by rapids.
The climate of Illinois, extending as it does over a space
of 5i degrees of latitude, must necessarily be varied. 1 he
natural difference of temperature between the northern and
the southern parts is, however, increased, by the numerous
and lar^e rivers which bound and intersect the countiy,
and by Its state of cultivation. Everywhere the winters
are severe, the summers hot and long, and the tempeiature
subject to frequent and sudden changes. In the southern
parts of the state the summer heat is very oppressive^and
enervating; and is only occasionally relieved by fresh
breezes from the prairies. In winter the snow falls to a
considerable depth, and lies occasionally for three months;
and many of the rivers remain frozen for the same length
of time. In some parts of the state only a few inches of
snow falls, and it quickly disappears. , rrM -i
Illinois possesses a vast extent of arable land. I he soil,
although varied, is generally highly productive, and foi
agriculture, it has been considered as unsurpassed by any
state in the American confederacy. The soil in “ the bot¬
toms,” or along the river valleys, such as those of the Rock
River, the Sangamon, and Kaskaskia, consists chiefly of rich
alluvial deposits, and is so productive as frequently to yield
40 bushels of wheat or 100 bushels of Indian corn to the
acre. Nearly all the tracts adjacent to the rivers are of
this character. “ The American Bottom,” as it is called,
is the richest river alluvium, and has been cropped without
deterioration for a century. It extends along the Missis¬
sippi for 90 miles ; but in consequence of^ its liability to
inundation, much of it is uncultivated. The prairies, al¬
though less productive, are still very fertile, and on account
of their greater salubrity are preferred for farms, wherever
wood is to be obtained. In 1850, there were 7 ^
farms in Illinois, containing 5,039,545 acres of improved
ground.
Important and valuable minerals abound in this state.
Bituminous coal occurs in almost every county ; and in
some instances may be obtained without excavation. Tas>t
beds are found on the bluffs adjacent to the “ American Bot¬
tom and it has been reported that anthracite coal has been
found in the county of Jackson. But the great coal region
is an extensive tract which extends quite across the state
from Missouri to Indiana, and from Iowa to Kentucky.
Iron has been found in the southern part of the state, and
is said to be plentiful in the northern. The great lead re¬
gion is shared between Illinois, Iowa, and Wisconsin. Ga¬
lena in the N.W. is nearly supported by this mineral. Sil¬
ver has also been found in the west part of the state, and Illinois,
copper is obtained in several places. I he °ther minera s v-"*'
found here are, zinc, gypsum, quartz, crystals, &c. _
Illinois possesses great facilities for manufactures, wnic r
have hitherto been very imperfectly developed. According
to the census of 1850, the number of manufacturing esta¬
blishments, producing each annually to the value of G.IUU
and upwards, was 3099. There were 16 woollen manufac¬
tories, employing a capital of L.30,900, and 178 han a, in¬
cluding 54 females, producing in all 336,995 yards of stuffs,
and 137,000 lbs. of yarn ; 96 tanneries, employing 275
hands and a capital of L.37,675 ; 31 furnaces, forges, &c.,
employing 482 hands, and producing 2700 tons of p.g iron
and 4160 tons of cast iron. The home-made manufactures
were valued at L.231,180. , t i •
The total of the imports into this state from the Lakes in
1851 was L. 1,564,190, and exports L.887,002. 1 he foreign
exports in 1852 amounted to L. 10,265, and imports to L.966.
The tonnage entered was only 1155, and cleared 3616.
The internal trade of this state is becoming considerable,
and increasing in proportion to the means of internal com¬
munication. Its direct foreign commerce is exceedingly
small and is chiefly with Great Britain.
The present constitution was adopted in convention on
the 31st August 1847, and accepted by the people on
the 7th March 1848. By it, one year’s residence in the
state entitles every white male citizen, 21 years of age, to a
vote for all elective affairs. The executive power is vested
in a governor and a lieutenant-governor, chosen by the elec¬
tors for four years, the former receiving L.500 per annum,
and the latter 3 dollars per day during the session, ihe
legislature consists of a senate and house of representatives.
The senate consists of 25 members elected for 4 years, and
the house of representatives of 75 elected for 2 years-
Each member receives 2 dollars a-day for 42 days, and 1
dollar a-day afterwards.
The justiciary consists of a supreme court of three divi¬
sions, each of which is presided over by a judge receiving a
salary of L.250 each per annum; and 17 Ctfcmtcourts,
presided over by as many judges, each receiving 1000 dol¬
lars per annum. Illinois is entitled to 9 members in the
national house of representatives, and to 11 electoral votes
for the president of the United States.
The debt of the state, principal and interest, was, in
January 1, 1855, L.2,798,923. During the two years end¬
ing November 30, 1854, there had been paid of the public
debt, in addition to L.240,000 paid on account of accruing
interest, the sum of L.55,007, making a total of E.790 007
paid during that time on account of the public debt. It tne
present rate of taxation is continued, and the present me¬
thod of reducing the debt followed, it will be entirely ex in-
sruished in 1866. The rate of taxation in 1852 on each 100
dollars was 60ld cents, i in 1853 49M cents. Durmg the
two years, L.56,178 were received from the sale of 80,12b U-t
acres of state land, and 48,598-15 acres remained unsold
December 1, 1854. . ,
Illinois consists of 100 counties, which contain a number
of thriving towns, many of which are increasing very fast in
population. Chicago is much the largest and has con¬
nected with it the greater part of the traffic of the state.
Pop in 1850, 29,963. In 1853, it is said to have increased
to upwards of 60,000. The capital of the state is Spring-
The following table shows the decennial increase of the
population since 1810:
Year. Whites. Free coloured. Slaves.
  613 168
506 917
1,637 747
3,589 331
5,366 None.
1810  11,501
1820  53,788
1830 155,061
1840 472,254
1850 846,104
Total.
12,282
55,211
157,445
476,183
851,470
loop . , r»e
In 1850 there were 1167 churches m this state. G1
ILL
Illuminati, these there belonged to Methodists, 389 ; to different divi-
sions of Baptists, 265 ; Presbyterians, 198 ; Christians, 67 •
Roman Catholics, 58 ; Congregationalists, 46 ; Lutherans’
40 , Unionists, 31 5 Episcopalians, 27 5 minor sects 46 * 
in all, 1167, providing accommodation for 636,478 per¬
sons. 1
In 1854, there were 4215 public schools in the state-
2492 being taught by males, and 1557 by females. The
number of children receiving instruction was 136,371.
There are 4 colleges in the state, attended by about 250
students. There is also a theological seminary (Baptist)
connected with Shurtleff College, at Upper Alton. At Chi¬
cago is the Rush Medical School, founded in 1842, havino-
in 1850, 6 professors, 70 students, and 16 graduates. In
1854 the sum of 951,504-07 dollars was devoted to the pur¬
poses of education. Besides those connected with schools
and colleges, there are 27 public libraries containing 19,916
volumes. The total number of newspapers and periodicals
published in 1850 was 119, of which 73 were political, and
46 devoted to literature, science, religion, &c.
Illinois was within the limits of the cession which Vir¬
ginia made to the United States in 1 787. But it had been
visited by the French traveller Marquette as early as 1673
and settlements were made at Cahokia and Kaskaskia be-
forejEe close of the seventeenth century. By the treaty
of 1/63 between England and France this country came
into the hands of the British, and at the Revolution in 1775
it became a part of the possessions of the United States. It
constituted a part of the N.W. territory in 1789, and
in 1800 it formed part of a separate territory under the
name of Indiana, in conjunction with the state now bearing
that name. A final division took place in 1809, when the
present state was organised as the territory of Illinois, and
was admitted into the Union in 1818, as an independent
state. Since that period it has been steadily propressino-
in general industry. 0 0
Its internal improvements for some years past have been
very great. Canals have been formed to compensate for
the natural bairiers to navigation in some of its rivers, and
recently its great canal from Chicago to Peru, on the Illinois
River has been completed, uniting the waters of Lake Michi¬
gan with the Mississippi; thus opening direct communica¬
tion between the whole of the Lake district in the N., and
the river navigation on the S. The system of railroads,
projected on a grand scale upwards of 20 years ago, and
which had been temporarily suspended, has been resumed
some years ago on a still greater scale, and is being carried
on with vigour. Chicago, its principal commercial city,
was in 1853 connected with Rockford, St Charles, Aurora,
and Peru within the state, and beyond it, either directly or
indirectly, with Detroit, Cincinnati, New York, Philadelphia,
and Boston. Besides these there were railroads uniting
Springfield with Jackson, and Naples, Alton, and Quincy,
with Columbus. When its railroads under construction
are finished, Illinois will be surpassed for its railroad com¬
munication by but few states in the Union.
ILLUMINATI, The Enlightened, a name applied to the
members of a secret society of the last century. It is said
that a society had been formed by a disciple of Swedenborg,
for the purpose of ostensibly bringing about a social reform
in Europe; and that from this society, as well as from the
societies of Jesuits and Freemasons, Adam Weishaupt,
professor of canon-law at Ingolstadt, took the idea of form¬
ing a society whose professed object was, by one single tie,
to unite men of all countries, in spite of different opinions,
religions, and ranks ; to instruct all classes; and to surround
sovereigns with men of integrity, justice, truth, and courage.
His adherents were at first called Perfectibilists, but after¬
wards designated themselves the Enlightened. From the
ablest of his law students he chose apostles for his new
scheme. These apostles he called areopagists, and sent to
ILL 363
various parts of Europe to work out his system. Before Illyria,
the existence of the society was known at Ingolstadt, several
lodges had been established in Bavaria, Suabia, Franconia,
Milan, and Holland, numbering 1000 disciples. Weishaupt
succeeded in gaining over the Baron de Knigge, and Bode
the philosopher, to his system. The whole society formed
a hierarchy which consisted of eight grades, independent of
minor subdivisions, viz.,—the Novice, the Minerval, the
Illuminatus Minor, the Illuminatus Major, the Scottish
Cavalier, the Priest, the Regent, and the King. Young
men between 18 and 30 were preferred, and Lutherans
were taken rather than Catholics. The Baron de Knigge
was a zealous promoter of their views. At the congress*of
Wilhelmsbad, 1783, when there were present men from all
parts of the world, he made many converts. The society
amounted to 2000, of whom he himself had converted 500.
A dispute arose between Weishaupt and Knigge ; the latter
was deposed, retired to Breme, and wrote against the
society. In 1785 the system was divulged, and Weishaupt
retired to Ratisbon. On the seizure of the papers and docu¬
ments of the leaders in the following year, Weishaupt fled
to Halle, where he died in 1830, at the age of 83.
A new combination was soon formed under the name of
the Germanic Union, the founder of which was Dr Bahrdt.
Its political intrigues favoured and hastened on the French
Revolution. Mirabeau, Talleyrand, and others, are said to
have adopted the principles of the new union, which Bode
is said to have expounded in person at the Masonic lodges
of Paiis. It has been doubted, however, whether the
society ever attained to a perfect organization, or whether
it ever exerted any extensive influence.
ILLYRIA, or Illykicum. The kingdom of Illyria, as
it was before the new territorial arrangement of Austria in
1849, represented only a comparatively small portion of the
ancient Illyria or Illyricum. In its widest sense that term
comprised all the country extending along the shores of
the Hadriatic, from the mouths of the Po to the frontiers
of Epirus. Inland it stretched from the sea to the banks
of the Ister or Danube, and the Alps that separate Italy
from Germany. On the E. it was bounded by Mace¬
donia, and the barbarous tribes that once obeyed Mace¬
donian sway. In a more limited sense it may be regarded
as comprising the sea-board between the Naro (Neretva)
and the Drilo (Driri), and reaching inland as far as the
country of the Triballi. In course of time the “ Illyricus
Limes” were pushed forwards on all sides, and in the se¬
cond century after Christ it comprised Noricum, the whole
of Pannonia, the whole of Mcesia, Dacia, and Thrace. In
the fourth century, Constantine having added to it Mace¬
donia, Ihessaly, and the whole of Greece, made it one of
the four great quarters into which the Roman world was
subdivided for the purposes of government. At a later
period the provinces added by Constantine were detached,
and annexed to the Eastern Empire, while the original Illy¬
ricum was reunited to the Empire of the West.
1 he inhabitants of this extensive region were known
under the general title of Illyrii. Ethnologically they were
a distinct race from their Sclavonic neighbours on the N.
and their Epirot neighbours on the S. ; but so little is
known of their modes of life and language that it is impos¬
sible to trace with certainty their ethnical affinities. The
subject has been investigated with much care and ability
by Ritter von Xylander. Ihe results of his researches will
be found in full in vol. iii. of Prichard’s great work. This
much is ceitain, that from the old Illyrians have spruno-
the modern Albanians, or, as they are called by the Turks,
the Arnauts. I hese Albanians, though the country
they now occupy represents part of Epirus, have nothing
in common with the ancient Epirots. When they them¬
selves began to be hard pressed by the Gauls and Sclaves
on the E. and N., they retired southwards, seized Epirus,
364 ILL
Illyria, and such of the inhabitants as escaped the sword were gra-
i [ ^ _ y dually merged in the Illyrian tribes. The earliest writers
who mention the Illyrians describe them as tattooing their
bodies, a practice which they shared with their neighbours
of Thrace. Like that people, too, they sought to appease
their gods by human sacrifices. Their women are de¬
scribed as enjoying much influence in politics as well as
social life, and do not seem to have been very strictly
bound by their marriage vow.
The Illyrians are first mentioned in history in the Pelo¬
ponnesian War, when Thucydides describes them offering
a fierce resistance to Brasidas and the Spartans. In B.c.
383 they are found amalgamated into a sort of kingdom,
under the sway of a bandit chief, Bardylis by name. This
Bardylis attacked Macedonia, defeated the king Amyntas,
and took several cities. Some years later he again attacked
the Macedonians, and defeated and slew Perdiccas. The
war was renewed when Philip came to the throne, and by
his energy the inroads of the Illyrians were checked, and
their country partially subjugated. Clitus, the son of Bar¬
dylis, in vain endeavoured to recover from Alexander the
territory which his father had lost to Philip. Soon after
this the Illyrians became formidable by sea as buccaneers,
and carried their devastations over the coasts of Italy and
the islands of the Ionian Sea. Their coasts afforded great
facilities for privateering, as they abounded in excellent
harbours, which were difficult of access, and were only
known to the pirates themselves. The Greeks, unable^ to
protect themselves, applied to the Romans for aid. Ihe
Romans, whose commerce had suffered severely, demanded
redress. Teuta, the Illyrian queen, not only refused it, but
murdered the Roman ambassadors. War was accordingly
declared against her, and in B.c. 229 a Roman army in¬
vaded her country, and was everywhere victorious. Teuta
was obliged to sue for peace, which was only granted her
on condition that she should surrender a large tract of the
Illyrian sea-board, and send out no armed vessel south of
the Gulf of Lyssus. Ten years later the Illyrians renewed
their inroads, and the second Illyrian War was proclaimed,
which ended in exactly the same manner as the first. Dur¬
ing the Macedonian War they proved faithful to their Ro¬
man masters, and considerable additions were made to their
territory; but in b.c. 168 they again rebelled, and the Ro¬
mans having defeated and taken Gentius, their king, and
stormed Scodra, their capital, annexed their entire country.
The Illyrians, though conquered, were far from being finally
subdued, and their constant outbreaks and revolts were
only kept in check by the presence of an overwhelming
force. Under the empire, when the Romans were secur¬
ing their conquest in this part of the world by a chain of
forts along the Danube, they recruited their legions from
the warlike youth of Illyria; and the vanity of the con¬
quered race was sometimes flattered by seeing a country¬
man of their own seated on the throne of the Caesars.
Claudius, Aurelian, Probus, Diocletian, and Maximian
were all the sons of Illyrian peasants. In the sixth cen¬
tury the Sclaves invaded Ulyricum, and, defying the power
of the Byzantine emperors, erected the independent king¬
doms of Croatia and Dalmatia. (See Austria, Hungary,
and Dalmatia.) Venice and Hungary were the next in¬
vaders, and they in their turn were compelled by the Turks
to relinquish the greater part of their conquests in Illyria.
After the beginning of the fourteenth century the name of
this country disappeared altogether as a geographical term
from the map of Europe, till, in 1809, it was revived by Na¬
poleon. In that year the peace of Presburg was concluded,
in virtue of which Austria ceded to the French emperor
the Hungarian provinces south of the Drave, part of the
Tyrol, Dalmatia, and the crown lands of Carinthia, Carniola,
and the Kiistenland. When the peace of Vienna restored
these countries to the House of Hapsburg, the three last
I M E
named of these provinces were erected into the kingdom of Ilminster
Illyria. As thus constituted, the kingdom of Illyria lay ||
between N. Lat. 44. 59. and 47. 8., and E. Long. 12. 36. ^ mentia.^
and 16. 27-, and was bounded on the N. by the provinces of
Salzburg and Styria, E. by Styria and Croatia, S. by the
Adriatic, and W. by Lombardy. Its length from N. to S.
was 160 miles, its breadth was 110; its area fell a little short
of 11,000 square miles. In 1822 the circle of Carlstadt
and the Kiistenland were detached from it by the Emperor
Francis, and annexed to Hungary, with a view to develop¬
ing the internal resources of that country. 1 he kingdom
of Illyria now exists only in name. In 1849 the Austrians
remodelled the territorial distribution of their empire. The
division of the Illyrian kingdom was abolished, and out of
it were formed the three provinces of Karnthen or Carin¬
thia, Krain or Carniola, and Kiistenland or the Littorale
(sea-board). Each of these provinces will be found described
under its special head.
ILMINSTER, a market-town of Somersetshire, on the
He, an affluent of the Parret, 10 miles S.E. of Taunton.
It consists of two streets, one of which extends nearly a
mile from E. to W., and is crossed by the other at right
angles. The parish church is a large cruciform edifice with
a square embattled and pinnacled tower. Ilminster pos¬
sesses a well endowed grammar school, with four exhibi¬
tions at Oxford. Some woollen cloth, lace, and silk manufac¬
tures are carried on. Market-day, Wednesday. Pop. of
parish (1851) 3299.
ILVA, the ancient name of Elba. See Elba.
IMAGINATION is defined by Isaac Taylor to be “ the
power which the mind has to decompose its conceptions and
to recombine the elements of them at its pleasure. See
Poetry, &c., &c.
IMAUM, or Iman, a minister in the Turkish empire,
corresponding to our parish priest. He has the ordinary
charge of a mosque, calls the people to prayer, and reads
the prayers. The chief education of the Imans consists in
acquaintance with the Koran. T. hey are elected by the
people, are independent ecclesiastically, and may quit their
office if they choose. They wear wide turbans, differing in
form from the common ones. It is death for a Christian to
beat an Iman. The Iman who presides at the Friday
prayers is of a higher grade than the ordinary Iman. The
name is also applied to the founders of the four chief Mo¬
hammedan sects ; thus Ali is the Iman of the Persians, and
in this case the dignity or Imanate is hereditary.
IMBROS, or Imbro, an island belonging to Turkey, in
the Grecian Archipelago, and lying west from the entrance
to the Dardanelles, in Lat. 40. 10. N., Long. 25.50. E. It is
18 miles in length from E. to W., by about 10 in breadth,
and is well wooded and mountainous. Its loftiest peak rises
to the height of 1959 feet. Ihe valleys are fertile, and
produce wine, oil, cotton, &c. Pop. about 4000.
IMERITIA, or Imerethi, a province of Russian Trans¬
caucasia, forming part of the ancient Colchis ; bounded N.
by the main range of the Caucasus, E. by Georgia, W. by
Mingrelia, and S. by Akhalzik. It is 90 miles in length
from N. to S., by 75 in breadth. Area about 5000
square miles. The surface is generally uneven and rugged,
being traversed by offshoots from the Caucasus, but the soi
is of great fertility. The climate is very mild and favour¬
able to the cultivation of the products of warm countries,
being protected from the north winds by the lofty range o
the Caucasus. In many parts the trees produce fruit twice
a year. The loftier mountain slopes are covered with im¬
mense forests ; lower down are extensive tracts of luxuri
ant pasture ; while the valleys and plains produce abun ant
crops of wheat, barley, maize, tobacco, hemp, &c. e
Rion and its tributaries are the only streams in the province.
Game is abundant. There are no manufactures of impoi
ance. The chief exports are the productions of the coun-
I M M
Immacu- try, including wine, silk, honey, wax, skins, wool, and fruits ;
late Con- chief imports—woollen, linen, and silk goods, iron and copper
ception wareSj jewellery, salt, and colonial produce. The slave
Im each- tra(*e’ f°rmerly considerable, has been abated by the Rus-
mpent sians. Kootais, the capital, and only town in the province, is
situated on the Rion, and contains about 3000 inhabitants.
In the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries Imeritia formed
part of the kingdom of Georgia. It subsequently became
independent and was governed by its own kings. After¬
wards it was subdued by the Turks, who in 1770 were ex¬
pelled by the Russians. It continued to be governed by
its own kings till 1804, when one of them, in order to secure
himself in the government against a rival, acknowledged the
supremacy of Russia; and he and his successors were de¬
clared the lawful princes of Imeritia. Pop. about 100 000.
IMMACULATE CONCEPTION is the name given
in the Church of Rome to the doctrine that the Virgin
Mary was conceived in the womb sinlessly as Christ himself
was. The first public controversy on this question arose
a.p. 1140, at which time various churches, both in England
and France, had begun to hold festal days in honour of the
immaculate conception. Of the more important churches,
that of Lyons was the first to celebrate this festival, and it
was the opposition raised to it by Bernard that brought on
the discussion. In the fourteenth century this doctrine was
one of the points of controversy between the Dominicans and
Franciscans, the two most powerful religious orders of the time.
On the side of the Franciscans great renown was acquir¬
ed by the celebrated Scotus in defending the dogma, for
he set himself specially to oppose Thomas Aquinas, the
great oracle of the Dominicans, and hence arose the division
of sects known as Thomists and Scotists. In the seven¬
teenth century the old dispute between the Dominicans and
Franciscans raged with greater fury than ever. Two kings
of Spain, Philip III. and IV., sent to Rome for the express
purpose of having the dispute authoritatively settled by the
Sovereign pontiff. These embassies were sent to three
different pontiffs, Paul V., Gregory XV., and Alexander
VIE, but they all shrank from the task. It was obviously
dangerous to decide against either of such powerful parties,
and the pontiffs evaded the difficulty by declaring that the
arguments of the Franciscans were of some weight, and by
forbidding the Dominicans to attack the Franciscan doc¬
trines publicly. Notwithstanding this vacillation on the
part of the above-named pontiffs, the question seems to
have been virtually settled in the fifth session of the Council
of Trent,^where it is said that the “ Blessed and Immacu¬
late Virgift Mary ” is excepted from the decree concerning
original sin. However, as the controversy continued from
time to time to disturb the Church, it was finally decreed by
the bull ofiPio Nono, 8th December 1854, that the doc*
trine of the Immaculate Conception is an article of faith
of the Church of Rome.
IMOLA (the ancient Forum Cornelii), a town of the
Papal States, legation of Ravenna, and 25 miles W.S.W. of
the town of that name. It stands on the river Santerno and
the AHmilian way ; and is surrounded by walls, with the pro¬
tection of several towers and an old castle. It is a cathedral
city, and contains numerous churches and convents, a col¬
lege, hospital, theatre, literary academy, and public library.
Imola is the centre of a considerable trade in wine and
agricultural produce, and some manufactures of cream-of-
tartar and woollen hosiery. Pop. about 10,000.
IMPEACHMENT, an accusation and prosecution for
treason and other high crimes and misdemeanours. Any
member of the Lower House of Parliament may impeach
any one belonging either to that body or to the House of
Lords. The method of proceeding is to exhibit articles on
behalf of the Commons, by whom managers are appointed
to make good their charge. These articles are carried to
the Lords, by whom every person impeached by the Com-
1 M P
mons is always tried ; and if they find him guilty, no pardon
under the great seal can be pleaded to such an impeach¬
ment. (12th Will. III., cap. ii.)
IMPRESSMENT for the naval service, by the king’s
commission, has been a matter of much dispute, and sub¬
mitted to with great reluctance; though Sir Michael For¬
ster strenuously contends that the practice of impressing,
and granting powers to the admiralty for that purpose,
is of a very ancient date, and has been uniformly con¬
tinued by a regular series of precedents to the present time,
b om which he concludes that it is part of the common law.
1 he difficulty arises from the fact that no statute has ex¬
pressly declared this power to be in the crown, though many
of them very strongly imply it. But whatever may be said
as to the legality of this method of manning the navy, there
can be no doubt that it is a gross invasion of natural liberty;
and hence it has in recent times been very generally repro¬
bated, not only as forming a great anomaly in a free coun-
try, where natural rights are in all other cases respected, but
likewise as contrary to sound policy, and at variance with
the principles on which recruitment ought to be conducted,
excepting in those cases of imperious necessity which imply
the suspension of all ordinary rights and laws.
IMPRISONMENT, a mode in England and Scotland
of enforcing payment of debt; or performance of a cove¬
nant after judgment; and of securing persons accused
of crimes for trial and sentence. It forms also one of the
ordinary criminal punishments. Its history in Scotland
curiously illustrates the progress of civilization in that coun¬
try. I he earliest warrants of imprisonment in that country
for payment of civil debts were granted by magistrates of
burghs, and still exist under the name of acts of warding.
At a later period letters of four forms were issued under the
royal signet ; and the debtor, whether recusant or poor, was
denounced as a rebel, and incarcerated for non-payment.
I his cumbrous method was followed by letters of horning
and caption. Various other simplifications were effected in
the years 1503, 1606, and 1612 ; till, by the statute 1st and
2d Viet., c. 114, sec. 8, it was declared that letters of horning
and caption may be continued only at the creditor’s option
and expense, and a more rational course was substituted;
the com t which pronounced the judgment being empowered
to grant a short and simple warrant of imprisonment on a
charge to fulfil it being disobeyed. Such warrants also now
pass, after charges of payment, on protests of bills of ex¬
change, and on recorded bonds and formal deeds, contain¬
ing clauses of registration for execution. The effect of de¬
nouncing a debtor as a rebel on a charge of payment being
disobeyed, is to enable the creditor to accumulate the ori¬
ginal debt and all arrears of interest into one principal sum,
on which interest thereafter runs. The letters of caption’
and the short warrant recently introduced, contain authority
to break open the doors of any place within which the debtor
may be concealed.
In England, if a man is once imprisoned till he make
the satisfaction awarded by a court of law, no other or new
process can be sued out against his lands or goods, and he
must remain in prison, if his creditor please, till he make the
satisfaction required, or obtain his discharge as a bankrupt,
or take the benefit of the Insolvent Debtors’ Act. After libe¬
ration he cannot be re-incarcerated on the same warrant.
But it is no objection to the attachment of a debtor’s pro¬
perty in Scotland that he is in prison for the same debt, nor
even that his effects have been poinded or attached before
his imprisonment, provided they have not actually been sold.
If the sale take place either before or after his imprison¬
ment, without producing a sum sufficient to extinguish the
debt, the imprisonment may be enforced or continued for
the deficiency. A debtor in Scotland may even be liberated
and re-incarcerated on the same warrant; but where this is
done oppressively, the court will interfere, and require the
365
Impress¬
ment
II
Impri¬
sonment.
366 IMP
Impri- creditor to justify his conduct by showing some intervening
sonment. improvement in the circumstances of the debtor. Magis-
v'—' trates of prisons are bound to receive debtors with the ne¬
cessary warrants, under pain of liability for the debt; and
the imprisonment is required to be strict. On legal evi¬
dence of absolute necessity for the preservation of health,
the necessary relaxation is allowed; but it must be with¬
drawn when the necessity ceases. If a debtor escape
through negligence or connivance, or insufficiency of the
prison, the magistrates are liable for the debt; but not if
the escape were forcible and under night, or by an acci¬
dent, provided the officials have done all in their power to
prevent it, or to recover the person of the prisoner. An
exception occurs in the case of a person imprisoned till he
find security to appear in a subsequent suit; it being suffi¬
cient, though he temporarily escape, that he is timeously
produced when required in the suit.
A royal commission having been issued in the reign of
William IV., on the subject of imprisonment for debt in
Scotland, the statute 5th and 6th Will. IV., c. 70, was passed,
declaring it unlawful to imprison for a civil debt which does
not exceed L.8, 6s. 8d., exclusive of interest and expenses,
unless the debt be due to the crown, or for poor rates, local
taxation, or for aliment. In England, by the 7th and 8th
Viet., c. 96, § 58, imprisonment is unlawful for a judgment
debt under L.20; and on mesne process it is no longer al¬
lowed except when the party is about to quit the country,
and even then the discharge can be obtained on putting in
bail. Under the new County Court Acts (9th and 10th Viet.,
c. 95, amended by the 13th and 14th Viet., c. 61) the county
court judges have power to direct the imprisonment of a
debtor for forty days in certain cases, and whatever may be
the amount of the debt.
As to the imprisonment of offenders in order to trial for
crimes, usually called apprehension, see Arrest. The course
of proceeding before justices or magistrates is now regu¬
lated by the 11th and 12th Viet., c. 42. If no bail be al¬
lowed, the accused is committed to the common gaol or
house of correction for safe custody until delivered by due
course of law. By the recent statute 18th and 19th Viet,
c. 126, with the consent of the accused, the charge may be
summarily tried, instead of being sent to a jury at the ses¬
sions or assizes. The accused party must, in the first in¬
stance, be brought before the magistrate or justice for exami¬
nation, and unless there appear reason for his immediate re¬
lease, he is remanded to prison for further examination,
and an inquiry into the evidence of his guilt is taken. If
the evidence of guilt appear sufficient, the judge then
grants a warrant of commitment. In small offences com¬
mitted once or twice only, the trial before the judge pro¬
ceeds immediately. In all other cases the injured par¬
ties and witnesses, in England, are bound over to prosecute
at the sessions or assizes, while in Scotland the precognitions
are reported to the Lord Advocate, who, by himself, or his
deputes, directs how the cases shall be disposed of, either
by abandonment of the charge or trial. If the offence is a
bailable one, the party may be liberated on bail until the
time of trial. The punishment of imprisonment is now li¬
mited so as not to exceed three or at the most four years,
but frequently with the additional severity of hard labour,
or solitary confinement, as directed by the 7th Will. IV.,
and 1st Viet, c. 90, § 5. Imprisonment is also sometimes
inflicted in capital cases by way of commutation for death
(11th Geo. IV., and 1st Will. IV., c. 39, § 7). Under the
Scotch statute 1701, c. 5, the accused may take measures
to have a day fixed, within sixty days, for his trial, and if
the trial be not concluded within forty days afterwards, he
is entitled to liberation. The day for trial before an infe¬
rior court must be within thirty days after the sixty. A
party so liberated may be brought to trial in the superior
court within an additional term of forty days; but unless
INC
the trial be concluded by that time, he is held for ever dis- Improvisa
charged from the criminal consequences of his offence. tori
This statute is regarded as the habeas corpus of Scotland. II
In England, if any one conceive himself to be illegally de- ^ ncense,
tained in prison, he is entitled, by 16th Car. I., c. 10, to de-
mand a writ to bring his body before the Court of the
Queen’s Bench or Common Pleas, who shall decide in re¬
gard to the justice of his commitment. Blackstone re¬
marks that, by 31st Car. II., c. 2, commonly called the habeas
corpus act (amended and made more effectual by the 56th
Geo. III., c. 100), the methods of obtaining this writ are so
plainly pointed out, that so long as that statute remain un¬
impeached, no subject of England can be long detained in
prison, except in those cases in which the law requires and
justifies such detention. (m. l.)
IMPROVISATORI, the name applied to those who
exercise the faculty of declaiming in verse upon any sub¬
ject whatever without previous preparation. In no country
has it been practised so extensively as in Italy, where it
was introduced by the provengal bards in the twelfth cen¬
tury. The first eminent improvisatore was Serafino
d’Aquila, who was born a.d. 1466, and died a.d. 1500.
He was followed and surpassed by many of his country¬
men. In the beginning of the sixteenth century, the learned
Greek refugees introduced into Italy their Symposia, and
these entertainments were in great favour with Leo. X.
After his death, the native language of the Italians was
adopted in place of Latin, in which the improvisator! had
previously declaimed. Perhaps the most successful of the
class since then was Perfetti, who was born at Sienna
1680, and died at Rome 1747. He gained the laurel
crown which had been awarded only to Petrarch and Tasso.
The recitation of the improvisatori was often accompanied
by music. The extemporaneous verses uttered on one
single occasion amounted to hundreds, and even to thou¬
sands of lines. Whole tragedies were produced—the sub¬
jects being chosen by the spectators. The most celebrated
improvisatrice was Gorilla of Pistoia, but the printed works
of this class of versifiers never rise above mediocrity.
IN CCEN A DOMINI, i.e., at the Lord’s Supper, a name
given to one of the Papal bulls, from its being annually
read in the Romish churches on Holy Thursday.
During the dark ages it was fulminated against those who
showed any favour to heretics, or who imposed any taxes
upon the clergy. Its present form was given it by Urban
HI. in 1627, after the Reformation, and consequently it
specifies all the Protestant sects for anathema and excom¬
munication. The bull extends to those who read or keep
heretical books without permission from the Pope.
INCENSE, or Frankincense {thus and olibanum),
a dry resinous substance, which when burnt {incensum)
produces a pleasant perfume. Amongst ancient Pagan
nations the perfume of incense was generally offered to the
gods, and as the representative of God, the Persian sculp¬
tors exhibit incense burnt before the king. The word
used to denote incense arising from spices (Exod. xxx.
1), is also used in Hebrew to describe the smoke arising
from fat (Ps. Ixvi. 15). Incense, as used by the Jewish
priests, was a compound of stacte, onycha, galbanum, and
pure frankincense. This compound was to consist of equal
parts of each ingredient, to be broken into very minute
particles, and deposited before the ark. It was to be used
specially in the service of Jehovah; and its use in private
life was forbidden (Exod. xxx. 34-38). The origin of in¬
cense in the Jewish worship, according to Maimonides (in
More Nevochim), was to prevent the disagreeable effects of
having such numbers of animals slaughtered for sacrifice.
He accordingly regards the precept for burning incense as
conducing to the reverence which should be felt in the sanc¬
tuary. But beyond this, it is to be remembered that in¬
cense is symbolical of prayer. (Ps. cxli. 2 ; Rev. viii. 3, 4.)
INC
Inchbald. The burning of incense formed part of the daily service
of the ancient Jewish Church. The priests having drawn
lots to ascertain who should offer it, the person destined
took a large silver dish, in which was a censer full of in¬
cense ; and being accompanied by another priest carrying
some live coals from the altar, went into the temple, where,
in order to give notice to the people, they struck upon an
instrument of brass placed between the temple and the
altar; and being returned to the altar, he who brought the
fire left it there, and went away. Then the offerer of in¬
cense having said a prayer or two, waited the signal,
which was the burning of the holocaust; immediately after
which he set fire to the incense, the multitude continuing
all the time in prayer.
INCHBALD, Mks Elizabeth, an English actress, dra¬
matic author, and novelist, was the daughter of a farmer, and
was born in 1753 at Standingfield, near Bury St Edmunds, in
Suffolk. She lost her father at an early age, and her mother,
a giddy and foolish woman, was too gay to take any care of
her up-bringing. Tired of the dull routine of a country-
life, Miss Simpson conceived the idea of running away from
home, and seeking fortune, and perhaps fame, on the stage.
She arrived in London with a few shillings of money, a small
bundle of clothes, and a great store of trashy romance in
her head. In the course of her various adventures she
made acquaintance with some of the directors and actors of
the London theatres, but sought in vain to be admitted in¬
to any of their companies. Recounting her rebuffs, and
tne dangers of her position, to Mr Inchbald, one of the
comedians of Drury-Lane, she so touched him by the nar¬
rative that he offered her his hand. There was a great
disparity of years between them, but their union was per¬
fectly happy. Inchbald trained her to the stage, and acted
with her in the provincial theatres of England, and after¬
wards for four years in Edinburgh, with great applause. On
his death in 1778, she began to write for the stage, to which
she bade adieu as an actress in 1789. The success of her
dramatic pieces, and the strict economy of her life, soon
made her independent of the world; and her prudence, virtue,
and refined manners, opened up to her all but the highest
grades of the social scale. Her frugal habits remained with
her to the last; and she denied herself many of the com¬
forts of life in order that her invalid sister might want none
of its luxuries. Some of the entries in her journal prove
that she was not above a few of the little weaknesses of her
sex. In her youth she had possessed a rare beauty, and in
her diary she sometimes laments the effects of increasing
years. One extract will serve as a sample : “ 1798. Lon¬
don. Rehearsing Lover's Vows ; happy, but for a suspicion,
amounting to a certainty, of a rapid appearance of age on
my face.” She died at Kensington, Aug. 1, 1821, in the
sixty-ninth year of her age. Shortly before her death it
became known that she had written the history of her che¬
quered career, and she was offered L.1000 for the MS.,
which was with good reason believed to be both interesting
and valuable. She refused the offer, however, and left strict
orders that it should be destroyed after her death ; and her
orders were obeyed. The loss, however, was to some ex¬
tent compensated by the publication in 1833 of her Memoirs,
compiled chiefly from an autograph journal which she had
kept for about 50 years. This work is one of the most in¬
teresting of its class.
Mrs Inchbald’s plays amounted to nineteen in all. Some
of them were very successful; and one of them, Wives as
they were, and Maids as they are, still keeps the stage.
Of far higher merit, however, as a work of art, is her Such
things are ; and scarcely inferior are, The Married Man ;
The Wedding Day ; The Midnight Hour ; Every one has
his Fault; and Lover's Vows. In a literary point of view,
these plays are thrown into the shade by her two novels,
A Simple Story, 1791 ; and Nature and Art, 1796. These
I N D
367
two works rank among the happiest productions of the Inchcolm
female pen ; and charm both by their views of life and II
sketches of character, their simple truth and naturalness, In(lePen-
the high and pure moral which they teach, and the easy . dents*
grace and lightness of their style. They have both been
translated into French.
INCHCOLM, or Columba, an island in the Firth of
Forth, forming part of the parish of Dalgetty, Fifeshire, and
lying two miles S. of Aberdour. It is only about a mile in
length ; but is interesting as the site of an ancient monas¬
tery, founded by Alexander I. about 1123. The legend is,
that this monarch, in passing the Firth of Forth, was over¬
taken by a violent storm, which drove him to this island,
where he met with the most hospitable reception from a
poor hermit, then residing in the chapel of St Columba, and
who, for the three days during which the king remained
there tempest-bound, entertained him with the milk of his
cow and a few shell-fish. His majesty, from the sense of
the danger which he had escaped, and in gratitude to the
saint to whom he attributed his safety, vowed some token
of respect, and accordingly founded here a monastery of
Augustines, and dedicated it to St Columba. Allan de
Mortimer, lord of Aberdour, who attended Edward III. in
his Scotch expedition, bestowed half of those lands on the
monks oi this island for the privilege of a family burial-
place in their church. 1 he buildings erected in conse¬
quence of the piety of Alexander were extensive; and
there is still to be seen a large square tower belonging to
the church, with the ruins of the church and of several
other buildings. I he wealth of this place in the time of
Edward III. proved so strong a temptation to his fleet, then
lying in the Forth, as to suppress all the horror of sacrilege
and respect to the sanctity of the inhabitants. The Eng¬
lish landed, and spared not even the furniture more imme¬
diately consecrated to divine worship. But due vengeance
overtook them; for, in a storm which instantly followed,
many of them perished ; and those who escaped, struck with
the justice of the judgment, vowed to make ample recom¬
pense to the injured saint. The tempest ceased, and they
performed the promised atonement.
INGHKEIIH, a small island in the Firth of Forth,
lying about halfway between the port of Leith and King-
horn on the opposite shore. It is said to derive its name
from the gallant Keith, who so greatly signalized himself by
his valour in 1010, in the battle of Barry, in Angus, against
the Danes; after which he received in reward the barony
of Keith, in Lothian, and this little island. In 1549 the
English fleet, sent by Edward VI. to assist the lords of the
congregation against the queen-dowager, landed, and began
to fortify this island, the importance of which they became
sensible of, after their neglect of securing the port of Leith,
so lately in their power. I hey left here five companies to
cover the workmen, under the command of Cotterel; but
their operations were soon interrupted by M. Desse, gene¬
ral of the French auxiliaries, who took the place, after a
gallant defence on the part of the English. The Scotch
kept possession of the island for some years ; but at last the
fortifications were destroyed by act of parliament, to pre¬
vent it from being of any use to the French. The French
gave it the name of L'Isle des Chevaux, from the grass
which it produced being very nutritious for horses. A
lighthouse, with a revolving light, was erected on the island
m 1805, and has proved highly beneficial to the shipping
frequenting the Forth. &
INCOMBUSIIBLE Cloth. See Amianthus; and
Mineralogy.
INDENI URE, in Law. See Master and Servant.
INDEPENDEN IS, a sect of Protestants, so called
from their maintaining that each congregation of Christians,
with its office-bearers, which meets in one house for public
woiship, is a complete church ; has sufficient power to act
368 INDEPENDENTS.
Indepen- and perform every thing relating to religious government
dents. within itself; and* is thus independent of all extraneous con-
trol in spiritual matters, though still amenable to the judg¬
ment of sister churches which may express censure by with¬
drawing from fellowship with any church that seems to them
to be walking disorderly.
The Independents, like every other Christian sect, de¬
rive their origin from the practice of the apostles in plant¬
ing the first churches ; but they were unknown in modern
times till they arose in England during the reign of Eliza¬
beth. The hierarchy established by that princess in the
churches of her dominions, the vestments worn by the
clergy in the celebration of divine worship, the book of
common prayer, and, above all, the sign of the cross used
in the administration of baptism, were very offensive to
many of her subjects, who during the persecution of the
former reign had taken refuge amongst the Protestants of
Germany and of Geneva. Those men thought that the
Church of England resembled, in too many particulars, the
Church of Rome, which they believed to be antichristian;
and they called perpetually for a more thorough reformation,
and a purer worship. From this circumstance they were
stigmatised by their adversaries with the general name of
Puritans, as the followers of Novatian1 had been in the
ancient church. Elizabeth was not disposed to comply with
their demands; and it is difficult to say what might have
been the issue of the contest had the Puritans been united
in sentiments, in views, and in measures. But the case
was quite otherwise. That large body,—composed of per¬
sons of different ranks, characters, opinions, and intentions,
and unanimous in nothing but in their antipathy to the forms
of doctrine and discipline which were established by law,—
was all of a sudden divided into a variety of sects. Of these,
the most famous was that which was formed about the year
1581, by Robert Brown ; a man insinuating in his manners,
but unsteady and inconsistent in his views and notions of
men and things.
This innovator differed not in point of doctrine either
from the Church of England or from the rest of the Puri¬
tans ; but he had formed notions, then new and singular,
concerning the nature of the church and the rules of eccle¬
siastical government. He was for dividing the whole body
of the faithful into separate societies or congregations ; and
maintained, that such a number of persons as, “by a willing
covenant made with their God, are under the government
of God and Christ, and keep His laws in one holy commu¬
nion,” ought to be considered as a church, and enjoy all the
rights and privileges that are competent to an ecclesiastical
community. These small societies he pronounced inde-
pendentywre divino, and entirely exempt from the jurisdic¬
tion of the bishops, in whose hands the court had placed the
reins of spiritual government; and also from that of pres¬
byteries and synods, which the Puritans regarded as the
supreme visible sources of ecclesiastical authority. He also
maintained that the power of governing each congregation
resided in the people, and that each member had an equal
share in this government, and an equal right to order mat¬
ters for the good of the whole society. Hence, all points
both of doctrine and discipline were submitted to the dis¬
cussion of the congregation, and whatever was supported by
a majority of voices passed into a law. It was the congre¬
gation also that elected certain of the brethren to the office
of pastors, to perform the duty of public instruction and the
several branches of divine worship ; reserving, however, to
themselves the power of dismissing these ministers, and re¬
ducing them to the condition of private members, whenever Indepen
they should think such a change conducive to the spiritual dents,
advantage of the community. It is likewise to be observed
that the right of the pastors to preach was by no means of
an exclusive nature, or peculiar to them alone; since any
member who thought proper to exhort or to instruct the
brethren was abundantly indulged in the liberty of “ pro¬
phesying” to the whole assembly. Accordingly, when the
ordinary teacher or pastor had finished his discourse, all the
other brethren were permitted to communicate in public
their sentiments and illustrations upon any useful or edifying
subject. Such, at least, is the account usually given of
Brown’s views, but it receives very slender support from
his extant writings.2
The zeal with which Brown and his associates maintained
and propagated these notions was ardent and active. He
affirmed that all communion was to be broken off with those
religious societies which were founded upon a different plan
from his; and treated the Church of England more espe¬
cially as a spurious church, the ministers of which were
unlawfully ordained, whilst her discipline was popish and
antichristian, and her sacraments and institutions destitute
of all efficacy and virtue. The sect of this innovator, not
being able to endure the severe treatment which their own
zeal had brought upon them from an administration which
was not distinguished for its mildness and indulgence, re¬
tired into the Netherlands, and founded churches at Middle-
burg in Zealand, and at Amsterdam and Leyden in the
province of Holland. But their establishments were neither
solid nor lasting. Their founder returned into England,
and having renounced his principles of separation, took
orders in the established church, and obtained a benefice.
The Puritan exiles, whom he thus abandoned, disagreed
amongst themselves, and having split into parties, their af¬
fairs gradually declined. This engaged the wiser part of
them to mitigate the severity of their founder’s plan, and to
soften the rigour of his uncharitable decisions.
The person who had the chief merit of bringing about this
reformation was one of their pastors called John Robinson,
a man who possessed much of the solemn piety of the times,
and no inconsiderable portion of learning. This well-mean¬
ing reformer, perceiving the defects which reigned in the
discipline of Brown, and in the spirit and temper of his fol¬
lowers, employed the utmost zeal and diligence in correcting
them, and in new-modelling the society in such a manner
as to render it less odious to its adversaries, and less liable
to the censure of those Christians who looked upon charity
as the end of the commandments. Hitherto the sect had
been called Brownists; but Robinson having, in his Apo¬
logy, affirmed, “ Ccetum quemlibet particularem, esse totam,
integram, et perfectam ecclesiam ex suis partibus constan-
tem immediate et independenter (quoad alias ecclesias) sub
ipso Christo,” the sect was henceforth called Independents,
and the apologist was considered as its founder, though
Robinson was not the first to use that term.
The Independents were much more commendable than the
Brownists, whom they surpassed both in the moderation of
their sentiments, and in theorder of their discipline. They did
not, like Brown, pour forth bitter and uncharitable invectives .
against the churches which were governed by rules entirely
different from theirs, nor pronounce them on that account un¬
worthy of the Christian name. On the contrary, though they
considered their own form of ecclesiastical government as of
divine institution, and as originally introduced by the autho¬
rity of the apostles, nay, by the apostles themselves, they
1 The followers of Novatian were called Puritans, because they would not communicate with the Catholic Church, under pretence that
her communion was polluted by admitting those to the sacred mysteries who through infirmity had sacrificed to idols in times of perse¬
cution. These unhappy men were not received by the church till after a long course of penance. But the Novatians would not re¬
ceive them at all, however long their penance, or however sincere their sorrow, for their sin. In other respects, the ancient Puritans
were, like the English, orthodox in the faith, and irreproachable in their morals.
2 See Hanbury’s Memorials, vol. i., p. 20.
Indepen
dents.
• had yet candour and charity enough to acknowledge that
. true religion and solid piety might flourish in those com¬
munities which were under the jurisdiction of bishops or
the government of synods and presbyteries. This is put
beyond all doubt by Robinson himself, who expresses his
own private sentiments and those of his community in the
following clear and precise words Profitemur coram Deo
et hominibus, adeo nobis convenire cum ecclesiis reformatis
Belgicis in re religionis, ut omnibus et singulis earundem
ecclesiarum fidei articulis, prout habentur in harmonia con-
fessionum fidei, parati simus subscribere. Ecclesias refor-
matas pro veris et genuinis habemus, cum iisdem in sacris
Dei communionem profitemur, et, quantum in nobis est
cohmus. They were also much more attentive than the
Browmsts in keeping on foot a regular ministry in their
communities ; for, whilst the latter allowed promiscuously
all ranks and orders of men to teach in public, the Indepen¬
dents had, and still have, a certain number of ministers
chosen respectively by the congregations where they are
fixed; nor is any person amongst them permitted to speak
m public before he has submitted to a proper examination
ot his capacity and talents, and been approved of by the
heads of the congregation. J
Robinson presided as pastor of a church which had been
formed at Leyden, composed principally of refugees from
England, from 1609 till 1625, when he died. He was
held in much esteem, not by his own congregation merely
but in the city generally, for his piety, his charity, and his
learning. After he had been settled six years there he
became a member of the university, which placed him be¬
yond the control of the civil magistrate, and secured to him
certam fiscal privileges, such as exemption within certain
limits, from duties payable on beer and wine, &c. Besides
attending to the care of his flock he addicted himself to
theological studies, and composed several treatises, chiefly
of a controversial nature, on theological and ecclesiastical
questions. He was engaged in a protracted and somewhat
vexatious strife with some of his fellow exiles connected
INDEPENDENTS.
369
with the church at Amsterdam, on subjects relating to dmrch liberty o^oSpbvlheASol-Tol "T tlle, .e,nj°yment °j
order espec.aUy rnterconununion with other^churches, in IfiL
order, especially intercommunion with other churches
and the limits of the elders’ power in the government of
tie church. On these questions Robinson (with whom
the learned Ainsworth sided) advocated views such as are
now generally entertained by Independents. He reco°--
msed as worthy of confidence and fraternity all churches
holding sound doctrine; and he maintained the unlawful¬
ness of elders acting in the government of the church apart
from the body of the members. In common with all the
Independents of that age, he held what they called “ the
tn-formed presbytery;” by which they meant an eldership
composed of persons holding three distinct offices,—the
pastor, the teacher, and the ruler.
The wish of the exiles was to return to their own land,
and there to be allowed in peace to set up their altars and
observe their ordinances; but the tyranny of their perse¬
cutors continuing to render it daily less probable that this
end would ever be gained, they turned their thoughts across
the Atlantic, and made preparations for transporting them-
the Pacific; and though death arrested his own steps before Indepen-
he could accomplish his purpose of joining those whom dents,
he had sent away before, he was so much the soul of the
whole enterprise that he may be justly honoured as the
founder of the states which owe their origin to the Pilgrim
Fathers. °
In the meanwhile important changes had been trans¬
piring in England. The severe measures of Bancroft the
primate, against the Puritans, had resulted in the excision
rom the Anglican church of 300 clergymen, many of whom
held views nearly akin to those of the Independents. Of
this latter class the leader was Henry Jacob, who was for
some time connected with Robinson at Leyden, and with
whom, and not with Robinson, the use of the term Inde-
pendent originated? Jacob emigrated to New England in
Ibw4, where he soon after died; but the church which he
had founded in London continued to sustain itself amidst
much persecution, and has preserved its succession unbroken
to the present day. It numbers among its pastors Lathrop,
Lanne, Samuel How, and other men eminent in the history of
religion in England. From this, as a nucleus, Independency
gradually spread through England, and, in spite of the harsh
measures of Laud and the court, came, in the middle of the
seventeenth century, to occupy a dominant place among
the powers by which the destinies of England were swayed
In the Westminster Assembly the Independents took an
active share in the discussions which occupied that reverend
body, especially on points of church order; “debating all
things, says Baillie, “ which came within twenty miles of
their quarters,” and astonishing him by their “great learn-
mg, quickness, and eloquence, together with their great
courtesy and discretion in speaking.” After the Restora¬
tion, they, in common with all Nonconformists, shared the
sufferings which it was the pleasure of the dissolute sovereign
o inflict upon all who would not in every particular assent
to whatever the ruling powers might see meet to prescribe
in rehgious matters The wise and beneficent administra-
irrtl)I:"TjJ.LreS.l0,:ed ‘°,them enjoyment of
selves and their households to the unoceupfed Sons of p 5T.!iibp!'eS T\rem0’';d from ^em, and their right
America, in the hope of finding there that liberty which Jedired ^ H fell°W‘subjects leSal]y acknow-
t.hpir nw/n ,1™:—1 4.U T— .1 • 1
in 1689, an act which, though its provisions fall short of
what the true idea of religious liberty requires, was felt by
the Dissenters to be a precious boon. In 1691 a union was
effected between the Independents and the Presbyterians,
on grounds which indicate that the latter had come to em¬
brace to a great extent the ecclesiastical principles of the
former. From this time forward English Presbyterianism
became merged in Independency, the name only being re¬
tained by a few congregations which, inclining to Arianism
or Unitanamsm, called themselves Presbyterians for the
sake of securing endowments which had been attached to
their places ot meeting. The general body of Inde-
pendents, however, is divided into two great sections by
differences of view on the subject of baptism; hence the
Baptists often rank as a distinct sect, though really Inde¬
pendents Under the House of Hanover the English Inde¬
pendents have suffered no persecution, but it was not till
the repeal of the Test and Corporation Acts in 1828 that
all civil disabilities were removed from them, and their right
their own country denied them. In this scheme of emigra¬
tion Robinson took an active part. He was mainly instru¬
mental in procuring the fitting-out of the Mayflower and
the speedwell, in which the first band of emigrants crossed
the ocean to lay the foundations of that great commonwealth
which now spreads its gigantic limbs from the Atlantic to
Among the names which adorn English literature, several
are those of men who belonged to this religious body. It is
sufficient to mention the names of Owen, Goodwin, Milton,
Howe, Gale, Foster (celebrated by Pope in these lines:—
“ Let modest Foster, if he will, excel
Ten Metropolitans in preaching well,”)
2 ?w£°lleCted worlP were Published in 1851, in 3 vols. 12mo.
a e*Tcth 7grteg,tion is r
“ea in 1612. Robinson’s did not appear till 1619 ’ sc., p. 13.; This treatise was pub-
VOL XII.
3 A
INDEPENDENTS.
370
Indepen- Bunyan, Defoe, Watts, Doddridge, Ed. Williams, Robert
dents. Hal!, John Foster, J. P. Smith, and Wardlaw, to justify
this assertion. Of these several were Baptists.
In 1851, when the census was last taken, the Independ¬
ents (exclusive of the Baptists) possessed in England and
Wales congregations to the number of 3244; with an
average attendance for the whole, on census Sunday (March
30), of 404,686; and in Scotland 168 congregations, with
an average attendance for the whole of 57,466. In the
latter estimate, however, are included two distinct bodies,
which do not hold fellowship with each other, though at
one on matters of church order. In Ireland and the Chan¬
nel Islands the number of Independent congregations is
about 30. In the British colonies it is estimated that there
are 144 congregations. In the United States there are
about 1500 congregations, of which at least 1000 are in
New England. The number of members is computed at
160,000. The Independents have 9 colleges in England
and 1 in Scotland for the education of their ministry.1
Though the Independents reject creeds of human com¬
position as tests of orthodoxy and standards of truth, it
must not be concluded that they doubt or disbelieve the
doctrines deemed orthodox in other churches. Their pre¬
decessors in the last century were thought to be more rigid
Calvinists than the Presbyterians themselves; as many of
those may likewise be who in the present century admit not
the confessions and formulas of the Calvinistic churches.
They acknowledge as divine truth every doctrine contained
in the Scriptures, but they think that scriptural doctrines
are most properly expressed in scriptural language; and
the same spirit of religious liberty which makes them reject
the authority of bishops and synods in matters of discipline,
makes them reject the same authority in matters of faith.
In either case, to call any man or body of men their mas¬
ters, would, in their opinion, be a violation of the divine
law, since “ one is their master, even Christ, and they are
all brethren.”
In support of their scheme of congregational churches,
they observe that the word iKKXrjcna, which we translate
church, is always used in scripture to signify either a single
congregation, or the place where a single congregation
meets. Thus that unlawful assembly at Ephesus brought
together against Paul by the craftsmen is called e/c/cX^cria,
a church (Acts xix. 32, 39, 41). The word, however, is ge¬
nerally applied to a more sacred use ; but still it signifies
either the body assembling, or the place in which it assem¬
bles. The whole body of the disciples at Corinth is called
the church, and spoken of as coming together into one place
(1 Cor. xiv. 23). The place into which they came together
we find likewise called a church ; “ when ye come together
in the church—when ye come together into one place” (1
Cor. xi. 18, 20). Wherever there were more congregations
than one, there were likewise more churches than one. Thus,
“ Let your women keep silence in the churches” iv rats
EKKXTjcrtats (1 Cor. xiv. 34). The whole nation of Israel is
indeed called a church, but it was no more than a single
congregation, for it had but one place of public worship,
namely, first the tabernacle, and afterwards the temple.
The catholic church of Christ, his holy nation and kingdom,
is likewise a single congregation, having one place of wor¬
ship, that is, heaven, where all the members assemble by
faith and hold communion ; and in which, when they shall
all be fully gathered together, they will in fact be one glori¬
ous assembly. Accordingly we find it called “the general
assembly and church of the first-born, whose names are
written in heaven.”
Besides these, the Independent can find no other descrip¬
tion of a church in the New Testament; not a trace of a
diocese or presbytery consisting of several congregations all Indepen-
subject to one jurisdiction. The number of disciples in dents.
Jerusalem was certainly great before they were dispersed
by the persecution in which Paul bore so active a part.
Yet they are never mentioned as forming distinct assem¬
blies, but as one assembly meeting with its elders in one
place ; sometimes in the temple, sometimes in Solomon’s
porch, and sometimes in an upper room. After the dis¬
persion, the disciples who fled from Jerusalem, as they
could no longer assemble in one place, are never called a
church by themselves, or one church, but the churches of
Judaea, Samaria, and Galilee (Acts ix. 31 ; Gal. i. 22).
Hence the Independent concludes, that in Jerusalem the
words church and congregation were of the same import;
and if such was the case there, where the gospel was first
preached, he thinks we may reasonably expect to find it so
in other places. Thus, when Paul on his journey calls the
elders of the church of Ephesus to Miletus, he speaks to
them as the joint overseers of a single congregation :—
“ Take heed to yourselves, and to all the flock over which
the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers” (Acts xx. 28).
Had the church at Ephesus consisted of different congrega¬
tions united under such a jurisdiction as that of a modern
presbytery, it would have been natural to say, “ Take heed,
to yourselves, and to the flocks over which the Holy Ghost
hath made you overseers ;” but this is a way of speaking ol
which the Independent finds no instance in the whole of
the New Testament. The sacred writers, when speaking
of all the Christians in a nation or province, never call them
the church of such a nation or province, but the churches
of Galatia (Gal. i. 2), the churches of Macedonia (2 Cor.
viii. 1), the churches of Asia (1 Cor. xvi. 19). On the
other hand, when speaking of the disciples in a city or town,
who might ordinarily assemble in one place, they uniformly
call them a church ; as, the church of Antioch, the church
at Corinth, the church of Ephesus, and the like.
In each of these churches or congregations there were
bishops, sometimes called elders, and deacons ; and in every
church there seems to have been more than one elder, in
some a great many, “ who all laboured in word and doc¬
trine.” Thus yve read (Acts xiv. 23) of Paul and Barnabas
ordaining elders (to be bishops and deacons) in every church;
and (Acts xx. 17) of a company of elders in the church of
Ephesus, who were exhorted to “ feed the flock, and to
take heed to themselves and to all the flock over which the
Holy Ghost had made them overseers.” But of such elders
as are to be found in modern Presbyterian churches, who
neither teach nor are fit to teach, the Independent finds no
vestige in the Scriptures, nor in the earliest uninspired
writers of the Christian Church. The rule or government
of this presbytery or eldership in a church is not their own,
but Christ’s. They are not lords over God’s heritage, nor
can they pretend to more power over the disciples than the
apostles possessed. But wdien the administration of the
apostles in the church of Jerusalem, and other churches
where they acted as elders, is inquired into by an Inde¬
pendent, it does not appear to him that they did anything
of common concern to the church without the consent of
the multitude; nay, it seems they thought it necessary to
judge and determine in discipline in presence of the whole
church (Acts vi. 1-6, xv. 22 ; 1 Cor. v. 3, 4, 5). Excom¬
munication and absolution were in the power of the church
at Corinth, and not of the elders as distinguished from
the congregation (1 Cor. v.; 2 Cor. ii.). 4 he apostle in¬
deed speaks of his delivering some unto Satan (1 lim. i.
20). But it is by no means clear that he did it by himself,
and not after the manner pointed at (1 Cor. v. 4, 5); even
as it does not appear, from his saying, in one epistle, that
1 See Mann’s Reports on Census Returns for Religious Worship in England and Scotland; Congregational \ear Book for 1856; Bairds
Religion in America, p. 508.
INDEPENDENTS.
Indepen- the gift was given unto Timothy by the putting on of his
dents, hands, that this was not done in the 'presbytery of a church,
as in the other epistle we find it actually was. The trying
and judging of false apostles was a matter of the first im¬
portance ; but it was done by the elders with the flock at
Ephesus (Rev. ii. 2 ; Acts xx. 28); and that whole flock
did, in the days of Ignatius, all partake of the Lord’s Sup¬
per, and pray together in one place.1 Even the power of
binding and loosing, or the power of the keys as it has been
called, was by our Saviour conferred, not upon a particular
order of disciples, but upon the church. “ If thy brother
shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between
thee and him alone ; if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained
thy brother. But if he will not hear thee, then take with
thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three
witnesses every word may be established. And if he shall
neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church ; but if he
neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen
man and a publican. Verily I say unto you, whatsoever
ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven,” &c. (St
Matth. xviii. 15-48.) It is not said, if he shall neglect
to hear the one or two, tell it to the elders of the church ;
far less can it be meant that the offended person should
tell the cause of his offence to all the disciples in a presby¬
tery or diocese consisting of many congregations. But
he is required to tell it to that particular church or con¬
gregation to which they both belong; and the sentence of
that assembly, pronounced by its elders, is in a very solemn
manner declared to be final, from which there lies no appeal
to any jurisdiction on earth.
With respect to the constituting of elders in any church
or congregation, the Independent reasons in the following
manner :—The officers of Christ’s appointment are either
ordinary and permanent in the church, or they were ex¬
traordinary and peculiar to the planting of Christianity.
The extraordinary were those who were employed in lay¬
ing the plan of the gospel churches, and in publishing the
New Testament revelation. Such w^ere the apostles, the
chosen witnesses of our Saviour’s resurrection ; such were
the prophets inspired by the Holy Ghost for explaining
infallibly the Old Testament by the things written in the
New; and such were the evangelists, the apostles’ minis¬
ters. These can be succeeded by none in that which was
peculiar to them, because their work was completed by
themselves. But they are succeeded in all that was not
peculiar to them by bishops and deacons, the only two or¬
dinary and permanent orders of ministers in the church.
We have already seen that it belongs to the office of the
bishop to feed the flock of Christ. The only question to
be settled then, is, How men are ordinarily called to that
office ? for about the office of the deacon there is little or
no dispute. No man now can pretend to be so called of
God to the ministry of the word as the apostles and other
inspired elders w^ere, whom he chose to be the publishers
of his revealed truth, and to whose mission he bore wit¬
ness in an extraordinary manner. But what the apostles
were to those who had the divine oracles from their
mouths, that their writings are to us; and therefore as no
man can lawfully pretend a call from God to make any
addition to those writings, so neither can any man pre¬
tend to be lawfully called to the ministry of the word al¬
ready written, but in the manner which that word directs.
Now there is nothing of which the New Testament speaks
more clearly than of the characters of those who should
exercise the office of bishop in the church, and of the ac¬
tual exercise of that office. The former are graphically
drawn in the epistles to Timothy and Titus ; and the latter
is minutely described in St Paul’s discourse to the Ephe¬
sian elders, in St Peter’s exhortation to elders, and our
Lord’s commission to those ministers with whom he pro¬
mised to be always present even unto the end of the
world. It is not competent for any man or body of men
to add to or take from the description of a gospel mi¬
nister given in these places, so as to insist upon the ne¬
cessity of any qualification which is not there mentioned,
or to dispense with any qualification as needless which is
there required. Neither has Jesus Christ, the only legis¬
lator to the church, given to any ministers or people any
power or right whatsoever to call, send, elect, or ordain,
to that office, any person who is not qualified according to
the description given in his law; nor has he given any
power or right to reject the least of them who are so qua¬
lified, and who desire the office of a bishop or elder. Let
a man have hands laid upon him by such as could prove
an uninterrupted descent by imposition of hands from the
apostles; let him be set apart to that office by a company
of ministers themselves, the most conformable to the
Scripture character; and let him be chosen by the most
holy people on earth ; yet if he answer not the New Tes¬
tament description of a minister, he is not called of God
to that office, and is no minister of Christ, but is indeed
running unsent. No form of ordination can pretend to
such a clear foundation in the New Testament as the de¬
scription of the persons who should be elders of the
church ; and the laying on of hands is of small importance
in the mission of a minister of Christ; for now, when the
power of miracles has ceased, it is obvious that such a rite,
by whomsoever performed, can convey no powers, whether
ordinary or extraordinary. Indeed it appears to have
been sometimes used, even in the apostolic age, without
any such intention. When St Paul and St Barnabas
were separated to the particular employment of going out
to the Gentiles, the prophets and teachers at Antioch
“ prayed and laid their hands on them.” But did this ce¬
remony confer upon the two apostles any new power or
authority to act as ministers of Christ ? Did the imposi¬
tion of hands make those shining lights of the gospel one
whit better qualified than they were before to convert and
baptize the nations, to feed the flock of God, to teach,
rebuke, or exhort, with all long-suffering and patience ?
It cannot be pretended that there was any special virtue
in this ceremony. St Paul and St Barnabas had un¬
doubtedly received the Holy Ghost before they came to
Antioch; and as they were apostles, they were of course
authorized to discharge all the functions of the inferior
and ordinary ministers of the gospel. As in this instance,
however, the imposition of hands appears to have been a
mark of recognition of the parties as qualified for the work
to which they were appointed, so Independents usually
lay on the hands of the bishops with the same intent. In
a word, whoever in his life and conversation is conform¬
able to the character which the inspired writers give of a
bishop, and is likewise qualified by his “mightiness in the
Scripture” to discharge the duties of that office, is fully
authorized to administer the sacraments of baptism and
the Lord’s Supper, to teach, exhort, and rebuke, with all
long-suffering and doctrine, and has all the call and mis¬
sion which the Lord now gives to any man ; whilst he
371
Indepen¬
dents.
1 The evidence upon which this is stated by Mr Glass, for the whole of this reasoning is extracted from his works is nrobablv the
following passage in the epistle of Ignatius to the Ephesians : ’E, ivflf “For if the prayer of’one or two be of
such force as we are told, how much more prevalent must that be which is made by the bishop and the whole church ? He then that
does not come together into the same place with it, is proud, and hath condemned himself; for it is written ‘ God resisteth the nroud ’
Let us not therefore resist the bishop, that we may be the servants of God.” The sentence, as it thus stands by itself, certainly coun-
tenances Mr Glass s scheme; but the reader who thinks any regard due to the testimony of Ignatius will do well to peruse the whole
epistle as published by V ossius. r
372 1 N D
Indepen- who wants the qualifications mentioned has not God’s
dents. ca]]} whatever he may have, nor any authority to preach
the gospel of Christ, or to dispense the ordinances of his
religion.
From this view of the Independent principles, which is
faithfully taken from their own writers, it appears that,
according to them, even the election of a congregation
confers upon the man whom they may choose for their
pastor no new powers, but only creates a new relation
between him and a particular flock, giving him an exclu¬
sive right, either by himself or in conjunction with other
pastors constituted in the same manner, to exercise among
them that authority which he derives immediately from
Christ, and which, in a greater or less degree, is possessed
by every sincere Christian according to his gifts and abi¬
lities. Were the ministers of the gospel constituted in
any other way than this; by imposition of hands, for in¬
stance, in succession from the apostles; the case of Chris¬
tians would, in the opinion of the Independents, be ex¬
tremely hard, and the ways of God scarcely equal. We
are strictly commanded not to forsake the assembling of
ourselves together, but to continue steadfast in the apostles’
doctrine and fellowship, and in the breaking of bread, and
in prayer. “ But can any man,” asks one of their advo¬
cates, “ bring himself to believe, that what he is com¬
manded to do in point of gratitude, what is made his own
personal act, an act expressive of certain dutiful and pious
affections, can possibly be restricted to the intermediate
offices or instrumentality of others, who act by powers
which he can neither give nor take away ? To suppose a
thing necessary to my happiness, which is not in my own
power, or wholly depends upon the good pleasure of ano¬
ther, over whom I have no authority, and concerning whose
intentions and dispositions I can have no security, is to
suppose a constitution the most foolish and ill-natured,
utterly inconsistent with our ideas of a wise and good
agent.” Such are some of the principal arguments by
which the Independents maintain the divine right of con¬
gregational churches.
Sir James Mackintosh, in his Historical Fragment, gives
a short notice of this body. “ They disclaimed the qua¬
lifications of ‘ national,’ as repugnant to the nature of
‘ a church.’ The religion of the Independents could not,
without destroying its nature, be established by law. They
never could aspire to more than religious liberty, and they
accordingly have the honour to be the first, and long the
only, Christian community who collectively adopted that
sacred principle. It is true, that in the beginning they
adopted the pernicious and inconsistent doctrine of limited
toleration, excluding Catholics as idolaters ; and in New
England, where the great majority were of their persua¬
sion, punishing even capitally dissenters from opinions
which they accounted fundamental. But as intolerance
could promote no interest of theirs, real or imaginary, their
true principles finally worked out the stain of these dis¬
honourable exceptions. The government of Cromwell,
more influenced by them than by any other persuasion,
made as near approaches to general toleration as public
prejudice would endure; and Sir Harry Vane, an Inde¬
pendent, was probably the first who laid down, with per¬
fect precision, the inviolable rights of conscience, and the
exemption of religion from all civil authority.”1
For the History of the Independents, see Bogue and
Bennet’s History of Dissenters, 3 vols., Lond. 1833, 2d
edit.; Price’s History of Nonconformity in England, 2
vols., Lond., 1836 ; Hanbury’s Memorials relating to Inde¬
pendents, 3 vols., 1839; Fletcher’s History of Independency,
4 vols., 1847. For their Principles, see Owen’s In¬
quiry into the Nature, §c., of Evangelical Churches;
I N D
Davidson’s Ecclesiastical Polity of the New Testament, Inderabia
1848; Wardlaw’s Congregational Independency, 1848, &c. ||
INDERABIA, or Anderayia, an island in the Persian In(iia.
Gulf, lying 5 miles off the coast of Laristan, in N. Lat. 26.40.,
E. Long. 53. 39. It is a low, level, and narrow island,
about 3 miles in length.
INDEX EXPURG ATORIUS. In the Romish Church
the Index, or Index Librorum Prohibitorum, is the list of
books which are forbidden to be read. The list of books
allowed to be read, after certain corrections, is called the
Index Expurgatorius. The prohibition to read certain
books began very early. Constantine forbade the reading
of the books of Arius ; and the Council of Carthage, a.d.
400, forbade the reading of pagan books. When printing
afforded a rapid dissemination of books, it was thought ne¬
cessary to establish a censorship of the press, by which the
circulation of works injurious to the Romish faith could be
prevented. Hence, in popish countries an imprimatur, or
official permission, was necessary before a book was allowed
to be published. In 1546 the University of Louvain, in
accordance with an edict of Charles V., published a list of
books considered as dangerous. Lists of the same kind
were also prepared at Rome, Paris, Venice, and Cologne.
The management of the Index was fully systematized by a
select committee of the Council of Trent, and the ten rules
proposed by them were sanctioned by Pius IV. during the
twenty-fifth session of the council, a.d. 1564. The Congre¬
gation of the Index, as confirmed by Pius V., have the power
to supervise all books as to their bearing upon the faith and
discipline of the Romish Church. (Peignot’s Dictionnaire
des Limes Condamnes au feu, Supprimes, ou Censures;
Mendham’s Account of the Indices, both Prohibitory and
Expurgatory, See.)
INDIA. The general name of India has always had a
very wide and rather indefinite application, both in ancient
and modern times. It has been generally used to designate
all those vast regions of the Asiatic continent which lie to
the eastward of the Indus, which were accordingly dis¬
tinguished by the ancients into two great divisions, namely,
India intra Gangerh, and India extra Gangem. The
meaning of the name, which has long been a source of per¬
plexity to the learned, has never been clearly ascertained.
It is supposed to be of Persian origin, from the word Hind,
or Heando, the term in the more ancient languages of
Persia, which has been employed by the Greeks and Ro¬
mans, and from them made its way into the modern
languages of Europe. The progress of ancient discovery
in India has been already narrated in our account both of
Asia and Hindustan. Prior to the expedition of Alexander,
all the knowledge which the Greeks possessed of India was
derived from the report of the Persians. The geographical
writers of ancient times—Eratosthenes, Strabo, and Pliny
—procured more correct information from Alexander’s
officers; and in later times the ancients extended their
knowledge of India by means of commerce. The general
notion of the boundaries of India within the Ganges appears
to have been as follows:—On the north they stated the
boundary to be a range of mountains, the modern Himalaya,
which they considered to be the extremity of the range of
Mount Taurus, and which were named Paropamisus by
the natives, or the mountains of Emodus and Imaus. The
Indus was pointed out as the western boundary; and in
later times, when the knowledge of Indian geography was
extended, the Ganges was considered the boundary on the
E., and the ocean on the S. Of the form and limits of this
extensive region, known under the general appellation of
India, the ancients entertained very erroneous notions. Of
the country that lay between the Indus and the Ganges
they had begun to acquire from travellers more accurate
1 View of the Reign of James II., p. 166.
I N D
I N D
India
Rubber
Indian
Territory
information; but their accounts respecting Southern India
were still imperfect. The different geographical writers enu¬
merate many distinct tribes who were scattered over the
country between the Indus and the Ganges ; but they seem
^ not to have had sufficient information for such a classification
of the inhabitants; and little instruction is conveyed con¬
cerning India in such a list of uncouth names. Of India
beyond the Ganges the ancients are still more imperfectly
informed, nor do they seem to have affixed any limits to its
extension eastward.
Ihis term of India has been applied with great latitude
by modern geographers. According to Mohammedan
writers, it is understood to signify the country in immediate
subjection to the Mogul sovereigns of Delhi. By Euro¬
peans, the limits of India have generally been considered
as co-extensive with those of the Hindu religion. In the
latter view, it includes all those extensive countries that lie
between the Indus on the W. and China on the E., and
that are bounded on the N. by Bukbaria and Thibet, and
on the S. by the Indian Ocean and the Bay of Bengal. A
particular description of Hindustan, and of all these other
countries, will be found under their respective titles, to
which, therefore, the reader is referred.
India Rubber. See Caoutchouc.
INDIAN Territory, a central district of the CTnited
States of North America, lying between N. Eat. 33. 35. and
37. 0., and W. Long. 94. 20. and 100.; bounded N.
by Kansas, E. by the states of Missouri and Arkansas, S.
by Red River, which separates it from Texas, and W. by
the state of Texas. It is 320 miles in length from E. to
W., and 225 miles broad, and contains an area of about
72,000 square miles. I he surface of the country is level,
except in the south-eastern corner, where it is crossed by
the Ozark Hills, and has a gradual declination eastwards to
the Mississippi. The principal streams are the Arkansas,
which flows through the country from N. to S., and Red
River. Both are tributaries of the Mississippi, and are navi¬
gable for small steamboats. In the eastern half of the ter¬
ritory, where alone agriculture is prosecuted, the soil is
fertile. In its western division, on the other hand, the
country is flat, with a dry soil, and the water in the pools
brackish. Lhe inhabitants are wholly Indian, and comprise
both the tribes native to the district, and those that have
immigrated from E. of the Mississippi. The Indian Terri¬
tory was allotted to the Red Men of the United States in
1854, for the purpose of giving those that had been dispos¬
sessed of their lands a safe and permanent abode. The
measure has been already attended with beneficial results.
The tribes from the E., who had long had intercourse with
the whites, on arriving in their new country, at once com¬
menced agricultural pursuits and rude manufactures, and
now raise crops of grain and cotton sufficient for home con¬
sumption. The latter is for the most part spun by the
women, but a few mills are gradually beginning to sprino-
up. Hunting is pursued by the less civilized tribes of the
western division, where the grizzly bear, wild goat, and
deer are found, and the buffalo and wild horse roam in for¬
midable herds. The chief of these tribes are the Osages,
Kansas, Otoes, Omahas, Pawnees, and Puncahs. Of the
eastern tribes which have immigrated into the Territory, and
there enjoy each a district and constitution of its own, may
be named the Creeks, Cherokees, Choctaws, Chickasaws,
Seminoles, Senecas, and Quapaws. The first of these came
from Georgia and Alabama, and now occupy the country
N. of Canadian River. They have written laws and a li¬
beral form of government, and are rapidly progressing to¬
wards civilization. The Cherokees, who claim consan¬
guinity with the Creeks, are the most civilized of all the
tribes in the Territory. They immigrated from the high¬
lands of Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, and Upper Teness'ee,
in 1836, having sold their ancient possessions to the govern-
373
ment, and took up their abode in the Indian Territory to Indiana,
the N. of Arkansas River. Their tract of land is divided v v~.
into 8 districts, each returning, every four years, 5 mem¬
bers to the general council, which is made up of a commit¬
tee and minor council; the former consisting of 16 repre¬
sentatives, and the minor council of 24, are held in the town
of 1 ahlequah, N. of the Arkansas. The executive is vested
in a chief, assisted by 3 assessors, chosen for four years by
the general council. A printing press is established at
I ahlequah, the capital, where newspapers are regularly
published. 1 he next two tribes, the Choctaws and Chicka¬
saws, are kindred nations that formerly peopled the Missis¬
sippi valley, and now occupy the country S. of Canadian
River. They amalgamated in their new home, and are now
governed by the same laws. Their national council consists
of 40 members, elected by qualified citizens. The four dis¬
tricts, however, into which their settlement is divided, are
each governed by a chief, who has the right of a qualified
veto on all laws passed by the national council. This tribe
has a military organization, every male adult being subject
to service, and each district supplying 53 captains, who are
under the command of the general-in-chief. Their princi¬
pal town, called Council House, is situated on Kiamishi
River, a tributary of Red River. The only other tribes
that inhabit the Territory are the Senecas and Quapaws,
once powerful nations, but now rapidly becoming extinct.
All these tribes dwell in villages, and follow the plough.
Their progress in civilization is almost wholly attributable
to the labours of the missionaries, who, in spreading the
Christian faith, have not forgotten to sow the seeds of social
comfort and advancement. There is no census of the popu¬
lation, which is roughly estimated at about 100,000 persons.
INDIANA, one of the United States of North America,
is bounded, E. by the State of Ohio, S. by the River Ohio,
which separates it from Kentucky, W. by Illinois, from
which it is partly separated by the Wabash River, and N.
by Michigan and Lake Michigan. It lies between 37. 51
and 40. 46. N. Lat, and 85. 49. and 88. 2. W. Long.
Extreme length from N. to S., 276 miles ; greatest breadth,
1 75 miles. Area 33,809 square miles.
Indiana may be generally characterized as a great plain,
inclining towards the S.W. A range of hills extends
along the Ohio from the mouth of the Great Miami to Blue
River, and the shore of Lake Michigan is lined by large sandy
hills, which rise to a height of 200 feet. In some other
parts , are to be found “ knobs,” but these are seldom of great
extent or elevation. The surface of the country naturally
divides itself into several extensive river valleys. The val¬
ley of the Ohio, comprising an area of about 5500 square
miles, is a limestone tract, and was originally covered with
forests. About one-third of it is rugged and broken, so as
to be unfit for cultivation. The White River Valley, ex¬
tending through the centre of the state, from the Wabash
to the Ohio, contains about 9000 square miles. This dis¬
trict is almost uniformly level, and richly wooded, except in
the west, where there are some ranges of low rugged hills,
and several patches of prairie ground. The soiHs of the
richest kind. The Wabash Valley is much larger than the
others, and contains upwards of 12,000 square miles. The
eastern portion equals the White River Valley in fertility,
but the other parts are not so productive. The northern
part of the state, watered by the St Joseph and the Kan¬
kakee rivers, is somewhat more swampy than the Wabash
Valley; and a large tract, comprising the sandhills on Lake
Michigan, is covered only with stunted pines and burr oaks.
The state is well watered by numerous beautiful streams
and rivers, but with the exception of the Ohio and Wabash,
few of them are navigable. The Wabash is the largest
river that has its course mainly within the state, and to¬
gether with its branches, drains three-fourths of the entire
sm face. It rises in the W. of Ohio, and flows first in a
it
374
INDIANA.
Indiana. N.W. direction, and then S.W. till it meets the boundary
—of Illinois, which it follows southward for more than 100
miles, till it falls into the Ohio, after a course of upwards
of 500 miles; for 400 of which it is navigable for steam¬
boats at high water. The Ohio forms the entire southern
boundary of the state. The other principal rivers of In¬
diana are tributaries of the Wabash. The White River,
the most important of these, is formed by the W. and E.
Forks—two rivers, respectively about 300 and 200 miles
long—which unite about 100 miles above its confluence
with the Wabash. The Miami is formed by the St
Joseph and St Mary in the N.E., and falls into the Ohio.
The Upper St Joseph, with its tributaries, passes through
the northern counties, and falls into Lake Michigan.
Indiana resembles the other western states N. of the
Ohio in climate. They are generally milder than those on
the Atlantic coasts, but very subject to sudden changes.
The winter is very severe in the northern parts, but more
genial in the southern. Except in the neighbourhood of
wet prairies and swamps the climate is everywhere healthy.
Dr Owen, speaking of the geological position of Indiana,
remarks, that ‘‘it possesses all the elements of extraordinary
fertility.” The richest soil is that of the river bottoms,
where it is very deep and exceedingly fertile. The most
productive are those enclosed by the River Hills, which run
parallel to the Ohio and other rivers. The extensive val¬
ley of the Wabash is a tract of this description. Behind the
River Hills, a table-land spreads out, forming what may be
called the interior of the country, and here, instead of the
bottom-lands or river-valleys, there are vast prairies. The
soil of these is not so luxuriant, but is such as amply to re¬
pay the expense of culture. Even the wet and marshy
parts of the state admit of being brought under cultivation.
Indiana ranks fourth of the states of the Union in the ab¬
solute amount of Indian corn raised. It also produces large
quantities of wheat, oats, and Irish potatoes, as well as a
fair proportion of the other productions common to the
Western States.
The number of farms in Indiana under cultivation in
1850 comprised 93,896 acres, and the extent of improved
land was 5,046,543 acres ; of unimproved, 7,746,879 acres.
The value of the farms returned was L.27,277,034. The
orchard produce was estimated at L.64,988, and market-
garden products, L.14,573.
The chief minerals of Indiana are coal, iron, lime, marble,
freestone, and some copper. Of these the first is by far
the most important. It has been estimated that the coal
beds of Indiana cover 7700 square miles, and are capable
of yielding 50,000,000 bushels to the square mile. One
coal deposit commences in Perry county, and extends N.W.
into the county of Vermillion upwards of 150 miles.
The manufacturing capital of Indiana, in 1850, amounted to
7,941,602 dollars. The value of raw material, &c., consumed
in the year had been 10,214,337 dollars. The products were
valued at 18,922,651 dollars. There were on June 1, 1850,
4326 industrial establishments, producing annually to the va¬
lue of 500 dollars and upwards. Of these, two were cotton
factories, twenty-three woollen factories, nineteen iron
works, and 358 tanneries.
Indiana has no direct foreign commerce, but it has a
considerable transit trade, and exports large quantities of
agricultural produce. The facilities for internal communica¬
tion are great, and rapidly increasing. The principal canals
are the Wabash and Erie Canal between Evansville, on the
Ohio, and l oledo, on Lake Erie, 467 miles, of which 379
miles are in Indiana; and the White Water Canal, 68
miles long, uniting Lawrenceburg, on the Ohio, with Ha¬
gerstown. In 1853 the state had 755 miles of railroad
completed, and 979 in course of construction. The prin¬
cipal railroads centre in Indianapolis, and radiate from
that city in all directions. In 1854 the projected and
incomplete railroads were the Evansville and Terre Haute India:.
(27 miles finished) ; Indianapolis and Lawrenceburg (63 v /
miles finished) ; Indianapolis and Peru (30 miles finished) ;
Junction, New Albany and Salem (83 miles finished);
Fort Mayne and Muncie, Ohio and Mississippi, and Rich¬
mond and Logansport.
Indiana is divided into 91 counties. Its capital is India¬
napolis (pop. 8080), near the centre of the state; but the
largest town is New Albany (pop. (1850) 8181) ; and there
are a good many others very little inferior in size. The fol¬
lowing table shows the state of the population during the
present century :—
White. Coloured, Free. Slaves. Total.
1800  4,577 163 135 4,875
1810  23,890 393 237 24,520
1820 145,758 1,230 190 147,178
1830 339,399 3,629 3 343,031
1840 678,698 7,165 3 685,866
1850 977,605 10,811 none 988,416
The last census returned 537 deaf and dumb, 353 blind,
563 insane, and 938 idiotic.
By the ratio of the population, the state is entitled to
send 11 representatives to Congress; and like the other
states, 2 members to the Senate. The constitution of
Indiana was framed in convention 10th February 1851, ra¬
tified by the people 4th August, and came into operation
1st November the same year. It provides that every
white male citizen, of the United States, 21 years of age,
who has resided in the state 6 months, is entitled to vote
at the elections. Every white male of foreign birth, 21
years of age, who has resided in the United States 1 year,
and in the state 6 months, may vote at next election, pro¬
vided he has duly intimated his intention to become a citi¬
zen of the United States. Elections by the people are by
ballot. Elections by the General Assembly viva voce.
The General Assembly consists of a Senate and a House
of Representatives ; the Senate of not more than 50 mem¬
bers, chosen for 4 years ; the Flouse of Representatives
of not more than 100 members, chosen for 2 years. The
governor has a salary of 1500 dollars and a furnished house;
the lieutenant-governor and president of the senate 3 dollars
a-day.
The justiciary consists of a supreme court of 4 judges,
13 circuit courts, and 44 courts of common pleas.
In 1850 there were in Indiana 1947 churches. Of
these, 745 belonged to the Methodists ; 412 to the various
sects of Baptists; 267 to the Presbyterians; 182 to the
Christians; 85 to the Friends; 63 to the Roman Catho¬
lics ; 60 to the Lutherans ; 53 to the Moravians ; 24 to the
Episcopalians; 15 to the Universalists ; 10 to the Free,
and 31 to the minor sects, having accommodation for
689,230 persons. The value of church property is
1,512,485 dollars.
The legislature of Indiana, by an act of 5th March
1855, made a new provision for a general system of com¬
mon schools. A state board of education is established,
consisting of the governor, secretary of state, state trea¬
surer, and auditor, the attorney-general, and the superin¬
tendent of public instruction, who meet once a year. The
superintendent, who is elected by the people for two years,
must spend one day annually in each county. The board
of trustees of each township, has the general custody and
management of the school property and lands, and a limited
power to levy taxes for building school-houses, and autho¬
rity to employ teachers when the people do not appoint
them. The funds are derived from various sources. In 1854
the total amount was 2,559,308 dollars; the number of
schools was 2622; of scholars, 445,761; of teachers, 3,098;
being males, 2,432, and females 666. Salaries ot teachers,
average per month, male, 23’01 dollars; female, 15'62
dollars.
In 1850, there were 11 universities and colleges, having
I N D
Indiana- 61 professors and teachers, and 1069 students. The uni-
polis. versities have each a law faculty, and there are medical
colleges at La Porte and Indianapolis, both in a flourishing
condition. At Hanover is also the Indiana theological se¬
minary (Presbyterian) a branch of the Hanover College.
In 1850, the number of public libraries was 151, contain¬
ing 68,403 volumes. The periodical press in 1850 con¬
sisted of 121 publications ; of these one only was a monthly
magazine, the remainder were newspapers, appearing at
various intervals, from a day to a week.
Indiana stands among the first of the western states in
respect of provision for the unfortunate. The principal of
its benevolent institutions are the institution for the blind,
having, in 1851, 52 patients; an asylum for the deaf and
dumb, having, in 1854,139 pupils ; and the hospital for the
insane, having, in 1854, 163 patients. Every deaf-mute,
between the ages of 10 and 30, belonging to the state,
is entitled to admission gratis into the asylum, where
every attention is paid to the education and wants of the
inmates.
The total revenue of the state, in 1854, from all sources,
was  2,609,175 dollars.
Total warrants on the treasury for the
same period, were  1,645,544
Balance, 1st November 1854... 963,630
State debt, prior to 1847 was, total...14,374,640
Total debt was reduced to, 1st Nov.
1855  7,338,473 ...
In the early part of the 18th century, the French set¬
tled in Indiana. They occupied several posts as early as
the year 1702. But like other French settlements, these
remained nearly stationary till longafter the American Revo¬
lution. They lived on terms of amity with the neighbouring
savages, and became greatly assimilated to them in their man¬
ners and customs. They joined them in their hunting excur¬
sions, and subsisted more by the chase than the produce
of agriculture. They even formed matrimonial alliances
with them. Indiana formed, with Illinois, a territorial go¬
vernment in 1801. In 1809, it was separated from Illi¬
nois, and was admitted into the union as an independent
state in December 1816.
The chief natural curiosities of Indiana are,—the Wyan¬
dotte Cave, in Crawford County, and Epsom Salts Cave, on
the Big Blue River. The latter is situate on the side of a hill,
400 feet high. About 2500 yards from the entrance to
the cave is a white column, 15 feet in diameter, and 30
feet in height, regularly fluted and surrounded by smaller
and similar columns. The earth of the floor yields epsom
salts, nitre, aluminous earth, and gypsum. Within the
cave is a rude painting of an Indian Chief. Wyandotte
Cave had been explored, previous to 1850, for 3 miles.
In that year new chambers and galleries were discovered
more extensive than the old, and abounding in stalactites
and other calcareous concretions, some of great size and
splendour.
INDIANAPOLIS, a city of the United States of
North America, capital of Indiana, on the White River.
109 miles N.W. from Cincinnati. It is situate in an ex¬
tensive and fertile plain, near the centre of the state. The
town is regularly built, and the streets generally cross each
other at right angles. The state-house, an elegant build¬
ing, 180 feet in length by 80 in width, is surmounted by
a dome, and has ten Doric columns in front. There are
several iron foundries, flour mills, and manufactories of
steam-engines, paper, &c. Indianapolis is the terminus of
seven railroads, viz.,—the Madison and Indianapolis; the
Lafayette; the Terre Haute and Indianapolis; the In¬
diana Central; the Indianapolis and Bellefontaine; the
Peru and Indianapolis; and the Laurenceburg and Upper
Mississippi railroad. Nearly all of the above are now in
operation. Pop. (1853) about 12,000.
I N D 375
INDICTMENT, in Law, one of the modes of prose- Indictment
cuting an offender. In English law, it is a written accusa- 1}
tion of one or more persons of a crime or misdemeanor, ^ ndigo. ^
preferred to, and presented upon oath by, a grand jury.
In Scotch law, it is the name of the summons or libel upon
which criminals are cited to take their trial before the High
Court of Justiciary, and is drawn in the form of a syllogism.
The criminal libels for jury trial before the sheriffs of coun¬
ties are prepared in the same form.
INDIGO, a well known and very valuable vegetable dye,
originally brought to Europe from India, as the name (a
modification of Indicum) implies.
The indigo of commerce occurs in powder or in cubic
cakes of a deep blue colour, which acquires a copper tint
and lustre on the substance being rubbed. If pure, it is
tasteless and inodorous, insoluble in water, and very slightly
soluble in alcohol. By boiling it with very dilute sulphuric
acid, a viscous matter is separated. Dilute alkaline solu¬
tions remove from it a brown colouring matter, and boiling
alcohol a red one.
Chemists recognize two kinds of indigo, the blue and the
white, which are mutually convertible; and a consideration
of the processes by which this conversion is effected fur¬
nishes the rationale of the methods by which the dye is
procured from the plants which yield it.
When purified commercial indigo, reduced to powder, is
digested in water, with excess of lime, and a moderate
amount of green sulphate of iron, so as to expose it to the
deoxidizing action of the precipitated protoxide of the me¬
tal, it loses its blue colour and its insolubility, and forms a
soluble compound with the lime of a yellow colour. If
diluted hydrochloric acid be added to this solution, whilst
air is excluded, a dirty white crystalline powder precipitates,
which may be dried in vacuo, and constitutes the white
indigo. It consists of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitro¬
gen ; and is most satisfactorily represented as a chemical
compound by the formula C16 H6 N 02.
If the addition of hydrochloric acid to the yellow lime-
solution be made, with free exposure to the air, then the
precipitate rapidly changes from white to blue, and returns
to the condition of blue indigo. The formula for this is
C16II5 n o2 ; so that it differs from white indigo by con¬
taining one equivalent less of hydrogen. An alkaline solu¬
tion of white indigo yields the same blue precipitate, by
simple exposure to the air, without addition of an acid; and
one of the best methods of obtaining chemically pure indigo
is to digest the powdered commercial dye in an alcoholic
solution of weak caustic soda, along with honey or grape-
sugar as the deoxidizer. On exposing the filtered liquid to
the air, blue indigo separates in crystals. It may be sub¬
limed without decomposition.
It is probable that indigo exists in the plants which yield
it, as a soluble compound of its white modification with
potash, soda, or lime. The indigo plants grow chiefly in
the East and West Indies, in Central America, Africa, and
Europe. They belong to different genera, but the most
important is the genus Indigofera, of which the species
tinctoria yields the greater part of the indigo of commerce,
and the species pseudo-tinctoria the best. Besides these,
the I. disperma, argentea, anil, glauca, cinerea, are largely
cultivated. The Wrightia tinctoria, an evergreen native of
the East Indies ; the Isatis tinctoria, or woad of Europe ;
the Polygonum tinctorium of China; the Baptisia tinctoria
of the United States; and other plants of the genera
Nerium, Isatis, Pergularia, Tephrosia, Amorpha, &c.,
also yield indigo.
The Indigofera tinctoria grows about 2 feet high, with
pinnate leaves and papilionaceous flowers, followed by the
pods characteristic of the leguminous order of plants to
which it belongs. The colouring matter is most abundant
when the flower-blossoms are expanding, and occurs in
376 I N D
Indivisi- nearly the whole plant, but chiefly in the leaves. Two
methods are followed in preparing the dye,—the one by
Indore fermenting a watery infusion of the fresh plant or leaves,
x ‘ y the other by simply macerating in water the fully dried
^ leaves. The fermentation process is followed in the East
and West Indies; the maceration process in America. In
conducting the former, cuttings of the entire plant are
stratified in layers in a large cistern, and covered with a
kind of frame-work of wood and bamboo twigs to prevent
the plants rising out of the vat after they swell. Water is
then pumped upon them, and fermentation soon commences,
accompanied by the production of ammonia and the evolu¬
tion of much carbonic acid. Gradually, also, the liquid
changes from nearly white to grey, blue, and deep purple,
and becomes covered with a copper-coloured scum. When
the fermentation begins to abate, the liquid,—now of a yel¬
lowish-green colour,—is drawn off into a second open cis¬
tern, and beaten with oars; in short, exposed to a process
like that of churning for hours. During this process car¬
bonic acid is expelled ; the oxygen of the air allowed to act
freely on the soluble indigo, so as to change it into the in¬
soluble blue dye, and the particles of the latter gathered
into flocks or grains, which fall to the bottom. This pulpy
precipitate is then passed through a strainer, raised to the
boiling point, drained by a woollen filter, squeezed in a press,
cut by a wire into cubes, and dried.
In the maceration process, the leaves, threshed from the
stems, are dried and set aside. At first they yield, on macera¬
tion with water, no indigo; but, after some weeks’ keep¬
ing, they change from a fine green into a blue-grey; and,
if then soaked in water, yield a green solution, which, on
exposure to the air, gradually deposits blue indigo.
Indigo dissolves in strong sulphuric acid; and the solu¬
tion, after dilution with water, is largely used in dyeing.
Cloth is also dyed by soaking it in the solution obtained by
digesting in water indigo, sulphate of iron, and lime. White
indigo adheres to the fabric, and changes into the insoluble
blue modification on exposure to the air. (g. w.)
INDIVISIBLES, in Geometry, the elements or prin¬
ciples into which any body or figure may be ultimately
resolved, which elements are supposed to be infinitely small.
Thus, a line may be said to consist of points, a surface of
parallel lines, and a solid of parallel and similar surfaces.
INDORE, a town of Hindustan, and the capital of the
possessions of the family of the Mahratta chieftain known
under the name of Holkar. It is an ill-built town, contain¬
ing a few mosques and several Brahminical temples of no
architectural pretensions. The houses belonging to the
British resident and his assistants are well planned, and
surrounded with groves and gardens. Indore was plundered
in 1801 by Scindia, who had previously defeated Holkar at
the head of above 30,000 men. In 1804 it was occupied
by a British force under Colonel Murray, but was restored
on the subsequent pacification in 1805. Distant S.W. from
Delhi 494 miles. Lat. 22. 42.; Long. 75. 50.
The territorial possessions of the Holkar family consist of
several detached tracts, some of them lying very remote
from others. Their total area is returned at 8318 square
miles, supporting a population of 815,164. The revenue is
estimated at about L.222,000. An armed force is maintained
by the ruler of the country, amounting to 7000 men. The
founder of this family was Mulhar Rao Holkar, who, first
a shepherd, and subsequently a soldier, rose to military
distinction, and obtained a grant of the territory of Indore
from the Peishwa in 1733. He was among the Mahratta
leaders at the battle of Paniput in 1761, and died a few
years later. His successors brought Indore to a dis¬
tinguished state of military power; and, at the commence¬
ment of the present century, when the British government
was engaged in arduous conflict with various enemies, the
then ruler of the country, Jeswunt Rao Holkar, seized the
I N D
opportunity to invade the British dominions. Lord Lake Indorse-
despatched against him 5 battalions of native infantry, and ment
3000 cavalry, under Colonel Monson, an officer of great II
bravery, but unfortunately destitute of a corresponding de- In(ire.
gree of judgment; the expedition consequently terminated
disastrously, and the unhappy retreat of this force is cha¬
racterized as one of the most lamentable events in the his¬
tory of the British career in India. Jeswunt Rao, following
up his success, captured, in 1804, the city of Muttra, and
commenced the siege of Delhi, but retreated baffled upon
the approach of Lord Lake. From this time the fortunes
of the Mahratta chieftain rapidly declined. According to
Sir John Malcolm, Holkar entered Northern India with
92,000 men, and left it with a force diminished to 35,000
horse and 7000 infantry. Jeswunt Rao Holkar died insane
in 1811, and was succeeded by Mulhar Rao Holkar, in
whose reign the intrigues and disturbances fomented by
the different factions which distracted the state ripened into
hostilities. These, however, were brought to a speedy termi¬
nation by the decisive victory which, on the 21st December
1817, was gained at Mahidpore by the British army over
that of Holkar. On the 18th January 1818 a treaty was
concluded at Mundesore with the British government, that
power engaging to extend the same protection to the terri¬
tory of Holkar as to its own, and to maintain a field force
for the preservation of internal tranquillity and for defence
against foreign aggression; Holkar, on the other hand,
ceded various territories, and engaged to reduce his army
to the strength of 3000 cavalry. Mulhar Rao died in 1833.
He was succeeded by an adopted son named Martund Rao
Holkar, who subsequently yielded his throne to the superior
claims of Hurree Rao Holkar. By this latter prince the
throne was transmitted to an adopted son, Kumdee Rao
Holkar, whose career was terminated by an early death,
when it appeared that no person possessed any hereditary
claim to the succession. At length, however, the choice
fell upon a youth named Mulkerjee ; whose elevation, it was
avowed, was not in virtue of either adoption or hereditary
claim, but of the express nomination of the British govern¬
ment. The young chief, educated under the auspices of
the British government, displayed at an early age great capa¬
city for public business, and drew forth, by his exemplary
conduct, the approbation of the governor-general. In Feb¬
ruary 1852, upon the attainment of his majority, the young
chief assumed the reins of government. (e. t.)
INDORSEMENT, in Law, anything written on the
back of a deed, as a receipt for money received.
There is likewise an indorsement, by way of assignment,
on bills of exchange and notes of hand, which maybe done by
merely writing a person’s name on the back of the instrument.
INDRE, a department of Central France, consisting of
part of the old province of Berry ; lying between N. Lat.
46. 22. and 47. 15., and E. Long. 0. 52. and 2. 13.; bounded
N. by the department of Loire-et-Cher, E. by that of Cher,
S. by those of Creuse and Haute-Vienne, and W. by those
of Vienne and Indre-et-Loire. It is 60 miles in length
from N. to S., and 54 miles broad. Area 2629 square
miles. The surface of the country, which slopes to the
N.W., is generally flat, with undulations here and there,
and rounded granite hills towards the S.E. The chief
rivers of the department are the Creuse, Indre, and Claise.
The Indre traverses the centre of the department for a dis¬
tance of 80 miles, and passes the towns of La Chatre, Cha-
teauroux, and Chatillon. In the S.W. the department is
also watered by the Creuse and its feeder the Claise. None
of these streams are navigable within the department. The
quality of the soil is various. In the higher regions ot
Indre, to the E., there is a flat, dry, and flinty tract of land
called the Champagne, forming one-fifth of the whole de¬
partment. In the centre, and stretching westwards, the
marshy tract of the Brenne occupies a tenth of the depart-
I N D
Indre-et-
Loire.
ment. 1 he other parts have a richer soil, which is either
wooded or under cultivation. The climate of Indre varies
considerably from the prevalence of northerly winds in the
winter and southerly in the summer. The Champagne in
particular is subject to great extremes in temperature? The
agricultural products of the country are unimportant. Large
flocks of sheep graze on the plains, and their wool, which
is of fine quality, forms a considerable branch of trade- while
cereals, such as buckwheat, maize, flax, and hemp are
easily raised on the richer soils. In the neighbourhood of
the towns and villages, grapes and other fruits are grown in
considerable quantities. But the natural resources of the
department are not adequately developed, and with greater
agricultural skill there can be little doubt but that double the
present amount of grain could be produced. There is
nevertheless, a sufficiency for the requirements of the popu¬
lation without, having recourse to importation. Of 1 682 560
o7n'lQ?nta!ned m ^ department, 992,214 are arable,
210,794 under grass, 18o,366 waste (heaths, &c.), 166 607
Id 18a27a rrH44’75!, ™e„S’ 31>053 rire''s- canalS/&c!
and 18,273 orchards, gardens, &c. There are also on an
aveiage 900,000 sheep, yielding yearly about 16,964 cwts
of woo* The vine is little attended to, and the wine is con¬
sequently indifferent. Manufacturing industry is almost
Ar°entCOnfi Hd ^ ^ made at CMteluroux and
ninf nn"' H°Siery ^ as well as the spin¬
ning of hnen, are carried on in a small scale. Flour mills
are very numerous on the banks of the rivers. The mine-
marhll ietldepartiment ^ °f n° g''eat va,ue- Coal, iron,
arble, lithographic stone, and clay, are found, and worked
in some places but not with great profit, from the want of
proper means of communication. A branch of the Orleans
Lsdnnd°UrgeSirni??ad enterS the dePartnient and passes by
Issoudun and Chateauroux to Argenton. ^
Indre is divided into four arrondissements as follows • 
Arrondissements. Cantons. Communes. Pop. 1851
Chateauroux 8 84 ] 02,949
C^atre 5 59 57 344
IsSOudun  ^ 49 50,568
I N D
377
Indul¬
gence.
and Creuse, forms a part of the marshy territory, known by Induction
tlie same name in the neighbouring department of Indre "
I he agricultural products of Indre-et-Loire vary much
according to the great diversity of its soil. Wheat, rye
lemp, barley, oats,, and potatoes, besides various kinds of
Iruit, are grown with the greatest ease in the divisions of
Veron and Varennes, where the soil is deep and very fer¬
tile. I lie Gdtmes district, on the other hand, is covered
with moors and forests occupied almost solely by the beasts
of the chase. In many places the vine is cultivated with
success, and the wine of the department is held in estimation;
W ne/!le,r^,:ry-tree P,antations are very productive in silk,
ut 1,010,780 acres contained in the department thorp
ar%827£aaarab]e’ 222’402 Woods and foreS, 155,621
waste, 86,499 vines, 82,690 under grass, 58,495 various
(gardens, plantations, &c.), 50,600 roads, buildings, &c.
1 he exports from Indre-et-Loire are important, as its
productions considerably exceed the consumption of the
population. Wheat, hemp, wine and brandy, raw silk
chestnut oil, prunes and honey, are the principal articles of
exportation. The cultivation of the vine is on the increase
In minerals the department is not rich. Iron, marble,
and mill-stone, constitute the chief products of this class
but none of them are worked to any great extent. Manu¬
facture is almost entirely confined to woollen cloth, potterv
puper, iron, and the making of fancy goods. Communica¬
tion is effected by the rivers Loire and Vienne, which are
navigable for barges, and by the Tours et Bordeaux and
Dr leans et Nantes railways.
follows dePartment *s divided into three arrondissements as
Arrondissements. Cantons. Communes. Pop 1851
^urs ii 127 leo^s
?hiaon   7 87 90,137
Loches   6 68 64,629
P, a. Tot,al 23 248 271,938
14,276 XSms6 Ca|> °f tI,e dePa''tae«’ M “1851,
f INJ^?"^T_LOIRE, a department of Central France
formed chiefly of the old province of Touraine, and lying
between N. 1 at. 46. 45 and 47. 43., and E. Long. 0. iLd
I o rl Jrh bTidedihlrle dePartments of Sarthe and
Loire-et-Cher, E. by those of Loire-et-Cher and Indre, S. by
those oflndreaudWenne,and W.by thatofMaine-et-Loire.
I he department is 70 miles in length from N. to S., and
59 miles broad. Area 2360 square miles. Its surface
which inclines to the N.W., is very regular. The chief
rivers are the Loire, Indre, Cher, and Vienne. The first
flows through the centre of the department and receives the
t( wnrSnfST lb,,tani?S' T Tihe Cher j°ins the Loire near the
town of Fours, the Indre joins it about 15 miles further
ilown a.™! the Vienne about 10 miles further. The Loire
and Vienne are navigable for some miles.
ndre-et-Loire, from the different characters of its soil
^ay conveniently be classified into five divisions. North
fiva ll p01!? eXie"s*ve ^act of country, flat and uncul-
T nh1d’ ? nid the Gdtines, forms the first; that between the
.one and Cher, which is almost wholly under tillage, known
by the name of the Varennes, forms the second; the Cham-
pagne, situated between the Cher and Indre, with a thin
soil and great regularity of surface, the third; while the
Veron and Brenne constitute the fourth and fifth divisions
^ Veron, called also the Jardin de la France, is n osed
by the rivers Loire, Indre, and Vienne. It is the richest
and moSt highly cultivated district of the department but is
- i ject to inundation. The Brenne, lying between the Claise
VOL. XII.
Total  24 282 315,641
. 1T,°!irs’ ^le capital of the department, had in 1851, 30 189
inhabitants. ’
INDUCTION. See Logic.
tL1 pPUuG?t7('E’ one.of tlle greatest corruptions in
the Church of Rome, consists in the pretended remission of
sins upon payment of money, varying in amount according
to the offence. I he origin of Indulgences, as of man?
other innovations and abuses in that church, is to be traced
o a gradual corruption of practices originally pure. It ac¬
corded both with reason and scripture that offenders should
e punished, and doubtless the discipline exercised during
the purest days of the church was a salutary one. But in
process of time, especially during the dark ages, when the
people were grossly ignorant, and the rulers of the church
uvancious, offenders were allowed to obtain the relaxation
of discipline by purchase. During the 12th century the
different orders of its members vied with each other in ex-
toi ting money from the people. The bishops granted In¬
dulgences upon payment of money, to be applied professedly
to religious purposes; while the monks, by the sale or exhibi¬
tion of rehes, bones, &c., earned sums rivalling in amount
those collected by their ecclesiastical superiors. Both parties,
when they got the money, could spend it as they chose.
I he granting of Indulgences has been traced'as far back
as the beginning of the 9th century. During the time of
the Crusades, Urban II. granted them to all who would go
to 1 destine to fight for the recovery of Jerusalem from the
nhdels. I he temptation was subsequently held out to
those who should hire a soldier to go as a crusader. Shortly
after the beginning of the 14th century, Pope Clement V.
exposed Indulgences to public sale, in the 16th century,
Ceo X., m order to carry on the magnificent structure of
1 eters at Rome, published Indulgences, and a plenary
remission, to all such as should contribute money towards
it. r inding the project succeed, he granted to Albert, elec-
3 B
378 I N D
Indult tor of Mentz and archbishop of Magdeburg, the monopoly
| of them for Saxony and the neighbouring parts, and farmed
v Indus‘ j out those of other countries to the highest bidders, who,
in order to make the most of their bargain, procured the
ablest preachers to cry up the value of the commodity.
The form of these Indulgences was as follows:—“ May our
Lord Jesus Christ have mercy upon you, and absolve you
by the merits of His most holy Passion. And I, by His au¬
thority, that of His blessed apostles Peter and Paul, and of
the most holy Pope, granted and committed to me in these
parts, do absolve you, first from all ecclesiastical censures,
in whatever manner they have been incurred; then from
all thy sins, transgressions, and excesses, how enormous so¬
ever these may be, even from such as are reserved for the
cognizance of the holy see, and as far as the keys of the
holy church extend : I remit to you all punishment which
you deserve in purgatory on their account; and I restore
you to the holy sacraments of the church, to the unity of
the faithful, and to that innocence and purity which you
possessed at baptism ; so that when you die, the gates of
punishment shall be shut, and the gates of the paradise of
delight shall be opened : and if you shall not die at present,
this grace shall remain in full force when you are at the
point of death. In the name of the Father, and of the Son,
and of the Holy Ghost.”
The manner in which national resources were drained
and immorality increased by the sale of Indulgences was
felt to be a grievance by several European countries. Many
Catholics as well as Protestants were ashamed and indignant
at the degrading traffic. At the Diet of Nuremberg in
1522, the Germanic princes, both Catholic and Reformed,
protested against the infamous trade. Claude Espence, a
Catholic divine, declared of the Taxa Camerce sen Cancel-
larice Apostolicce, that more crimes could be learned from
it than from all vicious books together. The book referred to
contained a catalogue of the prices at which absolution could
be purchasedforallpossiblecrimesfrom the holy apostolic see.
Thus, for so many livres, a bishop may commit murder, adul¬
tery, &c., &c. The first great and fatal blow struck against the
system washy Luther in his ninetyvfive propositions against
the Indulgences, as hawked about by the impudent Tetzel.
This mountebank had been appointed by the Archbishop of
Mentz and Magdeburg as his agent in Germany for these
licenses to sin. He employed the blustering oratory for
which he was remarkable, in urging upon the Germans
the duty of obtaining remission for their own sins and those
of their friends, for the past, present, and future, by pur¬
chasing indulgences. The people were deluded by such
assurances as that the souls of those undergoing purgatorial
purification, escaped the moment the fee paid by friends
tinkled in the strong box, &c. Luther’s propositions against
Tetzel were posted up at Wittemberg in 1517. Next year,
when Luther took his degree of doctor at Frankfort-on-the-
Oder, he was attacked by Tetzel and some others, but he
ably maintained his ground against them, and the dispute
began to divide Germany. Maximilian I. informed Leo X.
of the state of the case, but the Pontiff paid little attention
to the affair, and the history of the dispute became identi¬
fied with the history of the Reformation.
INDULT, granted by the Church of Rome, to kings
and cardinals, is the power of presenting to benefices.
The power of nominating to the bishoprics within his realm,
was granted to Francis I. of France, upon the abolition of
the pragmatic sanction, a.d. 1516. By the agreement be¬
tween Paul IV. and the college of cardinals, a.d. 1555, the
latter have the disposal of the benefices depending upon
them.
INDUS. This great river of Asia has its rise in Thibet,
at the N. of the Kailas mountain, regarded in Hindoo my¬
thology as the mansion of the gods, in about Lat. 32., Long.
81. 30. It first takes a north-westerly direction for about
I N D
460 miles, when it is joined by the river of Dras, which, Indus,
rising in the mountains of Cashmere, and receiving several .
streams both from the E. and W., discharges a considerable
volume of water at its confluence. At Makpon-i-Shaga-
ron, in Lat. 35. 48., Long. 74. 30., the Indus emerges from
the mountainous region, and turning S. (a course which it
thenceforth continues to the sea), takes its way through the
country N. of Attock. Close above this last mentioned
town, and at the distance of 870 miles from its source, the
Indus receives on the western side the great river of Ca-
bool. Both rivers have a Urge volume of water, and as
they meet, amidst numerous rocks, the confluence is turbu¬
lent, and attended with great uproar. The town of Attock
is situate about 1000 feet above the sea level, and about
17,000 feet below the source of the Indus, which falls there¬
fore 16,000 feet in 870 miles, or at the average rate of about
19 feet per mile. The length of its channel from Attock
to the sea is 942 miles, and, consequently, in that lower
part of its course it falls little more than one foot per mile.
For about 10 miles below Attock, the river, though in gene¬
ral rolling between high cliffs of slate rock, has a calm,
deep, and rapid current; but for 100 miles further down to
Kalabagh, it becomes an enormous torrent. Lieutenant
Wood, describing this section of its course, observes, It
here rushes down a valley, varying from 100 to 400 yards
wide, between precipitous banks from 70 to 700 feet high.”
From Kalabagh, southwards, to Mittunkote, distant about
350 miles, the banks either right or left, are in several
places so low, that the first rise of the river covers the-
country round with water, extending, as the inundation ad¬
vances, as far as the eye can reach. On entering the plain,
the water loses its clearness, and becomes loaded with mud.
Two or three miles below Mittunkote, and about 490 miles
from the sea, the Indus receives the waters of the Punjnud,
the channel which conveys the collected streams of the
Punjab. Above the confluence, the breadth of the Indus
is less than that of the other river, but in consequence of
the greater depth and velocity, the former has the greater
volume of water. Wood found that the Indus pear the
confluence had a breadth of 608 yards, a velocity of about
5 miles an hour, a depth of 12 or 15 feet, and discharged
91,719 cubic feet per second. The Punjnud had a
breadth of 1766 yards, a velocity of about 2 miles an hour,
a depth of 12 or 15 feet, and discharged 68,955 cubic
feet per second. Below the junction, the Indus in its
lowest state is 2000 yards wide. Its aspect in this part is
well described by Major Boileau, He says, “ At the place
where we crossed the Indus, almost immediately below its
junction with the Punjnud, its stream is 2047 yards, or
nearly a mile and a quarter in breadth, at a place where its
width was unbroken, either by islands or sandbanks. The
banks are very low, and the water very muddy, having just
began to rise from the melting of the snow at its sources, nor
is the stream of very great depth, except in the main chan¬
nel ; but with all these drawbacks, it is a magnificent sheet
of water, a very prince of rivers.” Below Mittunkote, the
river passes in succession the towns of Sukkur, Bukkur,
Sehwan, Hydrabad, and Triecal. The last mentioned of
these towns is situate in Lat. 25. 9., Long. 68.21., and here
the delta commences; all the country below it, and contained
between the Fulailee branch on the E., and the extreme
western branch of the river, being, with little exception, allu¬
vial, and obviously deposited by the stream. At about 5
miles below Tatta, and 60 miles from the sea, the Indus
divaricates into two great branches, the Buggaur, which
flows westward, and the Sata, which maintains the previous
course of the Indus southwards, and is, in strictness, the
continuation of that river. The lower part of the delta is
intersected by rivers and creeks in almost every direction,
like the delta of the Ganges ; but it so lar differs from the
latter, that it has no trees on its surface, the dry parts being
INF
Tnfalistatio covered with brushwood, and the remainder, by much the
Tnfeflment largeS,t ^ ,beinK nois«me or muddy lakes. It is
Infeftment. remarkab]e that the influence of the tides is not felt at a
greater distance than 60 or 60 miles from the sea. At the
mouths of the different branches, the rush or influx of the
tide is high and dangerous, running, as has been estimated,
at the rate of 4 mdes an hour, though varying greatly at
different places. From the sea up to Hyderabad, the Indus
is in general about a mile in breadth, varying in depth from
J to 5 fathoms. 1 he river begins to swell in the middle of
July, from the melting of the snows, and continues to in¬
crease until the end of August. The most eastern of the
estuaries connected with the Indus is the Koree Mouth
from which, proceeding westward, the remaining creeks or
estuaries most worthy of notice, occur in the followino-
order: The Seer, Mull, Kaha, Kookewarree, Kedywarree
(discharging the waters of the Sata), Hujamree, Jooa, Dur¬
bar, ritteeanee, Coondee, Pitty, and Gizree. The snrino-
tide rises 9 feet. The length of the navigable part of the
river from the sea to Attock has been ascertained by mea-
surement to be 942 miles that of the upper part is about
870 miles making a total length in round numbers of 1800
miles. I he average declivity of the water-course from the
locality of the source to Attock is, per mile, 19 feet; from
Attock downwards to Kalabagh, a distance of about 110
miles, it is 20 inches ; from this last place to Mittunkote, a
distance of about 350 miles, it is 8 inches, and thence to
the sea 6 inches. The Indus appears destined to become an
important channel of commercial communication. (e. t.)
INFALIS PATIO, an ancient punishment of felons,
by throwing them amongst the rocks and sands, chiefly
used in port-towns. It is the opinion of some writers, that
infahstatus implied some capital punishment, by exposing
the malefactor upon the sand till the next tide carried him
away; and of this custom, it is said, there exists an old tra-
dition However, the penalty seems to have taken its name
from the Norman falese, or falesia, which signified not the
sands, but the rocks and cliffs adjoining, or impending over
t e sea-shore. Commisit feloniam ob quam fuit suspensus,
ut legntus vel alio modo mortidamnatus, ... vel apudDover
infalistatus, apud Southampton submersus.
INFANT, in Larv. See Parent and Child.
INFANTRY. See Army.
INFEh TMEN1, is the act of giving symbolical deli¬
very or possession of heritable subjects, either in absolute
property, redeemably, or in liferent; or in security, or re¬
lief of, any obligation. It is called in England and Scotland
seisin or sasine. Without this act, the deed conveying or
burdening an heritable subject, is incomplete, and may be
defeated by the subsequent deeds, or by the legal diligence,
of the creditors of the disponer. In all civilized countries
some ceremony is required to mark and give warning to the
public, of the transference of a right in lands. In the Ro¬
man law, as in our own, the distinction was recognised be¬
tween a right or claim to the subject, and a right in it,—
the latter requiring something to denote the possession
which is necessary to complete the right. As actual deli¬
very or possession may sometimes be inconvenient or im¬
practicable, symbolical delivery in presence of witnesses is
in many cases allowed both in England and Scotland, and
has been so from an early period. The like is common
among the other nations of Europe. Something of the
kind existed among the Jews (see Ruth iv., 7). In our
country writing must be employed to denote the various
and changing conditions of a transference of heritable pro¬
perty, which become necessary by the progress of com¬
merce. In England, the seisin following on such writing
is given by going to the land, and there, in presence of wit¬
nesses, called to attest the transaction and give notoriety to
it, the feoffer or his attorney delivers to the feoffee or his
attorney, a clod or turf, or a twig or bough there growing,
INF
379
saymg, m substance, “ I deliver these to you in the name Infeftment.
ot seisin of all the lands and tenements specified in this ^ ^ /
deed of conveyance.” If it be a house the seller walks out,
giving the ring or latch of the door to the buyer or his at¬
torney, who enters. In these cases, the manner, place, and
time of the ceremony, are endorsed on the deed, together
with the names of the witnesses. In judicial proceedings,
if the plaintiff recover in an action whereby the seisin or
possession of land is awarded, writs are directed to the
sheriff of the county, commanding him to give actual pos¬
session to the plaintiff, which may be done forcibly if ne¬
cessary ; or, if the possession be yielded peaceably, by sym-
bolical delivery, which is held to be a sufficient execution
of the writ. In Scotland when lands are voluntarily sold
or burdened, the disponer usually embodies in the disposi-
tion or bond what is called a precept of sasine, for infefting
the disponee or creditor. In virtue of that precept it was
until lately, indispensable that the bailie of the granter
should appear on the ground with a notary public and two
witnesses, before whom the disponee or his attorney delivered
the conveyance to the bailie, and required him to execute
the precept. The bailie then delivered the conveyance to
the notary to be read and published, after which the bailie
delivered the symbols to the attorney, who, having received
them, took instruments in the hands of the notary ; which
ceremonies were narrated in a document called the instru¬
ment of sasine, subscribed by the notary and witnesses. In
that instrument all conditions and real burdens, designed to
be effectual against third parties, were engrossed. The sym¬
bols consisted of earth and stone for the lands or tenements,
with the addition of a penny for any right of annualrent; a
sheaf of corn for parsonage teinds; a net and coble for fish¬
ings ; clap and happer for mills, &c. The instrument of
sasine was then required, by the Scotch statute 1617, c. 16,
to be registered for publication within sixty days from its
date, either in a general register of sasines, kept at Edin¬
burgh for Scotland, or in a particular register appointed by
the statute, which most frequently, though not in every case,
was the shire within which the lands are situated. If the
instrument were not recorded within the sixty days, it was
of no avail against third parties ; though it remained effec¬
tual against the granter of the precept and his heirs. In the
case of two competing and duly recorded instruments, the
priority of registration, though it were but an hour, gave the
preference. It must then be engrossed at full length in
the public record; any omission or essential error being
fatal. Much of this has been simplified by the recent sta¬
tute of 8th and 9th Viet., c. 35, which allows the precept in
reference to property not held burgage to be abbreviated
in this style,—“ I desire any notary public to whom these
presents may be presented, to give to the said A. B., or his
foresaid sasine (or liferent sasine, &c., as the case may be),
ot the lands and others above disponed, but always under the
burden of the real lien (as the case may be) before speci¬
fied.” The notary public, then, without going to the lands,
or delivering any symbols, extends his instrument, narrating
shortly the deed containing the precept, with any assigna¬
tions of it that may have been granted; and narrating also
all the real burdens or conditions intended to be effectual
against third parties, and, after inserting the precept, he con¬
cludes the instrument with words like these,—“ In virtue of
which precept, I hereby give sasine (or liferent sasine, &c.)
to the said A. B. of the lands and others above described
(adding in case of burdens or reserved rights. &c.), but al¬
ways under the burden of the real right of;” &c. This in¬
strument, subscribed by the notary before witnesses, may
be recorded at any time, and it is effectual against third
parties from the date of its being presented and entered, in
order to be recorded, which is now held to be the date of
the infeftment. All this is extended to lands and other
heritages in Scotland held in burgage tenure by the 10th
380 INF
Inferiaj and 11th Viet., c. 49. A search, therefore, in the different
records—that is, in the general and particular, or burgh
Ingcn- recor(Js, according to the locality of the heritage—shows the
house. incumbrances or burdens affecting infeftment; and it is
held t0 he a breach of an agent’s duty to his client to omit
to cause such a search to be made in these records, and in
others kept for the purpose of publishing the heritages in
Scotland, which are under legal attachment, and the par¬
ties who are inhibited from doing anything by which their
heritable property may be affected. Without a recorded
infeftment, actual possession of lands in Scotland does not
secure a buyer against the subsequent acts of a seller, or
the diligence of his creditor; and with it actual possession
is not necessary. In all competitions, the priority of the pre¬
sentment for registration of an instrument of sasine, gives
the preference. The ancient forms are now in disuse ; they
were expensive, and their multiplicity often occasioned
fatal errors; while practically their object, that of giving
intimation to the public, is equally attained by recording
the simplified instrument, which is readily discovered by a
search in the public records. (>r. l.)
INFERLE. See Feralia and Ferre.
INFORMATION, in Law, is nearly the same in the
crown office as that which in other courts is called a declara¬
tion. Informations are of two sorts ; first, those which are
partly at the suit of the king, and partly at that of a sub¬
ject ; and, secondly, such as are only in the name of the
king. The former are usually brought on penal statutes,
which inflict a penalty on the conviction of the offender.
The latter are of two kinds—those filed ex officio by
the attorney-general; 2d, those at the citation of some pri¬
vate person.
INFORMER {informator), in Law, a person who in¬
forms against, or prosecutes in any of the king’s courts,
those that offend against any law or penal statute.
Informers were very common both in Greece and in
Rome. Every corner of the streets was infested with
persons who made it their constant business to pick up
stories, and catch at every occasion to accuse persons of
credit and reputation. These persons were called by the
Greeks ^uKo^amu ; for a more particular account of whom
see Sycophant.
Amongst the Romans, informers were of two sorts, man-
datores and delatores. These played into each other’s
hands ; the former marking down such persons as they
pretended to have found guilty of any misdemeanour, and
the latter prosecuting them. What tended to increase the
number of these pestilent wretches was, that the informers
were entitled to a fourth part of the effects of the person
convicted. Wicked princes rewarded and countenanced
this mischievous tribe ; but Titus set on foot a most dili¬
gent search after them, and punished such as he found with
death or banishment. Trajan also is praised by Pliny for
pursuing similar conduct.
INGENHOUSZ, John, an eminent physician and na¬
tural philosopher, was born at Breda in 1730. He was
first established in medical practice there, but removed to
London in 1767, particularly with a view to study the im¬
proved methods of inoculation then recently introduced.
Having become acquainted with Sir John Pringle, at that
time President of the Royal Society, he was by him recom¬
mended to the Austrian ambassador, for the purpose of in¬
oculating the imperial family at Vienna, the Empress Maria
I heresa having lost two of her children by the natural
small-pox. He accepted this engagement in 1768, and
having been perfectly successful in his operations, he was
remunerated by the grant of a pension of L.600 a-year for
life, together with the titles of Aulic Counsellor and Phy¬
sician to the Imperial Family. He was also consulted, in
his medical capacity, by many others of the most distin¬
guished personages at Vienna, and he enjoyed the particu-
I N G
lar esteem of the Emperor Joseph II., who was fond of re- Ingen-
ceiving him in his cabinet, and of witnessing the exhibition housz.
of a variety of physical experiments, with which it was al-
ways the delight of Ingenhousz to amuse and instruct his
acquaintance of both sexes. The following spring he went
to Italy, and inoculated the Grand Duke of Tuscany. He
was made a Fellow of the Royal Society in May 1769; but
he appears to have remained some years in Italy, for he
was at Leghorn in January 1773 ; in March he dates from
Salzburg; and in November 1775 from Vienna. The
next year he was in London ; and, in the winter of 1779,
he went to Paris. The latter part of his life he spent prin¬
cipally in England, which, notwithstanding his dislike to
the chilliness of the climate, was always his favourite resi¬
dence, and “ where he enjoyed during many years,” to use
his own words, “ that felicity which a free and independent
man finds in the pursuit of knowledge and wisdom, in the
society and friendly intercourse of those who have distin¬
guished themselves by their learning.”
Dr Ingenhousz was cheerful in his disposition, and often
playful in his conversation. Though his pursuits were
chiefly scientific, he was not destitute of taste for literature
and poetry. He had a particular predilection for Lucan,
and for the Cardinal de Polignac, and would frequently
recite passages from their poems with great energy, and
with a strong German accent. Nor did he disdain the
comforts of commercial opulence, and he w£is often a visitor
at the magnificent villa of the late Mr Rucker ot Roehamp-
ton. He had been introduced there by his friend Dr
Brocklesby, who was in many respects of a perfectly con¬
genial disposition, and who had great pleasure in prevailing
on him to partake occasionally of his own hospitality, when
his table would otherwise have been solitary. He died the
7th September 1799, at Bow Wood, in Wiltshire, the house
of the Marquis of Lansdowne, who had long known and
esteemed him.
Dr Ingenhousz’s principal publications are—1. Experiments on
the Torpedo {Phil. Trans. 1775, p. 1). Mr IValsh had lately gained
considerable reputation by his account of the effects of the torpedo.
These experiments, which were made off Leghorn in company with
Dr Drummond, are merely illustrative of the properties of that ani¬
mal, which are now better known ; and they afford no decided test
of the electrical nature of the phenomena.
2. Methods of Measuring the Bulk of Mixtures of Common Air, and
Nitrous Air, with Experiments on Platina {Phil. Trans. 1776, p.
257). The eudiometrical apparatus is described as an improvement
on Fontana’s, The experiments are intended to show that platina
is not an alloy of iron and gold, since it may be deprived of all
magnetic properties by repeated cupellation.
3. A Way of Lighting a Candle by an Electrical Spark {Phil.
Trans. 1778, p. 1022). A very small charged jar setting fire to
pulverised resin, strewed on cotton.
4. On the Electrophorus, p. 1027. This is a Bakerian lecture,
read by appointment of the president and Council of the Royal
Society, relating to the instrument then lately invented by Pro- ^
fessor Volta, and which had been made known to the author by the
Archduke Ferdinand. Its action is explained upon the elementary
principles of the Franklinian theory. The next article in the
volume contains some experiments of Mr Henly in confirmation of
the doctrines here advanced.
5. On a New Inflammable Gas {Phil. Trans. 1779, p. 576). A
powerful explosion is produced by the detonation of the vapour of
a single drop of ether with oxygen gas. The author takes occasion
to investigate the elasticity of the gas evolved by the detonation of
gunpowder ; and agrees with Bernouilli in estimating it as equiva¬
lent to near 2500 atmospheres. It may here be remarked, that not¬
withstanding Bernouilli’s general accuracy, and great mathematical
talents, he has fallen into a very singular error, in comparing the
force of gunpowder with the daily labour of men ; and has acci¬
dentally made the force of one pound equivalent to the daily work
of 100 men, while, in fact, the force of 40 pounds is only equiva¬
lent to the daily labour of a single man.
6. On a Mode of Suspending Magnetical Needles, p. 537. Pro¬
posing that a hollow needle should be immersed in linseed oil, so as
to press with a small portion of its weight only on its axis, in order
that the friction may be greatly diminished.
7. Improvements in Electricity, p. 661. On plate machines of
I N G
Ingolstadt glass and pasteboard, and on a riband machine. A Bakerian lec¬
ture
Ingulphus. 8. Experiments on Vegetables, London. 1779. This volume is
chiefly occupied by the detailed proofs of the author’s principal
discovery, that vegetables in general pour out a portion of oxygen
gas in the sunshine, while they rather diminish its proportion at
night and in the shade. It is dedicated to Sir John Pringle and
was translated into French by the author, Paris, 1786 • Second
edition, 2 vols. 8vo, 1787-9; into Latin by Scherer, Vienna 1786-
and into Dntch by Dr Van Breda, of Delft, with others of his’works!
9. On the Salubrity of the Air at Sea, and at Places far removed
from the Sea (Phil. Trans. 1780, p. 554). From the imperfection of
the test employed, it was easy to imagine that some differences were
discovered, which subsequent observations have shown to have no
existence.
10. Nouvelles Experiences et Observations, 2 vols. 8vo Paris On
different subjects of natural philosophy. In German by Molitor
Vermischte Schriften, Vienna, 1784. J
.1L 0a the Influence of the Vegetable Kingdom in the Animal Crea¬
tion (Phil. Trans. 1782, p. 426). Asserting the accuracy of his ex¬
periments, and denying some statements of Dr Priestley; advanc¬
ing, in particular, many arguments to prove that the air obtained
is really supplied by the vegetables, and not by the water in which
they are usually immersed, in order to collect it. Dr Inmmhousz
was, on all occasions, anxious to support his claim to thUvery in¬
teresting discovery; and he insisted that Priestley’s earlier experi¬
ments, on the green matter contained in stagnant water, had little
or nothing in common with his own, because that matter was in
fact, of an animal nature. He was in the habit of collecting the
gas from cabbage leaves, and of keeping it bottled up in his pocket •
and he was prepared with some coils of iron wire fastened into the
corks, in order to exhibit the brilliant phenomenon of their com¬
bustion to his friends; the public being at that time less accus¬
tomed to this dazzling exhibition, than it has become in later years
when elementary lectures on chemistry have been more commonly
addressed to mixed audiences than heretofore.
12. Essay on the Food of Plants, 8vo, London, 1798. From the
French.
13. Dr Ingenhousz also inserted some essays in different volumes
of the Journal de Physique ; but they possess less originality and
importance than his English publications.
(Chalmers’ Biographical Dictionary, xix., London, 1815, 8vo;
Kesteloot in Biographic Universelle, xxi., Paris, 1818, 8vo.) (t. y.)
INGOLS TADT, a town of Bavaria, circle of Upper Ba¬
varia, on the left bank of the Danube, 35 miles S.W. of
Ratisbon. ^ It was once a place of great strength, having
in 1800 withstood for three months the French under Mor¬
eau ; and its fortifications, which were demolished after its
capture, have been recently rebuilt on an improved plan,
and include a tete-du-pont, and numerous round towers of
massive masonry. The town contains a royal palace, nine
churches, an hospital, and several charitable institutions.
Its university, founded in 1472, where Dr Faustus studied,
was in 1800 transferred to Landshut, and afterwards to
Munich. Its manufacture of woollen cloths, which was
formerly extensive, has, with its other branches of industry
and trade, fallen into decay, so that the town is too large
for its present population, amounting to about 10,000. &
IAi GULP HUS, the reputed author of the Ilistorict
Monasterii Croylandensis, or History of the Monastery of
Croyland, or as the place is now called Crowland, in Lin¬
colnshire. The genuineness of this work was for several
centuries undisputed; but the researches of modern anti¬
quarians, and especially of Sir Francis Palgrave, have proved
it to be a mere monkish invention of the thirteenth or four¬
teenth century, and in point of authenticity little better
than a historical novel. The last portion of the work is
occupied with an autobiography of the author. From it
we learn that Ingulphus was born of English parents in the
city of London. Educated at Westminster, he prosecuted
his studies at Oxford, and surpassed all his fellow-students
in his. knowledge of the Aristotelic philosophy, and the
rhetoric of Cicero. This distinction seems to have turned
his head; for, according to his own account, he began
from this time to despise the humble roof of his father,
and affecting the palaces of kings or princes, to be
invested and clothed in soft and splendid raiment. In the
I N H
381
year 1051 William of Normandy came over to England on Inhibition,
a visit to the Confessor, and Ingulphus, who had been for
many years past a special favourite of the Queen Edgitha,
contrived to have himself introduced by her to her noble
guest. The monk completely gained the favour of the
Psorman duke, who took him over in his train to France,
and made him his secretary. His influence at the court of
the Conqueror soon became unbounded, and Ingulphus
confesses that he did not always use it discreetly. For se¬
veral years his smiles were sought and his frowns dreaded
by the courtiers. At the end of that time a pilgrimage to
the Holy Land was proposed by the Archbishop of Mentz,
and Ingulphus with thirty others of the Norman court de-
termined to take part in it. Though the pilgrims arrived
in safety at Constantinople, and were afterwards received
with great kindness by the Patriarch Sophronius at Jeru¬
salem, yet the expedition turned out in the end a very dis¬
astrous one. Ingulphus was only too glad to return in
safety to iVormandy, where he became a monk in the ab-
bey of Fontenelle. In this quiet retreat he remained till
1075, when he was invited over to his own country by his
former benefactor (who had by this time established himself
on the throne of England), and was instituted as Abbot of
Croyland, where he remained till his death, December 19th,
1109. His influence with the Conqueror enabled him to
secure for that abbey many valuable privileges and immu¬
nities, besides the reconstruction and enlargement of the
building itself, which had been destroyed in the year 870
by the Danes.
I he Historia Monasterii Croylandensis, was first pub¬
lished in an imperfect form by Sir Henry Savile in his
Scriptores Rerum Anglicarum post Bedam, Lond. 1596.
Ihe MS. from which he printed was an incomplete copy,
breaking oft at the place where the French text of the
laws of William the Conqueror is introduced. The
history and fate of this MS. are quite unknown. Ingul¬
phus autograph was, after the dissolution of the monas¬
teries, kept in the church of Croyland, where it was guarded
with great care in a chest locked with three keys, which
were entrusted to the churchwardens of the parish. Selden
endeavoured, but in vain, to get access to the treasure, and
when Fulrnan made inquiries for it, he learned that it
was not to be found. Of the three copies of the autograph
which once existed, the first was that imperfect one used
by Sir Henry Savile ; the second was the property of
Marsham, and was the basis of Fulman’s edition ; the
third, from which Selden published the laws of the Con¬
queror, belonged to the Cottonian Library, and perished in
the fire which destroyed so many other valuable MSS. Of
these three the most complete was Marsham’s, which was
printed entire along with the continuation by Peter of
Blois in the Rerum Anghcarum Scriptorum veterum
Tomus Primus, Oxford, 1684. Ingulphus’ work, as its
name implies, is a history of the Abbey of Croyland from
the year 664 to 1089 ; while the continuation brings it
down to 1117. In addition to the simple annals of the
monks, however, it is in some sort a political history of the
time, and contains many long and important charters of
Edgar and his successors. The many curious anecdotes,
incidents, and episodes, too, which it embodies, combined to
make it one of the most interesting relics of the middle ages.
Its authenticity, however, has been fairly disproved, and
the continuation by Peter of Blois, must also be given up
as the monkish figment of a later date. The demonstra¬
tion, both from internal and external evidence of the for¬
gery, as given by Sir F. Palgrave, is too minute and de¬
tailed to be quoted. It is given in full in his article on
Anglo-Saxon History in the Quarterly Review, vol. xxxiv.,
to which we are indebted for many of the details in the fore¬
going notice.
INHIBII ION, a form well known in the law of Scot-
382 i N. H
Inhibition. ]and, by which a debtor is prevented from voluntarily alie-
natinjj or burdening his estate to the prejudice of the
particular creditors who may adopt this remedy. Accord¬
ing to its style, the debtor is required to refrain from doing
anything by which his estate may be dilapidated; but it
has long been decided that it is inoperative against his
moveables. It applies, however, not only to all the heri¬
table estate belonging to him at the date of inhibition, but
to all the heritage which he may acquire within forty years
afterwards. The extinction of the debt to secure which it is
used puts an end to the restraint, as the inhibition has re¬
ference only to a particular creditor and a particular debt.
To be effectual it must be formally served on the debtor,
personally, or at his domicile, published against third parties
at the head burgh of the county within which the lands are
situated, and recorded within forty days afterwards, either
in the county record or in the record kept for the whole
of Scotland, the former called the particular, and the latter
the general, record of inhibitions. A party dealing with a
debtor can thus, by searching these records, ascertain whe¬
ther he be under inhibition, except for the period during
the running of these forty days, the inhibition being effec¬
tual from its service, though it may not be recorded till
the last of the forty days. Even during these forty days,
the inhibition may be discovered by enquiries at certain
public offices. Any debt constituted by bond, bill, or
decree, and any action raised to compel payment, affords a
warrant for inhibition, even although the term of payment
be not come, or be only contingent. Where, however,
the debt is not past due, the court will recal or restrict the
inhibition according to circumstances, if it appear to be
used oppressively, or on insufficient grounds. W’hen the
debt is future, it is readily recalled, on security being found
by the debtor. The effect of inhibition is not to give
the creditor who employs it any preference over the other
creditors at its date, but only against parties who after¬
wards become creditors ; neither does it confer any benefit
on those who have not used it for themselves, so that a sale
of heritage by an inhibited debtor, or a bond granted by
him over his heritage, is only disregarded in a question
with the inhibiting creditor, and not with those who did not
resort to inhibition, or who only became creditors afterwards.
As it only prohibits voluntary sales or securities, it leaves the
debtor at liberty to complete whatever he was under a prior
legal obligation to perform. A subsequent disposition, there¬
fore, granted in fulfilment of prior minutes of sale, will not be
affected by it, nor a subsequent infeftment on a prior disposi¬
tion or bond. Neither does it hinder a creditor, provided he
were a creditor prior to the inhibition, from carrying off the
debtor’s estate in payment of his debt by the act of the law,
or by adjudication, as it is called, to the prejudice of the
inhibitor. If a debtor die, the inhibition does not extend
to, unless it be renewed against, his heir. A similar dili¬
gence is known in Scotland, under the names of judicial
and voluntary interdiction, for the protection of persons of
facile disposition and easily imposed on. Such a person, or
one described in the action raised for the purpose of laying
him under restraint as a person “ lavish and prodigal, of
weak and facile disposition, easily imposed on, and liable
to be concussed to do deeds to his leison or prejudice,”
may be prevented from executing any such deeds, without
the consent of interdictors, by decree of the Court of Session,
at the instance of his next of kin or heir-apparent, or even
ex propria motu of the judge. Letters of interdiction are
then raised on the decree, served, published, and recorded,
as in the case of inhibitions. The party himself may also
grant a voluntary bond of interdiction, in which, after ex¬
pressing his own consciousness of his facility, he may bind
himself not to grant any deed without the consent of certain
persons named by him, as interdictors. Letters of interdic¬
tion then follow on this bond, which are served, published,
INK
and recorded in the manner already mentioned. When Injunctio*
either of these proceedings is adopted, the effect is to re- ||
strain the interdicted person from alienating or burdening *nk-
his lands within the shire where the publication and regis-
tration have taken place, without the consent of the inter¬
dictors, but not to restrain him from disposing of his move¬
ables, nor doing any thing affecting heritage onerously and
rationally. The object of the appointment of interdictors
is only to save him from doing what is prejudicial. The
interdiction is at an end by the death of the interdictors,
and it may be recalled by the sentence of a judge, finding
either that it should never have been gone into, or that the
occasion for it has passed away. The consent of the in¬
terdictors to its recal, as being no longer required, is suffi¬
cient. The registers of interdictions are the same as those
for inhibitions.
INJUNCTION, in Law, is a prohibitory writ forbidding
certain acts to be done, and is in the nature of an interdic¬
tum in the civil law. The usual objects of such writ are
to stay or restrain proceedings at lawr, to prevent the in¬
fringement of copyright or of a patent, from committing
waste by felling timber, or ploughing ancient pastures,
from pulling down buildings, or obstructing ancient lights.
This writ may be obtained at any stage of a cause, accord¬
ing to circumstances, and even immediately on a suit being
instituted, without notice to the other side, upon sufficient
reason being shown by affidavit. Formerly common in¬
junctions were obtainable to stay proceedings at law, but
by the 15th and 16th Viet., c. 86, § 58, the practice is
an application for special injunctions. And now, by the
new Common Law Procedure Act, 1854, sect. 79, in all
cases of breach of contract, or other injury, a writ of injunc¬
tion may be obtained at law against the repetition or con¬
tinuance of such breach of contract or other injury, or the
committal of any breach of contract or injury of a like
kind arising out of the same contract, or relating to the
same property or right. This remedy at law may be claimed
in the same action in which damages for the injury are
sought to be recovered. Injunction is a proceeding very
like what is known in Scotland under the name of Inter¬
dict, or Interim Interdict, which is just an order of court
pronounced, on cause shown, for stopping any proceedings
complained of as illegal. The party asking such a measure
must set forth both a title and an interest to obtain it. Some¬
times the circumstances under which it is sought are so
urgent that it is given at once on the peril of the party ask¬
ing it, leaving the question of right to be afterwards deter¬
mined. It is then called an interim interdict.
INK. The term ink is usually restricted to the fluid
employed in writing with a pen. Other kinds of ink are
indicated by a second word, such as red ink, Indian ink,
marking ink, sympathetic ink, printers' ink, &c. Common
ink is, however, sometimes distinguished as writing ink;
its usual ingredients are a decoction of galls and a solution
of sulphate of iron, together with gum, to prevent the black
precipitate from subsiding. By exposure to the air, the
proto-gallate and proto-tannate of iron become per-gallate
and per-tannate, a change which accounts for the subsequent
blackness of writing executed with pale ink.
In making ink, it is important to regulate the proportion
of sulphate to the galls. Mr Lewis gives the proportion
of 3 parts galls to 1 part sulphate of iron, but this will
vary with the quality of the galls. For 12 gallons of ink,
12 lbs. of nut galls should be bruised and boiled for 3
hours in a copper with 9 gallons of water, the loss by eva¬
poration being made up by occasional additions of water.
The decoction is allowed to settle in a tub, the clear liquor
is drained off, and the lees are strained. 5 lbs. of gum
Senegal are to be dissolved in hot water just sufficient for
the purpose, and the mucilage is to be filtered and added
to the clear decoction. 5 lbs. of green sulphate of iron is
I *
also to be dissolved separately, and well stirred in. When
^ the ink thus formed is tolerably dark in tint, the clear por¬
tion should be drawn off' into bottles, and be well corked
up. To prevent the ink from becoming mouldy, 1 grain
of corrosive sublimate, or 3 drops of kreasote* ’ may be
added to each pint of ink. Some makers use bruised cloves
and various perfumes: logwood, sumach, and other vege¬
table astringents, and also sulphate of copper have been
used, but not with good effect.
Mr Brande gives the following recipeAleppo galls,
bruised, 6 oz.; sulphate oi iron, 4 oz.; gum-arabic, 4 oz.;
water, 6 pints. Boil the galls in the water, then add the
other ingredients, and keep the whole in a well stopped
bottle, occasionally shaking it. In two months strain off
the ink into glass bottles which are to be well corked.
Such ink as the above is liable to become yellow in the
course of time, from the decay of the vegetable matter,
while mere rust or per-oxide of iron remains. By the care¬
ful application of an infusion of galls the writing may be
made legible, a plan which has been adopted with success
in the recovery of certain ancient manuscripts. Ink is also
liable to fade on paper made from inferior rags and bleached
by an excess of chlorine ; this substance, together with acids
and alkalies, effectually destroys writing ink, an objection
which did not apply to the writing ink of the ancients, for
this was made of finely divided charcoal mixed with some
mucilaginous fluid, and resembling a black paint, while
model n ink has more of the character of a dye. Indian or
China ink may be made with lamp-black, purified with pot¬
ash lye, mixed with a solution of glue, and dried. If the
lamp-black be levigated with pure gelatine, an ink of good
colour is produced, although it has not the shining fracture
and is not so permanent on paper as genuine China ink.
Camphor and other perfumes are added to this ink, and the
lamp-black is said to be formed by collecting the smoke of
the oil of sesame.
The want of duration in common writing inks has led to
many suggestions for superseding vegetable astringents in
their composition. The permanent character of carbo¬
naceous inks would probably obtain a demand for them, if
they could be made sufficiently fluid for rapid writing. Some
years ago, Professor I raill suggested an acetic solution of
gluten as the basis of an indelible writing ink. The gluten
is obtained by kneading the dough of wheat flour in a stream
of water until the starch is completely separated. The
gluten should be kept for from 24 to 36 hours in water,
and then be digested in acetic acid of sp. gr. 1-033 to
I’034, in the proportion of 3 parts gluten to 20 of the
acid. By means of a gentle heat a greyish-white sapon¬
aceous fluid is obtained, which may be kept for a long
time. Colour is given by from 8 to 12 grains of the best
lamp-black and 2 grains of indigo, well incorporated with
each fluid ounce of the vehicle. An aroma may be imparted
to the ink, by digesting bruised cloves, pimento, or cinna¬
mon, in a portion of the original acid. This ink is of a
beautiful black colour, cheap, and cannot be removed by
water, chlorine, or dilute acid. It is not adapted for writing
on parchment, but may be used on paper with a steel pen,
which should be washed after being used.
Another kind of ink, said to be well adapted for steel
pens, is made as follows:—Exhaust 10 parts of logwood
with a sufficient quantity of boiling water to furnish 80
parts of liquid. To 1000 parts of this decoction add gra¬
dually 1 part of yellow chromate of potash ; the liquid be¬
comes first reddish-brown, and finally bluish-black ; gum, or
any other addition, is injurious. This liquor is an actual so¬
lution, and may be filtered ; no deposit is formed in it, and
the writing is not removed by immersing the paper in
water.
Blue writing inks have been largely substituted for the
black. Steuben’s ink is made by dissolving Prussian blue
(previously washed in dilute muriatic acid) in a solution of
oxalic acid. According to Hornung, blue ink is best pre¬
pared as follows:—Mix 4 parts of perchloride of iron in
solution with 750 parts of water; add 4 parts of cyanide
of potassium in solution ; collect the precipitate, wash it
with several additions of water, and allow it to drain until it
weighs about 200 parts; add to this 1 part of oxalic acid,
and promote the solution of the cyanide by agitation. Such
an ink may be kept for a long time. The Rev. J. B. Reade
prepares a blue writing ink which is free from acid, and
therefore can be used with steel pens as follows :—To
a solution ot iodide of iron add half the weight of the
iodine employed in obtaining it; pour this mixture into
a semi-saturated solution of yellow prussiate of potash,
employing a weight of this salt nearly equal to the whole
weight of iodine used in the above iodide solution. De¬
composition takes place; the cyanogen of the prussiate of
potash and the iron combine, and are precipitated in a solid
foi m; the potassium of the prussiate and the iodine com¬
bine to form a neutral iodide of potassium, which remains
in solution with a slight excess of iodide of iron. Filter
and wash the solid precipitate of cyanogen and iron, and
dissolve it in water, thus forming the blue ink required. A
portion of the precipitate added to ink made from galls
greatly improves its quality. Mr Reade has formulae for
various other inks, the whole of which form the subject of
a patent.
A permanent writing ink is said to be obtained by tritu¬
rating the finely divided charcoal employed in the manu¬
facture of Indian ink with a solution of silicate of potash.
A similar kind of ink may be obtained by heating leather
with caustic potash, and adding gelatinous silica to the black
carbonaceous matter thus produced, so as to saturate the
potash. A decoction of cochineal mixed with a solution of
silicate of potash furnishes a red ink of a very permanent
character.
Sir George Stewart Mackenzie some years ago patented
a plan for writing with a colourless ink on paper prepared so
as to produce either black or blue characters. The clear
fluid used as ink is a dilute solution of per-muriate of iron,
or some other per salt of iron. The paper is prepared in the
course of its manufacture, after the sizing and before the
finishing, by brushing in certain powders, the powder for
producing dark writing with a clear fluid ink consisting of 3
parts by weight of powdered gall-nuts, 1 part anhydrous ferro-
cyanide of potassium, 1 part carbonate of lime and 3 parts
rice flour; for blue writing 1 part anhydrous ferro-cyanide
of potassium, and 6 or 7 parts rice flour. The same patent
also contains a formula for preparing a black indelible ink,
by making a stiff paste of the finest lamp-black with a strong
mucilage of gum-arabic, and diluting this paste with a solu¬
tion of I part per-muriate of iron to 7 parts water. Copies
may be taken on prepared copying paper of writing exe¬
cuted with this ink. The usual plan for copying writing by
means of a copying machine is to write the original docu¬
ment with common ink containing a little sugar.
A good red ink may be prepared from 2 oz. of the best
Brazil wood, i oz. pounded alum, \ oz. crystals of tartar,
boiled with 16 oz. of rain or distilled water down to half;
% oz. gum-arabic is to be dissolved in the strained liquid;
and lastly, there is to be added to it a tincture made with
H drachm of cochineal, and 14 oz. of alcohol, of sp. gr.
0-839.
There are many recipes for coloured inks for which there
is little or no demand. Sympathetic ink is a solution of a
salt of cobalt; the chloride, the nitrate, and the sulphate of
cobalt, form inks which are colourless and invisible on paper,
but it held near the fire the writing becomes of a beautiful
blue. As the paper cools moisture is absorbed and the
colour disappears ; but it may be reproduced by heat. The
addition of a salt of nickel gives a green colour, so that, in
384 INK IN N
Inker- preparing what are called magic or chemical landscapes, the
mann. sky may be painted with pure chloride, and the trees and
the grass with a solution containing nickel. Acetate of co¬
balt gives an azure blue; chloride of copper a gamboge
yellow ; chloride of cobalt an olympian green ; and bromide
of copper a fine brown.
Sympathetic inks. A diluted solution of muriate of copper
forms a delicate sympathetic ink, which is invisible until
gently heated, when the letters assume a fine yellow colour ;
and they become again invisible when the paper cools.
Letters written with a solution of acetate of lead are in¬
visible till exposed to the action of sulphuretted hy¬
drogen.
A weak infusion of nut-galls, or other astringent vege¬
table, will form letters that become legible when touched
with a solution of some salt of iron.
Letters written with ferro-cyanide of potass become
legible when touched with a solution of sulphate of iron.
The ink used for marking linen is commonly a solution
of nitrate of silver written with a pen upon the linen, pre¬
viously moistened with a solution of potash or soda. In this
process the oxide of silver is precipitated upon, and combines
with the cloth very firmly. It may, however, be removed
by dipping the linen into chlorine water until the silver is
converted into a chloride, which may be known by the white
colour of the stain ; then rinsing in soft water, and washing
in water containing ammonia, which quickly dissolves the
chloride of silver. Mr Reade prepares a marking ink by
rubbing together in a mortar nitrate of silver and the proper
equivalent of tartaric acid in a dry state. By the addition
of water, crystals of tartrate of silver are formed, and the
nitric acid is set free; this acid is neutralized by the addi¬
tion of liquor ammoniae, which also dissolves the tartrate of
silver. Gum, colouring matter, and water, can next be
added, in quantities which may be varied at pleasure.
Printers' ink is prepared by boiling linseed or nut oil
in an iron pot, kindling it and allowing it to burn for half
an hour; the vessel is then closely covered over to ex¬
tinguish the flame ; it is again boiled, and the last remains
of the grease are by some makers removed by means of
slices of bread; that which remains is a fine elastic dry¬
ing oil, which may be mixed with lamp-black for black ink,
with vermilion for the finer works in red ink, or the pig¬
ment may be varied according to the colour. For copper¬
plate printers' ink the oil is not boiled so much, and Frank¬
fort black is used for the carbon. For further details on the
subject of printers’ ink we must refer to the article Print¬
ing. A curious account of inks is contained in the work of
Caneparius, De Atramentis cuiuscunque generis, Rotter-
dami, 1718. (c. T.)
INKERMANN, a ruined city, in the south of the
Crimea, at the head of the harbour of Sebastopol, and situ¬
ated on the rocks to the right of, and overhanging the val¬
ley of Tchernaya. These ruins are cut out of the solid
rock, and in many respects resemble those of Idumaea.
They consist of columns, tombs, and the remains of palaces
hewn out on the face of the cliff which rises perpendicularly
for several hundred feet above the plain. The builders of
these stupendous temples and mausoleums are merely sub¬
jects of conjecture ; their handiwork, however, has a pecu¬
liar interest from its being the only remains of its kind in
Europe.
It was on the heights, on the other side of the valley, op¬
posite to the ruins, that the desperate battle took place be¬
tween the Russians and the allied French and English troops
on the oth November 1854. At the commencement of the
siege of Sebastopol in that year, the right attack rested on
the declivities of the plateau overlooking the Tchernaya,
called the “Heights of Inkermann.” These were held by
the English, who, from inadvertency erected no defensive
works to secure their position, excepting a small battery with-
outguns. The Russian general, Dannenberg, was aware oflnland Na-
this, and on the 5th November attempted to carry the vigation
heights, and thus oblige the Allies to raise the siege. His II
troops, from 30,000 to 40,000 strong, animated by the pres-
ence of the Emperor’s two younger sons, Michael and Ni- ^ <
cholas, and supported by heavy guns placed on a neighbour¬
ing hill, commenced scaling the acclivity at 5 o’clock in the
morning, concealed from view by a dense fog. Before attain¬
ing the summit, however, they were met by the British
“guards,” and some companies of the line, who, with the
courage of despair, and against fearful odds, kept the assail¬
ants at bay for nearly five hours until reinforced by the
French, with whose assistance the Russians were at length
forced down the hill, after a struggle which raged for eight
hours, and which was a series of the most desperate hand-to-
hand encounters. The loss on both sides was heavy. About
9000 Russians were killed or wounded, and about 5000 of
the Allies. Each side lost a general; the Russians, General
Soimanoff, and the English, General Cathcart.
INLAND NAVIGATION. See Navigation, In¬
land.
INN, a river of Europe, one of the principal affluents of
the Danube. It rises in a lake in the southern part of the
Swiss canton of Les Grisons, and follows a N.E. course
until it falls into the Danube at Passau. It flmvs through
the deep and narrow valley of the Engadine, through Tyrol
and Bavaria, and latterly forms the boundary between
Bavaria and Austria. Its length is about 250 miles.
INNS OF COURT are so called, according to some,
because the students there are to serve and attend the courts
of judicature ; or because these colleges anciently received
none but the sons of noblemen, and the better sort of gentle¬
men, w'ho, as Fortescue affirms, were to be there qualified to
serve the king in his court. In the time of Fortescue, there
were about two thousand students in the inns of court and
chancery, all of whom were Jilii nobilium, or gentlemen
born. But this custom gradually fell into disuse; so that
in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, Sir Edward Coke does not
reckon above one thousand students, and the number at pre¬
sent is perhaps not greater. Fortius Judge Blackstone as¬
signed the following reasons: “ 1. Because the inns of chan¬
cery being now almost totally filled by the inferior branch of
the profession, are neither commodious nor proper for the
resort of gentlemen of any rank or figure ; so that there are
very rarely any young students entered at the inns of chan¬
cery. 2. Because in the inns of court all sorts of regimen
and academical superintendence, either with regard to morals
or studies, are found impracticable, and therefore entirely
neglected. 3. Because persons of birth and fortune, after
having finished their usual courses at the universities, have
seldom leisure or resolution sufficient to enter upon a new
scheme of study at a new place of instruction ; wherefore few
gentlemen now resort to the inns of court, but such for
whom the knowledge of practice is absolutely necessary, i.e.,
in such as are intended for the profession.”
Our inns of courts, justly famed for the production of
men of learning in the law, are governed by benchers.
They still enjoy the exclusive privilege of conferring the
rank or degree of barrister-at-law, without which no one can
practise as an advocate in the superior courts at Westmin¬
ster. As a qualification for the call, the student must have
kept commons for three years, and have attended a certain
number of the lectures delivered by the readers.
The inns of court are—the Inner Temple and Middle
Temple, formerly the dwelling of the Knights Templars;
and Lincoln’s Inn and Gray’s Inn, which anciently belonged
to the Earls of Lincoln and Gray.
Inns of Chancery were probably so called, because an¬
ciently inhabited by such clerks as chiefly studied the form¬
ing of writs, which regularly belonged to the cursitors, who
are of chancery.
I N N
Inner¬
leithen
These are Clifford’s Inn, Clement’s Inn, New Inn Staple
Inn, and Barnard’s Inn. Furnival’s Inn, Lyon’s Inn, and
Innocent. lh*V.ie? I"n> ,fVe ceased to exist as law societies.
Originally these were preparatory colleges for youno-er
students; and many were entered there, before they were
admitted into the inns of court. Now they are mostly oc¬
cupied by attorneys, solicitors, and others, and an admission
to them is no longer of any avail to the student in his pro¬
gress to the bar. See Barrister.
INNERLEITHEN, a pleasantly situated village and
watering-place of Scotland, county of Peebles, near the con¬
fluence of the Leithen and the Tweed, 6 miles E.S.E. of
Peebles. It is much frequented in summer and autumn bv
visitors from all parts of the country. The publication in
1824 of Scott s novel of St Ronaris Well, of which it
was supposed to furnish the scenery and incidents, con-
1286 great y t0 bring ^ int° n°tiCe‘ P0P‘ °f Parish>
INNOCENT, the name assumed by a line of bishops
who at various times have occupied the pontifical throne!
1 he first of the name was made Pope of Rome in 482, and
i ion 1j- 'j1- tS6 s^ond’ succeeding Honorius II. in
1130, died in 1143. The third ascended the chair of St
and1die'1 i" 1216. The fourth reigned from
1243 to 1254 ; and the pontificate of the fifth only extended
over five months of the year 1276. The sixth was the only
one of the name who was not a native Italian; he was
a frenchman, and succeeded Clement VI. in 1352, and
died in 1362. The seventh reigned from 1403 to 1406-
and the eighth from 1485 to 1491; while the ninth!
ejected in 1591, only enjoyed his elevation for two months.
1 he tenth succeeded Urban VIII. in 1644, and reigned
oi eleven years. The eleventh became pope in 1676
and died in 1689. The twelfth reigned from 1691 to
1100; and the thirteenth, the last of the name, from 1721
to 1724.
By far the most remarkable of the popes who have reigned
under this name, and, after his model Hildebrand, perhaps
the greatest of all the successors of St Peter, was Innocent
III. At the time of his elevation he bore the name of Car¬
dinal Lotharius. He was the son of Thrasimund, Count of
Segm, of the famous house of Conti, and of Claricia, a scion
of the old and noble family of the Scotti. He is believed
to have been born at Rome about the year 1161, and to
have been educated at the celebrated school of St John of
the Lateran. From Rome he removed to Paris, at that time
the first theological school in the world, and distinguished
himself there by the zeal and intensity with which he pur-
sued his studies. He next set himself to master the science
of law, especially the canon law, at the University of Bo-
logna, and soon became as eminent in it as he had been in
theology at Paris. In 1181 he returned to Rome, and,
after rapidly passing through the lower grades of church
office, was made a cardinal-deacon by his uncle, Clement
III. He now began to take a leading part in the adminis¬
tration of church affairs; but on the death of his uncle he
withdrew himself from the world, and in his retirement
composed his celebrated treatise De Contemptu Mundi,
sive de Miseriis Humance conditionis. This work is really
what its title imports; but, while it exhibits a deep know¬
ledge of human nature, a thorough contempt for the ordinary
motives of human action, it shows also a spirit that would
have but little tolerance for the weaknesses of man if these
interfered either with the claims of duty or the schemes of
ambition.
The death of Celestin III., on the 8th January 1198, re¬
called him from his retreat. On the very day that that
pontiff died, the College of Cardinals, without a dissenting
voice, elected him to the vacant throne. It was in vain tha^
he wept and protested his unworthiness and his youth,
whether his tears were sincere, or merely masked a hypo-
vol. XII. 1
INN
385
critical humility, he was at length persuaded to accept the Innocent,
tiaia. He was then only thirty-seven years of age, and
though he was connected with some of the leading families
of Rome, he owed his rise solely to the force of his charac¬
ter and his reputation for the most austere virtue. Once
rmly seated on his throne, he began to carry out the great
design that till his latest day was dearest to his heart, of
restoring to the papacy its supremacy over all the powers
and principalities, both temporal and spiritual, of the world,
iis boundless ambition, his wide views, his boldness guided
and tempered by craft, and his unity of purpose, all pointed
Him out as the man of that age who alone could, if indeed
any one could, carry out that great design, and recall the
splendid age of the seventh Gregory. A less considerable
man certainly than Hildebrand, Innocent yet succeeded for
a time in doing what it had cost his great prototype his
throne, and almost his life, to attempt. The first care of
Innocent wus to re-establish the papal authority in Rome
itself. The prefect of that city had for many years past
been a nominee of the Emperor of Germany. * Innocent
now compelled him to accept office from his hands, and
to swear allegiance to himself. He next abolished the
consu a.te, and made the senate immediately dependent
upon himself, and thus rid his capital of even the shadow
of the imperial authority. It is not likely that, under
ordinary circumstances, he would have had it in his power
to effect these changes without a struggle; but the actual
condition of the empire at this moment was such as to
favour his designs. The emperor, Henry VI., had just
died; and, though shortly before his death he had caused
his infant son to be crowned, two rivals came forward to
dispute the claims of the child monarch. These were,—
Philip of Swabia, his uncle; and Otho, duke of Brunswick.
Innocent at first favoured the claims of this latter, who, at
his coronation in 1209, swore that he would renounce in
favour of the pope all claim to the disputed succession of
‘Matilda, constituting by far the most valuable part of what
is now known as the patrimony of St Peter. The new
emperor, however,—whose rival, Philip, had been murdered
by the Count Palatine of Bavaria,—not only failed to ob¬
serve his oath, but attached Apulia and Sicily, which he
claimed as fiefs of the empire. Innocent immediately ex¬
communicated and deposed him, and crowned in his room
the young Frederic of .Sicily, son of the late emperor
Henry VI. The electors were soon persuaded to approve
his choice, and the young prince, after a desperate resist¬
ance, was enabled to make good his claim. While thus
asserting the rights of the church abroad, Innocent was do¬
ing his best to improve its internal organization. His first
step in this direction was to put an end to the venality of
the Roman court, at that time a living scandal throughout
Christendom. For this purpose he often held the consistory,
a usage which had long fallen into abeyance. He kept his
ear open to all complaints, caused justice to be impartially
administered, and himself pronounced sentence on the most
important cases. On these occasions he displayed so deep
a knowledge of law, and so excellent a judgment, that the
ablest lawyers came to hear his decisions; and these deci¬
sions were afterwards often quoted by the civil tribunals.
Again he showed his ecclesiastical zeal by rekindlino'
throughout Europe the old crusading fire. He caused a
crusade to be preached in the principal states. The first
act of the expedition was to besiege and storm the Hunga¬
rian city of Zara, which was done contrary to the views and
without the sanction of the pope. His ire was only appeased
when he heard that Constantinople had been taken and pil¬
laged, and the Empire of the East for a time overthrown.
Innocent owed an old grudge to the Byzantines. At the
outset of his reign he had written to the Patriarch of Byzan-
tium to acknowledge the supremacy of Rome, which that
dignitary, backed by the civil power, had refused to do, and
3 c
386 INN
Innsbruck. Innocent had too much work on hand to enforce his claim
v'—at that time. He was now avenged, and his wrath against
the misguided zeal of the Crusaders was completely ap¬
peased. ^He was no less careful for the interests of morality.
Himself a man of austere virtue, he saw with anger and dis¬
gust the laxity of morals that then prevailed in most of the
European courts. The most conspicuous and powerful
sinner who drew down his vengeance on this account was
Philip Augustus of France. This prince had repudiated his
wife, Ingelburge of Denmark, and had married Agnes de
Meranie. Innocent excommunicated him, and put his king¬
dom under an interdict. The ban was not raised for eight
months, at the end of which time the French king felt con¬
strained to propitiate the pontiff’s wrath by taking back his
first wife, and dismissing her substitute, who soon after died
of grief. A similar event occurred in Spain. The King of
Leon had married his cousin, a daughter of the King of
Portugal. Innocent excommunicated him, but he continued
obdurate, and the pope laid both Leon and Portugal under
a ban. Still more formidable was Innocent’s quarrel with
King John of England ; which, after much violent recrimi¬
nation on both sides, resulted in the complete humiliation of
that monarch. (The details of this unhappy affair are given
in full under the head England.) But, of all the sins against
which Innocent set his face with the most uncompromising
severity, heresy was in his eyes the greatest, and its extirpa¬
tion was with him a matter at once of duty and of policy.
To these motives must be attributed the rigour, not to say
cruelty, with which he persecuted the Albigenses, the only
people who in that age were found bold enough to think
for themselves in matters of religion. (See Albigenses.)
Though the measures which Innocent devised against
this people were in the end successful, he did not live to
see their final triumph in his own day. A violent fever,
which terminated in paralysis, carried him off, July 16, 1216.
Innocent’s works were collected and published at Cologne
in 1552 and 1575, and at Venice in 1578. His formal
treatises consist of Discourses, Homilies, and a Commen¬
tary on the Seven Penitential Psalms. Far more im¬
portant than these are his Letters and Decretals, of which
the best edition is that of Baluze, Paris, 1682. This edition
contains an excellent life of Innocent by an anonymous bio¬
grapher.
INNSBRUCK, or Inspruck, a city of Austria, capital
of the Tyrol, on the River Inn, 84 miles N.N.E. of Trient.
In beauty of situation it is surpassed by few cities in
Europe. It stands in the middle of the valley of the Inn,
at the height of 1884 feet above the sea, and is hemmed
in on both sides by mountains from 6000 to 8000 feet
high. The name, Innsbruck (Inn’s Bridge), is derived from
a wooden bridge which crosses the river. During the War of
Independence in 1809 this bridge was the centre of a bloody
action, in which the peasants, under Hofer, completely routed
the French. Innsbruck consists of an old and a new town,
and of several suburbs. The houses are mostly in the
Italian style, with flat roofs, and frequently ornamented
with frescoes. Many of them have arcades below, oc¬
cupied with shops. Among the public buildings the
most interesting is the Franciscan church, which, among
other fine works of art, contains the tomb of the emperor
Maximilian L, one of the most splendid monuments of the
kind in Europe. It is ornamented with twenty-four bas-re¬
liefs, representing the principal actions of his life, and sur¬
rounded by twenty-eight colossal bronze statues of dis¬
tinguished men, including the most distinguished members
of the House of Austria. It contains also the mausoleum
of the Archduke Charles of the Tyrol and his wife, and the
grave of Hofer, surmounted by a marble statue of the hero.
The palace built for Maria Theresa in 1770 is an extensive
building, with gardens along the Inn, forming an agreeable
promenade. Projecting in front of the Furstenburg, the
I N Q
former residence of the counts of Tyrol, is the “ Golden Inquest
Roof,” a kind of oriel window, covered with a roof of gilt II
copper. The university has faculties of law, medicine, and In4uisi-
philosophy, and had, in 1853-4, 22 professors, with 278 v tl0n'
students. Instruction is entirely gratuitous, and there are "
exhibitions for students to the amount of L. 1200 annually.
The Ferdinandeum museum is devoted to the productions
of the Tyrol, in art, literature, and natural history. The
chief manufactures are silk, woollen, and cotton stuffs, lea¬
ther, gloves, glass, and cutlery. Innsbruck has also an im¬
portant transit trade. Pop. 15,000.
INQUEST. See Coroner.
INQUISITION, in the Church of Rome, a criminal
tribunal charged with the detection and punishment of
heresy, apostacy, and other crimes against religion.
This formidable jurisdiction, created for the purpose of
checking free inquiry in matters of religion, and maintain¬
ing the unity of the faith, was first instituted about the
beginning of the thirteenth century, when Innocent III.
appointed a commission to prosecute and punish the here¬
tics of Narbonne. In 1203 the pope employed Pierre de
Castelnau and Raoul, monks of Citeaux attached to the
monastery of FrontfrOine, in Narbonne, to preach against
the heresy of the Albigenses. They made a considerable
impression, and especially in Toulouse and its neighbour¬
hood their success encouraged the pope to introduce into
the Catholic Church inquisitors independent of the bishops,
who should, as delegates of the Holy See, have the right
of prosecuting heretics.
With this view, he named as apostolic legates the abbot
of Citeaux and the two monks Castelnau and Raoul, who
received orders to reclaim heretics to the Catholic faith,
and to excommunicate and hand over to the secular power
such as still remained obdurate. To carry out this plan
more easily, he called upon Philip II. of France and the
leading French nobility to prosecute heretics of every rank,
and to seize their property; promising them plenary in¬
dulgences as the reward of their zeal. But the papal legates
experienced great difficulties in the execution of their mis¬
sion, which was distasteful to the bishops; the king of
France took no part in the affair; and the counts of
Toulouse, Foix, Beziers, Carcassonne, and other great
lords of the provinces, refused to persecute a race of men
in whose religious views they took no interest whatever,
and whose piety and skill in the useful arts made them
good and valuable retainers. The legates were consequently
discouraged ; the Pope, however, exhorted them to per¬
severe, and at the same time addressed new briefs to the
French king, to the archbishop of Narbonne, and to the
bishop of Beziers, censuring their coldness and lack of zeal
for the church.
In these circumstances, Castelnau and Raoul commenced
preaching to the heretics, and even held conferences with
some of their leaders ; but, as might have been expected,
the number of persons converted by them was exceedingly
small. Arnauld, abbot of Citeaux, the principal legate, then
summoned to his assistance twelve abbots of his order,
elected by a chapter held in 1206, and also admitted to his
counsels two Spaniards, Diego Acebes, bishop of Osma,
and Dominic de Guzman, the celebrated founder of the
Dominican order.
At this time the great feudatories of Provence and Nar¬
bonne were engaged in constant wars with each other ; and
hence, when the papal legates summoned them to prosecute
the heretics in their states, they represented that they could
not execute the orders of his holiness by reason of the wars
which they were obliged to maintain against their neigh¬
bours. Innocent III. then ordered his legates to mediate
between the great lords, and turn their thoughts to rooting
out heresy in their domains. These orders, backed by the
thunders of the church, had the desired effect, and the great
inquis
Inquisi- lords consented to sign a peace. Of these seigneurs the
tion. most powerful was Raymond VL, count of Toulouse.
Having been several times threatened by Pierre de Castel-
nau, the proud noble answered with a haughty retort; and
the Albigenses, believing themselves safe under his protec¬
tion, assassinated the legate. This outrage roused the
wrath of Innocent, who proclaimed a crusade against the
heretics, and proclaimed to all who would join it the same
indulgences as if they had been called to combat against
the Saracens.
The establishment of the Inquisition in France dates
from the war now (1208) begun against the Albigenses,
and their protector, Raymond VI., count of Toulouse!
Resistance was speedily overcome at all points; and the
church was soon in circumstances to work its will upon its
victims. It is not easy to determine the number of the
unfortunate Albigenses who perished in the flames after
1208; but it is impossible not to be strongly moved with
horror as well as compassion in reading the histories of the
time, which represent the destruction of many thousands of
persons, in the midst of the most cruel torments, as the
triumph of a religion on which its divine Founder had im¬
pressed the characters of benevolence and mercy. In 1215
Innocent III. held a tenth general council, in which a va¬
riety of new penalties were decreed against the heretics of
Languedoc. In particular, it was ordained that those who
were condemned by the bishops as impenitent heretics
should be delivered to secular justice; that the goods of
laymen condemned should be confiscated, and those of
priests applied to the use of their churches; that the inha¬
bitants suspected of heresy should be summoned to purge
themselves in the canonical form, and in case of refusal
excommunicated ; that if they continued more than a year
under the anathema, without having recourse to the pardon
of the church, they should be accounted heretics, and
treated as such; that all persons who favoured or received
into their houses heretics, should be liable to excommunica¬
tion as well as the heretics themselves,—declared infamous,
and as such excluded from all public employments,—deprived
of the right of electing their own magistrates,—and rendered
incapable of giving evidence in a court of justice, making
testamentary dispositions, or taking up any succession, if
at the expiry of a year they had failed to perform their
duties and satisfy the church.
Pope Innocent III. died on the 12th of July 1216, and
was succeeded by Honorius III., who resolved to continue
the work which his predecessor had commenced. The new
pontiff approved of the institution founded by Dominic de
Guzman, with the view of preaching down heretics and
heresy, an institution which gave rise to the order of preach¬
ing friars, afterwards known as Dominicans. He wrote to
Guzman, encouraging him to persevere in his enterprise;
and through Cardinal Bertrand, whom he sent into the
provinces of Languedoc and Provence, with the title of
legate, carried on the war against the Albigenses with all
the zeal of his predecessor. Meanwhile St Dominic had
instituted an order for seculars, the members of which were
to be bound to assist those who preached against heresies,
and to prosecute heretics with unrelenting rigour. This
order was known under the various names of the Third
Order of Penitence, the Militia of Christ, or, as they be¬
longed to the family of the inquisition, Familiars. Here,
then, we have the two great elements of the Holy Office:
first, the institution of St Dominic, or the order of preach¬
ing friars, called Dominicans; and, secondly, the Militia of
Christ, an association which afterwards gave rise to that
which was known under the name of the Congregation of
St Peter Martyr; two orders which were soon confounded,
and the members of which were denominated Familiars of
the Holy Office of the Inquisition. It was not long before
this tribunal commenced active operations against heretics.
I TI o N.
In 1224 the Inquisition had been established in Italy, under
the direction of the religious Dominicans. But it was re¬
served for Gregory IX., who ascended the pontifical throne
in 1227, to fix the establishment of the Inquisition in the
form of a tribunal, and at the same time to give it constitu¬
tions. With this view he convened a council at Toulouse,
where new measures of severity were adopted against the
heretics; he also issued a bull excommunicating them, and
further enjoining that the impenitent should be delivered
over to the secular arm, and that all their supporters and
adherents should be declared infamous. He next trans¬
mitted a brief to Esparrago, archbishop of Toledo, exhort¬
ing him to combat heresy; and at the same time addressed
to the prior of the Dominicans of Lombardy a commission,
confiding to that religious order the execution of his bull
against heretics. Councils were also held at Melun, and at
Beziers, where new regulations were adopted for preserving
the purity of the faith, by multiplying the severities against
those by whom it was denied. Meanwhile the heresy of
the Albigenses penetrated even into the capital of the Ca¬
tholic world. The extreme means of repression hitherto
employed against them had failed of the desired effect.
Several thousands of their number had perished at the
stake in France and Italy; yet, so far from being dis¬
couraged, they had carried their doctrines into the very
capital of the Pope. A new bull was immediately issued,
more severe if possible in its provisions than any that had
preceded it, and embittered by the terrible rigour with which
it was enforced in all the States of the Church. From
Rome these regulations were transmitted to the Archbishop
of Milan, to be rigorously executed in the various parts of
Cisalpine Gaul, where heresy had made alarming progress.
Frederick II. also renewed the constitutions which he had
published against heretics in 1224, particularly the law
against blasphemers, which condemned all heretics indiscri¬
minately to undergo the punishment of burning, or of having
the tongue cut out, if the bishops thought proper to show
them mercy, in order that in future it might be impossible
for them to blaspheme the name of God.
Such is the general form which the Inquisition had as¬
sumed in France and Italy, when Gregory IX. introduced
it into Spain. This event took place about the middle of
the thirteenth century. Never did plant find a more con¬
genial soil. In France and in Italy it had required strenu¬
ous and persevering efforts to establish the terrible tribunal;
but in Spain it took root at once, and in time attained a
magnitude which it never reached in any other country.
During the fourteenth century its progress was steady,
whilst its vigour and energy were continually on the in¬
crease. Its jurisdiction was enlarged, and its ramifications
multiplied; autos-da-fe were celebrated in various places ;
and its victims were counted by hundreds.
But it was not until towards the close of the fifteenth
century, when Spain became a united kingdom under Fer¬
dinand and Isabella, that the Inquisition became general in
that country, and assumed the form which it retained till
its abolition in 1808. The execution of the bull of Sixtus
IV., which authorized Ferdinand and Isabella to establish
the Inquisition in their states, was indeed for a time sus¬
pended ; but this suspension must have been of short dura¬
tion, for in 1480 and 1481 we find it in full activity. Severe
measures were adopted against the Jews, who were accused
of the most absurd and ridiculous crimes, and in conse¬
quence the new Christians, as they were called, emigrated
in great numbers. The flames of persecution raged at
Seville, where, in 1481, twenty-six persons perished at the
stake; and already no less than two hundred and ninety-
eight victims had shared a similar fate. From this period
may be dated the establishment of the Inquisition as it ex¬
isted till our own time. This was effected by the creation
of a grand inquisitor-general; the appointment of a royal
388
INQUISITION.
Inquisi¬
tion.
council of the Inquisition, afterwards denominated the Coun¬
cil of the Supreme ; the institution of subaltern tribunals in
J all parts of the kingdom ; and, lastly, the enactment of laws,
giving stability to the tribunal, and uniformity to its pro¬
cedure. By this organization there was created in Spain a
jurisdiction in matters of religion, which, under the able but
merciless direction of such men as Torquemada, Valdez, and
their immediate successors, became the most effective en¬
gine of persecution which had ever before been known in
any age. Its character will be best understood by stating
the substance of its fundamental laws, which, under the
name of Instructions, were published at Seville on the 29th
of October 1484.
The first of these regulated the manner in which the
institution of the tribunal should be announced in those
countries or places where it might be judged necessary to
establish it. The second ordained the publication, in the
church of the place, of an edict accompanied with the
censures provided against those who, having committed the
crime of heresy or apostasy, should not voluntarily de¬
nounce themselves before the expiry of the term of grace
which had been granted them; and also against those who
should obstruct or resist the execution of the measures or¬
dained by the Holy Office. By the third a delay of thirty
days was allowed to heretics to declare themselves, and
thereby to prevent the confiscation of their goods, without
prejudice, however, to the pecuniary fines to which they
might afterwards be condemned. By the fourth it was
provided that the voluntary confessions of those who de¬
clared themselves should be made in writing in the presence
of the inquisitors and a registrar, so that the self-accused
might be required to answer all the questions which might
be addressed to them by the inquisitors on the subject of
their confessions, and also respecting their accomplices, and
those whom they knew or suspected to be guilty of apostasy.
The fifth prohibited giving secret absolution to any one who
had made a voluntary confession, excepting in the single
case where no one had had knowledge of his crime, and
where there was nothing to apprehend from its publicity.
By the sixth article it was provided that part of the penance
enjoined on him who had been reconciled should consist in
his being deprived of the exercise of every honourable em¬
ployment, and of the use of gold, silver, pearls, silk, and fine
linen. The seventh imposed pecuniary fines upon those
who had made a voluntary confession. The eighth pro¬
vided that the voluntary penitent who might present him¬
self with his confession after the expiration of the term of
grace should not be exempted from the penalty of confisca¬
tion of goods, which he would otherwise have incurred. In
the ninth article it was enacted, that if persons under the
age of twenty presented themselves to make confession
after the expiry of the term of grace, and if it were proved
that they had been led into error by their parents, it would
be sufficient to impose on them a slight penance. The
tenth imposed on inquisitors the obligation of declaring, in
the act of reconciliation, the time in which the reconciled
had fallen into heresy, in order to ascertain what portion of
his goods belonged to the fisc. The eleventh article bore,
that if a heretic detained in the secret prisons of the Holy
Office were touched with due repentance, and demanded
absolution, it might be granted him, by imposing as a
penance the pain of perpetual imprisonment. By the twelf th
it was provided, that if the inquisitors considered the con¬
fession of the penitent to have been simulated, in the case
indicated in the preceding article, they should refuse abso¬
lution, declare him a false penitent, and condemn him as
such to be relaxed, that is, delivered over to the secular
arm. The thirteenth ordained that if a man, absolved after
fiee confession, boasted of having concealed several crimes,
oi if it appeared from information afterwards obtained that
he had committed more than he confessed, he should be
arrested and judged as a false penitent. The fourteenth
provided that if the accused when convicted persisted in
denying the charge, even after the publication of the evi¬
dence, he should be condemned as impenitent. By the
fifteenth, if there were only a semi-plena probatio against
the accused who denied the crime charged against him, he
might be subjected to the question; in which case, if he
confessed himself guilty under the torture, and thereafter
confirmed his confession, he was punished as one regularly
convicted; but if he retracted, he was to undergo a second
time the same probation, or to be condemned to an extra¬
ordinary punishment. The sixteenth prohibited communi¬
cating to the accused an entire copy of the declarations of
the witnesses. They were only to be informed generally
what had been deponed, without being made aware of any
circumstances which might enable them to discover who
had given evidence against them. The seventeenth article
enjoined inquisitors themselves to interrogate the witnesses
in every case where it was possible for them to do so. The
eighteenth provided that two inquisitors should be present
when the person arraigned was put to the question; but if
otherwise occupied, they might appoint a commissary to
receive the declarations of the sufferer. By the nineteenth
article, if the accused did not appear, after having been
cited according to the prescribed forms, he might be con¬
demned as a convicted heretic. The twentieth bore that
if it were proved by the books, or by the conduct whilst in
life of a person deceased, that he had been a heretic, he
might be judged and condemned as such, his corpse disin¬
terred, and the whole of his property confiscated to the
state, at the expense of his natural heirs. By the twenty-
first article the inquisitors were ordered to extend their
jurisdiction over the vassals of the great lords; and if the
latter refused to recognise it, to apply to them censures
and other penalties. The twenty-second provided that if
the person condemned to be relaxed to the ordinary tribu¬
nal left children minors, a small portion of the confiscated
property of their father should be granted them by the
government in name of alms, and the inquisitors should be
obliged to confide to proper persons the care of their edu¬
cation and Christian instruction. By the twenty-third, if a
heretic reconciled during the term of grace, without having
incurred the penalty of confiscation, should have acquired
property from a person who would have been condemned
to that penalty, such property was not to be included in or
protected by the law of pardon. The twenty-fourth ren¬
dered it obligatory to restore to liberty the Christian slaves
of the reconciled when confiscation had not taken place,
provided the king had granted pardon only on that condi¬
tion. The twenty-fifth article prohibited the inquisitors
and other persons attached to the tribunal from receiving
presents, under pain of incurring the greater excommuni¬
cation, being deprived of all their employments, condemned
to make restitution, and amerced in twice the value of the
articles received. The twenty-sixth recommended to the
officers of the Inquisition to live in peace with one another,
without affectation of superiority, even on the part of him
who might be invested with the powers of the ordinary of
the diocese; and in case any difference should arise, it was
reserved for the inquisitor-general to settle it quietly {sans
eclat). By the twenty-seventh, inquisitors were expressly
enjoined to watch carefully over their subordinates, in order
that the latter might be exact in discharging their duties.
Lastly, the twenty-eighth article committed to the prudence
of the inquisitors the examination and discussion of all points
which might not have been provided for in the foregoing
constitutions.
Such is the substance of the Code of the Inquisition, as
originally promulgated. From this abstract it is evident
that the judgments and sentences pronounced would depend
upon the manner in which the charge was prepared, and the
Inquisi¬
tion.
IN Q U I
Inquiei- personal feelings and prejudices of the individual jud°-es.
tio°- The code in question was, however, several times au<>--
mented, even in the early days of the Inquisition. In par¬
ticular, there were added to it the instructions which had
been prepared at Seville in the beginning of 1484, those
of Valladolid in 1488, those of Toledo and Avila in 1498
and lastly those of Valladolid in 1561. But with all these
modifications the forms of procedure underwent little or no
change; nor was the cruel and inhuman character of the
code at all mitigated. It was scarcely possible for the
accused, however innocent, to establish an effectual defence.
Placed between the alternative of either recognising his
innocence or suspecting him of guilt, the judges constantly
allowed themselves to adopt the latter course, which super¬
seded the necessity of proof, and left the accused at their
mercy.
The additional acts of the inquisitor-general Torquemada
also fall under the description which has already been given.
They were eleven in number, and principally” intended to
regulate details. They provided that in every subaltern
tribunal there should be two inquisitor-jurisconsults, a fiscal,
an alguazil, registrars, and other officers if required ; that
every functionary who received presents either from the ac¬
cused or their families should be immediately dismissed;
that the Inquisition should maintain at Rome an able juris¬
consult, with the title of agent; that contracts signed before
the year 1479 by persons whose goods happened to be seized
after that period, should be valid; that proprietors who might
have afforded to fugitives an asylum on their estates, should
he held as having placed their whole property at the dis¬
posal of the government; that the notaries of the Inquisition
should keep accounts of the effects of persons condemned;
that the receivers of the Holy Office might sell that pro¬
perty the administration of which they found troublesome,
and collect the rents of such as was immoveable ; that each
receiver should attend to the interests of the tribunal to
which he was more immediately attached; that the goods
of a person condemned could not be sequestrated without
an order of the Inquisition ; that the inquisitor and other
officers should be paid their salaries quarterly by the re¬
ceiver ; and that, in regal’d to circumstances unprovided
for in the new constitutions, the inquisitors should have a
discretionary power to act as they judged best, but that, in
matters of great importance, they should have recourse to
the government for instructions.
The crimes of which the Inquisition took cognisance were
heresy in all its different forms, apostasy, Judaism, Moham¬
medanism, sorcery, offences against nature, and polygamy ;
and the punishments consequent on conviction varied ac¬
cording to the presumed degree of delinquency, from tem¬
porary confinement and severe penance to the san benito
and the auto-da-fe. This tribunal was not established with¬
out great opposition. The first inquisitor of Aragon was
openly assassinated, and all the provinces of that kingdom
offered the most strenuous resistance to a jurisdiction which
trenched so much on their ancient rights and privileges.
But their opposition proved unavailing, as did also an at¬
tempt made by the Cortes of Castille and Aragon to reform
the Holy Office after it had been established. The Inqui¬
sition triumphed over all its adversaries, and soon became so
formidable, that parents delivered up their children, hus¬
bands their wives, and masters their servants, without a mur¬
mur. Terror, in fact, constituted the great element of its
power; nor was this feeling diminished by the suddenness
with which it pounced on its victims, and the impenetra¬
ble secrecy in which all its proceedings were involved.
Imagination lent its aid to exaggerate the fearful reality;
terror froze all hearts; even kings and princes trembled
before it. Nor can it be denied that, in its early days, its
proceedings were marked by a bold and fearless imparti¬
ality. It scrupled not to arrest and proceed against Don
S I T I 0 N. 3sc
Carlos of Austria, prince of the Asturias, whom death alone Inquisi-
placed beyond the reach of its sentence. It instituted pro- tion-
cesses against Charles V., Philip II., the Duke of Alba, and
other illustrious personages. Nor was it in any respect more
lenient to the clergy than to the laity. Bartolomeo Car¬
ranza, archbishop of Toledo, a prelate of eminent learning,
piety, and moderation, was accused of entertaining and
countenancing certain opinions declared to be heretical,
imprisoned for several years, and, after enduring the great¬
est sufferings, died before his process was brought to a close,
though it ended in a sentence of absolution. With regard
to the inferior clergy, a charge of heresy, or even the sus¬
picion of having shown kindness to heretics, was almost
equivalent to a capital condemnation.
I he procedure of the Inquisition consisted of several
parts; namely, the denunciation, the inquest, the censure
by qualificators, secret imprisonment, the primary audiences,
the charges, torture, the requisitory, the defence, the proofs,
the publication of the proofs, the definitive censure by qua¬
lificators, and the sentence.
The procedure of the Holy Office commenced by denun¬
ciation, or something held equivalent thereto, such as a dis¬
covery incidentally resulting from a deposition made before
the tribunal in another affair; and this, when signed, as¬
sumed the form of a declaration, in which the delator, after
having sworn to tell the truth, designated by their names,
or in some other manner, the persons whom he believed or
presumed to be able to give evidence against the denounced.
Then followed the inquest, or examination of the persons
named and designed in the declaration as cognisant of the
facts and circumstances therein set forth, and who were
made to promise upon oath that they would never reveal the
interrogatories which they were to be called upon to answer.
Next came the censure by the qualificators. When the
tribunal had examined the preliminary instruction, and dis¬
covered therein sufficient grounds for further procedure,
and when the registers of the other tribunals of the province
had been examined, to ascertain if there existed in these
any charges against the denounced, the whole was sub¬
mitted by the inquisitors to certain theologians, called qua-
lijicators of the Holy Office, who indicated or qualified
in writing the propositions meriting theological censure,
as heretical, savouring of heresy, or calculated to lead to
heresy. In case the denounced was only suspected of
this crime, they decided whether the suspicion was light,
grave, or violent. As soon as the qualification here de¬
scribed had been made, the procurator-fiscal demanded that
the denounced should be transferred to the secret prisons of
the Holy Office. The tribunal had three sorts of prisons;
public, intermediary, and secret. The first were those in
which the Holy Office caused to be confined persons who,
without being guilty of any crime against the faith, were
accused of some delict, the punishment of which belonged
of right to the Inquisition. The second were destined for
such servants or ministers of the Holy Office as had commit¬
ted some crime or some fault in the exercise of their func¬
tions, without, however, incurring the suspicion ofheresy. The
third or secret prisons were those in which heretics, or per¬
sons suspected of being so, were confined, and where the pris¬
oners could only communicate with thejudges, in the cases pro¬
vided and with the precautions enjoined by the constitutions.
In the three days which followed the imprisonment of the
suspected, they gave him three audiences of monition oi
advice, to engage him to speak the truth and the whole
truth, without concealing anything which he had himself
done or said, or which he could impute to others contrary
to the faith. He was also told that if he conformed faith¬
fully to what had been prescribed to him in this particular,
mercy would be shown him, but that in the contrary case
he would be treated with all the rigour of law. After
the formality of the three audiences of monition had
390
INQUISITION.
Inquisi- been gone through, the procurator-fiscal prepared the in-
tl0n- dictment against the prisoner, in conformity with the heads
of accusation indicated or qualified in the instruction ; and
although there existed only a semi-plena probatio, he
charged the facts deponed to as if they had been fully proved,
and what was worse, he did not limit the articles or counts
of his indictment to the number of facts declared, and dis¬
pensed with applying to each head of accusation the proper
character or notion which distinguished it. The next part
of the procedure was the most horrible, namely the application
of the torture. Although the prisoner, in the three audiences
ot monition, might have confessed as much as, or even more
than, the witnesses had deponed to, the fiscal terminated
his requisitory or accusation, by demanding that the accused
should be subjected to the question, on the alleged ground
of culpable concealment and denial of the truth. It is cer¬
tain that for a long period the torture had not been applied
by the inquisitors, either in Spain or in any other country,
the mitigating and humanizing influence of time and im¬
provement having virtually abolished this barbarity; but
the form of procedure still remained unchanged. The re¬
quisitory or accusation of the fiscal was never communicated
in writing to the accused, to enable him to prepare his
defence. He was conducted into the hall of audience,
where, in presence of the inquisitors and the fiscal, a secre¬
tary read over the charges one after another, stopping at
each article, and calling upon the accused to answer at the
instant, whether it was conformable to the truth or other¬
wise ; thus laying a snare for the unhappy person who was
about to be put on his trial. After the accusation had been
read, the inquisitors asked the accused if he wished to be
defended. If he answered in the affirmative, they ordered
a copy to be taken of the accusation and answers, and, from
the list of titularies of the Holy Office, appointed him an
advocate. No prisoner was permitted to choose his own
counsel, although there existed no law of the Holy Office
which denied him this just and natural right. To the proof,
and the publication of the proof, as it was called, both gross
mockeries of justice, succeeded the definitive censure by
the qualificators, or theologians of the Holy Office, to whom
was remitted the original of the judgment they had pro¬
nounced on the summary instruction, together with an ex¬
tract of the answers made by the accused in his last exami¬
nation, and who were required to qualify for the second time
the propositions upon which the accusation was founded,
to consider the explanation given by the prisoner, and to
decide whether he had, by his answers, elided in whole or
in part the suspicion of heresy with which he was charged,
or whether, on the contrary, he had not fortified the suspi¬
cion of his guilt. The importance of this censure must be
evident, since on it depended the definitive sentence. Yet,
says Llorente, in his Hist. Crit. de VInquis. d’Espagne,
“ les qualficateurs se donnent a peine le temps d’ecouter
une lecture rapide de ce qui s’est passe; ils se hatent d’etablir
leur opinion, et c’est 14 le dernier acte important de la pro¬
cedure,” all the rest being a simple formality. Lastly
came the sentence, which, as may easily be anticipated from
the nature of the procedure, was generally condemnatory of
the prisoner. In fact, before the reign of Philip III., sen¬
tences ot absolution were so rare in the Holy Office, that
in one or even two thousand judgments we scarcely find
an instance where the prisoner was fully acquitted, because
the slightest doubt as to the complete innocence of the
accused led the qualificators to declare him suspected de levi,
and this was sufficient to induce the inquisitors to condemn
him to suffer pains more or less grave, according to circum¬
stances, and to make a formal abjuration of all kinds of
heresy, particularly of that of which he had incurred the
suspicion. I he reading of the judgment formed the finale
of the procedure which we have been endeavouring to
describe; and the execution of it always commenced in the
same auto-da-fe where it was read and signified. It is not Inquisi-
necessary here to dwell on the ceremony of the auto-da-fe, tion.
which has been already discussed under the head Act of
Faith. We shall only speak here of the san-benito. This
vestment was merely a kind of scapulary which was fitted
close to the person, and descended only to the knees, in
order that it might not be confounded with any form of the
monastic habit. It was made of an ordinary wroollen stuff
dyed yellow, with crosses of a red colour. Such was the
san-benito in 1514, when Cardinal Ximenes de Cisneros
caused the ordinary cross to be replaced by that of St
Andrew. Afterwards, however, the inquisitors varied the
forms of the san-benito, adapting them to the different
classes of penitents. We shall only mention here those in
common use. When a person had been declared slightly
suspected of heresy, and condemned to make abjuration, if
he demanded to be relieved from the censures ad cautelam,
he was made to assume a san-benito which the Spaniards
of the fifteenth century called zamarra, and which was
merely the scapulary we have already mentioned, without a
cross in saltier. But if the condemned abjured as one
violently suspected, he bore one-half of this cross; and if he
made abjuration as & formal heretic, he bore it entire. This,
however, applied only to those who, after having been re¬
conciled, had their lives spared. But there were other kinds
of san-benito for those who were condemned to perish in
the flames. He who, after having been once absolved from
the crime of formal heresy, and reconciled to the church,
relapsed into his former errors, was denominated relapsed,
and incurred the pain of death. His fate was inevitable,
however sincere his repentance. If reconciled before his
death he was merely strangled, or put to death in some
other manner less horrible than by fire, and then his corpse
was delivered to the flames. Thus, as there were three
kinds of san-benito for the three classes of condemned who
were delivered to the secular arm, so also the inquisitors
contrived an equal number for those who were doomed to
suffer death.
The first was that of prisoners who had repented before
being condemned. It was formed of a simple yellow sca¬
pulary, with an entire red cross in saltier, and a round
pyramidal bonnet, called coroza, of the same stuff as the
san-benito, and garnished with similar crosses, but without
any representation of flames, because the repentance of the
accused had saved them from death by fire. The second
was destined for those who had been definitively condemned
to be delivered to secular justice, in order to undergo the
pains of fire, and who had repented after their condemna¬
tion, and before being conducted to the auto-da-fe. The
san-benito and the coroza were made of the same stuff. On
the lower part of the scapulary was represented a human
bust on a brazier, whilst the rest of it was covered with the
resemblance of flames pointing downwards, to indicate that
the criminal was not to be burned alive, because he had not
been adjudged to suffer that punishment, but only to be
thrown into the flames after being strangled. The same
representations were painted upon the coroza. The third
was for those who were treated as guilty of final impeni¬
tence. It was made of the same stuff (serge) as the others.
The lower part exhibited a human bust on a brazier, sur¬
rounded with flames ; and the rest was covered with flames
in their natural direction, to show that he who wore it was
doomed to actual burning. On the vestment were also
delineated grotesque figures of fiends, which wTere in¬
tended to indicate that these lying spirits had taken up
their abode in the soul of the guilty. The coroza was
marked with similar figures. Such were the principal forms
of the san-benito. The others were intended for those
adjudged to suffer milder penalties, as confinement and
penance, and generally had inscribed on them the name,
country, species of heresy, punishment, and date of con-
INS
Insanity demnation of the delinquent, accompanied with a cross in
II saltier or with flames, according to circumstances.
Instinct.^ As the Inquisition was the creation of an intolerant age,
when religious zeal was envenomed by bigotry, and ex¬
asperated by schisms and divisions, so it has fallen before
the humanizing influence of modern civilization, and is now,
even in Catholic countries, only a matter of history. In
Spain and Portugal it has ceased to exist even in name;
in Italy and other countries, where it has not been formally
abolished, it is practically obsolete. But the time was when
it acted with fearful energy and efficacy, and when, like the
Vehmgericht, it struck terror into all hearts. In Spain
alone, according to Llorente, upwards of three hundred and
forty thousand persons were judged and punished, one way
or other, by this tribunal. Of these nearly thirty-two thou¬
sand were burned alive. And if to this number be added
all the unfortunates who were condemned by the tribunals
in Mexico, Lima, Carthagena, Sicily, Sardinia, Oran, Malta,
together with Naples, Milan, and Flanders, whilst these
countries were under the dominion of Spain, it would pro¬
bably be found that more than half a million of human
beings had been condemned by this inexorable tribunal to
undergo various punishments, a large proportion of which
inferred infamy. (j. b—E.)
INSANITY. See Mental Diseases.
INSECTS. See Entomology.
INSOLVENCY. See Bankruptcy.
INSPIRATION. See Revelation.
INSTINCT (from iv, in, and oti^civ, to prick), the
name given to that principle in the animal economy which
enables all animated beings to perform certain actions for
the preservation and reproduction of their species, involun¬
tarily and independently of all experience. It may be con¬
veniently divided into physical and mental instinct; the
former, independent of will or mind altogether, although
never found except where animal life and consequently
mind exists, is exemplified in the action of the heart and
the peristaltic motion of the bowels; the latter, independent
of reason or the higher faculties of mind, may be exem¬
plified in the formation of beaver-dams by the efforts of
that animal itself. The existence of such a principle is
best seen in the two instances which have been rendered
classic by Lord Brougham,—the formation of hexagonal
cells by the bee, and the deposition of grubs over her egg
by the solitary wasp. In the former example, antecedently
to all experience, the bee constructs a habitation for her
brood on mathematical principles of economy and strength,
not solved by the reason of man till after a lapse of eighteen
centuries of his history. In the latter instance, the solitary
wasp is found unerringly to provide for an unknown future,
bringing a given number of small grubs, and depositing
them over her egg in a hole which she has made, providing
exactly grubs enough to maintain the worm that egg will
produce when hatched, although all the steps in the process
are unknown to her experience and transcend her reason,
she having never seen an egg produce a worm, having
never seen a worm produced, being herself doomed to death
before the worm can be in existence, having never tasted
grubs nor used the hole which she has made except for the
prospective benefit of the unknown worm she is never to
see. These two instances bring into striking prominence
the characteristic feature of instinctive action. It is action
without knowledge, and in the dark; action in which no¬
thing is designed by the agent, and yet all his labour tends
to a certain defined and important purpose ; action which
works to perfection in its kind, anterior to and independent
of the teaching of experience. In all these particulars the
instinct of animals differs from the appropriate action of
man. He only works well after a course of teaching and
experiment; he has a consciousness of the nature of the
work which he undertakes, and intends and designs to do
INS 39i
what he accomplishes. Perfection and uniformity are seen instinct,
in the products of instinctive toil, imperfection and variety i >
are the consequences of human labour having the process
and the result always within the sphere of its cognition.
From these and similar facts various theories have been
formed in regard to the instinctive principle. By some
philosophers all instinctive action has been attributed to
merely an exquisite kind of mechanism, such as may be
brought to explain the actions resulting from mere irrita¬
tion ; while, on the other hand, they have been by others
referred not only to thought, but to the most sublime de¬
gree of intelligence of which we can form any conception.
From the marked infallibility of instinctive labour—which
though some have challenged, yet most concede—there has
arisen the notion that it is produced immediately by a direct
divine inspiration; and in comparing the deceitfulness of rea¬
son with the faultless operations of instinct, the maxim has
become common with many writers, Dem est anima bru-
torum. Both these theories, however, are incompetent; the
one degrading instinct below its proper rank to the level of
machinery, and the other lifting it above its proper place to
the highest mood of mind. It seems as unreasonable to
claim all that is unerring for the immediate agency of God,
as to claim it for the purely mechanical agency of matter.
The fact of the instinctive impulse being more precise and
unerring than human reason, does not demand that it should
be regarded as the effect of an influence superior to it,
since in this particular, although excelling human reason, it
falls short of the precision secured by mere irritation, as
irritation itself is transcended in perfection of result by mere
chemical and mechanical attraction and repulsion.
Another theory regards instinct as the result of the ani¬
mal’s faculties actuated by the impressions of his senses.
Here it is necessary to distinguish instinctive or natural
desires from instinctive operations. The gratification of a
sensual desire is something different from the execution of
a work. In the one it is not necessary to suppose any mov¬
ing power other than the strength of the appetency, which
finds its gratification in the sensual act; but in the other,
when the process is long and complex, a purely sensual
cause seems utterly inadequate. Of course, such a theory
cannot be disproved, and there is much to afford it coun¬
tenance in those cases where the instinct has been blunted,
the animal being guarded against those sensations which
would have called it into play. Thus swallows have been
known to lose their impulse to migrate at certain seasons,
when a due supply of food was granted, and they were
carefully shielded from the ungrateful sensations of cold.
This, however, is of as little avail to solve the more intri¬
cate problems of the question, as is Leibnitz’s doctrine of
pre-established harmony to cut the knot of liberty and ne¬
cessity in man, a theory which though it cannot be redar¬
gued, scarcely demands a formal rejection. That a bee
should simply gratify herself by the laborious structure of a
cell—which as a product occupies a place vastly superior to
the motive that called it forth—is a much more inconceiv¬
able hypothesis even than an invisible power or influence
acting constantly and immediately on the animal. To ima¬
gine a sensitive organism so contrived that it shall find gra¬
tification only in making a straight line of a certain size at
right angles to a plane, and in executing rhomboids inclined
at a certain angle, is to imagine a machine to which the ana¬
logy of our own nature forbids us to be reconciled. But the
theory which would reduce all to sensual titillation demands
more than this. It postulates an organism so contrived that
each finds pleasure not only in her own work, narrowed as
it is into a given mathematical track, but in adjusting that
work to the place and direction wanted, in order that when
added to the previous and subsequent labours of the rest, a
given effect unknown to each may be produced. It errs
also in placing on a level those acts in which instinct per-
i.
392 INS INS
Institute, forms a known part only of the process, with these higher in all 312. In addition to these, 20 citizens were to be
fc[s wh’ch instinct not only procures a gratification which appointed to travel in France and other countries to make
it knows, but accomplishes an end which it does not know scientific observations. The first public session of the in-
and does not intend. The phenomena in fact are more com- stitute was held 22d Germinal, Year IV. (1796). The
plex than the theory allows or proposes to account for: to use administration of each class was vested in a president and
LordBrougham’s comparison, it is as inapplicable to account two secretaries. In 1803 the constitution of the society
for the working of the bee as the supposition of merely sen- was changed by Bonaparte, then first consul, who suppressed
suous giatihcation would be to account for the skill of a the second class, that of moral and political science. The
man who in rubbing his hands not only warms himself but whole number of classes was then increased to four;—1.
moulds a watch, or of a child who, in trying a pencil on a I he physical and mathematical sciences, corresponding to
slate foi its o\v n amusement, unconsciously writes a classic, the Academy of Sciences which existed before the Re-
Anothei theory discerns in instinct the faint glimmerings volution. 2. The French language and literature, which
of intelligence working by the same rules which guide the corresponded to the French Academy. 3. Ancient history
operations of more developed reason ; in fact, regards it as and literature, which corresponded to the Academy of In-
of the same kind as the rational intelligence of man. This, scriptions and Belles Lettres. 4. The fine arts, corre-
howeyer, is completely at variance with the dicta of our spending to the Royal Academies of Painting, Sculpture,
consciousness, which clearly and decisively discriminates Architecture, and Music. For the first class the number
the simple agency of instinct from the more elaborate pro- of resident members in Paris was 63, and 100 correspond-
cess of leasoning. It is at variance with the fundamental ents ; for the second class 40 members; for the third, 40
idea of unconscious tendency to a given end, which, from an resident members, 60 correspondents, and 8 foreign as-
induction of the phenomena, we cannot help regarding as a sociates; and for the fourth class 28 resident members, 38
necessaiy element in every instinctive act. But although correspondents, and 8 foreign associates. In the beginning
distinct from reason, with which it coexists generally in the of 1804 the temporary secretaryship was made perpetual,
inverse ratio, being regular and perfect in its operation in and the five now appointed to the office retained it till the
proportion as reason is dormant or inactive, the instinctive re-establishment of the academies in 1816 as before the Re¬
act admits of being modified by the reasoning faculty. 1 hat volution. In 1805 an imperial decree issued a commission
animals do reason, and are capable of abstraction and com- regarding the Dictionary of the French language. In
parison, both of concepts and judgments, in a faint degree 1806 the society changed its name to “ The Institute of
resembling the higher intellectual process, is clear from nu- France.” In 1808 Napoleon demanded an historic state-
merous recorded feats, and is the foundation of their train- ment of all the progress that had been made in each class
ing for the assistance of man. The bee, when interrupted since 1789. In 1811 the name of the association was
by Huber in her operations, was seen to shorten the length changed into the “ Imperial Institute.”
of her cells, to diminish the diameter, gradually making In 1816, upon the restoration of monarchy, the four
them pass from one state to another, and adapting her build- classes resumed their ancient appellation of Academies. In
ing to the unusual circumstances imposed on it. The thirsty 1832 the class of moral and political science, which had
crow which threw into the pitcher pebble after pebble, been suppressed by Napoleon, was revived by Louis Phi-
till he raised the surface of the liquid to the level of his lippe. It consisted of five sections till the present Empe-
beak, showed a power of utilizing the resources of nature ror added a sixth by two decrees of the 14th April 1855.
that is put forth in its highest degree only by him who is For this new section, devoted to Politics, Administration,
pre-eminently the u tool-making animal.” And, to a certain and Finances, ten members were nominated. The same
extent the habits, thus originated by the judgment of indi- decrees instituted a triennial prize of the value of 10,000
viduals, become hereditary in the race. Skill acquired by francs for the work or discovery which the classes should
dogs in hunting is found to pass to their pups; and the deem of most importance to the country. Several of the
dogs in South America hunt in line the first time they are appointments, such as for the management of the library,
taken to the chase, while animals from other countries, heed- &c., are at the disposal of the minister of public instruction,
less of the precaution, rush on singly and are killed. Still who presents to the Emperor an annual account of what is
this modifying power is found to go only a little way, and done by the Institute. There are thus five classes or aca-
from its transitory effects, as seen in numerous experiments, demies, from each of which two persons are chosen to
it serves only to show how certainly the operations of instinct manage the finances of the Institute. New members are
can not be referred to reason. appointed by ballot. Each has a salary of 1500 francs.
It thus only remains for us to regard instinct as a mental Those neglecting to attend are liable to fine and expul-
faculty, sui generis, the gift of God to the lower animals, sion. The institute now consists of 223 members, 31 asso-
that man in his own person and by them might be relieved ciates, 228 correspondents, 7 secretaries, and 35 free aca-
from the meanest drudgery of nature. demicians. Each academy distributes annual prizes for
INSTI1 U FE (National), of France. After the merit in its own department. Thus there is a prize of
suppression of all royal and literary societies in France dur- 2000 francs for poetry, 2000 for the best work on French
ing the Revolution, a decree of the Year III. of the new history, &c. See Academy.
calendar ordained that there should be a National Institute. INSTRUMENTATION, in Music, signifies, in a gene-
^ rim ^ie Pupose of perfecting the sciences, ral sense, the manner in which the different musical in-
pu ishing discoveries, corresponding with learned foreign struments in a piece of music are arranged and employed,
societies, and pursuing such literary and scientific researches The different powers and qualities of the instruments, their
as s ou d tend to the general good and the glory of the Re- relative pitch, &c., must all be consulted in producing a
Pu p . t'118 ass°ciation there were 144 resident mem- good instrumentation, whether in a piece composed for
e^S9A associates in different parts of the country, instruments only, or in an instrumental accompaniment to
a" . 01eign- R was divided into three classes;—1. Of vocal music. A true balance of power must be maintained
p ysica an mathematical sciences, with 60 members resi- among the different instruments, otherwise the clearness and
en in ans, 60 associates in the departments, and 8 brilliancy of the harmony will be destroyed, and the effect
oreign. . O moral and political science, with 36 mem- confused and unsatisfactory. The best models of judicious
ers res1 ent in Baris, 36 in the departments, and 8 foreign, instrumentation are the compositions of Haydn, Mozart,
. iterature and the fine arts, with 48 resident mem- Beethoven, Cherubini, Weber, and Mendelssohn. See Mu-
bers in Baris, 48 associates in the departments, and 8 foreign; sic, §§ Accompaniment and Orchestral Music, (g. f. g.)
Instrumen-
tation.
393
Insurance. Insurance °r Assurance is a eorUract between two nar-
'  V ; °ne °f "'hom’t.1'0 insurer, assurer, or underwriter un
dertakes, for a certain consideration, called the premium to
assure or indemnify the other, the insured or assured list
coSr„acyOUTh°e ( 0SVT the 0cc.urrence of “ specified
comingency. Ihe deed of contract is called a policy and
e contingency assured against is termed the rfsk Such
contracts are either for a period, fixed at the outset of tlie
transaction, or for a period terminable on the occurrence of
an uncertain event, such as the terminatinn nf a
the falling of a life. termination of a voyage, or
The terms Insurance and Assurance are used somewhaf
indiscriminately, but to mark the distinction betweeTa con
tract involving a fixed claim on the occurrence of a speci-
ed contingency and a contract for an uncertain indemnity
assurance is more properly applied to contracts connected
w,th hfe-msurance toAse connected with fi™"
The different kinds of risk in “ Life Assurance” contracts
may be further arranged under the following heads
Contracts which are to subsist until the occurrence of an
event which must happen sooner or later such as hfe as"
surance for the whole^m, the contract being limited only
by the occurrence of the event, namely, death ; Y
nd contracts which are to provide against the conse-
] lences of the same event, eithg-within a specified period
such as assurance for a fixed term of years, or dependent
on survivorship, when the death of one or more parties
favour The fW reSp0nslble’ or terminates the risk in Ins
merely deferred Tb* assura,nce “rtain, the claim being
merely deferred. The second an assurance uncertain the
claim bemg contingent on an event which may or ma^ not
Marine assurance, all writers allow, preceded fire and
have beenfe T' V” nat"ra‘t0 sul,l,,,sc that such should
venturer h»d CaSe,from the .fact that the mercantile ad-
venturer had constant experience of direct loss bv ship-
wreck or disaster, while intelligent men could scarcely
S^ut ofrT^’ thrgh/ime’ With the
that, out of a certain number of voyages, some were for¬
tunate and others unfortunate. The idea having been
ZZarslt ri8k °f 1085 mi^ht sharcd, assurance
appears a natural consequence. Devastations by fire be¬
ing at once more easily traceable to their causes and less
susceptib e of being brought under the law of average
u d not so readily have suggested such an expedient •
vhile, as regards life assurance, the predominance of the
' np5Sh- sen^lment sufficiently explains why insurance against
pecuniary loss at sea should have preceded the purely bene-
timdy death t0 mit,gate t0 survivors the effects of an un-
In all that has been handed down to us in regard to
Phoenician commerce, and in what of the Rhodian code
mantime laws has been preserved in the legislation
Tht’r11 T’ We find n° reCOrd of a contract of insurance.
thp Rn ^ iWere UnacTiainted with the practice; and
the Romans knew it only indirectly in the contract of
CeverVof'T ^ fd Carg0, n0t recoverable in
th!c 1 YY 16 S^P being lost, a practice which forms
nia„,U‘‘JCde K“o:”‘he COmpilatiOM °f J“Sti-
livcWLlVy 23’ ,49)’ where the contractors for de-
ering corn in Spam during the second Punic War, sti-
V(JL* XIX,
insurance.
tlle ®overnment sho'>Id indemnify them against
Annthby- f y Sr tempest in the course of their voyages.
it re o ded[wnUed0niUS (F'? " 18)> "here it
n , ■ Claudms granted a similar guarantee during
duced °i.Scarcl7 > a"d ” another quotation generally ad-
SjsX- f “d diVerm’ ”), mentions to
Cammus Sallust his expectation of attaining security at
accruinYtoY111^ T* fl'0m the carriage of the booty
accruing to him after his victory in Cilicia. None of these
pracfceortee^6"’ "T t07arrant the conclusion that the
those times alth^W? °f insurance were understood in
gestfve of the *rine!ple ““Seteents referred to are sug-
of the nra«!er wh° h°ld that there "re distinct traces
the practice of marine assurance in Roman History are—
Loccemus (De Jure Maritime, lib. ii., cap. 1.) ; Puffen-
dorff (Brmt de la nature et de gens, lib. v. cap 9) •
Malynes (Lex Mercatoria, 3d edition, p. 105).’ Grotius
(Be Jure Belli et Pacis, 1624), is also referred to as a
supporter of the same views. On the other hand, Cleriac
(Les us et coutumes de la Mer, 1661), and others deny the
Emerton8"rc V Am°ng m°re modern writers
Grossf l^l A ^ Assuranfes et des Contrats d la
Brosse, 1783) and more recently Dr Duer (A Lecture on
KWV XtW^entfwns in Marine Insurance, Ac.,
New York, 1844), vindicate the claim of the Romans to
p-— ; but the other hand, Beckmann, Judge
Scf1828°4 A an (<Collection des Lois Ma-
ritimes, 1828-45), regard the Roman practice as little more
than an indemnification or species of bounty, and failing to
exhibit any trace of a pretium periculi or premium given
o the assurer on account of his promise to make good a
rf X ^sured eVen‘S "light °CCasi‘"1 te the ProP«y
It is after the revival of commerce in the 10th century,
that we must look for authorities as to ^origin of assurance.
/ ,i/n .Ant®mo de Capmany (Memorias Historicas Sobre
la Marina, $c., de Barcelona, tom. ii., page 383), founding
on ap ordinance issued by the magistrates of Barcelona in
143o, was the first to challenge for that city the honour of
being the birth-place of insurance ; but having met with the
works of Uzzano and Pegolotti he soon found reason to
modify his claims. Uzzano, a Florentine merchant, whose
writings are placed about 1400, quotes the rate of assurance
from London to Pisa, also from Bruges ; and Pegplotti, an-
ot , Ital'an author, whose writings appeared before 1350
makes reference to the contract of assurance.
But Mr F. Hendriks, in his valuable contributions to the
History of Insurance (Assurance Magazine) quoting from
aidessus shows that the word sigiirare occurs with refer-
ence to assurance in an unedited document of the year
1318, the Breve^ Portus Calleritani, enacted by the Pisan
republic for its then dependent port of Cagliari in Sardinia.
{Collection des Lois Maritimes, vol. iv., p 566 ) M Par
dessus also mentions that “ the contract of reciprocal insur-
ance was known in Portugal as early as the second half
of the fourteenth century, according to a chronicle of
Ring Ferdinand, who reigned from 1367 to 1383; and
that Souza (Privileges, tom. i., p. 355) refers to King
ini PortuSa)) wrdmg in his instructions from
Lisbon iOth September 1436, that the merchant vessels
of the English, which had been chartered for the Tangiers
expedition, had not been insured, owing to the fault of
their proprietors, whilst those of the Portuguese, even of
the royal navy, were insured.”
3 D
Insurance.
394
INSURANCE.
Insurance.
The earliest extant Flemish law as to as mrance is dated
1537, but M. Pardessus, in his work abjve referred to,
makes a quotation from the Chronicle of Flanders, from
which it may be inferred that insurance was practised at
Bruges as early as the end of the thirteenth century; the
chronicler further stating that the court of Flanders con¬
sented, in 1310, to the establishment of a chamber of assur¬
ance in Bruges, on requisition from the inhabitants. At first,
this great author inclined to regard the statement of the
chronicler with very grave suspicion, no trace of the matter
being found in the archives of Bruges, or in any authentic
history; and even more recently, although admitting the
document to be as old as the second half of the fourteenth
century, and the improbability of its authenticity to be
diminished in proportion as its antiquity is proved, he still
inclined to look on the record with suspicion, the law in
question being “unknown at the present time,” and the
system of premium insurance to which it alludes, being
specifically different from the mutual insurance originated
by King Ferdinand for Portugal.
The Roole (T Oleron, and the Consolat de Mar, have been
adduced by some as furnishing the origin of assurance, but it
seems clearly proved that they did not contain any reference
to the premium system of assurance. The Laws of Wishy
are equally silent on the subject, no mention being made
of assurance in these laws till 1541, when the notice of it
appears interpolated in a manuscript in the possession of the
University of Greifswalde.
Various French writers, Cleirac being the chief promoter,
hold that insurance and bills of exchange both owed their
origin to the expulsion of the Jews from France about the
beginning of the twelfth century, but we may accept the
opinion of Judge Park, that there are no materials for de¬
ciding the question, supported as that view is by the fact,
that President Montesquieu who mentions that the Jews,
upon this occasion, invented bills of exchange, does not say
a syllable of policies of assurance.
On the whole, the question of priority seems to lie be
tween Flanders and Italy ; but we think that the advocates
for its Italian origin might fairly push the discussion a little
further, and the following additional remarks will serve to
indicate our leaning on the subject:—
The maritime commerce of the Italian States appears to
have rapidly increased between the early part of the twelfth
and the end of the thirteenth centuries, at which latter period
it was carried to a very considerable extent. It is ex¬
tremely probable, that insurance came into use in Italy about
that time; and after the advantages attending it came to be
understood, it is natural to suppose that it would be trans¬
planted into most of the countries where the Lombards had
established their trading companies. Indeed, according to
Malynes, they introduced it into England, at an earlier
date than in the neighbouring countries on the continent;
as a proof of which he says that down to the time in which
he wrote (1622), there was, in every policy made at Ant¬
werp and other places in the Low Countries, a clause in¬
serted, that it should be in all things the same as policies
made in Lombard Street, in the City of London, the place
where the Lombards are known to have first settled and
carried on their commerce in England.
In giving the merit of the invention to the Italians, it ought
not to e orgotten that in the period of which we speak they
had mane the greatest proficiency in trade, and in every spe-
cies of mercantile improvement. In Venice was established
the fiist pubhc bank, and there also was first introduced a
funded debt, transferable from hand to hand. Bills of ex¬
change, if not invented by Venetian merchants, were first
used by t hem extensively, and the principles of book-keeping
by double entry were there fir.t understood and applied in
practice. 'r
Thus, although no direct authority exists to warrant a
positive assertion that the Lombards were the inventors of Life
this kind of contract, yet, when it is admitted that in the Assurance,
twelfth and thirteenth centuries they were the carriers,
manufacturers, and bankers of Europe, the inventors of
banking, book-keeping, &c., that they originated the name
of the contract, and carried the knowledge of it to the diffe¬
rent maritime states in which they settled, and that it was
by them introduced into this country in the thirteenth cen¬
tury, there is much to be said on the side of those who
maintain, that in order to support their extensive commerce,
these industrious and ingenious people originated the system.
The first English statute as to assurance was the 43d
Elizabeth, cap. 12, in 1601; but as it designates the system
as “ tyme out of mynde, an usage amongste merchants,” the
practice must therefore have been introduced into this
country at a much earlier period; probably through the
Lombards as already referred to.
LIFE ASSURANCE.
It is curious to observe that Life Assurance, which has so
favourable a bearing on our social and moral welfare, may
be said to have originated from the study of the laws of
chance, as observed in the experience of the gambler. It
will be remarked, however, that the one is the very anti¬
thesis of the other. In Life Assurance, the individual is
freed from risk by union for mutual protection with his fel¬
low-men. The gambler takes the single risk upon himself,
and his average, if he obtain it, can only arise from the
duration of his play. In fact, the man who has the oppor¬
tunity of assuring his life, and does not do it, is the gambler,
taking the single risk upon himself.
That the one practice took its origin, however, from the
observation of the other, there can be no doubt; the earliest
mathematical publication on probabilities, being a little tract
of Christian Huygens, written in Dutch, but afterwards
translated into Latin, and appearing under the title “ De
Ratiociniis in Ludo Aleae,” in the Exercitationes Geome-
tricce of Francis Schooten, printed at Leyden 1657. Two
other mathematicians, however, who preceded Huygens,
really laid the foundation of the science, although he wrote
the first systematic treatise on the subject. We refer to
the famous Pascal, and Fermat his friend, a magistrate of
the parliament of Toulouse. But as the history of the
general doctrines of probabilities is given under that head,
we must confine our remarks to the history of that doctrine
as applied to the duration of life, and the progress of life
computations.
It has been usual to commence the history of life con¬
tingencies with the little volume of “John Graunt, citizen
of London,” who published observations on the bills of mor¬
tality in 1662; but Mr Hendriks has given the means of
more remote speculation on the subject.
The practice in the days of Herodotus was to reckon
three generations equivalent to a century, and the census
of Vespasian, as noticed in Pliny, distinguished cases of
extreme longevity. But we do not find anything like an
observation on the subject until we come to the calculations
of the Prmtorian prsefect, Ulpianus, one of the most emi¬
nent commentators on the Justinian Code, who gave a table
of the estimated present worth of Life Annuities, with re¬
ference to the requirements of the Falcidian law, which
rendered it necessary to put a value on liferents and other
similar provisions. Ulpianus, however, took no account of
interest, so that his calculations are more expectations of
life than life annuities, and in that view Mr Hendriks says,
“ The old Roman jurisprudence gave far more correct views
of the comparative value of life at different ages than the
moderns possessed, in a popular way, until nearly the close of
the seventeenth century.” Ulpianus’ calculations {Pandect,
Life 35-2-68), compared with certain Swedish observations ffiven
Assurance, by Dr Price, are as follows:—
INSURANCE.
395
Ages.
Stockholm Life,
Dr Price.
Expectation of
Males,
Birth.
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
55
60
65
70
75
14- 25
31-05
30-00
26-74
23-85
21-40
19-42
17-58
15- 61
13-78
11-95
10-30
8-69
7-39
5!81
4-09
Females.
18-10
37-12
36-89
33-43
3001
26-80
23-98
21-62
19-25
17-17
15-12
12-89
10-45
8-39
6-16
4-39
Ages.
Birth to 20
20 „ 25
Expectations
Male and Female
Homan Life.
Ulpianus.
25
30
35
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48 ,
49 ,
50 ,
55 i
, 30
, 35
, 40
, 41
, 42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
55
60
60 and upwards,
30
28
25
22
20
19
18
17
16
15
14
13
12
11
10
9
7
5
or other detention whatsoever. In imitation of the preceding- t
f nllS0 Ufn kej°UrneyS °r V0WS for a le^the*ed period, or Assurance'
a passage from one country to another, may insure for their tT '
ransom.
,“75/ ^nothef kind of insurance is made by other nations upon
the life of men, incase of their decease upon their voyage, to pay certain
S Vi?1-1, 0r creditors- Creditors even may insure their
debts, if their debtor remove from one country to another; the same
can be done by those having rents or pensions, so as in case of their
ecease, to continue to their heirs such pension or rent as may he due
to Which are all stipulations forbidden, as against good
morals and customs from which endless abuses and deceptions arose,
whence they have been constrained to abolish and prohibit the said
usages; which is also to be prohibited and forbidden in this coun-
The most remarkable feature of these times was the con¬
demnation of, and legislation against, the practice of assur¬
ance in many countries. Not only in France was it assumed
, ™c°SmTzTable by,law- but in the Netherlands’ Ordinance
of Plnlip II., and in the Civil Statutes of Genoa (1588), in
It seems abundantly evident that Ulpianus’ estimate must
have been based on actual observations in some form, but
the Romans must have had a miserable chance of life in
old age.
From that period we have nothing to attract attention till
the sixteenth century, when Dr (or Sir) Thomas Wilson, —w ^USLCIUtU11 finance ot ioy« prohibits insur-
who dmdm 1581, published his Discourse upon Usurie ance ^bo hfe of any person, and likewise wagers upon any
which contains illustrations of endowment transactions on voya£e or frivolous purpose: and the Rnttprdam Cir-A\
not be made, without the license of the senate, upon the life
of the pope, nor upon the life of the emperor, nor upon the
hfe of kings, cardinals, dukes, princes, bishops, nor upon the
iite of other lords or persons, in constituted dignitiesf eccle¬
siastical or secular. Neither may they be made upon the
acquisition, loss, or change of lordships, governments, king¬
doms, provinces, duchies, cities, lands, or places” .... nor
upon any other transaction having the species or form of a
bond, security, or wager {vadimonii securitatis, seu partiti);
but all are understood and are forbidden. The 24th ar¬
ticle of the Amsterdam Ordinance of 1598 prohibits insur-
. •_   y* timisaciions on
the lives of children, but the life contingency portion seems
merely incidentally introduced with reference to questions
as to usury. 1
In 1661, M. Cleirac, the author oS Les us et Coutumes
de la Mer, notices the Guidon, “ a French production, for¬
merly compiled for the benefit of the merchants trading in
the noble city of Rouen.” This work is nearly 300 years
old, its author’s name is unknown, but it is a most curious
document, in consequence of the reference it makes to as¬
surance matters. From Mr Hendriks we give the fbllowino-
translation, omitting Cleirac’s notes:—
1. In other countries, where the bodies of people may be captured
and reduced to bondage, there are various usages for the insurance
of the body and life of men, whether they be of free condition, or
slaves, which customs will not be mentioned here, because in France
men of whatsoever nation are of frank and free condition.
“ 2. Notice only will be taken of what is practised in this country
by those who undertake distant voyages, as to the coast of Italy,
Constantinople, Alexandria, or other like voyages in the Mediter-’
ranean and Atlantic Seas, on account of the fear which they have
of the galleys, fustes, and frigates of the army of the Turk, or
Corsairs, who make a traffic of the sale of Christians, whom they
capture as well on sea as on land; which creates occasion for the
masters and captains of this country, when they undertake such
voyages, to stipulate with their merchant freighters, or others, for
the restitution of their persons, in case they are captured; and this
they can do even for the people of their crew.
“3. In such a case, the master must, in the policy, estimate his
ransom, and that of his companions, at so much per head; declare
the name of the ship, the stay or touchings which it will make, the
duration of each stay, and to whom the ransom is payable. 'The
insurer is^ bound to pay the sum insured for the ransom 15 days
after verification and certification of the captivity, without waiting
for the usual two months’ delay; and without other formality of
seeing freightage, bill of lading, or charter party, it will suffice to
produce the attestation of capture and the policy.
“ 4. Pilgrims going to the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, or on
other distant voyages, may effect insurance for their redemption,
valued at a given amount. Description shall besides be made of
• i 7 **<*gtio uuun any
voyage or frivolous purpose; and the Rotterdam Ordinances
0t. , ;and 1630 rePeat tlie latter injunctions. The 10th
article (TY^z-e 6) of the great French Marine Ordinance of
Louis XIV., dated 1681, says, “We forbid the making of
any .insurance on the life of men but the 11th article ex¬
cepts those who redeem captives, and guarantees the price
of the redemption assured upon the persons, if the redeemed
on his way back perish bp other means than natural death.
Lven later than the 17th century,” adds Hendriks, “life in¬
surance was regarded in France as obnoxious. In 1783,
theie remained a spirit of opposition to it. Emerigon,
whose work on assurance comprises more than 1300 quarto
pages, devotes one page to the subject of life assurance, and
that short space to the purpose of attacking the system.”
Rut we must now pass on to a more interesting period,
when we are called on to consider the conflicting claims of
great names, with reference to the origination and practical
application of the doctrine of annuities, as derived from the
study of the laws of chance or probability.
John de Wit, the Grand Pensionary of Holland, sub¬
mitted to the States-General of Holland, in 1671, a trea¬
tise on the valuation of life annuities, and, on the basis of
that document, it was resolved to grant life annuities for
the purpose of raising funds. This treatise Mr Hendriks
characterizes as “ the first known production of any age
treating in a formal manner of the valuation of life annui¬
ties,” and the scientific world are much indebted to him for
the restoration of this document, which was inserted in the
Resolutions of the States of Holland and West Friesland
of the year 1671, and which had remained as good as lost
for 180 years.
In the preparation of this document De Wit was no doubt
aided by the preceding labours of Pascal, Fermat, and Huy¬
gens, and he had no doubt the advantage of observations on
the duration of life among persons to whom the States of
Holland had previously granted annuities; but, indepen¬
dently of the originality of the design, we must give him
nwir persons, names, surnames, country, abode, age, and rank; . L11C 'Jiiginauiy or me design, we must give him
and, moreover, limit shall be made as to within what time they entire credit of having discovered a correct principle on
undertake to make and accomplish the voyage : the longest period which the value of a life annuity might be calculated. 1
shall be of three years inclusive, without admitting excuse of illness, De Wit’s Treatise is headed “ Value of Life Annuities!
396 I N S U E
Life ’n proportion to Redeemable Annuities.” He commences
Assurance. p0jntjng out t}]e difference between a “ redeemable
annuity,” as he terms it, at 4 per cent., that is a perpetuity
at 25 years’ purchase, or perpetual investment at 4 per cent.,
and a life annuity ; estimating the value of the latter in the
most favourable circumstances as “ really not below, but cer¬
tainly above 16 years’ purchase.” He then gives some pre¬
liminary observations on the doctrine of chances, and after¬
wards applies the principle to the calculation of an annuity
value at a particular age. His calculations are simplified
and explained as follows by Mr Hendriks:—
“ First, Out of 128 lives, aged say 3 years, 1 is supposed to die
in every half-year of the first 100 half-years, or 2 per annum for
50 years, leaving 28 alive, aged 53 years, at the end of the term;
out of whom 1 dies in every 9 months, being 0’66 per half-year
during the next 20 half-years, or 1’33 per annum for 10 years,
leaving IS’GG alive, aged 63 years, at end of second term ; of whom
1 dies in every year for 10 years, being 0’5 per half-year during
the next 20 half-years, leaving 5'66 alive, aged 73 years, at the
end of the third term; of whom 1 dies in every year and a half
for 7 years, being 0-33 per half-year during the next 14 half-years,
leaving 1 alive, aged 80, at the end of the fourth term; which
survivor does not live over another half-year. Secondly, Out
of the 128 lives, those who die in the respective half-years be¬
tween the ages of 3 and 80, will receive an annuity certain in
half-yearly instalments, for a term equal in continuance to the
number of completed half-years elapsed between age 3 and the
date of their death ; therefore, the sum of the present values of
half-yearly annuities certain, for the corresponding terms multi¬
plied in the numbers dying within such respective terms, gives the
present worth of all the annuities which will be enjoyed by the 128
lives, of which represents the present value of the single life
annuity at age of, say 3 years.”
We have dwelt at some length on the discovery of De
Wit, as it has not been available previously in any account
given of the progress of life calculations, our best writers in
this country, from the absence of any precise knowledge in
regard to it, having passed it over with a slight notice.
On the continent, however, the labours of De Wit have
been more highly appreciated. The Marquis of Condorcet,
in his Discours Preliminaire, gave him the credit of being
“ the first mathematician who thought of applying calcula¬
tion to political questions.” “ It was he who first essayed
to fix the rate of life annuities according to the probabilities
of life given by the tables of mortality. Upon politics,
upon the true interests of nations, upon the freedom of
trade, he had very superior ideas to those of his age; and
we may say that his premature death was a misfortune to
Europe as well as to his country.”
We cannot conclude our notice of De Wit without men¬
tioning the name of his fellow-labourer, if we may so term
him, the Burgomaster Hudde. We had at one time rather
a painful impression left on our mind, arising out of the
terms of Hudde’s certificate to the report of De Wit to the
States-General, and other observations by Mr Hendriks,
but we are glad to find, from the correspondence subse¬
quently brought forward, that they were fellow-labourers
in the same field, and that Hudde himself was a man of
science.
We have now to mention the first published work in
which an attempt is made to form Tables of Mortality.
We allude to the work of John Graunt, whose name has
been already mentioned. It was published in 1662, and is
the fiist book on the subject of life observations, as a dis¬
tinct treatise. It is entitled, Natural and Political Obser¬
vations, mentioned in a following index, and made upon
the Bills of Mortality, by John Graunt, citizen of London,
(afterwards described in the fifth edition as “ Captain John
Graunt, r.R.S. ) A century previous to the publication
ol this httle volume, viz., on 1st January 1562, the first re¬
gister of burials was commenced in London, the necessity
for the inquiry arising from the great mortality occasioned
by the plague at that time. From that time the bills of
A N C E.
mortality were kept at irregular intervals, according to the Life
appearance and disappearance of the plague, but from 1603 Assurance,
the records were continued uninterruptedly. Graunt paid
particular attention to these weekly returns, and, with a
sagacious appreciation of their value, reduced the results
into tables, “ in order to the more ready comparing of one
year, season, parish, or other division of the city.” He
analyses the bills themselves, and draws certain conclusions
with great adroitness, giving the first semblance of a table
of mortality in the arrangement of deaths in decads. The
work passed through five editions, the last under the super¬
intendence of his relative Sir William Petty, who himself
paid some attention to the subject, having published Essays
on Political Arithmetic concerning the People, Housings,
&jc., of London and Paris. Essay concerning the Multi¬
plication of Mankind, and the Growth of the city of Lon¬
don. Observations on the Dublin Bills of Mortality, &c.;
and Discourse on Duplicate Proportion, read before the
Royal Society 1674.
From this time till 1693, when the celebrated Dr Hal¬
ley’s investigations and calculations appeared, there is little
to attract attention. A set of tables were published during
this interval, entitled, Tables for Reneiving and Purchasing
of the Leases of Cathedral Churches and Colleges, &c.; also
Tables for Renewing and Purchasing of Lives, &c., bear¬
ing the imposing title of “ Sir Isaac Newton’s Tables;” but
we learn from Mr Edwin James Farren’s historical Essay
on the Rise and Early Progress of the Doctrine of Life
Contingencies in England, that Sir Isaac Newton being
then at Cambridge (Lucasian Professor vice Barrow), it
appears to have been thought politic to obtain his sanction
or imprimatur as to the correctness of the tables, and “ his
original cognizance of the work appears to have been to
merely confirm the (Q.E.D) correctness of a single table
relative to the established usage of renewing college leases.”
In No. 196 of the Philosophical Transactions, 1693,
Dr Halley published the result of his investigations under
the following title :—“ An Estimate of the Degrees of the
Mortality of Mankind, drawn from curious Tables of the
Births and Funerals at the city of Breslau, with an attempt
to ascertain the Price of Annuities upon Lives, by E. Hal¬
ley, R.S.S.”
The Table of Dr Halley is arranged exactly in the same
form as the mortality tables of the present day, and shows
the numbers living at each age, being the first* table of the
kind. He proceeded to form annuity values from his mor¬
tality table; but as he computed at one rate of interest
only, 6 per cent., and the values were given for every fifth
year merely, his results were very limited in their applica¬
tion. His mode of construction was not consecutive, he
having failed to obtain a general formula for the value of
annuities; but if he had made separate calculations for
each year of age, he would, no doubt, have discovered the
general solution. Dr Halley’s formula for annuity values
in modern notation (Milne’s) is as follows:—
A = a~1 {^(1 +r} -1 + 2a (1 +r)~2, &c. &c.
In specifying the uses to which his table may be put, he
thus indicates the calculations of assurances. “ Use IV.—
By what has been said the price of insurance upon lives
ought to be regulated, and the difference is discovered be¬
tween the price of insuring the life of a man of 20 and 50.
For example—it being 100 to 1 that a man of 20 dies not
in a year, and but 38 to 1 for a man of 50 years of age,”
&c. It will be perceived that the reference made is to short
period assurances, which, as will be shown afterwards, was
the practice of the day.
Dr Halley may be designed, then, the discoverer and
scientific arranger of what are called Life Tables, but there
is no doubt that De Wit preceded him by some years in
the elimination of a method by which the true value of a
t
I N S U R
Halley was more scientific
Lif%p ^ anUiw-C°uld °btained J u.uie scienunc
Assurance, than De Wit, but there is no occasion to place the one
above the other, they both made important discoveries and
valuable additions to our knowledge, and, without clashing
they may be referred to as the originators of the application
of the doctrine of probabilities of life and death to practi¬
cal uses. r
Notwithstanding the progress thus made in ascertaining
the values of life annuities at particular ages, the Govern^
ment continued to disregard such knowledge in their enact¬
ments, and in 1694 made the following estimate in a money
act, which was passed in that year :— J
Single life  7 years’purchase.
Two lives  gi.
Three lives  10
Which rates, under another act passed in 1703 were
raised, on ’
A single life, to 9 years’ purchase.
Two lives to 11
Three lives to 12
Abraham de Moivre comes next. The first edition of
his tract, entided Annuities upon Lives, &c., by Abraham
De Moivre, F.R S, was published in 1724, and passed
through several editions viz, in 1738, in 1750, in 1752, and,
hna%, m 1756. 1 his distinguished analyst improved what
Halley had begun, and Mr Farren points out very distinctly,
that the formula, generally attributed to Thomas Simpson,
by which the value of an annuity at any age may be de¬
rived from that at the next higher age, must now be attri¬
buted to De Moivre, he having generalized the formula
given by Halley. We have not been able to find the pas-
^.en0n W^1C^ Farren founds his claim in the 4th edition
1752, or m the edition of 1756; but as Mr Farren quotes
from the edition of 1724, that is sufficient authority.
formula may be given as follows, in modern nota¬
tion (Milne s), and it may be afterwards compared with
that ol Simpson and of Euler, to whom the discovery has
also been attributed:— J
A=1aa~ 1 (l+r) -1 (IVA)
But the labours of De Moivre are best known from his
hypothesis, that the decrements of life are equally and uni¬
formly progressive. He took Dr Halley’s observations
from the Breslau mortality, and finding that the decrements
of life, for considerable intervals of time, were nearly in
arithmetical progression, he assumed, that out of a given
number of persons born, a certain number of deaths would
take place annually, fixing the limit of life at 86 years;
thus out of 86 lives, assuming that 1 would die annually,5
the mortality the first year would be one out of 86; the
second year ] out of 85 ; and when the lives were reduced
to 50, the mortality became 2 per cent, that is, 1 out of
A N C E.
397
50, and so on. Upon this basis he worked out a system, Life
which, from the uniformity of its series, was easily made Assurance,
applicable to all single life calculations. The results agreed
closely with the true values according to Halley, from 30
to 70, and this mode of calculation was so far useful at the
time; but the talented author did not succeed in applying
the theorem satisfactorily to joint lives. It is quite possible,
we think, that an extension or modification of De Moivre’s
hypothesis, at some future day, may be found practicable,
and we are rather inclined to think that the discussion
proved favourable to the more complete investigation of the
laws and doctrines involved. At any rate we agree with
Badey, that his hypothesis will ever remain a proof of his
genius and abilities.
We have only further to direct attention to the fact of
De Moivre having proposed questions as to assurance
values. See Problems 14th and 15th in his 4th edition.
He also published a paper in the Philosophical Trans¬
actions, 1754, to determine the value of life annuities when
a proportion is required from the date of last payment to
the date of death.
After De Moivre, we pass on to Thomas Simpson,1 who,
in 1742, published The Doctrine of Annuities and Rever¬
sions, deduced from General and Evident Principles,
with useful Tables, showing the Values of Single and Joint
Lives, &c. Simpson did not think the Breslau Tables of
Halley at all applicable to London, and considered Smart’s
Tables on London Observations required correction with
leference to the afflux of people from all parts up to town.
The whole subject is treated by Mr Simpson in a much
more perspicuous manner than by any previous writer. His
formulae are general, and adapted to any table of mortality,
and although De Moivre portrayed the method of obtain¬
ing the annuities on lives at a younger age, from the values
at the immediately preceding age, still we must allow that
the advancement of the science is more attributable to
Simpson than to De Moivre. Simpson’s formula is con¬
tained in the seventh corollary to the first problem, in his
Doctrine of Annuities, which declares—“ If the value (P )
of the joint lives A, B, C, be given, or once computed, the
value (K) of the next younger lives A, B, C, &c, whose
ages are each, respectively, one year less than those of
ABC, &c., may be easily derived. And the result shown is
K _t—p QRS, &c.
rQKS, &c.
i i i
QRS, &c., being the numbers found in the table of obser¬
vations against the next younger ages, and r the amount
of L.l in a year.” In modern notation this becomes
ABC, &c. = fabc) (abc) —1 (1 +r)~1 |T +1 (ABC)j, &c.,
which is evidently the same as De Moivre’s process.
“LSrLT, ZufCJ :T;Joh" “»<» -
bills of mortality in 1727 28 • iml itPl7S8 nf+ f ^ bmart in this publication, the ages appear to have been added to the London
Lsh dir Richard UaZ J, Z n reSUltS had been °btained’ he P^^ed the first table composed from Enl-
Dr Halley’s hypothesis, «„<1 calculated by the ™th„d“ah “hi M Ab de Moivre to 4 5 6 TTZZ T’ °"
rence, land surveyor, 1730—A Dissertation upon Estates, upon Lives, &c. Gael Morris’ 1735—Tables for ft, t • ’ c, ®dw®-rd Ijaw-
Leases, and also for Renewing and Purchasing of Lives, &c VVeyman Lee 1737 An Essan in A • nwln9 lur chasing of
for Years and Lives, and to Estimate the ChLes of the Duration ZZles ivlZe lJlIZltilT 11 °f °f An™ities
Zbtr Ur, eq“‘rhprob>bl0 lifetime °f *
published A Valuation of Annuities and Leases certain for a Single Life, in which he endeavoured to defend himself Z
b1? aMWer ,° We)"”“ L“- "h° had attacked’his
■eases, Sc, hut those tuehtioued IZ\ ^ ** «**•
1
INSURANCE.
398
Life “Subsequent investigations,” says Farren, “have indeed
Assurance, revealed to us that Simpson’s formulas were capable of im-
v/-,w/ provement, but the principle of relying solely upon the
doctrine of mathematical ‘ probability ’ in demonstrating
life-contingency problems, without being restricted to any
particular set of numerical results, is still happily recognised
by calculators, and undoubtedly owes its prevalence to the
pre-eminent example thus afforded by this celebrated ma¬
thematician.” It should, however, be mentioned that
Simpson’s rules being partly deduced from De Moivre’s
hypothesis, and partly from real observations, are thus ren¬
dered of diminished value.
It is perhaps scarcely fair to record the foibles of men of
learning, but historical notes such as these would be want¬
ing in completeness if we did not refer to the controversy
between Simpson and De Moivre. It is characteristic of
the times in which they lived, and if not instructive, is
certainly amusing. Mr Simpson appears at a subsequent
date to have got into controversy also with Deparcieux,
and he complains with some bitterness of Deparcieux
having criticized with more severity than judgment the
alterations he had made in Smart’s table of mortality for
London ; but Simpson appears to have taken his information
at second-hand, and that the views of M. Deparcieux were
erroneously reported. Mr Milne, however, considers M.
Deparcieux’s remarks “ to be both candid and just,” and
gives them at length in the introduction to his Treatise on
the Valuation of Annuities and Assurances, vol. i., p. 8. In
1752, Mr Simpson published his Select Exercises for Young
Proficients in the Mathematics. That part relating to
annuities was separately printed in 1791, and is generally
bound up with his Doctrine of Annuities and Reversions.
In this last publication, he gives approximations to the
value of reversionary sums and annuities upon lives accord¬
ing to assigned order of precedency.
M. Antoine Deparcieux, in 1746, published his Essais
sur les Probahilites de la Duree de la vie Humaine. This
work contains valuable tables of mortality, derived from the
registers of deaths in the different religious houses in
France, separating the males and females. M. Deparcieux
also made use of the experience of the French Tontines,
and by separating the sexes, he ascertained the greater
longevity of female life. His calculations of the values of
annuities on single lives are made at three rates of inter¬
est. Milne considered his tables to be some of the most
useful that had then been published, and the values of
annuities given by them nearer the truth for the average
of England than any others of which he was aware, ex¬
cept in old age, when they were certainly too small. Al¬
together, he seems to have made a valuable addition to
the information of the day. His work attracted much at¬
tention on the Continent, and it is understood to have
been the foundation of the articles, “ Rentes Viageres,”
and “ Vie, Duree de la,” in the Encyclopedic. He had a
nephew of the same name, who published a quarto volume
at Paris in 1781, on annuities certain, entitled Traite des
Annuites.
^ Omitting the minor works of James Hodgson in 1747;
George Louis le Clerc, Comte de Buffon, in 1749; Thomas
Short in 1750; and Corbyn Morris in 1751, we come to
the works of James Dodson, who in 1751 contributed a
paper to the Philosophical Transactions, “On the Improve¬
ment of the Bills of Mortality;” in 1753, he published a
second volume of the Mathematical Repository, which con¬
tained solutions of various annuity questions on De Moivre’s
hypothesis; in 1754, he contributed a paper to the Philo¬
sophical Transactions, suggesting an improvement on De
Moivre s calculation connected with the payment of a pro¬
portion of annuity to the date of death; and in 1755, he
published the third volume of his Mathematical Repository,
which is entirely devoted to problems relating to annuities
reversions, survivorships, insurances, and leases dependent Life
on lives. Assurance.
These publications of Dodson are highly interesting, and
we find considerable prominence given to assurance calcu¬
lations as distinct from annuities. De Moivre and Simpson
gave one or two problems from which assurances might be
inferred, or which involved the assurance principle; but
Dodson proposed the solution of distinct problems on the
subject. All the solutions, however, being based on an
erroneous principle, are of little practical value.
Passing over the works of William Kersseboom of the
Hague, to be found in the Phil. Trans., May 1753, and of
S. Stonehouse (1754), whose new tables, deduced from the
London Bills of Mortality, do not differ largely from those of
Simpson, and the paper of the Rev. William Brakenridge,
in the Phil. Trans, of 1755, we notice the labours of
Leonard Euler, who, as Bailey expresses it, “ has conde¬
scended to illustrate the first principles of this science.” In
1760, in a paper inserted by him in the Histoire de VAcad.
Roy. de Berlin, entitled “ Recherches Generales sur la
Mortalite et la Multiplication du Genre Humaine,” he gave
a formula, similar to that of De Moivre and Simpson, for
ascertaining the value of an annuity at any age, from the
value at the age immediately preceding ; and by it he cal¬
culated a table for single lives, on a table of mortality pre¬
pared by M. Kersseboom, founded chiefly upon the regis¬
ters of the Dutch annuitants, carefully examined for a cen¬
tury backward. His formula is—
r~i 1(111+1)/. r
““V-H (1 + M + 1,)
m and m+l being values of annuities upon lives aged m
and m+ \ years respectively (m) and (m + 1) the numbers
that attain to those ages, according to the table of mortality,
and the present value of L.l, to be received at the ex¬
piration of a year; being the same formula as given in mo¬
dern notation, in the explanation of De Moivre’s discovery
of the process. In the second volume of his Opuscula
Analytica, published after his death in 1785, the solution
of a question relating to reversionary annuities is given—a
much more arduous undertaking, be it observed, than in the
present day, when so many auxiliary tables are ready to
assist the actuary.
In 1759 the publications of Graunt, Petty, and Corbyn
Morris, were reprinted in a work entitled Collection of the
yearly Bills of Mortality, from 1657 to 1758 inclusive, to¬
gether with several other Bills of an earlier date (anony¬
mous) ; and A Comparative View of the Diseases and Ages,
and a Table of the Probabilities of Life, by J. P., Esq.,
F.R.S. These were supposed to have been arranged by
Dr Birch, secretary of the Royal Society, from materials
furnished by Dr Heberden ; and the Table of Probabilities
was calculated by James Postlethwayte, Esq. Mr Farren
says, “ the publication is, in every respect, worthy of being
consulted, especially by statisticians interested in the early
history of the London bills of mortality, these being printed
at full length, and a very judicious preface prefixed.”
We have now to mention the works of an author, whose
name is known more extensively in connection with life
assurance than probably any other—we refer to Dr Price.
He wrote at a time when the practice may be said to have
been purely experimental, and with a disinterested desire
of protecting the public from erroneous and ill-digested
schemes, he did good service to the cause by hastening and
guiding its reform. Had he done no more than put an end
to many of the bubble schemes of the days in which he wrote,
his name would have been deservedly remembered, but he
did more, and much more, in the cause. Even the first
three editions of his work, which mainly contained a polemic
Life
Assurance
against the errors of the annuity plans then prevalent was
highly suggestive on many other points, especially in show¬
ing the necessity of more accurate observations on the mor¬
tality of human life, in order to determine with more cor¬
rectness the value of life annuities. In 1783 a fourth edi¬
tion of the work appeared, enriched with much new matter
Various tables calculated on the Northampton Observation®
were contained in this edition, also the Swedish tables, found¬
ed on the observations of Mr Wargentin, who was one of the
commissioners appointed to take charge of the returns of
the annual births and deaths in all Sweden and Finland
The number of the people, sexes distinguished, was returned
to these commissioners once in three years, and Mr Warden-
tin furnished to the Transactions of the Royal Acadeiny an
abstract of the returns for nine years, 1755 to 1763, for the
whole kingdom, and Stockholm separately. Waro-entin
died in 1783, but Mr Nicander, his successor, who^after-
wards continued his observations, maintains that he left
similar computations for four periods—(1765-6-7), (1768-9),
(1772), (1774-5 and 6)—and that an abstract deduced from
these statements was sent by him to Dr Price not lon<T be-
fbre his death. Dr Price acknowledges his obligations to
Mr Wargentin, as well as to Mr Oeder of Oldenburgh, and
Jo,l”7 P^r Sussmilch, the author of Gdttliche Ordnunq,
or The Divine Decreet in the Variations of the Human
Race, with regard to Births, Deaths, &c. (4 edits. 1742
1761, 1765, 1775). ^ V ’ ’
The chief feature of Dr Price’s fourth edition, however, is
the introduction of the Northampton Observations and Tables
founded on them, which became the basis of the calculations
in the Equitable Society, and were adopted by many assur¬
ance institutions established during the forty years which suc¬
ceeded their publication. These Tables at the present day
form the basis of the calculations in connection with legacy
duties under the 36th Geo. III., cap. 52, and are still con¬
fided in by various of the older insurance offices. They
were flamed from the accounts kept at Northampton dur-
ing the forty-six years 1735-1780, of the ages at death of
4689 persons who were buried in the parish of All Saints.
The chief defect in the result is, that the expectation of
early life is too small, and of later life too great; but the
table has fulfilled its mission ; and although it is now pro¬
perly designated the “ False Northampton Table,” in contra¬
distinction to the “ True Northampton Table,” published in
the records of the registrar-general, we can still afford to
give it its meed of praise, and we have no hesitation in
pointing to it as one of those supports which has lent valu¬
able aid in the construction of the vast fabric of life assur¬
ance. The inaccuracy of the table we can only touch upon
very slightly, leaving those interested to refer to the valuable
investigation of the subject by Dr Farr in the Eighth Report
of the Registrar-General of England. The Northampton
Table of Dr Price was constructed from the deaths alone,
on the hypothesis that the population of Northampton had
been stationary for nearly a century ; but Dr Farr has as¬
certained the fact, that from the eleventh century, when the
Doomsday Survey was taken, down to the present time, the
population increased during the whole period; and it is
certain that life tables can only be constructed from the
deaths alone, if the population be stationary, if the births
and deaths be equal, and if the results be not disturbed
by migration.
Dr Farr, in illustrating this subject, gives a true life table
for Northampton, deduced from the population returns of
1841, and the numbers living and dying at each age in All
Saints parish there, which he designates “ the True North¬
ampton Table;” and a table constructed from the deaths
alone during the same period, which he designates “ the
False^ Northampton Table” (being the counterpart of Dr
Price’s). These he compares together, and with Dr Price’s
own table, in the following manner. The calculations are
insurance.
S99
made at 3 per cent, interest, without any allowance for ex- Life
penses or profits Assurance.
After Lifetime
at 7 Ages.
Value of Life
Annuities of £1,
at 7 Ages.
By True
North-
ampton
Table.
37-57
47-57
39-93
32-59
25-49
18-76
12-27
Isa
c
srtg
is go
En <U p.
PP IS C5
24-88
39 54
33-40
28-15
22-85
17-49
11-91
Annual Pre¬
miums to be paid
for Life,to insure
£100 at Death.
By True
North¬
ampton
Table.
21-412
19-081
16-296
13-055
9-155
By False
Table.
17-085 12-169
23-396 20-615
By True
North¬
ampton
Table.
18-702
16-961
14-859
12-275
8-949
2-617
1-186
1- 549
2- 067
2-869
4-202
6-935
By False
Table
Single Premiums
to Assure £100
at Death,
By True
North¬
ampton
Table.
4-681 47-324
1- 714
2163
2- 655
3- 393
4- 620
7-139
28-946
34-717
41-506
49 625
59-054
70-424
By False
Table
61-642
37-044
42-616
47-686
53-809
61-334
71-021
From these data he draws the conclusion that “the North¬
ampton I able oi Mortality by Dr Price does not express
the mortality of All Saints parish in the town of North¬
ampton, of the county of Northampton, nor any other
town or county either in the past or the present century.”
We may add, at the same time, that if Dr Price’s Table
liad been properly formed, we believe the results would not
have differed from the values now exhibited on observations
correctly made; and that it is probable these results, as com¬
pared with modern observations, would have led to the con¬
clusion that the value of life in this country has not mate¬
rially improved during the last century. Without support¬
ing or suggesting the use of the Northampton Table, which,
without doubt, is erroneous in its mode of construction, and
cannot be continued in use by any society without sooner
or later giving rise to a feeling of dissatisfaction; yet we
almost regard it as providential that a nearer approach to
the truth was not then made, and that the Equitable Society
adopted the Northampton data, as it is probable that that
institution, if its rates had been little more than equal to
the risks, might have become involved in early difficulties;
oi at least would have failed to inspire that confidence, to
which the vast accumulation of its funds, in consequence
greatly of its high rates of premium, based on the North¬
ampton data, gave rise. In other circumstances, it is pro¬
bable that life assurance would have made but slow pro¬
gress, and its blessings would not have been available to
every man, as they now are.
Dr Price gives tables for single lives on the Northamp¬
ton data, complete at six rates of interest, and on two joint
lives at four rates, calculated on combinations of from five
to seventy years’ interval, which is sufficiently near to be used
for all ages by interpolation. To the sixth and seventh
editions of Dr Price’s work, there are valuable prefaces
by Mr William Morgan, actuary of the Equitable Society,
whose works we shall have to notice presently, and who in
his preliminary observations gives a graphic picture of the
state of assurance offices in his time.
The mathematical demonstrations are generally consi¬
dered the most unsatisfactory part of Dr Price’s work, and
it certainly is a blemish that, in the later editions, various
examples, or rather calculations, proceed partly on De
Moivre s Tables, and partly on the Breslau Observations,
notwithstanding the publication of his own new tables. Dr
Price has also the merit of having been the first to determine
the true value of a given sum payable at the end of the year
in which any number of lives become extinct, the investiga¬
tions of Simpson and Dodson both having been erroneous.
Baily also mentions De Moivre as having missed the solu¬
tion, but with his formula before us, we cannot admit it.
Mr Morgan’s earliest work, entitled The doctrine oj
400
INSURANCE.
Life Annuities and Assurances on Lives and Survivorships, was
Assurance, published in 1779. In his tables and examples the results
on De Moivre’s hypothesis were still required for illustra¬
tion, and in the absence of more extensive tables they
answered the purpose. On the whole, his book is highly
suggestive ; and from his plan of checking annuity values, it
may almost be said that the first idea of the columnar system
is to be found in the method employed by him. The fourth
edition of Dr Price’s Observations was published in 1783 ;
and in the interval, and subsequently, Mr Morgan appears to
have devoted himself to the study of the subject with greater
ardour and success than formerly. In 1788, 1789, 1791,
1794, and 1800, he contributed several papers to the Philo¬
sophical Transactions, in which he gave for the first time
accurate solutions of problems involving values of reversions
and annuities according to assigned order of precedency,
detecting the inaccuracy of his former rules, which were
also the rules of Simpson and others who had gone before
him. In 1821, after a lapse of 40 years, Mr Morgan again
came forward with a second edition of his work, in which,
not only much additional matter is contained, but he aban¬
dons entirely the hypothesis of De Moivre, and gives the
solutions of his questions according to the real probabilities
of life. He explains the nature of annuities and assurances
on lives, together with the principles on which the calcula¬
tions are based, giving the rules in words at length, and the
demonstrations algebraically in an appendix. In a postscript,
he gives a “ Nosological Table,” containing an account of
all the deaths in the Equitable Society during twenty years,
“among a population exceeding 150,000 persons.” These
were not the lives assured, but the number of years enjoyed
by those lives, and the mode of expression gave rise to some
mistakes—Mr Babbage and Dr Young being both misled.
Mr Morgan also published in 1828, A View of the Rise and
Progress of the Equitable Society.
Prior to the second edition of Mr Morgan’s work, M. De
St Cyran (capitaine en premier au corps royal du genie), pub¬
lished a work (in 1791), entitled Calcul des Rentes viageres
sur une et sur plusieures tetes, containing various annuity
tables, computed from Kersseboom’s Tables of Mortality.
He also gives values of annuities at 5 per cent., calculated
from a corrected copy of the table of mortality of M. Dupre
de Saint Maur ; and he gives a copy of Deparcieux’s Table
of Annuities for Single Lives. The algebraical formulae
are not clear, and his values of two and three lives are only
approximations. The annuities, as in Deparcieux’s Tables,
are made payable to the date of death.
In 1781 Carl Chassot de Florencourt published a work
entitled Abhandlungen aus der juristischen und politischen
Rechenkunst, in which he gives a table of single lives, cal¬
culated on Deparcieux’s Table of Mortality, but making
the annuity payable at the end of every year the life sur¬
vived, with a table of proportional parts, for additions to be
made according to the period the annuitant survived the
year.
In 1783 Francis Maseres, Cursitor Baron of his Majes¬
ty’s Court of Exchequer, published The Principles of the
Doctrine of Life Annuities explained in a familiar manner.
1 his work consists of 726 large quarto pages, but although
so voluminous, the work is full of information clearly con¬
veyed. He reviews with great acuteness the most interest¬
ing points in the advancement of the doctrine, prior to the
period at which he wrote. In tabular matter the work is
peculiarly rich, and Deparcieux’s Tables of Annuities from
the French Tontines are extended to 12 rates of interest
on single lives (2 to 10 per cent.), and on joint lives to two
rates (3^ and 4^ per cent.) the combinations being equal
ages—5 or 10 years, and multiples of 10. He also gives,
in an appendix, various suggestions and tables connected
with a proposed scheme for the better support of poor per¬
sons in certain circumstances, by enabling parishes to grant
them annuities for life; the tables being divided “ for the Life
use of London,” and “for the use of country parishes.” Assurance.
Next in order of time, and in order of importance not
behind any we have yet mentioned, comes Francis Baily,
F.R.S. With his earlier works we have no immediate
concern, but his volume on Annuities and Assurances
(editions of 1810 and 1813) contains a clear demonstration
of the whole theory. He adopts Simpson’s notation, and
gives solutions in the several cases of contingent annuities
and assurances as Mr Morgan had also done. He does
not spare censure in expressing his opinions of Mr Morgan’s
works, but although we do not admire some of the remarks
made in his criticism, we cannot help being impressed with
the idea that what Baily wrote he truly and honestly felt;
and if he does find fault, he is no less ready to praise when
he thinks it deserved. His defence of Barrett every actuary
must admire. Mr Baily’s work is a text-book in the study
of the science, and contains extensive tables, calculated on
the Northampton data, on the probabilities of living as
observed by M. Deparcieux, and on the probabilities of
living as observed in Sweden.
In 1806 E. E. Duvillard published his “ Table of Mor¬
tality for France before the Revolution,” in his work on
the Mortality of Small-pox, “ a work which,” says
Milne, “ would have been of greater authority if he had
given us satisfactory information respecting its construction
and the observations it depended upon.” From the time
of Dr Price, however, down to the date we have now
reached, there were many other writers on subjects con¬
nected, directly and indirectly, with annuities and assu¬
rances. For these, we must refer to the excellent Biblio¬
graphical Catalogue, appended to a work by Lewis Pocock,
F.S.A., published in 1842, entitled, A familiar Explana¬
tion of the Nature, Advantages, and Importance of Assu¬
rances upon Lives, &c.
The next work of historical interest is that of Joshua
Milne, actuary to the Sun Life Assurance Society, en¬
titled, A Treatise on the Valuation of Annuities and
Assurances on Lives and Survivorships, on the Construc¬
tion of Tables of Mortality, §c., with a variety of New
Tables, 1815. It is to him that we are indebted for the
introduction of the observations of Dr Heysham, made at
Carlisle from 1779 to 1787. From the data afforded by
these, which he believed “to be the only data derived
from a fluctuating population, which furnished the means
of forming an accurate table of mortality,” he calculated
tables, and published annuity values at various rates of in¬
terest. These Carlisle Tables, along with those on the
law of mortality in Sweden and Finland, proceeding from
the observations of Mr Nicander, in continuation of the
observations given by Dr Price, form his most valuable
contributions to the science of life assurance. The follow¬
ing will afford a general idea of the difference between
these two sets of Swedish Observations:—
There died annually in Sweden and Finland,
During 21 years, ended with 1775 (Dr
Price) 
During 20 years ended with 1795 (Milne)
lUales.
33-25
35-60
35-94
39-11
The Carlisle Table has to a great extent superseded the
Northampton Table. Most of the offices established before
Mr Milne’s work was published proceeded on the Northamp¬
ton data, and still do so, being probably deterred by the
complexity of a change ; but the great mass of offices now
adopt the sounder data of Milne; and those which do not,
proceed on tables very similar, such as the Chester, the
Equitable Experience, the results of the combined expe-
Life rience of various life offices published in 1841, or the Tables
Assurance. 0f the Registrar-General. The only real objection which
' y can be taken to the Carlisle I able is, that at some ages it
is very badly graduated, so that particular results are some¬
what anomalous. Instance the assurance for one year, at
the following ages:—
Age. Single Premiums
45  1-4377
46   1-4385
47.. 1-4178
48 1-3529
insurance.
401
Single Premiums.
49  1-3284
50  1-3027
51  1-3876
52  1-4758
But notwithstanding this irregularity, it is very generally
admitted that all subsequent observations have proved the
accuracy of its results, and the best proof of this probably
is, that all the auxiliary tables published for many years
have been founded on the Carlisle data. We admit that
it would be possible to have a more satisfactory table; but
it is as near the truth as we will probably ever reach suf¬
ficiently near for any7 practical purposes; and the immense
mass of tabular matter which has been computed and ar-
langed on its basis, must always keep it in the first place
as the foundation of assurance calculations.
On 29th June 1820, B. Gompertz, F.R.S., read at the
Royal Society a Sketch of an Analysis and Notation
Applicable to the Estimation of the Value of Life Con¬
tingencies ; and the paper was published in their transac¬
tions. We will not enter on consideration of the hypo¬
thesis of this writer, as our limits do not admit of our dis¬
cussing the very interesting theory which he propounds.
H is object is the enunciation of a law of vitality susceptible
of being calculated on a certain hypothetical principle,—
viz., that the vital energy or power to oppose destruction
loses equal proportion of its intensity in equal times.
In 1829, John Finlaison, actuary to the Commissioners
for the Reduction of the National Debt, made a report
to the Lords of the Treasury, which was ordered by the
House of Commons to be printed on 31st March 1829,
containing a statement of the facts and arithmetical con¬
clusions deduced, after an investigation of ten years, from
the observations on the mortality of the nominees in the
various tontines, and sets of life annuities which had been
instituted or granted by Government. These observations
proved, that at every period of life the female has a de¬
cided advantage over the male, removing all doubt on the
subject of the greater value of female life.
Some have objected to the results of these observations,
amongst other grounds, from the circumstance that they
extend over a remote period of time, rendering the data
inapplicable to present and future circumstances, if any
value is to be attached to the prevailing opinions as to the
improvement of life; but after many years’ experience of
the use of the table, and after applying such checks as were
available, we have come to the conclusion that these tables
represent, very correctly, the value of the lives of annuitants,
and are very suitable for calculations in connection with such
transactions. On the other hand, they are quite unsuit¬
able for adoption as the basis of life assurance premiums;
and we do not think any office could with safety adopt the
Government Tables as their guide in that respect. We
believe the National Debt Office are in possession of joint
life calculations, on the basis of Mr Finlaison’s computa¬
tions ; but as they have thought it proper to retain them for
their own use, we are glad to find that Mr Henry (a Scot¬
tish actuary) has had the perseverance to compute, and the
courage to commence the publication of a complete set of
Joint-life Tables.
In 1808 the Government began to grant annuities on
the Northampton Tables, and did so for twenty years. The
tables since adopted are founded on Mr Finlaison’s report.
The result of the Government operations in annuities is too
extended a subject to enter upon here; but we have plea¬
sure in referring the reader to an able article, On the Fi-
YOL. XII.
nancial Statistics of British Government, Life Annuities Life
(1808—1800), and on the Loss sustained by Government Assurance.
in granting Annuities, read before the Statistical Society,
19th May 1856, by Frederick Hendriks, Esq., whose ex¬
tensive knowledge and indefatigable research are well known
to all actuaries.
In 1825, Griffith Davies, the learned actuary of the
Guardian Assurance Company, published Tables of Life
Contingencies, containing the rate of mortality among the
members of the Equitable Society, and the values of life
annuities, reversions, &c., computed therefrom. The rate
of mortality among the members of the Equitable Society,
he deduced from the accounts given by Mr Morgan in his
addresses to the general courts of that institution, and in
the notes added by him to the later editions of Dr Price’s
Observations on Reversionary Payments. Mr Davies’ cal¬
culations were based on a period of fifty-seven years, from
1768 to 1825. j J >
In 1834 the Equitable Assurance Society published a
valuable abstract of the accumulated facts in their posses¬
sion, from which Mr Morgan deduced a table of mortality.
1 he most remarkable fact which these observations showed
was the decreasing influence of selection after five, ten,
fifteen, and twenty years from the period of admission ; and
on this important observation there are various interesting
papers in the Assurance Magazine. We would particu¬
larize the paper of Mr J. A. Higham, On the Value of
Selection, as exercised by the Policy-holders against the
Company, 1851. We would also refer to Mr Farren’s
Life Contingency Tables, parti., published in 1850.
Passing over the ingenious speculations of T. R. Edmunds
(1832), which bear a considerable resemblance to those of
Gompertz already noticed; and reserving the results of the
work of Thomas Galloway (1841), on the mortality among
the members of the Amicable Society, for exhibition in a ta¬
bular form, we may notice the Experience Table compiled
from data furnished by seventeen offices, according to the
resolution at a public meeting held 19th May 1838. This
investigation proved very interesting, and the results so far
satisfactory. Should a similar comparison be made on a
wider basis at the present time, we believe that the expe-
perience of well-constituted offices, in later years, will show
that the power of selection has proved stronger than for¬
merly, seeing that family history is so much more fully
inquired into; that the medical power of ascertaining
certain diseases is so much increased ; and that the medical
men of the present day are, especially in the country, a
much more competent body than formerly.
The following table, extracted from the Report of the Ac¬
tuaries on the Combined Experience, brings concisely into
view the results shown by these different observations:—
Table showing the Annual Number of Deaths in Quin¬
quennial Periods of Age, of 10,000 Persons living
at each Age, according to various Tables of Mortality.
20 to 24
25 ... 29
65 ... 69
70 ... 74
75 ... 79
747
814
886
972
1113
1266
1521
1800
2173
2734
3774
5414
351
410
506
547
705
718
760
1103
1847
2235
3469
5332
Equitable
Experience.
363
386
428
500
574
669
871
1240
1753
2551
3702
5292
352
429
518
595
657
769
1039
1330
1654
2204
3030
4291
Govern¬
ment An¬
nuities.
A ci
rt t-
<; ©
697
638
625
654
678
724
1076
1471
1796
2656
3630
4937
cS &
s i
431
452
498
554
575
595
653
846
1149
1732
2735
4378
Amicable
Experience.
Table
II.
244
321
427
530
679
886
1289
1836
2765
4136
6261
Table
III.
833
1166
1633
2279
3177
4410
6089
Table
IV
245
328
439
587
787
1050
1415
2041
3040
4321
5993
Experience
of the Offi-
c c —
& ",3 ra
r-* o
421
350
375
488
552
666
904
1248
1768
2627
3913
5655
-e o
<3
374
401
438
485
548
679
902
1241
1767
2589
3812
5607
3 E
402
I N S U R A N C E.
Life This combination of the experience of the offices gave
Assurance. rise to the calculation of A series of Tables of Annuities
and Assurances calculated from a new Hate of Mortality
amongst Assured Lives, which was published by Mr Jenkin
Jones in 1843, and to which reference should be made, as
well as to the report on the experience of the offices.
We have now to mention, in concluding this portion of
our subject, the invaluable records of the nation, which are
year by year accumulating new and important facts for our
guidance in estimating the value of life in this country.
We refer to the tables and results published since 1839 by
the Registrar-General, and deduced from the records of
births, deaths, and marriages, in England. The Sixth Report
is particularly important as containing a life table and various
calculations, founded on the national observations applicable
to the year 1841, prepared by Dr Farr. We have had occa¬
sion to use these results extensively, having adopted them as
the basis of some most important calculations, and as before
adopting them we made them our particular study, we refer to
them with much satisfaction, as tables well suited as a basis
for life assurance transactions. They are graduated so as to
give them a preference over the Carlisle observations, but a
careful comparison will show how they support the results
shown by that table.
Attached to the Twelfth Report of the Registrar-General,
Dr Farr introduced his valuable English Lite Table No. 2,
compiled from the returns of deaths in the seven years
1838-44, and from the census returns of 1841. The Eng¬
lish Life Table No. 1, the result of one year’s observations,
and No. 2, the result of seven year’s observations, agree
very closely, as will be perceived from the following tables
of comparison :—
After Lifetime or Expectation of Life.
1841. English )
Life Table No. 1 }
1838-44...No. 2
40-17
40-36
10
47-08
47-47
20 30 i 40
39-88 33-13 |26-57
50
20-03
39-99 33-21 26-46
19-87
60
13-59
13-60
70
8-52
8-55
Annual Premium to assure X. 1 Of).
1841. English l
Life Table No. 1 /
1838-44 ... No. 2
L.s.d.
2 510
L. s.d.
15 0
L. s. d.
11111
1 11 8
L.s.d.
2 11
X. s. d.
2 14 7
2 0 9! 2 1411
X. s. d.
3 17 6
L.s.d.
6 2 7
X. s. d.
10 3 2
Among other important facts which have been derived
from the records of the Registrar-General, we must direct
attention to those contained in the Fourteenth Report rela¬
tive to the comparative effects of particular occupations on
health and longevity. The annexed table is extracted from
that Report, the several classes being arranged in the order
of mortality at the ages 45 to 55.
Mortality per cent.
Ages.
25-
35— Occupation.
1-015
•912
•797
•763
•812
•945
1-163
•979
•849
•759
1-130
1-383
•864
1-059
1-056
1-046
1-240
1-032
1-415
1-253
1-135
1-475
1- 653
2- 045
Parmer......
Shoemaker..
Weaver 
Grocer 
Blacksmith..
Carpenter...
Tailor 
Labourer....
Miner  
Baker  
Butcher 
Innkeeper..
948 1-236 All England 1-787
45—
1-199
1-503
1-537
1-579
1-651
1-667
1-674
1- 730
2- 015
2-121
2-310
2-834
55-
2-490
2- 869
3- 299
2- 265
3- 724
2-966
2-818
2- 920
3- 450
3- 301
4- 149
3-897
3-031
65-
5- 530
6- 505
7- 459
4-972
7-443
6- 586
7- 647
6-790
8- 051
6-678
6-647
8-151
6-396
75—
14-802
16- 446
17- 308
12- 457
16- 710
14- 286
15- 528
17- 394
17-867
15-066
15-449
13- 084
14-055
We have now, in the course of these remarks, mentioned Life
all the most important observations which have as yet been Assurance,
made in connection with the records of mortality.
The following are additional sources of information,
though of less importance than the preceding:—
The Government Returns of the different censuses in 1801, 1811,
1821, 1831, 1841, and 1851.
The papers by Mr Edmunds in the Lancet, as to the method of
determining the relative mortality of particular localities, both
with complete and imperfect data.
Mr Chadwick’s paper in the Statistical Journal, on the best mode
of representing accurately, by statistical returns, the duration of
life; and an excellent paper in the same journal, in answer to Mr
Chadwick’s paper, On a Method recently proposed for conducting
Inquiries into the Sanatory Condition of various Districts, by P. G.
P. Neison.
(The Statistical Journal may indeed be referred to generally, as
containing many important papers.)
Dr Cleland’s Enumeration of the City of Glasgow in 1831, as to
which Mr Milne promised to publish a Table of Mortality, based on
the results of ten years, 1820-1830, but did not accomplish it.
F. G. P. Nelson’s Vital Statistics.
M. Domonferrand’s Expectation of Life in France, calculated ap¬
proximately from official documents, as published in the Journal
de VEcole Royale Poly technique.
The works of Francis Corbaux should also be referred to (see Mr
Pocock’s list).
Likewise the writings of Dr Young (see same list).
M. Villermes’ valuable papers on the Annales d,Hygiene, in which
the mortality of the different parts of a large city were first inves¬
tigated, showing that the mortality differs very sensibly in the
arrondissements of Paris, will be found interesting.
Report of Irish Census Commissioners, in an article on the health
of Dublin, attached to Mr Wild’s paper on the Causes of Death in
Ireland.
Reports to the House of Commons, compiled from the Returns of
the War Office and Army Medical Department; also Reports on
the Health of the Navy.
We have confined our observations hitherto in a great
degree to the notice of the works of those earlier authors
who have materially contributed to our knowledge by intro¬
ducing new data, and we may now refer to those authors
whose ingenuity has greatly increased the practical applica¬
tion of those data by the invention of new modes of calcu¬
lation. In making this distinction, however, we cannot
strictly adhere to it, as we must include many of the names
already mentioned as contributors to our data, who have
also greatly advanced our steps in calculation. We may
repeat the names of De Wit, Graunt, Halley, De Moivre,
Simpson, Price, Maseres, Morgan, Daily, Milne; but their
works have already been noticed at as much length as our
space will admit.
We do not hesitate to place at the head of our modern
computers, George Barrett of Petworth, Sussex, the original
inventor in this country of the columnar system of calcula¬
tion. His system, when submitted to the Royal Society,
unfortunately did not meet the attention it deserved. But
its value was fully appreciated by Mr Francis Baily, who
published it in the Appendix to his own well-known work on
Annuities. He thus describes the method :—
£< Let A be the life on which the annuity is granted; and let
the number of persons living at the age of A, according to any
given table of observations, and at 1, 2, 3, &c., years older be de¬
noted respectively by a, b, c, d, . . . w, x, y, z; z denoting the
number of persons living at the age of the oldest life in the given
table, and in general equal to unity. Moreover, let the amount of
L.l in a year, according to the given rate of interest, be denoted
by r. This being premised, it is well known (by those who are
conversant with the subject), that the value of an annuity on the
single life A is expressed by the following series:—
n denoting the number of years from the age of A to the age of the
oldest life in the table of observations; and the sum of this series,
numerically expressed according to the age of A, forms the com¬
mon tables of the value of life annuities. But the above series may
be expressed more conveniently for our present purpose by the fol¬
lowing one:—
INSURANCE.
Life 1 /
Assurance. — ( ir"-1 + cr"-2 + dr”-3 + . , t xr^ + yr + z\
K .g evj(jentiy tjie same as the former.
In the plan proposed, therefore, A is supposed to he a child just
horn, or one whose age is equal to 0; and each term of the series
(beginning at the end) is to be numerically expressed and arranged
in regular order in the same column, at the bottom of which must
be placed the numerical value of the common divisor ar". In a
collateral column are to be placed the sums of the first one, first
two, first three, first four, &c., values in the former column, which
I shall denote by z, Y, x, &c., and by the help of these two columns
we shall be enabled to solve every question relative to life annuities
and assurances, not only with less liability to error, but frequently
in a more expeditious and easy manner than by the usual method
of proceeding.”
The following is part of the Carlisle Table calculated on
this method by Mr Babbage :—
Mr Babbage gives the following formulse:—
Value of an annuity of L.l on a life aged v
Ay
Sussmilch’s Table of Mortality. It is the model for others
of the like description.”
A
Age.
Living accor¬
ding to Suss
milch.
1000
750
661
618
593
579
&c.
The numbers in
B discounted for
the years of the
age, r being
= 1-04.
1000-
721-15
611-13
549-40
560-90
475-90
&c.
D E
Sum o fthe num-jSum of the num¬
bers in B added bers in C added
upward from upward from
beneath. beneath.
28-988
27-988
27-238
26-577
25-959
25-366
&c.
12437-48
11437-48
10710-33
10099-20
9549-80
9042-90
&c.
It is quite evident that these tables are computed on the
D and N system, as contained in the works of Griffith Da¬
vies. Column C is identical with column D, and column
E with column N, with this exception, that the summations
are placed differently, agreeing in this respect with the ar¬
rangement of Barrett, as followed by Dr Farr.
But though the credit of the actual discovery is un¬
doubtedly due to Tetens and Barrett, there were several
other eminent calculators of the last century, who came so
near it that another step boldly taken would infallibly have
led them to it. The most remarkable of these were Halley,
William Dale, De Moivre, and Morgan. Dr Halley’s method
was entirely columnar, the denominator in his formula being
common to all the numerators, as expressed in the following-
notation (Jones):—
403
Life
Assurance.
Do. deferred for jp years —- V ^ •
Do. for a temporary period q years =
Dt) + 1 Bj; -f- ^ q_ i
Ay
Value of an assurance of L.l on a life aged v  t •
8 rAv
The value of an assurance on a life aged v deferred for y> years is
rAv
The value of a temporary assurance fory> years on a life aged v is
rAv
Various other problems in assurance and annuities can
also be solved by these tables.
Before introducing Barrett, we ought probably to have
mentioned John Nicholas Tetens, Professor of Philosophy
and Mathematics at Kiel, who first promulgated the colum¬
nar method in a work published in 1785, under the title of
Einleitung zur Berechnung dev Leibrenten und Anwart-
schaften die vom Leben und Tode einer oder mehrerer Per-
sonem abhangen mit Tabellen zum practischen Gebrauch.
This fact, however, detracts nothing from the merits of
Barrett, whose discovery was original to himself, and quite
independent.
Tetens describes his method thus—“ By means of a new
auxiliary table, which can be made in accordance with the
table of mortality, by which it is to be reckoned, and at the
rate of interest proposed for its foundation, the whole labour
as well for life annuities as for the mean duration of life,
may be reduced to one division. The preparation of that
table requires nothing more than an easy addition, when
regard is had to the duration of life only ; but demands some¬
what more trouble if it be extended to the calculation of life
annuities. It would not be desirable, therefore, to make it
for one single annuity of the kind. But then it gives simul¬
taneously all values of life annuities, as well as all durations
for every age at once. I will here annex it, as applied tu
, * / 7
1m 1 m
If he had made a calculation for each age, he would pro¬
bably eventually have discovered the D and N system ; as
the result, however, of trial or experiment, if it may be so
called, not of real investigation. Dale’s work, published in
1772, may be called Aritlimetical, but is one of consider¬
able originality. His formula is similar to that of Halley,
combining the enumerators, and making one common deno¬
minator; thus,—
^iw+l ^ d" ^»i+2 ^ • • . "f lm+x 'l'X
There is no doubt that he thus produced a D and N column,
but unfortunately only applicable to one age. Had he, too,
made the calculation for every age till birth, he might have
discovered the D and N process. De Moivre, in his Doc¬
trine of Chances, second edition, 1738, p. 212, gives a for¬
mula which gives him a primary claim to the method of
dealing with discounted decrements. The following is De
Moivre’s own formula:—
A-B
Ar
+
B-C
Arr
+
C-D D-E
Ar3 + Ar4 +
E-F
Ar5
&c.
A, B, C, D, E, F, represent the numbers living at any age,
and the differences give the decrements. The method, as
applied to reversions, is similar to that of Halley as applied
to life annuities, but the general solution was wanting. Mr
Morgan, in his Doctrine of Annuities and Assurances,
1779, may be almost said to have discovered the D and N
system without knowing it. He uses the discounted values,
however, merely as a method of check, and those who
peruse his explanations on the subject must feel convinced
that he did not know the power of the D and N columns.
The next great impulse was given to the science by
Griffith Davies. Without his inventive genius, the system
of Barrett might have remained long unimproved, but he
remodelled it, and although the principle is the same in
both, he has so arranged his tables that they may almost
404
INSURANCE.
Life be said to be a new discovery. Mr Davies published his
Assurance, method in his Tables of Life Contingencies, as published
in 1825, and more fully in his Treatise on Annuities, also
written and printed in 1825, but published only in 1856,
after his death, by his executors.
The following extract of a table on the Carlisle three
per cent, basis will illustrate the subject:—
Ages.
No.
Living.
N
M
104
103
102
101
100
1
3
5
7
9
&c.
0462
1429
2452
3536
4683
&c.
0000
0462
1891
4343
7879
&c.
0000
0462
2353
6696
1-4576
&c.
04488
09246
09524
09809
10100
&c.
04488
13730
23260
33070
43170
&c.
04488
18220
41480
74550
1-17700
&c.
The column D is obtained by discounting the number of living
at each age to the beginning of life; thus the number living at
104 is discounted 104 years, the number at 103 is discounted 103
years, and so on. The column N consists of the continuous sum¬
mation of the results in column D; and the column S consists of
the continuous summation of the results in column M. The column
C is obtained by discounting the number of those who die in each
year to the beginning of life ; thus the one who dies after reaching
104 is discounted 105 years, the number who reach 103 and die
before 104, is discounted 104 years, and so on. The column M
consists of the continuous summation of the results in column C.
The column ft consists of the continuous summation of the results
in column M.
The principles of the columnar system are very concisely
treated in Mr David Jones’ work On the Values of Annui¬
ties and Reversionary Payments, published under the su¬
perintendence of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful
Knowledge. The following are extracts :—
I. Annuities.
If we call z the difference between the age m, and the oldest com¬
pleted by any life according to the table,
am=Pm,i-r+pm,2.r2 +pm,z-r3 +pm,i.A +. . .+pm,zrz
writing for pm,h Pm,2i &c., their values , - ™+2 , &c.
„ _ lm + l T + Im^ + lm + Z ^ "b An+ 4 A -}-... + lm + z 'P
a-m — 7 •
If the numerator and denominator of this fraction be multiplied
by rm (which will not affect the value of the expression) the for¬
mula becomes
7 , rm + l i / , „ rm+2 i 7 rm+3 i / J rm+4
lm + l r i + 2 7 n^i-m + 3' +
am — 1 ’ &C’
Rule.—Multiply the number of living at each year of age by
the present value of L.l, due at the end of the same number of
years as the age; then the present value of the annuity at any
age, is found by dividing the sum of the products at all the ages
above that on which the annuity depends, by the product at that
age.
The advantage of the last form of the fraction over the other
may be seen by taking as examples the separate ages of 96 and 95
in the Carlisle Table of Mortality.
„ _ l97 r37 + 4s r98 + /99 r" + lm rm+ + lm r104
, _ /,J6 r96 + /97 r97 + 4
3 4-A,
On comparing the expressions for these two values, we observe
that in finding the value at the age of 95, every term is introduced
which was employed in finding the value at the age of 96 ; so that
it costs very little more trouble to find the value at both the ages,
than to find the value at one of them only; but had the first ex¬
pression for am been used, the operation employed in finding the
value at the age of 96 would not have afforded direct assistance in
finding the value at the age of 95. The method which has been
adopted has also other important advantages, the preparatory ope¬
rations being of great use in abridging the labour of finding the
values of temporary deferred annuities and assurance.
The following example in numbers, of the value of annuities at
4 per cent, at the Carlisle rate of mortality, will show the process jjife
of forming a table of the values of annuities on single lives.
Assurance.
/104 t-104 —i x .01692512 —01692512„ _-01692512_
lm r103 r=3 x -01760212 =-05280636 103
N102 =-06973148
/In9 7-l°2 =5 x -01830625 =-09153125 102
•U5280636
•06973148
•09153125
= -32051
= -76183
Nioi ="16126273  -16126273 ,
/10i r101 =7x-01903850 =-13326950 101 ■_.33326950~1'21005
Nioo = -29453225,, -2945322^
^100 r100=9 x -01980004 = •1782OO36ai00~.y7g2oo36=1'65282
N99 =-47273259 „ -47273259
099=
II. Assurances.
"2265124
= 2-08700
The present value of the nth year’s payment is found by mul¬
tiplying the present value of L.l, due at the end of n years, by the
fraction which has for its numerator the number who die in the
nth year from this time, and for the denominator, the number living
at the present age. Let us call dm the number who, according to
the tables, die in the nth year of their age ; then
a _ rdm+i + r2 . dm+2 +r3 . dm+3 +r4 . dm+4 + &c., &c.
■^m —   ——i 
Multiplying numerator and denominator by rm,
a _rm+i.dm+1 + rm+2 . dm+2 +rm+3.dm+3 +&c. + &c.
Am  l~m 
which may be practically applied in the same manner as the annu¬
ity formulae.
The following works should be consulted in regard to
the systems of Barrett and Davies, and their application :—
Appendix to the Doctrine of Life Annuities and Assurances, by
Francis Daily, 1813.
A Comparative View of the Various Institutions for the Assurance
of Lives, by Charles Babbage, 1826—(Appendix, No. III.)
On the Calculation of Single Life Contingencies, No. I., by Professor
De Morgan—Companion to the Almanac, 1840.
On Life Contingencies, No. II., by Professor De Morgan—Com¬
panion to the Almanac, 1842.
Account of a Correspondence between Mr George Barrett and Mr
Francis Baily, by Professor De Morgan—Assurance Magazine, vol.
iv., page 185.
We consider that the columnar, or D and N system, has
entirely superseded the old mode of calculation, we have
not considered it necessary, therefore, to illustrate the older
method ; but every student should of course make himself
acquainted with it, more especially with reference to cal¬
culations proceeding on more than two lives, by the study
of Baily, Milne, and Jones.
Additional information as to the columnar system will
also be found in the Actuarial Tables of W. T. Thomson,
F.R.S.E., 1853, and in the very valuable Tables and For¬
mulae for the Computation of Life Contingencies, of Mr
Peter Gray, published in 1849. In conclusion, the names
of Edward Sang, Peter Hardy, Samuel Brown, Charles
Jellicoe, William Wood, William Orchard, and B. H.
Todd, may be selected for special notice from the long list
of calculators who have advanced various departments of
the science. Much valuable information on the subject will
also be found in the Assurance Magazine; the Reports
of the Registrar-General; and in the Evidence given be¬
fore the House of Commons in 1843 on Joint-stock Com¬
panies, and in 1853 on Assurance Associations. The evi¬
dence on Friendly Societies will also be found interesting.
LIFE ASSURANCE OFFICES.
Before the establishment of assurance offices, it was the
practice for individuals to underwrite life risks, in the same
way as marine assurance ; and looking to the Guidon and the
Laics of Wisby, it seems possible to connect the original
suggestion of life assurance, or life indemnity, with the
risks of the sea. It is to be assumed that during the period
when life assurance was transacted by means of underwriters,
INSURANCE.
Life probably during the greater part of the seventeenth cen-
Assurance. tury, the contracts were all for short periods. A case in
^ point is that of Sir Robert Howard, on whose life an assur¬
ance was effected for one year, from 3d September 1697.
On the 3d September 1698, about one in the morning, he
died, and a question arose as to the expiry of the risk.
Lord Holt ruled that “ from the day of the date” excluded
the day itself, and the underwriter was made liable. It is
quite reasonable to suppose that persons would hesitate to
accept the security of private individuals for whole term
policies, which could not be acted on till the death of the
assured, at, in all probability, a remote period of time.
It is generally supposed that the Mercers’ Company
were the first to institute a “ Widows’ Fund,” having done
so in 1699, on the suggestion of Dr Assheton. Another
society was established in 1700, entitled “ The Society of
Assurance of Widows and Orphans.” But it was not till
the establishment, in 1706, of “ The Amicable Society for
a perpetual Assurance Office,” that assurance of lives, as a
scheme or business, may be said to have commenced.
The charge for admission and the annual contribution
were L.7, 10s. entrance-money, and 10s. monthly, or an
equivalent sum quarterly, with Is. additional quarterly in
either case for expenses. These payments entitled the no¬
minee to a dividend, dependent on the amount of the claims
during the year, which, of course, was entirely a lottery.
Before the division at the end of the year, there was a fixed
dividend of L.l or L.l, 4s. per share allowed to each part¬
ner. The numbers were limited to 2000 members on
single lives, and no one was allowed to hold more than
three shares ; nor were any admitted to be partners whose
ages were below twelve or above forty-five, and all between
these ages were admitted on the same terms.
The original charter was soon found to hamper the opera¬
tions of the society, and others were obtained from time to
time, which modified its original constitution, and enabled
it to enlarge the sphere of its usefulness.
The society was reorganized in 1807. This new charter
empowered it to raise the number of its members to 8000;
and the supplementary charters of 1823 and 1836 enabled it
to increase these numbers, first to 16,000, and then to 32,000.
The charter of 1836 contains some important changes of
system as regards valuation and dividends, inter alia, the
actual dividend for every share which should become a
claim was increased from L.l50 to L.200, and the society
was empowered to effect assurances for specified sums on
joint lives, or on the life of the last survivor of two or more
persons, or on contingencies depending on life, or any life
assurances for limited periods for specified sums.
In 1845 the society obtained an act of parliament “to
enable the corporation to lend money upon mortgage for the
purpose of investment, and also to confer other powers upon
the said society.” These other powers were connected for the
most part with the mode of transactingbusiness,—valuations,
and the divisions of profits,—and had the effect of making
the society an assurance office on very nearly the usual plan.
In 1854 a second act was obtained conferring extended
powers as to investment.
The “ Hand-in-Hand, or Amicable Contribution So¬
ciety,” was founded in 1636, but was then exclusively a
fire office.—It now transacts life business. The Sun Office
was founded by deed of settlement on 15th June 1810.
The Union Office in 1714.
In 1712 the joint-stock mania of that day was at its
height. The time of the South Sea bubble succeeded, and
of course, in the prevailing mania, assurance schemes were
extensively projected—few indeed were carried out, and
still fewer were constituted to stand the test of time; but
we find two offices of high character and standing in the
present day, which trace back their existence to that period,
—The Royal Exchange Assurance Company established by
royal charter on 22d June 1720; and the London Assn- Life
lance Corporation by similar charter of the same date. The Assurance,
business of these offices did not originally extend to life
assurance; but on 29th April 1721,"the Royal Exchange
i tceived a charter for the assurance of lives, and similar
powers were obtained by the London Assurance Corpora¬
tion. The history of the proceedings of those days, con¬
nected more particularly with the establishment of these
two societies, is recorded by Mr Hendriks in his interesting
account of the First Parliamentary Committee of Insur¬
ance, fyc., and by Mr Francis in his entertaining Annals
and Anecdotes of Life Assurance.
After the institution of the offices just named, life assu-
lance, for nearly half a century, seems to have remained sta¬
tionary, for, “in the year 1779, the business of assurances
on lives (we quote from Mr Morgan) was but little under¬
stood and little practised, excepting the society in Sergeant’s
Inn (the Amicable), which assured lives at all ages under
45 at the same annual premium, and never exceeded L.300
on the same life, and the Royal Exchange Office, which
made a few assurances for a single year at the general pre¬
mium, I believe, of L.5 per cent.”
We now come to the “ Society for Equitable Assur ances,”
the well-known London Equitable, which was established
in 1762. Thomas Simpson, whose works have been already
noticed, Dodson the editor of the Mathematical Peposi-
tory, and Edward Rowe Moris, an accomplished antiquarian
of these days, were the originators and promoters of this
the most successful institution of the kind which ever existed.
For some years it made little progress; but, in 1769, Dr
I rice published his Observations on Reversionary Pay¬
ments, &;c., in which he recommended the society to public
notice, and from that year, or rather from 1775, when Mr
Morgan, Dr Price’s nephew, was appointed actuary, we may
date the prosperity of this great institution. A detailed his¬
tory of the society is given in Mr Morgan’s View of the Rise
and Progress of the Equitable Society, published in 1828.
One event, however, in connection with its early history
calls for special record, viz., the fact that in 1760 the crown,
on the recommendation of the Attorney and Solicitor Gene¬
ral of the day, refused a charter to the society. The formal
grounds of refusal were three:—Istf, Doubts as to the pro¬
bable success of the undertaking, which, it was argued,
would be ruinously injurious to the public interest in the
event of failure; 2d, Disbelief in the principle of the scheme,
which was described as depending “on the truth of certain
calculations taken upon tables of life and death, whereby
the chance of mortality is attempted to be reduced to a
certain standard ;” this attempt being itself denounced as a
mere speculation, never yet tried in practice, and conse¬
quently subject, like all other experiments, to various chances,
in the execution ; 3c?, The fear of doing injustice to the
London and Royal Exchange Assurance Companies, which
had paid very large sums for their charters.
The following is the present position of the Equitable
Society, as shown in its latest published accounts:—
Abstract of General Cash Account of the Equitable Society
for the year ending 31s£ December 1855.
Charge.
Received for new assurances and an annuity L.3,789 13 6
Annual premiums on old assurances  19fi4R9 19 o
Dividends on stock  112,050 0 0
Interest on mortgages 13l’950 5 3
Interest on exchequer bills and bonds  5 623 18 4
Entrance money, policy money, extra premiums 1 ’
commuted premiums, and forfeits  ] 5,226 0 10
Cash lent on mortgage, repaid  jpg 512 2 6
Exchequer hills sold  60 887 14 2
Stock sold  62,'350 0 0
Balance from account to 31st December 1854  24,605 12 4
L.801,517 18 11
to
406
1 N S U 11 A N C E.
Life Discharge.
Assurance. Claims paid on policies within the number of) ^ ^ ^
the first 5000 J ’
Claims paid on policies not included in the number 6,700 0 o
L.307,570 0 0
Additions to claims paid    305,110 16 0
Annuities    1,982 14 0
Income tax    15,502 18 9
Keturns of premiums and forfeits   157 12 0
Expenses of management  6,762 12 8
Paid for surrender of policies  19,449 18 0
Paid for additions surrendered  15,895 9 0
Interest on mortgage...,    108,000 0 0
Balance 31st December 1855   21,085 18 6
L.801,517 18 11
Funds, 31s£ December 1855.
Stock in the Funds—
L.l,705,000 in 3 per cent consols. It 0 non e *
i ocn onr> • <> ■ , L.3,665,000 3 per cents.
1,960,000 m 3 per cent, reduced J ^
Exchequer bonds, L.100,000.
Cash in mortgage, L.3,647,796, 13s. 5d.
Soon after the establishment of the Equitable Society,
in 1762, a great number of assurance societies sprung up,
but these institutions were, according to report, “ for the
most part, gross impositions on the public, proceeding from
ignorance or knavery, and encouraged by credulity and fal¬
lacy.” The abatement of most of these nuisances was due
in no small measure to the appearance of Dr Price’s Ob¬
servations on Reversionary Payments.
We might followup this account of the earlier life offices
by giving information as to the rise and progress of a few
more of the most prominent, established during the 50 years
which followed the advent of the Equitable, and still in be¬
ing, but we must confine ourselves to narrower limits, and
merely give the names of all offices since established, and
which are still in existence, with the date of their establish¬
ments, as nearly as we can ascertain; divided into periods to
show the rapid increase of such institutions in later years.
The following English offices, now in existence, were
established between 1762 and 1810 :—
Westminster Society 1792
Pelican 1797
Globe 1803
Albion    1805
London Life Association... 1806
Eagle 1807
Provident 1807
Rock 1807
West of England 1807
Atlas '  1808
Norwich Union 1808
The following English offices, now in existence, were
established between 1810 and 1825 :—
Alliance 1824
Asylum 1824
British Commercial 1820
Clerical, Medical, andl100.
General J
Economic 1823
European 1819
Guardian 1821
Imperial 1820
The following English oi
established between 1825 an
Argus  1833
Clergy Mutual 1829
Crown  1825
Friends’ Provident Instit. 1832
Mutual 1834
The following English oi
established between 1835 an
Albert  1838
Alfred  1839
Anchor 1842
Britannia  1837
British Mutual 1844
Church of England 1840
English and Scottish Law 1839
Equity and Law 1844
Family Endowment 1844
Law Life  1823
Leeds and Yorkshire 1824
Palladium 1824
United Kent 1824
Yorkshire 1824
Also
National Assurance (Ire-1 io00
land) /
Patriotic (Ireland) 1824
ces, now in existence, were
1835:—
National Life Society  1830
Promoter  1826
United Kingdom  1834
Universal  1834
Western Annuity 1831
ces, now in existence, were
1845:—
Monarch  1835
National Assurance In¬
vestment    1844
National Mercantile  1837
National Provident  1835
North of England  1844
Nottinghamshire and Der¬
byshire  1835
Preserver   1843
General 1837
Great Britain  1844
International,formerly Na¬
tional Loan Fund   1837
Legal and General  1836
Liverpool and London 1836
Medical, Invalid,& General 1841
Merchants and Tradesmen 1844
Metropolitan    1835
Minerva  1836
Provident Clerks’  1840 J,ife
Reliance   1840 Assurance.
Royal Farmers’   1840 v. t a
Royal Naval, Military,
East India, and General 1837
Star 1843
Victoria    1838
Wesleyan Provident  1841
Western  1842
Westminster and General 1836
The following English offices, now in existence, were
established between 1845 and 1850 :—
Accidental Death  1849
Agriculturist  1845
British Empire Mutual.... 1846
Cambrian and Universal... 1846
Catholic  1846
City of London,  1845
Consolidated  1846
Defender    1846
East of England  1849
Engineers, Masonic, and
Universal  1848
English Widows’ Fund  1847
Gresham  1848
India and London   1846
Indisputable  1848
Kent Mutual  1849
Legal and Commercial 1845
London Mutual 1848
London & Provincial Law 1845
Medical, Legal, & General 1846
Metropolitan, Counties, &
General   1848
Mitre  1845
Phoenix  1848
Professional  1847
Prudential Mutual  1848
Railway Passengers’  1849
Royal  1845
Solicitors’ and General  1846
Sovereign  1845
Times  1840
United Mutual  1849
United Kingdom Temper¬
ance  1849
The following English offices, now in existence, were
established between 1850 and 1855 :—
Achilles 1853
Age  1851
Anglo-Australian 1853
Ark 1852
Athenaeum   1851
Beacon    1852
Birkbeck   1852
British Equitable  1854
British Nation  1854
British Protection  1850
British Provident  1850
British Industry  1852
Briton  1853
Brunswick 1.854
Caxton 1854
Deposit and General 1851
Diadem  1854
Eclipse   1853
Emperor  1853
Empire  1854
English and Cumbrian .... 1850
English and Foreign  1852
English and Irish Church.. 1853
Era  1852
Falcon    1854
Female Provident  1855
General Accident  1855
General Indemnity  1853
Home Counties   1853
Householders   1852
Hull and London  1855
Justice 1855
Lancashire  1852
Law Property 1850
Law Union  1854
Life Assurance Treasury... 1855
London Equitable Mutual 1855
Lond. & Provl. Provident 1854
Magnet   1854
Manchester and London.... 1853
Marine Causualty  1852
Marine and General Tra¬
vellers’  1854
Maritime Passengers  1852
Monetary  1851
National Alliance   1855
National Guardian   1850
National Industrial  1854
National Provincial  1851
New Alliance 1855
New National  1853
New Equitable  1850
Observer  1855
Peoples’ Provident 1853
Prince of Wales  1851
Protector  1853
Protestant  1852
Provincial  1852
Safety  1854
Saxon 1854
Security   1854
St George 1854
Travellers’ and Marine  1854
United Homoeopathic  1855
United Kingdom Annuity 1850
United Orders Provident... 1855
United Service & General 1851
United Trades’  1855
Unity Friendly Brothers’ 1855
Unity General 1854
University  1854
Waterloo   1851
Lombard  1853
London and Continental... 1851
London Exchange 1853
Wellington Reversionary
Annuity   1852
Whittington  1855
Abstract showing the existing English Offices, and the date
of their Establishment.
Before 1762..     7
From 1763 to 1810(47 years)..   11
... 1810 ... 1822 (15 years) [2 Irish]   16
... 1825 ... 1835 (10 years) 20
... 1835 ... 1845 (10 years) 34
... 1845 ... 1850 (5 years) 31
... 1850 ...1855 (5 years) 77
185
insurance.
Life The following are the Scotch life assurance offices, and
Assurance, the dates of their establishment:—
407
Caledonian (Life 1833)  1805
North British (Life 1823) 1809
•Scottish Widows’ Fund ... 1815
Edinburgh   1823
Scottish Union  1824
Standard  1825
Scottish Provincial  1825
Scottish Amicable  1826
Scottish Equitable  1831
Northern   1836
Scottish Provident   1837
Life Association  1838
City of Glasgow...,  1838
National  1841
Colonial  1846
(15 in all.)
It follows as a very natural question, upon consideration
of these lists,—are all these offices properly constituted, and
are they worthy of confidence ? But such a question is one
which it is very difficult to answer. There is one test
which, to a certain extent, is a sound one, viz., the period
of time during which an office has existed; but even that
may fail if an institution has been managed by an un¬
principled actuary, or by reckless directors. Indeed the
character and ability of the actuary and directors is the
surest safeguard, although a test difficult and often invi¬
dious to apply. Most of the long established companies are
undoubtedly conducted on right principles; and although
some of them be less prosperous than others, one may
with perfect safety assure in almost any of them. As to
those more recently established, many of them are no
doubt well conducted, and cannot fail of success ; but when
we regard the utter recklessness with which offices have
been formed of late years, it is impossible to recommend
caution too strongly to intending insurers. The fact that
within the last twelve years 513 offices have been projected,
and 228 founded, of which more than one-half have ceased
to exist, does not give us much primary confidence in the
soundness, speaking generally, of anything new in the way of
assurance. Most of the failures seem to have been caused
entirely by reckless extravagance in the management.
In 1844 an act was passed for the regulation of joint-
stock companies, which required assurance companies to go
through certain forms before commencing business, and to
comply with certain regulations after their establishment,
such as registering their annual balance-sheet, with an ac¬
count of assets and liabilities; but the act has been found
practically useless for the purpose it was intended to fulfil,
as it neither places a check on the formation of bubble com¬
panies, nor can it enforce its own requirements, if these com¬
panies choose to set it at defiance. For some time after the
act came into force in 1846, balance-sheets were recorded
with fair regularity, but they were for the most part in an
unintelligible shape, and where they were understood they
show'ed generally such extravagance and mismanagement,
that it created, in 1852-3, a most uneasy feeling as to the
future prospects of such institutions, and of life assurance
in general. A committee of the House of Commons was
appointed in 1853, and voluminous evidence was taken ;
but, though the danger was recognized, and the worthlessness
of the act of 1844 fully acknowledged and explained, govern¬
ment has in the meantime done nothing to mitigate the evil.
The wholesale manufacture of offices still continues, life
assurance is scandalized, and one of the greatest institutions
of the age is in danger of being brought into disrepute.
Special legislation will be required to check the evil, and
this seems to be admitted by the government itself, which,
in the Joint-Stock Companies Bill of 1856, left the ques¬
tion of assurance societies altogether out of account. The
evidence taken in 1853 points out the proper remedies, but,
in the meantime, until legislation in some form is pro¬
posed, no further suggestions can be of any avail.
In conclusion, we would refer to the immense amount of
assurance transactions in this country, as showing the extent
of the interests involved in that branch of business. We
have no precise means of making an estimate of the existing
amount of such contracts at the present date; but it was
computed that in 1849 the sums assured in English offices
amounted to 150 millions, while those assured in Scotch Life
offices in 1852 amounted to 34 millions. We have no^ssurance*
doubt that at the present date the amount of life as-
surance in existence in the United Kingdom is upwards of
two hundred millions. A considerable number of the life
assurance offices have been constituted by special acts of
parliament, and a very full list of these acts will be found
in Mr Bunyon’s Law of Life Assurance, afterwards re¬
ferred to.
THE CONTRACT OE ASSURANCE.
It is quite superfluous at the present day to occupy much
space in attempting to prove the benefits of life assurance,
which may be said to be universally admitted. But it is
not equally superfluous to explain the principle on which an
assurance office is conducted, which we shall accordingly
proceed to do.
Let us suppose that a number of persons having relations
i dying on them for support, wish to make some provision for
such dependants in case of death ; but, having only an an¬
nual sum to dispose of, without capital, can save but little,
and that by slow degrees. We will suppose 1000 persons
in this situation have discovered that, according to the laws
of nature, a certain number of them will die annually, and
that these persons enter into agreement with each other to
the effect that those who survive shall burden themselves
with a certain payment to the representatives of those who
may die within the year, the subscription of each to be
greater in proportion as his age is more advanced. This
would be the very simplest form of an assurance contract;
but, for obvious reasons, it is plain that such is not the
mode in which the agreement could be practically carried
out. I he first difficulty, then, that arises, is in fixing the
proper payment for the risk of the year to be made by each
individual. I his part of the transaction requires a calcula¬
tion to be made by some persons skilled in such matters,
proceeding on a table of the probability of life and death,
generally known as a table of mortality. We will suppose
that L.20 is considered a sufficient contribution for each
person to secure L.1000 to the heirs of those who may die
within the year, assuming all to be the same age. This
subscription of L.20 each for 1000 persons would amount
to L.20,000; and if 20 persons, the number calculated on,
were to die, the sum of L.20,000 divided among their repre¬
sentatives would give exactly L.1000 for each. It will be
observed that L.20 only was paid by each of the deceased
members, as well as the survivors; now the benefit to the
former is evident; while the latter have had the advantage,
by union, of protection during the year. Of course, all re¬
quired to be in good health and of good habits at the com¬
mencement of the contract.
This would be an assurance association formed for one
year. For the sake of simplicity, we have not taken
into account interest of money or expenses of manage¬
ment, neither have we assumed or provided for any
probable variation in the exact number of deaths. If
at the end of the year it was wished to renew the
contract, an examination would require to be made as to
the health of the parties, and a new premium struck with
reference to the increased age of each for the next year’s
assurance. Now, in practice, the renewal of such a scheme
from year to year would be attended with great difficulty
and hardship in particular cases, as the lives in deteriorated
health would require to be rejected periodically, thus vir¬
tually counteracting to a great extent the benefit of the
scheme ; and the premiums of the rest would go on in¬
creasing year by year, till, at an advanced period of life,
the annual payment would probably be too heavy a burden
to be borne. I o avoid these difficulties, it would soon be¬
come evident that the body of persons referred to could
attain their object better by entering into an agreement
p
408
INSURANCE.
Life with each other for the whole term of life. To accomplish
Assurance, this, they would require to pay such an equalized annual
j*ate (beginning higher, of course, than under the annual
scheme) as might be equivalent to the annual ascending
rates—in short, paying more while young, to prevent the
rate increasing when older.
The following table will explain the principle more fully:
Persons of 20 years
of age would be
charged, on the
ascending plan
for an assurance
of L.1000, a pre¬
mium of 
Persons of 30 do.
„ of 40 do.
„ of 50 do.
„ of 60 do.
For first
year.
For a se¬
cond year,
assuring
at 1 year
older.
L, s. d.
7 10 0
11 0 0
14 10 4
15 0 0
37 7 9
For a
third year,
assuring
at 2 years
older.
L. s. d.
7 15 0
11 10 0
15 7 8
15 19 2
39 19 1
L. s. d.
8 0 0
12 0 0
16 0 10
16 19 5
41 15 4
^ 5
A d
a;
S-t »T3
O) ^
Sh ^
a cs
""
a ©
T3 q
B cs
29 18 4
41 13 4
66 11 8
108 1 8
180 16 8
But instead of this method of assuring for a year only
and renewing the contract each year at the premium cor¬
responding to a higher age, it would be found better to pay
an equalized, unvarying, annual sum, as shown in the fol¬
lowing example:—
At 20 years of age the equalized rate 1 p, 3
would be  —  J
30  22 9
40  29 17
50  41 13
60  66 11
I These rates
21 remaining
6 ( always the
4 j same.
a
Now, it is evident, on a comparison of the annual progres¬
sive rate with these for the whole term, that under the equa¬
lized system persons assured pay more for some years than
is necessary to meet the risk ; while in after years, when the
lives become advanced in age, they pay less—the office ac¬
cumulating the difference between the premium for the risk
of each year, in the earlier years, and the annual payment
made on the equalized system, to meet the deferred risk,
when the equalized premium, in consequence of advanced
age, is less than the year requires.
The income of an assurance office, in its earlier years,
consists of—
1. The premiums necessary for the risks of the year.
2. The addition to the premiums for expenses of management.
3. The difference between the premiums for the risk of the year
and the whole-term rate.
4. The interest on the fund reserved for the increased risk of
future years.
The first and second are legitimate expenditure ; the third
and fourth form the accumulated fund ; but in later years
the tide will turn, and this accumulated fund will be required
to make the income sufficient to meet the claims.
The profit on assurance business arises from different
sources—such as, from fewer deaths occurring than were
calculated on ; from a higher rate of interest being obtained
than that on which the calculations are based ; and from the
expenses of management being less than the sum provided
to defray them; and if a percentage for profit has been
added to the rates, that will form another source.
To insurers it is of the utmost consequence to know that
an assurance office is carefully accumulating the fund re¬
quisite for the risk of distant years. If that fund be squan¬
dered or lost, ruin must arrive sooner or latter ; and this is
the great danger of the assurance system ; for a person who
joins an office not only assures for one year, but makes an¬
nually, in the earlier years, a deposit with the office to meet
his payments later in life.
An agreement among a body of persons to form a union Life
for assurance in the manner before described, is called Assurance
mutual assurance; and some of the largest societies of the
day are constituted upon that plan; but as assurance
business is also transacted by institutions differently con¬
stituted, it will be well, before going farther, to explain the
difference in the constitutions of these bodies.
Mutual Societies are bodies of individuals associated in
the manner before described, for the purpose of providing
capital sums, payable at death, and other cognate provi¬
sions, to the representatives of members. The affairs are
managed by directors elected periodically from among the
assured, and the funds are held to be common property,
subject to such reserves and guarantees as may be con¬
sidered necessary for the future safety of the institution.
A higher rate of premium than the risk demands is gene¬
rally charged, to defray expenses of management and at the
same time increase the basis of security.
In consequence of the contributors paying a higher rate
of premium than is absolutely required, a surplus fund
should arise. From the division of the fund so created the
bonus system of the assurance offices has taken its origin.
In the earlier years of assurance business, the bonus sys¬
tem was not contemplated, there being great uncertainty as
to the value of life and as to the sufficiency of premiums;
but as knowledge increased, it was found that, from time to
time, a portion of the funds not required to provide for the
responsibilities of the office might be fairly and safely
divided; and the different modes of dividing that surplus
have become at the present day the marked and distinguish¬
ing feature in the constitution of each office.
Guarantee or Proprietary Companies are formed of par¬
ties who have subscribed a capital, on the security of which
the business of assurance is transacted. Formerly this
class of offices used only to grant policies for fixed sums,
payable at death, guaranteeing the security of the parties
by large capitals, but giving them no benefit or advantage
from the profits of the business. This was in the earlier
days of life assurance ; but the guarantee class of offices do
now, we believe, without exception, allow the policy-holders
to participate more or less in the profits of the business;
and some of them, constituted in the best manner, affirm
that they are enabled to give even larger benefits than the
mutual institutions ; while their security is greater, not only
from the capital of the partners, but from the more respon¬
sible management, the directors being partners and policy¬
holders. There is much difference of opinion, however, as
to the merits of the two classes of offices, and each has
numerous supporters. A well-constituted mutual institu¬
tion properly managed does not, if the premiums are suffi¬
cient and the funds are properly accumulated, require a
capital, as the premiums should meet all claims; but as in
guarantee or proprietary companies the assured are relieved
from all anxiety, and the responsible management is in the
hands of those who are the obligants under all the transac¬
tions of the office, while the assured are allowed to partici¬
pate largely in the whole profits of the business, there is
much to be said in favour of that class of offices ; everything^
however, depends on the regulations and constitution of
the offices themselves. Guarantee as well as mutual offices
are widely different in their modes of doing business and in
the principles of their constitution. Having, therefore
merely indicated that there is a difference, the choice be¬
tween the two classes, and the selection of a particular
office, must be the subject of inquiry and selection by each
individual himself.
Before an office agrees to assure a life, there are certain
forms to be filled up and regulations to be complied with,
so as to ascertain the state of health of the proposer; for
unless he is in good health, the office could not undertake
the risk with any prospect of advantage, or in fairness to
Life the other persons who have entered as assurers. These
Assurance, forms, which are furnished by the offices, having been
y—^ completed satisfactorily, and evidence of age furnished the
policy is made out, the validity of that deed depending upon
the truth and accuracy of the answers given in making the
proposal. If the insurer conceals anything which he knows
to be material, it is a fraud; but besides this, in strict
law, if he conceals anything which may influence the rate
of premium, which the underwriters may require, although
he does not know that it would have that effect, such con¬
cealment entirely vitiates the policy. Having gone through
al! the necessary forms, the assurance will be accepted or
declined, by the company. If accepted, a deed will’ be
issued by the assurance office, called a policy, which ex¬
presses the nature of the contract and its limitations.
Stamps.
The following are the stamp-duties upon policies of assu¬
rance on lives (16th and 17th Viet., cap. 59) : 
Where the sum insured shall not exceed L.500, then * ^
for every L.50, and any fractional part of L.50.’ .. 0 6
And where it shall exceed L.500, and shall not exceed
L.iOOO then for every L.100, and any fractional
part of L.100  j 0
And where it shall exceed L.100,' and anyfractionai
part of L.IOOO ' 10 Q
The stamp may he either impressed on the paper, or
denoted by an adhesive stamp affixed thereto.
The expense of the stamp is generally defrayed by the offices.
The Premium.
Premiums can be paid in one sum, compensating all
ordinary payments, or by a limited number of payments, or
by annual payments during life; also in some offices by
Halt-yearly, quarterly, and even monthly instalments. The
date at which the premium annually falls due should be
caretully noted, as an error in payment, should the office
omit to give notice (they are not legally bound to do so),
wouJd forfeit the policy in most instances ; thirty days,
called days of grace, are generally allowed for payment
after the regular date of renewal; but a policy forfeited
may generally be revived within three months, by pro¬
ducing medical evidence of good health, and payment of a
fine. 1 he forfeiture of policies in this way is a point which
engages at present the anxious attention of the assurance
companies, and we are glad to find that one office has shown
a good example, by systematizing its practice in that re¬
spect. The following are the resolutions lately adopted by
that office (the Standard Life Assurance Company of Edin¬
burgh,) and they appear very liberal:—
1. That policies of five years’ duration, effected for the whole
term of life at a uniform rate of premium, shall not be forfeited in
consequence of non-payment of any ordinary premium, notwith-
standing the expiry of the thirty days of grace ; provided payment
shall be tendered before the expiry of thirteen months from the
date of such premium falling into arrear, reckoning, not from the
end of the days of grace, but from the regular date when the
premium fell due; and no evidence of health shall be required •
but the directors shall not receive payment of any such arrear
except with a fine of five per cent, per month on the premiums in
arrear. At the expiry of such period of thirteen months, the po¬
licy shall be entirely forfeited, and the directors shall calculate the
value of such assurance according to their usual practice, and carry
the same to a “ forfeited policy account,” to the credit of the per¬
sons who were interested in the assurance so forfeited, to remain
there till the end of five years from the regular date when the
premium fell due which was not paid. But if no claim shall be
made and substantiated for such calculated value within the said
period of five years, the same shall be carried into the general funds
ot the company, for their own use.
2. That all other policies, on which the ordinary premium may
not be paid within the thirty days of grace allowed for payment,
VOL. XII. 1 2 ^ ’
INSURANCE.
409
shall be forfeited, but may be revived by the board of directors Life
due^f theffi m°fhS fr°m th®regular dateof such premium falling Assurance,
due, if the directors are satisfied with the explanation given as to '  .
e cause of non-payment—the parties proving it to have been an
oversightand if the directors are thus satisfied, medical evidence
as to the health of the party whose life is assured shall be dispensed
with; but the directors shall impose a fine not exceeding ten per
cent, on the premium in arrear. If the directors are not satisfied
from the circumstances stated, that the forfeiture of the policy was
through oversight or if the period of arrear exceed three months
he policy may still be revived on evidence of health and habits’
satisfactory to the directors, provided application be made within
thirteen months from the date of the premium falling into arrear
reckoning, not from the end of the days of grace, but from the
regular date when the premium fell due; but the directors shall
impose a revival fine not exceeding five per cent, per month on
the premiums in arrear. The directors to be the sole judges of the
cordingly^^11118 t0 health ^ habits> and entitled to decide ac-
It is quite proper that a precise understanding as to the
torteiture of policies should be come to; for it is surely
unfair that a person who has been paying premiums for
ten, twenty, it may be fifty years, should stand in the posi¬
tion of forfeiting the savings of a lifetime, by omission to
pay a sum at a particular period. A forfeiture in such cir¬
cumstances becomes also a greater hardship, when we know
that the office has in its hands probably a large sum, which
they would have given the policy-holder to surrender his
contract immediately before the forfeiture, or would have
lent him on his note of hand, at interest, did he re¬
quire it.
At the end of this article, the premiums for different
kinds of risks on lives of persons of different ages within
certain limits are given, which will be found useful for re¬
ference. They are net rates, or pure rates, as they are
sometimes termed, being the bare result of calculations
at Carlisle three per cent., without any additions for ex¬
penses or profit. Offices would probably add from fifteen
to twenty per cent, in calculating premiums without profits,
and twenty-five to thirty per cent, in calculating premiums
with profits.
Some mutual offices still charge an entry-money in ad¬
dition to the premiums, but that practice has now been very
generally given up.
The regulation of these annual payments in the earlier
stages of assurance business was a matter of some difficulty ;
and, as previously stated, the earliest offices charged the
same premium at all ages, in ignorance of the certainty of
the risk increasing with age. The Equitable was the first,
it is understood, to adopt a graduated scale.
1 o afford increased facilities to assurers, some offices are
now in the practice of allowing one-half of the premiums
for a limited number of years to remain unpaid, as a debt
on the policy, bearing interest. Referring to what has
already been said as to that portion of the premiums which
exceeds the risk of the year, it is evident, on consideration,
that the offices are safe in this practice, so long as the sum
lent, or allowed to remain unpaid, is only a portion of the
premium applicable to future years. The system, within
limits, is quite sound, although some persons, ignorant of
the principle, have condemned it; and it suits the circum¬
stances of some parties not to pay at first more than is
necessary, having the prospect at the same time of bonus
benefits, which may reduce the debt allowed to accumulate.
In consequence of the heavy pressure of the income-tax,
more especially on persons deriving their income from their
own personal exertions, and liferenters, the government, by
the act 16th and 17th Viet., cap. 34, made provision for a
reduction in favour of any person “ who should have made
an assurance on his life, or on the life of his wife, or should
have contracted for any deferred annuity on his own life,
or on the life of his wife.” This provision was temporary,
but has been renewed from year to year.
3 F
410
INSURANCE.
Life Limits of Policy as to Residence.
Assurance.
v-»L j Persons assured are generally allowed to travel and re¬
side within the limits of Europe, and to pass from one part
of Europe to another, by sea or land, in decked or steam
vessels. Before steam-navigation was so extended, and so
safely conducted as at present, persons were only allowed
to cross the channel and land within certain limits, such as
between the Elbe and Brest. No office now keeps up
such restrictions ; yet when any person holding a life as¬
surance has occasion to leave the country, he should refer
to the particular clause embodied in his policy, and get the
necessary license if required.
Some offices, in the praiseworthy desire to extend their
liberality, make no charge for voyages to any part of the
world, limiting any extra charge to residence in particular
countries. This, however, has a good deal of the show of
liberality without the substance, as very few persons under¬
take voyages without intending to settle or reside abroad
at least for a temporary period.
Residence in North America, within certain limits, in¬
cluding all British North America; the Cape of Good
Hope, as also Australia and New Zealand, are generally
considered nearly as healthy as Great Britain, and mode¬
rate rates of extra premium, if any, are usually charged
for these climates. The East Indies, West Indies, and
southern part of the United States, require higher rates of
additional premium.
One office, the Colonial, established in 1846, has pub¬
lished rates for most climates, and by systematizing foreign
rates, has done a great deal of good by the introduction of
more liberal terms and conditions for foreign residence or
occasional travel.
But the most important change made in assurance prac¬
tice for many years was introduced in 1850 by the Scotch
office already referred to, resolutions having been adopted
under which policies after five years may be relieved of all
conditions as to foreign residence, the person assured prov¬
ing that he has no intention of residing abroad. This change
was suggested from the observation of the very small amounts
paid for foreign residence, compared with the whole business
of the various companies, and the evident conclusion, that it
was absurd to maintain a rule reducing the value of a policy,
in a large degree, for the purpose of keeping in check a few
persons who might have occasion to leave the limits of
Europe. The plan has been quite successful, and has added
a large percentage to the value of policies.
It would have been probably more correct in principle,
if some small extra payment—Is. or 6d. per cent, per an¬
num—had been demanded on account of this whole-world
license; but there is sometimes an error in trammelling a
large movement, such as that referred to, by some trifling
restrictions for the sake of strict adherence to rule, and the
office did wisely in giving the extended license as a free gift.
It of course excludes those whose professions or occupa¬
tions are likely to lead them abroad.
The Interest of one person in effecting a Policy on the life
of another.
If an assurance be effected by one person on the life of
another, the assurer is generally required to declare and
prove that he has a sufficient interest in the life to warrant
his taking out a policy to the extent proposed. The object
of requiring such evidence is to prevent merely speculative
assurances, but the offices generally are satisfied as to the
bona fide nature of the transaction on the representations
of respectable parties, without requiring what in legal
phraseology would be termed proof.
By the act 14th Geo. III., cap. 48, it was enacted “ That
in all cases where the assured hath an interest in such life
or lives, event or events, no greater sum shall be recovered Life
or received from the insurer or insurers than the amount or Assurance
value of the interest of the insured in such life or lives, or '—H
other event or events.
This clause in the statute was brought to bear in an ac¬
tion raised in 1805 by Messrs Godsall and Company against
the executors of the Right Hon. William Pitt. They had
effected an assurance on Mr Pitt’s life to cover a debt, but
after his death his debts were paid by the nation, and the
assurance office declined to pay the assurance, on the plea
that the interest of the assurers had ceased.
The assurance office received a verdict in their favour, to
which the law was considered to entitle them, but both the
act and decision were based on an erroneous view of life
assurance, which not being a contract of indemnity, is not
a contract into which the element of damage, dependent on
the payment or non-payment of a debt, enters. It is quite
right, in order to prevent merely speculative assurances,
that an interest should exist, and it is the duty of the offices
to satisfy themselves on the point before issuing a policy ;
but when an office has accepted an assurance, the question
of interest should never afterwards be raised, unless the
policy has been obtained by fraudulent means otherwise.
This case of Godsall v. Boldero (Pitt’s executor), was the
leading case as to interest under a life assurance policy for
half a century; but the offices seldom availed themselves
of the precedent which it formed. It has now been over¬
ruled, on the ground that the decision was “ founded on a
mistaken analogy, and wrong,” by the unanimous decision
of six judges sitting in the Exchequer Chamber, in the case
of Dalby v. The India and London Life Assurance Com¬
pany (see Smith’s Leading Cases, vol. ii., p. 213), delivered
2d December 1854. By this decision the continuance of any
portion of the interest required by the statute, when the
policy is effected, is no longer necessary; but an interest
in the life of the assured at the date of contract is still ne¬
cessary.
See also the case of Law v. The London Indisputable
Life Policy Company, 15th January 1855.
Surrender of a Policy.
It is the practice of the offices to return to the policy¬
holder who wishes to abandon his assurance a portion of
the premiums paid ; and the justice of such a return is evi¬
dent from what has been stated under the previous head as
to the composition of an annual premium under an equalized
rate. Persons assured ought to be allowed to surrender
their policies at any time alter joining the society, where a
policy is with a mutual office, or “with profits” in a guarantee
or proprietary company; but in the case of a policy without
profits, which is a fixed contract, the office may make any
conditions they choose. We have said that in mutual
offices surrender value should be allowed from the first, and
we have assumed the profit scheme of guarantee or pro¬
prietary offices to be in the same position as a mutual fund.
But while we are of opinion that surrender value should
be allowed from the first, we do not think that the differ¬
ence between the short-period rate of premium and the
whole-term rate should be exactly the measure of it. We
think it quite right that a large percentage should be de¬
ducted from the pure value of the policy, not only on ac¬
count of expenses, but on account of the withdrawal of the
party from the scheme. The office has no power to turn
out the lives that have deteriorated, and it is but just that
the lives retiring, which may be assumed to be good, should
pay a fine for the permission to retire.
A table of the values of policies from various ages and
periods, is given in the appendix, Table HI., p. , but
these are pure values, and a considerable deduction from
them would be made by an office in accepting a surrender.
Assurance K ^ Wr S®rV6 S° ^ aS a ^uide as to the vaIue of a policy
but application must be made to the office for the realterms
f surrfnder’ lf required. The values given do not em
brace the values of bonus additions. em
Most offices generally lend the value of a policy at a
moderate rate of interest on its security, which often pre¬
vents the necessity of surrender, and in many instances
fcJofSr °f S°me U >™ ava,u2
INSURANCE.
Death of the Assured and Claim upon the Office.
Evidence of death, when that event occurs, is required
by the company, and each has its particular forms. q The
cause of death is required to be certified as well as the
event, and it is of general importance that in that respect
the return should be as accurate as possible, as it enables
offices to keep full records of their casualties, which will
become, and has already proved to a certain extent a
most valuable source of statistical information. The nri
be^atedt1’ iTT l" reqUiling tile Cause
e stated is. In order to ascertain that the particular dis¬
ease of which die person died did not exist when the as¬
surance was effected,—that is, within the knowledge of the
rhy2n„dfjta,LtehePartydid ,10t die '-dor
It is certainly due to assurance offices to state that the
number of cases in which they have disputed claims is very
united, and that in almost every instance there was good
fver "thaf "fT1 t0 Settle' We 111,181 admit> ^ow-
ever, that some of the recent changes in the practice of
offices, by which they bind themselves not to dispute, are
ighly important, and are a movement in the right direc-
rancfT^W fail J0 extend the Practice of life assu-
rance. We think it unfortunate that those who originated
. PraStlce °[ declaring all policies to be indisputable con-
tiacts from the commencement, should have carried the
withTdne° ^ 18 STry Wr°ng’ both on Principle and
with a due regard to public morals, that the office should
fraud Unp hMya„ airaWhich had PalPably arisen from
rwvr» l* cl7 16 0r,°inator of the idea considered the
popularity of the measure more than its true effect—its
busmess-creatmg power more than its justice. We do not
withhold our commendation of the principle, but we cannot
admu that there should be no limitations. Vis quite 2per
2 Meu thf ail,‘ll!eStions as to the basis of the contract,
should be closed after a certain period, and that it should
not be in the option of an office to raise questions at any time;
indeed, it is probably more to the advantage of the offices
themselves than to the public that such should be the case,
as it will infallibly tend to the extension of the system. The
appearance of an office binding itself not to dispute policies,
was followed by the adoption of a similar resolution on the
part of various other institutions subsequently founded, but
we are not aware that any of the older and substantial offices
have adopted the principle in the form in which it origi¬
nated, that is, indisputability from the commencement of the
assurance. Some offices declare that policies are indisput¬
able except in case of fraud, meaning thereby, that no error or
unintentional mis-statement will be taken advantage of, but
this still leaves the door of dispute open for the whole term
of the contract. On the whole, we are disposed to approve
the principle now acted on by most of the Scotch offices,
and originated by the Standard Life Assurance Company
that after five years all policies shall be admissible to a select
class in which they shall be indefeasible, the whole clauses
ot the policy as the basis of the contract being deleted and
the company binding themselves to pay the sum assured,
d the annual premiums be paid—all which is expressed in
a certificate or supplementary policy. Under this system
a probationary period of five years is held to be sufficient
I"/ the ?T?Se in view’ and it is surely reasonable
that such a period should be allowed.
hese are all highly important changes in the contract
assurance, and if the legislature would only do their part
tlmnrir ^^"d extravagance which abounds u^der
the present excess of competition, the life assurance system
greatness ^ ^^ ^ 006 °f itS Proudest attributes of
been tbe practice among some offices to require
pi oof of age at death, if not previously afforded. ThS we
concmve to be most unjust; it ought to be given or required
at the commencement of the contract and ought never to
be dekyed fcn a c]aim arises. 0ne case hJC0^l^
notice lately, where proof of age was required thirtv-
two years after the policy was effected. The gentlemJn
had been in the service of the Hon. East India Company,
and it was discovered that in some official declaration to
to the office mTh himSelf °ut fbur years older than stated
to the office. The representatives of the deceased could
procure no evidence to show that this was wrong, though they
felt morally convinced it was so, and were obliged to submit
to a large deduction from the sum assured. Still the case
although hard enough on the representatives, might have
been worse, as the policy could have been reduced altogether
on the ground of misstatement in the original proposal. ’
Ihe only other points under this head which we think it
necessary to notice, are the assignment of policies and the
clause as to suicide, which we take together, because they
have some bearing on each other. y
In England the offices bind themselves to pay to the
H inifTrS’ and aSSignS °f Persons assured,
lie Scotland the expression is, heirs, executors, and
ssignees, now although both contemplate payment to as¬
signees, it is no less true, that, according to the law of En£-
;fnd’.P°!!CieS are incapable of assignment, as chases in action,
but nnlv !!ngS-° 711Ch the assured has not the possession,
but only the right to recover. The claim, however, can be
made good in a court of equity.
Scotland, a policy is legally assignable, but to convey
t effectually formal words of assignment and conveyance
must be made use of; and due notice given to the office
An unmtimated assignment would not stand good against
t le competing interest of creditors, or of a later assignment
intimated before an earlier one, and its particular date is of
great importance.
i j »nnTld^r t0 render an assignment indefeasible in Eng¬
land, Mr Bunyon (from whose works much accurate and
valuable information on this subject may be obtained) says,
notice of the assignment to the insurers is requisite, and
it is in all cases proper that the policy should be delivered
to the purchaser. In this manner, although he cannot have
t le legal interest or right to one transferred to him, he will
perfect his security or purchase, so far as the nature of the
case will permit, and will obtain, at least as against all sub¬
sequent purchasers, a right, as it has been expressed, in rem.
Until notice has been given, the vendor, moreover, has it
in his power to defeat the assignment by surrenderino- the
pohcy, or the bonuses which have accrued therein to the
office. But when notice has been given, the insurers
will become quasi trustees for the assignee; and that, al¬
though there may have been no acknowledgment of the
notice in any other act equivalent to the acceptance of a
trust by them.” r
We are almost afraid to venture any remarks on the
suicide clause in policies. In the case of policies of five
years standing admitted to a select class of assurance, as
already referred to, it is taken out of the contract. When
a policy is held by third parties, by assignment or otherwise,
it is also delete, according to the practice of most offices ;
but when policies are held in the name of the individual
himself, the clause of forfeiture is held to apply. Some
411
Life
Assurance.
412 I N S U R
Life offices modify its effect by agreeing to return all the pre-
Assurance. miums paid; others, by allowing the value of the policy
to the representatives of the deceased, but all this is not
satisfactory. If a man destroys himself, knowing what
he is doing, and more particularly if he were to effect the
assurance in contemplation ot suicide, it is cjuite right that
the claim should not be paid ; but if he does not know what
he does when he murders himself, it is clear, we think, that
the claim should be paid, even if it stands in the party’s
own name ; but. we would draw this further distinction, that
if a person be evidently insane, and be not properly watched
by his friends, or put under proper superintendence, the
claim should not be admitted, even although the party
did not know what he was doing when he committed
suicide. In the policies of some offices there is generally
a clause of arbitration, which is a great advantage to the
assured, the company binding themselves to submit all dis¬
putes to the decision of two neutral persons and an umpire.
A N C E.
The Bonus System. Life
Assurance.
We have said very little hitherto on this head, and we do Vs—
not intend to enlarge upon it; each office will be found to
display its own system, with all the attractions which cha¬
racterize it, and we are not called on to offer any opinion
as to the practice of the different institutions. As the sys¬
tems are widely different, they cannot all be based on jus¬
tice ; but they may, at the same time, be just in the view'
that each office generally sets forth distinctly what it pur¬
poses to do in its prospectus, so that the party proposing to
assure knows the system he is connecting himself with.
The practice of giving bonus arose, as already explained,
from the Equitable Society finding that its funds were more
than adequate to meet the demands upon them. The fol¬
lowing bonus table of that society, the only one we will
particularize, shows the extent of the benefit which assurers
have derived.
Table showing the addition to he made to each sum of £100 assured by the Equitable Society prior to the 1st of January 1817, when it shall
become a claim, agreeably to orders of general courts, holdeninthe years 1791, 1792, 1795, 1800,1809, 1819, 1829, 1839, and 1849.
Date of Assurance.
Addition
made in
1791.
* Before May 1st") lyqrv
in the year J 1 w
1791
1792
1793
1794
1795
1796
1797
1798
1799
1800
1801
1802
1803
1804
1805
1806
1807
1808
Before the 8th of \ 1809
December t
On or after the 8th) 1809
of December j
1810
1811
1812
1813
1814
1815
1816
£ s.
2 0
1 0
Addition
made in
1792.
Addition
made in
1795.
Addition
made in
1800.
£ s.
22 0
20 0
18 0
16 0
14 0
12 0
10 0
8 0
6 0
4 0
2 0
Addition
made in
1809.
£ s.
50 0
47 10
45 0
42 10
40 0
37 10
35 0
32 10
30 0
27 10
25 0
22 10
20 0
17 10
15 0
12 10
10 0
7 10
5 0
2 10
Addition
made in
1819.
£ S.
75 0
72 10
70 0
67 10
65 0
62 10
60 0
57 10
55 0
52 10
50 0
47 10
45 0
42 10
40 0
37 10
35 0
32 10
30 0
27 10
27 10
25 0
22 10
20 0
17 10
15 0
12 10
10 0
Addition
made in
1829.
£ S.
120 0
117 0
114 0
111 0
108 0
105 0
102 0
99 0
96 0
93 0
90 0
87 0
84 0
81 0
78 0
75 0
72 0
69 0
66 0
63 0
63 0
60 0
57 0
54 0
51 0
48 0
45 0
42 0
Addition
made in
1839.
£ S.
125 0
122 10
120 0
117 10
115 0
112 10
110 0
107 10
105 0
102 10
100 0
97 10
95 0
92 10
90 0
87 10
85 0
82 10
80 0
77 10
77 10
75 0
72 10
70 0
67 10
65 0
62 10
60 0
Addition
made in
1849.
£ S.
120 0
118 0
116 0
114 0
112 0
110 0
108 0
106 0
104 0
102 0
100 0
98 0
96 0
94 0
92 0
90 0
88 0
86 0
84 0
82 0
82 0
80 0
78 0
76 0
74 0
72 0
70 0
68 0
Whole
Addition.
£ S.
526 0
507 10
489 0
471 10
456 0
440 10
425 0
410 10
396 0
381 10
367 0
352 10
340 0
327 10
315 0
302 10
290 0
277 10
265 0
252 10
250 0
240 0
230 0
220 0
210 0
200 0
190 0
180 0
Date.
1790
1791
1792
1793
1794
1795
1796
1797
1798
1799
1800
1801
1802
1803
1804
1805
1806
1807
1808
1809
1809
1810
1811
1812
1813
1814
1815
1816
* If the Policy is dated c» or after the 1st of May, the whole addition prior to 1801 will be £9 less than it is stated to be in ^^
t A prospective addition of p^.jgg^t'itleJ'to^ad^tions^but^^he^vmt^only'orthek becommg^lams'befOTe^he next^nvestigationf^1 ^ ^eCC
Following the example of the Equitable, it is now the
practice of all mutual assurance offices to divide profits
among their members, and all proprietary offices have a
bonus scheme. The reason, however, for such accumula¬
tions and divisions has somewhat altered since the Equi¬
table promulgated the system ; high rates of premium were
originally demanded by the early societies, from want of
information as to the value of the risk undertaken ; and
higher premiums than are requisite for the risk are now re¬
quired, in order to give confidence, and to provide against
any incidental occurrence which might derange the calcu¬
lations. The result, under good management, is of course
a surplus fund, divisible as profits.
We have already mentioned the sources from which
profits arise, and we have indicated the necessity of accu¬
mulating a reserve fund for the deferred risks of an offic e,
he amount of that fund compared with the value of the
obligations, being the only proper test of the condition of
the institution; we are also of opinion that the mode o
ascertaining the position of an assurance office that is,
the investigation of its affairs with reference to profits—is
a much more important matter than the mode of divi ing
the fund when ascertained; but beyond these general
indications of our views, we cannot enter on the subject o
Investigation. For similar reasons we must decline to enter
on a discussion of the various plans or schemes in ac¬
cordance with which the profits of life offices are divided.
They are very various. Some make reversionary additions
to the sum assured; others pay in cash, or reduce the
premium; while others offer a choice among these be¬
nefits. Some again give those who have been longest as¬
sured the greatest advantage; while others divide accoid-
ing to the amount of premiums paid, or assume the value o
the policy as the basis of the bonus. Each office, o course,
——
insurance.
lauds its own scheme as the best; some divide accordin-
• o the strictest principles of justice others have temp
tations for old lives; while "—‘-1— 1
413
younger members,
tages” are offered
another class attracts the
In fact, the “greatest possible advan-
, „ , in many quarters, and the study of the
prospectuses of the offices is recommended as the only wav
to get a proper idea of the real advantages, and ouestion-
able allurements, which are held out. ^
These divisions generally take place annually, quinquen-
mally, or septenmally. The Equitable period of division
is at intervals of ten years ; but no office could now expect
period61181”688 Wh,Ch Started °n the basis of such a long
There is no department of the onerous duties of the
manager of a life office which calls for greater skill and
judgment than the investigation of affairt and division of
profits, more especially the former; and I cannot do better
than close these observations with the following quotation
from Dr Farr s opinion in the Report of the Registrar-
General T here is so much of peculiarity in every so-
Edt! what ^arge
Great Britain than in other countries; but we also find a Life
rge number of institutions for the purpose of assurance Insuranc<'.
America*11 C°UntrieS’ more particularly in Germany and ' v '
We have it not in our power to give a full list of these
hlSions •— foIloVving are soraeof the more important
Austria.
The Vienna1 FUnd f°r Wid°W8 and OrphanSE£abli8hed
The General Provident Fund in Vienna 1.‘i  S
The Assurance Company of Milan    jpofi
6 C0mpany in Trieste, established
mv ^ a^0Ple(^ assurance  i q?a
The Mutual Assurance Company, for Life Assurances'and
Annuities, in Vienna  iqqq
Azienda Assecuratrice in Trieste  
Germany.
The Life Assurance Bank for Germany, in Gotha  1829
The German Life Assurance Company in Lubeck.... igS
The Leipsic Life Assurance Company   1828
b.!,'ai;d 0" l!f premium, what reSve should be   
laid up, what constitutes the safety of a nartimlar The Berlin Life Assurance P y   ?831
«,baf u iii, , Safety of a particular office,
what should be sacrificed to extend the transactions, what
should be strenuously resisted to save a societv from immi¬
nent danger or insolvency, and what should be adopted to
give families the greatest benefits, the public the greatest
confidence in insurance societies—as demand from the
actuary great technical and mathematical skill, besides in-
egnty, consummate judgment, courage, and prudence.”
LIFE ASSURANCE IN THE COLONIES, AND IN FOREIGN
COUNTRIES.
We cannot do more than refer very generally to the
practice of life assurance in the colonies of Great Britain
and in foreign countries, as our information on the subject
is necessarily limited; but we think it desirable that the
opportunity shou d not be lost, of commencing a record,
w ich may be enlarged by further particulars at some other
time.
Various British offices transact life business abroad, and
some of them derive the greater part of their business from
that source through branch offices or agencies. It is not
necessary to particularize these offices, but it is rkdit to
mention that such exist.
The principal native offices established in the colonies
as far as we have been able to ascertain, are:—
1. Cape of Good Hope— Founded
Ine Cape of Grood Hope Mutual    1845
The South African Assurance Company  1831
The Cape of Good Hope Trust and Assurance Company 1840
Protecteur Fire and Life Assurance Company  1838
South African Private Widows’ Fund 
2. West Indies—
The Barbadoes Mutual Life Assurance Society  1840
The Jamaica Mutual Life Assurance Society   1844
3. British North America—
The Canada Life Assurance Company   1847
4. Australia—
The Australian Mutual Provident Society   
5. India—
m, Life Assurance Company    lar,r
The Munich Life Assurance Company .   -S
The Brunswick General Assurance Company 
The Frankfort Life Assurance Company A..:...’.’”.’!"!!.”' 
The Hammonia Life Assurance Society, established at Ham-
Durgn  
The birghnd AnnUity A'ssurance Company' Janus' ‘in Ham-
1842
1845
1845
1847
1829
and
The Indian Laudable and Mutual Assurance Society... 1815
The Madras Equitable Assurance Society  1842
. ^he offices established at the Cape of Good Hope, and
in British North America, charge rates very much the same
as those of British offices in Great Britain. The rates for
the West Indies and East Indies are, of course, higher, in
consequence of the greater mortality which obtains in those
countries.
Life assurance has been more extensively cultivated in
France.
L’Union 
La Compagnie d’Assurances Generales sur la vie  i oio
La ISTationale    
La France    1830
Le Phoenix    1843
Caisse des Ecoles et’des Families ..!... 
Caisse Paternelle (Tontine Association)   4^
La Concorde    -icaz
L’Economie     1841
L’Equitable (Mutual) " ’.   
La Minerve (Tontine Association)  
Societe Civile des Nu-proprietaires ^
Denmark.
The Life Insurance and Annuity Society at Copenhagen ... 1842
fhe American life assurance companies are numerous
id we are afraid some, especially of recent date, are
omitted in the list which follows :—
America.
Hew York Life Insurance and Trust Company Established
The Mutual Life Insurance Company of Hew York . ifm
Hew England Mutual Life Insurance Company, Boston......' 1843
Hew York Life Insurance Company  184A
The Mutual Benefit Life Insurance Company, New Jersey”
State Mutual, Worcester, Massachusetts   J
Connecticut Mutual Life Insurance Company, Hartford
County  J
Eagle Life and Health Insurance Company, New jersey”.”.
American Mutual Life Insurance Company of Hewhaven
County 
Union Mutual Life Insurance Company of Maine j j j  irao
Trenton Mutual Life Insurance Company, New Jersey  1848
Penn Mutual Life Insurance Company, Philadelphia...!  1848
Natural Life Insurance Company, Montpelier, Vermont  1848
artford Ltfe and Health Insurance Company, Connecticut 1849
United States Life Insurance Company, New York .. 1850
United States Life Insurance, Annuity, and Trust Company
Philadelphia  r
Manhattan Life, New York 
Charter Oak, Hartford, Connecticut    ^ggQ
Mutual Life Insurance Company of Baltimore .!!!.!....!!. !!!! 1845
Howard Life Insurance Company of New York ... 1852
Umted States Mutual, Laudable, and Provident Association,
Philadelphia  ’
Knickerbocker Life Insurance Company, New York  1853
1845
1845
1846
1847
1848
1850
1850
INSURANCE.
414
Life The following shows in abstract the amount of business
Insurance, transacted by the offices established in the state of New
W'Y / York during the year 1854, being the latest returns at pre¬
sent available. Some British offices do business in the
United States, but as it is necessary to invest 100,000 dol¬
lars in the state of New York, there is a wholesome check
upon foreign companies. In Canada and New Brunswick
similar laws are about to be introduced :—
Life Insurance Returns.
The aggregate assets of eleven Company’s amount to $6,727,273 72
income from 1854 from all sources ... 2,592,982 10
Gross amount at risk on whole-life and short-term
policies  72,431,797 32
Number of policies issued in U. S. in 1854, 5583
Amount insured thereby   15,023,647 00
... Cash premiums received in 1854   1,796,378 37
... Notes taken for premiums  306,310 52
... Expenses—as far as returned, 1854  300,441 13
Losses paid  886,932 34
accrued and unpaid, 1854   257,100 00
... Premium notes and loans on policies esti¬
mated as assets  1,596,284 82
OTHER KINDS OP ASSURANCE.
Life, fire, and marine assurance were, till within a few
years, the only assurance systems adopted in this country ;
but there has been of late an anxiety to extend the appli¬
cation of the principle ; and we now have companies formed
to afford protection against many various kinds of risk.
Some will no doubt succeed, but as they are all still in
their infancy, and almost altogether experimental, little in¬
formation, in the shape of data, being available on which
to found calculations, they will require much cautious man¬
agement. The following are the most prominent of the
schemes which have appeared:—
Insurance against railway accidents.
Insurance of passengers by sea and land 5 also against general
accidents; with compensation in cases of non-fatal injury: like¬
wise assurance of the baggage and effects of passengers.
Insurance on emigrants, covering the risk of voyages, localities,
gold diggings, &c.
Insurance of health, against total disablement from any cause.
Insurance against specific diseases, such as blindness, insanity,
paralysis.
Insurance of the lives of persons afflicted with disease.
Insurance, or guarantee of fidelity in situations of trust ; such
transactions being sometimes combined with life assurance.
Insurance of plate-glass windows.
Insurance against losses by hail storms.
Insurance against defective titles, where the title, though good
for holding, is unmarketable by reason only of such defects.
Insurance of the value of mortgaged property.
Insurance or guarantee of debts.
Insurance of dividends, and compensation from embarrassed
estates.
Insurance or guarantee of rents, securing punctual payment
whether the property be or be not occupied.
Insurance against loss by theft; for the efficient prosecution of
the offenders ; and for the detection and prevention of crime.
Insurance of live-stock, for the purpose of securing the farmer
against the diseases and casualties to which live-stock is exposed.
Matrimonial insurance, providing portions to persons who may
marry, and making provision for them at certain age if they do
not marry.
Insurance on infants, to take effect after a particular age.
(tV. T. T.)
EXPLANATION OF THE TABLES. Life
Insurance.
The Tables subjoined have as their basis the Carlisle table of mor-
tality, and three per cent, compound interest without any additions
whatever. They are constructed in a manner scarcely requiring
explanation, and may be used readily by inspection, according to the
cases required ; yet, for the sake of those who may not he acquainted
with the subject here treated, a few examples as to the application,
of the Tables will not be out of place.
Table I. contains the single and annual premiums required to
secure an assurance of £100, payable at death or any other period.
Example.—To effect an assurance of £100, payable at death of a
party, age 25 next hirth-day, the single premium required is
£36 :17:11 (36.8945, in the table), or the annual premium
for the same is £1: 14:1 (1.7029, in the table).
To effect an assurance of £100, payable at the death of a party,
age 25 next birth-day, provided he dies within 5 years after the
commencement of risk? Answer : single premium —£3 :13 : 7
(=3.678); annual premium during the 5 years, = 15s. lOd.
(=•791).
Table II. contains annual premiums required to secure an assu¬
rance of £100 at death, in case they are to cease on the party attain¬
ing a certain age. The first column shews the number of. annual
payments to he made by the assured, the next column specifies the
age of the assured, and in the third column are to be found the
respective premiums. The first column is mutual to the whole
breadth of the table.
Example.—To effect an assurance of £100, payable at the death
of a life, age 25 next hirth-day, the annual premium to cease on
his attaining the age of 65 ? Answer : £1 : 16 : 9 (=1.835), as
found in the column headed : [To cease at age 65] opposite age
25.
Table III. shews the value of a policy of £100, after its having
been in force for some number of years—for instance, a policy of
£100, opened in the year 1840, on a life aged 25, is worth £1:0:8
(=1.0301) in the year 1841, or £2 : 1:10 (=2.0935) in the year
1842, or £16:11 : 6 (=16.5726) in 1855 and so on, as is to be found
in the line corresponding with age 25, under their respective head¬
ings.
Table IV. contains the annual premiums required to secure an
assurance of £100, payable at the death of the first of two lives.
Example.—The annual premium for an assurance of £100, payable
at the death of the first of two lives, A and B, aged respectively
30 and 45, is £3 :18 : 3 (=3.913), as found in the line corre¬
sponding with [age of A 30], and the column headed [A + 15 =
B]—i.e., the difference of the two given ages being 15 years.
In like manner the annual premium for an assurance of £100,
payable at the first death of two lives, ages respectively 25
and 30, is £2 :17 : 4 (=2.864), as observed in column headed
[A + 5=BJ, and the line answering to [Age of A] 25.
Table Y. is precisely analogous with Table IV., except that the
former is for an insurance of £100, payable at the death of the
second party, and the premiums are to continue up to the year in
which that event takes place.
Tables VI. and YU. contain the single and annual premiums
for an assurance of £100, payable at the death of a life B, provided
he he survived by another life A.
Example.—The single premium to affect an assurance of £100
payable, provided B aged 35 he survived by A aged 25, is
£31: 7 :1 (=31.352), as found in Table VI., column B 35, oppo¬
site A 25, and the annual premium for the same assurance-
continuous to B’s death—is £1: 17 : 8 (=1.882), as observed
in the same column and line of Table VII.
insurance.
415
lilfc TABLE I. Shewing the Single and Annual Premiums for Assuring TATiri? tit ir i p t> t n
Insurance. £100 for Life or for a limited Period. Carlisle 3 per Cent TABLE H ._y„„e of a Polrey of £100, according to the number of Life
years elapsed from the commencement of Risk.— Carlisle 3 per Insurance.
SINGLE PREMIUM.
For
Life.
31.3146
31.8321
32.3331
32.8387
33.3599
33.8973
34.4514
35.0337
35.6345
36.2545
36.8945
37.5446
38.2157
38.8874
39.5280
40.1254
40.7304
41.3538
42.0069
42.6911
43.3971
44.1259
t4.8679
45.6237
46.3938
47.1580
47.8952
48.6243
49.3551
50.1083
50.8847
51.6959
52 5437
53.4401
54.4079
55.4303
56.5097
57.5989
58.6991
59.8111
60.9455
62.0945
63.2593
64.4134
65.5110
66 5299
.601
.651
.671
.676
.681
.686
.674
.679
.684
.689
.710
.715
.754
.845
.954
.981
.991
.984
.976
.986
.996
1.025
1.054
1.084
1.153
1.263
1.337
1.395
1.416
1.437
1.438
1.439
1.418
1.353
1.328
1.303
1.388
1.476
1.568
1.640
1.740
1.845
2.029
2.350
2.745
3.251
3.050
3.130
3.153
3.160
3.168
3.174
3.195
3.233
3.300
3.442
3.678
3.922
4.176
4.391
4.518
4.548
4.561
4.590
w4.651
4.747
4.895
5.131
5.408
5.714
6.015
6.274
6.435
6.529
6.552
6.501
6.408
6.289
6.237
6.278
6.460
6.732
7.120
7.523
8.004
8.675
9.615
10.891
12.267
13.622
14 774
15.710
For 15 7 10
Year. Years. Years. Years.
5R97
5.792
5.845
5.908
6.034
6.236
6.459
6.707
6.952
7.193
7.443
7.687
7.954
8.211
8.412
8.561
8.767
9.021
9.329
9.666
10.018
10.371
10.707
11.012
11.254
11.423
11.479
11.526
11.580
11.679
11.810
12.010
12.285
12.709
13.414
14.415
15.782
17.234
18.725
20.207
21.737
23.279
24.836
26.375
27.802
29.092
ANNUAL PREMIUM.
For 5 7
Life. Years Years
1.3279
1.3601
1.3917
1.4241
1.4581
1.4936
1.5308
1.5707
1.6125
1.6565
1.7029
1.7509
1.8016
1.8534
1.9039
1.9519
2.0016
2.0538
2.1097
2.1697
2.2331
2.3002
2.3704
2.4438
2.5207
2.5993
2.6773
2.7566
2.8385
2.9253
3.0176
3.1171
3.2248
3.3430
3.4758
3.6224
3.7845
3.9566
4.1396
4.3347
4.5452
4.7713
5.0149
5.2720
5.5324
5.7896
.655
.672
.677
.679
.681
.682
.687
.695
.709
.740
.791
.844
.900
.977
.992
1.006
1.027
1.059
1.111
1.172
1.240
1.307
1.366
1.402
1.424
1.429
1.418
1.398
1.371
1.359
1.367
1.407
1.467
1.554
1.645
1.754
1.904
2.117
2.407
2.727
3.051
3.334
3.567
.661
.674
.678
, .681
.686
.690
.699
.722
.758
.799
.842
.881
.921
.957
.980
.990
1.000
1.012
1.035
1.073
1.121
1.176
1.232
1.287
1.340
1.384
1.409
1.414
1.407
1.392
1.384
1.386
1.400
1.427
1.479
1.550
1.651
1.782
1.952
2.176
2.424
2.687
2.957
3.228
3.475
3.684
.667
.679
.685
.693
.708
.732
.758
.818
.847
.878
.908
.942
.974
.999
1.018
1.042
1.073
1.111
1.153
1.197
1.241
1.285
1.324
1.357
1.380
1.389
1.395
1.402
1.413
1.429
1.453
1.486
1.539
1.627
1.754
1.929
2.119
2.318
2 521
2.737
2.963
3.198
3.439
3.667
3.875
A.sre at
Enter¬
ing the
Assur¬
ance.
After After After After After After After
Year. Years. Years. Years. Years. Years. Years. Years.
.7350
.7472
.7760
.8063
.8382
.8884
.9248
.9633
1.0040
1.0301
1.0746
1.0872
1.0482
0.9879
1.0104
1.0517
1.1137
1.1798
1.2320
1.2875
1.3280
1.3709
1.4163
1.4256
1.3950
1.3994
1.4225
1.4871
1.5563
1.6517
1.7550
1.8888
2 0788
2.2424
2.4217
2.5047
2.5946
2.6924
2.8228
2.9420
3.0728
3.1413
3.0842
1.4767
1.5174
1.5761
1.6378
1.7192
1.8050
1.8792
1.9577
2.0237
2.0935
2.1501
2.1240
2.0257
1.9883
2.0515
2.1537
2.2803
2.3972
2.5037
2.5985
2.6806
2.7677
2.8216
2.8007
2.7748
2.8020
2.8885
3.0202
3.1822
3.3777
3.6107
3.9283
4.2746
4.6099
4.8658
5.0343
5.2171
5.4393
5.6819
5.9243
6.1176
6.1286
5.9476
2.2413
2.3115
2.4011
2.5116
2.6281
2.7509
2.8644
2.9676
3.0765
3.1580
3.1758
3.0909
3.0157
3.0191
3.1423
3.3081
3.4842
3.6539
3.7985
3.9337
4.0589
4.1538
4.1772
4.1608
4.1579
4.2474
4.3998
4.6220
4.8814
5.2027
5.6144
6.0828
6.5928
6.9991
7.3342
7.5912
7.8928
8.2213
8.5801
8 8795
9.0130
8.9020
8.4916
3.8424
3.9909
4.1627
4.3436
4.5343
4.7189
4.8979
5.0538
4.1303 5.1352
8.9324 11.2951
9.4122! 11.8511
9.8290112.3743
10.1998 12.8416
10.6025
11.0413
11.4517
11.6899
11.7012
11.3661
10.9913 13.5161127.4151
13.3497
13.8357
14.1827
14.2991
14.0896
13.7873
8.3799
8.6934
9.0062
9.2557
9.4219
9.5792
9.7281
9.9003
10.0972
10.3043
10 5376
10.7669
11.0228
11.3538
11.7455
12.0884
12.3971
12.6710
12.9426
13.2282
13.5485
13.9223
14.3744
14.9500
15.6549
16.5329
17.4687
18.4502
19.4478
20.4843
21.5273
22.5798
23.5684
24.3529
24.9041
25.1218
25.2965
25.4818
25.7472
26.0381
26.4004
26.8454
13.0536
13.3309
13.6509
14.0023
14.3714
14.7594
15.1374
15.5196
15.9060
16.2641
16.5726
16.8465
17.1285
17.4961
17.9697
18.5012
19.0805
19.7147
20.4451
21.2589
22.1636
23.0919
24.0458
25.0294
26.0922
27.2515
28.4859
29.7331
30.8724
31.8537
32.5837
33.2537
33.8985
34.5470
35.1901
35.8517
36.6109
37.4576
38.4025
39.4185
40.5537
41.5547
42.3526
18.0347
18.5242
19.0362
19.5587
20.0609
20.5097
20.9194
21.3167
21.7330
22.1692
22.6584
23.1905
23.8128
24.6059
25.5617
26.6226
27 70001
28.78331
29.8731
31.0027
32.1688
33.3588
34.5549
35.6624
36.6598
37.5016
38.3460
39.2302
40.1874
41.1879
42.2445
43.3631
44.5226
45.7025
46.9138
48.1881
49.3571
50.3280
51.0646
51.4352
51.7690
51.9661
52.2180
15
20
TABLE II.—An Assurance of £100, by limited Annual
Payments.—Carlisle 3 per Cent.
TABLE IV—Annual Premium for a Joint Life Assurance, payable
at the first death of two lives, A and B—Carlisle 3 per Cent
416
INSURANCE.
Life TABLE Y.—Annual Premium for an Assurance of £100, payable at
Insurance. the last death of two lives. Premiums to continue up to the last
death.—Carlisle 3 per Cent.
A-ge
of
A.
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
A + 0
= B.
.756
.779
.802
.799
.850
•876
•902
•930
.960
.990
1.022
1.055
1.089
1.125
1.161
1.198
1.236
1.276
1.317
1.362
1.408
1.456
1.507
1.560
1.616
1.673
1.733
1.795
1.859
1.928
2.000
2.077
2.159
2.247
2.343
2.445
2.556
2.670
2.798
2.930
3.071
3.220
3.379
3.547
A+5
= B.
0
.811
.836
.861
.846
.914
.943
.972
1.003
1.035
1.068
1.102
1.137
1.174
1.212
1.204
1.293
1.335
1.380
1.426
1.475
1.526
1 580
1.635
1.693
1.754
1.818
1.885
1.955
2.029
2.108
2.193
2.283
2.379
2.482
2.592
2.709
2.836
2.970
3.111
3.260
3.416
3.578
3750
3.932
A+10
-=B.
A + 15
= B.
.894
.922
.950
.979
1.009
1.040
1.072
1.106
1.142
1.179
1.218
1.259
1.301
1.344
1.388
1.4,34
1.482
1.532
1.585
1.640
1.699
1761
1.826
1.895
1.967
2.044
2.110
2.206
2.293
2 387
2.485
2.589
2.702
2821
2.947
3.082
3.223
3.374
3.534
3.707
3.892
4.090
4.301
10
.922
.980
.979
1.009
1.040
1.072
1.106
1.141
1.178
1.217
1.257
1.298
1.341
1.386
1.432
1.479
1.528
1.580
1.635
1.694
1.755
1.821
1.889
1.961
2.036
2.114
2.195
2.279
2.367
2.459
2.555
2 655
2.761
2.877
3.002
3.137
3.285
3.441
3.608
3.787
3.978
4.182
4.399
4.625
A+ 20
= B.
A + 25
= B.
15
.975
1.005
1.036
1.069
1.101
1.135
1.171
1.208
1.246
1.287
1.329
1.374
1.420
1.469
1.519
1.570
1.624
1.680
1.739
1.802
1.867
1.935
2.007
2.082
2.160
2.239
2.320
2.404
2.491
2.584
2.683
2.789
2.902
3.025
3.159
3.303
3.460
2.627
3.800
3.983
4.176
4.381
4.600
4.830
20
1.028
1.059
1.091
1.124
1.126
1.194
1.232
1.271
1.313
1.356
1.402
1.450
1.500
1.552
1.605
1.659
1.714
1.772
1.833
1.896
1.962
2.030
2101
2.176
2.254
2.336
2.422
2.506
2.596
2.693
2.795
2.903
3.019
3.142
3.276
3.419
3.534
3.741
3.917
4.105
4.306
A + 30
B
A + 35 A + 40
B. = B.
1.077
1.110
1.044
1.179
1.215
1.254
1.294
1.336
1.380
1.426
1.474
1.523
1.575
1.628
1.682
1.735
1.789
1.846
1.905
1.968
2.035
2.106
2.179
2.256
2.337
2.440
2.505
2.592
2.681
2.775
2.872
2.977
3.089
3.211
3.346
3.492
1.127
1.162
1.197
1.234
1.456
1.312
1.353
1.396
1.440
1.486
1.534
1.583
1.634
1.687
1.740
1.794
1.849
1.907
1.968
2.033
2.100
2.172
2.245
2.322
2.401
2.481
2.562
2.645
2.732
2.824
2.921
30 I 35
1.175
1.211
1.247
1.283
1321
1.360
1.401
1.443
1.486
1.533
1.581
1.631
1.684
1.737
1.792
1.845
1.901
1.958
2.018
2.081
2.147
2.215
2.287
2.362
2.440
2.520
Age
of
A.
40
TABLE YI.—Single Premium for an Assurance of £100, payable at
the death of B, provided he is survived by A. — Carlisle 3 per
Cent.
Age
of
A.
B10.
B 15. B 20
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
17.975
17.738
17.501
17.260
17.016
16.768
16.515
16.258
15.999
15.738
15.477
15.215
14.957
14.709
14.476
14.244
14.011
13.773
13.530
13.285
13.037
12.788
12.539
12.287
12.040
11.800
11.563
11.328
11.090
10.848
10.600
10.345
10.081
9.804
9.516
9.217
8.919
8.621
8.323
8.024
7.725
7.428
7.138
6.865
20.740
20.477
20.211
19.940
19.665
19.386
19.100
18.809
18.514
18.215
17.915
17.611
17.309
17.020
16.745
16.472
16.197
15.918
15.634
15.348
15.060
14.773
14.487
14.200
13.919
13.648
13.382
13.117
12.849
12.576
12.296
12.009
11.712
11.399
11.076
10.743
10.410
10.078
9.746
9.412
9.077
8.741
8.410
8.096
B 25.
23.490
23.216
22.934
22.643
22.341
22.031
21.710
21.382
21.047
20.708
20.366
20.019
19.674
19.341
19.024
18.706
18.384
18.054
17.718
17.378
17.036
16.695
16.355
16.016
15.684
15 366
15.055
14.748
14.439
14.127
13.808
13.482
13.145
12.790
12.423
12.043
11.664
11.286
10.910
10.532
10.155
9.777
9.407
9.056
15
B 30.
26.779
26.511
26.233
25.944
25.641
25.325
24.991
24.644
24.283
23.910
23.530
23.141
22.751
22.374
22.013
21.651
21.283
20.905
20.518
20.125
19.726
19-326
18.924
18.521
18.125
17.744
17.371
17.003
16.634
16.263
15.887
15.505
15.113
14.704
14.283
13.850
13.419
12.991
12.563
12.132
11.702
11 271
10.849
10.254
B 35.
20
25
30.383
30.125
29,859
29.578
29.284
28.975
28.647
28.303
27.943
27.566
27.178
26.772
26.359
25.952
25.558
25.156
24.743
24.316
23.875
23.427
22.970
22.510
22.046
21.580
21.119
20.672
20.231
19.793
19.350
18.903
18.449
17.987
17.515
17.024
16.521
16.007
15.500
14.998
14.502
14.006
13.514
13.023
12.543
12.090
"
B 40.
34.040
33.803
33.557
33.295
33.018
32.724
32.407
32.073
31.721
31.352
30.970
30.569
30.158
29.755
29.363
28.957
28.530
28.079
27.602
27.107
26.596
26.075
25.546
25.010
24.479
23.962
23.450
22.940
22.422
21.896
21.357
20.805
20.236
19.642
19.031
18.406
17.788
17.177
16.573
15.972
15.378
14.790
14.219
13.683
B 45.
35
38.249
38.036
37.816
37.582
37.332
37.066
36.775
36.467
36.138
35.789
35.425
35.038
34.643
34.256
33.884
33.498
33.089
32.652
32.184
31.691
31.172
30.633
30.074
29.495
28.910
28.332
27.754
27.172
26.577
25.969
25.343
24.701
24.035
23.337
22.616
21.872
21.130
20.391
19.656
18.921
18.191
17.468
16.764
16.103
40
B 50.
42.415
42.219
42.018
41.806
41.580
41.341
41.078
40.799
40.500
40.182
39.848
39.492
39.127
38.770
38.431
38.074
37.693
37.280
36.835
36.362
35.862
35.339
34.792
34.221
33.637
33.055
32.460
31.846
31.201
30.528
29.821
29.084
28.313
27.498
26.650
25.773
24.895
24.016
23.138
22.254
21.369
20.484
19.615
18.789
45
47.576
47.398
47.216
47.022
46.815
46.596
46.356
46.102
45.832
45.545
45.247
44.928
44.603
44.294
44.009
43.708
43.382
43.020
42.622
42.193
41.732
41.247
40.736
40.199
39.652
39.109
38.554
37.977
37.362
36.708
36.005
35.251
34.438
33.552
32.608
31.612
30.604
29.586
28.562
27.525
26.482
25.435
24.402
23.416
50
TABLE VII.—Annual Premium for an Assurance of £100, pay- Life
able at the death of B, provided he is survived by A.—Carlisle ^Insurance^
3 per Cent.
Age
of
A.
1(T
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
B 10. B 15.
.885
.878
.871
.864
.856
.849
.842
.834
.827
.820
.813
.806
.800
.793
.786
.780
.774
.767
.761
.755
.749
.743
.737
.731
.725
.719
.713
.707
.701
.695
.689
.683
.677
.671
.665
.659
.653
.646
.640
.633
.627
.621
.615
.609
W
1.047
1.038
1.030
1.021
1.013
1.004
.995
.987
.978
.969
.961
.952
.944
.935
.927
.919
.911
.903
.895
.888
.880
.873
.865
.851
.845
.838
.831
.824
.818
.811
.804
.797
.791
.784
.777
.771
.764
.758
.751
.745
.738
.732
.726
B 20.
L215
1.206
1.196
1.186
1.176
1.166
1.156
1.145
1.135
1.124
1.114
1.103
1.093
1.082
1.072
1.062
1.051
1.041
1.031
1.020
1.010
1.001
.991
.981
.972
.963
.955
.946
.937
.929
.921
.912
.904
.896
B 25.
15
B 30.
.880
.871
.863
.855
.847
.840
.832
.824
.817
20"
1.431
1.422
1.412
1.4D2
1.392
1.381
1.370
1.359
1.347
1.335
1.322
1.310
1.297
1.284
1.272
1.259
1.246
1.234
1.221
1.208
1.195
1.183
1.170
1.158
1.146
1.133
1.122
1.110
1.)
1J
1.077
1.066
1.056
1.046
1.036
1.026
1.016
1.007
.998
B 35.
.979
.970
.962
1.688
1.679
1.670
1.660
1.650
1.639
1.628
1.617
1.605
1.592
1.579
1.566
1.552
1.538
1.523
1.508
1.492
1.477
1.461
1.445
1.430
1.414
1.398
1.383
1.367
1.352
1.336
1.321
1.306
1.290
1.276
1.261
1.247
1.233
1.219
1.206
1.194
1.181
1.170
1.159
1.148
1.138
1.127
1.118
1.974 2.346
1.966 2.339
B 40.
1.958
1.948
1.939
1.928
1.918
1.906
1.894
1.882
1.869
1.856
1.841
1.827
1.812
1.796
1.779
1.761
1.743
1.724
1.705
1.686
1.666
1.646
1.627
1.607
1.587
1.567
1.548
1.528
1.508
1.488
1.469
1.449
1.430
1.411
1.392
1.374
1.357
1.340
1.324
1.309
1.294
1.280
2.331
2.323
2.314
2.305
2.295
2.285
2.274
2.262
2.249
2.236
2.223
2.208
2.193
2.178
2.161
2.144
2.125
2.106
2.086
2.065
2.043
2.020
1.996
1.972
30
1.923
1.898
1.873
1.847
1.822
1.796
1.771
1.746
1.721
1.696
1.671
1.647
1.623
1.600
1.577
1.556
1.535
B 45,
2/764
2.757
2.750
2.742
2.734
2.726
2.717
2.708
2.698
2.687
2.676
2.664
2.651
2.638
2.624
2.608
2.592
2.575
2.556
2.537
2.517
2.496
2.474
2.450
2.425
2.400
B 50.
32374
3.367
3.360
3.353
3.345
3.337
3.329
3.320 4.263
1.948 2.373
2.344
2.314
2.283
2.251
2.219
B 55.
42312
4.306
4.300
4.293
4.286
4.279
4.271
3.311
3.302
3.292
3.282
3.271
3.260
3.248
3.234
3.220
3.204
3.187
3.169
3.150
3.130
3.108
3.085
3.061
3.036
3.009
2.980
2.950
2.918
2.884
,2.848
35
40
2.185 2.811
2.152|2.771
2.1182.904
2.085 2.862
2.052|2.819
2.01812.775
1.985 2.731
1.952 2.687
1.9192.644
1.887I2.
1.854 2.557
1.822 2.515
IfTIlio
4.255
4.246
4.237
4.229
4.220
4.210
4.201
4.190
4.179
4.166
4.152
4.137
4.121
4.104
4.085
4.064
4.042
4.019
3.994
3.967
3.938
3.907
3.874
3.839
3.802
3.763
3.722
3.679
3.635
3.589
3.542
3.493
3.444
3.394
3.345
3.296
B 60.
U577
5.571
..565
,559
5.552
i.545
5538
i.531
5.524
..516
.508
i.500
..493
..485
..476
>.468
1.459
5.449
5.438
5.427
5.414
55
5.386
5.370
5.353
5.834
5.312
5.289
5.263
5.235
5.203
5.169
B 65,
11966
6.960
6.955
6.948
6.941
6.934
6.927
6.919
6.911
6.903
6.895
6.888
6.880
6.873
6.866
6.858
6.849
6.840
6.831
6.821
6.810
5.4016.799
6.787
6.774
6.761
6.746
6.730
6.712
6.690
6.666
6.639
6.608
5.133 6.573
5.094 6.535
5.054 6.494
5.0126.449
4.968 6.402
4.924|6.353
4.877 6.303
4.8306.251
4.7816.197
4.7306.143
4.6786.088
4.625 6.032
"ebllss’
FIRE INSURANCE.
It is impossible to estimate too highly the value and Fire
importance of insurance, and the benefits conferred on Insurance,
mankind by the invention, whether it be considered in
its original character as a protection to the merchant
who adventured his property on the bosom of the
treacherous deep—against its many perils—or, in its
more modern applications, as a guarantee against loss by
fire, and its further interesting adaptation to the assuring
of life. Considering that maritime insurance was well
known, and insurance on life understood and practised,
to a certain extent, in several mercantile countries by
the middle of the sixteenth century, it appears extra¬
ordinary, when we call to remembrance the devastations
and distress occasioned by^re in this country, that some
means should not have been adopted at an earlier period
to render such calamities less ruinous to individuals,
particularly when a plan, which appears ca entually to
have formed the basis of the present insurance companies,
was suggested so early as 1609.
In that year, a person proposed to Count Anthony
Gunther von Oldenburg, that, as a new species of finance,
he should insure the houses of all his subjects against
fire, on their paying so much per cent annually, according
to their value; but the prospect of gain so tempting to
most persons could not induce the Count to adopt the plan.
He thought it good if a company was formed of indi¬
viduals to insure each others’ houses, but he doubted tha
it could by him be“ honourably, justly, and irreproachfu y
instituted without tempting Providence—without in¬
curring the censure of neighbours, and without disgracing
one’s name and dignity,” adding that “ God had without
such means preserved and blessed, for many centuries,
INSURANCE.
FJre the ancient house of Oldenburgh, and He would still be
present with him through His mercy, and protect his
subjects from destructive fires.” This plan appears not
to have been again thought of until the fire of 1666 had
laid the city of London in ashes.
In consequence of this calamitous event, the citizens
began to see the importance, and indeed necessity, of
erecting their buildings of a material less susceptible of
file than hitherto 5 also of adopting a regular system of
precaution against future accidents, as well as of devisino-
some scheme for mutual pecuniary protection and relief!
Various proposals were accordingly submitted to the
Court of Common Council of the city of London, between
1669 and 1680, for the mutual relief of such as might
have their houses destroyed by fire—the most notable
and acceptable of which was by one of their own body,
Mr Deputy Newbold. But if we may judge from the
length of time that elapsed ere the worshipful committee
made their report to the court, we should conclude the
adopting of the proposal to have been attended with
serious difficulties, and in verification of the old proverb
that “ delays are dangerous,” during the period between
the first presentation of Mr Newbold’s proposals to the
Loid Mayor, and the final report of the committee
to whom the matter was referred by the Court of
Common Council, several private individuals associated
themselves together, and submitted to the good citizens of
London a “ design for insuring houses from fire,” and on
the 16th September 1681, a notice or advertisement was
issued from their “ office, on the back side of the Royal
Exchange, ’ offering to insure brick houses against fire "for
sixpence, and timber houses for twelvepence in the pound—
being at the rate of £2 :1 Os. per cent for brick houses,
and of £5 per cent for timber.
Subsequently, on the 13th October 1681, the Court of
Common Council did “ agree and resolve to undertake
ye insuring all houses w^fin this city and libertyes from
fire, and execute ye same with all expedicon,” and there¬
after “ resolved forthwith to engage a sufficient fund,
and undoubted security by the chamber of London, in
lands and good ground rents, for the performance thereof.”
Much amusing pamphleteering and advertising in the
Gazette took place between the advocates of the corpora¬
tion scheme, and the “ interessed” in the said insurance
office on the back side of the Royal Exchange.
The journals of the Court of Common Council in 1681,
1682, and 1683, record the signing of many policies, and
bear amusing evidence of the zeal and prudence of the
fire insurance committees in promulgating the benefits of
the corporation scheme, and combating the antagonistic
pamphlets issued by their competitors.
As the fruit of this pamphleteering agitation, the sub¬
ject was brought under the most serious consideration of
the court on the 13th November 1682, as appears by a
minute of that date; when the court evinced a much
greater anxiety to relinquish than they had to undertake
the design, and directed the discharge of existing con¬
tracts, with the repayment of the money which had been
advanced.
Notwithstanding this resolution, however, contained
in the foregoing minute, we find several policies subse¬
quently passed the common seal, on the 6th March and
3d May 1683.
417
After this, the city discontinued issuing policies, and Fire
having had a quo warranto brought against their charter, Insurance,
every exertion was used to obtain a surrender of the
existing policies, and thus release the city lands from the
incumbrances thereon.
The last matter taken into consideration was the
petition of Mr Newbold, the author of the design which
turned out so unsuccessful for remuneration, for the time,
trouble, and expense he had been at, which was referred
to a committee who reported on the 13th October 1696,
and on the 8th December following it was “ resolved to
give him the benefitt of making two persons free of this
citiebyredemp.con, paying to Mr Chamberl.in to the cities
use of fortie-six shillings eight pence a-piece, the said per¬
sons to be first presented and allowed of by this court ”
This was the fate of the “ City’s Design and Under¬
taking for the insuring of Houses from the evil of Fire ”
The “interessed” in the rival office became, of course
greatly elated, and their success led to the formation of
several other companies or mutual insurance societies 1
for protection against fire.
In 1696, the Hand-in-Hand Fire Office was esta¬
blished by about 100 persons, who afterwards formed a
deed of settlement, _ enrolled in Chancery January 24,
1698. This office is remarkable at the present day for
its age, and is the only surviving one of those of that
period.
Up to the year 1706, the protection afforded by fire
insurance societies was limited entirely to houses (build-
mgs), but in that year the Sun Fire Office was projected
by one Charles Povey, for insuring merchandise and
household goods (as well as houses) from fire; and was
the first office to extend the benefits of insurance beyond
the confines of the metropolis. This office has for very
many years stood proudly first on the list in amount of
business. The property insured by the Sun Fire Office
alone, in 1855 (as per the Government duty returns),
amounted to nearly one hundred and twenty-seven
millions sterling. The Union Fire Office was established
in the reign of Queen Anne, 1714. The Westminster
Fire Office in 1717. The Royal Exchange and London
Assurance Corporations in 1721. These are offices of the
first class; enjoying most deservedly the entire confi¬
dence of the opulent and discerning mercantile com¬
munity of London and of the public at large.
Every subsequent generation has witnessed the estab¬
lishment of additional fire insurance companies, hundreds
of which have never reached maturity. The companies
recognised by the Government at the period in which
we write (1856), in England, Ireland, and Scotland, are
72 in number—insuring in the aggregate more than 894
millions of pounds sterling worth of property—besides
63 millions of agricultural produce.
In 1782, during the premiership of Lord North, the
large amount of business transacted by the then offices
tempted his lordship to propose the first tax upon pru¬
dence in the shape of a duty of Is. 6d. per cent on the
amount of property insured. The growing necessities of
the State in times of war caused a gradual augmentation,
until at the present time the duty is 3s. per cent per
annum, and yields a revenue of £1,341,242, as per the
following Government official return :—
There is also a stamp duty of Is. on each policy.
The following from the London Gazette will sufficiently explain the principle on which the societies were founded: 
ar™ , , „ , , „ No. 2049.—July 6th to July 9th 1685.
haVlnS haPPened a fire on the 24th of the last month, by which several houses of the Friendly Society were burnt to the value of
rf’ theSeiare t0 S'/6 no^e t0 al; Person« ,of ^e said society that they are desired to pay at the office in Faulcon Court in Fleet Street
oflX^10- °f the Said °SS’ W 11Ch C°meS t0 five things and one penny for every hundred pounds insured, before the 12th
VOL. XII. 3 G
418
INSURANCE.
Fire
Insurance. Parliamentary Return of Fire Insurance Duties, Paid to Go-
vernment for the year 1855, by the following Fire Insurance
Offices—
£190,257 Anchor
124,140 National (Irish)
77,694 National (Scotch)
75,130 ~ ' '
59,555
49,928
47,951
43,668
37,923
36,324
36,228
31,456
28,014
27,705
27,524
26,455
26,040
Sun
Phoenix
Royal Exchange
Norwich Union
County
West of England
Imperial
Alliance
Atlas .
Globe .
Manchester
Guardian
London
Westminster
Law .
Union
Scottish Union
Royal Insurance, Liverpool 2.5,037
Liverpool and London
Unity
Yorkshire .
North British
Lancashire .
Leeds and Yorkshire
Birmingham
Kent .
Monarch
Royal Farmers’ .
General
Northern
Caledonian .
Hand-in-Hand
Birmingham District
Defender
Scottish Provincial
British Empire Mutual
Essex and Suffolk
Newcastle-upon-Tyne
21,057
20,265
19,949
19,583
18,160
18,114
14,193
14,066
12,966
11,414
10,606
10,080
9,814
9,450
7,943
7,832
6,380
6,272
6,096
6,008
Patriotic (Irish)
North of England
Essex Economic
Church of England
Salop
Nottinghamshire and D
hyshire
National Provincial
Sheffield
Law Union
Equitable .
Norwich Equitable
Kent (Mutual) .
Provincial
Hants, Sussex, and Dorset 2,324
Forfarshire and Perthshire 2,260
Midland Counties . 1,869
Shropshire andNorth Wales 1,734
Times . . . 1,666
Athenaeum (3 qrs.) . 909
Durham and Northumber¬
land . . . 298
Beacon . . . 247
Cambrian and Universal 233
United Kingdom Provin¬
cial (3 qrs.'
5,983
5,609
5,341
4,986
4,938
4,917
4,058
3,833
3,735
3,177
2,955
2,920
2,732
2,693
2,610
2,583
226
London and County (3 qrs.) 202
128
120
87
67
31
22
19
00
Emperor
Era ....
British Provident (3 qrs.)
Saxon (3 qrs.)
Eclipse
London and Continental
Preserver
Protestant (3 qrs.) disc.
The duty paid by the English and Scotch offices for
insurances in Ireland, added to the above, makes the total
amount received by the Government for the year 1855,
£1,341,242. The duty is collected by the offices along
with their premiums, and they are allowed a drawback
of 5 per cent upon it for their trouble and expense in
so doing.
The following table is given as illustrative of the pro¬
gressive increase of fire insurance in this country during
the last five years:—
An Account of the Gross Amount of Receipts for Insurance (Duty)
for the years 1850, 1851, 1852, 1853, 1854, and 1855.
1850
1851
1852
1853
1854
1855
£ s. d.
1,042,396 15 1
1,070,727 16 2
1,098,457 13 11
1,141,346 17 1
1,178,016 10 1
1,203,861 17 0
& s.
65,875 12
67,229 16
68,099 1
71,600 18
76,782 10
78,614 5
IRELAND.
£ S. d.
51,258 10 0
52,548 2 4
53,824 14 9
56,478 15 1
58,424 3 9
58,766 10 0
Gross Amount
of Keceipts.
£ s. d.
1,159,530 17 8
1,190,505 14 8
1,220,381 9 10
1,269,426 10 3
1,313,223 4 2
1,341,242 12 9
By the foregoing return, we find that British property
to the extent of more than £894 millions sterling must be
covered by our insurance offices. This, however, affords
no criterion of the actual amount of risk undertaken by
these offices. In the first place, because the duty on
farm-stock having been repealed in 1833, that very ex¬
tensive description of risk is not included in this calcula¬
tion ; and secondly, because some of the offices under¬
write /bragw risks to a very large amount, and these are
equally, by Act of Parliament, exempt from duty. Per¬
haps, therefore, the enormous sum of one thousand five
hundred millions sterling does not greatly exceed the
amount of property insured by our British fire establish¬
ments.
By far the greater number of the above are joint- I’ire
stock companies, who insure at their own risk and for
their own profit, and are represented by agents in all
the principal towns of the kingdom; the remainder are
joint-contribution, or mutual insurance societies, in which
every insurer participates in the profit or loss of the
concern.
The advantages of fire insurance are too well known to Practice
require any very elaborate description. A manufacturer
or private individual can, by the payment of an annual
sum (premium) proportioned to the risk, secure himself
against loss in the event of his manufactory or dwelling-
house, or their contents, being destroyed by fire.
It is almost impossible to form a correct classification
of the risks undertaken, nevertheless, the experience of
many years has enabled the old offices to arrive at
tolerable data for fixing the rates of premium for the
great variety of risks they are called upon to undertake.
They are generally divided into common, hazardous, double
hazardous, and special—the rates varying from Is. fid.
per cent per annum for a private first class dwelling-
house, to 42s. per cent per annum for a sugar refinery
or drying stove. The more fragile and costly contents
of a house, such as china, glass, mirrors, and pictures,
are charged a higher rate of premium than the ordinary
articles of household furniture, as being more susceptible
of damage in the event of fire, whilst books of accounts,
written securities, bills, bonds, ready money, and gun¬
powder, are deemed Tminsurable.
The government duty of 3s. per cent per annum is
exigible on all alike, without reference to the rate of
premium—public hospitals and agricultural produce and
implements excepted, which are specially exempted from
this impost, although why the agriculturist should be
thus favoured it is difficult to comprehend.
The conditions on which an insurance is granted are
in all cases printed upon the policy, and form a part of
the contract, being in general so well defined as seldom
to require submission for judicial interpretation.
1. Candour is imperative on the part of all persons
proposing for insurance. Any misrepresentation in de¬
scribing the building, or goods, or the process of manu¬
facture carried on, whereby the same may be charged at
a lower rate of premium than they otherwise would be,
invalidates the policy; and if any alteration be made
in the state of the building or process of manufacture
after the insurance is effected, the insured is required to
give due notice thereof to the insurers, otherwise he
forfeits all right of recovery under his policy.
2. The party effecting an insurance against fire must
have a bona fide interest in the property insured, to
enable him to establish a claim against the insurance
company ; and a trustee, mortgagee, reversioner, factor,
or agent, is held to have sufficient interest to effect a
policy of insurance, provided the nature of such interest
be distinctly specified at the time of effecting the in¬
surance.
An insurance on the same property in any other
office, must be named in, or endorsed on, the policy,
and in the event of loss, each office pays a rateable
portion thereof.
It frequently occurs, however, that various parties
have separate interests in the same property, in which
case each may insure his own interest without communi¬
cation with the others.
3. A separate sum must be insured on each building,
and on the contents of each, unless the insurance is
specially rendered subject to the conditions of average,
as in mercantile policies, the operation of which is that
the assured is entitled to recover such a proportion only
Fire of a loss as the sum insured bears to the value of the
; property; so that, if a merchant insures for £5000 orIv
when his merchandise collectively in all the places named
in the policy is worth £10,000 at the time the fire
happens, he can only call on the insurance company for
naij the amount of loss. r ^
4 Fire insurances are notin this country subject to
the law of average, as.in marine assurance (unless
otherwise stipulated, as in the foregoing mercantile case),
and the amount insured is payable to its full extent
provided the ascertained loss or damage is equal to the
sum insured; but in foreign countries all policies are
subject to average. F e
5. The offices now generally hold themselves liable
lor loss occasioned by lightning and gas explosions—
which concessions have been forced on them by the
competition of new offices; also for losses occasioned by
incendiarisms, the offices having a right of recovery from
the county, in the event of a conviction of the incendiary
Ihere is a general exemption from liability in the case of
fire occasioned by invasion, foreign enemy, civil commo¬
tion, not, or any military or usurped power, and under
this condition the Sun Fire Office was exonerated from
the loss occasioned by the disgraceful proceedings of the
mob in 1/80 (the Gordon Riots.)
Ihe offices are also very justly exempt from loss
arising from the natural heating of hay and corn, always
the result of gross carelessness. J
6. Policies of insurance may be effected for any period
it tor a year (which is most customary), or for a term of
years, by a single payment, it is usual for the office by
way of indulgence, to allow fifteen days after each year or
term of years for the payment of the premium for the
next period, in succession; and, provided the premium
be paid within that time, the insured is considered within
the protection of the office.
7. A policy of insurance is not in its nature assignable,
nor can it be transferred without the express consent of
die office. When, however, any person dies, his interest
remains in his executors or administrators respectively,
who succeed or become entitled to the property, provided
such representatives respectively procure their right to
be endorsed on the policy.
8. The prompt and liberal manner in which claims
are met by the tire offices of this country generally, is
highly creditable to the nation. There is, however, too
much reason to believe that frequent frauds are per¬
petrated by individuals insuring to a large amount pro¬
perty of trifling value ; and it is an undoubted fact that
fraudulent and excessive claims are of constant occur¬
rence—-these have been very much increased by the
competition and keenness for business which have existed
among the offices for very many years. Many offices
make it one of their conditions that the statement of loss
shall be supported by the oath or affirmation of the
claimant, declaring, at the same time, that if any false
swearing, fraud, collusion, or wilful mis-statement shall
take place, either by the assured or on his behalf, the
whole right of recovery shall be forfeited.
The effect or power M this clause was tried in the
court of Kings’ Bench in the month of March 1832, in
an action brought by a person of the name of Freidlander,
a jeweller, against the London Assurance Company
where the verdict was given for the defendams, which
was, in fact, declaring that, although the plaintiff could
prove a loss to a certain extent, he had forfeited all right
■under his policy in consequence of the fraudulent claim
he had set up.
. 0n the oath of a suspected claimant very little reliance
is to be placed, as it is borne out by the experience of
insurance.
419
all offices, that if a man will make out a fraudulent Fire
uaim, be will not be very scrupulous in swearing to its L^urance.
correctness. &
9. When a loss occurs, and there is no suspicion of
any unfair practice on the part of the insured, it is the
custom, as it is the duty, of the offices to be generous,
iberal, and prompt in their settlements. It is beyond
doubt that many fires are wilfully caused for the purpose
of defrauding the insurance companies, the greatest
check to which would be that the duty of coroner for
each county, city, or district, should extend to a full in¬
quiry into the cause or origin of every fire that occurs
n ‘‘ny ^^quence, viz., when a house or tenement is
destroyed within his jurisdiction; in fact, for an inquest
in all respects similar to those held in cases of violent
oi accidental death.
This plan was suggested by the writer of this article
years since, and a few years ago adopted by the
coroners for Londonand Middlesex, butas the authorides-
and, strange to say, the insurance companies themselves—
discouraged it by refusing to pay the customary fee to
the coroners, this most wholesome check to one of the
worst of crimes was abandoned. Insurance companies
much need the protection of the law in cases of fire
and none could be more effectually given than that w hich
an inquest w'ould afford; not, of course, to be holden in
trivial cases, such as foul chimnies, &c., but whenever
a fire extends to the destruction of a house or tenement
l ie case of Smithers, in Oxford Street, London, in
1832, may be here mentioned as in point:—This man
was executed for the double crime of arson and murder.
Iis object was, by burning his premises, to defraud the
insurance company, but in doing this he sacrificed the
lives of his lodgers, and thereby caused an inquest to be
held to inqmre into the cause of the death of the parties,
which led to his conviction. Now, had it not been for
the loss of human life, this man would in all probability
have escaped the just vengeance of the law, and the in¬
surance company have had to pay him his iniquitous
and fraudulent claim. h °
In the majority of cases, a fire does not involve a total
loss, and the insurance company is liable for the actual
amount of loss or damage sustained—not exceeding the
sum insured by the policy, which is the maximum beyond
which no claim can extend. The offices generally reserve
to themselves the power of reinstatement—a wholesome
and unobjectionable provision. (j-t g. s T
marine insurance,
A contract by which one party, the “insurer” or Marine
underwriter, ’engages for a stipulated premium to pro- Insurance,
tect another party, the “assured,” against loss arising Definition
from certain perils, or sea risks, to which his ship, o-0ods
or other interest, may be exposed during a specified
voyage, or period of time.
The policy of insurance, or instrument which contains 0f
the contract, is a printed form, with spaces left blank for policy
the insertion, in writing, of the particulars of the a^ree-
ment. The form in general use appears to have been
originally introduced with the earliest practice of marine
insurance in this country. Although worded in a con¬
fused and ambiguous manner, its meaning has been fully
defined by a series of legal decisions on every debateable
point; and in all cases the written conditions are held to
overrule any of the printed clauses which might appear
to be inconsistent with them.
The stamping of policies is at present regulated by the Stamp
unrepealed provisions of the 35 Geo. III., c. 63, and by Acts-
f
420
INSURANCE.
Marine the 7 Viet., c. 21. The most important of the former are
Insurance. those which declare all policies not duly stamped to be
" void, prohibit the affixing of stamps to policies after sig¬
nature, and exclude all unstamped policies, or agreements
for insurance, from the evidence admissible in courts of
law. The 7 Viet., c. 21, fixes the stamp duties as fol¬
lows :—
1. On Voyage policies:—For every £100 insured, and for every
fractional part of £100—
Where the premium does not exceed 10s. per cent,
20s.
30s.
40s.
50s.
60s.
2. On Time policies—for every £100, and for every
fractional part of £100—
Where the time does not exceed six months
Where it does exceed six months
And no time policy is allowed to be made for a
longer term than twelve calendar months.
3. On every policy of mutual insurance, not being
a time policy—for every £100, and for every frac¬
tional part of £100 ....
3d.
6d.
Is. Od.
2s. Od.
3s. Od.
4s. Od.
2s. 6d.
4s. Od.
2s. 6d.
If the separate interests of two or more distinct persons
be insured in one policy, the stamp must cover each frac¬
tional part of £100 in the amount of such separate in¬
terests, as if it were a full sum of £100. The penalty on
any person, broker, or underwriter, engaged in effecting
or subscribing policies not duly stamped, is £100.
In practice it is usually desirable to conclude an agree¬
ment for insurance at once, lest some subsequent intelli¬
gence should induce either party to recede; and it is
customary for the underwriter to sign a slip or short
memorandum of the insurance, until the stamped policy
can be completed. But such memorandums, however
obligatory in good faith, are not legally binding.
Policies In order to give validity to the contract, it is necessary
without the assured have a right of property, or “ interest,”
interest. ^ ^ thing assured. A policy without interest is held
to be a mere wager; and it is declared by the 19th Geo.
II., c. 37, that policies bearing the words “interest or no
interest,” or “ without further proof of interest than the
policy,” or “ without benefit of salvage to the insurer,”
or any policies made by way of gambling or wagering,
shall be null and void. The expected profits of a sea
adventure may be included in the value of the property
for insurance ; but an unwarrantable or fraudulent over¬
valuation of the thing insured renders the policy void,
even in respect to the value actually proved.
Valued A valued policy is one which contains a specific valua-
policies. tjon of the interest insured. This valuation forms an
essential element in the adjustment of all claims under
the policy, and cannot be set aside except on the ground
of fraud. The burden of proof, in any averment ot frau¬
dulent over-valuation, lies on the underwriter.
Open poli- An open policy is one in which the value of the inte-
cies. regt insured is not specified. In claims under such poli¬
cies the assured must prove the value of the thing insured.
The value of a ship for insurance is what she is actually
worth at the commencement of the voyage, including all
her stores, provisions, and outfit, money advanced for
seamen’s wages, and costs of insurance. The difficulty
of proving a precise value in the case of ships is sufficiently
obvious; and to avoid disputes, policies on them ought
always to be valued, as it is the usual practice to do.
The value to be proved under an open policy on goods
is their first cost, including the expenses of shipment,
with any portion of the freight that may have been pre¬
paid, and the costs of insurance. The value to be proved
in open policies on freight is the amount of the manifest,
or freight list, excluding such freight as may have been
paid in advance, but including the costs of insurance.
When the value proved under an open policy falls Marine
short of the sum originally insured, the difierence, which
is technically termed an over-insurance, is treated as a
deduction to be made from the amount of the policy. ni'
On this footing a proportionate part of the premium is
returnable to the assured, who, on his part, can make no
claim on the underwriter for loss or damage, beyond the
value of his interest as actually proved. If, on the other
hand, the value proved exceed the amount of the^ policy,
the assured is regarded as “ his own underwriter to the
extent of such excess ; and the amount of loss or damage,
if such has arisen, is apportioned on this footing between
the parties relatively to their several proportions of the
total value.
A “short interest” arises when only a part of the Short in-
interest insured has been exposed to risk; as when some terest.
portion of the goods specified in the policy have not been
loaded on board of the ship. This case is treated in the
same manner as that of over-insurance, from which
indeed it does not essentially differ. _
Double insurance takes place when the same interest Double •
has been insured twice or oftener. If this be done for insur‘nce'
fraudulent purposes, the policies will be void; but it
frequently occurs, either through mere inadvertence, or
from the want of definite information on the part of the
respective persons concerned in the transaction. In such
cases, the usual practice is that all the underwriters make
a return of premium, in proportion to the amounts of
their respective subscriptions, for the excess of the sum
insured above the actual value of the interest; the liabi¬
lities of the several underwriters under the different poli¬
cies being of course proportionally diminished. Io this
rule, however, there are two important exceptions. One
of these occurs when two or more persons insure the
same thing, in order to protect the distinct interests which
they may individually have in it; the other, when the
circumstances are such that a claim for loss might have
been brought against one set of underwriters before the
other set had become liable at all.
Re-insurance is illegal in this country, unless the Ee-insur-
original insurer become insolvent or die. ance.
The risk on the ship, in voyage policies, commences Duration
“ at and from ” the place specified in the policy, and con- ot ns ■
tinues till she arrive at the destination specified, and have
been there moored twenty-four hours in good safety. On
goods the risk begins with their loading, and ends with
their discharge, at the specified ports. On freight the
risk usually commences with the shipment, and termi¬
nates with the landing of the goods; but it there be a
contract of affreightment, under which the goods have
been provided for shipment, the risk is held to com¬
mence as soon as the ship is in readiness to take them on
board.
After the risk has once commenced, the whole premium
is earned, even although the voyage should not be prose¬
cuted, and the actual’ risk of the insurers be thereby
confined to the mere lying of the ship at the port where
the insurance was to commence. But if the risk should
not commence at all, or, in technical phrase, if the
“policy should not attach,” the premium must be re¬
turned to the assured. , ^
If the ship should deviate from the regular and usual Deviation,
course of the specific voyage insured, without necessity
or reasonable cause, the underwriter is thenceforth dis¬
charged from all liability under the policy. The insurance
becomes void as soon as such deviation begins ; and
consequently, it is quite immaterial whether a subsequent
loss of the ship should happen during the actual devia¬
tion, or after the ship had returned to her course, the
insurer being no longer concerned. It is also immateiial
-T
insurance.
Marine -whether the assured was or was not cojrnieiant nf ,
i”; deviation. A mere intention to deviate wS not vft^e Unseaworthyshould be allowed to recover their
the policy; but if the ship have sailed on T^ferttvoTaae XTnf °nl};.they ^ effeCted jt a dme
from that specified, the insurer is discharged although o-nn 1 i S P? lcy’ whlIe the shippers of the
the loss should happen before reachLTfhe notnt of ^ ° hf (wh° Cann0t inSUre their ProPerty
divergence in the two voyages. An unjustifiable delav tl • W1S?r*ban/or the V0yaoe) are not allowed to recover
in the prosecution of the voyage operates ^ a deviatfom - ’ ' * clrcumstance, too, that it is the owners of
The causes which justify deviation are such as to refit
the ship after she has been disabled, to avoid an enemy
or an impending storm, or to save the lives of seamen in
distress.
In all voyage policies it is an implied condition of the
421
Marine
Insurance.
Sea¬
worthiness  ^ ^ impiuju condition ot the
in voyage contract that the ship shall be seaworthy at the corn-
policies. TY1Ar1f’orr’OT,+ T>~    ■ ’ ■ '
mencement of the risk. By this is meant that the ship
shall be in a fit state, as to repairs, equipments, crew,
and all other respects, for encountering the ordinary
perils of the voyage insured, at the time of sailing on it.
Seaworthiness is a condition precedent to the contract;
. 1 , . ’ 7 Vy rv o UI
the ship, and not the proprietors of the cargo, who have
the power to regulate the ship’s condition as to repairs
and equipments, gives all the more force to the considera¬
tion just stated. But the principle of this distinction
between voyage and time policies seems itself to be as
open to objection as this particular result of it; as it
may probably be found to affect various other points
besides that of seaworthiness, and thus give occasion to
disputes and litigations on matters hitherto regarded as
conclusively settled.
i he contract of insurance being pre-eminently one
based on the assumption of perfect good faith between
and, therefore, where the ship is ormnallv unUw™ul '• • ass^mPtl0n Perfect good faith between
the underwriter is di cLr Jf eveS al houT the 16 P“!' J “ ‘V'16 duty °f the ^ wishi"« to
-- - - g® ’ ev®n although the loss the policy to make a true disclosure of every circumstance
Sea-
worthiness
in time
policies.
should result from causes independent of the particular
deficiencies constituting the unseaworthiness. It is not
mateiial whether the assured is oris not cognisant of the
defects rendering the ship unsea worthy; and this rule
applies indiscriminately to the owners of the ship and the
proprietors of the goods on board. But there is no
engagement that the vessel shall continue to be seaworthy
after the voyage has been commenced. The burden of
proof, in any averment of unseaworthiness, lies on the
underwriter, unless where the ship, without adequate
cause, becomes leaky soon after sailing.
It has very recently been decided in the English courts
that in time policies the warranty of seaworthiness is not
implied. This principle has been partially affirmed by
the House of Lords, in the case of Gibson v. Small (3d
June 1853, 21 L. T. 241), where it was held that when
the actual condition of the ship could not be known by
the owners, in consequence of her being at the time in a
distant part of the world, there was no implied engage¬
ment of her seaworthiness at the commencement of the
time policy. But it was left undecided whether the sea¬
worthiness of the ship would be implied in a time policy,
taken at the commencement of an outward voyage. Lord
St. Leonards thought it would—Lord Campbell thought
otherwise. It has now been decided by the Court”of
Queen’s Bench, in the cases of Thompson v. Hopper, and
Fawcus v. Sarsfield (March 1856), that there is no im¬
plied warranty of seaworthiness in any time policies
whatsoever. This view of the law, it must be confessed,
is entirely new; for no distinction between voyage and
time policies, in respect of the implied condition of sea¬
worthiness, is adverted to by the writers usually recog¬
nised as authorities, such as Marshall, Park, and Arnould ;
nor was any such distinction made in practice previously
to these legal decisions. The ground of this distinction
is explained to be that “ a time policy is to be construed,
as an ordinary contract in writing, by the terms thereof;
and not as a conti’act for marine insurance, subject to the
rules of law relating thereto ;” it being assumed that these
rules were laid down for voyage policies, and were not
adapted for time policies. It is further said that under¬
writers on time policies may protect themselves from the
consequences of the law as now laid down, either by
inserting an express warranty of the seaworthiness of the
ship in their policy, or by charging a premium propor¬
tional to the additional risk. This is no doubt true ; yet
we venture to say that a private remedy of this nature
is scarcely an adequate remedy for what certainly appears
to be an anomalous state of the public law. It seems to
be equally impolitic and inequitable that the owners of
likely to affect the underwriter’s estimate of the risk.
The concealment or misrepresentation of material facts,
oi the representation of anything not consistent with the
facts, will render the policy void. This rule holds good
even where the concealment or misrepresentation may
have resulted from a mistake, without the intention to
deceive. If the underwriter has actually been deceived,
whether wilfully or by mistake, the risk is different from
that understood and intended to be run; and on this
ground he is discharged. The materiality of a conceal¬
ment or misrepresentation depends, not on its eventual
influence on the result of the risk, but on its immediate
influence on the judgment of the underwriter at the time
of effecting the insurance. The loss may arise from
causes totally unconnected with the facts concealed or
misrepresented, but the policy is nevertheless void,
because a true disclosure of the facts at the time of
effecting it might have led the underwriter to decline
the insurance altogether, or to accept it only at a higher
premium.^ If an agent be employed to effect the insur¬
ance, he is bound to communicate to the underwriter,
not only all the material facts disclosed to himself by his
principal, but also any other material facts which may
have come to his knowledge from other sources. If
either the principal or the agent fail to communicate such
facts, the policy will be void. Should any material fact
come to the knowledge of the parties wishing to effect
the insurance after they have sent away an order to have
it effected, they are bound to intimate such fact without
delay, so that the underwriter may be informed of it (if
there should still be time) before he has accepted the
risk. The suppression of information tending to show
that the ship was overdue, or that there were rumours
current as to her having met with some accident (even
though it afterwards appeared that these rumours were
unfounded), are instances of concealment fatal to the
validity of the contract. It has also been held that a policy
was void because the agents employed to effect it failed
to inform the underwriters that their principal had in-
stiucted them to wait the arrival of the ship for a certain
number of days before acting on the order to insure. If
an agent has received orders to insure by express, or by
telegiaph, that circumstance ought to be mentioned to
the. underwriter. Misrepresentations of the terms on
which other underwriters have agreed to accept the
insurance, will be fatal to the validity of the contract, as
well as misrepresentation of the risk itself. It may be
observed generally that every circumstance represented
to the underwriter ought to be at least substantially true.
A mere expression of opinion or expectation does not of
F raud, con¬
cealment,
and misre¬
presenta¬
tion.
r-
422
INSURANCE.
The perils
insured
against.
Limita¬
tions of
under¬
writer’s
liability,
Marine course amount to a positive representation of facts ; but
Insurance. opinion or expectation expressed must itself be
genuine, as if it appeared that it had been only a pre¬
tence, or inconsistent with anything within the actual
knowledge of the assured at the time, the policy might
be vitiated. When an express warranty is given, its
terms must be literally complied with, otherwise the
policy will be void. The chief distinction between a
warranty and a representation is that the former is always
inserted in the policy, while the latter is never so inserted;
and the effect of this is, that while a representation affects
the contract only in so far as it may be found to have
been material to the risk, a warranty precludes all ques¬
tions as to materiality, its express terms superseding any
such inquiry.
The perils insured against are described in the printed
form as the “ adventures and perils of the seas, men-of-
war, fire, enemies, pirates, rovers, thieves, jettisons, letters
of mart and counter mart, surprisals, takings at sea,
arrests, restraints, and detainments of all kings, princes,
and people, of what nation, condition, or quality soever ;
barratry of the master and mariners, and all other perils,
losses, and misfortunes that have or shall come to the
hurt, detriment, or damage of the said goods, merchan¬
dizes, and ship, &c., or any part thereof.” It may be
observed that, as a general rule, the underwriters are
liable only for such losses as are proximately caused by
the perils insured against. For the remote consequences
of these perils, such, for' instance, as the loss of markets
through delay, they are not responsible. But, on the
other hand, if a loss has been proximately caused by a
peril insured against, the underwriters are not relieved
from liability, although such loss may have been remotely
occasioned by the acts or negligence of the assui’ed or
his agents. The reason for this rule, as given by Lord
Bacon, is that “ it were infinite for the law to consider
the causes of causes, and their impulsions one on another;
therefore it contenteth itself with the immediate cause.”
Losses resulting from breaches of the revenue laws,
or of the law of nations, or from illegal voyages gene¬
rally, are not covered by the policy. The risk of “thieves”
applies only to plunder committed by open violence, and
does not cover losses by theft in the ordinary acceptation
of the term. The illegal acts of the master and crew,
if committed without the privity of the owners, will
amount to barratry, so as to render the underwriters
responsible for them; but if the master be also owner
of the ship, none of his acts will be held as barratrous.
If the assured be the subject of a foreign State, under¬
writers in this country will not be liable for the acts of
that State, unless it appear from the form of the policy,
or from the circumstances of the case, that they meant
to insure against such risk. Losses by the ordinary
wear and tear of the ship, or by the natural deterioration
or decay of perishable goods, are not chargeable to the
underwriters.
j. , The printed form of the policy declares that “ in case
the assured any l°ss or misfortune, it shall be lawful to the assured,
in cases of their factors, servants, and assigns, to sue, labour, and
travel for, in, or about the defence, safeguard, and reco¬
very of the said goods and merchandizes, or ship, or any
part thereof, without prejudice to this insurance: to the
charges whereof, we, the assurers, will contribute, each
one according to the rate and quantity of his sum herein
insured.” The object of this clause is to permit the
assured to take measures for the recovery of the property
without losing any right of abandonment he might have
in the circumstances. Although the language of the
clause is only permissive, it is a settled rule that the
assured is bound so to labour for the recovery of the pro¬
loss or
damasre.
perty. The best practical rule for the assured to follow Marine
in cases of partial loss or damage, is to act in the cir- ^Insurance,
cumstances as a prudent man would do if uninsured.
An important clause in the printed policy is what is Of the
called the memorandum, which is as follows :—“ Corn, ™ue™oran‘
fish, salt, fruit, flower, and seed, are warranted free from
average, unless general, or the ship be stranded. Sugar,
tobacco, hemp, flax, hides, and skins, are warranted free
from average under five per cent. And all other goods,
also the ship and freight, are warranted free of average
under three per cent, unless general, or the ship be
stranded.” The effect of this clause, as'Interpreted by
legal decisions, is to free the underwriter from claims
for particular average (or partial damage), or from such
claims if under the rates specified, unless the ship be
stranded. But if the ship be stranded, he is liable for
such claims, whether caused by the stranding or not. For
losses of the nature of general average, the underwriter
is liable whether the ship be stranded or not, and
whether the amount be over or under the rates men¬
tioned in the memorandum.
It is frequently a matter of some difficulty to deter- What con-
mine whether a ship has been stranded within the mean- a
ing of the memorandum. A mere touching or striking, SLrau 1D^‘
whether on a rock, bank, reef, or other object, will not
constitute a stranding, unless the ship settles down and
remains fixed for some definite time. The amount of
damage sustained is not material to the question either
way. Where a vessel takes the ground in the ordinary
and usual course of the navigation in a tidal river or
harbour, on the ebbing of the tide, or from natural de¬
ficiency of water, this is no stranding. It is essential to
a stranding that the ship should take the ground by
reason of some unusual or accidental occurrence. A
voluntary stranding, to save the ship from sinking, is
within the meaning of the memorandum, although the
ship should be run into a tidal harbour for the pur¬
pose.
When an absolute total loss occurs, the assured is Of total
entitled to recover the amount of the policy without
giving notice of abandonment. When the subject in- ^nent>
sured, without being wholly destroyed, is so seriously
injured, through the perils insured against, that its reco¬
very might involve greater expenses than its eventual
value would cover, it forms a “ constructive total loss,”
and the assured is entitled to give notice of abandonment
to the insurers, and to claim the amount of the policy.
(See Abandonment). It is only, however, when the
circumstances seem to involve a virtual loss, as distin¬
guished from a deterioration of the property, that notice
of abandonment can be competently given ; and unless
the abandonment be accepted (which it seldom is), the
ultimate state of the facts will alone determine the ques¬
tion, whether it can be insisted on. The principle upon
which losses are settled when abandonment is validly
made, is that the underwriter becomes the proprietor of
the subjects abandoned on payment of the sum insured.
The effect of an abandonment of the ship is to transfer
the ownership to the underwriters, so that whatever
freight she may thereafter earn belongs to them; and
although such freight is thereby lost to the original
owners, the insurers of the freight are not liable to them
for loss in respect of it, because it is lost only by their
own act of abandonment, and not by the perils insured
against. When goods are so damaged by the perils in¬
sured against that they are necessarily sold at any place
other than the original destination, they are construc¬
tively lost, and the underwriter is liable for their insured
value, under deduction of the nett proceeds of the sale.
But this rule is not applied to goods warranted “free
Inwance fr0” ,?^age >inles? stranded, if there has been no
stranding of the ship; it being only in that event that
the underwriter is responsible for damage to such goods
A constructive loss of freight occurs when the ship is
* prevented by any peril insured against from completing
her voyage, or when the goods on which the freight is to
be earned have received such damage that they cannot
be conveyed to their destination; but if the ship can
proceed with other goods, the freight earned for these
must be deducted from the claim for loss.
Particular Partial loss or damage, arising from the perils insured
average on against, is usually, though somewhat loosely, designated
the ship, by the term “ particular average.” Under this head
are included the damages suffered from the accidental or
voluntary stranding of the ship, or by her getting into
collision with another vessel, by lightning, fire, hostile
attacks, or the violence of the sea under any extraordi-
na^ry circumstances. Damages to the ship’s upper works,
sails, spars, and rigging, are included under particular
average, if occasioned by the direct force of the sea; but
if caused merely by the force of the wind they are treated
as wear and tear, and are not chargeable to the insurers.
The loss of anchors and cables parted from by the vessel
riding hard, or by the anchor hooking to any object at
the bottom, is regarded as wear and tear; and the same
rule applies to the repairs of the ship consequent on her
becoming leaky through working and straining in a
heavy sea. The general principle upon which damages
of the nature of particular average are distinguished from
those falling under the class of wear and tear, is that
the former must be caused by the immediate operation
of some extraordinary accident, while the latter are only
the ordinary incidents of navigation, and as such are not
within the scope of the underwriter’s contract. But the
practical application of this principle is a matter of much
nicety, and must usually be left to the judgment of a
professional average stater.
In adjusting claims for particular average on ships,
cei tain deductions are made for the difference between
new and old, unless the ship be on her first voyage,
either outward or homeward, or the repairs be only tem¬
porary. On this footing one-third is deducted from the
costs of the materials and labour required for the ship’s
repairs, excluding, however, the charges for dock dues,
surveyor’s fees, or similar accessories, which are allowed
in full. No deduction is made for anchors (unless in so
far as they may be fitted with wood), and the deduction for
chain cables is only one-sixth. When a ship has to be
recoppered at the expense of the underwriters, the prac¬
tice is to allow in full the difference of price between
old and new metal, to the extent of the weight of the
old copper stript off; and if any sheets have been lost
by being rubbed off, the cost of replacing these is further
allowed, under deduction of one-third. If the ship has
not been stranded, the underwriters are not liable for
claims for particular average, amounting to less than
three per cent on her insured value, independently of
the accessory expenses, such as survey fees, &c., which
INSURANCE.
are not taken into account in making up the three per
cent. Two or more averages occurring in the course of
a voyage, may, however, be taken together to make up
tree per cent on the value of the ship, so as to render
the insurers liable.
Particular average on goods occurs when they arrive
at thmr port of destination damaged by sea water, or by
in e"e<its.in lieating °i‘ otherwise deteriorating them,
although in actual contact only with other portions of
tie caigo. Ihe amount of compensation recoverable
trom the insurers for such damage is regulated by com¬
paring the gross, market price which the goods would
have produced, if landed in sound condition, with the
actual gross price obtained for them in their damaged
state,_ and by charging to the insurers the same rate of
deterioration on the value insured, with the addition of
the extra charges specially occasioned by the damage,
such as surveys, &c. By this mode of adjustment the
assured recovers either more or less than the actual de¬
preciation of the goods, according as the insured value
may exceed or fall below the sound market value at the
port of destination ; but as the latter value generally
includes freights, duties, and other charges, besides pro-
hts, it is in most cases in excess of the insured value,
and to the extent of such excess the indemnity of the
assured is incomplete. The equity, however, of this
mode of. adjustment is obvious, when it is considered
that the insurer receives his premium only on the value
insured, and ought therefore to be liable only in respect
of that value, while at the same time the gross market
\ a ues of the goods in their sound and damaged condi-
tion furnish the only true criterion of the actual depre¬
ciation, because these are the only values with reference
to which, ultimately at least, purchasers could be in¬
fluenced. As already indicated, claims for particular ave¬
rage on goods must amount to three per cent or upwards,
or in the case of the goods specified in the second clause
of the memorandum, to five per cent or upwards, other-
ivise the underwriters will not be liable unless the ship
has been stranded; and it is only when there has been
a stranding of the ship that the insurers are liable for
any such claims on the goods specified in the first clause
of the memorandum, or on other goods specially war¬
ranted “free of particular average.”
The subject of general average has been treated in a
separate article, under the head of “ Average,” to which
the reader, is referred for information respecting this
class of claims on insurers. On the general subject of
marine insurance, the best book of reference is Arnould’s
Treatise, which embodies everything of essential impor¬
tance in the earlier works of Marshall and Park, besides
embracing the leading cases decided in the law courts
up to a comparatively recent period. Amongst the
minor works bearing on the subject, Steven’s Essay on
Average, Benecke on the Principles of Indemnity in
Marine Insurance, and Baily on General Average, de¬
serve special mention. (j.
423
Marine
Insurance.
Particular
average on
goods.
424
f
I N T I N T
Integral INTEGRAL, or Integrant, in Philosophy, appella-
II tions given to parts of bodies wliicb are of a similar nature
Interest. ^ w}u)]e> Thus filings of iron have the same nature
and properties as bars of iron. The parts as making up a
whole are called integrant; the whole as made up of its
various parts is called integrate.
INTERAMNA, now Terni, in Ancient Geography, a
celebrated city of Umbria, standing on a small island in the
River Nar, now the Nera, about three miles below the cele¬
brated cascade of the Velinus. It is said to have been
founded 80 years before Rome itself, and, from its posi¬
tion in one of the most fertile districts of Italy, early at¬
tained great wealth and prosperity. So fertile was its terri¬
tory that, according to Pliny, the meadows near the town
bore four crops of hay a-year. His testimony is borne out
by the historian Tacitus, who is generally, though on doubt¬
ful grounds, described as a native of the place. Its import¬
ance did not diminish when it passed under the Roman
yoke; and, though it suffered severely in the civil wars of
Marius and Sulla, the latter of whom confiscated its territory
and portioned it out among his veterans, it easily recovered
its losses, and became as important as ever. Though it
stood a few miles from the main trunk of the Via Flaminia,
yet a branch of that highway passed through it, which,
under the empire, became the principal thoroughfare. In
the political history of Rome the name of Interamna is sel¬
dom met with. In the civil wars of the first century after
Christ it was taken by Arrius Varus, the general of Ves¬
pasian, from the garrison that held it for Vitellius. In
a.d. 253 the emperors Trebonianus Gallus and his son
Volusianus, when hastening to crush the rebel iEmilian in
Mcesia, were put to death by their own soldiers in this town.
Interamna was at an early age made an episcopal see.
This distinction it continued to retain through the middle
ages till the present day. Under the name of Terni it
continues to thrive; and is interesting from the number
and value of its antiquities. Its present population is about
10,000.
INTERCALARY, an appellation given to the odd day
inserted in leap-year; which was so called from calo, calare,
to proclaim, it being proclaimed with a loud voice by the
priests. See Chronology.
INTERDICT, an ecclesiastical censure often inflicted
by the Church of Rome, and involving the suspension, total
or partial, of the ordinances of religion. It might be in¬
flicted on a city or province, or even upon a whole king¬
dom. Amongst the earliest instances of it are cases which
occur in the sixth century. Praetextatus, archbishop of
Rouen, had been murdered by Queen Fredegunde, in con¬
sequence of which the churches of the city were shut up,
and both Dupin and Fleury consider the penalty thus in¬
curred to have been properly an interdict. In 997 this
punishment was inflicted by Gregory V. upon the whole of
France, on account of the marriage of King Robert with
his cousin. A procedure of this kind in those days was no
idle parade of words, for we find that Robert himself was Tnterdic-
excommunicated and abandoned by almost the whole of t>on
his own court. In 1147 King Stephen of England was II
placed under interdict; but more famous is the case of vJn erest-^
John, who was visited with this ecclesiastical censure in —
1208 by Innocent III. The papal legates came before the
English king in a very suppliant manner, but the moment
the fiery monarch heard of an interdict, he flew into a rage,
exclaimed furiously against the pope and his cardinals,
threatened to send off all the bishops to Rome, and to
pluck out the eyes and cut off the noses of any Romans that
he should find in his dominions. Notwithstanding this vio¬
lence the censure was pronounced, and, in consequence,
every religious ordinance ceased except confession, absolu¬
tion, and baptism. The dead being denied the rites of
sepulture, were cast into pits and holes like dogs. On the
other hand, King John retaliated by allowing the adherents
of the pope to be subjected to outrage both in person and
property.
The effect of these interdicts was found to be bad. The
suspension of the rite of marriage, for example, necessarily
tended to demoralize the people. After the Reformation,
political considerations of a more cogent kind, compelled
the pope to resort less frequently to these modes of punish¬
ment.
INTERDICTION, a term used in the law of England;
for example, a party in a suit in Chancery, to stay some waste
or to stop proceedings in law, may pray for an injunction, in
the nature of an interdictum by the civil law, commanding
the defendant to cease. In Scotland, where a prosecutor
sues to prevent his adversary doing something alleged to
be illegal he asks for interdict; and if it is required, pend¬
ing the suit, it is called interim interdict. This remedy
may be granted against all alleged encroachments of almost
every kind. If a neighbour be removing a mutual fence
or boundary, or if any person attempts to sell property
under a title alleged to be bad, or to carry off effects se¬
questrated or hypothecated for behoof of another, he may
not only be sued for permanent interdict against doing so,
but for interim interdict pending the suit. In all legal dis¬
cussions regarding property the party in possession is gene¬
rally entitled to have interim interdict till the question of
right be decided; and it is thus quite common for a party
to obtain an interim interdict who is ultimately denied a
permanent one. The rule for granting the interim inter¬
dict seems to be, that provided the party applying for it
sets forth both a title and an interest to obtain it, it should
be given, wherever, assuming his representations to be well-
founded, he would be injured if it were withheld. It is
then granted at his peril, so that he is liable in damages to
his opponent if he fail in the end to prove that he was in
the right. When the propriety of granting interim interdict
is in some degree doubtful, it is frequently granted on cau¬
tion for damages to the opposite party, if it turn out to have
been applied for wrongfully.
INTEREST.
Definition. Interest is the annual sum or rate per cent, which the or diminution would wholly depend on the comparative
borrower of a capital agrees, or is bound, to pay to the lender scarcity or abundance of money; or, in other words, that
for its use.1 it would rise as money became scarce, and fall as it became
Interest de- jj- wag generai]y supposed, previously to the middle of more plentiful. But this opinion has been successfully^
cccten's pa- century, that, in the event of all legislative enactments controverted.2 And it has been shown that the rate of
rt'&ws, on the regulating the rate of interest being repealed, its increase interest, in advanced communities, is not determined by the
rate of     — —      ~
profit. x „ jntergt. loygj. d’un capital prete; ou bien, en termes plus exacts, achat des services productifs que peut rendre un capital ” {Say,
tom. ii., p. 480, ed. 4me.)
2 First by Mr Joseph Massie in a tract published in 1750, entitled An Essay on the Governing Causes of the Rate of Interest; and, second,
and with better effect, in Hume’s Essay on Interest, in 1752.
Interest.
INTEREST.
ihe_C.Uum0C>'! b"t by *be average rate of
—' profit derived from the employment of capital. "No doubt
it most frequently happens that loans are made in cur¬
rency; but this is of no consequence. There is obviously
no substantial difference between A furnishing B with 100
bushels of corn, or 100 yards of cloth, to be repaid at the
expo-anon of a specified period by the delivery of 104 or
105 bushels, or 104 or 105 yards, or with as much money
at 4 oi 5 per cent., as would purchase the corn or cloth.
And it is easy to perceive that, as crowds of passengers*
may be successively conveyed by the same carriage, soothe
same sum of money may serve to negotiate an infinity of
loans. Suppose A lends to X, L.1000, with which the
atter buys from B an equivalent amount of commodities •
that B, having no use for the money, lends it to Y who’
pays it away for produce to C, who again lends it to Z and
so on. It is plain that X, Y, Z have received loans of
commodities or produce from A, B, C worth three times
(and they might have been worth thirty or three hundred
times) as much as the money employed in settling the
transactions According as the supply of currency, com¬
pared with the business it has to perform, is greater or less
we give a greater or less number of guineas or livres, notes
or assignats, for the articles we wish to obtain. It is not
however, by the fact of the price of such articles being high
or low, out by the advantage or profit which the borrowers
expect to derive from their possession, that the interest or
compensation to be paid to the lenders for their use is de¬
termined. It may perhaps be supposed in the case of
goldsmiths and jewellers, that when the quantity of metallic
money is increased, they will obtain the raw material of their
business with greater facility. But this is not always the
case; and, though it were, it would not, in any degree,
affect the rate of interest. No coins are ever sent to the
melting pot unless the currency be degraded or depreciated;
that is, unless it be deficient in weight, or relatively redun-
dant in quantity. And it is plain that the inducement to
offer a high or a low rate of interest for loans of money,
which it is intended to work up into plate or other articles,
will not depend on the supply of such money, but on the
profit to be derived from its conversion into goods, a cir¬
cumstance wholly unconnected with the scarcity or abun¬
dance of coin.
It, therefore, appears that, speaking generally, the rate
of interest depends on the profit that may be made by em¬
ploying capital in industrious undertakings, and not on the
pi ices paid for the articles of which it consists. The latter
are affected by every change in the value of money, where¬
as the former is little if at all affected by these “chancres,
and is determined by the productiveness of industry. A
low or a high rate of profit is uniformly accompanied by a
low or a high rate of interest. Money, as every one knows,
is cheaper in the United States and'in Australia, than in
Ungland ; but the ordinary rate of profit being higher there
than here, interest, despite the lower value of money, is also
higher. Extraordinary as it may seem, it is nevertheless
true, that, during the half dozen years ending with 1856,
the current rate of interest in San Francisco, where bullion
is so very abundant as to be almost a drug, has varied
from 1£ to 2 and 3 percent, a month, or from 18 to24 and
36 per cent, per annum. And though it were allowed that
from a third to a half of this rate should be viewed as a pre¬
mium to compensate the insecurity prevalent in California,
still the residue would amount to three, four, or five times
the ordinary rate of interest in England. In farther cor¬
roboration of these statements, we may mention that the
low rate of interest in Holland during the greater part of
the 17th, and the whole of the 18th century, was not
owing to any peculiar abundance or cheapness of money,
but to the high rate of taxation and the difficulty of in¬
vesting capital with a profit. And to this latter circum¬
stance we owe the low rate of interest in this country to¬
wards the middle of last century and at several late periods.
t is not, in short, by the amount or value of the currencies
of different countries; but by the means which they respec-
Storly 27, » pr0f?!lle of capital or
stock, that their profits and interest are governed.
lhat a rise or fall in the value of money can have no
• feet influence over interest, is plain from the fket of the
fallerfSt rTS ^ pa‘d in the money that has risen or
snnrW * f 1 6 ^ dme’ a sudden increase in the
supply of money, may undoubtedly have a temporary effect
in depressing interest. Importers of bullion may not be
able to lay it out advantageously in purchases, and may, in
at aS<SowenCf’ bedlSp.0sed t0 |lave it coined and lent, though
at a low rate. We incline, however, to think that the in¬
fluence of considerations of this sort is but inconsiderable.
Lenders will not take less for loans than the borrowers are
willing to offer, and the offers of the latter must be deter¬
mined not merely by the amount of money seeking invest¬
ments but partly also, and in a still greater degree, by the
profit that may be made by its employment. When there
is a rapid influx of money, loans for short periods are
usually obtainable at low rates. This, however, is not
geneially the case with loans for lengthened periods. The
lenders are willing to accept a reduced interest for a short
tdra’ 11 if. they can look about for some more profitable
means of investment. But the interest on loans on mort¬
gage, or for lengthened periods, is always proportioned to
the rate of profit at the time; and, supposing the security
else unexcePtionable’ is but little affected by anything
I he profits made in industrious undertakings are, for the
most part, distributed into gross and nett profits. Thus if
from the total returns, whether annual or otherwise, ob¬
tained in any business or employment, we deduct all sorts of
outlays necessarily incurred in carrying it on, including the
wages or remuneration due to the undertakers for their skill
and trouble in superintending the business and a sum to
compensate the risks provided against by insurance, the
residue is the nett profit of, or return to, the capital em¬
ployed. And it is on this latter portion that interest de¬
pends, or rather with which it is usually identical. Lenders
having nothing to do with the employment of capital, are
not entitled to any peculiar advantage that may arise from
it. But they are entitled to all that can fairly be considered
as the return to the capital they have lent, after the risks,
salaries, and necessary emoluments of those who undertake
its employment, are deducted; and this much, speakino-
generally, they will get, and no more. Whatever else may
be realized by the employment of capital in industrial pur¬
suits, belongs to the borrowers, and forms the fund out of
which they are remunerated. In coming to this conclusion,
we are supported by the authority of Mr Tooke. “ The
rate of interest,” says he, “ is the measure of the nett profit
on capital. All returns beyond this on the employment of
capital, are resolvable into compensations, under distinct
heads, for risk, trouble, or skill, or for advantages of situ¬
ation or connection.”1
Whatever, therefore, may at any time occasion a Sudden
glut of money or capital, may lower the rate of nett profit
and interest. But that very circumstance, by increasing
the demand for capital, will eventually raise the rate to its
pioper level; and the glut having disappeared, profits
and interest will depend on the productiveness of in¬
dustry.
Besides such variations as are proportioned to variations
in the ordinary rate of profit, and which equally affect all
Considerations on the State of the Currency, 2d edit,, p. 12.
3 H
425
Interest.
VOL. XII.
426
Interest.
Influence
of the in¬
crease or
diminution
of security,
&c., on inte¬
rest.
INTEREST.
loans, the rate of interest varies according to the security
for the repayment of the principal, and the duration of the
loan. Hence the powerful influence which the character
of the borrower, the purpose for which he borrows, and the
nature of the business in which he is engaged, have over
interest. Careful, skilful, and intelligent parties always
borrow, cceteris paribus, on lower terms than those of an
opposite description. The spendthrift, the idle, and the un¬
skilful, can with difficulty obtain loans on any terms ; and
those who deal with them and stipulate for a high rate of
interest to cover their risk, frequently And that their gua¬
rantee is inadequate, and that they would have better con¬
sulted their own advantage by lending to respectable parties
on the usual terms. The nature of the employment in
which borrowers are engaged has also, as now stated, a
powerful effect in determining the rate of interest. Where-
ever there is risk, it must be compensated. A sum lent on
mortgage over a valuable estate is not exposed to any risk.
But a sum lent to a manufacturer or merchant engaged in
a hazardous business, is exposed to a high degree of risk;
and the interest payable on the latter, inasmuch as it must
include a premium to compensate this extra risk, may be
twice or three times as much as that paid on the mortgage.
We should mistake, however, if we supposed that this
circumstance places those who carry on peculiarly hazard¬
ous businesses in a comparatively disadvantageous situation.
Competition will not permit, taking everything into account,
a greater or a less amount of nett profit to be permanently
obtained in one branch of industry than in another. The
produce realized by those who engage in employments of
more than ordinary hazard is generally sold at prices that
yield the ordinary rate of profit, with a surplus sufficient to
guarantee their stock against the extra risk to which it is
exposed. Were it otherwise, everybody would decline
placing their property in a state of comparative danger, and
undertakings of a hazardous nature would not be entered
into. But it very frequently happens, that the manager of
a hazardous branch of industry, paying from 10 to 12 per
cent, for loans, realizes larger nett profits than the purchaser
of an estate with money borrowed at 3 or 4 per cent.
Supposing the security to be equal, capital lent fora fixed
and considerable period always fetches a higher rate of in¬
terest than that which is lent for short periods, or which
may be demanded at the pleasure of the lender. 1 here
are*but few modes of safely employing loans of which the
duration is so uncertain, so that they are frequently worth
very little; and hence the rate of interest is, in the majo¬
rity of cases, in part at least, determined by the length of
the loan ; for, when that is considerable, it may be produc¬
tively employed in a variety of businesses, in which it would
not otherwise be prudent to invest it, at the same time that
the borrower has time to prepare for its repayment. But
this principle has only a slight influence over loans for terms
beyond three, or at most five, years; for a loan for either
of these terms, but especially the latter, may be employed
in a great variety of ways, and would bring nearly as much
interest as it would do were it for ten or twelve years. It
is farther to be observed, that large classes of borrowers
prefer the less interest which they get for advances at short
dates to the higher rate which they might get were they for
longer terms. Most people wish to have the full command
of their capital. Merchants and manufacturers who lent on
mortgage would in so far deprive themselves of the means
of extending their business, and of speculating. And though
sometimes, perhaps, this might be for their advantage, yet Interest,
the flattering opinion which most people entertain of their l''—
own sagacity and good fortune, would but seldom permit
them to doubt that it was a very serious disadvantage.
Hence the low rates at which banking companies who pay
the sums deposited with them on demand,1 and governments
overwhelmed with debt, are able to borrow. A stock¬
holder’s mortgage, or claim on the revenue of a country,
maybe immediately converted into cash at the current prices.
And, however much the majority of the creditors of^a deeply
indebted country may be impressed with a conviction of its
inability to discharge the various claims upon it, each in¬
dividual, confident in his own good fortune and foresight,
•flatters himself that he, at all events, will foresee the com¬
ing tempest, and be able to sell out before a public bank¬
ruptcy.
It is evident, from these statements, that in addition to
the security for loans and their duration, the rate of interest
will, to a considerable extent, depend on the facilities af¬
forded for enforcing or carrying out the stipulations in con¬
tracts. And hence a main cause of its reduction as society
is more and more improved. Generally, it may be said
that a speedy, cheap, and effectual process for securing the
payment of debts, has a powerful tendency to lower—and
a slow, costly, and ineffectual process, to raise—the rate of
interest. In most countries, extraordinary means are taken
to compel payment of bills; and this is a principal cause of
the low rate at which they are commonly discounted. The
easy enforcement of contracts constitutes, in truth, an im¬
portant portion of the security for a debt. By a good se¬
curity, is not meant a guarantee that a loan will ultimately
be made good, but that it will be punctually paid when due ;
or, if the loan be of a kind that a little delay in its payment
is usually given, that that delay will not be exceeded, and
that it will be paid within the customary term. A security
which should insure the final payment of a debt, but which
should not insure its payment when due, or shortly there¬
after, is not a good, but a bad security. It is indispensable
to the transacting of business safely, cheaply, and expedi¬
tiously, that there should be as little doubt as possible either
in regard to the payment of loans or the term when they
are to be paid. If either of these points be doubtful, the
lender will insist on an indemnity for the consequent risk.
And it therefore appears that the summary proceedings
taken to enforce payment of bills, and such like debts, are
in truth and reality more for the advantage of the borrowers
than of the lenders. They reduce the rate of interest; and
the hardship, such as it is, which they occasionally inflict
on the borrower, does not occur in one case out of five hun¬
dred ; while their powerful influence in depressing interest
tells in every case.'2
In Greece the rate of interest was not regulated by law;
and it consequently varied with all the causes of variation
above alluded to. Generally, however, it was what we should
reckon very high, amounting, in most cases, to from 10 to
18 per cent., and upwards. This high rate of interest was
not occasioned by a high rate of profit, but by the uncer¬
tainty of the laws, and the facilities which they afforded to
fraudulent debtors to defeat the just claims of their credi¬
tors. The interest on money lent on bottomry, or on the
security of the ship or cargo, or both, was rated at so much
per voyage. It therefore depended on the place to which
the ship was to sail, the season of the year, the chance of
meeting pirates or enemies’ ships, etc. Usually it was ex-
* This, however, is not a common practice; most companies stipulating that notice of the withdrawal of deposits s a e given some
eight or ten days previously.
2 It is not, of course, any part of our business to inquire into the methods most proper to be taken to enforce payment of debts. But,
how paradoxical soever it may appear, we believe it would not be difficult to show that the putting of most descriptions of small debts,
or of debts under L.30 or L.40, out of the pale of the law, would be advantageous. It would tend to prevent the abuse of credit by the
lower classes, to whom it is extremely pernicious, and to make habits of economy and punctuality more valuable than at present.
Attempts
to limit
the rate
Interest tremely great, varying from 30 to 50 or 60 per cent The
— ^  bankers and money lenders of Athens, though oflowori-in
be.ng mostly freedmen or aliens, appear to have been con¬
sidered as eminently trustworthy, and entitled to the public
confidence. But they were, notwithstanding, quite as un¬
popular and for no better reasons, as the Jews and Lom¬
bards of the Middle Ages. We are surprised that so learned
a writer as Boeckh should have been so imbued with the
vulgar prejudice against them as to state that they drew
upon themselves the “ merited hatred of all classes He
should have known that it has not been the covetousness
of bankeis, but that bad laws administered by interested
judges, by making loans insecure, and driving parties of the
ugliest respectability from the banking business, have been
alone to blame for the exorbitant usury of ancient as well
as of modern times. Had contracts been properly enforced
the probability is that interest would hale been as low in
frreece as in England.1
Instead, however, of leaving the rate of interest to be
me rare ad.)usted by the free competition of the parties, on the prin-
ofinterest C1P cs t ms bilefly explained, or endeavouring to reduce it
have raised by facilitating the enforcement of contracts, most govern-
it. ments have interfered, either entirely to prohibit the taking
of interest, or to fix certain rates which might be legally
exacted, while any excess over them was declared to be
usury, and prohibited under the severest penalties. In the
ages in which these enactments had their origin, the precious
metals were the only species of money, and were considered
quite peculiar Being used in a double capacity-as stan¬
dards by which to ascertain the values of different articles
and as the equivalents for which they were most frequently
exchanged they acquired a factitious importance in the
estimation, not merely of the vulgar, but of persohs of the
greatest discernment. The fact, that to buy and to sell is
merely to barter one commodity for another, to exchange a
quantity of corn, or cloth, or beef, for a quantity of gold or
silver, and vice versa, was entirely overlooked. The atten¬
tion was gradually transferred from the money’s worth to
the money itself. And the wealth of states and of indivi¬
duals was not measured by the amount of their disposable
produce, or by the quantity or value of the articles with
which they could afford to purchase the precious metals, but
by the quantity or value of these metals actually in their pos¬
session. For these and other reasons, money has been con¬
sidered as a merchandise par excellence. And we need
not, therefore, be surprised at the measures to which the
prevalence of such exaggerated opinions almost necessarily
led; or that vigorous efforts should have been made to
protect those who were unprovided with so powerful an
instrument from becoming a prey to their more fortunate
neighbours. Individuals might freely dispose of their corn,
cattle, land, etc. But it was supposed that the demand for
money might be so great, as to enable the lenders, unless
restrained in their exactions, to ruin the borrowers, and
engross the whole property of the country.
. Another cause of the prejudice against stipulating for
interest grew out of the dislike entertained to accumula¬
tion. It is a consequence of economy, or of a saving of
interest.
427
rnd vis’ in nlde auges’ is considered indicative of Interest,
a .01 did disposition, and as being positively hurtful. Pro- v >
digals and spendthrifts were long, and perhaps still continue
to be, the favourites of the public. Before the nature and
unctions of capital were properly understood, it was believed
that it could not be increased without injury to individuals,
and that whatever advantage it might' give to one party
uust occasion an equal disadvantage to others. Our ances¬
tors did not know that those who, by their economy, accu-
m ate stock, add to their own wealth, without diminishing
that of any one else; nor did they know that, when ex¬
pended, as is almost always the case, in the support of pro¬
ductive industry, this stock affords the means of producing
an increased income. But reckoning, as they did, that the
savings of individuals were so much withdrawn from income
in which the public would otherwise have participated, it
was natural enough that they should endeavour to limit the
advantage derivable from their employment.
Much, also, of the prejudice against bargaining for inte¬
rest, prevalent m the middle ages, may be traced to the
authority of certain texts of Scripture, which were under¬
stood to prohibit its exaction. It is, doubtful, however,
whether they will really bear that interpretation. And sup¬
posing that they did, nothing could be more irrational than
to regard the municipal regulations of a people placed in
such peculiar circumstances as the Jews, as general and
fixed principles, applicable in all ages and countries.2
But, whatever may have led to the efforts so gene-rally
made to limit or suppress interest, it is abundantly certain
that, instead of succeeding in their object, they had an
opposite effect. If a borrower consider it for his advantage
° o cr , 7, or 8 per cent, for a loan (and otherwise he
would not make the offer), why should the legislature
prohibit him from offering, and the lender from receiv¬
ing, more than 3, 4, or 5 per cent. ? An interference of
this sort, besides being uncalled for and unnecessary, is
in a high degree prejudicial. Restrictive laws, instead of
reducing, uniformly raise the rate of interest. They cannot
be so framed as to prevent borrowers from engaging under-
hand, to pay a higher rate of interest than is fixed by statute.
nd if the lenders had implicit confidence in the secresy
and solvency of the borrowers, they might accommodate
them with the sums wanted, without requiring any addi¬
tional interest, because of the illegality of the transaction.
Itot cases of this sort are extremely rare. Gratitude, and
a sense of benefits received, are but slender securities for
honourable conduct. Numberless unforeseen events occur
to weaken and dissolve the best cemented friendships; and
a transaction of this kind would afford an additional source
of jealousies and divisions. In such matters, indeed, men
are more than usually sharp-sighted, and are little disposed
to trust to moral guarantees for the security of their pro¬
perty. But though neither the threatenings of the law
nor the inducements which it held out to dishonest debtors
to recede from the stipulations into which they had entered
were able to prevent, or even greatly to lessen, what are
termed usurious ba.rga.ins, they rendered them more oppres¬
sive. They obliged the lenders to demand, and the bor-
1 Boeckh’s Pullic Economy of Athens, vol. i., pp. 164-191 ~ ~
the firBt^to'emancipa^^himsel^from^^th^prejudice^formerijTscr^prevalent8 ^ rema^able fact that the famous reformer Calvin was one of
He comments as follows on the statement^f Aristotle that as monev did not nrnd* ^ amonff rehgIOUS people, against taking interest,
the lender « Pecunia non narit uecuniam OJ d Produce money, no return could be equitably claimed by
tibus argentum pr^db ZciC ^Sed et ierm product ° ? ex ^ et par£
ditas cum certa pecunia parari commutarive solet. Quod si i<ntur plus ex neeotiatione lucri nl” ^ ?rodu?at’ et habitation^ commo-
proventu: an feretur qui fundem sterilem fortass£ colono locaverit exquo mercedem vel nrovcntum qU?m GX fundi cuJusvis
aliquem perceperit, non feretur ? et qui pecunia fundum acquirit annon necunia UP cr^ + ^ recilnat Slbl> qul ex pecunia fructum
mercatores lucrum ? Ex ipsius, inquies, diligentia atj^ an,nuam P^nia™ ? U"de vero
me mutuam rogat, yacuam apud se habere a me acceptam cogitat. Non erga ex pecunia ilia 'lucmm^r enl omnino esse ? neque qui a
igitur rationes subtiles quidem sunt, et speciem quandain habent sed ubi nrrmins oinonri i . , • -cedit, sed ex proventu. Him
judicandum de usuris esse, non ex particular! aliauo Scrintnr»» w i + ^ ^ uotur, seipsa concidunt. Nunc igitur concludo
his Note, to hi, IwL J ) T I**-* Stewart»
428
INTEREST.
interest, rowers to undertake to pay a rate of interest sufficient to
yield the current rate of'nett profit at the time, with a fur¬
ther sum to balance the risk of entering into what the law
made an illegal transaction. This latter sum being, of
course, proportioned to the greater or less magnitude of the
risk to be provided against, it increased or diminished ac¬
cording as the laws for the prevention of usury were enforced
or relaxed.
Whenever, under the old system, the market rate of in¬
terest rose above the statutory rate, the free transfer of
capital was obstructed. Parties could no longer look merely
to their own advantage. And loans which might have
been obtained for 6, 7, or 8 per cent., had there been no
hazard from anti-usurious statutes, were raised, on its ac¬
count, to 8, 10, and 12 per cent. It is, therefore, plain
that if the means taken to put down usury w^ere not wholly
responsible for its existence, they, at all events, added largely
to its amount.
These conclusions do not rest on theory only, but are
supported by a wide and uniform experience. In Rome,
during the republic, the ordinary rate of interest was exces¬
sively high. The debtors, or plebeians, were every now'
and then threatening to deprive their creditors, who were
o-enerally of the patrician order, not only of the interest,
but of the principal itself. Repeated instances occurred to
show that these were not mere empty threats; and the pa¬
tricians indemnified themselves, by a corresponding pre¬
mium, for the dangers to which they were exposed. “ Des
continuels changements,” says Montesquieu, “ soit par des
loix, soit par des plebiscites, naturaliserent a Rome 1’usure;
car les creanciers, voyant le peuple leur debiteur, leur legis-
lateur, et leur juge, n’eurent plus de confiance dans les
contrats. Le peuple, comme un debiteur decredite, ne
tentoit a lui preter que par des gros profits; d’autant plus
que, si les loix ne venoient que de temps en temps, les
plaintes du peuple etoient continuelles, et intimidoient tou-
jours les creanciers. Cela fit que tous les moyens honnetes
de preter et d’emprunter furent abolis a Rome, et qu’une
usure affreuse toujours foudroyee, et toujours renaissante,
s’y etablit. Le mal venoient de ce que les choses n’avoient
pas ete manages. Les loix extremes dans le bien font
naitre le mal extreme: il fallut payer pour le pret de 1’argent,
et pour le danger des peines de la loi.” 1
In Mohammedan countries, notwithstanding the prohibi¬
tion in the Koran, the ordinary rate of interest is at least
three or four times as great as its ordinary rate in Europe.
“ L’usure augmente dans les pays Mahometans a propor¬
tion de la severite de la defense: le preteur s’indemnise du
peril de la contravention.”2
During the middle ages, when interest was excessively
high, the rate of profit was probably little, if at all, higher
than at present. But it should be observed that a very
great majority of the loans of these ages were but little in¬
fluenced by its amount. They were not made to be in¬
vested, but to be spent. The great barons and other
landed proprietors wrere the principal borrowers. And in
nineteen out of every twenty instances, the sums which
they borrowed were expended in the maintenance of crowds
of idle retainers, in warfare, or in prodigalities of some sort
or other. And while the borrowers belonged generally to
what we should now call the spendthrift class, and there
were no efficient means of compelling them to abide by
their engagements, the lenders were but few' in number,
and mostly Jews and Italians, the objects of the most un¬
reasonable prejudices. Under such circumstances, it would
be folly to suppose that the rate of interest should depend
in any considerable degree on the rate of profit. The
numbers,’position, and character of the borrowers, compared
with the fewness, position, and character of the lenders, and
the risk to which the latter were exposed in entering into
such transactions, occasioned the excessively high rate of
interest. Of the 50 and even 100 per cent, which bor¬
rowers then frequently engaged to pay as interest, not more
than 10 or 12 per cent, can properly be said to have been
given for the productive services of loans. The rest must
be considered as occasioned partly by the extreme scarcity
of disposable capital and the carelessness of the borrowers,
and partly, and principally, as a bonus to compensate the
lenders for the imminent hazard of losing the principal.
In England, as in most other countries, Christians were,
after the Conquest, absolutely prohibited, both by the civil
and the ecclesiastical law, from bargaining for interest.
But as Jew's, according to the Mosaic law,3 w'ere allowed to
lend at interest to a stranger, its exaction by them was first
connived at, and subsequently authorized by law. And the
same privilege was afterwards extended to the Italian or
Lombard merchants. In consequence of this exemption,
many Jews early settled in England, and engrossed a large
share of the trade of the kingdom. But despite their in¬
dustry and general good conduct, the prejudices against
them, and against the business in which they were mostly
engaged, were so very strong that they and their families
were regarded as slaves of the crown, by whom they were
plundered, to an extent and under pretences which would
now appear incredible. To such an extreme, indeed, were
these oppressive practices carried, that a particular office,
called the exchequer of the Jews, was established, for receiv¬
ing the sums extorted from them in fines, customs, tallages,
forfeitures, &c. They were, in consequence, obliged to
charge an enormous rate of interest, or, as Madox expresses
it, “ to fleece the subjects of the realm as the king fleeced
them.” 4 And hence, while only from 7 to 10 and 12 per
cent, interest was paid in countries where sounder princi¬
ples prevailed, the rate charged in England was three, four,
and even five times as great.0
But in the end the disorders occasioned by this ruinous
system became so obvious, that, notwithstanding the deeply-
rooted prejudices to the contrary, a statute w'as passed
in 1546 (37 Hen. VIII., cap. 7), legalizing interest to the
extent of 10 per cent, per annum ; because, as is recited in
the words of the act, the statutes “ prohibiting interest al¬
together have so little force, that little or no punishment
hath ensued to the offenders.” In the reign of Edward
VI., the horror against interest seems to have revived in
full force; for, in 1552, the taking of any was again prohi¬
bited, “ as a vice most odious and detestable,” and “ con¬
trary to the word of God.” But, in spite of this denuncia¬
tion, the rate of interest, instead of being reduced, imme¬
diately rose to 14 per cent., and continued at this rate until,
in 1571, an act was passed (13th Eliz., cap. 8) repealing the
act of Edward VI., and reviving the act of Henry VIII.,
allowing 10 per cent, interest. In the preamble to this act
it is stated, “ That the prohibiting act of King Edward VI.
had not done so much good as was hoped for; but that
Interest.
^ TUnrit d(zs Loix liv xxii c 21 ^ Ibid., liv. xxi.. C. li/.
3 Deuteronomy, cap. xxiii.,’ v. 20. 4 Madox’s History of the Exchequer, vol. i., pp. 221-261, 4to, 1769.
6 At Verona, in 1228, the interest of money was fixed by law at 12J per cent. Towards the end of the fourteent century,, e re
public of Genoa paid only from 7 to 10 per cent, to her creditors ; and the average discount on good bills at Barcelona, in o, is s a e
to have been about 10 percent. But whilst interest in Italy and Catalonia, where a considerable degree of free om was a owe o e
parties bargaining for a loan, was thus comparatively moderate, it was, despite its total prohibition, incomparably ig er in ranee an
England. Matthew Paris mentions that, in the reign of Henry III., the debtor paid 10 per cent, every two mont s. ^ n t is, oug
nipossible as a general practice, may not have been very far from the average interest charged on the few loans t at were t en con¬
tracted for (Hallam’s Middle Ages, vol. iii., p. 402.)
I N T E
Interest, rather the vice of usury hath much more exceedingly
^ abounded, to the utter undoing of many gentlemen, mer¬
chants, occupiers, and others, and to the importable hurt
of the commonwealth.” This salutary statute was opposed
even by those who should have known better, with all the
violence of superstitious fanaticism. Dr John Wilson a
man famous in his day, and celebrated for the extent of his
learning, informed the House of Commons, of which he
was a member, that “ it was not the amount of the interest
taken that constituted the crime; but that all lending for
any gain, be it ever so little, was wickedness before God
and man, and a damnable deed in itself, and that there was
no mean in this vice any more than in murder or theft.”
lo quiet the consciences of the bishops, a clause was in¬
serted, declaring usury to be forbidden by the law of God
and to be in its nature sin, and detestable. This statute
was limited to a period of five years ; but, “ forasmuch as
it was, by pi oof and experience, found to be very necessary
and profitable for the commonwealth of this realm,” it was,
in the same reign, made perpetual (39th Eliz., cap.’ 18).
In the 21st of James I., the legal rate of interest was re-
duced to 8 per cent., by an act to continue for seven years
only, but which was made perpetual in the succeeding
reign (3d Car. I., cap. 4). During the commonwealth,
the legal rate of interest was reduced to 6 per cent., a re¬
duction which was afterwards confirmed by the 12th Car.
II. And, finally, in the reign of Queen Anne, a statute
(12th Anne, cap. 16) was framed, reducing the rate of in¬
terest to 5 per cent., at which it stood 611 1839.
In the pieamble to this statute, it is stated that, c< where¬
as the reducing interest to 10, and from thence to 8, and
thence to 6, in the hundred, hath from time to time, by
expei ience, been found very beneficial to the advancement
of trade and the improvement of lands, it is become abso¬
lutely necessary to reduce the high rate of interest of 6 per
cent, to a nearer proportion to the interest allowed for
money in foreign states.” It was for these reasons enacted,
that all bargains or contracts stipulating for a higher rate of
interest than 5 per cent, should be utterly void. ' And “ that
all persons who should after that time receive, by means of
any corrupt bargain, loan, exchange, chevizance, or interest,
of any wares, merchandise, or other thing whatever, or by
any deceitful way or means, or by any covin, engine, or
deceitful conveyance for the forbearing or giving day of
payment, for one whole year, for their money or other
thing, above the sum of L.5 for L.100 for a year, should
forfeit, for every such offence, the treble value of the
moneys or other things so lent, bargained,” &c.
In Scotland, previously to the Reformation, no interest
could be legally charged. But that great event, by weaken¬
ing the force of those religious prejudices, which had chiefly
dictated the prohibition of interest, led to the adoption of
more liberal opinions on the subject, and to the enactment
of the statute of 1587(11th Park, Jac. VI., cap. 52), which
legalized interest to the extent of 10 per cent.. In 1633
the legal rate was reduced to 8 per cent., and in 1661 to
6 per cent. The statute of Anne, reducing the rate of in¬
terest to 5 per cent., extended to both kingdoms.
The statutes prohibiting the taking of interest in Ireland
were not repealed until 1635, when the statute 10th Car. I.,
cap. 22, gave liberty to stipulate for any rate not exceeding
10 percent. In 1704 this rate was reduced to 8 per cent.;
in 1722 it was reduced to 7 per cent.; and in 1732 in was
further reduced to 6 per cent.
In France the rate of interest was fixed at 5 per cent, so
REST.
early as 1665; and this, a few short intervals only excepted,
continued to be the legal rate till the Revolution' Laverdy,!
m 1766, reduced it from 5 to 4 per cent. Instead, however'
of the market rate being proportionally reduced, it was
raised from 5 to 6 per cent. Previously to the promulga¬
tion of the edict, loans might have been obtained on good
security at 5 per cent.; but an additional per cent, was
afterwards required to cover the illegality. This caused
the speedy abandonment of the measure.1
The same thing happened in Livonia in 1786, when the
Empress Catherine reduced interest from 6 to 5 per cent,
ditherto, says Storch (in loco citato), those who had good
security to offer were able to borrow at 6 per cent.; but
lenceforth they had to pay 7 per cent, or upwards. And
such will be found to be invariably the case, when the legal
is Jess man the market rate of interest.
It has been observed by Adam Smith, that the statutory
i egulations, reducing interest in England, were made with
great propriety. Instead of preceding, they followed the
fall which was gradually taking place in the market rate of
interest, and, therefore, did not contribute, as they would
otherwise have done, to raise that which they were intended
to reduce. Sir Josiah Child, whose treatise, recommend¬
ing a reduction of interest to 4 per cent., was originally pub¬
lished in 1668,2 states, that the goldsmiths of London, who
then acted as bankers, could obtain as much money as they
pleased, upon their servants’ notes only, at 4^ per cent.
I he supposed insecurity of the revolutionary establishment,
and the novelty of the practice of funding, occasioned the
payment of a high rate of interest for a large portion of the
sums borrowed by the public in the reigns of William III.
and Anne. But private persons, of undoubted credit, could
then borrow at less than 5 per cent. During the reign of
George II. the market rate of interest fluctuated from 3 to
4 and 4^ per cent.3
Smith mentions that the increased means of profitably
investing capital acquired during the war, terminated by the
peace of Paris in 1763, raised the market rate of interest to
a level with the statutory rate, or perhaps higher. But it
was not until the subsequent European war that any very
material or general inconvenience was found to result from
the limitation of interest to 5 per cent.
It is necessary, however, to observe, that this remark
applies exclusively to loans negotiated by individuals who
could offer unexceptionable security ; for, since the act
of 1714, persons engaged in employments of more than
ordinary hazard, or whose character for prudence and punc¬
tuality did not stand high, or who could only offer inferior
security, were unable to borrow at 5 per cent., and were
consequently compelled to resort to a variety of schemes for
defeating or evading the enactments in the statute. The
most common device was the sale of an annuity. Thus,
supposing an individual whose personal credit was indif¬
ferent, and who had only the liferent of an estate to give
in security, wished to borrow, he sold an annuity to the
lender sufficient to pay the interest stipulated for, which,
because of the risks and odium attending such transactions,
was always higher than the market rate, and also to pay the
premium necessary to insure payment of the principal at
the death of the borrower. It is curious to observe, that
though the sale of an irredeemable life annuity, at a rate
exceeding legal interest, was not reckoned fraudulent or
usurious, yet, so late as 1743, Lord Hardwicke held that,
in their less exceptionable form, or when they were redeem¬
able, their sale could be looked upon in no other light than
429
Interest.
1 Storch, Traite d'Economic Politique, tom. in., p, 187.
2 A second edition, very greatly enlarged, was published in 1690.
On the ohol1^0f/)eCKTnb1e7Q177i2, ^ thr6e l-VTt highest price they have hitherto reached, namely, 106f per cent.
Sed f a7,ert. • ’i i 7 T WhlcVheJallT of Lord Malmesbury’s attempt to negotiate with the French republic trans¬
pired, consols fell to 47|, being the lowest price at which they have ever been sold. ^
430
INTEREST.
Interest, as an evasion of the statute of usury, and a loan of money.1
's—But the extreme inexpediency of this distinction soon be¬
came obvious, and the law was changed. The great ex¬
tension of the traffic in annuities, and the advantage of
giving as much publicity as possible to such transactions,
led to various inquiries and regulations respecting them in
the early part of the reign of George III. In consequence,
the sale of irredeemable annuities became nearly unknown;
and it was ruled, that the sale of a redeemable annuity
could not be impeached, though it appeared on the face of
the deeds that the lender had secured the principal by
effecting an assurance of the borrower’s life.
During the greater part of the French revolutionary war,
the usury laws operated to the prejudice of all classes of
borrowers. The great extent and high interest of the pub¬
lic loans, the facility of selling out of the funds, the regularity
with which the dividends were paid, and the temptations to
speculation arising from the fluctuations in the price of
funded property, diverted so large a portion of the floating
capital of the country into the coffers of the treasury, that
it was next to impossible for private individuals to borrow
at the legal rate of interest, except from the trustees of
public companies, or through the influence of circumstances
of a very peculiar nature. Hence, the proprietors of un¬
encumbered freehold estates, of which they had the abso¬
lute disposal, w'ere very generally obliged, when they had
occasion for loans, to resort to those destructive expedients
which had formerly been the resource only of spendthrifts
and persons in desperate circumstances.
Committee The evidence annexed to the “ Report of the Committee
of 1818 on of the House of Commons, in 1818, on the Usury Laws,”
usury laws. se[S their impolicy and pernicious influence in a clear light.
Mr Sugden, now Lord St Leonards, stated, that when the
market rate of interest was above the legal rate, the landed
proprietor was compelled to resort to some shift to evade
the usury laws. He had “ known annuities granted for
three lives, at 10 per cent., upon fee-simple estates, unen¬
cumbered, and of great annual value, in a register county.
He had also known annuities granted for four lives ; and
more would have been added, but for the danger of equity
setting aside the transaction on account of the inadequacy
of the consideration. Latterly, many annuities were granted
for a term of years certain, not depending upon lives.” On
being asked whether, were there no laws limiting the rate
of interest, better terms could or could not have been ob¬
tained, he answered, “ I am decidedly of opinion that better
terms could have been obtained ; for there is a stigma
which attaches to men who lend money upon annuities, that
drives all respectable men out of the market. Some leading
men did latterly embark in such transactions, but I never
knew a man of reputation in my own profession lend money
in such a manner, although we have the best means of ascer¬
taining the safest securities, and of obtaining the best terms.”
“ The laws against usury,” said Mr Holland, of the house
of Messrs Baring Brothers and Company, “ drive men in
distress, or in want of money, to much more disastrous
modes of raising it than they would adopt if no usury laws
existed. The man in trade, in want of money for an un¬
expected demand, or disappointed in his returns, must ful¬
fil his engagements, or forfeit his credit. He might have
borrowed money at 6 per cent., but the law allows no one to
lend it to him ; and he must sell some of the commodity he
holds, at a reduced price, in order to meet his engagements.
For example, he holds sugar which is worth 80s.; but he
is compelled to sell it immediately for 70s. to the man who
will give him cash for it, and thus actually borrows money
at per cent., which, had the law allowed him, he might
have borrowed from a money dealer at 6 per cent. It is
known to every merchant that cases of this kind are com¬
mon occurrences in every commercial town, and more Interest,
especially in the metropolis. A man in distress for money
pays more interest, owing to the usury laws, than he would
if no such laws existed ; because now he is obliged to go
to some of the disreputable money lenders to borrow, as he
knows the respectable money lender will not break the laws
of his country. The disreputable money lender knows
that he has the ordinary risk of his debtor to incur in lend¬
ing his money, and he has further to encounter the penalty
of the law, for both of which risks the borrower must pay.
If no usury laws existed, in common cases, and where a
person is respectable, he might obtain a loan from the re¬
spectable money lender, who would then only have to cal¬
culate his ordinary risk, and the compensation for the use
of his money.”
The committee admitted the force of this evidence by
agreeing to the following resolutions :—“ 1st. That it is the
opinion of this committee, that the laws regulating or re¬
straining the rate of interest have been extensively evaded,
and have failed of the effect of imposing a maximum on such
rate; and that, of late years, from the constant excess of
the market rate of interest above the rate limited by law,
they have added to the expense incurred by borrowers on
real security, and that such borrowers have been compelled
to resort to the mode of granting annuities on lives ; a mode
which has been made a cover for obtaining a higher rate of
interest than the rate limited by law, and has farther sub¬
jected the borrowers to enormous charges, or forced them
to make very disadvantageous sales of their estates. 2d.
That it is the opinion of this committee, that the construc¬
tion of such laws, as applicable to the transactions of com¬
merce as at present carried on, have been attended with
much uncertainty as to the legality of many transactions of
frequent occurrence, and consequently been productive of
much embarrassment and litigation. 3d. That it is the
opinion of this committee, that the present period, when the
market rate of interest is below the legal rate, affords an op¬
portunity peculiarly favourable for the repeal of the said laws.”
In spite, however, of the recommendation of the com- Repeal of
mittee, and the cogent evidence on which it was founded, usury laws
the popular prejudice continued so strong, that it was notin 1839-
till 1839 that a statute was passed, the 2d and 3d Viet.,
cap. 37, which exempted all bills of exchange and promissory
notes, not having more than twelve months to run, and all con¬
tracts for sums aboveL.l 0, from the operation of the usury laws.
It was supposed, or at all events argued, that the repeal
of the usury laws would tempt such individuals as had money
to lend, to indulge in those mean and discreditable prac¬
tices which characterize the lowest class of money dealers.
But it was more reasonably contended, that in the event of
the rate of interest being left to be adjusted by the free
competition of the parties, there would be little employment
for inferior dealers. Except when the market rate of inte¬
rest was below the legal rate, the usury laws prevented all
persons, whose credit was not extremely good, from obtain¬
ing loans from capitalists of the highest character, and forced
them to have recourse to those who were less scrupulous.
Supposing the market rate of interest to be 6 or 7 per cent.,
an individual in ordinarily good credit may, now that the
usury laws are abolished, easily obtain a loan at that rate.
But when the law declared that no more than 5 per cent,
should be taken, and, consequently, affixed a species of
stigma to those lenders who bargained for a higher rate, the
rich and more respectable capitalists being excluded from the
market, borrowers were obliged to resort to those of an infe¬
rior character, who, in addition to the premium for the risk
of entering into an illegal transaction, received an indemni¬
fication for the odium which, in such cases, always attaches
to the lender. It is idle to attempt to secure individuals
1 “ Considerations on the Rate of Interest,” by E. B. Sugden, Esq., Pamphleteer, vol. viii., p. 278.
INTEREST.
Interest against the risk of imposition in pecuniary, more than in any
other species of transactions. And, although the object had
been desirable, it could not be obtained by such inadequate
means. The usury laws generated the very mischief thev
were intended to suppress. Instead of diminishing, they
multiplied usurious transactions, and aggravated the evils
they were designed to mitigate or remove.
Nothing can be more unreasonable than the clamour
against money lenders, because of their exacting a com-
paratively high rate of interest from prodigals and spend¬
thrifts. This is the most proper and efficient check that
can be put upon extravagance. Supposing the security of
a prodigal and an industrious man to be nearly equal,
and this is but seldom the case, the capitalist who lends to
the latter, in preference to the former, confers a service on
the community. He prevents those funds which ought to
be employed in supporting useful labour, and in addTng to
the public wealth, from being wasted in frivolous or perni¬
cious pursuits.
But, perhaps, it will be said, that this is mistaking the ob¬
ject of the usury laws ; that they were not intended to force
capitalists to lend to spendthrifts on the same terms as to
industrious persons, but to protect the prodigal and un¬
wary from the extortion of usurers, by making any stipu¬
lation between them for more than a given rate of inte¬
rest null and void. But why all this solicitude about the
least valuable class of society ? Why fetter the circulation
of capital amongst those who would turn it to the best ac¬
count, lest any portion of it chance to fall into the hands of
those who would squander it away ? If the prevention of
prodigality be of sufficient importance to justify the inter¬
ference of the legislature, prodigals should be put under an
interdict; for this is the only way in which it is possible to
restrict them. It is not by borrowing money at high inte¬
rest, but by contracting debts to dealers, on whose charge
there is no check, that spendthrifts run through their for¬
tunes. Bentham has justly observed, that so long as a man
is looked upon as one who will pay, he can much more
easily get the goods he wants than the money to buy them
with, though he were content to give for it twice or three
times the ordinary rate of interest. How contradictory,
then, to permit prodigals to borrow (for it was really bor¬
rowing) the largest supplies of food, clothes, &c., at 20, 30,
or even 100 per cent, interest, at the same time that we
prohibited them, and every one else, from borrowing money
at more than 5 per cent. ? Instead of being of any service,
this restriction was evidently injurious to the prodigal. It
narrowed his choice, and drove him to a market where no
disgrace is attached to the exaction of the most exorbitant
interest, and where he could scarcely escape being ruined.
The outcry which is sometimes raised against capitalists
for taking advantage of the necessities of industrious indi¬
viduals, is seldom much better founded than that which is
raised against them for taking advantage of the prodigal or
simple. Parties borrow according to their character for so¬
briety and punctuality in meeting their engagements, and
according to the presumed state of their affairs at the time,
lo say that a capitalist takes advantage of the necessities
of individuals, is, in most cases, equivalent to saying that he
refuses to lend to persons in suspicious or necessitous cir¬
cumstances, on the same terms he would do were they in
good credit, or were there no doubt of their solvency.
And were he to act otherwise, would he be considered fit
to be entrusted with the managemeQt of his affairs ?
But, as already seen, whatever may be the extortion of
lenders, the usury laws did not check it. On the contrary,
they compelled the borrowers to pay, over and above the
common rate of interest, a premium to indemnify the
lenders for the risks incurred in breaking them. They
attempted to remedy what was not an evil, and what, con¬
sequently, should not have been interfered with ; and in
doing this they necessarily created a real grievance. The
wisdom of an act of parliament which should compel the
underwriters to insure a gunpowder magazine and a salt
warehouse on the same terms would not be very evident.
Yet it would not be more absurd than to enact that the
same rate of interest shall be charged on capital lent on
good, on indifferent, and on bad securities. “ It is in
vain, therefore,” to use the words of Locke, “ to go about
effectually to reduce the price of interest by a law; and
you may as rationally hope to set a fixed rate upon the
hire of houses or ships, as of money. He that wants a
vessel, rather than lose his market, will not stick to have it
at the market rate, and find means to do it with security to
the owner, though the rate were limited bv law; and he
that wants money, rather than lose his voyage or his trade,
will pay the natural interest for it, and submit to such ways
of conveyance, as shall keep the lender out of reach of the
law.”1
The case of Holland furnishes a striking proof of the
correctness of the theory we have been endeavouring to
establish. The rate of interest has been,.for a very lono-
period, lower in Holland than anywhere else in Europe^
and yet it is the only country in which usury laws have
been altogether unknown, where capitalists are allowed to
demand, and borrowers to pay, any rate of interest.2 Not¬
withstanding all the violent changes of the government,
and the extraordinary disturbance of her financial concerns
since 1790, the rate of interest in Holland has continued
comparatively steady. During the whole of that period,
persons who could offer unexceptionable security have been
able to borrow at from 2 to per cent.; nor has the ave¬
rage rate of interest charged on capital, advanced on the
worst species of security, ever exceeded 6 or 7 per cent.,
except when the government was negotiating a forced loan.
But, in this country, where the law declared that no more
than 5 per cent, should be taken, the rate of interest for
money advanced on the best landed security varied, in the
same period, from 5 to 16 or 17 per cent., or above Jive
times as much as in Holland.
In France the usury laws were abolished at the Revolu¬
tion ; and it is stated that their abolition was not attended
by any rise of interest.3 According to the Code Napoleon,
only 6 per cent, is allowed to be charged on commercial
loans, and 5 per cent, on those made on the security of
real property. There is, however, no difficulty in evading
the law. This is usually done by giving a bonus before
completing the transaction, or, which is the same thing,
by framing the obligation for the debt for a larger sum
than is really advanced by the lender. None of the parties
particularly interested can be called to swear to the fact of
such bonus being given; so that the transaction is unim¬
peachable, unless a third party, privy to the settlement of
the affair, be produced as a witness.
In Hamburg, the rate of interest is quite unrestricted;
or, if there be a written law restraining it, it has become
obsolete. The rate, therefore, varies according to circum¬
stances. Occasionally it has been at 7, 8, and even 10
per cent.; and in 1799, a period of great mercantile em¬
barrassment and insecurity, it was as high as 14 per cent.
Generally, however, the rate of discount on good bills does
not exceed 3 or 4 per cent.4
431
Interest.
“ Considerations of the Lowering of Interest and Raising the Value of Money, 1691” {Works, vol. ii., p. 7, 4to, 1777).
2 Strictly speaking, this applies only to the state of Holland previously to the Revolution in 1795. The enactments of the Code Na¬
poleon were subsequently introduced ; but it appears, from the Report of the Parliamentary Committee on the Usury Laws, that they
have not been acted upon. 3 Storch, Economic Politique, tom. iii., p. 187. * Report on Usury Lavjs, p. 46.
432
Interest.
Simple in'
terest.
Compound
interest.
Calcula¬
tion of in¬
terest.
INTEREST.
In Russia, the legal rate of interest is 6 per cent. But
as Russia is a country capable of much improvement, and
where there are very great facilities for the advantageous
employment of capital, the market rate of interest is in¬
variably higher than the statute rate, and the law is con¬
stantly and easily evaded.1
In the United States, the legal rate of interest varies in
the different states of the Union. In Alabama and Texas
it is 8 per cent.; in New York, South Carolina, Georgia,
Michigan, and Wisconsin, 7 per cent.; in Louisiana, 5 per
cent.; and in all the other states, 6 per cent. The penal¬
ties for taking a higher rate than that allowed by law, vary
in the different states, being much less in some than in
others. We are not aware whether any legal rate of inte¬
rest has been established in California; but, as already
seen, the interest charged on bills in San Francisco has
varied of late years from to 3 per cent, per month.
The previous statements apply only to the cases of inte¬
rest arising out of loans made by one party to another.
But there are cases in which interest may become due
without being stipulated for, by unnecessary or unjustifiable
delays in the payment of debts, or by trustees, agents, or
other parties coming into possession of property belonging to
others, &c., and in these it is necessary, to obviate litigation,
that the interest to be charged should be fixed by law.
This legal rate had better be somewhat below the ordinary
market rate, and may be adjusted from time to time as cir¬
cumstances may require. But, except in cases of this sort,
there is no more reason for interfering to regulate the rate
of interest, than there is for interfering to regulate premiums
of insurance, or the prices of commodities.
Distinction of Simple and Compound Interest.—When
a loan is made, it is usual to stipulate that the interest upon
it should be regularly paid at the end of every year, half-
year, &c. A loan of this sort is said to be at simple in¬
terest. It is of the essence of such loan, that no part of the
interest accruing upon it should be added to the principal
to form a new principal; and though payment of the inte¬
rest were not made when it becomes due, the lender would
not be entitled to charge interest upon such unpaid interest.
Thus, suppose, L.100 were lent at simple interest at 5 per
cent., payable at the end of each year; the lender would, at
the end of 3 or 4 years, supposing him to have received no
previous payments, be entitled to L.15 or L.20, and no more.
Sometimes, however, money or capital is invested so
that the interest is not paid at the periods when it becomes
due, but is progressively added to the principal; so that at
every term a new principal is formed, consisting of the ori¬
ginal principal, and the successive accumidations of interest
upon interest. Money invested in this way is said to be
placed at compound interest.
It appears only reasonable, when a borrower does not
pay the interest he has contracted for at the period when
it is due, that he should pay interest upon such interest.
This, however, is not allowed by the law of England; nor
is it allowed to make a loan at compound interest. But
this rule is easily evaded, by taking a new obligation for the
principal with the interest included, when the latter be¬
comes due. Investments at compound interest are also
very frequent. Thus, if an individual buy into the funds,
and regularly buy fresh stock with the dividends, the capital
will increase at compound interest; and so in any similar case.
Calculation of Interest.—Interest is estimated at so much
per cent, per annum, or by dividing the principal into 100
equal parts, and specifying how many of these parts are
paid yearly for its use. Thus 5 per cent., or 5 parts out of
100, means that L.5 are paid for the use of L.100 for a
year, L.10 for the use of L.200, L.2, 10s. for the use of
L.50 for the same period, and so on.
Suppose, now, that it is required to find the interest of Interest.
L.210, 13s. for 3^ years at 4 per cent, simple interest. In
this case we must first divide the principal, L.210, 13s. into
100 parts, 4 of which will be the interest for 1 year; and
this being multiplied by 3^ will give the interest for 3^
years. But instead of first dividing by 100, and then mul¬
tiplying by 4, the result will be the same, and the process
more expeditious, if we first multiply by 4, and then divide
by 100. Thus,—
L. s.
Principal, 210 13
Rate per cent., 4
 L. s. d.
100)8,42 12 ( 8 8 64=1 year’s interest.
20
8^52 
12 25 5 6j=3 years’ interest.
4 4 3 =4 year’s interest.
L.29 9 9f = 34 years’ interest.
It is almost superfluous to observe, that the same result
would have been obtained by multiplying the product of
the principal and rate by the number of years, and then
dividing by 100.
Hence, to find the interest of any sum at any rate per
cent, for a year, multiply the sum by the rate per cent, and
divide the product by 100.
fo find the interest of any sum for a number of years,
multiply its interest for one year by the number of years;
or, without calculating its interest for one year, multiply
the principal by the rate per cent, and that product by the
number of years, and divide the last product by 100.
When the interest of any sum is required for a number
of days, they must be treated as fractional parts of a year;
that is, we must multiply the interest of a year by them,
and divide by 365.
Suppose that it is required to find the interest of L.210
for 4 years 7 months and 25 days, at 4^ per cent.—
Principal . L.210 Interest for 4 years =L.37-8000
Rate per cent. 4| 6 months = i of 1 year = 4’7250
  1 month =Jof6mths. = '7875
840 25 days = ‘6472
105
Interest for 1 year, L.9-45X4=L.37'80 do. for 4 years. L.43-9597=L.43,19s. 2d.
9-45 x 25
The interest for 25 days is — — -6472 ; that is, it is equal
to the interest for a year multiplied by the fraction //y.
Division by 100 is performed by cutting off two figures to the right.
Many attempts have been made to contrive more expe¬
ditious processes than the above for calculating interest.
The following is one of the best:—
Suppose it were required to find the interest upon L.172
for 107 days at 5 per cent.
This forms what is called in arithmetical books a double
rule of three question, and would be stated as follows :—
L. Days. L. L. Days.
100x365 : 5 : : 172x107 : L.2, 10s. 4|d., the interest required.
Hence, to find the interest of any sum for any number of
days at any rate per cent., multiply the sum by the number
of days, and the product by the rate, and divide by 36,500
(365 x 100) ; the quotient is the interest required.
When the rate is 5 per cent., or l-20th of the principal,
all that is required is to divide the product of the sum mul¬
tiplied by the days by 7300 (365, the days in a year, mul¬
tiplied by 20).
Five per cent, interest being found by this extremely
simple process, it is usual in practice to calculate 4 per
cent, interest by deducting l-5th ; 3 per cent, by deduct¬
ing 2-5ths ; 21 per cent, by dividing by 2 ; 2 per cent, by
taking the half of 4, and so on.
Report on Usury Laws, p. 46; and Starch, tom. iii., p. 207.
Interest.
> In calculating interest upon accounts-current, it is requi¬
site to state the number of days between each receipt or
payment, and the date (commonly the 31st of December)
to which the account-current is made up. Thus, L.I72
paid on the 15th of September, bearing interest to the 31st of
December, 107 days. The amount of such interest may
then, be calculated as above explained, or by the aid of
tables. J
interest.
433
mnlhn=3?hl °f/T- after the 31st 0f Member, the Interest,
most usual date to which accounts-current are made up, and
interest calculated. * ’ v
It is desirable, in calculating interest on accounts-cur¬
rent, to be able readily to find the number of days from
any day m any one month to any day in any other month.
Id.s may be done with the greatest ease by means of the
INTEREST,
Table I. Showing the amount of L.l improved at Compound Interest, at 3, 3^, 4, 5, arid § per Cent.,
at the End of every Year, from 1 to 70.
Interest.
Years.
2J per Cent.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
3 per Cent.
1-02500,000
1-05062,500
1-07689,062
1-10381,289
1-13140,821
1-15969,342
1-18868,575
1-21840,290
1-24886,297
1-28008,454
1-31208,666
1-34488,882
1-37851,104
1-41297,382
1-44829,817
1-48450,562
1-52161,826
1-55965,872
1-59865,019
1-63861,644
1-67958,185
1-72157.140
1-76461,068
1-80872,595
1-85394,410
1-90029,270
1-94780,002
1- 99649,502
2- 04640,739
2-09756,758
2-15000,677
2-20375,694
2-25885,086
2 31532,213
2-37320,519
2-43253,532
2-49334,870
2-55568,242
2-61957,448
2-68506,384
2-75219,043
2-82099,520
2-89152,008
2- 96382,808
3- 03790,328
3-11385,086
3-19169,713
3-27148,956
3-35327,680
3-43710,872
3-52303,644
3-61111,235
3-70139,016
3-79392,491
3-88877,303
3- 98599,236
4- 08564,217
4-18778,322
4-29247,780
4-39978,975
4-50978,419
4-62252,910
4-73809,233
4-85654,464
4- 97795.826
5- 10240,721
5-22996,739
5-36071,658
5-49473,449
5-63210,286
3£ per Cent.
1-03000,000
1-06090,000
1-09272,700
1-12550,881
1-15927,407
1-19405,230
1-22987,387
1-26677,008
1-30477,318
1-34391,638
1-38423,387
1-42576,089
1-46853,371
1-51258,972
1-55796,742
1-60470,644
1-65284,763
1-70243,306
1-75350,605
1-80611,123
1-86029,457
1-91610,341
1- 97358,651
2- 03279,411
2-09377,793
2-15659,127
2-22128,901
2-28792,768
2-35656,551
2-42726,247
2-50000,035
2-57508,276
2-65233,524
2-73190,530
2-81386,245
2-89827,833
2- 98522,668
3- 07478,348
3-16702,698
3-26203,779
3-35989,893
3-46069,589
3-56451,677
3-67145,227
3-78159,584
3- 89504,372
4- 01189,503
4-13225,188
4-25621,944
4-38390,602
4-51542,320
4-65088,590
4-79041,247
4- 93412,485
508214,859
5- 23461,305
5-39165,144
5-55340,098
5-72000,301
5- 89160,310
6- 06835,120
6-25040,173
6-43791,379
6-63105,120
6- 82998,273
7- 03488,222
7-24592,868
7-46330,654
7-68720,574
7-91782,191
1-03500,000
1-07122,500
1-10871,787
1-14752,300
1-18768,631
1-22925,533
1-27227,926
1-31680,904
1-36289,735
1-41059,876
1-45996,972
1-51106,866
1-56395,606
1-61869,452
1-67534,883
1-73398,604
1-79467,555
1-85748,920
1-92250,132
1- 98978,886
2- 05943,147
2-13151,158
2-20611,448
2-28332,849
2-36324,498
2-44595,856
2-53166,711
2-62017,696
2-71187,798
2-80679,370
2- 90503,148
3- 00670,759
311194,235
3-22086,033
3-33359,045
3-45026,611
3-57102,543
3-69601,132
3-82537,171
3- 95925,972
4- 09783,381
4-24125,799
4-38970,202
4-54334,160
4-70235,855
4- 86694,110
5- 03728,404
5-21358,898
5-39606,459
5-58492,686
5-78039,930
5- 98271,327
6- 19210,824
6-40883,202
6-63314,114
6- 86530,108
7- 10558,662
7-35428,215
7-61168,203
7- 87809,090
8- 15382,408
8-43920,793
8- 73458,020
9- 04029,051
9-35670,068
9-68418,520
10-02313,168
10-37394,129
10- 73702,924
11- 11282,526
4 per Cent.
4J per Cent.
1-04000,000
1-08160,000
1-12486,400
1-16985,856
1-21665,290
1-26531,902
1-31593,178
1-36856,905
1-42331,181
1-48024,428
1-53945,406
1-60103,222
1-66507,351
1-73167,645
1-80094,351
1-87298,125
1- 94790,050
2- 02581,652
2-10684,918
219112,314
2-27876,807
2-36991,879
2-46471,555
2-56330,417
2-66583,633
2-77246,979
2-88336,858
2- 99870,332
3- 11865,145
3-24339,751
3-37313,341
3-50805,875
3-64838,110
3-79431,634
3- 94608,899
4- 10393,255
4-26808,986
4-43881,345
4-61636,599
4-80102,063
4- 99306,145
5- 19278,391
5-40049,527
5-61651,508
5- 84117,568
6- 07482,271
6-31781,562
6-57052,824
6- 83334,937
7- 10668,335
7-39095,068
7-68658,871
7- 99405,226
8- 31381,435
8-64636,692
8- 99222,160
9- 35191,046
9-72598,688
10-11502,636
10-51962,741
10- 94041,251
11- 37802,901
11- 83315,017
12- 30647,617
12- 79873,522
13- 31068,463
13- 84311,201
14- 39683,640
14- 97270,995
15- 57161,835
5 per Cent.
1-04500,000
1-09202,500
1-14116,612
1-19251,860
1-24618,194
1-30226,012
1-36086,183
1-42210,061
1-48609,514
1-55296,942
1-62285,305
1-69588,143
1-77219,610
1-85194,492
1- 93528,244
2- 02237,015
2-11337,681
2-20847,877
2-30786,031
2-41171,402
2-52024,116
2-63365,201
2-75216,635
2- 87601,383
3- 00543,446
3-14067,901
3-28200,956
3-42969,999
3-58403,649
3-74531,813
3- 91385,745
408998,104
4- 27403,018
4-46636,154
4-66734,781
4- 87737,846
5- 09686,049
5-32621,921
5-56589,908
5- 81636,454
6- 07810,094
6-35161,548
6-63743,818
6- 93612,290
7- 24824,843
7-57441,961
7- 91526,849
8- 27145,557
8- 64367,107
9- 03263,627
9-43910,490
9-86386,463
10-30773,853
10- 77158,677
11- 25630,817
11- 76284,204
12- 29216,993
12- 84531,758
13- 42335,687
14- 02740,793
14- 65864,129
15- 31828,014
16- 00760,275
16- 72794,487
17- 48070,239
18- 26733,400
19- 08936,403
19- 94838,541
20- 84606,276
21- 78413,558
1-05000,000
1-10250,000
1-15762,500
1-21550,625
1-27528,156
1-34009,564
1-40710,042
1-47745,544
1-55132,822
1-62889,463
1-71033,936
1-79585,633
1-88564,914
1- 97993,160
2- 07892,818
2-18287,459
2-29201,832
2-40661,923
2-52695,020
2-65329,771
2-78596,259
2- 92526,072
3- 07152,376
3-22509,994
3-38635,494
3-55567,269
3-73345,632
3- 92012,914
4- 11613,560
4-32194,238
4-53803,949
4- 76494,147
5- 00318,854
5-25334,797
5-51601,537
5- 79181,614
6- 08140,694
6-38547,729
6- 70475,115
7- 03998,871
7-391*98,815
7- 76158,755
8- 14966,693
8-15715,028
8- 98500,779
9- 43425,818
9-90597,109
10-40126,965
10-92133,313
10-46739,978
12-04076,977
12- 64280,826
13- 27494,868
13- 93869,611
14- 63563,092
15- 36741,246
16- 13578,308
16- 94257,224
17- 78970,085
18- 67918,589
19- 61314,519
20- 59380,245
21- 62349,257
22- 70466,720
23- 83990,056
25- 03189,559
26- 28349,036
27- 59766,488
28- 97754,813
30-42642,553
6 per Cent.
1-06000,000
1-12360,000
1-19101,600
1-26247,696
1-33822,558
1-41851,911
1-50363,026
1-59384,807
1-68947,896
1-79084,770
1- 89829,856
2- 01219,647
2-13292,826
2-26090,396
2-39655,819
2-54035,168
2-69277,279
2- 85433,915
3- 02559,950
3-20713,547
3-39956,360
3-60353,742
3- 81974,966
4- 04893,464
4-29187,072
4-54938,296
4- 82234,594
5- 11168,670
5-41838,790
5- 74349,117
6- 08810,064
6-45338,668
6- 84058,988
7- 25102,528
7- 68608,679
8- 14725,200
8- 63608,712
9- 15425,235
9-70350,749
10-28571,794
10- 90286,101
11- 55703,267
12- 25045,463
12- 98548,191
13- 76461,083
14- 59048,748
15- 46591,673
16- 39387,173
17- 37750,403
18- 42015,427
19- 52536,353
20- 69688,534
21- 93869,846
23- 25502,037
24- 65032,159
26- 12934,089
27- 69710,134
29-35892,742
31- 12046,307
32- 98769,085
34-9669,5230
37-06496,944
39-28886,761
41-64619,967
44-14497,165
46-79366,994
49-60129,014
52-57736,755
55-73200,960
59-07593,018
Interest. Table jj
INTEREST.
-Showing the Present Value ofh.l receivable at the End of mg given Year, from I to 70, reckonina
  ComPmndI«t‘^‘^^M\fr,A^bJ„d6perCent. ’ ^
435
Interest.
Years. 2J per Cent.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
0-97560,976
•95181,440
■92859,941
•90595,064
•88385,429
•86229,687
•84126,524
•82074,657
•80072,836
•78119,840
•76214,478
•74355,589
•72542,038
•70772,720
•69046,556
•67362,493
•65719,506
•64116,594
•62552,772
•61027,094
•59538,629
•58086,467
•56669,724
•55287,535
•53939,059
•52623,472
•51339,973
•50087,778
•48866,125
•47674,269
•46511,481
•45377,055
•44270,298
•43190,534
•42137,107
•41109,372
•40106,705
•39128,492
•38174,139
•37243,062
•36334,695
•35448,483
■34583,886
•33740,376
•32917,440
•32114,576
•31331,294
*30567,116
•29821,576
•29094,221
•28384,606
•27692,298
•27016,876
•26357,928
•25715,052
•25087,855
•24475,957
•23878,982
•23296,568
•22728,359
•22174,009
•21633,179
•21105,541
•20590,771
•20088,557
•19598,593
•19120,578
•18654,223
•18199,242
•17755,358
3 per Cent.
0-97087,379
•94259,591
•91514,166
•88848,705
•86260,878
•83748,426
•81309,151
•78940,923
•76641,673
•74409,391
•72242,126
•70137,988
•68095,134
•66111,781
•64186,195
•62316,694
•60501,645
•58739,461
•57028,603
•55367,575
•53754,928
•52189,250
•50669,175
•49193,374
•47760,556
•46369,473
•45018,906
•43707,675
•42434,636
•41198,676
•39998,714
•38833,703
•37702,625
•36604,490
•35538,340
•34503,243
•33498,294
•32522,615
•31575,355
•30655,684
•29762,800
•28895,922
•28054,294
•27237,178
•26443,862
•25673,652
•24925,877
•24199,880
•23495,029
•22810,708
•22146,318
•21501,280
•28075,029
•20267,019
•19676,717
•19103,609
•18547,193
•18006,984
•17482,508
•16973,309
•16478,941
•15998,972
•15532,982
•15080,565
•14641,325
•14214,879
•13800,853
•13398,887
•13008,628
•12629,736
3J per Cent.
0-96618,357
•93351,070
•90194,270
•87144,223
•84197,317
•81350,064
•78599,096
•75941,156
•73373,097
•70891,881
•68494,571
•66178,330
•63940,415
•61778,179
•59689,062
•57670,591
•55720,378
•53836,114
•52015,569
•50256,588
•48557,090
•46915,063
•45328,563
•43795,713
•42314,699
•40883,767
•39501,224
•38165,434
•36874,815
•35627,841
•34423,035
•33258,971
•32134,271
•31047,605
•29997,686
•28983,272
•28003,161
•27056,194
•26141,250
•25257,247
•24403,137
•23577,910
•22780,590
•22010,231
•21265,924
•20546,787
•19851,968
•19180,645
•18532,024
•17905,337
•17299,843
•16714,824
•16149,589
•15603,467
•15075,814
•14566,004
•14073,433
•13597,520
•13137,701
•12693,431
•12264,184
•11849,453
•11448,747
•11061,591
•10687,528
•10226,114
•09976,922
•09639,538
•09313,563
•08998,612
4 per Cent.
0-96153,846
•92455,621
•88899,636
•85480,419
•82192,711
•79031,453
•75991,781
•73069,020
•70258,674
•67556,417
•64958,093
•62459,705
•60057,409
•57747,508
•55526,450
•53390,818
•51337,325
■49362,812
■47464,242
•45638,695
•43883,360
•42195,539
•40572,633
•39012,147
■37511,680
•36068,923
•34681,657
•33347,747
•32065,141
•30831,867
•29646,026
•28505,794
•27409,417
•26355,209
•25341,547
•24366,872.
•23429,685
•22528,543
•21662,061
•20828,904
•20027,792
•19257,493
•18516,820
•17804,635
•17119,841
•16461,386
•15828,256
•15219,476
•14634,112
•14071,262
•13530,059
•13009,672
•12509,300
•12028,173
•11565,551
•11120,722.
•10693,002
•10281,733
•09886,282
•09506,040
•09140,423
•08788,868
•08450,835
•08125,803
•07813,272
•07512,760
•07223,809
•06945,970
•06678,818
•06421,940
4£ per Cent.
5 per Cent.
0-95693,780
•91572,995
•87629,660
•83856,134
•80245,105
•76789,574
•73482,846
•70318,513
•67290,443
•64392,768
•61619,874
•58966,386
•56427,164
•53997,286
•51672,044
•49446,932
•47317,639
•45280,037
•43330,179
•41464,286
•39678,743
•37970,089
•36335,013
•34770,347
•33273,000
•31840,248
•30469,137
•29157,069
•27901,502
•26700,001
•25550,241
•24449,991
•23397,121
•22389,589
•21425,444
•20502,817
•19619,921
•18775,044
•17966,549
•17192,870
•16452,507
•15744,026
•15066,054
•14417,276
•13796,437
•13202,332
•12633,810
•12089,771
•11569,158
•11070,965
•10594,225
•10138,014
•09701,449
•09283,683
•08883,907
•08501,347
•08135,260
•07784,938
•07449,701
•07128,901
•06821,915
•06528,148
•06247,032
•05978,021
•05720,594
•05474.253
•05238,519
•05012,937
•04797,069
•04590,497
6 per Cent.
0-95238,095
•90702,948
•86383,760
■82270,247
•78352,616
•74621,540
•71068,133
•67683,936
•64460,892
•61391,325
•58467,929
•55683,742
•53032,135
•50506,795
•48101,710
•45811,152
•43629,669
•41552,065
•39573,396
•37688,948
•35894,236
•34184,987
•32557,131
•31006,791
•29530,277
•28124,073
•26784,832
•25509,364
•24294,632
•23137,745
•22035,947
•20986,617
•19987,254
•19035,480
•18129,029
•17265,741
•16443,563
•15660,536
•14914,797
•14204,568
•13528,160
•12883,962
•12270,440
•11686,133
•11129,651
•10599,668
•10094,921
•09614,211
•09156,391
•08720,373
•08305,117
•07909,635
•07532,986
•07174,272
•06832,640
•06507,276
•06197,406
•05902,291
•05621,230
•05353,552
•05098,621
•04855,830
•04624,600
•04404,381
•04194,648
03994,903
•03804,670
•03623,495
•03450,948
•03286,617
0-94339,623
•88999,644
•83961,928
•79209,366
•74725,817
•70496,054
•66505,711
•62741,237
•59189,846
•55839,478
•52678,753
•49696,936
•46883,902
•44230,096
•41726,506
•39364,628
•37136,442
•35034,379
•33051,301
■31180,473
•29415,540
•27750,510
•26179,726
•24697,855
•23299,863
•21981,003
•20736,795
•19563,014
•18455,674
•17411,013
•16425,484
•15495,740
•14618,622
•13791,153
•13010,522
•12274,077
•11579,318
•10923,885
•10305,552
•09722,219
•09171,905
•08652,740
•08162,962
•07700,908
•07265,007
•06853,781
•06465,831
•06099,840
•05754,566
•05428,836
•05121,544
•04831,645
•04558,156
•04300,147
•04056,742
•03827,115
•03610,486
•03406.119
•03213,320
•03031,434
•02859,843
•02697,965
•02545,250
•02401,179
•02265,264
•02137,041
•02016,077
•01901,959
•01794,301
•01692,737
436 1 N T
Interim INTERIM, the name given to a document which origi-
II nated in the following circumstances :—After the defeat of
Intermit- Eiector 0f Saxony in 1547, by Charles V., the Protes-
tent 1 ever. tants agreec[to allow the religious controversy between them-
selves and the Papists to be decided by the Council of Trent.
At this crisis the alarm of pestilence drove the Fathers from
Trent to Bologna, and the emperor could not induce them
to return. He accordingly entrusted Julius Pflug, bishop
of Naumburg, and two others, with the task of drawing up
a confession of faith for both the contending parties. This
document consisted of 26 articles, embracing all the leading
truths of the gospel; but in addition to these, it contained
all the leading innovations of Popery, excepting celibacy
and the exclusion of the laity from communion in both
kinds. As it was intended that this should continue only
in the meantime (interim), «>., till the council should reas¬
semble at Trent, the formulary came to be known as the
Interim. It was objected to by the majority of the Protes¬
tants. It gave rise to the adiaphoristic and synergistic con¬
troversies. There were two interims besides this of Augs¬
burg, viz., those of Leipzig and Franconia.
INTERLACHEN, a Swiss village in the canton of
Berne, 28 miles S.E. from the capital of the same name,
and situated on the left bank of the Aar, between the lakes
of Thun and Brienz, two miles distant from each. It
has of late become a favourite resort of the English from
„ its beauty of position, pleasant climate, and the cheapness
of lodging and provisions.
INTERLOCUTOR, a term used in Scotland to denote
any of those judgments or orders pronounced in the course
or preparation of a suit, which do not finally conclude the
cause. They are sometimes called interlocutory orders or
judgments, to distinguish them from the judgment by which
the merits of the suit are ultimately exhausted, which is
sometimes called the final interlocutor.
INTERMITTENT FEVER, or Ague, is character¬
ized by this, that the febrile paroxysm is followed by a
period of intermission, again succeeded after a certain in¬
terval by the febrile stage; the period of intermission and
the febrile stage recurring at certain intervals, so long as the
disease lasts. Ague displays itself under three distinct
forms,—1st, Quotidian, in which the fever passes through
its stages, and recurs again every 24 hours ; 2d, Tertian,
having a period of 48 hours; and, Zd, Quartan, having a
period of 72 hours. In the Quotidian the feverish paroxysm
begins early in the morning; in the Tertian about noon,
and in the Quartan, from three to six in the afternoon.
When the disease is fully formed, each feverish attack con¬
sists of three stages, the cold, the hot, and the sweating.
The cold stage commences with a sense of coldness running
down the back, the whole body feels cold, the nails turn
blue, the features collapse, and the skin assumes the rough
shrivelled appearance usually induced by cold; severe
shivering, with chattering of the teeth, rapidly follows and
continues fcr a considerable time, attended with a painful
sense of constriction round the temples, aching pains in the
back, and frequently with sickness and vomiting. This
stage, after a period lasting from half an hour to two hours
and a half, is followed by the hot stage, during which the
pulse rises, the skin becomes hot and parched, there is in¬
tense headache, thirst, and other symptoms of high fever:
this stage lasts from three to eight hours. Gradually
a gentle moisture appears on the skin, which soon amounts
to copious perspiration ; and the sweating stage, after con¬
tinuing lor a varying period, is followed by a complete re¬
mission, during which, excepting a sense of weakness, the
patient feels as if restored to perfect health.
Agues are peculiar to all undrained localities, and are viru¬
lent or dangerous apparently just in proportion to the
warmth of the country. In Britain, before the general
drainage and improvement of the soil ague was one of the
I N T
regular diseases ; but now it is quite rare, being only occa- Interrex
sionally met with in some undrained localities. In all coun- II
tries it chiefly manifests itself during the autumn, when the lntonation-
great heat of the sun raises malarious exhalations from the
undrained soil. This malaria may be carried by currents
of air to great distances ; and many instances are recorded
where ships’ crews, many miles from the African coast, have
been struck down with ague from encountering a current
of air blowing off the marshy coast. Formerly the treat¬
ment of this disease gave great trouble, but since the dis¬
covery of the alkaloids which reside in the Peruvian barks,
its treatment has been greatly simplified, as it is found that
these alkaloids, given at certain intervals, not only cure the
disease, but that, if administered to those exposed to the
malarious exhalations, they prevent the attacks of the disease
altogether. Quinine is the best known of these alkaloids,
but it has been found that the other alkaloids in the Cin¬
chona barks, viz., cinchonine and quinidine, are equally effi¬
cacious, while they have the additional recommendation of
being considerably cheaper. Five grains of any of these
alkaloids every third hour, till three doses are taken, gene¬
rally suffices to remove mild cases of ague. In malarious
districts, however, it is desirable to continue to take at
least one dose daily for a short time to prevent a relapse.
In severe cases doses of 15 or even 20 grains are often
given with great advantage. In some old or obstinate cases,
or in which quinine has not been given in sufficiently large
doses, arsenic has been found a valuable agent. When the
disease is not checked, it leads to various organic altera¬
tions of the organs, which it is unnecessary to particularize;
it may only be mentioned that the chief of these consists of
enlargement of the spleen, well known in malarious districts
by the name of ague cake. Those who have once suffered
from this disease are extremely liable to a recurrence of the
paroxysms on exposure to wetting, to east winds, or to mala¬
rious exhalations.
INTERREX, an extraordinary Roman magistrate, ap¬
pointed to guide the helm of state in the interval that
elapsed between the death of one king and the election of
his successor. That interval was called an interregnum.
After the death of Romulus, ten of the leading senators were
empowrered to form themselves into a board or committee,
for the purpose of nominating a successor to the vacant
throne, and carrying on the government till their choice was
approved by the people. These ten senators were called
interreges, and each of them was entitled to hold the sove¬
reign power, and enjoy its outward symbols and badges for
five days in rotation. As soon as they had fixed upon a
nominee their duty was to lay the matter before the senate.
If the senate approved their choice, a meeting of the curiae
was then called, and the sense of the people taken. If
the people were pleased with the nominee of the senate, a
special law was passed by which the regal power was vested
in him, and the interregnum came to a close. But if the
people refused to ratify the choice of the senate, the inter¬
reges resumed office, and held it in rotation as before till
a king was finally appointed.
Under the republic interreges were very frequently chosen
to hold the consular comitia, when the retiring consuls were
not on the spot to do so themselves. As in the days of the
monarchy, they were ten in number, and held office each
for five days in rotation. They were selected from among
the patrician members of the senate, and even after ple¬
beians became eligible to nearly all the offices of state, they
were never made interreges. On this account, an interreg¬
num was alw'ays distasteful to the plebs, and their tribunes
seldom failed to protest against and oppose it. After the
second Punic War the custom of an interregnum fell almost
wholly into abeyance. In the course of the first century
B.c. only two instances of it are recorded,
INTONATION, in Music, that property of sounds by
Intrench
ment
II
Inver-
keithing
I N Y
which they may become tones, i.e., may differ from each
other in gravity and acuteness. The intonation of a sino-er
will be true or false, according to the observance or non-
observance of the just proportions that belong to the inter-
_ vals sung- The intonation of an organ, or a piano, will be
false if the instrument has been ill tuned. So of a violin
&c., if the player has not the skill necessary to stop the
notes in time on the finger-board. False intonation is the
lule, true intonation the rare exception among singers, and
also among players on bowed instruments, such as the violin,
violoncello, &c. Intonation, or intoning, is also applied
to the singing of certain chants, or portions of chants
in the service of the Romish Church. (g. f c ’
INTRENCHMENT. See Fortification.
INTUI CION, t\\e Anschuuung o{ the Germans, is used
to denote the direct internal perception of truth. See
Metaphysics.
INVERARY, a royal, parliamentary, and municipal
borough of Scotland, and chief town of Argyleshire, is situ¬
ated on the west shore of Loch Fyne, at'the lower end of
a small bay where the River Aray falls into the loch, 40 miles
N.W. of Glasgow. The town is small, consisting princi¬
pally of a line of houses facing the loch, and another ex¬
tending inland at right angles to it, and having a northern
exposure. It originally stood on the north side of the bay,
but was removed to its present site by Archibald, Duke of
Argyll. Several elegant residences have recently been
erected, and the houses are generally well built. The
court-house is a handsome and commodious edifice. In a
gai den beside the church is a small obelisk in memorv of
several persons of the name of Campbell, who were exe¬
cuted there in 1685 for their opposition to popery. The
staple trade is the herring fishery, the Loch Fyne herrings
being celebrated for their excellence. Inverary was erected
into a royal burgh in 1648 by Charles I., while a prisoner
in Carisbrook Castle. It is governed by a provost, 2 bailies,
and 13 councillors, and unites with Ayr, Campbelton, Oban,
and Irvine in sending a member to parliament. Immedi¬
ately N. of the town is Inverary Castle, the seat of the Duke
of Argyll. It was commenced in 1748 by Duke Archibald,
after a plan by Adam. It consists of two storeys and a sunk
floor, flanked with round overtopping towers, and surmounted
with a square winged pavilion. In the hall are preserved
about 100 muskets that were “ out in the forty-five.” Pop.
(1851)of parliamentary borough 1064, of municipal borough
1164. ‘
INVERBERVIE, or Bervie, a royal and parliamentary
borough and seaport of Scotland, county of Kincardine, on
the S. bank of the Bervie, 9 miles S.S.W. of Stonehaven.
It was created a royal borough by David II. in 1342, and
its charter was renewed in 1595 by James VI. Linen
weaving is carried on to some extent, but most of the in¬
habitants are engaged in fishing. It unites with Montrose,
Arbroath, Brechin, and Forfar, in returning a member to
parliament. Pop. (1851) of parliamentary borough, 934;
of royal borough, 878.
INVERKEITHING, a royal parliamentary and muni¬
cipal borough and seaport of Scotland, county of Fife, on
the N. shore of the Firth of Forth, 10 miles W.N.W. from
Edinburgh. It is beautifully situated on the brow of an
acclivity rising from the margin of a bay called St Mar¬
garet’s Hope. The oldest existing charter of the town is
one from William the Lion, confirming one of unknown
date. This charter was confirmed by James VI. in 1598.
The widowed queen of Robert III., the beautiful Arabella
Drummond, resided here. Before the convention of royal
boroughs was appointed to be held in Edinburgh, Inver-
keithing was the place of its meeting. No manufactures
are carried on in the town, but in the vicinity are a distillery,
brewery, brickwork, tanwork, shipbuilding yard, and two
foundries. The harbour is accessible to vessels of 200 tons
I N V
437
at spring tide. The chief export is coal, which abounds in Inverlocky
the vicinity. Inverkeithing is a contributory borough to ||
Stirling in returning a member to parliament. Pop. (1851) Inverness,
of municipal borough, 1497; ofparliamentary borough, 1852.
INVERLOCHY, or Innerlochy, a hamlet in the
county of Inverness, on the E. shore of Loch Eil, 2 miles
“’em Fort William. According to the local legends it
stands on the site of a city, once the greatest in Scotland,
and where King Achaius signed a treaty with Charlemagne.
No vestiges of such a city are now to be traced. Indeed
the only relic of the past is the huge quadrangular edifice,
ca led Inverlochy Castle, which towers in solitary magnifi-
cence, a.nd has survived all tradition respecting its origin.
I he building forms a court, and is provided at the angles
with round towers, of the most massive proportions, the
whole fabric covering a space of 1600 yards. Inverlochy
was the scene of a victory gained, in February 1645,
by the loyalist troops, under the Marquis of Montrose, over
those of the covenant under Argyll.
INVERNESS, a royal parliamentary and municipal
borough of Scotland, the chief town of Inverness-shire as
well as of the North Highlands, is situated on both sides of
the Rivet Ness, about half a mile above its mouth in the
Moray Frith. It is a town of great antiquity, but the exact
date of its origin is unknown. It is known to have been
one oi the Pictish capitals, and to have been early incor¬
porated as a free town. fhere are on record four charters
granted in its favour by William the Lion. In 1411 it was
burned by Donald, Lord of the Isles, on his march to the
battle of Harlaw. On an eminence to the S.E. of the to^vn
stood an ancient castle, in which Macbeth is said to have
murdered Duncan. This fortress was razed to the ground
by Malcolm Canmore, who erected another on an eminence
overhanging the town on the south. This latter edifice
continued a royal fortress till 1746, when it was blown
up by the troops of the Pretender, and not a vestige of it
now remains. 1 he site is occupied by a handsome castel¬
lated building erected in 1835, and comprising the court¬
house, county buildings, and jail. The ancient and principal
part of the town is on the right bank of the river; but since
the construction of the Caledonian Canal it has been ex¬
tending chiefly on the opposite bank. The two banks are
united by an iron suspension bridge, finished in 1855, and
supplying the place of a fine stone bridge of seven arches,
erected in 1685, but which was swept away by the great
flood of 1849. In the centre of the town is the town-hall,
erected in 1708, in front of which is the ancient cross and
a large round pile of stones, held together with hoops, called
Clach-na-cudain, or “Stone of the tubs,” from having served
as a resting place for women in carrying water from the
river. It is reckoned the palladium of the town, and is said
to have been carefully preserved after the town was burned
by Donald of the Isles. In 1826 gas was introduced, and,
4 years later, water was distributed through the streets by
means of pipes from the river. In 1831 the streets were
paved anew with granite, and common sewers made, at a cost
of about L.6000. I he spire of the old jail is admired for
its fine proportions. At the northern extremity of the town
Cromwell erected a fort, capable of accommodating 1000
men, but this was demolished at the Restoration, though a
considerable part of the ramparts still remains. In 1851
there were 12 places of worship in the burgh, of which 3
belonged to the Establishment, 3 to the Free Church, 2 to
United Presbyterians, and 1 each to Episcopalians, Inde¬
pendents, Baptists, Wesleyan Methodists, and Roman Ca¬
tholics ; total number of sittings, 10,706. The Royal Aca¬
demy is a very flourishing institution, incorporated by charter
in 1792, and endowed with funds to the amount of upwards
of L.40,000, the greater part (L.25,000) of which was left
in 1803 by Captain W. Macintosh, for the education of
boys of certain families of that name. There is also a public
438 I N V
Inverness- seminary endowed, on the Madras system, from a bequest
Shire. 0f L.10,000, made by the late Dr Andrew Bell. Inverness
manufactures almost nothing except a little linen, but carries
on a considerable trade with Aberdeen, Leith, and London,
on the E. coast, and with Glasgow, Liverpool, and Ireland,
by means of the Caledonian Canal. The number and ton¬
nage of vessels registered at the port on 31st December
1855 were—under 50tons, sailing vessels 154, tonnage 3651;
steam 1, tonnage 19; above 50 tons, sailing vessels 87,
tonnage 7,276; steam 2, tonnage 535. The vessels that
entered and cleared coastwise during 1855 were—sailing
vessels, inwards 1858, tonnage 99,095 ; outwards 1813, ton¬
nage 87,232; steam vessels, inwards 384, tonnage 55,348 ;
outwards 385, tonnage 52,394. Colonial trade, sailing ves¬
sels, inwards 3, tonnage 549; outwards 1, tonnage 183.
Foreign trade, sailing vessels, inwards 16, tonnage 2620;
outwards 43, tonnage 3643. The burgh is governed by a
provost, 4 bailies, and 21 councillors ; and unites with For¬
res, Fortrose, and Nairn, in returning a member to parlia¬
ment. Pop. of municipal burgh (1851), 9969; of parlia¬
mentary burgh, 12,793.
INVERNESS-SHIRE, the largest county of Scotland,
comprising, besides its mainland portion, a considerable num¬
ber of the Hebrides, and having a total area of 2,723,501
statute acres, or 4,256 square miles. The mainland portion
lies between N. Lat. 56. 40. and 57.26., and W. Long. 3.50.
and 5. 50.; and is bounded on the N. by Ross-shire, E. by the
counties of Nairn, Elgin, Banff, and Aberdeen, S. by Perth¬
shire and Argyleshire, and W. by the Atlantic. It is 85 miles
indength from E. to W., and 57 in breadth from N. to S.,
and has an area of about 1050 square miles. The exterior
outline of the county is very irregular. On the N.E.,
where the county town is situated, a narrow tract runs out
between Nairnshire and the Moray Frith. Farther to the
S.E., a portion of it is detached and inclosed by the counties
of Elgin and Banff. Argyleshire penetrates it from the
S.W., and Ross-shire from the N.W., while its W. coast is
indented by Lochs Moidart, Aylort, Nevish, Hourn, and
other arms of the sea.
The surface of the county is very varied, consisting of
ranges of lofty mountains, alternating with deep, narrow
valleys, the beds of numerous lakes and rivers. The deep
valley of Glenmore, or the Great Glen, traverses the county
from S.W. to N.E., dividing it into two nearly equal parts.
It is for the most part about a mile in breadth, and is
bounded on either side by precipitous banks. In this glen
are Lochs Ness, Oich, and Lochy, which, being united by
the Caledonian Canal, form a line of inland navigation be¬
tween the E. and W. seas, from the Moray Frith on the
N.E. to Loch Linnhe on the S.W., a distance of about 60
miles. Of these the lochs comprise 37, and the canal 23
miles. Loch Ness is remarkable for its depth, which is so
great that its waters never freeze. On each side of this
valley there are numerous glens and straths, separated by
mountain ridges with lakes and rivers, displaying all the
varieties of picturesque scenery.
The western side of the county, or that portion of it
lying between the Caledonian Canal and the Atlantic, is
the most wild and mountainous, and is known by the name
of the Rough Bounds. Its principal divisions are Moidart,
Arasaig, Morar, Knoidart, and Glenelg, which contain the
glens or valleys of Glengarry, Glenmoriston, Glenurquhart,
and Strathglass. The most considerable lakes in this quar¬
ter are—Loch Eil, Loch Shiel, Loch Arkaig, Loch Garry,
and Loch Maddy. The portion lying E. of the Caledonian
Canal comprises the extensive district of Badenoch, S. of
which lies Lochaber; and on the N. the Aird, one of the
most fertile parts of the county. The divisions also in¬
clude numerous glens, lakes, and rivers, with extensive
woodlands, and a great extent of pasture lands. The val¬
ley of Glenroy deserves especial notice for its parallel roads,
I N V
which were supposed, by Dr Macculloch and others, to have Inverness-
been the shores of ancient lakes, or of one lake occupying shire
successively different levels, but attributed by Agassiz to
the action of a glacier from Ben Nevis. The other note¬
worthy valleys are Strathspey, Stratherrick, Strathearn, and
Strathnairn. The most considerable lochs are Treig, Ericht
(partly in Perthshire), Laggan, Insch, and Moy.
It is estimated that two-thirds of the surface of the
county are covered with heath. In many large tracts
heath prevails to such a degree, that for twelve or fourteen
miles scarcely any verdure is to be seen except on the
banks of some solitary rivulet. On the S. of Badenoch
there is a moss, supposed to be the most extensive in Bri¬
tain, in which a great number of small lakes are interspersed,
some of them containing w'ooded islands, where deer find
a secure shelter. By far the greatest part of the county is
occupied with mountains. Ben Nevis, now ascertained by
the Ordnance Survey to be the highest mountain in Great
Britain, stands on the S.W., a few miles to the E. of Fort
William, and is 4406 feet above the mean level of the sea.
Nealfourvonie, on the west of Loch Ness, rises almost per¬
pendicularly from the loch to the height of 3060 feet.
Cairngorm, which is partly in this county and partly in
Banffshire, is 4050 feet high.
The principal rivers of Inverness-shire are—the Spey,
which rises in a small loch of that name in the hills be¬
tween Badenoch and Lochaber, and flowing in a north¬
easterly direction for about 100 miles, falls into the sea 8
miles E. of Elgin, draining an area of 1300 square miles;
the Ness, which issues from Loch Ness, and flows through
the town of Inverness, falls into the Moray Frith after a
course of 6 miles ; the Lochy issues from Loch Lochy, and
has a course of 10 miles westward, in which it receives
from the E. the Spean, and falls into Loch Eil near Fort
William; and the Beauly, which has its source in the
N.W., and carries the united waters of the Glass, and two
other rivulets, into the firth of the same name. The Find-
horn and the Nairn on the E., and the Garry and Moriston
on the W., are smaller streams. The River Foyers, which
flows into Loch Ness from the S. is remarkable for its cele¬
brated falls, one of which is 30, and the other (about a
quarter of a mile lower down) is about 90 feet in height.
Granite, limestone, gneiss, slate, marble, brick-clay,
abound in many parts of Inverness-shire. Lead has been
discovered in Ben Nevis, and at several other places in that
neighbourhood, and also at Glengarry, but none of it is
wrought. Silver has also been found in several parts. A
vein of plumbago has been found at Glengarry. A great
part of the mountain of Ben Nevis is composed of beautiful
porphyry. There is no coal, and for want of it the limestone
is of little value.
From the trees found in great numbers, and some of them
of a remarkable size, in all the mosses, this country must
at an early period have been thickly covered with wood;
and at present there is here a greater space covered with
natural pines than in all the rest of Britain. In Strathspey
it is said that three tiers of stocks have been found, directly
above one another, in a moss; from which it is inferred
that the deepest must have come to maturity, and been de¬
stroyed, before the one next above it was formed. 1 his
district is still celebrated for its great forests; and the natural
woods on Loch Arkaig, in Glengarry, Glenmoriston, Strath¬
glass, Strathfarrer, and at the head of Loch Shiel, are also
very extensive. The forests consist chiefly of oak, fir, birch,
ash, mountain ash, holly, elm, hazel, and the Scotch poplar.
There are also extensive plantations of larch, spruce, silver
fir, beech, and plane. The birch is very abundant on the
sides of Loch Ness, Loch Laggan, about Rothiemurchus,
Glenurquhart, Invermoriston, and Glengarry, and is pur¬
posely cultivated for the manufacture of bobbins. Part of
the great Caledonian Forest extends for several miles near
shire bTda7 of th!s cou1nty Wlth Perthshire. Considerable
tracts have been planted, chiefly with firs and larches par-
hcularly in the N.E., in Badenoch, and on Loch Eil ’ *
There are several fishing villages on the E. coast, but
the sea-fishery is not prosecuted to a great extent. The
herring occasionally visit Loch Eil; salmon yield a con¬
siderable rent on the rivers Lochy, Beauly, and Ness and
are found also in the Morar, in Loch Insch in Badenoch
at Invermoriston, and Invergarry. Charr is caught in several
of the lochs, and flounders and sprats in the Beauly The
moors and woodlands are plentifully stocked with’ game
viz., red and roe deer, the Alpine and common hare black
game and ptarmigan, grouse, partridges, &c.; and pheasants
have lately been introduced. Foxes and wild cats are still
numerous, and, in the lakes and rivers, otters. There are
also eagles, hawks, and owls; and a multitude of water
fowls, particularly swans, resort to Loch Insch, and the
other lakes of Badenoch.
The territory of Inverness-*hire is divided into estates of
great extent, and, in proportion to the rental of the county
of great value. In 1804 more than the half, if we may
judge from the old valuation, belonged to seven proprietors
and as much more was held by other six as made the pos¬
sessions of these thirteen individuals equal to more than
two-thirds of the whole; each of them, at a medium, must
therefore have contained about 100,000 acres. The valued
rent of the county was L.73,188 Scots, the annual value of
real property, as assessed in 1815, was L. 185,565; as as¬
sessed in 1849, L. 196,825 ; and as assessed in 1855, under
the new valuation act, L. 196,275. The assessment for
rogue money is L.150; and for prisons, L.644, 12s. lid.
The cottar or crofter system is gradually decreasing in
this county, and in some parts of it it no longer exists. A
few tacksmen or great tenants held the land from the pro-
pi ietor. They sublet portions to cottars, receiving payment
in labour, or in contributions of hens, eggs, and small sums
of money. In this way the tacksmen often sat rent free,
and it was this class that made the great outcry when the
system was changed. Now the land is chiefly appropriated
to sheep farming, and good rents are obtained. Part of
Glenquoich, for example, lets for about L.500 per annum,
which used to bring only from L.20 to L.30 as a s/tez/ma
for the Kintail men. This practice of sheilings is one of
the old forms of the crofter system that has ceased. The
people not having pasture enough for their cattle, clubbed
and hired a range of pasture ground elsewhere, whither
they went with their wives, children, and cattle, for about
six weeks in summer, living in temporary bothies, making
butter, dancing, singing Gaelic songs, and holding a sort of
rural carnival. On all the high farms best adapted for
pasture or deer-forests, the crofter system is nearly at an
end ; but on the low grounds, where the land is improvable,
there are thousands of crofters, by whom the population of
the Highland counties is kept up. They have a house,
land for a cow, and a few sheep, and a certain right of hill
pasture, and pay from L.4 to L.10 or L.15 a-year of rent.
Lord Lovat, on his extensive estates, encourages this
system; he gives leases for nineteen years at very low
rents, on condition that a certain amount of land is culti¬
vated. The holding is directly from the landlord on clearly-
defined and understood conditions, without the severe exac¬
tions of the tacksmen,—to all whose demands they were
forced to attend, though their own crofts were neglected.
In some instances they are not allowed to multiply to too
INVERNESS-SHIRE.
439
Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland to the Board Inverness-
of irade, give the agricultural statistics of holdings in this shire.
COr L0/thralued rental of L.20 and upwards, for 1854 v'—
and 18oo ; the number of occupants being 749; 
Wheat,
1854.
Acres.
^   1,684
Bariey  2,660
0ats  13,674J
Rye  141
Rere  1,014
Beans 
Pease   234£
Potatoes   3,5244
Mangold  jq
Carrots  31
Cabbage  35f
Flax  2
Turnip seed  2.IJ
Other crops 
Bare fallow    572J
Grass and hay, under rotation 15,3134
1855.
Acres.
1,5394
2,220|
13,7044
125
1,0344
674
1624
1864
5,2864
2,9164
164
2
254
3
4
24
5064
14,2264
42,0304
Total  44,2424
The estimated produce of the principal crops for these
years were,—
1854.
Bolls.
Wheat  47,573
Barley  93,100
0ats  437,584
Bere  23,068
Pease and Beans 
Turnips, tons  84,984
Potatoes  6519
1855.
Bolls.
37,814
64,957
363,176
21,206
5,227
73,948
12,176
The amount of stock possessed by these occupants
2,330
634
521
8,301
1855 were,—
Horses for agricultural purposes above three years old
Horses for agricultural purposes under three years old
All other horses 
Milk cows 
Other cattle     g ygg
Calves  6 002
Sheep of all ages, for breeding  285 919
Sheep of all ages, for feeding  143156
Lambs, produce of 1855    138 619
s™ 
Total stock, 1855   590 907
Total stock, 1854   568>404
in
great a number. Sons, on marrying, must remove from
the paternal bothy; and this, though seemingly a harsh,
is, in some measure, a necessary restriction; the poor-law
compelling Highland proprietors to pay more attention than
they formerly did to the state of the people ; but good land¬
lords will not apply it too rigidly.
I he following tables, made up from the Report of the
Amongst the antiquities of Inverness-shire, which we can
only notice generally, are the circles of stones ascribed to
the Druids, which are found in many parts of the county,
particularly at Corrimony in its northern quarter ; two arti¬
ficial mounts in the parish of Petty, supposed to have been
places for administering justice; round buildings, called
Piets’ Houses, in Glenelg, and other parts; forts, built
without mortar, one of which, called Castle Spynie, 2 miles
E. from the church of Beauly, incloses a circle of 54 yards,
and another, in the parish of Laggan, stands on a rock|
100 yards in perpendicular height; vitrified forts on the
hill of Craig Phadric, about 2 miles from Inverness, Dun-
dhairdghall in Glen Nevis, and Dun Thion, near the River
Beauly; and a variety of castles, of which Inverlochy Castle,
a building of great extent and unknown antiquity, on the*
banks of the Lochy, near Fort William, is, perhaps, the
most remarkable.
I hei c is a chain of forts stretching across the county,
along the line of the Caledonian Canal. Fort George, a
regular fortress, mounting eighty guns, with barracks for
3000 men, was begun in 1747, and completed in twenty
years, at an expense of about L. 160,000. It is situated 12
miles eastward from Inverness, upon a neck of land on the
440 I N V
Inverness- Moray Frith, opposite to Fortrose in Ross-shire. Fort
shire. Augustus, also a regular fortification, though a place of no
great strength, with four bastions, and barracks for 400 men,
is situated at the west end of Loch Ness, nearly midway
between the east and west seas. It was first built in 1730,
at some distance from Loch Ness ; but having been demo¬
lished by the rebels in 1745, it was afterwards rebuilt nearer
the lake. Fort William, built in the reign of William III.,
is situated on a navigable arm of the sea, called Loch Eil,
at the south-western termination of the great valley. These
forts are now useless in a military point of view, though
kept in a state of good repair, and used as barracks for a few
soldiers. On Culloden Moor, a level heath to the eastward
of Inverness, on the 16th April 1746, was fought the battle
which put an end to the rebellion of 1745.
Inverness-shire contains twenty-eight entire parishes, and
shares several others with the counties of Argyle, Nairn,
and Elgin. Of these, twenty are on the mainland, and the
remainder in its islands. Some of the parishes on the main¬
land, as well as in the islands, are very extensive. Those
of Kilmalie and Kilmorack are about 60 miles in length, by
almost 30 in breadth. Many of the inhabitants are Roman
Catholics, particularly in the districts of Moidart, Arasaig,
Morar, and Knoidart, on the west side. The county sends
one member to parliament; and the town of Inverness, along
with Forres, Nairn, and Fortrose, chooses one forthe burghs.
The sheriff holds courts at four places, two of which, Inver¬
ness and Fort William, are for the mainland, and two more
for the isles in Skye and Long Island.
The population of Inverness-shire by the last six censuses
was as follows :—
1801. 1811. 1821. 1831. 1841. 1851.
Males 33,071 35,411 42,204 44,510 45,538 44,961
Females...39,601 42,260 47,757 50,287 52,261 51,539
Total 72,672 77,671 89,961 94,797 97,799 96,500
The occupation census for 1851 shows that the inhabi¬
tants are chiefly engaged in, or dependent on, agriculture
or cattle rearing. There were of males, 3052 farmers, 357
graziers, 1699 farmers’ or graziers’ sons, grandsons, brothers,
and nephews, of fifteen years of age and upwards, and re¬
siding on the farms ; 169 farm bailiffs, 6666 out-door agri¬
cultural labourers, 814 shepherds, 1702 in-door farm ser¬
vants, and 27 others connected with agriculture.—Of fe¬
males, 365 farmers, 2325 farmers’ or graziers’ wives, 2098
farmers’ or graziers’ daughters, grand-daughters, sisters,
and nieces, of fifteen years of age and upwards, and living
on the farm; 1903 out-door agricultural labourers, and
1497 in-door farm servants. There were also 202 game-
keepers, 230 gardeners, 67 woodmen, and 1034 fishermen.
There were 20 females and 6 males of 100 years of age
or upwards, a greater number than in any other county in
Scotland.
According to the census of religious worship and educa¬
tion for 1851, there were in this county 109 places of wor¬
ship, of which 44 belonged to the Free Church, 35 to the
Established Church, 4 to the United Presbyterians, 3 to the
Episcopalians, 1 to the Independents, 4 to the Baptists, 1
to the Wesleyan Methodists, and 17 to the Roman Catho¬
lics. The total number of sittings was 40,9 i 8, and the at¬
tendance at each of the services on Sunday 30th March
1851 was, morning 18,086, afternoon 11,692, and evening
5211. The number of day-schools was 162, of which 142,
with 9716 scholars, were public ; and 20, with 1017 scholars,
were private schools. The number of Sunday-schools was
75, with 4485 scholars; of these schools 32, with 1255
scholars, belonged to the Established Church ; 30, with 2286
scholars, to the Free Church ; 3 each to the United Pres¬
byterians, Episcopalians, and Baptists, and 1 each Indepen¬
dents, Methodists, isolated congregations, and Roman Ca¬
tholics. 1 here were also 2 mechanics’ institutions, and a
ION
Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Association, having to- Inverted
gether 546 members. _ II
INVERTED, in Music, signifies a change in the order v °Da'
of the notes which form a chord, or in the parts that
compose harmony, which happens by substituting in the
bass those sounds which ought to have been in the upper
part; an operation not only rendered practicable, but greatly
facilitated, by the resemblance which one note has to
another in different octaves. Hence we derive the power
of exchanging one octave for another, or substituting in
the extremes those which ought to have occupied the
middle station, and vice versa.
INVERURY, a royal parliamentary and municipal
burgh of Scotland, county of Aberdeen. It stands at the
confluence of the Don and the Ury, each here crossed by
a bridge, and is distant 16 miles N.W. from Aberdeen, on
the line of the Aberdeen and Huntly Railway. The village
is small and straggling; and the inhabitants are chiefly
employed in agriculture. The Aberdeenshire canal, com¬
pleted in 1807, connected it with Aberdeen, and was the
means by which a considerable trade in grain, lime, bones,
&c., was carried on. The canal has been purchased by the
railway company, and a part of the basin filled up to form
a track for the line of railway. Inverury unites with Elgin,
Banff, Cullen, Kintore, and Peterhead, in sending a mem¬
ber to parliament. Pop. (1851) of municipal burgh, 2084;
of parliamentary burgh, 2264.
INVESTITURE, in Law, a giving livery of seisin or
possession. There was anciently a great variety of cere¬
monies used upon investitures, which at first were made by
a certain form of words, and afterwards by such things as
had the greatest resemblance to the thing to be transferred.
Thus, where lands were intended to pass, a turf was de¬
livered by the granter to the grantee. In the church, it
was customary for princes to make investiture of ecclesias¬
tical benefices, by delivering to the person they had chosen
a pastoral staff' and a ring.
IODINE. See Chemistry, § Non-rnetallic Elements, 6.
IONA, or Icolmkill, a small island of the Hebrides,
memorable in our annals for its connection with the early
Christian church in Britain, and as having been for centu¬
ries a seat of learning and civilization—the “ Instructress
of the West”—as well as the chosen and venerated place
of sepulture of the kings of Scotland, and the native chiefs
and lords of the Isles. Thus consecrated by historical
associations and devotional feeling, and possessing remains
of great antiquity, the little low “Island of the Waves,” or
“ Blessed Island,” as its name has been interpreted, is in¬
vested with a strong and imperishable interest, and is the
resort of pilgrims of all classes and countries—poets, paint¬
ers, moralists, and devotees. Its appearance from the sea,
when the visitor has emerged from the shadow of the dark
massive rocks of Mull, or has surveyed the wondrous temple
of Staffa, is at first calculated to produce a feeling of disap¬
pointment. It presents no outline of precipitous cliffs or
fertile shores. The surface is varied by irregular ridges of
hills, rising up from the beach, with patches of green pasture,
some corn-fields, and a range of cottages—the modern vil¬
lage—fronting the sea, over which is seen the high square
tower of the ruined cathedral, from which in former ages a
famous peal of bells summoned the islanders to prayer, and
was heard far over these solitary and barren shores. The
hills in general do not exceed 100 feet in height, but the
most elevated of the group, called Dun-ii, rises 330 feet
above the level of the sea. The whole extent of the island
is but three miles in length by one in breadth; its popula¬
tion, according to the census of 1851, was just 604 souls,
consisting of crofters, or small tenants, with their families,
who unite the pursuit of fishing with the ciiMfetion of the
land, and the rearing of black cattle ; and proprietor,
the Duke of Argyll, derives from the entire island a revenue
Iona.
of only about L.3C0 per annum. The riches of Iona there-
—' ule> conslfttot tts past glory and ancient renown. Its trea
sures are its monastic ruins, sculptured tombs and crosses"
the memory of its first great canonized missionary and the
enthusiasm which hallows the spot, “once tile luminary of
the Caledonian regions, whence savage clans and roviny
barbarians derived the benefit of knowledge and the bless8
ings of religion. 1 ° L e Dless-
lona has been known under many names, and has afforded
scope for the ingenuity of etymologists. In writings and
charters it bears no less than thirty different denominations
r forms of orthography. Adomnan (circa a.d. 680) writes
it Hyona, supposed by some to be the Latinized form of
-t ion the Celtic “ Island of Waves,” or Ishona, Isle of the
5 WHl e keith and 1'ennant derive ^ from the Hebrew
Jonah a pigeon, presumed to be an allusion to the name of
Columba. Bede refers to it as % or ffii (sometimes com
muted into the single letter Y), signifying in Irish “ the"
island^ thus pre-eminently distinguishing Iona amono- the
Hebriuean archipelago of islands. It is still called Hy and
is so designated on some of the tombstones. At a very krly
penod the island was also termed Icolmcille, or Icohnkill
the island of Colum of the cell or cemetery ; while by the
EkHdTf fhenbedn fn°Wn ^ lnnis-nan-D™idhneah,
a seat oflp D d ’ °m & tradltion that the isIand ^s
a seat of the Druids previous to its occupation by Columba
I he term however, has been otherwise interpreted to mean
the isleofthe artizans or workers, which seems appropriate
enough to Columba and his disciples. ^ "
It was about the year 563 that Columba left Ireland
accompamed by twelve disciples, to Christianize the rude
islanders of Albamch, or western Scotland, ruled over by
Conal, king of the Dalnads. In Ireland (then named
Scotiaj, he had in consequence of his zeal in planting
churches, earned the name of Columcille, or Columba of
urches, and he had founded a noble monastery, named
from the number of oaks in the place, Dearmach (now
Durrough m King’s County). Columba, however, Inn ing
opposed Diarmid, King of Ireland, for refusing to release
a freeman (apparently one of his disciples) was excom¬
municated by the Synod of Ireland, and by the advice of
the Bishop of Clonfert, he repaired to Scotland. He ob-
tained from Conal a grant of the island of Iona, then peo¬
pled by five families, and there founded his famous monas¬
tery and fixed his chief residence for the remaining thirtv-
our years °f his life. A small bay and harbour, to the
S. W. of the island, are still pointed out as the spot where
Columba and his followers first landed, and on the shore
is a large mound, sixty feet long, supposed to represent the
size of the Lurrach or boat which bore the saint to Iona
I he original buildings of the monastery were of timber or
wattle-work. The apostle of the Scots, according to Ad-
oinmm, sent forth his disciples to “gather bundles of twigs
to build their hospice and for years the establishment at
Iona must have been a humble missionary enterprise. A
circle of stones, said to be the original cell or place of wor¬
ship, remains on the island. Columba and his disciples
were named Culdees, or hermit-worshippers, who sought
divine assistance by prayer in the caves or woods, or secret
corners of the island. Their zeal and devotion, however
soon led them to extend their labours, and to add to the
number of the faithful. The neighbouring islands were
converted, and Columba visited various parts of Scotland
and Ireland, while his disciples penetrated into Orkney.
Columba resided frequently among the Piets on the N."
of the Grampians, and is said by Adomnan to have con-
IONA.
verted lirudeus the King of the Piets, who had his court
at Inverness {ad ostiam Nessia). He had, however to
engage an interpreter in conversing with Brudeus, and this
fact seems to prove that the Piets spoke a language dif-
lumba A’™ the. ^ (d'Ireland or the Druid Scotst Co-
ba also visited St Kentigern at Glasgow, and at Iona
he inaugurated Aidan, king of the Scots. Having founded
many churches and monasteries, all in some degree depen
thTyear sgrSmvaStery ^ Columba^diedXut
e year 59/ within his own church at Iona aeed abrmf
celsetnTaft ^ predicted the time of his own de-
cease, and after ascending the hill which overlooked the
monastery gave it h1S blessing, and at midnight retired to
the church, where he was found dead before the altar
ie fond credulity of Adomnan has preserved many super
natural and miraculous legends relating to Columba - fable
is blended with truth, and poetry has shed its undying light
on the romantic traditions, but enough remains of unques-
onetl fact, and noble self-sacrificing exertion, to entitle
n umba to rank with those great moral heroes who have
gone forth to civilize and regenerate mankind.
bv mle °r SyStem of Iona is thus described
y Bede, after the monastery had attained power and im¬
portance. I Ins island has for its ruler an abbot, who is a
presbyter, to whose jurisdiction all the provinces, and even
the bishops, by an unusual practice, are subject, according
to the example of their first teacher, who was not a bishop
but a presbyter and monk.” The Culdees were a separate
nd independent sect. J hey differed from the Church of
form ^fAhe ^ T ^ i°bservance of Easter and the
form of the tonsure, which they cut according to the Eas-
tern practice. About a century after the death of Co-
Al?bH ^dom"a"’ tben Abbot of Iona, during a visit to
red, king of the Saxons, conformed to the Romish rites
and on his return attempted to induce his own people, and
those subject to the monastery of Iona, to adopt his views
They refused to conform, and it was not till the year 716
that the monastery, at the intervention of Egbert an En-
gllsh. P,nf^ |,who afterwards settled and died Lt Iona)
adopted the Romish custom as to the observance ofEaster
foreign invaders now came to disturb and lay waste the
infant colony. First, we learn from the Irish records (7Y-
gernach1 Annales) that the family of Hii, or the disciples
bv nIT l^’/u0^720’ driven beyond Drumalban
by ]\ ectan, king of the Piets. In 801, and again in 806,
the monastery was burned by those pirates, sixty-eight of the
inmates being on the latter occasion slain. A century
afterwards the Danes ravaged the monastery and slew the
abbot and fifteen monks. In 1097 Magnus Baerfaet, king
o Norway, visited Iona, and allowed the people to retain
their possessions. 1 he monastery continued durino- the
next century to be the resort of pilgrims, but it declined
from its former importance. T he simplicity of the Culdee
worship had yielded to the power of the Church of Rome
and the monastery was appropriated to monks of the Clu-
mac order subject to the bishops of Dunkeld. Between
the years 11/2 and 1180, William the Lion deprived them
of certain churches and lands in Gallowav, which he an¬
nexed to the canons of Holyrood. The island lords occa¬
sionally made donations to the church, and Donald of the
Isles who fought at Harlaw in 1411, is said to have pre¬
sented vessels of gold and silver to the monastery, and to
ave ecome a monk of Iona. The last abbot, one of the
council of the Lord of the Isles, becoming Bishop of the Isles
obtained in the year 1507 the annexation of Iona to his’
see. A nunnery had, about the thirteenth century, been in-
441
Iona.
mariner Z peHiIpsd^ in hi* spirit, and expressed in his happiest
in the Oriymes Parochiales, vol. ii., Bannatyne Club 1854 The ruin/aro f n ^ 68 .^lsI'orlca^ account of the island is to be found
the Camden Society’s Transactions, P&n III. ’ 6 rU1US ^ carefu% described by Mr Howson in a series of papers in
VOL. XII.
3 K
442
I 0
Iona. Stituted at Iona. It was dedicated to the Virgin Mary, and
_ / tli0 nuns were of the order ot St Augustine and wore a
white gown with a rochet of fine linen. There are few
notices of this institution; but in 1509 King Janies IV.
appears to have granted letters of protection to the prioress,
and in 1574, the then prioress, with the consent of the
convent, granted the lands which belonged to it to Hector
Maclean of Duart.
At the era of the Reformation, the convention of estates
in 1561 passed an act for the destruction of all abbeys and
monuments of idolatry, and the Synod of Argyle carried it
out with unsparing rigour in Iona. Its conventual build¬
ings were sacked and plundered; of 360 crosses said to
have been then standing, only three were left, some being
thrown into the sea, and others carried away to serve as
tombstones in Midi and the neighbouring islands. A va¬
luable library, with the psalters, and other books used by
the monks, and the registers of Iona, also perished at this
time. “ That any of these may have been preserved in
the abbey which rose upon the ruins of Columba’s monas¬
tery, is, of course, mere conjecture; but though Boece’s
fables about the books brought from Rome by King Fer¬
gus II. must be summarily rejected, there seems no reason
to doubt the proposed visit of Pope Pius V. in 1460 to the
library of Iona, or the alleged fact, that in 152o several
manuscripts were brought from Iona to Aberdeen, which,
though much injured and nearly illegible, appeared to be
fragments of Sallust and of some of our Scottish chronicles
(Origines ParochiaIcs). Of all the excesses of these icono¬
clasts, this literary destruction is certainly the most to be
deplored.
The ruins and relics of antiquity at Iona consist of part
of the cathedral church of St Mary,' the nunnery, some
small chapels, a building called the Bishop’s House, and a
number of ancient tombs and crosses. The cathedral is
apparently not older than the thirteenth century. It is
built of red granite in the usual cruciform shape, surmounted
at the intersection of the nave and the transept by a square
tower of about 75 feet in height. The building measures
internally 115 feet from E. to W. Some grotesque figures,
rudely carved, are seen on the columns; and in the chan¬
cel are the piscina and sedilia, which Mr Howson con¬
siders to be of early English work. On the N. of the
church were the cloisters, and, according to Martin, a li¬
brary; and from a Norman arcade still standing, these appear
to have been part of the oldest buildings. 4 he principal
altar of the church, formed of white marble veined with
gray, existed almost entire in 1688, when Sacheverell vi¬
sited Iona; and Pennant saw part of it in 1772, but it is
now gone. In the choir are the tombs of Macleod of Mac-
leod, Maclean of Ross, and the abbot John Mackinnon.
The first represents the figure of a chief rudely carved,
and the outline was apparently at one time filled with me¬
tal. The second is bolder and more artistic; the chief
rests on a pillow, with his dog at his feet, a spear in
his hand, a broadsword in his belt, and his shield present¬
ing the figure of a galley. The figure on the tomb of the
abbot is recumbent, and the inscription round the margin
runs—Hie jacet Johannes Mac Fingone, Abbas de Hy,
qui obiit Domini millesimo quingentesimo, cujus animce
propitietur Deus altissimus. Amen. In one of the cloisters
of the church formerly lay the black stones, described by
Pennant and Johnson, on which it was customary to swear
oaths and ratify agreements.
The most ancient and interesting of the conventual re¬
mains is the chapel of St Oran or Aran, with its burying-
ground, a little city of the illustrious dead, that once en¬
joyed the privileges of a sanctuary. The chapel is small,
measuring only 35 feet by 20 feet 8 inches. Its western
doorway presents a Norman arch with the beak-head
ornament. The burial place (described by Dean Monro
N A.
as “ a very fair kirkzaird)” bears in Gaelic the name of Iona.
Reilig Oiran, and was the place of sepulture of the kings of
Scots and Piets, down to the time of Malcolm III., who
died in 1093, and of the lords of the Isles and chiefs, to a
much later period. Shakspeare, it will be recollected, alludes
to the interment of the “ gracious Duncan” at Icolmkill:
“ The sacred storehouse of his predecessors,
And guardian of their bones.”
And there, too, Macbeth, the murderer of Duncan, is said
to have been buried. Dean Monro (who wrote in 1594)
states that there were in this sepulchre three little chapels
with marble inscriptions ; one, Tumulus Hegum Scotia, in
which were forty-eight Scottish kings—a palpable fiction
or exaggeration;—the second, Tumulus Regum Hibernia,
containing four Irish monarchs; and the third, Tumulus
Regum Norwegia, containing eight Norwegian princes.
There is now no vestige of such buildings, but a mound of
earth is called, by tradition, the Ridge ot Kings. South of
the chapel is a red unpolished stone said to mark the grave
of a king of France. The most ancient of the mo¬
numental stones bearing a date is that in memory of
Abbot Lachlan Mackinnon in St Oran’s chapel, which
is inscribed 1489. Those representing the broadsword
across the body, or exhibiting the ancient Hebridean
galleys (the stern and prow the same, and curved up¬
wards like the Roman vessels), may be centuries older.
Tombs of two bishops, of four priors of Iona, ot several
chiefs in armour, chiefly Macleans, are still to be seen in
the Reilig Oiran ; and in the chapel are similar memorials
to Angus Oig, a Macdonald ot the Isles, the friend ot
Robert Bruce; to Macquarrie of Alva, Maclean of Grulin,
and to one of the family of Campbell, son ot the Earl ot
Argyle. Two of the undated stones bear inscriptions in
the Irish character as follows :—Or do anmin Logain (a
prayer for the soul of Eogain) and Or do Mailjatric (a
prayer for the soul of Mailpatrick). Celtic antiquaries,
however, are not agreed as to these inscriptions, on which
the dust of antiquity rests somewhat too strongly. Near
the door of the chapel were to be seen, in 1772, the stones
called Clach-na-brath, which had been substituted for three
globes of white marble, always turned round by visitors, and
which it was superstitiously believed were to wear through
the pedestal before the end of the world. 1 he remains ot
the nunnery exhibit traces of Norman architecture. A
chapel was attached to the institution, believed to be the
burial-place of ladies of distinction, as the Reilig Oiran was
appropriated to the graves of eminent men. The tomb of
the last prioress, Agnes or Anne Maclean, bearing date
1543, is still left, though in a mutilated state. Of the an¬
cient crosses, a few continue to “ cast a melancholy splen¬
dour among the memorial tombs, and seem to preside over
the grassy graves with a gray and ghastly beauty.’ 1 wo
magnificent stones of this kind are almost entirely perfect.
One, known as Maclean’s Cross, is 11 feet in height, and
stands on a large basement of granite cut into three steps.
The second, St Martin’s Cross, is about 15 feet in height.
Both are richly carved in high relief with Runic knots
and various emblematical devices and fanciful scrolls. 1 be
freedom of design, and its excellent execution in a mate¬
rial so ill adapted for sculpture as mica-slate, has often been
remai’ked as surprising, and must strike the most incurious
observer. The remains of some other crosses are visible,
and there appear to have been several in the vicinity o
the cathedral. As connected with the monkish period, one
of the small harbours in the island bears the name of tie
Bay of Martyrs, being the place where the bodies of those
who were to be interred in the holy ground were received
by the monks. The sanctity of the island, and the mys¬
terious veneration in which it was held, rendeied Iona t ic
favourite burying-place of all families ot distinction ; an
Ionia.
ION
there was an ancient Gaelic prophecy, that seven years before
the end of the world a deluge was to sweep over Ireland
and the green-clad island of Islay, but that the sainted
island of Columba would rear her towers above the flood
Ihus the notion of protection was mingled with the repu¬
tation of the island for sanctity in making it the resort of
strangers to bury their dead. The tutelary saint, Colutrtba
is believed, on certain evenings of the year, to be seen on
islands!’ ' churC tower countinS the neighbouring
“ When 0’er each Runic altar, weed-entwined
The vesper clock tolls mournful to the wind’-
Counts every wave-worn isle and mountain hoar,
h rom Jvilda to the green lerne’s shore.”
Colhns has also, in his Highland Ode, embodied the more
magnificent superstition, that the tenants of the royal se¬
pulchres m certain seasons at midnight, stalk forth in pa-
geant robes and hold aerial councils. So late as the mid¬
dle of the last century, as related by Pennant, the people
of Iona, every Michaelmas Day, rode their horses round the
sacred circle of stones called Cnoc-nan Aimgeal, or the
Hill of Angels, vyhere Columba was believed to have met
Wf angdS- S° l0nS do Poetical and super¬
natural beliefs cling to remote localities among a simple
credulous, and imaginative people ! 1
ION
credulous, and imaginative people !
Iona is separated from the Island of Mull by a navio-able
sound scarce a mile in width, and lies about eight miles
S M from Staffa. The island possesses marble quarries,
which have been opened and worked, but without success
adequate to the necessary expenditure. On the S.W.
s lore are extensive rocks of sienite and serpentine. At
ranLnrUT.h (?,e SPpf wl1lere Columba is said to have
landed) are cliffs of hornblende, and nodules of hard steatite,
of a fine green colour, which the children of the island col-
fect and sell to strangers—rushing with them, on the ar¬
rival of the steam-boat, to the shores “ where once came
monk and nun with gentle stir.” The soil of the island is
hght but fertile and well fitted for the growth of oats, bar¬
ley and rye. The pasture, though scanty, is of excellent
qua i y, and the people of the island contrive to maintain
and clothe themselves from their native products. They
have now an Established and Free Church, with cheap and
ample means of education. (R> c
IONIA, in Ancient Geography, a district of Asia Minor,
extendmg along the ACgean Sea, from the Cumcean Gulf to
the Mons Gnus or Grium, a little way S. of Miletus. Its
length in a straight line was thus not much more than 100
miles, but its coast was so sinuous and indented that it had
a sea-board of fully more than three times that extent.
Inland, however, it nowhere extended more than 40 miles,
and in many places it was even considerably narrower!
Ihe extreme limits of its eastern frontier were Mounts
Sipylus and I molus. On the N. it was bounded by the
territory of Pergnmum and other iEolian cities in Mysia;
on the S. it extended a short distance into Caria. Its
pnncipal rivers were the Hermus, Cayster, and Maeander.
Ihe inhabitants of this small but valuable and important
region were Attic lonians, who, on the death of Codrus the
last king of Athens, set out under his sons Neleus and An-
droclus to seek their fortune beyond the sea. The causes
of this migration are very imperfectly understood. Ac-
cording to one account these two youths, disgusted at the
abolition of the regal form of government, and seeing no
hopes of preferment under the archonship of their elder
brother Medon, rallied round their standard the restless
spirits of Attica, and along with volunteers from other parts
of Greece emigrated to the western shores of Asia Minor.
Another and more probable account is that the Attic
onians, burdened with a surplus population, and exposed
to the incessant attacks of their Dorian neighbours, had
gone away in quest of more peaceful abodes to the Asiatic
coasts. Landing at Miletus, about B.c. 1044, or as somo
habit" ?ey stor.med that city put all the male in-
abitants to the sword, reserving the women to themselves
A number of other cities fell into their power, which they
thet soondifF81"11^—”6,1-5 ^ With these as centr4
that own^f theirc'vlllzation over the whole country
hXned r,SVVay- Some of the inhabitants they ex-
aliv/’ • ^ ^if t lGy subdued> and finally incorporated, yet
element11 Tl? T “ l° ^ the Greek ^ P^omiLt
ement. iaitlyby conquest, and partly by colonization
P 1 cities"8 tT" ^ “ “‘ ^Ive p" S
pal cities. These were all independent of each other vet
oon found it expedient, for purposes of trade and die
ettlement of disputes, to form themselves into a kind of
confederation, which, from the number of cities comnosinp-
it, was called the Ionian Dodecapolis. The cities indues?
Colophon TVn™ F Myus’ Peiene> Ephesus, Lebedus,
Colophon, Ieos, Erytihue, Clazomen^, Phoc^ea and
he two islands of Chios and Samos. At a Zer peM
the city of Smyrna was seized by the Colophonians and
admitted into the league. These cities bein|all colonized
chiefly for the excellence of their sites soon'rose to ureat
th and power. Many of them became in turn" the
parent states of numerous and flourishing colonies in every
corner of the Mediterranean and many parts of the Euxine7
Miletus alone is said to have sent forth seventy-five. Another
index to their prosperity will be found in the fact that the
aits and sciences attained a high degree of perfection in
them before the mother country had'a sin^^gtatToet
of' 2hri 2Stf0rian,’ t0 bTfc of- The extant ‘•emains
of then splendid temples and public buildings give evi-
e“e ai?d magnificence of their architecture,
enrh nil pohtical relations of the twelve cities were to
each other we have no means of exactly determinino- but
there is nothing to warrant the idea that they were’ever
held together in the bonds of a federal union. Each city
like an“dePe"<fe"t republic, and its constitution!
ike that of most Ionian colonies, was democratic. They
had brought with them from Greece a common race l
common religion, and a common language. And these
lings, more than any other, seem to have kept them to¬
gether. When they found it necessary to discuss any
metZ'thl P^01" inter^.dePuties from the several states
met at the Pamomum. 1 his was a piece of neutral ground
at the foot of Mount Mycale,on its northern slope, iifwhich
a temple had been built and consecrated to Neptune. A
town soon rose in the neighbourhood, in the Prytaneum
of which the deputies seem at one time to have met. It
was only m pressing emergencies that business was dis¬
cussed in these meetings. The general purport of the
assembly seems to have been to celebrate in common the
ntes of their national worship, and to promote good feeling
by periodical games and festivals. Danger first threatened
the Ionian cities on the side of Lydia. Hostilities broke
out as early as the reign of Gyges, and it was left for Crcesus
to subdue the last of the cities that held out. Crcesus was
in his turn defeated by Cyrus, and the lonians exchanged
the Lydian for the Persian yoke. The conquerors, how¬
ever, were at first wise enough not to interfere in the in-
ernal affairs of the Ionian states. They merely exacted a
tribute in money and a contingent of soldiers, and claimed
the light of appointing the governors of the towns. In the
cities themselves, democratic as they were in constitution,
aristocratic factions began to spring up, and as they were
general y backed by the Persian satraps, tyrannies were
soon established everywhere. Most of these tyrants were
themselves Greeks by birth, but governed in the Persian
interest. About the year b.c. 500 a strong reaction in
favour of their ancient liberty seized the lonians, and they
detei mined to rebel. The example was set by the Mile¬
sians, w 10 were backed by the promise of support from
443
Ionia.
444 ION
Ionian Athens and Eretria. The allied troops marched against
Islands. Sardes, which they took and burned, but they were soon
v>—overwhelmed by the superior strength of Persia, and the
Tonians were left to bear alone the brunt of the great king’s
ano-er. They were still powerful by sea, but their towms
asain fell one by one into the hands of the foe. Miletus
w-as taken and destroyed, and its inhabitants were either
killed or carried off' into the interior of Persia, where they
had lands assigned them. Clazomenae shared a similar fate,
and at the end of six years, during which the revolt lasted,
their chains were riveted more firmly than ever. When
Persia declared war against Greece, the lonians were
pressed into the service and compelled to fight against their
European kinsmen. Their revenge, however, was com¬
plete. At the battle of Mycale, b.c. 479, they turned the
fortune of the day by deserting in a body to the Greeks,
and the subsequent victories of Cimon enabled them to
throw off the Persian yoke altogether. Till the close of
I 0 N
the Peloponnesian War Athens was acknowledged by the Ionian
whole Dodecapolis as the head of the Ionian race, and w'as Islands,
often made the umpire in their feuds and difficulties. When
Sparta, at the close of the fifth century B.c., became the
leading power of Greece, the Ionian cities applied to her
for protection, w'hich was freely granted till the peace of
Antalcidas, b.c. 387, threw them, along with all the other
Greek cities in Asia, once more into the hands ot the Per¬
sians. The conquests of Alexander recovered them for
Greece, and enabled them to regain to some extent the
power and influence they had once enjoyed. The Roman
sway completely put an end to their political importance;
but their commercial and literary influence was still felt and
acknowledged. The subsequent history of each of these
cities will be found fully detailed under the separate head
of each. (Grote’s Hist, of Greece; Thirl wall’s Hist, of
Greece ; Chandler’s Travels in Asia Minor ; Leake’s Map
of Asia Minor, &c., &c.)
IONIAN ISLANDS.
The united states of the Ionian Islands, protected by
Great Britain, consist of the following seven larger isles :
—Corfu, Cephalonia, Zante, Santa Maura, Ithaca, Cerigo,
and Paxo, with their minor dependencies ; and are situated
off the western coast of Albania and Greece, except Cerigo,
which lies to the S. of the Morea; all being within N.
Lat. 36. and 50., and between E. Long. 19. 40. and 23. 10.
Official returns, obtained in 1836, give, as the entire native
population, 204,242; of whom 110,496 were males, and
93,746 were females. In 1831 the returns showed—
males 122,422, females 104,276 = 226,698; and in 1854
—males 123,254, females 105,727 = 228,981.1
The islands, whose names have been given, are computed
to contain an area of 1097 English square miles, to each of
which there appear rather more than 208 persons; the
population, however, is very unequally distributed.
The geological formation of the islands, as examined by
Dr Holland and Dr Davy,2 is mostly calcareous, like that of
of the opposite continent. In Zante volcanic action is
thought still to manifest itself in earthquakes, from which
there is never many months’ repose. In Corfu and some
of the other islands excellent stone for building is abun¬
dant ; and marble of various hues, and susceptible of high
polish, has been quarried, although not for export.
Throughout all the islands the principal soils are these
three—calcareous marl, red clay, and sand, which are given
in the order of their general abundance.
The ebb and flow of the tides, which are very marked at
Venice, are little perceptible on the shores ot the Ionian
Islands; but the sea around them is greatly affected, in
both its set and its level, by currents and winds, whose
course and effects have not been carefully investigated.
The climate of the several islands is not quite the same,
but probably does not differ much, in the chief character¬
istics, from that of Corfu, regarding which accurate observa¬
tions have been made and published.3 A table of the ex¬
treme variations of the thermometer in each month, for ten
years ending 1848, gives a mean temperature of 62°, and
shows a surprising uniformity in the temperature of the
same month in different years. It indicates the average
yearly quantity of rain = 45*83^- inches, which is not more
than falls in the chief parts of Cumberland or Westmore¬
land, and is less than in one or two points in these counties ;4
but it shows that the sirocco or S.E. wind blows 126J days
in the year ; and a register of the w eather, for every day
of 1846, marks great vicissitudes of temperature, equal to
20 deg. within 24 hours, at various seasons—the greatest
heat being 93° in July. Frost is rarely severe, or of long
duration. In 1846 the thermometer never fell below 40°.
Snow has occasionally been known to lie on the flat coun¬
try, but in general it is confined to the hills, from which it
melts after a day or two. But the dry cold winds, passing
over the snow which covers the hills of the continent, cause
a sensation of cold more piercing than is common in more
northern regions.
The mortality among the garrisons is found to be rather
less than that at Malta or Gibraltar; but pulmonary patients
are speedily cut off, and all those complaints passing
under the name of nervous are soon aggravated, particularly
in females, by the Ionian climate. The chief local disease
is intermittent fever, to which the natives are extremely
subject, particularly in damp situations. Cholera first visited
the islands in 1850, when it was very fatal in Zante and
Cephalonia. Corfu was by some supposed to owe its escape
then to the highly electrkal state of its atmosphere; but
in 1855 Corfu too was attacked, along with the other islands,
and suffered severely. Instances of longevity occur in the
Ionian Islands, particularly in Ithaca,5 and Dr Davy met
with some instances of very protracted life in Zante6 in
1824, and one at Paxo in the same year ;7 and a poor man,
supported chiefly by charity, died a few years ago at Corfu,
having attained, as was said, the age of 104 or 105 years.
Such cases, however, are far from common throughout the
states; and in the absence of more precise data, w’e must rather
incline to judge that the usual term of life is not long, where
the species comes early to maturity, and fourscore is spoken
of as a wonderful period of life among those w ho are exempt
from exposure and privation. 4 he old registers are not. to
be implicitly relied on, any more than the vague impression
of the common people as to their ages. A table drawn up
1 Parliamentary Papers, Despatch of Sir G. Ward. 3d August 1852, and Blue Book for 1854.
2 Travels in Greece ; Notes on Ionian Islands and Malta, 1842.
■! By Mr D. M'Kenzie, sub-librarian to Garrison Library, Corfu.
4 Above 100 inches, it is said.
5 Bowen’s Ithaca, p. 4, Corfu, 1850.
6 Dr Davy’s Notes, &c., on Ionian Islands and Malta, vol. i., chap, x., pp. 313-315.
7 Ibid., vol. i., chap, viii., pp. 175, 176; 181, 182.
Ionian
Islands
Products
by Dr Benzer 1 an eminent medical practitioner, shows in¬
deed among the Roman Catholics in the town of Corfu
between 1790 and 1820, several cases of personf pS
100 years, and six men attaining 90; but it is not <]<?
scnptive enough to afford much information
^ heir chief products may be considered, in one sense
common to the seven islands, although they have not been
cultivated everywhere with equal success or to the same
extent. Ohve oil and wine are produced in all; currants
m Zante, Cephaloma, and Ithaca; silk chiefly in Zante
and cotton in Cephalonia; flax, wheat, maize, and othei^
cereals, are grown everywhere ; orano-es lemons ami
throughout!1 a" the f''UitS 0fS0llthem E™P^. are abundant
No animals but goats and sheep are reared in the
elands Some cows are kept to supply the city of Corfu
with milk, but they are obtained from Albania; and almost
all the horses are imported from the same quarter. From
Albania, too, come the oxen for the supply of butcher
tTthe north!67 ^ °rigina,1y from districts farther
The less productive nature of the soil has stimulated to
greater activity of cultivation in Zante and Cephalonia-
but elsewhere there is little or no energy ; old syftems are
iiguly adhered to; and the implements of husbandry are
almost as primitive as in the days of Homer and Hesiod
The country people are even slow in taking advantage of
the good toll-free roads made under British^ authority,”and
prefer transporting their produce on the backs of horses to
using carts, in one of which the burdens of eight or ten
animals could be carried with greater facility.
• le ^ CroP l!Lonly biennial3 under the most favourable
cumstances. .1<or some years has been sadly deficient
no full yield having been obtained between 1834 and 1855
Ihe ohye is always grafted, and begins to bear fruit in 15
years ; it is commonly left to grow up without pruning or
other care, except a little occasional manuring and loosen¬
ing of the earth round the roots. The fruit is not gathered
by hand but allowed to fall, and then picked off the ground,
fiequently after it has begun to decay. When collected in
sufficient quantity it is carried to the mill, where it is first
crushed under a heavy stone worked by horses, and then
the pulp is subjected to a screw-press, turned by men
Ihis harvest begins in November, and lasts till March or
April. Ufficial returns show the last great crop of 1834 to
have amounted to 253,923 barrels (of 16 gallons), of which
were exported 197,777. '
The currant of Northern Europe (Ribes) does not thrive
in the Ionian Islands. What bears the denomination is the
truit of a dwarf vine (Vitis corinthiaca), which is thought
to have originated the word currant, through the French
name of Raisin de Corinlhe, given it from the place of its
first export to the West. The currant vine bears after three
years, and the stocks last for 20 or 30 years. The fruit is ripe
in August, and when gathered is spread out to dry on pre¬
pared spots ; a process which occupies from 14 days to
three weeks. The blight so prevalent in Europe did not
spare the currants of the islands; but in all places seriously
muT’and ln moSt whoIIy destroyed, the crops of 1853-4-5.
Ihe disease is supposed (1855) to be on the decrease how¬
ever, and the fumes of sulphur have been found a remedy
IONIAN ISLANDS.
445
of great efficacy, where the difficulty of applying it has t •
toeVl98™r,h in I amounted llTi
5 J)l]tin 1854 it was only 10,900,650 lbs ^
the quality being bad at the same time. ’
Neither raisins nor figs, nor other dried fruits, are ex-
kfmk1-5 Tv"6 f[eSfl"rangeS sentaway 5 although various
kinds, including the Mandarin orange of Malta, succeed
the islands ; nor the singular melons of Cephalonia
May ’ Butg in 0ct0ber> remain till April or
mention ""important, it may be curious to
mention, that as citrons ripen in no place nearer to Po-
and than the Ionian Islands, they have been sent to obtain
high prices from the wealthy Polish Jews, wllo Ton, for
them as the choicest ornament of the arbors in whicluhey
celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles. The prickly pear
{(Jactus Opuntia), which is the food of the cochineal thrives
in all the islands, of which Zante alone collects the in«ect
exporting it to I unis. Probably the same might be done
sevenIs 1 andT InlfTl ^ ^ ^VauyofTe
seven islands. In Cephalonia it is raised in some quantity
and of good quality. F«W forms a considerabfo artiefe
of export from Santa Maura alone, but might probab y be
grown elsewhere Madder (Rubia tinctorlmJ Jws wild
throughout the islands, and is used by the peasantry ftw-
t \ung but it is not cultivated, as it no doubt might be as
a valuable export. A successful experiment has shown
that, in Corfu at least, indigo can be grown, and the dye
obtained from it; but no practical result has followed 4 *
ihe Ionian seas contain abundance offish, yet even the
markets of the towns are by no means so well supplied as
Sm^r fiShermen n0t Cari^ ~ - put
villale" feWmata "“"r COarSe C,0t'’S are maiIe in the
la es, tor home use , and in most are potteries for a coarse tures.
earthenware, the best articles of which are the porous kirs
made in Zante, for cooling water by evaporation.P In seTe-
ra places, but chiefly at Corfu, silver and gold are prettily
worked into filigree and chased ornaments ; and in Zante silk
is dyed, and woven into scarfs and handkerchiefs. The
sweetmeats of Zante and Cephalonia are esteemed, and the
ujueurs of the latter, particularly an imitation of Zara
Maraschino, are prized beyond the islands ; and the soap of
Zante has a good reputation through all the Levant. In
the V enetian time the raising and weaving of cotton at Ce¬
phalonia is said to have been carried to a great extent, but
they are now very hunted. Salt is obtained in considerable
quantity at both Corfu and Santa Maura by evaporation
The chief export trade of the islands is that of oil to
emce and I rieste, and that of currants to England The
principal imports are of grain from Taganrog and other
ports of the Black Sea, as the islands do not grow altoge¬
ther above a fourth of a year’s consumption ; and of manu¬
factured goods from England and the Austrian dominions,
from both of which quarters they must be admitted at the
Paris6 dUtieS’ accordi"g to a provision of the treaty of
The lonians, especially those of Cephalonia, are much en-
share ofthe carrying trade of
the Black Sea and the Levant is in their hands. The traffic
between the sister islands is not important in point of value,
dSlmb Mr “ w »/ »** iw*. » a. in Lib™,, ,„i. vii., p. 33,
‘be k” fZYllll) it returned ^ ’’ ^ ^ “ Ch“«ed W n»niber, ,s in
Cr°P °f V“,6“i »“k * Foduct ihiC, imported to Engl.ud from Turkey, the ek.ent of 8000
Treaty of Pans (5th *ov. 1815), art. vii.; it is given in Jervis’s History of Corfu (1852, London, Colburn), Appendix F.
446
IONIAN ISLANDS.
Ionian but is constant and employs a number of bands ; and of small
Islands, craft, which, in shape and various peculiarities, such as the
1 ■' " ' wickerwork fence overlapping the bulwarks, recall the ves¬
sels of classical antiquity.1
For short passages, in many places is used a very rude
canoe, hollowed out of a single tree, and thence termed
monoxylon.
A peculiar flag belongs to the Ionian republic, under
which its vessels sail, and which is recognised by other
powers.
Money. The Ionian government, as the head of an independent
state, issues money of its own, but gets it struck in Eng¬
land. The Ionian coins now in circulation are, silver pieces
of 6 oboli, or 3 pence, and copper pieces of 1 obolo, or ^-d.,
and £ obolo, or Jd., with piccoli, or small bits equal to £th
of a halfpenny. Besides these, British money of all denomi¬
nations passes at its full value, with a vast variety of foreign
moneys, which become a legal tender after being included
in an official tariff' of the rates at which they will be taken
by the government.2
The legal interest of money is 6 per cent, on mortgages,
and 10 percent, on personal obligations. In loans on bot¬
tomry there is no limitation, and 3 per cent, a month is the
general rate stipulated. Usury is very prevalent, and many
ingenious expedients are adopted to evade the stringent
laws against it. A most useful remedy has been found in
the establishment of the Ionian Bank, set up in 1839 by a
joint-stock company of British and Ionian shareholders, hav¬
ing the head office in London, and branches in Corfu, Cepha-
lonia, and Zante, with corresponding houses in Athens and
Patras; beginning with a capital of L.100,000, which has
since been increased to L.150,000. The bank affords great
facilities in discounts and advances, and allows interest on
deposits. It enjoys an exclusive privilege3 of issuing pro¬
missory notes. These, being payable on demand, form a
convenient and favourite circulating medium.4 * * The smaller
growers of oil and of currants have been too prone to follow
an improvident system in the disposal of their produce, by
throwing it into the hands of agents. Oil, requiring some time
to become clear from the vegetable matter suspended in it,
ought to be kept in quantities in stone vats or troughs. But
to save the expense of these and of a magazine, it is common
to deposit the oil with a storekeeper, who receives it impure
and delivers it pure, of the same quality, but in quantity
diminished by his allowed per-centage for his trouble—com¬
monly 3 per cent. In like manner, currants, when re¬
moved from the drying ground, need to be placed in a store,
safe from damp and insects, where they have to be watched
to prevent fermentation, and for this care a certain rate is
charged. In both cases the storekeepers register what is
taken in, for which they grant receipts, and the owners often
draw upon them for money against the value of the deposits ;
an account-current being kept of such transactions till the
sale of the articles, which is frequently managed by the
storekeepers, whose first settlement often gives rise to dis¬
pute. In the oil-trade, too, it is common for groweis to
grant oil bills or notes, promising to deliver at a fixed term
a stated quantity of oil at a certain price; which results
in a gambling speculation on the future market-value of Ionian
oil. Islands.
While money bears such a value as has been stated, it is
rather surprising to find the price of land so high as it is,
although no exclusive political privileges attach to that sort
of property. Estimates of land are based on the average
returns for the last 10 years,0 and are made up so as to allow
4 per cent, on the capital to be expended ; but it is well
known that, practically, buyers are satisfied if they draw
3 per cent, on their investments.
Insurance, with all its wonderful benefits, is little known Insurance,
to the lonians. Of late years, the Austrian Lloyd Company
of Trieste, whose activity is doing so much good in the Le¬
vant, has had a branch for insurance of various kinds in the
chief Ionian Islands, but its operations seem to have been
limited to insurance of ships and against fire. Practically,
too, the Ionian Pension Scheme, organized in 1830, serves
as a society of mutual assurance, and works well, by main¬
taining a fund which goes far to save the general revenue
from liability to the public servants who retire after having
contributed to the fund, the amount of which in 1854 was
upwards of L.50,000.8
The Ionian revenues are mainly derived from export Kevenues.
duties on produce7, import duties, and stamps. In average
years the aggregate of the general and municipal revenues
might be taken at about L. 164,000. The loss from failing
crops is now proposed to be made up by a duty on houses,
which have hitherto been exempt from taxation.
The ordinary expenditure of the country ought to be
within the above amount, especially since the liberal re¬
duction of the sum contributed towards the cost of the
military force to L.25,000. But embarrassment in the
finances, beginning in 1835, although temporarily checked
in 1842 (when the public debt amounted to about
150,000),8 has gone on without effectual remedy, till pro¬
posals to that end were made in 1855 to the Ionian legis¬
lature.9
The dominant religion in the Ionian states is that of the Religion.
Greek or Oriental Church, the patriarch of Constantinople
being recognised as the head, although he is not so in Russia
or in Greece. The three orders of clergy—bishops, priests,
and deacons, are maintained. Each island has its bishop,
elected by its own clergy, and approved of by the govern¬
ment, but not consecrated without the authority of the
patriarch. In the ceremony of consecration is observed a
relic of the old deference to popular approval; for before
each of the proper episcopal vestments is put upon the
bishop-elect, the assembled multitude is asked by open
proclamation, “Is he worthy?” and an unfavourable re¬
sponse would, it is said, cause proceedings to be stayed.
The bishops of the four principal islands, Corfu, Cepha-
lonia, Zante, and Santa Maura, have the title of Metropo¬
litan (equivalent to that of archbishop), and discharge by
turns, for five years, the duties of the channel of communica¬
tion with the patriarch; which gives them for the time the
style of Exarch, a name derived from that of the representa¬
tives of the Byzantine empire at Ravenna and elsewhere.
Some of the Ionian sees are of great antiquity, and their
1 Bowen’s Ithaca, Appendix I.   
2 Amongst these are the Mexican and South American dollar, rated at 4s. 4d. Doubts have been started in e e i errane-
the good policy of admitting them as currency, as their fineness is sofnetimes questioned, and their inequality in v.eigi is cons a y
found. Hence it is argued, the heavy coins will be used as bullion, and none but light ones will be sent to places v ere ey are
rency at the same value as the Spanish Pillar dollar. Of 1000 South American dollars weighed at Malta m 1834, 718 were over we.g ,
41 exact weight, and 241 under weight. See pamphlet On Currency of Malta, by a British Merchant, Malta, o . n na
dollars go for 4s. 2d. only. The dollar of account in the Ionian States is the Venetian or imperial = 4s. 2d., marked ihe 1 mar aoi
is = 4s. 4d., and is marked 0.
3 For twenty years from 23d October 1837.
4 The smallest are = L.l, and the largest, 100 Spanish dollars = L.21, 13s. 4d. roqio 19 9d
6 Formerly five years ; altered to ten, after so many failures of crops. L.50,91U, s.
7 Chiefly one of 18 per cent, ad valorem on oil and currants, fixed in May 1833, by 14th act of 4th parliament.
8 Speech of the Right Hon. J. A. Stewart Mackenzie, Lord High Commissioner, 3d March 1842, in Ionian Government Gazette.
8 Speech of the Right Hon. Sir John Young, Lord High Commissioner, 18tb June 1853, in Ionian Government Gazette.
bishops may be recognised in early councils of the church
It is commonly said that the Greek Church permits its
clergy to marry; but this is not a correct mode of statino-
the extent of the indulgence, which is limited to allowing
persons, who have married before ordination, to retain their
wives and yet enter the sacred profession; and the rank
of bishop is denied to a churchman not a bachelor or a
widower. 1 he clergy are extremely ill paid, and not unfre-
quently take a share in commercial or other occupations.
As a body, m spite of honourable exceptions, they cannot
lie deemed other than ignorant, and not highly regarded by
tiie community ; and comparatively few of the higher classes
enter the sacred profession. The Oriental Church has
never^ withheld any part of the Bible from the study of the
laity, ^one, however, without some education, could
have profited by such a license till of late years, when
Lr.t.sh and American religious societies have circulated
versions of the Scriptures in modern Greek. The liturgy
ot the Eastern Church is in the ancient Greek of the
lathers, and many of the prayers are reputed to be com¬
positions of St Basil, and the same language is employed
in the pastoral letters of the patriarch. The Ionian church
has not followed the example set in Greece of prohibiting
the marriage of its orthodox with heretics, and is ver?
tolerant towards Protestants, while it views Roman Ca¬
tholics with jealousy, and Jews with abhorrence. Through¬
out the seven islands the number of both clergymen and
churches is far beyond what is required, the latter exceed¬
ing _000. Except the prelates, the clergy are not sup¬
ported by the general treasury, but by the income of ec-
c esiastical property, now in the hands of government, and
by special endowments. Many churches are in the hands
o fraternities, and still more in those of lay patrons, who
provide for the service out of the income, dues, and offerings,
and are not called on to account for the overplus.2
The Latin Church, which was dominant under the Vene¬
tians, has a bishop resident at Corfu, but not permitted
to take his title from an Ionian diocese; and out of the
former property of the establishment the ecclesiastical body
is supported. 1 he Roman Catholics are not numerous
and consist more of foreigners than descendants of Vene¬
tians and other settlers.
The Church of England has a military chaplain at each
of the three principal stations for the troops—Corfu, Cepha-
lonia, and Zante. I he appointment of a government civil
chaplain was for the first time made in 1836, but it was dis-
continued after about three years. Since that period, the
civilians at Corfu have occasionally, with aid from religious
bodies in England, raised by subscription funds to make
up a salary for an officiating clergyman. The islands,
being a foreign state, are not within the proper diocese of
the bishop of Gibraltar; and the act of parliament enabling
government to contribute to the endowment of chapels at
some of our Mediterranean factories has been held inappli¬
cable to them as it at present stands.
Several thousand Jews are to be found in the islands,
most of whom are domiciled in the town of Corfu, having
originally come from Spain. In former times they were
exposed to great ill usage, and even now do not escape the
contumely of the vulgar, who will not allow them to show
themselves at Easter. Till of late years their cemetery was
not permitted to be inclosed, and they still labour under va-
IONIAN ISLANDS.
441
nous disabilities, civil as well as political. They may be- Ionian
come attorneys but not advocates, and are excluded from Islands,
the public service. Medicine is open to them, and amon<>- v'-~'
their practitioners are always to be met with men eminent
for skill and ability. The laws respect their sabbaths and
some of their high festivals, by exempting them from beino-
called to attend the tribunals on those days. Their chief
occupation is trade, in which many have acquired wealth
and respectability.
The language of the country people in the islands has Lanmiaire
always been Greek, more or less corrupted. That employed
111 fociety an{l in commerce, as well as in legislation
and official business, was Italian, till the recent adoption of
Gieek as the language of the legislature, courts of justice,
and al public departments. The Italian commonly spoken
partook naturally, in a great degree of the peculiar Vene-
tian dialect. The several islands dispute the purity of their
Lneek. Corfu, from the mixture of other languages, and
the comparative neglect of the native dialect by the higher
classes, was supposed to have had its Greek more debased;
and Santa Maura, having less intercourse with foreigners,
claimed for its vernacular speech the first place in point of
correctness. When Greek journals were printed in Corfu,
Cephalonia, and Zante, some years ago, their style was
reckoned by competent critics little inferior to that of the
contemporary Athenian newspapers. Nevertheless, whe¬
ther the reflection be agreeable or not to their self-compla¬
cency, the lonians may rest assured, that in the Hellenic
w orld the true standard of language will be looked for at
Athens, not at Corfu. English is pretty generally under¬
stood, and is spoken well by some who have never been
out of the island ; but its employment as the sole language
of translation has not been provided for so distinctly as the
constitution of 1817 directed to be done, before the intro¬
duction of Greek into daily use should take place.
1 ublic instruction forms an important branch of expendi- Education,
tine, about. L. 10,000 a-year being the charge for schools
in all the islands and the university at Corfu.a In the life¬
time of the late Frederick Earl of Guildford, who was its
chancellor and spent large sums of his own upon its chairs
and students, and while, during the subjection of Greece,
the Ionian Islands were in some measure the metropolis of
the Hellenic race, this last establishment might be said to
flourish. Now, without extraneous support, and with a more
favourably situated rival at Athens, it has become un¬
suited to the wants of the population. A beneficent
lady, the late Countess Mocenigo, in bequeathing funds for
educational purposes, directed scholarships to be awarded
to meritorious students, for enabling them to go abroad and
finish their education in the colleges of larger countries;
and many think the Ionian government would do better
to act upon a similar system while improving and extending
the schools within the states. As a stimulus to acquire some
elementary instruction, the election laws prohibit anv elector
from using the franchise till he has shown he can both read
and write; and it is satisfactory to find the ability to read
and write so diffused, that out of 981 persons (943 males
and 38 females) brought before the Corfu tribunals4 superior
to the police court, between 1st May 1843 and 1st May
1844, 210 was the number of those who appeared ignorant
of both.
During the rule of Venice, the islands observed the Vene- Justice.
*•»» Mm .nd retire into a con-
3 .ins*ance of.th!s is the church a* C°rfu containing the relic of St Spiridion, and belonging to one of the BuWi families
"S 180; —Vi-eLe-V; «£
Statistica Penale, dal 1 Maggio 1841 ai 30 Aprile 1844, bv Dr Giulio Tinaldn Prefer,tier-; „ e „ , ,
lished at Corfu, 4to, 1846. 7 u o J iraid0 1 retenden—a set of very well-arranged tables, pub-
448
Ionian
Islands.
Descent.
IONIAN ]
tian statutes, civil and criminal, recourse being had when
they were silent or defective to the Roman law of Justinian.
Under the French dominion (1807-1817), the legal system
of Napoleon was not established. After the local legisla¬
ture was organized by the constitution of 1817, various
enactments were passed, abrogating or modifying former
laws. The same constitution contemplated the exchange
of die Venetian laws for entire codes, which should form a
part of the constitution itself, and receiving like it the pre¬
vious sanction of the crown, have a character of permanency,
from the impossibility of their alteration by the Ionian par¬
liament. In 1841, by what seems a violation of this positive
provision, there were issued a civil code (of about 2100 arti¬
cles), and a criminal code (of about 800 articles), with relative
codes of procedure, all derived mainly from the Code Napo¬
leon. These bodies of laws have received some modifica¬
tions, but have been allowed to stand in the situation of
purely local laws, and liable to change by the ordinary legis¬
lature. Each island has a judicial establishment of its own,
consisting of civil, commercial, and criminal courts, together
with police magistracies. From these courts, beyond a cer¬
tain amount of value, and a certain scale of punishment,
there is an appeal to the supreme council of justice at Corfu,
which decides in last resort—the appellate jurisdiction of
the privy council not extending to the Ionian Islands as a
foreign state. This court is composed of four members ;
two Ionian, named by the senate, and two, either British or
Ionian (but in practice always the former), appointed by the
crown. These judges take the chair for a year in rotation ;
but the president not having a casting vote, when they are
equally divided in opinion, the question is carried before the
lord high commissioner and the president of the senate,
and the voice of the former preponderates. T he number
of cases decided in appeal is nearly 1000 each year, by far the
greater part being reviewed on written pleadings without
being argued viva voce. I rial by jury, in a modified shape,
is resorted to in cases of alleged libel, having been intro¬
duced as a provision of the press law of 1848.1 It has been
little resorted to, and cannot be said to have given satis¬
faction. The courts in all the islands have the assistance
of a highly intelligent and respectable bar. Every see has
an ecclesiastical court in which its prelate sits alone ; the
court of appeal being composed of the exarch (or the bishop
next him in succession to the office) and three clergymen,
the prelate having the casting vote.
How far the lonians can be looked upon as true descend¬
ants of the Greeks of antiquity, it is not easy to determine.
Some German authorities consider that Fallermayer2 is coi-
reet in supposing the present continental Greeks to be
wholly of Sclavonic origin, dating from the seventh and
eighth centuries, a conclusion rather judged too sweeping
with regard to Greece Proper, and which is less applicable
no doubt to the islands, whose rural population was not so
exposed to be cast off or mingled with foreign races. I his,
with the arguments founded on language, character, and
often physiognomy, warrants the belief that among the
country people there is yet some of the ancient Greek
blood.3 The inhabitants of the towns are more likely to be
of mixed origin, and most of the higher classes seem to be
of foreign descent. Each island has widely ramified septs
or clans who have the same name, like the nomen gentile
of the Romans, while the particular families have some dis¬
tinguishing appellation. Few of the sirnames had other
than vowel terminations till it very lately became fashion¬
able to add a Grecizing s to the heretofore final letter. As
written in Italian times, we find, at Corfu, many houses of
S L A N D S.
the Theotoky, Bulgari, &c.; in Zante, the T olterra, Sala- Ionian
mos, &c.; in Ithaca, the Petala, Caravia, and Dendrino, &c. ; Islands,
while in Cephalonia, the principal names form an Italian
heroic verse, when thus arranged, “ Loverdo, Metaxa,
Tipaldo, e Vocca.” The name of Tipaldo is thought to
be derived from the French Thibaut, and that of Corafa
(in Cephalonia) from the Italian Caraffa. At Corfu the
Venetian name of Dandolo is found unchanged, and the
Zambelli of Santa Maura belongs to the noble house of that
name established at Trent. The heraldry of the islands is
Venetian, and has been jealously maintained. Some Ionian
families, ennobled by the Venetian seigniory, and amount-^
ing at present to about 50, have the hereditary title of
Count, which is borne before their Christian name by all
members of the house, male and female, but is transmitted
by the male only. Sounding titles are liked. 1 he president
of the senate is styled “ His Highness,” the senators “ the
Most Excellent,” members of assembly “ the Most Noble,”
and every elector is qualified to write himself “ Noble,” that
having been ruled by the constitution of 1803 ; a mode of
republican equalization by levelling up instead of levelling
down. Several families, untitled as w'ell as titled, are un¬
derstood to trace their pedigrees up to a period anterior to
the Venetian rule ; and one or two charters of the Neapo¬
litan time (before 1386), and even of the Greek empire,
are said to be extant in their archives.
In 1818 the Prince-regent instituted “the Most Distin¬
guished Order of St Michael and St George,” divided into
three classes, and originally giving precedence in Great
Britain ; but by a later statute having that effect only when
the sovereign shall so declare on investiture. It was mainly
designed to rewrard lonians and Maltese; but the commis¬
sioners of inquiry into the affairs of Malta some years ago,4
did not consider” it had been of any utility in that colony,
and perhaps the same view might be taken of it in relation
to the Ionian republic.
In 1825 the Ionian legislature5 put an end to entails, property,
prohibiting them for the future, and giving great facility to
the cutting off of those in existence. The old entails, un¬
der the form of perpetual trusts, had been designed to
favour the nearest blood of a family rather than individual
successors, and most commonly allowed all the male heirs
of equal grade to participate. They thus locked up lands
from commerce, and impeded their improvement, failing at
the same time to obviate the endless subdivision of pro¬
perty. So far had this last evil gone, that the fifth part of
a single olive-tree was actually a point in dispute not many
years5ago, and still smaller fractions have been spoken of.
There are no great fortunes inherited, but many families
are in comfortable circumstances ; and some holders of land,
who also engage in trade, are believed to be wealthy; in
one case, report has attributed to the party no less than
L.100,000; but if this be not an exaggerated estimate, it
is founded in great measure on credits which could not be
realized at pleasure. If we take as a measure of Ionian
incomes the highest official salaries, that of the piesident
of the senate, before a recent hasty reduction, w-as L.1350,
and that of each senator was the half. Families of high
respectability are satisfied with assigning to a daughter a
marriage-portion of 6000 Spanish dollars = L.1240, which
may ultimately come to be the chief source of her support
in widowhood. . T
The price of labour in the larger islands is high, in
1824 field labourers got Is. 3d.b a-day, and in 1855 not less.
Cheapness of living might be presumed from the mode¬
rate incomes of the native gentry; but foreigners do not
1 Act 68th of 8th parliament. 2 Geschichte der Morea.
3 See the question as to the Hellenes generally, discussed in a note to chap. Ixvi. of Thir wa s istory oj
4 Parliamentary Papers, Report of Malta Commissioners (Messrs Austin and Lewis). _
5 Act 34th of 2d parliament. 8 ^ Davy’s Notes, vol. i., chap x., p. 3, fa.
Ionian
Islands.
Habits,
find this in the larger places where the conveniences of life
are to be had ; and to obtain the same amount of comfort as
in any part of Great Britain beyond the capital, the same
sum must be spent in the islands alluded to
In externals the higher orders of lonians are becoming
assimilated to those of Western Europe. Few ladies now
wear the dress of their own islands, but submit to the fa¬
shions of London and Paris. The female peasantry keep
up the proper costumes of their districts, which are very
various, and sometimes costly, from the profusion of gold and
silver ornaments. The attire of the men is more uniform
and simple, except when the plain brown jacket is exchanged
ior a blue one enriched with embroidery. They like° to
appear in their best at the church festivals, when they meet
also td dance in the open air. Their dances, although tradi¬
tionally derived from those of the ancients, have little va¬
riety or grace, and no animation except in some executed by
men alone. In the lower ranks, an oriental feeling still pre¬
vails and women are generally treated as inferiors, and the
lazy husband makes the wife his drudge, enforcing his com¬
mands with the stick, of which it is a point of honour for
her not to complain. The upper classes are giving ladies
their due place in society ; but from some aristocratic feel¬
ings, do not welcome the birth of a girl, who may one day
carry her dowry away from the family. There is a strong
dislike to women remaining unmarried ; yet the objection
to their going into society is but gradually disappearing.
Marriages in every grade are for the most part arranged be¬
tween the families, and the parties most concerned often see
each other for the first time after their union has been settled.
Divorces seem to have been granted formerly on slighter
ground than would now be held sufficient, and they occur
less^frequently. The Greek Church does not sanction any
one s marrying oftener than thrice, and prohibits matrimony
between cousins three times removed,—a restriction at one
time thought to extend still further.1
Baptismal names are in many cases taken from the pa¬
tron saints; whence Spiridion is so common in Corfu
Gerasimo in Cephalonia, and Dionisio in Zante. Ancient
names hovyever abound,—Aspasia for girls ; Leonidas, So¬
crates, and Themistocles, for boys. To strangers the effect
is odd, as they do not readily regard the name as an ordi¬
nary appellative, but think of its ancient bearer or of its
meaning, and start at hearing that Aristides is a fraudulent
bankrupt, or that Zoe (life), and Athanasius (immortal) are
both dead. Saints are sometimes invoked on account of
their names,—as in marriage contracts, Procopius;2 and
in parturition, Eleutherus.3 * 5 6
. preek families frequently take into their service young
girls, who receive very small wages, but are treated with
much indulgence and familiarity, and have the promise of
a dowry to assist their settlement in life, after they shall
have reached a suitable age.
In the country districts there are many usages which may
be traced back to antiquity; and the mode of living has little
changed from the earliest times. The “ villam’’ are addicted
to gambling, and the old game of the “ morra” is seen
almost as much as in the Campagna di Roma. The educated
classes have emancipated themselves from superstition; but
it has great sway over the vulgar, and an oath on the relics
of a saint is regarded with much higher awe than one upon
the Gospels. A mixture of superstition and idleness used
to cause such observance of saints’ days and other festivals,
that, including Sundays, there were above 200 days on
which work was not done ; but the church does not require
IONIAN ISLANDS.
449
this cessation from labour, and it is practically limited to Ionian
pai ticular festivals, which are quite numerous enough. Much Islands,
as the Jews are abhorred, it is curious that at Easter fami- v ■-
lies of every rank kill a lamb, when the church bells ring
joyfully on the Saturday just an hour before noon, and mark
a cross with the blood on the lintel of the door, from which
it is never washed off. Belief in the effect of the “ evil eye”
is very strong and general; and it is supposed to cause harm
to children, animals, and property. Nav, witchcraft, in the
shape of spells and philtres to create love, and of fortune-
elling, is not exploded. The terrible “ vendetta” of
Southern Europe is not entirely eradicated from the Ionian
people, but it is much tamed, although it often displays it¬
self in malicious mischief to the property of the hated indi-
ymual; and in its most dreadful form it would be rarer than
it is, did the present law, adopted in 1847, not require proof
of premeditation, which it is extremely difficult to bring
forward. Inebriety is not an Ionian vice ; among the lower
orders it is extremely rare, and among the higher classes
is almost unknown. Music is generally relished in the
Ionian States ; all ranks evince the gift of a good ear, and
the opera is a favourite recreation in the islands which can
command one. Many excellent musicians, vocal and in¬
strumental, are to be met with among both ladies and gen¬
tlemen of the best society.5
Of the Ionian character a passing stranger is likely to take Character,
a ayouiable impression. In manner, they resemble well-
bred Italians rather than the French of the present day
lo great politeness they add ready speech, and take plea-
suie in making themselves agreeable; or perhaps in the
more refined art of making their hearer imagine that he has
rendeied himself agreeable to them. Their perception of
chaiacter is almost intuitive, and affords them an incalcu¬
lable advantage, where they wish to persuade. They dis¬
cuss with temper, as well as ingenuity, in business as well
as in society. In their family relations there is much kind¬
liness and good nature, where neither interest nor passion
enters. Children are indulged to a fault, and permitted to
give vent to their feelings, instead of being taught to re¬
strain them. From the mode of contracting marriage, it is
said that, although society is never shocked by improper
manifestations in public, the standard of matrimonial morality
is by no means high. But the most generally besetting
sin of the Ionian is that which was so conspicuous among
the ancient Greeks—mendacity. In the idle rumours of the
day it is wonderful how many minute details are given, with
apparent accuracy, on the principle laid down by the ser¬
vant in Sheridan’s comedy, who thought one lie must be
supported by many.6 Then in more important matters the
widely-spread evil is of serious magnitude. As regards
others, the courts of justice every day experience the ut¬
most difficulty in ascertaining exactly the truth. Want
of good faith in fulfilling engagements is common, to an ex¬
tent very astonishing in a country where there is commerce,
and consequently credit; yet the high profits expected
from money, and the low return looked for from land, prove
the difficulty of recovering capital lent out. Other con¬
tracts than those regarding loans are constantly violated,
and parties do their utmost to overreach one another with
an ingenuity well worthy of a better motive, and with a de¬
gree of disapprobation from society noways commensurate.
Litigation is therefore begun with boldness, and continued
with obstinacy; and it is well known that the lonians are
more unreasonable and troublesome than any of those who
come in the way of business to the British consulates in
2 ih’Ai:g;ee m0re ; am!t0 have aITlied the rule t0 spiritual affinity, or that caused by relationship to one’s godfather and godmother.
4 Cnrl Z nt0*0*‘°**Z°*a*™: „ u . . 3 The freer or deliverer; in Italian, San Liberals.
Lortu every year, Zante and Cephalonia occasionally.
5 Signora Angri, who sung lately at Covent Garden, is a Corfiot.
6 The Rivals, Act ii., sc. 1, Fag loq.
VOL. XII. 3 L
450 IONIAN:
Ionian the Levant. In the political affairs of the lonians, the charge
Islands. Qp tergiversation is vehemently bandied about, but it pro-
duces little effect on those who receive it, or on the public
at large. Like the Greeks of antiquity, the lonians are am¬
bitious, vain, and as impatient of the pre-eminence of others,
as any who have felt “ envy, the vice of republics ;’n so that
the rustic who could not endure to hear Aristides called
“ the just,” would not appear singular in the Septinsular
States.
If genius has not displayed itself among the lonians, the
talents of many of them have, in various walks, led them to
honourable distinction. In the sixteenth century the gram¬
marian Matteo Devari (Matthaeus Devarius), a native of
Corfu, wrote his Latin treatise on the Greek Particles, since
superseded by the larger works of Hoogeveen and others,
but valuable at the time of its posthumous publication.1 2
Eugene Bulgari, who died in 1806, archbishop of Cherson,
was also a Corfiot, whom the Empress Catherine II. drew to
Russia, on account of his celebrity for Greek scholarship.
Ugo Foscolo belonged to the same island, and so does the
Cavaliere Andrea Mustoxidi,3 whom we name though liv¬
ing, as he has already a European reputation for his Italian
version of Herodotus. Carburi the engineer, who per¬
formed the herculean task of transporting to St Petersburg
the huge mass of granite for the pedestal to Falconet’s
statue of Peter the Great, was from Cephalonia. Thence,
also, went into the service of France, Count Loverdo, who
became a general under Napoleon. Corfu was the birth¬
place of Count Giovanni Capo dTstria, who attained a high
rank among diplomatists, and rose to be president of Greece,
the station he occupied when assassinated by Greek hands,
from which he was justly entitled to look for protection and
support. In the fine arts, Corfu may boast of the late Cava¬
liere Prossalendi, whose ability as a sculptor is attested less by
the bronze statue of Sir Frederick Adam, which the artist left
unfinished, and which was completed by others after his
death (to stand on the esplanade of Corfu), than by works
which may be seen and admired elsewhere.4
Corfu. . Corfu5 6 (anc. names Scheriaf Phceacia, Corcyra).—This
island, the most northern of the Ionian States, lies along
the coast of Albania (Epirus), for the chief part, at a
distance of about 6 or 8 miles, but at one point of the
N.E. channel being little farther than 1^ mile. It is of
a curved form, not very unlike the sickle,7 to which the
ancients compared it; its extreme length is about 40 miles ;
its breadth varies, nowhere exceeding 12 miles ;8 at the town
of Corfu it is about 6, but lessens gradually towards the
southern extremity. Towards Albania, or E., it turns the
hollow side, having nearly in its centre the town and har¬
bour of Corfu. The island may be said to be separated
into three parts by hills running across it; the northern
range being thatofSan Salvador9 (the ancient Istone),10 and
San Pantaleone ; the southern being formed of the hills of
Benizze ; while the middle section of the land is backed by
S L A N D S.
the mountain of Santi Deca11 and other hills, descending Ionian
close or near to the sea on their western sides. San Sal- Llands.
vador is something above 3000 feet high, and Santi Deca v-’*-'
is not much inferior. The whole country presents the
utmost diversity of ground, and is well clothed with wood,
while many places display the most varied and luxuriant
vegetation. The want of streams capable of producing
much effect in the landscape is made up for by the sea,
which towards the E. wears the resemblance of an exten¬
sive lake, with the Albanian mountains towering beyond,
bare indeed, but picturesque in outline and hues, with their
second range lofty enough to add to the view snow on
their summits till after the close of June. The prospects
from the more elevated spots are magnificent, taking in both
seas, and in clear weather discovering the line of the Italian
coast, near Otranto, although above 70 miles away. In
all directions the villages, with the churches and belfries,
add greatly to the effect, placed as they commonly are in
high and prominent situations, and mingled with wood.
The town of Corfu (pop. above 20,000) stands upon very
uneven ground, forming the broad part of a peninsula,
whose termination in the citadel is cut from it by an arti¬
ficial fosse, formed in a natural gulley, having a salt-water
ditch at the bottom. Seen from the water, or from a height,
it is picturesque in masses, but in detail it is not to be praised
for either beauty or comfort. Having grown up within
fortifications, where every foot of ground was precious,
there is nothing spacious, except the handsome esplanade
between the town and the citadel; and there are no build¬
ings of importance. The palace is large, but the exterior
has no architectural merits, although internally its apart¬
ments are very stately. In several parts of the town, in
which there are not many streets fit for wheel-carriages,
may be found houses of the Venetian time, with some traces
of past splendour, but they are few, and are giving place
to structures in the modern French style, which are more
convenient for habitation.
Travellers generally agree that Corfu is the most beau¬
tiful of all the Greek isles, except, perhaps, Candia (anc.
Crete), which is less easily visited. But foreigners who
have been long in Corfu complain of the monotonous colour
of the olive, whose grayish-green is little relieved by the
cypress and pine, or mulberry and jujubier. This is the
more to be regretted since the island is adapted for
many different trees, such as various descriptions of oak,
plane, Spanish chestnut, walnut, &c. The government of
Venice gave at one time premiums to landowners for plant¬
ing olive-trees, partly to encourage so desirable a product as
oil, and partly to discourage the raising of wheat, which
might interfere with that from the continental estates of
some Venetian nobles. Once planted, the olive has suited
the people. The number of trees in Corfu has been guessed
to be not much below six millions; the produce in the
last full oil year (1834) was 236,016 barrels of 16 gallons
1 Longfellow, Evangeline, part L, 1.
2 Maffeo Veniero the poet, archbishop of Corfu (oh. 1586) was not an Ionian, hut horn at Venice of a noble house.
3 This writer, as historiographer of the Ionian Republic, has completed a History of the Ionian Islands in Italian, which is understood
to be already in the hands of the Ionian government, but why its publication is delayed has not been explained.
4 His marble statue of Diana is in the collection of the Duke of Devonshire, and his Hero watching for Leander (also in marble) was
possessed by the late Lord Nugent. Prossalendi died in 1837.
6 Derived, it is believed, from xogutyri, in allusion to the two peaked rocks on which the citadel stands, or perhaps directly from the
modern Greek xo^tp* being written xogipoi, which sounds the same—Kigxuga is now preferred. _ _ .
6 Dr Smith, in his Classical Dictionary (yoc. Phaeates) thinks that Scheria was not the same with Corcyra; but the ancient authorities
seem to treat them as identical. Phseacia appears employed by Latin writers, as Pliny and Tibullus, but it is never used by Greek
authors. Homer names Scheria as “ land of the Phseacians,” without expressing that the entire island belonged to them.
7 They gave it sometimes the appellation of Drepane [A^scravn], w'hether referring to the implement of Ceres, or the one so cruedy
used by Chronos against Ccelus (Hesiod, Deor. Gener., 158-200).
8 When the greatest width is called twenty miles, the measurement is taken from the east end of the projecting part, likened to the
handle of the sickle, which ought rather to be computed in the length.
9 This is the old Venetian way of writing the Italian “ Salvatore.”
10 So fatally celebrated in the beginning of the Peloponnesian War.
11 This is often worse corrupted into Santa Decca. The Greek name is Si 'Ayioi 3txa, or “ the ten saintswho they were is unexplained.
IONIAN
Ionian each.1 Single trees of first quality yield sometimes as much
Islands. as one jar> or 2 gallons of oil, and this with little trouble or
^ expense beyond the collecting and pressing of the fallen
fiuit. The trees being allowed to grow unrestrained are
much larger and more wide-spreading than those in Pro¬
vence or Tuscany, and some are of great age, not under
three centuries, and frequently the stem is decayed al¬
most to the bark, which still sustains the branches. It is
worthy of remark that Homer names, as adorning the o-arden
of Alcinous, seven plants only—the wildolive,2 the oifolive 3
the pear, pomegranate, apple,4 fig, and vine.5 Of these, the
apple and pear are at present reckoned very inferior in
Corfu ; the others thrive as well as they did, and are accom¬
panied ]?y all the fruit-trees known in southern Europe, with
addition of the Japan medlar (or loquat), and in some spots
of the plantain or banana. Of fruits found in perfection
farther north, the cherry and strawberry agree with Corfu.
When undisturbed by cultivation, the myrtle, arbutus, bay,’
and ilex form a rich brushwood, and the flora is ex¬
tensive.6 The few individuals who have taken care of gar¬
dens and other rural properties in Corfu have reaped ample
fruits of their pains 5 but Corfiot proprietors in general dis-
play little taste for the country, to which they do not resort
except in autumn. Phis sort of absenteeism is probably
increased by the tenure of land, which locks up most estates
in Corfu, and is peculiar to it. It is termed “ colonia per-
petua, or perpetual tenant-right, and is regarded as a kind
of lease, yet being in its effects more akin to a subinfeudation.
The landlord grants a lease to the tenant and his heirs for
ever, for a rent, payable in kind, fixed at a certain propor¬
tion of the produce. Of old, a tenant thus obtaining half
the produce to himself, was held to be co-owner of the soil
to the extent of one-fourth, and if he had three-fourths of
the crop, his ownership came to one-half. Such a tenant
could not be expelled but for non-payment, bad culture, or
transferring his lease to another person without the land¬
lord’s consent. Attempts have been made to prohibit so
embarrassing a system.7 Agriculturists preferring this
tenure, the existing laws permit it,8 but require an express
stipulation9 for giving the tenant any right to what has been
viewed as property in the soil, while it is really more of a
security, and merely entitles the tenant to be paid for his
apparent share, if he is asked to sell his entire rights. In
paying the rent or portion of the olive crop due to the land¬
lord, whether by colonia or ordinary lease, the parties do
not wait till the oil is pressed to find how much makes a
fourth or a half, as may be, but just before the fruit drops,
valuators, mutually appointed, estimate how much each
tree will probably yield, and upon their calculation delivery
of the fruit or the oil is made, let the true quantity after¬
wards produced be greater or smaller than that estimated—
an arrangement which savours more of gambling than of
business. Agricultural improvement will not have fair
room till such evils be remedied. Traces still exist of the
large old fiefs (baronie) in Corfu, as in the other islands, in
the form of quit-rents (known in Scotland by the name of
ISLANDS.
feu-duties), generally equal to one-tenth of the produce.
But they have been much subdivided, and the vassals may
by lawr redeem them, by payment of capital yielding, at the
rate of 6 per cent., the same annual return.10 There existed
for some time in Corfu, apparently till late in the seven¬
teenth century, a singular colony of gipsies, tolerated by the
government, which assigned them a certain district to in¬
habit, under the exclusive jurisdiction of a particular noble
family.11
The Corfiot peasantry are reputed the idlest of all the
lonians. 1 he olive receives little or no culture from them ;
cereal crops have their soil prepared with the aid of the plough;
and the vineries alone are laboured by the broad heart-shaped
hoe. The vintage begins on the festival of Santa Croce,
which according to old style is the 26th of September:
it is not a pretty or lively scene, and little care is taken in
the various operations. The fermentation in vats is very
short; for sweet wines not more than four or five days,
and sometimes three only : the rest of the process goes on
in the cask. None of the Corfu growths are prized.
Cottagers cultivate no gardens for themselves, and every
day countrymen may be met carrying out from Corfu mar¬
ket the herbs he has bought there, like the Roman villa-
owners ridiculed by the epigrammatist;12 and it is well known
that a considerable sum13 goes annually to buy in Apulia the
garlic and onions which might have been raised round the
villages. The old fortifications of the town being so ex¬
tensive as to require a force of from 10,000 to 20,000
troops to man them, have been in great part thrown down,
and a simpler plan is in progress, limiting the defences to
the island of Vido for the harbour and to the old citadel, with
the New Fort, and possibly a third point, for the land.
Opportunity will ultimately be afforded for the town to
spread, which is greatly needed. The chief improvement,
alter the introduction ol water, already effected, is sewerage,
towards which nothing of importance has been done. From
the rocky site, no small cost must be incurred; but, for health
and comfort, no measure so essential could have been taken,
and it ought to have preceded every object of ornament or
convenience. The largest dependency of Corfu is Fano, an
island lying about 13 miles to the N.W., about 12^ miles
in circumference, with its hill, Maraviglia, rising about 1500
feet. It is at present renowned for its honey; but its
most interesting claim to notice arises from its being
thought to correspond with the isle which, under the name
of Ogygia, is assigned by Homer14 to Calypso. Corfu and
its dependencies contain very few and unimportant remains
of antiquity. The site of the ancient city is well ascer¬
tained, about 1^ miles to the S.E. of Corfu, upon the nar¬
row piece of ground between the sea-lake of Calichiopulo and
the Bay of Castrades, in each of which it had a port. And
the third harbour, occasionally mentioned, may have been,
either where the present one is, or perhaps rather in
a small bay under the hill of Ascension, below the remains
of a temple, popularly called of Neptune. This relic is of
very simple Doric, and nowr in its mutilated state presents
451
Ionian
Islands.
1 This is nearly, if not exactly, the measure. So it is fixed by act 9th of 3d parliament, 26th May 1828, to have effect from 1st
February 1829. The barrel of 16 gallons is by the same act subdivided into 4 “ metri,” the metro into 4 gallons, and the gallon into 8
. dicotili. Besides these, there is the popular measure of the jar=^ metro, or 2 gallons. The price fluctuates much, but 2s, Id. a gallon
is nearly the common rate. °
$u\int iXaivi;, Odyss., v. 4/7. 3’'0^va:/• poixl. y,n\'iai. Odyss., vii. 115.
g Ibid. 116. .... 6 trcfoXfi, Ibid. 123.
feee Flora Corcirensis of Fieri, published at Corfu above twenty years ago. Florists admire the many varieties of anemone and
orchis. The apples [pomd] of Alcinous are twice alluded to hy Ovid, Am. i., 10-56 ; Pont, iv., 2-40, an honour they do not now seem
to deserve; and on what foundatian Statius calls the orchard of Alcinous “ twice bearing” [“ bifera Alcinoi pomaria,” Sylv. i., 3-81]
we are at a loss to conjecture. The like epithet given by Virgil [Geo)-y. iv., 119] to Paestum, with respect to its rose-gardens, is not merited
in modern days. Dr Davy would consider the pomegranate as a later introduction, and interpret poia by plum ; but lexicographers make
pomegranate the translation. See Liddell and Scott’s Lexicon, and Pape’s Wbrterbnch, voc. Voia.
i0In 1?27, Ff.act 85th of 2d parliament. 8 ionian Civil Code, art. 1629. 9 Ibid., art. 1631.
Ionian Civil Code, art. 1677. 11 A good deal of curious local information on this subject might be gathered.
, Martial, Epigr., iii. 47. 13 Said to amount to 23,000 Spanish dollars = L.5100.
Odyss.., vii. 244. Some would make it Gozo, near Malta, which had this name according to Strabo, ix. 407.
452 IONIAN I
Ionian some curious peculiarities of construction.1 The remains
Islands, of the other city Cassiope, now termed Cassopo, show signs
of solid masonry, but nothing more: the fane of Jove has
disappeared. The entire demolition of the city of Corcyra
is less surprising, as the modern town, and the vast works
of defence round it, must have caused a demand for mate¬
rials ready to the hand.
The isle of Ptychia2 has not been identified to the satis¬
faction of antiquaries ; but the modern Leftimo is identical
with the Leucimne of Thucydides.
The Venetians have left many memorials of their length¬
ened sway. A striking one is their naval arsenal on the
little sea-lake of Govino, about 5 miles to the N.W. of
Corfu harbour. It is quite a ruin, but is of no mean size ;
and it has been thought that it might be useful some day
to clear out the Govino harbour for refitting vessels, as the
operation could not be difficult, from the soft nature of the
mud and sand with which the place is filled up. Area in
English square miles, 227; greatest height in English feet,
3000. Pop.—males, 37,796; females, 32,736,—total, 70,532.
Paxo. Paxo (anc. Paxos3) lies next after Corfu to the S.,
at a distance of about 8 miles. Its form is oval, being
about 5 miles long and 2 broad. It is very rocky, and for
their supply of water the inhabitants depend greatly on ar¬
tificial cisterns, although there are springs, particularly that
of Remitti, about 3 miles from Gajo. The chief produce
is oil, esteemed the best in the Ionian States. The head
town is Port Gajo, on the E. side, within a rocky creek,
sheltered by an islet. The land of Paxo rises from the
sea-shore gradually to Papandi, a village which is nearly
in the central and highest position on the island. Area in
English square miles, 26; highest point in English feet,
600. Pop. in 1854—males, 2729 ; females, 2396,—total,
5125.
Santa Santa Maura (anc. Leucas, Leucadia) is about 60
Maura, miles to the S.E. of Corfu. Its length is about 20 miles,
and its breadth between 8 and 9. The surface is very un¬
even, presenting a range of hills, loftiest at their north¬
eastern point, and running down to their south-western
termination in the white cliff, about 200 feet high, cele¬
brated as Sappho’s Leap. The channel between the Greek
district of Acarnania and the island of Santa Maura is at
one part as narrow as 1200 yards, and had long been
fordable, till measures were begun a few years ago to open
out a passage for vessels. Here the fort to which properly
belongs the name of Santa Maura stands on an accumu¬
lation of sand, having between it and the body of the island
a shallow lagoon, of width varying from 100 yards to
mile. We may conjecture that the island was originally
disjoined from the coast of the continent, and that the open¬
ing was afterwards filled up by the deposit of sea-sand.
In the age of Homer it was called a promontory (’Akt-t]) ;
but this would be applicable either before separation or
after rejunction. The Corinthians first cut the canal; but
it had closed up again before the Peloponnesian War, so as
to be unnavigable for galleys. The Romans are supposed
to have cleared it out afresh, probably under Augustus ;
and a cut, proposed to be 3 miles long and 16 feet deep,
was begun a few years ago; but it is not yet completed,
and perhaps never will be so. Between the fort and the
island, across the shallows of the lagoon, a canal for boats has
been deepened and fenced with walls. A huge aqueduct,
serving as a causeway, was made by the Turks to connect
the fort and the island ; but it was injured by an earthquake
in 1825, and has not been repaired. The chief town
Amaxichi (of about 4000 inhabitants) stands on the edge
S L A N D S.
of the lagoon, in a low and damp situation. It enjoys Ionian
abundance of water introduced by the Saracens, whose Elands,
conduits admitted of modern restoration. The houses are 's«»‘v-w
in general confined to two stories, the lower of stone and
the upper of wood, as the safest mode of construction, to
escape the effects of the earthquakes. The sites of the
ancient cities of Nerikos and Leucas have given rise to
doubt; but the view taken by the able compiler of Murray’s
Handbook^ seems to reconcile difficulties. Some Cyclo¬
pean and other remains of antiquity are to be found near
Amaxichi; and foundations of the temple of Apollo on the
rock of Leucate may be traced. The island is luxuriant
in its vegetation, and most of the Ionian fruits are thought
to come to greater perfection here than elsewhere. The
principal crops are oil and wine for export, and grain for
two-thirds of their own consumption. The currant grows,
but is not raised for commerce. Some parts of Santa
Maura are said to be very healthy, and they must have the
advantages of elevation and of pure water ; but all the vi¬
cinity of the shallows is liable to fever. Area in English
square miles, 180; highest point in English feet, 3000.
Pop. in 1854—males, 10,678; females, 9365,—total, 20,013.
Ithaca (anc. Ithaca), 5 miles S. of Santa Maura, and Ithaca.
3^ miles E. from the northern part of Cephalonia, to
which it is nearly parallel. It is about 17 miles long and
4 broad; but not uniformly so, particularly near the mid¬
dle, where it is deeply indented from the E. by the Gulf
of Molo, within whose southern horn is the Bay of Vathi,
at the head of which stands the town of the same name,5
the capital of the island, with deep water close to the shore.
The general appearance of Ithaca is that of a ridge of rock,
with steep sides, and in one hill rising to great elevation,
and may be termed rugged rather than grand, some of the
valleys being gayer, from the vines and flowering shrubs
with which their sides are clothed. The town of Vathi
makes a picturesque curve round the end of its bay, which
seems landlocked, and is overhung by hills. It contains
above 2500 inhabitants. Few, if any, of the present Itha¬
cans can claim descent from the subjects of Ulysses; as
the incursions of corsairs and wars with Saracens had so
depopulated Ithaca before the beginning of the sixteenth
century, that the Venetians had the island repeopled from
the continent of Greece. The Ithacans are industrious
husbandmen and sailors, their chief crops being the cur¬
rant and wines, which last are esteemed above any pro¬
duced in the sister islands. Of grain they are unable to
raise above one-fourth of their annual supply. The chief
mountain, Anoge, perhaps 3000 feet high, may be the an¬
cient Neritos, and on the hill of Actos (about 400 feet high)
tradition points out the ruins of the castle of Ulysses ; as it
also shows the port of Phorcys, in a creek off the port of
Vathi; and the grotto of the nymphs6 in a cave on the
side of Mount Santo Stefano, within which are stalactites,
that scholars would gladly recognise as the “ webs of stone.”
Area in English square miles, 44; highest point in Eng¬
lish feet, 3000. Pop. in 1854—males, 5936 ; females, 5412,
—total, 11,348.
Cephalonia (anc. Cephalleniu!) has its north-eastern part Cepha-
nearly parallel to Ithaca,at a distance averaging about 4 miles,lom11,
the remaining portion stretching to the S.E. It is the largest
of the Ionian Islands, its extreme length being 31 miles, its
breadth varying greatly, from about 20 miles in the southern
portion to 3 and less in the projecting part opposite Ithaca.
The whole country is hilly, the main range running from
N.W. to S.E., and filling up the island with its skirts. The
ancient Mount Alnos, now Monte Negro or Black Mountain,
1 See Jervis’s History of Corfu, p. i., ch. i., note to p. 19.
2 Thucyd., iv. 46. 3 The plural word includes the rock of Antipaxo, S.E. of Paxo. 4 Ed. of 1854., p. 78.
6 Derived from the character of the bay, Bxtv, deep. 6 Odyss., xiii. 103-8.
7 Called also Melsena by Pliny, Hist. Nat., iv. 12. Cefalonia is the spelling of the Italian name in the Constitution of 1817.
Ionian
Islands.
ante.
is the loftiest part of the sierra, and rises 5306 feet, beino-
the highest land in the Ionian group, and often re’tainin^
snow for several months. The name of Black was given
to this mountain from the darkness of its pine woods,1 which
still constitute the most striking feature in Cephalonian
scenery, although their extent has been sadly curtailed by
fires, the most serious of which was caused in a popular tu¬
mult. In the western part of the island a gulf runs up from
the S.; and on its E. side stands the chief town, Aro-ostoli
with about 8000 inhabitants; and on the W. side its rival’
Lixuri, with fully 5000. Not far from Argostoli are the
mins of the ancient Granii, and Lixuri is close to, or upon
those of Pale ; but the principal, and apparently oldest
city, Samps (or Same2), has left Cyclopean walls, with other
considerable and interesting remains on the bay of Samos
which opens into the E. side of Cephalonia; and on the
same side stood Proni (or Pronni), above the vale of Each
and its blossoming oleanders. The soil of Cephalonia re¬
quiring culture, the natives have always been extremely ac¬
tive, and have turned to advantage all available spots, by
forming terraces on the steep sides of the hills. Little corn
is grown, but some wine and oil. The chief staple, how¬
ever, is the currant, in the production of which this island is
superioi to Zante for quantity. A singular natural pheno¬
menon occurs at the mouth of the harbour of Argostoli, and
lo mile from the town, in the course taken by four streams
which flow inwards from the sea, and are lost in cavernous
openings in the land—one of them running so strongly that
rt is employed to turn the undershot wheel of a corn-mill.3
I he island is ill supplied with fresh water ; no streams flow,
and springs are apt to fail in dry summers. The well near
the monastery of San Geronimo, the vulgar believe to be the
subject of an annual miracle in its overflowing, when the
relics of the saint are brought past it on his festival. The
fact has been observed by many free from credulity; and it
can been accounted for, without supposing priestcraft, by
the pressure of the crowd on the occasion affecting the
soil round the water, as Dr Davy thinks, and as he noticed
with regard to another well near Lixuri.4 Cephalonia re¬
tained longer than the sister islands traces of feudal influ¬
ence exerted by the landed proprietors, some of whose
estates were widely extended, and included at least one
village which bore their family name.5 Area in English
square miles, 348; highest point in English feet, 5306.
Pop. in 1854—males, 38,524 ; females, 31,957,—total,
70,481.
Zante (anc. Zacynthus*), in its northern extremity, is about
8 miles S. of Cephalonia; and, stretching towards the S.E., is
22 miles long, and between 7 and 11 broad. A considerable
part of the immediate line of the sea-shore is rocky and bare,
but the interior is highly cultivated and rich. The capital,
named also Zante, stands on a bay upon the E. coast, op¬
posite the Morea, which is within sight. The town is pretty,
consistingofgood houses, not crowded, but situate in a semi¬
circle round the harbour, and partly on the slope of the hill
(350 feet high) which bears the citadel, once a Venetian
castle; and the numerous minaret-looking steeples give the
whole something of an oriental character. The country be¬
yond seems one fine valley, bounded by hills, of which
IONIAN ISLANDS.
453
Mount Vrachiona towards the N.W. is the highest. The
present olive-trees are not in such masses as to maintain the
classic appellation of the “ woody Zacynthusbut the
smiling vineyards and the gay gardens surrounding the
fine country houses of the gentry, go far to justify the mo¬
dern proverbial title of “ Flower of Levant.” The Zantiots
are particularly industrious, and in consequence secure to
themselves a full measure of comfort. The gentry are fond
of the country and its beauties, and reside much at their
villas, where they prosecute horticulture with Zealand suc-
cess. The lower orders in Zante are less prone to theft than
their Ionian brethren ; but their quick tempers lead them
oftener to make use of their hands on slight provocation.
I he higher classes are distinguished for their sensible and
ob iging disposition, and even among lonians for their pleas¬
ing manners and address. Zante has little to show of anti¬
quity, but one of the pitch wells described by Herodotus7 re¬
mains piecisely as he left it; the other is now more inactive
than when seen by Dr Davy in 1834.8 They are situated
near the southern extremity of the bay of Chieri, about half
a mile from the sea. The mineral tar was mixed with
pine-pitch before use ; now, however, it is not employed for
anything but tarring boats of the country. In the bay of
Catastari, what is popularly called a “grease spring ”issues
from the rock of a sea-cave. It was examined in 1834 by
Dr Davy, who considers the substance reputed “ grease ” to
be baregine, or glairine.9 The chief crop of Zante is the
currant; but wine is also made for export: oil too is pro¬
duced almost annually, owing to the more careful culture
of the tree. The currant harvest here, as in Cephalonia, is
a very busy and lively season, occurring mostly in August,
and lasting through part of September. The drying of the
fiuit requires almost three weeks, and is greatly dependent
for success on the total absence of rain—a single shower
affecting the quality, and therefore the price. °The com¬
petition of the produce of the Morea, which is shipped from
Patras, is most formidable to Cephalonia and Zante, and the
blight of the vines has caused a serious defalcation in the
crop of the islands for the last three or four years. When
the growers obtain 70 Spanish dollars (L.15, 3s. 4d.) per
1000 lbs. of fruit, they thrive well, because 20 dollars (L.4,
6s. 8d.) are a remunerating price. During the suspension
of agriculture in Greece from the War of Independence,
1000 lbs. of Cephalonia or Zante currants were sold for 100
Spanish dollars (L.21, 13s. 4d.) No wonder, then, that the
growers talk of their produce in the most eulogistic strain,
and say that the first-rate well-dried fruit has the hue and
lustre of the finest black Genoa velvet. Whether from vol¬
canic action below its crust or from other causes, Zante is
subject to earthquakes of amazing frequency ; fortunately,
severe shocks have not been felt at shorter intervals than
of about twenty years. The last took place on 30th October
1840, which did considerable damage to buildings, espe¬
cially the military quarters ; but the preceding one, which
occurred 29th December 1820, was far more serious in its
effects. It has been remarked, as a sign of the greater dry¬
ness of the atmosphere of Zante than that of Corfu, that the
fire-flies, which in spring evenings are seen in brilliant my¬
riads at Corfu, are by no means numerous at Zante, where,
Ionian
Islands.
1 The so-called Cephalonia pine, well known to British nurserymen, is not, scientifically speaking, of the Pine tribe, and when large
has something of the general appearance of the cedar. °
. 2 So it seems to have been called in Livy’s time, Hist., xxxviii. 30. Samos or Same is mentioned by Homer (11, ii. 631) who uses
it as a name for the island, although he also names it Cephallenia (Odyss., iv. 671).
3 It is to be regretted that this curiosity has not been more carefully examined. Might not it afford good means of making tidal
experiments, free from disturbing causes ? 6
4 Dr Davy’s Notes, vol. i., chap, iv., p. 161.
famU hUS Metaxata, the I)lace celebrated by being Lord Byron’s last residence in Cephalonia, derives its appellation from the Metaxa
6 Called also Hyrie by Pliny, Hist. Nat., iv. 12.
’ Herodot., iv. 195. 8 Murray’s Handbook, ed. 1854, p. 93; Dr Davy’s Notes, vol. i., ch. iv., p. 153-9
8 Ibid., i. pp. 147-153. > r ■
l.
454 IONIAN
Ionian on the contrary, are many glow-worms, which are rather
Islands. rare at Corfu. Area in English square miles, 156; highest
v'—point in English feet, 2274. Pop. in 1854—males, 20,575 ;
females, 17,870,—total, 30,445.
Cerigo. Cerigo{a.nc. Cythera1 2) lies at a distance of not less than 150
miles from Zante, the nearest of the Ionian group, and about
8 miles from the southern coast of Greece. Its length from N.
to S. is nearly 20 miles, and its greatest breadth about 12.
There are many rocky hills, and below them considerable
undulations of surface ; streams too abound; and there is
no doubt of the country being in various parts fertile ; yet,
although called anciently the favourite abode of Venus, it
possesses little natural beauty, except in some of the vales ;
and has been little cultivated, having more pasture land
than any other of the seven islands. From its situation, at
the meeting as it were of seas, the currents which sweep
round Cerigo are strong, storms are frequent, and the air is
said never to be quite calm. Some wine and corn are
grown, and the quality of the oil is good, although its quan¬
tity is not large. The honey of Cerigo is highly prized,
but it is not in general carefully prepared for exportation.
The people are industriously disposed, and many labourers
go annually to seek employment in the Morea and in Asia
Minor. The first village of Cerigo is Capsali, near its
southern extremity ; but there is little of a regular harbour
there or on any part of the coast; the best anchorage how¬
ever, being at San Nicolo, at the centre of the E. side of
the island. This latter is supposed to be on the site of the
ancient port of Scandea. Cythera, the capital, had stood
within a mile and a half of the northern coast; but no trace
can be pointed out with confidence of the famous shrine of
the ruling divinity of the place. Area in English square
miles, 116 ; highest point in English feet uncertain. Pop.
in 1854—males, 7016; females, 5991,—total, 13,007.
Cerigotto. Cerigotto (anc. JEgilia1) is the principal dependency of
Cerigo, and lying about 20 miles to the S.E. is nearly
at the middle of the direct course between Cerigo and
Candia.
A question has been raised whether the islands of Cervi,
commanding Vatika Bay, and Sapienza, commanding the
harbour of Modon (anc. Methane), both possessed by Greece,
ought not to be deemed Ionian dependencies, in terms
of the Russo-Turkish treaty of 21st March 1800, referred
to in the treaty of Paris (5th November 1815); nay, some
have imagined the same words might be so construed as
to include the islet Sphagia (anc. Sphacteria), within the
Bay of Navarino.
History. The earliest notice we meet with of these islands is in
Homer, who represents to us the Phaeacians of Scheria liv¬
ing happily under the kingly government of Alcinous,3 and
Ithaca under Ulysses,4 whose sway extended over Cepha-
lonia, Zante, and the opposite continent, all his subjects
appearing to bear the name of Cephallemans,5 but whose
entire force did not exceed 12 ships. The other Ionian
islands are not named, and Leucadia was attached to Epi¬
rus. Fables later composed, but referring to earlier ages,
make Corfu be resorted to by Maoris6 of Euboea, who had
fed the infant Bacchus on honey; and afterwards by Jason
and Medea ; and Hesiod makes Venus, on rising from the
sea, touch on Cythera.7 When history dawns on the islands,
they are under republican government. A colony from
Corinth was founded at Corfu, probably about B.C. 734,8
expelling the Cretans, who with the Liburnians had been
ISLANDS.
in occupation of the island. Leucadia too was colonized Ionian
by the Corinthians, who cut or cleared out the canal, and lslands-
rendered the place an island. Zante received an immigra-
tion from Achaia, and Cerigo was made a dependency of
Sparta.
The maritime progress of Corcyra causing some dis¬
agreement with the parent state, the earliest sea-fight re¬
corded took place between them about b.c. 695. Before
the expedition of Xerxes, the fugitive Spartan king Dema-
ratus asked and received shelter from the Zacynthians.
When the great Persian invasion took place, the Corcyraeans
had a fleet of sixty sail; but they did not send them to aid
the Greek cause, retaining them to be ready to side with
the victors, as appears from their having offered themselves
previously as allies to the great king. Leucadia had three
vessels at Salamis; and 200 Cephallenians of Pale fought
at Platasa. On the flight of Themistocles from Athens,
the conquerors did not imitate the earlier generosity of the
Zacynthians, and obliged the fallen statesman to implore
the protection of the king of the Molossians. A new quar¬
rel having arisen between Corinth and Corcyra about the
colony of Epidamnus (Rom. Dyrrachium, mod. Durazzo9),
founded by the latter in Illyria, the Epidamnians invoked
the aid of Corinth, and the Corcyraeans solicited the inter¬
ference of Athens. Both the parties called in embraced
the opportunity, which promised an extension of influence
for or against an island which then ranked as third maritime
power in Greece. In the first battle the Corcyraeans had a
decided advantage, and took 15 Corinthian ships before get¬
ting the assistance of Athens ; but in a second engagement,
after their force was augmented by 10 Athenian galleys,
both sides claimed the victory, which ended the Corcyraean
war (b.c. 432), during which the Zacynthians were united
to the Corcyraeans. Nextyear (b.c. 431), Spartahavingjoined
with Corinth against Athens, the Peloponnesian War broke
out, and lasted for thirty years. In it Cephallenia became
the ally of Athens, without offering opposition.10 The same
was the case with Zacynthus. Cythera was taken and gar¬
risoned by the Athenians, but restored to Sparta at the peace
of B.C. 429. The Corcyraeans were not directly parties
in this fierce contest, farther than by occasionally aiding
the Athenians with ships ; yet civil dissensions raged with¬
in the island with fearful violence. The aristocratic and
democratic factions, as either gained the victory, wreaked
the utmost vengeance on their opponents. They took dif¬
ferent sides respecting foreign politics, the former being
supporters of the Lacedaemonians, and the latter of the
Athenians; and in the worst period of their troubles, Thucy¬
dides openly says the popular party made faction the pre¬
text for their personal animosity and gain, debtors making
away with their creditors. In the fifth year of the war
(b.c. 427), the democrats gave vent to their savage pas¬
sions, in a way that reminds us, in all its details, of the hor¬
rors of the 2d and 3d September 1792, in the prisons of
Paris. Corcyra was the place of review of the fleet des¬
tined for the fatal Sicilian expedition ; but after its ill suc¬
cess, Corcyra seems to have fallen off from the Athenian
alliance, and various minor steps were taken by Athens
and Sparta to recover or preserve their weight in the coun¬
cils of Corcyra. In this the Athenians were the more in¬
fluential, although at a later time they are found under the
necessity of supporting the aristocratic party, contrary to
their former system; and in b.c. 343, the island was so far
1 Once called Porphyrae, according to Pliny, Hist. Nat., iv. 12.
2 Pliny, Hist. Nat., iv. 12. 3 Odyss., vi.
4 II., ii. 631; Odyss., iv. 671, &c, 5 II., ii. 138-144.
6 Apollon. Rhod., Ary., iv. 542 ; this name might really mean Long Island.
7 Dear. Gener., v. 198. 8 Thirwall’s Hist, of Greece, chap, xii., vol. ii., p. 93.
9 Thucydides (i. 13) says it was 260 years before this time, and if we suppose him to mean the period of which he was writing the
epoch corresponds to that of Periauder. 10 Thucyd., ii. 30.
Ionian
Islands.
separated from Athens, as to join Corinth in aidin«- the
^ Syracusans.1 In 312 and 310, b.c. the Corcyr^ans strenu¬
ously helped the people of Apollonia (mod. Pollond) and
Leucadia against Cassander,2—their last effort and success
In the course of the many wars consequent on the division
of the empire of Alexander the Great, Corcyra had sundry
vicissitudes; in b.c. 301, it was taken by Cleonymus the
Spartan. He was soon driven out by Agathocles of Syracuse
who made it the dowry of his daughter Lanassa, who’
quitting her first husband, Pyrrhus of Epirus, gave herself
and the island to Demetrius Poliorcetes. In b c 274
Ptolemy son of Pyrrhus, took Corcyra, which seems'to have
remained tor a time connected with Epirus. In b.c. 229
I euta, que^n of the Illyrians, in a roving expedition, like
those of modern buccaneers, made herself mistress of Cor-
cyra; but getting into a quarrel with the Romans, was forced
to surrender it to them in the following year. Leucadia
again become a promontory, fell into the hands of the Romans
during their contest with Philip V. of Macedon (b.c. 179)-
but not without a gallant struggle.3 Zacynthus was ceded
by the Achseans to the Romans in b.c. 191, and Cephallenia
was reduced in b.c. 189,5 not, however, till the town of Same
had stood a close siege for four months by M. Fulvius the
consul. During their wars against Macedon the Romans
often made Corcyra their winter quarters, and had the as-
sistance of its ships. In the civil wars it favoured Pompey6
and his party; and at it Cicero and Cato are understood to
have parted. Here Octavius reviewed his fleet before the
battle of Actium, b.c. 31. According to traditions of the
church, Christianity was early preached at Corcyra by the
same Jason and Sosipater who are mentioned in the New
Jestament,' and who suffered martyrdom on the spot
marked by a small church of Byzantine plan, said to be the
oldest Chiistian temple in the island, and to occupy the
pi ecise site of the original fane raised on the hallowed ground,
now within the suburb of Castrades. Under the Roman
empire the Ionian Islands were sunk into parts of the
province of Achaia,—the whole island of Cephallenia being
at one time the estate of a wealthy Roman.8 Agrippina
touched at Corcyra with the ashes of Germanicus.9 Nero,
in his musical progress to Greece, visited Corcyra, and
sang before the altar of Jove at Cassiope.10 After this we
find no historical events relative to the islands under the
earlier emperors, except that Titus is said to have landed
at Corcyra on his way from the conquest of Judea, and
Hadrian to have gifted Cephallenia to the Athenians. In
the decline of the empire, the Huns under Alaric (a.d. 398),
and Attila (a.d. 441), with the Vandals under Genseric,
ravaged the Ionian islands, as well as most of Greece. Be-
lisarius and Narses recovered those provinces for Justinian ;
but Sclavonic invaders of various tribes repeated their de¬
vastations at very brief intervals.
By the Emperor Heraclius I., the Ionian Islands were
attached to the prefecture of Lombardy; and to it, or to
Sicily, they continued united for about 250 years, till Leo
the Philosopher (about a.d. 890) formed them all, or most
IONIAN ISLANDS.
of their number, into a distinct province, under the title of
the Iema of Cephallenia ; and, in this condition, they were
to be accounted as belonging to the Eastern empire, after
Italy had been divided into various states. Towards the close
o the eleventh century, the Norman conquerors of Naples
Marring against the western portion of the Byzantine em¬
pire, turned towards the islands of the Ionian group ; and
in a.d. 1081, Robert Guiscard captured Corfu ;u and not
• CeP1;ialonia- 0n the revolt of the latter island
in 108o, he was proceeding to bring it again into subjection,
w icn he died at Cassopo in Corfu.12 A second conquest of
Corfu was made in 1146, by Roger king of Sicily, Nephew
of Guiscard, but it was recovered by the Emperor Manuel
Comnenus with the co-operation of the Venetians, in 1132.
In 1192 Richard Cceur-de-Lion landed at Corfu, on his
ill-starred voyage from Palestine, after the fourth crusade.
On their way to the fifth crusade, the combined forces from
the taking of Zara (1203) halted to refresh at Corfu, where
they seem to have been gladly welcomed, and to have found
the country very fertile and abounding in forao-e. Here
however, the news of Walter of Brienne’s marvellous suc¬
cesses in Apulia and Naples caused a sort of mutiny, and
many of the warriors prepared to give up the expedition
against Constantinople, intended in favour of the young
Alexis, who had joined the Western army at Zara. With
some difficulty, the dissension M-as healed, and the crusade
pioceeded.13 Alexis appears to have been recognised as their
empeior by the Corfiots. When the Greek empire was
exchanged for the Latin, at Constantinople, the Venetians
obtained various possessions, and amongst these Corfu. A
famous Genoese corsair, Leon Vetrano, took it from them,
but on his defeat and execution the senate of Venice (in
1206) sent thither ten noble families,14 granting them fiefs
in ordei that they might colonize it. The republic soon
afterwai ds took Cephalonia and Zante, the former of which
Mas held under them by a succession of five counts of the
family of Tocco,15 who appear to have also held Santa Maura,
and probably Zante, at the same time. Through the rest
of the thirteenth century, and most of the fourteenth, the
Ionian Islands were a prey, by turns, to corsairs, and to Greek
and Neapolitan claimants. At last, while the civil wars of
Naples gave a good opportunity, the Corfiots voluntarily
placed themselves under Venice, the first maritime power of
the age (9th June 1386).16 Acting with mercantile caution,
the senate did not think its title sufficient until ratified
(16th August 1401) by Ladislaus17 king of Naples, on pay¬
ment of 30,000 ducats, thus extinguishing the right which
had been maintained to Corfu through the Duchy of Tar¬
anto. In 1485 Zante was obtained by purchase from the
Turks in a very depopulated condition ; and in 1499 Ce¬
phalonia was captured from the same masters. The dreaded
Barbarossa, on the part of Soliman II., ravaged Corfu in 1537,18
and the great fleet of Selim II. did nearly the same in 1570,
not touching the citadel hoM'ever. In 1571 Corfu was the
station at which Don John of Austria reviewed the grand
Christian armament of which he was generalissimo, before
455
Ionian
Islands.
^lb-xvl-» caP-11; The Spartan expedition under Mnasippus against Corcyra, in the same year, is recorded by Xenophon
{Hellen., vi. 2), who describes the island as particularly rich in vineyards and pastures. J P
Ibid., lib. xix cap 5, 6. 3 LiVi) xxxiii. 17-
6 Liv., xxxvi. 31, 32. 6 Liv., xxxviii. 28, 29.
7 ;°mPey 8 ^valry had a part of their forage from Corcyra (Caesar, Bell. Civ., iii. 58); but it rather seems to have been a small supply.
ason, in Acts xvn. 5, 6, 7, and 9; Sopater, in Acts xx. 4; and both Jason and Sosipater (who are called his kinsmen by St Paul)
8 r°m!nS 2-L •Bemg canomzed b7 the Eastern Church, their festivals are held on the same day, 29th April o.S.
' Ant.onius> ln. tlme of Strabo (29 B.c.), whose words, however (lib. x.), may perhaps be thought to mean merely that Cephallenia
m as as subject to him as a private property. They are given in a note to chap. lx. of Thirlwall’s History of Greece, the positive sense
being attributed to them in the text (yiii., p. 462). ^ Tacit. Ann, in. 1. io Sueton. Her. 22. P
jo .sm°ndi, Repub. Ital, ch. iv.; Giannone, Storia di Napoli, lib. x., cap. 5.
j, Giannone, ut sup., cap. 6, whose authority seems preferable to that of writers who make Robert’s death occur in Cephalonia.
Michaud, Hist, des Croisades, lib. x. r
jg Morosini, Historic, di Venetia, lib. 7. is Michaud, Edaircissements d liv. xi, § 3.
Sismondi, Repub. Ital, tom. iv., ch. iii. 17 Morosini, Hist, lib. xvii.
Sismondi, Repub. Ital., tom. viii., ch. x.
456 I O N I A N I S L A N D S.
Ionian sailing to fight and win the battle of Lepanto—one of the
Islands, most glorious but unavailing victories which history records.1
Even after Lepanto, the Turks continued for a year to
hold Santa Maura, which the Venetians had abandoned
in 1570. Venice paid an increased tribute for the island of
Zante. Corfu had been fortified in 1559; and to what
was then built the republic added, by degrees, the exten¬
sive works which afterwards protected it. The last and
greatest struggle for its possession was in 1716, by the forces
of Achmet III., which were defeated by the Venetian troops
under the gallant Count Schulenburg,2 who had before
earned fame by his retreat across the Oder, in face of
Charles XII. of Sweden, and by his conduct at the battle
of Malplaquet, under the orders of Prince Eugene. Under
the sway of Venice, her government was represented in the
Ionian Islands by a provveditore, against whose misrule a
check was established, in permission to the city of Corfu to
send to Venice a deputy styled “ Nuncio,” through whom
complaints might be addressed to the senate. As the re¬
public decayed at home she could not remain healthy
abroad ; and in her last years there was no doubt much cor¬
ruption and abuse of all kinds in her dependencies. In her
better days, however, she has probably been unjustly cen¬
sured. Terrible as antagonistic factions were to each other
in the struggle for political power, the lower classes were
not unheeded by the state.3 The statute-book was dis¬
figured by the retention of threatened demembration and
other marks of barbarous times, but practically they had
fallen into disuse—and in civil matters, although the courts
were left a degree of arbitrary authority which must have
been very embarrassing to judges, still, the administration of
justice in Venice was regarded as pure, and the common¬
alty could enjoy what they prized—“ Pane in Piazza e
guistizia in Palazzo.” The decisions of the famous Council
of Forty were highly esteemed.4
On the fall of the Venetian republic in 1797, the treaty
of Campo Formio, 5which gave Venice to Austria, an¬
nexed the Ionian Islands to France; and in 1798 the
French government ratified the arrangement, and their di¬
vision into three departments. But a Russo-Turkish force
came to drive out the French in the close of that year; and
in the spring of 1799 Corfu capitulated. The Allies in
1800 erected the Septinsular republic, which, with various
modifications, was but another name for anarchy and con¬
fusion, till a secret article in the treaty of Tilsit, in 1807,
declared the Ionian Islands an integral part of the French
empire. In this condition they remained till the British
forces, under General Oswald, took Zante, Cephalonia, and
Cerigo in 1809, and Santa Maura in 1810. Colonel Church
reduced Paxo in 1814 ; and after the abdication of Napoleon
Corfu was, by order of Louis XVIII., ceded to Sir James
Campbell. At the congress of Vienna, no settlement had
been made oflonian affiairs, which were definitively arranged
by the treaty of Paris (signed 9th November 1815); the
contracting powers being Great Britain, Russia, Austria, Ionian
and Prussia. By this it was agreed to revive the Ionian Islands,
republic (which had ceased to exist in 1807), and place it ^
under the exclusive protection of Great Britain, Austria
enjoying the right of equal commercial advantage with the
protecting country. In fulfilment of the treaty, a charter
was passed by the Legislative Assembly, called for that pur¬
pose, and ratified by the Prince Regent in 1819,6 which
formed the Ionian constitution till some change was intro¬
duced of late years. Few historical events have occurred in
the islands since 1818. The first is the asylum opened in
them, with Ionian citizenship to the unfortunate refugees from
Parga, on the cession of their country to Turkey in 1819,
a measure7 which we ought not to do more than regret as
a cruel necessity at the time of its being carried out; but
which might have been obviated by greater vigilance on the
part of British diplomacy at Vienna or Paris. In 1819
some disturbances connected with taxation occurred at Santa
Maura; and in 1821 a more serious tumult arose there,
having some relation to the war of independence, then being
waged in Greece. The French revolutionary movement of
1848 was used as an example in Cephalonia, and an in¬
surrection, with the less immediate aim of annexation to
Greece, and the more immediate object of pillage, begun in
Cephalonia, required to be suppressed by the military. No
acts of timely rigour having been employed to check the
unruly, a more extended and violent outbreak there in 1849
needed to be put down by martial law, and several execu¬
tions of wretches who had been guilty of brutal murders and
other crimes of fearful atrocity, together with high treason.
In making the treaty of Paris, Prussia no doubt had
little interest; Austria may have felt some jealousy, regard¬
ing British interference with harbours and places of strength
so near her own ports in the Adriatic; while Russia may
have been disposed to make the lonians some atonement
for her treachery to them in 1807, and besides to keep up some
sort of influence, however indefinite, with her co-religionists
in so important a part of the Mediterranean, and so near to
Greece, where things were not yet ready for opposition to
Turkey. Great Britain may have considered it advisable
to try the experiment of protection, instead of running the
risk of greater cost, by adding to the long list of her colonies ;
yet, there is much reason to believe the proprietors and
commercial men of the islands would not have objected to
becoming subjects of the British Crown, had it been pro¬
posed.
The constitutional charter8 of 1817 was drawn up with
unquestionable ability, and for some years worked well in
practice ; but we must regret that it was deceptive. Instead
of openly asserting an influence in the affairs of the
protected state, it secured that indirectly, appearing to be
something quite different from what it really was. The mi¬
litary possession of the islands having been conferred on the
crown by the treaty of Paris, the charter added some
1 It was fought on 7th October ; and the grateful piety of the Church of Rome observes, as a festival of thanksgiving, the first Sunday
of the month (Muratori, Annal. d^Ital., 1571). Lepanto is now chiefly remembered by many for its having cost his left hand to Spain s
greatest genius. Cervantes received two other wounds also, in the action, in which he highly distinguished himself. Havarrette, Vida
de Cervantes, p. vii., prefixed to Baudry’s edition of Don Quixote, Paris, 1845.
2 This is the marshal’s true name, not unknown in England, where his sister, a favourite of George I., was created Countess of
Kendal in Great Britain, and Duchess of Munster in Ireland. Venice honoured Schulenberg’s memory with the marble statue which
adorns the esplanade of Corfu. The vulgar, however, think St Spiridion shares the merit, and the holy man's relic is carried in pro¬
cession to a part of the wall over the scene of the final repulse of the Moslem, on the 19th August, the anniversary of that miraculous
interposition. On the defences and siege of Corfu, and its history in general, vide Jervis’s History of Corfu, 1852. Schulenburg s Me¬
moirs, published about fifteen years ago, are said to form an interesting addition to a department in which German literature is not as
yet rich.
3 Daru and other modern writers seem anxious to paint the Venetian administration in as odious colours as possible, to justify the
extinction of the republic ; but they overstep justice.
4 The members voted by ballot on each point submitted to them.
6 Signed 17th October 1797.
6 Signed by his Royal Highness 9th August 1817 ; the formal installation of the new constitution taking place on 1st January 1818.
7 Act 14th of 1st parliament (22d May 1819).
8 A copy of the English version of the original Italian is given by Mr Jervis in his History of Corfu, Appendix G; and it is also found
entire in Montgomery Martin’s Statistics of British Colonies, Appendix vii.
Ionian
Islands.
provisions regarding a militia, should it ever be embodied
^ and declared that the Ionian treasury should make cer’
tarn Payments towards meeting the expense of maintain¬
ing 3000 men m the garrisons, and of the fortifications,
ine united states of the Ionian Islands were to be po
verned, under the superintendence of a British lord hHi
commissioner, by a senate which was to exercise all exe
cutive functions, and to be the upper house of the legis¬
lature, having also the power of issuing temporary enact¬
ments during the recess of parliament. The president of
the senate was to be named by the crown for a period of
years ; and he was to have the initiative1 and casting-
vote in the senate. Ihe other five senators were to be
chosen by the legislative assembly from their own body
The seat of government being at Corfu, the senate was
represented in the other islands, and at Corfu by a
regent named by the senate; the regents to be aided by
a municipal council named by the electors of the legis¬
lative assembly The legislative assembly was to consist of
40 members, 29 of whom were to be chosen by the per
sons qualified to elect, under the Russian constitution of
1803, which brought the franchise very low, without
distinction of real property. The remaining 11 were
ex officio, the six past senators, and five of the past
regents. The nomination of candidates was confined to a
standing committee,2 made up of the 11 e* officio legis¬
lators, who issued a double list, from which the voters must
make their selection. The assembly was to meet bien¬
nially for a session of three months, and to expire in five
years; the lord high commissioner having the power to pro¬
rogue the parliament for six months, and the crown
to dissolve it by an order in council. For a bill to be¬
come a law, it was necessary that it should be passed by
the assembly and senate, and be approved by the lord
high commissioner, whose veto had the effect of throw¬
ing it out for that session ; and the crown enjoyed the
pieiogative of annulling, by order in council, any sta¬
tute within a year from its passing. The chief authority
given to the lord high commissioner lay in his sanction
being necessary to make valid every act or appointment of
the senate, except the pardon of criminals for other offences
than those treasonable against the protecting sovereign.
Besides this, the lord high commissioner was the head of the
health office and of the police; and, in fine, was armed with
the undefined power of “alta polizia.”3 In each island his
Excellency was to have a representative or resident of his
own choosing, to watch over the proceedings of the regent
and local administration. The courts of justice occupied a
branch of the charter, but the details respecting them need
not be entered upon.4 The direct appointment of three pub¬
lic servants5 was reserved to the crown, and of two6 to the
lord high commissioner; and those selected might be either
British or Ionian. It was provided, that on the termination
of a parliament, whether by expiration of its quinquennial
term, or by dissolution, all offices should become vacant;
and consequently, even officers appointed from England,
but holding commissions from the lord high commissioner,
required then to be renewed. In practice, however, this
rule was very rarely used for throwing public servants out
IONIAN ISLANDS.
Of employment, and the establishment of a pension scheme
or a large class of functionaries, who were compelled to
contribute to its fund, was a virtual pledge that they should
not be arbitrarily dismissed; yet, on the opening of the
fenth parhament in 1852, the above provision was re¬
voked by the incoming government, and many public ser¬
vants, including 13 judges, were dropped out of the service
and no redress could be obtained.7 * The last points of the
hands^rthe n°tlCed’ ^ ^ left in the
rt government, and the right of petitioning the
throne was accorded to all lonians undlr certain re-
gn ations. Under such a constitution, the lord high
comnussroner could, directly, prevent anything: and it
.s easy to see he could, indirectly, cause almost anv-
t nng, and that the professed freedom was covert des-
potism.
lihmuv ch^®e Introduced into the Ionian system was
liberty of the press, given by statute in 1848;8 but unac-
at0tZn't"a?tbyiaf00d laW0f.libel’ and cl<>gged with a crude
attempt at trial by jury, it has proved more than useless.
ifie next was the adoption of modern Greek as the official
language m l 852,9 a badge of nationality which the charter
of 1817 had contemplated, but with prudent reserve had
deferred die ; and which of course cannot have a ten-
lonians^0 inCreaSe the Spread of British ideas among the
1 he abolition of the local courts of appeal10 has been al¬
ready ahuded to, and being administrative need not be
lore noticed farther than as a step which has not given any
general satisfaction to the Ionian public. The other changes
weie political, and have had more important consequences.11
ney consist of an addition of two members to the as-
semWy-^the abolition of the 11 ex-officio legislators, and
of the committee formed by them—entire freedom of elec¬
tion both parliamentary and municipal—a wider extension
of the franchise—and vote by ballot. On the other hand,
the nomination of the five senators from among the members
of assembly for the respective islands was given to the lord
high commissioner, with power also to select two of the five
senators from among electors qualified to sit in parliament.12
The results of these changes have not been gratifying.
I he first assembly (9th) which met after the new rule of
election, was dissolved after a brief term of turbulence and
absurdity discreditable equally to its ability and its discre-
tion. The next parliament (the 10th) still in existence,
after a display of violence and factiousness, heightened pos¬
sibly by the breaking out of the war in the east, became in
no degree more practical during its session in 1855, and
deservedly drew upon itself the marked though calm rebuke
of the representative of the British government.13
B 18 8ai.d> that. the chief framer14 of the constitution of
1817 anticipated its requiring alterations after 20 years ; and
it is to be regretted that some were not effected by de¬
grees, commencing at an earlier period, instead of so many
and so important concessions from the protecting power
being made at once, ere the Ionian public were prepared to
take so large a part in the administration of their affairs
Liberty of the press should have been granted long ao-o in
order to the creation of public opinion, which cannot'be
457
1 With little exception. 2 a* i j
3 High police seems to have meant political police 4 £ ? ^ PTar/ '0UnciL
« Th. 8e„rel„y to the lord high ,„d judgcs or the supnme voder § Justice.
lor,i«l Office”""^" “d th” CWef to th8 rC*ardinS wh<>»' reference w„ alw.y, made to the Co.
» 0f8PC“piS, 9“ Is! “me “lU,inS Mm 10 high °f P™' Colonial (Mce.
i7mhfaCt’ U ?ame i"t1° 0Perati°n on 31st December 1851, by act 76th of 8th parliament, 2d June 1849 10 t t
12 7 ^ electoral law> ln art- 87th of 8th parliament, 28th December 1849. ' Ia 1844‘
13 jlesointion of Assembly, 5th session of 8th parliament, 18th December 1849
14 SirSnms Maui-md11"5 t0 ^ Assemb1^ 13th Jul7 1855' in Ionian 0a^e, 15th July 1855.
Ionian
Islands.
VOL. XII.
3 M
458 IONIAN
Ionian said to exist in the Ionian Islands and freedom of election
Islands, might have come next. Some connection with Russia had
v—' always been kept up by a few Ionian families through in¬
termarriage and public employment; and some fellow-feel-
ino- was known to exist towards those professing the same
religion; but persons long resident in the islands were
surprised to find, after hostilities began in 1854, that the
Ionians almost universally showed not only an utter want
of sympathy with the western allies, but satisfaction at the
slowness of their progress. A firm persuasion of the invin¬
cibility of Russia prevailed; and there could be little doubt
that her interests had been urged, either indirectly through
Greece, or directly by emissaries, or perhaps by both
means. Defeat of the Czar would cause all this to subside ;
still the consideration ought not to be forgotten, if the
affairs of the Levant are to undergo some re-adjustment.
From time to time a report has gone abroad, that Great
Britain meant to obtain the sanction of the other powers,
and particularly of the parties to the treaty of Paris, for
making Corfu and Candia colonies, Greece compensat¬
ing Turkey for the cession of the latter, and receiving the
six Ionian islands in return. All lonians who had much to
lose, would dread the annexation to Greece so loudly cla¬
moured for1 2 by a section of the seventh parliament; and, on
the contrary, would prefer being admitted to all the advan¬
tages of British subjects, which they know to be enjoyed
by the Maltese. The thinking part of the community, too,
must have known that a large amount of British capital
would soon be poured into a colony possessing so vast na¬
tural resources, waiting to be more fully and profitably de¬
veloped. Although the public has felt the ill effects of too
little care of their finances, and individuals have had reason
to complain of particular acts3 of the British Government
and its representatives, the lonians must be fully aware
that they could not have been so well situated under any
other state, none having so free a constitution. Taxation
was lighter, not exceeding 10s. a-head, and the aid given
by the protecting power towards the cost of the garrison
had been a subject of great liberality on the part of the
crown;4 * and their own money, with four or five times as much
more, was annually spent by the garrisons within the islands.
A heavy penalty required to be paid for their nominal na¬
tionality, in the want of occupation for the educated classes,
who could not be admitted into the British army or navy,
or the civil service ; and who, although confined to law and
ISLANDS.
medicine in profession, would never, but in their utmost Ionian
need, avail themselves of the permission proffered them by Islands.
Earl Grey, to go as settlers to Australia.3 1 o Great Bri-
tain the advantages were principally negative, in prevent¬
ing any other power from holding so important positions
in the Adriatic as Corfu, Cephalonia, and Zante have
been reckoned by the highest authority ;6 and those advan¬
tages can be secured almost as effectually by the system of
protection as by colonization, and with less cost to the
treasury. The sums expended on the fortifications and
military buildings of Corfu, down to 1849,7 amounted to
L.456,311, of which the Ionian treasury paid L.307,627,
leaving the British Government to meet the deficiency of
L.l48,624 ; and the pay and all expenses of the garrison
of at least 3000 men, cannot be under L.100,000 a-year;
so that, even supposing the works to have been entirely
stopped since 1848, the entire outlay on account of the
Ionian Islands for the 38 years between 1817 and 1856, ap¬
pears not less than L.3,800,000, which, after deducting the
Ionian contribution at its higher rate of L.35,000 a-year, or
L.l,330,000, leaves L.3,450,000 for troops, and L. 148,624
for buildings; or, in all, L.3,598,624; which is probably short
of the true expense defrayed by the protecting state.
In conclusion, it might be observed, that the Ionian move¬
ment party has raised a cry of “ violation of the treaty of
Paris” by Great Britain, in taking any part at all in the in¬
ternal affairs of the island, and has pretended that nothing
beyond military possession of the fortifications was meant
to be given to this country, and has endeavoured to excite a
wish for nationality more independent of any protection,
if not a union with Greece. The so-called liberal party
would extort further concessions from the crown, and reduce
the lord high commissioner to a cipher ; a third, named by
the others the retrograde party, but embracing many
of the most judicious men, who have the greatest stake
in their country, would be well pleased to revert to the
state of affairs in 1818, and let the wmrk of reform be
commenced afresh, and by degrees; and persons who have
heard all these matters treated of on the spot, and wit¬
nessed the progress of the Ionian Islands for some years,
consider that if the protection be maintained, the last and
quietest of these views is the safest and most promising,
when the Russian fascination shall have passed away from
the clever people who have forgotten—they cannot have
forgiven—Tilsit. (w. b—R.)
IONIC Order. See Architecture.
Ionic Sect, The, was the oldest of the ancient schools
of philosophy. It originated in Asia Minor, under Thales
of Miletus, about 600 b.c. Its most famous leaders after
Thales were Anaximander of Miletus, Pherecydes of Syra,
Anaximenes of Miletus, Heraclitus of Ephesus, Anaxagoras
and Hermotimus of Clazomenae, and Diogenes of Apollonia.
From Asia Minor the spirit of the Ionic philosophy passed
into Greece, at first with Anaxagoras, and afterwards with
Archelaus, the master of Socrates. Thus Athens, taught
from Ionia, became in turn the headquarters of philosophy,
and the parent of the most celebrated Greek schools. The
interval between Thales and Archelaus embraced a period
of about 150 years. The philosophers of the Ionic school
directed their attention principally to physics and morals.
A few only of their principles and beliefs can now be ascer¬
tained from the fragments which have come down to us.
In mental philosophy Pherecydes broached the doctrine of
the immortality of the soul; Heraclitus speculated on the
nature of the difference between the sleeping and waking
state of an intellectual being, and on the individual sense,_
as distinct from general reason, the latter being the seat of
all truth, the former of all error. Anaxagoras first drew the
line of distinction between spirit and matter, and drew at¬
tention to the regulative faculty in man.
In physiology the great question which the Ionic philoso-
1 Unless we take as a proof of it, that sometimes a legislator who returns home, after giving obnoxious votes, is pelted wit emon
by his displeased constituents.
2 Parliamentary Papers : Ionian Islands. Despatch of Sir H. Ward, 13th December 1850.
3 See the Ionian Islands, by an Ionian, 1851, London, Ridgway; and the various works cited in it.
4 It had been one-fifth of the entire revenue, but after various abatements was fixed at L.25,000. _ too i<M)
6 Parliamentary Papers Despatch of Earl Grey to Sir H. Ward, 13th August 1819. Ionian Islands under British Protection, p. Itv,
6 The late Sir Charles J. Napier. See his work on The Colonies, 1833, London, Boone.
7 See official table in Jervis’s History of Corfu, Appendix H.
low
Ionium phers attempted to solve was, What is the original element
Marc jf oniy one? or wjiat are the originaI elements, if more than
Iowa. one’ of which the universe consists ? Thales believed in
v one—water; Pherecydes in earth ; Anaximenes and Dio¬
genes in air; and Heraclitus in fire. Archelaus believed
in two—heat and cold, as represented by fire and water
Those who believed in a plurality of elements, whether two
or more, considered the mechanical action of these upon
each other as sufficient to account for the existing state of
things ; whereas those who admitted only one were obli°-ed
to endow it with a principle of vitality and development to
account for existing variety. The latter of these schemes
is known as the dynamical theory, the former as the me¬
chanical. Ijlut the labours of the Ionic philosophers were
not confined to such speculations. Thales made such ob¬
servations in astronomy as enabled him to calculate eclipses ;
Anaximander and Anaximenes constructed sundials and
maps; Heraclitus endeavoured to explain the causes of
eclipses, and of the successions of the seasons ; while Anaxa¬
goras turned his attention to the milky way, comets, winds,
thunder, meteoric stones, &c. These labours of the Ionic-
philosophers cleared the way for all those schools which, at
a later period, undertook to explain the physical world, and
served at once as a model and a starting point for Leucip¬
pus, Democritus, Empedocles, Aristotle, and, finally, for
Epicurus. In fact, most of the schools which arose in
Greece, from the time of Thales to that of Socrates (b.c.
600 to b.c. 400), and constituted the first philosophic period,
were in some sort so many offshoots from the Ionic philoso¬
phy. Pythagoras, born at Samos, became the pupil of Phere¬
cydes ; Xenophanes, the founder of the Eleatic school, was
a native of Colophon ; Abdera, the birth-place of Leucip¬
pus and Democritus, and the seat of the school which they
founded, was a colony from Phocaea; and, besides, Demo¬
critus was the pupil of Anaxagoras. In the course of its
development the Ionic school was contemporary with the
Abderitan and Eleatic systems, as also with that of Empe¬
docles and Pythagoras. The first of these philosophies oc¬
cupied itself with nearly the same questions as the thinkers
of Ionia. Empedocles admitted, as the first principles of
things, the elements of fire, water, earth, and air, thus at¬
tempting to harmonize the opinions of Heraclitus, Thales,
Pherecydes, Anaximenes, and Diogenes. The Pythago¬
rean and Eleatic schools, on the other hand, were hostile°to
it. They were the idealists of that early period, and, con¬
sequently, in direct antagonism to the materialistic views of
the Ionic philosophy. See Thales, Anaximander, &c.
IONIUM MARE, a term in use among the ancient
geographers for that part of the Mediterranean which washed
the western shores of Greece and Epirus, and separated
them from Italy and Sicily. The origin of the name, and its
exact purport as at first employed, are alike very doubtful.
The term is first found in ASschylus, though what meaning
he attached to the words cannot be clearly ascertained.
Herodotus and Thucydides both talk of the “ Ionian Gulf,”
which, as described by them, can only mean the Adriatic;
and the first of these historians often alludes to the “ Ionian
Strait,” indicating by that term the passage between the
heel of Italy and the Epirote coast. In course of time a
wider but vague and indefinite meaning was attached to
the term. Polybius employed it to indicate a part of the
Mediterranean extending fi-om the entrance of the Adriatic
southwards to the Peloponnesus. At a later period Pliny
included under it the Sicilian and Cretan seas. Later still
all these arbitrary subdivisions of the Mediterranean were
merged in the extension of the name Adriatic, which com¬
prised them all. See Adriatic Sea.
IOWA, one of the United States of North America, lies
between N. Lat. 40. 40. and 43. 30., and W. Long. 90. 12.
and 96. 53. It is bounded N. by the Minnesota territory, E.
by the Mississippi River, which separates it from the states
I 0 W 459
of Illinois and Wisconsin, S. by Missouri, and W. by the Iowa.
Missouri and the Great Sioux River, the former of which i
separates it from the Indian Territory, and the latter from
Minnesota. Greatest length from E. to W., 307 miles;
gieatest breadth, 196 miles; area, 50,914 square miles.
The surface of Iowa is somewhat elevated and generally
undulating. It has no mountains, nor even hills, of any
great height. Table Mound, a conical elevation with a flat
summit, 3 or 4 miles from Dubuque, is perhaps 500 feet
uiv‘ °n ,the borders of the rivers there are frequent
6 luffs, which are generally from 40 to 130 feet high.
Ihe highest ground in the state is a plateau in the N.W.
called Coteau des Prairies, which enters it from Minnesota,
ihe southern part of the state abounds with grassy lawns
and verdant plains, intersected by numerous rivers, the
chief of which are the Des Moines, the Skunk, the Iowa,
and the Red Cedar (a branch of the Iowa), rivers which
flow in a S.E. direction into the Mississippi. The banks of
almost ah of these rivers are skirted with belts of wood.
1 lie distinguishing feature, however, of Iowa is its unique
and admirably diversified prairies, sometimes spreading
out into vast plains. The entire state is named a “rolling
prairie ” by the settlers, from the resemblance its surface
bears to the rolling swell of the ocean. From the absence
of wood, the scenery becomes wearisome and tame.
The soil of Iowa is in general fertile. Near the confines
of the Coteau des Prairies the country is hilly and deso¬
late ; the high lands being covered with gravel, support
but a scanty vegetation, while the low grounds are marshy.
It appears, however, from the surveys which have been
made, that no state in the Union has a smaller proportion of
inferior land. Dr Owen, in his geological report, remarks
that “ the soil of Iowa is generally excellent, and of easy
cultivation.” “ The valleys—especially of the Red Cedar,
Iowa, and Des Moines—present a body of arable land,
which, taken as a whole, for richness in organic elements,
for amount of saline matter, and due admixture of earthy
silicates, affords a combination which belongs only to the
most fertile upland plains.” The climate is generally more
healthful than most of the new states. The openness of
the country renders it less liable than is usual to the in¬
fluence of malaria; the air on the upland prairies is buoyant,
and rendered free from all pernicious influences by the re¬
freshing breezes that blow periodically over them. The
rapid flow of its rivers also carries off in the valleys those
miasmatic influences which otherwise tend to the production
of disease. Ihe winter is occasionally severe, but the se¬
verity is not so great as is usual in the same latitudes. The
summer also is less oppressively hot.
Iowa is strictly an agricultural country. Its fine prairies
and rich natural pastures afford peculiar facilities for rearing
cattle and sheep. Wool-growing has accordingly become
one of the staple employments of the settlers. The raising
of hogs is an occupation equally common and profitable.
The value of live stock in 1850 was estimated at L.737,855,
and slaughtered animals at L. 164,233. The amount of
wool produced was 373,898 lbs. Considerable progress
has recently been made in agriculture, as shown by the
increase of the various productions of the state. For in¬
stance, in 1840 there were only 154,693 bushels of wheat
grown; in 1850 there were 1,530,581; in 1840,216,385
bushels oats; in 1850, 1,524,345; in 1840, 1,406,241
bushels maize; in 1850, 8,656,799. The value of orchard
products in 1840 was 50 dollars; in 1850, 8434 dollars.
All the other productions common to similar latitudes are
grown in Iowa, and have increased in an equal or greater
proportion.
Manufactures have as yet made little progress in the
state. Having only existed for little more than ten years
as an independent state, time has not been afforded to de-
velope its manufacturing resources. Possessing within
460 IOWA.
Iowa, itself abundance of the two grand elements for manufac-
—^ tures—coal and water-power—there can be no doubt that
Iowa will yet be distinguished as a manufacturing state.
In 1850 the number of manufacturing establishments, pro¬
ducing each to the value of 500 dollars annually and up¬
wards, was 482. Of these there were three for the manu¬
facture of cast iron, fourteen tanneries, and one woollen fac¬
tory. The others were chiefly employed in the manufac¬
ture of articles for ordinary and domestic purposes and
anricultural implements. The home-made manufactures
in the year ending 1st June 1850 were valued at L.44,258.
The minerals of Iowa are not of great variety. The vast
bituminous coal-field of the state occupies most of its cen¬
tral and southern portions. For upwards of 200 miles the
River Des Moines passes through this great deposit, the
area of which has been estimated at about 20,000 square
miles, embracing a country equal in extent to more than
one-half of the state of Indiana. The beds of coal, which
are 100 feet in thickness, lie near the surface, and may he
worked at small expense. The lead mines of Iowa are a
continuation of those of Illinois and Wisconsin. The
workings are old and have been very productive. They
occur in the N.E. of the state, Dubuque, one of the oldest
settlements in N. America, being the chief town of the lead¬
mining district. Dr Owen, in his Geological Survey, re¬
marks that the lead-mines of Iowa produce as much of that
metal as the whole of Europe, except Great, Britain, and
that their capabilities are unbounded. Zinc is found chiefly
in the form of electric calamine, in cellular masses in con¬
nection with the lead. This mineral occurs in some “ dig¬
gings” also in a state of carbonate and in others as a sul-
phuret. Copper is found in the same localities as zinc. It
has also recently been discovered in Cedar county in con¬
siderable quantities. Iron-ore is abundantly distributed,
but as yet only a small quantity of it has been converted
into metal. In the geological survey of the state above
referred to, it is affirmed that its resources and capabilities
are such that 10,000 labourers and miners might be profi¬
tably employed within its boundaries. Iowa has no direct
foreign commerce, but its trade with the ports of the At¬
lantic and the Mexican Gulf is very considerable and rapidly
increasing. The exports consist of agricultural and mining
products. The home traffic of this state is also very con¬
siderable. The facilities which it possesses both for inter¬
nal trade and foreign commerce are very abundant, and in
a short time will be greatly increased. A railroad 180
miles in length has been projected between Dubuque, the
capital of the lead-mining district, and Keokuk, the chief
port of the state for foreign trade. Keokuk, Davenport,
Lyons, and Dubuque will also shortly be connected by rail¬
roads with the interior. The system of railroads which has
been projected are to converge in the city Iowa. Besides
these, which will radiate through the state in various direc¬
tions, the grand trunk line is proposed to be carried from
this city westward to Council Bluffs on the Missouri, and
will form a part of the great Pacific line which is to termi¬
nate at San Francisco in California. Through Iowa will
also pass a branch of the great chain of north and south
railroads connecting St Louis with the extreme settlements
of Minnesota territory. When these are completed, both
the home and foreign commerce of the state will be inde¬
finitely increased. The valley of the Des Moines River
contains at present half the population, as well as half
the agricultural wealth of the state, and its prosperity may
for some time depend as much upon the improvement of
navigation on this river as upon the execution of these pro¬
jected railroads. The Des Moines rises in the Coteau des
Prairies, in the S.W. of Minnesota, and flowing through the
state, in general in a S.S.E. direction, divides it into two
nearly equal sections, and after a course of 400 miles, falls
into the Mississippi at the S.E. extremity of the state, about
4 miles below Keokuk. Iowa has many other interior rivers Iowa<
which are navigable for various—some of them for consi-
derable—distances. The Skunk is more than 200 miles in
length, and flows through a fertile country. It pursues a
course of 150 miles in a S.E. direction nearly parallel to Des
Moines. The Iowa, from which the state takes its name,
has in general a S.S.E. direction, and after a course of up¬
wards of 300 miles, discharges itselfinto the Mississippi by two
mouths, forming a delta, the sides of which are about 6 miles
long. It is navigable by steamboats at all seasons to Iowa
city, 80 miles from its mouth, and for boats of light draught
much farther up. The Red Cedar (a branch of the Iowa)
is navigable for 60 miles. The Wapsipinicon, the Mako-
queta, Turkey, and Upper Iowa Rivers have courses vary¬
ing in length from 100 to 200 miles, and are navigable for
distances of 20 to 60 miles. They flow in an E. or S.E.
direction into the Mississippi. The Great Sioux, an import¬
ant tributary of the Missouri, forms the N.W. boundary
of the state ; its length is estimated at 300 miles. The tri¬
butaries of the Missouri in this state are of minor impor¬
tance.
Iowa is divided into 49 counties. In 1840 the popula¬
tion of the state was 43,112, including 172 free coloured
persons and 16 slaves. In 1850 it had increased to 192,214,
including 333 free coloured persons. Iowa sends two re¬
presentatives to congress and two members to the senate.
Iowa city is the capital of the state. Pop. in 1850 was
1183. Burlington, the most populous town, had, in 1850,
4082 inhabitants. Dubuque and Keokuk are next in im¬
portance.
The present constitution of Iowa was adopted in 1846.
It gives the right of suffrage to every white male citizen
who has resided in the state six months, and thirty days in
the county in which he claims to vote.
The legislature consists of a senate of 30 members elected
for four years, and a bouse of representatives of 69 members
for two years. The number of representatives must not ex¬
ceed 72, and the senators must not be less than one-third,
nor more than one-half of that number. The governor, who
is chosen for four years, receives 1000 dollars per annum.
The members of the legislature receive each 2 dollars a-day
for the first 50 days of the session, and 1 dollar a-day after¬
wards. The justiciary consists of a supreme court, circuit
or district courts, and courts of local jurisdiction. I he su¬
preme court consists of a chief and two associate justices
elected by the joint vote of the legislature for six years.
They receive each 1000 dollars per annum. There are 10
district courts, each of which is presided over by a judge
chosen by the people of the district for five years, and re¬
ceiving a salary of 1000dollars a-year. Justices of the peace
preside in the courts of local jurisdiction, and have power
to decide in all civil cases where the amount in dispute
does not exceed 100 dollars, or by consent of parties, 500
dollars.
On 1st November 1854 the funded debt of the state w'as
L.15,959, the interest of which is about L.1520.
There were in Iowa, in 1850, 148 churches, of which 50
w'ere Methodist, 24 Presbyterian, 17 Roman Catholic, 16
Baptist, 14 Congregational, 8 Christian, 5 Quaker, and 14
minor sects. The average number of persons to each
church was 1298. The value of church property amounted
to 177,400 dollars.
A superintendent of public instruction is chosen by the
people for three years, under provision of government. 1 he
constitution provides also for a state university, and the
establishment of three normal schools. In 1850 this state
possessed 3 colleges, having 8 teachers and pupils.
In 1854 there were 1520 district schools, attended^by
44,115 scholars, taught by 961 male teachers, and 772
female.
The first white settlement in Iowa was made at Dubuque
I P H
Iphicrates. as early as 1686 by French Canadians. The state oriffi-
W^nally formed a part of the province of Louisiana, and was
purchased m 1803 from the French, by the United States
1 he territory now comprising the state of Iowa, was a Dart
ot the Missouri territory from 1804 to 1821 ; and after that
it was placed successively under the jurisdiction of Michigan
and Winsconsm territories. It was erected in June 1838
into a separate government, with the title of the Territory
ot Iowa, and including within its limits the whole Minne¬
sota territory west of the Mississippi. I„ 1846 it was cir¬
cumscribed within its present boundaries, and admitted into
tne Union as an independent state.
IPHICRA IES, an Athenian general who plays a con-
sP“r,US Part /n ^le history ot Greece in the first half of
the 4th century b.c. He owes his fame chiefly to the im¬
provements which he introduced into military tactics and
the marked success that attended their adoption. The
Greek states, at that time at war with each other, carried
on hostilities by rapid incursions into each other’s terri¬
tories, and retreats as rapid when a three had been collected
sufficient to repel them. To the soldiers who took part in
these forays lightness was an indispensable element of safety
Iphicrates, who was the first to see this, resolved to organize
a body of troops that should combine the advantages ot lUht
and heavy armed men. For this purpose he substituted a
fight oval targe in room of the heavy round buckler then in
use doubled the length of the sword and of the spear, and
replaced the steel coat-of-mail by a linen corslet. These
troops he called “ Peltastse,” from the target which they
bore; and such was their discipline and efficiency, that in a
short time none of the ordinary Greek hoplites would meet
them m the field, except the elite of the Spartan infantry.
I heir ordinary method of attack was to break the line of
u'u- en?my> e^lei’ by a feint or by a dense rain of missiles,
-this done, the hoplite, with his cumbrous panoply, and
short, thick sword, had no chance against the agile move¬
ments, and long, keen rapier, or equally terrible pike of the
nimble Athenian. The Spartans, though they affected to
despise these Peltasts as mere skirmishers, were more than
once taught a deadly lesson at their hands. A Spartan
corps, returning home from the capture of the Pirteus by
Agesilaus, in b.c. 392, was attacked by Iphicrates in the
neighbourhood of Corinth, and destroyed to a man. This
exploit of the Athenian commander soon became noised
abroad throughout Greece. This victory, besides the im¬
mediate advantages that resulted from it, was peculiarly
valuable to the Athenians, whose credit it redeemed, while
the pride of Lacedaemon was sorely humbled at the defeat
of its hi avest waii iors by a band of light-armed mercenaries.
Encouraged by his success, Iphicrates proceeded rapidly to
follow it up. Town after town fell into his hands, and
Athens bade fair to retrieve her old place in the van of the
Greek states, when the peace of Antalcidas put an end to
the war. The latter half of Iphicrates’ military career was
as brilliant as its outset had been. He served with high
distinction in the Hellespont, and afterwards in Egypt,
whither he had been sent to assist the Persians in subduing
that country. His conduct in Thrace tarnished his good
name for a short time. He had married a daughter of
Cotys, king of that country, and sided with his father-in-
law against his native land, when he went to war with
Athens for the possession of the Thracian Chersonesus.
For his conduct in this affair he was afraid to return home,
but the Athenians soon pardoned him, and gave him a joint
command in the Social War. For his conduct in this office
IRA
he was brought to trial on his return home; but the elo¬
quence of Lysias procured him an honourable acquittal.
Rrom this time Iphicrates continued to live quietly in
Athens, where he died at a very advanced age, though the
exact date of his death is unknown.
IPSWICH, a borough and river-port of England, capital
o tie county of Suffolk. It stands on a gentle slope at the
confluence of the Gipping with the Orwell, on the line of the
Pastern Counties railway, 68 miles N.E. of London. In the
old part of the town the streets are mostly narrow and irre¬
gularly built ; and some of the old houses are decorated with
unions carvings. In the modern part the streets are wide
and regular, and lined with neat and substantial buildings,
psvvich is rapidly improving, and is altogether a clean,
healthy and pleasant town. It contains 12 parish churches,
none of which are architecturally remarkable, and several
issenting places of worship. There were, in 1851, 91 day-
schools, with 4253 scholars. Among the public buildings
are the shire and town halls, custom-house, corn exchange,
gaols, cavalry barracks, theatre, assembly-rooms, baths,
unatic asylum, and hospital. The grammar-school founded
° SeyVf natlveof the t0W11> has 6scholarships
and 2 exhibitions at Pembroke College, Cambridge. There
are also a mechanics’ institute, with library, a public li¬
brary news-rooms, museum of natural history, a blue-coat
school, and several almshouses. Ipswich was formerly ce¬
lebrated for its woollen manufactures, but these are now
a but extinct. It chiefly depends at present on the ma-
nufacture of agricultural implements, ship-building, and its
shipping. It is about 18 miles from the sea by the river
winch is navigable to the town for vessels of upwards of
J tons- .P 18 the seat of a considerable trade, the chief
exports being corn, malt, and agricultural implements:
the chief imports, coal, iron, and timber. The shipping
registered at the port on 31st December 1854 was,—sailing
vessels 167, tonnage 13,763; steamers 6, tonnage 295.
ibose entered and cleared at the port during 1854,—coas¬
s’183’ tonnaSe 87,876; outwards 715, tonnage
if ;~colonial and foreign traders, inwards 106, tonnage
11,0,6; outwards 84, tonnage 8101. Ipswich is governed
by a mayor, 10 aldermen, and 30 councillors, and returns 2
members to parliament. Pop. (1851) 32,914.
IHAK-AJEMI, a large province of Persia, nearly cor¬
responding to the ancient Media, lies between N. Lat. 31.
and 37., and E. Long. 46. and 53. It is bounded, n!
461
Ipswich
by the provinces of Azerbijan, Ghilan, and Mazanderaun,
E. by Khorasan and Yzed, S. by Pars and Khuzistan, and
W. by iurkey. It consists of an elevated table-land, tra¬
versed by several ranges of barren hills which run from W.
to E., inclosing several valleys from 10 to 15 miles in
breadth. 1 he soil, which is uncultivated, except in the
vicinity of the villages, is good, and readily produces rich
cereal crops, and excellent fruits, with tobacco, opium,
cotton, saffron, &c. 1 he valleys and plains abound with
excellent pasturage. Wool, goats’ hair, and silk, fbrm im¬
portant sources of wealth to the inhabitants. Cotton fabrics,
leather, glass, earthenware, with stuffs of gold and silver
thiead, are the chief manufactures, and along with thenatu-
lal productions of the province, constitute its principal ex¬
ports. The chief emporium of trade is Ispahan, once the
capital of Persia.
Irak-Arabi (the ancient Babylonia), a district of
Asiatic I urkey, pashalic of Baghdad, lying mostly between
the courses of the Euphrates and Tigris, S.E. of Baghdad. It
contains the ruins of Babylon, Selucia, and several other cities.
462
I E E L A N D.
History. Ireland, one of the largest of the European islands,
is situated to the west of Great Britain, from which it is
separated by a narrow channel called the Irish Sea and St
George’s Channel on the east, and is bounded on its other
sides by the Atlantic Ocean, through which it can maintain
a direct communication with the continents of Europe, Af¬
rica, and America. The advantageous position, the fertility
of the soil, and the salubrity of the climate, have conferred
upon Ireland commercial facilities, which are capable ot
being greatly increased. How far these natural advantages
have been made available towards the internal improve¬
ment of the island itself, and the general benefit of the
empire of which it forms an important part, may be best
ascertained from the following details of its history and
statistics.
HISTORY.
The Irish nation is undoubtedly of Celtic origin. 1 his
truth is stamped in indelible characters in the names of
the rivers, towns, mountains, and other objects ot histori¬
cal notoriety throughout the island; it is proclaimed by
marks equally indelible in the relics of antiquity, the tu¬
muli, the cairns, the cromleachs, and the druidical circles,
the remains of which, after having triumphed over the ra¬
vages of time and repeated revolutions, are now perpetu¬
ated in the pages of the antiquary’s researches. The name
of the island itself confirms the assertion. Eri or Erin, its
most ancient appellation, and that to which the natives still
cling with the attachment of veneration, is derived from the
Celtic lar or Eir, which signifies western. Most of its more
modern names may be easily traced to this source. By the
Grecians, to whom, though unacquainted with its localities,
its general geographical position and bearings were not un¬
known, it was called lerna, being honoured by them with
the rank of the third of the islands of the ocean, and yield¬
ing precedence in this respect only to Taprobane and Bri¬
tain. Ptolemy names it louerna; Juvenal and Mela, luver-
na. Diodorus Siculus, approaching more nearly to the ab¬
original word, calls it Iris. Marcianus Heracleota and Eu¬
stathius adopt the term used by Ptolemy, but corrupted by
the latter into Bernia. By the Britons it was called Iver-
don ; and the Saxons, attaching to the native name an epi¬
thet from their own language, called it lerland or Ireland.
Its later name, Hibernia, may be traced somewhat more
circuitously to the same source, although much etymolo¬
gical and antiquarian ingenuity has been employed to de¬
duce it from other circumstances. Some choose to de¬
rive it from its climate, calling it Hibernus, on account of
its wintry temperature, as unjustly in fact as erroneously
in etymology ; others from Iberus, a Spaniard, or a river
o!' Spain. One writer ventures still further. Postellus, in
his strictures on Mela, deduces it from the Hebrew, “ Irin
quasi lurin,” the land of the Plebrews, “ who, knowing that
the empire of the world would be established in a very
strong corner to the north-west, made themselves masters
as soon as possible of those parts, and of Ireland.” Bochart
traces it to the Phoenician ; Hibernia, according to him, or
lerne, being nothing more than Ibernae, or the furthest ha¬
bitation, because, beyond Ireland westward, all was ocean,
according to the ancients. This derivation may be easily
made to harmonize with that deduced from the Celtic,
serving also to corroborate the opinion now very generally
entertained, that the Celtic Irish and the Phoenician were
kindred branches from the same eastern stem. Another
name from another source has been fixed upon Ireland, one History,
of different derivation, and of later acceptation, as not being
known until the fourth century after Christ, when the coun¬
try was generally designated throughout the learned world
of that day by the name of Scotia. Some writers take the
word to be a corruption of Scythia, from which region they
suppose the nation to have emigrated; others, amongst whom
are Whitaker and Chalmers, assert that the people acquired
this name from their habits of roving and spirit of enterprise;
the term “ sceite,” according to them, signifying dispersed
or scattered. The name of Ogygia has also been applied to
it, and adopted by O’Flaherty in his Chronological Annals.
Certainly, if the Ogygia, which Plutarch places west of
Britain, be any thing more than an imaginary formation,
it must signify Ireland. Yet if so, it should more proper¬
ly be considered as an epithet given to it on account of its
antiquity than as a proper name ; the Greeks applying that
word exclusively to what was of an origin beyond existing
records.
A recurrence to the Greek and Roman writers will
show that the country thus designated was not consider¬
ed by them as the habitation of a single nation. On the
contrary, its coasts are described by Ptolemy as being
possessed by a number of tribes of various names ; whilst
with the interior he seems to have had no acquaintance.
His nomenclature has been followed by succeeding geo¬
graphers, with little variation. According to these authori¬
ties, the northern regions were possessed by the Venicnii
and the Robogdii; the eastern by the Darnii or Darini,
the Voluntii, the Blanii or Eblanii, the Cauci, the Me-
napii, and the Coriondi; the southern shores were pos¬
sessed by the Brigantes, the Vodii, the Uterni or Ivernii,
and the Vellebori; the western coast was the residence
of the Gangani or Cancani, the Auteri, the Nagnatse, and
the Herdini or Herpeditani. Whitaker supposes the in¬
terior, comprehending all the inland counties, to have
been peopled by a tribe which he calls the Scoti.
The native annalists present a very different picture
of the ancient state of the country, which, although much
disfigured by the fables of romance with which the bards,
the only historians of the time, chose, for very obvious
reasons, to embellish their narratives, must be supposed
to rest upon a groundwork of reality. Rejecting, there¬
fore, from their accounts what is evidently fabulous, and
suspending the judgment as to circumstances of doubt¬
ful or obscure character, the temperate investigator of
truth will be able to trace a series of historical connec¬
tions, to which assent may be conceded, at least to the
same extent as to those parts of the recognised histones
of other countries, in which it is acknowledged that truth
verges upon fiction. With this clue to the investigation
of a train of occurrences which affect to penetrate fui-
ther into the darkness of antiquity than those of any other
nation, except the Jewish, the investigation of the histoiy
of Ireland may be ventured on from the earliest period at
which the most enthusiastic advocate of its primeval ori¬
gin thinks himself justified in fixing his first footsteps, until
we arrive, through the periods of doubt, at those of un¬
disputed historical certainty in our own times.
According to the native historians, Partholan, the sixth
in descent from Magog, Noah s second son, settled in Ire¬
land at the head of a thousand men, and took possession
of a country in which no one appeared to dispute his right
of occupancy. But he did not long enjoy his possession ot
it in tranquillity; for at the same time, or shortly afterwards,
there arrived a band of lawless adventurers, of the stock
Ilistory^ of Nimrod, the descendant of Ham, who were distinguished
by the name of Fomorians, or Fawmorries, a name still ap¬
plied to strangers by the native Irish. With these took
place a series of deadly hostilities, which terminated in a
battle so bloody and so decisive, that not a single stranger
was left alive; and the ground was so infected with "the
putrefying corpses, which the residue of the followers of
Partholan were now too few' and weak to inter, that a plague
broke out, which destroyed all the survivors, and left the
country totally uninhabited for thirty years.
At the termination of this period, Nemedius, another
descendant of Japhet, made a settlement on the island
with a thousand men, from the borders of the Euxine. The
tranquillity of his settlement Was also disturbed by the in¬
cursions of tribes of Fomorians, here said to be African
pirates, with whom his followers carried on an incessant
warfare, but with different ultimate success ; for the stran¬
gers, being reinforced with fresh supplies from their own
countrymen, at length defeated the Nemedians with such
slaughter, as to force the scanty remains of this second co¬
lony to return to the country whence they had originally
emigrated, fhey took their departure in three companies.
The first, under Breac, proceeded to Thrace, where they
took the name of Belgae ; the second, under Jobath, pro¬
ceeded no farther than Boeotia ; and the third, under Brid-
tan, repaired to the neighbouring island of Britain, where
they formed the tribe of the Brigantes. From this Bridtan,
the Psalter of Cashel, a record of great authority in the
first and second ages of the Irish, traces the origin of the
Welsh.
The Fomorians, when sole masters of the country, went
to war amongst themselves, and carried their dissensions to
such a height of animosity, that the island was a second
time utterly depopulated, and continued so until some of the
descendants of the Thracian Nemedians, to the number of
about five thousand men, returned thither, under the com¬
mand of the five sons of Dela. The Irish annalists distin¬
guish this colony by the name of Fir-bolgs; a name said to be
applied to tribes living in caves, whither the natives used to
have recourse for shelter in cases of extremity. To this co¬
lony is attributed the division of the country into five princi¬
palities, which continued, though not without interruption,
till the English invasion. The names of the states of the
pentarchy were, Leinster, Munster, Ulster, Connaught, and
Meath. The principal chieftain of each division was honour¬
ed with the title of king, a name applied very liberally at all
times to the petty dynasts who arrogated supreme authority
over their own territories, however limited; but the ruler
over Leinster was recognised as sovereign, to whom sub¬
mission was tendered, and from whom protection was claim¬
ed, by the other members of the pentarchy in cases of danger.
This system of government continued undisturbedfor eighty
years, through a succession of nine sovereign rulers, when
it was broken in upon by the intrusion of another colony of
the same stock, called by the Irish writers Tuatha-na-Da-
nans; a name said by some to have been given them as being
the descendants of the three sonsof Danan, a profound adept
in the art of magic, and by others, as being divided into
the three tribes of Tuatha or commanders, Dee, druids or
priests, and Danan or bards. The chronicles of the time
state, that having been driven out of Boeotia by their in¬
veterate enemies the Fomorians, after wandering through
various countries, they settled in Norway, where they were
hospitably received; whence they removed to Scotland,
and, after a residence there of seven years, proceeded to
Ireland, carrying with them several necromantic curiosi¬
ties, the most remarkable of which was the fatal stone, or
stone of destiny, to which tradition attached the belief that
the sovereignty would remain with that nation whose king
was crowned upon it. The tale would be unworthy of his¬
torical notice, w'ere not an observance of the present day
IRELAND.
463
connected with the superstitious credence to which it owes History,
its birth. The stone, after having been preserved for many
generations in the line of the Irish Milesian monarchs, was
taken to Scotland by a king of that family, by whom it was
fraudulently detained, and used as the inauguration stone
of the Scottish kings until the time of Edward I. of Eng¬
land, who, on his conquest of the country, transferred it,
together with all the other appendages of royalty, to Lon¬
don, where it is still kept, under the name of Jacob’s stone,
and is used in the ceremonial of the coronation of the kings
of Gieat Britain. The Belgae defended themselves for
some time with great spirit, but they were at length total¬
ly defeated. Numbers of them withdrew to the neigh¬
bouring islands and coasts of Scotland ; and those who re¬
mained were reduced to a state of abject slavery, under
which they remained during the whole time their enemies
held the dominion, which the latter were enabled to do,
without molestation from a foreign enemy, for an hundred
and ninety-seven years, under a succession of nine sove¬
reigns.
The dynasty of the Tuatha-na-Danans was terminated
by an event similar to those which had extinguished the
two previous colonies. An expedition from Spain, under
the eight sons of Milesius, landed in the south-west of Ire¬
land, and after encountering many perils, partly by the vio¬
lence of a storm, by which five of the leaders were lost,
partly by the resistance of the old settlers, they obtained
possession of the entire country, which was divided be-
tw een Heremon and Heber, two of the surviving sons of
Milesius ; Amergin, the third, having no share in the go¬
vernment, but acting rather as a councillor to both, a func¬
tion which his literary acquirements entitled him to assume.
The southern part fell to Heber ; Leinster and Connaught
to Heremon, who fixed his residence at Teamor, now called
Tarah, in Meath. A war soon broke out between the bro¬
thers, which was terminated by the total defeat of Heber,
the aggressor, who was killed in a battle fought at Geisiol,
or Geashil, in the King’s County. But his death did not put
an end to the domestic dissensions of the family. A few
years after, Heremon put his remaining brother to death, and
thus obtained the sole dominion, which he held for thirteen
years, till his death. His time was chiefly employed in re¬
pelling invasions of the Britons and of the Piets. The go¬
vernment then continued through a race of twenty kings
of the same family, of whom nothing worthy of mention is
recorded ; the annals of the period containing merely the
intestine dissensions of the chiefs of the several branches,
and their wars with the Britons and Piets, until the crown
descended to Ollav Fola, of the family of Ir, one of
the sons of Milesius who had perished on the first landing
in Ireland. During his reign, which commenced about
900 years before Christ, the Fez, or triennial meeting of the
subordinate chieftains, priests, historiographers, and bards,
was instituted at Teamor, or Tarah, in which, besides the
regulation of all matters affecting the government and the
enacting of laws, a minute investigation was entered into
of the national monuments and records. Whatever was
then deemed genuine and authentic, was inserted in a vo¬
lume called the Psalter of Tarah. This legislator closed
a reign of forty years, spent with benefit to his subjects and
honour to himself, by a natural death, a circumstance very
unusual in the annals of those times, and left the undisput¬
ed succession to his son, who enjoyed it for seventeen
years, and also had the unusual good fortune to die in the
same manner. T. he annals of the succeeding monarchs,
for the space of 260 years, present nothing but a reitera¬
tion of war and mutual destruction, to such an extent,
that out of thirty-one kings, who held the reins of govern¬
ment during that period, all but three are recorded to have
fallen in battle, or by a violent death. The only occur¬
rences worthy of notice that can be gleaned from the his-
464
I R E L A N D.
History, torv of this barren period, are, the erection of a mint, the
formation of a standing army by the allowance of a fixed
pay to the soldiery, and the invention of the small boats,
formed of whcker-work and covered with hides, now called
corraghs. , , ..
Kimbath, who ascended the throne 460 years before
Christ, has obtained an honourable celebrity by his efforts
to revive and improve the institutions of Ollav Fola. He
formed a national police, and regulated the artificers and
tradesmen, whom he placed under the jurisdiction of a
council of sixty of the nobles and learned men, without
whose license no person was permitted to practise any
mechanic art. The foundation of the royal palace of
Eamania, near Armagh, is attributed by some writers to
him ; whilst others give the credit of it to his widow, who
succeeded him, and reigned seven years, when she was cut
off by her successor, who in his turn fell by the hand of
Hugony the Great, in revenge for the death of his foster
mother. This last-named monarch, with whom the line
of Heremon would have terminated had he died without
issue, was married to the daughter of a king of France,
and kept possession of the crown during a vigorous and
active reign of thirty years. He obliged the Piets to pay
tribute, and extended his dominion over the Western
Isles. He also abolished the pentarchical form of govern¬
ment, dividing the country into twenty-five provinces,
over each of which he placed one of his twenty-five sons,
and causing the public revenues to be collected according
to this arrangement. But neither his virtues nor his abi¬
lities were sufficient to save him from the usual fate of Irish
monarchs, nor to prevent the recurrence of acts of slaugh¬
ter amongst his posterity. He was slain, after a reign of
thirty years, by his own brother, who fell by the hand of
one of Hugony’s sons, who in his turn perished by the
treachery of his only brother. Amongst the successors of
Hugony, Eochy, surnamed Feileagh, or the Melancholy,
has made his reign memorable by founding the royal seat
of Croghan, in Connaught. It is also celebrated as being
the era of the red-branch knights of Ulster, who were
said to have had a residence at the palace of Eamania.
His successor Eochy introduced the custom of burying in
graves instead of burning. Conary More, who reigned for
thirty years according to some writers, and sixty accord¬
ing to others, is famous for having enjoyed the longest,
happiest, and most tranquil reign in Irish history. Such
periods are not those which furnish most materials for the
annalist. Of the particulars of his life, though so highly
celebrated, little is recorded. He wras killed in battle by
the king of Wales, though other accounts state that he
was treacherously burned in his own palace of Teamor,
which also became a prey to the flames. In the reign of
Crimthan, one of his successors, who had married the
daughter of a Pictish chieftain, the Irish were the auxi¬
liaries of the Piets against the Romans. The information
of the leader of a rival faction to this prince is said to
have induced Agricola to entertain the idea of conquer¬
ing the island with a single legion and some auxiliaries.
Whatever might have been the result of such an invasion
under a general of acknowledged military talents, it is
certain that the Roman power in Britain declined so ra¬
pidly from this time, that the Irish made frequent irrup¬
tions into the Roman province, and returned to their own
country loaded with spoil. Feredach, one of the succes¬
sors of Crimthan, owes his title of the Just to his chief
councillor Moran, whose rigid impartiality in the dispen¬
sation of justice is recorded, in the figurative language of
the bards, under the allegory of a collar, invented and
handed down by him to his successors in office, which had
the supernatural effect of pressing upon the neck of the
wearer in case his decision deviated from the strict rule of
equity, so as to strangle him if he persevered in his ini¬
quity. Feredach was killed after an unsettled reign of History,
seven years, by an insurrection of the peasantry, to whom
the name of Attacots was given ; a name which afterwards
was carried into North Britain, where, though at first ap¬
plied to disturbers of the public peace, it ultimately be¬
came the distinguishing title of a tribe inhabiting the
country adjoining the Roman wall. After a period, of
civil commotion, Tuathal, upon attaining the sovereign
power, exerted himself to restore the ancient constitution
of Ollav Fola, and the pentarchical division of the coun¬
try. To him is attributed the appropriation of the central
province of Meath, as a demesne or mensal land for the
supreme monarch. Here he restored the royal residence,
and founded an edifice for the sacred fire, to which the
Druids and priests were to have recourse on the last day
of October, to perform a solemn sacrifice, and to supply
fire to all the people, who were bound to extinguish their
usual fires at that time, and to relight them from this hal
lowed source. He built similar palaces and temples at.Uis-
neacht in Connaught, at Flaodha in Munster, and at lail-
tean in Ulster, where there was a fair, to which parents
brought their grown-up children and contracted them in
marriage. He also was the originator of the fine after¬
wards known by the name of the Borome, or Leinster tri¬
bute, imposed upon the king of that province for having
caused the death of two daughters of Tuathal, whom he
inveigled away under a treacherous promise of marriage.
This monarch died in battle. The reign of Conn Keadca-
hagh, or Conn of the Hundred Battles, is best known by the
division of Ireland which he was compelled to make with
Mogha Nuod, king of Munster. The line of demarcation
was fixed by a rampart and fosse, extending across Ireland
from Dublin to Galway, the country to the south of which
was called Leagh Mogha, or Mogha’s share, that to the
north Leagh Cuin, or Conn’s share; names still familiar
amongst the Irish. Cormac, the grandson of Conn of the
Hundred Battles, signalized himself by his efforts to re¬
store the ancient regulations of the monarchy ; but having
lost an eye in suppressing a rebellion excited by one of
his own family, and being thus excluded from the throne
through the prevalence of a prejudice which forbade a
mutilated person to continue monarch, he closed his life
in retirement, during which he drew up a treatise, yet
extant, called the Book of Advice to Kings; a work ex¬
tolled by the native writers as worthy to be written in
letters of gold, a perfect standard of policy to all ages. In
his reign flourished the celebrated Irish militia, known by
the name of Fiana Erion, and commanded by Fein M'Cooil,
commonly called F'ingal. It was a military association,
into which admission was attainable only by convincing
testimonies of great strength, activity, and intelligence;
besides which, an engagement was required on the part of
the newly-admitted member to choose a wife solely for
her merits, never to ill-treat a woman, and not to turn his
back upon an enemy, even though nine times as nume¬
rous as the body to which he belonged. The regular
number of this force was said to be nine thousand men,
divided into three battalions. After a variety of exploits,
which have furnished materials to much of the legendary
romance of the time, the body was annihilated during the
succeeding reign, at the battle of Gabra or Gawra, in
Meath, where Oscar, the son of Ossian the poet, fell.
Passing over a series of several kings known only by
name, Nial of the Nine Hostages signalized himself by
his military expeditions in Scotland, England, and France.
His career of conquest was cut short in the last-named
country, where he died of the wound of an arrow treach¬
erously discharged against him on the banks of the Loire.
His immediate successor, Dahy, met with an untimely
fate in the same country by lightning. He was the last
pagan king of Ireland. In the third year of Logary, or
H istory
Lae-ra, who succeeded Dahy, Palladius arrived in Ire-
' 'and> heinS sent on a mission thither by Pone Celestine
for the conversion of the natives. He was not, however,
beenih»s fmployed. The names of St
Aibe, Declan, Iber, and Kinan, are quoted as his prede¬
cessors in the pious work. But their labours were con¬
fined to particular districts, nor does it appear that they
acted under the authority of the see of Rome. Either
through ignorance of the language, or want of spirit to
withstand the ferocious opposition of his pagan adversa¬
ries, Palladius was compelled, after having founded three
churches, to relinquish the design, and to quit the coun¬
try, in order to save his own life and those of his followers •
but he was prevented by death from returning to Rome
to give an account of his mission. The completion of the
work so inauspiciously commenced was reserved for St
Patrick, whose success has acquired him the title of the
apostle of Ireland. He was a native of North Britain.
When sixteen years old he was brought prisoner to Ire¬
land by Nial of the Nine Hostages, during one of his fo¬
reign expeditions, and spent seven years in slavery in the
country, where his employment was the herding of swine.
J he law of bondage at that time extended no longer than
the seventh year, at the expiration of which time he re¬
turned to his native country; and, after having studied
IRELAND.
465
formation respecting the ancient history of the country. History.
Patrick did not retain the government of the bishopric
erected by himself in Armagh; but having appointed Binen
or Benignus his successor in the see, and having made a
visit to Rome, he spent the remainder of his life chiefly
at Saul, near Downpatrick, where he had founded a monas¬
tery, in which he closed a career of active and successful
labours, in the hundred and twentieth year of his age, and
was buried in the neighbouring abbey of Downpatrick.
Although the exertions of St Patrick produced an effect
so great upon the public mind, that, for many years after,
the founding of religious institutions, and the lives and
deaths of the ecclesiastics engaged in maintaining and ex¬
tending the new faith, formed the chief subjects of history,
it does not appear that the change of religion produced the
beneficial alterations that might have been hoped for from
it on the political aspect of affairs. The brief notices of
the civil occurrences continue to exhibit little more than
a reiteration of the turbulence, crime, and desolation, that
lio.cl marked the era of paganism. Ihe only event of* ini-
portance that diversifies the tissue of domestic and foreign
warfare which forms the subject of the annals of thole
days, occurred during the reign of Hugh, the son of Ain-
mireagh, in which an assemblage was convened at Drum-
keath, in Derry, for the express purpose of curbing the li-
under his nnr-lp c -^erry, xor tne express purpose of cr
Rr>mp ,1 i ’t e R boP l°urs> he found his way to cense of the bards, now become intolerable. The urivi-
attemnt which f ec,ted bf the P°Pe to renew the leges annexed of old to this order, whose properties as well
ft,led; an ‘'"'^taking for as persona were inviolable in all civil commotions, whTse
1.1*,..  J I-9 C11M U1JUCI laKIIJM JUI
which his knowledge of the language, acquired during his
captivity, peculiarly qualified him. To Ireland, therefore,
he proceeded with twenty disciples or assistants, which
number was increased to thirty-four in England, where
he touched during his voyage. His first reception on
his landing at Wicklow was very discouraging. The re¬
port of his arrival had already reached the Pagan prince
who had expelled his predecessor. The same spirit of
hostility was directed against the new comer, and Patrick
and his company were assailed and forced to take refuge
on board their ships. But, though discouraged, he was not
disheartened. Instead of relinquishing his purpose, he pro¬
lands were freed from tribute, and whose houses were re¬
spected as sanctuaries, had rendered the numbers of the
profession so great, and entailed such a burden on the
state for their support, that they were several times before
about to be banished from the country. At the assembly
now held, they found a zealous and useful friend in the ce¬
lebrated Columbkill, who left his monastery of Iona to be
present here, and prevailed so far as to procure a mitiga¬
tion of their treatment, by changing the decree for their
banishment into one for the diminution of their numbers.
It was therefore resolved, that in future the king of Ire¬
land, each provincial sovereign, and the lord of every sub-
i i. • i i ^ ^ ijio pui puae, nt; pro- ictiiu, cdui provincial sovereign, and the lord of everv sub-
haW ^frpthpTh-a te IP rdS navmedi^oIm-patrick» where, ordinate territory, was to maintain a bard to preserve the
TT]g efreslled himself by a short leisure, he proceeded genealogies and record the acts of the respective families •
to Ulster, and preached before the chieftain of the dis- mid thafa suitable salary was to be allowed W inTetum’
nhmin°r0rClb ^ aV° <"?nvei!t blf a.nd hls family> and to for which he was also to instruct the youth in history, poe-
vpfr f0lind a ChurCJ11there- In the second try, and antiquities. The whole body was placed under^he
) o his mission he presented himself before the Fez, control of an arch-poet, in whom was vested the power of
or counci at Parah, where he proved equally successful; admitting qualified persons. Thus restrained as to num-
rngary e king declaring himself a convert, and many bers and means of acquiring wealth, their properties were
JTS f0llOWing hlS exa,mfle- Nor d0es il aPPear as hitherto exempted from taxation, and their persons prU
that the subsequent progress of the apostle was checked vileged. Yet, during this gloomy period, in which the in-
■>> any untoward circumstance. Ihe remainder of his ternal state of the country exhibits so little to cheer the
i e, w ic was protracted to an unusual length, was spent inquirer, it became celebrated throughout Christendom on
in laversing the country, spreading around a knowledge of account of the piety and learning of the inmates of its reli-
..i,!,?.Sit.ian.d0]Ctrine’ ?a,ain£ ™er c?nv5rtf: ami found- gious establishments. In the fifth century Sedulius made
ing churches and monasteries. Ihe chief of his religious
foundations was at Armagh, which soon became a school
of theology, so famous that students flocked to it from all
quarters in such numbers, that at one time it was said to
have communicated instruction to seven thousand stu¬
dents. Ihe exertions of Patrick were not wholly confin¬
ed to the preaching of the gospel. He gave his advice and
assistance in the reformation of the government. At his
suggestion, Logary summoned an assembly of the princes,
historians, and antiquaries, to revise the records and chro¬
nicles of the country ; and their amendments were deposit¬
ed in the public archives, under the name of “ The Great
-Antiquity.” Fragments of copies taken from this work were
to be met with for many centuries afterwards, under the
names of the Book of Armagh, the Psalter of Cashel, the
Book of Glandaloch, the Leabhar Gabala, and others, from
winch subsequent writers have derived much of their in-
vol. xn.
himself known as a poet, an orator, and a divine, and
spread a knowledge of his acquirements, and the fame of
the country in which he had imbibed them, through France,
Italy, and the western regions of Asia. Columbkill, al¬
ready transiently noticed as the founder of the monastery
of Iona or Hy, the burial-place of the Scottish kings,
adorned the sixth century. So also did Congall, the founder
of the monastery of Bangor, famed for the multitude of re¬
ligious men whom its learning and the strictness of its
rules led to it. In the seventh century flourished Columba,
the founder of several monastic institutions in France and
Italy; Aidan, to whom the conversion of the Northum¬
brians is attributed; Finan, who followed him in the same
field of missionary labour; Argobast, who preached in
Alsace, and was thence raised to the see of Strasburg;
Adamnanus, who visited the court of Alfred, king of North¬
umberland; and Cuthbert, the son of one, ot the petty kings
3 N
466
IRELAND.
History.
of Ireland, who, after having been prevailed on with much
’ difficulty to take charge of the bishopric of Holy Island in
the same part of England resigned it for a life of studious
retirement in the Isle of Earn, where he closed hi, life.
In the eighth century lived Sedulius the younger, who as¬
sisted at a council held at Rome by Gregory IL, and was
afterwards a bishop in Spain ; also Vergihus, a philosopher
as well as a divine, as appears by a treatise of his on the
Antipodes, written against the then received opinion of the
shape of the earth, which he proved to be a globe, and not
a plain surrounded by the heavens at its verge. He spent
some time in France at the court of King Pepin, by whom
he was highly esteemed.
The state of Ireland was now destined to suffer from ano¬
ther element of convulsion. About the commencement of
the ninth century, the Danes began to extend to it th^ir pre¬
datory ravages. Their first attacks were trifling and occa¬
sional, more of the nature of piratical incursions than pre¬
concerted invasion. But in proportion as the success o
their first assaults rendered them more daring, and their
more extended knowledge of the country made them et-
ter acquainted with its fertility, their bands became more
numerous, and better prepared for continued hostilities ;
whilst at the same time the unsettled state of the country,
caused by the intestine wars of the native princes, carried
on either for the purpose of attaining the supremacy, or
for exacting tribute from their inferiors, prevented that
combination of defence which alone could ensure success
against the foreign enemy. In the middle of the same
century, Turgesius, king of Norway, had virtually rendered
himself monarch over the greater part of the island. He
maintained himself in it with all the cruelty and arrogance
of an usurper. Danes were placed in all the subordinate
kingdoms. Every district had a Danish officer placed over
it, and even every house was required to maintain a Da¬
nish soldier. The use of arms was prohibited to the Irish.
A tribute of an ounce of gold was exacted from every
householder, the non-payment of which was punished by
the mutilation of the nose, whence the tribute was known
by the name of the nose-tax ; and, to complete the climax
of degrading submission, the bridal favours of new-married
virgins were exacted by the Danish chief of the territory,
and were sometimes commuted, at his caprice, for a sum ot
money. The country had groaned for thirteen years under
this complication of insult and injury, until it was at length
roused to shake off the degrading yoke. Turgesius had
erected a rath for his residence in the neighbourhood ot
Tarah, where lived Malachy, who still retained the title ot
king among the Irish. Turgesius claimed his daughter.
Malachy, conscious of his inability to resist the deman
openly, yet unwilling to sacrifice his only child without an
effort, sent along with her a number of young men dis¬
guised as her female attendants, who fell upon the Danes
in the rath, slaughtered them, seized Turgesius, and hand¬
ed him over bound to Malachy, who had advanced wit
a band of armed men to their aid. The captivity of the
tvrant wTas the signal for a general insurrection of the Irish,
by which the Danes were forced either to fly aboard their
shipping, or to take refuge in the maritime towns that ac¬
knowledged their authority. Turgesius, after being kept
some time in prison, was drowned in Lough Innel. On the
expulsion of the Danes, the country reverted to its former
state of internal dissension. Cormac M‘Cuillenan, king of
Munster and bishop of Cashel, an union of civil and spiri¬
tual jurisdiction then not uncommon, claimed a tribute
from the king of Leinster, which, on refusal of payment,
he proceeded to enforce by the power of his arms. But on
entering his adversary’s territory, he found him strength¬
ened by the support of the king of Ireland. The unex¬
pected intelligence threw such a damp upon the spirits of
his troops, that many deserted him before the battle:
those who stood firm were soon routed, and Cormac him- History,
self was killed by a fall from his horse, whilst endeavouring
to escape amongst the fugitives. This king is best known
in history as the compiler of a book of annals, called the
Psalter of Cashel, from which succeeding writers derived
much information. It has been many years lost.
The internal dissensions of the country encouraged the
Danes to make another effort for subjugating the island. A
large force landed in Leinster, under the command of Se-
trick, said by some writers to have been a son of Turge¬
sius, by whom Dublin was taken, and the possession of it
secured by a signal victory obtained over the combined
forces of the Irish, in which Nial, king of Ireland, and many
of his generals, fell. The distractions of the country, thus
augmented by the presence of a foreign enemy, obtained
a temporary intermission by the accession of Brian Boree
to the sovereignty. This prince, the great hero of the
Irish, was brother to the king of Munster, on whose death
he succeeded to the throne of that province, from which
he not only expelled the Danes, who had made a settle¬
ment in Limerick, but extended his dominion over the
whole southern division of Ireland. The brilliancy of his
achievements against the common enemy induced the
rest of the subordinate chieftains to unite in a confederacy
for deposing Malachy, the reigning monarch, and raising
Brian into his place. The object was effected with little
difficulty, and, what was more unusual in the revolutions
of the country, with no bloodshed. Malachy was of a
mild and undecided character. After a feeble effort to
revive the spirit of loyalty among the subordinate princes
of the northern division, to the chief of whom, O Neill, he
offered a large portion of his dominions, he resigned the
crown without a struggle. The new monarch w^as pub¬
licly proclaimed and inaugurated at Tarah. After re¬
ceiving the submissions of the kings of Ulster and Con¬
naught, and reducing some refractory chieftains wTho dis¬
puted his authority, he directed the combined energies of
all the states against the Danes, whom he expelled from
the island, with the exception of such as consented to em¬
brace Christianity. These he located in the great sea¬
ports of Dublin, Wexford, Waterford, Limerick, and Cork.
Having thus removed the obstacles arising from a foreign
enemy! he directed his attention to the general civilization
of the kingdom, by founding or restoring the places ot
worship and seminaries of education, building bridges,
opening passes, erecting fortresses, and fitting out a fleet
to oppose the Danes on their own element, before they
could effect a landing. In the accomplishing of these ob¬
jects, he spent the latter part of a long and glorious reign.
But its termination was marked by a circumstance that un¬
did all his labours. The subordinate king of Leinster, ir¬
ritated at an insult offered to him in the court ot Brian,
made overtures to the king of Denmark for a union to ex¬
pel him from the throne. These were gladly accepted.
A large fleet was sent from Denmark, which landed a body
of troops near Dublin, where they were joined by those ot
the king of Leinster. Brian was not negligent in discover¬
ing, or tardy in adopting measures to resist, this new com¬
bination. At the head of a numerous and well-appointed
army, collected from all the other provinces, he marched
to meet the enemy. The battle was fought on the plains
of Clontarf. It was bloody and desperate, but decls,ve.;
the Danes were utterly defeated, and forced to fly to their
ships. The Leinster men, abandoned by their foreign
friends, were cut to pieces without mercy. Hie exu
tion of triumph would have been as unm.xed as the vic¬
tory was glorious, had it not been clouded by the death
of the monarch, who, though too far advanced m years to
take part in the engagement, led the army to the field,
and was killed in his tent, whither he had remained du¬
ring the conflict, bv a party of straggling Danes, as they
^rere flying' His e,dest s0n Mort°gh fell in the battle.
Malachy, the deposed monarch, seized the opportunity
of reviving his claim to the vacant throne. His conduct
during the late crisis had been more than dubious. He
had made a show of assisting the Irish with the forces of
Meath, which province he had been allowed to retain,
but, on the commencement of the battle, withdrew his
men to a neighbouring eminence, where he continued an
inactive spectator of the struggle. His claim was ac¬
quiesced in. But his resumption of the reins of authority
proved only the signal for the renewal of those scenes of
turbulence and anarchy which the commanding talents of
his predecessor had kept under control. The apprehen¬
sions of subjugation to a foreign power were indeed re¬
moved. The victory of Clontarf discouraged any further
effort of the Danes, whom alone the native rulers dreaded.
These were left to carry on undisturbed their schemes of
self-aggrandizement and mutual contention. The only
event to diversify the gloomy monotony of incessant civil
discord, was a synod of the clergy at Kells, held in 1152,
under Cardinal Papiron, the pope’s legate. Heretofore
the connection of the Irish church with the see of Rome
had been very slight, and altogether voluntary. It was
governed by the two Archbishops of Armagh and Cashel,
and a number of bishops, whose system of control was re¬
gulated by domestic synods. At the assemblage now
spoken of, the supremacy of the see of Rome was ac¬
knowledged, and four palls' were given to the Archbishops
of Armagh, Cashel, Dublin, and Tuam.
Things continued in this state till the time of Roderic
Connor, whose reign forms the commencement of a new
era, which overthrew all the ancient forms and constitu¬
tions of government, and gave to the tide of political
events a new turn, by which they have been influenced to
the present time. Notwithstanding the proximity of
England to Ireland, there had hitherto been but little in¬
tercourse between the two countries. Wales, then an in¬
dependent state, interposed between them. The Saxons
were not a people of commercial or adventuring enter¬
prise ; and, even after the final consolidation of England
into an established monarchy under the Normans, the
views of the monarchs of this line, whether for extension
of territory or for commerce, were directed towards the
states of the Continent, whence they had derived their
parentage. We read indeed of an invasion, and even a
subjugation of part of Ireland, by Edgar, king of the
Northumbrians. If such occurred, it has left behind it
few or no historical traces. The episcopal see of Dublin
acknowledged the supremacy of that of Canterbury, from
which it received its canons and rights of ordination. The
Danish character of the city, which, until after the Eng¬
lish invasion, was always considered as a subordinate sea¬
port, accounts sufficiently for this peculiarity ; and that
the connection between the two kingdoms had nothing
in it savouring of subjection on the part of Ireland at the
time now about to be entered upon, appears from the fact,
that at the synod of Armagh, assembled in 1170, to in¬
quire into the cause of the arrival of strangers from Eng¬
land for the purpose of conquest, the impending calamity'
was imputed to the sins of the people, and more espe¬
cially to the practice of buying English children, and
making them slaves. Giraldus Cambrensis, in stating
the fact, adds, “ that the English, by a common vice of
their country, had a custom to sell their children and
kinsfolk into Ireland, although not driven to it by extreme
poverty.”
Dermot M‘Murrough, king of Leinster, had incurred
the hatred of his own subjects, and of the other princes,
by his tyranny. His breach of the laws of hospitality in
carrying off the wife of O’Ruark, king of Breffney, gave
particular offence to Roderic, by whom he was conse-
IRELAND.
quently driven from his dominions. In his distress he
had recourse to Henry II. of England, under whom he 1
offered to hold his crown as a tributary, if restored by
that monarch’s exertions. The offer was very grateful to
Henry. He had long before turned his thoughts to the
acquisition of Ireland. As early as the year 1154, he had
procured a bull from Adrian, who owed his elevation to
the papacy to Henry’s influence, conferring on him the
sovereignty of the island, in order to its civilization, upon
payment of the tribute of Peter’s pence to the court of
Rome. But his domestic difficulties and continental en¬
gagements had hitherto obliged him to postpone any ac¬
tive measures to accomplish his object. He was now in
Guienne, embarrassed by rebellion amongst his French
subjects, and by his disputes with the papal see, and
therefore was forced to confine himself to general expres¬
sions of assent, confirmed by a permission to all his English
subjects to assist in the restoration of his new ally. Sup¬
ported by this authority, Dermot turned homewards, and,
after vainly attempting to engage adventurers in Bristol,
he at last formed a treaty with Richard Clare, earl
of Pembroke, better known by the name of Strong-
bow, a Welsh baron, who, having impaired his patrimony,
was easily engaged to take part in a desperate enterprise,
on the uncertain expectation of inheriting the kingdom
of Leinster after Dermot’s death, by a marriage with his
only daughter, which was to be the' reward of his exer¬
tions if successful. Through Strongbow’s influence, he
also engaged the assistance of Robert Fitzstephens, con¬
stable of Abertivi, and of Maurice Fitzgerald, a Welsh
chieftain. Having secured these auxiliaries, Dermot re¬
turned to Ireland, where he lived concealed in the mo¬
nastery of Ferns, the confidence of whose inmates he had
gained by liberal donations to their house, until the arri¬
val of his new friends warranted him in asserting his for¬
mer station.
hitzstephens was the first to fulfil his engagement.
He landed at the headland of Bag-and-Bon, in the estu¬
ary of the Bannow, with a following of but thirty knights,
fifty gentlemen, and three hundred archers. Small as
the number was, their discipline and superiority in mili¬
tary equipment justified Dermot in throwing off the veil
on their appearance. The first movement of the com¬
bined force was upon the town of Wexford, a Danish de¬
pendency of the crown of Leinster, which surrendered
on the first appearance of the enemy, and was, with the
two adjoining cantrids of Forth and Bargie, given to Fitz¬
stephens by Dermot, as a foretaste of what was to be
hoped for in his service. The next movement was against
the king of Ossory, in the Queen’s County, who, after a
gallant struggle, was also forced to acknowledge the su¬
periority of the Norman mode of warfare. After a hard-
fought contest of three days, the passes of his borders
were forced, and himself compelled to fly. The news of
these successes soon compelled Roderic to take the most
decisive measures. At the head of an army collected
from all the subordinate provinces, he advanced to drive
the rebel king and his foreign auxiliaries into the sea;
but the interference of the clergy prevented the appeal
to arms. A treaty was concluded, by which Dermot was
restored to his former rank, on condition of dismissing his
foreign forces, and paying a fine for his outrage against
O’Ruark. His son was delivered to Roderic as a hostage,
along with others, for the fulfilment of the terms.
The arrival of Maurice Fitzgerald, who landed at Wex¬
ford with ten knights, thirty gentlemen, and an hundred
archers, gave a new turn to affairs. Fitzstephens, who
was then engaged in erecting a fortified post at Carrig,
which commanded a pass on the Slaney, near Wexford,
resolved to maintain his position. Little influence was
necessary to induce Dermot to aid an effort as profitable
467
History.
468
IRELAND.
History, in expectation as perfidious in act. Encouraged by t ie
hone that this new supply would be the prelude to the
influx of fresh bands of well-trained warriors, he indulged
in the prospect of gratifying his revenge on the causes of
his degradation, and even of seating himself on the throne
of supreme sovereignty, through the powerful aid of his
English allies. For this purpose, after having reduced
the^citv of Dublin to submission by the devastation of the
neighbouring district of Fingal, thus establishing his rule
over the whole of his former dominions, he sent to urge
Strongbow to hasten his arrival.
This nobleman, not satisfied with the general permis¬
sion already given by Henry, went to that prince, then in
Normandy, and having obtained a vague and equivocal
assent, prepared for the vigorous prosecution of his en¬
terprise. He first sent over Raymond le Gros, with a
detachment of ten knights and seventy archers ; who,
landing near Waterford, defeated a body of three thou¬
sand Irish, collected from the neighbouring country on
the spur of the moment, and maintained his position in
an intrenched camp until supported by Strongbow him¬
self, who brought to his relief a body of two hundred
horse and upwards of a thousand archers. He then, aid¬
ed by the function with Dermot, who had hastened to
the place, made himself master of Waterford, and thence
proceeded to Dublin, which was taken by assault. Kode-
ric, alarmed at the successes of the English, afcer having
called in vain on Dermot to abide by the late treaty, and
having, according to some accounts, beheaded that king s
son, in consequence of his father s refusa o u
terms of it, collected another army to oppose the inva¬
ders. Dermot's death at this juncture gave a new cha¬
racter to the contest. Strongbow, by h.s marriage with
that prince’s only daughter, had succeeded to us roya
rights; but being unsupported by any of the Irish chief¬
tains, who viewed with apprehension and envy this intru¬
sion of a stranger, he found himself cooped up in the city
of Dublin, with his small band of Englishmen, to stand
the brunt of the entire Irish army, with which Roderic
had invested the city. But he was delivered from this
critical situation by one of those exertions by winch a vigo¬
rous mind surmounts difficulties. He had been reduced
to the necessity of proposing a capitulation. 1 he only
terms offered him were the immediate evacuation of the
country. Such a surrender of all their brilliant prospects
was to these daring adventurers a prospect worse than
death. Mito de Cogan, by whose valour in leading the
assault the city had been taken, now proposed a sally.
His advice was followed. Strongbow, at the head of a
select body of ninety knights, attacked the Irish camp.
The assault was so sudden and unexpected, that Roderic
had scarcely time to escape from the bath, where he was
then refreshing himself. The panic spread through all
parts ; and this great army was dissipated almost without
a blow. The English followed up their good fortune by
marching to Wexford to relieve Fitzstephens, who was
blocked up by the Irish in his castle of Carr.g. In the pas¬
sage thither, the army had to force its way through t le
passes of Idrone, where O’Ryan, the dynast of the terri¬
tory, disputed the ground with it successfully, unti us
death turned the fate of the day. It is said that the
English were so severely pressed in the engagement, that
Strongbow’s son, a lad rising into manhood, fled from the
fight, for which he was hewn in two by his indignant fa¬
ther. A mutilated figure on a small monument placed by
the side of Strongbow’s tomb in Christ Church, Dublin,
is still adduced as evidence of the truth of this extraor¬
dinary event.
The successes of Strongbow excited the jealousy of
Henry, who began to apprehend in them, not the enrich¬
ing of a subject, whence the monarch might derive ho¬
nour, but the aggrandizement of a rival m powe •
forbade any of his subjects going to the assistance of the
English in Ireland, and commanded the immediate return
of all those already there. He was, however, appeased
by the appearance of Strongbow himself, who surrendere
all his possessions in Ireland to the king, to be holden at
his good pleasure. He was restored to favour, and ap¬
pointed seneschal of this new lordship, with the excep¬
tion of Dublin and the other fortified cities, which the
king retained in his own hands. Henry soon afterwards
went over to Ireland with a train of 500 knigh ts, and a lai ge
body of soldiers. Landing at Waterford, he proceeded
without molestation to Dublin, where he received the ho¬
mage of a numerous assemblage of the native chieftains,
whom he entertained in a pavilion hastily constructed o
wicker-work without the walls, as the city then contained
no building suitable for their accommodation. He also
held a great council or parliament at Lismore, in which
the English laws were received and sworn to. At tne
same time a synod of the clergy at Cashel adopted the
rules of doctrine and discipline of the English church or
their future regulation. After spending the Christmas in
Dublin, and dividing the districts that acknowledged Ins
authority among the chief leaders of the adventurers y
whose valour they had been acquired, he returned to
England early in spring, to allay the commotions which
threatened to break out there.
His absence gave rise to dissensions amongst the Eng¬
lish leaders, which led to revolt amongst the natives, who
had so lately submitted. To aid the efforts of the Iris i,
Roderic made another attempt to regain his lost domi¬
nions, and to expel the strangers. He invaded Meath
which had been given by Henry to an English baron of
the name of De Lacy, with such fury, that Raymond le
Gros, the favourite general of the English, who was then
celebrating his marriage with the sister of Strongbow,
was forced to quit Wexford the morning after his nup¬
tials, in order to make head against the Irish. But they,
content with the devastation committed in Meath, had
already retired across the Shannon, and Raymond turned
his arms against Limerick, which city he too y storm
with little difficulty. Roderic, convinced of his inability
to cope with success against the superior power of Eng¬
land, sent deputies to the king, proposing to do homage,
and pay a stipulated tribute, in return for which he was
to hold the kingdom of Connaught, and all h.s other lands
and sovereignties, as fully, in other respects, as before the
arrival of the English. , . , .
On the death of Strongbow, who died and was buried in
Dublin, leaving behind him an only daughter, the heiress
of his princely domains, the government of Ireland was com¬
mitted to William Fitz-Andelm, a nobleman allied to Henry
by blood ; but the complaints arising from his indolent and
corrupt administration became at length too loud to remam
unnoticed. He was therefore removed, and John, the king s
favourite son, was appointed lord of Ireland, at the ear y
ao-e of twelve years. On his arrival at Waterford, at the
head of a train of young and arrogant noblemen, the native
chieftains hastened to pay their respects and do him hom¬
age ; but when they approached to testify their allegiance
according to the custom of the country, by saluting him
with the lip, the prince’s English attendants repelled them
with insolence, plucked them by their beards, and treated
them with every mark of studied indignity. e ig
minded natives quitted the court, and their cause was es¬
poused by all who heard their tale. The alarm of a
was spread throughout every part ot the coun ry.
ties already built by the English on their newly-acquned
territories in Meath were stormed and razed, some of then
owners killed, and others driven from their settlements.
John was recalled, and the government intrusted to De
IRELAND.
History. Lacy, who was soon afterwards assassinated by one of the na-
tives whilst superintending the erection of a fortress which
he was building, sacrilegiously, according to the opinion of
the times, on the ruins of an abbey dedicated to Columb-
kill at Durrow. He was succeeded in the government by
De Courcy, a nobleman celebrated for his gigantic size
and prowess. He had been given such parts of Ulster as
he could conquer; and having established his head-quarters
at Down, he maintained himself there for some time in a
kind of subordinate sovereignty, against all the efforts of
the neighbouring princes, and even made an attempt to
extend his conquests into Connaught, in doing which,
though he failed in the main object of his ambition, he es¬
tablished his power in the neighbourhood of Armagh.
The death of Henry II. made no change in the govern¬
ment of Ireland. Richard, intent on his schemes of foreign
conquest, permitted John to retain the title and authority
conferred on him by his father. The only event which
varied the scene of intestine commotion in Ireland during
this reign, was the death of Roderic, the last sovereign of
all Ireland. The latter years of his life were embittered,
in addition to the loss of his independence, by the rebel¬
lious conduct of his own sons, which at last compelled him
to seek, in the retirement of monastic seclusion, the tran¬
quillity he had vainly sought for on a throne. He died in
the monastery of Cong, in 1198, in extreme old age.
John, in the early part of his reign, paid little attention
to the affairs of Ireland, which was now much distracted by
the feuds carried on between De Lacy, son of him who had
been killed at Durrow, and De Courcy. In this struggle
the artful management of the former gained him the ad¬
vantage over De Courcy’s blunt and boisterous ferocity.
He accused him of having imputed to John the murder of
his nephew Arthur, in consequence of which, De Courcy
was summoned to the court in London ; and when he treat¬
ed the mandate with contempt, he was treacherously seized
by his enemy De Lacy, while performing a religious pen¬
ance unarmed in the church of Down, and sent prisoner to
England, where he was long kept in confinement. A pro¬
ceeding as unworthy as this which exposed De Courcy
to the royal indignation, brought John a second time to
Ireland. The lady of William de Braosa, who had receiv¬
ed a large grant of land in Thomond, or North Munster, on
being required to send her children to the English court as
hostages for her husband’s allegiance, refused to obey ; al¬
leging as a reason, that she would not intrust her children
to the care of the murderer of his own nephew. The in¬
sult was unpardonable, and John went over in person to
avenge it. Upon his arrival in Dublin, upwards of twenty
chieftains attended to do homage; but he performed no
military act worthy of notice. The unfortunate De Braosa
was forced to fly to France, leaving his wife and family be¬
hind, who were seized by the tyrant and sent to England,
where they died of the severity of their treatment in pri¬
son. During his short stay, John paid much attention to
the internal management of the counti’y. He ordained
that the law's of England should be introduced, with all their
judicial forms, a copy of them being left under his great
seal, in the exchequer of Dublin. He also divided the
districts which acknowledged his authority, and which were
afterwards distinguished by the name of the Pale, into
the twelve counties of Dublin, Meath, Kildare, Louth,
Carlow, Kilkenny, Wexford, Waterford, Cork, Kerry,
Tipperary, and Limerick. In the remainder, which com¬
prehended two thirds of the island, the king’s supremacy
was merely nominal. Connaught, which Roderic in his
treaty with Henry had specially reserved to himself, after
suffering dreadfully by the contentions of that monarch’s
|fons, and by the irruptions of the English leaders, who
endeavoured, by their interference in these family quarrels,
to obtain some footing in it for themselves, fell ultimately
469
into the hands of Cathal, surnamed Croove-derg, or the Historv.
Bloody-handed. But the influence of the De Burghos, a v ^ .i—1
branch of the family of Fitz-Andelm, proved too powerful
for him. After many a desperate struggle with the intrud¬
ers, in which his undisciplined valour enabled him to cope
at times successfully with the well-marshalled followers of
the English chieftain, he was compelled to surrender two
parts of the country to the king of England, in order to
secure to himself the peaceable possession of the remain¬
der ; at the same time acknowledging himself a vassal, and
binding himself to a yearly tribute of an hundred merks.
On the departure of John, who continued but a short time
in the country, the government was intrusted to John de
Grey, bishop of Norwich, who conducted it with prudence
and vigour; and afterwards by Henry de Loundres, arch¬
bishop of Dublin, the most remarkable act of whose admi¬
nistration was the erection of a castle in Dublin, now the
acknowledged capital of the English territory.
Immediately after the accession of Henry III. the Irish
transmitted to England a list of the encroachments made
on their rights in the preceding reign, with a petition to
be taken under the royal protection. Henry sent them
in answer a copy of the Magna Charta, whereby they were
to be placed on the same footing as English subjects. This
charter was confirmed by others of a similar tendency,
transmitted by the same monarch. He also gave O'Brien,
king of Thomond, a grant of that territory, to be held by
English law, in lieu of the Irish tenure by which he had
hitherto possessed it. The change was considered of such
value as to be worth the payment of a thousand merks, and
an annual sum of an hundred and thirty. But the king’s
promise of impartial protection to the Irish was grossly vio¬
lated in the instance of Cathal Croove-derg, who was now
deprived of the third part of his kingdom that had been al¬
lowed to remain with him by John, this portion being grant¬
ed, together with all the rest of Connaught, to Richard de
Burgho. Cathal died soon after this unjust deprivation of
his property. His subjects, assisted by O’Neill, prince of
Tyrowen, placed his brother Tirlogh on the throne; but he
was removed by the lord-deputy, and Aedh, a son of Ca¬
thal, substituted in his place. Aedh being shortly after¬
wards killed in a skirmish, the lord-deputy again removed
Tirlogh, whom the people of Connaught had reinstated,
and placed Feidlim, another son of Cathal, upon the throne.
But a title held under a tenure so precarious and degrad¬
ing could not be satisfactory. Feidlim, therefore, cross¬
ed over to England, and threw himself on the protec¬
tion of the king, by whom he received a special assurance
of security in the possession of his territories, which ena¬
bled him to retain them unmolested till his death.
Towards the conclusion of his reign Henry made a grant
of Ireland to his eldest son Edward; with a proviso, how¬
ever, that it was to be always connected with and depen¬
dent upon the crown of England. The country derived
no benefit from the arrangement. Edward was drawn
away to pursue schemes of more brilliant promise in the
Holy Land, and Ireland was suffered to continue under
the management of subordinate officers. Its state was at
this time truly miserable. In addition to the struggles of
the Irish chieftains to regain their patrimonial rights of
property and independence, the districts which acknow¬
ledged the English rule were torn to pieces by the hosti¬
lities of rival barons. To such a pitch did this state of
anarchy increase, that in a contest between the De Burghos
and the Fitzgeralds, the latter faction seized upon Richard
de Rupella, the lord-justice of Ireland, and threw him,
with several of his adherents, into prison, from which it
required the authority of a parliament to liberate him.
The neglected state of the country during the reign of
Edward I., whose attention was absorbed by the nearer
and more pressing affairs of Scotland and Wales, increas-
-V
470
IRELAND.
History, ed the turbulence and audacity of the English barons. A
dispute between Sir William de Vesci, the lord-justice,
who had married an heiress of the Pembroke family, and
John Fitzthomas, one of the heads of the Fitzgeralds, was
carried to such a pitch, that each accused the other ot
high treason ; and the affair was brought before the king
in person, to be decided by the law of duel. On the day
appointed for the combat, Vesci was not forthcoming. He
had fled to France. The king transferred his lands in
Ireland to his accuser, which contributed considerably to
the future aggrandizement of the Fitzgerald family. So
grievously was the great body of the Irish pressed down
by the arrogant tyranny of these feudal lords, that they
offered the king six thousand merks for a charter from
him to be governed by the laws of England. Ihis rea¬
sonable request, which implied nothing more than the en¬
forcing of the previous charters of John and Henry to the
same effect, was neutralized by the opposition of the ba¬
rons, whose oppressions it was meant to curb. A second
application of a similar nature during this reign met with
a similar fate. The conduct of Edward to one of the lords-
justices, De Ufford, whom he called over to explain why
such quarrels were permitted during his administration,
proves that the king was not over anxious to probe this
malady to the bottom. De Ufford’s defence of himself
was, that “ he deemed it expedient to suffer one knave to
destroy another, to save expense to the king.” Edward
was satisfied with this evasive answer, and sent him back
to his government. The wars of the barons were still to¬
lerated ; and the Irish, who wished for the protection of
English law against their tyranny, were still forced to pur¬
chase it by special charters of denization, by the fees of
which the officers of the court were enriched. These
charters were mostly the consequence of intermarriages
with some of the great English families.
The accession of Edward II. afforded a prospect of the
restoration of the royal authority, and the suppression of
the exorbitant power of the English barons. Ihe king,
compelled to part with his favourite Gaveston, sent him
into Ireland as lord-lieutenant, as into a kind of honour¬
able exile. On his arrival, Gaveston obtained some advan¬
tages over the Irish septs in the neighbourhood of Dublin ;
but, however flattering the appearances arising from this
change of administration, they proved delusive. Edward,
unable to endure longer his favourite’s absence, recalled
him, and the country fell back into the anarchical sway of
the barons. The royal mandates were set at nought, and
private wars carried on without restraint or control. Fright¬
ful as were the state and prospects of the country, a fresh
ingredient of misery was now thrown in. Robert Bruce,
king of Scotland, elated with the victory of Bannockburn,
resolved on a measure which, if successful, would have
added considerably to the security of his own kingdom,
and to the weakening of his most formidable enemy. He
proposed to detach Ireland from England, and to connect
it with Scotland, either as an ally or a dependency.
With this view, and also to give employment abroad to an
ambitious and ardent relative, he proposed to his brother
Edward the conquest of the country. The offer was ac¬
cepted. The first attempt on the northern province fail¬
ed, because the means were insufficient for the magnitude
of the object. But Bruce was not to be discouraged by a
single check. The attempt was soon afterwards renewed
with enlarged resources. In the summer of 1315, Edward
Bruce landed in the north of Ireland, at the head of six
thousand men, where he was joined by numbers of the
discontented Irish. De Burgho, earl of Ulster, aroused
by the danger which threatened his possessions, aided by
Feidlim, king of Connaught, marched to oppose the in¬
vader. Their combined force was defeated at Coleraine,
and Bruce, following up his victory, reduced Carrickfergus;
penetrated into Meath, where he defeated, at Kenlis or History.
Kells, a second army sent to oppose him ; advanced still
further to Skerries, where he encountered and routed Sir
Edmund Butler, the lord-justice ; and returning to Dun¬
dalk, through want of provisions, was there crowned king
of Ireland. His affairs were now singularly prosperous.
His brother came to his assistance from Scotland, but
was forced, through the scarcity of provisions, to return,
leaving with him a part of his troops. Feidlim joined his
party, and was followed by O’Brien of ’Ihomond, and se¬
veral lesser chieftains. The English barons now began to
be sensible that the tenure of their possessions was at
stake. They collected a numerous body of troops, which
were sent, in the first instance, into Connaught, to put
down Feidlim. A sanguinary battle ensued at Athenree,
in which the Irish prince was slain, and with him ter¬
minated the last hope of the restoration of the monar¬
chy of Ireland. Bruce, after refreshing his troops, march¬
ed to Dublin. To guard against his assaults, the citizens
set fire to their suburbs, with such precipitation, that
one of the churches was involved in the conflagration ;
and intrenching themselves within their walls, they pre¬
sented such a face as deterred the besiegers from con¬
tinuing the siege. Bruce therefore proceeded to Kil¬
dare, which he ravaged, and thence penetrated through
the passes of Ossory into Munster, spreading havoc and
desolation on all sides. Want of provisions, and the in¬
telligence, on one hand, of another army having been col¬
lected against him, under the command of Roger Morti¬
mer, sent from England as lord-justice, and on the other,
of new supplies from home, led by his brother in person,
induced him to retrace his steps towards Ulster. By
forced marches he retreated unmolested into Meath. He
was followed by the English, now under the command of
Sir John Bermingham. Both armies met at Faugher, near
Dundalk. The Scotch army was the more numerous,
but it was much exhausted by fatigue and famine ; the
English were well equipped and armed, and in a high
state of organization. It is said that Edward Bruce, on
hearing that his brother was advancing, pressed on the
engagement, in the hope of securing to himself the undi¬
vided honour of victory. The result was deserving of
the arrogance which led to an act so ill advised and pie-
cipitate.° After a sanguinary struggle, the Scottish army
was totally defeated. The body of Bruce was found, after
the engagement, in the midst of heaps of slain, lying under
that of an English knight of the name of Maupas, who
had pressed forward to the honour of being captor of the
Scottish general. Robert Bruce, on hearing of the result,
immediately returned home, and made no furthei attempt
upon the country.
The expulsion of the Scotch gave little relief to the
people, who still continued to groan under the feudal op¬
pressions and interminable quarrels of their rulers. On
the accession of Edward III. they addressed themselves
again to the throne, in order to procure a general charter
of admission to the rights of British subjects. The peti¬
tion was favourably received; but being referred, like
former applications of the same kind, to the Irish parlia¬
ment, through the lord-justice, it was, like these, rejected.
The Irish, disappointed in their hopes of good govern¬
ment, broke out into acts of insurrection. The king, un¬
able to restore tranquillity by energetic measures, had re¬
course to others, the evil effects of which were long felt.
The greater part of Leinster had been parcelled out into
five palatinates, in favour of the five grand-daughters of
Strongbow, on whom this princely inheritance had de¬
volved in failure of male issue. Meath and Ulster had
also been granted in like manner. The number of these
exempt jurisdictions, in which the superior lord exercised
most of the prerogatives of royalty, was now increased,
IRELAND.
History, by erecting the county of Desmond, or South Munster,
into a palatinate in favour of Maurice Fitzthomas, a
branch of the Fitzgerald family; and another was shortly
after erected in Tipperary, for James Butler, created Earl
of Ormond. In consequence of the great privileges be¬
stowed on these noblemen, the king’s authority was pro¬
portionally contracted, and a few powerful chieftains were
enabled, under colour of asserting their rights, to over¬
awe or control, by their combination, the wholesome exer¬
cise of the powers of the constitution, or to convulse the
country to its centre, by their mutual contests for supe¬
riority. This ruinous system was carried still further.
The chief governor, unable to collect men in numbers
sufficient to cope with the insurgent Irish, applied for
military aid to the Earl of Desmond. The request was
readily acceded to, and ten thousand men were sent hfm ;
but as the deputy was deficient in the means of paying
or feeding such a body, the troops were allowed to live
on the country at free quarters, or, as it was then called,
on coygne and livery, which consisted in the taking of
man’s meat, horse’s meat, and money, of all the inhabi¬
tants, at the will and pleasure of the soldier, who had no
other means of subsistence. This extortion was original¬
ly Irish, for they used to lay Bonaught, as they called it,
upon the people, and never gave their soldiers any other
pay. But under the English it was still more intolerable,
as with them the oppression was not temporary or limit¬
ed either in time or place, but, because there was every¬
where a continual war, either offensive or defensive, and
every lord of a country, and every marcher, made war
and peace at his good pleasure, it became universal and
perpetual, and was, indeed, the heaviest oppression that
ever was inflicted on any kingdom, Christian or heathen.
The effects of this feeble policy proved the reverse of
what its devisers may be supposed to have expected.
Internal turbulence and discord increased. To heighten
the confusion, William de Burgho, who united in his own
person the government of the two palatinates of Meath
and Ulster, and had also the greater part of Connaught,
was assassinated at Carrickfergus by his own domestics.
His only daughter was carried to England for protection.
O’Neill of Tyrowen, to whose family the northern pala¬
tinate of De Burgho had formerly belonged, seized on
the opportunity to recover by force a considerable portion
of the inheritance of his forefathers. The estate in Con¬
naught was also seized on by two of the younger branches
of the De Burgho family, who, conscious of the illegality
of their claim according to the rules of English law, re¬
nounced their allegiance, assumed the Irish name of
M‘William, distinguishing themselves from each other
by the surnames of Eighter and Oughter, or the Hither
and Further M‘William ; the former holding the lands in
Galway, the latter those in Mayo, and both, conforming
to the laws and tenures of the Irish, set the authority of
the king’s justice at defiance. But the act which tended
most to destroy the English power, by unhinging the con¬
nection between the parent country and the colony that
bad sprung from it, was an order that all public officers
whose property existed wholly in Ireland should be dis¬
placed, and their places supplied by persons born in Eng¬
land, and having lands in that country. This act gave
rise to the distinction between the English by blood and
the English by birth, causing those of the former class,
through irritation at the insulting degradation by which
they were deprived of their fair share of the honours and
emoluments earned by the blood of their ancestors, not
only to attach themselves to the native Irish by the ties
of marriage and community of interests, but to exceed
them in the intensity of hatred to the new intruders ;
and hence they were said to be more Irish than the Irish
themselves. The effects of this unjust and impolitic or-
471
dinance were not long in showing themselves. A common History,
interest united the descendants of the old settlers into a
general combination. Alarmed at the spirit which they
indicated, the lord-justice, Sir John Morris, deemed it
expedient to assemble a parliament at Dublin, whereby
a less dangerous vent might be afforded to the expression
of the grievances of the discontented. But the injured
party adopted another and a more spirited course. Not
content with absenting themselves from parliament, they
held another assembly, totally independent of it, at Kil¬
kenny, under the auspicesof the Earl of Desmond, in which
they drew up a remonstrance, to be presented to the king,
which exhibited a striking view of the aggressions of the
government, and the grievances which had excited gene¬
ral discontent. The king’s answer was gracious and con¬
descending. Assurance was given them of immediate re¬
lief from the more gross grievances, and of inquiry into all.
His anxiety to procure aid for his continental expeditions
appears to have been one cause of the readiness with
which these concessions were granted; for we are inform¬
ed that the Earls of Desmond and Kildare attended him
with numerous followers into France, and the latter dis¬
tinguished himself greatly at the siege of Calais. But
the spirit of self-interested monopoly which gave birth to
this distinction, though repressed, was not extinguished;
and fresh occasion was soon given it to blaze forth from
a quarter whence it might least have been apprehended.
Lionel, afterwards Duke of Clarence, Edward’s second
son, had married the heiress of the late Earl of Ulster,
and thus became entitled to the lordships of Ulster and
Connaught. To add weight to the enforcement of his
claim, which he was about to assert in person, the king
invested him with the lord-lieutenancy of Ireland. But,
born and educated in England, he carried over with him
all his English prejudices and prepossessions. Surround¬
ed by men of English birth, and taught by them to look
on the ancient settlers, not only as unworthy of his confi¬
dence, but as disaffected to his government, he forbade, by
proclamation, any of the old English, or of the king’s sub¬
jects of Irish birth, to approach his camp. This imprudent
measure deprived him of the only aid which could render his
operations against the common enemy of the English go¬
vernment effectual. Left, amongst strangers to the country,
to traverse unknown districts, and to contend against an
enemy of whose movements and mode of action he was
wholly ignorant, he found himself enclosed in a position in
which advance was impossible and retreat perilous, and from
which he was extricated solely by an appeal to those whose
services he had at his first landing so haughtily and un¬
wisely rejected. After a short stay he was recalled, but
returned in a few years, improved in the knowledge of
the science of governing a country of habits dissimilar to
those of his own. On his second visit he directed his at¬
tention to the general reformation of the parts of the island
that yielded a willing obedience to the royal authority. A
parliament was summoned at Kilkenny, the result of whose
deliberations was an ordinance, since known by the name
of the Statute of Kilkenny, which forms one of the great
political epochs in the history of the country.
By this statute it was enacted, that marriage, fostering,
or gossipred with the Irish, should be deemed treasonable;
and conformity to the rules of Irish law was subjected to a
similar penalty. The use of Irish names, language, or ap¬
parel, by any person of English birth or descent, was punish¬
able by forfeiture of lands or imprisonment. Penalties w ere
also imposed on those who permitted their Irish neighbours
to graze on their lands, who presented them to ecclesiasti¬
cal benefices, who admitted them into religious houses as
members, or who gave encouragement to the Irish bards,
musicians, or story-tellers. The execution of this statute
was enforced by the anathemas of the church against its
472
IRELAND.
History, violators. Whatever might have been the effects of an
enactment so rigorous towards uniting the English settlers
more closely among themselves, it is evident that it severed
completely any links of the bond of mutual charity and
community of interests that existed between them and the
Irish. The presence of an English nobleman of royal birth,
connected by marriage with the descendant and represen¬
tative of a family now nearly Irish through length of resi¬
dence, might have led to the introduction of a system of ge¬
nerous equity towards the natives of the country, the former
rightful possessors of the soil. But the wording of this sta¬
tute pronounced the Irish to be irreclaimable. The oppor¬
tunity for the amalgamation of conflicting interests was lost;
and ages passed over without another such presenting itself
for a renewal of the experiment. The Duke of Clarence
was again recalled, and the administration of the govern¬
ment left, as before, to deputies. The low condition td
which the country was now reduced may be inferred from
the fact related as to Sir Richard Pembridge, warden of
the Cinque Ports, who, on being appointed to the lieuten¬
ancy, refused to undertake the office, in consequence of the
distracted state of the country ; and it was adjudged that
his refusal was strictly legal, inasmuch as residence in
Ireland, even in the elevated station assigned to him, was
looked upon as but an honourable exile, to which no free¬
man was to be subjected, except in case of abjuration for
felony, or by act of parliament. So far was the English
power reduced towards the close of this reign, that, as the
authority of the English law had extended during the
time of Johrxover the twelve counties already named, and
over the greater part of Connaught, it was confined, in
the thirtieth year of the present reign, to the four coun¬
ties of Meath, Louth, Dublin, and Carlow; and of these
the greater part was border-land, governed by march law,
which was little more than another word for the arbitrary
will of the lord of the marches. The last effort made by
Edward to restore the English government, was a man¬
date directing a stated number of bishops, knights, and
burgesses to attend the king in his parliament in England,
to assist in enacting laws for Ireland. The proceedings
of this parliament are lost, but the existence of writs to
the several counties, cities, and boroughs, directing them
to defray the expenses of the persons sent over, proves
that it had assembled. About the same time the trade
with Portugal was thrown open to the Irish, but the dis¬
orders of the country were too deeply rooted to admit of
the people availing themselves of the privilege.
In the beginning of the reign of Richard II., Robert de
Vere, earl of Oxford, was appointed lord-lieutenant of
Ireland by the joint consent of the king and the English
nobility ; the latter party wishing thus to break the con¬
nection of favouritism that bound him to the former. But
after an equipment, fitted out on a princely scale, the pro¬
ject failed. He had proceeded as far as Wales, when
Richard, who accompanied him to the waters edge, found
his attachment too violent to bear the separation, and
brought him back to London. Commissioners were after¬
wards deputed to inquire into the state of the country,
but with no beneficial result. At length Richard resolv¬
ed to visit this part of his dominions in person. He land¬
ed at Waterford with an army of four thousand men-at-
arms and thirty thousand archers; but after nine months
spent in an empty display of regal pageantry, during
which he received the submission of seventy-five native
Irish or degenerate English chieftains, and granted par¬
dons to others, whom an apprehension of ill treatment
kept at a distance, he returned to England. The only
stipulation for restoring tranquillity made during his visit
was, that the province of Leinster should be evacuated
by the Irish ; but when the condition was to be enforced,
after the removal of the terrors of a royal army, the re¬
quisitions of the government were followed only by ex- History,
cuses and delays, and ultimately by insurrection, in the
course of which Roger Mortimer, earl of Marche, whom
Richard had left behind him as his lieutenant, was killed
at Kenlis, in a skirmish against the O’Byrnes, whom he had
driven from their mountain fastnesses in Wicklow.
Mortified and irritated by a result so contrary to the
anticipations entertained from his expensive armament
and pompous reception in Ireland, Richard undertook a
second military expedition thither. He landed again in
Waterford, and after spending some time there and at
Kilkenny, in an idle display of royalty, he proceeded to
Dublin, in the full confidence that now, as previously, his
journey thither would be but a progress of pacific parade.
In this expectation he was buoyed up by the appearance
of several of the Irish lords, who, presenting themselves
with halters round their necks, fell at his feet and implor¬
ed forgiveness with the most abject humility. But on en¬
tering into the woods and defiles of the marches of Lein¬
ster, his reception was very different. M‘Murchad, the
principal chieftain of the province, who, notwithstanding
the pensions he had received, and the submissions he had
entered into, was still the inveterate enemy of the Eng¬
lish, rushed out unexpectedly from the cover of his woods,
at the head of three thousand chosen men, so well ap¬
pointed, and with such a display of valour, as to stop the
advance of the royal army for some time; and though it
ultimately forced its way to the capital, such were the
losses sustained by famine, hardship, and battle, that
Richard had to wait for a reinforcement from England be¬
fore he could resume hostilities. In the mean time the
news of the successes of the Duke of Lancaster compel¬
led him to hasten his departure, in order to oppose this
new enemy. The unfortunate and disgraceful termina¬
tion of his reign belongs to English history.
The intestine commotions in Ireland were aggravated
in the reign of Henry LV. by invasions of the Scotch, who
assisted the Irish of Ulster in driving the English from this
province, and acquired some settlements there, whence they
were never afterwards wholly removed. Henry’s second
son, Thomas, duke of Lancaster, was sent over as lord-lieu¬
tenant. His government was vigorous, and in some degree
effective. The native Irish of Wicklow were checked ; the
degenerate English in Meath and Uriel were compelled
to Submit; and M‘Murchad, who still maintained himself
in the western parts of Leinster, in defiance of the govern¬
ment, was defeated in a severe and well-contested battle.
The citizens of Dublin fitted out several naval expedi¬
tions against the Scotch and Welsh ; and though, in their
first engagement with the former enemy, they suffered a
total defeat on the coast of Ulster, they afterwards re¬
venged the insult by carrying the war into the islands
and coasts of Scotland, and by their depredations in Wales,
whence they brought back in triumph a shrine of St Cu-
bin, and lodged it with much ceremony in Christ Church,
as a proud monument of their victory. But tins favour¬
able change was merely temporary. The lord-lieutenant
was wounded, and his forces beaten back, under the very
walls of Dublin ; and he soon afterwards quitted the coun¬
try altogether. The residents in the border counties were
now reduced to the degrading necessity of purchasing
peace and protection from the neighbouring Irish chief¬
tains, by the payment of a stipulated tribute called black
rent. .
The arrival of Sir John Talbot, Lord Furmval, in the
succeeding reign, a man distinguished for his military ta¬
lents, gave hope of a change for the better. By his acti¬
vity and valour he compelled several of the neighbouring
Irish chieftains, not only to desist from their incursions, but
also to do homage and give hostages. l(et though bound
to keep the peace, they still retained their independence,
History
and the English pale was not enlarged. The lord-lieuten¬
ant, likewise, having brought with him no supplies either
of men or money, had no means of maintaining h s posi¬
tion except the oppressive and ruinous system of covene
and livery. The English settlers were (hus reduced m
state of extreme degradation and distress. Looked upon
by the Irish as aliens and intruders, they were treated^bv
lhene» comers from England as slave!, and considered
by the English m general as m nowise better than the
natives. In the beginning of this reign, the parliament at
London in consequence of the swams of needy adven-
turers from Ireland, whom the devastations of their own
country had driven to seek an asylum abroad
act oblige all Irish to quit J Zgdl Even ,1!
students who resorted to London for education thounh
expressly excepted from the severe provisions of the sfa.
tute, were contemptuously excluded from the Inns of
Court, from a prejudice as impolitic as it was unjust since
it not only precluded them from an intercourse tending to
from' to thelr affftlons.l° England, but debarred tlfem
from the means of acquiring a knowledge of the laws
which were the only effective means of preserving the
nection between the countries. Indeed the continuance
of such connection was preserved at the present dS
more by the ignorant prejudices of the nativLrincestoTm-
selves, than by the exertions of the government. ConteTt-
ed to rule over their petty septs, their aversion to the
English was scarcely more violent than that entertained
by them against the neighbouring tribes of their own race
Ihey umted in the most cordial attachment with the old
English m their revolts; and their insurrections, far from
whnf r/tedc b/ -a £enei'al desire of exterminating the
lb°1y,i0f their lnvaders> were usually occasioned by
some local dispute or act of private oppression. 7
in the beginning of the reign of Henry VI. the two
Anglo-Irish families of Desmond and Butler began to as¬
sume the high political position which they retained Ion.
feadershtTnh'e f T ^ ,°f Desmond’ obtained thf
leadership of the family and the title, to the prejudice of
his nephew, who had degraded himself in the^yes of his
followers by marrying a peasant’s daughter. The uncle
was secured m the estate by authority of parliament
and also constituted governor of the counties^f Water¬
ford, Cork, Limerick, and Kerry, over which he exert¬
ed an almost royal jurisdiction. The Earl of Ormond
froemhfhd 0if But,er after havinS been removed
from the chief government of Ireland by the machinations
of h s enenues was protected against their further efforts
by the persona kindness of Henry VI., which laid the
foundation of a lasting attachment to this monarch on the
part of the earl and his descendants. A change now took
pace in the government, more important in its effects
than any hitherto recorded. Richard duke of York, de-
scended from an elder brother of the prince through whom
the reigning family derived its claim to the throne, was
universally beloved. The contrast between him and his
Tt wnoltf S0Jere'gn y38/00 goring to remain unnoticed.
It was therefore resolved to remove him out of Endand •
and he was appointed lord-lieutenant of Ireland, with ex-
traordmary powers. His administration presents one of
the few bright gleams of Irish history. It was long quot¬
ed aSthe tlme when peace and p1.osperitj
when faction was repressed by even-handed justice, and
bv birth6 nTeS’;he English blood’ and the English
by birth, coalesced in an honest exertion to improve the
country. Aware, on his arrival, of the bitted jealousy
which existed between the rival families of the Butler!
and Geraldines, and although he knew that the former was
attached by gratitude to his rival, he scorned to be sway-
his ,La7fiSUSpiC,,0n\0n thiat aCC0Unt; but> on the birth of
his son, afterwards the unfortunate Duke of Clarence bv
vol. xu. ’ y
IRELAND.
473
fnn|ag’ng tb? heads of both families to be sponsors at the Historv.
nfant s baptism, he bound each to himself and to the other
y the tie of gossipred, a relationship respected to a degree
of veneration amongst the Irish. Being called away to
l n& and to olear himself from some imputations on his
°yalty, he intrusted the administration to the Earl of Or-
mond, who WaS succeeded by Sir Edward Fitz-Eustace, a
knight of great military fame, by whom the O’Connors of
Offaly were defeated, and the sept of the O’Neills, who had
presumed to insult the city of Dublin by plundering some
wJb7h,pS ,the bay> and carrying off the archbishop,
were so roughly treated at Ardglass, as to check for a
ong period any efforts of the northern toparch against the
Pale- Z" ‘b.6 ™an time the Duke of Y°rk, though suc-
St^0rut0 Seize the Eng,ish cr™n>
totally defeated at Bloreheath, and forced to fly into Ire¬
land, where he was received more like a sovereign prince
than a discomfited traitor. The parliament passed !n act
T;and deJcreed that whosoever sboaid "t-
iZf lhn c 'f arb.hlm’ uuder pretence of writs from Eng¬
land, should be deemed guilty of high treason. An agent
ed Onnih Wb(: V,entured t0 violate tbe law, was execut-
V?- t duke,L subse(3uent change of fortune, num¬
bers of his Irish adherents followed him to England. The
pa abnate of Meath, in particular, was almost deserted by
eBnghsh settlers, who hastened to enrol themselves
under the banner of the white rose. He appeared in
London with this gallant train; but the war being unex¬
pectedly renewed, he was encountered at Wakefield bv
an army four times more numerous than his own, which
consisted but of five thousand men, mostly Irish, and fell
in the unequal contest, together with the greater part of
is devoted followers. The exhaustion thus produced was
nearly fatal to the English interests in Ireland. Towards
the close of Henry s reign, the Irish or rebellious English
had conquered or subjected to tribute the greater part of
the counties of Limerick and Tipperary, togethel with
those of Kilkenny and Wexford, and almost the whole of
Carlow, Kiltlare, Meath, and Uriel, so that little was left,
of which the English could claim the undisputed posses¬
sion, excepting the county of Dublin. The only method
tLT1^ Pe/CK T8 ^ the Purcbase of the protection of
the heads of the Irish septs, who, gratified with such ac¬
knowledgment of their superiority, looked with contemp¬
tuous disregard on the movements of the Saxons, as the
English were called by them.
I he attachment of the Geraldines to the house of York
was rewarded by Edward IV. on his attainment of the
royal dignity, by appointing the Earl of Kildare to the
hJ th ^nT^cV-, He W3S shortly afterwards superseded
Jl i6 pUkie °/S arenCej tbe klnS’s brother, who appoint-
d Le,Earl °I Desmond his deputy, in return for having
crushed an effort made by the Butlers in favour of the
house of Lancaster. But his continuance in power was
shoi t-hyed. On the king’s marriage with Elizabeth Grey,
he had incautiously thrown out some reflections upon the
meanness of her birth. Tiptoft, earl of Worcester, was
soon afterwards sent over as lord-deputy, and, in a parlia¬
ment summoned at Drogheda, he caused an act to be pass¬
ed against the Earls of Kildare and Desmond, for allying
themselves by marriage, and fostering with the Irish ene*
. l dare> though arrested, was fortunate enough to ef-
fect his escape. Desmond, relying either on his innocence
or his influence, came forward to justify his conduct, and
was immediately seized and executed without even the for¬
mality of a trial. Ihis monstrous outrage did not long go
unpunished. Kildare justified himself so effectually befb?e
ttbe k!ng; thatbe ^as not only restored to his titk/and es-
Chl£f g°vernor 5 and Tiptoft, being re-
ca led mto England, suffered, in a new revolution, the same
fate which he had inflicted upon Desmond. The defence
3 o
474
IRELAND.
History, of the confined limits of the pale was now intrusted to a
 ^ military order established by authority of parliament, un¬
der the name of the Fraternity of St George. It consisted
of thirteen leaders of the first consequence in the four
counties of Dublin, Meath, Kildare, and Uriel, who had
under them forty knights, as many squires, and an hun¬
dred and twenty mounted archers. The appointment of a
force so inadequate to preserve the peace even of the con¬
tracted limits it was intended to protect, evinces in the
strongest manner the reduced state of the English power
after the termination of the desolating conflict between
the rival roses.
The short and distracted reign of Richard III. allowed
no time to attend to the state of Ireland. His successor,
for what reason it is not known, suffered the government
to continue in the hands of the Fitzgeralds, the avowed
friends of the house of York. The evil consequences of
this policy, or negligence, were not long in showing them¬
selves. Lambert Simnel, who had been set up by the
king’s enemies on the Continent to personate the Eail of
Warwick, son of the late Duke of Clarence, was sent by
them to Ireland, as the place most favourable for the de¬
sign. He was received by the Earl of Kildare, then lord-
lieutenant, as the lawful sovereign ; proclaimed king; pub¬
licly crowned in Christ Church, with a crown taken for
the purpose from a statue of the Virgin Mary ; and borne
thence to Dublin Castle on the shoulders of Darcy of
Flatten, according to a form used in the inauguration of
the native Irish kings. A parliament convened by his
writ, under the title of Edward VI. granted subsidies, and
enacted severe laws against those who refused to recog¬
nise his right, amongst whom the chief were the families
of Butler and Bermingham, and the citizens of Waterford.
Fortunately for the peace of the country, the arrival of a
body of German auxiliaries from Flanders, under the com¬
mand of Martin Swart, inspired the partisans of Simnel
with such an overweening confidence in their own strength,
that they determined to transfer the seat of war to Eng¬
land. Thither Simnel went, attended by the flower of the
Irish nobility, and a numerous following of the natives.
He was met at Stoke, in Nottingham, and defeated by
Henry with immense loss, as the Irish, whose light arms
could make no impression on the compact and iron-bound
ranks of their adversaries, refused quarter, defending them¬
selves singly, even when routed, until they fell overwhelm¬
ed by numbers. Simnel, when taken prisoner, was punish¬
ed, not by severity, but degradation. He ended his life as
a scullion in the royal household. The actors in this hasty
and ill-digested movement were not treated harshly. Even
the city of Dublin was pardoned, on its humble submis¬
sion. But, in the hope of securing the future allegiance
of the great residents, Sir Richard Edgecombe was sent
over as a special commissioner, with a train of five hun¬
dred men, to receive their submission, and administer the
oath of allegiance. On his arrival at Kinsale, his appre¬
hensions at first prevented him from landing; and he re¬
ceived the homage and oaths of Lord Ihomas Barry, a
principal nobleman of the district, on board his ship; but
afterwards landed, and was received in Cork, Wateifoid,
and Dublin, in a manner befitting his mission. I he Earl
of Kildare hesitated for a time, but at length joined with
the others in tendering this proof of submission to the
ruling power.
Another claimant of the throne now appeared in the
person of Perkin Warbeck, who was, or pretended to be,
the Duke of York, second son of Edward IV. He landed
at Cork, where his identity was acknowledged. On his
arrival there he wrote to the Earls of Desmond and Kil¬
dare. The former recognised him at once ; but before the
latter could decide on the part he ought to take, the ad •
venturer had removed to the French court, whither he had
been invited for the purpose of more effectually annoying History,
the English king- Henry now sent over into Ireiand Sir
Edward Poynings, a knight of distinguished ability, ac¬
companied by several English lawyers to fill the omces
of judges ; those then on the bench, who owed their eleva¬
tion to party influence, being notorious for their incapacity.
The administration of this governor forms a new era in
the history of the country. A parliament assembled by
him enacted several useful laws, two of which were pe¬
culiarly influential in breaking down the exorbitant power
of the nobility. By one of these, all the statutes hither¬
to passed in England were made law in Ireland ; by the
other, it was enacted that no parliament should be held
until the reasons for holding it, and the statutes to be
proposed in it, should be approved by the privy council
of England. Warbeck made a second attempt upon Ire¬
land, in which he was openly assisted by the Earl of Des¬
mond ; but after an unsuccessful attempt on Waterford,
he was forced to quit the country? and take refuge wit
the king of Scotland. The enemies of Kildare were not
remiss in seizing this opportunity to crush him ; and the
Butlers importuned the lord-deputy to imitate the exam¬
ple of Tiptoft, and consign him at once to the execution¬
er. But Poynings rejected the cruel and impolitic sugges¬
tion, contenting himself with sending the earl to England to
answer in person the allegations brought against him. This
proceeding, as just as it was merciful, led to a conclusion
wholly opposite to the anticipations of his enemies. When
warned by the king to choose able counsel to defend him¬
self against the heavy charges advanced against him:
« Yes,” said Kildare, “ I choose the ablest in the realm;
1 take your highness as my counsel against these false
knaves.” Charge after charge was alleged against him,
and answered ; amongst others, that of having burned the
church of Cashel. On hearing this brought forward, Kil¬
dare interrupted the speaker : “ Spare your evidence,’ said
he; “ I did burn the church, but I thought the bishop had
been in it.” This extraordinary plea raised a laugh amongst
all present. His accusers in a rage exclaimed, “ All Ire¬
land cannot rule this earl.” “ Is it so?” replied Henry;
“ then this earl shall rule all Ireland; and he sent him
back as lord-deputy. The event justified Henry’s sagacity.
Kildare repaid his sovereign’s confidence by a government
of unremitting zeal, energy, and fidelity. Ihe boundaries
of the pale were gradually extended; several septs, to
whom tribute had hitherto been paid, were forced to sub-
mit. He marched a gallant army into Connaught, against
Ulick de Burgho, the head of the degenerate English in
that province; more, it must be acknowledged, to gratify
private resentment than to promote the interests of his
royal master. The armies met at Knocktow, near Galway.
The victory of the deputy was sullied by the ferocity of
his troops, who refused to give quarter, and continued the
massacre until night forced them to desist. This victory
reduced the whole of Connaught to obedience. Ihe
O’Neills and the O’Briens were the only septs of any con¬
sequence who still refused to tender their allegiance.
The Earl of Kildare was continued in the government
by Henry VIII., who testified his approbation of his ser¬
vices by appointing his son Gerald his successor. Ihe
young earl, with the characteristic valour of the family,
inherited a more than ordinary share of their pnde and
imprudence. Too haughty to court the favour of Wolsey,
then in the zenith of his greatness, by meanness and sub¬
serviency, he incurred that proud prelate s hatred, which
was heightened by the artful suggestions of his rival the
Earl of Ormond. Through the machinations of this noble¬
man he was removed, and summoned to England to ac¬
count for his conduct. Here, strengthened by a marriage
with the daughter of the Marquis of Dorset, he was en¬
abled to baffle the efforts of the cabal formed against him.
I R E L
^ITistoi> He attended Henry at his celebrated interview with
^ Francis I., and, by the splendour of his suite, and the bril¬
liancy of his equipage, contributed largely to the splen¬
dour of “ the Field of the Cloth of Goid.” On his return
home, the struggle between the rival families attained to
such a height, that commissioners were sent from En<>--
land to investigate the case. Their report, when laid be¬
fore Henry, induced him to remove from the head of af¬
fairs Pierce earl of Ormond, better known in the chro¬
nicles of the times by the name of Red Peter, the deputy
to the Earl of Surrey, then lord-lieutenant, and to substi¬
tute his rival in his place. The decision proved eventual¬
ly fatal to this nobleman. Inflated with an opinion of his
own greatness, he acted so as to excite a suspicion of aim¬
ing at the assumption of independent power in Ireland.
His enemies pressed the charge against him, and a pe¬
remptory order was issued for his immediate attendance
at court. Unwilling to quit the seat of power, conscious
most probably that his conduct would not bear a strict
investigation, he endeavoured, through his wife’s relations,
to evade obedience; but finding all his efforts ineffectual,
he ultimately repaired to London, after having supplied
all his castles with arms and ammunition from the royal
stores, a measure tending most powerfully to confirm the
prejudice raised against him. On his arrival there he was
forthwith thrown into the Tower.
. That the royal anger against the earl had not been very
violent, is evident, notwithstanding the harsh treatment
thus inflicted on him, from the fact that he was permitted
to commit the government during his absence to some
person for whose conduct he should be responsible. Bv
a step still more unaccountable than any of those that had
involved him in suspicion, he intrusted the administra¬
tion to his eldest son Thomas, a stripling scarcely twenty-
two years of age, who, to the rashness of youth, and a
natural violence of temper, added an insolent contempt of
his rivals, and a boyish confidence in the irresistible power
of the Geraldines. The news of his father’s imprisonment
could not fail soon to arrive in Ireland. Common fame,
aided by the artifices of the enemies of the family, swell¬
ed it into an assertion of his execution. The young lord
lent a credulous ear to these falsehoods, and, as impetuous
as he was credulous, instantly had recourse to means of
vengeance as desperate as they were chivalrous. Attend¬
ed by a retinue of an hundred and forty followers equip¬
ped in a style of gaudy display, which, even in those times
of courtly splendour, earned for him the title of “ the
Silken Knight,” he proceeded to St Mary’s Abbey, on the
northern bank of the Liffey, where the privy council were
assembled ; and there, throwing down the sword of state,
he solemnly renounced his allegiance, and declared himself
the mortal enemy of the English government. All the
other members of the council gazed on him in silent as¬
tonishment. Archbishop Cromer, then primate and chan¬
cellor, alone interfered, and remonstrated with the fiery
young man on the madness of the act he was committing.
The appeal to his better judgment was interrupted by
the family bard, who, unconscious, through his ignorance
of the language, of what was going forward, commenced
a rhapsody on the glories of the Geraldines, the treatment
of their chief, and the vengeance which it claimed. Passion
prevailed over prudence. The voice of age and wisdom
was drowned in the clamours of bis attendants, and the
young lord tore himself from the chancellor, rushed out
of the council board, and, without premeditation or pre¬
paration, plunged into a war against the whole power of
England.
Baffled in an attempt to surprise the castle of Dublin,
Lord Thomas ravaged all the district of Fingal, in its north¬
ern neighbourhood, during which Alen, archbishop of
Dublin, one of the determined enemies of his family, was
AND. 475
taken prisoner. When brought before him, his hasty ex- History
pression, “ Away with the English churl,” was translated by - >
his rude Irish followers into a mandate for execution, and
the wretched man was immediately butchered. He then
renewed his attempt to seize the castle, but was prevented,
and eventually driven from the city by the citizens, who
even burned part of the suburbs, to prevent them from af¬
fording shelter to his troops. From being the aggressor,
he was now forced to act on the defensive. Maynooth
Castle, his strongest fortress, was invested, and, after a re¬
sistance of fourteen days, was captured by the treachery of
a foster bi other of Lord Thomas, who, after having been
paid the pecuniary remuneration of his treason, received a
more adequate recompense by being hanged by the orders
of the English deputy. The irregular army of the insur¬
gents began to dissolve on the intelligence of this disaster,
and their leader was driven to a desultory warfare in the
fens and mountains, from which he was inveigled by a so¬
lemn assurance of pardon given by the English general
Lord Grey, and confirmed by the communion of the holy
sacrament. Grey was rewarded for his services by the of¬
fice of lord-justice. His first act of government'was one
of atrocious perfidy. In spite of his previous solemn pro¬
mise, he sent his prisoner to London, where the first news
the wretched youth received was, that his father had died,
not by legal execution, but through grief at his insane re¬
bellion. This act of Grey was followed by a similar one,
if possible of deeper guilt. Henry breathed the most fu¬
rious revenge against the whole family of Kildare, and sent
orders to have the five uncles of the young lord seized,
io effect this, the lord-deputy invited them to a banquet,
where, in the midst of the pretended hospitality, they were
anested, forced on board ship, hurried to England, and
executed along with the real instigator of the rebellion.
A brother of Lord Thomas, a boy about twelve years of
age, who was also included in this decree of blood, after
having been sheltered for some time, at no small risk, by
his aunt, the widow of M‘Arthy, a Munster chieftain, was
conveyed to France, and, when Henry had the meanness
to claim him as a subject, he escaped to Flanders. Thence,
when pursued by the same spirit of despicable malignity,
he fled to Germany, and finally found shelter in Rome,
under the protection of Cardinal Pole, who, in defiance of
Henry’s protestations, received and educated him as his
kinsman, and, by his favour and support, enabled him to re¬
cover his birthright, and restore the otherwise extinct ho¬
nours of the house of Kildare.
A period now arrived in which religion, hitherto little
noticed in the political events of the country, was forced
to assume a character as dissonant to its real nature as pre¬
judicial to its true interests. Henry determined to extend
to Ireland the reformation he had with so little opposition
established in England. Commissioners were sent over to
procure an acknowledgment of the king’s supremacy, who,
though opposed by Cromer, the archbishop of Armagh, a
strenuous champion for the religion at that time establish¬
ed by law, succeeded in obtaining it. A parliament, as¬
sembled at the special suggestion of Browne, the first Pro¬
testant archbishop of Dublin, exhibited a subserviency to
the royal wishes as great as even the despotic character of
Henry could require. It pronounced the king’s marriage
with Catherine of Aragon null; declared the inheritance
of the crown to be in the king’s heirs by Anne Boleyn;
and as the passing of this declaration was followed by an
account of that unhappy lady’s condemnation and death,
and the king’s subsequent marriage with Anne Seymour,
it altered the succession anew to correspond with the new’
change in the king’s disposition. It also acknowledged the
king’s supremacy in the fullest manner, forbade appeals to
Rome, renounced the authority of the Romish see, and de¬
creed the suppression of most of the monastic institutions.
476
History,
IRELAND.
An act, mere creditable to ‘^^tTL'Vrnded in
every^parish 3for instructing the natives in the English Ian-
8Ufrndina^%™"e^nS“Sge^nffident
B " ,fsh the rfghty undertaking which Henry’s im-
to accompli fenced. The Irish clergy in general
petuous zeal ha m relinquisi1ed va-
rerH^aVnereferments rafher thaJsubmit to it. The Irish
chieftains found in it a new motive to animate themselves
and to influence their followers against the Saxons. The
feelino- was fomented by a communication from Rome, e -
eitimrthe northern chieftains, and more particularly O Neil,
to rally round the sacred standard of their fo''e^athe^'
O’Neill ioyfully accepted the post thus assigned him.
proclaimed himself head of the northern Irish assembled
a numerous force, advanced to Tarah,
proclaimed on the ancient hill of royalty of the native mo
narchs of Ireland; but, content with this idle display
pomp he prepared after ravaging the country, to return
fnto his own demesnes. The deputy had expected this
storm and was prepared against it. With the forces raised
in Dublin and Drogheda he pursued the re«™g
overtook them a£ Bellahoe, on the borders of Meath, where,
after a partial engagement, in which the van of the latt
army only was concerned, the Irish fell back on their mam
body, which, struck with an unaccountable panic, immedi-
he3 waived all defence, pleaded guilty, and perished by the
same Le into which h‘e had so h;-eherous y drawn Lord
Thomas Fitzgerald and the rest of the ill-tated <aera
““xhe next step taken by Henry to complete the tranquil-
lization of Ireland, was the assumption of the royal title.
Hitherto, though exercising all the essentials of sovereign-
tv the kings of England had contented themselves with
the title offords of Und This term was now W
bv act of parliament into that of king. The alteration was
commemorated by conferring peerages on several ot the
heXoTthe great families. O’Neill was made Earl of
Tyrone with the singular privilege of transmitting t
Se and estate to an illegitimate son, to the prejudree of h,s
lawful issue. Ulick de Burgho was created Earl ot Ulan
ricarde, and O’Brien Earl of Thomond. Several of inferior
note were created barons. Besides the act declaring the
king’s regal title, others, to the following purport, give stnk-
SnSions of the manners of the times: Laymen and
bovs were excluded from ecclesiastical benefices, homi¬
cide and robbery were punished by fine, w> “ murdw and
rape bv death ; coygne and livery were prohibited, unless by
command of the lofd-deputy; idle men and retainers were
forbidden; noblemen were allowed no more tha y
bits or bandies of linen in their shirts, which were not to be
dyed with saffron; and the people of a country nito wh c
theft was traced, were to trace it thence, or make restitution.
A glaring omission in these statutes render
nugatory. Whilst the great lords were rendered more de¬
pendent on the crown by the abolition of their ancient
tenures, no provision was made in favour of t e su o
nate chieftains, or the great mass of the popu ation, over
whom their ancient masters were still permitted to exer
their former arbitrary dominion. Neither was this omis¬
sion caused by inadvertence. The petitions of the na ives
to be governed by English law were disregarded or denie .
O’Byrne, the head of a sept which had long kept the capi¬
tal in a state of alarm, vainly petitioned that his territory
should be converted into an English county by the name
of Wicklow. A similar proposal for the Annaly, from its
proprietors the O’Ferrals, was treated in like manner, al- History,
though the king, when applied to, had acquiesced in t
arrangement. The only territorial change ventured upon by
the lord-deputywasthedivisionofthe territory ofMeath into
the counties of East and West Meath. Still, however the
civil reformation of the country was in Pr0^ess' A,St^
of general tranquillity was perceptible. Such, indeed, ^
the spirit of allegiance at this period that Francis I then
at war with England, found it impossible to move the Insh
to insurrection. On the contrary, Henry was attended to
Calais on his French expedition by a considerable body o
Irish troops, who distinguished themselves equal y Y
agility during the march, and their ferocity in the combat.
Bui the happy prospect which now began to dawn over the
country was marred by the mismanagement of the Enghs
government. O’More and O’Connor of Offaly had renewed
their incursions into Leinster. They were soon driven
back into their fastnesses, whence they were lured by a
delusive expectation of pardon and favour, on condition
of presenting themselves to the king. Scarcely, however,
had they arrived at court when they were seized and
thrown into prison, where the former soon sunk under t e
severity of his treatment. The disgust excite y
of treachery was heightened by the manner in wlm* the
reformation was pressed upon the people. When Dowdah
the primate, who had succeeded Cromer, refused to coun
tenance the new doctrines, an old <»ntroversy retoe to
the superiority of the sees of Armagh and Dublin was re
lived and, by a royal patent, the title of primacy was
transferred from the former to the latter see. Dowdal,
unable to brook the indignity, peevishly as well as injudi-
cinnt.lv deserted his see, and retired to the Continent.
The opposite party, taking advantage of this false step, im-
mediately pheed Goodacre, a Protestant bishop in the see
he had abdicated. Throughout the country parts ako, the
removal of the clergy of the ancient faith, and the mtro-
ductill of those of the new doctrines, were carried on
in a spirit of violence and acrimony unbecoming the cause
and irritating to the people. The garrison of Athlone at-
tacked the Lcient and venerated recess of Clonmacnois
plundered its furniture, defaced its ornaments, and defifed
L aitars. Similar excesses took place in other parts, ibus
he Impression made by those champions of reform
that the new system sanctioned sacrilege and robbery.
In the nordb the general peace was disturbed by the fa-
mill dissensions of the O’Neills. Shane or John O Neill,
the legitimate son of the first Earl of Tyrone, laboured se-
dulouflv to induce his father to alter the arrangement
which gave the inheritance to his natural son Matthew.
The latter threw himself for protection on the lord-depu y,
who could devise no better means for dosing the tamd;
schism, than by seizing on the persons of the a"
countess whom he kept in close confinement. I he con
sequence of this arbitrary act was the throwing .the wll°
of ftiat country into the hands of Shane, who claimed it by
the principlesIif the English law, and who, assisted by
body of Scots, committed terrible depredations on the pi o-
perty of those who disputed his right or set his power
defiance^ occasioned by the death of Edward
VI addldToTis state of confusion. The religion was
airain changed. Dowdal was recalled to the primacy , t
S violent of his opponents fled ^
of Lnrlv nf the clergy returned to their tormer
C restoratioillvas amended with no acts iif violence:
the Protestants were not Pejsec"te * h severity of
several of the English, who had fled
the law in their own country, were receiv The
by the Catholics in Ireland. .Not, f'L ture 0f their
septs of Leix and Offaly resiste f ^ j leaders
lands. They insisted that the offences ot tneir
IRELAND.
Historj. ought not to involve in their confiscation the inferior
heads. They took up arms in defence of their rights;
but they were soon taught the futility of their opposition!
An armed force was sent into the country, which proceeded
in the work of extermination with such ruthless ferocity,
that scarcely a remnant of the ancient residents could be
found to avail themselves of the tardy pardons procured for
them by the generous interference of the Earls of Kildare
and Ossory. The territory was reduced into shire-ground,
under the names of the King’s and Queen’s Counties, in
honour of Philip and Mary, whose names were given to^he
respective assize towns of each.
Elizabeth, on her accession, found the whole island in¬
volved in a state of petty warfare. The Earl of Thomond
contended with another branch of the O’Briens for the ru-
lership of North Munster. The Desmonds and Butlers re¬
newed their contentions in the south. M‘William Oughter
rose in arms against the De Burghos of Clanricarde. The
dispossessed inhabitants of Leix and Offaly revenged
themselves by the pillage of the neighbouring districts^ of
Leinster, and Shane O’Neill was making rapid strides to¬
wards the sovereignty of the whole of Ulster. The last
named of these parties was the first pacified. Sir Henry
Sidney, the new lord-deputy, instead of turning the mili¬
tary force of the queen against him in the first instance,
had recourse to gentler measures. Accepting an invitation
to settle the matters in controversy at O’Neill’s own resi¬
dence, he was received with such splendid hospitality, and
heard such a statement of facts, as induced him not only
to relinquish all ideas of severity, but to engage to be his
mediator with the queen. O’Neill even attended the
lord-deputy to Dublin ; but when there, being made more
fully aware of the deadly machinations of his secret ene¬
mies, who thirsted to make his princely property an object
of confiscation, he adopted the daring resolution of proceed¬
ing to London, and laying his case before the queen in
person. Attended by a chosen band of followers equipped
in the most appropriate costume of the country, he entered
that city, to the astonishment and delight of the population,
then as well as now fascinated by show and singularity. A
native Irish chieftain, followed by a band of men armed in
a strange fashion, with heads bare, their hair flowing in
clustering curls on their shoulders, clad in saffron linen vests
of exuberant folds, surcharged with light and polished cui¬
rasses, and bearing broad double-edged battle-axes over
the shoulders, caught the fancy and dazzled the imagina¬
tion, not only of the populace, but of the queen herself. She
received the singular visitant with marked favour, and sent
him back to Ireland secured in the possession of the title
and property which he claimed as his right upon his fa¬
ther’s death. But this unexpected tide of royal favour only
whetted the ingenuity of his enemies at home. Complaint
after complaint, either of actual offence or of imputed ill
intention, was sent over to Elizabeth, whose answer, “ that
if he revolted it would be better for her servants, as there
would be more forfeitures to divide amongst them,” excited
their hopes, as the prospect of the prey had roused their
cupidity. Sir Henry Sidney had placed a garrison in the
town of Derry. This step O’Neill considered as an infringe¬
ment of his rights, and an intrusion on his sovereignty. A
body of forces led by him against it defeated and slew the
governor. Shortly afterwards, the church, which had been
used as a powder magazine, was blown up by accident, and
the garrison forced to evacuate the place. This event
was construed by the people into a judgment from heaven
for the profanation. O’Neill then proceeded to Armagh,
which he took by storm, and burned the cathedral; but was
baffled in a subsequent attempt upon Dundalk. The tide
of fortune now set strongly against him. Several of the
native chieftains in the north, and Desmond in the south,
took part with the government. His forces were unequal
477
to contend against such a combination. Finding resist- History,
ance hopeless, his first emotion was to throw himself on v—!.
the mercy of the lord-deputy; but the treatment of
O’More under similar circumstances deterred him. He
therefore determined to seek the protection of a body of
Scotchmen, who were encamped in that part of Antrim
then known by the name of Claneboy. His proposal of
joining this party, which was readily accepted by them,
became known to the English governor, who sent an offi¬
cer of the name of Piers to the Scotch commander, to
persuade him to assassinate his unsuspecting guest. The
plot succeeded. O Neill, on his arrival, was assailed by
a party of his hosts followers, upon the futile pretence of
a sudden quarrel during the entertainment to which he
was invited. His head was sent to Dublin, and Piers re¬
ceived a thousand pounds for his share in the transaction.
The deputy named a feeble old man, named Tirlogh Ley-
n3gh, as head of the sept, to prevent this office being fil¬
led by a more youthful and daring individual.
The ruin of O’Neill in the north was followed by that
of Desmond in the south. A small body of Spaniards
was brought into that part of Ireland by a banished
branch of the Fitzgerald family. Though the Earl of
Desmond steadily persevered in avoiding to connect
himself with their proceedings, the conduct of some of
his relations involved him in suspicions, which were then
nearly tantamount to guilt. His brothers Sir John and Sir
James having joined the invading party, the former disgra¬
ced himself, and injured his cause, by the unprovoked mur¬
der of an English gentleman of the name of Davels, who
had been sent by the deputy to persuade them to continue
in their allegiance. The whole force of the government
was directed against the family. The army of the insur¬
gents was utterly routed at Kilmallock. The earl himself,
though as yet guilty of no overt act, received a peremp¬
tory order to surrender within twenty days; and upon his
declining to appear, he was declared a traitor. The war
was carried on against him with unexampled cruelty.
Slaughter, fire, and famine, desolated the finest parts of
the rich province of Munster. Desmond, driven to des¬
peration, made a vigorous stand. At one time he pos¬
sessed himself of the town of Youghal, but was soon af¬
terwards defeated by his old and bitter enemy the Earl of
Ormond. At this time a new lord-deputy was sent over
in the person of Lord Grey. His first effort was an attack
upon the O’Byrnes of Wicklow, who were charged with
having banded themselves in alliance with Desmond. He
determined to attack them in their stronghold of Glen-
dalogh, in the very centre of the mountains; but, when
entangled in the inextricable labyrinths of these moun¬
tain fastnesses, he was assaulted with such well-judged
fury, that his army was cut off almost to a man, he him¬
self scarcely escaping to Dublin, overwhelmed with shame
and confusion. Hence he was soon afterwards called away
to Munster. A body of Spaniards seven hundred strong
had arrived in Kerry to the aid of Desmond ; but the num¬
ber was too small to be effective. On their landing they
secured themselves in an intrenchment, which they named
Fort d’Ore. Here they were blocked up by the lord-de¬
puty, so as to render escape impossible. They surrender¬
ed, whether on terms or at discretion is uncertain. But
the subsequent atrocity is as certain as it is detestable.
Lord Grey ordered the whole of the garrison to be butch¬
ered. His instructions were executed to the letter. Sir
Walter Raleigh, and Spencer the poet, were involved in
the infamy of this abominable act, the one as the officer
presiding at the massacre, the other as assisting in the
councils where it was devised. The war was now at an
end, but the chief victim still found means to avoid the
indefatigable pursuit of his enemies. Hunted from lair
to lair, he suffered all the extremity of famine. A few of
478
IRELAND.
History. l,is daring adherents had seised a prey of cattle for his
sustenance They were traced into a wooded valley,
where, attracted by a light, his pursue-were led to a
hovel in which they found only a feeble old man. On
beint assaulted and wounded, he called out for mercy,
and fold them he was the Earl of Desmond. This was
the signal for his death. The soldier repeated lus blow,
and sfew him. His head was forwarded to the queen,
who ordered it to be fixed upon London Bridge.
The government of Sir John Perrott, who succeeded
T ord Grev, presents one of the bright spots in the history
' nf the country. His first act was to publish an amnesty,
and to denounce the military slaughters and spoliations
which were encouraged by too many of the commanders.
He took care to secure all parties in their persons and
properties, to administer justice to all alike, and torefoim
the gross abuses in the public departments. Nor were his
endeavours unsuccessful. The natives vied with each other
in tendering proofs of loyalty. The old lords of the pale
suspended their feuds, and came up to attend his court in
Dublin. A parliament was assembled, which, though with
some reluctance, passed an act for the attainder of the
deceased Lord Desmond, together with an hundred and
forty of his followers, and confiscated his immense estate
to the crown. Having thus reduced the south to order, ie
turned his attention to Ulster. Hugh, the e dest son of
Matthew, Lord Dungannon, was entitled to the honours and
estates belonging to the earldom of Tyrone. He had been
educated in England, and had served with honour in the
queen’s army. He now applied for his seat m the House
of Lords, and for the restoration of his propert). Pei
granted him the first of these requests, and referred him
to the queen as to the second. He therefore presente
himself at court, not, like his predecessor, m the wild at
tire and equipage of an Irish dynast, but as a British
courtier. He was received with marked partiality, and
soon restored to his possessions. The close of I errott s
government was stained by an act unworthy of him.
O’Donnell, the chieftain of Tyrconnel, was suspected o
meditating a revolt. Perrott undertook to stifle the at¬
tempt without difficulty or expense. To effect this, he
caused O’Donnell's eldest son to be inveigled on board a
ship sent into Lough Swilly, on pretence of trafficking in
wine, and had the young man brought up to Dublin,
where he was kept for some time in close confinemen .
But such had been this governor’s general conduct, that
even an act so unjustifiable did not deprive him o gene
ral confidence. On his recall, being aware of an imped¬
ing Spanish invasion, he assembled such of the lords and
chieftains as were most likely to be swayed from their
allegiance by the appearance of a foreign force, point¬
ed out to them the consequences which must result from
the apprehended invasion, and persuaded them to give
hostages in proof of their determination to adhere to
their sovereign. He then quitted the country, o owec
by the blessings and prayers of thousands. The conduct
of his successor, Sir William Fitzwilliam, whose so e o
ject appeared to be the accumulation of wealth, en lance
the feelings of regret for his departure. After t ie e
feat of the Spanish Armada, several of the ships belong¬
ing to it were lost on the northern coast of Ireland. Re¬
ports were rife as to the quantities of money acquired
from the wrecks by the chieftains residing in the neigh¬
bourhood. Fitzwilliam seized upon some of them, on the
mere suspicion of their being in possession of these trea¬
sures, and kept them for years in close confinement. He
afterwards imprisoned M‘Mahon, the head of the sept that
held Monaghan county, on a charge of treason, for having
employed a military force to collect his revenues, an usual
custom in the Irish districts, and brought him to trial be¬
fore a jury of soldiers, by whom he was at once condemn-
Hi story.
ed and consigned to immediate execution. These and simi¬
lar severities excited the spirit which they professed to re¬
press. Young O’Donnell, who had been treacherously en¬
trapped by Perrott, found means to escape from Dublin
Castle, and took refuge in the mountains of Wicklow,
whence, after a year’s residence, he made his way, thioug
extraordinary difficulties, to his own country, where he was
most active in fomenting the spirit ot discontent amongs
About this time the university of Dublin was founded, on
the site of a suppressed monastery. The project was first
conceived by Sir John Perrott, but it was not acted upon
until the time of his successor. It was the only successfu
effort since the arrival of the English at imparting to the
country a knowledge of the higher branches of learning.
O’Neill, ever since his restoration to his estate, had been
preparing means for the part he afterwards acted. Amongst
the stipulations in his favour on his restoration, was the
privilege of being attended with a certain number ot arm¬
ed men. These he frequently changed, so as to have m a
short time a large number of his followers trained to the
use of arms. When he conceived himself sufficiently pie-
pared to set the English power at defiance, he threw ott
the mask, and openly laid siege to the tort of Blackwater,
built some time before for the avowed purpose ot keeping
him in check. Sir Nicholas Bagnal was sent to relieve it.
The opposing armies met near Armagh. The numbers on
each side were nearly equal, but fortune turned the scale ot
victory. In the heat of the engagement, the explosion ot
a magazine threw the queen’s forces into confusion. 1 he
death of Bagnal, who, whilst raising his visor, was shot
through the brain, rendered the confusion irremediab e.
The victory of the Irish was decisive, and filteen hundred
of the enemy fell in the field. The fort of Blackwater im¬
mediately surrendered, and Armagh was evacuated by the
q * Elizabeth at length determined to make one irresistible
effort to crush an adversary now become truly formidable.
She sent the Earl of Essex into Ireland as lord-lieutenant,
at the head of twenty thousand men; a number deemed
more than sufficient to accomplish her object in a single
campaign. Essex had orders to proceed directly against
Tyrone ; but he took a course diametrically opposite. He
directed his march southwards through Munster, where ie
found an impoverished and depopulated country, and an
enemy that eluded every effort to bring them into decisive
coLon. In passing through Lei*, his cavalry suffered
heavily from the repeated desultory attacks ot O More,
who cherished all his ancestor’s hereditary hatred of the
English; whilst another division of his army was de eated
by the O’Byrnes of the mountains. In another quarter Sir
Conyers Clifford, who was sent into Connaught to create a
diversion in favour of the main body, was routed and killed
in the Curlew Mountains, by O’Ruark prince ot Bre^ ic>!
as the county of Leitrim was then called These related
losses so diminished the numbers and broke the sp
the English, that when Essex moved northwards to effect
his main object, he found his means inadequate to the^
tempt. An interview was proposed and accepted,
was followed by a truce for six weeks, in consequence ot
which the English army returned to its quarters in Le
"^The anger 6f Elizabeth at this termination of her ex¬
pensive expedition was extreme. Essex, to ward off its
effect, took the desperate expedient ot returning un ^
to court, to justify himself in person. I he act was.as u
fortunate as inconsiderate. He was arrested, imprisoned
and" on a still more frantic effort to excite the atizens of
London against the queen, was tried and behead ’ , ,
Sir Charles Blount, Lord Mountjoy, was sent to Ireia
in the place of Esse*. His love of literature had excted
IRELAND.
History, an opinion of his effeminacy. O’Neill exulted openly at the
—' appointment of a man “ who would lose the season of ac¬
tion whilst his breakfast was making ready.” He was soon
to learn that the graces of polite literature are by no means
incompatible with the qualifications of a warrior. At the
commencement of Lord Mountjoy’s proceedings, an occur¬
rence took place which excited in his mind strong doubts of
the honesty of the Earl of Ormond, who had stifl the chief
command of the army. This nobleman having allowed him¬
self to be trepanned into a conference with O’More, the
chieftain of Leix, on pretence of treating as to terms of sub¬
mission, was seized and long detained prisoner, as Mount-
joy was not over hasty in paying a large ransom for a man
who, he shrewdly suspected, had been the secret cause of
his own calamity. The proceedings against O’Neill were
conducted with much policy. The inferior chiefs were
bribed to join in the confederacy against him. Rival claim¬
ants were set up against his friends. The lands of those
who adhered to him were mercilessly devastated. Pardon
was granted to the insurgents only on the condition of be¬
traying or murdering a relative or friend. A strict adhe-
lence to these practices soon wasted O’Neill’s strength.
He persevered in his resistance, however, in the hope of
succours from Spain. These at length arrived, but fell far
short of what his expectations had anticipated, or the great¬
ness of the emergency called for. Two thousand men, un¬
der the command of Don Juan d’Aquila, were all that Philip
of Spain would or could spare towards this effort to crush
his rival, or at least to dismember her empire. To com¬
plete the series of ill-combined arrangements, the invading
force landed at Kinsale, in the south of Ireland, whilst the ally
w hose interests it was sent to maintain was shut up in the
northern extremity of the island. The Spaniards, as soon
as they landed, were blocked up in Kinsale by the combined
forces of the lord-deputy, and Sir George Carew, president
of Munster. Don Juan wrote in the most urgent terms to
O Neill and O Donnell to come to his relief. They advanced
at the extraordinary speed of forty miles a day, through a
country already desolated by the protracted continuance
of a war of extermination. At the same time that they
arrived near the scene of action, the landing of a second
Spanish armament at Castlehaven, joined to the intelli¬
gence that this was to be followed by still further succours,
induced several of the southern chieftains to declare them¬
selves openly in favour of the Spaniards; and Mountjoy now
found himself blocked up in turn, between the garrison of
Kinsale on the one side and the Irish army on the other. Un¬
der such circumstances, delay would have been ruin. Famine
and disease, already active in his camp, must soon have ac¬
complished the annihilation of his army. The impatience
of the Spanish general, and the want of concert among the
Irish, saved him. O’Neill was prevailed upon to hazard an
attack upon the English lines. In this he was anticipated.
Mountjoy, aware of his intention, marched to meet him
with part of his forces, leaving the remainder to keep the
besieged in check. The enemy wTere taken by surprise,
and, after a short resistance, the main body of the Irish was
broken and scattered. O’Donnell, who commanded the
rear, fled without striking a blow. O’Neill, after some in¬
effectual attempts to rally his men, still much superior in
numbers, gave up the attempt in despair, and hurried back
to the north. The Spanish general, finding himself de¬
serted, and, as he thought, betrayed, by his new auxiliaries,
surrendered upon terms. The war of desolation was now
carried into the northern province. The forts of Charle-
mont and Mountjoy were erected to curb the Irish in that
quarter. The open country was desolated. Large tracts
were converted into deserts, where the miserable remnant
of the population endeavoured to support nature by feed-
ing on grass, or the filthiest garbage. O’Neill’s friends and
adherents gradually fell off. He at length applied to be
479
received into mercy. Mountjoy, at this time aware of the History,
precarious state of Elizabeth’s existence, was equally anxious
to terminate the struggle. After receiving from O’Neill
an abject submission on his knees at Mellifbnt, he admit¬
ted him to pardon, and encouraged him with the hope of
restoration to his title and estate. Scarcely had the cere¬
mony been concluded when the news of Elizabeth’s death
arrived. O’Neill, on hearing of it, burst into a flood of
tears, occasioned, as he said, by his regret for a princess
whose kindness he had so ungratefully repaid, but, with
more probability, by the reflection that an earlier intima¬
tion of the event might have enabled him to take advan¬
tage of it for procuring terms less degrading. The war
could not have been much longer continued. It had worn
itself out; the resources of the country were completelv
exhausted ; the population was reduced to the number of
from six to eight hundred thousand ; the finances were in
the most ruinous state; and the debasement of the coin,
an expedient adopted by Elizabeth to parry off the ruin,
ultimately served only to aggravate the distress.
With the exception of an effort made in the cities of
Waterford and Cork to restore the old forms of worship,
which was speedily put down with the effusion of but little
blood, the submission of Tyrone restored the general tran¬
quillity to such a degree, that Mountjoy felt justified in
proceeding to England to present himself before his new
sovereign, leaving Sir George Carew in his place as lord-
deputy. He was accompanied by O’Neill and O’Donnell,
the former of whom was confirmed in his title of Tyrone,
and the latter created Earl of Tyrconnel. Before his de¬
parture he published a general amnesty, and received into
the protection of the English law the whole of the Irish
people hitherto exposed to the ill-defined rule of their re¬
spective chieftains. But the dawn of tranquillity was dark¬
ened by the apprehension of fresh convulsions. An anony¬
mous letter was found in the council-chamber of the cas¬
tle, hinting at the existence of a conspiracy carried on by
some of the great Irish lords against the state. On the
alarm being given, the Earls of Tyrone and Tyrconnel, ac¬
tuated either by a consciousness of guilt, or by an appre¬
hension that they were specially marked out as the objects
of persecution, left the country, and took refuge in Spain.
Their flight was considered as sufficient proof of their guilt.
They were attainted, and their immense possessions for¬
feited to the crown. In one district of the north the flame
of insurrection broke out openly. Sir Cahir O’Dogherty,
proprietor of Innishowen, who had hitherto espoused the
cause of the English, disclaimed his allegiance, seized by
treachery the fort of Culmore, and thence proceeded to
attack the town and fort of Derry, which he took by storm,
putting the whole garrison, with the commandant, to the
sword; but after continuing his ravages for five months, his
followers were routed, and himself slain, in an engagement,
by Sir Arthur Chichester, the lord-deputy, who found his
presence necessary for the complete suppression of the in¬
surrection.
The death of this chieftain and the flight of the two
earls having placed nearly the whole of Ulster in the king’s
hands, he resolved to remodel the province, by removing the
ancient possessors, and introducing a colony of English and
Scotch settlers in their stead. The tract on which the ex¬
periment was to be made comprehended the counties of Tyr¬
connel, since called Donegal, Tyrone, Derry, Fermanagh,
Armagh, and Cavan, spreading over upwards of half a mil¬
lion oi acres. I he lands were to be portioned out into
estates varying from one to two thousand acres, the pro¬
prietors of which were bound to build substantial residen¬
ces in them after the English fashion, and to people them
with English and Scotch tenantry. The city of London
was peculiarly active in promoting this plan. A company
of merchants and undertakers there, under the name of
480
History*
IRELAND.
, r . , o • f fnr Inrfrp tracts of land, which that reign of turbulence and internal commotion, they sur-
the Irish Soclety’C0J\r^, tenure. ' The remainder was por- rendered them anew to James, and took out new patents,
they still hold under Individuals either English or for the enrolment of which a sum of three thousand pounds
tioned out amongst ;f in. was paid. The officers of chancery, either through negh-
cS order gencl or from a worse motive, omiUed^execute die pro
i . __ or! in nrrlpr to nrniTIO
History.
cipai lauiiiica xiwtv  n
of baronets was instituted in order to promote the execu¬
tion of this favourite project of James. The number of
its members was limited to two hundred, each of whom
purchased his rank by the payment of a sum adequate to
support thirty men on the new plantation for three years.
About the same time, the county of Wicklow, heretofore
theproperty of the septs of the O’Byrnes, and O’Tooles ten thousand pounds.
 j f : nativps had travaeant monarch w
cess of enrolment, and the king, towards the close °^i^s
reign, was preparing to take advantage of the laches of his
own servants, and to seize on Connaught, in order to have
it parcelled out anew, as he had done with Ulster. 1 he
injured party, aware of their adversaries power, prepay to
avert the ruin which impended over them, by the proffer of
Whether the necessities of this ex-
or O’Tothils, was made shire-ground, after the natives had
been dispossessed by a summary process, somewhat similar
to that employed in the settlement of the northern counties.
In order to secure the permanence of these changes by
positive law, a parliament was convoked, after a lapse of
twenty-seven years. It was the first to which members from
all the counties of Ireland were sent. To secure a prepon¬
derance in favour of the crown, a number of new boroughs
was created, in the charters of which the right of election
was placed in hands which secured subserviency to the
rulincr power of the day. Notwithstanding this precaution,
the political aspect which this assemblage presented was
by no means promising. In the upper house, which con¬
sisted of but four earls, five viscounts, sixteen barons, and
twenty-five bishops, the numbers of the latter order gave
the crown an irresistible preponderance. But in the House
of Commons the parties were more equally balanced. 1 he
election of a speaker served as a trial of strength. Ihe
court party proposed Sir John Davis, the attorney-genera ,
an Englishman, and author of the celebrated tract on the
Causes why Ireland had never been completely subdued.
The country party set up Sir John Everard, an Irish law¬
yer of respectable family. The election went in favour of
the former, by a majority of a hundred and twenty-seven
travagant monarch would have led him to the acceptance
of that sum for the fulfilment of his part of an equitable
contract, cannot now be decided. His death left the ques¬
tion at issue to be handed down to his successor, as one o
the ingredients of discontent in the cup of bitterness that
he was condemned to drain to the very dregs.
Charles I. began his reign by sending a large force to
Ireland, both to provide against the danger of foreign in¬
vasion, and to curb internal disaffection ; but, through a de¬
ficiency of pecuniary means to support the troops, he had
recourse to the exertion of his prerogative, and quartered
them on the counties and principal towns, obliging the in¬
habitants to supply them, not only with lodging, but with
money and provisions. The murmurs against this oppres¬
sive impost were loud and frequent. A meeting of t le
principal Catholic recusants and great landed proprietors
having assembled in Dublin, proposed to Lord Falkland, the
lord-lieutenant, to grant the king a voluntary assessment
of an hundred and twenty thousand pounds, on a guarantee
of security in their rights and properties. The proposal
was accepted by the king, who sent oyer the document
containing the required concessions, ratified by his signa¬
ture, in order to their being confirmed by the ensuing par¬
liament. The principal articles in this covenant, which
was known by the name of The Graces, were—that the
votes to ninety-seven. The defeated party, not content ™*s Knowi^ uv be pmited t0 sixty years; that
with protesting against the unfair c^^tjuction of the house, W^cla ietors should receive new patents;
took advantage of the absence of the majority, who had the soldiery shouU be restrained) the
left the apartment for the purpose of being counted o f . ki > 0fpcers and the powers of his courts de¬
division, put their own speaker in the chair, and were pi - r,0wers of the ecclesiastical jurisdiction limited,
ceeding to pass resolutions, when the excluded members fined ^PJ^dontanS far all past offences. When
returned, and, failing in an attempt to ejec ve!:p! L parliament which was to give the sanction of law to
from the chair, placed their own nominee in his lap. T P f bad met, an informality in the writs for as-
scene of disgraceful tumult which followed was at leng was al]erred as a reason for not having then con-
terminated by the secession of the mmonty, after they and^g nQ new writs were issued, nor any steps
protested against all thf acts that should be passed, a, ^ convoke another parliament, the people, who had
advanced their money on the security of this promise, en¬
tertained strong doubts of the king’s sincerity. /I he recall
of Lord Falkland served to confirm these suspicions. Ihe
lords-iustices who were appointed on his departure execut¬
ed the laws against recusant Catholics with great severity.
They caused the celebrated place of penance in Lough-
derg, called St Patrick’s Purgatory, to be dug up and de¬
secrated ; and on being resisted by a tumultuous mob in
formal and unconstitutional.
A commission, issued for the discovery of defective titles,
at the head of which was placed Sir William Parsons, a
name of no small notoriety in the series of subsequent
events, began now to excite alarm. During the long con¬
tinuance of civil war, the loss of family documents, the ne¬
glect of the performance of feudal services, the ignorance
of the great proprietors, and the uncertainty of the law
fluctuating between English and Irish tenure, broug it most t prevent the Carmelite friars of Dublin
persons of property within its fangs, and excited the alarm an endeavour to preve^ reUgious rites> they seized
of all. By means of it the king established a claim of o ^fteenreligious houses, and dispossessed the Catho-
upwards of an additional half million of acres. The c P „ , . ipLe :n Backlane, giving it to the Dublin
profit of these confiscations accrued to the members and lies of for some time as a Protes-
dependents of the government, who employed agents, tech- universi y, P a res oniy augmented the spirit
nically called discoverers, to scrutinize titles and discover tant seminary. These measures only augme V
flaws, receiving as their reward a portion of the lands
charged with being concealed or illegally withheld from
the crown. Their success in other parts led them to pro¬
ject the confiscation of the whole of Connaught. The
king’s claim rested on a case of the most flagrant iniquity.
The lands of this province had been surrendered by their
proprietors to Sir John Perrott, and restored to them by ms aeseruon. f r'tJTao T have emitted you.” “ We
grants from the queen, to be held under the provisions of his former poima > A sturdy republicans;
English law. Having neglected to enrol their patents in see you have, replied one or me ? t
tant seiiiiimry.   -j - o i a
of discontent, to repress which Charles sent over Lor
Wentworth, afterwards Earl of Strafford. This nobleman,
from being one of the most active leaders of the populai
party in the English parliament, became at once the most
violent assertor of the king’s arbitrary measures. Equal y
proud and daring, he took no pains to conceal or palliate
his desertion. “ You see, gentlemen, said he to some of
IRELAND.
481
on e meeting of parliament, had issued orders that the The timidity of some of the parties caused its postpone-
members should lay aside their swords when they took ment. Roger Moore, after having visited his friends in
t eir seats. Ihe Earl of Ormond, who had just come of Ulster, on whose exertions, owing to the severity with
age, on being stopped at the entrance of the House of which they had been dispossessed in the late settlement
Lords, and required by the usher of the black rod to give of that province, he placed most dependence, came up to
up his sword, answered, that if that officer must have his Dublin to superintend the attack, which was now fixed
swoid, it should be through his body, and passed on to his on for the 23d of the same month. The lords-justices,
seat. On being summoned before the council to answer Sir William Parsons and Sir John Borlase, were till this
for this faring insult on the viceregal authority, he defend- moment unaware of the conspiracy, and unprepared for
ed himself by saying that he had received the investiture resistance. On the evening of the 22d, information of its
to his earldom cincturam gladii, and was ordered by the existence was given, through Owen Conolly, a Protestant,
writ of summons to attend parliament gladio cinctus. The who had been invited to join in it. Parsons paid little
answer, as spirited as it was unexpected, staggered Strafford, attention to his statement, but Borlase took the alarm,
He felt that such a spirit in so young a man must either be placed guards on the castle and principal avenues, and
crushed at once, or otherwise directed. He had the pru- seized M‘Mahon and Lord M‘Guire. Moore had sufficient
dence to adopt the latter course; and Ormond, at the age notice of the discovery to make his escape. Dublin was
of twenty-four, was admitted into the Irish privy council, thus saved; but the insurrection broke out with irresisti-
The imperious and harsh measures of the lord-lieutenant ble fury in the north, where Sir Phelim O’Neill, one of the
had, however, the effect of putting down all opposition in Tyrone family, a man of mean capacity but violent pas-
parliament. Six subsidies, amounting to three hundred sions, took the lead, by surprising the castles of Charle-
thousand pounds, were granted, and no steps taken to se- mont, Dungannon, and Mountjoy. Tanderagee, and the
cure to the people, by the sanction of parliament, those border town of Newry, soon afterwards fell into the hands
graces which the king had pledged himself to grant, and of the insurgents. Fermanagh was seized upon by a bro-
for which they had paid so highly. In some respects ther of Lord M‘Guire, and Monaghan by the M‘Mahons.
Strafford’s government was laudable. He reformed the So well organized was the conspiracy, that within eight
army, so as to render it efficient without being burdensome days’ time the Irish found themselves masters of the coun-
to the people ; he encouraged the linen manufacture, using ties of Tyrone, Monaghan, Longford, Leitrim, Fermanagh,
at the same time every means to depress that of wool; he Cavan, Donegal, and Derry, together with some parts
promoted a spirit of commerce, and guarded the coasts of Armagh and Down.
with great vigilance against the annoyance of pirates. In the mean time the lords-justices were engaged in
Amongst the worst acts of his government, was his project taking measures for their own security in Dublin. All
to subvert all titles to estates in Connaught, in order to strangers were ordered to quit the city. Parliament was
plant a new Protestant colony in that province. Taking prorogued. The sheriffs of the counties of the pale re-
with him a large body of soldiers to overawe the juries, he ceived orders to provide for the security of their respec-
held courts of inquest to investigate titles. His measures tive districts. The Catholic lords of the pale attended
were effectual in four counties. In Galway, the jurors the counsel, declaring their readiness to assist in the de¬
having presumed to give a verdict against the crown, were fence of the country. The lords-justices, suspicious of
summoned before the court of the council chamber in their motives, yet unwilling to irritate them by an expres-
Dublin, and the sheriff fined a thousand pounds for re- sion of doubt, furnished a small supply of arms to those
turning an improper jury. The exigencies of Charles’s most exposed to danger. After the first burst of an explo-
affairs induced him to call over Strafford to England, sion so general and so unexpected, the progress of the in-
where, after some time, he was impeached by the House surgents failed to keep pace with their primary exertions,
of Commons. The principal charges against him rested The Protestants in Down took refuge in Carrickfergus.
upon his conduct whilst in Ireland. Several articles were In Fermanagh, Enniskillen set the attempts of the insur-
certainly groundless, others exaggerated, but more than gents at defiance, and Lord M‘Guire’s castle was taken
sufficient remained to justify the sentence which brought by storm. Sir Phelim O’Neill was driven with disgrace
his head to the block, and fulfilled the ominous prediction and loss from Castlederg, was defeated in Donegal, forced
of the party he had deserted when in the zenith of his to retire from before Newry, and again routed at Lisburn,
prosperity. then called Lisnegarvey, with such slaughter that the
Whilst general discontent in Ireland was fermenting number of the slain is said to have trebled that of the gar-
through the duplicity of the king, the arbitrary conduct rison. These reverses were attended with consequences
of his officers, the suggestions of his enemies in England, truly dreadful. The Irish, exasperated by defeat, carried
and their bloody triumph over his great agent, a secret on their hostilities without mercy. The inhabitants of
conspiracy was forming to rescue the country by force of Lurgan, who had surrendered on terms, were seized, and
arms from its present oppressed state, and to restore the the town plundered. Lord Caulfield, who had been taken
VOL. xn. 3 p
482 I R E L
History, in Charlemont, was murdered, with fifty others. Prison-
ers, whilst removing from one place of confinement to ano¬
ther, were attacked on the road and massacred, or driven
into the nearest river. These excesses were not confined
to the one side only. The garrison of Carrickfergus fell
upon the Catholic inhabitants of the neighbouring penin¬
sula of Island Magee, and forced a number of them over
the rocks into the sea. Sir Charles Coote, who was sent
out from Dublin to oppose the insurgents, carried on a war
of extermination against all suspected of favouring them.
That these atrocities did not stain the rebellion at its com¬
mencement, but grew out of its progress, is evident from
the fact, that no mention of a massacre is made in any of
the proclamations issued by the lords-justices, even so late
as the 23d of December, three months after its commence¬
ment; the protestation of the Irish parliament, which
met on the 17th of November, is also silent on the point;
nor does any state paper emanating from the Irish govern¬
ment afford grounds for the charge. The parliament, on
assembling, sat but for two days. Its only acts were a
protestation against those who had taken arms, and the
appointment of a committee to confer with their leaders.
Alarmed at this act of concession, it was prorogued by the
lords-justices; and the conference was broken off in the
most indignant manner by O’Moore, when he found him¬
self and his friends stigmatized in it by the name of re¬
bels. The lords-justices now proceeded to deprive these
noblemen and gentlemen of the pale of the arms furnish¬
ed to them in the first paroxysm of terror. Exposed thus
undefended to the attacks of the insurgents on the one
hand, and to the suspicions of the government on the
other, they held meetings with the leaders of the insur¬
rection, first at the hill of Crofty, and afterwards at that
of Tarah, in consequence of which they determined to
embody themselves as a force distinct from the Ulster
Irish, under the command of Lord Gormanstown and the
Earl of Fingal, with the professed purpose of confining
their operations to self-defence. The lords-justices were
alarmed. They now sent to invite the discontented lords
and gentry to Dublin, to confer with them on the state
of the country. These excused themselves, on the plea
that they would not venture within a city under the con¬
trol of Sir Charles Coote, whose sanguinary speeches at
the council board, and massacres throughout the country,
had already rendered him peculiarly obnoxious. They
also drew up an address to the king, complaining of the
injurious conduct of the lords-justices, by which they
had been driven to the necessity of arming themselves in
their own defence ; and they published a manifesto to the
same purport, for general circulation. The latter document
produced a decisive effect. Ihe insurrection, hitherto
confined to Ulster and a small portion of Leinster and
Connaught, at once became general. At the commence¬
ment of the year the authority of the lords-justices was
confined to Dublin and Drogheda, the latter of which was
in a state of siege. In Connaught, the town of Galway
was retained in its allegiance through the influence of the
Marquis of Clanricarde, the king’s steady friend. In
Munster, the cruelties of Sir Warham St Leger, president
of the province, which equalled those of Sir Charles Coote
in Leinster, drove even those hitherto well disposed into
insurrection.
The arrival of supplies of men from England produced
a change, and encouraged the lords-justices to exert them¬
selves to crush their enemies. The means adopted by
them were those of extreme severity. The prisoners of
the lower orders brought into Dublin were summarily
executed by martial law; those possessed of lands were
tried by the regular course of law, in order to secure the
confiscation of their property. Bills of indictment for
high treason were found against all the Catholic nobility
AND.
and gentry in Meath, Wicklow, and Dublin, and against History,
many in Kildare. Several persons of imputed guilt were
put to the torture to extort confessions. The Earl of Or¬
mond, who had the command of the army, received in¬
structions not only to kill all rebels and their adherents,
but to burn all the places where they had been harboured,
and to destroy all the male inhabitants capable of bearing
arms. Nor were these merely denunciations, circulated
for the purpose of producing obedience through terroi.
Sir William Cole’s regiment alone boasted, that, besides
killin0- two thousand five hundred men in battle, they had
starved and famished, of the vulgar sort, whose goods they
seized on, seven thousand. The Earl of Ormond was des¬
patched into the county of Kildare to relieve and secure
the castles which still held out for the government. After
executing his commission, he defeated at Kilrush a large
body of the Irish under Lord Mountgarret; but being un¬
able, through want of supplies, to follow up his advantage,
he was forced to content himself by thus securing a safe
retreat to Dublin. f
On the other side, the arrival of Owen Roe O Neill gave
fresh vigour to the cause of the Irish in Ulster. A Scotch
force, which had been sent thither under the command
of Lord Leven, remained inactive. Lord Leven, after an
empty display, quitted the country, leaving the command
to General Munroe, who, following the example of his
predecessor, remained quiet in his quarters, whilst the
forces of O’Neill were daily augmenting, by the accession
of numbers of the natives, and by supplies of officers, mi¬
litary stores, and money, from the Continent.
The insurgents now began to find themselves sufficient¬
ly powerful to give form and regularity to their proceed¬
ings. A general assembly of delegates from all the pro¬
vinces was convened at Kilkenny. Their first act was a
declaration, in which, after professing their determination
to adhere to their allegiance to the king, they disclaimed the
authority of the Irish government in Dublin, administer¬
ed as it was by a malignant party in conjunction with the
king’s enemies in England. I hey appointed for the exe¬
cution of their edicts subordinate councils in the provinces,
from which there was to be an appeal to the supreme
council of the Catholics of Ireland, a permanent body, con¬
sisting of twenty-four members, chosen by the general
assembly. Having thus organized their civil constitution,
they provided for their military operations by giving Owen
Roe O’Neill the command of their forces in Ulster; Ge¬
neral Preston, who had lately brought a supply of arms
and ammunition from France, in Leinster; Garret Barry
in Munster; and Colonel Burke in Connaught. Lord
Castlehaven, who, on the first breaking out of the war, had
made a tender of his services to the government, but had
been refused, having afterwards appeared in Dublin to
justify himself from a charge of treason, was thrown into
prison, whence he contrived to escape after a confinement
of twenty weeks, and was appointed to the command of
the Leinster cavalry.
The good effects of system soon showed themselves.
Munroe was defeated in Ulster, and the united forces of
Lords Muskerry and Castlehaven were successful in Mun¬
ster. Connaught was wholly in obedience to the confede¬
rates ; and though Preston had allowed himself to be de¬
feated near New Ross, Lord Ormond found himself too
weak to reap any decisive advantage from his victory. Yet,
notwithstanding these favourable appearances, the leaders
of the confederates, aware of the great superiority of their
opponents, and not firmly united amongst themselves, were
anxious to put an end to hostilities. But the English par¬
liament obstinately refused to negotiate with those whom
they styled rebels and murderers. The Earl of Ormond
at the same time undertook to continue the war on the
part of the crown, provided the lords-justices furnished
IRELAND.
History, him with a supply of ten thousand pounds. After much
delay, a cessation of arms was acquiesced in by both the
belligerent parties, for which the confederates agreed to
advance to the amount of thirty thousand pounds for the
king’s service, one half in money, and the remainder in
cattle.
T-he great object of the cessation of hostilities was to
procure from the king a permanent settlement of the coun¬
try. Both parties sent in their proposals. In these the Ca¬
tholics asked for freedom of religion, seminaries for the edu¬
cation of their children, a free parliament, from which all
who had not property in Ireland should be excluded, and
an amnesty for the past. The Protestants, on the contrary,
called for the strict execution of the penal laws, the total
disarming of the Catholics, the vesting of all estates hi¬
therto forfeited in the crown, and the distribution of
them when so vested amongst English settlers exclusively.
Charles gave no decisive answer to any of these proposals.
He pleaded the difficulties of his situation, and referred
them to Ormond, whom he had appointed chief governor
instead of Parsons and Borlase, and had raised to the dig¬
nity of a marquis. Ormond procrastinated. The mean
motives of avarice and personal aggrandizement are char¬
ged against him for his indecision in such an emergency.
But be the cause what it might, the opportunity for a pa¬
cific settlement was let slip, and lost for ever.
The first eventful change was the desertion of the con-
fedeiate party by Lord Inchiquin, who, on being refused
the office of president of Munster by the king, declared
for the parliament, and became the bitter enemy of his
former associates. Still, however, the confederates had
the advantage in several minor encounters, for military
operations were not wholly stopped by the armistice. At
this period, whilst they refused to furnish the king with
supplies either of men or money until their interests were
more fully secured than by the temporary stipulations of
a truce, and whilst Ormond, on the king’s part, resisted
every attempt at a permanent peace, the pope’s legate,
Rinuncini, archbishop of Fermo, arrived, and in his mas¬
ter’s name protested against any pacification which did not
secure the public establishment of his religion. Charles,
pressed by the exigencies of his situation, and unable to
overcome Ormond’s reluctance, employed another agent.
He sent over the son of the Marquis of Worcester, Ed¬
ward Lord Herbert, better known by the title of Earl of
Glamorgan, to which he was soon afterwards promoted,
who, through his influence with the confederates, succeed¬
ed in persuading them to make a double treaty, the one
public, the other private ; which latter contained articles
insisted on by the Catholics, but deemed to be such as,
if generally known, would increase the prejudice against
the royal cause in the minds of the English. The secret
clauses were, a provision that the members of each religi¬
ous persuasion should pay their tithes to their own clergy,
and that the churches should remain in the hands of their
483
present possessors.
Rinuncini, who, while on his way to Ireland, had ob¬
tained from the queen an assurance of terms even more
favourable than those of the private treaty, objected to
both of them; he also insisted on the publication of the
former. His wish was accomplished by an accident. Sir
Charles Coote, the second of the name, for the former had
been killed in a skirmish soon after the breaking out of
the war, having defeated, near Sligo, a body of men com¬
manded by the Archbishop of Tuam, found amongst the
baggage of this prelate a copy of the secret articles. The
document was immediately transmitted to the English
parliament, which lost no time in publishing it through¬
out all parts of the country. Charles at once denied its
authenticity. He declared that Glamorgan had exceeded
his powers, and caused him to be arrested on a charge of
treason, and examined before the Irish privy council. His History,
duplicity gained him but little credit even at the time, and
documents preserved in the public libraries of England
have since furnished incontestible proofs of his insincerity.
Glamorgan was soon liberated upon bail. The transaction
destroyed all remaining confidence between the confede¬
rates and the king. Ormond refused to ratify the secret
articles. Rinuncini, also, who had private information of
the progress of a treaty at Paris between Charles and the
pope, insisted on delay. In the mean time, the king’s
affairs became desperate; and Ormond, when it was now
too late, consented to relinquish his objections to the repeal
of the penal laws, and concluded a treaty with the confe¬
derates. But the want of confidence excited by the king’s
conduct caused delays in carrying the terms of the treaty
into effect, which ended in the utter ruin of the royal
cause. Rinuncini, still averse to a compromise which
withheld from the Catholic church the enjoyment of any
of its former privileges, made party with Owen Roe O'Neill,
who, through the aid of the nuncio’s money, was enabled
to undertake offensive operations, and defeated Munroe
at Benburb, a village on the Blackwater. Rinuncini, elat¬
ed with his success, entered Kilkenny, appointed a new
confederate council, and imprisoned the members of the
old one. Ormond, in despair, resigned the sword of state,
and retired to the Continent; and though he returned
again armed with full powers as lord-lieutenant, and
though a new general assembly of the confederates, con¬
voked at Kilkenny, had declared themselves favourable to
terms in which both parties might be led to acquiesce, and
were violent in their protestations against the stubborn re¬
sistance of the nuncio, the adoption of any decisive measure
was postponed, until all were aroused from their lethargy by
the appalling news of the demand made by the parliamentary
army in England to bring the king to trial. Then, indeed,
the confederates agreed to the terms proposed by Ormond.
The leading points were, the free exercise of religion, and
the retaining of the churches then in possession of the Ca¬
tholics until the king’s pleasure should be known. Twelve
individuals appointed by the general assembly, under the
name of the commissioners of trust, were made guardians
of the treaty, and vested with powers to levy soldiers, raise
money, and perform all acts of supreme authority. The
treaty was signed on the 17th of January 1648. But it was
then too late. Before the news of its ratification could ar¬
rive in London, Charles had forfeited his life upon the
scaffold.
Previously to the death of the king, no less than five
armies were maintained in Ireland, each acting for a dif¬
ferent object. The Marquis of Ormond commanded that
of the king, for the purpose of restoring him to his govern¬
ment. The parliamentary forces, under Colonel Jones,
had possession of Dublin ; and in the south he was sup¬
ported for some time by a force under the Earl of Inchi¬
quin. General Preston commanded the troops of the
confederate Catholics in Leinster. Owen Roe O’Neill,
who had attached himself to the nuncio, and therefore
was equally opposed to the king, the parliament, and the
confederates, had the command of all Ulster, except a
small portion of its eastern extremity, where Munroe was
at the head of an army which favoured the Scotch. All
these elements of intestine commotion were again thrown
into action by the king’s death. Rinuncini, indeed, find¬
ing that this event, which he was charged with having
hastened by his obstinacy and violence, had alienated the
whole of the Catholic population, quitted the country
privately. Ormond then endeavoured to gain over O’Neill,
but failed ; he afterwards made overtures to Colonel Jones,
with whom he was equally unsuccessful, his proposals
being met with the retort that his suspicious conduct had
been the cause of exciting the apprehensions of the king’s
484
History.
IRELAND.
insincerity which prevented any of the parties in Ireland army of Cromwell. This general commenced the cam- History,
from coalescing with him sincerely, and thus led to his paign in 1650 by a movement on Kilkenny, which was to
destruction. Having at length, from his own resources,
collected an army sufficient to take the field, he invested
Dublin, with the intention of reducing it by famine. But
an advanced post at Baggotsrath having been successful¬
ly assaulted by a sortie from the garrison, which followed
up its success by an attack on the marquis’s head-quar¬
ters at Rathmines, the whole besieging army was seized
with such an unaccountable panic that it dispersed in all
directions, leaving the general so utterly deserted, that
when he wrote to Jones respecting the prisoners who had
fallen into his hands, this officer’s taunting reply was, that
he did not know where to find his lordship in order to
wait upon him on the business.
Before the marquis could recover from the effect of
this defeat, news was brought him of the arrival of Oliver
Cromwell in Dublin, with a select and well-appointed army
of ten thousand men. After a short delay in that city to
refresh his troops and to regulate the civil affairs of the
country, Cromwell proceeded to besiege Drogheda, which
Ormond, suspecting his intention, had provided with a
good garrison, and abundance of military stores. After
having made a practicable breach, the assault was given,
but the besiegers were twice repulsed. On the third at¬
tack, led on by Cromwell in person, his troops forced
their way into the town, and the garrison were overpowered.
In the heat of action Cromwell put the whole garrison to
the sword; and in this terrible severity he took the surest
method to hasten the termination of what threatened to be
a long and bloody conflict. The merciless but well-timed
stroke broke the power of his adversaries, and by their
intimidation saved the country from the bloodshed of a
protracted struggle. From Drogheda Cromwell proceeded
southwards to Wexford, which being well garrisoned and
provided, was expected to make a long resistance, so
as to give time to Ormond to collect his forces from
other quarters. But it was betrayed by the treachery
of the officer placed in command of the castle, and,
when taken, treated with the same stern cruelty as that
which had before marked Cromwell’s triumph at Drog¬
heda.
The effect of these terrible examples of severity in
paralyzing opposition, was increased by the orders given
by Cromwell to his troops to abstain from any wanton
injuries on the peaceable peasantry, and to pay them in
full for all their supplies ; a system directly contrary to all
former practice, according to which, the soldier, whether
friend or foe, was ever the peasant’s terror.
The only hope for the royalist party now rested in the
cordial union of Ormond and O’Neill. Both were sensible
that a junction of their forces was absolutely requisite to
counteract the movements of Cromwell. To effect this
object, O’Neill moved southwards with his army, but was
seized on his march with a defluxion of the knees ; a com¬
plaint attributed at the time to a pair of poisoned boots
prepared for him by an agent of the confederates. Un¬
willing to retard the movements of the armies, he had
himself conveyed in a litter, but sunk under the accumu¬
lated pressure of disease and fatigue, and died at Clough-
outer Castle.
The commissioners of trust were so much alarmed at
the treatment of Drogheda and Wexford, that they were
with difficulty prevented, by the remonstrances of Or¬
mond, from abandoning Kilkenny. The want of con¬
fidence which he experienced, both from the leaders of
the confederates, and the inhabitants of several of the
large towns in the south, tended much to embarrass him.
The city of Waterford absolutely refused admission to
his troops, even at a time when a passage through it was
required to make a successful assault on the retiring
have been betrayed into his hands. But the plot being
discovered, and the traitor executed, he was forced to lay
regular siege to the place. It made a very gallant defence.
After a breach had been effected, the besiegers were re¬
pulsed in two attempts, and Cromwell was preparing to
retire, when he received secret information that the town
magistrates were anxious to surrender. A third assault
was then made, with as little success as the former; but
Ireton having come up with a fresh supply of men, and
the garrison having been informed that no assistance
could be afforded them from without, the town surrender¬
ed on terms highly honourable to its defenders, who, on
marching out, were complimented by Cromwell for their
gallantry, and told, that had it not been for the treachery
of the town’s people, he must have raised the siege.
Clonmel still held out against the parliamentary army.
The garrison was commanded by Hugh O’Neill, another
branch of the family which had signalized itself in the
wars of Ireland. The first assault was repelled with such
slaughter that the infantry refused to advance a second
time, and Cromwell was compelled to bring forward his
own favourite regiment of cavalry. These succeeded in
entering the breach, but met with an opposition so fierce
and so unexpected, at a retrenchment thrown up within,
that the greater part of the storming party lay dead or
wounded on the spot, and the remainder evacuated the
place. In the two assaults Cromwell lost two thousand
of his best soldiers. Not daring to venture on a third, he
changed the siege into a blockade. The Marquis of Or¬
mond, aware of the importance of the place, made every
exertion for its relief. Assisted by the Catholic bishop of
Ross, he collected a numerous but tumultuary body of
men in the western part of Cork. These were attacked
and routed, and the bishop taken. His life was promised
to him, provided he would prevail on the garrison of a
neighbouring fort, which greatly annoyed the besiegers,
to surrender. On going thither, he exhorted the garri¬
son to persevere in their defence, and, on his return to
the camp of Cromwell, was executed. O’Neill having de¬
fended the town as long as his ammunition lasted, with¬
drew his troops by night unobserved ; and Cromwell, un¬
aware of the movement, gave the people very favourable
conditions, to which he was the more inclined, as the in¬
telligence of Charles II. having taken refuge in Scotland,
and the hostile indications from that quarter, rendered his
presence in England necessary to his party. Immediate¬
ly after the surrender of Clonmel, he proceeded to
Youghal and embarked for England, leaving the army in
charge of his son-in-law, Ireton.
All rational hope of successful resistance to the parlia¬
ment was now at an end. Ormond prepared to quit the
kingdom. The commissioners of trust for some time op¬
posed his intention, conscious of the confusion which must
arise from such a public avowal of his despondency. But
with the Catholic clergy it was otherwise. They suspect¬
ed that he was secretly negotiating with Cromwell. His
former conduct afforded plausible grounds for such a sus¬
picion ; and during the siege of Clonmel he had procur¬
ed passes from that general for himself and Lord Inchi-
quin to go to England. A synod of the bishops, held at
Jamestown, resolved upon sending a deputation to him,
calling upon him to quit the country, and transfer his
powers to some trustworthy person, who enjoyed the con¬
fidence of the nation. A second resolution denounced
excommunication against all who should hereafter adhere
to him. Whilst the relics of those who professed attach¬
ment to the royal cause were wasting their strength and
ruining their prospects by these proceedings, Ireton was
engaged in extending his authority by the reduction of
IRELAND.
History, one place of strength after another. Ormond, as a last
resource, convened a general assembly at Loughrea ; but
the party of the clergy was too powerful. Finding all
means ineffectual to induce them to recall their hostile
declaration, he embarked in a frigate provided for him by
the Duke of York, transferring his powers as lord-lieute¬
nant to the Marquis of Clanricarde. An extraordinary
negotiation was now commenced with the Duke of Lor¬
raine, by which it was proposed, that on the advance of a
large sum of money, and a proportionate supply of mili¬
tary stores, he should be declared protector of the royal
cause, and receive some towns as cautionary securities.
But the rapid progress of Ireton baffled all these projects.
Limerick was reduced, partly by the effects of a pestilen¬
tial disease, partly by treachery. Amongst the victims
of the plague was Ireton himself. After his death, Gal¬
way surrendered to Ludlow, his successor. A last des¬
perate attempt at resistance was made in Connaught by
Clanricarde, aided by Sir Phelim O’Neill, who now again
began to make himself conspicuous. It was defeated, and
Clanricarde fled to one of the islands on the coast. Sir
Phelim was taken prisoner, and ultimately executed as a
traitor. The nuncio’s party sent ambassadors to offer the
crown of Ireland to the pope, the kings of France and
Spain, and the Duke of Lorraine ; but none of them would
accept the worthless bauble. Clanricarde still endea¬
voured to maintain a mountain war amidst the glens and
wastes of western Connaught. It was but the expiring
effort of unbending loyalty. At length a letter from
Charles, recommending him to provide for his own safety,
released him from the shackles of the self-imposed bonds
of loyalty. He applied to Fleetwood, Cromwell’s deputy,
for a pass to retire to England. It was granted, and he
submitted to the parliament on an assurance of not being
called upon to perform any act inconsistent with his duty
to his sovereign. Shortly afterwards, a proclamation from
the English parliament announced the termination of what
was called the rebellion in Ireland.
The victors had now only to share the spoil. The
greater part of the nobility and gentry of Ireland, and of
the army, had expatriated themselves ; the estates of the
confederates were deserted. It remained to apportion
them amongst the friends and followers of the parliament,
in such a manner as would best secure a zealous attach¬
ment to the new order of things. The ordinance of the
Ehglish parliament to this effect decreed, that all who
had been concerned in the rebellion previously to the
10th of November 1641, all Jesuits and priests, all who,
not being themselves in arms, had slain English soldiers,
and all who, being now in arms, did not lay them down
within twenty-eight days, should be excepted from par¬
don. The Marquis of Ormond, the Earls of Inchiquin and
Roscommon, and Bramhall, Protestant bishop of Derry,
were also specially excepted. All persons who had borne
a command against the parliament were to be banished
during pleasure, to forfeit two thirds of their estates, and
to be assigned lands to the value of the remaining third
wherever the parliament should appoint. All Catholics
who had resided in Ireland at any time during the war,
and had not manifested their constant good will to the
commonwealth of England, were to forfeit one third of
their estates. All others residing in Ireland, as before,
who had not been in arms for the parliament, or manifest¬
ed their good will towards it when an opportunity offered,
were to forfeit one fifth.
A high court of justice, somewhat of the nature of a
court-martial, being composed of parliamentary officers,
who acted in the double capacity of judges and jurors, and
whose decisions were not regulated by any settled rules of
evidence, sat on the cases of delinquency. Yet, after the
severest scrutiny, the number of those subjected to the
485
penalties of the first clause of the instructions was very History,
small. Lord Mayo in Connaught, and Colonel Bagnal in
Munster, were condemned, as it was thought, unjustly.
Lord Muskerry was saved by the evidence of the numer¬
ous English settlers, who pressed forward to vouch for the
protection and security they enjoyed under his control.
In Ulster, Sir Phelim O’Neill was the only victim. Al¬
though offered not only pardon, but restoration of property,
if he could produce substantial proof that he had had a com¬
mission from Charles to commence the insurrection, he dis¬
claimed the fact, and died maintaining the contrary. Of
others, not quite two hundred could be found who came
within the strictness of the clause, so much had the ac¬
counts of the atrocities committed at the breaking out of
the insurrection been magnified, or so completely had the
actors in it been swept off by the desolation of the hostili¬
ties that succeeded.
The disposal of the forfeited lands was regulated accord¬
ing to the principles of an act of the English parliament, by
which those who at the commencement of the war had sub¬
scribed L.200 tov/ards the reduction of Ireland were to have
1000 acres in Ulster; those who had subscribed L.300, the
same number in Connaught; and those who had subscribed
L.450 and L.600, a like quantity of land in Munster and
Leinster. The holder of the lands thus granted was bound
to pay a yearly quit-rent to the crown, of one penny an acre
in Ulster, three halfpence in Connaught, two pence in
Munster, and three pence in Leinster. The soldiers who
had served in Ireland since the landing of Cromwell there
in 1649, were entitled to a share of the lands in lieu of
their arrears, on the same terms as those who had advanced
money, and who were distinguished by the name of adven¬
turers. Those who had served previously to that date
were to look for payment to the residue of lands which
might be over and above after the former division had
been made ; a kind of security which was found to be very
deficient. In order the more effectually to secure the new
possessors in their properties, the Catholics who should be
found entitled to retain any part of their estates under the
provisions of the act above specified, were to surrender such
part if in any of the other provinces, and to receive an
equivalent, or, as it was called, “ to be reprized,” by waste
lands in Connaught, which new allotments were assigned
in the parts of the province situated at least a mile from
the coast. No Catholic was, under any condition, to be suf¬
fered to remain in a town, or within a certain space around
it. By the latter part of this provision, it was intended to
cut off the Irish from any communication with foreigners,
as by the former the broad boundary of the Shannon se¬
parated them from any contact with the residents in other
parts of the kingdom. Commissioners of delinquency sat
at Athlone, to decide upon the qualifications of the Roman
Catholics; others, appointed to arrange the details of set¬
tlement of those transplanted to Connaught, held their
court at Loughrea. A third body of commissioners met in
Dublin, to receive and hear claims. Under their direction
a survey was made by the celebrated Sir William Petty, of
all the forfeited lands, which, notwithstanding the lapse of
time, and the state of the country when executed, is found
to be singularly correct in its details. The confiscation
comprehended by much the greater part of the surface of
Ireland, and threw the property, and consequently the in¬
fluence, of the country into the hands of a new class of
men. Private soldiers, or desperate adventurers, now be¬
came the lords of extensive tracts, once enjoyed by the na¬
tive families of ancient descent, or by the Anglo-Irish no¬
bility. It also produced another change, of less striking
character at first, but of overpowering influence on the fu¬
ture destinies of the country. The land was likely to be
useless for want of cultivators. The continuance of a war¬
fare, in which mercy was deemed a symptom of timidity or
486 I R E L
History, of treachery, had swept away the peasantry in multitudes.
Numbers had been transported as slaves to the plantations ,
many had emigrated as soldiers or colonists. The plan of
peopling the wilds of Connaught by transplanted Catholics
was almost totally relinquished. Hands were wanting on
the new estates ; the tenants were therefore retained, but
they were treated with all the jealous severity arising from
a consciousness of weakness, and an apprehension that ad¬
vantage would be taken of it. They experienced the harsh¬
ness of slavery, without the enjoyment of that protection
which the selfishness of ownership in some degree spreads
over it.
The government of Ireland was intrusted by Cromwell
to his son Henry, who proved himself worthy of the
choice. He visited most parts of the island, so as to make
himself personally acquainted with its resources and ca¬
pabilities. He checked the frauds attempted to be com¬
mitted by the commissioners in the disposal of the forfeit¬
ed lands, repressed the violence of the soldiery, and af¬
forded the protection of the law to the ill-used peasantry.
He had even devised plans on an extended scale for the
improvement of the country, which the short duration of
his power prevented him from executing. Impressed with
the necessity of diffusing knowledge as the surest foun¬
dation for the solid advancement of the people, he pur¬
chased the library of Archbishop Usher, in order to be¬
stow it on a second college which it was intended to
found in Dublin. Amongst other plans for the consoli¬
dation of the interests of the two countries, it was intend¬
ed that Ireland, instead of being governed by a domestic
parliament, should send representatives to that of Eng¬
land. The number fixed upon was thirty. But the death
of Cromwell, and the resignation of his son Richard, put
an end to all these well-intended projects. On the an¬
nouncement of this latter event, the English parliament,
aware of Henry Cromwell’s abilities and popularity, and
apprehensive of an attempt on his part to maintain him¬
self in the government, sent over Sir Hardress Waller to
seize upon the castle of Dublin ; but the precaution was
unnecessary. Cromwell retired without opposition, re¬
maining in privacy in his house in the Phoenix Park until
he had provided himself with the means of removing to
England, having administered the government with so
much disinterestedness during a period in which he had
the means of amassing unlimited wealth, that he could not
at once defray the expenses of his passage over.
The thoughts of the new settlers, who were now trans¬
formed from needy adventurers and soldiers into landed
proprietors, began to turn upon the means of securing the
properties so unexpectedly acquired. The agitation con¬
sequent on the death of Cromwell, whose overruling mas¬
ter-mind had hitherto kept all parties subservient to his
views, began to take a turn decidedly favourable to the
restoration of royalty. The great leaders of the parlia¬
mentary party perceived this, and prepared to shape their
course accordingly. Lord Broghill, who had already
changed from a royalist to a republican, was the first to
retrace his steps. He was followed by Sir Charles Coote,
the most sanguinary of the parliamentary leaders. The
towns of Youghal, Bandon, and Kinsale, which had been
amongst the first to revolt to Cromwell, were now led by
Lord Broghill to declare for the king. Coote secured
Galway and Athlone. The same party, after a short
struggle, seized upon Dublin Castle. Sir Hardress Wal¬
ler, who had taken possession of it for the parliament, was
sent a prisoner to London ; and Ludlow, who, upon the
alarm of the change of sentiment in the parliamentary
party in Ireland, had been sent over to take the chief
command, on arriving in Dublin Bay, was prevented from
landing, and forced to return to England. A convention
was assembled in Dublin. The council of state in Eng-
A N D.
land ordered its dissolution. The order was set at de- History,
fiance. The king’s declaration at Breda being presented to
the convention, was accepted by acclamation, and Charles
was proclaimed with every demonstration of joy in all the
great towns. Thus, the restoration of the son in Ireland
was effected by the same persons who had been mainly
instrumental in bringing his father to the block.
The sudden change of public opinion gave Charles irre¬
sistible influence in Ireland. All parties looked to him.
Above all, the Catholics, whose attachment to his father
had been the great cause of their sufferings, and of the
ruin of their property, anticipated an immediate restora¬
tion of their estates. So sanguine were they, that many
proceeded to take forcible possession of them, and to eject
the new proprietors. The Protestants raised the cry of
a new rebellion, employed agents in London to resist
their claims, and had influence sufficient to obtain clauses
in the act of indemnity, excluding from it all who had
at any time aided the Irish, and prohibiting the resto¬
ration, upon any terms, of lands already disposed of by the
parliament or convention. Nor was it without the great¬
est difficulty that an exception could be carried in favour
of the Marquis of Ormond and other Protestants. Every
severe ordinance against the Catholics was strictly en¬
forced. The commoner sort were prohibited from quitting
their place of residence without permission. Assemblies
of the Catholic gentry were forbidden. A proclamation
was issued for apprehending Irish rebels, and for assuring
all adventurers and soldiers in the quiet possession of
their grants.
At length the king’s declaration, which was to form the
basis of the new settlement of the landed property of the
country, was published. This document, after vesting all
the confiscated property in the king, confirmed the adven¬
turers and soldiers in the lands already granted to them.
The officers in the king’s service before 1649, distinguish¬
ed by the name of “ Forty-nine Men, were to receive
their arrears in lands at the rate of twelve and sixpence
in the pound, and an equal dividend of whatever should
remain of their security. Protestants whose estates had
been given to adventurers were to be restored, and the
present holders “ reprised,’ that is, given othei lands of
equal value. Innocent Papists were also to be restored,
and the holders reprised ; those restored to property with¬
in corporate towns were to be reprised in the neighbour¬
hood, as no resident Catholics were to be permitted in
those places. Such Catholics as had accepted lands in
Connaught were to continue bound by that act. I hose
who had joined the king in his exile, and served undei
his banners, were to be restored when the piesent holdeis
were reprised ; such persons were called “ Ensign-men.
Additional grants were made to Ormond and Inchiquin,
who had been restored by the English parliament. Monk,
now Duke of Albemarle, and some others, received grants.
The king’s brother, James, duke of York, had several of
very great extent. Thirty-six of the Irish nobility and
gentry, to be specially named by the king, were also to be
restored under the title of “ Nominees.” Those who had
any share in the trial and execution of the late king vveie
specially excluded from the benefit of this arrangement.
Lands belonging to corporations were to be restored, and
the possessors reprised. The qualifications which entit e
a Roman Catholic to claim the benefit of the clause re¬
specting “ innocent Papists,” were so worded as to render
the chances of an acquittal almost impossible. None were
to be restored as such, who, at the time of the cessation
in 1643, had been of the royal party, or had lived within
the quarters of the confederates, except the inhabitants
of Cork and Youghal, who had been forcibly expelled
from those towns, and driven by the fanatics into the ene¬
my’s lines; who had acted with the confederates before
History
Vcjs**** v‘
IRELAND.
the peace of 1648, or had adhered to the nuncio or the
PaPal Power against the royal authority, or, when excom-
mumcated for such adherence, had submitted and obtain¬
ed absolution. Whoever derived his title from persons
guilty of those crimes ; whoever claimed his estate on
the articles of peace, thus acknowledging his concurrence
in the rebellion ; whoever had held correspondence with
the confederates, sat in their councils, or acted under
their commission ; whoever had employed agents to treat
with any foreign power to bring forces into Ireland, or
had been a tory, the name given to the marauding parties
which harassed the country; were also excepted. Few
Roman Catholics could hope to escape being included in
some one or other of those sweeping clauses.
The principal subjects which engaged the attention of
the Irish parliament that met after the Restoration, were
the established church, and the settlement of property
Ormond, to whom the management of Irish affairs was'
principally intrusted, contrived, by postponing the consi¬
deration of the question of the lands, to secure the adop¬
tion of the former. Although the House of Commons
was almost exclusively composed of those who had a few
years before been most zealous in pulling down the church
and abolishing the liturgy, it now not only readily as¬
sented to the revival of both, but concurred in censuring
the solemn league and covenant, and in condemning their
former oaths of association. I hey also procured an order
from the lords-justices to adjourn the law term, and close
the courts of justice, in order to prevent the reversal of
outlawries, or the ejectment of adventurers and soldiers
before their titles could be secured by statute.
I he act of settlement, the next object of parliamentary
attention, was framed according to the spirit, and nearly
according to the letter, of the declaration published by the
king. The principal alterations were respecting reprisals
and what was called the doubling ordinance. The com¬
missioners of the court of claims had been guilty of gross
partiality respecting these. They rejected the claims of
the nominees, and the ensign-men, on the plea that there
were not lands sufficient to reprise the present possessors,
a defalcation caused by the clandestine disposal by them¬
selves of these lands to their own friends. Through the
exertions of the House of Lords, a clause was inserted for
the revocation of these fraudulent grants. The doubling
ordinance was still more pregnant with injustice. The
English parliament having found that the sums subscrib¬
ed by the original adventurers had fallen short of the
amount required to finish the war, and being in want of
further supplies, passed a law, that whosoever advanced
one fourth more than his original share, should be entitled
to as much land as if he had actually doubled his sub¬
scription ; and that if any adventurer refused to make
such advance on his original share, any other person, on
paying it, should reap the benefit of the doubling clause,
provided he repaid to the adventurer the sum at first sub¬
scribed. With great exertions, and by the determined
interference of the Earl of Kildare, it was at length de¬
termined that the adventurers should receive lands for
the money actually advanced by them, and no more. The
Irish parliament, however, could only frame heads of a
bill to this effect, which was liable to be modified by the
king and privy council in England. Thither, therefore,
all parties interested sent agents to defend their respec¬
tive claims. London became the scene of controversy,
intrigue, cabal, and even violence. The Irish called for
tiie fulfilment of the articles of the peace of 1648. Or¬
mond, who hated the Catholics even more than he did the
regicides, persuaded the king that such fulfilment would
be detrimental to his favourite scheme of maintaining an
nglish interest in Ireland. Richard lalbot, afterwards
Lord Tyrconnel, the advocate of the Irish, finding reason
and justice ineffectual, challenged Ormond. The latter
made his complaint to the council; Talbot was committed
to the Tower, and detained there till he made an humble
submission. Ihe bill, with all its clauses, received the
royal assent, and was sent back to Ireland, where it was
adopted by both houses of parliament.
. ^ut the passing of the act was not sufficient to render
it operative. Every one was dissatisfied with it. Even
the adventurers, whose interests were best guarded by it,
exclaimed against it most loudly. They considered the
rejection of the doubling ordinance as the deprivation
of so much of their justly purchased property. The land
gianted to the nominees, the number of whom had been
increased by the king, was looked upon as so much cut off
from the common fund whence they were to be repaid.
T-he restoiation of church property was peculiarly galling
to their religious prejudices. The Protestant officers felt
that their security was greatly diminished by large grants
lavishly made to some of the king’s special favourites,
iue Catholics complained that, so far from having justice
done to their services, their agents were not even admit¬
ted to plead their cause before the council.
Ormond, now elevated to the rank of a duke, was sent
over as lord-lieutenant to calm these effusions of anger,
and to settle in the most amicable manner the conflicting
interests of the parties. Fhe first proceedings were those
of the commissioners of innocency, who soon found that
the number of those who could clearly establish their in¬
nocence, even before a court cautiously and carefully
composed of Englishmen and Protestants, was inconve¬
niently great, and excited the most serious alarm amono-st
the other party, who felt that every acquittal abstracted
so much from the fund to which they themselves had to
look for a settlement. Out of a hundred and eighty-seven
cases adjudicated in the first three months, a hundred and
sixty-eight were pronounced innocent, and but nineteen
condemned. The House of Commons called upon the
loi d-lieutenant to make the qualifications more rigorous.
"Ihe more violent of the old parliamentary soldiers laid a
plan for a general insurrection. Ormond was steady. He
put down the conspiracy, and executed a few of the
ringleaders. He refused to make any change as to the
qualifications. Rut he contrived to effect, by an evasion,
what a regard for consistency of character had made him
reject in public. Upwards of four thousand cases had
been entered, and, from the number already decided, and
the character of the decisions, it was felt that by much
tie gi eater proportion of the Catholic proprietors would
be restored to their estates. To prevent such an occur¬
rence, the time of the sitting of the court w'as limited to
a fixed number of days, during which not more than one
fourth of the claims could by any possibility be heard. It
then closed, and thus upwards of three thousand ancientand
respectable Irish families were stripped of their fortunes
without even the form of a trial before a court specially
constituted to do them justice. The injured parties ap¬
plied to the king; but he refused to listen to them, and
they were irremediably ruined. Though their claim was
rejected, however, its justice was recognised by a conces¬
sion, and the lord-lieutenant was permitted to select
twenty out of the three thousand, to be restored to their
estates as objects of special favour.
lo remedy, in some degree, the defects of the act of
settlement, a bill was brought into parliament, chiefly by
the instrumentality of the Duke of Ormond, which made
a few alterations in some of its most obnoxious provision^
I 1,S is known by the name of the act of explanation.'
ihe two together form the tenure under which by much
the greater part of the landed property of Ireland is held ;
they have therefore been quaintly, and with more regard
to their binding force than their justice, styled the Mag-
487
History.
488
History, na
IRELAND.
To account
ua. Charta of the Protestants of Ireland,
for the Duke of Ormond’s conduct towards his former
friends, to whom during the war he owed so much, and
his master every thing, and his sacrifice of their interests
to the bitter enemies both of himself and the king, it may
be sufficient to mention, that his estates, which, before the
breaking out of the civil war, had yielded but about
L 7000 per annum, now' brought him in a yearly income
of upwards of L.80,000, in addition to the pecuniary grants
made him for losses during the disturbances. The acts
which ruined so many of the adherents to the royal cause
secured him in the undisturbed enjoyment of this princely
income. . . . .
Notwithstanding the apprehensions arising from the
still uncertain state of title, the condition of the country
began to improve with a rapidity alarming to the English,
who were now suffering through a decline of their domes¬
tic trade, which prejudiced persons imputed in a great
degree to the excessive importation of Irish cattle. Io
prevent the supposed ill effects of this, acts were passed
prohibiting the Irish from sending cattle or provisions
into England after the first of July, which exclusion was
afterwards extended to all periods of the year. So strong
was the prejudice, so powerful the alarm, that when the
Irish parliament, through a wish to alleviate the suffer¬
ings of the people of London after the great fire in that
city in 1666, sent them a free gift of thirty thousand
oxen, the only wealth of the country at the time, the well-
intended donation was rejected, as an attempt to evade
the prohibition under the mask of benevolence. Ihe
king endeavoured to alleviate, though he was too weak
and too timid to prevent, this impolitic act of injustice.
He issued an act of state, permitting the Irish to export
to foreign countries all commodities of their own growth
and manufacture; and the Duke of Ormond, on his part,
encouraged the woollen manufacture, for which the coun¬
try was peculiarly fitted, from its capability of rearing
sheep, and its water-power for machinery. He brought in
foreigners acquainted with the processes of the manufac¬
ture, established a board of trade in Dublin, and encou¬
raged factories on the Suir. His attention was also di¬
rected to the improvement of the linen manufacture. But
his laudable efforts were thwarted by his enemies at court,
who persuaded Charles to recall him. Lord Robarts, who
was appointed in his place, rendered himself so offensive
to all parties, that he was soon removed, and his place
supplied by Lord Berkeley, who was also as speedily with¬
drawn, in consequence of his being active in procuring a
commission of inquiry as to frauds practised on the Ca¬
tholics in the adjudication under the act of settlement.
The government of Lord Essex, his successor, was equally
short-lived; and it was found necessary to restore Or¬
mond, as the only person sufficiently acquainted with the
state of parties in Ireland, to manage the country without
danger of a sudden explosion.
Shortly after his return to office, the Popish plot occur¬
red. The devisers of this execrable contrivance endea¬
voured to involve the Irish in a share of the guilt. Charges
were made against Talbot the Catholic archbishop of
Dublin, Lord Mountgarret, and Colonel Peppard, as being
principals in it. On investigation, the first of these im¬
puted conspirators was found to be labouring under a com¬
plication of disorders, beneath which he soon afterwards
sunk; the second was bedridden through age; and the
third was entirely unknown. The Duke of Ormond, more
probably through a conviction of the necessity of yielding
something to popular clamour, issued two violent proclama¬
tions. The one required the relations of lories to be an¬
swerable for them, and also that the priests of parishes
in which a robbery or murder had been committed should
be transported, unless the offender were delivered up to
justice within a fortnight; the other prohibited Catholics History,
from entering Dublin Castle, or any fortified place, and
caused all fairs to be held without the walls of cities and
corporate towns. But restraints, however rigorous, were
not sufficient. The bigotry of the time called for a vic¬
tim. Plunket, the Catholic archbishop of Armagh, was
accused of being the instigator of a plot to raise seventy
thousand men to overturn the government. He was sent
to London, tried there for a crime committed in Ireland,
denied either time or means to bring over witnesses, con¬
demned as a traitor, and executed at Tyburn, professing
his innocence to the last. The only subsequent act of
Charles’s reign, of consequence enough to merit notice,
was a second attempt to deprive Ormond of his power.
And it proved successful. Partly from a plea of his ad¬
vanced age and increasing infirmities, partly from a ne¬
cessity avowed by the king of removing from office seve¬
ral of his friends, the sword was taken from him and as¬
signed to his relative Lord Rochester.
All the political arrangements consequent on the acces¬
sion of James II. indicated a settled and systematic de¬
termination to disturb, if not wholly to nullify, the provi¬
sions of the act of settlement. Talbot, afterwards Earl
of Tyrconnel, was placed over the army, which he imme¬
diately began to new-model, by cashiering and disband¬
ing most of the Protestants, and bringing Catholics into
their places; and by disarming the militia, which consist¬
ed chiefly of Protestants, under the plea that they were
suspected to have been connected with Monmouth’s re¬
bellion. These apprehensions were still further increased
by the promotion of Tyrconnel to the chief government.
The first overt act was made against Dublin College, by
nominating a Catholic to the professorship of the Irish
language, which was defeated on the ground that no such
professorship existed. An attempt made to appoint a
Roman Catholic to a fellowship was frustrated by the gross
incapacity of the person recommended.
The king’s attempts against the Irish corporations were
more successful. In order to carry into effect all his
changes, the sanction of an Irish parliament was neces¬
sary ; and to effect this, it was equally necessary to secure
a majority in the boroughs, in which the Protestant inte¬
rest had hitherto been almost exclusively predominant.
Tyrconnel caused all the charters of these bodies to be
seized into the king’s hands, on the plea of violation or
non-performance of conditions, and granted new charters,
so arranged as to throw the whole of the borough influ¬
ence into the hands of the Catholics. A few of the cor¬
porate bodies still hold under these charters ; but the great
majority of them having been passed after the abdication,
are considered as of no authority in the courts of law.
On the landing of the Prince of Orange in Torbay,
Tyrconnel received orders to send over four thousand
men to England. So little prepared was he at the time
to meet the exigency, that he found it necessary to with¬
draw the garrison from Londonderry in order to make up
the number. But he soon became sensible of his error.
The Protestants in the northern counties had already been
roused to a movement of self-defence, in consequence of
an anonymous letter sent to Lord Mount-Alexander,
warning him of the intention of an immediate insurrec¬
tion to extirpate them. Just at the time, a Roman Ca¬
tholic regiment, lately raised by the Marquis ol Antrim,
had been ordered to Derry in room of the troops sent to
England. The appearance of the men, now approaching
the town, noway tended to diminish the feelings of alarm
already excited by the previous warning. The first divi¬
sion of the newly-arrived regiment was within a few hun¬
dred paces of the town, when several young men, said to
be apprentice boys, hurried armed to the gate, shut out
the soldiers, hastened to the walls, pointed the guns, and
IRELAND.
History, threatened them with destruction if they attempted to
force their entrance.
This decided act of the people of Derry was followed
up by all the northern Protestants. The town of Ennis¬
killen was secured in a similar manner, and armed asso¬
ciations were formed throughout every part of the pro¬
vince, to maintain the Protestant religion, and secure the
dependency of Ireland. The first act of these bodies,
after providing themselves with the means of resistance’
was to apply to William. But he had already opened a
treaty with Tyrconnel, to whom he sent General Hamil¬
ton, then prisoner with him, under a promise, that if he
failed in gaining over Tyrconnel, he himself should re¬
turn. Hamilton’s conduct on the occasion was inexcus¬
able. Instead of using arguments to persuade Tyrconnel
to submit, he encouraged him to persevere in the cause
of James, and remained with him instead of redeeming
his parole, and proved his zeal in the cause he had thus
faithlessly adopted, by heading a body of troops in Ulster,
An express order from James forced the besieging gene¬
ral to relinquish this inhuman device for augmenting the
horrors of war. The wretched sufferers were allowed to
return home, and the town’s people adroitly seized this
opportunity of recruiting their strength, by taking in some
of the younger and more vigorous, and sending away in
their stead those exhausted by the hardships of the siege.
ter the garrison had been reduced to the necessity of
subsisting on food loathsome to humanity, Kirke made a
second attempt for its relief. A frigate and two provi¬
sion ships sailed up the river, broke the boom thrown
across it to obstruct their passage, and entered the town
uninjured. The Irish army, whose hopes of success had
rested wholly on the effects of famine, raised the siege in
despair. The town’s people, though reduced to half their
original number by the casualties of war and sickness,
nad the hardihood to issue out in pursuit of the retiring
army ; but their temerity was punished by a severe check.
About the same time the Enniskilleners gained a signal
by which the whole province, with the exception of Der^ victory at Newto^^^^^
fr n.nL8k' f v’ was ^,roug^t again under its allegiance three times their number. ’ ^ uemy
to its former king.
James soon afterwards landed at Kinsale with a small
body of French forces, having declined the aid of a more
powerful armament, from a wish to be indebted for his re¬
storation to the unassisted loyalty of his own subjects. On
aniving at Dublin, he was welcomed wdth loyal addresses
from all ranks and classes, amongst which the Protestant
clergy were not less forward than others in their profes¬
sions of zealous attachment. Finding himself at the head
of what he considered as an unanimous people and a large
army, his first movement was the reduction of the city
of Derry, which, instead of listening to terms offered by
Tyrconnel, resolved upon an obstinate resistance; expel¬
led the governor set over the city by the king, upon a
well-founded suspicion of intended treachery on his part;
marshalled themselves in regiments; chose for leaders in
this desperate attempt, George Walker, a clergyman of
the established church, who had already signalized him¬
self by raising a regiment of a thousand Protestants, and
Major Baker ; and, turning their guns against James, who,
from a mistaken reliance on his personal influence, had
approached the walls, compelled him to retire. The sword
was now drawn between king and subject. The men of
Derry had not only renounced their allegiance to their
sovereign, but defied his power and insulted his person.
James, convinced of the irresistible force of the numbers
brought against the place, and of the futility of their means
of resistance, their numbers not being more than seven
thousand men, and these undisciplined and badly armed,
the place unprovided with military stores, or even suffi’
The military career of James in Ireland was neither
creditable nor fortunate ; his political efforts during the
short period of his Irish government remain to be can¬
vassed. A parliament was assembled in Dublin, in which
t le Protestant party, as might have been expected, was
considerably outnumbered by the Catholics. One of its
first acts was the attainder of about two thousand Protes¬
tant noblemen and gentlemen, adherents of William, whose
estates were to be forfeited, unless they surrendered be-
oi e a certain day, and who, if found guilty, were to be
excluded from the benefit of a royal pardon; an act al¬
most equalling in the extent of its powers, and the seve¬
nty of its inflictions, the rigours of the act of settlement.
I fie other measures of this parliament were of a different
c laracter ; one was an act for establishing liberty of con¬
science, and repealing all such as were contrary thereto;
another, connected with religious observances, directed
that all should pay their tithes to the pastor of their own
persuasion. A bill was also brought in to repeal the act
of settlement, which was carried after much opposition
rom the Protestant bishops, and some of the lords. Ano-
t ler to prevent appeals to England was also carried,
though with much difficulty. Two more, the one to re-
peal Poyning® law, the other to establish inns of court in
Dublin, were opposed by James himself, who, still fondly
clinging to the hope of a restoration to his seat of domi¬
nion in England, was averse to whatever had a tendency
to diminish the dependency of Ireland. His conduct with
respect to the circulating medium is the most unjust, as
well as the most impolitic, of his measures. Parliament
cient quantity of provisions, and the defences by no means had voted him a subsidy of twenTyTouLd pounds"!
° reS1St the, adv“f?s a well-organized be- month. He doubled this^um by a royal ordtaance The
smging force, returned to Dublin, leaving the conduct of
the siege to Marshal Rosen, who had been a German of¬
ficer in the French service. After some feeble attempts
at gaining the town by storm, Rosen adopted the surer
though more tedious method of blockade. The inhabit¬
ants were soon reduced to extreme privations, yet still
money, notwithstanding votes of parliament and kingly
proclamations, came in slowly. James erected a mint in
Dublin, where he had large quantities of base metal coined
into pieces of large nominal value. The plan, as a finan¬
cial project, proved a complete failure, bringing discredit
on the deviser, and inflicting injury on the friends of his
uSs eofedtt0 their e7nation .^Ums out: After cau^wlm we^e the
XT! rnn 8 SuffTg’w-,7 Were chaered br Whilst James was neglecting his military opemtions "n
hue afLaranCe °. a se"t ^ William to their relief; the north of Ireland, and injuring his credit and resources
mandld itan^P7 PY assf "ho com- by his financial mismanagement in Dublin his Inta^
Snvlu .lt’f.Sail^d awaJ t0 Lou,?h where he em- nist William, now freed by the death of Dundee from the
Lodlmin1 need ofd'em.8 MlThrgfrrison'persevered Wehe"sionfof a Scotch ™i°". was making extensive
in its defence. Rosen, enraged at «heir obstinacy, or. folded
dered all the Protestants in the neighbouring districts to
be driven under the walls, in order to expedite the ex¬
tremity of famine. The townsmen, in retaliation, pre¬
pared to hang up all the prisoners on the town walls.
VOL. XII.
near Carrickfergus, with a well-appointed army of ten
thousand veterans. After taking that town, which sur-
rendei ed on honourable terms, he moved southwards to
Dundalk, where the scarcity of provisions, and the ap-
3 Q
490
IRELAND.
History, proach of the Irish army under James, “bliged him to halt
' nml pncamn. His position was low and unhealtny, ms
camp ill supplied with provisions. H.s men
fVirrmrrli sirkness and inaction. James, though mucn
'do it by his officers, could not be prevailed upon to
Ed an assault. After remaining some t,me opposed
to each other in a state of inaction, Schomberg took ad¬
vantage of the arrival of some fresh troops to change Ins
position, and retrace his steps towards Carnckfergus,
where he was more secure against the necessity of com¬
bating to disadvantage with a superior force. _
Next year William resolved to take the field m person.
He landed early in June at Carrickfergus, and being
ioined by Schomberg with the remains of his shattered
forces, advanced southwards in the same direction that
had formed the line of march in the last campaign. His
forces now amounted to six and thirty thousand men, the
oreater part veterans, who had proved themselves on the
Continent. James’s army had been in the mean time
furnished with a supply of five thousand Frenchmen ; but
these were raw and undisciplined, and procured by an
exchange of an equal number of Irish the flower of his
army. After retreating before his rival from Dundalk to
Drogheda, he at length took up a position on the south
side of the Boyne, where, contrary to the advice of all his
officers, he determined to make a stand, and to set his
chance of dominion on the hazard of a battle. William,
whose disposition and circumstances equally urged him to
bring the contest to an immediate decision without hesi¬
tation, prepared to force the passage of the river. Whilst
engaged in reconnoitring the enemy’s arrangements, he
received a wound on the shoulder from a piece of artilleiy
levelled at him from the opposite bank, but not sufficient
to prevent him from appearing at the head of his troops in
the ensuing day’s engagement. The next morning his
army, headed by himself, moved to the attack in three di¬
visions. Crossing the river where the water in some places
came up to their breasts, his troops gained the opposite
bank, notwithstanding a galling fire from the infantry, by
which they were lined, and repeated charges of the Irish
cavalry led on by General Hamilton. Schomberg was
killed, as is supposed by a chance shot from his own sol¬
diers, in the confusion of one of these desperate assaults.
Callimote, the leader of the French Protestants in Wil¬
liam’s army, also fell during the passage. W alker, li e-
wise, the clerical defender of Derry, fell here. When his
death was reported to William, the only remark made by
the cold Dutchman was, “ The fool; what business had
he there?” The Irish, after some vain efforts to drive
back the enemy into the river, in one of which Hamilton
was taken prisoner, finally broke and quitted the field, think¬
ing only of making good their retreat.
Whilst William was thus actively engaged in asserting
his title to his newly-acquired throne, James was standing
aloof on the hill of Donore, an idle spectator of a struggle
which involved the fortunes of himself and all his adhe¬
rents. On seeing the discomfiture of his army, he imme¬
diately fled to Dublin, and thence to Waterford, leaving
directions to have the bridges broken down after him, to
check his pursuers. William, adopting the same system
towards him as when be had driven him from England, al¬
lowed him to continue his flight unmolested. Proceeding
to Drogheda, he forced it to surrender on a threat of mi¬
litary execution in case of resistance, and thence continued
his march without interruption to Dublin, holding out of¬
fers of protection to the peasantry, who accepted his pro¬
tection, but declaring that he would leave the leaders, of
what he chose to call a rebellion, to the chances of war.
The main body of the Irish army retreated to Limerick
and Athlone, placing the strong line of the Shannon be¬
tween themselves and their victorious enemy. An attempt
made upon Athlone by General Douglas was unsuccessful. History-
After being baffled in an attempt to force a passage t icre,
and in another at Lanesborough, lower down the river, he
was forced to desist and retire to Dublin. A similar at¬
tempt made by William upon Limerick met with the same
termination. Relying for success on the dissensions that
existed between the French and Irish officers in James s
army, he advanced to that town, carrying with him only a
field train of artillery. On being apprized of his error by
the formidable aspect of defence presented by the garrison,
he sent for his battering train from Dublin, which, when
within seven miles of his camp, was attacked and totally
destroyed by a sortie of General Sarsfield. William, flow“
ever, was not of a temper to be easily discouraged. With
two pieces which had escaped the fate of the others lie
effected a breach, and proceeded to attempt an entrance
by storm; but the breach was defended^ so gallantly that
he was forced to retreat and raise the siege, after having
suffered a loss of two thousand of his best men. I he ur¬
gency of his affairs in England obliged him to go thither,
leaving the command of the army to his generals, Solmes
and Ginckel. The war was carried on during the winter,
chiefly from a suggestion of the Earl, afterwards the cele¬
brated Duke, of Marlborough, who proposed the taking ot
Cork and Kinsale, so as to secure the command ot the
southern coast. The suggestion was adopted, and its exe¬
cution intrusted to the proposer of it. The fortifications
of Cork were in a state of great dilapidation; the place
was in a hollow, commanded by the surrounding mountains.
After a short resistance, the only remarkable feature o
which was the death of the Duke of Grafton, one ot the
natural sons of Charles II., the town surrendered on con¬
dition of protection to persons and property. But it was
with much difficulty that the commanding officers enforced
the observance of these terms. As soon as the troops had
entered, a tumult was excited, the governor was wound¬
ed, the Earls of Tyrone and Clancarty narrowly escaped,
and the houses of many Catholics were plundered. Kin-
sale, which was afterwards invested, presented more A™"
culty. The garrison abandoned the town, and confined
their defences to two castles. One of these, the old castle,
was soon stormed; but the other held out until its garnson
procured permission to march out with their arms and
ioin the main body of the Irish. Ginckel, after the cap¬
ture of these places, attempted to carry the war into the
west of Cork and Kerry ; but his troops were foiled in the
mountain passes, and forced to return with loss. Whilst
the military operations were proceeding thus languidly,
the civil officers of King William were more active and
successful in securing their own interests, by the confisca¬
tion of the property of the adherents of King James, the
forfeitures made by them comprehended a million ot acres,
the property of three thousand nine hundred and twenty-
one sufferers, and were valued at three millions three hun¬
dred and twenty thousand pounds. The injustice ot in¬
flicting such a penalty on adherence to the cause ot a right¬
ful sovereign can only be surpassed by the means ot its
enforcement. The Irish gentry who possessed estates were
indicted for high treason in their respective counties, and
the causes then removed by certiorari into the Kings
Bench in Dublin. Thus, in most cases, the accused per¬
sons were deprived of the means of making their defence.
In many, they were ignorant even of their accusation, un¬
til they found themselves stripped of their patrimony by
the sentence of the court. At the same time rumours ot
plots and conspiracies were set afloat, and proclamations
issued in consequence, assessing the Catholic inhabitan s
of peaceable counties for injuries to Protestant property
in others, excluding from protection those who had sons
in the enemy’s quarters, prohibiting assemblages o more
than ten Catholics, and subjecting to transportation the
IRELAND.
History, parish priest of places where such assemblages were held.
' These proceedings drove the great body of the Catho¬
lics to desperation. They saw no hope but in the subver¬
sion of a government whose establishment was to be se¬
cured only by their utter ruin.
Military operations recommenced vigorously at the be¬
ginning of summer. St Ruth, who had been sent from
Trance to take the chief command, determined to make a
stand at Athlone, which he strengthened with some works.
Ginckel directed his main force against it. His first as¬
sault failed. After a delay of nine days spent in prepara¬
tions, a second attempt was made with still less effect. Not
only were his troops repulsed, but his works were burned.
St Ruth, intoxicated with his success, withdrew the greater
part of his men from the defences, in spite of the warnings
of his Irish officers. Ginckel, aware of the inconsiderate
movement, took advantage of it, and forced the passage of
the Shannon by surprise, whilst St Ruth was celebrating
his victory by balls and entertainments in his camp a*t
some distance. The Irish general then retired to Aghrim,
on the borders of Galway, there determined to make a final
stand, on a position chosen by himself. He was soon fol¬
lowed thither by the English, who attacked the position
with undaunted intrepidity. Tor some time the contest
was doubtful; but the death of St Ruth, who fell by a
cannon-ball in the heat of the action, decided its fate.
Whether from jealousy or contempt, this foreigner had
avoided communicating his plans to the Irish generals
who were to execute them. His sudden death, therefore,
left the army without a head. All was confusion; and
Ginckel, taking advantage of this state of things, pressed
on and obtained an easy, but not a cheap victory. In the
preceding struggle, upwards of two thousand of his men
had fallen. The loss of the Irish, which occurred mostly
in the rout, exceeded seven thousand.
The remains of the Irish army fell back upon Limerick.
This city was now the only place of any importance that
held out. Galway had surrendered upon favourable condi¬
tions. The garrison of Banagher, on declaring their de¬
termination to return home after surrendering, were sup¬
plied by their conqueror with the means of proceeding thi¬
ther. Ginckel, who had remained some time inactive in
Galway, hoping that terms of accommodation would be of¬
fered, as Tyrconnel was now dead of an illness said to be
caused by disappointment, and the lords-justices who suc¬
ceeded him were inclined to make terms, provided the in¬
terests of the general body of the Catholics were secured
by them, at length opened the trenches before Limerick.
At first the operations of the besiegers proceeded but
slowly. Having, however, made themselves masters of a
pass across the Shannon, through the treachery of Colonel
Clifford, the officer who commanded there, they were ena¬
bled to invest the town on all sides. This advantage was
followed by an assault on one of the gates, which was urg¬
ed with so much ardour, that the officer there thought it
necessary to raise the drawbridge with so much precipita¬
tion that upwards of a thousand of the garrison were left
on the outside, exposed to the besiegers’ fire. The great¬
er part of these unfortunate victims were killed either by
the enemy or in attempting to swim the river; a few were
captured. The act itself was condemned as over hasty.
The officer who gave the order for it was a Trenchman, and
his conduct was imputed to bad motives. The bad feeling
that had long subsisted between the strangers and the na¬
tive troops was thus greatly exasperated. The latter, con¬
ceiving that their countrymen had been wantonly sacrifi¬
ced, determined to seek for peace. Their resolution was
encouraged by Ginckel, and a cessation of arms for the
purpose of adjusting the terms of a treaty was the conse¬
quence. The news was immediately forwarded to the
lords-justices in Dublin, just in time to prevent the publi-
491
cation of a proclamation, offering to the Irish in arms terms History,
as liberal as they could have hoped for after a victory;
granting, in fact, to the Catholics all the privileges they
had heretofore enjoyed, and all they have since obtained.
The lords-justices hastened to the camp, and in two days
after their arrival the articles of Limerick received the
signatures of both the contracting parties.
By this treaty it was stipulated that the Roman Catho¬
lics should enjoy the exercise of their religion, as during
the reign of Charles II.; to which was added a promise
that the king would endeavour to procure further security for
them on this point, as soon as parliament should be assem¬
bled. It was further agreed, that all the inhabitants of Li¬
merick, and those in arms for King James in the counties
of Limerick, Clare, Kerry, Cork, and Mayo, should enjoy
their estates, and be suffered to pursue their respective
avocations unmolested; that the Catholic gentry should be
allowed the use of arms, and should not be called upon to
take any oath but that of allegiance ; and, finally, that all
the soldiers who were unwilling to submit to these condi¬
tions should be conveyed to the Continent at the expense
of the English government. Two days after the signing
of this treaty, a Trench fleet arrived on the coast with a
large supply of reinforcements and military stores. But it
was then too late. Nothing now remained in order to ter¬
minate the war, but the execution of that part of the treaty
which permitted the Irish soldiery to choose between resi¬
dence at home and service under a foreign but friendly
power on the Continent. The Irish guards set the exam¬
ple ; they all volunteered for the service of the king of
brance, seven individuals only excepted. Two regiments
of Ulster Irish returned home in a body. Of the remain¬
der of the Irish army, but one thousand horse and fifteen
hundred foot remained. The generous self-devotion of
those who sacrificed their country for their principles was
but ill rewarded. On the arrival of the troops in Trance
no quarters were assigned to them. The regiments were
broken up, the officers reduced to lower grades, and the
generals excluded from court. After some time, however,
the value of their services was acknowledged, and the Irish
brigade, during the succeeding continental wars, long main¬
tained the highest character for fidelity to the cause it had
embraced, and for the intrepidity it manifested under every
circumstance of difficulty and danger.
A parliament was convened shortly after the ratification
of the treaty. It was the first that had assembled after a
lapse of twenty-six years of intestine commotion. Com¬
posed as it was of a great majority of Protestants, it testi¬
fied little inclination to co-operate with the king’s wishes,
in adhering to the strict fulfilment of the articles of Lime¬
rick. The king evidently wished them to be maintained
in the spirit as well as in the letter. The feelings of the
leading party in parliament were sufficiently indicated in a
sermon preached by the Bishop of Meath before the lords-
justices, which inculcated the detestable doctrine that Pro¬
testants were not bound to keep peace with Papists. The
first open breach that occurred between the government and
the House of Commons was caused by the introduction of
two money bills. According to the system of Ireland un¬
der Poyning’s law, no bill could be brought into parliament
until it had received the approbation of the king through
the privy council. According to the principles of the Bri¬
tish constitution, all money bills should originate with the
House of Commons. The party opposed to the king took
their stand upon the latter ground. One of the two bills
was rejected altogether, and the other suffered to pass
solely in consideration of the present exigency of affairs,
and the pressing necessity of raising a supply for the king’s
service. Lord Sidney, in retaliation, suddenly prorogued
the parliament, after reprehending the House of Commons
shaiply for what he styled an undutiful and ungrateful in-
492
I R E L
History, vasion of the royal prerogative. This act increased the
'   general discontent, as several measures of importance tl e
in progress were left unfinished. -l r j i
A new parliament, assembled in 1695 by the Lord-de¬
puty Capel, opened with an assurance from the throne,
that the king was intent upon the firm settlement of Ire-
1-md upon a Protestant interest. Such a declaration was
hailed with joy by the prevailing party. In order to sup¬
port the king in this measure, a committee was appointed
to consider what penal laws were in force. The following
were found to be the principal: 1. An act subjecting all
who maintained the supremacy of the church of Rome to
the penalties of a prmmunire, and requiring the oath of su¬
premacy as a qualification for every office. 2. An act im¬
posing fines on absence from the parish churches on Sun¬
day. 3. An act authorizing the chancellor to appoint a
guardian to the child of a Catholic. 4. An act to prevent
Catholics from being private tutors, without license from
the bishop. Having ascertained the actual state of restric¬
tions on the Catholics, as they had existed previously to
the treaty of Limerick, the parliament proceeded, not to
secure them in the privileges guaranteed to them by that
instrument, but to increase the number of penalties and re¬
strictions, contrary to its spirit and tenor. The following
statutes, passed by this parliament, formed the commence¬
ment of the system of restrictive legislation now known by
the name of the penal code, which, when wound up to its
acme of intolerant severity, by the successive enactment of
laws, each surpassing its predecessor in severity, was de¬
scribed by Burke as the acme of refinement in political
persecution. These acts were, 1. to deprive Catholics of
the means of educating their children, either at home or
abroad, except under Protestant teachers, and to prevent
them from being guardians even to their own children; 2.
to disarm the Catholics; 3. to banish Catholic priests and
prelates. Having passed these acts in direct violation of
the treaty, they proceeded to confirm those articles, or
so much of them as might consist with the safety and
welfare of the king’s subjects in these kingdoms. The
bill took care that the precautionary proviso should not
be a dead letter. It abrogated the articles which provid¬
ed for the security of the Catholics from disturbance on
account of their religion, which confirmed them in the
possession of their estates and the exercise of their pro¬
fession, which allowed them the use of arms, and which
required the oath of allegiance only as a test of their loy¬
alty. The bill passed the House of Commons with little
difficulty. But in the House of Lords, where several of the
Catholic peers still had seats, it was strenuously resisted ;
and when carried, a protest against it was entered on the
journals by thirteen peers, six of whom were bishops.
This mutilated ratification of the treaty was followed up
by three other penal laws: 1. To prevent the intermar¬
riages of Protestants and Catholics ; 2. to prevent Papists
from being solicitors; and, 3. to prevent them from be¬
ing gamekeepers.
The spirit of religious intolerance that gave birth to
these acts was not the only evil that checked the pros¬
perity of the country. The commercial spirit of mono¬
poly of the English manufacturers, who had long viewed
with a jealous eye the increase of the woollen manufac¬
ture in Ireland, to which the cheapness of living and the
excellency of the pasturages afforded peculiar advantages,
prevailed on the king to make a solemn assurance that he
would do all that in him lay to discourage that manufac¬
ture, adding as a mitigation of a declaration so iniquitous,
that every encouragement should be afforded to the linen
manufacture. The former part of the promise was rigid¬
ly adhered to, the latter was disregarded. Every attempt
to establish the linen manufacture in the south of Ireland
failed, chiefly from the opposition given by the clergy to
A N D.
the introduction of an equitable modus for the tithe of History,
flax.
Whilst parliament was thus employed during the reign
of William, in undoing the bonds of the treaty of Lime¬
rick, the court of claims appointed to investigate and dis¬
pose of the lands forfeited by the adherents of James was
equally active in its invasion of their property. Amongst
the chief sufferers by the decisions of this court was the
Earl of Clancarty. It appeared doubtful whether his
noble estate should be included amongst the forfeitures.
The point was decided by a declaration of the grand jury
of the county of Cork, which resolved that its restoration
would be prejudicial to the Protestant interest. It was
therefore sold, under a decree of the court. A subsequent
attempt made in his favour in the reign of George II. was
not only equally unsuccessful, but all attempts at a repe¬
tition of it were crushed by a vote of the House of Com¬
mons, that any lawyer who pleaded in his behalf should
be deemed an enemy to his country.
The annals of Ireland during the reign of Queen Anne
are merely a record of the exertions of the Irish parliament
to rivet and extend the penal laws. By an act passed in
1703, the father of a Papist who conformed to the esta¬
blished religion was incapacitated from disposing of his
property by sale, mortgage, or bequest; and a Papist was
prohibited from being guardian to his own child, who, on
conforming, was to be taken from his parent, and given in
charge to a Protestant. Papists were rendered incapable
of holding lands for more than thirty-one years; and if
the profit rent of such land was found to exceed one third
of the actual rent, the benefit of the lease was to be trans¬
ferred to the Protestant who made the discovery. They
were also prevented from inheriting the lands of their
Protestant relatives, and their own lands were to be
gavelled after death amongst their children. The most
extraordinary provision of this monstrous act, was the re¬
quiring the oath of abjuration, and the sacramental test,
to be taken as a qualification for office and for voting at
elections. The cause of its insertion is singular. The
English government was at this time negotiating with
the emperor of Germany for the toleration of Protestant¬
ism throughout his dominions. To press the enactment
of severe laws against the Catholics at home at such a
period, exhibited an inconsistency as absurd as it was ini¬
quitous. An effort was therefore made to dissuade the
Irish parliament from proceeding with the bill, but to no
purpose. Knowing, therefore, that the majority of the
lower house consisted of Protestant dissenters, the clause
requiring the taking of the sacramental test was inserted
by the English council, in the hope that the rigid puritans
would reject the whole bill rather than saddle themselves
with the disqualification. But they were mistaken. Bi¬
gotry prevailed over self-interest; and the Puritans of the
day acquiesced in the passing of a law, which depi ived
the conscientious members of their own persuasion of the
right of exercising the most valuable privileges of free¬
men, rather than suffer their Catholic countrymen to par¬
ticipate in them.
This act was followed up by resolutions calling upon
all the civil officers of the government to enforce its pro¬
visions, and declaring that the prosecuting and informing
against Papists was an honourable service to the govern¬
ment. But this law, and these resolutions, were not deem¬
ed sufficient. In 1709 another act was passed, imposing
additional restrictions upon the Catholics, by which they
were prohibited from holding annuities for life ; requiring
the father of a conforming child to give in to the chan¬
cellor a strict account of the value of his property, in or¬
der to apportion a due share thereof to his support.
Jointures were secured to conforming wives. Papists
were forbidden to be assistants in schools. Popish priests
IRELAND.
493
History. wh0 conformed were allowed a stipend of L.30 a year,
that of a Protestant curate being L.50; and rewards were
offered for the discovery of popish prelates, priests, and
teachers, at the rate of L.50 each for the first of these
classes, L.20 for the second, and L.10 for the third. A
subsequent statute excluded Catholics from acting as she¬
riffs, and from sitting on grand juries, and even proceed¬
ed as far as to enact, that in trials arising out of sta¬
tutes for strengthening the Protestant interest, the plain¬
tiff might set aside a juror on the ground of his being a
Papist. The example of the parliament was followed^by
the corporations. Bye-laws were enacted, excluding Ca¬
tholics from every profitable branch of trade. The result
was, that all the Catholic gentry possessed of the means
of emigration quitted the country, as did all the merchants
of respectability, carrying with them, to fructify in other
and in hostile countries, the property which might have
enriched that of their persecutors.
The system was now nearly complete. The Catholics
were excluded from every opening to political power.
They were not exterminated, because the land would have
been valueless to the new proprietors, without the assist¬
ance of labourers sufficient to extract its produce. The
effects of the system soon began to appear. The son of
James II. made an attempt to recover his father’s do¬
minions in the beginning of the reign of George I. The
new proprietary took the alarm. On the first rumour of
his intended project against Scotland, a number of Irish
Catholic gentlemen were thrown into close confinement.
The government, however, ashamed of this unnecessary
ebullition of terror, soon afterwards caused them to be
liberated, even without payment of the customary fees.
The alarm was futile. The Irish had not the means, nor
even the inclination, to renew the contest. Their spirit
was broken by the grinding degradation of the restrictions
thrown around them. Yet, to make assurance still surer,
these restrictions were increased by the addition of new
clauses to the penal code, mostly of minor importance, by
one of which Papists were excluded from voting in vestries
for the assessment of money for repairing or rebuilding
parish churches.
The Irish Protestants were equally active in asserting
their own liberties, as in extinguishing those of the Catho¬
lics. An attempt made by the English House of Lords
to exercise the right of ultimate jurisdiction in cases of
disputed property, to the prejudice of the peers of Ireland,
was stubbornly resisted; and though the dispute was cut
short for the time by an English act, declaring that the
British parliament had full power and authority to make
laws to bind the people of Ireland, the acquiescence of
the latter proceeded, as future events fully proved it, from
a consciousness, not of the defect of right, but of power
to assert it. In its resistance to another act of British in¬
terference the country was more successful. The coin¬
age, particularly of copper, was deplorably defective both
in quantity and in value. An application for a domestic
mint, a right often before allowed and exercised, was re¬
jected, and in lieu of it a patent was granted to an Eng¬
lish brassfounder of the name of Wood to coin copper to
a large amount. The pride of the Irish took fire, and the
circumstances of the case elevated the feeling into patriot¬
ism. Amongst the opponents of Wood’s patent, Jonathan
Swift, the celebrated dean of St Patrick’s, was most emi¬
nent. In a series of letters, published under the name of
the “ Drapier,” he denounced the scheme as illegal and
ruinous. One of the letters was deemed libellous, and a
large reward was offered for the discovery of the author.
But the fidelity of the dean’s partisans bore him harmless ;
the storm passed over without injury to him. The invi¬
dious patent was recalled; and his grateful country has
embalmed his memory in the immortality of patriotism.
The state of the Catholics was now brought down near¬
ly to the lowest point of depression. An address of con¬
gratulation to George II. on his accession, presented to
the lord-lieutenant by Lord Delvin, on their part, was
suffered to remain unnoticed, except so far as to render
so faint an effort an apology for still further restraints.
A bill was brought in for excluding Papists from voting at
elections. By another, lawyers and attorneys married to
Papists were prevented from practising. Even converts
could not hold the office of justice of the peace if their
wives and children continued to be recusant; and persons
plundered by privateers in the service of a popish nation
were to be reimbursed by a levy on the goods of Roman
Catholics only. A vote of the Commons, declaring any
person who took legal steps for the recovery of his tithes
of dry cattle, commonly called the tithe of agistment, to
be an enemy to the country, threw the greater part of
the burden of maintaining the Protestant clergy from the
rich proprietor, whose land was wholly under pasturage,
upon the Roman Catholic cotter, who was obliged to raise
some grain on his little patch of ground for the subsist¬
ence of his family.
Whilst the Irish parliament were thus vigilant in cutting
off from the Catholics all means of regaining political
power, they were no less so in preventing any encroach¬
ment of the English government upon the rights they
themselves possessed. The relations of these two latter
parties towards each other after the Revolution were pe¬
culiar. The members of the House of Commons held
their seats, not, as in Great Britain, by septennial election,
but during the pleasure of the crown. Their tenure was
therefore generally regarded as tantamount to a life es¬
tate, subject only to a dissolution on the demise of the
crown. Hence they were virtually unrestrained by po¬
pular control. On the other hand, as the lord-lieutenant
came over to Ireland but once in two years, to hold a par¬
liament for granting the supplies, the management of the
country rested with the lords-justices nominated to hold
the reins of government in his absence, who were select¬
ed from among the most powerful of the great Protestant
families. Their influence, in questions between the two
countries, was therefore often directed to thwart the mea¬
sures of the English cabinet, particularly when these
seemed to interfere with their own aggrandizement. The
operation of the penal laws, whilst it enslaved the Catho¬
lics, pauperized the country. The great mass of the po¬
pulation was deprived by them of the main stimulus to
industry, the hope of improving their condition by their
own exertions. The great proprietors found their land
becoming of less value, from the neglect of agricultural
improvement. The supplies for the service of govern¬
ment were therefore granted with a niggardly and reluc¬
tant spirit. The English cabinet hoped to cut the knot
that thus linked them to the Irish parliament. An at¬
tempt was made to obtain a vote for the supplies for
twenty-one years. The Irish aristocracy immediately
took the alarm. However acquiescent in the general te¬
nor of their votes, they now rallied, and the insidious at¬
tempt was rendered abortive by a majority of one.
The depression of the country, arising from the treat¬
ment of the Catholic part of the population, was endea¬
voured to be remedied by the extension of education, the
formation of patriotic societies, and the execution of public
works. To educate the Catholics, it was necessary they
should first be converted, because by the penal code do¬
mestic education according to the principles of their own
faith was prohibited. Schools were therefore opened, in
which the pupils were taught the elements of literature
and the useful arts, and were also clothed and fed at the
public expense. Being established by letters patent from
the crown, these obtained the name of charter schools.
History,
494 I R E L
History. Their professed object was the diffusion of useful know-
ledge: but as their primary process was based upon Pro¬
testant instruction, and as this, to be effective, required
a total severance of the parental tie which linked the Ca-
tholic peasant to his family, the effort failed. The second
element of national regeneration was attempted by the
formation of a society, in imitation of the Royal Society of
London, under the name of the Physico-Historical Society,
for the improvement of agriculture, husbandry, and the
useful arts, which afterwards merged into the Royal Dublin
Society. The last-named element of improvement, the
execution of public works, gave rise to the measure of in¬
land navigation. But none of these were effective to the
extent proposed by those who set them on foot. The great
object was not merely to give Protestantism the ascen¬
dency, but to eradicate Catholicism; to realize, in fact,
what was imagined by a fiction of law, when, in a case
where a Catholic came into a court of justice, he was
gravely told that the law did not recognise the existence
of a Papist. Education, whether of the primary rudiments
or of the higher departments of science, gave know¬
ledge, and knowledge revealed the extent and gloom of
degradation. Useful works required workmen, and thus
circulated capital amongst the Catholic population, to
which the undertakers were compelled to have recourse
for the mechanical parts of such undertakings. A state
of society so anomalous, in which universal liberty was
the avowed principle, yet slavery, unmitigated by the pro¬
tection which sordid interest extends to the preservation
of individual property, was the practice, could not but be
most precarious. The ruling party, aware of the danger
of explosion, at length found itself compelled to give vent
to the under-workings of the re-action against oppression,
by a partial change of system. That of ever-increasing
compression, painful and hazardous at all times, was found,
in periods of general agitation or impending warfare, im¬
practicable. The threatened invasion of England by the
young Pretender was the crisis which led to a change of
domestic policy towards the Catholics. Ireland, as the
weakest point of the empire, was looked upon as the most
exposed. The Irish population was numerous and dis¬
contented. Their deficiency in the means and the organi¬
zation of war could be instantaneously supplied by the
wealth of France, and by the long-proved skill and valour
of their countrymen, the Irish brigades in the French ser¬
vice. To ward off the apprehended danger, Lord Ches¬
terfield was sent over in the spirit of conciliation. To the
Catholics, worn down by the action of half a century of
increasing oppression, the slightest relaxation of the high¬
ly strained engine of oppression became comparatively a
blessing. An accidental circumstance afforded the new
governor an opportunity to evince the sincerity of his
professions, flitherto the Catholics had held their assem¬
blages for religious worship in the most secluded and se¬
cret places. The rewards offered by the laws for the de¬
tection of their priests, or of those who attended their ce¬
remonies, compelled them to the strictest secrecy. The
floor of a building in one of the confined streets of Dublin,
where mass was celebrated, gave way, and caused the
death or mutilation of a number of the wretched beings,
congregated to worship their God at all hazards, in the
way in which they had been trained. Lord Chesterfield,
with the tact which has immortalized him as a first-rate
character in the annals of fashionable life, seized the op¬
portunity of declaring openly that he would not be a party
to a system of religious prevention, liable to the hazard of
such results; and the meetings of Catholics for the pur¬
pose of religious worship were consequently winked at. Still,
however, the spirit of the penal code remained unrestrict¬
ed; and operative laws were passed during the govern¬
ment of this, the first of the tolerating lord-lieutenants, not
A N D.
only annulling all marriages between Protestants and Ca- History,
tholics, if celebrated by a Catholic priest, but also render-
ing the clergyman who performed the ceremony liable to
capital punishment. The threatened storm from abroad blew
over. The invasion of the young Pretender forms no part
of Irish history. The Irish Catholic remained unmoved in
his habits of passive obedience. The Irish Protestant re¬
turned to his parliamentary controversies with the ruling
powers in England. Where there existed such a consci¬
ousness of overwhelming superiority on the one side, act¬
ing upon a spirit of domineering independence, checked by
an internal conviction of weakness, the weakness of divi¬
sion, on the other, collisions between the English cabinet
and the Irish ascendency party could not fail to be fre¬
quent and acrimonious; much less could such collisions
fail to throw to the surface some of those restless spirits
which political convulsions have shaken from their orbits
of ordinary movement. A contest between the Irish privy
council, which then exercised the most important parts of
the legislative functions of government, and the corpora¬
tion, stimulated Charles Lucas, a Dublin apothecary, to as¬
sert the rights of the latter. Though unsuccessful, he was
not unrewarded. The death of the two representatives
for Dublin gave rise to a contested election, an event of
rare occurrence under the then existing constitution of the
Irish parliament. Lucas was elected, under the pledge of
vindicating, in the Flouse of Commons, the perfect inde¬
pendence of the Irish legislature. This doctrine, first
broached by Molyneaux shortly after the Revolution, in a
treatise called the “ Case of Ireland,” was viewed with alarm
by the English party in the House, and with jealousy by
that of the Irish aristocracy. By the one it was viewed
as a severance of the connection of sovereignty and depen¬
dence between the two countries, by the other it was felt
to sap the foundations of their own domestic omnipotence.
Passages of libellous tendency were extracted from Lucas’s
publications. The House ot Commons declared him an
enemy to the country, and passed a vote for his prosecu¬
tion. He evaded the coming storm only by retiring to the
Continent. On a subsequent vacancy, however, he was re¬
elected, and took his seat as one of the representatives of
the people, which he retained till his death. The Irish par¬
liament, arrogant where it felt secure in its own power, was
tamely submissive under circumstances wherein an asser¬
tion of its just rights would have been truly creditable. A
surplus revenue remained in the Irish exchequer. 1 he Eng¬
lish council insisted on the king’s right to dispose ot it at
pleasure. The Irish Commons equally insisted on their ab¬
solute control over the public purse, without any interfer¬
ence from other quarters. The bill acknowledging ttm
necessity of the royal consent to the appropriation ot
the surplus income was rejected by the Commons. The
English council cut the matter short. The money in dis¬
pute was drawn out of the treasury by a king’s letter, and
the Commons passively acquiesced in the spoliation and
insult.
In this state of torpid tranquillity, ruffled only by appre¬
hensions of internal commotion, or by the agitation ot par¬
tisan quarrels between the rival factions of court and coun¬
try which divided the dominant party, Ireland continued
to advance for nearly seventy years alter the Revolution,
until at length the elements of activity were roused by the
reality of an actual invasion. In the year 1759, a fleet
was fitted out in the French ports, for the avowed purpose
of landing a large armament in Ireland. A small squadron
under M. Thurot, supposed to be an advanced section of
the main fleet, and intended to cause a diversion ot the de¬
fending forces, landed in the north of Ireland, and took
possession of the town and castle of Carrickfergus, with
little opposition. After holding it a few days, the Trench
commander, checked by the appearance of the general and
IRELAND.
History, determined resistance which was gathering around him
through all the northern counties, deemed it expedient,
instead of proceeding to the assault of the wealthy and un¬
defended town of Belfast, which lay at but a few miles’
distance, to re-embark. Any further repetition of his pre¬
datory incursions was prevented by the destruction of his
little armament in the channel, in an engagement, in which
Thurot himself lost his life.
The alarm excited by the threatened invasion afforded
an opportunity to the Catholics to call the attention of the
government to their sufferings. An address, framed by a
committee of their body, was presented to the lord-lieu¬
tenant, making a tender of their allegiance at this critical
period. Its favourable reception brought forward others
of the same kind from every part of the country, and thus
was the first impulse given to the movement for the repeal
of the penal code. Another opportunity of echoing the
sentiments contained in these addresses presented itself on
the accession of the new king, George III. It was eagerly
seized on, and the address was received with equal favour
as the former. The state of the country required some
vital change in its internal administration. ^1 he revenue
was declining, and the peasantry were every year becomino-
more destitute and discontented, f he wretched sufferers,
attributing their misery to the exaction of tithes and the en¬
closure of lands hitherto left open in commonage, banded
themselves together in large bodies at night, and destroy¬
ed the new enclosures; whence they at first received the
name of Levellers, but were afterwards better known by
that of Whiteboys, from their wearing wdiite shirts over
their clothes, to be known to one another in their noctur¬
nal expeditions. From the invasion of property they pro¬
ceeded to the attack of persons obnoxious to them, parti¬
cularly tithe proctors, treating with wanton and barbarous
cruelty those who fell into their hands. The government,
instead of probing the evil to the bottom in order to effect
a cure by the removal of the cause of irritation, retaliated
by a series of severe and arbitrary laws, known by the
name of the Whiteboy Acts, many of which are still in
force. Attempts were made to connect those insurrec¬
tions of desperate misery with the political movements of
France. Rumours were circulated that the Whiteboys
were encouraged by money from that court, and that their
combination was the explosion of a plan for restoring the
Pretender. A parish priest of the name of Sheehy, who
had made himself obnoxious to the gentry in his neigh¬
bourhood by his exertions to shield the peasantry from
their oppressions, was arrested on a charge of treason ; and,
though acquitted of that crime after a patient and long
investigation by a jury in Dublin, he was, on his return
home, again arraigned on a charge of murder, universally
known to be false, and executed. The situation of the
British government in Ireland at this time was extremely
irksome and invidious. In order to carry on the public
business smoothly, it became necessary to conciliate the
great landed proprietors, who, through their borough in¬
fluence, had the control of the House of Commons. They
were to be gained over partly by allowing them a large
share in the disposal of all places of trust and profit, and
partly by indulging their enmity to the Catholics, who were
still suspected of being cemented in a secret union for the
recovery of their forfeited estates. The party which thus
virtually ruled the country by playing the British govern¬
ment and the Irish people against one another, was known
by the name of the Undertakers. They had a double ob¬
ject ; the one to make the crown, as far as Ireland was con¬
cerned, dependent on themselves ; and the other to check
the spirit of liberty in the people, and at the same time to throw
on the government the odium of the measures of which
they themselves were the instigators. To break down this
petty aristocracy, which had intruded itself between the pre-
495
rogative of the crown and the rights of the people, the Bri- History,
tish cabinet resolved, in the early part of George III.’s reign,
that the lord-lieutenant, who had hitherto visited the coun¬
try only once in two years for the purpose of holding a par¬
liament and passing the supplies, leaving the management of
the cduntry during the intervening period to two or three
lords-justices chosen from among the leaders of the Undertak¬
ers, should reside permanently in Dublin, so as thus to be the
immediate and ostensible organ of government patronage
and influence. At the same time, to put a stop to the out-
cry against the mismanagement of the public income, which
was attributed to the people’s want of a sufficient check
over their representatives, the duration of parliaments,
which hitherto had terminated only on the demise of the
crown, was limited to eight years, so that, as the parlia¬
ments then sat only ever second year, there should be four
sessions between each dissolution. Lord Townshend, a
nobleman of moderate political, but of great convivial en¬
dowments, was selected as the most fitting person to effect
the change. He succeeded with much difficulty, some loss
of character, and great expenditure of the public money.
But the people felt no benefit from the change. The
places and pensions, hitherto bestowed on the dependents
of the Undertakers, were now lavished with augmented
profusion on the creatures of the lord-lieutenant. The
disappointed borough holders of the old parliaments felt
their power in the House of Commons increased by the
curtailing of the period of legislation. They threw them¬
selves into the ranks of opposition, to thwart the measures
of the government wdiich they could no longer direct. The
pailiament w'as the arena for the struggle between the
two parties, and the real interests of the country were dis¬
regarded. The severity of the Whiteboy Acts caused a
temporary cessation of insubordination in one part of the
country, only to give vent to it in another. The disturb¬
ances in the south had been imputed to Catholic conspi¬
racy, aided by foreign influence. A similar systematized
spirit of outrage now displayed itself in Ulster, which was
chiefly inhabited by a Protestant population, that had al¬
ready testified its loyalty during Thurot’s invasion. The
real cause of disaffection was the same in both parts of the
country. High rents, and the rapacity of the agents of
absentees, drove the people into insurrection. The assem¬
bled multitudes here took the name of Hearts of Steel.
For their suppression, the legislature passed an act that of¬
fenders should be tried in counties different from that in
which the crime was committed. The extreme severity
a.nd injustice of the law counteracted its operation. Dub¬
lin juries, disgusted at a measure so arbitrary and uncon¬
stitutional, acquitted the prisoners, and the law was soon
repealed. Emigration to the American colonies was the
consequence of the depressed state of the peasantry, and
of the severity with which they were treated. The war
with those colonies, by closing this vent for the discharge
of the popular discontents, caused them to accumulate at
home. It also increased their amount by the addition of
other grievances arising out of the change from peace to
war. America had been the great mart for Irish linens,
now the only thriving branch of the national manufactures;
it was also the great market for Irish provisions. The war
closed the trade, and an embargo laid on provisions in fa¬
vour of some great English contractors put a stop to their
export. The country was also deprived of its portion of
the regular troops, which the increasing emergency of the
struggle with the revolted provinces called away. The
sufferings of the people were intense ; and the alarm of dan¬
ger was shortly afterwards increased by the well-founded
apprehension of an invasion from France, now the avowed
ally of the Americans. To allay the spirit of discontent
which was rapidly pervading all ranks, two measures were
proposed, the one in England, the removal of the restric-
496
I R E L A N D.
History, tions imposed there, as unwisely as selfish!},
' ^ merce ; fhe other the relaxation of the penal code in Ireland.
The commercial jealousy of the mercantile interest in L g
land prevented the former; the latter succeeded so far a
to allow Catholics to hold lands by lease for a long term of
years. This boon, though it might excite the hope of more
extended liberality, could avail htt e toward relieving the
pressure of immediate distress. Want at home, and dan¬
ger from abroad, stared the country every year more fully
in the face. The landed and commercial interests called
on the government for protection. The Earl ot Bucking¬
hamshire, then lord-lieutenant, a man of moderate abili¬
ties, returned for answer that the government had none to
give. The people, urged on by the exigency of the crisis,
resolved to arm themselves. Volunteer associations were
not hitherto wholly unknown in the country. Ihe mili¬
tary spirit of the nation had shown itself on many preced¬
ing occasions, in the readiness with which numerous bodies
of men, assuming a self-formed and self-taught military 01-
ganization, united together on occasions of local 01 tempo¬
rary danger. The invasion of Thurot gave lise to sonic
in the north, the outrages of the Whiteboys led to others
in the southern counties. But such instances were tem¬
porary and local. The impulse now given to the public
spirit, by the desponding reply of the government t0 tj16
appeal for protection, was universal and permanent. Ihc
organization commenced in Belfast, to which the lord-lieu¬
tenant’s answer had been more specially directed. Ihe
constituted authorities had told them they were not to look
to them for protection, but to themselves. They took the
hint, and formed several companies of self-armed, sell-
disciplined, and self-officered soldiers. The surrounding
towns followed the example; and the government, acting
in the spirit of its own suggestion, supplied these new-
raised levies with arms, hhe flame of military ardour
spread with unexpected rapidity through all parts, and
the number of well-disciplined corps soon became so
great and so formidable as to dispel all thought ot inva¬
sion on the one side, and all apprehension of it on the
other. The same spirit caused a re-action against the
monopolizing restrictions of the British legislature.^ The
people of Ireland entered into a very general combination
to confine themselves to the use of their own manufac¬
tures. The sudden check to industry thus produced in
England caused the supporters of the measure to reflect
on its inexpediency; and the military display could not
fail to attract their respect.
The people of Ireland now began to expect frorn their
volunteer associations what, according to the principles of
the constitution, should only be looked for from the legis¬
lature. These bodies were not backward in meeting such
expectations. Assemblages of volunteer corps in Dublin
and elsewhere passed resolutions that the king, lords, and
commons of Ireland alone were competent to make laws
to bind the people of Ireland, ihe political feeling thus
excited increased the number of military associations;
and, whilst in the parliament the old system of corrupt in¬
fluence carried all before it by numerical majorities, the
volunteers of Ulster, in the consciousness of their strength,
held a meeting at Dungannon, declarative of the neces¬
sity of a thorough reform of the state of the representa¬
tion, and of a combined exertion of the whole volunteer
force of Ireland to procure it. The effervescence of pa¬
triotism was increased by the unsettled state of the ad¬
ministration in England; Lord North had resigned, and
the death of Lord Rockingham put a premature end to
his short-lived administration. The result as to Ireland
was the dissolution of the parliament, against which the
feelings of the nation were so highly excited. A new
parliament was about to meet; and at the same time a
meeting of delegates from all the volunteer corps in Ire¬
land was to assemble in Dublin, to urge on the favourite History.
measure of parliamentary reform. ^
At this time several individuals had raised themselves
to the highest pinnacle in the scale of patriotism. The
most remarkable was the Earl ot Charlemont, who, after
spending his youth amidst the elegancies ot Italian re¬
finement, devoted his maturer years to the service of his
country at home. Next to him were Grattan and Flood,
both members of parliament, both eager to establish the
independence of their common country on sure grounds,
yet fatally adverse to each other as to the foundation on
which it was to be laid ; the former considering a simple
repeal of all English laws interfering with Irish rights as
a sufficient disavowal of the assertion of supremacy, the
latter requiring an open and explicit disclaimation on the
point. Grattan was successful, and the country voted him
L.50,000. The breach between the rival patriots was ir¬
remediable. Grattan remained at home to continue the
struggle for securing the newly-gained rights of his coun-
try.^l'lood soon afterwards retired to England, where a
seat in the British legislature flattered him with a more
enlarged sphere for the display of his powers. But he
failed, and was no longer named as a patriot or statesman.
The meeting of the new parliament and of the volun¬
teer convention took place simultaneously. I he first and
only act of any consequence adopted by the latter, was a
resolution as to the necessity of a reform in parliament;
which having been immediately afterwards introduced by
Mr Flood into the House of Commons, was there rejected
by a large majority; and the convention, partly through
an apprehension among many of its members, of dangers
from a collision between two representative bodies, both
emanating from the same source, and both claiming to be
the constitutional organ of their constituents, and partly
through a manoeuvre of some of its leaders, quietly ad¬
journed, and never afterwards assembled.
Assemblages of large bodies of armed men, uncon¬
nected with and beyond the control of the government,
could not fail to alarm the ruling powers. The union of
these bodies into a deliberative meeting, for the avowed
purpose of influencing the legislature, was still more
alarming. The first effort of the volunteers to attain
this position had been baffled. The meeting of delegates
was dissolved; but it might, and there was every reason
to suppose that it would, be re-assembled. To prevent
such a recurrence by violent means was dangerous. Ihe
volunteer body was numerous. It counted upwards of
100,000 men, embracing the greater part of the wealth
and respectability of the country, in its ranks; its num¬
bers and discipline were yearly increasing. The conse¬
quences of a hostile collision with such a body, particu¬
larly at the close of an unsuccessful war, commenced with
the avowed determination of crushing the spirit of inde¬
pendence in the American colonies, were fraught with
great hazard. An attempt was therefore made to break up
the strength of this body by internal divisions. The Ca¬
tholic question effected this. The volunteers were almost
exclusively Protestants. The extension of rights to a por¬
tion of the population, so long held in a state of passive
degradation, was viewed by many of them with a jealous
eye. They looked upon every new concession to the Ca¬
tholics as so much abstracted from themselves. Still,
however, the Catholic cause was gaining ground.
The extension of a free trade to Ireland had afforded
the means of accumulating property. It was eagerly seized
on by the Catholic merchants and traders. Ihe lately
conceded permission to hold land on long leases gave the
holder of such property a fixed position and weight in the
country. New laws, framed in the spirit of the increasing
liberality of the age, extended their rights.
permitted to purchase, hold, and dispose of land, by will
IRELAND. 497
History, or otherwise, as freely as Protestants. The penal acts
prohibiting the celebrating or hearing of mass, keeping
horses above the value of five pounds each, instructing
their own children, or acting as teachers, were repealed;
as were those taxing them for the losses sustained from
privateers, obliging them to pay Protestant watchmen,
excluding them from residence in particular towns, and
some other petty and irritating restrictions. Still they
were far from being on a political equality with their Pro¬
testant countrymen; and at the very time that the severity
of the code was thus relaxed as to property, new laws
were passed still further contracting their political rights.
By one of these they were debarred from admission into
the Inns of Court; by another the English act of William
III. excluding them from sitting in parliament, was for¬
mally enacted in Ireland. The passing of it attracted but
little notice, as the act of William had been hitherto pas¬
sively acquiesced in by the Catholic body.
Whilst the government was successfully busied in sow¬
ing the seeds of disunion amongst the volunteers, it paid
little attention to conciliate the people by economy or
good management. The reckless system of lavish and
profligate expenditure introduced by Lord Townshend, to
break down the monopoly of the Undertakers, was perse¬
vered in to secure majorities in the House of Commons.
A feeble effort made by the Duke of Buckingham to re¬
trench and restore order into the finances only led to his
recall. Yet it was soon found that a government resting
on majorities thus purchased depended on a very frail se¬
curity. The mental derangement of the king in 1789
showed the futility of such reliance. The English cabi¬
net wished to restrict the Prince of Wales in the discharge
of the regal powers intrusted to him as regent. The
Irish privy council was prepared to follow the example.
But the opposition in parliament, anxious to extend their
own influence by gaining over the heir-apparent, who had
till then always made professions of great liberality of po¬
litical opinion, resolved to grant him the regency of Ire¬
land, with no restrictions beyond those imposed by the
constitution on the sovereign himself. An address to
this effect, voted by both houses of parliament, in opposi¬
tion to the lord-lieutenant, was forwarded to London.
The sudden and unexpected recovery of the king pre¬
vented its effect. But the British minister, having now
so fully before him a warning of the consequences that
might result from similar collisions of the two legislatures
upon future questions, seemed fully determined to seize
on every opportunity of preventing it, by taking measures
for effecting a union of the parliaments of both countries,
similar to that which took place in Scotland at the com¬
mencement of the century. The prevalence of opposition
to the wishes of the English cabinet was as transient as it
had been sudden. The members who voted against the
ministry on the regency question were again found in their
places on all ministerial questions, with the exception of
those whose rebellion had been too gross and daring to
admit of pardon; and the parliamentary management of
the country began to subside again into its former state of
torpidity.
But the calm was not to be of long duration. A new
element of convulsion was at work. The French revolu¬
tion broke out in the same year in which the king’s insa¬
nity had caused such excitation. For some time it pro¬
duced but little effect on the popular movements in Ire¬
land. The Protestants, indeed, began to call more loudly
for reform, and the Catholics to press more openly for ad¬
mittance into the pale of the constitution. Both were
disregarded. The government felt itself strong in its ma¬
jorities, and in the plenitude of its means for securing
them. The question of reform was disregarded; that of Ca¬
tholic relief was not only scouted with marked contumely,
VOL. XII.
but, during the ensuing recess in 1792, every exertion was History,
made on the part of government to draw forth from the
grand juries of the several counties the strongest resolu¬
tions against any further concessions. Yet the very next
year a bill was introduced into parliament by the govern¬
ment, for extending the elective franchise to the Catholics,
which was passed by a majority nearly equal to that which
had refused to take their claims into consideration in the
last session. Bills for amending the representation, and
for disqualifying placemen from sitting in the House of
Commons, were also introduced. The promises of reform
thus held out induced the minority to acquiesce in several
coercive measures, particularly one against the holding of
conventions by delegation. Enactments of the latter cha¬
racter having been secured, that of reform was allowed
to languish, and, next year, was rejected by an over¬
whelming ministerial majority. The French war in which
England was now involved had been the cause of this
sudden burst of concession ; but when the means of car¬
rying it on, and of checking by severity any efforts to ex¬
cite discontent at home, had been assured, the mask was
thrown off, and the management of affairs carried on with
increased profligacy of expenditure, and disregard of pub¬
lic opinion. The advocates of reform, despairing of any
change of measures from parliament, endeavoured to carry
the question of reform by a pressure from without, through
the agency of voluntary associations. They formed a
Whig Club, which afterwards was superseded by that of
the United Irishmen. One of the leading features of both
societies, especially of the latter, was the advocacy of
the Catholic question, as it now appeared evident that
the question of reform was hopeless, without the previous
admission of the Catholic body to their rights of freemen.
The government, after some further perseverance in mea¬
sures of harshness and restraint, heightened by the in¬
creased violence of the leaders of the people, the principal
of whom, Wolf Tone, Hamilton Rowan, and James Nap-
per Tandy, were forced to expatriate themselves, changed
at once to a system of conciliation. In assurance of the sin¬
cerity of the change of sentiment, Earl Fitzwilliam, a noble¬
man possessed of large estates in Ireland, and a steady advo¬
cate of liberal measures, was sent over as lord-lieutenant.
He commenced his government by arrangements for bring¬
ing in a bill for the total repeal of the penal statutes, and
by the removal from office of the inferior agents of go¬
vernment, who, by their long continuance in place, and
the manner in which their mutual interests were connect¬
ed, virtually possessed the supreme power. The latter
of these efforts caused the lord-lieutenant’s removal. The
family of the Beresfords, which had for many years pos¬
sessed the chief places of profit and influence, remonstrat¬
ed effectually against their own dismission and the break¬
ing up of the old system, and Earl Fitzwilliam was sud¬
denly recalled. Earl Camden, who succeeded him as
lord-lieutenant, recurred to the former system of patron¬
age and coercion. The United Irishmen now looked not
to a reform, but to a separation from Great Britain, and
the establishment of an independent republic in alliance
with that of France, as the only means of securing the in¬
dependence of their country. A well-arranged system of
secret confederacy was spread over the greater part of
the kingdom, headed by an executive in the capital, the
members of which, though wholly unknown, except to the
few individuals in immediate communication with them¬
selves, issued orders for enlisting, combining, and arming
their adherents, which were zealously and implicitly obey¬
ed. The northern and midland counties had for some
time been disturbed by the fierce and deadly contentions
of the peasantry of the two opposite religious creeds ; the
Catholics took the name of Defenders, the Protestants
that of Orangemen. As the struggle grew more despe-
3 it
498
IRELAND.
History. rate, the attraction of party extended to he higher classes
and the former of these predial disturbers merged into
the great mass of United Irishmen, whilst the latter con¬
solidated by the infusion of a superior spirit of wealth and
intelligence, formed a compact, well-organized, and reso¬
lute body, under the original name of Orangemen, deter¬
mined to maintain to the utmost their own monopoly of
newer and the entire exclusion of the Roman Catholics, who
formed the great mass of the population, from any parti¬
cipation of it. The increasing hostility of both parties
showed itself by acts of augmented atrocity on both sides.
The Defenders’ means of aggression were nocturnal plun¬
der, house-burnings, and murders. The other party,
backed by the sanction of the government, had recourse to
the force of statutes of increased rigour, and, where these
failed, to the agency of military violence beyond the law.
In the year 1796 the organization of the united system on
the one side, and on the other the increased severities of
the Orangemen, supported by the government, and directed
exclusively against the Catholic peasantry, compelled the
leaders of the people to press upon the French government
the necessity of an immediate invasion. In consequence of
their repeated and urgent applications, aided by the exer¬
tions of Wolf Tone, who, since his departure from Ireland,
had devoted himself to this object, a large armament was
equipped in the western ports of France, for the avowed
purpose of invading Ireland. The command of it was in¬
trusted to Hoche, then considered as the first officer of the
time. Taking advantage of a storm which drove the block¬
ading squadron of England off the coast, a large fleet sailed
from Brest under his command in the middle of December;
but the same violence of weather which afforded it the oppor¬
tunity of eluding the vigilance of the British navy dispersed
it when at sea, insomuch that but a part of the armament ar¬
rived on the coast of Ireland. Having lain for some time
in Bantry Bay undiscovered by the enemy, waiting the
arrival of the general, who had embarked in a frigate, and
finding the further continuance on the station every day
more precarious, it departed, contrary to the pressing re¬
monstrances of Wolf Tone, and returned to Brest, whither
the remainder of the fleet soon afterwards arrived, with the
loss of a few ships. A second expedition from the Dutch
coast was equally unsuccessful. The possibility of an in¬
vasion being thus demonstrated, and the probability of its
ultimate success, if effected on a great scale, being appre¬
hended in the present excited state of the public mind, the
government had recourse to still stronger measures to put
down the spirit of insurrection. The habeas corpus act
was suspended, domiciliary visits throughout the country
parts were frequent, meetings of the people were dispersed
bv violence, torture was inflicted to force confession from
suspected persons, and bodies of soldiery were allowed to
live at free quarters in suspected districts. The relaxation of
discipline and consequent outrages arising from these prac¬
tices caused General Abercromby, who came over to take
the command of the army at this juncture, to declare, in ge¬
neral orders to the troops, that “ the army was in a state of
licentiousness which rendered it formidable to every one but
tfie enemy.” The announcement was as unpalatable as it was
harsh. The general was recalled. General Lake was sent in
his place. By his commands the soldiery exercised an almost
uncontrolled authority, in which they were sanctioned by in¬
structions from the government empowering the army to use
force at the discretion of the officers against the people. At
the same time the strength of the United Irish Association
was considerably impaired by the arrest or flight of the ex¬
ecutive, caused by the treachery of some of their own body.
This circumstance, however, produced no despondency.
On the contrary, it led to increased exertion. A new ex¬
ecutive was formed, and a resolution adopted to press for¬
ward the insurrection without waiting for French assist¬
ance. A second act of treachery baffled this effort. Twelve History,
of the leading members of the United Irishmen were seized,
with their papers, whilst in committee. A third act of treach¬
ery led to the disclosure of the details of the plans. Cap¬
tain Armstrong, of the king’s county militia, entered the
association for the purpose of betraying its leaders. By his
information two barristers of the name of Sheares, brothers,
were arrested; and shortly afterwards, Lord Edward Fitz¬
gerald, a brother of the Duke of Leinster, to whom the
chief command of the insurrection had been intrusted, was
seized in his place of concealment in Dublin, and carried to
prison, w’here he soon after died either of his wounds or
from his treatment whilst there. Notwithstanding these
checks, the insurrection exploded at the time arranged by
its leaders. On the evening of the 23d of May, the United
Irishmen assembled in large bodies in the neighbourhood
of Dublin and the adjoining counties. The warnings pre¬
viously given to government were sufficient to provide
against the intended attack upon the capital. The parties
collected in its neighbourhood wrere easily dispersed, with
the loss only of a few lives. Unfortunately the same vigi¬
lance did not extend to the more distant parts. The sig¬
nal for commencing operations on the side of the insur¬
gents was to be the non-arrival of the mail coaches at their
respective places of destination. The northern and west-
ern mail coaches were stopped. The town of Naas was
attacked, but, owing to an anonymous warning, the garrison
was prepared, and the assault was repelled. Unsuccessful
attacks were also made on Carlow, Hacketstown, and Mo-
nasterevan. A large body which had assembled on the
hill of Tarah was routed with much slaughter. The ope¬
rations of the army were seconded by the most violent acts
on the part of the government. Several of the leaders who
had been previously seized were tried and executed. Num¬
bers arrested on suspicion were brought to places prepared
for the purpose, and there tied up and flogged, to extort
confession. The principal places in Dublin for these in¬
quisitorial executions were the Royal Exchange, the Old
Custom-House, the Prevot Barrack, and a riding house
belonging to a cavalry corps commanded by one of the
Beresford family. The atrocities practised in the capital
under the sanction of the government were improved upon
in the country parts, where the military, to whom full li¬
cense was permitted, by putting the country under mar¬
tial law, not only adopted the same method of extorting
confession, but used others of more refined agony to elicit
discoveries or to gratify revenge. In some cases they
hanged up their victim, and let him down again just before
life was extinct; thus repeating at pleasure the sufferings
of strangulation. On the heads of others they applied caps
lined with heated pitch, which, when fastened on, and al¬
lowed to cool, were suddenly torn off, carrying with them
the hair and skin. In the spirit of fiendish mockery, they
cut ridges in the hair of others, in the form of a cross, and
filling up the furrow with gunpowder, set fire to it. On
the first breaking out of the rebellion, a number of sus¬
pected persons, some of them respectable farmers, who
had been confined in a racket-court at Hacketstown, w'ere
deliberately shot, without even the form of trial, on the
removal of the troops from that place, lest they should
join the rebel camps. A similar massacre was perpetrated
at Dunlavin. The insurgents of Kildare, finding them¬
selves defeated in almost every assault upon the king s troops,
came forward to surrender on promise of pardon. Man\
laid down their arms, and were permitted to disperse in
safety. But a large body of them, assembled for the same
purpose, was unexpectedly attacked by a detachment of
the military, who had not been made acquainted with the
arrangement, and cut to pieces.
The system of torture was carried by the soldiery into
the county of Wexford, which had hitherto remained quiet.
IRELAND.
History. Here the insurgents were more successful. After cutting
to pieces a detachment of cavalry from Dublin, and ano¬
ther of infantry and artillery from Duncannon Fort, and
taking Enniscorthy by storm, they seized on the town of
. Wexford, which had been evacuated on the first alarm by
the military. Having established themselves here, and at
Vinegar Hill, an eminence near Enniscorthy, they remained
comparatively quiet, being chiefly occupied in putting to
death prisoners charged with having been active in the
cruelties practised upon the insurgents. Their first se¬
rious defeat was at New Ross, from which they were re¬
pulsed after a sanguinary contest of ten hours. In revenge
for this defeat, a party of the fugitives set fire to a barn
at Scullabogue, in which upwards of an hundred of their
prisoners were confined, all of whom were either burned, or
piked in attempting to escape from the flames. The same
impulse of sanguinary despair caused the insurgents in
Wexford to put their prisoners to death, by piking them
on the bridge, and flinging their bodies into the sea; a pro¬
cess of cruelty continued for several days, notwithstanding
the active interference and remonstrances of several of
their own clergy. At length, however, their main posi¬
tion at Vinegar Hill was invested by a large military force,
and stoi med after a short resistance. Wexford soon after¬
wards fell into the hands of the royal troops, having sur¬
rendered without resistance, on conditions which were im¬
mediately violated. The leaders of the insurrection who
had not fallen in the field were executed by court-martial,
and the insurrection in this and the neighbouring county
of Wicklow totally suppressed.
The news of the first successes of the insurgents in
Wexford caused a rising in the counties of Antrim and
Down, which had remained passive on the first breaking
out of the insurrection in Kildare. But it was speedily
put down after a battle in the town of Antrim, and another
at Ballynahinch, in both of which the insurgents, who dis¬
played much courage, but no military skill, were totally
defeated. The marauding parties, who still harassed the
country after the dispersion of the main bodies, were
ultimately broken up by the prudent and merciful conduct
of Lord Cornwallis. This nobleman, who succeeded Earl
Camden as lord-lieutenant, not only put an instant stop to
the system of torture and extermination which had been
adopted and perseveringly acted on by his predecessor,
but issued an amnesty to all who submitted and returned
to their dwellings. This merciful policy had its full effect;
and the country, after being convulsed for two months by
the deadly struggles of the contending parties, entertained
the hope of being restored to tranquillity, when the pro¬
spect was suddenly overcast. Towards the close of sum¬
mer, a small French squadron landed a force of about
twelve hundred men at Killala, in the west of Ireland.
Humbert, the general, being joined by a number of the in¬
habitants, pressed on to Castlebar, where a force of from
five to six thousand men under General Lake was posted
to oppose him. This force was taken by surprise, and
routed almost without firing a shot. The French then
proceeded to Coolooney, where they received a tempo¬
rary check from a party of the Irish militia, which made a
gallant stand against superior numbers ; and thence pro¬
ceeded, followed by General Lake, into the county of
Longford. Having arrived at the village of Ballynamuck,
the French commander, finding himself surrounded by an
overwhelming majority of force, collected from all parts
by Lord Cornwallis, surrendered at discretion, leaving his
Irish auxiliaries to the mercy of the enemy. No quarter
was given to these. A second attempt at invasion, equally
feeble and futile, was made the following month. A small
squadron appeared off the northern coast, filled with troops
intended for disembarkation ; but it was routed by a su¬
perior English fleet, with the loss of one line-of-battle
499
ship and six frigates, in which were some of the expa- History,
triated Irish who were embarked in this desperate expedi-
tion. Amongst these was Wolfe Tone, who, on being
brought prisoner to Dublin, anticipated the sentence of a
court-martial by an act of suicide.
The British government of that day have been accused
of fomenting the rebellion of 1798 for the purpose of bring¬
ing about a legislative union between Ireland and Great
Britain. There is no foundation for the charge, but doubt¬
less the government took advantage of the explosion of the
insurrection of 1798 to hasten on the progress of a neces¬
sary measure, the adoption of which was only a question of
time. The union of both countries had been proposed and
debated without result in 1782, the year of so-called con¬
stitutional independence and final adjustment; three years
after which, Mr Foster, the chancellor of the Irish exche¬
quer, said in the Irish parliament, 11 Things cannot remain
as they are ; commercial jealousy is roused, and it will in¬
crease with two independent legislatures. Without a
united interest in commerce, in a commercial empire, poli¬
tical union will receive many shocks, and separation of in¬
terest must threaten separation of connection, which every
honest Irishman must shudder to look on as a possible event.”
Mr Fox stated in the British House of Commons that from
the period of 1782 there had been growing sources of dis¬
satisfaction and discontent in Ireland, and that its condition
in 1797 wras one at which no man could look without the
greatest alarm.
The rebellion of 1798 alarmed all reasonable persons,
and the dispute which had occurred in 1789 between the
two parliaments of Great Britain and Ireland respecting the
powers to be granted to the Prince of Wales as regent,
clearly demonstrated that there was no security in the exist¬
ing arrangement. The project of 1782 was revived, and a
legislative union of Great Britain and Ireland recom¬
mended in the lord-lieutenant’s speech at the opening of
the parliament in January 1799. After a discussion in the
Lower House on the address, which occupied twenty-two
hours, a resolution approving of the principle was carried
by a majority of one. After a subsequent debate, the opinion
of the House having been declared against it by a majority
of five, the paragraph in favour of the Union was expunged
from the address to the throne. For a time the question
remained in an unsettled state. Mr Pitt, in his speech
of the 31st January 1799, said, “ I wish that the question
of the Union should be stated distinctly, temperately, and
fully; that it should be left to the unprejudiced, the dis¬
passionate, the sober judgment of the Irish parliament.
I wish that those whose interests are involved in the mea¬
sure should have time for its consideration. I wish that
time should be given to the landed, to the monied interest,
that they should look at it in all its bearings—that they
should coolly examine and sift the popular arguments by
which it has been opposed ; and that then they should give
their final judgment.” The great body of the people were
induced to give the measure a tacit though reluctant assent,
from a promise held out to them of Catholic emancipation,
and other advantages which they had little hope of obtain¬
ing from the Irish parliament. The government being re¬
solved on the measure, found it necessary to prevent or dis¬
perse various public meetings of its violent opponents, and
to make use of all the influence at their command to over¬
come the reluctance of the majority of the Irish House of
Commons. Confiding in the success of his arrangements,
Lord Castlereagh, the Irish minister, revived the question
early in 1800 ; and on the final division, which took place
on the 6th February in that year, 158 members voted for
the Union, and 115 against it. The principle being admitted,
and the details having been settled by the British parlia¬
ment during the past session, no further difficulty was ex¬
perienced. At the close of the year the two separate par-
1
500 I R E L
History. Haments of Great Britain and Ireland were dissolved and
^ a proclamation issued for the assembling of an imperial par¬
liament in January 1801. The articles of the Act of Union,
eight in number, are,—1. The permanent union of the two
kingdoms into one, under the name of the United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Ireland. 2. The succession to the
throne to continue as at present, limited. 3. I he kingdom
to be represented by one parliament, to be called the Par¬
liament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ire¬
land. 4. 28 peers temporal elected for life, and 4 spiritual
peers succeeding each other by a rotation of sessions, were
admitted into the House of Lords ; 100 representatives, 2
for each county, 2 for Dublin city, 2 for Cork city, and 1
each for 31 towns and the university, were to be elected
into the Lower House. 5. The churches of England and
Ireland were to be united into one, to be called the United
Church of England and Ireland, the doctrine, worship, and
discipline of which was to be the same as that established
for the Church of England. 6. The subjects of Great
Britain and Ireland were to be placed on the same footing
as to manufactures, trade, and commerce. 7. The contri¬
bution of each portion of the empire towards the general
expenditure was to be in the proportion of 15 to 2 between
Great Britain and Ireland for 20 years ; after which, to be
regulated at the discretion of parliament. 8. The existing
laws and courts of justice in each island were to continue
as heretofore, except that appeals from the Irish chancery
were to be brought before the House of Lords in England.
The style of the king was in consequence changed to that
of King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ire¬
land, and the blazoning of the royal standard was altered
accordingly.
In 1793, eight years previous to the Union, Mr Grattan
stated that, of 300 members of the Irish House of Commons,
200 were the nominees of private individuals, from 40 to
50 were returned by constituencies of not more than ten
persons each ; several boroughs had not more than one re¬
sident elector, and that out of 300 members thus returned,
104 were placemen and pensioners. At the Union com¬
pensation was awarded to the proprietors of 83 boroughs,
an act having been previously passed by which the Irish
parliament voted L.1,400,000 for the “ losses sustained from
the Union by the cities, towns, and boroughs, in Ireland, and
to make compensation to persons for loss or reduction of
emolument of office by the Union.” Thus ended the Irish
parliament, which, “ the moment it arrogated to itself the
powers of an independent legislature, imbibed the elements
of dissolution, or separation from England ; for there being
no connecting link between the legislators of the two islands,
but the precarious prerogative of the crown, there was un¬
avoidably a constant endeavour of the executive to main¬
tain an authority over the legislature, prevention in Ireland
being of necessity more desirable than opposition by the
veto. The government had long been dependent on an
oligarchy, who maintained an ascendancy at their own price
in Irish affairs. ‘ The Union,’ as a national historian justly
observes, ‘ broke the strength of the aristocracy ; it effected
that which it proposed, by untying the hands of government;
it loosened its dependence upon a party, and restored to the
state the privilege of good government.’ Ireland, in fact,
for centuries possessed but two classes of society, the
rich and the poor; there was no solid bond between the
crown and the people, and the feudalism which the re¬
ligion of Luther in England, and of Calvin in Scotland,
had tended so much to annihilate, flourished in most parts
of Erin (as it still does in some places) in all its desolat¬
ing vigour.”1
The Act of Union did not at once produce the results
promised by its advocates. It neither tranquilized the conn-
AND.
try, nor aided the consolidation of its resources. The Pro- History,
testants, who constituted the aristocracy, found their influence
diminished by it. The Catholics soon discovered the hope¬
lessness of the expectation of being thereby admitted to the
rights of freemen. When the question of their emancipa¬
tion was about to be made an object of discussion, it was
now for the first time publicly announced that the king had
insuperable objections to the measure. The consequence
was a change of ministry, which was followed up by legis¬
lative measures of great severity towards Ireland, founded
on the suspected existence of a spirit of disaffection there.
Martial law was re-enacted, and the acts for the suspension
of the habeas corpus, and for preventing seditious meetings,
were revived. These measures of prospective severity did
not prevent the mischiefs apprehended. In 1803, less than
three years after the passing of the Act of Union, an insur¬
rection, devised by Robert Emmett, the younger brother of
a barrister of the same name w ho had expatriated himself
in consequence of the leading part he had taken in the pro¬
ceedings of the united Irishmen, broke out in the city of
Dublin. Its explosion was so sudden and unexpected, that
no suspicions, at least none strong enough to lead to the
adoption of measures of precaution, were entertained by the
government. Soon after sunset on the 23d of July, Em¬
mett, who had returned to Ireland, in ignorance of the al¬
tered state of public feeling, issued, at the head of a number
of his followers, armed chiefly with pikes, from a depot
established by him in an obscure street in the west of Dub¬
lin, and after cutting down some of the military who were
proceeding individually to their several quarters, moved to¬
wards the Castle, the main object of attack, when his fol¬
lowers were delayed by the approach of Lord Kilwarden’s
carriage. This excellent and popular nobleman, who had
been chief-justice of the King’s Bench during the late
troublous times, was coming into Dublin as a place of se¬
curity, in consequence of a rumour of a rising having reached
him in his villa, a few miles from town. On being recog¬
nized, he was immediately assailed, and mortally wounded.
The arrival of two small picquets immediately dispersed the
collected multitude, with the loss of a few lives. Emmett,
on finding the failure of his scheme, escaped to the neigh¬
bouring mountains, where he was soon afterwards taken,
brought to trial, and executed. A similar attempt at in¬
surrection was arranged in the north of Ireland by an asso¬
ciate of Emmett, named Russell, but discovered before the
time fixed for its explosion. Measures of prevention were
adopted, and its leader, being soon afterwards taken in his
place of concealment in Dublin, was also executed. The
only permanent consequence of these foolish plans of rebel¬
lion was the revival of statutes of extreme severity, which,
by placing the people beyond the protection of the usual
course of law, served to foster in the mind the seeds of dis¬
content and disaffection, which it was the professed object
of such legislation to extinguish.
The agitation of the feelings of mutual irritation between
the two great parties in Ireland, arising from the late insur¬
rection, had not sufficiently subsided to admit of the most
distant hope that the Catholic claims would receive the
slightest attention in parliament till 1805. Even then, so
powerful was the party adverse to the entertainment of the
question, that motions for a committee on the petitions of
the Catholics presented in that year were rejected in both
Houses by overwhelming majorities. Even a bill, which
asked no more than to put Roman Catholic officers in the
army on the same footing in the English as they were in
the Irish service, brought in by the then ministry, led to a
dissolution, both of the administration and of the parliament,
in consequence of the king’s aversion to it. For several
years afterwards, the question was periodically mooted in
1 Martin’s Ireland and the Union.
IRELAND.
History, one or both houses of parliament, and uniformly rejected,
though on each subsequent occasion by a diminished ma¬
jority.
The Catholic committee, which had sat under various
names and forms from time to time since its original insti¬
tution in 1756, having, in 1811, proposed to assemble by
delegation in Dublin, steps were taken by the government
to put it down, as contrary to the provisions of the conven¬
tion act, which prohibited such assemblages ; but, in conse¬
quence of the acquittal of one of the members by a Dublin
jury, no further proceedings w^ere taken, and the increased
activity of the association recalled the Orange lodges into
existence, and led to frequent collisions among the people.
In 1817 public opinion had advanced in favour of the Ca¬
tholic claims so far as to admit of the question of securities
being a topic of discussion. The chief point now was the
exertion of a royal veto in the nomination of the Roman
Catholic hierarchy, but the claim was fortunately afterwards
abandoned.
In 1821 George IV. visited Ireland during the vice¬
royalty of Earl Talbot. The king landed at Howth on the
12th of August, and after a stay of nearly three weeks, dur¬
ing which all was loyalty and gaiety, his majesty embarked
at Dunleary, afterwards called Kingstown, on the 3d of
September, and Daniel O’Connell, at the head of a Catho¬
lic deputation, presented the king with a crown of laurel.
In 1823 the Catholic question began to assume a new
and more imposing form. Its change of character was
owing to Daniel O’Connell, then a practising barrister, who,
after having signalized himself on his first entrance into
political life by an eloquent protest against the extinction of
the parliament of Ireland, had been subsequently an active
and most influential actor in all the proceedings of the Ca¬
tholic body. Deploring, along with his friend and coadju¬
tor in political action, Mr Shiel, the state of torpid depres¬
sion into which the question had declined, he suggested
the revival of a central body to advocate and manage their
cause, planned its details, and commenced its organization.
The first meeting of this body, so soon, under the name of
the Catholic Association, to be the acknowledged organ of
the public sentiment of the greater part of the population
of Ireland, commenced in a meeting of three individuals.
Its distinguishing characteristics were the exclusion of any
thing savouring of delegation, a strict adherence to the letter
of any law that had been or might be enacted in order to
stifle the expression of the sentiments of the Catholics, and,
above all, the admission of the great body of the people into
it. This last element of its constitution was finally secured
and firmly grafted into it, after a continued and precarious
struggle for existence, by a pecuniary contribution, which
O’Connell denominated “ the Catholic rent.” Every Ca¬
tholic was called upon to subscribe at least one penny per
month to defray the expenses of the association, and there¬
by became a member of it. These expenses were far from
inconsiderable. They were applied partly to protect poor
Catholics from the petty persecutions of intolerant magis¬
trates and landlords, partly to meet the general expenditure
of the association, whose communications with all parts of
the country could not otherwise be effectively carried on,
and partly for the gratuitous circulation, throughout every
part, of a newspaper, containing a detail of all the proceed¬
ings and debates of the association.
The dissolution of Mr Canning’s ministry by the unex¬
pected death of its leader, and the formation of the Welling¬
ton administration, gave a character of increased energy to
the struggle for Catholic emancipation. The Duke was
universally believed to be decidedly and irreclaimably ad¬
verse to concession on this subject; and one of the first
measures taken by the Catholics on his accession to power,
was the adoption of pledges, to be given by every candi¬
date at an election, to oppose the new government. They
501
were intended for the next general election, but Mr Vesey History.
Fitzgerald having accepted a seat in the cabinet, a vacancy
occurred in the representation of the county Clare, and
O’Connell was elected, declaring that he would take his
seat and vote. The agitation had now arrived at that point
when it could no longer be resisted with safety, and the
Catholic claims, which ought to have been admitted imme¬
diately after the Union, were granted in 1829.
Ihe chief opponents of the Union were the Orange
party in Ireland, who had been, and hoped to remain, in the
ascendant; the Roman Catholics generally acquiesced in the
arrangement, feeling that it would break up or at least di¬
minish the power of the Protestant aristocracy. The first
public attempt to put in question the repeal of the legisla¬
tive Union between Great Britain and Ireland was made by
the High Tory corporation of Dublin in 1810; the subject
was afterwards debated in the House of Commons in 1822 ;
and two years later Lord Cloncurry recommended the Ca¬
tholics to join the Protestants on the Repeal question. The
great leader of the Roman Catholic or national party hav¬
ing been re-elected for the county of Clare after the pass¬
ing of the Relief Act, took his seat in the House of Com¬
mons, and surprised his opponents, who had supposed him
to possess only the talents of a vulgar demagogue, by exhi¬
biting his capacity to cope with the best parliamentary ora¬
tors. io keep alive the spirit and activity of his followers,
and coerce the government into granting measures of ame¬
lioration, O’Connell proclaimed, in the first year of his ad¬
mission to a seat in parliament, that a repeal of the legisla¬
tive Union was the only means of obtaining justice for Ire¬
land, and systematically maintained the position which from
first to last he had no serious thought of realizing. The
Repeal Association followed the Catholic Association, and, in
conjunction with the anti-tithe agitation, this new element
of discord raised a storm so potent that it was with difficulty
O’Connell could keep it within bounds, and the govern¬
ment was compelled to obtain additional powers by means
of the Coercion Bill which passed the House of Commons,
and was enforced by the Marquis of Anglesey, then lord-
lieutenant of Ireland.
With a population approaching 8,000,000 in number, of
which little more than 10 per cent, were members of the
Established Church, every parish in Ireland was provided
with a clergyman of that persuasion, supported by tithes
received from the farmers who were almost universally Ro¬
man Catholics, the amount payable being ascertained by tithe
proctors, who walked over the fields and valued the crops for
that purpose. In 1823 compositions for tithe were autho¬
rized by statutable enactment, but few had taken advantage
of the provisions of the act, and during the Reform Bill agi¬
tation the Roman Catholics pressed forward the anti-tithe
movement. In 1830, Earl Grey, who had succeeded the
Duke of Wellington, having promised a bill in parliament
for the settlement of the tithe question, the resistance to
further payment of tithe became general until 1832, when
Lord Stanley introduced the Tithe Composition Bill. The
Church Temporalities Act, which originally contained the
famous Appropriation Clause,reduced the number of bishop¬
rics, and transferred the revenues of the suppressed sees
to the Board of Ecclesiastical Commissioners; and in 1838
compositionsfbr tithe were abolished, fixed payments, or rent
charges (consisting of three-fourths of the amount of the
former composition), to be paid by the landlords, being sub¬
stituted.
When parliamentary reform took place in 1832, Ireland
acquired the privilege of sending five additional members to
the Imperial Parliament, the qualification for voters in the
counties of cities and towns was raised, and the franchise
in other respects assimilated to that of the counties in which
the rights of the 40s. freeholders had been taken away by the
Catholic Emancipation Act. In the next year a commis-
IRELAND.
502
History, sion was appointed to inquire into the state of the municipal
■ - ^ — J corporations of Ireland. I he abolition of the penal laws,
and the establishment of the right of Catholics to sit in Par¬
liament had not procured their admission into offices under
the municipal corporations, all of which were exclusively
under the control of Protestants ; but the many abuses and
restrictions which were found to exist in those bodies were
remedied, or removed, by the Municipal Reform Act of
1840.
In 1836 the police system, originated in 1814 by Sir
Robert Peel, when chief secretary for Ireland, was perfected
by the consolidation of the law and complete establishment
of the efficient constabulary force, which, disseminated in
small bodies throughout the country, is the theme of gene¬
ral admiration for its efficiency and intelligence.
Second in importance only to the establishment of police
for the security of order and property, is the foundation of
a system of national education which was laid in 1833, and
supported by grants of public money, for the education of
the poor without distinction of religious creed. The sys¬
tem has so grown in extent and utility, that it must greatly
contribute during the next half century to the rapid spread
of civilization throughout the country.
Notwithstanding the numerous institutions for the relief
of the poor, and the extent of private benevolence, the
amount of pauperism existing in Ireland had become such
that it was necessary, for the sake of policy as well as of hu¬
manity, to provide, by legislative enactment, for the support
of the aged, impotent, and infirm poor. A commission ap¬
pointed in 1836 to inquire into their condition, recommend¬
ed that relief should be given only to the impotent; and in
1838 an act was passed authorising relief under strict limi¬
tations, but was gradually extended in the course of time,
until in 1847 the right of the destitute poor to relief was
established in consequence of the famine which had resulted
from the continued lailure of the potato crop.
After the return of Lord Melbourne as premier in 1835,
the Government maintained for some time a good under¬
standing with O’Connell, who established the Precursor
Society to obtain “equality with England under the Union
but the continued opposition of the House of Lords to the
Municipal Reform Bill for Ireland, and the recall of the
Marquis of Normanby from the lord-lieutenancy in 1839,
induced O’Connell to infuse new vigour into the Repeal
movement, and establish the “ Loyal National Repeal As¬
sociation.” The ministry of Sir Robert Peel succeeded
that of Lord Melbourne in 1841, and the Repeal Asso¬
ciation was reorganized. The year 1843, denominated the
Repeal year, was remarkable for what were known as mon¬
ster meetings, commencing at Trim in the month of March,
and ending at Mullaghmast on the 1st of October. Another
meeting was to have been held on Sunday, the 8th of Oc¬
tober, at Clontarf, but the Government took measures by
proclamation and otherwise to prevent the assemblage of
the people. O’Connell, upon understanding the determina¬
tion of the Government, successfully used his authority to
keep his followers away, and no monster meetings were after¬
wards attempted.
In January 1844 the state prosecutions against the agi¬
tator and his colleagues commenced, and resulted in the
condemnation of the accused, who were sentenced to a
short term of imprisonment. They were confined in Rich¬
mond bridewell, but on appeal to the House of Lords, the
judgment of the Irish Court of Queen’s Bench was reversed History,,
and their prison doors opened.
The Repeal question was one in which O’Connell had
little hope, and his followers had much faith. The events
of the last few years, when O’Connell had been carried be¬
yond his judgment, had rendered him somewhat timid and
doubtful of the result. He never again prosecuted the
cause with the same vigour as heretofore. The people be¬
came indifferent to him, his health failed, and famine deso¬
lated the land. Early in 1847 O’Connell left Ireland for
the last time, and, after a gradual decay, died at Genoa of
disease of the brain.
Previous to the decease of O’Connell the influence of
the young Ireland party had increased among the masses of
the people, and in 1846 they formed a separate body, under
the title of the “ Irish Confederation.” On the breaking out
of the French revolution, early in 1848, the confederation
transgressed all the bounds of moderation, sent a deputa¬
tion to the Provisional Government of France, requesting
aid on behalf of the “ oppressed nationality of Ireland,” and
organised plans of insurrection. The Government allowed
the rebellion, if such it could be called, to attain its full
proportions, when, after much excitement, it was terminated
by the arrest of Mr Smith O’Brien, who had incautiously
appeared at the head of a small body of insurgents at Bal-
lingarry, in the county of Tipperary. Mr Smith O’Brien
and others were tried for high treason, and found guilty,
but the sentence of death was commuted to transportation
for life. In 1856, such of the convicts as had not broken
their parole received their freedom from the Government.
Notwithstanding the various important ameliorations
which had taken place in legislation on Irish affairs, it may
be doubted whether any efforts of the Government, or of
the people themselves, would have been sufficient to pro¬
duce that improvement in the condition of the country
which is now in progress, unless accompanied by provision
for the removal of the surplus population which undoubt¬
edly existed.
The will of Providence solved the difficulty. In 1846 the
food upon which alone the great body of the people had
been reduced to depend for subsistence failed, not for the
first time, but more extensively than on any former occa¬
sion. The struggle now was not for emancipation, the abo¬
lition of tithes, or the repeal of the Union, but for life ; and
the utmost efforts of the Government, represented by the
Board of Works, the Poor Law-Commission, and the two
Relief Commissions, were exerted. The result of this
“ the greatest attempt ever made to grapple with famine
over a whole country,” was the preservation of the great
body of the labouring population. Many, however, per¬
ished from want, and more from its effects; while the emi¬
gration which had previously commenced more than
doubled in extent, and has assisted continuously since that
period to reduce the population of Ireland from 8,175,124,
which it numbered in 1841, to its present population of not
more than 6,000,000. This reduction of the numbers ot
the people to a proportion more in accordance with the
means of subsistence, and the demand for labour, in addi¬
tion to the removal of all just causes of discontent, and the
assimilation of rights and privileges to those enjoyed by
other portions of the empire, will go far to render the poli¬
tical history of Ireland for the future identical with that of
the remainder of the United Kingdom.
IRELAND
503
Statistics. Ireland is an island, rliomboidal in shape, placed at the
eastern extremity of the Atlantic Ocean, which washes its
northern, western, and southern shores, while its eastern coast
is separated from the adjacent island of Great Britain by the
Northern Channel, which at one point is only 13J miles wide
the Irish Sea about 130 miles in width, and St George’s Chan¬
nel, which is 69 miles wide between Dublin and Holyhead,
and somewhat less at its southern extremity. Its geographi¬
cal position is between N. Lat. 51. 26. and 55. 21., and W.
Long. 5. 20. and 10. 26., comprising therefore 3. 55. of Lat.,'
and 5. 6. of Long.—the degrees of latitude being the same as
those under which are situated the dissimilar climates of Ber¬
lin, Hamburg, Rotterdam, Leipzig, Warsaw, part of Hud¬
son’s Bay, the Straits of Belleisle,.and Petropaulowski, in
STATISTICS OF IRELAND.
Kamtschatka, which latter is nearly under the same parallel of Statistics,
latitude as Wicklow. The largest diagonal line that can be i
drawn within the island, viz., from Tor Head, in Antrim, to
Mizen Head, in Cork, measures 302 miles ; and the shorter,
from Carnsore in Wexford, to Erris Head in Mayo, is 210
miles in length. The breadth of the country from Dundalk to
Ballyshannon is 85 miles ; from Dublin to the head of Galway
Bay 110 miles; and the indentations of the coast by harbours,
arms of the sea, and mouths of rivers are so numerous, that
scarcely an acre of land in the country is more than 50 miles
from the sea, or good navigation. The territorial divisions,
and the acreable extent of Ireland, which, next to Great Bri¬
tain, is the largest island in Europe, appear in the following
Territorial Divisions.
Counties, and
Counties of Cities
and Towns.1
1. Carlow 
2. Dublin 
City 
3. Kildare 
4. Kilkenny 
City.. 
5. King’s 
6. Longford 
7. Louth 
Drogheda Town...
8. Meath 
9. Queen’s 
10. Westmeath 
11. Wexford 
112. Wicklow  
Total.
1. Clare 
2. Cork 
City 
3. Kerry 
4. Limerick...
City 
5. Tipperary..
6. Waterford.
City 
Total.
1. Antrim 
Car.-Fergus Town
2. Armagh  
3. Cavan 
4. Donegal  
5. Down 
6. Fermanah 
7- Londonderry....
8. Monaghan 
9, Tyrone 
No. of
Baro¬
nies
7
10
14
11
12
6
6
18
11
12
9
8
124
75
Total.
1. Galway 
Town 
2. Leitrim 
3. Mayo  
4. Roscommon.
5. Sligo 
15
"s
8
6
10
8
6
5
4
70
18
”5
9
9
6
Total 
Total Ireland.
47
316
Acreable Extent,
According to the Ordnance Survey and Census Report,
No. of
Parishes
47
99
116
140
”51
26
64
146
53
63
144
59
Of Arable
Land.
Of Unculti¬
vated Land.
184,059
196,063
356,787
470,102
337,256
191,823
178,972
547,391
342,422
365,218
510,702
280,393
1,008
80
251
’*87
131
193
82
824
75
”28
36
51
70
23
43
23
42
3,961,188
455,009
1,308,882
414,614
526,876
843,887
325,345
3,874,613
515,771
265,213
375,473
393,191
514,180
289,228
318,282
225,885
450,286
391
120
17
73
58
41
309
2,532
3,407,539
742,805
249,350
497,587
440,522
290,696
31,249
19,312
5l',854
21,126
145^836
58,937
15,603
16,033
69,289
56,392
45,501
200,754
Of Planta¬
tions.
4,927
5,519
8,288
13,899
8,258
4,610
5,318
12,767
11,630
8,803
14,325
17,600
731,886
296,033
465,889
726,775
121,101
178,183
105,496
115,944
8,304
52,180
11,169
11,575
23,779
23,408
1,893,477
180,423
35,117
71,918
769,587
78,317
114,847
180,709
21,585
311,867
130,415
Of Towns
and
Villages
602
5,519
'*490
1,549
*902
364
1,200
”464
1,117
628
2,392
341
15,569
728
6,515
"807
2,759
2,*359
1,525
10,358
8,996
7,325
7,079
14,355
6,155
7,718
5,816
11,981
1,764,370
708,000
115*869
800,111
130,299
151,723
2,220,960
13,464,300
1,906,002
6,295,735
79,783
23,718
3,*396
8,350
6,732
6,134
48.340
14,693
2,037
'778
502
479
2,211
210
1,559
304
710
8,790
1,801
848
768
460
Of Water.
505
1,017
3,056
1,733
13,675
813
3,*244
396
22,427
3,668
1,090
51,624
67,920
12,867
32,761
18,531
13,*523
5,779
151,381
53,288
17,042
22,142
23,107
3,432
46,755
10,327
6,167
31,796
Total Area.
Annual
amount of
Griffith's
Valuation.
221,342
225,413
418*436
509,732
493*985
269,409
201,434
57*9!899
424,854
453,468
576,588
500,178
4,876,211
827,994
1,846,333
1,18*6,126
680,842
1,061*731
461,553
6,064,579
761,877
328,076
477,360
1,193,443
612,495
457,195
518,595
319,757
806,640
214,956
3,877
374,482 42,929
90,030
23,748
56,976
29,370
12,740
212,864
630,825
5,475,438
1,566,354
392,363
1,363,882
607,691
461,753
4,392,043
20,808,271
1 The area of cities and towns is included in that of the counties to which they belong.
L.
163,514
533,616
594,886
313,494
343,445
19,631
233,741
150,785
210,119
20,238
540,998
244,517
306,803
377,835
251,791
4,305,413
313,801
1,024,434
124,834
275,971
455,536
63,770
671,252
277,949
39,630
3,247,177
474,362
13,521
241,908
250,726
225,049
455,697
170,668
220,430
203,348
277,556
2,533,265
426,626
26,658
120,920
299,852
289,011
190,653
1,353,720
11,439,575
■
504
Statistics.
IRELAND.
Giraldus Cambrensis, who was twice in Ireland and col¬
lected materials for a topography of the island, reports favour¬
ably of the climateNec terrarum temperatissima, nec
Cancri calor exfestuans compellit ad umbras, nec ad tocos La-
■pricorni rigor invitat, aeris amsenitate temperieque tempora
fere cuncta tepescuntand so it remains a country of mild
winters and cool summers, temperate to a degree equal to that
of any other country on the face of the globe. “ The general
temperature, in the yicinity of the capital, is somewhat lower
than the 50th degree of Fahrenheit’s thermometer, and a mean
of the hottest or coldest months of the year rarely varies
more than 10° from the standard heat; winter, therefore, is
usually accompanied by a temperature of 40°; spring and
autumn of 50° ; and summer of 60°; and the general heat of
any single month of these seasons seldom varies very much
from the corresponding temperature of the particular season
to which it belongs. Of these limits, the lowest is not suffi¬
ciently cold to check the natural herbage of the island, nor the
highest sufficiently powerful to parch the surface of a moist
soil, or to scorch its luxuriant grasses. Hence, the fields
maintain a perpetual verdure, unimpaired by either solstice ;
the farmer is enabled to lay his lands under grass at almost
every season, even at the commencement of winter, and the
grazier never loses the benefit of his rich pastures at any
period of the year, unless during the passage of a temporary
drift of snow ; so that horses, cattle, and sheep, attain, with
little care, to a degree of perfection which they seldom acquire
in other countries, without great care and expense.” 1 “ The
worst circumstance of the climate of Ireland,” says Arthur
Young, “ is the constant moisture without rain. Wet a piece
of leather, and lay it in a room where there is neither sun nor
fire, and it will not in summer even be dry in a month. I have
known gentlemen in Ireland deny their climate being moister
than England; but if they have eyes, let them open them,
and see the verdure that clothes their rocks, and compare it
with ours in England, where rocky soils are of russet brown,
however sweet the food for sheep. Does not their island lie
more exposed to the great Atlantic? and does not the west
wind blow three-fourths of the year ?” This humidity of the
climate is owing more to the frequency of showers and cloudy
weather, than to the quantity of rain which has been observed
in the undermentioned localities to be as follows :—
Locality.
Dublin.
Belfast.
Castlecomer.
Cork.
Cork.
Derry.
Observer.
Apjohn,
Portlock.
Aher.
Smith.
Royal Inst.
Sampson.
Quantity.
30- 87
34-96
37-80
40-20
36-03
31- 12
Aver, of vears.
6
6
18
6
6
7
Sir Robert Kane estimates the average annual fall of rain
at 36 inches ; but in so variable a climate thorough accuracy
can only be obtained by observations made in numerous loca¬
lities, and extending over considerable periods of time. So
much, however, is certain—that the climate of Ireland is variable
in detail—very mild and equable in temperature—that pro¬
longed frosts and violent thunderstorms are of rare occurrence
—and that the prevailing winds are those from the Atlantic
Ocean, the S. W., W., and N. W., with a predominance during
the early part of the year of the S.E. winds. So far as the
human constitution is concerned, the climate of Ireland must
be accounted extremely wholesome. “ The greater prevalence
of fevers and dysentery in Ireland, although partly attribut¬
able to the humidity of the atmosphere, in connection with
marsh exhalations, is mainly owing to other causes ; more es¬
pecially to very poor and often unwholesome diet, to famine,
to imperfect clothing, to sleeping on the earthen floors of the
cabins, to neglect of personal and domestic cleanliness, and to
various circumstances which associate themselves with the op¬
pression, ignorance, and bigotry to which the lowest classes
are subjected, and with the imperfect civilization to which
they have as yet, in many places, attained. The very re¬
markable diflerence in moral constitutions, in temperament,
and even in physical conformation, among the natives of the
kingdoms, and especially between those of Ireland and Great
Britain, cannot be explained by any appreciable differences of Statistics
the climate or soil; they must, therefore, be referred, and are
clearly indeed attributable, to other sources.” 2
The general surface of the country is a plain, not altogether
level, but interspersed with low hills, rising towards the sea-
coast into mountain ranges, which present a difference of geo¬
logical structure of the most decided character, consisting
mainly of the older or primitive rocks, while the great central
plain is formed of calcareous strata. Were this great lime¬
stone plain sunk a second time beneath the waters, it would
form a vast lake interspersed with islands, surrounded by the
maritime counties, and communicating with the sea in the
counties of Dublin, Galway, and the north of Clare. _ Next to
the carboniferous limestone, which prevails so extensively, the
principal rocks are granite, mica-slate, clay-slate, old red sand¬
stone, yellow sandstone, and quartz. Granite is found chiefly
in Wicklow, Galway, Down, and Donegal, and occasionally,
but only in small quantities, in some other counties; in the
granite districts are found the chief mines of lead, and some
other minerals. Mica-slate forms the chief portion of Derry
and Tyrone ; it also appears extensively in Donegal, Galway,
and Mayo. Clay-slate composes the greater part of the coun¬
ties of Wexford, Louth, Down, Waterford, Cork, and Kerry,
and smaller sections of other counties ; this formation contains
an important portion of the mineral wealth of Ireland. A
considerable portion of the county of Cork is constituted of the
old red sandstone formation.
Several coal-fields exist in Ireland resting on a limestone
basis. In Ulster, the district of Coal Island, in the county of
Tyrone, produces coal of good quality, extensively used in the
neighbourhood ; the small coal-field at Ballycastle, in Antrim,
is of no economical importance. The province of Connaught
affords beds of coal in Leitrim, Roscommon, and Sligo, but
rarely exceeding three or four inches in thickness. The Mun¬
ster coal-fields are in the counties of Cork, Kerry, and Lime¬
rick. The chief coal district, however, is that of Leinster, in
Carlow, Kilkenny, and the Queen’s County. This coal, as
well as that of the Munster district, is anthracitous ; that of
Connaught is bituminous. The native coal is only used in the
districts where it is raised, and neither the quantity nor the
quality has been found such as to interfere with the importa¬
tion of coal from Great Britain, which probably exceeds one
million of tons annually.
More notable in Ireland are the unstratified igneous rocks,
of which many varieties are found. Trap rocks exist in vari¬
ous parts of the country, but more especially in Antrim, where
they are found in great variety. The basaltic columns of
Fairhead and the Giant’s Causeway form one of tlm most in¬
teresting geological districts in the British Empire. The
trap-rocks often repose on the indurated chalk of Antrim,
especially in Rathlin Island and at Cushendole. At the lat¬
ter place, beds of trap and the chalk alternate. Of quartz
rock, the chief development in Ireland is in Mayo and Donegal;
it appears also in the peninsula of Howth and Dublin,the sum¬
mits of the Sugar-Loaf Mountains, and Bray Head, in Wicklow,
and in the district of Forth, in Wexford. No tertiary forma¬
tion has been discovered in Ireland, except the clays containing
lignite or wood-coal on the southern shore of Lough Neagh.
The elevation of the surface of Ireland is stated in the fol¬
lowing table from the Land Tenure Commissioners’ Map :
Square miles.
Between sea level and 250 feet in height  13,242f
250 and 500  11’7^
500 and 1000,  5,797|
1000 and 2000  1.5S9|
Above 2000 feet in height 
32,509f
The highest peaks in the chief mountain-groups are :
Carntual, M'Gillicuddy’s Reeks, Co. Kerry 3,414
Lugnaquilla, Wicklow  3,039
Slieve Donard, Mourne Mountains, Co. Down 2,796
Mulrea, Co. Mayo   2,688
Comeragh, Co. Waterford 2,597
Brrigal, Co. Donegal 2,462
Trostan, Co. Antrim 1,810
The principal mountains in the S. are the Galtees, Bockra,
&c., which range from 1500 to 3000 feet in height; and in the
1 Hamilton on the Climate of Ireland (Transactions of the Royal Irish Academy, vol. vi.)
2 M‘C ulloch’s Account of the British Empire.
IRELAND.
Statistics, N. the Cuilcagh and Sperrin mountains, rising from 2188 tr>
2238 feet. 8
If the possession of numerous fine bays and harbours made
a country great as a commercial and maritime power, Ireland
would be second to none in Europe. Pre-eminent even in Ire¬
land is the magnificent harbour of Cork, securely landlocked
protected by strong batteries, and used as the only naval
station on the Irish coast. Baltimore harbour, Skull, Cape
Clear, Crookhaven, Dunmanus and Bantry Bay, are all of suffi¬
cient depth and capacity for large vessels. On the western
coast are Berehaven, Kenmare River, Valentia, Yentry, Smer-
wick, Brandon Bay, the estuary of the Shannon, Galway Bay
Roundstone Bay, Ardbear or Clifden, Ballynakill and Killery
harbours, Clew, Blackrod, and Killala bays, with many others
of less importance. On the northern coast are Milroy har¬
bour, and the fine gulfs of Lough Swilly and Lough Foyle.
The eastern coast has been less favoured by nature, and fur¬
nishes only one bay, with sufficient depth of water for the
largest vessels, that of Strangford. The Bay of Dublin which
is much exposed, contains the fine artificial harbour ofKings-
town Belfast, Newry, Drogheda, Wicklow, Arklow, and
Wexford, have all been converted into ports, but are naturally
deficient in the requisites for good harbours. Between Wex¬
ford and Cork is the fine estuary of Waterford, formed by the
confluence of the rivers Suir, Nore, and Barrow. Altogether,
Ireland possesses If harbours for the largest ships, 17 for fri¬
gates, from 30 to 40 for merchant vessels, with many good
summer roadsteads, and an infinity of small harbours for fish¬
ing boats.
The islands off the coasts of Ireland are numerous, but gene-
raliy of small size; the largest are Rathlin and Tory in the
JN.; Achill, Clare, the South Arran Islands, and Yalentia, in
the W.; and Whiddy and Cape Clear in the S.
The lakes in Ireland are numerous. Lough Neagh, in Ul¬
ster, is the largest inland lake in the United Kingdom] and is
only exceeded in Europe by Lake Ladoga in Russia, Lake Yener
in Sweden, and the Lake of Geneva. According to the Ordnance
Survey it covers 98,255 statute acres. The River Bann pass¬
ing through it affords the means of lowering its surface, which
is 48 feet above the sea at low water; but as its deepest part
is beneath the level of low water, total drainage would be im¬
practicable. Tradition states that it was once dry land, and
that the tops of buildings may at times be seen in it,—a legend
which has been made use of by Moore in one of his melodies.
Lough Aeagh contains but one islet, Ram Island, remarkable
only for a round tower, and as contributing to break the same¬
ness of the surface of the lake, which, being surrounded by
shores almost as level as itself, and generally bare of wood, has
little or none of the picturesque beauty which renders Lough
Erne and Killarney so delightful. Its vicinity to the five coun¬
ties of Ulster, Antrim, Down, Armagh, Tyrone, and London¬
derry, each of which its.waters touch, presents great advantages
for internal trade by inland navigation; steam-vessels have
been placed upon the lake, and, in conjunction with Coal Island,
Newry, Ulster, and Lagan canals, Lough Neagh, with its
100 miles of coast, promises to increase in importance as a
centre of internal traffic. Lough Erne, the next in size, lies
wholly within the county of Fermanagh. Its total length is
upwards of 40 miles, but its greatest breadth is not more than
8. Strictly speaking, it consists of two lakes, about 5 miles
apart; the more inland measuring about 14 miles in length,
and that nearer the sea 25. They are connected with each
other by a fine river flowing from the upper or southern,
into the lower or northern lake. On an island formed by the
division of this river into two branches, the chief part of the town
of Enniskillen is built. The upper lake covers 9278 statute
acres, and contains above 90 islands ; the lower and larger lake
contains nearly 28,000 statute acres and numerous islets. Its
coasts are studded with numerous seats and villas of much
beauty. Lough Corrib and Lough Mask, in the west of Con¬
naught, are separated from each other by an isthmus not more
than 3 miles broad. The former of these lakes covers an area
of 43,484 acres, and the latter 22,219. It discharges its waters
mto Galway Ba,y by a short but broad and rapid river, which
skirts the town of Galway. Its level is but 14 feet above that
ot the sea, and works have long been in progress to connect
the navigation of the bay with that of the two great lakes
above it. Means of connecting them by water communica¬
tion has not yet been effected. Farther north, and about 3
VOL. XII.
505
miles from Ballina, is the narrow lake of Lough Conn, 12 Statistic
miles long. The lakes of Killarney, in Kerry, have long been i i
celebrated for their picturesque scenery. They are small as
compared with the larger lakes of Ireland; the lower lake
covers 5001 acres, the middle lake 680 acres, and the upper
lake only 430 acres. Lough Derg, in the south of Donegal,
is small, but of great celebrity from an islet in it called St
Ratnck s Purgatory, which has been resorted to from time
immemorial as a place of penance by pilgrims of the Roman
atholic persuasion. This lake is not to be confounded with
t le great Lough Dearg lying on the course of the Shannon,
which contains 29,570 acres. Lough Gill, in Sligo, Lough
lellin to the north of Meath, and Lough Oughter, in Cavan,
are also worthy of notice for their scenic beauties. There are
many other lakes of small size in most parts of Ireland, but
chiefly in the counties of Cavan, Westmeath, and Longford.
Ireland contains not only the largest lake, but also the
largest river in the United Kingdom—the Shannon, which,
rising m the mountains on the confines of Fermanagh and
Leitrim, flows through Lough Allen, and thence in a "south¬
western direction, separating Connaught from Leinster- till,
arriving at Limerick, it turns westward, and discharges itself
into the Atlantic, through a fine estuary, 'which, at its entrance
between the capes of Loophead and Kerryhead, is 8 miles
wide, it is navigable for large vessels to Limerick, and for
vessels of small tonnage to within 5 miles of its source in
Lough Allen. Its centre length measures 240 miles, and in
consequence of the small amount of its fall, which does not ex¬
ceed 150 feet, its current is very slow and often imperceptible.
. uririp 1^s passage from Lough Allen to Limerick it expands
into the large lakes of Lough Reagh, 15 miles, and Lough
earg 21 miles, in length, and studded with numerous islets.
1 he Blackwater rises near Charleville, and, flowing south-
eastwards, discharges itself into the Atlantic at Youghal, after
terming the boundary between the counties of Cork and Wa¬
terford. Between the latter county and that of Wexford is
he estuary of the feuir, the Nore, and the Barrow, all of which
r V<u a *.r sources not far from each other in the central range
of the Slievebloom Mountains ; and, after diverging so that
their streams enrich a great portion of the provinces of Lein¬
ster and Munster, unite again near the city of Waterford.
•i .ane^ r^ses in the mountains of Wicklow, and empties
itself into St George’s Channel at Wexford. The Boyne,
famous for its historical recollections as well as for its natural
advantages, has its sources in the central elevated plain of
Leinster, and, flowing north-eastwards, falls into the Irish Sea
at Drogheda. The Bann rises in the Mourne Mountains, flows
northwards through Lough Neagh, and, after separating the
counties of Londonderry and Antrim, flows into the Atlantic
at Coleraine. The Foyle is formed by the union of the
streams of the Poe, the Mourne, the Finn, and the Derg,
which, flowing from different parts of the interior of Ulster,
discharge their combined waters into Lough Foyle near Lon¬
donderry. The Erne, which flows from Lough Erne, has a
short but rapid course to the Atlantic westwards, and dis¬
charges its great body of waters into Donegal Bay, over a
ledge of rocks rising 10 feet above the level of the ordinary
tides. The other rivers, though numerous, amounting nearly
to one hundred, are small, and mostly confined to the counties
that give them birth. Ihe Liffey, W'hich rises in the moun-
tain-land of Wicklow, and, after a circuitous course through
Kildare, discharges itself into the Irish Sea, is remarkable for
nothing except that the metropolitan city of Dublin is seated
on its banks.
1 he extent of country forming the basin from whence each
of the principal rivers derives its supply is as follows :—
Sq. miles
Shannon  4-544
Barrow, Nore, and Suir ...3*400
Galway, including Loughs
Corrib and Mask 1-374
Erne 1-585
Eoyle  1.476
Bann and Maine  1-266
Blackwater, S 1-219
Boyne and Blackwater ... 1-086
Moy  1-033
Slaney   -gis
Sq. miles.
Bee  735
Liffey   568
Blackwater, N 526
Maine and Inney  5H
Feale and Galle 479
Roughty  475
Ovoca  281
Bandon  228
Lagan  227
Avonmore  200
Ireland was once so thickly covered with timber as to receive
3 s
506
I R E L A N D.
Statistics, the name of the Island of Woods. During the early periods
v ; of its connection with England, its extensive and impenetrable
^ forests formed a main obstacle to the progress ot the Eng-
lish troops. Westminster Hall is said to be roofed with oak
cut in the woods of Shillelagh. Numerous trunks of large trees
are constantly found in the bogs. Even in mountain tracts, de¬
voted for a long succession of years to the pasturage of sheep,
timber trees shoot up spontaneously wherever the land is
secured from the intrusions of cattle. Many places, where the
vestige of a plantation is not to be seen, retain names of which
the word “ wood” forms a component part; and in localities
where the most attentive culture will not suffice to keep any
tree or shrub alive on account of the western blasts, large
trees are found imbedded in the bogs. The different kinds of
timber found in the bogs of Ireland are confined to oak, fir,
yew, holly, sallow, and birch. Two centuries ago, when Ire¬
land’was covered with forests, there were numerous small iron
works, in which wood charcoal was employed, and vast quan¬
tities of wood used until the country was gradually stripped of
its supply, and the working of iron was consequently abandoned.
The extension of agricultural improvement, and more especi¬
ally the timber act, which gives the tenant, at the expiration
of his lease, a pecuniary interest in the trees he has planted,
are gradually removing this defect, the consequence of ages of
disturbance and desolation ; but trees in large quantities are
generally found in Ireland only in the vicinity of the residences
of the gentry, except in some favoured spots, which are well
wooded. _ .
Ireland is reputed to contain much lead, copper, andiron, but
notwithstanding many attempts to work the metallic.mines dis¬
covered in the country, few have been found sufficiently pro¬
ductive to repay the necessary outlay of capital. Towards the
close of the last century gold was discovered accidentally in the
streams flowing from the mountain of Croghan Kinsela, on the
confines of Wicklow and Wexford. The metal was found
in lumps and small pieces down to the minutest grain. Many
of the peasants having ruined themselves by leaving their Statistics,
proper occupations to join the search, Government^ to put
an end to the fruitless quest, took up the enterprise, and
only relinquished it after satisfying the seekers of its worth-
lesness. “ The gold is associated with magnetic ironstone,
sometimes in masses of half a hundredweight ; also iron
pyrites, brown and red hematite, wolfram, manganese, and
fragments of tinstone in crystals, together with quartz.
From the nature of these attendant minerals, of which
most are known to occur in the quartz veins of the ad-
jacant mountain, it was hoped that by tracing up the rivulets
to their sources, and laying bare in various directions the un¬
derlying rock, the metalliferous veins might be discovered,
from the disintegration of which the sand and soil of the bed
of the streams had been produced. All such trials proved
useless, and the question as to the source from whence the gold
in those streams in Wicklow has been derived, remains still un¬
answered.”1
Copper ores are distributed throughout the clay-slate dis¬
tricts in a great number of localities more or less abundantly.
The principal mines are those of Ballymurtagh, Conoree, Crone-
bane and Tigroney, and Ballygahan, in Wicklow county ; the
Knockmahon, Kilduane, Bonmahon, and Balinasisla, in the
Waterford district; Allihies or Berehaven, Audley, and Co¬
sheen and Skull, in the south-western district; and the mines
of Hollyford and Lackamore, in the western district.
The total quantity and value of copper ore from Ireland,
sold in Swansea, where it is smelted, were in—
Years. Tons.
1836   21,819
1840   19,580
1843   17,509
1844   18,597
1845   18,430
1846   17,471
Value.
L.163,865
127,911
117,625
77,622
97,122
106,078
Years. Tons.
1847   14,857
1848   12,808
1849   10,425
1850   10,021
1851   10,577
1852   12,171
Value.
L.96,330
82,039
68,794
69,594
77,713
104,822
The produce and value of the copper mines in Ireland for
1853-4: is shown in the following table :—1
Mines.
1853.
Ore.
Cork :—
Baltimore  
Berehaven  
Cosheen  
Crookhaven 
Glandore 
South Cork 
Galway :—
Galway   
Tipperary :—
Holyford 
Lackamore  
Waterford :—
Knockmahon  
Wicklow :—
Ballygahan 
Ballymurtagh...
Conoree 
Cronebane  
Tigroney 
Total   11,485
Tons.
153
5,868
54
550
3,373
1,326
40
121
Copper.
Tons. cwts. qrs. lbs.
7 16 1 0
582 7 1 19
5 2 2 5
100 16 1 9
352 1 0 21
57 13 2 21
11 0 0 4
11 18 2 12
1128 16 0 7
L. s. d.
716 9 0
58,528 7 0
471 15 0
10,104 4 0
38,559 13 6
5,724 1 6
1,088 2 0
1,196 11 0
Pro¬
duce.
116,389 3 0
91A
9*
181«
27f
1854.
Copper.
Tons.
5^030
45
43
67
62
555
159
4,421
53
1,237
58
9
Tons. cwts. qrs. lbs'
488
8
2
5
4
12
4
0
13
14
3 7
3 26
0 0
0 22
3 16
11,739
97 17 0 23
13 7 2 20
434 18 0 22
1 19 2 7
55 12 3 6
7 13 2 17
3 18 3 20
L. s. d.
53,348 1 0
905 11 0
194 0 0
617 19 0
344 6 0
10,979 4 6
1,423 18 6
53,022 13 0
167 14 0
5,763 9 0
826 11 0
460 2 6
1,124 13 3 18 128,053 9 6
Pro¬
duce.
9fiV
18i
8f’i1i
n
17I-!
10U
4*
13i
37f
12i
Lead is more extensively diffused through Ireland than
copper. The granitic district of Wicklow contains numerous
veins ; the principal are those of Glendalough, Glenmalur,
Glendasane or Luganure, and Ballycorus. The clay-slate dis¬
tricts also yield numerous indications of this metal, but few of
the mines have proved profitable. Those still worked are at
Clonligg, Newtownards, and Rathmullen, in Down county ;
Bond and Newry, in Armagh county ; Castleblayney, in Mon¬
aghan county ; Kenmare, in Kerry county ; Kilbricken and
Ballyhickey, in Clare county; Shallee, in Limerick county;
and Bantry, in Cork county. A vein at Clontarf, near Dublin,
was worked until the mine was filled with water by the ingress
of the sea. At Bally corus, where the lead ores from the mines
of the Mining Company of Ireland are smelted, the quantities
of ore worked up in 1851 from Luganure mines was 671 tons,
which produced 460 tons of lead, equal to nearly 69 per cent.
The proportions of silver to a ton of lead are generally found to
be,—from the mine of Luganure, 8 oz.; Caime, 12 oz. ; Bally¬
hickey, 15 oz. ; Shallee, 25 oz.; Kilbricken, 120 oz.; lolly-
ratty, near Strangford, 10 oz. The average of silver extracted
from the lead ore raised by the Mining Company of Ireland in
1851, was 7 oz. to the ton of lead ; the total quantity 3860 oz.;
producing L.1029, 6s. 8d. The working of the principal lead
mines in Ireland for 1853-4 is shown in the following table . -
1 Sir R. Kane’s Industrial Resources of Ireland.
IRELAND.
507
Statistics.
Jogs
County.
Clare.
Down.
Louth
Mines.
Limerick..
Tipperary.
Wicklow ..
Annaglough..
Kilbricken....
Miltown 
Newtownards.
Strangford....
Dundalk 
Lanbrynmair.
Shallee  
Gurtnadyne...
Bally goneen...
Luganure 
Wicklow 
1853.
Ore.
Tons. Cwts.
100 0
31 10
10 0
1,606 0
40 0
26 0
0
0
0
0
282
220
909
85
Lead.
Total  3,309 10
Tons. Cwts.
77 10
22 10
8 0
1,270 0
31 0
16 0
180”’ 0
154 0
636 " 7
57 0
Silver.
2,452 7
Ozs.
2,416
296
7,020
3,280
4,287
365
17,664
Native silver was found in a bed of iron ochre in Cronebane,
but the deposit has been long since exhausted. Sulphuret of
silver was found in the lead ore at Ballycorus some years since,
and the Mining Company of Ireland have resumed operations
to prove this valuable discovery. Tinstone has been found in
the auriferous soil of Wicklow, but no veins or workable de¬
posits have been discovered. Other minerals, useful in manu-
factures and the arts, and found in quantities in various parts
of the country, are manganese, antimony, zinc, nickel, iron
pyrites, alum, clays of various kinds, building stone, marble,
nags, and roofing slates. Mineral springs, chiefly chalybeate,
are numerous in many parts of the country. Those of chief
note for their medicinal qualities are at Mallow, in Cork, re¬
sembling the hot wells of Bristol; Ballynahinch, in Down ;
S ward inbar, in Cavan ; Castleconnel, near Limerick; and Lu¬
can, near Dublin.
The bogs are chiefly found in the elevated central district.
Two lines drawn across the island, the one from Howth to
oligo, the other from Wicklow to Galway, will comprehend by
much the greater portion of bog throughout the island. This
division is traversed by the Shannon from north to south and
then divided into two parts, that to the westward of the river
containing more than double the extent of the bogs which are
to be found in the division to the eastward. “ Most of the bogs
which lie to the eastward of the Shannon, and which occupy a
considerable portion of the King’s county and the county of
Kildare, are generally known by the name of the Bog of Allen ;
it must not, however, be supposed that this name is applied to
any one great morass ; on the contrary, the bogs to which it is
applied are perfectly distinct from each other, often separated
by high ridges of dry country, and inclining towards different
rivers as their natural directions for drainage, and so inter¬
sected by dry and cultivated land, that it may be affirmed
generally there is no spot of these bogs to the eastward of
the Shannon so much as two Irish miles distant from the up¬
land and cultivated districts. The total quantity, indepen¬
dently of small mountainous and detached patches, has been
thus estimated:—
Flat red bog, capable of being reclaimed 1,576,000 acres.
Mountain bog, mostly convertible into pastur-
aSe 1,255,000
1854.
Ore.
Tons. Cwts.
67 10
98 0
1,379" 0
39*’ 0
15 15
142 0
213 10
20 0
1,095 0
3,069 15 2,210 15
Lead.
Tons. Cwts.
51 0
70 0
1,084*" 0
29
12
95
145
Silver.
14 10
710 0
Ozs.
6,650
91
3,420
2,900
65
4,970
18,096
Statistics.
Total 2,831,000
The bogs are distinguished, according to their substance, into
red or fibrous, and black or compact. The former, which con¬
sists chiefly of the Sphagnum palustre, or bog-moss, is the
most general. Its colour is of a reddish brown, approaching
when dry to that of an olive. Its surface is generally covered
with heath, which gives it a still darker hue. The black bog
varies in colour from dark brown to perfect black ; in which
latter case it is extremely hard and close grained, separating,
when broken, into angular fragments. On cutting downwards’
the substance grows denser and darker, exhibiting a black mass
very compact, strongly resembling pitch or coal, and when ig¬
nited emitting a smell so offensive as to prevent its general use
as an article of fuel. The peat is found to rest on a blue clay,
and ultimately on limestone gravel. The depth of the bogs in
some places is nearly forty feet; twenty-five may be considered
as a general average. In all cases they are found above the
level of the sea. The greatest height of any is 488 feet, the
least 25 ; and in all cases they might easily be connected with
some river by which their superfluous waters can be carried off
where draining is requisite for reclaiming them.
Previously to the calculations made by Sir William Petty Population,
scarcely any data existed even for a probable or conjectural
estimate of the number of the inhabitants of Ireland ; ideas
upon the subject were necessarily confused, and the statements
found in books and writings differed greatly from each other.
I he marks of the plough observable on the tops of hills which
have for many years been devoted to pasture only, have been
adduced as a proof that the superabundant population of for¬
mer ages compelled the farmers to have recourse to the poorer
ground there to raise a sufficiency of grain ; but the fact has
been imputed, with equal show of probability, to the disturbed
state of the country, when a ferocious enemy, having desolated
and possessed the more fertile lands in the plains, compelled
the natives to have recourse to the poorer soils on the hills. It
has also been attributed by some to the superior mildness of
the chmate in ancient times. The opinion of Agricola, quoted
Tacitus, that a single legion would be sufficient to conquer
the island, does not indicate a very numerous population at
that period ; and, subsequently, the smallness of the force with
which Henry II. held possession of the country favours the
samecondusion. After the close of the desolating wars of
Llizabeth, in which the Irish in arms were generally extermi¬
nated as rebels, Fynes Moryson, Lord Mountjoy’s secretarv
asserts that not more than five or six hundred thousand escaped
the edge of the sword or the horrors of famine. Sir William
Petty’s first estimate, as stated in the ensuing table, rests upon
conjecture; his second is founded on the number of “ smokes”
or hearths in the country. Those given by the tax-collectors
are founded on data of the same description, corrected in the
work of Mr Bushe by collateral calculations. The returns of
the established clergy were made at a time in which much of
the country was without a resident clergy of this persuasion
and therefore must be of doubtful value. De Burgho’s estimate
formed from information collected through the Catholic clergy,
then in a state of the lowest political degradation, must be
equally dubious. Newenham formed his from a great variety
of ingenious calculations on the quantity of food, exports, and
imports &c. The first of the parliamentary inquiries was a
total lailure, several counties having declined to make any re¬
turn, and those of several others being very inaccurate The
second, which ascertained not only the number of the people
but the name, age, occupation, and degree of mutual relation¬
ship, of every individual, may be considered as approximating
very closely to accuracy. In the third, which might be pre¬
sumed to be an improvement on the preceding, the returns of
the enumerators employed were not subjected to any effectual
check, and therefore little reliance can be placed on some of its
statements The return of 1834 rests on the same defective
basis as that of 1831; but as it was afterwards checked and
corrected by the commissioners of public instruction, through
the medium of the resident clergy, its statements are entitled
to more credit; but the returns of this census having been
nia e according to the ecclesiastical arrangement of dioceses,
oes not admit of comparison with the other returns, which
508
IRELAND.
Statistics. are divided into counties. The parliamentary census of 1841
w—' was fortunately of great authority, and admirably executed
Taken in connexion with the remarkable movement of the
population of Ireland between 1841 and 1851, the accuracy of
theP parliamentary returns of the numbers of the people at
those two periods became of great interest and importance.
The following is the result of the ditferent_estimates and
census enquiries into the number of the population of Ireland
at various periods :•—• pop
IGS^'Sir William Petty   ^0 000
1672 Ditto  
1695 Captain South    
1712 Thomas Dobbs ”!”;!!‘!‘""’‘!!!'"!!!2’l694)48
1?| :::::::::::: is
1731 Established Clergy   079 «o±
1754 Tax Collectors  ooit’orI
1760 De Burgho, Hibern. Dominican  o’kJJi’ota
1788 Gervais P. Bushe 
1805 Thomas Newenham   
Year. Pop.
1811 Parliamentary return  5,937,856
1821 Ditto 6,801,827
1831 Ditto    7,767.401
1834 Commissioners of Public Instruction  7,943,940
1841 Parliamentary return  8,175,124
1851 Ditto  6,552,386
Few countries in the world have increased in population so
rapidly as Ireland during the first forty years of the present,
and the conclusion of the last century. Arthur Young, in his
Tour through Ireland, in 1766, observed that it everywhere
evinces the marks of a rapid increase of population. It is
generally supposed that the number of the people increases in
the ratio of food and comforts, and that an increase of popula¬
tion is a convincing proof of the advancing prosperity of a na¬
tion. The effect of the failure of the potato crop in depopu¬
lating the country would show that the population of Ireland
had outstripped the progress of wealth, and the increase of in¬
dustry, and had reduced their wants to the lowest point with¬
out procuring an addition to the comforts of life corresponding
to the increase of the population.
The following table exhibits the population of each portion
of the country, according to the censuses of 1821, 1831, 1841,
and 1851, together with the house accommodation at the latter
period:—
Provinces,
Counties, and
Cities.
Leinster.
Carlow 
Dublin 
Dublin City 
Kildare 
Kilkenny 
Kilkenny City 
King’s 
Longford 
Louth 
Drogheda Town..
Meath 
Queen’s  
Westmeath 
Wexford 
Wicklow 
1821.
Total 
Munster.
Clare 
Cork 
Cork City 
Kerry 
Limerick.... 
Limerick City 
Tipperary 
Waterford 
Waterford City....
Total 
Ulster.
Antrim 
Belfast Town 
Carrickfergus Dis.
Armagh  
Cavan 
Donegal 
Down 
Fermanagh....
Londonderry ,
Monaghan 
Tyrone 
1,757,492 1,909,713
78.952
150,011
185,881
99,065
158,716
23,230
131.088
107.570
101,011
18,118
159,183
134,275
128,819
170,806
110,767
1831.
1841.
81,988
176,012
204,155
108,424
169,945
23,741
144.225
112,558
107,481
17,365
176,826
145,851
136,872
182,713
121,557
208,089
629,786
100,658
216,185
218,432
59,045
346.896
127,842
28,679
1,935,612
258,322
703,716
107,016
263.126
248.801
66,554
402,563
148,233
28,821
Total..
Connaught.
Galway 
Galway Town..
Leitrim  
Mayo 
Roscommon 
Sligo 
2,227,152
1851.
Males.
86,228
140,047
232,726
114,488
183,349
19,071
146,857
115,491
111,979
16,261
183,828
153,930
141,300
202.033
126,143
Females.
1,973,731
286,394
773,398
80,720
293,880
281,638
48,391
435,553
172,971
23,216
33,01
68,071
119,183
48,504
67,573
8,917
55,285
41,042
44,308
7,945
70,815
55,543
56,089
86.942
50,232
Total.
813,462
217.683
45,177
8,023
197,427
195,076
248,270
325.410
130,997
193,869
174,697
261,865
1,998,494
309,599
27,775
124,785
293,112
208,729
146,229
2,396,161
268,685
48,224
8,706
220,134
227,933
289,149
352,012
149,763
222,012
195,536
304,468
2,286,622
Total 1,110,229
General Total. . 6,801,827
381,564
33,120
141,524
366.328
249,613
171,765
276,188
75,308
9,379
232,393
243,158
296,448
361,446
156,481
222,174
200,442
312,956
103,931
278,858
39,052
116,492
103,304
24.083
159,961
67,719
11,257
904,657
121,011
46,847
3,769
95,718
86,610
124,691
152,769
56,807
93,032
68,824
126,205
35,046
78,660
139,178
47,184
71,200
11.056
56,795
41,308
46,504
8,900
69,935
56,080
55,320
93,217
48,746
859,129
108,497
284,468
46,693
121,747
105,384
29,365
171,526
71,035
14,040
68,059
146,731
258,361
95,688
138,773
19,973
112,080
82,350
90,812
16,845
140.750
111,623
111,409
180,159
98,978
Houses in 1851.
1,672,591
952,755
2,386,373
1,343,914
7,767,401
422.923
17,275
155,297
388,887
253.591
180,886
1,418,859
976,283
146,915
10,491
56.087
133,376
86,357
62,879
130,370
53,453
4,751
100,367
87,461
130,469
168,048
59,200
98,836
72,989
129,529
212,428
563,326
85,745
238,239
208,688
53,448
331,487
138,754
25,297
1,857,412
12,542
29,285
57,622
17,488
24,999
3,777
21,125
15,311
17,821
3,634
25.678
20,937
21,221
33,315
17,236
Uninhabited.
Inha¬
bited.
11,177
23.618
22,276
15.834
23,373
2,587
18,798
13,858
16,503
2,957
24,044
19,185
18,740
29,508
15,544
321,991
36,686
96,370
18,230
37.776
35.068
9,966
57,210
23,391
5,553
1,035,473
2,011,756
151,221
13,204
55,754
141,236
87,060
65,631
496,105 514,106
8,175,124 3,190,50713,361,463
251,381
100,300
8.520
196,085
174,071
255,160
320,817
116,007
191,868
141,813
255,734
298,136
23,695
111,841
274,612
173,417
128,510
320,250
47,274
20,553
1,688
37,409
32,088
46,679
62,471
22,127
35,869
27.557
47,016
380,731
258,002
17,566
31,428
84.188
9,419
33,704
30,819
5,565
48,566
20.189
3,238
'267,116
699
2.238
1,920
948
1,493
401
1,234
827
1,403
355
1.239
1,222
847
1,777
963
1,685
6,732
1,043
1,883
1,697
905
3,261
1,442
712
19,360
54,466
4.132
20.172
49,860
31,989
23,411
184,030
1,010,211
6,551,970 1,207,002
44,077
13,806
1,488
35,073
30,050
44,618
58,429
20,214
33,339
25,742
45,037
351,873
49,208
2 540
18,922
46.940
29,530
22,163
13
154
121
41
26
3
15
26
26
17
37
25
14
50
24
Total.
592
45
118
48
77
46
16
81
35
7
11,889
26.010
24,317
16,823
24,892
2,091
20,047
14,711
17,932
3,329
25,320
20,432
19,601
31,335
16,531
Provinces,
Counties, and
Cities.
276,160
33,158
91,038
10,510
35,664
32,562
6,486
51,908
21,666
3,957
473 286,949
2.406
1,131
180
2,142
1,450
2,251
3,982
1,071
1,947
1,553
2,534
20,647
2,142
237
816
2,062
1,311
1,037
534
169,303 7,605 285 177,193
46,533
15,009
1,676
37,251
31,527
46,946
62,490
21,330
35.356
27,316
47,620
373,054
51,437
2.782
19,762
49,073
30,897
23.242
1,046,294 65,178 1,884 1,113,356
Leinster.
Carlow.
Dublin.
Dublin City.
Kildare.
Kilkenny.
Kilkenny City.
King’s.
Longford.
Louth.
Drogheda Town.
Meath.
Queen’s.
Westmeath.
Wexford.
Wicklow.
Total.
Munster.
Clare.
Cork.
Cork City.
Kerry.
Limerick.
Limerick City.
Tipperary.
Waterford.
Waterford City.
Total.
Ulster.
Antrim.
Belfast Town.
Carrickfergus Dis
Armagh.
Cavan.
Donegal.
Down.
Fermanagh,
Londonderry.
Monaghan.
Tyrone.
Total.
Connaught.
Galway.
Galway Town.
Leitrim.
Mayo.
Roscommon.
Sligo.
Total.
General Total.
Statistics.
IRELAND.
Statistics. The chief impediment to improvement in the condition of
the people of Ireland daring the present century has been the
redundancy of the population. In a country almost wholly de¬
pendent on the cultivation of the soil, there were in 1841 as
many as 335 persons to each square mile of arable land. Per¬
haps, with the exception of China there was no other country
in the world so densely peopled, and certainly none where the
population was so disproportioned to the means of employment.
509
This great density of population was necessarily accompanied Statistics,
by an extreme competition for land and employment, with the ^ v—>
absence of all inducements to the acquirement of skill, and in
consequence of the low rate of remuneration for labour and
high rents, the impossibility of any accummulation of capital
in the hands of the cultivators of the soil. The following table
shows the density of the population in 1841, and its remarkable
decrease in 1851;—•
Counties.
Leinster.
Carlow 
Dublin 
Kildare  
Kilkenny 
King’s 
Longford 
Louth 
Meath 
Queen’s 
Westmeath 
Wexford 
Wicklow 
Total
Munster.
Clare  
Cork  
Kerry  
Limerick 
Tipperary   
Waterford  
Total
Ulster.
Antrim 
Armagh 
Cavan  
Donegal 
Down 
Fermanagh 
Londonderry....
Monaghan 
Tyrone 
Total
Connaught.
Galway 
Leitrim 
Mayo 
Roscommon 
Sligo 
Total
General Total.
Rural Population.
1841.
72,172
113,778
104,090
173,157
130,239
108,117
96,479
171,726
138,873
131,316
173,267
117,892
1,531,106
267,907
683,919
269,406
274,520
364,261
149,207
1851.
53,391
89,857
87,319
134,044
99,334
77,072
78,067
133,094
99,850
100,613
148,587
90,406
1,191,634
2,009,220
261,846
211,893
234,914
290,002
323,807
150,795
197,622
191,301
298,498
2,160,698
403,746
155,297
369,138
243,539
166,915
1,338,635
7,039,659
195,620
478,898
208,153
201,931
261,741
119,756
1,466,099
No. of Persons to the square mile
Of Arable Land.
1841.
251
371
187
236
247
361
345
201
259
230
217
269
247
377
334
416
333
276
293
332
1851.
172
295
155
185
188
253
295
157
181
177
181
173
189
Decrease
between
1841-51.
Of the entire Rural
District.
1841.
79
76
32
51
59
108
50
44
78
53
36
96
58
229
221
216
226
194
234
218
233,500
176,051
166,651
250,269
280,699
110,098
162,368
128,966
241,105
1,749,707
277,094
111,897
257,933
162,460
116,885
926,269
325
511
400
472
403
334
397
428
424
406
348
398
475
354
367
386
257
417
269
231
343
209
293
288
287
280
204
266
255
277
251
241
148
113
200
107
82
59
209
330
159
218
169
257
308
190
210
185
193
151
202
207
238
145
259
220
207
1851.
155
266
134
169
129
183
249
147
151
142
166
116
Decrease
between
1841-51.
54
64
25
49
40
74
59
43
59
43
27
35
Of the entire Area (includ'
ing the Town Population.
1841.
249
1-045
175
254
190
274
394
208
232
199
224
161
1851.
157
45
151
167
112
191
158
167
114
68
94
131
241
60
125
104
140
137
126
144
132
220
77
116
145
5,333,709
335
212
221
414
315
156
339
211
245
383
237
253
165
253
173
257
231
195
236
99
217
155
191
344
224
134
294
154
201
259
191
205
113
182
121
171
162
135
164
56
71
33
68
62
40
57
30
70
91
22
45
57
44
124
46
48
52
71
52
86
69
60
53
259
221
296
159
310
263
272
253
197
1-145
146
199
145
196
328
160
168
157
200
127
220
164
225
129
246
200
227
303
453
326
159
378
219
274
401
248
279
180
253
183
267
251
207
251
196
296
383
233
137
344
162
237
284
203
235
131
183
129
183
178
147
202
Decrease
between
184]-51.
52
29
55
45
78
66
48
64
42
24
34
39
57
71
30
64
63
45
57
7
70
93
22
34
57
37
117
45
44
49
70
54
84
73
60
49
Number of Persons by Occupations in 1841 and 1851, classified ac¬
cording as Producers, Manufacturers, and Traders.
Occupations. 1841. 1851.
Ministering to food—
Producers  1,854,141 1,461,776
Manufacturers  13,995 18,035
Traders  35,935 52,103
Total  1,904,071 1,531,914
Occupations.
Ministering to clothing—
Cloth manufacturers.
Leather-workers 
Clothes-makers 
Traders 
Total.
1841. 1851.
669,224 278.223
57,833 49,900
167.998 267,225
6,269 11,184
901,324 606,532
510
Statistics.
IRELAND.
1841
Occupations.
Ministering to lodging, &c.:
Workers in stone  aq«
metal  tt’786
Miscellaneous 
Traders  2’093
Total  164,366
Ministering to health 
charity ....
justice 
education
religion....
6,871
253
19,541
16,814
7,192
Total  50,671
27,177
48,195
45,083
20,749
5,265
146,469
7,148
1,898
26,862
17,407
8,398
61,713
Occupations. 1841.
Unclassified:—
Ministering to arts  3,495
... trade  59,549
... travelling  18,975
Miscellaneous  409,409
Total  491,428
1852.
2,674
54,470
43,743
394,208
494,995
Statistics.
General Total  3,511,860 2,841,623
The absence of a general system of registration^ of births,
deaths, and marriages in Ireland renders it impossible to ob¬
tain perfectly accurate information on those important subjects.
To remedy the defect as far as possible, the Census Commis¬
sioners collected from the information of the people themselves
a statement of the number of deaths which occurred in Ireland
from the 6th June 1841 to 30th March 1851, by diseases,
seasons, and localities; also the total number of deaths. I he fol¬
lowing table shows the proportions in the several provinces:
Provinces.
Leinster—
Munster....
Ulster  
Connaught.
Total of Ireland
Diseases.
Epidemic
Diseases.
122,072
216,499
105,903
109,327
553,801
Sporadic
Diseases.
203,069
174,501
163,571
80,571
621,712
Violent
Sudden
Deaths.
8,692
17,052
9,592
14,421
49,757
Causes
not
specified.
21,477
62,790
31,574
19,940
135,781
Seasons.
Spring.
109,298
154,076
103,037
76,771
443,182
95,556
135,014
77,422
65,756
373,748
56,868
58,837
45,527
30,773
192,005
Winter.
93,588
113,527
84,654
49,016
340,785
Localities.
Civic
Districts.
84,770
77,080
40,917
14,768
217,535
Rural
Districts.
180,350
231,555
206,750
154,164
772,819
Public
Institu¬
tions1.
90,190
162,207
62,973
55,327
370,697
Total
Number of
Deaths from
6th June
1841 to 30th
March 1851.
353,310
470,842
310,640
224,259
1,361,051
The statement in the foregoing table being only the number
of deaths recorded by persons living in Ireland at the time of
the census of 1851, fall short of the actual number which must
nave occurred during the ten years. The Census Commission¬
ers estimate that, had emigration and immigration been equal,
and the average number of births and deaths in England taken
as the basis of the calculation, the probable number of inhabi¬
tants which would have been in Ireland on the 31st of March
1851, was 9,018,798. From the etfects of famine, emigration,
&c., the actual number was reduced to 6,552,386 persons, and
is still in course of reduction. Assuming the same rate of in¬
crease as in the above estimate, the commissioners give the
following as the probable results:—
Estimated Decrease, by Emigration, of the Irish Population from uOth
March 1851 to 31s« December 1855.
house in a small street, having from five to nine rooms and
windows; and in the first, all houses of a better description
than the preceding classes.”
The number of houses in 1841 and 1851, according to this
classification, was as follows:—
Difference between 1841
and 1851.
Inhabited. In 1841.
1st class  40,080
2d class 264,184
3d class 533,297
4th class 491,278
In 1851.
50,164
318,758
541,712
135,589
1,046,223
65,263
1,868
Increase.
10,084
54,574
8,415
Decrease.
13,055
355,689
282,616
1,445
18512
1852.. .
1853.. .
1854.. .
1855.. .
Population
6,552,385:
6,422,197
6,296,328
6,186,369
6,107,899
Esti¬
mated
N umber
of
Births.
158,525
207,168
203,107
199,560
197,029
Esti¬
mated
Number
of
Deaths.
Increase
of Pop.
by ex¬
cess of
Births
over
Deaths.
109,206
142,715
139,918
137,475
135,731
49,320
64,539
63,277
62,174
61,388
Emigra¬
tion from
Irish
Ports.4
179,507
190,322
173,148
140,555
91,914
Deer, of Pop.,
being the dif¬
ference be¬
tween the ex¬
cess of Births
and the
Emigration.
130,188
125,869
109,959
78,470
30,616
The number of natives of other parts of the United King¬
dom and of foreigners resident in Ireland has increased. Of
those born in England and Wales, there were resident in Ire¬
land in 1841, 21,552 persons, whilst in 1851 the number was
34,454. Of natives of Scotland living in Ireland there were
in 1841, 8585 persons, and 12,309 in 1851. The number of
persons born in foreign countries resident in Ireland in 1841
was 4471; in 1851 it was 9583.
Together with the decrease of the poorer classes of the popu¬
lation a proportionate removal of their habitations has taken
place. The classification of houses adopted by the Census
Commissioners in 1841 and in 1851, was as follows :—“ In the
lowest, or fourth class, were comprised all mud cabins having
only one room ; in the third, a better description of cottage,
still built of mud, but varying from two to four rooms and
windows ; in the second, a good farm-house, or in towns, a
Total inhabited 1,328,839
t— • , . .. , ( Built, ...52,208
Uninhabited j Building) 3^3 ^  ____
General Total, ...1,384,360 1,113,354 Net deer. 271,006.
It thus appears that between 1841 and 1851, 355,689 mud
cabins have disappeared from Ireland, and that while there
has been this decrease in the fourth class, there has been an
increase in the number of the better classes of habitations of
10,084 in the first class, 54,574 in the second class (compris¬
ing the country good farm-houses), and 8,415 in the third
class (or houses containing from two to four rooms, but built
of mud.) ,
Amongst the population of Ireland there is greater physical physical
variety and more distinctive peculiarities than are found in varieties,
other portions of the United Kingdom, fhe Milesian race,
with black hair, brilliant dark eye, oval face, and finely moulded
sinewy form, predominate in the West and South. In the
East and North the Saxon race prevails with lofty brow, broad
ruddy face, blue eye, clear skin, red or flaxen hair, and power¬
ful frame. Intermingled with these races are the several vari¬
eties of the Dane, the Norman, &c. The central and mountain¬
ous districts are chiefly occupied by people of Celtic or Gaelic
race, with high cheek bones, round face, gray eye, rough brown
hair, dingy complexion, and muscular body of short stature.
The baronies of Forth and Bargie, in the county of Wexford,
which were granted in 1169 by the Irish king Dermod Mac-
Morrogh to the Constable Harvey de Montmorency, were by
him and his followers cleared of the native population and
colonized with settlers from Somersetshire and Pembrokeshire
whose descendants still remain a peculiar race. Mason, in his
Statistical Account, describes the people of these baronies as
1 There were 11,331 deaths returned from workhouses in which the season could not be stated; the summary under this head is theie-
fore unavoidably deficient that amount.
2 The births, deaths, and emigration for 1851, are given for nine months only, viz.,—from 1st April to 31st December.
3 According to the census. 4 £<e>> including Irish emigrants who had been living in other parts of the United Kingdom.
IRELAND.
511
Statistics, very different in language, customs, and dress, from those in
x. ^ any other part of Ireland, and asserts that when he visited the
district (in 1819) they spoke the language in which Chaucer
wrote. In the county of Limerick, near Adare, and other
parts, a colony of German Protestants, known as “ The Pala¬
tines,” were introduced by Lord Southwell about a century
and a half ago, and are still different in character and distinct
in habits from the people of the country. Ferrar the historian
of Limerick observes of the Palatines, that “they preserve
their language, but it is declining; they sleep between two
beds ; they appoint a burgomaster, to whom they appeal in
all disputes. They are industrious men, and have leases from
the proprietors of the land at reasonable rents ; they are, con¬
sequently, better fed and clothed than the generality of Irish
peasants. Besides, their modes of husbandry and crops are
better than those of their neighbours. They have by degrees
left off their sour-crout, and feed on potatoes, milk, butter,
oaten and wheaten bread, some meat, and fowls, of which they
rear many. They keep their cows housed in winter, feeding Statist! cs.
them with hay and oaten straw: their houses are remarkably ^ /
clean; to which they have stables, cowdmuses, a lodge for their
plough, and neat kitchen-gardens. The women are very in«
dustrious, and perform many things which the Irish woman
could never be prevailed on to do; besides their domestic em¬
ployments and the care of their children, they reap the corn,
plough the ground, and assist the men in everything. In short,
the Palatines have benefited the country by increasing tillage,
and are a laborious, independent people, who are mostly em¬
ployed on their own small farms.”
Of the entire population, amounting in 1851 to 6,552,386, Language,
there were returned to the Census Commissioners 1,524,286
persons who could speak the Irish language. Of these,
740,045 were males, and 784,241 females. By far the greater
portion of these persons, however, were also able to speak
the English language, as will appear from the annexed
table:—
Provinces.
Leinster....
Munster....
Ulster 
Connaught.
Total of Ireland.
Number of Persons who could
Speak Irish only.
Males.
51
62,056
14,685
59,271
136,063
Females.
149
84,280
21,098
78,012
183,539
Total.
200
146,336
35,783
137,283
319,602
Number of Persons who could
Speak English and Irish.
Males.
29,915
334,424
51,422
188,221
603,982
Females.
29,061
335,025
49,271
187,345
600,702
Total.
58,976
669,449
100,693
375,566
1,204,684
Population
in 1851.
1,672,738
1,857,736
2,011,881
1,010,031
6,552,386
Soil.
Ireland is naturally, both from soil and climate, a pastoral
country, and it was not until the commencement of the last
century that efforts were made to introduce an attention to
tillage on an extended scale. Primate Boulter, when one of
the Lords Justices, pressed strongly on the British Govern¬
ment the necessity of enforcing a tillage system ; and for this
purpose proposed a law, in 1727, to compel landholders to till
five acres out of every hundred in their possession, exclusive
of meadows and bogs ; and also to release tenants to the same
extent from the penal covenants against tillage, inserted in
their leases. Mr M‘Culloch observes, in his Statistical Account
of the British Empire, that the luxuriance of the pastures in
Ireland and the heavy crops of oats raised, even with the most
wretched cultivation, attest the extraordinary fertility of the
soil. Strong retentive clay soils, sandy soils, chalky and
gravelly soils, and several other descriptions of soil common in
England, are seldom or never met with in Ireland, which affords
no great diversity as compared with Great Britain. Mr
Wakefield describes the soils of Ireland as follows :—“ A great
portion of the soil of Ireland throws out a luxuriant herbage,
springing from a calcareous subsoil without any considerable
depth. This is one species of the rich soil of Ireland, and is
found throughout Roscommon, in some parts of Galway, Clare,
and other districts. Some places exhibit the richest loam I
ever saw turned up with a plough ; this is the case throughout
Meath in particular. Where such soil occurs, its fertility is
so conspicuous, that it appears as if nature had determined to
counteract the bad effects produced by the clumsy system of its
cultivators. On the banks of the Fergus and Shannon, the
land is of a different kind, but equally productive, though the
surface presents the appearance of marsh. These districts are
called caucasses: the substratum is a blue silt deposited by the
sea, which seems to partake of the qualities of the upper stra¬
tum, for this land can be injured by no depth of ploughing
“ In the rich counties of Limerick and Tipperary there is
another kind of rich land, consisting of a dark, friable, sandy
loam, which, if preserved in a clean state, would throw out
corn for several years in succession. It is equally well adapted
for grazing and tillage, and I will venture to say, seldom ex¬
periences a season too wet, or a summer too dry. The richness
of the land in some of the vales may be accounted for by the
deposition of soil carried thither from the upper grounds by the
rains. The subsoil is calcareous, so that the very richest
manure is then spread over the land below, without subjecting
the farmer to any labour.
“In the north the quantity of rich soil is not very consider¬
able, yet valleys of extraordinary fertility are found in every
county ; and I was not a little astonished, amidst the rocky and
dreary mountains of Donegal, where there was hardly a vestige
of cultivation, to find myself drop all at once into a district
where the soil was exceedingly fertile. Independently of the
caucasses, the richest soil in Ireland is to be found in the
counties of Tipperary, Limerick, Longford, and Meath. Some
parts of the county of Cork are uncommonly fertile, and upon
the whole, Ireland may be considered as aftbrding land of ex¬
cellent quality.” “You must examine into the soil,” says
Arthur Young, speaking of Limerick and Tipperary, “before
you can believe that a country which has so beggarly an ap¬
pearance can be so rich and fertile.”
Ihe prevalent soil is a fertile loam, resting on a rocky sub¬
stratum, chiefly of limestone. The depth, though in general
not great, is in some parts such as to admit of fresh vegetable
mould being repeatedly thrown up by successive ploughings to
a greater depth. This occurrence is most striking in Meath,
and in the district of the counties of Tipperary and Limerick,
long distinguished by the name of the Golden Yale, from its
extraordinary fertility. In some parts, particularly in Galway,
the rock shows itself above the surface in ridges like waves,
the interstices being filled with rich mould, which produces a
thick, close sward, extremely grateful to sheep. Large tracts
of grazing land similar to the Downs in England are unusual;
the only tract of any extent of such description is the Curragh
of Kildare, which has been used, time immemorial, for a sheep
walk. The mountains are capable of tillage to a considerable
height; and their summits, with the exception of a few of the
very highest, are fit for pasturage in summer.
Wakefield, in his observations on the state of tillage, classed
the country into nine agricultural districts, according to the
peculiarities of soil and culture. The first comprehended the
flat parts of Antrim, the eastern side of Tyrone, and the coun¬
ties of Down, Armagh, Monaghan, and Cavan. In these the
farms were small, and spade cultivation common. Potatoes,
oats, and flax were the principal crops. The second district com¬
prehends the counties of Londonderry and Donegal, the moun¬
tainous part of Antrim, and the north and west of Tyrone.
Agriculture was in a more backward state here than in the pre¬
ceding _ district. Wheat was little cultivated. In the third,
which is confined to the northern parts of Fermanagh, the
system of tillage was better, and the farms larger. Wheat was
largely planted, but oats formed the great staple crop. The
wrhole of the north-west of Ireland, comprehending Sligo,
Mayo, Galway. Clare, with Roscommon and Longford, forms
the fourth district. Oats was the prevalent crop, but much
barley w as also raised in the districts near the sea. The plough
512
Statistics.
IRELAND.
was often drawn by four horses abreast. Illicit distillation was
carried on here upon an extensive scale, and much of the land
leased to tenants in common, according to what is called the
con-acre system. In the fifth district which comprehends
Limerick, Kerry, the south-western and northern parts of
Cork and all Waterford, cultivation was not far advanced, the
greater part being a grazing country Where tillage prevailed
the land was much subdivided, and the farms consequently
very small. The sixth district included the southern part ot
Cork. Spade culture was here frequent, the farms small, and
hogs constituted the main dependence of the poor. The best
farming in Ireland was to be seen in the seventh district, which
comprised Tipperary, the Queen’s and King’s counties. Til¬
lage was carried on in a systematic manner, and wheat formed Statistics,
an important part of the crop. The character of the eighth
district, which comprehends Kilkenny, Kildare, Carlow, West¬
meath, Meath, and Louth, much resembled that of the preced¬
ing, except that the system of tillage was not managed with
so much neatness and precision. The farms were large, and the
English mode of treatment adopted ; but the details executed
in a more slovenly manner. Wexford, and the arable part of
Wicklow, formed the ninth district.
The quantity of arable land in 1841, according to the return
of the Census Commissioners, was 13,464,300 acres, and in 1851,
14,802,581 acres; and the proportion per cent, of cultivated and
uncultivated surface, &c.,at those two periods was as follows:
Provinces.
Leinster 
Munster....
Ulster 
Connaught,
General total..
Total Area
in
Statute
Acres.
4,876,211
6,064,579
5,475,438
4,392,043
20,808,271
Division of Surface.
Arable Land.
Proportion
per cent.
1841.
81-23
63-89
62-23
50-57
64-71
1851.
82-80
71-08
7295
56-01
71-14
Uncultivated.
Proportion
per cent.
1841.
15-01
31- 22
32- 22
43-39
30-25
1851.
13-67
24-48
21-89
3812
24-14
Plantations.
Proportion
per cent.
1841.
2-38
2-15
1-46
1-10
1-80
1851.
2-09
1-71
1-07
0-93
1-47
Towns.
Proportion
per cent.
1841.
0-32
0-24
0-16
0-09
0-21
1851.
0-38
0-23
0-16
009
02-2
Water.
Proportion
per cent.
1841.
1-06
2- 50
3- 93
4- 85
3-03
1851.
1-06
2- 50
3- 93
4- 85
3-03
When compared with its extent and the amount of its agri¬
cultural population the number of proprietors of land in Ire¬
land is small, a circumstance which has to some extent led to
the neglect both of the land and its tenantry. The confisca¬
tions and colonizations which took place in the reigns of Eliza¬
beth and James the First, gave possession of large tracts of
country to individuals whose more extensive properties in
England made them careless of their estates in Ireland. The
wars of Cromwell introduced into the country for the most part
a small proprietary, who, being generally resident, produced a
more beneficial influence on the relations of society. Respect¬
ing the enactment of the penal laws which affected the position
of the great body of the people—the Roman Catholics—as re¬
garded landed property, the Land Occupation Commissioners
observe that they “ must have had a very general influence on
society in such a country as Ireland.”
“ These laws, both in their enactment and in their subse¬
quent relaxations, have affected materially the position of
occupier and proprietor. They interfered with almost every
mode of dealing with landed property by those who professed
that religion, and by creating a feeling of insecurity, directly
checked their industry.
“ The Protestant landlords also suffered indirectly from the
operation of the same laws ; for, in letting their estates, they
were, to a great degree, confined in the selection of their ten¬
ants, to those who alone could enjoy any permanent tenure
under them, and were exclusively entitled to the elective fran¬
chise. Many landlords parted with the whole, or a great por¬
tion of their property, for long terms, and thus avoided all
immediate contact with the inferior occupiers, so that all the
duties of a landlord were left for performance to a middleman.
The latter, on the other hand, in the favourable position in
which the laws had indirectly placed him, as regarded the pro¬
prietor, dictated very frequently his own terms to the landlord;
and restrictive covenants against subletting or subdividing were
seldom inserted.
“ About eighty years after their first introduction, a relaxa¬
tion of these laws took place.
“ Among many measures professedly for the improvement
of Ireland, an act was passed in 1771 which allowed Roman
Catholics to take a lease for sixty-one years of not less than
ten acres, or more than fifty, of bog, with only half an acre
of arable land for the site of a house, but not to be situated
within a mile of a town ; and if it was not reclaimed in twenty-
one years, the lease to be void. In 1777 it was enacted that
titles not hitherto litigated should not be disturbed, and
Roman Catholics were allowed to take leases for any term
under 1000 years. In 1782 they were allowed to acquire free¬
hold property for lives or by inheritance; and in 1793 was
passed a further enactment, which materially affected the posi¬
tion of landlord and tenant. The 40s. franchise was by that
act extended to Roman Catholics; the landlords and the. mid¬
dlemen then found the importance of a numerous following of
tenantry; and subdivision and subletting, being by this law
indirectly encouraged, greatly increased. '1 he war with Franee
raised considerably the profits of the occupier, who was thus
enabled to pay a large rent to the mesne lessee. These causes
produced throughout the country a class of intermediate pro¬
prietors, known by the name of middlemen, whose decline
after the cessation of the war, and the fall of prices in 1815,
brought with it much of the evils we have witnessed of late
years. Many who, during the long war, had amassed much
wealth, had become proprietors in fee; others, who . had not
been so successful, struggled in after years to maintain a posi¬
tion in society which their failing resources could not sup¬
port. Their sub-tenants were unable to pay ‘ war-rents.’ The
middleman himself, who was liable for the rent during the same
period, became equally unable to meet his engagements. All
became impoverished ; the middleman parted with his interest
or under-let the little land he had hitherto retained in his own
hands ; himself and his family were involved rapidly in ruin.
The landlord, in many cases, was obliged to look to the occu¬
piers for his rent, or, at the expiration of the lease, found the
farms covered with a pauper, and, it may be, a superabundant
population. Subsequently, the act of 1829 destroyed the poli¬
tical value of the 40s. freeholder, and to relieve his property
from the burden which this chain of circumstances brought
upon it, the landlord, in too many instances, adopted what
has been called, the ‘ clearance system.’ ”
The conditions under which this system was put in practice
will be clearly seen from the description given by the Irish
Railway Commissioners in their report, dated July 1838.: -
“ The misery and destitution which prevail so extensively,
together with all the demoralization incident to the peculiar
condition of the Irish peasantry, may be traced to this source
[the ‘ Forty Shilling Freeholders’ Act’]. The country, parti¬
cularly in the west and south-western counties,, is overspread
with small but exceedingly crowded communities, sometimes
located in villages, but more frequently in isolated tenements,
exclusively composed of the poorest class of labourers, wh°>
removed from the presence and social or moral influence a
better and more enlightened class, are left, generally, to the
coercive power of the law alone to hold them within the boun s
of peace and order. No system of constant or remunerative
IRELAND.
Statistics, industry is established amongst them. The cultivation of their
patches of land and the labour of providing fuel are their sole
employment, which, occupying but a comparatively small por¬
tion of their time, leaves them exposed to all the temptations
of an idle, reckless, and needy existence.
“ In such a community there is no demand for hired labour¬
ers. Every occupier, with such assistance as his own family
can furnish, manages to raise the scanty supply of food which
he may need for their support, and as much grain, or other
produce, as may be required to pay his rent; but beyond this,
there is no solicitude about cultivating the land, nor the least
taste for improving or making it more valuable. At the
periods of active labour, when additional hands are absolutely
necessary, every expedient is resorted to in order to avoid the
employment of a single paid labourer. Children of tender
years are then forced to do the work of men in the fields, to a
degree far beyond their strength; and all the females who are
capable of rendering assistance are tasked in many ways utterly
unsuited to their sex, and incompatible with the slightest atten¬
tion to their proper cares and duties. At all times, indeed, of
the year, whether the case be urgent or not, the share’ of
labour out of doors imposed upon women and young girls,
who might in every respect be so much better occupied, is as
injurious to the moral condition, as it must be to the personal
and domestic comfort of the peasantry.
There is a class of landholders superior to these, holding
from eight to twelve or fifteen acres, who are equally slovenly
and careless in the management of their land; but necessarily
obliged, on account of its greater extent, to procure assistance
out of their own families. Sometimes, but rarely, these per¬
sons hire daily labourers among the neighbouring poor ; and
in such cases they are usually guided in their choice, not by
the character or capability of the man they employ, but by the
lowest rate of wages at which they can possibly obtain his ser¬
vice. More commonly, however, they engage, as farm-servants,
young men between sixteen and twenty-five years of age, who
reside in the family of their employer, and hire themselves
out at remarkably low wages, seldom exceeding L.l per quar¬
ter, and, in numerous instances, scarcely more than half that
sum.
“ The litigation which occupies a great portion of the time
of the several Courts of Petty Sessions, arises out of the dis¬
putes of this class of servants with their employers ; the former
being usually impatient to break off their engagements at the
busy and more profitable season of the year, and the latter
anxious, of course, to reap the full benefit of the contract. An¬
other common subject of angry contention before the same
tribunals, is furnished by ill-defined boundaries, neglected
fences, and consequent trespass between the neighbouring ten¬
ants of the small divisions of land above described. More
time and money are commonly wasted in such contests than
would suffice to repair all the damage which forms the ground
of quarrel; and animosities are engendered which often lead to
feuds of a lasting duration, and the most deadly consequences.”
Formerly the custom prevailed of granting leases either in
perpetuity for 999 years, or for lives renewable for ever, with a
covenant of perpetual renewal on payment of a fine, sometimes
merely nominal, on the fall of each life. This tenure is sup¬
posed to have originated in the desire of the grantees of confis¬
cated estates, who were generally absentees, to obtain a recog¬
nition of their title. Hence some of the owners of large estates
receive a very small share of the actual profits. The leases
513
commonly granted at present are for sixty-one, thirty-one, or Statistics,
twenty-one years, with very frequently a life or lives, but the ^ r- v-m J
larger portion of the land is held by tenants-at-will. Land¬
lords neither erect nor repair the farmsteads, and seldom ex¬
pend money on permanent improvements, the maintaining and
improving of the farm being thrown wholly on the tenant. The
system of middlemen, who rent land from the proprietor, and
re-let it to under-tenants, formerly prevailed. It is now rare.
In many instances there were several middlemen between the
head landlord and the occupying tenant, which latter, accord¬
ing to the law of real property in Ireland, thus becomes an¬
swerable for the payment of his own rent to his immediate land¬
lord, and for that of all the rents of every intermediate holder
under the original proprietor. Grazing farms are large ; the
arable in general small, particularly in Ulster, in which pro¬
vince much of the land in several counties, particularly in those
where the domestic manufacture of linen prevailed, is parcelled
out into very minute subdivisions. The practice of taking into
cultivation large tracts of mountain bog or other land hitherto
unreclaimed, is now very prevalent. The cottier system, by
which the occupying tenant receives a patch of land, in part or
whole payment of wages, and that of r undale, in which a large
tract is held by a number of individuals in common, are still
kept up.
A striking peculiarity is the mode in which occupiers hold
their land in some of the northern counties. The custom is
called tenant-right, and is supposed to have originated in the
circumstance of large tracts of land having become the property
of public bodies or individuals who, being absentees, let their
farms, reserving to themselves a rent, but making no expendi¬
ture, and exercising little interference with the land. The
tenant, where this custom prevails, claims and generally exer¬
cises a right to dispose of his holding for a valuable considera¬
tion, although he may himself be a tenant-at-will, and may have
expended nothing in permanent improvements.
In 1847 an inquiry was instituted by the Irish government
as to the annual amount of the agricultural produce of Ireland,
which has been since carried on from year to year, the infor¬
mation being collected by the constabulary in the first in¬
stance, according to townlands, afterwards consolidated into
poor-law unions, and thus published in the returns presented
annually to both Houses of Parliament. The returns are
made into two divisions, crops and stock.
The size of farms, as well as their mode of culture, varies
greatly in different parts. Generally speaking, in the manu¬
facturing districts of the north, the small allotments of land,
there dignified by the name of farms, are limited to a few acres,
the cultivators of which no more deserve the name of farmers
than would the occupiers of mere cabbage gardens. In the
grazing counties the farms are of very great extent, often
spreading over upwards of a thousand acres; whilst in the
counties in which greater attention is paid to tillage, they are
more moderate in dimensions. The mixture of grazing and
tillage so frequent in England is much less usual here, except
on the farms of gentlemen, where both the feeding of stock and
the growth of grain are carried on, in numerous instances, to
as high a state of excellence as in any part of Great Britain.
Kor are there any large tracts of country exclusively devoted
to the breeding of cattle, as in the Highlands of Scotland.
The following table shows the changes which have taken
place in the several classes of holdings in 1841, and between
1849 and 1854:—
Size and Number of Holdings in 1841, and in 1849 to 1854 inclusive.
Years.
1841
1849
1850
1851
1852
1853
1854
Not exceeding 1 Acre.
Number.
31.989
35,326
37,728
35,058
35,795
38,165
Rate
per cent.
4- 9
5- 6
6- 2
5- 9
6- 1
6-5
Above 1, and not
exceeding 5 Acres.
Number.
310,375
98,179
91,618
88,083
81,561
79,418
80,976
Rate
percent.
44-9
151
14-6
14-5
13-9
13-6
13'7
Above 5 Acres, and not
exceeding 15 Acres.
Number.
252,778
213,897
203,331
191,854
182,308
178,701
179,140
Rate
per cent.
36-6
32-9
32-4
31-6
30-9
30-5
30-3
VOL. XII.
Above 15 Acres, and not
exceeding 30 Acres.
Number.
79,338
150,120
145,380
141,311
139,136
138,864
137,640
Rate
per cent.
11-5
23-0
231
23-2
23-6
23-8
23-3
Above 30 Acres.
Number.
48,623
156,960
152,567
149,090
151,408
152,571
154,166
Rate
per cent.
7-0
24-1
24-3
24- 5
25- 7
26- 0
26-2
Total
Holdings.
Number.
691,114
651,145
628,222
608,066
589,471
585,349
590,087
3 T
I
514
IRELAND.
Statistics.
The total number of holdings has continued to decrease since than in 1853, by 4738, as maybe seen from the following Statistics,
/i i The number of holdings returned for 1854 is greater table: v. r —L j
1841.
Classification of
Holdings.
Not exceeding 1 Acre
Above 1 to 5 Acres
.. 5 to 15 ...
.. 15 to 30 ...
.. 30 to 50 ...
.. 50 to 100 ...
..100 to 200 ...
..200 to 500 ...
.. 500 Acres 
Total.
Leinster.
1853.
15,051
23,397
30,565
24,748
15,812
13,299
6,331
2,553
387
132,143
Munster.
1854.
15,067
23,832
30,386
24,645
15,930
13,431
6,401
2,531
388
132,611
1853.
7,796
12,754
22,081
26,716
21,628
20,844
8,499
2,840
414
123,572
Ulster.
Connaught.
1854.
8,749
12,737
22,034
26,238
21,753
20,942
8,507
2,904
413
1853.
7,180
27,092
80,254
57,853
22,997
11,689
2,901
977
291
124,277
211,234
1854.
8,178
27,900
80,556
57,155
22,801
11,912
2,978
942
287
212,709
1853.
5,768
16,175
45,801
29,547
9,860
5,932
3,043
1,747
527
118,400
1854.
6,171
16,507
46,164
29,602
10,337
6,227
3,140
1,790
552
Total.
1853.
120,490
35,795
79,418
178,701
138,864
70,297
51,764
20,774
8,117
1,619
585,349
1854.
Increase
between
1853and
1854
38,165
80,976
179,140
137,640
70,821
52,512
21,026
8,167
1,640
2,370
1,558
439
524
748
252
50
21
590,087 4,738
It will be seen that the increase extended to every class—
farms “ above 15, and not exceeding 30 acres” alone excepted ;
the proportion which the numbers in each class bear to the total
number has scarcely varied during the last three years. In
1854, of the entire number of farms, 6-5 per cent, did not ex¬
ceed 1 acre in extent; 13-7 per cent, were above 1, and not
exceeding 5 acres; 30‘3 per cent, were above 5, and not ex¬
ceeding 15 acres ; 23*3 per cent, were above 15, and not ex¬
ceeding 30 acres; and 26'2 per cent, were above 30 acres—
thus, about half the farms in Ireland are above 15 acres in extent.
The average extent in each class of holdings remains nearly
the same in 1854 as in 1853, with the exception of farms con¬
taining “ 500 acres and upwards,” which in 1853 comprised
2,176,824 acres, and in 1854, 2,122,967 acres, being a dimi¬
nution in the latter year of 53,857 acres ; this, together with an
increase of 21 in their number, reduced their average size from
1344i acres in 1853 to 12941- acres in 1854. The average
extent of land held by each class in 1854 is shown in the follow¬
ing table:—•
Classification of Holdings.
Holdings not exceeding 1 acre.
Do. above
Do. above
Do. above
Do. above
Do. above
Do. above 100
Do. above 200
1
5
15 „
30 Vg
50
5 acres
15
30
50
100
200
1500
Do. above 500 acres.
Total.
No. of
Holdings in
each class.
38,165
80,976
179,140
137,640
70,821
52,512
21,026
8,167
1,640
590,087
Extent of
Land held by
each class of
Landholders.
Acres.
24,667
281,464
1,836,486
3,056,193
2,864,703
3,886,499
3,217,590
2,900,557
2,122,967
20,191,136
Average Extent
of the Holdings
in each class.
A. n. p.
0 2 23
3 1 36
10 1 0
22 0 32
40 1 32
74 0 2
153 0 5
355 0 25
1.294 1 39
Division of Land.
Tillage.
Acres.
21,451
179,168
877,468
1,240,749
1,007,377
1,117,229
681,020
364,590
81,558
5,570,610
Acres.
1,670
81,990
812,622
1,471,148
1,433,758
2,006,140
1,693,060
1,373,466
626,795
Fallow.
Acres.
139
1,732
6,716
12,269
14,718
21,240
16,604
10,278
1,738
Woods and
Planta¬
tions.
Acres.
215
2,168
9,029
14,501
20,246
42,336
65,674
89,261
65,093
9,500,649 85,434 308,532
Bog and
W aste.
Acres.
1,202
16.406
130,651
317,517
388,604
699,554
761,232
1,062,962
1,347,783
4,725,911
Table showing the Extent in Acres of each description of Crop grown upon each Class of Holdings exceeding
one Acre in extent in 1854.
Description of Crops.
Wheat 
Oats 
Barley, here, and rye.
Beans and peas 
Total cereal crops.
Potatoes 
Turnips 
Other green crops
Total
green crops.
Flax 
Rape 
Meadow and clover.
General total.
Above 1 to
5 Acres.
10,039
63,548
10,509
707
84,803
61,557
6,289
2,961
Total flax, rape, and i
meadow j
70,807
4,092
66
19,400
23,558
179,168
Above 5 to
15 Acres.
44,095
374,161
35,448
2,827
Above 15 to
30 Acres.
456,531
224,349
36,197
10,807
271,353
34,764
666
114,154
76,033
517,524
53,516
4,814
651,887
256,264
63,242
16,734
336,240
48,243
1,518
202,861
252,622
Above 30 to
50 Acres.
80,651
385,239
51,412
4,654
521,956
172,162
60,172
14,432
246,766
31,390
1,496
205,769
238,655
1,240,749 1,007,377
Above 50 to
100 Acres.
106,855
381,325
60,78 2
5,276
554,238
158,119
73,785
17,126
249,030
22,679
2,437
288,845
313,961
1,117,229
Above 100 to
200 Acres.
63,079
203,756
34,429
2,554
303,818
72,325
50,615
11,997
134,937
Above 200 to
500 Acres.
7,124
2,685
232,456
242,265
681,020
25,794
96,487
14,806
1,389
138,476
27,479
30,834
7,586
65,899
2,154
3,243
154,818
160,215
364,590
Above 500
Acres.
4,160
19,517
2,643
286
26,606
4,602
7,568
2,187
14,357
846
976
38,773
40,595
81,558
IRELAND.
515
Statistics.
Table showing the Extent of Land under Crops for each County and Province in Ireland, in 1854 and 1855, and the Statistics.
number of Acres under each species of Crop. v ^
Provinces and Counties.
Leinster—
Carlow 
Dublin.
J1854
  \1855
J 1854
 \ 1855
Kilte {}®S
Kilk“”y {ilS
tt- , /1854
K g  \ 1855
L<meford { 1855
L-‘h {lit
Meath I
118o5
Qmen’s {Jls
Westmeath j
 ins
 jus
Total of Leinster |
Increase or Decrease in
Leinster.   
Munster-
Clare.
Cork.
Kerry,
/ 1854
1,1855
/ 1854
[ 1855
/ 1854
\ 1855
Limerick •! loft
1. 1855
Tipperary 
Waterf°rd {llS
Total of Munster
1854
1855
Acres.
8,745
9,569
11,889
14,207
18,381
20,698
34,968
37,297
17,767
18,502
1,977
2,357
6,903
9,675
15,762
18,733
20,936
21,454
3,915
4,618
21,905
23,921
6,177
6,667
Oats.
Increase or Decrease in
Munster 
169,325
187,698
Acres.
26,491
25,724
25,105
24,301
43.520
43,953
54,205
53.102
33,174
32,489
39.521
30,843
36,670
38,514
85,667
86,625
32,055
32,606
53,769
54,531
86,633
86.102
36,746
36,287
553,556
553,077
18,373
8,540
9,318
51,146
49,927
2,450
2,716
14,427
17,155
50,735
54.325
24,272
24.325
dec.
479
151,570
157,766
6,196
37,817
39,298
139,596
149,856
34,139
36,651
45,009
45,430
77,026
78,180
30,892
30,831
364,479
380,246
15,767
Barley,
Bere, Rye,
Beans,
and Peas.
Acres.
5,710
5,060
5,630
4,850
7,767
6,251
8,582
8,659
6,335
5,636
394
328
24,928
22,034
6,110
5,014
9,937
9,683
2,233
1,531
44,797
41,940
4,918
4,599
Potatoes.
Turnips.
127,341
115,585
dec.
11,756
14,155
13,394
40,000
39,113
9,696
7,702
15,343
12,053
12,017
11,635
9,488
9,460
100,699
93,357
dec.
7,342
Acres.
10,973
11,061
10,314
11,989
13.109
14.110
25,567
22,812
21,038
21,725
16,547
16,260
11,813
11,937
16,867
19,200
21,559
20,885
17,877
18,486
27,980
27,686
11,176
11,854
204,820
208,005
3,185
34,097
35,807
84,153
81,081
30,144
31,357
33,282
35,733
54,048
52,148
20,725
18,818
256,449
254,944
dec.
1,505
Other
Green
Crops.
Flax.
Acres
5,537
5,956
3,558
3,488
9,988
10,990
11,270
12,689
8,705
9,343
2,129
2,732
8,666
9,234
9,492
9,934
12,929
14,226
5,656
6,444
14,542
16,253
4,273
4,501
96,745
105,790
me.
9,045
7,647
8,453
47,502
53,654
10,512
9,737
11,612
11,402
26,587
29,738
11,052
11,964
114,912
124,948
10,036
Acres.
1,220
1,261
4,100
4,087
2,053
1,907
3,027
3,196
2,666
2,583
1,162
932
2,489
2,536
4,173
4,018
1,845
1,962
2,320
2,344
4,969
4,933
1,339
1,084
31,363
30,843
me.
520
2,321
2,386
10,603
10,578
2,334
2,523
2,749
2,749
4.124
4,220
3,294
3,139
25,425
25,595
Acres
32
81
5
1
6
9
54
45
214
254
592
262
694
190
481
267
11
7
260
200
466
825
5
1
Meadow
and
Clover.
2,820
2,142
dec.
678
Acres.
23,662
25,396
45,406
45,823
45.123
48,707
44,241
47,437
38,857
39,896
19.124
20,157
17,071
17,276
61,935
64,642
48,900
51,926
38,465
40,545
43,295
45,711
53,550
55,028
Total Extent |
under Crops.
479,629
502,544
me.
22,915
909
890
3,324
2,393
673
621
316
244
199
103
31
43
5,452
4,294
Acres.
82,370
84,108
106,007
108,746
139,947
146,625
181,914
185,237
128,756
130,428
81,446
81,871
109,234
111,396
200,487
208,433
148,172
152,749
124,495
128,699
244,587
247,371
118,184
120,021
1,665,599
1,705,684
total inc.
40,085
49,156
52,179
94,812
104,545
54,101
56,362
69,117
71,187
76,740
83,851
16,112
17,647
me.
170
dec.
1,158
360,038
385,771
me.
25,733
154,642
161,725
471,136
491,147
144,049
147,669
191,855
195,953
301,476
314,200
115,866
116,227
1,379,024
1,426,921
total inc.
47,897
516
IRELAND,
Statistics. Table showing the Extent of Land under Crops for each County and Province in Ireland, in 1854 and 1855, and the Statistic.
number of Acres under each species of Crop,—Continued.
Provinces and Counties.
Ulster—
Antrim
f 1854
\ 1855
/ 1854
\ 1855
f 1854
\ 1855
f 1854
{1855
/ 1854
\ 1855
f 1854
' \1855
T ^ ^ I1854
Londonderry.... j 1855
f 1854
\ 1855
/ 1854
\ 1855
Armagh.
Cavan.
Donegal
Down,
Fermanagh.
Monaghan.
Tyrone 
Total of Ulster j
Increase or Decrease in f
Ulster \
| Connaught—
n i / 1854
Galway \ 1855
, .+ . f 1854
Leitrim \ 1855
11854
 \ 1855
Wheat.
Mayo 
-d /1854
Roscommon ^ 1855
Qr f1854
Sllg0 \ 1855
Total of Con- f 1854
naught \ 1855
Acres.
9,200
11,090
11,555
12,225
847
865
3,384
2,963
27,960
30,359
1,397
1,413
3,532
3,052
2,957
3,466
4,760
4,694
65,592
70,127
Acres.
94,294
98,729
70,963
78,717
88,083
91,371
102,635
108,784
134,291
142,631
40,316
40,770
85,395
91,783
78,262
83,569
147,133
153,817
Barley,
Bere, Rye,
Beans,
and Peas.
Potatoes.
Acres.
4,123
4,572
1,945
2,447
1,119
800
6,326
7,298
16,845
15,836
1,661
1,111
2,131
2,113
3,924
3,712
1,729
1,536
841,372
890,171
39,803
39,425
inc.
4,535
16,602
18,818
293
270
3,753
4,594
2,795
4,148
1,354
2,088
inc.
48,799
dec.
378
80,917
81,347
26,959
28,829
80,706
83,633
55,585
59,185
41,724
41,467
10,644
10,397
323
555
5,989
5,426
404
486
1,951
2,334
Turnips.
Other
Green
Crops.
Acres.
47,356
46,957
34,426
31,690
30,879
31,256
44,568
41,559
47,116
47,222
19,734
18,212
33,283
32,234
26,522
25,394
47,012
43,643
330,896
318,167
Acres.
9,317
12,376
6,082
8,046
2,729
3,167
15,342
16,654
20,440
22,119
3,454
4,252
9,515
11,474
5,508
7,053
12,947
15,231
Flax.
Acres.
2,530
2,598
3,052
3,179
3,316
2,939
2,471
2,626
4,843
4,734
1,930
1,680
1,655
1,411
2,337
2,128
3,237
2,979
Acres.
8,924
6,719
16,295
9,284
8,842
6,029
26,061
15,799
19,895
11,166
3,480
2,006
17,230
11,818
16,222
11,859
22,453
13,224
Meadow
and
Clover.
85,334
100,372
dec.
12,729
24.797
29,918
Increase or Decrease f me.
in Connaught \ 5,121
Total of Ireland
1854
1855
Increase or Decrease in
Ireland 
411,284
445,509
285,891
294,461
inc.
8,570
2,045,298
2,117,955
19,311
19,198
51,499
52,894
23.666
23,530
58,858
59,039
35,830
36,785
27,642
28,165
25,371
24,274
15,038
197,495
200,413
dec.
113
287,154
267,565
inc.
34,225
72,657
dec.
19,589
2,918
989,660
981,529
14,830
15,607
988
1,078
8,365
9,547
3,613
4,729
4,383
4,426
32,179
35,387
dec.
1,097
139,402
87,904
Acres.
55,109
53,640
25,792
25,555
33,045
34,952
31,566
33,000
37,208
36,357
34,112
34,775
20,543
20,443
15,053
15,377
31,298
30,865
Total
Extent
under
Crops.
Acres.
230,853
236,681
170,110
171,143
168,860
171,379
232,353
228,683
308,598
310,424
106,084
104,219
173,284
174,328
150,785
152,558
270,569
265.989
283,726
284,964
dec.
51,498
9,324
8,203
1,626
1,191.
2,489
2,183
1,638
1,725
1,541
1,080
16,618
14,382
785
544
1,022
718
999
741
430
384
493
379
1,238
1,811,496
1,815,404
tot. inc
3,908
43,020
45,886
27,748
28,472
17,920
18,234
28,930
30,224
16,853
15,642
3,208
329,170
366,497
dec.
8,131
me.
37,327
dec.
2,236
98,777
95,094
3,729
2,766
227,621
233,696
82,625
84,643
179,079
183,397
129,225
137,666
95,941
95,581
134,471
138,458
dec.
963
dec.
3,683
151,403
97,106
dec.
54,297
inc.
3,987
1,257,864
1,311,737
53,873
714,491
734,983
tot. inc.
20,492
5,570,610
5,682,992
tot. inc,
112,382
I E E L A N D.
517
Statistics. General Abstract, shoiving in “ Quarters ” the Cereal Produce of Ireland in 1855 ; also, the Produce of Potatoes in Statistics.
Tons.
Provinces and Counties.
Leinster—•
Carlow 
Dublin 
Kildare 
Kilkenny...
King’s 
Longford...
' Louth 
Meath 
Queen’s  
Westmeath
Wexford ...
Wicklow ...
Total of Leinster.
Munster—
Clare  
Cork 
Kerry 
Limerick..
Tipperary .
Waterford.
Total of Munster.
Ulster —
Antrim 
Armagh 
Cavan 
Donegal 
Down  
Fermanagh ...
Londonderry
Monaghan ....
Tyrone 
Total of Ulster.
Connaught—
Galway 
Leitrim 
Mayo 
Roscommon..
Sligo 
Total of Connaught.
Total of Ireland.
Estimated Quantity of Cereal Produce in Quarters.
Wheat.
1855.
Quarters.
31,185
57,975
72,636
109,545
61,860
6,085
41,380
71,715
65,028
15,513
78,840
23,221
634,983
36,306
140,634
9,433
66,288
182,743
70,384
505,788
38,691
38,467
3,084
13,958
134,462
5,485
9,852
13,284
17,222
274,505
66,681
1,102
20,604
11,498
9,021
108,906
1,524,182
Oats.
Quarters.
122,885
143,580
221,560
242,042
157,465
170,338
212,167
413,099
156,477
279,041
408,587
163,912
2,691,153
200,008
674,605
140,739
240,742
412,162
123,492
1,791,748
517,374
351,633
379,437
549,901
740,066
202,996
475,970
391,636
766,673
4,375,686
419,644
142,713
362,214
253,761
223,501
1,401,833
10,260,420
Barley.
Quarters.
20,033
23,307
24,890
34,488
21,875
258
101,986
16,403
39,538
1,588
178,542
14,742
477,650
63,894
174,796
34,930
60,780
53,426
37,957
425,783
6,954
7,523
449
27,064
64,965
799
1,774
10,112
2,291
121,931
37,735
140
19,502
831
12,615
70,823
1,096,187
Quarters.
1,911
688
6,009
3,659
5,097
334
758
2,523
6,995
3,865
1,125
6,196
39,160
382
699
102
105
3,053
291
4,632
190
993
671
377
1,312
1,197
2,200
4,132
586
11,658
1,348
218
154
193
41
1,954
57,404
Rye.
Quarters.
223
102
1,445
135
2,263
762
1,988
3,489
164
2,459
326
407
13,763
3,861
1,026
3,196
170
843
1,675
10,771
459
517
2,473
3,201
2,303
2,651
1,187
1,418
1,450
15,659
7,954
2,331
5,762
1,093
221
17,361
57,554
Estimated Produce
of Potatoes.
1854.
57,765
75,252
83,348
114,507
138,604
94,336
60,883
98,294
108,410
103,957
117,877
58,166
1,111,399
201,592
368,533
190,678
180,812
273,393
97,187
1,312,195
291,541
141,443
152,598
184,992
252,876
94,786
146,385
82,437
211,314
1,558,372
282,949
124,588
317,371
203,304
151,476
1,079,688
5,061,654
Tons.
71,748
86,931
93,518
117,845
139,445
96,520
87,821
100,235
117,905
113,876
102,197
53,596
1,181,637
201,096
360,846
181,882
231,327
322,460
61,842
1,359,453
377,107
202,549
207,149
283,313
369,560
137,939
216,610
170,450
298,060
2,262,737
392,072
172,989
430,396
274,034
160,581
1,430,072
6,233,899
Table of the Acreage under Crops, the Estimated Average Produce per Statute Acre, and the Total Produce of Ireland
in 1847, and from 1849 to 1855, inclusive.
Extent
of Crop.
1847
18481
1849
1850
1851
1852
1853
1854
1855
743,871
Incom
687,646
604,867
504,248
353,566
326,896
411,284
145,620
Average
Produce
per
Statute
Acre.
Barrels,
20
Stones.
6-6
plete.
5-3
4- 4
5- 0
5’5
5-8
5-9
5-7
Estimated
Total
Produce.
Quarters.
2,926,733
2,167,743
1,550,196
1,493,525
1,154.205
1,133,585
1,452,467
1,524,182
Extent of
Crop.
Statute
Acres.
2,200,870
2,061,185
2,142,596
2,189,775
2,283,449
2,157,849
2,045,298
2,116,898
per
Statute
Acre.
Stones.
8-4
7-6
7-7
7- 9
8- 2
7-9
Estimated
Total
Produce.
Quarters.
11,521,606
9,836,893
10,341,973
10,771.236
11.712,528
10,690,881
11,293,101
10,260,420
Barley.
Extent
of Crop.
283,587
290,690
263,350
282,617
249,476
272,644
236,293
226,454
Average
Produce
per
Statute
Acre.
Stones.
8-7
8-8
9-1
9-3
9-3
8-7
Estimated
Total
Produce.
Quarters.
1,379,029
1,352,354
1,299,835
1,375,518
1,257,398
1,398,705
1,212,047
1,096,187
Extent
of Crop.
49,068
60,819
57,811
53.347
40,933
28.380
16,920
11.347
Average
Produce
per
Statute
Acre.
Stones.
8-6
8-2
83
8-3
8-7
8-4
8-1
7-8
Estimated
Total
Produce.
Quarters.
274,016
320,587
308,291
286,149
231,075
153,765
89,066
57,404
Rye.
Extent
of Crop.
12,415
20,168
18,342
19,697
12,993
12,376
11,366
11,633
Average
Produce
per
Statute
Acre.
Barrels,
8-2
7- 8
8- 0
7- 9
8- 2
7- 9
8- 0
Estimated
Total
Produce.
Quarters.
63,094
101,714
88,307
97,187
63,289
62,284
55,687
57,554
Beans and Peas.
Extent
of Crop.
Statute
Acres.
223,768
53,916
62,590
49,717
36,189
35,242
22,575
18,494
Average
Produce
per
Statute
Acre.
Gallons.
28-4
26-6
25-4
25- 8
267
26- 4
26-6
30-1
Estimated
Total
Produce.
Quarters.
284,456
179,521
198,959
160,451
120,821
116,165
74.980
69,569
1 The returns for 1848 were incomplete, owing to the then disturbed state of some counties.
2 Beans only.
518
IRELAND.
Statistics.
Table of the Acreage under Crops, the Estimated Average Produce per Statute Acre, and the Total Produce of
Ireland in 1847, and from 1849 to 1855, inclusive,—Continued.
Statistics,
1847
1848’
1849
1850
1851
1852
1853
1854
1855
Extent
of Crop
284,116
Incom
718,608
875,357
868,501
876.532
898,733
989,660
982,028
Bar¬
rels, 20
stones,
57-7
plete.
44-7
36-6
40-9
38-7
51-1
40-9
50-8
Estimated
Total
Produce.
Extent
of Crop.
16,385,562
32,112,979
31,567,917
35,528,175
34,044,831
45,932,301
40,493,236
49,871,192
370,344
360,069
347,331
3H3.54S
356,790
399,377
329,170
366,311
Estimated
Total
Produce.
15- 5
16- 1
15-7
15-9
15- 9
16- 4
15- 8
16- 6
Extent
of Crop.
Tons.
5,760,616
5,805,848
5,439,005
6,081,326
5,675,897
6,562,471
5,207.636
6,063,965
Mangel-Wurzel.
13,766
18,758
20,390
25,847
30,830
33.283
21,351
22,278
>-o =
&,tn
Estima¬
ted Total
Produce.
Tons.
180
18-5
17- 9
18- 0
18-1
17-7
17- 2
18- 0
Tons.
247,269
346,595
364,036
466,235
557,139
588,988
366,427
401,844
Cabbage.
Extent
of Crop.
25,083
22,790
28,962
28,452
28,421
26,158
24,080
Esti¬
mated
Total
Produce.
14-4
13-9
13- 9
14- 2
14-1
13-3
13-0
361,720
317,802
401,622
404,680
401,828
356,649
312,510
Extent
of Crop.
58,312
60,314
91,040
140,536
137,008
174,579
151,403
97,048
£*CS D
Stones
14
lbs.
48-0
39-6
39- 4
38-6
41-4
40- 2
37- 6
38- 6
Estimated
Total
Produce.
2,798,976
2,387,202
3,588,370
5,417,766
5,673,994
7,018,059
5,696,979
3,746,274
II ay.
Extent of
Crop.
1,138,946
1,141,371
1,200,124
1,246,408
1,270.713
1,270.742
1,257,864
1,313,680
Tons.
1- 9
2- 0
2-0
2-0
2-1
2-0
1- 9
2- 0
Estimated
Total
Produce.
2,190,317
2,287,134
2,453,259
2,518,977
2,690,598
2,518,984
2.494,951
2.663,953
Total
Extent
UNDER
Crops.
5,238,575
5,543,748
5,758,292
5.858.951
5,739,214
5.696.951
5,570,610
5,684,607
When Mr Wakefield wrote, flax was cultivated in every
county of Ireland, except Wexford and Wicklow, but in con¬
sequence of the withdraival of the bounties, its cultivation de¬
clined, but of late years flax has been more extensively grown.
The following Table gives the breadth of Flax cidtivated in each Province since 1849:—
Leinster 
Munster.....
Ulster  
Connaught.
Total.
1849.
Acres.
741
937
57,651
985
60,314
1850.
Acres.
1,801
2,094
85,065
2,080
91,040
1851.
Acres.
4,889
5,991
125,407
4,249
140,536
1852.
Acres.
4,433
4,179
125,175
3,221
137,008
1853.
Acres.
4,497
5,225
160,308
4,549
174,579
Acres.
2,820
5,425
139,003
3,724
150,972
1855.
Acres.
2,142
4,294
87,904
2,766
97,106
The Census Commissioners of 1841 ascertained the quantity
of land in every farm in Ireland, and the number of horses and
mules, asses, cattle, sheep, pigs, and poultry, on each holding,
in that year—the returns published in their report aflbrd a
valuable basis for comparison with the information annually
published in the returns of agricultural produce. The com¬
missioners assumed an average rate per head for each descrip¬
tion, viz.,—horses and mules were valued at L.8 each; asses at
L.l; horned cattle at L.6, 10s.; sheep at L.l, 2s.; pigs at
L.l, 5s. ; poultry at 6d. By this means they arrived at an ap¬
proximation to the value of the live stock in Ireland in 1841.
Horses and mules, cattle, sheep, and pigs, should now be esti¬
mated at higher prices, but for the sake of comparison with
previous years, the prices of 1841 have been adopted. The
following table affords a general view of the extent of the
changes which have taken place since that year.
Number of Holdings exceeding 1 Acre, and Live Stock thereon, in 1841, and in 1849 1854.
1841.,
1849.,
1850.,
1851.
1852.
1853.
1854.
No. of
Holdings.
691,114
619,027
592,896
570,338
554,413
549,554
551,922
Horses
and Mules.
576,115
548,288
548,719
543,312
545,900
561,100
564,530
Asses.
92,365
117,939
123,412
136,981
144,120
148,720
150,576
Cattle.
1,863,116
2,771,139
2,917,949
2,967,461
3,095,067
3,383,309
3,497,901
Sheep.
2,106,189
1,777,111
1,876,096
2,122,128
2,613.943
3,142,656
3.722,219
Pigs.
1,412,813
795,463
927,502
1,084,857
1,072,658
1,444,945
1,342,549
182,988
201,112
235,313
278,444
296,182
311,492
Poultry.
8,458,517
6,328,001
6,945,146
7,470,694
8,175,904
8,660,738
8,630,488
Value of Stock.
£19.399,843
25,692,616
26,951,959
27,737,393
29,134,229
31,458,785
33,508,371
Increase of Value be¬
tween each period.
£6,292,616
1,259,343
785,434
1,416.836
2,757,965
1,679,994
The grazing of various kinds of stock is seldom combined.
A usual mode with respect to black cattle, particularly in Con¬
naught, is to collect yearling calves, which are fed till they are
four years old, when they are sold at the great annual fair at
Ballinasloe, to the graziers of Limerick, Tipperary, Roscom¬
mon, and Meath, by whom, wdien fattened for the butcher, they
are either shipped alive for Liverpool, or sent to the markets
of Dublin and the larger northern towns, or to Limerick and
Cork, where they are cured for exportation.
The dairy farms form a conspicuous feature in the rural
economy of the country, occupying a still larger portion of the
soil than that used by the grazier. Butter, much celebrated
for its excellence, is exported in large quantities. That of
Carlow bears the highest character in the foreign market. It
may appear strange that a country whose character stands so
high in the production of butter, should be so unsuccessful in
that of cheese. Yet such is the fact. With the exception of
some made in the county of Antrim, particularly at Carrick-
fergus, Irish cheese is of very inferior quality. The failure of
the many attempts to produce a good article may in some cases be
attributable to the want of that tact in the management of it dur¬
ing its fabrication, which is only to be acquired by long and per¬
severing practice ; but several attempts made by capitalists with
the assistance of persons skilful in the manufacture, have failed.
1 The returns for 1848 were incomplete, owing to the then disturbed state of some counties.
8 No separate returns, this crop being included under the head of “ other green crops.
519
IRELAND.
Statistics.
The following Table exhibits the Quantities of Grain and Malt exported from Ireland to Great Britain,
from 1840 to 1854, inclusive.
Statistics.
Woollen
anufac-
ires.
The clumsy and defective construction of agricultural im¬
plements, formerly so conspicuous, becomes every year less ob¬
servable. In most parts much attention is paid to their con¬
struction ; and where they ditfer from those most in vogue in
Great Britain, the cause can be traced to the peculiarities of
the soil. The Irish spade is narrower in the blade than the
English, and longer in the handle. In many parts its use is
supplied by a narrow spade, with a projection for the foot only
on one side ; it is called a loy. In cutting turf, a kind of dou¬
ble loy, called a slane, is used. Oxen are little employed in
tillage. When used in the plough they are yoked sometimes
by the horns, sometimes by the breast. The Scotch cart or
dray, with two large wheels and a single horse, is to be found
in every part, its structure having been found best adapted to
a hilly country such as Ireland generally is. It has in a great
measure superseded the old Irish car. The fences vary ac¬
cording to the character of the soil. In the rocky districts in
the north and west they are mostly dry- stone walls, sometimes
of great thickness at bottom, being used as well for a means of
disposing of the numerous loose stones on the surface, as for
inclosing the land. A mound, planted at top with furze or
gorse, is a common fence in those parts where fuel is scarce.
In the more improved parts white thorn hedges are most usual.
Lime or limestone gravel is the most general manure. It is
often used mixed with turf mould. On the sea-coasts coralline
sand and sea-weed are employed ; the former is often conveyed
to great distances into the interior.
Ballinasloe great cattle fair held in October is the chief mart
for the sale of sheep and horned cattle, and the prices obtained
there have considerable influence over the general markets
throughout the kingdom. The following table affords a com¬
parative view of the number of cattle exported from Ireland
to Great Britain from 1847 to 1854:—
Oxen, Bulls Sheep and
Year. and Cows. Calves. Lambs. Swine.
1847  189,960 9,992 324,179 106,407
1848  196,042 7,086 255,682 110,787
1849  201,811 9,831 241,061 68,053
1850  184,616 4,462 176,945 109,170
1851  183,760 2,474 151,807 136,162
1852  197,644 3,826 158,020 151,895
1853  180,785 5,281 224,500 101,396
1854  204,004 7,514 356.780 170,188
The rich pasturages, adapted both for black cattle and
sheep, furnished in abundance the material for two branches
of manufacture, the woollen trade, and the tanning of leather.
The former was carried on to a considerable extent at a very
remote period. Traces of an export of woollens to Italy
as early as the reign of Edward III. have been discovered.
The manufacture was an object of legislative interference
as early as the third year of Edward IV. (1462); and an act
of Henry VIII. in 1542 expressly notices the exportation of
woollen yarn from Ireland. The former of these acts was
the first attempt to restrict the importation of foreign goods
into England. By it woollens, laces, and ribbons were pro¬
hibited ; but a provision was inserted, “ that all wares and
chaflers made in the land of Ireland may be brought and sold
in this land of England, as they were wont to do before
the making of this statute.” Although subsequent prohibi¬
tory acts of Elizabeth, Janies, and Charles I, make no men¬
tion of Ireland, there is little reason to suppose that any
change was made as to the freedom of trade with this country,
until the 12th of Charles II., when an act was passed in the
English parliament, imposing such rates of duty as effectually
prevented importation. By an act of the same year, the ex¬
portation of wool from England was prohibited generally, as
was that from Ireland, to foreign countries. An act of the 9th
and 10th of William III. prohibited the exportation of fullers’
earth to Ireland. But the great blow to this branch of national
industry was caused by an address from both Houses of the
English parliament to William in 1698, praying him “ with
a view to secure the woollen manufacture as much as possible
entire to England, that he would use his utmost diligence to
hinder the exportation of wool from Ireland, except to be im¬
ported hither ; and for discouraging the woollen and encou¬
raging the linen manufactures of Ireland.” The immediate
consequence of these addresses was the passing of an act pro¬
hibiting the exportation of wool or woollens, except to Eng¬
land, from which country the manufactured article was already
excluded by the act of the 12th Charles II. still in force. Under
this code England effectually restrained the Irish trade. The
supply of the raw material was narrowed by the impossibility
of importing British wool, and the manufactured goods were con¬
fined to the domestic consumption of the country. The laws
which prohibited the exportation of Irish woollens to foreign
countries, and to the British colonies, were repealed in 1779.
By the Act of Union, the duties on woollens imported into either
island were confined to those called “ old and new draperies
and the high duties of Charles II. were reduced to eightpence
halfpenny per yard on the old, and twopence three farthings on
the new draperies. By the same act, England relaxed her
monopoly so far as to permit the export of wool and woollen
yarn duty free to Ireland. Previous to the Union, when the
import of English wool was prohibited, the manufacture of Ire¬
land was confined to the coarsest description of goods, for which
alone the Irish wool was suited. Previous to the introduction
of carding machinery the manufacture of woollens was incon¬
siderable, but immediately after the Union, machinery worked
by water-power became general and the trade increased, but
the combinations of workmen and protecting duties rendered
the Irish manufacturers unable to compete with those of Great
Britain, and the trade continued limited to the demand for
home consumption. Flannels are made in Wicklow, and blan¬
kets in Kilkenny. Frieze of the coarsest kind is in some parts
manufactured by the peasantry for domestic consumption, and
the supply of the adjoining district.
The same legislative measure which was intended to dis- Linen,
courage the woollen manufacturer stated, that “if the Irish
turned their industry and skill to the settling and improving of
520
IRELAND.
Manufac- the linen manufacture, they should receive all the countenance,
tures. favour, and protection for its encouragement, and Promotion
to all the advantage and profit they might be capable of de-
riving from it ” This declaration should not lead to the m -
fercnce that the manufacture had been previously unknown or
disregarded in Ireland. On the contrary the use of linen was
so prevalent amongst the higher orders that sumptuary law
were enacted to check its excessive use. The unfortunate Earl
of Stratford seems also to have anticipated the views of the
British manufacturers on the subject. _ Instead of extmguish-
imr the woollen trade by exclusive duties, he laboured to foster
that of linen. He imported flax seed in large quantities from
Holland, and held out premiums to induce Flemings and Dutch¬
men acquainted with the manufacture to settle m Ireland. On
these laudable objects he spent upwards of L.30,000 ofhis pri¬
vate fortune ; and his example was followed by the Duke of
Ormond. Still, however, the woollen manufacture prevailed,
particularly in the S. and W., where the climate and the ex¬
tensive pasturage for sheep insured a copious and cheap supply
of the raw material. In the same spirit, an act was passed by
the English parliament in 1696, to encourage foreign linen
manufacturers to settle in Ireland; and with that view all arti¬
cles made of flax or hemp in this country were admitted into
England duty free,—a privilege which is estimated to have
given that branch of trade an advantage of L.25 percent, over
other nations in the English market. The Irish parliament,
responding to the sentiments and wishes of that of England,
promised that “ it would heartily endeavour to establish the
linen and hempen manufacture, so as to render it useful to both
kingdoms adding, that “ it hoped to find such a temperament
in respect to the woollen trade here, that the same may not be
injurious to England.” The “ temperament here announced
was evinced most effectually by laying prohibitory duties on
the export of its own woollens, thus accepting the compact on
the part of Ireland, and giving the country an incontrovertible
claim upon England for a perpetual encouragement of that
branch which was to be nurtured in lieu of the natural staple
of the country. In furtherance of the measures mutually agreed
on between both kingdoms, a board of trustees for the encou¬
ragement of the linen manufacture was established in 1710,
consisting of a number of individuals of influence in each pro¬
vince. Under its control a code of regulations was devised and
maintained, which extended to the most minute particulars of
the processes, and had the effect for many years of securing the
fabric a decided preference both in the home and foreign mar¬
ket. A large sum was annually granted to this board, for pre¬
miums and the supply of wheels and other implements, which
was continued till the year 1830, when the grants were discon¬
tinued, and the board ceased to act. The flax seed is chiefly
imported. Little is grown in the country, as, notwithstanding
all the exertions made by the grower, the plant raised from it
is considered of inferior quality.
The first flax-spinning machinery erected in Ireland was at
Cork in 1805. About 1825, English and Scotch yarns were
first imported into Ireland, and undersold the hand-spun article.
The use of machinery gradually increased, and the linen manu¬
facture soon became extinguished in the S. and W., and con¬
centrated in the N. In 1821 the yarns were all made by hand.
With one or two trifling exceptions, not a spinning factory vras
to be seen. In 1849 there were upwards of 70. In 1819, with
the existence of bounties on the export of linens, and heavy
duties on the admission of foreign flax and linen fabrics, only
40 millions of yarns were exported from Ireland. In 1849
these exports had increased to 75 millions.
In the Hand-Loom Commissioners’ Report in 1840, Mr
Caesar Otway, describing Banbridge, records the salvation of
the linen trade by the introduction of machinery:—“ The
numerous falls, and the extensive water-power afforded by the
river Ban and its tributaries, the undulatory formation of the
surface of the country, so well adapted for bleach-greens,
the central position of the district, as regarded the great linen¬
weaving counties, and its contiguity to Belfast, attracted, at an
early period, attention as a favourable location for the invest¬
ment of capital in the linen trade. Between Banbridge and
Guildford some of the first manufacturers who invested large
capital in the linen trade established themselves, and here the
great experiment of placing the linen trade of Ireland on a new
foundation was tried: the great subdivision of the capital
invested in the linen trade, the want of a proper division of
labour being applied to it, and a direct market for the disposal Manufac.
of the produce year after year, rendered it more apparent that tures.
it could not be longer continued on its former system. All the
attempts on the part of the legislature to protect the trade,
and of the Linen Board to encourage it, had only aggravated the
evils they intended to remedy. On the repeal of the protect¬
ing duties, and the introduction of mill-spun yarn into England
and Scotland, it became evident to the capitalists of the north
of Ireland, either that the linen trade should be placed on a
new foundation, and conducted on the improved principles that
were being applied to its manufactures in the other portions of
the United Kingdom, or that Ireland should lose its linen trade
altogether. The question became not as to whether the em¬
ployment of linen-weavers by extensive manufacturers, and
confining them to the mere process of weaving, was or was not
more advantageous than the old system, where the producer
of the raw material, the weaver of the cloth, and the merchant
who disposed of it, were the same individual; but whether it
would be more profitable to alter the system or lose the trade.
The result was, the linen manufacture was placed on a new
foundation, and men of extensive capital and skill became
engaged in it. The linen trade was not only thus preserved,
but extended, and all the individuals engaged in its operations
here have been bettered by the change.”
The following tables show the value of the brown or un¬
bleached linen sold in the several linen markets in Ireland
during a period of four years, as furnished by the returns of
the seal-masters and inspectors of the Linen Board to parlia¬
ment in 1825. The sums stated in the former of these tables
are the first cost paid to the manufacturer by the. country pur¬
chaser ; the value of most of the linen sold is afterwards
considerably increased by the process of bleaching and other
treatment.
Total of Brown or Unbleached Linen sold in Ireland.
1822
1823
1824
1825
Total
Leinster.
L.
285,354
336,698
207,638
192,888
1,022,578
Ulster.
L.
2,066,122
2,127,529
1,968,180
2,109,309
8,271,140
L.
68,870
82,202
95,195
110,420
356,687
Connaught.
L.
117,664
130,914
140,856
168,090
557,524
Total.
L.
2,538,010
2,677,343
2,411,869
2,580,707
10,207,929
(Since 1825 no returns have been kept.)
The number of yards of linen exported from Ireland was—
To Great Britain. To Foreign parts. Total.
iSOO   No separate returns. 35,676,908
IgOl"... 34,622,898 3,288,704 37,911,602
1809  33,018,884 4,147,515 37,166,399
1813  35,018,884 3,926,731 38,945,615
1817 50,290,321 5,940,254 56,230,5/5
1821  45,519,509 4,011,630 49,531,139
1825 ....52,560,926 2,553,589 55,114,515
1835:::::::::::.... ... ... 60,916,592
The apparent amount of exports of linen from Ireland is now
small, arising from the fact, that nearly all is sent by cross¬
channel steamers to the English and Scotch ports, whence it is
transhipped to foreign countries. The entire export from Ire¬
land to Great Britain and all foreign countries reaches about
1116,000,000 yards ; value, L.4,400,000. The following table
shows a comparison of the production and value of the yarns
made, and amount of wages paid, in an interval of ten
years:—
Bundles of t,„: j
Yarn produced. Value. Wages Paid.
1840 5,000,000 L.l ,500,000 ^^O
1850 7,400,000 1,942,500 317,000
The cotton manufacture was introduced in 1777, and became Cotton,
an object of attention to the Irish parliament, which endea¬
voured to secure a monopoly of the home market by high im¬
port duties and bounties. The first cotton mills were erec e
at Prosperous, in the county of Kildare, and in Belfast, abou
the year 1784. From that period till the Union, it throve, in
consequence of the measures adopted to prevent foreign^ com¬
petition. At the Union it was arranged that the then existing
duties should continue for eight years, after which they were
IRELAND.
Silk.
Lace.
Metals.
Provisions.
Distilla¬
tion.
to be gradually lowered, by eight annual reductions, in such
manner that, after the year 1816, they should stand at 10 per
cent, ad valorem. The progress of the manufacture has been
very slow as compared with that of Great Britain The alter
ation of the scale of duties materially atfected the home
demand, and the immense capital and great superiority of the
British artist have contributed much to secure to his manufac
ture a preference in the foreign market.
In 1822 the quantity of cotton wool imported was 3 755 0°4
1’197’2941bs*; leaving a total quantity
at 4,5/6,816 lbs. of cotton yarn consumed, after allowine 10
per cent, for waste, &c., on the cotton imported.
The silk manufacture was introduced into Ireland in 1693
by French emigrants after the revocation of the Edict of
Mantes Its seat was the city of Dublin, where it was main-
tamed by the aid of protecting duties. Some feeble attempts
to tix it in the country parts failed completely. The last of
these was so lately as 1825, when a company was formed for
the purpose of fixing the trade on a secure basis in the south
of Ireland by rearing the silk-worm there, and thus having;
the benefit of the raw material for the labour of producing it]
but after considerable expense had been incurred for the pur¬
chase of ground and the planting of mulberry trees, the scheme
was relinquished as hopeless. One branch of the manufacture,
a fabric of mixed worsted and silk, known by the name of
tab bine tor Irish poplin, is in considerable demand, both at
home and elsewhere, for the richness and beauty of the texture.
It is almost the only branch now flourishing. The general
trade has been nearly annihilated by the removal of the pro¬
tecting duties in 1821, after which, in consequence of the
combination of the workmen to keep up the rate of wages, the
Irish manufacturer became unable to compete successfully with
the English trade. J
.The. manufacture of lace is carried on to some extent in
Limerick, and of late years a great source of employment for
females has been introduced in the working of patterns on
muslin with the needle.
Manufactures in metal exist only to a small extent; and the
making of glass, which was once carried on largely, has de-
The provision trade, together with the exportation of the
agricultura1 produce of the country, has always been, and will
probably long remain, the principal commercial business carried
on in Ireland This export trade is mainly with Great Britain
to Liverpool, Bristol, and Glasgow, from Belfast, Dundalk,
Drogheda, Isewry, Waterford, Limerick, and more particularly
from Cork and Dublin. In 1825, 181,276 barrels of beef and
pork 362,2/8 cwts. of bacon and hams, 474,161 cwts. of butter,
and 35,279 cwts. of lard, were exported. Since that period
the provision trade has vastly increased, but in consequence of
the cessation of the duties on the cross-channel trade, there are
no means of accurately ascertaining the present extent of the
trade.
. The art of distillation, and the use of spirituous liquors, was
introduced into Ireland at an early period. Camden, who
derived his knowledge of the country from preceding writers,
states that “ the excessive moisture of the air and soil occasions
many to be troubled with fluxes and catarrhs, particularly
strangers, to stop which they have excellent usquebagh, much
less heating and more drying than ours.” It was not, how¬
ever, subjected to fiscal regulations until the reign of Charles
II., when, in 1661, an excise duty of 4d. per gallon’was charged,
and continued at that rate till 1715, when an additional duty
of 3d. was imposed ; and two years after a further duty of Id.
This duty in 1719 produced a revenue of L.5785. In 1785
the duty was fixed at Is. 2d., and so continued for some years.
Its produce at that rate in 1791 was L.204,648. After a
variety of changes, by which it was progressively raised, it
stood in 1814 at. 5s.. 6d. ; and shortly afterwards an attempt
vas made to maintain a duty of 6s., but the experiment was
found to be unsuccessful, and it was lowered to the former rate
after two years’ trial. Severe restrictions were imposed, and
a complicated and harassing system of checks established, upon
every part of the process, to prevent the possibility of yielding
to the temptations to defraud the revenue occasioned by the
large rate of duty.. The consequence was, that the whole spirit
trade was thrown into the hands of a few capitalists, who, by
their mutual understanding, were enabled to check and control
tiie officers of the revenue in their attempts to stop the issue
VOL. XII.
from the distilleries of spirits which had not paid duty ■ whilst
in. the country parts, and particularly in the mountainous dis¬
tricts in the north and west, illicit distillation was carried to an
enormous extent. In 1811, when the duty was 2s. 6d. ner
gallon, 6,500,000 gallons were paid for ; in 1822, when it was
raised to 5s. 6d.,.only 2,950,000 gallons were brought to
charge, whilst at this latter period the commissioners of revenue
estimated the total consumption at not less than 10 000 000
gallons, of which therefore upwards of 7,000,000 paid no duty
the profits on the manufacture were such as to induce the
people engaged m illicit distillation to run all risks, and to set
at defiance every effort of the constituted authorities to nut
down the practice, and consequently tbe duty was reduced in
18—. from 5s. 6d, to 2s. the wine gallon, or 2s. 4d. the imperial
gallon. The results are best exhibited by the following table
showing the quantity of spirits that paid duty each year, the
rate of duty, and the net amount of revenue collected : 
521
Gallons Impe¬
rial Measure.
3,311,462
2,910,483
3,590,376
6,690,315
9,262,744
6,834,867
8,260,664
9,937,903
9,212,223
9,004,539
8,710,672
8,657,756
8,168,596
9,763,808
Kate per Gallon.
5s. 6d. per Irish gallon 
Ditto 
Ditto 
2s. per English gallon  
Ditto 
2s. lOd. per imperial gallon...
Ditto 
Ditto 
Ditto 
f 2s. 10d., 3s., and 3s. 4d
1 per do 
3s. 4d 
Ditto 
Ditto 
1,409,128
1,451,580
1,442,845
„ .. 1,360,769
3s. 4d. and 2s. 4d  1,464,581
Net Amount
of Revenue.
L.912,288
797,518
634,460
771,690
1,084,191
964,509
1,122,096
1,395,721
1,305,064
The following table shows the number of gallons of Irish
spirits brought to charge since 1840, and the amount of
duty
Years. Gallons. Duty
1840  10,815,709 L.1,261,832 14 4
1841   7,401,051 936,126 3 8
1842   6,485,443 864,725 14 8
1843    5,290,650 904,908 8 0
1844   5,546,483 852,418 11 4
1845   6,451,137 860,151 12 0
1846    7,605,196 1,014,026 2 8
1847   7,952,076 1,060,276 16 0
1848   5,737,687 804,984 8 0
1849   8,126,507 943,057 14 8
1850   6,973,333 929,777 14 8
1851   7,408,086 987,774 19 0
1852   7,550,518 1,006,735 14 8
1853   8,208,256 1,094,434 2 8
1854   8,136,362 1,273,151 18 8
The principle of extracting the largest possible amount of
revenue from the duty on spirits having been adopted, the rate
was raised in 1855 to 6s. 2d. per gallon, when the number of
gallons brought to charge declined to 6,228,856, and the
maximum rate, of duty productive to the revenue appears to
have been attained, if not exceeded.
There are breweries in most of the large towns in Ireland,
the produce of which has superseded the use of beer imported
from Great Britain, and also furnishes quantity sufficient
for a large export trade, which has of late years much in¬
creased.
The external trade of Ireland branches out into two great r.
divisions, the cross-channel trade with Great Britain, and the
commerce with foreign, nations. The relative importance of trade'
each port, as respects its commercial character, will appear
from the first and second tables following, which contain a spe¬
cification of the number and tonnage of vessels that entered
and cleared out coastways, from and to the British colonies
and foreign countries in 1853, in each of the ports of ^reland ;
while the progress of domestic navigation will appear from
the .tnird and fourth tables, containing a summary, in triennial
periods, of the tonnage of ships belonging to and registered
at the different ports in Ireland, and of the number and ton¬
nage of those employed in the cross-channel trade.
3 u
522
IRELAND.
Statistics.
r»„r.- Vmeb and Steam Vessels that Entered and Cleared Out Coastways at each of the Statist.
Number and Tonnage of 9 Ports in Ireland in the Year 1853.
Belfast.
Cork.
Dublin.
Limerick.
Waterford. _
Other ports 
Total.
^eteo- 19,344 '220 69,953 | 69 17,477 I 850 [ 144,536
Account of the Tonnage belonging to a^dB^isterf f f *
Irish Ports at different Triennial Periods, with the In
crease between the first and last Periods.
Name of Pokt.
Ballina 
Belfast 
Coleraine 
Cork 
Drogheda 
Dublin 
Dundalk 
Galway 
Limerick 
Londonderry
Newry  
Ross 
Skibbereen..
Sligo 
Strangford..
Tralee 
Waterford ..
Westport....
Wexford 
Other ports..
Years
1840. 1841,
1842.
149,809
101,349
14,507
94,742
42,247
26,155
32,720
13,030
Years
1843.1844,
1845.
154,402
115,658
14,692
105,101
42,837
23,507
35,018
9,353
60,346
26,098
8,291
66,547
24,583
40,283
Years
1846,1847,
1848.
202,011
2,795
145,127
19.287
126,288
7,971
11,443
43,155
27,844
35,714
25,824
14,296
’979
81,926
735
25,318
11,230
Total  569,294 631,981 781,943 791,525
Years
1849, 1850,
1851.
Tons.
162
226,414
1,030
149.465
20,524
123,182
8,918
12,170
39,646
23,383
30,743
28,371
8,649
13,112
5,626
3,180
69,237
624
27,089
Increase
between
first pe¬
riod, 1797-
98-99, and
last period
1849-50 51.
Tons.
213,352
136,041
17,528
89,697
36,256
20,527
18,251
12,766
2,640
60,308
20,205
Number and Tonnage of Vessels employed in the Inter¬
course between Great Pritain and Ireland, which entere
Inwards and cleared Outwards with Cargoes, at the
Ports of the United Kingdom during Four 1 ears.
—T7. 
Inwards 
Outwards 
1851.
Yes. Ton.
9,187 1,679,483
19,051 2,378,097
Yes.
9,406
18,676
1,762,197 9.840
2,409,905 19,244
Ton.
1,931,939
2.594,555
Yes.
10,606
20,685
2,042,146
2,819,395
627,571
These tables exhibit the great prepGndcraiiceofthecross-
channel trade, which has been greatly augmented since the m
troduction of steam navigation. f thisnur-
The earliest attempt at establishing a company f°r this pur
pose was made in Dublin about the year 1816. Two small
vessels were fitted out; but the construe ion 0 ‘ eflbrt
was faulty, their dimensions were too smal and the ettort
proved abortive. The cross-channel trade with the exception
of that in coal, is almost wholly carried on by f
vessels, but since 1825, when the trade between Great Bntam
and Ireland was placed upon the footing 0 a
no separate returns have been made out a.
of the quantity or value of the exports an impor s. Fisheries
The coasts of Ireland abound with fish; a"d
Temple observed, “ that the fishery of lie an > J?oun(i/’
would prove a mine under water, as rich as any g
Arthur Young also remarks, “ that there is scarcely a parrot
Ireland, but what is well situated for some fishe y
quence ; and that her coasts of innumerable creeks and r ve
mouths are the resort of vast shoals of herrings cod ling,
hake, and mackerel, &c., which might, with proper attention,
IRELAND.
523
Statistics, be converted into funds of wealth.” Yet the Irish fisheries
v < / have never prospered.
Bounties to encourage the fisheries first granted in 1764-, and
continued for several years, failed to place them on a produc¬
tive footing. The experiment was repeated in 1819, when
commissioners were appointed for applying in Ireland the sys¬
tem previously adopted for the Scotch fisheries, with powers to
grant bounties to persons building fishing-boats of a certain
tonnage, and for the curing of herring and some other kinds of
fish. An annual sum of L.5000 was placed at their disposal,
the application of which was afterwards limited to the building
of piers and the repairing of boats; a large portion of the grant
was also employed as a loan fund, to enable the poorer fisher¬
men to procure the necessary gear on advantageous terms.
The Irish Fishery Board was abolished in 1830, and the unap¬
plied residue of the grants vested, in the first instance, in the
Board of Inland Navigation, and subsequently in that of Pub¬
lic Works, to whom sums of L.4500, L.3500, L.2500, L.1500,
and L.1000, were granted during the five ensuing years, to be
applied to the completion of piers erected before 1830, and for
defraying the expenses incurred in the collection of ’the out¬
standing loans of the former commission. In 1842, the Board
of Public Works were appointed commissioners for the im- Statistics,
provement and regulation of the fisheries, and the coast has , /
been portioned out into 28 fishery districts.
The following table shows the number of vessels and hands
engaged in the sea fisheries under different circumstances, viz.,
—1. Under the system of bounties and loans ; 2. After the with¬
drawal of bounties ; 3. When carried on without any assistance
either of bounty or loan; 4. Before the years of famine ; 5.
After the famine ; and in the years 1851 and 1852:—
1830. 1836. 1844. 1845. 1848. 1851. 1852.
Vessels and Boats 13,119 10,761 17,955 19,883 15,932 14,756 13,277
Men and Boys 64,771 54,119 84,708 93,073 70,011 64,612 58,822
Later returns have been found to be somewhat inaccurate in
detail, but it is certain that the progressive decline in the num¬
ber of vessels and men employed still continues.
The most ancient annals of Ireland record a twofold division Territorial
of the country by two of the descendants of Milesius, who made divisions,
an imaginary line, drawn from Dublin to Galway, the bound-
ary of their respective shares ; of these the northern was called
Death Conn, the southern Death Mogha. In the time of
Ptolemy the island was partitioned out by a number of tribes,
whose position has been determined by Whitaker as follows;—■
Name according to
Whitaker. Ptolemy.
North.
Robogdii
East.
Darini
Voluntii
Eblani
Caucii
Manapii
Coriundi
South.
Brigantes
Yodii
Uterni
West.
Luceni
Veliborii
Gangani
Auteri
Nagnatae
Herdini
Central.
Scoti
Poooycho/
Actfitvot
OvoKovvrtoi
’ESAflCi/o;
Kottoco;
M«J/067Z-/0f
Ko£/oj/B;o/
B^iyccvreg
'Ovo^toi
’Ovngvoi
’ Ovehivogot
Toc'yyctvoi
’AvTiQOl
'NotyvctTou
’ES/i/o;
Modern County.
Londonderry, Antrim
Antrim, Down
Down, Armagh, Louth
Meath, Dublin
Dublin, Wicklow
Wicklow, Wexford
Wicklow, Kildare, Carlow
Wexford, Waterford
Cork
Cork, Kerry
Kerry
Kerry, Limerick
Clare
Galway
Mayo, Sligo, Roscommon, )
Leitrim, F ermanagh j
Donegal
Tyrone, Fermanagh, Lei¬
trim, Monaghan, Cavan,
Longford, Westmeath, (
King’s, Queen’s, Kil
kenny, Tipperary
Boundary
From
To
Hornhead
F airhead
Ardglas
Boyne River j
Liffey River
Oboca
Between the Boyne and Bar-
row Rivers, the Eblani,
and the Brigantes.
Carnsore
Blackwater
Bann
Dingle Bay
Galway Bay
Libnius |
Ballyshannon
Bounded by the Shannon,
Loughs Allen and Erne,
west; Barrow, Boyne, and
Lough Neagh, east; Suir
and Blackwater south ;
and a chain of mountains
north.
A subsequent division was that into the five petty kingdoms
of Leinster, Ulster, Munster, Connaught, and Meath, which
latter consisted of the counties of Meath, Westmeath, Long¬
ford, and parts of Armagh and Louth. This division con¬
tinued until after the English invasion ; but, in the reign of
King John, the portions of Ireland subject to his sway were
formed into the twelve counties of Dublin, Meath, Kildare,
Uriel (now Louth), Carlow, Kilkenny, Wexford, Waterford’
Cork, Kerry, Limerick, and Tipperary. No further change’
took place until the reign of Philip and Mary, when the King’s
and Queen’s Counties were formed. Elizabeth divided Con¬
naught into the seven counties of Galway, Clare, Roscommon,
F airhead.
Ardglas.
Boyne River.
Lasbius or Liffey
River.
Oboca or Ovoca.
Carnsore Point.
Blackwater River.
Bann River.
Ibernus or Dingle
Bay.
Senus or Shannon
River.
Libnius River.
Rhebius or Bally¬
shannon River.
Hornhead.
Mayo, Sligo, Leitrim, and Longford ; and Ulster, into the nine
counties of which it consists at present. Wicklow was sepa¬
rated from Dublin and made a distinct county by James I.
1 he practical division of the country was, however, for cen¬
turies into the English and Irish portions of the island, or
Ireland within, and Ireland beyond the Pale. No alterations
have taken place since the reign of James I., excepting the
division of Cork and Tipperary into ridings.
The 32 counties of which Ireland consists, are divided into
316 baronies, comprising 2,532 parishes, and these again into
townlands; or, as they are sometimes called, ploughlands,
which is the name of the smallest of the territorial subdivisions.
524
Statistics.
IRELAND.
Govern¬
ment.
The number of these townlands is about 60,760, averaging
300 acres each There are also eight counties of cities and
dOO acres ea C()rk Limerick, Waterford, Kilkenny,
Sway Drogheda, ’and Carrickfergm. Independently of the
uaiway, ^ B ’ he who]e country is divided into 163
PoorXaw Unions, which are subdivided into about 3440 elec¬
toral divisions. The names of all the smaller divisions of land
and of most villages, towns, lakes,_ rivers &c are of Celtic
origin and the following explanation taken from Dr Beau¬
fort’s Memoir of a Map of Ireland, of those words which most
frequently occur in composition, will render the names of
places more intelligible.
Agh, a field.
Anagh, or Ana, a river.
Ard, a high place or rising ground.
Ath, a ford.
Awin, a river.
Bally, or Ballin, a town, or inclosed place of habitation.
Ban, or Bane, white or fair.
Beg, little.
Ben, the summit of a mountain, generally an abrupt head.
Bun, a bottom, a foundation or root.
Car or Cahir, a city.
Garrick, Carrig, Carrow, a rock, or stony place.
Cork, Corragh, a marsh or swampy ground.
Clara, a plain.
Croagh, Croghan, a sharp-pointed hill resembling a rick.
Clogh, Clough, a great stone.
Curragh, a marsh or fenny plain.
Cion, a glade or level pasture ground.
Col, Cul, a corner.
Derry, a clear dry spot in the midst of a woody swamp.
Don, a height or fastness, a fortress.
Donagh, a church.
Drotn, a high, narrow ridge of hills.
Inch, Inis, an island.
Ken, a head.
Kill, a church or cemetery.
Knock, a single hill or a hillock.
Lick, a flat stone.
Lough, a lake or a pool.
Magh, a plain.
Main, a collection of hillocks.
More, large or great.
Rath, a mound or entrenchment, a barrow.
Ross, a point of land projecting into water.
Shan, old. .
Sliebh, a range of mountain, a hill covered with heath.
Tack, a house.
Temple, a church.
Tom, Toom, a bush.
Tra, a strand.
Tober, Tubber, a well or spring.
Tullagh, a gentle hill, a common.
Tully, a place subject to floods.
The executive government is vested in the lord-lieutenant,
who must be a peer, assisted by a privy council, indefinite in
number, appointed by the crown, and by a chief secretary, a
member of the House of Commons. Since 1801 there have
been 18 viceroys, and 27 chief secretaries of Ireland. In the
absence of the lord-lieutenant, his place is supplied by lords-
justices, who are usually the primate or the Archbishop of
Dublin, the lord chancellor, and the commander of the forces.
Each county is in charge of a lieutenant, generally a peer,
an indefinite number of deputy lieutenants and magistrates,
who act gratuitously, and one or more resident paid magis¬
trates, all appointed by the crown, during pleasure. The
counties of cities and towns, and the boroughs, are governed
by their own magistrates. The judicial establishment consists
of the Lord Chancellor, the Master of the Rolls, four judges in
each of the courts of Queen’s Bench, Common Pleas, and Ex¬
chequer ; an assistant barrister for each county, a bankrupt
court with two judges, a commissioner of the Insolvents’ Court,
the judges of the Prerogative Court and of the Admiralty. Two
of the judges hold assizes for criminal and civil pleas, in each
county, in spring and summer every year. The country is
divided into six circuits: Home—Meath, Westmeath, King’s,
Queen’s,Carlow,Kildare; North-East—Louth with Drogheda,
Down,Antrim withCarrickfergus, Armagh, Monaghan; North-
West—Longford, Cavan, Fermanagh, Tyrone, Donegal, Lon¬
donderry county and city; Leinster—Wicklow, Wexford, Wa¬
terford county and city, Kilkenny county and city, Tipperary
E. and W. Ridings; Munster—Clare, Limerick county and Statistics
city, Kerry, Cork county and city ; Connaught—Roscommon, >-
Leitrim, Sligo, Mayo, Galway county and town. The details
of the execution of the laws are committed to the constabulary
in the counties, and the police in Dublin.
The country is now represented in the imperial parliament
by 4 spiritual peers in rotation, 28 temporal peers elected for
life, and 105 commoners ; of which latter class 64 represent
the 32 counties, 2 the university, 12 the cities and towns of
Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Waterford, Belfast, and Galway, and
27 the boroughs. The number of electors under the Reform
Act was, in 1832, 98,857 ; on 1st January 1850, the consti-
tuency had diminished to 61,036—27,180 in the counties and
33,856in the cities and boroughs. The Act 13th & 14th Viet.,
cap. 69, was passed in 1850 to amend the representation ; and
in addition to those persons previously qualified to register and
vote in county elections, occupiers of any tenements rated in
the last poor rate at a nett annual value ofL.12 and upwards,
are entitled to vote in elections for counties, subject to regis¬
tration in accordance with the act and to certain limitations
therein ; also owners of certain estates of the rated nett annual
value of L.5. In boroughs, occupiers rated in the last poor-
rate at L.8 and upwards are entitled to vote, subject to regis¬
tration and certain limitations in the act. The number of
electors registered on the 1st January 1851 was 163,546, being
135,245 in the counties, and 28,301 in the cities and boroughs.
Of the 300 members who composed the Irish House of Com¬
mons in 1793 no less than 200 were stated by Mr Grattan to
be the nominees of private individuals; and from 40 to 50
members were returned, it is said, by constituencies of not
more than 10 electors. Eighty-three of these nomination
boroughs were afterwards abolished, the proprietor of each
receiving L.15,000 compensation, for which purpose the sum of
L.l,245,000was voted by the Irish parliament. The Act of U nion
reduced the number of representatives in the House of Commons
to 100, and the Reform Act of 1832 added five to that number.
By the Municipal Reform Act, 3d & 4th Viet., cap. 118,11 of
the principal towns, each containing upwards of 12,000 inhahi-
tants, are divided into wards, and are governed by a council
consisting of a chief magistrate called mayor, sovereign, pro¬
vost, or portreve—that of Dublin styled lord mayor and a
certain number of aldermen and councillors for each ward;
all of whom are elected by the inhabitants entitled to vote in
right of their property. The total number of existing corpo¬
rations is 95, possessing an income of about L.62,000 per
annum. Independently of the towns with corporations, the
Act of 9th Geo. IV., cap'. 82, enabled every city and town to elect
commissioners to superintend the lighting, paving, and cleans¬
ing of their respective districts, but the Towns Improvement
Act of 1854 supersedes the Act of 9th Geo. IV. in each town
after the election of commissioners under the new act.
The Irish Militia consists of 12 regiments of artillery, and 35 Militia
regiments of infantry, numbering, when embodied, 31,349 men.
The first regular police force established throughout Ireland Police,
was originated by the Act 54th Geo. III., cap. 131, passed in
1814—“To provide for the better execution of the laws in
Ireland by appointing superintending magistrates and addi¬
tional constables in counties, in certain cases.” Other acts
followed, but all were consolidated or repealed by the 6th \\ ill.
IV., cap. 13, passed in 1836. Originally the expense was
defrayed partly by grand jury presentments, and partly out of
the Consolidated Fund; but the Act 9th & 10th Viet., cap. 97,
passed in 1846, provides that the whole expense shall be borne
by the Consolidated Fund, except a moiety of the cost of addi¬
tional constabulary force applied for by the magistrates ol any
county or district, or of the reserve force when employed
therein, or of an increased force stationed there by the lord-
lieutenant. The Act 6th Will. IV., cap. 13, likewise autho¬
rized the lord-lieutenant to appoint resident stipendiary
magistrates, to act in disturbed districts, or where for any
other sufficient cause it should appear to be expedient. The
constabulary force consists of an inspector-general, 2 deputy
inspectors-general, 2 assistant inspectors-general, a receiver,
surgeon, veterinary surgeon, 35 county inspectors, 248 sub-
inspectors, 335 head-constables; 2049 constables, and 9491
sub-constables; total, 12,166, with 360 horses, whose main¬
tenance in 1854 amounted to L.596,760, including the expense
of 71 stipendiary magistrates. The proportion ot the expense
of the force charged on the Consolidated F und in 1854 n as
L.572,511.
IRELAND.
525
SMMcs. Statement exhibiting the effective strength of the Constabulary Farce in each County and County of a City or Town in Statistic.
£r J854 ary the T°,al ExPmdit<"e on account thereof, for the Year ending 31st Vecem- • ^
Counties.
Antrim 
Armagh 
Carlow  
Cavan 
Clare  
Cork, East and
West Ridings...
Donegal 
Down 
Dublin  
Fermanagh  
Galway. East and
West Ridings.
Kerry 
Kildare 
Kilkenny 
King’s  
Leitrim  
Limerick 
Londonderry....,
Longford 
Louth ....,
Mayo 
Meath 
Monaghan  
E c
7
6
5
9
10
21
9
7
6
6
17
7
6
8
7
7
7
5
6
6
10
9
5
7
7
5
10
11
25
12
8
6
6
19
7
7
9
8
18
16
5
7
8
10
10
6
t« <a a
c-e c
o c o
o So
46
37
30
61
72
156
52
48
45
35
113
44
49
74
65
46
99
22
37
37
57
68
35
181
149
115
326
310
575
266
199
173
141
557
173
186
310
274
264
502
72
146
187
207
307
158
Total.
241
199
155
406
403
777
339
262
230
188
706
231
248
401
354
325
627
104
196
238
284
394
204
Total Expendi¬
ture of each
County.
L. s. d.
11,846 14 9£
11,536 7 3i
7,439 14 2f
17,406 18 10£
19,359 13 3
37,668 2 7$
16,451 17 10
12,105 8 6£
10,124 12 9|
8,676 12 7J
33,696 15 2|
12,030
11,258
18,528
16,328
14,3^8
27,527
5,208
9,817
11,197
16,152
17.145
11,096
14 6J
16 5f
16 0
19 2}
2 11J
18 6J
19 6
5 6J
15 0
1 0}
19 3i
14 5i
Counties.
Queen’s  
Roscommon  
Sligo 
Tipperary, North
& South Ridings
Tyrone  
Waterford 
Westmeath 
Wexford 
Wicklow  
C E
Cities and Towns.
Carrickfergus ...
Cork  
Drogheda  
Galway  
Kilkenny  
Limerick  
Waterford 
Depot, Recruits..
Reserve Force at
Phoenix Park...
Officers at Head
Quarters 
9
8
7
21
7
7
8
8
7
Total.
§13 g
ry C O
^ So
60
74
36
193
32
43
56
50
38
1
23
6
9
7
13
11
5
81
281 329 2066
270
354
148
879
135
186
220
167
168
6
82
33
43
31
56
55
515
296
Total.
9422
351
448
199
1116
181
244
292
233
219
7
109
41
53
41
72
69
520
391
Total Expendi¬
ture of each
County.
L. s. d.
15,690 15 1|
20,905 1 7
10,298 12 8J
47,894 3 lOf
9,028 17 10
11,623 9 3|
13,240 11 0J
11,967 8 8£
10,477 15 3£
276 1 2$
4,857 7 2f
1,513 13 10
2,130 15 0J
2,312 9 8f
3,757 18 3$
3,386 4 8
14,416 13 7
15,281 10 3
9 40,755 5 5
12107 596,759 15 3
. T.he Revenue Police organized for the suppression of illicit
distillation, consists of about 1200 officers and men, maintained
at an expense in 1855 of L.62,720.
Revenues. Before the arrival of the English, the revenues of Ireland
were paid in cattle; and even after that period the custom
prevailed for several centuries in the parts less subject to
foreign influence. Traces of it have been met with so late as
the reign of Elizabeth. The new government, under the Eng¬
lish, introduced the method of raising money by subsidies.
John exacted a subsidy from the Irish clergy, and established
the court of exchequer for the general management of the
revenue. The same method was continued during the reigns
of Henry III. and the first Edwards; but the income thus
extracted from the people proved so inadequate to meet the
expenditure that recourse was had to the legalized extortion of
coygne and livery, which was the levying of man’s meat and
horse’s meat for the soldiery in time of service. The amount
of the regular revenue, in the reign of Edward III., is stated
by Walsingham and Holingshed to have been L.30,000; but
Sir John Davis, who collected his information from the pipe-
rolls, and other authentic sources, reduces it to L.10,000. The
most remarkable financial measure of Ptichard II. was a tax
upon absentees. In 1433, the eleventh of Henry VI., the
revenue was reduced to L.2339, 18s. 6d,, whilst the expenses
of the government were L.2348, 16s. ll^d., thus exceeding
the income by L.18, 17s. 5-±d. At the latter end of the same
reign, the Duke of York, when sent over as lord-lieutenant
with extraordinary powers, not only obtained the whole
revenue, but stipulated for an additional supply from England
of 4000 marks for the first year, and L.2000 for every°year
thereafter. Edward IV. raised money by the imposition of
duties on all merchandize sold in Ireland except hides. In the
fifteenth year of Henry VII. a duty of one shilling in the
pound was laid on all merchandize imported and exported,
except wine and oil; and a tax, by way of subsidy, of 13s. 4d!
on every hide of land. During this reign the revenue seldom
exceeded^ L.5000. Henry VIII. increased the revenue by the
suppression of monasteries. The laws against absentees were
also enforced. During the first fifteen years of Elizabeth,
the revenue was L.120,000, or L.8000 per annum, whilst the
expenses amounted to L.490,779, 7s. 6£d. In 1599, at the
close of Tyrone’s rebellion, L.600,000 were spent in six
months; and Sir Robert Cecil affirmed that Ireland had cost
the queen L.3,400,000 in ten years’ time. In the pacific reign
of James the customs increased from L.50 to L.3000, and at
the close of his reign to L.9700. The wardships and other
feudal rights produced about L.10,000, notwithstanding which
the income was inadequate to the expenditure. To defray the
expense of the army, an order of baronets was established, by
which L.98,500 were raised, in addition to which L.247,433
were remitted from England to clear otf the debts incurred bv
Elizabeth. The Irish parliament granted the same king a
subsidy of 2s. 8d. in the pound on every personal estate of three
pounds annual value, and fourpence in the pound on every
real estate of one pound value; an act of liberality with which
James was so much pleased, that he declared “he would here¬
after hold his Irish subjects in equal favour with those of his
other kingdoms.” In the succeeding reign Stratford raised the
customs to four times their previous amount. In the same
reign the first mention is made of an excise tax. Thurloe,
however, in his state papers, mentions that the revenue for two
years ending in 1657 amounted to L.137,558, whilst the ex¬
penditure was L.142,509. When the Irish parliament met
after the Restoration, it granted, first, an hereditary revenue
to the king, his heirs and successors; second, an excise for main¬
taining the army; third, the subsidy of tonnage and pound¬
age for the navy ; and, fourth, a tax of two shillings each on
hearths, in lieu of the feudal burdens, which were then abolished.
After the Revolution, the information respecting this important
element of national statistics becomes more precise and satis¬
factory. The revenue, from the landing of Schomberg in 1689
till the end of the reign of William, was as follows, the total
of the previous military expenditure of the war with James
having amounted to L.3,851,655:—.
Year. Revenne.
1689  L.8,834
1690  93,910
1691  274,949
1692  393,926
1693  444,183
1694  430,534
1695  438,304
Year. Revenue.
1696  L.513,534
1697  548,967
1698  601,846
1699  701,932
1700  766,620
1701  697,955
1702  581,286
526
Statistics.
IRELAND.
During; the earlier part of Anne’s reign the income exceeded
half a million, but in her latter days it was less productive. In
surplus,Vhich was applied, not always judiciously, to public
W The national debt of Ireland, incurred by an excess of
expenditure beyond the income of the country, increased
with great rapidity towards the close of the last century
and tifl the year 1817, when it ceased to form a separate
item in the public accounts, in consequence of the consoli¬
dation of the British and Irish exchequers. _ Its progressive
increase since the Revolution is exhibited in the following
table:—
1716.
1720,
1730 220,730
1740 296,988
1750 205,117
1762 223,438
LI     uz.o,oo
1780 1,067,565
1790 1,586,067
1800 22,245,190
1810 75,240,790
1817 134,602,769
Public Debt of Ireland
L.16,106
,...87,511
Statistics.
The following table gives an account of the gross revenue
levied in Ireland, in each year from 1840 to 1853; distinguish¬
ing the expenses of collection and the other payments out ot
the revenue in its way to the exchequer; also an account of
the amount of repayments into the exchequer on account of
advances for public works, employment of the poor, distress,
&c., &c., in Ireland, for the like period.
Gross Revenue levied in Ireland, in each year from 1840 to 1853.
1840
1841
1842
1843
1844
1845
1846
1847
1848
1849
1850
1851
1852
1853
Balances
outstand¬
ing at
the com¬
mence¬
ment of
the year.
1.
L.
220,509
190,389
199,628
220,065
172,827
169,938
166,769
179,203
210,686
159,731
156,135
144,352
157,574
167,946
Gross
Receipt of
Revenue
after
deducting
Drawbacks,
Discounts,
&c.
L.
4,107,866
4,118,689
4,156,892
4,099,062
4,406,509
4.667.462
4,919,622
4.454.462
4,521,958
4,291,807
4,257,686
4,382,000
4,424,785
4,752,233
Total
Income,
including
Balances.
L.
4,328,375
4,309,078
4,356,520
4,319,127
4,579,336
4,837,400
5,086,391
4,633,665
4,732,644
4,451,538
4,413,820
4,526,352
4,582,359
4,886,444
Charges
of
Collection.
4.
Charge.
Payments
out of the
Revenue
in its way
to the Ex¬
chequer,
other than
charges of
Collection.
L.
542,716
537,615
536,707
534,833
528.700
539,124
533,351
546,499
566.701
545,958
618,744
561,821
561,207
580,713
Payments
into the
Exchequer
on account of
Revenue.
L.
35,808
35,643
37,256
36,550
35,438
34,654
34,017
35,560
35,764
38,141
36,813
34,072
33,019
30,460
L.
3,559,462
3,536,192
3,562,492
3,574,917
3,845,260
4,096,853
4,339,821
3,840,920
3.970.448
3,711,304
3,613,911
3,672,883
3,820,186
4.118.449
Balances
outstand¬
ing at the
termina¬
tion of
the year.
L.
190,389
199,628
220,065
172,827
169,938
166,769
179,203
210,686
159,731
156,135
144,351
157,574
167,946
156,821
Total
discharge
of the
Income.
L.
4,328,375
4,309,078
4,356,520
4,319,127
4,579,336
4,837,400
5,086,391
4,633,665 i
4,732,644 '
4,451,538
4,413,820
4,526,351
4,582,359
4,886,444
Payments
into the
Exchequer
on account of
Repayments
of Advances
for Public
Works, &c.
9.
Total Pay¬
ments into the
Exchequer on
account of
Revenue, Re¬
payments Aic.,
being amount
of cols. 6 & 9.
L.
353,638
433,441
371,877
384,794
420,470
394,305
370,283
514,481
357,117
621,155
505,021
360,195
466,329
445,889
L.
3,913,100
3,969,633
3,934,369
3,959,711
4,265,730
4,491,158
4,710,104
4,355,401
4,327,565
4,332,459
4,118,932
4.642,195
4,286,515
4,564,338
An Account of the Nett Produce of the Revenue of Ireland, paid into the Exchequer there, in each year, from 1840 to
1854, distinguished under the different heads of Revenue.
Years.
Customs.
Excise.
Stamps.
Property
and Income
Tax.
Post
Office.
Miscella¬
neous.
3. I. 5-
1840
1841
1842
1843
1844
1845
1846
1847
1848
1849
1850
1851
1852
1853
1854
L.
2,030,159
1,999,257
1,949,834
1.960,498
2,126,149
2,091,651
2,258,043
2,009,133
2,069,773
1,941,122
1,827,289
1,854,268
1,856,160
1,924,511
1,852,108
L.
1,177,407
1,097,918
1,110,342
1,082,722
1,147,940
1,408,471
1,467,060
1,152,932
1,321,915
1,231,548
1,312,123
1,348,911
1,478,092
1,708,621
2,208,580
L.
432,722
425,771
491,851
521,981
545,898
558,569
573,767
567,996
532,924
502,073
462,691
451,534
474,374
474,430
453,812
27,976
549,011
L.
6,664
3,000
3,000
16,000
22,000
29,000
59,000
39,000
26,000
5,000
10,000
6.
L.
6,929
7,411
5,248
5,059
6,590
6,347
6,063
5,698
4,835
6,633
5,744
9,000
7,732
7,206
5,202
Imprest
and other
Moneys.
7.
L.
5,581
5,835
2,216
1,677
2,683
9,816
5,888
46,160
2,000
3,928
6,063
4,470
3,829
3,681
4,812
Repay¬
ments of
Advances
for Public
Works.
8.
L.
353,638
433,441
371,878
384,794
420,470
381,938
352,642
484.924
304,927
621,155
505,021
327,499
466,329
475,445
351,281
Total.
9.
L.
4,013,100
3,969,633
3,934,369
3,959,731
4,265,730
4,478,792
4,692,463
4,325,844
4,275,375
4,332,459
4,118,932
4,000,682
4,286,515
4,621,870
5,434,807
Circulating The circulating medium in Ireland was, until lately, sub¬
medium. ject to a great variety of alterations. Without entering into
the disputed question of the existence of a mint in Ireland
established by the Ostmen or Danes, the first certain account
of a mint there is that established in 1210, by King John,
who caused pennies, halfpennies, and farthings to be coined
and made current by proclamation. Further coinages were
made by Henry III. and by Edward L, who added the title of
Dominus Hibernie to that of Rex Anglie on his Irish coin¬
age. It consisted of groats, halfpence, and farthings. The
first important alteration as to value was in the latter part of
the reign of Edward III. who caused the ounce of silver to be
cut into twenty-six deniers or pennies, instead of twenty,, as
before, which caused the depreciation of eight, and one-third
per cent, in the Irish, as compared with the British currency,
which existed until the final assimilation ot the two currencies
in 1825. Henry VI., or rather the Duke of York, his l1®11'
tenant in Ireland, had mints in Dublin and I rim, in which
I K E L A N T>.
Statistics, both silver and copper money were coined. In the beginning of
v r j the subsequent reign of Edward IV. the value of silver coins was
raised to double their previous amount. The consequence was
an enormous increase of price in all the necessaries of life ;
to remedy which, the Irish parliament enacted, that the mas¬
ter of the mint should strike, in the castles of Dublin and
Trim, and in the town of Drogheda, five kinds of silver coins ;
the gross (or groat), the demi-gross, the denier (or penny), the
demi-denier, and quadrant (or farthing) ; eleven groats to
weigh an ounce troy, and each, unclipped, to pass for four-
pence. A few years afterwards, the price of silver was again
raised so excessively, that the difference between the Irish and
English groat was fifty per cent, in a pound of bullion. In
the reign of Henry VII. the difference between the two coin¬
ages was one-third. Soon after the accession of Henry VIII.
the coin in Ireland was so clipped, defaced, and scarce, that
the Earl of Surrey, then lord-lieutenant, sued for his recall, in
consequence of the want of money to carry on the war against
the Irish. Elizabeth ordered the ounce of silver to be cut into
sixty pennies, so that the coin of that name was reduced in
weight from the twentieth to the sixtieth part of an ounce.
The total value of the money coined in Ireland by that prin¬
cess is said to have been L.94:,577,19s. 6d. English, which, at
the rate of sixteen-pence Irish for a shilling English, amounts
to L.118,222, 9s. 4^d. Irish. The Irish shilling, or harp as
it was called, from the impression on its reverse, was worth
ninepence English. By a proclamation issued in the fifth year
of James I. the same proportion of values was continued. In
1613 English money was current in Ireland at an increased
value; the English five-shilling crown-piece passing for six
shillings and eightpence, and the other coins in proportion.
The exchange between Dublin and London was twenty-one
shillings Irish for fifteen English, with sixpence or eightpence
per pound extra, payable in London. By a proclamation in
1637, the name of Irish money was ordered to be abolished, and
all payments were reduced to English sterling money. About
1672, small change was so scarce in Ireland, that towns and
private dealers were obliged to issue copper tokens. James
II., on his arrival in Dublin in 1688, issued a proclamation,
by which the English guinea was to pass current at L.l, 4s,,
the crown-piece at 5s. 5d., and all lesser coins in the same pro¬
portion. In 1690, he depreciated still further the value of the
coin, by the issue of pieces of base metal, which were to pass
at a nominal value far above their intrinsic worth; so that
the coins issued of the nominal value of L.965,375 according
to some, but, according to others, of L.l,596,799, were really
worth no more than L.6495, estimating the metal at fourpence
per pound. On the accession of William, this coinage was
cried down. In 1725, the new gold coin of Portugal was made
current in Ireland, the largest coin, or Portugal piece, being
rated at L.4. About the same time, iu consequence of the
scarcity of small change, Wood obtained his patent for the
issue of a copper currency, which was prevented by the lite¬
rary exertions of Dean Swift in his celebrated publications
called the Drapier’s Letters. In 1780, the acts of parliament
prohibiting the carrying of gold or silver into Ireland were
repealed. At that time the value of the precious metals in
circulation as specie, or hoarded, was estimated at L.3,000,000
Irish. No further legislative change took place until the as¬
similation of the Irish and English currency in 1825, pre¬
viously to which, however, the want of a metallic circulation
527
was so severely felt, particularly during some periods of Statistics,
the French war, that private bankers and traders issued v v y
notes or tickets for small sums, from five shillings down to
twopence-halfpenny; and also copper tokens. The evils
of this combined pressure of the scarcity of legal and the
abundance of counterfeit coin, was ultimately remedied
by the issue of stamped dollars estimated at six shillings, and
by silver tokens of tenpence and fivepence, by the Bank of
Ireland, which circulated freely until they were replaced by
the issue of a pure standard coinage of silver from the royal
mint.
The entire banking business of Ireland, until 1783, was in
the hands of private individuals, who often issued notes to an
amount not only far beyond their respective capitals, but ex¬
ceeding in a great degree, what the wants of the country re¬
quired, or its credit could support. To remedy the evil effects
of a system so pernicious, a national bank was established in
that year, with similar privileges to those of the Bank of Eng¬
land in respect to the restriction of more than six partners in
a private bank. The injury that Ireland has sustained from
the repeated failure of banks may be mainly attributed to
this injudicious regulation. The loss that the country has suf¬
fered by the failure of banks may be described in a few words.
In 1804, there were fifty registered banks. Since that year,
many more were opened; but all have failed or wound up
their accounts, with the exception of three in Dublin. In 1821,
in consequence of the failure of eleven banks nearly at the
same time in the south of Ireland, governmentmade an arrange¬
ment with the Bank of Ireland, by which joint-stock compa¬
nies were allowed to be established at the distance of 50
Irish miles from Dublin, in return for which concession that
company, which was originally established with a capital of
L.600,000, and increased at various times, was permitted to
increase its capital L.500,000, making its entire capital amount
to L.3,000,000, of which L.2,630,769 was lent to the govern¬
ment. In consequence of several restrictions remaining un¬
repealed, no joint-stock company was formed until 1825, when
the Northern Banking Company of Belfast, formed on a private
bank, began to act on the new system. In the same year the
Provincial Bank of Ireland began business with a capital of
L.2,000,000; the Hibernian Bank with a capital of L.l,000,000,
and the Bank of Ireland established branch-banks in several
of the larger towns. The Belfast Banking Company was
formed in 1827, and the National Bank in 1835. In 1836 the
Royal Bank of Ireland was formed, and in 1837 the Ulster
Banking Company commenced business. The last joint-stock
banking company formed in Ireland was the unfortunate
Tipperary Bank, which did not issue notes.
On the expiry of the Bank of Ireland’s charter in 1838, it
was continued by act of parliament from year to year until
1845, since which time it has been regulated by the new Bank¬
ing Act, 8th & 9th Viet., c. 37, according to the following prin¬
ciples :—The bank to continue the banker of Government,
which is to pa)7 for the ten subsequent years 3^ per cent, on
the debt it owes to the bank. The proceedings of the establish¬
ment to be under the same rule which has been applied by
parliament to other banking institutions, and to make weekly
returns, similar to those of the Bank of England under the
new act, containing a full development of its affairs, the
amount of its bullion, and the variations in the quantity.
The joint-stock banks now doing business are as follow:—
Name.
Thus marked * do not issue their own Notes.
Bank of Ireland 
■^Hibernian Joint-Stock Co., Dublin..
Provincial Bank of Ireland 
Northern Banking Co., Belfast 
Belfast Banking Company 
National Bank  
Ulster Banking Company, Belfast...
Clonmel National Bank 
Carrick-on-Suir National Bank 
*Royal Bank, Dublin  
When
instituted.
1783
1824
1825
1825
1827
1835
1836
1836
1836
1836
No. of
Brunches.
23
2
38
11
22
45
18
2
Capital.
L.3,000,000
1,000,000
2,000,000
500,000
500,000
1,000,000
1,000,000
80,000
40,000
1,044,250
Capital paid up.
L.3,000,000
250,000
540,000
150,000
125,000
450,000
187,000
16,235
4,962
209,175
Paid up
per share.
L.100
25
25
30
25
22J
2*
2*
2£
10
Reserved Fund.
L.l,144,000
68,000
162,216
59,778
40,826
60,000
Fixed Issue.
L. 3,738,428
927,667
243,440
281,611
761,757
311,079
66,428
24,084
528
IRELAND.
Statistics.
rpr Amminl Arpraae of the Returns of the several Banks of Issue in Ireland under the Provisions of the
Ihe Annual. ^ j ^ ^ y.^ ^ 37jo/, the years 1846 tQ 1854>
1846.
1847.
1848.
1849.
1850.
1851.
1852.
1853.
1854.
Certified
issue of all
the Banks.
L.6,354,494
6,354,494
6,354,494
6,354,494
6,354,494
6,354,494
6,354,494
6,354,494
6,354,494
Notes of
L.5 and
upwards.
L.3,121,259
2,844,049
2,439,121
2,204,474
2,197,117
2,113,077
2,215,503
2,517,570
2,872,007
Notes
under L.5.
L.4,144,461
2,986,375
2,389,868
2,105,802
2,315,401
2,349,870
2,602,935
3,132,883
3,423,597
Total issue
of all the
Banks.
L.7,265,721
5,830,425
4,823,992
4,310,283
4,512,443
4,462,909
4,818,238
5,650,455
6,295,607
Gold held.
L.2,106,004
1,263,517
1,083,919
1,089,476
1,017,036
937,408
994,548
1,393,867
1,745,329
Silver held.
L.334,258
491,953
502,975
528,783
375,322
318,574
249,028
182,729
213,711
Total specie
held by all
the Banks.
2,440,266
1,755,475
1,586,898
1,541,094
1,315,439
1,255,985
1,243,576
1,576,600
1,959,043
Savings-banks were introduced into Ireland in 1810. The
greatest amount deposited was in 1845, previous to the years
of distress consequent on the famine ; and the fluctuations which
have since taken place appear in the annexed table :—
Years. Depositors. Amount.
1845...... 96,422 L.2,921,581
1846   93.853 2,855,827
1847   80,351 2,410,720
1848   48,512 1,334,296
1849   45,548 1,200,273
Years. Depositors. Amount.
1850   47,987 L.1,291,798
1851   49,554 1,347,617
1852   52,142 1,447,315
1853   55,630 1,586,010
The amount of subscriptions raised in England for the relief
of suflerers by the famine of 1822 having exceeded the ex¬
penditure, the surplus was intrusted to a committee in Lon¬
don, and was retained under the name of the Irish Repro¬
ductive Loan Fund, as a permanent fund for organizing loan
societies, ultimately originated the present loan fund sys¬
tem, under which small sums are advanced to industrious in¬
dividuals of the working classes, to be repaid by instalments,
with interest, and which was placed under the control of a com¬
mission in 1836, by the Act 6th and 7th Will. IV., c. 55. The
rate of discount on loans, made chargeable by it at 6d. in the
pound, has been reduced to 4d. in the pound by the Act of 6th
and 7th Viet., c. 91, which placed the general control over all
charitable loan societies and charitable pawn or deposit offices
under the superintendence of the “ Loan Fund Board.” The
number of funds, with their capital and circulation since the
commencement of the system, has been—
Years. No. of Funds. Capital. Circulation.
1838   50 ... L.180,526
1839   224 ... 816,473
1840   215 ... 1,164,046
1841   268 L.370.507 1,438,598
1842   300 124,920 1,691,871
1843   298 403,343 1,650,963
1844   259 417,584 1,702,918
1845   255 444,427 1,857,457
1846   250 408,842 1,770,397
1847   228 270,613 863,647
1848   177 217,119 717,865
1849   160 189,187 649,934
1850   132 182,501 662,794
1851   123 186,240 712,073
1852   H3 186,271 739,056
1853   H2 212,338 842,803
1854   115 214,735 870,024
Pawn offices, on the plan and under the name of the Frencl
Monts, de Pitte, were opened in several towns of Ireland ii
1841, with the object of advancing money on pledges at rate
more moderate than those of the licensed pawnbrokers; bu
all have since been discontinued.
By means of navigable rivers and canals, Ireland possessei
extensive inland navigation. For the details of the variou
canals, see Navigation, Inland.
The railway from Dublin to Kingstown, which was openet
at the latter end of 1834, was the first, and for several yean
the only railway in Ireland.
The progress and condition of the railway system may be
seen in the following tables, compiled from the board of Trade
Returns:—
Traffic and Receipts of the Railways in Ireland from
1836 to 1854, inclusive.
Years ending
30th June.
Miles open
on the 1st
January in
each year.
No. of
Passengers.
From
Passen¬
gers.
From
Goods
Total.
1836 (I5 mon.)
1837  
1838  
1839  
1840  
1841  
1842  
1843  
1844  
1845  
1846  
1847  
1848  
1849  
1850  
1851  
1852  
1853  
1854  
6
6
’ 6
6
13J
13J
13i
31i
311
65
65
120|
209J
428
515
580
666
771
865
1,237,800
1,184,428
1,243,972
1,341,208
1,358,761
1,629,024
2,046,903
2,074,444
2,588,096
3,481,707
3,610,506
3,866,294
4,374,749
6,059,947
5,495,796
5,633,603
6,166,127
7,074,475
6,911,170
L.
35,316
31,901
33,318
34,409
36,176
41,002
54,219
56,548
62,608
104,762
105,469
149,581
211,593
290,604
339,076
365,603
435,910
537,259
521,671
L.
' 105
44
270
307
414
466
2,520
6,802
8,886
14,636
18,274
35,000
60,215
127,462
174,959
198,459
243,609
294,310
352,806
L.
35,421
31,945
33,588
34,716
36,590
41,468
56,739
63,350
71,494
119,398
123,743
184,581
271,808
418,066
514,035
564,062
679,519
831,569
874,477
The internal traffic of the country is carried on cniefly by
wheel-carriage roads. Their condition, both as to lines of di¬
rection and mode of construction, is excellent. Materials for
the construction and repairs of roads are very generally distri¬
buted throughout the whole island, either in quarries, ridges,
and masses of gravel, or in the beds or channels of rivers
and streams, The limestone, which is the general substratum
of the greater part of the country, is the best material for
their formation; and the system known under the name of
n.acadamizing was long and successfully practised in many of
the leading lines of road in Ireland before it was thought of
in Great Britain. Young remarks upon this peculiarity as
early as the year 1779. “ For a country,” says he, “ so
very far behind us as Ireland to have got so suddenly the start
of us in the article of roads, is a spectacle that cannot fail to
strike the English traveller exceedingly. I will go here; I
will go there ; I could trace a route upon paper as wild as fancy
could dictate, and everywhere 1 found beautiful roads, with¬
out break or hindrance, to enable me to realize my design.
But from this commendation the turnpikes in general must be
excluded ; they are as bad as the cross roads are admirable.”
Statistics,
IRELAND.
529
Statistics. The cause of this eulogy is to be traced to acts passed on the
y ty- subject from the time of Charles I. to the beginning of the
reign of George III. Before that time the roads were con¬
structed and repaired, like those in England, by the rule of
six days’ labour, or statute-labour system. This was found
inadequate to its purposes, and the roads were afterwards main¬
tained and repaired by Grand Jury presentments, and the main
roads by turnpikes. At present all the main lines of road are
under the care of the Grand Juries of the respective counties.
The Grand Jury cess is a tax levied under votes of the Grand
Juries, called presentments, made at the assizes. The pur¬
poses for which presentments are made are,—1, Making new
roads, bridges, quays, and gullets; 2, Repairing same; 3,
Building and repairing courts of justice ; 4, Building and re¬
pairing prisons; 5, Prison expenses ; 6, Police expenses ; 7,
Salaries to county officers ; 8, Public charities ; 9, Repayment
of government advances; 10, Miscellaneous. Some of those pre¬
sentments are imposed and rated at the pleasure of the Grand
Jury; the following are imperative by act of parliament:
—County infirmary and fever hospitals ; district fever hospi¬
tals and infirmaries (partly); building and repairing dioce¬
san schools ; expenses of inquests ; constabulary force (partly);
prosecution of offenders ; maintaining deserted children; ex¬
penses of the general valuation ; expenses of Commissioners
of Public Works; compensation for malicious injuries; ex¬
penses under the Arms’ Act ; repayment of government ad¬
vances ; and some others of minor importance. Presentments
for the general use of the county are levied on the county at
large ; those for particular districts on the baronies or parishes
enjoying their benefit. The amount of Grand Jury cess from
1840 to 1854, was—
Years. Amount.
1840  L.1,269,880
1841   1,240,602
1842   1,191,684
1843   1,151,110
1844   1,129,432
1845   1,149,923
1846   1,180,287
1847   1,175,474
Years. Amount.
1848  L.1,241,854
1849  1,349,124
1850   987,677
1851   944,924
1852   884,976
1853   879,328
1854   922,852
and the purposes to which it was applied in 1853 and 1854, as
follows :—
Roads, bridges, &c  49,520
Repairs of roads, &c 327,879
Erection and repairs of court or ses¬
sions’ houses    4,051
Erection and repairs of prisons  6,183
Other prison and bridewell expenses.... 88,597
Police and witnesses  38,107
Salaries of county officers 100,785
Public charities  52,731
Repayments to Government 100,650
Miscellaneous 110,825
1854.
76,025
367,450
3,110
5,828
92,232
35,489
102,063
56,162
111,130
73,961
Total 879,328 922,852
The Infirmaries for counties and cities are supported by
county assessments not exceeding L.700 at each assizes, or
L.1400 annually for each county, aided by Treasury grants of
L.100 Irish for the surgeon’s salary, by subscriptions, dona¬
tions, and bequests, and by petty sessions’ fines. They are
governed by corporations, consisting of the primate, lord-
chancellor, bishop of the diocese, rector or vicar of the pa¬
rish, life-governors who have paid L.21, and annual subscri¬
bers of 3 guineas. The Poor-Law Commissioners may in¬
spect these institutions, as well as other hospitals supported in
part by Grand Jury cess or parliamentary grants, and give
directions in concert with the local governors, as to their ma¬
nagement. In 1849, the number of intern patients in the in¬
firmaries was 11,114 ; extern, 45,930 ; total, 57,044. The ex¬
penditure amounted to L.27,475, 18s. 5d., and the average cost
per head for each patient was 16s. 4^d., exclusive of the expense
of medicine and salaries. Subscriptions, L.1332, 11s. lOd.
Fever Hospitals are of three kinds,—1, County hospitals,
maintained by presentments, not exceeding L.250 at each as¬
sizes, or L.500 annually ; 2, District hospitals, far cities, towns,
or other parts of a county, maintained by private subscrip¬
tions, and aided by presentments not exceeding double the
amount of the voluntary fund; 3, Poor-law union fever hos¬
pitals, the expenses of which are charged upon the union rates.
The provisions of the Medical Charities Act, 14th & 15th Viet.,
cap. 68, passed in 1851, by which boards of guardians were
empowered to form the poor-law unions into dispensary dis¬
tricts, and to place the management of the dispensaries under
the control of the Poor-Law Commissioners, took effect in
1851. Each dispensary district is placed under a committee of
management, consisting of the guardians in the district and of
rate-payers elected by the board of guardians of the union,—
the number of each committee being fixed by the commission¬
ers. The board of guardians provide the requisite accommo¬
dation for the dispensaries in the several districts, medicines,
and appliances, and pay the salaries of the medical officers;
the expenses being charged upon the poor-rates. The 163
unions have been divided into 723 dispensary districts, giving
an average of rather more than 4 divisions to each district, the
average population of the districts being about 9000. The Act
put an end to all previous provisions for affording dispensary
relief by means of presentment from county cess.
The Census Commissioners report the number of the sick in
Ireland on the night of the 30th March 1851, to have been
104,495 persons, or P59 per cent, of the population. Of these,
5180 were deaf and dumb, 7587 blind, 5046 lunatic, 4904
idiotic, 4375 lame and decrepit.
The “ Act for the more effectual relief of the destitute poor
in Ireland” was passed in 1838, and the system came into ope¬
ration in 1839. Four workhouses were completed in 1840,
and in 1846 there were 129 unions. In 1850 the number of
unions was 163, comprising about 3440 electoral divisions.
1 he following table affords a series of annual returns of the
number of paupers relieved in the workhouses from the com¬
mencement of proceedings under the Irish Poor Relief Act
until the year 1847:—
No. of Paupers
No. of relieved in
Year. Unions, workhouse.
1840   4 10,910
1841   37 31,108
1842   92 87,604
1843  106 87,898
1844  113 105,358
1845  123 114,205
1846  129 243,933
1847  130 417,139
Annual
expendi¬
ture.
37,057
110,278
281,233
244,374
271,334
316,025
435,001
803,686
In consequence of the great strain to which the system was
subjected by the great and sudden increase of pauperism caused
by the failure of the potato crop, the Out-door Relief Act of 10th
Viet., c. 31, was passed in 1847, and the numbers relieved since
that period, together with the total expenditure, have been: 
Year.
1848
1849
1850
1851
1852
1853
1854
1855
Number
of Unions.
131
131
163
163
163
163
163
163
Number of
Paupers re¬
lieved in work-
house.
610,463
932,284
805,702
707,443
504,864
396,436
310,608
269,794
Number of
Paupers re¬
lieved out of
workhouse.
1,433,042
1,210,482
368.565
47,914
14,911
13,232
9,008
35,432
Total number
relieved.
2,043,505
2,142,766
1,174,267
755,347
519,775
409,668
319,616
205,226
In main¬
tenance.
L.605,136
797,294
710,945
692,914
517,445
446,030
463,858
432,842
Annual Expenditure-
Out-relief.
L.725,578.
679.604
120,789
11,399
4,917
4,920
3,715
4,702
Salaries and
all other
expenses.
L.504,920
700,753
598,374
437,334
360,905
334,768
292,579
247,715
Total.
L.1,835,634
2,177,651
1,430,108
1,141,647
833,267
785,718
760,152
685,259
Statistics.
530
IRELAND.
Statistics. Maximum and Minimum Number of Paupers in the Work-
v r houses in each of the Years ending 29th Sept. 18j1-55.
Minimum No.
1851   140,031
1852   111,117
1853   79,410
1854   66,474
Years. Maximum No.
14th June 1851  266,934
21st Feb. 1852  196,966
30th April 1853  144,812
11th Feb. 1854  116,033
24th Feb. 1855  99,627
Years.
27th Sept.
18th Sept.
24th Sept.
16th Sept.
22d Sept.
1855  56,518
The system of out-door relief, which was adopted as a matter
of necessity, is now almost entirely discontinued, the house
accommodation being amply sufficient for all applicants. The
poor-law system in Ireland has been conducted with a view
to the support of those who are not in a condition to maintain
themselves by their own personal labour, but at the same time
to discountenance in the young and healthy all reliance on
eleemosynary relief. Since the disastrous period of the famine
“ the labours of the Poor-Law Commission have been incessant
to improve and perfect the system of relief, tempering the
sound economical principles on which it is founded with every
humane modification of which they are susceptible. The result
has been that they have at length established a system as com¬
plete as any such progressive system can well be; and which
is no less distinguished for its general philosophical principles
than for its humane spirit. As now established it will not
only render any future miseries like those of the famine years
in Ireland impossible ; but will, while ministering to the in¬
evitable and habitual wants of the poor, open up a perennial
source of progressive amelioration for that class of the com¬
munity, until the time arrives when all such extraneous aid can
be dispensed with.”1
The poor-rate is levied under the assessment of poundage
rate on the net annual value of the property rateable, which
annual value is “ the rent for which one year with another the
property might be let from year to year, the probable annual Statistics,
average cost of repairs, insurance, and other necessary expenses
for repairs, and all public charges, except tithes, being paid
by the tenant.” The property liable to poor-rates includes:—
All land and buildings ; mines seven years open; commons, and
all profits out of land ; navigations ; rights of way, and other
rights and easements upon land; tolls. The following kinds
of property are exempt:—Turf-bogs, for which rent is not
paid ; places of worship ; buildings used exclusively for chari¬
table purposes; buildings used for public purposes; burial
grounds. The persons liable are—the occupier of the
rateable property at the time the rate is made, except the occu¬
pier of tenements under L.8 value in certain boroughs, and at
and under L.4 value elsewhere, who is not liable, and in such
cases the immediate lessor is to be rated instead. The owner
of any rent (except owners of rent charges) is liable to allow
the person paying him rent one-half the amount of the rate.
The annual amount levied as poor-rates, since passing of the
act, has been returned to parliament as follows:—
1848  L.1,619,810
1849   1,674,793
1850   1,571,110
1851   1,039,173
1852   1,109,630
1853   1,000,312
1854   925,154
1840  L. 21,985
1841   73,962
1842...  208,557
1843   271,776
1844   278,474
1845   295,781
1846   376,507
1847   645,657
During the pressure caused by the famine, the expenditure
for the relief of the poor in some cases equalled or even
exceeded the rent, but in 1855 it had been so much reduced as not
to exceed an average of Is. 2Jd. in the pound on the total poor-
law valuation, which, in that year, amounted to L.11,565,466.
The results of the parliamentary returns of the state of crime
in Ireland during the ten years from 1845 to 1854 was:—
Years.
1845
1846
1847
1848
1849
1850
1851
1852
1853
1854
Summary Convictions
before Magistrates.
Petty
offences.
17,512
16,695
25,810
49,717
63,586
64,802
72,019
59,215
43,186
37,958
Drunken¬
ness.
22,076
23,282
15,406
12,302
11,604
13,938
12,617
19,504
12,404
12,215
Number of cases tried at Assizes and Quarter Sessions.
Males.
12,807
14,204
23,552
28,765
31,340
22,682
17,337
12,444
10,260
7,937
Females.
3,889
4,288
7,657
9,757
10,649
8,644
7,347
5,234
4,884
3,851
16,696
18,492
31,209
38,522
41,989
31,326
24,684
17,678
15,144
11,788
Convicted.
Acquitted.
7,101
8,639
15,233
18,206
21,202
17,108
14,377
10,454
8,714
7,051
9,595
9,853
15,976
20,316
20,787
14,218
10,307
7,224
6,430
4,737
Proportion of
Convictions to
population.
1 in 1,127
1 in
1 in
1 in
1 in
1 in
1 in
1 in
1 in
1 in
946
536
449
386
477
453
626
758
920
The ecclesiastical arrangement of the country was formerly
framed on the same fourfold provincial division as the civil,
but under different names and with different boundaries.
There were four archbishoprics,one for each province, but named
from the place in which the archiepiscopal see was fixed. The
number of bishoprics subject to each of these varied at different
periods, and two or more sees were frequently united to afford
a revenue supposed to be necessary to maintain the dignity of
the bishop. Formerly the dioceses were more numerous than
at present, as may be seen from the following list, extracted
from an old Roman provincial:—■
Armagh, containing Meath or Elnamirand, Down or Dun-
dalethglass, Clogher of Lugundun, Connor, Ardachad (Ardagh),
Rathbot (Raphoe), Rathlue (now part of Derry), Daln-liquir
(unknown, but by some supposed to have merged into Meath),
Dearri (Derry); Dublin, containing Glendelagh, Fern, Ossori
or De-Canic, Lechlin, Kildare or Dare; Ca.ssel, containing
Isle of Gatha (now Innis-Scattery, and united to Limerick),
Limric, Laon or De Kendalnan (now Killaloe), Cellumabrath
(called also Fenebore, now Kilfenora), Melie or Emileth
(Emly), Ross or Roscrea, Waterford or Baltifordian, Lismore,
Clone or Cluanan (Cloyne), Cork, Rosalither (now part of Cork),
Ardforth; Tuam, containing Duac or Kilmacduach, Mage
(or Mayo, now part of Tuam), Enachdun (also part of Tuam),
Cellaiar (unknown), Roscommon (translated to Elphin), Clon-
fert, Achad (Achonry), Lade or Killaleth (Killala), Conani
(Clonmacnois, now part of Meath), Kilmunduach (Kilmac-
duagh), Elphin.
By the Church Temporalities Act 3d and 4th Will. IV., c.
37, the archbishoprics of Cashel and Tuam were reduced to
bishoprics, the whole of Ireland divided into two provinces,
and the bishoprics, as vacancies occurred, reduced to ten.
The bishoprics and their incomes are thus classed according
to the provisions of the Church Temporalities Act:—
NORTHERN PROVINCE.
Armagh with Clogher L.12,087
Meath and Clonmacnoise  4,068
Derry and Raphoe  8,000
Down, Connor, and Dromore   4,204
Kilmore, Ardagh, and Elphin  6,253
Tuam, Killala, and Achonry  4,600
Total L.39,212
SOUTHERN PROVINCE.
Dublin, Glendelagh, and Kildare L.7,786
Ossory, Leighlin, and Ferns  4,200
Cashel, Emly, Waterford, and Lismore  5,000
Cork, Cloyne, and Ross  2,498
Killaloe, Kilfenora, Clonfert, and Kilmacduagh   3,870
Limerick, Ardfert, and Aghadoe  4,973
Total.... L.28,327
1 Sir John Forbes’s Memorandums made in Ireland.
IRELAND.
531
Statistics. The following account of the gross and net revenues of the
^ sees of the archbishops and bishops, with the charges and
deductions to which such revenues are subject, is taken from a Statistics.
Return to the House of Lords (No. 13, 1854):— . j
Provinces and Sees.
Northern Province.
Armagh, with Clogher 
Meath and Clonmacnoise 
Derry and Raphoe 
Down, Connor, and Dromore 
Kilmore, Ardagh, and Elphin...
Tuam, Killala, and Achonry 
Southern Province.
Dublin, Glandelagh, & Kildare..
Ossory, Ferns, and Leighlin 
Cashel, Emly, and Waterford...
Cork, Cloyne, and Ross 
Killaloe, Kilfenora, Clonfert,
and Kilmacduagh 
Limerick, Ardfert, & Aghadoe..
Total.
Gross Revenues.
From Rents.
L. s. d.
8,233 0 0
2,644 7 6
9,892 5 7
3,017 5 9
3,702 16
2,742 17 8
6,887 13 10
2,647 2 3
3,283 4 5
1,794 0 0£
2,253 18 7
3,209 18 11£
50,308 11 2
From Fines.
L. s.
6,767 8
1,180 0
2,301 4
1,799 19
2,174 1
1,959 18
1,273 7
1,643 19
1,925 17
739 3
1,248 1 41
1,245 4 2
24,348 6 1
From other
sources.
L. s.
1298 13
483 14
563 17
170 19
1078 4
377 19
d.
7'
2
2
1
6
1
88 7 1
314 17 5
125 1 8
155 10 0
417 19 3J
80 0 0
5155 3 04
Total.
L. s. d.
16,299 1 11
4,308
12,847
4,988
6,955
5,080 15
8,249 8 5
4,605 19 2£
5,334 3 8
2,688 13 7|
3,919 19 3
4,535 3 1£
79,812 0 3*
Charges
and Deductions.
L. s. d.
1,664 12 9
544 1 1
4,786 3 5}
1,329 6 6£
347 10 2
1,182 7 7\
612 10 2
731 3 Of
642 12 1^
378 2 0£
609 3 8f
547 5 113
13,374 18 9
Net Income.
Id. s. d.
14,634 9 2
3,764 1 If
8,061 3 84
3,658 17 5f
6,607 12 3
3,898 7 7J
7,636 18 3
3,874 16 If
4,691 11 64
2.310 11 7f
3.310 15 6f
3,987 17 If
66,437 1 64
The revenues of the suppressed sees were, in the years end-
1851.
L.2,471 2 9
9,003 14 2
3,017 0 Ilf-
6,467 3 6
4,378 3 4
8,092 2 10
5,756 17 04
4,211 8 8|
2,874 11 3
4,448 6 94
3,376 18 7
Total L.61,521 4 44 L.54,097 9 104
These revenues of the suppressed bishoprics, together with
those of suspended dignities and benefices, and disappropriated
tithes, were vested by the Church Temporalities Act in the
Board of Ecclesiastical Commissioners, to be applied by them
to the erection and repairs of churches, to the providing for
the church expenses which had been defrayed by vestry rates,
and to other ecclesiastical purposes.
The aggregate income of the Ecclesiastical Commissioners,
and their annual expenditure, from their establishment in
1833 to 1854, was,—
Years. Receipts. Disbursements.
1834  L.68,728 10 8 L.51,042 17 9
1835  168,027 8 10 120,252 17 6
1836  181,045 3 1 168,292 9 5
1837  103,221 0 7 163,859 12 5
1838  100,497 0 6 114,255 17 9
1839  138,160 9 2 119,827 6 1
1840  139,268 14 10 146,426 19 4
1841  115,723 9 9 108,334 19 8
1842   82,906 18 3 96,380 6 6
1843  110,916 2 4 90,680 11 1
1844  105,913 0 7 119,721 12 2
1845  116,104 11 2 125,248 3 10
1846  112,195 19 4f 111,894 0 14
1847   96,694 11 5 97,658 7 10
1848   92,971 9 04 88,069 1 114
1849   79,924 11 6 84,361 9 5
1850   80,877 14 5 74,438 4 5£
1851   99,015 6 3 100,719 8 11
1852  111,355 5 0 110,297 6 2
1853  136,884 9 3 144,497 3 10
1854  117,936 2 11 112,064 9 11
Total...L.2,358,367 18 11J L.2,348,323 6 1£
The incomes of the parochial clergy arises from tithe rent-
charge together with glebe lands and houses. The collection
of tithes having been a perpetual source of vexation to the
majority of the people, the Tithe Composition Bill of 1823 was
mg 1st August 18o3 and 1854, as follows:—
1853.
Ardagh  L.3,556 16 6£
Clogher  10,560 17 6
Clonfert and Kilmacduagh  2,600 14 3
Cork and Ross  4,682 6 2|
Dromore  4,677 3 7
Elphin  9,483 19 3
Kildare & Deanery of Christ Ch... 5,500 18 10
Killala and Achonry ,.... 6,204 11 11
Ossory  3,877 19 0
Raphoe  6,272 11 8£
Waterford and Lismore  4,103 5 7
passed by the Wellesley administration. By the act of 1st and
2d Viet, c. 109, compositions for tithe were abolished, and fixed
payments or rent charges substituted, consisting of three-fourths
of their amount, and to be paid by the landlords or others hav¬
ing a perpetual interest in the land.
In cities and towns corporate, and in the suburbs and liber¬
ties adjoining, where there are small or no tithes, or other
duties settled by law upon the incumbents of parishes having
actual cure of souls, a power was vested in the lord-lieutenant
to authorize valuations upon oath to be made from time to
time of each and every house belonging to any or all of such
parish or parishes, and upon the return of such valuation the
lord-lieutenant and six of the privy council are empowered to
allot and charge any sum or sums of money to be paid out of
each house belonging to said parish unto the several and respec¬
tive incumbents, either by apportioning the said payment
according to the yearly value of each house or otherwise. This
tax is denominated ministers’ money, and was originally levied
under the statute of 17th and 18th Car. II., c. 7, upon certain
cities and towns, for the maintenance of the incumbents there
having actual charge of souls, at the rate of one shilling in the
pound on the yearly value of each house—but so that houses
valued at upwards of L.60 per annum are to be taxed at the
rate of those of L.60 and no more. The tax is levied only in
Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Waterford, Drogheda, Kilkenny,
Clonmel, and Kinsale; none of the cities or towns in Ulster
being subject to it.
The act 17th and 18th Viet., c. 11, passed in 1854, repeals
the 17th and 18th Car. II., c. 7, and enacts that the charge of
ministers’ money for the year ending 31st December 1853 be
ascertained, and the sums certified shall, in future, be raised in
each parish of the towns liable, by a rate on all houses now
chargeable, except those rated at or under L.10. The rate
may be redeemed by payment of 14 years purchase of amount
assessed. The sums certified as chargeable in each town were
■—•Clonmel, L.341; Cork, L.3324 ; Drogheda, L.288; Dublin,
L.9868; Kilkenny, L.307; Kinsale, L.74 ; Limerick, L.310 ;
Waterford, L.940 : total, L.15,452.
The annual revenue of the Established Church in Ireland dur¬
ing three years ending 1831, was returned to parliament as —
Archbishops and Bishops  L.151,128
Deans and Chapters   1,043
Economy Estates of Cathedrals  11,056
Other subordinate corporations  10,526
Dignities and Prebends without cure of souls... 34,482
Glebe lands..  92,000
Tithes  555,000
Ministers’ Money  10 300
L.865,535
The revenues of the church have since undergone a consider¬
able diminution, and, exclusive of the funds vested in the
Board of Ecclesiastical Commissioners, now amount to about
532 I R E L
Statistics. L.600,000, of which L.401,114 is tithe rent charge ; L.66,437
>■ !— — J the net revenues of the sees of archbishops and bishops ,
L.95,000 glebe lands, and the remainder in ministers’ money,
&c.
The Roman Catholic hierarchy consists of four archbishops,
one to each province, whose sees are in Armagh, Dublin,
Cashel, and Tuam, and 24 bishops. The bishops are nomi¬
nated by the Pope, generally out of a list of names submitted
to him by the bishops of the province and the clergy of the
vacant diocese. In case of expected incapacity from age or
infirmity, the bishop names a coadjutor, who is usually con¬
firmed by the pope. Every diocese has a dean or a vicar-
general, the former appointed by the cardinal-protector at
Rome, the latter by the bishop ; but these dignitaries are
without jurisdiction or emolument. The whole of the clergy
are supported solely by the voluntary contributions of their
flocks. The episcopal emoluments arise from the parish in
which the bishop officiates, from marriage licenses and other
official acts, and from the cathedraticum, an annual sum vary¬
ing from L.2 to L.10, paid by each incumbent in the diocese.
The average amount of a bishop’s income may be stated at
about L.500 per annum. The parochial clergy are nomi¬
nated exclusively by the bishop. The number of priests in
Ireland in 1854 was 2291, of whom 1222 were educated at
Maynooth College. Their incomes, entirely derived from
their parishioners, arise from fees on marriages, baptisms,
funerals, and prayers for the dead, on Easter and Christmas
dues, varying from one to ten shillings, and from incidental
voluntary contributions, either in money or labour. The
total sum raised and contributed in the parish is usually con¬
sidered a common fund for the maintenance of the parish
priest and his curates, either by a certain proportion or other¬
wise. All the places of public worship are built by subscrip¬
tions. There are numerous monasteries and convents ; the
latter are supported partly by sums, usually from L.300 to
L.500, paid by those who take the vows in them, and partly by
the fees for the education of the daughters of respectable
Roman Catholics. The friars and nuns also devote them¬
selves to the gratuitous education of the children of the poor.
Candidates for clerical ordination, formerly under the necessity
of obtaining their education in continental colleges, are now
educated at home; the principal clerical colleges are those of
St Patrick and Maynooth, supported by grants of public money
and by pensions from the students, and those of Carlow and
Tuam, by voluntary contributions.
The Presbyterians of Ireland, who are very numerous in
most parts of Ulster, are formed into congregations, each of
which is under the ecclesiastical government of a court called
a session, consisting of the minister and elders of the congre¬
gation. An indefinite number of the ministers of these congre¬
gations, with a lay elder for each, constitutes a presbytery,
which has the charge of the congregations represented in it.
Delegates from -each of these presbyteries, consisting of all the
ministers, with a lay elder for each, constitute the general
assembly, which is presided over by a moderator chosen
annually, and regulates the ecclesiastical concerns of the body.
The first presbytery in Ireland was formed at Carrickfergus in
1642, and gave rise to the Synod of Ulster, The Presbyterian
Synod of Munster was formed about 1660. The Presbytery
of Antrim separated from the Synod of Ulster in 1727, and
the Remonstrant Synod in 1829. A number of Seceders
formed themselves into the Secession Synod of Ireland about
1780. In 1840 the General and Secession Synods having
united, assumed the named of the General Assembly of the
Presbyterian Church in Ireland, comprising in 1854, 488
congregations, arranged under 36 Presbyteries. The ministers
are supported by voluntary contributions, the rents of seats or
pews, and a portion of the parliamentary grant (Regium Do¬
num), which in 1853 amounted to L.33,661.
The Remonstrant Synod of Ulster was formed in 1830, in
consequence of the separation of seventeen ministers, with their
congregations, from the General Synod of Ulster, on the ground
that, contrary to its usages and code of discipline, it required
from its members in 1827 and 1828, submission to certain
doctrinal tests and overtures of human invention. There are
4 presbyteries and 27 congregations in this Synod, which in
1853 received L.1996 of the parliamentary grant.
United Presbytery or Synod of Munster.—This body was
formed in 1809 by the junction of the Southern Presbytery of
AND.
Dublin with the Presbytery of Munster, and is one of the three Statistics,
non-subscribing Presbyterian bodies of Ireland; the other two ^
being the Presbytery of Antrim, and the Remonstrant Synod
of Ulster. A few years ago these three bodies united to form
the “ General Non-Subscribing Presbyterian Association of
Ireland,” for the promotion of their common principles, the
right of private judgment, and non-subscription to creeds and
confessions of faith. From the annual parliamentary grant in
1853 the Synod of Munster received L.937, and the Presby¬
tery of Antrim, L.900.
The Reformed Presbyterian Synod of Ireland, consisting
of 4 presbyteries and 25 congregations, is unconnected with
the General Assembly, and does not participate in the parlia¬
mentary grant.
The Regium Donum, or Royal Gift, was first granted in
1672 by Charles II., who gave L.600 of “ secret service money”
to be distributed annually, in equal portions, among the Pres¬
byterian ministers. The grant was discontinued towards the
close of his reign and during that of James II., but was
renewed by William III., who augmented it to L.1200 a-year.
In 1784 the amount was increased to L.2200; in 1792 to
L.5000 ; and in 1803 a classification was made according to
the number of families in each congregation and the amount of
the minister’s voluntary stipend, by which those of the 1st class
received L.100 annually; of the 2d, L.75; and of the 3d,
L.50. In 1831 the system of classification was altered, and 37
ministers now receive L.100 each, and 425 L.75 each per
annum, late Irish currency. As the 37 ministers in the L.100
class die, their successors will only receive L.75 each. The
amount of the parliamentary grant for 1856 was L.38,953.
The Methodist body in the United Kingdom forms one con¬
nexion, the president of the British Conference being also pre¬
sident of the Irish one. The number of ministers in Great
Britain, including superannuated and supernumerary ministers,
is 1184 ; in Ireland, 160. Number of members in Great Britain,
270,965; in Ireland, 19,608. Of the Primitive Methodist
Society there are 8348 members in Ireland. Baptist congre¬
gations were founded in Dublin and some other parts of the
country about the year 1650-3; but as they gradually declined,
a society was formed London in 1814, to “ employ itinerants in
Ireland, to establish schools, and to distribute Bibles and tracts,
gratuitously, or at reduced prices.”
The first attempt at founding a university in Ireland after
the arrival of the English was made by John Leek, archbishop
of Dublin, who obtained a papal bull for the purpose in 1311,
which was carried into effect in 1320 by Alexander Bicknor
his successor, but the establishment was soon extinguished.
Another attempt was made at Drogheda; a university was
founded by act of parliament in 1465, with the same privileges
as that of Oxford, but soon shared the fate of its predecessor.
The next attempt was more happy. In 1593 the university
of Trinity College, Dublin, was opened in the buildings of the
dissolved monastery of All-Hallows. The number of students
on the books of the college in 1850 was 1503, and its present
annual income amounts, on an average, to L.64,000 ; of which
sum about L.30,000 arises from entrance and annual fees paid
by students to the college and their tutors, the fees on degrees,
and other incidental and contingent sources. In 1810 the
inhabitants of Belfast opened a collegiate institution for scien¬
tific and literary instruction by private subscription. It was
sanctioned by act of parliament, and receives a liberal grant
of public money ; but as it has not been privileged to grant
degrees, it cannot be ranked as a university.
The Queen’s colleges of Belfast, Cork, and Galway, were
established under the 8th and 9th \ ict., cap. 66, passed in
1845 and in 1850; the Queen by letters patent founded “ The
Queen’s University in Ireland,” with powers to grant degrees
in the faculties of Arts, Medicine, and Law, as such are granted
by other universities, to students wTho have completed their
studies in any one of the Queen’s colleges of Belfast, Cork, or
Galway. The university consists of a chancellor and senate,
nominated by the crown.
With respect to the second class of places of public educa¬
tion, an act of Elizabeth required that a grammar school should
be maintained in every diocese, by the contributions of the
bishop and beneficed clergy. James I. vested tracts of for¬
feited lands for the maintenance of similar schools. His ex¬
ample was followed by Charles I. Erasmus Smith, also, one
of the adventurers who obtained large grants of land during
IRELAND.
Statistics, the time of Cromwell, applied some of his property to this pur-
v ^ > pose. Classical schools were also endowed by other private
individuals. The schools of royal foundation were those of
Armagh, Dungannon, Enniskillen, Raphoe, Cavan, Banagher,
and Carysfort. Those of Erasmus Smith’s, and other private
foundations, were,—Drogheda, Galway, Tipperary, Ennis, Na-
van, and Ballyroan. The diocesan schools never exceeded 17
out of the 22 dioceses.
The College of Maynooth was founded in 1795, for the pur¬
pose of educating students designed for the Roman Catholic
priesthood, by an act of the Irish parliament, which was an
exclusively Protestant assembly. The act passed both Houses
without a dissentient vote. A sum of about L.8000 was an¬
nually voted for its maintenance by the Irish, and afterwards,
without objection, by the Imperial Parliament from 1795
to 1807, when L.5000 additional were voted for the enlarge¬
ment of the buildings, and the grant became the subject of
dispute and opposition in the legislature. The annual vote
from 1808 to 1813 was L.8283, and from 1813 to 1845 it was
raised to L.8928. The total amount of donations and bequests
to the college, including the sums funded for bourses, was
L.31,681 besides all the fee simple estates of the late Lord
Dunboyne, in the county of Meath, which now return to the
college L.460 per annum. The number of students increased
with the enlargement of the buildings from 50 until it
amounted in 1839 to 478 ; between 1841 and 1845 it fell to an
average of 430; of these 250 were charged on the parliamen¬
tary vote ; the others paid an annual pension for their main¬
tenance. By the act of 8th and 9th Viet., cap. 25, passed dur¬
ing the ministry of Sir Robert Peel, the college was placed on
a new footing, and permanently endowed for the maintenance
and education of 500 students, and of 20 senior scholars on
the Dunboyne foundation, which has been uniformly since that
time the total number of students. Besides providing by an
annual charge on the consolidated fund of L.30,000 for the
annual cost of commons, &c., for these 520 students, of al¬
lowances to the 20 Dunboyne students, and to 250 students of
the three senior classes, and of salaries to the president, supe¬
riors, and professors, the act moreover vested in the Commis¬
sioners of Public Works a sum of L.30,000 for erecting the
buildings necessary to accommodate the enlarged number of
students. No applicant can be received as a student of May¬
nooth College unless he be designed for the priesthood in Ire¬
land, be sixteen years of age, and be recommended by his
bishop.
The Roman Catholic University was established at a syno¬
dal meeting, held on the 18th May 1854.
The primary schools owe their foundation to an act of Henry
VIII., which bound every incumbent of a parish by oath to
maintain a school therein to teach the English language. The
bond was neglected by many, and observed with culpable laxity
by most others. The statute having fixed upon 40s. as the
minimum of the teacher’s salary at the time of its enactment,
the incumbent, regardless of the great subsequent depression
of the value of money, deemed his duty to be fulfilled and his
conscience cleared by paying that annual stipend to his parish-
clerk, or some other person who professed to teach in the parish.
Soon after the Revolution, a project was started and eagerly
followed up by the Established clergy, of founding schools, in
which the children of the poor should be instructed in the rudi¬
ments of literature, as well as in useful works, and also main¬
tained at the public expense. To these laudable objects was
also added that of converting them to the Protestant doctrine.
These schools being incorporated by act of parliament, received
the name of charter-schools. They were long a favourite ob¬
ject of interest to the legislature, which annually voted large
sums for their support, in addition to those procured by dona¬
tion or bequest.
The Society for Promoting the Education of the Poor, com¬
monly called the Kildare Place Society, originated in a volun¬
tary institution, formed in 1811, the principles of which were
stated to be “ the admission of pupils, uninfluenced by religious
distinctions, and the reading of the Bible or Testament, with¬
out note or comment, by all the pupils who had attained a
suitable proficiency ; excluding catechisms and controversial
treatises ; the Bible or Testament not to be used as a class book
from which children should be taught to read or spell.” In
consequence of a recommendation made in 1812, by commis¬
sioners appointed to inquire into the state of the schools and
charities of public foundation, that “no attempt should be
made to influence or disturb the peculiar religious tenets of
any sect or description of Christians,” and of the pledge given
to the same effect by the Kildare Place Society, a parliament-
ary grant of public money was given in 1819, which was con¬
tinued and increased. But a stipulation introduced into its re¬
gulations sometime afterwards, requiring the Bible to be used
as a school book, aroused the suspicions of the Roman Catholic
clergy, who excited a distaste to it throughout the country, and
the children of that persuasion were gradually withdrawn.
Upon inquiry in 1824, it was ascertained that out of 400,348
children whose parents paid for their education, there were
Protestants, and 319,288 Roman Catholics: while out
of 56,201 children educated in the Kildare Place schools, 26,237
were Protestants, and only 29,964 Roman Catholics. The
commissioners consequently recommended that the grants of
public money for the education of the poor should be vested in
a board nominated by the government, under arrangements
calculated to prevent any apprehension of interference with
peculiar religious tenets. The recommendation was reported
to the House of Commons by a committee in 1828, and on the
subject being again referred to a committee in 1830, it was re¬
ported on favourably, and the annual grant to the Kildare
Place Society was withdrawn, since which period the schools
gradually declined ; in 1854, the Dublin model schools of the
society were put under the management of the Church Educa¬
tion Society.
In 1833, the grants of public money for the education of the
poor were placed under the superintendence of “ The Commis¬
sioners of National Education.” The principles on which the
commissioners act are,—that the schools shall be open alike to
Christians of every denomination ; that no pupil shall be re-
quired to attend at any religious exercise, or to receive any re¬
ligious instruction which his parents or guardians do not ap¬
prove ; and that sufficient opportunity shall be afforded to the
pupils of each religious persuasion to receive separately, at
appointed times, such religious instruction as their parents or
guardians think proper. This system of united education is
one which does not exclude children of any denomination, while
it admits to a participation of its benefits those of every reli¬
gious creed who may wish for instruction without interfering
with any conscientious scruples. The duty of the commissioners
consists, therefore, in guarding against any infraction of these
fundamental principles from any quarter, and in establishing re¬
gulations as to details, so as best to secure the general efficiency
of the system.
In 1845 the commissioners were incorporated under the
name of The Commissioners of National Education in Ire¬
land.
The following return gives the number of schools and pupils
under the superintendence of the commissioners since the com¬
mencement of the system, and the amount of parliamentary
grants annually voted for its maintenance:—
Years.
No. of
Schools.
1833   789
1834  1106
1835  1181
1836  1300
1837  1384
1838  
1839  1581
1840  1978
1841  2337
1842  2721
1843  2912
1844  3153
1845  3426
1846  3637
1847  3825
1848  4109
1849  4321
1850  4547
1851  4704
1852  4875
1853  5023
1854  5178
No. of Parliamentary
Pupils. Grants.
107,042 L.25,000
145,521 35,000
153,707 35,000
166,929 35,000
169,548 50,000
Included in the next. 50,000
192,971 50,000
232,560 50,000
281,849 57,000
319,792 55,000
355,320 55,000
395,550 75,000
432,844 85,000
456,410 100,000
402,632 120,000
507,469 125,000
480,623 120,000
511,239 140,000
520,401 164,577
544,604 182,073
550,631 193,040
551,110 215,200
The Church Education Society, supported wholly by volun¬
tary contributions, was instituted in 1839. The number of
schools and pupils, with the amount of the annual receipts of
the society, appears in the folioW’ing summary :■—,
534
IRELAND.
Statistics.
Tears.
1839..
1840.. .
1841.. .
1842.. .
1843.. .
1844..
1845.. .
1846.. .
1847.. .
1848.. .
1849.. .
1850.. .
1851.. .
1852.. .
Schools.
.. 825
..1015
..1219
..1372
..1729
..1812
..1811
..1809
..1859
..1861
..1868
..1882
..1885
..1858
Pupils.
43,627
59,067
69,643
86,102
102,528
104.968
100,755
96,815
116.968
120,202
111.877
108,450
103.878
105,387
Receipts.
L.8,470
14,482
19,050
27,874
28,065
35,772
39,499
41,639
40,410
37,296
39,648
38,258
40,718
40,724
Tears. Schools. Pupils. Receipts. -
1853  1880 99,234 44,280 Statistics.
1854    I860 95,483 44,529
The official returns exhibiting the progress of Education
for the whole of the population receiving instruction in public
schools, give the following results. The numbers stated in
1824 and 1834 are those on the rolls of the schools; the others,
those in actual attendance :—
Census Return 1821 394,813
Commissioners of Education 1824 509,150
Commissioners of Public Instruction 1834 681,000
Census Return 1841 592,650
Census Return 1851 504,382
The following Abstract shows the Numbers and Denominations of Schools in the Rural and Civic Districts of Ireland
in 1851.
No. of
Schools.
University of Dublin..
Maynooth College 
Queen’s College, Gal-1
way  J
National  
Church Education  
London Corporations ..
Diocesan  
Endowed  
Schools of Design 
Boarding  
Private  
Parochial  
Free  
Industrial  
Mission    
Military 
Royal Hibernian  
Boarding, Charitable ..
Do. Agricultural
Workhouse 
Gaol  
Total
Rural Districts.
1
1
3232
851
24
11
110
56
1945
458
264
24
209
9
1
14
3
181
9
7403
No. of Pupils.
Males.
505
65
93,433
14,984
645
169
3,332
1,200
31,110
8,311
4,884
68
3,571
512
318
396
110
27,633
712
191,958
Females.
77,972
14,382
621
88
1,982
682
22,464
6,540
5,806
820
4,319
160
20
273
23
24,585
102
160,839
Total.
505
65
171,405
29,366
1,266
257
5,314
1,882
53,574
14,851
10,690
888
7,890
672
338
669
133
52,218
814
352,797
Civic Districts.
No. of
Schools.
269
62
11
53
3
167
1128
106
120
2
34
25
19
”78
27
2105
No. of Pupils.
Males. Females. Total,
650
19,877
2,196
448
2,450
305
3,272
20,309
5,649
6,335
2
1,962
1,494
166
11,745
1,960
78,820
24,692
1,942
51
1,555
184
2,559
12,877
4,000
6,260
82
786
407
324
16,637
492
72,848
650
44.569
4^138
499
4,005
489
5,831
33,186
9,649
12,595
84
2,748
1,901
490
28,382
2,452
151,668
Total.
No. of
Schools.
3501
913
24
22
163
3
223
3173
564
384
26
243
34
1
33
3
259
36
9508
No. of Pupils.
Males.
650
505
65
113,310
17,180
645
617
5,782
305
4,472
51,419
13,960
11,219
70
5,533
2,006
318
562
110
39,378
2,672
270,778
Females. Total,
102,664
16,324
621
139
3,537
184
3,241
35,341
10,540
12,066
902
5,105
567
20
597
23
41,222
594
233,687
650
505
65
215,974
33,504
1,266
756
9,319
489
7,713
86,760
24,500
23,285
972
10,638
2,573
338
1,159
133
80,600
3,266
504,465
The population from five to fifteen years of age, the number
attending and not attending school, and the proportion per
cent, of the latter, in 1851, was :—
Males.
Females.
Total.
Population 
Numbers attending school 
Numbers not attending school
Proportion per cent, at each 1
age not attending school J
951,342
246,991
704,351
74
919,646
213,604
706,042
77
1,870,988
460,595
1,410,393
75
It appears that during the week to which the foregoing ab¬
stract refers there were 504,465 persons of all ages receiving
instruction in schools in Ireland, of whom 270,778 were males,
and 233,687 females; the number in attendance on schools
during the week ended the 6th of June 1841, as returned by
the Census Commissioners, was 502,950 ; there was, therefore,
an increase in 1851 of 1515 persons in the total number at¬
tending school. Taking into account the greatly diminished
population, these numbers represent a considerable increase in
the proportion under education. Of the entire population in
1841, 61 in every 1000 were attending school, whilst in 1851
there were 76 in every 1000. (h. s—r.)
IREN
Irenaeus. IREN^EUS, Saint, a celebrated bishop of Lyon of the
second century. His birth is commonly assigned to the
year a.d. 120, though some make it as late as a.d. 140. It is
not known with certainty what country gave him birth, yet
from his modes of thought, as discernible in the fragments
of his writings which have come down to us, it has been
conjectured, with probability, that he was a Greek. That
he possessed so little skill in writing Greek may be ex¬
plained by the fact that he had mostly to speak another
language. From the mention which he makes of his having
been in youth the disciple of Polycarp, it is supposed that
he may have been a native of Asia Minor. After the valu¬
able training which he received from such a preceptor as
the venerable Bishop of Smyrna, he was sent on a mission
to Pothinus, Bishop of Lyon, in Gaul—upon what occasion
is unknown. He was elevated to the sacerdotal office in
a.d. 177, and sent by the churches of Vienne and Lyon on
some ecclesiastical business, to Eleutherus, Bishop of Rome.
Meanwhile the flames of persecution raged, and Pothinus
having suffered martyrdom, Irenaeus was appointed bishop
in his place. He is represented as a zealous preacher of
the gospel amongst the surrounding idolaters, and a wise
ruler amongst his own flock. When external peace was
restored to the church, there sprang up violent controversies
with Gnostics, Valentinians, and whole hosts of visionaries.
These occasioned Irenaeus great uneasiness, for he was of
a pacific disposition. He did not, however, refrain from
entering the lists against error; and the only one of his
works which has come down to us is that Against Heresies.
The original Greek of it has nearly all perished, and the
uncouth Latin translation which we have was made, accord¬
ing to Dodwell, near the end of the fourth century. It
consists of five books, which were published, apparently, at
different times. Irenaeus was well qualified to write such a
work, as he has been considered to have possessed a more
extensive acquaintance with heathen mythology, literature,
and philosophy, than any other man of his day. In com¬
bating Gnosticism, he takes the common view, that it sprang
from philosophy, and in opposition he appeals chiefly to
tradition and the consent of the church. He regards piety
and love as of far more importance than mere knowledge;
and, indeed, as a general characteristic of our author, it may
be noticed, that he stands distinguished above his succes¬
sors in Christian philosophy for the pre-eminence which he
assigns to the ethical over the physical element in man.
He was the first of the fathers to place in a clear light the
truth that the education of man consists in acquiring the
knowledge of God, “ Vita hominis autem visio Dei.” All
things reveal Him, but the process is gradual, and the
Gnostics err in repining at the slowness of the growth of
their knowledge. The permission of evil itself is connected
with the education of the species. Man, as possessing liberty,
is good or bad, not from nature, but from choice. What¬
ever difficulties may be raised about the possibility of our
knowing God, Irenaeus, on the other side, takes the ground
that our reason tells us there is a God; nor can this Deity
be dispensed with by the fiction of an endless succession of
beings, for however long the series may be, we must ulti¬
mately come to the one on which all the others depend.
He charges the Gnostics with making a greater God than
God, and then denying his existence. He stated very
clearly the doctrine of the resurrection like Plato ; and with
his characteristic horror of the unmeasured, he held that
only a limited and definite number were chosen to life.
Irenaeus is the first church teacher in whom we find any
allusion to infant baptism, and with him it is seen as the
medium through which the principle of sanctification, im¬
parted by Christ to human nature from its earliest develop¬
ment, became appropriated to children. The child born in
a Christian family was, according to him, to have this ad¬
vantage above others, that he did not first come to Chris-
JE U S. 535
tianity out of heathenism or the sinful life of nature; but Irenaeus.
from the first dawning of consciousness unfolded his powers
under the imperceptible preventing influence of a sancti-
fying ennobling religion. In such a life regeneration did
not constitute a new crisis beginning at a definable mo¬
ment, but it was to begin imperceptibly, and so to proceed
through the whole life. Hence baptism was to be adminis¬
tered to a child at the very outset. His views on this sub¬
ject were combated by Tertullian.
Besides his work Against Heresies, Irenaeus wrote a letter
to Florinus, entitled, Monarchy, or God not the Author of
Evil. Florinus had imbibed first the errors of the Gnostics,
and then those of the Valentinians. These latter were re¬
futed by Irenaeus in a work called Ogdoad, or the Number
Eight. Against Blastus he wrote his treatise On Schism,
in which he entered into the controversy about the time of
the celebration of Easter. He also wrote a letter remon¬
strating with Victor, the haughty Bishop of Rome, for his
anathemas against the churches in Asia. The divisions re¬
garding Easter at this time were painful to Irenaeus, for to
him the unity of the church was of paramount importance.
Being himself originally from Asia, he formed in this and
in the Gnostic controversies, as it were, a bridge between
the East and the West. From the school of John in Asia
Minor, there had gone forth an influence which tended to
purge the church from the caprice of Gnostic theosophy,
and sought faithfully to preserve the peculiar fundamental
doctrines of Christianity. This tendency Irenaeus trans¬
fused into the conflicting rush of opinions which then threa¬
tened to oversweep the Christianity of the West. He formed
the link of connection between Asia Minor and Rome, and
in many respects represented in himself what was peculiar
to them both. With a sober practical spirit, and a pecu¬
liarly sound and discriminating tact in determining what
was of living moment in all doctrines, his humility and good
sense presented a remarkable contrast to the arrogant pre¬
tensions of the Gnostic teachers, and the extreme views of
the followers of Montanus. It was not, however, till Ter¬
tullian arose that the absorbing interest of practical Chris¬
tian life found a scientific expression, and the devoutly living
element in Christianity being projected upon a scientific
plan was lifted a step higher above the shifting tides of po¬
pular philosophy. Besides the foregoing works, Eusebius
mentions one On Knowledge, against the Gentiles, two ad¬
dressed to Marcian, On the Preaching of the Apostles, and a
collection of discussions of various subjects.
The weak point in the writings of Irenaeus is his extra¬
vagant regard for traditions. He carefully collected these,
and plumed himself on having seen and known many who
had been personally acquainted with the apostles them¬
selves. Some of the absurd notions which he entertained
regarding the millennium may be seen in Middleton’s Free
Inquiry. It ought not, however, to be forgotten that with
all the sensuousness which clouded his view on this and
other subordinate points, there was blended a love of holi¬
ness purely spiritual, and an exalted idea of the supreme
blessedness of fellowship with God. The thousand years’
reign, with all its sensuous accessories, he regarded as only
a preparatory step for the righteous, who were there to be
trained for a more exalted heavenly existence in which they
were afterwards to reap a full manifestation of the divine glory.
The time and circumstances of his death are not known.
It has been asserted, that along with 9000 confessors to the
truth in the district of Lyon, he received the crown of
martyrdom in the beginning of the third century. But to
this there is an insuperable objection in the total silence of
Eusebius, Tertullian, and all the early historians. His
life has been written by Gervaise in 2 vols. 12mo, Paris,
1723. His works w7ere published by Erasmus in 1526, and
by Fenardent, in 1596. These were reprinted by Grabe, at
Oxford, in 1702. In 1710 appeared Rene Massuet’s edi-
536 IKK
Ireton tion in Paris, and shortly afterwards that of PfafF with the
II newly discovered fragments, which, however, have been
Irkutsk, considered spurious. See Lardners Credibility, &c., Uod-
 ' vvell On Irence.us, Tillemont and Fleury’s Eccles. Hist.
IRETON, Henry, a distinguished general and states¬
man of the English Commonwealth, was the eldest son of
German Ireton of Attenton, in Nottinghamshire, and was
born in 1610. He was intended for the English bar, and
after graduating at Oxford, entered the Middle Temple as
a student of law. But the outbreak of the civil war com¬
pletely altered his plan of life. He offered his sword to the
parliament, and through the interest of Cromwell, whose
daughter Bridget he had married, he obtained rapid pro-
motTon. At Naseby he commanded the left wing of the
parliamentary troops, and though he fought both bravely
and skilfully, he was completely overpowered by the furious
onset of Rupert, and taken prisoner. Cromwell, however,
with his Ironsides, retrieved the fortunes of the day, and
Ireton regained his freedom some hours after he had lost it.
In the subsequent proceedings of the parliament he took a
leading part, was one of those who clamoured most loudly
for the death of the king, and, when it was decided upon,
signed the warrant for his execution. He next accom¬
panied Cromwell into Ireland, aided him zealously and
effectively in all the military operations, and when his chief
was called away to the campaigns against Scotland, re¬
mained behind to complete the reduction of Ireland with
the title and powers of lord-deputy. In this office success
attended his diplomatic as well as his military plans ; and
his character for severity, or, as his enemies called it,
cruelty, contributed not a little to terrify his foes into sub¬
mission wherever he went. In the midst of his victorious
progress he was cut off by the plague at Limerick, Novem¬
ber 15,1651. His death was sincerely regretted, and his loss
deeply felt by his party, who revered him as a good soldier,
an able statesman, and a saint. His body was embalmed
and conveyed to England, where it was buried in Henry the
Seventh’s chapel in Westminster Abbey. After the Resto¬
ration his remains were disinterred, exposed on the scaffold,
and afterwards publicly burned at Tyburn. By Bridget
Cromwell (who after his death became the wife of Fleetwood)
he had one son and four daughters, who all survived him.
Ireton’s abilities both in peace and war are not denied
even by the keenest partisans of the monarch whose death
he had a “main finger” in bringing about. Cromwell,
whose insight into character was unerring, had great faith
in his judgment, and entrusted him with drawing up all the
more important public acts, memorials, and documents of
his party. The legal skill and knowledge which these dis¬
played gained for their author the surname of “ the scribe.”
Hume and the royalist historians are fond of describing
Ireton as artful, designing, unscrupulous, and hypocritical;
but they hold similar and even more offensive language
towards Ireton’s master, and posterity has now reversed
their verdict in both cases.
IRIDIUM, a metal discovered in 1803. See Chemistry,
56, Platinum.
IRIS. See Botany, Nat. Ord. 236, Iridacece.
IRISH SEA is that part of the Atlantic lying between
Great Britain and Ireland, between N. Lat. 51. 40. and 54.
30., and having St George’s Channel on the S. and the
North Channel on the N. It contains the Isles of Man
and Anglesea, with Holyhead and some smaller islets.
IRKU fSK, the capital of the government of that name,
is situated on the River Angara (here 330 yards broad),
opposite the mouth of its tributary the Irkut, in N. Lat. 52.
1 7., and E. Long. 104. 20., and 4000 miles E. of St Peters¬
burg. The town stands on a plain 1270 feet above the sea
level, and has a dry climate although exposed to the extremes
of temperature. During the 15 years from 1830 to 1845,
the mean temperature of the place was—in spring 33° 34', in
X R 0
summer 61° 28', in autumn 30° 29', and in winter l^IS' Iron
below zero ; the mean temperature of the year being 31° 3'. Crown
Irkutsk is well laid out, and its streets, although not paved, jl
are kept very clean. The houses, about 2000 in number,
are mostly of wood. The public offices are, however, all ”
stone buildings. They consist of the governor-general’s
palace, the American Company’s hall, the public library
(containing 5000 volumes), the museum, and the medical,
military, and naval schools. There are also a handsome
cathedral, 9 churches, and a large bazaar. Irkutsk is the
see of an archbishop, as well as the chief residence of the
Governor-General of Eastern Siberia. Ihe commerce of
Irkutsk is considerable, as it forms one of the principal
stations on the great Chinese caravan route. At the yearly
market, which commences on the 13th of December and
lasts for a month, the finer goods of the west are exchanged
for the raw materials of the East. Tea from China, and furs
from the Pacific settlements, are exchanged for European
manufactures from St Petersburg and Moscow. There is
also a considerable trade in grain, wool, and minerals, from the
surrounding country. Manufacture is here confined to
woollen stuffs, glass, leather, and iron. There are here 7
public government schools, in one of which the sons of
exiles are trained. After going through the usual course of
study, they are drafted into the army. Of the other schools
two are for girls, one is allotted to the clergy, a third to the
merchants, and the remaining two form a gymnasium and
college. The average number of students in the latter is
150, with 1 rector and 14 professors, who also teach in the
gymnasium. Pop. (1853) 14,454.
IRON CROWN is the name by which is known the
celebrated diadem used at the coronation of the Lombard
kings. Though called the iron crown, it consisted of a
broad band of gold set with jewels, and only a thin circlet
of iron inside the band. But to this iron circlet great inte¬
rest was attached, for it was considered to be one of the nails
used at the crucifixion of our Saviour, brought from Pales¬
tine by the Empress Helena, and beaten out into a narrow
ring. It was thus that the name originated by which the
crown has for centuries been known. It has been used at
the coronation of 34 different monarchs, including Charle¬
magne, Charles V., and Napoleon. It was worn by the last
of these at his second coronation i.e., in 1805, as King of
Lombardy. When placing it on his own head he exclaimed,
“ God has given it to me, woe to him who touches it!
This curious relic of antiquity is preserved in the Cathedral
of St John at Monza, in the north of Italy. It is kept in a
chapel on the right-hand side of the high altar.
IRON MASK, The Man of the, was the designation
applied to a remarkable personage whose real name was
unknown. He was so called because of a black mask which
completely concealed his face. This mask was of black
velvet, and so constructed by means of springs that the
wearer never required to take it off, not even while eating.
He was kept in the Castle of Pignerol, from which he was
taken (in 1681) to Exelles; thence (in 168/) to the island
of St Marguerite ; and lastly (in 1698) to the Bastile in
Paris. At each of these places he was attended by the
same keeper, M. de St Mars. When taken from place to
place, armed attendants on horseback were ready to despatch
him if he made any attempt to escape, or even to show his
face. That the prisoner thus guarded was a person of no
small importance is evident from the precautions taken to
keep him from being recognised. During his captivity in
the Bastile, he was always treated with the greatest con¬
sideration. His fare was sumptuous, and his accommoda¬
tion was the best that could be obtained in the prison. He
had a great predilection for lace and extremely fine linen,
which were supplied him ; indeed he got whatever he
asked. He read extensively, and was a good player on the
guitar. The physician who attended him at the Bastile
I R O
Iron Mask, describes him (according to Voltaire) as remarkably well
made, with skin rather brown, and tone of voice interesting
from the fact that he never complained of his fate, nor
dropped any hint of what he might be. The physician at
times examined his tongue and various parts of his body,
but never saw his countenance. Besides these incidents,
there are some interesting anecdotes, showing how impor¬
tant it was considered to keep the man with the mask un¬
known. It is related that while he was at St Marguerite,
he carved with a knife some words on a silver plate, which
he threw from a window upon the shore. The plate was
picked up by a fisherman, who brought it to the governor of
the jail. The words must have contained a complete reve¬
lation of the mystery connected with the prisoner, for the
governor of the jail (M. de St Mars) detained the fisherman
to ascertain whether he had shown the plate to any one.
The fisherman assured him that he had not, but it was equally
important that he should not have read the words himself;
accordingly, the jailer did not let him go till he was certain
of the man’s inability to read at all. Upon setting him at
liberty, M. de St Mars said to him—“It is well for you
that you cannot read!” Upon another occasion, the man
with the mask had covered a shirt with writing, and got it
somehow thrown into the water. It was picked up by a
boy and brought to the governor. The boy was asked if he
had read any of the writing, but he denied having done so.
However, in a few days afterwards he was found dead in his
bed. According to another anecdote, a prisoner confined
in the apartment immediately above that of the man with
the mask, succeeded in carrying on a conversation with him
by means of the chimneys. When pressed to tell who he
was, the mask replied that his life, and not only his, but the
lives of all who might become possessed of the secret, would
be sacrificed should he make known the mystery. When
about to be removed from St Marguerite to the Bastile, he
inquired of his keeper (M. de St Mars) if his life were in
danger. The keeper was overheard to answer, “ No, Prince,
your life is safe,” &c. This accords with the respect uni¬
formly paid him, for his governor never sat in his presence.
The mysterious individual died in the Bastile on the 19th
November 1703. He fell suddenly ill one day after attend¬
ing mass, and at 10 o’clock on the evening of the following
day he died. He was buried on the next day, in the ceme¬
tery of St Paul, under the false name of Marchialy. He was
considered as being about 45 years of age. Everything
belonging to him, his clothes, bed, &c., were committed to
the flames. The apartment in which he had been kept was
searched to see that he had not concealed any notice by
which he might be identified. The walls were scraped and
whitewashed anew, and the tiles of the floor changed. To
discover the person wdio was for so many years concealed
behind the black mask, was one of the most curious problems
in history. All the possible (and some impossible) person¬
ages have been successively declared to be the same as this
great unknown. In an anonymous book published at
Amsterdam in 1745, under the title Secret Memoirs for the
History of Persia, the man with the mask was declared to
be the Duke of Vermandois, the natural brother of the
dauphin. The duke was represented as having given a
personal affront to the dauphin, for which offence he was
condemned to perpetual imprisonment. These so-called
secret memoirs were in reality a history of the intrigues of
the French court after the death of Louis XIV., and the
persons who figured in the book were disguised under
imaginary and Persian names. In 1746 another book
appeared with the title of The Man with the Iron Mask, and
although it contained an enumeration of adventures not at
all applicable to the person of whom we have been speaking,
yet from this time he became specifically designated by the
title as given above. In 1751 Voltaire’s work, The Age of
Louis XIV., appeared at Berlin, and contained an account
of the unknown person with the mask. The leading parti-
VOL. XII.
I R O 537
culars of this account, relating to treatment in the Bastile, Iron Ma>.k.
&c., we have already given. Voltaire takes credit to him-
self as being the first who had given any proper historical
account of the man with the mask. He draws attention to
the important fact that, at the time when St Mars and his
charge went to St Marguerite, no person of distinction had
disappeared in Europe. In 1759, Lagrange-Chaucel endea¬
voured to show that the unknown was the Duke de Beau¬
fort. In 1768, St Foix threw out the conjecture that the
person concerned was the Duke of Monmouth, who was
openly executed in London! In 1769 some particulars
were brought to light by Griffet in the discovery of the
manuscript journal of Dujonca, a lieutenant du roi in the
Bastile in 1698. These particulars related to the death,
burial, &c., of the unknown, which we have given already.
In 1770 an attempt was made by Baron d’Heiss to identify
him as Matthioli, secretary to the Duke of Mantua, who had
been seized and confined in the Castle of Pignerol. Voltaire
appeared again on the subject in the seventh edition of the
Dictionnaire Philosophique, in which he corrected some in¬
accuracies into which he had formerly fallen, but throws no
new light on the subject. It has, indeed, been asked how
Voltaire should come to know so much about the man with
the mask as he pretends? It has been suggested that he
was the author of the Persian Memoirs, although he after¬
wards called it a contemptible and obscure tract; and that
his inaccuracies regarding dates, &c., in his Age of Louis
XIV. (which was published under the assumed name of
Francheville), were intentional, his purpose being, if pos¬
sible, to draw out such as might possess any authentic
documents on the subject. If so, in failing to clear up one
mystery, he seems willing to have created another, for he
concludes the notice of which we are speaking by the
remarkable sentence—“ He who writes this perhaps knows
more about the subject than Father Griffet, and will say no
more about it.” The editor of the said dictionary suggests
that the unknown may have been an elder brother of Louis
XIV.—an illegitimate son of Anne of Austria, by Cardinal
Mazarini or the Duke of Buckingham, brought up secretly
in order to prevent scandal in the royal family and dissen¬
sions in the kingdom. In 1789 a document was passed off
as having been discovered at the Bastile, oracularly settling
the question by the words, “ Foucquet arriving from St
Marguerite with an iron mask . . .,” in a mass of unin¬
telligible notes. Cubiere suggested that the unknown
prisoner was a twin-brother of Louis XIV., and in 1790
appeared the Memoirs of Cardinal Richelieu, which con¬
tained a document with the following title:—“Account of
the birth and education of the unfortunate Prince, abducted
from society by the Cardinals Richelieu and Mazarin, and
confined by order of Louis XIV.; drawn up by the governor
of this Prince on his death-bed.” According to the narra¬
tive the Prince, who was educated secretly by order of his
father, one day saw a portrait of Louis XIV., and at once
perceived its likeness to himself. He was immediately
masked and imprisoned as before described. It need scarcely
be added that there is great difficulty in the way of accept¬
ing the document under consideration as authentic. In
1800 the claims of Matthioli were revived by Roux-Fazillac,
and defended by Delort in 1825. Several of the persons
already mentioned were also again successively supposed to
be the mysterious prisoner ; new names, however, such as
that of Henry Cromwell, being added to the list. In 1837
some able researches were published by Jacob, in which the
belief is supported that the statesman Foucquet was the
prisoner. It is contended that the prosecutions taken in
the case of Foucquet were precisely similar to those taken
in the case of the prisoner with fhe mask ; and that it was
immediately after the pretended death of Foucquet that the
prisoner with the mask appeared. More recently Lord Dover
took up the subject, and supported the belief that Count
Matthioli, before-mentioned, was the mysterious unknown.
3 T
538
IRON.
Iron maim-Iron, on account of its abundance, working qualities,
facture. an(j tenacity, is probably the most useful and valuable
of metals. According to Dr. Ure, “ it is capable of being
cast into moulds of any form, of being drawn into wire
of any desired length or fineness, of being extended into
plates or sheets, of being bent in every direction, of being
sharpened, or hardened, or softened at pleasure. Iron
accommodates itself to all our wants and desires, and
even to our caprices ; it is equally serviceable to the arts,
the sciences, to agriculture, and war; the same ore fur¬
nishes the sword, the ploughshare, the scythe, the prun-
ing-hook, the needle, the graver, the spring of a watch
or of a carriage, the chisel, the chain, the anchor, the
compass, the cannon, and the bomb. It is a medicine
of much virtue, and the only metal friendly to the human
frame.” In its primitive position it is commingled with
the earth’s strata in bountiful profusion ; it is found in
various combinations and conditions in every formation,
and it is a constituent element of both animals and
vegetables.
In treating of the manufacture, properties, and pro¬
duction of this most important material, it will conduce
to perspicuity to arrange the subject under five distinct
heads, viz.—I. The History; II. The Ores and Fuel;
III. The Manufacture; IY. The Strength and other
Properties of Iron ; V. The Statistics of the Iron trade.
I. History of the Iron Manufacture.
The Malleable iron appears to have been known from a
History. remote antiquity. Its obvious utility and great supe¬
riority over the softer metals, then commonly used, com¬
bined with the expense of its reduction, caused it to be
highly prized, though the extreme difficulty of working
it by the rude methods then employed greatly restricted
its application.1 There are notices in Homer and
Hesiod of the arts of reducing and forging iron, but
cast-iron was then unknown, an imperfectly malleable
iron being produced at once from the ores in the furnace.
It is probable that the Greeks obtained most of their
iron through the Phoenicians from the shores of the Black
Sea, and from Laconia.
It would be interesting to trace the gradual advances
which have been were made in the reduction of iron from
its discovery to the present time; to inquire into the cir¬
cumstances which led to the successive changes in the
processes, and into the principle on which those changes
were founded; to examine into the differences in the
products which from time to time ensued, and to notice
the influence of these conditions on the extent and pro¬
gress of the manufacture. Our knowledge of these
changes, however, is scanty and imperfect, and we can
only conjecture what was probably its early progress.
The furnaces which were first employed for smelting
iron were probably similar to those now called air-
hloomeries. They were probably simple conical struc¬
tures, with small openings below for the admission of
air, and a large one above for the escape of the pro¬
ducts of combustion, and would be erected on high
grounds in order that the wind might assist combustion.
The fire being kindled, successive layers of ore and char¬
coal would be placed in it, and the heat regulated by
opening or closing the apertures below.
The process of reduction would consist of the de-oxida- The
tion of the ore and the cementation of the metal by long
continued heat. The temperature would never rise suffi¬
ciently high to fuse the ore, and the product would there¬
fore be an imperfectly malleable iron, mixed with scorias
and unreduced oxide. It would then be brought under
the hammer, and fashioned into a rude bloom, during
which process it would be freed from the greater portion
of the earthy impurities.
By such a process as this the Romans probably worked
the iron ores of our own island; scorias, the refuse of
ancient bloomeries, occur in various localities, in some
cases identified with that people by the coincident remains
of altars dedicated to the god who presided over iron.
Mungo Park saw a rude furnace of this kind used by the
Africans, and, indeed, with some modifications, it is still
retained in Spain, and along the coasts of the Mediter¬
ranean, where rich specular ores are worked.
The advantages of an artificial blast would soon become
manifest, and a pair of bellows or a cylinder and piston
would soon be applied to the simple construction men¬
tioned above. Homer represents Hephaestus as throwing
the materials from which the shield of Achilles was to
be forged into a furnace urged by 20 pairs of bellows
The inhabitants of Madagascar smelt iron in
much the same way, their bio wing apparatus, however, con¬
sisting of hollo w trunks of trees, with loosely fitting pistons.
The furnace corresponds to the hlast-bloomery, and
has by successive improvements developed into the blast
furnace, now almost universally used, and into the Catalan
forge, still employed in some districts. The application
of the blast would offer considerable advantages ; it would
obviate the necessity of an elevated site, place the tem¬
perature more immediately under the direction of the
smelter, and render the whole process more regular and
certain. The method of reduction remained the same
as before, but the product would differ considerably, for
whenever the blast was sufficiently powerful, the iron
would be fused, a partial carburation would take place,
and the resulting metal would be a species of steel, utterly
useless to the workmen of those days; hence, it seems
necessary to infer, that a rude pi’ocess of refining was
invented, the metal being again heated with charcoal, and
the blast directed over its surface, the carbon would be
burnt out, and the iron become tough and malleable. The
processes might perhaps form two successive stages of one
operation, as at present practised with the Catalan forge.
The increasing demand for iron, and the progress of
internal communication, would lead the smelter to in¬
crease the size and height of his bloomery, and this pro¬
bably would lead to a very unexpected result. The
greater length through which the ore had to descend
would prolong its contact with the charcoal, and a higher
state of carburation would ensue, the product being
cast-iron—a compound till then perhaps unknown.
From the time that cast-iron became the product of the
smelting furnace, the refining would be made a separate
process, requiring a separate furnace and machinery.
It would soon be found also that, as the furnace increased
in height, the pressure of the superincumbent mass would
render the materials so dense as to retard the ascent of
the blast, and thus cause it to become soft and ineffi¬
cient ; hence the internal buttresses called boshes were
1 This is shown by the epithet roXvxpnTo; (much-wrought), applied to it by Homer—Iliad, vi. 48.
I R
The first introduced to support the weight of the charge,
^*^7^ relieving the central parts from the pressure, and per-
mitting the free ascent of the blast. Whilst the good
quality of the iron and the regularity of the process
were thus ensured, increase of quantity was the result
of improvements in the blowing apparatus, which was
now enlarged and worked by water-power. With
these modifications, the furnace was the same essen¬
tially as the blast-furnace now employed, though not so
large; indeed, until the introduction of coke at a much
later period, the blast-furnace seldom exceeded 15 feet
in height by 6 at the widest diameter. The more perfect
operation of the blast furnace allowed the reduction of
the heaps of scoriae, which had been gradually accumu¬
lating during the period that the blast bloomeries had
been in operation, and which contained 30 to 40 per
cent of iron. A new species of property was thus created,
extensive proprietorships of Danish and Roman cinders
were formed; large deposits of scoriae which for ages
had lain concealed beneath forests of decayed oak, were
dug up, and in Dean Forest it is computed that 20 furnaces,
for a period of upwards of 300 years, were supplied chiefly
with the bloomery cinders as a substitute for iron ore.
At what period the complete transformation of the
blast-bloomery into the blast furnace was effected, it is
impossible to say. It was probably in the early part of
the 16th century, as we find that in the 17th the art of
casting had arrived at a considerable degree of perfec¬
tion, and in the reign of Elizabeth there Avas a consider¬
able export trade of cast-iron ordnance to the Continent.
In the forest of Dean are the remains of two blast-furnaces,
which formerly belonged to the kings of England, but
they have been out of blast since the commencement of the
struggle between Charles I. and his Parliament. Cal¬
culating from the quantity of scoriae accumulated in their
immediate neighbourhood, which appear to have lain un¬
disturbed for the last two centuries, Mr Mushet has
attempted to deduce the period of their erection, Avhich
he conceives to have been about the year 1550, in the
time of Edward VI.
Up to this period wood charcoal was the only mate¬
rial employed in smelting operations, but the Avants
of a constantly increasing population, not less than
the great consumption of the blast furnaces them¬
selves, created a scarcity of this essential material,
and gave a check to the manufacture. To such an
extent had the wood been destroyed, that the cutting
doAvn of timber for the use of the iron-works was pro¬
hibited by special enactments; and the forests of Sussex
alone appear to have been exempt from the general decree
of conservation. The number of furnaces in blast de¬
creased three-fourths, and the annual production, which
but a short time before is said to have been 180,000 tons,
was in 1740 reduced to only 17,350 tons.
James I. granted patents to ironmasters in various
parts of the kingdom for using pit-coal in the manu¬
facture of iron. The obstacles to its introduction, however,
were numerous, and not easily overcome. The compara¬
tively incombustible nature of coke, and its feebler chemical
affinities, rendered a more powerful blast and a longer
subjection to the heat indispensable to its successful adop¬
tion. Ignorance of the causes of failure operated long and
seriously, but all difficulties were at length surmounted.
An enlargement of the height of the furnace prolonged
the contact of the ore and coke, and at last the employ¬
ment of the steam-engine and improved blowing apparatus
rendered the blast much more powerful and regular, and
gave that impetus to the manufacture which has caused
Great Britain to take the first rank in this branch of
industry.
O N. 539
The first great improvement on the blowing apparatus 4be
was the substitution of large cylinders, with closely fitting
pistons, for the bellows. The earliest of any magnitude
were probably those erected by Smeaton at the Carron
Iron-Works, in 1760.
In 1783-4, Mr Cort of Gosport introduced the processes
of puddling and rolling, two of the most important in¬
ventions connected with the production of iron since the
employment of the blast furnace. (See Addenda, a.)
About this time the steam-engine of James Watt came
into use, and along with it commenced a new era in the
history of the iron trade and every other branch of in¬
dustry. Its immense power, economy, and convenience
of application, brought it at once into general employ¬
ment. It was soon applied to pumping, blowing, and
rolling; it enabled the mines to be sunk to a greater
depth; refractory ores to be reduced with facility, and
the processes of rolling, forging, &c., to be effected with
a rapidity previously unknown.
Of late years, Scotland has made considerable progress
in the iron manufacture. The introduction of railway
communication, and the invention of the hot-blast, have
given a stimulus to the trade which has raised
Glasgow into importance as an iron district, and few
towns possess greater facilities for the sale of their
produce, than this central depot of the mineral treasures
of the country by which it is surrounded.
The hot-blast process, for which a patent was taken
out by Mr Neilson in 1824, has effected an entire re-
\rolution in the iron industry of Great Britain, and forms
the last era in the history of this material. This simple
but effective invention has given such facilities for the
reduction of refractory ores, that between three and four
times the quantity of iron can be produced weekly, with
an expenditure of little more than one-third the fuel;
and, moreover, the coal does not require to be coked, or
the ores to be calcined.
In conclusion, we may add that there appear to have
been five distinct epochs in the history of the iron trade.
The first dating from the employment of an artificial
blast to accelerate combustion.
The second marked by the employment of coke for
reduction, about the year 1750.
The third dating from the introduction of the steam-
engine, and on account of the facilities which that in¬
vention has given for raising the ores, pumping the mines,
supplying the furnace with a copious and regular blast,
and moving the powerful forge and rolling machinery, we
may safely attribute this era to the genius of James Watt.
The fourth epoch is indicated by the introduction of
the system of puddling and rolling, very soon after the
employment of the steam-engine.
The fifth, and last—though not the least important
epoch in the history of this manufacture—is marked by
the application of the hot-blast—an invention which has
increased the production of iron fourfold, and has enabled
the ironmaster to smelt otherwise useless and unreducible
ores; it has abolished the processes of coking and roasting,
and has given facilities for a large and rapid production,
far beyond the most sanguine anticipations of its inventor.
Manufacturers taking advantage of so powerful an agent,
have not hesitated to reduce improper materials, such as
cinder-heaps and impure ores, and by unduly hastening
the process, and attending to quantity more than to
quality, have produced an inferior description of iron,
that has brought the invention into unmerited obloquy.
II. The Ores.
The ores of iron are found in profuse abundance in The Ores,
every latitude, embedded in or stratified with eA’ery
540
The Ores.
The iron
ores of the
United
Kingdom.
IRON.
formation. They occur both crystallized, massive, and
arenaceous, lying deep in strata of vast extent, filling
veins and faults in other rocks, and scattered over the
surface of the ground. Sometimes, but rarely, found
native; usually as oxides, sulphurets, or carbonates,
more or less mingled with other substances. Ot these
ores there are perhaps twenty varieties, many of which
arej however, rare ; others are combined with substances
which unfit them for the manufacture of iron, so that the
remainder may be classed under the following general
heads; their composition, however, varies greatly :—
1. The magnetic oxides, in which the iron occurs, as
Fe3 O4 or Fe2 03 + Fe 0. This is the purest ore which
is Avorked, the best Swedish metal is manufactured from it.
It is found in primitive rocks, and is widely diffused over
the globe.
2. Specular iron ore, peroxide of iron, Fe2 O3. This is
rich and valuable ore, and has been worked from a
remote antiquity in Elba and Spain. It is found chiefly
in primary and transition rocks.
3. Red and brown haematites, hydrated peroxide of
iron. These ores occur in botyroidal radiating masses,
in Cumberland, Ireland, America, and other places.
4. Carbonate of iron. This ore occurs mixed with
large quantities of argillaceous, carbonaceous, and sili-
cious substances, forming the large deposits of clay-iron¬
stone and blackbands, from which most of the iron of
this country is obtained. These strata are generally
found in close proximity to the coal measures.
All the above ores are more or less mixed with silica,
alumina, oxide of manganese, &c., and it may not be
uninteresting to glance at their geographical distribution
in Europe and America.
This country possesses peculiar and remarkable ad¬
vantages for the manufacture of iron. The ores are
found in exhaustless abundance, usually interstratified
with the coal for their reduction, and in close proxi¬
mity to the mountain limestone, which is used as a
flux. In few countries do these three essential materials
occur in such abundance, or so near together as to
give the necessary facilities for a large and profitable
production.
The ores principally employed are the clay-ironstones
and carbonates of blackbands, which are found inter¬
stratified with the coal fields of Ayrshire, Lanarkshire,
Shropshire, South Wales, and other parts, and these
vary in richness in different localities, according to posi¬
tion and the amount of silica clay and other foreign
matter with which they are associated. The chemical
composition of three varieties of the ore used in Lanark¬
shire is given by Dr. Colquhoun, as follows:—
Protoxide of iron
Carbonic acid
Silica
Alumina .
Lime
Magnesia .
Peroxide of iron
Bituminous matter
Sulphur .
Oxide of Manganese
Moisture and loss
No. 1.
53'03
35'17
1-40
063
333
1-77
023
303
000
000
1-41
100-00
No. 2.
47 33
33-10
663
4-30
2-00
2-20
033
1- 70
022
013
2- 26
100-00
No. 3.
35-22
32-53
956
534
8-62
519
1-16
213
0-62
O'OO
o-oo
100-37
The carbonic acid in the above ores may be partly
combined with the lime as carbonate of lime, as well as
with the protoxide of iron.
M. Berthier gives, according to Dr. Ure, the follow¬
ing analyses of the English and Welsh ironstones of the The Ores,
coal measures:—
Loss by ignition
Insoluble residuum
Peroxide of iron
Lime
Bich Welsb
Ore.
30-00
8-40
6000
o-oo
98-40
Poor Welsh
Ore.
27-00
22 03
42 66
600
97-69
Dudley Bich
Ore or
Gubbin.
3P00
7-66
58-33
2-66
99 65
Calculating the amount of carbonate of iron and
metallic iron indicated by the above analyses, we
have:—
Carbonate of iron
Metallic iron
8877
4215
6509
3P38
85-20
40.45
The richness of the above ironstones would be about
33 per cent of iron. In the process of roasting, 28 per
cent of the ore is dissipated.
Mr Mitchell gives also the following assays of clay-
ironstone and blackband ore, as under :—
Clay Iron¬
stone, Lei¬
trim, Ireland.
51-653
3-742
•976
1-849
•284
•410
•274
•372
■214
•284
31142
6-640
[ 2-160
100-000
Blackband
Carbonate
Ore.
20-924
•741
1- 742
14-974
•987
•881
trace.
trace.
•098
•114
14-000
26-179
16-940
2- 420
100000
Protoxide of iron
Peroxide of iron
Oxide of Manganese
Alumina
Magnesia
Lime
Potash
Soda
Sulphur
Phosphoric acid
Carbonic acid .
Silica
Carbonaceous matter
Loss
In North Lancashire and Cumberland, the red haema¬
tite ores are now extensively worked, and great quantities
are yearly shipped from Whitehaven, Ulverstone, &c., to
Staffordshire, South Wales, and Scotland, fcr mixing
with the poorer argillaceous and blackband ores. In
Cumberland and North Lancashire, no less than 546,998
tons were raised in 1854 for this purpose, and the greater
portion was exported from those districts.
In addition to these exports, about 25 to 30,000
tons are smelted by the hot blast at Cleator, in the neigh¬
bourhood of Whitehaven. It produces a strong and
ductile iron, considered highly valuable for mixing with
the weaker irons. These ores have been carefully analysed,
and contain:—
Peroxide of iron 90'3
Silica 5"0
Alumina 3’0
Lime trace.
Magnesia trace.
Water 6 0
104-3
Or about 62 per cent of metallic iron.
In Ireland there are vast deposits of iron ore of great
richness, though as yet but little worked. Some of these,
such as the ores worked at the Arigua mines, and the
Kidney ores of Balcarry Bay, yield as much as 70 per
cent of iron. If these mines were worked more exten-
sively, and if peat fuel were used in the smelting opera-
IRON.
541
The iron
ores of
France.
The Ores, tions, the iron would probably be of the very best quality,
and might rival the famed Swedish charcoal metal. Of
this there is now every reason to hope, as the establish¬
ment of railway communication, with almost every part
of Ireland, will open out the immense peat bogs of that
country, and facilitate the introduction of vegetable fuel
for the reduction of the ores, and create a large and im¬
portant addition to other branches of Irish industry.
In a communication to the writer from Mr M‘A11, dated
Scrabby, he states—“ I have sent you samples of
two kinds of iron ore, one is the red, the other the
purple haematite. There are strata which are inex¬
haustible, and the ore can be raised and delivered
at the furnace for less than a shilling a ton ; the peat
or vegetable carbon is equally cheap and abundant.
Limestone of the purest quality is also close at hand,
and can be delivered at the fux-nace at ninepence per
ton. On account of the purity of these materials,
iron of the greatest strength and ductility can be made,
which, from its non-liability to corrode, wmuld be admir¬
ably adapted for naval and marine purposes.” Ireland
is, therefore, according to Mr M‘A11 and others, in a con¬
dition to supply large quantities of excellent iron.
France possesses an abundant supply of iron ore, but
on account of the scarcity of coal, the manufacture has
been greatly restricted in extent. The introduction of
railway communication is, however, rapidly removing this
difficulty, and the operations of smelting are greatly on
the increase. The railroad has enabled the French iron¬
master to substitute coal for charcoal in the reduction of
the iron ores, and in consequence an immense increase
has taken place in the production of pig and manufactured
iron. The ores are found in beds or strata in the Jura
range ; accumulated in kidney-shaped concretions in the
fissures of the limestone; or dispersed over the surface
of the ground, and but slightly covered with sand or clay.
They are found in the departments of the Yonne, the
Meuse, and the Moselle, and indeed may be traced from
the Pas de Calais on the north to the Jura on the south,
indicating throughout an abundant and ample supply.
The present increased production of iron in France is
chiefly due to the introduction of coal in smelting, but it
may also be traced in some measure to the encouragement
given by the Government to that branch of industry, and
to the enterprise of such men as M. de Gallois and M.
Dufrenoy, who have exerted themselves to extend its
manufacture in that country. M. de Gallois resided in
England for several years, immediately subsequent to the
peace of 1815, and having obtained admission into the
different iron-works here, he returned to France and
established the works at St. Etienne, now probably the
largest and most extensive in that country.1 The pro¬
duction of crude pig-iron in France is now little short of
1,000,000 tons annually, but the demand for railways,
rolling-stock, bridges, iron ships, girders, and other con¬
structions is so great that large quantities of iron are still
annually imported from this country.
Valuable deposits of the blackband and clay carbonate
ores are found interstratified with the great coal-field of
Ruhr; and the bog-iron and haematite ores are found in
considerable profusion in Rhenish Prussia and other
parts. In Upper Silesia, on the Vistula and the Oder,
large deposits of coal and iron are found in juxtaposition,
and are worked to a considerable extent.
The consumption of iron is not so great as in France,
The iron
ores of
Prussia.
though it is increasing rapidly, as may be seen from re- The Ores,
turns recently given by the British Charge d’Affairs at
Berlin. These returns showT that the amount of iron ore
raised in Prussia has increased from 1,495,516 tons in
1853, to 2,144,509 tons in 1854 ; this has taken place in
nearly all the producing districts, but chiefly on the
Rhine, where the demand has increased from 719,684 to
1,068,656 tons; in Westphalia, from 146,320 to 330,014
tons ; in Silesia, from 563,739 to 650,369 tons ; in Lower
Saxony and Thuringia, from 51,963 to 70,676 tons; in
Prussian Brandenburgh, from 8,084 to 12,731 tons'; and
m the Upper Zollverein from 6,736 to 12,063 tons.
In Austria, all the iron is smelted with charcoal or The iron
carbonised peat, and is in consequence of the finest ores °f
quality; it may be applied to every description of manu- Sweden
facture, from the most ductile wire to the hardest steel. &c. ’
The production is, however, small. The ores are found
in Hungary, Styria, Moravia, and Upper Silesia.
In Belgium, both coal and iron are found in equal
abundance, and are worked at Charleroi, Liege, and at
other places. The ores, which are chiefly hiematite, are
derived from the limestone at the base of the coal mea¬
sures. (See Addenda, b.)
The superiority of the Swedish iron has long been
acknowledged, and till recently it has been unrivalled.
This arises not only from the purity of the ore—the
magnetic oxide of iron—but in consequence of its being
smelted with charcoal only. The quantity is, however,
restricted, as the ironmasters are allowed by law only a
certain number of trees per annum, in order that the
forests may not be totally destroyed. Coal does not exist
in either Sweden or Norway.
In 1844 some experimental researches were under¬
taken by Mr Fairbairn of Manchester, at the request of
the Sublime Porte, in regard to the properties of iron
made from the ores of Samakoff in Turkey. The ores
were strongly magnetic, and contained, according to
Dumas and others, 62 to 64 per cent of iron. They
consisted of:—
One atom iron 28 + one atom oxygen 8 = 36
Two atoms iron 56 three atoms oxygen 24 = 80
Iron . 84 Oxygen .32 116
Some of these ores have been smelted with charcoal,
and some very fine specimens of iron and steel produced.
The manufacture is, however, in a languid state in Turkey,
and although smelting furnaces, blowing apparatus, forges,
rolling mills, &c., were prepared and sent out from this
country, they are to a great extent useless among a people
who have deeply rooted prejudices and habitual inactivity
to overcome, and everything to learn in all those habits
of industry which indicate the rising prosperity of an
energetic and an active people.
Both the magnetic, haematite, and clay-ironstones The iron
abound in the United States. The magnetic ores ores °f
worked in New England, New York, and New Jersey; America-
the haematite in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jer¬
sey, and other localities; but the greater part of the
manufacture must eventually establish itself in the valley
of the Mississipi, west cf the Alleghany range, where
vast deposits of coal and iron exist, though at present
but imperfectly known or developed. The ores in most
of these districts are smelted with a mixture of char¬
coal and anthracite, and the usual limestone flux, and
produce a very excellent quality of iron.
1 The universal exhibition of last year (1855) fully justifies the remarks in reference to the great increase of the iron trade of France.
Any person in the least conversant with the imperfect machinery and processes of the iron manufacture as it existed in France some
years since, could not have been otherwise than struck with the improved character of those exemplified in the Paris Exhibition. In no
country (probably not excepting even this) has so great progress been made in so short a time, in advancing from a state of comparative
rudeness to one of considerable perfection, as in France.
i
542
I B 0 N.
The Ores.
In Nova Scotia some of the richest ores yet discovered
occur in exhaustless abundance. The iron manufactured
from them is of the very best quality, and is equal to the
finest Swedish metal. The specular ore of the Acadian
mines, Nova Scotia, is said by Dr. lire to be a nearly pure
peroxide of iron, containing 99 per cent of the per¬
oxide, and about 70 per cent of iron. When smelted,
100 parts yield 75 of iron, the increase in weight being
due to combined carbon. The red ore Dr. Ure states to
be analogous to the kidney ore of Cumberland, and to
contain:—
Peroxide of iron
Silica
Water .
(1)
85-8
8'2
60
(2)
84-4
8-0
7'6
1000 1000
The Acadian ores are situated in the neighbourhood of
large tracts of forests, capable of supplying almost any
quantity of charcoal for the manufacture of the superior
qualities of iron and steel. Several specimens of iron
from these mines have been submitted to direct experi¬
ment, and the results prove its high powers of resistance
to strain, ductility, and adaptation to all those processes
by which the finest description of wire and steel are
manufactured.
The difficulties which the Government have had to
encounter, during the last two years, in obtaining a suffi¬
ciently strong metal for artillery, are likely to be removed
by the use of the Acadian pig-iron. Large quantities
have been purchased by the War Office, and experiments
are now in progress, under the direction of Lieutenant-
Colonel Wilmot, Inspector of Artillery, and of Mr
Fairbairn, which seem calculated to establish the supe¬
riority of this metal for casting every description of heavy
ordnance.
There are also some very rich ores at the Nictau
mines, as the following analyses by Dr. Jackson shew.
They contain impressions of Silurian tentaculites, spiri-
.fers, &c.—
Peroxide of iron . .
Silica . . ... • •
Carbonate of Lime
Carbonate of Magnesia
Alumina 
Oxide of Manganese .
Water 
* Gain from oxygen,
t Over-run, probably car¬
bonic acid from carbonate of
lime.
Brown Ore, somewhat
magnetic.
7020
14-40
5-60
2-80
680
•40
•00
100-20
"20*
100-00
Bed Iron Ore.
64-40
1920
540
3- 20
1-20
4- 40
2-40
100-20
•20f
100-00
As our limits are circumscribed, it will not be neces¬
sary to extend this section further; suffice it therefore to
observe, that in all countries nature has, with a beneficent
purpose, interlaid and interstratified the whole surface of
the globe with this useful and indispensable material, and
it would ill bespeak that high intelligence with which
man is endowed if he did not avail himself of, and turn
to good account, the immense stores of mineral treasures
which are so profusely laid at his feet.
The Fuel.
The enquiry into the properties and composition of
the ores of iron, and the processes employed for their
reduction and subsequent conversion into bars and plates,
would be incomplete unless accompanied by descriptive
analyses of the fuel by which they are fused. Indeed the
results of the operations of smelting, puddling, &c., are
so intimately dependent on the quality of the fuel em- The Fuel,
ployed, as to render a knowledge of its constituents
essential to the manufacture of good iron.
Charcoal was at first universally employed in the
manufacture of iron, and on account of its purity com¬
pared with other kinds of fuel, and its strong chemical
affinities and consequent high combustibility, it is of very
superior value where it can be obtained in large quanti¬
ties at a moderate cost. This, however, is rarely the case,
and hence its use is restricted within very narrow limits
in most countries. Charcoal is the result of several pro¬
cesses, in each of which the object is to increase the
amount of fuel in a given bulk. The wood being cut
into convenient lengths, and piled closely together, in a
large heap, the interstices being filled with the smaller
branches, and the whole covered with wet charcoal pow¬
der, is then set on fire. Care is taken that only sufficient
air is admitted to consume the gaseous products of the
wood, so as to maintain the high temperature without
needlessly consuming the carbon. After the whole ol
the gaseous products have been separated, and the carbon
and salts only are left, the access of air is prevented, and
the heap allowed to cool.
Another and better process is to throw the wood into
a large close oven or furnace, heated either by the com¬
bustion within it, or by a separate fire conducted in flues
around it. By this process, not only is the yield greater
and of better quality, from the slower progress of the ope¬
ration, but the products of the distillation may be pre¬
served and employed for a great variety ot purposes.
The following results of some experiments by Karsten,
shew the difference in yield of very rapid and very slow
processes:—
Wood.
Youns; Oak .
Old „ .
Young Deal .
Old ,, .
Young Fir .
Old „ .
Mean
Charcoal produced
by quick carbonization.
16.54
15- 91
14-25
14- 05
16- 22
15- 35
15-38
Charcoal produced
by slow carbonization.
25-60
25-71
25-25
25-00
27-72
24-75
25.67
These, on the average, give for the quick process i5‘3,
and for the slow 25-6, being in the ratio of 1: 1.67, or
0‘67 in favour of the quick process.
Peat.—This material seems likely to come into use
for smelting iron in countries such as Ireland, where
neither coal nor wood are found in abundance. It is
purer and less objectionable than coal, and if properly
dried, compressed, and carbonized, would prove a very
valuable fuel for the reduction of such ores as we have
already described in the section on the iron ores of
Ireland. It is carbonized in the same way as the char¬
ring of wood.
Coke.—Before the introduction of the hot-blast, this
material was used to a very great extent in the manu¬
facture of iron ; it is prepared from coal in the same way
that charcoal is prepared from wood, the operation being
called the coking or desulphurizing process. The heaps
do not require so careful a regulation of the admission of
air as those of charcoal, on account of the comparatively
incombustible character of the coke. Sometimes the
heaps are made large, with perforated brick chimnies, to
increase the draught through the mounds ; at other times
they are formed into smaller heaps, and the conversion
takes place without the intervention of flues. The moie
usual and economical plan is, however, the employment
of close ovens, by which process a great saving is effected,
the yield being from 30 to 50 per cent in the one case,
IRON.
543
The Fuel, and from 50 to 75 in the other, according to the nature
and quality of the coal.
Coal.—The hot-blast has enabled the ironmasters to
use raw coal in the blast furnaces, the great heat of the
ascending current of the products of combustion coking
it as it falls in the furnace. The sulphur, however, and
other deleterious ingredients, do not appear to be so
completely got rid of as when the coal is used in the
shape of coke; and it appears probable, that even with The Fuel,
the hot blast, the separate process of coking might be
advantageously used, on account of the greater purity of
the iron produced.
The following tables, selected from various sources,
give the composition of the different kinds of fuel, all of
which are applicable to the reduction and fusion of the
iron ores :—
Fuel.
Splint Coal
Cannel Coal
Cherry Coal
Caking Coal
Anthracite
Peat
Locality.
Specific
Gravity.
Newcastle, Wylam.
Glasgow.
Lancashire, Wigan
Edinburgh,
Parrot coal.
Newcastle, Jarrow
Glasgow.
Newcastle, Gares-
field.
Durham South
Hetton.
Swansea,
South Wales,
Pennsylvania,
Massachussets,
W orcester.
Vulcaire,
Long,
Camp de Feu,
Cappage,
Kilbeggan,
Kilbakan,
1.290
1.266
1.302
1.307
1.272
1.228
1.319
1.318
1.263
1.266
1.286
1.280
1.274
1.269
Carbon.
1.348
1.270
1.462
75.00
70.90
74.823
82.924
64.72
72 22
83.753
67.597
74.45
84.846
81.208
87.952
83.274
75.28
Hydrogen.
92.56
90.58
94.05
90.45
94.89
28.35
57.03
58.09
57.79
51.05
61.04
51.13
6.25
4.30
6.180
6.491
21.56
3.93
5.660
5.405
12.40
5.048
5.452
5.239
5.171
4.18
Oxygen
and
Nitrogen.
2.330
2.600
3.380
2.430
2.550
0.920
5.630
0.930
6.110
6.85
6.67
6.33
18.75
24.80
5.085
10.457
13.72
23.85
8.039
12.432
13.15
8.430
11.923
5.416
3.036
20.54
Ashes in
100 parts.
13.912
1.128
2.545
14.566
1.676
1.421
1.393
1.519
4.670
Authority.
Thomson.
Ure.
^-Richardson.
Thomson.
Ure.
-Richardson.
2.530
4.100
2.570
2.450
2.560
2.150
31.760
31.370
30.770
39.55
30.46
34.48
1.720
4.670
68.65
2.55
1.83
8.06
Thomson.
Richprdson.
Thomson.
Regnault.
Jacquelin.
Overman.
Regnault.
Overman.
Regnault.
Dr. Kane.
According to Knapp, peat contains from 1 to 33
per cent its weight of ash. In coal we have the fol¬
lowing from Mr Mushet’s analyses :—
Welsh furnace coal
»> • *
„ slaty „ . .
Derbyshire furnace coal
„ cannel coal
Specific
gravity.
1-337
1-393
1-409
1-264
1-278
Carbon.
88-068
89709
82-175
52-882
48-362
Ashes.
3- 432
2-300
6-725
4- 288
4638
Volatile
matter.
8- 300
8-000
9- 100
42.830
47.000
And again the analyses, from Overman, of the ash of
coal, may be quoted, as shewing the constituents com-
tained in the ashes derived from combustion: —
Sulphate of lime
Lime
Silex
Oxide of iron
Alumina .
803
3-8
14-2
1-7
00
1000
3-6
2-5
85-7
o-o
8-2
100-0
The following table of the heating power of various
kinds of fuel, from Knapp’s Chemical Technology, is not
without interest; in practice, however, only a portion of
the absolute heating power is made available:—
Charcoal—
Average . . . .
Peat from Allen in Ire
land, Upper
Lower .
Pressed .
Peat charcoal—
Essone
Framont and Champ de
Feu .
Coke—
St. Etienne
Besseges .
Rive de Gier .
Brown coal—
Mean of 7 varieties
Cannel coal, Wigan
Cherry, Derbyshire
Cannel, Glasgow
„ Lancashire
Durham
Gas coke, Paris—
Anthracite .
Pennsylvania .
Mean of 5 varieties
Authority.
Berthier
j* Griffith
j-Berthier
^-Berthier
Berthier
-Berthier
<
- Berthier
Lbs. of water
heated from
0° to 100°
centig.byllb
of fuel.
68-0
62-7
56.6
280
50-7
58-9
656
64-3
589
50-3
64-1
61-6
564
53-2
71-6
50-3
69-1
67-4
544
IRON.
The Fuel. In concluding the observations on fuel, we may notice
'-'-y ' that the various kinds of coal are classed by mine¬
ralogists as the bituminous, and stone or anthracite coal.
The first class is chiefly employed for the purpose of
smelting, though, since the introduction of the hot-blast,
anthracite is coming largely into use both in tins country
and America. Mr Crane of South Wales was the first
who attempted the reduction of iron ores by anthracite,
and Mr Budd, at his works at Ystalyfera, followed suc¬
cessfully in the same path. To these two gentlemen the
public are indebted for having surmounted the obstacles
to the employment of this fuel for smelting iron.
On the occasion of a visit to Mr Crane’s works, nearly
twenty years ago, the writer had an opportunity of in¬
specting some specimens of anthracite, which had passed
through the furnace and been in contact with the minerals
at the°temperature of fusion for 48 hours, without having
suffered decomposition, and were found to be charred to
a depth of only three-fourths of an inch, the interior
being of a perfectly shining and black colour, and quite
unaffected by the heat of the furnace.
THE MANUFACTURE OF IRON.
The processes for the manufacture of iron, as we have
already pointed out, are of two distinct kinds, those of
cementation and those of smelting; the product of the
former is imperfectly malleable iron, that of the latter,
cast-iron, or iron combined with more or less carbon.
Process The iirst and older process is uncertain in its results,
with the involves considerable expense, and as there are no
Catalan efficient means of getting rid of the earthy impurities, it
hearth. necessitates the employment of rich magnetic, specular,
or hsematite ores ; on account of these defects, it is now
seldom employed. The ores to be reduced by this pro¬
cess were heated with charcoal in open furnaces like the
Catalan hearth, the fire being urged by a blast. The
oxygen, water, and volatile substances were driven off,
and the iron—carburized and partially fused—sunk to
the bottom of the hearth. The blast was then directed
downwards, so as to play over the surface of the iron,
and oxidized the greater part of the combined carbon;
during this operation the iron became tough and mal¬
leable, and fit for the hammer.
Fig. 1.
Mr Clay’s
process.
The annexed section (fig. ]) shews the disposition of
the Catalan hearth during the process of reduction. The
fuel and ore B, are piled over the hearth A, and ignited;
the blast to urge the fire is applied at D, and the gaseous
products of combustion pass off by the chimney C.
A similar process has lately been invented by Mr
Clay, which appears to reduce the rich ores with great
advantage, and to be free from the defects of the older
process. Mr Clay mixes the ore with four-tenths of its
weight of coal, and grinds it so small that it will pass The mami-
through a screen of one-eighth of an inch mesh ; it is .^r|ure 0
then put into the hopper A (fig. 2), from which it falls
upon the preparatory bed B, at the side of the puddling
furnace C. While in this position, the ore is heated, and
partly decomposed, and the coal coked. The charge is
then drawn forward into the reverberatory furnace C,
where it is fused by the heat of the gaseous products
passing from a fire at D to the chimney F, and is
puddled and balled in the ordinary way. The cinder
produced contains 50 to 55 per cent of iron, is free from
phosphorus, and is very suitable for smelting in the blast
furnace. This process is said to produce puddled bars
equal to those made by the four operations of calcining,
smelting, refining, and puddling, under the old system,
and appears to be peculiarly adapted for the reduction o
those rich ores which cannot be smelted advantageously
in the blast furnace, because the small quantity of slag
which is formed does not protect the metal fiom the
oxidizing effects of the blast.
The process of smelting in the blast furnace is now Smelthg'
almost universally adopted for the reduction of iron ores,
and for the cheapness and working qualities of the metal
IRON.
Steu”””' Pr?Jrai a,^ weU as.for tlie raPidity of lI>0 manufacture,
iron it is decidedly superior to all others.
Ores which contain much carbonic acid, water or
Calcination Volatile matter’ were atr0ne tim« invariably subjected to
of the ores. a Prepnratory process of calcination, but, since the intro¬
duction of the hot-blast, they are now frequently employed
in the law state. The calcination is sometimes effected
in the open air, by stacking the ore with coal, settin«-
fire to it, and allowing it to burnout; but this method
is liable to serious objection. It is impossible to keep
the temperature uniform throughout the heap, and in
consequence, while some portions are scarcely affected
others are fused together into large masses, which cannot
be smelted without difficulty, even when broken up.
Apart from the irregularity and uncertainty of the open'
air process,, it appears to be more expensive than the
calcination in kilns, when the admission of air is entirely
under command. These ovens or kilns are usually built
of masonry, and are placed, if possible, on a level with
the. chaiging platform of the smelting furnace. The
argillaceous ores lose, during this process, 20 to 30 per
cent; the carbonaceous, 30 to 40 per cent of their
weight. (See Addenda, C).
Ihe blast furnace consists of a large mass of masonry
usually square at the base, from which the sides are
carried up in a slightly slanting direction, so as to form
externally, a truncated, pyramid. In the sides there are
large aiched recesses, in which are the openings into the
furnace for the admission of the blast, and for running
out. the.metal and cinder; at the top of the furnace is a
cylindrical.erection of brickwork, called the tunnel-head
foi protecting the workmen from the heated gases rising
ftom the furnace, and having one or more doors through
which the charges of ore, fuel, and flux are thrown in°to
the furnace. In front, protected by a roof, is the casting-
house, where the metal is run from the furnace into
moulds.
545
it is one . of the largest class, 38 feet square at the The manu-
base, diminishing upwards 3 inches for every vertical facture °f
2l>
3,0 FEET.
Fig. 4.
The blast
furnace.
Fig. 3 is a vertical section, and fig. 4 a plan of one
of the furnaces at the Dowlais Iron Works, which
belong to the representatives of the late Sir J. Guest.
Mr Truran, in a recently published and elaborate work
on iron, has figured and described it. He states that
VOL. XII,
foot, till it attains a height of 25 feet, where the square
form ends with a moulded cap; above this, the form is
circular, diminishing in diameter at a similar rate, and
finishing at top with a plain moulded cornice, as a sup¬
port for the charging platform. In the section and plan
A is the hearth, 8 feet high and 8 feet in diameter. BB
the boshes, rising to a height of 15 feet, and 18 feet wide
at their greatest diameter. From the top of the boshes
the body of the furnace contracts, in a barrel-shaped
curve, so that at the charging platform D, at a height of
°0 feet, it is only ten feet in diameter; E is the tunnel-
head, with doors of iron, to admit the charges of ore and
fuel; FFF the tuyere-houses, arched over and spread
outwards, with the openings into the furnace for admit¬
ting the blast. G, the opening through which the iron
is run from the furnace. The exterior is generally built
of stone, and requires to be strongly bound with iron
hoops, to prevent fracture from the expansion of the
interior by the heat. The interior is lined with fire¬
brick set in fire-clay, a space of 2 or 3 inches being left
between the two courses, to allow the expansion of the
inner course. The hearth and boshes were usually con¬
structed of refractory sandstone grit, or conglomerate,
but fire-bricks are now chiefly used, and although they
do not last so long, they are, in the end, more economical,
and may be replaced whenever the furnace is blown out.
The proper inclination of the boshes is a point of much
importance, so that the materials, whilst smelting, may
neither press too heavily downwards, nor yet be so
retarded as to adhere in a half-liquid state to the brick¬
work, and cool there, thus forming what are known by
the name of scaffolds, the removal of which is a source
of great inconvenience.
Another form of furnace is occasionally used for Tll° c”P°la
smelting, called the cupola, and built much more slightly ^Ulnace•
than the blast furnace. Its form is circular, and from
the boshes upwards it is constructed of fire-brick, one, or
sometimes two, courses in thickness. It is strongly
bound together with wrought-iron hoops, and pillars°of
cast-iron, bolted at each end to imbedded rings of the
same metal, rise through the foundation to the summit of
tlie tuyere arches, giving considerable firmness and
stability to the structure. Cheapness and facility of
construction are much in its favour, and although objec¬
tions have been made to the thinness of its sides, as
permitting great loss of heat by radiation, it has met
with very general adoption.
In addition to the cupola furnace, another of the same
character has of late years been introduced. It consists v
3 z
546
1 ft 0 N.
The manu- 0f a truncated cone, composed entirely of boiler-plates
facture of r^vetted together, as per annexed fig. 5. On the four
iron
The blast,
opposite sides recesses are cut to admit the tuyeres and
the opening from the hearth into the casting-house. The
interior of the furnace is lined with fire-brick and fire¬
clay in the usual way, and this plate furnace is not only
perfectly secure, as regards the expansion and contrac¬
tion, but it is found to be economical and to answer every
purpose in common with the large stone and iron-bound
furnaces.
Fig. 5 exhibits a plan and elevation of this description
of furnace, the parts AAA being the tuyere-houses, and
B for the discharge of the metal from the furnace.
The blast is usually created by a steam engine; a
piston being attached to the extremity of the beam,
working in a cylinder of large diameter, and forcing the
air through pi’oper valves into a large spherical reservoir,
constructed of boiler-plate, whence its own elasticity causes
it to flow in a regular unintermitting stream into the fur¬
nace. A cylindrical vessel, open at bottom, and immersed
in a pit of water, has sometimes been used to regulate the
pressure of the blast, but the water evaporated is detri¬
mental to the working of the furnace. The nozzles by
which the blast is directed into the furnace are made of
cast or wrought-iron, and sometimes a current of water
is conveyed round their extremities to keep them cool.
The number of blow-pipe nozzles to each furnace varies
at different works; the usual number is three, one for each
of the tuyere houses, but sometimes six, eight, or twelve
are employed ; it, however, appears questionable whether
this is not objectionable, as the density and penetrating
power of the blast is considerably diminished by this
system of diffusion. This, however, is a point which
can only be decided by practice, and must be left to the
judgment of the smelter. The usual pressure of the The manu-
blast as it enters the furnace is about 3|- lbs. per square ?acturo ol
inch, but in some cases it is as much as 5 lbs. per square
inch. (See Addenda, D).
The communication between the ground and the tunnel- Elevation
head is effected in various ways. In South Wales the ot the
furnaces are usually built on a declivity, which affords ™at^lat®n_
ready means of access from behind ; sometimes an incline nei-heaci.
is constructed, or other contrivances, such as the balance
and pneumatic lifts, are resorted to for the elevation of
the materials.
The dimensions and form of the blast furnace vary Capacity of
greatly, according to the fashion of the district, and the furnace,
notions of the builder. Yet so much does the quantity
and quality of the iron depend upon the size of the c0nsijmp_
furnace and strength of the blast, that we may venture tion of
to assert that the production varies in the ratio of the materials,
cubical contents of the furnace, and the volume of air
admitted. Mr Truran gives the following particulars of
the Dowlais Foundry iron furnace:—“The capacity is
275 cubic yards. It is blown with a blast of 5390 cubic
feet of [cold] air per minute. The materials charged at
the top consist of calcined argillaceous ore, coal, and
limestone. The yield or consumption averages 48 cwts.
of calcined ore, 50 cwts. of coal, and 17 cwts. of broken
limestone, to 20 cwts. of crude iron obtained. The weekly
make of iron is occasionally over 130 tons. The weekly
product of cinder amounts to 250 tons. For the pro¬
duction of white iron for the forge, in furnaces of the
same capacity as the foregoing, a larger volume of blast
is employed, along with a different burden of materials.
The blast averages 7370 feet per minute. The consump¬
tion of materials to one ton of iron averages 28 cwts. of
calcined argillaceous ore, 10 cwts. of haematite, 10 cwts.
of forge and finery cinders, 42 cwts. of coal, and 14 cwts.
of limestone. With these materials the weekly produce
amounts to 170 tons of crude iron, and 310 tons of cinder.”
The action which takes place in the blast furnace is as Action
follows The contents being raised to an intense heat within the
by the combustion of the fuel, are brought into a softened n^ ur*
state; the limestone parts with its carbonic acid, and
combining with the earthy ingredients of the ironstone,
forms, with them, a liquid slag, whilst the separated
metallic particles, descending slowly through the furnace,
are deoxidized and fused ; in their passage they imbibe
a portion of carbon, and at last settle down in the hearth,
from whence they are run off into pigs about eveiy
twelve hours; the slag, being lighter, floats upon the
surface of the liquid metal, and is constantly flowing out
over a notch in the dam-plate, level with the top of the
hearth. This slag indicates, by its appearance, the
manner in which the furnace is working; thus, if the
cinder is liquid, nearly transparent, or of a light greyish
colour, and has a fracture like limestone, a favourable
state of the furnace is indicated. Tints of blue, yellow,
or green are caused by a portion of oxide of iron passing
into the slag, and shew that the furnace is working cold.
The worst appearance of the cinder is, however, a deep
brown or black colour, the slag flowing in a broad hot
rugged stream, and indicating that the supply of coke is
not sufficient to deoxidize the whole of the iron. _
During the process of smelting, the interior of the Indications
furnace requires to be very carefully watched. The sti earn ^ ^
of air constantly rushing in at the tuyeres, exeits ^ nace>
chilling agency on the melted matter directly opposec to
it at its entrance. The consequence of this is the forma
tion of rude perforated cones of indurated scon®,
stretching from either side horizontally into the furnace,
each one having its base directly over the embouchure o
a blast-pipe. When these project only to a certain
IRON.
Running
off the
reduced
metal.
The manu- extent, they are favourable to the working of the furnace,
ironUre 0i aS ^ie ^^ast t^rown right into the centre, and prevented
from passing up the sides and burning the brickwork.
Sometimes, however, when the furnace is driving cold
amd slow, these conduits of slag become so strong, and
jut out so far as to meet in the middle, and thus cause a
great obstruction to the entrance and ascent of the blast.
When this happens, there is usually no remedy but to
increase the burden, that is, to increase the quantity of
mine or ore to the charge. This causes an intense heat,
the furnace is said to work hot, and the conduits of slag-
drop off from the sides. This, however, is followed by
bad as well as good consequences; the brickwork is
frequently melted, and, for a time, the iron produced is
small in quantity, and of the worst quality. To bring
the furnace again to its proper state, the burden must be
reduced ; the sides then become cool, new tubes of slag
are formed, and the iron produced is good.
At the end of every twelve hours, more or less, the
furnace is tapped, that is to say, the aperture in the
dam-stone, which, at the commencement, had been stopped
up with a mixture of loam and sand, is re-opened, and
the metal contained in the hearth allowed to flow out
into moulds, made in the sand of the cast-house floor,
thus forming a cast or sough of pigs. When this opera¬
tion ceases, the dam-stone is again secured, and the work
proceeds as before. In this manner a furnace is kept
continually going, night and day, and never ceases to
work until repairs are necessary. Incessant action has
even been thought necessary to the successful carrying
on of an iron-work, but the example of perhaps the
largest ironmaster in South Wales has shewn, contrary
to general practice in that district, that smelting may
be discontinued for at least one day in the week without
any very serious derangement of operations.
Thus, far we have confined our observations to the
production of iron by the cold-blast process; we have now
to consider the changes introduced by the employment of
a heated blast.
In the year 1828, Mr J. Beaumont Neilson, a practical
engineer at Glasgow, took out a patent for an improved
application of air to produce heat in fires, forges, and
furnaces, where bellows or other blowing apparatus are
required.” Mr Neilson proposed to pass the current
of air through suitably shaped vessels, where it was to be
heated before it entered the furnace. In this simple sub¬
stitution of a hot-blast, heated in a separate apparatus,
for a cold-blast heated in the furnace itself, consists the
whole invention.
Like most other improvements, the progress of this was
at first slow. Retarded by practical difficulties, which
beset all new processes in their first use—stopped every
now and then by the prejudices of custom and ignorance,
which cling with inveterate tenacity to maxims of esta¬
blished practice, and repel indiscriminately innovations
which improve and those which modify without improv-
ing,—the invention was more than once on the point of
being abandoned. A great part of the interest in its
possible remuneration was transferred by the inventor
to strangex-s, whose combined efforts and influence were
necessary to insure its success. But though thus tardy
in its first steps and feeble in its early efforts, the hot-
blast process is now adopted at the greater number
of the iron-works of Great Britain, and other parts of
Europe and America.
It.is perhaps not generally known that practical men,
previous to Mr Neilson’s invention, universally believed
that the colder the blast the better was the quality and
quantity of the iron produced ; and this opinion appeared
to be confirmed by the fact that the furnaces worked
547
better in winter than in summer. Acting on such views. The manu-
the ii-onmaster actually resorted to artificial means of re- future of
frigeration, to reduce the temperature of the blast befox-e it j1^' _ .
Hut-blast
process.
Kg. C.
entered the furnace. The fact of the improved action of
tne furnace m winter may perhaps be explained as a
Kg. 7.—End Elevation.
Kg. 10 —Joint of Heating Pipe
in lying Pipe.
consequence of the diminished amount of aqueous vapour
contained in the atmosphere in cold weather; and the
Eig. 8.—Elevation.
opinion that the low temperature is the cause of the
alleged increase of production has been shewn to be
wiong by the success of Mi- Neilson’s invention.
548
IRON.
This simple invention affects only the transit of the air
from the blowing cylinder to the furnace, an o\en 01
Earliest
apparatus
for lieatinj
the blast.
stove being interposed, through which, in appropriately
shaped vessels, the air is conducted, and in which it is
heated to G00° or 800° Fahr., or to any other tempera¬
ture adapted for the purpose of smelting.
The earliest and simplest plan by which the blast was
heated is shewn in the sketch, fig. 6 (p. 547). In
ing through it to impinge alternately first on one side The mainl¬
and then on the other, in order that the temperature might .^ure °*
be uniformly and effectively communicated from the
metal to the blast. By this means a moderate current
of air has been heated up to 300° or 400° Fahr.
Figs. 7, 8, 9, and 10, shew the apparatus first employed, Calder
we believe, by Mr Dixon at Calder, and hence generally hfating
called the Calder pipes. As erected at the Butter ley aI’Fara U3,
Iron-Works, Derbyshire, the apparatus consists of two
parallel horizontal pipes LL, fig. 7, called technically the
“ lying pipes,” one communicating with the cold-blast
inlet pipe B, the other with the hot-blast outlet pipe
S, fig. 9. Into sockets formed in these, the ends of
the arched heating pipes h h h fit tightly, as shewn in fig. 7
and in fig. 10, upon a lai’ger scale. The air, there¬
fore, entering the inlet pipe B, figs. 8 and 9, passes over
the transverse arched pipes h h, where it is exposed to the
an oven of brickwork 0000, with a fire fed by the door D, a
large cylindrical tube or receiver h h, made of rivetted
boiler-plate, about 3 feet in diameter, and 8 or 10 feet
long, was placed. The pipes, B and S, attached to the
receiver hh at the opposite ends, communicated with
the blowing-cylinder and smelting-furnace respectively.
Lunular shaped partitions ppp, projecting from opposite
sides on the interior of the receiver, caused the air pass-
mmmBm
Fig. 12.
action of a large surface of heated metal, and is deliveied
into the hot-blast pipe S, which conveys it at the lequnec
temperature into the blast furnace. The whole appaiatus
is enclosed in the oven or furnace 0000, as shewn in t e
figs. 7, 8, and 9. ,,
The figures of the transverse pipes vary considerably
at different iron-works. Sometimes they rise up an
form a large semicircular arch over the file, 8 oi
IRON.
549
The mami- feet perpendicularly, and are then connected by an arch
facture of af. ^]ie t0p ; sometimes they cross the fire in the form
of a pointed arch, variously acuminate, or a single lai'ge
tube is used, traversing the furnace in a long spiral
direction. Their cross-section is as various as the form
in which they are bent; pipes of circular, flattened
elliptical, rectangular, heart-shaped, and other sectional The manu-
forms have been employed, in order to increase the |acture
heating surface in proportion to the volume of the blast,
All these forms of apparatus, although admirably adapted
for heating the air, are liable to fracture, from the un¬
equal expansion of the metal.
One other form of apparatus, represented in the preceding
figures, Nos. 11,12, and 13, demands notice, on account of
its great heating power. The cold air enters by the pipe
M into oneside of the lyingpipe A A, whichis divided down
the centre by a partition or diaphram, and then passes up
one side of the heating pipes, which are also divided by
partitions ; it then turns round at the top, as shewn at D
(fig. 12), and descends in the direction of the arrows into
the lying pipe AA on the other side to that which it en¬
tered. It is thence conveyed by the arched pipe E, fig.
13, into the second divided pipe BB, through another
scries of heating pipes, and ultimately escapes by the out¬
let pipe C, at a high temperature, to the smelting furnace.
The diaphram pipes are, however, not generally used.
The ordinary arrangement is exhibited in the draw¬
ing of one of the furnaces and heating apparatus of
the Coltness Works, kindly furnished by Mr Hunter, the
intelligent managing partner of that establishment. The
drawings, figs. 14 and 15, represent a sectional elevation
and plan of a very successful and regular working fur¬
nace, but the size and form, as already observed, require
to be governed by the quality and nature of the materials
that are to be used.
The more difficult the reduction of the ironstone the
smaller must be the diameter of the hearth, so as to enable
the blast to penetrate and circulate throughout the whole of
its contents. In other conditions, where the ores are
easily reduced, hearths of 9 feet diameter have been
introduced with great advantage, and that without detri¬
ment to the quality of the iron produced. The diameter
of the body of the furnace is likewise regulated by the
quality of the materials used, and in cases where the
coal is not bituminous and the ore hard, a large diameter
is found to work very irregularly; and the results have
been, where furnaces have been erected 18 feet diameter,
to have them reduced to only 6 feet.
The height of the furnace is also regulated by the
nature of the materials and the strength of the blast by
which they are reduced. Sometimes, when the coal is
soft and crushes by the superincumbent pressure, it is
bound or compressed to such an extent as to prevent the
blast penetrating the mass, and causes an irregular work¬
ing of the furnace ; and, moreover, under these conditions,
it makes what is called white or silvery iron.
The pressure of the blast inquires also to be regulated
to suit the materials, and, according to the workings at
Coltness (shewn in figs. 14 and 15), the pressure is about
4 lbs. on the square inch, and as much as 10,000 cubic
feet of air is discharged into the furnace per minute.
The temperature of the blast is 594° Fahr., and the
area of the heating surface of the apparatus for raising
that temperature is 3500 square feet.
The quantity of materials to make a ton of iron at these
works varies in some relative proportion to their densities ;
but the following may be taken as a fair average of the
consumption of fuel, ore, limestone, &c.:—
550
IRON.
The manu- Ton
facture of 1
iron. 1
Cwt.
10 of raw coal.
17 of calcined ironstone.
12 of broken limestone.
Ton. Cwt.
0 4 of coal for heaters.
0 4 of „ for blowing en-
gine.
Tig. 15.
With the above charges the furnaces will produce from 168 to The manu-
170 tons per week, or 8,700 tons of good iron per annum. facture of
Fig. 16 shews the general arrangement and the dispo- y w
sition of a hot-blastfurnace, and the apparatus connected
with it. J is the blowing cylinder, from which the air ^°^last
is forced into the receiver K, made of wrought-iron boiler
plate; from this it passes by the pipe L into the heating
ovens, one of which is shewn in section at M, and the pipe
N conducts it, when heated, to the furnace. PPP are
the tuyeres, FF the charging doors, E the tunnel-head.
With regard to the advantages and defects of the hot-
blast process, much has been said on both sides, and the \
question does not appear by any means exactly settled.
It is asserted, on the one hand, that iron reduced by the
hot-blast loses much of its strength, whilst, on the other, it
is contended that the quality of the iron is richer, more
fluid, and better adapted for general purposes than that
produced by the cold-blast. The advocates of the hot-
blast say that the process has increased the production
and diminished the consumption of coal three or four
fold; and the upholders of the cold-blast maintain that
the same effects may be produced, to almost the same
extent, by a judicious proportion of the shape and size of
the interior of the furnace, a denser blast, and greater
attention on the part of the superintendent to the process.
On these points it appears to us that although the hot-
blast has enabled the manufacturer to smelt inferior ores,
cinder-heaps, and other improper materials, and to send
into the market an inferior description of iron ; this is
no reason for its rejection, but rather an argument in
its favour. It is true that when a strong rigid iron is
required for such works as bridges or artillery, the some¬
what uncertain character of hot-blast metal renders it
objectionable, but this appears to be due rather to the
carelessness or want of attention in the manufacture than
to the use of heated air or defects in the process. On
the other hand, the hot-blast, by maintaining a higher
temperature in the furnace, ensures more effectually the
combination of the carbon with the iron, and produces a
fluid metal of good working qualities, generally superior
to cold-blast iron, in cases where great strength is not
required ; and, moreover, we have yet to learn why even
the strongest and most rigid iron cannot be made by this
process. The comparative strength of hot and cold blast
iron will, however, be given in another part of this article ;
for the present it is sufficient to observe that the results
of the experiments are not unfavourable to the hot-blast
I E O N.
551
The manu¬
facture of
iron.
(Kg. 16).
iron, either as regards its resistance to a transverse strain,
or its power to resist impact.
Dr. Clark, Professor of Chemistry in the University
of Aberdeen, investigated the merits of the hot and cold-
blast process in regard to the consumption of fuel, as early
as 18S4-5. He states, that after the hot-blast had been
brought fully into operation at the Clyde Iron-Works,
“ during the first six months of the year 1833, one ton
of cast-iron was made by means of 2 tons 5| cwt. of
coal, which had not previously to be converted into
coke ; adding to this 8 cwt. of coal for heating, we have
2 tons 13^ cwt. of coal required to make one ton of iron.
In 1829, when the cold-blast was in operation, 8 tons
1£ cwt. of coal had to be used. This being almost
exactly three times as much, we have from the change
of the cold-blast to the hot, combined with the use of
coal instead of coke, three times as much now made from
.the same quantity of coal.” Dr. Clark adds the follow-
^g statistics of the Clyde Iron-Works:—-
In 1829, the weekly produce of three furnaces, cold air and coke
being used, was 110 tons 14 cwt.; and the average of coal
to one ton of iron was 8 tons 1 cwt. 1 qr.
In 1830, the weekly produce of three furnaces, coke, and air at
300° Fahr. being used, was 162 tons 2 cwt.; and the average
of coal to one ton of iron was reduced to 5 tons 3 cwt. 1 qr.
In 1833, the weekly produce of four furnaces, raw coal, and
air heated to 600° being used, was 245 tons ; and the
average of coal to one ton of iron was reduced to 2 tons,
5 cwt. 1 qr.
11 On the whole then, the application of the hot-blast
has caused the same fuel to reduce three times as much
iron as before, and the same blast twice as much.”
This decrease in the amount of fuel and blast required
for the reduction of iron, Dr. Clark accounts for by
shewing, that in an ordinary furnace, “ 2 cwt. of air a
minute or 6 tons an hour are injected into the furnace.”
This he considers “ a tremendous refrigeratory passing
through the hottest part of the furnace,” and to a great
extent repressing the temperature which is necessary tor
the complete and rapid reduction of the iron.
Mr Truran considers that “ writers on the hot-blast
have greatly exaggerated the effects of this invention on
the iron manufacture of this country. If we are to
believe the majority of them, the great reductions which
have been effected within the last 25 years, in the
quantities of fuel and flux to smelt a given weight of
iron, and the large increase of make from the furnaces,
is entirely owing to the use of this invention. That the
hot-blast, under certain circumstances, has effected a
saving in the consumption of fuel, and also augmented
the weekly make, we freely admit. But the saving of
fuel, and increase of make due to its employment, is not
generally one-fourth of the quantity which writers have
asserted.” Here Mr Truran is at issue with Dr Clark,
and denies the cooling effect of a cold-blast. He attri¬
butes the effects of a heated-blast, “first, to the caloric
thrown into the furnace along with the blast, enabling
a corresponding quantity of coal to be withdrawn from
the burden of materials, with a proportionate reduction
in the volume of blast, the effects of which are seen
in an augmentation of the make, but do not result in
any saving of fuel; secondly, to the reduced volume
of blast and large proportion of caloric which it carries
into the furnace, causing a diminished consumption of
fuel in the upper parts of the furnace.” Although we do
not agree with all Mr Truran’s strictures on the hot-blast,
the consumption of fuel in the throat is, nevertheless, a
question well worthy of investigation. The combustion
t
552
IRON.
The man..- is of course largely increased by the narrow form of throat
facture of o-iven to furnaces, which greatly increases the ettu t
^_of the blast there, and accounts for the difficulty of
usin" those kinds of coal, in the raw state, which splinter
if rapidly heated. If Mr Truran’s conjectures be correc ,
and it be found, that by increasing the area of the throat,
raw coal and anthracite can be advantageously used with
a cold-blast, the superiority of the hot-blast will not be
so decidedly marked. This must, however, be determined
by practice; as at present, certainly, it is well known
that the anthracite and splint coal can be used most
effectively and economically with the hot-blast
We quote from one more authority on this subject
INI. Dufrenoy, in his report to the Director-General ot
Mines in France, states, that upon heating the air pro¬
ceeding from the blowing cylinder up to 612° Fahr., a
considerable saving in fuel was effected by the use of
raw coal instead of coke, and that this caused no derange¬
ment of the working of the furnace or deterioration of
the iron produced. On the contrary, “ the quality of
the metal was improved, and a furnace which, when
charged with coke, produced only about hall No. 1 and
half No. 2 pig-iron, gave a much larger proportion of
No. 1 after the substitution of raw coal. Besides this,
the quantity of limestone was considerably diminished.”
This last circumstance, according to M. Dufrenoy, is due
to the increased temperature of the furnace, which fuses
more readily the earthy matter and other impurities in
combination with the ores.
To show the saving effected, M. Dufrenoy gives the
quantities used in each of the experiments at the Clyde
Iron-Works :—
In 1829, the combustion being produced by cold air, the con¬
sumption for one ton of iron was—
1 Tons. Cwt. Tons. Cwt.
Coal—for fusion, 3 tons of coke,
corresponding with . 6 13
„ for blowing engine . 1 0
Total coal used .
Limestone
In 1831, the furnaces bein
Fahr.—
Tons. Cwt. Tons. Cwt.
Coal—for fusion, 1 ton 18 cwt. coke,
corresponding with 4 6
„ for the hot air apparatus 0 5
,, for blowing engine . 0 7
To enable the waste gases to be collected and applied The mam’,
to raising steam, heating hot-blast stoves, &c., without facturo ot
detriment to the working of the blast-furnace, it is
necessary to withdraw them at an elevation where they
have completed their work, yet at such a distance from
the mouth of the furnace that they may be extracted in a
dry state, and before they come into contact with the
atmosphere, so as to cause combustion. This may be
effected, either by increasing the height of the blast¬
furnace, withdrawing a portion of the gases through
7 13
0 10£
blown with air heated to 4509
Collection
of the
waste
gases.
Tig. 17.
apertures in the side, or, if the furnace be not too large,
by closing the top of the furnace with a moveable door.
Fig. 17 shews the first plan; AA are the apertures through
which the gases escape by the chamber BB into the pipe
C, which conveys them to the place where they are
burnt. The requisite pressure for causing the gases to
escape at AA is obtained by heaping the charges of fuel
and ore to some height above them. Fig. 18 shews
Total coal used . . . 4 18
Limestone ... 09
In July 1833, the temperature of the blast being raised to 612°
Fahr., and the fusion effected by raw coal, the consumption per
ton of iron was—
Tons. Cwt. Tons. Cwt.
Coal—for fusion . . .20
„ for the hot air apparatus 0 8
„ for blowing engine . 0 11
Total coal used ... 219
Limestone ... 07
Since that time, the employment of a blast heated to
800° or 900° has still further increased the weekly
production and saving of fuel.
The Waste Gases.—From the description that we have
given of the smelting operations, it is evident that a large
volume of gaseous products are constantly escaping at
the top of the blast-furnace. These are found to contain
a large proportion of unconsumed inflammable gas,
capable of developing heat, and in countries where fuel
is expensive, it is of great importance that these should
be applied to useful purposes, and not be wasted in the
atmosphere. Various contrivances have been adopted
for this purpose, and in some places, particularly on the
Continent, they have been utilized with great economy.
Kg. 18.
another contrivance for the same purpose ; a casting A A
in the shape of a truncated cone is fixed at the top ol the
furnace, the small diameter downwards; the aperture in
the bottom of this is closed by another conical casting B,
supported by a chain and counterpoise weight; this
evidently shuts the mouth of the furnace, and the gases
pass off by the pipe C. When a charge is to be thrown
in, it is emptied into the cone hopper AA. When the
charge is complete, the moveable cone B is lowered
so as to enable the charge to pass between it and the
edges of the hopper when it is again raised, and the
operations of the furnace proceed as before.
In this country sufficient attention has not been paid
to this economical practice, as compared with what luis
been done in other countries where fuel is expensive. It
is no excuse that fuel is cheap, as in most cases the gases
can be applied with economy, and their combustion
tends to abate the serious nuisance of smoke.
The Conversion of Crude into Malleable Iron.
. 1 Nature of
The conversion of the carburised crude iron, obtained converting
from the blast furnace, into malleable or wrought iron is operations.
IRON.
553
Methods of
conversion
with char¬
coal and
coke iron
Messrs
Rushton &
Eckcrsley’s
works.
Mixing of
hoeinatite
ore with
iron to be
converted.
Classifica¬
tion of
various
kinds of
iron.
Difficulties
in the way
of convert-
1 ing highly
carburised
I ^r°n.
effected by several operations of an oxidising character
in which it is sought to separate, in the gaseous state, the
carbon contained in the iron, by combining it with oxy¬
gen, whilst the other metals alloyed with the iron and
the phosphorus pass into the slag.1
In i ef'erence to subsecpient operations, the iron pro¬
duced in the smelting furnace may be divided into two
kinds—that reduced by charcoal and that reduced by
coke or raw coal. When charcoal iron has to be con¬
verted by charcoal, as in Sweden, it is decarburised in
the charcoal refinery, with or without an intervening
process. Where coal can be obtained, however, it is now
usually converted by the process of puddling. Pig iron
produced by coke or coal is converted into malleable
iron either by decarburation in the refinery or oxidising
hearth, and subsequent puddling, or it is converted at
once in the puddling furnace by the process of boiling,
which is equally effective, and is now more generally
practised.
ibis last process, as the one most generally adopted
in this country, deserves a special notice, and we are
fortunate in having before us the particulars of the man¬
ner in which it is conducted by Messrs Rushton and
Eckersley of Bolton, kindly furnished by Mr Rushton,
the senior partner of the firm. This establishment is
probably one of the most modern and complete of the
kind in the kingdom; it is one that has spared no ex¬
pense in the application of useful inventions, and has
kept pace with every improvement that has taken place
in the manufacture of bar and plate iron for the last
fifteen years.
The machinery and appliances at these works consist
of:—
6 Steam engines, of 180 total nominal HP.
2 Five-ton and 2 fifty-ewt. steam hammers.
3 Helve hammers.
1 Set of puddled iron rolls.
1 Set of boiler plate rolls.
1 Merchant train and balling mill.
16 Puddling furnaces.
14 Balling and scrap furnaces.
And other machinery, such as plate and bar shears, lathes, &c.
At Messrs Rushton and Eckersley’s works, a small
proportion of the Cumberland haematite ore is mixed
with the crude pig iron to be converted, as it is found to
assist in the process of boiling in the puddling furnace,
and in other respects to facilitate the process and improve
the quality of the iron.
The crude pig iron is assorted according to the degree
and uniformity of its carburisation, and classed as Nos.
1, 2, 3, &c.; No. 1 being most highly carburised, No. 2 less
so, and so on to No. 4, which contains much more oxygen
than the others. The carbon combined with iron gives
it fusibility and fluidity, but deprives it of ductility. To
render it malleable and capable of being welded, it must
be deprived as far as possible of all the extraneous sub¬
stances which have been mixed with it in the blast fur¬
nace, more especially of the carbon. Primd facie, therefore,
it would appear that the highly carburised pig iron is the
most suitable for casting, whilst that containing least
carbon is best adapted for conversion into malleable iron ;
hence, in the trade, the crude iron is divided into foundry
and forge pigs.
The pigs, however, in which carbon most predomi¬
nates, and which, as a rule, have been most effectually
separated from all other impurities during the process of
smelting, are in many respects preferable for the manufac¬
ture of wrought iron ; up to this time, however, great
practical difficulties have attended the decarburisation of
iron containing so much carbon, and the white or forge The mana-
iron is almost always preferred, measures having been facture °f
taken for depriving it of the metals and earthy impurities
not separated in the blast furnace.
With regard to the process of refining, we may observe, The refin-
that the crude iron is melted in a hollow fire, and par- ing process
tially decarburised by the action of a blast of air forced
over its surface by a fan or blowing engine. The carbon
having a greater affinity for the oxygen than for the iron,
combines with it, and passes off as gaseous carbonic oxide
or carbonic acid. During this process, a portion of the sili-
cum, &c., is fused out, and separated from the iron. It is
obvious from the above that the iron to be refined, being
placed in contact with fuel at a high temperature, is liable
to be deteriorated by the admixture of sulphur and other
impurities of the fuel; and as the iron is only partially
exposed to the action of the blast, the operation is neces¬
sarily, under these circumstances, imperfect. From the
refinery the metal is run out into large moulds, and is
then broken up into what is technically distinguished as
uplate metal.”
The process of puddling succeeds that of refining; and The pU(1.
in this operation the reverberatory furnace is employed, filing1 pro-
with the fire separated by a partition or bridge from the cess-
hearth, on which is placed the metal to be puddled. By
this arrangement the flame is conducted over the surface of
the metal, creating an intense heat, though the deleterious
portions of the fuel cannot mix Avith the iron. In this
furnace the iron is kept in a state effusion, whilst the work¬
man, called the “ puddler,” by means of a rake or rabble,
agitates the metal so as to expose, as far as he is able, the
Avhole of the charge to the action of the oxygen passing
over it from the fire. By this means the carbon is oxidised”
and the metal is gradually reduced to a tough, pasty
condition, and subsequently to a granular form, some¬
what resembling heaps of boiled rice with the grains
greatly enlarged. In this condition of the furnace the
cinder or earthy impurities yield to the intense heat, and
flow off from the mass over the bottom in a highly
fluid state.
The iron at this stage is comparatively pure, and
quickly becomes capable of agglutination ; the puddler
then collects the metallic granules or particles Avith
his rabble, and rolls them together, backwards and for¬
wards, over the furnace bottom, into balls of conve¬
nient dimensions (about the size of thirteen-inch shells),
Avhen he removes them from the furnace to be subjected
to the action of the hammer or mechanical pressure
necessary to give to the iron homogeneity and fibre.
These processes of refining and puddling have universally
been employed till recently; but improvements have
rendered it simpler, and the refining process is now very
generally abolished. r
Shortly after the employment of the puddling process, rSt °S
it was found adA'antageous to mix a portion of crude crude iron
iron Avith the refined plate metal, the expense of the inPu<ldling
process of refining being saved upon the iron used in the
crude state; and trusting to the decarburising effects of
the puddling furnace, it was found that the refining The pro-
process might be altogether dispensed Avith, if the crude ce?s. of
iron containing a proportion of oxygen and very little boilinS-
carbon Avas employed. In this single process it is to be
observed, that as all the carbon has to be got rid of in
the puddling furnace, the evolution of gas is much more
violent, the fluid iron boiling and bubbling energetically
during the period of its disengagement, and hence the
operation has acquired the popular name of the “ boiling”
process.
VOL. XII.
See Mr. Blackwell’s paper, Oil the Iron Industry of Great Britain, rpafi before the Society of Arts
4 A
554
IRON.
The manu¬
facture of
Its advan¬
tages and
defects.
Mr. Nas¬
myth’s
patent for
using
steam.
Mode of
operating.
In this operation the pig iron when melted is moie
fluid, on account of containing a greater proportion ot
carbon than the metal from the refinery, and requires more
labour in stirring it about and submitting it to the action
of the current of air; the process, moreover, is attended
by a greater waste of iron than puddling either plate, or
crude iron and plate mixed, but not so great a loss as in
the two operations of refining and puddling. It must,
however, be admitted that the superior fluidity of the iron
in the boiling process has a more injurious action on the
furnace. Notwithstanding these objections, the system
of boiling without the intermediate process of refining
has been gaining ground for the last ten years, and in many
places has entirely superseded the use ofthe refinery; recent
events have therefore led to the conclusion, that in a short
time the refining process will have become a thing of the
past.
Numerous attempts have been made to secure a more
scientific and perfect decarburisation of the crude iron,
but without success. One improvement, however, recently
patented by Mr James Nasmyth, gives promise of making
the boiling process as nearly perfect as we may hope
to see it. It has been in use for two years at the Bolton
Iron Works, and from its constant employment in the
puddling furnaces of that establishment, it has given
direct proof of its utility, and is gradually extending
itself among the large manufacturers as its advantages
become known.
The invention consists of the introduction of a small
quantity of steam at about 5 lbs. pressure per square inch,
into the molten metal as soon as it is fused, as the oxy¬
gen of the steam has at that high temperature a greater
affinity for carbon than for the hydrogen with which it
is combined or for the iron, the carbon is rapidly oxi¬
dised off. The liberated hydrogen has no affinity for the
iron, but unites with sulphur, phosphorus, arsenic, &c.—
substances very injurious to the quality of the iron, if
present even in minute quantities, and yet frequently found
in the ores and fuel.
The mode of operating is as follows:—The steam is
conveyed from the boiler to a vertical pipe fixed near the
furnace door, having at its lower end a small tap or
syphon, to let off the condensed steam, and prevent its
being blown into the furnace. A cock with several
jointed pieces of pipe are fastened to the flange of the
vertical pipe, so as to form, as it were, jointed bracket
pipes, somewhat similar to those of gas pipes, which
Tig. 19.
allow free motion in every direction, as in the annexed
sketch, in which A, fig. 19, is the reverberatory furnace,
a the vertical steam pipe communicating with the boiler,
£ the tap or steam cock, cc the elbow-jointed tubes, CC The manu-
the handle, and DD the steam tube or rabble, bent at the [^uro of
end, so as to inject the steam on the liquid metal GG.
This apparatus is introduced into the furnace immediately
the iron is melted, the puddler moving it slowly about in
the molten iron, while the steam pours upon it through
the bent end of the tube. In the course of from five
to eight minutes the mass begins to thicken, the steam
pipe is withdrawn, and the operation finished in the ordi¬
nary way with the common iron rabble. The time saved
by this process in every operation or heat, as it is techni¬
cally called, averages from ten to fifteen minutes, and
that during the hottest and most laborious part of the
operation.
By means of this apparatus, the highly carburized pig Advan-
iron, which is the most free from impurities, is rendered tages of
malleable in one furnace operation, without the deterio- P™*
rating adjuncts of the refining and puddling process as
ordinarily practised; in this operation no deleterious sub¬
stance can combine with the iron, whilst in the refinery
process the mixture of the fuel and metal is liable to
deteriorate the latter with sulphur, silicum, &c. This
new process, it is affirmed, has a beneficial effect in puri¬
fying the iron with greater economy and rapidity than
any other process with which we are acquainted.
Irrespective of the improvements just described, there
is another which is extensively used on the Continent,
denominated the Silesian gas furnace. For a drawing
and explanation of this furnace we are indebted to Mr
Anderson, inspector of machinery at the arsenal, Wool¬
wich. The following drawing, fig. 20, will explain the
new Silesian furnaces which are used in the manu¬
facture of iron in that country, in place of our rever¬
beratory air furnaces, and are said, on good authority,
to be a very great improvement, not only in regard to
the entire prevention of smoke and the economy of fuel,
but also in simplifying the wrought-iron manufacture,
and enabling a less skilled class of workmen to manage
the furnaces.
The chief feature is the gas generator, which may be
described as a close brick chamber with an opening at
the bottom for the admission of air from a fan, by means
of which the gases are driven out of the chamber into
the furnace amongst the iron to be heated. At the point
where the gases enter the furnace, a series of tuyeres are
provided for the admission of air from the same fan.
The pipes that convey the air and the gas from the retort
to the tuyeres are both provided with valves, in order
that the attendant may modify the quantity from either
source, so as to produce any intensity of flame the work
may require, and also to produce perfect combustion,
thus .placing the entire action of the furnace under com¬
plete control. It is about eleven years since these fur¬
naces were first introduced, and notwithstanding the
prejudices that were naturally raised against them, they
are said to be now extensively adopted in the Silesian
district, and in great favour with both the master and
the workmen.
In this description of furnace there appear to be three
great advantages over the air furnace—
Is£, The entire absence of smoke, in consequence of
complete combustion.
2d, The saving of upwards of 33 per cent in fuel,
from the whole of the gaseous products being made
available, and there being no necessity for the flame to
pass up the chimney to produce draught, as in the case
of the reverberatory furnace, which requires an inordi¬
nate supply of fuel as compared with what is wanted to
work the fan.
3c?, The absolute control the attendant has over the
The manu¬
facture of
iron.
IRON.
555
furnace, as regards the temperature and the simplicity
with which it can be worked. Its operations in this
respect are, according to those who have seen it at work,
so perfect as to be as precise in its action as a machine.’
From this description it would appear that the iron- The manu-
masters of this country have not made themselves facture of
acquainted with these improvements, but having some Y -
knowledge of the efficiency and existence of this process,
Fig. 20.
we would earnestly recommend it to their attention, as
an invention in more respects than one entitled to con¬
sideration.
Bessemer’s o*
process. r ^ince t*ie above was written, an apparently new
light has been thrown on the conversion of iron, by a
paper read by Mr H. Bessemer at the last meeting of the
British Association for the advancement of science, held
at Cheltenham in August last (1856). In this paper the
author announces to the world the discovery of an en¬
tirely new system of operations for the manufacture of
malleable iron and steel. The crude metal is converted,
by one simple process, directly as it comes from the blast
furnace. We should detract from its clearness did we
attempt to curtail the lucid description in which Mr
Bessemer has recommended his invention to the manu¬
facturers and the public; we therefore give the account
in his own words :—
Mr Bessemer states that “for the last two years his
attention has been almost exclusively directed to the
manufacture of malleable iron and steel, in which, how¬
ever, he had made but little progress until within the
last eight or nine months. The constant pulling down
and rebuilding of furnaces, and the toil of daily experi¬
ments with large charges of iron, had begun to exhaust
his patience, but the numerous observations he had made
during this very unpromising period, all tended to confirm
an entirely new view of the subject, which at that time
forced itself upon his attention, viz.—that he could pro¬
duce a much more intense heat, without any furnace or
fuel, than could be obtained by either of the modifications
he had used, and consequently, that he should not only
avoid the injurious action of mineral fuel on the iron
undei operation, but that he would, at the same time,
avoid also the expense of the fuel. Some preliminary
trials were made on from 10 lbs. to 20 lbs. of iron, and
although the process was fraught with considerable diffi¬
culty, it exhibited such unmistakeable signs of success,
as to induce him at once to put up an apparatus capable
of converting about 7 cwt. of crude pig iron into malle¬
able iron in thirty minutes. With such masses of metal
to operate on, the difficulties which beset the small labo¬
ratory experiments of 10 lbs. entirely disappeared. On
this new field of inquiry, he set out with the assumption
that crude iron contains about 5 per cent, of carbon; that
carbon cannot exist at a white heat in the presence of
oxygen without uniting therewith, and producing com¬
bustion ; that such combustion would proceed with a
rapidity dependent on the amount of surface of carbon
exposed; and, lastly, that the temperature which the
metal would acquire would be also dependent on the
rapidity with which the oxygen and carbon were made
to combine, and consequently, that it was only necessary
to bring the oxygen and carbon together in such a man¬
ner that a vast surface should be exposed to their mutual
action, in order to produce a temperature hitherto unat¬
tainable in our largest furnaces. With a view of testing
practically this theory, he constructed a cylindrical vessel
of three feet in diameter, and five feet in height, some¬
what like an ordinary cupola furnace, the interior of
which was lined with fire-bricks, and at about two inches
from the bottom of it he inserted five tuyere pipes, the
nozzles of which were formed of well-burnt fire clay, the
orifice of each tuyere being about three-eighths of an inch
in diameter; they were put into the brick lining from
the outside, so as to admit of their removal and renewal
in a few minutes, when they were worn out. At one
side of the vessel, about half way up from the bottom,
there was a hole made for running in the crude metal,
and in the opposite side was a taphole, stopped with loam,
by means of which the iron was run out at the end of the
process. In practice, this converting vessel may be made
of any convenient size, but he prefers that it should not
hold less than one or more than five tons of fluid iron at
each charge. The vessel should be placed so near to the
blast furnace as to allow the iron to flow along a gutter
into it; a small blast cylinder is required, capable of com¬
pressing air to about 8 lbs. or 10 lbs. per square inch. A
communication having been made between it and the
tuyeres before mentioned, the converting vessel will be
in a condition to commence work; it will, however, on
the occasion of its first being used, after relining with
fire-bricks, be necessary to make a fire in the interior
with a few baskets of coke, so as to dry the brickwork
556
IRON.
The maim- and heat up the vessel for the first operation, after which
facture of tiie fire jg to be carefully raked out_ at the tapping hole,
, which is again to be made good with loam, ihe vesse
will then be in readinesss to commence work, and may
be so continued until the brick lining, in the course of
time, is worn away, and a new lining is required. Ihe
tuyeres, as before stated, were situated nearly close to
the bottom of the vessel, the fluid metal therefore rose
some eighteen inches or two feet above them. It was
therefore necessary, in order to prevent the metal from
enterin" the tuyere holes, to turn on the blast beioie
allowing the fluid crude iron to run into the vessel from
the blast furnace. This having been done, and the fluid
iron run in, a rapid boiling up of the metal ivas heard
goino- on within the vessel, the iron being tossed violently
about, and dashed from side to side, shaking the vessel
by the force with which it moved. Flame, accompanied
by a few bright sparks, immediately issued from the
throat of the converting vessel. Ihis state of things
lasted for about fifteen or twenty minutes, during which
time the oxygen in the atmospheric air combined with
the carbon contained in the iron, producing carbonic acid
gas, and at the same time evolving a powerful heat. Now
as this heat is generated in the interior of, and is diffusive
in innumerable fiery bubbles throughout the whole fluid
mass, the vessel absorbs the greater part of it, and its
temperature becomes immensely increased, and by the
expiration of the fifteen or twenty minutes before named,
that part of the carbon which appears mechanically
mixed and diffused through the crude iron has been en¬
tirely consumed. The temperature, however, is so high
that the chemically combined carbon now begins to sepa¬
rate from the metal, as is at once indicated by an immense
increase in the volume of flame rushing out of the thioat
of the vessel. The metal in the vessel now rises several
inches above its natural level, and a light frothy slag
makes its appearance, and is thrown out in large foam¬
like masses. This violent eruption of cinder generally
lasts about five or six minutes, when all further appeal-
ancc of it ceases, a steady and powerful flame replacing
the shower of sparks and cinders which always accom¬
panies the boil. The rapid union of carbon and oxygen
which thus takes place, adds still further to the tempeia-
ture of the metal, while the diminished quantity of carbon
present allows a part of the oxygen to combine with the
iron which undergoes a combustion, and is converted into
an oxide. At the excessive temperature that the metal
has now acquired, the oxide, as soon as formed, undei-
goes fusion, and forms a powerful solvent of those earthy
bases that are associated with the iron. Ihe violent
ebullition which is going on mixes most intimately the
scoriae and metal, every part of which is thus brought into
contact with the fluid oxide, which will thus wash and
cleanse the metal most thoroughly from the silica and
other earthy bases, which are combined with the crude
iron, while the sulphur and other volatile matters, which
cling so tenaciously to iron at ordinary temperatures, are
driven off, the sulphur combining with the oxygen, and
forms sulphurous acid gas. The loss in weight of crude
iron during its conversion into an ingot of malleable iron,
was found, on a mean of four experiments, to be 12^ per
cent, to which will have to be added the loss of metal in
the finishing rolls. This will make the entire loss probably
not less than 18 per cent instead of about 28 per cent
which is the loss on the present system. A large portion
of this metal is, however, recoverable by treating with
carbonaceous gases the rich oxides thrown out of the
furnace during the boil. These slags are found to con¬
tain innumerable small grains of metallic iron, which are
mechanically held in suspension in the slags, and may be
easily recovered. It has already been stated that after Ihe maim-
the boil has taken place, a steady and powerful flame ™re of
succeeds, which continues without any change for about
ten minutes, when it rapidly falls off. As soon as this
diminution of flame is apparent, the workman knows that
the process is completed, and that the crude iron has
been converted into pure malleable iron, which he will
form into ingots of any suitable size and shape, by simply
opening the tap hole of the converting vessel, and allow¬
ing the fluid malleable iron to flow into the iron ingot
moulds placed there to receive it. ihe masses of iron
thus formed will be perfectly free from any admixture of
cinder oxide, or other extraneous matters, and will be
far more pure, and in a forwarder state of manufacture,
than a pile formed of ordinary puddle bars.. And thus,
by a single process, requiring no manipulation or parti¬
cular skill; and with only one workman, from three to
five tons of crude iron passes into the condition of several
piles of malleable iron, in from thirty to thirty-five mi¬
nutes, with the expenditure of about one-third part the
blast now used in a finery furnace with an equal charge
of iron, and with the consumption of no other fuel than
is contained in the crude iron. To those who are best
acquainted with the nature of fluid iron, it may be a
matter of surprise that a blast of cold air forced into
melted crude iron is capable of raising its temperature
to such a degree as to retain it in a perfect state of flui¬
dity, after it has lost all its carbon, and is in the condi¬
tion of malleable iron, which, in the highest heat of our
forges, only becomes a pasty mass. But such is the
excessive temperature that may be arrived at, with a
properly shaped converting vessel, and a judicious distri¬
bution of the blast, that not only may the fluidity of the
metal be retained, but so much surplus heat can be
created as to remelt the crop ends, ingot, runners, and
other scrap, that is made throughout the process, and
thus bring them, without labour or fuel, into ingots of a
quality equal to the rest of the charge of new metal.
For this purpose, a small arched chamber is formed
immediately over the throat of the converting vessel,
somewhat like the tunnel-head of the blast furnace.
This chamber has two or more openings in the sides of
it, and its floor is made to slope downwards to the throat.
As soon as a charge of fluid malleable iron has been
drawn off from the converting vessel, the workman will
take the scrap intended to be worked into the next
charge, and proceed to introduce the several pieces into
the small chamber, piling them up round the opening of
the throat. When this is done, he will run in his charge
of crude metal, and again commence the process. By
the time the boil commences, the bar ends or other scrap
will have acquired a white heat, and by the time it is
over, most of them will have melted and run down into
the charge. Any pieces, however, that remain, may then
be pushed in by the workman, and by the time the pro¬
cess is completed, they will all be melted and intimately
combined with the rest of the charge; so that all sciap
iron, whether cast or malleable, may thus be used up
without any loss or expense. As an example of the
power that iron has of generating heat in this process,
Mr Bessemer mentions that when trying how small a set
of tuyeres could be used, the size he had chosen pi oved
too small, and after blowing into the metal for one hour
and three-quarters, he could not get up heat enough with
them to bring on the boil. The experiment was theie-
fore discontinued, during which time two-thirds of the
metal solidified, and the rest was run off. A largei
set of tuyere pipes were then put in, and a fresh chaige
of fluid iron run into the vessel, which had the effect
of entirely remelting the former charge; and when
I R
The manu- t]ie -whole was tapped out it exhibited, as usual, that
factuie o }ntense an(j dazzling brightness peculiar to the electric
—/ light.
“To persons conversant with the manufacture of iron,
it will be at once apparent that the ingots of malleable
metal which are produced by this process, will have no
hard or steely parts, such as are found in puddled iron,
requiring a great amount of rolling to blend them with
the general mass, nor will such ingots require an excess
of rolling to expel the cinder from the interior of the
mass, since none can exist in the ingot, which is pure
and perfectly homogeneous throughout, and hence requires
only as much rolling as is necessary for the development
of libre; it therefore follows that instead of forming a
merchant bar or rail by the union of a number of sepa¬
rate pieces welded together, it will be far more simple,
and less expensive, to make several bars or rails from a
single ingot; doubtless this would have been done long
ago had not the whole process been limited by the size
of the ball which the puddler could make.
“ The facility which the new process affords, of making
large masses, will enable the manufacturer to produce
bars that, on the old mode of working, it was impossible
to obtain; while, at the same time, it admits of the use
of some powerful machinery, whereby a great deal of
labour will be saved, and the process be greatly expe¬
dited. Mr Bessemer merely mentions this in passing,
without entering into details, as the patents he has ob¬
tained for improvements in this branch of the manufacture
are not yet specified. He next points out the perfectly
homogeneous character of cast-steel—its freedom from
sand cracks and flaws—and its greater cohesive force
and elasticity, compax-ed with the blister steel from which
it is made, qualities which it derives solely from its fusion
and formation into ingots—all of which properties mal¬
leable iron acquires in like manner, by its fusion and
formation into ingots in the new process. Nor must it
be forgotten that no amount of rolling will give to blis¬
tered steel (although formed of rolled bars) the same
homogeneous character that cast-steel acquires, by a
i mere extension of the ingot to some ten or twelve times
its original length.
“ One of the most important facts connected with the
new system of manufacturing malleable iron is, that all
the iron so produced will be of the quality known as
charcoal iron, not that any charcoal is used in its manu-
factui'e, but because the whole of the processes following
the smelting of it are conducted entirely without contact
with, or the use of any mineral fuel; the iron resulting
therefrom will, in consequence, be perfectly free from
those injurious pi’operties which that description of fuel
never fails to impart to iron that is brought under its
influence. At the same time, this system of manufacturing
malleable iron offers extroadinary facility for making
large shafts, cranks, and other heavy masses; it will be
obvious that any weight of metal that can be founded in
ordinary cast-iron, by the means at present at our disposal,
may also be founded in molten malleable iron, and be
wrought into the forms and shapes required, provided
that we increase the size and power of our machinery to
the extent necessaxy to deal with such lai’ge masses of
metal. A few minutes’ reflection will shew the gi*eat
anomaly presented by the scale on which the pi-ocesses
of iron-making are at present carried on. The little fur¬
naces originally used for smelting ore have, from time to
time, inci'eased in size, until they have assumed colossal
proportions, and are made to operate on 200 or 300 tons
of material at a time, giving out 10 tons of fluid metal
at a single run. The manufacturer has thus gone on
O N.
557
increasing the size of his smelting furnaces, adapting to The manu-
their use the blast apparatus of the requisite proportions, facture of
and has by this means lessened the cost of production, in >
every way ensuring a cheapness and unifox-mity of pi’o-
duction, that could never have been secured by a multi¬
plicity of small fuxmaces. While the manufacturer has
shewn himself fully alive to these advantages, he has still
been under the necessity of leaving the succeeding opei'a-
tions to be carried out on a scale wholly at variance with
the principles he has found so advantageous in the smelt¬
ing department. It is true that, hitherto, no better
method was known than the puddling process, in which
fi-om 4 cwt. to 5 cwt. of iron is all that can be operated
upon at a time, and even this small quantity is divided
into homeopathic doses of some 70 lbs. or 80 lbs., each of
which is moulded and fashioned by human labomx care¬
fully watched and tended in the furnace, and removed
therefrom, one at a time, to be carefully manipulated
and squeezed into form. The vast extent of the manu¬
facture, and the gigantic scale on which the early stages
of its progress is conducted, it is astonishing that no effbrt
should have been made to x’aise the aftei* processes
somewhat nearer to a level commensurate with the pre¬
ceding ones, and thus rescue the trade from the trammels
which have so long surrounded it. Mr Bessemer then
adverts to another important feature of the new process,
the production of what he calls semi-steel. At the stage
of the process immediately following the boil, the whole
of the crude iron has passed into the condition of cast-steel
of ordinary quality ; by the continuation of the process the
steelsoproducedgi-aduallyloses its smallremaining portion
of carbon, and passes successively from hard to soft steel,
and from softened steel to steely iron, and eventually to
vei-y soft iron ; hence, at a certain period of the process,
any quality may be obtained; there is one in particular,
which, by way of distinction, he calls semi-steel, being in
hardness about midway between ordinary cast-steel and
soft malleable iron. This metal possess the advantage of
much greater tensile strength than soft iron; it is also
more elastic, and does not readily take a peiunanent set,
while it is much harder, and is not worn or indented so
easily as soft won. At the same time it is not so brittle
or hard to work as ordinary cast-steel. These qualities
render it eminently well adapted to purposes where
lightness and strength are specially required, or where
there is much wear, as in the case of railway bars, which,
from their softness and lamellar texture, soon become
destroyed. The cost of semi-steel will be a fraction less
than iron, because the loss of metal that takes place by
oxidation in the converting vessel is about 2| per cent,
less than it is with iron, but as it is a little more diffi¬
cult to roll, its cost per ton may fairly be considered to be
the same as won, but as its tensile strength is some thirty
or forty per cent greater than bar iron, it follows that
for most purposes a much less weight of metal may be
used, so that taken in that way the semi-steel will form
a much cheaper metal than any we are at present ac¬
quainted with.
“ In conclusion, Mr Bessemer observes that the facts he
has discovered have not been elicited by mere laboratory
experiments, but have been the result of operations on a
scale nearly twice as great as is pursued in the kwgest
iron-works, the experimental apparatus converting 7
cwt. in thirty minutes, while the oi’dinary puddling fui’-
nace makes only 4^ cwt. in two hours, which is made
into six sepai'ate balls; while the ingots oi' blooms ai’c
smooth, even prisms ten inches square by thirty inches
in length, weighing about as much as ten ordinary pud¬
dle balls.” (See Addenda, E).
»
IRON.
558
The manu¬
facture of MACHINERY OF THE MANUFACTURE,
iron.
The mechanical operations connected with the manu¬
facture of wrought-iron consist of shingling, hammering,
rolling, &c., to which we may add the forging of “ uses,”
that is, the forging of those peculiar forms so extensively
in demand for steam-engines, railway carriages, and other
works, which has lately become a large and important
branch of trade.
Old pro- In tracing the whole of the processes in the manu-
cesses and facture of wrought iron bars and plates, it will not be
machinery necessary to enlarge on those practices which have been
manufact superseded by more modern and improved machinery.
U re of bars, Suffice it then to observe, that formerly the puddled balls
plates, &c. were shingled or fashioned into oblong slabs or blooms by
the blows of a heavy forge hammer; during this oper¬
ation, the scorite and impurities which adhered to the
balls were separated from the blooms by the force of im¬
pact, and then by a series of blows the iron was rendered
malleable, dense, and compact. The blooms were then
passed through a series of grooved iron rollers, Avhich
reduced them to the form of long, slender iron bars.
These were cut up and piled regularly together or fag- The maim.
otted, and brought to a welding heat in the heating or facture °f
balling furnace, when they were again passed several times
through grooved rollers, and by this latter process were
made into bars or plates ready for the shears.
In order to arrive at a clear conception of the mechani- The steam
cal operations employed in the manufacture of iron, it engine.
will be necessary to describe more at length the processes
as at present practised, with the improved and powerful
machinery now employed; and as much depends upon
the application of the motive power, the steam-engine
claims the first notice. Until of late years, the vertical
steam-engine was invariably used for giving motion to
the forge hammer and rolling mill, which were placed
on one side of the fly-wheel and the crank on the other;
but the high-pressure, non-condensing engine is found
to be decidedly preferable, as the waste heat passing off
with the products of combustion from the puddling and
heating furnaces, is quite sufficient to raise the steam for
working the rolls and one of Brown’s bloom squeezers,
as shewn in the following drawing.
In this arrangement the cylinder A (figs. 21, 22, 23),
is placed horizontally, and is supplied with steam from
Fig. 21.
boilers near the puddling furnaces. The piston and slides
B, and connecting rod C, give motion to the crank shaft
D, on which is fixed a heavy fly-wheel E. The puddling
rolls F are driven direct from the end of the fly-wheel
shaft, and the bloom squeezers H, by a train of spur
wheels GGr. Under the lower rolls of the squeezers a
Jacob’s ladder or elevator I is fixed, for raising the block
which has been deprived of its impurities, and reduced to
an oblong shape by passing between the rollers of the
squeezer. The block, on leaving the rollers, is carried
in front of one of the projecting divisions of the ladder
and thrown on to the platform in front of the rolls ;
X E 0 N.
559
The manu¬
facture of
iron.
/ 2 z 4 s $ v a J 40 Feet
passed in succession through the other grooves till it
]3rown-s attains the required form of the bar.
bloom The drawings of Brown’s bloom squeezers, figs. 24, 25,
8fueczcrs. and 26, will sufficiently explain how the heated ball of
puddled iron, K, thrown on the top, is gradually com¬
pressed between the revolving rollers as it descends and
at last emerges at the bottom, where it is thrown on to
the moveable “ Jacob’s ladder,” by which it is elevated
to the rolls, as already described. This machine effects
a considerable saving of time; will do the work of 12
or 14 furnaces, and may be kept constantly going as a
feeder to one or two pairs of rolls. There are two
distinct forms of this machine, one as shewn in fig. 24,
where the bloom receives only two compressions; and
the other, which is much more effective, where it is
squeezed four times before it leaves the rolls and falls
upon the Jacob’s ladder, as exhibited in fio-s. 25, and
26.
There are two other machines for preparing the blooms Horizontal
by compression. One is a table firmly embedded in squeezer,
masonry, as shewn at AA, in fig. 27, with a ledge rising up
from it to a height of about two feet, so as to form an open
box. Within this is a revolving box C, of a similar
character, much smaller than the last and placed eccen¬
trically in regard to it. The ball or bloom D is placed
between the innermost revolving box C and the outer
case AA, where the space between them is greatest,
and is carried round till it emerges at E, compressed and
fit for the rolls.
Another instrument, fig. 28, used for the same purpose, TheAlliga,
acts as a pair of pliers, and squeezes the iron between two tor-
flat blades AA. This machine is called the Alligator, and
is probably more effective than the horizontal°machine,
but it requires an attendant to keep the bloom rollimr
about under the jaws AA, and is, in other respects”
inferior to Brown’s patent squeezer.
We have stated that the horizontal, non-condensing Advan-
steam-engine, from its compact form and convenience oftagesof
handling, is admirably adapted for giving motion to the the hori'
machinery of iron-works. For this object, it is superior
to the beam-engine, as its speed can be regulated with the °
560
IRON.
The maim- createst nicety, by opening or shutting the valve, so as
facture of to suit all the requirements of the manufactuie, unter
iron' v the varied conditions of the pressure of the steam, and
the power required for rolling heavy plates and bars, or The maim,
those of a lighter description. It is also much cheaper facture
in its original cost, and all its parts being fixed upon a
Fig. 25.
Hulls.
Fig. 26.
large bed-plate, require a comparatively small amount of
masonry to render it solid and secure.
In regard to the manufac¬
ture of the rollers for the
puddling, boiler-plate, and
merchant train, the greatest
care must be observed in the
selection of the iron and the
mode of casting. In Stafford¬
shire there are roller-makers,
but in general the manufac¬
turer casts his own, and as
much depends upon the metal,
the strongest qualities are
carefully selected and mixed with Welsh No. 1 or
No. 2, and Staffordshire No. 2. This latter descrip¬
tion of iron, when duly prepared, exhibits great tena¬
city, and is well adapted, either in the first or second
melting, for such a purpose. In casting, the moulds are
prepared in loam, and when dry are sunk vertically
Fig. 28.
into the pit to a depth of about 5 feet below the floor.
The moulding box is surrounded by sand firmly con¬
solidated by beaters, and a second mould or head is
placed above it, which receives an additional quantity of
iron to supply the space left by shrinking, and keep the
roll under pressure until it solidifies, and thus secuies a
great uniformity and density in the roller. The metal
is run into the mould direct from the air furnace by
channels cut in the sand, and immediately the mould is
filled, the workman agitates the metal.with a rod, in
order to consolidate the mass and get rid of any air oi
gas which may be confined in the metal. Ibis stinin.g
with iron rods is continued till the metal cools to a semi¬
fluid state, when it is covered up and allowed slowly to
cool and crystallize. This slow rate of cooling is neces¬
sary to favour an uniform degree of contraction, as the
exterior closes up like a series of hoops round the core
of the casting, which is always the most porous and the
last to cool. In every casting of this kind it is essential
to avoid unequal contraction, and this cannot be accom¬
plished unless time is given for the arrangement of the
particles by a slow process of crystallization. Hollers fox
561
IRON.
Different
kinds of
rolling
mills.
Tempera¬
ture of the
iron.
Shears.
boiler-plates and thin sheet-iron are difficult to cast sound
on account of their large size. They are subjected to
very peat strain, and require to be cast from the most
tenacious metals. The bearings or neck should be en¬
larged, or turned to the shape
shewn at AA, and the cylin¬
drical part B should be slightly
concave, because, when the
slab is first passed through the rollers, it comes in con¬
tact with a small portion only of the revolving sur¬
face. The central parts of the roller thus become
highly heated, whilst their extremities are perfectly cool;
the consequence is, that the expansion of the roller is
greatest in the middle, and unless this be provided for
by a concavity in the barrel, the plates become buckled,
that is, both warped and uneven in thickness, and, con¬
sequently, imperfect and unfit for the purposes of boiler
making. Bar rolls are generally cast in chill, and great
care is required to prevent the chill penetrating too deep
so as to injure the tenacity of the metal and render it
brittle.
There are different kinds of rolling mills used in the
iron manufacture, and they vary considerably in their
dimensions according to the work they have to perform.
I he first, through which the puddled iron is passed, we
have already described as puddling rolls. There are
others for roughing down which vary from 4 to 5 feet long,
and are about 18 inches diameter; those for merchant
bars, about 2 feet 6 inches to 3 feet long and 18 inches in
diameter, are in constant use. The boiler-plate and black
sheet-iron rolls are generally of large dimensions; some
of them for large plates are upwards of 6 feet long and
18 to 21 inches in diameter; these require a powerful
engine and the momentum of a large fly-wheel to carry
the plate through the rollers, and not unfrequently when
thin wide plates have to be rolled, the two combined
prove unequal to the task, and the result is, the plates
cool and stick fast in the middle. The greatest care
is necessary in rolling plates of this kind, as any neglect
of the speed of the engine or the setting of the rolls
results in the breakage of the latter, or bringing the
former to a complete stand.
The speed of the different kinds of rolling mills varies
according to the work they have to perform. Those for
merchant bars make from 60 to 70 revolutions a minute,
whilst those of large size for boiler-plates are reduced to
28 or 30. Others, such as the finishing and guide rollers,
run at from 120 to 400 revolutions a minute. In Staf¬
fordshire, where some of the finer kinds of iron are
prepared for the manufacture of wire, the rollers are
generally made of cast-steel, and run at a high velocity ;
such is the ductility of this description of iron, that in
passing through a succession of rollers, it will have elon¬
gated to 10 or 15 times its original length, and when
completely finished, will have assumed the form of a
strong wire f to ^ of an inch in diameter, and 40 to 50
feet in length.
A high temperature is an indispensable condition of
success in rolling. The experience of the workman
enables him to judge, from the appearance of the furnace,
when the pile is at a welding heat, so that when com¬
pressed in the rolls the particles will unite. Sometimes
it is necessary to give a fine polish or skin to the iron as
it leaves the rolls, but this can only be done when the
iron cools down to a dark-red colour, and by the practised
eye of an intelligent workman.
The above operations would still be incomplete unless
the ironmaster had means of cutting the bars and
plates to any required size and shape. The machinery
for this purpose has of late been brought to a hieh
VOL. XII.
degree of perfection, both in regard to power and The manu-
precision. facture of
The circular saw has been successfully applied for
squaring and cutting the larger descriptions of bars, and
does its work, particularly in railway bars, with almost ^rcular
mathematical precision. This machine consists of a cast- SaW‘
iron frame or bed AA, fig. 29, bolted down to a solid foun¬
dation, on the ends of which slide two frames BB to
support the bar to be cut. The two circular saws or
cutters CC are driven by straps passing over the pulleys
DE, and rotate at the rate of 800 to 1000 revolutions per
minute. The machine is set in motion by transferring the
straps from the loose pulley D to the fast pulley E, and
as soon as the required speed is attained, the frame BB is
carried forward, and the bar FF along with it, by a lever
G or eccentric motion, till the bar is cut through. The
rate of cutting or pressure upon the saws may be regulated
either by hand or weight; care must, however, be taken
not to allow the saws to become too hot, and this is pro¬
vided against by running them in a trough of water. By
this process it is evident that the bar must always
be cut square at the ends and correctly to the same
length. (See Addenda, F).
A great variety of shears are used for cutting iron, Bar
some driven by cams or eccentrics, and some by connect- and scrap
ing-rods and a crank on the revolving shaft. In large iron s^ears-
iron-works it is necessary to have two or three kinds, some
for cutting up scrap iron and bars for piling, and others
for boiler-plates. Of the first we may notice two, one
shewn in fig. 30, cuts on both sides at AA, and is driven
Kg. 30.
by a crank and connecting-rod B. This machine is
chiefly used for cutting puddled bars from the puddling
rolls, or any work required for shingling. The next
machine, fig. 31, receives motion in the same manner,
and also cuts on both sides, the cutters being fixed on the
lever and moving with it. This is used for the same
purpose as the last, and likewise for cutting scrap iron.
4 B
562
IRON.
The manu- These machines are extensively used in the manufacture of
facture of ironj an(j before the introduction of the plate shears, they
rig. si.
were used, with some modifications, to cut boiler-plates,
but the work was very imperfectly executed.
'horney- '■pbe demand for plates of large dimensions and greatly
. increased weight, such as those for the front and tube
Lear? plates of locomotive and marine boilers, and those for
tubular and plate bridges, created great difliculties, not The manu-
only in piling, heating, and rolling, but also in cutting !^ure 0
the plates accurately to the required size. To meet
these demands, and more particularly for the manufacture
of the large plates employed in the cellular top of the
Britannia and Conway tubular bridges, Messrs G. B.
Thprneycroft and Co. constructed alarge shearing machine
which cut upwards of 10 feet at one stroke. These
shears have now come into general use, and are of great
importance, on account of the accuracy with which they
cut plates of large dimensions, square and even. Figs.
32 and 33 represent this machine; a a a is the standard and
table on which the plate is fixed. Phis table slides
forward at right angles to the shears or cutters AAA*A*.
The top cutter descending by the action of three eccen¬
trics c cc, which press upon the top of the frame B as
it revolves, and force it down, and by one stroke, the
knife AA cuts through the whole length of the plate,
perfectly clean and straight. The plate is then reversed,
the newly cut edge being held against the slopes, and the
sliding frame again moved forward to the required width
of the°plate, when another stroke cuts the other side as
before. The rapidity with which the plates are cut is
another advantage of this machine, as great as the pre¬
cision of its cut, and when the immense quantity of plates
daily produced at Messrs Thorneycroft and Co.’s works
are considered, its importance becomes evident.
American At the Paris Universal Exhibition of last year (1855),
machine a piate_cutting machine was exhibited, from the United
boiler S States of America, which appears to effect the same ope-
plate. ration as Messrs Thorneycroft and Co.’s. It consists ot
a strong cast-iron frame, nine or ten feet wide, having
inserted along its face a steel plate, on which the iron to
be cut rests and is held firmly by a faller, which descends
on the upper side of the plate. On the same side^ of the
frame a revolving steel cutter, about nine inches in
diameter, traverses the whole length of the frame, and
in its passage cuts the plate, by compression, in a per¬
fectly straight line, corresponding with the steel edge
below. Cutting and shaving plates by a revolving disc
has been long in use, but the traversing motion in this
machine is certainly new, and its application very credi¬
table to the ingenuity of the inventor. The travelling
cutter, which requires great power when cutting thick
plates, is driven by a strap over a pulley at one end of
the machine, and looking at the work it has to perform
and the complexity of its parts, we should consider it
less effective and more liable to derangement than the
i simple and powerful machine of Messrs Thorneycroft.
Summary. Having thus traced the processes for the conversion
of crude into malleable iron, and the machinery em¬
ployed, it only remains to give a general summary of the
whole. As regards the arrangement of large iron-works,
the general principle should be for the machinery to be
classed and fixed in the order of the different processes,
so that the products of one machine should pass at once to
the next, and, in fact, the crude iron should be received
at one end, and having passed through all the processes,
delivered at the other in the manufactured state.
The crude iron from the smelting furnace is either
refined and puddled, or subjected to the boiling process,
to get rid of the combined carbon and render the iron
malleable ; it is then shingled by the forge hammer, by
the “ alligator,” by Brown’s squeezer, or by the other
machines which have been invented for this, purpose.
It is then at once passed through the puddling rolls,
where it is reduced to the form of a flat bar, an is
then cut into convenient lengths by the shears. 1 iese
pieces are again piled or faggoted together into con¬
venient heaps and re-heated in the furnace. As soon
as a faggot thus prepared has been heated to the welding
temperature, it is passed through the roughing rolls to
reduce it to the form of a bar, and then through the finish-
IRON.
I he manu¬
facture of
iron.
I'ig. 34.—Elevation.
ing rolls, where the required form and size is given to it,
either round or square bars, &c. These are straightened
and cut to the required sizes, and are then ready for
delivery. In most large works all these operations are
carried on simultaneously with the smelting process, and
in some with extensive mining operations for procuring
the coal, ore, and limestone required to supply a pro¬
duction of several thousand tons of manufactured iron
per month.
THE FORGE.
The forging of iron has entered, of late years, so largely
into the constructive arts, that the manufactures, how-
e\ei pei feet in the rolling-mill, would be very imperfect
indeed without the forge. To the discussion of this part
of the subject there are many inducements, and we can¬
not but wonder at the many devices, and the numerous
contrivances which present themselves for the attainment
of the operations of the forge. In effecting these objects,
Mr .Nasmyth s steam-hammer is evidently the mosteffec- Nasmyth’s
ive, an to that instrument we are indebted for the Hammer,
formation and welding of iron upon a scale previously
unknown to the workers in that metal.
Mr Nasmyth took out his patent for this invention
564
IRON.
Th. raaTO. i„ 1833 ; and from that time up to the present, it has der D, tigs. 34 and 35 through which ** FSto^od E mmanu.
facture of maintained its ground against every innovation, and has passes, attached to the hammer-blade F by means ot bars
performed an important duty in almost every well-regu- and cross-key k, which press upon an elastic packing, to     /
[ated work in Europe. It consists of an inverted cylin- soften the blow of the hammer, which m heavy forgings
iron.
Fis. 35.—Plan.
and heavy blows, operates severely upon the piston-rod.
The hammer-block FF is guided in its vertical descent
by two planed guides or projections, extending the length
of the side-standards AA, between which the hammer-
block slides. The attendant gives motion to the hammer
by admitting steam from the boiler to act upon the under
side of the piston, by moving the regulator I by the
handle d. The length of stroke is regulated by increasing
or diminishing the distance between the cam N and the
valve lever O o, by turning the screws P and U by the
bevil wheels q q. The lever O o operates by the cam N
coming in contact with the roller o. As soon as this con¬
tact takes place, the further admission of steam is not only
arrested, but its escape is at the same time effected, and
the hammer, left unsupported, descends by its gravity upon
the work on the anvil with an energy due to the height of
the fall. From this description, it will be seen that the
movement of the roller o causes the shoulder of the rod
P to get under the point of the trigger catch U; the
valve is by these means kept closed till the whole force
of the blow is struck. The instant the operation is
effected, the concussion of the hammer causes the latch
X to knock off the point of the trigger from the shoulder
on the valve-rod P, by means of the bent lever s v, and
the instant this is accomplished, the valve is re-opened
to admit the steam below the piston, by the pressure of
steam on the upper side of the small piston in the
cylinder M, forcing down the valve rod, which, in
this respect, is the active agent for opening the
valve.
To arrest the motion of the hammer, it is only neces¬
sary to shut the steam-valve; during the process of for¬
ging, it is, however, desirable to give time between the
blows, to enable the workman to turn and shift his
work on the anvil; and to effect this reduced motion,
the trigger U is held back from the shoulder of the
valve-rod P, by the handle y, which at the same in¬
stant opens the valve in the case J, and thus the action
of the steam in the cylinder D retards the downward
motion of the hammer. The result of these changes
is an easy descent of the hammer, which vibrates up
and down without touching the anvil, but ready for
blows of any severity the instant the trigger is elevated
above the shoulder of the valve lever P. From this
description, it will appear evident that Mr Nasmyth’s
invention is one of the most important that has occurred
in the art of forging iron. It has given an impetus to
the manufacture, and affords facilities for the welding of
large blocks of malleable iron that could not be accom¬
plished by the tilt and helve hammers formerly in use ;
and we have only to instance the forging of the stern-
posts and cutwaters of iron ships ; the paddle-wheel and
screw-shafts of our ocean steamers, some of them weigh¬
ing upwards of 20 tons, to appreciate the value, as wel
as the intensity of action of the steam-hammer.
In addition to the machinery of the forge, the V anvil,
the natural offspring of the steam-hammer, came into
existence from the same fertile
source. It is chiefly employed
for forging round bars and shafts,
and may be thus described, A
being a section of the round bar
or shaft to be forged, B the anvil-
block, and C the hammer. From
this, it is obvious that, in place
of the old plan, where the work
is forged upon flat surfaces, as
shewn in the annexed figure, and
where the blows are diverging,
the effect of the Y anvil is a c
consolidating the mass, and enabling the
forger to retain his work directly under
the centre of the hammer. This is the
more strikingly apparent, as the blows of
the hammer upon a round shaft have the
effect of causing the mass to assume the A\^
elliptical form, forcing out the sides as
at AA in every successive blow, and this
again, when turned, produces a spongy,
porous centre, as shewn in fig. 38. This
Mg. 36.
converging action, thus
Mg. 37,
process is, however, more clearly exemplified in Ryder s
forging machines, where all the anvils are of the
V form, for the forging of spindles, round bars, /kkim
and bolts.
The next important discovery in the art of
forging, is that of Mr Ryder’s machine, patented ^
some years since, for forging small articles, which, on ac¬
count of the rapidity and precision of its operations, de¬
mands a notice in passing. It consisted essentially of a
series of small anvils about three inches square, supporte
from below by large screws passing through the frame o
the machine. This screw was employed in order that the
distance between the hammer and anvil might be accu¬
rately adjusted. Between the screw and the anvil, a
stuffing of cork was introduced to deaden the effect of t e
blow. The hammers were arranged over the anvils, an
slid up and down in the frame of the machine. _ e
blow was effected by the revolution of an eccentric, acting
IRON.
565
The manu- by means of a cradle on the hammer-head, the hammer,
facture of however, being lifted again by a strong spiral spring.
The hammers made about 700 strokes a-minute. At
the side of the machine was a cutter or shears worked
by a long lever ; with this the articles were cut to the The manu-
required length as they were finished. facture of
Figs. 39 and 40 represents this machine as improved ^
by Messrs Platt Brothers of Oldham. A A A A are the
anvils supported on a wedge B, instead of the screw, as
in Ryder’s. This substitution was made because the
blows of the hammer tore off the threads of the screw,
and the machine soon got out of order. The distance
between the hammer and anvil is regulated by forcing
forwards the wedge B by the rack and pinion C. The
cork was then found insufficient as a stuffing, and an
immensely strong spring D was substituted ; this spring
is formed of a band of steel If inches broad, and f thick,
coiled in a close spiral 2 inches in diameter, and 6^ long;
it answers its purpose admirably. The hammers are
shewn at HHHII, supported by springs, one of which
is seen in the section at E. The eccentrics GGGG,
driven by the shaft FF, in their revolution force down
the cradles KKKK, which in their turn act on the tops
of the hammers, the springs (E) keep the hammer-head
always in contact with the cradles KK. The shaft FF
is driven by a strap on the pulley LL. It is evident
that, by the revolution of the shaft, the eccentric forces
down the hammer, and then allows the spring to lift it
again; the rapidity of the strokes is only limited by the
power of the spring E to keep the hammer in contact with
the cradle; if the eccentric revolves too fast, a violent
jerking motion is produced. In Mr Ryder’s machine,
566
IRON.
The matin- 700 strokes a-minote was the maximum; but Messrs
facture of pjatt Brothers, by increasing the strength of the spring,
run as hmh as 1100. A pair of knife edges, worked by
the machine itself, has also been substituted for the hand-
iron into the malleable state, it assuredly is not unrea- The mama-
sonable to look forward to still greater improvements in [^ure of
the manipulations of the forge.
IY.—THE STRENGTH AND OTHER PRO¬
PERTIES OF IRON.
In this section we have to consider the tensile and
transverse strengths and powers of resisting compression
of cast and malleable iron, as determined by direct ex¬
periment upon specimens of the material; and also to
examine whether, as has been alleged, the hot-blast
process injures the tenacity of the metal.
Cast Iron.—The following tables give the results of
experiments undertaken by Mr Hodgkinson and Mr
Fairbairn at the request of the British Association, to
determine the tensile and transverse strengths of cast-
iron derived from the hot and cold blast. The castings
for ascertaining the tensile strain were made very strong
at the ends, with eyes for the bolts to which the shackles
were attached; the middle part, where it was intended
that the specimen should break, was cast of a cruciform +
transverse section. The four largest castings were broken
by the chain-testing machine belonging to the corporation
of Liverpool, the others by Mr Fair bairn’s lever.
Table I.—Results of the Experiments on the tensile
strength of Cast-Iron.
Description of Iron.
Carron iron, No. 2, hot-blast
„ „ cold-blast
„ No. 3, hot-blast
„ „ cold-blast
Devon (Scotland) iron, No.
3, hot-blast 
Buffery iron, No. 1, hot-blast
,, „ cold-blast
Coed Talon (North Wales)
iron, No. 2, hot-blast
Do. do. cold-blast .
Number
of Experi¬
ments.
Mean strength per square
inch of section.
lbs.
13,505
16,683
17,755
14,200
21,907
13,434
17,466
16,676
18,855
tons. cwts.
6 0£
7 9
7 18£
6 7
9 15J
6 0
7 16
7 9
8 8
shears. These perform the work more rapidly and accu¬
rately than before, and leave the workman more at liberty.
Dies are let into the surfaces of the hammers and anvils,
which shape the iron as required.
The rapidity with which this machine executesall
kinds of intricate work is truly remarkable ; for instance,
a bar about X 2^ inches, will be reduced to l^xlO
inches, and cut off in a minute. Set screws, bolts, spin¬
dles, and all kinds of small work are produced at. the
same rate. Its precision is very effective ; the articles
are almost as true as if turned in a lathe, and very accu¬
rate as to size and weight. Other machines, called
“ lifts,” have been, and continue to be, used for forging
a variety of forms and “uses;” but as these partake
more or less of the principle employed in Ryder’s
machine, it will not be necessary to furnish further
examples.
In conclusion, we may observe that the facilities
afforded by the present age for the forging of malleable
iron, are without a parallel in the history of that material.
Every known resource has been adopted, and every con¬
trivance and device has been employed to meet the
demands of a large and an intricate trade ; and looking
at the present resources of the country, and the admir¬
able mechanical contrivances for the conversion of crude
From the same series of experiments we select the
following tables, giving the results obtained in regard to
the resistance opposed to compression by cast-iron. The
specimens employed were cylinders and prisms of various
dimensions, and having their faces turned accurately
parallel to each other and perpendicular to the axis of the
specimen. They were crushed by a lever between
parallel steel discs.
Table II.—Weights required to crush cylinders, Sfc., of
Carron Iron, No. 2, Hot-Blast.
Diameter of Cylinder
in parts of an inch.
Number of
Experiments.
4
15 = -64. . .
Prism base ‘50
inch square .
Prism base TOO
X -26 . . .
Mean
Crushing
Weight.
lbs.
6,426
14,542
22,110
35,888
25,104
26,276
Mean Crush¬
ing Weight
per square
inch.
lbs.
130,909
131,665
112,605
111,560
100,416
101,062
General Mean per
square inch.
121,685 lbs.
■ = 54 tons
6£ cwt.
100,738 lbs.
- = 44 tons
19J cwt.
IRON.
567
The manu- Table III.— Weights required to crush cylinders, #c.,
facture of 0/ Carron Iron, No. 2, Cold-Blast.
iron
Diameter of Cylinder
in parts of an inch.
Equilateral tri¬
angle side '866
Squares—side £
inch ....
Rectangles base
1-00 x '243 . .
Cylinders '45 inch
diameter and
•75 inch higdi .
Number of
Experiments.
Mean
Crushing
Weight.
lbs.
6,088
14,190
24,290
32,398
24,538
26,237
15,369
Mean Crush¬
ing Weight
per square
inch.
lbs.
124,023
128,478
123,708
99,769
98,152
107,971
96,634
General Mean per
square inch.
| 125,403 lbs.
>• = 55 tons
) 19J cwt.
100,631 lbs.
■ = 44 tons
18^ cwt.
Table IV.—Results of Experiments to ascertain the
forces necessary to crush short cylinders, $c., of Cast-
Iron from various parts of the United Kingdom.
Description of Iron.
n (Scotch) ii
hot-blast . .
Buffery iron, No. 1, hot-blast
„ „ cold-blast
Coed Talon, No. 2, hot-blast
„ „ cold-blast
Carron iron, No. 2, hot-blast
„ „ cold-blast
Carron iron, No, 3, hot-blast
„ „ cold-blast
Number
of Experi¬
ments.
Mean Crushing Weight per
square inch.
lbs.
145,435
86,397
93,385
82,734
81,770
108,540
106,375
133,440
115,442
tons. cwt.
64 18^
38 11|
41 m
36 18|
36 10
48 9
47 9f
59 11J
51 lOf
The specimens of Carron iron in table IV. were prisms,
whose base was | x ^ 1 inch, and whose height varied
from ^ inch to 1 inch. The other specimens were cylin¬
ders, whose diameter was about ^ inch, and height varied
from ^ inch to 2 inches.
From the above experiments, Mr Hodgkinson con¬
cludes that “ where the length is not more than about
three times the diameter, the strength for a given base
is pretty nearly the same.” Fracture took place either
by wedges sliding off, or by the top and bottom forming
pyramids, and forcing out the sides; and the angle ol1
the wedge is nearly constant, a mean of 21 cylinders
being 55° 32'.
From the same series of experiments we give the re¬
sults obtained by Mr Fairbairn, in regard to the effects of
time and temperature. The bars employed were cast
to be 1 inch square, and 4 feet 6 inches long, and were
loaded with permanent weights as under; the deflections
being taken at various intervals during a period of fifteen
months. Coed-talon hot and cold-blast iron was employed.
Table V.—The Effects of Time on loaded lars of Hot and
Cold-blast Iron in their resistance to a transverse strain.
Permanent load in
lbs.
280
336
392
449
Mean.
Increase of deflection of cold-
blast bars.
.033
.046
.140
.047
.066
Increase of deflection
of hot-blast bars.
.043
.077
.088
.069
It has been assumed by most writers on the strength
of materials, that the elasticity of cast-iron remained The mami-
perfect to the extent of one-third the weight that would facture of
break it. This is, however, a mere assumption, as it
has been found that the elasticity of cast-iron is injured
with less than one-half that weight, and the question to
be solved in the above experiments was, to what extent
the material could be loaded without endangering its
security; or how long it would continue to support
weights, varying from one-half to one-tenth of the load
that would produce fracture. These experiments were
continued from six to seven years, and the results
obtained were, that the bars which were loaded to
within of their breaking weight, would have con¬
tinued to have borne the load, in the absence of any dis¬
turbing cause, ad infinitum-, but the effect of change, either
of the same or a lighter load led ultimately to fracture.
From these facts it is deduced, that so long as the
molecules of the material are under strain (however
severe that strain may be), they will arrange and accom¬
modate themselves to the pressure, but with the slightest
disturbance, whether produced from vibration or the
increase or diminution of load, it becomes, under these
influences, only a question of time when rupture ensues.
In the following experiments on the relative strengths
of coed-talon hot and cold-blast iron to resist transverse
strain at different temperatures, the results are reduced
to those of bars 2 feet 3 inches between supports, and 1
inch square, as follows :—
Table VI.
Cold Blast, No. 2
Hot Blast, No. 2
Cold Blast, No. 2
No. 3
No’.’2
Hot Blast, No. 2
No!’3
No! 2
Tempe¬
rature,
Pahr.
27°
32°
113°
20°
32°
84°
192°
212°
600°
Red by-
daylight.
Red in
dark.
136°
187°
188°
212°
600°
Red in
dark.
Specific
Gravity.
6.955
6.955
6.955
6.968
6 968
Modulus of
Elasticity.
12799050
14327450
14168000
14902900
14003350
14500000
14398600
13046200
11012500
13869500
Breaking
weight.
874
949.6
812.9
811.69
919.7
877-5
743.1
924.5
1033.0
663.3
723.1
875.7
638 8
823.6
8184
876.8
829.7
Ultimate
deflec¬
tion.
.4538
.402
.336
.4002
.429
.421
.301
Power
of re
sisting
impact
397.7
382.4
273.1
325.0
396.0
369.4
223.7
.389 340.6
.359 229.3
.363 298.9
I rom the above it will be seen “ that a considerable
failure of the strength took place after heating the No.
2 iron from 26° to 190°. At 212°, we have in the
No. 3 a much greater weight sustained than by No. 2
at 190°; and at 600° there appears, in both hot and
cold-blast, the anomaly of increased strength as the tem¬
perature is increased.” 1 The above results are, with
one exception, in favour of the cold blast, as far as
strength is concerned; and in favour of the hot blast,
with one exception, as regards power of resisting impact.
The following table gives the results of Mr Fairbairn’s
experimentson the transverse strength of rectangular cast-
iron bars, each bar being reduced to exactly one inch square.
“In the following abstract, the transverse strength,
which may be taken as a criterion of the value of each
iron, is obtained from the mean of the experiments first
on the long bars, 4 feet 6 inches between the supports,
and next on those of half the length, or 2 feet 3 inches
between supports.”
“All the other values are deduced from the 4 feet 6
inches bars.”
This probably arises from the greater ductility of the bars at an increased temperature.
IRON
568
The manu¬
facture of
iron.
Table Vll.-Okneral Summary of Results on rectangular bars, as obtained from nearly the whole of the BnUsh
Iron-Works.—Manchester Memoirs, New Series, Vol. V.
The maim
facture of
iron.
s-a
.sg
Description of Iron.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
Ponkey, No. 3, cold-blast .
Devon, No 3, hot-blast*
Oldherry, No. 3, hot-blast : .
Carron, No. 3, hot-blast * . .
Eglinton, No. 4, from prepared
Beaufort, No. 3, hot-blast . .
Butterley 
Bute, No. 1, cold-blast .
Windmill End, No. 2, cold-bias
Old Park, No. 2, cold-blast
Beaufort, No. 2, hot-blast .
Low Moor, No. 2, cold-blast
Buffery, No. 1, cold-blast*
Brimbo, No. 2, cold-blast
Apedale, No. 2, bot-blast
Oldberry, No. 2, cold-blast
Pentwyn, No. 2 . . .
Maesteg, No. 2 ...
Muirkirk, No. 1, cold-blast*
Adelphi, No. 2, cold-blast
Blania, No. 3, cold-blast
Devon, No. 3, cold-blast
Gartsherrie, No. 3, hot-blast
Eglinton, No. 4, common cok
Frood, No. 2, cold-blast
Lane End, No. 2 ... •
Carron, No. 3, cold-blast .
Dundyvan, No. 3, cold-blast
Maesteg (marked red) . .
Corbyns Hall, No. 2 . . .
Pontypool, No. 2 ... •
Walbrook, No. 3 . . . •
Milton, No. 3, hot-blast . .
Buffery, No. 1, hot-blast* .
Level, No. 1, hot-blast .
Pant, No. 2 
Level, No. 2, hot-blast . .
W. S. S., No. 2 ... •
Eagle Foundry, No. 2, hot-blast
Elsicar, No. 2, cold-blast .
Yarteg, No. 2, hot-blast ,
Coltham, No. 1, hot-blast .
Carroll, No. 2, cold-blast .
Muirkirk, No. 1, hot-blast*
Brierley, No. 2 
Coed-Talon, No. 2, hot-blast* .
Coed-Talon, No. 2, cold-blast*
Monkland, No. 2, hot-blast
Ley’s Works, No. 1, hot-blast
Milton, No. 1, hot-blast . .
Bias Kynaston, No. 2, hot-blast
o
4
2
5
2
6
5
4
4
4
5
4
4
5
5
3
4
4
5
4
5
5
4
5
6
5
3
5
4
5
5
5
5
4
3
5
5
6
5
4
4
4
5
4
4
5
4
5
3
3
4
5
7122
7-251
7-500
7-056
Modulus of
Elasticity in
lbs. per
square inch,
or stiffness.
Breaking
weight in
lbs. of
bars 4 ft.
6 in.
between
supports.
17,211,000
22,473,650
22,733,400
17,873,100
7-069
7-038
7-066
7-071
7-049
7-108
7-055
7-079
7017
7017
7-059
7-038
7-038
7113
7-080
7-159
7-285
7-017
7-031
7-028
7-094
7-087
7-038
7-007
7-080
6- 979
7- 051
6- 998
7- 080
6- 975
7- 031
7-041
7-038
6- 928
7- 007
7-128
7-069
6- 953
7- 185
6-969
6-955
6-916
6-957
6-976
6-916
16,802,000
15.379.500
15,163,000
16,490,000
14,607,000
16,301,000
14.569.500
15,381,200
14.911.666
14,852,000
14.307.500
15,193,000
13.959.500
14,003,550
13.815.500
14,281,466
22,907,700
13,894,000
13.112.666
15,787,666
16,246,966
16,534,000
13.971.500
13,845,866
13.136.500
15,394,766
15.852.500
13.730.500
15.452.500
15,280,900
15,241,000
14.953.333
14,211,000
12.586.500
15,012,000
15,510,066
17,036,000
13,294,400
16,156,133
14.322.500
14,304,000
12.259.500
11.539.333
11.974.500
13,341,633
Breaking
weight in
lbs. of
bars 2
6 in.,
reduced
to 4 ft. 6
in. be¬
tween
supports.
Mean
breaking
weight
in lbs.
(S.)
567
537
543
520
515
505
489
495
483
441
478
462
463
466
457
453
438
453
443
441
433
448
427
447
460
444
444
456
440
430
439
432
427
436
461
408
419
413
408
446
422
464
430
417
406
409
403
402
392
353
378
595
537
524
529
515
487
495
529
470
483
453
455
457
473
455
464
457
464
467
434
443
430
444
454
441
449
449
403
455
439
446
446
408
430
385
408
424
418
404
386
337
Ultimate
deflec¬
tion of 4
ft. 6 in.
bars in
parts of
an inch.
581
537
530
527
515
517
502
491
489
485
474
472
463
459
456
455
455
454
453
449
448
448
447
447
447
444
443
443
442
442
440
440
438
436
432
431
429
429
427
427
426
424
419
418
418
416
413
403
392
369
357
Power of
the 4 ft.
6 in. bars
to resist
impact.
1-747
1090
1.005
1-365
1-460
1-599
1-815
1-764
1-581
1-621
1-512
1-852
1-550
1-748
1-730
1-811
1-484
1-957
1-734
1-759
1-726
•790
1-557
1-870
1-825
1-414
1-336
1-469
1-887
1-687
1-857
1-443
1-368
1-640
1-516
1-251
1-358
1-339
1- 512
2- 224
1-450
1-532
1-231
1-570
1-222
1-882
1-470
1-762
1-890
1-525
1-366
Colour.
992
589
549
710
751
807
889
872
765
718
729
855
721
815
791
822
650
886
770
777
747
353
998
798
841
629
593
674
830
727
816
625
585
721
699
511
570
554
618
992
621
716
530
656
494
771
600
709
742
532
517
Whitish grey
White
Whitish grey
Quality.
Hard
Light grey —
Dullish grey Han
Dark grey Soft
Bluish grey
Dark grey
Grey
Dull grey
Dark grey
Grey
Light grey
Bather hard
Hard
Hard
Soft
Hard
Soft
Bather hard
Dark grey
Bluish grey
Dark grey
Bright grey
Light grey
Bright grey
Light grey
»>
Dull grey
Light grey
Dark grey
Grey
Dull grey
Bluish grey
Grey
Dull blue
Light grey
Grey
Dull grey
Light grey
Dull grey
Light grey
Bluish grey
Grey „
„ Hard
Whitish grey Bather
Grey Hard
Bluish grey Soft
Dark grey
Bright grey
Grey
Bluish grey
Stiff
Bather soft
Hard
Bather soft
Fluid
Soft
Hard
Soft
Bather hard
Open
Soft
Bather soft
Fluid
Soft
Bather soft
Bather hard
Soft
Bather hard
Soft
Grey
Light grey
soft
Soft and fluid
Bather soft
* The irons with asterisks are taken from the experiments on hot and cold blast iron made by Mr Hodgkmson and Mr Fairbaim
the British Association for the Advancement of Science. See Seventh Beport, vo . vi. . . ,
The modulus of elasticity was usually taken from the deflection caused by 112 s- ®j1 e ^ d th breadth in inches, and l the dis-
To find from the above the breaking weight in rectangular bars generally: calling & and dthe
‘ „ _ 4-5 6 (C S_ Breakina: weight in lbs. The value ot
tance between the supports in feet; and putting 4’5 for 4 feet 6 inches, we ^
S being taken from the table above. . • „Ups deen, and 6 feet between
For Example :—What weight would be necessary to break a bar of Lowmoor iron, inc es ^ , table. Then
the supports ? According to the rule given above we have 6=2 inches, eZ=3 inches, l 6 ee , ,
4jXtjlS_4-5x?X9X4;2_6372 lbs
-j- This iron was melted in the cupola, from coke entirely freed from sulphur, by Mr C. Calvert s process.
IRON.
569
The manu- With regard to the comparative strengths of hot and
facture of cold-blast iron, the following extracts from Mr Hodg-
kinson’s report, read before the British Association, give
the general results of his experiments :—
Table YIII.—Carron Iron, No. 2.
Tensile strength in lbs. per')
inch square . . j
Compressive do. in lbs. per")
inch, from castings torn[-
asunder . . . )
Do. from prisms of various )
forms . . . j
Do. from cylinders .
Transverse strength from all)
the experiments . )
Power to resist impact .
Transverse strength of bars)
1 in. square in lbs. . )
Ultimate deflection of do. in )
inches . . . (
Modulus of elasticity in lbs.)
per square inch . . j
Specific gravity .
Cold-blast.
16683 (2)
106375 (3)
100631 (4)
125403 (13)
(11)
0)
476 (3)
T313 (3)
17270500 (2)
7066
Hot-blast.
13505 (3)
108540 (2)
100738 (2)
121685 (13)
(13)
(9)
463 (3)
1 337 (3)
16085000 (2)
7046
Ratio represent¬
ing Cold-blast
by 1000.
1000 : 809
1000:1020
1000:1001
1000 : 970
1000 : 991
1000:1005
1000: 973
1000:1018
1000 : 931
1000: 997
Table IX.—Devon Iron, No. 3.
Tensile strength .
Compressive do. .
Transverse do. from the ex-)
periments generally . j
Power to resist impact .
Transverse strength of bars")
1 inch square . . . j
Ultimate deflection do. .
Modulus of elasticity do.
Specific gravity
Cold-blast.
(5)
(4)
448 (2)
79(2)
22907700 (2)
7.295 (4)
Hot-blast.
21907 (1)
145435 (4)
(5)
(4)
537 (2)
1.09 (2)
22473650 (2)
7.229 (2)
Ratio represent¬
ing Cold-blast
by 1000.
1000:1417
1000:2786
1000:1199
1000:1380
1000: 981
1000 : 991
Table X.—Buffery Iron, No. 1.
Tensile strength . .
Compressive do. . .
Transverse do. . .
Power to resist impact
Transverse strength l
of bars one inch >-
square . . . .}
Ultimate deflection do.
Modulus of elasti-)
city do. . . . J
Specific gravity . .
17466 (1)
93366 (4)
(5
(2
463 (3)
T55 (3)
15381200 (2)
7'079
436 (3)
1'64 (3)
13730500 (2)
6'998
1000: 769
1000: 925
1000: 931
1000: 963
1000: 942
1000:1058
1000: 893
1000: 989
Table XL—Coed Talon Iron, No. 2.
Tensile strength
Compressive do.
Specific gravity
18855 (2)
81770 (4)
6.955 (4)
16676 (2)
82739 (4)
6.968 (3)
1000: 884
1000:1012
1000:1002
Table XII.—Carron Iron, No. 3.
Tensile strength
Compressive do.
Specific gravity
14200 (2
115442 (4
7.135
17755 (2)
133440 (3
7.056 (1
1000:1250
1000:1156
1000: 989
“ Beginning with No. 1 iron, of which we have a spe¬
cimen from the BufFery Iron-Works, a few miles from
Birmingham, we find the cold-blast iron somewhat sur¬
passing the hot-blast in all the following particulars:
direct tensile strength, compressive strength, transverse
strength, power to resist impact, modulus of elasticity or
stiffness, specific gravity; whilst the only numerical
advantage possessed by the hot-blast iron is, that it bends
a little more than the cold-blast before it breaks.
VOL. xu.
“ In the irons of the quality No. 2, the case seems in The manu-
some degree different; in these the advantages of the f^cture of
rival kinds seem to be more nearly balanced. They are
still, however, rather in favour of the cold-blast.
“ So far as my experiments have proceeded, the irons
of No. 1 have been deteriorated by the hot-blast; those
of No. 2 appear also to have been slightly injured by it,
while the irons of No. 3 seem to have benefited by its
mollifying powers. The Carron iron No. 3 hot-blast,
resists both tension and compression with considerably
more energy than that made with the cold-blast; and
the No. 3 hot-blast iron from the Devon works, in Scot¬
land, is one of the strongest cast irons I have seen, whilst
that made by the cold-blast is comparatively weak, though
its specific gravity is very high, and higher than in the
hot. The extreme hardness of the cold-blast Devon
iron above prevented many experiments that would
otherwise have been made upon it, no tools being hard
enough to form the specimens. The difference of strength
in the Devon irons is peculiarly striking.
“From the evidence here brought forward, it is
rendered exceedingly probable that the introduction of a
heated blast in the manufacture of cast iron has injured
the softer irons, whilst it has frequently mollified and
improved those of a harder nature, and, considering the
small deterioration that the irons of quality No. 2 have
sustained, and the apparent benefit to those of No. 3,
together with the great saving effected by the heated
blast, there seems good reason for the process becoming
as general as it has done.”
The following table gives a general summary of the
results of Mr Fairbairn’s experiments on the strength of
iron after successive meltings. The iron used was Eg-
linton No. 3 hot-blast, and was melted eighteen times,
three bars being cast at each melting. These bars, which
were about 1 inch square and 5 feet long, were placed
upon supports 4 feet 6 apart, and broken by a transverse
strain. Cubes, from the same irons, exactly 1 inch
square, were then crushed between parallel steel bars,
by a large wrought-iron lever.
In the following Table XIII., the results on trans¬
verse strain are reduced to those on bars exactly 1 inch
square and 4 feet 6 inches between supports.
No. of
melting.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
Specific
gravity.
6.969
6.970
6.886
6.938
6.842
6.771
6.879
7.025
7.102
7.108
7.113
7.160
7.134
7.530
7.248
7.330
lost.
7.385
Mean break¬
ing weight
m lbs.
490.0
441.9
401.6
413.4
431.6
438.7
449.1
491.3
546.5
566.9
651.9
692.1
634.8
603.4
371.1
351.3
312.7
Mean ulti¬
mate deflec¬
tion in inches.
1.440
1.446
1.486
1.260
1.503
1.320
1.440
1.753
1.620
1.626
1.636
1.666
1.646
1.513
0.643
0.566
0.476
Power to re¬
sist impact.
705.6
630.9
596.7
520.8
648.6
579.0
646.7
861.2
885.3
921.7
1066.5
1153.0
1044.9
912.9
238.6
198.5
148.8
Mean crush¬
ing weight of
inch cubes in
tons.
41.9
i-64.3
82.8
In the above results it will be observed that the
maximum of strength, elasticity, &c., is only arrived at
after the metal has undergone twelve successive meltings.
It is probable that other metals and their alioys may
follow the same law, but that is a question that has yet
to be solved, probably by a series of experiments
4 c
570
IRON.
The manu- requiring a considerable amount of time and labour to
facture of accomplish, but which we may venture to hope will be
shortly forthcoming from the same author..
In the resistance of the different meltings from the
same iron, to a force tending to crush them, we have the
following results.
Table XIY.
Number of
meltings.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
111
11J
12
13
14
15
16
18
Resistance to
compression per
square inch, in
tons.
Remarks.
44.0
43.6
41.1
40.7
41.1
41.1
40.9
41.1
55.1
57.7
Mean69.8
73.1
66.0
95.9
76.7
70.5
88.0
f In this experiment the cube did not
J bed properly on the steel plates,
1 otherwise it would have resisted a
[much greater force.
Nearly the whole of the specimens were fractured by
wedges which split or slid off diagonally at an angle of
from 52° to 58°.
Malleable Iron.—The greatly extended application
of wrought iron to every variety of construction renders
an investigation of its properties peculiarly interesting. It
is now employed more extensively than cast iron; and, on
account of its ductility and strength, nearly two thirds of
the weight of material may in many cases be saved by its
employment, while great lightness and durability are
secured. Its superiority is especially evident in con¬
structions where great stiffness is not required, but on the
other hand any degree of rigidity maybe obtained by the
employment of a tubular or cellular structure, and this may
be seen in the construction of wrought iron tubular bridges,
beams, and iron shops. The material of malleable iron
which is making such vast changes in the forms of con¬
struction, cannot but be interesting and important, and
considering that the present is far from the limit of its
application, we shall endeavour to give it that degree of
attention which the importance of the subject demands.
From the forge and the rolling mill we derive two dis¬
tinct qualities of iron, known as “red short” and “cold
short” The former is the most ductile, and is a tough
fibrous material which exhibits considerable strength
when cold; the latter is more brittle, and has a highly
crystalline fracture almost like cast-iron; but the fact is
probably not generally known, that the brittle works as
well and is as ductile under the hammer as the other
when at a high temperature.
Mr Charles Hood, in a paper read some time ago before
the Institute of Civil Engineers, went into the subject of
the change in the internal structure of iron, independently
of and subsequently to the processes of its manufacture.
After adducing several instances of tough fibrous mal¬
leable iron becoming crystalline and brittle during their
employment, he attributes these changes to the influence
of percussion, heat, and magnetism, but questions whether
either will produce the effect per se. Mr Hood continues,
“The most common exempli flcation of the effect of heat
in crystallizing fibrous iron is, by breaking a wrought- The manu-
iron furnace bar, which, whatever quality it was of in .^ure of
the first instance, will in a short time invariably be con -
verted into crystallized iron, and by heating and rapidly
cooling, by quenching with water a few times any piece
of wrought iron, the same effect may be far more speedily
produced. In these cases we have at least two of the
above causes in operation—heat and magnetism. In
every instance of heating iron to a very high temperature,
it undergoes a change in its electric or magnetic condi¬
tion ; for at very high temperatures iron loses its mag¬
netic powers, which return as it gradually cools to a
lower temperature. In the case of quenching the iron
with water, we have a still more decisive assistance from
the electric and magnetic forces; for Sir Humphrey Davy
long since pointed out that all cases of vaporization pro¬
duced negative electricity in the bodies in contact with
the vapour; a fact which has lately excited a good
deal of attention in consequence of the discovery of large
quantities of negative electricity in effluent steam.” Mr
Hood then proceeds to the subject of percussion. “ In
the manufacture of some descriptions of hammered iron,
the bar is first rolled into shape, and then one-half the
length of the bar is heated in a furnace, and imme¬
diately taken to the tilt hammer and hammered, and
the other end of the bar is then heated and hammered
in the same manner. In order to avoid any unevenness
in the bar, or any difference in its colour where the two
distinct operations have terminated, the workman fre¬
quently gives the bar a few blows with the hammer upon
that part which he first operated upon. That part of the
bar immediately becomes crystallized, and so extremely
brittle that it will break to pieces by merely throwing it
on the ground, though all the rest of the bar will exhibit
the best and toughest quality imaginable.^ This change,
therefore, has been produced by percussion (as the pri¬
mary agent) when the bar is at a lower temperature than
the welding heat. Here it must be observed that it is
not the excess of hammering which produces the effect,
but the absence of a sufficient degree of heat, at the time
that the hammering takes place; and the evil may pro¬
bably be all produced by four or five blows of the ham¬
mer if the bar happens to be of a small size. In this
case we witness the combined effects of percussion, heat,
and magnetism. When the bar is hammered at the pro¬
per temperature, no such crystallization takes place,
because the bar is insensible to magnetism ; but as soon
as the bar becomes of that lower degree of temperature
at which it can be affected by magnetism, the effect of
the blows it receives is to produce magnetic induction,
and that magnetic induction and consequent polarity of
its particles, when assisted by further vibrations from
additional percussion, produces a crystallized texture.”
The crystallization of perfectly fibrous and ductile
wrought-iron has long been a subject of dispute, and
although we agree with most of Mr Hood s views, we
are not altogether prepared to admit that the causes as¬
signed are the only ones concerned in producing the
change, or that more than one is necessary.^ On the
occasion of the accident on the Versailles Railway some
years since, the whole array of science and practice weie
brought to bear upon the elucidation of the cause. Un¬
doubtedly the broken axle presented a crystalline fracture,
but it has never been ascertained how far heat and mag¬
netism were in operation as in the case of an axle, and
more especially a crank-axle, the constant vibiation
caused by irregularities in the way and the weight of the
engine appears to be quite sufficient to occasion the break¬
age without aid from the other forces. Undoubtedly
in almost all cases of the sudden fracture of axles or
IRON.
The manu- wrouglit-iron bars, during employment, the fracture pre-
lacture ot sents a crystalline structure, but we believe that any
molecular disturbance, such as impact, can effect this
the only question being, how long will the material sus¬
tain the action before it breaks. This question has been
attempted to be decided by direct experiment under the
direction of the Commission on Railway Structures. It
was found that with cast-iron bars subjected to 'lon<>-
continued impacts, when the blow was powerful enough
to bend the bars through one-half of their ultimate de¬
flection (that is to say, the deflection which corresponds
to their fracture by dead pressure), no bar was able to
stand 4000 of such blows in succession. But all the
bars (when sound) resisted the effects of 4000 blows
each bending them through one-third of their ulti¬
mate deflection. These results were confirmed by
experiments with a revolving cam which deflected the bars.
“In wrought-iron bars no very perceptible effect was
produced by 10,000 successive deflections by means of a
revolving cam, each deflection being due to half the weight
which, when applied statically, produced a large perma¬
nent flexure.” These results agree with those obtained
by Mr Fairbairn in regard to the effects of time on loaded
bars of cast-iron, already given.
Arago and Wollaston have paid considerable atten¬
tion to this subject, the latter having been the fh-st to
point out that native iron is disposed to break in octo-
hedra and tetrahedra, or combinations of these forms.
The law which leads to fracture in wrought-iron from
changes in the molecular structure operates with more
or less intensity in other bodies; repeated disturbances,
in turn destroying the cohesive force of the material by
which they are held together. A French writer of emi¬
nence, Arago, appears to consider the crystallization of
wrought-iron to be due to the joint action of time and
vibration, but we think with Mr Hood that time and its
duration depends entirely upon the intensity of the dis¬
turbing forces, and, moreover, that the time of fracture
is retarded or accelerated in a given ratio to the intensity
with which these forces are applied.
From the above statements we may safely deduce the
fact, that it is essential to the use of this material to con¬
sider the purposes to which it is applied, the forms to
which it may be subjected, and the conditions under
which it may be placed, in order to arrive at just conclu¬
sions as to the proportions, in order to afford to the
stiucture (whatever that may be), ample security in its
powers of resistance to strain.
On the subject of the strength of wrought-iron, we
have before us the researches of Mr Fairbairn, in a paper
entitled, “An Inquiry into the Strength of wrought-iron
plates and their rivetted joints, as applied to Shipbuild¬
ing and Vessels exposed to severe strains.”1 In that
communication it is shewn, from direct experiments,
that in plates of rolled iron there is no material difference
between those torn asunder in the direction of the fibre,
and those torn asunder across the fibre. This uniformity
of resistance arises probably from the way in which the
plates are manufactured, which is generally out of flat
bars, cut and piled upon
571
L
In the following table we have the results of the ex- The manu-
periments. facture of
Quality of Plates.
Yorkshire plates
Yorkshire plates
Derbyshire plates
Shropshire plates
Staffordshire plates
Mean
Mean breakin
weight in the
, ,’L
rect ion of the fibre,
in tons per square
inch.
25.770
22.760
21.680
22.826
19.563
22.519
Mean hreakim
weight across the
fibre, in tons per
square inch.
27.490
26.037
18.650
22.000
21.010
23.037
Or as 22.5, 23.0, equal to about ^ in favour of those
torn across the fibre.
I rom the above it is satisfactory to know, so far as
regards uniformity in the strength of plates, that the
liability to rupture is as great when drawn in one direc¬
tion as in the other; and it is not improbable, that the
same properties would be exhibited, and the same resis¬
tance maintained, if the plates were drawn in any parti¬
cular direction obliquely across the fibrous or laminated
structure.
From the same author we select the results of a series
of experiments on the tensile strength of S C bars of
different lengths, and about 11 in diameter. The follow¬
ing tables gives the strains required for each of four
successive breakages of the same pieces of iron. These
experiments are highly interesting, as they not only con-
firm those made upon plates, but they indicate a progres¬
sive increase of strength, notwithstanding the elongation
and the reduced sectional area of the bars. These facts
are of considerable value, as they distinctly shew that a
severe tensile strain is not seriously injurious to the
bearing powers of wrought-iron, even when carried to
the extent of or increased four times repeated, as was
done in these experiments. In practice it may not be
prudent to test bars and chains to their utmost limit of
resistance; it is nevertheless satisfactory to know that in
cases of emergency those limits may be approached with¬
out incurring serious risk of injury to the ultimate strength
of the material.
The following abstract gives the results of the experi¬
ments :—
Length between the
nippers.
Inches.
120
42
36
24
10
Breaking Strain
in tons.
32-21
32-125
32-35
32 00
32-29
Mean Elongation in
inches.
26-0
9-8
8-8
62
4-2
“ As all these experiments were made upon the same
description of iron, it may be fairly inferred that the
length of a bar does not in any way affect its strength.”
each other, as at A, one-half
transversely and the other
half longitudinal in the line
of the pile. From this it will be seen that in preparing
the. bloom or shingle for the rollers, the fibre is equally
divided, and the only superiority that can possibly be at¬
tained is in the rolling which draws the shingle rather more
Reduction of the above Table.
in the direction of the length of the plate than its breadth.
Length of bar.
Inches.
120
42
36
24
10
Elongation.
26-0
9-8
8-8
6-2
4-2
Elongation per unit
of length.
•216
•233
•244
•258
•420
1 Philosophical Transactions, part ii., 1850, p. 677.
572
The manu-
facture of wrought-iron mcio had an elongation of ‘216 smelted from pyrites, there was a trace of copper, showin0
thns while a b . , a bar of ten inches has an pyrites employed was not quite free from copper ; and in a specimen
inch per unit of its *e S ’ Ipno-th or nearly from if16 Clyde Iron-Works there was a trace of sulphur. _ Ihe
elongation of '42 inch per unit of its length, or ™y Mhvf. tab'rle exhibits the composition of six different specimens
it is in the former case. The relation be- • ^ ^ ^ ^
doubie wh t maximum elongation per
unit^may6be^pp'oiimately expressed by the followiag
formula, viz.
louowing lauie exniuiis uie eumpusitiuti wi «...   —
of cast-iron, No. 1, analyzed in my laboratory, either by myseii or
by Mr. John Tennent.
J = -18 +
2-5
where L represents the length of the bar, and l the
elongation per unit of the length of the bar.
The above results are not without value, as they ex¬
hibit the ductility of wrought-iron at a low temperature,
as also the greatly increased strength it exhibits with a
reduced sectional area under severe strain.
On the transverse strength of wrought-iron it will not
be necessary to enlarge, as we have numerous examples
before us in the experiments undertaken to determine
the strength and form of the Britannia and Conway
Tubular Bridges.1 In these experiments will be found
an entirely new description of form and construction,
which have emanated from them, and which have led to
a new era in the history of bridges, and the application of
wrought iron to other purposes besides those in connec¬
tion with buildings, and its greatly extended application
to the useful arts. For further information on this sub-
iect we refer the reader to Mr Fairbairn’s 2 and Professor
Hodgkinson’s works, in both of which will be found
data sufficient to establish the great superiority of mal¬
leable over cast iron, or any other material, either as
regards strength or economy in its application.
On the resistance of wrought-iron plates to a force
tending to burst them, Eondelet has shewn that it re¬
quires a force of 70,000 lbs. per square inch to produce
fracture, and Mr Fairbairn’s experiments proved that a
wrouo'ht-iron plate of one-quarter of an inch thick resisted
a pressure from a ball 3 inches in diameter, equal to that
required to rupture a 3 inch oak plank.
At the request of the British Association, Dr. Thomson
of Glasgow examined the chemical constitution of hot-
blast iron, and he gives the following as the result of his
inquiry:—
“ (1.) The specific gravity of hot-blast iron is greater than that of
cold-blast. . . „ . . • e
“ The following are the specific gravities of eight specimens ot
cold-blast iron:
Muir-
kirk.
Iron,  
Copper, 
Manganese,
Sulphur, ...
Carbon, 
Silica,  
Aluminum,
Calcium, .
Magnesium,
90-98
7-40
0-46
0-48
Muir-
kirk.
Muir-
kirk.
90-29
7-14
1-706
0-880
0-016
0018
91-38
2:bo
4-88
1-10
0-20
Pyrites.
89-442
0-288
3-600
3-220
3-776
Canon.
94010
0-626
3-086
1-006
1032
Clyde.
90-824
2'458
0-045
2-458
0-450
4-602
0-340
Mean.
91-154
2- 037
3- 855
1.177
1-651
“ The constant constituents of cold-blast cast-iron, No. 1, are iron,
manganese, carbon, silicon, and aluminum. The occasional consti¬
tuents are copper, sulphur, calcium, and magnesium. Ihese occur
so rarely, and in such minute quantity, that we may overlook them
altogether. , .
“ The constant constituents occur m the following mean atomic
proportions:
22 atoms iron   77 00
atom manganese
4-36 atoms carbon .
1 atom silicon
G aluminum
= 1-75
= 3-27
= 1-00
= 1-40—84-42
«(2). I examined only one specimen of cast-iron, No.^ 2.
a old i
1 Bxamrucu um   > It was
specimen, said to have^come from Sweden, but I have no
evidence of the correctness of this _ statement. Its specific gravity
was 7-1633 higher than any specimens of cold-blast iron, JNo. 1.
Its constituents were,
93-594
Iron
0-708
3-080
1-262
0-732
0-038—99-414
1st. Muirkirk
2d. Ditto .
3d. Ditto .
4th. Ditto .
6-410
6435
6-493
5th. Ditto
6th. From pyrites
7th. From Carron
6-579 8th. Clyde Iron-Works
6775
69444
6-9888
7-0028
“ The specific gravity of the Muirkirk iron is considerably less
than of that smelted at Carron and the Clyde Iron-Works; the mean
of the eight specimens is 6'7034.
“ It has been hitherto supposed that the difference between cast-
iron and malleable iron consists in the presence of carbon in the
former, and its absence from the latter; in other words, that cast-
iron is a carburet of iron. But in all the specimens of cast-iron
which we analysed we constantly found several other ingredients
besides iron and carbon. Manganese is pretty generally present in
minute quantity, though in one specimen it amounted to no less a
quantity than 7 per cent.; its average amount is 2 per cent. Sili¬
con is never wanting, though its amount is exceedingly variable^ the
average quantity is about ll per cent.; some specimens contained
3g per cent, of it, while others contain less than a half per cent.
Aluminum is very rarely altogether absent, though its amount is
more variable than that of silicon. Its average amount is 2 per
cent.; sometimes it exceeds 4^ per cent., and sometimes it is not
quite l-5000th part of the weight of the iron.
Manganese
Carbon .
Silicon .
Aluminum
Sulphur .
“ The presence of sulphur in this specimen leads to the suspicion
that it is not a Swedish specimen ; for as the Swedish ore is mag¬
netic iron, and the fuel charcoal, the presence of sulphur m the iron
is very unlikely.3 , , .1 „
“ In this specimen, the atoms of iron and manganese are to those
of carbon, silicon, and aluminum, in the proportion ot 4’- to one,
instead of ?>\ to one, as in cast-iron No. 1. _ ,
“ The atoms of carbon, silicon, and aluminum, approach the pro¬
portions of 7, 2, and 1, so that in cast-iron, No. 2, judging from one
specimen, there is a greater proportion of carbon, compared with the
silicon and aluminum, than in cast-iron, No 1.
“ Mr. Tennent analysed a specimen of hot-blast iron, JNo. 2, trom
Gartsherry. Its specific gravity was 6-9156, and its constitments,
Atoms.
Iron .... 90"542
2- 764
3- 094
0-680
2-894
0023
Manganese
Carbon .
Silicon .
Aluminum
Sulphur
99.997
So that it resembles cast-iron, No. 1, in the proportion of its consti¬
tuents. The carbon is almost the same as m cold-blast iron JNo. 2,
but the proportion of aluminum is four times as great, while the
silicon is little more than half as much. The atomic ratios are,
carbon, 4’; silicon, 0"67 ; aluminum, 2"28.
“ 3. Five specimens of hot-blast cast-iron, No. 1, were analysed.
Two of these were from Carron, and three from the Clyde Iron-Works,
where the hot-blast originally began; and where, of course, it has
been longest in use. The specific gravity of these specimens was
found to he as follows:
1 See Mr Fairbairn’s and Mr Edwin Clark’s works on the Conway and Britannia Tubular Bridges. „
h “ On the application of cast and wrought iron to building purposes,” and “Useful Information for Engineers.
3 I have been told by Mr Mushet that the Swedes add sulphur to their iron No. 2.
I R
The manu¬
facture of
iron.
1st. From Clyde Works .
2d. From Carron .
3d. From Carron .
4th. From Clyde Works .
7-0028
7-0721
7-0721
7-1022
Mean . . . 7-Q623
It appears from this, that the hot-blast increases the specific
gravity of cast-iron by about l-22d part. It approaches nearer the
specific gravity of cast-iron, No. 2, smelted by cold air, than to that
of No. 1.
The following table exhibits the constituents of these four speci¬
mens :— r
Iron 
Manganese .
Carbon ....
Silicon 
Aluminum .
Magnesium .
Clyde.
97-096
0-332
2-460
0-280
0-385
100-55
Carron.
95-422
0-336
2-400
1-820
0-488
100-466
Carron.
96-09
0-41
2-48
1-49
0-26
100-73
Clyde.
94-966
0-160
1-560
1-322
1-374
0-792
Clyde.
94-345
3-120
1-416
0520
0-599
100-174 100-
The mean of these analyses gives us,
O N.
Gloucester
Monmouth
Glamorgan
Carmarthen
Merioneth
Shropshire
Derby
York
Westmorland
Cumberland
Lancashire
Sussex
Stafford
Cheshire
Brecon
Stafford 1
(about to >
blow) J
Fur¬
naces.
24
Charcoal.
Tons
each.
650
700
600
400
400
600
300
600
400
300
700
150
Total.
2600
2100
1800
400
400
1800
300
600
400
300
2100
300
13,100
Fur¬
naces.
21
7
6
53
Coke.
Tons
each.
1100
1100
600
750
700
750
600
800
800
Total.
6,600
23,100
4,200
4,500
700
4,500
600
1,600
2,400
48,200
Iron
Manganese
Carbon
Silicon
Aluminum
Atoms.
95-584 or 27'31 } R ?
0-871 or 0-249 j b
2-099 or 2-79 )
1-086 or 1-086 >• 1*
0-422 or 0-337 j
101-285
Or, in the proportion of 6J atoms of iron and manganese to 1 atom
of carbon, silicon, and aluminum. In the cold-blast cast-iron we
nave,
In No. 1 .
In No. 2 .
In hot-blast
Iron. Carbon, &c.
3% atoms 1 atom.
4* 1 -
6|- 1 —
Thus it appears, that when iron is smelted by the hot-blast its
specific gravity is increased, and it contains a greater proportion of
iron, and a smaller proportion of carbon, sificon, and aluminum, than
when smelted by the cold-blast.
V. THE STATISTICS OF THE IRON TRADE.
This article has already extended so much beyond the
limits of our inquiry, that we must confine ourselves to
an exceedingly brief notice of the statistics of this impor¬
tant manufacture. In 1 /40 the iron trade suffered a
sudden check from a falling off in the supply of charcoal,
coal or coke not having been employed at that time for-
smelting. The annual production seems to have decreased
from 180,000 to about 17,350 tons per annum. This
comparatively small quantity was smelted in the follow¬
ing counties, viz.—
Brecon
Glamorgan
Carmarthen
Cheshire
Denbigh
Gloucester
Hereford
Hampshire
Kent
Monmouth
Furnaces.
2
2
1
3
2
6
3
1
4
2
Tons.
600
400
100
1,700
550
2,850
1,350
200
400
900
Nottingham
Salop
Stafford
Worcester
Sussex
Warwick
York
Derby
Furnaces.
1
6
2
2
10
2
6
4
59
Tons.
200
2,000
1,000
700
1,400
700
1,400
800
17,350
Annual average for each furnace . . 294 1 1
Weekly do. do. . . . 5 13 0
Soon afterwards the difficulties in the way of using
coal were overcome, and the manufacture extended
rapidly. The number of charcoal furnaces decreased,
but the quantity produced by each was considerably
increased. The following table shews the state of the
trade in 1788 :—
Charcoal. Coke.
. , „ , „ Tons. cwt. qrs. Tons. cwt. qrs.
Annual average from each furnace 545 16 2 907 0 0
Weekly do. do. 10 9 3 17 9 0
In the same year were erected and blowing in Scot¬
land the following furnaces :—
Goatfield
Bunawe
Carron
Wilsontown
Fur¬
naces.
Charcoal.
Tons
each.
700
700
Total.
700
700
1400
Fur¬
naces.
Coke.
Tons
each.
1000
800
Total.
4000
1600
5600
Total quantity of charcoal iron, in Britain, in 1788 14,500
Do. coke do. do. 53’800
Total quantity of iron, in Britain, in 1788 . . 68,300
■Do- do. 1740 . . 17,350
Increased produce of pig iron . . 50 950
About the year 1796 it was contemplated by Mr Pitt
to add to the revenue by a tax on coal. This met with
a powerful opposition on the part of the manufacturers
and consumers, especially those in the iron trade. A
committee was appointed, witnesses were examined, and
the measure abandoned as unwise and impracticable.
The following table exhibits an abstract of the facts col¬
lected, and shews the rapid progress of the iron trade in
the eight preceding years:—
Counties.
Chester
Cumberland
Derby
Gloucester
Hereford .
York
Shropshire
Wales
Stafford ".
Sussex
No. of
Furnaces.
2
4
3
2
5
22
23
28
14
1
104
Excise
Return of
Iron made.
4,710
5,144
2,138
380
2,850
21,984
68,129
45,994
15,820
172f
Supposed
quantity by
the Trade.
2,200
3,000
2,138
380
2,850
21,987
43,360
42,606
15,256
173
167,321| | 133,950 108,793
Actual
Return.
1,958£
2,034
2,107
380
2,529
17,947
32,969
35,485
13,2104
173
if
IRON.
The return from Scotland exhibited a list of 17
furnaces, and an exact return of pig iron,
manufactured, of. -
Making an annual total of . • • . '
Annual average produce from each furnace, in¬
cluding charcoal furnaces • • • •
Increase of annual average since 1788
The following table shews the comparative make of
pig iron in 1820 and 1827~
Tons.
16,086
124,879
1,032
232
North Wales
South Wales
Shropshire
Staffordshire
Yorkshire
Derbyshire
Scotland
1820.
Tons.
150,000
180,000
50,000
20,000
Furnaces.
12
90
31
95
24
14
18
284
1827.
Tons.
24,000
272,000
78,000
216,000
43,000
20,500
36,000
690,500
‘ 400,000
From that time to the present the manufacture has
steadily increased. The following table gives the state
of the trade in 1854; the particulars are extracted from
the Mining Records, published under the direction of Mr
R. Hunt, in connection with the Museum of Practical
Geology, London. The importance which Scotland has
assumed in reference to the iron manufacture is espe¬
cially worthy of notice.
Counties.
}
England :—
Northumberland,
Durham, and
Yorkshire
Derbyshire .
Lancashire and )
Cumberland j
Staffordshire
Shropshire . .
Gloucestershire
>cn->
ire, b
Wales :—
Flintshire, Den¬
bighshire
Glamorganshire,
Anthracite
district
Glamorgan shire
and Mon¬
mouthshire,
Bituminous
district
Scotland :—
Ayrshire
Lanarkshire
Other Counties
f
No. of
Works.
37
13
2
72
13
4
7
14
34
9
13
10
No. of
Fur¬
naces
erected.
No. of
Fur¬
naces
in blast.
228
106
33
5
203
34
7
11
35
134
41
88
27
724
80
25
3
166
28
5
9
21
100
30
72
16
Total produce
in tons.
555
348,444
127,500
20,000
847,600
124,800
21,990
32,900
750,000
249,600
468,000
79,040
3,069,874
In connection with the above, we insert the following
table from Mr Kenyon Blackwell’s paper on the Iron
Industry of Great Britain, read before the Society of
Arts. It gives the estimated production of crude iron
in the various countries.
Great Britain
France
United States
Prussia
Austria
Belgium
Bussia
Tons.
3,000,000
750,000
750,000
300,000
250,000
200,000
200,000
Sweden
Various German!
States j
Other Countries .
Tons.
150,000
100,000
300,000
6,000,000
In referring to the above, it will be seen that Great
Britain produces as much crude iron as all other countries
put together; and a great portion of that iron being The manu-
converted into bars and plates, indicates a large and •^mure 0
important article of production. An article of immense
value to the country—of great demand at home and
abroad—and justly entitled not only to improvements
and economy in its manufacture, but to the generous
support of a liberal and an enlightened Government.
(w. F.)
ADDENDA.
(A) Mr Cart's inventions.—It would be a difficult task to enu¬
merate all the services rendered by Mr Cort to the iron
industry of this country, or sufficiently to express our sympa¬
thies with the descendants and relatives of a man to whose
mechanical inventions we owe so much of our national great¬
ness. It is, perhaps, not generally known that Mr Henry
Cort expended a fortune of upwards of £20,000 in perfecting
his inventions for puddling iron, and rolling it into bars and
plates ; that he was robbed of the fruit of his discoveries by
the villany of officials in a high department of the Government,
and that he was ultimately left to starve by the apathy and
selfishness of an ungrateful country. When these facts are
known, and it has been ascertained that Mr Henry Cort’s in¬
ventions have conferred an amount of wealth upon the country
equivalent to six hundred millions sterling, and have given
maintenance and employment to six hundred thousand of the
working population of our land for the last three or four gene¬
rations, we are surely justified in referring to services of such
vast importance, and in advocating the principle that substan¬
tial proofs of the nations gratitude should be afforded to rescue
from penury and want the descendants of such a benefactor.
(B) The Ores of Belgium.—A species of bog ore is also used,
which is said to be found near the surface, and is washed to
free it from impurities.
(C) The Calcination of the Ores.—We are informed that the
black and clay bands are all calcined in Scotland, even for the
hot-blast process, the coaly matter in the black bands being
sufficient to effect the calcination without other fuel. The
carbonaceous ores lose as much as 40 to 50 per cent, of their
weight in the process.
(D) The blast.—The Scotch iron smelters allege that the diffu¬
sive power of the blast is increased rather than diminished by
increasing the number of blowpipe nozzles, and give as a rea¬
son for the use of so many that they can be so much more
easily repaired, the stoppage of one not materially affecting
the working of the furnace.
(E) Mr Bessemer's process.—Such is the discovery which Mr
Bessemer has communicated to the world, but having reason
to believe that the products of this new process of conversion
have not been sufficiently tested, we deem it essential to reserve
our opinion on this important question until further experi¬
ments have proved the efficiency of the process. We are the
more convinced of the propriety of exercising precaution from
the fact that experiments have been made by competent autho¬
rities, in which it has been ascertained that the ingots derived
from Mr Bessemer’s process are not malleable, bid highly re¬
fined metal, deprived of its carbon, but still requiring to be
puddled to fit it for the hammer or the rolls. Should this be
the case, the saving effected will not be so great as at first
anticipated, and, moreover, it has been asserted by practical
men that the heat produced is so intense, as not only to deprive
the metal of its carbon, but to injure the tenacity of the iron.
Should these statements be correct, it will seriously detract
from the merits of a discovery, which at first sight promised
the commencement of a new era in the manufacture^ of iron.
It is, however, due to Mr Bessemer to wait for further^deyelop-
ments, which may lead to important results before coming to
any conclusion as to the merits of his invention. We trust,
however, that the practical difficulties which appear to sur¬
round the process will ultimately be overcome by a series of
well conducted experiments, calculated to determine the full
value of the invention.
(F) We are informed that the circular saw for cutting railway
bars is frequently driven by the Eolipile or Hero’s engine, by
which a speed of 2000 revolutions a minute may be attained.
(W. F.)
575
IRON BRIDGES.
Iron
Bridges.
The exclusive use of iron in the construction of bridges
is of modern date, though no other material is so pecu¬
liarly adapted to such a purpose; it was not, however,
from any want of appreciation of these advantages, so
Iron
Bridges.
.r-
■"';W f
/•r
Mg. 1.—Coalbrookdale Bridge.
Bed-plate (fig. 1).
much as from the great cost, and even impossibility, of
obtaining iron in large masses, that its use was so long
delayed. It is now most extensively employed in bridge
construction, and though, in elegance or durability, iron
cannot compete with stone, where the span is moderate,
yet there are numberless cases where its adoption has
been the means of solving many of the great problems of
modern engineering, and its use has more especially
become an absolute necessity in Railway Bridge con¬
struction, where headway is so frequently of paramount
importance,—and where rapidity of execution is often a
more necessary consideration than even economy or
durability,—while the defective foundations that have so
often to be contended with, render the lightness, the in¬
dependent strength, and pliable character of iron for such
structures of the utmost value.
We shall confine our remarks in this article to ri id
structures. It is not, therefore, our intention to treat of
the Suspension Bridge, which is, moreover, not of such
modern date, nor have any important modifications been
made in its construction since the first magnificent speci¬
men of its class was erected by Telford over the Menai
Straits in 1820. It will, however, come within our scope
to describe the attempts that have been lately made to
render the suspension bridge sufficiently rigid for rail¬
way traffic, and to point out the difficulties of such a
problem.
Previous, however, to any description of the various
forms of iron bridges now in use, we shall give a brief
history of their introduction.
According to Gauthey,1 the history of iron bridges
1 “ Traite de la Construction des Fonts,” par M. Gauthey.
576
IRON BRIDGES.
Iron commences in the sixteenth century, when such struc- gether in the builder’s workyard, but this project was Iron
Bridges, tures were first proposed in some Italian works. In subsequently abandoned from motives of economy, and
1719 the subject was again revived by Desaguliers, but a timber bridge was substituted.
nothin^ like an attempt at construction appears to have The first iron bridge actually erected was the semi-
been rnade till 1755, when an iron bridge was proposed circular cast-iron arch across the Severn, near the village
at Lyons which was to consist of three arches of eighty- of Brosely, at Coalbrookdale, in Shropshire, which was
two feet span; one of these arches was actually put to- commenced in 1777, and completed in 1779. It must
(Pig. 2.)
(Mg. S.)
be remarked that some few years prior to this date, the
smelting of iron with coke was first successfully accom¬
plished by Mr Abraham Darby of Coalbrookdale, when
the use of cast-iron began at once to supersede that of
timber in numerous details of construction. This bridge
was designed by a Mr Thomas Farnolls Pritchard, an
architect of Shrewsbury, and was erected by Mr Abra¬
ham Darby, and his partner Mr Reynolds, the proprietors
of the Coalbrookdale Iron Works; the expense of its
construction being defrayed by a joint-stock company.
This arch is nearly semicircular, the span being 100 feet
6 inches, and is composed of five ribs, placed 4 feet 10
inches apart; the ribs (see fig. 1) are formed of thiee
concentric arcs of cast-iron, of which the lower one only
is entire, and made in two castings united at the crown,
the other two being deficient at their summits, in con¬
sequence of the superstructure resting on the crown of
the lower and entire arc ; the outer arcs are 5^ inches
IRON BRIDGES.
square, and the lower arc is 8^ inches deep, by inches
thick; they are connected by means of radial bars
fastened with bolts and nuts; and, at their springings,
they are supported upon cast-iron plates 4 inches thick,
bedded upon masonry. The roadway is supported on
open cast-iron spandrils, and is formed of a bed of clay
mixed with foundry slag laid upon cast-iron plates. The
total weight of iron-work is 378^ tons.
If we consider that the manipulation of cast-iron was
then completely in its infancy, a bridge of such dimen¬
sions was doubtless a bold, as well as an original under¬
taking, and the efficiency of the details is worthy of the
boldness of the conception. It is to be regretted that,
from a defect in the abutments, and the error committed
in treating the arch as one of equilibrium, the abutments
were thrust inwards at the approaches, and the ribs par¬
tially fractured.
Shortly after the completion of this arch, some bold
propositions for an extension of the principle originated
with some French engineers. M. Callipe, in 1779, made
a design for a wrought-iron arch of 656 feet span ; pro¬
posing to form the ribs of plate-iron placed edgewise, the
thrust being resisted by wrought-iron tie-bars, connected
with the ribs by vertical and inclined bars; and M.
Montepetit, in 1782, presented a plan for an arch of
4 D
577
Iron
Bridges.
578
Iron
Bridges.
IRON BRIDGES.
„ Qcdnp at PanSi of which the rihs
218J feet Span over th. Seme at 6 ^ 4
were to consist of tv™ ^ s of wro„ght.iron, 121
apart, MHripnBedo P entg were shewn
inchee deep by f '"oh 'h^k th ^ ^ ^
„,th return en^ fliod ^ the Encyl,lopeyie
engraving of this bna | obger_
^"Kprtl; to for’tn the ribs of
rations upo :oint with each other, and united
byTspecies of stirrup at each joint, with dist^ncejpie^3
hetwin the arcs, and bolts passing through alh M.
n trm moreover, was of opinion that no difficulty
would be found in constructing such arches of double the
span of the largest existing stone arches. _ , ., ,
PIn 1783, M. Racle gave a design for an iron bridge of
three arches of 84 feet span, to be erected at Lyons on
the site of the Pont de la Mulatiere. In this bridge, as
well as in other designs by that gentleman, the arcs con¬
sisted of panel work, or of cast-iron hollow voussoirs. _
M Aubry also proposed a bridge at Cordon, of six
wrouibtan archL of 75 feet span each, The ribs were
to beformed of two arcs of different radii united by bars,
the roadway being suspended from the arches. He also
gave a design, in 1786, for the construction of a wrought-
fron arch of 3181 feet span,* the ribs being formed of
two tiers of arcs, united by radial bars, and the spaces
between them filled with diagonal bracing. .
Though our neighbours were thus so prolific in design,
not one°of these various bridges was constructed ; a cir¬
cumstance to be accounted for partly from want of
enterprise, and partly from the fact that, with the excep¬
tion of M. Racle’s cast-iron voussoir bridge, theyweie
all formed of wrought-iron, a material which, though
more employed in France than cast-iron, was not obtain¬
able in plates or bars of sufficient dimensions for these
bold projects; accordingly, after a lapse of some years,
the next actual construction of iron bridges took place in
In 1795, the old stone bridge which crosses the Severn
at Buildwas, about ten miles below Shrewsbury, was
washed away by a flood, and Mr Telford being engineei
to the county, was called upon to replace it, which he
did, in 1796, by a single arch 130 feet span (see fig. 2).
The arch, which is very flat, is formed of five cast-
iron ribs, having a rise of only 14 feet; there are also
two outer ribs with a rise of 30_ feet, their springings
being lower than those of the inner ribs, and their
summits reaching to the top of the iron railing ot the
superstructure. The platform is 18 feet wide, and
formed of cast-iron plates, with deep flanges, which, in
themselves, serve as an additional stiffness to the system.
The expansion and contraction of the outer arcs being
different from that of the remainder, to which they were
dovetailed, was, as might be expected, found rather to
derange their action than to add any strength to the
structure.
The total weight of iron in the above bridge is about
174 tons, and it was constructed by the Coalbrookdale
ironmasters at a cost of '£6;034.
We now come to a description of probably one of the
boldest examples of arch construction in existence the
bridge over the Wear at Wearmouth, which was com¬
pleted also in 1796.
About the year 1790, Thomas Payne, the well known
political author, proposed to construct cast-iron arches
of framed open panels, in the form of voussoirs, and
with characteristic energy, he put his views to the
test by constructing an experimental arch of 88 feet 6
inches span, which was made by Messrs Walker of _
Rotherham, and exhibited in a bowling-green at Padding¬
ton ; this experiment was completely successful. . was
intended to have shipped this arch to America, but
Payne not being able to defray the expenses, the manu¬
facturers took it back, and the malleable iron was after¬
wards worked up in the construction of the Wearmouth
Bridge.3 . .
It was in the same year that a committee was appointed
for investigating the inconvenient and dangerous state o
the ancient ferry in the middle of the harbour at Weai-
mouth ; and it being decided that a bridge should be
substituted, arrangements were made for erecting one ©
stone, although this intention was subsequently aban¬
doned, and at the instigation of Mr Burdoiq the Mernbe
for the county, who had gone into the subject with t e
Messrs Walker of Rotherham, it was determined to con¬
struct a cast-iron arch. Mr Thomas Wilson was accord¬
ingly entrusted with the design, and the ideas of Payne
with regard to open voussoirs of cast-iron were adopte .
The history of this extraordinary structure is thus as
remarkable as its execution. If we are to consider Payne
as its author, his daring in engineering certainly does
full justice to the fervour of his political career ; for suc¬
cessful as the result has undoubtedly proved, want of
experience, and consequent ignorance of the risk, cou
have alone induced so bold an experiment; and we are
led rather to wonder at, than to admire, a structure
which, as regards its proportions and the sma 1 quantity
of material employed in its construction, will probably
remain unrivalled. ... , „
This bridge (see fig. 3) consists of a single circular
areh of 236 feet span, with a rise of 34 feet; the spnngings
commence at 95 feet above the bed of the river, and the
whole height above low water is about 100 feet, admitting
vessels of from two to three hundred tons burthen to pass
under it without striking their masts. The ribs, which
are six in number,, are placed 6 feet apart, and th y
are composed of cast-iron panels acting as voussoirs. In
elevation these panels form three concentric arcs, dis¬
tanced by radial bars, each arc being 6 ;nches br?ad
by 3£ inches thick, and the radial bais
97 inches long by 2 inches broad. Each separate
panel contains two radial bars, and a series of 105
these panels or voussoirs form a rib, and they are con¬
nected by wrought-iron arcs fitting in grooves on their
faces, to which they are finally secured by screws. The
ribs were united with each other by transverse ho
zontal struts 5 feet 11 inches long, formed of cast-iron
pipes, which are placed at every joint of the voussoirs
with flanges at their extremities, by which they
attached to them. • cu
The spandrils are filled in with cast-iron circles, fol¬
lowing the contour of the roadway, and thus dimimshin
in diameter from the springing to the cr<>wn of ‘henb.
The .superstructure is a strong frame-work of timbe
nlankincr, which was first coated with a mixture of tar
and chafk, to preserve it from rot, and then covered wi
a road of marl, limestone, and gravel.
The whole width of the bridge is 32 feet. The abut
ments, which are almost of solid masonry, aie - gouth
42 feet broad at their base, and 37 feet at top. The south
abutment has a foundation upon a solid rock, and .
from about 22 feet above the bed of the men O” Ae
north side, the ground not being so favourable it was
necessary to carry the foundations 10 feet below the b .
Iron
Bridges.
“Memoires sur Differentes Questions de la Science des Constructions publiques > P
3 See Bee’s Cyclopedia, art. Bridge, sec. Iron Bridges.
partie.’
IRON BRIDGES.
579
Iron The total weight of iron is 260 tons, 46 tons of which
are wrought-iron, and 214 cast.
The mode of putting together the ribs was so simple
and expeditious, that it was accomplished, and the whole
bridge thrown over the river, in ten days; the scaffolding,
which was very light, was immediately removed, and the
bridge was opened for general use on the 9th of August
1796, the total cost being £27,000.
The construction of the bridge, however, occupied alto¬
gether a period of three years, and to complete its
singular history, it was sold for £30,000 in a lottery, in
October 1816.
Independent of the want of material, the most remark¬
able deficiencies in this bridge are the want of diagonal
bracing, and the bad construction of the spandrils which
are filled in with light cast-iron circles.
Soon after the centres were removed, the arch, indeed,
was found to have deflected laterally eastward to the
extent of 12 or 18 inches, but by means of wedges, tie-
bars, and braces, it was partially restored to its original
form, and the light cross-bracing, as it at present exists,
was inserted. The stability of the bridge has been at
all times, however, extremely precarious, and ordinary
prudence cannot much longer delay its entire removal.
We must here mention that, in 1794, a small bridge
was erected at Laason, in Lower Silesia, by M. le Comte
Burghauss, consisting of a cast-iron arch, 43 feet span
and 20 feet wide, composed of five ribs, formed of several
arcs of different radii united by radial bars ; the platform
was of cast-iron plates. A similar bridge of 20 feet span
was constructed at Berlin, upon the Kupfergraben.
In 1797, Mr John Nash took out a patent for some
improvements in cast-iron arches, the ribs being formed
of plates. Two bridges upon his system were erected
over one of the canals in St. Petersburgh. Nash also
proposed to form an arch of a series of cast-iron boxes,
bolted together, and filled with earth or cement.
About the same period M. Gaston Rosnay obtained a
brevet d'invention for some improvements in iron bridges;
and suggested the employment of the railing itself, in
conjunction with arcs of double or triple wrought-iron
plates, for ensuring rigidity. The platform was also
made instrumental in strengthening the bridge, and con¬
sisted of a double layer of cross planks, which formed an
arch resting against the ribs, which were tied together
by cross tie-bars.
In the same year, M. Gauthey proposed for the Pont de
la Cite at Paris, two outer arches of cast-iron, somewhat
similar to the Wearmouth Bridge arches, although not
put together in the same manner, the platform being Iron
supported between the ribs. Although the Council of Bridges-
Ponts et Chausees had approved of this design, it was not
carried out, two wooden ribs being substituted for the
iron ones, which ultimately failed.
In chronological order, we next come to the remarkable
design by Messrs Telford and Douglas, in 1801, for re¬
placing London Bridge by a single cast-iron arch of 600
feet span, with a clear headway of 65 feet above high
water. The ribs were to be of cast-iron, in segments as
large as possible, and they were to be connected by diagonal
cross-bracing, disposed in such a manner that any part
of the ribs or braces could be taken out and replaced
without injuring the stability of the whole, or stopping
the traffic. On plan the superstructure was arranged to
spread in width from the centre of the arch to the ap¬
proaches. The scheme was investigated by a select
committee of the House of Commons, the works were
put in hand, and the river was contracted to the necessary
width. But this design was at length abandoned, owing
more immediately to the difficulties, with such a head-
way, of constructing the approaches, which would have
involved the formation of extensive inclined planes from
the adjoining streets.
Iron bridges now began to be generally adopted. Mr
Wilson constructed a cast-iron arch of a span of 180 feet,
at Staines-upon-Thames, in 1802 (see fig. 4). Its radius
was 260 feet, its rise being 16 feet. It was in many respects
similar to the bridge of Wearmouth, being formed of
cast panelled voussoirs 4 feet 10 inches long; the con¬
centric arcs were 6 inches deep by 4^ thick. The ribs
were connected by cast-iron rectangular bracing-frames,
Fig. 4.—Staines Bridge.
580
Iron
Bridges.
IRON BRIDGES.
Iron
Bridges.
fig. 5.—Pont du Louvre.
Pig. 5.
and the voussoirs were united by dowels; thewrought-mm
arcs, such as were used to coneect the v^?ssoir® , -i e
mouth Bridge, being dispensed with. The spa^nlsa
filled with cast-iron circles, and the platform ^
of cast-iron plates stiffened by curved webs, so awanged
as to cover two and three ribs alternately. The abut
ments of this bridge were insufficient to resistthe th
of the arch, and one of them actually moved horizontally
on its base without disturbing its joints.
The first iron bridge constructed ^ ^V ns
Pont du Louvre at Paris, in the year 1803. The plans
HU UVUVICf.
were prepared by M. Cessart, and modified by M. Dillon,
who had charge of its erection. The castings were made
near Touronde, at the iron-works of MM. Baudry and
^The arches of this bridge, which are nine in number
(see fig. 5), and 57 feet span, are composed ol five cast-
iron ribs placed 8 feet apart. Each rib or arc is 6^ inches
deep by 3 inches thick, and is made in two parts con-
neCT1,erit on cast-iron plates let into the
masonryFoffhegpier». which at top are 6 feet 4.„ches
thick The rise of the arcs is 10 feet 8 inches. Other arcs
Stsser dimensions, striding over the
on each pair of large arcs, are employed to fill m tne
depth of the spandrils or haunches. This bridge was
intended for foot passengersits total length between
the abutments is 516 feet, and its width between the
railings 30 feet. The total weight of iron in the nm
arches is about 263 tons. The stone piers, which are
eight in number, rest on pile foundations. An mtewsti g
experiment was made on one of the ribs by M. Dillon,
it was placed upon a substantial timter platf^m, and
weighted with several boxes suspended from the same
points of the rib from which the platform itself was to be
ultimately suspended, the boxes were
until the weight they contained amounted to double that
which the rib could possibly have to sustain, th®n^
found to be depressed at the summit, and raised at t
haunches; but™ the removal of the wetghts the arch
■< *■< * ill * ►!< ►!< * * * ^ ^
IRON BRIDGES.
581
Iron regained its original figure, which circumstance was
Bridges, strictly in accordance with the theoretical views upon
the subject.
We now come to the Pont d’Austerlitz, erected at
Paris by M. Lemande. This light and elegant structure
consists of five equal arches (see fig. 6), which are
segments of circles 138 feet radius, the span being
106 feet, and the rise 10 feet 8 inches. Each arch is
composed of seven ribs placed 6 feet 8 inches apart, each
consisting of three concentric arcs, which form panels
by their intersection with radial bars. The arcs are
5§ inches deep by 2§ inches thick, and the radial bars
are 2§ inches broad ; the .spandrils are filled up by arcs
and radial bars, forming panels similar to those of the
voussoirs. The ribs are united by cast-iron cross¬
frames, formed of bars 2f inches square by 6 feet 5 inches
long, with a double return at their extremities, by which
they are attached to the voussoirs; the depth of the
entire arc is 5 feet 3 inches. The platform is of timber,
covered with a thick bed of loamy earth and gravel.
The joints of the voussoirs were run in with spelter, and
an excess of rise was given to the summit of the arches
of 2|- inches. The settlement which took place on the
striking of the centres varied in different arches from
£ inch to inch—but it ultimately increased to 2^ inches
and 2| inches. The deflection was partly caused by the
fracture of some of the radial bars, particularly those
near the abutments, caused by the bridge having been Iron
overloaded immediately after its completion. The arcs
themselves remained, however, uninjured, and the
radial bars having been repaired by bands of wrought-
iron placed over the broken parts, the arcs were rendered
secure from further distortion.
This bridge was commenced in 1800, and finished in
1806.
In January 1805, some discussion took place as to the
best method of widening the waterway of the Pont de
TArcheveche at Lyons, and it was proposed to replace
the five stone arches of that edifice by three cast-iron
arches, of which the centre one would have had a span
of 239^ feet. (See fig 7.) The proposed construction was
novel; the arcs being formed of cast-iron pipes, two tiers
of which were proposed for each rib, connected by radial
bars, having their ends flattened and bolted between the
flanges of the pipes. A similar arrangement was pro¬
posed for the bracing-frames between the ribs. The
haunches of the ai’ches were also composed of pipes.
The proposed advantages in the use of pipes arose
from the consideration that the same quantity of metal
in a hollow section was much more advantageously
disposed of than in a solid section, and this first applica¬
tion of that principle to bridge structure is deserving of
notice.
Some novelty in construction next occurs in a small
wrought-iron arch, constructed in 1808, by William
Bruyer1 near St. Denis; the span is only 37 feet 5 inches,
with a rise of 3 feet 3 inches, and the ribs are composed
of panel voussoirs, but the angles of each panel are con-
M. Bruyer had applied this arrangement with advantage to the construction of wrought-iron sluice gates.
582
Iron
Bridges.
IRON BRIDGES.
. 8); the ends of
(Fig. 8.)—Cross-section.
nected in a peculiar manner (see fig
each radial bar have four
quadrant plates forged to
them, and the arcs and the
diagonal cross-bars, which [ p
all meet in the same point,
have similar quadrant
plates, that halve in thick¬
ness with those of the radial +r u i
bars and circular plates are made to cover the whole,
which are fastened together by four bolts and nuts.
Such a method of construction is extremely costly, and
evidently inapplicable to large structures.
A similar bridge was, however, proposed in 1810, by
M. Bruyer for the prolongation of the centre portion of
the Hotel des Invalides, at Paris; it was to be a single
arch of 426^ feet span, the ribs being divided into vous-
soirs similar to that just described, and tied together by
cross-bars and diagonal tie-bars at every interval of the
voussoirs. The execution of this structure, which was
only meant for foot passengers, had been decided upon,
but was afterwards suspended.
Another bridge for the same site was proposed by M.
Lamande, in 1811. This design presented some additional
peculiarities, inasmuch as it consisted of a combination
of wrought and cast-iron ; the bridge was to consist of
three arches, but the centre one only was to have been
of iron, with a span of 262^ feet. In this instance there
was to have been a carriage-way. The arcs of the
voussoirs were to be of cast-iron, but the radial bars and
the diagonal braces, and in fact, all those pieces which
were exposed to tensile strains, were to have been of
wrought-iron. Each upright served to connect two
adjoining voussoirs, and carried, at its extremities, ears or
hms, forming a kind of fork which clasped the voussoirs;
the ^ast-iron arcs of the voussoirs were further bound
together by wrought-iron arcs.
'improvements in the manufacture of iron kept pace
with the rapid increase of its application to construction,
while the ingenuity of inventors in this, as in all other
developement of new principles, far outstripped the
requirements of practice. Mr Pope proposed to con¬
struct bridges of 1000 feet span, on a new principle,
named by him the “ Flying Lever Pendant Bridge.”
However impracticable the construction may have
been, the idea is worthy of notice, inasmuch as it involved tT>
new and important applications of action and reaction,
These bridges were to consist of a combination of struts
and ties acting with various leverages and so arranged
that the entire half-bridge was one huge cantilever, with
the abutments sufficiently massive to bear all the over¬
hanging weight and strain of the half-arch. By this
means, there was no dependent pressure at the crown or
meeting of the two half-arches—each of which was to be
built progressively from the abutments to the centre,
without the aid of centering or scaffolding ; with this
arrangement, any portion of the middle could be remove
without disturbing the rest. _ .
These bridges were to be constructed of iron or timber.
M. Wilbeklng, Director-General of Ponts et Chaus-
sees, in Bavaria, published, in 1812, a treatise upon Iron
Bridges, in which he proposed to construct arches of non
pipes, fastened together by means of sockets attached to
the extremities of the cross-bars into which the ends o
the pipes entered; the cross-bars themselves were a so
formed of cast-iron pipes. M. Wilbeking gave a design
for two bridges upon this principle, one of 1112 feet
span, by 11 feet 2 inches rise, and the other of 292 feet
span by 29 feet rise. The pipes were to be about 8¥
inches diameter, by 1^ inch thick, those forming the cross¬
bars being something less. Each of these bridges was
composed of three parallel ribs, with two diagonal or
bracing ribs. The spandrils were filled in with radial
supports, stiffened by diagonal bars, or by wrought-iron
rings. The possibility of keeping such a system in form
is extremely problematical.
Messrs Jessup erected two iron bridges of great sim*
plicity at Bristol, the spans being 100 feet, and the rise 15
feet. The arch is composed of
six ribs made of two castings
united at the crown, and each
rib is provided with seven up¬
rights, which sustain the plat¬
form of the roadway : the ribs
are held together by nine
wrought iron cross-bars or ties.
Each of these bridges contains
150 tons of grey iron, and
was constructed at a cost of
£4000.
IRON BRIDGES.
Iron For examples in iron bridges, we are much indebted
to Mr Telford. A very fine iron bridge (see fig. 9), by
that gentleman, spans a natural channel formed* by’the
Spey in the Craigellachie rock. The span is 150 feet,
and the arch is composed of four ribs, the rise being 20
feet. Each rib consists of two concentric arcs, forming
panels, which are filled in with diagonal bars. The road”
way is only ] 5 feet wide, and is formed of another arc
of greater radius, to which is attached the iron railing;
the spandrils are filled by diagonal ties, forming coarse
trellis-work. The bridge rests upon stone abutments,
with circular castellated towers and curved wing walls
at each approach. This bridge is undoubtedly open to
the objection, that it consists of two very dissimilar
arches, which, owing to the variations of temperature,
must be subject to very variable strains. The total cost
of this bridge, including the blasting of rock on the west
side of the river, was .£8200.
Another bridge very similar, and of the same span, was
erected by Telford over Dornoch Frith, called Bonar
Bi'idge.
Several iron bridges, about the same date, were erected
by Mr Rennie—one at Boston, over the Witham, has a
span of 86 feet, with a rise of only 5 feet. Owing to
the unequal cooling of the ribs in the foundry, or from
some other cause, they were fractured in several places
when loaded, but notwithstanding these fractures, the
arch generally preserved its form.
We now come to the description of the two iron bridges
erected over the Thames, in London, viz., Yauxhall Bridge
and Southwark Bridge, the latter being in every respect a
most remarkable structure, whether as regards its bold
proportions or architectural effect.
The bridge at Yauxhall was designed originally by Mr
James W^alker; but in consequence of some disputes in
regard to its construction, four engineers were ultimately
engaged in its erection, namely, Mr Ralph Dodd, Sir
James Bartham, Mr Rennie, and Mr James Walker.
It consists of nine arches, the span being only 78 feet,
and the rise 29 feet, the piers are 12 feet thick; the
roadway is 36 feet wide between the railings, including
the footpaths of 6 feet each. Each arch is composed of
ten cast-iron ribs 18-g- inches deep, with a double flange
6 inches wide, the thickness of the middle web is 1 inch,
and that of the flanges 2 inches. Each rib, with its span¬
drils, consist of three castings; there are, consequently,
only two joints which divide the arc in three equal seg¬
ments ; the spandrils consist of light vertical panel work,
the verticals in section forming a cross. The upper line
of the ribs is straight, forming two inclines to suit the
slope of the road ; the ribs are united by diagonal strut-
ting-frames, of which there are five rows in each arch.
Hie ribs abut upon cast-iron plates, which are embedded
in the pilaster of the piers and abutments. The road¬
way plates are of cast-iron, with flanges on the upper
side, by which they are bolted together. Over each of
the four faces of the middle piers, there is a cast-iron
alcove; the railing is 4 feet 6 inches high, and composed
of cast-iron verticle bars. The outline of the superstruc¬
ture is a curve between the middle piers, with two straight
inclines, tangents to it. The total length of the bridge
is 809 feet. The first stone was laid on the 9th of May,
1811, and the bridge was opened to the public in July
1816. The iron-work was cast at Butterly, in Derby¬
shire, and the cost was £300,000 for the whole of the
work included in the structure.
The Southwark Bridge (see fig. 10), designed by Mr
Rennie, crosses the Thames between London and Black-
friais bridges, and as an example of arch construction,
stands confessedly unrivalled as regards its colossal pro¬
portions, its architectural effect, or the general simplicity
and massive character of its details. The depth of the
river being from 30 to 36 feet at high water, Mr Rennie
decided on crossing it with three arches ; the centre one
having a span of no less than 240 feet, and the external
arches 210 feet each; the rise of the centre arch is 24
feet, and of the external arches 21 feet. The piers and
abutments are built of Scotch granite, and rest on plat¬
forms upon timber piles, protected by timber sheeting.
The length of each pier, including the cutwater, is 78
feet, and the width 24 feet; the height from the cornice
of the centre arch, to the surface of the water at high
spring tide, is 42 feet; the total length of the bridge, with
the abutments, is 800 feet, and the width of the roadway
between the railing is 42 feet, which includes two foot¬
ways of 7 feet each. Each arch consists of eight ribs,
each rib being formed of thirteen vertical cast-iron seg¬
ments or voussoirs ; they do not abut immediately upon
each other, but upon an intervening transverse plate, ex¬
tending across the eight ribs at the junction of every
voussoir, a most efficient bond being thus obtained be¬
tween the individual ribs : there are fourteen such trans-
Fig. 10.—Southwark Bridge.
583
Iron
Bridges.
Kg. 10.—(Plan).
IRON bridges.
, . 1 rVn„ the two at the abut- at the crown, and gradually increase to 8 feet deep at the
Iron verse plates on each arch) including the two at t_ e^ u - _ they are inches thick, and have double
Bridges. ments. The voussoirs are 20 leet long, an r _
Fig. 10.— Section.
returns, 4 inches wide at their abutting edges, by which
they are bolted to the transverse plate; fillets are cast
upon this plate for the introduction of wedges to insure
perfect contact throughout the whole depth of the vous-
soirs. The spandrils are cast independent of the vous-
soirs, and attached to them by means of a number oi
dental projections fitting into corresponding recesses in
the voussoirs, both of which are dovetailed; their torm
is exceedingly simple and efficient; they consist ot
lozenge-shaped panels, formed by diagonal lines, and in¬
tersected at about the middle of the depth by a curved
line much flatter than that of the arc of the voussoir.
Diagonal bracing-frames are introduced between each
consecutive spandril, and the whole system is farther
secured from lateral motion by means of four diagonal
lines of bracing-bars intersecting each other and extend¬
ing across every arch. The roadway is formed of cast-
iron plates 4 feet wide, and alternately 22 and 11 feet
Ion**. These plates are strengthened by ribs, and are
bolted together by flanges at their edges, they break joint
with each other and rest alternately on six and four ribs,
and thus contribute materially to the lateral strength o
the structure. The parapets and cornice, as well as the
balustrade, which is 4 feet 8 inches high, are all of cast-
iron. „
The iron-work was cast by Messrs Walker & Co., ot
Rotherham, and the total weight was about 5780 tons ,
each rib was carefully fitted together at the works before
it was shipped for London. The total cost, including the
approaches, connecting-avenues, &c., &c., amounted to
about £800,000. The work was commenced on the 23d
of September 1814, and the bridge was opened in April
1819’
No provision having been made for expansion and con¬
traction, considerable inconvenience arose from its effects,
the paving stones of the footpaths having been broken
and disturbed in adapting themselves to the change of
nf the arches. The enormous weight ot this struc
ture contrasts rather disadvantageously with ^at of others
we have described, but the importance of unusual dura
bilitv in such circumstances was doubtless duly COI1^dfJe *
A short time after the completion of Southwark Bridge,
tw^castdron arches were erected by Telford an
i n-ont nrrh across the Severn at Tewkesbury (see fig. 11)>
S felt span” with a rise of 17 feet only consisting
of six ribs about 3 feet 3 inches deep, the spandnls being
filled in with light diagonal work ; and an arch, of a spa
of 180 feet, over the Gloucester and Birmingham Canal
iGalton whh arise of 18 feet; in this case, the ribs
“ifwi^tretTtharSt'he iron bridges we hare
described have been arches, and the material _ used ca
i^y-t, in^rj
these Structures, the arch has been treated as an arch f
equilibrium, and that the two principles on wh«h su^h
“wn “She equiiibrium of
parts, for maintaining its form; such also ts ‘he c
a great extent -f'S Mge wh^ the weight
sions, such as the Southwark B g > t- t the
of the rolling load bears only a small proport,on to^
weight of the structure l»’ is evidently inap-
bV “ hi aS hen the rX^ad bears so large a proportion
plicable when the ro o as is the case ln most
It Zs c Id onron. Another important difference
IRON BRIDGES.
Iron arises from the fact, that arches of masonry owe much
Bridges. 0f t^eiv stability to the friction and adhesion of the large
bearin" surfaces of the stones which form the voussoirs,
whereas, the bearing surfaces of the segments of cast-iron
arches are necessarily limited in dimension, and being in
all cases attached by bolts, the arch is rigidly restrained
from assuming a position of equilibrium and rest. In
the Southwark Bridge, this difficulty was partly met by
the introduction of the wedges we have described ; and
585
on the Pont d’Austerlitz, by ultimately closing the joints I^n
with spelter run in between the voussoirs. It is evident,
on these grounds, that a cast-iron arch cannot be con¬
sidered as a mere system of voussoirs assuming a posi¬
tion of equilibrium, but rather as a rigid structure, con¬
sisting of two inclined struts or beams, abutting against
each other horizontally at the summit of the arch, and
upon this assumption, we can arrive at the time direction
and amount of strain, each semi-arch being treated as a
Pig. 11.—Tewkesbury Bridge.
rigid beam. Such considerations render the calculations
of the strains in an iron arch extremely simple.
It will be observed, that in all the arches hitherto
described, the thrust is resisted directly by the abutments,
as in arches of masonry, and not by the tie-rods, as in the
ordinary “ bowstring girder,” they are all therefore true
arches, their claim to originality arising from the introduc¬
tion of iron in lieu of masonry, and from the ingenious and
skilful arrangement of detail displayed by the engineers.
We have now arrived at an epoch in civil engineering,
which at once enlarged tenfold its sphere of action, and
rendered impossible all reference to experience or pre¬
cedent ; and the arch and the beam, as well as every
other established principle of construction, underwent,
with miraculous rapidity, entire modification, and their
application became wonderfully extended.
We allude, of course, to the introduction of railways,
in which the application of iron takes an entirely new
direction. The success that had attended the use of
tramways in some collieries, led, in 1823, to the construc¬
tion of the Stockton and Darlington line. The Liverpool
and Manchester line, however, which was immediately
afterwards commenced, and where the locomotive engine
vol. xir.
was first successfully applied, ranks as the true prototype
of our present system.
Hitherto, bridges had been applied generally to high roads
where inclined approaches were of small importance,
and in determining the rise of his arch, the engineer
selected any headway he thought proper, while every
other consideration was similarly made subsidiary to the
problem of constructing the bridge itself, and the com¬
pletion of a single large bridge was an epoch in engineer¬
ing history. On the introduction of railways, hundreds
of roads, rivers, and valleys had at once to be spanned
with level roads. Time was as important an element as
economy or durability in the erection of these structures,
while every conceivable difficulty arose from their limited
headway, their bad foundations, their oblique directions,
or their gigantic dimensions. Navigable waters, as well
as crowded thoroughfares, had now to be crossed without
interference with existing traffic, and the ponderous
locomotive dashed over these new and hastily constructed
works, instead of the quiet team. The arch was evidently
at once inapplicable to the bulk of such requirements;
new principles of construction became imperative, and
the beam, with all its numerous modifications, at once
4 E
586
Iron
Bridges.
IRON BRIDGES.
superseded the iron arch as completely as the locomotive
did the stage coach. The earliest simple iron beams of
' which we possess any account, are those used by Mr 1 el-
ford in building a cotton-mill in Salford, m the year 1800
as recorded in “Tredgold’s Essay on Cast Iron by Hodg-
kinson, part ii. But the application of simple cas -iron
beams to the construction of bridges originated with the
late George Stephenson, who employed them on the
Liverpool and Manchester Bailway.
It will now be more convenient to discontinue our chro- B
nological history, and to avoid repetition, we shall, in the
next chapter, give a classification of the various forms of
girders now in use on railways, describe their general
principles of construction, and proceed with our descrip¬
tions of some of the most remarkable examples. Under
their respective heads, we here give, in a tabular foim,
some of the dimensions and other characteristics of the
works hitherto described.
Tabular List of the Bridges constructed as described in the First Chapter.
CHAPTER H.
We have, in the last chapter, traced the history of iron
bridges of rigid form down to the re-introduction of the
primitive straight beam or girder—apparently no doubt
a retrograde step, when compared with the elaborate
and elegant structures we have been considering, and on
which so much scientific investigation and mechanical
skill had been bestowed. We shall find, however, that
the beam rapidly outgrew its original simple form and
dimensions, and it is now scarcely to be recognised as
the parent of those magnificent structures (far exceeding
in dimensions the largest arches), which have become oui
most prominent monuments of engineering enterprise
and skill. We cannot fail to be struck with the reverse
order of progress which obtains in architectural histoiy,
where we find the beam or lintel characteristic of all the
early temples, the arch and abutment characterising the
progress of scientific construction.
The word beam, or girder, has thus entirely changed
its original signification, and some notice of its present
extended meaning is requisite. If we consider the
various means employed for crossing space, we find,
first, that the weight of the structure and its load is
transferred to the bearing points on each side of the
space to be crossed, always exerting there a vertical force
or pressure corresponding with the weight; and secondly,
that these vertical forces or pressures are invariably
resolved at the centre of the span into direct horizontal
forces.
Now, in order that vertical forces maybe transformed
into horizontal strains, and equilibrium maintained, some
fulcra or resistances must be interposed, and equivalent
horizontal forces of an opposite character be exerted;
and these fulcra and forces may either exist within the
structure itself, where they are termed the “ strains on
a beam subjected to transverse pressure,” or may be
external, in the form of corresponding horizontal pressure
upon the points of support, in which case the pressure is
called “ the thrust of the arch the oblique direction of
the thrust of the arch is thus the resultant of the direct
vertical weight of the mass itself, and the direct horizontal
reaction of the thrust at the centre. _
We have thus two distinct classes of bridges,—I irst,
those in which the horizontal strains are counterbalanced
by corresponding horizontal resistances at the abutments,
the strain on them being consequently oblique, tending
either to draw them together, or thrust them asunder.
Suspension bridges and arches are evidently of this class,
the simplest type of which would be two abutting struts
as in the figure—
Fig. 12.
.L lg. A*.
Secondly, those bridges in which the pressure upon the
abutments is purely vertical, the horizontal stiains eing
met by corresponding horizontal strains within t le
structure itself, the simplest type of such structures wou
IRON BRIDGES.
Iron be two abutting struts with a connecting tie-chain, as in
Bridges. ^ ficmre—
587
Fig. 13.
It is to every construction of this latter class that we
propose to apply the term beam or girder.
All bridge structures will be thus included under these
two types. The \arious forms of beam or girder now
in use may, however, be again farther subdivided, and
we shall adopt the following classification:—
1st. Arches.
2f/. Suspension bridges.
3d. Simple beams, including flanged
girders, whether with plain or
Second Tyne. V trellis work sides-
Ath. Trussed girders.
hth. Bowstring girders.
Qth. Tubular or hollow girders.
horizontal distance will vary, of course, according to the
figure of the arch. Similar reasoning must be observed
with regard to spandril arches, or those with a horizontal
top chord. From the preceding remarks, it is evident
that when the weight of the arch itself is considerable as
compared with the load, it will be necessary, as we at
first observed, to take the horizontal distance of the
centre of gravity of the loaded half-arch, which will be
at a point between that of the arch itself and that of the
load, which, if uniform, will be at the quarter span.
The following simple proportion will therefore give at
once the horizontal thrust:—
As the depth of the arch is to the horizontal distance
of the centre of gravity of one half of it from the springing,
so is the weight of half the arch to the horizontal thrust
throughout its length.
First Type. -j
(1.) Iron Arches.
It would be tedious to devote much more space to a
description of those structures, after the numerous
examples cited, more especially a?, in their application to
railway practice, no important novelties were introduced.
The true theory of iron arches has been partially
alluded to, and it has been shewn that all such structures
should be considered as consisting of tvw inclined struts
—it is evident, however, that these struts being curved
in the foim of the arch, the load will not have an uniform
effect upon them—but this adds little difficulty to the
problem. The horizontal forces we have shewn to be
equal at the springing and centre of the arch; and the
vertical pressure which is at each springing equal to half
the weight of the centre structure, is, at any other point,
equal to half the weight included between that point and
a corresponding one on the other side of the centre.
The laws which govern the horizontal and vertical
forces being thus known, it is only necessary to calculate
their amount and their resultants to shew the magnitude
of the force in the direction of the curve at any3 point.
The joints at each point should naturally be at right
angles to the direction of these resultants, and the depths
of the voussoirs should correspond with the amount of
pressures.
I he horizontal force, which is everywhere constant,
may be found upon very simple considerations. It
depends, first, upon the depth of the arch, or rise, as it is
termed. Secondly, upon the horizontal distance of the
centre of gravity of the half-loaded arch from its spring¬
ing ; and thirdly, upon the amount of load.
In considering the strains caused by the weight of the
arch itself, exclusive of the load, it may be well to
observe that, supposing the arch to be uniform in section,
its weight per unit of horizontal dimension will not be
uniform ; and therefore, the horizontal distance of the
centre of gravity of the half-arch from the abutment
must be the element of length in the calculation, and this
Fig. 14.
Let A B be such an arch, the points A and B being
taken at the centre of the springing. Let the rise at the
centre, measured from A B to the centre of the middle
voussoir, be 10 feet, and let the whole weight of the
structure and its load be 100 tons; the girder itself
forming but an insignificant portion of that weight, the
centre of gravity may be taken at the quarter span, or
40 feet horizontally from the point A.
Tons. Tons. rrr1 . . . , , .
Then as 10 : 40 = 50 : 200 4 !, horizontal strain and
( the centre and abutments.
The same reasoning applies to all the description of
beam that we ha\e tanulated. In the 44 Bowstring,**
the horizontal thrust of the arch or bow is resisted by
the tensile strength of the tie-rod or chain; and in the
plain girder, by the tensile resistance of the bottom v^eb.
lo detei mine the horizontal strains in all these various
forms of beams a. very simple rule is given in “Britannia
and Conway Bridges,” page 195, which is—
8d
where S is the horizontal strain in the middle of the top
or bottom member of the beam, W the total uniform load
including that of the beam L the span, and d the depth
(or in an arch the rise). Applying this rule to the
example just given, we shall have—
200 =
100 + 160
8+10
which agrees with the method before used.
We will call attention to another most useful and prac¬
tical formula, explained also at page 196 of “Britannia
and Conwmy Bridges,” and which is of extremely general
application, namely,—that in all arches, suspension
bridges, tubes, flanged girders, or bowstring girders,
and, m fact, every similar structure with top and bottom
members whenever the depth is +th of the span, and the
load, including the weight of the structure, is equally dis¬
tributed, the horizontal strain in the middle of both top
and bottom members of the system is exactly equal to
twice the weight of the system with its distributed
load.
Iron
Bridges.
588
IRON BRIDGES.
Iron
Bridges.
Again referring to the example which is given in the pro¬
portions mentioned: •
Tons. Tons.
2 x 100 = 200 as before.
It must be remarked that, in solid beams, trellis beams,
c ..u wrl-iirb have their top and bottom webs at-
St tatervting or contLous plates, the hori-
tached by 5t an(j bottom webs are not, as in the
zontal stra „ everywhere equal; but they dimmish
“t app oa?h Ae bearings, whlre they become zero
The rules we have given, when applied to these beams, only
determine the horizontal strains in the miciu e.
Towards the end of this chapter when describing beams
of this class, we shall treat more fully of the them y of t e
various strains to which they are subjected. As regards the
arch, from what we have shown, the reader will meet with
no difficulty in finding the horizontal thrust, with the centre
of gravity of the semi-arch, in any position ; and, as we pro¬
pose to confine ourselves to the principles of our subject,
we shall leave to the reader all mathematical application,
merely observing that a simple practical way of discussing
the arch will be found to be its imaginary transformation
into a beam, and the application of similar reasoning to its
investigation. . , ,
The requirements of railway practice have by no means
been favourable for tbe introduction of the iron arch the
height required, from the circumstance that the roadway
must be over the top, the practical difficulty of meeting the
thrust, and the necessity of a perfect stability in its founda¬
tions, have all been drawbacks to its use, although some of
our most elegant and efficient railway bridges are cast-iron
The earliest examples we have of such an application of
cast-iron arches are in a series of three bridges for crossing
the London and Birmingham Railway over the Grand
Junction Canal at Blisworth, Boxmoor, and Nash-mill.
That at Blisworth is of 50 feet clear span, and consists
of six cast-iron arched ribs, having a rise of 8 feet; the
four inner ones are arranged in two pairs, one under eac i
line of rails ; the two ribs composing each pair being 4 feet
11 inches from centre to centre, and a 6-feet space betvveen
each pair; the two single outer ribs are again 6 feet from
those in pairs; making a total width from centre to centre
of the outer ribs of 27 feet 10 inches. The depth of the ribs
is 2 feet 3 inches at the springing, diminishing to 2 teet at
the crown; their thickness is 2 inches, with a projecting flange
6 inches wide at the top and bottom; making a total sec¬
tional area of 51 square inches in each rib at the crown.
They rest on cast-iron skew back plates, and these again on
blocks of stone let into the brick piers. The ribs are each
made in three equal segments bolted together, and are con¬
nected by a system of trussing which we shall hereafter de¬
scribe. The haunches are filled in with three sepaiate cast¬
ings, one over each spandril, and one as a saddle over the
crown. The pattern consists of bars of a cruciform section,
crossing each other diagonally, and forming diamond-shaped
panels, decreasing in size towards the crown, whose upper
apices are connected together by a rib or top table, and their
lower ones connected to the main rib by being keyed in be¬
tween projections upon it. Upon the top tables just men¬
tioned, and firmly bolted to them, are placed strong cast-iion
plates 3 feet wide, fth of an inch thick, with flanges 4| inches
deep all round, and diagonal flanges from corner to corner.
These answer the double purpose of steadying and bracing
together the spandrils, and also of carrying the ballast, which,
however, is not used for bedding sleepers, the rails being
carried in chairs resting on longitudinal balks of timber, and
bolted down through them to the top table of the spandrils.
The peculiar feature of the bridge is in the system of
trussing employed to connect the main ribs. At equal dis¬
tances along the curved rib there are cast-iron struts fur¬
nished with skew ends, with bevelled edges, for the purpose Ir?n
of keying them in between projections cast on the main i ibs ; Bn ges-
these struts are 12 inches deep, 2 inches thick, and all ra- “y—
diate towards a line joining the centres of curvature of all
the arched ribs. The skew end of one strut is placed op¬
posite that of the strut on the other side of the rib, so that
they form a zig-zag line, the general direction of which is
parallel to the abutments ; between these struts are Placed
distance pieces of a cruciform section, with broad ends with
bevelled edges, and keyed in between projections on the
struts, in the same manner as the latter are fixed to the
main ribs. The skew-back plates before mentioned extend
the whole length of the abutment, and are of an irregular
shape, so as both to fit the springing of the arch, and also
to radiate in the same manner as the struts above men¬
tioned, forming, indeed, the last of these struts on each side.
It will be observed that the whole of the bearing poition
of this bridge is put together without any bolts (with the
exception of those at the junctions in the main ribs, and
those fastening the platform plates to the top tables of the
spandrils), every junction being made with keys in the
manner lust described, so as to render motion in the joints
almost impossible, and to assimilate the system, as it weie,
to one entire piece. . ,,
The bridge, indeed, though not perhaps remarkable for
its great span, is one that justly deserves notice for the ex¬
treme care bestowed by the designer on the minutiae of all
its parts, and the great rigidity given to it by the system of
trussing so well adapted to the purpose.
The bridge over the canal at Boxmoor is of much the
same description ; the arrangement of the ribs is precisely
the same as of those at Blisworth, but the span and use are
greater; the former is 66 feet, and the latter 11 feet 9 inches,
the depth being 2 feet 9 inches at the springing, diminish¬
ing to 2 feet at the crown; the spandrils are similar to those
atgBlisworth, and also the top plates, except that they aie
lozenge-shaped instead of square. The trussing of the
main ribs is different, the system of keying not being so
entirely adhered to. It consists of cast-iron stints of a
cruciform section keyed in between the main ribs in lines
perpendicular to the abutments, and of cast-iron pipe stmts
through the entire length of which wrought-iron tie-rods
pass, and which extend from side to side of the budge
parallel to the abutments. These also are keyed in between
the main ribs, but are not in any way connected with the
struts described as being placed at right angles to the abu -
"'The bridge at Nash-mill is precisely similar to the one
at The'outer ribs of these bridges are surmounted by light
cast-iron railing which extends some distance each way past
the arch to the top of the slopes on either side, and gives
the bridge a neat and pleasing appearance.
There is also an elegant bridge on this pnnap e erected
on the Midland Counties Railway over the River f ent, at
its confluence with the Soar, near Sawf.eIoo feet span' the
consists of three segmental arches of 100 feet span, uie
“S bein' 130 feet. They are similar in prmcjle o
the arches of Vaualvall Bridge, but possess eons,derabte
architectural beauty, the spaudr.ls of the "bs be,uj formed
with vertical panels in the l utlor sty e. c ami
sists of six ribs, strutted and t,ed by btacng-panels and
rods; the ribs are double-flanged, and 16 "s SI)nn<ung
the span; the depth of the rib is 3 feet at the ^mgmg,
and 2 feet 6 inches at the crown ; they are eac ^ 1 _
castings, and the work is admirably e^ec? , * j being
form is of timber ; the width between the balustrades being
27 feet. This bridge was completed by the }
piny iri 1839; its situation amidst fine scenery adds much
to its successful artistic effect. . n nur
Numerous other examples might be g
IRON BRIDGES.
589
jron railways, while the advantages which such structures pos- much more frequent use, where circumstances would allow
Bridges, sess, as regards durability and beauty, would warrant their of their adoption.
Among the boldest structures of this class which have
been contemplated, the arches designed to cross the
Menai Straits, on the site of the present tubular bridge,
are perhaps the most remarkable. These arches, two in
number, were of great architectural beauty, the span being
350 feet, with a rise of 50 feet. They are engraved and
described in Britannia and Conway Bridges, page 17,
and plate 32. The process proposed for their erection was
equally remarkable. It was necessary to dispense with all
centering, which was to be effected by resisting the hori¬
zontal thrust of each successive voussoir by tie-rods pass¬
ing over the pier, and attached to a corresponding vous¬
soir on the opposite side. Each semi-arch would thus
form a bracket tied back by an opposite semi-arch, and the
horizontal thrust being thus entirely destroyed, the semi¬
arches would exert no pressure on each other when they
met over the centre of the span, while the whole of the rods
employed would only equal in their combined section the
sectional area of a chain of sufficient strength to resist
the horizontal thrust of the complete arch ; the considera¬
tion of the strain on these individual rods affords an in¬
structive illustration of the actual strains on the voussoirs
of an arch.
Before leaving this part of the subject, we may allude to
the introduction of deep iron arches in the construction of
roofs, of which an interesting example exists at the Great
Western Railway Station at Paddington, and in the roof of
the transept of the Crystal Palace. The investigation of
the strains in the arch in such cases is extremely difficult.
The unequal distribution of the lead, the great degree of
curvature, and consequent great vertical depth from the
springing, together with the attachment of the arch to its
supports—all complicate the problem.
These curved ribs, however, are not true arches, since
they may be considered as nearly free from thrust.
(2.) Suspension Bridges.
Under this head, we only intend, as before explained, to
notice the attempts that have been made to render such
structures sufficiently rigid for railway travelling. We may,
however, observe, that similar reasoning to that which we
have applied to the arch may be applied to suspension-
bridges,—i.e., we may consider them as girders, by imagin¬
ing the existence of a horizontal strut to resist the tension
of the chains.
In comparing a suspension-bridge, or an arch with a gir¬
der of the same span, depth, and strength, it is evident that
while the suspension-bridge will correspond with the lower
member of the girder, the arch will correspond with the
upper member, therefore there must be a theoretical ad¬
vantage possessed by the suspension-bridge and arch in
weight over the girder; but the arch is a structure which
requires so many additions to preserve it from change of
shape, that it cannot practically be taken as merely suffer¬
ing compression. With the suspension-bridge the case is
entirely different; the chain being in a state of equilibrium
preserves its form, independent of all extraneous assistance,
possessing unaided all the qualifications for resisting the
strains of a horizontal load. The suspension-bridge is thus,
undoubtedly, the lightest of bridge structures ; and the only
drawback to its application to railway purposes is its flexi¬
bility, which renders it unfit for the support of a rigid road¬
way. To overcome this difficulty, and combine the rigidity
of the girder with the advantages of the chain, has been a
problem which has naturally occupied the attention of en¬
gineers.
The construction of a suspension-chain for the erection
of the tubes intended for the Britannia Bridge, for a long
time occupied attention ; but this was finally abandoned,
owing to the difficulty arising from the expansion and con¬
traction of the chain, which it was proved in a span of 460
feet, with versed sine of 40 feet, would amount to 4 inches.
Such a degree of extension would increase the versed sine,
and lower the centre portion of the tube as much as
inches. Unless, therefore, the roadway be pliable enough
to follow this descent and rise of the chain, it is evident
that the chain would be at times either sustaining the whole
weight or none at all. The trussing on any rigid roadway
suspended from a chain must, therefore, be sufficiently pliable
to yield to this motion of the chain, and to be uninjured by
its constant action, consequently it must be subject to con¬
siderable deflection on the passage of a heavy load. The
requisite bracing for securing even this partial rigidity would
add, moreover, great weight and cost to the structure, so
that, in fact, the economy of the chain would disappear;
and, where circumstances will permit, it is far preferable to
590
IRON BRIDGES.
Iron
Bridges.
convert the chain into the lower member of a rigid beam, as
in the Chepstow and Saltash bridges by Mr Brunei, which
will be described under the head of Irussed Girders.
In the crossing of the River Niagara over the N.agara
Falls where scaffolding or the floating of any kind of struc¬
ture’to its place were equally impracticable a suspension
bridge was the only possible expedient; and the skdful and
successful manner in which the d.fhculties of such a pro¬
blem have been met deservedly characterize this work as
one of the most remarkable that claims our attention.
The Niagara bridge which has been lately completed by
Mr Roebling is indeed the only successful railway suspen¬
sion bridge of large span. It crosses the Niagara River
at a height of 245 feet above the water by a single span
of 821 feet 4 inches, and forms the connecting link between
the American States and Canada.
The superstructure may be best described as a hollow
rectangular box, 18 feet deep and 24 feet wide, on the top
of which the railway is laid, while the bottom, which is 2o
feet wide, forms the roadway for public traffic both these
floors are constructed of timber beams ; and each connecting
side consists of a row of double posts or uprights of timbei,
each pair being 5 feet apart; between them wrought-iron
diagonal bars are made to pass, extending each way to the
fourth pair of posts at an angle of 45 degrees. The upper
or railway floor is suspended from two wire cables at inter¬
vals of 5 feet, and the lower floor is suspended at similar
intervals from two other wire cables which have a deflection
of 10 feet more than the upper ones; these cables, four in
number, are each 10 inches in diameter, aijd^composed of
seven strands, each containing 520
wires, making a total of 3640 wires.
One strand forms the axis round which
the other six are twisted; a section of
the cable is shown in the accompany¬
ing figure. Sixty wires are equal to
1 square inch of solid section, therefore
the total area of each cable is 60-4
square inches; or the total sectional area of iron supporting
the structure is 24T6 square inches.
Each cable rests upon a separate saddle, there being two
on the top of each of the four towers. The saddles are
placed on ten cast-iron rollers, 5 inches diameter and 25^
inches long, which bear upon cast-iron plates 8 feet square
and 2£ inches thick, strengthened by three parallel flanges
which form two compartments for the reception of the sad¬
dles.
The ends of the cables are attached to cast-iron shoes,
in each of which is inserted a wrought-iron pin which forms
the connection with the anchor chains. These anchor
chains are each imbedded in a solid shaft of masonry 7
feet by 3 feet, enlarged at the bottom to form a chamber
8 feet square cut in the rock. The shafts are sunk to a
depth of 25 feet on the New York side, and 35 feet on the
Canada side.
Each anchor chain is composed of nine links, the eight
lower links being 7 feet long, and the ninth or uppermost
10 feet long. The lowest link consists of seven wrought-
iron bars, 7 inches by 1'4 inches each, and amounting col¬
lectively to an area of 69 square inches. They are secured
to a cast-iron anchor plate, by a pin 3^ inches diameter.
From the fourth link the chain curves, and the section is
gradually increased to an area of 93 square inches. There
are two towers at each end of the bridge, based upon a mass
of masonry 60 feet by 20 feet, which is pierced by an arch
19 feet wide, forming the entrance to the lower roadway.
The towers are 60 feet high, 15 feet square at the base, and
8 feet square at the top.
Above the floors are 64 diagonal stays, extending from
the saddles to the suspenders, amongst which they are equally
distributed; they are formed of wire-rope Ifth inches dia¬
meter. There are also 56 stays attached at their upper
extremities to the soffit of the bridge, and at their other
ends well anchored to the rocks below. The superstruc¬
ture is thus tied down as well as suspended, and all undu¬
lations directly resisted.
The weight of the bridge is estimated as follows :
Iron
Bridges,
Timber    910130 lbs.
Wrought-iron   113'120 „
Castings  44-332 „
Rails   66-740 „
Cables between towers  534-400 „
Fig. 16.
The total weight being  1668-722 lbs. — 745 tons.
The bridge was commenced in September 1852, and
opened for traffic in March 1855. I he total cost was
L.80,000.
It may scarcely be necessary to observe, that were a
span of this magnitude required to cross a navigable channel,
it would be impossible to adopt the system of stays we have
described, and which are so essential in rendering the bridge
sufficiently rigid for railway traffic. The engineer has
here most successfully and judiciously availed himself of
this and every other advantage which the peculiar site af¬
forded, though, under ordinary circumstances, suspension-
bridges are not applicable to such traffic. Even in the
bridge we are describing, it is found necessary to limit the
speed of the trains to three miles an hour.
(3.) Simple Beams.
Under this head we shall include not only rectangular
prismatic beams, which are but little used in bridge con¬
struction, but more especially that particular form of beam
with top and bottom flanges, to which the term flanged
girder is generally applied, the vertical web of such giideis
consisting either of open work or solid plate.
The investigation of the strength of a prismatic beam to
resist the effect of a horizontal load, has engaged the atten¬
tion of mathematicians from the time of Galileo, who con¬
sidered that a beam loaded horizontally was only subjected
to one strain, and consequently only exerted one resistance,
viz., that of tension, or, in other words, a beam under pres¬
sure would turn on a fulcrum close to that pressure; but
by the able experiments and investigations of our more
modern philosophers this theory was shown to be fallacious,
and we are greatly indebted to the mathematical treat¬
ment of the subject by Marriotte, Coulomb, Young, Barlow,
Tredgold, and others, without which, and the more recent
investigations by Mr Eaton Hodgkinson, we should never
have had those magnificent triumphs of art and science
which span the widest rivers, and which form the subject
of our article. Yet the problem is by no means completely
solved, even at the present day, for there still exists a great
discrepancy with respect to the calculated and actual
strength of a beam. , j i •
When, supported at each end, a beam is loaded horizon¬
tally, it is found by experiment that its upper surface suffers
compression, and its lower surface suffers extension ; such
compression and extension evidently originating
vertical support of the beam at each end. Each halt ot
the beam may, therefore, be regarded as a lever m induc¬
ing these forces. Now, the beam is imagined to consist ot
a succession of indefinitely thin horizontal layers, anc tie
compression and extension ot these layers is foun to e
greatest near the upper and lower surfaces of the beam,
and to diminish in some ratio towards the centre ; it is,
therefore, presumed that some layer must exist within tie
beam in which neither compression nor extension takes
place. The position of this layer is called the neutral axis.
Now, presuming such to be the case, the extension or com-
IRON BRIDGES.
Iron pression of a layer must be as its distance from the neutral
Bridges. axis> ancj t]ie force wj]] 5e as t]le extension, if we admit the
truth of Hook’s principle, Ut tensio sic vis ; also the force
of a layei must be as its area, consequently the power of
any layer to resist a horizontal load is as its force, its area,
and the square of its distance from the neutral axis, and by
summing up the moments of the indefinitely thin layers,
we arrive at the well-known formula—
591
w =
_fbd'1C
61 '■
which also applies to a solid prismatic beam loaded as in the
fisrure:—
Fig. 17.
where W is the load, l is the horizontal length from the
fulcrum, d is the depth of the beam, b its breadth, and C is
the constant derived from experiment. In the figure, how-
ever, the top is in tension and the bottom is suffering com¬
pression ; in fact, the support in the middle may be consi¬
dered as a weight acting upwards while the weights WW
have the same effect as supports acting downwards.
It is remarkable that the importance of depth in an or¬
dinary beam should so long have escaped notice. We find
the floors of old houses invariably supported on massive
square beams, with no regard to economy of material, or its
proper disposal to resist strain. The use, however, of a
moi e expensive material, such as cast iron, called attention
to this important subject, and the solid beam merged slowly
into the flanged girder; for it was an easy step, when the
effect of depth in a beam was carefully considered, to per¬
ceive the value of the addition of a top and bottom flange,
thus introducing the material where it was evidently acting
to the greatest advantage.
The earliest flanged girders used in bridge construction
were formed with their flanges of equal strength, and their
vertical ribs were much more massive than requisite for the
office which they had to perform, namely, that of simply
uniting the flanges. The strength of such beams was cal¬
culated by peculiar formulae highly mathematical and com¬
plicated, inasmuch as due account was taken of the strength
of the middle web to resist horizontal strains. The mode
of calculation generally adopted was to consider the section
as a rectangle of the entire depth into the width of the
flanges, and then to deduct the value of the side portions,
the remainder being the strength of the flanged beam.
The rule deduced from the above reasoning was as fol¬
lows :—
w=^2-^A3^c
in which W is the load to be sustained, b the entire breadth,
d the entire depth, bx the breadth, exclusive of the thickness
of the web, di the depth between the flanges, l the length,
and C the constant quantity, as before.
Upon the preceding mode of reasoning, it is assumed
that when the outer layer is strained beyond its ultimate
strength, the fracture of the entire section must ensue.
It seems reasonable to suppose that, with the above data,
it would be only necessary to obtain by experiment the ulti¬
mate force of a unit of section to resist a direct strain (re¬
presented by C in the foregoing rules), to enable us to cal¬
culate the strength of a prismatic beam. Yet, as we have
before observed, such a calculation gives a result widely dif¬
ferent to that of practice, the actual strength of the beam
being invariably much greater than is determined by the
calculation. Some assumption that has been made must
therefore be erroneous, and the difficulty of the problem is
in accounting for this anomaly. By some it has been as¬
sumed that the position of the neutral axis is not situated
in the centre of gravity of the section of a beam, but is
much nearer the compressed side. This, to a certain extent,
is going back to the exploded Galilean theory, yet it is a
singular fact that experiments agreed very nearly with this
view. (See Experimental Researches on Cast Iron, by
Mr Eaton Hodgkinson.) Subsequently, in a paper by Mr
W. H. Barlow, read before the Royal Society, on a New
Element of Strength in Beams subjected to transverse pres¬
sure, and called the Resistance of Flexure, an account of
some valuable and interesting experiments was given, which
were conducted with the greatest nicety, and which seem
to piove that the axis of motion is in the centre of a uni¬
form section ; therefore the discrepancy before named has
yet to be accounted for, and it seems evident that a great
enoi is committed in considering the existence of a neutral
axis as it is called, which suffers neither extension nor com¬
pression, the fact being that if it is inactive it is only in a
hoiizontal direction, for there is no part of a beam sustaining
a load that is not strained in some direction ; and wherever
a particle of which it is composed can be shown to be free
from strain in one direction, in another direction that particle
bears its full share of strain. It appears evident that the
vertical reaction of the supports is not entirely met by the
simple horizontal resistances of an indefinite number of in¬
dependent layers. The layers should not be considered as
independent like the leaves of a book, since they form alto¬
gether a solid mass ; and we cannot imagine a top layer to
be compressed say of its length, and the next below
^ Ttr,qwithou the top layer receiving considerable assist¬
ance from its less strained neighbour to which it is so inti¬
mately united, and which, in its turn, receives successively
similar assistance from every other layer between itself and
the neutral axis. The external laver is not therefore
subject to the strain which is assumed on account of this
assistance which it receives from subsequent layers, and
fracture does not take place so soon as such a theory fore¬
tells.
Ihe mode alluded to of dealing with the forces brought
into action on a beam, when subject to transverse strain,
must therefore lead to a misapprehension regarding the true
directions of these forces ; for instance, the neutral axis is
supposed to be a point situated between the portion of the
beam undergoing compression and that undergoing exten¬
sion, and consequently neither subject to extension nor
compression, it being regarded as absolutely inactive. Now,
this would only be true if the forces called into play were
truly horizontal, which in fact is what the present theory of
beams assumes.
If, however, we consider the relative motions which take
place amongst the particles comprising the upper portions
of a beam when undergoing compression, and those under¬
going extension in the lower portion, it will at once be per¬
ceived that an infinite number of diagonal lines, passino-
through the region near what is called the neutral axis, may
be drawn exhibiting the direction of a variety of forces,
both compressive and tensile, and which are not represented
by the horizontal lines alone taken into account by the
above theory. It is conceived that this mode of looking at
the subject shows more clearly than any other that no actual
neutral axis can exist; that is, no portion of a beam under
Iron
Bridges.
il
592
IRON BRIDGES.
Iron
Bridges.
strain can be in a quiescent or passiee state
this more clearly, let us refer to the
figure which represents the centre por¬
tion of a beam, the vertmal line bd
beincr in fact the centre line.
Lit us suppose the beam to be loa.led
at the top point b, then when deflec¬
tion takes place, the pomts a and o w II
recede from each other, and at equal dis-
tances from the point rf, but the other
extremities of these diagonal lines will
be fixed in the point b by equal forces,
To illustrate
6 S
be seauently there will be a direct strain down these lines
of tension. ^ Again, the diagonals de and df suffer com¬
pression, being shortened by the approach of the points e
^Innumerable other diagonal lines in all possible angles
micrht be drawn from these points b and d, in which the
forces of extension and compression might be traced cros*-
ine each other in all directions ; therefore, as we have be-
fofe observed, when a beam is subjected to such a strain as
is caused bv a horizontal load, and by which pressure natu¬
rally takes place, there is no part of such a beam in a qui¬
escent state. Now, respecting the neutral axis referred
even to horizontal strains, it is assumed to be free from such
strains by the following geometrical reasoning,—viz., it a
rectangular parallelogram be bent into a curve, the outer
line being extended and the inner line shortened, there
must be some line between the two which will neither be
extended nor shortened; but it does not follow from this
geometrical fact that the line is free from strain because it
fs unaltered in length. A beam is curved by the effect of
strain throughout, and every line in it, excepting the ver
tical lines, is curved, including, of course, that called t e
neutral axis; and the fact of that line being curved shows
evidently a molecular disturbance which is certainly pro
duced by force, and therefore it is strained.
The other assumption in the above theory, which rendeis
it dependent upon the kind of material of which the beam
is composed,—viz., that the reaction of a compressed or
extended fibre is proportionate to the amount of compres¬
sion or extension,—has within moderate limits been proved
to be correct as regards wrought iron and cast iron, t e
amount of the extension or compression caused by 1 ton in
a bar 1 inch square, being respectively oi lts ’
and T1Tfonrth of its length, or twice as great for the former
as forthe latter; similarly, if the pressure or tension is twice
or three times as great, the alteration in length will also be¬
come twice or three times as great, but as we approach the
ultimate strength of the iron this law entirely ceases, t ie
compression or extension then increasing m a much mgi e
ratio than the force applied. The assumption, tensio
sic vis, on which this theory of a beam is founded, only
therefore holds good within moderate limits; and this vari¬
ation, combined with the erroneous assumption of the
of the fibres as being independent layers, before al uded
to, gives rise to the anomalies which exist between theory
and experiment, and renders the solution of the problem
extremely difficult. _ ...
To Mr Eaton Hodgkinson the credit is more especiahy
due of pointing out the proper relative proportions of the
top and bottom flanges ; but the section which these propor¬
tions rendered it necessary to adopt, caused the true valuation
of the entire section to be so tedious, and even difficult, in
the summation of the moments on each side of the neutral
axis,—which in this case was not in the mid section, that
that gentleman thought it far better to consider the vertical
rib as useless to resist horizontal strains, giving it only
sufficient strength to resist lateral strains, to connect the
top and bottom flanges, and transmit the strains between
them. Therefore, without any complexity of formulae, the
strength of the beam was considered to exist in its flanges,
and to vary simply as their distance apart, or as the depth
of the beam. „ , ,. , i j-
The investigations made by Mr Hodgkmson led directly
or indirectly to a great part of the information we possess
respecting the properties of wrought and cast iron. He
found the ultimate resistance of cast iron to be as follows,
viz., the extension 6-5 tons per square inch, and in com¬
pression 40 tons per square inch. He determined, more¬
over, the variation in length within certain limits of a
cast-iron bar 1 inch square subjected to strain to be about
i—th of its length per ton. Similarly with ordinal y
wrought iron, the ukimate resistance was determined to be
18-6 tons per square inch in extension, and 16 tons in
compression, and the elongation of an inch bar ot
its length per ton. He applied these practical results in
determining the flexure and strength of girders and pilla ,
and corroborated the accuracy of his deductions by number¬
less experiments rivalling in practical value his earlier in-
Ve&If we neglect the vertical rib of a girder, a very simple
view may be taken of its action in resisting a horizontal
load, and the result will agree exactly with what we have
given with respect to arched beams. In fact, the rule
comes universally applicable to beams generally, and may
be briefly explained as follows:
Iron
Bridges.
Fig. 19.
Let ABCD be a girder, loaded at W, and
, • . a j tj The forces are transmitted along the
the points A and B. ^e torces construct the
diagonal lines AW and BW . It we now
parallelogram of forces on the diagonals we shalM ave
\Vn reoresenting the vertical force, or halt tiie weig
SxSt Sfe bearings A and B and K, -1, represent
the horizontal strain at the eerare o length we
the whole depth, Wn=d, and An-half the length, we
shall have—
\V MV l
d'-2
-2:W=4d'
which is the horizontal strain at the P«int W- ^in, ^up-
pose we consider W to act as a fulcrum with the weignt
acting at A or B-^; the moment of this force will be
W and the horizontal strain acting with the
2*2 4 ’ _W/
leverage d will be S x and by equating these
MVl
or S=^-, as beiore.
By a similar method of reasoning ^dkcanbe
at any other point caused b) a loau i
determined. we will endeavour to
Referring once more to the figure,
determine the strain at the Poin^ ^ & fuicrum, and
Still considering the point W to a
the weight to act upwards at each of the points A and B,
IRON BRIDGES.
Iron
Bridges.
each half beam will act as a cantilever or as a beam fixed
at one end and loaded at the other.
W
The weight -j- will act with a leverage r = distance wC
W
with an effect x r, and the horizontal strain at w acts
with a leverage d, its moment being S xd; therefore
sa=rJ ani S==rW
4 2d
which becomes, when r =
l
2’
S
w/
4c?’
as before.
The requisite strength of the top and bottom flanges of
a girder to support any weight at the centre is thus at once
determined.
If the weight, instead of being placed on the centre of
the girder, be equally distributed over its length, it is evi¬
dent we still have a load equal to ^ at each end of the
girder as before, but the horizontal strain at the centre W
is now only half what it was in the former case; it is, in
fact, the same as though one-half of the entire distributed
weight were accumulated at the centre, and this will be
easily understood if we reflect, that although the weight at
W
each end is still each half of the beam no longer tends
to fold itself around the point W, at the centre of the beam
as before, but around a series of points equally distributed
along the beam as shown in the figure.
I’ig. 20.
The weights wx, w2, w3, iv^ See., may be considered as
acting at their centre of gravity, half way between the
points of bearing, and one-half only of their pressure acts
directly at the centre in a vertical direction.
We may suppose the whole weight to exist in the form
of two solid bars AC, CB, laid upon the beam, one-half of
the weight of which is evidently supported at A and B, pro-
Eig. 21.
the rectangle of the segments into which the given point
Fig. 22.
divides the beam to the strain at that point. Or referring
to the figure, we have, expressed algebraically,
the strain at the point O.
For all these beams or girders a general rule appertains,
which is
in which W = the load, a the area of the section strained,
l the length, and C the constant as before. With respect
to this rule, however, it will be necessary to observe that
the constant C will vary according to circumstances—that
is, it will be different for beams loaded and placed in diffe¬
rent positions.
The above rule equally applies to a solid section where
a = bd, and bd2 = ad; and to show the analogy between
the preceding rules for the horizontal strains and the above,
we shall have for a beam loaded in the middle
S =
4d ’
and W =
4S
and therefore, in this instance C = — ; but if the load be
8S a
uniform C= this constant will, therefore, be different
for all the various applications of the load and position of
the beam.
We shall now consider those simple girders which have
open work sides, including the trellis and Warren girders.
If the top and bottom flanges of an equally loaded girder
are united by vertical bars, the elements of a beam are
wanting in such a system, and flexure takes place, as in
593
Iron
Bridges.
ducing no transverse strain on the beam, while the other
half alone acts directly at C.
The beam at the centre therefore suffers from an equally
distributed weight only half as much as though the same
weight were accumulated at the centre, therefore we have
for the horizontal strain in the centre, caused bv a uniform
load,
h 8d‘
And to find the strain at any other point caused by a uni¬
form load, we have the following proportion :—As the
square of the half span is to the strain at the centre, so is
VOL XII.
Fig. 23.
the figure. The diagonals CEj, C^, C2E;j, &c., become
elongated, while the diagonals ACj, E.C,, E2C3, &c., be¬
come shortened, this distortion being greatest at the ends
of the beam, and nothing at the centre panel C4E5.
Assuming the curve to be a circle, the number of the
panels to be n, and T and Tj to be tangents at C and C5;
it is evident, that since the chords are equal, the angles
TCCj, CjCCj, &c.,“ are all equal, and the angle DCT,
which measures the distortion of the first rectangle, is n
times as great as the angle TC5C4, which measures the
distoition of the rectangle at the centre; consequently when
n becomes infinite, as in a girder with plain sides, the angle
4 F
594
IRON BRIDGES.
in the centre = 0, or the strain on the centre diagonals is no-
thingj increasing regularly towards each extienuty* this re-
suit niust be considered rather as an illustration than a demon¬
stration ; but to illustrate this important subject more fully,
let us first consider all the verticals and diagonals perfectly
inelastic, confining our attention to one panel C4E5. It
is evident that from the compression on the top flange, the
two points C4, C5 must have approached each other, and
the two points E4, E5 must become further removed from
each other : and this change of form of the top and bottom
flange is greatest at the centre of the beam and nothing at
the ends; the ends of the beam CADB do not therefore
remain parallel, but approach each other at the top, and
recede at the bottom. Now it is of extreme importance
to remark, that this distortion of the rectangle C4E5 from
the compression and extension of its top and bottom lines
does not necessarily involve any change in the length of
the verticals or diagonals, or, in other words, it may take
place without producing any strain in them.
If ABCD is the original rectangle, Av B1S C15 D15 will
represent the distorted rec¬
tangle, the side CD being
compressed to C^Dj, the side
AB elongated to AjBj, the
remaining sides A1C1B1D1
and the diagonals A1D1B1C1
remaining precisely of the
same length as in the ori-
ginal rectangle, but the line
of junction of the diagonals is
raised from O to and the Fl?‘24,
whole depth of the beam is diminished.
The girder may therefore, from mere change in its
and bottom flanges, assume the following form, even if
verticals and diagonals were perfectly inelastic.
top
the
Fig. 25.
If, however, these rectangles are filled in with solid plates, it
is evident that these plates must be stretched and compressed,
and consequently distorted through every atom of their com¬
position, before the rectangle ABCD can be changed into
the figure A^CjDj. Hence the remarkable stiffness and
rigidity of girders with solid plates in their sides, and the
small amount of deflection in such girders, as compared
with those whose sides are formed of open or trellis-work;
the difference resolving itself into this—that in the trellis
girder deflection is only resisted by the elasticity of the top
and bottom flanges, and in the girder with solid sides it is
resisted, in addition to the above, by the elasticity of every
particle of material of which the sides are composed.
Again, if we suppose the top and bottom flanges per¬
fectly inelastic, and the verticals and diagonals alone capable
of extension and compression, flexure takes place solely by
the elongation of the diagonals CE4 CjE^, &c., and by simul¬
taneous compression of the diagonals AjC, E^, &c., as in
fig. 24.
In this case the distortion of the rectangles is greatest
at the extremities of the girder, and nothing at the centre ;
the ends would now remain vertical, and, if plates were
substituted for the diagonals, the change of figure of these
plates would again involve compression, extension, and dis¬
tortion of every atom of which they are composed.
We have then this important deduction, that as regards
that portion of the entire flexure of a girder which arises Iron
from extension or compression of the flanges, the trellis- Bridges,
work, whatever may be its strength, does nothing towards
its diminution, while the plate, on the contrary, does resist
this flexure ; and as the distortion is greatest at the centre
of the girder, the centre panel in a trellis girder might be
omitted ; but it is by no means useless to insert a plate on
the centre panel of a solid-sided girder, though such has
generally been assumed to be the case.
Again, as regards that portion of the whole flexure of a
girder which arises from elongation or compression of the
verticals or diagonals, it is evident that such change of form
is greatest at the extremities, and whether plates or trellis-
work be used, the strength of the vertical rib should at
those points be greatest, while at the centre it may be re¬
duced to zero.
Now, in practice, the deflection of the girder arises from
both the above-named causes combined, viz., from the elas¬
ticity of the flanges and that of the vertical rib; and to
secure the least deflection possible, it is evidently necessary
to strengthen the flanges at the centre, to avoid that which
arises from their change of form ; also to strengthen the ver¬
tical rib at the extremities, so as to avoid the deflection
caused by its distortion. We therefore perceive that trellis-
work can only be substituted for plates at a sacrifice of stiff¬
ness, and that plates are efficient in insuring stiffness, even
in the centre panel of the beam.
If we consider the origin of the strain in a girder, we ar¬
rive also at the same result. Let A, B, C, D be the flanges
of a girder with vertical bars between them. Half the
AC. Then the strain on ACj is to the vertical pressure
at A, as the diagonal ACj is to the vertical AC ; the strain
on ACj varies therefore as the cosecant of the angle of in¬
clination CjAC.
Although in a girder with plain sides, the horizontal
strain vanishes at the extremities, this is not the case with
the trellis sides; for the strain on AE is evidently to the
pressure at A, as AE is to EC4, or varies as the tangent
of the angle of inclination C^E. If this angle be 45°,
then the tension on AE is exactly equal to the pressure at A.
The strut AC2 may be replaced by the tension-rod CE,
and with the exception that the strain will now be a tensile
one, it will in every other respect be similar to the strain
on A.
If the strut and tension-rod are both used, each may be
assumed as resisting one-half of the strain that would come
upon either singly.
If a thin plate is inserted, it may be considered as of no
effect, in resisting compression, but as replacing the tension-
rod CE ; and with respect to its requisite strength we may
arrive at a very useful practical approximation as follows :
IRON BRIDGES.
Iron If C1? Ej and C2, E2 are the verticalsasbefore, the portion of
Bridges, shaded plate, takes the place of the tension-rod between
Cj and E2, and being subjected to the same strain, requires the
same sectional area across the lines ab and cd. Each fibre
in the direction of the shading being also of the same length
as the diagonal which they replace, it is evident that the
quantity of material required per panel is approximately the
same whether the diagonal or the plate be employed. We
have alluded to the advantage on the side of the plate
with respect to flexure. It is also evident, from the figure
we have given of the distortion of the plate, that this tensile
strain is not the only efficient resistance it offers to the frac¬
ture of the beam, so that the strength arrived at above is
certainly on the safe side.
Having determined the requisite strength of the diagonals
and verticals of the extreme panel, and of the centre panel,
which, in fact, need only be of sufficient strength to act as
an independent beam in supporting the rolling load which
comes upon it, the strain on the intermediate panels will
be as their distance from the extremity. This may be illus¬
trated as follows:—
If an equally loaded girder be cut in two at the centre,
it will be perfectly restored by the insertion of a strut at C
and a chain at E. The tendency of either half to descend
at E is precisely counterbalanced by the similar tendency
of the other half, and no diagonal is necessary to maintain
equilibrium. If a weight W be placed at the centre of
one half, this equilibrium is destroyed, the point E now has
a tendency to descend vertically, with a pressure equivalent
W
to -^r, and a strut at AC, or a tension-bar BE equivalent
to this strain must now be inserted to restore stability.
Hence the centre panel requires diagonals proportionate to
the weight of the rolling load.
Now, if the beam, instead of being cut through at the
centre, be cut through at any point CE, it is evident that
a strut and a chain will no longer restore the stability of
I'ig. 30.
The vertical strain at
10-0 „
a — —-— = o
; 9"1
h = ~Y =4
c =
d—
8-2
2
7-3
2
= 3
= 4
at centre
e =
/=
6-4
2
5-5
2
= 1
= 0
In addition to these strains, we have evidently to add the
strain produced by the rolling load.
The strain on the verticals throughout is easily deter¬
mined when the strain on the diagonal is known, the verti¬
cal becoming a strut when the diagonal is a tie-bar, and a
tie-bar when the vertical is a strut. When a plate is used,
the vertical evidently becomes a strut; and w hen a diagonal
strut as well as a diagonal tie-bar is employed, or when the
plates become very thick, as in cast-iron girders, it has evi¬
dently no duty to perform, and may be omitted. We have
therefore all the elements of a perfect beam in the follow¬
ing arrangements (1, 2, and 3, fig. 31), in which ties are re¬
presented by dotted lines, and struts by full lines.
595
the system, the portion of the beam EA, supposing its
W
weight to be Wj, acts with a downward pressure — ’ at the
W
point E, which exceeds the downward pressure — of the
other portion. We therefore have a true measure of the
vertical force at every point of the vertical rib, which is
always equal to half the difference of the weights sustained
on the two sections of the beam into which the point di¬
vides it, and at once determines the requisite dimensions
of the diagonals, which are consequently in exact propor¬
tion to their distance from the extremity ; so that if a beam
be supposed 10 feet long, and to have 10 panels, with 1 ton
placed upon each panel, the vertical strains commencing
from the extremity will be as follows :—
Fig. 31.
In No 3 of fig. 31, we have evidently two systems of struts
and ties, and omitting either of them, we have the ordinary
Fig. 32.
Warren and Kennard girder as in fig. 32, which is doubtless
\
596
Iron
Bridges.
IRON BRIDGES.
the simplest possible form of trellis girder that can be con¬
structed, and of which a magnificent example exists in the
Crumlin Viaduct in South Wales.
We shall, however, first describe the Newark Dyke
Bridge, which, with the exception of some small and badly
designed cast-iron girders, was the first, and is still, as re¬
gards span, the largest bridge constructed on this principle.
Newark Dyke Bridge carries the Great Northern line over
a branch of the Trent near Newark, and was erected under
the direction of Mr Joseph Cubitt.
Iron
Bridges.
Fig. 33.—Newark Dyke Bridge.
This bridge (see fig. 34) consists of four independent
girders, viz. two for each line of railway. 1 he roadway is
beneath the girders. The top flange of each girder consists
of a series of cast-iron pipes butting end to end ; the lower
flange consists of wrought-iron links, and the flanges are
connected by diagonals forming a series of equilateral
triangles, and these diagonals are alternately struts and ties.
The ties are formed of wrought-iron, and the struts of cast-
iron : the length of each side of these triangles is 18 feet
6 inches.
inches; over the abutments the diameter is 13| inches, and
the thickness inch. They are turned and fitted into
each other at the joints, where they are connected by
eight bolts and nuts.
The diagonal struts and ties are connected with the top
flange at the centre of every alternate casting by means of
joint pins 5% inches diameter, passing transversely through
the cast-iron pipes which are bored to receive them.
The bottom flange consists of wrought-iron links 18 feet
6 inches long, rolled in one piece of the uniform depth of
9 inches. They vary in number and thickness, increasing
in total sectional area from the abutments to the centre,
where there are fourteen links f ths inch thick. Their ends
are swelled laterally to receive the joint pins by which they
are connected with the diagonals.
The diagonal links are of the same form and dimensions
as those of the bottom flange, as regards length and width,
but are increased in thickness from the centre towards the
abutments.
Fig. 35.
The diagonal struts are of cast-iron, the general section
is that of a cross like the sign -{-, two sides of which are
gradually increased in width from the lower to the upper
end, in which is formed a jaw embracing the top tube and
the diagonal links on each side of it. The joint pins pass
through the two sides of this jaw (see fig. 35), through the
two links and the tube, and then extend across the road to
the opposite girder, and thus form part of a system of
bracing between each pair of girders and over the roadway.
IRON BRIDGES.
Iron At the bottom of the strut there is a circular end piece
Bridges. (see 35^ 13£ jnches diameter and 5 inches thick, through
which is inserted the joint pin similar to that at the top,
fastening together the bottom ties and diagonal struts and
links, and extending in like manner across the whole width
of the bridge.
The horizontal bracing by which the top and bottom of
each pair of girders are connected together, and their la¬
teral stability is insured, consists of hollow east-iron pipes
extending across the road, and through which the ioint pins
also pass. J 1
These sti uts are cross-braced by diagonal wrought-iron
bars 2± inches wide, and connected with them by bolts.
The platform consists of a flooring of Memel fir 8 inches
thick, resting on the links of the bottom tie. These links are
suspended at the middle of their length by a pair of Uth
inch rods secured to the top tube at the" junction of the
diagonals.
On the bearings at each end of the girders are cast-iron
triangular frames, strengthened by a perpendicular rib from
t le apex to the base, i hey are braced transversely by
arched ribs of cast-iron above, and by girders with bracket
pieces below, to prevent any rocking motion. At the top
of these frames are placed blocks of gun metal 10 inches
square, upon which the ends of the top tubes rest. The
wnole weight of the bridge is thus supported on these
frames.
The total length between the supports is 259 feet, and
the depth from centre to centre of the joint pins is 16 feet.
The clear span between the abutments is 240 feet 6 inches.
'ihe total weight of iron is 244 tons 10 cwt., of which
106 tons 5 cwt. is wrought iron, and 138 tons 5 cwt. cast
iron, to which must be added 50 tons for the platform,
making the total weight of each bridge 294 tons 10 cwt.
fhe cost, exclusive of the masonry of the abutments, and
of the permanent rails, but inclusive of the staging for fix¬
ing and the expense of testing, was L.l 1,003.
597
The Crumlin Viaduct.
As a further example of these girders, we have no en¬
gineering monument in this country more remarkable for
lightness and novelty of construction than the viaduct, 150
feet span, which crosses the valley of Crumlin in South
Wales, at an altitude of nearly 200 feet.
The lofty piers on which it is supported are equally novel,
and in perfect keeping with the girders ; they are composed
o groups of cast-iron columns only 12 inches in diameter,
cross-braced, with wrought-iron ties; and the slender and
elegant appearance of this gigantic system of skilfully com¬
bined struts and ties can scarcely be imagined without see¬
ing it. The merit of this design is due to Mr T. W. Ken-
nard, by whom the viaduct was also erected.
The gradations are evident between the simple form of
girders last described, through trellis work of greater and
greater closeness until we arrive at the plate in which the
trellis bars may be considered infinite in number. We
shall not stop to investigate the actual deflections of such
girders, which we have already seen is less as the trellis
bars are more numerous, nor the effects of counter bracino-
on initial strain. These investigations, as well as other ap¬
plications of these principles, such as in the construction of
roofs, do not come within our present scope.
The great importance of the subject, however, cannot
be too strongly urged upon the attention of the engineer.
The evident defects which characterize most of our trellis
bridges arise entirely from the want of any generally
established principles as to their construction, and the too
common error of believing that any number of mere ten¬
sion bars, however arranged or thickly interlaced, can form
an efficient vertical rib to a girder, or in any way modify
the central strain on the top and bottom flanges which de- Iron
pends solely on the depth of the girder, and is perfectly in- Bridgea.
dependent of the system which connects them. *
As the best examples we can introduce of well designed
trellis girders we shall select the Boyne Bridge, and some
simple trellis girders of peculiarly light construction, erect¬
ed by Mr Edwin Clark on the Victor Emmanuel Railway in
Piedmont.
In the first timber bridges constructed in America on Boyne
the trellis principle, the trellis work, and, in fact, the sec- Bridge.
ti°n of ail the parts throughout, was nearly uniform. As
all the trellis rods in one direction act as ties, and in the
opposite direction as struts, there is thus a tendency in
such beams to buckle or twist unless the trellis work is pro-
poitioned for such strain. It is evident, also, from what we
have stated, that as regards trellis work the distortion will
be greatest near the extremities of the beams. In fact,
this has been experienced in some of our first iron trellis
bridges, including the Boyne Bridge, which is the largest,
and one of the earliest of these structures, though great skill
has been evinced in proportioning the various parts to the
strains to which they are subjected.
I his magnificent bridge or viaduct was erected by Sir
John M‘Neil on the line of the Dublin and Belfast Railway
over the River Boyne, near the town of Drogheda.
It consists of three spans, viz., of a centre span of 264
feet, and two side spans, each of 138 feet 8 inches. The
height above high-water spring tides to the soffit of the
bridge is 90 feet.
The bridge is approached at each extremity by a series
of arches 61 feet span.
The roadway is supported by two wrought-iron girders
braced together at intervals over the top. Each span is not
isolated, but the whole are united into one continuous beam
throughout the bridge, and every advantage is taken of the
extra stiffness and strength thus obtained.
When several consecutive girders are thus united so as
to form one single continuous girder, the pressure and the
strains, from the weight of the bridge itself or its load, are
entirely modified. Not only is the absolute deflection at the
centre of the span decreased, but there are points of con-
trary flexure in its length, the portion over the piers pre¬
senting a concave surface at the under side, and the centre
portion between the piers having a convex under surface.
I he horizontal strains by this arrangement are now due
only to the effect of the load on the spans between the
points of contrary flexure, and the beam is virtually short¬
ened. This shortening amounts in a perfectly continu¬
ous beam of equal spans to about two-thirds of the entire
span.
. tjle bric,ge we are describing each girder has double
sides formed of wrought-iron bars crossing each other at
light angles, and at an angle of 45° with the horizon. The
diagonal distance across the meshes, or distance from centre
to centre of joints, is 7 feet 5 inches, and the total depth is
22 feet 6 inches.
. 7?ie Pa'rs diagonal bars which sustain compression are
inside, and connected together by lattice work; the tension
bars being placed on the outside, and rivetted to the com¬
pression bars wherever they cross.
At the centre of the middle span the bars are 10i inches
wide by fths inch thick, and decrease towards the piers
where they are 4| inches wide by fths inch thick.
The cross section of each beam is thus rectangular: the
distance between the sides being 2 feet 3 inches, and the
total width of the top and bottom flanges three feet
The trellis sides are not attached directly to the top and
bottom tables but to a vertical continuous plate, -fths inch
hick and 17f th inches broad, which is reckoned Is part of
these tables. The trellis work is thus only 20 feet 10 inches
in depth, there being 2 feet 10 inches of side plate, which
598
IRON BRIDGES.
is made to form part of the sectional area of the top and
bottom chords, though really its centre of effort to resist
horizontal strains can scarcely be considered to coincide
with that of the actual chords.
The main girders are placed 24 feet 6 inches apart, and
are braced at intervals across the top with trellis cross-
The platform is 24 feet 6 inches wide, and is formed of
6 inch Memel planking resting on transverse lattice beams
3 feet 4 inches deep at the centre, and placed 7 feet 5
inches apart. „
The effective area of the upper flange of each beam is
about 113-5 square inches in the centre of the centre span,
and 127 inches at the lower flange. These areas diminish
towards the points of contrary flexure, where they are at a
minimum. They then increase again towards the piers,
where the areas are at a maximum.
The following table will show the areas at various sec¬
tions of each main beam :—
Square inches.
The top table at the middle has a section of  113'5
The bottom ditto, ditto 127 0
The top table, 45 feet from the piers ditto,   68-5
The bottom ditto, ditto,  68'5
The top table over the piers,  132-6
The bottom ditto, ditto, 127'0
The total combined effective area in the centre of centre
span is said to be 227 square inches, in which, as we before
observed, the area of the connecting side plates is also in¬
cluded.
It is evident that in this bridge the centre span is not a
portion of a perfectly continuous beam, the points of con¬
trary flexure being probably about 210 feet apart.
The centre span was constructed with a camber of 4
inches in the middle, which decreased on removal of the
scaffold to 1^ inch.
In testing the bridge with a load of 2 tons per foot run,
the deflexion was 1-9 inch.
The weight of iron work in the two beams forming the
centre span, and which carry two lines of railway, is as fol¬
lows :—
Tons.
Top chords 105-5
Bottom chords 109-1
Lattice work in the sides  82'8
Tranverse beams overhead   6'8
Roadway beams  46-1
Bracing at top and bottom  10-9
Pillars, stays, &c., over the piers  24-8
Iron
Bridges.
Bridge over
the River
Isere.
386 0
The bridge was opened for traffic on the 5th April 1855.
The bridge constructed to carry the line of the Victor
Emmanuel over the River Isere, at a point between the
villages of Montmeillen and Aiguebelle, in Savoy, is on
the lattice principle, in which the diagonals forming the
web are placed at an angle of 45° with the horizon.
The railway has but a single line of way, and is supported
by two girders, which are continuous throughout, forming a
total length of 558 feet.
The bridge has four uniform openings of 130 feet 4|
inches, and is supported by stone abutments at each end,
and by three piers of solid masonry in the river.
4 he foundations of the piers are on cast-iron cylinders,
three to each pier, 6 feet 6 inches in diameter.
I he thickness of the masonry is 8 feet 10^ inches.
The level of rails is about 18 feet above the bed of the
river ; but the water in floods occasionally rises fully to this
height, and, in the spring of 1856, it carried away a similar
bridge a few miles lower down, and deposited the entire
structure about 20 yards from its site in a perfect state.
The piers and abutments form an angle of 45° with the
direction of the stream.
The depth of the girders is uniform throughout, being
jk-th of the span, or 11 feet 9 inches in extreme.
The usual width of the squares formed by the vertical
gussets is 11 feet 3 inches, therefore there are twelve of
these bays over each opening.
Over each pier, and at the abutments, large cast-iron
frames are placed on each side of the girder to support the
top flange and provide for the additional strain on the web
caused by continuity; and beneath these are sets of cast-
iron bed plates, between which rollers are inserted to allow
of free expansion.
The diagonals of the web that have to withstand princi¬
pally the force of tension are simply bars of which the width
is reduced as the strains become less. For compression the
struts are formed of T iron rivetted back to back, and like¬
wise graduated in size.
The gussets or vertical struts are made up of small angle
irons and plates, which latter are stiffened on their edges
by light T iron.
The diagonals and centre plates of the gussets fit between,
and are rivetted to the deep vertical plates and angle irons
of the upper and lower flanges.
The section of the top of the girder is of the form of a
T, while that of the bottom flange is an inverted T.
The horizontal parts are formed of one row of plates, with
their covers and packing pieces, and the vertical parts of
two plates placed far enough apart to allow of the diagonal
struts and ties fitting between and fastened to the horizontal
chords by two heavy angle irons.
The roadway is supported by very light transverse open
girders of wrought-iron rivetted beneath the lower flanges
of the main girders with which they form right angles.
They are placed 3 feet 9 inches apart, and the weight is
distributed over several of them by similar open wrought-
iron girders fixed in a longitudinal direction under the lines
of rail.
The flooring is simply of 2J inches timber planking, laid
parallel with the rails, and bolted to the transverse girders.
The sectional areas of all parts of the girders vary accord¬
ing to the calculated strains when their continuity as affected
only by the weight of the permanent load is considered, but
the strain under the testing load of a ton per foot run does
not cause a strain of more than 3| tons per square inch for
compression, and 4^ tons for tension.
The greatest possible strain that can be brought upon
the diagonals is much less.
The tendency of the upper part of the girder to lateral
motion is constrained by a few light wrought-iron arches
fixed immediately above the gussets, which being fastened
to the roadway girders, the whole form strong rings or frames
at such points as effectually preserve the rectangular shape
of the trough. For this purpose it was necessary to use
great care in fixing the main girders so that the gussets of
each pier should be in a direct line.
The weight of iron work in each pair of main girders for
each span was 50 tons, and of its proportion of roadway
21 tons. The total weight of iron in the whole structure
is 322 tons wrought and 15 tons cast-iron.
On the same line of railway there are also two other
bridges, similar in every respect, but of only a single span
each.
The girders being therefore independent, the weight is
slightly increased ; that of the pair of girders to each
bridge being 72 tons, and of the whole bridge with roadway
96 tons.
We will now give an example of a bridge with flanged Bridgeovei
girders, which also belongs to the class “ Simple Girders, t*16
The bridge we are about to describe crosses the River
Yssel, and carries the extension line of the Dutch Rhenish
Railway.
The River Yssel, during the melting and breaking up of
Iron
Bridges.
the ice, becomes a wide and deep stream, and very dano-e-
rous. The project of a bridge to carry the railway over it
was at first considered by the Dutch engineers as being so
very difficult of execution, and so impossible to make secure
that, when definite plans were submitted, an enormous in¬
crease of strength in the design was required to withstand
the action of the ice, which they considered would become
jammed together into one mass across the whole of the
river, and thus, being acted upon by the whole force of the
stream, would carry away the entire structure unless extra¬
ordinary strength and solidity were used. To meet these
views the girders were made on the close boiler-plate
principle, and the bridge was supported by cast-iron cylin¬
ders (two to each pier) each 15 feet diameter, except the
centre cylinder which carries the roller path of a swivel
bridge, and is 28 feet diameter.
The brid£e has six openings, of which the two centre
ones are each 50 feet in the clear, and are crossed by con¬
tinuous wrought-iron girders, which revolve on the 28 feet
cylinder, forming the swivel bridge with two openings.
1 he other openings are each 164 feet in the clear
1 he bridge carries a double line of railway, which it sup¬
ports by three parallel girders, the centre ones being double
the strength of the others. These principal girders are
made perfectly continuous for the two spans on each side
of the centie, and therefore their height is uniform between
t ie centi Co of these spans. Since there are but two cylin-
deis used for each {He,-, the centre girder is supported on
sandwich girders, consisting of wrought-iron plates placed
vertically, with wmod bolted between them. By this ar¬
rangement the clear span is increased to 172 feet.
i he upper flange of each main centre girder is formed of
cast-iron, the extreme halves exactly corresponding, so
that, if brought together, they would form an arch; but as
tiey are constructed, appear like an arch cut asunder
spaced apart by a parallel beam. The tensile strain in the
top, induced by continuity, is entirely borne by wroujrht-
iron plates attached to the web above the cast-iron, which
extend throughout the parallel part, but vary in section
proportionately to the strain ; and therefore over the centre
piers there is no strain whatever on the cast-iron, which in
consequence, is much reduced in size.
The lower flange of the centre girder is made up of four
rows of plates, and four rows of angle iron. The web is
made double, forming a box between which the cast-iron of
the top flange is inserted. The side girders are simply of
the ordinary I shape, but a single web plate being used, the
castings of the top flange are attached outside the web and
are surmounted at the central part by a wrought-iron plate.
Hie bottom flange is also formed of four rows of plates of
less width and thickness than those in the centre. These
main girders are fixed in the centre, and the ends resting-
on rollers can readily expand. The roadway throughout
the bridge is of 12-inch balks, placed 12 inches apart” sus¬
pended to the lower flanges of the girders. The swivel
bridge turns on a central steel pivot and twenty rollers
each 2 feet 8 inches diameter, fixed to radial arms, and re¬
tained in place by a strong wrought-iron girder ring. They
are of cast-iron, turned, and revolve between the planed
conical surfaces of the upper and lower tram-plates. The
adjustment for the bearing at the ends of the girders is by
wedges moved by machinery. J
The weight of wrought-iron used in the whole super¬
structure was 851 tons, and of cast-iron 336 tons, and the
weight of wrought-iron in the lower ends of the cylinders
was 64 tons, and of cast-iron 508 tons. Much of the above
weight was unnecessary, and was merely added to over¬
come the scruples of the Dutch government engineers.
Utfier examples of similar construction mav be adduced in
c i-j u bottom flanSe and web of the girders are formed
of solid boiler plates, and the top flange of a combination
IRON BRIDGES.
of wrought and cast-iron, the latter being generally in ex¬
cess. Amongst those remarkable for their large span may
be mentioned the bridge that carries the line of the Man¬
chester South Junction and Altringham Railway over the
River Mersey in the town of Warrington, which is of 180
feet clear span ; and another, but larger structure, connect¬
ing the same line of railway with the Birkenhead, Lan¬
cashire, and Cheshire Junction Railway at Walton, near
Harrington, which is parallel to the brick viaduct on the
London and North-Western Railway, and also crosses the
Mersey and Irwell Canal. The centre span of this bridge is
^le others are tbe respective spans of
, ’ , ’ and 3? feet, with a bridge constructed to open of
the clear span of 53 feet. The larger girders bear on 9
feet cylinders, and the smaller on cylinders of 6 feet dia¬
meter.
(4.) Trussed Girders.
It must be remembered that the only material employed
in the construction of girders on their first introduction was
cast-iron.
Its uncertainty and weakness when exposed to tensile
stra.in, as in the lower flange of a girder, soon attracted the
notice of engineers. Little benefit was obtained by increase
of thickness ; for the treacherous character of the material
increased rapidly with the mass in which it is cast, and
simple girders were thus limited in their dimension to very
moderate spans. 1 he difficulty of uniting cast-iron rendered
impracticable the attempt to build up such girders of sepa¬
rate castings, and nothing remained but to attempt to
strengthen the lower flange by the addition of wrought-
iron tension rods. The first difficulty that presented itself
was to secure a due degree of tension on the rods so em¬
ployed, as the mere attachment of them to the lower mem¬
ber of the girder without initial strain, though it might pre¬
vent the destruction of the girder in case of the fracture of
the lower flange, would evidently do but little towards pre¬
venting such fracture. It was with this object that the rods
employed were attached at each extremity of the girder to its
upper flange, and at the centre only brought down below
the bottom flanges, and were then brought into tension,
t is evident that by tightening the screws by which these
rods were suspended any amount of initial strain could thus
e put upon the wrought-iron ties, causing a correspondino-
counter strain in the girder itself; and while the rolling load
was sufficient to cause a deflection equal to the counter
strain thus given, no strain could come upon the lower
flange of the girder itself. Provided the upper flange were
sufficient to resist the thrust to which it is subject, it is evi¬
dent that such girders are far less liable to accident than
simple castings, and are capable of application to much
larger spans.
The determination of the strength of such girders is, how¬
ever, a difficult task. A serious accident, moreover, which
occurred from the failure of a girder of this description at
tie Dee Bridge, near Chester, has entirely put an end to
their employment. In these bridges, the cast-iron girder
formed the who e depth of the truss, the tension rods pass¬
ing beneath its lower flange ; it therefore possessed consi-
c eiable strength as an independent girder, without count¬
ing on any assistance from the truss. Such girders are in
fact, compound girders formed by combining the truss with
the simple girder, the upper flange doing duty as a com¬
pression bar in both systems, and being thus subjected to
two independent strains. J
It is evident, therefore, that if the upper flange is simply
proportioned to its duty as the top flange of "the simple
guder, it will be of insufficient strength for its additional
duties as part of the truss. It has been argued, that from
the perfect union of the top flange with the vertical rib, a
599
Iron
Bridges.
600
Iron
Bridges.
IRON BRIDGES.
considerable portion of the whole girder might be taken as
forming part of the truss. It is, however, evidently impos¬
sible by calculation to say how far such assistance may be
relied on ; and a still greater objection exists in the fact
that such girders consist of two systems, the ultimate de¬
flections of which are utterly different,-the girder for in¬
stance may be broken before the truss attains half its ulti
mate deflection, or has done half its duty. T he objection
to this girder is common to all girders in which two inde¬
pendent systems are attempted to be blended ; and, as a
general principle, all such arrangements should be avoided
It has always been usual, in order to obtain additional
strength in the attachment of the three castings or which
such girders are composed, to increase their depth where
they are united as well as at each extremity ot the girdei,
and the tie-rods, instead of being in a line with the upper
flano-e of the girder, are attached to the upper portion ot
this increased depth. It is certain that in such an anange-
* Fig. 33.
ment we have no right, in calculating the strength of the
truss, to count on the additional depth so obtained, and it
has been contended that girders so trussed may in some
cases have been actually weakened. This appears, how¬
ever, to be scarcely possible, when we reflect that in all
such girders as are usually constructed the tightening of the
ties increases the camber of the girder. It is useless to say
more on the subject of this form of girder, as since the
adoption of wrought-iron for girders they have been en¬
tirely superseded ; they were designed when no other means Iron
existed of obtaining iron girders of great span ; and the Bridges,
melancholy accident which occurred at Chester is the only
existing instance of their failure, while the evidence given
on that occasion renders it highly probable that even in
that case the fracture was occasioned by the train running
off the line. In the trussed girders over the River Arno,
in Italy, strained tie-rods were introduced beneath the lower
flange from end to end of the girder, and the experiments
made on this girder were highly satisfactory.
One example ot this system exists in the bridge carry-
ing the road from Banbury to Lutterworth over the London
and Birmingham Railway (fig. 37). Span 64 feet.
There are six ribs which have a double curved form, or
rather that of a parabolic spindle ; the lower curve being
formed by a wrought-iron tie-bar, and the upper one by a
cast-iron arch ; the space between the two is tilled by cast-
iron ornamental panels, which are made to act as struts,
and for the purpose of keeping the bottom tie-bar in the
proper line of curvature and strain. 1 he tie is in two
parts, with eyes at each end, and pins passing through
them, which take the ultimate strain. A very ingenious ar¬
rangement is applied at the centre of the rib tor the pur¬
pose of adjusting the degree of tension upon the tie-beam.
It consists of a vertical tubular strut, attached to the top
arch by a screw, which is also used to force it down upon
the tie. On the top of the arch there is a kind of plate-
band cast with it, which forms the level for the cast-iron
road plates. The structure is exceedingly tasteful in ap¬
pearance ; and the nice arrangement in the parts makes it
something more of a mechanical contrivance than is gene¬
rally understood by an iron bridge.
Minories
Bridge.
Fig. 37.—Elevation of back of Main Ilib.
As an example of these bridges, we shall describe one
of the earliest and largest, viz., the trussed girder bridge
of 63 feet span, erected by Mr Bidder, for carrying the
Blackwall Railway across the Minories in London. This
structure, as well as all the bridges on the line, was not
originally designed to carry locomotives, the line being
worked by a rope. It is fortunate that in this, as in mos
of our early railway works, sufficient excess of strength was
given to allow of the greatly increased weight of our pre¬
sent railway traffic as compared with what was then anti¬
cipated. The bridge consists of 6 girders, viz., two oiffsi e
girders and 2 girders beneath each line of rails. Eaci
Iron
Bridges.
girder is formed of three separate castings with upper and
lower flanges. The upper flange is 8 inches wide, and the
bottom 2 feet wide. The general depth is 3 feet, but the
depth is increased at each extremity of each casting to 4
feet 6 inches. The joints by which they are bolted end
to end is thus 4 feet 6 inches deep. The joint is farther
strengthened by wrought-iron clips beneath the bottom
flange.
1 he trussing rods, by which the tensile strain on the
lower flange is relieved, and by which an initial camber
was given to the girders, consist of wrought-iron bar 5
inches wide and 1 inch thick, placed in pairs on each side of
the girders. I hese links are attached to the top flanges of
the girders at their extremities, and descend diagonally to
the bottom flanges at each joint, where they are connected
with each other, and with the girder by a pin passing
through the latter. They are tightened up by means of
keys at each end of the girder.
The bridge has subsequently been widened by movino-
one of the outside girders so as to admit of the introduction
i an?,.ler of rail.s’ the girders being strengthened by
t ie addition of top pieces which are firmly bolted to the
JJPPer flange> making the total depth of altered girders 5
After the accident which occurred at Chester, similar
additions were made to many then existing girders, an ad¬
ditional top flange being inserted in a direct line between
the attachment of the tie-rods.
The above girders resemble in principle another ordinary
form of trussed girder used for travelling cranes and other
IRON BRIDGES.
purposes where light girders of considerable span are re¬
quired timber being frequently used for compression, and
wrought-iron tie-bars for tension. The depth in such cases v
is generally obtained by the insertion of one or more light
cast-iron standards or struts between the tie-bar and the
timber. The principles on which the strength of such
girders is calculated are perfectly identical with those
given at page 592, inasmuch as the centre of the timber
strut may be taken as a fulcrum, and the strain on the
rods depend upon the distance from this point. The stiff-
ness of such girders is of course greatly increased by the
addition of diagonals between the standards, and in this
601
Iron
Bridges.
Fig. 38.
form, when made of durable materials, they become excel-
Ire rfqutred ^ PUrP°SeS ^ m°derate sPans <4
We have, however, two examples of bridges of enor¬
mous dimensions constructed on the same type viz thp pu
Chepstow and Saltash Bridges, both of which have’’been BriX?"
erected by Mr I. K. Brunei, and both of them equally re- S ’
mm-kable for their gigantic proportions, and the engineering
difficulties which had to be overcome, not only in the su¬
perstructure, but in their foundations. y
Fig. 39.—Chepstow Bridge (Elevation of Central Span.)
The Chepstow Bridge (fig. 39) carries the South M
Kailway over the River Wye at a height of 46 feet al
high water The remarkable rise of the tide which che
tenzes the Bristol Channel is well known, and at Chep
briXeahnha? 41 feet ;.at.high springs the elevation S
two k?ndb F OW,Water 18 thuS nearly double. In this br
consist/nf r ^ are emP,0yed-°ne half of the br
consists of ordinary wrought-iron girders of 100 feet s
VOL. XII.
resting on cast-iron columns; in the other half, the road¬
way is carried over the river by the trussed girders, which
have a span of no less than 305 feet. This portion of the
bndge is in fact a rigid suspension bridge, the tension of
the chains being resisted not as an ordinary bridge by at¬
tachment to the ground at each end, but by a horizontal
cylindrica! wrought-iron column, or strut, 9 feet in diameter
and fths inch thick, which reposes on the towers at each end
4 Gr
602
IRON BRIDGES.
Iron
Bridges.
of the bridge. Instead of the ordinary catenary the chain
consists of three straight links only.^ T e and
the flexure of the hori¬
zontal column is prevented
by their mutual attach¬
ment by diagonal and ver¬
tical bracing, the girders
which carry the roadway
are suspended from the
chain at two points only,
viz., at each end of the
centre link. T hese girders
are thus divided into three
nearly equal spans, and are
supported at each end by
cast-iron.
The tower at the extre¬
mity of the bridge rests
upon the precipitous rock
which bounds the river, but
at the other end upon a
pier consisting of six cast-
iron columns, which pass
through 50 feet of mud
down to the rock beneath.
The mode of sinking these
cylinders was novel. They
were placed in their posi¬
tion on the site of the pier,
which is dry at low water,
and the mud was exca¬
vated till they began to
sink with their own weight,
when fresh lengths were
added on the top as the
previous lengths sank down.
They were thus ultimately
bedded on the rock, and
filled up with concrete. The
Fig. 39 (End view). cylinders are carried up to
a height of 190 feet, and are connected at the top by the
cast-iron framing and tower which carries the tubes.
The weights of the various parts are as follows:
298 feet run of tube and butt plates  127J Tons.
Hoop of ditto over piers  ...
Side plates, bottom ditto, for attachment of
main chains 
Side plates for attachment of diagonal chains.
Stiffening braces, 26 feet apart  
Rivet heads and snaps   
Total weight of one tube... 161^
Main chains, eyes, pins, &c 
Diagonal chains, ditto   23
Vertical trusses  18? ...
Saddles, collars, &c., at points of suspension... 22
Main roadway girders, transverse floor gird¬
ers,    130
Total weight of iron in one roadway... 460
The tubes or struts are of uniform section throughout,
and are formed of sixteen equal plates f ths inch thick, and
two side plates fths inch thick. The plates are all 10 feet
long, lapped together at sides, and butt-jointed at the ends
with double butt plates, and rivetted togetherwith two rows
of rivets.
(5.) Bowstring Girders.
The difficulty of obtaining abutments capable of resisting
the thrust of large arches, more especially when the use of
2i
4i
4f
iron in their construction allowed of great diminution of
their rise or versed sine, led naturally to the addition of a
chain or tie to resist their thrust. Again, the outline of v
ordinary girders with parallel top and bottom flanges, when
of any magnitude, is by no means agreeable. Depth being
the only visible element of strength, the eye does not fail
to perceive that such an outline implies equal horizontal
strains throughout, where we feel that the strains at the
ends of a beam merge entirely into a vertical direction, and
that depth is there useless. In large girders the depth at
the centre was therefore alone increased, and the top took
an arched form, the curve being generally a parabola; the
analogy of such a girder with the bowstring arch is at once
apparent. It is, however, of great importance to understand
thoroughly the difference between these two systems.
The strain at the centre of each of them is, as we have
before seen, perfectly identical. The weight supported at
the ends is also in both cases equal to half the weight of
the girder; but the manner in which these similar vertical
forces are converted into similar horizontal forces between
their origin at the points of bearing and their mutual equili¬
brium at the centre of each girder, is in each case entirely
different, and the horizontal strain in the top and bottom
flanges varies accordingly.
In an uniformly loaded ordinary girder, with parallel top
and bottom flanges as we have already shown, the hori¬
zontal strain varies at any point of the flanges as the rectangle
of the segments into which the point divides the span. We
must, therefore, in order to insure equal strains throughout,
either diminish the section of the flanges in that proportion
as we recede from the centre, or we must diminish the depth
of the girder in a similar proportion, preserving uniformity of
section in the flanges. In either case the strain per square
inch remains constant throughout the whole length of the
flanges; but, as their actual section at corresponding points
is entirely different, it is evident that the actual strains to
which they are subjected are also entirely different. Now,
as these strains arise entirely from the action of the vertical
rib which connects the flanges, it is evident that the duties
of the vertical rib are entirely different in the two cases.
Iron
Bridges.
Fig. 40.
Fig. 41.
In the parallel-sided girder (fig. 40), in which the up¬
per and lower members taper off to 0 at the extremities,
the plate A1 requires sufficient stiffness and strength, both
vertically and diagonally, to support half the weight of t c
girder, and will be the thickest side plate in the girder ; but
in the parabolic-shaped girder (fig. 41), where the flanges
maintain their full section to the end, the plate A requires
no such additional strength, and may be reduced to nothing.
In fact, if we now omit the vertical rib altogether, fig. 4
is a bowstring girder. These girders, therefore, have little
analogy except as regards the strain at their centres, oi,
which alone is identical on both ; the difference between the
two girders is evident.
In fig. 40 the horizontal strain in the flanges is at a maxi¬
mum at the centre, and decreases to 0 at each end, an
the section varies in a similar proportion.
In fig. 41 the horizontal strain on the flanges is constant
throughout their length, and the section is also uniibrm
throughout.
In fig. 40 the vertical strains from the point of support are
thrown gradually into the flanges by the action of the ver-
IRON BRIDGES.
Iron
Bridges.
tical rib. They are nothing at the centre, and at a maxi¬
mum at the ends where they are entirely resisted by the
' vertical rib. J
In fig. 41 the vertical stiain is thrown directly into the
flanges without the intervention of any vertical rib.
Now, a bowstring girder is such an arch, with horizontal
ties to resist its thrust in lieu of abutments, and as regards
supporting its own weight, if the arch be one of equilibrium
and the ties are suspended from the arch to preserve their
horizontal position, no diagonal bracing or vertical rib of
any kind is necessary. We may, therefore, at once apply
all the principles applicable to the ordinary arch in investi¬
gating the strains of such a girder.
It is evident, however, in the same manner as with the
arch, that such a structure in equilibrium would not sup¬
port any unequal load. The best means of givino- rigidity
to this skeleton arch is a problem on which much ingenuity
has been expended. There are three methods by which
the rigidity has been obtained,-!^ By giving sufficient
ng'dity to the arch itself, or the ties themselves, or both to
ensure the requisite stiffness as in the High-level Bridge at
Newcastle; 2d, By cross-bracing between the arch and
the ties as in the Monkland Canal Bridge; and, 3d, By an
independent system of trussing or framing, combined with
the arch and ties as in the proposed girders for the Mayence
Bridge, and in most American timber bridges. By any of
these additions, or rather by a combination of them all, it is
probable that this system of girder is capable of very great
extension. An example of each of these bridges is here
given.
. ^ earfiest railway bridge on the bowstring principle
is that over the Regents Canal, near Chalk Farm, on the
London and Birmingham Railway (see fig. 42).
It is composed of three main ribs of cast-iron open panel-
woik, whose outline is parallel, but which includes an arc
extending to its extremities of length and depth, and inter¬
secting the vertical bars which form the panels. The span is
50 feet and the height of the ribs 10 feet. The section of
each rib is in the form of a hollow rectangle 2 feet 11 inches
wide, and the space between its sides is filled with diagonal
bracing-frames 5 feet 10 inches apart.
The railway is carried by cast-iron girders of the fish-
603
Fig. 42.—Regent Canal Bridge.
bellied shape, 28 feet between bearings and 1 foot 10
inches deep in the
middle ; they are
suspended from the
bracing - frames in
the main ribs by
wrought - iron sus¬
pension rods 2\ in¬
ches diameter; there
being sockets in the
bracing - frames to
receive their upper
ends, and in the
ends of the cross¬
girders to receive
their lower ends.
The centre main rib performs double duty ; and its brac¬
ing frames have double sockets, and carry two suspension
rods. In addition to the ribs themselves in resisting the
strain of the load there are longitudinal tie-bars under each
rib, there being four under each outside rib in a horizontal
row, and eight under the centre rib in two horizontal rows.
These tie-rods are secured to the bearing ends of the main
ribs, and are in three lengths, each united by sockets, gibs,
and keys. Upon the cross girders are oak sleepers for the
rails ; and the entire space between the rails is filled in with
cast-iron plates perforated in the form of trellis-work.
I he outsides of the outer ribs are ornamented with cast-
iron mouldings and fret-work. This bridge is of very
bold design, and certainly a novelty as regards construction.
1 he finest example of the kind of structure we are al¬
luding to is undoubtedly the High-level bridge at New-
mmm
Fig. 42.—{Transverse Section. )
castle-on- Tyne. This bridge (fig. 43), which crosses the side of which these towns are built. The old bridge crosses
River lyne, unites the towns of Gateshead and Newcastle, the river at the bottom of the valley, and the want of a
I he 1 yne runs through a deep valley or ravine, on each bridge at the high-level was long severely felt by the in-
Iron
Bridges.
604
Irot?
Bridges.
IKON BRIDGES.
habitants for the accommodation of their local traffic. So the great cost of the undertaking rendered it at that time
f„7 Wk as the commencement of the present century, tmposstble to carry any of them into effect, and they ivere
various plans were projected to meet this requirement; but reluctantly abandoned.
Iron
Bridges.
Tig. 43.—(Plan.)
The traffic between the two towns, however, rapidly and
constantly increased, especially when Gateshead became
the terminus of the Southern Railways, which were thus en¬
tirely isolated from the lines north of the Tyne ; some other
means of communication between the termini at Gateshead
and Newcastle became now, in fact, indispensable, the cost
of conveyance of passengers and merchandise by coaches
and omnibuses across the old bridge reaching the enormous
amount of L.1000 per week.
In a work so indispensable for both interests the local
authorities gladly co-operated with the railways, and it was
at length determined to construct the present bridge, and
to carry both a public road and the railway across it.
There are two platforms, the upper platform carries three
lines of railway, while the lower forms the common public
road.
The breadth of the river at this spot, at high water, is 515
feet, but the whole distance between the Gateshead station
and the central terminus on the Newcastle side is about 4000
feet. The approaches of the railway (as will be seen by the
engraving) are curves in contrary directions, but those of
the public road below are straight.
The bridge is in six spans, each of 125 feet, and the
superstructure is supported on stone piers and abutments,
at a height to the soffit, above high water, of 83 feet.
The foundations consist of piles, the spaces between
which are filled up with concrete. Many of the piles are
40 feet long, and all are driven through the hard sand and
gravel, forming the bed of the river, until they reach the
solid rock.
Many difficulties occurred in driving the piles which con¬
siderably retarded the progress of the work, and, among
others, the peculiar effect of ebb and flow during this opera¬
tion is worthy of note. At flood-tide the sand became so
hard as almost totally to resist the utmost efforts of driving,
while at ebb the sand was quite loose, and allowed of doing
so with facility. It was therefore found necessary to aban¬
don the driving on many occasions during high water.
The difference between high and low water is 11 feet 6
inches.
Another difficulty arose from the quicksands beneath the
foundations. Although the piles were driven to the rock
bottom, the water forced its way up, baffling the attempts to
fill in between them ; this, however, was remedied by using
a concrete made of broken stone and Roman cement, which
was continually thrown in until the bottom was found to be
secure.
The piles were driven by Nasmyth’s Steam Pile-driver, Nasmyth’s
this being one of the first cases in which this valuablePlle;
engine was used, a foundation was thus obtained, which &
certainly would not have been possible by the ordinary
means.
The ram weighed a ton and a-half and had a fall of 2
feet 9 inches. It was worked incessantly, night and day,
driving at the rate of sixty or seventy strokes per minute.
In several instances the pile heads burst into flame, and
burnt fiercely under this rapid action of the ram.
In setting out the spans previous to the driving of the Guage
permanent piles, guage piles were driven with the ordinary Ppes-
pile-engine as deep as they would go. When the steam
pile-driver was introduced, an experiment was tried with it
upon one of them, which was driven to a farther depth of 15
feet.
One of the foundation piles was tested with a load of 150 T®s^°
tons which was allowed to remain several days, and upon P1 es’
its removal no settlement whatever had taken place. The
piles are 4 feet from centre to centre, and the utmost that
can come upon one of them is 70 tons, supposing none of
the weight to be carried by the intervening space of plank¬
ing and concrete. _ ,
The foundations of the abutments are upon a bed
strong clay, under-lying the sand and gravel at a depth ofabutmeIltS)
18 feet; no piles are used ; the abutments are of stone simi- &c-
lar to the piers. The roadway is carried for a considerable
distance upon each side of the bridge upon masonry arches
of very durable construction. Designs for the proposed
Iron entrances to the bridge, and in keeping with the architee-
isriages. turai features 0f the structure were designed by the emd-
neer, but have not yet, for financial reasons, been carried
into effect.
The cofferdams for the piers (none being used for the
abutments) were formed in double tiers, filled in with pud¬
dle. The piles were not drawn, but were cut off level with
the bed of the river by a circular saw, the lower part re¬
maining to pi otect the foundations as well as to avoid dis¬
turbing the bottom by their extraction.
The foundation course lies about 2 feet below low water.
The stone is of a hard and durable quality, and came from
the neighbourhood, viz., a portion from Heddon-on-the-
Wall, and the remainder from Corbridffe.
ofpiers'&c! The dimensions of the piers are as follows
IRON BRIDGES.
Stone
work.
Area of foundations  76-4 by 22 6 wide.
Base, including cutwater to about 5 feet
above high water  67-4 by 19-6
Footing or springing of piers on cutwater 48-4 by 16-6
Shaft of piers up to level of superstructure 45-10 by 14-0
lengthened by an arched opening of 11 feet 10 inches
7 he most novel features, however, in this structure are
the bowstring arches over the centre portion of 900 feet
This space is crossed by six similar spans. The four centre
spans cross the river, the remaining two are on the slopes
on either side. 1
Each bay is crossed by four main arched ribs with hori¬
zontal tie-bars to resist the thrust. The upper roadway
rests upon the arches, the lower is suspended from them by
wrought-iron suspension rods.
Each arch is cast in five segments, strongly bolted to¬
gether, and when entire is 125 feet in span, with a rise of
17 feet 6 inches from the centre of the tension bars, and of
18 feet 1 ¥ inch from the upper surface of the bed plates.
1 he depth of the arch at the crown is 3 feet 6 inches, and
at the haunches 3 feet 9 inches. The section is that of a
double-flanged girder, the flanges being 12 inches wide, and
2 inches thick on the outer arches, and 3 inches thick in
the internal arches, which have a greater weight to support.
1 he vertical ribs are of the same thickness as the flanges.
1 he sectional area of the external rib at the crown is
133 inches, and of the internal ribs 189 inches; the com¬
bined aiea of section at the crown in the four arches beino-
644, and at the haunches 706 square inches.
The ties consist of flat wrought-iron bars, 7 inches by 1
inch of best scrap iron, with eyes of 3| inches diameter,
bored out of the solid, and pins turned and fitted closely.
Each external rib is tied by four of these bars, and each
internal rib by eight. The sectional area of each external
tie is 28 inches, and of each internal tie 56 inches, giving
a total area of 168 square inches.
These bars were all tested to 9 tons on the square inch.
The four ribs are disposed in pairs (see cross section);
the two internal ribs being 20 feet 4 inches apart in the
clear for carriage road, and the space between the internal
and external ribs is 6 feet 2 inches, forming a footpath on
each side. 1
The arched ribs are braced between the footpath space
by cast-iron vertical and longtitudinal bracing-frames, with
2-inch tie-bolts passing through them, which extend as near
as possible to the haunches, allowing only a sufficient head¬
way for the passengers.
The spandrils between the arches and the beams which
carry the railway, are filled with cast-iron vertical square
pillars, also braced across with diagonal bracino- frames
similar to those between the ribs. On the tops”of these'
spandrel pillars are trough-shaped longitudinal girders,
which extend along the bridge as continuous beams.
The ribs have square bosses cast on them, corresponding
with the spandrel pillars, and forming horizontal tables for
them to stand on; these were all truly bored and faced.
Ihe spandril pillars are continued downwards, conceal¬
ing the suspension bolts, and add great stiffness to the
superstructure.
On the longitudinal top-girders are the cross-girders,
also of a trough form, cast in one length, extending across
the whole four ribs. The cross-girders have pockets or
shoes cast on them, to receive the ends of the longitudinal
timber-bearers upon which the road-planking is spiked.
All butting joints were planed on their upper surfaces to
receive the bearing ends of the ribs, which were also planed.
On the abutments all the bearings are allowed to expand
and contract, but on the next bearings they are fixed down
firmly with four If-inch bolts and nuts; on the next pier
agam they are free, and so on alternately fixed and free.
Ihere are no rollers, but the bearings have slidino; sur¬
faces provided for the purpose.
I he motion caused by expansion and contraction, ascer¬
tained by observation, was, during a variation of tempera¬
ture of 32 degrees, *92 inch in the whole six spans—■•153
inch per span.
Each arch was temporarily erected at the contractor’s
works, and tested before removal, and all the other de-
Sal reCeived a seParate test previously to this final
The planking is 3 inches thick, jointed and tongued with
hoop iron, and laid in two courses crossing
each other at right angles. The upper course
is caulked and pitched with as much care as
would be bestowed on a ship’s bottom.
The lower roadway is formed of cross plank¬
ing in a similar manner, and is paved with
wooden blocks 4^ inches cube of a new con- Fig. 44.
struction. The blocks are cut at the upper surface, in
formofashoulder(fig.44), so that when , ,,
they are all in close contact they show —jl-
so many grooves, which extend to half j
their depth (fig. 45), the channels being —
an inch in width.
The surface on which the blocks
were laid was covered with pitch; the
blocks were dipped in hot pitch and laid,
and the grooves filled with broken stone
1
1
□
□
h1-(
□
□
□
nr
□l
dr
r-rr
....... L..wrv.cu Biunt: Fig.45.
ove/Lli' 1“ laJ'el;.?f PiteV"d final|y of sand was spread
upon this paving.681^ 'aS ma<ie but li,tle imPression
The quantity of masonry was,—
17*34 7.77„t’b“d *PProach«s- “P-222 ““ feet ashlar
'“rubbfeTmSjTrSSI CUb“ feet 877
TO,"’d,6co7rLC.Ul’iC fee‘ “hI‘r; 43U ?"d“ 1712
The total weight of cast-iron was  47284 tons
The total weight of wrought-iron was  321J
Total
The cost of the bridge was,—
5050
Masonry, including coffer-dams  L 119 OOO
Iron work, including road, railway, &c.. 114 000
Temporary bridge f.’. “"i; io.OOO
L.243,000
605
Iron
Bridges.
Februar^fs^^fftr10!?^1116 suPerstructure was cast in
September 1849 g<i °Pened ^ the “
606
IRON BRIDGES.
Iron
Bridges.
the Caledonian Railway. The laminated timber arches of
the old bridge were always much distorted, and as in many
similar bridges which were constructed on our early rail¬
ways, were beginning rapidly to decay, from the play of the
timbers and the infiltration of water into the joints and
between the planks of which the arches were composed.
Such arches me undesirable for exposed structures in a
damp climate, though peculiarly adapted for roofs where
the arches are sheltered from the weather, as in many sta¬
tions on the Caledonian line, and more especially on the
magnificent roof of the Great Northern Railway station at
King’s Cross. The railway passed over these arches, which,
from their dangerous state, were shored up, and it was of
the utmost importance to replace them by some other
structure without interfering with the traffic over more
than one line at a time. Wrought-iron bowstring girders
were therefore used on account of their lightness and the
facilities they gave for adding but little weight to the old
bridge during their construction upon it. The arch or top
member of these girders is partly wrought, and partly cast-
iron, and this construction has been found advantageous
and economical. A similar combination has been adopted by
Mr Clark in the bridge at Arnheim over the Yssel, on the
Walton Viaduct, the large girder-bridge at Warrington, &c.
The lower flange or tie consists of wrought-iron plates
as in the bottom of an ordinary flanged wrought-iron
girder. The stiffness of the tie is secured by a deep verti¬
cal rib which forms a portion of its effective section, and
which renders it sufficiently rigid not only for supporting
the roadway, but also for assisting materially in preserving
the arch from vertical change of form. This is farther se¬
cured by a similar vertical rib which forms a portion of the
effective section of the arch. The vertical and diagonal
bracing which connects the arch and the tie are attached
conveniently to these vertical ribs. The arch consists of
three ribs, the centre being nearly double the strength
of the external ribs. The total length of the girders is 148
feet, and the depth is about TVth of the length, or 15 feet.
The duty of the diagonal bracing is simply to preserve
the form of the girder under a rolling load, and in order to
insure a sufficient connection between the arch and the tie
at each extremity, the panels at the extremities are filled in Iron
with close plates. The transverse timbers which carry the Bridges,
roadway, and which are simply bolted up beneath the lower ■v'****'
flange, are 8 inches deep, and are placed close side by side,
running across the whole bridge. Such a roadway is re¬
newed with extreme facility, and occupies the least possible
depth. The arches are braced together over the roadway.
The whole weight of these girders for the double line is
only 128 tons, and their substitution for the old bridge did
not occasion the least interruption to the traffic. The sec¬
tional area of the top flanges is 120 square inches, viz.,
60 square inches of wrought-iron, and 115 square inches of
cast-iron. The sectional area of the lower Hange or tie is
150 square inches.
As examples of the third method of securing vertical
rigidity in such girders we may refer to most of the large
timber viaducts erected in America, where the arch is
combined in numberless ways with horizontal trussed or
trellis girders with great ingenuity and simplicity of detail.
Wrought-iron arches of a somewhat similar description
have been designed by Mr Clark for the bridge at Mayence
on the Rhine.
In this case the arches have a versed line of about one-
tenth of their length, and are connected over several spans
as well as rendered rigid by a continuous wrought-iron
trellis girder of half the depth of the arch which is in sec¬
tion a wrought-iron rectangular box.
This roadway girder is extremely light, its duty being only
to distribute the weight of the rolling load. It offers great
facilities for the erection of the arches, and secures them
from lateral motion by partially filling in the spandrels over
the piers. It also breaks the extremely undulating outline
which independent arches would present. It is moreover
evident that great benefit is derived from the continuity
thus given to the various spans. It is believed that, in
cases where the roadway can be placed on the top of this
continuous girder to allow of cross-bracing beneath it, this
system is peculiarly applicable to spans of great magnitude.
There is a peculiar bow-string bridge erected on the
Gloucester and Birmingham Railway, by Captain Moor-
som (fig. 46), which is worthy of notice.
Fig. 46.—Cheltenham Bridge.
The roadway is carried by two main ribs of 45 feet span,
each of which is in form of an arch with an arched chord;
the top member is 9 inches deep by 3 inches in thickness,
and the lower member or chord is one foot 6 inches deep,
and is of the double-flanged form. The whole rise of the
top member of the rib from the springing is 7 feet 3 inches,
and that of the lower member or chord is 1 foot 6 inches;
the space between them at the centre being 4 feet 3 inches.
Each rib is in five castings; and the top and bottom mem¬
bers are tied together by vertical bolts, 2 feet 5f inches
apart.
I he roadway plates are carried on a series of cast-iron
beams on the skew, one end resting on the walls, the other
in shoes, provided on the lower member of the ribs. Three
of the cross beams bear at both ends on the walls; the
beams themselves are curved with a camber of 1 foot 6
inches, and are tied together with bolts. The whole plat¬
form is carried by roadway plates of cast-iron, on which the
road materials are placed.
(6.) Tubular Girders.
In the ordinary plate girder we seem to have arrived at
the limits of simplicity of construction. A top and bottom
flange with a vertical rib, all composed of plates, and united
by angle irons, form a beam, the calculation of the strength
of which is within the reach of every one. As soon, how¬
ever, as we exceed very moderate limits, difficulties arise
entirely beyond the reach of theoretical research, which
are in fact quite independent of the action of such a beam
as a girder, but arise from the distortion of form to which
such a system, supported only on two distant and limited
IRON BRIDGES.
Iron bearing surfaces, must as a whole be liable, more espe-
Bndges. cially as expansion and contraction prevent any rigid at-
tachment even on these contracted supports.
It is in meeting such difficulties in large structures that
the skill and judgment of the engineer is really taxed when
he exceeds the limits of actual experience. In the design
of the Britannia Bridge, it was the mere arrangement of
materials to resist the transverse strain which composed the
difficulty of the problem. It was rather the practical con¬
struction of any such structure at all; the difficulty of ob¬
taining the materials required, or of adopting such as were
obtainable to such new purposes, and of devising a beam
not merely of sufficient strength for its ultimate use as a
bridge, but of sufficient independent rigidity for retaining
its form not only when in place, but during its erection on
its temporary scaffold, its floatation on unstable pontoons,
and the ultimate raising of it into its place suspended iso¬
lated from four simple chairs.
The tubular girder alone seems really adapted to such
varied strains; and it is difficult to conceive even now, with
all our subsequent experience, any other means than those
adopted of solving the great problem which thus inaugu¬
rated a new epoch in the history of bridge construction, and
led directly not only to our present theoretical knowledge
of the principles of beams, but to all those numberless ele¬
gant and ingenious practical combinations of wrought-iron
in bridge construction, which it has been our province to
describe.
1 hese remarks on a subject now becoming old, are neces¬
sary, because great misapprehension exists as to the real
objects in view in the construction of the first tubular
bridges, and which, though probably the only constructions
possible under such circumstances, and unsurpassed in point
of simplicity of construction or economy by any other kind
of beam, are yet not necessarily of universal application.
The chief examples existing at present of tubular bridges
of any magnitude are the following :—
1. The Conway Bridge.
2. The Britannia Bridge.
3. The Brotherton Bridge over the River Aire.
4. The bridge over the Nile.
5. The Victoria Bridge over the St Lawrence.
In all these cases, a tubular bridge simply means a pair
of girders, with their top and bottom flanges of sufficient
horizontal extension to meet and combine, forming a rec-
607
tangular tube or trough, through the interior of which, or Iron
upon the top of which, the roadway may be laid. Bridges.
It may here be stated, that the result of experiments
made with that object had directly proved that which might
at first sight appear problematical, viz., that with such ex¬
tensive horizontal development of the top and bottom
flanges, the whole of their sectional area acts effectually
in resisting extension or compression throughout the entire
width ; and, in fact, in cases of absolute fracture, where
such beams have been broken in the experiments, the tear¬
ing asunder of the bottom plates actually commenced at
about the middle of the tube, and not at tlie outside edges.
The whole of the principles applicable to simple girders are
thus directly applicable to these bridges, and full details of
these principles and of their application, with a minute de¬
scription of the construction and erection of the Britannia
and Conway Bridges, together with an account of the ex¬
tensive series of experiments made in connection with
these works, and of the practical deductions thus arrived at,
will be found in Mr Edwin Clark’s work on this subject, to
which the reader has before been frequently referred. We
shall here merely give a few details, and draw attention to
some of the circumstances which must be taken into ac¬
count in considering these works as simple beams.
The Britannia Bridge, which carries the Chester and
Holyhead Railway over the Menai Straits (see figs. 47 and
48), consists of two independent continuous wrought-iron
tubular beams 1511 feet in length, and weighing 4680 tons
each, independent of the cast-iron frames inserted at their
bearings on the towers. They are 15 feet wide, and vary in
depth from 23 feet at the ends to 30 feet at the centre. They
rest on two abutments and three towers of masonry, at a
height of 100 feet above high water. The roadway is laid
along the bottom, viz., one line of rails in each tube. Idle
centre or Britannia tower, which is altogether 230 feet high,
is built on a rock in the middle of the Straits. The bridge has
thus four spans, viz., two spans of 460 feet over the water,
and two spans of 230 feet over the land. On each side the
weight of a single span of 470 feet is 1587 tons, and of a span
of 242 feet 630 tons. These tubes repose solidly on the
centre tow'er, but repose on roller beds on the land towers
and abutments. Now, these gigantic dimensions are by no
means the only remarkable features in this work. The op¬
ponents of the Holyhead Road had imposed conditions on
the Chester and Holyhead Railway, wdiich were thought
insurmountable with respect to this bridge. The navigation
Fig 47. Britani:ia Bridge—(Fart Elevation).
was not to be interrupted—no scaffolding could thus be used
—and the clear height of 100 feet was to be retained through¬
out ; arches being objected to unless the springing and not
the centre was at this elevation. The tides set through
this portion of the Strait with a velocity of 9 miles per hour,
anc. the quiet water at each turn of the tide lasts but for a
IKON BKIDGES.
608
Iron very short space of time. The tubes were designed to
Bridges. meet ap these requirements ; they were so constructed at a
considerable distance from their permanent site on the
shores of the Straits, they were floated upon pontoons upon
these rapid tides to the base of the towers, and they were
then drawn up by hydraulic presses to their required height.
They were here united through the towers by the insertion
of shorter lengths, and ultimately brought into the condi¬
tions of continuous beams as regards strain, by the means
employed for their junction. It is evident such structures
would be designed specially for such varied circumstances,
for example,—
As soon as they were completed on temporary platforms,
these platforms were removed, and they became isolated
beams; the ends were accordingly strengthened with cast
and wrought-iron framing for this special object, and had
they always remained there the sides might have been
throughout considerably lighter than they are ; they now
weigh nearly 40 per cent, of the whole weight. But in the
next operation, that of floating, the tubes were liable to be
supported at any point of their length, besides being sub¬
jected to chances of considerable distortion, and to disasters
which on more than one occasion did actually threaten their
entire destruction. The stilfening frames and gussets, which
in an ordinary girder would have only been necessary at
the ends, became therefore necessary throughout the whole
length, and even the top and bottom were considerably
modified, as it is evident that while overhanging the pon¬
toons on each end to the extent of 70 feet, that the top, Iron
instead of being in compression was thrown into exten- Bridges,
sion ; the weight of the tubes was consequently much in-
creased by these arrangements. Again, they had to be
raised by being suspended freely from four chains. Provi¬
sion for this suspension from such limited attachment had
also to be made of a totally opposite character from that
made for their vertical support when on their bed; and, ulti¬
mately, when raised to their place, they remained no longer
independent beams, but were converted into continuous
beams,—parts before in tension being now thrown into com¬
pression, and vice versa ; while the ends which were before
subject to no horizontal strain were now exposed to greater
strain than even the centre of the span. And, last of all,
during the act of raising one of these enormous masses, the
press from which it was suspended burst, and one end of
the beam fell through a space of no less than 9 inches on
to a loose uneven heap of planks beneath it, bulging in the
bottom plates, breaking all the castings, distorting seriously
the sides and stiffening frames; while the broken press itself,
which descended from a height of about 100 feet above, broke
through the top plates and completed the crippling of the
whole section of support. It may surely be doubted whether
anything but a tube could have stood such unexampled
violence ; and in proportioning the parts of a structure
destined for such usage, the mere considei'ation of the strain
to which as an ordinary beam it would be subjected, formed
but a part of the problem ; no direct comparison can there¬
fore be made between the weight of this bridge and an or¬
dinary beam. If this were the case with the large spans,
it is still more so with the small spans of 230 feet, which as
simple beams would weigh only 230 tons each, whereas
their actual weight is 650 tons. But it must be borne in
mind that as regards the bridge itself these small spans were
not required at all, and that they were merely designed and
used as counterpoises for the large tubes, for the important
purpose of converting them into continuous beams by their
overhanging weight. By examining their detail, it will be
found they are designed solely for this special purpose, their
use as beams being made entirely subsidiary.
Some misapprehension exists on the object and import¬
ance of the cells of which the top and bottom of these
tubes is composed. These cells are rectangular, there be¬
ing eight of them in the top and six of them in the bottom,
and they run throughout the bridge. With respect to their
importance, it must be observed that the whole section of
the top of the Britannia tube at the centre is 648f25
square inches, and of the bottom 585'43 square inches,
and that the tube is 15 feet wide ; the thickness of a single
plate to ensure this section would therefore have been 2'7
inches for the top, and 2'3 inches for the bottom ; and had
such a plate been procurable, nothing better could have
been desired, and the cells would be unnecessary. Such a
thing, however, is evidently impossible, and the engineer in
this, as in numberless other details, had to adopt what he could
obtain ; now the arrangement of the plates in cells is almost
the only conceivable arrangement possible for obtaining
the required section, allowing access, at the same time, to
every part for construction and future maintenance. This
alone led to their use in the bottom of the tube, where their
form was totally unimportant. With respect to the top,
however, it was of great importance, since thick plates could
not be had, to ascertain the best form of cell for resistance
to compression that could be devised with thin plates. A
series of valuable experiments by Mr Eaton Hodgkinson led
to the use of the rectangular cells as actually used, not be¬
cause such form presented any peculiar advantage over any
other form, as some have imagined, but because these ex¬
periments demonstrated that cells of that magnitude and
thickness were independent of form, and are crushed only
by the actual crushing of the iron itself; under these cir-
Iron
Bridges
Bridge
over the
Aire.
cumstances, the square cells were used as the best practical
method of obtaining the sectional area required.
Similar misapprehension also exists as to the considom.
turns which led to the rectangular form of the tubes them
selves. Now, the result of direct experiments made wbh
round, oval, and rectangular tubes—there being precisely
the same section and weight in all three, and, consequently
d.fferentdepths-was, that the circular tube was the weakest
and the oval tube the strongest, the rectangular form beX
intermediate. The oval tube was, indeed, first studied with
a view to its use. Its form, however, was not favourable
neither for its actual construction, nor for its connection
with the suspension chains, which were originally intended
to be used in the erection; and practical consideration® in
this case, also compelled the use of the rectangular tube
It must also be remarked, that the result of experiments
made on round, oval, and rectangular wrought-iron tubes
when reduced to the same depth and compared, was in
IS"!! f reCtanSular fm;m’ alth°ugh wUhin ordinary
limits vhe form was not proved to be a matter of very great
importance. It may be added, that this bridge hLXw
been in use six years, that the deflection has been ca™
ly tested, from time to time, with the utmost precision
and that not the slightest perceptible increase has taken
place during that period. The care with which the paint-
rnnfhr atten.de,d’ and the protection afforded by the
^of, have also entirely preserved it from the slightest da¬
mage by oxidation ; and it is difficult to conceive^hat even
t re orm^ T/Tf. Can„in ^ Wa? affect ^ch a struc¬
ture, or to doubt that it will remain one of the most dura-
oft’he" enmrtam y f T °f the mOSt remarkaWe monuments
mif enterPuse present century.
Rr;:ahe CoRnway Brldse is in most respects similar to the
Britannia Bridge, the local peculiarities of site being nearly
imilar. It consists of only two tubes of 400 feet spa/
placed side by side, and weighing each 1180 tons. The
same provisions, as regards its strength, were made for
efe Lml'itk aCe T1 raisil!S il! b,“’38 tl,e sPan is si"-
gle, and it is not a continuous beam, the general arrange-
ment of the plates is entirely different on the two bridge!
land" BrothCT;°" I«dge, on the York and North Mid-
and, the span of which is nearly identical with the small
spans of the Britannia Bridge, viz, 225 feet, it was possible
to compose the top of a single plate, and no cells whatever
have been used, either on the top or bottom.
ie depth of these tubes is 20 feet, and their width be¬
tween the side plates is 11 feet.
Each tube rests on two sets of rollers at one extremity,
the other being bolted down to the pier. The rollers are
IRON BRIDGES.
the top was narrower than the bottom, so that their section
n-o
, . o ^ me jjici . j. ne rollers are
placed at the extreme outsides of the tube, immediately
under the sides extending inwards only 2 feet 3 inches.
1 ne roller-plates are bedded on creosoted timber The
bearmgs are stiffened by cast-iron standards, three on each
side, firmly bolted to the side plates. Each standard is about
: in, sectlonal area at the bottom, and tapers to
about 30 inches section at the top.
The rails are laid on longitudinal timbers, which are
meted m th mterVfls of 5 fee\ hy anSle ir°n brackets,
meted to the cross beams or keelsons^
The weight of one tube is as follows
Between the bearings the wrought-iron  log T„na
On the bearings the wrought-iron 
Cast-iron on the hearings  14i
Cast-iron in rollers and plates
609
Iron
Bridges.
Total weight  235
The rigidity of the tube exemplifies remarkably the
advantage of solid or close sides in diminishing deflection.
A circumstance also occurred in the construction of this’
bridge winch illustrates one of the great advantages pecu-
liai to tubes, viz, their independent strength.
m form given to these tubes is not rectangular, but
VOL. XT1. ° ’
7as pyramidal; their width at the bottom was 11
feet 10 inches, and at the top only 11 feet. Now, after the
opening of the bridge, the width at the level of the carriao-e
windows was objected to by the government inspectors,
although they had previously sanctioned the width on the
rst tube erected. It became necessary, therefore, to widen
e tubes, and this was done in a very interesting manner,
viz, by literally opening the top of the tube down a centre
line throughout its length, and inserting in the opening a
longitudinal plate, 10 inches broad, from end to end. In
this manner the sides were evidently moved farther apart
o a less extent at the level of the carriages. By these
means, and the removal of a portion of the projecting rib
° the T irons the whole was sufficiently widened. No
other kind of beam could evidently have retained its form
during so extraordinary an operation.
t} jy PrinLj.al featurf in t,le Egyptian Railway Bridges is, Egyptian
that the road is earned upon the top of the tubes, and notRaiIway
m their interior. Bridges.
wa3heTBareitWO tubldar v5aducts up°n the Egyptian Rail-
v ay 1 he larger one crosses the Damietta branch of the
Canal atrRek!’ t,he/sTmaIler one crosses the Karrineen
Canal at Berket-el-Saba (Lake of the Lion). These via-
ducts unite two old roads, formerly connected by a ferry,
and each is contiguous to a vice-regal palace.
In the larger viaduct there are ten spans or openings, the
4 H
610
Iron
Bridges.
IRON BRIDGES.
two centre ones comprising one of the largest swing-bridges
that has been attempted. _ . . f •
The total length of the swing-beam is 157 feet, it is
balanced at the middle of its length on a large central pier.
When open to the navigation a clear water-way is left on
either side of the central pier of 60 feet. Each halt of the
beam sustains its own weight as a cantilever, 66 feet longj.
The eight remaining spans are 80 feet in the clear, ar¬
ranged four on each side of the centre portion; and the
total length of the viaduct between the abutments is 865 ieet.
The piers consist of wrought-iron cylinders, 7 feet in
diameter below the level ot low Nile, and 5 feet diameter
above that level. They were sunk by a pneumatic process
to a depth of 33 feet below the bed of the river, through
soil of a peculiarly shifting character, and are filled in with
concrete.
There are six of these cylinders in the central pier which
supports the swing-bridge ; and the adjacent piers on either
side of the centre have each four cylinders; each of the
remaining piers has two cylinders only. 1 he tops of the
cylinders are covered by cast-iron circular plates which
rest entirely upon the concrete, special care being taken to
prevent any contact with the cylinders. On these circular
plates rest the upper cast-iron plates which connect the
piers, and form a seating for the bearing-plates of the
beams.
The beams or tubes are 6 feet 6 inches deep, and 6 feet
6 inches wide at the bottom, tapering to 6 feet wide at top,
and they rest at their ends on rollers working between
planed surfaces to admit of the motion caused by expansion
and contraction.
The tubes carry a single line of way on their tops, the
rails being laid on longitudinal sleepers, and there is also a
roadway 4 feet wide on either side, supported by wrought-
iron brackets bolted to the sides of the tube.
These roadways are of corrugated iron, resting on the
brackets, and stiffened by strips of bar-iron placed trans¬
versely on the top.
The six cylinders for the central pier are also provided
with cast-iron circular plates, as before described, and sur¬
mounted by a framework of cast-iron, uniting the tops of
the cylinders, and serving as the lower tramway for the
rolling machinery.
The revolving machinery consists of a turn-table contain¬
ing eighteen accurately turned conical rollers, their angle
being determined to the greatest nicety, and corresponding
with the angular surfaces of the tram-plates between which
they revolve.
The diameter of this turn-table is 19 feet from centre to
centre of the rollers.
The whole of the rollers, together with the wrought-
iron circular frame to which they are attached, form an in¬
dependent system, usually termed the “ live-ring,” held in
its position by the central pivot. The frame of the “live-
ring” is connected with the rollers by radial spindles with
gun-metal gudgeons at the periphery and centre. And, to
prevent any difference in angular speed between the rollers
and centre portion, a very excellent arrangement is adopted,
which consists in a diagonal strap passing over the central Iron
wheel, and extending to the outer periphery. This strap Bridges,
is keyed up to any adjustment in which it firmly keeps the v"—'
radial spindles.
The swing-tube is firmly attached to the upper tram-plate
by a system of cast-iron bracket-work and strong bolts and
nuts; forming, in fact, as is most essential at this point,
an exceedingly rigid attachment. The centre pivot is
of forged iron, 9 inches diameter, and turned accurately
to fit its bearings. To insure a firm fixing for this pivot,
it is made to pass through the entire depth of the lower
tram-plate into a socket provided for the purpose, in which
position it is firmly keyed. The bridge is turned with faci¬
lity by a capstan worked by two men, with gearing com¬
municating with the large rack surrounding the lower tram-
plate.
To prevent accident to the swing-bridge when open,
“ Fenders” are placed up and down stream, similar in con¬
struction to the piers of the bridge. At the bearing ends of
the swing-bridge arrangements are made for locking it in
its position. These consist of fixed inclined planes attached
to the under surface of the bearing ends of the tube and
corresponding wedges which slide on the piers, which are
made to recede and advance by means of a screw turned
by gear-work.
In the Birket-el-Saba Viaduct the swing portion forms
spans on each side of 43 feet, and the fixed portion consists
of two spans of 70 feet each. In other respects the viaducts
are precisely similar.
Both were commenced in May 1853, and completed for
traffic in October 1855.
It may be here remarked that the duties of a swing-
bridge in resisting strain are greatest when the bridge is
open and only sustaining its own weight. This will be
readily understood by considering the entire swing-bridge
in the condition of a beam supported in the middle, and
loaded at the ends, the action being, in fact, similar to that
illustrated by fig. 17. The centre point in the figure may
represent the centre pier of the swing-bridge; therefore
it is evident that the depth must be proportioned to
the entire length of the swing-beam and not to the mere
span on each side of the centres; and by the simplest
reasoning it will be found that the load of a railway
train, if amounting even to one ton per foot, will not
produce so much strain on the bridge when it is resting at
its ends on the outer piers, as the beam will produce itself
when open and overhanging; for in the former position,
the load, though probably double the weight per foot run
of the beam itselfi is acting on a span supported on each
end, equal to less than half the length of the beam, whereas
in the latter case the weight of the entire beam is acting
at a span which gives it more than twice that leverage.
There are numerous other iron railway bridges of which
we could give examples, but those already given compre¬
hend the whole of the principles of construction adopted.
The engraving (Plate II.) of some of the most important
bridges will give perhaps a more comprehensive idea of
their magnitudes. (R* s0
I K R
Irrawaddy
. II
Irrigation.
IRRAWADDY, a river of Asia, rising at the eastern
extremity of the Himalaya range of mountains, in Lat.
28. 5., Long. 97. 58. It flows in a direction from N. to S.*
traversing the heart of the Burmese empire, which it se¬
parates into two nearly equal divisions. After a course of
790 miles, it reaches the southern frontier of Burmah, and
crossing over into the British province of Pegu, pursues its
course for a further distance of 270 miles, reaching the Bay
of Bengal by several mouths, which form the delta of the
Irrawaddy. At the distance of 550 miles from its source
it flows past the city of Ava, the capital of the Burmese
I R R 611
Empire, 65 miles below which it receives its great con- Irrigation,
fluent the Khyendwen. Fifty miles below the southern i
frontier of Burmah, the Irrawaddy passes the British town
of Prome, 90 miles below which it divaricates into two
principal channels, each measuring about 130 miles in
length. The more westerly of these branches is known as
the River of Bassein, from the town of that name upon its
banks, and discharges itself into the Bay of Bengal, in Lat.
15. 50., Long. 94. 26. The other main branch is de¬
signated the Rangoon River, and falls into the Gulf of
Martaban, in Lat. 16. 28., Long. 96. 24.
IRRIGATION.
Irrigation was the first application of science to agri¬
culture. Nature by it was impressed into the service of
man. Her quiet and unaided processes having been no¬
ticed, they were gradually systematized to a beneficial re¬
sult. And as toiling man dug and laboured at the stubborn
earth to make it yield his corn, he found that bountiful
nature, if rightly directed, would, through the fertilizing in¬
fluence of water, produce perennial crops of grass to feed
his cattle and enrich his corn land. The elements which
are diffused in the air and water are concentrated in the
grass. The grass feeds the cattle, and the cattle support
man. In all countries in which agriculture has made pro¬
gress, meadows and corn land are found conjoined. On
them is developed that assimilating vegetation which gives
unceasingly to the farm without receiving anything. Hence,
wherever farming is understood, irrigated meadows are
highly valued, and, though the art as practised in different
countries varies both with the skill of the people and the
necessities of the climate, it has from remote antiquity
engaged much of the attention of agriculturists.
If, in our comparatively moist climate, we find our crops
in some seasons diminished grievously by a continued
drought, we may have some conception of the necessity
under which those lie who cultivate a soil where rain sel¬
dom or never falls, to call in the aid of irrigation. With
us the water of irrigation may supply either the food of the
plant, or the moisture needed for its vegetation. But in
Peru, Egypt, some parts of Persia, India, and China, the
plant could not even strike root without the aid of water
artificially applied to the parched soil.
Though the operations of irrigation and drainage seem
exactly opposed to each other, they are not in reality so.
The main advantage of irrigation is the deposit of nutrition
to the grass from the water passing over its surface. The
great use of drainage, though at first sight it appears to act
merely by carrying off stagnant water, which would cool
the earth and starve the plant, is to render the soil like an
open filter, through which the water, as it passes off, is de¬
prived of much of its fertilizing qualities, and these are
found stored up in the porous soil, ready for the use of the
roots of plants in search of food. Grass is the surface filter
vyhich retains the fertilizing qualities of the water of irriga¬
tion ; the soil is the underground filter which acts in the
same capacity on the water of drainage. Stagnation is
equally injurious to both. The water of irrigation must
pass over the surface, and that of drainage through the soil
and substratum, before any benefit can arise from its pre¬
sence. 1
According to the parliamentary return of agricultural
statistics for England in 1854 (the accuracy of which un¬
der this head we feel inclined to receive with some doubt),
the extent of land under irrigated meadows is 1,292,329
acres, which is equal to nearly one-half of the land under
clover and artificial grass. The produce of these meadows
and cultivated grasses is chiefly consumed by live stock, the
manure of which goes to a considerable extent to enrich
the arable corn land. Taking England and Wales alone, the
proportions under corn and under cultivated grass are as 3
to 1. In France, according to Lavergne, the proportions
under these crops are'as 9 to 1. That is to say, while in
England every three acres of corn land are enriched bv the
manure produced from one acre of meadow, in France the
same manure has to be spread over nine acres. The result
is that the average produce per acre of wheat in England
is double that of France. Hence we see the importance
of attention to irrigation as a means of increasing the gene-
ral productions of our soil. It has indeed been asserted by
M. Bousingault, the eminent French agricultural chemist
that such is the influence of irrigation that, where the sys¬
tem can be introduced in connection with an arable farm,
the advantage accruing from it in bringing the elements of
lertility on to the farm is greater than the loss sustained by
the land through the sale of its marketable produce.
Ihe quality of the water employed exercises a great in¬
fluence on the effect produced. New facts are constantly
arising in proof of this. 3
. There are four ways of irrigating land with water; and
in order to preserve a command over its motions, it must
in all cases enter the land to be irrigated at a higher level
than where it leaves it. This disposition of materials is the
only way to make water move in a sensible and equable
cunent. 1st, One kind of irrigation is called Bed-work Irri¬
gation, which is the most efficient, though also the most
cost y kind by which currents of water can be applied to
level ground. 2d, Another kind is called Catch-work Irri¬
gation, which is suited to both level and uneven ground.
3d, A third gets the name of Subterraneous Irrigation, from
the water being supplied upwards to the surface through
drains in the subsoil. 4t/i, And the fourth kind is called
V\ arping, when the water is allowed to stand over a level
field till it has deposited the mud it contains.
In addition to these a novel application of the principle
of irrigation has been lately introduced into the farm prac¬
tice of England, and which consists of the application, by
pipes or hose, of the liquid manure of the farm, more or less
diluted with water, to the growing crops, and especially to
the growth of Italian rye grass. As this process is yet only
in an experimental state, we can do no more than refer to it
here.
Several particulars require deliberate consideration be-
fore determining on forming any kind of water meadow.
I he vicinity of a river is desirable, not so much on account
of the supply of water, for that may be obtained in winter be¬
side a mountain torrent or a lake, but on account of the fertiliz¬
ing matter which is generally suspended in the waters of a
river Hence a river, flowing through an alluvial and culti¬
vated country is preferable to one through a mountainous and
locky country. An ample supply of water is absolutely
612
IRRIGATION.
Irrigation, necessary to beneficial irrigation. It is folly to incur the
v   ' expense of forming the most perfect water meadow without
an ample supply of water to fill the channels to overflowing.
The supply of the water must be on a higher level than the
ground to be irrigated. The fall need not be more than is
necessary for a pretty rapid current of water’ ^ch, m
ordinary cases, may be 10 inches or 1 foot for 100 or 200
yards, and about 2 feet for 300 yards. 1 he water, if pos¬
sible, should be taken as far above the meadows as to have
a sufficient fall without damming up the river. When this
plan is impracticable, but only when impracticable, a dam
should be thrown across the stream at such a distance above
the meadow as to secure not only a sufficient fall, but to
protect the fields on both sides from inundation, whether
the fields belong to different proprietors or not. For, in re¬
gard to dams across small streams which form the boundaries
of farms or estates, it may not be irrelevant to mention
that altercations have frequently arisen from supposed
damages arising from inundations or infringements on the
rights of waters. In every case, therefore, of constructing
a dam for irrigation, it will be wise to avoid the chance of
disputes, by acquiring, in the first place, the right for such
an erection by purchase or otherwise. When a dam is in¬
evitable, it should be constructed substantially. The first
cost will be less than the repairing of a dam which has blown
up from under or burst out at the sides. When water cannot
be obtained under these prerequisites, conjoined to an
ample supply, then the formation of water meadows at that
place should be altogether relinquished. But should the
requisite desiderata be available, the field to be converted
into a water meadow should in the first place be thoroughly
drained. The most perfect piece of workmanship as a
water-meadow will be comparatively useless, unless the
water which has passed through the soil to the subsoil find
a free egress by drains. Without drains the water will
inevitably stagnate on the subsoil, unless indeed the sub¬
soil consists of very porous materials, such as chalk, sand,
gravel, or fissured rock.
Besides the particulars enumerated, two essential rules
in the formation of water-meadows should never be ne¬
glected, namely, that no part of them, however small, should
be on a dead level; and that every drop of water, while
irrigating, should be kept constantly in motion. These
rules are founded on the very principle of irrigation which
has been illustrated in the prefatory remarks. True in¬
clined planes can be the only form of surface to which
these rules will strictly apply; but although it may not be
possible to stretch such planes along a great extent of sur¬
face, as ground is proverbially uneven, yet every portion of
it which is watered directly from the main supply should be
so exactly inclined. The spirit-level should be the vade-
mecum of the irrigator, the eye being deceptive in regard to
the levelness of ground; and even with that indispensable in¬
strument, the irrigator will find the formation of a complete
water-meadow on an irregular surface no easy task. Su¬
perficial observers may see little difficulty in the operation;
but the practical irrigator knows how nice a thing it is to
adjust irregularities of ground to the constant and equable
flow of water. So great is this difficulty that none but pro¬
fessional irrigators ought to attempt the formation of water-
meadows, and they ought to be of established character
and experience.
1 he first thing to be done for any water-weadow is to
make the conductor or drain which brings the water from
the liver to the meadow. The size of the conductor de¬
pends entirely on the quantity of water which the meadow
requiies. Its bottom, at its junction with the river, should
always be as low as the bottom of the river, in order to
cany away as much mud as possible to the meadows. Its
couise should be as straight and as near an inclined plane
as possible. I he stuff taken out of the conductor should
be employed in equalizing its banks, or filling up ir- Irrigation,
regularities in the meadow. These general directions
naturally lead to the examination of the particulars of
which the different kinds of water meadows enumerated
consist.
I. BED-WORK IRRIGATION.
This species of irrigation is eminently applicable to level
ground, and under it, as the name implies, the ground is
thrown into beds or ridges. After the conductor has been
brought from the river to the meadow as directed, it should
be led along the highest end or side of the meadow in an
inclined plane; and should it terminate in the meadow,
and not have to proceed farther on to another, its end
should be made to taper when there are no feeders, or to
terminate in a feeder. The tapered end will retard the
motion of the water, and containing, of course, less water,
the water will overflow the banks of the conductor. The
main drain to carry off the water after it has irrigated the
meadow should next be formed. It should be cut in the
lowest part of the ground at the lower end or side of the
meadow. Its dimensions should be capable of carrying off
the whole water used, so quickly as to prevent the least
stagnation, and discharge it into the river. The stuff" taken
out of it should be used to fill up irregularities in the mea¬
dow. In case the river takes a turn along the lower end
or side of the meadow, the turn should be used as a main
drain to carry off the water, and save the expense of cutting
a drain. It may be imagined that as a portion of the water
will be absorbed by the soil, the main drain need not be
made so large as the conductor, merely to carry off the
water that has been used; but in practice it will be found,
that when the water is muddy, very little of it comparatively
will enter the ground, because the sediment, acting as an
impervious covering, prevents much of the water from de¬
scending into the ground. The next process is the forming
of the ground intended for a water-meadow into beds or
ridges. That portion of the ground which is to be watered
by one conductor should be made into beds to suit the cir¬
cumstances of that conductor ; that is, instead of reducing
all the beds over the meadow to one common level, they
should be formed to suit the different swells in the ground,
and should any of these swells be considerable, it will be
necessary to give each side of them its respective conductor.
The beds should run at or nearly at right angles to the line
of the conductor. The breadth of the beds is regulated by
the nature of the soil and the supply of water. Tenacious
soils and subsoils, and a small supply of water, require as
narrow beds as thirty feet. Porous soils and a large supply
of water may have beds of forty feet. The length of the
beds is regulated by the supply of water and the fall from
the conductor to the main drain. If the beds fall only in
one direction longitudinally, their crowns should be made
in the middle; but should they fall laterally as well as lon¬
gitudinally, as is usually the case, then the crowns should
be made towards the upper sides, more or less according to
the lateral slope of the ground. The crowns should rise a
foot above the adjoining furrows. The beds thus formed
should slope in an inclined plane from the conductor to the
main drain, that the water may flow equably over them.
The beds are watered by what are called feeders, that is,
by channels gradually tapering to the lower extremities,
and their crowns cut down, wherever these are placed. 1 he
depth of the feeders depends on their width, and the width
on their length. A bed two hundred yards in length re¬
quires a feeder of twenty inches in width at its junction
with the conductor, and it should taper gradually to the
extremity, which should be one foot in width. The taper
retards the motion of the water, which constantly decreases
IRRIGATION.
Irrigation, by overflow as it proceeds, whilst it continues to fill the
feeder to the brim. The stuff which comes out of the
feeders should be carefully and evenly laid along the sides
of the beds. The water overflowing from the feeders down
the sides of the beds is received into small drains formed
in the furrows between the beds. These small drains dis¬
charge themselves into the main drain, and are in every
respect the reverse of the feeders; that is, their taperino-
extremities lie up the slope, and their wide ends open into
the main drain, to accelerate the motion of the departing
water. The depth of the small drain at the junction is
made about as deep as that of the main drain, and it gra¬
dually lessens towards the taper to six inches in tenacious
and to less in porous soils. The depth of the feeders is the*
same in relation to the conductor. The stuff obtained from
the small drains is employed to fill up inequalities in the
meadow. For the more equal distribution of the water
over the surface of the beds from the conductor and feeders,
small masses, such as stones, solid portions of earth or turf
fastened with pins, are placed in them, in order to retard
the momentum which the water may have acquired. These
stops, as they are termed, are generally placed at regular
intervals, or rather they should be left where any inequality
of the current is observed. Heaps of stones answer very
well for stops in the conductor, particularly immediately
below the points of junction with the feeders. Solid por¬
tions of earth are usually left in the feeders, or tough pieces
of turf fastened down with wooden pins ; but care must be
taken to keep the tops of the pins below the reach of weeds
floating on the surface of the water. These stops, however,
are nothing but expedients to rectify work imperfectly exe¬
cuted. It must be obvious that a perfectly formed water-
meadow should require few or no stops. The small or main
drams require no stops. The descent of the water in the
feeders will no doubt necessarily increase in rapidity, but
the inclination of the beds, and the tapering of the feeders,
should be so adjusted as to counteract the increasing ra¬
pidity. At all events notches cut into the sides of the
feeders to retard the velocity of the water, is much more
objectionable than stops, although some writers recommend
them; but where they have been observed, the spectator
may depend on having seen an imperfect water-meadow.
The distribution of the water over the whole meadow is
regulated by the sluice, which should be placed at the origin
of every conductor. By means of these sluices any portion
of the meadow that is desired can be watered, whilst the
rest remains dry; and alternate watering must be adopted
when there is a scarcity of water. Each sluice should be
placed according to the elevation or depression of the ground
which it supplies with water. All the sluices should be
substantially built at first with stones and mortar; because
a carelessly constructed sluice will permit the leakage of
water at all times; and should the water from the leak be
permitted to find its way into the meadow, that portion of
it will stagnate and produce coarse grasses. In a well
formed water-meadow it is as necessary to keep it perfectly
dry at one time, as it is to place it under water at another.
A small sluice placed in the side of the conductor opposite
to the meadow, and at the upper end of it, will serve to
dram away the leakage that may haply have escaped from
the head sluice. The laying out of the beds, feeders, and
small drains, constitutes the nice part of the formation of a
water-meadow ; it constitutes the test by which the skill of
the irrigator is tried ; and it is impossible to acquire the skill
without practice.
To obtain a complete water-meadow, the ground will
often require to be broken up and remodelled ; for it is rare
to find a piece of ground naturally possessing the requisite
qualifications of a water-meadow. Such a remodelling will
no doubt be attended with cost; but it should be considered
that the first cost is the least; and remodelling the only way
613
of obtaining the desired object of having a complete water- Irrigation,
meadow which will continue for years to give satisfaction. v
To effect a remodelling when the ground is in stubble, let
it be ploughed up, harrowed, and cleaned as in a summer
fallow ; the levelling-box employed when required, the stuff
from the conductors and main drains spread abroad, and
t ie beds ploughed into shape. All these operations, as of
the farm, can be performed at little expense, and they form
t te substantial foundation of the nicer operations of the
spade, the barrow, and the level. The meadow should be
ready by August for sowing with grass-seeds. The seeds
best suited for a water-meadow are perennial rye-grass
{Lohum perenne), sweet-scented vernal grass (Anthoxan-
thum odoratum), crested dog’s tail grass (t'ynosurus crista-
tus), meadow fox-tail grass {Alopecurus pratensis), rough-
stalked meadow-grass (Poa trivialis), and florin (Anrostis
stolonifera). The florin is the prevailing grass in all good
water-meadows, and it makes a most delicious hay. It is
best propagated by sowing the stems chopped into pieces
i e chaff. These grasses do not always produce a good
crop the first year, but the rye-grass will assist to thicken
the crop, borne writers, and particularly Mr Smith in his
ssay on Irrigation, assert that it is of no importance what
grasses are sown in water-meadows, as the most congenial
kinds will in time spring up and banish all the others; but
is it not better to supply the ground at once with the best
grasses than wait for the extirpation of the worst ? The
method now described of forming a water-meadow is at¬
tended with one great disadvantage ; the soft ground cannot
be irrigated for two or three years after it is sown with
grass-seeds. This disadvantage can only be avoided where
the ground is covered with old turf which will bear to be
lifted. On ground in that state a water-meadow may be
most perfectly formed. Let the turf be taken off with the
spade, and laid carefully aside for relaying. Let the strint
ground then be neatly formed with the spade and barrow
into beds varying in breadth and shape, according to the
nature of the soil, and the dip of the ground; the feeders
from the conductor, and the small drains to the main drain
being formed at the same time. Then let the turf be laid
aown again and beaten firm, when the meadow will be com¬
plete at once, and ready for irrigation. This is the most
beautiful and most expeditious method of making a com¬
plete water-meadow where the ground is not naturally suf¬
ficiently level to begin with.
The water should be let on, and trial made of the work
whenever it is finished ; and the motion of the water regu¬
lated by the introduction of a stop in the conductors and
feeders, where a change in the motion of the current is ob¬
served, beginning at the upper end of the meadow. Should
the work be finished as directed by August, a good crop of
hay may be reaped in the succeeding summer. There are
few pieces of land where the natural descent of the ground
will not admit of the water being collected a second time
and applied to the irrigation of a second and lower meadow!
n such a case the main drain of the watered meadow may
form the conductor of the one to be watered, or a new con¬
ductor may be formed by a prolongation of the main drain :
butenher expedient is only advisable where water is scarce
Where it is plentiful, it is better to supply the second mea¬
dow directly from the river, or by a continuation of the
first main conductor. In some instances it may be neces¬
sary to carry a conductor over a hollow piece of ground
along an aqueduct made for the purpose, called * carry-
bridge. Such an aqueduct may be made either of wood
cast-iron, or stone and mortar.
As a real example of a water-meadow, such as has been
described, will illustrate the several particulars specified
more accurately than any imaginative case, fig. 1 is a de¬
sign of one belonging to Mr Loch of Rachan in Peebles-
s me, and executed in 1823 by Mr George Stephens, drainer
IRRIGATION.
Stephens’ Practical Irrigator and Drainer, 1834 (p. 10),
a work of great practical utility. The meadow, as may be
seen in fig. 1, lies on both sides of the River Biggar, and con¬
tains eight acres, partly of clay, but mostly of gravel, and
both resting on a gravelly subsoil. The river supplies the
meadow amply with water. The expense of straightening
the river, building the dam and sluices, and forming embank¬
ments against inundations in every flood, was L.9 per acre.
The work was executed late in spring 1823, and in 1825
four hundred stones of hay per acre were cropped, worth
sixpence per stone, or L.10 per acre, and L.l per acre for
the aftermath, from land that was not worth L.2 per acre
before being irrigated. The references to the cut are these :
a is the Biggar water; b is the dam 30 inches high across it;
c, c, c, c, sluices in conductors; d, d, d, d, d, conductors; e, e, e, e,
feeders; /, /, f f small drains; g, g, g, main drains; h, a drain
for cutting off natural springs ; i, a small sluice on the side
of the conductor, to carry off any leakage of water from the
sluice c; A, a carry-bridge or aqueduct; ll, conductor to
another meadow; . . . . stops in conductors and feeders.
II. CATCH WORK IRRIGATION.
mr bickford’s improved Devonshire system.
We have thought it right to give the details of Mr Bick¬
ford’s system as the best illustration of the catch-work plan,
while it has the advantage of being comparatively cheap in
its first construction, and has met with the approval of emi¬
nent practical agriculturists, such as Mr Pusey, Mr Druce
of Eynsham, and others, who have introduced it into other
counties besides Devonshire with great success. Mr Bick¬
ford thus describes it:—
After nearly twenty years’ experience of this system of watering
meadows in ditferent situations, and under nearly every variety of
circumstance, I may without presumption judge of its value ; and
being confirmed by the experience of my neighbours, whose opi¬
nions are entitled to respect, I venture to offer it to the considera¬
tion of others, believing that the use of this system would have the
general effect of improving irrigated meadows in yearly value from
10s. to 20s. per acre. I am confirmed in this opinion by long ex- Irrigation,
perience, strengthened by the estimate made of it by a few agricul- v ^ y
turists who happen to have had their attention drawn to it—per¬
sons well qualified to judge of such a matter.
This system has the advantage over the common system of obvi¬
ating the necessity for large and frequent level gutters; it has the
effect of continuing (and even causing) a smooth and uniform sur¬
face to the meadow, allowing of the operations of mowing and cart¬
ing over the meadow without any sensible perception of the exist¬
ence of the gutters used for irrigation ; and also, that of accelera¬
ting the speed of the water over the land when “ turned on,” and
the speedily draining the water from the surface when “ turned
off.” In fact, it becomes an instrument in the hands of the irri¬
gator, by means of which he can do with ease whatever his judg¬
ment determines ought to be done. It also obviates that waste of
land occasioned by the usually large gutters. In fine, I profess to
say that it is every way better than the old system : it can be done
in half the time, and for less than half the expense.
Without further preface, I shall proceed with the details of the
plan, and shall endeavour to make it quite intelligible. The chief
features of the system consist in causing the ground intended to be
irrigated to be covered with a net-work of small gutters, intersect¬
ing each other as nearly at right angles as circumstances will per¬
mit. These gutters are about 4 inches wide and 1 inch deep ; they
are cut with a “ die” fixed in a sort of plough of simple con¬
struction, drawn generally by one horse. This net-work of gutters
is fed at the highest level possible, or thought desirable, by a car¬
riage gutter of sufficient size for the purpose, to be determined by
the operator.
The system will be fully brought to view in the course of the
description I shall give of the manner to be pursued in laying down
the levels.
Let fig. 1 be a piece of meadow; look first where the water
enters the meadow,
or where it can be
made to enter. This
is a matter of some
importance, and
should be consider- A
ed well, in order to
get the best supply
of water, at the best
place, and at the
least expense. Let ^
this be ascertained
to be at A in figure j
1. Then estimate
roughly where it
may be supposed the water will run; suppose along the dotted line
1 .... 2. Then take the level (fig. 2), and proceed to mark a
line across the meadow, according to
the following rule. Set the feet Nos. 1
and 2 (fig. 2) level on the ground by
means of the plumb-line 3 ; mark the
place of No. 1; then advance the level
by putting No. 1 in the place of No. 2,
and finding a new place for No. 2 by
means of the plumb; and so proceed
until you have made a level line across
the meadow, subject, however, to cer¬
tain variations, which I shall explain
as occasion may require. Let some
person follow with a spade or something
of the sort, and turn up a bit of sod at
every alternate move of the level, by which means you will have a
bit of sod as a mark, at about every 10 feet. Begin say at B, fig.
1, and proceed as directed, and on a flat piece of ground you will
probably produce a line thus, BC. The arrows marked on the line
show the way the water is to be made to run on in the gutter line ;
to obtain which you must deviate from precise levelling, and allow
the plumb-line to drop a little before the level mark when you are
inclining down the meadow, and a little behind it when you are in¬
clining up the meadow. This will have the effect of running the
water out of the low places, and upon the high places. Care must
be taken in levelling to follow out the indications of the level, how¬
ever crooked and curved the line might appear ; and by all means
to go down around every elevation, and to avoid every disposition
to cut the line straighter, &c., as every straight cut that is made of
that sort will have the effect, more or less, of causing a dry spot be¬
low the gutter, or a pond above it.
Having completed that line, return to the side you first began,
and by no means level backwards. Return, say to D, which should
be about 10 paces down from B; and by proceeding as in BC, you
will very likely produce the line DE. The consequence will be.
IRRIGATION.
Irrigation, that C and E are too far asunder; you must therefore begin at F,
i ^ y and produce the line FG. I have supposed the middle of the mea¬
dow to be lowest, and the meadow itself to be flat, rising on each
side of the middle by two gentle undulations, requiring the lines of
gutter to curve very considerably. The nature of the ground is
supposed to make it necessary now to begin at H, and ttf produce
HI. It will now be perceived that D and I are too far asunder
making it necessary to introduce KL, beginning at K. Then pro¬
ceed to finish out the higher side in like manner.
To avoid crowding the figure, I shall draw it anew, with a few
alterations introduced for the purpose of showing the next process
to advantage.
Let fig. 3 represent a meadow, with all the lines of fig. 1 marked
with the level and
ploughed, but not
“ turned outthe
lines will be suffici¬
ently perceptible to
manage the next
proceeding. It will
be perceived that
the curves of the
lines form a series
of loops, and that
the undulations of
the meadow are
prettily mapped out
615
Fig. 3.
le^vs^16 £Urves down around the hills and up around the val-
wL'tp,] v!1 Ca-n ^ r® Perceive where the water is principally
wLrd bend ’’ JrUSt,^bove wbere the curves form the greatest down¬
in' ? In tbe case before us it is at A, fig. 3. The next
the^hole t0 draW the liDeS Which’ UP°n an average of
ctlar Se’Ji! d ^ augleS t0 the leVel ’ but in each l)arti-
as the rrrlTni & r0r? the rlght angle, more or less, according
nut some « mTe 0r less irreferulai'- The plan I adopt is, to
and bv dre • t0 Ploagh after me, and then I walk on before,
the 'nlonrrh gglnf laave a sufficient stain to mark where
throP t USt f0ll0W- Care must be taken to go as nearly
do thS fi st Cet!lT °lthe downward looPs as possible In order to
t C;Ut the baes \ 2, 3, 4, 5, and then fill up the intervals
anart arr ’ +" ^bey akould be from 10 to 15, or more, paces
them to h n! t0 the taSte °f the 0Perator- I do not at all like
bv nb,, i, S , apart than 15 Paces> but some Persons think that
y placing them closer together you cut too much land.
turf outof theSm!f 18 V bring in the water> after just lifting the
1 out of the gutters already cut. I use, first, a spirit-level, and
2 nchrjthe^t2 P0l®s’ alIovving the gutter to drop 1J inch or
than i fneh ^11 h ? ^ he„gr°Und will allow of it; but not less
, , . , will do at all well. A much larger gutter is required
S *:lnChdr0p tha“ at 2 inches’ and- brides, it will not ru^ itself
dry so well when the water is turned off. The 2-inch drop gutters
w,ll run the ™t.r off directly ; the i-inch will scarcelyTu”
ferther Ifd d ‘0 *he suPP1y «f ,t the
farther end. In the case supposed in fig. 3, it is wanted on the ris¬
ing ground, at the farther end A ; therefore the gutter should drop
but if the watr<ll-ngly 1" ProP°rtion). and be of a good sizef
ter the d is wanted chiefly at the beginning end of the gut-
ei, the drop need not be so much, and the gutter should taper
away so as to end nearly in a point. P
stream Sh°Uld haVe regard to the size of the
c-utter’of m • ^°Ugh t0 Water the Wh0le Piece at times, one
ft wRhmf+SUfC1 S1ZG ^ d° the WOrk’ Sb0uld be IDade ; and to do
t without stops; stops in a gutter are decidedly objectionable
Where he stream is small, make a leading gutter, and take out
from it taper gutters, each of a size suited to the stream when at
“ that the S‘,'“ra (<■'»"■ rain or «„y
whole ^ ^ “any taper-gutters may be used as will disperse the
(““g“r “■and finish
Fig. 4.
e to G .iS a carriage-gutter.as far as c, and a watering-gutter from
« to B « and 6 are watering-gutters taken out of it. When the
Snm ° ‘t0,l “r1 WiU “Me U ,0 '""'k " »i * 2
11 work in b, without any stop it will work in cB If the
should th k mUCh f°r CB’ ^ WiU WOrk b at the same time ; and
all Career irTw 1en°Ugh’ ^ WiU aIs0 fiU « without any stop at
all. Care should be taken not to make AB larger than just to carry
Fig. 5.
the full stream wanted; and in every case when the gutter is got Irrigation.
too large by frequent cleaning out, cut it anew on one side or the   
other.
In levelling, after having marked every 2 poles with the spirit-
level, mark the ground between with the plumb-level every 10
feet or so, and cut accordingly. Make the hedge-trough a carriage-
gutter wherever it can be done conveniently, taking care always
to make the water run in them when so used; and by no means to
have stagnant water in the troughs. Covered gutters made with
large tile could also be substituted for the deep open carriage-gut¬
ter, where it is necessary to cross the middle of meadows; it would
UiS2.vbVlate tbe danSer °f Ibe open gutter to sheep and lambs;
and the extra expense would be partly compensated, as the tiled-
gutter would never require the annual “ cleaning out ”
Genera! rules cannot be laid down to suit every circumstance
that will occur, but practice and an ingenious mind will decide
that which is most fitting on each occasion.
in watering with a small stream which happens to be insufficient
for the whole meadow, the water must be confined to ground deter¬
mined on by stops in the two perpendicular gutters which run on
the two sides of it, thus:—>
Fig. 5 is a
section of the
net - work of
gutters; AB is
the carriage-
gutter ; a is a
taper water¬
ing-gutter, to
the extent of
which the wa¬
ter is supposed
to be deter¬
mined to be
confined; b, c,
d, e, are the
feeding gutters x IB. u,
(perpendicular to the levels); the cross-gutters are the “level”
ones ; b and e serve as the two side gutters of the proposed section
to be watered. The water is confined to the ground between them
by stops at the crossings, ar¬
ranged thus :—b is a crossing
on the feeder (b, fig. 5); and e
is a crossing on the feeder (e,
fg- 5); 1, 2, 3, 4 are stops, the
purpose of which is obvious
enough. The arrows show the
direction the water is made to
run. The stops are pieces of pj™ g
the turf taken out of the gutters, which, being cut with a “ die ” of
that^mav bP° gUtterS,with fatness; by th^means any stoppings
loss 0?g„e ^ are d°“ ‘“'“•'J'' with°“‘ “/‘rouble fr
JitTr are ,,0.t 10 be cut in the seme places two years fol-
iZ7: ?“* 0n.°“ "?» “ »S »„ be conveniently done, say
about a foot and a half from the former ones; and the turf of the
XuHet ZV,1! 6,i ‘?Jbe °‘d 0"'- “re no, to cra„ the
° d * 5“ 100 fttU\ % ‘bis means the gutters are always new and
,P?PerT' 'i'"™ 'be r,*!,.hand side and «6„„,“e
thus tS mi y,ear 6y Sb0uld be cut the ^/f-hand side and below ;
cient at^ f" WayS ^ original position, and be as effi!
made. 7 PG “ they were the first year tb^ were
The objection generally raised against this plan is, that the only
carnage-gutter being at the head (highest level) of the watered
grouml, the best of the water is expended on the first part of the
meadow (which is generally the best and healthiest land), and the
ower part of the meadow (which we have said might want it most)
maS sTch annr*!- af-er haVing been dePrived of ^ best
material Such an objection is more plausible than valid ; experi¬
ence constantly denies that such is the result. I have always^een
whelTnut Pa?8 °f.meadows formerly on the old system improve
• kfPi * under thls system, for however gutters on the old system
m.ght be proviM for carrying the w.te/down to . cerSn (L "
the machinery is so cumbrous that it is seldom used. I mean Hiere
are so many heavy stops and bays to be interfered with, to be re¬
moved, adjusted put in and readjusted, and so on, that it is seldom
nerveitb fen~Stv f neVer USed- What is wanted is a mlchi-
cuky The^lanl18? readilyTwith Pleasure and not with diffi-
?laa 1 advocate is just such a thing; it is easy to use
Ind I T r PlearVt0 d0; and’ f0r that reason. sure to L done
And I shall presently show that it is quite effectual for the purpose
with matterin ^
616
Irrigation,
IRRIGATION.
j musl admit that the stones, gravel, grit, and
even sticks ini leaves with which a stream might be charged m
else of flood would not be carried to the extreme end of a meadow
case ol flood, . but then j say they ought not; and I may
by the mean^^ plan> they ar(3 not . for although gutters
add, in the case the ota ^ ^ ^
iS mUCH ^tter than allowing
violen/gushes of water to create a number of artificial hills and
gullies in the usual way. It is well known (to those who know
nractically anything about it) that, when water is allowed to de¬
fend ^ -utter in a full violent stream, it frets the earth away from
the sides and bottom of the gutter, and the material is washed
down to settle when the current ceases to rush, thus causing two
unsightly evils—a deep gully in one place, and an inconvenient
hillock in another. .
It will he proper now to call attention to the manner in which
the water is carried, with its suspended matter, to the extreme end
of the meadow, by the plan we are pursuing. You will observe
that the ground is covered by a sort of net-work of little gutters,
from the “ leading-in” gutter at the head, to the extreme end of the
piece of ground lying downward from that leading-in gutter ; one
set of gutters, as we have shown, being, in a sort, parallel to each
other intersected by gutters at right angles to them, and also paral¬
lel to each other : this would he strictly true were the surface
strictly a plane surface ; but this being very rarely the case, both
sets deviate from a strictly parallel condition (as we have shown),
in order to meet the undulations of the ground; these deviations
compensate each other on the aggregate. Now, instead of carry¬
ing the water “ down to the lower end” by means of one large
gutter, and then dispersing it by another large gutter (a level one),
we do it by twenty or so little gutters which feed the dispensing
gutter about every ten or fifteen paces; being so small they never
fret away ; being newly cut every year they never increase in size.
These advantages are too manifest to require pointing out.
The sections for watering on our plan are perpendicular sec¬
tions (I call them so for want of a more appropriate term), i.e.,
from the “ leading-in” gutter to the end of the piece—the running
way of the water; and never lateral sections. That is, our section
will be a, b, c, d (fig. 7), for one section, and b, e, d, f for another ;
and never 1, 2, 3, -
c, d, f. The wa¬
ter is not impair¬
ed in quality
while running
down these up¬
right gutters, 4,
5, 6, 7.
We see the rea¬
son of this while
we keep in me¬
mory that water
is only good (as
water) from two <?'   tt
circumstances,— Fig. 7.
viz., 1st, from the purity of its composition (freedom from mineral
properties), in which case the water will be as good at last as at
first; and, 2dlg, for what it holds in solution, not for what it car¬
ries in an insoluble state, for that should be deposited. Now, as
long as this water is kept in motion it carries its solved substances
with it, and the plant (grass) that takes up the material solved takes
up the water also; so that as the water loses its quality it also
loses its volume, partly by evaporation and partly by absorption by
the grasses, consequently the water that remains must be just of the
same quality as at first.
I have not tried any analytic experiment to prove the truth of
what I have here stated, nor do I think it necessary to do so, as it
is of no consequence whether it be true or not to a few quarts of
diminution more or less; but this we know, water does evaporate,
and that vegetables do decompose water for their own nutrition ;
and we know that evaporation carries off little or none of the solved
matter. Upon this I found an argument, and take it as proved,
that as the water diminishes in volume as well as in quality, and
that if those diminutions went on in exact ratio, then the water
would remain, under all circumstances, precisely of the same quality;
and that for all practical purposes which we have now under con¬
sideration, it does so remain. The most satisfactory proof of the
truth of this argument is found in the answer given by the meadows
themselves, viz., that it is true. Experience has assured that the
above reasoning is correct; the water is good to the last.
It is very difficult to prove it by experiments in nature in every
case. The water will act best upon the best land ; therefore to ex¬
pect water to exhibit as much good effect on the lower end of a Irrigatio:
meadow, where the soil is inferior in quality, as it shows on the '—
higher end, where the soil is superior in quality, is to expect what
reason ought not to ask, and that to which nature will never re¬
spond.
But these small gutters are sufficient when the little stops are
taken out of the perpendicular gutters, and the level gutters are
stopped so as to confine the water to the perpendiculars, to carry
down as much water as ought to be carried down. The level gutter
of a lower section (if it is determined that a lateral section shall be
watered), instead of being fed by a large stream at the end, is sup¬
plied every ten or fifteen paces by one of those little gutters, thus
giving an uniform supply throughout the length of the level gutter.
A larger supply than this will afford is an evil, not a good ; you do
not want to wash the surface of your land, you want to irrigate it.
But this fashion of sending down the water is not what I advise ; I
only say it can be done if required. I advise that the sections be¬
gin at the head : a surplus will be found to run into the little gutters
sufficient for the land below.
When the water is shut out from the “ leading-in” gutter it is
not necessary to move any of the little stops; the same perpendi¬
cular gutters that are effectual to run the water on, are as effectual
to run it off, leaving the surface of the meadow dry and solid—a
most manifest advantage.
The water is evenly distributed over the surface of the land by
these minute gutters, which are made to follow all the undulations
of the land, which can never be done by the large gutters; and
also, from the draining effect of the perpendicular gutters, the
water is never suffered to accumulate in ponds. The water on the
meadow is, therefore, never “over-shoe” anywhere.
These gutters are no way dangerous to sheep or lambs, are never
in the way of mowing, have an elegant rather than an unsightly
appearance, are not perceived either in raking or carting, and
suit the horse-rake or hay-making machine admirably.
I am not aware of any circumstances under which this has not
the advantage over the “ old plan.” For wetting the ground in
summer this plan has the decided superiority, as less water will do
the work than will be required merely to fill the level gutters
under the old system. It will be proper to remark, that grass so
raised is scarcely safe for sheep ; it certainly rots their livers. I
found out this at the expense of many sheep. It is perfectly ana¬
logous to a plentiful rain after long drought; grass resulting thus,
proves equally as fatal to sheep as that produced hy summer water¬
ing in a hot dry season, and vice versd.
Where the stream is small, a pond should be made, capable of
holding as much water as will run a good stream for four hours or
more; such a pond would make such a stream valuable as is really
insignificant in itself. A small stream so collected will damp over
thirty acres sufficiently well to secure a crop of hay.
I would just advert to the fact that the leading-in gutters can
be so arranged as to tend themselves in cases of flood ; but the op¬
portunity does not present itself just now for going into that branch
of the subject.1
This comparatively cheap system is rapidly extending,
and is much more worthy ot imitation than the ancient and
costly bed-work plan. Though it was at first chiefly used
on the sloping sides of the Devon and Somersetshire valleys,,
it has been lately applied to levels as flat as the banks of
the Thames. A new meadow of Lord Poltimore’s on this
system has a fall of not more than 1 in 528. And when it
is considered that a catch-work meadow can be formed at
a cost of about L.4 an acre, while on the bed-work system
it will cost from five to ten times that sum, there cannot be
a moment’s doubt of the comparative advantage of the two
systems for general adoption.
MANAGEMENT OE WATER-MEADOWS.
The formation is not the only difficulty attending water-
meadows ; their good management is a nice business, and
essential to the deriving of benefit from them. It must be
confessed that much ignorance and negligence prevail in
their management; and when the risk is considered of losing
the whole of the fine herbage, and getting coarse in its
stead, by bad management, a skilful irrigator is a character
who ought to be highly appreciated. The particulars which
1 Journal of Royal Agricultural Society of England, 1852.
IRRIGATION.
Irrigation, require constant attention are,—the state of the water in the
river, whether there is sufficient to water the whole, or only
a part of the meadow ; the regulating of the sluices, so as
not to permit more nor less water than the part of the mea¬
dow intended to be watered requires; the length of time
the water should be allowed to remain on the°meadow at
diffeient periods of the season ; the proper time at which
hay harvest and pasturage should commence and terminate ;
the state and nature of the soil to be irrigated, whether
porous or impervious ; and the removal of all minute ob¬
structions to the perfect irrigation of the meadow.
Every size of river is not equally suitable for irrigation.
A large flowing ^ stream, supplying sufficient water^at all
times, affords facilities for irrigating a part or the whole of
a meadow, much better than a brook which swells and falls
with every shower of rain. At the same time, whatever
may be the command of water, it is an error to attempt to
irrigate too large a surface at one time. The attempt to
torce a larger quantity of water than the feeders and drains
can easily convey, will end in deluging one part, whilst an-
othei will be stinted; and where there is inequality of irri¬
gation, there will be inequality in the quantity and quality
of the grass. Where there is an ample supply of water,
therefore, no more ground should be irrigated at one time
than can be covered equally to the requisite depth by the
natural force of the water. Where the supply is short of
this, which is more frequently the case, the water should
only have as much ground allotted to it as it can effectually
imgate. The intervals between the irrigations will be
gi eater when the supply of water is scanty than when plen¬
tiful ; but notwithstanding this, the effects produced on the
meadow in both cases may be nearly equal, according as the
weather is favourable or otherwise. The adjustment of the
water by the sluices is a delicate operation under every cir¬
cumstance, but particularly so when there is at times a de¬
ficiency of water. The falling or rising of the water in the
river requires particular attention, and the changing of the
water from one part of the meadow to another, or even from
one bed to another, according to its abundance or deficiency
particular dexterity. Attention to the sluices for a short
time every day, will obviate many risks of bad management.
A great error may be committed by permitting the water
to remain too long on the ground at a time. Unless the
ground gets the air and becomes dry at stated periods, the
fmer grasses will be destroyed, and those of coarse quality
will spring up. The watering may be continued tor as
long as fifteen days in the beginning of the irrigating season
^ N(?vember>but the time should be gradually lessened till
March or April, when it should cease altogether. Between
the intervals of watering, the land should be laid completely
dry. Precautions are particularly necessary in lettino- the
water off and on in frosty weather, frost taking quick hold
of wet grass land, and throwing the plants out by the roots,
ihe water should be let off on the morning of a dry day
and the land thus becoming dry in the course of the day
the frost will not injure the grass at night. Or, what is a
still safer method, the water should be taken off in the morn¬
ing and put on again at night, but few persons will take the
trouble of attending so minutely to irrigation. In spring
the new grown tender grass will be easily destroyed by frost
if the utmost attention be not paid to the state of the ground’
either by protecting it with water, which is the surest pro¬
tection it can receive, or making the ground thoroughly dry
in dry weather. There is another error which should be
guarded against: when water remains too long on the ground
in the spring, it generates a white scum, of ihe consistence
of melted glue, which, when left on the grass, inevitably
destroys it. Instances may be observed of water bein^
permitted to remain on meadows from the autumn till ei<>ht
or ten days before the cutting of hay. The consequences
are, that the hay is of the coarsest quality, and the early
VOL. XII.
617
bite foi sheep entirely lost. It seems to be a judicious re- Irrigation.
commendation to depasture the early grass on water-mea-
dows with ewes and lambs in March and April, and to eat
it barely down before May with a heavy stock. On good
land, and in good seasons, a second and even third crop of
feed may be got before the 1st of May, the water being let
on after each feed. After that the grass is allowed to stand
for hay; but it should be irrigated for a few days to clean
the pasture. I here is some doubt that grass, after being
irrigated in summer, will affect sheep with rot; but whether
that which has been irrigated in May, before the hay has
been cut down, will so affect them on the aftermath, is not
so decidedly known.
When it is determined to irrigate, the drains and feeders
should be previously inspected, all obstructions removed,
and dilapidations amended. Whatever difference of opinion
may exist on irrigating at this particular period of the sea¬
son, all irrigators are agreed that early irrigation in autumn
produces greater effects than late, and that water should be
used largely during the winter, and scantily during the
spring. It is possible that the benefits derived from early
irrigation, especially after rains, may arise from the good
effects of manure of various kinds, accumulated on the land
during summer, being washed down by the rains, and mixed
with the irrigating water; and it is certain that abundant
irrigation in winter protects the grass from cold, as the tem¬
perature of grass under water in winter is seldom under 40°
lahr. The signs of early and luxuriant vegetation obser¬
vable on water-meadows in spring, when the rest of the
ground may be covered with snow, evince the warmth com¬
municated by the water. After the hay is carried off, the
water is sometimes let on, to promote the growth of the
alteimath, which it will no doubt do; but the rank grass
encouraged by this summer irrigation will undoubtedly rot
sheep. Where sheep are kept, and intended to depasture
meadows, there should be no irrigation in summer. “ Damp¬
ing the land only is allowable. Cattle are not affected as
sheep.
Should the irrigation be postponed till the autumn, in the
beginning of October the first duty of the irrigator is to
see that all the feeders and drains are cleared of every ob¬
struction, occasioned by the treading of sheep or cattle.
The sluice is then drawn up, and if the water be abundant,
the conductor and feeders will be filled with water in about
half-an-hour. The motion of the water should first be ad¬
justed in all the conductors; then in the feeders nearest
the upper part of the meadow, and then in the lower ones
in succession. The sluices regulate the water in the con¬
ductors, and the position of the stops regulates the water in
the feeders. The stops should be so placed as to cause the
water to overflow the sides of the feeders, by making the
openings at the sides of the stops wider or narrower. This
first general inundation will show any irregularities on the
suiface of the meadow; and that some irregularities will
exist in the best-constructed water-meadows, it is not in the
power of art to prevent. The earth in the filled-up hollows
will subside, whilst the hard portions of ground which have
been reduced will maintain their new shape. The irregu¬
larities should now be marked and rectified in the ensuin°-
summer. At least three such adjustments of the water are
necessary before an irrigator should be satisfied that the
meadow is properly irrigated with the requisite depth of one
inch of water. This quantity of water should be continued
over the meadow during October, November, December,
and January, from fifteen to twenty days in succession, ac¬
cording as the weather is fresh or frosty, wet or dry. ’Be¬
tween every such interval, the meadow should be laid
thoroughly dry for five or six days to give the grass air;
and should the weather threaten a lengthened period of hard
host, the watering should be entirely discontinued for the
time ; for in thawing, the sheet of ice which covers the sur*
4 i
618
IRRIGATION.
Irrigation, face of the meadow will draw every plant of grass out by
the roots, and make the soil like a mass of fermented dough.
In Devonshire, however, the rule is neither to lay on or
take office water in frost. During the period of irrigation,
the meadows should be regularly visited and inspected once
in every three or four days, to correct any deviation frorn
regular watering, such as may arise from collections ot
weeds pettv depredations of men and beasts, sticks, stones,
or leaves, that may have fallen in and been detained in the
conductors and feeders. . .
In February, great attention is required Irom the irriga¬
tor, as the grass will now begin to vegetate. The periods
of watering must be shortened, and those of drying must
be proportionally lengthened. White scum, frost, and such
like evils, should be carefully avoided, as the tender grass
will sensibly feel their injurious effects.
In March, the same precautions are requisite ; but in the
south of England, where grass is sufficiently abundant for
stock in this month, the irrigation should be dispensed with.
In Scotland, irrigation maybe continued all April, but with
such caution, that the water should be allowed to run only
five or six days at a time, and gradually lessened towards
the end of the month ; and in the beginning of May dis¬
pensed with altogether, and the meadow laid thoroughly
dry for the summer. It should be borne in mind, that this
is the most trying season for young grasses in Scotland ;
and also, that if watering is continued after this month, the
blades of grass will be covered with a gritty sediment, which
not only injures the quality of the hay, but renders the
mowing of it a difficult process.
The annual expense of keeping a water-meadow in repair
may be about five or six shillings an acre. The greatest
expence in keeping a meadow will be incurred in the second
year, on account of the sinkings of those places which had
been made up with loose earth having to be brought up to
the common inclination.
III. SUBTERRANEOUS IRRIGATION.
This species of irrigation is so named because the sup¬
ply of water is derived from under the surface ot the ground
to the upper soil. It is only applicable to perfectly level
ground, so raised above the supplying river as to admit of
a complete drainage of the field to be irrigated. This sys¬
tem of irrigation consists, in the first place, of ditches be¬
ing formed around all the sides of the field. These act the
part of conductors when the field is to be flooded, and of
main drains when it is to be laid dry. The water flows
from the ditches as conductors into built drains or conduits,
formed at right angles to them, in parallel lines through
the fields, and it rises upwards in them as high as the sur¬
face of the ground, and again subsides through the soil and
the conduits into the ditches as main drains, and thence
into the river. Sluices are requisite to convey the water
from the river into the ditches. This submersion, as it
may be called, rather than overflow, of the ground in water,
must be conducted with great care, and the water let on
very calmly; for were the water let on or taken off with a
forcible current, the finer particles of the soil would be de¬
tached, and carried off into the river. Indeed, however
carefully the operation may be conducted, the only advan¬
tage derived from this species of irrigation is the moisten¬
ing of dry ground in dry weather, which would otherwise
be parched up; and in this respect the operation is best
conducted in summer, and is as applicable to arable as to
pasture land. It can therefore be of no importance to sub¬
terraneous irrigation, whether the water be clear or turbid,
since all the sediment must be seethed through the soil,
before it can possibly reach the surface of the ground. In
the Fen counties both arable and pasture land are benefited
by the system, the depth of water in the ditches which Irrigation,
bound all the fields being regulated with a view to this.
IV. WARPING.
Warping is the overflowing of level ground with muddy
water within tide mark. Of course, it can only be prac¬
tised near the sea, and most frequently it is attempted
within the estuaries of large rivers, which have flowed
through alluvial cultivated countries. A good idea of the
process of warping may be got by sailing up the Trent from
the Humber to Gainsborough. The banks of the river were
constructed centuries ago to protect the land within them
from the encroachments of the tide. A great tract of
country was thus laid comparatively dry. But while the
wisdom of one age thus succeeded in restricting within
bounds the tidal water of the river, it was left to the greater
wisdom of a succeeding age to improve upon this arrange¬
ment, by admitting these muddy waters to lay a fresh coat
of rich silt on the exhausted soils. The process began
nearly a century ago, but has become more of a system in
recent times. Large sluices of stone, with strong doors, to
be shut when it is wished to exclude the tide, may be seen
on both banks of the river, and from these great drains are
carried miles inward through the flat country, to the point
previously prepared by embankment, over which the muddy
waters are allowed to spread. These main drains being
very costly, are constructed for the warping of large ad¬
joining districts, and openings are made at such points as
are then undergoing the operation. The mud is deposited,
and the waters return with the falling tide to the bed of the
river. Spring-tides are preferred, and so great is the quan¬
tity of mud in these rivers that from 10 to 15 acres have
been known to be covered with silt from 1 to 3 feet in
thickness during one spring of 10 or 12 tides. Peat-moss
of the most sterile character has been by this process
covered with soil of the greatest fertility, and swamps which
used to be resorted to for leeches are now, by the effects
of warping, converted into firm and fertile fields. I he art
is now so well understood, that by careful attention to the
currents, the expert warp farmer can temper his soil as he
pleases. When the tide is first admitted, the heavier par¬
ticles, which are pure sand, are first deposited; the second
deposit is a mixture of sand and fine mud, which, from its
friable texture, forms the most valuable soil; while lastly
the pure mud subsides, containing the finest particles of all,
and forms a rich but very tenacious soil. The great effort,
therefore, of the warp farmer is to get the second or mixed
deposit as equally over the whole surface as he can, and to
prevent the deposit of the last. This he does by keeping
the water in constant motion, as the last deposit can only
take place when the water is suffered to be still. Ihree
years may be said to be spent in the process, one year
warping, one year drying and consolidating, and one year
growing the first crop, which is generally seed hoed in by
hand, as the mud at this time is too soft to admit of horse
labour.
Its immediate effect, which is highly beneficial, is the
deposition of silt from the tide. I o insure this deposition
it is necessary to surround the field to be warped with a
strong embankment, in order to retain the water as the tide
recedes. The water is admitted by valved sluices, which
open as the tide flows into the field, and shut by the pres¬
sure of the confined water when the tide recedes. These
sluices are placed on as low a level as possible, to permit
the most turbid water at the bottom ot the tide to pass
through a channel in the base of the embankment. Ihe
silt deposited after warping is exceedingly rich, and capable
of carrying any species of crop. It may be admitted in so
small a quantity as only to act as a manure to arable soil,
IRRIGATION.
Irrigation, or in such a large quantity as to form a new soil. This
latter acquisition is the principal object of warpin" and it
excites astonishment to witness how soon a new soil may
be formed. From June to September, a soil of three feet
in depth may be formed under favourable circumstances.
These circumstances are summer, and the very driest season
and longest drought. In winter, and in floods, warping ceases
to be beneficial. In ordinary circumstances, on the Trent and
Humber, a soil from 6 to 16 inches in depth may be obtained,
and inequalities of 3 feet filled up. But every tide generally
leaves only one-eighth of an inch of silt, and the field which
has only one sluice can only be warped every other tide.
The silt, as deposited in each tide, does not mix into a
uniform mass, but remains in distinct layers. The water
should be made to run completely off, ''and the ditches
should become dry, before the influx of the next tide
otherwise the silt will not incrust, and the tide not have the
same effect. Warp soil is of surpassing fertility. The ex¬
pense of forming canals, embankments, and sluices for warp¬
ing land is from L.10 to L.20 an acre. A sluice of 6 feet
in height and 8 feet wide, will warp from sixty to eighty
acres, according to the distance of the field from the river.
The embankments may be from 3 to 7 feet in height, as
the field may stand in regard to the level of the highest
tides. After the new land has been left for a year or two
in seeds and clover, it produces great crops of wheat and
potatoes.
In (ji eat Britain, irrigation is practised to the greatest
extent in Devon and Somerset, Gloucestershire, Wiltshire,
and Dumfriesshire, and partially in some other counties.
In England it has long been successfully practised. Into
Scotland it is comparatively of recent introduction.
Warping is only practised in Lincolnshire and Yorkshire,
in the estuary of the Humber, in the Rivers Trent, Ouse’
and Dun, which flow into it. The silt, which is in great
abundance in these rivers, is doubtless worn off the diluvial
soils and chalk strata by the action of the tide. Floods in-
yaiiably injure its quality, which is in the highest perfection
in the driest summers. Apparently it is a mixture of sand,
chalk, and clay, for it cakes on drying, and will cleanse
cloth of giease like fullers earth. By analysis the principal
ingredients were found to be a fine sand, a considerable
portion of lime, some mica, and a minute portion of saline
matter.
Subterraneous irrigation is chiefly practised in drained
moi asses, which are apt to become too dry in summer, by
closing up the mouths of the main drains, and causing ’the
water in them to stand back in all the drains till it rises up
to the soil. It was recommended by the late celebrated
engineer Mr Rennie, to be practised on some extensive fens
which he had drained in Lincolnshire, near Boston. To
irrigate effectually in this manner, it is necessary to build
the mouths of the main drains with strong masonry, and
erect sluices for the retention of the water in the drains.
I his species of irrigation may also be attempted on any
flat piece of ground resting on a gravelly bottom, by means
of ditches which surround it, and which can command
water from a lake or river. Turnips or potatoes, or any
kind of crop, whether drilled or not, might be beneficially
watered in this manner in a dry summer.
In March, 240 sheep for three weeks, at 6d. each
Per week L.18 0 0
In June, mowed 18 tons hay, at L.4 per ton  72 0 0
In August, mowed ISJ do. do. 54 0 0
In September, 80 fat sheep for three weeks, at 4d.
each per week    4 0 0
It then fed lean bullocks, the feeding not 1 j
... - - e,1 /
619
Irrigation.
,148 0 0
ADVANTAGES OP WATER-MEADOWS AND WARPING.
The advantages derived from water-meadows and warp¬
ing, as stated by authors who have written on those subjects,
almost exceed credibility.
In 1802 Mr Smith laid out a water-meadow on the Pais¬
ley farm, near Woburn, Bedfordshire, for the Duke of
Bedford, and in 1803 its produce was as follows:—
valued, equal to L.16, 13s. 8d. per acre,
Mr Pusey gives an instance of a field of two acres on his
home farm in Berkshire, good land naturally, but so much
out of condition, that latterly the hay crop had been hardly
worth cutting, the produce of which, after irrigation, he
estimates as follows:—
■o. , . , , , Rays’keep of a sheep.
I irst penning, sheep put on, but grass too strong to
feed, and made into hay, say only    3 000
Second feeding, 400 lambs for eight days, say'240
m,s.h®eP   1,920
Third penning, 250 sheep for ten days 2,500
Fourth do., 250 sheep for fourteen days 3,500
10,920
The total amounts to 5 months’ keep for 73 sheep on two
acres, thirty-six sheep to an acre. Mr Pusey compares the
result with the feed afforded in Lincolnshire by a thoroughly
good crop of turnips, which are said to keep ten sheep an
acre for five months,—and with grass land of good quality,
which fattened seven sheep to an acre in the five summer
months. Admitting the seven fattened sheep to be equal to
fourteen of his kept merely in store order, the account would
stand thus, comparatively: ten sheep on an acre of turnips,
fourteen on an acre of superior grazing land unwatered, and
thirty-six on an acre of moderate land watered. Mr Pusey’s
investment in irrigation, in one of the dry inland counties,
has paid him a return of 30 per cent, on the capital expended’.
1 hese two cases may suffice as examples of successful
irrigation in England. The following cases occur in Scot¬
land, a country, from its irregularity of surface, not natu¬
rally suited to that species of improvement. Nevertheless
in all the pastoral districts, both in the north and south, an
abundance of early food in spring for ewes and lambs might
be obtained, by judicious irrigation, in every valley which
contains a river. In mountainous districts the rivers may
not supply the richest quality of water for irrigation, but
there the soil on the margins of rivers being generally of
friable loam, would be peculiarly benefited by irrigation.
Such land is invariably sound for sheep when drained ; and
if made diy, and then irrigated, it would, early in sprint,
and indeed throughout the summer, afford the finest qualhy
of the richest herbage. Water-meadows in such situations
could be inclosed by themselves, and they could supply hay,
if required, for the sheep-stock in winter, or be pastured at
pleasure by any kind of stock during the summer.
To begin with a.n instance of simple irrigation in a pas-
toial district, “hallaw Meadow, on a large sheep-farm
belonging to Sir George Montgomery, Bart, of Macbiehill,
in Peeblesshire, containing fifteen acres, was inclosed from
moorland in 1816; and by collecting the water from the
smiounding sheep-drains, five acres are partially irrigated,
and the remaining ten are top-dressed with the manure
made fiom part of the produce which is consumed in win-
tei by the sheep of the farm, in a wooden shed near the
meadow. By this simple method of improvement, fifteen
acres of common sheep-pasture land give the proprietor from
three thousand five hundred to four thousand stones of hay
per annum, averaging sixpence per stone. What an immense
advantage to a sheep-farm! By this simple process of in¬
closing, and cutting a few small feeders and drains the
owner is enabled to provide food for his flock, when his
less fortunate neighbours’ sheep must either starve or be
supplied from the farm-yard ; but I am afraid there are very
1 Smith’s Essay on Irrigation.
620
IRRIGATION.
Irrigation, few sheep-farmers who are so fortunate as to have any hay
i y beyond what is requisite for stock at home. Sir George
fed the same number of sheep on the farm as he did before
the meadow was taken off and inclosed; and I am fully
persuaded that the same improvement might be made on
almost every sheep-farm in Tweeddale, for in almost all of
them, there are situations where fourteen or fifteen acres
might be inclosed and partially irrigated, as in every pas¬
toral district there are numerous rills which might be easily
collected and used to the greatest advantage, at a very
trifling expense ; so that, instead of being obliged, in snow¬
storms, to send fifty thousand sheep to a milder climate in
the southern parts of Dumfriesshire (where owners are
obliged to be at the mercy of their southern neighbours,
not to mention the very serious injury the flocks receive by
long and fatiguing journeys), by adopting the above system
of improvement a considerable part of the losses generally
sustained every year would be prevented.”1
Here is an instance of the conversion of peat-bog of little
value into a water-meadow of great value. “ Sir Thomas
Gibson Carmichael, Bart, of Castle Craig, commenced, in
the year 1817, by forming five acres with the plough and
spade into regular bed-work. The land, in its natural
state, was a complete bog, valued at eight shillings of yearly
rent per acre. The formation was difficult, on account of
the great number of deep peat-holes which were obliged
to be filled up, to bring the surface to a proper level. The
expense of levelling and forming the beds was L.6 per acre,
the crop of hay was 466 stones, of 221b. per stone, per acre,
valued at fivepence per stone, and the after-grass at 18s. per
acre, making L.10, 12s. 2d. per acre of gross produce.”2
But this enumeration of the several cases of successful
irrigation would be incomplete, were the water-meadows
in the neighbourhood of Edinburgh omitted to be par¬
ticularized. The city of Edinburgh stands on an emi¬
nence, which commands the cultivated country around it.
Commanding as the situation is, water from the Crawdey
Spring, in the Pentland Hills, situate at seven miles’ dis¬
tance, flows to the top of every house in the city. A ready
means is thus provided of washing away all the filth of the
houses and streets, which is conveyed in large sewers to
the lower end of the town, where their contents are made
to irrigate many acres of naturally rich and also of poor soil.
Probably upwards of 200 acres are thus irrigated for the
production of grass for the cowfeeders who supply milk to
the inhabitants. The rent for which these meadows are
let in small portions to cowfeeders varies on an average
from L.20 to L.30 per acre. Some of the richest meadows
were let in 1835 at L.38 per acre; and in that season
of scarce forage, 1826, L.57 an acre were obtained for
the same meadows. The largest portion of these mea¬
dows, about one hundred and thirty acres, belongs to
the estate of Craigintinny; part of them, comprising land
now of the richest quality, having been thus watered for
nearly a century, and part of them of the poorest sandy soil.
Hie waste land called the Figget Whins, containing thirty
acres, and ten acres of poor sandy soil adjoining them, were
ormed into water-meadows in 1821, at an expense of
L.1000. I he pasture of the Figget Whins used to be let
ior L.40 a-year, and that of the ten acres at L.60. Now
the same ground, as meadows, lets for L.15 or L.20 an
acre a-year, and will probably let for more as the land
becomes more and more enriched. It is stated by Mr
Stephens, that one hundred and ten acres of Craigin¬
tinny meadows, in 1827, yielded a profit of L.2300. The
repair ot these meadows costs from ten to fifteen shillings
pei acre, u nc i is comparatively a large sum for repairs,
but then they are not only watered during the winter, but
for two or three days between the intervals of cutting the
grass during the summer. The grass is cut from April to Irrigation.
November, every three, four, or five weeks, according to
the richness of the vegetation. It is exceedingly tender
and succulent, and suitable to the production of a large
quantity of milk; and were it not frequently cut, it would
fall down, and soon rot at the roots.
After these striking instances of the advantages which
are derivable from irrigation in a pecuniary point of view,
by largely increasing the rent of land, must be mentioned
the advantages which are derived from a large increase in
the produce of the soil. The early grass in March, which
could only be fostered by irrigation, is of the most essential
use to ewes and lambs, and it offers an excellent substitute
for the artificial grasses, which are usually obliged to be * I
heavily stocked in early spring, when they are unable to
bear it; and in truly pastoral districts, where artificial
grasses are cultivated to a limited extent, and where old
grass is generally long in springing, the breeding stock of
sheep is apt to suffer in spring; but an irrigated meadow
would not only supply early and abundant food, but it would
enable the store-masters to raise an early crop of lambs.
The large crop of fine hay which is subsequently cut from
water-meadows after the pasturage of the early grass, also
insures the safety of the flock, and the growing condition
of the herd, in the severest winter; whilst it, at the same
time, supplies the manure which fertilizes, to an increasing
extent, the land kept under arable culture. Whether, there¬
fore, in pastoral districts, or in the neighbourhood of large
towns, or wherever an abundant supply of river water
through an alluvial cultivated country can be obtained, ir¬
rigation will certainly repay, in a short time, all the expense
and trouble which are necessary for its preparation.
The quality of the water is an important element in the
process of irrigation. It has been alleged that whether
water is clear or turbid, irrigation is of service to grass land.
There is much truth in this allegation ; but it does not declare
the whole truth. No doubt moisture alone is of great service
to the vegetation of grass on sandy soils in a dry season;
but a deposit of mud along with the moisture would surely
not benefit the grass the less, nor would it injure the bare soil.
The waters of the Nile and Ganges would alone promote
vegetation on their banks, the soils of which seldom expe¬
rience the refreshing sustenance of rain ; but the inunda¬
tions of those mighty rivers would not be hailed with ecstasy
and gratitude on the return of every season, were their waters
devoid of the fertilizing mud with which they are largely
impregnated. Major Rennell states that the Ganges con¬
tains a two-hundredth part of its volume of mud, and that
it thus carries 2,509,056,000 cubic feet of it per hour. In
like manner, the Nile contains a hundred and twentieth
part of its bulk in mud, or 14,784,000 cubic feet of it per
hour. It is impossible but that the water of all rivers con¬
tains at all times, even when purest, some sediment; but
it is obvious that those rivers which flow through cultivated
countries must contain at all times the greatest quantity of
sediment. In this way the rivers of plains must contain
more mud than the rivers of mountains; and hence irriga¬
tion exhibits the most favourable results in the plains. But
were no other proof of the superiority of turbid over clear
water for irrigation to be found, the luxuriant produce of the
water-meadows in the neighbourhood of Edinburgh, which
are watered from the common sewers of that city, would ot
itself supply a convincing illustration.
Similar results could never be derived from clear water;
nor is it ever found so superabundantly rich as to be neces¬
sary to be treated like the water of those meadows next
the town, where holes are dug in the ground, for the pur¬
pose ot catching the grosser materials with which it is
charged, before it is used for irrigation.
Stephens Practical Irrigator,
2 Ibid.
3 Ibid., p. 77.
I RR I G
Irrigation. V. HISTORY OF IRRIGATION.
Irrigation is at least coeval in antiquity with embanking
and draining. It is probably of greater antiquity. Nature
had, no doubt, first taught man the art of irrigation by the
inundations of rivers ; but nature could teach neither em¬
banking nor draining. Egypt was the field which was first
artificially irrigated. There the fertilizing effects of the
water of the Nile, after its overflow, could not fail to at¬
tract the attention of its inhabitants, and teach a simple les¬
son to the Egyptians, who had only to imitate nature to se¬
cure the fertility of the soil lying beyond the reach of the
inundations'rof the Nile. The remains of canals as capa¬
cious as the beds of rivers, which are still to be seen in that
sand-desolated country, evince the gigantic efforts which
had at one time been made by its inhabitants to irrigate
that portion of their country upon which a drop of rain never
falls to refresh its languishing vegetation. These canals
traverse the whole country, and are so directed as probably
to have been made to receive the water of the Nile, and
conduct it to every part, the inequalities of the surface not
being great in Egypt. The large lakes of Moeris, Behire,
and Mareotis, all probably artificial excavations, had perhaps
once formed extensive reservoirs to supply the canals after
the Nile had retired within its own banks. At what time
all these mighty contrivances were begun, history is as silent
as on the origin of the pyramids. It is, however, related
that Sesostris greatly increased the number of the canals,
which must have been at a period of great antiquity, for he
reigned about the sixteenth century before the Christian
era. Greater efforts to promote irrigation were more urgent
in Egypt than in most other countries ; for no rain fell in
that country to cherish vegetation ; and rice, which forms
the chief food of its inhabitants, could not be raised without
a great supply of water.
It is therefore highly probable that the remains of great
canals and lakes are indicative of the majestic scale with
which the Egyptians had prosecuted the art of irrigation.
It is, however, prudent to speak with caution on matters
connected with the agriculture of ancient Egypt; for our
knowledge of its husbandry is chiefly derived from hints
contained in Scripture history, and not from its own histo¬
rical records. The historian of Egypt, Herodotus, was a
Greek, and lived at so late a period as the fifth century be¬
fore the Christian era, long after the glory of Egypt had de¬
parted ; whereas the Scriptures supply us with facts of
Egyptian agriculture of much greater antiquity, isolated
though they certainly are. Such circumstances as the fol¬
lowing indicate the existence of irrigation in Egypt at a
very remote period of the world. When Abraham and Lot
journeyed together in search of a country to abide in after
they had left Egypt, they agreed to separate, when they
found that the land they were then in could not supply suf¬
ficient food for their united flocks and herds ; and we are
told that Lot chose the plain of Jordan, because it was wa¬
tered as well as the land of Egypt. “ And Lot lifted up
his eyes and beheld all the plain of Jordan as thou comest
into Zoar, that it was well watered everywhere, before the
Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, even as the garden
of the Lord, like the land of Egypt.”1 Egypt never con¬
tained rivers to water it, there being only the Nile ; so that
the similitude between “ the plain of Jordan ” and “ the
land of Egypt,” to the mind of Lot, must have arisen from
the rivers in Jordan being as numerous as the canals in
Egypt: and Lot having witnessed the fertilizing powers of
the water of these canals in Egypt, naturally supposed that the
rivers would produce a similar effect on the plain of Jordan.
The Egyptians had been in the habit of watering their gar¬
dens as well as their fields, and this they accomplished at
A T I 0 N. 621
pleasure, by raising water with a machine which they worked Irrigation,
with the foot. Simply as such contrivances were, and they ^
are to be seen in Egypt at this day, they could not fail to be
troublesome. Dr Clark describes the Egyptians, when
raising water for their gardens, as requiring to work stark
naked, or only partially covered with a blue striped shirt.
When Moses, therefore, described the promised land to the
Israelites, he represented it as a land which was supplied
with water in a natural manner, in contradistinction to the
more difficult and artificial way by tbe foot in Egypt: “ For
the land whither thou goest to possess it, is not as the land
of Egypt from whence thou earnest out, where thou sowedst
thy seed and wateredst it with thy foot, as a garden of
herbs : But the land whither ye go to possess it, is a land
of hills and valleys, and drinketh water of the rain of Hea¬
ven : And it shall come to pass, if ye shall hearken dili¬
gently unto my commandment which I command you this
day, that I wall give you the rain of your land in due sea¬
son, the first rain and the latter rain, that thou mayest
gather in thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil.”2
By irrigation, the soil of Egypt had been rendered so
fertile that Pliny compares it to that of the Leontines, for¬
merly the most fertile part of Sicily. Certain it is that
Egypt was very prolific in corn even in the days of Abra¬
ham, who had recourse to it in years of famine, and that
was at least eighteen centuries before the Christian era.
Too little is known of the agriculture of the ancient
kingdoms of Assyria, Babylon, Carthage, Phoenicia, and
Greece, to enable any one to ascertain how they practised
irrigation ; but as they all had Egypt as an example in agri¬
culture and the arts, it is probable that they had followed
those practices in husbandry which were most suitable to
their respective countries. The little that Xenophon says
in his Anabasis of the husbandry of Persia, would lead to
the belief that canals had been cut from rivers to irrigate
the country after the manner of Egypt, and to this day the
utmost labour and ingenuity are employed by the Persian
agriculturists in the irrigation of their parched country.
The sagacious Romans, it is well known from the writings
of their rustic countrymen, adopted irrigation on an exten¬
sive scale, as one of the best means of improving land. The
oldest Roman rustic writer, Cato, expressed his opinion that
the way to become rich quickly was “ by grazing cattle
well,” and hence he gives the preference to meadows. He
does not maintain that grass is the most valuable crop which
the land can produce, for he only places meadows in the
fifth degree of value, giving preference in this respect to
vineyards, watered gardens, willow fields, and olive gardens,
but that they yielded most profit in proportion to the
expense attending them, and they were always ready; hence
their ancient name, parata. Agreeably to this opinion,
Cato recommends the formation of meadows, and particu¬
larly of water-meadows, whenever there is a command of
water: Praia irrigua, si aquam habebis, potissimum fa-
cito? Columella recommends the same precept, and enters
more minutely into the kinds of soils which should be con¬
verted into water-meadows, and of the nature of the surface
best adapted to them, as well as the management of the
water in the time of irrigation. “ Land that is naturally
rich,” says he, “ and that is in good heart, does not need
to have water set over it; and it is better hay which nature
of its own accord produces in a juicy soil, than what water
draws from a soil that is overflowed. This, however, is a
necessary practice when the poverty of the soil requires it;
and a meadow may be formed either upon stiff or free soil,
though poor, when water may be set over it. Neither a
low field with hollows, nor a field broken with steep rising
ground, are proper ; the first, because it contains too long
the water collected in the hollow's; the last, because it
1 Gen. xiii. 10.
3 Deut. xi. 10, 11, 13, 14,
3 Cat. cap. ix.
622 I R R I G
Irrigation, makes the water run too quickly over it. A field, however,
that has a moderate descent may be made a meadow,
whether it is rich or so situated as to be watered; but the
best situation is where the surface is smooth, and the descent
so gentle as to prevent either showers or the rivers that
overflow it from remaining long", and, on the other hand,
to allow the water that comes over it quietly to glide off.
Therefore, if in any part of a field intended for a meadow,
a pool of water should stand, it must be let off by drains,
for the loss is equal, either from too much water or too little
grass.”1 But none of the Roman rustic writers give direc¬
tions 7ww a water-meadow should be made, nor say any¬
thing about the utility of sluices, although Columella gives
minute directions about the formation of d7'i/ meadows. It
does not appear, moreover, that they were acquainted with
the raising of turf and laying it down again for meadows,
because they only recommend hay-seeds from the hay-lofts
and cribs to be sown, and deprecate the watering and pas¬
turing of cattle on the new meadows till the surface becomes
hard. There is no specific notice taken by any of them of
how long a period meadows should be watered, if one
sentence of Pliny be excepted, wherein he directs that
“ meadows ought to be watered immediately after the
equinox, and the waters restrained whenever the grass
shoots up into the stalk2 but there is no hint whether
they should be laid dry at intervals.
Pliny alone mentions watering before the first crop of
hay is cut, on the principle that wet grass, whether wetted
by water or dew, is cut more easily than dry: Noctibus
roscidis secari melius? The Romans were in the custom
of cutting their meadows at least twice a-year, in May and
August or September, and making hay of both these cut¬
tings ; but meadows for forage were cut sometimes four
times. The autumnal hay was emphatically called cordum,
and being soft, and sweeter than hay come to its full growth,
it was the kind most proper to be given to sheep in winter.
The produce of the Roman meadows appears to have been
very considerable, and it is therefore no wonder that they
put such a high value on grass-land. Both Columella and
Pliny estimate it a day’s work for a man to mow a jugerum
and bind 1200 bundles of hay, of four pounds each. Ac¬
cording to a calculation made by Dr Dickson, these quan¬
tities would give a produce of 265 hay stones, of 22 lb. to
the stone, per acre (416 imperial stones per imperial acre),
of prepared hay, besides the autumnal crop and the rakings
taken up afterwards, and which may be estimated at one-
half more.4 This is not the proper place to describe the
Roman method of making hay, which differed from the
method of this country, but having alluded to hay having
been bound in bundles, it may not be irrelevant to state
that the Romans made up their hay into bundles of 4 lb.
each before they carried it into the barns or hay-lofts, and
that they never ricked it but in rainy weather.
Immediately after the fall of the Roman empire, agricul¬
ture declined, and was kept in a very depressed state during
the middle ages, which depression, with respect to agricul¬
ture, lasted about ten centuries. It need therefore excite no
surprise that the general agriculture of Italy was not much
improved, from what it had been amongst the Romans, till
after the revival of letters. Irrigation was perhaps the only
blanch of agriculture which received improvement or exten¬
sion befoie the expiration of the dark ages; and its improve-
ment at that time was even confined to the north of Italy.
’C iri’igation of Lombardy to this day forms the prin¬
cipal feature of its agriculture. The Lombard kings, fol¬
lowing the example of the Romans, encouraged and ex-
tenc ed irrigation, and they were ably assisted by the inmates
of their numerous and wealthy religious establishments.
A T I 0 N.
Under these favourable auspices, irrigation had been ex- Irrigation,
tended on a great scale in Lombardy as early as 1037; and \ ^
such expert hydraulic engineers had the monks of Chiare-
valle become, that they were consulted and employed as
such by the Emperor Frederick I. in the thirteenth cen¬
tury ; and, ever since, so assiduous has been the care with
which the agriculturists in Lombardy have preserved entire,
and in good working order, their water-meadows, that at
the present day no other part of the globe can exhibit that
operation on so grand a scale and in such excellent order,
and producing so rich a pasturage, verdant throughout the
year. The largest rivers in the north of Italy, the Po, the
Adige, the Tagliamento, and others, are put tinder requi¬
sition for a supply of water in summer and winter, for the
purposes of irrigation ; the whole country from Venice to
Turin being almost one continued water-meadow. But
there irrigation is not confined to grass-land; water being
also conducted between the ridges of corn-land, in the
hollows* between drilled crops, among vines, and over the
flats appropriated to the production of rice; and it is also
used to deposit mud, in the manner of warping, where it
contains sediment. Irrigation naturally passed from Lom¬
bardy into the south of France, where it is used to raise
many of the more valuable productions of the soil. Spain
to this day employs irrigation to so considerable an extent,
that few crops are there raised without it. Some water-
meadows in the neighbourhood of Salisbury, in Wiltshire,
which are said to have existed from time immemorial, have
led to the belief that irrigation has been practised in Bri¬
tain from the time of the Romans. It is, indeed, extremely
probable, that had the Romans constructed such works
during their sojourn in Britain, the pastoral habits of their
Saxon successors would have preserved them from destruc¬
tion. But be this as it may, it is certain that irrigation
after the method of Italy was not extensively introduced
into Britain till the sixteenth century, when it was attempted
on a large scale in Cambridgeshire, on the estate of Babra-
ham, by one Pallavicino, the collector of Peter’s pence in
the reign of Queen Mary, but who, on the accession of
Elizabeth, had the art to turn Protestant, and purchase that
estate with the balance of money which he had in his pos¬
session, amounting it is said to L.30,000 or LAO,000, and
appropriate it to his own use. This dishonest experiment
of Pallavicino was so gross, that his example as an irrigator
was not followed at the time, nor indeed were many water-
meadows formed in England till the end of the last or be¬
ginning of the present century. Since that time, many of
them have been scientifically made both in England and in
Scotland, which all have proved how profitably irrigation
might be extended, and of which a few successful examples
have been enumerated. As might be expected from the
nature of the climates, irrigation is extensively practised in
India, China, and parts of America, particularly Mexico
and Peru ; but as the irrigation of those countries presents
no features peculiarly different from that related of Egypt
and Italy, it is unnecessary to enlarge upon it.
VI. THEORY OF IRRIGATION.
The theory of irrigation, as propounded by the late Sir
Humphrey Davy, is given by him in these words:—“Water
is absolutely essential to vegetation; and when land has
been covered with water in the winter or in the beginning
of spring, the moisture which has penetrated deep into the
soil, and even the subsoil, becomes a sort of nourishment
to the roots of the plants in the summer, and prevents those
bad effects which often happen in lands in their natural state
from a long continuance of dry weather. When the water
1 Col., lib. 2, cap. xvii,
2 Nat. Hist., lib. 18, cap. xxvii.
Husbandryof the Ancients, vol. ii., p. 321.
3 lb. lib. 18, cap. xxviii.
I R V
Irtish used in irrigation has flowed over a calcareous country, it
II is generally found impregnated with carbonate of lime, and
rvlng- j in this state it tends, in many instances, to ameliorate the
—soil. Common river water also generally contains a certain
portion of organizable matter, which is much greater after
rains than at other times, and which exists in the largest
quantity when the stream rises in a cultivated country.
Even in cases where the water used for flooding is pure,
and free from animal and vegetable substances, it acts by
causing the more equable diffusion of nutritive matter exist¬
ing in the land; and in very cold seasons it preserves the
tender roots and leaves of the grass from being affected by
frost. ... In general, those waters which breed the best
fish are the best fitted for watering meadows ; but most of
the benefits of irrigation may be derived from any kind of
water. It is, however, a general principle, that waters con¬
taining ferruginous impregnations, though possessed of fer¬
tilizing effects, when applied to a calcareous soil, are inju¬
rious on soils that do not effervesce with acids ; and that
calcareous waters, which are known by the earthy deposite
they afford when boiled, are of most use on siliceous soils,
or other soils containing no remarkable quantity of carbo¬
nate of lime. fo show the protective power of water
against cold, it is only necessary to state the well-known
physical fact, that water is of greater specific gravity at 42°
Fahrenheit than at the freezing point of 32° ; and hence
water in contact with the roots of grass is rarely below 42°,
a degree of temperature not at all prejudicial to the living
organs of plants. These theories establish and indicate
several advantages which are derivable from irrigation. It
supplies moisture to the soil, necessary in dry seasons and
I K V 623
in tropical countries; it affords protection to plants against Irving,
the extremes of heat and cold; it disseminates manure most
minutely to plants; and it washes away injurious matter
from the roots of plants. The benefits derivable from irri¬
gation are chiefly mechanical. The operation of water bring¬
ing matter into minute subdivision; the sediment which it
contains when used in irrigation being minutely distributed
around the stems of the plants; water protecting plants in
irrigation against the extremes of heat and cold, by com¬
pletely covering and embracing every stem and leaf; and
the supplying of moisture to the soil, and washing poisonous
matter out of it, are all purely mechanical operations. Warp¬
ing is obviously a mechanical operation. Could the hand
of man distribute manure around the roots and stems of
grass as minutely and incessantly as turbid water; could
it place a covering upon each blade and around each stem
of grass, as completely as water can embrace each plant and
keep it warm; could it water the grass as quietly and con¬
stantly as the slow current of irrigation; and could it wash
away injurious matter from the soil as delicately around
the fibres of the roots of grass as irrigating water, there
would be no need of irrigation; the husbandman could
then command at will verdant pasturage for his flocks and
herds throughout the year, and in the driest season. His
mechanical agency would be as effective as that of irriga¬
tion. But the relative powers of things being as at present
constituted, man employs irrigation as the instrument of his
will, and attains the maintenance of his live-stock by in¬
ducing Nature to assist him in a work in which she un¬
doubtedly displays her superioritv over him both in indus¬
try and dexterity " (H. s., j. c—kd.)
IRTISH, a river of Siberia. See Siberia.
IRVINE, a royal and parliamentary burgh, seaport, and
market-town of Ayrshire, Scotland, situated on the estuary
of the Irvine water, 29 miles distant from Glasgow, and
10 from Ayr. The old burgh on the N. side of the water
is connected with the S. side by a stone bridge of four
arches. Its buildings are a townhall and six churches.
The harbour has 8 feet of water at the bar in high tide;
and at the port there were registered (Dec. 31, 1855)4
steamers and 113 sailing vessels, with an aggregate tonnage
of 17,719 tons. The principal export of the place is Ayr¬
shire coal, the amount shipped in 1855 being 264,625 tons,
or half the quantity shipped in that year from the Scottish
ports. During the same year there entered the harbour
243 sailing vessels, of 19,555, and 132 steam-vessels, of
26,467 aggregate tonnage; and cleared out 4008 sailing
vessels, of 336,384, and 163 steam-vessels, of 29,144 ag¬
gregate tonnage. In the summer months the suburban
villas on the shore are frequented by visitors for sea-bathing.
Irvine was created a royal burgh by King Robert I. in 1308,
and is governed by a provost and eighteen councillors. It
unites with Ayr, Campbelton, Inverary, and Oban, in re¬
turning a member to parliament. Population in 1851 —
royal burgh, 4790; parliamentary burgh, 7534.
IRVING, Edward, the most powerful and impressive,
if not the greatest, pulpit orator of his day, was born at
Annan, in Dumfriesshire, August 15, 1792. His parents
were in circumstances to give him a good education. After
learning all that the little town of his birth could teach him,
he went to Edinburgh, and at the university of that city
distinguished himself greatly in the study of the exact
sciences. Taking his degree in the ordinary course, he
left college, and went to teach mathematics in the burgh
school of Haddington. The next year found him settled
in Kirkcaldy ; where, besides teaching as before, he read
deeply in divinity, with the view of entering the church.
In 1819, having been licensed, he left Kirkcaldy, hoping
to be sent to the East, and there become a Protestant
Xavier. Accident, however, made him acquainted with
Dr Chalmers, who appointed him his assistant in the parish
of St John’s, Glasgow. The strangeness of his doctrine,
his wild prophet-like manner, and the disturbing force of
his personal character, were ill-calculated to please his entire
congregation. Some of them shrunk back before the strong
reality ot their young pastor’s nature, and the stern truths
which he had the courage to tell; others, warmly admiring
his defiance of the comfortable old conventions to which
they had been used, applauded, flattered, and perhaps helped
a little to spoil him. His fame soon spread, and in 1822
he was invited to settle in London, where he was appointed
minister of the church of the Caledonian Asylum. In a
short time it became “ the fashion ” to attend his preaching.
Crowds ot people ot every rank, from the highest to the
lowest, flocked to hear him: statesmen, poets, painters,
philosophers, literary men, merchants, and great noblemen,
thronged his church, and the whole world of fashion soon
lay at his feet. To retain his hold over it, he thought that
on all occasions he ought to shine. Time for fresh study
and thought was denied him. His old stores began to tail.
The excitement he had created soon became too powerful
for even his strong understanding and noble spirit to con¬
trol. At any cost it must be kept up. To pause, were it
but for a moment to steady his whirling brain, was to fall.
Every new effort demanded something equally great and
stimulating for the next display. In the zenith of his fame
he published a volume of discourses under the title of
For the Oracles of God, four orations ; For Judgments to
Come, an argument in nine -parts. Three editions of this
work were sold in less than half a year. Aimless, and with¬
out a wide or lasting interest, curiously quaint in style and
manner, while the matter generally bears upon the topics
of the passing hour, it contains many passages of extraordi-
nary beauty and depth, many an outpouring of lofty devo¬
tion, and frequent bursts of the most passionate eloquence.
As time wore on, the mysticism and strangeness of his writ¬
ten style became sensible also in his oral discourse. The
624 I S IE
Isas us. opinions and personal influence of Coleridge began to tell
' ^ upon him. Turning to the Bible, he sought to expla.n all
its difficulties through the medium of the unfulfilled pro¬
phecies. He next estranged many of his adherents by
proclaiming and advocating the advent of the millennium.
Then comparing the early with the modern history of the
Christian church, he thought that it was only the want of
faith which prevented the ministers of the one from doing
what had been done by the apostles of the other. This led
him to preach the possibility of working miracles and speak¬
ing in unknown tongues. His conduct, which had long
been watched with uneasiness and suspicion by the Church
of Scotland, now came to be openly discussed in her
courts, and Irving was deposed from her ministry. But his
adherents were numerous and devoted, and built him a
chapel, in which he continued to preach to them to the
end. Even after his health began to give way his zeal re¬
mained unabated, and he persisted in squandering his
energies as freely as in the first vigour of his strength. In
1834 he set out on a tour through Scotland, in the hope of
re-establishing his shattered nerves, but he only reached
Glasgow, where he died on the 8th of December, in the
forty-third year of his age. He was buried in a crypt of
the cathedral of that city.
No more devout or earnest spirit has appeared on the
stage of time in the nineteenth century than Edward Irving.
He was born to be a Christian minister, and, as was said of
him by a friend who knew him well, “ he strove with all the
force that was in him to be it. He might have been so
many things ; not a speaker only, but a doer,—the leader of
hosts of men. For his head, when the fog Babylon had not
yet obscured it, was of strong far-searching insight. His
very enthusiasm was sanguine, not atrabiliar; he was so
loving, full of hope, so simple-hearted, and made all that
approached him his. A giant force of activity was in the
man ; speculation was accident, not nature. There was in
him a courage dauntless, not pugnacious, hardly fierce, by
no possibility ferocious; as of the generous war-horse,
gentle in its strength, yet that laughs at the shaking of the
spear. But, above all, be what he might, to be a reality
was indispensable for him.” In another place the same
friend exclaims—“ But for Irving, I had never known what
the communion of man with man means. His was the
freest, brotherliest, bravest, human soul mine ever came in
contact with. I call him, on the whole, the best man I
have ever, after trial enough, found in this world, or now
hope to find.” Similar was the judgment of all Irving’s
friends, and even of most of those whom the laws of their
church compelled to take part in deposing him. All ad¬
mired the man, his many virtues, his matchless eloquence ;
all deplored his fall, and the gulf of separation which it cre¬
ated between them.
ISA)US, the fifth in order of the ten Attic orators com¬
prised in the Alexandrian canon, was most probably a native
of Chalcis, though Athens, the scene of his oratorical tri¬
umphs, claimed him for her son. The dates of his birth
and death are alike unknown; but this much is certain,
that he rose into eminence in the interval between the
close of the Peloponnesian War, b.c. 404, and the acces¬
sion of Philip to the throne of Macedon, b.c. 348. His
fathers name was Diagoras. In his youth he seems to
have been at one time rather dissipated and extravagant,
but with advancing years he reformed his mode of life, and
became frugal and self-denying. Little more is known of
his life, except that having mastered the arts of eloquence
under Lysias and Isocrates, he opened a school of oratory,
taught with great success, numbered Demosthenes among
his pupils, and enjoyed the friendship of all the leading
literati of his day.
In the Lives of the Ten Orators, attributed to Plutarch,
Isaeus is mentioned as the author of sixty-four orations.
ISA
Fourteen of these were condemned by the ancient critics Isaiah,
themselves as spurious. Of the remainder, only eleven have
come down to us entire; but fragments are preserved of
no fewer than fifty-six attributed to him. The eleven ex¬
tant are all forensic, and bear on subjects connected with
disputed inheritances. Their chief value to us lies in the
knowledge they afford of Athenian law in matters relating
to wills, the transmission of property, the rights of succes¬
sion in cases of intestacy, and many of the forms of pro¬
cedure. Of all these Isaeus seems to have been thoroughly
master. Little was written by the ancients themselves
upon the place and character of Isaeus as an orator. Indeed
the only extant criticism of him is in the parallel drawn by
Dionysius of Halicarnassus, between him and his master
Lysias. This, along with the actual remains of Isaeus, sup¬
plies materials for a pretty accurate estimate of him. With
infinite grace Lysias combined an artless and natural sim¬
plicity that gained belief for his statements, even when
they were known to be false, and conviction for his reason¬
ing when it was plainly untenable. Isaeus, on the other
hand, disregarded nature too much, and was too manifestly
an artist. More polished, and at the same time more vehe¬
ment than his master, he always seemed to study effect,
and to aim at conviction more by his manner of stating the
case than by a regard to the ultimate truth. On this ac¬
count, says Dionysius, “ Lysias was believed, even when
he stated what was false; people hesitated to believe Isaeus
even when he was known to speak the truth.” Isseus, how¬
ever, is entitled to special praise as the first who practised
and recommended the scientific cultivation of political ora¬
tory. To him is due the credit of introducing that powerful
and impressive style, which was afterwards perfected by his
pupil Demosthenes. Ten of the eleven extant orations of
Isaeus have been known since the revival of letters. The
eleventh, on the Inheritance of Menecles, was first published
by Th. Tyrwhitt, Lond., 1785, from a manuscript out of the
Laurentine library of the Grand Duke of Tuscany at Flo¬
rence. In 1815 Angelo Mai discovered the larger half of
the oration on the Inheritance of Cleonymus, which he pub¬
lished at Milan, and afterwards at Rome. There have been
numerous editions of Isaeus in the collective works of the
Attic Orators, of which the best is Bekker’s. There have
been also several separate editions, of which the best is that of
Schomann, Greifswald, 1831. In 1779 Sir William Jones
published an English translation of Isaeus, with a learned
commentary, and critical and historical notes. Besides
being somewhat loose and feeble, this version is said to be
not even very correct.
This Isaeus ought not to be confounded with Isaeus, ano¬
ther celebrated orator, who lived at Rome in the time of
Pliny the younger, about the year 97.
ISAIAH, or the evangelical prophet, one of the earliest
and most celebrated of the Jewish seers whose utterances
have been committed to writing. Of his personal history
very little is known. He was the son of Amoz (not Amos
the prophet, as the fathers erroneously supposed) ; was
married, and had two sons. The place of his abode was
Jerusalem, and his dwelling near the temple. His long
prophetic career included the reigns of Uzziah (partly),
Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah.
During Uzziah  1 or 4 years (b.c. 763 or 759.)
... Jotham  16
... Ahaz  16
... Hezekiah 14
47 or 50 years (B.c. 713.)
The arguments adduced to show that he lived till the
reign of Manasseh are of little weight. The sublime pas¬
sage in the sixth chapter is not to be interpreted simply of
Isaiah’s call to be a prophet. This he had received before,
but was now solemnly consecrated to a very lofty and im-
ISA
Isaiah, portant display of his office. The extent to which he was ab-
sorbed by the solemn duties he had to perform may be seen
in the few notices which we have of himself and his family,
as well as in the exalted strains of his seraphic utterances!
FTib wife is called a pTophctcss^ not simply because she was
married to him, but because she possessed the gift of pro¬
phecy, like Miriam, Huldah, &c. In the names which he
bestowed upon his two sons may be seen the leading cen¬
tres of judgment and mercy round which all his utterances
were clustered.
That the prophecies of Isaiah emanated from one man had
been but little doubted till the last quarter of the eighteenth
century, when it became fashionable to view them as an
anthology of gleanings from various quarters. A summary
of the ever-varying and mutually-destructive opinions on
this subject is given by Professor Alexander, in his Pro¬
phecies of Isaiah, Earlier and Later. “ It is commonly
agreed among them that the first six are genuine produc¬
tions of Isaiah, to which it can hardly be considered an ex¬
ception that chap. ii. 2-4 is supposed by many to be still more
ancient. The only observable dissent from this general
judgment seems to be the paradoxical opinion of the Dutch
wiiter Roorda, that chap. ii. 2-4 is the only portion written
by Isaiah, and that all the rest of the first five chapters is
the work of Micah. Chap. vii. 1-16 is regarded by Gesenius
as probably not the composition of Isaiah, who is mentioned
in the third person. This opinion is refuted by Hitzio-,
and repudiated by the later writers. Koppe’s idea that the
twelfth chapter is a hymn of later date, after being rejected
by Gesenius, and revived by Ewald, has again been set
aside by Umbreit. The genuineness of chap. xiii. and chap,
xiy. 1-23, is more unanimously called in question, on account
of itsi esemblance to chaps, xl. to lx vi., which this whole class of
critics set aside as spurious. Chaps, xv. and xvi. are ascribed
by Koppe and Bertholdt to Jeremiah; by Ewald and Um¬
breit to an unknown prophet, older than Isaiah ; by Hitzig,
Maurer, and Knobel, to Jonah; by Hendewerk, to Isaiah him¬
self. . Eichhorn rejects the nineteenth chapter; Gesenius
calls in question the genuineness of verses 18-20; Koppe de¬
nies that of verses ]8-2o ; Hitzig regards verses 16-2o as a
fabrication of the Jewish priest Onias; while Rosenmiiller,
Hendewerk, Ewald, and Umbreit vindicate the whole as a
genuine production of Isaiah. The first ten verses of the
twenty-first chapter are rejected on the ground of their re¬
semblance to the thirteenth and fourteenth. Ewald ascribes
both to a single author; Hitzig denies that they can be
from the same hand. Ewald makes the prophecy in chap,
xxi. the earlier; Hitzig proves it to be later. Koppe,
Paulus, Eichhorn, and Rosenmiiller look upon it as a vati-
cinium ex eventu; Gesenius, Ewald, and the other later
writers, as a real prophecy. The twenty-third chapter is
ascribed by Movers to Jeremiah ; by Eichhorn and Rosen-
miiller to an unknown writer later than Isaiah; by Gesenius
and De Wette to Isaiah himself; by Ewald to a younger
contemporary and disciple of the prophet. The continuous
prophecy contained in chap. xxv. 27, Knobel shows to have
been written in Palestine about the beginning of the Baby¬
lonish exile ; Gesenius, in Babylon, towards the end of the
captivity, and by the author of chaps, xl. to Ixvi.; Umbreit,
at the same time, but by a different author; Gramberg, after
the leturn from the exile ; Ewald, just before the invasion
of Egypt by Cambyses ; Yatke, in'the period of the Mac¬
cabees ; Hitzig, in Assyria, just before the fall of Nineveh;
while Rosenmiiller, in the latest editions of his Scholia,
ascribes it to Isaiah himself. Chaps, xxviii. to xxxiii. are sup¬
posed by Koppe to contain many distinct prophecies of dif¬
ferent authors, and by Hitzig several successive composi¬
tions of one and the same author; while most other writers
consider them as forming a continuous whole. This is re¬
garded by Gesenius and Hitzig, notwithstanding the ob¬
jections of preceding critics, as a genuine production of
VOL. XII.
I A H.
Isaiah ; but Ewald doubts whether it may not lie the wrork
of a disciple. Most of the writers of this school join chaps,
xxxiv. and xxxv. together as an unbroken context; but
Hitzig no less confidently puts them asunder. Rosenmiiller,
De Wette, and others set these chapters down as evidently
written by the author of chaps, xl. to Ixvi.; while Ewald,on
the other hand, maintains that this identity is disproved by
a difference of style and diction.”
Although such a host of conflicting opinions springs more
from a determination to rid the text of every thing super¬
natural, than a desire to expound it, and rests more on meta¬
physical arguments, which are adduced to prove all pro¬
phecy impossible, than on the philological considerations,
which are rather their pretext than their reason, still, on
philological grounds alone, the plea for the dismemberment
of the Isaian prophecies can be successfully refuted. For
example, we may urge the title of the book itself in chap. i. 1,
where Isaiah is mentioned as the author of the following
wiitings. Nor can it be said that, from the use of the
word vision, only a small part of the prophecies can be
inferred to in the title, for the period involved is expressly
mentioned as extending over four reigns, and the word
vision is used to mean a whole series of prophesies.
Jo iegard the collection as an anthology is a purely gra¬
tuitous assumption, destitute of foundation in the history
of prophetic literature, and resting on a series of assump¬
tions equally invalid, such as the existence of two authors
of the name of Isaiah, who lived 200 years apart, and whose
writings somehow became hopelessly intermingled. Be¬
sides this, the assertion of Josephus, that the prophecies of
Isaiah induced Cyrus to pass the edict allowing the resto¬
ration of the Jews, referring, as it does, to parts of the
book eliminated by critical taste as spurious, would prove
that the false Isaiah prophesied truly; for the supposition
that the prophecies are ex post facto, and palmed off upon
the true Isaiah, involves too many impossibilities.
A fatal objection to the creation of a pseudo-Isaiah is
found in the fact, that though he is placed subsequent to
Jeiemiah, yet this latter often imitates him ! The expres¬
sion, Holy One of Israel, often used by Isaiah in reference to
Jehovah, is also found in Jeremiah 1. and li., and so striking is
their coincidence, that De Wette and Von Colin are driven
to the desperate extremity of declaring the passage in Je¬
remiah spurious ! 1 he texts in Isaiah thus imitated are in
the chapters (xl. to Ixvi.) deemed spurious and of later date,
which we here see cannot be the case. This view is further-
corroborated by a passage in Ecclesiasticus, where Jesus
Sirach, in the third century b.c., passes a high eulogium
upon Isaiah, and gives obvious reference to the chapters
which the eighteenth century has doomed to be cut out of
his prophecy. No prophet in fact existed in the iron age
towards the close of the Babylonian Captivity, who could
have penned the classic passage from chaps, xl. to Ixvi.,
that part of the book usually assigned to a later hand.
In attempting to show the spuriousness of parts of Isaiah,
great use has been made of the fact, that a few Aramaic
words and expressions are occasionally to be met with,
which they regard as proving a later origin than that as¬
cribed to Isaiah. This whole argument, the main support
°f. Bcitholdt, Umbreit, and others, has been proved by
Ilirzel to be fallacious. Chaldaisms occur in the most an¬
cient of the Hebrew records; and this is accounted for by
the fact that the patriarchs were surrounded by nations
who spoke Chaldee. It is also curious enough, that the
earlier or admittedly genuine prophecies in the collection
contain moie Chaldaisms than those supposed spurious and
therefore of later origin. The usual plea of variety of
style has little foundation, and if it had, it has little force.
I he same author may vary his style according to his subject,
as Jeremiah does in his prophecies against Judah, when
contrasted with those against other nations. Who would
4 K
625
Isaiah.
626
ISA
Isauria.
dream of discarding the Ars Poetica of Horace, because it
contains numerous words and forms of expression not to be
found in any other Horatian composition ? Isaiah is ad¬
mittedly one of the greatest men in Jewish literature; and
an important part of this greatness consists in the versatility
*°f InreSrcUo the origin and arrangement of the collection
little is known. It has been urged, that Isaiah himself
could not have arranged the present collection, as it con¬
tains no prophecy which can be referred to the reign of
Jotham. But this may have been owing to the fact, that
there was nothing to distinguish this reign from the pre¬
vious one, so that chaps, i. to v. may embody the substance
of such revelations as took place during Jotham’s time.
Some have tried to show from the headings that the work
of a later hand than that of Isaiah is visible in the collec¬
tion. But the only case that requires notice is chap.xvii. 1.
It begins, “ The oracle (or burden) concerning Damascus ;”
but the prophecy which follows refers rather to Samaria.
It is urged that a mistake like this would not have been
made by the author; but there is no mistake. All prophecy
is primarily for the church, and it is by reason of the rela¬
tion which they may happen to bear to the church that
foreign nations are noticed at all. Damascus is mentioned
in the example quoted, because of the connection between
it and Ephraim. The Talmudists say, that the men of
Hezekiah collected the writings of Isaiah, but this is a mere
conjecture founded on Proverbs xxv. 1. According to
Hengstenberg, the prophecies are in the main arranged in
a chronological order. The few exceptions which occur, are
found, he says, upon examination, to be prophecies grouped
together on account of the similarity of their contents.
Looking at his writings generally, Isaiah stands in the
first rank of the prophets by the simplicity, clearness, sub¬
limity, and freshness of his compositions. The very com¬
prehensiveness of his writings have misled mere critics, so
as to suppose that several authors were necessary for what
he singly accomplished. His threatenings are like a tempest,
and his consolations are as the gentle words of a mother
comforting her child. His authority was great in his own
day, his writings were continually referred to by our Lord
and his apostles, the fathers are full of his praises, and he
will stand high in the Christian world when the mists which
German criticism has gathered around his prophecy shall
have long been cleared away and forgotten.
ISA U III A, in Ancient Geography, a tract of country in
Asia Minor, on the northern side of Mt. Taurus, which
separated it from Cilicia, and bounded on the E. by Lycao-
nia, on the N. by Phrygia, and on the W. by Pisidia. Prac¬
tically it may be considered as forming part of Pisidia, es¬
pecially as strong affinities subsisted between the inhabi¬
tants of the two countries. The Isaurians were a wild and
half-barbarous race, who lived by rapine and plunder.
When resisted by superior numbers they fled to their moun¬
tain strongholds, where few either cared or dared to follow
them. On sea they were equally formidable. Along with
their Cilician neighbours they ranged the eastern seas as
pirates, and at one time nearly swept the Roman flag off
the Levant and adjoining waters. So formidable did
they now become, that in b.c. 78, the Romans set on foot
a special campaign against them, and reduced them into a
kind of temporary submission. When Pompey put an end
to piracy in the east, the Isaurians, though surrounded on
every side by the Roman power, were still unsubdued, and
by their incessant raids and forays kept their more peace-
. ful neighbours in constant alarm. The Romans then pro¬
ceeded to surround their country with a chain of fortresses,
but the Isaurians broke through them and remained as un-
tameable as before. Under the empire, army after army
was sent against Isauria, which stood to Rome, and after-
waids to Constantinople, very much in the relation that Cir-
I s c
cassia now does to Russia. In the 8th century their na- Ischia,
tional vanity was gratified by seeing a countryman of their
own appointed to the throne of the Eastern empire in the
person of Leo. III. From this date they gradually ceased
to be formidable. The only city of importance in Isauria was
Isaura, its capital. It was a large, rich, and well-fortified place,
at the foot of Mt. Taurus on its northern slope. The country
itself was rocky and barren. The only useful plant that
throve in it was the vine, which was cultivated with care.
ISCHIA, the JEnaria or Inarime of the Romans, and
the Pithecusa or Pithecusse of the Greeks, an island in the
Mediterranean, belonging to the kingdom of the Two
Sicilies. It lies S.W. of Cape Miseno {ySIisenurn Pr. of
the Romans), and is separated from it by a strait 8 miles in
breadth, in which lies the little island of Procida, the an¬
cient Prochyta. It forms the northern boundary of the
Bay of Naples, and is distant about 16 miles from Capri,
the southern boundary. Its circumference is about 15
miles, and its area 24 square miles. The origin of the
island is evidently volcanic, and though it has now no re¬
gular crater, it has always been subject to strong volcanic
action. The Monte di San Nicola, or Mount Epomeo (the
ancient Epomeus), rising to a height of 2513 feet, shows
near its top the traces of two large craters, while its sides
are covered with cones. From this peak the island slopes
gently to the sea on all sides except the north, where the
descent is bolder and more abrupt. As seen from the sea
the island presents a picturesque and pleasing appearance,
and on landing, the favourable impression is fully justified
by the beauty of the landscape and the fertility of the soil,
and the general air of prosperity and comfort that every¬
where prevails. The wine, which the island produces in
large quantities, is excellent of its kind, and the crops of
chestnuts, olives, figs, and corn, are large and good. Game,
especially partridges, is also very abundant. Sulphur and
other minerals are abundant; and clay of excellent quality
is found near Camasicciola, and furnishes the material for
several large potteries. The hot springs that abound in all
parts of the island attract great numbers of invalids from all
parts of the Italian mainland.
Ischia forms part of the province of Naples, and is divided
into two cantons. Its largest towns are Ischia, on the
N.E. (described by Swinburne as “ a pretty town of white
buildings, and the residence of a bishop”), with a popula¬
tion of about 5500 inhabitants; Foria, on the W., with a
good harbour, a considerable trade, and a population of
about 6000; Camasicciola, with about 4000 inhabitants;
and near it, on the sea, Lacco, with a fishing population of
somewhat less than 2000. The entire population of the
island is estimated at about 25,000.
Ischia was first colonized by Greek settlers from Chalcis
and Eretria, who gave it the name of Pithecusa or Pithe-
cusae. The common idea is that they gave it this name
from “ Pithekos,” the Greek for an ape; but as apes are
not known to have ever existed in the island, the etymon
is more reasonable which derives it from “ Pithos,” the
Greek for an earthen vessel, as it seems that even in that
remote period potteries wTere established by the colonists.
Pithecusa soon rose to great wealth and importance, and
continued to prosper till civil dissensions broke out among
the settlers. Frequent earthquakes and volcanic outbreaks
at length drove them altogether from the island. In the
fifth century b.c. another colony was settled there by
Hiero, the tyrant of Syracuse, which had hardly begun to
establish itself when it too was driven from the island by
similar causes. It next fell under the sway of Neapolis,
and finally of Rome. Under the Romans it does not seem
to have acquired any importance, and it is rarely mentioned
in Roman history except as a favourite resort of invalids.
In ancient as in modern times the hot springs and baths of
Ischia were renowned for their curative properties.
I S E
Ischl . ISCHL, a market-town and fashionable watering-place
Jl in Upper Austria, at the junction of the Traun and Ischl,
_Ser<L ‘ m**es S’ by W. from Linz, and 170 from Vienna. It
is situate on a small plain surrounded by hills, and in
the neighbourhood of extensive forests. Ischl is resorted
to for its excellent climate and the efficacy of its waters.
The mineral springs contain a solution of sulphate of soda
and common salt, and have a purgative effect. Here the
emperor of Austria and many of the nobility have summer
residences. Permanent population about 2000.
ISERE, a department in the S.E. of France, on the
Sardinian frontier, formerly comprised in the old pro¬
vinces of Dauphine and Viennois, and lying between
N. Lat. 44. 41. and 45. 52., and E. Long. 4. 44. and 6. 22.
It is bounded on the N. by the department of Ain, E.
by Savoy, S. by the department of Hautes Alpes, and
W. by those of Drome, Loire, and Rhone. Area 3201
square miles; length from N. to S., 70 miles; breadth
from E. to W., 60 miles. The surface of the country is
generally irregular, and is especially so in the southern
parts, where it is crossed by offshoots from the Alps. The
highest elevations in the province are the Col de Saysse,
Col de Sept-Laux, Pic de Granier, and Pic de Belledonne’
reaching a height of from 9000 to 11,000 feet. The valleys
are celebrated for their extent and fertility. Those of Isere
and Gresivaudan, both traversed by the same river, are
together about 50 miles in length, and are justly reckoned
the richest in France; while the numerous glens that
branch off from them are rich in pasturage and forest trees,
extending up the sides of the mountains to the very sum¬
mit. In one of those glens or upland valleys, 4000 feet
above the sea level, is the famous convent of the Carthusian
order of monks, known by the name of “ La Grande Char¬
treuse,” for which see Chartreuse, la Grande. In the
N.W. the surface of the country is less hilly, and in
some places the low grounds are marshy. The" principal
rivers are the Rhone, the Drac, and the Isere. The first,
forming the N. and W. boundaries, separates this depart¬
ment from those of Ain, Rhone, and Loire, and is navi¬
gable, except after long drought. Its tributary, the Isere,
rises in Savoy, and traverses the department. It is navi¬
gable, but only for very light barges. The Drac joins the
Isere a short distance below Grenoble, but is not navigable.
All the rivers and streams of the department are subject to
inundations, which in 1846 and 1856 devastated the country
to a most alarming extent. The climate, from the irregu¬
larity of the surface, is various. Agriculture is almost
wholly confined to the valleys, where the soil is very rich*
and water abundant. There are cultivated wheat, barley,
rye, oats, maize, potatoes, and hemp, which in some places
grows to the height of 15 feet; while on the hill sides, with
a southern exposure, the vine, mulberry tree, walnut, and
almond, are grown to a greater extent than in any other
portion of France of the same size. The silkworm is reared
easily and with profit, while in the pastures sheep and
small cattle feed in considerable numbers. Of 2,048,638
acres contained in Isere there are 781,835 arable;
woods and forests; 425,011 waste (marsh, rocks, &c.);
164,854 under grass; 68,443 vineyards; 44,826’roads’
buildings, &c.; 38,273 rivers, canals, &c.; 25,703 various,
gardens, &c. This department, moreover, is celebrated for
its mineral wealth, as well as for the richness of its soil
and the grandeur of its scenery. Iron, lead, copper, and
anthracitic coal are worked in various parts; and both
gold and silver exist, but not in such quantities as to war¬
rant mining undertakings. Marble, granite, porphyry,
gypsum, and slate are quarried, and beautiful crystals "are
found in the mountains, while platinum occurs in the Drac
valley. The manufactures of the department are unimport¬
ant; they consist chiefly of cloths, beetroot-sugar, brandy,
and silk. a
I S H 627
Isere is divided into four arrondissements as follows:— Iserlohn
Arrondissements. Cantons. Communes. Pop. 1851. Ishmael
Grenoble  20 212 220,192
Vienne  10 134 159,514
La-Tour-du-Pin  8 122 136,593
St Marcellin  7 84 87,198
45 552 603,497
Grenoble, the capital of the department, had in 1851
26,852 inhabitants.
ISERLOHN, a walled town of Prussian Westphalia,
government of Arensberg, on the Baar, a small affluent of
the Ruhr, 17 miles W. of Arensberg. This is one of the
most extensive manufacturing towns in Westphalia. In
the surrounding country there are iron forges, paper-mills,
bleach-works, and other factories. The manufactures com¬
prise steam-engines and machinery, cutlery, zinc and brass
ware, leather, silk, calicoes, and" broad cloth. Pop., in¬
cluding a suburb beyond the walls, 12,645.
ISERNIA (the ancient JEsernia), a town of Naples,
province of Molise, on a spur of the Apennines, 23 miles
W. of Campobasso. It is one of the most ancient towns
of the kingdom, having been in the Roman times a strong¬
hold of the Samnites. The massive remains of its poly¬
gonal walls still exist as the foundation of the modern ones
in nearly their entire circuit. An aqueduct hewn in the
solid rock, and numerous remains of the ancient town, are
still to be seen. It is the see of a bishop, and the chief
town of a district. The cathedral and a great part of the
town were destroyed by an earthquake in 1805. Pop. about
8000.
ISH, in Scotch Lav), signifies expiration. Thus we say
£< the ish of a lease.” It signifies also to go out; thus we
say, “ free ish and entry” from and to any place.
ISHMAEL was Abraham’s eldest son, born to him by
Hagar. He made the desert into which he had been cast
his abode, and by attaching himself to, and acquiring in¬
fluence over, the native tribes, rose to great authority and
influence. Although their lots were cast apart, it does not
appear that any serious alienation existed between Ishmael
and Isaac; for we read that they both joined in the sepul¬
chral rites of their father Abraham (Gen. xxv. 9). This
fact has not been noticed as it deserves. It is full of sug¬
gestive matter. As funerals in the East take place almost
immediately after death, it is evident that Ishmael must
have been called from the desert to the death-bed of his
father; which implies that relations of kindness and respect
had been kept up, although the brevity of the sacred nar¬
rative prevents any special notice of this circumstance.
Ishmael had, probably, long before received an endowment
from his father’s property, similar to that which had been
bestowed upon the sons of Keturah (Gen. xxv. 6). No¬
thing more is recorded of him than that he died at the age
of 137 years, and was the father of twelve sons, who gave
their names to as many tribes (Gen. xvii. 20; xxv. 13).
He had also two daughters, one of whom became the wife
of Esau.
Ishmael has no claim to the honour which is usually as¬
signed to him, of being the founder of the Arabian nation,
d hat nation existed before he was born. He merely joined
it, and adopted its habits of life and character; and the
tribes which sprung from him formed eventually an import¬
ant section of the tribes of which it was composed. The
celebrated prophecy which describes the habits of life which
he, and in him his descendants, would follow, is therefore
to be regarded not as describing habits which he would first
establish, but such as he would adopt:—<£ Behold, thou art
with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name
Ishmael (God hears), because the Lord hath heard thine
affliction. And he shall be a wild man: his hand shall be
against every man, and every man’s hand against him, and
628 I S H
Ishnik he shall dwell in the presence of all Ms brethren” (Gen.
II xvi. 11, 12). This means, in short, that he and his de-
Isinglass. scendants should lead the life of the Bedouins of the Ara-
' ^ bian deserts; and how graphically this description portrays
their habits, maybe seen in the article Arabia, and in the
works of Niebuhr, Burckhardt, Lane, &c.; and, moie pai-
ticularly in the Arabian romance of Antar, which presents
the most perfect picture of real Bedouin manners now in
existence. The last clause, “ He shall dwell in the presence
of all his brethren,” is pointedly alluded to in the brief notice
of his death, which states that u he died in the presence of
all his brethren” (Gen. xxv. 18). Of this expression, va¬
rious explanations have been given, but the plainest is the
most probable. It had seemingly some such force as this:
The heritage of Canaan is, indeed, destined for another
son of Abraham ; but still the lot of Ishmael, and of those
that spring from him, shall never be cast far apart from that
of his brethren. This view is confirmed by the circum¬
stance, that the Israelites did, in fact, occupy the country
bordering on that in which the various tribes descended
from Abraham or Terah had settled—the Ishmaelites,
Edomites, Midianites, Moabites, Ammonites, &c. Most
interpreters find in this passage, a promise that the descen¬
dants of Ishmael should never be subdued. But we are
unable to discover this in the text; and, moreover, such
has not been the fact, whether we regard the Ishmaelites
apart from the other Arabians, or consider the promise
made to Ishmael as applicable to the whole Arabian family.
See Arabia.
ISHNIK, or Isnik. See Nicasa.
ISIDORES. Of several persons of this name the most
notable are St Isidore of Pelusium and St Isidore of Se¬
villa. The former, who died about the year 450, was a na¬
tive of Alexandria, and spent the greater part of his life
in a monastery near Pelusium, of which he is supposed to
have been abbot. He was an ardent disciple and supporter
of Chrysostom. The memory of his learning and piety is
preserved in his Letters, of which upwards of 2000 are ex¬
tant. They are chiefly expository, containing much sound
instruction, and are deserving of notice for the purity of their
style. They are in five books, collected into one volume
fob, Gr. and Lat., Paris, 1638.
Isidore of Sevilla, surnamed Hispalensis from the country
of his birth, lived between 570 and 636. About a.d. 600
he succeeded his brother Leander in the archbishopric of
Sevilla, and during a long and active administration of office
made his name venerable as the main pillar of the Catholic
Church in Spain, the restorer and maintainer of clerical dis¬
cipline, the most learned and the most eloquent doctor of
his age. Of his voluminous works the most remarkable is
his Origines seu Etymologiarum libri xx., an encyclo¬
paedic collection of treatises on all the arts and sciences at
that time embraced within the range of human study. The
best edition of his collected works is that of Arevali, 7 vols.
4to, Rome, 1797-1803.
A celebrated collection of forged canons or decretals, in¬
tended to prove the paramount authority of the Romish See
over all other tribunals, was the work of Isidore Mercator
or Peccator, a monk of the eighth century.
ISINGLASS, a variety of gelatine, sometimes called
icluhyocolla, or fish-glue (from a fish, and KoXXa,
glue), prepared from the air-bag, swimming-bladder, or
sound of various fishes. The Russian and Siberian isin-
gkss is most esteemed; it is chiefly obtained from sturgeons,
a family, of cartilaginous fishes of the genus Acipenser.
The swimming-bladder is cut up, washed, and then ex¬
posed to the air, with the inner silvery membrane upwards.
M hen dry, this membrane is removed by beating and rub¬
bing.; the sound is then prepared in various ways. For
forming^what is called /eo/’isinglass it is merely dried ; for
long anu short staple, it is twisted between three pegs into
I S I
the shape of a horse-shoe, harp, or lyre ; for booh isinglass,
it is folded like the sheets of a book ; for ribbon isinglass,
it is rolled out. The swimming-bladder of AL sturio of the
Caspian Sea furnishes leaf isinglass of three qualities, known
os fine-firsts, firsts, and seconds. A. guldenstadtii of the
Caspian and Black Seas and their tributary rivers, furnishes
caviare from its roe or ovary, whilst the swimming-bladder
yields staple and /co/1 isinglass. The varieties of staple are
Patriarch Astrakhan, and Astrakhan firsts, seconds, and
thirds. The varieties of leaf are also firsts, seconds, and
thirds,—the firsts forming the finest leaf known in com¬
merce. A. rufinus and A. stellatus also yield isinglass.
There is a kind known as Samovey leaf, from Tanganrod,
but this is inferior; there is also the sisane leaf, said to be
obtained from a small fish, and kroski isinglass, which is
made into small membranous disks. Isinglass is also pro¬
cured from Siluris glanis. For purse, pipe, and lump isin¬
glass, the swimming-bladder is dried unopened, and the
variety known as Siberian purse, of moderately good quality,
is greatly in demand.
Brazilian isinglass is obtained from Para and Maranham,
but the fishes which produce it have not been named. For
the variety known as pipe-Brazil, the swimming-bladders
are dried unopened, and made into pipes 10 or 12 inches
long, and from 2 to 2} inches broad, and are sometimes
distended with air. Lump isinglass is formed by placing
two swimming-bladders side by side, and for honey-comb
isinglass, the largest lump isinglass is split open. There
are also varieties of isinglass from New York, from Hudson’s
Bay, and from the East Indies. In Moldavia a variety is
prepared frem the skin, stomach, intestines, and swimming-
bladder of the sturgeon. These are cut small, steeped in
cold water, and simmered. The jelly thus produced is
spread out into thin layers, and dried into a kind of parch¬
ment, which, on being softened with water, is rolled into
cylinders, or extended into plates, and forms an inferior
isinglass. Cod sounds are also used for a similar purpose.
The patent gelatine prepared from glue-pieces or cuttings
of hides, &c., after the manner of glue, is also used as a
substitute for isinglass. A solid gelatine in thin plates and
strings, is prepared from bones, and is chiefly of French
manufacture.
Isinglass is prepared for sale by being picked and cut.
This was formerly done by hand, but is now effected by
steam machinery; the thin filaments thus produced should
be whitish in colour, dry, semitransparent, nearly tasteless,
and quite devoid of smell. Isinglass diflers from glue, in
being tough, fibrous, and elastic, instead of brittle. On
boiling, it should completely dissolve, and on cooling, should
form a white jelly, soluble in weak acids, but separable from
them by alkalies. With milk and sugar it is used as a diet
for invalids, and it is also used in the preparation of blanc¬
mange, jellies, and creams, and for enriching soups, and
sauces. For the reasons given under Gelatine, isinglass
is no longer considered to be highly nutritive ; it is even
less digestible than the flesh or muscular part of animals.
The great consumer of isinglass is the brewer, who uses it
as a fining material, for which purpose lump isinglass is
chiefly used. This is deeper in colour, and inferior in sol¬
ubility to the better varieties. On mixing it with the
liquor to be fined, it partly combines with some of those
matters which render the liquor cloudy, and entangles in
its meshes those which are mechanically suspended, the
whole then rising to the surface can be removed, and the
liquor be left clear. Wine, coffee, and other liquids are
also clarified by isinglass, but sole-skins and hartshorn sha¬
vings are often used as substitutes for it. Isinglass forms
the adhesive material in court-plaister, for which purpose a
solution of isinglass, mixed with tincture of benzoin, is
brushed over black sarsenet. Isinglass dissolved in spirits
of wine or common gin, and gently simmered by placing
Isinglass.
I S I
the bottle in a vessel of boiling water for about an hour,
onus diamond cement, or white fish-glue ; g„m ammoniac
is sometimes added. Panes of isinglass, instead of due
are used m France instead of horn, for lanterns, and also
tor lamp-shades, &c. (n
ISIS. See Egypt. ^ * ''
ISKARDOH, the capital of Bultistan, is situate in a
valley 19 miles long and 7 broad, and embosomed in stu¬
pendous ranges of mountains. The castle of the former
sovereigns stands on a small natural platform about 300
feet above the bed of the Indus and its great tributary the
Mngur, the two rivers forming a junction at the foot of the
rock on which the castle is built. Ahmed Shah, the late
native sovereign of Bultistan, had ruled his kingdom with
a moderation little known among Asiatic despots He
“ail Th TTCrSful eff01tS t0 become a protected
vassal of the Indian Government as he dreaded the power
and rapacty of the Sikhs. His fears proved trueTT
kardoh havmg been seized by Gholab Singh, the present
^ fsT° A MShm?re' Iskardoh is in Lat- 35-12> Long .75.35.
ISLAM, or Islamism. See Mohammedanism.
A x, or I sea, an island on the west coast of Scotland
5o. 30. and 5o. 08. and W. Long. 6. 2. and 6. 35., 17 miles
W. of Cantyre, and 2 miles S. of the island of Jura. It is
27 miles in length from N. to S., and 22 miles broad and
Elands1 nfnorea ^ ab0Ut 174 S(lUare miIes- Unlike the other
islands of the same group, its surface is generally regular
with moderate undulations. The soil, which is a mlture
renders i?1^’ and If11’-13 hlghly absorbent, a quality that
renders very productive under the great amount of rain
which falls on the island. The rocks'belong to the schTs-
toze formation, and contain some veins of lead. Islay has
iff f611 famous for the distillation of whisky, which is
generally accounted the best in Scotland. In'1851 the
4^089 °n theisland amounted to
S t n^2>t° 311’8365 in 1853, to 336,715; in
an lVh° 4 !’ p f m 1855’ t0 386,822; or, on an average,
The nrfoPe l0f he ^^ distilled throughout Scotland.
Ihe principal crops of the island are barley, oats, here rye
“nid 2lrn ■ iS Syid,eiint0 &m l>arishes>and in Esi
12 334 in Af ab'ted 1iouses> 'vith ;l population of
miT i iyoLishow.lng a decrease since 1831 of 2658.
e largest village is Bowmore, on Lochindaal, with a
population of 1202 persons. See Hebrides.
w1 f i f ^ °1S’ or IsLE 0F Pines, one of the Spanish
TH indu 8 f S’ lyfg 16 miles off the S.coast of Cuba.
I, ,'8 42 miles in length from N. to S., by 32 in breadth, and
has an area of 709 square miles. It is richly wooded, and
is iiotecl for its healthy climate and fertile soil. Pop. 1400.
ISLE, L, a town of France, department of Vaucluse
arrondissement of Avignon, and 12 miles E. of the town of
ft name. It stands on a small island formed by the
Sorgues, and contains about 6000 inhabitants, chiefly em-
icTdf f manufacture of silk and woollens.
S nf TV °p f ,NES’. an0 Llet in the South Pacific, lying
j’ °f Caledoma in S. Lat. 22. 38., E. Long. 167. 25.
t is about 4^ miles m circumference, and is covered with
luxuriant vegetation. In 1853 the French took possession
of it along with New Caledonia. 1
a t0".n of.’ Moldo- Wallachia, on the north bank
the Kark C ) 1 ° D,an"be’ 65 mi,es d!sto"t from
17Qn v k 8 ’ T\o2 \r0m the town of Ga]atz. Prior to
1790 it was m the hands of the Turks, but in that year was
ake„ by the Russians in whose possession it remained till
18o6, when itwas ceded to the Moldo-Wallachian provinces
blown’16 °f the Forte- TfrofortMcaLs were
InW, P.by ’‘i m 1856 before evacuating. Its
Which fT are chl.edy dependent on the trade of the Danube,
mod cl ^ 6 °r Steam and sailing vessels. The
p1 oducts of Moldavia are gram, hides, and tallow, exported
ISO
from Ismail in large quantities. With the exception of
some old Armenian churches there is nothing in the build-
(1849)'26 243 t0 the eyC °f the observer- PoP-
ISMID Izmid or Iznikmid, a seaport town of Asia
Mmor, at the head of the Gulf of Ismid (an inlet of the sea
of Marmora), and 50 miles E.S.E. from Constantinople. It
stands on the slope of a hill rising from the bay, and con¬
tains about 900 houses. Its trade is said to be considerable.
Ismid occupies the site of the ancient Nice media, a cele¬
brated city of Bithynia, built in b.c. 264, by Nicomedes I.,
vv 10 made it his capital. It soon became one of the most
splendid cities in the kingdom ; and under the Romans was
a favounte residence of several of the later emperors, amoim .
others of Diocletian and Constantine the Great It is
memorable in history as the scene of Hannibal’s death, and
Great birthp aCG °f Arnan’ the historian of Alexander the
ISOCRATES, a celebrated Athenian orator, and the
fom th in the order of the Alexandrian canon, was born at
thens b.c. 436. He was the son of Theodorus, a musical
mstiument maker in that city. As his father was a man of
large means Isocrates had the benefit of the best training
then to be had in Ins native city, and Tisias, Gorgias, Pro-
. US) and I heramenes were among his teachers." A con¬
stitutional shyness and timidity which he tried in vain to
overcome led him to abandon all hope of attaining eminence
as a public speaker. But though he could not speak him¬
self none knew better than he the laws of oratory, or the
best training for students of that art. In Chios, where he
first established himself as a teacher of rhetoric, he did not
succeed very well; but when he removed to Athens he
was eagerly sought after, and counted among his scholars
such men as Iheopompus, Ephorus, Xenophon, Ismus,
and Demosthenes. Cicero somewhere observes that the
onPnetn HIS0CiatieS £ymiiasium, a workshop of words,
, pe" tbe whole °f Greece, and that from his school, as
om the horse of Iroy, had gone forth a troop of heroes.
It became a fashion at Athens to attend his course, and the
number of his pupils at last rose to 100, from each of
whom he received 1000 drachmae. His terms were often
complainedof as extravagant; but when at the height of
ns fame he said that he would gladly pay 10,000 drachma
to any one who could give him a good voice and confidence
to speak m public. At the age of 94 he wrote in the
exordium of his Panathencncus, “ So utterly destitute am I
of.the two qualities most valued in an orator at Athens—
voice and manner—that I believe no one of mv time is in
these i espects so ill-provided as I.” Certain it is that he
was never known to speak in public but once. The ora¬
tions which he wrote were either delivered by others or
sent for private perusal to the persons to whom they were
addiessed, and in this way he amassed large means. Ni-
cocles, king of Cyprus, gave him twenty talents for the
oration Epos NocoiAea. His persistent refusal to take any
629
Ismid
Isocrates.
i- , ■ . ... ^ iciusai to laxe any
direct part in public affairs raised against him a host of
enemies. I o put an end to the slander that threw sus¬
picion upon his motives, he determined in b.c. 352 to ac¬
cept the tnerarchy—the most important and expensive of
the extraordinary public services that could be undertaken
vJthTr 6 CvTvl ISi°CrT fulfil,ed bis self-imposed task
with a splendid liberality that silenced his enemies, and
made him for a time extremely popular. Another accusa¬
tion charged him with maintaining too friendly and inti¬
mate a correspondence with kings, and letters of his are
sti 1 extant to Philip and Alexander of Macedon. But his
political views were too large and wide for any of the fac
turns that then distracted Athens in common Jith the ofoer
states of southern Greece; and he never would identify
himself with the politics of any party. His m-eat desire
was to see the Greeks (under that name he included all
L
630
Isocrates.
ISO
those who spoke the Greek tongue) banded together in a
powerful league against their common foe of Persia.
Though a strong advocate of a peaceful policy he urged
this war as the only means he could think of that would
likely put an end to the wretched little wars in which the
Greeks were wasting each other’s strength, and which made
the whole country an easy prey and a tempting bait to any
rapacious neighbour. No better proof of his genuine pa¬
triotism can be adduced than his Panegyncus, which it is
said that he spent ten years of his life in polishing and re¬
touching. In this harangue (written while Athens was
still suffering from the disasters of the Peloponnesian War)
he expatiates in glowing terms on the glory and greatness of
his native city, her exploits in war, her suffeiings in the
cause of Greece, and her splendid achievements in litera¬
ture and the arts. With equal eloquence he enlarges on
her services to civilization by her colonies in every corner
of the Mediterranean, her management of them, and her
development of the commercial resources of every country
to which her splendid fleets could penetrate. A powerful
appeal to Spartans and Athenians to lay aside their mutual
enmity, and combine their forces against their common
enemy of Persia, shows at once the genuineness of his pa¬
triotism and his enlarged political views. Though he was
all his life a friend of peace, yet he was at the same time
too much a friend of virtue to purchase it at the cost of
honour. His conduct, in the case of his old friend and
teacher Theramenes, suffices to refute the charge of per¬
sonal cowardice sometimes brought against him. When
Theramenes was condemned to death by the Thirty Ty¬
rants, Isocrates was bold enough to risk his life in uphold¬
ing and sympathizing with him. He had reached the great
age of 98, when the battle of Chaeronea was fought, B.C.
338. The victory of the Macedonians extinguished for
ever the liberties of Greece; and Isocrates, unwilling to
survive the downfal of his country, died by his own act a
few days after.
The general esteem in which Isocrates was held by the
ancient critics is attested by the number of commentaries
which were written upon his works. These, with the his¬
tory of his school by Hermippus, have all long since perished.
Of the sixty-eight orations, which in ancient times passed
under the name of Isocrates, twenty-eight were acknow¬
ledged as genuine, and of these twenty-eight only twenty-
one have come down to us. The titles and a few fragments
of twenty-seven others ascribed to his pen have been pre¬
served. Besides these orations, ten letters, bearing chiefly
on the political questions of the day, are extant under his
name; but some of them are undoubtedly spurious. Of
the extant orations eight belong to the forensic class, and
contain much valuable information on the civil law of Athens
and the forms of legal procedure. Others of them belong
to the hortatory or declamatory style; and all alike display
the characteristic excellencies and defects of their author.
In estimating these orations it must never be forgotten
that they were not intended to be valued by their effect
upon a miscellaneous audience, but upon the intelligent
reader in his closet. He bestows great care on the ar¬
rangement and distribution of his subject. His language
is always finically Attic. In the choice of his words he
was hardly less fastidious than Charles Fox, who would use
in his History no word that had not the stamp of Dryden’s
sanction. His periods are all rounded with consummate
care. Every clause is scrupulously balanced with the other
members of the sentence, and disposed so as to flow on in
haimonious cadence with the whole. Indeed, Cicero ex-
pressly says that Isocrates was the first to study rhythm in
the writing of prose. His words thus roll on melodiously,
till their very melody cloys by its sweet monotony, and the
reader begins to long for something more free and forcible,
and less obviously artistic. Dionysius neatly decides be-
I S P
tween Lysias and Isocrates in a single line, when he says Isomerism
that “ the first pleases naturally, while the latter aims at II
pleasing.” Yet this critic, severe as he is upon the finely IsPahan^
modulated phrases and regular antithesis of Isocrates, does
ample justice to the high moral tone and noble spirit of
piety and virtue that breathe through all his works.
Few of the writers of Greece have been so often or so well
edited by modern scholars as Isocrates. He appears, of course,
in all the collections of the Attic Ten, and in a vast number
of special editions. The best text is that of Bekker. The
English edition of Battie, 1749, and the French edition of
the Abbe Auger, 1782, are neither of them so good as they
ought to have been from the MSS. which these scholars
had at command. Coraes’ edition, Paris, 1807 ; that of W.
Lange, Halle, 1803 ; and that of Baiter and Saiippe, Zurich,
1839, are all good. G. S. Dobson published an excellent edi¬
tion in London in 1828, with a Latin translation and copious
notes. Isocrates has been translated into English by Sad-
leir; Dinsdale, Lond. 1752; and Gillies, Lond. 1778. The
French translation of the Abbe Auger, the only one in that
language, is regarded as a total failure. Excellent criticisms
on the life and writings of Isocrates will be found in some
of the works already named, and also in Westermann’s
History of Greek Oratory ; Leloup’s Commentatio de Iso¬
crate, Bonn, 1823 ; Pf'und’s JJe Isocratis vitd et Scriptis ;
and Brequigny’s Vies des Anciens Orateurs Grecs.
ISOMERISM, from ilcros, equal, and yepo^part. Bodies
which contain the same elements in the same ratio, and
yet have distinct physical and chemical properties, are said
to be isomeric. Isomeric bodies are divided into polymeric,
in which the elements being the same the mode of conden¬
sation is different; and metameric, which have the same
equivalent numbers, but are supposed to be differently con¬
stituted. See Chemistry.
ISOMORPHISM, from iW, equal, and pop^y], shape
or form. A vast number of subtances are distinguished by
crystalline forms, which have been arranged into six classes
or systems founded upon the relation of their axes of sym¬
metry to each other, the study of which belongs to the sci¬
ence of Crystallography. (See Mineralogical Science.)
Certain elementary substances, which are analogous to each
other in chemical properties, have the power of assuming a
similar crystalline form, and may be substituted for each
other in a compound without producing any change in its
crystalline form. Such bodies are said to be isomorphous.
Thus, magnesia, oxide of copper, protoxide of iron, and ox¬
ide of nickel, are isomorphous : when they enter into com¬
bination with the same acid, and with similar proportions of
water of crystallization, they furnish crystals which are
identical in form, and if of the same colour cannot be dis¬
tinguished by the eye. Common alum is a sulphate of alu¬
mina and potash; but the alumina may be displaced by
peroxide of iron, the potash by ammonia, or by soda, and
yet the shape of the crystal remain the same. Mixtures of
isomorphous salts cannot be separated by the method of
crystallization, unless of very different degrees of solubility.
ISOTHERMAL LINES. See Climate.
ISPAHAN or Isfahan, formerly the capital of the Per¬
sian empire, now of the province of Irak-Adjemi, is situa¬
ted on the River Zendarood, N. Lat. 32. 42., E. Long. 51.
46., about 220 miles S. of Tehran, and 230 miles N. of
Schiray. It is the centre point from which all the impor¬
tant roads of the country radiate. The present city is in a
very dilapidated condition. The streets are empty, palaces
in ruins, the gardens, once so famous for their luxurious
beauty, strewn with stones and lime from the neighbouring
ruins, and the bazaars deserted, though formerly the resort
of merchants from all quarters of the East. The area of
the city is extensive, and covers both sides of the river; on
the one side is the town proper, on the other the suburb
called Julfa devoted to the Christians. The present in-
1 S R
Israel, habitants confine themselves to certain districts where the
streets are more commodious and accessible, the rest of the
town being quite tenantless. The suburb Julfa is occu¬
pied by Armenians, and forms the residence of the Euro¬
pean embassies when the Court is at Ispahan. It is con¬
nected with the city proper by three ruinous bridges, only
one of which can be used. This bridge is composed of
thirty-three arches, above each of which are three smaller
ones, and has, besides a causeway for horsemen and cattle,
a covered footpath for passengers. The principal features
of Ispahan are the mosques, palaces, and gardens, that vie
with each other in displaying tokens of departed greatness.
In the centre of the town is the Ma'idan, or Square of Shah
Abbas, said to be 2000 feet long by 700 feet in breadth,
each of its sides being occupied by arcades of double ranges
of arches. In the N.W. side of the square is the gate of
entrance to the Shah Abbas Bazaar, on which the celebra¬
ted clock of Ispahan formerly stood. This bazaar, built by
the Shah whose name it bears, is described by travellers as
one of great extent, but is now occupied by only a few
tradesmen. Opposite its gate, on the south-eastern side of
the Maidan, stands the mosque of Shah Meshed, the most
richly adorned of any in Ispahan, and having a gate of
great magnificence covered with gold and silver ornaments.
Christians are not admitted to the interior. The Looft
Ullah Mosque and Ali Gate front each other on the S.E.
and S.W. sides of the square, and both are remarkable speci¬
mens of Persian architecture. But the building which
strikes the eye of the stranger most in this city is the palace
of forty columns, or Chehel Sitoon. Its interior is covered
with gilding, mirrors, and paintings. Some of the pictures
represent scenes which occurred two or three hundred years
ago, and are said to be well executed. The Shah holds his
audiences here when in Ispahan. Besides these buildings
there are several smaller mosques, colleges, and a consider¬
able number of caravanserais and public baths. The interest
attached to this city is, however, chiefly derived from the his¬
torical descriptions of its former wealth and grandeur. It
was under the caliphs of Bagdad that Ispahan began to in¬
crease in wealth, population, and trade, and rose to be capi¬
tal of Irak. I he invasion of Timor, however, gave a severe
blow to its prosperity. The city was taken by him in 1387,
and great atrocities were perpetrated on the inhabitants. At
the beginning of the seventeenth century the town began to
rise again into notice. Abbas Shah, of the Sefi dynasty, re¬
moved the seat of government from Kazwinto Ispahan, and
used every means to advance its prosperity, and increase
trade. He carried off the inhabitants of Julfa, a town on Ar¬
ras River, in Armenia, and allotted them the suburb of Ispa¬
han, now called Julfa. These were famous for their industri¬
ous habits and their knowledge of the arts. Under this
monarch the city rose to great eminence as a place of com¬
merce and wealth, and is said to have contained a popula¬
tion of more than a million souls, but after his death it again
declined, and at the end of the eighteenth century the seat
of government was transferred to Teheran, the present ca¬
pital of Persia. Ispahan is again beginning to acquire im¬
portance, and to attain somewhat of that commercial posi¬
tion which, from her natural advantages, she is entitled to
occupy. The inhabitants are reputed the most intelligent
in the empire. At present the chief manufactures are silk
and gold brocade, and the general trade embraces all those
articles belonging to the East, such as silk, tea, coffee, &c.,
that are brought through Ispahan on their road westwards.
The population is variously estimated from 50,000 to
120,000. See also Persia.
ISRAEL (“a prince with God”), the name given to
Jacob at Peniel (Gen. xxxii. 28-30). After denoting first
the patriarch Jacob, and from him the whole nation of the
Jews, the name was applied to the ten tribes, after their re¬
volt, in contradistinction to Judah. Since the Babylonish
I S R 631
Captivity, the name of Jews, from the tribe of Judah, has D’Israeli.
been commonly applied to the nation. See Jews.
ISRAELI, Isaac d’, the author of The Curiosities of
Literature, and many other works connected with literary
history, was the son of a Venetian merchant of Jewish
race settled in England, and was born at Enfield, near
London, in 1766. His early education at the place of his
birth was shaped with a view to fit him for the merchant’s
desk; but, while at school, he evinced a precocious, and,
as his parents thought, a dangerous fondness for literary,
and especially poetic pursuits. To cure him of these tastes
they sent him to Amsterdam, where a correspondent of
his father’s was charged to place him in some school of
repute. At the age of eighteen he returned to England
with a great knowledge of Bayle, Voltaire, and the French
philosophes, and a MS. poem of his own against “ Com¬
merce.” Meeting with no sympathy in his favourite pur¬
suits at home, he sought it abroad. Samuel Johnson had
long been the English dictator on all questions of poetry
and criticism, and the story is that the young DTsraeli
sent his poem to him for judgment about the same time
that Samuel Rogers sought an opinion on the first fruits
of his genius. Both alike were disappointed. The reign
of the great critic was then drawing to a close. While
they were still in suspense as to their fate, they heard
that Johnson was dead. The satire against Commerce
never saw the light; but its author, still believing him¬
self a poet, continued to pour forth his soul in song, and
beside many short pieces in verse (contributed chiefly to
the Gentleman's Magazine), published also, but without his
name, some romantic tales in prose. The latter do not
seem to have ever had much success, if we except the sa¬
tirical piece called Flim-Flams ; and his Defence of Poetry,
his most ambitious effort in rhyme, was speedily suppressed
by himself. The fortune which awaited him on reaching
manhood enabled him to shape his future life according to
the plan long before laid and cherished by himself. Fie
resolved to devote himself to the career of literature, and
to take the literary character itself for his theme. Some
of the fruits of his wide and miscellaneous reading appeared
in 1791, when he gave to the world the first volume of his
Curiosities of Literature ; a second followed a few years
later ; and a third appeared in 1817. A second series ap¬
peared in 1823. In the intervals of his deeper studies he
contributed occasional papers to the Quarterly Peview.
I he most memorable of these was his review of Spence’s
Anecdotes in 1820. This essay gave rise to the famous
Pope controversy, in which Campbell, Byron, Bowles,
Roscoe, and others less eminent, broke lances. The cha¬
racter of Pope had long occupied Disraeli’s thoughts, and
he had gathered a great mass of materials for a life of the
poet. But after hesitating for a while between this task,
and the weightier one of contributing to the history of our
vernacular literature, he decided, as must ever be regretted,
in favour of the latter. In 1795 he had published one of the
most delightful of his works, his Essay on the Literary Cha
racier, and had followed it up in the ensuing year with his
Literary M^iscellanies. Between 1812 and 1816 appeared
the Calamities of Authors, the Quarrels of Authors, and
the Character of King James I. The last-named work was
described by himself as “an affair of literary conscience.”
Naturally shy and timid in private life, DTsraeli proved
his moral courage as a writer by vindicating the first of the
Stuart dynasty. Whatever weight be allowed to this de¬
fence of James, it was from no love of paradox that it was
undertaken by its author. He earnestly believed every
line that he wrote on the subject, and that his judgment
was borne out by the original records on which his work
was based. A similar motive actuated him in his next
elaborate work on the history of the seventeenth century
—his Commentaries on the Life and Feign of Charles L,
632 I S R
D’Israeli. 1828-1831. This work cxciteil far more interest than its
predecessor. “Men were attracted,” says his son, “to a
writer who traced the origin of the anti-monarchical principle
in modern Europe ; treated of the arts of insurgency ; gave
them at the same time a critical history of the Puritans,
and a treatise on the genius of the 1 apacy ; scrutinized the
conduct of triumphant patriots, and vindicated a decapitated
monarch. The success of this work was eminent; and its
author appeared for the first and only time of his life in
public, when, amid the cheers of undergraduates, and the
applause of graver men, the solitary student received an
honorary degree from the university of Oxford, a fitting
homage, in the language of the great university, ‘ optimi
regis optimo vindici.’” Increasing years and infirmities
were not able to damp the ardour of his literary enthu¬
siasm ; and it was for many years believed that a complete
history of our literature might be looked for from his pen.
His historical labours interfered with this design, and it was
only partly fulfilled in his Amenities of Literature. This
was his last work, and it saw the light in 1841, two years
after its author had been struck with blindness. The de¬
votion of his daughter enabled him to finish it, and carry it
through the press. DTsraeli spent the last thirty years of
his life in studious ease at Bradenham Blouse, Buckingham¬
shire, where he died in the January of 1848, in the eighty-
third year of his age.
In works like DTsraeli’s, which range over the whole
field of modern literature, and present flowers culled from
every tree, it would be too much to look for absolute cor¬
rectness in many small matters of detail. But, though the
critics have detected errors (few of them of any importance),
yet, on the whole, DTsraeli’s works deserve high praise on
the score of accuracy as well as honesty. Without preju¬
dices and without passions, almost, it might be said,
without a country, he had no motive either to distort the
facts of history, or by adroitly managing its lights and sha¬
dows, to gild the evil, and obscure the good. Having no
theories or traditionary opinions to defend, he sought truth
for itself, and reproduced it, set and polished perhaps, but
intrinsically the same as he found it. The literary vein
upon which he fell had been, till his day, almost unworked
in England, though the French had for ages known its
value, and had gathered from it some rare and precious ore.
He may therefore fairly be called the father of that very
important and interesting branch of English literature of
which his own Curiosities may serve as a type. It may
be doubted if, in the walk which he marked out for him¬
self, he has yet been approached—he certainly has not
been left behind. It would be absurd to place him, as is
sometimes done, on the same niche with Montaigne; yet
it is true that one reads the works of both with a similar
kind of interest. His delightful gossippings are made
the vehicle of curious and valuable learning. His criti¬
cism, though not always very philosophical, is generally set
off by some choice felicity of phrase, while many of his
isolated remarks are singularly acute and happy. Some¬
times, as in his story of Chidiock Titchbourne, he strikes
upon a chord of deep and subtle pathos. Many of his mis¬
cellaneous papers pi’esent pictures of past times, more gra¬
phic and memorable than the formal disquisitions of the
most learned antiquarians. The reader enjoys the fruit,
without having planted the tree, or anxiously watched the
stages of its growth. In the charm and freshness of these
pieces one forgets that they are merely the fragments,
which it was the author’s plan to have welded into the unity
of a perfect whole. Had he been able to carry out this
design he would have been entitled to rank with Warton;
but he wanted the fine critical sagacity and compass of
mind winch the poet-historian brought to bear on his His¬
tory of English Poetry.
In piivate life D Israeli was one of the best of men. By
1ST
one who had the best means of judging he is described as Issoire
having “passed through life without an evil act, almost II
without an evil thought.” His excessive nervousness made
him shy, timid, and sometimes irritable; but it was not in
his nature to harbour thoughts either of guile or malice.
ISSOIIIE (the ancient Issiordurum), a town of France,
capital of a cognominal arrondissement, in the department
of Puy-de-D6me, on the Couse, near its confluence with
the Allier, and 18 miles S.S.E. of Clermont. The only
point of public interest in the town is the Church of St
Paul, a curious specimen of the Romanesque style. It has
a considerable trade in articles of copper manufacture, as
also in hemp and wine. Pop. (1851) 5735.
ISSOUDUN, a town of France, capital of a cognominal
arrondissement in the department of Indre, and situated
partly on the declivity and partly at the foot of a hill, on
the right bank of the Theols, 17 miles N.E. of Chateau-
roux, and 148 miles S. of Paris, with both of which it is
connected by railway. The river is here crossed by three
bridges, connecting the town with as many suburbs on the
opposite bank. Issoudun was formerly a place of consider¬
able strength, and has been subjected to repeated sieges.
The fire of 1651, by which upwards of 1000 houses were
destroyed, gave occasion for great improvements in the
town, and to this circumstance it owes its superiority to the
other towns in the centre of France. The Tour-Blanche,
an erection of the twelfth century, the walls of which are
14 feet thick and 95 feet in height, and the ancient town-
gate and belfry, now used as a prison, are objects of interest.
The chief manufactures are woollen cloth, cotton goods,
hosiery, leather, and parchment; and these, with corn, wine,
wool, cattle, and timber, constitute the chief articles of
trade. Pop. (1851) 13,215.
ISSUS, in Ancient Geography, a city of Cilicia in Asia
Minor, close to the frontier of Syria, on or near the head of the
Sinus Issicus, now the Gulf of Scanderoon or Iskenderun.
It was in the neighbourhood of this city that Alexander
annihilated the Persian army under Darius, b.c. 333. Here,
too, was fought, in a.d. 194, the bloody battle between
Septimus Severus and Pescennius Niger, in virtue of which
the former became sole master of the Roman empire. The
exact site of Issus has not yet been discovered. It has
been often sought for by modern travellers, and much has
been written about it, to little purpose. The disappearance
of all remains can only be accounted for on the idea that
they have been engulfed by the sea. About 7 miles S.E.
from the Syrian frontier, Col. Chesney found some consider¬
able ruins, consisting of the remains of a temple, part of the
Acropolis, and an extensive aqueduct, which he believed to
belong to the ancient Issus. It is more likely, however,
that these mark the site of Nicopolis, a city built by Alex¬
ander to commemorate his victory over the Persians.
ISTALIF, a town of Afghanistan, province of Cabool,
and 22 miles N.W. of the town of that name. It is pic¬
turesquely situated amid groves and orchards, at the base
of the Hindoo Coosh, which here rises from 15,000 to 20,000
feet above the level of the sea. Till it was taken and partly
destroyed by the British in 1842, its population w'as about
15,000. The inhabitants, much reduced in number since
that year, are chiefly employed in the spinning, weaving,
and dying of cottons.
ISTHMIA, one of the four great national festivals of the
Greeks. It was instituted in honour of Neptune, and took
its name from the isthmus (i.e., of Corinth) where it was
celebrated. At the narrowest part of that isthmus was a
race-course and theatre, where the games were held. I'lie
conduct of the games was entrusted to the Corinthians, who
enjoyed that privilege till the overthrow of their city by
Mummius, b.c. 146. In that year it was devolved upon
the people of Sicyon, with whom it remained till the re¬
building of Corinth by the order of Julius Caesar, when it
1ST
Istria or
Ilistria
a,?ain reverted to the Corinthians. The Isthmia were ori¬
ginally celebrated at irregular intervals; but in b.c. 584
Italy. w,len they had come to be regarded as a national festival!
, they became periodical, and were held every third year
i.e., twice in each Olympiad. They continued to be so
celebrated till the establishment of Christianity as the reli
gion of the empire. Their gradual decay and final extinc¬
tion date from that event.
The games themselves, which marked the recurrence of
the festival, included the usual athletic sports in all their
varieties of wrestling, boxing, gymnastics, and foot and
chariot races, besides the higher contests of musical and
poetical skill. After the establishment of the Roman power
m Greece, gladiatorial shows and wild beast fights were
added to the other attractions. The prizes in the Isthmia
consisted of simple garlands of pine leaves. Ivy was at one
time substituted ; but the pine soon regained its old ascen¬
dency. I hese simple rewards were as keenly contested as
the costly prizes of the English race-course; and the suc¬
cessful aspirant for them was held in the highest honour for
the remainder of his life, and became entitled to many
valuable privileges and immunities. The best poets of
Greece found in these victories a theme worthy of the
highest efforts of their muse. The triumphal odes of Pindar
are the noblest monuments of this kind of composition that
t f, mm * r tl1KedT rUS' ^ee ^ames5 Gymnasium, &c.
IS I RIA or HISTRIA, in Ancient Geography, a penin¬
sula at the northern extremity of the Adriatic, jutting out
between the Sinus Tergestinus (the Gulf of Tergeste or
1 rieste) and the Sinus Flanaticus or Gulf of Quarnero. It
took its name from Ister, the Greek word for the Danube
in consequence of an old popular idea that a branch of
that river fell into the Adriatic near its head. The penin¬
sula is about 50 miles in length, with an average breadth
of between 30 and 40 miles, and an area of about 1900
square miles. It is nearly triangular in form, and has for
its apex the Pr. Polaticum, now the Punta di Promontore.
A range of bare rocky mountains shooting off from the
Julian Alps, traverses its whole length, and sends off
lower and smaller ranges to the sea. The highest point
of the central ridge is called the Monte Maggiore, and is
about 4500 feet above the sea. The coast is rugged and
rocky, but, except on its eastern side, neither bold nor pic-
X T A
turesque. The numerous inlets and arms of the sea which
indent it on every side form excellent harbours; that of
I ola, in particular, was as famous in ancient, as it is in mo¬
dern times. The rocks and shoals along the coast render
these forts difficult of access, an additional advantage in
the eyes of the ancient Istrians, who, like all the tribes of
the Illyrian coast, were noted pirates. The soil of the
peninsula, though not very fertile, is well adapted for olives,
vines, and other fruit trees. The oil was held in high
esteem by the Romans, and still maintains its high cha¬
racter. The mountains afford pasture for considerable
icids of cattle, and, besides growing excellent timber, es¬
pecially oaks, are valuable for their quarries of marble and
freestone. The fisheries of the coast give employment
to many hands both in taking the fish and in making the
salt employed in curing them.
The ancient Istrians were of the same stock as their
Illyrian neighbours, and like them became known to the
Romans as pirates. They were first subdued by the Ro¬
man arms about the beginning of the second Punic War •
in the following century it was found necessary to recon¬
quer their country. The final annihilation of their inde¬
pendence was effected by C. Claudius in b.c. 177 Au
gustus incorporated their territory as a part of Italy and
it remained subject to Rome till the 6th century, when it
fell into the hands of the Goths. The Goths were in their
turn driven out by the emperors of the East, who retained
Istria, till m the 10th and 11th centuries, it became subject
successively to the dukes of Carinthia and Dalmatia. In
the 13th century the western part of the peninsula, as far
as the River Arsa, was seized by the Venetians, and retained
by them till the overthrow of their republic in 1797. The
eastern part of it finally fell into the hands of the Aus¬
trians, who united it to Carinthia. Western Istria, sharing
the fate of the other possessions of Venice, was, by the
treaty of Campo-Formio, likewise made over to Austria.
1 he treaty of Presburg made the French masters of all
i q6, oVTtian ProTces tm downfall of Napoleon in
1813. From that date till 1849, Istria formed part of the
government of Trieste. A new territorial arrangement of
the Austrian possessions was made in 1849, by which Istria
was incorporated with the Kustenland. (See Austria
Illyria, and Kustenland.)
633
Italy.
ITALY.
Name.
The name Italia was originally applied to the extreme
end of the peninsula, south of a line drawn from the Gulf of
Squillace, Sinus Scylaceus, to that of Sta. Eufemia, Sinus
lermcBus. By the time of Thucydides, in the 5th cen¬
tury b.c., the appellation had already extended to Metapon-
tum on the E., and the Posidonian Gulf on the W. coast,
thus including the whole of modern Calabria, and great part
of the provinces of Basilicata and Salerno. The further ex¬
tension of the name was contemporary with the progress of
the Roman power, and at the time of Pyrrhus it included
apparently the whole peninsula, except Liguria and Cisal¬
pine Gaul., In the 7th century of Rome, though both Li¬
guria and Cisalpine Gaul were still, in official usage, dis¬
tinct from Italia, yet the latter name, as we gatherVrom
many passages in the classics, was already employed, in
common acceptation, to designate the whole country from
the Alps to the Sicilian Straits. The official acceptation
was dropped as soon as Augustus, in his division of Italy
incorporated Liguria, Cisalpine Gaul, Venetia, and Istria.
The origin of the name has been referred to various
sources, all equally uncertain. Greek and Roman tradition
deduced it from the eponymous hero Italus, a supposed
CEnotnan or I elasgic chief; whilst Timaeus, followed by
\ arro and Gellms, derived it from halos, which in old
Greek signified an ox, from the quantity of cattle bred in
tne country. Grascia enim antiqua, ut scribit Timceus,
tauros vocabat IraAofs, a quoram multitudine et pulchritu-
dine etfcetu vitulorum, Italiam dixerunt} The word Vi-
tulus (calf) and halm were, according to Festus, synony¬
mous ; and on faz denarii, struck by the Sabellian nations
Vitehi fbi-0 Italy'^ War’ B’C' 9°~88’ there °CCUrS the WOrd
In early times Italy was also called Saturnia from the
Latin god Saturnus, (Enotria from an ancient chief CEno-
trus, and Ausonm from the Ausones, the Aurunci of the
Romans, who occupied the centre of the peninsula. All
these names however, seem to have belonged to particular
districts, and to have been applied to the whole country
only by the Latin and later Greek poets; indeed (Enotria
would appear from Antiochus to have been synonymous
with Italia in its original acceptation. The Greek poets
applied to it sometimes the name Hesperia, on account of
4 u
VOL. XII.
3 Varro, Be Re Rusticd, ii. 5.
634
ITALY.
Italy, its being to the westward of their country. The Germans
called it Waelshland, because the parts nearest to them
were inhabited by the Galles or Walles; and in their present
language the name of Waelshland is still retained by the
common people. . .
Divisions. The loftiest range of mountains in Gurope on the J\.G.,
N. and N.W., and the sea on every other side, form the
natural boundaries of Italy. The alpine chain, extending
in a semicircular form from the Julian Alps at the head of
the Adriatic to the Maritime Alps on the Gulf of Genoa,
divides it on the N.E. from Illyria and the Tyrol, on the N.
and N.W. from Switzerland, and on the W. from France,
where the River Yar ( Varus) forms its boundary. From this
alpine range, which may be called its basis, Italy projects
S.E. in a peninsular form, and nearly in the shape of a boot,
far into the Mediterranean Sea, which takes the different
names of—Adriatic, Mare Superum, on the E. coast—Io¬
nian, Mare Ionium, on the S.E. coast, from the Cape of
Sta. Maria di Leuca to the Straits of Messina—and of Tyr¬
rhenian, Mare Inferum vel Tyrrhenum, on the W. coast.
According to these physical barriers, Trieste and the pro¬
vince of Istria on the E., and Nice on the W., would be
excluded from Italy ; but ever since Augustus extended its
limits to the Var on the W., and the Gulf of Quarnero
(Sinus Flanaticus) on the E., they have been reckoned as
part of Italy. In the present political division of the Aus¬
trian empire, however, neither Istria nor Trieste are in¬
cluded in the Lombardo-Venetian kingdom, the limits of
which are at the Isonzo, N.E. of Aquileia. Along the N.
and N.W. frontier the limits of Italy have at different times
undergone various, though insignificant changes; for the
Alps, though presenting an unbroken line on a distant view,
are so deeply indented with valleys as to make a natural
boundary possible only by following the watershed, a course
never or seldom adopted in political arrangements. But
even the watershed would not mark the limits of different
nationalities, as valleys which, by this criterion, should not
belong to Italy, are inhabited by an Italian race ; and Ger¬
man or French is spoken in districts which should be in¬
cluded in Italy.
The Italian peninsula is situated between the parallels of
N. Lat. 46.30. and 37.54., and E. Long. 6. 38. and 18. 32.;
if the islands are included, the southernmost parallel of
Lat. is 35. 40. Its length in a direct line from the foot
of the Alps near Aosta to the Capo di Sta. Maria di Leuca
(lapygium Promontorium) is about 600 miles, and to the
Capo dell’ Armi (Leucopetra) a little more than 660. Its
breadth varies greatly. From the mouth of the Var to the
head of the Adriatic, near the Isonzo, it is 300 miles ; and
if the line be carried to the head of the Gulf of Quarnero,
near Fiume, it is more than 350. It narrows rapidly as it
descends S.; and from Viareggio to Cervia is only 95 miles.
Further S. it expands a little ; and from Piombino to Anco¬
na the breadth is 138 miles, and 150 from Capo di Licosa
to Brindisi. From Diamante to the mouth of the Crati, in
Calabria, it is 29 miles, and only 18 between the Gulfs of
Sta. Eufemia and Squillace. It is surrounded by many
islands, the principal of which are—on the E. coast the
group of the Tremiti, N. of Monte Gargano, and S. Pietro
and S. Paolo in the Gulf of Taranto ; on the S., Sicily, the
largest of all, the Lipari group, Pantelleria, Malta, and
Gozo, 58 miles from Sicily ; on the W., Capri, Procida, and
Ischia, at the two extremities of the Gulf of Naples; the
Ponza group opposite Gaeta, Giglio near Monte Argentaro,
the two large islands of Sardinia and Corsica ; and between
the latter one and the coast of Tuscany are Pianosa, Elba,
and Capraia. The most important of these are noticed
under their respective heads in this work.
The sea coasts of the peninsula, on the Tyrrhenian side,
are, for the most part, protected by lofty acclivities, but on
the Adriatic and the Ionian they are generally flat. The
most remarkable capes or promontories of the peninsula
are :—Delle Melle, Manara, Piombino, Argentaro, Circello,
Miseno, Campanella, Licosa, Vaticano, Delle Armi, on the
W. shore; Spartivento, Rizzuto, Nau or Colonne, Alice,
Leuca, Gargano, on the S.E. and E. shore.
The extent and population of Italy, including its islands,
are shown by the following Table, which is to be considered
as merely approximative. In some of the states, the re¬
turns of population are not much attended to; and, with
regard to their area, there is great discrepancy between the
various authorities:—
Name of the States.
Episcopal
sees.
Extent in square
miles.
Jews.
Population.
Capital Cities.
Kingdom of the Two Sicilies—
Naples 
Sicily 
Kingdom of Sardinia—
Piedmont and Riviera 
Island of Sardinia  
Lombardo-Venetian kingdom 
Papal States 
Grand Duchy of Tuscany (including Lucca)
Duchy of Modena 
Duchy of Parma 
Republic of S. Marino 
Corsica, belonging to France 
Malta and Gozo, belonging to England.
83
14
26
11
20
68
21
4
4
251
1
1
253
24,962
9,556
15,397
8,228
13,208
12,120
6,784
1,629
1,712
18
93,614
2,850
114
96,578
2,500
4,250
7,000
12,800
7,180
2,680
630
37,040
6,845,355
2,285,580
3,946,450
552,665
5,503,473
3,065,000
1,817,500
606,300
508,800
7,800
25,148,923
236,251
128,361
25,503,535
Naples.
Palermo.
Turin.
Cagliari.
Milan.
Rome.
Florence.
Modena.
Parma.
S. Marino.
Aiaccio.
Valletta.
The most densely inhabited state is that of Lucca, which
contains 525 individuals for every square mile; next to it
come the Lombard provinces. The most thinly inhabited
parts are the Campagna of Rome and the Island of Sar¬
dinia. Italy has more populous towns than any other
state of Europe of the same extent. Naples has more than
400,000 inhabitants; Milan, Turin, Rome, and Palermo
each more than 150,000; Florence, Venice, and Genoa
more than 100,000; Leghorn, Messina, Verona, and Bo¬
logna more than 60,000 ; Parma, Padua, and Catania more
than 40,000; Mantua, Bergamo, Brescia, Ferrara, Modena,
Piacenza, Ancona, and Bari, more than 30,000, See.
The division of Italy into Northern, Central, and Southern,
is neither political nor strictly geographical, but is adopted
sometimes as a convenient designation of some parts of the
country. According to the general acceptation in the pen¬
insula, Northern Italy is understood to include Piedmont
and the Riviera, Lombardy, the Venetian, Parma, Modena,
Italy
Physical
geogra¬
phy-
and the States of the Church, as far as an imaginary line
from the Gulf of Spezia to Ravenna; Central Italy in¬
cludes Tuscany and the rest of the States of the Church;
and Southern Italy the kingdom of Naples. The division
m more common use among natives is into Upper and
Lower Italy, the former applying to the portion N. of the
Apennines and to the Riviera, the latter to all the rest of
the peninsula.
The face of the country is much diversified by moun¬
tains, of which those forming its N. and N.W. boundary
have been described in this work under the article Alps.
A second range of mountains, running through its whole
length, determines its configuration and its physical charac-
ter. From the earliest historical times they were called
Apennines, a name supposed of Celtic origin, from its con¬
taining the root Pen, which in Celtic dialects signifies
height or head.
i Tllei APennines may be regarded as a great offshoot of
the Alps, from which they branch off near the Gulf of
Genoa; but as there is no regular break in the chain, much
uifterence of opinion has prevailed as to the point of their
real commencement. Polybius extends the Apennines
nearly as far as Marseilles; Strabo, on the contrary, ex¬
tends the Maritime Alps to Vado, and states that the Apen¬
nines begin near Genoa. The latter opinion has been
adopted by the best modern geographers, who fix the junc-
tl®n. fbe Maritime Alps and the Apennines in the valley
of the Bormida, W. of Savona, where the range, which does
not exceed the height of 1300 feet, presents the nearest ap¬
proach to a break.
1 heir main range follows at first the sea-coast in a N.E.
direction, till it forms the mass of Bocchetta, at the head of
the Gulf of Genoa, where it makes a bend, and, increasing
in breadth and height, proceeds eastward to Pontremoli; N.
o the latter place the range makes another bend, and
strides across the peninsula in a broad, unbroken mass
L.S.L. till it approaches the Adriatic, so as to send down
it& lower slopes towards Rimini. In this part of their course,
w nch forms the S. barrier of the great plain of Upper Italy,
the highest peaks of the Apennines are Monte Cimone, to
at6 ^le Lucca, 6975 feet in height, and
Monte Falterona. From Monte Nerone, 5011 feet, where
the Metauro {Metaurus) rises, and Monte Catria, 5586 feet,
. of Uibino, the range proceeds S.E., not far from, and
almost parallel with, the coast of the Adriatic, to which its
lower skirts descend. Increasing in bulk, it then swells
into the masses of Monte Sibilla, N.E. of Norcia, 7200
feet, where are the sources of the Nera; and of Monte
lerminillo or di Lionessa, 6998feet. Here the Apennines
diverge into two main ranges, of which the eastern one, the
loftiest, keeps along the Adriatic, and forms Monte Corno,
or the Gran Sasso d’ Italia, their highest peak, 10,207 feet;
Monte Morrone, 6862 feet, which rises abruptly behind Sol-
mona (Sulmo) ; and Monte Amaro, the highest summit of
the Maiella, 8956 feet. This branch has been sometimes
considered as an offshoot, for it is almost entirely drained by
rivers falling into the Adriatic. But it is evident that it
belongs to the principal chain, and that before the Aterno
had opened its way through the narrow gorge of Inter-
monti, the Valley of Solmona must have formed an inland
basin similar to, though lower in level than Lake Fucinus.
I he other range, sweeping round the head of the Aterno,
and separating its valley from that of the Salto and Velino,
swells into Monte Velino, 8180 feet, standing nearly in the
centre of the peninsula; and then, after inclosing the basin
oi Lake Fucinus, forms the high summit of Monte Greco,
.75 feet. The two ranges reunite in the Piano di Cinque-
niiglia, the coldest and most wintry spot in Italy. It is a
high table-land, 4298 feet, inclosed by much higher moun¬
tains, and divides the upper basin of the Sangro from the
valley of Solmona. The chain proceeds from the group of
ITALY.
635
Monte Greco, round the head of the Sangro, in a S.E. direc¬
tion, and, keeping in the centre of the peninsula, attains, at
La Meta, an elevation of 7480 feet. Proceeding south¬
wards, it incloses the source of the Volturno, and forms
the group of the Matese, 6745 feet, on the N.E. of the
Campanian Plain. It is in their course from the group of
Monte Sibilla that the Apennines, attaining their greatest
elevation, exhibit the nearest approach to alpine scenery.
As they descend further south, they gradually diminish in
height, though still rising occasionally to great elevation.
From the Matese, the main range follows a S.E. direction
in the centre of the peninsula, in an irregular and confused
mass, to the group of mountains between Bisaccia and
>.. Angelo de Lombardi, in Lat. 41. At this point it
takes a sudden bend W. to Monte Terminio, 5680 feet, at
t le head of the Ofanto, and there, after dividing the valleys
ot the Sele, the Ofanto, the Galore and the Sabbato, turns
L. and proceeds to form the group of mountains N. of Po-
tenza, which divide the basin of the Ofanto from that of
the Bradano, and with their branches spread over most of
the surface of the province of Basilicata. From that group
the mam range takes a S. course, approaches the Tyrrhe¬
nian Sea near the shore of the Gulf of Policastro (Laus
bmus), and in entering Calabria, forms the high table-land
ot Campotenese, on the E. of which, Monte Dolcedorme
the summit of the Pollino, rises to 6875 feet. The range
afterwards keeps along the shore of the Tyrrhenian Sea to
Monte Cocuzzo, 5620 feet, W. of Potenza, where it turns
E., divides the basins of the Crati and the Savuto (Oci-
narus), and after spreading over a considerable surface of
table-land called Sila, sinks rapidly as it extends south-
wards, and offers almost a complete break between the two
gulfs of Sta. Eufemia and Squillace. Here the neck of
land, 18 miles broad, is so low as to have suggested, at two
different periods, the idea of a canal across it; to Dyonisius
the elder, in the fifth century b.c., and in the last century
to Charles III., king of Naples. South of the Rivers La-
mato and Corace (Crotalm), (the former emptying itself
into the 7 yrrhenian, and the latter into the Ionian Sea), the
range of the Apennines rises again, and extends along the
e.„ . It16 peninsula, the original Italia, nearer the E. coast,
till it forms the mass of the Aspromonte, 4512 feet, the
alopes of which are washed by the Ionian and Sicilian Seas,
i he Straits of Messina can scarcely be considered as the
end of the chain. The narrowness, the indentations, and
the geological formation of the two coasts are such as to
favour the inference that before the sea found its way
through the range, the Apennines followed their course
through Sicily in a W. direction from Cape Peloro (Pelo-
fum) to Cape Boeo (Lilybeeum), the extreme W. point of
the island. r
Having so far traced the main range by the watershed
of the Apennines, we shall proceed to notice the most im¬
portant of the numerous offshoots. On the N.E. declivity
of the range, from its commencement to the high table¬
land of the Piano di Cinquemiglia, there are numerous but
low and short spurs. The ranges of hills, especially those
that descend into the plain of Lombardy, branch off uni¬
formly at right angles from the central chain, and differ
but little in length from one another. South of the Piano
di Cinquemigha several lofty offshoots descend towards the
Adnata, dividing the basins of the Sangro, the Trigno
and the Biferno, and forming the N.W. boundary of the
Apulian Plain, which, on the S.E., is inclosed by a low
ridge tertiary hills, known by the local name of Le Mar¬
gie. I he latter hills branch from the group of mountains
near Lagopesole, S. of Monte Vulture, and after sending
a small shoot towards Venosa (Venusia) and Minervino,
proceed in an E direction, and gradually diminish in height
as they approach the head of the Gulf of Taranto; then
cross the province of Otranto in its length (where they at-
i
ITALY.
636
Italy, tain to but a very insignificant elevation), and end in the
Capo di Sta. Maria di Leuca.
It is on the S. side of the Apennines that we have to
look for their most remarkable offshoots. As soon as they
be<nn to recede from the coast of Genoa, and take, beyond
Pontremoli, an E.S.E. direction, they send down a rugged
ridge, which separates the valleys of the Magra {Macro),
and the Serchio ( Auser), and forms the group near Massa
and Carrara (known for their marble quarries), of which
Pizzo d’Uccello is 5800 feet high.
The greater part of Tuscany consists of a series of val¬
leys formed by minor offshoots of the Apennines descend¬
ing towards the Tyrrhenian Sea. As soon as the main
range has reached the frontier of the Abruzzi, it projects
westward a lofty and important branch, which, under dif¬
ferent names, forms, in part, the boundary between the
Papal and the Neapolitan states, and separates the basin
of the Garigliano from that of the Teverone, and from the
Pontine Marshes. Spreading over the country of the an¬
cient Sabines and Volscians, it sweeps round the volcanic
group of the Alban Hills, forms the N.W. boundary of the
Campanian Plain, overhangs Terracina, and ends in the
Gulf of Gaeta, leaving between the two latter places a hol¬
low in which lies the small lake of Fondi {Lacus Amycla-
nus). From the group of the Matese another lofty off¬
shoot, taking a S. direction, incloses on the E. the Campa¬
nian Plain, and forms the mountain group S. of Avellino,
where it divides into two branches. One of these taking
an E. course rejoins the main range towards Monte Ter-
minio; the other bending S.S.W. forms the Montes Lactarii
(the highest of which, Monte St Angelo, overhanging Cas-
tellamare, is 4722 feet), and after dividing the Gulf of Na¬
ples from the Gulf of Salerno, ends in the Punta della Cam-
panella {Prom. Minerva), opposite the island of Capri.
Beyond Salerno another offshoot of the main range sweeps
round the plain of Paestum, and after forming the hilly
district of the Cilento, ends in the promontory of Licosa, on
the Tyrrhenian Sea.
For the greater part of their course towards the N., the
Apennines, like the Alps, exhibit rather a uniform ridge,
of no great breadth, with transverse valleys descending on
each side towards the sea; but in their S. course, from
the N. frontier of the Abruzzi to Calabria, they display
features peculiar to themselves. They spread to a con¬
siderable breadth, divide into numerous irregular groups
and ranges, through which there are narrow passages, and
which, by maintaining a general parallelism, inclose highly
fertile though elevated valleys, and then reuniting, form
the high table-lands of the Piano di Cinquemiglia, Campo
Tenese, and Sila. The most remarkable passes and
valleys of this kind are,—the high valley of Leonessa, shut
in on every side by mountains ; the valley of Rieti {rosea
rura Velini), whence the defile of Antrodoco {Interocrea),
through which the River Velino emerges, leads to the
tipper valley of the Aterno; the pass of Tagliacozzo, leading
from the valley of the Teverone to the basin of Lake Fu-
cinus, through which the ancient Via Valeria passed; the
narrow gorge of Intermonti, cut by the Aterno through the
lower shoots of Monte Corno and the Maiella; the valley
of Boiano, the Boviana claustra of Silius Italicus, on the
N.E. of the Matese; the pass of Arpaia, supposed to
be the Caudine Forks of the Romans, which opens a com¬
munication between the Campanian Plain and the valley of
Benevento; the Yal di Bovino, a long defile leading from
the upper valleys of Principato Ultra to the Apulian Plain;
and the valley of Diano, through which the high road to
Calabria is carried.
None of the summits of the Apennines are covered with
perpetual snow; which, however, remains all the year
^Unn m Jhe chasms and hollows of Monte Corno, the
Maiella, Monte Greco, and Monte Pollino. The lower
slopes of the range are well wooded, but the lofty peaks or Italy,
ridges are generally bare rocks. Their geology and mine-
ralogy, with the exception of a few districts, have not been
sufficiently explored. There is no doubt that the greatest
bulk of the range is of limestone, but other rocks appear
oftener and to a greater extent than is generally supposed.
Monte Corno and other peaks in the Abruzzi are of com¬
pact quartz, which abounds also in Calabria. Serpentine
crops out in large masses near Sestri on the Riviera, on the
flanks of Monte Pollino, and of the Terminio, &c. Exten¬
sive beds of lignite, and it is supposed of coal, exist in the
Abruzzi, near Lettomanoppello; on the N.E. slopes of
the Maiella; in the mountains of Giffuni and Monte Cor-
vino, E. of Salerno; and on the S. slopes of the Sila in
Calabria. Granite, porphyry, and gneiss, cover large tracts
of the south portion of the range, and the great mass of the
Aspromonte, at the toe of the boot, consists almost entirely
of primitive rocks.
A few detached mountains are found in Italy, which,
though geologically similar to, yet geographically do not
belong to the chain of the Apennines, from which the
largest of them is at a considerable distance. The most
important of these, arranged according to their size, are—
Monte Gargano {Garyanus), an isolated mass, at the E.
end of the Apulian Plain, projecting considerably into the
Adriatic; Monte Argentaro {Mans Argentarius), a lofty
promontory rising in the Tyrrhene Sea, opposite the small
island of Giglio, from the lagoon of Orbitello, which sepa¬
rates it from the mainland; Monte Circello {Mons Circeius),
which stands like a gigantic beacon at the S. extremity
of the Pontine Marshes; last in size, but greatest in in¬
terest, Monte Sto. Oreste {Mons Soracte), a mass of second¬
ary limestone, rising like an island 2000 feet from the midst
of the volcanic tufa of the Campagna, about 25 miles, as
the crow flies, from Rome.
The Italian peninsula presents four distinct volcanic dis¬
tricts. Three of the volcanoes are entirely extinct, while
the fourth is still in great activity. These districts are,—
1,^, The Euganean Hills, a small group extending for about
10 miles from the neighbourhood of Padua to Este, and
separated from the lower offshoots of the Alps by the wide
plain of the Padovano. Monte Venda, their highest peak,
is 1806 feet.
2d, The Roman district, the largest of the four, ex¬
tending from the hills of Albano to the frontier of Tus¬
cany, and from the lower slopes of the Apennines on the
E. to the Tyrrhene Sea on the W. It may be divided into
three groups,—the Monti Albani, the highest of which,
Monte Cavi, 3160 feet, is the ancient Mons Albanus, on
the summit of which stood the temple of Jupiter Latialis,
where the assemblies of the cities forming the Latin confe¬
deration were held; the Monti Cimini, which extend from
the valley of the Tiber to the neighbourhood of Civita-
Vecchia, and attain, at their culminating point, an elevation
of more than 3000 feet; of Radicofani and Monte Amiata,
the latter of which is 5794 feet high. The lakes of Bol-
sena {Vulsiniensis), of Bracciano {Sabatinus), of Vico {Ci-
minus), of Albano {Albanus), of N emi {Nemorensis), and other
smaller ones, belong to this district; and between its S.W.
extremity and Monte Circello are the Pontine Marshes
{Palus Pontina), a broad strip of alluvial soil infested by
malaria.
3d, The volcanic region of Terra di Lavoro {Campania
Felix), which is separated by the Volscian Mountains from
the Roman district. It may be also divided into three
groups,—of Roccamonfina, at the N.N.W. end of the Cam¬
panian Plain, where the highest cone, called Montagna di
Santa Croce, is 3200 feet,—of the Phlegrman Fields, em¬
bracing all the country round Baiae and Pozzuoli, and the
adjoining islands. Monte Barbara {Gaurus), N.E. of the
site of Cumae; Monte S. Nicola {Epomeus), 2610 feet, in
ITALY.
. Ischia; and Camaldoli, 1488 feet, W. of Naples, are the
highest cones. The lakes Averno (Avernus), Lucrino (Lit¬
er mus), Fusaro {Palm Acherusia), and Agnano, are with¬
in this group, which has shown activity in historical times.
A stream of lava issued in 1198 from the crater of the Sol-
fatara, which still continues to exhale steam and noxious
gases; the Lava dell’ Arso came out of the N.E. flank of
Monte Epomeo in 1302; and Monte Nuovo, N.W. of
Pozzuoli, and 440 feet high, was thrown up in three days in
September 1538. Since its first historical eruption in a.d.
79, Vesuvius or Somma, which forms the third group, has
been in constant activity, its last eruption havintaken
place in May 1855. The Punta del Nasone, the highest
point of Somma, is 3747 feet, and the Punta del Palo, the
highest point of the brim of the crater of Vesuvius was in
1847, 3949 feet high.
Ath, The Apulian volcanic formation consists of the great
mass of Monte Vulture, which rises at the W. end of the
plains of Apulia, on the frontier of Basilicata {Lucania), and
is surrounded by the Apennines on its S.W. and N.W.
sides.. Its highest peak, the Pizzuto di Melfi, attains an
elevation of 4357 feet: within the widest crater there are
the two small lakes of Monticchio and S. Michele.
In connection with the volcanic districts, we may men¬
tion Le Mofete, or Pools of Amsanctus {Amsancti Valles),
lying in a wooded valley S.E. of Frigento, in the centre of
the Neapolitan province of Principato Ultra, and described
by Virgil, AEneid, vii. 563-71. The largest of the two is
not more than 160 feet in circumference, and 7 feet deep.
These pools emit noxious gases (carbonic acid and sulphu¬
retted hydrogen), which, when wafted from the pools by
the wind, endanger animal life in the open air. Birds are
occasionally killed, whilst crossing the valley, by the mephi¬
tic vapours.
The volcanic districts of the Italian islands of Sicily,
Sardinia, Lipari, Ponza, See., will be found noticed under their
respective articles. See also /Etna, Vesuvius, Vulture.
The range of the Apennines, by the shifting which we
have noticed of their direction from sea to sea in their
course through the peninsula, form six principal basins, be¬
sides several smaller ones, which we shall briefly notice.
1. The basin of the Po and the Adige, extending from the
Alps to the Apennines, and comprising nearly the whole of
Upper Italy, is the largest uninterrupted extent of highly
fertile alluvial land in Europe. On its N. frontier, at the
foot of the Alps, is a series of lakes, which, being never
frozen in winter, feed numerous streams, and serve the
purpose of internal navigation.
The Lago Maggiore or di Locarno ( Verbanus), the most
westerly of these lakes, is nearly 50 miles long, and varies
in breadth from 5 to 8 miles. Its greatest depth does not
exceed 25 feet. It contains the Borromean Islands, already
described in this work. The Lago di Lugano is about 24
miles in length, and from 2| to 6 in breadth. It is of great
depth, and its surface is 870 feet above the level of the sea.
The Lago di Como {Larius) is of great depth, and sur¬
rounded by high abrupt mountains, which constitute the
romantic beauty of its borders. It is 27 miles long, or 33,
if the small Lago di Riva at its N. end be included, and in
no part exceeds 3 miles in breadth. The Lago dTseo
{Sebinus), 18 miles long and 5 broad, is 680 feet above the
level of the sea, and in some parts has a depth of 700 feet.
In its centre there is an island 1 L mile long. The La«-o
d Idro is only t miles long. Ihe Lago di Garda {Benacus),
the largest of all the lakes of Italy, is nearly 40 miles in
length and 10 miles in its greatest breadth. Its surface is
227 feet above the level of the sea, and its greatest ascer¬
tained depth is 1300 feet.
This part of Italy abounds in rivers. The principal of
these is the Po {Padus), the largest river in Italy. It orim-
nates in the Monte Viso (Vesulus), one of the highest sum-
637
mits of the Western Alps, 12,000 feet high, S.W. of Turin,
and after a course in an E. direction of more than 380 miles,
including its windings, enters the Adriatic by many mouths’
which form a kind of delta somewhat similar to that of
the Nile. It receives numerous tributaries, the most im¬
portant of which are,—on its northern side the Dora Baltea
{Duria Major), the Ticino {Ticinus), the Adda [Addua),
the Mincio {Mincius) ; all flowing from the S. slopes of the
Alps; and, on its southern bank, the Tanaro {Tanarus),
the Scrivia, the Irebia, the Panaro {Scultenna), the Reno
{Rhenus), ftowmg from the N. slopes of the Apennines. A
more detailed description of this important river, and of the
dykes or embankments by which it is inclosed, will be found
under the head Po in this work. The next considerable
liver of Upper Italy is the Adige {Athesis). It rises in the
Rhaetian Alps, in the German Tyrol, where it is called
Etsch, in a small lake near the modern village of Reschen,
and after receiving the Eisach and other small tributaries’
it flows past Trento, emerges into the plain of Italy at
Verona, and after a course of 200 miles enters the Adriatic
a few miles N. of the Po.
Lhe lakes of Upper Italy are of unspeakable advantage
both as regards the internal communications and the culti¬
vation of the country. As the slope of the land from these
lakes to the Po is regular and gentle, nature has thereby
furnished the means of distributing the water over an exten¬
sive portion of the land, and in that due proportion which
the nature of the soil, or the description of the crop, may
require. By an ingenious system of canals, which dates at
least from the twelfth century, streams of water are made to
pass rapidly over the fields that require it, and what is
not absorbed by the earth is received into canals, and at
lower elevations again passed in a similar manner over other
fields, till the surplus fluid at length reaches the Po. A
full description of the origin and of the various modes of
disposing water to the greatest advantage peculiar to this
part of Italy, has been already given in this work in the
articles Irrigation and Hydrodynamics. A detailed notice
of the basins of the Po and the Adige, of its lakes, its divi¬
sions, its agriculture, &c., will be found also in this work
under the heads Sardinia, Lombardy or Lombardo-
Venetian Kingdom, &c\, &c.
2. The sweep of the Apennines between the parallels
of N. Lat. 44. and 42. 30., leaves on their W. side an ex¬
tensive tract of country, constituting the whole of Tuscany
and consideiable part of the Roman States, and forming the
basins of the Arno {Ar?ius) and the Tiber. These two
principal rivers of Central Italy rise at a short distance from
each other ; the Arno in Mount Falterona, and the Tiber in
Mount Coronaro ; and at first both take a S. course till the
Arno approaches within a few miles of Arezzo, where the
difference of level of the district intervening between the
two basins is such, that, by an artificial canal through the
Val di Chiana, the Arno might be brought to flow into the
bed of the Chiana, and to join the Tiber below Orvieto.
From near Arezzo the range of hills that extend towards
Siena drive the Arno into a N.W. direction, till it is joined
by the Sieve, when it makes a sudden turn W., flows
through Floience, and, after a course of 140 miles, enters
the sea by an artificial canal 6 miles below Pisa. The Tiber,
on the contrary, continues its course due S. to the foot of the
hill on which Todi stands, whence it follows a S.W. course
till it is joined by the Chiana, when it flows S.E. till within
about 20 miles from Rome. It takes then a S.W. direction, '
and, after a course of 198 miles, falls into the sea at Ostia. It
receives many tributaries, of which the most important are
the C hiana (Clanis), on the right side; and on the left the
Nera {Nar), and the Teverone (Anio). The Tiber is turbid
{ flavus), rapid, and deep. The basins of the Arno and
t ie i iber are separated by the volcanic groups of the Monti
Cimmini and the Monti Amiata, and by the ridge of tertiary
638
ITALY.
Italy, hills near Siena, in which the Ombrone {TJmbro) and other
smaller streams have their source. 1 he Lake of Perugia
{Thrasimenus) belongs to the basin of the liber. It is 26
miles in circumference, and has three small islands. Its
bed has been gradually raised by vast quantities of alluvial
deposit carried into it by the rain, and its greatest depth at
present is only 21 feet.
3. The Campanian Plain, the most fertile district in
Italy, inclosed on three sides by the Apennines, and on the
fourth, the S.W., by the sea, forms the basin of the Garig-
liano (Liris) and the Volturno (Vulturnus), the latter of
which rises at the foot of the mountains of Rionero, near the
village of Castellone, and after a tortuous course (from which
it is supposed to have derived its name) flows round Capua,
and enters the sea 15 miles W. of that city. Its principal tri¬
butary is the Galore (Calor), which has already been joined
by the Sabbato (Sabatus), below Benevento. These two
rivers rise at no great distance from each other in the group
of Monte Terminio, where also are the sources of the Ofanto
and the Sele, and drain an extensive tract of country inclosed
by the Apennines. The Garigliano, which, as far as
Ceprano, still retains its classic name of Liri, rises below the
village of Cappadocia, 5 miles S. of Tagliacozzo, in the
Abruzzi, runs S.E. through the valley of Roveto; on issuing
from which, at Sora, it bends S. to Ceprano, where it turns
again S.E. towards Pignataro, and thence due S. to the sea
only 12 miles N. of the mouth of the Volturno ; the beds
of the two rivers being separated by an offshoot of the Apen¬
nines, and by the volcanic group of Roccamonfina. Among
the tributaries of the Liris is the small classic Fibreno
(Fibrenns), which rises at once with a considerable volume
of water near the village of Posta, at the foot of a group of
mountains S. of Lake Fucinus, of which the Fibreno is sup¬
posed to be one of the subterranean channels. This lake,
which we have already noticed as being inclosed in an upper
valley of the Apennines, is the largest in S. Italy ; it is 35
miles in circumference, and has an area of 36,315 acres, and,
though fed by several streams, has no visible outlet. Its
greatest depth is 52 feet, and its surface is 2176 feet above
the level of the sea. It is known to have been entirely
frozen over in 1167, 1229, 1595, 1683, and 1726. As its
shores are subject to great inundations, the Emperor Claudius
constructed a tunnel about three miles and a half long to
convey its surplus waters into the Liris. This tunnel was
allowed to fall into disrepair during the middle ages.
4. The plain which, sloping gently over a breadth of
thirty miles from the E. side of the Apennines to the sea, ex¬
tends more than eighty miles in length from the Biferno
(Tifcrnus), to Barletta, a few miles S. of the mouth of the
Ofanto, is known by the local name of Tavoliere di Puglia,
or Puglia Piana, and is intersected by several streams, of
which the Ofanto is the only important one. At the E. end of
this plain, where it approaches the isolated group of Mount
Gargano, are the small salt lakes of Lesina {Lacus Pan-
tanus\ Varano, Salpi (Salapina Pains), and Pantano Salso,
the latter of which receives the Cervaro (Cerbalus), and the
Candelaro. The Ofanto {Aufidus), the principal river of S.
Italy, rises from the group of the Terminio, about 25 miles
from the Gulf of Salerno, flows E. through the rugged moun¬
tain country, which is the frontier of the provinces of Salerno,
Avellino, and Basilicata, flows round the basis of Mount Vul-
ture on the N. side, and crossing the Apulian Plain, enters
LeR dnatic midway between the Lago Salpi and the town
o arietta. It has much of the character of a mountain
torrent, being swollen rapidly by heavy rains in winter,
while in summer the volume of its water is very small. The
sod of the l avoliere is of a calcareous nature, and well
a ap e or t ie growth of wheat. In winter itforms the excel¬
lent pasturing ground on which graze the countless flocks that
descend at that season from the high valleys of the Abruzzi.
5. The basin of the Sele {Silarus), includes the plain
which extends about 28 miles in length from the neighbour- Italy,
hood of Salerno, to the S. of Psestum, and 12 miles in its
broadest part. The Sele rises at once in a large volume at
a place called Caposele, near the source of the Ofanto, and
takes a S. direction till it receives the Negro which
drains the valley of Diano; it then turns S.W., and enters
the Gulf of Salerno, 4 miles N. of the site of Paestum.
6. The Apennines, in their course S. through Basili¬
cata, after sending E. the offshoot of Le Murgie, form
a sloping plain, which, with scarcely any interruption, ex¬
tends nearly 100 miles along the shore of the Ionian Sea
from 1 arentum to Capo del Trionto, and varies from 24
miles to only 2 miles in breadth. It is traversed by nu¬
merous streams of classical associations; the Bradano
(Bradanus), the largest, which rises in the mountains near
Rionero, S. of Venosa, and following a S.E. course, enters
the sea N. of the site of ancient Metapontum ; the Basiento
(Casuentus), the Salandrella, the Agri (Aciris), the Sinno
(Siris), the Calandro (Acalandrus), and the Crati (Cra-
t/iis), next in size to the Bradano, which rises S. of
Cosenza in the table-land of Sila, flows at first in a due
N. direction, and afterwards turns abruptly E., and 5 miles
before entering the sea, is joined by the Coscile {Sybaris).
This district, which, from the frequency of floods, and the
want of drainage, is now infested with malaria and very
scantily inhabited, was in former times famous for its fer¬
tility, and was the seat of the large and opulent Grecian
cities of Metapontum, Heraclea, Sybaris, and Thurii.
Between the plain of Lombardy and the Apulian Plain,
there are a great many streams flowing almost due E.
into the Adriatic. The largest of them are,—the Tronto
(Truentus), the boundary between the Papal and the Neapo¬
litan states; it rises in the mountain group of Amatrice;
the Pescara, which, from its source W. of Monte Corno
to Popoli, retains the ancient name of Aterno (Aternus).
From the upper part of its course through a deep valley,
where its bed has an elevation of 2000 feet, it descends
through a narrow gorge into the valley of Solmona, whence
it issues by the pass of Intermonti, and flowing through the
plain below Chieti, enters the sea with a considerable vo¬
lume of water at the fortress of Pescara. The Sangro
(Farm) rises near Gioia under the mountains S.E. of Lake
Fucinus, runs in a very elevated upper valley, from which
it escapes through a very deep and narrow gorge below
Barrea, winds its course round the hill on which Castel di
Sangro is built, runs through the valley that divides the
south offshoots of the Maiella from the mountains of Ag-
none, and reaches the plain of Lanciano, where it enters
the Adriatic.
All the rivers of Italy are subject to sudden and very
heavy floods, and with the exception of the Po, the Adige,
and the Tiber, have their volume of water greatly reduced
in summer. The insignificant amount of tide in the Medi¬
terranean renders most of them useless for navigation.
In a country extending through 10 degrees of latitude Climate,
there must be great differences of climate, and consequently
of vegetation and agriculture, from position alone. Besides
that, however, the climate of Italy is modified to such a de¬
gree by the ranges of the Alps and Apennines, and by the
air of the sea along its coasts, as to render useless any divi¬
sion into regions according to the classification of Saussure.
In the plains of Lombardy and Piedmont, and the other
territories to the N. of the Apennines, which are inclosed
by mountains on every side but the E., Fahrenheit’s
thermometer in winter descends to 10 degrees; snow lies
sometimes a fortnight on the ground, the lagoons at the
mouths of the rivers are frozen, and slight night frosts appear
early in November, and some years as late as April. Deli¬
cate plants do not thrive except in sheltered situations, but
the mulberry trees flourish, rice is grown, and the pastures
are rich. South of the Apennines, that part of Tuscany
I T A L Y.
Italy, and the States of the Church which is near their main
range is subject to great cold, but westwards, and along the
Riviera, the temperature grows milder, snow seldom lies
long on the fields, and the climate is suitable to the growth
of the olive and the orange. But it is when we reach the
central range of the Apennines that we find the coldest
districts of Italy. In all the upland valleys of the Abruzzi
and of Sannio, snow begins to fall early in November, and
heavy storms occur often as late as May ; whole communi¬
ties are shut out for months from any intercourse with their
neighbours, and some villages are so long buried in snow
that regular passages are made between the different
houses for the sake of communication among the inhabi¬
tants. The district extending from the S.E. of Lake Fuci-
nus to the Piano di Cinquemiglia, and inclosing the upper
basin of the Sangro and the small lake of Scanno, is the
coldest and most bleak part of Italy south of the Alps.
Heavy falls of snow in June are not uncommon, and it is
only for a short time towards the end of July that the nights
are totally exempt from light frosts. Yet, less than 40
miles E. of this district, and even more to the N., we find
the olive, the fig-tree, and the orange, thriving luxuriantly
on the shores of the Adriatic from Ortona to Vasto. In
the same way, whilst in the plains and hills round Naples
snow is rarely seen, and never remains long, and the ther¬
mometer seldom descends to the freezing point, 20 miles
E. from it in the fertile valley of Avellino, of no great ele¬
vation, but encircled by high mountains, light frosts are
not uncommon as late as June; and 18 miles further E., in
the elevated region of S. Angelo de’ Lombardi and Bisac-
cia, the inhabitants are always warmly clad, and vines grow
with difficulty and only in sheltered places. But nowhere
are these contrasts so striking as in Calabria. The shores,
especially on the Tyrrhenian Sea, present almost a con¬
tinued grove of olive, orange, lemon, and citron trees,
which attain a size unknown in the N. of Italy. The
sugar-cane flourishes, the cotton-plant ripens to perfection,
the date-trees are seen in the gardens, the rocks are clothed
with the prickly-pear or Indian-fig, the inclosures of the
fields are formed by aloes and sometimes pomegranates,
the liquorice-root grows wild, and the mastich, the rose¬
mary, the myrtle, and many varieties of oleander and cistus,
form the underwood of the natural forests of arbutus and
evergreen oak. If we turn inland but five or six miles from
the shore, and often even less, the scene changes. High
districts covered with oaks and chestnuts succeed to
this almost tropical vegetation; a little higher up and we
reach the elevated table-lands of the Pollino and the Sila,
covered with firs and pines, and affording rich pastures
even in the midst of summer, when heavy dews and light
frosts succeed each other in July and August, and snow
begins to appear at the end of September or early in
October.
Along the shores of the Adriatic, which are exposed to
the N.E. winds, blowing coldly from over the Albanian
Mountains, delicate plants do not thrive so well in general
as under the same latitude along the shores of the Tyrrhe¬
nian Sea.
It may have been gathered from the preceding sketch of
the physical conformation and the climate of Italy, that it
becomes difficult to take a general view of the state of its
agriculture.
The cultivation of Savoy or Lombardy differs from that
of Calabria as much as that of Massachusetts does from
that of Carolina. In this work, therefore, the details of
rural economy will be found under the heads of the several
dominions into which Italy is divided; and in this place
will only be noticed those results of agriculture which yield
food, drink, or clothing to its inhabitants, or which form
the basis of manufacturing industry, or the rudiments of
foreign commerce. The cerealia form, as elsewhere in
639
Europe, the chief aliment of the inhabitants ; in Italy, Italy,
however, the lower classes, who are the most numerous,
subsist much on maize and beans, which requires little pre¬
paration to render it fit for food. In some of the southern
parts wheat is made use of by the same class, both in the
form of bread and in that of macaroni, which is manipulated
with great facility. Wheat and maize are, on the average
of years, about equal to the consumption, but little can be
spared for exportation; and in many of the ports are de¬
pots of foreign wheat kept to meet the variations of sea¬
sons, or to be used as articles of commerce with other
countries.
As Italy produces abundance of wine, and consequently
needs neither beer nor corn-spirits, no barley is needed for
these drinks, and scarcely any is cultivated. Oats are but
little grown, but abundance of beans of various kinds is
produced. Rye, the common bread-corn of the far greater
portion of Europe, is only raised in a few spots in the very
northernmost parts of Italy, where it is made into bread
for the poor; whilst those of the higher classes there, as
well as throughout the whole peninsula in the cities, make
use of wheaten bread. Rice grows in many parts, in fact
wherever there is a sufficiency of water to insure a good
produce, at such a distance from towns as not to be inju¬
rious to the health of the inhabitants. It is a part of al¬
most every meal in families in easy circumstances, but is
scarcely used by the families who are in circumstances
that require the practice of great parsimony. A great va¬
riety of lupines are used as food, especially in the soups.
In some parts of the mountainous regions, chestnuts are a
substitute for corn as long as they last. Fruits are plen¬
tifully used, particularly figs, grapes, and melons, as food;
whilst the cheapness of onions, garlic, tomatos or love-
apples, and capsicums, render them valuable as condiments.
The potato, which in the other parts of Europe has been so
much extended of late years, has been but partially intro¬
duced into Italy; and, where it is cultivated, it occupies a
very small proportion of the soil. Lettuces, asparagus, en¬
dive, artichokes, and several kinds of turnips and of carrots,
are everywhere grown.
Animal food is far from being extensively used. The
oxen yield in some parts excellent, in other very indiffer¬
ent meat. The mutton is neither good nor abundant,
but has been much improved of late years. Swine furnish
a plentiful supply during the winter months; they are also
prepared as bacon or hams, and above all as sausages, the
fame of which latter has reached unto England under the
name of the city of Bologna, where they were early and ex¬
tensively prepared. The large dairy farms in Lombardy,
in which the cheese known by the name of Parmesan is
made, and the oak and chestnut forests of Calabria furnish
the most and best swine’s flesh.
The fisheries contribute largely to the supply of food in
Italy, though, from the number of fasts still countenanced
by the Catholic Church, not sufficient for the consumption ;
and the deficiency is procured by commerce with the Eng¬
lish, French, and Americans, who convey to the sea-ports
the salted cod-fish from the banks of Newfoundland.
Their own fisheries on the coast give much occupation;
the most considerable are those for the tunny, a very large
fish, and for the anchovy, a very small one. These are
conducted upon a large scale by joint-stock companies.
The lakes and the rivers also yield some, though not a great
proportion, of that kind of food which ecclesiastical restric¬
tions render indispensable.
The sugar-cane is not cultivated in the south of Italy, as
it is found, that in point of strength, as well as of cost, the
sugar made from it does not succeed in a competition with
that substance when imported from the West Indies.
The products of agriculture are sufficient for the cloth¬
ing of all its inhabitants; for though wool is neither good
.
640
Italy.
ITALY.
History.
nor plentiful, yet hemp and flax are grown everywhere, are
manufactured at home, and, from the nature of the climate,
linen can be substituted for woollen dress during most of
the months of the year. Some raw wool is, however, im¬
ported to supply the manufactures, and some cloths both
from England and France, together with (in Lombardy)
those from the other Austrian provinces, especially from
Bohemia. Some cotton is grown on the southern divisions
of Italy, but not sufficient to furnish materials for their very
insignificant manufactures of that article.
The chief product of Italian agriculture is the silk. It is
produced in every part, and much of it is converted into
articles of dress or of furniture, where it is collected; but
the chief production of it is in Sardinia, Naples, and Lom¬
bardy, whence the looms of England, Prussia, Austria,
Russia, and Germany, are supplied. The value of this
commodity exceeds that of all the other productions of
Italy which are exported to foreign countries. The manu¬
facture has of late years made great progress, which it is
still steadily maintaining. The great increase which has
taken place in the propagation of the mulberry tree has,
within the last thirty years, increased the quantity of raw
silk to an extent that had never before been dreamed of.
Another very important Italian product, which is used
partly as food, partly employed in home manufactures, and
extensively exported as an article of foreign commerce, is
the oil of the olive tree. It is used as a substitute for but¬
ter in the S., is much appropriated to the manufacture of
many kinds of soap, and is exported to England for the
use of our various fabrics, chiefly those of wool, and as
a luxury at our tables. The planting and watching costs
but little labour or expense, and in a few years the income
more than recompenses the labour. The best olive oil is
produced near Genoa, in Lucca, in Tuscany, and in Cala¬
bria ; but it is plentiful throughout the whole of Italy, ex¬
cept in Lombardy and in Piedmont.
The wines of Italy are not very highly valued in other
countries, and almost the whole that is produced is consumed
at home. Those of the N. are for the most part disagreeably
acid, and scarcely any of them are or can be preserved beyond
one year, d he vines are not so much grown in vineyards,
as in the hedge-rows; a system which doubtless injures the
quality of the wine. In the southern parts, however, where
the vines are grown in low vineyards as in France, the
wines are of a more fiery quality, and though prepared with
little care, they only require to be better known to be
esteemed by foreigners.
The minerals of Italy are of small value; and though
mines of gold, silver, and copper were once wrought, the
veins have been long exhausted. Some alum is found in
the Papal dominions and the Neapolitan territory, some
vM and antimony in Parma, and sulphur in the island
o Sicily. In many places there are excellent marble
quarries, the best near Verona and Carrara. Alabaster is
ound in many of the mountains. The salt manufactured
on the sea-shore, and from saline springs, is more than is
required for the home consumption, and a large quantity
might be exported.
r cqmmerce, trade, and manufacturing industry of
Italy, differ m the different states. The statistics of these
will be found under the heads of the respective states.
the history of Italy before the rise of the Roman power
V? obscurity, or clouded with indistinctness,
otwithstanding the learning and the ingenuity of modern
nftprTr ^ lnrco *ect^nS and reconciling the very scanty and
ten contradictory statements of ancient authors, very little
and hpnnnive ™e oflustory is kn0Wn of the ethnography
Thl^n P f \< mSI?ns of the country at that early period.
I he names ot the early inhabitants, however, as far as they
can be ascertained, will be found in this work under the
articles on the modern Italian states
1 he horizon begins to clear as Rome extends her con- Italy,
quests. In the northern part the Gauls were rude and
fierce, and they the longest resisted the encroaching power ;
whilst lower down, on the Arno and the Tiber, there was a
number of tribes, such as the Etruscans, the Samnites, and
the Latins, who, in a kind of confederacy, though sometimes
at variance with one another, long sought, and ultimately in
vain, to defend their freedom against the rising and aspiring
city. In the southern parts were Grecian colonies, with but
little union, and frequently engaged in hostilities amongst
themselves. When and by what means all these tribes be¬
came finally subjected to Rome, belongs to the history of
that empire. The history of the conquered is swallowed
up in that of the conquerors.
The fate of Italy was that of Rome till the dissolution of a.d. 476 to
that colossal power. When the seat of empire was removed 568.
to Constantinople, Italy, though accounted a portion of the
Western Empire, was treated as a dependent province, and
continued with only the semblance of power, till a soldier
of fortune founded the kingdom of Italy. . |
Odoacer, who by his intrigues had raised himself to the
command of the German mercenaries in the imperial ser¬
vice, gathered hordes of Heruli and other followers of Attila,
besieged and captured Pavia, Ravenna, and Rome, and pro¬
claiming himself king of Italy (Aug. 23, 476), put an end
to the Western Empire. The conqueror consigned Romu¬
lus Augustulus, the last emperor of the West, to the Cas-
trum Lucullanum, near Naples, where he was allowed to
end his days in obscurity and confinement. Odoacer used
as much prudence and humanity as could have been looked
for in a rude conqueror ; but his kingdom was of short du¬
ration. Theodoric, king of the Ostrogoths, at the instiga¬
tion of the Emperor Zeno, who reigned in Byzantium, in¬
vaded Italy, and after defeating Odoacer at Aquileia (March
27, 489), and again near Verona, and on the Adda, besieged
him in Ravenna. In 493 Ravenna surrendered, and Theo¬
doric, who murdered Odoacer as they sat together at table,
erected a sovereignty, which, besides the whole of Italy and
Sicily, extended northwards to the Rhine and the Danube,
and eastwards to the frontiers of Dacia and Macedonia.
The only part not subjected was some islands in the lagoons
of the Adriatic Sea, inhabited by those fugitives who had
first found a refuge there from the ravages of Attila, after
the fall of Aquileia (a.d. 452), and had there secured free¬
dom, and, by the capability of defending themselves, laid the
foundation of what subsequently became the republic of
Venice. Under the government of Theodoric, the Goths
multiplied rapidly; they were the masters of one-third of
the soil wrested from the conquered race. By his external
policy Theodoric had acquired the confidence of the other
Gothic tribes, even in the remote regions that border on
the Baltic Sea, and had introduced, strong forms of govern¬
ment into Rhmtia, Noricum, Dalmatia, and Pannonia.
Though the jealousy of the emperor at Byzantium induced
him to invade the territory commanded by Theodoric, and
to employ both a large fleet and a powerful army, his at¬
tempts were repelled, and he retired from the contest.
Theodoric was not less successful against King Clovis,
the leader of the Franks, who were checked in the midst of
a career of victories in Burgundy.
Ravenna was the seat of the government of this prince,
though he occasionally resided at Verona. He once visited
Rome, where he was received with rapture by the populace,
and with the highest marks of respect by the senators. Cas-
siodorus and Boethius, the last writers who can pretend to
a place in the Latin literature, were among the ministers of
Theodoric. His endeavours to amalgamate his Italian and
Gothic subjects were much obstructed by the religious con¬
troversy between the orthodox and the Arians. Whilst
adhering to the latter sect, he tolerated at first, and even
honoured, many of the other profession ; but in the later
ITALY.
Italy, years of his reign, when the Emperor Justin began to per-
—secute the Arians, Theodoric retaliated upon the ortho¬
dox ; and in the disorders that followed, Boethius ended his
days in prison, and his father-in-law, Simmachus, was exe¬
cuted.
Theodoric died in the palace he had built at Ravenna in
526, after having by his will divided his dominions between
two grandsons, bequeathing Italy to Athalarie, then a boy
ot twelve years of age. The youthful sovereign was left
under the pupilage of his mother Amalasontha, from which
he was early withdrawn by the flatterers who surrounded
him. His mother then entered into a negotiation with the
Emperor Justinian, tending to secure a safe retreat to her¬
self at Dyrrachium, in Epirus ; but the death of Athalaric
at the age of sixteen, from premature consumption, caused
her to assume the power of the state. She was smothered
in a bath on a small island in the lake of Bolsena by order
of Theodatus, a husband she had chosen to be a sharer of
the throne.
The imperial court was eager to take advantage of the
unsettled state of Italy to reduce it again under subjection.
Belisarius, the most renowned ot the generals, was de¬
spatched, but with an inconsiderable force. He regained
Southern Italy as far as Naples without any defensive steps
.ta]<en Eheodatus, who at last resigned his crown
to Vitigis, who was elected by a solemn assembly of the
troths. I he war began now to rage with great fury. Vi¬
tigis appeared before Rome, which had received Belisarius,
and summoned it to surrender. After a siege of a year
(March, 537-38), in which both besiegers and besieged
fought with desperate fury, Vitigis, being threatened in'the
rear by the lieutenant of Belisarius, set fire to his camp
and proceeded by forced marches to invest Rimini. Beli¬
sarius w ould now have been able to subjugate the enemy
but for the dissensions which broke out amongst the officers
in command of the several divisions of the army of Justinian
in 538. I he chief command was then conferred on Narses,
a eunuch, whose conduct at that period, whatever military
rnent he afterwards displayed, tended greatly to the injury
of his sovereign’s party. Vitigis recovered several stronf-
holds, marched to Milan, and because it had admitted a
Hreek garrison, put to death all its inhabitants.
. Narses was soon recalled, and Belisarius being reinstated
in the supreme command, captured Ravenna, where Vi¬
tigis had in vain sought safety, and returned with nu¬
merous captives to Constantinople to receive the applause
of the people and a splendid triumph. His departure re-
vived the spirits of the remaining Goths, and the feeble
efforts of the successive generals of Justinian were insuf-
hcient to crush the war. The handful of the barbarians
chose lotila for their king, in the year 541; his progress
was rapid, and almost without interruption. He captured
Naples and besieged Rome, which, after an unsuccessful
attempt to relieve it by Belisarius, who had been recalled
from the wars of Persia, was compelled by famine to sur¬
render in the year 546. After a useless occupation of
Rome when it had been abandoned by Totila, Belisarius
was recalled to Constantinople, and the command once
more conferred upon Narses, who was furnished with troops
stores, and money, with a profusion widely different from
tiie parsimony exercised towards his predecessor. He ad¬
vanced with his forces by the head of the Adriatic Sea
and encountered and totally defeated the Goths under
J ot'la, who himself was killed in the conflict. After his
death, those who had escaped elected Tejas as their king •
but he too was soon subdued by Narses, and with him ter¬
minated, in 553, the Gothic supremacy in Italy.
After these events, Italy became a province of the
Eastern empire, of which Ravenna formed the capital, and
m which the representatives of the emperor, the exarchs
xed their residence. Narses, the first of them, was re-
voi.. xn.
641
moved by Justin, the successor of Justinian, and in revenge Italy,
for his dismissal and the insulting language of the Empress v'-«—
Sophia, he despatched a messenger to Alboin, king of the
Longobards, inviting him into Italy. The Longobards are
supposed to have been of Scandinavian origin, and to have
gained a settlement between the Oder and the Elbe, in the
reign of Augustus. They gradually descended towards the
south and approached the Danube, which they passed to
reduce, in pursuance of a treaty with Justinian, the cities
of Noricum and the fortresses of Pannonia.
They were thus established on the frontiers of the Ro- 774' 568 t0
man empire, and had for neighbours two other tribes, the
Avars and the Gepidas, who were sometimes hostile towards
each other, though commonly at peace, demanding and re¬
ceiving what they deemed tribute, but which the imperial¬
ists denominated presents. The Avars and the Longobards,
at the instigation or with the connivance of the Emperor
Justin, jointly attacked the Gepidae. The bravest of them
fell in battle ; their king Cunimund was slain, and his daugh¬
ter Rosamund became the captive of Alboin, the chief of
the Lombards, and by marriage shared that throne which
had before been occupied by the daughter of Clovis, the
king of the Franks.
The ambition of Alboin was excited rather than satisfied by
the conquest of the Gepidae, and the submission of the Avars
to his authority. Fifteen years before, his subjects, as the
confederates of Narses, had visited Italy ; the mountains,
the rivers, and the highways, were familiar to their memory!
I he repoit of their success, and the sight of the spoil, kin¬
dled in the rising generation the flame of emulation and of
enterprise. Their hopes were encouraged by the spirit and
eloquence of their leader. No sooner had Alboin erected
his standard, than the native strength of the Longobards
was multiplied by the adventurous youth of Germany and
Scythia, and by the peasantry of Noricum and Pannonia,
who had resumed the manners of barbarians.
Hie whole nation of the Longobards, accompanied by their
allies, and attended by their wives, their children, and their
cattle, began their march through the Carnic Alps in April
568. Leaving a strong garrison to guard the passes of the
mountains at forum Julii, the modern Cividale, which was
erected into a dukedom under his nephew Gisulphus, Al¬
boin passed without encountering any opposition, through
the Venetian country, and the city of Aquileia opened its
gates, most of the inhabitants having abandoned their homes
at the approach of the invaders. Padua and some other
cities were passed by, either because they did not intercept
his progress, or because they were too strongly garrisoned.
\ icenza, Verona, I rent, Brescia, &c., were easily occupied,
and each city was garrisoned and entrusted to one of his offi¬
cers with the title of Duke ; and five months after his depar¬
ture from Pannonia, the conqueror invested Milan, then the
capital of Liguria, which was captured after a short siege,
the principal people, with their bishop, Honoratus, having
fled to Genoa. In Milan the ceremony of the inauguration
was solemnly performed. Alboin was lifted on a shield in
the midst of his troops, received the emblems of royalty
then in use, and was proclaimed king of Italy.
From Milan Alboin sent out expeditions, which reduced
Piacenza, Parma, and Modena, and the other inland cities
in iEmilia and Tuscany. Pavia offered an obstinate resist¬
ance, but, after a siege of three years, it surrendered; and
being strongly fortified, it was fixed as his place of resi¬
dence, and long continued to be the capital of the Lon<m-
bard kingdom. Whilst Alboin was taking the steps ne¬
cessary to defend the dominions he had acquired, and to
reconcile his new subjects to his rule, he was murdered in
his palace at Verona, 28th June 573, at the instigation of
his wife, who had been mortally insulted by the request of
.oin to (h'mk out of the skull of her father, Cunimund,
m Inch he used as a goblet. 1 he queen, with her paramour,
4
made an attempt to obtain tbe command of the Longobards;
but not succeeding in their purpose, they fled to the Roman
garrison at Ravenna, where both perished most miserably.
Clephis, a relation of Alboin, having been raised to the
throne, extended the Longobard power to the gates of
Rome; but he conducted himself with such cruelty, that
he was’killed by his own people, after a reign of eighteen
months. His actions produced a dislike to monarchical
power, and for ten years no king was chosen. The dukes
who had been created among the chiefs of the Longobards
acted in their respective territories as independent but al¬
lied sovereigns. Under this kind of government their power
continued to extend, and that of the emperor gradually re¬
treated before it. The want of a central authority was,
however, soon discovered; and in 584 Autharis, the son
of Clephis, was chosen as king, and, by his valour and pru¬
dence, established the throne securely. It is not necessary
to enter into a minute history of the several kings of the
Longobards. A kind of aristocratic monarchy was created,
composed of thirty principalities, the chiefs of which were
distinguished by the titles of dukes, counts, or barons, which,
with the revenues of the land, were held as fiefs under the
kings, and became gradually hereditary.
The islands of the Adriatic were formed into a republic,
and the inhabitants, by electing, in 697, their first doge or
duke, formed an independent and central government. The
exarch appointed by the government at Constantinople held
authority at the city of Ravenna, and had under his power
Romagna, the Pentapolis, or five maritime cities of Rimini,
Pesaro, Fano, Senigaglia, and Ancona, and almost the whole
sea-shores of Lower Italy, where Amalfi, Naples, and
Gaeta had their own dukes. The island of Sicily, and the
capital, Rome, in which a patrician ruled in the name of the
emperor, formed also parts of the imperial dominions.
Constantly pressed upon by the Longobards, the power
and influence of Constantinople gradually declined; and
its fall was hastened by the Emperor Leo, called the Is-
aurian, whose zeal in the destruction of images embittered
the clergy of the orthodox church in Italy. The inhabi¬
tants of cities forcibly expelled the imperial authorities, and
elected a senate, with consuls, as in the time of the Roman
republic. In Rome itself a certain power was acknowledged
in the bishop, which, on account of the sanctity of his cha¬
racter, was of a paternal nature ; at first it was exercised in
ecclesiastical affairs, but by degrees extended to civil mat¬
ters, and in process of time arrived at temporal sovereignty.
The popes, who were anxious to defend their territory
against the Longobards, when the Byzantine court had ne¬
glected or abandoned them, applied for assistance to the
Franks.
The original Longobard invaders, composed as they were
of various tribes, comprised different religions, some of them
still adhering to the ancient heathenism, whilst others had
embraced the Christian religion, but with the heretical
tenets of Arianism. These tribes had gradually been led
to embrace the profession of the Roman Catholic Church.
Luitprand, who ascended the throne in 712, was the last of
that nation to abandon his heresies, which he did in the
presence of Pope Gregory II., at Rome in 729; upon which
the pontiff made a public renunciation of his allegiance to
the imperial court, and withdrew all claim of obedience
from it. The popes were, however, indisposed to form an
alliance with Luitprand, whose vicinity to the capital of
their diocese they viewed with suspicion. When the em¬
peror was making preparations to invade Italy', in order to
enforce his decrees for the destruction of images, Gregory
III. addressed himself to Charles Martel, who then governed
the Franks, and was the best commander, and the most
powerful prince of Western Europe.
Gregory despatched an embassy to his residence, with
numerous presents of holy relics, “it was received with re¬
spectful distinction, and a treaty was speedily concluded,
by which Charles engaged to march with an army into
Italy in defence of Rome and of the church, in case any
attack should be made by the emperor or the king of the
Longobards. The Romans, on their part, were to acknow¬
ledge Charles as their protector, and to confer upon him
the dignity of the consulship.
Leo the Isaurian was succeeded by his son Constantine,
surnamed Copronymus, who carried his rage against images
to a greater extent than his predecessor, and forbade the
worship of the saints and of the Virgin Mary. This occa¬
sioned new disturbances in Italy, and made the Romans
more zealous than before to separate themselves from their
dependence on Constantinople. Zachary, who had suc¬
ceeded to the chair of St Peter, urged on Luitprand the
restoration of the four cities, and also the district of Sabina,
which had been seized upon thirty years before; and, in
compliance with the representation, they were thus added
to the sacred patrimony. Luitprand died in 744, after a
reign of thirty-two years. His son Rachis, who succeeded
him, was anxious to extend his dominions, and invaded the
territory ceded to the holy see by his father, when Pope
Zachary visited him, and, by his representation of the
punishment hereafter to be inflicted on those who violated
the rights of the church, so operated upon his mind, that he
not only restored the towns and territory he had seized, but
took the habit of a monk, and entered into the monastery
of Monte Cassino, where he passed the remainder of his
days, honoured as a saint by the other monks of the fra¬
ternity.
Astolphus succeeded his brother on the Longobard throne
in 751. The exarchate of Ravenna and the duchy of Rome
excited his love for conquest. The city, the capital of the
first, was surrendered with little difficulty. He advanced
towards Rome, and, arriving at Narni, sent an embassy to
the pope, announcing his determination to enter that city,
to seize the wealth of the Romans, and to impose a tax ot
a golden solidus on every one who would not swear him
allegiance. Stephen, who then filled the papal chair, at¬
tempted by negotiation to avert the threatened storm ; but
failing to appease Astolphus, in imitation of his predeces¬
sor, he had recourse to the assistance of France. Pepin,
the son of Charles Martel, now filled the throne of that
kingdom, and professed unlimited obedience to the holy
see. Stephen, by the consent, or at least connivance, of
Astolphus, whose forces were encamped round the city ot
Rome, made a journey to F"ranee, and Pepin immediately,
accompanied by the pope, passed the Alps with a large
army, and advanced into Italy. Astolphus could not raise
a sufficient force to repulse his assailants, and, after some
slight reverses, retired to Pavia. In that city Ije was be¬
sieged, and compelled to sue for peace. T his was granted,
upon the condition that he should give up, not to the em¬
peror, but to the pope, the several cities he had captured
in the exarchate and the dukedom, and deliver hostages for
the performance of the conditions agreed on. Pepin with
his forces returned to France; and the pope proceeded to
the south, in the expectation of being placed in possession
of the cities and territories which Astolphus had stipulated
to deliver up to the holy see. The Longobard king, how¬
ever, as soon as the storm had passed over, broke into the
dukedom and besieged Rome. The pope again had re¬
course to Pepin, who readily advanced. Astolphus, after
an unavailing siege of three months, abandoned Rome, and
once more took refuge in the strong fortifications of Pavia.
During this second siege, which Pepin speedily com¬
menced, an embassy from the Emperor Constantine Cop¬
ronymus arrived at his camp, to remonstrate against the
donation of the exarchate to the pope ; and offered to repay
the expenses of the war to France, if the territories were
delivered over to the power of the emperor. Pepin replied
Italy.
A.D.
961.
774 to
y. to the envoys, that “as he had a right to those territories
^ by the sword, and had thought proper to bestow them on
the pope, nothing should induce him to alter his resolution ”
By a vigorous prosecution of the war, Pepin obtained a
peace ; and for the pope the city of Comacchio, in addition
to what had been before ceded to him. From this period
756, the pontiffs assumed the language as well as the power
of sovereigns, no longer using for the dates of their re¬
scripts the year of the reign of the emperor, but that of
their own pontificates.
Astolphus, soon after executing the treaty concluded at
Pavia met an untimely death, the manner of which, how¬
ever, has been variously described. During the succeed¬
ing twenty years the Longobards languished in a state of
weakness and decay, but interrupted by a disputed succes¬
sion, which ended in the elevation of Desiderius to the va¬
cant throne. A double marriage was arranged between
two daughters of this Longobard king and Carloman and
Charles (usually called Charlemagne), the sons of Pepin.
Cl lanes soon divorced his wife, under the pretence of bar¬
renness ; and Carloman died, leaving two sons, who with
' their motller fled for refuge to Desiderius, when Charle¬
magne took possession of their father’s estates. Thus family
jealousy was one amongst many grounds of quarrel. Desi-
denus was induced to attack the dominions granted to the
pope; and, at the invitation of the pontiff, Charlemagne
advanced with a large army. Desiderius took refuge in
Pavia; and after the capture of Verona, and a visit to
Kome, Charlemagne drew up his forces, a part of which
had blockaded it, around that city. The defence was brave
and protracted ; but by famine, and by the plague, which
raged within the walls, the city was at length compelled to
surrender. Desiderius was made prisoner, and sent with
his family to France. All the other cities submitted to
Charlemagne in 774.
llius ended the kingdom of the Longobards, after it had
existed two hundred and six years. Though the kings were
at first rude and barbarous, yet, when they had embraced
11 T-k nSti-an rell8lon> they ruled with equity and mildness.
ihe policy of Charlemagne to his newly-acquired kin«--
dom appears to have been wise and liberal. He sanctionld
tlie laws by which the districts had been governed, whether
Koman or Longobard ; but to the latter he made a few ad-
ditions. The emperor was left in quiet possession of the
whole of Apulia, and of the other places in Italy that he
held. He allowed to the Dukes of Spoleto, Friuli, and
rSenevento, the same power and authority as they had ex¬
ercised under the Longobard kings ; and the smaller dukes
were continued in their dignities, but were compelled to
take annually the oaths of allegiance to him; and, unless
they violated it, the dignity was made hereditary in their
families. Having thus settled the affairs of Italy, he re¬
turned to France, having in 781 appointed his son Pepin
his viceroy. 1
' A seditious controversy in Rome respecting the election
of a pope, induced Leo III., who had been raised to that
dignity, to pass the Alps and apply for protection to Char¬
lemagne, against the Roman populace. The conqueror of
Italy, in consequence of this, repaired to Rome, where, on
Christmas day 800, during the celebration of divine rites
Leo placed a valuable crown on his head, and the church
resounded with the acclamations of the people, “ Long life
and victory to Charles, the most pious Augustus, crowned
by Crod the great and pacific emperor of the Romans ”
Ihe title thus conferred by the pope on the conqueror has
been retained by his German successors, till it was aban¬
doned in the present century, out of compliment to revolu¬
tionary France.
During the life of Charlemagne, whilst his son Pepin was
acting as viceroy, Venice, which had grown up to be a con¬
solidated and warlike power, disavowed the title conferred by
ITALY.
the pope, and commenced hostilities against his Italian do¬
minions. The Saracens, anew power, availed themselves of
the circumstances, and attacked the islands of Corsica and
Sardinia, where they obtained much plunder, and made
captive many of the inhabitants. Pepin equipped an army
and a fleet to reduce Venice to submission; but havino-
failed in the attempt, and lost most of his vessels amon^
* anc^ r°cks of the islands, he died shortly afterwards
at Milan through sheer chagrin. A natural son of Pepin,
named Bernard, was nominated by Charlemagne as his vice¬
roy in Italy.
Charlemagne died the 28th January 814, and was suc¬
ceeded by his son Louis. Louis and Bernard met at Aix-
a-Cnapelle, and arranged the mode of ruling the extensive
dominions of their departed ancestor. The ambition of
.Bernard, however, led him to attack his uncle, and to dis¬
pute his succession; but he was defeated, captured, and
condemned to the loss of sight, under which operation he
expired, in the fifth year of his reign.
Italy icmained as a portion of the Frankish monarchy till
the treaty of Verdun in 843, when it was delivered over,
with the imperial title, and with the addition of the country
of Lorraine, to Lotharius I. the eldest son of Louis. He
bequeathed his dominion to Louis If. in 850, who appears
to have been one of the best of the princes of the Carlo-
yingian race. The election of a pope, Benedict HI., his re¬
jection by Louis, and the ultimate submission of the mon¬
arch to its legality, were sources of vexation, though not
of actual hostility. In the latter years of his reign, the Sa¬
racens, who had occupied Sicily since the year 828, in¬
vaded the south of Italy, ravaged Apulia and Calabria, and
took possession of several strong places in which they estab-
hshed themselves A defeat they sustained near Capua
checked for a while their progress ; but three years after¬
wards they resumed their attacks, and carried their depre¬
dations as far as Rome, which was saved by the cour-
age and energy of Pope Leo IV. in 849. The death
ot Louis II. in 87o seemed the signal for discord, from
the various claimants in the imperial family to the Ita¬
lian dominions. Charles the Bald of France first took
possession; but dying in 877, Carloman, king of Bava¬
ria, seized the inheritance; and he was followed in 880 bv
ns brother Charles the Fat, king of Suabia, who, for the
last time, united under one sovereign the whole of the
prankish monarchy. During seven years Italy was the
theatre of the lawless violence, in which the nobles re¬
quired an Italian prince, and the pope was anxious to have
a foreigner placed on the throne ; whilst the Saracens, avail¬
ing themselves of the disturbances, extorted money from
the pope as the price of peace, and still continued their de¬
predations. Berengar, duke of Friuli, and Guido, duke of
Spoleto, with the Marquis of Tvrea, were rivals for the
throne; but Guido was, in 894, crowned as emperor and
king, and his son Lambert nominated as his successor in
these dignities. Arnulf, the German king of the Carlovin-
gian race, urged and succeeded in his pretensions, and was
ciowned in 896; but, like those who succeeded him, he
was unable to exercise any considerable power except
whilst he continued to reside among his subjects.
After the death of Lambert, in 898, and of Arnulf in 899
Louis, king of Lower Burgundy, appeared as the rival of
Berengar I., but without effect; and the same fate befell
another claimant, Rudolph of Upper Burgundy; in spite
of the pretensions of both, the possession of the throne was
at length, in 915, in the hands of Berengar, who was so¬
lemn y crowned. The power in the hands of the feudal
vassals of the throne was so much weakened by the recent#
dissensions, that it became almost impossible to repress the
plundering inroads which the Saracens were continually
making on his dominions. This monarch was murdered in
, when Rudolph of Upper Burgundy was induced to
643
Italy.
644
I T A L Y.
Italy.
transfer his pretensions to the throne to Hugo, count o
Provence. Hugo endeavoured, by the exercise of the most
bloody tyranny, to gain the unsteady dominion of Italy,
but his nephew, Berengar, marquis of Ivrea, having escaped
sol snare tl,It were laid for him fled for refuge to Otho
he Great in Germany, collected there a number of fug-
lives, turned towards Italy, and in 94o succeeded m com-
nellinff Hugo to abdicate the throne, and tiansfer it to his
ion Lotharius, who was less the object of general aversion
than himself, and who, upon his accession, appointed Beren-
car his first minister of state.
h The death of Lotharius occurred in 9o0, and was sup¬
posed to have been the result of poison administered by
Berengar, who was desirous to marry the beautiful wife of
his royal master to his own son. To avoid this match, and
to escape from the consequences of rejecting it, Adelheld
fled for safety to the Castle of Canossa, against which her
persecutor commenced a siege. She then applied for as¬
sistance to King Otho. He with great expedition passed
the Alps, liberated the lady, defeated Berengar, captured
Pavia, and having seated himself on the throne of Italy,
espoused the fair Adelheld in 951. Berengar made himself
useful to the new sovereign by his early submission, and by
his delivering up the Friuli (the keys of Italy) to the bio-
ther of Otho ; and thence his otters of service were accepted,
and he was appointed to rule the country in the name of
Otho. After ten years, complaints reached the throne from
the great vassals in Italy, when Otho returned theie, dis¬
missed Berengar from his station, led him as a prisoner to
Bamberg, in Germany, and having united Italy with his
German dominions, was crowned with the iron crown at
Milan in the year 961. Otho certainly granted the best
lands as feuds to his German nobles 5 but he confencd
great privileges on the cities of Italy, and on these theii
free constitutions were grounded. During the tenth cen¬
tury, the liberality of the Frankish kings, who had served
their purpose, so corrupted the church, and so weakened the
royal authority, that it effectively undermined it; w'hilst the
clergy and the people elected the popes according to the
dictation of the consuls and of the inferior patricians. Thus
it happened that, in the first half of the tenth century, two
women of great beauty and skill in intrigue disposed of the
holy see. Theodora, 'in 914, raised her son by her lover
Pope John X. to the chair of St Peter, which he filled
under the name of John XI. I he brother of the last,
Alberich of Camerino, and his son, Octavian, were absolute
masters of Rome ; and the latter was consecrated pope in
956, at the age of twenty years. Otho, when crowned at
Rome in 962, annulled the election, and appointed Leo
VIII. in his stead ; but the people, jealous of this exercise
of power, elected Benedict V. The popes, instead of go¬
verning Rome, were thus themselves dependent on the
leaders of the populace, who were at this time the real dis-
pensers of the patronage.
The republics of Gaeta and Amalfi, and the dukedom of
Naples, still maintained their independence against the
Longobard dukedom of Benevento. They had a common
enemy to contend with in the Saracens, who had by each
party been invited to afford them assistance in their quarrels,
but who had fixed themselves in Apulia, and there con¬
structed powerful fortifications. The Emperor Louis II.,
and King Macedo, by their united forces, had so broken
the power of the Mussulmans in 866 that the latter could
no longer maintain themselves in Lower Italy ; and thus
enabled the Greeks to form establishments on the territory
previously occupied by the Saracens. They founded a
. province called the Thema of Lombardy, which was ruled
by a chief residing in Bari, and which maintained its inde¬
pendence during more than a hundred years.
a.d. 961 to Otho the Great was succeeded in 973 by his son, Otho
XL Under his reign, Crescentius, then consul in Rome,
1073.
on the pretence of restoring the ancient constitution, at¬
tempted to secure to himself the sole power of that city;
whilst Otho, engaged in warfare against the allied forces
of the Greeks and Saracens in Lower Italy, suffered the
vicious popes, Boniface VII. and John XV., to exercise
supreme authority. Otho III., who, when only three years
old, in 983 had succeeded his father, elevated his cousin,
Gregory V., to the papal throne ; but Crescentius, with the
assistance of the populace, drove him from the city, and
filled his station with a Greek pope, John XVI. Otho
entered Rome a second time; deposed John, and elevated
to the papal chair his late tutor, Gerbert (Silvester II.)
Crescentius and twelve others of his associates, who had
thrown themselves into the Castle of St Angelo, were be¬
sieged, taken prisoners, and beheaded in 997 ; and the city
was compelled by force of arms to take the oaths of allegiance.
The death of Otho III., in 1002, was deemed by the
Italians a dissolution of their connection with the German
emperors, and Hardouin, marquis of Ivrea, was crowned
king of Italy in Pavia; upon which the jealousy of the
Milanese, the habitual rivals and enemies of Pavia, induced
the citizens of that place to declare Henry II. of Germany
as king also. The immediate consequence was a civil war,
in which each city and district took a greater or a less part,
and all suffered most severely. Henry was indeed, in 1004,
acknowledged by the assembly of nobles collected in Pavia;
but, in the tumult which arose on the occasion, a great part
of the city was destroyed by fire. Hardouin died in 1015,
and Henry remained without any competitor. He died,
without leaving any children, in 1024, and with him ended
the Saxon dynasty. Conrad II., of the house of Weibelin-
gen, and surnamed the Salic, who had been recommended
by Henry on his deathbed as most worthy to succeed him,
was elected by the states of the empire in Germany, ami
having descended to Italy, was crowned at Rome in 102/.
A general assembly was held near Piacenza, at which smaller
fiefs were declared to be hereditary, and attempts^ were
made to obtain peace and security to all the states. These
efforts were ineffectual, from the rage between the growing
cities and their bishops, as well as the hatred between the
clergy and the inferior inhabitants and the nobles. In
Rome, where the family of Crescentius still directed the
voices of the public, neither Henry, nor Conrad, nor the
pope, could enforce obedience. When Henry III., the son
of Conrad, came to Italy in 1046, he found no less than
three popes in Rome. These he displaced, and selected
Clement II., who was placed in the chair of St Peter, and
regularly afterwards x’aised to the spiritual dignities German
ecclesiastics. This reform, although apparently wise at the
time, as giving dignity to the pontiffs, was afterwards found
in practice to have tended to corrupt them.
During the long minority of Henry IV., after the death
of his father, Hildebrand, a monk, afterwards Pope Gre¬
gory VII., took the lead in opposition to the temporal power.
The increase of clerical power was much promoted by the
transactions of the Normans. As early as the year 1016,
some warriors from Normandy settled in Apulia and Cala¬
bria, and having early formed alliances with the Longobards,
the republics, or the Greeks, as best served their purpose,
against the Saracens, they became, through their warlike
habits, a very powerful party. Leo IX. made several at¬
tempts to draw them away ; but these all failed, and ended
in his own captivity and submission. Nicholas II., on the
other hand, formed alliances with the Norman leaders, and
in 1059 endowed Robert Guiscard with the feudal rights
of all the lands he had conquered in Lower Italy. After¬
wards, the popes, in the contentions with the imperial power,
trusted chiefly to the aid they could draw from their faithful
confederates, the newly-created Dukes of Apulia and Cala¬
bria, and the Great Counts of Sicily, Normans also. W hilst
in the south of Italy the small states thus became laigcr,
I T A L Y.
a.d. 1073
to 1260.
in the north the great states were broken up into several
of small extent and power. The Longobard states founded
their subsequent greatness, and Venice, Genoa, and Pisa
had already become rich and powerful. The Pisans who
in 980, were in alliance with Otho II., and performed
great services against the Greeks, and against the Saracens
in Lower Italy, united with the Genoese, now a seafaring
and warlike people, to attack the unbelievers in Sardinia
and twice, in 1017 and 1050, conquered those intruders’
and finally divided the lands, in large districts, amongst the’
most eminent of the native inhabitants.
Gregory VII., who was elected pope in the year 1073,
used all the exertions and influence of his station to extend
the power of the church. He laid claims to authority over
Spain as a fief of the church, and required of that kingdom
all the conquests which had been made from the Moors.
Sardinia was demanded of the conquerors, and France was
under his authority, fie made attempts to exercise his
power in Hungary, and even in Russia ; and extorted from
Lngland the tax known by the name of Peter’s pence
which long continued to be paid. In Italy, where know¬
ledge had begun to dawn, there were many opposed to the
vast extension of the papal power; but they were outnum-
bei ed by others, who feared more the government of a
German prince. In most of the other parts of Europe the
regulai priests had so much influence, that the pretensions
of the pontiff were submitted to with little or no reluctance^
It was not so, however, in Germany. The policy of Grc-
goiy had enjoined on the priests the observance of celibacy,
and the German clergy were reluctant to put away their
wives. They opposed the pope’s decrees, and joined with
the emperor in resisting them. The German bishops in
council pronounced the deposition of the pope; and the
pontiff issued his excommunications against them and their
emperor. A war thus broke out between Henry of Suabia
and Pope Gregory, though Clement III. had been created
pope by the Germans. Gregory with his army was defeated,
and he retired to the Castle of St Angelo, where he was lon<r
besieged. On his release by Robert Guiscard he removed
to Salerno, where he died in the year 1085. Two popes
weie chosen in succession by the cardinals, viz., Victor
HI. and Urban II.; whilst the antipope Clement, with his
conclave, sometimes in Rome, at other times driven from
it, never ceased to fulminate his excommunications. Ur¬
ban maintained the contest with Clement, and in fact tri¬
umphed ovei him. His success was owing in a great mea¬
sure to the part he took in favour of the Crusades, which
about that period began to excite the attention and rouse
the passions of all Europe to achieve the conquest of the
Holy Land. The enthusiasm of the period enabled Urban
to drive Clement from the city of Rome, and to take pos¬
session of the chair of St Peter, in which dignity he ter¬
minated his life in the year 1099. Paschal II. was fixed
by the cardinals at Rome in the papal chair; and though
the party of Clement on his death elected another antipope,
it did not weaken the secure hold on the dignity to which
Paschal had been elevated. The son of Henry IV. was
encouraged by the pope to rebel against him, as one who,
being excommunicated, could not convey to his successor
any right. The father wvas made prisoner by the son, and
Henry V. was then crowned emperor and king.
Henry V., though, until he obtained the throne, the de¬
voted defender of the papal claims, after his accession be¬
came their antagonist, and thus gained the support of his
German nobles. After suppressing commotions in other
parts of his dominions, he crossed the Alps with an army
of eighty thousand men ; passed through Italy to Rome
without serious opposition ; and there massacred many of
the citizens, shut up the pope, the cardinals, and the nobi-
645
Hty in prison, and held them confined till he’had compelled
I aschal II. to renounce the right of investiture in HI],
and to crown him as emperor. Henry had scarcely de- Italy
parted and reached his patrimonial dominions when he ^
found a general flame kindled around him. The Lateran
council disavowed all that the pope had done, upon the
notorious ground that it had been extorted by force. The
I rench clergy had acquiesced in the excommunication, and
those of Germany rejected the bull of investiture; whilst
a rebellion, excited by Duke Lothario, broke out in Saxony.
By the aid of the Duke of Stauffen-Suabia, Henry was en¬
abled to lull the domestic threatening storm, and again with
an army marched to Italy, and seized upon Rome, whilst
the pope fled to Apulia. At last, in the year 1122, by the
Worms compact, the respective rights of*the emperor and
the pope were clearly defined, both with regard to the im¬
pel ial investiture and to the selection of bishops and their
oath of allegiance. Shortly afterwards Henry died at Ut¬
recht in May 1125.
During the reigns of these German princes many of the
cities of Italy had risen to considerable wealth, power, and
splendour, and, from the emperors being often absent with
then aimies in the other parts of their dominions, had as¬
sumed to themselves almost all the rights of sovereignty.
Ihese cities forced the others of less extent near to them
into an alliance, by which they obtained the aid of their
population whenever they had occasion to have recourse to
aims. Ihe two cities of Milan and Pavia, in the north of
talv, weie the chief of rival associations. Disputes between
Milan and Cremona gave occasion to the first hostilities
between the former of those cities and Pavia, in 1129, to
which a contest between two rivals for the crown of Italy,
Lothario II. and Conrad of Hohenstauffen, gave a different
direction, and created two parties, the Guelphs, the ad-
icients of the popes, and the Ghibelines, the supporters of
the German emperors. These two parties, which lono-
divided Italy, derive their origin from a family which in
the eleventh century held extensive possessions in the
noi th of Italy, amongst the mountains between St Gothard
and the Brenner, and bore the name of Welf. They de¬
scended into the plains of Germany, and obtaining settle¬
ments in some of its finest provinces in the south of that
country, were thus enabled in process of time to become
t ie founders of both the royal and ducal houses of Guelph ;
the first seated on the throne of Great Britain, and the
second enjoying the duchy of Brunswick.
I his family quarrelled among themselves, one branch
bearing the name of Welf, changed by the Italians into
Guelph, and the other Weiblingen, changed into Ghibe-
hne; and they had, before their intermeddling in the Ita-
lian wars, fought a bloody battle at Winsberg in 1140.
I he state of Italy favoured the creation of parties, to which
the chiefs of the two branches of this German family at¬
tached themselves, and continued their animosity durintr
more than one hundred years.
In Rome were violent schisms between the partisans of
rival popes; and this again gave rise to that spirit of inde¬
pendence which that city had constantly nourished. It
was especially excited by the preaching of Arnold of
Brescia, an eloquent monk, the pupil of Abelard, who de¬
claimed with great energy against the luxury of the clergy
and the temporal power of the popes, and in favour of that
liberty which Rome had in ancient times enjoyed. Though
banished in the year 1146, he returned again from Zurich,
where he had taken refuge, and, under the English Pope
Adrian IV. was taken and burnt alive in 1155. In the
meantime the two great cities had strengthened themselves.
Milan had m her alliance the cities of Tortona, Crema,
Bergamo, Brescia, Piacenza, and Parma. Pavia was at
the head of Cremona and Novara. Verona, Padua, Vicenza,
1 rev iso, and Mantua, who were nearly equal in power,
maintained each its independence. Turin was at the head
ot the towns of Piedmont, and disputed the authority of the
646
Italy.
ITALY.
Counts of Savoy. The great feudatories were the Marquis
of Montserrat and the Prince of Asti. To the south o the
Po the city of Bologna had acquired great power, and ex¬
ercised influence over Modena and Reggio on one side,
and Ferrara, Ravenna, Faenza, Forh, and Rimini on the
other. Florence had risen to superiority in Tuscany by
the destruction of Fiesole, and had as allies the cities ot
Pistoja, Arezzo, San Miniato, Yolterra, Lucca, Cortona,
Perugia, and Siena. . -r j. r
Such was the state of affairs in Italy when the diet ot
the empire of Germany, assembled at Frankfort in the year
1152, bestowed the crown of that kingdom on trederick
duke’ of Bavaria, of the house of Hohenstauffen, better
known by the name of Barbarossa, the nephew of Conrad,
his predecessor in that dignity. The new emperor is re¬
corded by the authorities of his time to have been brave,
just, and not addicted to cruelty, yet his reign was a most
disastrous one for Italy. The cities were zealous to defend
the rights of self-government which they had obtained, and,
though filled with factions, resolved to maintain them.
They were surrounded with strong walls, impregnable
against the arts of attack then practised; and they were
well peopled with men, patient, brave, and abstemious.
The open country and the smaller towns, from which the
numerous fortified cities drew their sustenance, suffered
severely whenever an army traversed that country ; and, to
produce a greater pressure on the cities, the rude soldiery
of that time not only destroyed the provisions they could
not consume, but cut down the growing crops before they
were fit to be harvested, or set them on fire, with the houses
and the barns of the cultivators. Barbarossa viewed the
whole of Italy as his subjects, and treated those who op¬
posed him as rebels and traitors; and as the Ghibelines,
who were the weaker party, adhered to him, his chief ope¬
rations were directed against the Guelphs, of whom Milan
was the main support and centre of union.
Six times did the emperor cross the Alps with a nume¬
rous German army to reduce the country to obedience, and
each time his attempts were frustrated. In 1154, in con¬
junction with the people of Pavia, he defeated the Milanese
army, but could not take the city; yet he destroyed Tor-
tona, and was then crowned in Pavia with the iron crown
of Lombardy, and at Rome with the golden crown of the
empire, though the ceremony was performed in the suburb,
admission within the walls of the latter city being refused.
After plundering Spoleto, sickness and desertion so thinned
his ranks, that he led back the remnant of his troops, and
repassed the Alps by way of Trent and the Tyrol. The
most savage destruction was perpetrated in the retreat; but
the cities were unassailed, and rejoiced in their freedom,
though they did little injury to the retiring army. In the
interval that followed, a civil war was carried on by the two
parties, at the head of which were Milan and Pavia; but
in this the latter, the weaker of the two confederates, suf¬
fered the most, whilst by the former the citizens of Tortona
were received with sympathy, their houses rebuilt, and their
fortifications restored.
Barbarossa entered Italy again in 1158, with the vassals
who crowded to him from all parts of Germany. At
Brescia the terror of his name induced that city to renounce
the alliance with Milan, which refused to receive the em¬
peror. By the aid of the militia of Cremona and Pavia he
was enabled to besiege Milan; but his engines being in¬
sufficient to beat down the walls, he resolved to starve it
into surrender, and intercepted all provisions and destroyed
the growing crops. In this situation of distress Blandrate,
an independent noble, known as a protector of Lombardy,
with some others of the same rank, assumed the office of
mediator, and obtained favourable terms. The city agreed
to pay a tribute, and to restore the rights of the emperor,
on condition that they should elect their consuls, and not
be bound to open their gates to the emperor. Tortona
and Crema were both included in this pacification, which v
was signed on the 7th of September 1158. A few weeks
afterwards, a diet of the kingdom of Italy having been con¬
voked at Roncaglia, fixed much wider bounds to the regal
rights than the Milanese would admit, upon which they
again took up arms and prepared to defend themselves.
Another diet was called, which met at Bologna in the spring
of 1159, and by whose decision Milan was declared to be
under the ban of the empire. As that city was too strong
to be captured, the first attempt of the emperor was directed
against the allied city of Crema, which was compelled to
surrender, after a siege of six months, in January 1160.
The German troops were exhausted by the severe duty
of the siege, and their term of service having expired,
many of them withdrew; but Frederick, with the Italian
Ghibeline cities of Pavia, Cremona, and Novara, carried
on the war by devastating the country of the Guelphs, and
excluding all supplies from Milan. In June 1161, a new
army reached the theatre of war in Italy, when the emperor
resolved to reduce what he called his rebellious city. The
defence of Milan was hopeless, but firmly maintained, when
a fire, which destroyed the chief magazine of provisions,
induced the inhabitants to surrender at discretion in March
1162. Frederick ordered the militia of the Ghibeline cities
to raze the walls, and so to destroy the buildings, that not
one stone should be left on another. The poorer inhabi¬
tants were placed in villages at some distance from the
place; and many sought hospitality in other cities, where
their perseverance was recorded with applause, and where
they spread the love of freedom and hatred of tyranny.
The spirit of independence so rapidly increased that it was
soon communicated to the Ghibeline cities; and the effect
of it was to produce a confederacy of a most extended
nature. Frederick had entered Italy in 1163, attended
only by his splendid train of nobles, but without an army,
under the impression that he could at pleasure call out the
militia of the Ghibeline cities. He directed his steps to¬
wards Rome, where, on account of a contest for the papal
chair, occasioned by the death of Adrian IV., he thought
his presence necessary. Whilst in the south, a union was
formed in the Veronese, which he deemed injurious to his
prerogatives; and he hastened to call out the militia of the
Ghibeline cities of Pavia, Cremona, Lodi, and Como, to
lead them against Verona; but they were indisposed to the
service, upon which he returned to Germany to collect an
army, on whose exertions he might depend.
Iii October 1166 Frederick descended from the Grisons
with his newly collected army. His military operations
were ineffectual; and whilst he advanced to Rome and to
Ancona, the confederation of the cities of the Guelphs and
the Ghibelines, begun at Pontida in April 1167, was ce¬
mented on the 1st December of the same year, and as¬
sumed the name of the Lombard League. Frederick had
been repulsed at Ancona, whilst he had been victorious at
Rome ; but his victory proved useless. His army was at¬
tacked by disease, which swept away great numbers; and
with the remnant he could scarcely protect himself from the
increasing influence of the League, whose authority had
already restored Milan, and built the new city of Alessan¬
dria, at the confluence of the rivers Tanaro and Bormida.
In March 1168, the emperor, with but a very few troops,
was enabled to effect his retreat from his Italian subjects,
by the road of Mount Cenis, and soon prepared a new
German force, which was to be employed in coercing
them.
In the efforts to lead the Germans again into Italy, he
was baffled by their reluctance, and remained, as far as re¬
garded Italy, in a state of repose during five years. He
sent, indeed, his warlike chancellor, Christian, archbishop
of Mentz, to raise his party in Tuscany, the only district
• i? *hi,ch there existed any portion of attachment to the
(jhibeline cause.
In October 1174, Frederick again entered Italy at the
head of a powerful army, but was detained four months by
the siege of the newly-built town of Alessandria; and the
sickness among his troops, occasioned by the severity of the
winter, so weakened him, that having abandoned the sie^e
in April 1175, he was too weak to attack the forces of the
League, and thus induced to enter on a negotiation. Much
^rjei?WaS sPen^ no P^an °I conciliation was adopted;
and Frederick again sent into Germany for an army, which
arrived in the spring of 1176 at Como', whither he was en¬
abled secretly to join them ; but he could get very little aid
from the few cities of the Ghibeline party. He advanced
to the neighbourhood of Milan, and on the 29th May 1176
at Legnano, attacked the forces of the League. Though
at first he met with success, yet the issue of die battle was
so decisively against him, that his camp was pillaged, his
army Aspersed, and himself compelled to flee for his life
rinally he escaped to Pavia, to contradict the report of his
death, which had prevailed during several days. Negotia¬
tions followed this defeat. The pope and the Venetians acted
as mediators, and in 1177 a truce for six years was concluded.
Luring its continuance the political power of the League
was strengthened and consolidated; whilst, on the odier
hand the emperor had learned the lesson, untaught to his
predecessors, of submitting to restrictions imposed by sub¬
jects on their sovereign. The truce was followed by the
treaty of Constance, 25th June 1183, which secured the
privileges of the cities, and recognised the prerogatives of
the monarch, with certain necessary restrictions.
Barbarossa partook of the religious enthusiasm which in¬
fected all Europe, and, after the peace of Constance, re¬
paired to the Holy Land, where, in 1190, he was drowned
Arme°nSng ^ Calycadnus’ an inconsiderable stream in
Though the peace of 1183 gave political freedom to the
cities, yet, as it was not followed by any confederation, each
ought only of strengthening its own defences, and of in¬
triguing for power and supremacy. A party spirit was thus
kindled, which spread and continued during the whole pe¬
riod that the emperors of Germany of the house of Hohen-
stauften continued to exercise the shadow of sovereignty.
1 he cities were soon divided again into Guelphs and Ghi-
behnes. W here the Guelphs had the government, a large
minority constantly opposed them; and the same was the
case where the opposite faction had the upper hand. Noble
families were engaged in feuds with each other, which en¬
dured through generations, and were constantly occasioning
open murders or private assassinations. An instance of the
prevalent feudal proceedings may not be without its use in
showing the effects of such a state of society. A noble
Guelph, named Buondelmonte, of the upper vale of the
Arno, had demanded the hand of a lady of the Ghibeline
house of Amidei at Florence. His proposals were accept¬
ed, and preparations were made for the marriage. But a
Jady of another family, the Donati, stopped the lover as he
passed her door; and bringing him into the apartment
where her females were at work, raised the veil of her
daughter, whose beauty was most captivating. “Here”
said she, “ is the wife I had reserved for thee. Like thee
she is a Guelph; whilst thou takest one from the enemies
of thy church and race.” Buondelmonte, dazzled and en¬
amoured, instantly accepted the proffered hand. The
Amidei considered this inconstancy as a deep affront; and
a 1 the noble families of Florence of the Ghibeline faction
about twenty-four in number, met, and agreed that he should
atone with his life for this offence. Buondelmonte was at¬
tacked on the morning of Easter Sunday, as he passed the
bridge on horseback, and was there killed. Forty-two fami¬
nes of the Guelphic faction then met, and swore to avenge
ITALY.
the insult, and much bloodshed followed. Every day some
new murder or some open battle alarmed the citizens of
f lorence, during the space of thirty-three years. These two
parties stood opposed to each other within the walls of the
same city; and although sometimes in appearance recon¬
ciled, yet every little accident renewed their animosity, and
they again had recourse to deadly warfare.
I he nobility of Italy, who possessed extensive feudal es¬
tates in the neighbourhood of the cities, were bound by
t leu tenures to take part with the emperor in the hostili¬
ties he had carried on against them. They soon became
deeply involved in debt; and their creditors were for the
most part the inhabitants of the cities, to whom the estates
weie hypothecated. They were a high-spirited race, had
by practice acquired great skill in arms, and were acuter
and abler political intriguers than the magistrates of the
cities. Some of the nobles who had castles sufficiently
strong, lands sufficiently extensive, and vassals sufficientlv
numerous to defend themselves, became attached to the
t nbehne party. I hose of them whose castles were weak
from their situation, or near to cities too populous to be
ruled by them had been admitted to become citizens of
such places, had assisted them in war, had obtained a con¬
siderable share in their government, and were for the most
part compelled by their interest to become adherents of the
Guelphic faction. The plains of Italy were thus deprived
of all the independent nobility, who had become citizens of
some of the free republics; but every chain of mountains
was thickly set with castles, held by those who, whilst they
maintained their own independence, professed to owe and
to acknowledge allegiance to the emperors. As war was
their sole occupation, they were often gladly received by
the republics, which stood much in need of able captains.
It seems that the independent nobles who became con¬
nected with the cities as commanders of the forces were not
alvv'ays, though most commonly, of the same faction ; for
the Ghibehne family of Visconti, which held most exten-
sive fiefs, associated itself with the Guelphic republic of
Milan, these nobles, however, when connected with the
cities soon acquired extensive influence, and became finally
founders of families who obtained hereditary, and, some of
them, sovereign power. Of these the house of Este, allied
to the Gue phs of Saxony and of Bavaria, who had strong
castles on the Euganean Hills, joined the republic of Fer¬
rara. i he family of Ezzel or Eccelino, whose fiefs and
castles were at the foot of the Tyrolean range, and who
were devoted to the Ghibeline party, formed connec¬
tions with the republics of Verona and Vicenza. On the
"YTT1 Slde, ,of the APennines> tIle fortresses of several
Ghibeline nobles excited and maintained revolutions in
lacenza, Parma, Keggio, and Modena; whilst on the
southern side of those hills were the castles of other Ghibe¬
hne nobles, in turns citizens or enemies of the republics of
Arezzo, I lorence, Pistoja, and Lucca.
The state of society here briefly sketched continued
during the whole of the reign of the family of Hohenstauf-
fen ; yet m the latter years of that period the art of paint¬
ing first made its appearance in Italy, and the first dawn of
the revival of literature became visible in the horizon, by
tie improvement made in the language, by the discovery
of magnifying glasses and of the magnet, by the establish¬
ment of the University of Bologna, and by the appearance
of many writers of genius and learning, to whom the litera¬
ture and civilization of all Europe became deeply indebted
During the nomina! reign of the German family, no one
of the individuals who succeeded to the title after the death
of Barbarossa is deserving of notice, excepting his grand¬
son, Frederick II., who attained the dignity before he had
armed at the age of eighteen. During his reign, Inno¬
cent III. attained the pontifical chair; a man of vast talent,
ime force of character, great learning, and an irreproach-
648
Italy.
I T A L Y.
A.n. 1260
to 1512.
able life Though the instigator of the crusades against
the Albigenses in France, his acts originated in the view he
took of the moral effect of the increase of the ecclesiastical
power, and of its concentration in the head of the church.
He made efforts in Rome to establish civ. liberty, by form-
in" a representative senate, to whom all power but the
iudicial was intrusted; but he issued Ins commands to all
the princes of Europe in stronger tones than those ot Gre-
crory VII., which, if obeyed, would have deprived them ot
all political liberty. . . . . .
Frederick, who, at his coronation, had promised to un¬
dertake a crusade to the Holy Land, embarked for Pales¬
tine in 1228, and succeeded in making a treaty with the
Sultan, in 1229, by which he obtained Jerusalem, and agreed
that access to the Holy Sepulchre should be free both to
Mohammedans and Christians. Gregory IX., who had suc¬
ceeded Innocent, dissatisfied with the arrangements,^ ex¬
communicated him. Having returned to Italy in 1237, he
defeated at Cortenuovo his opponents, who lost 10,000 men :
and his subsequent activity gained all Upper Italy to his
party, except the four cities of Milan, Brescia, Piacenza,
and Bologna. But Gregory IX. induced the maritime re¬
publics of Venice and Genoa to rescue the Guelphs from
destruction. This gave a turn to affairs, though Pisa still
held fast to the emperor and the Ghibelines. A general
council, summoned by the pope, ratified his excommunica¬
tion, and his party forsook him by degrees. The mendi¬
cant orders everywhere excited conspiracies against him;
he became suspicious of every one around him, and was
at length obliged to concede everything to the pope.
Through the mediation of St Louis of France, he proposed,
as the condition of his readmission to the church, that he
should go to the Holy Land and join the crusaders. Whilst
waiting the effect of his proposals he died from dysentery
in the castle of Fiorentino in Apulia, the 13th December
1250.
After the death of Frederick, the new pope, Innocent
IV., who had sought refuge at Lyons, returned to Italy, but
he was deceived in the expectation of general submission
which he had formed. During his progress through Genoa,
Milan, Ferrara, Bologna, and Perugia, he was in some
places received with coldness, and in others with disdain.
Meanwhile, in the absence of the head of the empire, great
confusion ensued, and freedom was extinguished. The
Eccelinos became for a time absolute masters of the north
of Italy. The cities of Mantua and Ferrara fell into the
power of D’Este, and Verona into that of Mastino della
Scala. Pallavicino became lord of Cremona, and the Tor-
riani of Milan, Brescia, Alessandria, and Tortona. The
whole of Italy, with the exception of Tuscany and the ma¬
ritime cities, quietly submitted to a military commander.
During the period in which the emperors of Germany
of the Suabian or Hohenstauffen race were the kings of
Italy, the maritime cities of Venice, Genoa, and Pisa had
grown up to be powerful republican states, and were only
by slight ties bound to the common sovereigns of Italy.
The nobility who had been admitted to the rights of citi¬
zenship were the senators; and some member of their fa¬
milies was commonly chosen as a ruler, with the title of
doge or duke. They were strict aristocracies, preserved in
that form by laws which, whilst they gave security to their
privileges, secured in like manner the rights and posses¬
sions of each individual. Under this state of security they
naturally became wealthy, and their progress was accele¬
rated by favourable circumstances. The Crusades, which
animated the whole west of Europe, created a demand for
shipping to convey troops and stores to and from the Holy
Land ; and thus a mercantile navy was called into existence,
which could at any time be easily converted into a military
navy. It was in this way that Venice was enabled to take,
and for a time to retain, the city of Constantinople itself.
The commerce of the East had also greatly contributed to
increase the wealth, and consequently the power, of these ^
free cities. The chiefs of the Crusades, who returned from
these expeditions, brought with them from Asia a taste for
its luxuries; and for these the maritime cities became the
storehouses, supplying the countries in the western part of
Europe.
After the death of Pope Alexander IV. in 1261, his suc¬
cessor, Urban IV., among several princes who sought the
government of Italy, selected Charles of Anjou, brother of
St Louis of France, appointed him king of Naples, a sena¬
tor of Rome, papal vicar of Tuscany, and finally king of
Italy. This gave a new direction to the two parties, the
Guelphs and the Ghibelines, which still distracted the coun¬
try. One of them was considered as the friend, and the
other as the enemy, of the French aspirant. Besides these
parties, there were also the republics; and besides them,
contests between the nobles and the people, in most ol
which the latter were, in the beginning at least, the con¬
querors. Charles invaded Naples, and defeated Manfred,
the king, who fell in battle at Benevento, February 26,
1266, and thus gave the superiority to the Guelphs, which
he further increased by placing a garrison in Florence, and
excluding from the councils the whole of the nobles, and
all others of the Ghibeline party. He was for a short time
alarmed by an invasion from Germany under Conradin, the
grandson of Frederick II., and the last of the house ot
'Hohenstauffen, who claimed the throne of Naples. Conra¬
din was only sixteen years of age when he arrived at Ve¬
rona at the head of 10,000 cavalry, where he was joined by
all the Ghibeline commanders who had distinguished them¬
selves under his ancestor, and aided by the efforts of the
Ghibeline cities, Pisa and Siena. The citizens of Rome
were so disposed to favour him, that on his advance they
opened their gates and promised assistance. But all this
zeal in his favour was of no avail. He entered the Ab-
bruzzi, and in the Campi Palentini, near Tagliacozzo, fought
a desperate battle 26th August 1268. It terminated in
the total defeat of the Germans. Conradin, with the chiefs,
were made prisoners, and, after a mock trial, were con¬
demned and beheaded at Naples on the 26th ot October
1268. After these executions, an uninterrupted exhibition
of similar spectacles filled the two Sicilies, and some other
parts of Italy, with such horror and dismay, that Charles
of Anjou reigned triumphantly, and soon acquired the mas¬
tery over the republican cities.
Gregory X., who ascended the papal throne in 1272, saw
the impolicy of his predecessors, who had given themselves
a French master. He endeavoured to raise the Ghibeline
party so as to counterbalance the Guelphs ; and engaged
Pisa, Venice, and Genoa, to co-operate with him in choos¬
ing a chief. The election was made the following year, when
Rodolph of Hapsburg, the founder of the house of Austria,
was declared emperor. Martin IV., who was made pope in
1280, undid the work of his prececessor, and persecuted
the Ghibelines with great fury ; but in the mean time
the popes had secured to the holy see the temporal power
over the ecclesiastical territories. During this period hos¬
tilities took place between the maritime republics. The
Genoese had assisted Michael Palaeologus in his successful
efforts to retake Constantinople from the Venetians, and
had received for their reward the island of Chios. In
1284, the Genoese had nearly annihilated the fleet of the
Pisans in a sea fight near Meloria ; and in another battle,
near Curzola, they had gained the command of the sea by
their defeat of the Venetians.
Charles was preparing an armament in all the ports of
Naples and of Sicily, with the intention of contending in
Greece for the Eastern Empire. This induced him to levy
taxes of great amount with excessive rigour, and the judges
endeavoured to prevent resistance by striking terror into
Italy.
ITALY.
all those who declined or even delayed the required pay-
ments. John of Procida, who had been the friend and con¬
fidant of Frederick and of Manfred, a native of Salerno
visited the cities of both Sicilies, to reanimate the zeal of
the Ghibelines, and to rouse their hatred towards the French.
He had also obtained promises from Greece and from Spain'.
It was not necessary, howTever, to have recourse to foreimi
aid, for a sudden and popular explosion took place in Paler¬
mo. It was excited by a French soldier, who behaved
rudely to a betrothed lady, as she was on her wray with her
affianced husband to a church to receive the nuptial bene¬
diction. The indignation of her family was on the instant
communicated to the populace. The bells of the churches
were ringing for vespers ; the people answered by the cry,
“ To arms ! death to the French !” The French were
fin iously attacked in every quarter. Those who attempted
to defend themselves were soon overpowered; others, who
endeavoured to pass for Italians, wrere known by their pi’o-
nunciation, and instantly put to death. In a few hours
more than four thousand persons thus perished in Palermo,
and every other town in Sicily followed the bloody example!
Thus the Sicilian vespers overthrew the dominion of Charles
and of the Guelphs, separated that island from the king¬
dom of Naples, and transferred the crown of the former to
Peter of Aragon, the son-in-law of Manfred, who was con-
sideied as the heir of the house of Hohenstauffen. The
massacre occurred on the 30th of March 1282.
In 1282 the democratic principle had been established
in Florence by the attainder of the nobles as a body, and the
Guelphic party had received great accessions of strength ;
but some disputes, which had originated in the neighbour¬
ing town of Pistoja, were extended to Florence, and in a
short time divided the whole of Tuscany into twro factions
of Guelphs, called the Bianchi and the Neri, or the Whites
and the Blacks. The mutual animosity and hostility of
these factions lasted till 1302, when, by the intrigues of
Boniface VIII., and the instrumentality of Charles de Va¬
lois, the Bianchi were plundered and expelled the country.
Many of them thereupon joined the Ghibelines. In Lom¬
bardy the dying cause of freedom still continued to exist,
and was at length rekindled; and the people, wearied out
with the feuds of their nobles, between 1302 and 1306
drove them from the towns. At this period, by the man¬
agement of Philip le Bel, a Frenchman, Clement V. was
chosen pope, who removed the seat of the papal throne to
Avignon, urhere it was maintained till 1377. This gave
room for the display of the spirit of freedom in Homeland
in all the territory of the church. The authority, and al¬
most the name of the emperor of Germany had been ne¬
glected in Italy during sixty years, whilst the minds of the
people were wholly occupied with internal disputes. At
length, in 1308, the diet of Germany advanced Henry of
Luxembourg to the imperial dignity, after three other
princes had enjoyed that honour. Henry VII. had little
power to enforce obedience in Germany, and foresaw symp¬
toms of opposition, which he wished to divert by flattering
the vanity of conflicting parties, and uniting them in pro¬
jects for extending his authority over the several parts of
Italy. Henry crossed Mount Cenis, and appeared in Italy
in 1310, accompanied by a few cavalry, not amounting to
two thousand, composed chiefly of Belgians, Germans,'and
some Savoyards. At Turin he was received by many of
the nobles of Lombardy and Piedmont, who at least pro¬
fessed obedience ; and even the cities, in confusion and dis¬
tress as they all were from their internal contentions, gave
indications of a strong desire for tranquillity under their con¬
stitutional chiefs. Henry professed strict impartiality, and
his conduct corresponded with his professions; but he was
sadly in need of money. Supplies were furnished to him
with great parsimony by all but the citizens of Pisa, who
were extremely liberal, and ipcreased his force with a guard
vol. xn.
of six hundred bowmen, who accompanied him to Borne
where he received the golden crown of the emperor from
the pope’s legate, without the walls, as the citizens refused
admission to him and his troops, but had admitted a garri¬
son of Neapolitans. The term for which his foreign troops
had enlisted had expired on his coronation, and they mostly
left his service; but the Ghibelines of Central Italy gathered
round him, and formed a respectable force. He made some
ineffectual efforts to conquer the democracy of Florence,
who had taken a garrison of mercenaries into their pay.
Beinforced by the Pisans, he then marched towards Borne
to contend with Bobert, king of Sicily, who maintained an
ill-disciplined force in that city, and expected reinforce¬
ments from the Guelphs of Tuscany. On the road, not far
from Siena, on the 24th August 1313, he died from poison
administered to him in the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper
by a Dominican monk. 11
On the death of Henry, disputes arose at the diet at Frank¬
fort respecting the succession to the imperial crown, but
they seemed to have had little effect on the condition of
Italy. In a few years most of the republican cities in the
middle of Italy had fallen under the government of some
distinguished military family, whilst Tuscany alone main¬
tained a share of liberty, by selecting Bobert, king of Naples
as its protector. The Ghibeline city of Pisa found a mas¬
ter m Uguccione della Faggiuola in 1314; and, after his
expulsion in 1316, in Castruccio Castracani. Padua fell to
the house of the Carraras. Alessandria, Tortona, and Cre-
mona were reduced to submission by the Visconti of Milan.
Mantua fell to the share of Gonzaga in 1328. In Ferrara
the family of the Este established their hereditary power ;
and Bavenna became the patrimony of the Polentas. In
the other cities the same tyranny was established, and in
each succeeding age with ever increasing evils. The petty
tyiants adhered to Bobert of Naples, whose greedy lust of
power obtained the means of indulgence, when Clement
vdesigning thereby to hold the balance of parties in his
own hands, appointed him vicar-general of Italy. Louis of
Bavaria made his appearance in Italy in 1327, in order to
put down both Anjou and the Guelphs. He was at first
supported by the Ghibelines ; whom, however, he soon com¬
pletely estranged by his weakness and treachery. Mean¬
while, the wickedness of Pope John XXII., who supported
the Guelphs, had so cooled their zeal in his favour, that the
two parties who had so long opposed each other, in the
cause of common freedom, were now reconciled.
At this period (1330) John, king of Bohemia, the son of
the Emperor Henry VII., made his appearance in Italy;
and having been invited by the citizens of Brescia, and fa¬
voured by the pope, he was announced as the mediator and
pacificator of the kingdom. But his purposes were frustrated
by the opposition of Tuscany, where a dread of the govern¬
ment of a single person was generally entertained. His
hckle disposition made him soon abandon his objects, and
he quitted Italy in 1333.
After his departure, Mastino della Scala, who had been
one of his supporters, and who was lord of the half of
Lombardy, and of the territory of Lucca, began to threaten
the independence of Italy. He was opposed by a league,
at the head of which was Florence. But hostilities had
hardly begun when they were brought to a close, and the
freedom of Florence was thereby secured. The necessities
of Mastino induced him to sell his city of Lucca to the
T lorentines, upon which the Pisans rose and took that city
for themselves. After this transaction, the Florentines,
disgusted with those who had caused the loss of* Lucca
selected as their chief a military adventurer, who, in the
Crusades, had obtained the title of the Duke of Athens;
but, owing to his severity, they soon dismissed him. In
Borne, torn by aristocratic factions, Cola di Bienzo was
chosen tribune of the people, in order to restore the laws and
4 N
CO >>
650
Italy.
ITALY.
tranquillity; but after seven months he was obliged to
rive wav before the power ot the nobles, in 1347 After
a banishment of seven years, in 1354 he returned with Card.-
ml Alhornoz * but his rule was short, and he was killed in
an insurrection instigated by the nobles. The Genoese
tired out with everlasting quarrels between the Guelphic
families of Spinola and Doria, and the Ghibehne families
of Grimaldi and Fieschi, drove them all out ot their city,
and elected their own first doge or duke. In Pisa the
Ghibelines were divided into two violent parties, those ot
Bergolini and of Raspanti, when, after much contention
the latter succeeded in expelling the former, in 1348. At
this period Italy suffered from a dreadful famine, which,
in 1347, swept away, by absolute starvation, vast numbers
of the inhabitants; and in the following year a pestilence
of a deadly nature swept the peninsula. Such was the
suffering produced by these visitations, that it was calcu¬
lated that two-thirds of the whole population were destroyed.
Another tremendous scourge followed, and was longer en¬
dured. After each peace, troops of disbanded soldiers were
formed under chiefs, called condottieri, who carried on war
on their own account, burning some towns, ransoming others,
and plundering everywhere. They were mostly Germans,
who had been called in by the Viscontis and Della Scalas.
A Duke Werner, a Count Lado, and a Friar Monreale, led
bands of these robbers, who devastated Italy from Mont¬
serrat to the extremity of Naples, between 1348 and 1354.
Meantime another war had broken out between the mari¬
time republics of Genoa and Venice. The Venetians
formed alliances with the Greek emperor and with Peter of
Aragon. Formidable fleets were collected, one commanded
by the Genoese admiral, Paganino Doria, and the other by
the Venetian, Nicolo Pisani. A battle was fought between
them on the 13th of February 1352, which proved indeci¬
sive ; but in a second, fought in the following August, the
Genoese were defeated with great loss. In two years suc¬
cess changed sides; and after a defeat of the Venetians in
November 1354, a truce was agreed to, which terminated
in a peace in the month of May following.
The family of Visconti had risen to great power in the
centre of Italy. John Visconti had influence in Genoa,
intrigued in Venice, and threatened to destroy the inde¬
pendence of Tuscany. He died in 1354; and his power
and pretensions, being divided between his three nephews,
became weaker, and received a check when Charles IV.
returned to Italy in 1355 to remodel the governments of
Pisa and Siena, and so far overcame Tuscany, though only
for a short period, as to compel even Florence to adopt the
title of an imperial city. With but little real power he
opposed the Visconti; but ended in obtaining money from
them, as he did from most parts of Italy, in his progress
through the country. In 1363, he liberated the city of
Lucca from the dominion which the Pisans had obtained
over it. Between the years 1365 and 1375, Pope Innocent
VI. obtained absolute power over the cities of the papal
dominions; but lost much of it again, from the discontent
excited by the tyranny of the legate, and by the interference
of Florence in favour of their freedom. Robert of Geneva,
who was elected as pope, and took the name of Clement
VII. , established his court at Naples in 1378, under the
protection of Queen Joanna. He was opposed by another
pope, Urban VI. The church was thus divided between
two popes and two colleges of cardinals, and the temporal
power of the holy see was weakened. Several of the cities
had been enfranchised by the Florentines; but those of
Romagna, with some others, fell under the yoke of petty
tyrants.
The continued thirst for dominion of the Visconti in the
centre of Italy, where they had rendered themselves masters
of Genoa and Bologna, excited a general combination
against them, at the head of which was Florence; and the
old parties of Guelphs and Ghibelines were forgotten in
this new and threatening crisis. In Florence, the Guelphs ^
were divided into two parties, the Ricci and the Albizzi.
After much bloodshed, Michael de Lando, a man of humble
origin, but brave and generous, restored tranquillity in 1378.
The party of the Ricci, which had thus suffered a tempo¬
rary check, was essentially aristocratic, and comprised
among its members the family of Medici, whose names are
then for the first time to be met with in Italian history.
This party soon afterwards, in another tumult, banished
Lando, and those who had supported his nomination, and
then re-established the former aristocracy more firmly than
before.
In the other republics the same progress was made.
The leaders of the democracy, or their heirs, created them¬
selves tribunes of the people, and became a fresh aristo¬
cracy, with the power of transmitting it to their families.
At Genoa, a civil war was carried on for a long time
between the two strongest parties. It ended in their con¬
ferring the sovereignty, in 1396, on Charles VI., king of
France.
In Lombardy, Gian Galeazzo Visconti, who was on the
throne of Milan, having rendered himself master of the
smaller cities in that district, alarmed Siena, Pisa, Bolog¬
na, and other considerable places. Being restrained by the
opposition of the Florentines from attacking them at that
time, he carried out his design a few years later, and con¬
quered most of them. Tuscany itself was endangered by
his ambitious views, and was only saved by the appearance
of the plague to which Gian Galeazzo with many thousand
others fell a victim in 1402. This event gave a breathing
time to that part of Italy; and, during the minority of the
son of Gian, many of the places he had seized were retaken.
Milan fell into a state of anarchy, and the Venetians availed
themselves of it to conquer Padua and Verona, whilst, on
the other side, the Florentines captured Pisa; and Gian
Maria, a youth, was only supported on the tottering throne
of Milan by the arms of his mercenaries. His tyranny and
cruelty are painted in the blackest colours by all the writers
of his age ; and he at length fell a victim to the indignation
of some of the nobles, by whom he was assassinated, in
May 1412. ,
In 1409, a new but transitory danger threatened the re-^
public of Florence, by the invasion of Ladislaus, king of
Naples, which was no sooner repressed than the power of
the Visconti became predominant. The Duke Philip Ma¬
ria of that family, with the assistance of his celebrated ge¬
neral, Carmagnola, between 1414 and 1420, conquered all
the states which had belonged to the family in Lombardy ;
and Genoa submitted to him in 1421. Venice and Flo¬
rence then made a league in 1425, and Carmagnola con¬
quered the whole of the territories on the river Adda, and
secured them by the peace of Ferrara in 1428. 1 he con-
dottiero Braccio Montone contrived to make himsell master
of the city of Perugia, and of the whole of Umbria, and
extended his power to Rome itself; whilst the Petrucci, in
1430, firmly established their power in Siena.
After the weakening of Milan by the Florentines and
Venetians, and owing to the constant disturbances raised
in Naples by the party of Anjou against Alfonso ot Ara¬
gon, there was no longer any dangerously preponderating
power in Italy. There existed, however, constant hostility
between the armed military bands, in two divisions, ac¬
cording to their usual practice. One ol these was led
by Braccio Montone, and the other by Sforza Attendolo.
Francis Sforza was enabled to make himself, after the
death of Visconti, master of the whole territory of Milan,
in 1450. The Venetians, greedy of extended territory,
made an alliance with some of the smaller states ; Sforza
made a counter treaty with Florence, which, under the
change of circumstances, providently changed its policy.
Italy.
ITALY.
651
Italy. At this period the house of Medici, by its wealth and its
—prudence, began to attract notice and to gain importance
in Florence. The power of Milan, where Sforza ruled;
of Venice, which possessed the half of Lombardy; of
Florence, which was wisely directed by Lorenzo de’ Me¬
dici ; and of Naples, which was not in a state to venture on
offensive war; formed towards the end of the fifteenth
century the political balance of Italy, and, in spite of ma¬
nifold feuds, gave confidence to each state that its independ¬
ence was secure.
In 1494, Charles VIII., king of France, advanced to¬
wards Italy, designing to conquer Naples ; and Ludovico
Sforza came forward, first to support, but afterwards to op¬
pose him, whilst the pope, Alexander VI., in order to ele¬
vate his son Caesar Borgia, courted the French alliance.
The opposition to Charles was feeble, but the cruelties and
the rapine which he caused or permitted filled Italy with
disgust. Ludovico Sforza collected an army in the north,
which induced Charles to leave one-half of his forces to re¬
tain the possession of Naples, which he had gained. He
was impeded in his retreat, and lost in it the greater part of
his army before he could enter his own kingdom. That
portion of his force which he had left in Naples was obliged
to capitulate at Atella in July 1496; so that after two years
of a devastating war, the French did not gain the least foot¬
ing. Louis XIL, who had succeeded to Charles VIII. in
April 1498, made pretensions to the government of Milan.
He was opposed only by Ludovico Sfbrza, because Venice,
which would have joined Ludovico, was engaged in an
alarming war with the Turks ; and Florence, from which
the Medicis had been banished, was ruled by a party intent
upon subjecting Pisa to their authority. Alexander VI.,
who had opposed Charles, formed an alliance with Louis,
on condition that Caesar Borgia should be made Duke of
Valentinois in France, and of Romagna in Italy. Frederick
king of Naples, though aware that he must be ultimately
the victim of France, was too much occupied in restoring
tranquillity at home to take any active measures to protect
Italy.
Louis, favoured by the position of affairs, passed the Alps
* with a powerful army in August 1499. He took some small
towns by assault, and put the garrisons and most of the in¬
habitants to the sword ; a ferocious proceeding, which pro¬
duced universal terror, so that Sforza could make no op¬
position, but dispersed the army he had collected, and with¬
drew with his family and treasures into Germany. There
he found protection with the Emperor Maximilian. The
cities of the north of Italy opened with trembling anxiety
their gates to the troops of the French king, and he was
installed as Duke of Milan in that capital, whilst Genoa,
which had been an ally of Sforza, made terms with France.
After this hasty subjugation, Louis returned to Lyons. The
insolence of the French, their violation of all national insti¬
tutions, their contempt of Italian manners, the accumulation
of taxes, and the irregularity of their administration, ren¬
dered the yoke insupportable. Ludovico soon became ac¬
quainted with the ferment which prevailed, and the eager
wishes of his subjects to see him again at their head. Pre¬
senting himself on the Swiss frontier, he hastily collected a
small force. With this he entered Lombardy in February
1500, having only five hundred horse and eight thousand
infantry. Como, Milan, Parma, and Pavia, opened their
gates to receive him ; and after a short siege Novara capi¬
tulated. But Louis was active, and his general, Tremouille,
advanced to suppress this rebellion with an army in which
were ten thousand Swiss. Hired troops of the cantons were
in both armies. When they met, these troops had parleys
between themselves, and the part in Ludovico’s army agreed
with those in the army of Tremouille to murder their Ita¬
lian fellow-soldiers, and to leave the service in which they
had entered. This was executed. Ludovico Sforza was
delivered up and sent to France, where he died after ten
years’ imprisonment; and the Swiss returned home with the
wages of perfidy and the curses of Lombardy, whilst the
French continued masters of the country till 1512.
The French then attempted to gain Naples, and a most
infamous treaty was concluded with Ferdinand the Catholic
of Spain, who had engaged to defend it, by which that un¬
fortunate country was subdued; and in the division of it,
quarrels broke out between the French and Spaniards, in
consequence of which, after the battle of the Garigliano,
gained the 27th December 1503, by Gonzalvo, the general
of the latter, the French were completely driven out, and
the kingdom of Naples became an appanage of the Spanish
crown.
By the death of Pope Alexander VL, and the accession
of Julius II., the pretensions of Caesar Borgia vanished, as
the new pontiff was more zealous to strengthen the holy
see than to advance the son of his predecessor. With this
view he formed a treaty with the kings of France and Spain,,
called the League of Cambray, in 1508, the object of which
was to check the engrossing measures of the Venetian re¬
public. Failing in this object, his holiness, in 1509, entered
into a treaty with the Venetians themselves, in which the
king of Spain and the Swiss cantons were comprehended.
His aim was to drive the French out of Italy; but he finally
abandoned this project, from a fear that the council of
French and German prelates assembled at Pisa would be
induced to declare his election to the popedom invalid, and
dismiss him from the dignity. In the mean time Maximi¬
lian of Germany and the king of France had concocted an
alliance at Blois, by which it was agreed to divide between
them the whole of the dominions of Venice on the conti¬
nent ; and in consequence of it, hostilities commenced in
1509. The cities surrendered to the French, the Ger¬
mans, or the Spaniards, all of whom exercised the most
abominable cruelties. The pope, in the midst of the con¬
quests of the great powers, became alarmed, and attempted
to free Italy from their ravages, by inflaming the emperor
against the French, by forming a league with Venice, and
by calling in the aid of the mercenary Swiss. The pope
raised an army, commanded by the Duke of Urbino ; and
though it was defeated in 1511, he succeeded in forming a
league, to which the prefix of Holy was given, on account
of his being at the head of it, with the kings of Spain and
of England, and which also comprehended the Swiss and
the Venetians.
A powerful Spanish army from Naples, in 1512, advanced
to assist the pope, commanded by Raymond de Cordova,
who was glady received by the people. The French ad¬
vanced under the command of Gaston de Foix, and a mur¬
derous battle was fought near Ravenna, on the 11th of
April 1512. The French were victorious, but their vic¬
tory was more than counterbalanced by the loss of their
great geneB^ who fell in the action. Maximilian suddenly
betrayed his^ allies, recalled the German troops from the
French service, and gave a passage through his territory
to the Swiss to join the Venetian army. Ferdinand of
Spain and Henry VIII. of England simultaneously attacked
France, which was thus obliged to recall her troops from Italy,
and abandon the country to the power of the Holy League.
The liberties of Italy were then annihilated. Florence,
with luscany, after being plundered by the Spaniards with¬
out pity or remorse, was delivered over to the banished but
now restored Medicis. Giovanni de’ Medici, afterwards
Pope Leo X., with some other members of that familv, re¬
imbursed themselves for their long proscription, by the
abundant wealth they employed their power to extort.
Charles V., already king of Spain, on the death of his a-®- 1512
grandfather Maximilian, was raised to the imperial throne l^fh
in lol9. Charles, and Francis the king of France, had
abundant subjects of contest; and Italy was doomed to be-
652 I T 1
Italy, come the theatre of their quarrels. Francis, in 1523, sent
^an army under Bonnivet to invade Fombardy and take
possession of Milan. Bhe city had time to collect stores
and complete its defences, owing to the supineness ot
the French general, and thus was preserved from capture
till the emperor raised an army of sufficient strength to
meet Bonnivet in the field.
In the next year the imperial army received such rein¬
forcements that" Bonnivet thought himself unable to resist
it, and resolved to withdraw his troops. On the retreat he
was wounded, and the command devolved on the Chevalier
Bayard, who was killed in the battle. The remnant of
the French now only thought of escaping to their own
country, leaving Lombardy in the power of the imperial¬
ists. Charles was so elated by the success of his arms in
Italy, that he resolved on invading the patrimonial domi¬
nions of Francis, and accordingly Pescara led his army into
Provence, and began the siege of Marseilles; but the at¬
tempt proved unsuccessful, and Francis once more mustered
courage to make an attempt to retrieve the reverses he
had suffered in Italy. The French passed the Alps by
Mount Cenis, and the rapidity of their movements enabled
them to enter Milan, which was unprepared for the attack ;
but the imperial general secured and garrisoned the citadel,
which in some measure commanded it. Francis then laid
siege to Pavia, which was strongly fortified, and garrisoned
by six thousand veterans. The siege occupied several
months, and thus gave time for Charles to collect his troops.
Francis was resolved to fight, though urged by his generals
to avoid a battle. On the 24th of February 1525, the two
armies engaged; the contest was obstinate, and the issue
long doubtful; but after dreadful carnage, the imperialists
were victorious, Francis himself was taken prisoner, and
with him Henry king of Navarre, and a few only of the
body guard escaped. The French in Milan retired, and in
fourteen days after the battle, not a soldier of that nation
remained in Italy.
» After this attempt of the French on Italy, which, like all
that preceded, had only shown that a temporary ascendancy
could be obtained by that nation, but could never be re¬
tained, the preponderating influence was securely held by
the Emperor Charles V. Most of the reigning houses dis¬
appeared, and their successors were appointed either avow¬
edly or secretly by him. When the male line of the Mar¬
quis of Montserrat became extinct, Charles, in 1536, gave
his dominions to Gonzaga of Mantua ; and Maximilian II.,
in 15/3, created it a dukedom. The Florentines made .mi
attempt, after murdering the Duke Alexander in 153^ to
regain their independence; but their efforts were ufMvail-
ing, and Cosmo de Medici was raised to supremej^nver
by the influence of Charles. Parma and Piacenza had been
seized upon by Pope Julius II. for the holy see ;J$it Paul
III., in 1545, erected those states into a dukedam for his
natural son Peter Alexander Farnese, whose Octavio,
in 1556, was invested by the emperor. Genoajilich, since
1499, had submitted to France, found a dcYw^mr from that
power in the person of Andrea Doria, who esta|Kshed a firm
aristocracy, which overcame the conspira^B planned by
Fieschi for its overthrow. Charles in 155^^p.d conveyed
Milan, and also the kingdom of Naples,'tq^K son Charles.
At the peace of Chateau-Cambresis in 15^Philip II. and
Henry II. of France renounced their pr^Rsions to Pied¬
mont, which was given to the legitima^pheir, the brave
Spanish general Emanuel Philip, duke <*avoy. In 1597
the legitimate line of the house of Esfe became extinct,
upon which Caesar d’Este, a natural sqfilf the last prince,
obtained Modena and Reggio by an erifelfment from the
empire; and Ierrara was conveyed to him as a feudatory
ot the papal throne. AW
I he end of the sixteenth century was period of peace in
Ita y, and of such prosperity as could be^xpected after the
L L Y.
discovery of the way to India by the Cape of Good Hope had Italy,
destroyed the eastern traffic it had so long monopolized and
found so lucrative. In the next century only some insignifi¬
cant changesof territory took place. By the treaty of Lyons,
12th January 1601, the house of Savoy gave up some pos¬
sessions it had in France, and received in return the estate
of Saluzzo. By the peace of Chierasco in 1631, the cun¬
ning of Richelieu obtained Pignerol and Casale, which com¬
manded the passes into Italy ; but in 1637 he was obliged
to give up the latter fortress. The peace of Italy was not
disturbed by any of the operations of Louis XIV. of France.
Its neutrality had been made one of the terms of the treaty
of Turin in 1696.
The war of succession in Spain, which broke out in 1700,
produced considerable changes in Italy. The battle of
lurin, won (September 7, 1706) by the Imperialists under
the command of Prince Eugene of Savoy, caused the French
to surrender to Austria (March 13, 1707) all the possessions
and fortresses which they occupied in virtue of the Spanish
rights in Lombardy; and thus Spain, after having held them
for two centuries, lost them without even her consent
having been asked. The duchy of Mantua shared the
same fate. Ferdinand Gonzaga, the last duke, sunk in
sensuality and sloth, and utterly indifferent to affairs of state,
had allowed the French to occupy it during the war. It,
too, was surrendered to the Imperialists, notwithstanding
the protest of Ferdinand, who died of grief at Padua a few
months after. By the treaty of Turin, October 7, 1703,
Montserrat, which formed part of the duchy, was ceded
by Austria to Savoy as the price of her co-operation. In
1707 the Imperialists took possession of Naples with
scarcely any resistance from the Spanish viceroy. By the
peace ot Utrecht (April 1713) and the two treaties of
liastadt and Basle (March 6, September 7, 1714) the ar¬
rangements which had followed the battle of Turin were
ratified, and the emperor was confirmed in his possession
of Naples. The island of Sardinia, given up by Spain, was
added to his conquests, and Sicily, chiefly through the
agency of England, was also wrested from Spain, and given
to the house of Savoy. After the death of Louis XIV.,
Spain, at that time governed by Cardinal Alberoni, endea¬
voured to retrieve her losses, and pounced upon Sardinia in
1717, and on Sicily in the following year. England, France,
Holland, and Austria, immediately formed themselves into
a league against her, known as the Quadruple Alliance.
The war that begun was brought to a close by the peace
of February 17, 1720. Naples was left in the possession of
the house of Austria, which also received Sicily, exchang¬
ing it with the house of Savoy for the island of Sardinia.
From this time the dukes of Savoy have taken the title of
kings of Sardinia. The contingent succession to Tuscany,
and to Parma and Piacenza, upon the extinction which was
then anticipated of the Medici and Farnese families, was
secured to Don Carlos, the younger son of Philip V. of
Spain by Elizabetta Farnese, his second wife.
T he war of the Polish succession, 1733-38, caused other
important changes in the Italian peninsula. The Spanish
Infant Don Carlos, to whom the duchies of Parma and
Piacenza had already devolved (January 10, 1731), seized
the kingdom of Naples, defeated the Austrians at Bitonto
(May 25, 1734), and was crowned at Palermo (December
1734) as king of Naples and Sicily. Emmanuel of Savoy,
now king of Sardinia, joined France and Spain, and with
the aid of the former was enabled to take possession of the
duchy of Milan. By the treaty of Vienna, of November
1735 (at first entered into only by Austria and France, but
to which afterwards Spain and Sardinia found themselves
obliged to give in their adhesion), it was stipulated that Don
Carlos should deliver up Parma and Piacenza to the em¬
peror, and in return be acknowledged king of Naples and
Sicily; that the king of Sardinia should restore the duchy
I T A L Y.
Italy, of Milan to Austria, retaining only Tortona and Novara;
—that Tuscany, at the death of the grand-duke Giangastone
de Medici, who had no heir, should go to the house of Lor¬
raine in compensation for their hereditary states, which, on
their taking possession of Tuscany, were to go to Stanis¬
laus, the father-in-law of Louis XV., in return for his re¬
nouncing the Polish crown, and after his death to France.
Giangastone, in whom the line of the Medici became ex¬
tinct, complained of these arrangements formed without his
knowledge; but all he could obtain was an imperial di¬
ploma, issued with the consent ot the Germanic diet on the
24th January 1737, which, to remove any chance of rever¬
sion to the empire, provided that at his death the sove¬
reignty of Tuscany should be vested in Francis of Lorraine,
and his male descendants in the order of primogeniture;
in case of the extinction of that line, in Charles of Lor¬
raine and his male descendants; and, failing the male
653
branches altogether, it should be vested in their female de
scendants. Giangastone died the same year, and Francis
of Lorraine, who had married Maria Theresa, eldest daughter
of the Emperor Charles VI., afterwards empress of Austria,
came to his newly acquired state in 1739. Massaand Car¬
rara, in 1743, fell by hereditary succession to the duke of
Modena.
I he death of Charles VI. without male issue gave origin
to the war of the Austrian succession. By a treaty agreed
upon at Worms in 1743 by Austria, England, and Sar¬
dinia, the Finale was wrested from the republic of Genoa,
a neutral power, which was thereupon driven, in self-
defence, to join Spain and France. In the course of the
war the Austrians were defeated at Velletri, near the Nea¬
politan frontier (10th August 1744), by Charles III., and
were driven out of Milan by the Spaniards, who, in their
turn, were expelled by Charles Emmanuel of Savoy. Genoa
surrendered (7th September 1746) without opposition to
the Austrians, who did such deeds of tyranny and extortion
that the people rose en masse and drove them out of the
town. 1 he next year (1747) it withstood successfully a
severe and protracted siege by Austrians and Piedmontese
on land, and by an English squadron at sea. At length, by
the treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (30th April—18th October
1748), Charles III. was maintained in the possession of
Naples and Sicily; the duchies ot Parma, Piacenza, and
Guastalla, were settled on his brother Don Philip; Milan
was restored to the house of Austria ; the districts of Vige-
vanasco and Bobbin, and some portions of Anghiera and
Pavia, which Maria I heresa had ceded to the king of
Sardinia for his services, were secured to him, and the
Finale was restored to Genoa.
As soon as peace was definitely made, Genoa continued
with greater energy the warfare which had been going on
in the island of Corsica from 1736; but finding herself un¬
able to cope alone with the islanders, especially through the
genius and military skill of General Paoli, by a treaty con¬
cluded at Versailles (15th May 1768) she made over the
island to Louis XV. A large French army, after a pro¬
tracted and obstinate resistance, overcame the Corsicans,
and Paoli, with more than 400 of the leading patriots, was
compelled to make his escape from the persecution of the
conqueror on the 13th June 1769.
from the treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle to the attack of the
French upon Piedmont in 1792, Italy enjoyed 44 years
of peace, during which the country made steady progress
in the improvement of its social and political institutions.
I he Emperor Joseph II. encouraged the University of
Pavia, abolished in part the feudal institutions, and checked
the privileges of the clergy in Lombardy, which, under the
mild and wise administration of his minister, Count Fir-
mian, increased greatly in wealth and population. His
brother Leopold, grand-duke of Tuscany, gave a new code
of laws, introduced numerous improvements into every
branch of the administration, and supported the bishop of
Pistoja, Scipione de’ Ricci, in his attempts at ecclesiastical
reform. In Naples, Charles III., and, after his accession to
the throne of Spain, his son Ferdinand, under the ministry
of the Marquis Tanucci, adopted the same course of re¬
forms. Feudal rights and jurisdictions were nearly all abo¬
lished, attempts were made towards a methodical arrange¬
ment of the numberless existing statutes, pragmatics, edicts,
&c.; and the mortmain laws were enacted to check the in¬
crease of the excessive landed property of religious corpo¬
rations. Numerous improvements were also made in the
duchies of Parma and Piacenza by Don Philip, under the
direction of his minister Dutillot. Even the Roman States
had not been stationary. The reform in the secondary
branches of the administration begun by Benedict XIV.
(Lambertini, 1744-1758); neglected by Clement XIII.
(Rezzonico, 1758-1769) ; were continued by Clement XIV.
(Ganganelli, 1/69-1 /74), who, yielding to the demands of
the courts of France, Spain, Portugal, Naples, and Parma,
suppressed the order of the Jesuits (21st July 1773); and
by Pius VI. (Braschi, 1774-1799), who drained the Pon¬
tine Marshes.
Such was the state of Italy when the French attacked
Sardinia in September 1792. As the narrative of the
events by which Italy fell under the dominion of Bonaparte
has been already given under the head France, it is only
necessary to refer the reader to that article. When quiet
possession of the peninsula had been gained in 1797, re¬
publicanism was in the ascendant at Paris, and the Cisalpine
republic was formed. Lombardy was extended by adding
to it a portion of the papal territory. Genoa formed another
republic, called the Ligurian ; and Venice, which had sub¬
mitted without opposition, changed its own institutions on
the model of the French republic, though it was soon after¬
wards transferred to Austria by the treaty of Campo-Formio.
Naples also was, in 1799, formed into the Parthenoprean
republic, but after a few months Cardinal Ruffo re-estab¬
lished the government of Ferdinand IV., the leading pa¬
triots having surrendered the castle on condition that they
should be allowed to go to France. The capitulation was
broken by Lord Nelson; and the liberals who had already
embarked on ship-board, and who numbered many of the
host and most learned men in Naples, were all executed.
V hen Bonaparte became first consul, the Cisalpine repub¬
lic was new-modelled after the pattern of France, and con¬
verted into the Italian republic. In 1805, when the mili¬
tary regime was completed in France, and Bonaparte had
become its emperor, the same kind of monarchy was forced
upon Italy, and he was crowned at Milan on the 26th of
May, with the iron crown of Lombardy. In January 1806,
a French army entered Naples and proclaimed king his
brother Joseph, who, however, in 1808, exchanged it for
the throne of Spain, and was succeeded by General Murat.
For one of his sisters, who had married Paschal Baceiochi,
I ai ma and Piombino were formed into a kingdom, to be
called that of Etruria; but it was soon destroyed, and con¬
verted into a province of France. Ferdinand of Naples,
who in 1806 took refuge in Sicily, was enabled to maintain
himself by the assistance of the English navy and armv.
Whilst Murat reigned as king in Naples, and Eugene Beaii-
harnois as viceroy in Milan, they were both summoned, with
all thdtejarces they could collect, to join the grand army for
the ^^Hation of Russia. After the retreat from Moscow,
both^Krned to their dominions with the remnant of their
forces. Eugene maintained the fidelity for which he had
engaged; but Murat, offended with Bonaparte, formed an
alliance with the confederated monarchs of Europe. After
the abdication of the imperial throne Eugene withdrew,
and the states of Italy returned to the government of their
former rulers, with the exception of Venice, which remained
subject to Austria.
Italy.
654
ITALY.
Italy.
On the return of Bonaparte from Blba in 18lo, Murat
J took up arms, advanced northwards, and entered Bologna.
Driven thence, he was soon afterwards defeated neai 1 o-
lentino, and his power completely destroyed. The capital
was entered by the Austrian general Nugent, and Mairat
fled to France, while his wife and family found refuge in
Austria. Ferdinand returned from Sicily to Naples, and
maintained, with few changes, the Code Napoleon and the
other institutions introduced by the French. Murat made
a feeble attempt to recover his kingdom ; and having col¬
lected a small body of troops in Corsica, landed with them
at Pizzo, in Calabria, where he was made prisoner, tried
by a military tribunal, and shot. By the final treaty of
Vienna, the following arrangements regarding Italy were
agreed to, which, with few changes, still remain. The king
of Sardinia received back all his dominions, according to
the boundaries existing in 1792, with some few changes in
the frontier on the side of Geneva. To these were added
the city of Genoa, and the territory attached to it in former
times when it was a republic. The emperor of Austria
united with his hereditary monarchy the newly-erected
kingdom of Venetian Lombardy, in which were included
the districts of the Valteline, Bormio, and Chiavenna parts
of the Swiss canton of Grisons. Istria was not included in
the Austrian kingdom of Illyria. The valley of the Po
was fixed upon as the boundary between the Popedom and
Parma. The house of Este was again declared sovereign
over Modena, Reggio, Mirandola, Massa, and Carrara.
The Empress Maria Louisa received the state of Parma as
a sovereignty for her life, after which it was to fall to the
Duchess of Lucca and her heirs, who were to give up a
territory in Bohemia to the Duke of Reichstadt, the son of
Napoleon and Maria Louisa. Prince Ferdinand of Austria
received Tuscany and the district of Piombino, with the
title of Grand Duke. He also obtained the sovereignty of
the isle of Elba, on condition of reserving in that island
the rights of Prince Buoncompagni Ludovisi. The Infanta
Maria Louisa received Lucca as a sovereign dukedom, and
with it a yearly pension of 500,000 francs, till the decease
of the Empress Maria Louisa. The pope was fully rein¬
stated in all his dominions, with the exception of a few
small portions on the left bank of the Po; but Austria re¬
served the right of recruiting in Ferrara and Comacchio.
Ferdinand of Naples was again acknowledged as king of
both Sicilies, and the republic of San Marino and the Prince
rights and their own liberties. Even Murat, in his march Italy,
to Upper Italy, in 1815, had appealed to the spirit of na- i
tional independence, and gave out the freedom of Italy as
the object of his expedition. It became then the favourite
theme of the national literature, and the measures adopted
by the Congress of Vienna contributed to strengthen it.
By the extension of the Austrian power in the peninsula,
all the Italian sovereigns became virtually so many liege
lords of the empire ; their policy was dictated by the cabi¬
net of Vienna, and not one of them dared to act or think
for himself. Thus King Ferdinand, who, on leaving Sicily
in May 1815, had addressed to the Neapolitans a procla¬
mation, in which he promised to be the depositary of such
laws as should be decreed by a constitution, in June of the
same year, by a secret treaty signed at Vienna, engaged
himself not to introduce into his states any principles of
government irreconcileable with those adopted by Austria
in her Italian provinces; and accordingly, in 1816, he put,
de facto, an end to the Sicilian constitution of 1812. The
accumulated hatred of all the tyranny and petty persecu¬
tions that took place in any part of Italy after the restora¬
tion fell therefore upon Austria, which, right or wrong, was
looked upon as their instigator and abettor. This feeling
increased in proportion as at every effort made by the
people to rid themselves of the tyranny under which they
were groaning, the Austrians stepped in to support their
sovereigns, and rivet their chains. A conviction then arose
that there could scarcely be any real improvement in the
state of the peninsula until national independence had been
obtained. These observations will give a clue to the events
that took place from 1815 to 1855. Their historical de¬
tails, which varied in the different states, will be given
under the head of each of those states; here we shall only
sketch rapidly their course, in so far as they had a common
object in view, and affected the interests of the whole
peninsula.
The Italian sovereigns, on returning to their respective
states, neither restored the ancient order of things, nor
adapted their new policy to the fresh wants and altered
conditions of society. In compliance with the dictations
of the Holy Alliance, they undid not only what had been
done under the French rule, but also their own previous
reforms. By an agreement with the pope, the Jesuits
were restored everywhere, many of the suppressed monas¬
teries were re-established, and the mortmain laws of the
of Monaco were guaranteed in the enjoyment of their an<nsighteenth century were repealed. The taxes upon land
cient rights.
Thus, at the end of twenty years of war, Italy lost the
ancient liberties of some of its provinces, and saw the Aus¬
trian sway more firmly established and extended in others.
But this was not the worst. Her rulers, who, before the
French Revolution, had commenced civil and political re¬
forms, came back with an obstinate aversion to any change.
All that the country had gained was the abolition of the
remnants of feudal rights and privileges, the division of
feudal domains, and of the extensive lands Avrested from
were increased, and exports and imports checked by means
of high duties. The system of passports was made much
more stringent, and permission to leave one’s native town,
even for a few days, often denied. Elementary education
was narrowed in its limits, and thrown entirely into the
hands of the clergy; its highest branches were discoun¬
tenanced and lowered by the expulsion from the univer¬
sities of some of the ablest professors, supposed to entertain
liberal views. Private lecturing or teaching was not allowed
without a previous license from the ordinary and the police
the suppressed monasteries, and the introduction of the 1 agent. The freedom of the press was fettered more than
Code Napoleon into most of its states
The restoration of the old governments, however, was
not followed by the return of tranquillity, still less of con¬
tentment among the Italians. A new spirit was astir among
them which was not likely to be allayed by the arrange¬
ments of the Congress of Vienna—the spirit of national in¬
dependence. Awakened first by a few poets of the last
twenty years of the eighteenth century, it had been fostered
by the allied powers themselves, who found it their own inte¬
rest to oppose it to the French rule. The archduke John
of Austria, in 1809, Lord William Bentinck, in 1814, at
Genoa and General Nugent, in 1815, had all promised in-
. dependence to the Italians, and excited them to rise in the
name of their country s freedom, and defend their own
it had ever been before, and every work before being pub¬
lished was subjected to a rigorous scrutiny. Public func¬
tionaries were changed without any regard to justice, but
merely because they had served under the former govern¬
ment. All who had distinguished themselves in the time
of Napoleon, or who were of a liberal turn of mind, were
openly persecuted, or held in disesteem, and their move¬
ments and words suspected, watched, and reported. In
addition to all this, in the papal states ecclesiastics returned
to fill all civil offices, and the Code Napoleon was withdrawn
from those provinces which had formed part of the king¬
dom of Italy. Hence there arose general discontent among
the people, and thousands of otherwise quiet persons, either
in the hope of finding redress and protection, or only out
ITALY.
655
Italy, of a feeling of revenge, joined the Carbonari. This was
a secret political society which had been formed during the
French rule for the purpose of emancipating the peninsula,
and is supposed to have been at first encouraged by the
Bourbons of Sicily against Murat. The Carbonari counted
among their numbers many officers who, when the army at
the restoration had suddenly changed its colours, were
either expelled or not regularly promoted. This vast com¬
bination, supported by the general sympathies of the people,
wanted but a small impulse to break out into open rebel¬
lion, and it was in vain that the government of Naples
tried to oppose to the Carbonari another secret society,
called the Colderari, who adhered to the royal party.
The Spanish military revolution of January 1, 1820,
which proclaimed the constitution adopted by the Cortes in
1812, produced an excitement which spread rapidly through¬
out Italy. Its first effects were experienced at Naples. In
July 1820, the army mutinied, and demanded the Spanish
constitution. The king thereupon named as vicar-general
his eldest son Francis, who assented to the demand in his
father’s name, and appointed a provisional junta. In pre¬
sence of this body as well as of the chiefs of the army, both
he and his father, on the 13th July, swore fidelity to the
new order of things. An assembly was convened, which
adopted the Spanish constitution, with some trifling modifi¬
cations, decreed a large military force, and began reforms
in several branches of the public administrations. General
Florestano Pepe was sent with a body of troops to restore
tranquillity in Palermo, where on the 15th July, at the news
of the events of Naples, a popular outbreak had created
great confusion. Pepe landed at Melazzo, marched towards
Palermo, entered it by capitulation on the 6th October, and
proclaimed the constitution.
Meanwhile the emperors of Austria and Russia and the
Prince Royal of Prussia met in October at Troppau, where
the ambassadors from France and England were also pre¬
sent, and decided on a military interference in the affairs of
Naples. Austria at this time had marched an army of
80,000 men into her Italian provinces, and Great Britain
and France had each stationed a naval squadron in the Bay
of Naples, with instructions to watch over the safety of the
king and the royal family.
The three sovereigns having invited Ferdinand to meet
them at Laybach, the king announced his resolution of
accepting the invitation, and received the assent of parlia¬
ment, on his declaring that his going would have no other
object than to avert a war and maintain the constitution in
its integrity. The crown prince was appointed regent, and
the king proceeded on the 13th December in an English
ship of the line to Leghorn, and thence to Laybach. The
congress decided not to allow the continuance of the new
order of things at Naples, and entrusted the emperor of
Austria with the power of suppressing what they called a
revolt. This resolution was made known to the prince
regent in Naples. He was also informed that an Austrian
army was ready to enter the kingdom, and that if it was
insufficient, a Russian army would follow. The x-egent and
the parliament having determined to resist, and made pre¬
parations for defence, the representatives of the allied powers
withdrew from Naples, a large Austrian army under General
Frimont advanced, and after encountering and routing the
Neapolitans on the frontier of the Abruzzi, entered Naples
on the 23d of March 1821, and restored the old regime.
Ferdinand returned soon afterwards to his kingdom to direct
the state prosecutions.
While these events were taking place in Naples, another
military insurrection, originating in the same causes, but
differently directed, broke out early in March in Piedmont,
and proclaimed the Spanish constitution. The king, who
had assented to the resolutions of the Congress of Laybach,
refused to yield, on the 13th abdicated the throne, and in
the absence of his brother and heir, Charles Felix, who had Italy,
set out for Modena to meet the king of Naples on his return
Irom Laybach, appointed Prince Charles Albert Carignani
as regent. Charles Felix, by a proclamation of the 16th,
declared that the abdication of his brother was forced and
illegal, and disavowing the changes that had taken place in
Turin, appointed General Latour to take the command of
the loyal troops stationed at Novara, and to suppress the
insurrection. The liberal party determined to resist; but
as soon as this resolution was adopted, the prince-regfljit
on the night of the 21st fled to Novara, and there declamd
his readiness to submit to the royal pleasure. An ariA,
hastily collected, was despatched from Turin to atWk
Latour, and on the other hand Count Bubna, the Austrian
commander-in-chief in Lombardy, to whom Charles Felix
had applied, on the 8th April crossed the Ticino and
marched to his assistance. After a short but brisk skirmish
near Novara on that day, the liberal army was defeated,
General Latour entered Turin on the 10th, and Count
Bubna took possession of the fortress of Alessandria on the
llthol April. Victor Emmanuel confirmed solemnly on
the 19th his act of abdication ; Charles Felix assumed the
title of king, with a power as unrestricted as that of his
brother had been ; Charles Albert, who was refused admit¬
tance by the new king, after a short residence in Florence,
went to make amends for his liberal tendencies by serving in
the French army which restored despotic rule in Spain in 1823.
These movements were followed by numerous state trials
and executions in Naples and Piedmont, as well as in the
rest of Italy. Among those arrested in Lombardy were
Silvio Pellico, Count Gonfalonieri, Marroncelli, and other
distinguished literary men, who, after being condemned to
death, had their sentences commuted into imprisonment in
the castle of Spielberg. In the kingdom of Naples, a call
for a constitution by a few young men at Boscotrecase in
1827, was followed by a bloody retribution; many of the
inhabitants were massacred; the'rest were dispersed; the
village itself was razed to the ground, and its site was effaced
by the plough. In the Roman States, after the death of
Pius VII. (August 1823), his successor Leo XII. (della
Genga) adopted a coercive policy of still more grinding
severity, while the strange excesses of Cardinal Pallotta,
the espionage and bloodthirsty persecutions of Cardinal
Rivarola, and the extraordinary commission of Monsignore
Invernizzi spread dismay and affliction in every family.
^ After nine years of proscriptions and repression, the
French revolution of July 1830 gave new hopes to the
Italians, and was the proximate cause of fresh disturbances.
The secret societies, which had never been entirely extir¬
pated, increased in number and activity, and their leaders
received and held out promises that if they came to an open
rupture with their sovereigns, they might rely on effectual
assistance from the newly established government in France.
No disturbances, however, took place in Lombardy and
Piedmont, where the prosecutions had somewhat abated;
nor in Tuscany, which was mildly governed; nor in the
Two Sicilies, where the general amnesty by which Ferdi¬
nand II. initiated his kingdom in 1830 allayed discontent,
and gave a hope of moderate reforms. In Modena the
Duke Francis IV. had for some time promoted the conspi¬
racy with arms and money, and was intimate with Giro
Menotti, a young man who led a first movement on the
3d February 1830. The troops were called out, and, after
some fighting in the streets and from Menotti’s house, he
and his party surrendered. Two days later, on the arrival
of the news of the events at Bologna, a more formidable
revolt broke out; in consequence of which the duke deemed
it expedient to withdraw <to Mantua, taking with him his
prisoners of whom Menotti was afterwards shot—and a
provisional government was established. Parma soon fol¬
lowed the example, and the duchess withdrew to Piacenza.*
k
656
I T A L Y.
Italy. But the most important events happened in the Homan
states, where the old and infirm Pius VIII. (elected 31st
March 1823), being both unwilling and unfit to change the
course followed by his predecessor, Leo XII., gave the
people no hopes of better times, and drove them almost to
madness. On the 4th of February an insurrection broke
out at Bologna, which compelled the legate to resign his
authority; and a provisional government abolished by a
decree the temporal power of the pope. The insurrection
spread out rapidly to Ancona, which capitulated to a hand¬
ful of the insurgents. Meanwhile a division of a large
Austrian army already collected in Lombardy advanced to
Modena and Parma, and reinstated their respective rulers.
The Italians, relying on the declaration made by France
soon after the days of July, that she would not permit
Austria to interfere in Italy, were buoyed up with the hope
of French assistance; but when Louis Philippe had firmly
established himself on the French throne, he explained away
that declaration by stating that it did not bind him to take
any steps to prevent such interference. A negotiation
between Austria and France ended in an understanding
that the former power might suppress the several Italian
insurrections without permanently occupying the countries
in which they prevailed. Accordingly, another division of
the Austrian army advanced to Bologna, and having entered
it without any resistance, marched towards Ancona, where
the members of the provisional government (who belonged
to some of the noblest and wealthiest families in the country)
had taken refuge. Before the arrival of the Austrians, the
insurgents, who in their flight had taken Cardinal Benve-
nuti and carried him with them as a hostage, surrendered
to him the citadel on condition that indemnity should be
given to all political offenders; but the pope refused to ra¬
tify the cardinal’s stipulation. Pius died on November 30,
1830, and was succeeded by Gregory XVI. (Canpellarii
2d February 1831.
I he events we have related caused Austria, Prussia,
France, Russia, and England to present a joint memo¬
randum (10th March) to the new pope, in which admission
of the laity to administrative and judicial fiinctions, and a
general improvement in the laws and the administration,
were strongly recommended. The only result, however’
wasa motu proprio (10th July 1831), by which the pope
modified in part the municipal institutions. On the loth
July the Austrians withdrew, but no sooner had they
crossed the frontiers than the liberal party took up arms
again in the four legations. After a skirmish at Cesena,
in which the insurgents were defeated, the papal troops’
entered Bologna, shot at random many people in the
streets, and committed such horrors that when the Aus¬
trians arrived the inhabitants welcomed them with re¬
joicings. This fresh intervention of Austria having called
the attention of the French government, a French fleet with
an army on board appeared before Ancona in March 1832
seized the citadel, and drove away the papal troops. This
led to some detailed negotiations which ended in a treaty
ot the Ibth of April, by which it was settled that the French
were to remain at Ancona at their own expense and without
receiving any reinforcements, and were to depart as soon
of the ^Austrians^ ^longer occasiou f’or tlie assistance
Ttnhnn™ thf'S Period ,t,,ere was a lull of nearly 10 years in the
chiefly hv th i’ 7^ exteption of the outbreaks, caused
in SiciL thTfCh0lera’ "V837’ at Syra™se and at Palermo,
minister nfnnl Put (lovvn b>' the Neapolitan
and r/eP: iCe’Del Carietto’ "’ho Shed blood unsparingly,
and it gave an excuse to Ferdinand II. to put an end to the
separate government that the island had enjoyed from the
henF?e0n, °f.5e ™°rch>’ in thc century, in 1838
the Fiench withdrew from Ancona and tho a,r
the Legations. Ancona, and the Austrians from
No attempt to reform having been made, and the police,
in the Roman States and the Two Sicilies especially, becom¬
ing more stringent and inquisitorial every day, the discontent
and agitation reappeared stronger than ever in 1844, and
were kept alive and spread by the scientific Congress which
met every year in one of the Italian cities. An attempt at
revolt at Cosenza in Calabria was easily repressed; the
brothers Bandiora, with a few followers, were captured soon
after landing on the Calabrian coast, and all executed by
the Neapolitan government, which had been acquainted of
their projects by the English ministry, and was accordingly
prepared to meet them.
The death of Gregory XVI. (1st June 1846), and the
election of his successor, Pius IX. (Mastai Ferretti, June
16), opened another period in the history of Italy. On the
16th July, a month after his election, the new pope granted
a general amnesty to all political offenders. The hosannas
were countless. Pius IX. was hailed as a deliverer in every
part of Italy. I he cry ot Viva Pio JYono became the
rallying word of the liberal party. Reforms followed
reforms, and hopes grew stronger every day. Austria
became alarmed and threatened to interfere. The Nuncio,
Monsignor V iale (who, at a later period, was to take a pro¬
minent part in framing the Austrian concordat), acting in
direct opposition to his instructions from Rome, discussed
with Metternich the excesses of the liberals, the weakness
of the government, and the probability of its requiring aid.
On the 17th July 1847, the Austrians crossed the Po and
occupied Ferrara, where several outrages were committed
by the Croats. The governor of the Legation, Cardinal
Ciacchi, and the secretary of state, Cardinal Ferretti, pro¬
tested strongly against the invasion of the papal territory;
the Austrian cabinet replied ; Ferretti protested again, and
sent a remonstrance to the European powers; and the
Austrians at last withdrew.
The agitation was everywhere on the increase. A hand¬
ful of daring men proclaimed a constitution at Reggio, in
Calabria, and attacked the troops at Messina, in September,
but were easily beaten off. Then followed, as usual, arrests,
a state of siege, councils of war, the brutal license of the
army. In Lombardy, the commander-in-chief, Marshal
Radetzky, imprisoned by hundreds, and brought the prison¬
ers before councils of war. The affairs of the peninsula
having called the attention of the European powers, the
British government determined upon sending to Italy Lord
Minto, who formed part of the cabinet of Lord John
Russell. Lord Minto’s instructions were to recommend to
the Italian sovereigns those political changes and that good
faith which would give security to their governments, and
to their subjects that moderation which might lead to the
establishment of liberty. He began by visiting Switzerland,
whence he went to Italy, where he acted up to his instruc¬
tions faithfully. He became the butt of numerous accusa¬
tions and misrepresentations both abroad and at home ; but
he served his government with ability as well as with ho¬
nour, and deserved well of Italy by his honest and faithful
endeavours to inculcate good faith on her rulers.
I he last months of 1847 saw the first important political
change in the form of Italian governments. In Tuscany,
a law of the grand duke (September 4th); in Rome, a
motu proprio ot the pope (25th October) ; and in Pied¬
mont a notification of the king (29th October), established
elective consultative bodies to act as councils of state. At
Lucca, the same reforms having been called for, the duke
withdrew, and the duchy was united to Tuscany, 11th
October 1847.
Naples and Austria proclaimed that their states needed
no reforms. On the 2d January 1848, a liberal demon¬
stration at Milan caused the Austrian garrison to massacre
many harmless old people and women in the streets.
Funeral ceremonies for these victims were celebrated in
Italy.
Piedmont, Tuscany, and the Roman States. On the 4th
proclamations were seen posted in the streets of Palermo’
declaring that a revolution would take place on the 12th
January, if the king, before that day, did not grant some
reforms. No reforms were granted, and on the ap¬
pointed day the population of Palermo rose in arms against
a garrison of 8000 men, who, after four days, were strength¬
ened by reinforcements of 5000 men and eight war steam¬
ers. The insurgents formed a provisional government
ITALY.
•J 1 T A , . j'iuvioiuijcu government,
presided over by old Admiral Ruggiero Settimo. In Naples
on the 27th January, a large number of people assembled
before the palace and called for a constitution; the kino-
changed his ministry, and on the 29th promised to o-ive it!
the, ls‘ February a general amnesty was granted to all
political offenders; on the 10th the constitution was pub¬
lished, to which, on the 24th, the king and all the members
of the royal family took their solemn oath.
The period of consultative councils was over; that of
representative institutions had begun. Constitutional sta¬
tutes were published on the 15th February in Tuscany, at
I urm on the 4th, and in Rome on the 14th of March Rut
in Sicily fighting was still going on; and as the’royal
troops had the worst of it, the king entreated the British
government to interpose its good offices, and despatched a
messenger with an invitation to Lord Minto, then in Rome
who arrived on the 4th of February, and began to confer
with the government as to the terms to be offered to Sicily.
Meanwhile the citadel of Palermo surrendered to the in¬
surgents ; the royal forces were everywhere defeated; and
on the 24th the provisional government summoned a par¬
liament in order to adapt their constitution of 1812 to the
present times.
The breaking out of the French revolution gave a new
turn to Italian affairs. New passions were called into play-
new conflicts arose. A small republican party, stirred up
and abetted by French agents, got the upper hand in many
places. 1 be peninsula was covered with blood, and at last
with the exception of Sardinia, lost all it had gained in the
hist four months of the eventful year 1848.
On hearing the news from Paris, the king of Naples en¬
trusted Lord Minto with the terms which he was requested
to take to Sicily; but on arriving at Palermo (9th March)
vyith the squadron of Sir William Parker, Lord Minto found
that a Neapolitan war steamer had brought those terms and
published them as an ultimatum of the king, and that pub¬
lic opinion, excited by the contemporary arrival oftheFrench
news had already rejected them. With great difficulty
Lord Minto succeeded in obtaining from the government
of 1 alermo that the royal terms should be accepted, with
sorue trifling modifications. These, on being transmitted
to Naples, were refused by the king, who protested against
wl!\ch take P,ace from that time in Sicily
(22d March). The king, by this time, was possessed of no
stronghold in the island except the citadel of Messina.
Parliament having assembled at Palermo (25th March)
decreed that the Bourbons had forfeited the throne of
Sicily (13th April), and after accomplishing the reform of
the constitution, called to the throne the duke of Genoa
(11th July), the youngest son of the king of Sardinia. A
messenger sent to announce the election was conveyed to
Genoa by an English war steamer, speedily followed by a
Trench one with a formal deputation on board. The duke
neither accepted nor refused the crown.
In Naples the moderate constitutional ministry (of which
Poerio was a member) was replaced, 3d April,’ in conse¬
quence of the events in France, by a more radical adminis¬
tration. ihe franchise was now extended by a new elec¬
toral law; a modification in the appointment of the upper
house was announced ; and an army was sent, under General
, lU‘a™ J ePe>t0 j°in in the war against the Austrians. On
t le 15th May, the day on which parliament was to meet, the
VOL. xn. ’
republican party, encouraged by the presence of the French
fleet, and prompted by the representative of the republic,
raised barricades with the aid of many French officers and
sailors, and called for a modification of the upper house.
A collision ensued, which cost more than 1000 lives and
gieat destruction of property. The fight lasted seven hours;
and the royal troops, after carrying the barricades, were as¬
sisted by the lower classes in the pillage of the houses.
1 he next day the king changed the ministry, dissolved the
c lambers that had never met, issued a proclamation stating
ns most firm and immovable will to maintain the consti¬
tution, and recalled the army from Bologna, where it was
on its way to the Po. A new electoral law was framed.
Ihe chambers met for the first time on July 1st, and sup¬
ported the government in stifling the revolution originated
in Calabria by the news of the 15th May.
ihe events of Piedmont and Southern Italy, and the
news of the French republic, acted like an electric shock
upon the Lombardo-Venetian kingdom ; yet no important
events took place until the rising of the people at Vienna,
on the 13th March, had thrown the imperial government into
contusion. Before proceeding to hostilities the Milanese
demanded several concessions. Their refusal was followed
by the insurrection of Milan (18th March 1848), and the
expulsion of the Austrians (23d March), by the capitulation
of the commander of Venice (24th), and by the rising of
the whole kingdom.
Provisional governments were established, under the
piesideney of Casati at Milan, and of Manin at Venice.
On the 23d King Charles Albert declared war against
Austna. On the 8th April he forced the Austrian lines on
the Mincio in three places, and, crossing the Adige, took
up a position to the N. of Verona. On the 30th the Aus-
trians were dislodged from Goito, and driven to the gates
of Mantua. After these victories, Piacenza, Parma, Mo-
dena, Lombardy, and Venice, by universal suffrage, joined
the Sardinian monarchy, on condition that the constitutional
statute should be remodelled by a general constituency.
who fiad received an accession of strength of
innnS men by Nugent, on the 28th May with
40,000 men fell upon and defeated 5000 Tuscans and
Neapolitans at Curtatone, and on the 30th attacked the
right wing of the Sardinians at Goito. He was repulsed
with great loss, and on the same day the fortress of Peschiera
surrendered to Charles Albert. Radetzky recovered his
Joss by marching with 30,000 men upon Vicenza, where
the papal army under General Durando were quartered
ac i been j°ined by Welden with a reinforcement
of 15,000 men, on the 10th June, after a bombardment of
8 Jiours, he compelled Durando to surrender on the
terms that the Romans should recross the Po and not
take up arms against Austria for the space of three months
Ihe Sardinians, on the 13th July, invested Mantua; but
in doing so they left their strong position, and lengthened
their line too much. The watchful Radetzky at once saw
their mistake, attacked them on all points, and gave them
a severe defeat on the 25th at Custoza. The Sardinians
withdrew to Milan, where, on the 4th August, they were
again defeated. On the 6th they crossed the Ticino, and
Radetzky entered Milan, where, on the 9th, he signed an
armistice.
As soon as these events were known at Naples, the king
hastened the preparations he had been making for attacking
Sicfly and an expedition under General Filangieri finally
left Naples for Messina on the 30th August 1848 The
Neapolitan troops disembarked on the 3d September, rein-
forced the garrison of the citadel, and invested the town.
Ihey then opened fire upon the place, which was defended
by the inhabitants with the energy of despair. After a
murderous bombardment of five days they got possession
ot it, and rushing in, perpetrated such atrocities, that the
4 o
657
Italy.
ITALY.
658
Italy, commanders of the French and English fleets then in the
' Bay of Naples interfered and extorted an armistice from
the conquerors. . „
Important events were meanwhile taking place in Kome.
Soon after the papal troops had marched to the frontiers,
Austria, by threatening to dissolve the spiritual connection
between Germany and Home, so powerfully influenced the
pope, that on the 29th April 1848, in a secret allocution in
consistory, he disapproved of the war with Austria, and the
project of an Italian alliance for its prosecution. As soon
as this became known, great dissatisfaction was expressed,
and the pope began to grow unpopular. On the 13th Sep¬
tember a new ministry was formed under the presidency of
Cardinal Soglia. One of the leading members of the cabi¬
net was Count Rossi, who, seizing the helm with a strong
and skilful hand, steered the ship of state in a constitutional
course. Meanwhile, the republican party, driven from Na¬
ples and Lombardy, had concentrated its strength in Rome.
Seeing in Rossi an obstacle to the execution of their wild
schemes, they murdered him on the 15th November on his
way to the chambers. Several acts of disorder followed the
perpetration of this crime ; the pope grew alarmed, and,
encouraged by Martinez de la Rosa, Spaur, and D’Harcourt,
the Spanish, Bavarian, and French ambassadors, left Rome
in disguise on the night of the 25th November. Flying for
refuge to Gaeta, he was there received by the king of Na¬
ples. On the following day a supreme junta was formed,
which, after a useless attempt to induce the pope to return,
presented and passed a bill through the chambers (26th
December) summoning a constituent assembly to deliberate
upon the form of government.
The pope opened the new year 1849 with a protest from
Gaeta, 1st January, against these acts, and with a threat of
excommunication, which exasperated the people. The mo¬
derate party were now left unsupported, and the republi¬
cans gave practical effect to their principles without check
or opposition. The constituent assembly met on the 5th
February ; on the 8th passed a decree abolishing the tem¬
poral sovereignty of the pope, and establishing a republic.
On the 9th the republican flag was hoisted on the tower of
the capitol.
After the disasters of the Sardinian army, and the truce
of Milan, France and England mooted a mediation for the
affairs of Italy, to which Sardinia easily acceded. Austria,
after some objections, consented to send Count Colloredo to
Brussels, where the conferences were to be held: Tuscany
also sent a representative. But the flight and protest of
the pope, and his appeal to the arms of foreign powers, and
the flight which followed of the grand duke of Tuscany
marred the whole project, and put an end to the media¬
tion.
The events at Rome so far emboldened the small ultra
party in Piedmont, that the government were compelled to
resume the war against Austria. Accordingly, on the 12th
March 1849, a superior officer, expressly sent to Milan, an¬
nounced the cessation of the armistice to Marshal Radetzky.
General Chrzarnowsky, a Polish officer, was appointed
commander-in-chief of the Sardinian army, and the king
accompanied it merely as a general officer at the head of
the brigade of Savoy.
The hostile armies crossed the Ticino at the same time
in order to invade the enemy’s territory ; the main body of
the Sardinians at Buffaloro, and the Austrians 12 miles
lower down the stream between Vigevano and Pavia.
Chrzarnowsky had placed General Ramorino with a division
of the army in an angle formed by the Po and the Ticino
opposite Pavia, with injunctions to prevent the Austrians
from crossing. Ramorino not only did not oppose the pas¬
sage, but disobeyed orders so completely, that he was de¬
prived of his command, and at the end of the war, tried by
a court-martial, found guilty, and shot. By this neglect of
duty on the part of Ramorino, Radetzky was placed between Italy,
the two divisions of the Sardinian army, and in a position ^
to command the road to Turin. The Sardinian vanguard
had already advanced to within five leagues of Milan, when
a retrogade movement became absolutely necessary. On
the 23d March the duke of Savoy, who had remained be¬
hind with the reserve, attacked the Austrians at Mortara, but
was driven back, and on the 24th Radetzky advanced and
placed himself between Vercelli and Novara. It was here
that the two armies met, and an engagement took place
which put an end to the campaign. The Sardinians were
defeated and driven back into divisions. At the end of the
day, Charles Albert abdicated, and the duke of Savoy, now
king Victor Emmanuel, concluded an armistice, which was
afterwards changed into a final treaty. The terms were,
that Sardinia should pay the expenses of the war, and suffer
the fortress of Alessandria to be garrisoned by a joint Aus¬
trian and Piedmontese corps.
Intestine revolution was added to the evil of a foreign
defeat. When the news of the disaster and the armistice
of Novara reached Genoa, the people were thrown into a
state of excitement, of which the republican party took
advantage. General Avezzana, the commander of the Na¬
tional Guard, summoned the citizens to arms; barricades
were erected, a severe conflict with the royal troops fol¬
lowed, and a Ligurian republic was proclaimed. The go¬
vernment immediately sent a large force under the com¬
mand of General della Marmora, who, on the 5th April,
invested the place with such energy, that the insurgents
begged for a truce, which was granted, and on the 11th,
the town was unconditionally surrendered. A general
amnesty was granted, except to Avezzana and eleven
other chiefs, who took refuge on board an American war
steamer.
Naples felt the effect of what was passing in Upper Italy.
At the first news of the cessation of the armistice of Milan,
the king, on the 13th March, dissolved the chambers, which
were then sitting, and which were destined never to meet
again. Meanwhile the English and French governments
had failed to arrange matters between Naples and Sicily,
and their respective admirals now ceased to enforce the ar¬
mistice. As soon as the intelligence of the defeat of No¬
vara arrived at Naples, the king sent orders to General
Filangieri to resume hostilities. Catania, after the most
desperate resistance, was captured on the 6th April; Syra¬
cuse next surrendered, and Palermo sent in its submission
to the commander-in-chief on the 25th. The royal troops
entered it on the 15th May, and the whole island submitted
to Ferdinand II.
The summoning of a constituent assembly in Rome
caused a small faction to call also for a constituent in Tus¬
cany. The grand duke on the 10th January 1849, opened
the session of the legislative chambers with a speech, in
which he stated that the reasons for prosecuting the war
against Austria still existed, and that he concurred in the
wishes of his people. In less than a month (7th Febru¬
ary), he silently abandoned Siena, where he was staying,
and betook himself to the fishing village of Santo Stefano,
in the Maremma, whence, on the 21st, he sailed to Gaeta
on board H. B. M.’s war steamer the Bulldog. In a letter
which he left behind for the minister Montanelli, he an¬
nounced, that the pope having threatened to excommuni¬
cate him if he adhered to the Italian constituent, he saw no
other means of extricating himself from the embarrassing
position in which he was placed than by quitting Tuscany.
On the arrival of this news at Florence, a provisional go¬
vernment was formed, and Mazzini, one of its members,
tried to make Tuscany a province of the Roman republic.
But the country had little sympathy with her extemporized
administration. The members met at first with sullen op¬
position, but on 12th April, the municipality of Florence,
amulst the acclamations of the multitude, and the support
of the peasantry, drove them away, restored the monarchy
formed a new ministry, and recalled the grand duke D?
legates were sent to Gaeta, to tender him the crown on the'
of fhe constitution. Leopold issued a proclamation in
which he formally promised to uphold the free institutions"
yet, shortly afterwards, under the plea that Leghorn had
not agreed to the restoration, he called in the Austrians
who, under the command of General D’Aspre, entered Tus
cany on the 5th of May 1849. The grand duke encou.
raged by their presence, returned to his dominions and sun
pressed the constitution. p
onIthGa^TerrOUfldipl°mat^ intriSues that had been going
on at Gaeta for the restoration of the pope came at last to
an issue, and the Roman Catholic powers undertook a cm
sade against republican and antipapal Rome. A French
expedmon, under Genera! Oudinot, landed at Civita Vecchia
Rnm 6 2\ h Apn ; and on t,le 29th reached the walls of
l ]A corPs °f 16,000 Neapolitans crossed the frontier
;n( t0(J UP a position between Albano and Frascati A
sZn t"8TK ar,my entered the Legation, ; a„Teven
-pain, stirred by the piety of her ambassador, Martinez de
«ededa’toenTa d‘V'SI0"’ 'Vh‘cl! ,ande<1 at Fiumicino, and pro-
theh way. TemCma’ all sorts of excesses on
The French professed to come as friends, but their nrp-
to^ntrth":" Rv ^ ^ In
i l nty’ their advanced corps was vigorously at¬
tacked by the Romans and compelled to fall blck? After
protracted and unsuccessful negotiations between the tri-
— ant rhe French agent, Mr Lesseps, whose arrange-
ents were disavowed by the French ministry Oudinot
On^heiranS^f aTVig°rOUS prosec^ion of’the siege.
near the Vnk rfn kT S°me sharp %htinS took place
times ^ Wai! taken and retaken several
es. On the 13th the French opened a brisk fire against
the walls ; on the 1st July, after forty-eight hours rf can
nonade, the breach was declared practicable, and the co
lumns rushed to the attack. Resistance w£ n"w useless'
and the triumvirate res,gned their power into the hands of
Romrn'X ^ °n the,3d J'l,y t,,e F™ch entered
n ll V- F ° PPPe sent three commissioners, Cardinals
Sno^nttr11’ and A,tiel1' whose hant
udinot, on the 3d August, resigned the civil administra-
Ifoorder The"686"'1"8-0 himflf the ra™‘enance of pub-
c order. The commissioners began the usual work of im
pnsonment and persecution. K 1
The pope did not as yet venture to meet his subiects
and on the 4th September 1849 moved from Gaeta to Por-
deempd ^ 00 4t l April 1850’ when tranquillity was
kinTof Cient^ re-estabIished> t^t after blessing the
king of Naples, who accompanied him to Terracina he nro
ceeded by Velletn to Rome, where he arrived on the 12th.
Venice alone, though blockaded by the Austrian
mondi off °f the T’ ,and vig°rously bombarded since the
month of June on the land side, continued to assert Italian
dependence. Famine, conflagration, the plague of cholera
nd the usual horrors of a siege, failed to quell the uncon¬
querable courage of the inhabitants. The war continupd
tTSJuyaf August with un abated violence, maintained
with skill and constancy by the Austrians, with desperate
valour by the Italians. When the news arrived of the first
Junganan disasters, the assembly accredited Manin tb
forth ‘fT'* 'f, P0"er to'the besfof feLbilfty
for the safety and honour of the city. On the 23d Aiimist’
having received certain intelligence'that Hungfry was® "n'.’
tirely subdued, and seeing that it was boneless sin,.I,. I,,,,,,! i
ll"h UP authority foto
e/iiit^dTa s"h ^ -tit:
Austrians entered into silent Venice. There; and on that
I T A L Y.
659
day, the war of Italian independence came to a close. There Italy
i no brighter fact in those two eventful years, than the or! vjl
cei y conduct, the calm endurance, and the noble defence
of Venice, which cost the Austrians 20,000 men.
of r16 lnhanlta,ntS^f Italy are a mixture of races, composed
but , GaU S? (fermans, and Saracens, who at various
min^ne^botinr^ ^ 'he and
islamk'hath 'm",y C'fn!uries lll« the peninsula and its Unguaga.
tales whh ,1 ff" :V- e<i mt° num0r0us and »fte” hostile
bond o? !» t1 Instltutl°ns and interests, the common
bond of the Italian people, as formerly with the Hellenic
From “he vaeilev-CTrni,!ngUa8e and “ Common hterature.
^ rom the va leys of the Alps to the shores of Calabria in
the’lar?etv of ft T iSh"d °f Sardinia> "otwithstand’ing
the variety of dialects, any one who has the faintest claim
to education can comprehend and enjoy the works of her
great writers. Yet the origin of this bo^d of na fonaL is
wrapped up in darkness. This, however, is not he pkce
to d.scuss the origin of the Italian tongue. The learned
Muraton endeavours to trace it to the corruption of Lafin
that overran^he!'0^ ^ fnd phraSeS °f the nations
Emphr PeriV T7 after.the overthrow of the Roman
Provencal I> T‘ finds *ts onSm 111 the modification of the
no 5^ ' 7BeiVbo and Gravina, on the other hand, uphold
t as the vulgar language of the country even in the best
days of Rome, and maintain that it acquired importance and
superiority m proportion as Latin, the literaryTanguaL of
the polished classes, died away. We shall only offer a few
remarks on the subject. None of the various nations that
SnturTwas'in 7 raded Italy fr°m the fifth to the twelfth
centurj was in such numbers as to sweep away the inhabi-
tants of the country, and substitute its own language for that
ttf Prhe:i0US,y ,The inVaderS seem’ oS the con-
try Fvp! TCt V le guage of the con(luered coun¬
try. Lven the Longobards, who, no doubt! were more
followed1 them1 any °f the invadin» races that preceded or
' , “ .tllcr ': comparatively, a small minority in the
country in which they settled, and instead of giving their
own anguage to the conquered, we find that f few® yea 3
Latin hm Settle“eI;t’ "ot 0">y H'clr laws were drawn up in
their cornsnond*61'' chronicleIs>their Private contracts, and
XTS0 ttTatZfSc1;™"’ th°USh 3
The numerous dialects of Italy and its islands have not
ongmated in the corruption of the Italian language. On
forme^aTDant^tJlfmn i!angUap SeemS t0 have been
led’ as Uanto tells us, by a selection of the best words
c d phrases of all the different dialects. All the dialects
excepr those of the Riviera, Piedmont, and Lombardy end
the.r words in vowels. The dialects of the Riviera !nd
more especially those of Piedmont, are more akin to the
pentosula ' tW ofhthe,ot.he1r lliaiects of the north of the
peninsula. The Lombard dialects, the harshest in Italv
aie distinguished by the sound of the French u which fs
Cis^a andent b0UDdary bet"'een G*
from the moud! GuTf ofrshpee™a0to
lects, which improve as from eadi nF flino r
ceed towards the centre so that c; ? •,neS We pr°-
hood the dialect, bo"h with eld n T '‘S,
660
Italy.
ITALY.
Literature.
and Calabria, we find the worst of dialects ending with
vowels, with some guttural sounds which had disappeaied
S. of Florence. At Gaeta, at Naples, on the shores of
Calabria, and more especially on the shore of Apulia, the
dialects contain a very large and decided Greek e ement;
and at Bari and Tarentum the broad Doric element breaks
out not only in the words, but also in such a prolonged stress
on the accent in words, as to resemble singing more than
sneaking. The Sicilian dialects are more like those of the
S E. end of the province of Otranto than those of Calabria,
and'on the W. coast of the island differ little in the words
from the Italian. _ T v i u
It is remarkable how little the Italian language has
changed from the beginning of the 13th to the 19th century.
It has been enlarged with new words, but has not altered
in its grammatical forms, and very few words have become
antiquated. The language in which king Manfred used to
sing songs at night in the streets of Barletta, is still the
language in which a prima donna sings in the Scala at Mi¬
lan, or the S. Carlo at Naples. The Ode to Poverty by Guido
Cavalcanti, a Florentine who died in 1301, so far as lan¬
guage is concerned, might have been written by Leopardi,
who died in 1837.
The real time at which the Italian language had ac¬
quired its well defined and distinct existence, has been the
subject of great controversy. Early in the 13th century,
however, it was already formed, and we find it employed
in different and distant parts of the country. Ciullo d’Al-
camo, a Sicilian, wrote poetry towards the close of the
12th century; and there is extant a hymn by St Francis
of Assisi, who died in 1226. Italian poetry was cultivated
in Sicily at the court of Frederic II. of Hohenstauffen, by
himself, as well as by his son king Enzo, and by bis unfor¬
tunate secretary Pier delle Vigne. Some events of the life
of the great emperor and his natural son Manfred were
chronicled in Italian by Matteo Spinello of Giovinazzo,
near Bari, who died about 1247. At the same time the
Florentine Ricordano Malespini was writing in good Italian
the history of his country, and Guidotto da Bologna was
translating precepts from Cicero, and embodying them in a
flower of rhetoric, which he dedicated to king Manfred.
In the 14th century, which the Italians, in speaking of
their literature, designate as the Trecento, besides nume¬
rous productions, most of which are now lost or forgotten,
three works appeared, which alone would be sufficient,
should every other literary monument perish, to keep Ita¬
lian alive to the most distant ages:—the Divina Corn-
media of Dante Alighieri (born 1265, died 1321); the
Rime, or poetry of Francesco Petrarca (1304—1374); the
Decamerone, or tales of Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1378),
—all three Florentines. The Trecento was also the age of
Giotto (1276-1337), of Giovanni da Pisa (1240-1320),
and of Andrea Orcagna (1326-1389).
The impulse which Petrarch and Boccaccio had given to
the study of the Latin and Greek languages, was maintained
after their death, and caused Italian to be much neglected
till towards the end of the 15th century; at that time its
use, as a literary vehicle, was resumed, both by the encou¬
ragement and the example of Lorenzo de’ Medici. With
Angelo Poliziano(1454-1494), Lorenzo’s protege, who wrote
some of the finest stanzas in the Italian language, a galaxy
of poets, historians, and miscellaneous writers arose which
shone with uninterrupted brilliancy to the end of the follow¬
ing century.
Of the numerous standard works that appeared during
this period, which the Italians call the Cinquccento, it will
be enough to record a few of the most remarkable. The
historical and political writings of Machiavelli (1469-1527),
the didactic poems of Giovanni Rucellai (1475-1526),
Luigi Alamanni (1495-1556), and Bernardino Baldi(1553-
1617) ; the letters, dialogues, plays, etc., of Agnolo Firen-
zuola (1493-1548), Cardinal Bembo (1470-1547), An- Italy
nibal Caro (1507-1566), Antonfrancesco Grazzini (1503-^
1583) ; the histories of Francesco Guicciardini (1482-
1540), Jacopo Nardi (1476-1556), Benedetto Varchi (1502-
1565), and Camillo Porzio (1520-1580) ; the Life of Be-
venuto Cellini, by himself (1500-1570) ; the Lives of Pain¬
ters by Giorgio Vasari (1517-1574); and the well-known
epic poems of the Orlando Furioso of Ariosto (1474-1533),
and the Gerusalemme Liberata of Tasso (1544-1595).
The Cinquecento was also the golden age of Italian art—
the age of Raphael (1483-1520), of Titian (1480-1576),
of Michael Angelo (1474-1564), and of Palladio (1518-
1580).
The decay of taste, which had begun towards the end of
the sixteenth, prevailed generally in the seventeenth cen¬
tury, or the Seicento, to such a degree that the word sei-
centista has remained proverbial in Italian as descriptive of
a writer whose style is turgid, strained, and bombastic, and
whose thoughts are false, and replete with strange conceits.
It is principally ascribed to the prevalence of the Spanish
rule in most of the peninsula, though the falling of educa¬
tion into the hands of the newly established order of the
Jesuits, and the introduction of the Inquisition by Pius V.,
had also their share of influence. Nowhere, certainly, did
bad taste show so early and prevail so much as at Naples,
which had become a Spanish province in 1504. Marini
(1569-1625), a poet of great genius, but who did most to
corrupt the Italian literature, was a Neapolitan. The arts
had the same fate ; and the age of Marini was also the age
of the painter Michael Angelo da Caravaggio (1569-1609),
the sculptor Bernini (1598-1680), a Neapolitan, and the
architect Borromini (died 1667).
The causes of mental degradation and literary corruption,
however, did not operate in an equal degree in those states
of the peninsula which, with their independence, retained
their national spirit. Accordingly, two remarkable authors
escaped entirely, and a few more in part, the depraved taste
of their age. Foremost stands Galileo Galilei (1564-1641),
an acute observer, a profound philosopher, and an elegant
and perspicuous writer, who, at the age of seventy, was im¬
prisoned and tortured by the Inquisition for having adopted
and expounded the Copernican system. Equal to him in
elegance of diction, and not much inferior in the spirit ol
philosophical inquiry, was Francesco Redi (1626-1697),
who wrote also the lively dithyramb of Bacchus in Tus¬
cany. Gabriello Chiabrera (1552-1638), Fulvio lesti
(1593-1646), Vincenzo Filicaia (1642-1707), and Ales¬
sandro Guidi (1650-1717), in spite of their faults, are
among the best lyric poets; Paolo Sarpi (1552-1622),
and Cardinal Sforza Pallavicino (1607-1667), both wrote
the well known histories of the Council ol Trent—the
former a powerful but not elegant denouncer, and the lat¬
ter an elegant but not powerful defender of the Court of
Rome.
The earlier half of the eighteenth century saw several
learned historical works, such as the History of Naples, by
Pietro Giannone (1676-1748); the Annals of Italy, by
Muratori (1672-1750); and the Verona Illustrata, by Sei-
pione Maffei (1675—1755)—none of them remarkable for
elegance of style. Towards the middle of the century,
French writers began to have an unfavourable influence
upon the Italian language and literature long before the
French invasion took place; but later the Drammi, or
operas, of Pietro Metastasio (1698-1782); the works of
Gasparo Gozzi (1713-1786) and Giuseppe Parini (L29-
1799); and, above all, the tragedies of Vittorio Ajfieri
(1749-1803), and the poetry of Vincenzo Monti (1754-
1828), stemmed the current of deterioration, and opened
up another bright era in the history of the Italian mind.
This era has been continued in the present century in the
histories of Carlo Botta (1766-1837), and Pietro Colletta
I T .
Italy. (1775-1833) ; in the poetry of Ugo Foscolo (1778-1827),
Giacomo Leopardi (1798-1837), Giuseppe Giusti (1809-
1850); in the novels and poetry of Tommaso Grossi, Ales¬
sandro Manzoni; in the philosophical and scientific works
of Rosmini, Romagnosi, Gioberti, Delle Chiaie, Brocchi,
and Volta; and in many other works which it would be
tedious to enumerate.
Many of the dialects have also a literature of their own ;
the Venetian is, in this respect, the most important, and
next to it the Sicilian, the IVlilanese, and the Neapolitan.
The Anacreontics of Meli (1740-1815), who ranks among
the first lyric poets, though in the Sicilian dialect, are gene¬
rally read and highly admired in every part of Italy. &
Religion. Jn Italy the inhabitants adhere almost universally to the
Roman Catholic Church. The Jews in Venetian Lom-
bardy, in Leghorn, in Rome, and in Ancona, have permis¬
sion, but under some rigid restrictions, to establish syna¬
gogues. The foreign Protestants also may celebrate their
rites in their own language, under the sanction of the am¬
bassador or consul of their nation ; but the number of per¬
sons not Roman Catholics is very small indeed. The esta¬
blished clergy are very numerous. The number of sees,
which formerly exceeded that of the bishoprics in the rest
of Christendom, though greatly reduced, amounts still, as
we have seen, to 253, while in the rest of Roman Catholic
Em ope there aie only 300. Many of the monasteries which
once deluged the cities and large towns have been sup¬
pressed. The churches, however, still possess great riches,
and are everywhere sumptuous in their decorations and
ornaments, containing much of what is magnificent and
glorious in art, and refined in taste and beauty. The ex¬
terior of the churches is very imposing, and the ceremonies
are performed with vast pomp and solemnity.
The higher clergy possess great power, and enjoy some
immunity for their persons and goods, and in many cases
are fieed from taxation. The secular priests are under the
superintendence of the bishops, and the monasteries under
the chiefs of their several orders. Though the extent of
the influence and power of the church, and its universality,
are the same as in Spain and in Portugal, its exciting cause
and its associations are very different. In those countries
the religion is a species of chivalry, originating in the idea
of the conquests achieved over the Moorish Mohamme¬
dans, and combined with all the traditions on that subject.
In Italy it is chiefly to be traced to the progress made in
the fine arts. It is associated with painting and statuary,
with music and with architecture, and, as in Spain, has no
necessary influence on the moral sense of the individual.
In no part of Europe is the education of the humbler
classes so neglected as in Italy, taken as a whole. Some
progress has indeed been made in Lombardy, in Sardinia,
and in Tuscany, yet nothing is thought of or projected in
the other territories, on the subject. The instruction of
the poor is wholly in the hands of the ecclesiastics, and no¬
thing can be worse conducted. It is a wonder to find a
rustic that can read, and a mechanic in the towns that can
write his own name is equally rare. The institutions for
the higher kinds of education are also far behind those in
the other countries of Europe. Among these are the col¬
leges and lyceums, where the instruction is partial, and
not calculated to teach the manly virtues, or foster freedom
of thought. The studies are directed to logic and the
classics ; but the sciences are neglected, as are the lan¬
guages of other countries, their customs, their intelligence,
and their modes of thinking and reasoning. Mathematics
are not much known, but casuistry is sedulously inculcated.
The Collegia Ambrosiano, and the Collegia Brera in Milan
form exceptions to the description here given, but in every¬
thing but classical literature they are far from beino- well
conducted.
The universities where education is completed are suffi-
i L Y. 66i
ciently numerous, and mostly of ancient date in their foun- Italy,
dation. They are—Bologna, founded in the year 1119;
Naples, in 1224; Padua, in 1228; Rome, in 1244; Peru¬
gia, in 1320; Pisa, in 1329; Siena, in 1249; Pavia, said
to have been founded by Charlemagne in 774, but, at all
events, remodelled in 1390; Turin, in 1412; Parma, in
in 1422; Florence, in 1443; Catania, in 1445; Cagliari,
in 1764; and Genoa, renewed and extended in 1783; to
which may be added those of Palermo, Camerino, and
Macerata, and that of Modena, which has been shut since
1849.
I he dates of these institutions may serve to show the
probable course of study originally introduced, when the
wrorks of the schoolmen and the casuists entirely engrossed
the public mind. Several improvements have been in¬
grafted on these foundations, but they have been of little
efficacy in exciting to study, or in forming a considerable
proportion of enlightened scholars.
In almost every one of the cities of Italy there have been Literary
long-established literary and scientific societies, which have societies,
cherished and encouraged learning among their respective
members. These were instituted in the fifteenth century,
and have multiplied and increased ever since. They have*
contributed, since the revival of learning, to its preserva¬
tion, and have been in a great degree the means of bring¬
ing the talents and industry of the scholars into public no¬
tice. They are too numerous to be even named here.
One of the earliest, as well as the most celebrated, is the
Academia della Crusca of Florence, which still exists, and
has for its object the perfecting of the language. The
most flourishing of these societies in the present day are
the Imperial Institution of Milan, the Academy of Sciences
at lurin, and the Royal Society at Naples. The institu¬
tions for the promotion of the fine arts are numerous. They
are connected with schools, in which painting, sculpture,
and architecture, are taught by competent masters. The
most useful of these are at Florence, Rome, and Bologna.
Italy abounds in collections of books, and especially of Libraries,
manuscripts of great antiquity, and of high value. The
libraries in general are, however, deficient in modern foreign
works of literature and of science. The most distinguished
of the public libraries are—in Rome, the Vatican, which con¬
tains 23,500 MSS., the Minerva 120,000 printed volumes and
4900 MSS., and the Angelica 90,000 vols.; in Florence, the
Laurenziana and the Magliabecchiana; in Naples, the Bor-
bonica, 200,000 vols. and 4000 MSS., and the Brancacciana,
70,000vols., 7000 MSS.; in Bologna, the university, 140,000
vols., 9000 MSS., the Comunale, 100,000 vols., and the Mar¬
tini, 11,000 vols. (all music); in Milan, the Ambrosiana,
120,000vols., 5500 MSS., and the Brera; Venice, St Marks,
112,000 vols., and very rich in MSS.; Padua, university ;
Brescia, Quiriniana, 90,000 vols.; Ferrara, 90,000 vols.;
Mantua, 80,000 vols.; Parma, 90,000 vols.; Genoa, university,
50,000 vols., and Comunale, 40,000 vols.; Turin, university,
112,000 vols. and rich in MSS., and many smaller ones.
There are in every part of Italy museums of great value,
and most of them are arranged in the most perfect manner!
All of them are with the greatest liberality thrown open to
the public, and are thereby made the common property of
all nations. Each palace of the men of eminent rank, and
each public building, is a cabinet of art; and each city
boasts of its antiques or of its modern works of art. The
most distinguished of the museums are the Vaticano and the
Capitohno at Rome, the Borbonico at Naples, and the Gal¬
leria at Florence. Picture galleries are to be found every- _
where, and contain many of the finest specimens of art.
1 he churches, too, are most abundantly graced, as well by
tidr architecture as by the exquisite pieces which exhibit
the skill of the painters or the sculptors. Many of the best
works of art were removed by the French invaders; but,
in 1814 and 1815, most of these were restored to the states
ITALY.
662
Italy, from which they had been carried off. There are botanic
gardens attached to most of the universities, and several in
the vicinity of the larger cities ^ and there are astronomical
observatories in Bologna, Padua, Milan, 1* lorence, Naples,
and Palermo.
Social con- The Italian nobility consists of a vast number of families,
ditiou. the eldest member of which continues to retain the family
titles, though utterly destitute of corresponding means. In
most of the states they have little or no influence as a
body on the measures of the government. In the papal
states some patrician power exists, and some feudal rights
are exercised, and in Genoa some vestige of their ancient
dignity is retained; but in the other parts not even a
shadow of power is to be found amongst them. They
have the barren titles of prince, duke, viscount, marquis,
or count. Many of them in the Roman states and in
Tuscany possess extensive landed estates, which are for the
most part entailed on the eldest son, and many of these are
deeply mortgaged. As no provision is made for the junior
members of such families, they commonly enter the church
or the army, and sometimes, though rarely, obtain offices
in the civil service of the government. Of late some of the
nobility have directed their attention to agriculture ; but
none of them, except in Venice and in Genoa, have applied
themselves to commerce. From the condition of this class,
it is usual to find the whole of the family residing in the
palace of its chief, with their wives and children, if they
have any. As money rent is not commonly paid for the
estates, but the produce of these divided between the pro¬
prietors and their occupiers, the necessaries for the support
of such families reach them directly ; and, except for pur¬
poses of show or of luxury, very little money is neces¬
sary. Although some members of the noble families have
devoted themselves to the promotion of literature, of sci¬
ence, or of the fine arts, yet the great body live in the
silent enjoyment of their rank and property. The limited
means of these families do not allow them to show any
hospitality.
The morals of the nobility have greatly improved of late
years, and the practice of each married lady having her fa¬
vourite lover or cicisbeo, after the birth of her first child,
has almost entirely disappeared. Gambling is also much less
fashionable among them now than it used to be. One of
their commonest indulgences is a box at the opera, where
they attend in the evening, and receive the visits of their
friends, without interrupting the pleasures they derive from
the representation and the music.
The burghers in the cities have now none of the power
which they enjoyed in the many cities which were once
denominated free. The municipal power is concentrated
in the hands of the several governments ; and, where cor¬
porations do still exist, they have no other right than that
of making humble representations or suggestions on infe¬
rior and local subjects. The more affluent inhabitants of
the cities, comprehending those of the legal profession, the
bankers, the merchants, and the superior artists, amongst
whom may be included the possessors of the smallest landed
estates, are not numerous ; but they mix more with stran¬
gers than the nobles, and have fewer national prejudices,
d hey appear to know that all born beyond the Alps are not
necessarily barbarians or semi-barbarians, and amongst them
foreigners may find the best associates.
The lower classes of the population in large towns are
in bad repute, both as to morals and instruction, and are
represented as more acute than honest.
Whatever may be the faults of the Italian nation, one
good quality is obvious ; their ready assistance to suffering
humanity. All the cities are filled with charitable institu¬
tions, in which infants, the helpless aged, the diseased, and
the destitute, find refuge and relief; but it must be ac¬
knowledged, that no country has more need of such insti¬
tutions, for in none are there to be found so great a number Italy,
of beggars, nor so numerous a body as, in all the cities,
take little care for anything beyond the passing day or even
hour.
The greater part of the population of Italy is, however,
to be seen in the country, devoted to the pursuits of agri¬
culture. A few, a very few of them, are in circumstances
of moderate affluence ; a few more may be represented as
in a state of comparative ease; but the great body, to whom
all others bear a slight proportion, are in a poor condition.
They are the occupiers of small portions of land, some of
them not exceeding four acres in extent, and most of them
less than ten acres. laving in small cottages, they labour in
the fields, and maintain themselves and their families on
half the produce of the land, the other half being delivered
to the proprietor at the time of harvest as his rent. Their
food, simple as it is, is barely sufficient to keep them in a
healthy state. In no part of Italy does animal food form
the staple of their diet; in most districts, indeed, they sel¬
dom taste it. In the northern and central districts their
common fare is a kind of meal called polenta, made of In¬
dian corn, pounded and boiled to the consistence of hasty
pudding. In the south they live chiefly on bread and a
polenta made of beans.
The Italians as a nation are a fine race of men. The
men are well formed, rather slim than stout, but strong and
agile, with a complexion, either from nature or from ex¬
posure to the sun, of a dark hue, with expressive counte¬
nances and dark sparkling eyes, and for the most part with
black hair. Their gait is grave but not solemn, and their
whole appearance is expressive of self-respect. The wo¬
men have mostly narrow foreheads, black or dark-brown
hair, large, brilliant, and expressive eyes, a beautiful nose,
which, with the forehead, forms the elegant Roman profile ;
a small mouth, with lips rather swelling; a clear, white
complexion, with slight red tinges showing through it, and
a delicate, but well-formed figure. The lower classes,
owing to their early marriages, their subsisting wholly on
vegetable food, and the hard labour they endure under a
burning sun, have their beauty checked before it has at¬
tained maturity; yet even they often display great at¬
tractions.
A hasty or an unobservant traveller, in passing through
Italy, may well be charmed with the scenery of the coun¬
try, the magnificence of the cities, the clearness of the
sky, and the mildness of the climate. He will see only
what is admirable and exciting. The prospects on de¬
scending from the Alps, adorned as they are by lofty pre¬
cipices, with their tops buried in snow, and their sides dis¬
covering waterfalls descending into the beautiful lakes be¬
low, are all of a kind to charm the eye and feed the fancy.
Flowers of every tint exhale the most grateful odours ; and
the fruits of every clime grow in plentiful profusion. On
the plains, too, the beauty of the fields, surrounded with
mulberry trees, with vines in graceful festoons, with their
pendant fruit, the centre of the inclosure exhibiting heavy
crops of corn, pulse, or culinary vegetables, all conspire to
increase the delight. The excellence of the roads, the
post-horses, and the inns, contribute their share to heighten
the enjoyment. The appearance, too, of the cities, with
their mtignificent public edifices and their spacious private
dwellings, though the streets may be narrow and crooked,
presents a picture eminently calculated to convey to the
beholder that feeling of pleasure which novelty usually
creates in the mind. We have enjoyed these gratifications
to the fullest extent; but, in the description here given, we
have felt it a duty to look beyond the delightful surface, to
view the interior of the land, the state of the several classes
of society that inhabit it, and to communicate to the reader
the most accurate view that could be produced after much
careful investigation. (* * *)
I T C
Itch
Iturup.
ITCH (Scabies), is a contagious vesicular disease of the
skin, attended with an intolerable itching, hence its name.
, The vesicles are minute and slightly acuminated, with a
pearly transparency at their summit, and are most numer¬
ous at the flexures of the joints, and the soft skin between
the fingers. It seems to be almost solely propagated by con¬
tagion, and a few days generally elapse between the infec¬
tious contact and the manifestation of the itchino-. This
disease is now very generally ascribed to the presence of a
minute insect resembling the cheese mite, and named acarus
scabiei, which propagates with great rapidity, burrows in the
skin, and is the cause of the intolerable itching; and nu¬
merous carefully conducted experiments have proved that
tins insect placed on the healthy skin soon burrows below
the surface, and gives rise to the disease. A few, however
deny that the insect is the invariable cause of the disease’
but assert that it is only generated in some cases of scabies’,
ihe disease in the dog termed the mange seems to be the
same malady, and contact with a mangy dog will produce
itch in the human subject as readily as'contact with a per-
son with that cutaneous disease. Sulphur is considered as
the specific for the cure of itch. It is commonly applied in
the form of ointment; the sulphur being simply mixed with
lard or butter. It is much more efficacious, however, if
combined with an alkali. The best proportion seems to be—
sulphur two parts, subcarbonate of potass one part, and lard
eight parts, frequent washing of the parts affected with
soap and water are essential to a speedy cure. Indeed,
some practitioners assert that every case may thus be cured
without using any specific ointment or lotion. Many other
external applications may be used instead of sulphur oint¬
ment, such as ointment of white hellebore, solutions of the
chloride of lime, or chloride of soda, solution of the muriate
of mercury, &c. In inveterate cases sulphureous baths, or
sulphureous fumigations, have been found efficacious.
11HACA. See Ionian Islands.
Ithaca, a town, capital of Tompkin’s county, state of New
York, North America, situate on both sides of the Cayuga
Inlet, about a mile S.'from the head of Cayuga Lake,'and
lb- miles W. by S. from Albany. It is regularly built, and
pleasantly situate, being surrounded on three sides by hills
rising to the height of 500 feet. The Cayuga and Susque-
Jianna railroad connects it with Owego, and another line
extends northward to Auburn and Lake Ontario. It has
one cotton and two woollen factories, a paper mill, and
several iron foiindries. Pop. (1853) estimated at 7000.
I TIL S PORI US. There is hardly a spot of ground
on the earth s surface of which the site has been so much
disputed as the Itms Portus. The place itself is one of no
importance, but it has a kind of factitious value as the spot
from which in b.c. 55, and again in the following year,
Caesar set out to the conquest of Britain. To determine
the site of the Itius Portus would be so far to fix the spot
where the great captain first set foot on our island. Calais
and Boulogne (Gesoriacum, afterwards Bononia), and
every bay between these points, have been at various times
upheld by different geographers as the scene of Cmsar’s
embarkation ; but the best authorities are now agreed that
the actual spot was the village of Wissant or Duessant, which
lies about 3¥ miles N.E. of Cape Grisnez (Itium pro-
montorium). D’Anville and Long both strongly advocate
the view which seems to be now very generally accepted.
An admirable discussion of the whole question will be
pp'^S-^ST01'86 L°ng,S editi°n °f 6W’ Lond’ 1853>
ITURBIDE or Ytukbide, Augustin, the famous Mexi¬
can usurper. See Mexico.
t 1IT,URiU,P’ the lar»est and most important of the Kurile
Islands, belonging to Japan, and separated from Kunashir
on the S. by the Strait of St Anthony, and from Urup on
the N. by Vries Strait, N. Lat. (S. point) 44. 29., E. Lon^
I V 0
146. 34.; length 140 miles, average breadth 20. It is
of volcanic origin, well wooded, and fertile. The inhabi¬
tants are chiefly engaged in the chase and in fishing.
IT ZEHOE, a town of Denmark, duchy of Holstein, on
the Stbr, 32 miles N. W. of Hamburg. As the river is navi¬
gable, the town carries on a considerable trade with Ham¬
burg and other places. It has manufactures of tobacco,
earthenware, leather, sugar, chicory, &c. Pop. about
5800. 1
IVES, a market-town of England, county of Hunt¬
ingdon, on the left bank of the Ouse, which is here crossed
by an ancient stone bridge of six arches, 5 miles E. by S.
from Huntingdon. Brewing and malting are carried on to
some extent, but more important is its trade in cattle and
agricultuial produce, its market being one of the largest in
the kingdom for cattle and sheep. Market-day, Monday.
Pop. (1851) 3522. *
Ives, St, a municipal and parliamentary borough and
seaport-town of England, county of Cornwall, on the west¬
ern shore of the bay of the same name, 8 miles N.E. of
Penzance. It consists of several streets, for the most part
narrow and irregular. The parish church is a low but spa¬
cious granite building of the time of Henry V., and has an
elegant tower 90 feet high. I he harbour is defended by
a pier built by Smeaton in 1770, and is capable of accom¬
modating vessels of 200 tons. On 31st December 1855
there were 166 sailing vessels of 13,404 tons, and 3 steam
vessels of 584 tons, registered as belonging to the port.
Ihe number and tonnage of vessels that entered and left
the port during that year were Coasting trade, inwards,
sailing vessels 1699,tonnage 110,469; steamers 130,tonnage
29,700: outwards, sailing vessels 1155, tonnage 74,154 •
steamers 182, tonnage 36,498 ;—colonial trade, inwards, sail¬
ing vessels 4, tonnage 578; outwards 2, tonnage 220:
foreign trade, sailing vessels, inwards 37, tonnage 4899; out¬
wards 15 ; tonnage 2327. This is the principal station of
the pilchard fishery. In the vicinity are extensive tin and
copper mines. The town is governed by a mayor, four al¬
dermen, and twelve councillors, and returns one member
to parliament. Pop. (1851) of municipal borough, 6525;
of parliamentary do., 9872.
I VIZ A, Ivica, or Ibiza (the Ebusus of the ancients),
one °f the Balearic Islands belonging to Spain, and situate
in the Mediterranean, 60 miles E. by N. of Cape San Mar¬
tin, on the mainland of Spain, and 50 miles S.W. of Ma¬
jorca, between N. Lat. 38. 50. and 39. 7.; and E. Long. 1.
15. and 1.40. Greatest length from N.E. to S.W. about 25
miles, and greatest breadth about 13 miles. The coast is in¬
dented by numerous small bays, the principal of which are
those of San Antonio on the N.W., and of Ivizaon the S.E.
coast. The surface, in some parts stony, is generally very
fertile. The hilly parts are richly wooded. The climate is
mild and agreeable, the heat in summer being tempered by
the cooling sea-breezes. Oil, wine, corn, and fruits are the
principal productions of the islands, but the inhabitants are
very indolent, and their modes of cultivation very primitive.
Salt is extensively manufactured, and constitutes one of the
principal articles of exportation. The fisheries are also im¬
portant. The capital is Iviza, a fortified town on the S.E.
coast, with a good harbour, and containing about 4000 in¬
habitants. Pop. of island about 12,000.
IVORY, a dental substance, placed by chemists be¬
tween bone and horn: that variety which is distinguished
by the decussating curved lines on the surface of the trans¬
verse section of the tusk is peculiar to the African and
Asiatic elephants; but the tusks of the walrus, the narwhal
and the hippopotamus, and the teeth of the same animals
also furnish ivory. The fruit of a species of palm (Phyte-
lephas macrocarpa) from Peru, is imported under the name
oi vegetable ivory. The tusks of the elephant furnish the
chief supply of ivory. In the Great Exhibition of 1851
663
Itzehoe
II
Ivory.
IVORY.
664
Ivory, were a pair weighing 325 lbs., obtained from an animal killed
^ near the Lake Ngami, in South Africa: each tusk measured 8
feet 6 inches in length, and 22 inches in basal circumference.
It is considered that the tusks deteriorate in length and
quality by the domestication of the elephant. African tusks
are preferred to the Indian as being denser in texture, and
not so liable to turn yellow. The demand for ivory for
knife-handles, billiard-balls, keys of musical instruments,
mathematical scales, chess-men, for inlaying, for thin plates
for miniatures, for carving, and for various other purposes
is so enormous, and the supply is so well maintained, that
surprise may well be felt that the noble race of animals
which yield it has not long since become extinct, especially
when we consider that the supply of small tusks annually
imported is so vast as to reduce the average weight of the
whole import to about 9 lbs. per tusk. Teeth under from
10 to 16 lbs. are called scrivelloes. A few years ago it was
calculated that the consumption of ivory in Sheffield alone
required the annual slaughter of 22,000 elephants. I he
collection of broken or shed tusks may somewhat mitigate
the zeal of the hunter, and we may also refer to that re¬
markable source of ivory which exists in Eastern Siberia
and the Arctic marshes, where the tusks of the mammoth,
and other animals, are collected in vast quantities, and sold
under the name of Siberian Fossil Ivory, although they do
not appear to have undergone that species of transmutation
implied by the term fossil, but are as useful to the artist or
manufacturer as recent ivory. We are not aware that fossil
ivory is imported into this country, although it is exten¬
sively used by the ivory-workers on the continent.
The engine-turned markings on true ivory render it unfit
for the purposes of the dentist, who accordingly prefers the
teeth of the hippopotamus or river-horse, especially the two
external semicircular teeth in the lower jaw. This ivory is
known by the inaccurate term of sea-horse; it is covered
with a thick enamel, which is so hard as to resist steel tools,
and even to strike fire with steel, and is removed by means
of a grindstone, or by driving a thin chisel between it and
the ivory within. The action of the blow-pipe is also used
for the same purpose. This kind of ivory is harder than
that of the elephant, whiter in colour, and of more than
double the value ; it has a slight blue tint, and scarcely any
grain. The dentist also makes use of the teeth of the
walrus or sea-cow. In this case the outer portion consists
of ivory, while the brown oval centre resembles bone. Small
supplies of ivory are obtained from the long, straight tusks
of the narwhal or sea-unicorn, the masticating teeth of the
spermaceti whale, and the grinders of the elephant.
Regarding the elephant’s tusk as ivory, properly so called,
we may distinguish between African and Asiatic ivory by
the former being, when recently cut, of a mellow, warm,
transparent tint, with scarcely any appearance of grain, in
which state it is called transparent or green ivory; but, as
the oil dries up by exposure to the air, it becomes lighter
in colour. Asiatic ivory, when newly cut, appears more
like the African, which has been long exposed to the air,
and tends to become yellow by exposure. The African
variety has usually a closer texture, works harder, and takes
a better polish than the Asiatic. The teeth, however, of
both kinds vary greatly in quality and solidity, so that the
choice by the purchaser is always hazardous; he is usually
guided by the appearance of the rind, which should be
smooth and free from cracks, and of the tip, where the rind
is to a certain extent worn away, but it is not until the
tusk is cut up that flaws, cracks, and imperfections can be
detected. It occasionally happens that the musket ball of
the huntsman, which failed to kill the animal, has become
embedded in the tusk, and encrusted with a fresh deposit
of bony matter, to the great injury of the ivory. Gold and
silver bullets have on a few rare occasions been found,
showing that the shot was fired by royal hands.
The tusk or tooth, as it is generally called, is usually Ivory,
solid for about half its length, circular or elliptical in sec- v—*-'
tion, and free from vessels or pores such as occur in bone;
and although containing a large proportion of lime, it has
none of the harsh, meagre character of bone, but admits of
exquisite smoothness, and displays all the niceties of the
turners’ and carvers’ art in the slenderest proportions.
Much judgment is required in cutting up a tooth, so as
to apportion the various parts with economy. The ivory
saw is a blade from 15 to 30 inches long, and about the
fortieth of an inch thick, set in a steel frame, and tightly
stretched, so as to make a very straight cut. The outside
strips or spills, as they are called, are used for the handles
of penknives; the scraps are burnt for ivory black; and the
clean shavings and saw-dust are used for making jelly or
size. The mode of cutting up the tooth must of course de¬
pend on the uses to which it is to be applied, but in any
case it is desirable to mark out the tooth in some way be¬
forehand, and also to pencil out the end of the piece before
the saw is used longitudinally. Billiard balls are usually
turned out of teeth of nearly the same diameter, called ball-
teeth, the object being to prevent the unequal shrinking of
the ivory in drying. The ivory shrinks in the direction of
the length of the tooth, as well as in the width, but much
less in the former than in the latter direction. A billiard
ball will vary in its diameters, if used in a room of different
temperature to that in which the ivory was kept, so that it
is usual to turn the balls roughly to shape, and keep them
for some months in the billiard room before the turning is
completed. Ivory ornaments should not be kept on a chim¬
ney piece which is much exposed to the heat of the fire.
The slices of ivory cut for the keys of pianofortes are
placed for a few hours in an oven at a temperature sufficient
to evaporate the oil, by which means they are not only
whitened, but sufficiently shrunk to be at once glued to the
wooden bodies of the keys. The action of the atmospheric
moisture, in varying the length of ivory, is considerable, so
much so that ivory drawing-scales are not to be relied on
in accurate work. Scales of box-wood and lance-wood are
much to be preferred.
The thin plates of ivory used for the keys of pianofortes,
inlaying, and similar work, are usually cut from the solid
block by means of a fine feather-edge veneer saw, in which
case there is a considerable amount of saw-dust. The
Russian method of cutting veneers spirally from a cylinder
of wood, with a knife of the same length, has been adopted
for ivory, although in such case a reciprocating saw is used,
and ivory-dust produced. Mons. Pape of Paris furnishes
veneers of this kind as large as 30 by 150 inches, and he
has veneered a pianoforte entirely with ivory. We are not
disposed to regard the result as pleasing or useful. In the
United States department of the Great Exhibition was an
ivory veneer 40 feet in length by 12 inches in width. Arti¬
ficial or factitious ivory is prepared in France in thin plates
or veneers, and it has the appearance of a dull, opaque
cement. A superior substance was exhibited by Mr Henry
Brown in the Great Exhibition, under the name of British
ivory. A prize medal was awarded to the inventor, “ on
account of its being likely to turn out a valuable and im¬
portant discovery, and in many cases calculated to super¬
sede real ivory.” The vegetable ivory already referred to
is a good substitute for ivory where appearance and dura¬
bility are not of importance: it soon tarnishes, and wears
rapidly if exposed to much friction.
Ivory may be dyed of various colours. The red of bil¬
liard balls may be given by dipping the ivory for a short
time into a mordant of nitro-muriate of tin, and then plung¬
ing it into a bath of Brazil wood, cochineal, or a mixture of
those substances. A scarlet tint is produced by lac dye,
and if the scarlet ivory be plunged into a solution of pot¬
ash, it changes to cherry red. A yellow die may be pro-
.
I V o
Ivory-
black.
duced by giving the ivory the tin mordant, and digesting it
at a gentle heat in a clear decoction of fustic. A black dye
may be given by boiling the ivory in a strained decoction
o logwood, and then steeping it in a solution of red sul¬
phate, or red acetate of iron. In dyeing ivory the surface
should not be polished until the dye is sel As a fte
ivory is taken out of the hot-dye bath it should be plunged
in cold water to prevent the chance of cracking; and should
thui,d^appear- !n ?ay,k Spots or Patclles, they should be
rubbed down with chalk, and the ivory be dyed once more.
When ivory has become discoloured it is not easy to
bleach it. borne recommend that it be scrubbed with
Trent sand and water, but this is evidently inapplicable to
works delicately carved by hand or at the lathe. Articles
m lvory> which have suffered partial decomposition by ex¬
posure to air and moisture, have been restored by boilimr
them in a solution of gelatine. Such was the case with
some works in ivory sent from Nineveh to this country by
Mr Layard. They were in a state of decomposition, and
the method of restoring them was suggested by Professor
Owen. An attempt has been made to render ivory flexible
by removing a portion of its lime by the action of hydro¬
chloric acid. Phis plan has been adopted by a surgical-
instrument maker, M. Charriere of Paris, who first gives
the pieces of ivory their required form and polish, then
steeps them in dilute acid, until they have become supple
and elastic, after which they are taken out and dried, when
they again become hard, but the flexibility can be restored
by surrounding the ivory instruments with wet linen, or by
placing wet sponge in the cavities of the pieces.
I he art of working in ivory belongs to the turner, to the
carver, to the inlayer, and other artists, and does not call
tor special notice here.
Ivory-Black. When bones are subjected to destruc¬
tive distillation in close vessels, the substance of the
bone is resolved into its constituent elements, which re¬
combine and form new compounds. Some of these escape
in the form of vapour or gas, such as carbonic acid and
various hydro-carbons. Water holding carbonate of ammo-
nia in solution is also formed, and an oil, which is collected
and used for feeding the lamps, which, being burnt in close
chambers, with a very limited access of air, the oxygen of
which is just sufficient to combine with the hydrogen of the
oil, but not sufficient to form any compound' with the car¬
bon, the results of the combustion are water and carbon, in
a minutely divided form, which collects on the walls of the
chamber, and forms lamp-black. In the distillation of
bones muriate of ammonia and sulphate of soda are formed
towards the end of the process; the latter is separated by
so ution and crystallization, and the former by sublimation!1
When all the volatile products are separated, the mass
which remains in the retort, consists of the earthy and
saline portions of the bone, blackened by the carbon of
the animal matter, and forming what is called ivory-black
bone-black, or animal charcoal In this condition, from
its strong attraction for animal colouring matters, it is em-
I X I
ployed in the refining of sugar for bleaching the syrup, and
in other arts for similar purposes. If the bone-black be
exposed to a red heat, with access of air, the carbon passes
off as carbonic acid, and the bone-ash is left of a light
colour, which ash is useful in making cupels for the assayer;
it is also a good polishing powder for plate, and is the raw
material for the manufacture of phosphorus.
When the material for the production of bone-black con¬
sists of ivory dust or shavings, the calcined matter is called
ivory-black ; it is ground and levigated on a porphyry slab,
and produces a beautiful velvety black, which forms the
c nef ingredient in the ink of the copper-plate printer.
Ivory black may be prepared on a small scale in a covered
crucible at an ordinary fire. (c x )
IVORY, James, the most considerable British mathe¬
matician of his day, was born at Dundee in 1765, spent
t le most active period of his life as professor at the Mili¬
tary College of Marlow (afterwards removed to Sandhurst),
and died Sept. 21, 1842, at the age of seventy-seven. (See
§103 ^rehmmary Dissertation, by Professor J. D. Forbes,
IVRE A (the ancient Eporedea), a town of Northern Italy,
capital of a cognominal province, in the division of Turin
and kingdom of Sardinia, situate on the left bank of the
Dowe, 29 miles N.N.E. of Turin. It is an old-looking
town, irregularly built and walled, besides being protected
by a citadel and a small fortress upon an adjacent hill. It
is the see of a bishop, and contains a cathedral supposed to
occupy the site of a temple of Apollo, with six parish
churches, several convents, a royal college, ecclesiastical
semimuy, hospital, &c. It has important manufactures of
silk and a considerable trade in cheese, cattle, and other
produce of the Alps. It has been repeatedly taken by the
french; and under Napoleon I. was made the capital of
the department of Doire. Pop. about 8000.
*V.RY'?UR‘SEINE> a village of France, department
I-*Lc’-SltUate,0n a Sentle eminence, near the left bank
of the Seine, and 3 miles S.S.E. of Paris. It has manufac-
tuies of glass earthenware, glue, chemical products, &c.
Pop. about 8000 Ivry la Bataille, in the department of
Eure, 17 miles S.E. of Evereux, is celebrated for the vic-
orygmned by Henry IV. over the Duke of Mayenne in
1590. Pop. about 1000.
IVY. See Hedera, Botany, Index.
IXION, in the Greek Mythology, was the king of the
Lapithm, and the father of Pirithous. When Deioneus,
w lose daughter Dia he had married, demanded the usual
bridal gifts, Ixion under pretence of paying him, invited
im to a feast, and arranged so that he fell into a pit of fire,
or this treacherous murder Ixion was shunned by every¬
body, until Jupiter, taking pity on him, invited him to his
table, instead of showing gratitude for this kindness, how¬
ever, he strove to wile away the affections of Juno. Ju¬
piter, in indignation, chained him by the hands and feet to
a winged wheel, and condemned him to roll round upon
it eternally. 1
665
Ivory
II
Ixion.
‘ Th* '"eth0d °f °blain,ng 8“‘ amm0ni“ of the <|e,tru^7i5till.Uoil of
4 p
VOL. XII,
666
J.
Jthe tenth letter of the alphabet, is variously pronounced
9 according to the language in which it is used. In
English it is always equivalent to g soft in such words as
George. In German it is equivalent to our y. In French
it has the sound of the French g soft. Amongst the .Ro¬
mans such words as Juno, &c., were written luno, &c. The
substitution of J for I as a consonant at the beginning of
words is of modern date. Yet the letter itself existed be¬
fore the Roman republic came to an end. The separation
of J from I, however desirable, is not yet universally adopted
in dictionaries and similar works.
JABLONSKI, Paul Ernest, an eminent German orien¬
talist, was born at Berlin in 1695. His father, who was a
Pole by birth, and a minister of the Protestant Church by
profession, was desirous to see his son treading in his own
footsteps. Accordingly the young Jablonski, after going
through the usual course at the University of Frankfort-
on-the-Oder, devoted himself to the study of the Eastern
tongues—Coptic in particular. For these pursuits he
showed such aptitude that at the age of twenty-one he was
sent at the expense of the Prussian government to carry
them out in the great libraries of Oxford, Paris, and Ley¬
den. Returning home with vast stores of learning, and
rich extracts from the best Coptic manuscripts, he was in
1720 made pastor of the Protestant church of Liebenberg;
and two years later, professor of theology at Frankfort-on-
the-Oder, and pastor of the Calvinistic church in that*city.
Shortly afterwards he became a member of the Academy
of Sciences of Berlin. The remainder of his life he devoted
to his favourite studies, sending forth treatise upon treatise
in rapid succession. Before his death, which took place
Sept. 13, 1757, he had published in all fifty different works,
of which a complete list is given in Meusel’s Dictionary.
Of these the principal are,—Disquisitio de Lingua Lycaonica,
Berlin, 1714, in 4to; Thirty-nine Letters full of erudition, in the
Thesaurus Epistolicus Lacrozianus, tom. i., p. 163 et seqq.; Exerci-
tatio Historico-theologica de Nestorianismo, Berlin, 1724, in 8vo;
Remphah Egyptiorum Deus ah Isra'elitis in deserto cultus, Frankfort,
1731, in 8vo ; JJissertaliones Academicce viii. de terra, Gosen, ibid.
1735, 1736, in 4to; De ultimis Pauli Apostoli lahorihus a B. Luca
prcetermissis, ibid. 1746, in 4to; Pantheon JEgyptiorum, sive de Diis
eorum Commentarius, cum Prolegomenis de Religione et Theologia
AEgyptiorum, ibid. 1750, 1752, in 3 vols. 8vo; De Memnone Greeco-
rum et AEgyptiorum, hujusque celeberrima in Thebaide statua, ibid.
1753, in 4to, with figures; Institutiones Historice Christianas anti-
quions, ibid. 1754, in 8vo; Tnstitutiones Ilistorice Christianas recen-
tioris, ibid. 1756, in 8vo; Remarks on the Canon of the Kings of
Thebes, by Eratosthenes, inserted in the Chronology of Devignores;
Different Memoirs or Extracts in the Miscellanea Berolinensia, the
Nova Miscellanea Lipsiensia, and other periodical collections ; and
Opuscula quibus Lingua et Antiquitas AEgyptiorum, dijficilia Libro-
rum Sacrorum loca, et Historice Ecclesiasticce capita illustrantur,
magnam partem nunc primum in lucem protracta edidit Jan. Gu-
lielm. Te-Water, Leyden, 1804, 1813, in 4 vols. 8vo.
Of all these the most valuable by far is the Pantheon
AEgyptiorum, which long held its ground as the most valu¬
able essay on the subject which it discusses, and even still
can hardly be regarded as quite superseded, though a great
advance has been made in many matters of detail.
JACA, or Jacca, a fortified town of Spain, in the pro¬
vince of Aragon, situate at the foot of the Pyrenees, on
the River Aragon, 60 miles N. of Saragossa, and about 20
miles distant from the French frontier. It is a town of
gi eat antiquity, and, from its position, has been the scene
of many sanguinary contests. Its occupation was eagerly
coveted by every invader of the peninsula, from Cato and
Julius Cseaar to the generals of Napoleon. Jaca is the see
of a bishop, who is suffragan to the archbishop of Saragossa. Jackson.
It is well built, and possesses an old cathedral, with several
religious houses. The remains of an old Roman wrall are
still visible amongst its other defences. Pop. about 3200.
JACKSON, Andrew, eleventh president of the United
States, was born March 15, 1767, at Waxsaw in South
Carolina. His parents, whe» were of Scottish extraction,
had emigrated two years before that date from the N.
of Ireland. His father died early ; but his mother, though
left with very scanty means, gave her son an excellent
education with the view* of fitting him for the church. He
was only fourteen years old when the war of independence
broke out, but he joined the ranks of the patriots. He w*as
taken prisoner, and his military career was thus cut short.
When peace was restored he turned to the study of the
law, took an active part in framing the constitution of the
new state of Tennessee, and next entered Congress, first
as a representative, and afterwards as a senator. Having
no taste for political intrigue he resigned his seat in a year,
and was made one of the judges in the Supreme Court of
Tennessee. From this time till 1812 much of Jackson’s
time was spent in harassing and dangerous conflicts with
the Indian tribes on the frontier, among whom his name
became a watchword of terror. In that year war was
declared between Britain and America. Jackson was ap¬
pointed to command the forces allotted for the defence of
the southern states, and signalized himself by the energy
and decision of his movements. Finding that some disaf¬
fection prevailed in the south, he suspended the Habeas
Corpus Act on his own responsibility, and proclaimed mar¬
tial law. These strong measures were peculiarly distasteful
to his countrymen, and Jackson would probably have been
brought to trial had he not changed the tide of public opinion
by his decisive repulse of the English troops at the battle
of New* Orleans, Jan. 8, 1815. His military talent and
his strong democratic leanings made him a great favourite
with “ the people” in America, whom he further pleased
by always advocating territorial aggrandizement. The
conservative party in the state regarded his principles and
his conduct with equal dislike ; and when he became a can¬
didate for the presidency, in 1824, they contrived, though
with great difficulty, to procure his defeat. In 1828, how¬
ever, and again in 1832, he overcame all opposition, and
was chosen president. During his tenure of office he more
than once exhibited the same obstinate self-will and force
of character which had marked his military career, and in
the great discussion on the renewal of the charter of the
United States he put his veto upon the decision of both
the chambers of Congress. Had the constitution been
less firmly established, it might have found in Jackson a
very dangerous foe. His ambition, his disregard of the
personal and civil rights of his countrymen, his fondness for
war, and his habits of command, made it apprehended that,
with a fitting occasion, he might make himself the Napoleon
of the American republic. On resigning office, in 1836,
Jackson retired to his farm, near Nashville, where he died,
June 8, 1845.
Jackson, John, a distinguished English portrait-painter,
was the son of a poor tailor of Lastingham, in Yorkshire,
where he was born in 1778. The strong taste for drawing
which he early displayed gained him the notice of Lord
Mulgrave and Sir George Beaumont, and rescued him from
the humble trade of his father, to whom he had been ap¬
prenticed. Removing to London, he studied at the Royal
Academy, and then began life as a portrait-painter. He
J A C
Jackson,
William.
found the held occupied by Beechey, Opie, Hoppner, and
Lawrence. Hopeless of rivalling these artists as an oil-
painter, he confined himself to water-colours, and in that
walk earned a great name for himself. Renewed study
with matured powers, and under more favourable circum¬
stances, made him a master in the higher branch of his art
and in 1817 he became a Royal Academician. Two years
later he visited Italy with his friend Chantrey, and was made
a member of the Academy of St Luke at Rome. His best
portraits are those of his brother-artists, Canova, Chantrev
Stothard, and Flaxman. His likeness of Flaxman, as was
said by Sir Thomas Lawrence, would have done honour to
Yandyck himself. Many of the heads in Cadell’s splendid
portraits are from drawings by Jackson. He died at
London June 1, 1831. Jackson is justly regarded as one
of tbe ablest pupils of the Reynolds school. Less showy
than Lawrence, but far more true to nature, he caught with
admirable ease the characteristic expression of the face and
reproduced it with a rare effect. With all his rapidity of
manipulation, he always put a careful finish on his pictures.
His colouring is deep, clear, brilliant, and well relieved. In
private life Jackson was amiable and pious. Without a
spark either of envy or jealousy, he rejoiced in each new
triumph of a brother-artist as in his own, and held out a
lelping hand to many a youth of promise in his struggles
with obscurity and poverty.
Jackson, William, an English musician of repute, was
oi n at Exeter, in 1730. His father, a grocer, bestowed a
liberal education upon him; but, on account of the lad’s
strong predilection for music, was induced to place him
under the care of the organist of Exeter Cathedral, with
whom he remained about two years. He then went to
London, and studied under John Travers, organist of the
Kings Chapel. Returning to Exeter, he settled there as
a teacher and composer ; and in 1777 was appointed sub¬
chanter, organist, lay-vicar, and master of the choristers
ot the cathedral. In 1775 he published his first work,
Uoelve bongs, which became at once highly popular.
His next publication, Six Sonatas for the Harpsichord,
was a failure. His third work, Six Elegies for three
voices, preceded by an Invocation, with an Accompani¬
ment, was very successful, and placed him among the
first composers of his day. Dr Burney considered these
as the best of Jackson’s works, and added that “ no com¬
poser copied less from others than Jackson.” His fourth
work was another set of Tvjelve Songs, now very scarce •
and his seventh work was again a set of Twelve Songs, all
of which are now forgotten. He next published Twelve
Hymns, with some good remarks upon that style of com¬
position, although his precepts were better than his practice.
A set of Twelve Songs followed, containing some good
compositions. Next came an Ode to Fancy, the words by
Dr War ton. Twelve Canzonets for two voices formed his
ninth work; and one of them—Time has not Thinned my
rLowing Hair—was long sung at every public and private
concert. His tenth work was Eight Sonatas for the Harpsi¬
chord, some of which were novel and pleasing. He com-
posed three dramatic pieces—Lycidas, in 1767 ; The Lord
of the Manor, \n 1781 ; and The Metamorphoses, a comic
opera, which did not succeed. In the second of these dra-
rnatm works, two a\xs—Encompassed in an AnqeVs Form,
and When first this Humble Roof I knew—were great
favourites, and are still admired. Some of his church-
his death, did not please the critics.
In 1 78.. he published Thirty Letters on Various Subjects,
winch are well written and interesting. In these he severely
attacked canons, and described William Bird’s Non nobis
Homme as containing passages not to be endured. But his
anger and contempt were most strongly expressed against
catches of all kinds, and he denounced these as barbarous
and shocking compositions. In 1791 he published a pam-
J A C
667
Jackson
phlet, On the Present State of Music in London, in which
he found fault with everything and everybody. It was a
Ifilious and jaundiced effusion. He published in 1798 Jacobi.
The Lour Ages, together with Essays on Various Subjects ; v-*-
a work which gives a favourable idea of his character and of
his literary acquirements. It appears that he cultivated a
taste for landscape-painting, and imitated, not unsuccess-
fully, the style of his friend Gainsborough. For many of
his latter years Jackson suffered severely from asthma, which
he tried to cure by low diet. Dropsy ensued, of which he
i ied in 1803, leaving a widow, two sons, and a daughter.
According to his friend General Burgoyne, Jackson’s cha¬
racter was highly amiable. (Gt F. G>)
JACKSON, a town of North America, capital of the state
o _ Mississippi, situate on the right bank of Pearl River,
4o miles E. of Vicksburg, with which it is connected by rail.
It contains a State-house, a lunatic asylum, and penitentiary,
and supports several newspapers. About 30.000 bales of
cotton are annually sent from Jackson to the Mississippi for
shipment. Pop. (1853) about 3500.
Jackson, a town of North America, capital of a cogno-
minal county in the state of Michigan, situate near the
source of Grand River, 32 miles S. of Lansing. From its
position on the Michigan Central Railway its trade is con¬
siderable, while the River Grand supplies sufficient water¬
power for driving a number of mills. Coal and good build¬
ing stone abound in the neighbourhood. The town con¬
tains a court-house, jail, penitentiary, and five churches, and
supports two newspapers. Pop. (1853) about 3600.
JACKSONVILLE, a town of the United States of
North America, capital of Morgan county, in the state of
Illinois, situate 32 miles W. of Springfield, on the Sangamon
and Morgan Railway, in an undulating and fertile plain near
Movestar creek, a tributary of Illinois River. It is well
built, and contains some elegant public buildings, the prin¬
cipal of which are the college, the asylums for the blind,
deaf, and dumb, and the insane. The manufactures of the
town include flour, cotton, leather, and machinery. Pop.
(1850) 2745. J *
JACOB, St., a Swiss hamlet, about a mile S. of Basle,
on the Bienne road, and the scene of a great battle fought
in 1444, between 1600 Swiss and a vastly more numerous
French force, under the dauphin, afterwards Louis XI. The
Swiss fought for ten hours, slew three times their number
of the enemy, but were themselves cut off to ten men. The
battle is known as the “ Swiss Thermopylge,” and, from
the contest, the wine of the neighbourhood is still called
“ Schweizerblut,” or “ Swiss Blood.”
JACC)BI, Friedrich Heinrich, was born at Diissel-
doif, 25th January 1743. At the age of sixteen he was
sent to Geneva, where he completed his apprenticeship for
the commercial career to which he was destined. Return¬
ing to Diisseldorf in 1763, he was, much against his will,
placed by his father at the head of a commercial establish¬
ment. In that year also he married. In 1770 his elevation
to the office of Councillor of Finance for the cities of Berg
and Juliers afforded the opportunity, which he ardently de¬
sired, of exchanging commercial for literary pursuits. Soon
after this he engaged, along with Wieland, in the publica¬
tion of the German Mercury. In 1776 he was called to
Munich to occupy a still more important political position.
His honourable and successful defence of the freedom of
commerce having brought him into disgrace with the go-
veinment, he retired to the mansion of Pempelfort, near his
native city, where he continued to enjoy a learned leisure
till 1793, vyhen the tide of French invasion compelled him
to seek refuge in Holstein. 1 he next ten years of his life
weie passed in the N. of Germany, in voluntary exile. In
1804 he was again called to Munich, as member of an
Academy of Sciences about to be instituted; of which, in
1809, he was made president. In his sixty-sixth year he
L
568 J A C
Jacobi, resigned his functions, and spent the evening of his life in
  / traiumil retirement. His last labour was the revision of his
own works. He died before this was completed on the
10th of March 1819, in the seventy-sixth year of his age.
The character of Jacobi was elevated and noble. W hen
still a youth at Geneva, he exposed himself to ridicule by a
disdainful rejection of the tricks and artifices of business;
and throughout his career he preserved a stainless purity of
life and exaltation of sentiment amounting to philosophical
heroism. The foundation of this character was a profound
piety, tinged, however, with mysticism. In his literary
works the beauty of a great, profound, and harmoniously
developed mind, shines forth with a lustre that has attracted
universal admiration. It was the man himself that impressed
upon his compositions those characters of ardour, profundity,
and elegance, which have gained for him the name of the
German Plato.
It is worthy of remark in relation to his philosophy
generally, that while he was, with the exception of Kant,
the most original thinker of his generation, his opinions
were from first to last elicited not by solitary meditation,
but rather by contact and conflict with other minds. His
first impulse towards philosophy was received from his friend
Lesage, at Geneva, and was sustained through life by ex¬
tensive personal intercourse and correspondence with the
most celebrated philosophers of his time. His principal
works were in their origin polemical. The earliest of them,—
the two philosophical romances, Waldemar, and The Corre¬
spondence of Alwell (1779—1781),—are directed against
the prevailing sensationalism and gross materialistic utilita¬
rianism of the French philosophers. The first of his purely
philosophical works,—Letters to Mendelssohn on the Philo¬
sophy of Spinoza (1785), occasioned by a conversation with
Lessing,—is a destructive criticism of materialistic pan¬
theism. This completes the first period of his literary life.
The second period is the epoch of his polemic against the
idealism of Kant and Fichte. The principal works belong¬
ing to it are,—David Hume, or, Idealism and Realism
(1787); a Letter to Fichte (1799); and an examination of
The Attempt of the Critical Philosophy to make Reason
Intelligible (1801). The last work of Jacobi (the great
work of his old age),—On Things Divine, and the Revela¬
tion of Them,—is primarily directed against the idealistic
pantheism of Schelling.
From the position of continued antagonism and protest
which he occupied throughout his literary career, the philo¬
sophy of Jacobi presents, in the first instance, a negative,
polemical aspect. As directed against Spinoza, Kant,
Fichte, and Schelling, the leading principle of his criticism
is the assertion that a speculative philosophy, when fully
developed, must necessarily lead to atheism and fatalism.
Thus he has shown in his Letters to Mendelssohn, that the
Cartesian principle of the coincidence of thought and exist¬
ence has only found its legitimate development in the ma¬
terialistic pantheism of Spinoza. And again, in his later
writings, he has pointed out the inconsistencies into which
Kant fell, by attempting to give a solid basis to our know¬
ledge of the actual, while yet in his speculative philosophy
rejecting the data of experience; and he has farther
shown how these inconsistencies have been escaped only
by the egoism of Fichte, in which self is God and the uni¬
verse, and by a return to Spinozism in the later idealis¬
tic pantheism of Schelling. Against all these he iterated and
reiterated the assertion that it is vain to seek the materials
of a philosophy in thought itself; that pantheism, with its
baleful practical results, is the only consistent end of such
a course ; that while thought or intellect may elaborate, the
elements to be so elaborated must be sought elsewhere.
\\ e are thus brought to the positive aspects of Jacobi’s
philosophy. In maintaining that intellect itself can furnish
no matei ials ibr metaphysics, he was frequently brought
OBI.
face to face with the question, Where, then, are they to be Jacobi,
found ? In his answer to this question, we find the distinc-
tive feature of his system, the philosophy of feeling, faith,
reason. Flis opinions on this point were formed during
the earliest period of his career, and were suggested chiefly
by the study of Spinoza, Berkeley, and Hume. His subse¬
quent conflict with Kant and his followers occasioned no
addition to the substance of his doctrine, but only served
to bring it more distinctly and definitely out, by opposition
and contrast. According to Jacobi, the materials of know¬
ledge and philosophy are furnished antecedently, in the or¬
der of thought, to every exercise of the intellect. If it
were not so, intellect or understanding could have had no
domain in which to operate. They are furnished with what
is above intellect, and beyond its comprehension. This
highest faculty of an intelligence is reason. It is its office
to apprehend immediately, without any intervention of the
understanding, realities that are brought face to face with
it as its objects. The data of this reason, as the basis of
all that can be comprehended, are themselves incomprehen¬
sible. To attempt to establish their validity by any pro¬
cess of analysis or deduction, is to misapprehend their na¬
ture and place. They cannot be so established; they can
only be accepted as primitive facts, of their own nature
authoritative, and constraining us to unquestioning accept¬
ance of them ; and the trust which we thus repose in them,
the instinctiveof reality, is denominated faith.
Thus, for example, in regard to the external world. It
is the universal judgment of mankind that that world exists
without us, and independent of us. The speculative philo¬
sophy in vain attempts to deduce the knowledge of it from
our understanding. The necessary result of such an at¬
tempt is either to identify mind with matter, as in Spinoza’s
materialism, or to identify matter with mind, as in Schelling’s
idealism. The only legitimate course is to accept the
fact of an external world, as immediately revealed to our
reason; the only legitimate interpretation of the fact is a
system of dualism and realism. Nor is it a valid objection
that we are thus constrained to depend upon the mere
feeling of the truth, to exercise faith in the reason which
brings us into direct contact with the reality. For from
the nature of the case such faith must be exercised, when¬
ever we come into contact with a primitive and underived
fact of consciousness. And what bat the same feeling or
faith have we to plead in behalf of the law of the under¬
standing itself, the principle of identity or contradiction ?
Again, in recognizing the reality without us, the exter¬
nal not-self we are at the same time recognizing, in con¬
trast to it, the reality within us—the internal ego or self.
It is true that at first the emphasis is laid upon the asser¬
tion of the non-ego; but this implies the assertion of the
contrasted ego—it is impossible to recognize the one, without
at the same time a conscious recognition of the other. And
thus, along with the external world, reason also immediately
reveals to us the internal. Indeed, it is especially in so
doing that reason is the life and soul of the human mind.
Our individuality, our personality, our identity, it gives as
primitive facts, beyond question and beyond explanation.
And in thus enabling us to say “ 1 am,” it constitutes the
peculiarly divine in man, w'ho in this respect, as distinctly
self-conscious, is the image of the Supreme Being, the great
“ I am” Himself.
And it is here that we find the peculiar and appropriate
sphere of reason, in immediate contact with the great reali¬
ties of the soul—God, liberty, immortality, the true, the
beautiful, and the good. In this highest sphere especially,
it appears how reason is the life of the mind. It alone can
reveal to us the objects which form the food of that life.
And it is only in proportion as we are in harmony with
these that the revelation can be made.
In this way Jacobi traced back our knowledge to a pri-
J A C
Jacobins, mitive revelation, made by reason, faith, feeling, of realities
independent of thought. This supreme revealer, from its
very nature, is itself mysterious and inexplicable. But
that does not imply that we may not seek to construct a
system by collecting the data that are thus furnished to
humanity, and, using this same reason as a test, purifyino-
them from the various prejudices with which, in the blind¬
ness of spontaneous life, they may have been adulterated
Jacobi mainly occupied himself in vindicating the place
and authority of this primitive revelation ; he has not at¬
tempted any complete systematic exposition of its content^
In the words of a reviewer cited by Chalibaeus, “ Jacobi is
like a solitary thinker, who, at the dawn of day, has found
some ancient riddle hewn in an eternal rock. He believes
in the riddle, but in vain endeavours to solve it. He car¬
ries it about with him the whole day, coaxes out of it some
important meaning, coins this into doctrines and images
which delight the hearers and animate them with noble,
wishes and presentiments; but the solution fails, and he
lays himself down to rest at eventide in the hope that some
divine dream, or the morrow, will give to his longing- the
true interpretation in which he has so firmly believed ”
Jacobi’s influence has been less felt in the formation of
a disttnct school than in contributing to modify the opinions
of the followers of Kant and his successors. In this respect
his avowed mysticism was perhaps the best antidote to the
reigning rationalism. But both in philosophy and in theology
this mysticism, so far as erroneous, is in itself an evil; and in
ermany the mysticism of Jacobi has already produced its
bitter fruits. So far as the positive elements of his philo¬
sophy are concerned, the British student cannot fail to be
struck with their coincidence with the leading doctrines of
the Scottish school. In his earliest publication, in the per¬
son of one of the heroes of the tale, he bases his opposition
t/0f.en,,Pincism and epicurism upon Ferguson’s History of
Civil society, and also expresses ardent admiration of the
works of Thomas Reid. His doctrine of the immediate
Knowledge of the external world is identical with that of
Reid; and ms iKcfine of reason and faith in general, so
c o-S C0TTcides in tlle Inam wnn tk- generalizations
of Sir William Hamilton.
His vyhole works have been collected and edited by one
o his disciples, with an introduction containing a sketch
?fo™oPllil0S0Phy- This edition was published at Leipzig,
lol2-2o, in six octavo volumes. (j. m£g.)
JACOBINS, Ihe, one of those clubs which played so
conspicuous a part in the first French Revolution. When
it became evident in 1789 that a social crisis was at hand
the members elected by the people considered it advisable
to have conferences among themselves about questions of
public interest. At these meetings the deputies from Bre¬
tagne took the lead, and from this fact the society was for
some time, called the Breton Club. The three orders of
the National Assembly were represented in it—all desirous
of a change of things. The clergy were represented by
the bishop of Autun (Talleyrand), the Abbe Sieyes, and
otheis; the nobility by the Duke de la Rochefoucauld, the
Viscount de Noailles, &c. ; the magistracy by Duport
target, &c. At first the club, during its sittings at Ver¬
sailles, made no great noise, but immediately after the events
of October 5th and 6th, in 1789, they publicly opened their
meetings in the monastery of the Jacobins in the Rue St
Honore, at Pans. Although inaugurated as T/ie Societa of
the rriends of the Constitution, they got the name of the
Jacobins from their place of meeting, and by that title they
are now best known. Their hall was thronged by crowds
of listeners, including most of the remarkable public men
of the period. The club itself became the parent of numer-
ous afhhated societies throughout France. At the funeral
of Mnabeau in 1791 the Jacobins mustered 1800 strono-
ihey were almost powerful enough, bv their vehement de-
J A D
669
Jade.
nunciations of the king and his ministers and their own Jacobites
numerical weight in the assembly, to subvert the govern¬
ment. In 1792 they took the name of The Society of the
Triends of Liberty and Equality. Their influence, how¬
ever, was for a time somewhat lessened by the rise of a
moderate party which had been forming in the society it¬
self, and which occasioned a temporary secession. Imme¬
diately after the fall of the king, the Jacobins began that
struggle against the Girondists which ended in the destruc¬
tion of the latter. After this, the violence of the club knew
no bounds, and often hurried many of the members into
the most outrageous excesses. After the fall of Robespierre
during the Convention they rapidly lost influence, and were
at last suppressed. The history of this club is closely in¬
terwoven with the history of France during the first Revolu¬
tion. See France.
JACOBITES, The, were those who, at the English
Revolution in 1688, adhered to the cause of the dethroned
king, James II. Some, as Middleton, Melford, &c., shared
his exile, and formed his little court at St Germain. In
Ireland the adherents of the Stuarts rose in rebellion, but
were vanquished by force of arms. In Scotland attempts
were made in 1715 and 1745 by the descendants and ad¬
herents of James II. to expel the House of Hanover. Both
vvere unsuccessful, and involved the ruin of many noble
families. It is now known that during the reign of Queen
Anne, Marlborough, Bolingbroke, and others in the govern¬
ment, were secretly intriguing, whether sincerely or not,
for the restoration of the banished house of Stuart. See
Britain.
JACOBUS, a gold coin, worth twenty-five shillings, and
so called from King James I. of England, in whose reign
it was struck. There are two kinds of Jacobus, the old
and the new; the former valued at twenty-five shillings,
weighing six pennyweights ten grains; the latter, called
also Carolus, valued at twenty-three shillings, and in weight
five pennyweights twenty grains.
JACQUERIE. This name was given to the revolt of
the French peasantry against the nobles in the fourteenth
century. It arose from the term Jacques Bonhomme, by
winch the peasants were in jest designated by the nobles.
The struggle was carried on with great fury on both sides,
and was not suppressed till several counties had been com¬
pletely devastated. See France, anno 1356.
JADE, an ornamental stone, of which there appear to
be two varieties, common jade or nephrite, and saussurite
oi jade tenace. Common jade is a silicate of magnesia,
oxide of iron, and alumina. Its specific gravity varies
fiom 2 9 to 3*0; hardness 7’0. Its colour is leek green,
passing into grey. It is very tough, and scarcely fusible
before the blow-pipe. Nephrite was formerly worn as a
charm, and was supposed to be a cure for diseases of the
kidney, whence the name from vecbpos, kidney. From its
toughness it has been used for the blades of hatchets by
the New Zealanders, and other savage nations. Humboldt
speaks of jade stones being an article of trade amono- the
natives of the N. and S. sides of the Oroonoko. Ja°de is
much used in Turkey and Poland for the handles of knives,
daggers, swords, &c.; and in India, ornaments and trinket®
delicately worked, are made of it. In China, the jade is of
a whitish colour, and is called yu. It is formed into vases,
rings, and other articles. A great variety of jade ornaments
from India and China appeared at the Great Exhibition of
I85L Such articles are very costly, on account of the ex¬
treme difficulty of working this refractory substance, but it
has been suggested that mortars, pestles, and some other
objects required by chemists, could be manufactured of jade
of larger size than can now be made of agate, and, from the
simplicity of the forms, at moderate cost. Jade is polished
like earnehan, but it takes only a greasy, not a brilliant polish,
baussui ite is a double silicate of magnesia, lime, and
670 J A E
Jaen oxide of iron, with silicate of alumina ; specific gravity 3 2
II to 3*4, hardness 5*5. Its colour is greenish-white, or ash-
Jaffa. grey ; its cleavage is in two directions, meeting at an ang e
' of nearly 120°. Its lustre is pearly, resinous, or vitreous ;
it is extremely tough, and is fusible befoi e the b ow-
pipe. . . . (C*T,)
JAEN, a province of Andalucia, Spain, lying between
N. Lat. 37. 30. and 38. 40., and W. Long. 2.50. and 4.20;
and bounded N. by the province of Cuidad-Real, E. by
Albacete and Granada, S. by Granada, and W. by Cor¬
dova. It is about 80 miles in length from E. to W., by
about 70 in average breadth; area 4445 square miles.
It is surrounded on every side by lofty mountains, which
almost exclude it from communication with the surrounding
provinces. Its surface is a constant alternation of hills and
valleys, the latter being well watered and fertile, whereas
the former yield little except some pasture for sheep, which
come here in the winter season from the more northern
provinces. Agriculture is in a very backward state, so
that, notwithstanding the great fertility, the quantity of
grain produced does not meet the amount consumed in the
province. The Guadalquivir, with its affluents, drains the
entire province. Jaen was celebrated for its mineral pro¬
ductions even in the time of the Romans, and at present
its lead and iron mines are extensively wrought. The
Moorish kingdom of Jaen was not so extensive as the
modern province. Pop. (1849) 307,410. See Andalucia
and Spain.
Jaen, the capital of the above province, stands on an
acclivity near the River Jaen, a tributary of the Guadal¬
quivir, 37 miles N. of Granada, and 120 miles E. of Seville,
in N. Lat. 37. 48., and W. Long. 3. 47. Its position is
very important in a military point of view, defending, as it
does, the mountain road into Granada. On the top of the
hill behind the town there is a castle, with which the walls
of the city are connected. The streets rise above each
other on this hill-side, and are irregularly built, narrow,
and dirty. The principal public building is the cathedral,
a Graeco-Roman structure, erected in 1525, on the site of
an old Moorish mosque. In it is preserved the relic called
“ El Santo Rostro,” or the impression of our Lord’s face on
the handkerchief of St Veronica. Jaen was long in the
hands of the Moors, and has suffered many sieges. In
1808 it fell into the hands of the French under Cassagne,
who committed great atrocities on the inhabitants. Jaen
is the see of a bishop, conjointly with the town of Baeza.
Besides the cathedral, the town contains 12 churches and
15 convents. The manufactures, now unimportant, consist
of silk, woollen cloths, and mats. But the trade of the
place is brisk, from its situation, surrounded by the most
fertile lands. Pop. (1845) 17,327.
JAFFA, or Yaffa (the ancient Joppa), is a seaport
town of Palestine, in N. Lat. 32. 3., E. Long. 34. 45. It
is situate on an eminence projecting into the sea, about 40
miles N.W. of Jerusalem. It is mentioned in the Old
Testament as the port at which the timber for the building
ol Solomon’s temple was unshipped. During the wars of
the Maccabees its shipping was set on fire by Jonathan;
and it was again pillaged during the wars between the
Romans and the Jews, 8400 of its inhabitants being put
to the sword, and the town burnt. Having subsequently
become a refuge for pirates, the place wras utterly destroyed.
Gradually, however, it seems again to have risen to import¬
ance, for during the reign of the Christian emperors it was
made the seat of a bishopric. In a.d. 636 it was taken by
Omar. In the crusades it was taken by Baldwin I., and in
1186 retaken by Saladin. In more recent times it was
stormed by Napoleon in 1797, when 500 Turkish prisoners
were put to death.
The harbour of Joppa has always been dangerous, owing
to its exposure to the sea, and, being now nearly choked up
J A I
with sand, vessels are obliged to keep at a distance from
the shore. Notwithstanding all danger and difficulty in
landing, Joppa has for many centuries been the resort of
pilgrims on their way to Jerusalem.
The town chiefly faces the N. The buildings are sur¬
mounted by flattened domes, which rise in rows above
one another like terraces, on the steep face of the eminence
on which the town is built. The summit of the height is
crowned with a castle; but though the general situation of
the town is thus somewhat picturesque, its appearance on
closer inspection is mean and comfortless. A wall 12 feet
high defends the town on the landward side, and two forts
protect the harbour. Joppa carries on trade in cotton, soap,
fruit, coral, &c. The fruits, consisting of water melons,
oranges, lemons, &c., grow well in the sandy soil of the
numerous neighbouring gardens. It imports rice from
Egypt. The inhabitants consist of Turks and Arabs, Ro¬
manists and Greeks, with some Armenians, as may be in¬
ferred from the three mosques, three churches, and three
Armenian convents to be seen in the town. A British
consul resides here. Pop. 4000.
JAFNA, the capital of the district of Jafnapatam. It
stands at some distance from the sea, but communicates
with it by a river navigable for large boats, and which falls
into the sea near Point Pedro. The town is fortified and
possesses a good citadel, which, though small, is exceed¬
ingly well built; but it was given up in 1795, after a short
resistance, to the British troops. The situation is salubri¬
ous, and living is cheap; on which account many families
have removed to this place from Columbo. The greater
part of the inhabitants are of Mohammedan extraction, and
are divided into several tribes, known by the names of
Lubbahs, Moplays, Chittees, and Cholias. The foreign
settlers are more numerous than the native inhabitants.
There are manufactures of coarse cotton cloths, calicoes,
handkerchiefs, shawls, stockings, &c.; and there are also
many artificers, such as goldsmiths, jewellers, joiners, and
cabinet-makers.
JAFNAPATAM is the name of a district in the north¬
ern extremity of Ceylon. It is considered as the most
healthy and populous part of the island, as it escapes, owing
to its maritime situation, the intensely hot winds which pre¬
vail on the continent. It is clear of woods, produces a
variety of fruit and vegetables, and abounds also in poultry
and game; whilst the tract that lies between Point Pedro
and Jafna is favourable to the breeding of sheep. In the
islands dependent on this district, namely, Delft, Harlem,
Leyden, and Amsterdam, so named by the Dutch from
their native cities, government has an establishment for
breeding horses and cattle, for which the islands afford ex¬
cellent pasture. The woods towards the interior, separating
the district from the Candian provinces, are inhabited by a
savage race of people known by the name of the Vadahs or
Bedahs, wdio are supposed to be the ancient inhabitants of
the country.
JAGERNDORF, or Kaknow, a town of Austrian
Silesia, circle of Troppau, and 14 miles N.W. of the town
of that name, between the Great and Little Oppa. It is
surrounded by high walls, and has a palace belonging to
the princes of Lichtenstein, and a handsome church, with
a spire 230 feet high. Its linen and woollen cloth manu¬
factures are considerable. Pop. about 4800.
JAGHIRE, an assignment made in Bengal by an im¬
perial grant upon the revenue of any district, to defray civil
or military charges, pensions, gratuities, and the like.
JAINS, called by some Joinus, a sect or rather race of
Hindus, found in considerable numbers in different parts of
India, particularly in the southern peninsula. They form a
class of dissenters from the established faith of Brahminism,
so generally considered throughout India as alone founded
on an orthodox basis. They deny altogether the authority
Jafna
II
Jains.
J A I
Jains, of the Vedas, regarded by the genuine Hindu as the holiest
^ of books. They either disown, or sink into a subordinate
rank, all the grand objects of Hindu veneration. In their
hypothesis concerning the origin of the world, they have
adopted opinions which seem to partake of the character of
atheism. They do not, like the Ibllowers of the Vedas, ac¬
knowledge any spiritual and eternal Being, from whom the
universe derived its origin. The material world, as well as
the minds of all men and animals, are held by them to be
eternal. They refuse to acknowledge anything which is
not, or has not been, the object of the senses. Upon this
principle they deny the existence of any beings superior to
man, and admit no objects of worship except men who have
raised themselves by their merits to the rank of divinities.
As, however, they set no bounds to the perfection which
the human soul may arrive at, their most eminent saints and
pontiffs (amongst whom they particularly celebrate Gomat
Iswara Swami) partake almost of the attributes of supreme
divinity. To this station, however, they are exalted, not
in consequence of a virtuous life, or of benefits rendered to
mankind, but of those excesses of absurd and extravagant
penance to which, throughout all India, such sovereign
merit is attached. They have three ranks of ascetics, whom
they call Yatis. The first, called Anuvrata, can be at¬
tained only by him who forsakes his family, entirely cuts
off his hair, holds always in his hand a bundle of peacock’s
feathers and an earthen pot, and wears only clothes of a
tawny colour. The second rank, Mahavrata, requires that
all dress should be abandoned except a mere rag to cover
nakedness, and that the hair instead of being shaven off,
should be pulled out by the roots. He who aspires still
higher, and seeks to attain the third degree, or Nirvana,
throws aside even rags, and remains entirely naked ; he eats
nothing but rice, and that only once in two days. The
name is nearly synonymous with that of Deity, and he is
held in nearly equal veneration with the priests and rajahs,
whose images are worshipped in the temples. At Billicull,
or Belligola, the residence of their high priest, they have a
gigantic image of Gomat Iswara Swami, the foot of which
is 9 feet in length, so that the height of the entire statue
cannot be less than 54 feet; and there is a similar one at
Kurcul, near Mangalore. This worship of gigantic images
is common to them with the followers of Buddha, whom
they also closely resemble in their theological tenets; nay,
Samana and Gaudma, the main objects of Buddh venera¬
tion, are enumerated by the Jains amongst the earliest and
most venerated of their priests. On the other hand, they
differ from them entirely in being divided into four castes,
distinguished from each other by the same privileges and
manners as amongst other Hindus. The Jains observe also
similar penances, carrying them only to a still greater ex¬
treme. They are also scrupulous to a still greater degree
as to causing the death of any living thing, even the minutest
insect. The strictest Jains, to guard against this danger,
do not eat after sunset; they have always a small broom to
sweep the ground before them, and never drink water un¬
less strained through a cloth. The orthodox Hindus have
ceremonies by which any involuntary offence of this kind
may be expiated; but the Jains, not allowing the efficacy
of these, have no means of relieving their soul from the
burden of such a trespass. Like the other Hindus, they
consider it as unlawful for the widow to marry again, but
discourage the barbarous practice of sacrificing herself on
the body of the husband. On the whole, it would appear
that whilst their doctrines and belief closely coincide with
those of the Buddhists, their civil and social life is discri¬
minated only by minute shades from that of the Hindus.
They have a system of their own with regard to history,
chronology, and physics, of which we need only observe, that
its tenets are still more extravagant and absurd than those con-
J A L 671
tained in the orthodox pages of the Vedas and Puranas. (See Jalap
Asiatic Annual Register, vol. ix.; Dubois On the Manners II
of the People of India, Lond. 1817; Ward On the History,
Literature, and Religion of the Hindus,\^ox\d.\'AYU) (h.m.)
JALAP. In Mexico, from 4000 to 6000 feet above the
sea level, grows the plant which yields true jalap, and which
has been called by botanists Convolvulus purga, and Jpo-
mcea purga, the latter name being adopted by De Candolle.
It has since, however, been placed in the genus Exogo-
nium. The true jalap {Exogonium purga) has a tuberous,
perennial root, a smooth, twining, annual stem, a salver-
sliaped corolla, with long cylindrical tube, a calyx of five
small, unequal sepals, and herbaceous stems. Its leaves
resemble the ivy, and its beautiful red flow ers open only at
night. The dried tubers of this plant supply the drug
jalap, so named from Jalapa, a town in Mexico, where it
abounds, and which is the only market for the tubers.
These, as found in commerce, rarely exceed 1 lb. in
weight; they are oval in form, and covered with a dark skin
or cuticle. Internally they are yellowish gray, with deep
brown concentric circles, and are hard and difficult to
powder. Inferior sorts are more irregular in form, and are
called spurious jalap, or, from their shape, cocked-hat jalap.
Some roots are much worm-eaten, and are so called; but,
as the insects do not touch the resinous portions, such roots
are available for extracts.
Four kinds of jalap are known in English commerce, two
genuine and two spurious,—first, dark, heavy, resinous
tubers; secondly, lighter coloured and less resinous; thirdly,
white or false jalap, pieces of which are occasionally mixed
with the true ; and, fourthly, jalap-stalk or woody jalap,
the slices of which are more fibrous and woody than the
genuine. There are about 200,000 lbs. of the pure jalap
annually exported from Vera Cruz on the Gulf of Mexico,
the seaport of Jalapa.
The resinous portion, jalapine, is the active ingredient
of jalap. It is obtained by mixing the alcoholic tincture of
jalap (prepared by percolation or digestion) with water.
The precipitated resin is to be washed in warm water, and
then mixed with alcohol. By evaporation the tincture
yields the resin, which, according to Mayer, who names it
rhodeoretine, consists of C. 72, H. 60, O. 27. It is insolu¬
ble in ether, and is convertible by the action of alkalies
into rhodeoretinic acid, which is soluble in water. The
powdered root of jalap, as well as the resin, is a local irritant:
in the human subject jalap acts as a powerful and drastic pur¬
gative, 3 or 4 grains of the resin sufficing for the purpose.
Jalap is tolerably certain in operation, and does not dis¬
order the system so much as some other purgatives, the
effect being principally confined to the alimentary canal.
It is used as a vermifuge; also in cerebral affections, drop¬
sies, and some other diseases. The dose of jalap, m powder,
is, for an adult, from 10 to 30 grains; for young children,
from 2 to 5 grains. Jalap is sometimes exhibited in ginger¬
bread ; such are the purgative cakes, and the biscuits purga-
tifs of England and France. (c. t.)
JALAPA or Xalapa, a town of Mexico, capital of a
cognominal department, in the state of Vera Cruz. It is
situate on a small plain at the foot of a range of hills 55
miles N.W. of the town of Vera Cruz, and about 4500 feet
above the sea level. On account of its exhilarating cli¬
mate it is a favourite resort of the inhabitants of Vera Cruz
when the vomito prieto is prevalent there. The only build¬
ing of importance is an old church, which is believed by the
people to have been founded by Cortes. Cotton is manu¬
factured, but its trade has greatly diminished. In the
neighbourhood grows the creeping-plant, Exogonium purga,
or, as it is called from this town, Jalap. The population
of the department is estimated at 45,000, and of the town,
at 16,000 persons.
672
JAMAICA.
Jamaica
An island lying off the Bay of Honduras, between the Carib-
) bean Sea and Gulf of Mexico, within N. Lat. 17. 40. and
18. 30., and W. Long. 76. 10. and 78.30., about 4000 miles
S.W. of England, 80 miles S. of Cuba, 90 miles W. of St
Domingo, and 515 miles N. of Chagres, the Atlantic port
of the Isthmus of Panama. It is the most southern of that
group, which is called by some the Greater Antilles, by
others the Leewa:d Islands. The latter name, however,
is now generally applied to the smaller islands on the N.E.,
and sometimes to those on the S. of the Caribbean Sea.
It is the largest, and was formerly the most valuable of the
British West Indies, being 140 geographical miles in length,
by 50 in extreme breadth, and containing about 4,080,000
acres, or 6400 square miles. Within its government are com¬
prised, besides the three small islands called the Caymanas,
Belize, or British Honduras, on the mainland of Central
America, with Iluatan and other islands in the Bay of Hon¬
duras. These places, though distant respectively 600 and
460 miles, have been called the dependencies of Jamaica,
and are ruled by superintendents appointed by the gover¬
nor. The title of Britain was disputed by Spain in the
early part of the last century, and the Bay Islands were given
up to that power by the treaty of London in 1786, but
were reoccupied by the British during the subsequent war.
Having, with the Mosquito Territory, formed the subject of
dispute between Great Britain and the United States, aris¬
ing out of the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty, they have (1856)
been constituted as free territory under the republic of
Honduras, with provisos against alienation, the erection of
forts, and the introduction of slavery.
Jamaica was discovered by Columbus on the 3d of May
1494, wEile coasting along the S. of Cuba, during his second
voyage. He called it St Jago, after the patron saint of
Spain, but it is now generally known by its Indian name
Jamaica, a word signifying the Isle of Springs, according to
the best authorities, though Long derives it from a kind of
fruit. It is sometimes written Xaymaca by the Spaniards.
On approaching the shore, Columbus called the nearest
land after his first ship, Santa Maria, a name still preserved
in Port Maria. He effected a landing a little to the west¬
ward, at Ora Cabessa, where, after a slight opposition from
the natives, he took possession of the country, with the usual
formalities, for the king of Spain.
J he inhabitants were the same mild, inoffensive race as
those of Cuba and Hayti. Like the Arowaks of Trinidad
and Guiana, they were probably offshoots of the great
Mexican stock, and very different from the fierce Caribs of
the Windward Islands. After a short stay, Columbus quitted
Jamaica, which remained undisturbed for nine years. In
June 1503, on his fourth and last voyage, he was driven by
a tempest, in which he lost two ships, to a bay on the N.
side of the island, which he named Sta. Gloria (now St Ann’s
Bay), where he ran his remaining vessels ashore in a small
inlet still called Don Christopher’s Cove. The shipwrecked
manners were received with the greatest kindness by the
Indians, and here Columbus remained upwards of a year
awaiting the return of messengers he had dispatched to
Uvando, governor of Hispaniola, as Cuba was then called.
unng t is time he suffered much from disease, as well as
rom ie mutiny of his followers, whose gross misconduct
alienated the Indians, and provoked them to withhold their
accustomed supplies, until he dexterously worked upon their
superstition by prognosticating an eclipse.
i ^le s.ec®nd departure of Columbus, Jamaica seems
to have remained unvisited until 1509, three years after his
death, when his son Diego, having established his right in
the council of the Indies to the governorship of Hispaniola,
which included Jamaica, sent Don Juan d’Esquivel to take Jamaica
possession of the island in opposition to Alonzo d’Ojeda, v
who claimed it under a royal grant.
By Esquivel the natives were treated, according to Her¬
rera, with unusual humanity. That his successors did not
imitate him in this respect is proved by the astounding fact
that of the Indian population, at this time estimated at from
60,000 to 100,000 souls, not a descendant of either sex
existed in 1655, when the island fell into the hands of the
English, nor, it is supposed, for nearly a century before.
After a short sway, Esquivel died in Sevilla d’Oro, a town
founded by himself on St Ann’s Bay, which is supposed by
some to have been deserted on account of the ravages of
ants, by others to have been destroyed during an insurrec¬
tion of the Indians. Its premature fall was, however, most
probably owing to the attacks of French flibustiers, or pirates,
who for a long period infested these coasts. The site of the
town may still be traced by mounds of earth, as well as in
the names of certain fields belonging to the Seville sugar
plantation. Melilla, near Port Maria, or, according to an¬
other opinion, at Martha Brae, near Falmouth, shared the
same fate.
About the year 1523, Diego Columbus, visiting Jamaica
from Hispaniola, founded, on the River Cobre, inland to the S.
of the mountain range, St Jago de la Vega, St James of the
Plain, which gave the title of Marquis to his descendants,
and is still the official capital, under the name of Spanish
Town. At some distance westward, on the coast, was built
Oristan, which is now called Bluefields. Down to 1596
the history of Jamaica is only a record of the rapid dis¬
appearance of the Indians, under the Spanish yoke, and
of intrigues at the court of Spain, having for their ob¬
ject the dispossession of the descendants of Columbus,
whose rights were, however, successfully defended, and
eventually centred in an heiress, through whom they passed
by marriage to the house of Braganza, reverting afterwards
to the Spanish crown, in consequence of the revolution of
1640, which placed John, duke of Braganza on the throne
of Portugal. Long anterior to this last event, the union of
the crowns of Spain and Portugal, under Philip II., in 1580
occasioned an influx of Portuguese colonists into Jamaica,
who contributed much to its strength and prosperity, but
were usually on indifferent terms with the Spanish settlers.
Attention had at an early period been paid to agriculture,
the cotton-plant was extensively cultivated, and the sugar¬
cane, vine, and various kinds of corn and grass had been
introduced; and whereas a small species of dog, called the
alco, was the only domestic quadruped known to the abo¬
rigines, horses, horned cattle, and swine had been imported
from Hispaniola, which multiplied amazingly, and a flourish¬
ing trade sprang up in lard and hides, as well as tobacco,
sugar, and ginger. In 1596, during the alliance of Queen
Elizabeth with the Low Countries, and the consequent war
with Spain, Sir Anthony Shirley, a British admiral, invaded
Jamaica with a large fleet, and landing at Passage Fort,
plundered St Jago and the neighbouring territory, but made
no attempt at occupation. After thirty-nine years’ tranquil¬
lity, during which, under the government of Don Arnoldo
de Sasi, the island rose to a high pitch of prosperity, it
was again invaded in the reign of Charles I. by Colonel
Jackson, who defeated the inhabitants in a severe engage¬
ment at Passage Fort, and did not retire till he had ravaged
the whole country, and laid the capital under heavy con¬
tributions. 1 he Spanish colonists never recovered from
this attack. At the termination of the next twenty years
we find the whole island divided into eight districts, and in
the nominal possession of eight noble families, whilst the
Jamaica.
rest of the population is said, but the statement seems
scaicely credible, to have consisted only of 1500 Spaniards
and Portuguese (though the Portuguese had, according to
some accounts been expelled by the Spaniards), and about
the same number of blacks and mulattoes
The preposterous claim by Spain to the exclusive right
of navigating the American seas, and the outrages com
mitted upon British subjects in these parts, provoked Crom-
weh to send an expedition, consisting of 6500 men, under
Admirals Penn and Venables, against Hispaniola. Fail-
mhted m'tiroTPt’ th,ey Were aft™'ds -m-
m tted to the Tower, they attacked Jamaica, which capi¬
tulated, after a trifling resistance, on the 3d of May 1655
AfterVth?r T 16VtarS.\n P«ssession the Spaniards!
Charles TT TPe ° ^ lslfnd’ untiI the restoration of
Charles II., Jamaica remained under military jurisdiction
£r„rr"\rre ma<le by crom'‘ei1»eS.abiih a
turn and peaceable government, as well as to people the
i*/11 j fr0m, bcotland and Ireland, from the Windward
Islands, and from the English colonies in North America •
but these efforts were for some time neutralized by the in¬
cessant attacks of the Spaniards and their negroes, who had
retreated to the mountains, by the disaffection of the troops,
and rapid mortality among the settlers. A better state^f
affairs was at length established by Colonel D’Oyley a man
Hisn011^?6 and caPfcit7' A formidable armament from
o T tr T 7 defeated at Nuevo, on the 8th
aLr J 165Vnd thue rTnant of the Spaniards was soon
after driven from the island. Their slaves, however for
the most part remained, and maintained themselves in’the
mountains where, being constantly augmented by runaway
negroes hey afterwards became" formidable, under The
name of Maroons The troubles in England after Crom-
veils death caused a considerable accession to the number
of colonists and in 1661, soon after the Restoration the
waT mfdaebbvhChent|0fTaTregl;,arCivil Sovernment in Jamaica
s made by Charles II., who appointed D’Oyley governor-
in-chief, with an elective council. Lord wfndsor! who
aicceeded him the following year, was instructed to sum-
on a popular assembly with power to pass such laws for
the internal regulation of the country as should not be sub¬
versive of dependance on the parent state. At this date
ev?n0Indknsbfegan V ^ imp°rted in larSe numbers, and
en Indians from Yucatan, though this latter traffic was
soon prohibited. Jamaica became also about this time
the resort of the buccamers, a band of freebooters com¬
posed of adventurers and outlaws of all nations, whom
e war with Spain enabled to carry on their trade of piracy
under the British flag Their ill-gotten wealth was reck¬
lessly squandered in Port-Royal, and their barbarous out-
rages applauded by the inhabitants, who shared their gains,
the king hi™sdf: ’ ^ atf°r thC Same reas™ by
In 1670 peace was made with Spain; the title of En-
K anr]'i!TICa ^ reC0Snized by the treaty of Ma¬
nuel, and it became necessary to put down the buccaniers
This was effectually done by their own former leader
nire^fV MorSan’ who had been knighted for the cap-
in 167^1?™’ and ^ ieiltenant-governor of Jamaica
in 167a. He was succeeded by Lord Vaughan, during
limstration was former] m T? 1 J .1 °
JAMAICA.
whose administration was formed in England the 4th, or
Roya African Company which established a monopoly in
he slave-trade In 1678, under Lord Carlisle, an at¬
tempt was made to saddle the island with a yearly tribute
to the crown, and to take away the legislative powlr of the
House of Assembly, which was to be in future a mere in¬
strument for voting supplies and passing those laws which
after being prepared by the governor and council, were ap-
ro^hrT • !n C;°nSe(iUTCe of the strenuous resist¬
ance of the colonists, the privileges of the Assembly were
restored under Sir Thomas Lynch in 1682, but the tribute
question was not settled till 1728, when L.8000 a-year
(currency) was settled on the crown, on condition, among
other things, that all the laws and statutes of England
should equally apply to Jamaica: this bill, which was con¬
sidered the Magna Charta of Jamaica, was passed under the
administration of the Duke of Portland. This L.8000
currency, afterwards commuted to L.6000 sterling, was at
the disposal of the governor. Out of it he provided for cer¬
tain allowances and salaries, as well as for the repairs of
certain forts. It was called the Council Fund, and from it
seems to have arisen the erroneous idea, repeated even in
5 inn™ PubIlcatl0ns> tbat the crown draws a revenue of
L I 0,OOO a-year from Jamaica. This council fund was in
1854 merged in the civil list.
iroo^6 thls,eYent many calamities had happened. In
1692 oeeurred the great earthquake, when the chief part
the town of Port-Royal, built on a shelving bank of
sand, slipped into the sea, and was destroyed. Two years
after, a powerful French armament from St Domingo,
commanded by the governor, Ducasse, committed the
eatest cruelties and devastations on the S. and E. coasts
n-litiT In ]7lf11 andVCn ^ hl ^ galIantry of the
militia, in 1712, and again on the same day in 1722
there were dreadful hurricanes, the anniversary of which’
as well as that of the great earthquake, was by Act of As¬
sembly set apart as a fast. This last hurricane was so
destructive to Port-Royal, that the seat of commerce was
transferred to Kingston. In 1744 there was another hure
ncane, and no less than five in 1780 and the six follow¬
ing years, at which time the distress occasioned by these
visitations was much aggravated by a decree of the Im¬
perial Parliament, virtually prohibiting trade with the United
btales, and confining the colony, for her American sup¬
plies, to the inadequate markets of Canada and Nova
?o?£a' dhe next hurricane seems to have occurred in
1812. I here was a slight one in the next year, another
more severe m 1815, others again in 1819 and 1846.
i n 17;18,,under Governor Trelawny, a pacification took
place with the Maroons, after a contest of nearly forty years
during which a body of Mosquito Indians wL elCd
il” hemo 1 be Maroons were henceforth confined^
certain specified localities—an ill-judged policy, which per¬
petuated the distinction of race and separation of interest
They proved in consequence, from time to time, very
Fnrlb pSRmie; and,m J79°’ dunngthe admhnstration of the
Earl of Balcarras, a serious rebellion broke out, chiefly con-
foied to the Trelawny Town Maroons, which was quelled
ie next year, after great loss of life, when 600 of the in-
su^ents were transported to Nova Scotia. There are now
t iree Maroon settlements in Jamaica, which have, however
Towngrhan 1 P0litiicfi existence, viz., Accompong
I own, Charles lown, and Moore Town. The Maroons
are perhaps even more averse to labour than the ordinary
hm0fLneg|°]’ Vfd ,CertTly more thievish and dissolute^
but the wild life they have led for so many generations
las matie them taller, and more active and vigorous. In
1 /60 a dangerous revolt of the Koromantyn slaves was
speedily repressed, and punished by the most barbarous
executions. In 1765 the Assembly expressed a wish to
limit the importation of slaves, but the governor bv
instruction refused his consent. In 1774 1 bill passed
tho RSSTb7 dle.Sa™e object’ but was disallowed by
fopn h °Vlrade -in England- From 1700 to 1786
the numberof slaves imported into the island was 610,000
of whom about one-fifth was re-exported.
!n 1782 Jamaica was threatened with an invasion hv
the combined fleets of France and Spain under De Gra^
It was saved by the victory of Rodney and Hood, off Do-
rum,ca, in commemoration of which a statue of Uird Rod-
ney by Bacon, has been erected in Spanish Town. The
c nef events of the following years were,—a fire which con-
4 Q
673
Jamaica.
674
Jamaica.
JAMAICA.
ron
was
sumed nearly the whole town of Montego Bay—the Ma¬
roon war above mentioned,—an apprehended invasion of
the French from St Domingo—a conspiracy among the
slaves in Kingston—disputes with the Imperial Government
on the introduction of black troops, and the excessive taxa¬
tion of the island staples. 111? u 1
In 1806 Admiral Duckworth defeated the French squad-
destined to invade Jamaica. In 1807 the slave-tiade
abolished, at which time there were 323,827 slaves in
Jamaica. During the last eight years of the trade, 86,821
slaves were imported, of whom about one-tenth was re¬
exported. At this period Jamaica had reached the highest
pitch of prosperity. Its fields teemed with sugar, coftee,
cacao, cotton, pimento, ginger, and indigo ; and it was the
depot of a lucrative transit-trade between Europe and the
Spanish main, employing, in the year 1816, no less than
199,894 tons of shipping; in 1828, 254,590 tons; in 1830,
130,747 tons.
In 1823 the agitation in England against slavery had
reached such a height that Lord Bathurst, in a despatch to
the Colonial Legislature, recommended the adoption of cer¬
tain measures for ameliorating the condition of the slaves.
This moderate suggestion was unfortunately rejected, and,
during the following year, a proposal for the emancipation
of children of a certain age shared the same fate. From
this period, till the moment of emancipation, we find in
Jamaica ill-advised and indefensible proceedings by the
colonists, and unwarrantable interference on the part ot
the dissenting missionaries; in England violent and un¬
scrupulous agitation. An examination of the history of
these events proves that a measure, the success of which
depended upon the anxious and cordial co-operation of
both parties, became at length, on all sides, with few excep¬
tions, a mere party, and too often a mere personal question.
In 1831, a recommendation by Lord Goderich, of the
same nature as the one previously mentioned, seems to
have excited the colonists, in spite of the efforts of the
Earl of Mulgrave, the governor, to acts of intemperate folly
against the crown, as well as of scandalous violence against
the missionaries; and the negroes, led by the latter to be¬
lieve that England had decreed their emancipation, rose in
1832 in a revolt, which was not subdued till many hundred
lives had been sacrificed, property to the amount of up¬
wards of a million destroyed, and the atrocities usually at¬
tending a servile war perpetrated on both sides. These
events created great excitement in England, and that class
of philanthropists, which is ready to be generous at the ex¬
pense of others, clamoured for instant and unconditional
emancipation. The English government, however, with more
justice, passed, on the 14th May 1833, “An Act to Abolish
Slavery,” but fixing an apprenticeship of twelve years, re¬
duced afterwards to six, and eventually to four; and grant¬
ing to the owners a compensation of twenty millions ster¬
ling, of which L.6,161,927, 5s. lOd. was awarded to Jamaica,
being rather more than L.19 a-head on a slave population
of 309,338. This sum, though much less than the assess¬
ment of the government commissioners themselves, was a
noble sacrifice by a nation in the cause of freedom, and
one which a better and more statesmanlike measure might
have rendered unnecessary; but as Earl Grey remarks in his
Colonial Policy, it was a measure which “ is now generally
admitted to have been most unhappily defective.”
All parties were determined that the apprenticeship should
be a failure. 1 he magistrates sent to protect the negroes were
prejudiced against the employers, who, on their part, could
not give up their power without a struggle. Their manner
was more overbearing and tyrannical than in the days of
slavery ; and they frequently displayed the bitterness of
their feelings, by turning the negroes out of their houses,
destroying their provision grounds, and subjecting them to
every kind of annoyance. The Marquis of Sligo who had
succeeded Lord Mulgrave in July 1834, was recalled in Jamrwa
1836, having incurred unpopularity, in consequence of
the interference of the British government with the
House of Assembly, relative to the “ Act in Aid of the
Abolition of Slavery.” He was succeeded by Sir Lionel
Smith, during whose administration, on the 1st of August
1838, the apprenticeship was terminated by an act of the
Assembly itself, and entire emancipation took place; and
early in the ensuing year the House of Assembly having
refused to transact business in consequence of renewed in¬
terference by the British legislature in the case of the
“ Prisons’ Act,” a bill was introduced by Mr Labouchere
into the House of Commons to suspend the constitution of
Jamaica, the rejection of which measure occasioned the re¬
signation of Lord Melbourne’s ministry. On resuming office,
in consequence of Sir Robert Peel’s failure to form an ad¬
ministration, they passed an act to compromise the Jamaica
dispute, and Sir Lionel Smith having become unpopular
in consequence of these events, was superseded in October
1839 by Sir Charles Metcalfe, whose wise and conciliatory
policy restored tranquillity to the colony. He brought about
a better understanding between the labourers and em¬
ployers, and took measures to provide religious instruction
and the due administration of justice. The number of the
island curates was doubled. Acts were passed for the se¬
lection of the two puisne judges from barristers of a certain
standing, and for the appointment of nine chairmen of
quarter sessions, also barristers. These changes were rea¬
dily granted, though involving an increased expenditure
of L.30,000 a-year. He turned his attention also to sub¬
stitutes for the laborious cultivation of sugar. Agricultu¬
ral societies were formed, and attempts made to develope
the resources of the colony in silk, cotton, fibrous mate¬
rials, tobacco, arrowroot, and copper. Silk works were esta¬
blished on a grand scale in St Ann’s, mines were opened,
and a new prosperity seemed about to dawn upon Jamaica.
None of these schemes, however, rewarded the enterprise
of the promoters. They failed in succession, and from the
same cause, the want of cheap and continuous labour.
Fully alive to this deficiency, Sir Charles was a zealous ad¬
vocate of immigration, which commenced in 1839, from
Sierra Leone and the Kroo Coast; and in 1840 the first
Jamaica Immigration Act was passed. Groundless fears,
however, on the part of the mother country, of a renewal
of slavery under another name, led the Imperial Govern¬
ment to impose restrictions on immigration, not yet en¬
tirely removed, which, by enhancing the difficulty and ex¬
pense, have prevented such a comprehensive scheme as
could alone be permanently beneficial. Meanwhile, the
planter, compelled to waste his capital on unproductive la¬
bour, has seen the superabundant population of other coun¬
tries swept off by his rivals, though the condition of the im¬
migrant is nowhere to be compared with that which humane
policy has secured for him in a British colony. Sir Charles
Metcalfe resigned in 1842, to the extreme regret ot the colo¬
nists, who commemorated his administration, by forming a
new parish called after his name, out ot portions ot St George
and St Mary. He was succeeded by the Earl of Elgin,
who adopted the same policy, and under whose auspices a
railway, 12 miles in length, was opened, connecting the
two capitals, Kingston and Spanish Town. On his ad¬
vancement to Canada, he was succeeded by Sir Charles
Grey at the commencement of troublous times. I he act
of 1846 had passed, admitting slave-grown sugar into the
English markets, and the most sanguine began to despair.
The proverbial luxury of a Jamaica plantation had been
exchanged before this for an almost equally remarkable
frugality. The hoe had given way to the plough, and other
implements of the most improved construction; and the
hereditary estates of many absentee proprietors had passed
for a mere trifle into the hands of the practical planter; but
Jamaica.
neither improved agriculture, nor strict economy, nor the
' residence of the proprietor, availed against the superior
advantages of the slave-owner; and though the prospects
of copper mining, which was resumed with vigour seemed
promising the necessity of retrenching the island ex¬
penditure became evident. The first bill for carrying this
into effect was rejected by the Council as inadequate in its
general effect, but at the same time bearing unjustly upon
individuals, by making in some instances a reduction of
more than 30 per cent, on the salaries of permanent offices
without compensation to the holders. The second was
disallowed by the Imperial Government for similar reasons.
Again the Assembly resented interference, and refused to
perform its functions. The result was most disastrous. In
rum.duties were allowed to expire, bv which
L.50 000 were lost; and in 1853 taxes and import duties were
Tmorn^ f0r/1Xw0nthTS’ CaUSing a sacrifice of more than
nf h ? u?11/ LJ30’000 t0 the permanent debt
of the island. Public functionaries remained unpaid except
by an issue of inconvertible paper called island cheques.
In the midst of these troubles came the cholera, which is
supposed to have decimated the population. Durino- this
betwer^ rel,ng.1ran ,high- Tf*re was OP™ hostility
between the Council and Assembly, and among many dis¬
graceful scenes the imprisonment of one of the judges for
an alleged libel on the House of Assembly was perhaps the
most remarkable. Many non-resident proprietors urged
the suspension of the constitution. On the other hand,
delegates were sent from Jamaica to lav the case of the
decided8 the g°vernment, which eventually
he commend—that permanent provision should
be made for the salaries of permanent offices ; that the
initiation of all money grants should be left to the crown;
that certain members of the legislature should be responsible
or the expenditure of the public money. Conditional on
the acceptance of these suggestions was made the imperial
guarantee to that part of the Jamaica debt which bore 6 per
cent mterest, amounting to L.500,000, as well as to an
additional loan of L.50,000 for compensation to the holders
of those permanent offices which were to be reduced, and
an absolute grant of L.3500 for three years towards the
govei nor s salary. The despatch containing these recom¬
mendations was carried out by Sir Henry Barkly, who had
successfully guided the colony of British Guiana through
a similar crisis. He succeeded Sir Charles Grey in the
autumn of 1853, and found the colonists wearied of the
unequal contest, and anxious for peace. In the next year
was passed, m England, the “ Encumbered Estates (West
Indies) Bill, m relation to which the Duke of Newcastle
of the 22d JUne l85u’ “ That in Jamaica nine-tenths
of the estates were under heavy incumbrances, a large por¬
tion of which was for sums in excess of the value of the
estates, so that it was utterly impossible for the proprietors
to obtain any further advances.” This remedial measure
became a dead letter, partly on account of the jealousy of
the island government, but chiefly because, in the case of
most of these estates, it was less difficult to make a title than
to find a purchaser. During the last few years Jamaica has
been tranquil, but it has been the tranquillity of prostration.
Sir Henry Barkly, who induced the Assembly to consent
lr;ranUtSy^haingeS Iduring this Period> heen re-
Plafd byC; H.Darlmg, Esq late governor of Newfound¬
land. I he island has also suffered severe loss in the retire-
nient of the chief-justice, Sir Joshua Rowe, who for twenly.
three years presided over the Supreme Court with integrity
and ability, stamping its judicial proceedings with a cha¬
racter far above the ordinary colonial standard
The constitution of Jamaica has been modified, in manv
important particulars, by several acts passed in the island
in the years 1854 and 1856. The ruling body now consists
of a governor or captam-general, advised by a privy coun-
JAMAICA.
Ie^iat‘Ve council, and of an elective legislative Jamaie
assembly. I he governor, who is styled “His Excellencv ”
is commander-in-chief and vice-admiral, and has the dis¬
posal of several appointments, is nominated by the crown
through the secretary of state for the colonies. He re¬
ceives from the Imperial Government a salary of L.3500
a-year, and from the colony, including the salary of his
secretary, L.2746, besides sundry allowances. His privy
council is appointed by himself during pleasure, without
imitation of number or qualification; and its president, or
senior member, administers the government during the
absence of the governor, should no lieutenant-governor be
appointed, though the commission is usually given to the
f°rCeS- LeSislative Council is also
appointed by the crown, through the governor, for life
subject to certain disqualifications, such as crime, absence
member T6’ 7 fW1^’ &c- ^ consists of seventeen
Zh W five/whom may be office-holders without other
qualification ; the remaining twelve must be in possession of
a freehold estate m the island of the annual value of L 300
foo X7 taXCa °n freehold Property to the amount of
The T ZePres*dent receives a salary of L.600 a-year.
Z Councd forms the uPPer chamber, and may
initiate any measures not involving imposition of taxes or
appropriation of money. The House of Assembly consists
of forty-seven members, being two for each parish, and an
additional one for the towns of Spanish Town, Kingston
andPort-Roy.!. These are elected by holders of freeholds
o the annual value of L.6, a qualification which it has been
in contemplation to alter for the payment of L.l taxes the
constituency amounting only to 3000, as stated bv
ofThp A n m 1853* The qualification of member;
of the Assembly consists of the payment of L.l0 taxes, and
ThI beGome disquuhfietl by crime, insolvency, fraud, &c.
e House of Assembly is summoned by the governor in
council; it may be adjourned, prorogued, or dissolved by
the governor alone-unless so dissolved, its duration is for
ven years. It forms the lower chamber, and, in conjunc¬
tion with the council, and with the consent of the governor
may pass laws for the colony, provided they be nft reZ:
nan, to ,he spmt of the English law; but all laws so passed
are subject to the approval of the Imperial Government.
.e Houje of Assembly had formerly the power of origi¬
nating and appropriating grants of money, a privilege mani¬
festly open to the greatest abuse. But by the act of 1854
is was abolished, and no grant is to originate in the
Assembly except by message from the governor, or through
ind 7nrT2 COmmittee- , body is an innovation,
memhpr nf Z ^ crown. It consists of one
Hip a! LegldatT C°uncil, and three members of
the Assembly, not office-holders, chosen and changed at
pleasure by the governor, who are to act as his mechum of
commumcation with the Council and Assembly, and to assist
and in ?hpPanng e1St™ates: levying and disbursing money,
and in the general administration of the affairs of the co-
allowances^ receive a saIary of L-800 a-year>and
T he parishes are under the government of a chief magis¬
trate appointed for life by the governor, termed the custos
rotulorwn, who is styled “Honourable,” and presides over
the vestry, a body consisting of the rector and church-
wardcns, justices of the peace, and ten vestrymen who
r 7 freeholders, tax-payers, electors, and be able to
read and write; they must be of good repute, and not have
been insolvent within two years. The churchwardens must
meeatq0uZeriverS ThZ Establifed Church* The vestries
meet quarterly. They raise and appropriate local taxes bv
authority of an annual act of Assembly, for the relief of’the
poor, and repair of churches and public buildings; they regu-
s thdrrdurd generally th,e affairs ^the parish ; and it
their duty to prepare yearly an account of the taxable
675
676
Jamaica.
JAMAICA.
and real property in the parish for the executive committee.
A committee of the vestry, elected by ballot, decides upon
applications for relief from taxes, a return of which is made
to the executive committee and receiver-general, and may
be carried by appeal before the circuit judge, who has the
power of inflicting punishment for perjury.
Such is the existing constitution, and though the altera¬
tions in the management of its finance, and the check to
the practice of reliefs in the vestries, have removed the most
flagrant evils of the former system, it may be doubted
whether Jamaica is not daily becoming more unfitted even
for this modified form of popular government. It is gene¬
rally agreed that it would have been better to have sus¬
pended the constitution at the period of emancipation, and
to have entrusted the introduction of the new arrangements
rendered necessary by that important measure to a prudent
and able governor; for as the late Mr C. Buller said, in
1839, “ It was not possible for any similarly constituted
colony to furnish persons competent to execute so great a
task; ” and the refusal of the legislature in 1853 to pass
the Customs Duties Acts, a measure ruinous to the country
at large, but if report speak truly, highly profitable to
certain members of the ruling body, is one of the most re¬
markable instances on record of the perversion of repre¬
sentative institutions. If such has been the past, there is
little ground for hope of amelioration in future. Wealth
and intelligence are leaving the country ; even now it is
impossible to fill up the number of the Legislative Council.
The white and mulatto races are inimical to each other,
and though Sir Henry Barkly, by dexterously enlisting the
more moderate of each in the cause of order, managed to
carry on the government, it is to be feared they will not
long act harmoniously together. The blacks, ignorant and
impulsive, incline first to one side, then to the other. Mean¬
time, the thinned ranks of the whites are very poorly re¬
cruited—for capital seeks a better and more certain return ;
and there is little prospect of lucrative employment to di¬
vert the enterprising emigrant from Australia or Canada.
The judicial system has been entirely remodelled by the
act of 1855-56. The chief-justice, and assistant-judges, and
chairmen of quarter sessions, having retired with pensions,
the following take the place of the former arrangements:
The chief-justice, who must be a barrister of five years’
standing, discharges also the duties of vice-chancellor, and
sits with the ordinary as surrogate; his salary is fixed at
L.1800 a-year. Associated with him are three assistant-
judges, barristers of three years’ standing, with salaries of
L.1200 a-year. None of these judges are eligible to seats in
the Assembly. The attorney-general discharges, in future,
the duty of advocate of the admiralty, with an additional
salary of L.500 a-year. The supreme court, presided over
by the bench of judges, holds sittings in Spanish Town
three times a-year. It has an appellate jurisdiction, and
out of it all process is to issue. The island is divided into
four circuits,—the Home, the Cornwall, the Surrey, and
the Middlesex,—in the first of which the chief-justice pre¬
sides, and sits three times a-year in Kingston, and three in
Spanish Town. The assistant-judges preside over the
others three times a-year. They take cognizance of crimes,
insolvencies, and civil causes, and hear appeals formerly
heard by chairmen of quarter sessions. These changes
have been made for the sake of economy, and to bring in¬
expensive justice within the reach of every man. The
courts of common pleas and quarter sessions are replaced
by the circuit courts. Almost all fees are replaced by
fixed salaries. Summary jurisdiction is given in small
amounts to two justices of the peace. Besides the unpaid
magistracy of the country there still remain (in 1856)
seventeen stipendiary justices, with salaries and allowances
amounting to L.450 each, paid by the English government.
As these posts become vacant, no fresh appointments are
made. The common, and much of the statute law of Eng- Jamaica,
land, is in force in Jamaica, but the latter must be re-
enacted in the island. The bankruptcy laws have not been
adopted ; but by the Insolvent Debtors Act, a debtor making
oath that he is possessed of nothing besides bare necessaries,
and delivering his books into the hands of the deputy-
marshal, is, after remaining three months in prison, released
from all claims. For the protection of creditors, it was for¬
merly requisite to give three weeks’ notice, and obtain a
passport before leaving the island. Civil cases are decided
by a majority of five in a jury of seven. The same number
tries criminal cases, but the verdict must be unanimous.
A special jury consists of twenty-one, of which each side
may strike off seven. The law of capital punishment is by
this act assimilated to that of England.
The great abuse of patent offices, the holders of which,
living in England, received at one time L.30,000 a-year
from Jamaica for duties performed by deputy, has long
been suppressed, and the last sinecure of this kind has now
expired. The ecclesiastical establishment consists of a
bishop, whose diocese includes the Bahamas and Honduras,
with L.3000 a-year, first appointed in 1825, previously to
which the bishop of London was diocesan. This salary
is paid by England, which also allows L.2000 a-year for
archdeacons, and L.2000 a-year for assistants, and L.400
for a commissary. The present bishop, Dr Spencer, hav¬
ing resigned, receives a pension of L.1400 a-year out of
his former salary, the rest of which is paid to his co¬
adjutor, Dr Courtenay, who is styled Bishop of Kingston
and who receives, in addition, L.400 a-year as arch¬
deacon and commissary of Middlesex,—making in all,
L.2000 a-year. There are two other archdeacons, those
of Cornwall and Surrey; the last being vicar-general.
There are 22 rectors, corresponding to the number of
parishes, and 50 island or perpetual curates, whose salaries
are secured under an act which expires in 1859; but by
the recent act of 1856 it is proposed to make an immediate
reduction to the extent of about twelve and a half per cent.,
holding out the inducement of continuing this scale for
fourteen years, and the threat of a larger reduction to those
who will not agree. The rates under the bill are as follow:—
Rectors. A-year.
Kingston L.60O
St Catherine  500
St James’  500
Trelawney  500
Rectors. A-year.
St Andrew L.450
The Seventeen others... 400
The Fifty curates  340
By these means the church establishment which, in the
year 1855, cost L.36,777, 7s. 10d., is estimated for the year
1856 at L.29,398.
There are in addition seventeen Presbyterian, sixteen
Moravian, three American, forty-four Baptist, twenty-two
Wesleyan, ten Independent ministers, besides Roman Ca¬
tholics and Jews.
The schools of these different denominations are calcu¬
lated to contain 13,641 pupils. There are ten endowed
schools under private charities, such as the Mico, Wolmer’s,
Munro and Dickenson’s, Vere, &c., capable of instructing
1710 children; there are private schools educating 500;
making a provision for the education of 15,841 children free
of expense to the public. To these must be added 5733
belonging to the established church, making a total of
21,584 out of a population of about 380,000, or between five
and six per cent, who are nominally receiving education,
but the desultory attendance of the negro children makes
these advantages more apparent than real. There has been
no state provision for education independently of that for
the ecclesiastical establishment for some years; in 1856 a
vote of L.6000 for this purpose was negatived. As nearly
connected with education the island press may properly be
noticed here. There are in Kingston four daily papers
the Morning Journal, Colonial Standard, Daily Adver-
Jamaica.
JAMAICA.
User, and Banner of the People ; an advertising sheet and
r SaZw? a?ppear occasionalIy- In Spanish Town there
is the Watchman; in Falmouth, the Falmouth Post and
Prelawny weekly; and m Montego Bay, the Cornwall
Chronicle, and County Union weekly. They are not
liable to stamp duty. J y e not
nf i «iei?rla,ti0n’ a^r_din£ to the return of 1855, consists
of 181,633males,and 19o,800females; butthis is based upon
at 380 000Sof ’ t,hat°^i8iiwhen the Population was returned
erefld^ r,16’00<? Were white> 68,000 coloured,and
the rest black of whom about 1200 were maroons. Since
hen upwards of 40,000 people have died from cholera and
pox, and about 2000 have emigrated to Navy Bay
? ™rfk °,n the r1ail^ay over the Isthmus of Panama, a por-
of ch^T °niy aVe returned- The careless treatment
of children by the negroes, and their almost invincible re-
tPhPg=PJfe5SLW.hich has necessarily reduced
are paid entirely by the Imperial Government, the island al¬
lowance having been for some time withdrawn. A small
sum from the island civil list is expended annually upon the
fortifications, which are, however, scarcely defensible. The
naval department is under a commodore, whose flag-ship
lies off Port-Royal, where the naval yards and hospital are
situate. It is occasionally visited by the admiral and
squadron of the North American station, which embraces
the M est India Islands. The police force has been reor¬
ganized by an act passed in 1856. It is now to consist of
41 sergeants, and 406 privates; and the custos of each
parish is empo wered, in case of emergency, to raise a consta¬
bulary consisting of one m every hundred of the inhabitants
as an auxiliary force. The police are composed almost en¬
tirely of black and coloured people.
We now come to the revenue, and the property and com¬
merce from which it arises. r }
.i k / i ’ . . ^ iic^cssaruy reduced
rate of increase /and the wasTfoTpSh^mone/durinTthe madeUlSScT ^ T estimated> in a calculation
protracted dispute between the Council and House of As! “no! or St L ^ L-490.°<» cur-
sembly, has caused the number of immigrants imnorted tn of that »ut L-327,OOG sterling. This was independent
fall very short of other colonies Wf. • P ed to of that raised by the vestries for parochial purposes which
’ - - °meS- : Ae^nd’ in Vonsequenc^ amounted to about L.300,000 currency, or Bo 000 ster-
Jing. The public revenue of 1841 was L.226,959 18s 3d •
tie parochial, L.177,491, 12s. lOd. sterling. The public
expenchture, L.291,415,16s. Od.; the parochial, L.l50,357,
16s. 8d. In the year 1854, owing to the suspension of the
impoit and rum duties, and consequent large accumulation
of taxable artic es which had paid nothing to the treasury,
IST™ s“in?'whik expenditure
was 1j. 197,633. In 1855 the following return was made : 
INCOME.
Ordinary revenue  ^
Casual revenue 
lhS4n ’^SnTe,d m British Guiana ‘he
ThTfclt d ’ °,nly M>000»'e''e brought to Jamaica.
The following returns have been made by the Emigration
into Jamaica from
Emancipadoes from Havana... ovf?
Sierra Leone   
5195
Besides which there were still in the island 1684 coolies
io had arrived before 1847, and a considerable number of
recaptured Africans. The criminal returns of this popula-
tion are remarkably favourable; the number imprison
n°n the 31St December 1655 was only
SvriZf •SirTH‘ Barkly reP°rts that the numbers convicted
were as l^tosT1^ C°mpared with British Guiana
The feeling of security arising from the orderly be¬
haviour of the lower classes, as well as of economy motives
have led to the disembodiment of the militia, who in 1816
numbered about 8000 foot, and 900 horse, and in 1830
were increased to 18,000 men, including artillery. There
is still a nominal staff at head-quarters, and though the
LX2P9n7 inT«An I85/ Was °niyL-2’ 14s” ifc had reached
nf 18mn and WaS Ser down at L-300 ^ the budget
ot 1856. The garrison of Jamaica has also been much
reduced ; m 1816 it consisted of about 5000 men It
is now generally composed of about 1400, of whom
600 are white, and the remainder Africans. The head¬
quarters of the white troops are at Newcastle, a canton¬
ment originated by Sir W. Gomm in the Blue Moun¬
tains, about 4000 feet above the sea. A detachment is
iUpa;^ed at Maroon Town, formerly Trelawny, about 2000
eet above the sea in the Mountains of St James. The
climate of these stations is so good that the troops are said
to be less inured to heat at the end of a year there
han when first landed. The head-quarters of the black
troops belonging to one of the three West India Regiments
are at Up Park Camp, near Kingston. This corns was
formerly recruited entirely from the coast of Africa but
Snkl6 nTir0eS’ and ?ven co°lies’ are now enlisted in its
ranks. There are white and black artillerymen at Port-
Heme’ E offRW mT ^ Port-Henderson 5 at Lucea, the ex-
il- -5; °f ^ lsland 5 and at Port-Antonio on the N.
maL The Th° f °f tkese1 troops are commanded by a
major-general, whose official residence is at Kingston, and
199,647 6
26,771 17
Total L.226,419 3
expenditure.
Ordinary expenditure  Tj o
Casual expenditure w
Total L.243,105 0 0
abou"^^ ‘he 'OCd °r Par0Chi81 taXeS am0unted t0
In the budget for 1856, the following estimates of the
were
INCOME.
KuS::::::::::::::::::::::;;;:-: L1%2
ll’Z
Stock and Hereditaments  i
House-tax (disallowed)    an™
Land-tax      ' 5 000
Interest on balance of guaranteed loan in
Colonial Bank  j 000
0 0
Collection of revenue.
expenditure.
L.206,000 0 0
Parochial items transferred  ia'o^q
Church establishment   
Administration of justice   ooo
Police    9
Governor and Privy Council'.’.’.'.'.’.'.'.' 
Legislative Council    n’TZ,
House of Assembly  
Executive committee   o’qon
Sanitary establishment   in ion
Education (disallowed)...  
Printing....  .   MOO
Public works     4,000
Lighthouses    3,500
Prisons    1,000
  17,700
Carry forward L.l 62,
807 3 8
677
Jamaica.
678
Jamaica.
JAMAICA.
Brought forward 
Insolvent deposits 
Interest on loans   
Miscellaneous, including L.300 for militia,
L.300 to geologist 
L.162,807 3
2,000 0
38,411 8
3,546 10
8
0
0
4
Total L.206,765 2 0
By an act of Assembly in 1854, the Council Fund of
L.6000 a-year, originally granted in 1728, ceased, and it was
provided that L.25,000 should be raised annually as a per¬
manent civil list, for the purposes of the government of the
island, and a further sum of L.30,000 for the interest on,
and repayment of the guaranteed debt.
It is difficult to fix the value of the moveable and im¬
moveable property in Jamaica, once estimated at 50 mil¬
lions. The latter, however, that is, the land with the build¬
ings on it, is periodically valued for taxation, and the here¬
ditament tax is raised upon a sum equal to six per cent, on
such valuation—that being, according to an arbitrary as¬
sumption, the net revenue of the land. Though the tax is
paid upon many properties on which the cultivation has been
given up, and which produce no revenue at all, this sum
was fixed in 1850 at L.693,382, 4s. 3d., on an estimated
value of about 11 millions and a half. Since then the de¬
cline has been rapid ; and when it is remembered that the
fall in rateable property in the next year exceeded 2 mil¬
lions, there can be little doubt that the difference in value
since the prosperous days of Jamaica amounts to at least
80 per cent. For many once valuable estates no purchaser
could now be found on any terms. It is on record that
231 sugar estates have been abandoned, besides 243 coffee
plantations, and 132 grass pens. It is notorious that the
paper circulation, which amounted to L.258,816 in 1844,
has dwindled to L.70,000 in 1855. It is clear, therefore,
that though the public and parochial taxation has been re¬
duced from about L.800,000 currency to less than L.300,000
sterling, it is much more burdensome to the tax payer now.
Indeed, when it is considered that the value of articles ex¬
ported, expensive as they are to produce, does not reach one
million, it is evident that the estates in the aggregate yield
no rental at all, but are maintained by non-resident pro¬
prietors possessed of other means, who are unwilling to
abandon the hope of future improvement. Even supposing
the whole money expended in raising these articles of ex¬
port amounted to little more than double the public revenue
of the country, a proportion, highly taxed as the island is
admitted to be, quite beyond belief, it would follow that
after payment of production, expenses, and taxes, little or no
surplus would remain for the proprietor ; but such expenses
must in reality far exceed L.600,000, and can only be pro¬
vided, as before observed, by those proprietors who have
other funds at their disposal.
It is necessary to explain the two forms of calculation to
which reference has been made—currency and sterling.
The former was an arbitrary mode of reckoning, unrepre¬
sented by any coinage, employed until the year 1840, by
which L.140 currency equalled nominally L.100 sterling;
but a premium of about 18 per cent, was paid in addition
to place this sum in England, so that upwards of L.166 in
Jamaica were needed to pay L.100 in England. In 1840,
an act passed, establishing the English computation, fixing
the pound sterling at 5 dollars, or L.l, 13s. 4d. currency,
and making English money the legal tender. Spanish and
Portuguese coins are still current, the highest being the
doubloon, or ounce, worth about L.3, 6s. 8d. Before this
date, a “ fivepenny,” worth 3d. sterling, was the lowest coin.
I here is still no copper, and the lowest coin is the silver
three-halfpence, coined especially for Jamaica, and called a
prsedial, as intended for the payment of agricultural labour¬
ers. In former days, the only paper currency consisted of
island cheques issued by the treasury. There are now two
banks of issue, a branch of the Colonial Bank, and the Bank Jamaica
of Jamaica. A third, the Planters’ Bank, has been given
up since the trade of the colony declined. The present
issue is usually from L.70,000 to L.80,000. Savings banks
have also been established in the island.
The commerce of Jamaica depends almost entirely on
its agriculture. It has gradually lost the greater portion
of the transit trade in consequence of the revolt, and sub¬
sequent disorganization of the Spanish colonies on the main¬
land, the establishment of St Thomas as a free port, and
the rapidity of steam communication between Europe and
the American coast, which diminished the advantages of an
emporium in the West Indies. Its agricultural prosperity
has declined in equal proportion, though, from different
causes, the value of its staple having been depreciated by
successive acts of the Imperial Government, whereby the
differential duties, under the protection of which the scheme
of emancipation was originally intended to be carried out,
were discontinued. In 1840, East India sugar was ad¬
mitted on equal terms into the British market. Four years
afterwards the same advantage was conceded to foreign
sugar, the produce of free labour; and in 1846 to slave-grown
sugar. Protection has also been removed from molasses,
coffee, and cocoa. Under these circumstances, the want
of adequate labour has prevented Jamaica competing with
those countries in which, from slavery or other causes, there
is a sufficient supply.
The following tables illustrate these observations:—
Years. Value of Imports. Value of Exports.
1809  L.4,068,897 L.3,033,234
1810  4,308,337 2,303,579
1853    864,094 837,276
1854   403,520 932,316
The exports consist of her own products only, the im¬
ports include those intended for re-exportation, as well as
those taken for home consumption, which explains why, in
the flourishing era of the transit trade, the balance should
be apparently so much against Jamaica. The exports, too,
are entered at their value in the place of growth, while to
imports are added charges for freight, &c. The small im¬
ports of 1854 were partly owing to the goods imported in
anticipation the year before, when the duties were not
levied. The same cause accounts for the small quantity
of rum exported in 1853, and the excess of the two follow¬
ing years, enough for two years’ home consumption having
been entered in the same year duty free. The following
table gives the trade and navigation report for 1855 :—
Arrivals in Jamaica in 1855.
From
Great Britain
United States
Colonial 
Foreign 
Totals.
No. of
Ships.
122
94
145
127
488
Tonnage.
43,029
13,784
15,435
11,804
84,052
Men.
4322
Value of Imports.
British, 494,019 15
Foreign, 405,487 12
899,507 7 10
Departures from Jamaica in 1855.
To
Great Britain
United States
Colonies 
For. countries
Totals.
No. of
Ships.
123
77
63
240
503
Tonnage.
38,997
13,502
8,347
26,014
86,860
Men.
4462
Value of Exports.
L. s. d.
1,003,325 9 5
of which
953,123 10 0
represented island
Of the ships in this list 40 were ships of war, 44 steamers,
and 38 colliers.
JAMAICA.
^ ImVartS rnto the ^ ^ 1817 ^ 1855, showing.
1 s"f*f cfr°P "as,i? 1805. which exceeded
LoOjOOO nhds., that of 18oo did not reach 30 000 hhds
that of 1856 Lad fallen to 20,000 hhds. The largest coffee’
crop was in 1814, and exceeded 34 million pounds. The
fleat increase of pimento is unfortunately accounted for by
the rapid spread of the tree, which grows wild in Jama^
over lands formerly under cultivation. Since 1852 a small
~ °f <j?PIv]r °r?has be.en exported, amounting in 1854
to 3 / tons. Besides these principal articles, there is exported
a small quantity of tamarinds, cocoa nuts, succades, shrub
ebony, lignum vitae, and lancewood. There are five mining
companies m Jamaica, all in their infancy—the Clarendon
Consols, and Wheal Jamaica, in Clarendon ; the Port-Royal
and St Andrews, and the Ellerslie and Bardowie in ^t
these^th 5 fW .P°rtland MininS Company in Portland. Of
these the first two are at present the most promising. The
principal imports into Jamaica are salt pork and beef salt
hdi and oil butter, lard, cheese, corn, corn-meal, oatmeal
Ipr^’ bjS-CmtS’ nce’ tobacco’ wine> ami beer; hardware cut-
lery and ironmongery ; ready-made clothes, boots and shoes,
and dry goods of all sorts; soap, candles, saddlery and har¬
ness; shingles, lumber, wood-hoops and coals. y
Ihere is a steam communication between England and
Jamaica, and wee versa, twice a month, in 19 days. The
loyal Mail Steam Packet Company’s ships leave South-
ampton on the 2d and 17th of each month, calling at
St ihomas, Porto Rico, and Jacmel, in Hayti, and reach
ingston on the 21st and 6th. They leave again for Eng-
44 the 2'th and 12th, making the course of post about
Tn J i rhey a S° Sad once a*month between Jamaica
and Honduras ; course of post 10 days. There are frequent
opportunities between Jamaica and Havana, and the United
Mates. In the island there is a post twice a-day between
Kingston and Spanish Town, and a communication twice
a-week between these capitals and the country districts •
besides expresses, the arrival and departure of the mail
packets. Jamaica being on the direct route from England
to Nicaragua can scarcely fail to share in the growing im¬
portance of the states of Central America.
Hitherto its history, since emancipation, has been dis¬
couraging to the friends of liberty. The negro, on whom
the cultivation of the island depends, has gradually retired
from labour, and retrograded in the social scale. This does
not arise from any hostile feeling towards the whites, with
whom he usually lives on the most amicable terms; it is
the natural result of removing all restraint from a people
low in civilization, and consequently with few artificial
wants, in a country where land is superabundant. The
Jamaica negro can earn enough in a sugar plantation in a
few weeks to buy a small patch of freehold land. The wood
upon it forms his cottage; the vegetables which grow al¬
most spontaneously support him in tolerable comfort. When
tim bttl® ProPerty .d°es not require his care, he works from
time to time for hire; but as plantation after plantation is
abandoned, and the country returns to its primeval forest,
; 18 corJfined more and more to the society of his own
race; and though not more addicted to crime, is rapidly re-
a Sava,ge State: During slavery the dissenting
ministers possessed great influence over him; he now pre-
taW eStlSh5d c!™rch> because it costs him nothing,
f inn u TeS lttIe for either- Not feeling the want of educf-
empIorintfnT S“k “ f°r his childre"’ whom he Prefers
nor schoois ,,,. '7 T '! ?er"lce-. Hence, neither churches
scholars Th m damaica> but congregations and
returns whfrhT fobseJ.vatlons are confirmed by the last
in 18 54 T h fiX h! dlminutlon of children in the schools
i . ’ as. cornpared with the previous year, at 2000 and
7 I6 lef censpicuous in’those belong.
ind sP nf f l p1^6'1 Church ofEngland and Scotland, than
i those of the Baptists and Independents. We can scarcely
blame the negrofo foll ing ^ bent of his incS^
there TK ent tb,at. unde.r tbese circumstances, unless
meet the Pvn^ \mmediate suPPly of immigrants, to
I 10 t C, exPense of whose introduction, averaging at least
come to f ’ thfe ar1 n° railable fund8’ ad «odety will
Havti Alre^J6 ft, eil< ’ and tbe ^s^and become a second
caused t^e r dy fC enormous depreciation of property has
caused the ruin of so many, that the name of Jamaica pro-
assocktednCe-il!Sed proverbially to indicate wealth, is now
associated with poverty and distress.
to oaT!Ca it °! a l°nS, °val shaPe’ and has been compared
beau iMR d the t0 the we8b Jts surface's
ran^e d Ve-rS o Wlth h,lls and valleys‘ An e]evatcd
g , called, in the eastern or highest part, the Blue
Mountains, and terminating in Dolphin Head, to the W
internentgOUdlnfIy throu^h the is]and, and other high ridges
rallv hlS- iham‘ °n the S- the mountains are gene-
[hed* ef\VVlth Slgandc Spines 0r buttresses risinggfrom
Thoth d ^r?^ distaTe 0f 12 miles from the sel
roads m d^ °r aCCeSS they are traversed by bridle
loads in various directions to the height of nearly 6000
alH .’.d SeVei a P,aSSeS’or ^aPs> as ^ey are called, of great
altitude, connect the two sides of the island. On these
elevated ranges the coffee attains the greatest perfection,
posed chTefl enfeh TStS aiSCend t0 the hiShest Peak> com¬
posed chiefly of beef-wood, as it is called from its colour
and sutin-wood. Under their shade the tree-fern grows to
e height of 15 feet, and the flute-like note is heard of the
o itaire, a bird only found in these wildernesses. On the
J\. side the mountains approach the sea closely, but more
StatAnny’andeT f?rmf are gCnt,y rounded> a«d in
Ann and Irelawny the lower slopes are shaded by
pimento woods, the indigenous growth of the island, and
dsewhere by orange groves, mango, and cedar forests, above
c i frequently towers the gigantic silk-cotton tree. The
shady valleys between were once occupied by cacao walks
now destroyed; and on the lowlands, near^he sea, were
formerly the indigo works, long since abandoned. Here
are now the sugar estates, in which the dark green of the
tlieVflhr"61^ byi116 g°lden tint of the guinea grass, and
the cabbage and cocoa-nut palms shoot up in long lines
a frWe of Wate‘'S ^ fr0m which they are separated by
Ld the hf “ai?gKroves». g^wing below high-wLr mark,
and the beautiful but poisonous manchineel. The waving
679
Jamaica.
JAMAICA.
680
Jamaica, field of canes is broken at intervals by the white cluster
of buildings composing the sugar works. The mill, the
boiling-house, with its tall chimneys, and the stables, stores,
and bookkeepers’ houses surround a large court-yard.
Above, on an eminence, is usually the proprietors mansion,
and close by, though completely buried m the broad foli¬
age of the plantain and banana, the negro village. On
these plantations during crop the scene is most animated.
Bands of negroes, with cutlasses, attack the rows of canes
which tower5 above their heads ; waggons, drawn by oxen
or mules, in endless succession, carry the canes to the mill;
women and children hurry with the dry stalks to feed the
fires ; and the shouts, without which a negro seldom does
any thing, announce afar off, in this clear atmosphere, the
neighbourhood of a sugar estate. It is here, too, that the
traveller sees most clearly the decline of the country. At
each end of the island, in the parishes of Hanover and
Portland, he may journey for miles through deserted plan¬
tations. Ridges, overgrown with guava bushes, mark the
site of the corn fields; rank vegetation fills the court-yard,
and even bursts through the once hospitable roof. A curse
seems to have fallen upon the land, as if this generation
were atoning for the sins of the past. For while we lament
the ruin of the present proprietors, we cannot forget the
unrequited toil which in times gone by created the wealth
they have lost, nor that hapless race, the original owners of
the soil, whose fate saddens the darkest page of history.
The sugar estates resemble generally those of the other
islands, but Jamaica has a feature peculiar to itself. In
the centre of the island, and towards the S. and W.,
are large plains, or table-lands, at an elevation of about
1000 feet, covered with a luxuriant growth of guinea grass,
dotted with groves of tall trees, and, at greater intervals, with
white houses and villages. From an eminence the whole
country resembles a series of English parks. These are
the pens, or grazing farms, where horses and cattle of most
excellent quality are bred. They are chiefly in St Ann,
Manchester, St Elizabeth, St James, and Hanover. The
climate, at this elevation, is well suited to an European po¬
pulation, who cannot work on the sugar plantations, but
may with safety be employed on the light and healthy
duties of the farm. From one of the many points of view
on the mountain range the country presents an aspect of
beauty and grandeur scarcely to be surpassed. Above
tower the lofty peaks, with clouds resting on their summits—
around are magnificent forests—beneath are the peculiar
hollow basins, called cock-pits—below them deep ravines,
or wider valleys ; through these flow rivers or mountain tor¬
rents, occasionally falling from the rocky ledges in cascades
which would attract notice in any part of the world. At a
greater distance the wide plains are spread out like a map, che¬
quered with towns and villages; and the deeply indented coast,
terminating to the east in lofty cliffs, is washed by the glitter¬
ing waters of the Caribbsean Sea. The view of the island from
the sea has long been celebrated. Soon after leaving Cape
Tiburon, the western point of Hayti, the Blue Mountains
are in sight, and along the S. coast of Jamaica, from
Point Morant to Kingston, the inhabited plains, sloping
gradually up, till cultivation terminates in forest, present
an aspect of no common beauty. From Fort Nugent,
which is conspicuous under a steep hill to Port-Royal, runs
a narrow sandy promontory, called the Palisades. Here is
the great cemetery where so many victims to yellow fever lie
buried that the name has become proverbial; and this neck of
land incloses the harbour of Kingston, which is entered by a
most intricate channel between Port-Royal and Port-Hen-
derson, and beyond which the capital is seen stretching
northwards towards the amphitheatre of the Liguana Hills,
and protected by the loftiest range of the Blue Mountains.
The heights of the principal peaks have been computed as
follows Blue Mountain Peak, 7770 feet; Portland Gap
ridge, 6501 feet; Portland Gap, 5640 feet; and St Ca- Jamaica-
therine’s Peak, 4970 feet. It is stated, however, by some
authorities that the three highest peaks on the grand ridge of
the Blue Mountains, called Coldridge, have their respective
summits 8184, 7656, and 7576 feet above the level of the sea.
Jamaica is, as its name imports, abundantly supplied with
water. Upwards of two hundred rivers have been enume¬
rated, few of which are navigable for vessels of any burden.
Black River, the largest and least rapid of these, flows
through a level country, and is accessible to small craft for
about 30 miles. Salt River, and the Cabarita, both also on
the S. side, are navigable by barges. The others on the
S. are the Yallahs, Cobre, and Rio Minho; on the N., Mar¬
tha Brae, the White River at Buff Bay, the great Spanish
River, and Rio Grande. Many of these are perfectly dry
for six months in the year, leaving a stony channel, many
hundred feet across, and twelve feet deep. These channels,
which are commonly used as roads, are liable to be filled in
an instant by an impetuous torrent, which comes down
without warning, in consequence of a storm or waterspout
bursting far away in the mountains, and many fatal acci¬
dents have been the result. The writer once saw the
streets of Kingston laid suddenly two feet under water from
a similar cause, with a perfectly clear sky overhead. Many
of these rivers are of great value in turning mills and irri¬
gating the plantations. The springs and rivulets are very
numerous but unequally distributed ; and from the uncertain
supply of water, most estates are obliged to keep up large
tanks or ponds at a great expense. Several of these springs
are medicinal, the most remarkable of which are a hot salt
spring near the mouth of the Milk River, in Vere, and a sul¬
phureous spring, of the temperature of 123° Fahrenheit,
near the beautiful village of Bath, in St Thomas in the East.
Jamaica has sixteen secure harbours, the chief of which are
Port Morant, Kingston, Old Harbour, Green Island, Mon¬
tego Bay, Falmouth, Port Maria, and Port Antonio, be¬
sides thirty bays, roadsteads, or shipping stations, which
afford tolerable anchorage. Those on the N. side are,
however, exposed to the N. wind, or norther, which often
sweeps over these seas with little warning, and irresistible
force.
Jamaica is divided into three counties—Surrey, Cornwall,
and Middlesex ; and these are subdivided into twenty-two
parishes, many of which are as large as English counties.
The towns are not remarkable for architecture, drainage,
or cleanliness. The official capital, Spanish Town, or St
Jago de la Vega, as it is still called in official documents, is
a small town of 7000 inhabitants, on the Cobre, about six
miles from the sea. The governor’s palace, called the
King’s House, is a large building occupying one side of a
square, on the other sides of which are the public buildings
of various kinds. Spanish Town is the residence of the
judges, barristers, and other officials, and contains the ca¬
thedral ; near it, on the way to St Ann’s, is the beautiful
road on the banks of the Cobre, called the Bog Walk.
Kingston, the commercial capital, is considerably larger,
with a population of 30,000: it is also hotter, and more
unhealthy. In 1803 it w'as incorporated as a city, and is
governed by a mayor, aldermen, and common council-men.
There is a good theatre here, and a large English and
Scotch church, besides other places of worship. It is on
the sea, and the quays are very commodious, and well con¬
structed. On the point of land which forms Kingston Har¬
bour is the naval station of Port-Royal. Independently of
the dockyards and barracks, the town is a wretched place,
inhabited chiefly by people of colour. Savana la Mar, a
hot unhealthy town, destroyed by the sea in 1780, is the
chief place of the county of Cornwall; and Falmouth and
Montego Bay are the principal towns on the N. of the
island. None of them contain any remarkable buildings,
public or private. All who can, prefer living a little way in
Jamaica.
the country, in the usual one-storied house of the tropics
with its green jalousies and deep verandah. 1 5
The soil is in most places deep and fertile, and for the
growth of sugar, pimento, and ginger, and, as some think, of
i, never,bee" ^passed. On the N. there is a
L thP W 7/°^ JhG ibnCk m°uld’ reckoned the best
the West Indies for the cane, is a deep warm hazel
mould, easily laboured, and requiring little manure. The
black-shell mould owes its fertility to the mineral salts and
exuviae which it contains. On the S. side are large na¬
tural salt ponds which of late years have been neglected.
The principal soils in the interior are a red clay, a yellowish
clay, a red grit, a loose conchaceous mould, a black mould
sand^ThP^ ’ a i°OSe Ve^table mou,d on rock, a fine
i redisandstone of the lower mountains resembles
much the porphyrite conglomerate of the higher, and both
drill1106 7^? ;.but VvhlIe that grown on the former has been
driven out of the market by the cheaply grown coffee of
Ceylon, the latter retains its value, being considered by
many superior to the Mocha which springs from a similal
soil. Among minerals are—argillaceous dark purple schist-
gneiss; steatite, and even serpentine; sienites, highly m^
caceous, and the hard lamellated amianthus, re^em-
mg petrified wood; white freestone; quartz of different
kinds; limestone, and a kind of marble. Rich lead ore
impregnated with silver is found in St Andrew; radiated
antimony and rich copper ores, abounding in malachite
are found chiefly in Clarendon, Portland, and St George ;
magnetic iron and cobalt in St George and Metcalf- ml
thracite coal in Portland and St George; but neither
go d nor pure silver have been found, though the In¬
dians possessed ornaments of both when discovered by
eaten^hvThp8* °f Trl’ COmm°n in Jamaica, was
mpmnfit ifgruf dul"ing slavery, so much to the detri-
^enal ^ u and ,value that tbe Practice was made
penal 1 he honeycomb limestone rock, of which a great
part of the island is composed, contains no minerals, but is
hollowed into innumerable caverns and fissures. Many of
these are beautifully ornamented with stalactites, particu-
laily one on the Roaring River estate, near Savana la Mar.
.n some of these fissures called “sinks,” rivers suddenly
disappear to rise again at a considerable distance. On the
eState SfV,£Tal sPrinSs rise like fountains with
g eat force in one field. On the road from Falmouth to
Maroon Town a considerable stream pours from an opening
n the solid rock several feet above the ground, and the Rio
Bueno streams at once from the foot of a perpendicular rock
m bt Ann. There are fewer traces of fire in Jamaica
than in the other islands ; but the Burnt Hill, near Hope
Bay, seems to be an extinct volcano. There is great va-
nety of climate ; the medium heat at Kingston is about 80°
and the minimum 70 Fahrenheit, throughout the year At
40°? ^ 6000 feet’ the aven«e ranse
is from 55 to 6o ; the minimum in winter being 44°. On
™ MTJa'm Peak’ in Au£USt’ tbe writer found the
temperature 44 at sunrise, and ice of some thickness has
been formed there in March Snow has never been known
to tall. I he alternation of temperature is from 8° to 10°
on the S. side, and more on the N., but the transi¬
tions are not so sudden and detrimental as in many parts of
he cont,„ent of North America. The grand
tion for excess of temperature is afforded by the breezes
which regularly every morning set in from the sea, to the
land, and every evening from the land to the sea, to nre-
serve the equilibrium which the noonday sun has disturbed ;
when these are sometimes interrupted the heat is intense
e thermometer rising to 100° Fahrenheit, and the island
becomes unhealthy. There is no striking variety in the
length of the day, or in the seasons, except the alternations
of wet and dry. Storms of thunder and lightning lie Z-
valent, and sometimes very mischievous in autumn. The
VOL. XII. c
JAMAICA.
681
hurricane season ranges from July to October. The peri- Jamaica.
ilJ M rainSi nhlCu aSt ordinanly for six weeks, are called  -
e May and October seasons, but there is great irregularity
m the time of their falling. The N. side usuallysufferl
ss from drought than the S., but even there the rains
are sometimes very capricious, following the course of a
nver, or being stopped by a ridge of hills. The parishes of
ere and St Dorothy, on the S. side, have sometimes been
more than a year without rain, to the destruction of vegeta¬
tion and cattle. b
Some pjirts of Jammoi, particularly near morasses, are
extremely unhealthy, and there few escape intermittent
fevers, or fever and ague,” as it is called, but in general
wh Zf116 !? fav°urable t0 tbose who live carefully, though
when the yellow fever comes as an epidemic, which happens
eveiy seven or eight years, it carries off all alike. It is
however, rarely known at an elevation of 1000 feet, and in
tZs^lfd Pod1 yp 1StnCtSi’ eSpedaIly the Santa Cruz Moun¬
tains and Pedro Plains, there are remarkable instances of
longevny among the English settlers. The annual mortality
I30if thP imn tr0°PS f°r t1Wenty years cnding 1837 was
130 in the 1000 or a seventh of the entire foi-ce. Since
they have been ed on fresh provisions, and more especialR
since they have been encamped on high ground, this has
been reduced to 34 per 1000. Of late yfars the cholera
has made its appearance, and committed extraordinary
havoc; and since emancipation smallpox has been more pre-
ZZZZm0™1 °-nhe negr0es neglecring the vaccination
of their children. The vegetable productions of Jamaica
liveffi °? nUmerous t0 be described. There are forest
tiees fit for every purpose, from shipbuilding to cabinet-
making, among which the ballata, rosewood, satinwood
ahogany, lignum vitae, lancewood, and ebony, are conspi-
cuous ; but the scarcity of labour makes it cheaper to im-
poit plarAs ready sawn from America. The logwood, the
unk of which resembles the clustered columns of Gothic
architecture, and the fustic, are largely exported for dyeing.
ilZ lT? cclkr(Cedre/a odorala), with ash-like leaves,
s valuable for the interior of houses, as its scented wood
FrW0fSinSevC-S' 1 be silk-cotton tree (Ceida Bombax or
Enodendron) is one of the largest in Jamaica; its silky pods
re used to stuff pillows, but, Ifom want of adhesion in the
fibres is useless for manufacture. The pimento is indigenous
and furnishes the allspice. The bamboo, the coffee, the
cacuo or chocolate tree, are well known productions; the
last, however, is disappearing, and the export has ceased.
Several species of palm abound, the macca, the fan palm,
Z SCreT Palm’ Z the noblest is the palmetto royal
(Areca oleracea), the green top of which is called the
mountain cabbage, and eaten as a vegetable. The cocoa-
nut is the most valuable of all this tribe. The mano-0
which overspreads the island, forming a splendid forest tile’
and affording food for man and beast, was introduced by
Rodney, who took it from a French ship; the breadfruit
by the famous Bligh in 1793. The papaw has the peculiar
property of rendering meat tender. The lace-bafk tree
ound near Maroon I own, has an inner bark of so delicate
a texture that ladies’ dresses have been made of it. The
guava, from which the delicious preserve is made, is a weed
of the country, and the fruit when raw scarcely eatable
The palma chnsti, from which castor oil is made, is a very
abundant annual A new species of silkworm (the Bombt/x
Cynthia) which feeds on its leaf, has lately been introduced
SffT I!ldia’ by tbe Jamaica Society of Arts, founded by
. r '-• Drey. The sunflower is sometimes cultivated for
od. A variety of the Cactus Opuntia, on which the cochi¬
neal feeds, is common, and from which, as well as from the
insect, recent experiments have proved that a dye may be
oitained. English vegetables grow in the hills; whiff the
I TZZr thG P antain’ COCOa’ yam> cassava, ochra, beans
and peas of various sorts, ginger, and arrowroot. Maize
4 it
JAMAICA.
682
Jamaica, and guinea corn are generally cultivated, and the guinea
  ' grass, accidentally introduced in 1750, has overspread the
whole island, and forms the most wholesome and strengthen¬
ing food for horses and cattle. The principal fruits are the
orange, the shaddock, the lime, the grape or cluster fruit,
the pineapple, neseberry, granadilla, star-apple, custard-
apple, mammee sapota, mango, banana, grapes, melons, the
avocado pear, the breadfruit, and tamarind, though the last
three would be more correctly ranked among vegetables.
There is a botanic garden near Kingston, and a finer one
at Bath, where many now naturalized exotics were first
planted. The sarsaparilla is erroneously supposed to grow
in Jamaica, though it is classed in the customs’ returns there
among the imports. It is brought from the Spanish main,
and re-exported by the Jamaica Jews, in whose hands the
trade is ; hence it is called Jamaica sarsaparilla. The sugar¬
cane was cultivated at an early period in Jamaica by the
Spaniards, and was so much extended by the English that,
in 1671, we read of sugar works scattered over the whole
island. There are several varieties, the most valuable being
the one brought from Bourbon in 1799, which is of a bright
yellow; and the Mont Blanc, of three sorts, white, violet,
and blue. Besides which is the ribbon-cane, beautifully
striped with various colours, which is coarse and dry, but
more hardy than the other sorts. The statistics of the sugar
and coffee cultivation have been given elsewhere. There
are many beautiful flowers in the island, the most remark¬
able of which are the aloe, the yucca, the datura, the
mountain pride, the portlandia; the cactus and cereus tribe,
the various kinds of convolvulus and ipomoea, and two
beautiful descriptions of plumeria, called the tree jasmine.
Innumerable varieties of ferns grow in the mountains, and
orchids in the woods. The pastures are infested by that
interesting mimosa, the sensitive plant. It is eaten by
sheep, but is armed with minute thorns, which make
troublesome wounds in their feet. There are many
beautiful insects, among which the fire-flies are most
remarkable. There are fourteen sorts of Lampyridce or
fire-flies, besides the Elateridce or lantern beetles, which
are larger and more luminous; but neither in flowers
nor insects is Jamaica so rich as more southern islands.
To compensate for this it has no venomous serpents,
though abounding in harmless snakes and lizards. A large
lizard, the iguana, is considered a delicacy, as are the land-
crab and tortoise. The scorpion and centipede are
poisonous, but not very common or dangerous. Ants,
mosquitoes, and sandflies, swarm in the lowlands. Bees,
among which is a stingless variety, are numerous in the
woods, and produce excellent honey. It is a popular error
that in the tropics flowers have no scent and birds no song.
The datura and orange are among many instances to the
contrary in the former case; and as to the latter, Goss
enumerates some twenty different song birds in Jamaica,
among which may be mentioned the Jamaica nightingale,
a kind of mocking-bird (Merula Jamaicensis), and a species
of humming-bird (Mellisvga humilis). Parrots and pigeons
are common, and the wild Guinea fowl; also a species of
goatsucker, called the mosquito hawk, and a great variety
of water-birds, among which is the pelican and a sort of
albatross. The crane, heron, plover, snipe, ortolan (or
rice-bird of Carolina), and quail, are migratory. The aura
vulture, or Turkey buzzard, called the John Crow, is nu¬
merous, and valuable as a scavenger. By its instinct the
concealed body of a murdered man has more than once
been traced in Jamaica. The sea and rivers swarm with
fish ; among the larger ones are the shark, the nurse shark,
the bonito, the sword and saw fish; besides the snapper,
mullet, king-fish, Spanish mackerel, the flying-fish, &c.
1 he cachalot is found. Turtles abound ; and the seal and
manatee, or river cow, are sometimes found, and the croco¬
dile (called erroneously alligator). Jamaica, when dis¬
covered, contained but few species of animals. Besides Jamaica,
the alco, there was the utia or Indian cony, the musk-rat,
the armadillo, monkey, agouti, peccary, opossum, and ra¬
coon. At present the only wild animals are the wild hog
(an African variety, introduced from the Canaries), a kind
of deer (the cariacou), goats, rats, and mice. The rats com¬
mit serious ravages among the canes, and those which feed
only in the cane-fields are by some esteemed a delicacy.
This species, called the Charles Price rat, was introduced
to destroy a smaller kind; but the remedy seems to have
proved worse than the evil. The breed of oxen has been
much improved by judicious crossing, and can scarcely
be surpassed. The horses have much of the Arab blood.
They are small but fleet, and at the island races have often
beaten English racers, particularly some taken out by the
Marquis of Normanby, when governor. The Cleveland
bay has lately been introduced from England, with a view
to size and bone. The mules are large, hardy, and saga¬
cious, and much used for mountain-riding, as well as for
carrying baggage and working on the estates. The sheep
and pigs are of excellent quality, and the pork of Jamaica
is considered much more wholesome than that of England,
being frequently recommended to invalids. Goats are much
reared by the negroes, but they are very mischievous in
sugar and coffee plantations. The Cuba bloodhound is
used as a watchdog, being the species which thrives best in
a hot climate ; the English hound and terrier, which have
frequently been introduced, soon degenerate and die.
Poultry succeeds well, particularly the turkey, the Guinea
fowl, and Muscovy duck.
The principal publications relating to Jamaica are—
Long’s History, 1774; Bryon Edwards’ History, 1809,
with an Appendix, 1819; Benny’s History, 1807; Mathi-
son, 1811 ; Howard’s Laws of Jamaica, 1827; Beckford’s
History; Dallas’ Maroon War; Stewart’s Jamaica;
Monk Lewis’ Tour; Madden’s Jamaica; Montgomery
Martin, 1836; Philippo’s Past and Present State of Ja¬
maica, 1843. The earlier histories are scarcely applicable
to the present day, while many of the later publications are
mere vehicles for conveying the author’s views for or against
slavery. By far the best and most reliable information is
contained in the despatches of successive governors, pub¬
lished in the parliamentary Blue Books; many of which,
and particularly those of Sir Charles Grey, contain admirable
expositions of the state of the country, and causes of its
decline. The natural history of Jamaica has also been the
theme of many writers—Sloane, in 1692; Brown, 1754;
Barham, 1794; Lunan, 1814. These authors have a most
able and enthusiastic successor in Gosse, whose Journal of
a Naturalist in Jamaica, 1851, and Birds of Jamaica,
1847, are delightful books. For vivid pictures of scenery
and life in Jamaica, Tom Cringle’s Log, and The Cruise
of the Midge, by Michael Scott, a Kingston merchant, are
unrivalled.
Before concluding this article it is necessary to refer to a
dependency called the Caymanas, or Cayman Isles. These
are three small coral islands or keys, in N. Lat. 19. to
19. 20., and 30 to 40 leagues W.N.W. from Point Negril,
Jamaica, and about the same distance S. of Cuba. Grand
Cayman lies oft' the centre of the Yucatan Passage; Cay-
man-Braque or Brae, and Little Cayman are near each
other, and about 34 miles N.E. from Grand Cayman. They
were discovered by Columbus, but no settlement was ever
made by the Spaniards. Grand Cayman, the only one
occupied, is about a mile and a half long by a mile broad,
and contains about 1000 acres. It is very low, entirely
without springs, and overgrown with low stunted shrubs.
These islands are favourite breeding-places for turtles, im¬
mense shoals of which animals frequent the low sandy shore
for the purpose of depositing their eggs. The present race
of inhabitants are entirely coloured people, whose ostensible
JAM
James
James,
occupation is that of fishermen and pilots, but they have
the reputation of being also pirates and wreckers. They
Epistle of. “Ve ln retched villages, dignified by the names of
George Town and Bodder Town, and are in no way inter-
fered with by the Jamaica authorities, but are governed
by a captain of their own choosing, who seems to possess
despotic power. There is a church on the island, but
JAM
683
JAMES, the name of several persons mentioned in the
J\ew iestament.
1. James, the son of Zebedee and Salome, was the brother
ot John the Evangelist. His occupation was that of a
fisherman, probably of Bethsaida. Along with John and
r eter he was chosen to witness the transfiguration the re¬
storation of Jairus’ daughter to life, and to be with Jesus in
Gethsemane on the night of his agony. From their bold
warm, and impetuous temperament, he and his brother
were called Boanerges, som of thunder. He was the first
ot the apostles to suffer martyrdom, having been executed
, T 44 m Jerusa,enh by order of Herod Agrippa.
When led to execution, his firmness was so impressive, that
the officer in attendance became a Christian, and suffered
death along with him in the same cause.1
2. James, the son ofAlphaus and Mary, was one of the
twelve. He is called the Less, either from being younger
than the previous James, or on account of his little stature.
In the Gospels there is mention made of James, the brother
oj Jesus ; and Neander pronounces it one of the most diffi¬
cult questions in apostolic history, to determine whether he
was the same as the son of Alphaeus.
James, Epistle of, one of the canonical epistles of the
i\ew i estament, concerning the true authorship of which
frequent doubts have been raised. It has been claimed for
the son of Zebedee, on account of the inscription on a
Synac MS. published by Widmanstadt; and also of an
Arabic MS. cited by Cornelius a Lapide. This claim,
however, has found few supporters. In regard to James,
the Lord s brother, and James the son of Alphseus, all who
believe these to be different personages, agree in ascribing
the epistle to the former. According to Hegesippus he
was surnamed the Just, from the equity with which he
governed the church at Jerusalem ; and, according to Eu¬
sebius, he was the first who had the pastoral charge in that
city an office which he held for thirty years. The claims
of the ^ Wo-James invite the question of the authenticity
and canonical authority of the epistle. The objection's
which have been raised to the epistle are the following—
Eusebius expressly refers to it as a spurious productionfand
Jerome uses expressions to the same effect, probably merely
repeating Eusebius. It was rejected in the fourth'century
by Iheodore of Mopsuestia, and in the sixth by Cosmos
Indicopleustes. On the other hand, it has been cited by
Clemens Romanus, Irenaeus, Origen, and Ephrem Svrus,
and was commented on by Clemens Alexandrinus. 'Still
more important is the fact, that the epistle forms part of
the Syriac version made so early as the close of the first
century. After the Council of Nice, it was received by the
churches of both the East and the West. It remained as
a canonical portion of Scripture till, on purely dogmatic
grounds, doubts were raised by Erasmus, Cajetan, and
Luther. 1 he second of these observed, that the salutation
with which the epistle begins is that of a heathen rather
than of an apostle, and one who does not even claim to be
an apostle. Luther called it an epistle of straw, and con¬
sidered the doctrine of justification, as set forth in James
opposed to that of St Paul. In conformity with these
views, De Wette started the hypothesis that the epistle was
written by some one who assumed the name of James in
order to add weight to his attack upon Paul’s doctrine of
entirely in ruins. They appear to be under none of the James, St
restraints of law or religion ; and a Presbyterian missionary "
who devoted himself to their instruction was lately obliged
to leave in despair. Their numbers have much decreased,
and at present do not reach 100, as during the last few
years many families have left this barren rock for the more
fertile shores of Ruatan Island. (s. c.)
justification. This has been successfully refuted by Ne¬
ander, who shows that the real difference between Paul
and James consists in the different circumstances in which
they wrote, and the different objects which they had in
view. Paul had to enlighten those who put their trust in
the justifying works of the law; James had to show the
. S their faith as a solitary principle, without confor¬
mity of fife, was valueless.
The epistle, then, is to be considered the production of
James the Just, bishop of Jerusalem, and was written a.d.
d-. or thereabout, immediately before his martyrdom. Some
commentators complain of the want of connection in
thought, but Bishop Jebb shows that there is a strong logi¬
cal chain binding together what at first sight appears the
most incongruous and irrelevant materials. He has also
applied the principle of Hebrew parallelism with success to
several passages in the epistle.
James, St, of the Sword {San Jago del Espada), a mili¬
tary order in Spain, instituted in 1170, under the reign of
Ferdinand II. king of Leon and Gallicia. Its object was
to put a stop to the incursions of the Moors, these knights
obliging themselves by a vow to secure the roads. An
union was proposed and agreed to in 1170, between these
and the canons of St Eloy; and the order was confirmed
by the pope m 1175. The highest dignity in that order is
that of grand-master, which has been united to the crown
of Spain. The knights were obliged to give proof of their
descent from families that had been noble for four genera¬
tions on both sides ; they also were required to make it appear
that their ancestors were neither Jews, Saracens, nor heretics
nor ka(J ever been called in question by the inquisition.
JAMES, the name of seven princes of the house of
Stuart, the first five of whom were kings of Scotland, while
the last two reigned over the whole kingdom of Great
Britain. James I., the younger son of Robert HI., was
born in 1393, came to the throne in 1424, and was assassi-
natflfebTry 21’ 1437’ His son> James II., was born
in 1432, and was accidentally killed by the bursting of a
cannon at the siege of Roxburgh, in 1460, being then in
ms 29th year. James III., the son of the last-named, was
born in 1454, came to the throne in 1460, and was mur-
• er,e^_ln in his 35th year. His son, James IV., born
in 1474, began to reign in 1488. He was slain with the
flower of his nobility at Flodden, in 1513. James V., born
in 1512, came to the throne on his father’s death, in the
following year, and died in 1544, in his 33d year. James
i , cot‘an^’ horn in 1566, became king of England
Vcno1’ thf/itle of ,James I ’ on the death of Elizabeth, in
1603. After a reign of 36 years in Scotland and 22 in
Great Britain, he died in 1625, in the 60th year of his age.
James \ II. of Scotland, and II. of England, the second
f" °f-Ch,arIeS L’ was born in 1633, and died in exile in
1 iOI, in the 68th year of his age. (See Scotland, Eng¬
land, Great Britain, &c., &c.)
JAMES RIVER, a river of the United States of
America, rising in the Alleghany Mountains, and flowing
through the state of Virginia to the Atlantic Ocean. It
first flows in a south-easterly direction, then changes to the
N.E., after passing Lynchbury, and returns to its former
direction a few miles above Columbia, in which course it
continues to Chesapeake Bay. It is 450 miles in length,
Jam ea
Rive:?.
1 Clem. Hist. Eccl. i. 9.
684 J A M
Jameson, and is navigable for vessels of 130 tons to the port of liieli-
George mond, 150 miles from the sea, where the rivei meets the
II tide. At this point the James River and Kanawha Canal
Jameson, keginS. The trade of the James River is considerable and
i 11crciisiii forming, as it does, a great outlet for the tobacco,
cotton, and other produce of Virginia.
JAMESON, George, an eminent artist, the Vandyck
of Scotland, was the son of Andrew Jameson, an architect,
and was born at Aberdeen in 1586. He studied under Ru¬
bens at Antwerp; and after his return, applied with indefa-
tEable industry to portraits in oil, though he sometimes prac¬
tised in miniature, and also in history and landscape. His
largest portraits were generally somewhat less than life. His
pieces are all distinguished by their delicacy and softness,
and their clear and beautiful colouring; his shades are not
charged, but helped by varnish, with little appearance of
the pencil. When King Charles I. visited Scotland in
1633, the magistrates of Edinburgh, knowing his majesty’s
taste, employed Jameson to make drawings of the Scottish
monarchs, with which the king was so pleased, that he sat
to him for a full-length picture, and rewarded him with a
diamond ring from his own finger. Jameson always drew
himself with his hat on, either in imitation of his master
Rubens, or from having been indulged in that liberty by
the king when his majesty sat to him. Some of Jameson’s
works are in the colleges of Aberdeen ; but the best col¬
lection of his works is at Taymouth Castle, the seat of the
Marquis of Breadalbane. He died at Edinburgh in 1644,
and was interred in the Greyfriars’ churchyard, but without
a monument. Jameson was but little known in England,
and has not been noticed by any English writer on the fine
arts, except Lord Orford. But he was much esteemed in
his own country ; and Arthur Johnston, the poet, addressed
to him an elegant Latin epigram on his portrait of the
Marchioness of Huntly.
Jameson, Robert, the late distinguished professor of
natural history in the University of Edinburgh, was born
in Leith on llth of July 1774, and received the elements
of his education in the public grammar school of his native
town. It is stated that his schoolboy acquirements gave
small promise of future distinction, and his residence in a
seaport not unnaturally inclined him to become a sailor;
but his father strenuously opposed the wishes of the boy,
and he was bound apprentice to an eminent surgeon in
Leith. In due time he commenced his medical studies in
the University of Edinburgh; and among other branches,
he became, in 1792-3, a student of natural history, under
the Rev. Dr Walker, who may justly be considered as the
reviver of a taste for that science in the capital of Scotland.
Young Jameson soon became a favourite pupil of that mas¬
ter, accompanied him in some of his mineralogical excur¬
sions, and assisted him in the arrangement of a museum
which Walker endeavoured to accumulate.
This predilection for the study of natural history was in¬
creased by a visit which Jameson paid to London in 1793,
when he became acquainted with Sir Joseph Banks and
with Dr Shaw, then employed in that department of the
British Museum. On his return to Scotland, Jameson
seems to have adopted natural history as his chief occupa¬
tion ; and he also attended the chemical lectures of the
celebrated Dr Black.
In 1794 he commenced his explorations of the isles of
Scotland by a visit to Shetland, from which his father’s
family had sprung. Among other mineralogical excursions
in different parts of Scotland, he examined the interesting
Isle of Arran in 1797. The first fruit of these researches
appeared in Jiis Mineralogy of Arran and Shetland, pub¬
lished in 1798. This work contains dissertations on kelp
and peat, which present little interesting, except the au¬
thor s remarks on the analogy between the acid found in
peat bogs and the suberic acid of chemists, and the em-
J A M
ployment of charred peat, in some countries, for the manu- Jameson
facture of iron. In the year 1798, accompanied by a friend, Robert,
afterwards Sir Charles Bell, he carefully explored the He-
brides ; and in the following year he visited the Orkney
Isles, and Arran for a second time, preparatory to his work
termed The Mineralogy of the Scottish Isles, which ap¬
peared in 1800 in two thin 4to volumes, and contained his
former account of Arran and Shetland.
Besides these publications, Jameson had read occasional
papers to the Natural History Society of Edinburgh, and
sent a few communications to some philosophical journals;
but none of them seem to have been afterwards considered
by their author as of much importance.
In 1800 he proceeded to Freyberg, for the avowed pur¬
pose of completing his mineralogical studies under the cele¬
brated Werner. Freyberg was, at that period, considered
the great mineralogical school of Europe. The impressive
manner of Werner in communicating instruction, and the
enthusiasm with which he contrived to impi'ess his students,
is well known ; and Jameson became a devoted follower of
all the dogmas of Wernerian geology. Among his fellow-
students was Von Buch, and the illustrious Von Humboldt
had preceded him in the same school. Both these great
geologists commenced as supporters of the hypothesis of
Werner, and, like Jameson, both afterwards saw reason to
adopt very dilferent geological theories.
During the two years succeeding his Freyberg studies,
Jameson visited different parts of the continent, to increase
his mineralogical knowledge ; but in 1804 he returned to
his native country, where he speedily obtained the chair of
natural history, as successor to his old master, Dr Walker.
The duties of this chair embraced a very wide range of
subjects, which, in most continental schools, are assigned
to different professors. Jameson adopted the arrangement
of his predecessor, dividing natural history into—\st, Me¬
teorology ; 2d, Hydrology ; Zd, Mineralogy, including geo¬
logy ; \th, A slight sketch of phytology ; and, 5ih, Zoology.
It was in the three first divisions of the subject, especially the
third, that the prelections of Jameson were chiefly valuable;
but his acquaintance with animated nature was more limited.
He exhibited his anxiety to discharge his academical duties
to the utmost, and his enthusiasm on his favourite subjects
he failed not to impart to his students, by which a strong
stimulus was given to mineralogy and geology in Scotland.
The Wernerian doctrines of Jameson were not univer¬
sally received. A very different theory of the earth had
been promulgated some years before by the celebrated
Hutton ; and it was most ably supported by the experi¬
ments and papers in the Transactions of the Edinburgh
Royal Society, of Sir James Hall, and the admirable Illus¬
trations of the Huttonian Theory of Professor Playfair; while
a good abstract of Flutton’s views was annually given in his
chemical course by Professor Flope. The principal sup¬
porters of the Wernerian or Neptunian theory were Jameson
and Dr John Murray, in his well written Comparative View
of the Neptunian and Huttonian Theories. The controversy
was carried on with spirit at the meetings of the Royal and
other societies, and it did not fail, from the ingenuity and
earnestness of the supporters of each theory, to impart a
high interest to geological speculations. It is not a little
creditable, however, to the candour of Professor Jameson,
that, after having long believed and zealously taught the
Wernerian theory of the earth, he did not hesitate publicly
to renounce his long-cherished geological speculations, and
do justice to the extraordinary merits of Dr Hutton.
Before Jameson became the professor of natural history,
he seems to have resolved on producing a mineralogical
survey of all Scotland ; and in 1804 he published the first
part of the first volume of such a work, comprehending the
county of Dumfries ; but the increasing duties of his chair,
and his resolution of forming a museum worthy of the uni-
JAM
Jameson,
Robert.
versity, suspended that work, which was never farther rea¬
lized. We may here state that, by the inattention of some of
his predecessors, and the ravages of time, the considerable
collections bequeathed to the college by Sir Robert Sibbald
and others had disappeared ; and most of the acquisitions
made by Dr Walker were, after his death, claimed by his
relations as private property ; so that, when Jameson began
to teach, he was almost without any public museum for the
illustration of his lectures. He had, however, made a fine
collection of minerals in Germany and elsewhere, which he
used in that part of his course; and the few and imperfect
zoological specimens he found in the museum were soon
augmented by his indefatigable exertions, and considerable
sacrifices both of valuable time and money. In after years
the purchase of the noble Dufresne collection at Paris by
an anticipation of funds about to accrue to the university
a small annual grant by the government for the support of
the museum, and the fees for admission, together with nu¬
merous contributions obtained at Jameson’s request from
former pupils, have rendered this one of the noblest mu¬
seums in our islands devoted to the teaching of natural
history. °
These engrossing occupations did not prevent Jameson’s
cultivation of his favourite study. In 1804 appeared his
System of Mineralogy, in two octavo volumes, with a se-
pm-ate dissertation on Werner’s External Characters of
Minerals. In the first he gave most accurate descriptions
of individual minerals; in the latter, he introduced, for the
first time to the British public, Werner’s capital definitions
and nomenclature of colours, as applicable to descriptions of
minerals and animals. The third volume of his System
was published in 1809, under the title of Elements of Geo¬
gnosy in which, with the phraseology, he adopted all the
hypothetic views of Werner, which he there contrasted with
t le fiery theory of Hutton. This work never became popu-
ar, partly from the growing tendency of geologists to dis¬
pute the dogmas of the Neptunists, and no doubt also from
the intermixture of German idiom in which it was delivered
A second edition aCaxs System of Mineralogy fm three octavo
vo umes was published in 1816 ; and at the same time, an
enlarged edition of his External Characters. In both edi-
tions of his System the arrangement of Werner is scrupu¬
lously followed ; but in his Manual of Minerals and Moun¬
tain Rocks, which appeared in 1821, Jameson adopted the
arrangement and nomenclature, as well as the crystallo¬
graphy of Professor Mohs. This mav be considered as his
last separate publication.
Jameson, however, was otherwise engaged in the cause
of science. We have already noticed his labours in the
formation of the university museum, an object to which he
devoted a large portion of the best years of his life ; and he
assured the writer of this memoir that to this he had sacri-
ficed his intention of completing the mineralogical survey
of Scotland. A knowledge of his exertions in this cause
induced his friends, some years before his death, to place
the fine bust of him by Steel in the principal saloon of the
museum.
The Natural History Society of Edinburgh had lan¬
guished for several years after the death of Smellie; but
it was revived through the exertions of Jameson, Dr Neill
and some other naturalists, and, under the designation of
the Wernerian Society, has published seven volumes of
iransactions, containing valuable memoirs, some of which
are by Professor Jameson.
In 1819 he established The Edinburgh Philosophical
Journal in which, for a time, he was ably assisted by Dr
Brewster; but it was afterwards solely conducted by Pro¬
fessor Jameson. J
Jameson continued to give two annual courses of lec¬
tures, until the few last years of his life. His lectures were
well attended, and he had the art of inspiring his pupils
JAN
685
Janesville.
with his own love of a favourite science. This was much Jamestown
enhanced by those frequent instructive excursions, in which
for many years he was accustomed to lead his students,
among the interesting geological localities around Edin¬
burgh, during which he explained the theories of the earth,
and the succession of geological epochs.
At length his health gave way, and for five winter ses¬
sions the class of natural history was taught for him by his
nend and colleague, the present professor of medical juris¬
prudence. Increasing debility came on, and Professor
Jameson died with tranquillity on 17th April 1854, in the
fiftieth year of his professorship, and the eightieth year of
hls aSe' (t. s. t.I
JAMESTOWN, the capital and port of St Helena, is
situate at the mouth of James Valley, on the N.W. side
of the island. It contains several schools, and a military
and seaman s hospital. The latter is supported by a duty
° TfMTPcArJ0nTIevied^n eveiT vessel entering the port.
JAMIESON John, DD., author of the Etymological
Dictionary of the^ Scottish Language, was born in Glasgow
m 17o9. He took orders in the Secession Church, and was
for some years a minister in connection with that body in
Forfar. About the year 1795 he was translated to Edin-
cugc mm1'6 ? SPent the Iatter half of his long life, faith¬
fully fulfilling the duties of his office. From time to time
fie continued to publish essays on religious and theological
subjects. Among these were his Alarm to Great Britain •
or an Inquiry into the Causes of the rapid Progress of In¬
fidelity, 1 <95 ; Vindication of the Doctrine of Scripture
m reply to Dr Priestly’s History of Early Opinions ; The
Use of Sacred History, and some other works of this class
besides sermons. Far more valuable than any of these’
however, were his Etymological Dictionary of the Scottish
Language, 1808-9, by far the best work on that subject
that has ever appeared; and his Hermes Scythicus, 1814,
in which he tried to show the radical affinities of the Greek
and Latin languages to the Gothic. Dr Jamieson died at
Edinburgh in 1838.
JAMYN, Amadis, a celebrated French poet of the six¬
teenth century, was born about 1540 at Chaource, in Cham-
pagne. I rained under Dorat, Turnebus, and other great
scholars of that era, he early showed a great fondness for
literary pursuits. Ronsard, then the acknowledged cory¬
phaeus of French poetry, was pleased with his youthful effu¬
sions, and had him appointed secretary and reader to
Charles IX. On the death of this benefactor, Jamyn
quitted the court, and returned to his native town, where
he died about 1485. His (Euvres Poetiques were pub-
r - i ia.t ^ ar‘s ’n 1^75, and again in 1577. They are
divided into five books, and consist chiefly of amatory and
lyrical pieces, sonnets, elegies, and eclogues. He seems to
have taken Ins friend Ronsard as his model, and though he
does not equal him in fancy or passion, he is more true to
nature, and shows a finer taste. Besides his original works,
Jamyn published (Paris, 1574, and again in 1780 and 1784)
a translation of the last thirteen books of the Iliad, and of
the first three of the Odyssey, in Alexandrine verse. These
translations contain many beautiful lines and numerous
passages that happily recal the splendid thought and diction
of the Greek original; but they are sadly marred by bar¬
barous solecisms, giving the idea rather of a travestie than
a translation.
JANESVILLE, a town of the United States of North
America, capital of Rock county, in the state of Wisconsin,
situate on both sides of the River Rock, 45 miles S.E. of
nn ’ 1 ^ ™"rt'house occupies a prominent position
on the summit of the crags which overlook the town. A
plentiful supply of water from the river, and ample railroad
communication, are local advantages which give an increas¬
ing impetus to the trade and manufactures of the town.
Janesville was settled about 1836, became capital of the
686
JAN
Janizaries county in 1839, and was incorporated as a city in 1853.
II Pop. (1850) 3451 ; in 1853, estimated at 5000.
Jansen. JANIZARIES, or Janissakies. See Ottoman Army,
under Army. „ v v
JANSEN or Jansenius, Cornelius, bishop of Ypres,
and the author of the celebrated Augustinus, was born in
1585 at Acquoi, near Leerdam, in Holland. He studied
theology at Utrecht and Louvain, where he became ac¬
quainted with De Hauranne, afterwards Abbe of St Cyran.
After completing his studies with this friend at Paris, he
went with him to Bayonne, and there became the head of
a newly founded college. Returning in 1617 to Louvain,
he was made principal of the college of St Pulcheria. Two
years later, he graduated as doctor in theology. In 1630
he was made professor of the Holy Scriptures ; and in 1635,
bishop of Ypres. He only enjoyed his bishopric, however,
for about three years, being cut off by the plague, May 6,
1638. The works of Jansen published during his life were
chiefly polemical in their character, and did not attract
much notice. The most important of them, and that to
which he owed his mitre, was his Mars Gallicus. France
was at that time endeavouring to break the power of Spain
by alliances with Protestant states. The Spaniards, in their
turn, alarmed by the success of the French diplomacy, raised
the cry of heresy against the French, and Jansen, at the
request of the Spanish court, wrote the work in question
with the view of holding up to Catholic Eui'ope the dangers
that threatened the true faith were France allowed to pur¬
sue her policy unchecked.
Jansen died in the bosom of the Romish Church, and
was one of her most devoted champions ; but he left behind
him in MS. a work which was the means of damaging the
cause of that church very nearly as much as the Reforma¬
tion itself. This was the Augustinus Cornelii Jansenii,
published two years after his death by his literary executors
Fromond and Calen. The last twenty years of his life had
been spent on this self-imposed task. “ Ten times,” says
Sir James Stephen, “ he read over every word of the works
of St Augustine ; thirty times he studied all those passages
of them which relate to the Pelagian controversy. All the
fathers of the church were elaborately collated for passages
illustrative of the opinions of the bishop of Hippo. With
St Austin as his text and guide, Jansen proceeded to
establish, on the authority of that illustrious father, those
doctrines which in our times and country have been usually
distinguished by the terms Calvinistic or Evangelical. Heirs
of guilt and corruption, he considered the human race, and
each successive member of it, as lying in a state of con¬
demnation, and as advancing towards a state of punishment,
until an internal impulse from on high awakens one and
another to a sense of this awful truth, and infuses into them
a will to fly from impending vengeance. But this impulse
is imparted only to the few; and on them it is bestowed in
pursuance of a decree existing in the divine intelligence
before the creation of our species. Of the motives of their
preference, not even a conjecture can be formed. So far
as human knowledge extends, it is referable simply to the
divine volition, and is not dependent on any inherent moral
difference between the objects of it and those from whom
such mercy is withheld. This impulse, however, is not
irresistible. Within the limits of his powers, original or
imparted, man is a free agent—free to admit and free to re¬
ject the proffered aid. If rejected, it enhances his respon¬
sibility ; if admitted, it leads him, by continual accessions
of the same supernatural assistance, to an acquiescence in
those opinions, to the exercise of those affections, and to
the practice of those virtues which collectively form the
substance, of the Christian system.” The appearance of a
work putting forward such views as these threw the city of
Louvain into a ferment; but the harsh measures taken to
suppress the heresy only caused it to take deeper root and
JAN
spread its branches more widely. From Louvain it passed Jansen,
into France. Fiercely opposed, especially by the Jesuits,
it was as keenly defended by Jansen’s old friend St Cyran,
the young Arnauld, and with him the whole Port-Royal.
The theological faculty of Paris then took up the case, and
Cornet, the syndic of that body, named a commission to
select and report upon the offensive views in Jansen’s book,
and end the dispute by referring the whole affair to the
pope. The five following points were fixed upon—1. That
there are some of God’s commandments beyond the power
of even the best of men to obey, however anxious they may
be to do so, inasmuch as they have not yet received the
measure of grace necessary to an acceptable obedience.
2. That even in an unregenerate state man is incapable of
resisting inward grace. 3. That in the fallen state of nature,
merit and demerit do not depend on a liberty which ex¬
cludes necessity, but on a liberty which excludes constraint.
4. That the semi-Pelagians, while they admitted the neces¬
sity of an inward preventing grace for the performance of
each particular act, were yet heretical in maintaining that
this grace was of such a nature that the will of man was
able either to resist or obey it. 5. That it is semi-Pela-
gianism to say that Christ by his death atoned for the sins
of all mankind. After much intriguing and delay, the whole
affair was laid for judgment before the reigning pope, In¬
nocent X. In his bull of May 31, 1653, entitled Cum
Occasions, that pontiff pronounced the first four points
heretical, and the fifth rash, impious, and blasphemous.
This bull was accepted and promulgated in France and the
Netherlands with the royal consent. But it was far from
giving universal satisfaction, and the Jansenists, who now
counted in their ranks Pascal and Nicole with the whole
Port-Royal, began to oppose and expose the intrigues of
the Jesuits with all their might. Acknowledging that the
five propositions in question were rightly condemned by the
pope, they denied that they were to be found in the Augus¬
tinus in the sense in which they were condemned. Again
the Jesuits appealed to the sovereign pontiff, and Alexan¬
der VII., in his bull of Oct. 16, 1656, entitled Ad sacram,
declared that the five propositions were contained in Jan¬
sen’s book, and had been condemned by his predecessor in
the sense intended by their author. Not content with this
settlement of the question, Alexander sent into France a
formula embodying the substance of this bull, which all the
ecclesiastics of that country were called upon to sign, on
pain of suspension, and even excommunication. The whole
body of the French clergy, except four bishops, refused to
comply, and their obstinate resistance holds a conspicuous
place in the church annals of that era. It was proposed to
bring them to trial; but they had powerful friends at court
and in the parliament, and the idea fell to the ground.
Meanwhile the Port-Royalists, not content with a passive
resistance, carried the war into the enemy’s country. Besides
exposing the wide-spread corruption of the whole Romish
Church, they singled out the Jesuits as winking at, and even
openly promoting it, for their private ends. To counteract
the evil influence of this false priesthood, they wrote ad¬
mirable text-books on various branches of education, dis¬
seminated biblical knowledge, and by their own lives set the
example of a high and pure morality. The appearance of
the Provincial Letters embittered the controversy which
raged with unabated fury till the “ Peace of Clement IX.”
restored quiet to the church for a time. This pontiff de¬
clared himself satisfied if the bishops would subscribe them¬
selves, and make others subscribe, purely and simply, though
they expressly declared that they did not desire the same
submission for the fact but for the right. The liberal policy of
Innocent XL went far to restore general harmony. In 1698,
however, the smouldering fire again broke out into a fierce
and open flame. In that year appeared the Moral Observa¬
tions on the New Testament of Father Quesnel, then re-
JAN
Janssen garded as the head of the Jansenist party. Louis XIV.,
I! now a mere tool in the hands of the priests, showed at once
Janssens, orthodoxy and his piety by banishing Quesnel. A few
years later, he suppressed and destroyed the monastery of
the Port-Royal, and offered the most revolting indignities
to the ashes of its illustrious dead. The famous bull of
Clement XL, issued in 1713, and entitled “ Unigenitus,”
which condemned the 101 propositions of Quesnel’s work,
may be considered as having put an end to the controversy.
After this date, at least, it became mixed up with many
other questions, in which the original ground of dispute
was lost sight of and finally merged. (See Reuchlin’s
Geschichte von Port Royal; Dumas’ Histoire des Cinq
Propositions ; Sir James Stephen’s Ecclesiastical Biogra¬
phies, &c., &c.)
JANSSEN, Cornelius, an eminent portrait-painter, was
born at Amsterdam, though, in the Chronological Tables,
and in Sandart, it is asserted that he was born in London!
He resided for several years in England, where he was
engaged in the service of King James I., and painted several
excellent portraits of that monarch, as also of his children,
and of the principal nobility of his court. He had not the
freedom of hand nor the grace of Vandyck; but in other
respects he was accounted his equal, and in the finishing of
his pictures superior. His paintings are easily distinguished
by their smooth, clear, and delicate tints, and by that cha¬
racter of truth to nature with which they are strongly
marked. He generally painted on pannel; and his draperies
are for the most part black, probably because that tint threw
out his flesh colours more brightly than any other. His
pieces have retained their original lustre in a very rare de¬
gree. His fame began to be somewhat obscured on the
arrival of Vandyck in England; and when the civil war
broke out some time afterwards, he returned to his own
country, where his paintings were held in the highest esteem.
He died in 1665.
JANSSENS, Abraham, a contemporary of Rubens,
and regarded as in some respects his successful rival, was
born at Antwerp in 1569. He delighted in strong contrasts
of light and shade, and gratified this taste in his torchlight
and similar scenes. His subjects were generally chosen
with a view to setting off to the best advantage his powers
of colouring, which, in his day, were reckoned inferior to
those of Rubens alone. His flesh tints, in particular, were
very highly admired, and have retained their original lustre
with little change. Janssens was also a good draughtsman,
and had a fine eye for the composition of a picture. His
best pieces are still to be seen in the churches of Ghent,
Antwerp, and Dusseldorf.
Janssens, Victor Honorius, was born at Brussels, in
1664, and died in 1739. After an apprenticeship under
Volders he became painter to the Duke of Holstein, and
held that office for four years. He then migrated to Italy,
and, settling at Rome, devoted himself to the study of
Raphael and the antique, and revelled in the beautiful land¬
scape scenery on every side. His pieces soon rose in value,
and he obtained more commissions from the Roman nobility
than he was able to execute. He remained eleven years
at Rome, and during part of that time he worked in com¬
pany with the celebrated Tempesta, in whose landscapes
he used to paint the figures. His own walk was historical
painting, which he practised both on a large and small scale ;
but his smaller sizes were most appreciated. On returnino-
to Brussels he became as popular as he had been in Italy!
and he also found a market for historical pieces on a «reat
scale. His own taste, as well as his domestic circumstances,
led him to paint in this style for the remainder of his life.
He found it more lucrative, more easy, and more expedi¬
tious. His industry and rapidity of execution are amply
attested by the numerous pieces from his hand which adorn
many of the Flemish churches.
JAN 687
JANUARIES, St, or San Gennaro, the patron saint Januarius
of Naples, was bishop of Beneventum, and flourished about II
the close of the third century after Christ. The traditions 'iranus and
of the church assert that, having been condemned to death, __ Jana-
he was thrown to the lions in the amphitheatre of Puteoli.
The lions, instead of devouring him as had been expected,
laid themselves down in tame submission at his feet. This
miracle gained so many converts to Christianity, that Dio¬
cletian ordered the martyr to be beheaded. This cruel
sentence was executed in a.d. 305. The remains of the
saint were buried in Pozzuoli, but were removed, after a
few years, to Naples. In the ninth century, Sicon, Prince
of Beneventum, carried off the bones of the saint to Bene¬
ventum, of which city he had been bishop. In 1497 the
body was again taken to Naples, and buried with great pomp
in the cathedral. When the saint was martyred some of
his blood was collected in two phials, which are now kept
in the cathedral church. Twice a-year—in May and Sep¬
tember—this blood liquefies, and the recurrence of the
miracle is looked forward to with great joy by the people
of all ranks. On each occasion the liquefaction lasts for a
week, which is always spent by the Neapolitans in festivities
of every kind.
JANUARY, the opening month of the year, was intro¬
duced into the calendar by Numa, and by him consecrated
to Janus, from whom it received its name. As the god
Janus had two faces looking in opposite directions, so Ja¬
nuary, as the first month of the year, looked back upon the
past and forward upon the future. The consecration of the
month took place by an offering of meal, salt, frankincense,
and wine, each of which was new. On the first of this
month all enmities were suspended, presents were ex¬
changed, consuls installed, &c. See Calendar.
JANUS and JANA, in the Ancient Mythology, two
deities held in especial honour by the Romans. The names
themselves are derived from dies, light, or day; and their
original form was Dianus and Diana. Dianus was soon
coi rupted into J anus, and the analogy holds in the feminine
form, for though Diana remained unchanged, she was in¬
voked by the rustics in their prayers and hymns to the
new moon as “Jana novella.” Janus, as her brother,
seems to have been the same with Sol; and though special
honours were at first paid to each as a distinct deity, their
rites were finally merged into a common worship. It is
probable that the Romans borrowed their idea of Janus from
the Tuscans, among whom a similar god was worshipped
from a very remote period. He presided over the be¬
ginnings of things, and hence Horace invokes him in the
following strain :—•
“ Matutine pater, seu Jane libentius audis,
Unde homines operum primos vitaeque labores
Instituunt.”
So much importance did the Romans attach to success¬
ful beginnings, that when any civil or military undertaking
failed at the outset, they often began it anew. In honour
of him Numa called the first month of the year Januarius;
and as he both looked back upon the past, and forward to the
new year, he was always represented with a two-faced
head. As the presiding god of the seasons his statue had
four heads, his temples were built with four equal sides
but only one entrance, and his common designation was
“ quadrifrons.” As the patron of gates {januce), he is
provided with a key in his left hand, and a staff in his right.
These insignia symbolized his power as the janitor of
heaven, whence he was called Patulcius, the opener, and
Clusius,. the closer. Indeed, all his attributes, numerous
and varied as they seem, have reference to the idea of
opening and shutting, and, regarding Janus as identical with
Sol, symbolize the vivifying influences of his beams on the
fruits of the soil and the operations of nature. The great
688
Japan.
JAP
JAP
temple of this divinity at Rome was that of Janus Quirinus,
of which the gates were kept open in times of war, and only
closed when the state enjoyed universal peace. During
the republic these gates were only once shut, at the end ot
the first Punic War, B.c. 241. In the reign of Augustus Japan.,
they were closed three times—first, after the battle of ^ y
Actium, b.c. 29; a second time after the Cantabrian War,
B.c. 24; about the third time authors are not agreed.
JAPAN.
Situation. Tiie empire of Japan consists of a chain of islands lying
off the eastern coast of continental Asia, and extending
S.E. and N.W. between N. Lat. 31. and 48., and E. Long.
129. and 150. Inclosed between this chain of islands and
the opposite coasts of Corea and Manchu Tartary, is the
Sea of Japan, which communicates by means of straits with
the Chinese Sea on the S., the Pacific Ocean on the E.,
and the Sea of Okhotsk on the N. To the E. Japan has
no nearer land than California, 5000 miles off; the nearest
part of China is about 420 miles, and of Kamtschatka 270
Name. miles distant. The term Japan is probably a corruption
of the Chinese name, Jih-pun-quo,—i.e., Kingdom of the
Source of the Sun, or Eastern Kingdom. Marco Polo, who
was the first to bring intelligence of this country to Europe,
and who acquired his information in China, calls it Zi-
pangu. The Japanese name is Nipon, or Nifon,—Sun-
source.
General The empire is divided into Japan proper,— consisting
descrip- 0f t}le three large islands of Nipon, Kiu-siu, and Sitkokf,
tion. an(j the numerous small islands. Nipon, the largest and
most important of the group, and that which gives name to
the whole empire, has an estimated area of 100,000 square
miles; its length being more than 900 miles, while its
average breadth exceeds 100. It is thus about one-fifth
part larger than Great Britain. Its form is that of a curve
or crescent, with the concave side towards the mainland.
S. of Nipon, and separated from it by a narrow channel, is
the island of Kiu-siu, or Ximo, about 200 miles in length
and about 80 in average breadth, thus containing an area
of about 16,000 square miles. Lying N.E. of Kiu-siu, and
eastward of the southern extremity of Nipon, is the island
of Sitkokf, or Sikoko, about 150 miles in length by 70 in
average breadth. It is separated from Nipon by a long
strait in some parts not more than a mile in width; and
from Kiu-siu by Bungo Channel, which is about 30 miles
broad. N. of Nipon, and separated from it by the Sangar
Straits, is the large island of Yesso, a conquest and colony
of the empire. Its form is that of an irregular triangle,
and its area is computed at 30,000 square miles. The
southern portion of the island of Krafto, or Sagalien,
which is separated from Yesso by the Strait of Perouse, and
the three southernmost of the Kurile Islands—Kunashir,
Iturup, and Ourop—belong to Japan.
The small islands which surround these are generally
rocky and barren, but occasionally rich and fruitful. The
entire number of islands composing the empire of Japan is
estimated at above 1000, and the area of the whole empire
at not less than 170,000 square miles. The coasts are diffi¬
cult of access, not only from the multitude of rocks and
islets which beset the passages, but also from the severe
gales which, more than in any other part of the ocean,
agitate these narrow seas. Several dangerous whirlpools
also occur among the rocks. Kaempfer remarks, that nature
seems to have designed these islands to be a sort of little
world, secluded and independent from the rest, as well by
rendering it dangerous to approach their shores, as by
endowing them plentifully with everything necessary for
luxury and comfort, and thus enabling them to subsist
without any commerce with other nations. The Japanese
policy, which rigidly forbids all intercourse with strangers,
in other circuinstances impracticable, has been greatly faci-
litated by the interposition of these natural barriers.
The climate of Japan must vary considerably between Climate,
its southern and northern extremities; but, except at a few
points, we possess very little information on the subject.
In the southern part of the empire, it is said in many re¬
spects to resemble that of England. At Nagasaki, in the
island of Kiu-siu, Lat. 33., the average temperature in the
month of January was 35°, and in August 98°, of Fahr.
At this point the weather is very changeable. Rain is fre¬
quent at all seasons of the year, but especially in the
months of July and August. In December and January
the ground is covered with hoar frost, and occasionally with
snow, except in very mild winters. In summer the land is
cooled by the sea-breeze which blows from the S. during
the day, and from the E. at night. At Simoda, on the
island of Nipon, in N. Lat. 34. 39. 49., E. Long. 138. 57.
50., we learn, from the account of the American expedition
(1852-54), that “ the climate is more or less variable in the
winter and spring. The presence of snow upon the lofty
peaks, although there is seldom frost or snow at Simoda
itself, and the not unfrequent rains, with the ever necessary
fogs, give an occasional humidity and rareness to the at¬
mosphere, which are chilling to the senses, and must be
productive of occasional inflammatory diseases, such as are
frequent in the spring and winter with us. The change of
wind alternates often between the warm sea-breezes from
the S., and the cold blasts from the snow-capped mountains
inland, and produces the usual effects, doubtless, of such
variations. In summer it is occasionally very hot in the
day-time, but the nights are refreshed by the sea-breezes.
From April 19 to May 13, a record of the thermometer
gives 72° as the highest, and 58° as the lowest point; and
of the barometer, 290,38 and 30°. As the season advances
the mercury rises, no doubt, much higher, reaching pro¬
bably 85° of Fahr., or more.” Golownin, a Russian naval
officer, who was for two years a prisoner at Hakodadi in
Yesso (N. Lat. 41. 49., E. Long. 140. 47.), describes its
climate as follows:—“The ponds and lakes freeze, snow
lies in the valleys and plains from November till April, and
falls in as great abundance as at St Petersburg. Severe
frosts are indeed uncommon, yet the temperature is often
two degrees below the freezing point. In summer the rain
pours in torrents at least twice a-week, the horizon is ob¬
scured by dark clouds, violent winds blow, and the fog is
scarcely ever dispersed. Apples, pears, and peaches hardly
attain ripeness, and the orange and lemon will not bear
fruit.” Of the climate of the still more northern part of the
empire we have no precise account; but the same writer
informs us that on the coast of Sagalien, which is but little
farther N. than Paris, the sea is not clear of ice so early
as the Gulf of Finland. Fogs are also, as might be ex¬
pected, very prevalent in Japan, and thunder-storms are
frequent.
The surface of the principal islands is in general very Surface,
irregular, though in the interior some plains of considerable
extent occur. In many places hills descend close to the
sea shore, or leave only a narrow strip of land between the
water and their bases. The highest mountain is said to be
Fusi, an extinct volcano, on the island of Nipon, westward
of the bay of Yeddo. Its summit is clad in perpetual snow,
thus indicating a height of not less than 12,000 feet above
the level of the sea. Several mountains of considerable
elevation are seen to rise in the northern part of Nipon, in
Japan
Volcanoes
and earth,
quakes.
Rivers.
Geology.
Yesso, and in Sagalien, and some of them are active vol¬
canoes. Besides the outbursts of frequent volcanic erup¬
tions, no country is more frequently visited by destruc¬
tive earthquakes. Kaempfer enumerates six active volcanic
mountains. “ Earthquakes,” says he, “ are so frequent that
the natives regard them no more than Europeans do ordi¬
nary storms.” In I086 a succession of earthquakes took
place and lasted for forty days, causing the destruction of
the best part of the city of Yeddo, and the death it is al-
leged, of 200,000 of its inhabitants.’ In 1783 the ’emption
of a volcano in the island of Kiu-siu, accompanied by vio¬
lent earthquakes, destroyed in a single province twenty-
seven villages. Another volcanic eruption took place in
the same island in 1793, accompanied by earthquakes which
continued from March to June, and caused, according to
official returns, the death of 53,000 persons, with a propor¬
tional destruction of property. On 23d December 1854
an earthquake occurred which was felt on the whole coast!
Of the town of Simoda only a few temples and private edi¬
fices, that stood on elevated spots, escaped destruction.
ie fine city of Osaca, on the south-eastern side of Nipon
was completely destroyed, and the capital Yeddo did not
escape without injury. On 10th November 1855, an earth-
mrwwf ,Yefr° 18 Sa,Ki t0 have caused the destruction of
100,000 dwellings and 54 temples, and the death of 30 000
persons. ’
The rivers are numerous, but short, shallow, and rapid.
1 hey are not navigable for vessels of burden, but some of
them may be ascended by small boats for some miles from
the sea. 4 he principal lake of Japan is that of Oitz, in the
southern part of the island of Nipon. It is about 60 miles
in length, but of inconsiderable breadth.
Little is at present known of the geological formation of
the Japanese islands. The volcanic formation appears to
prevail, but by no means to the exclusion of the plutonic and
sedimentary. The useful mineral products, so far as yet
known are gold silver, copper, quicksilver, tin, lead, iron,
coal, sulphur, and salt. With the exception of tin and iron
these seem to be all very abundant. The gold is found in
many parts of the empire, sometimes as ore, and sometimes
from the washings of the earth or sand. Silver is equally
plentiful with gold, and it is probable that the quantity of
these metals annually exported from the country, when the
trade was open, amounted in value to a million and a half
sterling. Copper abounds through the whole group, and
sometimes of a quality not to be surpassed by any in the
world. The natives refine it, and cast it into cylinders about
a foot long and an inch thick. A specimen analyzed by
Dr Percy gave 0*13 per cent, of nickel, 0‘03 per cent, of
iron, and extremely minute traces of tin and gold. The
coarser kinds they cast into round lumps or cakes. Iron ore
rich enough for the purpose of smelting appears to be con¬
fined to three provinces, and the metal is consequently dear.
Iron,” says Kmmpfer, “ is much of a price with copper
iron tools being full as dear, or rather dearer, than those of
copper or brass.” The same is stated with respect to the
proportional value of iron and copper by Golownin. Lead
and quicksilver are said to be abundant, but they have never
been articles of export. Tin has been discovered in small
quantities, and of a quality so fine and white that it almost
equals silver; but of the extent to which it may be pro¬
cured little is known, as the Japanese do not attach much
value to it. Zinc, according to Kaempfer, is not produced
in Japan, and in his time calamine used to be imported from
1 onquin for the manufacture of brass wares. Zinc how¬
ever, is expressly stated by the governor-general Baron Van
f mhoff to be an article of export as well as brass. This was
fifty years after Kaempfer’s time. Sulphur, as might be
expected in a region so volcanic, is very abundant. In
some places it lies in broad deep beds, and may be dug up
and removed with as much ease as sand. A considerable
VOL. XIT.
JAPAN.
revenue is derived by the government from this source.
Coal appears to be found in many parts of the country, and
is used for fuel. Siebold speaks of it as being in com¬
mon use throughout the country, and on visiting one of the
mines he saw enough to convince him that it was skilfully
worked. Being bituminous, it is for domestic purposes
generally converted into coke. Rock-salt seems to exist
in some parts of the country, but does not appear to be
much used, the culinary salt in use being made from sea
water by an unskilful and expensive process. By saturat¬
ing masses of sand with sea water in the sun a strong lye
is obtained, which is afterwards boiled in earthen vessels,
and yields an expensive and impure muriate of soda. No
diamonds have been found, but agates, carnelians, and jas¬
pers are met with, some of them of great beauty. Pearls
frequently of great size and beauty, are fished up on nearly
all parts of the coast.
I he vegetable productions of Japan are, for the most Vegetable
part, those common to temperate regions. Timber is, hew- produc-
ever, so scarce that no one is permitted to cut down a tree tions’
without permission from the magistrate, and only on condi¬
tion of planting a young one in its stead. The most com¬
mon forest trees are the fir and cedar—the latter growino- to
an immense size, being sometimes more than 18 feet& in
lameter. In the northern parts of the empire two species
of oak are found which differ from those of Europe. The
acorns of one kind are boiled and eaten for food and are
said to be both palatable and nutritious. The mulberry
grows wild in great abundance, and the varnish tree (rhus
vermx) abounds in many districts. In the S. the bamboo
cane, though a tropical plant, is found either in the wild or
cultivated state, and is largely used in the manufactories.
1 he camphor tree is of great value here, and lives to a great
age. feiebold visited one which Kaempfer had described as
having been seen by him 135 years before. It was healthy,
and covered with foliage, and had a circumference of 50
teet. 1 he country people make the camphor from a decoc¬
tion of the root and stems cut into small pieces. Chestnut
and walnut trees are both found. Among the fruit trees
are the orange, lemon, fig, plum, cherry, and apricot.
^ xtensive cultivation leaves no room for wild animals; Animals
and tame animals not being used for food, are not multi-
phed beyond the felt necessity for their use. The horses
are small, but hardy, active, and of good bottom. William
Adams, an English mariner of the time of James I. de¬
scribes them as “not tall, but of the size of our middling
nags short and well trust, small headed, and very full of
metal, m my opinion far excelling the Spanish jennet in
pude and stomach.” Oxen and cows are only used in
ploughing and carriage, milk or butter not being used as
articles of food. Buffaloes of an extraordinary size, with
hunches on their backs, like camels, are used to draw carts
and carry heavy goods on their backs. Sheep and goats
were formerly kept at Firando by the Dutch and Portu¬
guese, and might be bred in the country to great advan¬
tage if the natives were permitted to eat their flesh, or
knew how to manufacture their wool. They have a few
swine, kept chiefly for trading with the Chinese, among
whom they are in great demand. Dogs are to be found in
large numbers in the half domesticated state in w hich thev
generally exist in the East. This is not true, how-ever, of
one species, resembling somewhat an English spaniel, which
is considered so valuable as to form part of every royal
Japanese present. It is conjectured that the English Variety
may have sprung from some presented by the emperor
to the king of England. The wild animals are bears, wild
boars, foxes, monkeys, deer, and hares. Rats and mice
are very common, as well as two small species of weasel or
lchneumon, which live, half tame, under the eaves of houses.
Wdd fowl are very abundant, consisting chiefly of geese
and ducks, which migrate in great numbers to the shores
4 s
L
690
JAPAN.
" ~ be foun‘’ Th re are two species of pheasant, and one of
neacock' peculiar h)^Tapan. PDomestic poultry are kept by
peacock, pecu r ornament or amnsement.
J6 na'r«het7tma«e «f large size, and, along with the
fn°sect tribes, are dreaded for their deadly and destructive
Japan.
P0The shallow bays and creeks around the islands swarm
with shoals of fish, which, indeed, constitute neaily the
whole animal food of the Japanese, and furn'sh *em
tifullv with oil for domestic purposes. In their coarse
S/the intestines of the whale, and even the refi.se ot
blubber, are considered good enough for food, Jd-
panese are the boldest and most expert of all Asiatic fisher¬
men. Their fishing voyages extend to the rigorous seas of
Sagalien and the Kuriles in pursuit of herring, with which
they manure their cotton fields. They are the only Asiatic
people that pursue the whale. The women are said to be
expert divers for shell-fish, with which the shores of Japan
abound. . . i
Natives. The Japanese are described as an active, vigorous people,
of the middling size, and in their bodily and mental powers
more closely assimilated to Europeans than Asiatics. I he
common people, according to Thunberg, are of a yel ow
colour, which sometimes borders on brown, and sometimes
on white. The labouring classes, from the exposure ot
the upper parts of their bodies in summer, have their na¬
turally fair complexion deepened into brown. Their dark
brown eyes are oblong, small, and sunk deep in the head.
The eye-lids forming a deep furrow gives them the ap¬
pearance of being keen-sighted. Their heads are large,
and their necks short, their hair black and glossy with oil.
Their noses, without being flat, are yet rather thick and
short. Dr Ainslie gives a somewhat different account ot
their complexion. He represents them as perfectly fair,
and indeed blooming, though this seems to apply chiefly
to the women. Thunberg also mentions that the descend¬
ants of the oldest and noblest families of the princes
and lords of the empire are somewhat majestic in their
shape and countenance, being more like Europeans; and
that ladies of distinction, who seldom go out in the open
air without being covered, are perfectly white. Sie-
bold, speaking of the inhabitants of Kiu-siu, corroborates
this view, and says that u the women who protected them¬
selves from the influence of the atmosphere have generally
a fine and white skin, and the cheeks of the young girls
display a blooming carnation.” The married women of Ja-
pan dye their teeth black, by means of a corrosive composi¬
tion, so powerful that by mere touch it burns the flesh into
a purple gangrenous spot, and in spite ot the utmost care
in its application, invariably taints the gums, destroying their
ruddy colour and vitality. “The Japanese women, always ex¬
cepting the disgusting black teeth of those who are married,
are not ill-looking. The young girls are well formed, and
rather pretty, and have much of that vivacity and self-reli¬
ance in manners which come from a consciousness of dig¬
nity, derived from the comparatively high regard in which
they are held. In the ordinary mutual intercourse of
friends and families the women have their share, and rounds
of visiting and tea-parties are kept up as briskly in Japan
as in the United States” {American Expedition).
Origin of Superficial observation led to the belief that Japan was
race and colonized by the Chinese; but a more accurate knowledge
language. 0f the physical characteristics and language of the people has
rendered this opinion untenable. Indeed, the Japanese
themselves consider it a high disgrace to be compared with
the Chinese. Dr Ainslie states that the only occasion on
which he saw a Japanese surprised into a passion, and, for¬
getting his habitual politeness, lay his hand on his sword,
was on a comparison being made between the two nations.
The structure of the languages of the two countries is
essentially different, that of Japan being polysyllabic, while
all the dialects of the Chinese are monosyllabic. It is true
that, like the Latin in Europe during the middle ages, the
Mandarin dialect of the Chinese is in use among the learned
here, as in Corea, Tonquin, and elsewhere ; and hence
many Chinese words have been introduced into the Ja¬
panese ; but the introduction of these only makes the struc¬
tural difference the more strikingly apparent. The Yomi, or
primitive language of Japan, is used in poetry and works of
light literature. The Koye, or Chinese language, slightly
varied in pronunciation, is employed by the bonzes ox priests
in their religious books. The vulgar language of the
country is a mixture of the tw7o. Close affinities have not
been traced between the Yomi of Japan and any other
Asiatic language. By some, at least, it is thought to be
most analogous to the languages of the I artar race, to
which, in spite of diversity in physical characteristics, it is
now most commonly believed that the Japanese belong.
In regard to the population of Japan, all our information Popula-
rests merely on conjecture. Some authorities estimate ittl0n>
at not more than 10,000,000, while others make it more
than four or five times that amount. All travellers who
have visited the country bear testimony to the populousness
of the parts visited by them. 1 has, Ksempfer, who passed
four times over that part of the country between Nagasaki
and Yeddo, says,—“ The country is populous beyond ex¬
pression, and one would scarce think it possible that, being
not greater than it is, it should nevertheless maintain and
support such a vast number of inhabitants. 1 he highways
are an almost continued row of villages and burghs. \ ou
scarce come out of one but you enter another; and you
may travel many miles, as it were, in one street without
knowing it to be composed of different villages but by the
different names that were formerly given them, and which
they afterwards retain though joined to one another. It
has many towns, the chief whereof may vie with the most
considerable in the world for largeness, magnificence, and
the number of inhabitants.” William Adams, writing eighty
years before Ksempfer, speaks in the same strain in re¬
ference to the same district. These accounts, however, refer
chiefly to the island of Kiu-siu and the southern part ot
Nipon, and even of these only to the highway from Naga¬
saki to Yeddo, doubtless the most thickly peopled part of
the empire. Of the island of Sitkokf, the northern part o
Nipon, and of Yesso, we know little or nothing; but, as the
two last are in many parts composed of rugged mountains,
and have a less genial climate, we may conclude that they
are less densely populated than Kiu-siu or the S. of Nipon.
Sagalien and the Kuriles, with their rugged mountains and
bleak climate, cannot be other than thinly peopled. I al<ing
the average between the populations of Bengal and Madias,
—countries which, in nearly the same latitudes, when ta 'en
together combine the principal features of the Japanese
territory,—we obtain the datum of 225 persons to the square
mile as an exceedingly probable basis for calculating t e
population of Japan. This, in round numbers, would give
the population of the four principal Japanese islands as
39,900,000. Taking the average all over China, according
to the last census of 1812, as the basis of calculation, which
gives 268 to the square mile, we would have a Japanese
population of 42,000,000. The checks to this exuberant
population are infanticide (which, although prohibite y
law, is openly practised), and public prostitution, w ic is
legalized. Pestilences and occasional famines have pe
riodically thinned a country wholly dependent on its own
soil, which was populous two centuries and a half ago, an
having enjoyed an uninterrupted peace for moie turn
years, cannot well be less populous now. 0
The Japanese are divided into classes, whic i are a ^
hereditary ; a state of society that bears a close resemblance
Japan
Govern¬
ment.
to that of the Hindus, while it differs widely from that of
the Chinese. These classes, exclusive of the imperial
families, are,—1^, The hereditary vassal princes of the em¬
pire ; 2d, The hereditary nobility, who hold their lands as
fiefs subject to render knight or military service to some
one of the hereditary princes; 3d, The priests; 4iA, The mili¬
ary or soldiers of the nobility ; 5M, The professional class,
it St1! 10r officifls’1 medical practitioners, and the
traders -SS^lTS-16 C T’ comPrisinS aI1 merchants and
Ji jt ’ Jff’ ..K artlZan class> including all crafts; and,
8^, Unskilled labourers, including peasants, fishermen, and
°^S" 70 thls. laf class belongs the great mass of the
people, who are, in fact, in a condition of villeinage, and in
so far as they are rural labourers, mere occupants, or at best
metayers To these may be added a pariah class, con-
sisting of all persons dealing in leather, skins, and peltry,
and who, from their constant contact with dead animal
matter, are deemed in a state of perpetual pollution. They
are not permitted to dwell among the rest of the peopte
but must live in villages by themselves. They daPre not
ZZZT" a7nn’teahouse> or any place of public enter¬
tainment ; and no Japanese not of their own class would
fond F V86 a VeSS;d °Ut °f Which they had taken
Th ’ thef1 are ,taken tbe jailors and executioners.
f°fiJuC a/SeS have the Privilege of wearing two
swoids, the fifth of wearing one, and all the five of wearing
a particular kind of trowsers forbidden to the rest Al
though the ranks of each are closed against the others, it
does not appear that the line of class-separation is always
impassable. 1 he most illustrious of all the secular emperors
who reigned towards the end of the sixteenth century, rose
to the throne from being a hewer and carrier of wood, by
mere force of superior endowment. J
The form of government in Japan resembles, in no small
degree, the feudal system of mediaeval Europe. The sove¬
reign power is lodged in a supreme ruler, but the greater
part of the country ,s subject to vassal princes, who pay tri¬
bute or render military service to the lord paramount. Not
only every institution, but nearly every office is hereditary,
descending from father to son. According to Japanese his¬
tory, a single race of sovereigns, reputed to be descended
from the gods governed the empire for eighteen hundred
years to a.d. 1195, when the then commander of the army
while engaged m suppressing a rebellion, usurped the greater
part of the secular power, leaving to the lawfid sovereign little
more than the spiritual. Hence arose the singular govern¬
ment which still exists, consisting of two sovereigns, the
one invested with the whole secular power, the other only
with the ecclesiastical The spiritual sovereign is known
by the name of the Mikado, and his court by that of Bairi.
1 he actual sovereign goes usually by the name of Siogun,
but is also called the Kubo Sama, i.e.. Lord Kubo the
name or title of the original usurper. Both princes ’have
their separate courts and capitals, the spiritual chief resid¬
ing m Miako, the temporal in Yeddo. The Mikado, though
nominally supreme, has not a particle of temporal power,
being literally, from birth to death, shut up at Miako, in his
httle principality of Kioto, with the revenues of which and
the presents sent him by the Siogun, he must be content
Even the government in his own principality is in the hands
of some grandee of his court, so that there never lived a
sovereign having less of the attributes of sovereignty. He
is visited with great pomp, once in seven years, by the
Siogun Whatever may have, at one time, been the power
of the Siogun, it is certain that it is now very much cir¬
cumscribed ; indeed he is as much subject to laws as the
meanest of his subjects. The real power of the empire is
chiefly vested in the grand council of thirteen members
five belonging to the first class of society, the hereditary
vassal princes, and the remaining eight to the second class!
the nobility below the rank of princes. The chief or
japan.
president of this council has the title of “ Governor of the
Empire, and in him is vested the supreme power. He
decides upon all affairs of moment, appoints to the various
offices, and receives returns from all the authorities of the
empire. His office appears to be hereditary. The grand
council has even the power of dethroning the emperor,
mportant resolutions of the council are always laid before
mm, and he generally assents without investigation or de-
ay; but, should he not at once grant his assent, or disap¬
prove of a measure, it is immediately referred to the arbi-
tration of the three princes of royal blood most nearly
related to the Siogun, and their decision is final. If they
differ in opinion from the monarch, he must instantly re-
inquish the throne to his son, or some other heir, without
even the power to retract. If, on the contrary, they agree
with him, the member of council who proposed the rejected
measure must die, and not unfrequently all who supported
has thus sometimes happened that the whole
council, with the governor of the empire at their head, have
been obliged to atone by suicide for a mistake in national
policy. I lie vassal princes still exercise a kind of sove-
leign power within their own territories. Formerly the
kingdom was subdivided into sixty-six or sixty-eight pJinci-
pahties, which had previously formed indepemlent king¬
doms, and continued as principalities, under the rule of their
respective princes, subject however to forfeiture in the case
of rebellion or treason. This penalty of forfeiture having
een incurred by many of the reigning princes, advantage
was taken of the circumstance to split the forfeited princi¬
palities into fragments ; so that, instead of the original num¬
ber there are now no less than six hundred and four dis¬
tinct administrations, including principalities, lordships, im¬
perial provinces, and imperial towns, of which last the Sio¬
gun himself is the ruling head. The chief danger to the
empire lies in these princes, and, accordingly, strange and
harassing means are employed to restrain their power.
Iheir families are kept at court as hostages, and they them-
Ve®,are ol)^ged to pass half the year, or every alternate
yeai there, while they are kept poor by the large contingents
of troops which they are compelled to furnish. They are
allowed to exercise scarcely any function of administration,
that is not merely ceremonial, the real administration be¬
ing conducted by deputies appointed by the imperial council,
two for each province. To secure the fidelity even of these
their families must constantly reside at Yeddo the capital
w a e they themselves reside alternately at the capital and
m the province. Besides these, the princes are continually
surrounded by numerous private spies, who, unknown to
them, watch their domestic as well as their public proceed¬
ings In fact, me emperors, the governor of the empire,
grand councillors, vassal princes, down even to the humblest
citizens, all are under the eye of a secret police. Every
city or town is divided into groups of five families, and
every member is held personally responsible for the con-
duct of the whole. Everything, therefore, that occurs in one
of these families, out of the usual course, is instantly re¬
ported to the authorities by the other four to save them¬
selves from censure Such are the means by which an ex¬
tensive but essentially feeble empire is held together and
hence arises the unalterable character of the laws and cus¬
toms. A governor, a lord, or prince knows that if he at¬
tempt any alteration whatever, he will be instantly de-
nounced by his colleague or secretary as a violator of the
established usages of the empire, and the punishment of his
crime is death. I he same fear of the same inevitable doom
gree^f change m°n |,e0ple fl'°m m°0ting the s]i«htest (le-
sen^ThCnt |na"",:'lly fran.l<’ ani) Possessed of a high Character
sense of honour, have become in public life cunning, trea-of Japan-
cherous, and mean. “ The men of all classes were exceed- ese. "
mg y courteous, and although inquisitive about strangers,
691
Japan.
692
Japan.
JAPAN.
never became offensively intrusive. The lower people were
evidently in great dread of their superiors, and were more re-
:i™d in tlieir presence than they fu*7.
had been left to their natural instincts. 1 he rigit exclusive
ness in regard to foreigners is a law merely enacted by the go¬
vernment from motives of policy, and not a sentiment of the
Japanese people. Their habits are social among themselves,
and they frequently intermingle in friendly intercourse.
‘‘ The Japanese,” says Kaimpfer “ are very industrious and
inured to hardships. Very little will satisfy them. Ihey
generally live on plants and roots, tortoises, shell-hsh, sea¬
weeds, and the like. Water is their common drink. I hey
go bare-headed and bare-legged. They wear no shirts;
they have no soft pillows to lay their heads on, but sleep on
the ground, laying their heads, instead of a pillow, on a piece
of wood or on a wooden box somewhat depressed in t le
middle. They can pass whole nights without sleeping, and
suffer all manner of hardships.” The following apparently
very correct picture of this people is given by an anony¬
mous writer of the reign of Elizabeth. “ 1 he inhabitants
show a notable wit and an incredible patience in suffering,
labour, and sorrows. They take great and diligent care
lest either in word or deed they should show their fear or
dullness of mind, and lest they should make any man (who¬
soever he be) partaker of their troubles and wants. 1 hey
covet exceedingly honour and praise ; and poverty wft'1
them bringeth no damage to nobility of birth. Ihey suffer
not the least injury in the world to pass unrevenged, b or
gravity and courtesy they give not place to the Spaniards.
They are generally affable and full of compliments. They
are very punctual in the entertainment of strangers, of whom
they will curiously inquire even trifles of foreign people, as
of their manners, and such like things. 1 hey will as soon
lose a limb as omit one ceremony in welcoming a friend.
They use to give and receive the cup at one and the other s
hands, and before the master of the house begins to
drink, he will proffer the cup to every one of his guests,
making show to have them begin. Fish, roots, and rice are
their common junkets; and if they chance to kill a hen,
duck, or pig, which is but seldom, they will not like churls
eat it alone, but their friends will be partakers of it. Al¬
though essentially an abstemious and sober people, they
are not averse occasionally to strong potations.” “ The
common people,” says Golownin, “ are fond of them, and
frequently drink to excess on holidays, but the vice of
drunkenness is far less common than in Europe,” oman
here occupies a higher position than in any other Asiatic
country. “There is one feature in the society of Japan
by which the superiority of the people to all other oriental
nations is clearly manifest. Woman is recognised as a com¬
panion, and not merely treated as a slave. Her position is
certainly not as elevated as in those countries under the in¬
fluence of the Christian dispensation; but the mother, wife,
and daughter of Japan are neither the chattels and house¬
hold drudges of China, nor the purchased objects of the
capricious lust of the harems of Turkey. The fact of the
non-existence of polygamy is a distinctive feature which
pre-eminently characterizes the Japanese as the most moral
and refined of all eastern nations. The absence of this
degrading practice shows itself not only in the superior cha¬
racter of the women, but in the natural consequence of the
greater prevalence of the domestic virtues.”2 Concubinage,
however, is common; and prostitution prevails to a very great
extent. “ Public bagnios,” says Golownin, “ are licenced and
open from sun-set to sun-rise ; their keepers ranking with
merchants (entitled to wear one sw ord and the distinguishing
trousers). One of the temples of Venus at Yeddo is as
magnificent as a prince’s palace, and contains six hundred
priestesses.” It would appear, however, that there is some¬
thing like moral revenge on the keepers of these establish¬
ments at their death. “Although,” continues Golownin
“ the keepers of bagnios are publicly licensed, they are held ^
infamous, and when they die, denied any other funeral than
a dunghill, to be devoured by dogs. A bridle of straw is
put in their mouths, and their bodies dragged thus through
the streets to be left on the dung-heaps.” Capt. Saris had
given the very same account two hundred years before. rI he
women of the lower orders are frequently seen engaged in
field labour, and employments wFich in other countries are
considered to belong specially to the stronger sex, showing
the general industry, and the necessity of keeping every
hand employed in this populous empire. “ All along this
coast,” says old Adams, “ and up to Ozaca, we found women
divers that lived with their household and family in boats,
as in Holland they do the like. These women would
catch fish by diving, which by net and lines they missed,
and that in eight fathoms depth. Their eyes, by continual
diving, do grow as red as blood, whereby you may know a
diving woman from all other women.”
The Japanese are distinguished for their neat, clean, and
orderly habits. “ They are,” says Ksempfer, “ very nice
in keeping themselves, their cloths, and houses, clean and
neat.” The bath is in frequent use, their inns and houses
of consideration being furnished with cold, hot, and vapour
baths. Their highways are good, and swept with as much
nicety as the street of a well-regulated European town.
The distances are marked by posts, and where practicable
the rivers crossed by bridges. Along the roads are numer¬
ous inns for the accommodation of travellers. Adams, on
one occasion, accompanied the prince of Firando to the
capital, who had with him a train of 3000 persons, and he
thus describes the hospitalities of their march. “ Such good
order was taken for the passing and providing for of these
3000 soldiers, that no man either travelling or inhabiting
upon the way where they lodged was any way injured by
them, but chiefly entertained them as their other guests,
because they paid for what they took, as all other men did.
Every town and village upon the way being well fitted with
cooks and victualling houses where they might at an instant
have what they needed, and diet themselves from a penny
English a meal to two shillings a meal.”
The Japanese at one time enjoyed a high reputation
among eastern nations for courage and military prowess.
This, however, is no longer the case, and we suspect they
will be found an essentially feeble and pusillanimous people.
According to Golownin, they are deficient in courage, and
in the art of war mere children. This can scarcely fail to
be the case with a people who, by all accounts, have en¬
joyed peace external and internal for more than two cen¬
turies. A courageous and patient endurance of pain and
suffering, and even a contempt of death, we know to be
quite consistent with a lack of active aggressive courage.
Of the Japanese army little is known, except that it is
very numerous, and that the military, like every other class,
is hereditary. The officers and commanders, however, do
not belong to the military order, but are princes and nobles,
from which we may infer that the spirit and discipline of
the Japanese army are not of a high order. The army con¬
sists of two classes, the soldiery of the emperor, and that
of the vassal princes, the former being considered the better
organized. Both consist of infantry and cavalry, armed
with swords, lances, and the bow and arrow, and occasionally
with the matchlock.
The Japanese laws are very short and intelligible, ant
the proceedings under them are as simple as the laws them¬
selves. There are no professional lawyers, every man be¬
ing deemed competent to plead his own cause. If a patty
is aggrieved, he appeals to the magistrate, who summons
the other party before him. The case is then stated by
the comnlainant in his own wav, and the accused is heat
Japan.
Army.
Laws,
Account of American Expedition to Japan.
2 Ibid.
JAPAN.
693
Japan. ,n reply. The magistrate examines witnesses, and is said
frequently to display great acuteness in the detection of
falsehood. He passes sentence, from which there is no
appeal, and it is carried into execution instanter. It the
matter in dispute be of great importance, the magistrate
may refer it to the emperor in council. Sometimes in
trifling cases he orders the parties to go and settle the mat¬
ter privately with the aid of their friends, and it is well un¬
derstood that the matter must be so settled, or unpleasant
consequences will result.
Iheie is no country in which human life seems to be
less valued than in Japan, whether by the government or
the people themselves. Capital punishments extend even
to the slightest offences, and suicide is not only frequent,
but is considered meritorious. When an official has com¬
mitted an offence, or even when there has been in his de¬
partment a violation of law, although beyond his power of
prevention, so sure is he of the punishment of death, that
he anticipates it by disembowelling himself. By this act of
self-destruction he saves his property from forfeiture and
his family from death. With many of the high officials it
is a point of honour thus to kill themselves on any failure
in their departments, and their sons are often promoted to
high rank as a reward for the father’s compliance with the
established usage. Disembowelling is the usual manner of
committing suicide, and is performed by making two in¬
cisions in the form of a cross over the abdomen, while a
tiusty follower stands behind to complete the work by de¬
capitation. Public executions are usually performed by
beheading, and crucifixion is also a mode in use. After
execution, the bystanders amuse themselves by trying their
own skill and the temper of their swords upon the corpse,
enue. _ The great source of revenue in Japan is the rent of land,
with an impost on houses, in the manner of a ground rent.
I here appears to be no tax on articles of consumption, no
capitation tax, and no transit duties. The cultivators of
the soil appear to be mere villeins, simply occupants culti¬
vating as metayers. In lands belonging to the crown, the
proportion of the crop considered rent is four parts in ten,
and in the rest six in ten, most commonly the latter. These
proportions apply to every kind of crop—corn, pulses, and
cotton. I he land, in order to determine the rent, is sur¬
veyed by sworn appraisers twice a year, once before the
seed is sown, and again immediately before harvest. Those
that cultivate untilled ground have the whole crop for two
or three years. Among their many excellent laws relating
to agriculture, one is, that whosoever does not cultivate his
ground for the term of one year forfeits his possession. It
would appear from the proportion of crop taken as rent that
the impost on the land does not materially differ from that as¬
sumed as land-tax under the Mohammedan government of
Hindustan, and continued in some places by ourselves. This
will enable us to make an approximate estimate of the rental
of Japan, that is, of the principal source of its public in¬
come. This, of course, will suppose a similar condition of
society and rate of population in Japan and the country
with which it is compared. Let us take, therefore, the
same Indian territories by which we have attempted to esti¬
mate the population. These have, in round numbers, a popu¬
lation of 46,000,000, and yield a land-tax of L.10,000,000.
This proportion would give to Japan, with its estimated po¬
pulation of 40,000,000, a rental of nearly L.8,700,000 to
be divided between the imperial governments, feudatory
princes, hereditary nobles, and the soldiery.
To the rent of land is to be added the ground rent of the
houses, which is said to be at the rate of Is. 8d. for each
fathom of frontage, without regard to depth, unless it exceed
fifteen fathoms, when the rate is doubled. Whether the
impost applies to all houses, wherever situated, or only to
those in towns, is not stated ; but if the former be the case,
estimating each house to have an average of five inhabitants’
and also five fathoms of frontage, would give the income Japan,
from this source at more than L.3,300,000, or, adding this
to the land rent, would make the annual revenue of the
empire about L.12,000,000.
I he Japanese being chiefly dependent on the soil for sub- Agricul-
sistence, have arrived at a high state of perfection in the arts ture-
of agriculture. Though a great part of the country is hilly or
mountainous, and the soil in general rather poor, yet almost
every available foot of land is cultivated, and very abun¬
dant crops are raised. Where the land is inaccessible to the
plough it is cultivated by manual labour. Like the Chinese,
they pay great attention to manuring and irrigation. As
animal food constitutes hardly any part of their subsistence,
no pastures or meadows are to be seen. Rice constitutes
the main object of agriculture, as it forms the bread corn
of the people from one end of the empire to the other. Its
cultivation extends to the island of Yesso, and as far N. as 45
degrees of Lat. I he rice of Japan is known to excel every
other in Asia, and this may not be owing exclusively
to its skilful cultivation, but partly to the climate and
the distance of Japan from the tropics. From it the inha¬
bitants distil a drink called saki (a kind of rice beer), in
very general use. Wheat and barley are grown, but the
former is not in much use, and the latter is the chief proven¬
der of cattle. Rye, maize, panic, millet, and the Cynosurus
corocanus are also raised. Beans and peas of different
kinds are cultivated in great abundance, particularly the
bean Dolichos soja, from which soy, a kind of sauce, pre¬
pared by boiling and fermentation, is made. Among es¬
culent roots and pot-herbs the following are successfully
cultivated the batata, potato, carrot, turnip, cabbage,
radish, lettuce, gourd, melon, and cucumber. The fruits
aie generally those of Europe, as the orange, lemon, peach,
fig, pear, chestnut, walnut, and cherry.
I he tea-plant in Japan, as in China, takes the place of
the vine in the temperate regions of the west, and of the
coffee in tropical countries. “ The tea shrub, “ says Ksemp-
fer, “ is one of the most useful plants growing in Japan,
and yet it is allowed no other room but round the borders
of lice and corn fields, and in other barren places unfit for
the culture of other things.” In a few places the plant,
according to Siebold, receives more attention; generally,
however, hardly as much as our hawthorn hedges, and thus
the leaves are unfit for the consumption of strangers. Its
use, however, is universal among the natives. It was in¬
troduced into this country from China in the ninth cen-
tury. Tobacco was first introduced by the Portuguese in
the early part of the sixteenth century, about the same
time that it was introduced into England, and it is remark¬
able that the Japanese emperor instituted a persecution
against its growers and smokers at the same time that King
James issued his Counter-Blast, and with as little effect
in arresting its use.
'I he plants cultivated in Japan for textile purposes are
cotton and hemp in the northern islands. The mulberry
is grown for the silk-worm. In husbandry cotton ranks
next in importance to rice, and furnishe.s materials for
clothing the great mass of the people.
In the manufacture of cotton fabrics the Japanese dis- Manufae-
play considerable skill, but in this respect they do not equal tures.
the Hindus. Their best silk is said to be superior to that of
China. In the manufacture of porcelain, too, they are said
by some to excel the Chinese. Specimens of great beauty
and delicacy, at least, have been produced, though some
assert that, owing to the exhaustion of the best clay, such
articles can no longer be manufactured. Like the Chinese
the Japanese have long practised the manufacture of paper
and glass. Formerly they did not know how to make the
flat pane for window glass, and probably what they do make
is of an inferior quality, as they still purchase thick mirror
glass from the Dutch, to grind into lenses. Paper they
694
Japan.
JAPAN.
Arts.
Sciences.
manufacture in great abundance as well for nTttmg and
printing as for tapestry, hankerchiefs, &c. It is made ot
lery various qualides, and some of it is as soft and flex.b e
as cotton cloth. Indeed, that used for handkerchiefs might
be mistaken for cloth, so far as toughness and flexibility
are concerned. This paper is made of the bark of the mul¬
berry (Morns papyrifera) by means of the following process.
—In December, after the tree has shed its leaves, they cut
off the young shoots, about 3 feet in length, and tie them
up in bundles. They are then boiled in a lye of ashes in
a covered kettle, till the bark is so shrunk that half an inch
of the wood may be seen projecting at either end of the
branch. When cool, the bark is stripped off, and soaked
in water for three or four hours until it becomes soft, when
the exterior black cuticle is scraped off with a knife. T he
coarse bark, which is full a year old, is then separated from
the fine, which covered the younger branches, and which
makes the best paper. The bark is then boiled again in
clear lye, continually stirred with a stick, and fresh lye from
time to time added, to make up for the evaporation. It is
then carefully washed at a running stream, by means of a
sieve, and incessantly stirred until it becomes a fine pulp.
For the finer kinds of paper this process is repeated, a piece
of linen being substituted for the sieve. After being washed
it is beaten with sticks of hard wood on a wooden table,
till it is brought to a pulp, which is put into water and dis¬
solved and dispersed like meal. This is put into a small ves¬
sel with a decoction of rice and a species of Hibiscus, and
stirred until it has attained a tolerable consistence. It is
then poured into a larger vessel, whence it is taken out,
and put in the form of sheets in mats or layers of grass
straw. These sheets are laid one upon another, with straw
between, and pressure is applied to force the water out.
After this they are spread upon boards in the sun, dried,
cut, and gathered into bundles for sale and use. The
well-known lacquer ware to which Japan has given name,
is unequalled for beauty and durability by that of any other
nation. We have ourselves of late years imitated, but cer¬
tainly not equalled it. They display considerable skill in
working the metals. In wood work, caskets, cabinets, and
the like, they are unsurpassed. Some of their swords are said
to be equal to the finest Damascus blades ; and Golownin
states that their carpenters’ and cabinetmakers’ tools are
equal in temper to those of a similar kind in England.
They are exceedingly quick in observing any improvement
brought in among them by foreigners, and copy it with
great skill and exactness. Clocks, watches, and astrono¬
mical instruments are made by them, copied from Euro¬
pean models.
In certain branches of the fine arts the Japanese have
attained no small skill. They are ignorant of anatomy and
perspective, and therefore barbarous in their sculptures and
landscapes; but in the representation of a single object
they manifest great accuracy of detail, and a truthful ad¬
herence to nature. Architecture, as an art, can hardly be
said to have any existence—their temples, palaces, and pri¬
vate houses being all low and temporary structures, gene¬
rally of wood ; and the frequency of earthquakes leads them
to bestow less care on their buildings than in other circum¬
stances they might do.
The medical knowledge of the Japanese must necessarily
be very imperfect, as their dread of pollution from contact
with dead bodies prevents them from scientifically investi¬
gating the dead subject. The native physicians display
great eagerness to acquire information on professional points
from Europeans; and Dr Siebold speaks with high praise
ot the zeal with which they thronged around him from all
parts of the empire, seeking to enlarge their stores of know¬
ledge. He also bears testimony to their intelligence, as
evinced by the questions they asked. Original medical
works are constantly appearing, as well as translations of
such Dutch medical works as they can best understand. Japan.
Their drugs are mostly animal and vegetable ; they are too
little acquainted with chemistry to venture upon mineral
remedies. They study medical botany with great atten¬
tion, and display considerable knowledge of the virtues of
plants. Acupunture and moxa burning are both in use in
Japan, and are native inventions. In the science of astro¬
nomy they have made considerable proficiency. They
understand the use of European instruments, and many
of them are successfully made by native workmen. Mey-
lan says that he saw good telescopes, chronometers, ther¬
mometers, and barometers made by Japanese mechanics.
They calculate eclipses accurately; and yearly almanacs are
prepared in the Yeddo and Dairi colleges. Lalande’s Trea¬
tises and other astronomical works have been translated from
the Dutch, and are studied with great ardour. Their year
consists of twelve lunar months, but is converted into side¬
real time by the introduction every third year of an inter¬
calary month of the requisite length. The natural day of
twenty-four hours is divided into twelve watches—six for
the day, from sun-rise to sun-set, and six for the night,
from sun-set to sun-rise. As this division is absolute, it
follows that the watches are never of the same length, ex¬
cept at the equinoxes. Their length is regulated only four
times in the year, the intervening watches being conse¬
quently left in uncertainty. The twelve watches go by
the names of the signs of the zodiac. These signs are the
same as ours, differing only in their names. The chrono¬
logy of the Japanese, like that of the Chinese, is usually
reckoned by the reigns of their monarchs, beginning with
the first Mikado, the supposed founder of their empire, and
who commenced his reign b.c. 660. They have also a cycle
of sixty years, formed by multiplying the signs of the zodiac
by the number of the elements, which they reckon to be
five.
There are three religions, and numerous religious sects Religions,
in Japan. The ancient religion of the country is called
Sinsyu, i.e., the gods’ worship, and its followers are called
Sintoos. In this worship the chief deity is the sun-god¬
dess Ten-sio-dai-zin. She is considered too exalted to
be herself addressed in prayer, and is therefore invoked
through inferior deities called Kami, of whom there are
reckoned 492 gods and 2640 deified men, making in all
3132 gods who have their temples, priests, and priestesses,
the last being the wives of the priests, for celibacy forms
no part of this worship. “ The more immediate end,”
says Kaempfer, “ which its followers proposed is happiness
in this world, and they have but an obscure notion ot the
immortality of the soul and of a future state of rewards and
punishments. The temples,” he continues, “ are gene¬
rally in a grove of trees or on the side of a green hill,
and have avenues of cypresses leading to them, the build¬
ings themselves, however, being small and mean. The five
great duties enjoined in the Sintoo religion are,—ls£, Pre¬
servation of pure fire as an emblem ot purity and an in¬
strument of purification ; 2d, Purity of soul and body, the
former by obeying the dictates of reason and the laws, the
latter by abstaining from whatever defiles; 3rf, Observ¬
ance of festival days, which are numerous; 4tf/q Pilgri- .
mages; and oth, The worship of the Kami, both in the tem¬
ples and in private dwellings. For pilgrimages there are
twenty-two chief holy places, besides many smaller ones.
Pre-eminent among these is the temple of Isye, in the
island of Nipon, which is to the Japanese what Mecca is
to the Mohammedans. One pilgrimage at least to this
shrine is incumbent upon every professor of the Sintoo faith,
and the very pious go annually. But the most remarkable
feature in this religion is the doctrine of purity and pollu¬
tion in regard to acts harmless or indifferent in themselves,
in which respect it agrees with that of the Hindus, and
differs entirely from any form of belief among the Chinese.
Japan
External purity, ’ says Kaempfer, “ is one of the most
_ stringent parts of the Sintoo religion. This consists in ab¬
staining from blood, from the eating of flesh, and from com¬
munication with dead bodies. Those who have rendered
themselves impure by any of these things, are thereby dis¬
abled from going to the temples, from visiting the holy
places, and in general, from appearing in the presence of
the gods. Whoever is stained with his own or any other
blood is impure for seven days. Whoever eats the flesh of
any four-footed beast, deer only excepted, is impure for
thnty days. On the contrary, whoever eats the flesh of a
towl, wild or tame—waterfowl, pheasants, and cranes ex-
cepted—-is impure only for a Japanese hour, which is two of
ours. Whoever kids a beast, or is present at a public execu¬
tion, or attends a dying person, or comes into a house where
a dead body lies, is impure for that day. But of all the
things which are impure, none are reckoned so very con¬
tagious as the death of parents and near relations. The
nearer you are related to the dead person, so much the
greater the impurity. All ceremonies which are to be
observed on this occasion, the time of mourning and the
hke, are determined by this rule.” They have no idols in
then temples ; there are indeed images of their Kami, but
these, it is alleged, are not for purposes of worship. The
only decorations in their older temples were a mirror, the
emblem of purity of soul, with several strips of white
paper formed into what is called a gohei, also an emblem
o purity. 1 he festivals all begin with a visit to the tem-
ple. 1 here the votary performs his ablutions at a reser¬
voir provided for the purpose ; he then kneels down in the
verandah opposite to a grated window, through which he
gazes at the mirror, and offers up his prayers, with a sa¬
crifice of rice, fruit, tea, or the like. This done, he drops
his coin in the money-box and retires. The money thus
conti ibuted is applied to the support of the Kaminusi or
priests of the temple.
The religion of Buddha is said to have been first intro¬
duced into Japan a.d. 69, but to have made very little pro¬
gress until the sixth century. It is now by far the most
prevalent religion in the country, but is much mixed up
with the ancient worship, and the ancient worship with it.
I he philosophy of Confucius was early introduced into
Japan, but is confined to the higher and more educated
classes. It is rather a system of philosophy than a religion ;
it inculcates no particular faith and can accommodate itself
to any. It is compounded of most of the moral precepts of
Confucius and some high mystic Buddhist notions. In
some of its features it borders closely on Pantheism. It
has no religious rites or ceremonies of its own. Of the
two principal religions it would appear that there are many
sects. Liberty of conscience, so far as it does not interfere
with the interests of the government or affect the peace
and tranquillity of the empire, has been at all times allowed.
It was on political, and not on religious grounds, that Chris¬
tianity was driven out. A curious illustration of this tole¬
ration is given in an account of the shipwreck on the coast
ot Japan of a governor-general of the Philippines in 1608
on is return to Spain, and of which an abstract was pub-
hshed in the Asiatic Journal for 1830. It is as follows
there are no less than thirty-five different sects or reli¬
gions in Japan. Some deny the immortality of the soul
others acknowledge divers gods, and others adore the ele¬
ments. All are tolerated. The bonzes of all the sects
having concurred in a request to the emperor that he would
expel our monks from Japan; the prince, troubled with
their importunities, inquired how many different religions
there were in Japan. Thirty-five, was the reply. ‘ Well ’
said he ‘ where thirty-five sects can be tolerated, we
np" e- y^ar W,th thirtysix; leave the strangers in
peace. The testimony of Golownin is to the same
ettect in reference to religious toleration. “ The diffe-
JAPAN.
695
Japan.
rence of religion and sect,” says he, “ in Japan does not
cause the smallest embarrassment to the government or
to private persons. Every citizen has a right to profess
what faith he pleases, and to change it as often as he thinks
fit. No one cares whether he does so from conviction, or
from regard to interest. It frequently happens that the
members of one family follow different sects, yet this dif¬
ference of faith never occasions ill-will or disputes. The
making of proselytes, however, is prohibited by law.” Ac¬
cording to the same writer, not only is any belief tolerated,
but even the absence of all belief; in short, every mood of
mind that does not vex the political peace of the empire.
Education, in so far as this consists in reading and writ- Education
mg, is universal even among the lowest ranks in Japan,
i here are colleges and academies throughout the empire
in all the principal towns. There would seem also to be
something like a national system of education, for Meylan
states that the children of both sexes, and of all ranks, are
invariably sent to rudimentary schools ; but whether or not
these are supported by the State he does not say. Here
the pupils are all taught to read and write, and are initiated
into some knowledge of the history of their own country,
lliere are immense numbers of cheap easy books con¬
tinually issuing from the Japan press, designed for the in¬
struction of children or poor people. Books of a hio-her
order are produced for the rich and better educated—read¬
ing being a favourite occupation with both sexes. The
city of Mikado appears to be the great literary metropolis
ot Japan, and the residence of the literati. Printing from
blocks after the Chinese fashion was introduced in the
beginning of the thirteenth century. Books are profusely
illustrated with wood-cuts engraved on the same block with
the types, and the Japanese are not ignorant of the art of
printing in colours.
The Japanese carry on a large internal traffic, which, from Trade-
the peculiar characteristics of their country, is in a great mea-
sure by coasting. The numerous straits and creeks, with their
shallow waters, though generally unfit for ships of burden,
are sufficiently commodious for the small craft of the Japa¬
nese, which rarely exceed 60 tons burden. The inland trans¬
port is by horses, oxen, and porters, there being very little
river or canal navigation. Kaempfer, who, however, refers
to the busiest parts of the country, that between the chief
port Osaca and the two capitals, speaks of its commercial
activity as follows ;—“ How much is carried on between
the several provinces of the empire ! How busy and indus-
tnous the merchants are everywhere ! How full their ports
ot ships ! How many rich and mercantile towns up and
down the country! There are such multitudes of people
along the coasts and near the seaports ; such a noise of oars
and sails and numbers of ships and boats, both for use and
pleasure, that one would be apt to imagine the whole na¬
tion had settled there, and all the inland parts were left
quite desert and empty.” This was said 160 years a^o, and
it may be safely assumed that the uninterrupted peace which
the country has since enjoyed has not impaired its com¬
mercial prosperity. That the Japanese are a commercial
people may be inferred from the order, neatness, and pro¬
priety with which everything connected with their trade
is conducted. They have gold, silver, and copper money,
as well as bills of exchange. Their shops have signs, and
their goods are packed and labelled with a truly mercantile
care and neatness.
The foreign intercourse of Japan was, more than two cen¬
turies^ and till withm the last two years, solely confined to
the Dutch and Chinese. Even with these the trade was
limited being with the Dutch fora considerable time re¬
stricted to a single ship annually, and with the Chinese to
ten junks. I he exports and imports were even limited as
to value, and the sales and purchases fixed by a tariff of the
apanese goveinment. The Dutch were confined to the
696
Japan.
J A P A N.
‘r.toS LVg.h^ifeKSt
riutole bridge conneL the island with the town o
Ki^«T^uri:T«r'|
On^the N. side are two water-gates which were kept al-
wa\s shut/ except to admit or let out the Dutch vessels
When a ship arrived her guns and ammunition were first
taken out, and she was afterwards searched in every part,
and an exact list made of everything on board. The crew
were then permitted to land on the island, where they were
kept, as long as the ship remained, under the inspection ot
o-uards. Every Japanese official at the Dutch factory was
bound twice or thrice a year to take a solemn oath ot re¬
nunciation and hatred of the Christian religion, and wasmade
to trample crosses and crucifixes under his feet. I he Dutc i
were at all times surrounded by Japanese spies, whom they
were obliged to employ as interpreters, clerks, servants, &c.
As the empire is again in some measure thrown open to
foreign intercourse, it may not be unprofitable to speculate
on the nature and value of a trade with it. The com¬
modities which have been chiefly in demand in Japan, are
iron, steel, lead, tin, quicksilver, cinnabar, sapan-wood, black
pepper, cloves, nutmegs, sugar, putchuk, deer-skins, ivory,
Chinese and Tonquin raw silk, Indian cotton goods, cotton
yarn, mirrors and other glass ware, and English woollens.
At one time or another all these articles found a market
in Japan, and most of them are imported by the Dutch
or Chinese at the present time. In a free trade, or any
approach to it, with Japan, we may suppose that iron and
steel, high-priced commodities there, would become staple
imports. The climate would give rise to a consumption ot
woollens; and although the Japanese are clothed in their
own cottons, judging from what has taken place in India
where both the raw and wrought articles are cheaper than
in Japan, we may infer that cotton fabrics might be imported
with advantage. Cotton yarn or twist has long been one
of the regular articles of import, although it was long the
high-priced manufacture of Java spun with the distaff that
was imported. Mirrors and glass ware would, no doubt, find
a ready mart. Sugar would certainly be in demand as Ja¬
pan produces none ; and the same may be said of nearly all
kinds of spiceries and dyewoods. Even cotton wool and
rice might be occasionally imported, as they are regulaily
into China. According to M. Caron, whose information
refers to 1636, or the period preceding the last persecution,
the European nations imported annually into Japan from
540,000 to 675,000 lbs. of Chinese raw silk, 200,000 deer¬
skins, and 100,000 other kinds of peltry.
With respect to the exchangeable products from Japan,
gold, silver, and copper were largely exported when the
trade was open. While the Dutch were carrying on
their trade at Firando, and still unrestricted, they ex¬
ported annually gold to the value of L.470,000, and silver
to from L.330,C)00 to L.385,000. But the Spanish and
Portuguese trade was free at the same time, and these na¬
tions are stated to have exported more largely, so that we
may conclude that a million and a half of the precious metals
were, from near the beginning to near the middle of the
seventeenth century, exported from Japan. Of copper, the
Dutch exported in some years as much as 1800 tons. Most
important, however, in this part of the world will be the
supply of coal which the islands are said to furnish abun¬
dantly. It will also be seen from what we have already
said of the productions of the country, that there are many
things among them that may become valuable as exports,
while a demand for other articles will no doubt lead to their
introduction as subjects of trade.
After the expulsion of the Portuguese in 1639, and be¬
fore the restrictions were so stringent as they afterwards Japan,
became, the entire value of the foreign trade was estimated
by the Dutch governor-general, the Baron Van Imhoft, at
L.833,000; while in his own time (1744) it had declined to
L.264,583, of which one-third only was Dutch, the rest
being Chinese. In 1805 the cargoes of two ships laid in at
Batavia, were sold in Japan for L.35,416, with which, or
rather with the balance after deducting heavy local charges,
copper and camphor were purchased, which in Batavia sold
for L.195,773. The adventure of next year was neither so
large nor so prosperous, for the outward cargo brought in
Japan only L.24,325, and the return cargo of copper and
camphor produced when sold in Batavia only L. 101,644.
These favourable speculations, however, arose entirely from
the enormous war prices for copper and camphor. Since
then the trade has become still smaller, and as already
stated, is confined to a single ship. In the earlier period ot
its trade Japan was not only free to all the world, but was
not even burdened with imposts on either ship or cargo :
presents, however, required to be made to the emperor, the
provincial governors, and one or two other parties.
The ordinary modern gold coin of Japan is an oblong Moneys,
and thin piece rounded at the ends, and impressed with
some symbolical Chinese characters. It is of no more than
16 carats, and contains 37-5 per cent, of copper. It weighs
180 grains, and is of the value of 21s. 3d. or nearly that of
our guinea. It goes, among Europeans at least, under the
name of a kupang. Previous to 1700, the gold money
which had been coined was a piece weighing 275 English
grains of 22 carats fine, and of the value of L.2, 4s. 7d.;
but in that year, and continued to 1730, the government,
perhaps actuated by a rise in the price of gold from the
large quantities of it which had been exported, began to
tamper with the coin, and insisted on the new coin, reduced
in weight and standard, being received at the same value
as the old, although of less than half its value. Besides the
ordinary gold coin, there is another of three times its value,
and a small coin of the value of about 3s. 6d. Jhe prin¬
cipal silver coin, called by the Dutch a schuet, or boat, from
its shape, is of the value of 16s. 3d. Notwithstanding the
existence of these coins, mercantile transactions are con¬
ducted by silver ingots as in China, and these are usually
of the fineness of ^ J. The small change of Japan consists,
like that of China, of small pieces of copper or brass with
a hole in the middle, and of these 600 are reckoned to the
tail weight of silver, itself of the value of about 5s. 6d.
Accounts are kept in tails, divided into ten parts called
mas, and these into 100 parts.
In history, the Japanese do not make the same pretence History,
to extravagant antiquity as the Hindus and Chinese. They
are content with going back to the commencement of the
refon of their first spiritual monarch, whose name was
Sinmu, or at full length Sinmu Tenu, meaning “the su¬
preme of all men,” and the “ divine conqueror,” a de¬
scendant of the gods. He was the first emperor, the sup¬
posed civilizer of the Japanese, and ascended the throne
660 B.c. From him to a.d. 71, there reigned only ten
emperors, which gives an average of 73 years to each reign!
The first of these emperors is reported to have lived 167
years, and to have reigned 79, and the last of them to have
lived 139 years and to have reigned 98. From a.d. 71 to
1690, there reigned 104 emperors, which makes the average
duration of a reign in this period only 15 years and 7 months,
its shortness being in a good measure ascribable to the
very frequent practice of abdication, sometimes voluntaiy,
and sometimes compulsory. Borrowing from Kaempfer,
we may notice a few of the most remarkable events of
this long period. In 693 the art of brewing saki was dis¬
covered. In 749, gold, which had heretofore been imported
from China, was first discovered in Japan. In 788 a strange
people, not Chinese, invaded Japan, and their final expul-
JAP
Japan, sion involved a war of eighteen years. In 1147 was born
—v/—^ Yoritomo, the first secular emperor. Placed in command
of an army to suppress a rebellion, this personage used the
power thus entiusted to him for his own aggrandizement
by usurping nearly the whole temporal power of his so¬
vereign, leaving him little more than the spiritual, and thus
establishing the form of government which has existed
down to our times. In 1284 the Mogul Tartar conquerors
of China invaded Japan with an armada of 4000 ships,
carrying a force, according to the Japanese, of 240,000
men. 1 his was the celebrated expedition of Kublai Khan
(grandson of the renowned Jenghis), the patron of Marco
Polo. This great armada, like the Spanish against our
own country, was nearly destroyed by a storm. Had it
effected a landing in sufficient force, it is probable that it
would have made a conquest of Japan, as the people who
fitted it out had just made of China.
Japan was first made known to Europe by Marco Polo
who was in China at the time of the Mogul expedition.
1 Ins, however, did not lead to its discovery. A Chinese
junk, manned by Portuguese, was driven upon its coasts by
a storm in 1542, forty-four years after the arrival of the
ortuguese in India. In 1549, seven years after the dis¬
covery, the Jesuits, headed by Francis Xavier, the famous
apostle of the Indies, made their appearance in Japan, and
forthwith the labour of converting the inhabitants went on
prosperously until 1587, or for thirty-eight years, when it
w’as partially arrested by the first persecution, which was of
no great severity. That took place under the Emperor
I aico Sama, the most illustrious of all the secular emperors
of Japan—a man who, by mere force of character, had, from
the condition of a hewer of wood, raised himself to the
throne. “ The heathen priesthood,” says Kaempfer, “ took
alarm at the rapid spread of Christianity ; and, in 1587, the
emperor issued a proclamation prohibiting his subjects, un¬
der pain of death, from embracing the new religion ; and
several persons were executed for disobedience.” It does
not appear, however, that more than six or seven and twenty
suffered on this occasion. The son of Taico, himself an
usurper, was dethroned by another usurper; and under him
the persecution of Christianity became terrible, for, in 1590,
it is stated that no fewer than 20,570 Christians were put to
death. Another persecution followed in 1597, when among
others that suffered were some European priests, who were
crucified. After this, however, a lull of forty years took
place, when the persecution was renewed in 1637; and in
a single day of the ensuing year, the 12th of April, 37,000
Christians were put to death. The persecutions of Roman
emperors were trifles to such wholesale butcheries. For
the two following years the Spaniards and Portuguese were
finally expelled the empire. The Romish priesthood boast
that before the first persecution they had made 1,800,000
converts, and that in the year that followed it they had
made 12,000; so that in all they had probably converted not
fewer than two millions of the Japanese, reckoning among
their proselytes several of the vassal princes.
The decree which isolated Japan from the rest of the
world is as follows:—‘‘No Japanese ship or boat what¬
soever, nor any native of Japan, shall presume to go out of
the country. Whoso acts contrary to this shall die, and the
ship, with the crew and goods aboard, shall be sequestered,
till further orders. All Japanese who return from abroad
shall be put to death. Whoever discovers a Christian priest
shall have a reward of from 400 to 500 schuets (from
L.305 to L.381), and for every Christian in proportion. All
persons who propagate the doctrine of the Christians (the
worship of the fathers), or bear this scandalous name, shall
be imprisoned in the Ombra or common jail of the town.
The whole race of the Portuguese, with their mothers,'
nurses, and whoever belongs to them, shall be banished to
Macao. Whoever presumes to bring a letter from abroad,
VOL. XII.
A N.
or to return after he has been banished, shall die, with all
his family; also whoever presumes to intercede for him
shall be put to death. No nobleman nor any soldier shall
be suffered to purchase anything of a foreigner.”
The Japanese government acted fully up to the letter
of its bloody decree of prescription. In 1640, three years
after its publication, and the year which immediately fol¬
lowed the practical expulsion of the Portuguese and Spa¬
niards, the Portuguese government of Macao sent a mission
to Japan, which, with its retinue, amounted in all to seventy-
thiee persons. On their arrival at Nagasaki, the parties
were arrested, and an order came in due time from the
capital directing them to be beheaded, and it was carried
into effect on all but twelve of the meanest persons, re¬
served for the purpose of carrying back a threatening mes-
sage, to the effect that, i( Should the king of Portugal, nay,
the very God of the Christians, presume to enter his domi¬
nions, he would serve them in the very same manner.”
1 he ceremony of trampling on the cross was instituted
on the expulsion of the Christians, and seems still to be
persevered in. It seems, however, always to have been
confined to those parts in which the Christian religion
had obtained the chief footing,—namely, the town of Na¬
gasaki, and the provinces of Omura and Bungo, in the
island of Kiu-siu. This is Kaempfer’s account of it: 
“ Another solemn and important act, in their opinion, is per¬
formed in the beginning of the year. This is the Jefume,
that is, in the strictest sense, ‘ the figure-treading,’ because
they trample over the image of our blessed Saviour extended
on the cross, and that of his holy mother, or some other
saint, as a convincing and unquestionable proof that they
for ever renounce Christ and his religion. This detestable
solemnity begins in the second day of the first month.”
The proscription of one particular form of worship, while
so many other religions or sects were tolerated, or viewed
with indifference, is easily explained. The new religion
was propagated by an energetic race of men, and its votaries
inspired with an active zeal unknown to all the old forms of
worship. Christianity, in a word, was proscribed, not on
account of its tenets, but on account of the danger appre¬
hended from those who taught it. The persecution was not
a religious, but a political one. Its ministers and followers
threatened the subversion of the native government and in¬
stitutions, and the substitution of a foreign yoke. They
were deemed guilty of high treason, and punished according
to the bloody code of Japan. According to Japanese no¬
tions, a dangerous insurrection was suppressed by the ex¬
termination of the insurgents. In this matter the Japanese
acted with foresight; for there can be little doubt but
that the Portuguese and Spaniards would, in due course,
and through the instrumentality of the Catholic religion,*
have effected the conquest of Japan, unless we suppose
them, which is highly improbable, to have acted with a
forbearance which neither Spaniards, Dutch, nor English
have exhibited in other parts of the East. The Japanese
not only saw this, but very plainly expressed it. Thus,
when the Spanish governor of the Philippines, in the
year 1597, sent an envoy to the Emperor Taico Sama to
remonstrate with him respecting his persecution of the
Christians, he thus addressed the Spanish official, “Con¬
ceive yourselves in my position, the ruler of a great empire
and suppose certain of my subjects should find their way
into your possessions, on the pretence of teaching the doc¬
trine of Sinto. If you should discover their assumed zeal in
the cause of religion to be a mere mask for ambitious pro¬
jects ; that their real object was to make themselves masters
of your dominions, would you not treat them as traitors to
the state ? I hold the Fathers to be traitors to my state, and
as such I treat them.”
7 he priests of the various ancient forms of worship, a
numerous body, for in the ecclesiastical capital alone they
4 T
697
Japan.
698
JAP A N.
Japan.
amounted to 52,169, with 6020 temples—were equally inte¬
rested with the government in the suppression ot the rival,
and to them dangerous religion. The violence, insolence,
and indiscretion of the Fathers, provoked the native priest¬
hood beyond bearing. The Jesuits eulogise one of the
converted tributary chiefs for his zeal, alleging that he had
destroyed heathen temples and monasteries reckoned by
some at no fewer than 3000. Some of these tributary princes
even went the length of sending an embassy to the Pope, and
kino-of Spain, which the emperor would not fail to consider as
an act of high treason. About the time that the first edict
against Christianity was published, the emperor, who was the
celebrated Taico Sama, despatched two imperial commis¬
sioners to Father Cuello, the vice-provincial, demanding an
answer and explanation to the following questions:—“ Why
he and his associates forced their creed on the subjects of
the empire ? Why they incited their disciples to destroy
the national temples ? Why they persecuted the Bonzes ?
Why they and the rest of their nation used for food animals
useful to man, such as oxen and cows ? And finally, why
they permitted the merchants of their nation to traffic in
his subjects, and carry them away as slaves to the Indies ?”
Evasive answers only were given to these demands, but the
destruction of the temples and the traffic in slaves were
not denied. With such provocations as these, we cannot
wonder at persecution, although shocked at the ferocity and
vindictiveness of its excesses. “ Now,” says Kaempfer, “ as
to the fall of the Portuguese, I heard it often affirmed by
people of great credit among Japanese themselves, that
pride and covetousness in the first place,—pride amongst the
great, and covetousness in the people of less note,—contri¬
buted very much to render the whole nation odious.” In our
time the persecution, with the murder of ambassadors, would
certainly be avenged by an invasion, very probably ending in
a conquest of Japan. Even in the seventeenth century, Spain
would probably have engaged in such an enterprise from
the Philippines, had she not about this time been separated
from Portugal; and the naval superiority of the Dutch, in
alliance with the Japanese, proved an insuperable obstacle.
The Dutch made their first appearance in Japan in 1600,
fifty-eight years after its discovery by the Portuguese, and
about half-a-century after the latter nation had been carry¬
ing on trade with it. In common with the Portuguese, and
eventually with the Spaniards, they carried on with it an
active and profitable intercourse, down to the time of the
exclusion of these two nations. The seat of this commerce
was Firando, in the island of Kiu-siu. When the last per¬
secution of Catholic Christianity was in progress, the Dutch
furnished information of the political intrigues of their com¬
mercial rivals to the Japanese. They were called upon to
assist in destroying the last refuge of the Japanese Chris¬
tians in Simabarra, in Kiu-siu, and effected with the cannon
of their ships what had baffled the skill of the imperial forces.
This last event happened in 1639, and two years after, im¬
perial commissioners arrived in Firando to remonstrate with
them respecting what appeared to be very venial proceed¬
ings. 1 hey were thus addressed: “ In former times, it
was well known to us, that you both served Christ, but on
account of the bitter enmity you ever bore each other, we
imagined there were two Christs. Now, however, the
emperor is assured to the contrary. Now, he knows, you
both serve one and the same Christ. From any indication
of serving him, you must for the future forbear. Moreover,
on certain buildings, which you have newly erected, there
is a date carved, which is reckoned from the birth of Christ,
t hese buildings you must raze to the ground forthwith.”
1 he order was incontinently complied with, but their prompt
<?j^(!1£Lnce ^ not save the Dutch from being removed in
1641 fiom Firando and its comparative liberty to the vir¬
tual imprisonment on the island of Dezima in the harbour
In 1613 we have the first authentic information of the Japan.
Englisn having attempted an intercourse with Japan, but
it is certain, from the accurate information concerning it
given by the Elizabethan writer whom we have more than
once quoted, that they must have frequented it much ear¬
lier. William Adams, an Englishman, who acted as pilot
to the first Dutch vessel that arrived at Japan, and had
settled there, induced his countrymen to attempt .to estab¬
lish a trade. Accordingly, a ship called the Clove, com¬
manded by Capt. John Saris, whose name we have had occa¬
sion to mention more than once already, was despatched for
Japan, and reached Firando on the 11th of June 1613.
Adams, who stood high in favour, obtained for his coun¬
trymen a most favourable reception, and, in a letter to the
King of England, the emperor desires “the continuance of
friendship with your Highness—and that it may stand with
your good liking to send your subjects to any part or port
of our dominions, where they shall be most heartily wel¬
come ; applauding much their worthiness in the admirable
knowledge of navigation, having with much facility disco¬
vered a country so remote, being no whit amazed with the
distance of so mighty a gulf, nor greatness of such infinite
clouds and storms, from prosecuting honourable enterprises
of discoveries and merchandizing—wherein they shall find
me to further them according to their desires.” The English,
however, did not succeed, and, after a ten year’s trial, in which
they expended L.40,000, they withdrew from the country.
In 1653 a fruitless attempt was made to renew our inter¬
course with Japan, said to have been defeated by the
Dutch informing the Japanese that the Queen of England
was a daughter of the King of Portugal. The failure is
not to be regretted, since it is certain that under the blight¬
ing influence of a monopoly, trade could not have prospered
in Japan, or anywhere else.
It is not necessary to advert to any of the subsequent
small and futile attempts made to open an intercourse with
the long-locked empire of Japan, since they are all super¬
seded by the more successful attempts recently made.
To America undoubtedly belongs the credit of having
been the first to re-establish commercial relations with
Japan. The increased traffic in this part of the world,
particularly between Eastern Asia and North-Western
America, and the importance of the whale-fishery in the
Japanese seas, had rendered it very desirable to have
free access to at least some of the ports of Japan. Re¬
peated attempts had been made by England, Russia, and
the United States, but without success, when, at length the
United States government resolved to make an effort wor¬
thy of the object, and accordingly fitted out an expedition
under the command of Commodore M. C. Perry. The
commodore sailed from Norfolk in the Mississippi w-ar-
steamer, on 24th November 1852, to be followed as soon
as possible by the other vessels of the expedition. He
arrived in the Bay of Yeddo on 8th July 1853, with four
vessels, two war-steamers and two sloops of war, and after
some negotiations he delivered the letter of the President,
promising to return for an answer in the spring. The rest
of the year was spent at Loo Choo and China, and on 12th
February 1854, the squadron reappeared in the Bay of
Yeddo, having by this time been increased to nine vessels,
three steam-frigates, four sloops of war, and two store-ships.
A treaty was concluded on the 31st of March, in terms of
which the ports of Simoda in the island of Nipon, and Hako-
dadi in Yesso, are opened for the reception of American
ships, where they will be supplied with wood, water, pro¬
visions, coal, and other articles, so far as the Japanese pos¬
sess them. Ships in distress, or from stress of weather,
may enter other ports ; and seamen shipwrecked on any part
of the coast are to be aided and carried to either Simoda or
Hakodadi. Shipwrecked seamen and others temporarily
residing at these ports are, at Simoda, free to go anywhere
JAP
Japanning, within the limits of 17 English miles from a small island in
^ the harbour, and in like manner at Hakodadi within 12
miles. Ships of the United States are also permitted to
trade under such regulations as shall be temporarily estab¬
lished by the Japanese government for that purpose. All
the privileges that may hereafter be granted to any other
nation are to be accorded to the United States. On the
7th of September following, an English squadron, consisting
of a frigate and three steamers, under the command of Rear-
Admiial Sir James Stirling, entered the harbour of Nagasaki.
The primary object of this visit to Japan was to search
for Russian vessels, but it was also intended to attempt to
establish friendly relations between the two nations. A
treaty was entered into, the effect of which is to open ab¬
solutely and at once to British ships of every description,
JAR 699
for effecting repairs and obtaining fresh water, provisions Jarnac
and other supplies, two of the most convenient harbours il
in Japan—Nagasaki and Hakodadi;—to open inferen- Jaroslav-
tially to British ships in distress any other port in Japan
it may be expedient for them to seek shelter in; to
secure eventually to British ships and subjects in every
port of Japan which may hereafter be open to foreign¬
ers, equal advantages with the ships and subjects of
the most favoured nation, excepting only the advantages
at present accorded to the Dutch and Chinese. It im¬
poses, in return for these concessions, no other obliga¬
tion on British ships and subjects than that of respecting
the laws and ordinances of the ports they visit. More
recently the Russians have succeeded in obtaining a similar
footing in Japan. (j—n c.)
JAPANNING, a species of lac-varnishing, in imitation
of the lacquered ware of Japan, which, with that of China,
is esteemed the best in the world. The ware may be lac¬
quered upon wood, metal, or papier-mache grounds. A
description of the process as practised in China may serve
to explain the sources of superiority. The article, if of
wood, being made very dry, light, and smooth, is primed
with a mixtuie of ox gall and rottenstone, which is rubbed
smooth before the varnish is applied. The varnish is com¬
posed of 605 grains of gum-lac in 1200 grains of water, to
which aie added 38 grains of oil of Camellia sasanqua, a
pig’s gall, and 19 grains of rice vinegar. The ingredients
aie well mixed in full daylight, when the varnish gradually
deepens into a brilliant black. A very thin coat of this
varnish is applied with a flat hair brush. The article is left
in a steamy heat, and is then rubbed down in water with
very fine pumice. A second coat of lac varnish is next
applied, and the polishing is repeated, which two operations
are continued until a perfectly even and brilliant surface is
attained, a finer quality of lac being used for the later coats,
of which there are never less than three, nor more than
eighteen. The object is ornamented by an artist, who
draws the design in white lead, engraves it, and fills up the
details. J he article is next painted with the camphorated
lac of Kouang-si, which serves as a basis for the gilding. It
is completed by varnishing.
In our method of japanning, the wood intended for the
best works is thoroughly dried, since any warping or shrink¬
ing would be fatal to the finished surface; for which pur¬
pose well seasoned wood is cut nearly into the required
forms, and exposed for several days to a gradually increas¬
ing heat in the japanner’s stove. The articles are then
finished as to form, and are again stoved, after which the
cracks are stopped with putty or white lead. For black
japanned works, a ground of ivory black mixed with dark-
coloured anime varnish is applied. This is dried in the
stove, and coated with varnish three or four times, the work
being stoved between every two coats. For coloured
grounds, the varnish mixed with the proper colour is laid
on in one or two coats, and the work is completed by
several successive varnishings and dryings. Ordinary
painters’ colours ground with linseed oil or turpentine and
mixed with anime varnish are employed for various black
or brown surfaces with gilt edges, imitations of marble, fine¬
grained woods, tortoise-shell, &c. The colours mostly used
are flake-white or white lead, Prussian blue, vermilion,
Indian red, king’s yellow, verdigris, lamp-black, and the
various tints produced by their admixture. The varnishes
used are copal, seed-lac, anime, and mastic. The lac varnish
is the best for hardness, but its colour prevents its use for
delicate grounds, so that for such purposes it is either mixed
with gum varnish, or copal varnish is used instead. Copal or
anime varnish made without driers is applied, in from two to
six coats, after the colour has been laid on. (See Varnish.)
Japanners sometimes use a priming of size and whiting,
which is laid on with a brush, and left for a day or two to
dry; it is then made smooth by rubbing with rushes and a
wet cloth. When this is quite dry, the grounds are laid on,
and finished by varnishing and polishing with rottenstone,
or in the case of a white ground, with putty or starch, and
oil. It must, however, be remarked, that a priming, or
artificially prepared ground, is objectionable, the japanning
being more liable to crack than when executed on the
actual surface of the object itself. A gold ground is formed
by varnishing the work with japanner’s gold size, and when
nearly dry, but still clammy, covering it with gold dust ap¬
plied on a piece of wash-leather; the effect of such a ground
when highly varnished is very brilliant. Japan work is
ornamented with drawings or engravings on the principle
of transfer, for which purpose the engraving is printed, or
the drawing executed on fine paper previously prepared
with a coat of isinglass or gum water. When this is dry it
is placed face downwards upon the japan ground, which is
covered with a thin coat of copal varnish. A sponge dipped
in warm water is then applied to the back of the paper,
which dissolves the isinglass, loosens the paper, and leaves
the print on the work. Another method is to execute the
print on an elastic composition of glue, &c., which receives
the impression well, and can be laid down at once on the
japanned surface. The whole of the processes require so
much drying, that stoves are requisite to hasten the work.
The great demand for japa.ming is for works in papier
mache, to which article we must refer for further informa¬
tion on the subject. Common articles of furniture are
sometimes said to be japanned, thereby implying that they
are more durable than common painted articles. The term
as thus used is, however, incorrect, since the colours em¬
ployed on such common works are only mixed with turpen¬
tine instead of oil.
For japanning works in metal, they are cleaned with tur¬
pentine to get rid of grease or oil, unless the oil should be
linseed, in which case the articles are stoved until the oil
becomes quite hard. Japanning is then performed in the
usual manner. See Lac, Lacquer. (c. t.)
JARNAC, a town and commune of France, department
of Charente, 8 miles E. from Cognac, and 15 from An-
gouleme. The town stands on the N. side of the River
Charente, which is here crossed by a suspension bridge. It
was here that the Prince de Conde fell when fighting with
but a handful of men against the forces of the Due d’Anjou.
Brandy is distilled at Jarnac in large quantities. Pop. 3360.
J AROSE AY, a government of European Russia, bound¬
ed N. by the government of Vologda, W. by those of Nov¬
gorod and Tver, S. by that of Vladimir, and E. by that of
Kostroma, between N. Lat. 56. 40. and 59., and E. Long.
37. 40. and 41. 20. It is 155 miles in length from N. to S.
by 140 in breadth, and contains an area of 14,000 square
miles. 1 he surface of the country is regular, and in many
700 JAB
Jaroslavl. parts even flat and marsliy. The principal rivers are the
Volga flowing from the N.W. to S.E, and its tributaries
the Mologa and Sheksna. Several lakes occur in the S.,
the largest of which, called Nero, is 11 miles long and 5
miles fn breadth. The soil in general is not very good,
being in some places too dry, and in others too damp. Agri¬
culture is consequently confined to tile river sides, where
the soil is subject to natural drainage, and the communica¬
tion is rendered easy. Rye, flax, and potatoes form the
chief products. The first, however, is not. grown to
an extent sufficient for the consumption of the province,
and is imported down the Volga from the neighbouring
governments. Extensive forests in the interior of Jaroslav
at one time proved a source of revenue to a large portion of
the inhabitants, but now from want of state protection they
have been much destroyed, and fuel is consequently scarce.
Some cargoes of fir deals, however, as well as tar and tur¬
pentine, are annually shipped to Archangel for exportation.
The central position, however, which this government holds,
affords greater scope for manufacture than agriculture.
Linen, silk, calico, lead, and bell metal are fabricated in
considerable quantities at Jaroslav, Mologa, and Rybinsk.
The latter town enjoys an important transit trade; all the
grain, flax, hemp, &c., brought up the river being either
transhipped into lighters for navigating the narrower streams
in the N., or unshipped there for manufacturing purposes.
On an average 2000 vessels arrive annually at this river-
port from the S., and about 8000 depart for the N.
The trade of Rybinsk is rapidly on the increase. In habits
the people of Jaroslav present the same general features as
those of the other Russian provincials. The poorest of the
peasantry leave their homes to work at the harvest in the
neighbouring provinces, returning with a competency for
the winter, which they spend in comparative idleness.
Several of the villages are occupied solely by serfs, who
work collectively at their respective trades, each village hav¬
ing its peculiar manufacture—one for shoemaking, another
for tailoring, and so on. These serfs pay an annual fee to
their masters, but are under no restrictions in their work.
The gardeners of the province have long been noted for their
skill in horticulture, and can always obtain high wages in
other parts of the empire. The government of Jaroslav is
divided into the five circles of Poschechon, Mologa, Ry¬
binsk, Rostov, and Danilov. Pop. (1851) 943,426.
JAROSLAVL, atown of Russia, capital of the above go¬
vernment, situated in the angle formed by the confluence
of the Rivers Volga and Katarosst, 480 miles distant from
St Petersburg, and 163 miles from Moscow. It is one of
the most ancient cities in the empire. Since the reign of
Katherine II., who introduced German customs into the
town, and otherwise took interest in its prosperity, Jaro¬
slavl has steadily increased in importance and population.
In appearance it resembles other Russian towns, the streets
and squares being wide. The houses are built of wood and
stone in about equal numbers, and the town is surrounded
by a palisade. Five of its suburbs are on the right bank of
the Katarosst, and one on the left side of the Volga. Hand¬
some villas line the river sides in the neighbourhood. The
town contains 6 government offices, all of stone, and 24
churches and religious houses, 13 of which are stone, the
others wooden. In gratitude for a lyceum which Prince
Demidoff founded and endowed, the inhabitants have raised
a monument to him in the public square. Besides this in¬
stitution there are 4 public seminaries, 2 theological and 2
secular, with about 1300 scholars each.
Jaroslavl, conjointly with Rostov, is the see of an arch¬
bishop. It is principally noted for its manufactures, which
include linen, calico, silk, paper, leather, gold and silver
ornaments, &c. The total number of manufactories in the
town is 86. Ihe artisans are generally of an intelligent
class; they are freed from any tax on trade. The muni-
J A S
cipal government is in the hands of the citizens, according Jaroslaw
to certain qualifications, which, however, are possessed only ||
by a few. The population of Jaroslavl in 1851 amounted Ja8sy.
to 29,332 persons.
JAROSLAW, a town of Austrian Gallicia, circle of
Przemysl, on the San, a tributary of the Vistula, 17 miles
N.N.W. of the town of Przemysl. It has a castle belong¬
ing to Prince Czartorysky, a cathedral, normal school, and
manufactures of woollen and linen cloths. Pop. about
4000.
J ASHER, The Book of, a work mentioned in Joshua x.
13, and 2 Sam. i. 18, and which, especially in recent times,
has occasioned much controversy. The two passages con¬
nect the book with two poetical compositions, and from this
circumstance Lowth has supposed that it was a collection
of national songs; and that the name applied to it was the
first word of the first poem, Jashei—he sang,—this being
the common way in which the Hebrews gave names to
books. A more general belief was that founded upon a
different meaning of the word, according to which it was
supposed to consist of a series of biographies of just men
—Jasher meaning /^. In early times Theodoret thought
the whole book of Joshua to be a quotation from Jasher,
while Jerome considered Genesis and Jasher to be the same.
Some thought Jasher to be the Pentateuch; others, the
book of Judges, and others again conjectured that it was a
treatise on archery. This last opinion was founded on a
mistaken notion of the passage in David’s lamentation over
Saul, where when he says that the children of Judah were
taught the use of the bow, the bow is imagined to be the name
of a poem so called from its initial word. In the thirteenth
century, a book on Jewish laws, by Rabbi Tham, was called
Jasher; and another, which was printed in 1625, professed
to have been preserved by an old man at the destruction of
Jerusalem. In 1751 an impudent forgery was palmed off
upon the public, under the name of the Book of J usher, by a
type-founder of Bristol of the name of Jacob Hive. The pre¬
face to the book gave an account of the pretended discovery
of the original in the city of Gazna in Persia by Alcuin,
who is also said to be the author of the English translation.
This forgery was revived in 1827, and would scarcely de¬
serve so much notice were it not for the learned critiques
to which it gave rise. (See Horne’s Introduction.') The
subject of Jasher has been again revived by the publication
in 1854 of a work by Dr Donaldson, entitled Jasher
Fragmenta Archetypa Carminum Hebraicorum in Masore-
thico Veteris Testamenti textu passim tesselata, &c. Ac¬
cording to this author, the Old Testament is a new building
consisting of materials taken from the dismembered book
of Jasher, and these materials he restores to their primitive
place. The present arrangement of the Old Testament,
according to Donaldson, was effected by men thoroughly in¬
competent to the task ; and amongst other discoveries which
he has lived to make are these,—that Moses did not write
the Pentateuch; that Shem, Ham, and Japhet were the
three sons of Adam; that Abraham was the son of Abel;
that the Song of Moses was written in the time of Solomon,
and the Song of Hannah by David.
JASSY, the capital of Moldavia, situated on the left
bank of the Baglui, a tributary of the Pruth, about 200
miles N.N.E. of Bucharest, and 130 miles N. of Galatz, in
N. Lat. 47. 3., and E. Long. 27.22. It stands partly on a
plain and partly on a hillside, in the midst of a country rich
in agricultural produce. The area of the town is very ex¬
tensive, and quite out of proportion to the number of houses.
All the public buildings, and most of the private dwellings,
have pleasure-grounds attached to them which occupy at
least one-sixth of the area comprised within the walls. The
principal street is broad, and would be handsome were its
appearance not disfigured by the booths which line its sides.
The other streets are tortuous, narrow, and dirty, while
JilSZ-
Apathi
II
Jauts.
J A S
most of the houses are built of wood. The pavement con¬
sists of oaken planks thrown across the streets, which are
so ill compacted that when the river is in flood, the drainage
j of the city is forced through them and spreads stench and
disease around. Like all wooden-built towns it has suffered
frequently from conflagrations. The fire of 1827, which
was one of the most destructive, reduced half the town to
ashes; but the houses destroyed were replaced by others of
more substantial and elegant structure, and at present they
are the best and cleanest in the city. The principal public
buildings are the prince’s palace, the church of the “ Three
Saints,” and the monastery of Formosa. Besides these there
are 42 Greek churches, 1 Roman Catholic, and 1 English
chapel, with 25 religious houses, an hospital attached tcf the
convent of Spiridion, a college, an academy, a scientific in¬
stitution, and printing press, the only one in Moldavia. The
manufactures are confined to the fabrication of canvas for
the Turkish markets, and of carpentry; while the trade of
the place, dependent as it is on the agricultural products of
the country, fluctuates according to the season of the year.
Jassy is the residence of the hospodar, of the foreign
consuls, and of most of the boyards of the principality. It
is also the see of a Greek archbishopric. The history of
the town dates as far back as the time of the Romans, when
it bore the name of Jassiorum municipium. It was once
occupied by a Roman legion. Perhaps there is no Euro¬
pean town that has changed masters so often as Jassy; for,
placed as it is on the great military highway of the East,
and protected by no natural defence, it has become the prey
and the camp of every invading host. Between the years
1853 and 1856 it was in the hands of Russians, Turks, and
Austrians respectively ; and, as always happens in such cir¬
cumstances, the inhabitants were oppressed and trade extin¬
guished. The population of this town fluctuates from the
same cause. Before the Russo-Turkish war of 1853 to 1856
it was computed at 50,000, while in 1856 it was estimated
at about 30,000, of whom one-eighth were Jews.
JASZ-APATHI, a town of Central Hungary, 54 miles
E. of Pesth. The population, numbering about 8000, is
chiefly agricultural: but hemp, silk, and vegetable dyes are
manufactured.
JASZ-BERENY, a town of Central Hungary, situate on
both sides of the River Zagyva, a tributary of the Theiss,
13 miles distant from Jazy-Apathi, and 41 miles E. of Pesth.
It contains a^ large Roman Catholic besides several other
churches, a Iranciscan convent, a gymnasium, and council-
hall. Tradition points out an old tomb on an island in the
Zagyva as that which contains the bones of Attila the Hun,
but there is not the slightest historical probability that this
is really his sepulchre. Jasz-Bereny has markets for corn
cattle, and horses. Pop. (1851) 16,873.
JAUER, an ancient town of Prussian Silesia, in the go¬
vernment of Liegnitz. The town is situate on the Neisse,
at the foot of the Riesengebirge, 38 miles W. of Breslau,5
and 10 miles S.E. of Liegnitz. It is surrounded by an old
wall and contains a castle built by Henry III. in 1244, and
now converted into a house of correction and asylum. The
manufactures consist of gloves, woollen and iinen goods,
and tobacco.^ Its sausages and shoes are exported to great
distances. From the rapid current of the Neisse, the town
is subjected to frequent inundations. Pop. about 6000.
JA U I S, a people of Hindustan, who have at different
times made some figure in its annals. The first historical
mention of them occurs at the beginning of the eleventh
century, on the invasion of India by Mahmoud the Gazne-
vide. That conqueror found them established on the east¬
ern bank of the Indus, prepared to oppose his passage. For
J A U
701
this purpose they had mustered a large fleet of boats, to
the number, according to some accounts, of eight thousand.
1 hey were completely defeated, however, and driven into
the mountainous districts in the interior of India.
From this time the Jauts remained in obscurity till the
reign of Aurungzebe. Churamana, a Jaut of some distinc¬
tion, collected then some troops of banditti, with whom he
began to commit depredations on travellers. Popular and
enterprising, he gradually rose from a captain of robbers to
be a, powerful chieftain ; and availing himself of Aurung¬
zebe s absence in the Deccan, became the terror of the
country round. He had even the audacity, on one occa¬
sion, to plunder the rear of that monarch’s army; and,
when pursued, took refuge among the mountains of Nar-
war, where he eluded all attempts to extirpate his force.
Under the growing imbecility of Aurungzebe’s successors,
the Jauts continually extended their power, till at length,
during the weak reign of Mohammed Shah, and under their
enterprising head, Sooraje Mull, it rose to its utmost height.
I hat chief wrested continually new concessions from the
weak emperor, till he was able almost to dictate the counsels
of the Mogul Court. A reverse, however, took place on
the invasion of Northern India by Ahmed Shah, the so¬
vereign of Cabul. Sooraje Mull, having opposed that
invader, saw his territory overrun, and was obliged to seek
aid from the Mahratta power. When the Mahrattas, how¬
ever, invaded Delhi, the Jaut chief went over to Ahmed
Shah, and offered to atone for former hostility by his ser¬
vices on that critical occasion. The battle of Panniput
followed, in which the Mahrattas were totally routed, and
their power for the time entirely broken. Ahmed Shah
rewarded the services rendered by his new ally in this
hour of need by the important cession of Agra and its
district. Sooraje Mull, and his son Jowalier Sing, made
repeated attempts to obtain possession of Delhi, but were
always baffled by untoward circumstances. Jowalier Sin<>-
was assassinated by an impostor, who had undertaken to
initiate him in the secret of the philosopher’s stone. He
left his son an infant; a circumstance which, affording an
open field to the dissensions of the chiefs, weakened the
Jaut power, and rendered it unable to contend with the
other fierce competitors for the spoils of the Mogul. In
their contests, particularly with Nujeeph Khan, they were
gradually stripped of all their possessions, and at length re¬
duced to the fortress of Bhurtpore, with a small surround-
ing district. W hen the British power became predomi¬
nant in this part of India, Runjeet Sing, rajah of the Jauts,
sought security by concluding a treaty with Lord Lake’,
by which, on engaging to assist Britain against all enemies,
he not only retained the internal government of his terri¬
tories, but was even exempted from paying any tribute.
Yet, in 180o, after the defeat of Holkar, he received that
chief, with his discomfited army, into Bhurtpore. The
place sustained a most desperate siege, and cost the British
army an immense number of lives." At length the rajah,
despairing of effectual resistance, agreed to compel Holkar
to quit the place, and to give it up to the British, on con¬
dition of retaining the government of his territories and the
fortress of Deeg. Fie was obliged, however, to pay twenty
lacs of rupees, and to give ample security for a more faith¬
ful observance of this treaty than of the former. At a later
period, disputes regarding the succession to the throne of
Bhurtpore led to the interference of the British. The place
was invested by a large force under Lord Combermere •
and, on the 18th January 1826, the hitherto impregnable
fortress was stormed and taken after a desperate resistance
on the part of the Jauts.
Jauts.
L
702
JAVA,
Java. The first in importance, although only the third in
v'—-v—^ magnitude of the islands in the Indian Archipelago, lies
between E. Long. 105. 12. and 114. 4. and 8. Lat. 5.
52. and 8. 40. In form it is long and narrow, being 666
miles in length from E. to W., by from 56 to 136 in
breadth. Area 50,260 square miles. To the N.W., it is
parted from Sumatra by a strait, at its narrowest part only
14 miles wide, and with islands between ; and to the E.
from Bali, by a strait of no more than two miles broad. On
its low, and in some measure sheltered N. coast, Java has
a good many islands, by far the largest and most important
of which is Madura, separated from it by a strait at one
part only about a mile wide. On the bold precipitous S.
coast there are very few islands, and only two of any consi¬
derable size, Baron and Kambangan. The coast line of Java,
which is about 1400 English miles in extent, has many bays
on its northern coast, but it is not deeply penetrated by any
one of them, so that it has properly no harbour but one, that
of Surabaya, formed between the main island and Madura,
where the strait that divides them is still narrow. The south¬
ern coast is still less indented. Here there are two har¬
bours only,Pachitan—inconvenient and unsafe—and Chala-
chap, formed between the main island and Kambangan, both
out of the way of intercourse, and little frequented. On
other parts of the S. coast there is no safe anchorage, while
dangerous surge rolls in on the shore in all seasons. With
the single exception named, the ports of the northern coast
are but open roadsteads, with good anchoring ground; but
the want of land-locked harbours is not felt so near the
equator, where hurricanes are never experienced, and where
the weather is only occasionally tempestuous at the change
of the monsoons.
The physical outline of Java may be divided into five
different sections of various breadth. Beginning from the
western end and following the line of the northern coast,
the first section ends with the eastern side of the bay of
Batavia. This is about 75 miles in average breadth. The
second extends E. as far as Cheribon, in Long. 108. 36.,
and is about 95 miles broad. Both these divisions are
mountainous, the mountains being of less elevation than in
the other parts of the island, but more crowded, and with
narrower valleys. They constitute the proper country of
the Sundas, who speak a distinct language, and are less ad¬
vanced in civilization than the Javanese, the nation which
occupies all the rest of the island. The third section ex¬
tends from Cheribon to the western side of the promontory
ot Japara, in about Long. 110. 30., and its breadth does not
exceed 50 miles, the island being greatly narrowed by the
bay which extends for 140 miles from the point of Indra-
maya to that of Japara. The fourth section extends from
the promontory of Japara to that portion of the island which
is opposite to the western end of Madura, and this has an
average breadth of about 100 miles. The fifth section em¬
braces the remainder of the island, and is no more than 50
miles in breadth. In the three last sections, the mountains
aie of greater elevation, the plains more spacious, and along
their northern coasts there runs generally a belt of alluvial
land, varying from 5 to 15 miles in depth.
The geological formation of Java is eminently volcanic,
■phyk T" ranSe ()* mountains runs in a longitudinal direction through
the centre of Java, the peaks of which vary from the height
of near 4000 to near 12,000 feet above the level of the sea.
No fewer than 46 of these peaks are volcanoes, 20 of which
aie in a state of greater or less activity. The craters are
sometimes of great extent, and their walls illustrate the Java,
structure of the mountains, which is either vertical and .,—,
irregularly columnar, or disposed in oblique or horizontal
strata.
Dr Horsfield gives the following account of the most re¬
markable crater in Java, that of the Tenger Mountain, in
the eastern part of the island. “ This mountain,” says
he, “constitutes one of the most remarkable volcanoes
of the island. It rises from a very large base, in a gentle
slope, with gradually extending ridges. The summit, seen
from a distance, is less conical than most of the other
principal volcanoes, varying in height at different points,
from 7000 to 8000 feet. The crater is not at the sum¬
mit, but more than 1000 feet below the highest point;
and consists of a large excavation of an irregularly cir¬
cular form, surrounded on all sides by a range of hills of
different elevations. It is by far the largest crater in the
island, and perhaps exceeds every other crater on the globe.
It constitutes an immense gulf, the bottom of which is
level, and denominated by the natives the dasar (the floor).
This is naked, and covered with sand throughout; in one
portion, near the middle, the sand is loose and blown by
the wind into slight ridges, and to this the natives give the
name of sagara-wadi, literally ‘ sea of sand.’ The largest dia¬
meter of the crater is, according to my estimate, full 3 miles.
From its interior, and towards the middle, there rise several
conical peaks, or distinct volcanoes. The chief of these,
the Mountain Brama (from the Hindu god Brama, whose
emblem is fire), is a perfectly regular cone, and still in par¬
tial activity, with occasional eruptions. It is surrounded on
one side by the ‘sea of sand’ above mentioned. Adjoin¬
ing to it stands another conical peak, more than 1000 feet
high, named Watangan (hall of audience), or Widadaren
(abode of celestial nymphs), covered externally with sand,
quite naked, and, on account of its steepness, its top has
never been examined. At a small distance from the Brama
rises a smaller cone, called Butak (the bald). The two last
have not exhibited any volcanic activity in recent times.”
“ The range of hills surrounding the Dasar is very steep,
and elevated to the N. At the opposite point it is lower,
and affords a passage for men and horses ; and, while I was
occupied in examining the Brama, my assistants amused
themselves by galloping over the extensive sandy plain,
6000 feet above the level of the ocean, much to the grati¬
fication of the attendant natives. The soil of the Tenger
(wide or spacious) Hills is extremely fertile, consisting of a
deep vegetable mould, accumulated for many ages on the
sand and debris thrown up from the mountain.”1
The volcanoes afford examples of every kind of volcanic
product, as lava, tufa, obsidian, sulphur, and ashes in a high
state of comminution.
South of the great central volcano is a range of low moun¬
tains skirting the southern shore of the island, and seldom
exceeding 3000 feet high. In some places this chain comes
into contact with the high central one, and covers its basis;
but it is not stratified like the other, although consisting also
of volcanic materials, chiefly basalt. Agates, chalcedony,
flint, and petrified wood are found in it. The southern
shore of the island is frequently bounded by steep and often
precipitous piles of trap. Low ranges of limestone are seen
in the low lands of the eastern parts of the island. In the
western part of it, nearest to Sumatra, a few boulders of
granite are occasionally found; but, as a general rule, this
rock forms no part of the geological constitution of Java.
J ap of the Island of Java ; with the Geographical Preface, &c., of Planted Javanicce Rariores, by Thomas llorsfield, M.D.
Hot springs are frequent in many parts of the island,
generally at the bases of the volcanic ranges, and several
of them strongly impregnated with carbonic acid. Mud vol¬
canoes exist in the low lands, yielding in some cases muriate
of soda for culinary purposes.
The valleys of Java are numerous, but its extensive
plains are not above six in number. In the first section of
the island, or its western end, there is no considerable plain ;
in the second only one, that of Bandong. In the third
and fourth sections there are four great plains, those of
Surakarta, Madiyun, Kadiri, and Malang; and in the fifth,
constituting the eastern portion of the island, there are two,
those of Bandawasa and Pugar. All these plains are
bounded to the E. and W. by mountains varying from 8000
to above 11,000 feet high, which furnish them with a peren¬
nial supply of water for irrigation. Although the valleys
of Java are frequently narrow, a few of them are spacious,
and of equal fertility with the plains.
Java has no extensive collection of water, salt or fresh,
and no large lagoons connected with the sea. There exist,
however, a few beautiful mountain lakes. One of those
lies within the mountain Wilis (“ the green”), which parts
the plains of Madiyun and Kadiri, and is known by the
name of Gdbal. There is a second in the province of
Cheribon, known by the Sanscrit name of Talaga, or the
reservoir; and a third is in the province of Pasuruhan
and called Banunila, or the blue-water. In Java, how¬
ever, there are several extensive marshes, which, in the
season of the rains, become lakes, are navigated, and have
fisheries.
The rivers of Java, especially on its northern side, are
numerous; but, from the form of the island, they are of
small size. None of them are navigable for vessels of burden,
and few even for boats beyond the reach of the tide. They
are all, more or less, obstructed by mud or sand-bars at
their mouths. Though of little utility for trade, they are ex¬
cellently adapted for irrigation. Few of the rivers of Java
have specific names, but take their appellations generally
from the places they pass by, and change them with every
new one, a circumstance which may, perhaps, be owing to
their small size and great number. There are, however, a
few exceptions in some of the larger, as the Saraya, a river
of the province of Banumas and the Praga, with its tribu¬
taries the Elos rivers of Kadu, all debouching on the southern
coast.
The largest and most useful river of the island is that
usually called Solo, from its passing the native capital, of
which this is the popular name. It has its source in one of
the low ranges of mountains towards the southern side of
the island, and after a tortuous course of 350 miles, reckon¬
ing only from the native capital, it empties itself into the sea
by two mouths in the narrow strait between Java and Madura.
It is par excellence the “ great river.” Except for the three
last months of the dry season, beginning with August, it is
navigable for large boats, and for the whole year for small
ones. The second river in magnitude is called by the na¬
tives the Brantas, but usually by Europeans the river of
Surabaya. This also has its origin in one of the low moun¬
tain ranges towards the southern coast, receives many af¬
fluents, and dividing itself into two branches, enters the sea
by two mouths, one in the province of Pasuruhan, and the
other in the narrow part of the strait between Java and
Madura, passing by the town of Surabaya and contributing
to form its excellent harbour.
The climate of Java is what may be expected in a nar¬
row sea-girt country between five and eight degrees S. of
the equator, having plains almost on a level with the sea,
and inhabited land 5000 feet above it. The wet season
begins with October and ends with March, and the dry with
April, and ends with September. The monsoons are those
of the southern hemisphere, the north-western correspond¬
ing with the wet season, and the south-eastern with the dry. ja
The setting in of these monsoons is irregular, and, even
during their prevalence, there is some dry weather in the
wet and not unfrequently rain in the dry. At the equi¬
noxes, when the monsoons change the weather is very un¬
settled, and most tempestuous at the commencement of the
winter solstice in September and October. Thunder-storms
are then frequent, and often destructive to life. Land and
sea breezes are experienced within 15 miles of the north¬
ern and southern coasts, and in particular localities of its
eastern and narrowest extremity the south-eastern monsoon
blows with great force across the whole island. The tem¬
perature, so far as the seasons are concerned, is equable.
Near the level of the sea, which is that of the great alluvial
band, which runs along the northern side of the island, and
of the wide plains of the interior, Fahrenheit’s thermometer
seldom falls below 70°, and seldom rises above 90°. Ac¬
cording to the elevation of the land, every variety of tem¬
perature is experienced from this last to 5° below the freez¬
ing point. Snow never falls, even on the highest peaks;
but on these at the height of the winter, in July and August,
ice a few lines thick is formed, and hoar-frost is seen every
morning, called by the natives, poison-dew (ambun-upas),
from its pernicious effect on vegetation. In the inhabited
mountain valleys, at the height of 4000 feet, the thermo¬
meter is usually about 20° below what it is at the level of
the sea. Here is experienced a climate agreeable and
congenial to the European constitution ; and here the corns,
fruits, flowers, and esculent vegetables of temperate regions,
have long been acclimated.
In point of salubrity, the climate of the high lands of
Java is unexceptionable, and that of the low, containing
the mass of the population, is generally equal to that of
any other tropical country. In a few spots of the alluvial
band of the northern coast, such as Batavia and Cheribon,
deleterious malaria have occasionally prevailed, arising from
the neglect of canals and water-courses, or from these being
obstructed by volcanic debris; but these are exceptions,
as are also a few forest tracts of the interior of the island.
The extensive cultivation of rice by irrigation might have
been expected to generate malaria, but such is not the
case, nor has it ever been even alleged to have done so in
the country itself.
The botany of Java is rich and diversified. Few of the Bota
plants being deciduous, the island presents, at all times, the
same appearance as the most fertile temperate regions at the
height of summer. Its villages, and even its towns, are in a
great measure concealed from view, by the luxuriant abun¬
dance and perpetual verdure of its vegetation. Patches of
sandy shore and lava-covered mountain peaks are the few ex¬
ceptions. The vegetation varies considerably with the soil,
whether composed of the debris of volcanic matter, by far
the most prevalent one, or of calcareous rock, or of sand¬
stone. But it varies more according to the elevation of
the land, which gives rise to at least six different botanical
zones. Of these the learned Dr Bleeker gives the following
succinct but spirited description: “ It is more especially
on the low coast lands that we find superb palms, bananas,
aroids, amaranthacese, poisonous euphorbiacese, and papi¬
lionaceous legumens. Scarce have we reached the height
of 1000 feet above the level of the sea when our eyes are
struck by the quantity of ferns which already preponderate
over the other plants. Here, too, we are surprised by mag¬
nificent forests of slender bamboos growing spontaneously.
The further we ascend, the greater is the change in the
aspect of vegetation. Palms and leguminous plants become
rare, and bamboos are less abundant. In recompense, we
find forests of fig trees with their tall trunks, spreading
branches, and thick foliage, enveloping more lowly trees
and humbler plants, and exhibiting a majesty which even
surpasses the splendour of the palms of the coast. Here,
704
Java.
JAVA.
too, the ferns increase in number and extent, often with
v-—trunks several yards in height. Orchideous plants also
present themselves in considerable numbers. Sometimes
these are found solitary and independent, but more gene¬
rally as pseudo-parasites, forming, in this case, along with
an infinite variety of other plants, an additional vegetation
on old trees, hardly distinguishable on this account on first
view.” “ At a height considerably higher, the vegetation
still loses nothing of its imposing aspect. The figs here fra¬
ternize with gigantic rasimalas (Liquidambar astingarid),
with white trunks. To the Orchideae are added Nepenthes,
with calyciform flowers {Nepenthes gymnamphord) ; while
numerous species of ferns are accompanied by Loran-
thaceae and elegant Melastomas. The region of figs and
rasimalas is bordered above by that of oaks and laurels,
and here the Melastomas and orchideous plants become
still more abundant, while the vegetation receives a new
ornament in numerous Pan dans, particularly the Freci-
natias, which are found as pseudo-parasites, rubiaceous
plants being at the same time abundant, growing by
themselves and flourishing in the shade. There is but
one region higher than that of oaks and laurels, where
the magnificence of the trees begins to decline. It would
seem as if Nature, at the height of 5000 and 6000 feet,
having accomplished her masterpiece, becomes power¬
less to maintain the tropical character of the vegetation.
Therefore, rubiaceae, heaths, coniferous and other plants
familiar to countries beyond the tropics, present to us the
flora of higher latitudes. Cryptogamous plants, especially,
are infinitely multiplied; mushrooms are abundant, and
mosses cover the ground and invest the trunks and branches
of trees. The ferns are now smaller in size, but play an
important part, being of an infinite variety of forms, and
constituting the mass of the vegetation.” Such is the bo¬
tanical character of the western or Sun da portion of the
island; and although there be several plants peculiar to each,
that of the central and eastern or Javanese portion does
not materially differ from it.
Zoology. The fauna of Java is proportionally as varied as its
botany. Of mammiferous animals alone, it is thought to
have no fewer than a hundred species, several of them
peculiar to it. There are four species of monkey. Java
has one species of sloth peculiar to itself, the Kukang or
Stenops Javanicus. The species of bats are numerous.
One of these, the kalung of the Javanese, or Pteropus
edulis, is remarkable for its size and numbers. A flock of
these is easily mistaken by a stranger for crows; they are
chiefly to be distinguished by their larger size and heavier
flight. They feed on fruit, in the course of a night de¬
vouring the produce of several trees, and their flesh is con¬
sidered esculent. The dung of another species, together
with that of swallows which dwell in caves and old buildings,
affords the only supply of saltpetre in Java and the other
islands.
In Java, although the most populous and cultivated island
of the Archipelago, wild feline animals are still numerous.
1 he tiger, the same as that of Sumatra, of the peninsula,
and of continental India, abounds in all the forests of Java.
ie leopard is also common, the same litter sometimes
producing a black variety of it, in which the spots can only
be distinguished in a strong light. Two small species of
eopard are also found, Felis minuta, and the Linsanga gra¬
cilis, the last an anomalous animal with some of the habits
o a weasel. Of the weasel family, Java has five species,
wo o w nc i yield musk, and a third is the Viverra musanqa,
an animal of the size of an ordinary cat, and of very wide
distribution, being found also in the Philippine Islands. Of
the dog, besides the half-domesticated race, there are two
wild species; but the fox, the jackal, the wolf, and the
hyena of the continent of India, are unknown. There is
one species or otter, the Aonyx Icptoyiyx,
1 he elephant is not found in Java, nor does there exist
any evidence of its ever having been indigenous, and this
is the more remarkable as it is abundant in Sumatra. The
animal, however, was known to the Javanese for ages, and
was probably imported occasionally for the use of its princes.
Java has one rhinoceros peculiar to itself, and differing even
from those of Sumatra. It is an animal easily tamed, and
when so, gentle in its habits. Besides the domesticated
hog, Java has two wild species, the Sus verrucosus and
Sus vittatus. Both are very numerous, and their depreda¬
tions are a serious impediment to agriculture.
A wild ox is found in the forests of Java, the same as
that found in the peninsula and Borneo, but which is want¬
ing in Sumatra. It is the Bos sondaicus of naturalists.
The Dutch naturalists inform us that all attempts to tame
it have been vain, as in the case of the buffalo of the Ame¬
rican prairies. According to the Javanese, however, it will
pair with the domesticated cattle, producing a fertile off¬
spring, to which they attribute the largest breed of their
oxen. The buffalo, Bos bubalus, is found wild in many of
the forests of Java, but considered by naturalists to be de¬
rived from individuals in the domestic state that had escaped
from servitude. The horse nowhere exists in Java in the
wild state, but the numbers of this animal and of horned
cattle in the domestic state throughout the island are very
large, the Dutch returns reckoning the first at 320,000, and
the last at about 2,000,000.
No wild goats exist in Java, but the domestic has been
immemorially known, although of small importance in rural
economy. I he sheep, usually called by its Sanscrit name
biri, but sometimes “ the European goat,” is very little
known to the natives. Six different species of deer exist,
the most numerous of which are the Cervus mantjac and
the Cervus rusa. I hese two will live and multiply in parks
and paddocks, like our fallow and red deer, and are occa¬
sionally so kept. One species only of pigmy musk exists,
the Moschus kanchil of naturalists. One species of hare is
found in the neighbourhood of Batavia, and to the distance
of about 50 miles E. of it, but in no other part of the island.
It is a small animal, not exceeding a rabbit in size, and even
of less speed. It had been generally believed that it was
originally imported from the continent of India, but the
Dutch naturalists have lately described it as a distinct spe¬
cies, under the name of Lepus melanancha, from being
black over the nape instead of red, as the European hare.
Of birds the number of species is large, but of individuals
generafly small. Dr Horsfield has enumerated no fewer
than 116 species. Of gallinaceous birds there is one species
of peacock, the Pavo spicifer, equally handsome with the
Indian. Two species of cock are found in the woods of
Java, the Callus Bankiva and the Callusfurcatus or Ja¬
vanicus, a very beautiful bird, and peculiar to Java. This
will pair with the common poultry, and the progeny is a
hybrid, which for its beauty is sometimes kept by the na¬
tives. Two species of partridge are found in Java, the
Perdnx Sinensis and Perdrix Javanica, and two small spe¬
cies of quail, the pugnacious propensities of the females of
which, in the season of incubation, are availed of to produce
a combat after the manner of fighting cocks. Of the pigeon
tribe there are in Java no fewer than ten different species.
T he family of birds most deficient in Java is that of web¬
footed water-fowl. There is but one species of duck, a
teal, the Dendrocygna arcuata, and no species of goose,
nor any migratory bird. There are, however, two indigen¬
ous species of pelican. The species of waders are numer¬
ous. I he common snipe is abundant. Among tlie waders
there are eleven species of stork or heron. Among smaller
birds there are two species of cuckoo, one of which has a
wild plaintive and monotonous note, not unpleasant to
Europeans. With the Javanese, however, it is a bird of
ill-omen. The mancho or Gracula religiosa, the speaking
Java,
JAY A.
Java.
Inhabi¬
tants.
Agricul¬
ture.
grackle, is common. The Java sparrow, Fringilla oryzivora,
a great enemy of the rice crop, is but too common. The
house sparrow is a stranger, introduced seemingly by Euro¬
peans. It is still, for the most part, confined to the Euro¬
pean towns on the northern coast. Birds of prey are very
numerous, but none of them of great size. There are eight
species of eagle or falcon,-and seven of owls, but no vulture.
One species of black crow is abundant.
Fish are plentiful along the whole northern coast of Java,
and a few species are of excellent quality, but, upon the
whole, the abundance and the quality are not equal to those
of the shores of the Straits of Malacca. The fresh-water
fish are all of very inferior quality, and no migratory species
frequent the rivers for spawning as they do on the rivers of
the eastern side of Sumatra. Shell-fish are very abundant
on the northern coast, especially oysters of excellent quality,,
and prawns, the last being much used by the people in the
shape of the condiment called by the Javanese trasi. The
fisheries of the exposed southern coast of the island are un¬
important.
Java, whether the inhabitants be of the Javanese or
Sunda nation, is peopled by the same race, the Malayan.-
This is characterized by a short and squat person, the sta¬
ture being about two inches less than that of the European,
the Chinese, the Hindu, the Persian, or Arabian. The
face is round, the mouth wide, the cheek-bones high, the
nose short, small, never prominent as with the European,
and never flat as with the African negro. The eyes are
always black, small, and deep-seated. The complexion is
brown, with a shade of yellow, not so dark as with the ma¬
jority of Hindus, and never black as with some of them.
Fairness is, indeed, in estimation with the Javanese and
others of the same race. The hair of'the head is abundant,
always black, lank, and harsh, or at least never soft or silky.
The hair on other parts of the body is either scanty or al¬
together wanting. 1 he beard consists only of a few short
straggling hairs, and there is none at all on the breast or
limbs. 1 he Javanese, personally, are not an agile people,
and make very indifferent runners or wrestlers. As to
moral character, the Javanese of the present day may be
described as a peaceable, docile, sober, simple, and indus¬
trious people. The practice of running a muck, so frequent
with the other cultivated nations of the Archipelago, is of
very rare occurrence with them.
Java was populous, and to a considerable degree civilized
for many ages before it was known to Europeans. De
Barros describes the Javanese, at the arrival of the Portu¬
guese, as what they still are, “ the most civilized people of
these parts” {gentes de mais policid). They were then
found carrying on trade from Sumatra to the Moluccas
they furnished bread-corn and manufactures to the less ad¬
vanced nations in return for their rude productions, and
they had effected conquests or settlements in Malacca,
Palembang in Sumatra, and in the two fertile islands of
Bali and Lomboc. In fact, it is certain that the Javanese
were, at this time, a far more civilized, probably even a
more numerous people than either the Mexicans or Peru¬
vians, who became known to Europe nearly at the same
time. The essential part of Javanese civilization seems to
be of native origin, and to have sprung up in the island
itself, although it subsequently received considerable acces¬
sions by intercourse with Hindus.
With the exception of the people of Bali and Lomboc,
the Javanese are the only nation of the Archipelago that
can be said to be almost exclusively agricultural. With
the exception of the fishermen of the northern coast, and
a very small proportion of artisans, the computed ten millions
of the population of the island is directly or indirectly en¬
gaged in agriculture, and have made a respectable progress
in it. To regulate the processes of agriculture, the Javanese
have a rural calendar still in use. This consists of a year
VOL. xir.
705
of 360 days, beginning with the winter solstice of the
southern hemisphere in the end of June, and divided into
twelve seasons of unequal length, varying from 23 to 41
days each. It details the times for clearing and preparing
the land, for sowing, for transplanting, and for reaping the
different crops. The native terms by which the seasons
are named, are, for the most part, the ordinal numbers of
the vernacular language, while the adaptation of the seasons
to the latitude of Java, sufficiently show that this calendar
is a Javanese invention, and not borrowed from strangers.
Irrigation, in so far as the rice crop is concerned, multi¬
plies the productive powers of the soil from five to ten-fold,
according to the abundance of water, and the facility of
using it, and has been carried to such an extent in Java,
that the majority of the arable land of the island consists of
rice fields. The perennial streams and rivers, as they de¬
scend fiom the mountains, are, by means of embankments
and trenches, diverted into small fields surrounded by low
dikes, which can be flooded or drained at pleasure. The
process of forming such lands is expensive and laborious,
but when once formed, they are easily preserved. When
the water for irrigated lands is sufficiently abundant and
continuous, two crops of rice are raised within the year, and
in some cases even three within fifteen months, the sun
being hot enough to ripen rice in every season. The hus¬
bandman may follow his convenience as to the time of sow¬
ing, and in contiguous fields may be seen at once sowing
and reaping rice, with every intermediate stage of the growth
of the plant. When the water is not sufficiently copious
for two crops, the rice is sown in the wet or hot season; and
in the diy, or cold, crops considered of secondary value are
produced, such as pulses, oil-giving plants, and cotton. No
manure is ever applied to irrigated lands, nor are fallows
practised^
Dry or upland arable is of small value compared to irri¬
gated land. On the best dry lands rice is occasionally
grown, but more generally these lands are used for such crops
as pulses, oil-giving plants, cotton, sugar-cane, and tobacco,
and on the mountain-slopes, at an elevation of 2000 and
3000 feet, for coffee.
In the most fertile parts of Java, which,- from the neigh¬
bourhood of the high mountains, are usually also the most
picturesque, the scenery is at once agreeable and magnifi¬
cent, and certainly for grandeur and beauty excels all that
may be seen, even in Italy, that country which in summer
bears the nearest resemblance to Java. In such situations
we have mountains 10,000 feet high, cultivated to half their
height, the valleys below having all the appearance of a
well-watered garden.
W hen Java first became known to Europeans, its prin¬
cipal agricultural products were rice, pulses, sesame, ground-
pea, and other oil-giving plants, indigo and cotton, with
palms and indigenous fruits. European intercourse has
added to these maize, tobacco, and coffee. The quantity
of its great staple, rice, which it produces, can only be esti¬
mated. With the exception of a small quantity of maize,
rice is the only bread-corn of the Javanese; and, therefore,
if we take the consumption per head at a quarter, or 448
lbs., this, on a computed population of ten millions, will make
the total annual produce the same number of quarters. The
export is, at present, too inconsiderable materially to affect
this computation, for in 1848 it amounted to no more than
217,000 quarters..
From the first appearance of Europeans, and no doubt
for many ages before, Java was the great granary of the
other countries of the Archipelago. Recently the exten¬
sive culture by corvee labour of such products as sugar,
coffee, and indigo, under an idle and pernicious hypothesis
that some peculiar commercial advantage to the state be-
longed to their culture, has greatly interfered with the pro¬
duction of corn. T he export of it has consequently dimi-
4 u
Java.
706
JAVA.
Java.
Mechanic
arts.
drlw’their com fron, other place, such as Bali.
L°The steteTf the^chanic arts among the Javanese is far
u i +1 f nf tlipir agriculture, but still m advance ot that
of ti'e other nations of the Archipelago ; and with die ex-
.• „f textile fabrics, not below that of the Hindus.
About thirty different crafts may be enumerated as prac¬
tised among them, the most important of which are the
blacksmith or cutler, the carpenter, the kns-sheathmaker,
the coppersmith, the goldsmith, and the potter. Bot
bricks and tiles are, at present, largely made; and excel¬
lent bricks are found in the remains of many ancient tem¬
ples proving that the art of manufacturing them has been
known for many ages. Coarse unglazed pottery, similar to
that of Hindustan, is also made ; and the names of the di-
ferent sorts all belong to the vernacular language. Beyond
the manufacture of this coarse article, the Javanese have
not advanced—all their better pottery having been lor ages
received from China. , , , . . i
Their skill in carpentry is displayed in house and boat
building, in the fabrication of agricultural implements, and
of the hilts, shafts, and scabbards of warlike weapons. I he
ordinary dwellings of the peasantry consist of a rough frame
of timber, thatched on the coast with the leaves of the mpa
palm, and in the interior with grass ; having walls and par¬
titions of split, flattened, and plaited bamboo work I hey
are always built on the ground. The dwellings of the upper
classes differ, chiefly, in their greater size, with the excep¬
tion of the palaces of the princes and higher nobility.
Boat-building is an art extensively practised all along the
northern coast of Java. Their boats vary in form and size
from mere fishing canoes to vessels of fifty tons. Ihe
building of ships is, at present, carried on under the direc¬
tion of Europeans, the workmen, however, being all J avanese.
When Europeans became first acquainted with the Javanese,
they were possessed of vessels ot large size, well entitled to
the name of ships.
The agricultural implements of the Javanese are, like
those of nearly every other Asiatic people, simple and rude.
The Javanese of the present day have no architecture
that deserves the name, and apart from the temples ot their
ancient worship, no relics remain of any kind of domestic
architecture, of bridges, of reservoirs, or of embankments
of rivers, such as are found in the country of the Hindus.
The remains of the remarkable edifices connected with the
Hindu religion are abundant; but it is singular that an im¬
proved architecture ceased with that religion, and that no
Mohammedan structure of solid materials or beauty has
been constructed since the adoption of the Mohammedan
religion towards the end of the fifteenth century.
It is in working the metals, however, that the Javanese
have most excelled, and as they acquired this comparative
excellence without possessing any of the metals themselves,
but having all of them imported, the fact may be considered
as evidence of comparatively advanced civilization. Accord¬
ing to the Javanese, the first rank among artisans is to be
ascribed to the blacksmith, or at least to the cutler. The
most esteemed product of his skill is the dagger, the well
known kris. Every man, and boy of fourteen, wears at
least one kris as part of his ordinary dress, and men of rank
two and sometimes four. Even ladies of high rank occa¬
sionally wear one. Swords are used only in native warfare,
and are much less esteemed than the kris, the national
weapon. The Javanese spear, a plain pike with an iron
head, is a formidable weapon, from its long shaft of from
12 to 14 feet. Some of the Javanese krises, from their
antiquity, are highly appreciated, and when sold bring
enormous prices. The Javanese had also, before the arrival
<mf the Portuguese, a knowledge of gunpowder and artillery.
Java.
De Barros, in describing an expedition which invaded Ma¬
lacca in 1513, says, “ that it was furnished with much artil¬
lery, made in Java, for,” adds he, “ the Javanese are skilled
in founding or casting, and in all work in iron, besides what
they have from India.”
The Javanese, although they manufacture gold and silver
ornaments of considerable beauty, execute nothing equal
to the filigree work of Sumatra. In works in brass, their
chief excellence consists in the fabrication of musical in¬
struments, a full band of which is known throughout the
Archipelago by the Javanese name of gamalan. The in¬
struments consist chiefly of bars, constructed after the man¬
ner of the staocata, or of the gong, a word which has found
its way into our dictionaries and is genuine Javanese.
Some of these gongs have been made three feet in diameter.
Musical instruments of this description are still manufac¬
tured in Java, and form an article of exportation, as, indeed,
they are said to have done on the first arrival of the Por¬
tuguese.
The only textile material of native produce is cotton,
rather a coarse article, and the only kind of cloth made from
it is a stout durable calico, the muslins and other fine tex¬
tures of Continental India being unknown as manufactures.
The processes of cleaning and preparing the cotton, of spin¬
ning, weaving, and dyeing, are all carried on by women,
and are purely domestic operations, as is the case with all
the other nations of the Archipelago. The usual mode of
giving variety of colours to the web is the simplest possible,
consisting in weaving the previously coloured yarn in stripes,
chequered or tartan patterns, so frequent with the other
tribes, being against the taste of the Javanese. . Another
mode peculiar to this people consists in covering with melted
wax the part of the cloth not intended to be dyed before
putting it in the vat, the process necessarily requiring repe¬
tition in proportion to the number of colours intended to
be given. .
The only material, besides cotton, from which cloth is
made by the Javanese is silk, and as the art of reaiing the
silk-worm has never been successfully introduced into Java,
the raw material has always been imported. At present it
is imported from China, an inferior silk, from which a coarse
cloth is wrought with the same implements as that of cotton.
Paper is a manufacture peculiar to the Javanese. It is
of the nature of the papyrus of the ancients, and not of the
beautiful and ingenious fabric which the nations of Europe
acquired from the Arabs of Spain, and so long known to
the Chinese.
Of higher branches of knowledge, the Javanese know Higl.er
little. The Hindu system of noting numbers seems to have °e
been introduced from India, and not by the Arabs, for we
find it in ancient inscriptions, both on stone and brass. The
Javanese, however, have little knowledge of arithmetic.
Music is, probably, of all others, the art in which the Music.
Javanese, compared with most of the other Asiatic races,
have made the greatest progress. In common with all the
other nations of the Archipelago, they are passionate lovers
of music, and have generally fine musical ears. Javanese
melodies are wild, plaintive, and beyond all other Asiatic
music, not, perhaps, excepting that of the Persians, pleasing
to the European ear. Most of their musical instruments,
too, are superior to those of other Asiatic nations. They
have wind and stringed instruments, both of them rude and
imperfect however. Their best and most frequent are those
of percussion. Some of these consist of a single gong, or
of a series of them representing different notes, and others
of bars of brass or sonorous wood placed over troughs, and
representing so many keys, after the fashion of the harmo-
nicon. The late Dr Crotch, a most competent judge, after
inspecting the fine collection of instruments brought to-^
England by Sir Stamford Raffles, favoured the writer with
his opinion of them, as well as of the general character of
.1 A
Java. Javanese music. With respect to the single gongs, he
V-pv—" thus expressed himself: “ A pair of gongs was suspended
from the centre of a most superb wooden stand richly
carved, painted, and gilt. The tone of those instruments
exceeded in depth and in quality anything I had ever heard.”
Of the instrument consisting of a double series of small
gongs, he thus spoke: “ The tone of this instrument is at
once powerful and sweet, and its intonation clear and per¬
fect ; ” and of the instruments of percussion generally, he
observed that he “ was astonished and delighted with their
ingenious fabrication, splendour, beauty, and accurate in¬
tonation.” With respect to the character of Javanese
music generally, he made the following observations:
“ The instruments are all in the same kind of scale as that
produced by the black keys of the pianoforte, in which scale
so many of the Scots and Irish, all the Chinese, and some
of the best Indian and North American airs were com¬
posed. The result of my examination is a pretty strong
conviction that all the real native music of Java is composed
in a common enharmonic scale. Some of the cadences re¬
mind us of Scotch music for the bagpipe. Others in the mi¬
nor key have the flat seventh instead of the leading note or
sharp seventh, one of the indications of antiquity. In many
of the airs, the recurrence of the same passages is artful
and ingenious. The irregularity of the rhythm or measure,
and the reiteration of the same sound, are characteristic of
oriental music. The melodies are, in general, wild, plain¬
tive, and interesting. A full band of Javanese musical
instruments, which consists of flutes, drums, gongs, and
staccatas, will cost from L.100 up to L.400.
Language. Two languages are spoken in Java, of the same general
structure, belonging to the same class of tongues, and hav¬
ing many words in common, yet essentially differing from
each other. These are the Javanese and Sunda.
The Javanese has been immemorially a written language,
and its alphabet has extended to the Sunda language. In¬
scriptions on stone and brass carry us back in its history to
the twelfth century. The written character is of two de¬
scriptions, that found in ancient inscriptions, and that at
present current. They seem, however, to be essentially
the same, and not to differ more than black letter from
modern manuscript. The character is peculiar, essentially
unlike that of the other alphabets of the Archipelago, and
equally unlike any Hindu or other foreign character. It
does not even, like several of the ruder alphabets of the
Archipelago, follow the rhythmical arrangement of the
Hindu alphabets. In fact, it has all the appearance of be¬
ing an indigenous invention. The consonants alone are
considered substantial letters, and the vowels mere adjunc¬
tive signs to modify them, or, as the Javanese designate
them, their “ clothing.” The consonants are nineteen in
number, but the initial vowel a is considered a substantive
letter. This vowel, too, is inherent in, and follows every
consonant, unless there be a contrivance to elide it. In¬
dependent of this letter, there are five other vowels. Ja¬
vanese writing is neat and distinct, and, so far as concerns
native sounds, perfect, for every sound in the language has
its representative character, and the same character has in¬
variably the one power and no other.
There are three dialects of the Javanese, the vulgar
tongue, the polite dialect, and the ancient or recondite.
All of them are marked by simplicity of grammatical struc¬
ture, a simplicity which appears to be innate and original.
The foreign languages which we find mixed with the
Javanese are Sanscrit, Arabic, and Talugu or Telinga.
All these have found their way into it, not through foreign
conquest and the intermixture and settlement of men of
strange race, but through the influence of religion and com¬
merce. Of these languages by far the largest infusion is of
Sanscrit. Of the first conversion of the Javanese to Hin¬
duism, and consequent influx of its sacred lauguage into
V A. 707
Javanese, there is no record whatever; but it seems pro- Java,
bable, from the extent of the influence exercised, that the
connection is of great antiquity,—probably little short of
twenty centuries. In the ordinary language of Java, the
proportion of Sanscrit words is about 11 in 100, but in the
kawi or recondite, it is not less than 40 per cent. The
proportion of Arabic words is comparatively small. The
Talugu words introduced are very few in number.
The Sunda language, as already stated, differs from the
Javanese, and is a ruder and less cultivated tongue. To
judge by ancient inscriptions, it had once a peculiar cha¬
racter of its own, but is now written in the Javanese, with
the omission of two letters, a palatial d and a t. It has no
recondite, like the Javanese, and no ceremonial dialect, ex¬
cept in so far as it has borrowed, in the last case, a few
words from that of the Javanese. Its literature, also small
in amount, is taken from the latter.
The literature of the Javanese is sufficiently abundant, Litera-
and exists both in the ancient and modern languages. In ture.
both it is metrical throughout, the former being in different
metres, borrowed from Sanscrit poetry, and the latter in
native stanzas, of many kinds, and in a peculiar rhyme.
The principal portion of Javanese literature consists of
romances and of histories, partaking too much of the cha¬
racter of the romances. The romances are founded, some
of them on Hindu legends, and others on ancient Javanese
story. Of the Sanscrit poems, which describe the wars of
the Pandus, and the adventures of the demi-god Rama, the
Javanese possess abstracts both in the ancient and modern
tongue. These two poems are to the Javanese what the
poems of Homer were to the Greeks and Romans, and they
have even transferred the scenes of them to their own island.
The poem which describes the wars of the Pandus is known
to the Javanese by the name of the Bratayuda, a title which
is composed of two Sanscrit words, signifying “ the war of
the descendants of Barat.” This, the most meritorious
production of Javanese literature, is said to have been com¬
posed in the twelfth century (1195), by a Brahmin of the
name of Ampusadah, at the court of a Javanese prince.
It cannot with truth be said of Javanese poetry that it
possesses either vigour or fertility of imagination. On the
contrary, although a few better passages now and then oc¬
cur, its general character is that of inanity and childishness.
At the same time, it is certainly of a higher order than that
of any other people of the Archipelago, while it is much in¬
ferior to the literature of the Hindus.
The native government of Java is a pure despotism. Govern-
The sovereign is the arbitrary lord of all, including, in ment.
theory at least, the religion and the property of his subjects.
All titles are derived from him, and are annulled at his
pleasure. He names his successor out of the members of his
family; and there is nothing hereditary, save the royal
family, for which there is a superstitious veneration, very
like idolatry,—even here, however, scarcely extending be¬
yond the first generation.
The Javanese sovereign exercises his authority through
a minister, having under him four assistants, who are his
deputies, as he himself is of the sovereign. Two of these
are charged with the administration of the royal house¬
hold and capital, and two with the administration of the
provinces, of which, in the Javanese portion of the island,
when under native rule, there were not fewer than forty.
These were under the administration of governors bearing
the Sanscrit title of bopati. These had their deputies, so that
a provincial government was a copy in miniature of the
supreme administration. The province was divided into
districts, administered by officers, and each district was
composed of a certain number of villages, each having its
head man and deputy.
I he village community constitutes the most important
part of the Javanese institutions. The Javanese village,
708
Java.
Discovery.
JAVA.
like the Hindu, is an incorporation, in whuih the powers
self-government to a large extent are inherent. Its officers
consist of the head man, his assistant or deputy, and the
village priest who are elected by the occupants of the and,
andfn afew^cases by its proprietors With these v.llage
nffiee.. vests the collection of the public taxes, and the whole
care of the police. . . . .1
In the structure of Javanese society there is no other
distinction of classes, except that of nobles and commonalty.
Slavery is at present unknown in Java, in so far as concerns
its native inhabitants, nor is it known to have existed in any
period of Javanese history, which is remarkable enough since
it prevails more or less among all the less advanced nations
of the Archipelago. That at a remote and early time it did
exist in Java there can be no doubt. Its disappearance
must be attributed to density of population, with its con¬
comitant cheapness of labour, which made it more econo¬
mical and convenient to employ free men than to breed and
maintain slaves, and assuredly to no higher motive.
The main source of the revenue of a Javanese prince is
derived from the rent of land, or a tax on rent; and Java is
probably the only country of the Archipelago, with the ex¬
ception of Bali and Lomboc, in which, from the relation
between land and population, a real land rent can be said to
exist. This rent is chiefly found in the irrigated land, that
is, in the land of the highest fertility, and is composed of
two elements—the difference in the quality of different lands,
and the value which in the course of ages has been invested
in such lands in converting them into water-fields.
In the ruder country of Sundas there are some remains
of a private and heritable property in the land, but in the
country of the Javanese the sovereign has gradually taken
the whole rent as tax, reducing the cultivators to the con¬
dition of mere occupants or tenants at will, he himself hav¬
ing become the virtual proprietor.
All other sources of taxation than the land are, under the
native government, comparatively trifling. In some cases
a small capitation tax is levied, but this also is confined to
the cultivators. A property in the nests of the esculent
swallow, and in certain fish-ponds or stews, formed another
branch of the native revenue. Taxes on consumption in
the shape of customs, transit duties, and market dues formed
a third, but probably most of these are of comparatively
modern origin, and will be presently considered.
Java was unknown even byname to the civilized nations
of ancient Europe, and even to those of the middle ages.
It is first named by Marco Polo, who, in his junk voyage
from China to the Persian Gulf, passed through the nor¬
thern part of the Archipelago about the close of the thir¬
teenth century. He gives the name as Ciaua or Java, but
his information being mere hearsay is in other respects
erroneous. Thus, mistaking probably the products of its
commerce for its indigenous productions, he enumerates
among the latter cloves and nutmugs, and gold in quan¬
tity “ exceeding all calculation and belief,” although it pro¬
duces none at all.
No sooner had the Portuguese reached India by the
Cape of Good Hope than the name became familiar enough
to Europeans. L. Barthema visited the island and remained
fourteen days in it, but his account is obviously false or
worthless, for he describes parents as selling their children
to be eaten by the purchasers, and himself as quitting the
island in haste for fear of being made a meal of. Edoardo
Barbosa, although he had not visited it, describes its pro¬
ductions, its trade, its manufactures of arms, and the persons,
dress, and manners of its inhabitants, with much accuracy.
Pigafetta, although his information respecting it was de¬
rived, as he tells us himself, from the old pilot who ac¬
companied him from the Moluccas, is even more correct
than Barbosa.
Plow very little, however, was really known of Java by
the early Portuguese of India, is to be seen from what De
Barros, master of all the Indian archives, says of it in his
Third Decade, published in 1663, no less than fifty-two
years after the conquest of Malacca, and several years
after his countrymen had visited China, discovered Java,
and traded with both. He makes it to consist of two is¬
lands, Java and Sunda; and his work contains a rude map,
in which a great river, or rather a strait of the sea, is
represented as dividing them. Phis he calls the river
Chiamo, which may possibly be the Chitando of the Sun¬
das, a considerable stream at the eastern boundary of their
country, and which, in their language, signifies, “ boundary
water or river.”
Java.
It is only from the time of the Javanese conversion to the Mo- History,
hammedan religion, which all parties are agreed in asserting to
have been consummated by the overthrow of the most potent Hindu
state of the island in 1478, that their history begins to have some
faint semblance of congruity. AH that transpired previous to this
date is more a matter of archaeology than of history or chronology.
They possess chronological tables, hut in these the earlier period is
palpably fabulous ; the dates, after the manner of the Hindus, being
expressed, not in numeral characters, or in words representing
numbers, hut in mystical terms, differently interpreted by different
parties. It is a favourite notion with Javanese chronologists that
the islands of Sumatra, Java, Bali, Lomboc, and Sumbawa, formed
at one time a.continuous land, and they assign precise dates pre¬
posterously modern, to the times in which they became so many
different islands. Sumatra, according to these statements, was
separated from Java in the year 1192, Bali from Java in 1282, and
Lomboc from Sumbawa in 1350, that is above half a century after
Marco Polo had passed through the Archipelago.
From the eleventh century the Javanese chronology assumes an
air of at least some feasibility ; but even from that time down to
1478, there is much discrepancy between different statements, ac¬
cording as the mystic words in which dates are expressed are in¬
terpreted. Thus, the “ thousand temples” of Brambanan, the finest
remains of Hinduism in the island, are said by one account to have
been built in 1096, and by another in 1266.
The great events of Javanese history are the respective conver¬
sions of the people to Hinduism and Mohammedanism. Of the time
when the first of these took place, or the manner in which it was
brought about, we have no positive information. The evidence
derived from language and ancient monuments, sufficiently attests
the general prevalence, if not, indeed, the universality of some
form or modification of the religion of the Hindus over the island ;
but anything beyond this is matter of inference or conjecture.
Ancient states existed which had acquired a considerable amount
of civilization and power, as is shown by the ruins of palaces and
temples ; but none of them had any durability,—none of them ruled
over the whole island, while several of them, according to tradition,
existed at one and the same time.
The Hindus, it is highly probable, migrated to Java and estab¬
lished their religion in it at a very early period, probably as early
as the sixth century. That the Hindus and their religion, however,
existed in Java from the end of the thirteenth to that of the fifteenth
century, is a matter of certainty, proved by monumental dates en¬
tirely reliable.
The history of the conversion of the Javanese to the religicfn of
Mohammed, even at this comparatively recent period, is much en¬
veloped in fable. The parties who effected the conversion were
the mixed descendants of Arabs, Persians, Malays, and Mohamme¬
dans of Hindustan,—parties who had settled on its northern coast
for the purposes of trade; who were intimately acquainted with
the natives of the country and their language ; and who, in process
of time, had acquired wealth and influence. Of such men were the
real missionaries of Islam in Java composed, and the work of con¬
version was certainly a slow one. As early as the year of our time
1358, an unsuccessful attempt had been made by missionaries of
this description to convert the Sunda nation. Another was made
in 1391 to convert the proper Javanese; and the tomb of one of
the reputed saints who made this attempt, one Maulana Ibrahim,
still exists in Gressik, bearing the year of Salivana, 1334, or of our
time 1412. In the year of Christ 1460, the Mohammedan converts
assembled a force for the conquest of Majapait, the capital of the
principal Hindu state, but were defeated; and it was not until
1478, eighteen years after, that they succeeded in capturing the
capital, overthrowing the state, and establishing their own power
and faith.
The Sunda nation appears to have been converted about the same
time, the conquests proceeding from Cheribon, and ending with
Bantam in 1480. The Mohammedan chiefs assumed the government
JAVA.
Java. °f the respective states which they had subjugated, under the title
^ Susunan, abbreviated Sunan, a spiritual title, meaning “object of
reverence,” which one of the native princes still retains.
According to these statements, the work of conversion ran over
a period of at least 130 years. Even at the lapse of this time, how¬
ever, it does not appear to have been completed ; for, according to
De Barros, when Henrique Leme visited the country of the Sundas
1522, forty-four years after the supposed final conversion of the
Javanese, he found idolatrous temples, nunneries, and the practice
of concremation still existing. For a century after the overthrow
of Majapait, Java appears to have been split into many indepen¬
dent states. When first visited by the Portuguese, such was un¬
questionably its condition. “ The island of Java,” says De Barros,
is divided into many kingdoms;” and he enumerates no fewer
than fourteen, most of which, notwithstanding much corruption of
orthography, can be identified with the existing names of provinces.
About the year 1578, however, a native chief, the governor of the
province of Mataram, on behalf of the king of the neighbouring
state of Pajang, raised himself to sovereign power, and founded the
family from which has sprung the two existing native rulers. In
the course of the first four reigns of this dynasty, most of the pro¬
per country of the Javanese, with the island of Madura, were sub¬
jugated, and the princes of the Sunda country made tributary.
It was in the reign of the second prince of this dynasty, that the
Dutch made their first appearance in Java, under Houtman, in
1595. In 1610 they obtained permission from the Sunda prince of
Jacatra, to build a fort near to the spot on which now stands the
city of Batavia. In 1619 this fort was besieged by the joint forces
of the princes of Jacatra and Bantam, aided and abetted by the
English. It was relieved by a Dutch fleet under Admiral Koen,
and the assailants defeated and driven off. It was after this event
that the name of Batavia first given to the fortress was bestowed on
the town. In 1628 Batavia was besieged by a numerous army sent
against it by the reigning prince of Mataram, with the hope of ex¬
pelling the Dutch from the island ; but by the skill and courage of
the European garrison, the rude and disorderly host was baffled
and routed. From this time the history of Java is properly that
of its European conquerors. No considerable territorial acquisition,
however, was made until 1677, when the Dutch obtained a cession
of the principality of Jacatra. From that time up to the year 1830,
every war carried on by them with the native princes, whether as
principals or auxiliaries, invariably ended in a cession of territory
to the former; so that, at present, hardly one-fourteenth part of
the island is in possession of native rulers, and even that is entirely
tributary and dependent.
I rom the year 1674 to 1830, the Dutch, as principals or auxili¬
aries, have been engaged in no fewer than four great wars, all of
long duration. One of which, begun in 1674, lasted for thirty-four
years; one in 1718, lasted for five years; one in 1740, for fifteen
years; and one in 1825, for five years; so that, of one-third part
at least of a period of 156 years, civil war raged in the island.
The Dutch have divided their possessions in Java into twenty
provinces or residencies, each of which is administered by a resi¬
dent or prefect. Six of these belong to the country of the Sundas,
and fourteen to that of the Javanese. The two remaining native
states, although administered by their own princes, are virtually
Dutch provinces, and. placed under the control of an officer, with
the same title as those of the provinces under direct Dutch rule.
Population. Attempts have been made at various times to estimate the total
population of Java. The first of these was by the historian Va-
lentyn, who eotimates the population in his time (1726) at 3,199,750-
and including Madura, 3,591,500. This estimate was made shortly
after a civil war of five years’ duration. In 1755, immediately
after the finest parts of the island had been the theatre of a civil
war of fifteen years, an estimate was made which gave Java only
1,941,911, or including Madura, 2,001,911. This would seem to
show that in less than thirty years a decrease had taken place ex¬
ceeding a million and a quarter. At the close of the last century,
estimates of the population were made, which raised the joint popu¬
lation of Java and Madura to 3,559,611. This was after a con¬
tinued peace of forty-five years ; and shows, compared to the last
estimate, an increase exceeding a million and a half. In 1808 an¬
other estimate was made, and by this the number was made 3,730,000.
In 1815 a census was attempted, during the temporary occupation
of the English, which raised the population of Java to 4,390,661
or including Madura, to 4,615,270. In 1826 a census was token
which gave the population at 5,403,786. Ten years later, another
was taken, and this raised the number to 7,861,551 ; and conse¬
quently gave a decennial increase at the rate of about 44 per cent.
The census of 1845 made the joint population of Java and Madura
9,530,781, or of Java alone, 9,235,033. The last census is that of
1852, and this made the joint population of Java and Madura
9,943,075. The population was estimated as being-, on 31st Dec
1853, 10,290,000.
The inhabitants of Java, besides Javanese and Sundas, consist Java
also of Madurese; for these are not confined to their own island, v im- ,y -
but form the larger part of the population of that section of Java
which fronts Madura. This portion having been depopulated by
the civil wars of the end of the seventeenth and beginning of the
eighteenth centuries, the Madurese began to emigrate to it from
their own less fertile land ; and this emigration still goes on, so
that the Madurese in Java are probably at present more numerous
than in their parent country. For the whole island, including
Madura, the proportions of the three nations is supposed to be 66
in 100 of the Javanese; 26 of the Sundas ; and 8 of the Madurese.
The most numerous class of stranger-settlers are the Chinese;
the census of 1852 makes their numbers 125,407, the greater
number consisting of a mixed race. The small proportion of Chinese
in Java is, of course, in some measure attributable to the nature of
the labour market, in so far as respects unskilled labour, that being
already preoccupied by the native population ; but it arises also
from the restraints imposed by the policy of the Dutch government
on their settlement. They are obliged to pay a mulct for leave to
enter, and a larger one for permission to quit, besides a poll-tax—
all of them imposts to which no other class of strangers is subjected.
Jealousy of Chinese settlement is, indeed, a principle of long stand¬
ing in the Dutch administration. In the early part of the last cen¬
tury their numbers alarmed the government, and their wealth and
prosperity appear to have excited the envy of the Dutch colonists ;
and in 1723 the local government issued a decree against Chinese
immigration, which, however, was never fully acted on. They
were, however, prohibited from passing beyond the limits of the
town of Batavia without a license ; and all who could not render an
account of themselves satisfactory to the European authorities were
imprisoned or sent back to China. These severities drove the
Chinese to revolt; and on the 26th of September 1740, the Chinese
quarter of Batavia was attacked by a mob, consisting of soldiers,
sailors, European settlers, and natives, and in the course of two
days, 10,000 of the Chinese are stated to have been slaughtered, and
their houses pillaged and burnt. Those who escaped the massacre
retreated into the interior of the island, and the result was a civil
war, which, in one form or another, lasted for fifteen years. The
local government sent a letter full of excuses to the emperor of
China, to which the emperor did not vouchsafe a reply. In justice
to the Dutch nation it should be noticed, that the whole proceed-
ing was condemned at home : and the weak and timorous governor,
who was the cause of, or winked at the massacre, was duly punished.'
The other Asiatic people settled in Java consists of Arabs, or
rather, for the most part, of their mestizo descendants, and of na¬
tives of the other islands of the Archipelago. All these are grouped
together in the census of 1852, and their total number, including
slaves, is no more than 37,701. The number of slaves is but 9410.
None of these are Javanese, but all natives of the other islands of
the Archipelago, or their descendants, chiefly of Celebes, Sumatra,
and Bali. All of them are domestics of Europeans or Chinese.
The practice of employing free Javanese as domestic servants was
fust introduced by the English during their temporary occupation
of the island, and has been follotved by the Dutch.
The revenue of the European government of Java is that of the Revenue
whole island, including Madura ; excepting as to some taxes on
consumption, the territories are subject to the two remaining native
princes, embracing an area of 2229 square miles, and a reputed
population of 850,000. It is derived from multifarious sources,
and may be briefly described, taking the figures from the public
accounts of 1843, as given by Mr Temminck. These may be suffi¬
cient for a general view, as no material change has since been made
in the fiscal system.
During the five years’ temporary occupation of Java by the
British government, from 1811 to 1816, nearly the whole ancient
system of monopolies, forced deliveries, and corvee labour was
overthrown, and free culture, open trade, and free labour substi¬
tuted for them. The merit of this great revolution in the adminis¬
tration of the island belongs to the late Sir Stamford Raffles, the
Bi itish lieutenant-governor of Java, under the supreme government
of India; and he carried his bold and valuable innovations into
effect with a courage, industry, and perseverance entitled to the
greatest praise. The financial system which he adopted, however
was not so happy,—in so far as the land-tax was concerned, for it
proceeded on the principle of the states entering directly into an
arrangement with each individual occupant of a few acres, in the
case of Java probably not fewer than half a million. Under this
system, the tax was paid either in money or in kind, at the option
of the occupant; and being generally paid in the latter, it followed
that the government was converted at once into warehouse-keepers,
and corn merchants. As in our own territories on the continent
o India, the new system was found mischievous and impracticable.
Ihe land was over-assessed, and the hypothetical land-tax could not
be realized.
710
Java.
JAVA.
After a two years’ trial, the Dutch commissioners who received
After a two y iougl abandoned the Ryotwarrie system
ofT814 and arranged with the heads of the village corporations for
the land tax leaving its distribution among the occupants to these
the land ta , fves. This natural and simple system, the only
corporations fc 1 f iet as that of Java, after being in
r'S f“ 14 y‘« ™ partially r«li„,ui,hea i„ 1832 and the
old system of forgeddeliveries of certain agricultural products and of
corvje labour in raising them, was to a large extent restored. The
nretext for this was the hope of greater gain, and the assump on
that by the immemorial usage of the country, the state was entitled
to take at its option, its tax in money, in kind, or in corvee labour.
Tinder this system a considerable portion of the tax on rent is remit¬
ted and some of the best land with the labour of its peasantry has
been appropriated to the cultivation of products deemed peculiarly
fitted for the markets of Europe, such as coffee, sugar, and indigo,
with tea, cinnamon, and cochineal, the last three expressly intr0‘
duced into the island for this special purpose. By this impolitic
measure, the Dutch government has become, once more, a cultiva¬
tor a trader, and necessarily, from its position to a certain extent,
a monopolist trader. The evil effects of such a system on that
wealth, which is the only source of public revenue, must be obvious
to every enlightened statesman. . ^
The actual amount of the tax on rent or land-tax remaining to the
Dutch government, after deducting exemptions, was, in 1843, allow¬
ing 20 pence to the florin, L.835,551. To this,however, is to be added
a sum of L.26,215 for the quit-rents of land sold at various times in
fee simple to Europeans, with other itemsof the nature of a land-tax,
as the rents of certain fish-ponds, or stews, amounting to L.27,302,
making the total land-tax realized L.889,128. No account is ren¬
dered of remissions on account of land appropriated to the culture
of produce for government, but a few facts are stated which will
give a tolerable notion of the extent to which this very barbarous
system is carried. The number of Javanese families from which
corvee labour was exacted for the culture of coffee, in 1841, was
453,289, and for that of sugar, indigo, and cinnamon, 350,955,
making the total number, exclusive of those employed in the culti¬
vation of tea and cochineal, which is not stated, 704,244 families,
equivalent to a population exceeding three millions and a half, or
40 parts in 100 of the entire population of the European portion
of the island. The quantity of land set aside for the cultivation of
sugar, indigo, and cinnamon, amounted in 1841 to 317,635 acres,
and this consisted of the richest irrigated lands of the island, usu¬
ally yielding two yearly harvests, and equal in value to ten times
that of the average of all dry lands. The quantity of land, of an
inferior description, appropriated to the culture of coffee and tea,
all peculiarly fitted for the growth of maize, is not stated, but
some notion of it may be formed from the number of families em¬
ployed, as above given, and from the number of trees, which
amounted in 1841 to 336,922,460.
The taxes on consumption are multifarious, consisting of mono¬
polies, excises, customs, transit and market duties, taxes on fisher¬
ies, and on the slaughter of cattle. The chief monopolies are
those of the vend of opium and salt. In 1843 the first of these
amounted to L.796,630, and the last to L.384,159. The monopoly
of opium is at once productive and unexceptionable in principle.
That on salt is, of course, a poll-tax, which amounts to about 4s.
on each family, and is only less onerous than our own in Bengal,
from the salt of Java, the produce, chiefly by solar evaporation, of
its northern coast, being better, cheaper, and more economically
distributed to the consumers than that of Bengal. Another mono¬
poly is that exercised in certain caves producing the esculent swallow
nests, and this, as the birds are the chief manufacturers, and stran¬
gers the chief consumers, is an unexceptionable source of revenue.
In 1843 its amount was L.24,27l. The sale of timber from the teak
forests, which are the exclusive property of the government, con¬
stitutes another monopoly, of which the produce in the same year
was L.42,141. These different items make the total revenues aris¬
ing from monopolies L.1,247,201. In the public accounts, the mo-
nopoly of the tin of Banca is set down as Javanese revenue, and
stated at the sum of L.250,000. As the revenue of Java alone sup¬
plies the funds with which the mining and smelting is carried on,
this branch is therefore correctly enough included in the financial
resources of that island.
The export and import duties of Java in 1843, including port
charges, amounted to L.460,840 ; and the market, transit, and ferry
dues, came to L.262,672. The tax on the slaughter of cattle was
L.39,341, and that on fish and fisheries L.27,911. It is not neces¬
sary to add that the two last, as taxes on necessaries of life, are inju¬
rious imposts. A strange want of attention to an obvious principle
is evinced by the European government of Java, connected with
the slaughter of cattle. The slaughter of the buffalo is expressly
prohibited, with the avowed object of increasing the number of this
animal for the benefit of agriculture. The certain effect of the
prohibition, however, must of course be the very reverse of what
is intended, for the rearing of these animals is surely discouraged,
not promoted, by depriving the owners of a market for the old, im¬
perfect, or superfluous ones.
The excise on distilled and fermented liquors, and on tobacco,
yielded between them, in 1843, only L.36,843. The taxes on
consumption yielded, in all, monopolies included, a revenue of
L.2,207,488.
The direct taxes, land-tax excepted, are of very trifling amount.
Stamp duties yielded L.26,452, and taxes on transfers and succes¬
sions L.19,470, plain proofs of the real poverty of the ten millions
of people, and similar to those which are afforded from the same
class of taxes in our own Indian possessions. The capitation tax
paid by the Chinese yielded no more than L.3477, and that on
slaves only L.2014. A tax on gaming was far more productive
than either of these, for it produced L.37,101. A duty on auction
sales gave L.24,173, and the profits on public pawnbrokers’.shops
L.27,905. The tax on carriages and horses kept for private use
gave the small sum of L.5530 only, and the post-office and stage
coaches no more than L.18,226. Printing is a monopoly in the
hands of government, and is represented as yielding a profit of
L.4833. The tribute paid by native princes amounted only to
L.3287. To these items are to be added the sale of such articles as
rice, packing sacks, gold dust, and sundries, amounting to L.78,483.
The whole amount of these director miscellaneous taxes isL.166,938,
or, including the sale of produce, probably not the productions of
Java, L.245,421.
The account of receipts contains, in all, forty-five different heads,
without, however, any logical arrangement. The sums, too, are for
the most part gross receipts, not including charges of collection,
which are not separately given. The total revenues of Java in
1843 were L.3,209,357, including the monopoly of tin, but exclu¬
sive of the profits of trade on commodities sold in Europe—if there
should be any. The rate of taxation per head on the population of
Java, subject to European rule, is about 7s. 5d., and would pro¬
bably amount to at least 10s., had not the resources of the island
been dissipated in idle and wasteful governmental speculations,
agricultural and commercial. In the British settlement of Singa¬
pore, without land-tax, customs, port-dues, salt monopoly, poll
taxes, gaming tax, or stamp duties, the rate of taxation per head
is better than 18s., or 142 per cent, more than that of Java. The
difference is evidently owing to the superior industrial strength of
the population of Singapore ; its superior freedom in the exercise of
that strength, and its comparatively superior wealth.
The expenses of the government of Java in 1843 were given at
the sum of L.6,291,606. Thus, then, the expenditure exceeded the
amount of the taxes by the enormous sum of L.3,082,249, to be
made good, by the contingency of profits on produce ^ remitted
to Europe. The civil charges came to L.827,825, the military to
L.720,319, the naval to L.138,846, and the extraordinary expendi¬
ture, on account of Sumatra, to L.220,076. The expense of de¬
spatching government produce, exclusive of freight and charges,
amounted to L.75,212, while the interest of the public debt, nearly
all incurred in twenty-seven years’ time, came to L.1,018,463, or
about half of that of British India, with a hundred and twenty mil¬
lions of inhabitants, and which it has taken a century to incur.
The internal trade of Java embraces that of all the Netherland
possessions in India, as it is the entrepot for the whole of it. It
includes also a large remittance for the public revenue in the shape
of produce, as coffee, sugar, indigo, tin, and spices. Java and the
other Dutch possessions were delivered over by the English in
1816, with a considerably improved commerce, and certainly, at
all events, with a clear field for the establishment of a liberal sys¬
tem. The opportunity has assuredly not been taken advantage of.
Double duties have been imposed on all goods imported under a
foreign flag, and other contrivances of the exploded mercantile sys¬
tem have been had recourse to, in order to give trade a direction to
Holland, a costly expedient injurious to the colony and of no sub¬
stantial value to the mother country. In 1824, and within eight
years after the restoration, a new East India Company was set up
as one of these contrivances, the Handel Maatschapij or trading as¬
sociation. This association is merchant, shipowner, agent, for the
sale of the government produce in Europe, carrier of this produce,
and farmer of some branches of the public revenue of Java. Origi¬
nally, there was guaranteed to it, a fixed and certain interest on
its capital stock, and even the sovereign of the Netherlands was a
sleeping partner of it. The false hypothesis on which this retro¬
grade policy was adopted, was a supposed necessity for encoun¬
tering what was called the overgrown capitals and enterprise of
England and America, as if the free capital and enterprise of Hol¬
land, which under greater difficulties had not achieved much greater
things, was unequal to carry on the trade of its own colony without
pillowing and bolstering. This company has been in existence for
thirtyyears, and we may see by the result how little it has effected.
Java,
J A X
Jaxartes, In the value of all the imports into the Dutch East India
v i possessions, exclusive of government stores, was L.2,512,893 but
^ ~ that of the exports L.6,149,088. Of the exports, no less than
L.3,996,750 consisted of government produce, chiefly sent to Europe
through the Handel Maatschapij, or Commercial Association, leav¬
ing for the exports of private merchants no more than L.2,152',300, a
large portion of it the property of the privileged society itself.’ From
this statement it will appear that the exports, instead of being nearly
the same as the imports, as they ought in all fair trade, exceed them
by the enormous sum of L.3,636,195, or by 144 per cent. It is evi¬
dent that the difference, whether it ever reaches the treasury of
Holland or not, is mere tribute paid by Java, and this, too, in a
form the most injurious. These figures Mull further show that of
the export trade of the Dutch possessions in India, nearly two third
parts are carried on by the government with the colonial revenue
while little more than one third of it is conducted by private capi¬
tal and enterprise. This is assuredly the greatest violation of the
sound principles of commercial policy, which has been perpetrated
since the overthrow of Indian monopolies, and one which ought not
to have been witnessed in our times.
In 1844 the total value of the imports of Java M'as L.2,339,971,
which shows that in the seven years ending M’ith 1851 they had
fallen off by no less than L.172,922. In 1842 the value of the
exports was L.5,034,529. In the nine years, therefore, between
1842 and 1851, these had increased by the sum of L.1,114,560.
European The government of Java and the other Hetherland possessions of
govern- India is vested in a governor-general, named by the king, and
raent. answerable for his acts only to him. He is commander-in-chief of
the military and naval forces, and possesses absolute legislative and
administrative poM-er. The liberty of the press does not exist ;
indeed, there is no press at all except that of the government, the’
J A X
political literature of Java consisting of two newspapers, the go¬
vernment gazette, and another equally under a rigorous censor¬
ship. In the three small British settlements, in the same quarter of
India, there are six, as free as the journals of England or America.
For the administration of justice there is a supreme court sitting
at Batavia, which has a primary jurisdiction in a few cases, but is
generally a court of appeal and cassation for the whole Netherland
possessions in India. There are three provincial courts at the three
principal European towns—Batavia, Samarang, and Sarabaya—for
the administration of civil and criminal justice, one of the judges
of which goes on circuits. Justice to natives and Chinese is ad¬
ministered by the country courts in Mrhich the president or chief
civil administrator presides, having native chiefs for assessors. In
criminal cases, the jurisdiction of these courts is confined to offences
not capital, and, in certain civil cases, appeals from them lie to the
provincial courts.
The finances are under the management of a director-general, a di¬
rector of receipts and domains, a director of produce and ware¬
houses, and a director of cultivation—these officers constituting the
finance board. For keeping and auditing the public accounts,
there is a distinct department—the chamber of accounts. From the
mixing up of cultivation and trade M'ith governmental affairs, the
duties of these two departments become sufficiently onerous, com¬
plex, and always greatly in arrears.
The tributary princes, of which the number of principal ones is
no fewer than one-and-tM’enty, administer the civil governments of
their own countries. Of these there are five in Java, two of them
only considerable ; three in Madura, tM'O in the group of islands
at the eastern end of the Straits of Malacca, three in Borneo,
two in the Moluccas, four in Celebes, one in Sumbawa, and one in
Sumatra. (j_N. c.)
JAXARTES,the Siiton, or Syr Daria (i.e., Yelloic Ri¬
ver), a river of Turkestan, rising in the high table-land that
stretches westward from the N. side of the Lake Sir-i-kol,
opposite Issar, and falling into the Sea of Aral. It springs
from many sources in the great Mooshtah table-land where
the lake of Sengirkool and the mountain torrents of the
Terek and Karaboora ranges chiefly contribute to its
origin. After leaving the mountains the Syr enters the
Khokan Valley which it traverses, and where its volume is
very much increased by the influx of streams on both sides.
After a course of about 400 miles it enters the Khirjiz-
steppe at the town of Rhodien. In its passage through
this desert it receives tributaries from the N. alone, the
country to the S. being too flat and dry for water to collect
or flow. It is here that the Syr branches off into two, for¬
merly three, separate rivers about 250 miles from the Aral.
The most northern and largest branch being the proper
continuance of the original river, keeps the name Syr,
while the other is called Koovan-Daria. A third branch,
the most southern, called Tanghi-Daria, is now dried up.
This was caused by the Khokanians, about 1815, erecting
a strong dyke at the point where this branch diverged from
the main stream, to prevent the inhabitants of the Khanas
of Khiva from planting colonies on its banks. The river
enters the Aral at Fort Kos-Aral after a course of about
1000 miles. From the general flatness of the country tra¬
versed, the Syr is very tortuous, with low banks, and its
waters, as the name denotes, have a lightish yellow appear¬
ance. Its depth varies according to the season of the year ;
in autumn, the water being very low, and in some places
dried up, while in spring its banks are overflowed. It is
the intention of the Russian government to form a line of
small steamers for the navigation of the Syr, which will de-
velope the resources of its fertile banks. This river was
not unknown to the ancients. Its banks were peopled by
the Massagetae, with whom Cyrus the elder of Persia came
into collision, about the year 530 b.c., in his attempt to ex¬
tend his conquests beyond the Aral ; and it was in battle
with their queen Tomyris that the Persian lost his life.
He founded a city on the left bank of the river called
Cyreschata, the ruins of which are said to have been dis¬
covered by recent travellers. It was next visited by the
Greeks under Alexander in 329 b.c., in their invasion of
Sogdiana, and a city was founded and named Alexandreia
Ultima. But the ancient and modern geography of this
whole country is so obscure and often contradictory, that dis¬
putes have arisen on the most important points of the subject.
Ihese ambiguities and contradictions arise from two cir¬
cumstances, the inaccessibility of the place, and more par¬
ticularly the peculiar and remarkable changes of the sur¬
face which occur in these parts. The Jaxartes was be¬
lieved by the ancients to flow into the Caspian. There is
now little doubt that the present Sea of Aral formed, at no
distant period, a part of the Caspian, as the geology of the
district, as well as historical evidence, clearly proves ; while,
from the former source, it is evident that by plutonic action
the position of the rivers, as well as of these great lakes, has
been very materially changed, and still is transitory.
JAY, William, D.D., the author of some of the best
and most widely known manuals of domestic devotion that
have appeared in England in this century, was born at
Tisbury in Wiltshire, May 6, 1769. His father, a mason
by trade, was unable to give him any but the poorest edu¬
cation ; and at an early age he began active life as his
father’s apprentice. Near the village where he was born,
the author of Vathek was at this time building his splendid
mansion of Fonthill Abbey. Jay had been assisting his
father for an entire year in the work as an ordinary stone¬
cutter, when he attracted the notice of Cornelius Winter, a
dissenting clergyman, who occasionally preached at Tis¬
bury. Pleased with the young mason’s intelligence and
piety, this benefactor persuaded him to put himself in
training for the church. He was himself at the head of an
academy in Marlborough, where he prepared young men
for the ministry. Though his own resources were small,
he undertook that his new protege should be put in the
way of pursuing his theological studies without interruption.
How he effected this is not exactly known. It is most likely
that he inteiested some of his wealthier personal friends in
his new pupil. fo one of them, John Thornton, the
friend of Cowper and Wilberforce, and a leading mem¬
ber of what is known in religious history as the “ Clapham
Sect, he appealed for aid, and that munificent benefactor
conti ibuted liberally to the support of the poor student as
711
Jay,
William.
' , '
712
J E A
St Jean he passed through his academic course. JayJ"a[^fe
D’Angely acknowledged his obligations to Winter by writing his hie ,
II a work which became one of the most popular, as it is cer-
Jedburgh. one of the bestj pieces of religious biography that
  ^ ' this century has seen. Jay left the training school of
Marlborough towards the close of 1788, after three years
and a half of unbroken study. His first call was to Chris¬
tian Malford where he remained for a year and was re¬
warded for his services with a stipend of L.Jo. lie was
then called to Hope Chapel in the Hot-Wells of Bristol,
where also he remained for a year. At the end ot that
time he was translated to Bath, and in this town he taught,
preached, and wrote, during the remainder of his life. He
died December 27, 1853, in the eighty-fifth year of his
ao-e and sixty-third of his ministry. .
°jay had been for some time an author before his works
attracted any notice. The first work that made his name
known, was his Mutual Duties of Husbands and Wives; and
the fame which he gained by this publication was fixed and
extended by the four volumes of his Short Discourses for
the Use of Families. This work had a very large circula¬
tion in England, and a still larger in America, where the
college of New Jersey honoured itself and him by sending
him the diploma of D.D. Still greater, however, was the
success of his morning and evening Exercises for the Closet,
which, since it first appeared, has run through very many
editions, and has found its way into nearly every English
home. Like all Jay’s works, these Exercises are earnest,
homely, and strongly practical. Breathing a spirit of high
and pure devotion, they are also marked by a concise neat¬
ness of diction, great aptness, and abundance of illustra¬
tions. They always keep in view the purpose they are in¬
tended to serve ; and so well adapted are they to their end,
that while they do not fall below the requirements of the
most highly educated, they meet the wants of the least in¬
structed minds.
JEAN D’ANGELY, St, a town of France, capital of a
cognominal arrondissement, in the department of Charente
Inferieure, on the River Boutonne, 33 miles E.S.E. of La
Rochelle. It has two parish churches, an ancient abbey,
communal college, hospital, theatre, and a handsome public
hall. The chief manufactures are gunpowder and cognac
brandy. By means of the river, which is navigable for
vessels of from thirty to forty tons, a considerable trade is
carried on in wine, brandy, and timber. Pop. (1851)
6187.
JEBAIL, a town of Syria. See Djebail.
JEDBURGH, a royal and parliamentary burgh of Scot¬
land, capital of Roxburghshire, situate on the Jed Water,
a tributary of the Teviot, 12 miles S.E. of Melrose, and 47
miles S.E. of Edinburgh, with both of which it is connected
by rail. It is surrounded with orchards and fertile fields,
and in the neighbourhood are the remains of numerous
strongholds built to protect the Scottish border. The town
owes its interest wholly to the past, associated as it is with
many important events in the history of Scotland. In the
oldest chronicles the name is spelt indifferently as Ged-
worde, Jedworth, Jedwood, and Jeddart. The last of these
still lingers among the peasantry. It owed its origin to the
erection of the abbey founded by David I. in the twelfth
century, and to the castle built about the same time, doubt¬
less as a protection for the sacred edifice. The latter was
frequently honoured by the residence of royalty ; and Alex¬
ander III. selected it for the festivities of his second mar¬
riage. Toward the close of the fifteenth and beginning
of the sixteenth centuries, Jedburgh appears as a place
famous in border warfare. In 1523 it was burned by the
Earl of Surrey, and the abbey suffered so severely as to be
rendered uninhabitable afterwards. The slogan or war-crv
of the inhabitants was “ Jeddart’s here and their mode of
first hanging and then trying prisoners has passed into the
j E F
proverb of “ Jeddart justice.” After the Union, Jedburgh Jeddo
gradually fell in importance, and it was not till the recent li
introduction of wool manufactories that it showed any signs Jeflerso^‘/
of progress. The modern town contains four principal streets, "
diverging from the great square where the markets are held.
The chief buildings of interest are the old abbey and the
gaol. The former, which is now little better than a ruin,
exhibits in its architecture a very effective blending of the
Noman and early English styles. The abbey was long used
as a school and church after the Reformation. In the former
Thomson the poet received his early education. The gaol,
which is a modern building, stands on the site of the old
castle not far from the abbey. The trade of Jedburgh
chiefly consists in agricultural produce and woollen stuffs.
The latter are manufactured in considerable quantities, as
well as iron and brass goods. Markets are held in the town
every Tuesday and Saturday. The municipal affairs are in
the hands of a provost and fifteen councillors ; and the burgh
unites with Haddington, Dunbar, Lauder, and North Ber¬
wick in returning a member to parliament. There are
seven churches in the town belonging to the Established,
Free, United Presbyterian, Independent, and Episcopal
denominations. Pop. (1851) of royal burgh, 2948; parlia¬
mentary burgh, 3615.
JEDDO, Jedo, or Yedo, the capital of Japan, and the
largest city, in that empire, is situate on a gulf on the
western side of the island of Nipon, in N. Lat. 35. 32.,
E. Long. 140. It stands on a large plain at the head of the
gulf, which is here so shallow that vessels generally dis¬
charge their cargoes a league or two below the city.
Jeddo is said to be 7 miles in length by 5 in breadth, and to
have a circumference of 20 miles. It is not enclosed by walls,
but is intersected by numerous broad canals and ditches,
having on each side high embankments, on the top of which
are planted rows of trees. A river of considerable size flows
through the town into the harbour. The houses are small
and low on account of the frequency of earthquakes. They
are built of wood with thin clay walls, and are divided into
rooms by paper screens. The floors are covered with
mats, and the roofs with shavings of wood. Being thus
entirely composed of combustible materials, fires are fre¬
quent and destructive. As the families of the princes, lords,
and nobility of the empire are obliged to reside continually
at Jeddo, there are numerous houses of a superior class.
These, however, are only one storey in height, and have
no towers. They are distinguished from the other houses
by large courtyards, stately gates, and fine varnished steps
leading up to the door. There are besides numerous tem¬
ples, monasteries, and other religious buildings. The im¬
perial palace is near the middle of the town, and is said to
be more than 8 miles in circumference. It consists of se¬
veral palaces or castles, with large gardens and orchards.
Besides being the residence of the court, Jeddo contains
flourishing manufactures, and carries on an extensive
commerce. The population is variously estimated from
700,000 to 1,500,000, and even more. (See Japan.)
JEFFERSON, Thomas, one of the founders of Ame¬
rican independence, and president of the United States,
was born at Shadwell, in Albemarle county, Virginia, on
the 2d of April 1743. His ancestors had at an early period
emigrated to that province, and his father had been one
of the commissioners for determining the boundary between
Virginia and North Carolina. Having completed his edu¬
cation at William-and-Mary College, Williamsburg, he be¬
came a student of law under George Wythe, afterwards^
chancellor of the state of Virginia; and upon coming of
age, he was admitted to the bar, appointed a justice of
peace for the county in which he lived, and soon afterwards
returned as one of its representatives in the provincial
legislature.
The position of public affairs early led him to concern-
JEFFERSON. 713
Jefferson. p]ate questions far more comprehensive and important than
' any of those connected with the administration of his native
state. As early as the year 1763 a spirit of opposition to
the British government had manifested itself in the pro¬
vince, and continued gradually to increase, until, in 1769,
it assumed the shape of a determination not to import arti¬
cles from the mother country. This resolution Mr Jeffer¬
son not only signed, but used all his influence to promote.
In the beginning of 1773, a general system of resistance
was first organized, by the formation of committees of cor¬
respondence in the different provinces. This plan, devised
and matured by Jefferson, was eagerly adopted ; and, when
the measures of the British government in 1774 showed the
increased necessity of opposing to them a united and reso¬
lute opposition, its benefits became strikingly apparent.
The passing of the Boston port act, and the bills which im¬
mediately followed that measure, had, in the opinion of the
colonists, filled up the measure of oppression and insult.
The breach with the mother country daily became wider;
and, as a crisis was evidently approaching, Jefferson’s plan
served not only to concentrate the general spirit of resist¬
ance, but also to give it a suitable direction. About this
time he published a Summary View of the Rights of Bri¬
tish America, which he intended as an exposition, to be
laid before the sovereign, of the wrongs that country had
suffered, and the sort of redress she was prepared to de¬
mand. For this publication, Lord Dunmore, the governor,
threatened to prosecute him on a charge of high treason,
and also dissolved the legislature, which by its resolutions
had sanctioned similar doctrines. In the following year,
when the legislature was again assembled to consider the
conciliatory propositions which had been sent out by the
British ministry, Jefferson was appointed a member of the
committee to whom these were referred, and he drew up
the reply which was presented by that body; a document
of great importance in the history of the period to which it
refers. But he had scarcely completed this task when he
was called to perform a part on a wider field of action. The
colonies resolved to unite and send delegates to a general
congress, and Mr Jefferson took his seat as a member of
that body, then assembled at Philadelphia, on the 21st of
June 1775, and immediately became one of its most pro¬
minent members. In the following summer, when, from
the tone of the debates in congress, and the general expres¬
sion of public opinion, it appeared that the time had arrived
for an entire and final separation from Great Britain, a com¬
mittee was appointed to draw up a declaration to that effect.
Of this committee Mr Jefferson was chairman, and, in con¬
formity to the instructions of congress, he prepared the de¬
claration of independence, which, after a few alterations, was
adopted on the 4th of July 1776. This is by far the most
memorable event in his life.
During the summer of this year, Mr Jefferson took an
active part in the public business ; but being obliged in the
autumn to return to Virginia, he was, in his absence, ap¬
pointed, in conjunction with Dr Franklin and Mr Deane,
a commissioner to the court of France, for the purpose of
arranging with the government of that country treaties of
alliance and commerce. Owing to ill health, and other
causes, however, he declined the appointment, and shortly
afterwards resigned his seat in congress ; -but being elected
to the first legislature assembled under the new constitution
of Virginia, he applied himself to introduce various changes
and amendments into the laws and institutions of that state,
particularly enactments for preventing the importation of
slaves, destroying entails, abolishing the right of primogeni¬
ture, overthrowing the church establishment, and remodel¬
ling the whole of the statutory law. In June 1779 he was
elected governor of Virginia, and re-elected the following
year. This was a season of imminent peril. The state,
invaded on the north and the south, was ravaged by the
VOL. XII.
troops of Tarleton and Arnold, and he himself was the ob- Jefferson,
ject of especial pursuit. But amidst all the difficulties with v ■- v —. /
which he was surrounded, Jefferson conducted the affairs
of the state with so much prudence and energy, that, after
the expiry of his term of service, the legislature passed an
unanimous resolution, expressive at once of their gratitude,
and of the high sense they entertained of his prudence,
ability, and integrity. In June 1783, Mr Jefferson was
again sent to congress as the delegate of Virginia, and as a
leading member of that body, was intrusted with the pre¬
paration of the address made by congress to General Wash¬
ington, when he resigned his commission and withdrew
from public life. In May 1784, congress having decided
that, in addition to Mr Adams and Dr Franklin, another
minister plenipotentiary should be appointed, for the pur¬
pose of negotiating treaties of commerce with the French
government, Mr Jefferson was immediately elected to this
office, and in the month of July sailed for France, where
he arrived on the 6th of August. He remained in Europe
until the 23d of November 1789, and, during his stay, vi¬
sited Holland, the N. of Italy, and the principal seaports
on the southern and western coasts of France. He also
crossed over to England, and, in concert with Mr Adams,
endeavoured to negotiate a commercial treaty with the Bri¬
tish government; but their efforts were unavailing, and,
after a fruitless visit of seven weeks, he returned to Paris.
During Mr Jefferson’s residence in France, he was not only
engaged in various diplomatic negotiations of importance
to his own country, but was received with marked kindness
by men of letters, science, and political distinction. He was
likewise an eye-witness of the extraordinary occurrences
in public affairs which took place in rapid succession to¬
wards the close of his sojourn in the French capital; he had
become acquainted with many of the leading men of the
National Assembly, who were disposed to seek his advice, and
place confidence in his opinions; and, as the representative
of a free nation, he was an object of interest and attention
to the principal actors in the new scenes which had opened
upon France.
But his stay was not protracted till that fatal period which
was darkened by the sanguinary excesses of popular frenzy ;
and the interest which he took in the French Revolution was
consequently warmed by the hope that a great people were
about to shake off their fetters, and, by a peaceful but de¬
cisive effort, to establish rational liberty upon the solid foun¬
dation of improved institutions. In November 1789 he
returned on leave of absence to the United States, and there
accepted the office of secretary of state offered him by Ge¬
neral Washington, instead of resuming his post as minister
at the court of France. Whilst in the department of the
state, Mr Jefferson laid down those general maxims relative
to foreign intercourse, which have ever since been regarded
with approbation by the American people, and developed
those principles which, in his estimation, ought to govern
the conduct of a neutral nation. He understood the true
interests of his country : he felt that she required time to
consolidate her new institutions, and to strengthen the foun¬
dations of the freedom she had conquered; and he laboured
assiduously to impress his convictions on the minds of his
countrymen. In December 1793, Mr Jefferson resigned
his office, and having retired to private life, devoted him¬
self to the education of his family, the cultivation of his
estate, and the pursuit of those studies which he had long
abandoned, but now resumed with fresh ardour. But he
was not long permitted to enjoy the tranquillity of retire¬
ment. In September 1796, General Washington madq
known to the people his wish not again to be a candidate
for the presidency ; and the two parties which had gradually
grown up in the republic found it impossible to unite, as
in the case of Washington, in the choice of one individual
to whom the administration of public affairs might by com-
714
Jefferson.
J E F F E
Mr Adams was selected by
R S O N.
„,on consent be committed- - democratic t
^tttsprfve^LdwLs; and upon counting the
Vr The former in whose favour there appeared the
Set nnmbe , wi declared president, and the latter vrce-
nresWent! At the next election, however, when again put
forward as the popular candidate, he proved successful m
his opposition to Mr Adams; and, although an accidenta
eaualitv of votes between him and the person simultane¬
ously chosen as vice-president raised a question which had
not been provided for by the constitution, and thus gave
his opponents an opportunity of contesting the validity o
his election, yet, after a severe struggle, he was declared
duly elected, and, on the 4th of March 1801, ent^
upon his first presidential term. The administration of x
Jefferson embraced a long and interesting period in the
history of the United States, and was distinguished by
important measures, which contributed, in no inconsidera¬
ble decree, to promote the prosperity and increase the
happiness of the free nation at the head of which he was
placed. Under it various aggressions were promptly chas¬
tised ; the attempt made by the agents of the Spanish go¬
vernment to obstruct the free navigation of the Mississippi
was repelled; and the vast territory of Louisiana, affording
an independent outlet for the western states, was purchased,
and placed under the republican institutions of America.
During the same period the internal policy of the United
States underwent important changes. Measures were
adopted for liquidating the public debt; the judicial system
was improved; a rigid economy controlled and regulated
the public expenditure ; all useless offices were abolished ;
and the president himself set the example of voluntarily
relinquishing unnecessary power and patronage. The public
approbation formed the best reward of these sacrifices ; and
hence, when Mr Jefferson’s term of service had expired, he
was again elected by a majority which had increased from
eight votes to one hundred and forty-eight. In his inau¬
gural address, delivered on the 4th of March 1805, he de¬
clared his firm determination to continue to act upon those
principles on which he believed it to be his duty to ad¬
minister the affairs of the commonwealth, and which had
already been sanctioned by the unequivocal approbation of
the country. But he had scarcely entered upon office when
an event occurred which seemed calculated to disturb the
domestic tranquillity of the United States, if not to endanger
the stability of the union itself. This was the conspiracy
of Colonel Burr, a man of an ardent and ambitious cha¬
racter, who, disappointed formerly in attaining the first office
of the government when it seemed within his grasp, and
afterwards superseded in the second by the election of Mr
Clinton, now sought, by desperate means, either to establish
a new republic in the Spanish provinces of the west, or to
break up the federal union in his own country. But his
scheme was discovered, and although, when apprehended
and brought to trial on a charge of treason, he obtained a
verdict of acquittal, yet enough came out in evidence to
show the government the extent of its danger, and to indi¬
cate the measures necessary to prevent its recurrence. At
this period, too, the foreign relations of the United States
became greatly embarrassed in consequence of the war
which raged in Europe. Nearly the whole of their revenue
depended on commerce, and on this serious aggressions had
been made by both the belligerent powers, France and
Britain ; whilst the right of search claimed by the latter was
resented as at once contrary to the public law of nations,
insulting to the American flag, and inconsistent with free
navigation. In this view, the natural and obvious remedy
was a declaration of war. But, as it was conceived that the
interests and situation of America required the previous trial
and failure of all other means of obtaining justice, an em¬
bargo was resorted to, and a measure for establishing one
passed congress on the 22d of December 1807, in conse- Jefferson,
quence of the recommendation of the president. After this
embargo had existed a year, however, overtures were made
by the British government, indicating a disposition to abate
somewhat of its pretensions; and as these had been pre¬
ceded by the recall of some of those orders in council to
which the Americans most strongly objected, an accommo¬
dation was effected without difficulty, because, in fact, the
non-intercourse system had proved more prejudicial to the
commercial interests of the United States than to those of
Great Britain. oj i* ht
Affairs were in this situation when, on the 3d of March
1809, Mr Jefferson’s second term of office expired, and with
it also terminated his political career. He had now attained
the sixty-fifth year of his age, and had for forty years been,
almost without interruption, engaged in the most arduous
public duties. He had passed with honour and credit
through the various stations to which the service of his
country had called him, and he now resolved to quit the
scene where he had so long acted a prominent part while
still unoppressed by the infirmities of age, and to pass the
evening of a busy life in the calmness of domestic retirement.
From this time until his death, which took place on the
4th of July 1826, he resided chiefly at his favourite retreat,
Monticello ; sometimes occupying his time with publications
of his private correspondence, and at others connecting him¬
self with rising institutions formed to promote the advance¬
ment of science, literature, or taste. He was sought out
in his retirement by strangers of all nations who visited
America, and also by the natives of every part of his own
country, who regarded him as “ their guide, philosopher,
and friend.’’ His residence was the abode of dignified ease
and unostentatious hospitality; in the calm enjoyments of
Monticello he forgot both the toils and the dangers of his
long political career ; he took the deepest interest in every¬
thing which seemed calculated to advance the improvement
or increase the happiness of his country. Amongst his
labours of this kind the most prominent consisted in the
exertions he made for the improvement of education in Vir¬
ginia, by the establishment of an university at Charlottes¬
ville, a town at the foot of the mountain where he resided.
This institution, commenced by his own private donations
and those which he succeeded in obtaining from his friends,
received the sanction of the legislature. His plans, having
for their object to combine elegant learning with strictly
useful knowledge, were approved of; he himself was ap¬
pointed rector of the new university; and from this time
forward he devoted himself to consolidate the establishment
which he had founded. Indeed, all his thoughts and means
were employed to insure its success.
“ Thus,” says an American biographer, “ glided on the
evening of Mr Jefferson’s patriotic and benevolent life ; as
age wore gradually away the energies of his body, his mind
shone with intelligence undiminished ; and his efforts and
desires for the progress of human happiness and knowledge
knew no change. Years, however, had crowded upon him ;
and when the increase of infirmities at length prevented him
leaving his chamber, he remarked to the physician who
sought to assist him by the aid of his art, that ‘ the machine
had worn out, and could go on no longer.’ During the
spring of 1826 he had suffered from increasing debility,
but it was not until the 26th of June that he was obliged
to confine himself to his bed. The strength of his constitu¬
tion and freedom from bodily pain for a short time en¬
couraged the hope that this confinement would be only
temporary, but his own conversation showed that he did not
himself so regard it. ‘ Do not imagine,’ he said to those
around him, ‘ that I feel the smallest solicitude as to the
result. I do not, indeed, wish to die ; but I do not fear
to die.’ His temper retained all its usual cheerfulness and
equanimity ; his only anxiety seemed to be for the pros-
J E F
J E F
715
Jefferson, perity of the university, and he expressed strongly his hopes
^ that the state would not abandon it; he declared that if he
could see that child of his old age fairly flourishing, he was
ready to depart,—to say ‘ nunc dimittis, domine,’ a favourite
quotation with him. On the 2d of July he appeared free
from disease, but his weakness was such that his physicians
expressed a doubt whether his strength would prove suf¬
ficient to restore him. Conscious himself that he could not
recover, and without any bodily or apparently mental pain,
he calmly gave directions relative to his interment, which he
requested might be at Monticello, without parade or pomp.
He then called his family around him, and conversed sepa¬
rately with each of them. To his beloved daughter, Mrs
Randolph, he presented a small morocco case, which he
requested her not to open till after his death. When the
sad limitation had expired it was found to contain an affec¬
tionate poetical tribute to the virtues of her from whom he
was thus torn away. He desired, if any inscription were
placed on his tomb, he should be described only as (the
author of the declaration of independence, of the statutes of
Virginia for religious freedom, and the father of the univer¬
sity. On Monday, the following day, he inquired of those
around him with much solicitude what was the day of the
month; they told him it was the 3d of July. He then
eagerly expressed his desire that he might be permitted to
live to another day, to breathe the air of the fiftieth anni¬
versary of the declaration of independence. His wish was
granted ; the morning of the 4th of July 1826 found him
still living; and after declaring himself gratified by the
affectionate solicitude of his family and servants, and having
distinctly articulated these words, ‘ I resign myself to my
God, and my child to my country,’ he gradually expired
without a murmur or a groan.”
At the time of his death Mr Jefferson had just entered
the eighty-fourth year of his age. In person lie was above
six feet in height, and, though thin, erect and well formed.
His complexion was fair, his forehead broad, and his face of
a square form, with a thoughtful expression. His address
was cordial, and his manner simple, cheerful, and unassum-
yet mingled with a certain degree of native dignity; in
his disposition he was full of liberality and benevolence; in
his temper he displayed the greatest equanimity, never being
known to give way to passion, nor, even during the excite¬
ment of political contentions, to indulge in angry or vindic¬
tive feelings. His attachment to his personal friends was
warm and stedfast; to them he communicated without re¬
serve all that he thought or felt; in regard to them he
exercised no diplomatic caution, nor entertained any un¬
generous distrust; and he had his reward in that unflinch¬
ing support which he received from them on every emer¬
gency. His application was constant and severe; and his
habits were so exact, that in a cabinet abounding with
papers, all were arranged in such a manner that any one
might be instantly found. Considered intellectually, how¬
ever, Mr Jefferson does not appear to us to occupy the
distinguished rank which has been generally assigned to him
by his countrymen, particularly by his eloquent eulogist Mr
Webster. On the contrary, he seems to have been one of
those men of plain, practical good sense, calm temperament,
methodical habits, and persevering application, who make
the most of their faculties, and are, upon the whole, much
better fitted to excel in the conduct of business than to
obtain distinction in pursuits of a higher order, or to stamp
the impression of their genius upon the science, the litera¬
ture, the philosophy, or the legislation of their time. Jeffer¬
son was perhaps at the head of the class to which he belonged,
but that class was not a high one; and, in truth, he had
always been more remarkable for the share which he took
in the early formation of the American republic, than for
any very predominant superiority of understanding. (Ame¬
rican National Portrait Gallery, part xxiii.; Jefferson’s
Memoirs, vol. i.; Edinburgh Review, vol. xxxi., p. 139;
North American Review, No. 86.) (j. B.—e.)
JEFFERSON CITY, a town of the United States of
North America, capital of the state of Missouri, situate on
the right bank of the Missouri River, opposite the mouth of
Cedar Creek, 100 miles W. of St Louis, with which it has
communication by river and rail. It stands on elevated
ground overlooking the river, and commands a beautiful
prospect. The principal buildings are the state hall, the
governor’s house, and the penitentiary. The town though
thriving has not made such rapid progress as most of the
cities in the Union. Pop. (1853) about 3000.
JEFFREY, Francis, Lord Jeffrey, a distinguished critic
and Scottish judge, was born in Edinburgh on the 23d of
October 1773. His father was one of the depute-clerks
of the Court of Session, “ not a high but a very respectable
situation,” as Lord Cockburn describes it, and which en¬
abled its possessor to give his children—two sons and two
daughters—a good education. The mother, Henrietta
Loudon, a Lanarkshire lady, appears to have been a very
amiable and excellent person. She died in 1786, and her
family revered her memory. Francis, the eldest son, in
his eighth year was sent to the High School of Edinburgh,
where he remained till he was fourteen. He was then
removed to Glasgow University, and attended college for
two sessions. He made considerable progress in the Greek
and Logic classes, then taught by Professors Young and
Jardine, both able and popular instructors, and regarded
with affectionate veneration by Jeffrey, as they were after¬
wards, by another eminent student, Thomas Campbell. The
second session Jeffrey seems to have devoted entirely to
the moral philosophy class, taught by Professor Arthur;
and upon this slender basis of scholarship he proceeded to
Oxford. He was entered of Queen’s College, and remained
there from October 17, 1791, till June 5, 1792. The
young Scottish student was by no means prepossessed in
favour of Oxford. He was more inclined towards meta¬
physical than classical studies; and he seems to have thought
with Gibbon that little else than port and prejudice were
to be imbibed in the college halls. His opinions already
leaned to the popular side; and the stately Toryism of Ox¬
ford, which had recommended the university to the father,
failed to attract or change the son. Separated from his
early friends and relatives, in a scene so totally new and
alien to all his feelings he was lonely, dispirited, and help¬
less. He expected to learn nothing, he said, but the Eng¬
lish language! This accomplishment, however, he never
attained, for he only grafted some high English tones on
his native Scotch, which, even with his fine rich voice, had
an effect far from being graceful or musical. Lord Holland
happily said, that “though Jeffrey had lost his broad Scotch
at Oxford, he had only gained the narrow English.” This
peculiarity of pronunciation, joined to his petit figure and
volubility of speech, formed an obstacle to Jeffrey’s success
at the bar. It gave him an air of superficial smartness and
affectation which was only overcome in his highest moods,
when the mature lawyer or eager politician, earnest in his
cause, and impelled by strong feeling, carried all before
him by his rapid eloquence and moral vehemence.
Restored once more to his friends and to Edinburgh
society,—and in no one could the home affections or local
attachment be more strongly implanted, though little seen
on the surface,—Francis Jeffrey applied himself zealously to
study. The law was not his favourite pursuit, but it was
necessary that he should choose a profession, and this
seemed to lie before him. He may be said to have breathed
the atmosphere of the Court of Session from his infancy,
and his father had held it up as the great object of his family
ambition. The usual preparatory training was gone through,
and he was called to the bar in December 1794. Previous
to this Jeffrey had distinguished himself at the Speculative
Jefferson
City
Jeffrey.
716
Jeffrey.
JEFFREY.
»x^a
great^te for about thirty years, and had en-
rolled many eminent men among its members—as Playfair,
DugaM Stewart, Mackintosh, Dr Gregory, &c. When Jef-
Kined it in 1792, he found Walter Scott officiating as
secretary. In a few years Henry Brougham Francis Hor¬
ner John Archibald Murray, James Moncneff, and Henry
Cockburn became members; and an institution boasting
such an array of varied and commanding talent, and enriched
with historical associations, might well breathe an invigorat-
W spirit and generous emulation into the youths who
crowded to its intellectual contests. Jeffrey was never
absent from the meetings, and never present without tak¬
ing a part in the discussions. He there earned Ins first
laurels, and felt his native strength freed from scholastic
restraints, and revelling, as he said, “ in the bright an
boundless realms of literature and science. At this time
he was attached to scientific pursuits, attended chemical lec¬
tures, and delighted in every department of natural plulo-
S° IBs progress at the bar was slow, and long doubtful. He
laboured under two disadvantages. His sentiments on a
public questions were (to the great grief of his father), de¬
cidedly at variance with those in whose hands the pation-
age of Scotland was then vested, and his love of literature
was more active and predominant than his love of law.
Like most of his associates in the Speculative, he was a Whig
in politics; and, in those days to be a Whig in Scotland, w'as
to be proscribed from most of the higher circles in society,
to be shut out from most offices of trust, and debarred from
nearly all hope of advancement. The bench was filled
with judges of high Tory principles—men of resolute cha¬
racter and dominant will, who crushed or discouraged every
young aspirant at the bar supposed to be tainted with li¬
beralism ; and clients and agents held aloof from counsel,
on whom the suspicion or displeasure of the Court rested.
Within a period of nine years, from 1794 to 1803, Jeffrey’s
professional income never, in any one year, exceeded L.100.
The unsuccessful advocate, however, was not idle. He
.continued his studies wdth unabated ardour, and at one
time entertained the ambition of becoming a popular poet.
He completed a poem on Dreaming, consisting of 1800
lines, in blank verse; he translated the Argona.uticon of
Appollonius Rhodius, extending to above 6000 lines in
blank verse; he wrote two plays, one a tragedy, conceived
apparently in the spirit of Lillo’s domestic dramas ; and he
threw off copies of occasional verses, descriptive, amatory,
and serious,—none personal or satirical. All this was done
for the solitary student’s own gratification and improve¬
ment. He was generally dissatisfied with what he wrote,
and seems never, except in the case of the translation,
to have contemplated publication. When worshipping
the muse in secret, he was, like Chaucer’s Prioress, “ all
conscience and tender heart.” Had he come forward and
challenged public criticism as a poet, he would probably
never have been a reviewer. His works would have risen
up in judgment against him; and his dread of ridicule, no
less than his sense of justice, would have deterred him from
condemning others in points where he had himself offended,
and from assuming the tone and style of the Dictator. As
it was, he was benefited by the exercise. “ Many who are
not able to reach the Parnassian heights may yet,” as his
friend Henry Mackenzie has said, “ approach so near as to
be bettered by the air of the climate.” He could not have
expatiated so long in verse, or courted the tragic muse,
without extending the range of his moral emotions and sen¬
sibilities ; felicities of expression, metaphors, analogies, and
imagery, would be sought after; comparisons would be in¬
stituted ; and command of language, acuteness of percep- Jeffrey,
tion, and refinement of taste would follow. We have no
doubt that some of the happiest flights of the eloquent
pleader and brilliant essayist, might have been traced to the
silent and abortive studies of the poetical enthusiast. One
distinguishing feature of the poetical temperament he al¬
ways possessed—he was keenly alive to the beauties of ex¬
ternal nature. His letters overflow with expressions of
delight when he visited the wild scenery of the Highlands,
or reposed for a season amidst the cultivated pomp and
beauty of the English parks and woodlands. His residence
at Craigcrook commands extensive and noble views—the
sea, the distant Highland mountains, and his “own romantic
town,” seated on its throne of crags;—and to wander at will
on those heights contemplating the summer sunsets, or the
varied aspects of the sky and surrounding landscape, con¬
tinued with Jeffrey, till he was upwards of three score and
ten, to form one of the most exquisite and indestructible of
his enjoyments. Nay, the passion increased with his years,
as it does with all men who have not sold themselves to
the hollow vanities and traffic of the world. Time that
steals away so many of our pleasures seems to leave this,
the purest of them all, as the peculiar solace and delight of
age.
The year 1802 may be termed the grand era and turning-
point in Jeffrey’s life. He had the previous winter mar¬
ried—the marriage having “ all the recommendations of
poverty,” as Lord Cockburn characterizes it. But Jeffrey
doubted whether he should get above the L.100 a-year
before he was too old to marry at all, and he felt the deso¬
lation of being in solitude as something worse than any of
the inconveniences of poverty. He was an epicurean phi¬
losopher on a low platform. Fhe lady of his affections was
his second cousin, a daughter of Dr Wilson, professor of
Church History in the University of St Andrews. She
survived the marriage only about four years; but happy
in his choice, with no impending cloud, Jeffrey set up his
household deities in a flat or floor of Buccleuch Place. It
was not in the fabulous eighth or ninth flat, named by Sydney
Smith, but in the third flat of the house, now No. 18 ; and
t}iere—in the little parlour, furnished at a costof just L.l 3,8s.,
as Jeffrey with manly and honourable feeling recorded with
his own hand, and preserved the record, or in the drawing¬
room, made orhate at an expense of L.22, 19s. there as¬
sembled a more remarkable body of young men, and was
organized a more memorable project than any other room
of"similar pretensions in Britain ever witnessed. The men
were the host himself, Sydney Smith, Francis Horner, Dr
Thomas Brown, John Archibald Murray, Dr John Thom¬
son, and Thomas Thomson. As yet Henry Brougham,
soon to be the most active of the band, was not admitted to
the consultations; for Sydney Smith, stout-hearted as he
was, dreaded discovery of their scheme, and feared the
rashness of the future Chancellor. Ihe project was the
establishment of the Edinburgh Review. “ I proposed that
we should set up a Review,” says the witty Sydney, “ and
it was acceded to with acclamation. I was appointed edi¬
tor, and remained long enough to edit the first number of
the Edinburgh Review” In reality three numbers weie
issued before he left Scotland ; and though he was the pro¬
jector and most active manager, there was no regular editor
to the first three numbers. “ The motto I proposed for the
Review,” continued Sydney, “ was,—
Tenui musam meditamur avena.
(‘We cultivate literature upon a little oatmeal.’)
But this was too near the truth to be admitted, and so we
took our present grave motto from Publius Syrus. The
motto, as Scott said, was as if the adventurers had hung out
the bloody flag on their title page,—Judex damnatur cum no-
cens absolvitur; “ The judge is condemned wdien the gui ty
JEFFREY. 717
Jeffrey, is acquitted.” No quarter was to be given to the public
/ enemy—the critics were not to withhold their arm from
battle for pity, need, or respect of persons,—and they kept
their word ! Of this powerful journal a short detail will not
be inappropriate. The first number appeared on the 10th
of October 1802. The impression of 750 copies was soon
exhausted, a second followed, and other and larger editions
were called for. Before the Review had reached the third
number, the regular sale was 2500 copies, and ultimately it
rose to about 12,000. Sydney Smith opened a negotiation
with the publishers, Archibald Constable of Edinburgh (the
Tonson or Lintot of Scotland) and the Messrs Longman of
London, which resulted in Jeffrey being appointed editor
with an allowance of L.50 for each number, and L.10 a
sheet, or 16 pages, for all contributions. “ The terms are
without precedent,” said Mr Longman; “ but the success of
the work is not less so,” added Jeffrey, and in fact in a few
years the minimum allowance to the authors was raised to
sixteen guineas a sheet, and the editor’s allowance was more
than doubled. The Review was an “ argosy with portly
sail,” against which the “ petty traffickers” of the monthly
and critical reviews had no chance of competition. It bore
down all rivalry till Scott took the field.
During the long period of twenty-six years Francis Jef¬
frey conducted the Edinburgh Review. His best contri¬
butors were Smith, Horner, Brougham, and Mackintosh.
Hallam and Scott lent occasional assistance, and at a com¬
paratively late period Mr Macaulay imparted fresh vigour
and brilliancy to its pages. From the first, however, Jef¬
frey was the most popular and effective writer ; besides in¬
citing his coadjutors, and giving consistency and stability to
the work, he selected as his peculiar and chosen field the de¬
partments of poetry, romance, and biography. Politics he
took up occasionally, though in this he was inferior to
Brougham, and metaphysical speculation he divided with
Mackintosh. He had no theory of his own, but he set him¬
self to disentangle metaphysics from what he deemed doubt¬
ful and obscure, and to exhibit what is satisfactory to rea¬
son or what bears in any degree on practical purposes. The
happiest of all his critiques of this description is his review
of Alison’s Essays on Taste, which he afterwards expanded
into the article Beauty for this Encyclopaedia. He cut off
from Alison’s theory of association the notion of long trains
of ideas and sensations, which he held to be superfluous,
and he enforced his views with a clearness and vivacity of
style, and richness of illustration, which are perhaps not ex¬
ceeded even by the finest of Dugald Stewart’s disquisitions.
In the few essays which he contributed on the old English
masters he did good service to literature. His reviews of
the Elizabethan writers, and of the wits, poets, and essayists
of the Anne and Georgian periods, are generally marked by
correct taste and acute discrimination. He did injustice to
Swift, whose moral obliquities blinded the critic to the vast
intellectual resources of that giant of his age, but he dwelt
with cordial delight on the milder charms of Addison, the
noble sweep of Dryden’s versification, and the pointed bril¬
liancy and antithesis of Pope. Fie may be said to have re¬
velled among the creations of Shakspeare, Beaumont and
Fletcher, Ford and Massinger. The same poetical suscep¬
tibility led him to hail Keats as a true poet, and to devote
some of his most eloquent pages to Crabbe, Campbell, and
Moore. The only defect of these genial essays is, that the
style is often loose and careless. The critic’s essays, like his
speeches, sometimes wanted simplicity and condensation.
In dealing with living authors, Jeffrey had to encounter
dulness and conceit, and he was startled by novelties not
recognized in his school. Flushed with youthful power and
success, he was at times harsh and petulant. He wrote to
show his wit, and he failed occasionally to appreciate the
higher traits of original genius. Political feeling also warped
his judgment. The works of Wordsworth, Southey, and
Coleridge were treated with unjustifiable severity. His war Jeffrey,
with the Lake poets lasted longer than the war of Troy,
and he did not come off conqueror. Even the critic’s per¬
sonal friend Scott was schooled with a sort of pedagogical
superiority, and his small errors dwelt upon as inexpiable
offences. In all these unfavourable critiques, however, the
best passages were uniformly quoted; whatever was pictu¬
resque, solemn, or figurative, in the work reviewed, found
its way into the review. These extracts rendered Jeffrey’s
criticism’s highly interesting; and the reviewer was not
wholly to be condemned for his depreciatory criticism. If
he dwelt more on faults than on beauties, he conceived it
to be his duty to punish sins of carelessness and irregularity
with an unsparing hand, in order that he might at once pre¬
serve the public taste from corruption, and reform the offen¬
der. He sent proof slieets of his most sarcastic articles to
friendly parties whom he attacked—to Scott among others
—which certainly evinced his courage as well as his con¬
scientiousness. “ I let them know,’’ he used to remark,
“ what I say of them before they are led out to execution.
When I take up my reviewing pen, I consider myself as
entering the temple of truth, and bound to say what I
think.” He used jocularly to term the table in his study
his dissecting table ; and it bore many remains of mangled
authors and fragments of works that he had dismissed to
contempt if not oblivion ; but there also were gathered many
choice and beautiful flowers of fancy, with much solid and
valuable fruit, the offspring of rich culture and a teeming
soil. One of the bold and slashing articles in the Review
(1806) led, as is well known, to a duel with Thomas Moore,
but the poet and critic afterwards became warm friends, and
Moore contributed to the work which had made such an
onslaught on his reputation. The hostile criticism on By¬
ron’s juvenile poems was another blunder of the Review ;
it was absurdly severe. The offence was not committed by
the editor, and Jeffrey amply atoned for his editorial indis¬
cretion by his eloquent criticism on the noble poet’s subse¬
quent productions. Byron, in turn, did justice to the worth
and generosity of his critic. In one of the later cantos of
Don Juan, he warmly apostrophises Jeffrey, and makes
touching and beautiful allusion to “ add langsyne,” Scotch
plaids, Scotch hills, and streams,—the visions of youth that
floated past him in Italy, like Banquo's offspring, clothed in
their own pall—a pall that now covers both poet and critic.
The political strictures of the Review were no less W'armly
resented by the friends of government. The war in Spain
ranged the nation into two decided parties,—one, like Scott,
animated with a strong anti-Gallic spirit, and another, like
Jeffrey, Brougham, and their friends, predicting that we
should reap nothing but disaster and disgrace from the strug¬
gle. A review of Don Cevallos on the French Usurpa¬
tion in Spain (1808) by Brougham, was the signal for the
secession of Walter Scott and many persons of influence
from the Review, and led to the establishment of its great
rival, the Quarterly Review, in London. A class of reli¬
gious objectors also swelled the cry of opposition. Sydney
Smith’s attacks on cant and methodism were held up to re¬
probation. In ridiculing the writings of authors of this class,
and endeavouring to root out as he said, “ the nests of con¬
secrated cobblers,” Sydney’s wit sometimes bordered upon
profanity, and a hue and cry of heresy was raised against
the Review which was not extinct for years afterwards.
Jeffrey’s leading object was more general and enlarged ; he
wished to combine ethical precepts with literary criticism,
“ earnestly seeking,” as he said, “ to impress his readers
with a sense of the close connection between sound intel¬
lectual attainments and the higher elements of duty and
enjoyment, and of the just and ultimate subordination of
the latter to the former.” This was aiming at a high stan¬
dard, and the attempt was not unsuccessful. All Jeffrey’s
writings bore the recommendation of a moral purpose. Since
718
Jeffrey.
JEFFREY.
his dav criticism has become more aesthetic and profound,
and accordingly his essays in a collected shape have not
been very popular; they had done their work m the ong.-
nal periodical form, and much of their value perished m the
usino-. He was the great pioneer; he achieved much him¬
self f but he had led the way to brighter conquests by
others ; and in politics this was more strikingly evident than
in literature. Time has reversed many of his literary judg¬
ments 1 but to the Edinburgh Review may be mainly as¬
cribed the formation and continued growth of that public
opinion on which, as Hume has remarked, all governments
ultimately rest, and which in England, carried the abolition
of slavery, the repeal of the test acts, the emancipation of
the Roman Catholics, and the reform of the parliamentary
representation and municipal institutions of the country.
Mr Jeffrey’s practice at the bar increased with his popu¬
larity as a reviewer. He was a careful and conscientious
counsel; and when the Jury Court for the trial of civil
cases was established in Scotland, he rose to the highest
eminence and most extensive practice as a pleader. His
professional talents and integrity had borne down all politi¬
cal opposition; and in 1829 his brethren of the bar elected
him to the honorary office of Dean of the Faculty of Advo¬
cates. He had previously received honours of another
description in his election in 1820 and 1822, as Lord Rectoi
of the University of Glasgow.
But we have now to view him in a new and higher scene
—in Parliament. The great political change which he had
in no small degree helped to bring about, was accomplished.
The old idols to which so many had bowed, had been
thrown down and dashed on the floor of the sanctuary; the
Whigs were in office, and Mr Jeffrey was the Lord Advo¬
cate of Earl Grey’s administration. In February 1831 he
took his seat in the House of Commons as member for the
Perth district of burghs. He was unseated by an election
committee, in consequence of some irregularity in the return,
but through Lord Fitzwilliam’s influence he was elected
for Mai ton in Yorkshire. The House of Lords rejected
the Reform Bill, Parliament was dissolved, and the Lord
Advocate solicited the suffrages of his native city. No less
than 17,400 of the inhabitants petitioned the Town Council
in his favour, but that self-elected and irresponsible body,
sealed against all popular sympathies, rejected him by three
votes, thirteen being in favour of Mr Jeffrey, and seventeen
supporting his opponent Mr R. A. Dundas. He again tried
the Perth burghs, and by a valid election, was returned.
In parliament he assisted in carrying the Reform Bill, and
when that bill became law, and the new constituency was
formed, he was triumphantly returned, along with his friend
Mr Abercromby, now Lord Dunfermline, as representative
of the city of Edinburgh. He retained his seat until May
1834, when he was elevated to the bench on the retirement
of an aged judge, Lord Craigie. His parliamentary experi¬
ence had extended over three years, and had cost him, in
election contests, about L. 10,000 !
Jeffrey, like Erskine, though pre-eminently eloquent at
the bar, is generally considered to have failed as a parlia¬
mentary speaker. His career was short, and his health was
shattered and precarious. He was fifty-seven ere he entered
the House of Commons—a period of life too late to acquire
distinction in that difficult arena. His failure was less
marked than that of Scarlett, Follett, and other eminent
barristers; but it may be conceded that his style of oratory
was not adapted for the House of Commons. It was too
ornate and refined, and sometimes too prolonged. There
was too much leaf for the fruit. The speeches wanted
breadth and^ heartiness, which are essential in a popular
assembly. I he physical defects of the speaker, to which
we have already alluded,—the rapid utterance, and weak,
high-toned voice—rendered it difficult for his hearers to
follow him; but his speech on the Reform Bill was one of
the ablest addresses which that crisis called forth, and there Jeffrey,
were other occasions on which he spoke with great effect.
He was also, as Lord Cockburn has observed, “ a regular
attender, a good voter, a wise adviser, and a popular gen¬
tleman” in the House of Commons.
As a judge, Lord Jeffrey earned high distinction and im¬
plicit confidence. The most plodding and prosaic lawyer
could not have been more industrious, though few could
rival him in the clearness and vivacity with which he stated
his legal decisions. The rapidity of his intellect sometimes
led him to interrupt counsel, in order to elicit the truth, or
detect sophistry; but this, as his friendly biographer states,
was done with great urbanity, and solely from an anxiety
to reach justice. He was, in fact, as popular with the
counsel as he was with the public. In his periods of
leisure, Lord Jeffrey still devoted attention to literature.
He read much ; carried on a considerable correspondence;
and took a lively interest in the Edinburgh Review, to
which, after his becoming a judge, he contributed one or
two articles,—tributes to the memory of Wilberforce and
Mackintosh. So late as 1848, he wrote a paper on the
claims of Watt and Cavendish as the discoverers of the
composition of water. His health had been long weak,
but his death was sudden and unlooked-for. On Tues¬
day, January 22d, he discharged his usual official duties
in the Court of Session ; on the Saturday evening follow¬
ing he was no more. He died January 26, 1850, aged
seventy-seven, and was interred in the Dean Cemetery.
His death was deeply mourned in his native city, with which
he seemed to be peculiarly and indissolubly identified. To
Walter Scott belongs the honour of creating a new and
splendid epoch in our national poetry and in historical ro¬
mance, which, while it embraced all the civilized world in
its effects, shone with a peculiar and I'enovating lustre on
his native country. Francis Jeffrey was the founder of a
school of philosophical criticism and independent thought
that has exercised greater influence on public opinion and
contemporary literature than all the universities in the king¬
dom. His merits were high and various. In literature,
he was long the prince of critics. In law, he was the most
eloquent of advocates, and the most upright and discrimi¬
nating of judges. As a politician, he was the enemy of all
oppression, intolerance, and wrong, and the friend of every
institution and measure that tended to enlighten and benefit
society. In private life he displayed all the social virtues,
and specially he was one of the most brilliant conversa¬
tionists of his age; full of wit, “ that loved to play, not
wound,” and of fancy that seemed inexhaustible in its com¬
binations and imagery ; the man of genius, and the patriot;
kind, hospitable, generous, and disinterested. The rashness
and precipitancy that marked some of his early judgments
and opinions had disappeared long before his death. The
youthful asperities and crudities had been removed or mel¬
lowed down by time and reflection, and the nobler qualities
of his heart and mind became only more active and trans¬
parent with his years. He had gained all the prizes of
honest ambition; he enjoyed wealth and honours without
detraction or envy; he had survived all political and lite¬
rary animosities ; and he died before his intellectual powers
or the fine humanity of his nature had suffered diminution
or decay. For one who had toiled so incessantly, who had
mingled in the stormy contentions of the world, and was as
courageous as he was gentle and courteous, who had at¬
tacked established prejudices, and promulgated his canons
of criticism and party denunciations with a sort of defiant
power, this was a rare and enviable felicity. It could only
be the reward of solid virtues and substantial services. It
has been the lot of few, but all seemed willing and happy
that it should be the lot of Francis Jeffrey.
Lord Jeffrey was twice married ; the second time, in 1813,
to an American lady, daughter of Charles Wilkes, Esq.,
J E F JEN 719
Jeffreys New York. He left one child, a daughter, married to Pro-
11 fessor Empson, Haileybury, lately deceased. Mrs Jeffrey
Jelalabad. gurvived her husband only about four months, dying May
18, 1850. (r. c—s.)
JEFFREYS, George, Lord, better known as “Judge
Jeffreys,” an English lawyer, whose name has become a
proverb of infamy, was born in 1648 at Acton in Denbigh¬
shire. His father was a country squire of means so small
that he was unable to do more for his son than give him a
good legal education. That son, however, soon showed
himself possessed of qualities that made him quite inde¬
pendent of aid from without. Charles II. described him
as a man who “ had no learning, no sense, no manners,
and more impudence than ten carted street-walkers.” The
first half of this character is hardly fair to Jeffreys ; the se¬
cond, true so far as it goes, falls far short of the whole truth.
“ His legal knowledge,” says Macaulay, “ was merely such
as he had picked up in practice of no very high kind. But
he had one of those happily constituted intellects which,
across labyrinths of sophistry, and through masses of imma¬
terial facts, go straight to the true point.” His manners
were marked by a wild and brutal ferocity which was
never matched or even approached by the worst of the
bullies and prostitutes that he himself ever condemned to
be flogged at the cart’s-tail. To describe his impudence
in brief compass is quite beyond the powers of language.
In his wilder moods it ceased to be impudence, or even
impudicity, and rose into paroxysms of a terrific and half
maniacal frenzy. When to these qualities are added the
cunning of a wild beast, the cruelty of an inquisitor, and a
malignity that gloated and revelled in the shrieks and groans
of its unhappy victims, it will be easily seen why the name
of Jeffreys is even now hardly ever pronounced by the
Englishman without a curse. Jeffreys first rose into notice
by attending the assizes at Kingston when every other mem¬
ber of the profession was frightened away by the plague,
then raging there. This act would seem to indicate that,
until his swinish habits of drunkenness and debauchery had
ruined his nerves and sapped his strength, he was not with¬
out a certain amount of courage. He worked himself into
practice at the Old Bailey, and early became common ser-
jeant, and then Recorder of London. Having in this capa¬
city shown himself a willing tool of the court, he gradually
rose till, in 1683, he became chief-justice of the King’s
Bench. After the failure of Monmouth’s mad attempt on
his uncle’s crown, it was Jeffreys’ duty to traverse the west¬
ern counties and punish all who had been taken in revolt.
In this tour, characteristically called “ the Bloody Assizes,”
or Jeffrey’s campaign, the chief-justice made it his boast
that he had hanged more traitors than all his predecessors
together since the Conquest. Lord Lonsdale says that his
victims numbered 700 ; Burnet, 600. The list sent by the
judges to the Treasury gives 320, which is probably far
short of the truth. For these important services he was
rewarded by James with the office of Lord High Chancel¬
lor, and he continued to serve his patron with his whole
soul till the Revolution. When that event deprived him
of his only friend, Jeffreys, conscious of danger if not of
guilt, tried to fly the kingdom. Disguising himself as a
sailor, he lurked at Wapping, watching for a vessel to carry
him to the continent. An attorney whom he had brow¬
beaten and bullied from the bench some time before, re¬
cognised him by the ferocious glare of his eyes as he was
staring out of a tavern window. The alarm was given, and
Jeffreys was only saved from being lynched by the mob
by the arrival of a strong guard. He was carried to the
Tower of London, where he died April 19, 1689.
JELALABAD or Dooshak, an ancient city of Seistan,
in Afghanistan, about 250 miles W. of Kandahar, situate
4 miles from the right bank of the Helmoon River, and
about 10 miles E. of the Lake Hamoon. This town was
once large and flourishing, and is said to have been almost Jelalabad
as populous as Ispahan. At present it only contains about II
10,000 inhabitants, and covers not more than a fourth of v Jena- ^
its ancient area, which is now strewn with broken fragments “ y"’“-
of its former greatness. There is a good bazaar in the
town, and the streets are better laid out than in the gene¬
rality of eastern cities.
Jelalabad, a town of Afghanistan, in the province of
Cabool, situate in the rich plain of Jelalabad. Though ad¬
vantageously built on the main road from the Punjaub to
Cabool, it has neither trade nor manufactures. It will,
nevertheless, be ever celebrated in history in consequence
of the heroic and successful defence made during the win¬
ter of 1841 by a handful of British troops, under Sir Ro¬
bert Sale, against a numerous army of Afghans. The for¬
tifications were destroyed by order of General Pollock, on
his final evacuation of Afghanistan in 1842. Lat. 34. 25.
Long. 70. 28.
JELATMA, a town of Russia, government of Tambov,
and 150 miles N. of the town of that name. It stands on
the River Oka, and, by the facility of river communication,
carries on a trade in corn, tallow, wax, &c. The manufac¬
tures comprise linen, sailcloth, and vitriol. Pop, (1851)
5953.
JELETZ, a manufacturing town of Russia, in the govern¬
ment of Orel or Orlov, situate on the left bank of the River
Sosna, 256 miles S.S.E. of Moscow, and about 100 miles
from the town of Orel. Its trade has increased very much
of late, and the manufacture of iron, which abounds in the
neighbourhood, is gaining importance. Grain and cattle
are staple articles, while iron, leather, and soap form the
principal manufactures. Pop. (1851)24,340.
JEMAULABAD, a town and fortress in the S. of In¬
dia, province of Canara, which was originally called Nara-
singha Augady, The first, which was built by Tippoo,
stands on the summit of an immense rock, which may be
deemed impregnable, as it is wholly inaccessible except by
one narrow way. The nature of the access to it, however,
renders the approach to it in the face of an enemy nearly
as difficult as the ascent; so that a very small body of men
with artillery are adequate to blockade a strong garrison,
which renders the place of little use, excepting as a safe¬
guard for treasure or records. After the fort was built by
Tippoo, he placed in it a khiladar or commandant, with a
garrison of 400 men ; and the town at that time contained
1000 houses, and carried on a considerable trade. On the
invasion of Mysore, the Coorg rajah destroyed the town,
and carried away half the inhabitants j the remainder made
their escape into the woods, and only about twenty houses
have since been rebuilt. After the fall of Seringapatam,
it sustained a siege of six weeks from the British, when,
being bombarded, it was taken, and, the commander having
poisoned himself, his principal officers were hanged. It
was afterwards surprised and taken by a band of insurgents
or plunderers, when it was reduced, after a blockade of three
months, and all that did not escape were summarily exe¬
cuted. The surrounding country is woody. E. Long. 75.
22., N. Lat. 13. 2,
JEMMAPES, a large village and commune of Belgium,
province of Hainault, and arrondissement of Mons, 3 miles
W. of the town of that name. It stands on the River
Maine, and on the canal between Mons and Conde. In
the vicinity are limestone quarries and coal-mines. Here,
in 1792, the French, under Dumouriez, gained a decisive
victory over the Austrians. Linder French rule Jemmapes
gave name to a department which was nearly co-extensive
with the present province of Hainault. Pop. of commune
(1851) 8387.
JENA, a fortified town, the capital of a cognominal
circle in the grand duchy of Saxe-Weimar, is situate in a
valley on the River Salle, here crossed by a handsome stone
720
JEN
It is 12 miles E. of Weimar, and 45 milesjl.W.
Jenner. bridge. It ^ ^ ™ ^ - as a seat of learning,
of Leipzig. I ^ great battles fought in its
and is also celebrated ^t b ^ wag founded in
^47 bbv‘the Elector John Frederic, and was opened in
1558 under the joint patronage of the ducal houses of ei-
nfar Altenb rg, Coburg, and Meiningen. Its ha s and
lecture-rooms were soon filled with students from all parts
of Germany ; and the fame of the prelections delivered m
its theatresY made the attendance yearly increase. The
largest number of matriculated students was in 1813, when
!t amounted to nearly 3000. From that date, however, the
numbers have been gradually diminishing, partly from a
want of proper academic discipline, but chiefly from the
erection of several new colleges in other parts of the country.
In 1850 there were about 400 students and to teachers,
including professors and tutors. The great names which
are associated with this university are numerous, and justly
celebrated in the departments of philosophy and theology.
Gerhard, Buddens, Dantz, Fichte, Schelhng, Hege , Gnes-
bach, Gabler, and Schiller, have all taught within the walls
of the college. The garden in which the observatory
stands was long the favourite resort of the last, who is said
to have composed many of his works there. In connection
with the university there is a library containing /0,0
volumes and many valuable MSS., an hospital, a lunatic
asylum, botanic garden, and observatory. The students
have also admittance to the museums of natural histoiy an
archaeology in the ducal castle. Besides the above-men¬
tioned buildings Jena contains a Roman Catholic and three
Protestant churches. The courts of appeal for the Saxon
duchies and Reuss princedoms are held in the castle. 1 he
trade of the town is unimportant; and the manufactures
consist only of coarse linen, tobacco pipes, and hats. Jlie
famous battle of Jena, fought in October 1806 between
the Prussians, under Prince Hohenlohe, and the trench,
under Napoleon, when the former were defeated, took
place in the neighbourhood of the town. This battle, how¬
ever, must he carefully distinguished from that of Auer-
stadt, which happened after the defeat of the Prussians by
Bonaparte, but which is apt to be confounded with it from
the proximity of the places and time of the two events.
Pop. (1852) 6502.
JENNER, Edward, an English surgeon and physician,
and the discoverer of vaccination, was born in the vicarage
house of Berkeley in Gloucestershire, on the 17th May 1 /49.
He was the third son of the Reverend Stephen Jenner,
A.M., Oxon. rector of Rockhampton and vicar of Berkeley.
His mother was the daughter of an English clergyman, the
Reverend Henry Head, of an ancient Berkshire family, who
also at one time held the living of Berkeley, and was a pre¬
bend of Bristol.
The family of Jenner was of some standing and antiquity
in the counties of Gloucester and Worcester. It has pro¬
duced several eminent men besides Jenner. Among these
may be mentioned, Dr Thomas Jenner, president ot Mag¬
dalen College, Oxford. Jenner’s father possessed consider¬
able estates in Gloucestershire in addition to his church
preferments. He Was also tutor to the late Earl of Berkeley,
and was highly esteemed by the whole of that noble house,
which equally gave its friendship to the son.
Jenner’s father died when Jenner was only five years
old; his elder brother Stephen, a beneficed clergyman and
fellow of Magdalen College, Oxford, took charge of his
education. At about the age of eight, when at school at
Wotton-under-Edge, Jenner first displayed that taste for
natural history which was so prominent and eventually so
important a point in his character.
His education for the medical profession commenced, as
was then usual, with an apprenticeship to a medical practi-
*: Mr Ludlow, an eminent surgeon of Sodbury (or
JEN
Sudbury), near Bristol, was Jenner’s master. Inhistwen- Jenner
ty-first year he went to London and became a private pupil ^
of John Hunter, with whom he resided for two years, ihe
community of their tastes and the mutual esteem and regard
which arose out of this connexion laid the foundation for a
lasting friendship between these two great men, which was
broken only by Hunter’s death. In after life Jenner never
failed to speak in the warmest terms of Hunter.
Under so distinguished an anatomist, Jenner acquired an
almost unrivalled skill in minute dissections and delicate
injections of parts. When in 1771, Cook, the great oceanic
explorer, returned from his first voyage of discovery, Jen¬
ner was recommended to feir Joseph Banks as a fit person
to assist in putting up and arranging the valuable specimens
of natural history which were collected during that voyage.
This task he accomplished, and exhibited at the same time
so much dexterity and knowledge, that he was oft'ered the
appointment of naturalist to the next expedition, which
sailed in 1772. Jenner refused the offer, preferring to re¬
turn to Berkeley where he commenced practice as a coun¬
try surgeon. His first attempts were very successful, for
although so young his practice rapidly increased. Add¬
ing to professional skill the manners of a thorough gentle¬
man, and the information of a scholar, he was a welcome
guest in the most distinguished families.
A mind so genial as Jenner’s, and with so quick a per¬
ception of the Beautiful, could not fail to have a tinge of
the Ideal. It is not remarkable, therefore, that he culti¬
vated occasionally the art of poetry. He would read his
compositions at convivial meetings, or send them to friends
in the ordinary interchange of literary correspondence. One
of these has long been popular, and has been read by many
without a suspicion that the author of them was the disco¬
verer of vaccination. The Signs of Kain, in metrical veise,
commencing—
tioner.
“ The hollow winds begin to blow,
The clouds look black, the glass is low,”
was sent by Jenner as an excuse for not accepting the in¬
vitation of a friend to make a country excursion. It is re¬
markable for its combination of the minute accuracy of the
naturalist with an easy versification not unworthy Crabbe.
He was a good hand too at an epigram or a ballad, and he
could sing his own verses in good taste. He was particu¬
larly fond of music, and could play on the violin and flute,
as well as sing.
It was not until the year 1795, at the age of fifty, that
he published to the world the results of his researches into
vaccination, and announced the discovery that has immor¬
talized his name. But previously to this date he laboured
much at various scientific subjects as well as at experiments
on the cowpox. He corresponded regularly with John
Hunter on questions of natural history, comparaUve ana¬
tomy, physiology, and pathology, sending him specimens of
all kinds, giving him hints and facts, and instituting and
carrying out observations and experiments suggested by
Hunter, The results of some of these latter were published
in Hunter’s paper on the Heat of Animals and Vegetables,^
printed in the Philosophical Transactions for 1778, and of
others in Hunter’s Observations on some Parts of the Animal
Economi/, published in 1792. He dissected many “free-
martins,” as he himself states in a letter to Dr Worthing¬
ton, dated 1810; adding that he was the first (some thirty
years ago) who made known to John Hunter the condition
of the sexual organs in these animals; and so laid the
foundation for Hunter’s paper on the subject published in
the Philosophical Transactions. Fie first communicated
the results of his researches in pathology to two small medi¬
cal societies of the district. His essay on Angina pectoris
which forms the ground-work of his friend Dr Parry s
work, was one of these. Another communication contained
J E N N E R.
Jenner.
observations on a disease of the heart, which frequently
comes on during attacks of rheumatism, and leads to en¬
largement and disorganization of the viscus. This (like
others) fell into the hands of members of those societies,
and was lost. It would have constituted a most important
contribution to the literature of practical medicine, as it
was doubtless an anticipation of the subsequent researches
of Watson and Bouillaud on the same subject. He also
wrote an essay on Ophthalmia.
At a later period (1790) he inquired very carefully into
the nature of tubercular deposits, which he believed’, to be
allied or analogous to hydatid formations. He also inves¬
tigated the anatomy and pathology of the lymphatic system.
In reference to this subject, and further to elucidate it, he had
recourse to comparative anatomy and pathology. Some of
his earliest views on the formation of tubercles in the
lungs, were communicated to Dr Beddoes, and were pub¬
lished by the latter in his work on Factitious Airs. They
were also made public in a more mature form by Dr Baron,
his intimate friend and biographer, in his two works, the
one On the nature of Tubercular Accretions on Serous
Axembranes (1819), and the other, Illustrations of the In¬
quiry respecting Tuberculous Diseases, published in 1822.
Perhaps this is the best place to mention another question
in practical medicine which occupied Jenner’s attention, al¬
though at a later period. A curious custom, apparently indi¬
genous, has been noticed in various districts of Great Britain
and Ireland namely, the dipping or immersion in water, by a
regular “ professor,” of a person attacked with hydrophobia,
with a view to cure. The vale of Gloucester was a “dip¬
ping country and, as Jenner remarks in one of his letters,
Pyrton Passage, four miles from Berkeley, has been noted
for the practice for time immemorial. His thoughts,
therefore, had not been idle, and he wished to see how far
the practice could be supported by analogy, by getting
some vaccinated person dipped within a few days after the
insertion of the lymph.
It was at the medical societies just referred to that Jenner
was accustomed to bring forward the reported prophylactic
virtues of cow-pox, and to strenuously recommend the sub¬
ject as one well deserving inquiry. Although he received
no encouragement from his medical friends, he often re¬
curred to the subject, until at last he was threatened with
expulsion as an insufferable bore.
The vale of Gloucester was favourable to geological re¬
search, and Jenner was not the man to neglect the ad¬
vantages it offered. His correspondence with John Hunter
often refers to organic remains. He was within reach of
the principal oolitic series and the lias formation, both
rich in fossils. Of these he made a large collection. But
he was also busy at the same time with pharmaceutical
chemistry, and in particular he instituted experiments with
the view of producing tartar emetic more uniform in its com¬
position, and, therefore, in its medicinal action, than that
which commerce supplied. The description of his process
is published in the first volume (1793) of the Transactions
of a Society for the Improvement of Medical Knowledge,
having been communicated to that society by John Hunter’.
In 1783 Montgolfier made public the result of his first
experiment in aerostation. Jenner was much interested in
it, and having constructed a balloon, had it filled with hy¬
drogen gas in the hall of Berkeley Castle.
This was not the only instance of the versatility of his
studies, for, in 1787, we find him writing to Sir Joseph
Banks a letter in which, amongst other matters, he gives
a detailed account of his experiments with artificial man¬
ures. Agricultural pursuits occupied his attention from
time to time during the rest of his life.
His paper on the Cuckoo was one of his most carefully
elaborated essays, and was finally read to the Royal Society
10th March 1788, and printed in the Philosophical Trans-
YOL. XII.
721
actions of that year. Jenner had spent portions of several Jenner
years and much labour in the collection of the facts contained ^
in it. It explained the habits of the cuckoo very satisfactorily,
and has always been considered as a model of accurate inves¬
tigation. His Observations on the Migrations of Birds, read
to the Royal Society, Nov. 27, 1823, may be classed with
this paper on the cuckoo.
1 he domestic incidents of Jenner’s life at this period
were important to him and to his future career; but not
otherwise remarkable. In 1778 he experienced a disap¬
pointment in his affections. For several years after he still
felt mortified and miserable on account of it, for, in one of
his letters dated 1783, he complains that still the same dead
weight hangs upon his heart, and expresses the pleasure
with which he could “ see an end of this silly dream of
life. On the 6th March 1788, ten years after his disap¬
pointment, he was mamed to Catherine Kingscote, of an
ancient Gloucestershire family.
In 1793 Jenner was deeply affected by the death of
John Hunter. Already in 1777 Hunter had had an at-
tack of the disease that was ultimately to destroy him; but
it was Jenner’s affectionate and anxious attention to his
symptoms which at that time enabled him to detect its true
nature. In 1778 he wrote out, but did not send, a letter
to Dr Heberden, giving his opinion as to the nature of
John Hunter’s illness {Angina pectoris) and his reasons for
entertaining it. The examination after death fully estab¬
lished the correctness of Jenner’s views.
In 1792 Jenner determined to give up the general prac-
profession, and practise as a physician only.
With this view he obtained the degree of Doctor of Medi¬
cine from St Andrew’s.
In 1795 he commenced his professional visits to Chel¬
tenham (which he continued for many years), it being ob¬
vious that Berkeley could never support a physician? In
the spring of this year he had performed his first vaccina¬
tion, and was preparing to bring the results of his investi¬
gation before the public. In the year 1798 he published
the Inquiry, being his first work on the subject. Hence¬
forth the immortal name of Jenner was to be identified
with vaccination. It will be necessary, however, to return
to the earlier years of Jenner’s life if we would trace the
gradual development of the idea which was ultimately to
confer such incalculable benefits upon the whole human
race for so long as variola, or small-pox, shall infest it.
It was while Jenner was yet an apprentice at Sudbury
that his mind was first directed to the study of cow-pox.
A young countrywoman came one day to his master’s house
to seek advice; small-pox happened to be mentioned in
her hearing, and she remarked, “ I cannot take that disease,
for I have had cow-pox.” It was the first time that the
popular notion had been fairly brought before Jenner’s
mind, and it rivetted his attention. He resolved to let no
opportunity of acquiring knowledge on so interesting a sub¬
ject escape him. When, in 1770, he went to London, he
repeatedly mentioned the circumstance to John Hunter,
who made Jenner’s opinions, and the popular notions of
Gloucestershire, known both to his class and in conversa¬
tion. Other lecturers made mention of them also.
About 1775 Jenner began to examine more particularly
into the truth of the popular notions; but it was not until
1780 that he could report satisfactory progress. He had
fii st to get at the natural history of the various forms of
vai ioloid eruptions, such as swine-pox, chicken-pox, and
spurious cow-pox, and to determine the distinguishing
characteristics of each. Both numerous experiments and
extended observations were required, with few opportu¬
nities for either; he did not, therefore, hesitate to experi¬
ment on his own and only son. When the child was a
year and a half old he inoculated him for swine-pox sue-
cessfully, and at six different periods shortly after he inocu-
4 Y
722
Jenner.
JENNER.
kted him with variola, mthout tne slightest inflammation
the v rus of the cow-pox imparted a protecting condition;
the virus l be local inflammation of a
peculiar character induced, but it gave no protection. In
1 787 he had already come to the conclusion that the vesi-
cular inflammatkm'of the horse’s heel termed “ grease,”
was varioloid. In 1788 he took with him to London a
drawing ofthe casual vaccination as seen on thehands of
the milker, and showed it to SirEverard Home, Mr Clive,
and others. Hitherto, however, he had only observed the
casual disease, and the various epizootic forms ; he had not
communicated it from human being to human being.
The 14th of May 1796 is the date given by Jenner as
that on which he vaccinated James Phipps, a healthy boy
about eight years old, with lymph taken from the hand o
Sarah Nelmes, a maid-servant who had been infected by
her master’s cow. On July 19th following, he announced
the success of the experiment to his friend Gardner, add¬
ing, “ But now listen to the most delightful part of my
story _the boy has since been inoculated for the small¬
pox, which, as I ventured to predict, produced no effect.
Phipps lived to be inoculated twenty times for small-pox,
and equally at each time without effect. In October 1818
Dr Baron found Jenner planning a cottage forPhipps (whose
health was much impaired), which was built, and its little
garden laid out and stocked with roses from his own shiub-
bery, under his personal superintendence.
It was not until the spring of 1790 that the opportunity
was again afforded him of resuming his researches, for the
cow-pox disappeared from the dairies. In the meanwhile
(1787) he made many efforts to generate the virus from the
heel of the horse, but in vain. He had also completed his
Inquiry into the Causes and Effects of the Variolce Vaccina;,
which was published in the summer of 1798. The second
edition came out in 1800, and the third in 1801.
Before he published his Inquiry, Jenner thought it pru¬
dent to go to London, and there demonstrate the truth of
his delineations and assertions by performing vaccination
himself. With all his efforts and the efforts of his friends,
not one individual could be persuaded to submit to the
operation; and, after a fruitless stay of three months in
London, Jenner left it for Berkeley, his patience exhausted.
Jenner’s announcement of his discovery was received as
such announcements usually are. The sanguine and bene¬
volent set no bound to their anticipations; the envious and
narrow-minded did not fail to deride and condemn the prac¬
tice. But, upon the whole, it had a favourable reception,
and researches were instituted in various directions to con¬
firm and develope it.
From the date of the publication of his Inquiry, Jenner
may be said to have become a public character; for he was
mixed up, more or less, with all the proceedings instituted
in his own country to apply the discovery to practical uses,
and had at the same time a world-wide correspondence with
foreign lands. The history of vaccination will have a sepa¬
rate consideration (see Vaccination), so that the incidents
in the life of Jenner need only be mentioned here.
Jenner soon had to meet his opponents in controversy.
The earliest of these was Ingenhousz, a distinguished Ger¬
man physician, and the confidential adviser of the royal
family of Austria. Jenner tried to meet his objections, but
an imperial physician felt it rather humiliating to retract an
error ; so that, finding him altogether intractable, Jenner
published, on April 5, 1799, the explanations he had given
to him under the title of Further Observations on the
Variolce Vaccince.
Jenner s worst opponents were not, however, the avowed
antagonists. Like all men in his position, he had secret
foes acting the part of candid friends, or invidious men,
covetous of his probable fame, and scheming to appropriate Jenner.
it to themselves. Such an one was Dr Pearson, who, so
early as Nov. 8, 1798, published a pamphlet in defence
of vaccination; in which, however, he undertook to set
Jenner right by his “ own reasoning,” while, diplomatically,
he hinted to Jenner privately that the principal facts (which
he acknowledged) would be better established by his not
uniformly acceding to all Jenner’s doctrine. Pearson co¬
operated with Dr Woodville, physician to the Small-pox
Hospital; and when Jenner went to London, in March
1799, he found that they had already vaccinated 200 per¬
sons ; but, unfortunately, they were ignorantly using a con¬
taminated varioloid virus, and sending it about the country
as the true vaccine lymph. These proceedings greatly dis¬
couraged Jenner. He therefore published, in this year
(1800), a Continuation of Facts and Observations relative
to the Variolce Vaccince ; in which, with much moderation
and accuracy, he investigated the facts and arguments of
Woodville and Pearson.
Pearson had soon thrown off the mask, for, hardly had
Jenner left London (in the summer of 1799), than, without
a word to the latter, he began to scheme the establishment
of a Vaccine Institution, in which he, and not Jenner, was
to occupy the most conspicuous position.
It was very obvious that the time had arrived for the
establishment of some system of co-operation and mutual
support amongst the true friends of vaccination. The whole
weight of defending and extending the practice could no
longer, with any propriety, be left wholly to Jenner, as hi¬
therto. But Jenner felt that his experience was all impor¬
tant and ought to have a predominant influence in any pub¬
lic vaccine institution. We therefore find him in London
in March 1800, communicating proposals to Lord Egremont
for an institution of the kind. He at the same time secured
the warm support of the Duke of York (who at first leaned
to Pearson), in the first instance, and next of the Duke of
Clarence, the King and Queen, the Prince of Wales, and
other members of the royal family. Indeed, all his best
friends rallied round him on this occasion. His scheme
was not, however, carried into effect by the establishment
of the Royal Jennerian Society until three years afterwards.
During this year the Count de la Roque translated the
Inquiry into the French language, three editions of which
translation were exhausted in less than seven months. On
the 3d May 1801 the Madrid Gazette announced a trans¬
lation into Spanish, and about the same time there appeared
another by Dr Davids into the Dutch. Jenner’s time was
now wholly occupied with the correspondence which poured
in upon him from all quarters, and with the arrangements
necessary for transmitting lymph to the various countries
from which he had applications for it. As he himself said,
he was the vaccine clerk of the world. In five years from
the date of his first public announcement of his discovery,
vaccination had made its way into every civilized country,
and was everywhere hailed as an inestimable blessing.
Medals, diplomas, and complimentary verses and addresses
poured in upon him from every side. He did not, however,
neglect home duties, but offered gratuitous vaccination to
all the poor who might think right to apply to him on cer¬
tain fixed days. This practice he continued for the rest of
his life. It proved to be particularly laborious whenever an
alarm of small-pox took place ; on such occasions he would
have three hundred persons waiting at his door.
Early in 1801 Jenner published his Account of the Origin
of the Vaccine Inoculation. About this time he began to
investigate other diseases of animals, and in particular that
of dogs known as “ the distemper.” He believed that vac¬
cination rendered them less susceptible of the disease. In
June 1801 he and his nephew, George Jenner, vaccinated
about twenty of His Majesty’s stag-hounds; and in conse¬
quence of this step it became a common practice (as it is
J E N N E R.
Jenner. still) to vaccinate valuable sporting dogs. A paper by
Jenner on the distemper, together with an account of two
cases of small-pox communicated to the foetus in utero,
was published in vol. i. of the Medico-Chirurgical Tran¬
sactions (1809).
In October of this year (1801) vaccine lymph reached
Moscow at the time of the coronation of the Emperor Alex¬
ander. On the 10th August 1802, the Empress Dowager
sent Jenner a most gracious and complimentary letter
signed by herself, accompanying it with a valuable diamond
ring. Towards the close of this year his friends in his na¬
tive county of Gloucester, presented Jenner, in gratitude
for his services, with a small service of plate bearing appro¬
priate devices and inscription.
In the year 1802 the first parliamentary grant was made
to Jenner. It was amply merited. He had spent much
time as well as toil on his discovery; he had sacrificed great
professional advantages; and he had disbursed largely and
liberally from his own private fortune, in order to assist in
conveying the vaccine lymph and the knowledge of its uses
to the most distant countries. He was by no means in in¬
dependent circumstances, and he had a family and many
relatives who looked to him for support. His friends, there¬
fore, warmly urged upon him the propriety of his petition¬
ing Parliament for some remuneration for his services, which
he accordingly did on 17th March. It was referred to a
committee of which Admiral Berkeley was chairman.
Although Jenner’s friends were active, his enemies were
not idle. The opportunity now afforded to injure him was
seized by Pearson, who endeavoured to lessen the weight of
his claims to remuneration by insidiously attempting to show
to the committee that vaccine inoculation had been practised
before J enner took it up ; and that, although Jenner was the
first to promulgate the practice, his opinions were erroneous,
and had to be corrected by others, but especially by him¬
self (Pearson) and Woodville. The grant was opposed in
the House on very frivolous grounds. Mr Bankes of Corfe
Castle thought its first duty was to guard the national purse,
and that Jenner ought to have remunerated himself by
making a secret of his discovery. The Chancellor of the
Exchequer thought the “ approbation” of the House was
the highest reward that could be given him, inasmuch as
it would lead to an extended and very lucrative practice.
The proposition for the grant of L.10,000 was carried, but
only by the narrow majority of three.
Jenner’s feelings were deeply wounded by the mode in
which the grant was made. He would gladly have repu¬
diated the whole affair. Nor did it add either to his wealth
or professional success. It was still unpaid at the end of
two years; he was loaded with additional taxation in con¬
sequence of it to the amount of L.400 a-year ; the expenses
of his “petition” amounted to nearly L.1000; and when at
last the money was paid to him, about L.1000 was with¬
held on the pretence of fees due. He had, therefore, no
pecuniary remuneration for his labours, for the balance left
hardly met his expenses out of pocket.
Jenner now thought, however, that he might venture to
grapple with the risks and costs of practice in London.
Elated and allured (as he himself states) by the speech of
the Chancellor of the Exchequer, he took a house in Hert¬
ford Street, Mayfair, for ten years, at a high rent; but the
result of his first year’s practice sufficed to show the falsity
of the minister’s prediction.
His emoluments at this time from vaccination, were not
more than L.350 per annum. The year 1804 therefore
finds Jenner at his own happy home at Berkeley and
amongst his old friends at Cheltenham, a poorer man in
pocket, but a richer man in this world’s wisdom, although
somewhat saddened by his disappointments.
It must not be concluded, however, that all was darkness
while in London. Early in the year 1803 the Royal Jen-
723
nerian Society was established, according to his own plan, Jenner.
under the most favourable circumstances, and in a way as
flattering to himself as possible.
On the 3d February Jenner took his seat for the first
time as president of the society, and on the 2d March
headed a deputation to the King, to return thanks to his
majesty for his patronage of the institution. In order to
render due honour to the man whose name it bore, the
members resolved to celebrate the anniversary of the
Royal Jennerian Society on Jenner’s birth-day, May 17 ;
and, accordingly, the first festival took place this year on
that day,—Lord Egremont in the chair.
At the close of 1803 Jenner had the first opportunity
of exercising that influence with foreign governments which
his discoveries and character had secured him. The sud¬
den breaking out of the war, after the peace of America,
found many of our countrymen in France, who, as is well
known, were most unjustly prevented leaving that country.
Jenner applied to General Andreossi in favour of some of
these, but he also tried his influence with the National
Institute of France (with which he had already corres¬
ponded) on behalf of Lord Yarmouth as well as others.
In February 1805 he addressed a letter to Napoleon him¬
self, requesting permission for “ two men of science and
literature” (Dr Wickham, one of the Ratcliffe travelling
Fellows of Oxford, and Mr Williams) to return to England.
It was on this or some similar occasion that Napoleon,
being about to reject the petition, heard Josephine utter
the name of Jenner. The Emperor paused for an instant,
and exclaimed, “ Jenner! ah, we can refuse nothing to that
man.” He subsequently made other applications to Na¬
poleon, each with the like success. In 1808 he interfered in
a similar way, and as successfully, with the Spanish govern¬
ment for the release of an English gentleman from ten
years’ confinement in a Mexican fortress. By direct ap¬
plication to the Emperor of Austria, he served the son of
Sir John Sinclair. In fact, about this time his name was
so potent and his influence so well known, that persons left
England with certificates signed by him, which had all the
force and value of real passports. The document stated
the objects of their travels, whether in pursuit of health,
science, or other affairs not connected with war, and seems
to have availed the bearer.
Jenner once or twice applied to the British govern¬
ment on behalf of French prisoners in England, but un¬
happily all his efforts were fruitless. He was not allowed
to exercise any influence in that quarter. Nor was he per¬
mitted to share in the least degree in the vast patronage at
the disposal of the government. He never succeeded in
procuring an appointment for any of his relatives or friends.
All his attempts to get a living for his nephew George had
failed, although he applied where he was quite justified in
thinking he should meet with attention and success. He
felt this neglect acutely.
Jenner had derived little, if any, pecuniary benefit from
the parliamentary grant of L.10,000, and his friends became
anxious about his private affairs, for he was not remarkable
for worldly wisdom. At their instance, a subscription was
set on foot in India, where the benefit of Jenner’s discovery
had been largely experienced and gratefully acknowledged.
In 1806 he received L.3000 from Calcutta as the result of
this movement, with an intimation that L.1000 more would
shortly follow ; but the full amount of the Eastern acknow¬
ledgment did not reach him until 1812. Bengal sent L.4000,
Bombay L.2000, Madras L.1383.
The Marquis of Lansdowne (then Lord Henry Petty),
was a principal mover in Jenner’s second parliamentary
grant. Happily for Jenner, and the credit of Great Britain,
that enlightened nobleman was appointed Chancellor of the
Exchequer at this juncture; and in the session of 1806 he
brought the question of vaccination before jhe House of
724 JEN
Jenner. Commons. In the first instance, however, it was referred
to the College of Physicians of London, who, having in¬
quired into it, reported that a body of evidence so large, so
temperate, and so consistent, such as was that collected in
support of vaccination, was never before advanced in sup¬
port of any medical question. In the following year (29th
July 1807), Jenner’s claims were brought forward in parlia¬
ment by Mr Spencer Percival. The report of the College
of Physicians afforded the grounds on which he moved that
a sum not exceeding L.10,000 be voted to Jenner, free of
all fees and charges. Lord Henry Petty, Mr Windham,
and Mr Whitbread, warmly advocated Jenner’s claims ; and
Mr Edward Morris, member for Newport (Cornwall), in¬
fluenced entirely by the weight of the evidence, moved that
L.20,000 be granted instead of L.10,000. On a division,
there were 60 for, and 43 against, the motion.
It could hardly be expected that no opposition whatever
would be offered, and, accordingly, the dissentients found a
mouth-piece in Mr Shaw Lefevre, who adopted the usual
line of argument on occasions of the kind. He first at¬
tempted to depreciate the value of vaccination and the
merit of the discovery, and next to depreciate Jenner’s merit
as the discoverer, arguing, in fact, that he was not the dis¬
coverer. Happily for the credit of the nation, these argu¬
ments failed in their intended effect.
Jenner did not cease his researches during this long
period. In 1804 he published in the Medical and Physical
Journal (vol. xii.), a paper on the Varieties and Modifica¬
tions of the Vaccine Pustule ; and, in 1808, his Facts on the
Variolous Contagion. The progress of vaccination abroad
was uninterrupted ; at home, prejudices were active. Sir
Isaac Pennington, the Reader in Physic at Cambridge,
opposed it, and thus countenanced the unprincipled, ranco¬
rous, and ignorant opposition of practitioners like Moseley,
Rowley, Squirrel, &c. These men pandered to and excited
the popular feeling so much, that the question was seriously
discussed in a popular debating society of the day, “ Which
has proved a more striking instance of public credulity—the
Gas-lightsof James Windsor, or the Cow-pox Inoculation?”
But petty feelings were operative also in higher quarters.
The Royal Jennerian Society having failed to accomplish
the objects for which it was founded, Jenner laboured hard
to secure the national support to vaccination ; and, in 1808,
the National Vaccine Establishment was determined on.
Its organization was entrusted to the College of Physicians
of London; and, in the first instance, the propriety of Jenner
exercising a predominant influence in the working of the
institution was fully acknowledged by that corporation. After
remaining in London for five months, with no other object
than the efficient organization of the institution, family affairs
obliged Jenner to go into Gloucestershire. Hardly had he
departed when Sir Lucas Pepys, the president, formed the
board out of officials of the Colleges of Physicians and Sur¬
geons. Jenner was altogether excluded. This was a hard
trial to him.
The Royal College of Physicians of London has never
been distinguished for its magnanimity. It could enter into
the fruits of Jenner’s labours without compunction ; and, con¬
sistently with itself, it afterwards refused him the compli¬
ment of its honorary Fellowship. In 1813 Jenner was
presented by the University of Oxford with the honorary
degree of M.D., and his friends thought it a favourable oc¬
casion to confer upon him the title of Fellow of the College
of Physicians. The Fellowship at that time could only be
conferred on graduates of Oxford and Cambridge, while
hitherto the only British diploma held by Jenner was the
then not very distinguished diploma of M.D. of St An¬
drews, for at that time it was one of the most venal of the
Scottish universities. Now, however, Oxfoi’d nobly did her
duty, and, in confirming the degree of M.D. on* Jenner,
enhanced the greatness of the compliment by assuring him
NEE.
that it was an honour which had not been conferred on any Jenner.
man for nearly seventy years before. Jenner replied, that ^
he was the first of a long line of ancestors who was not
educated there. But he added, “ It is better perhaps as it
is, especially as I have arrived at your highest honours
without complying with your ordinary rules and discipline.”
He then reluctantly put on the accustomed academic gown
and cap.
The example of Oxford was wholly lost, however, upon
the College of Physicians of London. Jenner was at this
time a fellow or member of twenty-six medical or scientific
societies, including the Royal Societies of London and Got¬
tingen, the French Institute, the Royal Academies of
Munich, Madrid, Stockholm, the University of Cambridge
(Massachusetts), and of Wilna, the Royal College of Physi¬
cians of Edinburgh, and the like. He had been formally
presented with the freedom of London, Edinburgh, and
Dublin, and of various other towns and burghs; and the
most distant nations and peoples venerated his name. He
had, in short, won for himself the highest position ever at¬
tained in the medical profession, in any age or nation. But
all this was of no account to the few individuals who consti¬
tuted the governing body of the Royal College of Physi¬
cians of London. Edward Jenner could only be admitted
into their body on undergoing the usual examination. This,
however, was essentially classical; the examination, as to
professional knowledge, was conducted in the Latin tongue,
and was of a simply formal character; but, as a further test
of sound knowledge, the candidate translated portions of
Hippocrates and Aretaeus out of the original Greek. It is
doubtful whether half-a-dozen of the Fellows of the same
age as Jenner, now sixty-four years old, could have passed
this mere classical examination without going back to the
studies of their boyhood; yet this was what, in effect, they
required Jenner at that age to do. He, on his part, ex¬
pressed his opinion very characteristically, “ I would not
do it for a diadem,” he said,—“ that would be a bauble—I
would not do it for John Hunter’s museum!”
In April 1814 Jenner paid his last visit to London. He
had several interviews with the Duchess of Oldenberg, who
delighted him exceedingly. She was also present at his in¬
terview with her brother the Emperor of Russia. Most of
the distinguished foreigners wished to know him personally.
The King of Prussia was the first crowned head who
adopted the practice of vaccination in his own family, Jen¬
ner having sent the lymph for that purpose in 1799; he
sent a respectful intimation of the time he would see Jen¬
ner. He had interviews also with Blucher, Platoff, and
most of the distinguished foreigners then in London.
In September 1815 his faithful and beloved wife died.
This loss he felt most acutely. He retired immediately to
Berkeley, and never again quitted it, except for a day or two.
From 1815, the remaining years of Jenner’s life were passed
in such occupations as befitted a physician, a naturalist, a
magistrate, and a man whose life was rapidly drawing to a
close. Acknowledgments of his great services still, how¬
ever, reached him from time to time. He was elected a
member of the Royal Academy of Sciences of Bavaria late
in 1814. In 1818 it was proposed that a medal of him
should be struck at Paris, as one of the series u Des hom-
mes illustres de tons les PaysP and in 1821 he was ap¬
pointed physician-extraordinary to the king. During these
later years he followed up the thoughts and views of his
earlier lifetime. In 1817 he traced the equine virus ex¬
perimentally for the last time, and demonstrated its pro¬
phylactic power against variola. In 1818, and following
years, his thoughts were much occupied with an extensive
epidemic of small-pox, often assuming a spurious or imper¬
fect form. Numerous were the reported failures of vac¬
cination in that and subsequent years, so that Jenner’s at¬
tention was directed anew to the subject. For some time
J E N N E B.
.Tenner
. before his death he was employed in reviewing his opinions
and comparing them with the numerous facts he had col¬
lected from all parts of the world, and it was his intention
to have published a digest of the whole. It was probably
with a view to the fulfilment of this plan that he sent out a
Circular Letter early in 1821 to the most respectable
practitioners in the kingdom, with questions as to the pro¬
gress of the vaccine vesicle, the influence of herpetic and
other eruptions upon it, and the number of cases of small¬
pox after vaccination. This circular was followed in 1822
by his last published essay, A Letter to Charles H. Parry,
M.D., on the Influence of Artificial Eruptions in certain
Diseases. His last scientific researches were read to the
Royal Society 27th November 1823, being Observations
on the Migrations of Birds.
During his later years, when resident at Berkeley, Jenner
acted constantly as a magistrate. He could not but see that
the peasantry were not fairly treated. They were oppressed
by the poor-laws, and they were taught nothing—neither
the laws of their country, nor of their God. The nature of
his magisterial duties are shown in one of his letters writ¬
ten to Mr Moore (the brother of General Moore) of the
date of 1813. He remarks,—“ How you would enjoy seeing
me in the exercise of my magisterial powers, dealing out
lessons of morality to the poor unfortunate daughters of
vaccina, when exhibiting their untimely prominences. I
bring them all to the altar with their swains if I can.”
Jenner had had several attacks of illness during his life,
but he attained to a good old age. On the 6th August
1820, when in his seventy-second year, while walking in
his garden, he became suddenly faint and giddy, and ap¬
pears to have lost his consciousness. It was a premonition
of the disease that was to terminate his life; for, although
there was no paralysis, and not much indication of serious
mischief in the brain, the latter organ had evidently been
the seat of the attack. On the 24th January 1823, he was
busily engaged in his professional avocations and his cus¬
tomary acts of kindness and charity. On the 25th January
he arose as usual, and went into his library. Not appear¬
ing at breakfast, the servant went to ascertain the cause of
his delay, and found that his master had sunk from his
couch and was lying on the floor insensible. The right
side was paralysed, and he was in a state of apoplectic coma,
in which he continued until his death, a few hours after,
on January 26, 1823, at 3 o’clock in the morning.
A public subscription for a monument to Jenner was set
on foot shortly after his death, but only two public bodies
subscribed; the College of Physicians of Edinburgh gave
L.50, and the College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, L.10.
After considerable difficulty there was raised sufficient to
place a statue of Jenner by Sievier in the nave of the ca¬
thedral at Gloucester. Another attempt was made in the
year 1850 to erect a monument by public subscription, but
that seems to have failed also. The warmest interest was
on this occasion shown by the United States.
The character of Edward Jenner is soon delineated. He
was an English gentleman, with a liberal and professional
education. Rural scenes and domestic life he loved best,
and for these he repeatedly sacrificed wider fields of energy
than a village in England afforded. And even when a
world-wide fame became his, he wished that fame had been
the lot of another man, because it deprived him of “ his
peace and quietness.” The delight of his heart was ever
his own village home, and the routine of his rural life.
With a genial temper, high moral tone, cultivated tastes, a
turn for poetry, and access to the best society, it was not
surprising that he was likened to such English worthies, as
honest Isaak Walton, the pious Evelyn, and the melan¬
choly Cowper. But, perhaps, these qualities were not
favourable to the full evolution of his intellectual powers
or to grand labours. The discovery of vaccination was
725
due, in the first instance, rather to an impulse of his youth Jenner.
than an effort of his intellect. Afterwards his large bene- —
volence sustained his efforts, for he fully appreciated the
great and enduring benefits that discovery would confer
upon the whole human race. If he finally felt a pride and
deep personal interest in its promulgation, as his own dis¬
covery, the feelings were just.
His large benevolence was constantly shown in various
ways, and has been already illustrated in the preceding
pages. He loved to gratify the lowly in rank by his per¬
sonal attention, and especially by his grace and condescen¬
sion ; to seek out and help genius struggling with poverty ;
to set on foot or support any plan for advancing science;
or any institution having good for its object. His affections
were of the warmest; his sensibilities acute. Hence his
ardent love of wife and child, and his sympathies with the
suffering, the gentle, and the lowly. Hence, also, the pecu¬
liar delicacy of his perceptions in all that regarded the grace
and dignity of the female character.
Jenner’s intellect was hardly inferior in power to the in¬
tellect of his master, John Hunter. But there was this
difference between the men, that Hunter had few of those
graces of character which made Jenner so pleasing in so¬
ciety. Hunter devoted, therefore, less time to the pleasures
of social intercourse, and became more and more an enthu¬
siast in the study of life and organization. Jenner’s posi¬
tion in a country village, and his pursuits as a country sur¬
geon, did not favour this entire devotion ; but, on the con¬
trary, prevented it, inasmuch as it threw the temptation of
social enjoyment in his way. As a naturalist, Jenner took
a high rank, and he would have shone as a pathologist had
a proper sphere of action been open to him. He had large
powers of observation, but a peculiar horror of arithmetic,
and no taste for any of the branches of pure science. The
descendant of a line of English clergymen, a tinge of piety
would seem to be almost of necessity a part of Jenner’s
character. But he had evidently more than this; a spirit
of religion seemed to be infused into all he did. Piety
was so much a part of his nature, that it was habitual with
bim—yet, unostentatiously, and especially without that loud
and suspicious profession of religion so frequently asso¬
ciated with an imperfect manifestation of the Christian
grace of charity. Jenner appears to have habitually and
constantly felt that he was always in the presence of God.
Although Jenner’s temper was genial and gay in society,
he was subject through life to fits of melancholy; in this
respect resembling men of similar organization. He seems,
too, to have been somewhat sensitive as to his claims to
distinction, and to have had an excessive love of approba¬
tion. Among the last words he addressed to Dr Baron, his
biographer, were these, “ I am not surprised that men are
not thankful to me.” And when at an earlier date the
Emperor Alexander of Russia said to him, “ I am happy to
think that you have received the thanks, the applause, and
the gratitude of the world;” Jenner said, “he had received
the thanks and the applause, but not the gratitude.” Un¬
doubtedly, the practice of vaccination was opposed in the
time of Jenner (as it is yet) by the perverse, the ignorant,
and the prejudiced; equally certain is it, that the opposition
to it was conducted as now in the vulgar and brutal manner
which such a class of opponents would necessarily manifest.
But, on the other hand, few of the good and great through¬
out the world withheld their support. No large worlf of
humanity was indeed ever more universally appreciated and
welcomed. The parliamentary grants were, certainly, by no
means commensurate with the benefits the discovery of vac¬
cination had conferred and would confer. Jenner ought to
have had a larger professional recompense ; and if he had
aimed at wealth, he might undoubtedly have acquired it by
his discovery. But then to this end he should have made
the promulgation of it a commercial, and not a philanthro-
726 JEN,
Jenyus. pic, enterpvize. Rarely does the world give both wealth
^ — J and honours to the philanthropist. Jenner was as success¬
ful as any man in this respect. Honours and fame he had,
such as never fell before to the lot of a physician.
Jenner was a devoted smoker of tobacco, and it was pro¬
bably a community of taste in this respect which led the
Duke of Sussex to present him with a beautiful hookah.
Jenner’s manners and personal appearance were not
striking at first sight; further observation showed, however,
that he was a remarkable man. He was simple and unre¬
served, but at the same time dignified. He was rather
below the middle size, had a pleasant cheerful expression,
full lips, well-formed nose. None of his direct descendants
survive to inherit his name. (t* e.)
JENYNS, Soame, author of the Free Inquiry into the
Nature and Origin of Sin, was born at London in 1704.
He was born of a good family, and enjoyed all the advan¬
tages in the way of education that ample means and high
social standing could give. In 1722 he was entered of St
John’s College, Cambridge, where in due course he took
the ordinary degrees. In 1742 he was chosen M.P. for the
county of Cambridge, in which his property lay. In 1754
he sat for the borough of Dunwich; and seven years later
he was returned for the town of Cambridge, which he con¬
tinued to represent till his retirement from public life. In
1755 he was made one of the commissioners of the board
of trade, and retained that office, amid all the changes of
administration, till it was abolished in 1780. Jenyns was
twice married, but left no issue by either of his wives. He
died after a short illness December 18, 1787.
For the measure of literary repute which he enjoyed
during his life Jenyns was indebted as much to his wealth
and social standing as to his accomplishments or talents,
though both were considerable. He made his debut in
literature as a poet; and his Art of Dancing, 1727, and
Miscellanies, 1770, contain many passages graceful and
lively, but occasionally verging towards license. The suc¬
cess of these efforts gained for his prose works a more in¬
dulgent reception than was warranted by their intrinsic
merits. The first of these was his Free Inquiry into the
Nature and Origin of Evil, 1756. This essay was severely
criticised in many of the reviews of the day, and in none
more severely than in the Literary Magazine. Dr John¬
son, the author of the critique, condemned the book strongly
as a slight and shallow attempt to solve one of the most
difficult of moral problems ; and though Jenyns put forth
a second edition, with a vindication prefixed, the strong
points of the critic’s argument remained as strong as before.
Johnson’s critique, indeed, is the very best paper of that
kind that he ever wrote—a masterpiece both of reasoning
and of satirical pleasantry. Jenyns, a gentle and amiable
man in the main, was extremely irritated by his failure,
and tried to take vengeance on Johnson after his death by
a sarcastic epitaph. In this he overshot his mark; an
anonymous friend of the doctor retaliated by one still more
cutting, and Jenyns was silenced. In 1776 Jenyns published
his View of the Internal Evidence of the Christian Religion.
In early life he had been noted as orthodox, even to bigotry ;
and though at a later period he had sported a kind of deistic
scepticism, yet before this book appeared, he had returned
to the creed of his youth, and was held even by his ene¬
mies to be a sincere and pious Christian. Yet he was
accused by many of cherishing a secret enmity to the faith
he professed, for defending it on the ground of its total
variance with the principles of human reason. The charge
would probably be fair enough against any one who should
now venture to set up such a defence ; but Jenyns seems
to have regarded himself as having really done service to
the Christian faith. The essay in question was very highly
praised in its day for its literary merits. Like his other
prose works, it is pure and graceful in style, and contains
J E R
many acute remarks and happy illustrations. It is so plainly Jeremiah
the work of a dilettante in theology that as a scientific trea-
tise it is valueless. The writing dazzles and pleases the
reader far more than the thought impresses or satisfies him.
JEREMIAH, the plaintive prophet, was the son of Hil-
kiah, one of the priests of Anathoth, not the high priest as
some have imagined. At a very early age, Jeremiah re¬
ceived a Divine commission to be a prophet (in the 13th
year of Josiah, B.C. 629). The hostility which he incurred,
both from his townsmen and his own more immediate friends,
drove him to Jerusalem, there, on a wider field though
with no greater success, to help on the reformation of the
people from idolatry. The death of Josiah w as the sig¬
nal for an attack upon Jeremiah by the priests and the
prophets, and had it not been for the influence of a few
powerful friends such as Ahikam, the prophet would pro¬
bably have lost his life. As it was, he was imprisoned,
and only allowed to write his predictions, and have them
read to the people by Baruch. He escaped the vengeance
of Jehoiakim through the favour of the princes ; but in the
time of Zedekiah, the princes became his enemies, while
the monarch consulted him in secret. When Jerusalem
was taken by Nebuchadnezzar, the prophet was found in
prison to which the princes had consigned him. 1 he heathen
conqueror, forming a far more correct estimate of his worth
than his own countrymen had done, gave special instruc¬
tions to his general to provide for Jeremiah and attend to
his counsels. Being offered the choice of going to Baby¬
lon or of remaining in his own fallen country, the patriotic
prophet chose the latter, and went to Mizpah with Geda-
liah, the Babylonian governor. At the time of the down¬
fall of his country, Jeremiah had been fully forty years a
prophet—
During Josiah  18 years (B.C. 629.)
... Jehoahaz  OJ
... Jehoiakim  11
... Jehoiachin  Of
... Zedekiah  H
40f years (b.c. 588f.)
But he did not now cease to give warning to the rem¬
nant of the people. On the murder of Gedaliah he
resisted the wayward movement among the Jews to go to
Egypt, the scene of their bondage, and destined again to be¬
come the scene of their religious ruin. To stay their down-
ward career, however, he went with them, and it is said met
his death at their hands in the streets of Cairo, where his tomb
used to be shown. A less credible tradition relates that his
bones were removed to Alexandria by Alexander the
Gx*eat.
The character of Jeremiah forms a remarkable contrast
with that of his contemporary Ezekiel—the one displaying
the latent boldness of a sensitive and shrinking spirit, the
other showing the absorbent power of divine inspiration in
a soul of finer and firmer texture. The style of J eremiah is
quite in accordance with such a character. A monotony
of pain runs through the whole of his prophecy, which makes
him dwell always on the same images ; and there is marked
carelessness of diction which befits a soul in the deepest
grief. Numerous quotations from the older books of the
Bible, and especially from the older prophets, betray his
personal sensitiveness without subtracting from his power.
The authenticity and canonicity of the writings of Jere¬
miah may be regarded as beyond dispute. Only in very
recent times have traces of a later hand been imagined in
the second decade of the chapters into which his prophecy
is now divided. In Matt, xxvii. 9, there is a quotation from
Jeremiah not now found in that prophet’s writings ; but as
it is found in Zech. xi. 12, 13, it is not improbable that the
name of Jeremiah has crept into the text from the margin.
Besides this, the difference of order in the prophecies as
J E R
Jericho, given in Hebrew and Septuagint copies, as well as the omis-
' sion of numerous passages in the latter, have occasioned
some difficulty. These diversities have been mostly ac¬
counted for by the supposition of a double recension.
The unchronological order of the prophecies, although it
has been the occasion of much scientific criticism, can
scarcely be regarded as a stumbling-block in the works of
a prophet distinguished above all for the tragic looseness of
his style. Ewald, on the supposition that the various parts
have been dislocated accidentally, or even designedly after
Jeremiah’s prophetic career was broken by his departure
into Egypt, attempts to reconstruct the whole, but in truth
nearly follows the existing order of arrangement.
The principal commentators who have given separate
treatises on Jeremiah are,—Calvin, Piscator, Venema, Mi-
chaelis, Schnurrer, Dahler, Movers, Umbreit, Nagelsbach
(1850), and Neumann (1856).
JERICHO, a town in the plain of the same name, not
far from the River Jordan, at the point where it enters the
Dead Sea. It lay before the Israelites when they crossed
the river on first entering the Promised Land, and was ut¬
terly destroyed by them, an awful curse being pronounced
upon any one who should rebuild it. All the inhabitants
were put to the sword except Rahab and her family (Josh,
ii. vi.).
Notwithstanding the curse, Jericho was soon rebuilt, and
became a school of the prophets. Its inhabitants returned
after the exile, and it was eventually fortified by the Syrian
general Bacchides. Pompey marched from Scythopolis,
along the valley of the Jordan, to Jericho, and thence to
Jerusalem; and Strabo speaks of the castles Thrax and
Taurus, in or near Jericho, as having been destroyed by
him. Herod the Great, in the beginning of his career,
captured and sacked Jericho, but afterwards strengthened
and adorned it, when he had redeemed its revenues from
Cleopatra, on whom the plain had been bestowed by An¬
tony. He appears to have often resided here, probably in
winter; he built over the city a fortress called Cypros,
between which and the former palace he erected other
palaces, and called them by the names of his friends. Here
also was a hippodrome, or circus, in which the same tyrant,
when lying at Jericho on his deathbed, caused the nobles
of the land to be shut up for massacre after his death: he
died here, but his bloody intention was not executed.
The palace at this place was afterwards rebuilt more mag¬
nificently by Archelaus. By this it will be seen that the
Jericho which existed in the time of our Saviour was a great
and important city, probably more so than it had ever been
since its foundation. It was visited by him, as when he
lodged with Zaccheus, and healed the blind man. Jericho
was afterwards made the head of one of the toparchies, and
was visited by Vespasian before he left the country, who
stationed there the tenth legion in garrison. Eusebius and
Jerome describe Jericho as having been destroyed during
the siege of Jerusalem, on account of the perfidy of the in¬
habitants, but add that it was afterwards rebuilt; but, as
Josephus is silent respecting this event, Dr Robinson re¬
gards it as doubtful. That the town continued to exist
as a place of importance, appears from the names of five
bishops of Jericho which have been collected (Oriens
Christ, iii. 654). The emperor Justinian built here a
Xenodochium, apparently for pilgrims, and also a church
dedicated to the Virgin; and the monastery of St John,
near the Jordan, was already in existence (Procop. De
2Edific. Justiniani, v. 9). The town, however, appears to
have been overthrown during the Mohammedan conquest;
for Adamnanus, at the close of the seventh century, de¬
scribes the site as without human habitations, and covered
with corn and vines. The celebrated palm groves still
existed. In the next century a church is mentioned; and
in the ninth_ century several monasteries appear. About
J E R 727
the same time the plain of Jericho is again noticed for its Jerome, St.
fertility and peculiar products; and it appears to have been
brought under cultivation by the Saracens, for the sake of
the sugar and other products for which the soil and climate
were more suitable than any other in Palestine. Ruins of
extensive aqueducts, with pointed Saracenic arches, remain
in evidence of the elaborate irrigation and culture of this
fine plain, at a period long subsequent to the occupation of
the country by the Jews. It is to this age that we may
probably refer the origin of the castle and village which
have since been regarded as representing Jericho. The
place has been mentioned by travellers and pilgrims down
to the present time as a poor hamlet consisting of a few
houses. In the fifteenth century the square castle or tower
began to pass among pilgrims as the house of Zaccheus, a
title which it bears to the present day. The village identi¬
fied with Jericho now bears the name of Rihah, and is
situate about the middle of the plain, 6 miles W. from the
Jordan, in N. Lat. 31. 57., and E. Long. 35. 33.
JEROME, St, commonly accounted the most learned of
the Latin fathers, was born at Stridon, a city of Pannonia,
about, as it appears, a.d. 342. His father’s name was
Eusebius, that of his mother is unknown; he had a sister,
who gave herself up to a religious life; and a brother,
Paulinian, much younger than himself. When about
twenty-five years old he came to Rome in the Episcopate
of Damasus, and studied under the celebrated grammarian
Donatus. He here received baptism ; after which he went
into Gaul, and spent a considerable time at the city of
Treves, where he made himself familiar with the writings
of the great St Hilary, transcribing more than one of them
with his own hand. He then passed a short time at
Aquillia, where he became acquainted with many eminent
men, amongst whom were Rufinus and Heliodorus; with
the latter of these, Evagrius, a priest of Antioch, and some
others, he travelled through Thracia, Pontus, Bithynia,
Galatia, and Cappadocia. Prom thence he passed into the
East, and staid some time at Jerusalem; from which city
he came to Antioch, where he made acquaintance with
Apollinaris, who had not then openly taught his heresy.
In 372 he retired to a desert lying between the countries
of Syria and Arabia, where he employed himself in the
study of the Hebrew language, and began his commentaries
on the books of Scripture. After studying four years in
these wilds, and seeing one of his companions leave him,
two others sink under the hardships and privations of
their desert life, and being himself much enfeebled by sick¬
ness, he abandoned for the present the life of a solitary, and
came to Antioch. The church of this city was at that time
divided by the factions of Paulinus, Meletius, and Vitalis,
each of whom claimed to be its bishop. St Jerome, by the
direction of Damasus, acknowledged Paulinus ; and, about
the year 375, was ordained priest by him, but upon condition
that he should not be compelled to abandon the eremitical
life, nor to perform any of the duties of his office. At the
time of his ordination, or probably a little before, he had been
assailed by the opposite factions of the Arians and Sabel-
lians as to the sense in which he understood the word
Hypostasis; a term which had formerly been used to express
equally the Divine Nature and the Persons of the Holy
Trinity; but which, since a council held at Alexandria in
the year 362 at which the great St Athanasius presided,
had been chiefly confined to the latter sense. St Jerome,
when it was demanded of him, whether, with the Arians,
he acknowledged three Hypostases; or, with the Sabellians,
only one, replied, with great exactness and propriety, “ If
Nature be understood by this term, there is only one; but
if Person, there are three.” On account of these divisions
he left Antioch, and fixed his abode at Bethlehem. In
380 he went to Constantinople, and became the pupil of
Gregory of Nazianzum, the bishop of that city. In the
728: ,T E R
Jerome, St. following year Gregory resigned his see, and Jerome
returned to Syria. Soon afterwards, with Paulinus of
Antioch and St Epiphanius, he revisited Home, and was
made his secretary by Damasus, taking at the same time
the spiritual care of* several eminent Homans of botn sexes.
In 385, the year following the death of Damasus, he re¬
turned’to the East, saw St Epiphanius as he passed through
Cyprus, went to Antioch and Jerusalem, spent a month
with the blind Didymus, then one of the most celebrated
teachers at Alexandria, visited some of the Egyptian mo¬
nasteries, and thence returned to Bethlehem, where he spent
the remainder of his life as head of a monastic institution,
and where he composed the greater number of his works.
Towards the close of his life Palestine suffered much from
an inroad of barbarians; and in 416, after the Council of
Diospolis, the Pelagians, supported by John the heretical
bishop of Jerusalem, sent bands of armed men to destroy
the monastery of their opponent, St Jerome, and disperse
the religious of both sexes who lived under his direction.
A deacon was killed, and St Jerome himself escaped with
difficulty by flight. After this he continued his literary
labours for four years ; and on the 30th September, A.D. 420,
he died. His most valuable work is his Latin version of
the Old and New Testaments, commonly called the Vul¬
gate ; of which, however, the Psalter is not his, it having been
made from the Septuagint, and not from the Hebrew, which
St Jerome always followed. The books of the Apocrypha,
except Tobit and Judith, he also omitted, as not being
contained in the Hebrew canon. St Jerome enjoyed very
singular advantages for the performance of this great under¬
taking, not only from his intimate acquaintance with the
Hebrew, his long abode in Syria, and his knowledge of
the places, local traditions, and customs of the country,
but also from the fact of the existence in his time of the
Hexapla of Origen, by the Greek version of which (the
most accurate of any extant) he was enabled to correct both
the commonly received Greek and the ancient Italic texts.
The Council of Trent declared the Vulgate to be an authen¬
tic version, and corrected editions of it were published by
the popes Sixtus V. and Clement VIII., a.d. 1590, 1592,
1593. We are also indebted to St Jerome for the best
commentary extant on the prophets, for one on Ecclesiastes,
on St Matthew, and the Epistles of St Paul to the Galatians,
Ephesians, Titus, and Philemon. He was besides one of
the chief polemical writers of his age, opposing vigorously
the Montanists, Helvidius, Jovinian, Rufinus and the
Origenists, the Luciferians, Vigilantius, and Pelagius. He
translated a work of Didymus on the Holy Ghost, composed
a biographical account of the lives and writers of those ec¬
clesiastical authors who had flourished before his time, and
made several additions to the Chronicon of Eusebius, which
he continued to the year 378,—it is contained in the eighth
volume of the edition of Villarsius. He also left behind
him more than 150 letters on different subjects connected
with theology and the Scriptures. St Jerome, in his
very valuable commentary on the prophets, opposes the
literal and semi-Judaic ideas of Theodore, “the inter¬
preter,” as he is called, who was bishop of Mopsuestia
in the time of St Jerome, and one of the chief doctors
and representatives of the school of Syria and Antioch
(See Theodore of Mopsuestia.) He had attacked St Je¬
rome, as it appears, under the name of Aram, for teaching
the doctrines of original sin, and the remission of sins by
the sacraments of baptism and the Lord’s supper. Theo¬
dore, wherever it is possible, gives to the prophecies mean¬
ings exclusively literal and temporal, the result of which is,
of course, to deprive us of that evidence of our religion which
prophecy supplies, to divest the typical writings of the Old
Testament ot great part of their meaning, and, by confining
the promised blessings to a particular locality, to do away
with all idea of a church Christian and universal. Thus the
J E R
very remarkable words of Hosea vi., 2, 3,—“ After two Jerome,
days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us
up, and we shall live in his sight. Then shall we know, if we
follow on to know the Lord: his going forth is prepared as
the morning ; and he shall come unto us as the rain, as the
latter and former rain unto the earth,”—are explained by
Theodore, merely of the restoration of the chosen people to
their temporal prosperity after the Assyrian captivity ; but
St Jerome, as might be expected, explains them of the re¬
surrection of Christ, and the regeneration of the human
race through it. The words of chap. xiii. 14, of the same
prophet,—“ I will ransom them from the power of the
grave ; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be
thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction,”—Theo¬
dore treats in the same manner, and refers for their fulfil¬
ment to the same period, but St Jerome applies them in
their most perfect meaning to the death of Christ. The
commencement of the 2d chap, of Joel,—“ The day of the
Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand: a day of darkness and
of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness,”—Theo¬
dore supposes to describe a merely physical obscurity, which,
he says generally, and without allusion to any specific event,
was fulfilled in the days of Hezekiah and Sennacherib ; and
“ the day of the Lord,” he thinks to be a period of intoler¬
able calamity caused by the Assyrians. St Jerome gives
to both a spiritual and Christian meaning, extending them
from the narrow and partial one of Theodore, to the end of
all things, and the final day of judgment. Lastly, notwith¬
standing the apostolic declaration of the fulfilment in our
Lord’s betrayal, of the words of Zechariah xi. 12, 13,—
“ They weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver. And
the Lord said unto me, cast it unto the potter: a goodly
price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty
pieces of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house of
the Lord,”—Theodore maintains that the number “ thirty”
there mentioned, is not to be taken to signify any fixed
sum, “ but merely to show the great benevolence of the
people to the prophet, and their honourablenesswhilst the
casting of the thirty pieces to the potter, means, according
to him, merely the trial of the people through the furnace
of their sufferings. St Jerome pointedly opposes both ideas,
as he does Theodore’s assertion, that “ the rising of the
sun of righteousness” in Malachi, means only the victories
of the Maccabees. We conclude St Jerome to be opposing
Theodore, not only from the internal evidence afforded
by a comparison of their respective works, but because the
former more than once makes allusion to some living person
of note whose name he will not mention, and who, from his
method of dealing with prophecy, should rather, he says,
be termed a Jew than a Christian. It is clear that there
was no one of those times but Theodore who answers to St
Jerome’s description. The style of St Jerome varies ac¬
cording to the nature of his subject. In his controversial
works he is exceedingly pointed and cutting, and proves him¬
self a considerable master of rhetoric and logic; and shows,
moreover, his acquaintance with the writings of the ancient
philosophers and poets, by introducing frequent citations
from their works. Simplicity and earnestness are the chief
characteristics of his commentaries. In those on the pro¬
phetical writings, his intimate knowledge of Jewish habits
and antiquities, has enabled him to do more perhaps than
any other commentator to elucidate that portion of the sa¬
cred text. The best edition of his works is that of Villar¬
sius, 11 vols. folio, Verona, 1734-40. (g. F. D.)
JEROME, the friend and disciple of John Huss, and,
like him, a martyr to the truth. His family name was
Faulfisch, but he is generally called “ of Prague,” from the
Bohemian capital in which he was born and brought up.
After completing his studies in his native city, he visited
the universities of Cologne, Heidelberg, Oxford, and Paris.
It is said that he first understood and learned to value the
J E R
Jerome, doctrines of Wycliffe while copying the works of that re-
—r—'' former during his stay in England. Certain it is that be¬
fore he returned to Bohemia from his wanderings over Eu¬
rope he had signalized himself by a strong opposition to
the Church of Rome, and had defended brilliant theses
at Paris against Gerson, the famous chancellor of that uni¬
versity. His reputation for learning and practical sagacity
was so great, that he was employed by Ladislaus II. of
Poland to organise the University of Cracow, and similar
compliments were paid him by other crowned heads of that
era. Everywhere he proclaimed himself the disciple of
Wycliffe, and though such a profession was becoming daily
more dangerous, scorning to curb his impetuous temper,
he often allowed himself, in his denunciations of Popery,
to be hurried away beyond the limits of prudence, and some¬
times even of decency. In a short time he observed no
measures towards the pope and the cardinals, and among
other problems, proposed the following:—Whether the
pope possessed more power than another priest? and whe¬
ther the bread in the Eucharist or the body of Christ pos¬
sessed more virtue in the mass of the Roman pontiff than
in that of any other officiating ecclesiastic? One day,
along with some of his friends, he drew a sketch of Christ’s
disciples on one side following, with naked feet, their mas¬
ter mounted on an ass ; whilst on the other they represented
the pope and the cardinals, in great state, on superb horses,
and preceded as usual with drums and trumpets. These
pictures were exposed in public; and it is easy to conceive
the effect they were calculated to produce on an excitable
and enthusiastic multitude. On another occasion Jerome,
when arguing with a monk, lost his temper at being sharply
opposed, and carried his violence so far as to fling his ad¬
versary into the Moldau. The monk reached the bank,
but, as the chronicler of this incident naively observes, “ he
found when he touched the land that he had lost the thread
of his argument, and was unable to pursue the discussion.”
These outbursts of temper soon involved Jerome in troubles
from which a politic prudence would have saved him. At
Vienna he was thrown into prison as a heretic, and was
only released by the urgent intercession of his countrymen
at Prague. Obtaining his freedom, he hastened to join
his friend Huss in that city, and made himself conspicuous
by the fiery zeal with which he inveighed against the
abuses of the hierarchy, and the dissolute lives of the clergy.
In 1415, when he heard that Huss had been thrown into
prison by the Council of Constance, there to abide his trial,
he set out for that city without a safe conduct, determined
to plead his friend’s cause. He arrived at Constance on
the 4th April, and was there dismayed to learn that Huss
was to be judged and condemned in secret, and would only
leave his prison to die. A panic seized him, and he
fled from the town as rapidly as he had come to it.
Had he been arrested, he would undoubtedly have shared
his master’s fate in his master’s company. Though without
a safe-conduct he reached Uberlingen undisturbed, and he
might easily have reached Prague had he only held his
tongue. But so many crosses and dangers had not in¬
creased his prudence. Wherever he went he declaimed
openly and vehemently against the council. One day, at
the table of a cure, who had invited him to his house as he
was journeying through the Black Forest, he forgot himself
so far as to call it “ a school of the devil, a synagogue of
iniquity.” Some priests of the company, deeply offended,
laid the matter before the governor of the nearest town,
and Jerome was arrested and thrown into prison. Other
accounts state simply that Jerome was seized at Hirschau
by John of Bavaria, prince of Saltzbach, and kept in con¬
finement by him till the council made known its wishes.
Certain it is that he was carried in chains to Constance,
and when in prison there, learned the terrible tidings of his
friend’s martyrdom. More than once he was brought to
VOL. XII.
J E K 729
trial, but his eloquence, learning, and logic, were more than Jersey,
a match for the most subtle accuser that could be suborned
against him. Meanwhile, his confinement and the cruel
indignities which he suffered, undermined his health, and
when his energies of mind and body were totally worn out,
he was induced on the 11th September 1415, to recant the
heresies with which he was charged. A less rigorous im¬
prisonment was the only reward of this apostacy. After
languishing in the darkness of his dungeon for several
months longer, he was once more brought before the coun¬
cil on the 26th May 1416. Triumphing overall his weak¬
nesses he defended himself with a boldness, vehement
energy, and learning, that filled even his accusers with
wonder and admiration. He solemnly retracted his recanta¬
tion : “ Of all the sins,” he said, “ that I have committed since
my youth, none weigh so heavily on my mind and cause
me such poignant remorse, as that which I committed in
this fatal place, when I approved of the iniquitous sentence
rendered against Wycliffe and against the holy martyr
John Huss, my master and friend.” His defence had in¬
clined his judges to mercy ; but with these words he sealed
his own death-warrant. Four days later (May 30th, 1416)
he was publicly burnt at the stake, and his ashes, like those
of Huss, were collected and thrown into the Rhine.
Historians, Catholic and Protestant alike, vie with each
other in paying homage to the heroic courage and apostolic
resignation with which Jerome met his doom. Posterity has
confirmed their verdict, and reveres him as a martyr to the
truth, who, unwearied in life, and noble in death, has ac¬
quired an immortal renown for his share in the Reformation.
In many respects far beyond his age, Jerome was identified
with it in the weaknesses of his character. With a mind
more variously endowed than Huss, he wanted the moral
weight which gave his master so great an ascendancy over
the minds of men. Bold, even to rashness, his courage
was shown rather in bursts of furious vehemence than in
the equable tenor of his life, and more than once failed him
in critical moments. In this weakness he only reflected
the turbulent and unruly spirit of the age he lived in, and
gave a colour to the charge of his adversaries, that he al¬
ways allowed his prejudices and passions to outrun his
better judgment. This, without being absolutely true, is
so to some extent. To no one was it more disastrous than
to Jerome himself. For it not only led him to the stake,
but it also undid much of the effect which might have been
looked for from his labours and his martyrdom.
JERSEY, the largest and most important of the Chan¬
nel Islands, is situate in the bay of St Michael, 13 miles
W. of the nearest coast of France, and 85 miles from the
nearest point in the English coast; N. Eat. (St Helier’s)
49. 11.3., W. Long. 2. 7. It is 12 miles in length from E.
to W., and 7 in breadth from N. to S., and has an area of
about 40,000 acres. The N. coast of the island is rocky,
bold, and precipitous, rising sometimes to the height of
more than 200 feet above the sea. From this the land has
a general slope to the S. coast, where it sinks nearly to the
level of the sea. The surface is hilly and undulating, and
diversified with many deep and well watered valleys. The
prevailing rocks are granitic, in some localities overlaid by
schists. Along the northern coast sienite is abundant, and
passes in some places into porphyry and greenstone. The
climate, though moist, is mild, and the mean annual tem¬
perature (52° Fahr.) is higher than that of any part of
England. The mean summer temperature is 620-2, and
the mean winter 42°-6. The island enjoys an early spring
and a lengthened autumn, vegetation being generally well
advanced in March, and the landscape far from naked at the
end of December. Snow and long continued frosts are
rare, but rains and dense sea fogs and violent winds are
frequent. Agriculture has recently been greatly improved,
but its progress is still much retarded by the minute division
4 z
730 J E R
Jersey, of property occasioned by the law of gavelkind. The farms
v-«—v/-*-'' average about four acres, and few of them exceed ten. 1 he
principal manure is vraic, a sea-weed which at certain sea¬
sons is gathered in large quantities, and is used, either
fresh or after it has been burned, for fuel. Wheat is the
principal gmin crop; but barley and oats are also grown.
Potatoes and parsnips are extensively cultivated. Lucerne
is also extensively reared, being a great favourite with the
farmers, as it grows well on soils unfit for other purposes.
A large portion of the land is laid out in orchards, apples
and cider being among the chief exports of the island.
The common fruits of England are abundant, and the grape
and melon are raised in the open air. The great pride of
the island, however, is the Chaumontelle pear, which at¬
tains great perfection, and is frequently a pound in weight.
Cattle-rearing is conducted on an extensive scale. The
cows, which belong to the variety known in England as the
Alderney, yield large quantities of butter for exportation.
Few sheep are reared. The horse is a small, hardy variety.
The Channel Islands are considered as belonging to the
crown, but as forming no part of the realm, so that they are
not represented in Parliament; and Acts of Parliament, as
such, have no legal force as regards them, unless they are
therein specially named, or unless the acts, in virtue of an
order of council, are registered on the records of the islands.
In their institutions, customs, and laws, the people still re¬
tain much that is Norman; and, in this respect, Jersey has
retained considerably more of the old institutions and of
their free spirit than the sister island of Guernsey. The
people appear to have at all times enjoyed much freedom
and great privileges.
The island of Jersey is divided into twelve parishes, each
of which has its own parochial government. The chief
officer is the connetable, or constable, elected by the par¬
ishioners for three years, and who may be called the mayor
of the parish. He is aided in his duties by centeniers,
vingteniers, and officiers du connetable. The centeniers
are elected by the rate-payers of each parish for three years,
and are two in number for each of the country parishes, and
eight for St Helier’s. The vingtenier is an officer ap¬
pointed over a vingtaine, or district of a parish, their num¬
ber varying with the number of vingtaines into which each
parish is divided. He collects the parish rates, and is also
invested with considerable power in his district, subject,
however, to the approval of the centenier or connetable.
The connetable and centenier are assisted in their police
duties by the officiers du connetable, of whom there are
twelve in each parish, with the exception of those of St
Brelade’s and St Helier’s,—the former having fifteen, and the
latter twenty-four. They are elected by the rate-payers
for seven years, in all the parishes except St Helier’s,
where their term of office is only four years. The duties
of all these offices are performed gratuitously. The superior
offices are eagerly sought after, from the honour and in¬
fluence attached to them, and even the subordinate offices
are much desired, and are filled by persons of good social
standing. The connetable, centeniers, vingteniers, and
officiers du connetable, are ex officio members of the parish
assembly, composed of all the rate-payers in the parish
above a certain rate, and certain officials. In civil matters
the connetable presides over the parish assembly, in eccle¬
siastical the rector. The connetable is, in virtue of his
office, a member of the legislative assembly or states, and
thus has a voice in the general direction of the affairs
of the island. I he states are composed of a bailiff, as
president, twelve jurats, twelve rectors, and twelve conne-
tables. I here is no regular session, nor any fixed times of
meeting. They are convened by the bailiff whenever he
believes that a meeting is necessary to consider certain
measures. The bailiff is chief justice of the island. He is
nominated by the crown, and holds office durante bene
S E Y.
placito. He has a salary of L.300 per annum from the Jersey,
crown, which, with certain fees derived from the office,
make up an income of about L.800. The bailiff, with the
twelve jurats, compose the royal court. The jurats, or
judges, are elected by the people and hold office for life.
They receive no salary, the honour and dignity of the office
being considered a sufficient reward. The qualifications re¬
quired for the due discharge of the office of jurat are,—an in¬
violable attachment to truth, justice, and equity ; an acquaint¬
ance with the laws, customs, and history of his country,
to understand the spirit and working of its institutions, and
the devotion of all his energies and ability to the promotion
of the welfare and well-being of his fellow-men. The
attorney-general, vicomte, and solicitor-general, are ap¬
pointed by the crown, and have each a fixed salary from
the crown revenues. They have seats but not votes at the
states, and the attorney and solicitor generals may also
express their opinions on matters brought before that as¬
sembly, but they cannot introduce a measure or make any
proposition. The vicomte has not the right of discussion.
He is the chief executive officer of the court, both in civil
and criminal affairs. The twelve rectors are appointed by
the governor for life, and, in addition to their ecclesiastical,
have certain civil duties to perform as members of the
states. The dean is the head of the church, and his no¬
mination is in the hands of the crown. He must be a
Jersey man, and has invariably been one of the rectors.
The governor and lieutenant-governor are named by the
crown. The former holds office for life, and has the ap¬
pointment of a receiver of the crown revenues, and the
nomination of clergy to vacant cures. He is not required
to reside on the island, nor is it even necessary for him to
visit it. He derives a large income from the crown re¬
venues. The lieutenant-governor, who is usually a major-
general in the army, is commander-in-chief of all the forces
and militia in the island. He may negative any act passed
by the states, and may even withhold his consent to their
assembling, but in such cases he must give his reasons to
the secretary of state. The lieutenant-governor has the
power of ordering foreigners out of the island, which, how¬
ever, is rarely exercised.
The language of the churches and courts of law, and of
the upper classes generally, is French ; that of the common
people is the old Norman or Romance language. English,
however, is becoming daily more common, and is now very
generally understood and spoken.
The island of Jersey was visited by Her Majesty in 1846,
and in commemoration of that event, a college was founded,
which was opened on 29th of September 1852. It has pro¬
fessorships of the classics, mathematics, English, French,
German, and drawing; and in 1855 had 118 students.
Since the commencement of the present century, com¬
merce has been making rapid progress in the island. At
the latter end of the seventeenth century there was no har¬
bour at St Helier’s, and even a century later, only two ves¬
sels could unload at a time in the harbour. In 1790, the
north pier was commenced, but from want of funds it was
many years in completion. The commercial or merchants’
quays were built soon after by the chamber of commerce and
the merchants at their own expense. The old south pier
was commenced in 1821. The accommodation having soon
become insufficient for the increasing traffic, a new harbour
was commenced in 1841, and completed in 1846. In 1842
the shipping belonging to the island consisted of 296 ves¬
sels, having an aggregate of 27,075 tons; and in 1854, of
381 vessels, having an aggregate of 36,404 tons, and navi¬
gated by 3057 men. In 1854 the arrivals at the port of
St Helier’s were 1677 vessels, of the aggregate burden of
138,177 tons. The gross amount of harbour dues received
during that year was L.4800.
The principal source of revenue is the duty on spirits and
J E R
Jersey wines, imported and consumed on the island. The net
|| total amount received from this source for year ending 2oth
Jerusalem. 0f March 1853, was L. 14,950. Another source of revenue
is the licences to publicans, which produces about L.1500
annually.
The manufactures are almost entirely confined to shoe¬
making, hosiery, and ship-building. The oyster fishery af¬
fords employment to many of the inhabitants. Steam-
packets leave Southampton for Jersey three times a week,
and there is also a weekly steamer from Plymouth. Traders
are constantly sailing from London, Weymouth, Bristol, and
other English ports. The exports to England are chiefly
cattle, potatoes, apples, cider, spirits, oysters, and granite,
in return for cotton and woollen goods, hardware, and cut¬
lery, earthenware, glass, soap, and coals. The foreign im¬
ports are wine, brandy, fruit, skins, poultry, timber, tallow,
hemp, linen, and corn. The population of Jersey has been
rapidly increasing from 28,600 in 1821, to 57,020 in 1851.
The Channel Islands were united to the English crown
at the Norman conquest, having previously belonged to the
dukes of Normandy. When the English lost the conti¬
nental portion of Normandy, they kept possession of these
islands, and have retained it ever since. Their importance
in a military point of view, and their proximity to the coast
of France, caused them to be eagerly coveted by the French,
who have made frequent attempts to seize them, but always
without success. The last attack was made in 1781, when
the Baron de Rullecourt, with 800 men, landed at Jersey
J E R U S
History JERUSALEM (E‘.'7'1"r, habitation of peace-, SeptTepov-
craXrifi; Vulg. Hierosolyma ; Arab. El Kuds), the Jewish
capital of Palestine. It is mentioned very early in Scrip¬
ture, being usually supposed to be the Salem of which Mel-
chizedek was king. Such was the opinion of the Jews
themselves ; for Josephus, who calls Melchizedek king of
Solyma, observes that this name was afterwards changed
into Hierosolyma. All the lathers of the church, Jerome
excepted, agree with Josephus, and understand Jerusalem
and Salem to indicate the same place., The name Jeru¬
salem first occurs in Josh. x. 1, where Adoni-zedek, king
of Jerusalem, is mentioned as having entered into an alli¬
ance with other kings against Joshua, by whom they were
all overcome.
In drawing the northern border of Judah, we find Jeru¬
salem again mentioned (Josh. xv. 8). This border ran
through the valley of Ben Hinnom ; the country on the
south of it, as Bethlehem, belonged to Judah ; but the
mountain of Zion, forming the northern wall of the valley,
and occupied by the Jebusites, was assigned to Benjamin.
Among the cities of Benjamin, therefore, is also mentioned
(Josh, xviii. 28) “ Jebus, which is Jerusalem.”
After the death of Joshua, the Israelites took Jerusalem,
smote it with the edge of the sword, and set it on fire.
After that, the Judahites and the Benjamites- dwelt with
the Jebusites at Jerusalem ; for it is recorded that the
children of Judah could not drive out the Jebusites inha¬
biting Jerusalem; and we are farther informed that the
children of Benjamin did not expel them from Jerusalem.
Probably the Jebusites were removed by Judah only from
the lower city, but kept possession of the mountain of Zion,
which David conquered at a later period. Jerusalem is
not again mentioned till the time of Saul, when it is stated
that David took the head of Goliath and brought it to Je¬
rusalem. After David, who had previously reigned over
Judah alone in Hebron, was called to rule over all Israel,
he led his forces against the Jebusites, and conquered the
castle of Zion, which Joab first scaled. He then fixed his
J E K 731
during the night, and, surprising the governor in bed, com- Jersey City
pelled him to sign a capitulation. The garrison, however,
with the militia, under the command of Major Pierson, Jerusalem,
completely routed the invaders, whose general was mortally
wounded. The loss of the English was small, but they had
to lament the death of their gallant commander, who fell
while cheering on his men at the moment of victory.
Jersey City, a seaport-town of the United States of
North America, capital of Hudson county, in the state of
New Jersey. It stands on the right bank of the Hudson
River at its mouth, opposite the town of New York, from
which it is 1 mile distant. The streets of the town are
broad and well built. Besides several churches belonging
to the leading sects, there are a good many educational
establishments, the principal of which is the High School.
The manufactures are important, including soap, glass, por¬
celain, delft-ware, black lead, iron, ropes, and starch. One
or two newspapers are published in the town. Jersey City
has become of considerable commercial importance from its
proximity to New York, and from the great advantages it
has in river, rail, and canal communications. The Great
Southern Railway, as well as the Morris Canal have their
termini here, and steam ferryboats constantly ply between
Jersey City and New York. The town was incorporated in
1820, and in 1851 the adjoining villages of Harsimus and
Pavonia, &c., were annexed to it. In 1850 the population
of Jersey City proper amounted to 6856, while in 1853,
along with its recent accessions, it had 18,456 inhabitants.
ALEM.
abode on this mountain, and called it “ the City of David.”
The reasons which led him to fix upon Jerusalem as the
metropolis of his kingdom are very intelligible. It was in
his own tribe of Judah, in which his influence was the
strongest, while it was the nearest to the other tribes of
any site he could have chosen in Judah. The peculiar
strength, also, of the situation, enclosed on three sides by
a natural trench of valleys, could not be without weight.
The promise of its glory received its accomplishment
when Solomon built his temple upon Mount Moriah. By
him and his father Jerusalem had been made the imperial
residence of the king of all Israel; and the temple, often
called “ the house of Jehovah,” constituted it at the same
time the residence of the King of Kings, whose vicegerents
the human kings were taught to regard themselves. It now
belonged, even less than a town of the Levites, to a particu¬
lar tribe ; it was the centre of all civil and religious affairs.
The importance and splendour of Jerusalem were consider¬
ably lessened after the death of Solomon ; under whose son,
Rehoboam, ten of the tribes rebelled—Judah and Benjamin
only remaining in their allegiance. Jerusalem was then
only the capital of the very small state of Judah.
After the time of Solomon Jerusalem was much affected
by the rapid alternation of good and bad kings. Under
good kings the city flourished, and under bad kings
it suffered greatly. Under Rehoboam (b.c. 973) it was
conquered by Shishak, king of Egypt, who pillaged the
treasures of the temple. Under Amaziah it was taken by
Jehoash, king of Israel, who broke down 400 cubits of the
wrall of the city, and took all the gold and silver, and all the
vessels that were found in the temple. Uzziah, son of
Amaziah, who at first reigned well, built towers in Jerusa¬
lem at the corner-gate, at the valley-gate, and at the turn¬
ing of the wall, and fortified them. His son, Jotham, built
the high gate of the temple and many other structures.
Hezekiah (b.c. 728) added to the other honours of his reign
that of an improver of Jerusalem. His most eminent work
in that character was the stopping of the upper course of
732 JERUSALEM.
Jerusalem. Gihon, and bringing its waters by a subterraneous aque-
' duct to the west side of the city. This work is inferred,
from 2 Kings xx., to have been of great importance to Je¬
rusalem, as it cut off a supply of water from any besieging
enemy, and secured it to the inhabitants of the city. Heze-
kiah’s son, Manasseh, in his later and best years, built a
strong and very high wall on the west side of Jerusalem.
The works in the city connected with the names of the
succeeding kings of Judah were, so far as recorded, con¬
fined to the defilement of the temple by bad kings, and its
purgation by good kings, till about 100 years after Manas¬
seh, when the city and temple were abandoned to destruc¬
tion. After a seige of three years, Jerusalem was taken by
Nebuchadnezzar, who razed its walls, and destroyed its tem¬
ple and palaces with fire.
The ten tribes forming the kingdom of Israel had been
already upwards of 130 years transported to Assyria, when
Judah also was exiled to Babylon. The castle of David,
the temple of Solomon, and the entire city, lay in ruins,
and to all appearance there was an end of the people as
well as of the holy city of the Jews. But the same pro¬
phets who foretold the destruction of Jerusalem, also an¬
nounced the consolations of a coming time. Moses, Isaiah,
Jeremiah, and Daniel, all foretold the searching probation
which their countrymen were to undergo in captivity and
exile, and their return home when the term of that proba¬
tion was completed. Daniel lived to see the reign of Cy¬
rus, king of Persia, through whose agency this prediction
was fulfilled. It was in the year b.c. 536, in the first year
of his reign, that Cyrus proclaimed the restoration of the
Jews. This offer was accepted by a considerable number
of persons, particularly priests and Levites ; and the many
who declined to quit their houses and possessions in Baby¬
lonia, committed valuable gifts to the hands of their more
zealous brethren. Cyrus also caused the sacred vessels of
gold and silver which Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the
temple to be restored to Sheshbazzar, the prince of Judah,
who took them to Jerusalem, followed by 42,360 people,
beside their servants, of whom there were 7337 (Ezra i.
5-11).
On their arrival at Jerusalem they contributed according
to their ability to rebuild the temple ; and when in the
following year the foundation was laid of the new house
of God, “the people shouted for joy, but many of the
Levites who had seen the first temple, wept with a loud
voice.” (Ezra iii. 2, 12.) When the Samaritans expressed
a wish to share in the pious labour, Zerubbabel declined
the offer ; and in revenge the Samaritans sent a deputation
to King Artaxerxes of Persia, describing Jerusalem as a
rebellious city of old time, which, if rebuilt, and its walls
set up again, would not pay toll, tribute, and custom. The
deputation succeeded, and Artaxerxes ordered that the
building of the temple should cease. The interruption
thus caused, lasted to the second year of the reign of Darius,
when Zerubbabel and Jeshua, supported by the prophets
Haggai and Zechariah, again resumed the work, and would
not cease though cautioned by the Persian governor of
Judaea. On the matter coming before Darius Hystaspis,
and the Jews reminding him of the permission given by
Cyrus, he decided in their favour, and also ordered that the
expenses of the work should be defrayed out of the public
revenue. In the sixth year of the reign of Darius the
temple was finished, when the people kept the Feast of
Dedication with great joy, and next celebrated the Pass-
ovei. Afterwards, in the seventh year of the second Ar¬
taxerxes, Ezra, a descendant of Aaron, came up to Jeru¬
salem, accompanied by a large number of Jews who had
remained in Babylon. At a later period, in the twentieth
year of King Artaxerxes, Nehemiah, who was his cup¬
bearer, obtained permission to proceed to Jerusalem,
and to complete the rebuilding of the city and its wall,
which he happily accomplished in the face of great opposi-Jerusalem,
tion. (Neh. i., ii., iv., and vi.) The city was then capacious i,-
and large, but the people in it were few, and many houses
lay still in ruins.
It is said by Josephus (Antiq. xi. 8) that when the do¬
minion of this part of the world passed from the Persians
to the Greeks, Alexander the Great advanced against
Jerusalem to punish it for the fidelity to the Persians which
it had manifested while he was engaged in the siege of
Tyre. His hostile purposes, however, are said to have
been averted by the appearance of the high-priest Jaddua
at the head of a train of priests in their sacred vestments.
After the death of Alexander at Babylon (b. c. 324),
Ptolemy surprised Jerusalem on the Sabbath-day, when
the Jews would not fight, plundered the city, and carried
away a great number of the inhabitants to Egypt, where,
however, from the estimation in which the Jews of this
period were held as citizens, important privileges were be¬
stowed upon them (Joseph. xii. 1). In the contests
which afterwards followed for the possession of Syria (in¬
cluding Palestine), Jerusalem does not appear to have been
directly injured, and was even spared when Ptolemy gave
up Samaria, Acco, Joppa, and Gaza to pillage. The con¬
test was ended by the treaty in b.c. 302, which annexed
the whole of Palestine, together with Arabia Petraea and
Ccele-Syria, to Egypt. Under easy subjection to the
Ptolemies, the Jews remained in much tranquillity for more
than a hundred years, in which the principal incident, as
regards Jerusalem itself, was the visit which was paid to
it, in b.c. 245, by Ptolemy Euergetes, on his return from
his victories in the East. He offered many sacrifices, and
made magnificent presents to the temple. In the wars be¬
tween Antiochus the Great and the kings of Egypt, from
b.c. 221 to 197, Judaea could not fail to suffer severely;
but we are not acquainted with any incident in which Je¬
rusalem was principally concerned till the alleged visit of
Ptolemy Philopator in b.c. 211. He offered sacrifices and
gave rich gifts to the temple, but venturing to enter the
sanctuary, in spite of the remonstrances of the high-priest,
he was seized with a supernatural dread, and fled in terror
from the place. But the whole story of his visit, and its
results, rests upon the sole authority of the third book of
Maccabees (chaps, i. and ii.), and is therefore not entitled
to implicit credit. Towards the end of this war, the Jews
seemed to favour the cause of Antiochus ; and after he had
subdued the neighbouring country, they voluntarily ten¬
dered their submission, and rendered their assistance in ex¬
pelling the Egyptian garrison from Mount Zion. For this
conduct they were rewarded by many important privileges
by Antiochus. He issued decrees directing, among other
things, that the outworks of the temple should be com¬
pleted, and that all the materials for needful repairs should
be exempted from taxes. The peculiar sanctity of the
temple was also to be respected.
Under their new masters the Jews enjoyed for a time
nearly as much tranquillity as under the generally benign
and liberal government of the Ptolemies. But in b.c. 176,
Seleucus Philopator, hearing that great treasures were
hoarded up in the temple, and being distressed for money
to carry on his wars, sent his treasurer, Heliodorus, to bring
away these treasures. But this personage is reported to
have been so frightened and stricken by an apparition that
he relinquished the attempt; and Seleucus left the Jews in
the undisturbed enjoyment of their rights (2 Macc. iii. 4-40;
Joseph. Antiq. xii. 3. 3). His brother and successor, An¬
tiochus Epiphanes, however, was of another mind. He
took up the design of reducing them to a conformity of
manners and religion with other nations—or, in other words,
of abolishing those distinctive features which made the
Jews a peculiar people, socially separated from all others.
This design was odious to the great body of the people,
J E R U S
Jerusalem, although there were many among the higher classes who
regarded it with favour. Of this way of thinking was Mene-
laus, whom Antiochus had made high priest, and who was
expelled by the orthodox Jews with ignominy, in b.c. 169,
when they heard the joyful news that Antiochus had been
slain in Egypt. The rumour proved untrue, and Antiochus
on his return punished them by plundering and profaning
the temple. Worse evils befel them two years after: for
Antiochus, out of humour at being compelled by the Ro¬
mans to abandon his designs upon Egypt, sent his chief
collector of tribute, Apollonius, with a detachment of 22,000
men, to vent his rage on Jerusalem. This person plundered
the city, and razed its walls, with the stones of which he
built a citadel that commanded the temple mount. A statue
of Jupiter was set up in the temple; the peculiar obser¬
vances of the Jewish law were abolished ; and a persecu¬
tion was commenced against all who adhered to these ob¬
servances, and refused to sacrifice to idols. Jerusalem was
deserted by priests and people, and the daily sacrifice at the
altar was entirely discontinued (1 Macc. i. 29-40 ; 2 Macc.
v. 24-26; Joseph. Antiq. xii. 5, 4). These cruelties led
to the celebrated revolt of the Maccabees, who, after an
arduous and sanguinary struggle, obtained possession of
Jerusalem (b.c. 163), and repaired and purified the temple,
which was then dilapidated and deserted. New utensils
were provided for the sacred services; the old altar, which
had been polluted by heathen abominations, was taken away,
and a new one erected. The sacrifices were then recom¬
menced, exactly three years after the temple had been de¬
dicated to Jupiter Olympius. The castle, however, re¬
mained in the hands of the Syrians, and long proved a sore
annoyance to the Jews, although Judas Maccabaeus sur¬
rounded the temple with a high and strong wall, furnished
with towers, in which soldiers were stationed to protect the
worshippers from the Syrian garrison. Eventually the
annoyance grew so intolerable that Judas laid siege to the
castle. This attempt brought a powerful army into the
country under the command of the regent Lysias, who, how¬
ever, being constrained to turn his arms elsewhere, made
peace with the Jews ; but when he was admitted into the
city, and observed the strength of the place, he threw down
the walls, in violation of the treaty. In the ensuing war
with Bacchides, the general of Demetrius Soter, in which
Judas was slain, the Syrians strengthened their citadel, and
placed in it the sons of the principal Jewish families as hos¬
tages. I he year after (b.c. 1o9) the temporising high
priest Aleimus directed the wall which separated the court
of Israel from that of the Gentiles to be cast down, to afford
the latter free access to the temple ; but he was seized with
palsy as soon as the work commenced, and died in great
agony. When, a few years after, Demetrius and Alexan¬
der Balas sought to outbid each other for the support of
Jonathan, the hostages in the castle were released; and
subsequently all the Syrian garrisons in Judaea were eva¬
cuated, excepting those of Jerusalem and Bethzur, which
were chiefly occupied by apostate Jews, who were afraid to
leave their places of refuge. Jonathan then rebuilt the
M alls of Jerusalem, and repaired the buildings of the city,
besides erecting a palace for his own residence. The par¬
ticular history of Jerusalem for several years following is
little more than an account of the efforts of the Maccabaean
princes to obtain possession of the castle, and of the Syrian
kings to retain it in their hands. At length, in b.c. 142,
the garrison was forced to surrender by Simon, who demo¬
lished it altogether, that it might not again be used against
the Jews by their enemies. Simon then strengthened the
fortifications of the mountain on which the temple stood,
and built there a palace for himself. This building was
afterwards turned into a regular fortress by John Hyrca-
nus, and was ever after the residence of the Maccabgean
princes. It is called by Josephus “ the castle of Baris,” in
A L E M. 733
his History of the Jews ; till it Mras strengthened and en-Jerusalem,
larged by Herod the Great, who called it the Castle of An-
tonia, under which name it makes a conspicuous figure in
the Jewish wars with the Romans.
Of Jerusalem itself we find nothing of consequence, till
it u'as taken by Pompey in the summer of b.c. 63, and on
the very day observed by the Jews as one of lamentation
and fasting, in commemoration of the conquest of Jerusa¬
lem by Nebuchadnezzar. Twelve thousand Jews were
massacred in the temple courts, including many priests, who
died at the very altar rather than suspend the sacred rites.
On this occasion Pompey, attended by his generals, went
into the temple and viewed the sanctuary ; but he left un¬
touched all its treasures and sacred things, while the walls
of the city itself were demolished. From this time the
Jews are to be considered as under the dominion of the
Romans. The treasures which Pompey had spared were
seized a few years after (b.c. 51) by Crassus. In the year
B.c. 43, the walls of the city, which Pompey had demolished,
were rebuilt by Antipater, the father of that Herod the
Great under whom Jerusalem was destined to assume the
new and more magnificent aspect which it bore in the time
of Christ, and which constituted the Jerusalem which Jose¬
phus describes. This Jerusalem—the Jerusalem as im¬
proved by the magnificent tastes and profuse expenditure
of Herod—was probably as different from the Jerusalem
before his time as the London of 1856 is from the London
of 1800. And perhaps the difference was even greater, for
our great fanes still exist, whereas the temple, which always
formed the great architectural glory of Jerusalem, was taken
down and rebuilt by Herod the Great, with a magnificence
exceeding that of Solomon’s. Nor was the city in this
state admired by Jews only. Pliny calls it “longe clarissi-
mam urbium orientis, non Judaeae modo” {Hist. Nat. v. 16).
Jerusalem seems to have been raised to this greatness, as
if to enhance the misery of its overthrow. So soon as the
Jews had set the seal to their formal rejection of Christ, by
putting him to death, and invoking the responsibility of his
blood upon the heads of themselves and of their children,
its doom M’ent forth. After having been the scene of horrors
without example, it was, in a.d. 70, abandoned to the Ro¬
mans, uho razed the city and temple to the ground, leaving
only three of the towers and a part of the western Mall to
show how strong a place the Roman arms had overthroMn.
This demolition, however, did not cause the site of the
city to be utterly forsaken. Titus left there in garrison the
whole of the tenth legion, besides several squadrons of
cavalry and cohorts of foot. For these troops, and for those
M ho ministered to their Mants, there must have been dwel¬
lings ; and there is no reason to suppose that such Jews or
Christians as appeared to have taken no part in tl e Mar
were forbidden to make their abode among the ruins, and
building them up so far as their necessities might require.
But nothing like a restoration of the city could nave arisen
from this, as it was not likely that any but poor people, who
found an interest in supplying the Mrants of the garrison,
were likely to resort to the ruins under such circumstances.
However, we learn from Jerome that for fifty years after
its destruction, until the time of Adrian, there still existed
remnants of the city. But during all this period there is
no mention of it in history.
Up to a.d. 131 the Jews remained tolerably quiet, al¬
though apparently waiting any favourable opportunity of
shaking off the Roman yoke. ' The then emperor, Adrian,
seems to have been aware of this state of feeling, and,
among other measures of precaution, ordered Jerusalem to
be rebuilt as a fortified place, wherewith to keep in check
the whole Jewish population. The works had made some
progress, when the Jews, unable to endure the idea that
their holy city should be occupied by foreigners, and that
strange gods should be set up within it, broke out into open
734 J E R U S
Jerusalem, rebellion under the notorious Barchochebas, who claimed
to be the Messiah. His success was at first very great;
but he was crushed before the tremendous power of the
Romans, so soon as it could be brought to bear upon him ;
and a war scarcely inferior in horror to that under Vespa¬
sian and Titus was, like it, brought to a close by the capture
of Jerusalem, of which the Jews had obtained possession.
This was in a.d. 13o, from which period the final dispersion
of the Jews has been often dated. The Romans then
finished the city according to their first intention. It was
made a Roman colony, inhabited wholly by foreigners, the
Jews being forbidden to approach it on pain of death : a
temple to Jupiter Capitolinus was erected on Mount Moriah,
and the old name of Jerusalem was sought to be supplanted
by that of iElia Capitolina, conferred upon it in honour of
the emperor, JElius Adrianus, and Jupiter Capitolinus. By
this name was the city known till the time of Constantine,
when that of Jerusalem again became current, although
iElia was still its public designation, and remained such so
late as a.d. 536, when it appears in the acts of a synod held
there. This name even passed to the Mohammedans, by
whom it was long retained ; and it was not till after they
recovered the city from the Crusaders that it became gene¬
rally known among them by the name of El-Khuds—the
holy—which it still bears.
From the rebuilding by Adrian the history of Jerusalem
is almost a blank till the time of Constantine, when its history,
as a place of extreme solicitude and interest to the Christian
church, properly begins. Pilgrimages to the holy city now
became common and popular. Such a pilgrimage was under¬
taken, in a.d. 326, by the emperor’s mother, Helena, then in
the 80th year of her age, who built churches on the alleged
site of the nativity at Bethlehem, and of the resurrection on
the Mount of Olives. This example may probably have ex¬
cited her son to the discovery of the site of the holy sepulchre,
and to the erection of a church thereon. He removed the
temple of Venus, with which, in studied insult, the site had
been encumbered. The holy sepulchre was then purified,
and a magnificent church was, by his order, built over and
around the sacred spot. This temple was completed and
dedicated with great solemnity in a.d. 335. There is no
doubt that the spot thus singled out is the same which has
ever since been regarded as the place in which Christ was
entombed; but the correctness of the identification then
made has been of late years much disputed, though, as it
seems, needlessly, and on quite insufficient grounds. The
very cross on which our Lord suffered was also, in the
course of these explorations, believed to have been dis¬
covered.
By Constantine the edict excluding the Jews from the
city of their fathers’ sepulchres was so far repealed that
they were allowed to enter it once a-year to wail over the
desolation of “ the holy and beautiful house,” in which their
fathers worshipped God. When the nephew of Constan¬
tine, the Emperor Julian, abandoned Christianity for the
old Paganism, he endeavoured, as a matter of policy, to
conciliate the Jews. He allowed them free access to the
city, and permitted them to rebuild their temple. They
accordingly began to lay the foundations in a.d. 362; but
the speedy death of the emperor probably occasioned that
abandonment of the attempt, which contemporary writers
ascribe to supernatural hindrances. The edicts seem then
to have been renewed which excluded the Jews from the
city, except on the day of annual wailing.
In the following centuries the roads to Zion were thronged
with pilgrims from all parts of Christendom, and the land
abounded in monasteries, occupied by persons who wished
to lead a religious life amid the scenes which had been
sanctified by the Saviour’s presence. After much struggle
of conflicting dignities, Jerusalem was, in a.d. 451, declared
a patriarchate by the council of Chalcedon. In the next
A L E M.
century it found a second Constantine in Justinian, who Jerusalem,
ascended the throne a.d. 527. He repaired and enriched
the former structures, and built upon Mount Moriah a mag¬
nificent church to the Virgin, as a memorial of the perse¬
cution of Jesus in the temple. He also founded ten or
eleven convents in and about Jerusalem and Jericho, and
established an hospital for pilgrims in each of those cities.
But these prosperous days were soon to end. The Per¬
sians, who had long harassed the empire of the East, pene¬
trated into Syria in a.d. 614, and, after defeating the forces
of the Emperor Heraclius, took Jerusalem by storm. Many
thousands of the inhabitants were slain, and much of the
city, including the finest churches—that of the holy sepul¬
chre among them—was destroyed. When the conquerors
withdrew, they took away the principal inhabitants, the pa¬
triarch, and the true cross ; but when, the year after, peace
was concluded, these were restored, and the Emperor Herac¬
lius entered Jerusalem in solemn state, bearing the cross
upon his shoulders.
The damage occasioned by the Persians was speedily re¬
paired. But Arabia soon furnished a more formidable
enemy in the Khalif Omar, whose troops appeared before
the city in a.d. 636; Arabia, Syria, and Egypt having al¬
ready been brought under the Moslem yoke. After a long
siege the austere Khalif himself came to the camp, and the
city was at length surrendered to him in a.d. 637. The
conqueror of mighty kings entered the holy city in his gar¬
ment of camel’s hair, and conducted himself with much dis-
cretion*and generous forbearance. By his orders the mag¬
nificent mosque which still bears his name was built upon
Mount Moriah, upon the site of the Jewish temple.
Jerusalem remained in possession of the Arabians, and
was occasionally visited by Christian pilgrims from Europe
till towards the year 1000, when a general belief that the
second coming of the Saviour was near at hand, drew pil¬
grims in unwonted crowds to the Holy Land, and created
an impulse for pilgrimages thither, which ceased not to act
after the first exciting cause had been forgotten. The
Moslem government, in order to derive some profit from
this enthusiasm, imposed the tribute of a piece of gold as
the price of entrance into the holy city. The sight, by
such large numbers, of the holy place in the hands of in¬
fidels, the exaction of tribute, and the insults to which the
pilgrims, often of the highest rank, were exposed from the
Moslem rabble, excited an extraordinary ferment in Europe,
and led to those remarkable expeditions for recovering the
holy sepulchre from the Mohammedans, which, under the
name of the Crusades, will always fill a most important and
curious chapter in the history of the world.
The dominion over Palestine had passed in a.d. 960
from the khalifs of Baghdad to the Fatemite khalifs of
Egypt, who, in their turn, were dispossessed in a.d. 1073
by - the Turkmans, who had usurped the powers of the
eastern khalifat. The severities exercised by these more
fierce and uncivilized Moslems upon both the native Chris¬
tians and the European pilgrims supplied the immediate im¬
pulse to the first eastern expedition. But by the time the
crusaders, under Godfrey of Bouillon, appeared before Jeru¬
salem, on the 17th of June 1099, the Egyptian khalifs had
recovered possession of Palestine, and driven the 1 urkmans
beyond the Euphrates.
After a siege of forty days, the holy city was taken by
storm on the 15th day of July, and a dreadful massacre ot
the Moslem inhabitants followed, without distinction of age
or sex. As soon as order was restored, and the city cleared
of the dead, a regular government was established by the
election of Godfrey as king of Jerusalem. One of the first
cares of the new monarch was to dedicate anew to the Lord
the place where His presence had once abode; and the
mosque of Omar became a Christian cathedral, which the
historians of the time distinguish as “ the temple of the
JERUSALEM. 735
Jerusalem. Lord” (TemplumDomini). The Christians kept possession
°f Jerusalem eighty-eight years. During this long period
they appear to have erected several churches and many
convents. Of the latter, few if any traces remain ; and of
the former, save one or two ruins, the church of the holy
sepulchre, which they rebuilt, is the only memorial which
attests the existence of the Christian kingdom of Jerusalem.
In a.d. 1187 the holy city was wrested from the hands of
the Christians by the Sultan Saladin, and the order of things
was then reversed. The cross was removed with ignominy
from the sacred dome, the holy places were purified from
Christian stain with rose-water brought from Damascus, and
the call to prayer by the muzzin once more sounded over the
city. From that time to the present day the holy city has
remained, with slight interruption, in the hand of the Mos¬
lems. On the threatened siege by Richard of England in
1192, Saladin took great pains in strengthening its defences.
New walls and bulwarks were erected, and deep trenches
cut, and in six months the town was stronger than it ever
had been, and the works had the firmness and solidity of a
rock. But in a.d. 1219, the Sultan Melek el Moaddin of
Damascus, who then had possession of Jerusalem, ordered
all the walls and towers to be demolished, except the cita¬
del and the inclosure of the mosque, lest the Franks should
• again become masters of the city and find it a place of
strength. In this defenceless state Jerusalem continued
till it was delivered over to the Christians in consequence
of a treaty with the Emperor Frederick II., in a.d. 1229,
with the understanding that the walls should not be rebuilt.
Yet ten years later (a.d. 1239) the barons and knights of
Jerusalem began to build the walls anew, and to erect a
strong fortress on the west of the city. But the works
were interrupted by the emir David of Kerek, who seized
the city, strangled the Christian inhabitants, and cast down
the newly erected walls and fortress. Four years after,
however (a.d. 1243), Jerusalem was again made over to
the Christians without any restriction, and the works ap¬
pear to have been restored and completed; for they are
mentioned as existing when the city was stormed by the
wild Kharismian hordes in the following year; shortly after
which the city reverted for the last time into the hands of
its Mohammedan masters, who have kept it to the present
day.
From this time Jerusalem appears to have sunk very
much in political and military importance ; and it is scarcely
named in the history of the Memluk sultans who reigned
over Egypt and the greater part of Syria in the fourteenth
and fifteenth centuries. At length, with the rest of Syria
and Egypt, it passed under the sway of the Turkish sultan
Selim I., who paid a hasty visit to the holy city from Da¬
mascus after his return from Egypt. From that time Jeru¬
salem has formed a part of the Ottoman empire, and during
this period has been subject to few vicissitudes: its history
is accordingly barren of incident. The present walls of the
city were erected by Suleiman the Magnificent, the suc¬
cessor of Selim, in a.d. 1542, as is attested by an inscrip¬
tion over the Jaffa gate. So lately as a.d. 1808, the church
of the holy sepulchre was partially consumed by fire; but
the damage was repaired with great labour and expense in
September 1810, and the traveller now finds in this impos¬
ing fabric no traces of the recent calamity.
In a.d. 1832, Jerusalem became subject to Mohammed
Ali, the pasha of Egypt, the holy city opening its gates to
him, without a siege. During the great insurrection in the
districts of Jerusalem and Nabulus, in 1834, the insurgents
seized upon Jerusalem, and held possession of it for a time;
but by the vigorous operations of the government order w'as
soon restored, and the city reverted quietly to its allegiance
on the approach of Ibrahim Pasha with his troops. In
1841 Mohammed Ali was deprived of all his Syrian posses¬
sions by European interference, and Jerusalem was again
subjected to the Turkish government, under which it now Jerusalem,
remains. It is not, perhaps, the happier for the change. v—
The only subsequent event of interest has been the esta¬
blishment of a Protestant bishopric at Jerusalem by the
English and Prussian governments, and the erection upon
Mount Zion of a church, calculated to hold 500 persons,
for the celebration of Divine worship according to the ritual
of the English church. The wardenship of the holy places at
Jerusalem has always been keenly contested by the Greek
and Latin churches ; and on the anniversaries of some of
the festivals common to both, scenes of a most indecorous
and irreverent nature were regularly witnessed. It was in
vain that the Turkish governor of the city endeavoured to
mediate between them ; and it was well if the most solemn
services of the two churches ended without bloodshed. The
Greeks, countenanced by Russia, and the Latins by France,
kept up the old feud with such fierce animosity, that it at
length embroiled the peace of Europe, and was one of the
ostensible causes of the Russo-Turkish war of 1853-55.
For the history of Jerusalem see Geschichte von Jerusalem,
Strasbourg, 1518; Spalding, Gesch. d. Christl. Konigreichs
Jerusalem, Berlin, 1803; Delying, JEliee Capitolince Origg.
et Historia, Lips. 1743 ; Poujoulat, Histoire de Jerusalem,
Brux. 1842; Raumer’s Palastina; Robinson’s Bib. Re¬
searches in Palestine.
Before proceeding to inquire into the ancient state of the
city, and to describe its present condition, it will be well to
furnish the reader with a general description of the site,
that he may be enabled to follow the details with the more
precision. For this purpose we shall avail ourselves of the
able sketch given by Professor Robinson in his Researches
(i. 380-384).
“ Jerusalem lies near the summit of a broad mountain- General
ridge. This ridge, or mountainous tract, extends without Topogra-
interruption from the plain of Esdraelon to a line drawn phy.
between the S. end of the Dead Sea and the S.E. corner
of the Mediterranean ; or, more properly, perhaps, it may
be regarded as extending as far S. as to Jebel Araif in
the Desert, where it sinks down at once to the level of
the great western plateau. This tract, which is everywhere
not less than from 20 to 25 geographical miles in breadth,
is, in fact, high uneven table-land. It everywhere forms
the precipitous western wall of the great valley of the Jordan
and the Dead Sea; while towards the W. it sinks down by
an off-set, into a range of lower hills, which lie between it
and the great plain along the coast of the Mediterranean.
The surface of this upper region is everywhere rocky, un¬
even, and mountainous ; and is, moreover, cut up by deep
valleys which run E. or W. on either side towards the Jor¬
dan or the Mediterranean. The line of division, or water¬
shed, between the waters of these valleys—a term which
here applies almost exclusively to the waters of the rainy
season—follows for the most part the height of land along
the ridge ; yet not so but that the heads of the valleys, which
run off in different directions, often interlap for a consider¬
able distance. Thus, for example, a valley which descends
to the Jordan, often has its head a mile or two westward of
the commencement of other valleys which run to the western
sea.
“ From the great plain of Esdraelon onwards to the S.,
the mountainous country rises gradually, forming the tract
anciently known as the mountains of Ephraim and Judah ;
until, in the vicinity of Hebron, it attains an elevation of
nearly 3000 Paris feet above the level of the Mediterranean
Sea. Further N., on a line drawn from the N. end of the
Dead Sea towards the true W., the ridge has an elevation
of only about 2500 Paris feet; and here, close upon the
watershed, lies the city of Jerusalem. Its mean geogra¬
phical position is in N. Lat. 31. 46. 43., and E. Long. 35.13.
from Greenwich.
“ Six or seven miles N. and N.W. of the city is spread
JERUSALEM.
736
Jerusalem, out the open plain or basin round about El-Jib (Gibeon),
extending also towards El-Bireb (Beeroth); the waters of
which flow off at its S.E. part through the deep valley here
called by the Arabs Wady Beit Hanina; but to which the
monks and travellers have usually given the name of the
‘ Valley of Turpentine,’ or of the Terebinth, on the mis¬
taken supposition that it is the ancient valley of Elah.
This great valley passes along in a S.W. direction, an hour
or more W. of Jerusalem; and finally opens out from the
mountains into the western plain, at the distance of six or
eight hours S.W. from the city, under the name of Wady
es-Surar. The traveller, on his way from Ramleh to Jeru¬
salem, descends into, and crosses this deep valley, at the vil¬
lage of Kulonieh on its western side, an hour and a half
from the latter city. On again reaching the high ground
on its eastern side, he enters upon an open tract sloping
gradually downwards towards the E.; and sees before him,
at the distance of about two miles, the walls and domes of
the holy city, and beyond them the higher ridge or summit
of the Mount of Olives. The traveller now descends gra¬
dually towards the city along a broad swell of ground,
having at some distance on his left the shallow northern
part of the valley of Jehoshaphat; close at hand, on his
right, the basin which forms the beginning of the valley of
Hinnom. Further down both these valleys become deep,
narrow, and precipitous ; that of Hinnom bends S. and again
E. nearly at right angles, and unites with the other, which
then continues its course to the Dead Sea. Upon the
broad and elevated promontory within the fork of these two
valleys lies the holy city. All around are higlier hills; on
the E. the Mount of Olives; on the S. the Hill of Evil
Council, so called, rising directly from the vale of Hinnom;
on the W. the ground rises gently, as above described, to
the borders of the Great Wady; while on the N. a bend of
the ridge, connected with the Mount of Olives, bounds the
prospect at the distance of more than a mile. Towards the
S.W. the view is somewhat more open ; for here lies the
plain of Rephaim, commencing just at the southern brink
of the valley of Hinnom, and stretching off S.W., where it
runs to the western sea. In the N.W. too, the eye reaches
up along the upper part of the valley of Jehoshaphat; and
from many points can discern the mosque of Neby Samwil,
situated on a lofty ridge beyond the Great Wady, at the dis¬
tance of two hours.
“ The surface of the elevated promontory itself, on which
the city stands, slopes somewhat steeply towards the E.,
terminating on the brink of the valley of Jehoshaphat.
From the northern part, near the present Damascus gate,
a depression or shallow wady runs in a southern direction,
having on the W. the ancient hills of Akra and Zion, and
on the E. the lower ones of Bezetha and Moriah. Between
the hills of Akra and Zion another depression or shallow
wady (still easy to be traced) comes down from near the
Jaffa gate, and joins the former. It then continues ob¬
liquely down the slope, but with a deeper bed, in a southern
direction, quite to the pool of Siloam and the valley of Je¬
hoshaphat. This is the ancient Tyropceon. West of its
lower part Zion rises loftily, lying mostly without the mo¬
dern city; while on the E. of the Tyropceon and the valley
first mentioned, lie Bezetha, Moriah, and Ophel, the last a
long and comparatively narrow ridge, also outside of the
modern city, and terminating in a rocky point over the pool
of Siloam. These three last hills may strictly be taken
as only parts of one and the same ridge. The breadth of
the whole site of Jerusalem, from the brow of the valley of
Hinnom, near the Jaffa gate, to the brink of the valley of
Jehoshaphat, is about 1020 yards, or nearly half a geogra¬
phical mile; of which distance 318 yards are occupied by
the area of the great mosque El-Haram Esh-Sherif. North
of the Jaffa gate the city wall sweeps round more to the
W., and increases the breadth of the city in that part.
“ The country around Jerusalem is all of limestone for-Jerusalem,
mation, and not particularly fertile. The rocks everywhere - ■- v ■_ -
come out above the surface, which in many parts is also
thickly strewed with loose stones; and the aspect of the
whole region is barren and dreary; yet the olive thrives
here abundantly, and fields of grain are seen in the valleys
and level places, but they are less productive than in the
region of Hebron and Nabulus. Neither vineyards nor
fig-trees flourish on the high ground around the city, though
the latter are found in the gardens below Siloam, and very
frequently in the vicinity of Bethlehem.”
Every reader of Scripture feels a natural anxiety to form
some notion of the appearance and condition of Jerusalem
as it existed in the time of Jesus, or rather as it stood before
its destruction by the Romans. It is certain that our know¬
ledge of its ancient state must proceed upon an accurate
knowledge of its present condition. But if we compare the
accounts of different travellers, and the plans which many
of them have laid down, the irreconcilable differences be¬
tween them produce a discouraging conviction of the insuffi¬
ciency of the basis thus offered for the foundation of any
fixed conclusions. And even if there were agreement in
the accounts of the superficies, something more than this
would be required—something more than ever perhaps will
be realized while the site continues to be trodden under #
foot by the Gentiles. Much was done by Dr Robinson and
others during the period of the rule of the Pasha of Egypt,
in which greater facilities were offered for exploration than
are likely to be soon again obtained. But a far more minute
and searching examination of the site than was even then
realized is necessary for the purposes of antiquarian com¬
parison. For instance, the surface is in many parts covered
to a vast depth, and the character and properties of parti¬
cular spots are necessarily much altered, by the accumulated
rubbish of ages. Some notion of this may be formed from
the fact that in seeking a foundation for the Protestant
church on Mount Zion, superincumbent rubbish to the
depth of fifty feet was dug through before reaching the solid
rock (Olin, ii. 254). It would therefore appear that not
only a very minute survey, but numerous excavations, would
be necessary to the ends of a really satisfactory investiga¬
tion.
To the obscurity originating in these causes may be
added that which arises from the many ambiguities in the
description left by Josephus, the only one which we possess,
and which must form the ground-work of most of our notices
respecting the ancient city. There are indeed some mani¬
fest errors in his account, which the critical reader is able
to detect without having the means to rectify.
In describing Jerusalem as it stood just before its destruc¬
tion by the Romans, Josephus states that the city was built
upon two hills, between which lay the Valley Tyropceon
(Cheesemonger’s Valley), to which the buildings on both hills
came down. This valley extended to the fountain of Siloam.
The hill on which the upper town stood was much higher
than the other, and straighter in its extent. On account of
its fortifications, David called it the Fortress or Castle; but
in the time of Josephus it was known by the name of the
Upper Market. The other hill, on which was situated the
lower town, was called Akra. It was in the form of a horse¬
shoe or crescent. Opposite to Akra was a third, and natu¬
rally lower hill (Moriah), on which the temple was built;
and between this and Akra was originally a broad valley,
which the inhabitants of Jerusalem filled up in the time of
Simon Maccabaeus for the purpose of connecting the town
with the temple. At the same time they lowered the hill
Akra, so as to make the temple rise above it. Both the
hills on which the upper and lower towns stood were ex¬
ternally surrounded by deep valleys, and here there was no
approach because of the precipices on every side.
The single wall which inclosed that part of the city
skirted by precp.tous valleys, began at the tower of Hin-
^ pens On the west it extended (southward) to a nlX
called Bethso, and the gate of the Essenes; thence it tot
along on the south to a point over against Siloam; and
OnWa (OnheiriniT, a'rg by S"I»"'»'>’alJool and
Uplild (Ophel), till it terminated at the eastern nortieo of
fnd tenP e- r,?1 tl,en tr'Vk Walls- told thatoie first
and oldest of these began at the tower of Hippicus on the
ZioroTo th^ Xvsf ext®ndin& (al°ng the northern brow of
) the Xjstus, afterwards terminated at the western
port,eo of the temple. The second wall began at the rate
of Gennath (apparently near Hippicus), and encircling only
the northern part of the city, extended to the castle of Am
ma at the north-west corner of the area of the temple
ha/;1?1 w.a]lwas built by Agrippa at a later period: it Ilso
as fhr aS Znrgapthe,tOWer 0t‘HiPPicus« la» northward
as tar as he tower Psephinos; and thence sweeping round
r^uth by,eaSt’ I1 tUrned ^erwari tewTds
Ihn sout‘b and was joined to the ancient wall at or in the
valley of the Kidron. This wall inclosed the hill Bezetha
0t!ler PassaSes we learn that the Xystus, named in
e above descriptions, was an open place in the extreme
WedtndXfah^’ Where the pe°Ple sometimes assem-
Bed it i6 ^vi.™” to si r1’tl,e T1;'6 ^
of fh F"rfher’ We are in&rmed that on tlT western side
of he temple a,ea were four gates; one leading over the
vaHey to the royal palace (on Zion) adjacent to the Xystus
he suhnrhV16 rK ^-iUSt mentioned; two conducting to
the submb (or new city) on the north; and the remainino-
one leading to ‘the other city,” first by steps down into
xy^lTi^ e8 thnn an aS^ent (Joseph*
. 11. 5, xx. 8. 11). By this “other city” can hn
meant only the lower city or Akra. The hill Bezetha
winch was last inclosed, lay quite near on the north of the
temple (Joseph. Be Bell Jud. v. 5. 8). From the account
of theoperatmns of the Romans under Titus, it may also he
collected that the interior and most ancient of the three walls
on the north, lay between Akra and the upper city, form¬
ing the defence of the latter in this part. It was doubtless
the same wall which ran along the northern brow of Zion. ’
It would be only going over this statement in other words
need nfd ^ results whlch it offers; and there is the less
need of doing so, as they only serve to support the conclu¬
sions which have long been regarded as established. Dr
Robinson, in comparing the information derived from Jo-
the mai/fe ^ °7 account’ declares that
the mam features depicted by the Jewish historian may still
be recognised. True,” he says, “ the valley of the Tyro-
pteon, and that between Akra and Moriah, have been greatly
led up with the rubbish accumulated from the repeated
desolations of nearly eighteen centuries. Yet they are still
distinctly to be traced: the hills of Zion, Akra,Moriah
and Bezetha, are not to be mistaken; while the deep val-
ey° of the Kldr°n, and of Hinnom, and the Mount of Olives
are permanent natural features, too prominent and gigantic
/htgV(^ -y P-4tible
The details embraced in this general notice must be more
particularly examined in connection with modern observa¬
tion ; for it is to be remembered that the chief or only
value of these observations consists in the light which they
throw on the ancient condition and history of the site Y
home questions of much interest, chiefly relating to the
site of the crucifixion of our Lord, and of the sepulchre in
which he was laid, are connected with the attempt to deter-
nime the course and extent of the ancient walls of Jeru-
saJem. The first, or most ancient wall, appears to have
inclosed the whole of Mount Zion. The greater part of it
therefore, must have formed the exterior and sole wall on
* voLU xi/ver ooking thedeeP valleys below Mount Zion ;
JEEUSALEM.
737
‘ walls.
and the northern part evidently passed from the tower of Jerusalem
-Hippicus on the west side, along the northern brow of Zion 1
and across the valley, to the western side of the temple area!
It probably nearly coincided with the ancient wall which
existed before the time of David, and which enabled the
Jebusites to maintain themselves in possession of the upper
city, long after the lower city had been in the hands of the
Israelites. Mount Zion is now unwalled, and is excluded
from the modern city. Some traces of this wall were visi¬
ble in the time of Benjamin of Tudela, who says that the
stones of the foundation were then taken away for building
(Itiner., ed. Asher., i. 73). No trace of it can now be per¬
ceived, but by digging through the rubbish, the foundations
might perhaps be discovered.
The account given by Josephus of the second wall is very
short and unsatisfactory. This is the more to be regretted
as on the course taken by the eastern part of that wall rests
the question, whether that which is now shown as the site
of Calvary and the Holy Sepulchre was anciently beyond
the wall or not. The difficulties of this question are very
great, the historical evidence being just as strongly in favour
of the present site as the topographical evidence is against
it. It cannot be denied that the breadth of the city, in a
site limited by nature, and where, therefore, every fbot of
ground was precious, would be greatly and inconveniently
narrowed by drawing the line so as to place the present
holy sepulchre beyond the walls. But, on the other hand
it must be admitted that the phrase “ beyond the walls” is
often interpreted with a larger meaning than necessary.
When applied to executions, gibbetings, or any purpose
not allowable within the walls, we have always understood,
from the analogous usages in all walled towns, that it de¬
notes the slope or any other practicable space immediate///
under the wall, and so near to it that a slight advance of
the wall would include the site. The fastening of the bodies
of Saul and his sons to the wall of Beth-shan may illustrate
t ns view of the case, which tends in some degree to lessen
the difficulty of the question. For our present purpose it
is sufficient to indicate the evident fact that this second wall
" the who,e of the lower city, or Akra, excepting
that part of the eastern side of it which fronted the tempi?
area on Mount Moriah, and the southern side, towards the
valley which separated the lower from the upper city. In
short, it was a continuation of the external wall, so far as
necessary, on the west and north, and on so much of the
east as was not already protected by the strong wall of the
temple area. 1 he precise course of this wall might perhaps
be determined by excavations. It is, indeed, our strom-
conviction that one good excavation along one of the two
streets which intersect the Via Dolorosa would go far to
settle for ever the only question of real interest connected
with the subject. It is likely that the foundations of the
o ( wa still exist; and if it lay at any point within the
present wall, those foundations must pass under this street,
and an excavation of not greater extent than those which
are made every day in London for sewerage, would brirm
them to light, and show whether the alleged site of Calvary
lay within or without the wall.
Although these were the only walls that existed in the
time of our Saviour, we are not to infer that the habitable
city was confined within their limits. On the contrary it
was because the city had extended northward far beyond
the second wall that a third was built to cover the defence¬
less suburb : and there is no reason to doubt that this un-
Chr/rtedThUbUrbi’i ^ Bezetlla’ existed in the time of
Christ. This wall is described as having also begun at the
Z7htflZT: !t rr/0rthward as far as togthe tower
Fsephmos, then passed down opposite the sepulchre of
rnvT611 °! tdiabene^ and being carried along through
he royal sepulchres, turned at the corner tower by the
Pullers monument, and ended by making a junctio/Jith
738
Jerusalem.
Gates.
JERUSALEM.
the ancient wall at the valley of the Kidr°n. It was begun
ten or twelve years after our Lord’s cruc fixion by the elder
Herod Aerippa, who desisted from completing it for fear of
nffpndinp theEmperor Claudius. But the design was after-
^rdf taken up and completed by the Jews themselves al¬
though on a scale of less strength and magnificence. Dr Ro-
binson thinks that he discovered some tracesof this wall, which
are described in his great work {Bibl Researches, i. 46 ).
The same writer thinks that the wall of the new city, the
yEha of Adrian, nearly coincided with that of the present
Jerusalem : and the portion of Mount Zion which now lies
outside, would seem then also to have been excluded ; for
Eusebius and Cyril, in the fourth century, speak of the de¬
nunciation of the prophet being fulfilled, and describes Zion
as a “ ploughed field.” , . „ r
We know from Josephus that the circumference of the
ancient city was 33 stadia, equivalent to nearly three and
a half geographical miles. The circumference of the pre¬
sent walls does not exceed two and a half geographical
miles ; but the extent of Mount Zion, now without the
walls, and the tract on the north formerly inclosed or partly
so by the third wall, sufficiently account for the difference.
The history of the modern walls has already been given
in the sketch of the modern history of the city. The pre¬
sent walls have a solid and formidable appearance, espe¬
cially when cursorily observed from without; and they are
strengthened, or rather ornamented, with towers and bat¬
tlements after the Saracenic style. They are built of lime¬
stone, the stones being not commonly more than a foot or
15 inches square. The height varies with the various ele¬
vations of the ground. The lower parts are probably about
25 feet high, while in more exposed localities, where the
ravines contribute lessen the security of the city, they have
an elevation of 60 or 70 feet. ■ ^ L e
Much uncertainty exists respecting the ancient gates of
Jerusalem. Many gates are named in Scripture ; and it
has been objected that they are more in number than a
town of the size of Jerusalem could require—especially as
they all occur within the extent embraced by the first and
second walls, the third not then existing. It has, there ore,
been suggested as more than probable that some of these
gates were within the city, in the walls which separated the
town from the temple, and the upper town from the lower,
in which gates certainly existed. On the other hand, con¬
sidering the circumstances under which the wall was rebuilt
in the time of Nehemiah, it is difficult to suppose that more
than the outer wall was then constructed, and certainly it
was in the wall then built that the ten or twelve gates men¬
tioned by Nehemiah occur. But these may be considera¬
bly reduced by supposing that two or more of the names
mentioned were applied to the same gate. If this view of
the matter be taken, no better distribution of these gates
can be given than that suggested by Raumer.
(«.) On the north side,—1. The Old-gate, probably at tlm
north-east corner (Neh. iii. 6; xii. 39). 2. Gate oj
Ephraim or Benjamin (Jer. xxxviii. 7), &c. I his gate
doubtless derived its names from its leading to the territory
of Ephraim and Benjamin; and Dr Robinson supposes it
may possibly be represented by some traces of ruins which
he found on the site of the present Gate of Damascus. 3.
The Corner-gate.) 400 cubits from the former, and appa-
rentlv at the north-west corner (2 Chron. xxv. 23), &c.
Probably the Gate of the Furnaces is the same (Neh.
iii. 2; xii. 38). (b.) On the west side,—4. The Valley-
gate) over against the Dragon-fountain of Gihon (Neh. ii.
13), &c. It was probably about the north-west corner of
Zion, where there appears to have been always a gate ; and
Dr Robinson supposes it to be the same with the Gennath
of Josephus, (c.) On the south side,—5. The Dung-gate,
perhaps the same as Josephus’s Gate of the Essenes (Neh.
ii. 13). It was 1000 cubits from the Valley-gate, and the
Dragon-well was between them. This gate is probably also Jerusalem,
identical with “ the gate between two walls” (2 Kings xxv.
4), &c. 6. The Gate of the Fountain, to the south-east
(Neh. ii. 14) ; the gate of the fountain near the king’s pool
(Neh. ii. 14); the gate of the fountain near “ the pool of
Siloah by the king’s garden” (Neh. iii. 15). The same gate
is probably denoted in all these instances, and the pools seem
to have been also the same. It is also possible that this
Fountain-gate was the same otherwise distinguished as the
Brick-gate (or Potter’s-gate), leading to the valley of Hin-
nom. (d) On the east side,—7. The Water-gate (Neh. m.
26). 8. The Prison-gate, otherwise the Horse-gate, near
the'temple (Neh. iii. 28). 9. The Sheep-gate, probably
near the sheep-pool (Neh. iii. 1, 32). 10. The Fish-gate
was quite at the north-east (Neh. iii. 3).
It will be observed that in two of the cases^ the distances
of the gates from each other are mentioned. Thus the Cor¬
ner-gate (3) was only 400 cubits from the gate of Ephraim
(2), and the Dung-gate (5) was 1000 cubits from the Valley-
gate (4). This suggests that the gates were really nearer
to each other than the objections already stated would as¬
sume ; and the “ hundred-gated Thebes” may be recollected
as warranting a doubt whether the ancient Orientals had
the same objection to gates which are now entertained. At
all events, if the circumference of the wall of Jerusalem,
before the third wall was added, be assumed to have been
21 miles, or equal to the present wall, then this extent would
have allowed ten gates at the highest named distance of
1000 cubits apart, and more than thrice that number at the
lowest named distance of 300 cubits.
In the middle ages there appear to have been two gates
on each side of the city, making eight in all; and this num¬
ber being only two short of those assigned in the above
estimate to the ancient Jerusalem, seems to vindicate that
estimate from the objections which have been urged against
it On the west side were two gates, of which the princi¬
pal was the Porta David (Gate of David), often mentioned
by the writers on the Crusades. It was called by the Arabs
Bab el-Mihrab, and corresponds to the present Jaffa-gate,
or Bab el-Khulil. The other was the gate of the Fuller s
Field (Porta Villce Fullonis), so called from Isa. vu. 3.
This seems to be the same which others call Porta Judi-
ciaria, and which is described as being in the wall over
against the church of the Holy Sepulchre, leading to Silo
(Neby Samwil) and Gibeon. This seems to be that which
the Arabian writers call Serb. There is no trace of it in
the present wall. On the north there were also tvvo gates;
and all the middle-age writers speak of the principal of them
as the Gate of St Stephen, from the notion that the death
of the protomartyr took place near it. This was also called
the gate of Ephraim, in reference to hs probable ancient
name. Arabic writers called it Bab Amud el-Ghm ab, o
which the present name, Bab el-’Amud, is only a contrac¬
tion. The present Gate of St Stephen is on the east of the
city, and the scene of the martyrdom is now placed near it;
but there is no account of the change. Further east wa,
the Gate of Benjamin {Porta Benjamims), corresponding
apparently to what is now called the Gate of Herod. On
the east there seem to have been at least two gates. ie
northernmost is described by Adamnanus as a small portal
leading down to the valley of Jehoshaphat. It was called the
Gate of Jehoshaphat, from the valley to which it led.
seems to be represented by the present Gate ofSt Stephen.
The Arabian writers call it Bab el- Usbat (Gate oft e 11 >
being another form of the modern Arabic name Bab es-
Subat. The present Gate of St Stephen has four lions
sculptured over it on the outside, which, as we as ie a
chitecture, show that it existed before the Fesen ^ s*
Dr Robinson suggests that the original small portal was
rebuilt on a larger scale by the Franks, "’hen t ey “i P
the walls of the city, either in a.d. 1178 or 1239. The other
JEHUS
Jerusalem, gate is the famous Golden-gate {Porta aurea) in the east-
W^ ern wall of the temple area. It is now called by the Arabs
Bab ed-Dahariyeh, but formerly Bab er-Rahmeh (Gate
of Mercy). The name Golden-gate appears to have come
from a supposed connection with one of the ancient gates
of the temple, which are said to have been covered with
gold; but this name cannot be traced back beyond the his¬
torians of the Crusades. T his gate is, from its architecture,
obviously of Roman origin, and is conjectured to have be¬
longed to the inclosure of the temple of Jupiter which was
built by Adrian upon Mount Moriah. The exterior is now
walled up ; but being double, the interior forms within the
area a recess, which is used for prayer by the Moslem wor¬
shipper. Different reasons are given for the closing of this
gate. It was probably because it was found inconvenient
that a gate to the mosque should be open in the exterior
wall. Although not walled up, it was kept closed even when
the Crusaders were in possession of the city, and only opened
once a year on Palm-Sunday, in celebration of our Lord’s
supposed triumphal entry through it to the temple. On the
south side were also two gates. The easternmost is now
called by the Franks the Dung-gate, and by the natives
Rab el-Mughanbeh. The earliest mention of this gate is
by Brocard, about a.d. 1283, who regards it as the ancient
Water-gate. Further west, between the eastern brow of
Zion and the Gate of David, the Crusaders found a gate
which they call the Gate of Zion, corresponding to one which
now bears the same name.
It thus appears that before the rebuilding of the walls of
Jerusalem by the Furks in the sixteenth century, the prin-
cipal gates of the city were much the same as at the pre¬
sent day. But of the seven gates mentioned as still exist-
ing, three, the Dung-gate, the Golden-gate, and Herod’s-
gate, are closed. Thus there are only four gates now in
use, one on each side of the town, all of which have been
enumerated. St Stephen’s, on the east, leads to the Mount
of Olives, Bethany, and Jericho. From the nature of the
ground, taken in connection with the situation of the tem¬
ple, a little south, there must always have been a great
thoroughfare here. Zion-gate, on the south side of the
city, connects the populous quarter around the Armenian
convent with that part of Mount Zion which is outside the
walls, and which is much resorted to as being the great
field of Christian burial, as well as for its traditionary sanc¬
tity as the site of David’s tomb, the house of Caiaphas, house
of Mary, &c. Jhe Jaffa-gate, on the west, is the termi¬
nation of the important routes from Jaffa, Bethlehem, and
Hebron. I he formation of the ground suggests this as one
of the great thoroughfares of the ancient city, which could
here be approached from the quarters just indicated much
more conveniently than at any other point. The Damas-
cus-gate, on the north, is also planted in a vale, which in
every age of Jerusalem must have been a great public way,
and the easiest approach from Samaria and Galilee.
owers. The towers of Jerusalem are often mentioned in Scrip-
tuie and in Josephus. I here is, indeed, no general account
of them ; but some of the principal are described, and we
may reasonably infer that the others resembled them more
or less in form and arrangement. Most of the towers men¬
tioned by Josephus were erected by Herod the Great, and
were consequently standing in the time of Christ. It was
on these, therefore, that his eyes often rested when he ap¬
proached Jerusalem, or viewed its walls and towers from
the Mount of Olives. Of all these towers, the most im¬
portant is that of Hippicus, which Josephus, as we have
already seen, assumed as the starting point in his descrip¬
tion of all the walls of the city. Herod gave to it the name
of a friend who was slain in battle. It was a quadrangular
structure, 2o cubits on each side, and built up entirely solid
to the height of 30 cubits. Above this solid part was a
cistern 20 cubits j and then, for 25 cubits more, were
A L E M. 739
chambers of various kinds, with a breastwork of 2 cubits, Jerusalem,
and battlements of 3 cubits upon the top. The altitude of i ,
the whole tower was consequently 80 cubits. The stones
of which it was built were very large—20 cubits long by
10 broad and 5 high, and (probably in the upper part)
were of white marble. Dr Robinson has shown that this
tower should be sought at the north-west corner of the up¬
per city, or Mount Zion. This part, a little to the S. of
the Jaffa-gate, is now occupied by the citadel. It is an
irregular assemblage of square towers, surrounded on the
inner side towards the city by a low wall, and having on
the outer, or west side, a deep fosse. The tow ers, which rise
from the brink of the fosse, are protected on that side by a
low sloping bulwark or buttress, which rises from the bottom
of the trench at an angle of 45°. This part bears evident
marks of antiquity; and Dr Robinson is inclined to ascribe
these massive outworks to the time of the rebuilding and
fortifying of the city by Adrian. This fortress is described
by the middle-age historians as the tower or citadel of David.
Within it, as the traveller enters the city by the Jaffa-gate,
the north-eastern tower attracts his notice as bearing evident
marks of higher antiquity than any of the others. The up¬
per part is, indeed, modern, but the lower part is built of
larger stones, bevelled at the edges, and apparently still
occupying their original places. This tower has been singled
out by the Franks, and bears among them the name of the
Tower of David, while they sometimes give to the whole
fortress the name of the Castle of David. Taking all the
circumstances into account, Robinson, Raumer, and other
travellers, think that the antique lower portion of this tower
is, in all probability, a remnant of the tower of Hippicus,
which, as Josephus states, was left standing by Titus when
he destroyed the city.
Josephus describes two other towers—those of Phasaelus
and Mariamne—both built by Herod; one of them being
named after a friend, and the other after his favourite wife.
I hey stood not far from Hippicus, upon the first or most
ancient wall, which ran from the latter tower eastward,
along the northern brow of Zion. Connected with these
towers and Hippicus was the royal castle or palace of the
first Herod, which was inclosed by this wall on the N.,
and on the other sides by a wall 30 cubits high. The
whole was furnished with great strength and regal splen¬
dour, and furnished with halls, and galleries, and cisterns,
and apartments without number (Joseph. Be Bell. Jud.
v. 4. 3, 4; v. 4. 4). These were the three mighty towers
which Titus left standing as monuments of the strength of
the place which had yielded to his arms; but nothing now
remains save the above mentioned supposed remnant of the
Tower of Hippicus.
A fourth tower, called Psephinos, is mentioned by Jose¬
phus {Be Bell. Jud. v. 4, 2, 3). It stood at the north-west
corner of the third or exterior wall of the city. It did not,
consequently, exist in the time of Christ, seeing that the
wall itself was built by Herod Agrippa, to whom also the
tower may be ascribed. It was of an octagonal form, 70
cubits high, and from it could be seen Arabia towards the
rising sun, and the inheritance of the Hebrews quite to the
sea. This shows that it must have stood upon the hi"h
swell of ground which extends up north-north-west from the
north-west corner of the present city. In this quarter there
are ancient substructions, apparently of towers and other
fortifications; and although none of them may be actually
those of Psephinos, Dr Robinson conceives that the tower
stood somewhere in this vicinity.
The above are the only towers which the historian par¬
ticularly mentions. But, in describing the outer or third
wall of Agrippa, he states that it had battlements of 2 cu¬
bits, and turrets of 3 cubits more; and, as the wall was
20 cubits high, this would make the turrets of the height of
25 cubits, or nearly 38 feet. Many loftier and more sub-
740
JERUSALEM.
Jerusalem, stantial towers than these were erected on each of the walls
w—' at regulated distances, and furnished with every requisite
for convenience or defence. Of those on the third or outer
wall are enumerated 90; on the middle or second wall, 40 ,
and on the inner or ancient wall, 60. , . . ,
Public The temple was in all ages the great glory and principal
Buildings, public building of Jerusalem, as the heathen temple, church,
or mosque, successively occupying the same site, has been
ever since the Jewish temple was destroyed.
\fter the Israelites had exchanged their nomadic life tor
a life in permanent habitations, it was becoming that they
should exchange also their moveable sanctuary or tabernacle
for a temple. There elapsed, however, after the conquest
of Palestine, several centuries during which the sanctuary
continued moveable, although the nation became more and
more stationary. It appears that the first who planned the
erection of a stone-built sanctuary was David, who medi¬
tated the design of building a temple in which the ark of
God might be placed, instead of being deposited k‘ within
curtains ” or in a tent, as hitherto. This design was at first
encouraged by the prophet Nathan ; but he was afterwards
instructed to tell David that such a work was less appro¬
priate for him, who had been a warrior from his youth, and
had shed much blood, than for his son, who should enjoy
in prosperity and peace the rewards of his fathers victoiies.
Nevertheless, the design itself was highly approved as a
token of proper feelings towards the Divine King (2* Sam.
vii. 1-12), &c. We learn, moreover, from 1 Kings v., and
1 Chron. xxii., that David had collected materials which
were afterwards employed in the erection of the temple,
which was commenced four years after his death, about
b.c. 1012, in the second month, that is, the month of Siv,
480 years after the Exodus from Egypt. We thus learn
that the Israelitish sanctuary had remained moveable more
than four centuries subsequent to the conquest of Canaan.
The site of the temple is clearly stated in 2 Chron. iii.
\ Then Solomon began to build the house of the Lord
at Jerusalem, in Mount Moriah, where the Lord appeared
unto David his father, in the place that David had prepared
in the threshing-floor of Oman (or Araunah) the Jebusite.
It seems that the summit of Moriah, although large enough
for the agricultural purposes of Araunah, had no level suf¬
ficient for the plans of Solomon. According to Josephus
(De Bell. Jud. v. 5), the foundations of the temple were
laid on a steep eminence, the summit of which was at first
insufficient for the temple and altar. As it w'as sunounded
by precipices, it became necessary to build up walls and
buttresses in order to gain more ground by filling up the
interval with earth. The hill was also fortified by a thiee-
fold wall, the lowest tier of which was in some places more
than 300 cubits high; and the depth of the foundation was
not visible, because it had been necessary in some parts to
dig deep into the ground in order to obtain sufficient sup¬
port. The dimensions of the stones of which the walls
were composed were enormous ; Josephus mentions a length
of 40 cubits. It is, however, likely that some parts of the
fortifications of Moriah were added at a later period. 1 he
characteristics of the site of the Solomonic temple have
undergone so many changes, that it is at present scarcely
possible to discern them. Niebuhr gave an accurate de¬
scription of what he found, illustrated by a map, in the
Deutsches Museum, 1784, vol. i., p. 448, sq.; ii. 137, sq.;
and also in the third volume of his travels (comp, also
Mishna, Middoth, ii. 4).
The workmen and the materials employed in the erec¬
tion of the temple were chiefly procured by Solomon from
Hiram, king of Tyre, who was rewarded by a liberal im¬
portation of wheat. Josephus states that duplicates of the
letters which passed between Solomon and King Hiram
were still extant in his time, both at Jerusalem and among
the Tyrian records. He informs us that the persons em¬
ployed in collecting and arranging the materials for the Jerusalem,
temple were ordered to search out the largest stones for the
foundation, and to prepare them for use on the mountains
where they were procured, and then convey them to Jeru¬
salem. In this part of the business, Hiram’s men were
ordered to assist.
Josephus adds, that the foundation was sunk to an asto¬
nishing depth, and composed of stones of singular magni¬
tude, and very durable. Being closely mortised into the
rock with great ingenuity, they formed a basis adequate to
the support of the intended structure. Josephus gives to
the temple the same length and breadth as are given in
1 Kings, but mentions 60 cubits as the height. He says
that the walls were composed entirely of white stone; that
the walls and ceilings were wainscoted with cedar, which
was covered with the purest gold ; that the stones were put
together with such ingenuity that the smallest interstices
were not perceptible, and that the timbers were joined with
iron cramps.
Divines and architects have repeatedly endeavoured to
represent the architectural proportions of the temple, which
was 60 cubits long, 20 wide, and 30 high. Josephus, how¬
ever {Antiq. viii. 3, 2), says, “ The temple was 60 cubits
high, and 60 cubits in length, and the breadth was 20
cubits ; above this was another stage of equal dimensions,
so that the height of the whole structure was 120 cubits.”
It is difficult to reconcile this statement with that given
in 1 Kings, unless we suppose that the words Taos rots
/xerpoLs, equal in measures, do not signify an equality in
all dimensions, but only as much as equal in the number
of cubits; so that the porch formed a kind of steeple,
which projected as much above the roof of the temple as
the roof itself was elevated above its foundations. As the
Chronicles agree with Josephus in asserting that the sum¬
mit of the porch was 120 cubits high, there remains still
another apparent contradiction to be solved, namely, how
Josephus could assert that the temple itself was 60 cubits
high, while we read in 1 Kings that its height was only
30 cubits. We suppose that in the book of Kings the
internal elevation of the sanctuary is stated, and that Jo¬
sephus describes its external elevation, which, including
the basement and an upper story (which may have existed,
consisting of rooms for the accommodation of priests, con¬
taining also vestries and treasuries), might be double the
internal height of the sanctuary. The internal dimension
of the “ holy,” was 40 cubits long, 20 cubits wide, and 30^
cubits high. The holy was separated from the “ holy of
holies” by a partition, a large opening in which was closed
by a suspended curtain. The holy of holies was on the
western extremity of the entire building, and its internal
dimensions formed a cube of 20 cubits. On the eastern
extremity of the building stood the porch. At the entrance
of this pronaos stood the two columns called Jachin and
Boaz, which were 23 cubits high.
The temple was also surrounded by three stories of
chambers, each of which stories was 5 cubits high, so
that there remained above ample space for introducing the
windows, requisite more for ventilation than for the admis-.
sion of light into the sanctuary. Now the statement of
Josephus, who says, that each of these stories of chambers
was 20 cubits high, cannot be reconciled with the biblical
statements, and may prove that he was no very close reader
of his authorities. Perhaps he had a vague kind of infor¬
mation that the chambers reached half-way up the height
of the building, and taking the maximum height of 120
cubits instead of the internal height of the “ holy,” he made
each story four times too high. The windows, which are
mentioned in 1 Kings vi. 4, consisted probably of lattice- ,
work.
The lowest story of the chambers was 5 cubits, the
middle 6, and the third 7 cubits wide. This differ-
ipacTr’
Jerusalem, ence of the width arose from the circumstance that the
' ' ' external walls of the temple were so thick that they were
made to recede one cubit after an elevation of five feet so
that the scarcement in the wall of the temple gave a firm
support to the beams which supported the second story
without being inserted into the wall of the sanctuary-
which insertion was perhaps avoided, not merely for archi¬
tectural reasons, but also because it appeared to be irre¬
verent. The third story was supported likewise by a
simdar scarcement, which afforded a still wider space for
the chamber of the third story. From this description it
may be inferred that the entrance to these stories was from
without; but some architects have supposed that it was
from within ; which arrangement seems to be against the
general aim of impressing the Israelitish worshippers with
sacred awe by the seclusion of their sanctuary.
In reference to the windows it should be observed that
they served chiefly for ventilation, since the light within
the temple was obtained from the sacred candlesticks.
It seems from the descriptions of the temple to be certain
t lat the oracle, or “ holy of holies,” was an adytum without
windows. It had probably no other opening besides the
entrance, which was as we may infer from the prophetic
visions of Ezekiel (which probably correspond with the
Instonc temple of Solomon) six cubits wide.
From 1 Kings vii. 10, we learn that the private dwellings
of Solomon were built of massive stone. We hence infer
that the framework of the temple also consisted of the same
material. I he temple was, however, wainscoted with
cedar wood, which was covered with gold. The boards
within the temple were ornamented by beautiful carvings
representing cherubim, palms, and flowers. The ceiling
of the temple was supported by beams of cedar wood.
I he wall which separated the “holy” from the “holy of
holies, probably consisted not of stone, but of beams of
cedar. It seems, further, that the partitions partly con¬
sisted of an opus reticulatum; so that the incense could
spread from the “ holy” to the “ most holy.”
The floor of the temple was, throughout, of cedar, but
boarded over with planks of fir. The doors of the oracle
were composed of olive tree; but the doors of the outer
temple had posts of olive tree, and leaves of fir. Both
doors as well that which led into the temple as that
which led from the “ holy” to the “ holy of holies,” had fold¬
ing leaves, which, however, seem to have been usually kept
open, the aperture being closed by a suspended curtain—
auC°nuriVainCe St'^ seen at ^le church-doors in Italy, where
the church-doors usually stand open, but the doorways can
be passed only by moving aside a heavy curtain. From
2 Enron, iii 5, it appears that the greater house was also
ceded with fir. It is stated in ver. 9, “ that the weight of the
nails employed in the temple was fifty shekels of gold;” and,
also, that Solomon “ overlaid the upper chambers with gold.”
1 he lintel and side-posts of the oracle seem to have
circumscribed a space which contained one-fifth of the
whole area of the partition; and the posts of the door of
the temple one-fourth of the area of the wall in which they
were placed. Thus we understand the passage, 1 Kings
vi. 31-35, which also states that the door was covered with
carved work overlaid with gold. Within the “ holy of ho-
i8 i »t00tl °nly the ark the covenant; but within the
holy were ten golden candlesticks, and the altar of incense.
1 he temple was surrounded by an inner court, which in
Chronicles is called the court of the Priests, and in Jere¬
miah the upper-court. This again was surrounded by a
wall consisting of cedar beams placed on a stone foundation.
1 his inclosure, according to Josephus (Antiq. viii. 3-9)
was three cubits high. Besides this inner court, there is
mentioned a great-court which seems to have been also
called outward-court. This court was also more espe¬
cially known as the court of the Lord’s house (Jer. xix 12 •
J E R U S A L E M.
741
XXV! 2). These courts were surrounded by ’ spacious Jerusalem
buildings, which, however, according to Josephus (De Bell. ,
Jud. v. 5, 1), seem to have been partly added at a period ^
later than that of Solomon. For instance (2 Kings xv. 35)
Jotham is said to have “ built the higher gate of the house
of the Lord.” In Jer. xxvi. 10, and xxxvi. 10, there is
mentioned a “new gate” (Comp, also Ezek. xl. 5-47; xlii.
l-M). The tAird entry into the house of the Lord men¬
tioned in Jer. xxxviii. 14, does not seem to indicate that
there were three courts, but appears to mean that the entry
into the outer court was called the first, that into the inner
court the second, and the door of the sanctuary the third.
It is likely that these courts were quadrilateral. In the
divisions of Ezekiel they form a square of four hundred
cubits, fhe inner court contained towards the east the
altar of burnt-offering, the brazen sea, and ten brazen
la vers; and it seems that the sanctuary did not stand in the
centre of the inner court, but more towards the west,
l^rom these descriptions we learn that the temple of Solo¬
mon was not distinguished by magnitude, but by good
architectural proportions, beauty of workmanship, and
costliness of materials. Many of our churches have an
external form not unlike that of the temple of Solomon,
in fact, this temple seems to have been the pattern of our
church buildings, to which the chief addition has been the
Cjothic arch. Among others, the Roman Catholic church
at Dresden is supposed to bear a strong resemblance to the
temple of Solomon.
It is remarkable that after the temple was finished it
was not consecrated by the high priest, but by a laym’an,
y the king m person, by means of extempore prayers and
sacrifices. The temple remained the centre of public wor-
slup for all the Israelites only till the death of Solomon,
after which ten tribes forsook this sanctuary. But even in
the kingdom of Judah it was from time to "time desecrated
by altars erected to idols. For instance, Manasseh “ built
altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the
house of the Lord. And he made his son pass through
the fire, and observed times, and used enchantments, and
dealt with familiar spirits and wizards: he wrought much
wickedness in the sight of the Lord, to provoke him to
anger. And he set a graven image of the grove that he
had made in the house,” &c. Thus we find also that kino-
Josiah commanded Hilkiah the high priest, and the priests
of the second order, to remove the idols of Baal and Ashe-
rah from the house of the Lord (2 Kings xxiii. 4, 13) In
fact, we are informed that in spite of the better means of
public devotion which the sanctuary undoubtedly afforded
the national morals declined so much that the chosen na¬
tion became worse than the idolaters whom the Lord de¬
stroyed before the children of Israel (2 Kings xxi. 9). It
appears also that, during the times when it was fashionable
at court to worship Baal, the temple stood desolate, and
that its repairs were neglected. We further learn that the
cost of the repairs was defrayed chiefly by voluntary con¬
tribution, by offerings, and by redemption money. The
original cost of the temple seems to have been defrayed by
royal bounty, and in great measure by treasures collected
by David for that purpose.
There was a treasury in the temple, in which much pre¬
cious metal was collected for the maintenance of public
worship I he gold and silver of the temple was, however
frequently applied to political purposes (1 Kings xv. 18 so )’
&c. 1 he treasury of the temple was repeatedly plundered
by foreign invaders. For instance, by Shishak (I Kings
xiv 26) ; by Jehoash, king of Israel (2 Kings xiv. 14) ; by
Nebuchadnezzar (2 Kings xxiv. 13); and lastly, again by
Nebuchadnezzar, who, having removed the valuable con¬
tents, caused the temple to be burned down (2 Kings xxv.
9j b.c. 588. The building had stood since its com¬
pletion 417 or 418 years (Josephus has 470, and Ruffinus
742
JERUSALEM.
Thus terminated what the later Jews called
Jerusalem. 3/0 years).
M in dmy^r B.C. 536 the Jews obtained permission from
The second Cyrus to colonize their native lan • , 2,rUS
temple. also that the sacred utensils w nc i lac j S .
the first temple should be restored, and that for therestora
tion of the temple assistance should be granted. The first
colony which returned under Zerubbabel and Joshua hav-
ino- collected the necessary means, and having also obtained
the assistance of Phoenician workmen, commenced in the
second year after their return, b.C 534, the rebuilding o
the temple. The Sidonians brought rafts of cedar trees
from Lebanon to Joppa. The Jews refused the co-opera¬
tion of the Samaritans, who being thereby offended induced
the king Artasashta (probably Smerdis) to prohibit the bmld-
ino-. And it was only in the second year of Darius Hys-
taspis B.C. 520, that the building was resumed. It was
completed in the sixth year of this king, b.C. 516. Ac¬
cording to Josephus {Antiq. xi. 4, 7) the temple was com¬
pleted in the ninth year of the reign of Darius.
This second temple was erected on the site of the for¬
mer, and probably after the same plan. According to the
plan of Cyrus, the new temple was sixty cubits high, and
sixty cubits wide. It appears from Josephus that the height
is to be understood of the porch, for we learn from the
speech of Herod which he records, that the second temple
was sixty cubits lower than the first, whose porch was 120
cubits high (comp. Joseph. Antiq. xv. 11,1). But it was
not so much in dimensions that the second temple was in¬
ferior to the first, as in splendour, and in being deprived of
the ark of the covenant, which had been burned with the
temple of Solomon. The temple of Zerubbabel had seve¬
ral courts (av\ai) and cloisters or cells (rrpoOvpoi). Jose-
phus distinguishes an internal and external tepov, and men¬
tions cloisters in the courts. This temple was connected
with the town by means of a bridge {Antiq. xiv. 4). Dur¬
ing the wars from b.C. 175 to b.C. 163, it was pillaged and
desecrated by Antiochus Epiphanes, who introduced into it
idolatrous rites (2 Mac. vi. 2, 5), dedicating the temple to
Jupiter Olympius, and the temple on Mount Genzim, in
allusion to the*.foreign origin of its worshippers, to Jupiter
Bevies. The temple became so desolate that it was over¬
grown with vegetation (1 Macc. iv. 38; 2 Macc. vi. 4).
Judas Maccabseus expelled the Syrians and restored the
sanctuary, b.C. 165. He repaired the building, furnished
new utensils, and erected fortifications against future attacks.
Alexander Jannaeus, about b.C. 106, separated the court of
the priests from the external court by a wooden iailing.
During the contentions among the later Maccabees, Pom-
pev attacked the temple from the north side, caused a gieat
massacre in its courts, but abstained from plundering the
treasury, although he even entered the “ holy of holies, b.c.
63 (Joseph. Antiq. xiv. 4). Herod the Great, with the
assistance of Roman troops, stormed the temple, B.C. 3 / ;
on which occasion some of the surrounding halls were de¬
stroyed or damaged.
Herod, wishing to ingratiate himself with the church
Temple of and state party, and being fond of architectural display, un-
llerod. dertook not merely to repair the second temple, but to raise^
a perfectly new structure. As, however, the temple of
Zerubbabel was not actually destroyed, but only removed
after the preparations for the new' temple were completed,
there has arisen some debate whether the temple of Herod
could properly be called the third temple.
The reason why the temple of Zerubbabel was not at
once taken down, in order to make room for the more
splendid structure of Herod, is explained by Josephus as
follows (Joseph. Antiq. xv. 11, 2). The Jews were afraid
that Herod would pull down the whole edifice, and not be
able to carry his intentions as to its rebuilding into effect;
and this danger appeared to them to be very great, and the
vastness of the undertaking to be such as could hardly be Jerusalem,
accomplished. But while they were in this disposition, the
king encouraged them, and told them he would not pull
down their temple till all things were got ready for building
it up entirely.
The work was commenced in the eighteenth year of the
reign of Herod ; that is, about twenty or twenty-one years
before the Christian era. Priests and Levites finished the
temple itself in one year and a half. The outbuildings and
courts required eight years. However, some building
operations were constantly in progress under the successors
of Herod, and it is in reference to this we are informed that
the temple was finished only under Albinus, the last pro¬
curator but one, not long before the commencement of the
Jewish war, in which the temple was again destroyed. It
is in reference also to these protracted building operations
that the Jews said to Jesus, “ Forty and six years was this
temple in building” (John ii. 20). The temple is described
by Josephus {Antiq. xv. 11, and T)e Bell. Jud. v. 5). _W ith
this should be compared the Talmudic tract Middoth.
{Mishna, v. 10).
The whole of the structures belonging to the temple
were a stadium square, and consequently four stadia (oi
half a Roman mile) in circumference. The temple was
situated on the highest point, not quite in the centre, but
rather to the north-western corner of this square, and was
surrounded by various courts, the innermost of which was
higher than the next outward, which descended in terraces.
The temple, consequently, was visible from the town, not¬
withstanding its various high enclosures. I he outer court
was called the mountain of the house. According to Mid¬
doth (i. 3) this mountain of the house had five gates, two
towards the south, and one towards each of the other quai-
ters. The principal gate was that towards the east: it was
called the Gate Susan, and a representation of the town of
Susa, sculptured in relief, was affixed to it. This had been
preserved from the days of Zerubbabel, when the Jews
were anxious to express by all means their loyal submis¬
sion to the Persian power. It seems, however, that besides
these five principal gates there were some other enhances,
because Josephus speaks of four gates on the west and
several on the south. Annexed to the outer wall were
halls which surrounded the temple, and were thirty cubits
wide, except on the south side, where the paaikiKT] <rroa. {the
royal hall) seems to have been threefold, or three times
wider than the other halls. The roofs of these halls were
of cedar wood, and were supported by marble columns
25 cubits high. The Levites resided in these halls. Ihere
was also a synagogue where the Talmudic doctors might
be asked questions, and where their decisions mig t e
heard. These halls seem likewise to have formed a
kind of lounge for religionists; they appear to have been
spacious enough to afford opportunities for religious teachers
to address knots of hearers. Thus we find that Jesus had
there various opportunities for addressing the people, ana
refuting cavillers. ,, , vv.
Here also the first Christians could daily assemble with
one accord (Acts ii. 46). Within this outer court money¬
changers and cattle-dealers transacted a profitable business,
especially during the time of Passover. The priests took
only shekels of full weight, that is, shekels of the sanctuary,
even after the general currency had been deteriorated ;
hence the frequent opportunity of the money-changers to
accommodate for agio the worshippers, most of whom ai-
rived from abroad unprovided with the right coin. e
profaneness to which this money-changing and catt e- ea
ing gave rise caused the indignation of our Lord, who sud¬
denly expelled all these sharks from their stronghold of
business (Matt. xxi. 12, sq.), &c.
The surface of this outer court was paved with stones or
various colours. A stone balustrade was several steps
J E K U £
Jerusalem, higher up the “ mountain” than this outer court, and pre-
'•—v-—'' vented the too near approach of the heathens to the next
court. For this purpose there were also erected columns
at certain distances within this balustrade, on which there
were Greek and Latin inscriptions, interdicting all heathens,
under penalty of death, to advance farther.
Higher up than this balustrade was a wall of the court,
40 cubits high from its foundation, but from within the
court it appeared to be only 25 cubits high. To this
higher court led a staircase and gate on the eastern side of
the square. This staircase first led into the court of the
women, which was 135 cubits square. Again, fifteen steps
higher up was the principal entrance to the court of the
Israelites, i.e., the men, on the eastern side of the temple.
On the other sides only five steps led up from the court of
the women to that of the men. But the fifteen steps,
each of which was lower than each of the five steps, seem
to have terminated in the same level. Over the gates were
structures more than 40 cubits high, in which were rooms.
Each of the gates was adorned with two columns, which
were 12 cubits in circumference. In these gates were
folding-doors, each of which was 30 cubits high and 15
wide ; they were plated with gold and silver. The gate
towards the east, being the principal one, was of Corinthian
brass, and was higher, larger, and more adorned with pre¬
cious metal than the rest. Within the walls of this court
were halls supported by beautiful columns. The court of
the priests was separated from that of the Israelites by a low
stone balustrade 1 cubit high. The whole space which was
occupied by the court of the Israelites and that of the
priests, together with the temple, was from east to west
187 cubits, and from north to south 135 cubits. Each of
these courts was 11 cubits wide, in which measurement
that of the halls seems not to have been included (comp.
Middoth ii. 6). The court of the priests surrounded the
whole temple. On the northern and southern sides were
magazines of salt, wood, water, &c., and on the south side
also was the place of meeting for the Sanhedrim. Towards
the east, with entrances from the court of the women, were
two rooms in which the musical instruments were deposited ;
towards the north-west were four rooms in which the lambs
for the daily sacrifices were kept, the shewbread baked, &c.
In the four corners of the court of the women were lazza-
rettos and quarantine establishments for the reception of
persons suspected of leprosy and other infectious diseases ;
there was also a physician appointed to treat the priests
who were unwell. Within the various courts there were
several alms-boxes, shaped like trumpets. All the courts
were paved with flat stones. From the various statements
concerning the court of the women, it is evident that this
appellation did not mean a place exclusively devoted to
the women, but rather a place to which even women were
admitted, together with other persons who were not allowed
to advance farther. The temple itself was fifteen steps
higher than the court of the Israelites, and stood, not in
the middle, but rather towards the north-western corner of
the court of the priests. In the usual plans of the temple
the passage in Middoth ii. 1, has been disregarded. This
passage clearly states that the temple was not in the cen¬
tre :—“ The greatest space was from the south, the next
greatest from the east, the third from the north, and the
least from the west. The foundations of the temple con¬
sisted of blocks of white marble, some of which were 45
cubits long, 6 cubits wide, and 5 cubits high. The porch
measured externally 100 cubits in width; the remaining
part of the building 60 or 70 cubits. Thus it appears that
the porch projected on each side from 15 to 20 cubits.”
The difference of measurement between Josephus and the
Talmud may be accounted for by the difference of internal
and external width. The projections of the porch were
like shoulders. The whole building was 100 or 110 cubits
SALEM. 743
long, and 100 cubits high. The internal measurement of the Jerusalem,
porch was 50 cubits by 20, and 90 cubits in height. The
“holy” was 40 cubits by 20, and 60 cubits high; the “ holy of
holies” was 20 cubits square and 60 cubits high. Accord¬
ing to Middoth, the porch was only 11 cubits, the “ holy” 40
cubits, the “holy of holies” 20 cubits, and behind this last
there was a vestry of 6 cubits. The remaining 23 cubits
vvere distributed among the diameters of the several walls, so
that thewholewas 100 cubits long. In the eastern front, which
was 100 cubits square, was aproportionate gate, 70 cubits high
and 25 cubits wide. Above the “ holy” and “ holy of holies”
were upper rooms. On the summit of the temple {kclto. ko-
pv(f>r]v) were spikes, which resembled our conductors in
shape, and were intended to prevent birds from settling on
the temple. It seems that the roof was flat, and surrounded
by a balustrade 3 cubits high. On the north and south
side of the temple were three stories of chambers, which
were much higher than those of the Solomonic temple, but
did not entirely conceal the temple itself, because it pro¬
jected above them. The spaces on the north and south
side of the porch contained the apparatus for slaughtering
the sacrifices, and were called the house of knives.
The “holy of holies” was entirely empty; there was, how¬
ever, a stone in the place of the ark of the covenant, on
which the high-priest placed the censer. Before the en¬
trance of the “ holy of holies” was suspended a curtain, which
was torn by the earthquake that followed after the cruci¬
fixion. The rabbis talk of two curtains, between which
was a space of 1 cubit, suspended before the “ holy of holies.”
The folding-doors between the porch and the “ holy” were
20 cubits high and 10 cubits wide ; but the entrance itself,
with its mouldings, was 55 cubits high and 16 cubits wide.
These doors stood open ; there were, however, behind them
some other doors which were shut, and before which a
splendid Babylonian byssus curtain was suspended, in co¬
lours and workmanship similar to that of the Solomonic
temple. The entrance to the porch was externally 70 cu¬
bits high and 25 cubits wide, with folding-doors of 40 cu¬
bits high and 20 cubits wide. These doors were usually
kept open. This entrance to the porch was adorned by a
colossal golden vine, whose grapes were as big as men.
This vine was a symbolical representation of the “ noble
vine” (Jer. ii. 21 ; Ezek. xix. 10; Joel i. 7), and of the
“ vineyard” (Isa. v.), under which the prophets represent
their nation. It is very likely that this vine also gave an
opportunity to the parable of the vine (John xv.), and to
the strange misconception of pagan scribblers that the
Jews worshipped Bacchus.
Within the porch were a golden and marble table, on
which the priest who entered the sanctuary daily deposited
the old and the new shewbread. Before the porch, towards
the south, were the brazier, or fire-pan, and the altar for
burnt-offerings; towards the north were six rows of rings
attached to the pavement, to which the sacrifices to be
killed were fastened ; also eight low columns overlaid with
cedar beams, from which the beasts that had been killed
were suspended in order to be skinned. Between these
columns stood marble tables on which the flesh and entrails
were deposited. On the western side of the altar stood a
marble table, on which the fat was deposited, and a silver
table, on which the various utensils were placed.
The temple was situated upon the south-eastern corner of
Mount Moriah, which is separated to the east, by a precipi¬
tous ravine and the Kidron, from the Mount of Olives ; the
Mount of Olives is much higher than Moriah. On the
south the temple was bounded by the ravine which separ¬
ates Moriah from Zion, or the lower city from the upper
city. Opposite to the temple at the foot of Zion, were
formerly the king’s gardens, and higher up, in a south-wes¬
terly direction, the stronghold of Zion or the city of David,
on a higher level than the temple. The temple was- in
744
Jerusalem.
JERUSALEM.
ancient warfare almost impregnable, from the ravines at the
precipitous edge of which it stood; but it require moie
artificial fortifications on its western and northern sides,
which were surrounded by the city of Jerusalem ; lor this
reason there was erected at its north-western corner the
tower of Antonia, which although standing on a lower leve
than the temple itself, was so high as to overlook the sacred
buildings with which it was connected, partly by a large
staircase, and partly by a subterraneous communication.
Under the sons of Herod, the temple remained apparently
in good order, and Herod Agrippa, who was appointed by
the Emperor Claudius its guardian, even planned the re¬
pair of the eastern part, which had probably been destroyed
during one of the conflicts between the Jews and Romans
of which the temple was repeatedly the scene (Antiq. xvii.
10). There are a few indications from which we learn that
important documents were deposited in the tabernacle and
temple. Even in Deut. xxxi. 26, we find that the book of
the law was deposited in the ark. According to 2 Kings
xxii. 8, Hilkiah rediscovered the book of the law in the
house of Jehovah. In 2 Macc. ii. 13, we find a library
mentioned, apparently consisting chiefly of the canonical
books, and probably deposited in theltemple. In Josephus
(De Bell Jud. v. 5) it is mentioned that a book of the law
was found in the temple. It appears that the sacred writ¬
ings were kept in the temple {Antiq. v. 1-17). Copies of
political documents seem to have been deposited in the
treasury of the temple.
This treasury was managed by an inspector, and it con¬
tained the great sums which were annually paid in by the
Israelites, each of whom paid a half shekel, and many of
whom sent donations in money, and precious vessels, dm-
OrjixaTo.. Such costly presents were especially transmitted
by rich proselytes, and even sometimes by pagan princes
(2 Macc. iii. 3 ; Joseph. Antiq. xiv. 16. 4), &c., &c. It is
said especially that Ptol. Philadelphus was very liberal to
the temple, in order to prove his gratitude for having been
permitted to procure the Septuagint translation. The gifts
exhibited in the temple are mentioned in Luke xxi. 5; we
find even that the rents of the whole town ot Ptolemais
were given to the temple. There were also preserved his¬
torical curiosities, especially the arms of celebrated heroes
(Joseph. Antiq. xix. 6. 1): this was also the case in the
tabernacle.
The temple was of so much political importance that it
had its own guards. Their general had his own secretary
{Antiq. xx. 6. 2; 9. 3), and had to maintain the police in
the courts (comp. Acts iv. 1, and v. 24). He appears to ha,ve
been of sufficient dignity to be mentioned together with
the chief priests. It seems that his Hebrew title was, the
man of the mountain of the house.
The priests themselves kept watch on three different
posts, and the Levites on twenty-one posts.
It was the duty of the police of the temple to prevent
women from entering the inner court, and to take care that
no person who was Levitieally unclean should enter within
the sacred precincts. Gentiles were permitted to pass the
first enclosure, which was therefore called the court of the
Gentiles ; but persons who were on any account Levitically
unclean were even not permitted to advance thus far. Some
sorts of uncleanness, for instance that arising from the
touch of a corpse, excluded only from the court of the men.
If an unclean person had entered by mistake, he was re¬
quired to offer sacrifices of purification. The high-priest
himself was forbidden to enter the “ holy of holies” under
penalty of death on any other day but the day of atone¬
ment. Nobody was admitted within the precincts of the
temple who carried a stick or a basket, and who wanted to
pass merely to shorten his way, or who had dusty shoes
(Middoth, ii. 2).
During the final struggle of the Jews against the Ro¬
mans, a.d. 70, the temple was the last scene of the tug of Jerusalem,
war. The Romans rushed from the tower Antonia into the ^
sacred precincts, the halls of which were set on fire by the
Jews themselves. It was against the will of Titus that a
Roman soldier threw a firebrand into the northern out¬
buildings of the temple, which caused the conflagration of the
whole structure, although Titus himself endeavoured to ex¬
tinguish the fire (Joseph. De Bell. Jud. vi. 4). “ One cannot
but wonder at the accuracy of this period thereto relating ;
for the same month and day were now observed, as I said
before, wherein the holy house was burnt formerly by the
Babylonians. Now, the number of years that passed from
its first foundation, which was laid by King Solomon, till
this its destruction, which happened in the second year of
the reign of Vespasian, are collected to be 1130, besides
7 months and 15 days ; and from the second building of it,
which was done by Haggai, in the second year of Cyrus the
king, till its destruction under Vespasian, there were 639
years and 45 days.”
The sacred utensils, the golden table of the shewbread,
the book of the law, and the golden candlestick, were dis¬
played in the triumph at Rome. Representations of them
are still to be seen sculptured in relief on the triumphal arch
of Titus. The place where the temple had stood seemed
to be a dangerous centre for the rebellious population, until,
in a.d. 136, the Emperor Hadrian dedicated a temple to
Jupiter Capitolinus on the ruins of the temple of Jehovah.
Henceforth no Jew was permitted to approach the site of
the ancient temple, although the worshippers of Jehovah
were in derision compelled to pay a tax for the mainte¬
nance of the temple of Jupiter. Under the reign of Con¬
stantine the Great some Jews were severely punished for
having attempted to restore the temple (comp. Fabricii Lux
Evangelii, p. 124). In a.d. 363, the Emperor Julian un¬
dertook to rebuild the temple; but after considerable pre¬
parations and much expense, he was compelled to desist by
flames which burst forth from the foundations. Repeated
attempts have been made to account for these igneous ex¬
plosions by natural causes; for instance, by the ignition of
gases which had long been pent up in subterraneous vaults.
A similar event is mentioned by Josephus {Antiq. xvi. 7.
1), where we are informed that Herod, while plundering
the tombs of David and Solomon, was suddenly frightened
by flames which burst out and killed two of his soldiers.
A splendid mosque now stands on the site of the temple.
This mosque was erected by the Caliph Omar after the con¬
quest of Jerusalem by the Saracens, a.d. 636. It seems
that Omar changed a Christian church, that stood on the
ground of the temple, into this mosque, which is called El
Aksa, the outer, or northern, because it is the third of the
most celebrated mosques, two of which, namely, those ot
Mecca and Medina, are in a more southern latitude.
The tower or castle of Antonia stood on a steep rock ad¬
joining the N.W. corner of the temple. It has aheady
been mentioned, that it originated under the Maccabees,
who resided in it. The name of Baris, which it obtained,
was originally the Persian name of a royal palace; but
which, according to Jerome {Epist. ad Princip. ii. 639), was
afterwards adopted in Palestine, and applied to all the large
quadrangular dwellings built with turrets and walls. As
improved by Herod, who gave it the name of Antonia, aftei
his patron Mark Antony, this fortress had all the extent and
appearance of a palace, being divided into apartments of
every kind, with galleries and baths, and also broad halls or
barracks for soldiers ; so that, as having everything neces¬
sary within itself, it seemed a city, while in its magnificence
it was a palace. At each of the four corners was a tower,
one of which was 70 cubits high, and overlooked the whole
temple with its courts. The fortress communicated with
the cloisters of the temple by secret passages, through
which the soldiers could enter and quell any tumults, which
JERUSALEM.
745
Jerusalem, were always apprehended at the time of the great festivals.
This tower was also “ the castle” into which St Paul was
carried when the Jews rose against him in the temple, and
were about to kill him; and where he gave his able and
manly account of his conversion and conduct. It was, in
fact, the citadel of Jerusalem.
Waters of In his account of the siege of Jerusalem by Pompey,
Jerusalem. Strabo says that the town was well provided with water
within the walls, but that there was none in the environs
{Geog. xvi. 2, 40). Probably the Roman troops then suf¬
fered from want of water, as did other armies which laid
siege to Jerusalem. In the narratives of all such sieges
we never read of the besieged suffering from thirst, although
driven to the most dreadful extremities and resources by
hunger, while the besiegers are frequently described as suf¬
fering greatly from want of water, and as being obliged to
fetch it from a great distance. The agonies of thirst sus¬
tained by the first Crusaders in their siege of Jerusalem will
be remembered by most readers from the vivid picture
drawn by Tasso, if not from the account furnished by Wil¬
liam of Tyre. Yet when the town was taken plenty of
water was found within it. This is a very singular circum¬
stance, and is perhaps only in part explained by reference
to the system of preserving water in cisterns, as at this day,
in Jerusalem.
Solomon’s aqueduct near Bethlehem to Jerusalem could
have been no dependence, as its waters might easily have
been cut off by the besiegers. All the wells also are now
outside the town; and no interior fountain is mentioned
save that of Hezekiah, which is scarcely fit for drinking.
At the siege by Titus the well of Siloam may have been in
possession of the Jews, i.e., within the walls; but at the
siege by the Crusaders it was certainly held by the besieg¬
ing Franks; and yet the latter perished from thirst, while
the besieged had ingentes copias aquce. We cannot here
go through the evidence which by combination and com¬
parison might throw some light on this remarkable ques¬
tion. There is, however, good ground to conclude, that
from very ancient times there has been under the temple an
unfailing source of water, derived by secret and subterra¬
neous channels from springs to the W. of the town, and
communicating by other subterraneous passages with the
Pool of Siloam and the fountain of the Virgin in the E. of
the town, whether they were within or without the walls of
the town.
The existence of a perennial source of water below the
temple has always been admitted. Tacitus knew of it
{Hist. v. 12) ; and Aristeas, in describing the ancient tem¬
ple, informs us that “ the supply of water was unfailing.”
The Moslems also have constantly affirmed the existence
of this fountain or cistern. But a reserve has always been
kept up as to the means by which it is supplied. This re¬
serve seems to have been maintained by the successive
occupants of Jerusalem as a point of civic honour ; and this
fact alone intimates that there was danger to the town in
its becoming known, and points to the fact that the supply
came from without the city by secret channels, which it was
of importance not to disclose. Yet we are plainly told in the
Bible that Hezekiah “ stopped the upper water-course of
Gihon, and brought it down to the west side of the city of
David” (1 Kings i. 33, 38) ; from 2 Chron. xxxii. 30, it
seems that all the neighbouring fountains were thus “stop¬
ped” or covered, and the brook which they had formed di¬
verted by subterraneous channels into the town, for the ex¬
press purpose of preventing besiegers from finding the
“ much water” which previously existed outside the walls
(comp, also Eccles. xlviii. 17). Perhaps, likewise, the pro¬
phet Ezekiel (xlvii. 1-12) alludes to this secret fountain
under the temple when he speaks of waters issuing from the
threshhold of the temple towards the east, and flowing down
towards the desert as an abundant and beautiful stream.
VOL. XII.
This figure may be drawn from the waters of the inner Jerusalem,
source under the temple, being at the time of overflow dis- v ^ v j
charged by the outlets at Siloam, into the Kidron, which
takes the eastward course thus described.
There are certainly wells, or rather shafts, in and near
the temple area, which are alleged to derive their waters
through a passage of masonry 4 or 5 feet high, from a cham¬
ber or reservoir cut in the solid rock under the grand mosque,
in which the water is said to rise from the rock into a basin
at the bottom. The existence of this reservoir and source
of water is affirmed by all Moslems, and coincides with the
preceding intimations, but it must be left for future explo¬
rers to clear up all the obscurities in which the matter is
involved. The ordinary means taken by the inhabitants to
secure a supply of water are minutely described in Raumer’s
Paldstina, pp. 329-333; Robinson’s Researches, i. 479-516;
and Olin’s Travels, ii. 168-181.
In proceeding to furnish a description of the present Je- Modern Je¬
rusalem, we shall, for the most part, place ourselves under rusalem.
the guidance of Dr Olin, whose account is one of the most
recent, and by far the most complete and satisfactory which
has of late years been produced.
The general view of the city from the Mount of Olives
is mentioned more or less by all travellers as that from which
they derive their most distinct and abiding impression of
J erusalem.
The summit of the Mount of Olives is about half a mile
E. from the city, which it completely overlooks, every con¬
siderable edifice and almost every house being visible. The
city seen from this point appears to be a regular inclined
plain, sloping gently and uniformly from W. to E., or to¬
wards the observer, and indented by a slight depression or
shallow vale, running nearly through the centre, in the same
direction. The south-east corner of the quadrangle—for
that may be assumed as the figure formed by the rocks
—that which is nearest to the observer, is occupied by
the mosque of Omar and its extensive and beautiful grounds.
This is Mount Moriah, the site of Solomon’s temple; and
the ground embraced in the sacred enclosure, which con¬
forms to that of the ancient temple, occupies about an eighth
of the whole modern city. It is covered with green sward
and planted sparingly with olive, cypress, and other trees,
and it is certainly the most lovely feature of the town, whe¬
ther we have reference to the splendid structures or the
beautiful lawn spread out around them.
The south-west quarter, embracing that part of Mount
Zion which is within the modern town, is to a great extent
occupied by the Arminian convent, an enormous edifice,
which is the only conspicuous object in this neighbourhood.
The north-west is largely occupied by the Latin convent,
another very extensive establishment. About midway be¬
tween these two convents is the castle or citadel, close to
the Bethlehem-gate, already mentioned. The north-east
quarter of Jerusalem is but partially built up, and it has
more the aspect of a rambling agricultural village than that
of a crowded city. The vacant spots here are green with
gardens and olive-trees. There is another large vacant
tract along the southern wall, and west of the Haram, also
covered with verdure. Near the centre of the city also
appear two or three green spots, which are small gardens.
The church of the Holy Sepulchre is the only conspicuous
edifice in this vicinity, and its domes are striking objects.
There are no buildings which, either from their size or
beauty, are likely to engage the attention. Eight or ten
minarets mark the position of so many mosques in different
parts of the town, but they are only noticed because of their
elevation above the surrounding edifices. Upon the same
principle the eye rests for a moment upon a great number
of low domes, which form the roofs of the principal dwell¬
ings, and relieve the heavy uniformity of the flat plastered
roofs which cover the greater mass of more humble habita-
5 B
746
JERUSALEM.
Jerusalem, tions. Many ruinous piles, and a thousand disgusting ob-
iects, are concealed or disguised by the distance. Many
inequalities of surface, which exist to so great an extent that
there is not a level street of any length in Jerusalem, are
also unperceived. t
From the same commanding point of view a few olive
and fig trees are seen in the lower part of the valley of Je-
hoshaphat, and scattered over the side of Olivet from its
base to the summit. They are sprinkled yet more sparingly
on the southern side of the city on Mounts Zion and Ophel.
North of Jerusalem the olive plantations appear more nu¬
merous as well as thriving, and thus offer a grateful contrast
to the sun-burnt fields and bare rocks which predominate
in this landscape. The region west of the city appears to
be destitute of trees. Fields of stunted wheat, yellow with
the drought rather than white for the harvest, are seen on
all sides of the town.
Jerusalem, as seen from Mount Olivet, is a plain inclin¬
ing gently and equally to the E. Once enter its gates,
however, and it is found to be full of inequalities. The pas¬
senger is always ascending or descending. There are no
level streets, and Kttle skill or labour has been employed to
remove or diminish the inequalities which nature or time
has produced. Houses are built upon mountains of rubbish,
which are probably 20, 30, or 50 feet above the natural
level, and the streets are constructed with the same disre¬
gard to convenience, with this difference, that some slight
attention is paid to the possibility of carrying off surplus
water. The latter are, without exception, narrow, seldom
exceeding 8 or 10 feet in breadth. The houses often meet,
and in some instances a building occupies both sides of the
street, which runs under a succession of arches barely high
enough to permit an equestrian to pass under them. A
canopy of old mats or of plank is suspended over the prin¬
cipal streets when not arched. This custom had its origin,
no doubt, in the heat of the climate, which is very intense
in summer, and it gives a gloomy aspect to all the most
thronged and lively parts of the- city. These covered ways
are often pervaded by currents of air when a perfect calm pre¬
vails in other places. The principal streets of Jerusalem run
nearly at right angles to each other. Very few, if any, of
them bear names among the native population. They are
badly paved, being merely laid irregularly with raised stones,
with a deep square channel, for beasts of burden, in the
middle; but the steepness of the ground contributes to keep
them cleaner than in most Oriental cities.
The houses of Jerusalem are substantially built of the
limestone of which the whole of this part of Palestine is
composed: not usually hewn, but broken into regular forms,
and making a solid wall of very respectable appearance.
For the most part there are no windows next to the street,
and the few which exist for the purposes of light or venti¬
lation are completely masked by casements and lattice-work.
The apartments receive their light from the open courts
within. The ground plot is usually surrounded by a high
enclosure, commonly forming the walls of the house only,
but sometimes embracing a small garden and some vacant
ground. The rain-water which falls upon the pavement
is carefully conducted, by means of gutters, into cisterns,
where it is preserved for domestic uses. The people of
J erusalem rely chiefly upon those reservoirs for their supply
of this indispensable article. Every house has its cistern,
and the larger habitations are provided with a considerable
number of them, which occupy the ground-story or cells
formed for the purpose below it. Stone is employed in
building for all the purposes to which it can possibly be
applied, and J erusalem is hardly more exposed to accidents
by fire than a quarry or subterranean cavern. The floors,
stairs, &c., are of stone, and the ceiling is usually formed by a
coat of plaster laid upon the stones, which at the same time
form the roof and the vaulted top of the room. Doors,
sashes, and a few other appurtenances, are all that can usu- Jerusalem.
ally be afforded of a material so expensive as wood. The
little timber which is used is mostly brought from Mount
Lebanon, as in the time of Solomon. A large number of
houses in Jerusalem are in a dilapidated and ruinous state.
Nobody seems to make repairs, so long as his dwelling does
not absolutely refuse him shelter and safety. If one room
tumbles about his ears, he removes into another, and per¬
mits rubbish and vermin to accumulate as they will in the
deserted halls. Tottering staircases are propped to prevent
their fall; and when the edifice becomes untenable, the
occupant seeks another a little less ruinous, leaving the
wreck to a smaller or more wretched family, or, more pro¬
bably, to a goatherd and his flock. Habitations which have
a very respectable appearance as seen from the street, are
often found, upon entering them, to be little better than
heaps of ruins.
Nothing of this would be suspected from the general ap¬
pearance of the city as seen from the various commanding
points without the walls, nor from anything that meets the
eye in the streets. Few towns in the East offer a more im¬
posing spectacle to the view of the approaching stranger.
He is struck with the height and massiveness of the walls,
which are kept in perfect repair, and naturally produce a
favourable opinion of the wealth and comfort which they
are designed to protect. Upon entering the gates, he is
apt, after all that has been published about the solitude that
reigns in the streets, to be surprised at meeting large num¬
bers of people in the chief thoroughfares, almost without
exception decently clad. A longer and more intimate ac¬
quaintance with Jerusalem, however, does not fail to cor¬
rect this too favourable impression, and demonstrate the
existence and general prevalence of the poverty and even
wretchedness which must result in every country from op¬
pression, from the absence of trade, and the utter stagna¬
tion of all branches of industry. Considerable activity is
displayed in the bazaars, which are supplied scantily, like
those of other eastern towns, with provisions, tobacco, coarse
cottons, and other articles of prime necessity. A consider¬
able business is still done in beads, crosses, and other sacred
trinkets, which are purchased to a vast amount by the pil¬
grims who annually throng the holy city. The support and
even the existence of the considerable population of Jeru¬
salem depend upon this transient patronage,—a circum¬
stance to which a great part of the prevailing poverty and
degradation is justly ascribed. The worthless articles em¬
ployed in this pitiful trade are, almost without exception,
brought from other places, especially Hebron and Beth¬
lehem,—the former celebrated for its baubles of glass, the
latter chiefly for rosaries, crucifixes, and other toys made of
mother-of-pearl, olive-wood, black stones from the Dead
Sea, &c. These are eagerly bought up by the ignorant
pilgrims, sprinkled with holy water by the priests, or con¬
secrated by some other religious mummery, and carried off
in triumph and worn as ornaments to charm away disease
and misfortune, and probably to be buried with the deluded
enthusiast in his coffin, as a sure passport to eternal blessed¬
ness. With the departure of the swarms of pilgrims, however,
even this poor semblance of active industry and prosperity
deserts the city. With the exception of some establishments
for soap-making, a tannery, and a very few weavers of coarse
cottons, there do not appear to be any manufactures pro¬
perly belonging to the place. Agriculture is almost equally
wretched, and can only give employment to a few hundred
people. The masses really seem to be without any regular
employment. A considerable number, especially of the
Jews, professedly live on charity. Many Christian pilgrims
annually find their way hither on similar resources, and the
approaches to the holy places are thronged with beggars,
who in piteous tones demand alms in the name of Christ
and the blessed Virgin. The general condition of the
JERUSALEM.
74T
Jerusalem, population is that of abject poverty. A few Turkish offi-
Ws/—^ cials, ecclesiastical, civil, and military; some remains of the
old Mohammedan aristocracy,—once powerful and rich, but
now much impoverished and nearly extinct,—together with
a few tradesmen in easy circumstances, form almost the
only exceptions to the prevailing indigence. There is not
a single broker among the whole population, and not the
smallest sum can be obtained on the best bills of exchange
short of Jaffa or Beirout.
rIke population of Jerusalem has been variously esti¬
mated by different travellers, some making it as high as
30,000, others as low as 12,000. An average of these esti¬
mates would make it somewhere between 12,000 and
15,000; but the Egyptian system of taxation and of mili¬
tary conscription in Syria has lately furnished more accu¬
rate data than had previously been obtainable, and on these
Dr Robinson estimates the population at not more than
11,500, distributed thus:—
Mohammedans  4,500
Jews  3,000
Christians    3,500
Popula¬
tion.
Total  11,000
If to this be added something for possible omissions, and
the inmates of the convents, the standing population, ex¬
clusive of the garrison, cannot well exceed 11,500. The
Moslems, it will be seen, exceed in number the Jews or
Christians respectively, but are much fewer than these two
bodies united. To all these classes Jerusalem is holy; and
is the only city in the world which peoples of such different
origin, races, language, and religions agree to regard with
nearly equal veneration.
The language most generally spoken among them is the
Arabic. Schools are rare, and consequently facility in read¬
ing is not often met with. The general condition of the
inhabitants has already been indicated.
The Turkish governor of the town holds the rank of
Pasha, but is responsible to the Pasha of Beirout. The
government is somewhat milder than before the period of
the Egyptian dominion; but it is said that the Jewish and
Christian inhabitants at least have ample cause to regret
the change of masters. Yet the Moslems reverence the
same spots which the Jews and Christians account holy,
the holy sepulchre only excepted ; and this exception arises
from their disbelief that Christ was crucified or buried, or
rose again. Formerly there were in Palestine monks of the
Benedictine and Augustine orders, and of those of St Basil
and St Anthony; but since 1304 there have been none but
Franciscans, who have charge of the Latin convent and the
holy places. They resided on Mount Zion [till a.d. 1561,
when the Turks allowed them the monastery of St Salvador,
which they now occupy. They had formerly a handsome
revenue out of all Roman Catholic countries, but these
sources have fallen off since the French Revolution, and the
establishment is said to be poor and deeply in debt. The
expenses arise from the duty imposed upon the convent of
entertaining pilgrims; and the cost of maintaining the
twenty convents belonging to the establishment of the
Terra Santa is estimated at 40,000 Spanish dollars a year.
Formerly it was much higher, in consequence of the heavy
exactions of the Turkish government Burckhardt says
that the brotherhood paid annually L. 12,000 to the pasha
of Damascus. But the Egyptian government relieved them
from these heavy charges, and imposed instead a regular
tax on the property possessed. For the buildings and landsi
in and around Jerusalem the annual tax was fixed at 7000
piastres, or 350 Spanish dollars. It is probable that the
restored Turkish government has not yet, in this respect,
recurred to its old oppressions. The convent contains fifty
monks, half Italians and half Spaniards. In it resides the
intendant or the principal of all the converts, with the rank
of abbot, and the title of Guardian of Mount Zion and Jeru8aleIn•
Gustos of the Holy Land. He is always an Italian, and v'—
has charge of all the spiritual affairs of the Roman Catholics
in the Holy Land. There is also a president or vicar, who
takes the place of the guardian in case of absence or death:
he was formerly a Frenchman, but is now either an Italian
or Spaniard. The procurator, who manages their temporal
affairs, is always a Spaniard. A council, called Descreto-
rium, composed of these officials and three other monks, has
the general management of both spiritual and temporal
matters. Much of the attention of the order is occupied,
and much of its expense incurred, in entertaining pilgrims
and in the distribution of alms. The native Roman Ca¬
tholics live around the convent, on which they are wholly
dependant. They are native Arabs, and are said to be
descended from converts in the times of the Crusades.
There is a Greek patriarch of Jerusalem, but he usually
resides at Constantinople, and is represented in the holy
city by one or more vicars, who are bishops residing in the
great convent near the church of the Holy Sepulchre. At
present the vicars are the bishops of Lydda, Nazareth, and
Kerek (Petra), assisted by the other bishops resident in the
convent. In addition to thirteen monasteries in Jerusalem,
they possess the convent of the Holy Cross near Jerusalem,
that of St Helena between Jerusalem and Bethlehem, and
that of St John, between Jerusalem and the Dead Sea. All
the monks of the convents are foreigners. The Christians
of the Greek rite who are not monks are all native Arabs,
with their native priests, who are allowed to perform the
church services in their mother tongue—the Arabic.
The Armenians in Jerusalem have a patriarch, with three
convents and 100 monks. They have also convents at
Bethlehem, Ramleh, and Jaffa. Few of the Arminians
are natives: they are mostly merchants, and among the
wealthiest inhabitants of the place; and their convent in
Jerusalem is deemed the richest in the Levant. Their
church of St James upon Mount Zion is very showy in its
decorations, but void of taste. The Coptic Christians at
Jerusalem are only some monks residing in the convent ot
Es-Sultan, on the north side of the pool of Hezekiah.
There is also a convent of the Abyssinians, and one belong¬
ing to the Jacobite Syrians.
The estimate of the number of the Jews in Jerusalem
at 3000 is given by Dr Robinson, on the authority ot
Mr Nicolayson, the resident missionary ta the Jews, and
seems to be confirmed from other sources. They inhabit
a distinct quarter of the town between Mount Zion and
Mount Moriah. This is the worst and dirtiest part of the
holy city, and that in which the plague never fails to make
its first appearance. Few of the Jerusalem Jews are na¬
tives : and most of them come from foreign parts to die in
the city of their fathers’ sepulchres. The greater propor¬
tion of them are from different parts of the Levant, and
appear to be mostly of Spanish and Polish origin. Few
are from Germany, or understand the German language.
They are for the most part wretchedly poor, and depend in
a great degree for their subsistence upon the contributions
of their brethren in different countries. These contribu¬
tions have of late years been smaller than usual, and, when
they arrive, are the occasion of much heartburning and
strife. The Scottish Deputation {Narrative, p. 148) say,
“ They are always quarrelling, and frequently apply to the
consul to settle their disputes. The expectation of support
from the annual European contributions leads many of them
to live in idleness. Hence there are in Jerusalem 500 ac¬
knowledged paupers, and 500 more who receive charity ia
a quiet way. Many are so poor that, if not relieved, the /
would not stand out the winter season. A few are shop
keepers, and a few more hawkers, and a very few are opera¬
tives. None of them are agriculturists,—not a single Jew
cultivates the soil of his fathers.”
748 J E R
Jervis. Consult Reisner, lerusalem Vetust. Descripta^ Erancof. 1563; 01-
v b j shausen, Zur Topographic d. alien Jerusalem, Kiel, 1833 ; Adricho-
mius, Jerusalem sicut Ohristi tempore floruit, Colon. 1593 ; Chrysanthi
(Beat. Patr. Hierosolymorum) Historia et Descriptio Terra: Sana-
tee, Urhisque Sanctce Hierusalem, Venet. 1728 (this work is in
Greek); D’Anville, Dissert, sur VEtendue de VAncienne Jerusalem,
Paris 1747; the articles on Jerusalem in Ersch and Gruber’s
Encyclopddie ; in Raumer’s Paldstina ; in Winer’s Realworterbuch ;
in Eugene Roger’s La Terre Saincte, ou Descript. Topographique
tres-particuliere des Sainctes Lieux, et de la Terre de Promission,
Paris 1646' and in Dr Robinson’s Ribl. Researches in Palestine;
with the additions since published in the Biblical Repository and
Bibliotheca Sacra; Stanley’s Sinai and Palestine ; also, the notices
of Jerusalem in the travels of Cotovicus, Zuallart, Radzivil, Mo-
rison, Nau, Sandys, Doubdan, D’Arvieux, Maundrell, Pococke, Nie¬
buhr, Clarke, Turner, Buckingham, Richardson, Richter, Jolliffe,
Jowett, Prokesch, Scholz, Monro, Hardy, Stephens, Paxton, Schu¬
bert, Olin, Stent, Formby, and the Scottish Deputation. Less im¬
portant notices may be found in other books of travels ; and the
Journals of Missionaries, printed in the Missionary Register, Ame¬
rican Missionary Herald, and Jewish Expositor, have occasional
notices of the Holy City. In regard to the Temple, consult
JERVIS, Sir John, Earl St Vincent, a distinguished
naval officer, was born at Meaford, in Staffordshire, on the
9th of January 1734, old style. His father, Lwynfen Jer¬
vis, Esq., was counsel and solicitor to the Admiralty, and
treasurer of Greenwich Hospital. Young Jervis was destined
for the law, but having contracted a dislike to that profes¬
sion, and a strong predilection for the sea, he ran away from
school, and expressed his determination to be a sailor. He
was therefore placed under Commodore Townsend, who was
at that time going out in the Gloucester as commander-in¬
chief to Jamaica. This was in the year 1748. In 1754
he was made a lieutenant out of the Prince into the Royal
Anne; and in the year 1759 he distinguished himself very
much at the siege and capture of Quebec, when General
Wolfe was killed. He was in consequence promoted by
Sir Charles Saunders, the commander-in-chief, to the rank
of commander, into the Porcupine sloop of war. In the
following year he was made a post-captain. He command¬
ed the Foudroyant in July 1778, when the memorable
rencontre took place between Admiral Keppel and Count
d’Orvilliers, and bore a very distinguished part in that ac¬
tion. In 1782 Captain Jervis fell in off Brest harbour
with the French ship Pegase, of seventy-four guns and
700 men, and took her after an engagement which lasted
three-quarters of an hour. The Pegase had eighty men
killed and wounded, while Captain Jervis and four men
only were wounded on board the Foudroyant. In conse¬
quence of this action, which at once raised his renown to
the highest pitch, he was created a knight companion of
the Bath. In 1784 he was elected member of parliament
for Launceston, and he afterwards sat for North Yarmouth.
In 1787 he was advanced to the rank of rear-admiral of the
blue, in 1793 to that of vice-admiral, and in 1795 he be¬
came admiral.
In November 1793 an expedition was fitted out to at¬
tack the French Caribbee islands, and Sir Charles Grey and
Sir John Jervis were nominated respectively to command
the land and sea forces to be employed on the occasion.
The expedition was at first completely successful, and
Martinique, St Lucia, and Guadaloupe, were surrendered
to the British arms. The French however succeeded in
retaking Guadaloupe, and the rainy season and the yellow
fever frustrated all the efforts of the British to regain pos¬
session of it. In 1795, on the resignation of Admiral
Hood, Jervis was appointed to the command of the British
fleet in the Mediterranean, and was employed in blockad¬
ing the French fleet in Toulon, and protecting our trade
in the Levant, a service which he performed with consum¬
mate skill and success.
In 1797 Admiral Jervis, with only fifteen ships of the
line, gained his celebrated victory over the Spanish fleet,
J E It
Lightfoot, Descriptio Templi Hieros., Opp. i., p. 533, sq. ; J. Jervis,
Bapt. Villalpando et Pradi, in Ezechiel; J. Jud. Leonis, libri v
quatuor, De Templo Hieros. tarn priori quam poster, ex Hebr. Lat.
vens, a J. Saubert, Helmst., 1665, 4to.; L. Capelli, Tpruytoti, sive
Triplex Templi delineatio, Amst. 1643, 4to. This is also inserted in.
the Critici Anglicani, tom. viii., and in the first volume of Walton’s
Polygott. Harenberg, in d. Brem. u. Verdisch. Biblioth. iv. 1. sq.;
573, sq.; 879, sq.; Bh. Lamy, De tabem. foed., urbe Hieros et de
Templo,B&r. 1720, sq.; Hirt, Der Tempel Salomons, Berl. 1809, 4to.
m. 3 Kpfrn.; Stieglitz, Gesch. der Baukunst, Niirmb. 1827, p. 125,
sq.; and Less, Beitrdge zur Qeschich. d. Ausbild. Baukunst, Leipz.
1834, i. 63, sq.; V. Meyer, Der Temple Salom., Berl. 1830; inserted
also in Blatter f. hdhere Wahrneue Folge, i.; Griineisen, im Kunstblatt
z. Morgenbl. 1831, No. 73-75, 77-80. Some more works are men¬
tioned by Meusel, Biblioth. Histor. i. ii., 113, sq. The best works
on the antiquities and history of the Jews contain also chapters il¬
lustrative of the temple. Among the biblical dictionaries, see es¬
pecially Winer’s Real-Wbrterb. sub “ TempelEzekieVs Temple,
being an attempt to delineate the Structure of the Holy Edifice, its
Courts, Chambers, and Gates, as described in the last nine chapters
of the Book of Ezekiel, with plates, by Joseph Isreels, London,
1827.
Consisting of twenty-seven ships of the line. The engage¬
ment, which took place off Cape St Vincent, on the 14th
of February, lasted about ten hours. The Spaniards were
completely defeated, and four sail of the line, two of 112,
one of 84, and one of 74 guns, were taken. The thanks
of both houses of Parliament were voted to the fleet, and
the commander-in-chief was created a peer, by the title ot
Earl of St Vincent. This victory was much more important
in its consequences than might be supposed from the mere
numerical loss which it caused to the enemy. It paralyzed
the power of Spain, gave encouragement to our allies, and
added fresh vigour to the efforts of the government in pro¬
secuting the war. The battle of Cape St Vincent was fol¬
lowed by the mutiny of the British fleet at Spithead; and
in the month of May and June following its effects were
felt in the fleet which was cruizing before Cadiz under the
command of Lord St Vincent. But the ringleaders were
executed, and the mutiny speedily repressed by the resolute
and determined conduct of the commander-in-chief: with a
combination of humanity and ingenuity eminently charac¬
teristic of the man, he contrived to make one execution
produce the effect of many, by ordering it on an unusual
day, Sunday morning. It was the practice to dispatch mu¬
tinous vessels to serve under his orders; and by his mas¬
terly operations of combined mercy and justice, he soon
reduced them to order, restoring discipline by such ex¬
amples as should be most striking, without being more
numerous than absolute necessity required. In June 1799
he resigned the command of the fleet, in consequence of
ill health, and returned to England in the month of August
following. On the resignation of Lord Bridport, and his
final retirement from active service, he was appointed to
the command of the Channel fleet, and in the spring of
1800 hoisted his flag in the Ville de Paris. In the follow¬
ing year, on the formation of the Addington ministry, he
was made first lord of the admiralty, and in that important
office the great capacity for business with which he was en¬
dowed by nature shone forth in all its lustre. He instituted
the celebrated Commission of Naval Inquiry, which not only
led to numberless discoveries of abuse and extravagance,
but laid the foundation of a system of economical adminis¬
tration, which has since been extended from the navy to all
the departments of the state. The extent of corruption
brought to light by the Commissioners of Naval Inquiry
almost exceeds belief. From the dockyard alone the go¬
vernment was plundered at the rate of a million sterling
annually; and the same nefarious practices prevailed in all
the other departments. Lord St Vincent grappled boldly
with these monstrous and deep-rooted abuses, and by his
unsparing rigour, inflexible honesty, and resistless energy,
succeeded in putting them down. “ It is impossible,” says
J E S
Jesi Lord Brougham, “ to calculate what would have been the
|] saving effected to the revenues of this country, had Lord
Jessore. Vincent presided over any great department of national
affairs from the beginning of the war, instead of coming to
our assistance after its close.” The resignation of Mr Ad¬
dington in 1804 put an end to the naval administration of
St Vincent, as first lord of the admiralty ; but the exigencies
of the state caused him in 1806 to be called from his well-
earned retirement and from the enjoyment of his domestic
comforts, at the age of seventy-two, to take the command
of the Channel fleet. He was at the head of the expedi¬
tion and the commission sent to the court of Portugal in
1806; and his conduct in that delicate and important affair
displayed great talents and address. In the spring of 1807,
advanced age and impaired health compelled him finally to
resign his command. The remainder of his life was spent
in retirement at his beautiful seat of Rochetts, where he
died on the 14th of March 1823, in the eighty-eighth year
of his age. The character of Lord St Vincent presented
an admirable union of the brightest qualities which can
adorn both civil and military life. As a statesman, he was
distinguished for his sagacity and foresight, and the pro¬
foundness of his views. He was a steady and consistent
supporter of liberal principles, ever preferring the side of
humanity and freedom. He was not more distinguished
for his great talents than for his magnanimity and complete
freedom from every feeling of jealousy or envy. And it has
been justly said by one who knew him well, that “ all good
officers, all good men employed under him, whether in civil
or military service, spoke of him as they felt, with admira¬
tion of his genius approaching to enthusiasm.” (Brenton’s
Life of Earl St Vincent; Lord Brougham’s Statesmen of
the Times of George ///.) (j. T.—R.)
JESI (the ancient JEsium), a walled city of the Papal
States, on the left bank of the iEsina, delegation of Ancona,
16 miles W.S.W. of the town of that name. It is the see
of a bishop, and has a cathedral, five churches, and twelve
convents. Pop. about 6000, chiefly engaged in the manu¬
facture of silk and worsted stockings.
JESSELMERE, a native state of Hindustan, in the
province of Rajpootana, situate between the 26th and 28th
degrees of N. Lat., and extending to the sandy desert, which
constitutes the western boundary of that province. It is a
barren country, being for the most part an uninterrupted
tract of sand, without rivers, and the wells being of very
great depth under ground.
The ruler of Jesselmere has an annual revenue of L.8500,
of which about one-half is derived from transit duties, and
the remainder from miscellaneous sources. A small mili¬
tary force maintained by the feudal chiefs is kept up for the
service of the state. The history of Jesselmere is little
known before 1808, when its ruler, alarmed at the encroach¬
ments of his neighbour, the chief of Bahawulpore, made ad¬
vances to an amicable understanding with the British go¬
vernment. This relation matured in 1818 into an alliance
by which Jesselmere became entitled to British protection,
and engaged to act in subordinate co-operation with the
British government, and with submission to its supremacy.
Jesselmere, the capital of this state, contains about 8000
houses, and a population of 35,000. Distant N.W. from
Calcutta 1290 miles. Lat. 26. 56; Long. 70. 58.
JESSORE, a district of the province of Bengal, to the
N.E. of Calcutta, bounded on the N. by the district of Pubna,
and on the E. by Dacca Jelalpoor, and Buckergunge; on
the S. by the Sunderbunds, and on the W. by Baraset and
Nuddea. It is 105 miles in length from S.E. to N.W., and
48 in breadth. The area, according to official statement, is
3512 square miles. The northern part of this district is
very fertile; but the southern division is in the Sunder¬
bunds, and composed of salt marshy islands covered with
trees. Some parts lie so low that embankments are found
J E S i?49
necessary to protect them against inundation. The land is. Jesuitism,
fertile, and produces rice, indigo, sugar, and tobacco in large '
quantities. The population, according to official statement,
is 381,744. According to recent authority, the Brahminists
form one-half of the population, the Mussulmans the other;
but this unusually large proportion of Mussulmans appears
remarkable in a tract so remote from the seat of their ter¬
mer empire in India. Jessore, the chief town, is situate
77 miles N.E. of Calcutta, in Lat. 23. 10., Long. 89. 10.
JESUITISM.—If a very few exceptive instances are
allowed for, it holds good as a rule, that canonization
shuts the door against authentic history. The instance
now before us has no claim to be regarded as one of those
rare exceptions. The existing memoirs whence we derive
our. knowledge of the personal history of the founder of
the order of Jesuits, are probably genuine, and, in the main
they may be authentic; but it is impossible that we, at this
time, should know them to be so. They contain indeed
little that should be regarded as improbable, and very
little that is absolutely incredible ; and even this little is
of a- kind which the practised reader of the literature
of the Calendar will find it easy to detach from the
places where it occurs without a disintegration of the
mass.
But then, in accepting these now extant materials, we
do so in simple faith; for scanty means, if any, are within
our reach by aid of which we might assure ourselves of the
truth of what we admit to be true, or might effect an ex¬
cision of the spurious parts. The life of “ St Ignatius,”
just such as we find it in the documents which the Church
of Rome and the Society itself recognise as authentic, is of
a kind which would attract no special notice. It would
take its place among instances without number of similar
conversions, and of equal intensities of feeling, and of ex¬
travagancies of behaviour not less absurd. The only kind
of surprise for which there can be ground in perusing the
biographies of Ignatius Loyola, is this—that a narrative ex¬
hibiting so little which is indicative of extraordinary intel¬
ligence, or of any rare qualities of the moral nature, should
be found standing at the head of a course of events which
has no parallel in the history of the human family. The
reader is impelled to exclaim, and to ask—“ Is this the man
from whose brain can have sprung the Jesuit institute
and its polity?” An answer in the affirmative can scarcely
be accepted apart from the supposition that the Jesuitism,
of which Loyola himself may be regarded as the author,
was little more than a germ-idea, caught at, cherished,
evolved, by minds of far greater compass than his own.
Be this as it may, no proper account of Jesuitism can be
presented without a preliminary, though it be a much con¬
densed, biography of the man who has been signalized as
its founder, and who undoubtedly bore sway as its chief,
through the period of its infancy and of its rapid growth.
The sources whence the customary notices of the life ot
Loyola have been drawn are, chiefly, those compilations
which the Society itself has put forth, or which it sanctioned
after the time when any independent testimony might have
been collected and appealed to.
The Bollandists, in their vast collection, the Acta Sanc¬
torum, have, in their usual elaborate manner, collected
those materials of Jesuit history which came to their hand.
These materials were digested and amplified by Orlandi-
nus ; and his voluminous memoir of the founder is the one
to which the Society has attached its sanction. The Jesuit,
John Peter Maffei, an agreeable writer, and author of a
History of the Indies, and a Life of the heroic St Francis
Xavier, has brought the narrative within moderate compass,
and given it a form acceptable to general readers. He ap¬
pears to have availed himself of the notes of a contempo¬
rary, Polancus, who had lived on terms of intimacy with
Loyola. Maffei’s book first appeared in 1585. Ludovico
750
JESUIT I S M.
Jesuitism. Gonsalvo, a Spaniard, and one who also had been Loyola s
companion, left memoirs relating to his master s earlier
years, and these notes carry an air of truthfulness and sim¬
plicity.
At a later time, the Jesuit Pietro Ribadeneira, taking
Gonsalvo’s Memoirs as his text, with which he combined
whatever had been done by his predecessors, compiled a
formal and very copious history of the founder of the order.
This writer differs in various instances from Maffei, and ge¬
nerally he does so when narratives involving the superna¬
tural are to be disposed of; in these cases he trenches as
little as possible upon the marvellous, and hastens forward
to set his foot on firmer ground. It is from the writers
above named that we are to learn all that can now be
known of the personal history of the founder.
Inigo de Recalde Loyola, the son of a nobleman of
Guipuscoa, was born in the year 1491. He was made a page
at the court of Ferdinand and Isabella, where he distin¬
guished himself in every accomplishment proper to a soldier
and courtier; and more than this, it is affirmed that he was
noted for the correctness of his behaviour, his respect for
religion, and his strict regard to truth. At this early age
he gave proof, we are told, of that sagacity which made him,
through life, master of the most hidden dispositions of those
around him ; and of that tact which enabled him to bend
all dispositions to his will. He had reached his twenty-
ninth year when an incident, so often related, gave a turn
to his mind, his purposes, and his course of life ; a turn to
which, as to an incidental cause, we must trace an evolution
deeply affecting the condition of Christendom through three
centuries.
The wound, which had spoiled this young gentleman’s
fortunes as a soldier and as a man of the gay world, had
been received at the siege of Pampeluna. The constitu¬
tional force of his will, which was displayed in submitting to
the cure of a badly set fracture, brought him near to death ;
but at the last moment he is restored by an immediate inter¬
vention—so he believes—of the “ Prince of the Apostles.”
A recovery protracted through many months, and which,
as he did not doubt, had taken its rise in a miracle of grace,
brought him into acquaintance with books of piety; and
the fervour of his temperament, thenceforward, took a cor¬
responding turn. The infinite, the unseen, and the eternal,
were accepted by him in place of whatever perishes in the
using, and which cloys even in the moment of possession.
The limping soldier becomes, not because it was his only
alternative, but with the full and free choice of his soul, the
man of prayer and of unconditional devotion to the most
arduous religious enterprises.
It is of some importance to remark that, on the probable
supposition of Loyola’s knowledge of Christian history
having been derived from one of those picture-book Gospels
which were in the hands of the laity at that time, we have
a clue to the fragmentary and excerptive character of his
first and chief literary work, the Spiritual Exercises. Of
Christianity he seems to have known just the main inci¬
dents of the life of Christ; but little or nothing of those
principles which are to be gathered from the apostolic
writings at large. Yet although, even to the last, he was
only a slender theologian, he had become, as if by intui¬
tion and in the first stage of his religious progress, a pro¬
found master of human nature, a skilfully exact physician
of souls, a prudent director of the I'eligious conscience, and
a master of all varieties of waywardness in religious feeling.
It is on this ground that we find him what we should look
for in the founder of a religious order.
_> That difficult subject, the devotion of some of the most
eminent Romish saints to the worship and service of the
“ Blessed Virgin,” meets us at the threshold of Loyola’s
personal history. Easy it may be to deal with this problem
in the instance of men like St Bernard, or Bonaventura, or
Ignatius Loyola, on principles purely psychological: the Jesuitism*
perplexity which meets us springs from the endeavour to
make so gross a form of polytheism consist with genuine
piety, in the Christian sense of the term. In this place we
do not attempt a solution of such a problem ; but yet, a pass¬
ing reference to it belongs to even the most hasty sketch
of the Jesuit institute, which has ever shown itself pre¬
eminently the “religion of Mary.” The personal conse¬
quences, as they affected the sentiments of this gallant
Spaniard and soldier, when he dedicated himself to the
“ Most Blessed Virgin,” are quite intelligible. It is also
easy to see, when we look to the ripened Jesuitism of a
later time, that a scheme of life founded upon the dethrone¬
ment of the individual conscience, and the neutralization of
genuine morality, should well consist with a sensuous con¬
ception of a female divinity, displacing the religious idea of
the Eternal and Infinite Being inflexibly true and holy.
There is no mystery thus far; but rather a satisfaction in
finding that an ethical system such as that of the “ Society ”
has consorted, as if by an instinct, with a theology so deeply
corrupted.
It was in the year 1522—a year memorable in the history
of the German reformation—that Loyola, by a formal act, de¬
dicated himself, body and soul, to the service of the “ Blessed
Mother of God and it was about this time, we are told,
that he composed the book—if book it can be called—en¬
titled Spiritual Exercises, and of which book something
more must presently be said. But an ambition, or a philan¬
thropy, which should embrace the human family, had already
begun to develope itself within him ; and its early prompt¬
ings led him to undertake nothing less arduous than the
conversion of the people of the East, even the Mohammedan
nations, Turks, Arabians, Persians. To carry out this vast
project his first step was a pilgrimage to the Holy Land.
The many adventures which befel him in this journey,
from which he returned in 1524, we must leave where
it may be found, on the ample pages of his biographers. In
the end the followers of the false prophet were necessarily
abandoned to their errors, and then it was Christendom
which he chose as the field of his mission; and on this
ground he encountered no similar disappointment, for al¬
though the Mohammedan nations remained unconverted,
yet he lived to see them environed on all sides, E. and W.,
by his agents, and, as it were, beleaguered by his institute.
A settled purpose, large in its bearing, must at this time
have lodged itself firmly in his mind ; for to secure success
in the prosecution of it, he submitted himself, being then in
his thirtieth year, to the irksome drudgery of acquiring the
learning with which he had formed no acquaintance in his
boyhood. If what has been related of their master’s »ourse
at this time by his disciples be simply true, the humiliations
he underwent, the assiduity he displayed, and the profici¬
ency which he made in his college training, afford proof the
most striking of a force of mind which must—which could
not but, prevail against all difficulties that were not abso¬
lutely insurmountable. During these years of personal
preparation he continued to exercise his peculiar gifts, both
as a spiritual adviser, and as a popular instructor.
About this time when Loyola’s course of theological study
in the University of Paris was drawing to its close, he
looked about for some who should be his companions and
coadjutors in carrying forward the scheme which he had
already devised for reforming the Catholic world. There
can be no doubt that he possessed, in a very eminent de¬
gree, the rare faculty which has enabled a few men to sur¬
round themselves with, and permanently to retain in their
service, minds of superior strength and of more varied ac¬
complishments. Several of those who, to the last, yielded
the place of power and honour to Ignatius Loyola, seem to
have been more than his equals in grasp of intellect, while
they far surpassed him in learning and in knowledge of the
JESUITISM.
Jesuitism, world. Of these eminent men who became, at length, the
' Fathers of the Society, the chief were,—Peter Faber, a
Savoyard, a man of fervent temper, and devout from boy¬
hood ; the heroic Francis Xavier, the illustrious apostle of
the Indies, who achieved a high renown for himself inde¬
pendently of Loyola, though not formally alienated from
him ; James Laynez, who succeeded him as general of the
order, and of whose intelligence and astuteness the Jesuit
polity was, as it seems, mainly the product—he is believed
to have compiled a principal part of the Constitutions of
the Society;—Alphonso Salmeron ; Nicolas Alphonso, sur-
na'med Bobadilla, a man of a penetrating spirit, and a master
in the knowledge of human nature; and Simon Rodriguez
d’Arevedo, a Spaniard of noble birth, and many accomplish¬
ments, as well as ardent piety and devotedness.
To these, who were Loyola’s earliest associates, were
added others in course of time. One of the most noted of
these was Claude le Jay; and it was by their aid, and as yield¬
ing themselves unreservedly to the will of the master mind,
that this band of devotees digested their scheme of life, fixed
themselves in their purpose in relation to the church and
the world, and imparted coherence and consistency to their
individual labours. It was these men who, in concert,
framed the Society of Jesus, and who, by that undiverted
intensity of purpose which marked them, launched it on its
course—a course of unexampled efficiency and power.
From this time forward we almost lose the clue whereby
to trace Loyola’s individual mind, as the mover of the Jesuit
polity, or as the mainspring of the Society; for it appears
that two, at least, of his companions—Laynez and Faber—
lent him the forces and the treasures of their minds entire,
and without conditions, as to any share of fame or visible
authority; they were content to witness the success of the
great enterprise to which they had committed themselves,
and to witness in silence its fast-spreading triumphs.
This band of men, dedicating themselves by a solemn
act, to the “ service of the Saviour,” and imploring the pro¬
tection and favour of “ Mary, the Queen of Virgins,” con¬
stituted themselves as a religious body, by vows and so¬
lemnities, on the 15th of August in the year 1534. But
this act did not constitute them a “religious order,” in the
authentic sense which that phrase carries in the Church of
Rome. To obtain the Papal sanction, which was needed
for this purpose, Loyola sent forward certain of his friends
to Rome in the year 1537; and there, for a length of time,
they urged their suit with the sovereign pontiff, Paul III.
What was at first asked was the apostolic sanction and
benediction in behalf of a missionary pilgrimage to the
Holy Land—a boon at length accorded. While awaiting
at Venice an opportunity for passing over the seas, the
three friends, Loyola, Laynez, and Faber, are believed to
have matured the principles of the institute, and to have
digested those maxims, so peculiar, when brought to bear
upon the consciences of the Jesuit agents, and upon secular
interests, which have seemed to contradict the first prin¬
ciples of morals, and to tend to the subversion of civil so¬
ciety. Yet these men must be thought of as sincere and
devout, and as in a sense philanthropists.
These “ Fathers,” after a year of waiting at Venice, found
they might excuse themselves from the mission they had
proposed, namely, to convert the Mohammedan nations, and
instead of so impracticable a task they turned themselves
toward that of renovating the Catholic world. A new ap¬
plication at Rome for authority was now needed; and in
this instance Loyola himself took the lead, as the originator
of the order, “ the Company of Jesus,” and having at length
obtained this grace, he thenceforward exercised the sway
belonging to him as its “ General.” The profession made
at this time included not merely the three vows of “ obe¬
dience, poverty, and charity;” but that of an unreserved
submission to the papal will, in all cases, and a dedication
751
of body and soul to the service of the church, and to the Jesuitism,
maintenance of the papal authority, especially as it was at
that time imperilled by the prevalent heresy of which Mar¬
tin Luther had been the mover. This last condition, al¬
though not verbally expressed, was no doubt clearly under¬
stood, and distinctly kept in view, as well by the Jesuit
fathers in offering themselves to the service of the papal
authority, as by this authority in accepting so timely an aid.
The papal bull which constituted the Society as a religious
order, by Paul III., is dated 1540. It was not until after
the date of this authentic recognition that Loyola’s election
as superior, or general, for life was formally made and
openly recognised.
Loyola possessed in a high degree that administrative
faculty which displays itself in the distribution of tasks, in
the classification of labours, in order, carried into the most
minute details of daily life in large establishments. It was
as thus gifted that he constituted the central Jesuit estab¬
lishment at Rome ; in which he secured economy in all
things, time especially, and the appointment of offices ac¬
cording to the individual ability of each member. It was
here that he realized, in the highest perfection, the mechan¬
ism in which living agents are at once the means and the
material. At the same time, and while himself extensively
employed as a spiritual adviser, or physician of souls, and as a
popular preacher also, the general originated and controlled
various missions to the several European states, as well
as to heathen lands. So it was, that, within a few years from
the date of the papal bull, the Society had established itself
in almost every country in Europe, as well as in many places
throughout the Old World and the New. Everywhere the
Jesuit had come to be in request as the man who, beyond
any others, was perfectly accomplished for whatever task it
was which he undertook; and it was he who never failed to
do his work well, whether it were as professor of the sciences
or as a schoolmaster, or as the guide of souls, or as confes¬
sor, or as the adviser of princes and statesmen, or even as
the superintendent of affairs purely secular and commercial.
Houses of the “ Order of Jesus ” in Spain, Portugal, France,
Germany, Italy, Sicily, India, had become the centres of
an influence toward which the eyes and thoughts, the fears
and the desires of minds, high and low, cultured and rude,
were incessantly directed. Each of these potent establish¬
ments, with their “ provincials,” maintained submissive de¬
pendence upon the home of the order at Rome. Thus it
was that the general held in his sole hand the reins of a
spiritual government which was rapidly spreading itself over,
and beyond the limits of the Christianized world.
With that prudence which belonged to Loyola as having
once been a man of the world, he, with inexorable firmness,
held his Society exempt from the cure of the souls of women,
though this had been importunately urged upon him ; those
instances alone excepted in which ladies of the highest rank,
by placing themselves under the guidance of a Jesuit father,
might be usefully employed at the courts of princes in
silently promoting the designs, or in protecting the interests,
of the Society. With a like firmness, and at the dictate of
the same sagacious perception of the remoter consequences
of any course of action, he maintained that rule of the order
which forbids a Jesuit to accept ecclesiastical dignities ot
any sort. Princes would gladly have welcomed Jesuit
bishops in their dominions ; but the general inexorably re¬
fused to give way to this desire, the issue of which, had he
allowed it, must have been to open, in the view of ambi¬
tious members of the Society, a prospect of honour and of
ease which would never consist with their devotion to its
proper purposes, or with their perfect submission to the
will of him to whose control they had surrendered every¬
thing.
But while the mitre and the hat were interdicted to the
Jesuit fathers, the office of confessor to kings and queens
752 J E S U I
Jesuitism. an(J emperors was eagerly accepted by them whenever prof-
fered. The reality of’ power, not its semblance or its pomps,
was thus secured for the purposes of the Society ; and it was
thus that the general* while strictly abstinent as to the hon¬
ours, and as to the revenues of the church, held in his hand,
available for uses of whatever kind, the consciences of po¬
tentates, the revenues of kingdoms, and, in a word, all things
earthly that might be employed for extending and confirm¬
ing a universal ghostly domination.
There were moments when this spiritual empire seemed
to be threatened from within ; and when a mind, a will, an
intelligence, springing up in some quarter, and as one might
say, not drawing its sap from the root of the Society, brought
the sovereignty of the one mind into question. The most
noted of these instances was that which occurred in Portu¬
gal, where the provincial Rodriguez had acquired at court,
as well as in the college ofler which he presided, a very great
personal influence—ai^ influence too great to consist with
that submissiveness whic Was the rule of the Society. Loyola
overcame, at length, yet not without much difficulty, this
rising opposition; but the extreme peril through which he
had carried his institute on this occasion, impelled him to
preclude, if possible, a recurrence of the like danger, by
embodying in a letter those principles upon a thorough
understanding of which the Society might repose. The
Letter on the Virtue of Obedience, addressed to the
Portuguese fathers, sets forth, in terms beyond the possi¬
bility of mistake, those axioms of the Jesuit institute which
constitute its very life, and which may be regarded as pe¬
culiarly characteristic of it.
Loyola had governed the Company of Jesus sixteen years:
these had been years of incessant toil, and often of urgent and
deep anxiety. In sustaining this burden his constitutional
energy had been quite expended ; and thus, as worn out,
he tranquilly expired at Rome, in his sixty-fifth year, July
1556.
Minds which, on the scale of intellectual power, occupy
extreme positions, the highest and the lowest, have often
this feature in common, that through their course they are
possessed by one idea, one form of thought, one purport and
end of existence. The difference between those of the
lofty and those of the low position is this, that while the
latter are habitually ruled by their single idea, the former
always rule it. A mind of the lower sort, when it is of the
religious order, becomes, according to its temperament, the
enthusiast, the fanatic, the zealot, the devotee, or the mys¬
tic transcendentalist. A mind of the higher sort, whose
element also is religion, shapes an orbit for itself athwart
the social system, draws a train of satellites in its track,
gives a new direction to human affairs, takes a place in his¬
tory, and, in a word, is such an one that Ignatius Loyola
might fitly be pointed out as among the most illustrious
samples of the class.
Loyola’s one idea, if it be allowable to think of him as
the founder of a religious order, was that of ruling the world
in respect of its now present and its palpable interests, not
by the universal diffusion of religious motives, not by fixing
the eyes of mortal men upon the invisible and the eternal
as their aim ; but by using the invisible and the eternal as
the fulcrum of his lever of government. It was, we must
assume, his sincere belief—and his sincerity we should not
question—that all things would go well in the w’orld, in a
world-ivise sense, if only it were brought into a state of ab¬
solute, unreasoning, ungainsaying submissiveness to a single
hand, ruling it for its good. But inasmuch as no immov¬
able prop for any such universal domination can be found
within, or upon the world itself, it must be sought for and
found in the world overhead, and in the world underneath
of this. I his then is Jesuitism, as imagined and originated
by its founder.
Loyola’s individual religious sentiment, and his benevo-
T I S M.
lence also, impelled him, at the same time, to labour for Jesuitism,
the purely religious welfare of the masses of the people,
wherever he might have access to them. He was a zealous
and effective street preacher and teacher, as well as from
the pulpit, and in the house, and the closet. This was his
occupation, in season and out of season.
But when we look into the Jesuit system, considered as
an institute framed for exerting a lasting influence in the
world, we find it adapted to purposes of a very different
order. To ascertain what those purposes are, we may
either appeal to the notorious facts of its history, through a
track of two centuries, or we may examine the constitutional
documents of the Society, such as they were framed and
left in the hands of Loyola’s immediate successors. In fact,
both these courses of inquiry should be pursued, and we
now proceed to indicate, very briefly, in what manner, as
we think, they should be carried forward.
DOCUMENTARY JESUITISM.
By the constitutional documents of Jesuitism, we mean
those writings, tracts, digests of laws, or expositions, which
the Company has from the first recognised as authentic, and
to which it appeals as embodying the mind, the principles,
and the practices of the order. These are,—ls£, I he book
alleged and believed to be Loyola’s own composition—viz.,
the Spiritual Exercises ; 2d, The letters addressed to the
Portuguese Jesuits, On Obedience, and which are also be¬
lieved to be Lovola’s own; 3c?, Phe Constitutions, and the
Directorium, which probably were wholly composed, or
digested by his immediate coadjutors, Laynez, Faber,
Aquaviva, and others. At a later time there was brought
to light, unadvisedly as it seems, the ]\Ionita Secreta, be-
lieved, however, to be a spurious production. A word then
for these documents in their order.
The Spiritual Exercises .—This book, when the impor¬
tant place it has held in the Jesuit Institute is remembered,
will not be looked into by the modern reader without a
mingled feeling of disappointment, amazement, and perhaps
contempt. It is not a summary of Christian doctiines it
conveys no particle of instruction j it is not a collection of
deep meditations ; it is not a diary of those alternations ot
sorrow and joy, depression and hope, which have filled the
religious life of some eminent Christians ; it is a manual
of fso called) religious manoeuvres, or manipulations, upon
and concerning sacred subjects ; the tendency and spirit of
the whole being in the last degree mechanical. As opposed
to what might be intellectual and reflective, it is perfunctory;
as opposed to what is imaginative, it is sensuous or beggarly ;
as opposed to what is spontaneous and nobly free, it is
slavish and stupifying. In conjecturing the probable re-
suits of a month’s drilling—for a month is the time assigned
to the entire course—regard must be paid to themoial and
intellectual condition of those who submit themselves to
such a treatment. A course like this, with its attendant
seclusion in a cell, and abstinence from the incitements of
pleasure or ambition—a four weeks’ discipline carried foiw ard
in accordance with these prescriptions, might in a usefu
manner revive the decayed religious recollections of
the world, supposing them to retain enough of religious
conscience to make them uneasy while pursuing a course
of lawless indulgence or ambition. There are also sedate,
saturnine, and feeble natures to which this discipline would
be well adapted. Men of this order might yield themselves
inertly to so mechanical a scheme of life, and go on well in
its trammels. As to strong minds, and as to the cultured,
the month’s task could be nothing but a temporary abnega¬
tion of their faculties of reason and feeling; it must induce
a state of mind wholly factitious, and which must c°me to
its end without result or product other than that ol leaving
J E S U
Jesuitism, upon the memory a repugnant and humiliating recollection,
and upon the manners and style of behaviour a stiffness and
conventional hypocrisy. The reader who is already better
taught than this strange book can teach him, may glean
from it—especially from its latter chapters—some few use¬
ful hints applicable to the religious life. On the whole, the
Spiritual Exercises is to be regarded as an engine of
spiritual despotism,—a tool for crushing the moral and in¬
tellectual life, preparatory to the function which the Jesuit
will be required to fulfil.
The Letter on Obedience, addressed, as mentioned
above, to the refractory Jesuits of Portugal, is, on suffi¬
cient grounds, attributed to Loyola himself. It was com¬
posed in 1553, three years only before his death, and it may
be regarded as embodying, within the compass of a few
pages, the very principle, the very distinctive element, of
the Jesuit institute; and whoever wishes to understand this
profound scheme of polity, and to form his judgment upon
it, considered in its relation to the axioms of universal mo¬
rality, or to Christian precepts, or in its bearing upon the
wellbeing of nations, should read, and read again, this re¬
markable document. It is true that a doctrine nearly ap¬
proaching that maintained in this Letter, may be gathered
from the pages of some monastic writers, and is implied in
the rules of some of the religious orders. But the differences
are these two,—in the first place, in this Letter the Jesuit
rule of obedience, involving,as it does, the stagnation of the
intellectual faculties, and a total abrogation of the indivi¬
dual conscience, is expressed in terms far more absolute,
reckless, and unexceptive than had hitherto been anywhere
heard; and, in the second place, this doctrine had hereto¬
fore been addressed to those only, who, having renounced
the world, and living or professing to live apart from it,
might, with little risk of serious ill consequences, profess
any sort, and practise any degree, of submissiveness to the
will of their superior. Obedience, within the walls of a
monastery, was obedience in the midst of a routine of inani¬
ties. But the Jesuit dogma of obedience was to be car¬
ried out and acted upon in the throng of the busy world.
The Jesuit, deeply concerning himself, as he did, with the in¬
terests of the social system—domestic and municipal—and
meddling always, when he could do so, with affairs of state,
did this, not as an individual moral agent who is in some
degree mindful of the quality of his personal acts, and
who judges them to be lawful or criminal; but as a being
who has surrendered his responsibility—his conscience,
whole and entire, and unconditionally, into the hands of a
superior. In the sense of this Letter on Obedience, there
is but one sin of which a Jesuit can possibly be guilty—
namely, disobedience, or the mere thought which might
impel him to call in question the rectitude of the commands
of his principal.
The Constitutions of the Society, or that body of rules
and methods which are the law of the community, relate to
the practices and the routine that attend the selection and
admission of members; to the classification of those actually
admitted, according to their individual qualities; to the re¬
jection or exclusion of candidates, and to the government
of the body by provincials and a General, who was chosen
for life, including also a provision made for holding this au¬
tocrat in check, or even for removing him from his place in
extreme cases. The reader, whom we may suppose already
to have acquired, from the perusal of the Spiritual Exer¬
cises, and the Letter above mentioned, an idea of the spirit
of the Jesuit institute, will find himself perplexed when he
looks into these, its forms and its modes of procedure, as
set forth in the Constitutions, if he endeavours to divine
what may be the real object—the practical purport or end
arrived at by so vast and elaborate a scheme of discipline
and government. What final purposes are to be the result
of a method and of a mechanism so profoundly contrived,
VOL. XII.
I T I S M. 753
so far-reaching in its means, and so appalling in the condi- Jesuitism,
tions which it imposes. v
Of this problem the documents in our hands afford no
solution. To these reasonable questions no answer is re¬
turned by any of those writings to which the Society has
been used to make its appeal when challenged to vindicate
its doings before the world. If we grant, as we may, that
Jesuitism is, to a certain extent, a religious institute, in¬
tended, like the more ancient monastic orders, to promote
and carry forward the individual piety of its members, or to
diffuse religious principles among the people, there yet re¬
mains, after these intelligible purposes have been secured,
a vast apparatus in excess, which can have no relationship
to objects or ends of this sort. What then are the ends which
this deep scheme actually has in view ? An answer to this
question must be sought for in following the Jesuit Society
through its history, from its earliest days to recent times.
It is this history which expound^tlfe Code and the Consti¬
tutions, of which Ignatius Loyola is the reputed author.
The Constitutions, as originally put forth, have become
embossed—if so we may speak—with copious expositions,
and they are followed by a body of instructions called the
Directorium, which adapt the general principles to a vast
variety of special cases. From these sources are to be ga¬
thered a true notion of the methods—peculiar to itself—ot
enforcing confession, and of surrounding every Jesuit with
a network of delation. These practices which are the spe¬
cial characteristics of Jesuitism, as distinguished from Ro¬
manism, and from the pre-existing monastic orders, call
for the closest attention, if we would, in a thorough manner,
and with philosophic impartiality, come to an understanding
of this, the most notable of all the religious schemes which
the world has ever seen or tolerated.
If in inquiring concerning the Company of Jesuits,
such as it had become at the time of Loyola’s death, we
were to measure it against the systems, the institutions, and
the men of that time, its one prominent characteristic, its
main distinction, would appear to be this, that it had at its
command, at every moment, the unscrupulous services of a
large number of men, fitted by natural talents, and by the
most careful training, for functions, offices, and labours of every
kind—spiritual, intellectual, political, economical, and even
commercial. The selection of its agents from among the
number, each well adapted by natural talent for the func¬
tion assigned to him, is clearly the principal intention of the
Constitutions, of the Directory, and of the other documents
of the Society. Then, the fit men having been secured,
their discipline and training was the second principal care
of the Society ; and then the distribution of them over the
world was the third. In relation to almost every depart¬
ment of human labour, men of this Society were found to be
better instructed than any others ; they were by natural
talent better adapted to their special tasks; they w^ere more
diligent, more assiduous, more self-denying and indefati¬
gable ; and, in a word, they were more practically efficient,
and they were more successful, than their competitors on the
same lines of labour. In any circle of affairs, public or
private, the Jesuit of that early time was the Joseph in
Potiphar’s house. It can be no marvel, therefore, if every¬
where his valuable services were sought for, and were highly
prized. It was especially so in whatever related to the
business of education, whether in schools or colleges; and
also in the delicate position courted for its members, namely,
that of directing the consciences of statesmen and princes/
The duties or offices which the Society professed at the
first to undertake, and which have ostensibly filled its hands,
and limited its views, were, as we have said, the cure of
souls, the conversion of heathen nations, and the education
of the young. But the work upon which, in fact—so we
must infer from its history—the mind of the leaders of the
Jesuit company has been always intensely fixed, but con-
5 c
*
754
JESUITISM.
Jesuitism, cerning which it has observed a discreet silence, was the
y ~ ^ > giving the aid of its casuistical direction to men in power,
and to women also, upon whose influence the turn of poli¬
tical affairs so often depends. It has been the discharge of
this occult function which has given its character to the
Society ; it has been the immoral refinements which it has
been compelled to invent or to adopt in discharging this
function which have drawn upon it general reprobation and
hatred and which have made it the object of well-founded
jealousy and fear in almost every country, Catholic as well
as Protestant.
The Jesuit missions among the heathen have been illus¬
trated by instances of Christian zeal and devotedness, such
as have never been surpassed; while at the same time these
very missions have exhibited, as in India, and in South
America, those characteristics of the Jesuit institute which
are the most to be reprobated, namely—its unscrupulous
compromises with pagan superstitions and vices, and its
pursuit of worldly influence and power, as in Paraguay,
apart from any genuine zeal for the spiritual, or even temporal,
well-being of the people whom it has assumed to govern.
In like manner the Jesuit scheme of education has dis¬
played the highest merits on the one side, combined always
with a vitiating element, which, if it had prevailed without
counteraction, must have led the mind of Europe in a back¬
ward direction, from the bright course it had entered upon,
toward the dim regions of intellectual stagnation. No
teachers, no professors, were more assiduous, or more able,
than the Jesuits who placed themselves at the head of
schools and colleges in the sixteenth century. Seldom
could their rivals compete with them. But the education
thus conveyed had a uniform characteristic—it was station¬
ary, not germinant; it was dogmatic, not suggestive ; it was
static, not dynamic. The most ample and exact acquaint¬
edness with things as they are was conveyed by the J esuit
teachers ; but along with this proficiency there was a pro¬
hibition, tacit or explicit, of inquiry or progress. Whereas
in the sixteenth century the human mind had received an
irresistible impulse, carrying it forward in all directions
over the field of action and of speculation, the Jesuit in¬
stitute, considered as an educational scheme, came forward
to stay or to neutralize that impulse by offering so to teach,
and so to train the mind of Christendom as should render
inquiry needless, and advancement undesirable. To some
extent this endeavour to supplant the opening science of
the age, and to arrest movement, actually took effect; and
it might have done so in a degree that would have been
fatal to our modern advancement, if the Jesuit body had
not, at an early time, so displayed its vicious tendencies in
another sphere as to awaken salutary distrust and alarm
throughout Europe.
This reaction against the Jesuit body took its rise within
the circle of political movements, where it had already
whispered doctrines against which the moral instincts of
men prompted them to make an outcry.
SKETCH OF THE HISTORY OF THE ORDER.
In taking a glance at the history of the order of Jesuits,
there is little that can command attention beyond the field
of its interference with the political interests of the Euro¬
pean nations. So far as Jesuitism was an outbreak of re¬
ligious fervour—and so far, when thus thought of, as
it served in a time of laxity to reanimate the Roman Ca¬
tholic world, and thus to maintain Catholicism against the
assailing forces of the Lutheran and Calvinistic reforma¬
tion—thus far, the Society may be regarded as having been
a seasonable and useful conservative energy ; for, unless the
Church of Rome had at that moment found, and had availed
itself of this aid, or of some aid of the same kind, it may
well be believed that the Romanized Christianity which
was destined for a lengthened term to hold the nations of Jesuitism,
southern Europe in a visibly Christian condition, must have
given way to the hostile force, so that the places which
knew it once should have known it no more. This was
not to be. The reformation was itself far from being such
as that the world could take it up as an ultimate type of
Christian belief and worship ; it was a sudden reaction from
the errors and corruptions of many ages; it was moreover
a violent reaction ; it drew with itself large fragments of
ancient errors, and an abundance also of crude novelties,
and it was hurried forward by the tempests of the political
world, and swayed this way and that by cross undercurrents.
The German, the Swiss, the English, and the Scotch refor¬
mations—all and severally—were temporary forms of Chris¬
tianity which could retain their own coherence only so long
as they were each of them forcibly compacted by the vigor¬
ous circumjacent pressure of the old religion. The vivid
zeal and the Protestant feeling of some overweening per¬
sons may prompt them to resent an averment of this sort,
which, however, may be assented to without any peril by
those who know howto hold fast their Christianity, while they
forget their Protestantism. But Jesuitism, so far as it came
in to save the Roman Catholicism of southern Europe, had
done its destined work at an early time; or we might say,
about the time when the Protestant evangelic fervour had
subsided throughout the reformed nations. This counter¬
active energy had well spent itself on both sides toward the
close of the seventeenth century. Thus far, therefore, the
history of Jesuitism stands on record as a short chapter in
the general history of the great religious movement of the
sixteenth century. Thought of in this way, it may be
granted that Martin Luther found his complement in Igna¬
tius Loyola.
The history of Jesuitism, we have said, must mean its
political history, and this is a dark narrative of a guileful
interference with the course of national affairs ; dark enough
even when left to work itself out in its own way, but de¬
riving a deeper colour, a fouler stain, from this source ; not
so much because crimes more flagitious were committed by
the hands, or at the instigation of Jesuit agents, but be¬
cause the Jesuit—whether suggesting crimes, or employed
in smoothing the path of the criminal, or in extracting the
sting of remorse—went about his work with refined reason¬
ings, with an apparatus of orderly logic, with a carefully
adjusted scheme of spurious ethics, which, as often as it
made one man actually a criminal, prepared a hundred for
walking in the same path. An aggravated mischief cannot
but ensue in the social system when men who have been
used to do ill at the blind impulse of sensual passions, cu¬
pidity, ambition, learn to do the very same things as recom¬
mended and palliated by sophistries. Those astute writers,
who, at a very early time after the death of Loyola, and
while his immediate successors were still living, gave them¬
selves to the task of moulding an ethical system suited to
the varied requirements of Jesuit confessors, may be re¬
garded as compiling in cypher the blackest passages of the
history of the courts of southern Europe for 150 years for¬
ward. The series of casuistic writers that is immortalized
in the Provincial Letters—such as Sanchez, Molina, Bau-
ney, Bobadilla, Escobar—are the expositors of the couise
of events in all those countries where the “ Company of
Jesus” had reared its establishments, and had been treated
with favour by kings, queens, and statesmen. Peruse these
casuists, make yourself master of the doctrine they profess
for giving nerve to the arm of the assassin, and you aie
furnished with a sort of programme of the tragedies o
European history, through the course of the following
century. Sweeping statements of this sort, condemnatoiy
of communities of men, may be true in substance ; but they
should never stand alone, as if they might be taken as un-
exceptionallyand universally true. Counter-statements, we
JESUITISM.
Jesuitism, sustained by evidence, and assented to by eminent writers,
not of the Society, have been advanced; and every candid
mind will rejoice to find that, in relation even to the Jesuit
Society, as to almost every other institute or community, it
is true that the better impulses of human nature largely
avail to correct and to modify the vicious tendency of sys¬
tems, and of codes, and of written doctrines.
Within the borders of Protestant countries it was inevi¬
table that the Jesuit should be regarded, and should be
dealt with also, not so much as the teacher of a reprobated
religion, as a conspirator, as an incendiary, as a convicted
enemy of the there established government. In particular
instances, unwarrantable severities may have been enacted ;
but, as a rule, the paramount reasons of self-preservation
must be held to bear out every infliction under which the
Jesuits of those times suffered. In England, for instance,
the proclamation of James I. (1604), and the procedures
thence resulting, infringed no rule of a just polity, if it be
granted that every government must sustain itself against
the machinations of traitors, or of agents of a foreign power,
found lurking about palaces, and waylaying princes with
daggers under their cloaks. Even in these times, if treason
were rife—if disaffection were widely spread—if a pre¬
tender to the throne were at hand—any class of men pro¬
fessing the principles, or known to be governed by the
principles, that are avowed by Jesuit writers, must be sum¬
marily disposed of.
In France the presence of the Jesuits, and their admitted
influence at court, under the protection of the Cardinal de
Lorraine, and the expulsion of the order at a much later
time (1764), all involve facts and reasons of a far more com¬
plicated order than those belonging to the same questions
as affecting England. Jealousies, alarms, hati'eds, the
balancing of parties in the Gallican church, and in the uni¬
versities, the inclinations of the court (that of Francis II.
and his successors), and that tendency towards freedom of
thought and action which already was at work among the
people, all these, and other undefined influences, give com¬
plexity to those struggles which ended in the suppression of
the order. The first expulsion of the order from France
dates 1592. They were recalled in 1603; but finally ex¬
pelled in 1764, occasioned by the failure of its trading opera¬
tions. From the first, the Jesuit teachers and professors
were able to place themselves in a position of indisputable
advantage as men of more energy and assiduity, and of
higher accomplishments, than were generally the doctors of
the Sorbonne, or the existing professors in colleges and
schools. On this ground the competitors were very un¬
equally matched ; or it was so in all instances but one ; the
eminent—the pre-eminent—men of Port-Royal, were well
qualified in all branches to dispute the ground with the
most noted of the Jesuit teachers. A mortifying conscious¬
ness of this unlooked-for and yet indisputable fact—the
existence of a body of learned and accomplished men,
highly esteemed also for their piety, their orthodoxy, and
their personal virtue, worked its way to the heart of the
J esuit Society, and suggested a purpose of vengeance which
was at length triumphantly realized in the destruction of
their rivals. The damage and the humiliation which had
accrued to the Society from the Provincial Letters might
now be patiently borne by the “ reverend fathers,” for they
could take to themselves the comfort of knowing that they
had moved the besom of royal violence to sweep over the
home of their enemies—Port-Royal was no more.
An antagonism of another sort took place between the
Jesuits and the clergy of the Gallican church, on the ground
of those principles of national independence which were
then in favour. Jesuitism, by its vow and its spirit, was
ultramontane in the most extreme sense. Nothing which
Hildebrand had affirmed, no enormity which Innocent III.
had carried into effect, revolted the Jesuit leaders or writers
755
of the sixteenth or seventeenth centuries. The papal Jesuitism.’
authority—regarded as the visible and audible will of »
Christ—could acknowledge no limit on earth, could yield
itself to no gainsaying. But by a large proportion of the
clergy of France these notions were repudiated, and an
appeal to the judgment of councils through a course of ages,
supported a very different belief, which yet was held to
consist with a due regard to the chair of St Peter. On
this ground, therefore, the Jesuits in France found them¬
selves—among Catholics—the advocates of an anti-national
doctrine: they might believe themselves to be firmly esta¬
blished in the closet of the sovereign, but they could never
feel themselves to be welcome, or at home, in the church,
or in the nation. The Jesuit’s church principles were dis¬
liked and rejected ; his machinations were not unknown ;
the corrupt morality which he taught at court, and whenever
among private persons it might, with advantage, be ad¬
vanced—these several grounds of exception, of suspicion,
of dislike, attached to the members of the order in France,
as decisively almost as in England, although under different
conditions.
In other Catholic countries—as throughout the domains
of Charles V., and in Portugal, whence the Society was ex¬
pelled in 1759, and in Venice, where at an early date (1606)
it gave ground, and in Sicily, in 1767—the Jesuit establish¬
ments made themselves obnoxious on somewhat different
grounds. These governments found and felt themselves
to be enveloped in the meshes of a mute organization, which
held on to a distant and foreign authority—an organization
which, spreading its fibres in the most intimate way through¬
out the very substance of the social system, domestic as well
as political, acted in both directions—the centrifugal and
the centripetal; that is to say, as an omnipresent reporter
of all things, and as a universal influence controlling all
affairs, under the direction of a power inaccessible and re¬
sponsible to none—amenable nowhere. Loyola, or who¬
ever it might be that was the contriver of the Jesuit insti¬
tute, might have foreseen that course of events which ensued
in almost every country within which it had at first tri.
umphed—namely, that it must come to be regarded as poli¬
tically incompatible with the security of civil government,
whether autocratic or democratic. This incompatibility
would be felt not less vividly in countries that were firmly
Catholic, and intolerant of dissent, than in Protestant coun¬
tries : the consequence was, the expulsion of the order
from countries the most orthodox, as well as from the here¬
tical.
Justice to the Jesuit Society demands that general allega¬
tions of this sort should be accompanied with modifying
statements. In several instances—especially in that of the
harsh and cruel measure of the Portuguese government, in
concert with that of Spain, in 1750 and 1759—the Jesuit
fathers were made the victims of state policy, taking its
course in utter contempt of reason, truth, religious feeling,
and common humanity. The history of the missions in
Paraguay and Brazil, and the narrative of the violences
attempted and perpetrated in these countries by the two
Catholic governments, are of a kind to engage the sympa¬
thies of the reader strongly and entirely on the side of the
Society. Little as we may approve of the principles which
guided those missions, it is a fact not to be disputed, that,
through a long course of time, the Jesuit rule secured to
the aboriginal tribes an incalculably larger amount of social
and individual well-being than they could have enjoyed in
their natTve condition; or, need it be said, under the fero¬
cious rule of their European conquerors.
But when Jesuitism had become the object of dread, ot
jealousy, and of dislike to the Papacy—that is to say to the
pontiff and his immediate ministers, it was on a different
ground. At a very early time the pope had seen that the
vow of unconditional obedience to the vicar of Christ had
JESUITISM.
756
Jesuitism, absolutely no meaning, whenever occasions arose which
made this silent submission, or submission at all, inconve¬
nient. The Jesuit doctrine was, that its vow of obedience
included not merely an outward compliance with the com¬
mand of a superior, but a conformity of soul and judgment
also—an inward and absolute approval of such commands,
whatever might be the contrary dictate of a man’s indivi¬
dual judgment and conscience: he must not only say that
white is black, but think it so. Then this outward obedi¬
ence, and this inward congruity of the will, forbade any at¬
tempt, even in the most urgent instances, to persuade the
superior, or to bring him over by argument, by expostula¬
tion, by entreaty, to another mind. Nothing can be more
clear or more imperative than are the several statements of
this doctrine wherever it presents itself in the authentic
writings of the Society. Yet notwithstanding these profes¬
sions, and in the face of them, Loyola himself, and the
generals who succeeded him, never scrupled to use every
sort of disuasive importunity, when they thought it desir¬
able to turn aside the sovereign pontiff from some course
which they judged to be prejudicial to the interests, or
damaging to the influence, of the Society. None could sur¬
pass the Jesuit General in silent obsequiousness, when this
humble mood suited him ; none so daringly contumacious
as he, when it did not suit him to submit. If then the
popes regarded the Society as a powerful auxiliary, they
well understood also that it retained always a will of its
own, which they could not control. The Society was at
best a “fast and loose” ally.
This significant fact had betrayed itself from the first,
and had been signalized several times during the lifetime
of Loyola and of Paul IV. Such were those occasions
when the general obtained release for his Society from the
spiritual care of women, unless indeed, and this was an ex¬
ception easily allowed, when ladies who sought the aid of a
Jesuit confessor, occupied high positions at the court of
princes. Such also was that occasion when the rule was
to be maintained which forbade a Jesuit to accept a bishop¬
ric, or a benefice of any kind. The same practice of obe¬
dience, whenever convenient, and of contumacy on special
occasions, had been freely resorted to in relation to the
missions of the Society. At a time when the compromising
behaviour of the Jesuit missionaries in India and China
had become known in Europe, and had raised an outcry
throughout Christendom, the popes made repeated endea¬
vours to bring these propagandists back to a course of
Christian simplicity and purity. These remonstrances,
these injunctions, were scarcely heeded; they seemed
scarcely to have become audible after they had traversed so
many thousand miles. It was manifest that the “ Company
of Jesus” was governed, not merely from within, but that it
had an independent life, and an object of its own, and that
it might, as occasion arose, pursue its private ends in spite of
injunctions, of decretals, of bulls, of anathemas. Hitherto no
religious body had grown up within the pale of the Church
which could in any comparable degree alarm the Papacy.
This jealousy and alienation had gone on always increas¬
ing, until it came to its natural issue in the decree of Cle¬
ment XIV. in 1773, suppressing the order. At that time
the relative forces of the two powers had become such as
to render this act possible on the part of the Church. Be¬
sides that the Society, like every human combination spring¬
ing into life with great energy, had by this time lost very
much ot its interior vitality; and it had, moreover, con¬
centrated upon itself, from all quarters, an amount of op¬
probrium quite unexampled in any instance which might
be brought into comparison with it. Religious orders had
indeed often fallen into contempt from their laxity, and
their departure from the spirit and rule of their founders.
But the Jesuit institute had become hateful just because
It had realized its original principle, and had fully developed,
in act, the incurable viciousness of its constitution, of its Jesuitism,
maxims, of its distinctive tendency. Other religious bodies y-w'
might retrace their downward steps, they might admit re¬
forms, and might regain their position in the world’s esteem.
But as to the order of Jesuits, the fact had at length become
incontestably certain—it was a truth uncontradicted (out of
the Society)—that to this body a renovation, and a return to
its primitive health, would be nothing less than a universal
calamity—would bring every civil polity, every social in¬
terest, into peril. The act, therefore, which suppressed this
order was borne out, and was assented to by the implicit
approval of the European nations, Catholic not less than
Protestant. In truth, it was by the urgency of the Catholic
governments that Pope Ganganelli had been led, or driven,
to take this course, which he did with the show, at least, of
extreme reluctance. It was thenceforward in heretical Prus¬
sia and schismatic Russia that the Society found an asylum.
Yet from Russia they were expelled by Alexander in 1817.
The events of the next following forty years were of that
sort which could not but induce a reaction within the pale of
the Church, and which would favour and bring on a resus¬
citation of Jesuitism. Pius VII. yielded to an influence in
re-establishing the order, which was almost as distinctly
expressed as that which had had its effect with his prede¬
cessor in abolishing it. A deluge had swept over Europe
in this interval ; a tornado had laid waste the Church;
heresy and atheism had reared themselves aloft, and had
appeared to be in course for utterly obliterating religious
belief, or such religious belief as the Roman Catholic
Church could recognize, from the minds and consciences
of men. The time, therefore, was come for having re¬
course anew to the most potent restoratives ; nor could any
means be devised so effective, or so near at hand, with this
view, as a revival of the Jesuit order. It was called upon,
therefore, at a time of need, to repeat its first services to
the Church, and at the same time to redeem for itself the
esteem which it had universally lost.
During the period that has elapsed since the re-establish¬
ment of the Society—now more than forty years—it has pur¬
sued its course, we may suppose, to the satisfaction of its
patrons and employers. Undoubtedly, the Jesuit influence
has come in to the aid of that reaction which has taken
place throughout, and still more beyond, the limits of the
Roman Catholic world. Every sort of tendency which there
may be to seek for and to accept infallible authority in
matters of religion, would meet Romanism under its Jesuitic
form. It is the Jesuit who must be stationed at the gate
of the Church to welcome and encourage returning and
repentant heretics. The antique religious orders possess no
powers of adaptation fitting them for a work of this sort;
in every sense they are superannuated. But the very cha¬
racteristic of Jesuitism is its appliant or polymorphous qua¬
lity. It knows perfectly who and what the repentant are.
It knows how those feel who stray away from Protestant
communions, and what are likely to be their difficulties in
seeking to return to the Catholic Church ; then it has a
perfect command of the pharmacopoeia of Romanism, and
more than all, it has always a choice of agents, among whom
it may find the very one who can best adapt himself to the
humours of the individual patient.
In labours of this sort, the restored Jesuitism of our
times has no doubt rendered great service to the Romish
Church. It has also made some progress in recovering the
position it once occupied as the director of education, po¬
pular and professional. Something, also, in recent times, it
may have effected in that which we must call its proper
work—political intrigue. But beyond these faint revivals of
the parts it played throughout the world in the seven¬
teenth century, there is little which is now possible to this
once formidable association ; and henceforward every new
development of the substantial forces of the social svstem
J E S J E S 757
Jesus, must remove to a still greater distance an interfering force,
such as that of Jesuitism. As measuring itself in turn
against each of these energies, this force must be conscious
of its insignificance. Our modern science, in its irresistible
onward course, tramples down the Jesuit non-progress edu¬
cational system. Popular enlightenment supersedes its la¬
bours on lower ground ; the triumphs of mechanical science,
and, along with these, the irrepressible energies of com¬
merce, are leaving in the rear, and far behind, those move¬
ments which obey the tardy tortuosity of the religious ma-
chinator. Railways, steam navigation, electric telegraphs, in¬
stantaneous international correspondence, to all these things
there belongs a velocity which wily intrigue can never over¬
take. The threads and wires of the general of the order of
the Jesuits, which once covered Europe, and stretched
across oceans, were at that time the quickest, the surest, the
most secret, and the most effective of all modes of corre¬
spondence. Now they are surpassed, they are superseded,
they are put out of question, by means which not princes
and conspirators merely have at their command, but which
obey the momentary call of every trader for a few shillings.
Do these things refute Jesuitism ? Assuredly they do not;
but the irresistible tendency of them is, to leave it, as a
power, to that contempt which the inherent turpitude of
its principles has so amply earned for it.
Yet this is not all: Jesuitism we must believe to be in
itself unchanged, and unchangeable; but its relative value,
and its available efficiency as a scheme of silent political
influence, has already undergone, and is every day under¬
going a change—a change touching its very existence. The
mind of the European community is now passing through
a process which, far as it may fall short of the wishes of the
enlightened moralist, or the anticipations of eager philanthro¬
pists, is yetfull of a cheering promise for the age nextensuing.
Those things in which consist the welfare of nations are every
year coming to be better understood than heretofore; the
folly—not merely the criminality—of violence, of ambition,
of political fraud, and chicane, is coming to be more and
more seen and felt; the few and the intelligible axioms of
private morality, embodying the requirements of truth, ho¬
nesty, and open dealing, are now in course of being applied,
more and more widely, to the public conduct of public men,
and also to the policy of governments. Is it not true that
those astute methods of government and those traitorous
arts to which the opprobrious phrase “ Jesuitical” has for
a century been applied, are falling fast into disesteem, and
are becoming the objects of indignant scorn ? Notwith¬
standing any single instances that might be cited to the
contrary, we believe that this is broadly the fact, and it is a
fact which is characteristic of the times now present. But
it so, and if whatsoever is “ Jesuitical” is becoming more
and more odious, and therefore less and less serviceable,
then assuredly Jesuitism itself will find it a task more and
more difficult to maintain the position which once it held in
the closets of princes, and even in conclaves. This sanative
course of things, which we are here supposing to be in pro¬
gress, tends always toward an accelerated movement, borne
upon, as it is, by what we have already adverted to—namely,
the universality and the instantaneousness of those means
of communication among the nations, which mechanical
agencies have lately realized; for that which almost anni¬
hilates time and space, robs fraud and wrong and treason
of their main resources. Crime is exposed as soon almost
as perpetrated ; the criminal is outrun by the ministers of
law ; and if such a phrase might be allowed, Europe is now
living in the perpetual glare of mechanical day-light—light
everywhere diffused, and which is liable to no intermissions.
Those, therefore—the conspirators against the rights and
liberties of mankind—whose practices lead them to court
the hour of darkness, will find themselves continually driven
into narrower and still narrowing corners, until at length the
world will rid itself of them for ever. (i. t.)
Jesus.
JESUS.
JESUS, the Divine Author of the Christian religion, was
born at Bethlehem, a city of the tribe of Judah, about six
miles south-east from Jerusalem. His mother was a Jew¬
ish virgin named Mary, the betrothed wife of Joseph, both
in the humblest rank of life, though both of the royal race
of David. The date of his birth is not mentioned in the
sacred record ; and there has been a difference of opinion
among the learned who have engaged in the inquiry, re¬
specting the precise period when it took place. It is now,
however, generally agreed upon, that it must be fixed a few
years earlier than is indicated by the epoch of our era,
which, according to the common computation, corresponds
with a. u. 754. We know that Jesus was born before the
death of Herod the Great; and it appears from Josephus,
that Herod died before the Jewish passover a. u. 750. From
calculations founded on other parts of the gospel history,
and particularly on a comparison between Luke, iii. 1 and
23, many have supposed that the nativity was in a. u. 747 ;
and in this opinion some have been confirmed by the con¬
jecture of Kepler, that the conjunction between Jupiter
and Saturn, which took place in that year, was the star
seen by the wise men; though it may be justly questioned
how far the principles of scriptural interpretation admit of
the supposition that the phenomenon referred to corre¬
sponds with the particulars mentioned by St Matthew.
In regard to the day or month in which the Saviour was
born, a subject to which the devotion of a large propor¬
tion of the Christian world has attached much importance,
we have no means of accurate knowledge. The descrip¬
tion given of shepherds watching their flocks by night is
inconsistent with the idea that it could have been in De¬
cember or January, or during the heat of the summer
months ; as we know that in these periods the herds were
no longer left in the fields. At other times of the year
the flocks might be turned out to pasture day and night in
the south of Palestine; but there is no circumstance re¬
ferred to by any of the evangelists to determine whether
it was in spring or in autumn that Jesus was born.
The chronological error in the vulgar era, and in the
season for celebrating the festival of Christmas, does not
in any way affect the truth of the gospel history ; and can¬
not indeed appear strange, when it is considered that seve¬
ral centuries elapsed before the method of computing time
by the birth of Christ was introduced, and that the festival
of the nativity was not observed in the primitive church.
During the first three centuries, the Christians adopted the
ordinary modes of reckoning time, which prevailed among
the heathen around them. Different methods were after¬
wards employed ; and it was not till the sixth century that a
Roman abbot named Dionysius the Less was induced, by
motives of religion, to have recourse to the expedient of de¬
termining dates by the number of years from the period
when the Son of God was born of a woman. The comme¬
moration of the day of the nativity was not generally observ¬
ed throughout the Christian world till the fourth century.
At that time the western church fixed upon the 25th of De¬
cember, and their example was generally followed. Dif¬
ferent causes have been assigned for the choice of this day.
Sir Isaac Newton, in his work on Daniel, supposes that it
was agreeably to the principle by which the chief feasts
were fixed at the cardinal points, without regard to histori¬
cal accuracy ; as the annunciation at the vernal equinox,
and St John the Baptist’s day at the summer solstice.
Hospinian and others have been of opinion that the festi¬
vities connected with the celebration of Christmas were
intended to make up for the Saturnalia, conformably to the
practice which had been acted upon from an earlier period,
of smoothing the way for the conversion of the heathen, by
758 J E S
Jesus, presenting their idolatrous ceremonies under a new form.
And there is not wanting reason to suppose, that from the
winter solstice being observed as the birtb-day of the sun,
when that luminary, returning from the south, seemed to
be restored to the world, the transition was suggested to
the celebration of the birth of him who was the life and
light of the world.1
The circumstances connected with the birth ot Jesus
corresponded in a remarkable degree with the predictions
of the Jewish prophets respecting the Messias. He be¬
longed to the tribe of Judah, and was of the house of
David. Events, over which his earthly kindred had no
control, fixed his birth at Bethlehem, from which place
the promised Deliverer was to spring. The seventy
prophetic weeks of Daniel were approaching to their ter¬
mination. And so determinate were these and other pre¬
dictions, that a general opinion prevailed, even in heathen
countries, that the tide of time was bringing our race to a
mighty epoch, and that a prince was to arise in the East
who was to obtain the empire of the world.2 The wisdom
of Divine Providence was also shown in the appointed
scene and season of the birth of Jesus. From the geogra¬
phical situation of Palestine, forming a part of Asia, touch¬
ing upon Africa, and connected by the Mediterranean
with the whole of Europe, the Jews enjoyed the best op¬
portunities of diffusing the knowledge of their principles.
And the intercourse between remote nations, occasioned
by the conquests of Alexander and the progress of the
Roman arms, afforded increased facilities for propagating
new opinions, while it forced upon men s notice the differ¬
ent forms of national worsnip, and led to an examination
of the great principles of religious belief.
Soon after the birth of Jesus, his parents fled with him
to Egypt, to save him from the fury of Herod, whose sus¬
picions were awakened by the idea of a rival to his throne.
An uncertain tradition fixes the spot of the residence of
the holy family at Matarea, near the ancient Heliopolis;
and one of the apocryphal gospels contains various idle
accounts of miracles which marked the presence of a su¬
perior being. From such traditions the Jews took occa¬
sion to circulate many ridiculous tales of magical arts learn¬
ed by Jesus while in Egypt, which were frequently referred
to by some of the early philosophic opponents of the Chris¬
tian* faith. The malignant insinuations of Celsus, how¬
ever, and the absurd legends which long found currency
among the Jews, are wholly inconsistent with the authentic
narrative of the return from Egypt upon the death of He¬
rod, when Jesus might still be said to be in infancy.
Upon their arrival in Palestine, Joseph was led to take
up his residence in Nazareth, in Galilee. Here the open¬
ing character of Jesus engaged the love and excited the
admiration of all who knew him.4 And, even before his
childhood was ended, in his twelfth year, when his parents
carried him up to one of the annual Jewish feasts, we find
him attracting the notice of the learned Rabbis, entering
into discussion with them, and filling them with astonish¬
ment at his extraordinary knowledge and sagacity. It
would appear that, according to the custom of his coun¬
trymen, he followed the trade of his foster-father. In
Mark, vi. 3, he is spoken of familiarly as “ the carpenter.”5
And Justin Martyr tells us, that while he sojourned on
earth, he was employed in the ordinary occupations of a
carpenter.6
u s.
In this lowly situation, and in the midst of these ser- Jesus,
vile employments, a character was silently maturing, such
as the world had never before witnessed ; and those lofty
designs were conceived, the accomplishment of which was
to give a new impress to the condition of society, and to
alter the destiny of our race. Frequent attempts have
been made to explain by the operation of natural causes,
how, in circumstances so unfavourable, a character like
that of our Saviour’s could have arisen ; and various theo¬
ries have been framed respecting the manner in which
the plan to which he devoted himself was suggested to
his mind. The insufficiency of these attempts we shall
afterwards consider. In the mean time, however, it may
be remarked, that, though no explanation can be given,
from circumstances merely external, of the growth of
such a mind as that of Jesus, which must be sought only
in the seed of the immortal plant itself, it is by no means
inconsistent with the highest ideas that can be entertain¬
ed of the divinity of* his nature, to suppose a progression
in the development of his humanity. External influences
must to a certain extent modify the character of every
man. We are told, accordingly, that “he grew in wis¬
dom’ as well as “ stature.” And the commanding situation
and romantic beauty of the city of his dwelling, the in¬
structions of his mother, intercourse with the heathen,
which, from the proximity of Nazareth to Galilee of the
Gentiles, must have been frequent, may have proved
among the subordinate aids for awakening that sense of
the loveliness and majesty of external nature to which we
find so many references in his discourses, and that sus¬
ceptibility of every tender emotion which his whole his¬
tory manifested, and that enlarged philanthropy which
looked beyond the distinctions of Jew and Gentile, of
sect and class, of rank and station, and considered the
whole human race as members of one great family, as
children of the same heavenly parent. Such influences,
however, are matter of conjecture rather than of positive
knowledge; for no reference is made to them by any of
the Evangelists. The piety of his mother and of Jo¬
seph renders it certain that he would from infancy be
made acquainted with the Old Testament Scriptures ; and
these not only contain the germ of all that is pure and ele¬
vating in religious sentiment, but also are, more than any
other0 study, calculated to awaken the curiosity and sti¬
mulate the powers of the opening mind. His conversa¬
tion and discourses everywhere show that he must have
made a constant study of the sacred records. It appears
that he never attended any rabbinical school, nor did he
receive a learned education.7
From the time when he appeared disputing with the
Jewish doctors in the temple, we have no direct infor¬
mation respecting him till his thirtieth year, when we
find him among those who presented themselves to John
upon the banks of the Jordan to be baptized, fhe inter¬
vening period was no doubt employed in maturing the
plan for the arduous undertaking to which he was prompt¬
ed by the stirrings of the Divinity within him. The con¬
sciousness of his high vocation, however, to a career that
was to attract the notice of the world, did not interfere
with the pious observance of his filial duties, or the labo¬
rious discharge of the common offices of his early situa¬
tion.8 The baptism of John served as a consecration to
his new office. The heavens were opened, the Holy Spirit
1 Schroekh’s Kirchcngeschichte, i, 403, 3 Matt. ii. 13.
2 Tac. Hist. v. 13 ; Suet, m Vesp. cap. iv. ; Virg. Poll. * Euke, ii. 52. , ,, #•
5 ’Oj/* ovto; 'urn i riKTuv o Hot Mugia;. This passage seems to have been tampered with as early as the time of Ongen, pro a ^ .
a wish to do away the prejudice that existed in many minds against the idea of a Saviour in such a state of humiliation,
another reading, <5 tou rizrovos Ho; xou Magias; but the weight of evidence is decidedly in favour of the former.
6 Tsxrov/xa ii^ya^ero, hi avS^uoroi; d!v, aporpcc xat Z,vya. Tryph. 88. See also Theod. 3, 23 ; and SoZ. 6, 2.
^ Matt. xiii. 54 ; John, vii. 15. 4 8 Luke, ii. 51 ; and Just. Mart, ut sup.
JESUS.
Jesus, descended upon him, and a voice was heard from heaven
declaring him to be the Son of God, and claiming for him
the attention of mankind. Immediately after his initia¬
tion, he was impelled to retire into the solitudes of a wil¬
derness, with a view, probably, of meditating on the work
before him ; and, by fasting and prayer, after the example
of former prophets, to prepare himself for his great under¬
taking. . A higher purpose was also accomplished during
this retirement, an opportunity being afforded him for
proving the purity and sinlessness of his nature, and esta¬
blishing his fitness for the office upon which he had en¬
tered, by baffling the temptations of Satan.
After this mysterious conflict, Jesus returned to Beth-
abara, a place near to that part of the river Jordan over
which the Israelites had passed under Joshua. It was
here that disciples first began to gather around him ; and
few passages in history are more interesting than that1
which tells of the individuals who first attached themselves
to his cause; of their curiosity, their doubts, their con¬
ferences with him, the influence he gained over their
minds, and their eagerness to communicate to others the
wondrous tidings, that they had found the promised Mes-
sias in the person of Jesus of Nazareth. The first two
individuals who joined themselves to him were disciples
of John the Baptist, who pointed out Jesus when walking
at a little distance, as the “ Lamb of God who taketh
away the sins of the world.” Upon this they introduced
themselves to his notice, and on his invitation accompa¬
nied him to the house where he lodged. What took place
at this memorable interview, or how a solitary and almost
unknown stranger attached to his cause the first two dis¬
ciples, we are not informed; whether by some token of
supernatural knowledge or power, or by the natural in¬
fluence of a superior mind ; the conviction was produ¬
ced ; and with it was imparted the spirit, which was at the
foundation of the indefinite extension of the new cause,
viz. the desire of imparting their own impressions of the
new doctrines to others. One of the two individuals was
Andrew, brother of Simon, who afterwards became so
eminent in the primitive history of Christianity. “Andrew
first findeth his own brother, and saith, we have found the
Messias; and he brought him to Jesus.’' These three were
the converts of the first day; and in a short time, without
any advantages of birth or station, or human learning, with¬
out the aid of powerful relations or influential patrons,
he had a considerable number of attached followers, who
listened to his teaching, and accompanied him from place
to place. At the feast of the Passover, along with the rest
of his countrymen, Jesus went up to Jerusalem, where
he increased the number of his disciples by his doctrines
and miracles. He seems to have continued in the land of
Judea about six or seven months; when the success of
his preaching, exciting the attention and envy of the
Scribes and Pharisees, led him to withdraw into Galilee,
where the power of the Jewish Sanhedrim was less to be
dreaded. In passing through Samaria, where the politi¬
cal circumstances of the inhabitants freed them from some
of the prejudices of the Jews2 respecting the character of
the Messias, he first openly and publicly proclaimed the
great truth, that all distinctions of Jews and Gentiles and
Samaritans were to be at an end ; and that, without refer¬
ence to time or place, or outward ceremony, the Deity
was to be worshipped in purity of spirit, and in faith on
the promised Messias.3 He then visited the whole of Ga¬
lilee, everywhere accompanying the instruction he gave,
in synagogues, or in private houses, or in the open fields,
with miraculous proofs of his divine character and com¬
mission. In Nazareth he was first subjected to personal
violence, his townsmen taking offence at his lowly origin.
Jo avoid their malice, he passed on to Capernaum, which
henceforth became the place of his general residence, and
from which, as from a centre, he visited the whole sur¬
rounding country. The first year of his ministry seems
to have been attended with almost universal success. He
met with no outward obstruction in his work, except in
Nazareth; his approach was everywhere welcomed, and
increasing multitudes followed him in his progress.
During the second year of his ministry, his followers be¬
came so numerous that he chose twelve persons who might
assist him in his work, and be prepared to propagate his re¬
ligion when he should leave the world. These he named
Apostles, an appellation which was appropriated at that
time among the Jews to certain public officers who were
the ministers of the high priests, and who were occasion¬
ally despatched on missions of importance to foreign parts.4
The number twelve had probably a reference to the twelve
tribes, as the seventy whom he afterwards chose might
be from the number of the Jewish Sanhedrim. The in¬
creasing success of Jesus raised up against him a host of
enemies, and from this time he was continually subjected
to the cavils of the Sadducees, and still more of the Scribes
and Pharisees, whose objections were of such a nature as
might be expected from unprincipled and hypocritical
men, who witnessed with jealousy any proceeding likely
to diminish their influence among the people, and who
were inflamed with resentment at the exposure which was
made of their true character.
It has already been observed that Galilee was the chief
scene of our Saviour’s ministerial labours. He did not,
however, confine himself wholly to that province, but
occasionally visited other parts. We find him at one
time on the coasts of Pyre and Sidon ; at another beyond
Joidan ; and at the passover he uniformly went up to Je¬
rusalem. As the Evangelists do not relate events in chro¬
nological order, we are without any precise information as
to the exact degree of success that from this period at¬
tended his labours; it seems probable that his follow¬
ers continued to increase, and that a deep and general
impression was made upon the public mind. His proceed¬
ings at last excited the attention of all classes in Judea.
Herod Antipas was haunted with the idea that he must
be John the Baptist restored to life, and was desirous to
have a personal interview with him; and there is not
wanting reason to suppose that he received the homa°'e
of princes more remote. The eyes of the chief men of
Judea were now upon him. The subject of his miracles was
discussed in the Sanhedrim, and frequent attempts were
made to seize and bring him before the council, though
without any settled purpose, perhaps, how they were to
proceed against him. At last, after the restoration of La¬
zarus to life, which led to the conversion of a multitude of
the Jews, a meeting of the Pharisaic party was held, when
it was finally determined that he should be put to death.
Ihe result is well known. In the dead of the night he
was surprised in the midst of his secret devotions, hur¬
ried before the Sanhedrim, and, after the mockery of a trial
in which even his judge acknowledged his entire innocence*
he was adjudged to suffer death. He was then carried
to the usual place of execution, on a small hill named Cal¬
vary, on the west of Jerusalem, a little without the walls,.
759
Jesus.
confine themselves to his preaching in Galilee, with the excep/on of what took place at Jermsalerim^
Moshelu De Rebus Christiunist &c. i. 6.
760 JESUS.
Jesus, and there he was crucified. This dreadful scene was ac-
"’'“'y'""*-' companied with signs and wonders which proclaimed the
dignity of the sufferer. A supernatural darkness overspread
the land of Judea, “ and behold the veil of the temple
was rent in twain, and the earth did cjuake, and the rocks
rent, and the graves were opened.” After his death his
body was taken down from the cross, and laid in a tomb
hewn out of a rock, after the manner of the Jewish se¬
pulchres. Every precaution was used to prevent the re¬
moval of the body by the disciples. A great stone was
rolled upon the door of the tomb, and a watch of Roman
soldiers, consisting of sixty men, was appointed to guard it.
This was on our Friday. The following day was the Jewish
Sabbath; the stone remained in its place fixed and se¬
cure, and the soldiers continued their watch undisturbed.
But on the morning of the third day, amidst a display of
supernatural agency that mocked the precautions of the
Jewish rulers, Jesus arose from the dead. After this he
continued some time on earth, affording the most indubi¬
table evidence of his identity, and of the reality of his re¬
surrection from the dead, and instructing his disciples in
the nature of the doctrine they were to teach mankind.
At last, at the end of forty days, he led forth his disciples
to Bethany, and there, while giving them his blessing,
“ he was parted from them, and carried up into hea¬
ven.”1
The year of our Saviour’s death cannot be exactly ascer¬
tained. Two extreme points, however, can be mentioned,
within which that event must have taken place. The one is
the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius,2 in which John the
Baptist began his ministry, and the other, the year in which
that emperor died, when Pilate had left the province of Ju¬
dea. As Jesus entered upon his ministry soon after the pub¬
lic appearance of John,3 it would bring us to a near approx¬
imation to the date sought for, could we say how many pass-
overs were celebrated by our Saviour. Even this, however,
cannot be determined with certainty. The most probable
opinion seems that of those who fix the number at three,
and this would bring us to A. u. 783. Irenaeus states that
Jesus was forty or fifty years of age when he was put to
death ;4 but it is generally agreed upon that his opinion
was founded, not on authentic records, but to suit a fan¬
ciful theory.5 Most of the Christian fathers assign only a
single year to the ministry of Christ, and fix his death in
a. u. 782. Their conclusions are drawn from an erroneous
view of Isaiah, Ixi. 1, and Luke, iv. 19.6
We have little authentic information respecting the cha¬
racter or history of Jesus additional to what is contained in
the New Testament. The name Chrestus is mentioned
by Suetonius; but it has been disputed whether he re¬
ferred to Jesus.7 Tacitus alludes to the fact of his death,
and speaks of him as the founder of the sect of the Chris¬
tians.8 The chief notices of him by the fathers have been
embodied in the preceding narrative. There is a passage
in Josephus,9 where his life and character are referred to in
the following terms: “ At that time lived Jesus, a wise
man [if he may be called a man], for he performed many
v/onderful works. He was a teacher of such men as re¬
ceived the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him many
Jews and Gentiles. [This was the Christ.] And when
Pilate, at the instigation of the chief men among us, had con¬
demned him to the cross, they who before had conceived
an affection for him did not cease to adhere to him [for on Jesus,
the third day he appeared to them alive again, the divine
prophets having foretold these and many wonderful things
concerning him]. And the sect of the Christians, so called
from him, subsists to this time.” This remarkable passage
is referred to by Eusebius,10 and its genuineness was never
called in question from his time till the sixteenth century,
when Gifanius and Osiander refused to receive it. Since
that period it has afforded matter for much controversy
among the learned. In favour of the genuineness of the
passage, it has been argued, that we have the undisputed
fact that it is found in all the copies of the works of Jose¬
phus from the time of Eusebius. It also exists in a He¬
brew translation in the Vatican; and there is an Arabic
version preserved by the Maronites of Mount Libanus. In
addition to this external evidence, it is urged that the num¬
ber of Christians in the time of Josephus was too great to
admit of the supposition that he should pass them over al¬
together unnoticed, an improbability which is increased by
the fact that he makes mention of John the Baptist,11 and
of the death of “ James, the brother of Jesus, called the
Christ.”12 On the other hand, it is certain that Josephus
was not himself a Christian ; and yet the passage, as it
stands in his writings, involves the profession of belief
in the divine mission of Jesus. It is farther to be remark¬
ed, that this testimony in favour of Christ is not quoted by
any of the apologists of Christianity who preceded Euse¬
bius ; and in particular, Origen,13 while he refers to the allu¬
sion made by Josephus to the death of James, and to his
account of John the Baptist, passes over in silence the pas¬
sage in question, though it would have afforded a more de¬
cisive answer had it been contained in the copies of the
Jewish historian then in circulation. The arguments on
both sides appear plausible, and the difficulties upon either
supposition cannot perhaps be removed but by the conjecr
ture, that Josephus did introduce into his work a notice of
Jesus, though without admitting him to be the Messias,
and that some over-zealous Christian about the time of Eu¬
sebius had inserted some additional clauses. This opinion
is now generally gone into by the continental critics. Those
parts which are usually looked upon as interpolations are
marked within brackets in the preceding extract.
It was scarcely possible that the appearance of so remark¬
able a character as that of our Saviour should not have in¬
duced many individuals, from various motives, to commit
an account of him to writing. Accordingly, it appears,14
that from the earliest period many histories of his life were
in circulation. The words of St Luke seem to imply that
these narratives were defective or erroneous; but there is
nothing to prevent us from supposing that some of them
might be the productions of men of good intentions, though
deficient in the talents or information requisite for so im¬
portant an undertaking. It was otherwise, however, in
succeeding times. After the four gospels had been writ¬
ten by the Evangelists, and had been generally received as
of divine authority in the Christian church, heretics and
others, who departed from the true faith, had recourse to
the expedient of forging gospels, epistles, &c. under the
name of some of the apostles, or that of our Lord himself
to which they might refer in support of their tenets. These
works were frequently formed out of the genuine gospels,
with such additions and omissions as the purposes of the
3 John, i. 19, 29, 35 ; ii. I.
6 Pisanski, De errore Irensei in determinanda aetate Christi, 1778.
1 Luke, xxiv. 51. * Luke, iii. 1.
Iren. h. 22, 5 ; John, viii. 57.
® Tertul. ; Lact. Instit. ; Aug.; Clem. Alex. i.
^ In his Life of Claudius, c. xxv. Judaeos impulsore Chresto assidue tumultuantes Roma expulit.
Auctor nominis ejus Christus, qui Tiberio imperante per procuratorem Pentium Pilatum supplicio affectus erat. (Ann. 1. xv.
c. 44.)
* Antiq. xviii. 3, 3. 10 Ecdet. i. ii.; Demonstr. Evangel, ni. 5.
Antiq. xviii. 5. ls Antiq. xx. 9, 1. 3 C. Cels. 14 Luke, i. 1.
12 Antiq. xx. 9, 1.
JESUS.
761
Jesus, writers required. There were not wanting members of
the true church who followed the same practice, with the
mistaken idea that the piety of the faithful might thus be
promoted, or that an answer might be afforded to some of
the objections of Jews and Heathens. In the second cen¬
tury, Irenaeus1 tells us that the Gnostics had an innumerable
multitude of spurious and apocryphal books ; and in the fol¬
lowing age they were greatly increased. The greater part
of these writings perished in the course of ages. Of such
of them as remained, a collection was published by Fabri-
cius, about the beginning of last century, in his Codex Apo-
cryphus Novi Testamenti. A full account of them is given,
with translations, in Jones’well-known work on the Canon.
Several of them were republished in London some years
ago, in a work entitled The Apocryphal New Testament.
That these works are not to be received as genuine, may
be proved by their vast inferiority to the canonical gospels,
and still more decidedly by the fact, that they were not re¬
cognised by the Fathers. In The Gospel of our Saviour's
Infancy, there are some passages which are referred to by
Eusebius, Athanasius, and Chrysostom, as containing some
trifling particulars of true history connected with the life
of Christ, but it is not ranked by them among the inspired
writings. It is worthy of remark, that it was from this pro¬
duction, and from The Gospel of the Birth of Mary, and the
Protevangelion of St James, that Mohammed derived all
his knowledge of our Saviour’s life. Indeed he does not
seem to have been at all acquainted with the canonical
gospels; and the legends of the East in general concern¬
ing our Lord are all from apocryphal sources.2
There is an account in Eusebius,3 of a message having
been sent by Agbarus, king of Edessa, who had heard of
the miracles of Jesus, and who requested him to come and
cure him of a malady with which he was afflicted. It is
added, that our Saviour wrote to him a letter, in which he
promised to send one of his disciples to heal him. A trans¬
lation of this correspondence from the Syriac original, con¬
tained in the archives of the church of Edessa, is given by
Eusebius. Additions were afterwards made to the story, 
as that Thaddeus, one of the seventy, was deputed by
Thomas, after the resurrection, to fulfil the promise of the
Saviour ; and Evagrius4 mentions, that our Lord not only
wrote a letter, but that he sent a handkerchief also, with
his picture drawn upon it. There can be no doubt that the
letters mentioned by Eusebius actually existed among the
records of Edessa, and that they were seen by that histo¬
rian. But, in addition to the external evidence from the
letters themselves, the fact that they are taken notice of by
no preceding Christian writer affords demonstration that
they are forgeries, which owe their existence probably to
the national vanity of some of the early Christians of Edes¬
sa. We are not informed that our Saviour ever committed
anything to writing, and we may be assured that if he
had, it would not have passed unnoticed by his first fol¬
lowers.
There is another statement contained in Eusebius, de¬
serving of more attention. He mentions that Pontius Pilate,
after the crucifixion of our Lord, wrote such an account of
his character and miracles to the Emperor Tiberius, as in¬
duced that prince to propose to the senate that a place
should be assigned to Jesus among the deities worshipped
by the Romans, but that the senate opposed the wishes
of the emperor. It was certainly the custom of the go¬
vernors of provinces to write memoirs of the remarkable
occurrences of the places where they presided ; and there
is nothing improbable in the idea that Pilate, who was con¬
vinced of the innocence of Christ, should send an account of Jesus,
him to Tiberius. It is certain also that Justin Martyr,6 in his
Apology for the Christians, presented to the Emperor Anto¬
ninus Pius, refers to the acts of Pilate, as containing an ac¬
count of the circumstances connected with the crucifixion ;
and Tertullian,6 towards the end of the century, appeals to
the same records. Still, however, we conceive that the
evidence for the existence of these acts is defective; and
the proposal alluded to by Tiberius to the Roman senate,
though mentioned by Tertullian, and repeated by writers
who succeeded him, is irreconcilable with the character of
I iberius, and the state of the Roman empire at that period.
At a later period, a spurious work, entitled The Acts of Pi¬
late! was circulated by the Jews, containing many slanders
against Jesus; and it appears that acts of a contrary nature
were fabricated by certain Christians, to do away the im¬
pression.8
hrom the time that the Jews returned from the Baby¬
lonian captivity, a belief in magic formed a borrowed part
of the national character; and at an early period the na¬
tural expedient was resorted to by the enemies of Jesus, of
disparaging his character, by representing him as a magician.
It was believed among them that there was a mystic word
which enabled those who had learned it to direct at will the
current of events; and a foolish story was circulated as
early as the second century,9 respecting the means by which
Jesus discovered and remembered this potent sign. Upon
this fable a life of Jesus was ultimately constructed, en¬
titled Toldoth Jeschu. The substance of this abominable
fabrication is, that Jesus was born in adultery, the particu¬
lars of which are detailed with revolting minuteness ; that
he contrived to steal the sacred word, by pronouncing
which he performed miracles at will, healed the sick,
opened the eyes of the blind, raised the dead; by means
of such works he gained over many converts, and would
have been still more successful had not another Jew dis¬
abused the minds of his countrymen by learning the
same word, and disclosing to the people how the same
miracles could be performed. The work terminates with
an account of the death of Jesus, and of his body being
stolen away by his disciples. It was published, with a
Latin translation and learned notes, by Wagenseil, in his
Tela Ignea Satance, h. e. Arcani et horribiles Judeeorum
adversus Christum Deum et Christianum religionem libri
ANEKAOTOI, 1681. It can scarcely be believed that
the more learned among the Jews gave credit to its men¬
dacious absurdities; though they long encouraged its cir¬
culation, to inspire their brethren with a deeper contempt
for Christianity and its followers.
The determination of the questions relative to the per¬
son and character and history of Jesus involves all the es¬
sential particulars connected with the evidences and doc¬
trines of the Christian faith. But in an article like the pre¬
sent, we cannot enter fully upon the consideration of any of
these important subjects. We shall merely offer a few re¬
marks upon such particulars as depend upon elements of
a historical nature, leaving the discussion of matters of
doctrine for other departments of this work.
The existence of such a person as Jesus Christ has scarce¬
ly ever been seriously denied ; and the general tenor of the
narrative of the Evangelists, with the omission of the mira¬
culous parts, has been received as substantially correct by
many who refuse to acknowledge the truth of our reli¬
gion. rIhe evidences for the genuineness and authen¬
ticity of the four Gospels will be stated under the proper
1 C. i. c. 17- 2 Jones, voL i.
7 This was during the persecution
8 Epiphan. Huer. ], i.
3 Hist. Ecclet. i. 13. ‘ Evag. iv. 26.
of Maximin. Euseb. Hist. Eccles. ix. 6.
VOL. XII.
6 Apol. i. 6 Tertul. Jpolog. c. v. 21.
9 Orig. Contr. Celt.
5 D
JESUS.
762
Jesus, heads, from which it will appear that no history whatever
is supported by stronger external proof; and that were it
not from internal grounds as to the nature of the facts
recorded, and the consequences which flow from them,
the truth of the narrative would never have been called in
question. Even the miracles were admitted by the earliest
opponents of Christianity, Celsus, Philostratus, and Hie-
rocles. These individuals did not deny the reality of the
works performed by Jesus; they only, upon internal evi¬
dence, objected to the idea that a person in circumstances
so lowly should be supposed to be divine, or explained
away the supernatural appearances by the supposition of
the exercise of magical arts,1 or maintained that the few
miracles which were performed did not warrant the idea
of a divine character.2
Different ground has been taken up by infidels in mo¬
dern times, who, while they have been constrained to ad¬
mit the truth of the general statements of the Evangelists,
have rejected altogether the supernatural machinery. In
setting aside the miraculous part of the gospel history, the
chief difficulty has been found in giving a consistent view
of the character of Jesus. If the miracles performed by
Christ were not real, the conclusion seems irresistible that he
must have been either a deliberate impostor, or a self-de¬
ceived enthusiast. By some writers, accordingly, Jesus
has been held up to ridicule and contempt, as exhibiting
many weaknesses, and even vices—as a pretended miracle-
worker and false prophet. Several of the deistical writers
of our own country took up this position, and were follow¬
ed by Voltaire and other French authors. The anti-Chris¬
tian views of Voltaire were adopted by Frederick the
Great,3 whose example and encouragement gave rise to the
spirit which has unfortunately led so many of the theolo¬
gians of Germany to exclude from Christianity every trace
of supernatural agency.
The notices of the English deists of the last century, re¬
specting the miracles and character of Jesus, in many in¬
stances at least, were little more than incidental, and formed
merely a part of their general argument against the truth of
our religion. In Germany the work has been more syste¬
matically pursued. With the characteristic industry of that
learned people, the writings of the Evangelists have been
considered in every possible form. Different theories have
been framed as to the secret views of Jesus, as to the real
causes of his success, and as to the true character of the
alleged miracles which were performed. Voltaire, after
our English authors, had endeavoured to account for the
exalted morality taught by Jesus, by supposing that it was
borrowed from the self-denying tenets of the sect of the
Essenes.4 The idea was followed out by various German
authors; while the lofty theology of the Alexandrian Pla-
tonists, and the liberal spirit of Sadduceism, were referred
to by others as sufficient to originate in an enthusiastic Jesus,
mind the system taught by Jesus. Some, like Edelmann,
while they have not disputed that a virtuous Jew named
Jesus actually existed, have refused to acknowledge the
genuineness and authenticity of the Gospels. Reimarus,
in a posthumous tract5 on the object of Jesus and his dis¬
ciples, while he acknowledges the excellence of the morals,
and even of the doctrines, of the Gospel, accuses Jesus of
not observing the rules which he prescribed, and of making
use of his system as a means for promoting his political
views ; and while he does justice to many of the high quali¬
ties of Jesus, he represents him, upon the whole, as actuated
by ambition, and as aiming at the establishment of his own
power under the character of the triumphant conqueror
to whom the Jews looked forward in their promised Mes-
sias. His arguments are chiefly founded upon the acknow¬
ledged ideas of the Jewish people respecting the Messias,
upon the caution exhibited by Jesus in arrogating that cha¬
racter, and upon his entering Jerusalem in royal state,
when he conceived that his cause was sufficiently advanced
to insure his success; while the grief he exhibited in the
garden of Gethsemane, and his exclamation on the cross,
“ My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me ?” are con¬
sidered as tokens of his disappointed hopes. This view has
been taken by other writers, with various minor modifica¬
tions, and with different degrees of learning and presump¬
tion. Others have represented Jesus as the dupe of his own
imagination,—as one who, by the dreams of a fond mother,
and the workings of an unrestrained fancy, was led to be¬
lieve himself to be the Messias; and who, partly by his
superior knowledge of the occult qualities of matter, and
partly by the sympathetic influence of a highly-wrought
enthusiasm, favoured occasionally by accidental circumstan¬
ces, performed many works that seemed to exceed the li¬
mits of natural causes, which were afterwards exaggerated
into real miracles. Another class of the neologian school
describe Christ as a pure and exalted character, who was
animated with the desire of raising the condition of his
degraded countrymen, and of promoting the general in¬
terests of humanity; and who, in the lowly situation in
which he was placed, found no other means of accom¬
plishing this end but by personating the character of the
Jewish Messias. As the Jews expected miracles to be
performed by their long-looked-for Saviour, Jesus accom¬
modated himself to their views in this respect. Accord¬
ing to this class of writers, he is supposed sometimes to
have availed himself of fortunate contingencies, repre¬
senting the restoration from a faint as a resurrection from
the dead, as in the case of the daughter of Jairus, and of
Lazarus, and sometimes to have succeeded, perhaps be¬
yond his own expectations, by the aids of animal magne¬
tism.6 His appearance to his disciples after his burial has
* Celsus. 2 Hierocles.
3 Frederick, while he treated with contempt the doctrines of the Gospel, acknowledged the excellence of its morality, which he
considered (it is unnecessary to remark how erroneously) as essentially the same with that of the Stoics.
4 Diet. Phil. art. Essenet. The untenableness of the theory had Jong before been well exposed by Prideaux, Connections, vol. ii.
p. 284.
5 This tract was published in 1788, by the celebrated Lessing, among his “ Wolfenbiittel Fragments by an anonymous person.’’ It
is entitled Fragment von deni Zweckc Je.su und seiner junger. It is now universally ascribed to Reimarus, wrell known as an able cri¬
tic, and the author of a work on natural religion. He was born at Hamburg in 1894, and died in 1785. He published nothing re¬
specting his views as to the subject of revealed religion during his life, but he left various manuscripts of an anti-christian charac¬
ter, some of which falling into the hands of Lessing, who at that time had the superintendence of the ducal library at Wolfenbiittel,
were published by him in the Beiir'dge zur Geschichte und Literatur, aus den Schdtzeu der Hezoglichen Bibliothek zu Wolfenbuttel. They
excited great attention ; and, more perhaps than any other work, led to the neologian spirit that has since so much prevailed in
Germany. Various answers were called forth. Of these, one of the ablest was that by lieinhard, a celebrated German preacher,
in a work entitled Versuch hiber den Plan den dcr Stifter der Christ, religion zum besten der Menschen entwarf. The main object ot the
author is to show that the mere plan for effecting the happiness of the species—a plan which he purposed to carry into effect, not
by violence or force of arms (in opposition to the theory of lleimarus), nor by the influence of a secret society (in opposition to the
wild imagination ot Bahrdt), but by means of moral suasion alone,—a plan which no great man of antiquity had ever conceiveu,
and which entered into no other religious system—proves Jesus to have been a messenger sent by God. This work by lleinhard is
one ot the most valuable contributions to the evidences of the truth of Christiaziity. It has been translated into French; and a
translation ot it into English has been published in America.
6 A list ot the writers who hold these opinions is given in WmsPs Billischesliealwbrterbuch,
JESUS.
Jesus
been also explained away, as if it had been the result of na-
tural causes ; it being argued that the suspension from the
cross for a few hours was insufficient to occasion death,
though in a worn-out frame it might occasion a temporary
swoon, from which he might be restored by the myrrh and
aloes and odoriferous substances which his disciples brought
to embalm him.1
In regard to the theory which is founded on the idea
that Jesus was actuated by selfish or worldly or ambitious
motives, it may safely be affirmed that it is altogether incon¬
sistent with the facts connected with every part of his his¬
tory. The whole tenor of his proceedings showed that
his views were above this world. He used none of the
arts necessary for gaining a party among his countrymen.
He did not flatter one sect at the expense of another.
He neither courted the favour of his countrymen, by in¬
flaming their prejudices against the Romans, on the one
hand ; nor did he, on the other hand, artfully conciliate the
favour of the Romans to be employed as a means towards
attaining the sovereignty of Judea. He openly denounced
the vices of the reigning sects; and though his benevo¬
lence led him to such a course of conduct as could not but
excite the admiration of many among the lower orders, he
made no attempt to render his popularity subservient to his
personal interests ; he shunned the demonstrations of popu¬
lar favour, and unsparingly exposed the unworthy motives
that led many to pay court to him. Not a single instance
can be mentioned in which he had recourse to any means
for establishing a temporal authority. His whole con¬
duct showed that he was animated with more exalted
aims. From the commencement of his ministry he assert¬
ed his divine commission, and spoke with undoubting con¬
fidence of the success of his cause. But the success of
which he spoke was not in schemes of worldly greatness,
but in the diffusion of truth and righteousness. He availed
himself of every suitable opportunity for correcting the er¬
roneous impressions that were entertained respecting the
character of the Messias. And so far was he from enter¬
taining views of personal aggrandisement in the character
he assumed, that from the very first he intimated that the
good he was to render to mankind was to be procured by
laying down his life for them. And the tenor of the evan¬
gelical history proves, that in proportion to the increasing
clearness with which he communicated to his chosen follow¬
ers the information as to his divine character, was the ex¬
pressness ot his declaration that his death was at hand.
There is only a single instance that can be adduced in
which there was any appearance on the part of Jesus, of
the assumption of temporal authority, viz. in the case of his
last entrance into Jerusalem. This has been represented
by Reimarus as an unsuccessful attempt made by him,
counting upon the support of the populace, to take pos¬
session of the temple and of the city. But such a view
is inconsistent, not only with the proceedings of Jesus upon
former occasions, but also with his conduct in Jerusalem
at that very period. There was no concert between the
people and Jesus or his apostles. The city of Jerusalem
was filled with strangers from all parts, who had come up
to attend the passover; the report of the resurrection
of Lazarus had been widely circulated; when Jesus ap¬
proached, curiosity assembled multitudes to behold him,
and, in the enthusiasm of the moment, they rendered ho-
763
mage to him as a king. But Jesus did not avail himself Jesus,
of the feeling that was excited. He addressed to the mul-
titude nothing calculated to rouse their passions. The
jealousy of the Roman governor, sufficiently awake to the
danger of an insurrection,2 took no alarm at the approach
of the procession to the temple, and Pilate made no al¬
lusion to it when Jesus was brought before his tribunal.
The same day that Jesus entered into the temple he vo¬
luntarily left it for Bethany, though it is obvious, that if
he had entertained the views ascribed to him, he would
have availed himself of the advantages it presented to
him, as the citadel that commanded the whole of Jerusa¬
lem.3 After this he openly returned to the temple on the
following days ; he made no appeal to the passions of the
people, but continued to address to the chief priests such
denunciations as could not fail to rouse those vengeful feel¬
ings of which he had foretold that he was to be the un¬
resisting victim.
Ihe attempt to prove that Jesus was merely an ambi¬
tious adventurer is now generally abandoned. But many,
while they admit the excellence of the personal character
of Christ, endeavour to account for the supernatural parts
of the gospel history on what is called the principle of ac¬
commodation, supposing that Jesus suited his proceedings
to the expectations of the Jews respecting the miraculous
power of their Messias. But to act upon such a principle
is surely inconsistent with the simplicity and integrity of a
spotless character. It is admitted by the defenders of the
hypothesis referred to, that we have in Jesus Christ a cha¬
racter which stands single and alone in the history of man¬
kind, free from any defect, and combining every species of
excellence. We have this same Jesus, without advantage
of education or outward condition, introducing a system of
religion and morals such as the world had never witnessed ;
the only system of positive religion that does not bear on its
face evidence of its falseness ; a system to which the most
enlightened men in every age since its first propagation have
yielded their homage; and a system of morals so pure in its
nature, and so comprehensive in its requirements, thatwhile
the most extraordinary progress has been made in every
other subject, it might easily be proved that all that ethi¬
cal inquirers have attempted is an analysis of the princi¬
ples of our nature, on which the rules of the New Testa¬
ment are founded, or an application of these rules to the
circumstances of mankind in new conditions of society.
If such a system had been originated by an individual
who made no claim to supernatural assistance, we would
have been presented with a moral phenomenon altogether
inexplicable. But this is not the state in which we find
the question. Jesus declares that he received from God
all that he reveals to man. Had he offered no proof
of this assertion, his moral qualities, even supposing him
to have been in error, might have remained unimpeached,
and he might have moved our compassionate respect, as the
self-deceived enthusiast of virtue or religion. But our Sa¬
viour not only demands credence on his own authority ; he
makes an appeal4 to the miracles which he wrought, in proof
of his divine mission. Now, the miracles which our Saviour
refers to are of such a nature, that either they must have
been performed or he must have lent himself to a deceit.
There is no other alternative. He could not but know
whether they were actually wrought, or whether they
1 See, in particular, the Leben Jesu by Dr Paulus of Heidelberg, who conceives that his opinion is strengthened by an attempt to
prove (which he has endeavoured to do in a separate tract upon the subject) that only the hands of Jesus were nailed to the cross
his feet being merely bound to it by a strong cord. But even supposing this to have been the case, which we consider as by no
means established, the evidence of actual dissolution is decisive. We have in the first place the testimony of the Evangelists then
the proceedings of the soldiers in general (John, xix. 33), and then the wound inflicted by one of them with a spear, which’from
the account given of it, must have entered the heart itself (v. 34.) 1 ’
2 In proof of this, see Joseph. Antiq. xviii. 3, 2. ? Michaelis. < John, xiv. 11.
764
Jesus.
JESUS.
were only seeming and illusory And if the miracles
'were not truly performed, then we have the individual
whose moral character stands in all other respects higher
than that of any other of the children of men, and who
las made the instrument of conferring the greatest boon
Tat ever was made to mankind,-we have that indmdual
guilty of an artful and criminal imposture.
S In regard to the theory that the apostles filled up the
picture of the character of Jesus from what they read in
the Old Testament Scriptures respecting the Messias, it
may be remarked, that the conception of such a character
in such circumstances is a phenomenon as inexplicable
upon ordinary principles as the actual existence ot the
prototype. And that four different writers, or that even
two different writers, without having a common subject,
should have given so many points of resemblance of such
an extraordinary nature, and in so many varied circum¬
stances, is altogether incredible. . . . c T
Among those who admit the divine commission of Je¬
sus different opinions have been entertained as to the
rank he holds in the scale of being. The general doctrine
of the Christian church, as expressed m ancient creeds
and in the confessions of reformed churches, is, that Christ
exhibited in his person a union of the divine and human
nature ; that the second person in the Irinity was united
to the man Jesus, who was God and man in one person.
To avoid the difficulties which have been supposed to be
involved in this mysterious doctrine, it has been maintain¬
ed by some that the Son is not equal with the Father, and
did not exist from eternity, but that the first created be¬
ing, the highest angelic nature, was made flesh and dwelt
on earth. The essence of this theory is, that the bon ot
God was a creature, but that he existed in a separate state
previously to his manifestation in the form of man. It is vari¬
ously modified according to the higher or lower character
that is given to the Son of God ; and is distinguished by the
name of Arianism, from the individual who in the early
part of the fourth century first brought the question into
general discussion. According to a third class, Jesus
Christ was a mere man, distinguished from other men
only by being employed by God in making a revelation
of his will to mankind, and superior in no respect to the
prophets who appeared among the Jewish people, except
in superior virtue, and in a more enlarged measure ot
divine countenance and assistance. This view, in its es¬
sential features, was embraced by the Ebionites, and also
by Artemon and others during the second and third cen¬
turies ; by Socinus in the sixteenth century, from whose
name those who adopt this opinion are frequently named
Socinians, though they assume to themselves the name of
Unitarians ; a title which is sometimes conceded by Trini¬
tarians for the sake of distinction, though they equally
hold the doctrine of the unity of the Deity. In America
the name Unitarian is applied to all those who reject the
doctrine of the Trinity. Jhe differences of opinion re¬
specting the person of Christ are connected with different
views as to the object and nature ot his commission. Tri¬
nitarians consider him as not only teaching a purer sys¬
tem of morality than the world had before known, but
also as making an atonement for human guilt by his death ;
while Socinians and many Arians deny the doctrine of
the atonement, and look upon Jesus merely as a teacher
of religion and virtue.
The character of Christ, as exhibited in the Gospels,
presents to us the only example, anywhere to be found,
of the perfection of humanity; and the contemplation of
it has ever been considered by his followers as one of the —
most edifying and delightful exercises of piety.1 A con¬
stant regard to the will of God, and a delight in doing it,
form the distinguishing features of his character. With
this was connected the absence of all sordid, or selfish,
or ambitious aims, and an enlarged and enlightened phi¬
lanthropy. There is perhaps nothing more remarkable in
the life of Jesus than the apparently inconsistent qualities
which are blended together in one harmonious whole.
We see in him the most unbending constancy united with
great tenderness of feeling—hatred of sin, and compassion
for the offender—a heart superior to all the allurements
of pleasure, with a condescending indulgence for the inno¬
cent relaxations of life—a mind of universal philanthropy,
alive to all the domestic charities—views that extended
to the whole human race, and a generous compliance with
national and individual peculiarities. It is difficult to
conceive that the portraiture presented to us in the sa¬
cred history can be contemplated without benefit; but
the chief benefit will be lost if it is forgotten that he whose
life was the model of every virtue laid down that life for
the sins of the world. .
Those who hold the highest ideas of the divinity of
Christ, admit to the fullest extent that he was also man;
and the curiosity is not unnatural as to the personal ap¬
pearance assumed by the Son of God. Upon this subject
no direct information is given in the New Testament. Trom
incidental notices, it has been conjectured that he was of
a robust frame, and that there was nothing particularly
marked in his appearance ;2 but it may be doubted how
far the passages referred to bear out these conclusions.
There is better evidence that the mixture of divine be¬
nignity and commanding authority which he everywhere
displayed in his character, were conspicuous also in his
voice and aspect.3
The most judicious of the fathers agree that nothing
was known of the personal appearance of Christ, though
inquiry upon the subject was not prohibited. During the
first ages of Christianity, the church, under persecution,
required a model of patient endurance; and the genera,
opinion of the fathers4 during that time seems to have been,
that the personal appearance of Christ corresponded lite¬
rally with the description in Isaiah, liii. 2, 3. There was
at the same time a prohibition, founded on the second
commandment, against attempting to frame any pictorial
likeness of the Son of God. We read, however, of pic¬
tures of Christ in the hands of one ol the Gnostic sects.5
Alexander Severus had his bust in the chamber set apart
for his devotional exercises ;6 and Eusebius relates, that
many among the heathens had pictures of Christ and ol his
apostles, which he himself had seen.7 At a somewhat later
period, when paintings began to be admitted into churches,
the attempt to present a likeness ot Christ was no longer
considered as unlawful; and full scope being given to the
imagination of the artist, attempts were made to embody
the purity, and elevation, and loveliness of the Saviour s
character, in lineaments of extraordinary beauty. Certain
theologians justified the attempt by explaining the desciip-
tion in Psalm xlv. as literally applicable to Jesus. Ihere
is a minute description of the personal appearance oi
Christ by the Greek ecclesiastical historian Nicephorus,
who flourished about the year 1330 ; and another in a let¬
ter purporting to be addressed by Publius Lentulus, go¬
vernor of Judea, to the Roman senate. Both of these,
Jesus.
i A catalogue of some of the most important treatises upon this subject in English is given by Bishop Newcombe, in the preface
to his work on our Lord’s conduct and character. T ^ •
* John, xx. 15, and xxi. 4. 3 John, xviii. 6; Matt. vu. 29 ; John, vu.
4 Tertull. De Came Christi, 9; adv. Jud. 14 ; Clem. Alex. Paed. iii. 1; Orxg. Contr. Celt. li.
‘ Iren. i. 25. 6 Lamprid. c. 29.
1 L. vii. c. 18.
J E S
Jesus however, are altogether without value. As the prosopo-
Jewel 9™Phia in the pretended letter of Publius is from time to
' time brought before the public in various forms, without
any hint as to its real origin, it may be proper to state,
that there is most decisive evidence of its being a mere
fabrication. No trace of it is to be found before the four¬
teenth century. No such person as Publius Lentulus
was ever governor of Judea. From the style, it is pro¬
bable that it was written by some monk in the middle
ages.1
In regard to pictures which tradition has represented as
haying been made while our Saviour was on earth, in ad¬
dition to that already mentioned as having been sent to
the king of Edessa, there was another supposed to have
been imprinted upon a handkerchief belonging to Veroni¬
ca. The legend is, that when Christ was led to cruci¬
fixion, Veronica, who followed him, put a handkerchief to
his face, on which Christ impressed his likeness. This
holy relic is still exhibited at Rome on certain festivals.2
Eusebius speaks of a statue of Christ erected by the wo-
J E V 765
man who was cured of the issue of blood, and mentions Jewel,
that he saw it himself at Caesarea Philippi.3 Julian the
Apostate is said4 to have taken it down, and erected his
own statue in its place. From the representations on some
ancient coins, it has been conjectured that the pillar refer¬
red to was originally erected in honour of Hadrian.6 In
the Romish church it is believed that there existed a pic¬
ture of Christ by St Luke, and that there was an image of
him cut out by Nicodemus in cedar wood ; but these tra¬
ditions are without support from antiquity, and inconsis¬
tent with many passages in the writings of the fathers.
A general resemblance is to be observed in all the pictures
of the Saviour; but though this has probably arisen from
admiration of one traditional model, there is no evidence
whatever of its genuineness. After all our inquiries, while
we are warranted in supposing that the benignant majes¬
ty which distinguished his character beamed forth in his
countenance, yet, in regard to any thing more definite, we
must rest in the conclusion of St Austin, “ qua fuerit ille
facie penitus ignoramus.”6 (D> w \
*TT?TxrT^T THE ^0N ?F SIRACH- (See Ecclesiasticus.)
JEWEL, John, Bishop of Salisbury, and one of the fa-
thers of the Protestant Church in England, was born May
4, lo22, at Buden, in the parish of Berry Narber in
Devonshire. After attending various schools in that coun¬
ty, he was entered of Merton College, Oxford, in 1535,
and passed under the care of John Parkhurst, afterwards
Bishop of Norwich. After graduating as B.A. when only
eighteen years ol age, he began to teach, and soon became
one of the most noted tutors in the university. At this time
the Reformation was beginning to make head in England,
but under the tyranny of Henry VIII. it was almost as dan¬
gerous for any one to vindicate as to oppose it. Jewel, a
1 rotestant at heart, contented himself with inculcating the
principles of the Reformation in his private lectures. ° On
the accession of Edward VI. he openly declared himself a
zealous Piotestant; and when the famous Italian reformer
Peter Martyr settled at Oxford as professor of theology,
and began to hold public disputations there after the fashion
of that age, Jewel became his secretary and intimate friend.
The premature death of Edward, and the accession of his
sister Mary to the throne, threw the chief power into the
hands of the Roman Catholics for the last time in the his¬
tory of England. So prominent a reformer as Jewel could
not but be marked out for vengeance. Expelled from his
college, he began to teach in the town, and his popularity
with his scholars remained undiminished. Severer mea¬
sures were then adopted ; and the alternative was laid be¬
fore him of submission or death. He hesitated, and yielded
a little. At length a prey to keen remorse, and with little
hope of security in compliance, he sought safety in flight.
With difficulty he found his way to Frankfort, where0 he
made a public confession of sorrow for his weakness in
temporizing with Popery. On the invitation of Peter Mar¬
tyr he removed to Strasburg, where he lived for a while
and assisted his friend in the composition of some of his
works. With the death of Queen Mary the sun began
again to shine on the persecuted Reformers. Jewel returned
to England, and in a short time was appointed to the see of
Salisbury. I he remainder of his life was spent in strength¬
ening the outworks of English Protestantism, and in ex¬
pounding the doctrinal system on which it is based. By
tongue and pen he did his best to eradicate whatever relics
of Popery continued to haunt his diocese. There was no
effort of mind or body which he was not ready to make in
furtherance of that aim. The zeal and unwearied apostolic
self-devotion with which he wrought in the good cause at
length destroyed his health, and cut short his noble career.
In the course of one of his tours through his diocese, he
died at the village of Monkton Farleigh, September 22,
1571, in his fiftieth year.
Jewel, though a keen partizan, was allowed by the men
of every party in his own day to have possessed every vir¬
tue under heaven. His learning was as much beyond dis¬
pute as his virtue, and the imprint of both is stamped on
every page of his voluminous works. By far his greatest
achievement is his Apology for the Church of England,
which was written in Latin, and published in London in
1562. This work, which is one of the ablest defences of
English Protestantism, was attacked by a great many Po¬
pish writers. The Defences, in which its author replied to
these attacks, added greatly to the value of the work, and
gave it such a pre-eminence that by the orders of Elizabeth
and James copies of it were chained in every parish church
of England and Wales for the general behoof of the people.
In many remote parishes these volumes were still to be seen
since the beginning of the present century.
With the exception of some of his sermons, Jewefs
writings are nearly all controversial. More fortunate than
most works of their class, they are still highly valued for
their views on the points at issue between the’churches of
Rome and England, as also on many of the special doc¬
trines of the English Church itself. A complete list of his
works is given in Wood’s Athen. Oxon, and in the Biogr.
Britt. The most detailed life of him is that by Dr Law¬
rence Humphrey, his successor in the diocese of Salisbury.
1 There are several manuscripts of this epistle, none of them, however, older than the fourteenth centurv On* nf ♦v,™
forward about the beginning of the century as newly discovered in the librarv nf the Vntieee 7? T i l' ° f th Was brougl1
in the American Biblical Repository, vol. ii., p. 367. ^ P he fabrication is also to be foun
3 ^uTeccL dvif * 18 ’ e Gieseler’s Kirchengeschiehte, i., p. 79.
‘S'vt n ; PhiloLg.v1i.,3. 6 L. Trim., 4, 5.
766
JEWS.
Jews. The character and fate of this singular people, in their
—v-"-' relation to the Christian faith, belong to other departments
of this work. In the present article we shall confine our¬
selves to a brief outline of the leading events in their
annals, as a part of general history. They derive then-
origin from Abraham, a native of Chaldea, who flourish¬
ed about 2000 years before the Christian era. At that
period the whole world was sunk in idolatry, and Abra¬
ham was chosen by the Almighty, that by him and his
posterity the knowledge of the essential principles of true
religion might be preserved on the earth, and the w-ay
prepared for the revelation of a more comprehensive sys¬
tem to mankind. Under the divine direction, Abraham,
at an early period of his life, withdrew from his country and
kindred, and from the infectious influence of their super¬
stitions ; taking up his abode in the country now known by
the name of Palestine, a small stripe of land along the
Mediterranean, naturally sterile and rugged, but capable
of extraordinary fertility through attentive culture, and
commanding advantages, by its local situation, for securing
an easy intercourse with the whole habitable world. In
the days of Abraham, part of it was altogether unoccupied,
and the rest was inhabited by different small tribes of the
Canaanites, who seem to have migrated from Arabia.
Among these, Abraham lived as an Emir or chief of a no¬
madic tribe, moving from place to place, as the increase of
his flocks and the condition of his dependents required. A
similar course of life was pursued by his immediate de¬
scendants, who, amidst their increasing numbers and en¬
larged possessions, did not depart from the habits of pastoral
simplicity ; so that during the period of 215 years, from the
time of the arrival of Abraham till the departure of Jacob
into Egypt, little progress seems to have been made in the
arts of civilized life. The migration referred to, of all the de¬
scendants of Abraham, was occasioned by the well-known
promotion of Joseph in the court of the king of Egypt. The
Egyptians at this period were living under a regular form
of government, and had made considerable advances in the
arts and sciences. Policy as well as habit led them to look
upon the nomadic life with an unfavourable eye; and from
this circumstance, as well as from the hereditary character
of offices among the Egyptians, the two races were kept
entirely distinct. A separate district of the country was
assigned to the Israelites, where they retained to a consi¬
derable extent the character of a pastoral tribe; the Egyptian
deserts, and the neighbouring country of Arabia Petraea,
affording ample opportunities for indulging in their primi¬
tive customs. The ordinary influence, however, of a more
civilized and powerful people upon their dependents or
allies, by degrees became perceptible ; and we find the Is¬
raelites beginning to practise some of the arts of the Egyp¬
tians, and falling gradually into their idolatry. Gratitude
or contempt secured the descendants of Jacob from the jea¬
lousy that their increasing numbers was calculated to awaken,
till the founder of a new dynasty perceived the full extent
of the danger to which his usurped dominion was exposed,
and, regardless of national obligations, formed a plan for
the extermination of the dangerous visitors. The rigour
with which his savage plan was carried into execution,
led to events by w-hich it was frustrated, and proved the
occasion of the establishment of the Israelites as a separate
and independent people. Under the visible interposition of
the Most High, Moses, who had been marvellously preserv¬
ed from becoming the victim of the royal mandate, gave a new
aspect to the destinies of the race. He led forth his coun¬
trymen from the house of their bondage, delivering to them
a body of laws and institutions, which not only gave an in- Jews,
delible stamp to the Jewish character, but exerted an in-
fluence that continues to be experienced throughout the
Christian and Mahommedan world. Like other lawgivers, he
appointed religious ceremonies to be mingled with political
institutions, but with this remarkable difference, that while
under other systems religion is used as a means for civil
security, the institutions of political society were employed
by Moses to give permanency to the doctrines and prac¬
tices of a pure theology.
The plan which had been entered upon by Moses for the
introduction of the descendants of Abraham into the land
promised to their progenitor, was carried into effect by
Joshua, who succeeded to Moses; and who proceeded
against the tribes which now inhabited that country, with
a severity that can be condemned only by those who forget
or deny the authority under which he acted, or the atroci¬
ous wickedness which warranted or called for the extremest
manifestations of the divine displeasure. The command for
the total destruction of the Canaanites, however, was only
partially executed ; and many of the evils which afterwards
befell the Jewish people arose from the example of the
families which had been spared with an ill-judged and pre¬
sumptuous clemency. Many of the tribes also seem to
have saved themselves by a timely flight, which it does not
appear that the Israelites were called upon to interfere with.
Procopius mentions that the peopling of Northern Africa by
the Phoenicians took place in consequence of the flight of
that people before the victorious Joshua.
Possession being taken of the land of Canaan, it was
parcelled out among the twelve Israelitish tribes, which
were to a certain extent independent of each other, though,
descended from the same stock, and worshipping at the
same shrine, and united by certain general interests, they
formed but one nation. Their government was strictly
theocratical, without, however, excluding the ordinary
forms of earthly rule. During the life of Joshua, the su¬
preme power was exercised by that individual, as it had been
by Moses, under the sanction of divine appointment, with the
assistance of certain ordinary magistrates. From the death
of Joshua, during a period of 450 years, in the absence of
a regular succession of recognised rulers, the civil consti¬
tution of the confederated tribes was fluctuating and un¬
certain. Their common origin and religion, the chief
bonds of their union, often proved too feeble to withstand
the influence of local interests and jealousies. Single tribes
followed their own views, to the neglect of the common
wishes or the common weal; leagues formed between two
or more tribes for special purposes awakened the suspicions
of their neighbours ; these circumstances were aggravated
by hereditary rivalries ; and the government was preserved
from dismemberment only by the rulers or Judges whom
Providence upon great emergencies raised up to under¬
take the cause of the people, defending them from their
enemies, or preserving them from intestine commotions.
At last the people, impatient of the uncertain government
which seemed to be exerted over them, resolved upon the
establishment of a monarchy, which might unite all in one
peaceful kingdom. A member of the tribe of Benjamin,
named Saul, was raised by common suffrage to the sovereign¬
ty, and held the sway over all the tribes of Israel about forty
years. His reign was far from being either prosperous or
happy; and though his bravery preserved the Israelites
from external adversaries, he was deficient in that political
sagacity which was necessary to consolidate the principles
of the new monarchy. Upon his death, the tribes of Ju-
Jews, dah and Benjamin refused to acknowledge the authority of
his son, and elected as his successor a youth named David,
who had been marked out by the prophet Samuel as des¬
tined to kingly honours, and whose adventurous exploits,
generous enthusiasm, and princely bearing, had endear¬
ed him to his tribe. His prudence proved equal to his
valour and his piety; and in a short time he succeeded in
uniting all the tribes in one kingdom, fixing his capital at
Jerusalem. He was succeeded by his son Solomon, under
whose reign the kingdom of Israel was carried to its highest
degree of prosperity. The descendants of Abraham now
formed the principal monarchy in Western Asia. From
the Mediterranean Sea to the Euphrates, from the river
°f Egypt to Berytus, and towards the east to the Hagarenes
on the Persian Gulf, all were subject to the sway of Solo¬
mon, under whose wise and peaceful rule trade flourished,
commerce was extended, and the arts and sciences found
patronage and protection. It often happens, that when a
prince like David has settled a kingdom on solid founda¬
tions, his son is induced to indulge a taste for luxurious
magnificence ; and to this, as well as to his sense of religion,
some have ascribed the building of the temple, the great
event of his reign.
Upon the death of Solomon, the kingdom fell asunder
under the feeble and impolitic sway of his son and succes¬
sor liehoboam. The causes of disunion lay deep in the
character and situation of the different tribes ; and, though
counteracted for a time, they were ever ready to operate
when occasion was afforded. The jealousy that subsisted
between the twelve sons of Jacob seems to have been inhe¬
rited by their descendants ; but it was only among the more
powerful tribes that such jealousies could lead to a dismem¬
berment of the commonwealth. From the beginning a ri¬
valry may be observed between the tribes of Joseph and
Judah. The former inherited a double portion in the al¬
lotments to Ephraim and Manasseh, the two sons of Jo¬
seph ; and their founder had been distinguished from his
brethren by the blessings pronounced upon him. The
tribe of Judah had the right of primogeniture, and the pro¬
mised Messias was to spring from them. In this way the
two tribes regarded each other with ill-concealed senti¬
ments of hostility ; and Shechem and Jerusalem, their
respective capitals, were each the focus of a party ready to
engage in active warfare. The impolitic exactions of lie¬
hoboam, while they gave dissatisfaction to all his subjects,
inflamed the Ephraimites to open revolt, which, fomented
as it was by the ambition of Jeroboam, terminated in the
establishment of a separate kingdom. This kingdom com¬
prehended all the tribes, with the exception of the two
southernmost(those of Judah and Benjamin), together with
all the tributary nations as far as the Euphrates. The royal
residence in the new kingdom w as in Shechem, where the
Mosaic ritual was superseded by a new mode of worship,
and the link that bound Ephraim and Judah together
finally severed.
The kingdom of Israel, as distinguished from that of
Judah, had a distinct existence about 235 years, when it
was invaded by Shalmaneser, who carried away the prin¬
cipal inhabitants into captivity. From that period all
traces of the ten tribes as a distinct people are in a great
measure lost. Colonists from Babylon and other eastern
cities mingled with the Israelites who were left in the land
of Palestine, and the mixed race were afterwards known
by the name of Samaritans.
The kingdom of Judah enjoy ed a somewhat longer ex¬
istence than that of Israel. At last, howrever, about 135
years after the transference of the ten tribes to Media,
the king of Babylon carried away captive the inhabitants
of the land of Judah, which was left for a time wholly
desert, or occupied only by wandering tribes.
During the captivity of Judah, the vanquished people
seem to have enjoyed a more than usual share of the fa¬
vour of their conquerors, and were considered more in the
light of colonists than of captives. They were not, as
they had been in Egypt, confined to a separate territory,
but mingled freely with the Babylonians; being settled
in thinly peopled districts, where, by a moderate degree
of industry, they found an abundant sustenance. Upon
the banks of the Euphrates they met some of the ex¬
patriated Israelites, who attached themselves to the tribes
that had adhered to the pure worship of their fathers ;
and the name of Jews, from the larger tribe, was applied
from this period to all who were recognised as the de¬
scendants of Jacob. The wisdom of many of the insti¬
tutions of Moses now appeared, as they preserved the He¬
brews a distinct people, notwithstanding the most intimate
intercourse with another race, and secured their attach¬
ment to the great principles of monotheism in the midst of
prevailing idolatry.
The captivity of the Jews continued till the year 536,
when Cyrus ascended the Medo-Persian throne. This
great prince had been foretold by the Jewish prophet
Isaiah, as the man from whom deliverance was to come
to the captive people ; and in the first year of his reign he
proclaimed a decree, permitting, or rather inviting, all the
people of the God of Fleaven, without exception, to re¬
turn to Judea, and rebuild the temple of Jerusalem.
About 50,000 availed themselves of this permission.
They assembled at an appointed place, according to the
usual mode of collecting a caravan, and proceeded under
the conduct of Zerubbabel, who was nominated leader
of the caravan, and governor of Judea. The return to
Jerusalem took place about the close of the first year of
Cyrus, after seventy years of captivity.
The building of a new temple, and the rebuilding and
fortifying the city, were the two national objects which
the restored captives had most at heart; and in the
second year of their return the foundation of a new
temple was laid. The jealousies and enmities, however,
of the colonists at Samaria presented obstacles to the ad¬
vancement of the work, and for a time it seems to have
been abandoned. This lukewarmness on the part of the
people called forth the indignant expostulations of the
prophets Haggai and Zechariah, which were attended with
such effect, that, by the joint application of Zerubbabel
the governor, and Jeshua the son of Josedek the priest,
the original decree of Cyrus was renewed by Darius, one
of his successors, and the temple was finished without
farther interruption. The obstacles towards restoring the
city of Jerusalem were not so soon overcome. The fears
of the Persian government were wrought upon by the re¬
presentations of the Samaritans, as to the danger of the
defection of the Jews if their city were again fortified ; and
thus, though Ezra was allowed by Artaxerxes Longimanus
to take with him to Jerusalem as many of the Jews of Chal¬
dea as were disposed to return, his powers, though consider¬
able, did not extend to the fortifying of the city. It was not
till the death of Zerubbabel, about twelve years after the
return of Ezra, that Nehemiah was appointed his successor
as governor of Judea, with authority to repair the city
and rebuild the walls. This change in the policy of the
Persians towards the Jews has been ascribed to the hu¬
miliating conditions of the peace which Artaxerxes was
obliged to make with the Athenians after the signal defeat
of his forces by Cimon, by which conditions no Persian
army was to approach within three days’ march of the
sea. Being thus excluded from the line of sea-coast,
it became an object to the Persians to have a fortified
town like Jerusalem in their interest, which, without in¬
fringing upon the treaty with the Athenians, might serve
as a pass for keeping open the communication between
Persia and Egypt, which latter country had been reduced
768 J E
Jews, anew under the Persian yoke. The extraordinary rapi-
dity with which Nehemiah executed the important trust
committed to him, the abuses which were introduced
upon his return to Persia, and the steps which he took
in consequence for the restoration of the Mosaic polity,
and which he completed in the reign of Darius Nothus,
are set forth in the book which bears his name, which,
with that of his contemporary Malachi, closes the Old
Testament canon,
From the time of the return from the Babylonian cap¬
tivity, a remarkable change is observable in the cha¬
racter of the Jews, and in the features of their policy,
civil and ecclesiastical. The infliction of the judgments
threatened in their sacred books for their disobedience,
seems to have impressed upon their minds a deeper re¬
verence for the institutes of their Great Lawgiver; while
the fulfilment of the predictions respecting their res¬
toration to their own country led them to direct their
views to the prophecies which spoke of the whole earth
being brought to acknowledge the sovereignty of the
God of Jacob. Of the tendency to idolatry, accord¬
ingly, for which they had hitherto been distinguished, we
find few farther traces ; and it was succeeded by a scrupu¬
lous adherence to the Mosaic ritual, on the observance of
which they built their hopes of the accomplishment of
the divine promises to their nation under the expected
Messias. This change was connected with certain altera¬
tions in their institutions, which exercised a decided influ¬
ence upon the destiny of the Jewish people in succeeding
times. We refer to the establishment of the national
councils known by the name of the Sanhedrims, and to
the introduction of the synagogue worship. The precise
period of their origin cannot be ascertained, but it seems
not improbable that it was almost as early as the time of
the return from Babylon, though a considerable period in¬
tervened before either system was in full operation. It has
been conjectured that Nehemiah, in the conduct of his
government, sought the assistance of a council or senate,
consisting of the most influential individuals in Jerusalem ;
and that, in imitation of this national council, smaller
senates were formed by degrees in each separate dis¬
trict, conducting the affairs of the community under the
authority of the great Sanhedrim. These councils were
intimately connected with the synagogues. As the Mo¬
saic law was made to extend to all the actions of civil
as well as to the duties of religious life, the Scriptures
became of constant reference in each community. The
people assembled to hear it read and explained as a re¬
ligious exercise; and as it was the statute-book of the
magistrate, its true meaning and right application to the
circumstances which occurred became a matter of daily
consideration. This gave rise to a class of men qualified
for the important office of explaining the law. Skill in
this department became the great distinction to which
all paid reverential homage; and the direction of the
worship of the synagogue, and the conduct of the courts
of law, fell under the authority of the learned doctors or
scribes, in whom were united the professions of law and
of divinity. This was followed by a loss of power on
the part of the priests, who became little more than the
ministers of the sanctuary, without any authority as lead¬
ers of the people. Such was the great change effected
in the course of a few centuries after the return from
the captivity. The power of the priests passed into the
hands of the rabbis; and instead of the schools of the
prophets, and worship on high places, we have the Sanhe¬
drims and the synagogues. The Jews who remained be¬
tween the Tigris and the Euphrates, and those also who
from this period began to scatter themselves throughout
Egypt’ Syria, and Asia Minor, and, at a later period,
over Greece and Italy, and the other parts of the western
w s.
world, adopted or carried along with them the synagogue Jews,
service. While their personal interests prompted them to
wander over different lands, a common feeling united
them all to the country promised to their fathers, and
to the hopes connected with its possession. These ex¬
patriated Jews conformed themselves to the regulations
prescribed from time to time by the learned doctors of
Judea; they contributed to the support of the services of
the temple so long as it remained ; and by these means,
and by avoiding all intercourse by marriage with other
nations, the Jews were distinguished as a separate people
over all the world, and the spirit was confirmed which has
preserved them from being confounded with others even
to the present time.
After the death of Nehemiah, Judea was annexed to
the prefecture of Syria, the administration of Jewish af¬
fairs being left to the high priests, subject to the control,
however, of the provincial rulers. In this condition the
Jews continued till the overthrow of the Persian empire
by Alexander the Great, when Jerusalem became subject
to the power of that mighty conqueror.
Upon the death of Alexander, the peace and security
which the Jews had enjoyed under the Persian dynasty
were changed for scenes of bloodshed and devastation.
In the wars which took place amongst the successors of
Alexander, Judea, from its situation between Syria and
Egypt, became alternately the prey of each. In the
words of Josephus, the Jews resembled a ship tossed by
a hurricane, and buffeted on both sides by the waves,
while they lived in the midst of contending seas. At first
their country was allotted to Laomedon, along with Ccele-
Syria and Phoenicia. But the ambitious views of Ptolemy
Lagus, king of Egypt, being directed to the whole of
Syria, he entered Judea, and choosing the Sabbath day
for the assault of Jerusalem, he met with no resistance
from the inhabitants, 100,000 of whom he carried off as
captives, settling them in Cyrene and Alexandria; thus
laying the foundation of the Jewish colony in Alexandria,
which for 400 years holds a conspicuous place in the
Jewish annals. With the exception of the period when
Judea was overrun by Antigonus, it continued under the
power of Ptolemy, whose policy towards the Jews was
wise and liberal. During the reign of this prince, Simon
the Just was high priest, who, according to Jewish tradi¬
tion, was the last member of the great synagogue, and in
this character completed the sacred canon. Ptolemy Lagus
was succeeded by Ptolemy Philadelphus as king of Egypt.
Under his reign the translation of the Hebrew Scriptures
into the Greek (named the Septuagint,' from an idle le¬
gend as to the number of individuals employed in the
work) was probably begun, though not completed till a
later period. During the wars of Antiochus the Great
with the Ptolemies, the inhabitants of Judea were sub¬
jected to severe suffering. Their country was laid waste,
and to which side soever victory inclined, they were equal¬
ly exposed to injury. Though they had received many
favours under the sway of the Ptolemies, the Jews espous¬
ed the cause of Antiochus, who showed his gratitude by
lightening their burdens, by gifts towards defraying the
expenses of their sacrifices, and by securing them in the
peaceable observance of the rites of their religion.
A very different policy was pursued by Antiochus Epi-
phanes, who, in all his dealings with the Jewish people,
was influenced only by his rapacity, and bigotry, and cruel¬
ty. The first act of his reign was to depose the high priest
Onias, that the vacated office might be conferred upon
Joshua, brother of Onias, who had bribed the king to this
injustice by the promise of a large tribute, to enable him
to pay which, certain privileges were conferred on him, to
be employed in introducing Grecian customs among his
countrymen, and in weaning them from their national pe-
J E
Jews, culiarities. The new high priest assumed the Grecian
name of Jason, allowed the services of the temple to fall
into disuse, and established a gymnasium, where, under the
pretext of practising athletic exercises, the Jews were won
over to heathenism. Jason was soon supplanted in his turn
by his brother Menelaus, who, in like manner, made it his
aim to substitute Grecian for Jewish customs. In the
mean time, the attention of Antiochus was attracted to¬
wards Egypt, which he invaded with a powerful army
that was everywhere victorious. While there, exaggerat¬
ed reports reached him of a revolt of the Jewish people,
and his arms were immediately directed against Judea.
Jerusalem was taken ; 80,000 of the inhabitants were sold
as slaves or put to the sword ; and, while he plundered
the temple of all its treasures, he showed his enmity against
the Jewish religion by desecrating with every abomination
all that the Jews esteemed most holy. After this, he anew
directed his attempts against Egypt. For a time success
seemed doubtful; but the weaker party made an appeal
to Rome, and the firmness of Popilius Lenas compelled
Antiochus to submission and retreat.
Disappointed in his designs against Egypt, Antiochus
returned to his capital, where he issued a decree com¬
manding all the inhabitants of his empire to worship the
gods of the king, and to acknowledge no religion but his.
It may be doubtful whether in this edict the sovereign
consulted most his rapacity or bigotry. At that time the
temples were not only enriched by the offerings of the vo¬
taries, but, from the security afforded by the character of
their sanctity, were the great banks of deposit; and An¬
tiochus seems to have laid the plan for plundering the
temples throughout his dominions, after suppressing their
worship. Among his heathen subjects, the decree met
with ready obedience. The compliance in Judea, how¬
ever, was not universal, and the partial opposition which
was made led to those measures of frantic severity on the
part of Antiochus that awakened into life the spirit of the
Maccabees, whom God raised up among their degenerate
countrymen to defend his cause, and give an example to
mankind.
A Grecian named Athenasus, well acquainted with all
the forms of heathen worship, was sent to Jerusalem to
instruct the Jews in the religion they were henceforth to
observe, with full powers to enforce compliance. He de¬
dicated the temple to Jupiter Olympus ; the statue of Ju¬
piter (the abomination of desolation spoken of by the pro¬
phet Daniel) was set up on the altar of Jehovah ; and
throughout all Judea idol altars were erected, upon which,
under penalty of the most barbarous tortures, the Jews
were compelled to offer sacrifice. Circumcision, the keep¬
ing of the Sabbath, and other observances of the ceremo¬
nial law, were made capital offences, and all the copies of
the sacred books that could be found were destroyed.
Groves were planted and idolatrous altars erected in every
city ; and at fixed periods the citizens were required to
offer sacrifice, and to join in the religious processions ; and
officers were sent into all the towns, attended by a mili¬
tary force, to command obedience to the royal edict. At
first they met with no opposition ; but the hour of resistance
was approaching. We learn from the first book of the Mac¬
cabees, that when the officers of King Antiochus, in travers¬
ing Judea, came to the city of'Modin to make the people sa¬
crifice, they commanded Mattathias, a priest of the sons of
Joarib, to come first and fulfil the king’s commandment.
*■ Mattathias answered with a loud voice, God forbid that we
should forsake the law and the ordinances: We will not
hearken to the king’s voice to go from our religion, either
to the right or to the left. Now, when he had left speak¬
ing these words, there came one of the Jews, in the sight of
ail, to sacrifice on the altar which was at Modin, accord¬
ing to the king’s commandment. Which thing, when
VOL. xn.
w S. - 769
Mattathias saw, he was inflamed with zeal, and his reins Jews,
trembled, neither could he forbear to show his anger ac-
cording to judgment; wherefore he ran and slew him upon
the altar. Also the king’s commissioner, who compelled
men to sacrifice, he killed at that time, and the altar he
pulled down. Thus dealt he zealously for the law of God,
as Phineas did unfo Zambri the son of Salom. And
Mattathias cried throughout the city with a loud voice,
saying, whosoever is zealous of the law, and maintaineth
the covenant, let him follow me. So he and his sons fled
unto the mountains, and left all that they ever had in the
city.”
Such was the commencement of that noble stand which
Mattathias and his sons made for the religion and liber¬
ties of their country. Mattathias was the son of John,
the son of Simeon, the son of Asmoneus, from whom the
family had the name of Asmonean. Different accounts
have been given of the name of Maccabee, by which
they are more generally known. The common expla¬
nation is, that it was from the four initial letters of the
words which were displayed on their banner (Mi Cha-
moka Baalim Jahoh, who is like unto thee among the gods,
O Lord). Others conceive that it was the surname given
by Mattathias to one of his sons, on account of his valiant
exploits,—the Hammerer.
Having fled to the mountains, Mattathias was soon
joined by associates from all parts of the country, who
needed only a leader to animate them to resistance. Mat¬
tathias lived but a short time to direct the energies of this
devoted band ; but upon his death he left fit successors
in his valiant sons, who, during a period of twenty-six years,
maintained a war with five successive kings of Syria, which
terminated in the establishment of the independence of
their country. Judas Maccabeus, the third son of Mat¬
tathias, was the first who undertook the management of
affairs. His successes were for a time uninterrupted.
I rom a petty revolt, the contest soon assumed the charac¬
ter of a mighty war ; the chosen generals of Antiochus
were defeated at the head of assembled hosts ; in less than
three years Jerusalem was once more in the hands of the
Jews, its altars repaired, its temple purified, and the sa¬
cred services restored; and, soon after the death of An¬
tiochus, the Syrians were compelled to conclude a peace
with the Maccabee.
Had the Jews been united among themselves, they
might now have defied the power of their enemies. But
there were many elements of disunion in this ill-fated na¬
tion. The zealous attachment to their ceremonial and
traditionary law, which animated the greater part of the
followers of Judas, and which was one great cause of their
success, was offensive to the party which had arisen with
less rigid views, and who were afterwards distinguished
by the name of Sadducees ; and there was a numerous
party, who, having conformed to the Grecian worship,
were wholly in the interest of the Syrians. The Syrians
were not slow in availing themselves of these internal
differences, and war again began to rage. Though de¬
serted by many of his followers, success still attended the
arms of Judas, till he was slain in a furious conflict with
the flower of the army of Demetrius, which with despe¬
rate resolution he had attacked near Azotus with only
eight hundred men.
Judas was succeeded in command by his brother Jona¬
than. He fought at first with various fortune; but the
prudence and enterprising valour of which he partook in
common with the whole family were crowned at last with
success. In the contests for the crown of Syria between
Demetrius and Alexander Balas, the alliance of Jonathan
was courted by the rival parties; and he was thus enabled
to make terms most favourable for Judea. But in the
wars that succeeded the death of Balas. he was treacher-
O K
J E W S.
770
Jews. ously slain by Tryplio, who, under professions of friend¬
ly   ship, had tempted him to enter Ptolemais without a suffi¬
cient force for his protection. .
Simon was now the only brother who survived of the
house of Mattathias; but‘the fate of his family did not
daunt him, and he at once accepted of the hazardous pre¬
eminence to which the suffrages of his countrymen call-
• 'ed him. “Since all my brethren,” said he, “are slain
► fnj* Israel’s sake, and I am left alone, far be it from me to
spare my own life in any time of trouble, for I am no bet¬
ter than my brethren; doubtless, I will avenge my na¬
tion and the sanctuary, and our wives and children.” The
pledge thus given he soon fulfilled. With characteristic
energy, he put the whole country in a posture of defence ;
and entering into a league with Demetrius, the rival of
the perfidious Trypho, he secured such privileges for the
Jews, that from this period, b. c. 143, they date their
freedom from the Syrian yoke. At this time the Jews
elected Simon ethnarch or prince, as well as high priest;
the office to be hereditary in his family. The government
of Simon was marked by vigour and wisdom. But, like
the rest of his family, he was doomed to a violent death,
being assassinated at an entertainment by his own son-in-
law, who had entered into a plot with Antiochus king of
Syria, for the extirpation of the Maccabean race. Two
of his sons were murdered with him ; but a third escaped
to Jerusalem, where he succeeded to his father’s govern¬
ment. This was John Hyrcanus, whose surname was de¬
rived from his valiant exploits in Hyrcania, with Deme¬
trius king of Syria. The reign of Hyrcanus lasted thirty
years, and was eminently prosperous. The kingdom of
Judea was extended on every side. Samaria was reduced,
and the temple on Mount Gerizim destroyed. Ihe Idu-
means were subdued, and became proselytes to the Jew¬
ish religion. A league with the Romans, which had first
been sought by Judas Maccabeus, and was renewed by Si¬
mon, was now confirmed on terms most advantageous to
the Jews in their relations with surrounding states ; and
the glory of the Asmonean princes was raised to its
height.
About the time of Hyrcanus we first find mention made
of the Sanhedrim or Great Council, which for a consider¬
able period exercised a power, partly legislative and partly
judicial, among the Jews. It consisted of seventy indivi¬
duals, priests and men learned in the law. Some have
conjectured that it owed its origin to the policy of Hyrca¬
nus, who wished to avoid the appearance of exercising an
unlimited authority, by an institution which might pro¬
tect, while it seemed to limit, the new monarchy.
The sons of Hyrcanus were unworthy of the stock from
which they sprung. The short reign of his eldest son
Aristobulus, which lasted only a year, was darkened by
monstrous crimes. By his orders Ids own mother was im¬
prisoned and starved to death, and his brother Antigonus
was assassinated. An agony of superstitious horror at
the enormity of his guilt, terminated his miserable exis¬
tence. His brother Alexander Jannaeus, who succeeded
him in the government, was a man of enterprising valour,
but cruel, deceitful, and tyrannical. The greater part of
his reign was occupied in quelling revolts among his sub¬
jects, occasioned partly by the turbulent spirit of the Pha¬
risees, but chiefly by the oppressiveness of his own sway.
Immediately before his death, which was hastened by in¬
temperance, he urged his queen Alexandra to unite her¬
self to the Pharisaic party, as the only means to preserve
the kingdom. The policy was wise for the house of the
Asmoneans, and was scrupulously followed by Alexandra.
Her reign, which continued nine years, was conducted
with prudence and vigour, and her kingdom preserved in
tranquillity.
Upon the death of Alexandra, her two sons, Hyrcanus
and Aristobulus, were both competitors for the vacant Jews,
throne. Hyrcanus was deficient in all the qualities that
were necessary for command, and would have yielded to
his brother without opposition, had he not been urged by
Antipater or Antipas (father of Herod the Great) to main¬
tain his cause. According to Josephus, Antipas was of a
noble family of Idumeans who had adopted the Jewish re¬
ligion. His father had been governor of Idumea during
the reigns of Alexander Jannseus and Alexandra. An¬
tipas himself was educated in the Jewish court, where he
attached himself to the interests of the eldest son, whom
he looked upon as the successor to the throne. The arts
of Aristobulus, who, in the prospect of his mother’s death,
had made himself master of several of the strongest fort¬
resses of Judea, presented an unexpected obstacle to the
hopes of the friends of Hyrcanus. The prize, however,
was too important to be lost without a struggle ; and Hyr¬
canus, under the influence of Antipas, engaged in a con¬
test for the throne. It was continued for a considerable
time with doubtful issue. At last the brothers submitted
their claims to the decision of Pompey, now crowned
with all the glories of the Mithridatic war. Pompey
delayed from time to time pronouncing in favour of
either party, till at last Aristobulus, disappointed in his
hopes of the support of the Roman, took up his ground in
Jerusalem, and prepared for w'ar. Upon this Pompey
marched against the Jewish capital, which, after a siege
of three months, was taken by assault. Had it not
been for the religious scruples of the Jews as to making
resistance to the progress of the works of the enemy on
the Sabbath, the fortress might have proved impregna¬
ble. The attachment of the Jews to their sacred cere¬
monies was strikingly evinced at this period in another
respect. At the moment when the temple was taken,
the priests were engaged in the daily sacrifices ; and,
amidst all the horrors which surrounded them, they pro¬
ceeded in their solemn services unmoved, thinking it bet¬
ter, says Josephus, to suffer whatever came upon them at
their very altars, than to omit any thing that their law
required of them. The curiosity of Pompey led him to
visit the whole of the sacred edifice, and he entered
into the holy of holies. The sacred utensils of the tem¬
ple he left untouched, and even the treasures, which
amounted to two thousand talents of gold. He also gave
orders for the purifying of the temple, and for the continu¬
ance of the divine service as before. He appointed Hyr¬
canus to the office of high priest, giving him at the same
time the government of Judea, tributary to the Romans,^
but without the title or ensigns of royalty. The cities of
Phoenicia and Ccele-Syria, which the Jews had conquered,
were separated from Judea and joined to Syria, which was
now made a province of the Roman empire, Judea being
reduced to a subordinate principality, b. c. 63.
Aristobulus, his sons Alexander and Antigonus, and
his two daughters, were carried away by Pompey as pri¬
soners to grace his triumph, Hyrcanus being left as go¬
vernor of Judea. This feeble prince was wholly under
the influence of Antipater the Idumean, by whose insti¬
gation he had made the effort which gave him his present
supremacy. Unfit himself to hold the reins of state, he
intrusted every thing to this crafty and ambitious fa¬
vourite, who appointed his own sons, Phasaelis and Herod,
the one governor of Jerusalem, the other of Galilee,
though both nominally under the control of Hyrcanus.
Herod, at this time only twenty-five years old, commen¬
ced his government with a vigour and severity that be¬
spoke the future tyrant. A band of robbers who infest¬
ed his province were made the first victims of his cruelty;
and when summoned before the Sanhedrim, who were
jealous of the rising powers of Antipater and his sons, to
answer for his stretch of authority, he entered the coun-
JEWS.
Jews.
cil in so menacing a form, that all, with the exception of
0,ne individual, were awed into silence. The attack which
the discontented Jews were afraid to commence openly,
they soon after attempted in secret, and the leading men
among them entered into a plot for the destruction of the
family of Antipas. The father was poisoned at an en¬
tertainment given by the high priest; and when Herod
and rhasaelis escaped the snare which was laid for them,
means were used to alienate from them the affections
o Hyrcanus. These arts, however, were baffled by He¬
rod, who contrived to increase his influence with the
prince Dy marrying his grand-daughter Miriam or Ma-
namne. The enemies of Herod now openly espoused
the cause of Antigonus, son of Aristobulus, who had
lately effected his escape from Rome, and who had found
a supporter of his pretensions to the Jewish throne in Pa-
corus, the Parthian leader. In the war which ensued,
Hyrcanus, with the assistance of the sons of Antipas, was
generally successful. But, under the pretence of comino-
to an amicable arrangement, Hyrcanus and Phasaelis were
entrapped into the enemy’s camp, where Phasaelis was put
to death, and the barbarous punishment of cutting off the
ears was inflicted upon the aged governor by his unfeeling
nephew Antigonus.
1 he discovery of this treachery aroused the energies
of the surviving brother to the uttermost. Having pla-
ced his family, and whatever of value he could collect, in
Massada, a fortress on a mountain near the Dead Sea, he
sailed to Italy to implore the assistance of the Romans.
In all the changes which had taken place at Rome, it had
been the policy of Herod to ingratiate himself with the
successful party. _ And it is a sufficient proof of the arts
and talents of this extraordinary man, that he enjoyed
the favour of Julius Caesar, and Cassius, and Mark An¬
tony, and that he was ranked as one of the friends of
Augustus and Agrippa. At the present time Antony was
in power at Rome. And when Herod asked merely that
the brother of Mariamne should be placed on the throne
ot Judea, as uniting by his descent the claims both of
Hyrcanus and Aristobulus, Antony named Herod him¬
self the king. Before the end of the year Herod was
again in Judea, raised a large body of soldiers, relieved
his friends at Massada, and was in readiness to take
the field against Antigonus. The war continued about
t iree years, in the course of which Jerusalem again
stood a long siege. When it was at last taken, the Ro¬
mans, exasperated at the obstinacy with which it had
been defended, would have made a general massacre, and
reduced the city to ashes, had they not been restrained
by Herod, who complained that “ they were going to make
him king of a desert.” The pusillanimity of Antigonus
upon his surrender subjected him to the scorn of the Ro¬
man general, who sent him in chains to Antony, under
the contemptuous name of Antigona, as if he were un¬
worthy to bear that of a man. Antony, at the cruel but per¬
haps politic solicitation of Herod, gave order for his execu¬
tion as a common malefactor, by the rods and axe of the lic-
tors. With Antigonus ended the Asmonean dynasty, after
it had subsisted 126 years. Josephus expatiates with a
natural pride upon the merits of this illustrious house, as
distinguished by their descent, by the dignity of the pon¬
tificate, and by the great exploits of their ancestors.
Bpon the accession of Herod to the Jewish throne, his
character began more fully to develope itself. By one
of the first acts of his reign, the whole of the members of
the Sanhedrim were put to death, with only two excep¬
tions. One exception was in favour of Sameas, the indi¬
vidual formerly referred to as standing alone in arraigning
Herod to his face. If there was any generosity in the con¬
duct of Heiod towards Sameas, he forfeits the admiration
it might have excited, by his unworthy jealousy of Aris-
771
tobulus, the brother of his wife Mariamne. When the
popular feeling was manifested in their admiration of the
rightful heir of the Asmoneans, Herod saw in him a dan¬
gerous rival to his power, and by his order the youthful
high priest was put to death. The mother of Aris¬
tobulus appealed to the justice of Antony to avenge the
murder of her son. Herod saw his danger, and secured
his safety by the homage of a personal interview. The
battle of Actium put an end to his farther hopes from
Antony, and his crown and even his life were exposed
to a new jeopardy. He resolved therefore once more to
have recourse to the expedient of a personal interview;
he presented himself before Augustus upon his arrival in
Rgypt; and the arts which had formerly prevailed with
Roman generals were still successful. But the qualities
by which he was able to attach to himself many illustrious
friends, and the munificent acts and proud and princely
undertakings which shed a barbaric splendour over his
reign, formed no atonement for the many deeds of blood
by which he had arrived at his guiltj' pre-eminence. His
crimes, however, were not allowed to pass unpunished. He
regarded not how much misery might be endured by
others, that his own passions might be indulged ; and in
those passions his guilt found its avengers.
When he left Judea to plead his cause before Antony,
he gave the extraordinary injunction, that if he were con¬
demned, Mariamne should be put to death, to prevent the
possibility of her ever being the wife of another. And
during his absence at the time when he paid his court to
Augustus, he gave the same instructions ; his love being
such, that he could not think of Mariamne but as his
own; if the name of love can be applied to that combi-
„„ tyranny, and pride, and selfishness, and lust,
which filled his guilty bosom. The fatal secret had been
communicated to the queen during his first absence, and
upon his return she upbraided him with his barbarous
cruelty. I he jealousy of the tyrant was awakened in a
moment, and, wild with rage, he rushed upon her with
his sword, asking if such a secret could have been reveal¬
ed except by a lover. But the paroxysm passed away,
and his suspicions were forgotten in his efforts to soothe
the resentment of his injured queen. Upon his second
return he found that his secret had again been disclosed;
and, goaded on by the enemies of Mariamne, he issued
orders for her execution. Remorse and despair now took
possession of his mind. He fled from all society, and,
under a complication of mental and corporeal suffering,
le sunk into a state of insanity. The derangement was
temporary, though traces of it were discoverable to the
end of his life.
As the sons of Herod by Mariamne grew up to man¬
hood, attempts were made to poison the mind of their fa¬
ther against them ; and the obvious interest with which
they were viewed by the Hebrew nation awakened his
jealousy. After a succession of scenes, in which the ty¬
rant and the father strove for the mastery within him, he
appeared as the accuser of his own sons, first before Au¬
gustus, and then before the deputies Saturninus and Vo-
lumnius ; and the sanction of the Roman authority being
obtained, the unhappy brothers were strangled by the or¬
ders of the unhappier father. Macrobius has preserved
a saying of Augustus upon hearing of the unnatural con¬
duct ot Herod, in allusion to the Jewish faith, “ that he
would rather be Herod’s sow than his son.” Antipater
his son by a former marriage, who had instigated the pro¬
ceeding against his brothers, was himself found guilty of
a plot to poison Herod. Sentence of death was imme¬
diately pronounced against him, but the tyrant’s own
death prevented it from being carried into effect.
Amidst the dark shades of the character of this ex-
traordmary man, the splendid acts of his administration
Jews.
772
Jaws.
J E W S.
are not to be forgotten ; the fortresses by which he sought
to give security to his kingdom ; the harbours he con¬
structed ; the cities he built; the magnificent palace he
reared for the royal residence ; and the temple which he
restored to almost its original greatness. The rebuild¬
ing of the city of Samaria, the building of the city and
harbour of Caesarea, with the rebuilding of the temple,
must be allowed to be monuments of a princely and pa¬
triotic mind. , „ . . ,
Upon the death of Herod, Palestine was divided
amongst his three surviving sons, Archelaus, Antipas,
and Philip. Archelaus was appointed ethnarch or go¬
vernor of Judea, Idumea, and Samaria, which formed the
largest part of the province. Antipas was named te-
trarch of Galilee, and Philip tetrarch of Trachonitis.
Archelaus followed in the footsteps of his father, and
being without his talents or his arts, he was deposed by
Augustus in the tenth year of his reign, in consequence
of repeated complaints from his subjects, and banished
to Vienne in Gaul. The part of Palestine which had
been under Archelaus was now reduced into the form of
a Roman province, being placed under the superinten¬
dence of a Roman governor, subordinate to the prefect of
Syria. No fewer than three of these subordinate gover¬
nors were appointed in succession towards the close of
the reign of Augustus. During the reign of Tiberius
there were only two, Valerius Gratus, a. d. 16, and Pon¬
tius Pilate, a. d. 27. Pilate seems to have been the first
who took up his residence at Jerusalem, those who pre¬
ceded him having dwelt at Caesarea. The condition of
the Jews under the Roman governors was miserable in
the extreme. The extortions of the publicans, whose of¬
fice it was to collect the revenue, were excessive ; and
the whole of their proceeding was vexatious and oppres¬
sive. It was vain to hope for redress from the governors,
whose avarice and injustice were proverbially great. The
very fact of paying tribute to a heathen government was
felt to be an intolerable grievance. And the Roman sol¬
diers quartered over the whole country, though they pre¬
vented a general insurrection, yet, by their very presence,
and by the ensigns of their authority, exasperated the
minds of the Jewish people, and led to many tumults, and
seditions, and murders. A numerous party existed in
Judea, whose religious prejudices were opposed to the idea
of paying taxes to a foreign power, and who cherished the
vain hope of restoring the Jewish kingdom. Attempts
were made by different individuals, and particularly by Ju¬
das the Gaulonite, to instigate the Jews to a general revolt,
which were repressed as they arose. But the fanatical
principles were widely spread, and led to excesses, to
which, in no small degree, may be ascribed the final de¬
struction of Jerusalem. The party was distinguished by
the name of Zealots.
The removal of Archelaus was not connected with any
act on the part of the Romans towards his brothers.
Trachonitis continued under Philip till the time of his
death, when it was annexed to the province of Syria.
Herod Antipas continued tetrarch of Galilee till after
the accession of Caligula, who, upon the discovery that
he had entertained treasonous designs, deprived him of
his tetrarchate, and banished him to Lyons, in Gaul.
The period at which we are now arrived is by tar the
most important in the Jewish annals, or rather in the
annals of the world. A short time before the death of
Herod the Great, Jesus Christ, the promised Messias,
was born at Bethlehem, one of the cities of Benjamin.
He commenced his public ministry about the 30th year
of his age, and was put to death by the sentence of the
Roman governor, Pontius Pilate. The circumstances con¬
nected with his life and death and resurrection belong to
Christian rather than to Jewish history.
Agrippa, a grandson of Herod the Great, having ingra- Jews,
tiated himself with the Emperor Caligula, was appointed
tetrarch of Tracbonitis, upon the death of his uncle
Philip; and upon the banishment of Herod Antipas, the
tetrarchy of Galilee was added to the dominion of Herod,
and ultimately he was named king of the whole territory
that had belonged to his grandfather. This prince, upon
his death, left a son, also named Agrippa. He was re¬
presented to Claudius as too young to be appointed to
such a kingdom, and Palestine was again placed under a
Roman governor. A considerable extent of territory,
however, was ultimately given to young Agrippa ; but
Judea and Samaria were reserved as a Roman province.
The policy of the Romans led them to give toleration to
their subject provinces in all matters connected with their
national worship ; and, from Pompey to Tiberius, counte¬
nance was given to the celebration of the Mosaic ritual. It
was otherwise with Caligula, under whose reign was laid the
foundation of those dissensions between the Jews and Ro¬
mans which led to the utter destruction of the Jewish polity.
The insane vanity of Caligula prompted him to enforce di¬
vine honours from all his subjects, which threatened the
worst consequences to the Jewish people in every part of
the empire. The Jews of Alexandria were the first who
suffered. By their refusal to comply with the imperial
edict, a pretext was afforded to the Grecian party in the
city to commence a prosecution against them. The mi¬
serable Jews resolved upon sending a deputation to Rome
to implore the clemency of the emperor. Jhis deputation
was headed by Philo, the greatest of all the uninspired Je w¬
ish writers, who has left an account of his interview with
Caligula, and of the uncertain respite which was granted
to his fellow-citizens. The governor of Syria received or¬
ders to place the statue of the emperor in the temple of
Jerusalem ; but he was induced, by the spirit of calm but
determined resistance threatened by the whole nation, to
delay the execution of the order till he received farther
instructions from the emperor. There is a difference in
the account of the manner in which Caligula acted upon
this occasion, by Philo and Josephus; it is certain, how¬
ever, that the Jewish nation remained in a state of sus¬
pense and fear till the death of the tyrant.
The worst evils, however, endured by the Jews at this pe¬
riod were not directly from the emperors themselves, but
from their provincial governors, who, without exception,
seem to have been men insensible to the claims of justice,
and actuated solely by a spirit of violence and rapacity.
Gessius Florus is represented by Josephus as spoiling
whole cities, and ruining entire bodies of men; as giving
security to robbers and lawless men when made a sharer
in their depredations ; and finally, as aggravating the op¬
pressions of the people, to instigate them to open lebellion,
that he might escape the danger of a representation of
his crimes being made to the emperor. It was natural
for the Jewish historian to represent the revolt which ter¬
minated in the destruction of his country, as originating
in the injustice of their enemies ; and it must be allowed,
when we contemplate the proceedings of the Romans, that
if ever there was a case in which revolt was justifiable, it was
in that of the Jews. It may be doubted, however, whether
they can be looked upon with that generous sympathy which
is always awakened by the history of a people nobly unit¬
ing in the assertion of their rights and liberties. Judea,
at this period, was torn by factions, a spirit of insubordi¬
nation and fanaticism, chiefly connected with views of
their promised Messias, pervaded the great body of the
people; and miserable as was their condition under the
oppressions of the procurators, it is impossible not to per¬
ceive, in perusing the works of their own historian, that
their greatest sufferings were occasioned by the unset¬
tled and violent spirit that reigned among themselves.
Jews.
JEW S.
773
The commencement of the war was connected with
/ circumstances which took place in Caesarea. The Syrian
party in that city had been favoured by the Roman em¬
peror, and they abused the advantage which this cir¬
cumstance gave them, in provoking and harassing the
Jews, till at last there was a violent collision, and the
Jews were driven out of the city. The leading men
among them appealed to Florus, who, instead of affording
them redress, cast them into prison. The news of this in¬
dignity kindled a flame in the Jewish capital; and the ex¬
citement among the people was such as to give Florus the
pretext which he had long desired, of letting loose the
soldiery upon the citizens. Great cruelties were inflicted,
and no distinction was made between the innocent and the
guilty. The influence of Berenice, sister of Agrippa,
who was in Jerusalem at the time, and the arrival of
Agrippa himself from Egypt soon after, promised to re¬
store tranquillity. They both seem to have been sin¬
cere in their efforts towards a pacification, and for a time
happy results followed the soothing counsels of Agrip¬
pa. It was, however, but for a time. All over Judea
there were spirits determined not to allow so favourable
a pretext for war as had been afforded by Florus, to pass
away ; and Agrippa, soon seeing that his attempts at me¬
diation were to be in vain, withdrew to his own kingdom,
and left Jerusalem to its fate. This was in the year 66.
Hitherto the people professed that it was against Florus,
and not against the Romans, that they had taken up arms.
The distinction would not probably have been acknow¬
ledged at Rome, and the Jews did not allow the ques¬
tion to be tried. Eleazar, the son of Ananias the high
priest, persuaded the people to reject the offerings which
were made by the emperor to the temple, and which had
been received since the time of Julius Caesar; and about
the same time the fortress of Massada, near the Dead
Sea, was taken, and the Roman garrison put to the sword.
Allegiance to the Romans was now in effect renounced,
and from this period we may date the commencement of
the war.
Eleazar took possession of Acra and the temple; and
receiving numerous reinforcements of Zealots or Siccarii
from different parts of the country, he not only resisted
the assaults of the Romans and of the soldiers of Agrippa,
but soon sallied out and made himself master of the whole
city. He granted a safe passage to the Jewish soldiers
who were against him, and to the troops of Agrippa; but
a different fate awaited the Roman garrison. They had
capitulated on condition that their lives were to be spared.
But the moment they yielded up their arms, the fol¬
lowers of Eleazar commenced an attack, and, with the
exception of their leader, they were all put to the sword.
This monstrous breach of treaty was on a Sabbath day;
and the minds of all those wdio had not as yet joined
in the revolt were filled with gloomy forebodings of the
evils which were now inevitable. But the Jews were
not the only guilty parties in the deeds which darken
the annals of these dreadful times. On the same day
of the massacre of the Roman garrison, the Jewish in¬
habitants of Caesarea, amounting to 20,000, were put to
the sword. Upon this the fire spread at once over all
Judea, and an attack was simultaneously made upon the
neighbouring territory of Syria. Cestius Gallus, the pre¬
fect of Syria, took immediate measures for chastising
this presumption. He ordered the twelfth legion into Ga¬
lilee, and soon afterwards he himself entered Judea with
an army of about 10,000 men. He advanced without
opposition to Jerusalem, and, from the state of parties
in the city, there seems little doubt, that if he had shown
common prudence, or common braver}', it would soon
have been in his power. But a severer doom was in
reserve for it. Cestius, to the surprise of all, in a few
days raised the siege, withdrew his troops, and com- Jews,
menced a retreat, which the pursuit of the Jews soon
changed into a general flight, in the course of which he
lost more than half his army. The Jews only lost a few
men.
The news of this defeat was received by Nero with
such alarm, that he immediately appointed Vespasian, who
was considered as the most experienced general in the
empire, to quell the insurrection. Without the loss of
an hour after his appointment, Vespasian despatched his
son Titus to Alexandria, whence, with the sixth and tenth
legions, he was to proceed to Judea. Vespasian himself
advanced to Syria.
Upon the retreat of Cestius, many Jews departed from
Judea, as from a foundering bark, that was soon to go
down in darkness and death. The Christians, we are in¬
formed by Eusebius, about this time, also remembering
the prophecies of our Lord, retired to the town of Pella
to avoid the approaching calamities.
The Jews who remained in their own land were dili¬
gent in putting all their strong places in a state of de¬
fence.
Vespasian opened his first campaign in Galilee in the
spring of 67. His army consisted of about 60,000 men,
horse and foot, including auxiliaries. On the first assault
he took and burned Gadara. He then presented himself
before Jotapata, which was commanded by Josephus, who
afterwards wrote the history of the war. After a siege of
forty days, the town was taken and destroyed. Above
40,000 men were killed during this siege. Josephus sur¬
rendered at discretion, and continued during the remain¬
der of the war a prisoner at large among the Romans.
In his history, accordingly, of this miserable period, we
have the account of an eye-witness. The fact that the
capture of Jotapata was the chief event of the first season,
proves that the Roman had met no unworthy foe.
In the spring of the following year, Vespasian com¬
menced by reducing the whole of Persea, it not being his
policy to march directly upon Jerusalem. He then ad¬
vanced from Caesarea towards the south, laid waste Ju¬
dea and Idumea, secured Samaria, and then drew back
to Caesarea, to be in readiness to march with all his forces
against the capital itself.
Vespasian had now made all his preparations; he had
occupied two seasons in clearing the whole territory round
and round, that nothing might interpose to break his onset;
Jerusalem itself stood like an isolated tower, against which
all the engines of destruction w ere arrayed ; the force of
Rome was drawn back to Caesarea, that it might be sent
off with an irresistible shock; but at that critical mo¬
ment the moving power of this machinery of desolation
took another direction, and a period was given to the Jew¬
ish people to repent,—or to fill up the measure of their ini¬
quities. Upon arriving at Caesarea, Vespasian received
intelligence which fixed his wdiole attention upon Rome.
Nero was dead, and the fate of the empire was in balance.
A more important prize than Jerusalem was now presented
to his view, and, called to the purple by the voice of his
soldiers, he set sail for Italy, leaving his son Titus to
conclude the war.
Throughout the protracted period during which Vespa¬
sian had been devastating Judea, Jerusalem, instead of mak¬
ing preparations to withstand the approaching attack, was
the scene of contentions so ferocious, that the advance of
the Romans was longed for by the great proportion of the
inhabitants, as the only earthly means for their deliverance
from the terrible evils under w'hich thev were suffering.
There were three factions within the walls, animated against
each other with sentiments of the deadliest hate, and often
engaging in actual conflict. Eleazar had seized the temple,
and kept himself in strength there with 2400 men. John,
774
J E W S.
Jews, the rival of Josephus, had his position in the inner court
of the temple. He had a party of 6000. Simon, the son
of Gioras, called Simon the assassin, occupied the upper
city. His force was the largest, consisting of 10,000, and
5000 Idumeans. Such was the position of the three fac¬
tions when Titus took the command, and the miseries of the
siege itself scarcely exceeded what had been endured
amidst the daily encounters of the Jewish soldiery. Death
was become so common a spectacle, that it was viewed
without emotion. The feelings of kindred were dried up ;
a callousness of heart seized upon all; the interest in life
itself seemed to be extinguished.
At last, about the beginning of x\pril of the year 70,
the tide of war took the direction of Jerusalem ; and Titus,
with the Roman host, advanced from Caesarea through
Samaria, and encamped under the walls. The contend¬
ing chiefs, when it was too late, entered into negociations
for uniting their forces against the Romans. Their mu¬
tual hatred, however, was never laid aside, nor did they
repose confidence in each other, though they fought with
the valour of desperation against the common enemy.
The city was fortified by three walls of prodigious
strength. The one built by Agrippa was seventeen and
a half feet broad, the stones thirty-five feet long, and
so compacted as not to be easily shaken by the battering
rams. The walls were everywhere guarded by towers, at
intervals of about 350 feet, of solid masonry, and of great
height. The tower Psephina, opposite to which Titus en¬
camped, was 122 feet high ; it is said to have command¬
ed a view of the whole territory of Judea to the border of
Arabia and to the Red Sea ; and there were other towers
of scarcely less imposing appearance, and of equal strength.
Above the whole city stood the temple, the walls of
which were in no place lower than 500 feet. It covered
a square of a furlong each side, and was of such strength
as to be supposed impregnable. Some of the stones em¬
ployed in the work were seventy feet square ;—and not one
of these was to be left upon another.
At first the Jews made some sallies, so vigorous as to
astonish the Romans themselves. Had the parties within
been united, and had the time from the commencement
of the war been employed in putting the city in a state of
complete defence, it might have withstood the whole Ro¬
man power for years. But the day and the hour of its
overthrow had been fixed in the counsels of heaven.
After strenuous fighting for every inch of ground, two
walls were successively abandoned by the Jews. But the
heights of Zion, the Antonia, and the temple, still remain¬
ed, which might be considered the strength of Jerusalem ;
and so hopeless did every attempt seem to take any of
them by storm, and so paralysing were the desperate ef¬
forts of the Jews upon the Roman power, that Titus found
it necessary to blockade and starve the city and garrison.
The inhabitants of Jerusalem now saw their enemies “ cast¬
ing a trench round about them, and compassing them round
and keeping them in on every side.” The wall, which was
nearly five miles in circumference, was completed in three
days. The horrors that ensued are beyond description.
Even before this time the evils of famine had begun to
be experienced. In the extremities of hunger, many
ventured out of the city to gather herbs. Strict orders
were given by Titus that such individuals should be seized
upon, and an example made of them, to the terror of the
besieged. Those who were found with arms were cru¬
cified, sometimes to the number of 500 in a day; and
the soldiers used to expose them in mockery to those
upon the walls, nailed in different postures. At last wood
was awanting to place the bodies upon, and room on
which to erect the crosses. When the wall was com¬
pleted, there was no Longer the possibility, at any risk, of
finding sustenance from without, and the ravages of hun¬
ger became inconceivably great. Whole families perish- Jews,
ed. Houses were filled with dead women and children,
the streets with aged men. The young had not strength
to bur)' the dead. Many died in the attempt to give bu¬
rial to others, and many repaired to the tombs to wait for
death. There were no more tears seen, nor cries heard.
They sat with dry eyes, and mouths drawn up into a bit¬
ter smile. A deep silence was spread over the city, form¬
ing a horrible kind of night. The only noise was from
those who were engaged in the work of plunder, whose
mirth it was to try their swords upon the bodies of the
dead ; but if any one begged them to put an end to their
misery, they would not kill them. The dying turned
their eyes to the temple, as if to complain to God that
these wicked men were suffered to live. Everything was
eaten; their girdles, the straps of their sandals, the re¬
mains of old hay, the refuse of the dunghill. Scenes still
more horrible discovered the depth of dreadful meaning
in the words of our Saviour : “ Behold the days are com¬
ing in ivhich they shall say, blessed are the barren, and the
wombs that never bare, and the paps that never gave suck”
And the predictions of Moses were fulfilled even to the
letter: “ The tender and delicate, which would not adven¬
ture to set the sole of her foot upon the ground for deli¬
cateness and tenderness, her eye shall be evil towards her
husband, and towards her son, and towards her daughter,
and towards her young one that cometh out from between
her feet, and towards the children that she shall bear; for
she shall eat them for want of all things secretly in the
siege, and straitness wherewith thine enemy shall distress
thee within thy gates.”
The cup was now full, and “ for the elect’s sake the days
were shortened.” The fortress of Antonia, after many
furious assaults, was taken and destroyed ; and, on the 17th
of July, Titus advanced as far as the temple, where the per¬
petual sacrifice ceased for want of a sufficient number to
offer it. Still the Jews refused to surrender, and the works
of the Romans proceeded. On the 8th of August, Titus
attacked the second court of the temple. The walls could
not be beat down, from the size of the stones, and the de¬
fence of the Jews prevented the scaling of the galleries.
Fire was therefore set to the doors, which soon spread
into the temple itself, and reduced the splendid edifice
into a heap of ruins. Still the upper city held out. But
at last a breach was effected, and on the 8th September
the whole of Jerusalem was in the hands of the Romans,
and orders were given by Titus for demolishing the city
and temple.
Three forts in Judea still held out against the Romans,
Herodion, Massada, and Machaeras. Two of these made
a long and vigorous defence, but before the end of the year
72 Judea was in a state of entire subjugation. Contrary
to the usual policy of the Romans, the territory was not
shared among military colonists. All the lands were ex¬
posed to sale. In the northern districts the chief pur¬
chasers were Syrians. Individuals among the Jews them¬
selves bought considerable properties in the south; the
proceeds were reserved for the imperial treasury ; and a
capitation tax was imposed upon the Jewish people through¬
out the empire, and exacted with the most galling seve¬
rity, for restoring and adorning the Roman capitol, which
had been destroyed in the civil wars some time before the
fall of Jerusalem.
From the time of the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus,
there is no longer any connecting tie in the history of the
Jewish people, except their imperishable love to the re¬
ligion of their fathers. Scattered abroad in almost every
country of the world, in every variety of outward condi¬
tion, their fate presents matter for a subordinate chapter
in the history of other nations, rather than a separate sub¬
ject of history. We are presented with a mass of materials,
J E
Jews, to which the ordinary rules of historical arrangement, by
epochs and by countries, do not apply. The condition of
the Jews from this date varies in different kingdoms, and
even in different parts of the same kingdom at the same pe¬
riod, and is so intimately connected with the varieties of na¬
tional policy, and with local and temporary causes, that it
cannot perhaps be fully understood in all its parts, except
when viewed as incorporated with universal history. There
are, however, a few general heads, under which the more
important particulars connected with their destiny may
be classed ; the classification must indeed be imperfect,
from the discordant and impracticable nature of the ma¬
terials with which we are presented ; still, however, there
is one principle which gives a unity to them all. And
in the absence of the definite lines which limit histo¬
rical narrative in other instances, we must be more for¬
cibly struck with the peculiarities of this singular race,
among whom the want of a native country has formed
a bond of connection more powerful than all the ties
of country to other tribes ; while the efforts made to
sever them from their religion has made them cling to
it with an energy that seems to have incorporated it¬
self with the very essence of their being. The circum¬
stances which preserved the Jews as a separate people
after the termination of the temple worship, were simi¬
lar to those which operated during the time of the cap-
tivity, with the addition of the rabbinical system, which
was now in full operation. In whatever country a few
families of Jews were collected into one place, the wor¬
ship of the synagogue brought them into religious fel¬
lowship; and pride in their privileges as God’s peculiar
people, a principle of honour in not deserting a persecuted
cause, revenge against a world from which they received
so much injustice, combined with never-abandoned hopes
of blessings yet in store for themselves or their children,
and the magic influence of associations connected with
their ancient ritual, have perpetuated the Jewish name in
every country where cupidity has allured or cruelty ba¬
nished any of the members of the race.
There is little that is interesting in the history of the
Jews for near forty years after the destruction of their
city. The ruins of Jerusalem were occupied by a Ro¬
man garrison, to prevent any attempt to rebuild it; and
the tax imposed by Vespasian continued to be exacted
by his immediate successors, who exhibited considerable
jealousy of the Jews, and often subjected individuals
among them to great hardships and indignities. Upon
the whole, however, the race seems to have enjoyed con¬
siderable security; and though forbidden to approach
Jerusalem, large communities were suffered to be formed
in Palestine.
In the beginning of the reign of Trajan, a spirit of rest¬
lessness and sedition again began to appear among this
unhappy people in all quarters of the world. When the
emperor was engaged in the war with Parthia, the here¬
ditary enmity of the Jews and Greeks in Egypt broke out
in hostilities, in which were shed oceans of blood. No
effective attempt seems to have been made for some time
on the part of the Romans to put an end to these com¬
motions. At last, however, Hadrian interposed, and in¬
flicted on the miserable Jews signal punishment. About
the same period, a. d. 116, the Jews of Mesopotamia,
whom the victories of Trajan had subjected to the Ro¬
man instead of the Parthian sway, rose in unsuccessful
rebellion against their new masters. In the following year
Trajan died, and, under his successor Hadrian, the Me¬
sopotamian Jews were again left to the sway of their an¬
cient monarchs.
Ihe accession of Hadrian was not likely to prove ad¬
vantageous to the Jews in general, as it had accidentally
been to those of Mesopotamia. He had indicated his
W S. 775
sentiments towards them by his proceedings in Cyprus Jews.
. and Egypt before the death of Trajan ; and when he" sue-
ceeded to that prince, he issued an edict forbidding cir¬
cumcision, the reading of the law, and the observance of
the Sabbath ; and he announced his purpose of establishing
a Roman colony on the ruins of Jerusalem, and of erecting
a temple to Jupiter on the place where the temple of Jeho¬
vah had stood, lo this new city was to be given the name
-dElia Capitolina, from his own praenomen, and from the
dedication of the capital to Jupiter. For a time the Jews
submitted, with ill-concealed purpose of resistance, to the
authority of Hadrian. But in the year 129 we find the
whole of Judea once more in a state of rebellion. The
leader of this new revolt was Barchochab, which, in the
Syriac, signifies the son of the star. He assumed the
character of the Messias, pretending that he was the Star
of Jacob foretold by Balaam, who was to deliver the Jews
and subdue the Gentiles. Little is known of his pre¬
vious history. According to report, he had been at one
time a robber ; and his conduct shows that he must have
been a man thoroughly conversant with scenes of blood
and lapine ; while the devotedness of his followers, and
the vigorous and for a time successful resistance he made
to the Romans, evince him a man of talent and energy.
The war against Barchochab presents a repetition of the
scenes of that of Titus. Success at last declared wholly
in favour of the Romans, and, about the year 134, Judea
was again made desolate. About a half million fell by
the sword in the course of this war, besides those who
perished by fire, famine, and sickness. Those who escaped
were reduced to slavery by thousands. Such as could
not be thus disposed of were transported into Egypt, and
1 alestine was almost wholly depopulated. The Jews were
now forbidden to enter Jerusalem, or even to look upon it
from a distance ; and the city, under the name of iElia,
was inhabited by Gentiles only, or such Christians as re¬
nounced the Jewish ceremonies.
However severe the Romans might be in the wars which
they carried on against the Jews, they seem to have been
ready to lay aside their resentment when the occasion
passed away; and under Antoninus Pius we find the Jew¬
ish people again restored to their ancient privileges, with
a prohibition merely against proselytizing. They were still
excluded from Jerusalem, but they were permitted to form
and to maintain considerable establishments both in Italy
and in the provinces; and while they were exempted
from many expensive and burdensome offices, they en¬
joyed municipal honours in common with other citizens.
The erection of new synagogues was permitted in the
principal cities; and the Jews were allowed to celebrate
the solemnities of their religion without molestation.
At this period we find the eastern and western Jews di¬
vided under two great spiritual monarchies, viz. the patri¬
archates of Tiberias and Babylon. The origin of both is
involved in considerable obscurity. In regard to the for¬
mer, viz. that of Tiberias, the tradition among the Jews
themselves is, that the Sanhedrim, after moving from Je¬
rusalem, settled at Jamnia, and finally fixed their abode
upon the banks of the Lake Genesareth, where their su¬
premacy was acknowledged as of divine appointment,
their chief or president exercising the authority of a spi¬
ritual head over the Jews in the provinces of the Roman
empire. He was acknowledged as their patriarch or
pontiff. An annual contribution was raised for him by
the dispersed brethren, and his legates or apostles visited
every synagogue, bearing his mandates, and deciding in
all questions that were brought before them. To this
new form of government a legal sanction was given by the
Roman emperors, and it continued in existence till about
the beginning of the fifth century. As the law was still
made to extend to every moment of time, and to every
776 ' J E
Jews, variety of thought and action, with a burthensome and
perplexing minuteness, and no memory could retain the
multitude of statutes which were pi escribed, and difficul¬
ties were constantly arising as to the duty required in
new combinations of circumstances, the Jewish lawyers
continued to possess an unbounded power over the con¬
sciences of the people. And as it was indispensable that
all the rabbis should agree in their decisions, reference was
constantly necessary to the spiritual patriarch, so long as
the traditionary law was not committed to writing, and was
to be found only in the living decision of the patriarch and
his senate. The publication of the Talmud, though it ex¬
alted the character of the special patriarchs by whom the
work was undertaken, was calculated to diminish the in¬
fluence of the patriarchate. It took away the necessity
of appeal from the inferior courts, by affording the means
to every rabbi to give a just decision. This must be con¬
sidered as the chief cause of the fall of the patriarchate of
Tiberias, which took place about the beginning of the
fifth century; though other circumstances contributed.
The exportation of the annual tribute from Rome was
prohibited by the Emperor Honorius ; by a law of Theo¬
dosius the title of prophet was taken from the patriarch
Gamaliel; and upon the death of that individual, though
the office was not abolished, its authority being destroyed,
no successor was found, and the power which had been
exercised by the patriarchs passed into the hands of the
rabbinical aristocracy.
The power of the patriarch of the West was of a spiri¬
tual nature ; but in the East, the office corresponding to
the patriarchate involved a mixture of temporal authority.
The Babylonian Jews are those inhabiting between the
Tigris and the Euphrates. During the wars between
the Jews and Hadrian, this colony was greatly increased
by fugitives from the West. In their early history, and
till a considerable time after the introduction of rabbinism,
the Babylonian Jews were less distinguished from the
people among whom they lived than their brethren in the
West. So long as the temple remained, it formed a bond
of union between the two classes, as they all contributed
regularly to its support. In addition to this religious tax,
they paid another to the kingdom to which they belonged.
A system of taxation was organized for this latter purpose,
which was intrusted to a chief person among themselves,
named the Resell Glutha, that is, a chief of the colonists, or,
as lie is usually called, Prince of the Captivity. The office
of this individual was at first wholly of a temporal nature,
and all that related to matters of faith and worship was
regulated by the decisions of the Sanhedrim at Jerusalem.
After the destruction of Jerusalem an attempt was made
to throw off the dependence upon the schools of Palestine,
which was frustrated for a time by the arts of the patriarch
and his senate. By degrees, however, the inconvenience
of a constant reference to a distant country, and the grow¬
ing celebrity of the schools of Nisibis and Nahardea, en¬
abled the Resell Glutha to establish his independence.
He formed a court after the model of that at Tibe¬
rias; and, under the prevailing belief that he was the
lineal descendant of David, he succeeded in establishing
his claim to a spiritual, in addition to his temporal autho¬
rity. He exercised a power almost despotic over the Jew¬
ish people; and, though a vassal of the king of Persia, he
maintained an almost regal state. The rabbis were in
complete subjection to him ; and from his being able to
bring his power as a temporal prince to bear upon his ec¬
clesiastical mandates, his influence over the Jewish com¬
munity was greater than that of the Nasi. From our ig¬
norance of the state of the East beyond Persia, the extent
of his dominions cannot be ascertained. His subjects con¬
sisted of shepherds, husbandmen, artisans, and merchants ;
of the latter many were wealthy. They do not seem
s.
to have been subjected to persecution, and, in the en- Jews,
joyment of peace, the interests of learning flourished,
Schools rose rapidly in different parts of his dominions;
and to one of these we are indebted for the Talmud of Je¬
rusalem, which has exercised such an influence upon the
Jewish people in all succeeding times. The increasing
number of the schools, and of the learned men proceeding
from them, gradually lessened the influence of the Resch
Glutha, though the office continued in existence till the
middle of the eleventh century, when it was suppressed
by the tyranny of one of the caliphs.
The establishment of Christianity as the religion of the
Roman empire, the irruption of the northern nations, and
the rise and progress of Mahommedanism, had all a mark¬
ed influence upon the condition of the Jews. The first
Christian emperors conducted themselves towards the
Jewish people with a lenity and forbearance that was not
always agreeable to some of their subjects. Under Con¬
stantine the right of the Jews to the privileges of Roman
citizenship was fully recognised, while the rabbis had
the same exemption from civil and military offices as the
Christian clergy. Christians, however, were prohibited
from becoming Jews, while converts from Judaism were
protected from the resentment of their countrymen. Un¬
der Constantius the Jews of Palestine subjected them¬
selves to the severity of the laws by their interference in
the contests between the Arians and Athanasians. Se¬
veral of their cities were destroyed, and the law of Had¬
rian was renewed, by which they were forbidden to ap¬
proach Jerusalem. I he hatred of Julian to the Chiistians
disposed him to view their enemies the Jews with a fa¬
vourable eye. He entered into a correspondence with
the patriarch of Tiberias, and wrote a friendly letter to
the Jewish community, in which he promised to put them
again in possession of Jerusalem, and to restore their
temple. At last an edict was issued for the rebuilding
of the sacred structure, and instructions were given to
Alypius, prefect of Syria, to carry it into effect. Jerusalem
was once more filled with Jews, who assembled from all
sides, emulous to give their aid in an undertaking which
was to prove a new era in their history. Materials for
the vast fabric wex*e collected, and the mountain was
purified from the abominations of idolatry. But when
the workmen proceeded to dig for a foundation, they were
surprised by a subterraneous explosion, in which some pe¬
rished, while the rest took to flight in dismay. Though
a difference of opinion has existed as to the character
of the igneous irruption, the evidence that the work was
in fact suspended is of the strongest nature, and the
truth of the predictions of Scripture was fully maintained.
The death of Julian prevented the renewal of the attempt,
and put an end to all his schemes for the benefit of the
Jewish community. His successors showed in general
a tendency to favour the Jews as useful subjects, and fie-
quently protected them from the violence of the people,
though in some instances the bigotry of the more power¬
ful prelates prompted to measures of severity. It must
be added, that the blind zeal of the Jews often rendered
them the just objects of the popular indignation.
Upon the division of the Roman world, the condition of
the Jews in the eastern empire became less favourable than
that of their brethren in the West. For a time, indeed,
they continued to enjoy the rights of Roman citizens ac¬
cording to the law; but under Justin I. they were pro¬
nounced as belonging to the same class with heretics, and
consequently disqualified for civil and military offices. I he
laws of Justinian were framed for persecuting them into
proselytism. By the imperial edicts the duties of citizens
without the honours were rigorously exacted. In mixed
marriages, the education of the children wras confined to
the Christian parent: if the children grew up unbelieveis,
Jews.
JEWS.
T T81™1 bet,Ween Cat!10l!dsm J'-doiom- In the
mony was inadmissible. Another law was ™ssed bv th s' Cs'lT'T,htWe“ ‘'f Aria°? and the Catholics, the
emperor, in consequence of a division -imontr • ’ they done in Asia' took advantage of the di-
’ ' — 4’ ’ - - ° V1S1°n amon- the dews vAls,ons» naturally ranging themselves on the side of the
lave been Anans, and they found their advantage in this alliance.
thin trihpsL hnwoiroi' u  i,^   a .1
777
Jews.
fUrs' r i • f V V • , “ vision among tlie Jews
themselves, which, had it been observed, might have been
followed with serious consequences to Judaism. Upon the
suppression of the patriarchate, the power which had been
enjoyed by that spiritual chief was divided among the pri¬
mates or chief rabbis of the separate Jewish communities.
. he Powei' ofr};h^ rabbis arose principally from the respect
in which the Talmud was held, and from the right which
they enjoyed of expounding the sacred volume. From po-
rt,yi°ir-hablt ^V^uctions were conveyed in ancient
L/Halciaic : ami as tljic  j . i i
Chaldaic; and as this ceased toT^undemood by many of hloM6 Pr0J)he/’ haf lni far a corimion cause agains
^hearers, who adopted the languageTtlfe^ d-
i  T 7 LU uc unuerstooa py many ot
« eir hearers, who adopted the language of the country in
which they settled, a very general wish prevailed for a
change in this custom, and for a translation of their Scrip-
tures. Ihis alarming spirit of innovation was resisted by
t le rabbis ; and the contending parties resorted to the ex¬
traordinary expedient of referring the cause to the Chris¬
tian emperor. The decision of the emperor was in favour
of the ngh s of the people. In the edict which was is¬
sued, the fullest license was granted for reading the Scrip¬
tures in the vernacular tongue; the Mischna was declared
to be of human composition merely, and full of such errors
as belong to all the works of men; and the hojie of the
emperor was expressed that the perusal of the Scriptures in
a known kngnage raight lead to the conversion of many to
the Christian faith. It is probable that this intimation
awakened the suspicions of the people, who do not appear
themVe aVai ed tkerase^ves of the permission that was given
In the western empire, upon the irruption of the bar¬
barous tribes, the Jews suffered less than their Christian
neighbours. . Heady to accommodate themselves to every
clmnge of circumstances in the pursuit of gain, we find
them following in the rear of conquering armies, or re¬
treating before advancing hosts, contriving in one form or
other to make their harvest of traffic in both cases, and fre¬
quently growing rich amidst the general ruin. In all the
kingdoms which rose up out of the ruins of ancient Rome,
the Jewish people formed a part; but our information
respecting them for a considerable period is far from
being complete. In the absence of a literature of their
own, we know of them only by ecclesiastical writers, who
take notice of them chiefly as the objects of the con
vertimr zeal nf 71. „ ,
T1 n 1 • -I “ au vein lag e in uns alliance,
me (jrothic tribes, however, were soon brought over to the
oi thodox belief, when the Jews stood opposed to the united
body of Christians, till the appearance of a new religion
vvi ought a diversion in their favour.
Ihe rise and progress of Mahommedanism proved,
upon the whole, highly advantageous to the Jewish peo-
P e‘ Pj(luaPy descendants of Abraham with the followers
o t ic prophet, they had in so far a common cause against
iiiolators, and against thn dpfpndantc ,1 
a* uujucis or tne con-
verting zeal.of the catholic church. The success of the
Christian priesthood among their barbarous invaders in¬
spired them with hopes of gaining converts among the
Jews. Hut the circumstances of the two classes were
altogether different. Among the heathen, when a prince
or a successful warrior was converted to the faith, he car¬
ried along with him all his subjects, or his companions
in war. Hut the Jews moved in masses only in mat¬
ters connected with their own religion ; in every other re¬
spect they w'ere wholly independent of each other. Their
conversion, therefore, could only be the effect of conviction
on the jiart of each individual. The character of the Chris¬
tian clergy did not fit them for so arduous an undertakino-.
Iheir ignorance and frequent immorality placed them at&a
disadvantage in regard to the Jews, who were in posses¬
sion of the Old Testament Scriptures, and had arguments
at command which their opponents could not answer Re¬
sides there were no inducements of a worldly nature at this
period to influence the Jews to exchange their religion.
I hey had no wish for the retreat of the cloister, nor did
they stand in need of protection for deeds of violence and
rapine. I heir habits were of a description altogether differ¬
ent from those of the monk or brigand. The attempts of
the clergy, however, were unremitted, and threats and
blandishments were alternately resorted to, and the stru"°-le
von. xn.
’ - - . w.v. wv-idiuaiiis, ui uie vniristian doc-
i me ; and this for a time made them forget the points of
difference. In the new impulse given to trade by the pro-
giess of the Moslem arms, the Jews, ever awake to their
own interests, took their advantage. In the wide extent of
conquest, new wants were created by the advance of vic¬
torious armies, kingdoms which had long ceased to hold
intercourse with each other were brought into union, and
new channels of commercial intercourse were opened up •
and, leaving the pursuits of agriculture, which were placed
at a disadvantage by the policy of the caliphs, the Jews
became the merchants by whom the business between
the eastern and western world was conducted. In
the court of the caliphs they were favourably received •
and for centuries the whole management of the coinao-e*
was intrusted to them, from the superior accuracy and
elegance with which they could execute it, and from
their opportunities, by the extent and variety of their com¬
mercial relations, to give it the widest circulation, and at
tiie same time to draw in the previous issues of other mints.
i\or did they flourish only in commercial greatness. Not
a few of them distinguished themselves in the walks of
science and literature. They became eminent in astro-
nomy, astrology, medicine ; the principal translations by
winch the Arabians became acquainted with the disco¬
veries and theories of Grecian and Roman authors were
conducted by them, though their chief attention was
withR^ t0 tle ^almud, and t0 the literature connected
Wherever the Moslem arms extended, we see the
Jews for a time in.a prosperous condition, though with
■various exceptions, in different countries and under dif¬
ferent caliphs. In North Africa, in Egypt, in Persia, we
fmd Judaism in a more favourable state than formerly:
and in Spain, the Jews rose to a height almost as great
as that of the Moors themselves. In that country their
religion enjoyed full toleration, and the Arabico-.Iewish
literature forms an important chapter in the history of
learning from the seventh till the twelfth century
lliere is a tradition, that during this period a Jew¬
ish kingdom was established on the shores of the Cas¬
pian, named Khazar. The inhabitants of the territory
consisted indiscriminately of Jews, Christians, and Mos-
lemites, drawn to the spot by the advantages which the
situation of the country presented for trade. A kinff of
the country (740) was converted to the Jewish faith
and for some time the affairs of the nation were conduct¬
ed by a Jewish prince, with the assistance of a council
whose members were of different religious persuasions. A
period of only a century and a half is fixed for the suc¬
cession of Jewish princes, though at a later date a con-
sidei able pait of the population consisted of Jews
About the same period a combination of circumstances
proved favourable to the condition of the Jews throughout
Christendom. Charlemagne protected their interests.
He is said to have had a Jewish merchant always near his
person, and the correspondence between that great mo¬
narch and Haroun Alraschid was under the care^of a Jew.
5 p
773
Jews.
JEWS.
The immediate successors of Charlemagne followed the
same line of policy. France numbered the sons of A la-
ham as the richest of her merchants. Their fame as p >-
sicians was also widely spread ; and their intelligence and
activity commended some of them to high political offices.
But a time of change was approaching; and we have
now to trace a gradual decline in the Jewish character
and condition, till at last we find that unhappy people tram¬
pled upon, crushed, butchered, proscribed, in almost every
country in Europe. The special causes of the persecu¬
tions to which the Jews were subjected were different in
different countries, and it would far exceed our limits to
trace them minutely. Throughout the greater part of
Europe, however, we witness the advances of a similar
process. We find the Jews abhorred by the superstitious
on account of their religion, envied by the powerful on
account of their riches ; and, amidst the contempt and in¬
justice to which they were subjected, courting, if not me¬
riting their fate, by crouching before and cozening their
hated oppressors. In many parts of Europe they were
not allowed to possess land, and were forbidden to aspire
to offices of trust or honour. The injurious effects of
this exclusion were soon manifest in their character and
habits. Shut out from all the paths which lead to distinc¬
tion, the aspiring aims of honourable ambition, and the
ennobling feelings connected with the love of country be¬
came strangers to their bosoms. Their efforts were limited
to the accumulation of wealth; and in the decay of com¬
merce during the middle ages, their minds were debased by
the petty details of the lower species of traffic, which was
all that was now open to them. Their ambition being thus
fixed upon one subject, they soon mastered all the degrad¬
ing arts of accumulating gain; and, prohibited from in¬
vesting their gains in the purchase of land, they found a
more profitable employment of it in lending it at usurious
interest to the thoughtless and extravagant. The effect
ofi this was inevitable. At a time when commercial pur¬
suits were held in contempt, the assistance of the Jews
became indispensable to the nobles, whose hatred rose in
proportion to their obligations ; and, where there was the
power, the temptation to cancel the debt by violence
became often irresistible. The Jews had no means of re¬
sisting such injustice, and their only revenge was in the
exaction of more exorbitant terms when the necessitous
again had recourse to them. The meanness and injustice
of which they were thus unquestionably guilty inflamed
the public feeling against them, till every atrocity was
considered as justifiable when directed against a Jew.
In the Germanic empire the rights which the Jews had
enjoyed under the ancient Roman law were to a certain
extent continued to them ; and though they gradually be¬
came the objects of aversion to all classes, the imperial pro¬
tection and the papal ordinances preserved them from gene¬
ral attack till the time of the Crusades. It was at Treves
that the suggestion was first made to the fanatical multitude
proceeding under Peter the Pennyless to take possession of
the Holy Land, that they should fall upon the enemies of the
cross living among themselves. The choice of death or of
conversion was given to the miserable Jews of that city, and
only a few escaped alive from the general massacre. Fathers
presented their breast to the sword after putting their own
children to death, that they might be rescued from the
danger of being trained up as Christians ; and wives and
virgins sought for refuge from the brutality of the soldiers
by throwing themselves into the river with stones fastened
to their bodies (1096). Similar scenes were repeated in
Cologne, Mentz, Worms, and in all the cities on the Rhine ;
and the progress of the armies was marked by the blood
of the Jews till they reached the plains of Hungary. Upon
a moderate computation, not fewer than 17,000 are suppos¬
ed to have perished. The minds of those who escaped
were filled with consternation ; and their synagogues re¬
sounded with their appeals to the justice and mercy of the *
God of their fathers, who seemed to have forsaken them
who refused to forsake Him. Many fled to Silesia, Mora¬
via, and Poland, where they laid the foundations of great
communities. A few, however, still continued to cling to the
land that had given them birth ; and we find them again in
sufficient numbers to excite the persecuting zeal of the
second Crusaders (1146). Upon this occasion the greater
part saved themselves by a timely flight. Forty years later,
the Emperor Frederick gave his protection to his Jewish
subjects till the tempest of the third Crusade swept past.
Disastrous as the period of the Crusades was to many of
the Jews in Germany, there were some of them who yet
conti'ived to reap a golden harvest. A demand for money
was created for the support of so numerous armies. Many
chiefs parted with their estates to enable them to proceed
with their retainers to the Holy Land; and in the transfer
of property which thus took place, as well as in the trade
that was occasioned by the fitting out or march of nume¬
rous hosts, many Jews accumulated great wealth.
From the time of the Crusades, the condition of the
Jews in Germany continued unsettled and degraded. His¬
tory is full of instances of the injustice which they suffer¬
ed from the rapacity of princes, and from the tumultuous
assaults of the people. From certain states and cities they
were interdicted altogether. In others, however, they had
a right of residence, and a particular quarter of the city
was assigned to them. But the privileges conferred upon
them often proved the occasion of new injuries. They
were frequently expelled from the streets to which they
had a legal right, in order that a sum of money might be
extorted from them for permission to return to their own
dwellings; the popular fury was ever ready to break out
against them ; and needy princes held out the threat, that
unless their coffers were replenished by contributions from
the Jews, an incensed populace would be let loose upon
them. Upon other occasions, the necessity of their conver¬
sion was insisted upon, and they were compelled to pay
large sums to avoid the misery of being forcibly baptized.
Reports were continually circulated to their disadvan¬
tage. Stories were told of Christian children having been
found murdered in the house ot a Jew, or of their own
children being prevented by cruel threats from adopting
the Christian faith, or of their stealing the consecrated
host to crucify afresh the Son of God. And such fabri¬
cations had the effect of subjecting the Jews to the cruelty
of lawless mobs, of circumscribing their rights, and of pla¬
cing their lives and fortunes at a miserable uncertainty.
Enthusiasts arose, who considered themselves commis¬
sioned by Heaven to proclaim war against the unhappy
people. A nobleman named Rhindfleish, in the thirteenth
century, proceeded through many of the most populous
towns in Germany, followed by a multitude, who destroyed
whole communities. A peasant named Armleder follow¬
ed a similar course (1337), till his atrocities awakened the
tardy justice of the emperor, by whom he was put to death.
In 1346, the Flagellants came into a collision with the Jews
of Frankfort, which terminated in a battle between the other
citizens and their Jewish neighbours. A few years later,
the whole of Europe being desolated by a plague, in Ger¬
many it was believed that the Jews had thrown poison into
the public wells. The result was terrible. At Basle the
Jews were brought into a vessel on the Rhine, which was
set on fire, their children being spared that they might be
educated as Christians. It would be tedious to enume¬
rate the various forms in which the Jews met their death
in other cities. But from Switzerland to Silesia the land
was drenched with innocent blood, and even the interfer¬
ence of the emperor and the pope proved long insufficient
to put an end to the atrocities that were perpetrated.
Jews.
J E W S.
Feelings of humanity, as well as the interests of his
kingdom, led the Emperor Charles IV. to grant to certain
states and cities privileges which they had long in vain pe¬
titioned for ; and in the Golden Bull the condition of the
Jews was determined in such a way as preserved them
from the hazard of the massacre of whole communities,
though it left them still exposed to the evils of individual
oppression and injustice.
Though thus subjected to every variety of inhumanity
and injustice in the German empire, they were still per¬
mitted to remain in the country ; and in some states and
cities considerable immunities were possessed by them.
It was otherwise in France, Spain, and Britain, from
which countries, after being subjected to the most gal¬
ling persecution, they were ultimately driven into banish¬
ment. In France the condition of the Jews had always
been more precarious than in Germany; and from the
tenth century we see them gradually and rapidly declin¬
ing from a learned, and influential, and powerful class of
the community, to miserable outcasts; the common prey
of clergy, and nobles, and burghers; and. existing in a
state worse than slavery itself. Even in this wretched si¬
tuation, though deprived of every thing else, and denied
the common rights of humanity, they were still possessed
of gold. This was at once their strength and their weak¬
ness ; though hated by all, all were dependent upon them ;
and, possessed of a large proportion of the wealth of the
kingdom, they had articles of value in pawn from all
classes of the community. They suffered here, as in Ger¬
many, by popular violence ; and the proceedings of the
princes were if possible more arbitrary and tyrannical. The
archives of the kingdom, however, contain evidence of usu¬
rious extortion so monstrous as loudly to call for legal inter¬
ference, though not certainly in the way in which it was ac¬
tually made. The edicts which terminated in their final ex¬
pulsion from the kingdom began with Philip Augustus. He
issued an ordinance for the relief of those who were indebt¬
ed to the Jews. According to it, all the pledges in their
hands were to be restored. Among these a golden crucifix
and a Gospel being found, the popular suspicion was awak¬
ened, and all the Jews of Paris were sent into banishment.
The necessities, or cruelty, or superstition of succeeding
kings varied the modes of Jewish persecution. Louis VIII.
annulled all interest on debts due to the Jews. Under
Louis IX. an edict was promulgated for the destruction of
the Talmud. By other laws, Jews were forbidden to
hold social intercourse with Christians; and no punish¬
ment was to be inflicted upon a Christian who killed a
Jew. As in Germany, monstrous tales were spread abroad,
and believed, of their sacrilege and cruelty. They were
accused of throwing poison into rivers, of practising magic,
of holding correspondence with infidel kings. They were
proscribed, hunted down, burnt to death. Yet still they
sought to live in the land that oppressed them, paid a price
to live in it,—and their revenge upon their oppressors was
to drain them of their gold. At last, in the latter part of
the reign of Charles VI. (1594), they were commanded
to quit the kingdom. This sentence was rigidly put into
execution ; and the greater part of the exiles withdrew to
Germany, Italy, and Poland.
The time of the introduction of the Jews into England
is unknown. Traces of them are discoverable before the
Norman invasion; after which event a considerable addition
was made to their numbers. William II. found in his Jew¬
ish subjects so great a source of profit, that he refused to
allow them to become converts to Christianity. The Jews
flourished accordingly under his reign; they increased in
numbers and in opulence in various cities throughout the
kingdom, and the greater part of Oxford is said to have be¬
longed to them. It is somewhat remarkable, however, that
their only burial-place was in London, and it was not till
779
the time of Henry II. that they were allowed the privilege Jews,
of interring their dead elsewhere. Though favoured for a
time by the English monarchs, from the advantages they
derived from them, the Jews became the objects of popu¬
lar hatred, partly from motives of superstition, and partly
from the odium that at that time was generally attached
to the practice of lending money upon interest, as well as
from the rigour with which this practice was exercised by
them. The first general display of the public hatred was
in the reign of Richard I. On the day of the coronation
of this prince, some Jews, contrary to an express prohibi¬
tion, were discovered as spectators of the ceremony. An
attack was made upon these individuals, which terminated
in a general assault upon the Jews. Their houses were
plundered, and in many instances committed to the flames.
Richard in vain attempted to repress the tumult, which
continued to rage two days. Similar outrages ensued in
Norwich, Stamford, and in several other towns. Knights
who were proceeding to the Holy Land considered them¬
selves justified in robbing the rich Jews, to aid them
in their pilgrimage. And, in many cases, those who had
borrowed money from their Jewish neighbours stirred
up the people to a tumultuous onset, as the easiest way
of cancelling their debts. In York the Jews took refuge
in the castle, and made a vigorous resistance ; but find¬
ing their situation hopeless, they devoted themselves to
a voluntary destruction. They first destroyed everything
of value that belonged to them. After this their chief
with his own hands murdered his wife and five children,
and then submitted to death himself. Their dead bo¬
dies were thrown over the ramparts. The example was
followed by five hundred others. In the mean time, those
who were indebted to the Jews proceeded to the cathe¬
dral, where the bonds were kept, and committed them
to the flames. During the two following reigns, the his¬
tory of England abounds in instances of the oppres¬
sions to which the Jews were subjected, and of the vast
sums extorted from them by the necessities of the mo¬
narchs ; though privileges were occasionally conceded to
them, in such forms as insured a profitable return. The
tyrannical proceedings of King John in reference to the
unhappy race are well known, and in particular the anec¬
dote of his ordering that a rich Jew of Bristol should lose
a tooth daily till he paid 10,000 merks. The Jew lost
seven teeth before he yielded. Their situation was in no
degree improved under Henry III. Though various de¬
crees were issued in their favour, the superstitions of the
clergy and the people, and the necessities of the govern¬
ment, subjected them to every varied form of contumely
and wrong. After the king had repeated his extortions so
frequently that the Jews made the vain threat of leaving
the kingdom, he sold to his brother all the Jews in his
realm for 5000 merks, with full power over their persons
and property. At last, in the succeeding reign (of Edward
I.), an edict was issued (1290), without any known pretext
afforded by their conduct, for their expulsion from the
country altogether; and, after having been deprived of all
their possessions, the wretched race, amidst the mockery
and triumph of the common people, proceeded to the shore,
and finally left the island. The exiles amounted to 15,000,
or, according to others, to upwards of 16,000.
The history of the Jews in the Spanish peninsula forms
one of the most interesting and affecting chapters in the
strange vicissitudes of that ill-fated race. During many
centuries their situation, both in Spain and Portugal, was
more favourable than in any other European country. The
political influence which they enjoyed with the Moslems
commanded for them the respect of the Christians, if it
increased their hatred ; and after the decay of the Mahom-
medan power, their superior education, their talents for af¬
fairs, their wealth and their industry, in a country where
780 J E
Jews, the lower orders were sunk in the deepest degradation,
while the nobles were engaged almost wholly in war, ren¬
dered them too important a class of the community to
allow their rights to be rashly interfered with. The pro¬
tection which they enjoyed arose in no small degree from
the policy of the sovereigns, who found their Jewish sub¬
jects invaluable, not only to themselves individually in
various departments, as physicians or ministers of finance,
but also to the country generally, from the life which
their industry gave to trade, and from the unfailing cer¬
tainty with which recourse might always be had to them
upon every occasion when money was required. The
nobles, and even the priesthood, were by no means insen¬
sible to the latter of these advantages ; and when, in some
instances, the sovereigns, forgetting their true interests,
prepared to make the Jews the subjects of their extortion,
we find the clergy overcoming their superstitious feelings,
and interfering in their behalf.
The political or rather legal position of the Jews in
Spain varied in different periods, and even at the same time
in different parts of the country. In the most favourable
circumstances, they were considered as belonging to the
king directly, and indirectly to his greater vassals; and thus
they enjoyed the right of self-defence, and could claim
the protection of their liege lords when unjustly attacked.
In all their greater communities they had their own courts
of law, which enjoyed a certain jurisdiction both in civil
and criminal affairs. They could possess landed property,
though many efforts were made to restrict this right,
which induced them here, as in other countries, to en¬
gage in the practice of lending money upon interest.
The rate of interest was fixed by the law ; and we do not
find charges of chicanery and extortion brought against
them similar to those made against their countrymen in
France, or England, or Germany. Among their other privi¬
leges, they could not be imprisoned on account of debt,
and, with certain limitations, their evidence was received
in courts of justice. In Portugal they enjoyed similar
privileges as in Spain.
The superior character of the peninsular Jews proved
that these advantages were not unworthily conferred.
They held a much higher rank than in the other parts of
Christendom. Not compelled to have recourse to arts
that sunk them in their own esteem, they maintained a ge¬
nerous rivalry in the liberal use they made of the wealth
which they acquired in the walks of honest industry.
Their literature betokens no ordinary progress in civili¬
zation. Their acquaintance with Arabic put them in pos¬
session of all the treasures of that language. Their poets,
grammarians, mathematicians, naturalists, are of no mean
reputation. And their astronomers were in so great re¬
nown, that some of them were employed by Alphonso the
Wise in the construction of his celebrated Tables. The
study of mental science was also cultivated with no ordi¬
nary care, though the pursuits of science, whether natu¬
ral or metaphysical, were ever more or less connected
with their theology. Three epochs have been marked in
the progress of the philosophy of the Jews of Spain. In
the first, we have the endeavour to connect the discove¬
ries of science with the doctrines contained in the Tal¬
mud, and to present the peculiarities of Judaism in a phi¬
losophic form. In the second, we find the spirit of rab-
binism lording it over the efforts of philosophic genius.
In the third, a contest was carried on, sometimes under
the forms of philosophy, between the advocates of Ju¬
daism, and those who endeavoured by the force of argu¬
ment to gain converts to the Christian faith.
_ ihe point at which the star of the fortunes of the Spa¬
nish Jews might be said to culminate, was in the thirteenth
century, during the reign of Alphonso X. From that pe¬
riod the superstitions of the people were more bitterly
w s.
directed against the unfortunate race, and in the succeed- Jews,
ing reigns constant attempts were made to diminish their
privileges, while local outbreakings of popular dislike
subjected individuals and whole communities to severe
suffering. Alphonso XI. though himself favourably dis¬
posed towards them, was compelled (1325) to yield in
various particulars to the feeling that began to be ex¬
pressed against them. In this reign they were enjoined to
confine themselves to particular streets, at the greatest
distance from the churches ; and thenceforth particular
districts were known in every city where a community
existed as the Jews’ Quarter. The greatest misery, how¬
ever, to which they were subjected arose from attempts
for their conversion. A proselytizing spirit had mani¬
fested itself in various forms from an early period. An
institution was erected in Aragon in 1250, for the express
purpose of training men to enter into controversy with the
Jews ; but, not trusting to the mere force of argument,
the rabbinical writings were frequently subjected to a cen¬
sorship, by which whatever was supposed to be injurious
to the interests or hurtful to the feelings of churchmen
was cancelled. Such instances of intolerance, however,
afforded but feeble presage of the fearful hurricane that
at last arose.
The attack commenced in Seville in 1391, where the
minds of the citizens were inflamed by a sermon which
an archbishop delivered in the cathedral. Individuals
among the Jews were insulted and plundered. The at¬
tempts made by the civil authorities to restrain the po¬
pular fury increased its violence, till at last a general at¬
tack was made upon the Jews’ Quarter, and of 7000 fa¬
milies upwards of one half were put to death, while the
remainder sought for safety by a pretended conversion
to Christianity. The example was followed in Cordova,
Toledo, Valencia, and in all the cities where the greatest
communities of the Jews were to be found. Many thou¬
sands were butchered ; not a few left the kingdom, seek¬
ing for refuge in Italy, Turkey, and the states of Barbary;
and it is calculated that 200,000 were forced into a pro¬
fession of Christianity. The condition of these converts,
or pretended converts, was truly deplorable. Subjected
to the suspicions of the Christians, and to the hatred of those
of their countrymen who continued stedfast to their ancient
creed, many of them found their situation altogether in¬
supportable, and became voluntary exiles. Not a few re¬
turned to the profession of Judaism, choosing rather to
brave all the horrors of persecution than to submit to the
odium of a suspicious apostacy.
The government showed its disposition to protect those
who did not depart from the Jewish religion ; several
of the princes were opposed to extreme measures; and
affairs began to wear a more favourable aspect. But
the calm was only temporary. The sincerity of the
whole of the Jewish converts, or, as they were called,
the New Christians, began to be questioned. The honour
of the church was considered as at stake ; and, by the
influence of Alphonso of Godeja, a bull was obtained from
Fope Sixtus IV. for the institution of the inquisition, ef¬
fectually to prevent a return to Judaism. The queen,
the Jews, even the Cortes, resisted the introduction of
this dread tribunal; but the priesthood prevailed. I he
tribunal was opened in Seville, and invested with full power
to summon every individual suspected of secret attachment
to Judaism. The unsparing energy with which it was to
proceed was marked by the fact, that in a short time Se¬
ville numbered more prisoners than inhabitants; and in
the course of a single year, in that city and in the imme¬
diately surrounding country, upwards of 2000 were put
to death, several were imprisoned for life, and 17,000
were subjected to corporal punishment. At last a large
stone building was constructed for containing a multitude
J E
Jews. of prisoners, combustible materials were placed around
the outside of the walls, while the wretched inmates were
left to perish by a slow death. Four inferior inquisitions
were erected in other quarters, and each tribunal receiv¬
ed the stnctest injunctions to use every effort to pre¬
serve the church from the stain of a return to Judaism.
Ihe different signs that were supposed to indicate a se¬
cret attachment to the abjured religion were defined by
law; and wherever any one of them was observed, the
individual was to be brought to trial. A free pardon
was offered to those who confessed their guilt, if they
evinced the sincerity of their contrition by revealing the
names of such as had shared with them in their de¬
ceit. The rabbis were forced, upon their oath, to de¬
clare if they knew any who secretly adhered to the hated
worship. Death was the punishment of concealment.
The fiercest civil war, the wildest incursion of barba¬
rous hordes, could not have occasioned the deaths of
so many innocent men, or annihilated so many sources
of advantage to the kingdom. The impolicy was not
less infatuated than the injustice and cruelty were mon¬
strous.
Hitherto the persecution had been confined to those who
were suspected of insincerity in their profession of the catho¬
lic faith ; it was now to be extended to wider limits. The
ai ms of Ferdinand and Isabella had been prosperous against
the Moors, and the soil of Spain was freed from the infidel
race. 1 he inquisition gave the horrid promise of torturing
the new Christians into sincerity, or of destroying them by
death ; and nothing now remained but the expulsion of the
Jews to deliver the kingdom from every taint of heresy.
The ambition of the crowned heads became alive to the glory
and advantage of reigning over a land purified from ail ad¬
mixture of error, and in 1492 the order was given, that
within four months every Jew should leave the country.
Upon the issuing of this memorable edict, the minds of the
unhappy people were filled with astonishment and horror.
From the one end of Spain to the other, the voice of la¬
mentation was lifted up. But superstition is inexorable;
and the appeal to the justice or mercy of Ferdinand or his
queen was alike in vain. The decree was passed, and it was
not to be recalled. The Jews now acted worthy of the
high character which they had sustained in Spain for nearly
a thousand years. The resource of apostacy still remained ;
but the temptation was spurned, and the sincerity of their
attachment to their faith was shown by their preferring it
to everything. Upwards of 300,000 left all that was dear
to them on earth, and went forth in search of lands where
they might be allowed to worship the God of their fathers
in peace. But misfortune continued to follow them on
their path. The account of their sufferings is heart-rending;
our limits permit us only to mention in general, that the
richer part of them withdrew first to Portugal, where the Jew¬
ish faith had been hitherto tolerated. But the contagious
influence of the proceedings in Spain extended to the sister
kingdom; and the wretched exiles, after being made the
objects of new forms of cruelty and injustice, were at last
expelled from that kingdom also. Others, who directed
their course for the states of Barbary and Morocco, were
subjected to the horrors of shipwreck and pestilence; some
were set ashore on desert islands by the inhuman ship¬
owners, and some were sold as slaves. Some went to Italy,
where the hardest fate of all awaited them, in the cruelty
with which their own countrymen refused to receive them.
Thousands lay perishing for hunger on the shore, till even
the pope (Alexander Vi.) interfered by a sentence of ba¬
nishment against the resident Jews. But, notwithstanding
all the sufferings to which they were exposed, and which
so materially diminished their numbers, flourishing com¬
munities were formed by the offspring of the exiles in Bar¬
bary, Turkey, Italy; and this perhaps more than any thing
w S. 781
else evinces how great multitudes had been sent into ba- Jews,
nishment.
In Spain there were now no professed Jews. There were
still, however, many secret adherents of the proscribed
faith. Of these, many were so dexterous in the concealment
which they practised, as to escape every effort for their
detection ; and some of them were seated as judges in the
very inquisition that had been instituted for their destruc¬
tion. Others, however, were less successful, and against
them horrible cruelties were exercised under the Emperor
Charles V. and by Philip II. and III.
Ihe policy of the Spanish government was extended
also to Naples, from which city the Jews were expelled
by Charles V. The example, however, was not followed
in other parts of Italy. In that country, from the time of
Charlemagne, the legal position of the Jews was nearly the
same as it was in Germany. They were placed under the
protection partly of the popes and partly of the emperors,
to both of whom they were bound to do homage. Here,
as elsewhere, they were chiefly engaged in money-lending
and in petty traffic. Their head-quarters was Rome, but
numbers of them were to be found in all the other prin¬
cipal cities. The conduct of the popes varied in refer¬
ence to the Jews, according to their personal character.
Paul IV. was the first who shut them up in a confined
quartei in Rome, called the Ghetto. By other popes they
were compelled to assemble regularly in a church at stated
periods, where sermons were preached for their conversion.
They were subjected to many other galling interferences
till the time of Sextus V. who annulled most of the vex¬
atious regulations of his predecessors, and restored them
to some degree of liberty.
The changes effected upon the character and condition
of the Jews by the restoration of letters, and by the
movements occasioned by the reformation, were less than
upon any other portion of European society. There were
indeed individuals among them who made noble use of
the newly-discovered art of printing, and who were dis¬
tinguished in the walks of literature and philosophy. But
the great proportion of the people, excluded from all
share in the government of the countries in which they
lived, viewed the mighty changes which were taking
place without interest or advantage. The great events
that were stirring other men’s minds into activity, freeing
them from the shackles of ancient prejudices, and opening
new views of human affairs, were looked upon by the
Jews as a spectacle in which they had no concern. Their
spirit was even more concentrated upon their individual
gains and their national hopes; and in the progress of the
human mind, and in the new views that were continually
opening up, they saw nothing more than the fluctuations
of a wild uncertainty, that wedded them with a deeper
pride to the contracted principles of their unchanging
rabbinism. On the other hand, the benefit of more en¬
larged views that began to be entertained upon the sub¬
ject of liberty, and respecting the rights of citizens, were
not for a long period extended to them ; and it is not till
within the last fifty years that an instance has been af¬
forded of the full concession of the privileges of citizen¬
ship to a Jew.
Still the progress of civilization was silently preparing
the way for greater justice being done to this people ; and
their conduct, in circumstances where they were allowed
scope for the development of their better qualities, tend¬
ed greatly to the removal of the predjudices that exisj-
ed against them. In no history have we more remarkable
illustrations of the great truths, that to enslave is to de-
giade, and that to render men useful citizens, it is es¬
sential to bestow upon them the rights of citizens.
Upon the revolt of the Netherlands, many of the Por¬
tuguese Jews (a name applied to all the Jews of the Spa-
782 J E
Jews, nish peninsula) took refuge from the persecutions of
Philip II. and III. in that country. The distinctions on
account of religion were to a certain extent removed? and
the Jews of Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and Antwerp, vied,
in the highest qualities of commercial greatness, with the
citizens of the new republic. They were afterwards joined
by many of their countrymen, but of a lower order, from
Germany and Poland. Offshoots from the new com¬
munity in Holland grew up in circumstances scarcely
less favourable in Denmark and Hamburg. The continu¬
ed persecution of the new Christians in Spain drove other
Jews to seek their fortune in the Spanish and other co¬
lonies in the New World. They settled in the Brazils,
and in some of the West India islands, with various for¬
tunes ; but many distinguished themselves by their regu¬
larity, and enterprise, and wealth, in such a way as to pro¬
duce an impression favourable to their European brethren.
The recognition of the independence of the United
States in America may be marked as the epoch that se¬
cured to the Jews the prospect of their being admitted
to the full privileges of citizenship, and freed them from
the disabilities that had been so long considered as inse¬
parable from their religious condition. The fundamental
principle of the new republic involved the treating of the
Jews upon the same terms as the other inhabitants. It
was not acted upon, however, throughout all the states,
till the year 1822. They are now distinguished in no
respect, except their religion, from any other part of the
population. They have synagogues in New York, Phila¬
delphia, Charlestown, Richmond, and the principal cities of
the United States.
The movements in America were intimately connected
with the changes which soon afterwards took place in
France; and to this may in some degree be traced the
new policy that was observed in that country in reference
to the Jews at the beginning of the revolution. Notwith¬
standing the edict of exclusion by Charles V., some Por¬
tuguese Jews had been allowed by Henry II. to settle
in Bordeaux and Bayonne ; and at a later period, the
conquest of Alsace, and other changes, added some of
their communities to the French dominions. The condi¬
tion of these communities was taken into consideration
in 1789, without any thing, however, being done in that
year. But in 1791 they were admitted to equal rights
as citizens. In 1806 a sanhedrim was assembled by
Bonaparte at Paris ; and, upon satisfactory answers being
returned to certain queries proposed to them respecting
their civil institutions, and their views as citizens and
subjects, a plan for the organization of the Jews through¬
out the empire was adopted. The abuse made of their
privileges in some of the provinces of the Rhine, led sub¬
sequently to partial restrictions in regard to money lend¬
ing ; and an effort was made to turn their attention to
agricultural pursuits. The privileges conferred by Bo¬
naparte were not interfered with upon the restoration of
the Bourbons ; and, since the revolution in 1830, the Jew¬
ish rabbis, as well as the clergy of the different Christian
sects, receive a stipendiary allowance from the state.
Though by no means approving of such a measure, we
conceive it to be worthy of remark, that the minister by
whom it was proposed supported it upon the ground that
they had shown themselves deserving of the patronage of
the state, having, during the preceding quarter of a cen¬
tury, acted in such a way as to give the noblest refutation
to all the slanders of their enemies.
At a national assembly held in 1796, they were declared
as in every respect citizens of the Batavian republic ; and
the union of France with Holland led to the removal of
every disability of the Dutch Jews.
In Germany little change had taken place in the con¬
dition of the Jewish inhabitants for many centuries. The
w s.
diet of Frederick the Great (1750), for the regulation of Jews,
his Jewish subjects, was of the most intolerant descrip-
tion. The severest measures were resorted to for pre¬
venting their increase beyond a fixed number. They
were excluded from all civil offices, and from many de¬
partments of lucrative and honourable employment, and
subjected to an unequal load of taxation. Their condi¬
tion in other parts of the empire was not more favourable
till towards the end of the last century. Various circum¬
stances contributed about that period to a decided im¬
provement. Among these, the writings and character of
Moses Mendelsohn may be mentioned as having had con¬
siderable effect in elevating the character of the people in
the general opinion. An edict of toleration was published
by the Emperor Joseph II. The most important part of
it perhaps consisted in the attention it directed, and the
support which it promised, to elementary education, and to
its throwing open the schools and universities of the em¬
pire to the Jews. Freedom of residence and of trade was
also granted to them. They were no longer excluded
from public places of amusement; and they were per¬
mitted to wear certain decorations, and might be creat¬
ed barons. The influence of Bonaparte was exerted for
the advantage of the Jews in many parts of the German
states; and from 1809 to 1813, we find ordinances issued
for the melioration of their condition, admitting them to
civil rights, and abolishing odious distinctions. By an
act of the congress of Vienna in 1815, the diet is pledg¬
ed to turn its attention to the melioration of the state of
the Jews; and it may be safely affirmed that their condi¬
tion has of late years been of progressive advancement.
In the Rhenish provinces of Prussia, some restrictions
have taken place in their privileges, by disqualifying them
for certain civil offices ; and, in 1822, their learned men
were excluded from holding offices in schools or univer¬
sities. In the free towns, commercial jealousy more than
feelings of a religious nature still places the Jews in some
respects at disadvantage.
In Switzerland, the privileges which the Jews enjoyed
during the reign of Bonaparte have been done away. In
Italy also their condition is less favourable than formerly.
In the ecclesiastical states they are again shut up in the
Ghetto, and 300 every Sabbath are obliged to hear a ser¬
mon for their conversion ; in 1829 a proposal was made for
banishing them from the dominions of the pope, which,
however, has not been carried into effect.
The greatest accumulation of the Jews in any one
point is in the countries of ancient Poland, now divided
amongst the emperors of Russia and Austria and the king
of Prussia. Their state has long continued fixed. They
form the middle class between the nobles and the serfs,
occupying all the common branches of traffic. The rab¬
binical spirit exists here in greater severity than in any
other country. The Austrian emperors have shown a
laudable zeal for the melioration of the condition of their
Jewish subjects. The Emperor Nicholas of Russia, though
his attention has been directed to the subject, has shown
a less enlightened spirit.
In England the Jews again obtained a legal re-estab¬
lishment under the protectorate of Cromwell, and have
ever since maintained their footing. A bill for their na¬
turalization was passed in the year 1753 ; but the pre¬
judices against the measure were so strongly expressed,
as to lead to its repeal in the following year. They
are still excluded from civil offices, and are subjected to
certain restrictions that interfere with some departments
of their trade ; but their rights have of late years been
made the subject of discussion, with every prospect of a
favourable issue. (d*
It is only necessary to indicate the changes which have
taken place in the civil condition of the Jews since the
above was written. In Spain and Portugal their rights are
still denied them with all the exclusive rigour of the mid¬
dle ages. In Spain, where every man must belong to the
Romish Church, their existence only is tolerated ; and even
in Portugal, where the Church of Rome has notthesamecon-
stitutional power, protection alone is guaranteed. In France
Napoleon III. has left unchanged the arrangement of 1831,
which introduced the rabbis into the circle of religious pen¬
sionaries of the state. The affairs of the French Jews are
managed by a general consistorium at Paris, and their
schools in^ Algiers enjoy the same privileges with those at
home. Nowhere is their social position higher than within
the realms of I ranee. In Holland and Belgium the only
remaining restrictions were swept away by the revolution
of 1830. The Belgian government now undertakes the
expense of Jewish education, and follows the example of
France in treating them with favour, although, as in Maes-
tricht in 1840, the popular prejudice against the race
occasionally breaks out into open violence. In Denmark,
since 1814, Jews have been eligible for communal magis¬
tracies; and in 1850 the special prerogative of the crown
to sanction their. intermarriage with Christians has been
dispensed with, on the condition that the children are edu¬
cated in the Christian faith. In Sweden the favourable
disposition of the government in 1838 was checked by po¬
pular indignation, in which the artizans of Stockholm were
particularly prominent. In Norway the law of 1814, which
forbade the toleration of their worship, has been gradually
relaxed, until, in 1851, the parliament, with the consent of
the king, placed them on the same footing with the various
sects that do not belong to the national church. In Rus¬
sia, which contains about two-thirds of the entire Jewish
population of Europe, their position is very various. In
the Polish provinces their numbers often exceed those of
the Christian population ; and in some of the smaller towns
they stand so high in influence that, for the sake of con¬
venience, the rest of the population has found it advisable
to hold the Christian Sabbath on the Saturday. In Old
Russia their residence is fettered with intolerable condi¬
tions. Great anxiety is manifested by the government for
their conversion to the Greek Church, and in 1842 impor¬
tant exemptions from taxation were, by an imperial ukase,
made venal with apostacy. Within the last ten years,
however, a severer regimen has been adopted, partly on
account of the known sympathies of the Jews with all the
revolutionary outbreaks in Poland, and partly on account
of their participation in the smuggling trade of the frontier.
Chiefly on the latter account they were interdicted, in 1843,
from settling within a certain distance from the Austrian
and Prussian boundaries, and all who were settled within
the proscribed limits were compelled to sell their houses,
and remove to the interior. Another ukase of September
1843 ordained that, in the deficiency of Russian subjects,
they should be subjected to military service, instead of pur¬
chasing exemption by a heavy tax. More oppressive was
the legislation of the 1st October 1846, which fixed the
right to wear a long beard, a caftan, girdle, and cap of sable
at 50 rubles yearly, and doomed all to wear a Christian
dress except children under ten, or old men above sixty,
who could not pay that sum. In 1850 an equally oppres¬
sive ukase forbade altogether the practice prevalent among
Jewish women in Russia of cutting off their hair at their
marriage, and wearing their head covered. A mitigation of
some of their burdens was granted in 1851; a capitation
tax, levied on Jews who came from Austria into Poland,
was repealed, and the price exacted for a safe-conduct to
all who quitted the Russian dominions for Gallicia was also
abated. In the late war with Turkey Jews were compelled
to enlist in the Russian militia when the regiments of
the interior were drafted south, and melted away in the
Crimea. In Turkey they enjoy, in an equal measure of
bondage and contempt, all the privileges accorded to foreign
nations under the sway of the sultan. In Italy the ban of
the middle ages still hangs over the Jewrish people ; only
in Parma and Tuscany is there any alleviation of their lot.
At Ancona, in 1843, a promise was given that the power of
the Inquisition over them should cease, and their position
beyond the pale of civil society otherwise amended. In
Rome they are still confined to the Ghetto, and must pay
800 scudi yearly for the wretched solace of papal protection.
It is due to the republic of 1849 to state that this odious tax
was formally annulled during the short period of its power;
but on the restoration of the pope it was again imposed, and
the old law, which forbade the employment of Jewish females
in Christian households was, in 1851, revived with heavier
penalties than before. The emancipation of the Jews in
Sardinia, which was promised in 1848, ha$ not yet been
carried out at least to its full extent. In Switzerland the
prevailing liberalism of their institutions has not prevailed
so far as to affect the social position of the Jews. So late
as 1839 they were forbidden to enter the canton of Basle
except on market-days, and Jews in the service of Christian
merchants received only a few days’ notice to quit the pro¬
vince. Lucerne followed the example, and expelled them
from the public market in 1850. A second time, in 1851,
the canton of Basle repeated its odious decree ; and, in spite
of the remonstrances of the French, the penalty for employ¬
ing a Jewish servant was fixed at 300 francs. In Germany
their condition varies very much, each principality enacting
laws more or less intolerant, according as the government,
controls, or is controlled by the invariably unfriendly voice
of the people. In Austria the decree of Joseph is still in
force. Their removal from one province to another is at
the option of the emperor, and trade itself is loaded with
restrictions which prevent them from ever reaching the posi¬
tion of a native craftsman or merchant. Only in some parts
are they permitted to rent or purchase land beyond the
space occupied by their own dwellings. In Hungary alone
the Magyar nobles have allowed them the free privileges
of unrestricted trade. After the commotions of 1848 the
Jewish capitation tax was mitigated to all except, the resi¬
dents of Vienna; but in Hungary their share in the revolu¬
tionary movements of that year became the occasion of a
heavy exaction, ostensibly to be devoted to the cause of
Jewish education. Popular hatred, however, avails far more
than legislative enactment effectually to isolate the Jews
from the commercial and literary circles of the kingdom ;
and few years pass without some flagrant act of expulsion
or exhibition of petty tyranny, from which there is no redress
and no protection. In Prussia there has been no recent
legislation of any consequence. Their admission as teachers
in the gymnasia, and physicians in the army, has been several
times proposed by government and abandoned. Commercial
jealousy is still powerful enough to procure their expulsion
from the exchange, and popular hatred to debar them from
the public gardens of the great cities. In the free towns
their condition is scarcely much higher than in the most
rural districts. In Frankfort the decree of 1824, which
excluded them from practising as physicians or advocates,
and interdicted them from trading in raw material, or em¬
ploying any assistants except those of their own faith, was
slightly modified in 1849, and a revision of questionable
tendency was made in 1851. In Lubeck their equalization
with the other citizens has been only promised ; and in Bre¬
men they must, as clients, pay a price for their protection.
In Hamburgh they have since 1849 been admitted to civic
privileges; and in 1851 their marriage with Christians has
been legalized, leaving it to the parents to decide in what
faith the children shall be educated. In Britain the ad¬
mission of Jews to parliament has been keenly agitated, but
hitherto the Upper House has negatived the decisions of
784 JEW J II U
Jew’s Harp the Commons in their favour. The question excited much
I! interest by the election of a Jew as one of the members of
eypoor. par];ament for Lon(Jon, who still holds his election, but has
not been permitted to take his seat. Comparatively little
is known of their condition in the countries of the East.
Wherever Islamism prevails they are the helpless victims
of studied insult and oppression. In Persia their fate is
wretched in the extreme. In Syria the sudden disap¬
pearance of a clergyman in 1840 revived the old outcry that
the Jews mingled Christian blood in their Pascal cere¬
monies, and Damascus became the scene of a persecution, Jezireh-el-
which quickly spread to the other towns of the Ottoman Omar
empire. 1 he intervention of their British compatriots has, II
however, availed to procure their protection from the Porte. ^^ujllur-
I he probable number of the Jews has been the subject
of frequent but not very successful conjecture. The most
cautious estimate is about six millions; but, as their num¬
bers are very great in lands where there is no census, it is
scarcely possible to say whether this falls far short of the
truth or not.
JEW’S HARP, or Jew’s Trump (Fr. Trompe). A
small musical instrument, known for centuries all over
Europe, and consisting of a metal frame with two branches,
between which a slender tongue of steel, fastened at one
end, and free at the other, is made to vibrate by twitching
with the finger, while the frame is held between the teeth.
The English name “Jew’s trump,” seems to be merely a
corruption of the French words/ew and trompe. Prefixed
to the Rev. Patrick Macdonald’s Collection of Highland
Airs (1781) there is a Dissertation by the Rev. Walter
Young, in which he states that the natives of the island of
St Kilda “being great lovers of dancing, have a number of
reels, which are either sung, or played on the Jew’s harp,
or trump, their only musical instrument” (p. 11). In the
Himalaya journals, published a few years ago, one of the
travellers mentions that he procured a Jew’s harp from
Tibet. At the commencement of the present century this
instrument was improved, and several Jew’s harps were
combined. No. 30 of the Leipzic Musical Gazette (1816)
contains an account of the compound Jew’s harp, with
pieces of music suited for it. The original little instrument
has, in modern times, suggested a variety of large and im¬
portant musical instruments in which the sonorous bodies
are vibrating tongues of metal. See Harmonium, and
article Music. (g. f. g.)
JEYPOOR, a considerable raj, or native state, of Raj-
pootana in Flindustan. This state, anciently called Amber,
is about 150 miles in length, and 140 in breadth, having an
area of 15,251 square miles. It is in general an extensive
plain, though in the north and north-western parts are
insulated peaks and clusters of hills here and there rising
above the general level. The population is a collection of
various races, of which the most numerous are the Minas,
supposed to be the aboriginal possessors of the country.
Next, and nearly equal in number, are the Jats, who are ex¬
tensive holders of land, and the most industrious and skilful
agriculturists. Brahmins are numerous, being in greater
proportion to the rest of the population than in any other
state of Rajpootana. Rajpoots, the ruling class, though infe¬
rior in number to the Minas and Jats, are conjectured to be
still capable of mustering 30,000 men in arms. Of less
important tribes the chief are the Banias, Dhakurs, and
Gujurs. The aggregate population has been estimated at
1,494,598. The revenue of Jeypoor, independent of the
possessions of feudal chiefs, is returned at L.458,395. Under
a treaty concluded in 1818 the country became tributary to
the East India Company. In 1842 a large arrear of tribute
had accumulated, the whole of which was remitted, and the
annual tribute thenceforward reduced to L.40,000 per
annum. The corruption and intrigue introduced into the
administration, rendered it necessary, in 1835, to move a
British force into Jeypoor, for the purpose of redressing the
wrongs and correcting the abuses which had brought the
country to a state exhibiting an empty treasury, desolate
palaces, a ferocious populace, and a rabble army. The
measuies of the British government speedily introduced a
better state of things. The prince having been poisoned
by his prime minister, a regency was appointed during the
minoiity of the infant successor; financial reforms were
commenced, and an approximation made to something like the
administration of justice. In 1851 the young chief completed
his eighteenth year. Fie had been initiated into public
business, and the British authorities, entertaining a favour¬
able opinion of his general fitness for the duties of his station,
he was allowed to assume the reins of government, and
exhorted to continue the beneficent system of administra¬
tion under which his dominions, during his minority, had
attained so high a degree of prosperity. Jeypoor, the capi¬
tal of the country, is distant 850 miles' N.W. from Calcutta.
Eat. 26. 56., Long. 75. 55.
JEZIREH-EL-OMAR (the ancient Bazebda), a town
of Asiatic Turkey, on a low sandy island in the Tigris, 120
miles E.S.E. of Diarbekr. The island is about 3 miles in
circumference and is almost entirely occupied by the town,
which is surrounded by a low stone wall, now verv much
fallen into decay.
JEZREEL, a town of Issachar, where the kings of Israel
had a palace, but after the terrible end of Jezebel and the
house of Ahab, the court seems to have fled from the place.
In the days of Eusebius and Jerome it was still known by
the names of Esdraila and Stradela. After a lapse of
seven centuries, it is mentioned in the history of the Cru¬
sades under the name of Paviun Gerinum, the Zerin of
the Arabs. Zerin is situate on a rocky brow at the N.W.
termination of Mount Gilboa, and consists only of twenty
ruinous huts.
JH AL A W AN, a province of Beloochistan, lying between
N. Eat. 26. and 29., and E. Long. 65. and 67. 30. It is
bounded on the N. by the provinces of Sarawan and Kelat,
E. by Cutch-Gundava and Sinde, S. by Lus and Mekran,
and W. by Mekran and Sarawan. It is 200 miles in length
from N. to S., by 150 in breadth, and has an area of about
20,000 square miles. It is mountainous, barren, and very
thinly peopled, the entire population being estimated at not
more than 30.000.
JHANSI, a considerable town of Hindustan, in the pro¬
vince of Bundelcund. It has a strong citadel, situate on
a hill which commands the town. It has a manufactory of
bows, arrows, and spears, the principal weapons of the Boon-
dela tribes. The town is situate amidst groves of fine trees,
and is surrounded by a good wall. On a rock overlooking
the town is a fortress or castellated residence of the rajah.
The streets and bazaars are clean and orderly. The terri¬
tory of which this place is the capital, was formerly part of
the possessions of the Boondela rajah of Oorcha; subse¬
quently it fell into the hands of the peishwa, and was as¬
signed to the administration of one of his officers in the cha¬
racter of soubahdar. In 1804 a treaty of defensive alliance
was concluded by the British with the then soubahdar as
a tributary of the peishwa. In 1817, consequent on the
cession to the East India Company of the peishwa’s rights
in Bundelcund, a second treaty was concluded by the Bri¬
tish government with the soubahdar of Jhansi, by which
he was acknowledged hereditary ruler of the territory. The
revenue of the rajah amounted in 1848 to L.61,198. The
town of Jhansi is in N. Eat. 25. 28., E. Long. 78. 38. (e. t.)
JHUJHUR, a petty native state in Hindustan, within the
Delhi agency, and subject to the control of the lieutenant-
J H Y
Jhylum governor of the N.W. provinces. It has an area of 1230
Jidda scluare ^l]es» and a population of about 110,000. This
principality was assigned by Lord Lake to Nijabut Ally
Khan, of the Bhura.tch family, in consideration of his ser-
yices against the Mahrattas ffom whom it was taken ; and
in 180b the grant was confirmed in perpetuity by the go¬
vernor-general to Fyze Ally Khan ; the present Nawatb,
and grandson of the original grantee, succeeded in 1835.
JHiLUM, Jeujm, Behut, or Vidusta, the ancient
Hydaspes, a large river of Hindustan, which has its rise in
the S.E. corner of the valley of Cashmere, in the great
Himalaya ridge of mountains. It is there called Vidusta,
and passes through two lakes E. and W. of the town of
Cashmere. It is joined, 10 miles below the town, by the
Kittle oinde, and receives many small rivulets in its course
through the valley and hills, which it enters at Baramoola;
and, 4 miles below Moozufferabad, it receives the Kishun-
gunga from the N.; its course thus far being nearly W.
from this it takes a great curve southwards to the town of
Jhylum, where, in the middle of October, it was found to
be 150 yards wide and from 12 to 16 feet deep. In its
iZT hiils this river is vei7 rapid, and from
100 to 200 yards broad. It is not fordable at any season,
though in many places nearly so, as men and horses cross
with ease, having only 15 or 20 yards to swim. After a
course of 450 miles, it joins the Chunab at Trimmoo Ghat,
18 miles below Jhung, and 45 above Moultan, in which it
Joses its name. 1 hese joint streams, called the Chunab or
C lunha, receive the Ravee 48 miles lower down, near Fa-
J I 0
zilshah and Ahmedpoor, from the eastward, and pass 4 miles
m 0t retaining the name of Chunab to within 7
miles of Ooch, where they are joined at Sheeneebukree by
the Gharra, or joint streams of the Beyah and Sutledi, 65
mi es below Moultan, and 40 miles below Buhawulpore.
from this point to Mittenda Khot, where they fall into the
Indus, about 76 miles, these five streams take the name of
the Funjnud. The Indus and the Punjnud, or the five
rivers, run parallel to each other for this distance, which is
about lOg miles. The whole of this space is one complete
sheet of water during the rains and hot season, and appears
as one river. The greatest breadth between the Jhylum
and the Indus appears to be 114 miles from Attock to Jel-
Jalapore Ghat. The whole course of the Jhylum, includ¬
ing its windings, may be estimated to exceed‘450 miles.
JIDDA, or Djidda, a seaport town of Arabia on the
Red 8ea, 64 miles W. from Mecca, of which it is the port:
N. Lat. 21. 29., E. Long. 39. 15. It stands on a gentle
elevation, rising from the sea, while the surrounding coun¬
try is a baie desert. Jidda, as respects cleanness and re¬
gularity of plan, is superior to most eastern towns. The
streets, though unpaved, are comparatively well laid out and
wide. The houses are built of coralline stone, from the
shores of the Red Sea, and from the perishing nature of
this materia], are not very durable. In the suburbs, the
houses are mere huts constructed of reeds and bushwood.
1 he principal street of the town runs parallel with the shore,
and as it contains most of the public buildings, and is much
frequented, it presents a very gay appearance. The public
buildings comprise numerous khans and mosques, the go¬
vernor s house, citadel, custom-house, and a rude stone
structure, which every true Mohammedan believes to be
the tomb of Eve. A wall encloses the town proper and
protects it from the incursions of the warlike Bedouins who
infest the neighbourhood. It has six gates, one each to¬
wards the N., E., and S., and three towards the sea. Of
the latter, only the central one is public, the other two be¬
ing used only on certain occasions. The Eastern, or Mecca
gate is open only to Mohammedans, and through it bands of
pilgrims pass daily for the Holy City. Jidda is said to be
very unhealthy, arising, no doubt, in part at least, from the
great scarcity of fresh water. There are only two good
VOL. XII. °
wells in the town and neighbourhood, and these being avail¬
able only to the rich, the poorer classes are obliged "to use
the blackish water found some 15 feet below the surface,
or the stagnant rain water collected in pools and cisterns
constructed for that purpose.
Jidda has long been famous as the commercial emporium
of Arabia, and indeed is solely dependent for its existence
upon its trade. Situate about the middle of the E. coast
o the Red Sea, only about 120 miles distant from the op¬
posite shore of Nubia, and within two days’ journey of Mec¬
ca, it is peculiarly fitted for the importation of foreign
goods as well as for the exportation of home produce. The
harbour, however, like most of the other ports on the Red
Sea, is inconvenient, and the entrance rather intricate. On
account of the shallowness of the harbour, large ships are
obhged to discharge their cargoes in the offing about 2
miles from the shore. The imports from Egypt and Abys¬
sinia comprise corn, rice, butter, sugar, clothing, oil, tobacco,
musk, and incense ; from India, muslins, shawls, spices, and
cocoa-nuts; while the Malay Islands and the Mozambique
coast send hither slaves. The imports are conveyed by
ships to Suez, whence they find their way to the Mediter-
ranean ports, or by caravans to Mecca and Medina, from
which cities they are dispersed to Syria, Asia Minor, and
iurkey. Dates, and the celebrated balm of Mecca, are
brought from the interior for shipment. Next to grain
the most important article of trade is perhaps coffee, which
is obtained in large quantities from Mocha. The number
of vessels belonging to the port is estimated at about 250.
Ihe government of Jidda is in the hands of the Pasha of
Egypt, and the town is garrisoned by Egyptian troops,
amounting usually to about 400. The population is very
fluctuating; the permanent population does not probably
exceed 10,000, while, on the arrival of the merchant fleets',
9nnnng the feaSt of Ramadthan, there may be as man^
as 20,000 strangers within its walls.
Jl?Np00R’ °r JoANPORE> a district of Hindustan, in
oi6 N-7oPr™nCeS’ included principally between N. Lat.
26. and 27. It is bounded on the N.W. by the territory
of Oude; on the N.E. by Azimghur; on the E. by Gha-
zeepoor, and on the S. by Benares and Allahabad, and em-
b-Ce*an aTrea of \5t52 s4uare miles, with a population of
798,503. It is well watered, and extremely fertile; and
the soil is under good cultivation, and well covered with
wood. 1 lie inhabitants are Mohammedans and Hindus • the
latter preponderating in the proportion of 15 to 1. Of the
Hindus there was one tribe amongst whom the practice of
female infanticide greatly prevailed; but, by the humane
influence of tlie British government, it has been altogether
abolished. This district came into the possession of the
British in 1775 as forming part of the Benares zemindarv.
Jionpoor, the chief town in the above district, and for¬
merly the capital of an independent principality. It is
situate upon the banks of the Goomty. The fort, which is
built of solid stone-work, was founded in 1370 by Sultan
Feroze III. of Delhi, and named after his unde and prede¬
cessor whose name was Joana. He ordered a Hindu temple
to be levelled, and erected the fort around the ruins of it
After his return to the capital, he collected numerous arti-
flceis, and persons of every description, and sent them to
inhabit the new city, which was completed in twelve years
On the subversion of the empire of Delhi by Timour or
Tamerlane, Khuaje Jehan, a governor of the eastern dis¬
tricts, assumed the royal dignity, and he made Jionpoor
bis capital. He was succeeded in 1399 by his son Moba-
nk Shah, whose successor was Sultan Ibrahim. Durin-
1/ifj;r(;yer0US,reign ot f(f y y^s he spared no expense to
strengthen and improve the fortress and city, and Jionpoor
famtrTf 006 i° - ^ Tf Celebrated cit'es of Hindustan,
n. ^ / V6 ,gl°n En^ ifrninS- Jionpoor was again an¬
nexed to the empire of Delhi in the year 1478, when the
5 G
785
Jionpoor.
786
J I T
Jitomir reigning prince was overthrown. Many of the mosques,
II and some of the caravanseries and colleges built at that pe-
Joan,Pope.riod are still in existence. The fortress is built upon a
^^ high bank of the River Goomty, so named from its mean¬
dering course. It is built of solid stone, and rises consider¬
ably above the level of the surrounding country. It was
frequently taken in the contests between the Afghans and
Moguls, and much dilapidated; but about the year lo70 it
was thoroughly repaired by a nobleman from the court of
Akbar, who was governor of Bengal. It was also during
his time that the celebrated bridge of Jionpoor was built,
which has now stood 280 years, and still remains a monu¬
ment of ancient magnificence and of architectural skill. In
1773, when this bridge was submerged during the rainy
season, a brigade of British troops sailed over it. Such is
the strength and solid construction of this bridge, that it
suffered no damage from the violence of the current. Ihe
town surrounds the fort on three sides, and contains a good
bazaar and a number of brick houses. The surrounding
country for several miles is covered with the ruins of tombs
and mosques. Of the latter there are several in a good
state of repair, namely, the Jamai Musjed, which is very
handsome, and is built of stone. 1 he travelling distance
from Benares is 42 miles, and from Lucknow, 147 miles.
E. Long. 82. 44., N. Lat. 25. 45. (e. t.)
JITOMIR, or Shitomir, a town of West Russia, capi¬
tal of the government of Volhynia, on the River Teterev, a
tributary of the Dnieper, 370 miles S.E. of W arsaw, in
N. Lat. 50. 15. and E. Long. 28. 40. The buildings of
the town are the governor’s house, a carmelite convent,
and several Greek and Roman Catholic churches. Ihe
manufactures are confined to hat-making and tanning, but
there is also a considerable trade carried on in woollen,
linen, and silk goods, as well as in Hungarian and Walla-
chian wdnes, tallow, and salt. Four annual fairs are held
here. The population of the town is composed of Poles,
Jews, Russians, and a few Wallachians. It is the see of both
a Greek and Roman Catholic bishop. Pop. (1850) 17,131.
JOAN, Pope, a person, supposed to have been of the
female sex, who was for many centuries believed to have
occupied the Papal throne between the years 855 and 85 <.
The fable of Pope Joan long held its ground in the annals
of the Romisli Church as a piece of authentic history. It
is only within i-ecent times that it has been finally con¬
demned to take its rank with many other once popular
myths in tho chronique scandaleuse. The common ver¬
sion of the st ory is as follows:—A young Englishwoman of
extraordinary beauty went to reside with her parents at
Fulda in Sax ;ony. She was loved by a monk belonging
to a convent of that city. To enjoy each other’s society
undisturbed, it was planned between them that she should
assume male ,attire, and apply for admission into the convent
as a neophyte . As she possessed a very extraordinary share
both of learn, ing and talent, she easily imposed upon the
unsuspecting abbot, and was admitted. Time wore on,
and the lovers , tired of their convent life, concerted a plan
of flight. Thi sy escaped in lay costumes to England, where
they remained for a time. From England they passed into
France, from France into Italy, and from Italy to Greece.^
In the course of these wanderings they visited the chief
seats of learnin; g in Europe, and became profoundly versed,
in all the scienci 3 of their age. Having mastered the Greek
tongue in Athe ns, they were preparing to turn their faces
northwards whe: n the lover monk was suddenly taken ill and
died. Joan, sti 11 in male attire, set out for Italy, and, fix¬
ing her abode at Rome, opened a school of philosophy there.
Her repute for eloquence, learning, and piety, attracted
crowds of studen ts, and even the most celebrated professors
were seen on the benches. Meanwhile the pope, Leo. IV.,
died, and Joan, i manimously chosen in his room, ascended
the throne with the title of John VIII. She lived dis-
J 0 A
creetly for a time, and was held in high esteem for her Joan, Pope,
piety and the purity of her life. But at length she fell
as she had fallen before; and one day, while walking in
solemn procession from the Vatican to the Lateran, she
was seized in labour, and, to the horror and scandal of the
multitude, gave birth to a child. The circumstances of
such an accouchment soon proved fatal both to the mother
and her offspring.
The first writer who mentions this piece of ecclesiastical
scandal was Marianus Scotus, a Scottish monk, who settled
at Fulda in 1058, wrote a Universal Chronicle, which comes
down to 1083, and died at Mayence in 1086. In his
chronicle he states the simple facts, “ Leo the pope died on
the 1st of August. To him succeeded John, who, as is
asserted, was a woman, and sat for two years, five months,
and four days.” The MS. of this work fell, in 1559, into
the hands of John Herold a Calvinist, who, in consigning
it to press, omitted, either through carelessness or dishon¬
esty, the words ut asseritur, and thus changed his author’s
hearsay into a direct and positive assertion. As time wore
on, the simple phrase of Marianus began to grow into a
perfect romance. An anonymous chronicle in the library
of St Paul at Leipzig, which comes down to 1261, mentions
the fact of a female pope of learning and beauty, who dur¬
ing her papacy gave birth to a child; and states that the
name and date of this pope are both unknown. A few
years later Martinus Polaccus, archbishop of Cosenza, and
author of a Chronicle of Popes and Emperors, coming
down to the year 1277, gave an enlarged version of the
story, which, however, it was reserved for our countryman,
John Bayley of Suffolk, in his Scriptores Majoris Britan-
nice, to adorn with all those minute details which were long
received as the proofs of its authenticity. All these chro¬
niclers, and a great many more whom we have not named,
who borrowed the story from them, were quite without
motive in telling the story according to their respec¬
tive versions of it. These versions differ from each other
solely in so far as one chronicler is more credulous or
more conscientious than another, more literal or fanciful
and inventive in his turn of mind. But the outburst of
the Reformation introduced a new element. The Protes¬
tants brought forward the tale to prove the fallibility of the
self-styled infallible church. Consequently it was theii in¬
terest to uphold its authenticity. The Catholics were now,
for the first time, alive to the necessity of disproving it.
Many a fierce controversy now took place between the
champions of the respective churches, and every big tome
on the one side called forth a still bigger one on the othei.
The truth was beginning gradually to clear itself from the
mass of error in which it was involved, and the coup-de-
grace was at length given to the whole dispute by a b rench
protestant minister, David Blondel. With a clearness of
logic, and a just appreciation of the real nature of historical
evidence, which seem to have been greatly wanting to his
predecessors, he demonstrates the absence of all good foun¬
dation for the story, the utter weakness of its early years,
the suspicions which stand around its cradle ; and, instead
of discussing how far Pope Joan was believed, or genera y
recognized in this or that century, shows that by her own
contemporaries she was never heard of at all. Blonde s
book called forth a host of answers from eminent men of
his own church, and he was himself persecuted and abused
in many ways for preferring truth to the interests of party.
Bayle soon after appeared, and strengthened the position o
Blondel with impregnable defences. Leibnitz and Rck-
hardt followed on the same side. With them the contro¬
versy may be said to have come to a close, and Pope Joan
to be finally convicted of being an impostor, or rat ler a
nonentity. The grounds on which this conclusion is ar¬
rived at may be briefly stated. In the first place, 2U
years elapsed between the era of the supposed pope and the
J O A
Joan date at which her name is first mentioned by any historian.
II In the next place there were at Rome, during the time
0 assigned to her Papacy four persons, who each in succes-
sion sat on the papal throne, and left behind them many
and various writings. Had they ever heard of the story, it
is impossible to believe that they should each and all have
passed it over in silence as they have done. In the third
place, all the contemporary writers, without a single ex¬
ception, attest that, immediately on the death of Leo IV.,
the papal chair was offered and accepted by Benedict III.
At the same time, though the story of Pope Joan is given
up by all historians alike as a fable, it is impossible that it
should have found believers and upholders for so many
centuries had there been nothing in the annals of the church
to give a sort of colour to it. Many conjectures have been
advanced upon the subject, of which by far the most plau¬
sible is that of Biancho-Giovini, who proves clearly enough
that the papal chair was often virtually occupied by a wo¬
man. Pope John X., elected in 914, owed his elevation
entirely to his mistress Theodora, whose beauty, talents,
and intrigues had made her mistress of Rome about the
beginning of the tenth century. At a late period Theo¬
dora s daughter, Marozia, wielded a similar influence over
Sergius III., and finally raised her son by that pope to the
pontifical throne, with the title of John XI. At a still later
period, John XII. was so completely governed by one of
his concubines, Raineria by name, that he entrusted to her
much of the administration of the holy see. These, and
other instances of the same kind that might be adduced,
account satisfactorily enough for the origin of the fable of
Pope Joan. (See Panvinio’s edition of Platina ; Bianchi-
Giovini’s Esame Critico degli atti e Doeumenti relativi
alia favola della Papessa Giovanna, Milano, 1845; North
British Review, vol. xii.)
Joan of Arc. See Arc, Joan of.
JOANNES or Mara jo, a large and fertile island on
the N. coast of Brazil, province of Para, situate between
the estuaries of the Amazon and Para rivers. It is about
120 miles in length from E. to W., and 90 from N. to S.
Pop. about 20,000.
J OB, Book of, so called from the name of the patriarch
whose inner history and outward fate it depicts. Various
questions have been agitated in regard to it, and, from its
almost isolated position in the Scriptures, these have afforded
ground for much ingenious and plausible conjecture. The
points of principal interest are—the reality or fiction of the
history, the age of the author, and the nature of the piety and
ethics which the book is designed to inculcate. All; these
questions are very much interwoven with each other; and so
clearly do the various answers reflect the mind and foregone
conclusions of the critic, that the treatment of the book may
be regarded as a testing-point, not only in criticism, but in
religion. In regard to the nature of the book, as historical or
dramatic, Spanheim has expressed the extreme on one side,
when he said, that “ unless it contained a true history, the
author was guilty of deception ” (ni historia sit,fraus scrip-
toris). Luther has expressed the golden mean of opinion,
when he said “ that he counted Job to be a true history;
but that everything happened and was said just as it is re¬
presented, he did not believe ; but, on the contrarfvhe held
that some able, pious, and learned man had reduced it to its
present order.” Numerous later critics, however, recoiling
from its exhibition of the supernatural, even under circum¬
stances of pain and desertion which render God and in¬
visible agency a necessity of the human mind, have re¬
solved the narrative into a pure poetic fiction. The same
anti-supernatural spell which dissolves the superhuman agen¬
cies into mists of the brain, constrains them at the same
time to witch away Job (the assailed) and his assembled
comforters out of the world of history. The first of these
views involves us in too many unnatural suppositions; but
JOB 787
the last—irreconcilable as it is with the spirit of ancient Job.
times, in which every myth had at least its nucleus in a ^
man—is totally irreconcilable with the personal allusions to
the patriarch in other portions of Scripture, where he is
classed with Noah and Daniel,—they victorious over the
destructive forces of nature, he a conqueror in the alembic
of spiritual powers. That much has been done by the author
in the grouping of the materials of the old tradition, and in
moulding the conversation of the speakers into their present
dramatic form, so that each shall typify a distinct mode of
human thought, and that their opinions shall stand out in
clear contrast with the address of Elihu and of God, need
not be denied. This leads directly to the question of the
author, his age and country. There are four groups of
hypotheses on this subject which claim to be considered.
By some the author is supposed to have lived in patriarchal
times, before the establishment of the Mosaic economy ; by
others he is regarded as contemporary with Solomon ; while
a third school fixes his floruit in the time of the exile ; and
a fourth professes to detect indications of modes of thinking
prevalent in an age still later. The first of these, viz., the
critics who assign the composition to anti-Mosaic times, err
in too rashly confounding the author with his hero. They
found their argument chiefly on the spirit and life of patri¬
archal times which animate the book, on the peculiar aspect
which the religious teaching exhibits, and especially the
absence of all reference to sacrifice or the Mosaic ritual.
W hat may be called the Arabism of the language has
also been adduced in support of this view; and, from the
occurrence of quaint old phrases, the book has been thought
to recede back to the early times when the separation of the
dialects had only begun, but was far from being complete.
To this latter argument, however, it is enough to answer
that these antique phrases were ever the cream and sparkle
of Hebrew poetry, if anything can be called antique in
languages which exhibit so little of progress or of decay.
To the former argument it seems sufficient to urge the pos¬
sibility of an author, with the fixed habits of the nomad
Arabs before his eyes, thoroughly to catch and appreciate
the distinctive features of patriarchal life, if not also of patri¬
archal religion. In strange contrast with this opinion
stands the estimate of those who hold the author to have
been some prophet of the exile, or one flourishing after the
restoration. Of course, to maintain such a theory the re¬
ference to Job in Ezekiel must be rejected as spurious; but
it is not so easy to destroy the marks of imitation in passages
copied from this book into the pages of Jeremiah, and even
found in a number of the early psalms. On philological
grounds, this theory is singularly inappropriate. If written in
the exile, its composition is unique in the history of ancient
literature, being pure in an age of Chaldaeism, and vigo¬
rously masculine in an age of sinking nationality and of
poetry still plaintive and touching, but essentially artistic
and feeble. The main defence of such a notion rests in
the supposed Persian origin of the doctrine given in Job in
regard to Satan and the angels. It has, however, been
abundantly shown that the representation there given is not
necessarily Persic; but, on the contrary, so thoroughly con¬
sistent with the whole teaching of Hebrew Scripture, that
it is scarcely possible to tell who are most in the wrong,—
those who, assuming Job to have been written in the days of
Solomon or the exile, detect points at variance with the
world’s earlier beliefs; or those who, with Herder, Eich-
horn, and Ewald, grant the antiquity of the book, blit chal¬
lenge the orthodoxy of its Satanology on the ground of later
revelations. In favour of the only remaining opinion
which assigns the composition of the book to the days of
Solomon, very much may be adduced, although there is
httie in the evidence that comes home to the mind with
anything like resistless force. The spirit and power of its
poetry marks a time of general vigour, and the age of David
788 JOB
Job. and Solomon was the golden age of Hebrew nationality and
^ song. In the Psalms of David, too, there is a kindred strain
of thought and expression (Psalms cii., civ., cvii., cxlvii.) ;
and passages are imitated in all the boldness of their original
passion—not feebly borrowed or extracted, as in the psalms
Qp the exile and by the later prophets. In the kook of
Proverbs, however, we find still closer affinities. The same
features in the portrait of Wisdom, and in the representations
of the abode of the dead, are to be found prominent and
peculiar in both, while a host of common words and phrases
point very expressively to a nearly contemporary age. Some
weight is also due to the existence in Job of geographical
allusions and descriptions of natural history with which the
age of Solomon was at least the first to be familiar since the
elder and simpler days of the patriarchs. We have thus the
materials for fixing within certain wide limits the date of
the book. The home and person of the poet are questions
that admit of various and almost endless conjecture, since
we are not constrained to identify his native country with the
scenes which he familiarly depicts. Some have supposed him
a foreigner—an Arab, perhaps, who may have wandered into
the country, but who still thought and wrote somewhat aside
from the ordinary ceremonial life of the Hebrews ; and others
think it more probable that he was an Israelite who had wan¬
dered forth from his native land to settle in Idumaea or
Egypt. Why it could not have been written by a Hebrew
who remained at home,—marked, as it is, by the peculiar
Hebrew ideas in regard to God and the unseen world, and
displaying very little knowledge which the keen spirit of a
prophet might not easily acquire under the guidance of that
God, who not only inspires his servants by his breath but
tutors them for their inspiration by his providence,—it is
somewhat difficult to see. Several recent critics imagine
it to have been written by a philosopher at the court of
Solomon. With regard to the ethics of the book, and
its relation to the great central doctrines of the cross and
immortality, various theories are held according as the solu¬
tion of the problem discussed is found in the remarks of one
or other of the speakers. In consideration, however, of the
successful rebuke which Job administers to his friends, and
his own deep repentance in the presence of God for the
rash words which he had spoken, it is scarcely credible that
we should look for anything but broken fragments of truth
in the passionate outbursts of folly which too frequently mar
the speeches of either party. The knot is first untied in
the remarks of Elihu, who, as the forerunner and vindicator
of God, stands alone unrebuked. The Divine address adds
only majesty and power to his appeal. All agree that the
object of the book is the solution of the question how the
afflictions of the righteous can be consistent with God’s jus¬
tice, and some regard the knot as not unloosed but merely
cut. In cutting it, too, they think the whole doctrine of
sacrifice and atonement is snapped in two. Stoic philosophy,
according to Ewald, is all that is inculcated, and blind re¬
signation to the will of late. With the prologue and epi¬
logue before us, in which the veil of God’s designs is lifted,
it is impossible to acquiesce in such a view. Nor did Job
seek or obtain a Stoic’s reward. Still it must be confessed
that in the disposal of that solemn question of God’s govern¬
ment, the Book of Job does not furnish a theodicee for the
sufferers of all time. Whatever weight be given to the pas¬
sage (xix., chaps. 23-29) where Job appeals to his Redeemer
acquittal, the burden of the doctrine of retribution is
throughout more entirely thrown on the present life with
its social changes than would be thought of now, when the
judgment hereafter has been fully revealed. Nor is it
difficult to see how this should happen. The ethics of the
future life were then deeply veiled, and the existence of the
soul alter death was known in too shadowy a form to throw
much weight into the balance when high moral problems
were to be solved. Hence the mind of the poet is recalled
JOG
from wandering into the region of the future in search of a Joel
solution ; and in the present moral government of God, ||
joined to his eternal existence, the ever-immortal soul finds J°gues*
an equally sure basis on which to rest its hopes. If the
existence of God and of the soul after death be granted,
then, although Job’s language may not disclose a belief in
a bodily resurrection, he loses nothing by fixing his faith
on the instances, sometimes clouded, but often clear, of
God’s present retribution. Faith in a moral government
hereafter is firmest when the two existences are viewed not
in their contrast, but in their similarity. Many commenta¬
tors, however, and with greater justice, regard this passage
as showing Job’s confidence in a bodily resurrection. (See
article Eiob, by Delitzsch, in Herzog’s Cydopcedia ; and
for a list of commentators on the book, see Kitto’s Biblical
Cyclopcedia?)
JOEL, one of the twelve minor prophets, the son of
Pethuel. Of his birth-place nothing is known with cer¬
tainty ; the pseudo-Epiphanius affirms that he was a native
of Betha, in the tribe of Reuben. From the local allusions
in his prophecy, we may infer that he discharged his office
in the kingdom of Judah. Various opinions have been
held respecting the period in which he lived. It appears
most probable that he was contemporary with Amos and
Isaiah, and delivered his predictions in the reign of Joash,
between 877 and 847 b.c. This is the opinion of Credner,
Winer, Movers, Ewald, Delitzsch, and others.
The style of Joel, it has been remarked, unites the
strength of Micah with the tenderness of Jeremiah. In vi¬
vidness of description he rivals Nahum ; and in sublimity
and majesty is scarcely inferior to Isaiah and Habakkuk.
The canonicity of the book has never been called in ques¬
tion. Consult A Paraphrase and Critical Commentary on
the Prophecy of Joel, by Samuel Chandler, 4to, London,
1745 ; Die Weissagung des Propheten Joel, ubersetzt und
erklrirt, von F. A. Holzhausen, Gottingen, 1829; Charac-
teristik der Bibel, von Dr A. H. Niemeyer, Halle, 1831,
vol. v., pp. 295-302 ; Dr Hengstenberg’s Christology of
the Old Testament, &c., transl. by Dr R. Keith, Washing¬
ton, 1839, vol. iii., pp. 100-141.
JOGHIS, a sect of religious persons in the East Indies,
who never marry, nor hold any private property, but live
on alms, and practise strange severities or mortifications.
They are subject to a general, who sends them from one
country to another to preach. They are, properly, a kind
of penitent pilgrims, and supposed to be a remnant of the
ancient Gymnosophists. They principally frequent such
places as are consecrated by the devotion of the people,
and pretend to live several days together without either
eating or drinking. After having gone through a course
of discipline lor a certain time, they look upon themselves
as impeccable, and privileged to do any thing; in conse¬
quence of which they give a loose rein to their passions,
and run into all manner of debauchery.
JOGUES, or Yugs, certain ages, eras, or periods ot
extraordinary length in the fabulous chronology of the
Hindus. They are (see Halhed’s Preface to the Code of
Gentoo Laws, p. xxxvi.) four in number, viz.:—
1. The Suttee Yug, or age of purity, which is said to
have lasted three millions two hundred thousand years;
and they hold that the life of man was extended in that age
to one hundred thousand years, and that his stature was
twenty-one cubits.
2. The Tirtah Yug, in which one-third of mankind was
corrupted, they suppose to have consisted of two millions
four hundred thousand years, during which men lived to
the age of ten thousand years.
3. The Dwapaar Yug, in which half of the human race
became depraved, endured one million six hundred thou¬
sand years, during which the life of man was reduced to a
thousand years.
J 0 H
Johanna
4. The Collee Yug, in which all mankind were corrupt-
^ ed, or rather lessened (for that is the true meaning of the
word Collee), is the present era, which they suppose or¬
dained to subsist four hundred thousand years, and of
which nearly five thousand are already past. The life of
man in this period is limited to one hundred years.
Some account has already been given of the Indian
chronology (see articles Chronology and Hindustan),
and it is therefore unnecessary to recur to the subject in
this place. But we may nevertheless subjoin Dr Bobert-
son s observations on the above periods, from the Notes
to his Historical Disquisition concerning India. “ If,”
says he, “ we suppose the computation of time in the In¬
dian chronology to be made by solar or even by lunar
years, nothing can be more extravagant in itself, or more
repugnant to our mode of calculating the duration of the
world, founded on sacred and infallible authority. From
one circumstance, however, which merits attention, we
may conclude that the information which we have hitherto
received concerning the chronology of the Hindus is very
incorrect. We have, as far as I know, only five original
accounts of the different Jogues or eras of the Hindus.
I he first is given by M. Rogers, who received it from the
Brahmins on the Coromandel coast. According to it, the
Suttee Jogue is a period of one million seven hundred’ and
twenty-eight thousand years; the Tirtah Jogue is one
million two hundred and ninety-six thousand years; the
Dwapaar Jogue is eight hundred and sixty-four thousand.
T.he duration of the Collee Jogue he does not specify
{Porte Ouverte, p. 179). The next is that of M. Bernier,
who received it from the Brahmins of Benares. According
to it, the duration of the Suttee Jogue was two millions five
hundred thousand years; that of the Tirtah Jogue,onemillion
two hundred thousand years, that of the Dwapaar Joo-ue
is eight hundred and sixty-four thousand years. Concern¬
ing the period of the Collee Jogue he is likewise silent
{Voyages, tom. ii., p. 160). The third is that of Colonel
Dow ; according to which the Suttee Jogue is a period of
fourteen millions of years, the Tirtah Jogue one million
and eighty thousand, the Dwapaar Jogue seventy-two
thousand, and the Collee Jogue thirty-six thousand years
{Hist, of Hindost., vol. i., p. 2). The fourth account is
that of M. Legentil, who received it from the Brahmins of
the Coromandel coast; and as his information was acquired
in the same^ part of India, and derived from the same source
with that of M. Rogers, it agrees with his in every particu¬
lar {Mem. de l’Academic des Sciences pour 1772, tom. ii.,
parti., p. 176). The fifth is the account of Mr Halhed,
which has been already given. From this discrepancy, not
only of the total numbers, but of many of the articles in the
different accounts, it is manifest that our information con¬
cerning Indian chronology is hitherto as uncertain as the
whole system of it is wild and fabulous. To me it appears
highly probable, that when we understand more thoroughly
the principles upon which the factitious eras or jogues of
the Hindus have been formed, that we may be more able
to reconcile their chronology to the true mode of comput¬
ing time, founded on the authority of the Old Testament;
and may likewise find reason to conclude that the account
given by their astronomers of the situation of the heavenly
bodies at the beginning of the Collee Jogue, is not estab¬
lished by actual observation, but the result of a retrospec¬
tive calculation.” *
JOHANNA, Hinzuan, or Anzuan, one of the Comoro
islands, situate in the Mozambique Channel, between
Africa and Madagascar. It is of an irregular triangular
form, 24 miles in length by 18 in breadth, and is highly
picturesque. Its highest peak, in S. Lat. 12. 15., E. Lono-.
44. 29., rises about 6000 feet above the sea-level. The sod
is fertile and well watered, producing cocoa-nuts, limes
oranges, yams, rice, millet, &c. Pop. about 20,000.
J 0 H
JOHANNISBERG, a village of Germany, duchy of
Nassau, near the E. bank of the Rhine, 12 miles W. of
Mentz. Its vineyards produce the finest of the Rhenish wines.
JOHN THE BAPTIST, the forerunner of the Lord,
was the son of Zacharias and Elizabeth, the latter “ a cousin
of Mary,” the mother of Jesus, whose senior John was by
a period of six months. The exact spot where he was born
is not determined. The rabbins fix on Hebron, in the hill-
countiy of Judaea; Paulus, Kuinoel, and Meyer, after Re¬
land, are in fkvour of Jutta, “ a city of Judah.” His father,
while engaged in burning incense, was visited by the angel
Gabriel, who informed him that in compliance with his
prayers his wife should bear a son, whose name he should
call John, and who should, by his pure life and fervid preach¬
ing, prepare the way for the long-expected Messiah. Zacha¬
rias unbelieving receives a sign, which acts also as a punish¬
ment—his tongue is sealed till the prediction is fulfilled by
the event. Six months after Elizabeth had conceived she
received a visit from Mary, the future mother of Jesus. On
being saluted by her relation, Elizabeth felt her babe leap
in her womb, and, being filled with the Holy Spirit, she
broke forth into a poetic congratulation to Mary, as the
destined mother of her Lord. At length Elizabeth brought
forth a son, whom the relatives were disposed to name Za¬
charias, after his father;—but Elizabeth was led to wish
that he should be called John. The matter was referred to
the father, who signified in writing that his name was to be
John. 1 his agreement with Elizabeth caused all to marvel.
Zacharias now had his tongue loosed, and he first employed
his restored power in praising God.
As a consequence of the lofty parental influences under
which he was nurtured, the child waxed strong in spirit,
f he sacred writer adds, that “he was in the deserts till the
day of his showing unto Israel.” The apocryphal Protev.
Jac., chap, xxii., states that his mother, to rescue her son
from the murder of the children at Bethlehem, fled with
him into the desert. She found no place of refuge • the
mountain opened at her request, and gave the needed shel¬
ter in its bosom. Zacharias refusing to disclose their retreat
was slain by Herod. At a later period Elizabeth died
when angels took the youth under their care. In the
fifteenth year of the Emperor Tiberius, John made his
public appearance in the wild mountainous tract of Jud*a,
exhibiting the austerity, the costume, and the manner of
fife of the ancient Jewish prophets (Luke iii.; Matt. iii.).
I he burden of John’s preaching bore no slight resem¬
blance to the old prophetic exhortations, whose last echo
had now died away for centuries. He called upon the
Jewish people to repent, to change their dispositions and
affections, and thus prepared the way for the great doctrine
piomuigated by his Lord, of the necessity of a spiritual re¬
generation. I he reason assigned by him for enterino-on
his perilous office was that the kingdom of God was at hand
and the high moral tone of his teaching shows, that in the
true prophetic ardour no blot of sensuous expectation de¬
faced the meaning of the expression.
The more than prophetic fame of the Baptist reached the
ears of Jesus in his Nazarene dwelling, far distant from the
locality of John (Matt. ii. 22-23). The nature of the re¬
port—namely, that his divinely-predicted forerunner had
appeared in Judaea—showed our Lord that the time was
novv come for his being made manifest to Israel. Accord¬
ingly he comes to the place where John was then ban-
tizmg in order that thus he might fulfil all that was re¬
quired under the dispensation which was about to disappear.
Johns sense of inferiority inclines him to ask rather than
o give baptism m the case of Jesus, who, however, wills
to have it so, and is accordingly baptized of John. Imme¬
diately on the termination of this symbolical act, a divine
attestation is given from the opened vault of heaven, de¬
claring Jesus to be in truth the long looked-for Messiah.
789
Johannis-
berg
II
John the
Baptist.
790 J O H
John, St. The relation which subsisted between John and Jesus,
after the emphatic testimony above recorded had been
borne, we have not the materials to desciibe with full cei-
tainty. It seems but natural to think, that John would
forthwith lay down his office of harbinger, which, now that
the Sun of Righteousness himself had appeared, was entirely
fulfilled and terminated. Such a step he does not appear
to have taken. On the contrary, the language of Scripture
seems to imply that the Baptist church continued side by
side with the Messianic, and remained long after John’s
execution. Indeed, a sect which bears the name of “ John’s
disciples,” exists to the present day in the East, whose
sacred books are said to be pervaded by a Gnostic leaven.
They are hostile alike to Judaism and Christianity, and
their John and Jesus are altogether different from the cha¬
racters bearing these names in our evangelists. Though it
has been generally assumed that John did not lay down his
office, other explanations may be given of the facts. John
may have ceased to execute his own peculiar work, as the
forerunner, but may justifiably have continued to bear his
most important testimony to the Messiahship, of Christ;
or he may even have altogether given up the duties of active
life some* time, at least, before his death ; and yet his disci¬
ples, bo h be'ore and after that event, may have maintained
their individuality as a religious communion. Nor is it im¬
probable that some misconception may have had weight in
preventing the Baptist church from dissolving, and that with
a view to remove some error of this kind that John after¬
wards sent the embassy of his disciples to Jesus. The
manner of John’s death is too well known to require to be
detailed. He reproved a tyrant for a heinous crime, and
received his reward in decapitation. Josephus, however,
assigns a purely political cause for his execution, but there
is no contrariety between his account and that given in the
New Testament. Both may be true : John was condemned
in the mind of Herod on political grounds, as endangering
his position, and executed on private and ostensible grounds,
in order to gratify a malicious but powerful woman.
The castle of Machserus, where John was imprisoned and
beheaded, was a fortress lying on the southern extremity of
Peraea, at the top of the Lake Asphaltites, between the do¬
minions of Herod and Aretas, king of Arabia Petraea, and
at the time of our history appears to have belonged to the
former (Lardner, vi. 483). At the time of the tragedy,
Herod was on his route towards the territories of Aretas,
with whom he was at war. Bishop Marsh {Lecture xxvi.)
remarks, that the soldiers, who are said to have come to
John while baptizing in the Jordan, are designated by a
term which denotes persons actually engaged in war, not
merely soldiers. In the same way, the officer sent to bring
John’s head bears a military title. These minute indica¬
tions afford a very strong evidence of the credibility of the
sacred narratives. We also see a reason why Herodias was
present on this occasion, since she was Herod’s paramour,
and had, “ like another Helen,” led to the war.
John, the Apostle, was the son of Zebedee, a fisher¬
man, and of Salome. It is probable that he was born at
Bethsaida, on the Lake of Galilee. His parents appear to
have been in easy circumstances; at least, we find that
Zebedee employed hired servants, and that Salome was
among the number of those women who contributed to the
maintenance of Jesus. We also find that John received
Mary into his house after the death of Jesus. Since this
house seems to have been situated at Jerusalem, it would
appear that he was the owner of two houses. John’s ac¬
quaintance, also, with the high-priest seems to indicate
that he lived at Jerusalem, and belonged to the wealthier
class. | On the banks of the Jordan the Baptist directed
John to Jesus, and he immediately became the Lord’s
disciple, and accompanied him on his return to Galilee.
Having arrived there, he at first resumed his trade, but
J O H
was afterwards called to remain permanently with the Re- Gospel of
deemer. Jesus was particularly attached to John, who St John,
was one of the three who were distinguished above the
other apostles. After the ascension, John abode at Jeru¬
salem, where Paul met him on his third journey, about the
year 52. Since he had undertaken the care of the mother
of Jesus we cannot well suppose that he left Jerusalem be¬
fore Mary’s death ; and, indeed, we find that about the
year 58, when Paul was at Ephesus, John was not yet liv¬
ing there. If we consider the great importance of Ephesus
among the various churches of Asia Minor, and the dangers
arising from false teachers, who were prevalent there as
early as the days of Paul (Acts xx. 29), it will appear likely
that John was sent to Ephesus after Paul had left that
scene, about the year 65. During the time of his activity
in Asia Minor he was exiled by the Roman emperor to
Patmos, one of the Sporadic isles in the JEgean Sea, where,
according to Revelations i. 9, he wrote the Apocalypse.
Irenaeus (Adv. Hcer. v. 30), and, following him, Eusebius
{Hist. Eccles. iii. 18), state that John beheld the visions of
the Apocalvpse about the close of the reign of Domitian.
If this statement can be depended upon, the exile to Patmos
also took place under Domitian, who died a.d. 96. Ter-
tullian relates that in the reign of Domitian, John was for¬
cibly conveyed to Rome, where he was thrown into a cask
of oil; that he was miraculously released, and then brought
to Patmos. But since no other of the ancient writers re¬
lates this circumstance, and since this mode of capital punish¬
ment was unheard of at Rome, we ought not to lay much
stress upon it. Polycrates, bishop of Ephesus, writing about
a.d. 200, calls him martyr, but it is probable that he alludes
only to his exile. According to Eusebius, he returned from
exile during the reign of Nerva. The three epistles of John,
as also the affecting account concerning his fidelity as a
spiritual pastor, given by Clemens Alexandrinus, testify that
he was the pastor of a large diocese. John died at Ephesus
past the age of ninety, in the reign ot the Emperor I rajan.
According to Jerome, he was a hundred years old, and ac¬
cording to Suidas, a hundred and twenty.
John, St, Gospel of. During the eighteenth century and
the first ten years of the nineteenth, the Gospel of John
was attacked,'but with feeble arguments, by some English
Deists, and bv four German theologians. A similar attack
has lately been made by Strauss, whose arguments, however,
have met with little sympathy even in Germany. It may
suffice to observe, that till the tend of the eighteenth cen¬
tury, no one ever expressed a doubt respecting the genuine¬
ness of John’s Gospel, except one small sect, whose scep¬
ticism was not based upon historical, but merely upon dog¬
matical grounds.
John’s Gospel differs very much in substance from the
first three Gospels. The most striking difference, more
apparent, however, in form than in substance, is that of the
speeches. The difference of the contents may be accounted
for by supposing that John intended to confine himself to
such communications as were wanting in the others, parti¬
cularly with regard to the speeches of Jesus. I he pecu¬
liarities of his Gospel more especially consist in the foui
following doctrines:—!. That of the mystical relation of
the Son to the Father. 2. That of the mystical relation of
the Redeemer to believers. 3. The announcement ot the
Holy Ghost as the comforter. 4. The peculiar importance
ascribed to love.
Although there can be shown in the writings of the other
evangelists some isolated dicta of the Lord, which seem to
bear the impress of John, it can also be shown that they
contain thoughts not originating with that disciple, but wit i
the Lord himself. Matthew (xi. 27) speaks ot the relation
of the Son to the Father so entirely in the style ot John,
that persons not sufficiently versed in Holy Writ are apt to
search for this passage in the Gospel ot John. The mystt-
J 0 H
J 0 H
791
John, St, cal union of the Son with believers is expressed in Matt,
the Epis- xxviii. 20. The promise of the effusion of the Holy Ghost,
ties of. in order to perfect the disciples, is found in Luke xxiv. 49.
The doctrine of Paul with respect to love, in 1 Cor. xiii.,
entirely resembles what, according to John, Christ taught
on the same subject. Paul here deserves our particular at¬
tention. In the writings of Paul are found Christian truths
which have their points of coalescence only in John, viz.,
that Christ is the image of the invisible God, by whom all
things are created (Col. i. 15, 16). Paul considers the
Spirit of God in the Church, the spiritual Christ, as Jesus
himself does (John xiv. 16).
That the speeches of Christ have been faithfully reported,
may be seen by a comparison of the speeches of the Baptist
in the Gospel of John. The Baptist s speeches bear an
entirely Old Testament character ; they are full of allusions
to the Old Testament, and abound in sententious expres¬
sions (John iii. 27-30 ; i. 26-36).
Most of the earlier critics considered the Gospel of John
to have had a polemico-dogmatical purport. According to
Irenaeus, John wrote with the intention of combating the
errors of Cerinthus the Gnostic. Others suppose that his
writings were directed against the disciples of John the
Baptist. It is not improbable that the evangelist had in
view, both in his introduction, and also in chap. xix. 34, 35,
some heretical opinions of those times; but it cannot be
maintained that this is the case throughout the whole of the
Gospel. He himself states (xx. 31) that his work had a
more general object.
One of the peculiarities of John is, that in speaking of
the adversaries of Jesus, he always calls them the Jews.
This observation has, in modern times, given rise to a pe¬
culiar opinion concerning the plan of John’s Gospel, namely,
that the Evangelist has, from the very beginning of the
Gospel, the following theme before his eyes :—The eternal
combat between Divine light and the corruption of man¬
kind, exemplified by the mutual opposition subsisting be¬
tween the hostile Jewish party and the manifestation of
the Son of God, which combat terminates in the victory
of light.
The introduction of the Gospel of John expresses this
theme in speaking of the opposition of the world to the in¬
carnate Logos. This theme is here expressed in the same
manner as the leading idea of a musical composition is ex¬
pressed in the overture. The Gospel is divided into two
principal sections. The first extends to chap. xii. It com¬
prehends the public functions of Jesus, and terminates with
a brief summary (verses 44-50). The second section con¬
tains the history of the Passion and of the Resurrection.
The Fathers supposed that the Gospel of John was writ¬
ten at Ephesus, and there is some internal evidence in
favour of the statement. One writer affirms that John
wrote the Gospel which bears his name in Patmos, but that
it was edited by the same Gaius whom Paul in the Epistle
to the Romans calls mine host. One might be inclined to
explain by this circumstance the postscript contained in
John xxi. 24, 25.
JOHN, St, the Epistles of. For the authenticity of the First
Epistle very ancient testimony may be adduced. Papias, the
disciple of John, quotes some passages from it. Polycarp,
also, another disciple of John, quotes a passage from this
Epistle. So also Irenaeus.
The author of the First Epistle describes himself, at its
commencement, as an eye-witness of the life of our Lord.
The style and language manifestly harmonize with those of
the author of the Gospel of John. The polemics, also,
which, in chap. ii. 18-26, are directed against the Docetic
Gnostics, in chap. iv. 1-3 agree with the sphere of action
in Asia Minor in which the Evangelist John was placed.
We may, therefore, suppose that the Epistle was written to
Christian congregations in Asia Minor, which were placed
under the spiritual care of the apostle. It is generally ad¬
mitted that chap. i. 2 refers to the Gospel. If this is cor¬
rect, the apostle wrote this Epistle at a very advanced age,
after he had written his Gospel. The Epistle breathes love
and devotion, but also zeal for moral strictness (chap. iii.
6-8; v. 16). There is a remarkable absence of logical
connection in the form of separate expressions, and in the
transitions from one thought to another. Some writers have
been inclined to find a reason for this in the advanced age
of the writer. Old age may, perhaps, have contributed to
this characteristic, but it is chiefly attributable to the men¬
tal peculiarity of the apostle. There has been no subject
connected with biblical literature which has attracted more
attention than this Epistle, in consequence of the contro¬
versies which have existed since the commencement of the
sixteenth century, respecting the celebrated passage in 1
John v. 7, 8. We cannot enter here into the history of
that controversy, which has continued with more or less of
asperity to our own day. We shall merely remark that
the disputed passage is found in no Greek manuscript, save
only in two, both belonging to the fifteenth century; and
that it has not once been quoted by any of the Greek,
Latin, or Oriental fathers. It is now, therefore, generally
omitted in all critical editions of the New Testament.
The Second and Third Epistles of John were originally
wanting in the ancient Syriac translation. From their na¬
ture, it may easily be explained how it happened that they
were less generally known in ancient Christian congrega¬
tions, and that the fathers do not quote them so often as
other parts of Scripture, since they are very short, and treat
of private affairs. The private nature of their contents re¬
moves also the suspicion that they could have been forged,
since it would be difficult to discover any purpose which
could have led to such a forgery.
The Second Epistle is addressed to a lady, called Kuria,
which name frequently occurs in ancient writers as that of
a woman.
The Third Epistle is addressed to Gaius, a person other¬
wise unknown. It is remarkable that the writer of this
Epistle calls himself “ the presbyter” or “ elder.” Some
writers have been inclined to ascribe these letters to the
presbyter John, who is sometimes spoken of in the ancient
church, and to whom even the Apocalypse has been attri¬
buted ; but if the presbyter John wrote these Epistles, John’s
Gospel also must be ascribed to the same person, of whom
otherwise so little is known. This, however, is inadmis¬
sible. We may suppose that the term “presbyter” or
“elder” expressed in the Epistles of John a degree of friend¬
liness, and was chosen on account of the advanced age of
the writer. The apostle Paul, also, in his friendly letter
to Philemon, abstains from the title apostle. The circum¬
stances and events in the church, to which the Second Epistle
alludes, coincide with those which are otherwise known to
have happened in John’s congregation. Here, also, are
allusions to the dangers arising from the Gnostic heresy.
The admonition, in verse 10, not to receive such heretics as
Christian brethren, agrees with the ancient tradition, that
John made haste to quit a public bath after Cerinthus the
Gnostic entered it, declaring he was afraid the building
would fall down.
J OHN.—Twenty-three popes of this name have occupied
the chair of St Peter. The subjoined table gives the dates
of the accession and death of each.
Tear of
Succeeded. Accession. Died.
John I Hormisdas 523 526
John II Boniface II. 532 535
John III Pelagius I. 560 574
John IV Severinus 640 642
John V Benedict II. 686 686
John VI Sergius I. 702 705
John VII   John VI. 705 707
John VIII Adrian II. 872 882
J O H
792
J 0 H
John
John of
Salisbury.
Year of
Succeeded. Accession. Died.
John IX  898 900
John X Lando 915 927
John XI Stephen VIII. 931 936
John XII Agapetus 956 964
John XIII Benedict V. 965 972
John XIV Benedict VII. 983 983
John XV  985 985
John XVI....  ••• 986 996
John XVII  997
John XVIII Sylvester II. 1003 1003
John XIX John XVIII. 1003 1009
John XX Benedict VIII. 1024 1034
John XXI Adrian V. 1277 1277
John XXII Clement V. 1316 1334
John XXIII Alexander V. 1410 1417
The history of the Papacy about the end of the tenth, and
beginning of the eleventh centuries, is even still very ob¬
scure, and the chronology is extremely confused. It is not
exxaetly known whether the Johns XV. and XVI. were dif¬
ferent persons, or the same pope twice included in the enume¬
ration. John XVII., again, is by some denied to have ever
been lawfully installed in the pontifical chair; but he is gene¬
rally included in the list. For John IX., see Pope Joan.
John, King of England, was the son of Henry II., and
the younger brother of Richard Cceur de Lion, on whose
death, in 1199, he succeeded to the throne of England.
He died in 1216. See England, and Britain.
John, King of France, surnamed “ The Good,” was
born in 1319, and succeeded his father, Philippe de Valois
(Philip V.) in 1350. He was defeated at Poictiers in 1356
by the Black Prince, and died in London in 1364. French
historians generally style him John II., to distinguish him
from John L, the title of a posthumous son of Louis X.,
who died in 1316 at the age of a few months. See France.
John L, King of Castile and Leon, w as born in 1358,
came to the throne in 1379, and died in 1390. John II.,
born in 1405, and died in 1454. See Spain.
John I., King of Portugal, born in 1357, usurped the
throne in 1384, and died in 1433. John II., surnamed
“ the Perfect,” son of Alphonso and Isabella, was born in
1455, and succeeded his father in 1481. After a brilliant
but stormy reign of fourteen years, he died in 1495. John
III., son of Emmanuel the Great and Mary of Castile, was
born in 1502, mounted the throne in 1521, and died in 1557.
John IV., son of Theodore, seventh Duke of Braganza,
and head of that house, was born in 1604. His native
country had at this time become an appanage of Spain.
He headed the Portuguese in throwing off the Spanish yoke,
was elected king in 1640, and died in 1656. John V.,
son of Peter II. and Elizabeth of Bavaria, wras born in
1689, and mounted the throne in 1705. After a forty-five
years’ reign of almost unbroken peace, he died in 1750.
John VI., born in 1767, began at the age of twenty-six to
reign in the name of his imbecile mother. Spending his
life alternately in Portugal and Brazil, he settled in Portu¬
gal in 1821, and died in 1826. See Portugal.
John L, King of Sweden, was the son of Sverker the
Younger, and was thence called Sverkerson. He reigned
from 1216 to 1222. John II. of Sweden and I. of Den¬
mark, was the son of Christian I. of the House of Olden¬
burg, and was born in 1455. He was proclaimed King
of Norway and Denmark in 1483, and finally of Sweden
in 1497. Expelled from the latter kingdom in 1512, he
retired to Denmark, where he died in the following year.
John HI. of Sweden, son of Gustavus Vasa, was born in
1537, usurped the throne in 1568, and died in 1591. See
Sweden, and Denmark.
John of Salisbury, a learned English ecclesiastic,
and the biographer of the two archbishops of Canter¬
bury, Anselm and Thomas a Beckett. Comparatively little
is known of his personal history. He was born about the
beginning of the twelfth century, and seems at an early
age to have passed over to France, where Abelard, though John or
nearing the close of his public career, was still teaching Jan> &t.
with as splendid success as in the prime of manhood,
“ I drank in with incredible avidity,” wrote his young Eng¬
lish admirer, “ every word that fell from his lips, but he soon,
to my infinite regret, retired.” John then turned to other
studies, and lost himself for two years in the subtleties of
the scholastic logic. Grammar and rhetoric next engaged
his thoughts for three years ; and at the end of that period
he began a seven years’ course of the classics, mathematics,
and theology. After a flying visit to England, John re¬
turned to France, whence he directed his steps southwards
to Italy. At Rome he was kindly received by the Pope
Eugene III., and afterwards by his successor Adrian IV.
With the latter of these pontiffs he w'as an especial favour¬
ite. “ Though Adrian had a mother and a brother,” he wrote
in his Metalogicus, “ I fear not to say that he preferred me
to them. He declared in public and in private that I was
of all men he whom he loved most tenderly. His exalted
position did not prevent him from admitting me to his
table. He insisted that we should drink out of the same
glass, and eat off the same plate.” In the intervals ot
teaching and travelling, John had written his Metalogicus,
an attack on the absurdity and danger of wasting so much
time as it was the fashion of that age to do, in the sheerest
quibbles of the wrangling art. With unsparing ridicule
and invective he laughs the scholastic doctors to scorn for
gravely debating such questions as “ How many angels can
dance at a time on the point of a needle ?” or, “ Whether,
when a hog is carried to market by a man with a rope tied
round its neck, the hog is really carried to market by the
man or the rope ?” So keen, indeed, is he in his onslaught
on scholastic philosophy as fatal to the grace and refinement
of poetry and polite literature in general, that he shuts his
eyes against its real merits and uses, and sees only the ri¬
diculous extravagances of its fanatical devotees. This
work was dedicated to Thomas a Becket, then engaged
with Henry II. at the siege of Toulouse; and so pleased
was he with the compliment that when he was promoted
to the see of Canterbury, he made its author his secretary.
In this capacity, John became, as is recorded by a contem¬
porary, the eye and hand of the bishop. In his disgrace he
accompanied him to France, and, after an exile of seven
years, returned with him to England, and was with him at
the moment when he wras put to death. He remained at¬
tached to the cathedral of Canterbury till 1176, when he
was elected Bishop of Chartres. He spent the rest of his
life in his diocese, and died October 25, in 1182. His
greatest work was Polycraticus, sive de nugis Curialium et
Vestigiis Philosophorum libri octo, characterized by War-
ton as “ an extremely pleasant miscellany, replete with eru¬
dition and a judgment of men and things, which properly
belongs to a more sensible and reflecting period.” The work
is intended to expose the frivolities of the great, and of such
as spend their lives at courts ; and is marked by a vein of
caustic satire, sometimes verging on the extreme limits of
good taste. But the general accomplishments and literary
faculty displayed in it are such as one looks for in vain in
almost any other book of that period. Its author’s charac¬
ter had always stood high as a refined scholar, an elegant
Latin poet, and an impressive orator. The researches of
modern scholars have merely gone to confirm the idea that
John was the most learned and accomplished man of his
age. (Leland; Craik’s Hist. Eng. Lit.-, Biog. Univ.;
Hist. Lit. de la France, &c., &c.)
John or Jan, St, one of the Virgin Islands in the
West Indies, belonging to Denmark, and lying 4 miles E.
off' St Thomas, in N. Lat. 18. 18., W. Long. 64. 49. It is
about 9 miles long and 4 in breadth, rising to a consider¬
able height in the centre, and having generally a very un¬
even surface. Exports trifling. Pop. (1850) 2228.
JOHNSON.
Johnson, JOHNSON, Samuel, one of the most eminent English
Samuel, writers of the eighteenth century, was the son of Michael
Johnson, who was, at the beginning of that century, a ma¬
gistrate of Lichfield, and a bookseller of great note in the
midland counties. Michael’s abilities and attainments seem
to have been considerable. He was so well acquainted with
the contents of the volumes which he exposed to sale, that
the country rectors of Staffordshire and Worcestershire
thought him an oracle on points of learning. Between him
and the clergy, indeed, there was a strong religious and po¬
litical sympathy. He was a zealous churchman, and, though
he had qualified himself for municipal office by taking the
oaths to the sovereigns in possession, was to the last a Jaco¬
bite in heart. At his house, a house which is still pointed
out to every traveller who visits Lichfield, Samuel was born
on the 18th of September 1709. In the child the physical,
intellectual, and moral peculiarities which afterwards dis¬
tinguished the man were plainly discernible; great muscu¬
lar strength accompanied by much awkwardness and many
infirmities; great quickness of parts, with a morbid propen¬
sity to sloth and procrastination; a kind and generous heart,
with a gloomy and irritable temper. He had inherited
from his ancestors a scrofulous taint, which it was beyond
the power of medicine to remove. Llis parents were weak
enough to believe that the royal touch was a specific for
this malady. In his third year he was taken up to London,
inspected by the court surgeon, prayed over by the court
chaplains, and stroked and presented with a piece of gold
by Queen Anne. One of his earliest recollections was that
of a stately lady in a diamond stomacher and a long black
hood. Her hand was applied in vain. The boy’s features,
which were originally noble and not irregular, were dis¬
torted by his malady. His cheeks were deeply scarred.
He lost for a time the sight of one eye; and he saw but
very imperfectly with the other. But the force of his mind
overcame every impediment. Indolent as he was, he ac¬
quired knowledge with such ease and rapidity, that at every
school to which he was sent he was soon the best scholar.
From sixteen to eighteen he resided at home, and was left
to his own devices. He learned much at this time, though
his studies were without guidance and without plan. He
ransacked his father’s shelves, dipped into a multitude of
books, read what was interesting, and passed over what was
dull. An ordinary lad would have acquired little or no
useful knowledge in such a way: but much that was dull
to ordinary lads was interesting to Samuel. He read little
Greek; for his proficiency in that language was not such
that he could take mucfh pleasure in the masters of Attic
poetry and eloquence. But he had left school a good La¬
tinist, and he soon acquired, in the large and miscellaneous
library of which he now had the command, an extensive
knowledge of Latin literature. That Augustan delicacy of
taste, which is the boast of the great public schools of Eng¬
land, he never possessed. But he was early familiar with
some classical writers, who were quite unknown to the best
scholars in the sixth form at Eton. He was peculiarly at¬
tracted by the works of the great restorers of learning.
Once, while searching for some apples, he found a huge
folio volume of Petrarch’s works. The name excited his
curiosity, and he eagerly devoured hundreds of pages. In¬
deed, the diction and versification of his own Latin compo¬
sitions show that he had paid at least as much attention to
modern copies from the antique as to the original models.
While he was thus irregularly educating himself, his family
was sinking into hopeless poverty. Old Michael Johnson
was much better qualified to pore upon books, and to talk
about them, than to trade in them. His business declined :
his debts increased : it was with difficulty that the daily
expenses of his household were defrayed. It was out of
his power to support his son at either university; but a
wealthy neighbour offered assistance; and, in reliance on
yol. xir.
793
promises which proved to be of very little value, Samuel Johnson,
was entered at Pembroke College, Oxford. When the Samuel,
young scholar presented himself to the rulers of that society, v'-**v'**->
they were amazed not more by his ungainly figure and
eccentric manners than by the quantity of extensive and
curious information which he had picked up during many
months of desultory, but not unprofitable study. On the
first day of his residence he surprised his teachers by quot¬
ing Macrobius ; and one of the most learned among them
declared, that he had never known a freshman of equal
attainments.
At Oxford, Johnson resided during about three years.
He was poor, even to raggedness; and his appearance ex¬
cited a mirth and a pity, which were equally intolerable to
his haughty spirit. He was driven from the quadrangle
of Christ Church by the sneering looks which the members
of that aristocratical society cast at the holes in his shoes.
Some charitable person placed a new pair at his door ; but
he spurned them away in a fury. Distress made him, not
servile, but reckless and ungovernable. No opulent gentle¬
man commoner, panting for one-and-twenty, could have
treated the academical authorities with more gross disre¬
spect. The needy scholar was generally to be seen under
the gate of Pembroke, a gate now adorned with his effigy,
haranguing a circle of lads, over whom, in spite of his tattered
gown and dirty linen, his wit and audacity gave him an un¬
disputed ascendency. In every mutiny against the dis¬
cipline of the college he was the ringleader. Much was
pardoned, however, to a youth so highly distinguished by
abilities and acquirements. He had early made himself
known by turning Pope’s Messiah into Latin verse. The
style and rhythm, indeed, were not exactly Virgilian; but
the translation found many admirers, and was read with
pleasure by Pope himself.
The time drew near at which Johnson would, in the or¬
dinary course of things, have become a Bachelor of Arts :
but he was at the end of his resources. Those promises of
support on which he had relied had not been kept. His
family could do nothing for him. His debts to Oxford
tradesmen w'ere small indeed, yet larger than he could pay.
In the autumn of 1731, he was under the necessity of
quitting the university without a degree. In the following
winter his father died. The old man left but a pittance ;
and of that pittance almost the whole was appropriated to
the support of his widow. The property to which Samuel
succeeded amounted to no more than twenty pounds.
His life, during the thirty years which followed, was one
hard struggle with poverty. The misery of that struggle
needed no aggravation, but was aggravated by the suffer¬
ings of an unsound body and an unsound mind. Before
the young man left the university, his hereditary malady
had broken forth in a singularly cruel form. He had be¬
come an incurable hypochondriac. He said long after that
he had been mad all his life, or at least not perfectly sane;
and, in truth, eccentricities less strange than his have often
been thought grounds sufficient for absolving felons, and
for setting aside wills. His grimaces, his gestures, his mut-
terings, sometimes diverted and sometimes terrified people
who did not know him. At a dinner table he would, in a
fit of absence, stoop down and twitch off a lady’s shoe. He
would amaze a drawing room by suddenly ejaculating a
clause of the Lord’s Prayer. He would conceive an unin¬
telligible aversion to a particular alley, and perform a great
circuit rather than see the hateful place. He would set
his heart on touching every post in the streets through which
he walked. If by any chance he missed a post, he would
go back a hundred yards and repair the omission. Under
the influence of his disease, his senses became morbidly
torpid, and his imagination morbidly active. At one time
he would stand poring on the town clock without being
able to tell the hour. At another, he would distinctly hear
5 H
794 JOHNSON.
Johnson, his mother, who was many miles off, calling him by his
Samuel. name. But this was not the worst. A deep melancholy
took possession of him, and gave a dark tinge to all his
views of human nature and of human destiny. Such
wretchedness as he endured has driven many men to shoot
themselves or drown themselves. But he was under no
temptation to commit suicide. He was sick of life ; but he
was afraid of death; and he shuddered at every sight or
sound which reminded him of the inevitable hour. In re¬
ligion he found but little comfort during his long and fre¬
quent fits of dejection ; for his religion partook of his own
character. The light from heaven shone on him indeed,
but not in a direct line, or with its own pure splendour.
The rays had to struggle through a disturbing medium:
they reached him refracted, dulled and discoloured by the
thick gloom which had settled on his soul; and, though they
might be sufficiently clear to guide him, were too dim to
cheer him.
With such infirmities of body and of mind, this celebrated
man was left, at two-and-twenty, to fight his way through
the world. He remained during about five years in the
midland counties. At Lichfield, his birth-place and his
early home, he had inherited some friends and acquired
others. He was kindly noticed by Henry Hervey, a gay
officer of noble family, who happened to be quartered there.
Gilbert Walmesley, registrar of the ecclesiastical court of
the diocese, a man of distinguished parts, learning, and
knowledge of the world, did himself honour by patronising
the young adventurer, whose repulsive person, unpolished
manners, and squalid garb, moved many of the petty aris¬
tocracy of the neighbourhood to laughter or to disgust. At
Lichfield, however, Johnson could find no way of earning
a livelihood. He became usher of a grammar school in
Leicestershire ; he resided as a humble companion in the
house of a country gentleman ; but a life of dependence
was insupportable to his haughty spirit. He repaired to
Birmingham, and there earned a few guineas by literary
drudgery. In that town he printed a translation, little no¬
ticed at the time, and long forgotten, of a Latin book about
Abyssinia. He then put forth proposals for publishing by
subscription the poems of Politian, with notes containing a
history of modern Latin verse; but subscriptions did not
come in ; and the volume never appeared.
While leading this vagrant and miserable life, Johnson
fell in love. The object of his passion was Mrs Elizabeth
Porter, a widow who had children as old as himself. To
ordinary spectators, the lady appeared to be a short, fat,
coarse woman, painted half an inch thick, dressed in gaudy
colours, and fond of exhibiting provincial airs and graces
which were not exactly those of the Queensberrys and
Lepels. To Johnson, however, whose passions were strong,
whose eyesight wras too weak to distinguish ceruse from
natural bloom, and who had seldom or never been in the
same room with a woman of real fashion, his Titty, as he
called her, was the most beautiful, graceful, and accom¬
plished of her sex. That his admiration was unfeigned can¬
not be doubted ; for she was as poor as himself. She ac¬
cepted, with a readiness which did her little honour, the ad¬
dresses of a suitor who might have been her son. The
marriage, however, in spite of occasional wranglings, proved
happier than might have been expected. The lover con¬
tinued to be under the illusions of the wedding-day till the
lady died in her sixty-fourth year. On her monument he
placed an inscription extolling the charms of her person and
of her manners; and when, long after her decease, he had
occasion to mention her, he exclaimed, writh a tenderness
half ludicrous, half pathetic, “ Pretty creature !”
His marriage made it necessary for him to exert himself
more strenuously than he had hitherto done. He took a
house in the neighbourhood of his native town, and adver¬
tised for pupils. But eighteen months passed away; and
only three pupils came to his academy. Indeed, his appear- Johnson,
ance was so strange, and his temper so violent, that his Samuel,
schoolroom must have resembled an ogre’s den. Nor was
the tawdry painted grandmother whom he called his Titty
well qualified to make provision for the comfort of young
gentlemen. David Garrick, who was one of the pupils,
used, many years later, to throw the best company of Lon¬
don into convulsions of laughter by mimicking the endear¬
ments of this extraordinary pair.
At length Johnson, in the twenty-eighth year of his age,
determined to seek his fortune in the capital as a literary
adventurer. He set out with a few guineas, three acts of
the tragedy of Irene in manuscript, and two or three letters
of introduction from his friend Walmesley.
Never since literature became a calling in England had
it been a less gainful calling than at the time when John¬
son took up his residence in London. In the preceding
generation a writer of eminent merit was sure to be muni¬
ficently rewarded by the government. The least that he
could expect was a pension or a sinecure place ; and, if he
showed any aptitude for politics, he might hope to be a
member of parliament, a lord of the treasury, an ambassa¬
dor, a secretary of state. It would be easy, on the other
hand, to name several writers of the nineteenth century of
whom the least successful has received forty thousand pounds
from the booksellers. But Johnson entered on his vocation
in the most dreary part of the dreary interval which separated
two ages of prosperity. Literature had ceased to flourish
under the patronage of the great, and had not begun to
flourish under the patronage of the public. One man of
letters, indeed, Pope, had acquired by his pen what was then
considered as a handsome fortune, and lived on a footing of
equality with nobles and ministers of state. But this was
a solitary exception. Even an author whose reputation was
established, and whose works were popular, such an author
as Thomson, whose Seasons were in every library, such an
author as Fielding, whose Pasquin had had a greater run
than any drama since The Beggar’s Opera, was sometimes
glad to obtain, by pawning his best coat, the means of din¬
ing on tripe at a cookshop underground, where he could
wipe his hands, after his greasy meal, on the back of a New¬
foundland dog. It is easy, therefore, to imagine what hu¬
miliations and privations must have awaited the novice who
had still to earn a name. One of the publishers to whom
Johnson applied for employment measured with a scornful
eye that athletic though uncouth frame, and exclaimed,
“ You had better get a porter’s knot, and carry trunks.”
Nor was the advice bad, for a porter was likely to be as
plentifully fed, and as comfortably lodged, as a poet.
Some time appears to have elapsed before Johnson was
able to form any literary connection from which he could
expect more than bread for the day which was passing over
him. He never forgot the generosity with which Hervey,
who was now residing in London, relieved his wants during
this time of trial. “ Harry Hervey,” said the old philosopher
many years later, “ was a vicious man ; but he was very
kind to me. If you call a dog Hervey, I shall love him.”
At Hervey’s table Johnson sometimes enjoyed feasts which
were made more agreeable by contrast. But in general
he dined, and thought that he dined well, on sixpenny
worth of meat and a pennyworth of bread at an alehouse
near Drury Lane.
The effect of the privations and sufferings which he en¬
dured at this time was discernible to the last in his temper
and his deportment. His manners had never been courtly.
They now became almost savage. Being frequently under
the necessity of wearing shabby coats and dirty shirts, he
became a confirmed sloven. Being often very hungry when
he sate down to his meals, he contracted a habit of eating
with ravenous greediness. Even to the end ot his life, and
even at the tables of the great, the sight of food affected
JOHNSON. 795
Johnson, him as it affects wild beasts and birds of prey. His taste
Samuel. in cookery, formed in subterranean ordinaries and Alamode
beefshops, was far from delicate. Whenever he was so
fortunate as to have near him a hare that had been kept too
long, or a meat pie made with rancid butter, he gorged him¬
self with such violence that his veins swelled, and the mois¬
ture broke out on his forehead. The affronts which his
poverty emboldened stupid and low-minded men to offer to
him would have broken a mean spirit into sycophancy, but
made him rude even to ferocity. Unhappily the insolence
which, while it was defensive, was pardonable, and in some
sense respectable, accompanied him into societies where he
was treated with courtesy and kindness. He was repeat¬
edly provoked into striking those who had taken liberties
with him. All the sufferers, however, were wise enough
to abstain from talking about their beatings, except Osborne,
the most rapacious and brutal of booksellers, who proclaimed
everywhere that he had been knocked down by the huge
fellow whom he had hired to puff the Harleian Library.
About a year after Johnson had begun to reside in Lon¬
don, he was fortunate enough to obtain regular employment
from Cave, an enterprising and intelligent bookseller, who
was proprietor and editor of the Gentleman’s Magazine. That
journal, just entering on the ninth year of its long existence,
was the only periodical work in the kingdom which then
had what would now be called a large circulation. It was
indeed, the chief source of parliamentary intelligence. It
was not then safe, even during a recess, to publish an ac¬
count of the proceedings of either House without some dis¬
guise. Cave, however, ventured to entertain his readers
with what he called Reports of the Debates of the Senate of
Lilliput. France was Blefuscu: London was Mildendo:
pounds were sprugs: the Duke of Newcastle was the Nardac
secretary of state : Lord Hardwicke was the Hurgo Hickrad ;
and William Pulteney was Wingul Pulnub. To write the
speeches was, during several years, the business of Johnson.
He was generally furnished with notes, meagre indeed, and
inaccurate, of what had been said; but sometimes he had to
find arguments and eloquence both for the ministry and for
the opposition. He was himself a T ory, not from rational con¬
viction—for his serious opinion was that one form of govern¬
ment was just as good or as bad as another—but from mere
passion, such as inflamed the Capulets against the Monta¬
gues, or the Blues of the Roman circus against the Greens.
In his infancy he had heard so much talk about the villanies
of the Whigs, and the dangers of the Church, that he had
become a furious partisan when he could scarcely speak.
Before he was three he had insisted on being taken to hear
Sacheverell preach at Lichfield Cathedral, and had listened
to the sermon with as much respect, and probably with as
much intelligence, as any Stalfordshire squire in the congre¬
gation. The work which had been begun in the nursery
had been completed by the university. Oxford, when
Johnson resided there, was the most Jacobitical place in
England; and Pembroke was one of the most Jacobitical
colleges in Oxford. The prejudices which he brought up
to London were scarcely less absurd than those of his own
Tom Tempest. Charles II. and James II. were two of the
best kings that ever reigned. Laud, a poor creature who
never did, said, or wrote any thing indicating more than the
ordinary capacity of an old woman, was a prodigy of parts
and learning over whose tomb Art and Genius still continued
to weep. Hampden deserved no more honourable name
than that of “ the zealot of rebellion.” Even the ship money,
condemned not less decidedly by Falkland and Clarendon
than by the bitterest Roundheads, Johnson would not pro¬
nounce to have been an unconstitutional impost. Under a
government the mildest that had ever been known in the
world, under a government which allowed to the people an
unpx-ecedented liberty of speech and action, he fancied that
he was a slave ; he assailed the ministry with obloquy which
refuted itself, and regretted the lost freedom and happiness Johnson,
of those golden days in which a writer who had taken but Samuel-
one-tenth part of the license allowed to him would have
been pilloried, mangled with the shears, whipped at the
cart’s tail, and flung into a noisome dungeon to die. He
hated dissenters and stock-jobbers, the excise and the army,
septennial parliaments, and continental connections. He
long had an aversion to the Scotch, an aversion of which
he could not remember the commencement, but which, he
owned, had probably originated in his abhorrence of the con¬
duct of the nation during the Great Rebellion. It is easy
to guess in what manner debates on great party questions
were likely to be reported by a man whose judgment was
so much disordered by party spirit. A show of fairness
was indeed necessary to the prosperity of the Magazine.
But Johnson long afterwards owned that, though he had
saved appearances, he had taken care that the Whig dogs
should not have the best of it; and, in fact, every passage
which has lived, every passage which bears the marks of his
higher faculties, is put into the mouth of some member of
the opposition.
A few weeks after Johnson had entered on these obscure
labours, he published a work which at once placed him high
among the writers of his age. It is probable that what he
had suffered during his first year in London had often re¬
minded him of some parts of that noble poem in which Ju¬
venal had described the misery and degradation of a needy
man of letters, lodged among the pigeons’ nests in the tot¬
tering garrets which overhung the streets of Rome. Pope’s
admirable imitations of Horace’s Satires and Epistles had
recently appeared, were in every hand, and were by many
readers thought superior to the originals. What Pope had
done for Horace, Johnson aspired to do for Juvenal. The
enterprise was bold, and yet judicious. For between John¬
son and Juvenal there was much in common, much more
certainly than between Pope and Horace.
Johnson’s London appeared without his name in May
1738. He received only ten guineas for this stately and
vigorous poem: but the sale was rapid, and the success
complete. A second edition was required within a week.
Those small critics who are always desirous to lower esta¬
blished reputations ran about proclaiming that the anony¬
mous satirist was superior to Pope in Pope’s own peculiar
department of literature. It ought to be remembered, to
the honour of Pope, that he joined heartily in the applause
with which the appearance of a rival genius was welcomed.
He made inquiries about the author of London. Such a
man, he said, could not long be concealed. The name
was soon discovered; and Pope, with great kindness, ex¬
erted himself to obtain an academical degree and the mas¬
tership of a grammar school for the poor young poet. The
attempt failed, and Johnson remained a bookseller’s hack.
It does not appear that these tw o men, the most emi-
ment writer of the generation which was going out, and the
most eminent writer of the generation which was coming
in, ever saw each other. They lived in very different cir¬
cles, one surrounded by dukes and earls, the other by starv¬
ing pamphleteers and indexmakers. Among Johnson’s
associates at this time may be mentioned Boyse, who, when
his shirts were pledged, scrawled Latin verses sitting up in
bed with his arms through two holes in his blanket, who
composed very respectable sacred poetry when he was sober,
and who was at last run over by a hackney coach when he
was drunk ; Hoole, surnamed the metaphysical tailor, who,
instead of attending to his measures, used to trace geome¬
trical diagrams on the board where he sate cross-legged; and
the penitent impostor, George Psalmanazar, who, after poring
all day, in a humble lodging, on the folios of Jewish rabbis
and Christian fathers, indulged himself at night with lite¬
rary and theological conversation at an alehouse in the city.
But the most remarkable of the persons with whom at this
J O H N S O N.
796
Johnson, time Johnson consorted, was Richard Savage, an earl’s son,
Samuel. a shoemaker’s apprentice, who had seen life in all its forms,
who had feasted among blue ribands in Saint James’s Square,
and had lain with fifty pounds weight of irons on his legs, in
■ the condemned ward of Newgate. This man had, after many
vicissitudes of fortune, sunk at last into abject and hopeless
poverty. His pen had failed him. His patrons had been
taken away by death, or estranged by the riotous profusion
with which he squandered their bounty, and the ungrateful
insolence with which he rejected their advice. He now lived
by begging. He dined on venison and Champagne whenever
he had been so fortunate as to borrow a guinea. If his
questing had been unsuccessful, he appeased the rage of
hunger with some scraps of broken meat, and lay down to
rest under the Piazza of Covent Garden in warm weather,
and, in cold weather, as near as he could get to the furnace
of a glass house. Yet, in his misery, he was still an agree¬
able companion. He had an inexhaustible store of anec¬
dotes about that gay and brilliant world from which he was
now an outcast. He had observed the great men of both
parties in hours of careless relaxation, had seen the leaders
of opposition without the mask of patriotism, and had heard
the prime minister roar with laughter and tell stories not
over decent. During some months Savage lived in the
closest familiarity with Johnson ; and then the friends
parted, not without tears. Johnson remained in London to
drudge for Cave. Savage went to the West of England, lived
there as he had lived everywhere, and, in 1743, died, pen¬
niless and heart-broken, in Bristol gaol.
Soon after his death, while the public curiosity was
strongly excited about his extraordinary character, and his
not less extraordinary adventures, a life of him appeared
widely different from the catchpenny lives of eminent men
which were then a staple article of manufacture in Grub
Street. The style was indeed deficient in ease and variety;
and the writer was evidently too partial to the Latin ele¬
ment of our language. But the little work, with all its
faults, was a masterpiece. No finer specimen of literary
biography existed in any language, living or dead ; and a
discerning critic might have confidently predicted that the
author was destined to be the founder of a new school of
English eloquence.
The Life of Savage was anonymous; but it was well
known in literary circles that Johnson was the writer. Dur¬
ing the three years which followed, he produced no impor¬
tant work ; but he was not, and indeed could not be, idle.
The fame of his abilities and learning continued to grow.
Warburton pronounced him a man of parts and genius ;
and the praise of Warburton was then no light thing. Such
was Johnson’s reputation that, in 1747, several eminent
booksellers combined to employ him in the arduous work
of preparing a Dictionary of the English Language, in two
folio volumes. The sum which they agreed to pay him was
only fifteen hundred guineas ; and out of this sum he had to
pay several poor men of letters who assisted him in the hum¬
bler parts of his task.
The Prospectus of the Dictionary he addressed to the
Earl of Chesterfield. Chesterfield had long been celebrated
for the politeness of his manners, the brilliancy of his wit,
and the delicacy of his taste. He was acknowledged to be
the finest speaker in the House of Lords. He had recently
governed Ireland, at a momentous conjuncture, with emi¬
nent firmness, wisdom, and humanity; and he had since
become Secretary of State. He received Johnson’s homage
with the most winning affability, and requited it with a few
guineas, bestowed doubtless in a very graceful manner, but
was by no means desirous to see all his carpets blackened
with the London mud, and his soups and wines thrown to
right and left over the gowns of fine ladies and the waist¬
coats of fine gentlemen, by an absent, awkward scholar, who
gave strange starts and uttered strange growls, who dressed
like a scarecrow, and ate like a cormorant. During some Johnson,
time Johnson continued to call on his patron, but, after be- Samuel,
ing repeatedly told by the porter that his lordship was not
at home, took the hint, and ceased to present himself at the
inhospitable door.
Johnson had flattered himself that he should have com¬
pleted his Dictionary by the end of ] 750; but it was not
till 1755 that he at length gave his huge volumes to the
world. During the seven years which he passed in the
drudgery of penning definitions and marking quotations for
transcription, he sought for relaxation in literary labour of
a more agreeable kind. In 1749 he published the Vanity
of Human Wishes, an excellent imitation of the Tenth Satire
of Juvenal. It is in truth not easy to say whether the palm
belongs to the ancient or to the modern poet. The coup¬
lets in which the fall of Wolsey is described, though lofty
and sonorous, are feeble when compared with the wonder¬
ful lines which bring before us all Rome in tumult on the
day of the fall of Sejanus, the laurels on the doorposts, the
white bull stalking towards the Capitol, the statues rolling
down from their pedestals, the flatterers of the disgraced
minister running to see him dragged with a hook through
the streets, and to have a kick at his carcase before it is
hurled into the Tiber. It must be owned too that in the
concluding passage the Christian moralist has not made the
most of his advantages, and has fallen decidedly short of the
sublimity of his Pagan model. On the other hand, Juvenal’s
Hannibal must yield to Johnson’s Charles ; and Johnson’s
vigorous and pathetic enumeration of the miseries of a
literary life must be allowed to be superior to Juvenal’s
lamentation over the fate of Demosthenes and Cicero.
For the copyright of the Vanity of Human Wishes
Johnson received only fifteen guineas.
A few days after the publication of this poem, his tragedy,
begun many years before, was brought on the stage. His
pupil, David Garrick, had, in 1741, made his appearance
on a humble stage in Goodman’s Fields, had at once risen
to the first place among actors, and was now, after several
years of almost uninterrupted success, manager of Drury
Lane Theatre. The relation between him and his old pre¬
ceptor was of a very singular kind. They repelled each
other strongly, and yet attracted each other strongly. Na¬
ture had made them of very different clay; and circum¬
stances had fully brought out the natural peculiarities of
both. Sudden prosperity had turned Garrick’s head. Con¬
tinued adversity had soured Johnson’s temper. Johnson
saw with more envy than became so great a man the villa,
the plate, the china, the Brussels carpet, which the little
mimic had got by repeating, with grimaces and gesticula¬
tions, what wiser men had written ; and the exquisitely sen¬
sitive vanity of Garrick was galled by the thought that,
while all the rest of the world was applauding him, he could
obtain from one morose cynic, whose opinion it was impos¬
sible to despise, scarcely any compliment not acidulated
with scorn. Yet the two Lichfield men had so many early
recollections in common, and sympathized with each other
on so many points on which they sympathized with nobody
else in the vast population of the capital, that, though the
master was often provoked by the monkey-like impertinence
of the pupil, and the pupil by the bearish rudeness of the
master, they remained friends till they were parted by
death. Garrick now brought Irene out, with alterations
sufficient to displease the author, yet not sufficient to make
the piece pleasing to the audience. The public, however,
listened, with little emotion, but with much civility, to five
acts of monotonous declamation. After nine representa¬
tions the play was withdrawn. It is, indeed, altogether
unsuited to the stage, and, even when perused in the closet,
will be found hardly worthy of the author. He had not
the slightest notion of what blank verse should be. A
change in the last syllable of every other line would make
JOHNSON.
Johnson, the versification of the Vanity of Human Wishes closely
Samuel, resemble the versification of Irene. The poet, however,
cleared, by his benefit nights, and by the sale of the copy¬
right of his tragedy, about three hundred pounds, then a
great sum in his estimation.
About a yeai aftei the representation of Irene, he began
to publish a series of short essays on morals, manners, and
literature. I his species of composition had been brought
into fashion by the success of the Tatler, and by the still
more brilliant success of the Spectator. A crowd of small
writers had vainly attempted to rival Addison. The Lay
Monastery, the Censor, the Freethinker, the Plain Dealer,
the Champion, and other works of the same kind, had had
their short day. None of them had obtained a permanent
place in our literature; and they are now to be found only
in the libraries of the curious. At length Johnson under¬
took the adventure in which sjo many aspirants had failed.
In the thirty-sixth year after the appearance of the last
number of the Spectator appeared the first number of the
Rambler. From March 1750 to March 1752, this paper
continued to come out every Tuesday and Saturday.
From the first the Rambler was enthusiastically admired
by a few eminent men. Richardson, when only five num¬
bers had appeared, pronounced it equal, if not superior to
the Spectator. 1 oung and Hartley expressed their appro¬
bation not less warmly. Bubb Dodington, among whose
many faults indifference to the claims of genius and learn¬
ing cannot be reckoned, solicited the acquaintance of the
writer. In consequence probably of the good offices of
Dodington, who was then the confidential adviser of
Prince Frederic, two of his Royal Highness's gentlemen car¬
ried a gracious message to the printing office, and ordered
seven copies for Leicester House. "But these overtures
seem to have been very coldly received. Johnson had
had enough of the patronage of the great to last him all his
life, and was not disposed to haunt any other door as he
had haunted the door of Chesterfield.
By the public the Rambler was at first very coldly received.
Though the price of a number was only twopence, the sale
did not amount to five hundred. The profits were there-
foie very small. But as soon as the flying leaves were col¬
lected and reprinted they became popular. The author lived
to see thirteen thousand copies spread over England alone.
Separate editions were published for the Scotch and Irish mar¬
kets. A large party pronounced the style perfect, so absolutely
perfect that in some essays it would be impossible for the
writer himself to alter a single word for the better. An¬
other party, not less numerous, vehemently accused him of
having corrupted the purity of the English tongue. The
best critics admitted that his diction was too monotonous,
too obviously artificial, and now and then turgid even to
absurdity. But they did justice to the acuteness of his
observations on morals and manners, to the constant pre¬
cision and frequent brilliancy of his language, to the weighty
and magnificent eloquence of many serious passages, and
to the solemn yet pleasing humour of some of the lighter
papers. On the question of precedence between Addison
and Johnson, a question which, seventy years ago, was
much disputed, posterity has pronounced a decision from
which there is no appeal. Sir Roger, his chaolain and his
butler, Will Wimble and Will Honeycomb, the Vision of
Mirza, the Journal of the Retired Citizen, the Everlast¬
ing Club, the Dunmow Flitch, the Loves of Hilpah and
Shalum, the Visit to the Exchange, and the Visit to the
Abbey, are known to everybody. But many men and
women, even of highly cultivated minds, are unacquainted
with Squire Bluster and Mrs Busy, Quisquilius and Ve-
nustulus, the Allegory of Wit and Learning, the Chroni¬
cle of the Revolutions of a Garret, and the sad fate of
Aningait and Ajut.
I he last Rambler was written in a sad and gloomy hour.
797
Mrs Johnson had been given over by the physicians. Three
days later she died. She left her husband almost broken¬
hearted. Many people had been surprised to see a man of
his genius and learning stooping to every drudgery, and de¬
nying himself almost every comfort, for the purpose of sup¬
plying a silly, affected old woman with superfluities, which
she accepted with but little gratitude. But all his affection
had been concentrated on her. He had neither brother
nor sister, neither son nor daughter. To him she was beau¬
tiful as the Gunnings, and witty as Lady Mary. Her opinion
of his writings was more important to him than the voice of
the pit of Drury Lane Theatre, or the judgment of the
Monthly Review. The chief support which had sustained
him through the most arduous labour of his life was the
hope that she would enjoy the fame and the profit which
he anticipated from his Dictionary. She was gone; and,
in that vast labyrinth of streets, peopled by eight hundred
thousand human beings, he was alone. Yet it was neces¬
sary for him to set himself, as he expressed it, doggedly to
work. After three more laborious years, the Dictionary
was at length complete.
It had been generally supposed that this great work would
be dedicated to the eloquent and accomplished nobleman to
whom the Prospectus had been addressed. He well knew
the value of such a compliment; and therefore, when the day
of publication drew near, he exerted himself to sooth, by a
show of zealous and at the same time of delicate and judi¬
cious kindness, the pride which he had so cruelly wounded.
Since the Ramblers had ceased to appear, the town had
been enteitained by a journal called I he World, to which
many men of high rank and fashion contributed. In two
successive numbers of the World, the Dictionary was, to
use the modern phrase, puffed with wonderful skill. The
writings of Johnson were warmly praised. It was proposed
that he should be invested with the authority of a Dictator,
nay, of a Pope, over our language, and that his decisions
about the meaning and the spelling of words should be re¬
ceived as final. His two folios, it was said, would of course
be bought by everybody who could afford to buy them.
It was soon known that these papers were written by Ches¬
terfield. But the just resentment of Johnson was not to
be so appeased. In a letter written with singular energy
and dignity of thought and language, he repelled the tardy
advances of his patron. The Dictionary came forth with¬
out a dedication. In the preface the author truly declared
that he owed nothing to the great, and described the diffi¬
culties with which he had been left to struggle so forcibly
and pathetically that the ablest and most malevolent of ail
the enemies of his fame, Horne Tooke, never could read
that passage without tears.
The public, on this occasion, did Johnson full justice, and
something more than justice. The best lexicographer may
well be content if his productions are received by the world
with cold esteem. But Johnsons Dictionary was hailed
with an enthusiasm such as no similar work has ever ex¬
cited. It was indeed the first dictionary which could be
read with pleasure. The definitions show so much acute¬
ness of thought and command of language, and the passages
quoted from poets, divines, and philosophers, are so skilfully
selected that a leisure hour may always be very agreeably
spent in turning over the pages. The faults of the book
resolve themselves, for the most part, into one great fault.
Johnson was a wietched etymologist. He knew little or
nothing of any Teutonic language except English, which
indeed, as he wrote it, was scarcely a Teutonic language;
and thus he was absolutely at the mercy of Junius and
Skinner.
I he Dictionary, though it raised Johnson’s fame, added
nothing to his pecuniary means. The fifteen hundred gui¬
neas which the booksellers had agreed to pay him had been
advanced and spent before the last sheets issued from the
Johnson,
Samuel.
798 J 0 H N S O N.
Johnson, press. It is painful to relate that, twice in the course of the year
Samuel, which followed the publication of this great work, he was ar-
s-**v*'/ rested and carried to spunging-houses, and that he was twice
indebted for his liberty to his excellent friend Richardson. It
was still necessary for the rnan who had been fbrrnally saluted
by the highest authority as Dictator of the English language
to supply his wants by constant toil. He abridged his Dic¬
tionary. He proposed to bring out an edition of Shak-
speare by subscription ; and many subscribers sent in their
names, and laid down their money; but he soon found the task
so little to his taste that he turned to more attractive em¬
ployments. He contributed many papers to a new monthly
journal, which was called the Literary Magazine. Few of
these papers have much interest; but among them was the
very best thing that he ever wrote, a masterpiece both of
reasoning and of satirical pleasantry, the review of Jenyns’s
Inquiry into the Nature and Origin of Evil.
In the spring of 1758 Johnson put forth the first of a
series of essays, entitled The Idler. During two years
these essays continued to appear weekly. They were
eagerly read, widely circulated, and, indeed, impudently
pirated while they were still in the original form, and had
a large sale when collected into volumes. The Idler may
be described as a second part of the Rambler, somewhat
livelier and somewhat weaker than the first part.
While Johnson was busied with his Idlers, his mother,
who had accomplished her ninetieth year, died at Lichfield.
It was long since he had seen her ; but he had not failed
to contribute largely, out of his small means, to her com¬
fort. In order to defray the charges of her funeral, and to
pay some debts which she had left, he wrote a little book
in a single week, and sent off the sheets to the press with¬
out reading them over. A hundred pounds were paid him
for the copyright; and the purchasers had great cause to
be pleased with their bargain; for the book was Rasselas.
The success of Rasselas was great, though such ladies as
Miss Lydia Languish must have been grievously disap¬
pointed when they found that the new volume from the
circulating library was little more than a dissertation on the
author’s favourite theme, the Vanity of Human Wishes ;
that the Prince of Abyssinia was without a mistress, and
the Princess without a lover ; and that the story set the hero
and the heroine down exactly where it had taken them up.
The style was the subject of much eager controversy. The
Monthly Review and the Critical Review took different
sides. Many readers pronounced the writer a pompous
pedant, who would never use a word of two syllables where
it was possible to use a word of six, and who could not
make a waiting woman relate her adventures without ba¬
lancing every noun with another noun, and every epithet
with another epithet. Another party, not less zealous, cited
with delight numerous passages in which weighty meaning
was expressed with accuracy and illustrated with splendour.
And both the censure and the praise were merited.
About the plan of Rasselas little was said by the critics; and
yet the faults of the plan might seem to invite severe criticism.
Johnson has frequently blamed Shakspeare for neglecting
the proprieties of time and place, and for ascribing to one
age or nation the manners and opinions of another. \ et
Shakspeare has not sinned in this way more grievously than
Johnson. Rasselas and Imlac, Nekayah and Pekuah, are evi¬
dently meant to be Abyssinians of the eighteenth century :
for the Europe which imlac describes is the Europe of the
eighteenth century ; and the inmates of the Happy Valley
talk familiarly of that law of gravitation which Newton dis¬
covered, and which was not fully received even at Cambridge
till the eighteenth century. What a real company of Abys¬
sinians would have been may be learned from Bruce’s
Travels. But Johnson, not content with turning filthy
savages, ignorant of their letters, and gorged with raw
steaks cut from living cows, into philosophers as eloquent
and enlightened as himself or his friend Burke, and into Johnson,
ladies as highly accomplished as Mrs Lennox or Mrs Samuel.
Sheridan, transferred the whole domestic system of Eng-
land to Egypt. Into a land of harems, a land of polygamy,
a land where women are married without ever being seen,
he introduced the flirtations and jealousies of our ball-rooms.
In a land where there is boundless liberty of divorce, wed¬
lock is described as the indissoluble compact. “ A youth
and maiden meeting by chance, or brought together by arti¬
fice, exchange glances, reciprocate civilities, go home, and
dream of each other. Such,” says Rasselas, “ is the com¬
mon process of marriage.” Such it may have been, and
may still be, in London, but assuredly not at Cairo. A
writer who was guilty of such improprieties had little right
to blame the poet who made Hector quote Aristotle, and
represented Julio Romano as flourishing in the days of the
oracle of Delphi.
By such exertions as have been described, Johnson sup¬
ported himself till the year 1762. In that year a great
change in his circumstances took place. He had from a
child been an enemy of the reigning dynasty. His Jaco¬
bite prejudices had been exhibited with little disguise both
in his works and in his conversation. Even in his massy
and elaborate Dictionary, he had, with a strange want of
taste and judgment, inserted bitter and contumelious reflec¬
tions on the Whig party. The excise, which was a favourite
resource of Whig financiers, he had designated as a hateful
tax. He had railed against the commissioners of excise in
language so coarse that they had seriously thought of pro¬
secuting him. He had with difficulty been prevented from
holding up the Lord Privy Seal byname as an example of the
meaning of the word “renegade.” A pension he had defined
as pay given to a state hireling to betray his country; a pen¬
sioner as a slave of state hired by a stipend to obey a master.
It seemed unlikely that the author of these definitions would
himself be pensioned. But that w^as a time of wonders.
George the Third had ascended the throne; and had, in the
course of a few months, disgusted many of the old friends,
and conciliated many of the old enemies of his house. The
city was becoming mutinous. Oxford was becoming loyal.
Cavendishes and Bentincks were murmuring. Somerset
and Wyndhams were hastening to kiss hands. The head
of the treasury was now Lord Bute, who was a Tory, and
could have no objection to Johnson’s Toryism. Bute
wished to be thought a patron of men of letters ; and John¬
son was one of the most eminent and one of the most needy
men of letters in Europe. A pension of three hundred a year
was graciously oftered, and with very little hesitation accepted.
This event produced a change in Johnson’s whole way
of life. For the first time since his boyhood he no longer
felt the daily goad urging him to the daily toil. He was
at liberty, after thirty years of anxiety and drudgery, to in¬
dulge his constitutional indolence, to lie in bed till two in
the afternoon, and to sit up talking till four in the morning,
without fearing either the printer’s devil or the sheriff’s
officer.
One laborious task indeed he had bound himself to per¬
form. He had received large subscriptions for his promised
edition of Shakspeare ; he had lived on those subscriptions
during some years ; and he could not without disgrace omit
to perform his part of the contract. His friends repeatedly
exhorted him to make an effort; and he repeatedly resolved
to do so. But, notwithstanding their exhortations and his
resolutions, month followed month, year followed year, and
nothing was done. He prayed fervently against his idle¬
ness ; he determined, as often as he received the sacrament,
that he would no longer doze away and trifle away his time ;
but the spell under which he lay resisted prayer and sacra¬
ment. His private notes at this time are made up of self-
reproaches. “ My indolence,” he wrote on Easter eve in
1764, “has sunk into grosser sluggishness. A kind of
J O H N S O N.
799
Johnson, strange oblivion has overspread me, so that I know not
Samuel, what has become of the last year.” Easter 1765 came, and
found him still in the same state. “ My time,” he wrote,
“ has been unprofitably spent, and seems as a dream that
has left nothing behind. My memory grows confused, and
I know not how the days pass over me.” Happily for his
honour, the charm which held him captive was at length
broken by no gentle or friendly hand. He had been weak
enough to pay serious attention to a story about a ghost
which haunted a house in Cock Lane, and had actually
gone himself, with some of his friends, at one in the morn¬
ing, to St John’s Church, Clerkenwell, in the hope of re¬
ceiving a communication from the perturbed spirit. But
the spirit, though adjured with all solemnity, remained ob¬
stinately silent; and it soon appeared that a naughty girl
of eleven had been amusing herself by making fools of so
many philosophers. Churchill, who, confident in his powers,
drunk with popularity, and burning with party spirit, was
looking for some man of established fame and Tory politics
to insult, celebrated the Cock Lane Ghost in three cantos,
nicknamed Johnson Pomposo, asked where the book was
which had been so long promised and so liberally paid for,
and directly accused the great moralist of cheating. This
terrible word proved effectual; and in October 1765 ap¬
peared, after a delay of nine years, the new edition of Shak-
speare.
This publication saved Johnson’s character for honesty,
but added nothing to the fame of his abilities and learning.
The preface, though it contains some good passages, is not
in his best manner. The most valuable notes are those in
which he had an opportunity of showing how attentively he
had during many years observed human life and human
nature. The best specimen is the note on the character of
Polonius. Nothing so good is to be found even in Wilhelm
Meister’s admirable examination of Hamlet. But here
praise must end. It would be difficult to name a more
slovenly, a more worthless edition of any great classic. The
reader may turn over play after play without finding one
happy conjectural emendation, or one ingenious and satis¬
factory explanation of a passage which had baffled preceding
commentators. Johnson had, in his Prospectus, told the
world that he was peculiarly fitted for the task which he had
undertaken, because he had, as a lexicographer, been under
the necessity of taking a wider view of the English language
than any of his predecessors. That his knowledge of our
literature was extensive is indisputable. But, unfortunately,
he had altogether neglected that very part of our literature with
which it is especially desirable that an editor of Shakspeare
should be conversant. It is dangerous to assert a negative.
Yet little will be risked by the assertion, that in the two
folio volumes of the English Dictionary there is not a single
passage quoted from any dramatist of the Elizabethan age,
except Shakspeare and Ben. Even from Ben the quota¬
tions are few. Johnson might easily, in a few months, have
made himself well acquainted with every old play that was
extant. But it never seems to have occurred to him that
this was a necessary preparation for the work which he had
undertaken. He would doubtless have admitted that it
would be the height of absurdity in a man who was not
familiar with the works of iEschylus and Euripides to publish
an edition of Sophocles. Yet he ventured to publish an
edition of Shakspeare, without having ever in his life, as far
as can be discovered, read a single scene of Massinger, Ford,
Decker, Webster, Marlow, Beaumont, or Fletcher. His
detractors were noisy and scurrilous. Those who most
loved and honoured him had little to say in praise of the
manner in which he had discharged the duty of a commen¬
tator. He had, however, acquitted himself of a debt which
had long lain heavy on his conscience, and he sank back
into the repose from which the sting of satire had roused
him. He long continued to live upon the fame which he
had already won. He was honoured by the University of
Oxford with a Doctor’s degree, by the Royal Academy with
a professorship, and by the King with an interview, in which
his Majesty most graciously expressed a hope that so ex¬
cellent a writer would not cease to write. In the interval,
however, between 1765 and 1775 Johnson published only
two or three political tracts, the longest of which he could
have produced in forty-eight hours, if he had worked as he
worked on the Life of Savage and on Rasselas.
But, though his pen was now idle, his tongue was active.
The influence exercised by his conversation, directly upon
those with whom he lived, and indirectly on the whole
literary world, was altogether without a parallel. His collo¬
quial talents were indeed of the highest order. He had
strong sense, quick discernment, wit, humour, immense
knowledge of literature and of life, and an infinite store of
curious anecdotes. As respected style, he spoke far better
than he wrote. Every sentence which dropped from his
lips was as correct in structure as the most nicely balanced
period of the Rambler. But in his talk there were no pomp¬
ous triads, and little more than a fair proportion of words in
osity and ation. All was simplicity, ease, and vigour. He
uttered his short, weighty, and pointed sentences with a
power of voice, and a justness and energy of emphasis, of
which the effect was rather increased than diminished by
the rollings of his huge form, and by the asthmatic gaspings
and puffings in which the peals of his eloquence generally
ended. Nor did the laziness which made him unwilling
to sit down to his desk prevent him from giving instruc¬
tion or entertainment orally. To discuss questions of taste,
of learning, of casuistry, in language so exact and so for¬
cible that it might have been printed without the alteration
of a word, was to him no exertion, but a pleasure. He
loved, as he said, to fold his legs and have his talk out. He
was ready to bestow the overflowings of his full mind on
anybody who would start a subject, on a fellow-passenger
in a stage coach, or on the person who sate at the same table
with him in an eating-house. But his conversation was
nowhere so brilliant and striking as when he was surrounded
by a few friends, whose abilities and knowledge enabled them,
as he once expressed it, to send him back every ball that
he threw. Some of these, in 1764, formed themselves into
a club, which gradually became a formidable power in the
commonwealth of letters. The verdicts pronounced by this
conclave on new books were speedily known over all Lon¬
don, and were sufficient to sell off a whole edition in a day,
or to condemn the sheets to the service of the trunk-maker
and the pastrycook. Nor shall we think this strange when
we consider what great and various talents and acquire¬
ments met in the little fraternity. Goldsmith was the re¬
presentative of poetry and light literature, Reynolds of the
arts, Burke of political eloquence and political philosophy.
There, too, were Gibbon, the greatest historian, and Jones
the greatest linguist, of the age. Garrick brought to the meet¬
ings his inexhaustible pleasantry, his incomparable mimicry,
and his consummate knowledge of stage effect. Among
the most constant attendants were two high-born and
high-bred gentlemen, closely bound together by friend¬
ship, but of widely different characters and habits; Ben-
net Langton, distinguished by his skill in Greek litera¬
ture, by the orthodoxy of his opinions, and by the sanc¬
tity of his life ; and Topham Beauclerk, renowned for
his amours, his knowledge of the gay world, his fastidious
taste, and his sarcastic wit. To predominate over such a
society was not easy. Yet even over such a society Johnson
predominated. Burke might indeed have disputed the
supremacy to which others were under the necessity of sub¬
mitting. But Burke, though not generally a very patient
listener, was content to take the second part when Johnson
was present; and the club itself, consisting of so many emi¬
nent men, is to thisdaypopularly designated as Johnson’sclub.
Johnson,
Samuel.
800 J O II N S O N.
Johnson, Among the members of this celebrated body was one to
Samuel, whom it lias owed the greater part of its celebrity, yet who
was regarded with little respect by his brethren, and had
not without difficulty obtained a seat among them. This
was James Boswell, a young Scotch lawyer, heir to an
honourable name and a fair estate. That he was a cox¬
comb and a bore, weak, vain, pushing, curious, garrulous,
was obvious to all who were acquainted with him. That
he could not reason, that he had no wit, no humour, no
eloquence, is apparent from his writings. And yet his writ¬
ings are read beyond the Mississippi, and under the South¬
ern Cross, and are likely to be read as long as the English
exists, either as a living or as a dead language. Nature
had made him a slave and an idolater. His mind resembled
those creepers which the botanists call parasites, and which
can subsist only by clinging round the stems and imbibing the
juices of stronger plants. He must have fastened himself on
somebody. He might have fastened himself on Wilkes, and
have become the fiercest patriot in the Bill of Rights So¬
ciety. He might have fastened himself on Whitfield, and
have become the loudest field preacher among the Calvinis-
tic Methodists. In a happy hour he fastened himself on
Johnson. The pair might seem ill matched. For Johnson
had early been prejudiced against Boswell’s country. To a
man of Johnson’s strong understanding and irritable temper,
the silly egotism and adulation of Boswell must have been
as teasing as the constant buzz of a fly. Johnson hated to
be questioned; and Boswell was eternally catechizing him on
all kinds of subjects, and sometimes propounded such ques¬
tions as, “ What would you do, sir, if you w'ere locked up in
a tower with a baby ?” Johnson was a water drinker and
Boswell was a winebibber, and indeed little better than a
habitual sot. It was impossible that there should be per¬
fect harmony between two such companions. Indeed,
the great man was sometimes provoked into fits of pas¬
sion, in which he said things which the small man, dur¬
ing a few hours, seriously resented. Every quarrel,
however, was soon made up. During twenty years the
disciple continued to worship the master: the master
continued to scold the disciple, to sneer at him, and to
love him. The two friends ordinarily resided at a great
distance from each other. Boswell practised in the Parlia¬
ment House of Edinburgh, and could pay only occasional
visits to London. During those visits his chief business
was to watch Johnson, to discover all Johnson’s habits, to
turn the conversation to subjects about which Johnson was
likely to say something remarkable, and to fill quarto note¬
books with minutes of what Johnson had said. In this way
were gathered the materials, out of which was afterwards con¬
structed the most interesting biographical work in the world.
Soon after the club began to exist, Johnson formed a
connection less important indeed to his fame, but much
more important to his happiness, than his connection with
Boswell. Henry Thrale, one of the most opulent brewers
in the kingdom, a man of sound and cultivated understand¬
ing, rigid principles, and liberal spirit, was married to one
of those clever, kind-hearted, engaging, vain, pert, young
women, who are perpetually doing or saying what is not
exactly right, but who, do or say what they may, are always
agreeable. In 1765 the Thrales became acquainted with
Johnson, and the acquaintance ripened fast into friendship.
They were astonished and delighted by the brilliancy of
his conversation. They were flattered by finding that a
man so widely celebrated preferred their house to any
other in London. Even the peculiarities which seemed
to unfit him for civilised society, his gesticulations, his
rollings, his puffings, his mutterings, the strange way in
which he put on his clothes, the ravenous eagerness with
which he devoured his dinner, his fits of melancholy, his
fits of anger, his frequent rudeness, his occasional ferocity,
increased the interest which his new associates took in him.
For these things were the cruel marks left behind by a life Johnson,
which had been one long conflict with disease and with ad- Samuel,
versity. In a vulgar hack writer, such oddities would have
excited only disgust. But in a man of genius, learning,
and virtue, their effect was to add pity to admiration and
esteem. Johnson soon had an apartment at the brewery
in Southwark, and a still more pleasant apartment at the villa
of his friends on Streatham Common. A large part of
every year he passed in those abodes, abodes which must
have seemed magnificent and luxurious indeed, when com¬
pared with the dens in which he had generally been lodged.
But his chief pleasures were derived from what the astro¬
nomer of his Abyssinian tale called “ the endearing elegance
of female friendship.” Mrs Thrale rallied him, soothed
him, coaxed him, and, if she sometimes provoked him by
her flippancy, made ample amends by listening to his re¬
proofs with angelic sweetness of temper. When he was
diseased in body and in mind, she was the most tender of
nurses. No comfort that wealth could purchase, no con¬
trivance that womanly ingenuity, set to work by womanly
compassion, could devise was wanting to his sick room. He
requited her kindness by an affection pure as the affection
of a father, yet delicately tinged with a gallantry, which,
though awkward, must have been more flattering than the
attentions of a crowd of the fools who gloried in the names,
now obsolete, of Buck and Maccaroni. It should seem
that a full half of Johnson’s life, during about sixteen years,
was passed under the roof of the Thrales. He accompanied
the family sometimes to Bath, and sometimes to Brighton,
once to Wales and once to Paris. But he had at the same
time a house in one of the narrow and gloomy courts on
the north of Fleet Street. In the garrets was his library, a
large and miscellaneous collection of books, falling to pieces
and begrimed with dust. On a lower floor he sometimes,
but very rarely, regaled a friend with a plain dinner, a veal
pie, or a leg of lamb and spinage, and a rice pudding.
Nor was the dwelling uninhabited during his long absences.
It was the home of the most extraordinary assemblage of
inmates that ever was brought together. At the head of
the establishment Johnson had placed an old lady named
Williams, whose chief recommendations were her blindness
and her poverty. But, in spite of her murmurs and re¬
proaches, he gave an asylum to another lady who was as
poor as herself, Mrs Desmoulins, whose family he had known
many years before in Staffordshire. Room was found for the
daughter of Mrs Desmoulins, and for another destitute dam¬
sel, who was generally addressed as Miss Carmichael, but
whom her generous host called Polly. An old quack doc¬
tor named Levett, who bled and dosed coal-heavers and
hackney coachmen, and received for fees crusts of bread, bits
of bacon, glasses of gin, and sometimes a little copper, com¬
pleted this strange menagerie. All these poor creatures
were at constant war with each other, and with Johnson’s
negro servant Frank. Sometimes, indeed, they transferred
their hostilities from the servant to the master, complained
that a better table was not kept for them, and railed or
maundered till their benefactor was glad to make his escape
to Streatham, or to the Mitre Tavern. And yet he, who was
generally the haughtiest and most irritable of mankind, who
was but too prompt to resent anything which looked like a
slight on the part of a purse-proud bookseller, or of a noble
and powerful patron, bore patiently from mendicants, who,
but for his bounty, must have gone to the workhouse, in¬
sults more provoking than those for which he had knocked
down Osborne and bidden defiance to Chesterfield. Year
after year Mrs Williams and Mrs Desmoulins, Polly and
Levett, continued to torment him and to live upon him.
The course of life which has been described was inter¬
rupted in Johnson’s sixty-fourth year by an important event.
He had early read an account of the Hebrides, and had
been much interested by learning that there was so near
Johnson,
Samuel.
JOHNSON.
him a land peopled by a race which was still as rude and
simple as in the middle ages. A wish to become intimately
acquainted with a state of society so utterly unlike all that
he had ever seen frequently crossed his mind. But it is
not probable that his curiosity would have overcome his
habitual sluggishness, and his love of the smoke, the mud,
and the cries of London, had not Boswell importuned him
to attempt the adventure, and offered to be his squire. At
length, in August 1773, Johnson crossed the Highland line,
and plunged courageously into what was then considered,
by most Englishmen, as a dreary and perilous wilderness.
After wandering about two months through the Celtic re¬
gion, sometimes in rude boats which did not protect him
from the rain, and sometimes on small shaggy poneys which
could hardly bear his weight, he returned to his old haunts
with a mind full of new images and new theories. During
the following year he employed himself in recording his
adventures. About the beginning of 1775, his Journey to
t ie Hebrides was published, and was, during some weeks,
the chief subject of conversation in all circles in which any
attention was paid to literature. The book is still read with
pleasure. The narrative is entertaining ; the speculations,
whether sound or unsound, are always ingenious; and the
sty e, though too stiff and pompous, is somewhat easier and
moie graceful than that of his early writings. His preju¬
dice against the Scotch had at length become little more
than matter of jest; and whatever remained of the old feel¬
ing had been effectually removed by the kind and respect¬
ful hospitality with which he had been received in every
part of Scotland. It was, of course, not to be expected that
an Oxonian Tory should praise the Presbyterian polity and
ritual, or that an eye accustomed to the hedgerows and
parks of England should not be struck by the bareness of
Berwickshire and East Lothian. But even in censure
Johnson’s tone is not unfriendly. The most enlightened
Scotchmen, with Lord Mansfield at their head, were well
pleased. But some foolish and ignorant Scotchmen were
moved to anger by a little unpalatable truth which was
mingled with much eulogy, and assailed him whom they
chose to consider as the enemy of their country with libels
much more dishonourable to their country than anythino-
that he had ever said or written. They published para¬
graphs in the newspapers, articles in the magazines, six¬
penny pamphlets, five shilling books. One scribbler abused
Johnson for being blear-eyed ; another for beinp- a pen¬
sioner : a third informed the world that one of the°Doctor’s
uncles had been convicted of felony in Scotland, and had
found that there was in that country one tree capable of
supporting the weight of an Englishman. Macpherson,
whose Fingal had been proved in the Journey to be an im¬
pudent forgery, threatened to take vengeance with a cane
he only effect of this threat was that Johnson reiterated
the charge of forgery in the most contemptuous terms, and
walked about, during some time, with a cudgel, which, if
the impostor had not been too wise to encounter it, would
assuredly have descended upon him, to borrow the sublime
language of his own epic poem, “ like a hammer on the red
son of the furnace.”
Of other assailants Johnson took no notice whatever.
He had early resolved never to be drawn into controversy;
and he adhered to his resolution with a steadfastness which
is the more extraordinary, because he was, both intellec¬
tually and morally, of the stuff of which controversialists are
made. In conversation, he was a singularly eager, acute,
and pertinacious disputant. When at a loss for good rea¬
sons, he had recourse to sophistry; and when heated by
altei cation, he made unsparing use of sarcasm and invec¬
tive. But when he took his pen in his hand, his whole
character seemed to be changed. A hundred bad writers
misrepresented him and reviled him ; but not one of the
bundled could boast of having been thought by him worthy
vol. xn. J
801
of a refutation, or even of a retort. The Kenricks, Camp- Johnson,
bells, MacNicols, and Hendersons, did their best to annoy Samuel,
him, in the hope that he would give them importance
by answering them. But the reader will in vain search his
works for any allusion to Kenrick or Campbell, to MacNicol
or Henderson. One Scotchman, bent on vindicating the
fame of Scotch learning, defied him to the combat in a
detestable Latin hexameter.
Maxime, si tu vis, cupio contendere tecum.”
But Johnson took no notice of the challenge. He had
learned, both from his own observation and from literary
history, in which he was deeply read, that the place of books
'u t”6 Pu° *c estimation is fixed, not by what is written
about them, but by what is written in them; and that an
author whose works are likely to live is very unwise if he
stoops to wrangle with detractors whose works are certain
to die. He always maintained that fame was a shuttlecock
which could be kept up only by being beaten back, as well
as beaten forward, and which would soon fall if there were
only one battledore. No saying was oftener in his mouth
than that fine apophthegm of Bentley, that no man was ever
written down but by himself.
Unhappily, a few months after the appearance of the
Journey to the Hebrides, Johnson did what none of his en¬
vious assailants could have done, and to a certain extent
succeeded in writing himself down. The disputes between
England and her American colonies had reached a point
at which no amicable adjustment was possible. Civil war
was evidently impending; and the ministers seem to have
thought that the eloquence of Johnson might with advan¬
tage be employed to inflame the nation against the opposition
here, and against the rebels beyond the Atlantic. He had
already written two or three tracts in defence of the foreign
and domestic policy of the government; and those tracts,
though hardly worthy of him, were much superior to the
crowd of pamphlets which lay on the counters of Almon
and Stockdale. But his Taxation No Tyranny was a
pitiable failure. The very title was a silly phrase, which
can have been recommended to his choice by nothing but
a jingling alliteration which he ought to have despised.
The arguments were such as boys use in debating societies.
I he pleasantry was as awkward as the gambols of a hippo¬
potamus. Even Boswell was forced to own that, in this
unfortunate piece, he could detect no trace of his master’s
powers. The general opinion was that the strong faculties
which had produced the Dictionary and the Rambler were
beginning to feel the effect of time and of disease, and
that the old man would best consult his credit by writino-
no more. °
But this was a great mistake. Johnson had failed, not
because his mind was less vigorous than when he wrote
Rasselas in the evenings of a week, but because he had
foolishly chosen, or suffered others to choose for him, a sub¬
ject such as he would at no time have been competent to
treat. He was in no sense a statesman. He never wil-
lingly read or thought or talked about affairs of state.
He loved biography, literary history, the history of man¬
ners ; but political history was positively distasteful to him.
I he question at issue between the colonies and the mo¬
ther country was a question about which he had really no¬
thing to say. He failed, therefore, as the greatest men
must fail when they attempt to do that for which they are
unfit; as Burke would have failed if Burke had tried to
write comedies like those of Sheridan ; as Reynolds would
have failed if Reynolds had tried to paint landscapes like
those of Wilson. Happily, Johnson soon had an oppor¬
tunity of proving most signally that his failure was not to
be ascribed to intellectual decay.
On Easter eye 1777, some persons, deputed by a meeting
which consisted of forty of the first booksellers in London,
5 i
802 JOHN
Johnson, called upon him. Though he had some scruples about do-
Samuel, jnp- business at that season, he received his visitors with
y>—V—^ much civility. They came to inform him that a new edition
of the English poets, from Cowley downwards, was in con¬
templation, and to ask him to furnish short biographical
prefaces. He readily undertook the task, a task for which
he was pre-eminently qualified. His knowledge of the
literary history of England since the Restoration was un¬
rivalled. That knowledge he had derived partly from books,
and partly from sources which had long been closed ; from
old Grub Street traditions; from the talk of forgotten poet¬
asters and pamphleteers who had long been lying in parish
vaults; from the recollections of such men as Gilbert Wal-
mesley, who had conversed with the wits of Button ; Cibber,
who had mutilated the plays of two generations of drama¬
tists; Orrery, who had been admitted to the society of Swift;
and Savage, who had rendered services of no very honour¬
able kind to Pope. The biographer therefore sate down to
his task with a mind full of matter. He had at first in¬
tended to give only a paragraph to every minor poet, and
only four or five pages to the greatest name. But the flood
of anecdote and criticism overflowed the narrow channel.
The work, which was originally meant to consist only of a
few sheets, swelled into ten volumes, small volumes, it is
true, and not closely printed. The first four appeared in
1779, the remaining six in 1781.
The Lives of the Poets are, on the whole, the best
of Johnson’s works. The narratives are as entertaining
as any novel. The remarks on life and on human nature
are eminently shrewd and profound. The criticisms are
often excellent, and, even when grossly and provokingly
unjust, well deserve to be studied. For, however erroneous
they may be, they are never silly. They are the judgments
of a mind trammelled by prejudice and deficient in sensi¬
bility, but vigorous and acute. They therefore generally
contain a portion of valuable truth which deserves to be
separated from the alloy ; and, at the very worst, they mean
something, a praise to which much of what is called criti¬
cism in our time has no pretensions.
Savage’s Life Johnson reprinted nearly as it had ap¬
peared in 1744. Whoever, after reading that life, will
turn to the other lives will be struck by the difference of
style. Since Johnson had been at ease in his circumstances
he had written little and had talked much. When, there¬
fore, he, after the lapse of years, resumed his pen, the man¬
nerism which he had contracted while he was in the con¬
stant habit of elaborate composition was less perceptible
than formerly ; and his diction frequently had a colloquial
ease which it had formerly wanted. The improvement may
be discerned by a skilful critic in the Journey to the He¬
brides, and in the Lives of the Poets is so obvious that it
cannot escape the notice of the most careless reader.
Among the Lives the best are perhaps those of Cowley,
Dryden, and Pope. The very worst is, beyond all doubt,
that of Gray.
This great work at once became popular. There was,
indeed, much just and much unjust censure : but even those
who were loudest in blame were attracted by the book
in spite of themselves. Malone computed the gains of the
publishers at five or six thousand pounds. But the writer was
very poorly remunerated. Intending at first to write very
short prefaces, he had stipulated for only two hundred
guineas. The booksellers, when they saw how far his per¬
formance had surpassed his promise, added only another
hundred. Indeed, Johnson, though he did not despise, or
affect to despise money, and though his strong sense and long
experience ought to have qualified him to protect his own
interests, seems to have been singularly unskilful and
unlucky in his literary bargains. He was generally re¬
puted the first English writer of his time. Yet several
writers of his time sold their copyrights for sums such as
SON.
he never ventured to ask. To give a single instance, Ro- Johnson,
bertson received four thousand five hundred pounds for Samuel,
the History of Charles V.; and it is no disrespect to the
memory of Robertson to say that the History of Charles V.
is both a less valuable and a less amusing book than the
Lives of the Poets.
Johnson was now in his seventy-second year. The in¬
firmities of age were coming fast upon him. That inevi¬
table event of which he never thought without horror was
brought near to him; and his whole life was darkened by
the shadow of death. He had often to pay the cruel price
of longevity. Every year he lost what could never be re¬
placed. The strange dependants to whom he had given
shelter, and to whom, in spite of their faults, he was strongly
attached by habit, dropped off one by one; and, in the si¬
lence of his home, he regretted even the noise of their
scolding matches. The kind and generous Thrale was no
more ; and it would have been well if his wife had been laid
beside him. But she survived to be the laughing-stock of
those who had envied her, and to draw from the eyes of the
old man who had loved her beyond any thing in the world,
tears far more bitter than he would have shed over her
grave. With some estimable, and many agreeable quali¬
ties, she was not made to be independent. The control of
a mind more steadfast than her own was necessary to her
respectability. While she was restrained by her husband,
a man of sense and firmness, indulgent to hei taste in
trifles, but always the undisputed master of his house, her
worst offences had been impertinent jokes, white lies, and
short fits of pettishness ending in sunny good humour.
But he was gone ; and she was left an opulent widow of
forty, with strong sensibility, volatile fancy, and slender
judgment. She soon fell in love with a music-master
from Brescia, in whom nobody but herself could discover
anything to admire. Her pride, and perhaps some better
feelings, struggled hard against this degrading passion.
But the struggle irritated her nerves, soured her temper,
and at length endangered her health. Conscious that her
choice was one which Johnson could not approve, she be¬
came desirous to escape from his inspection. Her manner
towards him changed. She was sometimes cold and some¬
times petulant. She did not conceal her joy when he left
Streatham: she never pressed him to return; ami, if he
came unbidden, she received him in a manner which con¬
vinced him that he was no longer a welcome guest. He
took the very intelligible hints which she gave. He read,
for the last time, a chapter of the Greek Testament in the
library which had been formed by himself. In a solemn
and tender prayer he commended the house and its inmates
to the Divine protection, and, with emotions which choke
his voice and convulsed his powerful frame, left foi ever
that beloved home for the gloomy and desolate house
behind Fleet Street, where the few and evil days which
still remained to him were to run out. Here, in June
1783, he had a paralytic stroke, from which, however, he
recovered, and which does not appear to have at a im
paired his intellectual faculties. But other maladies came
thick upon him. His asthma tormented him day and night.
Dropsical symptoms made their appearance. Whi e sink¬
ing under a complication of diseases, he heard that e
woman whose friendship had been the chief happiness o
sixteen years of his life, had married an Italian fiddler , ia
all London was crying shame upon her ; and that tie news
papers and magazines were filled with allusions to ie
Ephesian matron and the two pictures in Hamlet. e ve
hemently said that he would try to forget her existence
He never uttered her name. Every memorial of her w n
met his eve he flung into the fire. She meanw i e e
from the laughter and hisses of her countrymen and coun¬
trywomen to a land where she was unknown, as ene
across Mount Cenis, and learned, while passing a merry
J O H J 0 H 803
Johnston, Christmas of concerts and lemonade parties at Milan, that
Arthur, the great man with whose name hers is inseparably asso-
ciated, had ceased to exist.
He had, in spite of much mental and much bodily afflic¬
tion, clung vehemently to life. The feeling described in
that fine but gloomy paper which closes the series of his
Idlers seemed to grow stronger in him as his last hour
drew near. He fancied that he should be able to draw his
breath more easily in a southern climate, and would pro¬
bably have set out for Rome and Naples but for his fear
of the expense of the journey. That expense, indeed, he
had the means of defraying ; for he had laid up about two
thousand pounds, the fruit of labours which had made the
fortune of several publishers. But he was unwilling to break
in upon this hoard, and he seems to have wished even to keep
its existence a secret. Some of his friends hoped that the go¬
vernment might be induced to increase his pension to six
hundred pounds a-year, but this hope was disappointed, and
he resolved to stand one English winter more. That winter
was his last. His legs grew weaker; his breath grew shorter;
the fatal water gathered fast, in spite of incisions which he,
courageous against pain, but timid against death, urged his
surgeons to make deeper and deeper. Though the tender
care which had mitigated his sufferings during months of sick¬
ness at Streatham was withdrawn, he was not left desolate.
The ablest physicians and surgeons attended him, and refused
to accept fees from him. Burke parted from him with
deep emotion. Windham sate much in the sick room, ar¬
ranged the pillows, and sent his own servant to watch at
night by the bed. Frances Burney, whom the old man had
cherished with fatherly kindness, stood weeping at the door ;
while Langton, whose piety eminently qualified him to
be an adviser and comforter at such a time, received the
last pressure of his friend’s hand within. When at length
the moment, dreaded through so many years, came close,
the dark cloud passed away from Johnson’s mind. His tem¬
per became unusually patient and gentle; he ceased to
think with terror of death, and of that which lies beyond
death; and he spoke much of the mercy of God, and
of the propitiation of Christ. In this serene frame of mind
he died on the 13th of December 1784. He was laid, a
week later, in Westminster Abbey, among the eminent
men of whom he had been the historian,—Cowley and Den¬
ham, Dryden and Congreve, Gay, Prior, and Addison.
Since his death the popularity of his works—the Lives of
the Poets, and, perhaps, the Vanity of Human Wishes, ex¬
cepted—has greatly diminished. His Dictionary has been
altered by editors till it can scarcely be called his. An
allusion to his Rambler or his Idler is not readily appre¬
hended in literary circles. The fame even of Rasselas
has grown somewhat dim. But though the celebrity of
the wTitings may have declined, the celebrity of the writer,
strange to say, is as great as ever. Boswell’s book has done
for him more than the best of his own books could do.
The memory of other authors is kept alive by their works.
But the memory of Johnson keeps many of his works alive.
The old philosopher is still among us in the brown coat with
the metal buttons and the shirt which ought to be at wash,
blinking, puffing, rolling his head, drumming with his
fingers, tearing his meat like a tiger, and swallowing his
tea in oceans. No human being who has been more than
seventy years in the grave is so well known to us. And it
is but just to say that our intimate acquaintance with what
he would himself have called the anfractuosities of his in¬
tellect and of his temper, serves only to strengthen our con¬
viction that he was both a great and a good man. (t. b. m.)
JOHNSTON, Arthur, an eminent Latin poet and
scholar, was the fifth son of George Johnston of Caskieben,
by Christian, the daughter of Lord Forbes, and was born
in 1587 at his father’s estate of Caskieben in Aberdeen¬
shire. He received the rudiments of his education at
Kintore, whence he proceeded to Marischal College, Aber- Johnston,
deen. It is not certain whether he remained long enough Arthur,
at that university to take his degree. Probably he did not, v**-''
as he is known to have gone to the Continent while a mere
youth, and to have graduated as M.D. at Padua in 1610.
In a beautiful Latin elegy, addressed to a friend, he supplies
some of the details of his personal history. From it we
learn that he twice crossed the Alps, and twice visited
Rome ; that he had travelled in Germany, the Netherlands,
Denmark, and England; that he resided twenty years in
France; and that two wives who were of different nations
had borne him thirteen children. In all these wanderings
he seems to have assiduously cultivated the practice of
Latin verse composition ; and, according to Sir Thomas Ur-
quhart, “ before he was full three and twenty years of age,
he was laureated poet at Paris, and that most deservedly.”
His fame as a Latin poet even reached his own country, and
lost nothing when he entered the lists as the champion of his
contemporary Buchanan. A small witling of the day,
George Eglisham by name, had bitterly attacked Buch¬
anan’s version of the 104th psalm, and produced in contrast
a version of his own. Instead of seriously refuting Egli-
sham’s criticisms, Johnston merely ridiculed them in a
satire, as elegant as it was bitter, published in 1619, under
the title of Consilium Collegii Medici Parisiensis de
Manid G. Eglishemii [afterwards Hypermori Medicastri\
quam prodidit scripto, cui titulus Duellum Poeticum, &c.
The whole story forms a curious prototype of the celebrated
Frenzy of John Dennis.
Johnston seems to have returned to Scotland about the
year 1625, and shortly afterwards—probably about the year
1628—to have been appointed physician to Charles I. Aber¬
deen became his first head-quarters, and there, in 1632, he
published his Parerga^Epigrammata, and some minor poeti¬
cal pieces. In 1637 he was made rector of King’s College,
but after his appointment as royal physician, most of his time
was spent at the English court, and he was only able to visit
Aberdeen at occasional intervals. His attachment to his
native county, however, remained undiminished; and as
soon as his means enabled him to do so, he purchased an
estate there. Though he published several of his works in
London, such as his Cantici Salomonis Paraphrasis Po-
etica, 1633, and his Musce Aulicce, 1635, he reserved to
Aberdeen the honour of publishing the greatest and best
known of all his writings, which appeared there in 1637
under the title of Paraphrasis Poetica Psalmorum Davidis.
This, as it was the greatest, seems also to have been the
last of his works, if we except his contributions to the
Delicue Poetarum Scotorum, brought out at Amsterdam
about the same date. It had been written many years before,
and parts of it had been shown in MS. to the most eminent
scholars of Great Britain and the Continent. Like all its
author’s works it displays a masterly command of Latin
diction, and an almost unequalled skill in versifying. Buch¬
anan’s version of the Psalms, produced some years be¬
fore, had preoccupied that field ; and Johnston’s appearing
when it did, had the air of being designed to vie with that
of his great contemporary. Comparisons were of course in¬
stituted between the rival works, and though the critics
awarded the palm to Buchanan they were unanimous in
placing Johnston’s next to his, and both very far above
every other attempt of the kind that had appeared up to
that day. Posterity has confirmed this verdict. In his
original pieces Johnston exhibits much fancy and poetical
feeling, and a refined taste. Fie paid great attention to
the harmony of rhythm, for which he had an exquisite ear.
He preferred the elegiac distich to every other form of
verse; and, besides his minor pieces, all his psalms are
written in that metre except the 119th. Each part of that
psalm is rendered in a different measure, adapted to the
varieties of movement and idea. Johnston’s diction is for
804
J O H
Joinery.
Johnstone, the most part singularly pure, though he sometimes ern
Robert ploys a word or phrase not to be found in Hoi ace or Virgil.
There have been several editions of Johnston s entiie works,
and numerous editions ol his version of the Psalms.
JOHNSTONE, Robert, a Scottish historian, held at
one time in great repute, was born at Edinburgh in the
latter half of the 16th century. Little is known of his per¬
sonal history beyond this, that he migrated to London,
amassed a large fortune there, bequeathed considerable
sums to the University of Edinburgh, and to various towns
in Annandale (the nursery of his family), and died in
1639. He was long remembered for his Historia Rerum
Britannicarum, §c. ab anno 1572 ad annum 1628, Amst.
1655. This history of his own times was intended by the
author as a continuation of Buchanan’s work, and really
possesses very considerable merits. The narrative is ju¬
diciously constructed, the reflections are often very saga¬
cious, and the analysis of character sometimes extremely
acute. In point of style it falls far short of its model, yet
its general tenor is correctly classical.
JOHNSTONE, a manufacturing town of Scotland in
the county of Renfrew, situate on the Black Cart \\ ater, 10
miles W. of Glasgow, with which it is connected by railway
and canal. Johnstone is a modern town, with well-built
houses and open streets. Its increase in size and popula¬
tion has been rapid on account of the introduction of cotton
J 0 I
mills and iron foundries. At the beginning of the present Johore
century there were only from 10 to 20 houses in the village, ||
while in 1851 there were 311. The manufactures of the Joinery,
place now include cotton, iron, machinery, and brass. Pop. Vv—
(1851) 5872.
JOHORE, the capital of an independent principality of
the same name, in the southern part of the Malay penin¬
sula, on the River Johore, about 20 miles from its mouth, in
N. Eat. 1. 40., E. Long. 104. 5. It was founded in 1511
by the inhabitants of Malacca, who fled thither after the
capture of their city by the Portuguese. It subsequently
rose to be a place of considerable importance, but it now
consists of only about 30 huts. The inhabitants trade in
pepper, tin, gold, sago, and elephants’ teeth.
JOIGNY, a town of France, capital of a cognominal
arrondissement, in the department of Yonne. It stands on
the right bank of the Yonne, along which is a handsome
quay, and extends up the steep acclivity of a hill, the sum¬
mit of which is crowned by the ruins of an ancient castle.
The town itself is surrounded by old walls, with six gates,
and has two suburbs, one of which, on the opposite bank
of the river, is accessible by a stone bridge. The streets
are narrow, steep, and irregular. Chief public buildings
are the cathedral, two hospitals, communal college, theatre,
and cavalry barracks. Manufactures comprise coarse wool¬
lens, linen, leather, brandy, and vinegar. Pop. (1851) 6056.
JOINERY
Is one of the useful arts which contributes most mate¬
rially to the comfort and convenience of man. As the arts
of joinery and carpentry are often followed by the same in¬
dividual, it appears at first view natural to conclude that
the same principles are common to both these arts; but a
closer examination of their objects leads us to a different
conclusion.
Carpentry The art of Carpentry is directed almost wholly to the
defined. support of weight or pressure, and therefore its principles
must be found in the mechanical sciences. In a building
it includes all the rough timber work necessary for support,
division, or connection; and its proper object is to give
firmness and stability. (See Carpentry.)
Joinery The art of Joinery has for its object the addition in a
defined. building of all the fixed wood work necessary for conve¬
nience or ornament. It is the Intestinum opus of Vitruvius
and Varro, and the Menuiserie des bdtimens of the French.
In Italy it is called legname, carpentry being called grosso
legname, expressions very analogous to our “ whitesmith ”
and “blacksmith.”
The joiner’s works are many of them of a complicated
nature, and require to be executed in an expensive mate¬
rial ; therefore joinery requires much skill in that part of
geometrical science which treats of the projection and de¬
scription of lines, surfaces, and solids, as well as an intimate
knowledge of the structure and nature of wood.
It may also be remarked, that the 1’ough labour of the
carpenter renders him in some degree unfit to produce that
kind of accurate and neat workmanship which is expected
from a modern joiner.
Progress of 1° early times, very little that resembles modern joinery
joinery in was known; every part was rude, and joined in the most
England, artless manner. The first dawnings of the art appear in the
thrones, stalls, pulpits, and screens of our cathedrals and
churches; but even in these it is of the most simple kind,
and is indebted to the carver for everything that is worthy
of regard. Whether in these monuments the carver and
the joiner had been one and the same person we cannot
now determine, though we imagine, from the mode of join¬
ing in some of them, that this was the case.
During several centuries joinery seems to have been gra¬
dually improving, but nothing appears to have been written
on the art before 1677, when Mr Joseph Moxon, a Fellow
of the Royal Society, published a work entitled Mcchanick
Exercises, or the Doctrine of Handyworks. In this work
the tools and common operations in joinery are described
with a collection of the terms then in use. It must have
been a valuable work at that time, but to a master in the art
it would convey little if anything that was new. Sash-win¬
dows were introduced into England some time before the
date of Moxon’s work, but he has not noticed them. Ac¬
cording to the observations of Dr Thomson, this important
improvement had not found its way into Sweden at the time
he wrote.1
With the revival of classic art great changes took place
in every sort of construction. Forms began to be intro¬
duced in architecture which could not be executed at a
moderate expense without the aid of new principles, and
these principles were discovered and published by practical
joiners. As might naturally be expected, these authors had
but confused notions, with a scanty portion of geometrical
knowledge; and, accordingly, their descriptions are often
obscure, and sometimes erroneous. The change from the
heavy mullioned casement and its guard of iron bars to the
sash windows, necessitated some new method of protection,
and boxing shutters were invented. The framed wainscot
of small pannels gave way to the large bolexion moulded
pannelling. Heavy doors, which were formerly hung on
massive posts, or in jambs of cut stone, were now framed
in light pannels, and hung in moulded dressings of wood.
The scarcity of oak timber, and the expense of working it,
led to the importation of fir timber from the North, which
gradually superseded all other material except for the
choicest and dearest works. But, of all introductions, that
of the geometrical staircase, or stair supported by the wall
only, invented, says Palladio, by the famous Luigi Cor-
1 Travels in Sweden, p. 8.
JOINERY. 805
Joinery, naro (the first English example of whieh is said to have
been erected by Sir Christopher Wren in St Paul’s), led to
the greatest changes in the art of joinery, inasmuch as the
lines for their setting out necessitated a very considerable
knowledge of geometry.
The hand-rails of these stairs offered most difficulties,
and an imperfect attempt to remove them was first made
by Halfpenny, in his Art of Sound Building, published in
1725. Price, the author of the British Carpenter, pub¬
lished in 1733, was more successful, and his remarks show
a considerable degree of knowledge of the true nature and
object of his researches.
The publication of Price’s work must have produced a
considerable sensation among joiners, for it was soon fol¬
lowed by many other works of different degrees of merit.
Of these the works of Langley and Pain were the most po¬
pular.
The establishment of the principles of joinery on the
sound basis of geometrical science was reserved for Nichol¬
son. In his Carpenter's Guide, and Carpenter and Joiner's
Assistant, published in 1 792, he has made some most valu¬
able corrections and additions to the labours of his prede¬
cessors.
Corresponding improvements were also made in the prac¬
tice of joinery, for which we are much indebted to the late
Mr James Wyatt. But the art is still far short of perfection.
In fact, in some respects it seems to have retrograded. It
is seldom we find large glued-up pannels will now stand
well. Mouldings of great girth give at the mitres, doors
wind, and skirtings shrink from the floors, in a way seldom
seen in old houses. Our sashes, perhaps, are made better
than the heavy barred windows of a century and a half ago.
In no other respect, however, has joinery made the progress
which has been made in other arts. The improved state of
machinery has also done but little for its excellence, though
the circular saw-bench, the planing machines, the moulding
machines, and the mortising machines, have done much to
reduce the cost of labour. This last machine was suggested
by us in the last edition of this work (1830), our attention
having been drawn to it from the improvements in the art
of block-making (see Block-Machinery), and we are glad
to find it is now used in most of the large establishments
through the country.
Progress of The principles of joinery were cultivated in France by
joinery in a very different class of writers. The celebrated Blondel
Prance. given details for the construction of shutters, wainscot¬
ing, doors, hinges, fastenings, &c., in his work Palais et
Maisons de Campagne. In the extensive work of Frezier,
entitled Coupe des Pierres et des Bois, 3 vols. 4to, 1739,
all the leading principles are given and explained with te¬
dious minuteness, offering a striking contrast to the brevity
of our English writers. The first elementary work on that
part of geometrical science which contains the principles of
joinery appeared in France in 1705, from the pen of the
celebrated Gaspard Monge, who gave it the name of Geo¬
metric Descriptive. Much of what has been given as new
in English works had been long known on the Continent;
but there does not appear to have been much, if any, assist¬
ance derived from these foreign works by any writer prior
to Nicholson. In fact, this writer has been the founder of
all the subsequent works on the subject: Peter Nicholson’s
Carpenter and Joiner's Assistant has been published again
and again, in various forms, with additions from time to time,
by different hands. For revived mediaeval and Elizabethan
joinery, particularly as adapted to windows and staircases,
Weale’s Carpentry, Ato, 1849, will be found of great value ;
and most modern improvements are given in Laxton’s Joinery.
Examples of Building Construction, now in course of pub-
lication.
The most celebrated French work which treats of joinery
is Rondelet’s L'Art de Bdtir. It is also the best foreign
work on the subject that we have seen; but it is little
adapted to the state of joinery in England. In practice
the French joiners are very much inferior to our own.
Their work is rough, slovenly, and often clumsy, and at the
best is confined to external effect. The neatness, sound¬
ness, and accuracy, which is common to every part of the
works of an English joiner, is scarcely to be found in any
part of the works of a French one. The little correspond¬
ence, in point of excellence, between their theory and
practice, leads us to think that their theoretical knowledge
is confined to architects, engineers, &c., instead of being
diffused among workmen, as it is in this country. Ron¬
delet’s work occupied fourteen years (from 1802 to 1816),
in publication, since which Noshan, Manuel de Menuiserie,
4to, 1849; and Thiollet et Roux, Nouveau Recueil de Me¬
nuiserie for 1837, are the most celebrated works published
in France. The latter is expressly to be commended.
Much also may be learned from the famous work of Col.
Emy—Traite de la Charpente, atlas, fbh, 1847—particularly
with regard to framing.
In cabinet-work the French workmen are certainly supe¬
rior, at least as far as regards external appearance ; but
when use, as well as ornament, is to be considered, our
own countrymen must certainly carry away the palm. The
appearance of French furniture is much indebted to a
superior method of polishing, which is now generally known
in this country.1 For many purposes, however, copal var¬
nish (such as coachmakers use) is preferable; it is more
durable, and bears an excellent polish.
Geometry is useful in all, and absolutely necessary in Geometri-
some parts of a joiner’s business; but it is absurd to en- cal know-
counter difficulties in execution, and to sacrifice good taste, ledSe ne‘
convenience, economy, and comfort, merely for the purpose cessary>
of displaying a little skill in that science. It is, however,
a common fault among such architects as are better ac¬
quainted with geometrical rules than with the production
of visible beauties, to form designs for no other purpose
than to create difficulties in the execution.
But, when geometrical science is properly directed, it
gives the mind so clear a conception of the thing to be
executed, that the most intricate piece of work may be con¬
ducted with all the accuracy it requires.
The practice of joinery is best learned by observing the Practice of
methods of good workmen, and endeavouring to imitate joinery,
them. But the sooner a workman begins to think for him¬
self the better; he ought always to endeavour to improve
on the processes of others, either so as to produce the same
effect with less labour, or to produce better work.2 3
We intend, in this article, to give a plain and simple ex¬
position of the most valuable principles of the art of joinery,
which will, we hope, place many parts of the practice under
a new point of view, and ultimately tend to improve them.
Cabinet-making, or that part of the art of working in Cabinet-
wood which is applied to furniture, has little affinity with making,
joinery, though the same materials and tools be employed
in both. Correctness and strict uniformity are not so essen¬
tial in moveables as in the fixed parts of buildings ; they
are also more under the dominion of fashion, and therefore
are not so confined by rules as the parts of buildings.
Cabinet-making offers considerable scope for taste in
beautiful ibrms, and also in the choice and arrangement of
1 The method of making and using the French polish is minutely described in Dr Thomson’s Annah of Philosophy vol. xi. pp. 119
and 371. ’ ’ 11
3 Descriptions of the tools, with instructions for using them, may be found in Moxon's work before quoted, and in Nicholson’s
Mechanical Exercises, Taylor, London, 1812.
I
80G
JOINERY.
Joinery, coloured woods. It requires considerable knowledge of
perspective, and also that the artist should be able to sketch
with freedom and precision.
If the cabinet-maker intend to follow the higher depart¬
ments of his art, it will be necessary to .study the different
kinds of architecture, in order to make himself acquainted
with their peculiarities, so as to impress his works with the
same character as the rooms they are to furnish.
In as far as regards materials, and the principles of join-
ino- work, the cabinet-maker will find some useful informa-
ti(Tn in the second and third sections of this article. Many
curious works on furniture were published in the reigns of
Louis XIV. and XV., also by Chambers and the Adams.
Cruden’s Joiner's and Cabinet-Maker's Darling, 8vo, 1770,
is also a curious book. In ornamental composition be may
derive much benefit from Tatham’s Etchings of Ancient
Ornamental Architecture, London, 1799; Percierand Fon¬
taine’s Recueil des Decorations Interieures comprenant tout
ce qui a rapport d VAmeublement, Paris, 1812; and, for
general information, the Cabinet Dictionary and the Cabi¬
net-Maker and Upholsterer's Drawing-Book, of Sheraton,
may be consulted. But the most important works that
could be consulted are the various publications relative to
the Great Exhibitions in London and Paris, 1851 and
1855, where some of the finest specimens in the world
were exhibited. The most accessible to the English reader
are those given in the Art Journal and Illustrated London
News.
SECT. I.—ON MAKING WORKING DRAWINGS.
1. In this section we propose to lay before the reader
the most important part of the principles of describing, on
a plane surface, the lines necessary for determining bevels,
forming moulds, or any other purpose required in the prac¬
tice of joinery. The limits within which such an article as
joinery must be confined, in a work like this, will not per¬
mit us to enter much into detail on the various points to be
illustrated in this section; but we hope, by judicious selec¬
tion, to place under one point of view the principles that
are most useful to the joiner.
Projection of Bodies.
Nature of ^ c^ear idea of the nature of projection is so essential
projection *n making working drawings, that, in our endeavours to
illustrated, illustrate it, we cannot proceed upon principles too simple.
In the first stage of such an inquiry, experiment furnishes
at once the most clear and satisfactory evidence, parti¬
cularly to those who are not familiar with mathematical
subjects.
If some small pieces of wood, or pieces of wire, were
joined together, so as to represent the form of a solid body,
a cube for example, and if this figure were held between
the sun and the surface of a plane board, then the shadow
of the figure upon the board would be its projection upon
that plane. From this simple experiment it will appear,
that the projection of any line placed in the direction of
the sun’s rays will be a point: the projection of any line
parallel to the plane wdll be of the same length as the line
itself, and the projection of any line inclined to the plane
will be always shorter than that line.
3. We have supposed the board to be placed at any
angle with the direction of the rays of the sun; but, for our
present purpose, it is sufficient to consider them to fall per¬
pendicularly upon it; hence it is obvious, that to project a
straight line upon a plane, a perpendicular to the plane
should be let fall from each end of the line, and the line
joining the points where the perpendiculars meet the plane
will be the projection required.
When a projection is made upon a horizontal plane, it is
usually called a plan of the body. When the projection is Joinery,
upon a vertical plane, it may be an elevation or a section of
the body; it is a section when a portion is supposed to be
cut off; and the plane of projection is usually parallel to the
plane of the section.
4. Bodies may be divided into three classes, according
to the kinds of surfaces by which they are bounded. The
first class comprehends those which are bounded by plane
surfaces, such as cubes, prisms, pyramids, and the like.
The second class contains those which are bounded in part
by plane surfaces, and the rest by curved surfaces, as cylin¬
ders, cones, &c. The third including those which are
bounded by curved surfaces only, as spheres, spheroids, &c.
The projections of the first class of bodies will consist of
straight lines; those of the second class, of curved as well
as straight lines; and those of the third class, of curved
lines only.
5. Let ABCD and CDEF (fig. 1), be two plane sur- Projection
faces, connected by a joint at CD, so that while the plane of lines.
CDEF remains horizontal, the
plane ABCD may be placed per¬
pendicular to it, and thus repre¬
sent a vertical plane. Then, if a
line be so placed in space that ab
is its projection on the vertical
plane, and a!l> its projection on
the horizontal plane, its projection
on any other vertical plane, HGEC,
may be determined. This is easily effected, for we have
seen, that if a perpendicular be drawn to the plane from
each end of the given line, they will give the positions of
the ends of the line in the projection (art. 3.) Now, the
same thing will be done, by drawing da and lib" perpen¬
dicular to EC, and setting off the points a" and U at the
same height above EC respectively, as a and b are above
CD, then the line d'b" is the projection required.
The heights may be transferred from one vertical plane
to another when they are both supposed to be laid flat, by
drawing the line IC, so as to bisect the angle ECD, and if
cb be parallel to CD, meeting IC in c, then a line drawn
parallel to EC, from the point c, will give the height of the
point 5", and so may be found the height of any other point.
6. In the particular case we have drawn, none of the To deter-
projections represent the real length of the given line. To™1116^1®
obtain this length, draw de parallel to CD, and with the a
radius aU describe the arc He cutting de in e; draw de {|ne_
perpendicular to CD, cutting the line cb in d; join ad, and
it is the length of the given line.
The real lengths of lines frequently are not given, there- Projection
fore another general method of finding them will be use-of P ane8,
ful, and which may be stated as follows :—the length of
an inclined line projected upon a plane is equal to the hy-
pothenuse of a right-angled triangle, of which one side is
the projection upon the plane, and the other side is the dif¬
ference between the perpendicular distances of the extremes
of the line from the plane.
7. In fig. 2, abed represents the horizontal projection,
or plan, of a rectangular surface, and the elevation ab
shows its inclination ; and its pro¬
jection against another vertical
plane, making any angle ECD
with the former, or plane of eleva¬
tion, is shown by d'b'ccC. GC
being perpendicular to EC, and AC
perpendicular to CD, the heights
may be transferred by means of
arcs of circles described from C as
a centre. This is a better method
than that by bisecting the angle given in fig. 1 ; but neither
of them so good, in practice, as sitting off the heights with
the compasses, or with a lath. In our figures it is desira-
JOINERY.
Projection
of curved
surfaces.
Joinery, ble to show the connection of corresponding parts as much
as possible; therefore, the reader will bear in mind that
many of the operations we describe may be done with fewer
lines when the operator is fully master of his subject.
8. It may be further noticed in this place, that when a
point is to be determined in one line by the intersection of
another, the lines should cross each other as nearly at right
angles as possible ; for, when the intersecting lines cross
very obliquely, a point cannot be determined with any to¬
lerable degree of accuracy.
9. A curved line can seldom be projected by any other
means than by finding a number of points through which
the curve may be traced. Rules for all these cases, and
for the development of surfaces, will be found under the
heads Geometry, Conic Sections, Projection, &c., &c.,
and would swell our woik to too great a length were we to
repeat them. They are also more applicable to the car¬
penter than the joiner. An exceedingly good practical
treatise is furnished in Weale’s Carpentry, 4to, 1849, vol. i.,
where full directions are given to find the lines for the de¬
velopment of circular niches, circular-headed sashes, domes,
niches, groins, &c., &c.
To determine the Angle formed by two Inclined Planes.
To find the 10. The angle made by two planes which cut one an-
angle of other, is the angle contained by two straight lines drawn
Fig. 4.
planes in- from any (the same) point in the line of their common sec-
Clined to tion? at rig|lt angjes to that line ; the one in the one plane,
theran0 and the other in the other. This angle is the same as that
which the joiner takes with his bevel, the bevel being always
applied so that its legs are square from the arris, or com¬
mon section of the planes.
If two lines, AB and CD, be drawn upon a piece of paste¬
board, at right angles to one another, crossing at the point
E, and the pasteboard be cut half through, according to
the line AB, so that it may turn
upon that line as a joint; then, to
whatever angle, CED (fig. 3), the
parts may be turned, the lines EC
and ED will be always in the same
plane. Also, a line FD, drawn from
any point D, in the line ED, to any
point F, in the line EC, will be al¬
ways in the same plane. From these
self-evident properties of planes, it
is easy to determine the angle
formed by any two planes, when
two projections, or one projection and the development of
the surfaces, are given.
11. Let ABC (fig. 4), be the plan of part of a pyramid,
and BD the elevation of the arris,
or line formed by the common sec¬
tion of the planes in respect to the
line EB ; EB being the projection
of that arris upon the plan.
Draw AC perpendicular to EB,
cutting it in any point E, and from
E draw EF perpendicular to DB.
With the radius EF, and centre E, B<
cross EB inf and join A/and fC‘,
then the angle AfC is the angle
formed by the planes of the pyra¬
mid.
The angle may be constructed
when the plan and elevation of any
two lines drawn in the planes, so as to intersect in the arris,
are given ; but as these projections are not often given in
drawings of joiners’ work, we have inserted the preceding,
though it be a less general method.
The backing, or angle for the back of hip-rafters in car¬
pentry, and of hipped sky-lights, is found in this manner:
ABC being, in that case, supposed to be the plan of an
angle of the roof or sky-light, and DB the inclination of
the hip-rafter.
12. To show how the angle formed by two planes may
be found when the plan and development
are given, let it be required to find the
angle contained by the two faces of a
square pyramid, fig. 5. Let ABC be the
plan of a square pyramid, draw «C per¬
pendicular to, and bisecting AB, and make
aC equal to the slant height of the pyra¬
mid ; then with the centre C, and radius
AC, describe the arc A 1 2 3, and make
A 1, 12, 2 3, respectively equal to AB.
Join Cl, C 2, C 3, and the four triangles will show respec¬
tively the four surfaces of the pyramid.
Next draw FB perpendicular to AC, and with the radius
BF, and centre B, describe the arc FG. Then, with the
radius DB, and centre F, cross the former arc in G, join
BG, and FBG is the angle formed by the two inclined
faces of the pyramid.
Mouldings
Used in joinery are generally composed of parts of circles,
and differ somewhat from those used in stone. ^
(See Architecture.) Those which present
the convex side to the eye are fig* 6, which
is merely a rounded edge ; fig. 7, if of small Fig. 6.
size, a bead; if large (fig. 8), a torus : fig. 9 shows the torus
and bead together ; if
there is a deep sinking
under a bead (fig. 10), it is
called a quirked or cock
bead; if there be two
such sinkings, so as to Fig. 7.
show three quarters of a circle in
the bead, it is called (fig. 11), a
double quirked bead; two or more
beads, side by side (fig. 12), are
called reeds ; the fourth part of
a circle, or half a bead (fig. 13), is called an ovolo, or quar¬
ter round.
Fig. 8.
Fig. 9.
807
Joinery.
Fig. 10.
Fig. II. Fig. 12. Fig 13.
13. A moulding composed of two convex parts is also called
an ovolo, and is delineated thus,—Let the points A, B (fig.
14), represent the height of
the moulding and extremi
ties of the curves, from C
as a centre draw any circle
at pleasure, touching a per¬
pendicular let fall from A,
join AB and draw a line
parallel to this, touching the
circle at D, join DC and
produce it towards E, then
join DB and make the angle DBE, equal to BDE. From
E as a centre draw the rest of the curve BD.
/7i\
Fig. H.
Fig. 15. Fig. 16.
14. In concave mouldings, a simple curved grooving (fi£
\
803
JOINERY.
Joinery. 13), is called a hollow, two or more such grooves (fig. 16), are
called flutes; a hollow forming the
fourth of a circle (fig. 17), is called
a cavetto; if the curve die into a
plane face, and the line be con¬
tinued (fig. 18), it is a scape or listel,
a deep hollow, generally used as a
base moulding (fig. 19), is called a
scotia, it is set out thus,—Let ah be the height of the
required moulding, divide the same into three equal parts,
Fig. 17.
Fig. 18. Fig. 19.
one of which will be at c, from which as a centre draw the
circle aed; draw ed parallel through c, and from d, with
the distance de, draw the quarter circle ef.
Fig. 20.
Fig. 22.
15. In mouldings which are partly convex and partly con¬
cave, there are two sorts, the cyma recta
and cyma reversa, or ogee ; these may be
drawn in two ways, as they are required
to be bolder or flatter (figs. 20, 21, 22,
23). Grecian mouldings are all drawn
on similar principles, but are parts of
conic sections instead of circles: they are
often struck by hand.
A plain square sinking on the edge of a board (fig. 24),
for the purposes of framing, is called a rebate; if away
from the edge (fig. 25), a groove; placed under a cap (fig.
26), or as a necking (fig. 27), it is called a fillet; three such
Fig. 24. Fig. 25. Fig. 26.
fillets under an ovolo, when composing part of the capital
of a column (fig. 28), are called annulets.
Fig. 27. Fig. 28.
In all kinds of framing, the mouldings which rise above
the styles are called bolextion mouldings. See infra, fig.
44.
Raking Mouldings.
Raking jg. When an inclined or raking moulding is intended to
mouldings. j0jn a ]eve] moulding, at either an exterior or an in¬
terior angle, the form of the level moulding being given, it Joinery,
is necessary that the form of the inclined moulding should iv-»_-
be determined, so that the corresponding parts of the sur¬
faces of the two mouldings should meet in the same plane,
this plane being the plane of the mitre. It may be other¬
wise expressed, by saying that the mouldings should mitre
truly together.
If the angle be a right angle, the method of finding the
form of the inclined moulding is very easy; and as it is not
very difficult for any other angle, it may perhaps be best
to give a general method, and to illustrate it by examples
of common occurrence.
General Method of describing a Raking Moulding, when
the Angle and the Rake, or inclination of the Moulding,
is given.
17. Let ABC (fig.29), be the plan of the angle of a build- General
ing, piece of framework, or any other method,
body, which is to have a level
moulding on the side AB ; and this
level moulding is to mitre with an
inclined moulding on the side BC.
2 Also, let CBD be the angle the
inclined moulding makes with a
level or horizontal line BC.
B Produce AB to b, and draw Cb
perpendicular to AB; also make DC
perpendicular to BC, and dC per-
Fif? 09 pendicular to/jC. Set off Co? equal to
CD, and join bd; then the inclined moulding must be drawn
on lines parallel to bd.
Let 1, 2, 3, 4, &c., be any number of points in the given
section of the level moulding; from each of these points,
draw a line parallel to bd, and draw A 6' perpendicular to
bd. Set off the points l', 2', 3', 4', &c., at the same dis¬
tances, respectively from the line A 6', as the correspond¬
ing points 1, 2, 3, 4, &c., are from the line AB, and through
the points 1', 2', 3', &c., draw the moulding. The mould¬
ing thus found will mitre with the given one ; also, suppos¬
ing the inclined moulding to be given, the level one may
be found in like manner.
If the angle ABC be less than a right angle, the whole
process remains the same ; but when it is a right angle, BD
coincides with bd; and the method of describing the
moulding becomes the same as that usually given ; as it
does not then require the preparatory steps which are ne¬
cessary when the angle is any other than a right angle.
18. It is in pediments, chiefly, that the method of form- For pedR
ing raking mouldings is of use. b 30 represents part ot meats.
a pediment; AB is that part of the level moulding which
mitres with the inclined moulding ; all that part of the cor¬
nice below B being continued along the front, the lower
members of the raking cornice stop upon it, and, therefore,
do not require to be traced from the other.
In that part of the cornice marked AB, set off a suffi¬
cient number of points ; and from each of these points draw
JOINERY.
809
a line parallel to the rake, or inclination of the pediment.
Also, let a vertical line be drawn to each of the same points
from the horizontal line rs. Make Stf perpendicular to the
inclination of the pediment, and with a slip of paper, or by
means of arcs of circles, transfer the distances on rS to the
line r'S, and from the points thus found, draw lines parallel
to ; the intersection of these, with the inclined lines,
will determine the form of the moulding, as is indicated by
the letters.
When a pediment has a cornice with modillions, the
caps of the modillions require to be traced by the same
method.
19. It sometimes happens that an inclined base-mould¬
ing has to mitre with a level one at an angle; and as the
same thing occurs still more frequently with other mould¬
ing, such as cornices under the steps of stairs, &c., we shall
give another example, which will serve still farther to illus¬
trate the method of proceeding in such cases.
In fig. 31 a raking base-moulding is shown, where the
Fig. 31.
inclined moulding B is traced to mitre with the horizontal,
moulding C; and the horizontal moulding A is traced to
mitre with the inclined one B. The preceding examples
being understood, the lines and letters in the figure will
be sufficient to show the mouldings are traced. On the
same principle the lines for the angle bars of shop sashes,
may be readily found.
Remarks 20. Mouldings being almost the only part of modern
on mould- joiners’ work which can, in strictness, be called ornamental,
ings. and consequently that in which the taste of the workman
is most apparent, we shall offer a remark or two that
may have their use. The form of moulding should be dis¬
tinct and varied, forming a bold outline of a succession of
curved and flat surfaces, disposed so as to form distinct
masses of light and shade. If the mouldings be of consi¬
derable length, a greater distinction of parts is necessary
than in short ones.
Mouldings for the internal part of a building should not,
however, have much projection ; the proper degree of shade
may always be given, with better effect, by deep sinkings
judiciously disposed. The light in a room is not sufficiently
strong to relieve mouldings, without resorting to this me¬
thod ; and hence it is that quirked mouldings are so much
esteemed.
Joinery.
For skirt¬
ings, &c.
SECT. II.—ON THE CONSTRUCTION OF JOINERS’ WORK.
Qualifica¬
tions of a
good
joiner.
21. The goodness of joiners’ work depends chiefly upon
the care that has been bestowed in joining the materials.
In carpentry, framing owes its strength to the form and
position of its parts ; but in joinery, the strength of a frame
depends upon the strength of the joinings. The import¬
ance, therefore, of fitting the joints together as accurately
as possible, is obvious. It is very desirable that a joiner
VOL. XII.
should be a quick workman, but it is still more so that he Joinery.
should be a good one ; that he should join his materials v -
with firmness and accuracy; that he should make surfaces
even and smooth, mouldings true and regular, and the
parts intended to move so that they may be used with ease
and freedom. It is also of the greatest importance that
the work when thus put together, should be constructed of
such sound and dry materials, and on such principles, that
the whole should bear the various changes of temperature,
and of moisture and dryness, so that the least possible
shrinkage or swelling should take place. This last point
will be treated further on.
Where dispatch is considered as the chief excellence of
a workman, it is not probable that he will strive to improve
himself in his art further than to produce the greatest
quantity of barely tolerable work with the least quantity of
labour. In some articles of short duration, dispatch in the
manufacture may be of greater importance; but in works
that ought to remain firm for years, it certainly is bad eco¬
nomy to spare a few shillings’ worth of labour at the risk
of being annoyed with a piece of bad work as long as it
will hold together.
We have seen, with no small degree of pleasure, the
effect of encouraging good workmanship in the construc¬
tion of machinery, and would recommend that a like en¬
couragement should be given to superior workmen in other
arts.
Joining Angles.
22. When the length of a joint at an angle is not consi¬
derable, it is sufficient to cut the joint,
so that when the parts are joined, the
plane of the joint shall bisect the angle.
This kind of joint is shown for two
different angles, by fig. 32, and is
called a mitre.
When an angle of considerable
length is to be joined, and the kind
of work does not require the joining
should be concealed, fig. 33 is often
employed ; the small bead renders the
appearance of the joint less objection¬
able, because any irregularities, from
shrinkage, are not seen in the shade
of the quirk of the head.
A bead upon an angle, where the
nature of the thing does not determine Fig. 38.
it to be an arris, is attended with many advantages ; it is
less liable to be injured, and admits of a secure joint, with-
Fig. 32.
On joining
angles.
Fig. 34.
Fig. 35.
Fig. 36.
out the appearance of one. Fig. 34 shows a joint of this
description, which should always be used in passages.
Fig. 35 represents a very good joint for an exterior angle,
whether it be a long or short one. Such a
joint may be nailed both ways. But the joint
represented by fig. 36 is superior to it; the
parts being drawn together by the form
of the joint itself, they can be fitted w'ith
more accuracy, and joined with certainty.
The angles of pilasters are often joined, as
fig. 36.
Interior angles are commonly joined, as
5 K
JOINERY.
shown by fig. 37. If the upper or lower edge be visible,
the joint is mitred, as
in fig. 32, at the edge
only, the other part
of the joint being
rebated as in fig. 35.
In this manner are put
together the skirting
and dado at the inte¬
rior angles of rooms,
the backs, and back-
linings of windows, the
jambs of door-ways,
and various other parts
of joiners’ work.
Fig. 38 is an excel- Fig- 38-
lent method of joining angles for drawers, frames for lead
cisterns, boxes, &c., and is commonly called a dovetail; if
a portion of the junction is cut off at an angle of 45° (fig.
Fig. 39.
Fig. 40.
39), while the portion at b is dovetailed, it is called a mitre
dovetail; while if the portion at a (fig. 40), passes the other
portion at right angles, it is called a lap-dovetail.
A very good joint is shown at fig. 41, the angles being
brought together at an angle of 45°, two or more saw curls
are cut with a dovetail saw, and thin pieces of wood glued
in as shown ; this is called a keyed mitre.
Framing.
The object 23. Frames in joinery are usually connected by mortise
of framing, tenon joints, with grooves to receive pannels. Doors, win¬
dow-shutters, &c., are framed in this manner. The object
in framing is, to reduce the wood into narrow pieces, so
that the work may not be sensibly affected by its shrinkage ;
and, at the same time, it enables us to vary the surface
without much labour. Besides this, as the strains from the
grain of the wood are in difterent directions, the work is
prevented from winding on its face.
From this view of the subject, the joiner will readily per¬
ceive, that neither the parts of the frame nor the pannels
should be wide. And as the frame should be composed of
narrow pieces, it follows that the pannels should not be very
long, otherwise the frame will want strength. The pannels
of framing should not be more than 15 inches wide, and 4
feet long, and pannels so large as this should be avoided as
much as possible.1 The width of the framing is commonly
about one-third of the width of the pannel.
It is of the utmost importance in framing that the tenons
and mortises should be truly made. After a mortise has
been made with the mortise chisel, it should be rendered
perfectly even with a float; an instrument which differs
from a single cut, or float file, only by having larger teeth.
An inexperienced workman often makes his work fit too
tight in one place, and too easy in another, hence the mor¬
tise is split by driving the parts together, and the work is Joinery,
never firm ; whereas if the tenon fill the mortise equally,
without using any considerable force in driving the work
together, it is found to be firm and sound. The thickness
of tenons should be about one-fourth
of that of the framing, and the width
of a tenon should never exceed about
five times its thickness, otherwise,
in wedging, the tenon will become
bent, and bulge out of the sides of
the mortise. If the rail be wide,
two mortises should be made, with
a space of solid wood between ; fig.
42 shows the tenons for a wide rail.
If the tenon occurs at the end of a piece of framing, it must
be set back a little, so as to allow sufficient solid wood to form
a sound mortise; this is called a haunching (see e, fig. 43).
In thick framing, the strength and firmness of the joint
is much increased by putting a cross or feather tongue in
on each side of the tenon ; these tongues are about an inch
in depth, and are easily put in with a plough proper for
such purposes. The projected figure of the end of a rail
(fig. 42), shows these tongues put in, in the style there are
grooves ploughed to receive them.
Sometimes these projections are left in the solid wood
itself, in which case they are called stump tenons.
Sometimes, in thick framing, a double tenon in the thick¬
ness is made ; but we give the preference to a single one,
when tongues are put in the shoulders, as we have de¬
scribed ; because a strong tenon is better than two weak
ones, and there is less difficulty in fitting one than two.
The pannels of framing should be made to fill the grooves,
so as not to rattle, and yet to
allow the pannels to shrink
without splitting. When the
mouldings are stuck on the
framing, as is often the case
in large stuff, it becomes ne¬
cessary to find the lines to 
bring the angles together. In I—^
square framing, this is done
simply by cutting cd at a
mitre ; but if the framing be
oblique angle, it is done by
scribing; the angle at ab being determined by eye, cd is
cut parallel thereto.
Where large projecting or bolexion mouldings are used
the French have a very ex¬
cellent way of framing (fig.
44), which it would be well
to imitate in this country.
Here C is the pannel round
which the moulding B is
framed and mitred, the
whole is then framed into
A, which is a section both Fig. 44.
of the styles and rails.
24. When a frame consists of curved pieces, they are joining
often joined by means of pieces of curved
hard wood called keys. Fig. 45 is JLmnmJl^ pieces,
the head of a Gothic window frame,
joined with a key, with a plan of the
joint below it. A cross tongue is
put in on each side of the key, and
the joint is tightened by means of
the wedges a, a.
It is, however, a better method to
join such pieces by means of a screw
O' I
Fig. 43.
Fig. 45.
* Pannels of external doors and shutters may be rendered more secure by boring them, and inserting iron wires.
Society of Arts, voi. xxv., p. 106.
See Trans, of the
JOINERY.
811
Joinery.
Joining
with glue.
Glueing up
curved
work.
Bending
by steam¬
ing or
boiling.
holt instead of a key, the cross tongues being used which¬
ever method is adopted. Where the ends of the bolts can¬
not be allowed to project, they should be fixed as bed-bolts.
Joining with Glue.
25. It is seldom possible to procure boards sufficiently
wide for pannels without a joint, on account of heart shakes,
which open in drying. In cutting out pannels, for good
work, shaken wood should be carefully avoided. That part
near the pith is generally the most defective.
If the pannels be thick enough to admit of a cross or
feather tongue in the joint, one should always be inserted,
for then, if the joint should fail, the surfaces will be kept
even, and it will prevent light passing through. A very
good way also is to glue a piece of strong canvas on the
back of the pannel when the work is not intended to be seen
on both sides.
Sometimes plane surfaces of considerable width and
length are introduced in joiners’ work, as in dado, window
backs, &c.; such surfaces are commonly formed of inch,
or inch and quarter boards joined with glue, and a cross
or feather tongue ploughed into each joint. When the
boards are glued together, and have become dry, tapering
pieces of wood, called keys, are grooved in, across the back,
with a dovetail groove. These keys preserve the surface
straight, and also allow it to shrink and expand with the
changes of the weather.
26. It would be an endless task to describe all the methods
that have been employed to glue up bodies of such varied
forms as occur in joinery ; for every joiner forms methods
of his own, and merely from his being most familiar with
his own process, he will perform his work, according to it,
in a better manner than by another, which, to an unpreju¬
diced mind, has manifestly the advantage over it. The end
and aim of the joiner, in all these operations, is to avoid the
peculiar imperfections and disadvantages of his materials,
and to do this with least expense of labour or material.
The straightness of the fibres of wood renders it unfit for
curved surfaces, at least when the curvature is considerable.
Hence short pieces are glued together as nearly in the form
desired as can be, and the apparent surface is covered with
a thin veneer; or the work is glued up in pieces that are
thin enough to bend to the required form. Sometimes a
thin piece of wood is bent to the required form upon a
cylinder or saddle, and blocks are jointed and glued upon
the back ; when the whole is completely dry it will preserve
the form that had been given to it by the cylinder. The
curve should be made a little “quicker” than the curve in¬
tended, as the stuff will always spring back a trifle on being
released.
A piece of work glued up in thicknesses should be very well
done; but it too often happens that the joints are visible,
irregular, and in some places open ; therefore other methods
have been tried.
27. If a piece of wood be boiled in water for a certain
time, then taken out and immediately bent into any parti¬
cular form, and it be retained in that form till it be dry, a
permanent change takes place in the mechanical relations
of its parts; so that though, when relieved, it will spring
back a little, yet it will not return to its natural form.
The same effect may be produced by steaming wood;
but though both these methods have been long practised to
a considerable extent in the art of ship-building, we are not
aware that any general principles have been discovered,
either by experiment or otherwise, that will enable us to
apply it to an art like joinery, where so much precision is
required. We are not aware that it has been tried; but,
before it can be rendered extensively useful, the relation
between the curvature to which it is bent, and that which
it assumes, when relieved, should be determined, and also
the degree of curvature which may be given to a piece of a Joinery,
given thickness. v'™'"'
The time that a piece of wood should be boiled, or
steamed, in order that it may be in the best state for bend¬
ing, should be made the subject of experiments; and this
being determined, the relation between the time and the
bulk of the piece should be ascertained.
A novel and very simple and effective way of boiling sash-
bars or thin articles has been done thus (fig. 46). Take a
piece of common cast-iron pipe of sufficient diameter, stop
Fig. 4(3.
up one end with a plug of wood driven tight, fill the pipe
with water, raise one end in a sloping position, leaning it on
a pile of bricks, and kindle a fire as shown in the diagram.
For the joiner’s purposes we imagine that the process
might be greatly improved, by saturating the convex side
of each piece with a strong solution of glue, immediately
after bending it. By filling, in this manner, the extended
pores, and allowing the glue to harden thoroughly before
relieving the pieces, they would retain their shape better.
28. Large pieces of timber should never be used in Glueing up
joinery, because they cannot be procured sufficiently dry wooden
to prevent them splitting with the heat of a warm room. colamns.
Therefore, the external part of columns, pilasters, and works
of a like kind, should be formed of thin pieces of dry wood;
and, if support be required, a post, or an iron pillar, may
be placed within the exterior column. Thus, to form
columns of wood, so that they shall not be liable to split,
narrow pieces of wood are used, not exceeding five inches
in width. These are jointed like the staves of a cask, and
glued together, with short blocks glued along at each joint.
Fig. 47 is a plan of the lower end of a column glued up
in staves ; the bevel at A is used for forming the staves,
that at B is used for adjusting them
when they are glued together. A
similar plan must be made for the
upper end of the column, which will
give the width of the upper end of the
staves. The bevel's taken from the
plan, as at A and B, are not the true
bevels ; but they are those gene¬
rally used, and are very nearly true,
when the columns are not much diminished. To find the
true bevels, the principle we have given in art. 19 should be
applied. The same method may be adopted for forming
large pillars for tables, &c.
If a column have flutes, with fillets, the joints should be
in the fillets, in order to make the column, as strong as pos¬
sible ; also, if a column be intended to have a swell in the
middle, proper thickness of wood should be allowed for it.
When columns or pillars are small, they may be made of Small co¬
dry wood ; and to secure them against splitting a hole should lumns, ta-
be bored down the axis of each column. ble leSs>&c-
Fixing Joiners’ Work.
29. We have hitherto confined our remarks to that part Fixing
of joinery which-, is performed at the bench ; but by far the work 10
most important part remains to be considered. For, how- getlier-
812
Joinery
JOINERY.
Fixing
skirting
for rooms.
Fixing
landings
of stairs,
tops of
tables, &c.
Forming
archi¬
traves, &c.
Fig. 48.
ever well a piece of work may have been prepared, if it be
' not properly fixed, it cannot fulfil its intended purpose.
As in the preceding part, we shall state the general prin-
ciples that ought to be made the basis of practice, and illus¬
trate those principles by particular examples.
If the part to be fixed consist of boards jointed together, but
not framed, it should be fixed so that it may shrink or swell
vithout splitting or winding. The nature of the work will
generally determine how this may be effected. Let us sup¬
pose that a plain back of a window is to be fixed,
is a section showing B the back of the
window, A the window-sill, D the floor,
C the skirting, and E the wall of the house.
The back is supposed to be prepared, as
we have stated in art. 29, and that it is
kept straight by a dovetailed key a. Now,
let the back be firmly nailed to the win¬
dow-sill A, and let a narrow piece d, with
a groove, and cross tongue, in its upper
edge, be fixed to bond timbers or plugs
in the wall; the tongue being inserted also
into a corresponding groove in the lower
edge of the back of B. It is obvious, that the tongue being
loose, the back B may contract or expand, as a pannel in
a frame. The dado of a room should be fixed in the same
manner. In the principal rooms of a house, the skirting
C is usually grooved into the floor D, and fixed only to the
narrow piece d, which is called a ground. By fixing in
this manner, the skirting covers the joint, which would
otherwise soon be open by the shrinking of the back, and
from the skirting being grooved into the floor, but not fas¬
tened to it, there cannot be an open joint between the
skirting and floor. When it is considered, that an open
joint, in such a situation, must become a receptacle for
dust, and a harbour for insects, the importance of adopting
this method of fixing skirting will be apparent. As groov¬
ing a floor is attended with considerable labour, and as the
boards will sometimes twist, it is more common now to nail
a small fillet to the floor, against which the back of the
skirting rests, and, of course, has every room for expansion.
In fixing any board above five or six inches wide, similar
precautions are necessary ; otherwise it is certain to split
when the house becomes inhabited. We may, in general,
either fix one edge, and groove the other, so as to leave it
at liberty, or fix it in the middle, and leave both edges at
liberty.
Sometimes a wide board, or a piece consisting of several
boards, may be fixed by means of buttons, screwed to the
back, which turn into grooves in the framing, bearers, or
joists, to which it is to be fixed. If any shrinking takes
place the buttons slide in the grooves. In this manner the
landing of stairs are fixed, and it is much the best mode of
fixing the top of a table to its frame.
30. The extension of the principle of ploughing and
tongueing work together is one of the most important of the
improvements that have been introduced by modern joiners.
It is an easy, simple, and effectual method of combination,
and one that provides against the greatest defect of timber
work, its shrinkage. By means of this method, the bold
mouldings of Gothic architecture can be executed with a
comparatively small quantity of ma- ®
terial; and even in the mouldings
of modern architecture it saves
much labour. For example, the
moulded part of an architrave may
be joined with the plain part, as
shown by fig. 49.
Fig. 49.
If this method be compared with the
Fixing
grounds.
old method of glueing one piece upon another, its advan
tage will be more evident.
31. The architraves, skirtings, and surbase mouldings,
are fixed to pieces of wood called grounds; and as the
straightness and accuracy of these mouldings must depend Joinery,
upon the care that has been taken to fix the grounds truly ; -
it will appear, that fixing grounds, which is a part often left
to inferior workmen, in reality requires much skill and at¬
tention ; besides, they are almost always the guide for the
plasterer. Where the plasterer’s work joins the grounds,
they should have a small groove ploughed in the edge to
form a key for the plaster. In old work the ground was
generally hidden, but in modern work
it is frequently shown, which is a saving
of stuff: thus, instead of architraves
being prepared as in fig. 49, they are
made thus (fig. 50)—A is the rebated and
beaded door-jambs, B the ground which
is generally splayed at the back as a
key to the plastering instead of being
grooved. On this a thin piece of stuff Fig. 50.
is bradded to form the double-faced architrave, instead of
sinking out of the solid, and on this the ogee, or ovolo
moulding, is nailed. Again, with base
mouldings A (fig. 51), is the ground
fixed against the wall, on the top of
which B is nailed as the upper mould¬
ing, and C forms the skirting and lower
moulding.
32. In our remarks on construction, I Layi
we must not omit to say a few words ^ C floors,
on laying floors, because it will give us
an opportunity of pointing out a defect
which might be easily remedied. The
advice of Evelyn, to tack the boards Fig. 51.
down only the first year, and nail them down for good the
next, is certainly the best, when it is convenient to adopt
it; but, as this is very seldom the case, we must expect
the joints to open more or less. Now, these joints always
admit a considerable current of cold air, and also, in an
upper room, unless there be a counter floor, the ceiling be¬
low may be spoiled by spilling a little water, or even by
washing the floor. I o avoid this, we would recommend a
tongue to be ploughed into each joint, according to the old
practice. \\ hen the boards are narrow, they might be laid
without any appearance of nails, in the same way as a dow-
elled floor is laid, the tongue serving the same purpose as
the dowels. In this case we would use cross or feather
tongues for the joints. A new system of floors has lately
been used in London, to which the name of “ Victoria
floors has been given. A rough floor of boards, three
quarters of an inch thick, is first laid, and the rest of the
joiners’ work fixed, and the plastering finished. When all
is done, an inch or inch and quarter floor of plank, ripped
down the middle, and consequently very little more than
five inches wide, is laid; the rough boarding being first
covered with a layer of shavings, or old newspapers, or other
waste paper. I he boards are then dowelled on one edge
and nailed on the other, and a very sound floor is thus
formed, which neither springs nor creaks. We should fear,
however, that insects wrould harbour between the boards,
and if frequently washed the damp would get in between
the joints, and remain some time in the paper.
I here is a method sometimes used in laying floors, which Folding
workmen call folding ; according to this method, two boards floorj cen'
are laid, and nailed at such a distance apart, that the space sure
is a little less than the aggregate width of the boards in¬
tended for it; these boards are then put to their places, and,
on account of the narrowness of the space left for them,
they rise like an arch between its abutments. The work¬
men force them down by jumping upon them. Accord-
ingly, the boards are never soundly fixed to the joists, nor
can the floor be laid with any kind of evenness or accuracy.
We merely notice this method here, in order that it may be
avoided, except in very common work.
Joinery.
Heading
Joints.
JOINERY.
As boards can seldom be got long enough to do without
B
813
Hinging.
Room
doors.
A
Fig. 53.
joints, it is usual, except in very inferior work, to join the
ends with a tongued joint, as shown in fig. 52, where B is
the joist. The etched board is first laid, and nailed to the
joist.
In oak floors, the ends are forked together sometimes, as
shown at A (fig. 53), in order to render the joints less con¬
spicuous.
I he joints should be kept as distant from one another as'
possible.
Hinging.
33. It requires a considerable degree of care to hang a
door, a shutter, or any other piece of work in the best man¬
ner. In the hinge, the pin should be perfectly straight, and
truly cylindrical, and the parts accurately fitted together.
The hinges should be placed so that their axes may be
in the same straight line, as any defect in this respect will
produce a considerable strain upon the hinges every time
the hanging part is moved, will prevent it from moving
freely, and is injurious to the hinges.
In hanging doors, centres are often used instead of hinges;
but, on account of the small quantity of friction in. centres,
a door moves too easily, so that a slight draft of air ac¬
celerates it so much in falling to, that it shakes the build-
ing, and is disagreeable. We have seen this in some de¬
gree remedied by placing a small spring to receive the
shock of the door.
I he greatest difficulty, in hanging doors, is to make
them to clear a carpet, and be close at the bottom when
shut. To do this, that part of the floor which is under the
door, when shut, may be made to rise above a quarter of
an inch above the general level of the floor, which, with
placing the hinges so as to cause the door to rise as it opens,
will be sufficient, unless the carpet should be a very thick
one. Several mechanical contrivances have been used for
either raising the door, or adding a part to spring close to
the floor as the door shuts. The best method now in use,
and the simplest, is the invention of the skew-butt hinge.
I he parts of this which bear on each other are made with
a double bevel, so that, if more than half opened, the door
falls against the wall by its own weight; if less than half
open, it closes itself.
34. Various kinds of hinges are in use. Sometimes they
aie concealed, as in the kind of joints called rule joints;
others project, and are intended to let a door fold back over
projecting mouldings, as in pulpit doors. When hinges
project, the weight of the door acts with an increased lever-
age upon them, and they soon get out of order, unless they
be strong and well fixed.
I he dcoi of a room should be hung so that, in opening
the door, the interior of the room cannot be seen through
the joint. I his may be done by making the joint accord¬
ing to fig. o4. 1 he bead should be continued round the
door, and a common butt-hinge answers for it.
The proper I he piopei bevel for the edge of a door or sash may be
door.
dicular to Ce, which gives the bevel required. In practice Joinery,
the bevel is usually made less, leaving an open space in the
joint when the door is shut; this is done on account of the
interior angle of the rebate often being filled with paint.
Stairs.
35. The construction of stairs is generally considered the Stairs,
highest department of the art of joinery, therefore we treat
of it under a distinct head.
The principal object to be attended to in stairs is, that
they afford a safe and easy communication between floors
of different levels. The strength of a stair ought to be ap¬
parent as well as real, in order that those who ascend it
may feel conscious of safety. In order to make the com¬
munication safe, it should be guarded by a railing of pro¬
per height and strength; in order that it may be easy, the
rise and width, or tread, of the steps should be regular and
justly proportioned to each other, with convenient landings ;
there should be no winding steps, and the top of the rail
should be of a convenient height for the hand.
The first person that attempted to fix the relation be- proper
tween the height and width of a step, upon correct princi- proportion
pies, was, we believe, Blonde!, in his Cours d’Architecture. for stairs.
His formula is applicable to very large buildings, but not
to ordinary dwellings. Mr Ashpitel, who has investigated
the subject at great length, gives the following rules for
buildings of seven different classes :—
Tread breadth
in inches.
If 12  
„ Hi 
„ 11  
lOJ.
Rise height
in inches.
 6
 H
Tread breadth
in inches.
If 10  
„ 9J 
9  
Rise height
in inches.
 6J
 6|
 7
These dimensions give angles of ascent varying from 24°
to 37°. Of course the projection of the nosing is not
reckoned.
36. The forms of staircases are various. In towns, where pifferent
space cannot be allowed for convenient forms, they are kinds of
often made triangular, circular, or elliptical, with winding stairs,
steps, or of a mixed form, with straight sides and circular
ends. In large mansions, and in other situations, where
convenience and beauty are the chief objects of attention,
winding steps are never introduced when it is possible to
avoid them. Good stairs, therefore, require less geometri¬
cal skill than those of an inferior character.
The best architectural effect is produced by rectangular
staircases, with ornamented railing and newels. In Gothic
structures scarcely any other kind can be adopted, with
propriety, for a principal staircase. Modern architecture
admits of greater latitude in this respect; the end of the
staircase being sometimes circular, and the hand-rail con¬
tinued, beginning either from a scroll or a newel.
37. When a rectangular staircase has a continued rail, Rectangu-
it is necessary that it should be curved so as to change gra- tar stair-
dually from a level to an
inclined direction. This
curvature is called the
ramp of the rail. The
plan of a staircase of this
kind is represented by
ABCD (fig. 56) ; and fig.
58 shows a section of it,
supposing it to be cut
through at ab, on the plan.
The hand-rail is sup-
Fig. 56.
posed to begin with a newel at the bottom, and the form 110 find the
of the cap of the newel ought to be determined, so that it
will mitre with the hand-rail. Let H (fig. 57) be the section ne"
of the hand-rail, and ab the radius of the newel; then the
form of the cap may be traced at C by the methods we have
already described. (Arts. 17, 18, and 19).
814
Joinery.
JOINERY.
The sections of hand-rails are of various shapes ; some of
the most common ones are too small; a hand-rail should
Height for never be less than would require a square, of which the side
rail, &c. is 2^ inches, to circumscribe it.
For the level landings of a staircase the height of the
top of the hand-rail should
never be more than about
40 inches, and in any part
of the inclined rail the
height of its upper side
above the middle of the
width of the step should
be 40 inches, less the rise
of one step, when measur¬
ed in a vertical direction.
To describe To describe the ramps, Fig. 57.
the ramps let rs (fig. 58) be a vertical line drawn through the
of rails. middle of the width of the step; set ru equal to rs,
and draw ut at right angles
with the back of the rail,
cutting the horizontal line
s£in t. From the point t,
as a centre, describe the
curve of the rail. When
there is a contrary flexure,
as in the case before us,
the method of describing
the lesser curve is the
same.
To describe 38. The hand-rail of a
a spiral. stair generally begins with
a scroll, and the first step
Fig. 58.
of the stair is generally finished with what is called a curtail
or form, corresponding as much as possible to the scroll.
There are a great variety of geometrical spirals, which
are described and investigated under their proper heads;
but as they all finish on a point, and as all architectural
scrolls and volutes finish on a circle or eye, the usual mathe¬
matical scrolls are inapplicable. The earliest spiral adapted
to architecture was that of De Lorme. Since that several
systems have been invented, particularly that of Goldmann,
but the best is clearly that derived from the Ionic volute,
and is drawn thus—
Fig. 59.
The height, eye, and number of revolutions of the im-
(fig. 59) be the total height, and AC the intended height Joinery.
of the eye, and let the spiral be required to make two re- v^
volutions. Divide BC into four times as many parts as
there are revolutions required (4 x 2 = 8), because there are
four quadrants in every revolution. Draw any line DE
equal to the height of the spiral. Set down from D half
the number of parts, and one other part (4 + 1 = 5), this is
the top of the eye. Set down half AC at O, and describe
the eye; then at O set up half a part to F, and make
FG, FH = OF; then (fig. 60) draw OG, OH, GI, and
from O draw a line parallel to GH, and divide the same
into as many parts as there are to be revolutions. Fig. 60
is for one, fig. 61 for two revolutions. Divide the part Ol
at X, and proceed to draw the quarter circles, as in the
diagram; HD being the first opening of the compasses,
HP the next, and H, G, I, K, L, M, and N being the
centres. To describe the scroll let AB (fig. 62) be the Todescribe
width across, usually the scroll,
about 10 or 12 inches ;
let EB be the intend¬
ed diameter of the
eye ; and let the scroll
be required to make
one revolution and a
half, or six quadrants
(these are shown at
greater size by the side
of fig. 63), then pro¬
ceed as last directed,
--E
The hand¬
rail.
Fig. 61.
proved spiral being given to describe the curve, let AB
Fig. 62.
and complete the scroll, also dot in the lines of the nosings
and risers.
For the curtail step transfer the lines of nosings a, and The curtail
the lines of the risers b, to another place, as fig. 63, and set step,
out the thickness of the
veneer within the line
of nosing, the part
within this represents
the solid block of the
curtail. The places
of the ball usters are
shown in fig. 62.
It is obvious that
in every geometrical
staircase, the half of a
cylinder placed up¬
right in the well-hole Fig. 63.
would touch the wreathed string in all parts, another a little
less would touch all parts of the hand-rail. Let us suppose
ACB (fig. 64), to be the plan of half a cylinder so set upright
in the well-hole, and
let us suppose A'E
to be the height of
the same. Divide
the curved line ACB
into any convenient
number of parts, and
set the same off by
compasses on the
straight line from C
to A' and C to B'.
Or, in case ACB is
a semicircle, divide
the line AB, draw
the diameter CD,
making «D equal to
three-fourths of the radius, and draw DA, DB', and the
rest of the lines through the points of division, as shown
in the diagram. Then A'B' is the stretch out or length
of the circumference ACB unrolled. But A'E is said to
be the whole height. From E set down the respective
heights of the winders, step by step, as shown. Now let G
Fig. 61.
JOINERY.
815
Joinery.
be the representation of the cylinder, with the different
lines squared up and across, these will give a representa¬
tion of the curve at which the winders must ascend, and
which, of course, must regulate the hand-rail. The other
faint lines show the edge of the covering, and is the same
as finding a mould for a soffit.
39. Let us now turn to fig. 67. This represents the plan of
a staircase, beginning with a
scroll, and having steps wind¬
ing round the circular part of
the well-hole.
Tn the first place, let the
end of the steps be developed
according to the method we
have just given (fig. 65 shows
this development). Now the 1 ,g-65
hand-rail ought to follow the
inclination of a line drawn to
touch the nosings of the steps,
Fig. 67.
except where there is an abrupt transition from the rake of
the winding to that of the other steps; at such places it
must be curved,—the curve may be drawn by the help of
intersecting lines, as in fig. 66, if the workman cannot trust
to his eye.
menfof the .The Part whicl1 is shaded in fig. 65 represents the hand-
circular rai^ anc* enc^s t^le stePs when spread out, and the hand-
part. rad is only drawn close to the steps for convenience, as it
would require too much space to raise it to its proper posi-
The fall- tion. This development of the rail is called the falling-
ing mould, mould. We will now refer
to fig. 68, and will suppose
the inner semicircle of ACB
to be the plan of the well-
hole ; eA, aB, the width of
the rail, then the outer
shaded part ACB will be
the plan of the rail on the
level; ADEB is the cylin¬
der referred to before—
ADE being the angle at
which the stairs ascend.
Now we have shown before
(Conic Sections) that the
oblique section of a circular
4f' cylinder is an ellipse, if the
cylinder be circular the lines may then be found by a
trammel. Be it of what section it may the delineation of a
cylinder cut at any angle ADE may be found by dividing
The face ^ ^nt° e(lua^ Parts, and setting up the ordinates «1, 62, &c.,
mould as 1 his delineation is a plan on the oblique, or the
face-mould of the rail, to be cut “ on the plumb.”
The wood used for hand-rails being of an expensive kind,
it becomes of some importance to consider how the plank
may be cut so as to require the least quantity of material
for the curved part of the rail. Now, if we were to sup¬
pose the rail executed, and a plain board laid upon the
upper side of it, the board would touch the rail at three
points; and a plank laid in the same position as the board
would be that out of which the rail could be cut with the Joinery
least waste of material. v _ —
Let it be required to find the moulds for the part ah of To find
the rail (fig. 67), and to
avoid confusing the lines
in our small figure, the
part ab has been drawn
to a larger scale in fig. 69.
The plain board men¬
tioned above would touch
the rail at the points
marked C and B in the
plan; draw the line CB,
and draw a line parallel to
CB, so , as to touch the
curve at the point E.
Then E is the other point
on the plan; and a', e.
the face-
moulds, by
another
method.
Fig. (59.
X ' 7 7
and are the heights of these points in the development
(fig. 65).
Erect perpendiculars to CB, from the points C, E, and
B (fig. 69), and set off Ca', on fig. 69, equal to dc (fig. 65);
Ee equal to de, and Bll equal to /6'. Through the points
C and E, draw the dotted line C6; through de draw a line
to meet CE in h; and through the points dli, draw a line
to meet CB in <7; then join hg, and make Ci perpendicular
to hg.
Now, if Cd be equal to Ca, and perpendicular to C*;
and di be joined, it will be the angle which the plank makes
with the horizontal plane, or plan. Therefore, draw FD
parallel to Ci, and find the section by the process before
described. This section is the same thing as would be ob¬
tained by projecting vertical lines from each point in the
hand-rail against the surface of a board, laid to touch it in
three points. The inexperienced workman will be much
assisted in applying the moulds if he acquires a clear notion
of the position when executed.
To find the thickness of the plank, take the height to To find the
the under side of the rail cr in the development (fig. 65), thickness of
and set it off from in the line Ci, to r, in fig. 69; from the P18,1114,
the point r draw a line parallel to di, and the distance be¬
tween those parallel lines will be the thickness of the plank.
The mould (fig. 69), which is traced from the plan, is To appty
called the face-mould. It is applied to the upper surface tbe InouJds-
of the plank, which being marked, a bevel should be set to
the angle idC, and this bevel being applied to the edge
will give the points to which the mould must be placed to
mark out the under side. It is then to be sawn out, and
wrought true to the mould. In applying the bevel, care
should be taken to let its stock be parallel to the line di, if
the plank should not be sufficiently wide for di to be its arris.
In the method fig. 68, ADE, on the rise of the stair, is the
bevel.
After the rail is truly wrought to the face-moidd, the
falling-mould (fig. 65), being applied to its convex side, will
give the edge of the upper surface, and the surface itself
will be formed by squaring from the convex side, holding
the stock of the square always so that it would be vertical
if the rail were in its proper situation. The lower surface
is to be parallel to the upper one.
The sudden change of the width of the ends of the steps
causes the soffit line to have a broken or irregular appear¬
ance ; to avoid it, the steps are made to begin to wind before
the curved part begins. Different methods of proportion¬
ing the ends of the steps are given by Nicholson, Roubo,
Rondelet, and Krafft. We cannot in this place enter into
a detail of these methods, nor can we give the varied
systems of cutting the rail in the spring and in the plumb,
about which so much has been written, but for the reader’s
information a list of the principal writers on staircases is
subjoined:—■
816
Joinery.
JOINERY.
Price, in his British Carpenter, 4to, 1735; Langley, Builders'
Complete Assistant, 8vo, 17OS; Frezier, Coupe des Pierres et des
Bois, 4to, 1739; Roubo, I?Art de Menuisier, folio, 1771; Skaife,
Key to Civil Architecture, 8vo, 1774; Nicholson, Carpenters' New
Guide, 4to, 1792; Carpenters' and Joiners' Assistant, 4to, 1792;
Architectural Dictionary, 4to; Transactions Society of Arts, &c., for
1814 ; Treatise on the Construction of Staircases and Hand-rails, 4to,
1820; Rondelet, Traite de l'Art de Bdtir, tome iv. 4to, 1814;
Krafft, Traite sur VArt de la Charpenter, part ii., folio, 1820;
Jeakes, Orthogonal System of Handrailing, 1849 ; Ashpitel on Hand¬
rails and Staircases, 4to, 1851; and Riddell, Handrailing Simplified,
folio, Philadelphia, 1856.
SECT. III.—ON MATERIALS.
Import- 40. There is no art in which it is required that the
ance of the structure and properties of wood should be so thoroughly
su Jec ' understood as in joinery. The practical joiner, who has
made the nature of timber his study, has always a most
decided advantage over those who have neglected this
most important part of the art.
In the article Anatomy, Vegetable (vol. hi., pp. 61 and
82), the structure of wood is described ; in this place, there¬
fore, we shall only show how the joiner may, in a great
measure, avoid the warping caused by its irregular texture.
Boards cut 41. It is well known that wood contracts less in propor-
in a parti- tion, in diameter, than it does in circumference; hence a
tionw^'ll60*W^°^e tree always splits 'n drying. Mr Knight has shown
not retain ^t, in consequence of this irregular contraction, a board
their form. may l36 cut from a tree that can scarcely be made by any
means to retain the same form and position when subjected
to various degrees of heat and moisture. From the ash
and the beech he cut some thin boards, in different direc¬
tions relatively to their transverse septa, so that the septa
crossed the middle of some of the boards at right angles,
and lay nearly parallel with the surfaces of others. Both
kinds were placed in a warm room, under perfectly similar
circumstances. Those which had been formed by cutting
across the transverse septa, as at A in fig. 70, soon changed
their form very considerably, the one side becoming hollow,
and the other round ; and in drying, they contracted nearly
14 per cent, in width.
The other kind, in which the septa were nearly parallel
to the surfaces of the boards, as at B in fig. 70, retained,
with very little variation, their primary
form, and did not contract in drying
more than three and a half per cent, in
width.1
As Mr Knight had not tried resinous
woods, two specimens were cut from a
piece of Memel timber; and to render
the result of our observation more clear,
conceive fig. 70 to represent the section 70.
of a tree, the annual rings being shown by circles. BD
represents the manner in which one of our pieces was cut,
and AC the other. The board AC contracted per
cent, in width, and became hollow on the side marked b.
The board BD retained its original straightness, and con¬
tracted only 0*7 per cent. The difference in the quantity
of contraction is still greater than in hard woods.
From these experiments, the advantages to be obtained
merely by a proper attention in cutting out boards for pan-
nels, &c., will be obvious; and it will also be found that
pannels cut so that the septa are nearly parallel to their
faces, will appear of a finer and more even grain, and re-
quiie less labour to make their surfaces even and smooth.
But as this system would necessitate the rejection of all
Difference
in shrink¬
age.
but the heart of the tree for superior work, a method has Joinery
lately been pursued which it is said was first used by the ^
billiard-table makers. Let
AC (fig. 71) represent the
piece above referred to by
the same letters. It will be- Fig 71
come hollow on the side marked b, no doubt because the
rings of the wood when cut across are relieved from ten¬
sion, and endeavour to expand themselves. To counter¬
act this it is customary, in all good work, to rip the plank
down the centre, and then to “turn the stuff inside out”
as it is popularly called. This is done by reversing the
wood end for end, so as to bring the heart against heart,
and the outside against outside (without which the glue
joints are sometimes liable to
fly) ; and also so as to reverse
the circular parts of the grain,
as is shown in fig. 72. Fig. 72.
In wood that has the larger transverse septa, as the oak,
for example, boards cut as BD will be figured, while those
cut as AC will be plain.
42. I here is another kind of contraction in wood whilst Cause of
drying, which causes it to become curved in the direction Pieces
of its length. In the long styles of framing we have often carvino in
observed it; indeed, on this account, it is difficult to pre-■
vent the style of a door, hung with centres, from curving, length,
so as to rub against the jamb. A very satisfactory reason
for this kind of curving has been given by Mr Knight,1
which also points out the manner of cutting out wood, so
as to be less subject to this defect, which it is most desir¬
able to avoid. I he interior layers of wood, being older,
are more compact and solid than the exterior layers of the
same tree; consequently, in drying, the latter contract
more in length than the former. This irregularity of con¬
traction causes the wood to curve in the direction of its
length, and it may be avoided by cutting the wood so that
the parts of each piece shall be as nearly of the same age
as possible. But as this would also necessitate the rejec¬
tion of a great deal of stuff, a simpler method is found,
which is always to turn the heart of the wood outwards.
I hus, in framing a door, the heart should always go against
the jambs, and the sap side to the pannels.
43. Besides the contraction which takes place in drying, Changes
wood undergoes a considerable change in bulk with the va- produced
riations of the atmosphere. In straight-grained woods the tbe
change in length is nearly insensible;2 hence they areweatlier‘
sometimes employed for pendulum rods; but the lateral
dimensions vary so much, that a wide piece of wood will
serve as a rude hygrometer.3 The extent of variation de¬
creases in a few seasons, but it is of some importance to
the joiner to be aware, that even in very old wood, when
the surface is removed, the extent of variation is nearly the
same as in new wood.
It appears, from Rondelet’s experiments,4 that in wood
of a mean degree of dryness, the extent of contraction and
expansion, produced by the usual changes in the state of
the atmosphere, was—
1
In fir wood, from to ^ part of its width ;
And, in oak, from —^ to
part of its width.
Consequently, the mean extent of variation in fir is —
] 124
and in oak, ; and, at this mean rate, in a fir board
about 12-£ inches wide, the difference in width would be
Curving in
the direc¬
tion of the
width.
2 M*1 Transactions> Part ii- for 1817; or Philosophical Magazine, vol. 1., p. 437.
3 « r mTa an<! ®eneral R°y made some experiments on the expansion in length. See Account of the Trig. Survey, vol. i., pp. 46 and 49.
kee Philosophical Transactions, Lowthorpe’s Abridg., vol. ii., p. 37. *> ’ vt
4 Traite Theoretique et Pratique de VArt de Bdtir, article Menuiserie, tome iv., p. 425, 1814.
Kinds of
wood.
Oak.
J 0 I
Joint-Stock y^th of an inch. This will show the importance of attenrt-
Companies. ing to the maxims of construction we have already laid be-
's—fore the reader; for, if a board of that width should be
fixed at both edges, it must unavoidably split from one
end to the other.
44. The kinds of wood commonly employed in joinery
are,—the oak, the different species of pine, mahogany, and
sometimes lime-tree and poplar.
Of the oak, there are two species common in this island;
that which Linnaeus has named Quercus robur is the most
valuable for joiners’ work ; it is of a finer grain, less tough,
and not so subject to twist as the other kind. Oak is also
imported from the Baltic ports, from Germany, and from
America. These foreign kinds being free from knots, of
a straighter grain, and less difficult to work, they are used
in preference to our home species. Foreign oak is also
much used for cabinet-work; and lately, the fine curled
oak that is got from excrescences produced by pollard,
and other old trees, has been used with success in furni¬
ture. When well managed, it is very beautiful, and makes
a pleasing variety. It is relieved by inlaid borders of black
or white wood, but these should be sparingly used. Bor¬
ders of inlaid brass, with small black lines, give a rich effect
to the darker coloured kinds.
The greater part of joiners’ work is executed in fir, im¬
ported from the north of Europe. Yellow fir is used for
outside work, as doors, sashes, and for floors where there
is likely to be much wear. Some very good red pine deals
have been imported from Canada. Inside work is almost
always framed of white fir. Some very good pannels when
J O I
817
Fir.
not too wide, and excellent mouldings, are made of Ame- Joint-Stock
rican pine. White fir is often used for internal work, and Companies,
yellow pine is much used for mouldings.
The forest of Braemar, in Aberdeenshire, furnishes yel¬
low fir of an excellent qualify, little inferior to the best
foreign kinds.
For the general purpose of joinery, the wood of the larch Larch,
tree seems to be the best; this useful tree thrives well on
our native hills. We have seen some fine specimens of
this wood from Blair-Athol. It makes excellent steps for
stairs, floors, framing, and most other articles.
Mahogany, in joinery, is only used where painted work Mahogany,
is improper, as for the hand-rails of stairs, or for the doors
and windows of principal rooms. For doors it is not now
so often used as it was formerly; its colour is found to be
too gloomy to be employed in large masses. In cabinet¬
work it is almost the only kind used for ornamental work.
Lime-tree, and the different species of poplar, make very Lime-tree,
good floors for inferior rooms, and may often be used lor
other purposes, in places where the carriage of foreign tim¬
ber would render it more expensive. Lime-tree is valu¬
able for carved work, and does not worm-eat; but carving
is at present seldom used in joinery.
For farther information on wood, in addition to the works
referred to, the reader may consult Evelyn’s Silva, Dr
Hunter’s edition; Duhamel, Du Transport, de la Conser¬
vation, et de la. Force des Bois, Paris, 1767; Barlow’s ,
Essay on the Strength and Stress of Timber, 1817; Tred-
gold’s Elementary Principles of Carpentry, sect, x., 1820;
and the article Dry-Rot. (t. t—d.) (a. a.)
JOINT-STOCK COMPANIES are a species of part¬
nership in which a number of persons contribute funds or
“stock” for the accomplishment of some trading or other
profitable object. The peculiarity from which the term is
derived is the contribution of stock apart from joint man¬
agement. In an ordinary partnership the members bring
more or less of their own personal management into the
affairs of the company ; and although, in peculiar circum¬
stances, a partner may abstain from any interference, such
a person, called in the trading world “ a sleeping partner,”
is treated by the law in all respects as if he participated in
the privileges and responsibilities of his working brethren.
The distinctive peculiarity of the joint-stock company is,
that the members throw their stock into the venture with¬
out directly participating in the management, which maybe
either in the hands of a selected number of the shareholders,
or in that of persons who do not contribute at all to the
undertaking. The subject thus presents considerations
stretching far beyond the boundary of the mere laws affect¬
ing the rights and obligations of individual partners into the
field of politics and history. It is at once obvious that these
arrangements, by which the wealth of indefinite numbers ca.«
be concentrated in the hands of a few, are capable of creating
a political influence which will have more or less the charac¬
ter of a ruling or governing power, according to the strength
of the otherwise constituted authorities with which it may
come in contact. It was by this sort of concentration of
the wealth of many in the hands of a few that some of the
religious societies of the middle ages became formidable
rivals of the monarchies ; the Society of the Knights Temp¬
lars rising conspicuously above all others, and threaten¬
ing to establish a sort of corporate empire, presiding over
the European monarchies. Subsequently the Jesuits, in
their government of Paraguay, afforded evidence of the
power at the command of clever men regulating a common
fund, which alarmed crowned heads no less than the usurp¬
ing tenor of their doctrines. The great union of the Hanse
towns, before which the robber monarchies and aristocracies
of Central Europe fell, was again an instance of the power
of concentrated wealth when measured against pure mo¬
narchical and aristocratic authority ; and the expanding re¬
sources of the republic of Venice, and of other wealthy
oligarchies, seemed to be raising a new ruling power which
would gradually absorb and supersede the old dynasties,
whether autocratic or aristocratic, by which nations were
ruled. The expansion of trade by the discovery of America
and a new passage to India, and still more perhaps the re¬
casting of the political state of Europe by the Reformation,
broke up these great concentrated masses, and distributed
the power of collective wealth into smaller groups. Still
the influence of joint-stock associations has ever, from time
to time, arisen in formidable rivalry with other forms of po¬
litical power, sometimes creating an effectual barrier to poli¬
tical oppression, but at others threatening the liberties and
just rights of communities by a spirit of aggrandizement
and rapacity. Perhaps the most curious single instance
of a struggle between concentrated wealth and a ruling
dynasty will be found in the history of Russia. The mer¬
chants of Novogorod increased in wealth and influence
until they became a virtual republican government, gradually
absorbing under their influence the surrounding territory.
“ Who can resist God and the great Novogorod ?” became
a saying of the fifteenth century. The Grand Dukes of
Muscovy commenced a systematic war against this royal
company of merchants, and it seemed for some time a ques¬
tion whether Russia should be ruled by a commercial com¬
pany or an autocracy. After many scenes of cruelty and
rapacity, the latter prevailed. But the influence of Novo¬
gorod was not entirely extinguished until the foundation of
St Petersburg drew the northern trade of Russia into a
1 When the roof of Westminster Hall was under repair, an opportunity was taken to examine the wood of which it is constructed;
and it was found to be of oak, and not of chestnut, as stated in the article Dby-Rot, vol. viii., p. 213. The oak has been of an excellent
kind, but is now much worm-eaten.
VOL. XII.
5 L
818
JOINT-STOCK COMPANIES.
where it came effectually under impel ial
Joint-Stock new channel,
Companies. COntrol. , , . r
  British history affords many memorable instances of the
influence of joint-stock operations. It became the policy
of the crown, from Queen Elizabeth’s reign downwards, to
cherish commercial combinations, as a balance against the
power of the aristocracy, and sometimes the body thus
started with a stock of exclusive privileges acquired an in¬
fluence dangerous alike to the authority of the crown ami
the rights of the subject. The Russian Company, which
had been licensed just before the accession of Elizabeth,
acquired so much influence under her fostering care as to
spread its transactions into Persia on the one hand, and
embark in the whale fishery of Spitzbergen on the other.
This potent body was in use to send ambassadors to the
Grand Duke of Muscovy. But his successors, the czars,
were not inclined to encourage such fellowship, and gra¬
dually enfeebled the haughty corporation by restricting its
foreign privileges, and encouraging the rival company o
Holland. The celebrated Turkey or Levant Company was
chartered in 1581. Just eighteen years afterwards was
formed, under far less pompous auspices, that East India
Company which has been destined to rule over a gi eater
empire than that of Julius Caesar or Charlemagne. (See
India.) Many African and American companies were
formed in the seventeenth century, and created much ex¬
citement by their aggressions and rivalries. The Scots,
excited by witnessing the enterprise and prospeiity of
England, in which the invidious navigation law of Charles
II. prohibited them from participating, resolved to establish
a crreat national joint-stock company for themselves. In
1695 they formed the “African Company,” better known
as the Darien project, subscribing a capital of four millions,
the greater portion of which was paid up. 1 his was held
in its day to be a marvellous pecuniary effort for a portion
of the empire which, a century and a half later, entered on
railway projects involving in one year an outlay of sixteen
millions. The company obtained from the Scottish par¬
liament more absolute powers than even the great cor¬
porations of England ; being authorized to hold a monopoly
of certain trades, to occupy and govern territories, and to
make peace and war. It commenced the execution of a
variety of projects on a grand scale, and their disastrous
result was a signal instance of that unscrupulous spirit of
aggrandizement and oppression to which trading corpora¬
tions are so liable. The Scottish company, probably, like
many of the other bodies of adventurers, committed some
questionable acts, but none sufficient to justify the ra,jl"
corous hatred of the English rival companies, which, while
the Scots were prevented, as an alien nation, from having
their share in the English companies, denounced the corpoia-
tion set up by the nation, which they thus counted separate
and independent, for an infringement of a monopoly purely
English. King William was too dependent on the monied
power in England to hold an even balance of justice between
opponents so unequally matched, and the Scottish colony
was ruined.
Among the English companies of that age, several were
successively established for trading with Africa and Amei ica.
Their chief object and source of gain was one that would be
fortunately held in detestation by the greater portion of
British speculators at the present day,—the supply of cap¬
tured negroes to the plantations, foreign as well as British.
The culmination of these projects in the great South Sea
scheme of 1719 is a well-known chapter in English history.
The names of the many preposterous satellite schemes by
which it was surrounded have often been cited as instances
of folly calculated to tax the credulity of soberer periods, as
projects in which the inhabitants of the wisest of nations
actually embarked. If it were any consolation to find their
neighbours guilty of greater follies than their own, the
British of that age might find such consolation in a view of Joint-Stock
the French Mississippi scheme. The corporate power thus Companies,
created not only professed to absorb the trade, finance, and
banking of France, but projected the creation of a trans¬
atlantic empire, which, from its centre in Louisiana, should
gradually absorb the American continent.
Since the passing of the Patents Act in the reign of James
I., the crown alone was precluded from granting powers
of trading monopoly in royal charters, and the companies
which, since that period, have obtained any monopolies in
England beyond those created by the simple instance of
theft large capital, have held their powers from parliament.
The crown continued to grant monopolies in foreign trade
till 1693, when, in the celebrated question of the old East
India Company, the practice was condemned by a vote of
the House of Commons. A remarkable instance lately oc¬
curred of an attempt by some enterprising men to carry out a
project something like that of the East India Company, inde¬
pendently of authority either from the crown or parliament.
It was represented that the islands of New Zealand weie
admirably suited for colonization, and should be immediately
attached to the British colonial empire by the right of oc¬
cupancy. There was, however, a strong disinclination on
the part of British statesmen at that period to encumber
the imperial government with the management of addi¬
tional colonies. The adventurers conceived the idea of
occupying the islands with independent British emigrants.
The novelty of their views, and the energy and eloquence
with which these were enforced, attracted a number of
ardent spirits around them, who were taught that in these
happy islands, possessed of all the advantages of our British
climate without its drawbacks, they were to found that
empire of Anglo-Saxon origin, by which the southern por¬
tion of the world was to be eventually ruled. It seemed
hard that the government, declining to occupy the colonies,
should discourage this project; but there were many grounds
for dreading from it evil consequences, among which the
most obvious and immediate was, that when the colony
began slightly to prosper, it would attract the cupidity of
some other European power, from which it could not be
protected without an interference which might involve the
British government in formidable disputes. Hence, in tie
year 1840, the British flag was hoisted in New Zealand,
and although “ The New Zealand Company” was incorpo¬
rated, and afterwards became the medium for the disposal
of large tracts of land, its position was so humble in com¬
parison with the splendid visions entertained by its promot¬
ers, that after a long series of intricate disputes, they re¬
signed their charter to the government in 1850. _
The chief objects for which joint-stock companies have
lately been constituted are Banking, Insurance, works tor
the supply of cities with Water and Gas, Canals, Shipping,
and Harbours, and, at the head of all, Railways. The rail¬
way system, indeed, is the form in which both the governmen t
and the people have of late felt the pressure ot joint-stock
power, and known the influence of which it is susceptib e.
The history and effect of the railway system will be found
under its proper head; and it is only necessary here to re¬
mark, that although there has been, throughout the rise and
progress of the system, a contest on the part of the legis a-
ture to keep the interests of the public at large du Y P1®'
tected against the natural consequences of endowing a body
of affluent companies with a monopoly of the function ot
conveying persons and property from place to place, yet
the result is felt to be, that the companies have got, on the
whole, more power than a watchful legislature should have
confided to them. As each railway work required the
sanction of an act of parliament, it was supposed that the
interests of the public must be safe in the hands of the
legislature. But when railway bills crowded in, it was im¬
possible for the members of the legislature at large to ta e
J O I
Joint-Stock up their merits; and there was no staff of official persons en-
bjpanies. trusted with the responsibility of testing the fairness and pro-
v * piiety of their provisions. 1 he sections of parliament which
adjusted railway measures were not only subjected to mis¬
representation and persuasion, but sometimes counted in
their own body men deeply embarked in the interests of
particular lines. It was absolutely necessary that the legis¬
lature at large should, for the sake of the public safety and
convenience, create restrictions, to which all railway com¬
panies must be amenable. Some regulating acts were ac¬
cordingly passed, but not so early as effectually to serve the
intended purpose. The alarming climax which railway
speculation reached in 1846, when the legislature in one ses¬
sion passed bills authorizing an expenditure of 130 millions,
produced a reaction, on which some thinkers have looked
with complacency, believing that it has beneficially en¬
feebled, through losses and difficulties, a power which might
otherwise have become formidable and extremely unman¬
ageable.
In the meantime, legislation was demanded to apply a
general constitution to those joint-stock companies which
did not conduct such important operations, or exercise such
large powers, as to require or easily to afford a special act
of parliament to each. After several tentative measures,
and along with a special act applicable to banking, the
Joint-Stock Companies Regulation Act of 1844 was passed
(/th and 8th Viet., c. 110). When it had been more than
ten years in force, it was urged by the promoters of a re¬
vised measure that it had missed the true object of such an
act, in as far as it hampered, by too many directions and
restrictions, the trading operations of joint-stock companies;
and it was maintained that the true policy of such a measure
should be in the first place to fix the limits under which joint-
stock companies might legally act, and then incorporate
effectual provisions for the enforcement of the obligations
legally incurred in connection with them ; while within these
limits they should be left at perfect freedom to conduct
their operations, like private traders, in their own way.
Meanwhile the prevalence, soon after the European convul¬
sions of 1848, of opinions among the working classes inimi¬
cal to property and the rights of capital, suggested to some
political economists that the law of partnership fatally dis¬
couraged the humbler classes from investing their savings
in profitable speculations, by the principle which rendered
every one engaged in a commercial adventure, however
humble his interest in it, liable for all the debts incurred
by the company. Reference was made to the system of
partnerships, en commandite, practised in France and various
other nations, by which, when certain traders united as an
active partnership, liable with their whole means for the
debts which might be incurred through the operations in
which they shared, certain other persons not admitted to the
management might have shares in the concern, en comman¬
dite, without being responsible for losses beyond the extent
of the capital embarked by them. In 1850 a committee
of the House of Commons reported on the best means of
providing investments for the middle and working classes,
expressing an opinion, that although false expectations might
be foimed of the probable advantage to accrue to them by
a participation in profits, yet that a measure for the removal
of the existing difficulties would be peculiarly acceptable to
them, “ and would tend to satisfy them that they are not
excluded from fair competition by laws throwing obstacles
in the way of men with small capital.”
In 1854, a commission, consisting of eminent lawyers
and capitalists, reported on the assimilation of the commer¬
cial law of England and Scotland, and also on the question,
whether the law of partnership liability should be altered.
Among the lawyers there was a predominant aversion to
a change, founded chiefly on the risk of persons whose re¬
sponsibility was limited, recklessly undertaking projects be-
J O I
yond the proper means at their disposal; and the capitalists
took the conventional view, that there is always capital
enough in the country for the proper amount of commercial
speculation, without giving much weight to the moral and
social reasons for which it was thought advantageous to
facilitate the safe investment of savings and other small sums,
of money. The fall of several establishments in which
people of the middle classes invested their fortunes, and an
exposure of fraud and recklessness in the conduct of the
managing partners of these establishments, showed that
there was a fatal rottenness in the existing system. It was
argued, that with liability known to be limited, and publi¬
city and responsibility attending all acts of partnership
management, such calamities would not occur, whatever
others might supersede them.
The Joint-Stock Act of 1856 (19th and 20th Viet., c. 47),
was passed, partly to amend those defects in the act of 1844
which have been already alluded to, and partly to make an
effective provision for investments with limitation of respon¬
sibility. Banking and insurance companies are, for reasons
which the promoters stated that they bent before rather
than admitted, excluded from its operation. The number
of persons associating under it must amount to seven at
least; whenever the number of partners is less they all be¬
come personally liable for all the obligations incurred. No
body consisting of more than twenty persons is entitled to
carry on “ any trade or business having gain for its object”
without coming under the act, and being registered accord-
ingly- All shares are to be held absolutely, and not in trust
or security. If the directors of such a company declare a
dividend while the company is insolvent, or which in itself
creates insolvency, they incur personal liability. On the
application of a fifth in number and value of the shareholders,
the board of trade may appoint inspectors to examine and
report on the affairs of a company; and there is a provision
for appointing “ official liquidators” when the affairs of such
a company have to be wound up. If the liability of the
partners is to be limited, the word “ limited” must be the
last word in the name or firm of the company. This act
has not been long enough in force to allow any conclusion
to be formed on its practical success. (j. h. b.)
JOINVILLE, a town of France, department of Haute-
Marne, and arrondissement of Vassy, on the left bank of
the Marne, 23 miles N. of Chaumont. Pop. 3000.
JOINVILLE, Jean, Sire de, author of the Histoirede
St Louis, and one of the ornaments of his age, was born in
1223 or 1224. Sprung from an ancient and noble house of
Champagne, he spent the first years of his life with Thibaut,
king of Navarre, at whose court, then one of the most re¬
fined in Europe, he learned all the knightly graces and
accomplishments. When St Louis set out on his first cru¬
sade in 1248, Joinville accompanied him at the head of
several hundred men raised on his own estates, fought by
his side in the bloody engagements that followed the cap¬
ture of Damietta, and shared the fate of the greater part of
the French army in being taken prisoner by the infidels
after the disastrous campaign of Massoura. Escaping with
difficulty on the payment of a heavy ransom, he followed
his royal leader into the Holy Land, enjoyed his confidence
and friendship, was with him in every battle of the cam¬
paign, and finally returned with him to France in 1254 on
board the same ship. He had thus advantages for studying
the character and actions of the hero-saint, such as were
open to no other chronicler of the time. Accordingly, the
Histoire de St Louis, LX. du nom par Jehan Sire de Join¬
ville, written with a charming simplicity both of style and
thought, is as interesting as the Chronicles of Froissart. In
delineating his king, Joinville gives us unconsciously a por¬
trait of himself. The gay, free-handed knight, careless of
life and money, witty, shrewd, slightly worldly, proud of his
rank, yet fond of society in all its grades, stands out in strong
819
Jdinville
Jotnville,
Sire de
Jean.
820 J 0 L
Joliba and curious contrast with the self-denied, austere, and
II saintly king. Yet, contrasted as their natures were, the
Jomelli. men lived together on terms of brotherly familiarity. At
one time the king asks his friend whether he would not
rather be a leper than commit a mortal sin ? To which
Joinville, who abhors lying, naively replies, that he would
rather commit thirty mortal sins than be a leper. At
another he asks him if he ever washed the feet of the poor
on Holy Thursday, and Joinville replies “ that he never
will wash the feet of these rascals.” Joinville’s respect for
Louis’s noble nature and splendid intellect increased m pro¬
portion as he knew him better, and he records many notable
instances ofboth. On their return to France, they continued as
intimate as ever, and Louis very often invited his old brother-
in-arms to eat at his own table,£t a cause du subtile sens qu ’il
connaissait en lui.” When the French king set out in 1259
on his second crusade, so disastrous to himself and thousands
of other brave men, Joinville declined to go with him, al¬
leging as his excuse the ruin that in his absence had over¬
taken his estates. Joinville’s grief when he learned the
fate of the expedition was very poignant. From this time
he seldom appeared at the court of Louis’s successors; but
when Louis X. was preparing to invade the Netherlands,
Joinville, though in his ninety-second year, joined the army
at Arras. He died not long after; but the exact date of his
death is unknown. The best editions of Joinville s work are
those of 1668, with curious and learned dissertations by Du-
cange ; and of 1761, edited by Mellot, Sallier, and Chape-
ronnier, and printed at the royal press. The previous editions,
of which there are several, are all more or less incomplete.
JOLIBA. See Niger.
JOMELLI, Nicolo, one of the greatest composers of
the Neapolitan school, was horn at Aversa, a small town
near Naples, in 1714. Having learned to sing and to play
on the harpsichord, under the canon Muzillo, he went in
1730 to Naples, where he studied under Prota and Man-
cini, and afterwards under Feo and Leo. His earlier com¬
positions were Cantatas, which indicated his talent for
J 0 M
dramatic music. The success of his first opera, Verrore Jomelli.
amoroso, determined him to cultivate theatrical composi-
tion. Next year, 1738, he composed his first serious opera,
Odoardo; and in 1740 went to Rome, where he was pa¬
tronized by Cardinal York. After having composed several
works at Rome and at Bologna, he returned to Naples,
where his opera of Eumene was received with great favour.
During his residence at Bologna, he had studied church-
music under Padre Martini. In 1745 he visited Vienna, and
there formed a lasting friendship with Metastasio. When
he brought out at Venice his opera of Merope, it produced
such an effect that the Council of Ten appointed him direc¬
tor of the conservatory for orphan girls. He there com¬
posed his first church-music, which was much admired.
In 1748, having been called to Rome, he composed his
opera of Artaserse ; and, by the influence of Cardinal Albani,
was next year made chapel-master of St Peter’s in the
Vatican. In 1754 he resigned that office, in order to occupy
the place of chapel-master and court-composer to the Duke
of Wurtemberg at Stuttgart. There he remained about
eighteen years, and his style underwent a great change
through the influence of the German music which he was
constantly hearing. His modulation became more bold and
varied, and his instrumentation more powerful. He wrote
about thirty operas in Germany. When he returned to
Naples in 1772, his Germanized style did not please his
countrymen ; and even his Armida, one of his finest operas,
was not popular. His Demofoonte, another fine work, was
still less liked at Naples; and his Ifigenia, in 1773, was ill-
performed, and failed completely. He was then attacked
by apoplexy, but rallied, and his last composition was his
admirable Miserere. He died at Naples on 28th August
1774. In the fourth volume of Dr Burney’s History of
Music, pp. 566-70, there is an account of Jomelli’s funeral,
and remarks on his works and character by his friend Sa-
verio Mattel, the poet. Jomelli’s known compositions are,
—forty operas ; five cantatas ; four oratorios ; thii ty-four
church compositions. (G*F* G*)
end of volume twelfth.
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