Chapter XIII: Part 13

_Communications._--The North British railway possesses a monopoly in the shire. From the Forth Bridge the main line follows the coast as far as Dysart and then turns northwards to Ladybank, where it diverges to the north-east for Cupar and the Tay Bridge. From Thornton Junction a branch runs to Dunfermline and another to Methil, and here begins also the coast line for Leven, Crail and St Andrews which touches the main line again at Leuchars Junction; at Markinch a branch runs to Leslie; at Ladybank there are branches to Mawcarse Junction, and to Newburgh and Perth; and at Leuchars Junction a loop line runs to Tayport and Newport, joining the main at Wormit. From the Forth Bridge the system also connects, via Dunfermline, with Alloa and Stirling in the W. and with Kinross and Perth in the N. From Dunfermline there is a branch to Charlestown, which on that account is sometimes called the port of Dunfermline.

_Population and Government._--The population was 190,365 in 1891, and 218,840 in 1901, when 844 persons spoke Gaelic and English and 3 Gaelic only. The chief towns are the Anstruthers (pop. in 1901, 4233), Buckhaven (8828), Burntisland (4846), Cowdenbeath (7908), Cupar (4511), Dunfermline (25,250), Dysart (3562), Kelty (3986), Kirkcaldy (34,079), Leslie (3587), Leven (5577), Lochgelly (5472), Lumphinnans (2071), Newport (2869), St Andrews (7621), Tayport (3325) and Wemyss (2522). For parliamentary purposes Fife is divided into an eastern and a western division, each returning one member. It also includes the Kirkcaldy district of parliamentary burghs (comprising Burntisland, Dysart, Kinghorn and Kirkcaldy), and the St Andrews district (the two Anstruthers, Crail, Cupar, Kilrenny, Pittenweem and St Andrews); while Culross, Dunfermline and Inverkeithing are grouped with the Stirling district. As regards education the county is under school-board jurisdiction, and in respect of higher education its equipment is effective. St Andrews contains several excellent schools; at Cupar there is the Bell-Baxter school; at Dunfermline and Kirkcaldy there are high schools and at Anstruther there is the Waid Academy.

_History._--In remote times the term Fife was applied to the peninsula lying between the estuaries of the Tay and Forth and separated from the rest of the mainland by the Ochil Hills. Its earliest inhabitants were Picts of the northern branch and their country was long known as Pictavia. Doubtless it was owing to the fact that the territory was long subject to the rule of an independent king that Fife itself came to be called distinctively The Kingdom, a name of which the natives are still proud. The Romans effected no settlement in the province, though it is probable that they temporarily occupied points here and there. In any case the Romans left no impression on the civilization of the natives. With the arrival of the missionaries--especially St Serf, St Kenneth, St Rule, St Adrian, St Moran and St Fillan--and conversion of the Picts went on apace. Interesting memorials of these devout missionaries exist in the numerous coast caves between Dysart and St Andrews and in the crosses and sculptured stones, some doubtless of pre-Christian origin, to be seen at various places. The word Fife, according to Skene, seems to be identical with the Jutland _Fibh_ (pronounced _Fife_) meaning "forest," and was probably first used by the Frisians to describe the country behind the coasts of the Forth and Tay, where Frisian tribes are supposed to have settled at the close of the 4th century. The next immigration was Danish, which left lasting traces in many place-names (such as the frequent use of _law_ for hill). An ancient division of the Kingdom into Fife and Fothrif survived for a period for ecclesiastical purposes. The line of demarcation ran from Leven to the east of Cults, thence to the west of Collessie and thence to the east of Auchtermuchty. To the east of this line lay Fife proper. In 1426 the first shire of Kinross was formed, consisting of Kinross and Orwell, and was enlarged to its present dimensions by the transference from Fife of the parishes of Portmoak, Cleish and Tulliebole. Although the county has lain outside of the main stream of Scottish history, its records are far from dull or unimportant. During the reigns of the earlier Stuarts, Dunfermline, Falkland and St Andrews were often the scene of solemn pageantry and romantic episodes. Out of the seventy royal burghs in Scotland no fewer than eighteen are situated in the shire. However, notwithstanding the marked preference of the Stuarts, the Kingdom did not hesitate to play the leading part in the momentous dramas of the Reformation and the Covenant, and by the 18th century the people had ceased to regard the old royal line with any but sentimental interest, and the Jacobite risings of 1715 and 1745 evoked only the most lukewarm support.

See Sir Robert Sibbald, _History of the Sheriffdoms of Fife and
Kinross_; Rev. J.W. Taylor, _Historical Antiquities of Fife_ (1875);
A.H. Millar, _Fife, Pictorial and Historical_ (Cupar, 1895); Sheriff
Aeneas Mackay, sketch of the _History of Fife_ (Edinburgh, 1890);
_History of Fife and Kinross_ (Scottish County History series)
(Edinburgh, 1896); John Geddie, _The Fringe of Fife_ (Edinburgh,
1894).

FIFE (Fr. _fifre_; Med. Ger. _Schweizerpfeiff_, _Feldpfeiff_; Ital. _ottavino_), originally the small primitive cylindrical transverse flute, now the small B[flat] military flute, usually conoidal in bore, used in a drum and fife band. The pitch of the fife lies between that of the concert flute and piccolo. The fife, like the flute, is an open pipe, for although the upper end is stopped by means of a cork, an outlet is provided by the embouchure which is never entirely closed by the lips. The six finger-holes of the primitive flute, with the open end of the tube for a key-note, gave the diatonic scale of the fundamental octave; the second octave was produced by overblowing the notes of the fundamental scale an octave higher; part of a third octave was obtained by means of the higher harmonics produced by using certain of the finger-holes as vent-holes. The modern fife has, in addition to the six finger-holes, 4, 5 or 6 keys. Mersenne describes and figures the fife, which had in his day the compass of a fifteenth.[1] The fife, which, he states, differed from the German flute only in having a louder and more brilliant tone and a shorter and narrower bore, was the instrument used by the Swiss with the drum. The sackbut, or serpent, was used as its bass, for, as Mersenne explains, the bass instrument could not be made long enough, nor could the hands reach the holes, although some flutes were actually made with keys and had the tube doubled back as in the bassoon.[2]

The words _fife_ and the Fr. _fifre_ were undoubtedly derived from the
Ger. _Pfeiff_, the fife being called by Praetorius[3]
_Schweizerpfeiff_ and _Feldpfeiff_, while Martin Agricola,[4] writing
a century earlier (1529), mentions the transverse flute by the names
of _Querchpfeiff_ or _Schweizerpfeiff_, which Sebastian Virdung[5]
writes _Zwerchpfeiff_. The Old English spelling was _phife_, _phiphe_
or _ffyffe_. The fife was in use in England in the middle of the 16th
century, for at a muster of the citizens of London in 1540, _droumes_
and ffyffes are mentioned. At the battle of St Quentin (1557) the list
of the English army[6] employed states that one trumpet was allowed to
each cavalry troop of 100 men, and a drum and fife to each hundred of
foot. A drumme and _phife_ were also employed at one shilling per diem
for the "Trayne of Artillery."[7] This was the nucleus of the modern
military band, and may be regarded as the first step in its formation.
In England the adoption of the fife as a military instrument was due
to the initiative of Henry VIII., who sent to Vienna for ten good
drums and as many fifers.[8] Ralph Smith[9] gives rules for drummers
and fifers who, in addition to the duty of giving signals in peace and
war to the company, were expected to be brave, secret and ingenious,
and masters of several languages, for they were oft sent to parley
with the enemy and were entrusted with honourable but dangerous
missions. In 1585 the drum and fife formed part of the furniture for
war among the companies of the city of London.[10] Queen Elizabeth
(according to Michaud, _Biogr. universelle_, tome xiii. p. 60) had a
peculiar taste for noisy music, and during meals had a concert of
twelve trumpets, two kettledrums, with fifes and drums. The fife
became such a favourite military instrument during the 16th and 17th
centuries in England that it displaced the bagpipe; it was, however,
in turn superseded early in the 18th century by the hautboy (see
OBOE), introduced from France. In the middle of the 18th century the
fife was reintroduced into the British army band by the duke of
Cumberland[11] in the Guards in 1745, commemorated by William
Hogarth's picture of the "March of the Guards towards Scotland in
1745," in which are seen a drummer and fifer; and by Colonel Bedford
into the royal regiment of artillery in 1748, at the end of the war,
when a Hanoverian fifer, John Ulrich, was brought over from Flanders
as instructor.[12] In 1747 the 19th regiment, known as Green Howards,
also had the advantage of a Hanoverian fifer as teacher, a youth
presented by his colonel to Lieutenant-Colonel Williams commanding the
regiment at Bois-le-Duc. Drum and fife bands in a short time became
common in all infantry regiments, while among the cavalry the trumpet
prevailed.

For the acoustics, construction and origin of the fife see FLUTE.
Illustrations of the fife may be seen in Cowdray's picture of an
encampment at Portsmouth in 1548; in Sandford's "Coronation Procession
of James II.," and in C.R. Day's _Descriptive Catalogue_, pl. i. (F)
(description No. 42, p. 27). (K. S.)

FOOTNOTES:

[1] _Harmonie universelle_ (Paris, 1636), bk. v. prop. 9, pp.
241-244.

[2] For an illustration of one of these bass flutes see article
FLUTE, Fig. 2.

[3] _Syntagma musicum_ (Wolfenbuttel, 1618), pp. 40-41 of Reprint.

[4] _Musica instrumentalis_ (Wittenberg, 1529).

[5] _Musica getutscht und auszgezogen_ (Basel, 1511).

[6] See Sir S.D. Scott, _The British Army_, vol. ii. p. 396.

[7] See H.G. Farmer, _Memoirs of the Royal Artillery Band_ (London,
1904).

[8] _Id._

[9] _Id._

[10] Stowe's _Chronicles_, p. 702.

[11] Grose, _Military Antiquities_ (London, 1801), vol. ii.

[12] See Colonel P. Forbes Macbean, _Memoirs of the Royal Regiment of
Artillery_.

FIFTH MONARCHY MEN, the name of a Puritan sect in England which for a time supported the government of Oliver Cromwell in the belief that it was a preparation for the "fifth monarchy," that is for the monarchy which should succeed the Assyrian, the Persian, the Greek and the Roman, and during which Christ should reign on earth with His saints for a thousand years. These sectaries aimed at bringing about the entire abolition of the existing laws and institutions, and the substitution of a simpler code based upon the law of Moses. Disappointed at the delay in the fulfilment of their hopes, they soon began to agitate against the government and to vilify Cromwell; but the arrest of their leaders and preachers, Christopher Feake, John Rogers and others, cooled their ardour, and they were, perforce, content to cherish their hopes in secret until after the Restoration. Then, on the 6th of January 1661, a band of fifth monarchy men, headed by a cooper named Thomas Venner, who was one of their preachers, made an attempt to obtain possession of London. Most of them were either killed or taken prisoners, and on the 19th and 21st of January Venner and ten others were executed for high treason. From that time the special doctrines of the sect either died out, or became merged in a milder form of millenarianism, similar to that which exists at the present day.

For the proceedings of the sect see S.R. Gardiner, _History of the
Commonwealth and Protectorate_, _passim_ (London, 1894-1901); and for
an account of the rising of 1661 see Sir John Reresby, _Memoirs_,
1634-1689, edited by J.J. Cartwright (London, 1875).

FIG, the popular name given to plants of the genus _Ficus_, an extensive group, included in the natural order Moraceae, and characterized by a remarkable development of the pear-shaped receptacle, the edge of which curves inwards, so as to form a nearly closed cavity, bearing the numerous fertile and sterile flowers mingled on its surface. The figs vary greatly in habit,--some being low trailing shrubs, others gigantic trees, among the most striking forms of those tropical forests to which they are chiefly indigenous. They have alternate leaves, and abound in a milky juice, usually acrid, though in a few instances sufficiently mild to be used for allaying thirst. This juice contains caoutchouc in large quantity.

1. Unripe fruit cut lengthwise; about 1/2 nat. size. 2. Female flower taken from 1; enlarged. 3. Ripe fruit cut lengthwise; about -1/2 nat. size.]

_Ficus Carica_ (figure 1), which yields the well-known figs of commerce, is a bush or small tree--rarely more than 18 or 20 ft. high,--with broad, rough, deciduous leaves, very deeply lobed in the cultivated varieties, but in the wild plant sometimes nearly entire. The green, rough branches bear the solitary, nearly sessile receptacles in the axils of the leaves. The male flowers are placed chiefly in the upper part of the cavity, and in most varieties are few in number. As it ripens, the receptacle enlarges greatly, and the numerous single-seeded pericarps or true fruits become imbedded in it. The fruit of the wild fig never acquires the succulence of the cultivated kinds. The fig seems to be indigenous to Asia Minor and Syria, but now occurs in a wild state in most of the countries around the Mediterranean. From the ease with which the nutritious fruit can be preserved, it was probably one of the earliest objects of cultivation, as may be inferred from the frequent allusions to it in the Hebrew Scriptures.[1] From a passage in Herodotus the fig would seem to have been unknown to the Persians in the days of the first Cyrus; but it must have spread in remote ages over all the districts around the Aegean and Levant. The Greeks are said to have received it from Caria (hence the specific name); but the fruit so improved under Hellenic culture that Attic figs became celebrated throughout the East, and special laws were made to regulate their exportation. From the contemptuous name given to informers against the violation of those enactments, [Greek: sukophantai (sukon, phaino)], our word sycophant is usually derived. The fig was one of the principal articles of sustenance among the Greeks; the Spartans especially used it largely at their public tables. From Hellas, at some prehistoric period, it was transplanted to Italy and the adjacent islands. Pliny enumerates many varieties, and alludes to those from Ebusus (the modern Iviza) as most esteemed by Roman epicures; while he describes those of home growth as furnishing a large portion of the food of the slaves, particularly those employed in agriculture, by whom great quantities were eaten in the fresh state at the periods of fig-harvest. In Latin myths the plant plays an important part. Held sacred to Bacchus, it was employed in religious ceremonies; and the fig-tree that overshadowed the twin founders of Rome in the wolf's cave, as an emblem of the future prosperity of the race, testified to the high value set upon the fruit by the nations of antiquity. The tree is now cultivated in all the Mediterranean countries, but the larger portion of our supply of figs comes from Asia Minor, the Spanish Peninsula and the south of France. Those of Asiatic Turkey are considered the best. The varieties are extremely numerous, and the fruit is of various colours, from deep purple to yellow, or nearly white. The trees usually bear two crops,--one in the early summer from the buds of the last year, the other in the autumn from those on the spring growth; the latter forms the chief harvest. Many of the immature receptacles drop off from imperfect fertilization, which circumstance has led, from very ancient times, to the practice of _caprification_.[2] Branches of the wild fig in flower are placed over the cultivated bushes. Certain hymenopterous insects, of the genera _Blastophaga_ and _Sycophaga_, which frequent the wild fig, enter the minute orifice of the receptacle, apparently to deposit their eggs; conveying thus the pollen more completely to the stigmas, they ensure the fertilization and consequent ripening of the fruit. By some the nature of the process has been questioned, and the better maturation of the fruit attributed merely to the stimulus given by the puncture of the insect, as in the case of the apple; but the arrangement of the unisexual flowers in the fig renders the first theory the more probable. In some districts a straw or small twig is thrust into the receptacle with a similar object. When ripe the figs are picked, and spread out to dry in the sun,--those of better quality being much pulled and extended by hand during the process. Thus prepared, the fruit is packed closely in barrels, rush baskets, or wooden boxes, for commerce. The best kind, known as elemi, are shipped at Smyrna, where the pulling and packing of figs form one of the most important industries of the people.

This fruit still constitutes a large part of the food of the natives of western Asia and southern Europe, both in the fresh and dried state. A sort of cake made by mashing up the inferior kinds serves in parts of the Archipelago as a substitute for bread. Alcohol is obtained from fermented figs in some southern countries; and a kind of wine, still made from the ripe fruit, was known to the ancients, and mentioned by Pliny under the name of _sycites_. Medicinally the fig is employed as a gentle laxative, when eaten abundantly often proving useful in chronic constipation; it forms a part of the well-known "confection of senna." The milky juice of the stems and leaves is very acrid, and has been used in some countries for raising blisters. The wood is porous and of little value; though a piece, saturated with oil and spread with emery, is in France a common substitute for a hone.

The fig is grown for its fresh fruit (eaten as an article of dessert) in all the milder parts of Europe, and in the United States, with protection in winter, succeeds as far north as Pennsylvania. The fig was introduced into England by Cardinal Pole, from Italy, early in the 16th century. It lives to a great age, and along the southern coast of England bears fruit abundantly as a standard; but in Scotland and in many parts of England a south wall is indispensable for its successful cultivation out of doors.

Fig trees are propagated by cuttings, which should be put into pots,
and placed in a gentle hotbed. They may be obtained more speedily from
layers, which should consist of two or three years old shoots, and
these, when rooted, will form plants ready to bear fruit the first or
second year after planting. The best soil for a fig border is a
friable loam, not too rich, but well drained; a chalky subsoil is
congenial to the tree, and, to correct the tendency to over-luxuriance
of growth, the roots should be confined within spaces surrounded by a
wall enclosing an area of about a square yard. The sandy soil of
Argenteuil, near Paris, suits the fig remarkably well; but the best
trees are those which grow in old quarries, where their roots are free
from stagnant water, and where they are sheltered from cold, while
exposed to a very hot sun, which ripens the fruit perfectly. The fig
succeeds well planted in a paved court against a building with a south
aspect.

The fig tree naturally produces two sets of shoots and two crops of
fruit in the season. The first shoots generally show young figs in
July and August, but these in the climate of England very seldom
ripen, and should therefore be rubbed off. The late or midsummer
shoots likewise put forth fruit-buds, which, however, do not develop
themselves till the following spring; and these form the only crop of
figs on which the British gardener can depend.

The fig tree grown as a standard should get very little pruning, the
effect of cutting being to stimulate the buds to push shoots too
vigorous for bearing. When grown against a wall, it has been
recommended that a single stem should be trained to the height of a
foot. Above this a shoot should be trained to the right, and another
to the left; from these principals two other subdivisions should be
encouraged, and trained 15 in. apart; and along these branches, at
distances of about 8 in., shoots for bearing, as nearly as possible of
equal vigour, should be encouraged. The bearing shoots produced along
the leading branches should be trained in at full length, and in
autumn every alternate one should be cut back to one eye. In the
following summer the trained shoots should bear and ripen fruit, and
then be cut back in autumn to one eye, while shoots from the bases of
those cut back the previous autumn should be trained for succession.
In this way every leading branch will be furnished alternately with
bearing and successional shoots.

When protection is necessary, as it may be in severe winters, though
it is too often provided in excess, spruce branches have been found to
answer the purpose exceedingly well, owing to the fact that their
leaves drop off gradually when the weather becomes milder in spring,
and when the trees require less protection and more light and air. The
principal part requiring protection is the main stem, which is more
tender than the young wood.

In forcing, the fig requires more heat than the vine to bring it into
leaf. It may be subjected to a temperature of 50 deg. at night, and
from 60 deg. to 65 deg. C in the day, and this should afterwards be
increased to 60 deg. and 65 deg. by night, and 70 deg. to 75 deg. by
day, or even higher by sun heat, giving plenty of air at the same
time. In this temperature the evaporation from the leaves is very
great, and this must be replaced and the wants of the swelling fruit
supplied by daily watering, by syringing the foliage, and by
moistening the floor, this atmospheric moisture being also necessary
to keep down the red spider. When the crop begins to ripen, a
moderately dry atmosphere should be maintained, with abundant
ventilation when the weather permits.

The fig tree is easily cultivated in pots, and by introducing the
plants into heat in succession the fruiting season may be
considerably extended. The plants should be potted in turfy loam mixed
with charcoal and old mortar rubbish, and in summer top-dressings of
rotten manure, with manure water two or three times a week, will be
beneficial. While the fruit is swelling, the pots should be plunged in
a bed of fermenting leaves.

The following are a few of the best figs; those marked F, are good
forcing sorts, and those marked W. suitable for walls:--

Agen: brownish-green, turbinate.

Brown Ischia, F.: chestnut-coloured, roundish-turbinate.

Brown Turkey (Lee's Perpetual), F., W.: purplish-brown, turbinate.

Brunswick, W.: brownish-green, pyriform.

Col di Signora Bianca, F.: greenish-yellow, pyriform.

Col di Signora Nero: dark chocolate, pyriform.

Early Violet, F.: brownish-purple, roundish.

Grizzly Bourjassotte: chocolate, round.

Grosse Monstreuse de Lipari: pale chestnut, turbinate.

Negro Largo, F.: black, long pyriform.

White Ischia, F.: greenish-yellow, roundish-obovate.

White Marseilles, F., W.: pale green, roundish-obovate.

The sycamore fig, _Ficus Sycomorus_, is a tree of large size, with heart-shaped leaves, which, from their fancied resemblance to those of the mulberry, gave origin to the name [Greek: Sukomoros]. From the deep shade cast by its spreading branches, it is a favourite tree in Egypt and Syria, being often planted along roads and near houses. It bears a sweet edible fruit, somewhat like that of the common fig, but produced in racemes on the older boughs. The apex of the fruit is sometimes removed, or an incision made in it, to induce earlier ripening. The ancients, after soaking it in water, preserved it like the common fig. The porous wood is only fit for fuel.

The sacred fig, peepul, or bo, _Ficus religiosa_, a large tree with heart-shaped, long-pointed leaves on slender footstalks, is much grown in southern Asia. The leaves are used for tanning, and afford lac, and a gum resembling caoutchouc is obtained from the juice; but in India it is chiefly planted with a religious object, being regarded as sacred by both Brahmans and Buddhists. The former believe that the last avatar of Vishnu took place beneath its shade. A gigantic bo, described by Sir J. Emerson Tennent as growing near Anarajapoora, in Ceylon, is, if tradition may be trusted, one of the oldest trees in the world. It is said to have been a branch of the tree under which Gautama Buddha became endued with his divine powers, and has always been held in the greatest veneration. The figs, however, hold as important a place in the religious fables of the East as the ash in the myths of Scandinavia.

_Ficus elastica_, the India-rubber tree (figure 2), the large, oblong, glossy leaves, and pink buds of which are so familiar in our greenhouses, furnishes most of the caoutchouc obtained from the East Indies. It grows to a large size, and is remarkable for the snake-like roots that extend in contorted masses around the base of the trunk. The small fruit is unfit for food.

_Ficus bengalensis_, or the Banyan, wild in parts of northern India, but generally planted throughout the country, has a woody stem, branching to a height of 70 to 100 ft. and of vast extent with heart-shaped entire leaves terminating in acute points. Every branch from the main body throws out its own roots, at first in small tender fibres, several yards from the ground; but these continually grow thicker until they reach the surface, when they strike in, increase to large trunks, and become parent trees, shooting out new branches from the top, which again in time suspend their roots, and these, swelling into trunks, produce other branches, the growth continuing as long as the earth contributes her sustenance. On the bank's of the Nerbudda stood a celebrated tree of this kind, which is supposed to be that described by Nearchus, the admiral of Alexander the Great. This tree once covered an area so immense, that it was known to shelter no fewer than 7000 men, and though much reduced in size by the destructive power of the floods, the remainder was described by James Forbes (1749-1819), in his _Oriental Memoirs_ (1813-1815) as nearly 2000 ft. in circumference, while the trunks large and small exceeded 3000 in number. The tree usually grows from seeds dropped by birds on other trees. The leaf-axil of a palm forms a frequent receptacle for their growth, the palm becoming ultimately strangled by the growth of the fig, which by this time has developed numerous daughter stems which continue to expand and cover ultimately a large area. The famous tree in the Royal Botanic Gardens, Calcutta, began its growth at the end of the 18th century on a sacred date-palm. In 1907 it had nearly 250 aerial roots, the parent trunk was 42 ft. in girth, and its leafy crown had a circumference of 857 ft.; and it was still growing vigorously. Both this tree and _F. religiosa_ cause destruction to buildings, especially in Bengal, from seeds dropped by birds germinating on the walls. The tree yields an inferior rubber, and a coarse rope is prepared from the bark and from the aerial roots.

FOOTNOTES:

[1] Of these the case of the Barren Fig-tree (Mark. xi. 12-14, 20-21:
compare Matt. xxi. 18-20), which Jesus cursed and which then withered
away, has been much discussed among theologians. The difficulty is in
Mark xi. 13: "And seeing a fig-tree afar off having leaves, he came,
if haply he might find anything thereon; and when he came to it he
found nothing but leaves, for the time of figs was not yet." These
last words obviously raise the question whether the expectation of
Jesus of finding figs, and his cursing of the tree on finding none,
were not unreasonable. Many ingenious solutions have been propounded,
by suggested emendations of the text and otherwise, for which consult
M'Clintock and Strong's _Cyclopaedia of Biblical Literature_ (_sub_
"Fig") and the _Encyclopaedia Biblica_ ("Fig-tree"); the former
demurs to the unreasonableness, and contends that the appearance of
the leaves at this season (March) indicated a pretentious precocity
in this particular fig-tree, so that Jesus was entitled to expect
that it would also have fruit, even though the season had not
arrived; the _Ency. Biblica_, on the other hand, supposes that some
"early Christian," confounding parable with history, has
misunderstood the parable in Luke xiii. 6-9, and, forgetting that the
season was not one for figs, has transformed it here into the
narrative of an act of Jesus. The probability seems to be that the
words "for the time of figs was not yet" are an unintelligent gloss
by an early reader, which has made its way into the text. For
authorities see the works mentioned above.

[2] From Lat. _caprificus_, a wild fig; O. Eng. _caprifig_.

FIGARO, a famous dramatic character first introduced on the stage by Beaumarchais in the _Barbier de Seville_, the _Mariage de Figaro_, and the _Folle Journee_. The name is said to be an old Spanish and Italian word for a wigmaker, connected with the verb _cigarrar_, to roll in paper. Many of the traits of the character are to be found in earlier comic types of the Roman and Italian stage, but as a whole the conception was marked by great originality; and Figaro soon, seized the popular imagination, and became the recognized representative of daring, clever and nonchalant roguery and intrigue. Almost immediately after its appearance, Mozart chose the _Marriage of Figaro_ as the subject of an opera, and the _Barber of Seville_ was treated first by Paisiello, and afterwards in 1816 by Rossini. In 1826 the name of the witty rogue was taken by a journal which continued till 1833 to be one of the principal Parisian periodicals, numbering among its contributors such men as Jules Janin, Paul Lacroix, Leon Gozlan, Alphonse Karr, Dr Veron, Jules Sandeau and George Sand. Various abortive attempts were made to restore the _Figaro_ during the next twenty years; and in 1854 the efforts of M. de Villemessant were crowned with success (see NEWSPAPERS: _France_).

See Marc Monnier, _Les Aieux de Figaro_ (1868); H. de Villemessant,
_Memoires d'un journaliste_ (1867).

FIGEAC, a town of south-western France, capital of an arrondissement in the department of Lot, 47 m. E.N.E. of Cahors on the Orleans railway. Pop. (1906) 4330. It is enclosed by an amphitheatre of wooded and vine-clad hills, on the right bank of the Cele, which is here crossed by an old bridge. It is ill-built and the streets are narrow and dirty; on the outskirts shady boulevards have taken the place of the ramparts by which it was surrounded. The town is very rich in old houses of the 13th and 14th centuries; among them may be mentioned the Hotel de Balene, of the 14th century, used as a prison. Another house, dating from the 15th century, was the birthplace of the Egyptologist J.F. Champollion, in memory of whom the town has erected an obelisk. The principal church is that of St Sauveur, which once belonged to the abbey of Figeac. It was built at the beginning of the 12th century, but restored later; the facade in particular is modern. Notre-Dame du Puy, in the highest part of the town, belongs to the 12th and 13th centuries. It has no transept and its aisles extend completely round the interior. The altar-screen is a fine example of carved woodwork of the end of the 17th century. Of the four obelisks which used to mark the limits of the authority of the abbots of Figeac, those to the south and the west of the town remain. Figeac is the seat of a subprefect and has a tribunal of first instance, and a communal college. Brewing, tanning, printing, cloth-weaving and the manufacture of agricultural implements are among the industries. Trade is in cattle, leather, wool, plums, walnuts and grain, and there are zinc mines in the neighbourhood.

Figeac grew up round an abbey founded by Pippin the Short in the 8th century, and throughout the middle ages it was the property of the monks. At the end of the 16th century the lordship was acquired by King Henry IV.'s minister, the duke of Sully, who sold it to Louis XIII. in 1622.

FIGUEIRA DA FOZ, or FIGUEIRA, a seaport of central Portugal, in the district of Coimbra, formerly included in the province of Beira; on the north bank of the river Mondego, at its mouth, and at the terminus of the Lisbon-Figueira and Guarda-Figueira railways. Pop. (1900) 6221. Figueira da Foz is an important fishing-station, and one of the headquarters of the coasting trade in grain, fruit, wine, olive oil, cork and coal; but owing to the bar at the mouth of the Mondego large ships cannot enter. Glass is manufactured, and the city attracts many visitors by its excellent climate and sea-bathing. A residential suburb, the Bairro Novo, exists chiefly for their accommodation, to the north-west of the old town. Figueira is connected by a tramway running 4 m. N. W. with Buarcos (pop. 5033) and with the coal-mines of Cape Mondego. Lavos (pop. 7939), on the south bank of the Mondego, was the principal landing-place of the British troops which came, in 1808, to take part in the Peninsular War. Figueira da Foz received the title and privileges of city by a decree dated the 20th of September 1882.

FIGUERAS, a town of north-eastern Spain, in the province of Gerona, 14 m. S. of the French frontier, on the Barcelona-Perpignan railway. Pop. (1900) 10,714. Figueras is built at the foot of the Pyrenees, and on the northern edge of El Ampurdan, a fertile and well-irrigated plain, which produces wine, olives and rice, and derives its name from the seaport of Ampurias, the ancient Emporiae. The castle of San Fernando, 1 m. N.W., is an irregular pentagonal structure, built by order of Ferdinand VI. (1746-1759), on the site of a Capuchin convent. Owing to its situation, and the rocky nature of the ground over which a besieger must advance, it is still serviceable as the key to the frontier. It affords accommodation for 16,000 men and is well provided with bomb-proof cover. In 1794 Figueras was surrendered to the French, but it was regained in 1795. During the Peninsular War it was taken by the French in 1808, recaptured by the Spaniards in 1811, and retaken by the French in the same year. In 1823, after a long defence, it was once more captured by the French. An annual pilgrimage from Figueras to the chapel of Nuestra Senora de Requesens, 15 m. N., commemorates the deliverance of the town from a severe epidemic of fever in 1612.

FIGULUS, PUBLIUS NIGIDIUS (c. 98-45 B.C.), Roman savant, next to Varro the most learned Roman of the age. He was a friend of Cicero, to whom he gave his support at the time of the Catilinarian conspiracy (Plutarch, _Cicero_, 20; Cicero, _Pro Sulla_, xiv. 42). In 58 he was praetor, sided with Pompey in the Civil War, and after his defeat was banished by Caesar, and died in exile. According to Cicero (_Timaeus_, 1), Figulus endeavoured with some success to revive the doctrines of Pythagoreanism. With this was included mathematics, astronomy and astrology, and even the magic arts. According to Suetonius (_Augustus_, 94) he foretold the greatness of the future emperor on the day of his birth, and Apuleius (_Apologia_, 42) records that, by the employment of "magic boys" (_magici pueri_), he helped to find a sum of money that had been lost. Jerome (the authority for the date of his death) calls him _Pythagoricus et magus_. The abstruse nature of his studies, the mystical character of his writings, and the general indifference of the Romans to such subjects, caused his works to be soon forgotten. Amongst his scientific, theological and grammatical works mention may be made of _De diis_, containing an examination of various cults and ceremonials; treatises on divination and the interpretation of dreams; on the sphere, the winds and animals. His _Commentarii grammatici_ in at least 29 books was an ill-arranged collection of linguistic, grammatical and antiquarian notes. In these he expressed the opinion that the meaning of words was natural, not fixed by man. He paid especial attention to orthography, and sought to differentiate the meanings of cases of like ending by distinctive marks (the apex to indicate a long vowel is attributed to him). In etymology he endeavoured to find a Roman explanation of words where possible (according to him _frater_ was = _fere alter_). Quintilian (_Instit. orat._ xi, 3. 143) speaks of a rhetorical treatise _De gestu_ by him.

See Cicero, _Ad Fam._ iv. 13; scholiast on Lucan i. 639; several
references in Aulus Gellius; Teuffel, _Hist. of Roman Literature_,
170; M. Hertz, De N.F. _studiis atque operibus_ (1845); _Quaestiones
Nigidianae_ (1890), and edition of the fragments (1889) by A. Swoboda.

FIGURATE NUMBERS, in mathematics. If we take the sum of n terms of the series 1 + 1 + 1 + ..., i.e. n, as the nth term of a new series, we obtain the series 1 + 2 + 3 + ..., the sum of n terms of which is 1/2 n(n + 1). Taking this sum as the nth term, we obtain the series 1 + 3 + 6 + 10 + ..., which has for the sum of n terms n(n + 1)(n + 2)/3![1] This sum is taken as the nth term of the next series, and proceeding in this way we obtain series having the following nth terms:--1, n, n(n + 1)/2!, n(n + 1) (n + 2)/3!, ... n(n + 1) ... (n + r - 2)/(r - 1)!. The numbers obtained by giving n any value in these expressions are of the first, second, third, ... or rth order of figurate numbers.

1 /| 1 /| 1 /| 1 /| 1 /| 1 /| 1 /| 1
/ | / | / | / | / | / | / |
1 /| 2 /| 3 /| 4 /| 5 /| 6 /| 7 |
/ | / | / | / | / | / |
1 /| 3 /| 6 /| 10/| 15/| 21 |
/ | / | / | / | / |
1 /| 4 /| 10/| 20/| 35 |
/ | / | / | / |
1 /| 5 /| 15/| 35 |
/ | / | / |
1 /| 6 /| 21 |
/ | / |
1 /| 7 |
/ |
1 |

Pascal treated these numbers in his _Traite du triangle arithmetique_ (1665), using them to develop a theory of combinations and to solve problems in probability. His table is here shown in its simplest form. It is to be noticed that each number is the sum of the numbers immediately above and to the left of it; and that the numbers along a line, termed a _base_, which cuts off an equal number of units along the top row and column are the coefficients in the binomial expansion of (1 + x)^(r - 1), where r represents the number of units cut off.

FOOTNOTE:

[1] The notation n! denotes the product 1 . 2 . 3.... n, and is
termed "factorial n."

FIJI (_Viti_), a British colony consisting of an archipelago in the Pacific Ocean, the most important in Polynesia, between 15 deg. and 20 deg. S., and on and about the meridian of 180 deg. The islands number about 250, of which some 80 are inhabited. The total land area is 7435 sq. m. (thus roughly equalling that of Wales), and the population is about 121,000. The principal island is Viti Levu, 98 m. in length (E. to W.) and 67 in extreme breadth, with an area of 4112 sq. m. Forty miles N.E. lies Vanua Levu, measuring 117 m. by 30, with an area of 2432 sq. m. Close off the south-eastern shore of Vanua Levu is Taviuni, 26 m. in length by 10 in breadth; Kandavu or Kadavu, 36 m. long and very narrow, is 41 m. S. of Viti Levu, and the three other main islands, lying east of Viti Levu in the Koro Sea, are Koro, Ngau or Gau, and Ovalau. South-east from Vanua Levu a loop of islets extends nearly to 20 deg. S., enclosing the Koro Sea. North-west of Viti Levu lies another chain, the Yasawa or western group; and, finally, the colony includes the island of Rotumah (q.v.), 300 m. N.W. by N. of Vanua Levu.

The formation of the larger islands is volcanic, their surface rugged, their vegetation luxuriant, and their appearance very beautiful; their hills rise often above 3000, and, in the case of a few summits, above 4000 ft., and they contrast strongly with the low coral formation of the smaller members of the group. There is not much level country, except in the coral islets, and certain rich tracts along the coasts of the two large islands, especially near the mouths of the rivers. The large islands have a considerable extent of undulating country, dry and open on their lee sides. Streams and rivers are abundant, the latter very large in proportion to the size of the islands, affording a waterway to the rich districts along their banks. These and the extensive mud flats and deltas at their mouths are often flooded, by which their fertility is increased, though at a heavy cost to the cultivator. The Rewa, debouching through a wide delta at the south-east of Viti Levu, is navigable for small vessels for 40 m. There are also in this island the Navua and Sigatoka (flowing S.), the Nandi (W.), and the Ba (N.W.). The Dreketi, flowing W., is the chief stream of Vanua Levu. It breaches the mountains in a fine valley; for this island consists practically of one long range, whereas the main valleys and ranges separating them in Viti Levu radiate for the most part from a common centre. With few exceptions the islands are surrounded by barriers of coral, broken by openings opposite the mouths of streams. Viti Levu is the most important island not only from its size, but from its fertility, variety of surface, and population, which is over one-third of that of the whole group. The town of Suva lies on an excellent harbour at the south-east of the island, and has been the capital of the colony since 1882, containing the government buildings and other offices. Vanua Levu is less fertile than Viti Levu; it has good anchorages along its entire southern coast. Of the other islands, Taviuni, remarkable for a lake (presumably a crater-lake) at the top of its lofty central ridge, is fertile, but exceptionally devoid of harbours; whereas the well-timbered island of Kandavu has an excellent one. On the eastern shore of Ovalau, an island which contains in a small area a remarkable series of gorge-like valleys between commanding hills, is the town of Levuka, the capital until 1882. It stands partly upon the narrow shore, and partly climbs the rocky slope behind. The chief islands on the west of the chain enclosing the Koro Sea are Koro, Ngau, Moala and Totoya, all productive, affording good anchorage, elevated and picturesque. The eastern islands of the chain are smaller and more numerous, Vanua Batevu (one of the Exploring Group) being a centre of trade. Among others, Mago is remarkable for a subterranean outlet of the waters of the fertile valley in its midst.

The land is of recent geological formation, the principal ranges being composed of igneous rock, and showing traces of much volcanic disturbance. There are boiling springs in Vanua Levu and Ngau, and slight shocks of earthquake are occasionally felt. The tops of many of the mountains, from Kandavu in the S.W., through Nairai and Koro, to the Ringgold group in the N.E., have distinct craters, but their activity has long ceased. The various decomposing volcanic rocks--tufas, conglomerates and basalts--mingled with decayed vegetable matter, and abundantly watered, form a very fertile soil. Most of the high peaks on the larger islands are basaltic, and the rocks generally are igneous, with occasional upheaved coral found sometimes over 1000 ft. above the sea; but certain sedimentary rocks observed on Viti Levu seem to imply a nucleus of land of considerable age. Volcanic activity in the neighbourhood is further shown by the quantities of pumice-stone drifted on to the south coasts of Kandavu and Viti Levu; malachite, antimony and graphite, gold in small quantities, and specular iron-sand occur.

_Climate._--The colony is beyond the limits of the perpetual S.E. trades, while not within the range of the N.W. monsoons. From April to November the winds are steady between S.E. and E.N.E., and the climate is cool and dry, after which the weather becomes uncertain and the winds often northerly, this being the wet warm season. In February and March heavy gales are frequent, and hurricanes sometimes occur, causing scarcity by destroying the crops. The rainfall is much greater on the windward than on the lee sides of the islands (about 110 in. at Suva), but the mean temperature is much the same, viz., about 80 deg. F. In the hills the temperature sometimes falls below 50 deg. The climate, especially from November to April, is somewhat enervating to the Englishman, but not unhealthy. Fevers are hardly known. Dysentery, which is common, and the most serious disease in the islands, is said to have been unknown before the advent of Europeans.

_Fauna._--Besides the dog and the pig, which (with the domestic fowl)
must have been introduced in early times, the only land mammals are
certain species of rats and bats. Insects are numerous, but the
species few. Bees have been introduced. The avifauna is not
remarkable. Birds of prey are few; the parrot and pigeon tribes are
better represented. Fishes, of an Indo-Malay type, are numerous and
varied; Mollusca, especially marine, and Crustaceae are also very
numerous. These three form an important element in the food supply.

_Flora._--The vegetation is mostly of a tropical Indo-Malayan
character--thick jungle with great trees covered with creepers and
epiphytes. The lee sides of the larger islands, however, have grassy
plains suitable for grazing, with scattered trees, chiefly _Pandanus_,
and ferns. The flora has also some Australian and New Zealand
affinities (resembling in this respect the New Caledonia and New
Hebrides groups), shown especially in these western districts by the
_Pandanus_, by certain acacias and others. At an elevation of about
2000 ft. the vegetation assumes a more mountainous type. Among the
many valuable timber trees are the vesi (_Afzelia bijuga_); the dilo
(_Calophyllum Inophyllum_), the oil from its seeds being much used in
the islands, as in India, in the treatment of rheumatism; the dakua
(_Dammara Vitiensis_), allied to the New Zealand kauri, and others.
The dakua or Fiji pine, however, has become scarce. Most of the fruit
trees are also valuable as timber. The native cloth (_masi_) is beaten
out from the bark of the paper mulberry cultivated for the purpose. Of
the palms the cocoanut is by far the most important. The yasi or
sandal-wood was formerly a valuable product, but is now rarely found.
There are various useful drugs, spices and perfumes; and many plants
are cultivated for their beauty, to which the natives are keenly
alive. Among the plants used as pot-herbs are several ferns, and two
or three Solanums, one of which, _S. anthropophagorum_, was one of
certain plants always cooked with human flesh, which was said to be
otherwise difficult of digestion. The use of the kava root, here
called yanggona, from which the well-known national beverage is made,
is said to have been introduced from Tonga. Of fruit trees, besides
the cocoanut, there may be mentioned the many varieties of the
bread-fruit, of bananas and plantains, of sugar-cane and of lemon; the
wi (_Spondias dulcis_), the kavika (_Eugenia malaccensis_), the ivi or
Tahitian chestnut (_Inocarpus edulis_), the pine-apple and others
introduced in modern times. Edible roots are especially abundant. The
chief staple of life is the yam, the names of several months in the
calendar having reference to its cultivation and ripening. The natives
use no grain or pulse, but make a kind of bread (_mandrai_) from this,
the taro, and other roots, as well as from the banana (which is the
best), the bread-fruit, the ivi, the kavika, the arrowroot, and in
times of scarcity the mangrove. This bread is made by burying the
materials for months, till the mass is thoroughly fermented and
homogeneous, when it is dug up and cooked by baking or steaming. This
simple process, applicable to such a variety of substances, is a
valuable security against famine.

_People._--The Fijians are a people of Melanesian (Papuan) stock much crossed with Polynesians (Tongans and Samoans). They occupy the extreme east limits of Papuan territory and are usually classified as Melanesians; but they are physically superior to the pure examples of that race, combining their dark colour, harsh hirsute skin, crisp hair, which is bleached with lime and worn in an elaborately trained mop, and muscular limbs, with the handsome features and well proportioned bodies of the Polynesians. They are tall and well built. The features are strongly marked, but not unpleasant, the eyes deep set, the beard thick and bushy. The chiefs are fairer, much better-looking, and of a less negroid type of face than the people. This negroid type is especially marked on the west coasts, and still more in the interior of Viti Levu. The Fijians have other characteristics of both Pacific races, e.g. the quick intellect of the fairer, and the savagery and suspicion of the dark. They wear a minimum of covering, but, unlike the Melanesians, are strictly decent, while they are more moral than the Polynesians. They are cleanly and particular about their personal appearance, though, unlike other Melanesians, they care little for ornament, and only the women are tattooed. A partial circumcision is practised, which is exceptional with the Melanesians, nor have these usually an elaborate political and social system like that of Fiji. The status of the women is also somewhat better, those of the upper class having considerable freedom and influence. If less readily amenable to civilizing influences than their neighbours to the eastward, the Fijians show greater force of character and ingenuity. Possessing the arts of both races they practise them with greater skill than either. They understand the principle of division of labour and production, and thus of commerce. They are skilful cultivators and good boat-builders, the carpenters being an hereditary caste; there are also tribes of fishermen and sailors; their mats, baskets, nets, cordage and other fabrics are substantial and tasteful; their pottery, made, like many of the above articles, by women, is far superior to any other in the South Seas; but many native manufactures have been supplanted by European goods.

The Fijians were formerly notorious for cannibalism, which may have had its origin in religion, but long before the first contact with Europeans had degenerated into gluttony. The Fijian's chief table luxury was human flesh, euphemistically called by him "long pig," and to satisfy his appetite he would sacrifice even friends and relatives. The Fijians combined with this greediness a savage and merciless nature. Human sacrifices were of daily occurrence. On a chief's death wives and slaves were buried alive with him. When building a chief's house a slave was buried alive in the hole dug for each foundation post. At the launching of a war-canoe living men were tied hand and foot between two plantain stems making a human ladder over which the vessel was pushed down into the water. The people acquiesced in these brutal customs, and willingly met their deaths. Affection and a firm belief in a future state, in which the exact condition of the dying is continued, are the Fijians' own explanations of the custom, once universal, of killing sick or aged relatives. Yet in spite of this savagery the Fijians have always been remarkable for their hospitality, open-handedness and courtesy. They are a sensitive, proud, if vindictive, and boastful people, with good conversational and reasoning powers, much sense of humour, tact and perception of character. Their code of social etiquette is minute and elaborate, and the graduations of rank well marked. These are (1) chiefs, greater and lesser; (2) priests; (3) _Mata ni Vanua_ (lit., eyes of the land), employes, messengers or counsellors; (4) distinguished warriors of low birth; (5) common people; (6) slaves.