Chapter C: D E F G a B C' D' E' F' G' (10)

ALLU'VIUM (Lat. _alluvium_--_ad_, to, and _luo_, to wash), deposits of soil collected by the action of water, such as are found in valleys and plains, consisting of loam, clay, gravel, &c., washed down from the higher grounds. Great alterations are often produced by alluvium--deltas and whole islands being often formed by this cause. Much of the rich land along the banks of rivers is alluvial in its origin. There are great tracts of alluviums lying along the banks of the Derwent, the Ouse, and the Trent, and the Romney Marsh of Kent along the banks of the Thames.

ALLYGURH. See _Aligarh_.

ALMA, a small river of Russia, in the Crimea, celebrated from the victory gained by the allied British and French over the Russians, 20th Sept., 1854.

AL'MACK'S, the name formerly given to certain assembly-rooms in King Street, St. James's, London, derived from Almack, a tavern-keeper, by whom they were built, and whose real name is said to have been McCall, of which Almack is an anagram; afterwards called _Willis's Rooms_. They were first opened about 1770, and became famous for the extreme exclusiveness displayed by the lady patronesses in regard to the admission of applicants for tickets to the balls held here--only those of the most assured social standing being admitted. They were turned into a restaurant in 1890.

ALMA'DA, a town of Portugal, on the Tagus, opposite Lisbon. Pop. 7913.

AL'MADEN, a place in California, United States, about 60 miles S.E. of San Francisco, with rich quicksilver-mines, the product of which has been largely employed in gold and silver mining.

ALMADEN', a town of Spain, province of Ciudad-Real, celebrated both in ancient and modern times for its mines of quicksilver (in the form of cinnabar). Pop. 7410.

ALMADEN PROCESS. See _Mercury_.

AL'MAGEST (Ar. _al_, the, and Gr. _megist[=e]_, greatest, _sc._ 'treatise') the name of a celebrated astronomical work composed by Claudius Ptolemy.

ALMA'GRO, an old town of Spain, province of Ciudad-Real (New Castile), with important lace manufactures. Pop. 7700.

ALMA'GRO, Diego de, Spanish 'Conquistador', a foundling, born in 1475, killed 1538. He took part with Pizarro in the conquest of Peru, and after frequent disputes with Pizarro about their respective shares in their conquests led an expedition against Chile, which he failed to conquer. On his return a struggle took place between him and Pizarro, in which Almagro was finally overcome, taken prisoner, strangled, and afterwards beheaded. He was avenged by his son, born in 1520, who raised an insurrection, in which Pizarro was assassinated, in 1541. The younger Almagro was put to death at Cuzco in 1542 by De Castro, the new Viceroy of Peru.

ALMALEE', a town of Asia Minor, 50 miles from Adalia, with thriving manufactures and a considerable trade. Pop. 3500.

AL'MA MA'TER (Lat., fostering or bounteous mother), a term familiarly applied to their own university by those who have had a university education.

AL-MAMUN (m[.a]-m[:o]n'), a caliph of the Abasside dynasty, son of Harun-al-Rashid, born 786, died 833. Under him Bagdad became a great centre of art and science.

AL'MANAC, a calendar, in which are set down the rising and setting of the sun, the phases of the moon, the most remarkable positions and phenomena of the heavenly bodies, for every month and day of the year; also the several fasts and feasts to be observed in the Church and State, &c., and often much miscellaneous information likely to be useful to the public. The term is of Arabic origin, but the Arabs were not the first to use almanacs, which indeed existed from remote ages. In England they are known from the fourteenth century, there being several English almanacs of this century existing in MS. They became generally used in Europe within a short time after the invention of printing; and they were very early remarkable, as some are still, for the mixture of truth and falsehood which they contained. Their effects in France were found so mischievous, from the pretended prophecies which they published, that an edict was promulgated by Henry III in 1579 forbidding any predictions to be inserted in them relating to civil affairs, whether those of the State or of private persons. In the reign of James I of England letters-patent were granted to the two universities and the Stationers' Company for an exclusive right of printing almanacs, but in 1775 this monopoly was abolished. During the civil war of Charles I, and thence onward, English almanacs were conspicuous for the unblushing boldness of their astrological predictions, and their determined perpetuation of popular errors. The most famous English almanac was _Poor Robin's Almanack_, which was published from 1663 to 1775. Gradually, however, a better taste began to prevail, and in 1828 the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge, by publishing the _British Almanac_, had the merit of taking the lead in the production of an unexceptionable almanac in Great Britain. The example thus set has been almost universally adopted. The circulation of almanacs continued to be much cramped by the very heavy duty of one shilling and threepence per copy till 1834, when this duty was abolished. About 200 new almanacs were started immediately on the repeal. Almanacs, from their periodical character, and the frequency with which they are referred to, are now more and more used as vehicles for conveying statistical and other useful information, some being intended for the inhabitants of a particular country or district, others for a particular class or party. Some of the almanacs that are regularly published every year are extremely useful, and are indeed almost indispensable to men engaged in official, mercantile, literary, or professional business. Such in Great Britain are _Thom's Official Directory of the United Kingdom_, _The British Almanac_, _Oliver and Boyd's New Edinburgh Almanac_, and _Whitaker's Almanac_, started in 1868. In the United States is published _The American Almanac_, a useful compilation. The _Almanach de Gotha_, which has appeared at Gotha since 1764, contains in small bulk a wonderful quantity of information regarding the reigning families and Governments, the finances, commerce, population, &c., of the different States throughout the world. Since 1871 it is published both in a French and in a German edition. Among French almanacs the most famous was the _Almanach Liegeois_, whilst the _Almanach National_, first published in 1679 as _Almanach Royal_, is the most important of modern almanacs in France. Almanacs that pretend to foretell the weather and occurrences of various kinds are still popular in Britain, France, and elsewhere.--_The Nautical Almanac_ is an important work published annually by the British Government, two or three years in advance, in which is contained much useful astronomical matter, more especially the distances of the moon from the sun, and from certain fixed stars, for every three hours of apparent time, adapted to the meridian of the Royal Observatory, Greenwich. By comparing these with the distances carefully observed at sea the mariner may, with comparative ease, infer his longitude to a degree of accuracy unattainable in any other way, and sufficient for most nautical purposes. This almanac was commenced in 1767 by Dr. Maskelyne, Astronomer Royal. The French _Connaissance des Temps_ is published for the same purpose as the English _Nautical Almanac_, and nearly on the same plan. It commenced in 1679. Of a similar character is the _Astronomisches Jahrbuch_ published at Berlin.

ALMAN'DINE, a mineral of a reddish or violet colour, a variety of precious or noble garnet.

ALMAN'SA, a town of south-eastern Spain (Murcia), near which was fought (25th April, 1707) a decisive battle in the War of the Spanish Succession, when the French, under the Duke of Berwick, defeated the Anglo-Spanish army under the Earl of Galway. Pop. 11,887.

ALMAN'ZUR, or ALMANSUR, a caliph of the Abasside dynasty, reigned 754-75. He was cruel and treacherous and a persecutor of the Christians, but a patron of learning.

ALMA-TAD'EMA, Sir Lawrence, Dutch painter, born in 1836, resided since 1870 in England, where he became a naturalized subject. He was made A.R.A. in 1876, R.A. in 1879, knighted in 1899, and awarded the Order of Merit in 1905. He died at Wiesbaden, 25th June, 1912. He is especially celebrated for his pictures of ancient Roman, Greek, and Egyptian life, which are painted with great realism and archaeological correctness.

AL'MEH, the name given in Egypt to a class of girls whose profession is to sing for the amusement of the upper classes, as distinguished from the _gawasi_, who perform before the lower classes. They perform at feasts and other entertainments (including funerals), and many of them are skilful improvisatrici. One of their most famous dances is called 'The Bee'.

ALMEIDA ([.a]l-m[=a]'i-d[.a]), one of the strongest fortresses in Portugal, in the province of Beira, near the Spanish border, on the Coa. Pop. 2350. Taken by Massena from the English in 1810, retaken by Wellington in 1811.

ALMEIDA (d[.a]l-m[=a]'i-d[.a]), Francisco d', first Portuguese viceroy of India, son of the Conde de Abrantes, born about the middle of the fifteenth century. He fought with renown against the Moors, and being appointed governor of the new Portuguese settlements on the African and Indian coasts, he sailed for India in 1505, accompanied by his son Lorenzo and other eminent men. In Africa he took possession of Quiloa and Mombas, and in the East he conquered Cananor, Cochin, Calicut, &c., and established forts and factories. His son Lorenzo discovered the Maldives and Madagascar, but perished in an attack made on him by a fleet sent by the Sultan of Egypt, with the aid of the Porte and the Republic of Venice. Having signally defeated the Mussulmans (1508), and avenged his son, and being superseded by Albuquerque, he sailed for Portugal, but was killed in a skirmish on the African coast in 1510.

ALMELO', a town of Holland, province of Overyssel, on the Vechte; with manufactures of linen. Pop. 7360.

ALMENDRALEJO (-[=a]'h[=o]), a town of Spain, province of Badajoz, in a district rich in grain, wine, and fruits, with many brandy distilleries. Pop. 12,587.

ALMERIA ([.a]l-m[=a]-r[=e]'[.a]), a fortified seaport of Southern Spain, capital of province of Almeria, near the mouth of a river and on the gulf of same name, with no building of consequence except a Gothic cathedral, but with a large trade, exporting grapes, iron ore, lead, esparto, &c. The province, which has an area of 3360 sq. miles, is generally mountainous, and rich in minerals. Pop. of town, 48,614; of province, 393,689.

ALMODO'VAR, a town of Spain, province of Ciudad-Real (New Castile), near the Sierra Morena. Pop. 12,640.

ALMOHADES (al'mo-h[=a]dz), a Moorish dynasty that ruled in Africa and Spain in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, founded by Mohammed Ibn Tumart, a religious enthusiast, who assumed the title of _Mahdi_. They overthrew the Almoravides in Spain, but themselves received a defeat in 1212 from which they did not recover, and in 1269 were overthrown in Africa, when Idris El-Wathik, their last emir, was murdered by a slave.

AL-MOKANNA. See _Mokanna_.

ALMOND ([.a]'mund), the fruit of the almond tree (_Amygd[)a]lus comm[=u]nis_), a tree which grows usually to the height of 20 feet, and is akin to the peach, nectarine, &c. (ord. Rosaceae). It has beautiful pinkish flowers that appear before the leaves, which are oval, pointed, and delicately serrated. It is a native of Africa and Asia, naturalized in Southern Europe, and cultivated in England for its beauty, as it seldom produces edible fruit even in the warmer portions of Southern England. The fruit is a drupe, ovoid, and with downy outer surface; the fleshy covering is tough and fibrous; it covers the compressed wrinkled stone enclosing the seed or almond within it. There are two varieties, one sweet and the other bitter; both are produced from _A. communis_, though from different varieties. Most of the sweet almonds imported into Britain come from Southern Europe, the Levant, and California, the finest being the Valencian, Jordan, and Malaga. They contain a bland fixed oil, consisting chiefly of olein. Bitter almonds come from Mogador, and besides a fixed oil they contain a substance called _emulsin_, and also a bitter crystalline substance called _amygdalin_, which, acting on the emulsin, produces prussic acid, whence the aroma of bitter almonds when mixed with water. _Almond-oil_, a bland fixed oil, is expressed from the kernels of either sweet or bitter almonds, and is used by perfumers and in medicine. A poisonous essential oil is obtained from bitter almonds, which is used for flavouring by cooks and confectioners, also by perfumers and in medicine. The name _almond_, with a qualifying word prefixed, is also given to the seeds of other species of plants; thus _Java almonds_ are the kernels of _Canarium commune_.

ALMONDBURY ([.a]'mund-be-ri), a town of England, West Riding of Yorkshire, S.E. of Huddersfield, in which it is now included, with manufactures of woollens, cotton and silk goods.

AL'MONER, an officer of a religious establishment to whom belonged the distribution of alms. The grand almoner (_grand aumonier_) of France was the highest ecclesiastical dignitary in that kingdom before the revolution. The lord almoner, or lord high almoner of England, is generally a bishop, whose office is well-nigh a sinecure. He distributes the sovereign's doles to the poor on Maundy Thursday.

ALMO'RA, a town and fortress of India, in the United Provinces, capital of Kumaon, 170 miles E.N.E. of Delhi, a thriving little place. Pop. about 10,560.

ALMO'RAVIDES (-v[=i]dz), a Moorish dynasty which arose in North-Western Africa in the eleventh century, and reigned from 1055-1147. The town of Marrakesh, built in 1062, became the capital of this dynasty. Having crossed the Straits of Gibraltar, the family gained possession of all Arabic Spain, but was overthrown by the Almohades in the following century.

AL'MUG (or AL'GUM) TREE, names which occur in _1 Kings_, x, 11, 12, and _2 Chron_., ii, 8, and ix, 10, 11, as the names of trees of which the wood was used for pillars in the temple and the king's house, for harps and psalteries, &c. They are said in one passage to be hewn in Lebanon, in another to be brought from Ophir. They have been identified by critics with the red sandalwood of India. Some of them may possibly have been transplanted to Lebanon by the Phoenicians.

ALMUNECAR ([.a]l-m[u:]n-ye-k[:a]r'), a seaport of Spain, Granada, on the Mediterranean. Pop. 8000.

AL'NAGER, formerly, in England, an official whose duty it was to inspect, measure, and stamp woollen cloth.

AL'NUS. See _Alder_.

ALNWICK (an'ik), a town of England, county town of Northumberland, 34 miles north of Newcastle, near the Aln. It is well built, and carries on tanning, brewing, and a general trade. The town is famous for the curious ceremonies which take place there annually during the election of the common council (25th March). Alnwick Castle, residence of the Dukes of Northumberland, for many centuries a fortress of great strength, stands close to the town. Pop. (1921), 6991.

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ALOE (al'[=o]), the name of a number of plants belonging to the genus Aloe (ord. Liliaceae), some of which are not more than a few inches, whilst others are 30 feet and upwards in height; natives of South Africa and Socotra; leaves fleshy, thick, and more or less spinous at the edges or extremity; flowers with a tubular corolla. Some of the larger kinds are of great use, the fibrous parts of the leaves being made into cordage, fishing nets and lines, cloth, &c. The inspissated juice of several species is used in medicine, under the name of _aloes_, forming a bitter purgative. The medicinal value of bitter aloes was known to the Greeks in the fourth century B.C. According to the Arabian historian Edrisi, the occupation of Socotra by the Macedonians was due to Aristotle's persuading Alexander the Great to secure the monopoly of the supplies of the drug. The drug is said to have been commended to Alfred the Great by the Patriarch of Jerusalem, but a direct trade in it between Socotra and Britain was opened only in the seventeenth century. The principal drug-producing species are the Socotrine aloe (_A. Socotr[=i]na_); the Barbados aloe (_A. vulg[=a]ris_), first imported into Britain in 1693; the Cape aloe (_A. spic[=a]ta_), 1780; and Natal aloes, 1870; &c. A beautiful violet colour is yielded by the leaves of the Socotrine aloe. The American aloe (see _Agave_) is a different plant altogether; as are also the aloes or lign-aloes of Scripture, which are supposed to be the _Aquilaria Agall[)o]chum_, or aloes-wood (q. v.). _Aloe fibre_ is obtained from species of Aloe, Agave, Yucca, &c., and is made into coarse fabrics, ropes, &c.

ALOES-WOOD, EAGLE-WOOD, or AGILAWOOD, the inner portion of the trunk of _Aquil[=a]ria ov[=a]ta_ and _A. Agall[)o]chum_, forest trees belonging to the ord. Aquilariaceae, found in tropical Asia, and yielding a fragrant resinous substance, which, as well as the wood, is burned for its perfume. Another tree, the _Aloex[)y]lon Agall[)o]chum_ (ord. Leguminosae), also produces aloes-wood. This wood is supposed to be the lign-aloes (a corruption of the Lat. _lignum aloe_) of the Bible.

ALOPE'CIA, a variety of baldness in which the hair falls off from the beard and eyebrows, as well as the scalp.

ALOPECU'RUS, a genus of grasses. See _Foxtail-grass_.

ALO'RA, a town of Southern Spain, province of Malaga. Pop. 6200.

ALOST, or AALST ([:a]'lost, [:a]lst), a town of Belgium, 15 miles W.N.W. of Brussels, on the Dender (here navigable), with a beautiful, though unfinished, church, and an ancient town hall (thirteenth century); manufactures of lace, thread, linen and cotton goods, &c., and a considerable trade. In the market-place stands a statue of Thierry Maartens, who introduced the art of typography into the Netherlands in 1473. The town was occupied by the Germans in 1914. Pop. 35,603.

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ALPAC'A, a ruminant mammal of the camel tribe, and genus Auch[=e]nia (_A. Paco_), a native of the Andes, especially of the mountains of Chile and Peru, and closely allied to the llama. Llamas and alpacas are mutually fertile when crossed, and this explains the existence of intermediate forms between the two breeds. It has been domesticated, and remains also in a wild state. In form and size it approaches the sheep, but has a longer neck. It is valued chiefly for its long, soft, and silky wool, which is straighter than that of the sheep, and very strong, and is woven into fabrics of great beauty, used for shawls, clothing for warm climates, coat-linings, and umbrellas, and known by the same name. Cloth made from imported alpaca wool is manufactured in England, principally in Yorkshire. Attempts have been made to introduce and acclimatize the alpaca in Europe and in Australia, but no measure of success has attended the experiments. Its flesh is pleasant and wholesome.

ALPE'NA, a town of the United States, Michigan, at the entrance of the Thunder into Lake Huron, with saw-mills, woollen factories, &c. Pop. 12,706.

ALPEN-HORN, or ALP-HORN (Ger.), a long, nearly-straight horn, curving slightly, and widening towards its extremity, used in the Alps to convey signals, or notice of something.

ALPEN-STOCK (Ger.), a strong, tall stick shod with iron, pointed at the end so as to take hold in, and give support on, ice and other dangerous places in climbing the Alps and other high mountains.

ALPES ([.a]lp), the name of three departments in the south-east of France, all more or less covered by the Alps or their offshoots:--_Basses-Alpes_ (b[:a]s-[.a]lp; Lower Alps) has mountains rising to a height of 8000 to 10,000 feet, is drained by the Durance and its tributaries, and is the most thinly-peopled department in France; area, 2697 sq. miles; capital, Digne. Pop. (1921), 91,882.--_Hautes-Alpes_ ([=o]t-[.a]lp; Upper Alps), mostly formed out of ancient Dauphine, traversed by the Cottian and Dauphine Alps (highest summits 12,000 feet), drained chiefly by the Durance and its tributaries. It is the lowest department in France in point of absolute population; area, 2178 sq. miles; capital, Gap. Pop. (1921), 89,275.--_Alpes-Maritimes_ ([.a]lp-m[.a]-ri-t[=e]m; Maritime Alps) has the Mediterranean on the south, and mainly consists of the territory of Nice, ceded to France by Italy in 1860. The greater part of the surface is covered by the Maritime Alps; the principal river is the Var. It produces in the south, cereals, vines, olives, oranges, citrons, and other fruits; and there are manufactories of perfumes, liqueurs, soap, &c., and valuable fisheries. It is a favourite resort for invalids; area, 1443 sq. miles; capital, Nice. Pop. 357,759.

AL'PHA and O'MEGA, the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, sometimes used to signify the beginning and the end, or the first and the last of anything; also as a symbol of the Divine Being (_Rev._ i, 8; xxi, 6; xxii, 13). They were also formerly the symbol of Christianity, and engraved accordingly on the tombs of the ancient Christians. Some of these engravings are to be seen in the Louvre.

AL'PHABET (from _Alpha_ and _Beta_, the two first letters of the Greek alphabet), the series of characters used in writing a language, and intended to represent the sounds of which it consists. The English alphabet, like most of those of modern Europe, is derived directly from the Latin, the Latin from the ancient Greek, and that from the Phoenician, which again is believed to have had its origin in the Egyptian hieroglyphics, although Egyptologists are not unanimous on this point. There is little evidence in support of the theory that the Phoenician alphabet had developed from the Assyrian cuneiform. Some scholars, like Sir Arthur Evans, are of opinion that the Philistines established on the coast of Palestine had brought the alphabet over from Crete, and that from them it passed to the Phoenicians. The names of the letters in Phoenician and Hebrew must have been almost the same, for the Greek names, which, with the letters, were borrowed from the former, differ little from the Hebrew. By means of the names we may trace the process by which the Egyptian characters were transformed into letters by the Phoenicians. Some Egyptian character would, by its form, recall the idea of a house, for example, in Phoenician or Hebrew _beth_. This character would subsequently come to be used wherever the sound b occurred. Its form might be afterwards simplified, or even completely modified, but the name would still remain, as _beth_ still continues the Hebrew name for b, and _beta_ the Greek. Our letter m, which in Hebrew was called _mim_, water, has still a considerable resemblance to the zig-zag wavy line which had been chosen to represent water, as in the zodiacal symbol for _Aquarius_. The letter o, of which the Hebrew name means eye, no doubt was originally intended to represent that organ. While the ancient Greek alphabet gave rise to the ordinary Greek alphabet and the Latin, the Greek alphabet of later times furnished elements for the Coptic, the Gothic, and the old Slavic alphabets. The Latin characters are now employed by a great many nations, such as the Italian, the French, the Spanish, the Portuguese, the English, the Dutch, the German, the Hungarian, the Polish, &c., each nation having introduced such modifications or additions as are necessary to express the sound of the language peculiar to it. The Greek alphabet originally possessed only sixteen letters, though the Phoenician had twenty-two. The original Latin alphabet, as it is found in the oldest inscriptions, consisted of twenty-one letters; namely, the vowels a, e, i, o, and u (v), and the consonants b, c, d, f, h, k, l, m, n, p, q, r, s, t, x, z. The Anglo-Saxon alphabet had two characters for the digraph th, which were unfortunately not retained in later English; it had also the character ae. It wanted j, v, y (consonant), and z. The German alphabet consists of the same letters as the English, but the sounds of some of them are different. Anciently certain characters called _Runic_ were made use of by the Teutonic nations, to which some would attribute an origin independent of the Greek and Latin alphabets. Wimmer, the Danish scholar, is, however, of opinion that the _runes_ were developed from the Latin alphabet. While the alphabets of the west of Europe are derived from the Latin, the Russian, which is very complete, is based on the Greek, with some characters borrowed from the Armenian, &c; it is called _azbouka_, from the first two letters _az_, a, and _bouki_, b. Among Asiatic alphabets, the Arabian (ultimately of Phoenician origin) has played a part analogous to that of the Latin in Europe, the conquests of Mohammedanism having imposed it on the Persian, the Turkish, the Hindustani, &c. The Sanskrit or Devan[=a]gari alphabet is one of the most remarkable alphabets of the world. As now used it has fourteen characters for the vowels and diphthongs, and thirty-three for the consonants, besides two other symbols. Our alphabet is a very imperfect instrument for what it has to perform, being both defective and redundant. An alphabet is not essential to the writing of a language, since ideograms or symbols may be used instead, as in Chinese. See _Writing_.--BIBLIOGRAPHY: E. Clodd, _The Alphabet_ (Useful Knowledge Series, Hodder & Stoughton); Canon J. Taylor, _The Alphabet_; Philippe Berger, _Histoire de l'Ecriture dans l'Antiquite_.

ALPH[=E]'US (now RUFIA), the largest river of Peloponnesus, flowing westwards into the Ionian Sea. In Greek mythology Alph[=e]us is supposed to have been the son of Oceanus and Tethys.

ALPHON'SO, the name of a number of Portuguese and Spanish kings. Among the former may be mentioned ALPHONSO I, the Conqueror, first King of Portugal, son of Henry of Burgundy, the Conqueror and first Count of Portugal; born 1110, fought successfully against the Spaniards and the Moors, named himself King of Portugal, and was as such recognized by the Pope; died 1185.--ALPHONSO V, the African, born in 1432; succeeded his father, Edward I, 1438; conquered Tangiers in 1471; died 1481. During his reign Prince Henry the Navigator continued the important voyages of discovery already begun by the Portuguese. Under him was drawn up an important code of laws.--Among kings of Spain may be mentioned ALPHONSO X, King of Castile and Leon, surnamed the _Astronomer_, the _Philosopher_, or the _Wise_ (El Sabio); born in 1226; succeeded in 1252. Being grandson of Philip of Hohenstaufen, son of Frederick Barbarossa, he endeavoured to have himself elected Emperor of Germany, and in 1257 succeeded in dividing the election with Richard, Earl of Cornwall. On Richard's death in 1272 he again unsuccessfully contested the imperial crown. Meantime his throne was endangered by conspiracies of the nobles and the attacks of the Moors. The Moors he conquered, but his domestic troubles were less easily overcome, and he was finally dethroned by his son Sancho, and died two years after, 1284. Alphonso was the most learned prince of his age. Under his direction or superintendence were drawn up a celebrated code of laws, valuable astronomical tables which go under his name (_Alphonsine Tables_), the first general history of Spain in the Castilian tongue, and a Spanish translation of the Bible.--ALPHONSO V of Aragon, I of Naples and Sicily, born in 1385, was the son of Ferdinand I of Aragon, the throne of which he ascended in 1416, ruling also over Sicily and the Island of Sardinia. Queen Joanna of Naples made him her heir, but after her death in 1435 her will was disputed by Rene of Anjou. Alphonso now proceeded to take possession of Naples by force, which he succeeded in doing in 1442, and reigned till his death in 1458. He was an enlightened patron of literary men, by whom, in the latter part of his reign, his Court was thronged.--ALPHONSO XII, King of Spain, the only son of Queen Isabella II and her cousin Francis of Assisi, was born in 1857 and died in 1885. He left Spain with his mother when she was driven from the throne by the revolution of 1868, and till 1874 resided partly in France, partly in Austria. In the latter year he studied for a time at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, being then known as Prince of the Asturias. His mother had given up her claims to the throne in 1870 in his favour, and in 1874 Alphonso came forward himself as claimant, and in the end of the year was proclaimed by General Martinez Campos as king. He now passed over into Spain and was enthusiastically received, most of the Spaniards being by this time tired of the republican Government, which had failed to put down the Carlist party. Alphonso was successful in bringing the Carlist struggle to an end (1876), and henceforth he reigned with little disturbance. His minister Canovas del Castillo ruined, however, Alphonso's popularity when he advised the king to conclude an alliance with Bismarck and Germany. He married first his cousin Maria de las Mercedes, daughter of the Duc de Montpensier; second, Maria Christina, Archduchess of Austria, whom he left a widow with two daughters and a son.--ALPHONSO XIII, King of Spain, born in 1886, the posthumous son of Alphonso XII. His mother was appointed regent during his minority, and acted as such until 1902. On attaining his sixteenth year, the king assumed personal charge of the Government. In 1906 (31st May) he married Princess Ena, daughter of Princess Henry of Battenberg, a daughter of Queen Victoria.

ALPINE CLUB, an association of English gentlemen, originating in 1856 or 1857, having as their common bond of union a delight in making the ascent of mountains, in the Alps or elsewhere, difficult to ascend, and in investigating everything connected with mountains. Similar associations now exist in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and France.

ALPINE CROW, or ALPINE CHOUGH (_Pyrrhoc[)o]rax alp[=i]nus_), a European bird closely akin to the chough of England.

ALPINE MUSEUM, a museum established at Munich in 1911 by the German and Austrian Alpine Club. Its purpose is to spread knowledge about the Alps, and to disseminate the results of scientific research by means of exhibits and literary publications. Not only alpine geology, botany, and zoology, but also industry, custom, and costumes are well demonstrated in the exhibits.

ALPINE PLANTS, the name given to those plants whose habitat is in the neighbourhood of the snow, on mountains partly covered with it all the year round. As the height of the snow-line varies according to the latitude and local conditions, so also does the height at which these plants grow. The mean height for the alpine plants of Central Europe is about 6000 feet; but it rises in parts of the Alps and in the Pyrenees to 9000 feet, or even more. The high grounds clear of snow among these mountains present a very well marked flora, the general characters of the plants being a low dwarfish habit, a tendency to form thick turfs, stems partly or wholly woody, and large brilliantly-coloured and often very sweet-smelling flowers. They are also often closely covered with woolly hairs. In the Alps of Middle Europe the eye is at once attracted by gentians, saxifrages, rhododendrons, primroses of different kinds, &c. Ferns and mosses of many kinds also characterize these regions. Some alpine plants are found only in one locality. Considerable success has attended the attempt to grow alpine plants in gardens, the first necessity being a situation where there is plenty of sunlight, and which is free from the shade of trees.

ALPINE WARBLER (_Accentor alp[=i]nus_), a European bird of the same genus as the hedge-sparrow.

ALPIN'IA, a genus of plants. See _Galanga_.

ALPS, the highest and most extensive system of mountains in Europe, included between lat. 44deg and 48deg N., and long. 5deg and 18deg E., covering great part of Northern Italy, several departments of France, nearly the whole of Switzerland, and a large part of Austria, while its extensive ramifications connect it with nearly all the mountain systems of Europe. The culminating peak is Mont Blanc, 15,781 feet high, though the true centre is the St. Gothard, or the mountain mass to which it belongs, and from whose slopes flow, either directly or by affluents, the great rivers of Central Europe--the Danube, Rhine, Rhone, and Po. Round the northern frontier of Italy the Alps form a remarkable barrier, shutting it off from the mainland of Europe, so that formerly it could hardly be approached from France, Germany, or Switzerland, except through high and difficult passes. In the west this barrier approaches close to the Mediterranean coast, and near Nice there is left a free passage into the Italian peninsula between the mountains and the sea. From this point eastward the chain proceeds along the coast till it forms a junction with the Apennines. In the opposite direction it proceeds north-west, and afterwards north to Mont Blanc, on the boundaries of France and Italy; it then turns north-east and runs generally in this direction to the Gross Glockner, in Central Tyrol, between the Rivers Drave and the Salza, where it divides into two branches, the northern proceeding north-east towards Vienna, the southern towards the Balkan Peninsula. The principal valleys of the Alps run mostly in a direction nearly parallel with the principal ranges, and therefore east and west. The transverse valleys are commonly shorter, and frequently lead up through a narrow gorge to a depression in the main ridge between two adjacent peaks. These are the passes or _cols_, which may usually be found by tracing a stream which descends from the mountains up to its source.

The Alps in their various great divisions receive different names. The _Maritime Alps_, so called from their proximity to the Mediterranean, extend westward from their junction with the Apennines for a distance of about 100 miles; culminating points Aiguille de Chambeyron, 11,155 feet, and Grand Rioburent, 11,142 feet; principal pass, the Col di Tende (6158 feet), which was made practicable for carriages by Napoleon I. Proceeding northward the next group consists of the _Cottian Alps_, length about 60 miles; principal peaks: Monte Viso, 12,605 feet; Pic des Ecrins, 13,462; Pelvoux, 12,973. Next come the _Graian Alps_, 50 miles long, with extensive ramifications in Savoy and Piedmont; principal peaks: Aiguille de la Sassiere, 12,326 feet; Grand Paradis, 13,300; Grande Casse, 12,780. To this group belongs Mont Cenis (6765 feet), over which a carriage road was constructed by Napoleon I, while a railway now passes through the mountain by a tunnel nearly 8 miles long. These three divisions of the Alps are often classed together as the _Western Alps_, while the portion of the system immediately east of this forms the _Central Alps_. The _Pennine Alps_ form the loftiest portion of the whole system, having Mont Blanc (in France) at one extremity and Monte Rosa at the other (60 miles), and including the Alps of Savoy and the Valais. In the east the valley of the Upper Rhone separates the Pennine Alps from the great chain of the _Bernese Alps_ running nearly parallel, the great peaks of the two ranges being about 20 miles apart. The principal heights of the Pennine Alps are Mont Blanc, 15,781 feet; Monte Rosa, 15,217; Mischabelhoerner (Dom), 14,935; Weisshorn, 14,804; Matterhorn, 14,780. In the Bernese Alps, the Finsteraarhorn, 14,026; Aletschhorn, 13,803; Jungfrau, 13,671. The pass of Great St. Bernard is celebrated for its hospice. The most easterly pass is the Simplon, 6595 feet, with a carriage road made by Napoleon I, and a tunnel leading into Italy, fully 12 miles long. Farther east are the _Lepontine Alps_, which give off a number of streams that feed the Italian lakes--Maggiore, Como, &c. The principal pass is the St. Gothard (6936 feet), over which a carriage road leads to Italy, while through this mountain mass a railway tunnel more than 9 miles long has been opened. Highest peaks: Toedi, 11,887 feet; Monte Leone, 11,696. The _Rhaetian Alps_, extending east to about lat. 12deg 30', are the most easterly of the Central Alps, and are divided into two portions by the Engadine, or valley of the Inn, and also broken by the valley of the Adige; principal peaks: Piz Bernina, 13,294 feet; Ortlerspitze, 12,814; Monte Adamello, 11,832. The Brenner Pass (4588 feet), from Verona to Innsbruck, and between the Central and the Eastern Alps, is crossed by a railway. On the railway from Innsbruck to the Lake of Constance is the Arlberg Tunnel, over 6 miles long. The _Eastern Alps_ form the broadest and lowest portion of the system, and embrace the _Noric Alps_, the _Carnic Alps_, the _Julian Alps_, &c.; highest peak, the Gross Glockner, 12,405 feet. The height of the south-eastern continuations of the Alps rapidly diminishes, and they lose themselves in ranges having nothing in common with the great mountain masses which distinguish the centre of the system.

The Alps are very rich in lakes and streams. Among the chief of the former are the Lakes of Geneva, Constance, Zuerich, Thun, Brienz, on the north side; on the south Maggiore, Como, Lugano, Garda, &c. The drainage is carried to the North Sea by the Rhine, to the Mediterranean by the Rhone, to the Adriatic by the Po, to the Black Sea by the Danube.

In the lower valleys of the Alps the mean temperature ranges from 50deg to 60deg. Half-way up the Alps it averages about 32deg--a height which in the snowy regions it never reaches. But even where the temperature is lowest the solar radiation produced by the rocks and snow is often so great as to raise the photometer to 120deg and even higher. The exhilarating and invigorating nature of the climate in the upper regions during summer has been acknowledged by all.

In respect to vegetation the Alps have been divided into six zones, depending on height modified by exposure and local circumstances. The first is the olive region. This tree flourishes better on sheltered slopes of the mountains than on the plains of Northern Italy. The vine, which bears greater winter cold, distinguishes the second zone. On slopes exposed to the sun it flourishes to a considerable extent. The third is called the mountainous region. Cereals and deciduous trees form the distinguishing features of its vegetation. The mean temperature about equals that of Great Britain, but the extremes are greater. The fourth region is the sub-Alpine or coniferous. Here are vast forests of pines of various species. Most of the Alpine villages are in the two last regions. On the northern slopes pines grow to 6000, and on the southern slopes to 7000 feet above the level of the sea. This is also the region of the lower or permanent pastures where the flocks are fed in winter. The fifth is the pasture region, the term _alp_ being used in the local sense of high pasture grounds. It extends from the uppermost limit of trees to the region of perpetual snow. Here there are shrubs, rhododendrons, junipers, bilberries, and dwarf willows, &c. The sixth zone is the region of perpetual snow. The line of snow varies, according to seasons and localities, from 8000 to 9500 feet, but the line is not continuous, being often broken in upon. Few flowering plants extend above 10,000 feet, but they have been found as high as 12,000 feet.

At this great elevation are found the wild goat and the chamois. In summer the high mountain pastures are covered with large flocks of cattle, sheep, and goats, which are in winter removed to a lower and warmer level. The marmot, and white or Alpine hare, inhabit both the snowy and the woody regions. Lower down are found the wild-cat, fox, lynx, bear, and wolf; the last two are now extremely rare. The vulture, eagle, and other birds of prey frequent the highest elevations, the ptarmigan seeks its food and shelter among the diminutive plants that border upon the snow-line. Excellent trout and other fish are found; but the most elevated lakes are, from their low temperature, entirely destitute of fish.

The geological structure of the Alps is highly involved, and is far, as yet, from being thoroughly investigated or understood. In general three zones can be distinguished, a central, in which crystalline rocks prevail, and two exterior zones, in which sedimentary rocks predominate. The rocks of the central zone consist of granite, gneiss, hornblende, mica slate, and other slates and schists. In the western Alps there are also considerable elevations in the central zone that belong to the Jurassic (Oolite) and Cretaceous formations. From the disposition of the beds, which are broken, tilted, and distorted on a gigantic scale, the Alps appear to have been formed by a succession of disruptions and elevations extending over a very protracted period. Among the minerals that are obtained are iron and lead, gold, silver, copper, zinc, alum, and coal.

Extensive views of alpine scenery are now commanded by means of special railways climbing to the summit of Mont Blanc, the Jungfrau, and other mountains. The Rigi railway was one of the earliest constructed of these. Here there are hotels at the top, 5905 feet above the level of the sea, and 4468 above the Lake of Lucerne. A favourite view from hence is to watch the sun rise over the Bernese Alps. The Becca di Nona (8415 feet), south of Aosta, gives, according to some authorities, the finest panoramic view to be obtained from any summit of the Alps. The most accessible glaciers are those of Aletsch, Chamonix, and Zermatt.

ALPUJARRAS ([.a]l-p[:o]-_h_[.a]r'r[.a]s), a district of Spain, in Andalusia, between the Sierra Nevada and the Mediterranean, mountainous, but with rich and well-cultivated valleys, yielding grain, vines, olives, and other fruits. The inhabitants are Christianized descendants of the Moors.

ALQUIFOU (al'ki-f[:o]), a sort of lead ore used by potters as a green varnish or glaze.

ALSACE ([.a]l-s[.a]s; Ger. _Elsass_), before the French revolution a province of France, on the Rhine, afterwards constituting the French departments of Haut- and Bas-Rhin, and subsequently to the Franco-Prussian war of 1870-1 annexed by Germany, and incorporated in the province of Elsass-Lothringen (Alsace-Lorraine). Alsace is generally a level country, though there are several ranges of low hills richly wooded. The principal river is the Ill. Corn, flax, tobacco, grapes, and other fruits are grown. Area, 3202 sq. miles. Pop. 1,218,803. Alsace was originally a part of ancient Gaul. It afterwards became a dukedom of the German Empire. In 1268, the line of its dukes becoming extinct, it was parcelled out to several members of the empire. By the peace of Westphalia, in 1648, a great part of it was ceded to France, which afterwards seized the rest of it, this seizure being recognized by the peace of Ryswick, in 1697.

ALSACE-LORRAINE, the imperial territory, or Reichsland of Elsass-Lothringen, taken by Germany from France in 1871, and restored to France in 1919. The province is partly bounded by the Rhine; area, 5605 sq. miles. Pop. 1,874,014. Under the German system the province was divided into three districts, namely, Lorraine, Upper Alsace, and Lower Alsace, and governed by a Statthalter, having his seat at Strassburg. By the law of 31st May, 1911, a constitution was granted to Alsace-Lorraine, by which it received three votes in the Federal Council. After the signing of the armistice, French troops occupied Alsace-Lorraine, and the French Government, by a decree of 26th Nov., 1918, took over the administration of the restored territories, and French officials were installed. The three chief towns are Strassburg, Mulhausen, and Metz. About 76 per cent of the inhabitants are Roman Catholics, 22 per cent Evangelical, and between 1 and 2 per cent Jews. The chief crops are wheat, rye, barley, oats, potatoes, and hay; the potash deposits of Alsace are superior to and more extensive than those of Strassfurt, Germany. _See France; Moselle._--BIBLIOGRAPHY: M. Harrison, _The Stolen Lands: a Study on Alsace-Lorraine_; G. W. Edwards, _Alsace-Lorraine_.

ALSA'TIA, formerly a cant name for Whitefriars, a district in London between the Thames and Fleet Street, and adjoining the Temple, which, possessing certain privileges of sanctuary, became for that reason a nest of mischievous characters who were liable to be arrested. These privileges were abolished in 1697. The name Alsatia is a Latinized form of Alsace, which, being on the frontiers of France and Germany, was a harbour for necessitous or troublesome characters from both countries.

AL'SEN, an island on the east coast of Schleswig-Holstein; length, 20 miles, breadth, from 5 to 7 miles, diversified with forests, lakes, well-cultivated fields, orchards, and towns. Pop. 25,000.

AL SIRAT (s[=e]'rat), in Mahommedan belief the bridge extending over the abyss of hell, which must be crossed by everyone on his journey to heaven. It is finer than a hair, as sharp as the edge of a sword, and beset with thorns on either side. The righteous will pass over with ease and swiftness, but the wicked will fall into hell below.

ALSTROEME'RIA, a genus of South American plants, ord. Amaryllidaceae, some of them cultivated in European greenhouses and gardens. _A. Salsilla_ and _A. ov[=a]ta_ are cultivated for their edible tubers.

ALTAIC LANGUAGES (also called URAL-ALTAIC and TURANIAN), a family of languages occupying a portion of Northern and Eastern Europe, and nearly the whole of Northern and Central Asia, together with some other regions, and divided into five branches, the Ugrian or Finno-Hungarian, Samoyedic, Mongolic, Turkic, and Tungusic.

ALTAI MOUNTAINS ([.a]l't[=i]), an important Asiatic system on the borders of Siberia and Mongolia, partly in Russian and partly in Chinese territory, between lat. 46deg and 53deg N., long. 83deg and 91deg E., but having great eastern extensions. The Russian portion is comprised in the governments of Tomsk and Semipalatinsk, the Chinese in Dsungaria. The rivers of this region, which are large and numerous, are mostly headwaters of the Obi and Irtish. The mountain scenery is generally grand and interesting. The highest summit is Byeluka ('white mountain', from its snowy top), height 11,000 feet. The area covered by perpetual snow is very considerable, and glaciers occupy a large area. In the high lands the winter is very severe, but on the whole the climate is comparatively mild and is also healthy. The flora of the Altai Mountains greatly resembles that of the Alps, about five-sixths of the latter being found here. The mountain forests are composed of birch, alder, aspen, fir, larch, stone-pine, &c. The wild sheep has here its native home, and several kinds of deer are found. The Altai is exceedingly rich in minerals, including gold, silver, copper, and iron. The name Altai means 'gold mountain'. The inhabitants are chiefly Russians and Kalmuks. The chief town is Barnaul.

ALTAMU'RA, a town of South Italy, province of Bari, at the foot of the Apennines, walled, well built, and containing a magnificent cathedral. Pop. 25,616.

ALTAR ([a:]l'tar), any pile or structure raised above the ground for receiving sacrifices to some divinity. Amongst the Semites the altar was primarily the place where the victim was slaughtered, and amongst the Indo-Germanic peoples the place where it was burnt. The Greek and Roman altars were various in form, and often highly ornamental; in temples they were usually placed before the statue of the god. In the Jewish ceremonial the altar held an important place, and was associated with many of the most significant rites of religion. Two altars were erected in the tabernacle in the wilderness, and the same number in the temple. In most sections of the Christian Church the communion-table, or table on which the eucharist is placed, is called an altar. In the primitive Church it was a table of wood, but subsequently stone and metal were introduced with rich ornaments, sculpture, and painting. After the introduction of Gothic art the altar frequently became a lofty and most elaborate structure. Originally there was but one altar in a church, but later on there might be several in a large church, the chief or _high altar_ standing at the east end. Over an altar there is often a painting (an _altar-piece_), and behind it there may be an ornamental _altar-screen_ separating the choir from the east end of the church.

ALTAZ'IMUTH (also called UNIVERSAL INSTRUMENT), an astronomical instrument similar to a theodolite, having a telescope so mounted that it can be turned round in a plane perpendicular to the horizon, while it and the graduated vertical circle connected can also be turned horizontally to any point of the compass above a graduated horizontal circle. The altazimuth can thus determine the altitude and azimuth of objects, hence the name.

ALTDORF. See _Altorf_.

AL'TENA, a town of Prussia, Westphalia, 40 miles N.N.E. of Cologne; it has wire-works, rolling-mills, chain-works, manufactories of needles, pins, thimbles, &c. Pop. 14,579.

AL'TENBURG, a town of Germany, capital of Saxe-Altenburg, 23 miles south of Leipzig. It has some fine streets and many handsome buildings, including a splendid palace; it manufactures cigars, woollen yarn, gloves, hats, musical instruments, glass, brushes, &c. Pop. 39,976.

ALTERATIVES ([a:]l'-), medicines, as mercury, iodine, &c., which, administered in small doses, gradually induce a change in the habit or constitution, and imperceptibly alter disordered secretions and actions, and restore healthy functions without producing any sensible evacuation by perspiration, purging, or vomiting.

ALTER EGO (Lat., 'another I'), a second self, one who represents another in every respect. This term was formerly given, in the official style of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, to a substitute appointed by the king to manage the affairs of the kingdom, with full royal power.

ALTER'NATE, in botany, placed on opposite sides of an axis at a different level, as leaves.--_Alternate generation_, the reproduction of young not resembling their parents, but their grandparents, continuously, as in the jelly-fishes, &c. See _Generations, Alternation of_.

ALTERNATOR. See _Electricity_.

ALTHAE'A, a genus of plants. See _Hollyhock_ and _Marsh-mallow_.

ALTHORN, one of the instruments of the sax-horn family, the tenor sax-horn. See _Sax-horn_.

AL'TISCOPE, an instrument consisting of an arrangement of mirrors in a vertical framework, by means of which a person is enabled to overlook an object (a parapet, for instance) intervening between himself and any view that he desires to see, the picture of the latter being reflected from a higher to a lower mirror, where it is seen by the observer.

AL'TITUDE, in mathematics, the perpendicular height of the vertex or apex of a plane figure or solid above the base. In astronomy it is the vertical height of any point or body above the horizon. It is measured or estimated by the angle subtended between the object and the plane of the horizon, and may be either _true_ or _apparent_. The _apparent_ altitude is that which is obtained immediately from observation; the _true_ altitude, that which results from correcting the apparent altitude, by making allowance for parallax, refraction, &c. Altitude is one of the main determining influences of local climate. Its increase has the same effect on temperature as an increase of distance north or south of the equator.

ALTITUDE-AND-AZIMUTH INSTRUMENT. See _Altazimuth_.

ALTO, in music, the highest singing voice of a male adult, the lowest of a boy or a woman, being in the latter the same as _contralto_. The alto, or _counter-tenor_, is not a natural voice, but a development of the _falsetto_. It is almost entirely confined to English singers, and the only music written for it is by English composers. It is especially used in cathedral compositions and glees.

ALTOFTS, a town of England, West Riding of Yorkshire, on the south of the Calder, 3 miles north-east of Wakefield, with a fourteenth-century Gothic church, and extensive collieries adjoining. Pop. (1921), 5050 (urban district).

AL'TON, a town of England, in Hampshire, 16 miles north-east of Winchester, famous for its ale. Pop. (1921), 5580.

AL'TON, a town of the United States, in Illinois, on the Mississippi near the mouth of the Missouri, with a state penitentiary, several mills and manufactories, and in the neighbourhood limestone and coal. Pop. 23,783.

AL'TONA, an important commercial city of Schleswig-Holstein, on the right bank of the Elbe, adjoining Hamburg, with which it virtually forms one city. It is a free port, and its commerce, both inland and foreign, is large, being quite identified with that of Hamburg. Pop. (1919), 168,729.

ALTOO'NA, a town of the United States, in Pennsylvania, at the eastern base of the Alleghanies, 244 miles west of Philadelphia, with large machine-shops and locomotive factories. Pop. (1920), 60,331.

AL'TORF, a small town of Switzerland, capital of the canton of Uri beautifully situated, near the Lake of Lucerne, amid gardens and orchards, and memorable as the place where, according to legend, Tell shot the apple from his son's head. A colossal statue of Tell now stands here. The town possesses a beautiful church containing a remarkable organ and a picture by Van Dyck. Pop. 3837.

ALTO-RILIEVO ([.a]l't[=o]-r[=e]-l[=e]-[=a]"vo), high relief, a term applied in regard to sculptured figures to express that they stand out boldly from the background, projecting more than half their thickness, without being entirely detached. In mezzo-rilievo, or middle relief, the projection is one-half, and in basso-rilievo, or bas-relief, less than one-half. Alto-rilievo is further distinguished from mezzo-rilievo by some portion of the figures standing usually quite free from the surface on which they are carved, while in the latter the figures, though rounded, are not detached in any part.

ALTOETTING ([.a]lt-eut'ing), a famous place of pilgrimage, in Bavaria, 52 miles E.N.E. of Munich, near the Inn, with an ancient image of the Madonna (the Black Virgin) in a chapel dating from 696, and containing a rich treasure in gold and precious stones; and another chapel in which Tilly was buried. Pop. 5408.

ALTRANST[:A]DT ([.a]lt'-r[.a]n-stet), a village of Saxony, where a treaty was concluded between Charles XII, King of Sweden, and Augustus, Elector of Saxony and King of Poland, 24th Sept., 1706, by which the latter resigned the crown of Poland.

ALT'RINGHAM, or ALTRINCHAM, a town of England, in Cheshire, 8 miles south-west of Manchester, resorted to by invalids; large quantities of fruit and vegetables are raised; and there are several industrial works. Pop. 20,461. Also a parliamentary division of the county.