puncture with a red-hot iron; to dress wounds | incessantly, or playing at chess. In the country, with hot butter, and sometimes with pepper, salt, fowling, hawking, and hunting the wild boar and and brandy; and on the field of battle to thrust lion are actively pursued. Theatres are now wool into them. When amputation is resorted opened in the principal towns. to, it is performed by the stroke of an ataghan, and followed by the application of hot pitch. Hence, notwithstanding their aversion to change, we need not wonder that latterly the French army surgeons have been in great request by the natives. Hospitals have been established in the principal towns, and vaccination has been introduced. (Shaw, p. 196-199.; Campbell, Let. 20.) The Language is mostly Arabic, but mixed with Moorish and Phoenician words. The Kabyles have a peculiar language, so very poor that it is without conjunctions or abstract terms, and is indebted to the Arabic for these, and for all terms of religion, science, &c. In conversing with Europeans a lingua Franca is made use of; a mixture of Spanish, Italian, French, Portuguese, &c. (See BARBARY.) History. This country formed part of the Roman empire; but during the reign of Valentinian III. Count Boniface, the governor of Africa, having revolted, called in the Vandals to his assistance. The latter having taken possession of the country, held it till they were expelled by Belisarius, A. D. 534, who restored Africa to the E. Empire. It was overrun and conquered by the Saracens in the 7th century; and was soon after divided into as many kingdoms as there are now provinces. Ferdinand of Spain having driven the Saracens from Europe, followed them into Africa, and in 1504 and 1509 took possession of Oran, Bugia, Algiers, and other places. natives, wishing to throw off the Spanish yoke, had recourse to the famous corsairs, the brothers Aroudj and Khayr-ed-Dyn, better known by the names of Barbarossa I. and II., who had dis The Buildings, Furniture, &c.-The Berbers or Kabyles live in cabins (gurbies) made of the branches of trees plastered with mud and straw, with a low door and narrow glazed holes serving for windows; these huts are collected together in small groups or dashkras. The Moors, Jews, Negroes, and most others, except the Arabs, live in houses built on a uniform model, which from the earliest times has not varied. An open court-yard forms the centre, around which are various apartments, opening upon galleries supported by light pilasters: the roofs are flat, surrounded by a battlement breast high, and built with a composition of sand, wood ashes, and lime, mixed with oil and water, called terrace; whence our word. The rooms are floored and cisterns are made of this composition. Water-courses are composed of tow and lime only, mixed with oil; this mixture, as well as the former, soon acquiring the hard-tinguished themselves by the boldness and sucness and imperviousness of stone. In most habitations there is in each apartment a raised platform for sleeping on, the bed being composed of junk, matting, sheep-skins, or more costly material, according to circumstances. The other furniture consists, among the nomadic tribes, of two large stones for grinding corn, wrought by women; a few articles of pottery and bronze, and a rude frame for weaving. The better classes have cushions and carpets to their rooms, the lower part of their walls being adorned with coloured hangings, and the upper part painted and decorated with fret work. The tents of the Arabs (the magalia of the ancients) are sometimes called kymas, from the shelter they afford; and sometimes beet-el shaar, or houses of hair, from the webs of goats' hair of which they are made. They are constructed at this moment precisely in the way described by Livy (lib. xxix. § 31.), Sallust (Bell. Jug. § 21.), Virgil, &c. They are of an oblong shape, not unlike the bottom of a ship turned upwards, and are easily set up and taken down. (Shaw, pp. 206-222.) Dress, Food, &c. The dress of the Berbers is very rude and coarse; that of the other classes varies greatly; but it is common with both sexes to wear abroad a kuik, or toga, and a bernous, which covers the head and shoulders: the faces of the women are very much concealed. Vegetables form the chief diet of all classes, not a fourth part of the animal food being consumed by them that is consumed by an equal population in Europe. Bread, couscouson (a kind of Irish stew), legumes, potatoes, tomatas, and other vegetables, dressed with spices, oil, butter, or aromatic herbs; Indian figs, raisins, melons, and other fruits; with water, sherbet, and coffee, -form the main articles of consumption. (See ARABIA and BARBARY.) Amusements. Drinking coffee and smoking tobacco constitute never-failing amusements. Almost all the male inhabitants of the towns have a pipe attached to the button of their vest; and the more indolent and opulent will sit for days in cafés, unmindful of their families, smoking cess of their enterprises against the Christians. liberty, and engaged to cease in future reducing | introduction of European laws, arts, and sciences Christian captives to that ignominious condition. But it is exceedingly doubtful whether these stipulations would have been better observed than others of the same kind previously entered into by his predecessors. into this part of Africa. Its wealth, population, and influence in antiquity show what it may become. But it was idle to expect that it should ever make any improvement so long as it was domineered over by a brutal soldiery, or till it was placed under an enlightened government capable of enforcing order, and of making its regulations and itself be respected. It were, in fact, much to be wished that all N. Africa were taken possession of and occupied by the European powers. It would be impossible for them to extend their empire in this quarter without putting down intolerance, barbarism, and ignorance, and establishing in their stead liberality, civilization, and science. (The best auwork published by the Minister of War, in Paris, entitled, Tableau de la Situation des Etablissements Français dans l'Algerie, Paris, 1838; and Dr. Shaw's learned and invaluable Travels.) The last of the Algerine deys got entangled in altercations with the French government. Provoked by the discussions that had taken place, and the claims that had been put forward, he had the temerity to strike the French consul on the latter paying him a visit of ceremony. Redress was, of course, demanded for this gross insult; but instead of complying with any such demand, the dey took and demolished the French post at La Calle. This was equivalent to a declaration of war; and France determined on being avenged.thorities in relation to Algiers, are the excellent In this view, she fitted out a powerful armament, including a land force of nearly 38,000 men, with a formidable train of artillery, under the command of General Bourmont. The armament arrived on the Algerine coast on the 13th of June, 1830; and having effected a disembarkation on the following day, Algiers capitulated, after a feeble resistance, on the 5th of July. The dey was allowed to retire with his personal property unmolested to Italy, and his troops to wherever they chose. The French found in the treasury of the dey gold and silver, coined and uncoined, of the value of 47,639,011 fr., exclusive of stores of various kinds valued at 7,080,926 fr. ALGIERS (Al Jezair, or the Islands), a maritime city of N. Africa, cap. of the above country now in possession of the French, on the Mediterranean coast, on the W. side of a bay about 11 m. in width, and 6 deep, lat. 36° 48′ 30′′ N., long. 3° 1' 20" E. It is built amphitheatrewise, on the face of a pretty steep hill, having for its highest point the Kasba or citadel, 700 feet above the level of the sea. It is nearly 2 miles in circ. being surrounded by thick and high walls, flanked with towers and bastions. The The towns of Oran and Bona soon after sub-fortifications towards the sea are comparatively mitted, and the bey of Titteri was also reduced to strong; but those on the land side are incapable obedience. But the bey of Oran, or Tlemsen, of any very vigorous defence, and are, in fact, carried on for a lengthened period a series of commanded by the adjoining heights. Algiers contests and negotiations with the French, which had, previously to the French invasion, 5 gates, were terminated in 1837 by the treaty of Tafna; 2 on the sea, and 3 on the land side; about 160 by which he agreed to abandon the maritime parts streets, 5 squares, 2 palaces, 4 large and 30 small of the province, and to recognize the supremacy mosques (some of which are now converted of the French in Africa. The bey of Constan- into Christian churches), 2 large and 12 small tine was less easily dealt with. Trusting to the synagogues, many buildings for the military, and strength of his principal city, its distance from about 10,000 private houses. The pop. was forBona, the nearest port, and the badness of the merly estimated at from 110,000 to 180,000; but roads, he braved the hostility of the French. In there can no longer be any doubt that the lowest November, 1836, a force of 8,000 men, under of these numbers was very far beyond the mark. Marshal Clausel, advanced against Constantine. It appears from a census taken on the 12th of But the expedition, having been too long de- February, 1838, that the pop. amounted at that layed, encountered the greatest difficulties on its epoch to 25,962 individuals, exclusive of about march, from the severity of the weather, and the 3,000 Kabyles and others not classified. It is impracticable nature of the country; so that when true that a considerable emigration of Turks it arrived before Constantine, it was unable to and others took place after the occupation of undertake the siege of the place, and with diffi- the city by the French; but estimating the numculty effected a retreat. To wipe off this dis-ber of emigrants as high as 10,000, which is prograce a powerful army left Bona in the following autumn for the attack of Constantine, before which it arrived on the 6th of October. The Arabs made a vigorous resistance; but breaches having been effected in the walls, the city was carried by storm on the 13th. The French commander-in-chief, General Damremont, was killed during the siege. The occupation of Algiers by the French has excited some jealousy in this country, but without any reason. Such a conquest must undoubtedly weaken, instead of increasing, the power of France. But though in this respect it were otherwise, the benefits which it cannot fail in the end to confer on humanity are so great and obvious as to outweigh all other considerations. The French, ignorant of some of the peculiarities of Mohammedan law, and especially of the practice of bequeathing property in trust for individuals to the church, appear to have committed some injustice. But abuses of this sort will speedily disappear; and it is impossible to overrate the advantages that must result from the The bably beyond the truth, still the population Travels, pp. 33-35.) ALGOA BAY. See PORT ELIZABETH. ALHANDRA, a town of Portugal, prov. Estrema dura, on the Tagus, 18 m. N. N. E. Lisbon. Pop. 1,600. (Swinburne's ALICATA, or LICATA, a sea-port town on the S. coast of Sicily, Val di Girgenti, at the mouth of the Salso, lat. 37° 4′ 25′′ N., long. 13° 55′ 40′′ E. Pop. 13,465. It is built partly on the beach and partly on the slope of some hills. Its walls have gone to decay, and neither of its two castles is of any considerable strength. It is a poorlooking place, but exports considerable quantities of corn, with sulphur and soda, pistachio nuts, almonds, maccaroni, &c. The port is shallow, so that large vessels must load in the offing, or road, about a mile S. W. of the town, where Two Sicilies, ii. p. 297, 4to ed.; Smyth's Sicily, p. 199.) they are exposed to the southerly winds. ALICUDI, the most W. of the Lipari islands, 56 m. E. N. E. Palermo. Pop. 260. It is about 6 m. in circ., rises abruptly from the sea, with irregular ravines and precipitous hills. It is cultivated, wherever there is any soil, with singular and laborious industry, and produces most excellent wheat, barilla, flax, capers, &c. people are said to be exceedingly healthy; it has only two unsafe landing-places, and is rarely visited by strangers. (Smyth's Sicily, p. 277.) their being frequently propped up by timbers | la Situation, &c.; Rozet, iii. pp. 14-88.; Shaw's across from one to another. The islands whence Algiers derives its name, are two rocky ledges opposite its N. E. quarter, which have been united, strongly fortified, and connected with the main land by a mole; another mole, stretching S. W. from these islands, and furnished with two tiers of cannon, incloses the harbour, which is rather small, and incapable of accommodating any vessel larger than a middle-sized frigate. A light-house is erected on one of the islands at the junction of the two moles. The Kasba or citadel is surrounded by strong walls, and its fortifications have been repaired and strengthened by the French. It is, in fact, a little town in itself. It was here that the French found the treasure belonging to the dey referred to in the previous article. The mosques are octagon buildings, with a dome and minarets, often elegant, and adorned with marble colonnades. There are numerous public and private fountains, and baths of all kinds; for though formerly destitute of water, Algiers is now well supplied with that important element, which is brought to the town by aqueducts constructed in the last century, and which, previously to the French occupation, were kept in repair by funds set apart for that purpose. Many shops have been opened by Europeans; they consist of recesses in the sides of the houses, about 7 ft. by 4; but business is mostly trans-from British Consul, &c.) acted in the bazars, which, with barbers' shops and cafés, are the chief places of resort for the natives. Algiers is now the residence of the governor-general of the French possessions in Africa, and of the principal government functionaries and courts of justice. It was created the seat of a bishopric in 1838; is strongly garrisoned; and has a regular intercourse by steam packets with Marseilles. The manufactures are chiefly those of silk stuffs, girdles, purses, clocks, jewellery, woollen cloths, kaiks, bernous, sandals, harness, carpets, junk, bronze utensils, &c. markets are well provided with meat, vegetables, and fruit; provisions generally cheap, excepting bread, which is dear: there were no ovens, and only handmills for grinding corn, before the occupation by the French. European manners, habits, and dresses are common; as many hats are seen as turbans; cigars replace pipes, shops bazars; grand hotels, cafes, billiard tables, eating houses, cabinets littéraires have been set up, and a circus, cosmorama, and opera established. The streets have all received French names. In 1837 there were at Algiers 223 fine days, 63 on which it rained, and 69 during which the sky was covered with clouds. There arrived at Algiers in 1837, 905 vessels of the burden of 74,762 tons. Of these 29 vessels, tonnage 6,363, were from England; and 25 vessels, tonnage 4,581, from British possessions in the Mediterranean. The environs of Algiers are very beautiful, and for some miles round interspersed with great numbers of elegant villas. There are 2 small suburbs, those of Bab-el-Oued and Bab-a-Zoun; the former to the N., the latter to the S. of the city. About a mile S. of the Kasba is the Sultan Kalessi, or fort of the emperor, an irregular polygon without fosse or counterscarp, about 4 m. circumference. It stands on the spot where Charles V. encamped, A. D. 1541, and pletely commands the town; but is itself commanded by Mount Boujereah. The ancient city of Rustonium, the capital of Juba, was situated not far from Algiers, to the W. of Torretta Cica; some ruins of this city still exist. Algiers was founded A. D. 935. For some notice of its history, see the previous article. (See Tableau de The The It was ALIGHUR, a strong fort of Hindostan, in the district of the same name, between the Ganges and the Jumna, 53 m. N. Agra, lat.27° 56′ N., long. 77° 59′ E. taken by storm in 803; and was soon after made the head-quarters of a civil establishment for the collection of the revenue, and the administration of justice. The N. portion of the district of Alighur is a desolate tract, overspread with low jungle; but the S. portion is fertile and highly cultivated. The natives, though turbulent, are su perior to the Bengalese, and other tribes more to the East. ALKMAAR, a town of N. Holland, cap. arrond. and cant., on the great ship canal from Amsterdam to the Helder, 20 m. Ñ. N. W., the former, lat. 52° 38′ N., long. 4° 44′ 45′′ E. Pop. 9,500. It is strongly fortified and well built; there are many fine canals, shaded with trees, and the whole town has a strikingly clean and comfortable appearance. The Hôtel de Ville and the arsenal are the only public buildings that deserve notice. It is the seat of a court of primary jurisdiction, and has a Vast quantities of excellent butter and cheese are procollege, physical society, theatre, concert hall, &c. duced in the surrounding meadows. Exclusive of butter, about 40,000 tons of cheese are said to be annually disposed of in its markets. It also manufactures canvass, Its commerce has been materially facilitated by the conand has a considerable trade in cattle, corn, tulips, &c. instruction of the great canal. Without the town is a fine promenade, similar to those at the Hague and at Haarlem. In 1573, Alkmaar was invested by the Spaniards; but having been repulsed with great loss, in an attempt to take the town by storm, they abandoned the siege. In 1799, the Anglo-Russian army, under the Duke of York, advanced from the Helder as far as Alkmaar. (Dict. Géographique; Murray's Hand-book, &c.) com ALLAHABAD, an extensive and populous prov. or soubah of Hindostan proper, between the 24th and 26th deg. N. lat., and 79th and 83d E. long. It is bounded on the N. by Oude and Agra, S. by Gundwana, E. by Bahar and Gundwana, and W. by Malwah and Agra. about 270 m. in length by about 120 in breadth. It is It is divided into the following zillahs or districts, viz.: 1. Allahabad; 2. Benares; 3. Mirzapoor; 4. Juanpoor; 5. The Rewah territory; 6. Bundelcund; 7. Cawnpoor; 8. Manicpoor territory. It is watered by the Ganges, Jumna, and other great rivers. Adjacent to the former, the country is flat and very productive, but in the S. W., in the Bundelcund district, it forms an elevated tableland, diversified with high hills containing the celebrated diamond mines of Poonah. The flat country is extremely sultry, and subject to the hot winds, from which the more elevated region is exempted. In the hilly country, where the rivers are less numerous than in the plains, the periodical rains and well-water are chiefly relied on for agricultural purposes. On the whole, how ever, Allahabad is one of the richest provinces of Hindostan. The principal articles of export, are sugar, cotton, indigo, cotton cloths, opium, saltpetre. diamonds, &c.; and, in addition, it produces all kinds of grain and a vast variety of fruits. The chief towns are Allahabad, Benares, Callinger, Chatterpore, Chunar, Ghazypore, Juanpore, and Mirzapore. The whole of this extensive province is now subject to the British government; the Benares district having been ceded in 1775; Allahabad and the adjacent territory in 1801; and the districts of Bundelcund in 1803. Seven-eights of the inhabitants are supposed to be Hindoos, the remainder Mohammedans. ALLAHABAD, an ancient city of Hindostan, cap. of the above prov. and district, near the confluence of the Ganges and Jumna, being by the course of the river 820 m. from the sea, but the distance in a direct line from Calcutta is only 475 m.; from Benares, 75 m.; and from Agra, 280 m., lat. 25° 27' N., long. 81° 50' E. At a short distance from the city, at the junction of the rivers, is situated the fortress, founded by the emperor Acbar, in 1583; but much improved since it came into the possession of the British. It is lofty and extensive, completely commanding the navigation of both rivers. On the sea side it is defended by the old walls; but on the land side it is regularly and strongly fortified. It could not be taken by a European army, except by a regular siege; and to a native army it would be all but impregnable: and hence it has been selected as the grand military depôt of the upper provinces. unite, where the devotee plunges into the stream, with three pots of water tied to his body. Occasionally, also, some fose their lives by the eagerness of these devotees to rush in and bathe at the most sanctified spot, at a precise period of the moon, when the immersion possesses the highest efficacy. The Bengalese usually perform the pilgrimages of Gaya, Benares, and Allahabad in one journey, and thereby acquire great merit in the extimation of their countrymen." (Hamilton's Gazetteer; Heber, i. pp. 441-445.) At the ALLAHABAD (DISTRICT OF), consists of the territory immediately adjacent to the city of Allahabad. In 1815, it contained 1,655,106 begahs † of cultivated land, assessed at 279,3241, a year of jumma, or land revenue. same time it contained 395,012 begahs of land, fit for cultivation, and 1,109,777 waste. It is watered by the great rivers Ganges and Jumna, and, when well cultivated, is remarkably fertile. Wheat is the principal crop; but the culture of cotton and indigo has greatly increased-and that of opium has also been introduced. A considerable quantity of cotton cloths, and chintzes, were formerly produced; but this branch of industry is now nearly annihilated in consequence of the native manufactures being undersold by the British. This district suffered considerably from the jumma, or land revenue, having been fixed at too high a rate, when the perpetual assessment was introduced. It has been the theatre of a considerable number of gang robberies; but these have been either wholly suppressed, or greatly diminished in consequence of the introduction of a more efficient police. (Parl. Papers, No. 753. iii. Sess. 1832, p. 69, &c.; Hamilton's Gazeteer.) ALLAN (BRIDGE OF), a neat village of Scotland, on the Allan, 3 m. N. W. Stirling. It is a good deal resorted to in summer by visiters, on account of a mineral spring in the vicinity. ALLAUCH, a town of France, dep. Bouches du Rhone, 5 m. E. N. E. Marseilles. Pop. 3,869. It is built on the declivity of a hill, and is very ancient. ALLEGHANY,or APPALACHIAN MOUNTAINS, a chain of mountains, in the U. States of N. America, running in a N. E. and S. W. direction from the N. parts of Alabama and Georgia, to the state of Maine, a distance of about 1,200 m. It consists of a number of ridges, having a mean breadth of about 100 m. and a mean elevation of from 2,500 to 3,000 feet. Their highest summits are in N. Hampshire, where they attain to an elevation of between 6,000 and 7,000 feet. They are almost every where clothed with forests and interspersed with delightful vallies. Their steepest side is towards the E., where granite, gneiss,and other primitive rocks are to be seen. On the W. they slope down by a gentle declivity continued to the Mississippi. Iron and lead are both met with, the former in great abundance, in various parts of the range; and the considerable quantities of gold that have been found in the streams in the upper parts of N. Carolina and Georgia, show that it also is among the products of the Alleghanies. But coal seems to be by far the most important of their mineral riches. Vast, and all but inexhaustible beds of bituminous and of anthracite or stone coal, are found in different parts of the chain, and are already very extensively wrought. The quantities of anthracite brought to Philadelphia, partly for the supply of the city, and partly for shipment to other places, have wonderfully increased during the last dozen years. Salt springs are abundant all along the W. slope of the Alleghanies, and from some of them large supplies of salt are Being situated at the point of union of two great navigable rivers, Allahabad would seem to be in one of the finest positions in India for being the seat of an extensive commerce. And if we suppose with D'Anville and Dr. Robertson, that it occupies the site of the ancient Palibothra, it certainly ranked among the first commercial cities of antiquity.* But in modern times it does not appear to have ever attained to the magnitude or importance that might have been anticipated. Formerly, however, it was both more populous and flourishing than at present. A considerable cotton manufacture is said to have been driven from the town, by the exactions of the native officers of the Oude government. According to Hamilton, the pop. amounted, in 1803, to about 20,000, exclusive of the military; and there is no room for thinking that it has been materially increased in the interval. The houses are of mud, raised on the foundations of more substantial brick edifices that have fallen into decay. Heber says, it has a desolate, ruinous appearance, and that it has obtained among the natives, the name of Fakeerabad, (beggar abode !) It is the permanent station of a high court of justice. -Suder Mo-procured. This mountain system is crossed by the Hudson fussil, commission: and has a school formed, in 1825, for the education of the natives. Allahabad has been in possession of the British since 1763. says Besides the Ganges and Jumna, the Hindoos believe that another river, the Sereswati, joins the other two from below ground. In consequence of this extraordinary junction, Allahabad is reckoned peculiarly holy, and is annually visited by many thousands of pilgrims, who come from all parts of Hindostan to bathe and purify themselves in the sacred stream: in some years their numbers have amounted to nearly 220,000, each of them paying a small tax to government:-"When," Mr. Hamilton, "a pilgrim arrives, he sits down on the bank of the river, and has his head and body shaved, so that each hair may fall into the water, the sacred writings promising him one million of years' residence in heaven for every hair so deposited. After shaving, he bathes; and the same day, or the next, performs the obsequies of his deceased ancestors. The tax accruing to government for permission to bathe, is 3 rupees each person; but a much greater expense is incurred in charity and gifts to the Brahmen, who are seen sitting by the river-side. Many persons renounce life at this holy confluence, by going in a boat, after performance of certain solemnities, to the exact spot where the three rivers Major Rennell denies this, and contends that Patna occupies the site of Palibothra. (Memoirs of a Map of Hindostan. 3d ed. p. 49.) But the reasoning of Dr. Robertson, founded on the statements of river, and is the only instance known, except that of the St. Lawrence, of the ocean tides passing through a primitive mountain chain, and carrying depth for the largest vessels. It is also crossed by several canals and railways. (Darby's View of the United States, passim ; Maclure's Geology, &c.) ALLEN (BOG OF), the name usually given to the extensive tracts of morass situated in Kildare, and King's and Queen's counties, and the adjoining counties of Ireland. These do not however form, as is commonly supposed, one great morass, but a number of contiguous morasses separated by ridges of dry ground. Though flat the bog has a mean elevation of about 250 feet above the level of the sea, and gives birth to some of the principal Irish rivers, as the Barrow, flowing S., and the Boyne E. ALLEN (LOUGH), a lake, co. Leitrim, Ireland, about 10 m. in length, and from 4 to 5 in width. This lake is generally supposed to be the source of the Shannon, and it has perhaps the best title to that distinction. It is elerated 144 feet above the level of high water-mark at Limerick; and the Shannon has been rendered navigable as far as the Lough. ALLENDORF, a town of Hesse Cassel, on the Werra, 23 m. E. S. E. Cassel. Pop. 3,500. There is in the vicinity a considerable salt-work. Strabo and Arrian, seem to prove conclusively the identity of Palibothra and Allahabad (Disquisition on Ancient India, note xiii.) A begah varies in size, but is generally about one-third of an acre. ALLENSTEIN, a town in East Prussia, cap. circ., on the Alle, 27 m. S. S. W. Heilsberg. Pop. 3,000. It has a gymnasium, and fabrics of cloth and earthen ware. ALLESTAR, a town in the peninsula of Malacca, which contained, in 1823, 2,000 houses. ALLEVARD, a town of France, dep. Isère, cap. cart., 21 m. N. E. Grenoble. Pop. 2,599. There are valuable iron and copper mines in its vicinity, and founderies where iron of an excellent description is prepared for conversion into steel, and also for being cast into cannon. In the neighbourhood are the ruins of the castle of Bayard, the birth-place of the famous knight of that name the chevalier sans peur et sans reproche. finished in 1823, at an expense of about 2,000. It is built in imitation of the monument of Lysicrates at Athens, and consists of a triangular basement, on which rises a peristyle, of 9 Corinthian columns, 30 feet in height, supporting a cupola, surmounted by a gilt tripod. It is above 60 feet in height; is built of fine white freestone, and has a chaste, classical appearance. Independently of the peculiar associations connected with the place, the scenery around is equal in richness and variety to any in Scotland. The celebrated statues of Tam O'Shanter and Souter Johnnie are appropriately placed in a grotto within the grounds attached to the monument. (New Statistical Account of Scotland, art. Ayr; Chambers's Land of Burns, &c.) ALMADA, a town of Portugal, prov. Estremadura, on the Tagus, opposite to Lisbon. Pop. 4,000. There is an old castle on a rock, an hospital, a Latin school, with large magazines for wine. ALMADEN, a town of Spain, prov. La Mancha, in the Sierra Morena, 57 miles W. S. W. Ciudad Real. Within a very few miles of this town is a famous mine of cinnabar, whence mercury used to be obtained, to the extent of from 12,000 to 15,000 quintals a year, for the supply of the silver mines of Mexico. This mine is very ancient, and is believed, indeed, to have been wrought by the Romans. But the statements of Pliny (Hist. Nat. Lib. 337.) apply distinctly to Sisapo in Bætica, that is, to Almaden de la Plata, 27 m. N.N.W. Seville, where there is, also, a very productive mine. There are mines of the same port in other parts of Spain. ALLIER, a dep. almost in the centre of France, so called from the river Allier, one of the principal affluents of the Loire, which traverses it from S. to N., between 45° 58′, and 46° 47′ N. lat., and 2° 16′ and 3° 57′ E. long. Area, 723,981 hect., whereof about 468,000 are cultivated land, 70,000 meadows, 18,000 vineyards, 64,000 woods, 28,700 heaths, moors, &c. Pop. 309,270. Exclusive of the Allier, it is bounded E. by the Loire, and is traversed by the Cher, and other lesser rivers, &c. The ponds and smaller lakes are so numerous, that they are said to have an injurious influence over the climate. Surface undulating, and in parts hilly; soil generally fertile, producing a surplus of corn and wine, for exportation, with great numbers of cattle, sheep, and excellent horses. A good deal of the timber in the forests is oak, suitable for ship-building. Agriculture in this, as in many other departments of France, is in a very backward state. The peasantry are small proprietors, ALMAGRO, a town of Spain, prov. La Mancha, 12 m. and wedded to the practices of their forefathers. En E.S.E. Ciudad Real. Pop. 8,000. It has an important vain leur indiquerait-on de nouveaux procédés agricoles, manufacture of blondes. The country round is celeils cultivent comme faisaient leurs pères. Une aveuglebrated for its mules and asses, of which there is annually routine sert de bornes à leur étroite intelligence. There a large fair. are valuable mines of coal, iron, and antimony; and quarries of marble and granite. Among the manufacturing establishments may be mentioned the glass-works of Sourigny and Commentry, which employ about 800 work-people; the iron works of Tronçais, which employ above 500 ditto, and furnish annually above 500,000 kilogs. of iron; and there are also manufactures of cutlery, earthenware, cloth, and paper, with spinning-mills, and numerous breweries, rope-walks, &c. It is divided into 4 electoral arrond.; returns 4 m. to the Ch. of Deputies; and had, in 1838, 1,617 electors. Public revenue, in 1831, 6,444,045 fr. Chief towns, Moulins, Montluçon, Gannat, La Palisse, &c. (Hugo, France Pittoresque, art. Allier; French Official Tables.) ALLOA, a sea-port and m. town of Scotland, co. Clackmannan, on the Forth, at the point where it ceases to be a river, and becomes a frith, 25 m. W. N. W. Edinburgh. Pop. of town, 4,417: of parish and town, 6,377. It is irregularly built; but has recently been much improved. A church, opened in 1819, has a spire 200 feet in height. The harbour is excellent; vessels of large burden lying close to the quays; there is also adry dock and two yards for ship-building. The trade of the town is considerable, and it has nearly 8,000 tons of shipping. There are very extensive collieries, distilleries, and fron-works in the neighbourhood, the produce of which is principally shipped here: and in the town and its vicinity are extensive breweries, which produce ale rivalling that of Edinburgh, with an iron-foundery, two woollen manufactories, glass-works, tile and brick-works, &c. The justice of peace, and sheriff courts for the co. are held here. In a park adjoining the town, are the ruins of a seat of the Earl of Mar, part of which consists of a tower of the 13th century, 90 feet in height. (Revised at Alloa.) ALLOWAY KIRK: the church (Scottice, Kirk) of a parish, on the coast of Ayrshire, long united with that of Ayr, near the mouth of the Doon, on the road from Ayr to Maybole, about 3 m. S. from the former. The Kirk has been for a lengthened period in ruins, but being prominently brought forward in Burns's inimitable tale of Tam O'Shanter, and having in its immediate vicinity, the poet's birth-place, and the monument erected to his memory, it has become an object of great interest. Though roofless, the walls are in pretty good preservation; and the feelings with which they are now associated, will protect them from depredation. The church-yard, which is still used as a burying-ground, contains the graves of Burns' father and mother; and, such is the prestige with which it has been invested, that latterly it has become a favourite place of interment. Between Alloway Kirk and Ayr, but much nearer the former than the latter, is the cottage in which Burns was born (on the 25th of February, 1759), a one-story house, of humble appearance, with a thatched roof, and long used as an inn. About m. on the other side of the Kirk, are the " Auld brig o' boon," and the new bridge the latter about 100 yards below the former, and built since the time of Burns; and on the summit of the acclivity of the E. bank of the river, about half way between the old and new bridges, is the monument of the poet. This elegant structure was ALMANZA, a town of Spain, prov. Murcia, 56 m. N.W. Alicant. Pop. 5,000. It is well built, has broad streets, linen fabrics, and a great annual fair. In the neighbourhood of this town, on the 25th April 1707, the French, under the Duke of Berwick, gained a complete victory over the allied forces in the interest of the archduke Charles. The latter lost 5,000 men killed on the field, and nearly 10,000 taken prisoners. ALMAREZ, a town of Spain, prov. Estremadura, on the Tagus, 32 m. S. E. Plasencia. Pop. 1,000. Towards the middle of the 16th century, a fine bridge, in the Roman style, was carried over the river at this point. In 1810, an obstinate conflict took place near this town, between an Anglo-Spanish and French force. ALMEIDA, a fortified town of Portugal, prov. Beira, 24 m. W. by N. Ciudad Rodrigo. Pop. 6.000. From its position on the frontier of the kingdom, it has always been deemed a military post of the greatest importance. In 1762, it was taken by the Spaniards, after a long siege. In 1810, it was taken by the French under Massena: who abandoned it in the following year, after blowing up the fortifications. ALMELO, a town of the Netherlands, prov. Overyssel, on the Vecht, 22 m. E. N. E. Deventer. Pop. 4,000. It has a college, a commission of agriculture and manufactures, and bleaches fine linen. ALMERIA, (an. Murgis,) a sea-port town of Spain, Granada, near the mouth of the river, and at the bottom of the gulph of the same name, lat 36° 51' 29" N., long. 2° 32′ W. Pop. 19,000. It is the seat of a bishop, and has fabrics of soda and salt-petre, and of cordage and other articles made of the esparto-rush. The harbour is large, well sheltered, and is protected by a castle; the water is so deep, that large vessels anchor half a mile from shore, in from 9 to 14 fathoms, and smaller vessels anchor, close in shore, in from 5 to 9 fathoms. The ancient sovereigns of Granada considered this as the most important town of their dominions, as well on account of the fertility of the surrounding country, as of its manufactures and commerce. But it is now much fallen off. ALMODOVAR-DEL-CAMPO, a town of Spain, with a castle, prov. La Mancha, 18 m. S. S. W. Ciudad Real. Pop. 3,000. ALMONBURY, a pa. and township of England, W. R. co. York, wap, of Agbrigg, divided by the Colne from the pa. of Huddersfield. The pa. is very extensive, containing 30,140 acres, with a pop. of 30,606. It contains several villages, of which Almonbury, 14 m. S. E. Huddersfield, is the principal. Pop. of Almonbury township 7,086, mostly engaged in the manufacture of woollens and cottons, especially the former. (See HUDDERSFIELD.) ALMORA, a town of Hindostan, cap. Kumaon, in the N. E. part of India, 90 m. N. by E. Bareilly; lat. 29° 35′ N., long. 79° 40′ E. It stands on a ridge 5,337 feet above the level of the sea, and is compactly built. The houses of stone, and slated, are generally two and some three stories high; the ground-floor being occupied as shops. The old Gorkha citadel stands on a commanding point of the ridge at the E. extremity of the town, and several martello towers have been erected on peaks to the eastward. This place was acquired by the British in 1815. F |