Reference Books

PREPARATIONS Usually there is plenty of time after the beginning of first labor pains to get ready for the delivery. Signs of labor are low backache, bloody-tinged mucous strings passing from the birth canal, or a gush of water from the birth canal. The mother will need a clean surface to lie on. Her bed should be so arranged that the mattress is well protected by waterproof sheeting or pads made from... more...

GENERAL ADVICE The United States is divided geographically into military departments with a general officer commanding each department. The departments and their headquarters are as follows: (1) The Northeastern Department, with headquarters at Boston, Massachusetts. (2) The Eastern Department, with headquarters at Governors Island, New York. (3) The Southeastern Department, with Headquarters at... more...

BANKS, GEORGE LINNAEUS (1821-1881), British miscellaneous writer, was born at Birmingham on the 2nd of March 1821. After a brief experience in a variety of trades, he became at the age of seventeen a contributor to various newspapers, and subsequently a playwright, being the author of two plays, a couple of burlesques and several lyrics. Between 1848 and 1864 he edited in succession a variety of... more...

AN OAK BUFFETFinished BuffetDetails of BuffetThe accompanying sketch and detail drawing show a design of a buffet wherein refinement of outline and harmony of details are conspicuously regarded. Quarter-sawed oak is the most suitable wood for this handsome piece of mission furniture. The material should be ordered from the mill ready cut to length, squared and sanded. Following is a list of the stock... more...

CHITRAL, a native state in the North-West Frontier Province of India. The state of Chitral (see also ) is somewhat larger than Wales, and supports a population of about 35,000 rough, hardy hillmen. Previous estimates put the number far higher, but as the Mehtar assesses his fighting strength at8000 only, this number is probably not far wrong. Both the state and its capital are called Chitral, the... more...

CHARIOT(derived from an O. Fr. word, formed fromchar, a car), in antiquity, a conveyance (Gr.á¼…ρμα, Lat.currus) used in battle, for the chase, in public processions and in games. The Greek chariot had two wheels, and was made to be drawn by two horses; if a third or, more commonly, two reserve horses were added, they were attached on each side of the main pair by a single trace fastened... more...

SHAKESPEARE. TEMPEST. Act i. Sc. 2. There's nothing ill can dwell in such a temple:If the ill spirit have so fair a house,Good things will strive to dwell with 't. Act i. Sc. 2. I will be correspondent to command,And do my spiriting gently. Act ii. Sc. 2. A very ancient and fishlike smell. Act ii. Sc. 2. Misery acquaints a man with strange bed-fellows. Act iv. Sc. 1. Our revels row are ended:... more...

A SOUTHERN PLANTER. By SUSAN DABNEY SMEDES. Crown 8vo. 7s. 6d. "The book is eminently worthy of the great attention it has received. It puts the case of the Southern planters in a very rational and most interesting light. It may be described as the very antipodes to 'Uncle Tom's Cabin.' The picture of the rich, affluent patriarchal life, with woodlands, pastures and countless flocks,... more...

PREFACE The following pages are designed to give a historical and critical account of all that has been done in the way of translating Beowulf from the earliest attempts of Sharon Turner in 1805 down to the present time. As a corollary to this, it presents a history of the text of the poem to the time of the publication of Grein’s Bibliothek der angelsächsischen Poesie in 1859; for until the... more...

It is very easy to gain a knowledge of the stars, if the learner sets to work in the proper manner. But he commonly meets with a difficulty at the outset of his task. He provides himself with a set of the ordinary star-maps, and then finds himself at a loss how to make use of them. Such maps tell him nothing of the position of the constellations on the sky. If he happen to recognize a constellation,... more...