Reference Books

CLERVAUX (clara vallis), a town in the northern province of Oesling, grand-duchy of Luxemburg, on the Clerf, a tributary of the Sûre. Pop. (1905) 866. In old days it was the fief of the de Lannoy family, and the present proprietor is the bearer of a name not less well known in Belgian history, the count de Berlaymont. The old castle of the de Lannoys exists, and might easily be restored, but its... more...

A 1 Abilities—No man's abilities are so remarkably shining, as not to stand in need of a proper opportunity, a patron, and even the praises of a friend, to recommend them to the notice of the world. —Pliny. Absence, with all its pains,Is by this charming moment wip'd away. 3 Abuse is the weapon of the vulgar. —Goodrich. It is told of Admiral Collingwood that on his travels he carried a... more...

ANDROS, SIR EDMUND (1637-1714), English colonial governor in America, was born in London on the 6th of December 1637, son of Amice Andros, an adherent of Charles I., and the royal bailiff of the island of Guernsey. He served for a short time in the army of Prince Henry of Nassau, and in 1660-1662 was gentleman in ordinary to the queen of Bohemia (Elizabeth Stuart, daughter of James I. of England). He... 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...

CHAPTER ONE THE MEANING OF YOUR COMMISSION Upon being commissioned in the Armed Services of the United States, a man incurs a lasting obligation to cherish and protect his country and to develop within himself that capacity and reserve strength which will enable him to serve its arms and the welfare of his fellow Americans with increasing wisdom, diligence, and patriotic conviction. This is the meaning... 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...

CHAPTER I. ORIGIN OF COATS OF ARMS. Heraldry is the science which teaches how to blazon or describe in proper terms armorial bearings and their accessories. Many volumes have been written on the origin of Heraldry and even on the antiquity of separate charges contained in an escutcheon: it would be filling the pages of an elementary work on Heraldry to little purpose to enter upon an inquiry as to the... more...

ANJAR, a fortified town of India, and the capital of a district of the same name in the native state of Cutch, in the presidency of Bombay. The country is dry and sandy, and entirely depends on well irrigation for its water supply. The town is situated nearly 10 miles from the Gulf of Cutch. It suffered severely from an earthquake in 1819, which destroyed a large number of houses, and occasioned 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...

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...