Alcyone

( Astron.) A star of the 3d magnitude, the brightest among the Pleiades, sometimes for that reason called the Light of the Pleiades. Alcyonia Palus. Anc . Geog .) A lake of Corinth, whose depth the emperor Nero attempted in vain to fathom. Nocturnal orgies were annually celebrated there in honor of Bacchus. Alcyon'ic, a . Pertaining or relating to the Alcyonidæ. Alcyon'idæ, n. pl . (Zool.) A tam. of polyps, sub-ord. Alcyonacea , containing those in which the polyps are united, forming lobed or arborescent clusters of fleshy or coriaceous texture, filled with calcareous particles. The cells occupied by the polyps are placed at the ter min at i on of canals which run through the polypodom, and which, by their union with each other, serve to Fig . 77.- ALCYONIUM ELEGANS. Al'dehydes, n . pl . [A contraction from alcohol dehy- drogenatus, alcohol deprived of its hydrogen.] (Chem.) idation of the alcohol, le highly oxidized than the acids, and standing in an intermediate position between the alcohol and the acids. The characteristic reaction of the series is the formation of definite compounds with the acid sulphites of alkali metals. Aldehyde is a volatile inflammable liquid, with a peculiar pungent irritating odor, which has a faint resemblance to that of apples. It is obtained by a gradual oxidation of alcohol in var i- ous ways. Form., C2H4O. It may be mixed in all proportions with alcohol, ether, and water. It can scarcely be exposed to the air, without absorbing oxy- gen, and it then forms an acid compound. Al'den, in Illinois , a post-village and township of Mc- Henry co., 70 m. N.W. of Chicago. Al'den, in Iowa , a post-village and township in Hard in co.- Alden Village is on the low a river, about 70 miles N. by E. of Des Moines. Al'den, in New York , a township of Erie co., 22 m. S. of Buffalo. IMG:content-0127.png:[blocks in formation] Al'der Creek, in New York , a village of Oneida co., 107 m. W.N.W. of Albany. Al'derley, in Wisconsin , a post-village of Dodge co. Al'derm an, in N. Carolina , a vill. of Cumber land co. Al'derm an, in N. Dakota , a village of Barns co. are distinguished for their vinous flavor. India pale ale differs from others chiefly in having a larger quantity of hops. The use of an intoxicating beverage composed of barley and other grain steeped in water and after- wards fermented, may be traced in several parts of the ancient world. Pliny states that in his time it was in general use among the natives who inhabited the west- ern parts of Europe, and under different names in Egypt, Spain, and Italy. 900 years before Pliny, Hero- of barley, and Tacitus states that the ancient Germans for their drink drew a liquor from barley and other grains, and fermented it so as to make it resemble wine. Ale was also the favorite liquor of the Anglo-Saxons and Danes, and before the introduction of Christianity it was an article of belief among them that drinking copious draughts of ale formed one of the chief felicities of their heroes in the hall of Odin. It is equally named as one of the chief liquors provided for a royal banquet in the reign of Edward the Confe or. By a statute of Henry III. (1266), the preamble of which alludes to earlier statutes on the same subject, a graduated scale was established for the price of ale throughout Eng- land. For a long time after the introduction of hops in England, which took place about the year 1524, the name ALE was restricted to the unhopped liquors in opposition to the German beer or hopped liquors. But as now used, the word ale does not imply the absence, but only a le proportion of hops. Ale'a, n. [Lat., a game of hazard.) ( Law . ) The chance of gain or lo in a contract. (Conch.) A gen, of minute land-shells, found in marshy ground, roots of trees, mo , . Ale'a. (Anc. Geog.) A town of Arcadia, built by Aleus. It had three famous temples-that of Diana Ephesia, of Minerva Alea, and of Bacchus. At the annual festival held here in honor of the latter deity, women were beaten with scourges, in accordance with a command of the Delphian oracle. (Naut.) To spring a leak, is said of a ve el, when a leak commences in some part of her. Al'eatory, n . [From alea .] ( Law . ) An A. contract is an agreement of which the effects, with regard both to the advantages and lo es, whether to all the parties, or to some of them, depend on an uncertain event. Ale-berry, n. A beverage made by boiling ale with spice, sugar, and sops of bread. Ale-brewer, n . One who brews ale. Ale'-conner, ALE-KENNER, n. In England, an officer sworn to look at the a ize and goodne of ale and beer. Also an officer whose office is to inspect the measures used in public-houses. Al'derm an, n.; pl . ALDERMEN. [A. S., ealderman, from ealder , older, and man, a man.] Princes, earls, governors of provinces, and other persons of distinc- tion, were generally termed aldermen by the Anglo- Saxons. But besides this general signification of the word, it was also applied to certain officers in particu- lar; thus, there was an A. of all England ( alderman nus totius Anglia ), the nature of whose office has not been well ascertained. There was alse a king's A. ( alder- mannus reg is), who has been supposed to have been an occasional judge, with authority to administer justice in partial districts. There were also A. of cities, boroughs, and castles, and A. of hundreds, upon whose particular a battle.] Cock-fighting. functions it is usele to speculate. Aldermen, at present, are officers a ociated with the mayor of a city, for the administration of municipal governments, both in Eng- land and the United States. - In some places they act as judges in certain civil and criminal cases. Al'dermancy, and Aldermanry, n. The quality or office of an alderman. IMG:content-0128.png:[blocks in formation] Al'derm an ship, n. The condition of an alderman. Al'dern, a . Made of alder. Al'derney, or Aurigny, an island belonging to Great Britain, in the English Channel, 55 m. S. from the isle of Portland, and 18 m. W. of Cape La Hogue in Nor- mandy. The channel between A. and the latter is dan- gerous in stormy weather from the strength and rapid- ity of the tide. This isle is about 31⁄2 miles in length, by 334 in breadth. It is celebrated for its breed of cows (see Ox). Pop . 4 932. Al'dershot, and ALDER SHOTT, a parish of England, co. of Hants. Pop . 16,720. There is here, since 1854, a per- manent camp of 20,000 men. Al'die, in Virginia , a post-village of Loudon co., on Little river, 149 m. N. of Richmond. Al'dine Editions. ( Bibling .) The name given to the works which proceeded from the pre of the family of Aldus Manutius. See MANUTIUS. Ale'cost, n . ( Bot .) The costmary, Balsam it a vulgar is , sometimes put into ale to improve its taste. Alembert, JEAN LE ROND D', B. at Paris, 1717, was a natural child, abandoned by his mother, exposed in a public market, by the church of St. Jean le Rond, and found by the overseer of the district, who intrusted him to the wife of a poor glazier. D'Alembert commenced his studies in the college of Mazarin, where he made surprising progre in mathematics. When he left col- lege, he returned to his foster-mother, with whom he lived altogether 40 years. Giving up all hopes of wealth or civil honors, he devoted himself entirely to his favor- ite studies. Some memoirs, which he wrote in the years 1739 and 1740, procured him admi ion to the Academy of Sciences, in 1741, at the age of 24. From this time may be dated the career of honor which ranks him among the greatest benefactors to science of the last cen- tury. In 1743 he produced his treatise on dynamics. In 1749 he solved the problem of the prece ion of the equinoxes, ascertained its quantity, and explained the rotation of the terrestrial axis. In 1752 he published an e ay on the resistance of fluids, and soon after ob- tained a pension from Louis XV. He next engaged with Diderot in compiling the celebrated "Encyclopédie," for which he wrote the preliminary discourse, which was so excellent, that it drew from Condor cet the compliment, that in a century only two or three men appeared ca- pable of writing such. While engaged on mathemati- cal subjects, his name was not much known; but now he became celebrated by works of an historical and mis- cell a neo us character, such as his "Philosophical, His torical, and Philological Miscellanies;" "The Memoirs of Christina, Queen of Sweden," and his "Elements of Philosophy." Frederick, king of Pru ia, offered him the office of president of his academy, and Catharine, the empre of Ru ia, invited him in to her dominions as tutor to the grand-duke; but Alembert refused both. In 1765 he published his di ertation on the destruction of the Jesuits. He also published nine volumes of mem- oirs and miscellaneous pieces, and the "Elements of Music." In 1772 he was elected secretary to the French Academy, and wrote the history of 70 of its members. D. 1783. D'Alembert has been held up to reprobation on ac- count of his religious opinions. Neverthele , the pub- lished writings of D ' A. contain no expre ions offensive to religion. Had it not been for his private correspondence with Voltaire and others, which was published after his death, the world would not have known, except by im- Alec'tor, n . ( Zool .) See CURASSOW. Alec to rom'achy, n . [Gr. a lector , a cock, and mache , plication, what the opinions of D'A . were. On this Alec'trures, n . pl . See ALECTRURINE. Alectruri'næ, n . pl . ( Zool .) A sub-fam. of dentirostral birds, ord. Pa eres , fam. Muscicapida. Alectryomancy, and ALECTROM'ANCY, n. [Gr.] An ancient practice of foretelling events by means of a cock. The letters of the alphabet were traced on the ground, and a grain of corn laid on each; a cock was then per- mitted to pick up the grains; and the letters under the grains selected, being formed into words, were supposed to foretell the events desired. Alec'tura, n . ( Zool . ) See TALEGALLA. Aledo, in Illinois , a city, capital of Mercer co., about 75 miles W. N.W. of Peoria. Pop . (1890), 1,601. Ale'-draper, n . A keeper of an ale-house. Alee', adv . [From a and lee. In Fr. sous le vent , under the wind.] ( Naut . ) The situation of the helm when it is pushed down to the lee side of the ship, in order to put the ship about, or to lay her head to the windward. Aleft', adv . On the loft. (R.) Ale hoof, n. ( Bot . ) A species of ground-ivy, the Nepeta glechoma, ord. Lamiacea ; once so called on account of its being the chief ingredient with which ale was made. Ale'-house, n. A house where ale and beer are drunk; -distinguished from a tavern , where wines and liquors are also retailed. Al'eman, MATEO, a Spanish writer, who lived in the 16th century. He satirized the manners of his country- men in the masterly creation of Guzman de Alfarache , a novel published in Madrid, 1599. Alemanni, or ALLEMANNI, n. pl . [0. Ger. Allemannen , from alle , all, and Mann (pl. Männer ), a man; - all men, all sorts of men; a vast union of many tribes.] The name of a confederacy of several German tribes, which, in the beginning of the third century, approached the Roman territory. Their principal abode was the very heart of Germany, the space between the sources of the Rhine and the Danube; from this vital centre, their sway seems to have extended very far along the banks of both those rivers, occupying the entire space between them. In the earliest period of their history, their limits are supposed to have been the Rhine, the Danube, and the Maine; in subsequent ages, their terri- tory extended towards the Alps and the Jura mountains. Car a call a first fought with them, on the southern part of the Rhine, in 211, but did not conquer them. Maxi- min drove them beyond the Rhine, in 236, and Posthn- mius pursued them into Germany. But the A. did not desist from their incursions. Succe ively repulsed by Loll i an us, the emperor Probus, and Constant ins Chlorus, they were defeated by Julian, 357, who forced their princes to sue for peace. Val ent in i an I. had almost in- ce antly to contend with them in his own domain. Gratian, in 377, fought with them a bloody battle, at Alem'broth, n. ( Chem .) An old term, which was ap- plied by alchemists to the poisonous salt of wisdom , a double chloride of mercury and ammonia. It was used as a stimulant. Alemte'jo. See ALENTEJO. A'len, JOHN VAN, a distinguished Dutch painter of birds, landscapes, and representations of still life. B. at Am- sterdam, 1651; D. 1678. Alen'çon, a city of France, cap. of the dep. of the Orne, in a plain on the Sarthe, 105 m. W.S.W. of Paris.- Man . Cloth, linen, tanneries. Some houses still make the celebrated lace called point d'Alençon. The A. diamonds are crystals of smoke quartz found in neighboring granite quarries. Pop . 14,760. Alength', adv . [From a for ad, and length .] At full length; along; stretched at full length. (0.) Ale'nio, JULIUS, an Italian Jesuit, who propagated Christianity with great succe in China during 6 years and wrote several books in the Chinese language. D 1649. Alentejo, a prov. of Portugal, between Lat. 37° 20′ anu 39° 40′, having, N. Beira, S. Algarve, E. Spain, and W the Atlantic and part of Estremadura.- Area , 10,224 sq. m.- Climate , hot and dry. Surface undulating.- Rivers, Tagus, Guadiana, and Sado.- Chief towns , Evora the cap.; Beja, Villa-Viscosa, Portalegre, Elvas, and Es tremoz. Lisbon is mostly supplied with corn from hence, and rice is grown in the low grounds; pop . 329,277. The American Dictionary and Cyclopedia came the great emporium of trade between Europe and the East. A. has a castle, a Mohammedan college, with numerous pupils, many Christian schools and churches, an ancient aqueduct, several large inns, and many extensive warehouses and bazaars.- Manf . Silk, cotton, gold and silver thread stuffs. Large caravans arrive from Bagdad, Ba ora, Diarbekir, Mosul, Kurdistan, and Armenia. Consuls of most European nations reside at Aleppo. About 30 m. N.W. is Angoli Tagh, a mountain with ruins of a convent, and a number of deserted villages, which indicate its former populousne . Pop. about 100,000; but previously to the earthquake of 1822 it is said to have been upward of 200,000, Alep po, in Pennsylvania, a township of Green coun ty. Alert', a . [Sp. al ' erta , on the mound or post of the sentinel on the fortification or rampart. Watchful; vigilant; ready at a call; active; brisk; nimble. Although A. is used for briskne or activity in general, it still is most appropriately used of cases in which, according to the etymology, the mind and body answer to some external call upon them, to be on the alert, or to be on the lookout, ready to act on short notice, being found prepared. (Mil.) Upon the alert, on one's guard; upon the watch; guarding against surprise or danger.