Chapter 22

Bibliography.-G. Gilbert,Constitutional Antiquities(Eng. trans., 1895); Eduard Meyer’sGeschichte des Alterthums, ii. sect. 228; A.H.J. Greenidge,Handbook of Greek Constitutional Hist.(1895); J.W. Headlam,Election by Lot in Athens(Camb., 1891); and authorities quoted underGreece:History, ancient, andAthens:History.

(J. M. M.)

ARCHPRIEST(Lat.archipresbyter, Gr.ἀρχιπρεσβύτερος), in the Christian Church, originally the title of the chief of the priests in a diocese. The office appears as early as the 4th century as that of the priest who presided over the presbyters of the diocese and assisted the bishop in matters of public worship, much as the archdeacon helped him in administrative affairs. Where, as in Germany, the dioceses were of vast extent, these were divided into several archpresbyterates. Out of these developed the rural deaneries, the office of archpriest being ultimately merged in that of rural dean, with which it became synonymous. It thus became strictly subordinate to the jurisdiction of the archdeacon. In Rome itself, as the office of archdeacon grew into that of cardinal-camerlengo, so that of archpriest of St Peter’s developed into that of the cardinal-vicar. In England from 1598 until the appointment of a vicar-apostolic in 1623 the Roman Catholic clergy were placed by the pope under an “archpriest” as superior of the English mission. In the Lutheran Church in Germany the title archpriest (Erzpriester) was in some cases long retained as the equivalent of that of superintendent, sometimes also still called dean (Dechant), his functions being much the same as those of the rural dean.

ARCHYTAS(c.428-347B.C.), of Tarentum, Greek philosopher and scientist of the Pythagorean school, famous as the intimate friend of Plato, was the son of Mnesagoras or Histiaeus. Equally distinguished in natural science, philosophy and the administration of civic affairs, he takes a high place among the versatile savants of the ancient Greek world. He was a man of high character and benevolent disposition, a fine flute-player, and a generous master to his slaves, for whose children he invented the rattle. He took a prominent part in state affairs, and, contrary to precedent, was seven times elected commander of the army. Under his leadership, Tarentum fought with unvarying success against the Messapii, Lucania and even Syracuse. After a life of high intellectual achievement and uninterrupted public service, he was drowned (according to a tradition suggested by Horace,Odes, i. 28) on a voyage across the Adriatic, and was buried, as we are told, at Matinum in Apulia. He is described as the eighth leader of the Pythagorean school, and was a pupil (not the teacher, as some have maintained) of Philolaus. In mathematics, he was the first to draw up a methodical treatment of mechanics with the aid of geometry; he first distinguished harmonic progression from arithmetical and geometrical progressions. As a geometer he is classed by Eudemus, the greatest ancient authority, among those who “have enriched the science with original theorems, and given it a really sound arrangement.” He evolved an ingenious solution of the duplication of the cube, which shows considerable knowledge of the generation of cylinders and cones. The theory of proportion, and the study of acoustics and music were considerably advanced by his investigations. He was said to be the inventor of a kind of flying-machine, a wooden pigeon balanced by a weight suspended from a pulley, and set in motion by compressed air escaping from a valve.1Fragments of his ethical and metaphysical writings are quoted by Stobaeus, Simplicius and others. To portions of these Aristotle has been supposed to have been indebted for his doctrine of the categories and some of his chief ethical theories. It is, however, certain that these fragments are mainly forgeries, attributable to the eclecticism of the 1st or 2nd centuryA.D., of which the chief characteristic was a desire to father later doctrines on the old masters. Such fragments as seem to be authentic are of small philosophical value. It is important to notice that Archytas must have been famous as a philosopher, inasmuch as Aristotle wrote a special treatise (not extant)On the Philosophy of Archytas. Some positive idea of his speculations may be derived from two of his observations: the one in which he notices that the parts of animals and plants are in general rounded in form, and the other dealing with the sense of hearing, which, in virtue of its limited receptivity, he compares with vessels, which when filled can hold no more. Two important principles are illustrated by these thoughts, (1) that there is no absolute distinction between the organic and the inorganic, and (2) that the argument from final causes is no explanation of phenomena. Archytas may be quoted as an example of Plato’s perfect ruler, the philosopher-king, who combines practical sagacity with high character and philosophic insight.

See G. Hartenstein,De Arch. Tar. frag.(Leipzig, 1833); O.F. Gruppe,Über d. Frag. d. Arch.(1840); F. Beckmann,De Pythag. reliq.(Berlin, 1844, 1850); Egger,De Arch. Tar. vit., op. phil.; Ed. Zeller,Phil. d. Griech.; Theodor Gomperz,Greek Thinkers, ii. 259 (Eng. trans. G.G. Berry, Lond., 1905); G.J. Allman,Greek Geometry from Thales to Euclid(1889); Florian Cajori,History of Mathematics(New York, 1894); M. Cantor,Gesch. d. gr. Math.(1894 foll.). The mathematical fragments are collected by Fr. Blass,Mélanges Graux(Paris, 1884). For Pythagorean mathematics see furtherPythagoras.

1If this be the proper translation of Aulus Gellius,Noctes Atticae, x. 12., 9, “... simulacrum columbae e ligno ... factum; ita erat scilicet libramentis suspensum et aura spiritus inclusa atque occulta concitum.” (SeeAeronautics.)

ARCIS-SUR-AUBE,a town of eastern France, capital of an arrondissement in the department of Aube, on the left bank of the Aube, 23 m. N. of Troyes on the Eastern railway to Châlons-sur-Marne. Pop. (1906) 2803. Fires in 1719, 1727 and 1814 destroyed the ancient buildings, and it is now a town built in modern style with wide and regular streets. A château of the 18th century occupies the site of an older one in which Diana of Poitiers, mistress of Henry II., resided. The only other building of interest is the church, which dates from the 15th century. In front of it there is a statue of Danton, a native of the town. Arcis-sur-Aube has a tribunal of first instance. Its industries include important hosiery manufactures, and it carries on trade in grain and coal. The town communicates with Paris by means of the Aube, which becomes navigable at this point.

A battle was fought here on the 20th and 21st of March 1814 between Napoleon and the Austro-Russian army under Schwarzenberg (seeNapoleonic Campaigns).

ARCOLA,a village of northern Italy, 16 m. E.S.E. of Verona, on the Alpone stream, near its confluence with the Adige below Verona. The village gives its name to the three days’ battle of Arcola (15th, 16th and 17th of November 1796), in which the French, under General Napoleon Bonaparte, defeated the Austrians commanded by Allvintzy (seeFrench Revolutionary Wars).

ARCOS DE LA FRONTERA,a town of southern Spain, in the province of Cadiz; on the right bank of the river Guadalete, which flows past Santa Maria into the Bay of Cadiz. Pop. (1900) 13,926. The town occupies a ridge of sandstone, washed on three sides by the river, and commanding fine views of the lofty peak of San Cristobál, on the east, and the fertile Guadalete valley, celebrated in ancient Spanish ballads for its horses. At the highest point of the ridge is a Gothic church with a fine gateway, and a modern tower overlooking the town. The fame of its ten bells dates from the wars between Spaniards and Moors in which “Arcos of the Frontier” received its name. After its capture by Alphonso the Wise of Castile (1252-1284), the town was a Christian stronghold on the borders of Moorish territory. Another church contains several Moorish banners, taken in 1483 at the battle of Záhara, a neighbouring village. The ruined citadel, the theatre, and the palace of the dukes of Arcos are the only other noteworthy buildings. Roman remains have been found in the vicinity, and the ridge of Arcos is honeycombed with rock-hewn chambers, said to be ancient cave-dwellings.

SeeGaleria de Arcobricenses illustres(Arcos, 1892), andRiqueza y cultura de Arcos de la Frontera(Arcos, 1898); both by M. Mancheño y Olivares.

ARCOSOLIUM(from Lat.arcus, arch, andsolium, a sarcophagus), an architectural term applied to an arched recess used as a burial place in a catacomb (q.v.).

ARCOT,the name of a city and two districts of British India in the presidency of Madras. Arcot city is the principal town in the district of North Arcot. It occupies a very prominent place in the history of the British conquest of India, but it has now lost its manufactures and trade and preserves only a few mosques and tombs as traces of its former grandeur. It is a station on the line of railway from Madras to Beypur, but has ceased to bea military cantonment. The most famous episode in its history is the capture and defence of Arcot by Clive. In the middle of the 18th century, during the war between the rival claimants to the throne of the Carnatic, Mahommed Ali and Chanda Sahib, the English supported the claims of the former and the French those of the latter. In order to divert the attention of Chanda Sahib and his French auxiliaries from the siege of Trichinopoly, Clive suggested an attack upon Arcot and offered to command the expedition. His offer was accepted; but the only force which could be spared to him was 200 Europeans and 300 native troops to attack a fort garrisoned by 1100 men. The place, however, was abandoned without a struggle and Clive took possession of the fortress. The expedition produced the desired effect; Chanda Sahib was obliged to detach a large force of 10,000 men to recapture the city, and the pressure on the English garrison at Trichinopoly was removed. Arcot was afterwards captured by the French; but in 1760 was retaken by Colonel Coote after the battle of Wandiwash. It was also taken by Hyder Ali when that invader ravaged the Carnatic in 1780, and held by him for some time. The town of Arcot, together with the whole of the territory of the Carnatic, passed into the hands of the British in 1801, upon the formal resignation of the government by the nawab, Azim-ud-daula, who received a liberal pension.

The district of North Arcot is bounded on the N. by the districts of Cuddapah and Nellore; on the E. by the district of Chingleput; on the S. by the districts of South Arcot and Salem; and on the W. by the Mysore territory. The area of North Arcot is 7386 sq. m., and the population in 1901 was 2,207,712, showing an increase of 4% in the decade. The aspect of the country, in the eastern and southern parts, is flat and uninteresting; but the western parts, where it runs along the foot of the Eastern Ghats, as well as all the country northwards from Trivellam to Tripali and the Karkambadi Pass, are mountainous, with an agreeable diversity of scenery. The elevated platform in the west of the district is comparatively cool, being 2000 ft. above the level of the sea, with a mean maximum of the thermometer in the hottest weather of 88°. The hills are composed principally of granite and syenite, and have little vegetation. Patches of stunted jungle here and there diversify their rugged and barren aspect; but they abound in minerals, especially copper and iron ores. The narrow valleys between the hills are very fertile, having a rich soil and an abundant water-supply even in the driest seasons. The principal river in the district is the Palar, which rises in Mysore, and flows through North Arcot from west to east past the towns of Vellore and Arcot, into the neighbouring district of Chingleput, eventually falling into the sea at Sadras. Although a considerable stream in the rainy season, and often impassable, the bed is dry or nearly so during the rest of the year. Other smaller rivers of the district are the Paini, which passes near Chittore and falls into the Palar, the Sonamukhi and the Chayaur. These streams are all dry during the hot season, but in the rains they flow freely and replenish the numerous tanks and irrigation channels. The administrative headquarters are at Chittore, but the largest towns are Vellore (the military station), Tirupati (a great religious centre), and Wallajapet and Kalahasti (the two chief places of trade).

The district of South Arcot is bounded on the N. by the districts of North Arcot and Chingleput; on the E. by the French territory of Pondicherry and the Bay of Bengal; on the S. by the British districts of Tanjore and Trichinopoly; and on the W. by the British district of Salem. It contains an area of 5217 sq. m.; and its population in 1901 was 2,349,894, showing an increase of 9% in the decade. The aspect of the district resembles that of other parts of the Coromandel coast. It is low and sandy near the sea, and for the most part level till near the western border, where ranges of hills form the boundary between this and the neighbouring district of Salem. These ranges are in some parts about 5000 ft. high, with solitary hills scattered about the district. In the western tracts, dense patches of jungle furnish covert to tigers, leopards, bears and monkeys. The principal river is the Coleroon which forms the southern boundary of the district, separating it from Trichinopoly. This river is abundantly supplied with water during the greater part of the year, and two irrigating channels distribute its waters through the district. The other rivers are the Vellar, Pennar, and Gadalum, all of which are used for irrigation purposes. Numerous small irrigation channels lead off from them, by means of which a considerable area of waste land has been brought under cultivation. Under the East India Company, a commercial resident was stationed at Cuddalore, and the Company’s weavers were encouraged by many privileges. The manufacture and export of native cloth have now been almost entirely superseded by the introduction of European piece goods. The chief seaport of the district of South Arcot is Cuddalore, close to the site of Fort St David. The principal crops in both districts are rice, millet, other food grains, oil-seeds and indigo.

ARCTIC(Gr.῎Αρκτος, the Bear, the northern constellation of Ursa Major), the epithet applied to the region round the North Pole, covering the area (both ocean and lands) where the characteristic polar conditions of climate, &c., obtain. The Arctic Circle is drawn at 66° 30′ N. (seePolar Regions).

ARCTINUS,of Miletus, one of the earliest poets of Greece and contributors to the epic cycle. He flourished probably about 744B.C.(Ol. 7). His poems are lost, but an idea of them can be gained from theChrestomathywritten by Proclus the Neo-Platonist of the 5th century or by a grammarian of the same name in the time of the Antonines. TheAethiopisΑἰθιοπίς, in five books, was so called from the Aethiopian Memnon, who became the ally of the Trojans after the death of Hector. As the opening shows, it took up the narrative from the close of theIliad. It begins with the famous deeds and death of the Amazon Penthesileia, and concludes with the death and burial of Achilles and the dispute between Ajax and Odysseus for his arms. The title thus only applied to part of the poem. TheSack of Troy(Ίλίου Πέρσις) gives the stories of the wooden horse, Sinon, and Laocoon, the capture of the city, and the departure of the Greeks under the wrath of Athene at the outrage of Ajax on Cassandra. TheLittle Iliad(Ίγιἀς μικρά) of Lesches formed the transition between theAethiopisand theSack of Troy.

Kinkel,Epicorum Graecorum Fragmenta(1877); Welcker,Der epische Cyclus; Müller,History of the Literature of Ancient Greece; Lang,Homer and the Epic(1893); Monro,Journal of Hellenic Studies(1883); T.W. Allen inClassical Quarterly, April 1908, pp. 82 foll.

ARCTURUS,the brightest star in the northern hemisphere, situated in the constellation Boötes (q.v.) in an almost direct line with the tail (ζ and η) of the constellation Ursa Major (Great Bear); hence its derivation from the Gr.ἄρκτος, bear, andοὖρος, guard. Arcturus has been supposed to be referred to in various passages of the Hebrew Bible; the Vulgate reads Arcturus for stars mentioned in Job ix. 9, xxxvii. 9, xxxviii. 31, as well as Amos v. 8. Other versions, as also modern authorities, have preferred,e.g., Orion, the Pleiades, the Scorpion, the Great Bear (of.Amosin the “International Critical Comment” series, and G. Schiaparelli,Astronomy in the O.T., Eng. trans., Oxford, 1905, ch. iv.). According to one of the Greek legends about Arcas, son of Lycaon, king of Arcadia, he was killed by his father and his flesh was served up in a banquet to Zeus, who was indignant at the crime and restored him to life. Subsequently Arcas, when hunting, chanced to pursue his mother Callisto, who had been transformed into a bear, as far as the temple of Lycaean Zeus; to prevent the crime of matricide Zeus transported them both to the heavens (Ovid,Metam. ii. 410), where Callisto became the constellation Ursa Major, and Areas the star Arcturus (seeLycaonandCallisto).

ARCUEIL,a town of northern France, in the department of Seine, on the Bièvre, 2½ m. N.E. of Sceaux on the railway from Paris to Limours. Pop. (1906) 8660. The town has an interesting church dating from the 13th to the 15th century. It takes its name from a Roman aqueduct, theArcus Juliani(Arculi), some traces of which still remain. In 1613-1624 a bridge-aqueduct over 1300 ft. long was constructed to convey water from the spring of Rungis some 4 m. south of Arcueil, across the Bièvre to the Luxembourg palace in Paris. In 1868-1872another aqueduct, still longer, was superimposed above that of the 17th century, forming part of the system conveying water from the river Vanne to Paris. The two together reach a height of about 135 ft. Bleaching, and the manufacture of bottle capsules, patent leather and other articles are carried on at Arcueil; and there are important stone quarries.

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