Chapter 12

See Mariano F. Paz Soldan,Diccionario geográfico-estadistico del Perú(Lima, 1877); Mateo Paz Soldan and M. F. Paz Soldan,Geografia del Perú(Paris, 1862); Manuel A. Fuentes,Lima, or Sketches of the Capital of Peru(London, 1866); C. R. Markham,Cuzo and Lima(London, 1856), andHistory of Peru(Chicago, 1892); Alexandre Garland,Peru in 1906(Lima, 1907); and C. R. Enock,Peru(London, 1908). For earlier descriptions see works referred to underPeru.

(A. J. L.)

LIMAÇON(from the Lat.limax, a slug), a curve invented by Blaise Pascal and further investigated and named by Gilles Personne de Roberval. It is generated by the extremities of a rod which is constrained to move so that its middle point traces out a circle, the rod always passing through a fixed point on the circumference. The polar equation isr=a+bcos θ, where 2a= length of the rod, andb= diameter of the circle. The curve may be regarded as an epitrochoid (seeEpicycloid) in which the rolling and fixed circles have equal radii. It is the inverse of acentral conic for the focus, and the first positive pedal of a circle for any point. The form of the limaçon depends on the ratio of the two constants; ifabe greater thanb, the curve lies entirely outside the circle; ifaequalsb, it is known as a cardioid (q.v.); ifais less thanb, the curve has a node within the circle; the particular case whenb= 2ais known as the trisectrix (q.v.). In the figure (1) is a limaçon, (2) the cardioid, (3) the trisectrix.

Properties of the limaçon may be deduced from its mechanical construction; thus the length of a focal chord is constant and the normals at the extremities of a focal chord intersect on a fixed circle. The area is (b² +a²/2)π, and the length is expressible as an elliptic integral.

LIMASOL,a seaport of Cyprus, on Akrotiri Bay of the south coast. Pop. (1901) 8298. Excepting a fort attributed to the close of the 12th century the town is without antiquities of interest, but in the neighbourhood are the ancient sites of Amathus and Curium. Limasol has a considerable trade in wine and carobs. The town was the scene of the marriage of Richard I., king of England, with Berengaria, in 1191.

LIMB.(1) (In O. Eng.lim, cognate with the O. Nor. and Icel.limr, Swed. and Dan.lem; probably the word is to be referred to a rootli- seen in an obsolete English word “lith,” a limb, and in the Ger.Glied), originally any portion or member of the body, but now restricted in meaning to the external members of the body of an animal apart from the head and trunk, the legs and arms, or, in a bird, the wings. It is sometimes used of the lower limbs only, and is synonymous with “leg.” The word is also used of the main branches of a tree, of the projecting spurs of a range of mountains, of the arms of a cross, &c. As a translation of the Lat.membrum, and with special reference to the church as the “body of Christ,” “limb” was frequently used by ecclesiastical writers of the 16th and 17th centuries of a person as being a component part of the church; cf. such expressions as “limb of Satan,” “limb of the law,” &c. From the use ofmembrumin medieval Latin for an estate dependent on another, the name “limb” is given to an outlying portion of another, or to thesubordinatemembers of the Cinque Ports, attached to one of the principal towns; Pevensey was thus a “limb” of Hastings. (2) An edge or border, frequently used in scientific language for the boundary of a surface. It is thus used of the edge of the disk of the sun or moon, of the expanded part of a petal or sepal in botany, &c. This word is a shortened form of “limbo” or “limbus,” Lat. for an edge, for the theological use of which seeLimbus.

LIMBACH,a town in the kingdom of Saxony, in the manufacturing district of Chemnitz, 6 m. N.W. of that city. Pop. (1905) 13,723. It has a public park and a monument to the composer Pache. Its industries include the making of worsteds, cloth, silk and sewing-machines, and dyeing and bleaching.

LIMBER,an homonymous word, having three meanings. (1) A two-wheeled carriage forming a detachable part of the equipment of all guns on travelling carriages and having on it a framework to contain ammunition boxes, and, in most cases, seats for two or three gunners. The French equivalent isavant-train, the Ger.Protz(seeArtilleryandOrdnance). (2) An adjective meaning pliant or flexible and so used with reference to a person’s mental or bodily qualities, quick, nimble, adroit. (3) A nautical term for the holes cut in the flooring in a ship above the keelson, to allow water to drain to the pumps.

The etymology of these words is obscure. According to theNew English Dictionarythe origin of (1) is to be found in the Fr.limonière, a derivative oflimon, the shaft of a vehicle, a meaning which appears in English from the 15th century but is now obsolete, except apparently among the miners of the north of England. The earlier English forms of the word arelymororlimmer. Skeat suggests that (2) is connected with “limp,” which he refers to a Teutonic baselap-, meaning to hang down. TheNew English Dictionarypoints out that while “limp” does not occur till the beginning of the 18th century, “limber” in this sense is found as early as the 16th. In Thomas Cooper’s (1517?-1594)Thesaurus Linguae Romanae et Britannicae(1565), it appears as the English equivalent of the Latinlentus. A possible derivation connects it with “limb.”

LIMBORCH, PHILIPP VAN(1633-1712), Dutch Remonstrant theologian, was born on the 19th of June 1633, at Amsterdam, where his father was a lawyer. He received his education at Utrecht, at Leiden, in his native city, and finally at Utrecht University, which he entered in 1652. In 1657 he became a Remonstrant pastor at Gouda, and in 1667 he was transferred to Amsterdam, where, in the following year, the office of professor of theology in the Remonstrant seminary was added to his pastoral charge. He was a friend of John Locke. He died at Amsterdam on the 30th of April 1712.

His most important work,Institutiones theologiae christianae, ad praxin pietatis et promotionem pacis christianae unice directae(Amsterdam, 1686, 5th ed., 1735), is a full and clear exposition of the system of Simon Episcopius and Stephan Curcellaeus. The fourth edition (1715) included a posthumous “Relatio historica de origine et progressu controversiarum in foederato Belgio de praedestinatione.” Limborch also wroteDe veritate religionis Christianae amica collatio cum erudito Judaeo(Gouda, 1687);Historia Inquisitionis(1692), in four books prefixed to the “Liber Sententiarum Inquisitionis Tolosanae” (1307-1323); andCommentarius in Acta Apostolorum et in Epistolas ad Romanos et ad Hebraeos(Rotterdam, 1711). His editorial labours included the publication of various works of his predecessors, and ofEpistolae ecclesiasticae praestantium ac eruditorum virorum(Amsterdam, 1684), chiefly by Jakobus Arminius, Joannes Uytenbogardus, Konrad Vorstius (1569-1622), Gerhard Vossius (1577-1649), Hugo Grotius, Simon Episcopius (his grand-uncle) and Gaspar Barlaeus; they are of great value for the history of Arminianism. An English translation of the Theologia was published in 1702 by William Jones (A Complete System or Body of Divinity, both Speculative and Practical, founded on Scripture and Reason, London, 1702); and a translation of theHistoria Inquisitionis, by Samuel Chandler, with “a large introduction concerning the rise and progress of persecution and the real and pretended causes of it” prefixed, appeared in 1731. See Herzog-Hauck,Realencyklopädie.

LIMBURG,one of the many small feudal states into which the duchy of Lower Lorraine was split up in the second half of the 11th century. The first count, Walram of Arlon, married Judith the daughter of Frederick of Luxemburg, duke of Lower Lorraine (d. 1065), who bestowed upon him a portion of his possessions lying upon both sides of the river Meuse. It received its name from the strong castle built by Count Walram on the river Vesdre, where the town of Limburg now stands. Henry, Walram’s son (d. 1119), was turbulent and ambitious. On the death of Godfrey of Bouillon (1089) he forced the emperor Henry IV. to recognize him as duke of Lower Lorraine. He was afterwards deposed and imprisoned by Count Godfrey of Louvain on whom the ducal title had been bestowed by the emperor Henry V. (1106). For three generations the possession of the ducal title was disputed between the rival houses of Limburg and Louvain. At length a reconciliation took place (1155); the name of duke of Lower Lorraine henceforth disappears, the rulers of the territory on the Meuse become dukes of Limburg, those of the larger territory to the west dukes of Brabant. With the death of Duke Walram IV. (1280) the succession passed to his daughter, Irmingardis, who was married to Reinald I., count of Guelders. Irmingardis died without issue (1282), and her cousin, Count Adolph of Berg, laid claim to the duchy. His rights were disputed by Reinald, who was in possession and was recognized by the emperor. Too weak to assert his claim by force of arms Adolph sold his rights (1283) to John, duke of Brabant (q.v.). This led to a long and desolating war for five years, at the end of which (1288), finding the power of Brabant superior to his own Reinald in his turn sold his rights to count Henry III. of Luxemburg. Henry and Reinald, supported by the archbishop of Cologne and other allies, now raised a great army. The rival forces met at Woeringen (5th of June 1288) and John of Brabant (q.v.) gained a complete victory. It proved decisive, the duchies of Limburg and Brabant passing under the rule of a common sovereign. The duchy comprised during this period the bailiwicks of Hervé, Montzen, Baelen, Sprimont and Wallhorn, and the counties of Rolduc, Daelhem and Falkenberg, to which was added in 1530 the town ofMaastricht. The provisions and privileges of the famous Charter of Brabant, theJoyeuse Entrée(q.v.), were from the 15th century extended to Limburg and remained in force until the French Revolution. By the treaty of Westphalia (1648) the duchy was divided into two portions, the counties of Daelhem and Falkenberg with the town of Maastricht being ceded by Spain to the United Provinces, where they formed what was known as a “Generality-Land.” At the peace of Rastatt (1714) the southern portion passed under the dominion of the Austrian Habsburgs and formed part of the Austrian Netherlands until the French conquest in 1794. During the period of French rule (1794-1814) Limburg was included in the two French departments of Ourthe and Meuse Inférieure. In 1814 the old name of Limburg was restored to one of the provinces of the newly created kingdom of the Netherlands, but the new Limburg comprised besides the ancient duchy, a piece of Gelderland and the county of Looz. At the revolution of 1830 Limburg, with the exception of Maastricht, threw in its lot with the Belgians, and during the nine years that King William refused to recognize the existence of the kingdom of Belgium the Limburgers sent representatives to the legislature at Brussels and were treated as Belgians. When in 1839 the Dutch king suddenly announced his intention of accepting the terms of the settlement proposed by the treaty of London, as drawn up by representatives of the great powers in 1831, Belgium found herself compelled to relinquish portions of Limburg and Luxemburg. The part of Limburg that lay on the right bank of the Meuse, together with the town of Maastricht and a number of communes—Weert, Haelen, Kepel, Horst, &c.—on the left bank of the river, became a sovereign duchy under the rule of the king of Holland. In exchange for the cession of the rights of the Germanic confederation over the portion of Luxemburg, which was annexed by the treaty to Belgium, the duchy of Limburg (excepting the communes of Maastricht and Venloo) was declared to belong to the Germanic confederation. This somewhat unsatisfactory condition of affairs continued until 1866, when at a conference of the great powers, held in London to consider the Luxemburg question (seeLuxemburg), it was agreed that Limburg should be freed from every political tie with Germany. Limburg became henceforth an integral part of Dutch territory.

See P. S. Ernst,Histoire du Limbourg(7 vols., Liége, 1837-1852); C. J. Luzac,De Landen van Overmuze in Zonderheid 1662(Leiden, 1888); M. J. de Poully,Histoire de Maastricht et de ses environs(1850);Diplomaticke bescheiden betreffends de Limburg-Luxemburgsche aangelegenheden 1866-1867(The Hague, 1868); and R. Fruin,Geschied. der Staats-Instellingen in Nederland(The Hague, 1901).

(G. E.)

LIMBURG,orLimbourg, the smallest of the nine provinces of Belgium, occupying the north-east corner of the kingdom. It represents only a portion of the ancient duchy of Limburg (see above). The part east of the Meuse was transferred to Holland by the London conference, and a further portion was attached to the province of Liége including the old capital now called Dolhain. Much of the province is represented by the wild heath district called the Campine, recently discovered to form an extensive coal-field. The operations for working it were only begun in 1906. North-west of Hasselt is Beverloo, where all the Belgian troops go through a course of instruction annually. Among the towns are Hasselt, the capital, St Trond and Looz. From the last named is derived the title of the family known as the dukes of Looz, whose antiquity equals that of the extinct reigning family of Limburg itself. The title of duc de Looz is one of the four existing ducal titles in the Netherlands, the other three being d’Arenberg, Croy and d’Ursel. Limburg contains 603,085 acres or 942 sq. m. In 1904 the population was 255,359, giving an average of 271 per sq. m.

LIMBURG,a town of Germany, in the Prussian province of Hesse-Nassau, on the Lahn, here crossed by a bridge dating from 1315, and on the main line of railway from Coblenz to Lollar and Cassel, with a branch to Frankfort-on-Main. Pop. (1905) 9917. It is the seat of a Roman Catholic bishop. The small seven-towered cathedral, dedicated to St George the martyr, is picturesquely situated on a rocky site overhanging the river. This was founded by Conrad Kurzbold, count of Niederlahngau, early in the 10th century, and was consecrated in 1235. It was restored in 1872-1878. Limburg has a castle, a new town hall and a seminary for the education of priests; its industries include the manufacture of cloth, tobacco, soap, machinery, pottery and leather. Limburg, which was a flourishing place during the middle ages, had its own line of counts until 1414, when it was purchased by the elector of Trier. It passed to Nassau in 1803. In September 1796 it was the scene of a victory gained by the Austrians under the archduke Charles over the French.

See Hillebrand,Limburg an der Lahn unter Pfandherrschaft 1344-1624(Wiesbaden, 1899).

LIMBURG,the south-easternmost and smallest province of Holland, bounded N. by Gelderland, N.W. by North Brabant, S.W. by the Belgian province of Limburg, and S. by that of Liége, and E. by Germany. Its area is 850 sq. m., and its population in 1900 was 281,934. It is watered by the Meuse (Maas) which forms part of its south-western boundary (with Belgium) and then flows through its northern portion, and by such tributaries as the Geul and Roer (Ruhr). Its capital is Maastricht, which gives name to one of the two administrative districts into which it is divided, the other being Roermond.

LIMBURG CHRONICLE,orFesti Limpurgenses, the name of a German chronicle written most probably by Tileman Elhen von Wolfhagen after 1402. It is a source for the history of the Rhineland between 1336 and 1398, but is perhaps more valuable for the information about German manners and customs, and the old German folk-songs and stories which it contains. It has also a certain philological interest.

The chronicle was first published by J. F. Faust in 1617, and has been edited by A. Wyss for theMonumenta Germaniae historica. Deutsche Chroniken, Band iv. (Hanover, 1883). See A. Wyss,Die Limburger Chronik untersucht(Marburg, 1875).

LIMBURGITE,in petrology, a dark-coloured volcanic rock resembling basalt in appearance, but containing normally no felspar. The name is taken from Limburg (Germany), where they occur in the well-known rock of the Kaiserstuhl. They consist essentially of olivine and augite with a brownish glassy ground mass. The augite may be green, but more commonly is brown or violet; the olivine is usually pale green or colourless, but is sometimes yellow (hyalosiderite). In the ground mass a second generation of small eumorphic augites frequently occurs; more rarely olivine is present also as an ingredient of the matrix. The principal accessory minerals are titaniferous iron oxides and apatite. Felspar though sometimes present is never abundant, and nepheline also is unusual. In some limburgites large phenocysts of dark brown hornblende and biotite are found, mostly with irregular borders blackened by resorption; in others there are large crystals of soda orthoclase or anorthoclase. Hauyne is an ingredient of some of the limburgites of the Cape Verde Islands. Rocks of this group occur in considerable numbers in Germany (Rhine district) and in Bohemia, also in Scotland, Auvergne, Spain, Africa (Kilimanjaro), Brazil, &c. They are associated principally with basalts, nepheline and leucite basalts and monchiquites. From the last-named rocks the limburgites are not easily separated as the two classes bear a very close resemblance in structure and in mineral composition, though many authorities believe that the ground mass of the monchiquites is not a glass but crystalline analcite. Limburgites may occur as flows, as sills or dykes, and are sometimes highly vesicular. Closely allied to them are theaugitites, which are distinguished only by the absence of olivine; examples are known from Bohemia, Auvergne, the Canary Islands, Ireland, &c.

LIMBUS(Lat. for “edge,” “fringe,”e.g.of a garment), a theological term denoting the border of hell, where dwell those who, while not condemned to torture, yet are deprived of the joy of heaven. The more common form in English is “limbo,” which is used both in the technical theological sense and derivatively in the sense of “prison,” or for the condition of being lost, deserted, obsolete. In theology there are (1) theLimbus Infantum, and (2) theLimbus Patrum.

1. TheLimbus InfantumorPuerorumis the abode to whichhuman beings dying without actual sin, but with their original sin unwashed away by baptism, were held to be consigned; the category included, not unbaptized infants merely, but also idiots, cretins and the like. The word “limbus,” in the theological application, occurs first in theSummaof Thomas Aquinas; for its extensive currency it is perhaps most indebted to theCommediaof Dante (Inf.c. 4). The question as to the destiny of infants dying unbaptized presented itself to theologians at a comparatively early period. Generally speaking it may be said that the Greek fathers inclined to a cheerful and the Latin fathers to a gloomy view. Thus Gregory of Nazianzus (Orat.40) says “that such children as die unbaptized without their own fault shall neither be glorified nor punished by the righteous Judge, as having done no wickedness, though they die unbaptized, and as rather suffering loss than being the authors of it.” Similar opinions were expressed by Gregory of Nyssa, Severus of Antioch and others—opinions which it is almost impossible to distinguish from the Pelagian view that children dying unbaptized might be admitted to eternal life, though not to the kingdom of God. In his recoil from Pelagian heresy, Augustine was compelled to sharpen the antithesis between the state of the saved and that of the lost, and taught that there are only two alternatives—to be with Christ or with the devil, to be with Him or against Him. Following up, as he thought, his master’s teaching, Fulgentius declared that it is to be believed as an indubitable truth that, “not only men who have come to the use of reason, but infants dying, whether in their mother’s womb or after birth, without baptism in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost, are punished with everlasting punishment in eternal fire.” Later theologians and schoolmen followed Augustine in rejecting the notion of any final position intermediate between heaven and hell, but otherwise inclined to take the mildest possible view of the destiny of the irresponsible and unbaptized. Thus the proposition of Innocent III. that “the punishment of original sin is deprivation of the vision of God” is practically repeated by Aquinas, Scotus, and all the other great theologians of the scholastic period, the only outstanding exception being that of Gregory of Rimini, who on this account was afterwards called “tortor infantum.” The first authoritative declaration of the Latin Church upon this subject was that made by the second council of Lyons (1274), and confirmed by the council of Florence (1439), with the concurrence of the representatives of the Greek Church, to the effect that “the souls of those who die in mortal sin or in original sin only forthwith descend into hell, but to be punished with unequal punishments.” Perrone remarks (Prael. Theol.pt. iii. chap. 6, art. 4) that the damnation of infants and also the comparative lightness of the punishment involved in this are thusde fide; but nothing is determined as to the place which they occupy in hell, as to what constitutes the disparity of their punishment, or as to their condition after the day of judgment. In the council of Trent there was considerable difference of opinion as to what was implied in deprivation of the vision of God, and no definition was attempted, the Dominicans maintaining the severer view that the “limbus infantum” was a dark subterranean fireless chamber, while the Franciscans placed it in a region of light above the earth. Some theologians continue to maintain with Bellarmine that the infants “in limbo” are affected with some degree of sadness on account of a felt privation; others, following theNodus praedestinationisof Celestine Sfrondati (1649-1696), hold that they enjoy every kind of natural felicity, as regards their souls now, and as regards their bodies after the resurrection, just as if Adam had not sinned. In the condemnation (1794) of the synod of Pistoia (1786), the twenty-sixth article declares it to be false, rash and injurious to treat as Pelagian the doctrine that those dying in original sin are not punished with fire, as if that meant that there is an intermediate place, free from fault and punishment, between the kingdom of God and everlasting damnation.

2. TheLimbus Patrum,Limbus InferniorSinus Abrahae(“Abraham’s Bosom”), is defined in Roman Catholic theology as the place in the underworld where the saints of the Old Testament were confined until liberated by Christ on his “descent into hell.” Regarding the locality and its pleasantness or painfulness nothing has been taught asde fide. It is sometimes regarded as having been closed and empty since Christ’s descent, but other authors do not think of it as separate in place from thelimbus infantum. The whole idea, in the Latin Church, has been justly described as the merecaput mortuumof the old catholic doctrine of Hades, which was gradually superseded in the West by that of purgatory.

LIME(O. Eng.lim, Lat.limus, mud, fromlinere, to smear), the name given to a viscous exudation of the holly-tree, used for snaring birds and known as “bird-lime.” In chemistry, it is the popular name of calcium oxide, CaO, a substance employed in very early times as a component of mortars and cementing materials. It is prepared by the burning of limestone (a process described by Dioscorides and Pliny) in kilns similar to those described underCement. The value and subsequent treatment of the product depend on the purity of the limestone; a pure stone yields a “fat” lime which readily slakes; an impure stone, especially if magnesia be present, yields an almost unslakable “poor” lime. SeeCement,ConcreteandMortar, for details.

Pure calcium oxide “quick-lime,” obtained by heating the pure carbonate, is a white amorphous substance, which can be readily melted and boiled in the electric furnace, cubic and acicular crystals being deposited on cooling the vapour. It combines with water, evolving much heat and crumbling to pieces; this operation is termed “slaking” and the resulting product “slaked lime”; it is chemically equivalent to the conversion of the oxide into hydrate. A solution of the hydrate in water, known as lime-water, has a weakly alkaline reaction; it is employed in the detection of carbonic acid. “Milk of lime” consists of a cream of the hydrate and water. Dry lime has no action upon chlorine, carbon dioxide and sulphur dioxide, although in the presence of water combination ensues.

In medicine lime-water, applied externally, is an astringent and desiccative, and it enters into the preparation of linamentum calcis and carron oil which are employed to heal burns, eczema, &c. Applied internally, lime-water is an antacid; it prevents the curdling of milk in large lumps (hence its prescription for infants); it also acts as a gastric sedative. Calcium phosphate is much employed in treating rickets, and calcium chloride in haemoptysis and haemophylia. It is an antidote for mineral and oxalic acid poisoning.

LIME,1orLinden. The lime trees, species ofTilia, are familiar timber trees with sweet-scented, honeyed flowers, which are borne on a common peduncle proceeding from the middle of a long bract. The genus, which gives the name to the natural order Tiliaceae, contains about ten species of trees, natives of the north temperate zone. The general nameTilia europaea, the name given by Linnaeus to the European lime, includes several well-marked sub-species, often regarded as distinct species. These are: (1) the small-leaved lime,T. parvifolia(orT. cordata), probably wild in woods in England and also wild throughout Europe, except in the extreme south-east, and Russian Asia. (2)T. intermedia, the common lime, which is widely planted in Britain but not wild there, has a less northerly distribution thanT. cordata, from which it differs in its somewhat larger leaves and downy fruit. (3) The large-leaved lime,T. platyphyllos(orT. grandifolia), occurs only as an introduction in Britain, and is wild in Europe south of Denmark. It differs from the other two limes in its larger leaves, often 4 in. across, which are downy beneath, its downy twigs and its prominently ribbed fruit. The lime sometimes acquires a great size; one is recorded in Norfolk as being 16 yds. in circumference, and Ray mentions one of the same girth. The famous linden tree which gave the town of Neuenstadt in Württemberg the name of “Neuenstadt an der grossen Linden” was 9 ft. in diameter.

The lime is a very favourite tree. It is an object of beauty inthe spring when the delicately transparent green leaves are bursting from the protection of the pink and white stipules, which have formed the bud-scales, and retains its fresh green during early summer. Later, the fragrance of its flowers, rich in honey, attracts innumerable bees; in the autumn the foliage becomes a clear yellow but soon falls. Among the many famous avenues of limes may be mentioned that which gave the name to one of the best-known ways in Berlin, “Unter den Linden,” and the avenue at Trinity College, Cambridge.

The economic value of the tree chiefly lies in the inner bark or liber (Lat. for bark), called bast, and the wood. The former was used for paper and mats and for tying garlands by the ancients (Od.i. 38; Pliny xvi. 14. 25, xxiv. 8. 33). Bast mats are now made chiefly in Russia, the bark being cut in long strips, when the liber is easily separable from the corky superficial layer. It is then plaited into mats about 2 yds. square; 14,000,000 come to Britain annually, chiefly from Archangel. The wood is used by carvers, being soft and light, and by architects in framing the models of buildings. Turners use it for light bowls, &c.T. americana(bass-wood) is one of the most common trees in the forests of Canada and extends into the eastern and southern United States. It is sawn into lumber and under the name of white-wood used in the manufacture of wooden ware, cheap furniture, &c., and also for paper pulp (C. S. Sargent,Silva of North America). It was cultivated by Philip Miller at Chelsea in 1752.The common lime was well known to the ancients. Theophrastus says the leaves are sweet and used for fodder for most kinds of cattle. Pliny alludes to the use of the liber and wood, and describes the tree as growing in the mountain-valleys of Italy (xvi. 30). See also Virg.Geo.i. 173, &c.; Ov.Met.viii. 621, x. 92. Allusion to the lightness of the wood is made in Aristoph.Birds, 1378.For the sweet lime (Citrus LimettaorCitrus acida) and lime-juice, seeLemon.

The common lime was well known to the ancients. Theophrastus says the leaves are sweet and used for fodder for most kinds of cattle. Pliny alludes to the use of the liber and wood, and describes the tree as growing in the mountain-valleys of Italy (xvi. 30). See also Virg.Geo.i. 173, &c.; Ov.Met.viii. 621, x. 92. Allusion to the lightness of the wood is made in Aristoph.Birds, 1378.

For the sweet lime (Citrus LimettaorCitrus acida) and lime-juice, seeLemon.

1This is an altered form of O. Eng. and M. Eng.lind; cf. Ger.Linde, cognate with Gr.ἐλάτη, the silver fir. “Linden” in English means properly “made of lime—or lind—wood,” and the transference to the tree is due to the Ger.Lindenbaum.

LIMERICK,a western county of Ireland, in the province of Munster, bounded N. by the estuary of the Shannon and the counties of Clare and Tipperary, E. by Tipperary, S. by Cork and W. by Kerry. The area is 680,842 acres, or about 1064 sq. m. The greater part of the county is comparatively level, but in the south-east the picturesque Galtees, which extend into Tipperary, attain in Galtymore a height of 3015 ft., and on the west, stretching into Kerry, there is a circular amphitheatre of less elevated mountains. The Shannon is navigable for large vessels to Limerick, above which are the rapids of Doonas and Castleroy, and a canal. The Shannon is widely famous as a sporting river, and Castleconnell is a well-known centre. The Maigne, which rises in the Galtees and flows into the Shannon, is navigable as far as the town of Adare.

This is mainly a Carboniferous Limestone county, with fairly level land, broken by ridges of Old Red Sandstone. On the north-east, the latter rock rises on Slievefelim, round a Silurian core, to 1523 ft. In the south, Old Red Sandstone rises above an enclosed area of Silurian shales at Ballylanders, the opposite scarp of Old Red Sandstone forming the Ballyhoura Hills on the Cork border. Volcanic ashes, andesites, basalts and intrusive sheets of basic rock, mark an eruptive episode in the Carboniferous Limestone. These are well seen under Carrigogunnell Castle, and in a ring of hills round Ballybrood. At Ballybrood, Upper Carboniferous beds occur, as an outlier of a large area that links the west of the county with the north of Kerry. The coals in the west are not of commercial value. Lead-ore has been worked in places in the limestone.Limerick includes the greater part of the Golden Vale, the most fertile district of Ireland, which stretches from Cashel in Tipperary nearly to the town of Limerick. Along the banks of the Shannon there are large tracts of flat meadow land formed of deposits of calcareous and peaty matter, exceedingly fertile. The soil in the mountainous districts is for the most part thin and poor, and incapable of improvement. The large farms occupy the low grounds, and are almost wholly devoted to grazing. The acreage under tillage decreases, the proportion to pasturage being as one to nearly three. All the crops (of which oats and potatoes are the principal) show a decrease, but there is a growing acreage of meadow land. The numbers of live stock, on the other hand, are on the whole well maintained, and cattle, sheep, pigs, goats and poultry are all extensively reared. The inhabitants are employed chiefly in agriculture, but coarse woollens are manufactured, and also paper, and there are many meal and flour mills. Formerly there were flax-spinning and weaving mills, but the industry is now practically extinct. Limerick is the headquarters of an important salmon-fishery on the Shannon. The railway communications are entirely included in the Great Southern and Western system, whose main line crosses the south-eastern corner of the county, with two branches to the city of Limerick from Limerick Junction and from Charleville, and lines from Limerick south-westward to Tralee in county Kerry, and to Foynes on the Shannon estuary. Limerick is also served by a line from the north through county Tipperary. The port of Limerick, at the head of the estuary, is the most important on the west coast.The county includes 14 baronies. The number of members returned to the Irish parliament was eight, two being returned for each of the boroughs of Askeaton and Kilmallock, in addition to two returned for the county, and two for the county of the city of Limerick. The present county parliamentary divisions are the east and west, each returning one member. The population (158,912 in 1891, 146,098 in 1901) shows a decrease somewhat under the average of the Irish counties generally, emigration being, however, extensive; of the total about 94% are Roman Catholics, and about 73% are rural. The chief towns are Limerick (pop. 38,151), Rathkeale (1749) and Newcastle or Newcastle West (2599). The city of Limerick constitutes a county in itself. Assizes are held at Limerick, and quarter-sessions at Bruff, Limerick, Newcastle and Rathkeale. The county is divided between the Protestant dioceses of Cashel, Killaloe and Limerick; and between the Roman Catholic dioceses of the same names.

Limerick includes the greater part of the Golden Vale, the most fertile district of Ireland, which stretches from Cashel in Tipperary nearly to the town of Limerick. Along the banks of the Shannon there are large tracts of flat meadow land formed of deposits of calcareous and peaty matter, exceedingly fertile. The soil in the mountainous districts is for the most part thin and poor, and incapable of improvement. The large farms occupy the low grounds, and are almost wholly devoted to grazing. The acreage under tillage decreases, the proportion to pasturage being as one to nearly three. All the crops (of which oats and potatoes are the principal) show a decrease, but there is a growing acreage of meadow land. The numbers of live stock, on the other hand, are on the whole well maintained, and cattle, sheep, pigs, goats and poultry are all extensively reared. The inhabitants are employed chiefly in agriculture, but coarse woollens are manufactured, and also paper, and there are many meal and flour mills. Formerly there were flax-spinning and weaving mills, but the industry is now practically extinct. Limerick is the headquarters of an important salmon-fishery on the Shannon. The railway communications are entirely included in the Great Southern and Western system, whose main line crosses the south-eastern corner of the county, with two branches to the city of Limerick from Limerick Junction and from Charleville, and lines from Limerick south-westward to Tralee in county Kerry, and to Foynes on the Shannon estuary. Limerick is also served by a line from the north through county Tipperary. The port of Limerick, at the head of the estuary, is the most important on the west coast.

The county includes 14 baronies. The number of members returned to the Irish parliament was eight, two being returned for each of the boroughs of Askeaton and Kilmallock, in addition to two returned for the county, and two for the county of the city of Limerick. The present county parliamentary divisions are the east and west, each returning one member. The population (158,912 in 1891, 146,098 in 1901) shows a decrease somewhat under the average of the Irish counties generally, emigration being, however, extensive; of the total about 94% are Roman Catholics, and about 73% are rural. The chief towns are Limerick (pop. 38,151), Rathkeale (1749) and Newcastle or Newcastle West (2599). The city of Limerick constitutes a county in itself. Assizes are held at Limerick, and quarter-sessions at Bruff, Limerick, Newcastle and Rathkeale. The county is divided between the Protestant dioceses of Cashel, Killaloe and Limerick; and between the Roman Catholic dioceses of the same names.

Limerick was included in the kingdom of Thomond. Afterwards it had a separate existence under the name of Aine-Cliach. From the 8th to the 11th century it was partly occupied by the Danes (seeLimerick, City). As a county, Limerick is one of the twelve generally considered to owe their formation to King John. By Henry II. it was granted to Henry Fitzherbert, but his claim was afterwards resigned, and subsequently various Anglo-Norman settlements were made. About 100,000 acres of the estates of the earl of Desmond, which were forfeited in 1586, were situated in the county, and other extensive confiscations took place after the Cromwellian wars. In 1709 a German colony from the Palatinate was settled by Lord Southwell near Bruff, Rathkeale and Adare.

There are only slight remains of the round tower at Ardpatrick, but that at Dysert is much better preserved; another at Kilmallock is in great part a reconstruction. There are important remains of stone circles, pillar stones and altars at Loch Gur. In several places there are remains of old moats and tumuli. Besides the monasteries in the city of Limerick, the most important monastic ruins are those of Adare abbey, Askeaton abbey, Galbally friary, Kilflin monastery, Kilmallock and Monaster-Nenagh abbey.

LIMERICK,a city, county of a city, parliamentary borough, port and the chief town of Co. Limerick, Ireland, occupying both banks and an island (King’s Island) of the river Shannon, at the head of its estuary, 129 m. W.S.W. of Dublin by the Great Southern and Western railway. Pop. (1901) 38,151. The situation is striking, for the Shannon is here a broad and noble stream, and the immediately surrounding country consists of the rich lowlands of its valley, while beyond rise the hills of the counties Clare and Tipperary. The city is divided into English Town (on King’s Island), Irish Town and Newtown Pery, the first including the ancient nucleus of the city, and the last the principal modern streets. The main stream of the Shannon is crossed by Thomond Bridge and Sarsfield or Wellesley Bridge. The first is commanded by King John’s Castle, on King’s Island, a fine Norman fortress fronting the river, and used as barracks. At the west end of the bridge is preserved the Treaty Stone, on which the Treaty of Limerick was signed in 1691. The cathedral of St Mary, also on King’s Island, was originally built in 1142-1180, and exhibits some Early English work, though largely altered at dates subsequent to that period. The Roman Catholic cathedral of St John is a modern building (1860) in early pointed style. The churches of St Munchin (to whom is attributed the foundation of the see in the 6th century) and St John, Whitamore’s Castle and a Dominican priory, are other remains of antiquarian interest; while the principal city and county buildings are a chamber of commerce, a custom house commanding the river, and court house, town hall and barracks. A picturesque public park adjoins the railway station in Newtown Pery.

The port is the most important on the west coast, and accommodates vessels of 3000 tons in a floating dock; there is also a graving dock. Communication with the Atlantic is open and secure, while a vast network of inland navigation is opened up by a canal avoiding the rapids above the city. Quays extend for about 1600 yds. on each side of the river, and vessels of 600 tonscan moor alongside at spring tides. The principal imports are grain, sugar, timber and coal. The exports consist mainly of agricultural produce. The principal industrial establishments include flour-mills (Limerick supplying most of the west of Ireland with flour), factories for bacon-curing and for condensed milk and creameries. Some brewing, distilling and tanning are carried on, and the manufacture of very beautiful lace is maintained at the Convent of the Good Shepherd; but a formerly important textile industry has lapsed. The salmon fisheries of the Shannon, for which Limerick is the headquarters of a district, are the most valuable in Ireland. The city is governed by a corporation, and the parliamentary borough returns one member.

Limerick is said to have been theRegiaof Ptolemy and theRosse-de-Nailleaghof the Annals of Multifernan. There is a tradition that it was visited by St Patrick in the 5th century, but it is first authentically known as a settlement of the Danes, who sacked it in 812 and afterwards made it the principal town of their kingdom of Limerick, but were expelled from it towards the close of the 10th century by Brian Boroimhe. From 1106 till its conquest by the English in 1174 it was the seat of the kings of Thomond or North Munster, and, although in 1179 the kingdom of Limerick was given by Henry II. to Herbert Fitzherbert, the city was frequently in the possession of the Irish chieftains till 1195. Richard I. granted it a charter in 1197. By King John it was committed to the care of William de Burgo, who founded English Town, and for its defence erected a strong castle. The city was frequently besieged in the 13th and 14th centuries. In the 15th century its fortifications were extended to include Irish Town, and until their demolition in 1760 it was one of the strongest fortresses of the kingdom. In 1651 it was taken by General Ireton, and after an unsuccessful siege by William III. in 1690 its resistance was terminated on the 3rd of October of the following year by the treaty of Limerick. The dismantling of its fortifications began in 1760, but fragments of the old walls remain. The original municipal rights of the city had been confirmed and extended by a succession of sovereigns, and in 1609 it received a charter constituting it a county of a city, and also incorporating a society of merchants of the staple, with the same privileges as the merchants of the staple of Dublin and Waterford. The powers of the corporation were remodelled by the Limerick Regulation Act of 1823. The prosperity of the city dates chiefly from the foundation of Newtown Pery in 1769 by Edmund Sexton Pery (d. 1806), speaker of the Irish House of Commons, whose family subsequently received the title of the earldom of Limerick. Under the Local Government Act of 1898 Limerick became one of the six county boroughs having a separate county council.

LIMERICK,a name which has been adopted to distinguish a certain form of verse which began to be cultivated in the middle of the 19th century. A limerick is a kind of burlesque epigram, written in five lines. In its earlier form it had two rhymes, the word which closed the first or second line being usually employed at the end of the fifth, but in later varieties different rhyming words are employed. There is much uncertainty as to the meaning of the name, and as to the time when it became attached to a particular species of nonsense verses. According to theNew Eng. Dict.“a song has existed in Ireland for a very considerable time, the construction of the verse of which is identical with that of Lear’s” (see below), and in which the invitation is repeated, “Will you come up to Limerick?” Unfortunately, the specimen quoted in theNew Eng. Dict.is not only not identical with, but does not resemble Lear’s. Whatever be the derivation of the name, however, it is now universally used to describe a set of verses formed on this model, with the variations in rhyme noted above:—

“There was an old man who said ‘Hush!I perceive a young bird in that bush!’When they said, ‘Is it small?’He replied, ‘Not at all!It is five times the size of the bush.’”

“There was an old man who said ‘Hush!

I perceive a young bird in that bush!’

When they said, ‘Is it small?’

He replied, ‘Not at all!

It is five times the size of the bush.’”

The invention, or at least the earliest general use of this form, is attributed to Edward Lear, who, when a tutor in the family of the earl of Derby at Knowsley, composed, about 1834, a large number of nonsense-limericks to amuse the little grandchildren of the house. Many of these he published, with illustrations, in 1846, and they enjoyed and still enjoy an extreme popularity. Lear preferred to give a geographical colour to his absurdities, as in:—

“There was an old person of TartaryWho cut through his jugular artery,When up came his wife,And exclaimed, ‘O my Life,How your loss will be felt through all Tartary!’”

“There was an old person of Tartary

Who cut through his jugular artery,

When up came his wife,

And exclaimed, ‘O my Life,

How your loss will be felt through all Tartary!’”

but this is by no means essential. The neatness of the form has led to a very extensive use of the limerick for all sorts of mock-serious purposes, political, social and sarcastic, and a good many specimens have achieved a popularity which has been all the wider because they have, perforce, been confined to verbal transmission. In recent years competitions of the “missing word” type have had considerable vogue, the competitor, for instance, having to supply the last line of the limerick.

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