Elephant-sealElephant-seal
Elephant-seal, the Proboscis Seal, or Sea-elephant, the largest of the seal family (Phocidæ). There are probably two species, one (Macrorhinus angustirostris) found only on the coast of California and Western Mexico, the other (Macrorhinus leoninus) found in Patagonia, Kerguelen Island, Heard's Island, and other parts of the Southern Seas. They vary in length from 12 to 30 feet, and in girth at the chest from 8 to 18 feet. The proboscis of the male is about a foot long when the creature is at rest, but elongates under excitement. The females have no proboscis and are considerably smaller than the male. Both species are becoming rare owing to the wholesale slaughter of them which takes place.
Elephant's-foot, the popular name ofTestudinaria elephantipes, a plant of the nat. ord. Dioscoreaceæ (yams, &c.), distinguished by the shape of its rootstock, which forms a nearly hemispherical mass rising a little above the ground, covered with a thick corky bark. It has a slender climbing stem growing to a length of 30 or 40 feet, with small heart-shaped leaves and greenish-yellow flowers. It is known in the Cape Province as Hottentots' Bread.
Eleusi´ne, a genus of grasses, several of which, e.g.E. coracana, are cultivated as grain plants in India, Japan, and Tibet.
Eleusinian Mysteries, the sacred rites anciently observed in Greece at the annual festival of Dēmētēr or Ceres, so named from their original seat Eleusis. According to the Homeric hymn to Dēmētēr, the goddess, while wandering in search of Persephone, came to Eleusis, where she was hospitably received by King Celeus. He directed the establishment of a temple in her honour, and showed the use of grain to Triptolemus and other princes. As a preparation for the greater mysteries celebrated at Athens and Eleusis, lesser Eleusinia were celebrated at Agræ on the Ilissus. The greater Eleusinia were celebrated in the month Boedromion (September-October), beginning on the 15th of the month and lasting nine days. The celebrations, which were varied each day, consisted of processions between Athens and Eleusis, torch-bearing and mystic ceremonies attended with oaths of secrecy. They appear to have symbolized the old conceptions of death and reproduction, and to have been allied to the orgiastic worship of Dionysus (Bacchus). They are supposed to have continued down to the time of Theodosius I.
Eleu´sis, in ancient geography, a small city of Attica, about 14 miles from Athens, near the shore opposite the Island of Salamis. Its temple of Dēmētēr was one of the most beautiful buildings of Greece. The sacred buildings were destroyed by Alaric inA.D.396. In 1882 the Greek Archæological Society undertook excavations, and numerous remains have been unearthed. There is now a large straggling village here.
Eleu´thera, one of the largest of the Bahama Islands. It is of very irregular shape, its length being about 70 miles, and its breadth in general from 2 to 4 miles, though in one part 10. Pop. 6533.
Elevation. In astronomy, the elevation of an object above the horizon is measured by the arc intercepted between the horizon and the object on the circle which passes through the object and the zenith. In geometry, solids can be represented by means of two projections; one on a horizontal plane, and the other on a plane perpendicular to the horizontal. The former is called the plan, and the latter the elevation.
Elevation of the Host(Lat.hostia, a victim), in the ritual of the Mass, is the lifting up of the elements immediately after consecration, to be worshipped by the people. It was introduced into the Latin Church in the eleventh century, in consequence of the denial by Berengarius of the real presence in the sacrament. The Council of Trent ordered that the host should be worshipped with the highest adoration, that oflatria, which is offered to God only.
El´evator, (1) a mechanical contrivance consisting of a series of boxes or buckets attached to a belt travelling round two drums, one above and one below, for hoisting grain, meal, coal, coke, &c. In America large buildings which contain such contrivances, and in which grain is stored, receive the same name. (2) An apparatus for raising or lowering persons or goods to or from different levels in warehouses, hotels, &c., consisting usually of a cage or movable platform worked by hydraulic power: also called aliftorhoist.
Elf-arrows,Elf-bolts, orElf-shot, popular names in Europe for stone arrow-heads and axes. They were worn as charms againstlightning; cattle and men are said to have been struck and wounded by them. In the Far East they are 'thunder-stones'.
Elgar, Sir Edward, English composer, was born at Broadheath, Worcestershire, 2nd June, 1857. For some time he acted as conductor of the Worcester Instrumental Society, and as organist at St. George's, Worcester, but when later he turned to composition he resigned both these positions. In 1892 he producedThe Black Knight, and this was followed by several oratorios, cantatas, and other works, includingThe Light of Life, a short oratorio (Worcester Festival, 1896);King Olaf, a cantata (North Staffordshire Festival, 1896);Imperial March(1897);Te Deum(Hereford Festival, 1897);Caractacus(Leeds Festival, 1898); andOrchestral Variations(1899). In 1900 his famous sacred cantata,The Dream of Gerontius, was produced at the Birmingham Festival (repeated at Düsseldorf in 1901 and at the Niederrheinische Musik Fest in 1902), and added immensely to his already considerable reputation. In 1902 theCoronation Odeproved extremely popular, and in 1903 the Birmingham Festival introducedThe Apostles, a fine oratorio, which, like theGerontius, was honoured at the Niederrheinische Musik Fest the following year. In March, 1904, an 'Elgar Festival', lasting three days, was held at Covent Garden, London, at which, in addition toThe Dream of Gerontius,The Apostles, and other compositions by Dr. Elgar, was producedAlassio, a new concert overture, the outcome of a visit to Italy. In 1904 Dr. Elgar was knighted. From 1905 to 1908 he was professor of music at Birmingham University. He has received musical and other degrees from Oxford, Cambridge, and Yale.
Elgin, James Bruce, eighth Earl of, and twelfth Earl of Kincardine, Governor-General of India, born in 1811, died in 1863. Educated at Eton and Christ Church, he entered Parliament in 1841 as member for Southampton, and in the same year succeeded to the earldom. He was appointed Governor-General of Jamaica in 1842, and in 1846 Governor-General of Canada. In 1849 he was raised to the British peerage as Baron Elgin of Elgin. In 1857 he went as special ambassador to China, and concluded the Treaty of Tientsin (1858). In 1859 he became Postmaster-General in Palmerston's Cabinet, in 1860 was sent on a special mission to Pekin, and in 1861 became Governor-General of India.—Victor Alexander Bruce, ninth Earl of Elgin, son of the preceding, born 1849, died 1917, was also Governor-General of India (1894-9), and Colonial Secretary in the Campbell-Bannerman Ministry from Dec., 1905, to April, 1908.
Elgin(el´gin), a royal and parliamentary burgh of Scotland, capital of Elgin County, situated on the Lossie, about 5 miles from its influx into the Moray Firth, 70 milesN.W.of Aberdeen. The town largely consists of mansions and villas. The most interesting edifice is the cathedral, now in ruins, which was once the most magnificent in Scotland. It was founded by Bishop Andrew Moray in 1224; plundered and burned in 1390 by the 'Wolf of Badenoch', and again in 1402 by Alexander, third son of the Lord of the Isles; restored 1390 to 1424; and again plundered in 1568. Until 1918 the Elgin Burghs sent one member to the House of Commons. Pop. 8656.—Elgin, county of, also called Morayshire, is a maritime county, bounded by the Moray Firth, Banffshire, Inverness-shire, and Nairnshire; area, 340,000 acres. Along the sea-coast, which extends for more than 30 miles, the surface is flat, but inland it rises into hills of moderate elevation, intersected by fine and fertile valleys. The chief rivers are the Spey, Lossie, and Findhorn, the Spey and Findhorn having excellent salmon fishing. Inexhaustible quarries of freestone (rich in fossils) are worked. The climate is noted for its general mildness, dryness, and salubrity. The lower tracts of land are fertile and highly cultivated, the principal crops being wheat, oats, potatoes, and turnips. The great majority of farms are small. A portion of the surface is still covered with native forests. The county unites with Nairnshire in returning one member to the House of Commons, Pop. 43,427.
Elgin, a town of the United States, in Illinois, on Fox River, 36 milesN.W.of Chicago. It has a watch-factory and various flourishing industries. Pop. 25,976.
Elgin Marbles, the splendid collection of antique sculptures brought chiefly from the Parthenon of Athens to England by the seventh Earl of Elgin (1766-1841) in 1814, and afterwards purchased by Parliament for the British Museum at the cost of £35,000. They consist of figures in low and high relief and in the round, representing gods, goddesses, and heroes; the combats of the Centaurs and Lapithæ; the Panathenaic procession, &c. They exhibit Greek sculpture at its highest stage, and were partly the work of Phidias. The historical and artistic value of the Elgin marbles was at first doubted, and Lord Elgin himself was not spared. His act in removing the marbles was denounced as vandalism.
El Hasa, a fertile district of Eastern Arabia, on the Persian Gulf. It produces dates, wheat, millet, and rice. Pop. estimated at 175,000.
Eli, one of the Hebrew judges, the predecessor of Samuel. He was high-priest and judge for forty years, but was less successful as head of his own household. His two sons having been slain, and the ark taken in battle by the Philistines, thenews proved so severe a shock that he fell and broke his neck, at the age of ninety-eight. Little is really known of the history of Eli, since he is only shown to us in the weakness of old age, unable to control his sons Hophni and Phinehas, whose wickedness disgusted and alienated the people.
Eli´jah, the most distinguished of the prophets of Israel, flourished in the ninth centuryB.C., during the reigns of Ahab and Ahaziah, and until the beginning of the reign of Jehoram, his special function being to denounce vengeance on the kings of Israel for their apostasy. He incurred the anger of Jezebel, wife of Ahab, for slaying the prophets of Baal, but escaped to Horeb, afterwards returning to Samaria to denounce Ahab for the murder of Naboth. Elijah at length ascended to heaven in a chariot of fire, Elisha, his successor, being witness. See1 Kings, xvii to xxi, and2 Kings, i and ii.
Elimination, in mathematics, the process of treating a given set of equations so as to deduce from them an equation free from a selected letter, or from several selected letters. For instance, if the system of equations
a1x+b1y+c1z= 0,a2x+b2y+c2z= 0,a3x+b3y+c3z= 0,
a1x+b1y+c1z= 0,a2x+b2y+c2z= 0,a3x+b3y+c3z= 0,
a1x+b1y+c1z= 0,
a2x+b2y+c2z= 0,
a3x+b3y+c3z= 0,
has a solution in which one at least ofx,y,zis different from zero, then
|a1,b1,c1||a2,b2,c2| = 0.|a3,b3,c3|
|a1,b1,c1||a2,b2,c2| = 0.|a3,b3,c3|
|a1,b1,c1|
|a2,b2,c2| = 0.
|a3,b3,c3|
(SeeDeterminant.)—Bibliography: Burnside and Panton,Theory of Equations; Salmon,Higher Algebra.
El´iot, George, the assumed literary name of Mary Ann, or, as she preferred to write the name in later years, Marian Evans, English novelist. She was the daughter of a Warwickshire land-agent and surveyor, was born at Griff, near Nuneaton, on 22nd Nov., 1820, and died on 22nd Dec., 1880. She received at Coventry an excellent education, comprising the classical and modern languages, and shortly after her twenty-first year became a convert to Rationalism. Her first literary undertaking was the completion of Mrs. Hennell's translation of Strauss'sLife of Jesus(1846). Towards the end of her task she seems, however, to have wearied of it, and when the work appeared she declared herself 'Strauss-sick'. After spending two years abroad, she boarded at the house of John Chapman, editor of theWestminster Review, of which she became sub-editor. It was not, however, until January, 1857, that she came prominently into public notice, when the first of a series of tales entitledScenes from Clerical Lifeappeared inBlackwood's Magazine. The series came to an end in Nov., 1857, and in the following year the publication ofAdam Bedeplaced her in the first rank of writers of fiction. It was succeeded byThe Mill on the Floss(1860),Silas Marner(1861),Romola(1863),Felix Holt(1866),Middlemarch(1872), andDaniel Deronda(1876). In addition to those prose works she published three volumes of poems,The Spanish Gypsy(1868),Agatha(1869), andThe Legend of Jubal(1874). Her last work published during her life was the series of essays entitledThe Impressions of Theophrastus Such(1879), but a volume of mixed essays was issued posthumously. For many years she was happily associated both in life and work with George Henry Lewes, though a legal union was impossible during the lifetime of Mrs. Lewes. In May, 1880, after Lewes's death, she married Mr. John Cross, but did not survive the marriage many months, dying rather suddenly at Chelsea.—Bibliography: Haton,George Eliot in Derbyshire; J. W. Cross (editor),George Eliot's Life as Related in Her Letters and Journals(3 vols.); O. Browning,Life of George Eliot; Deakin,The Early Life of George Eliot; Sir Leslie Stephen,George Eliot(in English Men of Letters Series).
Eliot, Sir John, one of the ablest of the popular leaders of Charles I's reign, of an old Cornwall family, born in 1592, died in 1632. He entered Parliament in 1614 as member for St. Germans, winning immediate reputation as an orator. As vice-admiral of Devon he was energetic in suppressing piracy. In the three Parliaments of 1623, 1625, 1626, he made his way to the front of the constitutional party, joined Hampden and the rest in refusing contributions to the forced loan, and took a prominent share in drawing up the Remonstrance and Petition of Right. He was imprisoned in the Tower in 1629, and died in confinement. During his imprisonment he wrote a work on constitutional monarchy entitledThe Monarchie of Man. Among his other works are:An Apology for Socrates, andNegotium Posterorum(an account of the Parliament of 1625).
E´lis, a maritime state of ancient Greece in the west of the Peloponnesus, bordering on Achaia, Arcadia, and Messenia, and watered by the Rivers Alphēus and Penēus. Of its capital Elis (now Kaloskopi) there are few traces. Olympia, where the famous games were held, was near the Alpheus. Since 1899 Elis forms a nomarchy of Greece.
Eli´sha, a Hebrew prophet, the disciple and successor of Elijah. Many miracles of prediction and cure, and even of raising the dead, are ascribed to him, but his figure is less original and heroic than that of his master. He held theoffice of prophet for fully sixty-five years, from the reign of Ahab to that of Joash (latter half of ninth centuryB.C.).
Elix´ir, a word of Arabic origin (al iksir, the philosopher's stone), applied by the alchemists to a number of solutions employed in attempting the transmutation of metals into gold, and also to a potion, theelixir vitæ, or elixir of life, supposed to confer immortality. It is still used for various popular remedies, for the most part composed of various aromatic and stimulative substances held in solution by alcohol.
Elizabeth(Carmen Sylva), Dowager Queen of Roumania, born at Neuwied, principality of Wied, in 1843, died at Bucharest, 2nd March, 1916. In 1869 she was married to Prince Charles of Hohenzollern, who became King of Roumania in 1881. Queen Elizabeth, or, as she was generally known, Carmen Sylva (her pen-name), was not only a patron of Roumanian writers and artists, but herself a distinguished author. Among her works, which were all, with the exception of one, written in German, are:The Bard of the Dimbovitza,Pilgrim Sorrow,A Real Queen's Fairy Tales, andFrom Memory's Shrine. In 1914 she was made an honorary fellow of the Royal Society of Literature of Great Britain.
Elizabeth, Queen of England, daughter of Henry VIII and of Anne Boleyn, was born at Greenwich, 7th Sept., 1533, and almost immediately declared heiress to the crown. After her mother had been beheaded (1536) both she and her sister Mary were declared bastards, and she was finally placed after Prince Edward and the Lady Mary in the order of succession. On the accession of Edward VI Elizabeth was committed to the care of the Queen-Dowager Catherine; and after the death of Catherine and execution of her consort Thomas Seymour she was closely watched at Hatfield, where she received a classical education under William Grindal and Roger Ascham. At the death of Edward Elizabeth vigorously supported the title of Mary against the pretensions of Lady Jane Grey, but continued throughout the whole reign an object of suspicion and surveillance. In self-defence she made every demonstration of zealous adherence to the Roman Catholic faith, but her inclinations were well known. On 17th Nov., 1558, Mary died, and Elizabeth was immediately recognized queen by Parliament. The accuracy of her judgment showed itself in her choice of advisers, Parker, a moderate divine (Archbishop of Canterbury 1559), aiding her in ecclesiastical policy; while William Cecil, Lord Burleigh, assisted her in foreign affairs.
The first great object of her reign was the settlement of religion, to effect which a Parliament was called on 25th Jan., and dissolved on the 8th May, its object having been accomplished. The nation was prepared for a return to the Reformed faith, and the Parliament was at the bidding of the Court. The ecclesiastical system devised in her father's reign was re-established, the royal supremacy asserted, and the revised Prayer Book enforced by the Act of Uniformity. While, however, the formal establishment of the reformed religion was easily completed, the security and defence of the settlement was the main object of the policy and the chief source of all the struggles and contentions of her reign. Freed from the tyranny of Mary's reign, the Puritans began to claim predominance for their own dogmas, while the supporters of the Established Church were unwilling to grant them even liberty of worship. The Puritans, therefore, like the Catholics, became irreconcilable enemies of the existing order, and increasingly stringent measures were adopted against them. But the struggle against the Catholics was the more severe, chiefly because they were supported by foreign powers; so that while their religion was wholly prohibited, even exile was forbidden them, in order to prevent their intrigues abroad. Many Catholics, particularly priests, suffered death during this reign; but simple nonconformity, from whatever cause, was pursued with the severest penalties, and many more clergymen were driven out of the Church, by differences about the position of altars, the wearing of caps, and such like matters, than were forced to resign by the change from Rome to Reformation.
Elizabeth's first Parliament approached her on a subject which, next to religion, was the chief trouble of her reign, the succession to the Crown. They requested her to marry, but she declared her intention to live and die a virgin; and she consistently declined in the course of her life such suitors as the Duc d'Alençon, Prince Erik of Sweden, the Archduke Charles of Austria, and Philip of Spain. While, however, she felt that she could best maintain her power by remaining unmarried, she knew how to temporize with suitors for political ends, and showed the greatest jealousy of all pretenders to the English succession. With the unfortunate Mary, Queen of Scots, were connected many of the political events of Elizabeth's reign. On her accession the country was at war with France. Peace was easily concluded (1559); but the assumption by Francis and Mary of the royal arms and titles of England led to an immediate interference on the part of Elizabeth in the affairs of Scotland. She entered into a league with the Lords of the Congregation, or leaders of the Reformed party; and throughout her reign this party was frequently serviceable in furthering her policy. She also gave early support to the Huguenot party in France, and to the Protestants in the Netherlands, so that throughout Europe she was lookedon as the head of the Protestant party. This policy roused the implacable resentment of Philip, who strove in turn to excite the Catholics against her both in her own dominions and in Scotland. The detention of Mary in England (1568-87), whither she fled to the protection of Elizabeth, led to a series of conspiracies, beginning with that under the Earls of Northumberland and Westmorland, and ending with the plot of Babington, which finally determined Elizabeth to make away with her captive. The execution of Queen Mary (1587), though it has stained her name to posterity, tended to confirm her power among her contemporaries. The state of France consequent on the accession of Henry IV, who was assisted by Elizabeth, obviated any danger from the indignation which the deed had caused in that country; and the awe in which King James stood of Elizabeth and his dread of interfering with his own right of succession to England made him powerless. But Philip of Spain was not to be so appeased, the execution of Mary lending edge to other grievances. The fleets of Elizabeth had galled him in the West Indies, her arms and subsidies had helped to deprive him of the Netherlands; the Armada was already in preparation. Accordingly he called the Queen of England a murderess, and refused to be satisfied even with the sacrifice she seemed prepared to make of her Dutch allies. The Armada sailed on 29th May, 1588. The war with Spain dragged on till the close of Elizabeth's long reign.
During her reign the splendour of her government at home and abroad was sustained by such men as Burleigh, Bacon, Walsingham, and Throgmorton; but she had personal favourites of less merit who were often more brilliantly rewarded. Chief of these were Dudley, whom she created Earl of Leicester, and whom she was disposed to marry, and Essex, whose violent passions brought about his ruin. He was beheaded in 1601, but Elizabeth never forgave herself his death. Her own health soon after gave way, and she died on 24th March, 1603, naming James VI of Scotland as her successor.—Bibliography: M. A. S. Hume (editor),Calendar of State Papers(Spanish Series); J. Bruce (editor),Letters of Elizabeth and James VI; W. Camden,History of Queen Elizabeth; J. A. Froude,History of England; M. Creighton,Queen Elizabeth; E. S. Beesley,Queen Elizabeth.
Elizabeth, a city of New Jersey, United States, 14 milesS.W.of New York, with which it has ample communication by railway and steamer. It is a favourite residence of New York business men. The Singer Sewing-machine Company has a large factory here, and there are also foundries and oil-cloth factories. Pop. 73,409.
Elizabeth, St., of Thuringia, daughter of Andreas II, King of Hungary, was born at Pressburg 1207, and in 1221 married to Louis IV, land-grave of Thuringia. She erected hospitals, fed a multitude of poor from her own table, and wandered about in a humble dress, relieving the wretched. Louis died on a crusade, and her ownlife terminated 19th Nov., 1231, in a hospital which she had herself established. The church over her tomb at Marburg is one of the most splendid Gothic edifices in Germany.
Elizabethan ArchitectureElizabethan Architecture. Moreton Old Hall, Cheshire
Elizabethan Architecture: an InteriorElizabethan Architecture: an InteriorReconstruction in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London.
Reconstruction in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London.
Eliz´abethan Architecture, a style of architecture which prevailed in England during the reigns of Elizabeth and James I. It succeeded to the Tudor style, properly so called, with which it is sometimes confounded. The Elizabethan is a mixture of inferior Gothic and debased Italian, producing a singular heterogeneousness in detail, with, however, wonderful picturesqueness in general effect, and domestic accommodation more in accordance with the wants of an advancing civilization than was afforded by the styles which preceded it. The chief characteristics of Elizabethan architecture are: windows of great size both in the plane of the wall and deeply embayed, ceilings very richly decorated in relief, galleries of great length, very tall and highly-decorated chimneys, as well as a profuse use of ornamental strapwork in the parapets, window-heads, &c. The Elizabethan style is the last stage of the Tudor or Perpendicular, and from its corresponding in point of period with the Renaissance of the Continent has sometimes been called the English Renaissance. The epithet Jacobean has sometimes been given to the very latest stage of the Elizabethan, differing from the Elizabethan proper in showing a greater admixture of debased Italian forms. The princely houses which arose during the reign of Elizabeth are numerous, and many even yet remain to attest the splendour of the time. Of these may be mentioned Burghley House, Hardwick Hall, and Bramhall Hall.—Cf. Gotch and Brown,Architecture of the Renaissance in England.
Elizabeth Farnese(fa˙r-nā´zā), Queen of Spain, daughter of Edward II, Prince of Parma, born 1692, died in 1776. On becoming the second wife of Philip V she surprised those who had counselled the marriage by assuming the practical headship of the kingdom, and her ambition and that of her minister Alberoni disturbed the whole of Europe. Carlyle calls her a "termagant tenacious woman".
Elizabethgrad, a town of the Ukraine, on the Ingul, with an imperial palace, a theatre, manufactures of soap and candles, and several great fairs. Pop. 75,800.
Elizabeth Islands, a group of sixteen American islands south of Cape Cod, with a permanent population of about 150.
Elizabeth of Valois, orIsabella, Queen of Spain, was born in 1545, died in 1568. She was the daughter of Henry II of France and Catherine de' Medici. By the Treaty of Cateau-Cambrésis she was destined to be the wife of the Infante, Don Carlos, but his father, Philip II, being left a widower, became fascinated and married her himself. The stories of a romantic relationship existing between Elizabeth and Don Carlos are entirely groundless, but have furnished tragic subjects to Otway, Campistron, Chénier, Schiller, and Alfieri.
Elizabeth Petrovna, Empress of Russia, daughter of Peter the Great and Catherine, born in 1709 or 1710, died in 1762. She ascended the throne on 7th Dec., 1741, as the result of a conspiracy, in which Ivan VI, a minor, was deposed. Elizabeth is said to have rivalled her mother in beauty, and to have surpassed her in her love of pleasure, and her government was largely conducted by favourites. She was a patron of literature, founded the University of Moscow, and corresponded with Voltaire. A war with Sweden, in 1743, was advantageously concluded by the peace of Åbo. In 1748 she sent an army to assist Maria Theresa in the War of the Succession, and joined in the Seven Years' War against Prussia. She died before this war was concluded.—Bibliography: Nisbet Bain.The Daughter of Peter the Great; A. S. Rappoport,The Fair Ladies of the Winter Palace.
Elizabethpol, a town of Russia, in theCaucasus, capital of the government of same name, covering a great space of ground from the gardens and open areas it contains, but very unhealthy. Pop. 18,505.—The government has an area of 17,000 sq. miles, a pop. of 636,310. It is partly mountainous, partly steppes, and produces grain, cotton, tobacco, and wine.
Elizabeth Stuart, Queen of Bohemia, daughter of James I of England and VI of Scotland, born in Falkland Palace, Fifeshire, 1596, died on 13th Feb., 1662. Her marriage with the Palatine Frederick was celebrated at Whitehall in 1613. Her husband, then at the head of the Protestant interest in Germany, accepted in 1619 the Crown of Bohemia offered to him by the revolted Protestants of that country. After his defeat, however, by the imperalists at the battle of Prague in 1620, he and his wife were obliged to flee, first to Breslau and Berlin, and then to the Hague. Elizabeth returned to England at the Restoration with her nephew Charles II, but mingled very little in society. Elizabeth had thirteen children, of whom Charles Louis, the eldest surviving, was reinstated in the Palatinate by the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648. By her daughters, Elizabeth Charlotte and Sophia, she was the ancestress of Louis Philippe and of George I, and her sons, Rupert and Maurice, became famous Cavalier leaders.
ElkElk (Alces Machlis)
Elk,Moose, orMoose Deer(Alces Machlis), the largest of the deer family, a native of Northern Europe, Asia, and America. The American form (to which the name moose is usually given) is sometimes separated from the European asAlces americānus, but most naturalists find no specific difference between them. The elk or moose has a short compact body, standing about 6 feet in height at the shoulders, a thick neck, large clumsy head, and horns which flatten out almost from the base into a broad palmate form with numerous snags. In colour the elk is greyish brown, the limbs, sides of head, and coarse mane being, however, of a lighter hue. Its flesh resembles beef rather than venison. For the most part elks are inoffensive, and so exceedingly wary that they are approached only with difficulty. In America the Indians and half-breeds are the most skilful moose-hunters. By trampling down a restricted area of ground (moose-yard) and browsing on the edge of this, the moose is able to protect itself efficiently against the attacks of wolves. The moose has a wide range in Canada, extending from the Arctic Ocean and British Columbia to New Brunswick and Nova Scotia; and it is found also in Maine. It feeds largely on the shoots of trees or shrubs, such as the willow and maple, and on bark, &c. In Sweden its destruction is illegal, and in Norway there are many restrictions upon the hunting of it.
Antlers and Skull of Irish ElkAntlers and Skull of Irish Elk
Elk, Irish(Megacĕros hibernĭcus, orCervus giganteus), a large deer found in the Pleistocene strata, and distinguished by its enormous antlers, the tips of which are sometimes 11 feet apart. Though a true deer, its antlers differ from those of living species in that the beam is flattened into a palm. To sustain the great weight, unusually large and strong limbs and neck vertebræ were required. Its remains are found not only in Ireland but in Scotland and England, and on the Continent, where they occur in bogs, lacustrine deposits, brick-clay, and ossiferous caves.
El Khargeh.SeeKhargeh.
Elk´hart, a town of Indiana, United States, on Elkhart River, with railroad works and paper-mills. Pop. 19,282.
Ell(Lat.ulna, Gr.ōlenē, forearm), an old measure whereby cloths, stuffs, &c., are sometimes measured. The ell English is 5 quarters (45 inches), the ell Flemish 3 quarters (27 inches). In Scotland an ell contained 37.2 inches English.
Ell´and, a town of England, W. Riding of Yorkshire, between Halifax and Huddersfield, with an old church and town-hall, manufactures of cottons and woollens, and quarries. It gives its name to a parliamentary division. Pop. 10,676.
Ellenborough, Edward Law, Lord, English lawyer, Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench, born in 1750 at Great Salkeld, Cumberland, died in 1818. He was educated at the Charterhouse and at Peterhouse, Cambridge, and called to the Bar in 1780. Not long afterwards he took silk, and at the trial of Warren Hastings, in 1785, acted as leading counsel. The defence did not come on until the fifth year of the trial, but after eight years Hastings was acquitted and Law's success assured. In 1801 he was made Attorney-General, and in 1802 became Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench, and was created baron. He held the office of Chief Justice for fifteen years, resigning in 1818.
Ellenborough, Edward Law, first Earl of, son of Lord Chief Justice Ellenborough (see above), born in 1790, died in 1871. He was educated at Eton and St. John's College, Cambridge, and in 1818, having succeeded his father as second baron, he entered the House of Lords. In 1818 he took office as Lord Privy Seal, and was President of the Board of Control from 1828-30, and again in 1834. In 1841 he accepted the governor-generalship of India, and arrived in Calcutta in 1842, in time to bring the Afghan War to a successful issue. The annexation of Seinde in 1843 was followed by the conquest of Gwalior, but the conduct of the Governor-General gave dissatisfaction at home, and he was recalled early in 1844. On his return, however, he was defended by Wellington, and received the thanks of Parliament, an earldom, and the Grand Cross of the Bath. He then held the post of First Lord of the Admiralty (1845-6), and was President of the Board of Control from Feb. to June, 1858. His dispatch censuring the policy of Lord Canning as Governor-General of India led to his resignation, and he never resumed office.
Ell´ice Islands, orLagoon Islands, a group of coral islands annexed to Britain in 1892, lying north of Fiji, and extending for 360 miles north-west to south-east. The islands were discovered by Maurelle in 1781. The inhabitants are of Samoan race and language, have long been Christians, and support themselves chiefly by the coco-nut. Pop. 3084.
Ellichpur(el-ich-pör´), a town of India, in Ellichpur district, Berar, once a large and prosperous town. There is a military cantonment within two miles. Pop. 27,500.
El´licott, Right Rev. Charles John, English divine, born 1819, died in 1905. Educated at Cambridge, he was professor of divinity in King's College, London, Hulsean lecturer and Hulsean professor of divinity at Cambridge, and Dean of Exeter, and in 1863 was appointed Bishop of Gloucester and Bristol. He was for eleven years chairman of the scholars engaged on the revision of the New Testament translation, and published commentaries on the Old and the New Testaments, as well as sermons, addresses, and lectures.
Elliott, Ebenezer, English poet, known as the 'Corn-law Rhymer', born in 1781 near Rotherham, Yorkshire, died in 1849. At the age of seventeen he published his first poem,The Vernal Walk, which was soon followed by others. In 1829The Village Patriarch, the best of Elliott's longer pieces, was published. From 1831 to 1837 he carried on business as an iron merchant in Sheffield. HisCorn-law Rhymes, periodically contributed to a local paper devoted to the repeal of these laws, attracted attention, and were afterwards collected and published with a longer poem entitledThe Ranter. Commercial losses compelled him in 1837 to contract his business, and in 1841 he retired from it altogether. In 1850 two posthumous volumes appeared, entitledMore Prose and Verse by the Corn-law Rhymer.
EllipseEllipse
Ellipse´, one of the conic sections. The curve generated by a point which moves so that its distance from a fixed point bears a constant ratio (less than unity) to its distance from a fixed straight line. Kepler discovered that the paths described by the planets in their revolutions round the sun are ellipses, the sun being placed in one of the foci. To describe an ellipse: At a given distance on the surface on which the ellipse is to be described fix two pins,AandB, and pass a looped string round them. Keep the string stretched by a pencil,c, and move the pencil round, keeping the string at the same tension, then the ellipseEGFHwill be described.AandBare thefoci,Dthe centre,EFthe major axis,GHthe minor axis, and the fractionDA/DEtheeccentricityof the ellipse. A line drawn from any point in the curve perpendicularly to the axis is an ordinate to the axis. Any straight line drawn through the centre and terminated both ways by the curve is called a diameter.
Ellipsoid, a surface bearing the same sort of relation to a spherical surface as an ellipse bears to a circle. The name is also given to the solid bounded by such a surface.
The equation of an ellipsoid, referred to its principal axes, is
Herea,b,c, are the lengths of the principal semi-axes. A plane section is an ellipse, but there are two particular directions of the section for which the ellipse reduces to a circle.
The ellipsoid has important applications in dynamics, as a means of interpreting algebraic formulæ for physical quantities; examples are the ellipsoids of strain and of gyration, and Poinsot's momental ellipsoid.
Two ellipsoids in which the principal sections lie in the same planes, and have the same foci, are calledconfocal.
Ellipsoidal Harmonicsare mathematical functions by means of which certain physical problems in heat and electricity relating to ellipsoidal surfaces can be solved. For ellipsoids of revolution, seeSpheroid.
Elliptic Functionsare generalizations of the circular functionssine,cosine, &c. If
Equation
Equation
Equation
we have x = sin u. Similarly, if
Equation
Equation
Equation
we may writex=snu, √(1 -x2) =cnu, √(1 -k2x2) =dnu. These are Jacobi's elliptic functions. They obviously reduce to sinu, cosu, 1, whenkis 0. The circular functions have the period 2π; the elliptic functions aredoublyperiodic, having both a real and a pure imaginary period whenk2is real and less than 1. Like the functionssineandcosine, the elliptic functions haveaddition theorems, e.g.
Another method and notation has been introduced by Weierstrass, and is now much used. The functions are needed for the solution of many physical problems, such as those of the motion of a top and of a pendulum.—Bibliography: A. G. Greenhill,Elliptic Functions; Appell and Lacour,Fonctions Elliptiques; Whittaker and Watson,Modern Analysis.
Ellis, Alexander John, English philologist, born 1814 (name originally Sharpe), died in 1890. He was a distinguished graduate of Trinity College, Cambridge, was elected to the Royal Society in 1864, and was long a prominent member of the Philological Society, being more than once its president. Though phonetics was the subject in which he most highly distinguished himself, he was equally at home in mathematical and musical subjects. His chief published work isEarly English Pronunciation(in five parts), between 1869 and 1889; but his publications in the form of books, pamphlets, papers, and articles on phonetics, music, and mathematics are numerous.
Ellis, George, English man of letters, born in 1753, died in 1815. Educated at Westminster School and Trinity College, Cambridge, he became one of the junta of wits concerned in the well-known political satire,The Rolliad, and contributed to theAnti-Jacobin. He also wrote a preface, notes, and appendix to Way's translation of Le Grand'sFabliaux, and publishedSpecimens of the Early English Poets, with an Historical Sketch(1790), andSpecimens of Early English Metrical Romances(1805). He was an intimate friend of Sir Walter Scott.
Ellis, William, English missionary, born 1794, died 1872. He was sent out to the South Sea Islands in 1816 by the London Missionary Society, and returned in 1825, one result of his labours beingPolynesian Researches(1829). From 1830 to 1844 he was secretary to the society, and afterwards on its behalf made several visits to Madagascar, the longest being from 1861 to 1865. These visits led him to publishThree Visits to Madagascar(1858),Madagascar Revisited(1867), and theMartyr Church of Madagascar(1870).
Ellis Island, a small island in the upper New York Bay. Sold by the New York State to the United States, in 1808, it was for a long time used as a powder magazine, but in 1891 was made an immigrant station.
Ello´ra, orElo´ra, a ruined village, Hindustan, Deccan, Nizam's Dominions, 13 miles north-west of Aurangabad, famous for its rock and cave temples excavated in the crescent-shaped scarp of a large plateau. They run from north to south for about a mile and a quarter, and consist of five Jain caves towards the north, seventeen Brahmanical caves at the centre, and towards the south twelve Buddhistic caves. Of the temples some are cut down through the rock, and left open above like isolated buildings, others are excavated under the hill in the manner of caves properly so called. The interior walls are often richly carved with mythological designs. The most magnificent of the whole is the Hindu temple called Kailasa or Cailasa, the central portion of which forms an isolated excavated mass or immense block 500 feet in circumference and 100 feet high. It is surrounded by galleries or colonnades at the distance of 150 feet, in whichthe whole Hindu pantheon is cut in the perpendicular rock. Another fine temple, much smaller, but cut under the hill, is the Buddhist cave of Visvakarma, the only one excavated with a curved roof. The date of the caves is not certainly known, but they were probably the work of the reigning families at the neighbouring Deoghir, now Daulatabad, which, prior to the Mohammedan conquest,A.D.1293, was the capital of a powerful Hindu principality.—Cf. Fergusson and Burgess,The Cave Temples of India.
Ellore, a town of India, Godavari district, Madras presidency, once the capital of the Northern Circars. Pop. 29,500.
Ellwood, Thomas, an early writer among the Quakers, born in 1639, died in 1713. About 1660 he was induced to join the Society of Friends, and soon after publishedAn Alarm to the Priests. He was imprisoned on account of his religion, but subsequently became reader to Milton, and upon reading the MS. ofParadise Lostis said to have suggested to the poet the idea of writing theParadise Regained. In 1705 and 1709 he published the two parts of hisSacred History. His works include a poetical life of King David, theDavideis,Forgery no Christianity, and an autobiography,The History of the Life of Thomas Ellwood: written by his own hand.