Asymmetry of the Alps.
From the above account it will at once appear that between the convex and the concave margins of the Alpine chain there is a striking difference. Upon the outer side of the arc the central zone of crystalline rocks is flanked by Mesozoic and Tertiary belts; towards the west, indeed, the individuality of these belts is lost, to a large extent, but the rocks remain. Upon the inner side the Tertiary band is found only in the eastern part of the chain, while towards the west, first the Tertiary and then the Mesozoic band disappears against the modern deposits of the low land. The appearance is strongly suggestive of faulting; and probably the southern margin of the chain lies buried beneath the plain of northern Italy.
Age of the Alps.
The chain of the Alps was not raised by a single movement nor in a single geological period. Its growth was gradual and has not been uniform throughout. In the Eastern Alps the central ridge seems to have been in existence at least as early as Triassic times, but it has since been subject to several oscillations. The most conspicuous folding, that of the Mesozoic and Tertiary belts, must have occurred in Tertiary times, and it was not completed till the Miocene period. The structure of the zones in the Bavarian Alps seems to suggest that the chain grew outwards in successive stages, each stage being marked by the formation of a boundary fault. A precisely similar structure is seen in the Himalayas.
AUTHORITIES. — The literature is very extensive. The following list includes a few selected works on each portion of the chain: — F. Frech, ``Die karnischen Alpen,'' Abh. naturf Ges Halle, xviii (1892 and 1894); A. Rothpletz, Ein geologischer Querschnitt durch die Ost-Alpen (Stuttgart, 1894); C. Diener, ``Bru und Bild der Ostalpen unrides Karstgebietes,'' in Bau und Bild Osterreichs (Vienna and Leipzig, 1903): Livret-guide geologique dans le Jura et les Alpes de la Suisse (Paris and Lausanne, 189h); A. Helm, Mechanismus der Gebirgsbildung (Basel, 1878); D. Zaccagna, ``Riassunto di osservauoni geologiche fatte sul versante occidentale delle Alpi Graie,'' Boll. R. Com. Geol. Ital. vol. xxiii. (1892), pp. 175-244; C. Diener, Der Glebirpsbau der West-Alpen (1894); M. Bertrand, ``Etudes dans les Alpes francaises,'' Bull. Soc. Geol France, ser. 5, vol. xxii (1894), pp. 69-162; S. Franchi, ``Sull' eta mesozoica della zona delle pietri verdi nelle Alpi Occidentali,'' Boll. R. Geol. Ital. vol. xxix. (1898), pp. 173-217, 325-482, pts. v.-ix. For the broader question of the relation of the Alps to other regions, E. Suess, Das Antlitz der Erde Vienna, 1885) (English translation, Oxford, 1904) should be consulted. The Geologischer Fuhrer durch die Alpen, published by Borntraeger, Berlin, are handy guides. (P. LA.)
11. Flora. — The Alps owe the richness and beauty of their plant life partly to their position as the natural boundary between the ``Baltic'' flora on the north and the ``Mediterranean'' flora on the south, but chiefly to the presence on their heights of a third flora which has but little in common with either of the others. The stronghold of this last, the distinctively ``Alpine'' flora, is the region above the tree-limit. Its closest relationship is with the flora of the Pyrenees; but an alpine flora is characteristic of all the lofty mountains of central Europe. According to J. Ball, 2010 well-marked species of flowering plants occur within the limits of the Alps. If now we confine our attention to the alpine and higher regions of the Alps and exclude from our list all those plants which, however abundant in these regions, are not less so in the adjacent lowlands, we have left some 700 species (693, according to Dr Christ). We must observe, as regards the plants of the lower alpine region, that it is the actual presence of a forest vegetation, rather than the theoretical tree-limit, which affects their vertical distribution; so that, e.g. they overflow into the extensive clearings made by man in the primeval mountain forests. Indeed, an analysis of the composition of the alpine flora as a whole leads to the conclusion that the chief bond of union between its members consists in the treeless character of their habitat.
We may broadly distinguish two main geographical elements in the alpine flora, namely, the northern element and the endemic element. This division (which is not, however, strictly exhaustive) directs special attention to what is undoubtedly the most striking feature of the flora — namely, that of its 693 species no less than 271 reappear in the extreme north. This relation of the arctic to the alpine flora is all the more remarkable in view of the very important differences between the arctic and alpine climates. The following circumpolar species are common, and widely diffused throughout the whole of the Alps: Silene acaulis, Dryas octopetala, Saxifsaga oppositifolia, S. aizoides, S. steliaris, Erigeron alpinus, Azalea procumbens, M. yosotis alpestris, Polygonum viviparum, Salix retusa, S. herbacea, Phleum alpinum, Juniperus nana. The proportion of northern forms, as regards both species and individuals, increases as we ascend to the higher regions. In the highest vegetation-zone, the snow-region — i.e. on islands of rock above the snow-line — they attain to an equality with the endemic forms. As examples of northern flowers which are characteristic of the snow-region, we may mention Silene acaulis, Eritrichium nanuin and Arenaria ciliata. On the other hand, typical endemic species of this highest zone are Androsace helvetica, A. glacialis, Petrocallis pyrenaica and Cherleria sedoides. All the plants just named, we may observe, are ``cushion-plants.'' Their compact, moss-like growth and general structural peculiarities are not an expression of mutual affinity, but are in adaptation to the combined cold and dryness of their habitat. It is noteworthy that among the northern plants of the alpine zone, in the narrower sense of the term (i.e. of the region between the tree-limit and the snow-line), there is a marked predominance of species that affect moist localities; and conversely, the majority of alpine flowers of wet habitat are found also in the north. For example, in the genus Primula, a highly characteristic genus of the alpine flora, whose members are among the most striking ornaments of the rocks, the single northern species, P. Jarinosa, grows only in marshy meadows. On the whole, then, adaptation to cold and wet is the note of the northern element.
As for the explanation of the community between the alpine and arctic floras, all authorities are agreed that the key to the problem is furnished by the occurrence of the glacial period. In the ice-free belt, between the northern ice-sheet and the vastly extended glaciers of the Alps, the two floras must have found a common refuge and congenial conditions of existence; and this view is confirmed by direct palaeontological evidence. With the return of a milder climate, the so-called northern forms of the present alpine flora were split in two, one portion following close on the northern ice in its gradual retreat to the Arctic, the other following the shrinking glaciers till the plants were able to establish (or re-establish) themselves on the slopes of the Alps. The same explanation covers the case of the similarity of the flora (not merely as regards the northern element) on all the high mountains of central Europe. So much seems to be beyond reasonable doubt. But at this point disagreement begins between the most eminent writers on the subject. While some (e.g. Sir J. D. Hooker, Heer) regard the Arctic, and some (e.g. Wettstein) the Alps, as the original home of at least the bulk of the ``northern'' element, others (e.g. Ball, Christ) locate this in the highlands of temperate Asia. For it is a remarkable fact that, of the 230 northern species which are most typical of the far north, 182 are found also in the Altai (taking this as a collective name for the mountains that form the southern boundary of Siberia). In any case, however, the migration of these plants to the Alps must for the most part have taken place via the Arctic. The possibility of any extensive east to west migration having taken place direct from the Altai to the Alps seems excluded by the fact that 50% of the arctico-altaic alpine plants are absent from the Caucasus. A score of species, it is true — not such a number, be it observed, as was formerly supposed — are common to the Alps and Altai, but absent from the Arctic. But the species composing this Altaic element are not so numerous as the arctico-alpine species that are absent from the Altai. On the whole, a common origin in the north for at least the arctico-altaic group of alpine plants seems to be the most reasonable hypothesis.
Side by side with the northern element (which in some respects, we may observe to point the contrast, would be better named the tundra-element) we find a group of species usually spoken of as the xerothermic or meridional element. These do not, however, form an ``element,'' in the strict geographical sense in which this term is otherwise used here. They are those species which, on general phyto-geographical grounds, must be regarded as having originated under steppe-like conditions. Their affinities are chiefly, though not exclusively, with the present Mediterranean flora — about fifty are of presumably Mediterranean origin — and a large proportion of them are restricted to the southern slopes of the Alps. The following, however, among others, are distributed throughout the whole, or a great part, of the range: Colchicum alpinain, Crocus vernus, Orchis globosa, Petroeallis pyrenaica, Astragalus depressus, A. aristatus, Oxytropis Halleri, Erynigium alpinum, Erica carnea, Linaria alpina, Globularia nudicaulis, G. cordifolia, Leontopodium alpinum. The last named (the well-known ``edelweiss'') is at the present day characteristic of the Siberian steppes. The presence of these plants among the alpine flora is traceable to the steppe-like conditions which prevailed in central Europe both during the warmer inter-glacial periods and (probably) for a time after the close of the ice-age. Subsequently, as the climate of the plains assumed a colder and more humid character, they retired before the invading forests to the high mountains. Here, in the intenser insolation which they enjoy on the alpine slopes, they seem to find a compensation for the drawbacks incidental to the altitude of their present station.
As regards now the endemic element as a whole, the question as to the time and place of its origin is of a highly complicated and controversial nature. The question, too, in the case of this element, is necessarily of genetic rather than purely geographical scope. It must suffice to say that the weight of scientific opinion inclines to the view that at least the majority of endemic species are of pre-glacial origin, and are either strictly indigenous or products of the neighbouring lowlands. About 40% of the endemic element in the alpine flora are endemic also in the narrower sense, i.e. they are confined to the Alps. Many of them are restricted to some one small portion of the chain; these occur chiefly in the southern and eastern Alps. It is an interesting fact that the centrally situated Bernese Alps produce hardly a single peculiar species. The greater richness of certain districts in the matter of species is partly due to the variety of soils encountered therein; but in part may be explained by the fact that these districts were the first to be freed from the ice-sheet at the end of the glacial period.
The following is a list of the most thoroughly characteristic alpine plants — all of them ipso facto members of the endemic element — which are at once peculiar to the Alps (or practically so) and widely distributed within the limits of the chain. These are: Festuca pulchella, Carex microstyla, Salix caesia, Rumex nivalis, Alsine aretioides, Aquilegia alpina, Thlaspi rotundifolium, Saxifeaga Seguieri, S. aphylla, Astragalus leontinus, Daphne striata, Eryngium alpinum, Bupleurum stellatum, Androsace helvetica, A. glacialis, Gentiana bavarica, Phyteuma humile, Campanula thyrsoidea, C. cenisia, Achillea atrata, Cirsium spinosissimum, Crepis Terglouensis.
AUTHORITIES. — Among the voluminous literature on Alpine flora, the following works are particularly noteworthy: — Ball, ``On the Origin of the Flora of the European Alps,'' in proceed. of the Roy. Geog. Soc., 1879; Bennett, The Flora of the Alps, 2 vols. with 120 coloured plates (1896); Briquet, ``Les Colonies vegetales xerothermiques des alpes lemaniennes,'' in Bull. d. l. Murithienne, soc. valaisienne des sciences nat., xxvii. and xxviii. (1898-1899); Alph. de Candolle, ``Sur les causes de l'ineaale distribution des Plantes rares dans la chaine des Alpes,'' Extr. des Actes du Congres botan. internat. de Florence (1875); Chodat u. Pampanini, ``Sur la distribution des plantes des alpes austro-orientales,'' Extr. du Globe, organe de la soc. de geographie de Geneve, tome xli. (1902); H. Christ, Das Pflanzenleben der Schweiz (1882) — the chief classic on the subject; Engler, Die Pfanzenformationen und die pflanzengeographische Gliederung der Alpenkette (1901); Heer, Uleber die nivale Kora der Schweiz (1885); Jerosch, Geschichte und Herkunft der schweizerischen Alpenfforal cine Ubersicht uber den gegenwartigen Stand der Frage (1903). Schroter, Das Pflanzenleben der Alpen (Zurich, 1908); R. von Wettstein, Die Geschichte unserer Alpenflora (1896). The best book of coloured plates is the Atlas der Alpemflora, in 5 vols., pub. by the Deutscher u. Oesterreichischer Alpenverein (2nd. ed., 1897).
12. Fauna. — The fauna of the lower zones in the Alps is, on the northern side of the chain, practically identical with that of central Europe, and on the southern side with that of the Mediterranean basin. But in the higher regions it presents many features of special interest alike to the zoologist and the traveller. It seems therefore best to treat here principally of the animal inhabitants of the high Alps.
Though among mammalia — as also in the case of the birds — there are but few forms peculiar to the Alps, many interesting animals have found in the high mountains at least a temporary refuge from man. The European bison, the urus, the elk and the wild swine have disappeared since Roman times. But the lynx (Lynx vulgaris) perhaps lingers in remote parts, and the brown bear (Hrsus arctos) still survives in the dense forests of the Lower Engadine. The fox (Canis vulpes), the stonemarten (Martes foina) and the stoat or ermine (Putorius ermiiiea) range in summer above the tree-limit. The Ungulata are represented by the chamois (Rupicapra tragus) and the bouquetin or steinbock (Capra ibex). The former — the sole representative, in western Europe, of the antelopes — is found elsewhere only in the Pyrenees, Carpathians, Caucasus and the mountains of eastern Turkey; the latter survives only in the eastern Graian Alps. Of the Rodentia the most interesting and conspicuous is the marmot (Arctomys marmota), which lives in colonies close to the snow-line. The snow-mouse (Arvicola nivalis) is confined to the alpine and snow regions, and is abundant at these levels throughout the whole chain of the Alps. The mountain hare (Lepus variabilis or timidus) replaces the common hare (Lepus europaeus) in the higher regions; though absent from the intervening plains it again appears in the north of Europe and in Scotland. Among the Insectivora, the alpine shrew (Sorex alpinus) is restricted to the Alps. Of the Cheiroptera (bats) only Vesperugo maurus is characteristically alpine.
The birds of the Alps are proportionately very numerous. The lammergeyer (Gypaetus barbatus), once common, is now extremely rare, even if it has not already become extinct in the Alps; but the golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) still holds its own. Some of the smaller birds of prey are not uncommon, but there is none that can be regarded as specially characteristic either of the Alps as a whole or of the alpine region. As characteristic birds of the snow-region may be mentioned the alpine chough (Pyrrhocorax alpinus), which is frequently seen at the summits even of the loftiest mountains, the alpine swift (Cypselus melba), the wallcreeper ( Tichodroma muraria), snow-finch (Montifringilla nivalis) and ptarmigan (Lagopus mutus); the geographical distribution of this last being similar to that of the mountain hare. The black redstart (Rulicilla titys), though common in the lower regions, is
also met with in fair numbers almost up to the snow-line. The raven (Corpus corax) is fairly common in the alpine and sub-alpine regions. On the highest pastures we find, further, the alpine accentor (Accentor collaris) and the alpine pipit (Anthus spipoletta). The crag-martin (Cotyle rupestris) haunts lofty cliffs in the alpine region. On the upper verge of the pine forests, or in the scrubby vegetation just beyond, the following are not uncommon — black woodpecker (Picus martius), ring-ousel (Turdus torquatus), Bonelli's warbler (Phylloscopus Bonellii), crested til (Parus cristatus), citril finch (Citrinella alpina), siskin (Chrysomitris spinus), crossbill (Loxia curvirostra), nutcracker (Nucifraga caryocatactes), blackcock (Tetrao tetrix), and the alpine varieties of the marsh-tit (Parus palustris, borealis) and tree-creeper (Certhia familiaris, costae).
The remaining classes of Vertebrata are very sparsely represented in the high Alps; and what few species occur are mostly common to the plains as well. In fact, among the remaining land vertebrates, only the black salamander (Salamandra atra) is exclusively alpine. This interesting animal, though a member of the Amphibia, is terrestrial and viviparous.
The former connexion between the Arctic and the Alps, which has left such unmistakable traces in the present alpine flora, affords, as regards the fauna also, the only possible explanation of the present geographical distribution of many alpine forms; but it is chiefly among the Invertebrata that we find this collateral testimony to the influence of the glacial period. In this respect we may note that two small crustaceans, Diaptomus bacillifer and D. denticornis, swarm in the ice-cold waters of the highest alpine tarns throughout the entire chain; and the former of these is also a characteristic inhabitant of pools formed from melting snow in the extreme north. Among the remaining divisions of Invertebrata special mention may be made of the air-breathing Arthropoda — on the whole the most important and interesting group. About one-third of the animals belonging thereto that occur in the higher regions are exclusively alpine (or alpine and northern); these characteristically alpine forms being furnished chiefly by the spiders, beetles and butterflies. Most numerous are the beetles. Those of the highest zone are remarkable for the great predominance of predaceous species and of wingless forms. In this last respect they present a striking analogy with the endemic coleopterous fauna of oceanic islands. As for the butterflies, not more than one-third of the species found in the alpine region occur in the neighbouring lowlands. The relations between alpine butterflies and plants are especially interesting, as regards not only their bionomic interdependence but also the analogies of their geographical distribution. It should be noted that butterflies are the chief agents in securing the continued existence of such alpine flowers as depend on insect fertilization, the other insect fertilizers being mostly wanting at great heights.
The classic of alpine zoology is F. von Tschudi's Das Tierleben der Alpenwelt (11th ed., 1890). See also zoological section, by K. W. v. Dalla Torre, of Anleitung zu wissenschaftlichen Beobachtungen auf Alpenreisen. For the Vertebrata, see V. Fatio's Faune des vertebres de la Suisse (3 vols., 1869-1904). Die Tierwelt der Hochgebirgsseen, by F. Zschokke (1900) is an important treatise on an interesting department of alpine natural history. C. Zeller's Alpentiere im Wechsel der Zeit (1892) gives a reliable account of the gradual disappearance of some of the larger forms of life from the Alps. For the inter-relations of alpine insects and flowers, see H. Muller's Alpenblumen, ihre Befruchtung durch Insekten, und ihre Anpassung an dieselben (1881). (H. V. K.)
ALPUJARRAS or ALPUXARRAS, THE (Moorish al Busherat, ``the grass-land''), a mountainous district of southern Spain, in the province of Granada, consisting principally of valleys which descend at right angles from the crest of the Sierra Nevada on the north, to the Sierras Almijara, Contraviesa and Gador, which sever it from the Mediterranean Sea, on the south. These valleys are among the most beautiful and fertile in Spain. They contain a rich abundance of fruit trees, especially vines, oranges, lemons and figs, and in some parts present scenes of almost Alpine grandeur. The inhabitants are the descendants of the Moors, who, after the Spanish conquest of Granada in 1492, vainly sought to preserve the last relics of their independence in their mountain fastnesses. Many of the names of places in the Alpujarras are of Moorish origin. The district contains many villages of 1000 to 4000 inhabitants, the four largest being Lanjaron, with its ruined castle and chalybeate baths, Orgiba, Trevelez and Ugijar; all situated at a considerable elevation. Trevelez, the highest, stands 5332 ft. above the sea.
`ALQAMA IBN `ABADA, generally known as `ALQAMA AL-FAHL, an Arabian poet of the tribe Tamim, who flourished in the second half of the 6th century. Of his life we know practically nothing except that his chief poem concerns an incident in the wars between the Lakhmids and the Ghassanids (see ARABIA, History). Even the date of this is doubtful, but it is generally referred to the period after the middle of the 6th century. His poetic description of ostriches is said to have been famous among the Arabs. His diwan consists of three qusidas (elegies) and eleven fragments. Asma` i considered three of the poems genuine.
The poems were edited by A. Swain with Latin translation as Die Gedichte des Alkama Alfahl (Leipzig, 1867), and are contained in W. Ahlwardt's The Diwans of the six ancient Arabic Poets (Lond., 1870); cf. W. Ahlwardt's Bemerkungen uber die Aechtheit der alten arabischen Gledichte (Greifswald, 1872), pp. 65-71 and 146-168. (G. W. T.)
ALQUIFOU (etymologically the same word as ``alcohol''), a lead ore found in Cornwall, used by potters for its green glaze.
ALREDUS, ALURED or ALUREDUS, OF BEVERLEY, was sacristan of the church of Beverley in the first half of the 12th century. He wrote, apparently about the year 1143, a chronicle entitled Annales sive Historia de gestis regum Britanniae, which begins with Brutus and carries the history of England down to 1129. This work was edited by T. Hearne (Oxford, 1716), and at one time enjoyed some reputation as an authority. It is, however, a mere compilation and of no value. Geoffrey of Monmouth and Simeon of Durham are Alured's chief sources. Among the Cottonian MSS. there is a collection of records relating to Beverley, Liberlales Ecclesiae S. Johannis de Beverlae, which is attributed to Alured, but on no good authority. (H. W. C. D.)
ALSACE (Ger. Elsass), a former province of France, divided after the Revolution into the departments of Haut-Rhin and Bas-Rhin, and incorporated since the war of 1870 with the German empire (see ALSACE-LORRAINE). It is bounded on the north by the Rhenish Palatinate, on the east by the Rhine, on the south by Switzerland and on the west by the Vosges Mountains; and it comprises an area of 3344 English sq. m. The district possesses many natural attractions, and is one of the most fertile in central Europe. There are several ranges of hills, but no point within the province attains a great elevation. The only river of importance is the Ill, which falls into the Rhine after a course of more than 100 m., and is navigable below Colmar. The hills are generally richly wooded, chiefly with fir, beech and oak. The agricultural products are corn, flax, tobacco, grapes and various other fruits. The country has a great wealth of minerals, silver having been found, and copper, lead, iron, coal and rock-salt being wrought with profit. There are considerable manufactures, chiefly of cotton and linen. The chief towns are Mulhausen and Colmar in the upper district and Strassburg in the lower. The province is traversed from east to west by the railway from Strassburg to Nancy, and the main line north and south runs between Basel and Strassburg.
History. — From a very early period Alsace has been a disputed territory, and has suffered in the contentions of rival races. Inhabited by the Rauraci and the Sequani, it formed part of ancient Gaul, and was therefore included in the Roman empire in the provinces of Germania Superior and Maxima Sequanorum. The Romans held it nearly five hundred years, and on the dissolution of their power it passed under the sway of the Franks. In the Merovingian period it formed a duchy attached to the kingdom of Austrasia, and was governed by the descendants of duke Eticho, one of whom was St Odilia. After the death of Charlemagne, Alsace, like the rest of the empire, was divided into countships. But the duchy was re-established after the death of the German king Henry I., and became hereditary in the Hohenstaufen family, and then in the house of Austria,
which succeeded in 1273 to the imperial dignity. In the beginning of the 12th century the country was divided between the two landgraviates of Upper and Lower Alsace, but to counteract the power of the nobles the emperors established in Alsace a great number of free towns. This state of things continued until 1648, when a large part of Alsace, comprising the two landgraviates of Upper and Lower Alsace and the prefecture of the ten free imperial towns, was ceded to France by the treaty of Westphalia. In the war which preceded this peace (generally known as the Thirty Years' War) Alsace had been so terribly devastated by the Swedes and the French that the German emperor found himself unable to hold it. The population was greatly reduced in numbers, and much of the land was left uncultivated. In the war between France and the Empire, arising out of the attempt of Louis XIV to seize Holland, that part of Alsace which remained to Germany was again overrun by the French. Although this war was terminated in 1678 by the treaty of Nijmwegen, the French monarch was desirous of incorporating a still larger amount of Rhine territory; and accordingly in 1680 he laid claim to a number of territories, belonging to princes of the Empire, which he alleged had been dismembered from Alsace. It was ordered that these territories should be at once restored to that province under the crown of France, and several independent sovereigns were cited to appear before two chambers of inquiry, called chambres de reunion, which Louis had established at Brisach and Metz. The princes appealed to the emperor and to the diet; but the previous wars had so exhausted the power of the former that nothing could be done to resist the aggression. In 1681 the French troops under Louvois seized Strassburg, aided by the treachery of the bishop and other great men of the city. A further war broke out, but by the treaty of Ratisbon (Regensburg) in 1684, Strassburg was secured to France. The war was renewed in 1688 and continued until 1697, when the peace of Ryswick confirmed definitively the annexation of Strassburg to France. Some remaining territories of small extent were acquired by the French after the revolution of 1789, including Mulhausen, which had been a republic allied to Switzerland.
Originally Celtic, the population was modified during the Roman period by the arrival of a Germanic people, the Triboci. In the 5th century came other German tribes, the Alamanni, and then the Franks, who drove the Alamanni into the south. Since that period the population has in the main been Teutonic; and the French conquests of the 17th century, while modifying this element, still left it predominant. The people continued to use a German dialect as their native tongue, though the educated classes also spoke French. Protestantism was professed by a large number of the inhabitants; and in many respects their characteristics identified them rather with the race to the east than that to the west of the Rhine. In process of time, however, they considered themselves French, and lost all desire for reannexation to any of the German states.
Alsace suffered a good deal in the war of 1870-71. The earlier battles of the campaign were fought there; Strassburg and other of its fortified towns were besieged and taken; and its people were compelled to submit to very severe exactions. The civil and military government of the province, as well as that of Lorraine, was assumed by the Germans as soon as they obtained possession of those parts of France, which was very shortly after the commencement of the war. The Alsatian railways were reorganized and provided with a staff of German officials. German stamps were introduced from Berlin; the occupied towns were garrisoned by the Landwehr; and requisitions on a large scale were demanded, and paid for in cheques which, at the close of the war, were to be honoured by whichever side should stand in the unpleasant position of the conquered. The people, notwithstanding their German origin, showed a very strong feeling against the invaders, and in no part of France was the enemy resisted with greater stubbornness. It was evident from an early period of the war, however, that Prussia was resolved to reannex Alsace to German territory. When the preliminaries of peace came to be discussed at Versailles in February 1871, the cession of Alsace, together with what is called German Lorraine, was one of the earliest conditions laid down by Bismarck and accepted by Thiers. This sacrifice of territory was afterwards ratified by the National Assembly at Bordeaux, though not without a protest from the representatives of the departments about to be given up; and thus Alsace once more became German. By the bill for the incorporation of Alsace and German Lorraine, introduced into the German parliament in May 1871, it was provided that the sole and supreme control of the two provinces should be vested in the German emperor and the federal council until the 1st of January 1874, when the constitution of the German empire was established. Bismarck admitted the aversion of the population to Prussian rule, but said that everything would be done to conciliate the people. This policy appears really to have been carried out, and it was not long in bearing fruit. Many of the inhabitants of the conquered districts, however, still clung to the old connexion, and on the 30th of September 1872 — the day by which the people were required to determine whether they would consider themselves German subjects and remain, or French subjects and transfer their domicile to France — 45,000 elected to be still French, and sorrowfully took their departure. The German system of compulsory education of every child above the age of six was introduced directly after the annexation.
ALSACE-LORRAINE (Ger. Elsass-Lothringen), a German imperial territory (since 1871), consisting of the former French province Alsace (then divided into the departments of Haut-Rhin and Bas-Rhin), together with its capital Strassburg, and German Lorraine (which included the department of the Moselle and portions of the departments of Meurthe and Vosges), together with the capital and fortress of Metz. The imperial territory (Reichsland) is bounded S. by Switzerland; E. by Baden, from which it is separated by the Rhine; N.E. and N. by the Bavarian Palatinate, the Prussian Rhine Province and Luxemburg, and W. by France. Its area is 5601 sq. m. The maximum length from N. to S. is 145 m.; the maximum breadth E. to W. 105 m., and the minimum breadth, on a line drawn through Schlettstadt, 24 m. In respect of its physical features, Alsace-Lorraine falls into three parts — mountain land, plain and plateau. The first, practically co-extensive with the western half of Alsace, consists of the Vosges range, which running in a northerly direction from the deep gap or pass of Belfort (trouee de Belfort) forms in its highest ridges the natural frontier line between Germany and France. Between this mountain chain and its spurs, which fall steeply to the E., and the Rhine, stretches a fertile plain forming the eastern half of Alsace. In the N.W. a high and undulating plateau, which gently descends in the W. to the valley of the Moselle, occupies nearly the whole area of Lorraine. The drainage of the Vosges valleys and of the Rhine valley is collected and carried into the Rhine about 10 m. below Strassburg by the Ill, which has a course of more than 100 m. and is navigable below Colmar. With the exception of a few streams which run to the Rhone, all the waters of Alsace flow into the Rhine. The climate is on the whole temperate — warmest in the lowest districts (460 ft. above sea-level) of N. Alsace, and coldest on the summits of the Vosges, where snow lies six months in the year. The mean annual temperature at Strassburg is 49.8 deg. F., at Metz 48.2 deg.; the rainfall at Strassburg 26 1/4 in., and at Metz 27 1/2 in. The Rhine Valley is in great part fertile, yielding good crops of potatoes, cereals (including maize), sugar beet, hops, tobacco, flax, hemp and products of oleaginous plants. But grapes and fruit are amongst the most valuable of the crops. The cereals chiefly grown are wheat, oats, barley and rye. Great quantities of hay are harvested. This description embraces also the production of Lorraine, where agriculture is less strenuously carried on, and the fertility of the soil is less. But Lorraine possesses, in compensation, greater riches in the earth, in coal and iron and salt mines. Cows are grazed on the S. Vosges in summer, and large quantities of cheese (Munster cheese) are made and exported. Total population (1905) 1,814,626.
The farms in Alsace are mostly small and are beld partly as a
private possession, partly on the communal system; in Lorraine there are some larger occupations. The manufacture of cottons, and on a smaller scale of woollens, is special to Alsace, the chief centres of the industry being Mulhausen, Colmar and the valleys of the Vosges. The territory has always been the centre of an active commerce, owing to its situation on the confines of Germany, France and Switzerland, and alongside the great highway of the Rhine. The communications embraced some 1249 m. of railway (1903), of which 1108 m. belonged to the state, a good system of roads, and several canals (notably the Rhine-Rhone, the Rhine-Marie and the Saar Canals), in addition to the rivers. Administratively the territory is divided into the following three districts, showing a density of population of about 316 to the sq. m.:—
Population.Districts. Area in sq. miles. 1885. 1905.Upper Alsace . . 1354 462,549 512,709Lower Alsace . . 1845 612,077 686,359Lorraine . . . 2402 489,729 615,558
On the sex division, 935,305 were in 1905 males, and 879,321 females. The percentage of illegitimacy is about 7. The rural population embraces 51% of the whole, the urban population 48%. The largest towns are Strassburg (the capital of the territory), Mulhausen, Metz, Colmar, all above 20,000 inhabitants each. Classified according to religion there were, in 1904, 372,078 Protestants, 1,310,391 Roman Catholics, and 32,379 Jews. Education is provided for at the university of Strassburg, in 21 classical and pro-classical schools, in 18 modern schools, and in nearly 4000 elementary schools. Over 85% of the people speak German as their mother-tongue, the rest French, or a patois of French. The annual revenue and expenditure are each somewhat in excess of L. 3,000,000. Customs and indirect taxes yield more than three-fifths of the total revenue, and direct taxes less than one-fourth. The state forests give about one-ninth of the whole. The higher administration of justice is devolved upon six provincial courts and a supreme court, sitting at Colmar. Moreover, there are purely industrial tribunals at Mulhausen, Thann, Markirch, Strassburg and Metz. The fish-breeding establishment at Huningen in Upper Alsace should be mentioned.
Constitution. — The sovereignty over the territory was by a law (Reichsgesetz) of the 9th of June 1871 vested in the German emperor, who, until the introduction of the imperial constitution on the 1st of January 1874, had, with the assent of the federal council (Bundesrat) and, in a few cases, that of the imperial diet (Reichstag), the sole right of initiating legislation. In October of this last year a committee (Landesausschuss) of the whole territory was appointed to deliberate on laws proposed to it before they received the final sanction of the emperor. On the 2nd of May 1877, the Landesausschuss was itself empowered to initiate legislation within the competence of the territory, and in 1879 the imperial viceroy (Statthalter), representing the imperial chancellor, who had until then been the responsible minister, took up his residence in Strassburg. He is assisted in the government by 4 ministers of departments, under the presidency of a secretary of state, and, when occasion demands the extraordinary discussion of legislative proposals, by a council of state (Staatsrat), consisting of the secretary of state, under secretaries, the president of the supreme court of justice of the territory and, as a rule, of 12 nominees of the emperor. The Lanitesaus-schuss, a constitutional body with parliamentary privileges, consists of 58 members, 34 being appointed out of their number by the various district councils (Bezirkslage), 4 by the large towns, and 20 by the rural districts. Alsace-Lorraine is represented in the Bundesrat by two commissioners, who have, however, but one voice; and the territory returns 15 members to the Reichstag.
See A. Schmidt, Elsass unid Lothringen (Lerp., 1859); Spach,Histoire de la basso Alsace et de la ville de Strasbourg(Stras., 1860); von Mullenheim Rechberg, Die Annexion desElsass durch Frankreich und Ruckblick auf die Verwaltungdes Landes, 1648-1697 (Stras., 1897); Du Prel, Die deutscheVerwaltung in Elsass, 1870-1879 (Stras., 1879); L. Petersen,Das Deutschtum in Elsass-Lothringen (Munich, 1902). (P. A. A.)
ALSATIA (the old French province of Alsace), long a ``debatable ground'' between France and Germany, and hence a name applied in the 17th century to the district of Whitefriars, between the Thames and Fleet Street, in London, which afforded sanctuary (q.v.) to debtors and criminals. The privileges were abolished in 1697. The term is also used generally of any refuge for criminals.
ALSEN (Danish Als), an island in the Baltic, off the coast of Schleswig, in the Little Belt. It formerly belonged to Denmark, but, as a result of the Danish war of 1864, was incorporated with Germany. Its area is 105 sq. m.; the length nearly 20, and the breadth from 3 to 12 m. Pop. (1900) 25,000, most of whom speak Danish. The island is fertile, richly wooded, and yields grain and fruit. Sonderburg, the capital, with a good harbour and a considerable trade, is connected with the mainland by a pontoon bridge. Other places of note are Norburg and Augustenburg. On the peninsula Rekenis at the S.W. end of Alsen there is a lighthouse. Here, in 1848, the Danes directed their main attack against Field-marshal Wrangel's army. In 1864 the Prussians under Herwarth von Bittenfeld took Alsen, which was occupied by 9000 Danish troops under Steinmann, thus bringing the Danish war to a close. Since 1870 Alsen has been fortified.
'ALSHEKH, MOSES, Jewish rabbi in Safed (Palestine) in the later part of the 16th century. He was the author of many homiletical commentaries on the Hebrew Bible. His works still justly enjoy much popularity, largely because of their powerful influence as practical exhortations to virtuous life.
ALSIETINUS LACUS (mod. Lago di Martignano), a small lake in southern Etruria, 15 m. due N.N.W. of Rome, in an extinct crater. Augustus drew from it the Aqua Alsietina; the water was hardly fit to drink, and was mainly intended to supply his naumachia (lake made for a sham naval battle) at Rome, near S. Francesco a Ripa, on the right bank of the Tiber, where some traces of the aqueduct were perhaps found in 1720. The course of the aqueduct, which was mainly subterranean, is practically unknown: Frontinus tells us that it received a branch from the lake of Bracciano near Careiae (Galera): and an inscription relating to it was found in this district in 1887 (F. Barnabei, Notizie degli Scavi, 1887, 181).
ALSIUM (mod. Palo), an ancient town of Etruria, 29 m. W. by N. of Rome by rail, on the Via Aurelia, by which it is about 22 m. from Rome. It was one of the oldest cities of Etruria, but does not appear in history till the Roman colonization of 247 B.C., and was never of great importance, except as a resort of wealthy Romans, many of whom (Pompey, the Antonine emperors) had villas there. About 1 1/2 m. N.E. of Palo is a row of large mounds called I Monteroni, which belong to tombs of the Etruscan cemetery. Considerable remains of ancient villas still exist along the low sandy coast, one of which, about 1 m. E. of Palo, occupies an area of some 400 by 250 yds. The medieval castle belongs to the Odescalchi family. Near Palo is the modern sea-bathing resort Ladispoli, founded by Prince Odescalchi. See G. Dennis, Cities and Cemeteries of Etruria, i. 219.
ALSOP, VINCENT (c. 1630- 1703), English Nonconformist divine, was of Northamptonshire origin and was educated at St John's College, Cambridge. He received deacon's orders from a bishop, whereupon he settled as assistant-master in the free school of Oakham, Rutland. He was reclaimed from indifferent courses and associates here by a very ``painful'' minister, the Rev. Benjamin King. Subsequently he married Mr King's daughter, and ``becoming a convert to his principles, received ordination in the Presbyterian way, not being satisfied with that which he had from the bishop.'' He was presented to the living of Wilby in Northamptonshire; but was thence ejected under the act of Uniformity in 1662. After his ejection he preached privately at Oakham and Wellingborough, sharing the common pains and penalties of nonconformists, — e.g. he was imprisoned six months for praying with a sick person. A book against William Shedock, dean of St Paul's, called Antisozzo (against Socinus), written in the vein of Andrew Marvell's Rehearsal Transprosed, procured him much celebrity as a wit. Dr Robert South, no friend to nonconformists, publicly pronounced that Alsop had the advantage of Sherlock in every way. Besides fame, Antisozzo procured for its author an invitation to succeed the venerable Thomas Cawton (the younger) as independent minister in Westminster. He accepted the call and drew great multitudes to his chapel. He published other books which showed a fecundity of wit, a playful strength of reasoning, and a provoking indomitableness of raillery. Even with Dr Goodman and Dr Stillingfleet for antagonists, he more than held his own. His Mischief of Impositions (1680) in answer to Stillingfleet's Mischief of Separation, and Melius Inquirenduni (1679) in answer to Goodman's Compassionate Inquiry, remain historical landmarks in the history of nonconformity. Later on, from the entanglements of a son in alleged treasonable practices, he had to sue for and obtained pardon from King James II. This seems to have given a somewhat diplomatic character to his closing years, inasmuch as, while remaining a nonconformist, he had a good deal to do with proposed political- ecclesiastical compromises. He died on the 8th of May 1703, having preserved his ``spirits and smartness'' to the last.
See Wood's A thenae (Bliss) iv. 106; Calamy's Life of Baxter, ii. 487; Wilson's History and Ant. of Dissenting Churches, iv. 63-66. (A. J. G.) ALSTED, JOHANN HEINRICH (1588-1638), German Protestant divine. He was some time professor of philosophy and theology at Herborn, in Nassau, and afterwards at Weissenburg in Transylvania, where he remained till his death in 1638. He was a marvellously prolific writer. His Encyclopaedia (1630), the most considerable of the earlier works of that class, was long held in high estimation.
ALSTON, CHARLES (1683-1760), Scottish botanist, was born at Eddlewood, near Hamilton, in 1683, and became lecturer in materia medica and botany at Edinburgh and also superintendent of the botanical gardens, of the plants in which he published a catalogue in 1740. He was a critic of Linnaeus's system of plant-classification (see BOTANY.) He died on the 22nd of November 1760 at Edinburgh. His Lectures on Materia Medica were published posthumously in 1770.
ALSTON, a market-town in the Penrith parliamentary division of Cumberland, England, 29 m. by road E.S.E. of Carlisle, on a branch of the North-Eastern railway from Haltwhistle. Pop. (1901) 3133. It lies in the uppermost part of the valley of the South Tyne, among the high bleak moors of the Pennines. Copper and blende are found, and there are limestone quarries. The mines of argentiferous lead, belonging to Greenwich Hospital, London, were formerly of great value, and it was in order that royalties on the Alston lead mines and on those elsewhere in the county might be jointly collected that the parish was first included within the borders of Cumberland, in the 18th century. As many as 119 lead mines were worked in the parish in 1768, but the supply of metal has been almost exhausted. Coal is worked chiefly for lime-burning, and umber is prepared for the manufacture of colours. Thread and flannels are also made. Whitley Castle, 2 m. N., was a Roman fort, the original name of which is not known, guarding the road which ran along the South Tyne valley and over the Pennines. It has no connexionwith Alston itself.
ALSTROMER, JONAS (1685-1761), Swedish industrial re-former, was born at Alingsas in Vestergotland, on the 7th of January 1685. He left his native village at an early age, and in 1707 became clerk to Alberg, a merchant of Stockholm, whom he accompanied to London. After carrying on business for three years, Alberg failed, and Alstrom (as his name was before his ennoblement) engaged in the business of shipbroker on his own account, and eventually proved very successful. After travelling for several years on the continent, he was seized with the patriotic desire to transplant to his native country some of the industries he had seen flourishing in Britain. He accordingly returned to Alingsas, and in 1724 established a woollen factory in the village. After preliminary difficulties it became a very profitable business. He next established a sugar refinery at Gothenburg, introduced improvements in the cultivation of potatoes and of plants suitable for dyeing, and directed attention to improved methods in shipbuilding, tanning and the manufacture of cutlery. But his most successful undertaking was the importation of sheep from England, Spain and Angora. He received many marks of distinction, was created (1748) knight of the order of the North Star, and a few years later received letters of nobility, with permission to change his name to Alstromer. He died on the 2nd of June 1761, leaving several works on practical industrial subjects. A statue was erected in his honour in the exchange at Stockholm. One of his sons, Clas (Claude) (1736-1794), was a naturalist of considerable eminence. During a voyage to Spain he noticed a native Peruvian plant known in Peru as the lily of the Incas, at the Swedish counsul's at Cadiz; he sent a few seeds to his master and friend, Linnaeus, who named the genus in his honour Alstromeria. He also wrote a work on sheep-breeding.
ALTAI (in Mongolian Altain-ula, the ``Mountains of Gold''), a term used in Asiatic geography with Various significations. The Altai region, in West Siberia and Mongolia, is similar in character to Switzerland, but covers a very much greater area. It extends from the river Irtysh and the Dzungarian depression (46 deg. -47 deg. N.) northwards to the Siberian railway and to the Sayan mountains. The backbone of the region is the Sailughem or Silyughema mountains, also known as Kolyvan Altai, which stretch north-eastwards from 49 deg. N. and 86 deg. E. towards the western extremity of the Sayan mountains in 51 deg. 60' N. and 89 deg. E. Their mean elevation is 5000-5500 ft. The snow-line runs at 6700 ft. on the northern versant and at 7800 ft. on the southern, and above it the rugged peaks tower up some 3200 ft. more. Passes across the range are few and difficult, the chief being the Ulan-daban at 9275 ft. (9445 ft. according to Kozlov), and the Chapchan-daban, at 10,555 ft., in the south and north respectively. On the east and south-east this range is flanked by the great plateau of Mongolia, the transition being effected gradually by means of several minor plateaus, such as Ukok (7800 ft.), Chuya (6000 ft.), Kendykty (8200 ft.), Kak (8270 ft.), Suok (8500 ft.), and Juvlu-kul (7900 ft.). This region, which is not accurately known, is studded with large lakes, i.e. Ubsa-nor (2370 ft. above sea-level), Kirghiz-nor, Durga-nor and Kobdo-nor (3840 ft.), and traversed by various mountain ranges, of which the principal are the Tannu-ola, running roughly parallel with the Sayan mountains as far east as the Kosso-gol (100 deg. -101 deg. E. long.), and the Khan-khu mountains, also stretching west and east.
The range of the Altai proper, known also as the Ek-tagh, Mongolian Altai, Great Altai and Southern Altai, likewise extend in two twin parallel chains eastwards as far as 99 deg. , if not farther. The Ek-tagh or Mongolian Altai, which separates the Kobdo basin on the north from the Irtysh basin on the south, is a true border-range, in that it rises in a steep and lofty escarpment from the Dzungarian depression (1550 to 3000 ft.), but descends on the north by a relatively short slope to the plateau (4000-5500 ft.) of north-western Mongolia. East of 94 deg. the range is continued by a double series of mountain chains, all of which exhibit less sharply marked orographical features and are at considerably lower elevations. The southern chain bears the names of Karaadzirga and Burkhan-ola, and terminates in about 99 deg.; but the northern range, the principal names of which are Artsi-bogdo and Saikhat, extends probably most of the way to the great northward bend of the Hwang-ho or Yellow River round the desert of Ordos. Whereas the western Ek-tagh Altai rises above the snowline and is destitute of timber, the eastern double ranges barely touch the snow-line and are clothed with thick forests up to an altitude of 6250 ft. The slopes of the constituent chains of the system are inhabited principally by nomad Kirghiz.
The north-western and northern slopes of the Sailughem mountains are extremely steep and very difficult of access. On this side lies the culminating summit of the range, the double-headed Byelukha (the Mont Blanc of the Altai), whose summits reach 14,890 and 14,560 ft. respectively,1 and give origin to several glaciers (30 sq. m. in aggregate area). Here also are the Kuitun (12,000 ft.) and several other lofty peaks. Numerous spurs, striking in all directions from the Sailughem mountains, fill up the space between that range and the lowlands of Tomsk, but their mutual relations are far from being well known. Such are the Chuya Alps, having an average altitude of 9000 ft., with summits from 11,500 to 12,000 ft., and at least ten glaciers on their northern slope; the Katun Alps, which have a mean elevation of about 10,000 ft. and are mostly snow-clad; the Kholzun range; the Korgon (6300 to 7600 ft.), Talitsk and Selitsk ranges; the Tigeretsk Alps, and so on. Several secondary plateaus of lower altitude are also distinguished by geographers. The Katun valley begins as a wild gorge on the south-west slope of Byelukha; then, after a big bend, the river (400 m. long) pierces the Katun Alps, and enters a wider valley, lying at an altitude of from 2000 to 3500 ft., which it follows until it emerges from the Altai highlands to join the Biya in a most picturesque region. The Katun and the Biya together form the Ob. The next valley is that of the Charysh, which has the Korgon and Tigeretsk Alps on one side and the Talitsk and Bashalatsk Alps on the other. This, too, is very fertile. The Altai, seen from this valley, presents the most romantic scenes, including the small but deep Kolyvan lake (altitude, 1180 ft.), which is surrounded by fantastic granite domes and towers. Farther west the valleys of the Uba, the Ulba and the Bukhtarma open south-westwards towards the Irtysh. The lower part of the first, like the lower valley of the Charysh, is thickly populated; in the valley of the Ulba is the Riddersk mine, at the foot of the Ivanovsk peak (6770 ft.), clothed with beautiful alpine meadows. The valley of the Bukhtarma, which has a length of 200 m., also has its origin at the foot of the Byelukha and the Kuitun peaks, and as it falls some 5000 ft. in less than 200 m., from an alpine plateau at an elevation of 6200 ft. to the Bukhtarma fortress (1130 ft.), it offers the most striking contrasts of landscape and vegetation. Its upper parts abound in glaciers, the best known of which is the Berel, which comes down from the Byelukha. On the northern side of the range which separates the upper Bukhtarma from the upper Katun is the Katun glacier, which after two ice-falls widens out to 700-900 yards. From a grotto in this glacier bursts tumultuously the Katun river. The middle and lower parts of the Bukhtarma valley have been colonized since the 18th century by runaway Russian peasants — serfs and nonconformists (Raskolniks) — who created there a free republic on Chinese territory; and after this part of the valley was annexed to Russia in 1869, it was rapidly colonized. The high valleys farther north, on the same western face of the Sailughem range, are but little known, their only visitors being Kirghiz shepherds. Those of Bashkaus, Chulyshman, and Chulcha, all three leading to the beautiful alpine lake of Teletskoye (length, 48 m.; maximum width, 3 m.; altitude, 1700 ft.; area, 87 sq. m.; maximum depth, 1020 ft.; mean depth, 660 ft.), are only inhabited by nomad Telenghites or Teleuts. The shores of the lake — reminding a visitor somewhat of the Swiss lake of Lucerne — rise almost sheer to over 6000 ft. and are too wild to accommodate a numerous population. From this lake issues the Biya, which joins the Katun at Biysk, and then meanders through the beautiful prairies of the north-west of the Altai. Farther north the Altai highlands are continued in the Kuznetsk district, which has a slightly different geological aspect, but still belongs to the Altai system. But the Abakan river, which rises on the western shoulder of the Sayan mountains, belongs to the system of the Yenisei. The Kuznetsk Ala-tau range, on the left bank of the Abakan, runs north-east into the government of Yeniseisk, while a complexus of imperfectly mapped mountains (Chukchut, Salair, Abakan) fills up the country northwards towards the Siberian railway and westwards towards the Ob. The Tom and its numerous tributaries rise on the northern slopes of the Kuznetsk Ala-tau, and their fertile valleys are occupied by a dense Russian population, the centre of which is Kuznetsk, on the Tom.
Geology. — Geologically the Altai mountains consist of two distinct elements which differ considerably from each other in composition and structure. The Russian Altai is composed mainly of mica and chlorite schists and slates, together with beds of limestone, and in the higher horizons Devonian and Carboniferous fossils occur in many places. There is no axial zone of gneiss, but intrusions of granite and other plutonic rocks occur, and the famous ore deposits are found chiefly near the contact of these intrusions with the schists. The strata are thrown into folds which run in the direction of the mountain ridges, forming a curve with the convexity facing the south-east. The Mongolian or Great Altai, on the other hand, consists mainly of gneiss and Archaean rocks. The strike of the rocks is independent of the direction of the chain, and the chain is bounded by faults. It is, in fact, a horst and not a zone of folding.
Flora.—The flora of the Altai, explored chiefly by Karl F. von Ledebour (1785-1851), is rich and very beautiful. Up to a level of 1000 ft. on the northern and 2000 ft. on the southern slopes, plant life belongs to the European flora, which extends into Siberia as far as the Yenisei. The steppe flora penetrates into the mountains, ascending some 1100-1200 ft., and in sheltered valleys even up to 5500 ft., when it of course comes into contact with the purely alpine flora. Tree vegetation, which reaches up as high as 6500 and 8150 ft., the latter limit on the north and west, consists of magnificent forests of birch, poplar, aspen, and Coniferae, such as Pinus cerebra, Abies sibirica, Larix sibirica, Picea obovata, and so on, though the fir is not found above 2500 ft., while the meadows are abundantly clothed with brightly coloured, typical assortments of herbaceous plants. The alpine meadows, which have many species in common with the European Alps, have also a number of their own peculiar Altaian species.
Mineral wealth.—The Altai proper is rich in silver, copper, lead and zinc ores, while in the Kuznetsk Ala-tau, gold, iron and coal are the chief mineral resources. The Kuznetsk Ala-tau mines are only now beginning to be explored, while the copper, and perhaps also the silver, ores of the Altai proper were worked by the mysterious prehistoric race of the Chudes at a time when the use of iron was not yet known. Russians began to mine in 1727 at Kolyvan, and in 1739 at Barnaul. Most of the Altai region, covering an area of some 170,000 sq. m. and including the Kuznetsk district, has since 1746 formed a domain of the imperial family under the name of the Altai Mining District. The ores of the Altai proper nearly always appear in irregular veins, containing silver, lead, copper and gold — sometimes all together, — and they are, or were, worked chiefly by Zmeinogorsk (or Zmeiev), Zyryanovsk, Ust-Kamenogorsk and Riddersk (abandoned in 1861). They offer, however, great difficulties, especially on account of their continually varying productivity and temperature of fusion. The beautiful varieties of porphyry — green, red, striped — which are obtained, often in big monoliths, near Kolyvan, are cut at the imperial stone-cutting factory into vases and other ornaments, familiar in the art galleries and palaces of Europe. Aquamarines of mediocre quality but enormous size (up to 3 in. in diameter) are found in the Korgon mine. The northern, or Salair, mining region is rich in silver ores, and the mine of this name used formerly to yield up to 93,300 oz. of silver in the year. But the chief wealth of the northern Altai is in the Kuznetsk coal-basin, also containing iron-ores, which fills up a valley between the Kuznetsk Ala-tau and the Salair range for a length of about 270 m., with a width of about 65 m. The coal is considered equal to the best coal of England and south Russia. The country is also covered with thick diluvial and alluvial deposits containing gold. However, all the mining is now on the decline.
Population.—The Russian population has rapidly increased since the fertile valleys belonging to the imperial family have been thrown open to settlement, and it has been estimated that in 1908 the population of the region (Biysk, Barnaul and Kuznetsk districts) reached about 800,000. Their chief occupations are agriculture (about 3,500,000 acres under culture), cattle-breeding, bee-keeping, mining, gathering of cedar-nuts and hunting. All this produce is exported partly to Tomsk and partly to Kobdo in Mongolia. The natives may represent a population of about 45,000. They are Altaians in the west and Telenghites or Teleuts in the east, with a few Kalmucks and Tatars. Although all are called Kalmucks by the Russians, they speak a Turkish language. Both the Telenghites and the Altaians are Shamanists in religion, but many of the former are already quite Russified. The virgin forests of the Kuznetsk Ala-tau — the Chern, or Black Forest of the Russians — are peopled by Tatars, who live in very small settlements, sometimes of the Russian type, but mostly in wooden yurts or huts of the Mongolian fashion. They can hardly keep any cattle, and lead the precarious life of forest-dwellers, living upon various wild roots when there is no grain in the spring. Hunting and fishing are resorted to, and the skins and furs are tanned.
Towns.—The capital of the Altai region is Barnaul, the centre of the mining administration and an animated commercial town; Biysk is the commercial centre; Kuznetsk, Ust-Kamenogorsk, and the mining towns of Kolyvan, Zmeinogorsk, Riddersk and Salairsk are the next largest places.
AUTHORITIES. — P. Semenov and G. N. Potanin, in supplementary vol. of Russian ed. of Ritter's Asien (1877); Ledebour, Reise durch das Altaigebirge (1829-1830); P. Chikhatchev, Voyage scientifique dans l'Altai oriental (1845); Gebler, Ubersicht des katunischen Gebirges (1837); G. von Helmersen, Reise nach dem Altai (St Petersburg, 1848); T. W. Atkinson, Oriental and Western Siberia (1838); and Cotta, Der Altai (1871), are still worth consulting. Of modern works see Adrianov, ``Journey to the Altai,'' in Zaeiski Russ. Geogr. Soc. xi.; Yadrintsev, ``Journey in West Siberia,'' in Zapiski West Sib. Geogr. Soc. ii.; Golubev, Altai (1890, Russian); Schmurlo, ``Passes in S. Altai'' (Sailughem), in Izvestia Russ. Geogr. Soc. (1898), xxxiv. 5; V. Saposhnikov, various articles in same periodical (1897), xxxiii. and (1899) xxxv., and, by the same, Katun i yeya Istoka (Tomsk, 1901); S. Turner, Siberia (1905); Deniker, on Kozlov's explorations, in La Geographie (1901, pp. 41, &c.); and P. Ignatov, in Izvestia Russ. Geog. Soc. (1902, No. 2). (P. A. K.; J. T. BE.)
1 Mr S. Turner estimates the culminating peak of Mt. Byelukha at 14,800 ft., but to Willer's Peak, a little to the N. W. of Byelukha, he assigns an altitude of 17,800 ft. (p. 205 of Siberia.)
ALTAMURA, a town of Apulia, Italy, in the province of Bari, 28 m. S.S.W. of the town of that name, and 56 m. by rail via Gioia del Colle. Pop. (1901) 22,729. It possesses a fine Romanesque cathedral begun in 1232 and restored in 1330 and 1531, the portal being especially remarkable. It is one of the four Palatine churches of Apulia. The surrounding territory is fertile. The medieval walls, erected by the emperor Frederick II., rest upon the walls of an ancient city of unknown name. These early walls are of rough blocks of stone without mortar. Ancient tombs with fragments of vases have also been found, and there are cases which have been used as primitive tombs or dwellings, and a group of some fifty tumuli near Altamura.
ALTAR (Lat. altare, from altus, high; some ancient etymological guesses are recorded by St Isidore of Seville in Etymologiae xv. 4), strictly a base or pedestal used for supplication and sacrifice to gods or to deified heroes. The necessity for such sacrificial furniture has been felt in most religions, and consequently we find its use widespread among races and nations which have no mutual connexion.
Mesopotamia. — Altars are found from the earliest times in the remains of Babylonian cities; the oldest are square erections of sun-dried bricks. In Assyrian mounds limestone and alabaster are the chief material. They are of varying form; an altar shown in a relief at Khorsabad is ornamented with stepped battlements, which are the equivalent of the familiar ``altarhorns'' in Hebrew ritual. An altar also from Khorsabad (now in the British Museum) has a circular table and a solid base triangular on plan, with pilasters ornamented with animals' paws at the angles. A third variety, of which an 8th century B.C. example from Nimrod exists in the British Museum, is a rectangular block ornamented at the ends by cylindrical rolls. These altars are in height from 2 to 3 ft. According to Herodotus (i. 183) the great altars of Babylonia were made of gold.
Egypt. — In Egypt altars took the form of a truncated cone or of a cubical block of polished granite or of basalt, with one or more basin-like depressions in the upper surface for receiving fluid libations. These had channels whereby fluids poured into the receptacles could be drained off. The surface was plain, inscribed with dedicatory or other legends, or adorned with symbolical carving.
Palestine. — Recent excavations, especially at Gezer, have shown that the earliest altars, or rather sacrifice hearths, in Palestine were circular spaces marked out by small stones set on end. At Gezer a pre-Semitic place of worship was found in which three such hearths stood together, and drained into a cave which may reasonably be supposed to have been regarded as the residence of the divinity. These circular hearths persisted into the Canaanite period, but were ultimately superseded by the Semitic developments. To the primitive nomadic Semite the presence of the divinity was indicated by springs, shady trees, remarkable rocks and other landmarks; and from this earliest conception grew the theory that a numen might be induced to take up an abode in an artificial heap of stones, or a pillar set upright for the purpose. The blood of the victim was poured over the stone as an offering to the divinity dwelling within it; and from this conception of the stone arose the further and final view, that the stone was a table on which the victim was to be burned.
Very few specimens of early Palestinian altars remain. The megalithic structures common in the Hauran and Moab may be entirely sepulchral. At Gezer no definite altar was discovered in the great High Place; though it is possible that a bank of intensely hard compact earth, in which were embedded a large number of human skulls, took its place. A very remarkable altar, at present unique, was found at Taanach by the Austrian excavators. It is pyramidal in shape, and the surface is ornamented with human-headed animals in relief. This, like the earliest Babylonian altars, is of baked earth.
The Old Testament conception of the altar varies with the stage of religious development. In the pre-Deuteronomic period altars are erected in any place where there had appeared to be a manifestation of deity, or under any circumstance in which the aid of deity was invoked; not by heretical individuals, but by the acknowledged religious leaders, such as Noah at Ararat, Abraham at Shechem, Bethel &c., Isaac at Beersheba, Jacob at Bethel, Moses at Rephidim, Joshua at Ebal, Gideon at Ophrah, Samuel at Raman, Elijah at Carmel, and others. These primitive altars were of the simplest possible description — in fact they were required to be so by the regulation affecting them, preserved in Exodus xx. 24, which prescribes that in every place where Yahweh records his name an altar of earth or of unhewn stone, without steps or other extraneous ornamentation, shall be erected.
The priestly regulations affecting altars are of a very elaborate nature, and are framed with a single eye to the essential theory of later Hebrew worship — the centralization of all worship at one shrine. These recognize two altars, which by the authors of this portion of the Pentateuch are placed from the first in the tabernacle in the wilderness — a theory which is inconsistent with the other evidences of the nature of the earlier Hebrew worship, to which we have just alluded.
The first of these altars is that for burnt-offering. This altar was in the centre of the court of the tabernacle, of acacia wood, 3 cubits high and 5 square. It was covered with copper, was provided with ``horns'' at the corners (like those of Assyria), hollow in the middle, and with rings on the sides into which the staves for its transportation could be run (Ex. xxvii. 1-8). The altar of the Solomonic temple is on similar lines, but much larger. It is now generally recognized that the description of the tabernacle altar is intended to provide a precedent for this vast structure, which would otherwise be inconsistent with the traditional view of the simple Hebrew altars. In the second temple a new altar was built after the fashion of the former (1 Macc. iv. 47) of ``whole stones from the mountain.'' In Herod's temple the altar was again built after the same model. It is described by Josephus (v. 5. 6) as 15 cubits high and 50 cubits square, with angle horns, and with an ``insensible acclivity'' leading up to it (a device to evade the pre-Deutero- nomic regulation about steps). It was made without any use of iron, and no iron tool was ever allowed to touch it. The blood
and refuse were discharged through a drain into the brook Kedron; this drain probably still remains, in the Bir el-Arwah, under the ``Dome of the Rock'' in the mosque which covers the site of the temple.
The second altar was the altar of incense, which was in the holy place of the tabernacle. It was of similar construction to the altar of burnt-offering, but smaller, being 2 cubits high and 1 cubit square (Ex. xxx. 1-5). It was overlaid with gold. Solomon's altar of incense (1 K. vi. 20) is referred to in a problematical passage from which it would appear to have been of cedar. But the authenticity of the passages describing the altar of incense in the tabernacle, and the historicity of the corresponding altar in Solomon's temple, are matters of keen dispute among critics. The incense altar in the second temple was removed by Antiochus Epiphanes (1 Macc. i. 21) and restored by Judas Maccabaeus (1 Macc. iv. 49). That in the temple of Herod is referred to in Luke i. 11.
The ritual uses of these altars are sufficiently explained by their names. On the first was a fire continually burning, in which the burnt-offerings were consumed. On the second an offering of incense was made twice a day.
In the pre-Deuteronomic passage, Exodus xxi. 14, the use of the altar as an asylum is postulated, though denied to the wilful murderer. This is a survival of the ancient belief that the deity resided in the pillar or stone-heap, and that the fugitive was placing himself under the protection of the local numen by seeking sanctuary. From 1 Kings i. 50 it would appear that the suppliant caught hold of the altar-horns (compare 1 Kings ii. 28), as though special protective virtue resided in this important though obscure part of the structure.
Greece and Rome. — According to the difference in the service for which they were employed, altars fell into two classes. Those of the first class were pedestals, so small and low that the suppliant could kneel upon them; these stood inside the temples, in front of the sacred image. The second class consisted of larger tables destined for burnt sacrifice; these were placed in the open air, and, if connected with a temple, in front of the entrance. Possibly altars of the former class were in historical times substitutes for, and rendered the same service as, the bases of the sacred images within the temples in earlier ages. In this case the altar of Apollo at Delphi, upon which on the Greek vases Neoptolemus is frequently represented as taking refuge from Orestes, might be regarded as the pedestal of an invisible image of the god, and as fulfilling the same function as did the base of the actual image of Athene in Troy, towards which Cassandra fled from Ajax. The second class of altars, called bomoi by the Greeks and altaria by the Romans, appears to have originated in temporary constructions such as heaps of earth, turf or stone, made for kindling a sacrificial fire as occasion required. But sacrifices to earth divinities were made on the earth itself, and those to the infernal deities in sunk hollows (Odyss. x. 25; Festus s. v. Altaria). The note of Eustathius (Odyss. xii. 252) perhaps indicates some customs reminiscent of a primitive antiquity in which the sacrifice was made without an altar at all. He says apobomia tina iera on ouk epi bomou o kathagis mos all' epi edafous — ``some holy places away from altars, whose offering is made not on an altar but on the floor.'' Pausanias (vi. 20. 7) speaks of an altar at Olympia made of unbaked bricks. In some primitive holy shrines the bones and ashes of the victims sacrificed were allowed to accumulate, and upon this new fires were kindled. Altars so raised were, like most religious survivals, considered as endowed with particular sanctity; the most remarkable recorded instances of such are the altars of Hera at Samos, and of Pan at Olympia (Paus. v. 14. 6; v. 15. 5), of Heracles at Thebes (Paus. ix. 11. 7), and of Zeus at Olympia (Paus. v. 13. 5). The last-mentioned stood on a platform (prothusis) measuring 125 ft. in circumference, and led up to by steps, the altar itself being 22 ft. high. Women were excluded from the platform. Where hecatombs were sacrificed, the prothusis necessarily assumed colossal proportions, as in the case of the altar at Parion, where it measured on each side 600 ft. The altar of Apollo at Delos (o keratinos bomos) was made of the horns of goats believed to have been slain by Diana; while at Miletus was an altar composed of the blood of victims sacrificed (Paus. v. 13. 6). The altar at Phorae in Achaea was of unhewn stones (Paus. vii. 22. 3). The altar used at the festival in honour of Daedalus on Mt. Cithaeron was of wood, and was consumed along with the sacrifice (Paus. ix. 3. 4). Others of bronze are mentioned. But these were exceptional, the usual material of an altar was marble, and its form, both among the Greeks and Romans, was either square or round; polygonal altars, of which examples still exist, being exceptions. When sculptured decorations were added they frequently took the form of imitations of the actual festoons with which it was usual to ornament altars, or of symbols, such as crania and horns of oxen, referring to the victims sacrificed. As a rule, the altars which existed apart from temples bore the name of the person by whom they were dedicated and the names of the deities in whose service they were, or, if not the name, some obvious representation of the deity. Such, for example, is the purpose of the figures of the Muses on an altar dedicated to them, now to be seen in the British Museum. An altar was retained for the service of one particular god, except where through local tradition two or more deities had become intimately associated, as in the case of the altar at Olympia to Artemis and Alpheus jointly, or that of Poseidon and Erechtheus in the Erechtheum at Athens. The most remarkable instance of multiple dedication was, however, at Oropus, where the altar was divided into five parts, one dedicated to Heracles, Zeus and Paean Apollo, a second to heroes and their wives, a third to Hestia, Hermes, Amphiaraus and the children of Amphilochus, a fourth to Aphrodite Panacea, Jason, Health, and Healing Athene, and the fifth to the Nymphs, Pan, and the rivers Archelous and Cephissus (Paus. i. 34. 2). Such deities were styled sbmbomoi, each having a separate part of the altar (Paus. i. 34. 2). Other terms are agonioi, or omobomioi. Deities of an inferior order, who were conceived as working together — e.g. the wind gods — had an altar in common. In the same way, the ``unknown gods'' were regarded as a unit, and had in Athens and at Olympia one altar for all (Paus. i. 1. 4; v. 14. 5; cf. Acts of Apostles, xvii. 18). An altar to all the gods is mentioned by Aeschylus (Suppl. 222). Among the exceptional classes of altars are also to be mentioned those on which fire could not be kindled (bomoi apuroi), and those which were kept free from blood (bomoi anaiaaktoi), of which in both respects the altar of Zeus Hypatos at Athens was an example. The lstia was a round altar; the eschara, one employed apparently for sacrifice to inferior deities or heroes (but lschara Toibou, Aesch. Pers. 205). In Rome an altar erected in front of a statue of a god was always required to be lower than the statue itself (Vitruvius iv. 9). Altars were always places of refuge, and even criminals and slaves were there safe, violence offered to them being insults to the gods whose suppliants the refugees were for the time being. They were also taken hold of by the Greeks when making their most solemn oaths.