James Wood

“ Wheat is the most important product; the grape and all manner of fruits grow luxuriantly. Mineral wealth is great: it is the foremost State for gold and quicksilver; lead, silver, copper, iron, sulphur, coal, and many other minerals abound. The industries include brandy and sugar manufactures, silk-growing, shipbuilding, and fishing. All products are exported, eastward by the great Central, Union, and Southern Pacific railroads; and seaward, the chief port being San Francisco, the largest city, as Sacramento is the capital of the State. ”

“ Agriculture is the chief industry, and though primitive, it is remarkably painstaking and skilful. Forests have everywhere been cleared away, and the whole country is marvellously fertile. Its mineral wealth is enormous. Iron, copper, and coal abound in vast quantities; has coal-fields that, it is said, if they were worked, “would revolutionise the trade of the world.” The most important manufactures are of silk, cotton, and china. Commerce is as yet chiefly internal ”

“ Continental System, Napoleon's scheme for interdicting all commerce between the Continent and Great Britain, carried out with various issues till the fall of Napoleon. See Berlin and Milan Decrees.
Contrat, Social, Rousseau's theory of society that it is based on mere contract, each individual member of it surrendering his will to the will of all, under protection of all concerned, a theory which led to the conclusion that the rule of kings is an usurpation of the rights of the community, and which bore fruit as an explosive in the Revolution at the end of the century. ”

“ Constituent Assembly, the legislative body which the National Assembly of France resolved itself into in 1789, a name it assumed from the task it imposed on itself, viz., of making a constitution, a task which, from the nature of it proved impossible, as a constitution is an entity which grows, and is not made, nascitur, non fit. ”

“ Christian King, the Most, a title of the king of France conferred by two different Popes.
Christian Knowledge, Society for Promoting (S. P. C. K.) , a religious association in connection with the Church of England, under the patronage of the Queen and the presidency of the Archbishop of Canterbury, established 1698, the object of which is to disseminate a knowledge of Christian doctrine both at home and abroad by means of churches, schools, and libraries, and by the circulation of Bibles and Christian literature. ”

“ Great Slave, Great Bear, Athabasca, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Superior, Huron, Erie, and Ontario are the largest lakes; the climate is varied, very cold in the north, very wet west of the Rockies, elsewhere drier than in Europe, with hot summers, long, cold, but bracing and exhilarating winters; the corn-growing land is practically inexhaustible; the finest wheat is grown without manure, year after year, in the rich soil of Manitoba, Athabasca, and the western prairie ”

“ The government is in the hands of a governor, appointed by the crown, assisted by an executive council of five and a parliament of two houses; local government is in vogue all over the country; education is well cared for; the university of the Cape of Good Hope was founded in 1873. Discovered by the Portuguese Diaz in 1486, the Cape was taken possession of by the Dutch in 1652, from whom it was captured by Great Britain in 1805. ”

“ Canaris, Constantine, a Greek statesman, did much to free and consolidate Greece, more than any other statesman (1790-1877) .
Canary Islands (288) , a group of mountainous islands in the Atlantic, off the NW. African coast, belonging to Spain, with rocky coasts, and wild, picturesque scenery; on the lower levels the climate is delightful, and sugar, bananas, and dates grow; farther up there are zones where wheat and cereals are cultivated; the rainfall is low, and water often scarce; sugar, wine, and tobacco are exported; the islands are a health resort of growing favour. ”

“ Cornell University, a university in Ithaca, New York State, founded in 1868 at a cost of £152,000, named after its founder, Ezra Cornell; it supports a large staff of teachers, and gives instruction in all departments of science, literature, and philosophy; it provides education to sundry specified classes free of all fees, as well as means of earning the benefits of the institution to any who may wish to enjoy them. ”

“ The mountains are the highest in the States (13,000 to 14,000 ft.) , are traversed by lofty passes through which the railways run, have rich spacious valleys or parks among them, and have great deposits of gold, silver, lead, and iron. There are also extensive coal-beds; hence the leading industries are mining and iron working. The eastern portion is a level, treeless plain, adapted for grazing. Agriculture, carried on with irrigation, suffers from insect plagues like the Colorado potato beetle. The climate is dry and clear, and attracts invalids. ”

“ Cynics, a sect of Greek philosophers, disciples of Antisthenes, who was a disciple of Socrates, but carried away with him only part of Socrates' teaching and enforced that as if it were the whole, dropped all regard for humanity and the universal reason, and taught that “virtue lay wholly in the avoidance of evil, and those desires and greeds that bind us to enjoyments,” so that his disciples were called the “Capuchins of the Old World.” ”

“ Coolies, labourers from India and China, who now emigrate in large numbers, especially from China, often to where they are not wanted, and where they, as in the British Colonies and the United States, are much disliked, as they bring down the wages of native labourers. ”

“ Catharine of Valois, daughter of Charles VI. of France, and wife of Henry V. of England, who, on his marriage to her, was declared heir to the throne of France, with the result that their son was afterwards, while but an infant, crowned king of both countries; becoming a widow, she married Owen Tudor, a Welsh gentleman, whereby a grandson of his succeeded to the English throne as Henry VII., and the first of the Tudors (1401-1438) . ”

“ Sheep and ostrich farming are the chief industries; wool, goats' hair, ostrich feathers, hides, diamonds from Kimberley and copper from Namaqualand are the chief exports; two-thirds of the people are of African race, chiefly Kaffirs, who flourish under British rule; the remainder are of Dutch, English, French, and German origin; Cape Town is the capital, Kimberley and Port Elizabeth the only other large towns, but there are many small towns; roads are good; railway and telegraph communication is rapidly developing. ”

“ Catalani, Angelica, a celebrated Italian singer and prima donna, born near Ancona; began her career in Rome with such success that it led to engagements over all the chief cities of Europe, the enthusiasm which followed her reaching its climax when she came to England, where, on her first visit, she stayed eight years; by the failure of an enterprise in Paris she lost her fortune, but soon repaired it by revisiting the capitals of Europe; died of cholera in Paris (1779-1840) .
Catalonia (1,900) , old prov. of Spain, on the NE.; has a most fertile soil, which yields a luxuriant vegetation ”

“ The modern city is the fourth founded in succession on the same site, and remains of the former cities are included in it, old walls, gateways, narrow streets, and latticed houses, palaces, and 400 mosques. These, though much spoiled by time and tourists, still represent the brightest period of Saracenic art. The most modern part of the city consists of broad boulevards, with European-built villas, hotels, &c., and has all the advantages of modern civic appliances. There is a rich museum, and university with 2000 students. ”

“ Celestines, an order of monks founded by Celestine V. before he was elected Pope in 1354; they followed the rule of the Benedictine Order, and led a contemplative life.
Cellini, Benvenuto, a celebrated engraver, sculptor, and goldsmith, a most versatile and erratic genius, born at Florence; had to leave Florence for a bloody fray he was involved in, and went to Rome; wrought as a goldsmith there for 20 years, patronised by the nobles; killed the Constable de Bourbon at the sack of the city, and for this received plenary indulgence from the Pope ”

“ Natural productions are as various: the exports include valuable timbers and dye-woods, cinchona bark, coffee, cacao, cotton, and silver ore. Most of the trade is with Britain and the United States. Manufactures are inconsiderable. The mineral wealth is very great, but little wrought. The Panama Railway, from Colon to Panama, connects the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans, and is a most important highway of commerce. The people are descendants of Spaniards and Indians; education is meagre, but compulsory; the State Church is Roman Catholic. The capital is Bogotá. ”

“ Tea and silk are exported; cotton goods and opium imported. About twenty-five ports are open to British vessels, of which the largest are Shanghai and Canton. There are no railways; communication inland is by road, river, and canals. The people are a mixed race of Mongol type, kindly, courteous, peaceful, and extremely industrious, and in their own way well educated. Buddhism is the prevailing faith of the masses, Confucianism of the upper classes. The Government is in theory a patriarchal autocracy, the Emperor being at once father and high-priest of all the people, and vicegerent of heaven. ”

“ Cicero, Marcus Tullius, a Roman orator, statesman, and man of letters, born near Arpinum, in Latium; trained for political life partly at Rome and partly at Athens; distinguished himself as the first orator at the Roman bar when he was 30, and afterwards rose through the successive grades of civic rank till he attained the consulship in 63 B.C.; during this period he acquired great popularity by his exposure and defeat of the conspiracy of Catiline, by which he earned the title of Father of his Country, though there were those who condemned his action and procured his banishment for a time ”

“ Corinth, an ancient city of Greece, and one of the most flourishing, on an isthmus of the name connecting the Peloponnesus with the mainland; a great centre of trade and of material wealth, and as a centre of luxury a centre of vice; the seat of the worship of Aphrodité, a very different goddess from Athene, to whom Athens was dedicated. ”

“ The country, nearly three times the size of France, though it has only a ninth of the population, comprises in the W. three chains of the Andes and the plateaus between them, in the E. plains well watered by tributaries of the Orinoco. The upper valleys of the Magdalena and Cauca are the centres of population, where the climate is delightful, and grain grows. Every climate is found in Colombia, from the tropical heats of the plains to the Arctic cold of the mountains. ”

“ The government is republican; Roman Catholicism the State religion; education is fairly well fostered; there is a university at Santiago. The country was first visited by Magellan in 1520. In 1540 Pedro Valdivia entered it from Peru and founded Santiago. During colonial days it was an annex of Peru. In 1810 the revolt against Spain broke out. Independence was gained in 1826. Settled government was established in 1847. Since then a revolution in 1851, successful wars with Spain 1864-66, with Bolivia and Peru 1879-81, and a revolution in 1891, have been the most stirring events in its history. ”

“ Channel Islands (92) , a group of small islands off the NW. coast of France, of which the largest are Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, and Sark; formerly part of the Duchy of Normandy, and now all that remains to Britain of her French dominions, being subject to it since 1066; have a delightful climate mild and bright, and varied and beautiful scenery; the soil is fertile; flowers and fruit are grown for export to Britain, also early potatoes for the London market; Guernsey pears and Jersey cows are famous; valuable quarries of granite are wrought; the language is Norman-French. ”

“ Castro, Inez de, a royal heiress of the Spanish throne in the 14th century, the beloved wife of Don Pedro, heir of the Portuguese throne; put to death out of jealousy of Spain by the latter's father, but on his accession dug out of her grave, arrayed in her royal robes, and crowned along with him, after which she was entombed again, and a magnificent monument erected over her remains.
Castro, Juan de, a Portuguese soldier, born at Lisbon, distinguished for his exploits in behalf of Portugal; made viceroy of the Portuguese Indies, but died soon after in the arms of Francis Xavier (1500-1548) . ”

“ Chile (2,867) , the most advanced and stable of the S. American States, occupies a strip of country, 100 m. broad, between the Andes and the Pacific Ocean, and stretching from Cape Horn northward 2200 m. to Peru, with Argentine and Bolivia on its eastern borders. The climate is naturally various. In the N. are rainless tracts of mountains rich in copper, manganese, silver, and other metals, and deserts with wonderful deposits of nitrate. In the S. are stretches of pastoral land and virgin forest, with excessive rains, and cold, raw climate. ”