Owen, Sir Richard, celebrated English naturalist and comparative anatomist, born in Lancaster; wrote extensively, especially on comparative anatomy and physiology, in which, as in everything that occupied him, he was an enthusiastic worker, being a disciple of Cuvier; did not oppose, but was careful not to commit himself to, Darwin's evolutionary theories; Carlyle, who had two hours' talk with him once, found him "a man of real ability who could tell him innumerable things" (1804-1892).
Owen, Robert, a Socialist reformer, born in Montgomeryshire; became manager of a cotton mill at New Lanark, which he managed on Socialist principles, according to which all the profits in the business above five per cent, went to the workpeople; in furtherance of his principles he published his "New Views of Society," the "New Moral World," as well as pamphlets, lecturing upon them, moreover, both in England and America, but his schemes issued in practical failures, especially as proving too exclusively secular, and he in his old age turned his mind to spiritualism (1771-1858).
Owens College, Manchester, a non-sectarian university, founded by John Owens, a liberal Churchman, in 1846, and supported as well as extended by subsequent bequests, the medical school of which is one of the finest in the kingdom; of the students attending it in 1897-98, 639 were arts students, 99 women, and 418 medicals.
Oxenford, John, English man of letters and critic; translated Goethe's "Dichtung und Wahrheit," and "Echermann's Conversations with Goethe"; was dramatic critic for the Times, and wrote plays, as well as an "Illustrated Book of French Songs" (1812-1877).
Oxenstiern, Axel, Count, Swedish statesman, favourite minister of Gustavus Adolphus; supported him through the Thirty Years' War, though he disapproved of his engaging in it, and managed the affairs of the State with great ability after his death (1583-1654).
Oxford (46), the county town of Oxfordshire, seat of one of the great English universities and of a bishopric; is on the left bank of the Thames, 52 m. W. of London; it is a city of great beauty, its many collegiate buildings and chapels and other institutions making it the richest of English cities in architectural interest; naturally historical associations abound; here the Mad Parliament met and adopted the Provisions of Oxford in 1258; Latimer and Ridley in 1555, and Cranmer in 1556, were burned in Broad Street; Charles I. made it his head-quarters after the first year of the Civil War; it was the refuge of Parliament during the plague of 1665.
Oxford School, the name given to the leaders of the Tractarian Movement, which originated at Oxford in 1833.
Oxford University, Oxford is spoken of as a seat of learning as early as the 11th century. Cloistral schools existed before that. Schools of divinity, law, and topography were founded in the 12th century. In the 13th Dominican and Franciscan scholars raised it to a level only second to Paris, and by the end of the 14th century there were thousands of students in attendance. Oxford responded quickly to the Renaissance, and by the time of the Reformation 13 colleges were founded. Her Protestantism stood firm through Mary's reaction, sank into passive obedience under the Stuarts, but woke up to resist James II.'s Catholic propaganda. Thereafter followed a serious lapse in efficiency, but this century has seen a complete revival. Oxford has now 21 colleges, among which are Balliol, Christ Church, Magdalen, Oriel, Trinity, and University College; 64 professors and teachers, and 3000 students. It is rich in museums and libraries; the Bodleian Library is of great value, the Taylor Library is devoted to modern literature. The Oxford or Tractarian Movement, one of the most remarkable religious impulses of modern times, had its centre in the University between 1834 and 1845. Among distinguished Oxford alumni were Hooker, Jeremy Taylor, Wesley, Newman; Hobbes, Locke, Adam Smith; Johnson, Gibbon, Freeman, Green; Chatham, Gladstone; Ruskin; Shelley, Keble, Arnold, and Clough. Of the colleges of which the University consists, the University was founded in 1249, Balliol in 1269, Merton in 1264, Exeter in 1314, Oriel in 1326, Queen's in 1340, New in 1379, Lincoln in 1427, All Souls' in 1437, Magdalen in 1468, Brasenose in 1509, Corpus in 1516, Christ Church in 1546, Trinity in 1554, St. John's in 1555, Jesus in 1571, Wadham in 1612, Pembroke in 1624, Worcester in 1714, Keble in 1870, and Hertford in 1874.
Oxfordshire (186), a S. midland county of England, stretching on the N. bank of the Thames between Gloucester and Buckingham; is an agricultural district; bleak in the N. and W., it is hilly, well wooded and picturesque in the S., where are the Chiltern Hills; iron-stone is mined near Banbury, blankets made at Witney, and paper at Shiplake and Henley; natives of the county were Edward the Confessor, Leland, Warren Hastings, Maria Edgeworth, and J. R. Green.
Oxus or Amu-daria, a great river of Central Asia, rises in the Pamirs, and flows W. between Turkestan and Afghanistan, then N. through Turkestan to the Sea of Aral; it is believed at one time to have flowed into the Caspian, and there is record of two changes of course; half its waters are absorbed in irrigating the plains of Khiva.
Oxygen, a colourless, inodorous gas which constitutes one-fifth in volume of the atmosphere, and which, in combination with hydrogen, forms water. It is the most widely diffused of all the elementary bodies, and an essential support to everything possessed of life.
Oyer and Terminer, an English Court Commission to hear and determine special causes.
Ozone, is an allotropic form of oxygen, from which it can be developed by electricity, and into which it can be resolved by heat, present in small quantities in the atmosphere, and possessing strong oxidising properties.
P
Pache, Jean, Swiss adventurer, who became Mayor of Paris, and even Minister of War during the French Revolution, "the sleek Tartuffe that he was," is credited with the authorship of the famous revolutionary motto, Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity, or Death (1746-1823).
Pachomius, St., an Egyptian hermit, the founder of conventual monachism, who established the first institution of the kind at Tabenna, an island in the Nile; he also established the first nunnery under his sister (292-348). Festival, May 14.
Pachydermata, hoofed animals with thick skins and non-ruminant, such as the elephant and the hog.
Pacific Ocean, the largest sheet of water on the globe, occupies a third of its whole surface, as much as all the land put together. It is a wide oval in shape, lying between Australia and Asia on the W., and North and South America on the E. Except from Asia it receives no large rivers. On its American shores the Gulf of California is the only considerable indentation; the Okhotsk, Japanese, Yellow, and Chinese Seas, on the Asiatic coast, are rather wide bays shut in by islands than inland seas. Its innumerable islands are the chief feature of the Pacific Ocean. The continental islands include the Aleutian, Kurile, Japan, and Philippine Islands, and the archipelago between the Malay Peninsula and Australia; the Oceanic Islands include countless groups, volcanic and coral, chiefly in the southern hemisphere, between the Sandwich Islands and New Zealand. Commerce on the Pacific Ocean is only beginning, but will increase vastly with the extension of the United States westward, the colonisation of Australia, and the opening of Chinese and Japanese ports. San Francisco and Valparaiso on the E., Hong-Kong and Sydney on the W., are just now the chief centres of trade.
Packhard, distinguished American entymologist and naturalist, born in Maine; his classification of insects is accepted; b. 1839.
Pactolus, a small river of Lydia, famous for the gold contained in its sand, due, it was alleged, to Midas washing the gold off him in its waters, and the alleged source of the wealth of Croesus; its modern name is Sarabat. See Midas.
Pacuvius, an old Latin dramatist, nephew of Ennius (q. v.); wrote dramas after the Greek models (220-130 B.C.).
Padang (15), a town and free port on the W. coast of Sumatra, the largest town on the island, and the Dutch official capital.
Paderewski, Ignace Jan, a celebrated pianist, born at Podolia, in Russian Poland; master of his art by incessant practice from early childhood, made his début in 1887 with instant success; his first appearance created quite a furore in Paris and London; has twice visited the United States; is a brilliant composer as well as performer, and has composed numerous pieces both for the voice and the piano; b. 1860.
Padilla, Juan Lopez de, a celebrated Castilian noble, who headed a rebellion against Charles V., which he heroically maintained till his defeat at Villalos in 1521, and which his wife, Donna Maria, no less heroically maintained against a strong besieging force after his capture and execution.
Padishah, from two Persian words meaning "protector prince," is a title given to the Shah of Persia and the Sultan of Turkey, and at one time applied, among others, to the Emperors of Austria and Russia.
Padua (79), a walled city of Venetia, 23 m. by rail W. of Venice, has some manufactures of leather and musical-instrument strings, but is chiefly interesting for its artistic treasures; these include the municipal buildings, cathedral, and nearly fifty churches, innumerable pictures and frescoes, and Donatello's famous equestrian statue of Gattamelata; there is also a renowned university, library, museum, and the oldest botanical garden in Europe; after very varied fortunes it was held by Venice 1405-1797, then by Austria till its incorporation in Italy 1866. Livy was a native, as also Andrea Mantegna.
Pæstum, an ancient Greek city of Lucania, in South Italy, with remains of Greek architecture second only to those of Athens.
Pagan, Isabel, Scotch poetess, authoress of the plaintive song "Ca' the Yowes to the Knowes" (1740-1821).
Paganini, Nicolo, a celebrated Italian violinist, born at Genoa of humble origin; widely famous for his astonishing feats on a single-stringed instrument; was a composer of musical pieces for both violin and guitar; died rich (1784-1840).
Paganism, heathenism (q. v.), so called as lingering among the "pagani" or country people, after Christianity had taken root in the large towns.
Pagoda, an Indian or Chinese temple, associated chiefly with Buddhism, of a more or less pyramidal form and of several storeys, the most imposing being the Greek Pagoda of Tanjore; the name is applied also to a gold coin worth 7s. 6d. stamped with a pagoda.
Pahlevi, name given to a translation of the Zendavesta (q. v.) in the Zend dialect for the use of the priesthood.
Paine, Thomas, a notorious free-thinker and democrat, born in Thetford; emigrated to America, contributed, as he boasted, by his pamphlet "Common Sense," to "free America," by rousing it to emancipate itself from the mother-country; wrote the "Rights of Man" against Burke's "Reflections"; had to emigrate to France; took part in the Revolution to aid in its emancipation also, offended Robespierre, and was put in prison, where he wrote the first part of his "Age of Reason," a book which offended the Christian world and procured him ignominy and even execration in many quarters; died in New York, but his bones were conveyed to England by Cobbett in 1819 (1737-1809).
Painter, William, author of "Palace of Pleasure," a collection of tales chiefly from Italian sources, which proved suggestive in furnishing the dramatists with interesting subjects for representation (1540-1594).
Paisiello, Giovanni, an Italian composer, born at Taranto; his great work, the opera "Il Barbiere di Seviglia"; composed besides other operas, cantatas, requiems, &c.
Paisley (66), a Renfrewshire town, 7 m. W. of Glasgow, on the White Cart. It is the chief centre of manufacture of cotton thread in the world, and its other industries include dyeing, bleaching, woollen goods, and engineering. There are several fine buildings, a Baptist Church is said to be the finest modern ecclesiastical building in Scotland. The ornithologist Wilson, Professor Wilson ( Christopher North), and Tannahill were born here.
Palacky, Francis, distinguished Bohemian historian and politician, born in Moravia, author of a "History of Bohemia," in 5 vols., his chief work and a notable (1798-1876).
Paladin, the name given to the peers of Charlemagne, such as Roland, and also to knights-errant generally.
Palæography, the name given to the study and the deciphering of ancient manuscripts.
Palæologus, the name of a Byzantine family, several members of which attained imperial dignity, the last of the dynasty dying in 1453; they came into prominence in the 11th century.
Palæontology, the name given to the study of fossil remains, a branch of geology.
Palafox, Don Joseph, a Spanish soldier, born of a noble Aragonese family, who immortalised himself by his heroic defence of Saragossa against the French in 1808-9; on the fall of the place was taken to France and imprisoned till 1813; on his release was created Duke of Saragossa and promoted to other high honours at home (1780-1847).
Palais Royal, a pile of buildings in Paris, of which the nucleus was a palace built in 1629 by Lemercier for Richelieu, and known afterwards as the Palais Cardinal, and which at length by gift of Louis XIV. became the town residence of the Orleans family; these buildings suffered much damage in 1848 and in 1871, but have been restored since 1873.
Palamedes, one of the chiefs of the Greeks at the siege of Troy, a man of inventive genius; discovered the assumed madness of Ulysses, but incurred his resentment in consequence, which procured his death.
Palanquin, in India and China a covered conveyance for one person borne on the shoulders of men.
Palatinate, the name of two States, originally one, of the old German empire, one called the Lower Palatinate or the Palatinate of the Rhine, partitioned in 1815 among the States of Baden, Bavaria, Prussia, and Hesse-Darmstadt, and the other called the Upper Palatinate, now nearly all included in Bavaria; the former has for principal towns Spires and Landau, and the latter Ratisbon.
Palatine, one of the seven hills of ancient Rome, and, according to tradition, the first to be occupied, and forming the nucleus of the city; it became one of the most aristocratic quarters of the city, and was chosen by the first emperors for their imperial residence.
Palatine Count, a judicial functionary of high rank under the early Frankish kings over what was called a palatinate.
Palatine Counties, certain frontier counties in England, such as Chester, Durham, and Lancaster, which possess royal privileges and rights.
Pale, The, that part of Ireland in which after the invasion of 1172 the supremacy of English rule and law was acknowledged, the limits of which differed at different times, but which generally included all the eastern counties extending 40 or 50 m. inland.
Palenque, a town in the State of Chiapas, Mexico, discovered in 1760, buried under a dense forest with extensive structures in ruins.
Palermo (273), capital of Sicily, picturesquely situated in the midst of a beautiful and fertile valley called the Golden Shell; is a handsome town, with many public buildings and nearly 300 churches in Moorish and Byzantine architecture, a university, art school, museum, and libraries; industries are unimportant, but a busy trade is done with Britain, France, and the United States, exporting fruits, wine, sulphur, &c., and importing textiles, coals, machinery, and grain.
Pales, in Roman mythology the tutelary deity of shepherds and their flocks, the worship of whom was attended with numerous observances, as in the case of the nature divinities generally.
Palestine, or the Holy Land, a small territory on the SE. corner of the Mediterranean, about the size of Wales, being 140 m. from N. to S., and an average of 70 m. from E. to W., is bounded on the N. by Lebanon, on the E. by the Jordan Valley, on the S. by the Sinaitic Desert, and on the W. by the sea; there is great diversity of climate throughout its extent owing to the great diversity of level, and its flora and fauna are of corresponding range; it suffered much during the wars between the Eastern monarchies and Egypt, and in the wars between the Crescent and the Cross, and is now by a strange fate in the hands of the Turk; it has in recent times been the theatre of extensive exploring operations in the interest of its early history.
Palestrina, an Italian town, 22 m. SE. of Rome, on a slope of the Apennines, 2546 ft. above sea-level, on the site of the ancient Præneste, with the remains of Cyclopean walls, with a palace of the Barberini (q. v.).
Palestrina, Giovanni Pierluigi de, celebrated composer of sacred music, surnamed the Prince of Music, born at Palestrina; resided chiefly at Rome, where he wrought a revolution in church music, produced a number of masses which at once raised him to the foremost rank among composers; was the author of a well-known Stabat Mater (1524-1594).
Paley, Frederick Althorp, classical scholar, grandson of the succeeding, born near York; became a Roman Catholic, contributed to classical literature by his editions of the classics of both Greece and Rome, remarkable alike for their scholarship and the critical acumen they show (1816-1886).
Paley, William, "one of the most masculine and truly English of thinkers and writers," born at Peterborough; studied at Christ's College, Cambridge, where he was Senior Wrangler, and obtained a Fellowship, held afterwards various Church preferments, and died archdeacon of Carlisle; was a clear writer and cogent reasoner on common-sense lines, and was long famous, if less so now, as the author of "Horæ Paulinæ," "Evidences of Christianity," and "Natural Theology," as well as "Moral and Political Philosophy"; they are genuine products of the time they were written in, but are out of date now (1743-1806).
Palgrave, Sir Francis, historian, born in London, of Jewish parents of the name of Cohen; was called to the bar in 1827, and became Deputy-Keeper of Her Majesty's Records in 1838; was the author of a history of the "Rise and Progress of the English Commonwealth" and of a "History of England," tracing it back chiefly to the Anglo-Norman period, among other works (1788-1861).
Palgrave, Francis Turner, poet, son of preceding, born in London, professor of Poetry at Oxford, editor of "Golden Treasury of Songs and Lyrics," as well as author of lyrics, rhymes, &c.; b. 1824.
Palgrave, William Gifford, Arabic scholar, born at Westminster, brother of preceding; after a brief term of service in the army joined the Society of Jesus, and served as a member of the order in India, Rome, and in Syria, where he acquired an intimate knowledge of Arabic, by means of which he contributed to our knowledge of both the Arabic language and the Arab race; wrote a narrative of a year's journey through Arabia (1826-1888).
Pâli, the sacred language of the Buddhists, once a living language, but, like Sanskrit, no longer spoken.
Palimpsest, the name given to a parchment manuscript written on the top of another that has been erased, yet often not so thoroughly that it cannot be in a measure restored.
Palingenesia, name equivalent to "new birth," and applied both to regeneration and restoration, of which baptism in the former case is the symbol; in the Stoic philosophy it is preceded by dissolution, as in the rejuvenescence process of Medea (q. v.).
Palinurus, the pilot of one of the ships of Æneas, who, sleeping at his post, fell into the sea, and was drowned.
Palissy, Bernard, the great French potter and inventor of a new process in the potter's art, born in Périgord, of humble parentage; celebrated for his fine earthenware vases ornamented with figures artistically modelled, but above all for his untiring zeal and patience in the study of his art and mastery in it, making fuel of his very furniture and the beams of his house in the conduct of his experiments; he was a Huguenot, but was specially exempted, by order of Catherine de' Medici, from the massacre of St. Bartholomew in 1672, although he was in 1585, as a Huguenot, imprisoned in the Bastille, where he died (1510-1590).
Palk's Strait, the channel which separates Ceylon from the mainland of India, 100 m. long and 40 m. wide, generally shallow. See Adam's Bridge.
Palladio, Andrea, an Italian architect, born at Vicenza, of poor parents; was precursor of the modern Italian style of architecture, and author of a treatise on architecture that has borne fruit; his works, which are masterpieces of the Renaissance, consist principally of palaces and churches, and the finest specimens are to be met with in Venice and in his native place (1518-1580).
Palladium, a statue of Pallas in Troy, on the preservation of which depended the safety of the city, and from the date of the abstraction of which by Ulysses and Diomedes the fate of it was doomed; it was fabled to have fallen from heaven upon the plain of Troy, and to have after its abstraction been transferred to Athens and Argos; it is now applied to any safeguard of the liberty of a State.
Palladius, St., is called the "chief apostle of the Scottish nation," but his connection with Scotland during his lifetime is doubtful; he was sent to Ireland by Pope Celestine in A.D. 430, whence, after his death, his remains were brought by St. Ternan to Fordoun, Kincardineshire.
Pallas, one of the names of Athena (q. v.) considered as the goddess of war; a name of uncertain derivation.
Pallas, Peter Simon, a German traveller and naturalist, born in Berlin, professor of Natural History in St. Petersburg; explored Siberia, and contributed to the geographical knowledge of the Russian empire (1741-1811).
Pallavicino, Ferrante, Italian patriot, who gave offence by his pasquinades to the Papal Court and the Barberini; was betrayed and beheaded (1618-1644).
Pallavicino, Sforza, cardinal and historian, born at Rome; was of the Jesuit order, and wrote a "History of the Council of Trent," in correction of the work of Paul Sarpi (1607-1667).
Pallice, La, port of La Rochelle, from which it is 3 m. distant, with harbourage for ocean-going steamers.
Palm, Johann Philipp, a Nürnberg bookseller, tried by court-martial at the instance of Napoleon, and shot, for the publication of a pamphlet reflecting on Napoleon and his troops, an act, from the injustice of it, that aroused the indignation of the whole German people against him; "better," thinks Carlyle, "had he lost his best park of artillery, or his best regiment drowned in the sea, than shot that poor German bookseller" (1768-1806).
Palm Sunday, the Sunday before Easter, is so called from its being commemorative of Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem; it is observed by the Greek and Roman Churches; in the latter palm branches are blessed by the priest before mass, carried in procession, distributed to the congregation, carried home by them, and kept throughout the year.
Palma, 1, capital of the Balearic Islands (61), on the Bay of Palma, SW. coast of Majorca; has a Gothic cathedral, a Moorish palace, and a collection of pictures in the old Town Hall; manufactures silks, woollens, and jewellery, and does a busy trade. 2, One of the Canary Islands (39), 67 m. NW. of Teneriffe; grows sugar, and exports honey, wax, and silk manufactures.
Palma, Jacopo, or The Old, a celebrated painter of the Venetian school, was a pupil of Titian; painted sacred subjects and portraits, all much esteemed (1480-1548).
Palma, Jacopo, The Young, nephew of the preceding, also a painter, but of inferior merit, though he aimed to be the rival of Tintoretto and Paul Veronese (1544-1628).
Palmer, the name given to a pilgrim to the Holy Land who had performed his vow, in sign of which he usually bore a palm branch in his hand, which he offered on the altar on his return home.
Palmer, Edward Henry, Oriental scholar, born at Cambridge; had an aptitude for languages, and was especially proficient in those of the East; by his knowledge of Arabic contributed to the success of exploring expeditions to S. Palestine and Sinai; was appointed professor of Arabic at Cambridge in 1871; produced a Persian-English Dictionary, an Arabic Grammar, and a translation of the Korân, and in 1882 undertook two missions to Egypt, in the latter of which he and his party were betrayed and murdered; he was a man of varied gifts and accomplishments, and the loss in scholarship to his country by his fate is incalculable (1840-1882).
Palmer, Samuel, English landscape-painter, chiefly in water-colours (1805-1881).
Palmerston, Henry John Temple, Viscount, English statesman, born, of an Irish family, at Broadlands, Hants; was educated at the universities of Edinburgh and Cambridge; succeeded to his father's title, an Irish peerage, in 1802, and entered Parliament in 1807 as member for Newport, Isle of Wight; during his long career he subsequently represented Cambridge University (1811-1831), Bletchingly, South Hampshire, and Tiverton; from 1809 to 1828 under five Premiers he was Junior Lord of the Admiralty and Secretary at War; and separating himself finally from the Tory party, he joined Earl Grey's Cabinet as Foreign Secretary in 1830; contrary to all expectation he kept the country out of war, and during the next 11 years he associated England's influence with that of France in Continental affairs; returning to office in 1846, he remained at his old post till 1851, steering England skilfully through the Spanish troubles and the revolutionary reaction of 1848; a vote of censure on his policy was carried in the Lords in 1850, but, after a five hours' speech from him, the Commons recorded their approval; he resigned owing to differences with the Premier, Lord John Russell; in 1852 joined Lord Aberdeen's coalition ministry, and on its fall became himself Prime Minister in 1855; he prosecuted the Crimean War and the Chinese War of 1857, and suppressed the Great Mutiny in India; defeated in 1858, he returned to office next year with a cabinet of Whigs and Peelites; his second administration furthered the cause of free trade, but made the mistake of allowing the Alabama to leave Birkenhead; he was Prime Minister when he died; a brusque, high-spirited, cheery man, sensible and practical, unpretending as an orator, but a skilful debater, he was a great favourite with the country, whose prosperity and prestige it was his chief desire to promote (1784-1865).
Palmistry, the art of reading character from the lines and marks on the palm of the hand, according to which some pretend to read fortunes as well.
Palmy`ra, a ruined city of Asia Minor, 150 m. NE. of Damascus, once situated in an oasis near the Arabian desert; a place of importance, and said to have been founded by Solomon for commercial purposes; of imposing magnificence as it ruins testify, as notably under Zenobia; it was taken by the Romans in 272, and destroyed by Aurelian, after which it gradually fell into utter decay; its ruins were discovered in 1678; it contains the ruins of a temple to Baal, 60 of the 300 columns of which were still standing.
Palo Alto, 33 m. SE. of San Francisco; is the seat of a remarkable university founded by Senator Stanford, and opened in 1891, to provide instruction, from the Kindergarten stage to the most advanced and varied, to students and pupils boarded on the premises; of these there were 1000 in 1897.
Paludan-Müller, Frederick, distinguished Danish poet, born in Fünen; his greatest poem, "Adam Homo," a didactico-humorous composition; was an earnest man and a finished literary artist (1809-1876).
Pamela, a novel of Richardson's, from the name of the heroine, a girl of low degree, who resists temptation and reclaims her would-be seducer.
Pamirs, The, or the "Roof of the World," a plateau traversed by mountain ridges and valleys, of the average height of 13,000 ft., NW. of the plateau of Thibet, connecting the mountain system of the Himalayas, Tian-Shan, and the Hindu Kush, and inhabited chiefly by nomad Kirghiz bands; territorial apportionments have for some time past been in the hands of Russian and British diplomatists.
Pampas, vast grassy, treeless, nearly level plains in South America, in the Argentine State; they stretch from the lower Paraná to the S. of Buenos Ayres; afford rich pasture for large herds of wild horses and cattle, and are now in certain parts being brought under tillage.
Pampeluna or Pamplona (31), a fortified city of Northern Spain, is 80 m. due SE. of Bilbao. It has a Gothic cathedral and a surgical college, with manufactures of pottery and leather, and a trade in wine. Formerly capital of Navarre, it has suffered much in war; has this century several times resisted the Carlists.
Pan, in the Greek mythology a goat-man, a personification of rude nature, and the protector of flocks and herds; originally an Arcadian deity, is represented as playing on a flute of reeds joined together of different lengths, called Pan's pipes; and dancing on his cloven hoofs over glades and mountains escorted by a bevy of nymphs side by side, and playing on his pipes. There is a remarkable tradition, that on the night of the Nativity at Bethlehem an astonished voyager heard a voice exclaiming as he passed the promontory of Tarentum, "The great Pan is dead." The modern devil is invested with some of his attributes, such as cloven hoofs, &c.
Panama (15), a free port in the State of Colombia, on the Pacific coast of the isthmus of the same name, and an oppressively hot and humid place, is the terminus of the Panama railroad and the seat of a great transit trade. It has a Spanish cathedral. The population, of Indian and negro descent chiefly, is only half what it was when the canal works were in full operation.
Panama Canal Geographers were familiar with the idea of connecting the two oceans by a canal through Central America as early as the beginning of the 16th century, and Dutch plans are said to exist dating from the 17th century. The first practical steps were taken by Ferdinand de Lesseps in 1879; two years later work was begun; the cost was estimated at £24,000,000, but on January 1, 1889, the company was forced into liquidation after spending over £70,000,000, and accomplishing but a fifth of the work. Extravagance and incapacity were alleged among the causes of failure; but the apparently insurmountable difficulties were marshes, quicksands, and the overflow of the Chagres River, the prevalence of earthquakes, the length of the rainy season, the cost of labour and living, and the extreme unhealthiness of the climate.
Panathenæa, a festival, or rather two festivals, the Lesser and the Greater, anciently celebrated at Athens in honour of Athena, the patron-goddess of the city.
Panchatantra, an old collection of fables and stories originally in Sanskrit, and versions of which have passed into all the languages of India, have appeared in different forms, and been associated with different names.
Pancras, St., a boy martyr of 16, who suffered under the Diocletian persecution about 304, and is variously represented in mediæval legend as bearing a stone and sword, or a palm branch, and trampling a Saracen under foot, in allusion to his hatred of heathenism.
Pandects, the digest of civil law executed at the instance of the Emperor Justinian between the years 530 and 533.
Pandora (i. e. the All-Gifted) in the Greek mythology a woman of surpassing beauty, fashioned by Hephæstos, and endowed with every gift and all graces by Athena, sent by Zeus to Epimetheus (q. v.) to avenge the wrong done to the gods by his brother Prometheus, bearing with her a box full of all forms of evil, which Epimetheus, though cautioned by his brother, pried into when she left, to the escape of the contents all over the earth in winged flight, Hope alone remaining behind in the casket.
Pandours, a name given to a body of light-infantry at one time in the Austrian service, levied among the Slavs on the Turkish frontier, and now incorporated as a division of the regular army.
Pandulf, Cardinal, was the Pope's legate to King John of England, and to whom, on his submission, John paid homage at Dover; d. 1226.
Pange Lingua, a hymn in the Roman Breviary, service of Corpus Christi, part of which is incorporated in every Eucharistic service; was written in rhymed Latin by Thomas Aquinas.
Pánini, a celebrated Sanskrit grammarian, whose work is of standard authority among Hindu scholars, and who lived some time between 600 and 300 B.C.
Panipat (29), a town in the Punjab, 53 m. N. of Delhi; was the scene of two decisive battles, one in 1526 to the establishment of the Mogul dynasty at Delhi, and another in 1701 to the extinction of the Mahratta supremacy in North-West India.
Panizzi, Antonio, principal librarian of the British Museum from 1850 to 1866, born at Modena; took refuge in England in 1821 as implicated in a Piedmontese revolutionary movement that year; procured the favour of Lord Brougham and a post in the Museum, in which he rose to be one of the chiefs (1797-1879).
Pannonia, a province of the Roman empire, conquered between 35 B.C. and A.D. 8; occupied a square with the Danube on the N. and E. and the Save almost on the S. border; it passed to the Eastern Empire in the 5th century, fell under Charlemagne's sway, and was conquered by the modern Hungarians shortly before A.D. 1000.