Pragmatic Sanction, a term applied to "an ordinance of a very irrevocable nature which a sovereign makes in affairs belonging wholly to himself, or what he reckons within his own right," but applied more particularly to the decree promulgated by Charles VI., emperor of Germany, whereby he vested the right of succession to the throne of Austria in his daughter, Maria Theresa, wife of Francis of Lorraine, a succession which was guaranteed by France, the States-General, and the most of the European Powers.

Prague (310), capital of Bohemia, on the Moldau, 217 m. by rail NW. of Vienna, is a picturesque city with over 70 towers, a great royal palace, unfinished cathedral, an old town-hall, a picture-gallery, observatory, botanical garden, and museums; the University, partly German and partly Czech, has 300 teachers, 4000 students, and a magnificent library; the centre of an important transit trade, Prague is the chief commercial city of Bohemia; has manufactures of machinery, chemicals, leather, and textile goods; four-fifths of the population are Czechs; founded in the 12th century, it has suffered in many wars; was captured by the Hussites 1424, fell frequently during the Thirty Years' War, capitulated to Frederick the Great 1757, and in 1848 was bombarded for two days by the Austrian Government in quelling the democratic demonstrations of the Slavonic Congress of that year.

Prairie, name given by the French to an extensive tract of flat or rolling land covered with tall, waving grass, mostly destitute of trees, and forming the great central plain of North America, which extends as far N. as Canada.

Prakrit, name given to a group of Hindu languages based on Sanskrit.

Pratique, license given to a ship to enter port on assurance from the captain to convince the authorities that she is free from contagious disease.

Praxiteles, great Greek sculptor, born at Athens; executed statues in both bronze and marble, and was unrivalled in the exhibition of the softer beauties of the human form, especially the female figure, his most celebrated being the marble one of Aphrodité at Cnidus; he executed statues of Eros, Apollo, and Hermes as well, but they have all perished.

Praying-Wheels, cylinders with printed prayers on them, driven by hand, water, or wind-power, in use among the Buddhists of Thibet.

Pre-Adamites, a race presumed to have existed on the earth prior to Adam; traditional first fathers of the Jews.

Precession of the Equinoxes, name given to the gradual shifting of the equinoctial points along the ecliptic from east to west. See Equinoxes.

Précieuses Ridicules, a play of Molière's, published in 1653, directed against the affectations of certain literary coteries of the day.

Predestination, the eternal decree which in particular foreordains certain of the human family to life everlasting and others to death everlasting, or the theological dogma which teaches these. See Election, the Doctrine of.

Predicables, the five classes of terms which can be predicated of a subject, viz.—genus, containing species; species, contained in a genus; differentia, distinguishing one species from another; property, quality possessed by every member of a species; and accident, attribute belonging to certain individuals of a species and not others.

Pregel, a navigable river in E. Prussia, 120 m. long and 730 ft. broad, which falls into the Frische Haff below Königsberg.

Prejevalski, Nicholas, Russian explorer, born in Smolensk; joined the army, served against the Poles in 1861, and was appointed to Siberia in 1867; his first explorations were in the country S. of the Amur; in 1871-73 he travelled through Southern Mongolia from Pekin to the upper Yangtse-kiang region; thereafter his energies were devoted to Thibet; he made repeated unsuccessful attempts to reach Lhassa, exploring by the way the desert of Gobi and the upper Hoang-ho, and died finally at Karakol, in West Turkestan; he discovered the wild camel and wild horse, and brought back valuable zoological and botanical collections, which are now in St. Petersburg (1839-1888)

Pre-Raphaelitism, a movement headed by Rossetti, Holman Hunt, and Millais, of revolt against the style of art in vogue, traceable all the way back to Raphael, and of a bold return to the study of nature itself, agreeably to the advice of Ruskin, that "they should go to Nature in all singleness of heart, and walk with her laboriously and trustingly, having no other thought than how best to penetrate her meaning: rejecting nothing, selecting nothing, and scorning nothing"; the principle of the movement, as having regard not merely to what the outer eye sees in an object, but to what the inner eye sees of objective truth and reality in it.

Presburg (52), the ancient capital of Hungary, close to the Austrian frontier, on the Danube, by rail 40 m. E. of Vienna; is a pleasant town, with a cathedral, a town-house, and a Franciscan church, all of the 13th century, the old Parliament House, and a ruined royal castle; manufactures beer, dynamite, and starch, and trades largely in live stock and corn.

Presbyopia, diminution of sight due to age, occurring usually about forty-five, when near objects are less distinctly seen than distant, an affliction due to the flattening of the lens.

Presbyterianism, that form of Church government which, discarding prelacy, regards all ministers in conclave as on the same level in rank and function, and which is the prevailing form of Church government in Scotland; inherited from Geneva, as also prevailing extensively in the United States of America. The government is administered by a gradation of courts, called "Kirk-Sessions," of office-bearers in connection with a particular congregation; "Presbyteries," in connection with a small district; "Synods," in connection with a larger; and finally a General Assembly or a Synod of the whole Church, which, besides managing the affairs of the collective body, forms a court of final appeal in disputed matters or cases.

Prescott, William Hickling, American historian, born at Salem, Massachusetts; son of a lawyer; graduated at Harvard in 1814, and applied himself to study law; by-and-by he travelled in Europe, married, and turned to literature as a profession; growing blind, the result of an accident at college, he fortunately inherited means, employed assistants, and with great courage in 1826 began to study Spanish history. "Ferdinand and Isabella" appearing in 1838, established his reputation in both worlds; "The Conquest of Mexico" was published in 1843, and "The Conquest of Peru" in 1847; he was elected corresponding member of the French Institute; his style is vivid, direct, and never dull; though not philosophical, his histories are masterpieces of narrative and incident; he died of apoplexy at Boston before completing the "History of Philip II." (1796-1859).

Present Time, defined impressively by Carlyle as "the youngest born of Eternity, child and heir of all the past times, with their good and evil, and parent of all the future with new questions and significance," on the right or wrong understanding of which depend the issues of life or death to us all, the sphinx riddle given to all of us to rede as we would live and not die.

President of the United States, is popularly elected for four years, or rather by delegates so elected to each State, and sometimes re-elected for other four; is commander-in-chief of the army and navy; sees to the administration of the laws, signs bills before they pass into law, makes treaties, grants reprieves and pardons, and receives an annual salary of 50,000 dollars.

Press-Gang, a party armed with powers to impress men into the naval service in times of emergency, a practice which often gave rise to serious disturbances, and is not in any circumstances likely to be had recourse to again. See Impressment.

Pressensé, Edmond de, eminent French Protestant theologian, born at Luasanne, in Paris; studied under Vinet and Neander at Berlin; became Protestant minister in Paris; was elected a deputy in the National Assembly in 1871, and a senator in 1883; wrote a "Life of Christ," and on numerous subjects of theological and ecclesiastical interest (1824-1891).

Prester, John. See John, Prester.

Preston (112), Lancashire manufacturing town on the Ribble, 31 m. N W. of Manchester; is a well laid out brick town, with three parks, a magnificent town-hall, a market, public baths, free library, museum, and picture-gallery; St. Walburge's Roman Catholic church has the highest post-Reformation steeple in England, 306 ft. The deepening of the river and construction of docks have added to the shipping trade. The chief industry is cotton, but there are also shipbuilding yards, engineer shops, and foundries. One of Cromwell's victories was won here; it was the birthplace of Richard Arkwright, and the scene of the beginning of the English total abstinence movement in 1832.

Pretenders, The, the names given to the son and the grandson of James II. (Prince Charlie) as claiming a right to the throne of England, and called respectively the Elder and the Younger Pretender; the elder, who made one or two attempts to secure his claim, surrendered it to his son, who in 1745 was defeated at Culloden.

Pretoria (whites, 10), capital of the Transvaal, stands on a mountain-enclosed plain 1000 m. NE. of Cape Town, and nearly 300 m. W. of Lorenzo Marquez, Delagoa Bay, with both of which and with Natal it is connected by rail. It is a thriving town, growing rapidly with flourishing trade, the see of a bishop, and containing twenty English schools. Coal is found near, and wheat, tobacco, cotton, and indigo grown. It is the seat of the government of the Transvaal.

Prévost d'Exiles, Antoine François, or Abbé Prévost, a French romancer, born in Heslin, Artois; was educated by the Jesuits, and became a Benedictine monk, but proving refractory, fled to Holland and England; wrote several novels, but his fame rests on one entitled "Manon Lescaut," a work of genius, charming at once in matter and style; a "story," says Professor Saintsbury, "chiefly remarkable for the perfect simplicity and absolute life-likeness of the character-drawing"; derives its name from the subject of it, a young girl named Manon (1697-1763).

Prévost-Paradol, Lucien Anatole, French littérateur and publicist, born in Paris; distinguished himself as journalist and essayist; was an enemy of the Empire, but accepted a post under Ollivier as envoy to the United States in 1870, and committed suicide at Washington almost immediately after landing; it was on the eve of the Franco-German War, and he had been the subject of virulent attacks from the republican press of the day (1829-1870).

Priam, the old king of Troy during the Trojan War; was the son of Laomedon, who with the help of Apollo and Poseidon built the city; had a large family by his wife Hecuba, Hector, Paris, and Cassandra, the most noted of them; was too old to take part in the war; is said to have fallen by the hand of Pyrrhus on the capture of Troy by the Greeks.

Priapus, an ancient deity, the personification of the generating or fructifying power, and worshipped as the protector of flocks of sheep and goats, of bees, of the vine and other garden products; a worship known as the Priapus worship prevailed extensively all over the East.

Price, Richard, English moralist, born in Glamorganshire; wrote on politics and economics as well as ethics, in which last he followed Cudworth (q. v.), and insisted on the unimpeachable quality of moral distinctions, and the unimpeachable authority of the moral sentiments (1723-1791).

Prichard, James Cowles, founder of ethnology and a philologist, born in Hereford; bred to medicine, and practised in Bristol; wrote "Researches into the Physical History of Mankind," "The Eastern Origin of the Celtic Nations," "Analysis of Egyptian Mythology," and the "Natural History of Man"; maintained the original unity of the race, and that the original pair were negroes; philology was in his hands the handmaid of ethnology, and he made himself master of the primitive languages (1786-1848).

Prideaux, Humphrey, English prelate and scholar; remembered chiefly as the author of a learned work entitled "The Connection of the History of the Old and New Testaments"; wrote a "Life of Mahomet," popular in its day and for long after (1648-1724).

Pride's Purge, the name given to a violent exclusion, in 1649, at the hands of a body of troops commanded by Colonel Pride of about a hundred members of the House of Commons disposed to deal leniently with the king, after which some eighty, known as the Rump, were left to deal with his Majesty and bring him to justice.

Priessnitz, founder of the water-cure, in connection with which he had a large establishment at Gräfenberg, in Austrian Silesia; was a mere empiric, having been bred to farming (1799-1851).

Priest, properly a man in touch with the religious life of the people, and for the most part consecrated to mediate between them and the Deity; the prophet, on the other hand, being one more in touch with the Deity, being at times so close to Him as to require a priest to mediate between him and the laity.

Priestley, Joseph, a Socinian divine, born near Leeds; wrote in defence of Socinianism, and in defence of Christianity; gave himself to physical research, particularly pneumatic chemistry; is claimed as the discoverer of oxygen; sympathised with the French Revolution; was mobbed, and had to flee to America, where he died, believing in immortality despite his materialistic philosophy (1733-1804).

Prim, Juan, a Spanish general; distinguished as a statesman; rose to be Minister of War, but aspiring to dictatorship, was shot by an assassin; he was the leader of the movement that overthrew Isabella in 1868 and installed Amadeo in her stead (1814-1870).

Primrose, the name of a family in Goldsmith's "Vicar of Wakefield."

Primrose League, a politico-Conservative organisation founded in 1883 in memory of Lord Beaconsfield, and so called because the primrose was popularly reported to be his favourite flower. It includes a large membership, nearly a million, comprising women as well as men; is divided into district habitations; confers honours and badges in the style of Freemasonry, and has extensive political influence under a grand-master.

Prince Edward Island (109), an island province of Canada, in the S. of Gulf of St. Lawrence, occupies a great bay formed by New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Cape Breton, and is somewhat larger than Northumberland. The coast-line is exceedingly broken, the surface low and undulating, and very fertile. The chief industry is agriculture, oats and potatoes are the best crops; decayed shells found in beds on the shore are an excellent manure; sheep and horses are raised with great success. The climate is healthy, milder and clearer than on the mainland, but with a tedious winter. Coal exists, but is not wrought. The fisheries are the best on the Gulf, but are not developed. Manufactures are inconsiderable. Discovered by the Cabots, it was settled by the French in 1715, and ceded to Great Britain in 1763. Constituted a province in 1768, the name was changed from St. John to Prince Edward in 1799. Since 1875 the local government have bought out most of the great proprietors, and resold the land to occupying owners. Education is free. There are normal schools and two colleges. Half the people are Roman Catholics. A railway traverses the island, and there is daily steam communication with the mainland. The capital is Charlottetown (13); Summerside, Georgetown, and Sourio are the other towns.

Prince of Peace, a title given by Charles IV. of Spain to his Prime Minister, Don Manuel Godoy (q. v.).

Princeton (3), a town of New Jersey, 50 m. SW. of New York; was the scene of a battle in the War of Independence, and the meeting-place of the Continental Congress of 1783; now noted as the seat of the College of New Jersey, founded at Newark 1746, and removed to Princeton ten years later, with now 50 teachers and 600 students; Jonathan Edwards and Dr. James M'Cosh as presidents, James Madison and others as alumni, have given it lustre. The Theological Seminary, the oldest and largest Presbyterian one in the States, was founded in 1812, and a School of Science in 1871. The college is rich in museums, observatories, laboratories, libraries, and funds.

Pringle, Thomas, minor poet, born in Roxburghshire; edited the Monthly Magazine; emigrated to South Africa; held a small government appointment; was bullied out of it; returned home, and became Secretary to the Anti-Slavery Society (1789-1834).

Printed Paper, Carlyle's satirical name for the literature of France prior to the Revolution.

Prinzenraub (the stealing of the princes), name given to an attempt, to satisfy a private grudge of his, on the part of Kunz von Kaufingen to carry off, on the night of the 7th July 1455, two Saxon princes from the castle of Altenburg, in which he was defeated by apprehension at the hands of a collier named Schmidt, through whom he was handed over to justice and beheaded. See Carlyle's account of this in his "Miscellanies."

Prior, Matthew, English poet and diplomatist, born near Wimborne, East Dorset; studied at Cambridge; became Fellow of Trinity College; was ambassador to France; involved himself in an intrigue, was imprisoned, and on his release lived in retirement; he is remembered as a poet; wrote in 1687 a parody of Dryden's "Hind and Panther," entitled "The Story of the Country Mouse and the City Mouse," and afterwards, "Solomon on the Vanity of the World," "Alma; or, The Progress of the Mind," after Butler, as well as tales, lyrics, and epigrams; Professor Saintsbury calls him "the king of 'verse of society'" (1664-1721).

Priscian, Latin grammarian of the 6th century, born in Cæsarea; was author of "Grammatical Commentaries" in 18 books, a standard work during the Middle Ages, and in universal use at that time.

Priscillian, a Spaniard of noble birth, who introduced a Gnostic and Manichæan heresy into Spain, and founded a sect called after him, and was put to death by the Emperor Maximius in 385; his followers were an idly speculative sect, who practised a rigidly ascetic style of life, and after being much calumniated did not survive him over 60 years.

Prismatic colours, the seven colours a ray of pure white light is resolved into when refracted through a prism, applied figuratively by Carlyle to the pure light refracted through the soul of a man of genius.

Prisoner of Chillon, the name given to François de Bonivard (q. v.), who was for six years kept prisoner in the castle of Chillon, on the Lake of Geneva, and is the subject of a well-known poem by Byron.

Privateer, a private vessel licensed by Government under a letter of marque to seize and plunder the ships of an enemy, otherwise an act of the kind is treated as piracy.

Privy Council, is theoretically a council associated with the sovereign to advise him in matters of government. As at present constituted it includes the members of the royal family, the Cabinet, the two archbishops and the bishop of London, the principal English and Scotch judges, some of the chief ambassadors and governors of colonies, the Commander-in-Chief, the First Lord of the Admiralty, &c. No members attend except those summoned, usually the Cabinet, the officers of the Household, and the Primate. The functions of the Privy Council may be grouped as: (1) executive, in which its duties are discharged by the Cabinet, which is technically a committee of the Privy Council; (2) administrative—the Board of Trade, the Local Government Board, and the Board of Agriculture originated in committees; the Education Department is still a committee, and the Council retains such branches as the supervision of medical, pharmaceutical, and veterinary practice, the granting of municipal charters, &c.; (3) judicial—the Judicial Committee is a court of law, whose principal function is the hearing of appeals from ecclesiastical courts and from Indian and colonial courts.

Privy Seal, the seal of the sovereign appended to grants that do not require to pass the great seal.

Probus, Marcus Aurelius, Roman emperor from 276 to 282, born in Pannonia; having distinguished himself in the field as a soldier, was elected by the army and the citizens to succeed Tacitus; defended the empire successfully against all encroachments, and afterwards devoted himself to home administration, but requiring the service of the soldiers in public works, which they considered degrading, was seized by a body of them compelled so to drudge, and put to death.

Proclus, a Neo-Platonic philosopher, born in Constantinople; appears to have held a Trinitarian view of the universe, and to have regarded the All abstractly viewed as contained in the Divine ever emerging from it and returning into it, a doctrine Implied in John i. 1, but far short of the corresponding trinity in the ripe philosophy of Hegel (412-485).

Proconsul, name given to the governor of a Roman province who was absolute ruler of it, disposed of the army, dispensed justice, controlled administration, and was represented by legates.

Procop, the name of two Hussite leaders of the Taborites, who after leading successful forays on all hands from their head-quarters in Bohemia, fell in battle with their rivals the Calixtines at Lippau in 1434.

Procopius, a Greek historian, born at Cæsarea, the secretary of Belisarius, and author of a History of the Wars of Justinian, which is still the chief authority for the events of his reign; d. 565.

Procrustes, a brigand of ancient Attica, who when any one fell into his hands placed him on a bed, stretching him out if he was too short for it and amputating him if he was too long till he died; he was one day overpowered by Theseus, who tortured him to death as he had done his own victims; his practice has given name to any attempt to enforce conformity by violent measures.

Procter, Bryan Walter, English lyrist, known by his pseudonym as Barry Cornwall, born in London; was bred to the bar, and was for 30 years a Commissioner of Lunacy, and is chiefly memorable as the friend of all the eminent literary men of two generations, such as Wordsworth, Lamb, and Scott on the one hand and Carlyle, Thackeray, and Tennyson on the other; he was no great poet (1787-1874).

Proctor, Richard Antony, astronomer and lecturer on Astronomy; determined the rotation of the planet Mars, and propounded the theory of the solar corona (1837-1888).

Procurator-Fiscal, is a Scottish law officer appointed by the sheriff, and irremovable on efficient and good behaviour, whose duties are to initiate the prosecution of crimes and inquire into deaths under suspicious circumstances.

Progne, the sister of Philomela and wife of Tereus, changed into a swallow by the gods. See Tereus.

Progress of the Species Magazines, Carlyle's name for the literature of the day which does nothing to help the progress in question, but keeps idly boasting of the fact, taking all the credit to itself, like Æsop's fly on the axle of the careering chariot soliloquising, "What a dust I raise!"

Prohibitionist, one who would prohibit the sale of all intoxicating liquors.

Proletariat, the name given to the lowest and poorest class in the State, and which still retains the original Roman meaning, as denoting, from proles, offspring, one who enriches the State not by his prosperity, but by his progeny.

Prometheus (i. e. Forethought), a Titan, the son of lapetus and Klymene, and the brother of Epimetheus (q. v.), who, when the gods, just installed on Olympus, met with men at Mekone to arrange with them as to their dues in sacrifice, came boldly forth as the representative and protector of the human race and slew a bullock in sacrifice, putting the flesh of it in one pile and the entrails with the bones in another, veiled temptingly with fat, and invited Zeus to make his choice, whereupon, knowing well what he was about, Zeus chose the latter, but in revenge took away with him the fire which had been bestowed by the gods upon mortals. It was a strife of wit versus wit, and Prometheus, as the defender of the rights of man, was not to be outwitted even by the gods, so he reached up a hollow fennel stalk to the sun and brought the fire back again, whereupon the strife was transformed into one of force versus force, and Zeus caught the audacious Titan and chained him to a rock on Mount Caucasus, where an eagle gnawed all day at his liver which grew again by night, though, in inflicting this punishment, Zeus was soon visited with a relenting heart, for it was by express commission from him that Hercules, as a son of his, scaled the rock and slew the eagle. The myth is one of the deepest significance, reflecting an old belief, and one which has on it the seal of Christ, as sanctioned of Heaven, that the world was made for man and not man for the world, only there is included within it an expression of the jealousy with which Heaven watches the use mankind make of the gifts that, out of her own special store, she bestows upon them. Prometheus is properly the incarnation of the divine fire latent from the beginning in the soul of man.

Propaganda, a congregation, as it is called, at Rome, originated by Gregory XIII., and organised in 1622 by Gregory XV., the object of which is to propagate the faith of the Church among heathen nations and in countries where there is no established hierarchy, connected with which there is a college at Rome called the Congregatio de Propaganda Fide, where pupils are instructed for different fields of missionary enterprise.

Propertius, Sextus, a Latin elegaic poet, born in Umbria; went to Rome and became a protégé of Mæcenas; devoted himself to the cultivation of the poetic art; came under the spell of a gifted lady, to whom, under the name of Cynthia, he dedicated the first products of his muse, and whom he has immortalised in his poems; in his elegies he follows Greek models; his poetry, and the poetic quality it displays, have been much admired by Goethe (51-14 B.C.).

Prophecy, properly not a forecasting of particular events and the succession of them, but so far as it refers to the future at all is an insight into the course of things in the time to come from insight into the course of them in days gone by or now, and that is believed to be the character of Hebrew prophecy, founded on faith in the immutability of the divine order of things.

Prophets. See Priests, Hebrew Prophecy.

Proselytes, converts from heathenism to Judaism, of which there were two classes: Proselytes of the Temple, those who accepted the ceremonial law and were admitted into the inner court of The temple; and Proselytes of the Gate, who accepted only the moral law, and were admitted only into the outer court. They were a numerous class after the Dispersion, and were reckoned at hundreds of thousands.

Proserpina, the daughter of Zeus and Demeter, who was carried off while gathering flowers by Pluto (q. v.), became Queen of Hades, and is represented as sitting on an ebony throne beside him wearing a crown. According to later tradition Pluto had to allow her to revisit the upper world for two-thirds of the year to compromise matters with her mother, her arrival being coincident with the beginning of spring and her return to Hades coincident with the beginning of winter. She became by Pluto the mother of the Furies.

Prospero, one of the chief characters in Shakespeare's "Tempest," an exiled king of Milan, who, during his exile, practises magic, and breaks his wand when he has accomplished his purpose.

Protagoras, one of the earliest of the Greek Sophists, born at Abdera, and who flourished in 440 B.C., and taught at Athens, from which he was banished as a blasphemer, as having called in question the existence of the gods; he taught that man was the measure of all things, of those that exist, that they are; and of those things that do not exist, that they are not; and that there is nothing absolute, that all is an affair of subjective conception.

Protection, name given to the encouragement of certain home products of a country by imposing duties on foreign products of the class, opposed to free-trade.

Protestantism, the name given to a movement headed by Luther in the 16th century, in protestation of the supremacy in spiritual things claimed by the Church of Rome, and made on the ground of the authority of conscience enlightened by the Word of God, conceived of as the ultimate revelation of God to man.

Protestants, a name given to the adherents of Luther, who, at the second Diet of Spires in 1529, protested against the revocation of certain privileges granted at the first Diet in 1526.

Proteus, in the Greek mythology a divinity of the sea endowed with the gift of prophecy, but from whom it was difficult to extort the secrets of fate, as he immediately changed his shape when any one attempted to force him, for it was only in his proper form he could enunciate these secrets.

Protogenes, a Greek painter of the time of Alexander the Great, born in Caria; lived chiefly at Rhodes; was discovered by Apelles, who brought him into note; his masterpiece is a picture of Ialysus, the tutelary hero of Rhodes, on which he spent seven years, and which he painted four times over.

Protoplasm, a name given to presumed living matter forming the physical bases of all forms of animal and vegetable life; the term is now superseded by the term bioplasm. See Dr. Stirling, "As Regards Protoplasm."

Proudhon, Pierre Joseph, French Socialist, born at Besançon, the son of a cooper; worked in a printing establishment, spent his spare hours in study, specially of the social problem, and in 1840 published a work entitled "What is Property?" and in which he boldly enunciated the startling proposition, "Property is theft"; for the publication of this thesis he was at first unmolested, and only with its application was he called to account, and for which at last, in 1849, he was committed to prison, where, however, he kept himself busy with his pen, and whence he from time to time emitted socialistic publications till his release in 1852, after which he was in 1858 compelled to flee the country, to return again under an act of amnesty in 1860 and die; he was not only the assailant of property, but of government itself, and preached anarchy as the goal of all social progress and not the starting-point, as so many unfortunately fancy; but by anarchy, it would seem, he meant the right of government spiritually free, and, in the Christian sense of that expression, to exemption from all external control (see I Tim. i. 9) (1809-1865).

Prout, Samuel, eminent English water-colour artist, born at Plymouth; had from a child an irrepressible penchant for drawing, which, though discouraged at first by his father, was fostered by his schoolmaster; was patronised by Britton the antiquary, and employed by him to assist him in collecting materials for his "Beauties of England and Wales," but it was not till his visit to Rouen in 1818 that he was first fascinated with the subject that henceforth occupied him; from this time excursions were continually made to the Continent, and every corner of France, Germany, the Netherlands, and Italy ransacked for its fragments of carved stone; the old architecture that then fascinated him henceforth became a conspicuous feature in all his after-works; "the works of Prout," says Ruskin, "will one day become memorials of the most precious of things that have been ... A time will come when that zeal will be understood, and his works will be cherished with a melancholy gratitude, when the pillars of Venice shall be mouldering in the salt shallows of her sea, and the stones of the goodly towers of Rouen have become ballast for the barges of the Seine" (1789-1852).

Prout, Father. See Mahony, Francis.

Provençal Language, one of the Romance dialects of France, spoken in the South of France, and different from that spoken in the N. as in closer connection with the original Latin than that of the N., which was modified by Teutonic influence.

Provence, a maritime province in the South of France, originally called Provincia by the Romans, and which included the departments of Bouches-du-Rhône, Basses-Alpes, Var, and part of Vaucluse.

Proverbs, Book Of, a book of the Hebrew Scriptures, full of the teachings of wisdom bearing on the conduct of life, and though ascribed to Solomon, obviously not all of his composition, or even collection, and probably ascribed to him because of his fondness for wisdom in that form, and from his having procured the first collection. The principles inculcated are purely ethical, resting, however, on a religious basis, and concern the individual not as a member of any particular community, but as a member of the human race; the lessons of life and death are the same as in the covenant with Moses, and the condition in both cases is the observance or non-observance of God's commandments. There is no change in the principle, but in the expansion of it, and that amounts to the foundation of a kingdom of God which shall include all nations. In them the bonds of Jewish exclusiveness are burst, and a catholic religion virtually established.

Providence (175), a seaport and semi-capital of Rhode Island, U.S., on a river of the name, 44 m. SW. of Boston; it is a centre of a large manufacturing district, and has a large trade in woollens, jewellery, and hardware; has a number of public buildings, and institutions, churches, schools, libraries, and hospitals, as well as beautiful villas and gardens.

Prudentius, Marcus Aurelius Clemens. Christian poet of the 4th century, born in Spain; after spending the greater part of his life in secular affairs, gave himself up to religious meditation, and wrote hymns, lyrics, and polemics in verse.

Prussia (24,690), the leading State of the German Empire, occupies about two-thirds of the imperial territory, and contributes three-fifths of the population; it stretches from Holland and Belgium in the W. to Russia in the E., has Jutland and the sea on the N., and Lorraine, Bavaria, Hesse-Darmstadt, Saxony, and Austria on the S.; the SW. portion is hilly and the soil often poor, but containing valuable mineral deposits; the N. and E. belongs to the great European plain, devoted to agriculture and grazing; Hesse-Cassel is extremely fertile, and Nassau produces excellent wine; in the E. and in Hanover are extensive forests; Silesia, Westphalia, and Rhenish Prussia contain the chief coal-fields, and are consequently the chief industrial provinces; half the zinc of the world is mined in Prussia; lead, iron, copper, antimony, &c., are also wrought; the Hartz Mountains are noted for their mines; Salt, amber, and precious stones are found on the Baltic shores; textiles, metal wares, and beer are the main industries; Berlin and Elberfeld are the two chief manufacturing centres on the Continent; the great navigable rivers, Niemen, Vistula, Oder, Elbe, Weser, Rhine, and their tributaries and canals, excellent railways, and her central European position all favour Prussia's commerce, while her coast-line, harbours, and growing mercantile fleet put her in communication with the markets of the world; seven-eighths of the people are Germans; Slavonic races are represented by Poles, Wends, Lithuanians, and Czechs, while the Danes appear in Schleswig-Holstein; the prevailing religion is Protestant; education is compulsory and good; there are ten universities, and many great libraries and educational institutions; the Prussian is the largest contingent in the German army; the king of Prussia is emperor of Germany. The basis of the Prussian people was laid by German colonists placed amid the pagan Slavs whom they had conquered by the Teutonic knights of the 13th century; in 1511 their descendants chose a Hohenzollern prince; a century later the Hohenzollerns of Brandenburg succeeded; despite the Thirty Years' War Prussia became a European State, and was recognised as a kingdom in 1703; Frederick the Great (1740-1786) enlarged its bounds and developed its resources; the successive partitions of Poland added to her territory; humiliated by the peace of Tilsit 1807, and ruined by the French occupation, she recovered after Waterloo; William I. and Bismarck still further increased her territory and prestige; by the Austrian War of 1866 and the French War of 1870-71 her position as premier State in the German Confederation was assured.