The Meta-Encyclopedia

Single-source entries: G (55)

Each of these 11 subjects appears in only one of the 6 encyclopedias on this shelf. None is long enough to carry a page by itself, so they are gathered here by letter. Anything that grows moves out to a page of its own.

Grease

in mineralogy, a term used in relation to luster; fat quartz has a greasy luster. In farriery, a swelling and inflammation of the legs of a horse, attended with the secretion of oily matter and cracks in the skin.

Only in Collier's New Encyclopedia

Greasewood

a name applied to a number of thorny shrubs characteristic of strongly alkaline soils. The common greasewood of the west extends from the upper waters of the Missouri and the Platte rivers to the Gila, and westward to the Sierra Nevadas. It grows from four to eight feet high with a wealth of narrow leaves on the young branches. It is a companion of the salt sages, and thrives in soil too alkaline for wheat or alfalfa. A smaller form is found in the southwest from Texas to California. Greasewood is better than no vegetation. It relieves the barren aspect of a region, and its twigs afford some pasturage for cattle. See Wormwood ; Alkali

Only in Aiton's Encyclopedia

Great Barrington

a town of Massachusetts, in Berkshire co. It is on the New York, New Haven and Hartford railroad, and on the Housatonic . The town includes the villages river of Housatonic and Van Deusen. It is situated in the Berkshires and is notable It is a for its picturesque scenery. popular summer resort. It has public other libraries, several schools, and buildings. Its industries include public the manufacture of cotton, electrical appaper, etc. Pop. (1910) 5,926; paratus, the The boundaries of the (1920) 6,315.

Only in Collier's New Encyclopedia

Great Basin

in North American geography, a large area of interior drainage lying between the Wasatch Mountains and the Sierra Nevada. It has no outlet to the sea. It lies in Utah, Nevada, California, Idaho, and Oregon. Its general shape is triangular, with its base at the north. Its area is about 212,000 square miles. There are a number of salt lakes, each receiving streams. The largest is the Great Salt Lake . The largest river in this region is the Humboldt. There is little rainfall. Three regions of the basin are known respectively as Great Salt Lake Desert, The Mohave Desert, and the Black Rock or Carson Desert. A large part of the soil is of volcanic origin, for want of rain almost destitute of vegetation. The chief source of wealth is mineral. Iron, copper, silver, and gold exist in quantities. If water could be had for purposes of irrigation, this great region would become a garden spot of the world. See Great Salt Lake ; Alkali ; Irrigation

Only in Aiton's Encyclopedia

Great Britain

the largest of the British Isles--the largest and the most important island of Europe. It is divided into England, Wales, and Scotland. The term is used, though incorrectly, as synonymous with England, just as America is used as synonymous with the United States . The term grew in favor after James I became king of England as well as Scotland. From 1707 until 1801 Great Britian was the official designation of the kingdoms of England and Scotland. In order to include Ireland, the official name was changed to the United Kingdom . Great Britain is a historical and geographical term; but, like America, it does not designate a political country. It is said that the fleet of the Roman Agricola was the first to sail around Great Britain, thus proving that it is an island. See England ; Wales ; Scotland ; Ireland ; United Kingdom ; Chalk ; North Sea

Only in Aiton's Encyclopedia

Great Kanawha

an affluent of the Ohio river called New river in the upper part of its course, and rising in the Blue Ridge of North Carolina; it has a course of 450 miles, and is navigable to a fall 30 miles above Charleston, and about 100 miles from its mouth.

Only in Collier's New Encyclopedia

Great Salt Lake

an inland lake in the northwestern part of Utah. It is about eighty miles long and from twenty to thirty miles wide. The surface is about 4,200 feet above sea level; yet the lake has no apparent outlet. Judging from beaches that rise, terrace after terrace, the lake was formerly much larger than it is now and discharged its water into the Columbia. At that time its greatest depth must have been about 1,100 feet. It is now not over 850 feet in depth. Large portions of the old shore have been irrigated and are now productive gardens, orchards, meadows, and fields. The water is salty,--so heavy with brine, in fact, that a person bathing is lighter than the water and cannot sink. The lake rises and falls with changes in the seasons. The salt in solution varies accordingly, being by weight from a seventh to a fifth of the whole. The waters are too salty for fish and are nearly without life. West of Ogden the Southern Pacific has expended $4,000,000 in constructing a long trestle bridge across the north arm of the lake. The bridge stands on 38,000 piles eight feet above water. The bridge shortens the line forty-four miles. See Utah

Only in Aiton's Encyclopedia

Great Seal

the official signature royal seal for the United Kingdom, held way northward, invaded Turkey in charge by the Lord Chancellor for Crown Documents. GREAT SLAVE LAKE a body y of water in the Canadian Northwest Territory (62° N. lat.); greatest length about 300 miles, greatest breadth 50 miles. By the Slave river it receives the surplus waters of Lake Athabasca; and it discharges by the Mackenzie river into the Arctic Ocean. See ATHABASCA.

Only in Collier's New Encyclopedia

Great Slave Lake

. See Mackenzie

Only in Aiton's Encyclopedia

Great Slave River

a river in Canada flowing from Alberta into the Northwest Territories, carrying the surplus waters of Athabaska Lake into Great Slave Lake. After leaving the former, it is joined by the Peace river, total length is about three hundred total Its miles, practically all of which is navigable for river steamers during the open The valley through which it season. flows is remarkable for its fertility, but still largely unsettled.

Only in Collier's New Encyclopedia

Great South Bay

an arm of the Atlantic Ocean on the S. coast of Suffolk co., Long Island, N. Y.; 50 miles long, from 12 to 5 miles wide. Great South miles long, Beach, which is about 35 and has Fire Island Lighthouse on the W. it from the ocean. extremity, separates

Only in Collier's New Encyclopedia