Barbauld

Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)

ANNA LÆTITIA, an English poet and essayist, born in 1743. In 1774 she married the Rev. Rochemont Barbauld. Her first poems (1773) went through four editions in one year. She wrote "Early Lessons for Children" (about 1774); "Devotional Pieces" (1775); "Hymns in Prose for Children" (1776), translated in many languages; "Eighteen Hundred and Eleven," her longest effort (1811); and prepared an edition of the best English novels in 50 volumes. She died March 9, 1825. BARBED WIRE. See WIRE. BARBED WIRE ENTANGLE- MENTS. Protection placed in front of a military position to check an enemy assault. In the World War these were used to an unprecedented extent, owing to the prevalence of trench warfare. Great ingenuity was displayed in making these as impregnable as possible. Often they were wound around posts or stakes, projecting at an angle so as to form an abatis. At other times they were wound from bush to bush and tree to tree, every natural obstacle being availed of to strengthen the defense. Before an assault upon a trench thus defended could be made with any chance of success, an intensive and long continued artillery fire was necessary to cut lanes through the wires for the passage of the assaulting troops. Sometimes electric currents were run through the wires by the defenders, as a further strengthening of their position. The situation was not met until the invention of the tanks. These great monsters could not be deterred from crushing their way through the entanglements, while the attacking troops followed in their wake. After the Somme battle, where the tanks first demonstrated their value, they were 2lways put in the van of the drive projected by the Allies, and entanglements, however strong, could not succeed in stopping them.