Algonquin
al-gon'kwin, an important and widely spread family of North American Indian tribes. At the time of the discovery of America the Algonquin Indians extended from Labrador to what is now Mason and Dixon's line , and westward, somewhat irregularly, as far as the Rocky Mountains . A further account may be found under the headings of the various tribes, as the Delaware, Chippewa, and Blackfeet Indians. Powhatan, Philip, Tecumseh, Pontiac, and Black Hawk were Algonquins. About 35,000 Algonquins are left in the United States , and about 60,000 in Canada. See Indians
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Ali Baba
a'le ba'ba, the central character in the famous Arabian tale of The Forty Thieves. He overhears the robbers' password of "Open Sesame," and uses it in their absence to enter their famous cave and despoil it of treasure. Having found who took their treasure, the robbers vowed vengeance, and had themselves conveyed in empty covered jars and set down in Ali Baba's court; but his faithful slave, Morgiana, overheard their conversation and killed them, one and all, by pouring hot oil into the jars in which they were concealed. See Arabian Nights; Sesame
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Alias
in law, a term used to indicate the various names under which a person who attempts to conceal his true name and pass under a fictitious one is ascertained to have passed during the successive stages of his career.
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Alicante
a seaport of Spain; capital of the province of Alicante; the ancient Lucentum. It is situated at the foot of a cliff 850 feet high, which is crowned by the Fort of Santa Barbara. It has one of the best harbors on the Mediterranean, and carries on a considerable trade, exporting wine, fruit, esparto grass, etc. It was bombarded in 1873 by two vessels sent out by Cartagena insurgents. Pop. (1917), province, 502,607; city, 53,088.
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Alice of Old Vincennes. See THOMPSON
JAMES MAURICE.
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Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
a popular story for children by Lewis Carroll (Charles L. Dodgson), a clergyman of Oxford, England. The story was published in 1865. "What is the use of a book without pictures or conversations?" Alice asks, at the outset; and the book recounting her adventures is certainly full of delightful pictures and amazing conversations. It is a humorous tale of a little girl who follows a remarkable rabbit--with a watch in his waistcoat pocket--to a land where she soon "gets used to queer things happening." Sometimes rhymes are introduced in the "conversations," although the words do not always "come the same as they used to do," How doth the little crocodile Improve his shining tail, And pour the waters of the Nile On every golden scale. See Carroll ; Lewis
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Alin
OSCAR JOSEF, a Swedish historian, born in 1846; professor in the University of Upsala. He instructed the Princess Victoria of Baden, afterward Crown Princess of Sweden, in Swedish history and literature. In 1888 he became a member of the Upper Chamber of the Parliament. He has written many monographs on the history of Sweden. Died Dec. 31, 1900, in Stockholm.
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Alison
SIR ARCHIBALD, a Scottish historian, born at Kenley, Shropshire, Dec. 29, 1792. He studied at the University of Edinburgh, and was ad- Un mitted to the bar in 1814. His principal work, a "History of Europe," covering the period from 1789 to 1815, was translated into the leading languages of Europe. He died at Glasgow, May 23, 1867.
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Alizarin
the coloring matter used in the dyeing of Turkey red, exists in the madder root as a glucoside, which, when boiled with acids or alkalies, gives glucose and alizarin. But in 1869 Græbe and Liebermann discovered a method of manufacturing it from the coal-tar product anthracene. The manufacture of alizarin is now one of the most important branches of the coaltar coloring industry. or ALCAHEST, the
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Alkahest
universal solvent of the alchemists. See ALCHEMY.
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Alkalimetry
the process of determining the purity of alkalies. Commercial potash and soda contain foreign substances, which diminish the percentage of real alkali. The alkalimeter furnishes a simple and ready means of determining the proportion of pure carbonate of potash or soda contained in any sample. It consists of a graduated glass tube, filled with diluted sulphuric acid, and containing as much su absolute sulphuric acid as would neutralize a given weight, say 100 grains, of carbonate of potash. One hundred grains of the article to be judged of is then dissolved in water, and as much acid is gradually added to it from the tube as to neutralize the solution, that is, take up all the alkali. The point at which neutralization is complete is determined by means of colored tests. Formerly, the two vegetable colors, litmus and turmeric, were alone used for this purpose. It is not, however, always easy to recognize the neutral point, and other indicators (as these coloring matters are called) have come into use. The chief of these are methylorange and phenolphthalein. A mixture of the alcoholic solutions of these substances imparts a pale yellow color to strictly neutral liquids, which is changed to deep red by the least trace of alkali, and to pink by a trace of acid. This method of determining the strength of alkalies is called the alkalimetric process.
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Alkoran
. See Koran
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All-Saints' Bay
in the state of Bahia, coast of Brazil, forms a natural harbor, in which the navies of the whole world might ride at anchor. Its length from N. to S. is 35 miles; its breadth 27. The town of Bahia lies just within it.
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Allan
DAVID, an eminent painter known as "the Scotch Hogarth," born in 1744. He studied art for 16 years in Rome, gaining a gold medal for historical composition in 1773. In 1777 he began to paint to paint portraits in London. Among his most celebrated pictures are "The Origin of Portraiture" and the illustrations for Allan Ramsay's "Gentle Shepherd." He died in 1796. word used as
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Allan-a-Dale
a young minstrel in the old English ballads. About to be married, his bride is taken from him by her father, and promised to a rich old knight. Allan joins Robin Hood's band. With the aid of the outlaw and his bowmen, the maid is rescued at the altar, and the young couple are married. In Scott's Ivanhoe, Allan-a-Dale appears in the character of Locksley's minstrel. Scott has written a poem, also entitled Allan-a-Dale. Allan-a-Dale has no fagot for burning, Allan-a-Dale has no furrow for turning, Allan-a-Dale has no fleece for the spinning, Yet Allan-a-Dale has red gold for the winning. Come, read me my riddle! come, hearken my tale, And tell me the craft of bold Allan-a-Dale. See Ivanhoe ; Robin Hood
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