Alms
pity, mercy; charity, from eleeo, to have pity; eleos, pity. Thus, alms in English, when traced to its origin, is really the Greek word eleemosyne corrupted. In ordinary language, money, food, clothing, or anything else given as a gratuity to relieve the poor. In law, reasonable alms are a certain portion of the estates of intestate persons allotted to the poor. A tenure by free alms, or frank almoyne, is a tenure of property which is liable to no rent or service. The term is especially applied to lands or other property left to churches or religious houses on condition of praying for the soul of the donor. In the United States, churches, schools and charitable institutions are free from taxation.
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Alnus
a genus of plants belonging to the order betulaceæ (birch-worts). The flowers are monœceous and amentaceous. In the barren ones the scale of the catkin is three-lobed, with three flowers; the perianth is four partite; the stamina, four. In those which are fertile the scale of the catkin is subtrifid with three flowers, and there is no perianth. The ovary is two-celled, twoovuled, but only one ovule reaches perfection.
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Alocer
A powerful demon, according to Wierius, Grand Duke of Hades. He appears in the shape of a knight mounted on an enormous horse. His face has leonine characteristics; he has a ruddy complexion and burning eyes; and he speaks with much gravity. He is said to give family happiness to those whom he takes under his protection, and to teach astronomy and liberal arts. Thirtysix legions are controlled by him.
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Alomancy
Divination by means of salt, of which process little is known. It is this science which justifies people in Alruy saying that misfortune is about to fall on the household when the salt cellar is overturned.
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Alopecy
A species of charm by the aid of which one can fascinate an enemy against whom he has a grudge, and whom he wishes to harm.
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Alosa
a genus of fishes, of the family clupeidæ. It contains two British species, the A. finta, or Twaite shad, and the A. communis, or allice shad. The shad resemble herrings in their form and structure, but are so much larger that they have been popularly called the mother. of herrings. The allice shad is rare in the Thames. The American species, clupea sapidissima, is abundant on the Atlantic coast.
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Alost
or AALST, a city of Belgium, the capital of the former province of East Flanders. It is on the Dender, a tributary of the Scheldt. The city suffered severely in the German invasion of Belgium in 1914. It contained many historical edifices including the Church of St. Martin, one of the finest in Belgium. This church contained a famous painting by Rubens. There was a town hall, a college, hospital, and several other important public buildings. The industries included weaving, lace-making, and flax spinning. Pop. about 35,000.
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Alpha and Omega
the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. The expression signifies the beginning and the end--completeness. In Rev. i: 8, the Lord saith, "I am Alpha and Omega." The early Christians were wont to place these two letters on their tombs.
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Alrunes
Female demons or sorceresses, the mothers of the Huns . They took all sorts of shapes, but without changing their sex. The name was given by the Germans to little statues of old sorceresses, about a foot high. To these they attributed great virtues, honouring them as the negroes honour their fetishes; clothing them richly, housing them comfortably, and serving them with food and drink at every meal. They believed that if these little images were neglected they would cry out, a catastrophe which was to be avoided at all costs, as it brought dire misfortunes upon the household. They may have been mandrakes, and it was claimed for them that they could foretell the future, answering by means of motions of the head, or unintelligible words. They are still consulted in Norway.
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Alsberg
CARL LUCAS, an American biochemist, born in New York in He graduated from Columbia 1877. University in 1896 and later studied in Germany. He was in the chemical department of Harvard University from 1905 to 1908. In the latter year he became chemical biologist for the Bureau of Plant Industry, serving until 1912, when he became Chief of the Bureau of Chemistry in the United States Department of Agriculture. He was a member of many chemical societies.
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Alsike
a kind of clover. It is also called Swedish clover. Alsike is the name of a parish in Sweden. Alsike has slender, branching, half reclining stems, and bears pinkish heads. Linnaeus called it "hybridum," meaning that it is half way between white and red clover. Alsike will grow on wetter soil than red clover. See Clover ; Alfalfa
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Altai Mountains
an important Asiatic system on the borders of Siberia and Mongolia, partly in Russian and partly in Chinese territory, lying between lat. 46° and 53° N., long. 83° and 91° E., but having great eastern extensions. The Russian portion is comprised in the governments of Tomsk and Semipalatinsk, the Chinese in Dsungaria. The rivers of this region are mostly headwaters of the Obi and Irtish. The highest summit is Byeluka, height 11,000 feet. The vegetation is varied and abundant. The mountain forests are composed of birch, alder, aspen, fir, larch, stone pine, etc. The wild sheep has here its native home and several kinds of deer occur. The Altai are exceedingly rich in minerals, including gold, silver, copper, and iron. The inhabitants consist chiefly of Russians and Kalmuks.
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Altenburg
the capital of the former Duchy of Saxe-Altenburg, situated on the Pleisse, 30 miles S. of Leipsic. Standing on an almost perpendicular rock of porphyry, the old castle of Altenburg forms a striking feature in the landscape. It is memorable as the place whence, in 1455, a neighboring knight, Kunz von Kaufungen, the young Saxon princes, Ernest and Albert. Before he could reach the Bohemian frontier, he was apprehended by a charcoal burner, and handed over to the Brushes, woolen goods, executioner. gloves, and cigars are among the manufactures. The Pop. about 45,000. Duchy became a republic in 1918.
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