Alden, John
al'den, John (1599-1687), one of the Pilgrim fathers. In England he was a cooper and resided at Southampton. He came to Plymouth in the Mayflower in 1620, and was a man of importance in Plymouth colony for fifty years. He is the suitor of "Priscilla" in Longfellow's The Courtship of Miles Standish. As a matter of history, John Alden was the confidential assistant of Captain Standish and lived in his family. His marriage with Priscilla was the third wedding in the colony. He held various positions of public trust. He served as a member of the council of war. He was for three years the treasurer of the colony and served more than once as its agent. John and Priscilla settled on a farm in Duxbury, where they reared a family of four sons and four daughters. John died in 1687, the last surviving signer of the Mayflower compact. The old Alden farmhouse now standing was built by a grandson of John and Priscilla. See Plymouth ; Standish 2026 Editor's Note: Longfellow made John Alden famous with The Courtship of Miles Standish and Priscilla's line, 'Why don't you speak for yourself, John?' The couple proved prolific: millions of Americans descend from them, including Longfellow himself and several U.S. presidents. (Ed: BR 2026-07-05)
Only in Aiton's Encyclopedia
Aldenhoven
a town of Prussia, Rhine province; 12 miles N. E. of Aixla-Chapelle. Here the French, in 1793, under Dumouriez, were defeated by 50,000 Austrians, under Prince Josias of Coburg, and were prevented from making their contemplated invasion of Holland. 1794 the French under Jourdon, numbering 35,000, conquered the Austrians under Clerfayt.
Only in Collier's New Encyclopedia
Alderman (Title pertaining to an office)
a title pertaining to an office in the municipal corporations of Great Britain and the United States. In early Saxon times the term was indefinitely applied, and was generally given to a person possessed of an office of rank or dignity. In the court of the corporation of London the aldermen have legislative and judicial authority, and are elected for life. In the United States the powers and duties of aldermen differ in the various States and cities. As a rule they are elected by popular vote and constitute the source of municipal legislation.
Only in Collier's New Encyclopedia
Alderney
. See Channel Islands
Only in Aiton's Encyclopedia
Aldershot
al'der-shot, a military camp about thirty-five miles from London. It was established in 1855 as a training camp for soldiers. The British government has expended $20,000,000 there. Large barracks and other conveniences enable the military authorities to train troops in the manual of arms and in field manoeuvers, before they are sent away on garrison duty or to the scene of actual war. The presence of a permanent garrison and of large bodies of troops at other times has fostered the growth of a well built town of the same name. Hotels provide for the wants of visitors. Tradesmen of all sorts relieve the soldiers of their spare coin. Population, 30,000. 2026 Editor's Note: Aldershot is still the ' Home of the British Army ' — the garrison established here in 1855 remains a major military town more than 165 years later, having trained soldiers for every British war since the Crimean. (Ed: BR 2026-06-05)
Only in Aiton's Encyclopedia
Aldinach
An Egyptian demon, whom the demonologists picture as presiding over the tempests, earthquakes, rainstorms, hail-storms, etc. It is he, also, who sinks ships. When he appears in visible form he takes the shape of a woman.
Only in An Encyclopaedia of Occultism
Aldrich
NELSON WILMARTH, an American politician, born in Foster, spent R. I., in 1841. His Hi early life was in business and he became a partner in a wholesale grocery firm in Providence. He early showed an interest in and capacity for politics and was elected to the Rhode Island House of Representatives in 1875. Within a few years he was the chief political power in the State. He was elected to Congress in 1878, but resigned in 1881 to enter the Senate, to which he was successfully re-elected until 1911. His powerful personality and his deep knowledge of business and economics from the political standpoint made him a pow powerful factor in the Senate, especially in relation to measures affecting the tariff. He was chiefly responsible for the McKinley Bill in 1890. Greatly interested in financial matters, he was largely responsible for the Aldrich-Vreeland Currency Law. At the height of his power he was the most dominant figure in the Senate. At the expiration of his term in 1911 he declined renomination, undoubtedly foreseeing the conditions that were about to result from the splitting up of the Republican party, which took place in the following year. He was a chief authority on banking and finance and through his efforts banking laws were greatly improved. After his retirement he took no active part in politics, and died on April 16, 1915.
Only in Collier's New Encyclopedia
Aldrich (THOMAS BAILEY an American poet)
THOMAS BAILEY, an American poet, essayist, and writer of fiction, born in Portsmouth, N. H., Nov. 11, 1836. He spent his early youth in Louisiana, but at the age of 17 entered a mercantile house in New York. Removing to Boston in 1866, he became editor of "Every Saturday," and, in 1881, editor of the "Atlantic Monthly." He has become almost equally eminent as a prose writer and poet. Among his prose works the best known are: "The Story of a Bad Boy" (1870); "Marjorie Daw and Other People" (1873); "Prudence Palfrey" (1874); "The Queen of Sheba," a romance of travel (1877); Of "The Stillwater Tragedy" (1880). his poems, most are included in "Complete Poems" (1882) and "Household He died in Boston, Edition" (1895). Mass., March 19, 1907.
Only in Collier's New Encyclopedia
Aldrich William Sleeper
an American educator, born in Philadelphia in 1863. He graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1883, and in the following year received a degree in engineering from the Stevens Institute of Technology. After teaching for several years in high schools he became a member of the staff of Johns Hopkins University. From 1893 to 1899 he was professor of mechanical engineering and director of mechanical arts at West Virginia University. From 1899 to 1901 he was professor and head of the Department of Electrical Engineering at the University of Illinois. From 1901 to 1911 he was director of the Thomas S. Clarkson School of Technology. He was a member of many scientific societies. He wrote much on building construction and architecture and manuals for electrical engineering laboratories.
Only in Collier's New Encyclopedia