BELUGA-BELZONI.

exist traces also of the observance among them | Rhinodon are two species found by Kane and Hayes on that day of rites similar to the Celtic Beltane. in the Greenland Seas, and B. Kingii is said to be An Old Holne Curate,' writing to Notes and found in the Southern hemisphere.

BE'LUS. See BAAL.

BELVEDERE (It.) was originally an erection on the top of a house, for the purpose of looking out on the surrounding country, and enjoying the air, in which sense it is still understood in Italy. A part of the Vatican (q. v.) in Rome is known as the B., and gives name to the famous statue of Apollo. In France, and with us, the word has come to signify any kind of summer-house or place of refreshment.

Queries in 1853, says: At the village of Holne, situated on one of the spurs of Dartmoor, is a field of about two acres, the property of the parish, and called the Ploy (play) Field. In the centre of this stands a granite pillar (Menhir) 6 or 7 feet high. On May morning, before daybreak, the young men of the village assemble there, and then proceed to the moor, where they select a ram lamb (doubtless with the consent of the owner), and after running it down, bring it in triumph to the Ploy Field, fasten it to the pillar, cut its throat, and then roast it whole, skin, wool, &c. At midBELVEDE'RE (Kochia scoparia, Chenopodium day, a struggle takes place, at the risk of cut hands, scoparium, or Salsola scoparia), an annual plant for a slice, it being supposed to confer luck for the of the natural order Chenopodiaceae (q. v.), a native ensuing year on the fortunate devourer. As an act of the middle and south of Europe, and of great of gallantry, in high esteem among the females, the part of Asia, which has long been very familiar in young men sometimes fight their way through the British gardens as an ornamental annual, not upon crowd to get a slice for their chosen among the account of its flowers, which have no beauty, but young women, all of whom, in their best dresses, of its close, pyramidal, rigid form, and numerous attend the Ram Feast, as it is called. Dancing, narrow leaves, which make it appear like a miniature wrestling, and other games, assisted by copious cypress-tree. It is sometimes called SUMMER libations of cider during the afternoon, prolong CYPRESS. the festivity till midnight.

The time, the place (looking east), the mystic pillar, and the ram, surely bear some evidence in favour of the Ram Feast being a sacrifice to Baal.'

Additional notices of this sun and fire worship will be found under YULE, CANDLEMAS, LAMMAS, and the other heads referred to in this article.

BELUGA, a genus of Cetacea (q. v.), of the family of Delphinide or Dolphins (q. v.), differing from the rest of that family in the blunt and broad head, which has no produced snout; the smaller number of teeth, the greater part of which often fall out before the animal is far advanced in age; and

Beluga.

the want of a dorsal fin. A common species found in the northern parts of the world is B. arctica (for which name there are unhappily many synonyms, as B. leucas, &c.), the White Whale and White Fish of whalers, often called by English writers the B., and the Round-headed Cachalot. The form of the B. is remarkably characterised by the softness of all its curves, and adapts it for rapid and graceful movements; its skin is usually of a clear white colour, and not very strong, so that it often fails to retain a harpoon. The B. attains a length of more than thirteen feet. The female brings forth two young ones at a birth, and displays the greatest solicitude for them. The food of the B. consists of fish, in pursuit of which it often ascends rivers to some distance. It is gregarious, and may be seen in herds of forty or fifty, which often gambol around boats; it abounds in most parts of the arctic seas, and sometimes, but not very frequently, visits the British shores. One was killed in the Firth of Forth in 1815, and one in the Medway in 1846. The Greenlanders take the B. with harpoons or with strong nets. Its flesh affords them a valuable supply of food, and is eaten by most of the inhabitants of arctic coasts; it affords also a considerable quantity of the very finest oil, and the skin is made into leather. Some of the B. Declivis and B.

BELVI'SIA (also called NAPOLEO'NA), a genus of exogenous plants, the type of the natural order Belvisiaceae, of which order only a very few species have yet been discovered, natives of the tropical parts of Africa. They are large shrubs, with smooth, simple, leathery leaves. The flowers grow in threes, sessile in the axils of the leaves, and are beautiful

and extremely curious. The calyx is a thick, leathery cup, divided into five ovate segments. The corolla consists of three distinct rings; the outer one 5-lobed, and furnished with ribs, by means of which it is strongly plaited, turning back over and hiding the calyx when full blown; the second, a narrow membrane, divided into numerous regular segments like a fringe; the third, an erect cupshaped membrane. The stamens are erect like another cup; the ovary 5-celled, with two ovules in each cell; the style short, thick, and 5-angled, with a broad, flat, 5-angled stigma. The fruit is a soft berry, crowned with the calyx, with large kidneyshaped seeds. The wood is soft, and contains numerous dotted vessels.-The pulp of the fruit of the best known species is mucilaginous and eatable, the rind very full of tannin; the fruit is as large as a pomegranate, and the seeds 1 inch long.-The position of this remarkable order in the botanical system is not yet well determined. Lindley regards it as most nearly allied to Rhizophoraceae (Mangroves, q. v.). It is supposed by some that the two inner rings of the corolla should be regarded as sterile stamens, and the place of the order is thus fixed near Barringtoniaceæ (q. v.).

BELZO'NI, GIOVANNI BATTISTA, the son of a poor barber, was born at Padua in 1778, and was educated at Rome, for the priesthood, but soon displayed a preference for mechanical science, especially hydraulies; and when the French republican troops took possession of the pontifical city, he quited his religious studies altogether. About the year 1800, he visited Holland, and in 1803 came to England. For a time he gained a living by exhibiting feats of strength in theatres. At Astley's, he played the part of Hercules, but he also continued his mechanical studies, and even gave numerous hydraulic representations in the most populous towns of the kingdom. After a sojourn of nine years in England, he went to Spain and Portugal, in his capacity of theatrical athlete. From the peninsula, he passed to Malta, and thence to Egypt in 1815, on the invitation of Mehemet Ali, who wished him to construct a hydraulic machine. After succeeding in

BEM-BEMBRIDGE BEDS.

BEN-BENARES.

Eocene strata, resting on the St Helen's, and capped | 50 and 92 feet in depth, and in width between 600 by the Hempstead series. They are principally yards and a little more than half a mile. It is in developed in the Isle of Wight. Ed. Forbes, who lat. 25° 17′ N., and long. 83° 4' E., being 421 miles carefully examined them there, has arranged them to the north-west of Calcutta, and 466 and 74 in four subdivisions: 1. The upper marls and lami- respectively to the south-east of Delhi and Allonated gray clays, which form the basement bed of habad. Without reckoning Secrole, which, at the the 'black band,' the lowest member of the Hemp- distance of 2 or 3 miles to the westward, contains stead series. They are distinguished by the abun- the official establishments, B. covers, as it were, an dance of Melania turretissima. 2. Unfossiliferous amphitheatre of 3 miles in front, and 1 mile in mottled clays, alternating with fossiliferous marls depth, the immediate margin of the river, which and clays, whose characteristic organisms are Ceri- is comparatively steep, being chiefly occupied by thium mutabile and Cyrena pulchra. 3. The oyster-flights of steps, or ghats, as they are called, where bed, consisting of greenish marl, and containing crowds of all classes spend the day in business, immense quantities of a species of oysters (Ostrea Vectensis), accompanied with Cerithia, Mytili, and other marine mollusca. 4. The Bembridge limestone, generally a compact, pale-yellow, or creamcoloured limestone, but sometimes vesicular and concretionary, and containing occasionally siliceous or cherty bands. This is interstratified with shales and friable marls. All the beds are fossiliferous, containing numerous land and fresh-water shells, One bed is composed almost entirely of the remains of a little globular Paludina. Shells of Lymnea and Planorbis are abundant, and are accompanied with the spirally striated nucules of two species of Chara, water-plants which have been well preserved because of the large quantity of lime which enters into their composition. In this division have been found the mainmalian remains of the species of Palæotherium (q. v.) and Anoplotherium (q. v.) which characterise the gypseous deposits of Montmartre; it is consequently considered the British equivalent of these Parisian beds.

No marked line of distinction separates this series from the St Helen's beds on which it rests. The contained organisms indicate that both had the same fluvio-marine origin. The maximum thickness of the Bembridge series is 115 feet.

BEN, ABEN, AVEN, EBN, IBN are all forms in the different Semitic languages of the same word, which means 'son,' and is used as a prefix to names, Ben, a Hebrew form, is familiar to us from its use in Bible names-e. g. Benhadad, the son or worshipper of Hadad or Adod, the chief idol of the Syrians; Benoni, son of my pain; Benjamin, son of the right hand, &c. These examples show that not only literal, but metaphorical, sonship is expressed by this prefix. This form of constructing a name by composition was common in the Semitic languages on account of their lack of patronymics. The plural, Beni, is found in the names of many Arab tribes--as Beni Omayyah, the sons of Omayyah, the family known in history as the Ommiades; and sometimes in the names of places as Beni-Hassan.

BEN, BEIN, or BHEIN, a Gaelic word, signifying 'mountain' or 'mountain-head.' It is prefixed to the name of a great many mountains in Scotland-as Beu Nevis, Ben Macdhui, Ben Cruachan, &c. The corresponding term in various parts of Europe is Pen, which is found in many of the names in Cornwall and Wales, in the Pennine Alps, and probably also in the word Apennines and the Cevennes, a range of mountains in the S. of France.

BEN, OIL OF, a fluid fixed oil, obtained from the seeds of a tree found in India and Arabia, and known as the HORSERADISH TREE (Moringa pterygosperma). The seeds are called BEN NUTS, and are roundish, with three membranous wings. The oil is used by watchmakers, because it does not readily freeze; also by perfumers, as the basis of various scents; and other oils are often adulterated with it. See HORSERADISH TREE.

BENA'RES, a city on the left side of the Ganges, which here varies, according to the season, between

amusement, or devotion. This lively scene, backed by the minarets of about 300 mosques, and the pinnacles of about 1000 pagodas, presents a truly picturesque appearance to spectators on the opposite shore of the Ganges. On closer inspection, however, the city, as a whole, disappoints a visitor. The streets, or rather alleys, altogether impracticable for wheeled-carriages, barely afford a passage to individual horsemen or single beasts of burden; and these thoroughfares, besides being shut out from sun and air by buildings of several stories, are said to be shared with the numerous passengers by sacred bulls that roam about at will. The population in 1881 was 207,578.

In the traditions of the country, B. is believed to have been coeval with creation; and tolerably authentic history does assign to it a really high antiquity. In its actual condition, however, B. is a modern city. Both in extent and in embellishment, it owes much to the influence of Mahratta ascendency, which dates from the close of the 17th c.; and it possesses, perhaps, not a single structure that reaches back to the close of the 16th. As the central seat of Hinduism, B., on high occasions, attracts immense crowds of pilgrims-sometimes as many as 100,000; and a few years ago, during an eclipse of the moon, forty persons were trampled to death in the streets. Naturally enough, the Brahmins of B. have always been remarkable for bigotry. Now, however, Brahminism appears to be on the decline; and a result, which Mohammedan persecution vainly tried to produce, would seem to be gradually achieved, chiefly through the introduction of European litertuted in 1792, there was at a later date ingrafted ature and science. On the Sanscrit College, instian English department, comprising poetry, history, In 1850, the mathematics, and political economy. pupils numbered 230-6 converts to Christianity, B., as Heber 16 Mussulmans, and 208 Hindus. has observed, is very industrious and wealthy, as well as very holy. Besides having extensive manufactures of its own in cotton, wool, and silk, its commanding position on the grand line of communication-road, river, and rail alike-renders it the principal emporium of the neighbouring regions. It is the great mart for the shawls of the north, the diamonds of the south, and the muslins of the east; while it circulates the varied productions of Europe and America over Bundelcund, Goruck pore, Nepal, &c. For the general history of the city, see the following article on the district of the same name. The details of the mutiny of 1857 will be found under the head of SECROLE. At the same time, B. proper added its share to the fearful interest of the emergency through the proverbially fanatical character of its inhabitants, who, during the second siege of Bhurtpore, had got 30,000 sabres sharpened in anticipation of a second repulse of the British.

BENA'RES, the district mentioned in the immediately preceding article. It is under the lieutenantgovernorship of the North-west Provinces, being bounded on the W. and N. by Jounpur; on the E. by Ghazeepore and Shahabad; and on the S. and W.

BENATEK-BENCOOLEN.

with a superior French force under Admiral Du Casse. For four days he kept up a running-fight with the enemy, almost deserted by the rest of his squadron. On the morning of the 24th, his right leg was smashed by a chain-shot. His officers condoled with him. 'I had rather have lost them both,' said the sturdy admiral, 'than have seen this dishonour brought upon the English nation. But, hark ye-if another shot should take me off, behave like men, and fight it out!' As soon as his wound was dressed, he was carried to the quarter-deck, and directed the fight while it lasted. The enemy sus tained severe loss; but the infamous cowardice of the other captains, who actually refused to obey the admiral's signals, made the contest hopeless, and B. sailed away to Jamacia. He died of his wound on the 4th November. The recusant officers were tried by court-martial, and two captains were shot. B.'s employment of explosive vessels at St Malo, seems to have been an anticipation of Lord Dundonald's method at Basque Roads.

by Mirzapore. It extends in N. lat. between 25° 7' | Indies, on the 19th August 1702, he came ur and 25°32′, and in E. long. between 82° 45′ and 83° 38'; and thus measuring about 30 miles by about 55, it embraces an area of about 1000 square miles. In 1871, the census gave a population of 793,699, or about 800 to a square mile; the number of inhabited houses was 116,507. The district is traversed by the Ganges in a north-east direction for about 45 miles. Besides other rivers, such as the Karamnosa, the Goomtee, and the Burna, and several inferior streams, lakes and tanks are numerous, but small, the largest not exceeding a mile in circuit. The annual rain-fall, though averaging less than in the lower parts of the Ganges, is still considerable, always exceeding 30 inches, and amount ing in 1823 to 89. Considering that the tract is barely beyond the tropics, and but little elevated above the sea, the range of the thermometer is unusually great, being between 45° in January, and 111 in May. The mean temperature is stated at 77°, pretty near the middle point between the two extremes. The soil, though here and there sterile, is in general characterised by great fertility, more particularly to the left of the Ganges. In the growth of opium, indigo, and sugar-more especially of the last-the district surpasses nearly every other portion of British India. In fact, the state of agriculture is such as may be expected from the density of the population. The rich fields, the thriving villages, and the luxuriant groves, render the aspect of the country very delightful; and perhaps the best proof of the presence of industry and civilisation is the fact, that elephants, rhinoceroses, buffaloes, lions, and tigers, which were hunted in 1529, have entirely disappeared. After a Hindu domination, according to popular faith, of 2400 years, the district sank under the Mussulman yoke in 1193; and, in the first half of the 16th c., it was annexed by Baber to the Mogul Empire. On the dismemberment of that dominion, it fell to the share of the Nawab of Oude, whose grandson, in 1775, ceded it to the East India Company, about ten years after that body had acquired the sovereignty of Bengal.

BENA'TEK, a small town of Bohemia, on the right bank of the Iser, a few miles distant from Prague. It is worthy of note as being for a long time the residence of the astronomer Tycho Brahé. BENAVENTÉ. See SUPPLEMENT in Vol. X. BENBECU'LA, one of the Hebrides or Western Isles of Scotland, between North and South Uist, 20 miles west of Skye, and belonging to Inverness shire. It is 8 miles long, and 8 broad, low and flat, and consists chiefly of bog, sand, and lake, resting on a substratum of gneiss rock, with a very broken coast-line. Pop. 1718, consisting of fishermen and small farmers, who fertilise the soil with the seaweed which is cast ashore on the island.

BENBOW, JOHN, a brave English admiral, was born in Shropshire in 1650. He first distinguished himself as captain of a merchantman, in a bloody action with Salle pirates. He attracted the notice of James II., who gave him a commission in the pavy. After the Revolution, he obtained the command of a large ship, and in the course of a few years was made rear-admiral. The high confidence reposed in him by King William is borne in memory by a very bad pun on his name, said to have been perpetrated by the taciturn monarch. Objecting to several names proposed for the command of an expedition, he said: 'No; these are all fresh-water beaus, we need another kind of beau: we must send Benbow.' The most memorable of this gallant sailor's exploits was his last, where his stubborn valour contrasted nobly with the dastardly behaviour of his captains. Off St. Martha, in the West

BENCH, a hall or court where justice is administered. In this sense, however, it has in modern times received a more limited acceptation, signifying the dais or elevated part of a court-room or chamber where the judges sit to administer the laws. In English courts of justice, this seat is in form literally a bench or couch running along one end of the court-room, the number of judges and their places on this bench being marked by separate desks, one for each judge; but in Scotland and Ireland, the arrangement is different, the judges in these countries sitting on chairs placed at a long and, as in Scotland, a semicircular, table, which is in a raised position. The term B. is also applied, by class; thus, we speak of the B. and bar. way of distinction, to the judges themselves as a It has likewise, popularly and conventionally, an ecclesiastical application, the bishops of the Church of England being, as a body, sometimes designated by it; hence the expression, 'B. of Bishops.' See BANC. BENCH, COMMON, COURT This is technical name sometimes given to the Court of Common Pleas. See COURTS OF COMMON LAW.

OF.

a

BENCH, KING's or QUEEN'S, the supreme court of common law in the kingdom. See COURTS OF COMMON LAW.

BENCH, UPPER, the name given to the Court of King's Bench, in the time of Cromwell. See preceding notice, and COURTS OF COMMON LAW.

BE'NCHERS. The governing bodies of the four great Law Societies in England, or Inns of CourtLincoln's Inn, Inner Temple, Middle Temple, and Gray's Inn-are so called. They are generally Queen's counsel or barristers of distinction; and they annually elect a president or treasurer, as he is called, who takes the chair at their corporate meetings, and speaks and acts in their name.

INNS OF COURT.

See

BENCH-WARRANT, is a warrant signed by a superior judge or two justices of the peace, during the assizes or sessions, to apprehend a defendant, against whom a bill of indictment has been found. See WARRANT.

BENCOO ́LEN, a seaport town, capital of a Dutch residency of the same naine, on the west coast of Sumatra, near the entrance of the Strait of Sunda, in lat. 3° 47' S., long. 102° 19' E. It was founded by the English in 1686; but in 1824 it was transferred to the Dutch. Its principal export is pepper, and its external trade is carried on chiefly with Batavia, Bengal, and Holland. Pop. of town, 6000. Area of residency, 9690 square miles. Pop. 140,126.

BEND-BENEDICITE.