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Mahé

vent of a future Moslem teacher greater than Mohammed, who would lead the faithful to victory and conquer the world. This Messiah, it was declared, would never die; and though for a time he might disappear, at his second coming he would reconcile all differences among true believers. This dogma of Mahdism was accepted by the sect, then called Ismailis, to which Abdulla belonged. From time to time Mohammedan fanatics have risen in Syria, Persia, Turkey, and Egypt, who, claiming to be the Mahdi, have attempted the prosecution of religious wars. The most modern of these Mahdis was Mohammed Ahmed (born at Dongola in 1843; died at Omdurman in 1885), who made repeated efforts to conquer the Sudan. See James Darmesteter's The Mahdi, Past and Present (1885).

Mahé, French settlement, Malabar dist., Madras, India, 33 m. N.W. of Calicut. 'Settled in 1722, it was taken by the British in 1761, and again in 1779, being restored to France in 1815. Area, 2 sq. m. Pop. (1902) 9,455.

Mahikantha, group of feudatory states under the political control of the government of Bombay, India. Area, 11,049 sq. m. Pop. (1901) 361,545.

Mahmud I. (1696-1754) became sultan of Turkey in 1730, and was involved during the whole of his reign in wars with Austria and Russia, who had conspired to partition his kingdom. He inflicted several defeats on the Austrians, and recovered Belgrade, but did not make much headway against the Russians.MAHMUD II. (1785-1839) became sultan in 1808. In 1826 he suppressed the famous Janissary troops, and reorganized the army on European lines. Nevertheless he was forced in 1829 to recognize the independence of Greece, but successfully repressed (1833) the revolt of Mehemet Ali in Egypt. He also made a strenuous attempt to reform the internal adiministration and finances of the empire.

Mahmud OF GHAZNI. GHAZNI.

See

Mahogany, the wood of a West Indian and South American tree, Swietenia mahagoni, belonging to the order Cedrelaceæ. When felled, mahogany is of a light reddish-brown color, but it soon darkens on exposure to sunlight. The heartwood is heavy, hard, close and straight in grain,. and takes a very high polish, with a characteristic lustre, and sometimes with a wavy figure. Cuban or Spanish mahogany is used as a substitute for oak in shipbuilding, for beams, planks, and stanchions, while figured logs demand high prices for furniture.

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Santo Domingo mahogany is very similar in quality, very hard, almost horny, a stress of 4,300 lbs. per sq. in. being required to indent it in. transversely to the fibres. It is mostly figured, presenting a rich curl or feather at the bases of its branches. It is entirely used for cabinet work, especially for veneers. Nassau mahogany is used in turnery. Honduras mahogany is seldom figured, becomes somewhat brittle on drying, and is apt to develop deep star-shakes. Stress required to indent it in. transversely to its fibres, 1,300 lbs. It is known commercially as 'baywood,' and besides being used as a substitute for oak in shipbuilding, is largely used in cabin fittings and by cabinetmakers, turners, and carpenters. Some mahogany sold as Honduras is really Guatemalan. Mexican mahogany reaches the largest dimensions, generally coming to market in logs from 18 to 30 ft. long, and from 15 to 36 in. square. It is generally somewhat soft and spongy at the centre, often affected by star-shake, and plain in figure. The wood of the Coromandel redwood, Soymida febrifuga, is sometimes called East' Indian mahogany; that of Eucalyptus botryoides, bastard mahogany; of Khaya senegalensis, African mahogany; of Eucalyptus resinifera, forest or red mahogany; and of Cercocarpus ledifolius, bay mahogany.

Mahomet, Mahomedanism. See MOHAMMED; MOHAMMEDAN

ISM.

Mahone, WILLIAM (1826-95), American soldier and politician, born in Southampton co., Va. He graduated at the Virginia Military Institute at Lexington in 1847, and was engaged in civil engineering until the Civil War. He took part in the capture of the Norfolk Navy Yard; raised the Sixth Virginia Regiment, which he commanded through the peninsular campaign; was promoted to brigadier-general in 1862, and displayed great gallantry particularly at Petersburg. He became major-general in 1864 and served until the end of the war. Afterward he returned to engineering work, was president of the Norfolk and Tennessee Railroad, and about 1878 became prominent as a leader of the Readjusters (q.v.), a faction of the Democrats favoring a partial repudiation of the state debt. He was elected to the U. S. Senate for the term 1881-87, but aroused great antagonism by voting with the Republicans. After the expiration of his term he lived chiefly in Washington.

Mahon, Port. See PORT MAHON.

Mahony, FRANCIS SYLVESTER

Maidment

(1804-66), Irish humorist, known as Father Prout, was born at Cork. Settling in London as a man of letters, in 1834-6 he contributed to Fraser's Magazine his Reliques of Father Prout. As an original lyrist Mahony is on his highest level with the haunting if somewhat artificial Bells of Shandon. His most elaborate prose -the Apology for Lent, Dean Swift's Madness, Literature of the Jesuits is brilliantly allusive and energetic in style, but suffers from temperamental extravagance of humor and argumentative whim. In 1837-42 further papers of the Prout type were written (mainly from the Continent) for Bentley's Miscellany. About 1848 he made Paris his headquarters, 'and after 1858 was Paris correspondent for the Globe. In 1860 he wrote a characteristic inaugural ode for the first number of Cornhill. The Reliques of Father Prout appeared in 2 vols. in 1836, and again in 1860. 1881 Mr. Charles Kent edited The Works of Father Prout, with

memoir.

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See MARATHA. See Os

Mahrattas. Mährisch-Ostrau. TRAU, MÄHRISCH.

Mahuwa, tn. and port, Bhaunaghar state, Kathiawar peninsula, Bombay, India, 55 m. N.E. of Diu. Pop. (1901) 17,549.

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Mai, ANGELO (1782-1854), Italian classical scholar, born Schilpario (Bergamo). Appointed (1813) keeper of the Ambrosian library at Milan, he was successful in bringing to light lost writings of Cicero, Cornelius Fronto, and Plautus. In 1819 he was appointed librarian of the Vatican, in 1833 secretary of the Propaganda, and received the cardinal's hat in 1838.

Maia, in ancient Greek mythology, the eldest of the Pleiads, and by Zeus the mother of Hermes.

Maiden, a species of guillotine constructed at Edinburgh in 156465, and used from that date onward till 1710.

Maidenhair Fern.

ANTUM.

See ADI

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Maidenhead, munic. bor. and mrkt. tn., Berkshire, England, on the Thames, 13 m. E. of Reading. A bridge (1772) crosses the Thames to Taplow. Remains of a Roman villa have been excavated. Pop. (1901) 12,980.

Maidment, JAMES (1795-1879), Scottish antiquary, born in London. He edited numerous historical documents, mainly relating to Scottish affairs. He was chief editor of Kay's Edinburgh Portraits (2 vols. 1837), and collaborated with W. H. Logan in Dramatists of the Restoration (14 vols. 1877), The Spottiswoode Mis

Maids of Honor

cellany (2 vols. 1844-5), and Scottish Ballads and Songs (1859). See Bibliography, by T. G. Stevenson (1883).

Maids of Honor are, in the English court, attached to the queen's household in the department of the mistress of the robes. To them is assigned the duty, in turn, of daily attendance upon the queen. In the official Table of Precedence maids of honor rank after the daughters of barons, and before the wives of Knights of the Garter. They are entitled to the prefix 'Honorable.'

Maidstone, munic. and parl. bor., Kent, England, 34 m. by rail E.S.E. of London, and on the Medway. The church of All Saints dates from the 14th century, and was attached to the college of All Saints, founded by Archbishop Courtenay. An archiepiscopal palace was also erected by Courtenay; the present building, chiefly Elizabethan, was acquired by the town council in 1887. The grammar school was founded in 1547. The Charles Museum was opened in 1858, in the Chillington manor house. The county lunatic asylum is on Barming Heath. Industries include paper mills, breweries, malt kilns, and agricultural implement works. Stone is quarried, and hops and fruit are grown. The town was taken by Fairfax in 1648. Pop. (1901) 33,516.

Maidu, the name of a linguistic group of Indians, formerly occupying the northeastern part of California. They are often spoken of as the 'Diggers,' because of the great use they make of edible roots. Like other California Indians, their chief food is the acorn, which is ground into flour for breadmaking. They also practise the art of basketry, live in under-ground houses. Their religion and art is simple as compared with that of other American Indians. See Powers, Tribes of California (1877); Dixon, The Northern Maidu, Publications of American Museum of Natural History (1905).

Maikop, fort. tn., N. Caucasia, Russia, 60 m. s.E. of Ekaterinodar. Pop. (1897) 34,191.

Maildun, a romantic character in ancient Irish lore, who, born in Co. Clare, and of the kindred of Owenaght, saw many wonderful things and performed many wonderful feats while tracking the murderer of his father. His exploits are detailed by Joyce in Ancient Celtic Romances (1879).

Maimachin, Mongolian tn. and Chinese frontier post, opposite Kiakhta, in 50° 15' N. lat. The town has two fine temples. It trades in tea, silk, porcelain, paper, furs, and metal articles.

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There are hardly any permanent inhabitants, and women are forbidden to enter the town.

Maimansingh, dist., Dacca div., Bengal, India. Area, 6,287 sq. m.; pop. (1901) 3,915,068. Cap. Nasirabad.

Maimbourg, LOUIS (1610-86), French priest, born at Nancy; author of Traité historique des Prérogatives de l'Eglise de Rome (1685; Eng. ed. 1685), Histoire de la Décadence de l'Empire après Charlemagne (1681), and Histoire des Croisades (1682). He was expelled from the Jesuit order because of his Gallican views. His Schriften were published in 14 vols. (1686-7).

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Maimonides, MOSES BEN MAIMON (1135-1204), Jewish philosopher and physician, styled by the Jews Rambam, was born at Cordova in Spain, where he was forced to embrace Islam. Cairo he became physician to the sultan of Egypt. He was a pupil and friend of Averroes, and wrote in Hebrew and Arabic, winning fame as a theologian, and was learned also in mathematics and astronomy. His chief works are Mishneh Torah, a systematic codification of Jewish law from all sources; Mishnah, a commentary; An Abridgment of the 16th Book of Galen; and (best known) Moreh Nebokhim (Eng. trans. as Guide of the Perplexed, by M. Friedländer, 1886), a philosophic explanation of difficult passages of Scripture. See Vellin and Abrahams, Maimonides (1903).

Main, riv., formed in N.E. Bavaria, Germany, by the junction near Kulmbach of the White Main and the Red Main. After a very tortuous course of 307 m., mainly westerly, past Bamberg, Schweinfurt, Würzburg, Hanau, Offenbach, and Frankfort, it joins the Rhine on the r. bk. opposite Mainz. It is navigable as far as Bamberg, but is canalized between Mainz and Frankfort for the passage of larger vessels. The Ludwig's Canal connects the Main with the Danube. The chief tributaries are the Regnitz and Tauber on the 1. bk., and the Franconian Saale on the r. bk.

Maine, ancient prov. of France, lay s. of Normandy and E. of Brittany, and corresponded roughly with departments of Mayenne and Sarthe. The capital was Le Mans.

Maine (called "The Province or Countie of Mayne' in the charter given by Charles I. in 1639), one of the North Atlantic states of the United States, one of the group called the New England states. It is the most northeasterly state, lying between the parallels of 43° 4' and 47° 28′ N. lat. and the meridians of 66° 56′ and 71° 6' w.

Maine

long. It is bounded on the north and east respectively by the Canadian provinces of Quebec and New Brunswick, on the south by the Atlantic Ocean and on the west by New Hampshire and Quebec. A number of rivers mark portions of its boundary line: the St. Francis and the St. John on the north, the St. Croix on the east, and the Salmon Falls on the west. With an extreme length of 305 miles from north to south, and an extreme width of 270 miles, Maine has a total area of 33,040 sq. m., of which 3,145 sq. m. is water.

Topography. The surface of the state is generally hilly, and in the northwest is almost mountainous, though much of the north central part is a broad undiversified plateau. The drainage is divided by a highland which enters the state from the west about latitude 46° N., and runs irregularly east and northeast. This highland, which is a continuance of the Appalachian system, makes of the northern part a broad plateau, sloping from an altitude of about 1,500 feet on the western boundary to about 450 feet on the eastern. This northern portion, embracing about one-fourth of the state, is drained by the river St. John. The entire section is covered by vast forests and abounds in lakes and swamps, with occasional peaks thrust above the general level. The most prominent of these peaks is Bald Mountain in the east, with a height of 1,261 feet.

The southern part of the state slopes south and southeast from the central highland. This portion is drained by the St. Croix, Penobscot, Kennebec, Androscoggin, and Saco rivers, none of which is navigable continuously for a distance of more than 60 or 70 m. from the sea. Here are found hundreds of lakes, among which are Moosehead Lake with an area of 120 sq. m., and an elevation of 1,023 ft., and the Rangeley Lakes with an area of 90 sq. m., and an elevation of 1,511 sq. ft. There is much timber in this section also, particularly in the region drained by the upper Penobscot. The most prominent peaks of the southern part are Mt. Katahdin, 5,200 ft., Mt. Bigelow, 3,600 ft. and Mt. Abraham, 3,388 ft.

In the entire state there are 1,620 lakes, having an aggregate area of 2,300 sq. m. These lakes are so located at the head-waters and along the courses of the rivers as to be of great value as storage reservoirs, furnishing a constant and abundant water-power. By reason of this fact and because of the numerous falls along the rivers of the southern slope, the industries of Maine are favored by a supply of water-power variously

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Maine

estimated at from one to two million horse-power.

The sea-coast of Maine is indented to a remarkable extent. The indentations, large and small, give the total coast line a length of about 2,000 miles. East of the Kennebec river the coast is high and rocky, with an elevation of 1,000 ft. to 2,500 ft., and contains a great number of very fine harbors. The southwestern part of the coast is less indented, and is quite low, level and sandy.

Geology.-The geological history of Maine is marked by a number of picturesque and antagonistic changes. The basic rocks of the state are metamorphic and for the most part of the Archæan Age. The surface has been alternately elevated and depressed, and has been deeply scoured by the vast glaciers of Pleistocene time which covered almost the entire state with till. There is a small area of Silurian rocks along the south-central coast and quite an area of Devonian rocks in the north and northeast. The subsidence of the coastal region has resulted in the numerous bays and fiords and the fringe of detached islands.

Climate and Soil.-The temperature varies from winter to summer, and from north to south through a very wide range. The mean temperature at Portland is 23° in January and 69° in July, with a minimum of -21° and a maximum of 97°. Farther north the mean temperature for January is 10° and for July 65°. The cool summers, the lakes, rivers, and forests, make Maine, and especially the Maine coast, very popular as a recreation resort during the summer. The precipitation averages annually from 40 to 45 inches and is well distributed throughout the year. The snowfall is very heavy, ranging from an annual average of 5 ft. in the south to 9 ft. in the north and covering the ground from 3 to 5 months each year. Thus the growing season is short, varying from 5 to 6 months.

There is quite a variety of soils in the state, most of them too sterile for extensive and profitable cultivation. Along the rivers and about the lakes, and between the Penobscot and Kennebec rivers, there is, however, much alluvial soil of considerable richness. Most of the surface soil is of glacial origin, and in some of the higher portions of the state the surface soil has been swept away. Along the sea-coast is found much sterile sand and clay, while in the northern and north-eastern parts, in Aroostook county, is found the largest contiguous area of fertile soil in New England.

Mineral Resources.-The stone quarries are the most valuable

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mineral resources. For many years Maine ranked next Massachusetts in the production of granite, but in 1904 it stood third, being surpassed also by Vermont. The value in recent years has averaged annually almost $2,500,000. From 1890 to 1900 the state ranked sixth in the

production of limestone, but in 1904 it had fallen to ninth place, with a product valued at $802,472. Some marble is obtained, and the slate quarries yield an output having an annual value of about $175,000. The clay products are of considerable importance, particularly brick and tile, which have an annual value exceeding $150,000. Some silica, feldspar, tourmaline and copper are also obtained. There were in 1904, 23 springs yielding marketable mineral water. These were all in the south-eastern counties, chiefly in Androscoggin, York, Oxford, and Cumberland. The product was valued at $428,083.

Forests.-Maine was originally covered throughout by vast forests, mainly of white pine and spruce, with some hemlock, tamarack and cedar, and with several hard-wood species in the southern part. The greater part of the state is still clad with forests, although over a large area much of the finest timber has been cut down. The white pine forests have been almost entirely removed from the southern part of the state and from other parts accessible by steamer or by railroads. As the pine was removed, the cutting of spruce became more important, and to-day the vast forests of spruce in the region drained by the St. John and Penobscot rivers furnish almost one-half of all the timber cut. In 1900 there were in the state 292 logging-camps, employing 2,287 men and securing products valued at $3,140,345. There were 832 sawmills, employing 6,529 men, and turning out products valued at $11,476,563. The manufactures growing out of the timber supply are, as a group, the most important in the state. See MANUFACTURES.

Fisheries.-Maine ranks next to Massachusetts among New England states in the amount of capital invested and in the value of its fisheries, and ranks first in the number of men engaged. The capital invested in 1902, the date of the last public report, was $6,939,503, which sum was an increase of 73 per cent. since 1898. The total number of men employed (1902) was 19,832, of whom 9,207 were fishermen and the remainder shoremen. The total value of the product was $2,918,772. The values of those catches in which Maine surpasses all the other New England

Maine

states combined were: Lobsters, $1,066,407; herring, $510,189; and smelt, $103,055. Other valuable catches were: Cod, $376,676; clams, $194,486; hake, $144,891; haddock, $124,992; mackerel, $101,490; and salmon, $13,394. The salting of cod, herring and mackerel is worthy of note, as is also the preparation of smoked herring. The preparation of canned and smoked sardines' from herring is a very important industry, the value of the product approximating $5,000,000 annually.

Agriculture. Though of minor importance as an agricultural state since the settlement of the middle West, Maine far surpasses the other New England states in farm acreage. The number of farms decreased steadily from 64,300 in 1880 to 59,300 in 1900, but the farm area, 6,300,000 acres in 1900, remained about the same. The proportion of improved farm land decreased from 53.2 per cent. in 1880 to 37.9 in 1900. The average size of farms remained nearly constant for half a century, being 106 acres in 1900. In that year 95.3 per cent. of farms were operated by owners, and 3.4 per cent. by cash renters.

The acreage of principal crops and their value in 1905 were: Hay, 1,303,760, $13,939,804; oats, 112,817, $1,867,685; potatoes, 103,317, $11,029,090; buckwheat, 23,013, $448,754; corn, 13,000, $307,671; spring wheat, 7,880, $192,114; barley, 7,817, $154,151. The principal change in acreage in recent years has been in that devoted to Irish potatoes, which was 51,900 in 1893 and 71,765 in 1900. The great number of summer tourists along the coast has stimulated the marketgardening in that section. The orchards are composed almost entirely of apple trees, though some cherry and pear trees also are grown.

The numbers of farm animals Jan. 1, 1906, were: Horses, 137,512; dairy cows, 191,016; other cattle, 157,581; sheep, 270,025; swine, 69,877. Since 1890 there has been a steady increase in the number of dairy cows, and in 1900 30 per cent. of the farms derived their principal income from dairy products. The number of swine has declined steadily since 1890.

Manufactures. Owing to the great abundance of continuous water power afforded by the numerous rivers, and the excellent harbors, manufacturing is very important. The number of wageearners, the capital invested, and the value of products have steadily increased since 1850, the greatest absolute increases having occurred from 1890 to 1900 and from 1900 to 1905. The census

Maine

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of 1900 showed a total of 6,702 establishments in the state, employing $122,918,826 capital, and 74,816 wage-earners and manufacturing products valued at $127,361,485. These four figures were percentage increases, 1890 to 1900, of 33.8, 52.8, 6.3 and 33.1 respectively. Of the above establishments, 2,878, employing $114,007,715 capital and 69,914 wage-earners and having products valued at $112,959,098, are comparable with those inIcluded in the census of 1905, when there were reported 3,145 establishments, with $143,707,750 capital, 74,958 wage-earners, and products valued at $144,020,197. The leading industries in 1905, with the value of products of each, and, in parenthesis, the percentage of increase such value since 1900, are follows: Manufacture of paper and wood pulp, $22,951,124 (73.6); lumber and timber products, $17,937,683 (35.1); manufacture of cotton goods, $15,405,823 (5.3); woollen goods, $13,969,600 (20.1); boots and shoes, $12,351,293 (.4); canning and preserving fish, $5,055,091 (5.8); foundry and machine-shop products, $4,767,025 (44.5); flour and grist mill products, $3,932,882 (12.5); manufacture of worsted goods, $3,609,990 (102.9). Maine formerly was foremost in shipbuilding; to-day it ranks second in the construction of wooden vessels, and at Bath some steel vessels are built. Other industries worthy of note the tanning and finishing of leather, printing and publishing, marble and stone work, and the manufacture of planing-mill products. The chief centres of manufacture are Portland, Lewiston, Biddeford, and Auburn.

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Transportation and Commerce. -The railway mileage has been as follows: 1860, 472; 1880, 1,005; 1890, 1,377; 1900, 1,917; 1905, 2,103. The principal lines are the Boston and Maine, the Maine Central, the Canadian Pacific, the Bangor and Aroostook, and the Grand Trunk. The struction since 1890 has been largely in the central and northern part, and has been of great importance to the agricultural and lumbering industries. The electric railway mileage in 1903 was 353. Besides the coastwise traffic between Maine ports, there are steamship lines from the principal ports to Boston and from Portland to New York.

There are a number of ports of entry in Maine, the chief being Portland, Bangor and Eastport, which are respectively the ports for the districts of Portland and Falmouth, Bangor and Passamaquoddy Bay. For the year ending June 30,1906, the exports in foreign

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commerce from Portland aggregated $14,685,464, and the imports were $1,232,928. The chief exports were bacon, hams, lard, cattle, corn, and printing paper; the chief imports, sulphur, bituminous coal, clays, and lime.

Banks.-The number of national banks in June, 1906, was 80, having loans aggregating $29,752,000; capital, $9,476,000; surplus, $2,874,019; and individual deposits of $28,905,662. There are no state banks. April 29, 1905, there were 23 loan and trust com panies, with $11,833,487 in loans, $2,124,500 capital, and $18,058,236 deposits. On the same date there were 51 mutual and stock savings banks, with loans aggregating $13,438,998, and with 212,133 depositors and $78,230,219 deposits.

The

Finance. For the fiscal year ending Dec. 31, 1905, the treasury showed receipts of $2,608,608. The balance on hand Jan. 1, 1905, was $245,140, the expenditures, $2,423,502, leaving a balance Jan. 1, 1906, of $430,246. principal items of receipts were; state and county taxes, $1,026,591; tax on railroad companies, $519,668; tax on savings banks, loan and trust companies, $476,429; taxes on old and new corporations, $164,929; tax on insurance companies, $104,900. The main items of expenditures were: school and mill fund tax due towns, $573,386; charitable and correctional purposes, $423,258; educational purposes, $187,459. The bonded indebtedness has been steadily reduced from $2,619,300 in 1890, and $2,103,000 in 1900, to $1,380,000 on Jan. 1, 1906.

Population. The population at successive dates has been as follows: 1790, 96,540; 1810, 228,705; 1830, 339,455; 1850, 583,169; 1870, 626,915; 1890, 661,086; 1900,694,456; 1905 (Federal est.), 711,156. The colored population is very small, having been only 1,319 in 1900. The same year the foreign-born numbered 93,330. Of these 36,169 were English Canadians, 30,908 French Canadians, and 10,159 Irish.

These

Canadians and Irish are mostly farmers, who manage to thrive in the rather unfavorable agricultural conditions. The urban population, comprised in 25 cities with over 4,000 population, was 36.2 per cent. of the total.

The population of the principal cities in 1900 was as follows: Portland, 50,145; Lewiston, 23,761; Bangor, 21,850; Biddeford, 16,145. In 1905 estimates of their populations were: Portland, 58,000; Lewiston, 24,265; Bangor, 26,000; Biddeford, 18,000.

Government. The present constitution was adopted in 1819 and has been amended no fewer than 30 times. Amendments must be

Maine

approved by two-thirds of each house of the legislature and by a majority of the voters at a subsequent election. Suffrage, with the usual exceptions, is granted to registered citizens of the United States, resident three months in the state and able to read English. The legislature is composed of a senate of 31 members and a house of representatives of 151 members, all chosen biennially. The sessions begin on the first Wednesday in January of odd years. Members receive $150 per annum. Revenue bills must originate in the house. The capital is Augusta.

The executive authority is vested in a governor, elected biennially by popular vote, an advisory council of seven members, chosen for two years by joint ballot of both houses of the legislature, and a secretary of state, treasurer, and attorney-general, similarly chosen. The governor has a veto power, which lapses if unused for five days, and which may be overridden by a twothirds vote of each house of the legislature.

He, with the council, may grant reprieves and pardons. The supreme court is composed of 8 justices, appointed by the governor and council for seven years. Superior courts, with one judge similarly ap pointed, are found in some of the counties. The counties have probate and insolvency courts, justices of the peace, and trial justices, elected by the people, and inferior courts with judges appointed by the governor and council for seven years. The judges of municipal courts are similarly appointed for four years. There are 16 counties, each having a board of commissioners of six members, one being chosen annually, and a sheriff elected biennially. The towns are governed by the town meeting.

Education. The proportion of illiterates in the population of ten years of age and upward in 1900 was 5.2 per cent. Compulsory attendance is required of all able-bodied children of ages 7 to 15 years, for the full time during which school is in session in their respective towns. Public transportation is provided where necessary, in lieu of which school committees are allowed to pay the board of pupils. The district system was supplanted in 1893 by the town or township as the unit of administration, with a supervising committee limited to three members. In 1899 provision was made for education in inorganized townships, either by the maintenance of schools in the township or by sending pupils to an adjoining school. Secondary education is provided for in a great many free public high schools and

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