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ALGE ARE PLANTS OF A SIMPLE TYPE, SUCH AS SEAWEEDS AND MICROSCOPIC FORMS FOUND IN STAGNANT POOLS.

ALGE. (A) Pleurococcus vulgaris: details magnified; (B) Volvox globator; (C) Ulothrix parietina; (D) Vaucheria terrestris, showing fructification; (E) Anabæna variabilis; all greatly magnified; (F) Laminaria saccharina; (G) Fucus vesiculosus; (H) Ulva latissima; (Rhodymenia laciniata; (K) Cladophora; (L) Polydes rotundus; (M) Griffithsia simpliciflum. A, B, C, D, and E enormously enlarged; V, G and H much reduced.

Alfreton

Alfreton, mrkt. tn., Derbyshire, on the Midland Ry., 14 m. N.N.E. of Derby. Pop. (1911)

19,049.

Alfuras, or HARAFURAS, the original inhabitants of Celebes, but found also in Buru, Ceram, Jilolo, the Sula Is., and the N.W. of New Guinea. They are apparently of Malay descent, greatly modified by Papuan blocd."

Algæ, a large group of the simplest plants, including seaweeds, and the filamentous and microscopic forms which are found in stagnant pools and on moist surfaces exposed to the air, such as damp soils, stones, and the bark of trees. Though they vary greatly in complexity-from a single nucleated speck of protoplasm at one end of the scale, to the gigantic Macrocystis of southern seas with its fronds of 600 to SO0 ft. in length, clothed with ribbon-like leaves of proportionate size, at the other end-algæ never possess true roots, stems, or leaves, however closely these structures may be simulated. They are distinguished from the fungi by their power of building up their organic materials out of elementary inorganic substances. Algae are also distinguished from lichens, which consist of algae and fungi living together in an intimate nutritive relation-a high form of symbiosis. They always possess chlorophyll -the substance by means of which new material is assimilated under the influence of light-though its presence may be masked by other pigments. Álgæ are usually classified in three orders: CHLOROPHYCEE (green); PHÆOPHYCEÆ (brown); and RHODOPHYCEE (red); to which some authorities add a fourth, CYANOPHYCEE (blue). The green algae occur in great variety in pools of fresh and salt water. One of the simplest formis is Pleurococcus, abundant on damp surfaces. It is a single round green cell, which multiplies by division into two or four cells, which then separate; in some allied aquatic forms the protoplasm may escape through its cellulose wall, develop a pair of cilia, and swim through the water. In more complex forms, the individuals resulting from fission may not wholly separate, but remain embedded in a common envelope. A very highly developed example of such a colony may be seen in Volvox, a constantly moving sphere of many hundreds of ciliated individuals, connected by threads of protoplasm through the envelope, some of which are purely nutritive in function, while others become female reproductive cells, destined to form new colonies, and others again divide into numerous minute and active male elements, which are set free to fertilize the ova. The filamentous green algæ are

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higher forms, in which continued division results in single rows of cells separated from each other by transverse walls (Confervoidea), as in Ulothrix, a long dark-green hairlike plant very common on stones in running water, which propagates by means of motile zoospores formed in certain cells, and set free to swim to a new site for a new plant, and also reproduces itself by means of the fusion of two free motile sexual cells (gametes). Or the filaments may consist each of a single continuous tube (Siphonea), as in Vaucheria, common in moist soil in greenhouses, which has a highly developed form of sexual reproduction, as shown by the large quiescent female cell (oogonium) and the minute active male (antherozoid). The so-called blue algæ are inconspicuous and degenerate plants, found in fresh waters. A common example is Anabæna, which often makes the water of a pond opaque and dirty green in color, giving it a foul odor. It is among the brown and the red algæ or seaweeds that we find at once the largest and most differentiated forms, and the highest development of sexual reproduction. The common Laminaria, Fucus, and other seaweeds of the North Atlantic coasts, together with examples of simpler algæ already mentioned, are illustrated in the accompanying plate; but for a description of seaweeds, see that article. See also DIATOM.

Algaroba. See MESQUITE. Algarotti, COUNT FRANCESCO (1712-64), Italian scholar and critic; born at Venice; his works popularized abstruse subjects. His Neutonianismo per le Donne (1732; trans. into several languages) was praised by Voltaire. He travelled through Europe, staying some time at Paris, Berlin, Dresden, and St. Petersburg, and was especially honored by Frederick the Great. His poetry was mediocre, but his Saggi (essays) on art, etc. (1769), were influential in Italian literature. His Opere (Venice, 1791-4) were accompanied by a Life by Michelessi.

Algarve, the southernmost province of Portugal; mountainous in the N., but with a fertile coast belt on the s. Figs, almonds, olives, oranges, and vines are grown in the lowlands; cereals on the higher ground. The Algarves are noted sailors and fishermen. Cap. Faro. Area, 1,879 sq. m. Pop. (1900) 254,851.

Algebra (Arab. al jebr), the science of operations with quantities, where the quantities are usually represented by letters (a, b.c.... m, n..., p, q, r. . ., x, y, z, etc.) and the operations by symbols (+, -, X,,, etc.); these symbols may themselves be numbers. Algebra took its origin in

Alger

arithmetic, and both studies have the same fundamental laws. But many ideas are original in algebra. Certain quantities (e.g. imaginary quantities, such as the square root of a negative number ✔-1) cannot be entertained by arithmetic. Every quantity, and every step in the working, of an arithmetical problem is capable of intelligible conception; but algebra admits of unthinkable quantities and operations. Vieta (16th century) first used letters for all quantities, and shortly afterwards symbols were used for the operations. For a time the various powers' of a number were represented as xx, xxx, etc.; but when Descartes indicated the power by a number (x2, x3, etc.), the laws of indices were soon discovered, and it was by subjecting binomials to the latter that Newton discovered the binomial theorem. The whole field of algebra is covered by the investigation of identities (or the methods of presenting an alge braic expression in various ways) and of equations. Algebra, as commonly taught, is only one of many algebras. Hamilton, Grassmann, and others have conceived algebras with different fundamental laws, of which quaternions is an example. For the various algebraic operations, see the respective articles. See also Fink, History of Mathematics (1900); Merriman and Woodward, Higher Mathematics (1896).

Algeciras, tn., prov. Cadiz, Spain, the port on the bay opposite Gibraltar (5 m.). Industrial town, with busy export trade. The port is open and undefended. The bay was the scene of a naval battle between French and English fleets in 1801. The town was the meeting-place of the European conference on the Moroccan question in January, 1906. See MOROCCO. Pop. (1900) 13,302.

Alger, HORATIO (1834-99), American Unitarian clergyman and author, was born at Revere, Mass. In 1864-66, he was pastor of a Unitarian church at Brewster, Mass., but afterwards removed to New York city. He wrote in juvenile fiction the books of the Ragged Dick, Tattered Tom, and Luck and Pluck series.

Alger, RUSSELL ALEXANDER (1836-1907), American soldier and lawyer, was born at Lafay ette, O., and studied law. Serving in the Civil War, he was brevetted a major-general. He afterwards engaged in the lumber trade at Detroit, Mich., and in 1885-86 was Governor of the state. In 1888 he was an unsuccessful candidate for the Republican presidential nomination. In 1897-99 he was Secretary of War, and from 1902 till his death was U. S. Senator.

Algeria

a

Algeria, or L'ALGÉRIE, French colony in North Africa, occupies the central portion of the former States of Barbary. The area is about 184,670 sq. m., which would be almost doubled if the Sahara hinterland were included. The country is divided by elevation and climatic conditions into three zones, parallel to the coast, but of different breadths: (1) The Tell, or region of forests and arable land; (2) the Steppe, or region of herbaceous vegetation and of pastureland; (3) the Sahara, where agriculture is possible only by irrigation in certain oases. The coast, with an extent of almost 690 m., is on the whole high and rocky, and presents little shelter. There are, however,

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where snow and rainwater gather in winter.

Algeria belongs to the zone of Mediterranean climate, characterized by the division of the year into two seasons-the rainy or cold season (autumn, winter, spring), and the dry and hot season (summer). The climate fluctuates between the humidity of the Mediterranean and the aridity of the Sahara, the influences of which vary according to latitude, altitude, exposure, etc. The result of this is a great variety of local climates. The temperature is very equable on the coast. (See ALGIERS.) On the other hand, the interior and Sahara are subject to great and sudden changes. The flora and the fauna, like the climate,

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Algeria

numbers 729,960, of whom 449,420 are French, 117,475 Spanish, 33,153 Italians, 6,217 Anglo-Maltese, and others 9,353.

Algeria is essentially an agricultural country. The principal products are the vine and cereals. Vineyards covered (1909) 309,695 acres, and produced 181,031,820 gallons of wine. By far the larger portion (364,328 acres) is cultivated by Europeans in the vicinity of Algiers and Oran. There are about 5,562,000 acres of cereals under cultivation, 4,293,000 acres being grown by natives, chiefly in the Department of Constantine. Efforts are being made (1911) to establish the culture of cotton, camphor, tobacco, and roses. The

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a few large semi-circular bays. The orographical structure is determined by two series of mountain chains, which form part of the Atlas range, and may be called the Tell Atlas and the Sahara Atlas. Neither of these forms a continuous ridge; they are cut up into a series of distinct massifs, separated by rivers or plains. The height of these massifs is seldom more than 4,000 ft., and does not exceed 8,000 ft. in any part. The region between the two series of mountain chains is occupied by high plains, the altitude of which varies from 2,400 ft. to 3,900 ft. The rivers are nothing but torrents (wads or wadies), very frequently dried up. The waters of some of them are dammed up for irrigation. In the steppes the running waters have generally been unable to find an outlet to the sea; they form the shotts of the plains, shallow lakes VOL I.-11

are Mediterranean. The trees and shrubs are for the most part evergreens, the olive being the characteristic tree. The forests are composed chiefly of cork trees, evergreen oaks, Aleppo pines, cedars, and cypresses; the steppes are covered with alfa or esparto grass and salt-loving plants; the datepalm is the characteristic tree of the Sahara.

Algeria has (census, 1906) 5,231,850 inhabitants, of whom 4,501,890 are natives (Berbers or Arabs). The Berbers are Mohammedans, but do not practise polygamy; they occupy principally the mountain ranges and the southern oases, and are either settled or semi-nomadic. The Arabs inhabit the plains and the steppes, are nomadic or seminomadic, and occupy principally the western part of Algeria. The Algerian Jews number 65,000 (1906). The European population

government is offering bounties to agricultural societies. The olive grows very well, but its culture, together with that of the date, fig, and other fruit trees, is capable of development. In 1907 there were 12,802,170 olive trees, yielding 7,990,250 hundredweight of olives and 12,098,200 gallons of oil. Market-gardening flourishes in the neighborhood of the seaports, and tobacco (a growing industry) is extensively cultivated. Forests cover 6,156,000 acres. Sheep breeding is especially important.

There are copper, zinc, lead, antimony, and mercury mines, and petroleum springs. The only minerals at present of real importance are iron ore at Aïn Mokra and BeniSaf, and the extensive deposits of phosphate of lime, chiefly in the Tebessa district. The red marble of the ancients (giallo antico) was rediscovered near Kléber in Oran

Algeria

in 1878. There are numerous hot mineral springs, as at Constantine. The native industry (carpets, leather-work, arms) is on the decrease, and that of the Europeans is limited to the preparation of agricultural produce (flour-mills and distilleries).

The total commerce of Algeria is fairly equally divided between imports and exports; it amounted in 1907 to about $196,676,000. The greater portion of this commerce is with France (70 to 85 per cent.). The principal exports (1907) of Algeria are wine, alfa, tobacco, hides, sheep, wool, iron, fish, wheat, barley, beans, peas, citron fruits, raisins, figs, tanning bark, horses, bullocks, cork, and phosphates. The heaviest imports are cotton, cloth, tools, metals, coal, sugar, potatoes, building materials, wrought iron, soap, and machinery.

The railway system consists of one long line, parallel to the coast, joining the large towns of the Tell, and extending as far as Tunis; lines branch off north to the seaport towns, and south toward the Sahara, Biskra being the farthest station south. In 1908 there were 2.000 miles of railway open for traffic, also 204 miles of tramway. The principal seaports are Algiers (the capital), Bougie (pop. 17,540), Philippeville (pop. 26,050), Oran (pop. 106,517), Bona (pop. 42,934).

HISTORY.-The oldest evidences of the presence of man in Algeria are cut flints and instruments of polished stone. Monuments called megalithic, dolmens, menhirs, tumuli, and cromlechs are fairly numerous. The history of Algeria, the ancient Numidia, is one of successive conquests forced in turn upon the old Berber stock, always persisting and resisting. There were first the Phoenicians, the Romans, the Vandals, the Byzantines, the Arabs, the Mediterranean peoples of every race, and finally the French. The Turkish government of Algiers, with its corsairs scouring the Mediterranean, and its prisons for Christian galley-slaves, lasted from the sixteenth century to 1815, when a United States fleet under Decatur compelled them to cease depredations upon American vessels. Subsequently a British fleet bombarded Algiers and put an end to the slave trade; but piracy still persisted until 1830. At that time France put an end to it by taking possession first of Algiers, and then of Algeria. The conquest has been difficult, and attended by numerous insurrections, the Arabs and Berbers maintaining vigorous resistance for many years.

From the time of the French occupation, in 1830, to the establishment of civil government in Algeria, by decree of Oct. 24, 1870, the history of Algeria is chiefly that of

political evolution. At the present time the government and adminis

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tration of Algeria are centralized at Algiers under the authority of the Governor-General. All the services except the non-Mussulman services of Justice, Public Instruction and Worship, and the Treasury, are under his direction. The Governor-General prepares the

budget for Algeria, grants concessions for works, and contracts loans in the name of the colony. Since 1901 the budget of Algeria has been entirely distinct from that of France. It is voted by the financial delegations and the Superior Council. There are three delegations, representing respectively the French colonists, the French taxpayers other than colonists, and the Mussulman natives. The Superior Council is composed of elected members and of high officials. The French chambers alone have the right of legislating for Algeria. There are three departments in Algeria, each sending 1 senator and 2 deputies to the National Assembly.

Consult Reclus's Nouvelle Géɔgraphie Universelle; Wahl's l'Algé rie; Mercier's Histoire de l'Afrique septentrionale (3 vols., 1888-90); De Raynaud's Annales Algériennes (3 vols., 1887); Wilkin's Among the Berbers of Algeria (1900); Castéran's L'Algérie française (1900); Lebon's La politique de la France en Afrique, 1896-8 (1901); Hess's La vérité sur l'Algérie (1905); Schanz's Algerien, Tunesien, Tripolitanien (1905); Mulé's Chez les moumenin; récits algérien (1906); Crouse's Algiers (1906); HiltonSimpson's Algiers and Beyond (1903); Donop's Lettres sur l'Algérie, 1907-8 (1908); Lorin's L'Afrique du Nord (1908); Réclus's Algérie et Tunisie (1909); Shoemaker's Islam Lands (1910); Statistique générale de l'Algérie (annual); Exposé de la situation générale de Algérie (annual); Statistique financière... Algérie du Nord et Territoires du Sud (annual).

Algiers (French, Alger; Arabian, Al-jez-air, the islands'), capital of Algeria, is situated on the Mediterranean, about 500 m. from Marseilles. It stands on the seaward slope of high hills, and on the shores of a large semi-circular bay. The Arab town is in the form of a triangle, of which the Kasbah (fortress) forms the apex, and of which the base has been rebuilt in an imposing sea front of modern architecture. The modern town in no way differs from European cities. There are two large suburbs-St. Eugène in the north and Mustapha in the south. Mustapha Supérieur is the residential quarter for Europeans. Algiers is joined to Oran, Constantine, Tunis, and other large towns, by railway, and lies equidistant from the east and west boundaries of the country. An extent of about 10 m. along the bay is fringed with an almost unbroken succession of buildings. It pos

Algol

sesses a Roman Catholic cathedral, a military academy, observatory, museum of Mussulman art, etc.

In

With its exquisite climate, Algiers has become a favorite winter resort for Europeans. Mean temperature, 64.3 F.; January, 54.6° F.; August, 78° F. Algiers is one of the first provision and coaling stations of the Mediterranean. 1907 the tonnage of entrances was 1,853,772; of clearances, 1,845,793. Number of vessels entered was 1,677; cleared, 1,623. Of these, 19 vessels (46,554 tonnage) entered from the United States, and 30 vessels (67,356 tonnage) cleared for the United States. During the Turkish period it was the headquarters of piracy and slave-dealing. It was bombarded by Duquesne in 1682, by Lord Exmouth in 1816, and captured by the French in 1830. Population (1906) 154,049, of whom 33,949 were natives. The department of Algiers (65,930 square miles) had in 1906 a population of 1,596,333. Consult Cook's Practical Guide to Algiers (1904); Reynolds-Ball's Mediterranean Winter Resorts (1909).

Algiers, Louisiana, a suburb of New Orleans, on the south bank of the Mississippi River; connected by ferry with New Orleans. Incorporated as a city in 1852, eighteen years later it was merged with New Orleans and erected into a city ward. See NEW ORLEANS.

Algoa Bay, an open bay or roadstead southeast of Cape Colony. Here was the landing place of the settlers who founded the prosperous town of Port Elizabeth (1820). The

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bay is exposed to the southeast gales, but is largely used.

Algol, ß Persei, was catalogued by Ptolemy as the lucida of the Gorgon. It is the model 'eclipse star,' varying in brightness from 2.3 to 3.5 magnitude in a period of 2 days 20 hours 49 minutes, through the interpositions of a revolving dark satellite. The light-changes of Algol, noticed by Montanari in 1669, were methodically observed and explained by Goodricke in 1783; and his occultation hypothesis, discussed by Pickering in 1880, was spectroscopically verified by Vogel in 1889. An inequality in

Algoma

the timekeeping of the pair, compensated after about 140 years, is attributed by Dr. Chandler to its revolution round an obscure primary in an orbit crossed by light in 152 minutes. The opposite deviations of the eclipses from their calculated times would, on this supposition, be due to periodical alterations in the distance from the earth of the eclipsed body. M. Tisserand, on the other hand, accounted for the disturbance by the spheroidal shape of both the bright star and its companionthe diameter of the first-named being about 1,000,000 m., and the latter 830,000 m.; and their joint mass seems to be just twothirds that of the sun. Yet Algol must possess far more than the solar luminosity. It gives a helium spectrum, and is purely white. Al-Sufi classed it in the 10th century as a red star.

now

Algoma. (1.) Dist. Ont., Canada, on Lakes Huron and Superior. It is very rich in minerals, containing large supplies of copper, silver, and nickel. Area, 43,132 sq. m. Pop (1901) 56,500. It is traversed by the C. P. R. R. along its s. margin. (2.) Tn., a seaport on the N. channel of Lake Huron, is the see of an Anglican bishop. Pop. (1901) 3,633. (3.) City, Kewaunee co., Wis., situated on Lake Michigan and on the Ahnapee and Western R. R., 20 m. s. by w. of Sturgeon Bay. Its former name was Ahnapee. It has several manufactories. Pop. (1910) 2,082.

Algona, city, Ia., co. seat of Kossuth co., on the Des Moines R. and on the Elmore Branch of the Chi. and N. W., the Iowa and Dakota div. of the Chi., Mil., and St. P. and Iowa Cent. and W. R. Rs.; 52 m. w. of Mason City, in a good agricultural and live-stock region. It has a number of mills, foundries, and machine shops, and several handsome public buildings. Pop. (1910) 2,908.

Algonkian System. The name proposed by the United States Geological Survey for the group of rocks lying below the Cambrian and above the Laurentian or Archæan systems, from both of which the group is separated by a great unconformity. As thus constituted, the Algonkian system is one of the main divisions of the geologic scale, comprising the earliest sediments formed on the globe and the associated igneous rocks. In most regions the sedimentary strata have been profoundly metamorphosed and the original limestones, shales, and sandstones have been converted into marbles, quartzites, schists, and gneisses. The rocks of this system are of great areal importance in the Lake Superior region, where they contain valuable deposits of copper and iron. They

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are represented also in the Appalachian and Rocky Mountain districts, in Canada and many other parts of the world. See GEOLOGY.

Algonquin, a tn. and tnshp. in McHenry co., N. Ill., the centre of a prosperous dairy farm district. Crystal Lake, a popular summer resort, is in the vicinity. Pop. (1910) 3,675.

Algonquins, one of the main linguistic divisions of the N. American Indians, extended from the Rocky Mts. to Newfoundland, and from Hudson Bay to the Carolinas, though a considerable part of this area was occupied by the Iroquois. The largest tribes are known as Cree, Ojibwa, Blackfoot, and Micmac. In 1901 there were 93,319 in Canada and the U. S. Report Bureau of American Ethnology, 1885.

Algorism, or ALGORITHM, the Arabic system of numbers; a name derived from 'Al-Kharizmi,' the agnomen of Abu Jafar Mohammed, a mathematician of the 9th century A.D.

Alguazil (Sp. alguacil, from Ar. al, the,' and wazir, 'an officer or vizier,' or wazil, 'power granted by the king'), an inferior officer of justice in Spain entrusted with the duty of seeing the decision of a judge put into execution. A special class, called alguaciles mayores, is in different municipalities either hereditary or elective; while the alguaciles menores are ordinary officers attached to a court of justice.

Al-Hakim II., caliph of Cordova (961-976), a patron of art and learning. His library is said to have contained 600,000 volumes, afterwards partitioned among various colleges and the academy of Cordova.

Al-Hakim-Ibn-Otto (d. c. 780), a false prophet who came to Merv, the capital of Khorassan, in 774. He was surnamed Al-Mokanna, "The Veiled One,' because he always wore a mask in public. Moore made him the subject of his poem, Mokanna, or the Veiled Prophet of Khorassan.

Alhama (Ar. bath'). (1.) Town, prov. Murcia, Spain, 19 m. from Murcia. Famous sulphur springs frequented from ancient times. The town stands at foot of a great cliff crowned by a Moorish castle. Pop. (1900) 8,461. (2.) Town, prov. Granada, Spain, 22 m. from Granada. It is romantically situated, is a resort of invalids, and has been famed for its medicinal springs since Roman times. The upper town was damaged by an earthquake in 1884. Pop. (1900) 7,679.

Alhambra (Ar. Kilaat el-Hamara, 'Red Castle'), the palace of the Moorish kings of Granada, was erected from 1248 to about 1350. The Emperor Charles v. destroyed part of it, in order to

Alhóndiga de Granaditas

build a newer palace. In 1812 the French under Sebastiani blew up eight of the towers, and an earthquake in 1821 did serious damage. Its restoration was commenced by Queen Isabella in 1862. Even in its present condition, it is the most characteristic example of Moorish architecture and ornamentation in Spain. The Alhambra stands on a lofty terrace, enclosed by a strong wall. The parts of the palace still standing lie round two rectangular courts the Court of the Myrtles, and the Court of the Lions, in the centre of the latter being the celebrated Fountain of the Lions, a magnificent alabaster basin supported by twelve lions in white marble. The Court of the Lions is surrounded by arcades resting on white marble pillars. The portières, halls, and small gardens are of great beauty. The characteristic gloomy Moorish exterior gives place in the interior to gorgeous coloring, to the finest carving in stone, to palmlike marble pillars, and to elaborate scroll-work (arabesque). The other chief buildings are the ruined Alcazaba (i.e. the Citadel), the Hall of the Ambassadors, the Hall of the Abencerrages, and the Hall of the Two Sisters, which is connected with the baths. The South Kensington Museum contains a complete series of models of the Alhambra; there is also a model in the Crystal Palace, London. See Washington Irving's Alhambra (1832); Jones's Plans, Elevations, etc., of the Alhambra (1848); Murphy's Arabian Antiquities of Spain (1856); and Borrmann's Die Alhambra (1900).

Alhaurin el Grande, tn., Andalusia, Spain, 21 m. w. of Malaga. It is well laid out, having several squares, and is adorned with a number of fountains. There are interesting ruins of Arab fortifications and of a Roman aqueduct. Pop. (1901) 8,601.

Al-Hazan (965-1039), Arab astronomer and optician, was a native of Bassora, but afterwards settled in Cairo. He wrote a treatise on optics, which was translated into Latin, and published in Basel in 1572, under the title Optica Thesaurus. His account of the power of lenses is the earliest known, and he is credited with the first suggestion of spectacles. Kepler made considerable use of his writings.

Alhóndiga de Granaditas, a fortified public building used as a storehouse, near Guanajuato, Mexico, and noted for the resistance there offered in 1810 by officials of the local government against the insurrectionary forces at the commencement of the revolt against Spain. The defenders were taken only after a desperate resistance. Hidalgo

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