A bee is a social gathering for some useful work. The term is most often encountered in spelling-bee, a contest in spellings popular in America. The custom of bees originated in Devon in England, and was introduced to America during the 17th century. Research Bee
The word contest has several interpretations within the English language. In popular parlance, a contest is often regarded as a conflict or competition. This may be friendly, such as a sports contest, or more aggressive such as a contention. Another interpretation of contest is in the form of a keen controversy, where one disputes an argument. Thus, one can contest another's statement.
Formerly, during the 17th century, the term contest was used to mean to bear witness, or to confirm or assert with the witness of an oath. Thus to contest was to swear to a fact or statement under oath. But this use had fallen into disuse by the 20th century. Research Contest
Historically the Democratic Party was the most important of the American political parties, having been in continuous existence since the end of the 18th century. The rise of such a party, as soon as national politics began under the new Constitution, was natural. The love of individual liberty rather than strong government, was native in the minds of most Americans. Those who felt this most strongly would be likely to look with apprehension upon the Federal Government, and the possibility of its encroaching upon the States under cover of the new Federal Constitution. They were therefore likely to be advocates of strict construction of the Constitution and of States' rights. To these elements of party feeling, which had drawn the Anti-Federalists together in 1788, was added a few years later the strong sympathy of many Americans with the French Revolution, and the desire that Government should aid France in her contest with England.
Thomas Jefferson put himself at the head of the party drawn together by agreement in these sentiments, and led them in opposition to the Federalists. The party took the name of Democratic-Republican. Before Monroe's administration its members were more commonly called Republicans, since then most commonly Democrats. From the first the party was strongest in the Southern States. From its origin in 1792 to 1801, it was in opposition. In 1798 and 1799, upon the passage of the Alien and Sedition laws, it took strong ground for States' rights in the Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions. The election of Jefferson. in 1801 brought it into power. The chief tenets of the party were, belief in freedom of religion, of politics, of speech and of the press, in popular rule, in peace, in economical government, in the utmost possible restriction of the sphere of government, in hospitality to immigrants, and in the avoidance of foreign complications.
Placed in control of the government, the majority of the party drifted away from its strict constructionist ground, and supported measures of a nationalizing character. After the War of 1812, the Federalist party went out of existence, and the Democratic party had complete possession of the field. In 1820, Monroe was re-elected without opposition. But opposing tendencies in the nation and in the party were already showing themselves, and preparing the way for a new party division, between the Whigs, advocates of protection and other nationalizing measures, and those Democrats who held to the old programme of States' rights and free trade and restricted government. With the accession of Jackson in 1829, new social strata came into power in the Democratic party, the widening of the suffrage giving it a more popular character. Managed by skilful politicians, not without the aid of the spoils system, the party won every Presidential election but two (1840, 1848) from this time to 1860, destroyed the US bank, annexed Texas, and carried the country through the war with Mexico. But meanwhile the slavery question, coming into increasing prominence, was gradually forcing a division between the Democrats of the South and the great body of those in the North, who were unwilling to go so far in the protection of slavery by national authority as was desired by their Southern allies. The final split came in the nominating convention of 1860.
Two candidates were nominated, Abraham Lincoln and the Republicans won the election, and the American Civil War broke out. Though many War Democrats aided the administration in preserving the Union, the party was discredited in the eyes of many by its previous connection with the Southern leaders and the pro-slavery cause, and won no Presidential election until that of 1884, when in the minds of many the war issues were extinct and economic questions had taken their place. Defeated in 1888, it was again successful in 1892. By the end of the 19th century the party was hardly more strict-constructionist than the Republican, nor more marked by devotion to States' rights and the party was mostly noted as the opponent of a high tariff.
By the end of the 20th century the differences between the Democratic party and Republicans had become blurred, though the Democratic party was generally perceived - not always accurately - as more left-wing or liberal than the Republicans. Research Democratic Party
The Fronde was a French party during the minority of Louis XIV, which waged civil war against the court party on account of the heavy fiscal impositions laid on thepeople by Cardinal Maxarin, whom the queen-mother had appointed prime-minister after the decease of Louis XIII in 1648. At the head of the Fronde stood the Cardinal de Retz, and latterly the Prince LouisConde. The result of this contest, which lasted from 1648 to 1654, served only to strengthen the royal power. Research Fronde
The Guelfs and Ghibellines were two great Italian political parties in the 13th and 14th centuries. The names are derived from the Italian Guelfi and Ghibellini, which are corrupted from the German Welfen and Waiblingen. These latter words came to be used as party designations in Germany, in the war between Henry the Proud and Conrad of Hohenstaufen, to whom belonged the estate of Waiblingen in Wurtemberg. About the year 1200 the designations Guelf and Ghibelline came to be employed to denote respectively the Italian patriotic and papal party, and the party which supported the domination of the German emperors in Italy. After the fall of the Hohenstaufen the Ghibellines became the partisans of aristocracy, and the Guelfs the partisans of democracy and liberty; but the designations ultimately denoted mere communal and family feuds, and Dante, originally a Guelf, but subsequently a Ghibelline, asserted that the two parties were the cause of all the miseries of Italy. The contest continued with bitterness for almost 300 years. Corresponding parties appeared in Italy under many different names, as the bianchi and neri (white and black) in Florence, etc. Research Guelfs and Ghibellines
Humming-bird is the popular name for the Trochilidae family of minute and beautiful birds, so called from the sound of their wings in flight. The beak is slender, generally long, sometimes straight and sometimes curved. The tongue is long and filiform. They feed by hovering by a plant and use their tongue to catch insects.
In size humming-birds vary from that of a wren to that of a humble-bee. They never light to take food, but feed while on the wing, hovering before a flower, supported by a rapid vibratory movement of the wings which produces the humming noise. These beautiful birds are peculiar to America, and almost exclusively tropical. One species, the ruby-throated humming-bird (Trochilus colubris) is pretty common in the north-east of the United States. The only note of the humming-bird is a single chirp, not louder than that of a cricket. It is very fearless and irascible, two males scarcely ever meeting without a contest. Among the more remarkable of these birds is the tufted-necked humming-bird (Ornismya ornata) of Guiana and Northern Brazil. In this species the crest, outer tail-feathers, and neck-plumea are reddish chestnut, the latter tipped with green, the throat and upper part of the breast are emerald green, the back bronze green. Research Humming-bird
Anglo-Saxons is the name commonly given to the nation or people formed by the amalgamation of the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes, who settled in Britain in the fifth and sixth centuries, the Anglo-Saxons being simply the English people of the earlier period of English history. The tribes who were thus the ancestors of the bulk of the English-speaking nationalities came from north Germany, where they inhabited the parts about the mouths of the Elbe and Weser, and the first body of them who gained a footing in Britain are said to have landed in 449, and to have been led by Hengist and Horsa. From the preponderance of the Angles the whole country came to be called Engla-land, that is, the land of the Angles or English.
The whole Anglo-Saxon community was frequently spoken of as consisting of the eorls and the ceorls, or the nobles and common freemen. The former were the men of property and position, the latter were the small landholders, handicraftsmen, etc, who generally placed themselves under the protection of some nobleman, who was hence termed their hlaford or lord. Besides these there was the class of the serfs or slaves (theowas), who might be either born slaves or freemen who had forfeited their liberty by their crimes, or whom poverty or the fortune of war had brought into this position. They served as agricultural labourers on their masters' estates, and were merechattels, as absolutely the property of their master as his cattle.
The king (cyning, cyng) was at the head of the state; he was the highest of the nobles and the chief magistrate. He was not looked upon as ruling by any divine right, but by the will of the people, as represented by the witan (wise men) or great council of the nation. The new king was not always the direct and nearest heir of the late king, but one of the royal family whose abilities and character recommended him for the office. He had the right of maintaining a standing army of household troops, the duty of calling together the witan, and of laying before them public measures, with certain distinctions of dress, dwelling, etc, all his privileges being possessed and exercised by the advice and consent of the witenagemot or parliament (literally meaning meeting of the wise). Next in rank and dignity to the king were the ealdormen, who were the chief witan or counsellors, and without whose assent laws could not be made, altered, or abrogated. They were at the head of the administration of justice in the shires, possessing both judicial and executive authority, and had as their officers the scir-gerefan or sheriffs. The ealdormen led the fyrd or armed force of the county, and the ealdorman, as such, held possession of certain lands attached to the office, and was entitled to a share of fines and other moneys levied for the king's use and passing through his hands. The whole executive government may be considered as a great aristocratical association, of which the ealdormen were the members, and the king little more than the president. The ealdorman and the king were both surrounded by a number of followers called thegnas or thanes, who were bound by close ties to their superior. The king's thanes were the higher in rank, they possessed a certain quantity of land, smaller in amount than that of an ealdorman, and they filled offices connected with the personal service of the king or with the administration of justice. The scir-gerefa (shire-reeve or sheriff) was also
important functionary. He presided at the county-court along with the ealdorman and bishop, or alone in their absence; and he had to carry out the decisions of the court, levy fines, collect taxes, etc. The shires were divided into hundreds and tithings, the latter consisting of ten heads of families, who were jointly responsible to the state for the good conduct of any member of their body. Eor the trial and settlement of minor causes there was a hundred court held once a month. The place of the modern parliament was held by the witena-gemot. Its members, who were not elected, comprised the gethelings or princes of the blood royal, the bishops and abbots, the ealdormen, the thanes, the sheriffs, etc.
One of the peculiar features of Anglo-Saxon society was the wergyld, which was established for the settling of feuds. A sum, paid either in kind or in money, was placed upon the life of every freeman, according to his rank in the state, his birth, or his office. A corresponding sum was settled for every wound that could be inflicted upon his person; for nearly every injury that could be done to his civil rights, his honour, or his domestic peace, etc. From the operation of this principle no one from king to peasant was exempt.
Agriculture, including especially the raising of cattle, sheep, and swine, was the chief occupation of the Anglo-Saxons. Gardens and orchards are frequently mentioned, and vineyards were common in the southern counties. The forests were extensive, and valuable both from the mast they produced for the swine, and from the beasts of the chase which they harboured. Hunting was a favourite recreation among the higher ranks, both lay and clerical. Fishing was largely carried on, herrings and salmon being the principal fish caught; and the Anglo-Saxon whaling vessels used to go as far as Iceland. The manufactures were naturally of small moment. Iron was made to some extent, and some cloth, and salt works were numerous. In embroidery and working in gold the English were famous over Europe. There was a considerable trade at London, which was frequented by Normans, French, Flemings, and the merchants of the Hanse towns. Our Anglo-Saxon forefathers were notorious for their excess in eating and drinking, and in this respect formed a strong contrast to the Norman conquerors. Ale, mead, and cider were the common beverages, wine being limited to the higher classes. Pork and eels were favourite articles of food. The houses were rude structures, but were often richly furnished and hung with fine tapestry. The dress of the people was loose and flowing, composed chiefly of linen, and often adorned with embroidery. The men wore their hair long and flowing over their shoulders. Christianity was introduced among the Anglo-Saxons in the end of the sixth century by St Augustine, who was sent by Pope Gregory the Great, and became the first Archbishop of Canterbury. Kent, then under King Ethelred, was the first place where it took root, and thence it soon spread over the rest of the country. The Anglo-Saxon Church long remained independent of Rome, notwithstanding the continual efforts of the popes to bring it under their power. It was not until the tenth century that this result was
t about by Dunstan. Many Anglo-Saxon ecclesiastics were distinguished for learning and ability, but the VenerableBede holds the first place.
The Anglo-Saxon language, which is simply the earliest form of English, claims kinship with Dutch, Icelandic, Danish, Swedish, and German, especially with the Low German dialects (spoken in North Germany). It was not called Anglo-Saxon by those who spoke it, but Englisc (English), and many condemn the former name as a misnomer. The existing remains of Anglo-Saxon literature show different dialects, of which the northern and the southern were the principal. The former was the first to be cultivated as a literary language, but afterwards it was supplanted in this respect by the southern or that of Wessex. It is in the latter that the principal Anglo-Saxon works are written. The Anglo-Saxon alphabet was substantially the same as that which we still use, except that some of the letters were different in form, while it had two characters either of which represented the sounds of th in thy and in thing. Nouns and adjectives are declined much as in German or in Latin. The pronouns of the first and second person had a dual number, 'we tw' or 'us two' and 'you two', besides the plural for more than two. The infinitive of the verb is in -am, the participle in -ende, and there is a gerund somewhat similar in its usage to the Latingerund. The verb had four moods - indicative, subjunctive, imperative, and infinitive, but only two tenses, the present (often used as a future) and the past. Other tenses and the passive voice were formed by auxiliary verbs. Anglo-Saxon words terminated in a vowel much more frequently than the modern English, and altogether the language is so different that it has to be learned quite like a foreign tongue. Yet notwithstanding the large number of words of Latin or French origin that our language now contains, and the changes it has undergone, its framework, so to speak, is still Anglo-Saxon. Many chapters of the New Testament do not contain more than four per cent of non-Teutonic words, and as a whole it averages perhaps six or seven.
The existing remains of Anglo-Saxon literature include compositions in prose and poetry, some of which must be referred to a very early period, one or two perhaps to a time before the Angles and Saxons emigrated to England. The most important Anglo-Saxon poem is that called Beowulf, after its hero, extending to more than 6000 lines. Beowulf is a Scandinavian prince, who slays a fiendish cannibal, after encountering supernatural perils, and is at last slain in a contest with a frightful dragon. Its scene appears to be laid entirely in Scandinavia. Its date is uncertain; parts of it may have been brought over at the emigration from Germany, though in its present form it is much later than this. The poetical remains include a number of religious poems, or poems on sacred themes; ecclesiastical narratives, as lives of saints and versified chronicles; psalms and hymns; secular lyrics; allegories, gnomes, riddles, etc. The religious class of poems was the largest, and of these Caedmon's (about 660) are the most remarkable. His poems consist of loose versions of considerable portions of the Biblehistory, and treat of the creation, the temptation, the fall, the exodus of the Israelites, the story of Daniel, the incarnation, and the harrowing of hell, or release of the ransomed souls by Christ. Other most interesting poems are those ascribed to Cynewulf, the Christ, Elene, and Juliana, the subjects respectively being Christ, the finding of the cross by the EmpressHelena, and the life of Juliana. Rhyme was little used in Anglo-Saxon poetry, alliteration being employed instead, as in the older northern poetry generally. The style of the poetry is highly elliptical, and it is full of harsh inversions and obscure metaphors.
The Anglo-Saxon prose remains consist of translations of portions of the Bible, homilies, philosophical writings, history, biography, laws, leases, charters, popular treatises on science and medicine, grammars, etc. Many of these were translations from the Latin. The Anglo-Saxon versions of the Gospels, next to the Moeso-Gothic, are the earliest scriptural translations in any modern language. The Psalms are said to have been translated by Bishop Aldhelm (who died in 709), and also under Alfred's direction; and the Gospel of St John by Bede; but it is not known who were the authors of the extant versions. A translation of the first seven books of the Bible is believed to have been the work of Aelfric, who was Abbot of Ensham and lived in the beginning of the eleventh century. We have also eighty homilies from his pen, several theological treatises, a Latingrammar, etc. King Alfred was a diligent author, besides being a translator of Latin works. We have under his name translations of Boethius De Consolatione Philosophise, the Universal History of Orosius, Bede's Ecclesiastical History, the Pastoral Care of Gregory the Great, etc. The most valuable to us of the Anglo-Saxon prose writings is the Saxon Chronicle, as it is called, a collection of annals recording important events in the history of the country, and compiled in different religious houses. The latest text comes down to 1154. A considerable body of laws remains, as well as a large number of charters. Research Anglo-Saxons
Benjamin Harrison was an American politician. He was born in 1740 at Virginia and died in 1791. He was a member of the House of Burgesses in 1764, a member of the Correspondence Committee in 1773, and a delegate to the Continental Congress from 1774 to 1778. From 1778 to 1782 he was Speaker of the Virginia House of Burgesses, and ardently advocated united opposition to Great Britain. He was Governor of the State from 1782 to 1784, and when a delegate to the State Convention of 1788 opposed the ratification of the Constitution as being a national and not a Federal document.
Benjamin Harrison was the 23rd president of the USA from 1889 to 1893. He was born in 1833 at North Bend, Ohio and died in 1901. The grandson of President William Henry Harrison, he graduated at Miami University in 1852, and settled as a lawyer in Indianapolis. He was elected reporter of the Indiana Supreme Court in 1860, but his term was interrupted by the American Civil War.
He volunteered in 1863 and was colonel of an Indianaregiment in the battles of Resaca and Peach Tree Creek in 1864 he won distinction. Leaving the army with the brevet of brigadier-general, he resumed his position of Supreme Court reporter.
General Harrison was a successful lawyer and campaign orator, and in 1876 he received the Republican nomination for Governor, being defeated by a small majority. His name was presented to the Republican National Convention of 1880. Elected to the US Senate, he served from 1881 to 1887. At the National Convention of 1888 he was a leading candidate from the start, received the nomination, and was elected over President Cleveland in a campaign in which protection was the principal issue.
In his Cabinet, James Blaine in the State and Windom in the Treasury Department were national figures. Proctor, and later Elkins, was in the War Department, B F Tracy in the Navy, Noble in the Interior, Rusk Secretary of Agriculture, MillerAttorney-General, and Wanamaker Postmaster-General. The administration was marked politically by the McKinley Tariff Act in 1890, with the attendant feature of reciprocity; the foreign relations with Chili and Hawaii were matters of interest.
In 1892 the President was a candidate for renomination, and received the gift over his powerful rival, James Blaine, who resigned from the Cabinet during the contest. President Harrison was in the election again confronted with Cleveland. The Democratic reaction, very marked in 1890, proved to be still in force, and the President was defeated and retired from office in 1893. Research Benjamin Harrison
Charles Cornwallis (Lord Cornwallis) was a British soldier and the first marquess of Cornwallis. He was born in 1737 and died in 1805. He served in the Seven Years' War. He took his seat in Parliament and favoured the Americans during the preliminary troubles. Having been made lieutenant-general he was sent to America in 1776, fought in the Battle of Long Island, and pursued George Washington's army through New Jersey. He was defeated at the Battle of Princeton, decided the victory of Brandywine in 1777, and served at Germantown and Monmouth. Having been appointed to the command of the Southern army he overwhelmed Gates at Camden in 1780, but in his contest with Greene he was worsted, although he won a technical victory at Guilford Court House in 1781. Then followed his campaign in Virginia against Lafayette, the siege of his army in Yorktown, and its surrender to the Franco-American troops on October the 17th 1781. As Governor-General of India, from 1786 until 1793 and in 1805, he rendered valuable military and administrative services. He was also lord-lieutenant of Ireland, from 1798 until 1801, at the epoch of the Union. Research Charles Cornwallis
The Probert Encyclopaedia was designed, edited and programed by
Matt and Leela Probert
Abbreviations
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