Vitoria
Vitoria, An Episcopal City Of Northern Spain, And Capital Of The Province Of Alava; On The Miranda De Ebro-alsasua Section Of The Northern Railways, Among The Southern Outliers Of The Cantabrian Mountains, And On The Left Bank Of The River Zadorra, A Left-hand Tributary Of The Ebro. Pop. (1930) 40,641. ...
Vitre
Vitre, A Town Of North-western France, In The Department Of Ille-et-vilaine, On A Hill Above The Left Bank Of The Vilaine, 24 M. E. Of Rennes By Rail. Pop. (1931) 6,647. Vitre Belonged In The Loth Century To The Younger Branch Of The Counts Of Rennes. In 1295 It Passed ...
Vitrified Forts
Vitrified Forts, The Name Given To Certain Hill-forts Of Which The Defences Consist Entirely Or To Some Extent Of Walls Which Have Been Subjected In A Greater Or Less Degree To The Action Of Fire. Their Form Is Determined By The Contour Of The Summits Which They Enclose And Generally ...
Vitriol
Vitriol, A Name Given To Sulphuric Acid And To Certain Sul Phates. Oil Of Vitriol Is Concentrated Sulphuric Acid, C.o.v. And B.o.v. Being Abbreviations For "commercial" And "brown" Oil Of Vitriol, Respectively. Blue Or Roman Vitriol Is Copper Sulphate; Green Vitriol, Ferrous Sulphate (copperas) ; White Vitriol, Zinc Sul Phate ...
Vitruvius Marcus Vitruvius
Vitruvius (marcus Vitruvius Pollio), Roman Architect And Engineer, Author Of A Celebrated Work On Architecture. Nothing Is Known Of Him Except What Can Be Gathered From His Writings. Owing To The Discovery Of Inscriptions Relating To The Gens Vitruvia At Formiae In Campania (mola Di Gaeta), It Has Been Suggested ...
Vitry Le Francois
Vitry-le-francois, A Town Of North-eastern France, Capital Of An Arrondissement In The Department Of Marne, On The Right Bank Of The Marne, 20 M. S.e. Of Chalons, On The Railway From Paris To Strasbourg. Pop. (1931) 8,727. The Marne-rhine Canal, The Haute-marne Canal, And The Lateral Canal Of The Marne ...
Vittel
Vittel, A Watering-place Of North-eastern France, In The Department Of Vosges, 31 M. W. Of Epinal By Rail. Pop. (1931) 3,106. The Cold Saline And Chalybeate Waters Are Bottled And Exported In Large Quantities. They Are Prescribed In Cases Of Arthritis, Dyspepsia, Etc. Vittel Is A Fashionable Resort. ...
Vittoria
Vittoria, A Town Of Sicily In The Province Of Ragusa, 95 M. W.s.w. Of Syracuse By Rail (42 M. Direct), Founded In The 17th Century. It Is A Prosperous Town In The Centre Of A Fertile District, With The Largest Wine Trade In Sicily. Pop. (1931) 36,429 (town), 38,628 (commune). ...
Vittorio Veneto
Vittorio Veneto, A Town And Episcopal Residence Of The Province Of Treviso, Venetia, Italy, 25 M. By Rail N. Of Treviso, 466 Ft. Above Sea-level. Pop. (1931) 16,1o8 (town), 24,234 (com Mune). It Is A Summer Resort, With Sulphur And Saline Springs (51.8° To 59° F), And Was Formed In ...
Vivarini
Vivarini, The Surname Of A Family Of Painters Of Murano (venice), Who Worked In Venice In The 15th Century And Played An Important Part In The Development Of The Venetian School. The Family Appears To Have Come To Murano From Padua. ...
Vivero
Vivero, A Town Of North-western Spain, In The Province Of Lugo; On The Ria De Vivero, An Estuary Formed By The River Landrove, Which Here Enters The Bay Of Biscay. Pop. (1930) 12,429. Vivero Is An Old-fashioned Town, Connected With The Opposite Bank Of The Estuary By A Bridge Of ...
Vivisection
Vivisection. The Term Popularly Applied To Experiments On Animals (see Animals, Experiments On ). Even In The Early Days Of Legislation On The Subject When Physiology Was In Its Infancy, The Name Was Only In A Measure Accurate, As Cutting Experiments Formed But A Portion Of The Experiments On Animals. ...
Vizagapatam
Vizagapatam, A Town And District Of British India, In The Madras Presidency. The Town Stretches Along The Coast, And Has A Station On A Short Branch Of The East Coast Railway, M. N.e. Of Madras. Pop. (1931) 57,303. It Lies On A Small Bay. The Town Or Fort, As It ...
Vizeu Or Viseu
Vizeu Or Viseu, A Portuguese Episcopal City At The Terminus Of A Branch Of The Figueira Da Foz-guarda Railway. Pop. (1930) 9,471. The City Stands Near The Ruins Of The Ancient Vacca, Or Cava De Viriato, A Roman Military Colony Founded By Decius Brutus And Captured By Viriathus (2nd Century ...
Vizianagram
Vizianagram, A Town Of British India, In The Vizagapa Tath District Of Madras, 17 M..from The Seaport Of Bimlipatam, On The East Coast Railway, 522 M. N.e. Of Madras. Pop. (1931) 44,696. It Has A Small Military Cantonment. It Contains The Resi Dence Of A Zamindar Of The Same Name, ...
Vizier
Vizier, More Correctly Vizir (arabic W Azir), Literally "bur Den-bearer" Or "helper," Originally The Chief Minister Or Repre Sentative Of The Abbasid Caliphs (see Islamic Institutions; Caliphate ; And Barmecides). ...
Vlaardingen
Vlaardingen, A River Port Of Holland, In The Province Of South Holland, On The Maas, 6 M. W. Of Rotterdam By Rail. Pop. (1930), 27,855. A Very Old Town And The Seat Of A Former Margraviate Belonging To The Counts Of Holland, Vlaardingen Is Now Chiefly Important As The Centre ...
Vlachs
Vlachs. The Vlach (wallach) Or Ruman Race Constitutes A Distinct Division Of The Latin Family Of Peoples, Widely Dis Seminated Throughout South-eastern Europe, Both North And South Of The Danube, And Extending Sporadically From The Bug To The Adriatic. The Total Numbers Of The Vlachs May Be Approximately Estimated At ...
Vladikavkaz
Vladikavkaz, A Town Of Russia In The North Caucasian Area, In 3' N., 42' E. Pop. (1933) 113,20o. The Name Means "key Of The Caucasus," And It Stands On A Plateau 2,345 Ft. High On Both Sides Of The Terek River, Where The Latter Issues From The Darial Gorge. Towering ...
Vladimir
Vladimir, A Province Of The Russian S.f.s.r., Surrounded By Those Of Moscow, Yaroslavl, Ivanovo-voznesensk, Nizhegorod And Ryazan, Not Coinciding With The Pre-i917 Province Of The Same Name. Area 30,104 Sq. Kilometres. Pop. (1926) 1,319,836. It Is Part Of The Central Russian Plateau (800-950 Ft.) And Is Grooved By River Valleys ...
Vladimir_2
Vladimir, The Chief Town Of The Above Province, Known In History As Vladimir-on-the-klyazma, To Distinguish It From Vladi Mir In Volhynia. It Is Picturesquely Situated On The Klyazma And Lybed, In 56° 8' N., 20' E. Pop. (1926) 35,319. The Town Is A Trading Centre On The Railway And River ...
Vladivostok
Vladivostok (vlah-de-vos-t6i'), A Port Of Asiatic Rus Sia, In 43° I I' N., 13i° 53' E. It Stretches Along The Northern Shore Of The Golden Horn, On The Slope Of A Ridge Of Hills Extending Westwards To The Shore Of Amur Bay. It Is The Most Important Town In The ...
Vocational Training
Vocational Training. Logically, The Term Voca Tional Training Should Include Preparation For The Practice Of Medicine, Law And Other Professions; But It Is Convenient To Restrict It To Courses Of Regular Instruction Intended To Fit Boys And Girls For Commerce, Domestic Life Or Some Branch Of Industry. The Rapidly Growing ...
Voden A
Voden A, A City Of Greek Macedonia In The Province Of Pella On The Railway From Salonika To Monastir. Pop. (1928) 13,743, Consisting Of 14% Slays And 86% Greeks. It Is The Ancient Edessa (q.v.). The Town Stands On A Rocky Height Commanding Views Of Pindus And Olympus And Is ...
Vodki Or Wodky Vodka
Vodka, Vodki Or Wodky, The Russian National Spir Ituous Beverage. Originally Vodka Was Made Almost Entirely From Rye, Barley Malt To The Extent Of 15 To 2o% Being Used To Effect Saccharification (see But At The Present Day Potatoes And Maize Are The Staple Raw Materials From Which This Spirit ...
Voghera
Voghera (anc. Iria), A Town Of Lombardy, Italy, In The Province Of Pavia, And 19 M. By Rail S.s.w. Of That City, 305 Ft. Above Sea-level, On The Staffora (a Tributary Of The Po). Pop. (1931) 25,174 (town) ; 30,422 (commune). It Is On The Old Main Line From Genoa ...
Vogtland Or Voigtland
Vogtland Or Voigtland, A District Of Germany, Forming The South-west Corner Of The Land Of Saxony, And Also Embracing Parts Of Thuringia. It Is Bounded On The North By The Former Principalities Of Reuss, On The South-east By Czecho Slovakia, And On The, South-west And West By Bavaria. Its Character ...
Voice Sounds
Voice Sounds, Sound Made By The Human Voice, Which— As Used In English And Other European Speech—can Be Produced In Two Different Forms, Namely (a) Unvoiced, I.e., Breathed Or Whispered Speech, And (b) Voiced Speech. In Unvoiced Speech The Vocal Chords Are More Or Less Separated So That The Air ...
Voice
Voice Is The Sound Produced By The Vibrations Of The Vocal Cords, Two Ligaments Or Bands Of Fibrous Elastic Tissue Situated In The Larynx. It Is To Be Distinguished From Speech, Which Is The Production Of Articulate Sounds Intended To Express Ideas. (see Singing; And For Speech See Phonetics.) Physiological ...
Voile
Voile, A Term Applied To A Distinctive Type Of Fabrics Corn Prising A Variety Of Different Textures Produced From Wool, Cot Ton And Silk, And Possessing The Same General Features. It Is Char Acterized By A Light, Open And Net-like Structure Based Essentially On The Principle Of The Plain Calico ...
Voiron
Voiron, A Town Of France In The Department Of The Isere. Pop. (1931) 9,037• It Stands At A Height Of 95o Ft., On The Morge (a Tributary Of The Isere). Voiron Long Formed Part Of Savoy, But In 1355 Was Exchanged (with The Rest Of The Region Between The Rhone ...
Voivode
Voivode, A Title In Use Among Certain Slavonic Peoples, Meaning Literally "leader Of An Army" (s1. Voi, Host, Army; Voiditi, To Lead) ; Also V Aivode, V Ayvode , W Ayvode, Etc., Med. Gr. Boebodos, And So Applied At Various Periods And In Various Eastern European Countries To Rulers, Governors ...
Volcae
Volcae, An Ancient Celtic People In The Province Of Gallia Narbonensis, Who Occupied The District Between The Garumna (garonne), Cerbenna Mons (cevennes), And The Rhodanus, Corresponding Roughly To The Old Province Of Languedoc. They Were Divided Into The Arecomici On The East And The Tectosages On The West, Separated By ...
Volcano Islands
Volcano Islands, Three Small Islands In The Western Pacific Ocean, South Of The Bonin Islands, Forming Part Of The Japanese Empire (annexed In 1891). They Are Also Known As The Magellan Archipelago, And In Japan As Kwazan-retto (series Of Volcanic Islands). They Are Situated Between 24° And 26° N. And ...
Volcano
Volcano, An Opening In The Earth's Crust, Through Which Heated Matter Is Brought To The Surface, Where It Usually Forms A Hill, More Or Less Conical In Shape, And Generally With A Hollow Or Crater At The Top. This Hill, Though Not An Essential Part Of The Volcanic Mechanism, Is ...
Vole
Vole, A Name Employed For Several Genera Of Rodents Allied To The Rats And Mice And Included In The Family Muridae. The Two Common English Forms Are Better Known As The Water-rat And The Short-tailed Field-mouse. Voles May Be Distinguished From Rats And Mice By Their Small Eyes, Blunt Snouts, ...
Volendam
Volendam, A Small Fishing Village Of Holland In The Province Of North Holland, Adjoining Edam On The Shores Of The Zuider Zee. It Is Remarkable For Its Quaint Buildings And The Picturesque Costume Of The Villagers, Who Are Of A Singularly Dark And Robust Type. Many Artists Have Been Attracted ...
Volga
Volga (tatar: Etil, Itil Or Atel; Finnish: Rau; In Ancient Times Rha And Oarus), The Longest And Most Important River Of European Russia, And The Longest River Of Europe. Its Length Is 2,325 M. ; Its Drainage Area Covers 563,30o Sq.m. And Includes Middle And Eastern Russia, As Well As ...
Volhynia
Volhynia, A Province Of Poland, Having On The North The Province Of Polesie, On The West Lublin, On The South Tarnopol Provinces, And On The East Russia. It Is Only Half The Old Region Of Volhynia, Which, After Belonging In Turn To Russia, Poland And Russia Again, Has Now Been ...
Volksrust
Volksrust, A Town Of The Transvaal, Near The Natal Bor Der, Situated 5,429 Ft. Above Sea-level, And 32o M. N.n.w. Of Durban By Rail. It Was Founded By The Boer Government In 1888 And Was Of Some Importance As A Customs Port Of Entry. It Lost This Function At The ...
Volo
Volo, A Seaport Of Greece, On The E. Coast Of Thessaly, At The Head Of The Gulf To Which It Gives Its Name. Pop. (1928) It Is Connected By Rail With The Main Athens-salonika, Railway At Larissa. The Anchorage Is Safe, Vessels Loading And Dis Charging By Means Of Lighters. ...
Vologda
Vologda, A Province Of The Russian S.f.s.r., Very Much Smaller Than The Pre-i917 Province Of That Name. Area 110,365 Sq.km. Pop. (1926) 1,052,645. The Provinces Of North Dwina, Kostroma, Yaroslavl And Cherepovetz Fringe It, As Does The Lenin Grad Area And The Karelian A.s.s.r. Much Of It Was Under Ice ...
Volsci
Volsci, Ancient Italian People Who Were Prominent In The History Of The First Century Of The Roman Republic. They Then Inhabited The Partly Hilly, Partly Marshy District Of The S. Of Latium, Bounded By The Aurunci And Samnites On The S., The Hernici On The E., And Stretching Roughly From ...
Volsinii
Volsinii, An Ancient Town Of Etruria, Italy. The Older Volsinii Occupied In All Probability The Isolated Tufa Rock, So Strongly Defended By Nature, Upon Which In Roman Times Stood The Town Which Procopius Calls 040,f3ev-rds (urbs Vetus, The Modern Orvieto). It Had, And Needed, No Outer Walls, Being Sur Rounded ...
Volta
Volta, The Largest River Of The Coast Of Upper Guinea, Be Tween The Gambia And The Niger, With A Length Of About Goo M. Its Mouth And The Greater Part Of Its Course Are In British Territory. Its Lower Course Had Been Known Since The Discoveries Of The Portuguese, From ...
Volterra
Volterra (anc. Volaterrae), A Town And Episcopal See Of Tuscany, Italy, In The Province Of Pisa, From Which It Is 51 M. By Rail S.e., And 35 By Road W.n.w. From Siena. Pop. (1931) 6,355 (town) ; 19,054 (commune). It Stands On A Com Manding Olive-clad Eminence 1,785 Ft. Above ...
Voltmeter
Voltmeter, An Instrument Which Indicates The Difference Of The Electric Potential Between Its Terminals On A Scale Graduated In Volts. Legally, The (international) Volt Is The Electromotive Force Which Produces A Current Of One (international) Ampere In A Resistance Of One (international) Ohm. This Volt Is Equal To Absolute C.g.s. ...
Volturno
Volturno, A River Of Central Italy, Which Rises In The Neigh Bourhood Of Alfedena In The Central Apennines Of Samnium, Runs South As Far As Venafro, And Then South-east. After A Course Of Some 75 M. It Receives, About 5 M. E. Of Caiazzo, The Calore. The United Stream Now ...
Volunteers
Volunteers, A General Term For Soldiers Who Are Not Professionals Nor Permanently Embodied Under Arms In Peace. The Idea Of A Large Organized Volunteer Force Seems To Have Origi Nated In England At The Time Of The Militia Bill Of 1757, Which Was Amended In 1758 So As To Allow ...
Volute
Volute, In Architecture, A Spiral Scroll, Especially That At Each End Of An Ionic Capital And Those Under The Corners Of The Abacus Of The Corinthian Or Composite Capital. (see Order.) ...
Volvox
Volvox, A Well-known Genus Of Organisms Claimed By Zoologists To Belong To The Protozoa (q.v.), But Perhaps More Justi Fiably Placed By Botanists In The Chlorophyceae, A Section Of The Algae (q.v.). Vo/vox Consists Of Spherical Colonies Of Cells, All In Protoplasmic Connection With Their Neighbours And Each Bearing A ...
Vonones
Vonones (on Coins Onones), The Name Of Two Parthian Kings. (i) Vonones I., Eldest Son Of Phraates Iv. After The Assassination Of Orodes Ii. (c. A.d. 7), The Parthians Applied To Augustus For A New King From The House Of Arsaces. Augustus Sent Them Vonones (mon. Anc. 5, 9; Tac. ...
Vorarlberg
Vorarlberg, The Most Westerly Province Of Austria, Covers An Area Of 1,005 Sq.m. And Stretches From The Arlberg Pass To The Rhine And Lake Constance. The Southern Boundary Is Formed By The Limestone Range Of The Rhatikon Alps (scesaplana, Ft.) And Part Of The Crystalline Silvretta Massif (piz Buin, 10,880 ...
Voronezh
Voronezh, A Province Of The Russian S.f.s.r., Having The Ukrainian S.s.r. And The North Caucasian Area On The South, Kursk And Orel On The West, Tambov On The North And Stalin Grad On The East. Area 65,306 Sq. Kilometres. Pop. (1926) 700. It Is Now Included In The Recently Created ...
Vorontsov Or Woronzoff
Vorontsov Or Woronzoff, The Name Of A Russian Family, Various Members Of Which Are Distinguished In Russian History. ...
Vorticella
Vorticella, The Bell-animalcule, A Protozoan Genus Of The Large Family V Orticellidae Belonging To The Peritrichous Infu Soria (q.v.) Characterized By The Bell-shaped Body, With Short Oral Disc And Collar, Attached By A Hollow Stalk, Inside And Around Which Passes, Attached Spirally, A Contractile Bundle Of Myonemes. By Their Contraction ...
Vosges
Vosges, An Upland Department Of Eastern France, Formed In 1790 Chiefly Of Territory Previously Belonging To Lorraine, To Gether With Portions Of Franche-comte And Champagne, And Bounded North By Meurthe-et-moselle, North-east By Bas-rhin, East By Haut-rhin, South-east By The Territory Of Belfort, South By Haute-saone, West By Haute-marne And North-west ...
Vosges_2
Vosges, A Mountain Range Stretching Along The West Side Of The Rhine Valley, From Basel To Mainz, A Distance Of 15o M. They Are Similar To And Closely Associated With The Black Forest. The Ranges Are Similar In Geological Formation And Are Portions Of The Same Structural Unit, For The ...
Vossevangen Or
Vossevangen Or Voss, A Village And Tourist-centre Of Norway, In South Bergenhus Amt (county), 67 M. N.w. Of Bergen By Rail. Vossevangen Is Situated On The Vangsvand, In Fertile Upland, And Has A Stone Church Of The 13th Century, And A Finfneloft Or Two-storeyed Timber Church Of The 14th Century. ...
Vossius
Vossius (voss), Gerhard Johann German Classical Scholar And Theologian, Was The Son Of Johannes Voss, A Dutch Calvinist Pastor, And Was Born In A Village Near Heidelberg, Where His Father Had Found Refuge. But Voss Was Unwelcome Among The Lutherans, And Returned With His Son To Holland. Gerhard Was Educated ...
Vote
Vote And Voting. "vote" Is Specially Employed In The Sense Of A Registering Of One's Choice In Elections Or On Matters Of Debate, And The Political Meaning Is The Only One Which Requires Comment. In Ancient Greece And Italy The Institution Of Suffrage Already Existed In A Rudimentary Form At ...
Voting Machines
Voting Machines. The Use Of The Australian Ballot System Has Been Attended With Many Complications Which Have Seriously Handicapped Its Use. These Have Resulted In The Devel Opment Of Voting Machines For Registering And Counting Votes. Every Voter Under The Australian System Uses A Separate Paper Ballot Which Causes Considerable ...
Votkinsk
Votkinsk, A Town Of Russia In The Uralsk Area, On A Tribu Tary Of The Kama River In 5' N., 55' E. Pop. (1926) 19,479. It Manufactures Agricultural Machinery, And Has Railway And Shipbuilding Yards; It Is The Terminus Of A Branch Railway. ...
Votyak Republic
Votyak Republic, An Autonomous Socialist Soviet Republic, Within The Russian S.f.s.r., Originally Part Of The Former Vyatka Province. Area 30,355 Sq.km.; Pop. (1926), 756, 109. It Is Surrounded By The Tatar A.s.s.r., And By The Provinces Of Sverdlovsk And Kirov, And Lies Between And 3o' N. And 51 ° 3o' ...
Voussoir
Voussoir, In Architecture And Building, One Of The Wedge Shaped Stones, Tiles, Bricks Or Blocks Of Other Material Of Which An Arch (q.v.) Is Composed. The Lowest Voussoir On Each Side Of An Arch Is Known As A Springer (q.v.) ; The Highest, Or Central Voussoir, As A Keystone (q.v.). ...
Voznesensk
Voznesensk, A River Port In The Ukrainian S.s.r., On The Left Bank Of The Bug River, At The Head Of Navigation, And On The Odessa-cherkassy Railway, In N., 20' E. Pop. (1926) 20,813. ...
Vranja
Vranja, The Capital Of The Vranja Department Of Serbia, Yugoslavia. Pop. (1931) 9,817, A Large Proportion Being Alba Nians. The Town Is Picturesquely Situated On Hilly Ground With A Stream Running Through It Spanned By Six Stone And Two Wooden Bridges. The Inhabitants Are Employed Chiefly In The Cultivation Of ...
Vratsa
Vratsa, The Capital Of The Department Of Vratsa, Bulgaria, On The Northern Slope Of The Stara Planina And On A Small Sub Tributary Of The Danube. Pop. (1934) 16,477. Vratsa Is An Archi Episcopal See. Wine, Leather And Gold And Silver Filigree Are Manu Factured, And There Is A School ...
Vrsac
Vrsac, A Town Of The Banat, In The Province Of The Voivo Dina, Yugoslavia (magyar Versecz). Pop. (1931) 29,423, Com Prising Serbs, Germans And Magyars. It Is Famous For Its Red Wines And Brandy. Large Quantities Of Maize Are Grown In The District And Some Wheat And Oats. There Are ...
Vryheid
Vryheid, A Town In South Africa, 291 M. N. By W. Of Durban; 49' S. Lat., 44' E. Long.; Altitude 3,921 Ft. Pop. (1921) 4,019 (2,062 White). In The Vicinity A Considerable Num Ber Of Important Collieries Are Being Worked. The Hlobane Coal Fields Are South-east Of The Town. Vryheid ...
Vulcan
Vulcan, The Roman God Of Fire (volcanus), And More Espe Cially Of Devouring Flame (virg., Aen. 5. 662). Whether He Was Also, Like Hephaestus, The Deity Of Smiths, Is Very Doubtful ; His Surname Mulciber May Rather Be Referred To His Power To Allay Conflagrations. In The Comitium Was An ...
Vulcanite
Vulcanite, A Useful Insulating Material, Manufactured By Over-vulcanizing Rubber, Whence Its Name. Rubber Rolled With A Considerable Proportion Of Sulphur And Heated To A Temperature Of About 15o°, Becomes Hard And Capable Of Taking A High Polish. It Can Be Either Moulded In Manufacture To Any Required Form Or Cut ...
Vulci
Vulci, An Ancient Town Of Etruria, Some Ro M. N.w. Of Tarquinii. The Circuit Of The Walls Measures About 4 M., And Scanty Traces Of Them And Of Roman Buildings Within Them Still Exist. The Ponte Della Badia Over The Fiora, A Bridge With A Main Arch Of 66 Ft. ...
Vulgate
Vulgate, A Latin Version Of The Bible Prepared In The 4th Century By St. Jerome, And So Called From Its Common Use In The Roman Catholic Church (see Bible : Old Testament : Texts And Versions). ...
Vulture
Vulture, The Name Applied To A Group Of Birds Whose Best-known Characteristic Is That Of Feeding On Carrion. The American Forms Are Quite Distinct From The Others And Include The Condor (q.v.), The Califor Nian Vulture (gymnogyps Cali Fornianus), The King Vulture (sar Coramphus Papa), With A Gaudily Coloured Head, ...
Vyatka
Vyatka (now Renamed Krrov), A Province Of The Russian S.f.s.r., Surrounded By The Komi, Udmurt, Tatar And Marii Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republics, And By The Northern, Sverdlovsk And Gorki Provinces. Area 108,393 Sq.km. Pop. (1926) 2,222,792. It Is Smaller Than The Pre-1914 Province Of The Same Name. It Has On ...
Vyazma
Vyazma, A Town Of Russia In The Smolensk Province In 55° 11' N., 34° 19' E., At The Confluence Of The Berba And Vyazma Rivers. Pop. (1926) 17,217. It Is A Railway Junction And Has Leather, Oil-pressing And Match Factories. In The 11th Century It Was A Trade Centre Linked ...
Vycpalek Ladislav
Vycpalek Ladislav ), Czech Composer, Was Born At Vrsovice Near Prague In 1882. He Is One Of The Most Serious And Intellectual Of Modern Composers, Leaning Strongly Towards Mysticism And Sacrificing Both Colour And Euphony, Where Necessary To Polyphonic Requirements. His Most Interesting Work Is The Cantata, Of The Last ...
Vyrnwy
Vyrnwy (fyrnwy), An Artificial Lake Or Reservoir In The North-west Of Montgomeryshire, North Wales, Constructed For The Liverpool Water-supply. It Was Formed By Damming The River Vyrnwy, Which Joins The Severn Above Shrewsbury. A Town Of Russia In The Province Of Tver, In 38' N., 33' E., On The Moscow-leningrad ...
W The 23rd Letter
W The 23rd Letter Of The Alphabet. This Letter, As Its Name Implies, Was The Letter U Or V, Which Were Identical Till Comparatively Recent Times, Doubled And Used By The Norman Scribes To Represent The English Bilabial Spirant (modern W), Which Had Previously Been Represented In The Saxon Hands ...
Wabash Railway Company
Wabash Railway Company Is The Oldest Trans Portation System In The Mississippi Valley, U.s.a. The First Train Was Run On Nov. 8, 1838. At That Time The Railway Was Known As The "northern Cross," And Ran From Meredosia To Morgan City, Illinois, A Distance Of 12 Miles. It Was Almost ...
Wabash
Wabash, A City Of Indiana, U.s.a., On The Wabash River And Federal Highway 24. Pop. (1920) 9,872; And In 193o, 8,84o. It Is A Manufacturing City And The Trade Centre For A Rich Agricultural Region. Wabash Was Settled About 1834 And Chartered As A City In 1866. It Was One ...
Wace
Wace (?) Robert (i'00?-1175?), Chron Icler, Was Born In Jersey. He Studied At Caen; He Became Per Sonally Known To Henry I., Henry Ii., And The Latter's Eldest Son, Prince Henry; From Henry Ii. He Received A Prebend At Bayeux And Other Gifts. Except For These Facts He Is Known ...
Wadai
Wadai, A Country Of North Central Africa, Bounded North By The Sahara And East By Darfur Province Of The Anglo-egyptian Sudan. West And South-west It Extended To Kanem And Bagirmi And South-east To Dar Runga. Formerly An Independent Mo Hammedan Sultanate, It Was Conquered By The French In 1909-10 And ...