Mahogany
Mahogany, A Dark-coloured Wood Largely Used For House Hold Furniture, The Product Of A Large Tree Indigenous To Central America And The West Indies. It Was Originally Received From Jamaica; 521,300 Ft. Were Exported From That Island In 1753. It Is Known Botanically As Swietenia Mahogani, And Is A Member ...
Mahrattas
Mahrattas. The Mahrattas Are A Mixed People Inhabit Ing Central India From Gwalior To Goa. Their Religion Is Hinduism And Their Language Is Marathi. Their Origin Is Obscure, But They Seem To Have Entered India Before Mahmud Of Ghazni With His Mohammedan Horde Conquered Indian States In The Early Century. ...
Maidstone
Maidstone, Market Town, Municipal Borough And County Town Of Kent, England, 41 M. E.s.e. Of London By Rail. Pop. (1931) 42,259; Area, 4,008 Ac. There Is Evidence Of A Roman Settlement But The Name Maid Stone (medwegestun, Meddestane, Maydestan), Probably Mean Ing Medway Town, Is Presumably Saxon. At The Time ...
Maimonides Rabbi Moses Ben
Maimonides (rabbi Moses Ben Maimon) (1135— 1204), Also Known From The Initials Of These Last Words As Ram Bam, Jewish Philosopher And Master Of Rabbinic Literature, Was Born In Cordova On March 3o, 1135, And Educated By His Father And By Arabic Masters. When Cordova Was Taken By The Vic ...
Maina
Maina (or Mani) And Mainotes, A District And People Of The Peloponnesus, The Modern Morea. Maina Is The Country Occupied By The Mountain Range Of Taygetus From Sparta To Cape Matapan, The Ancient Taenarum. It Is Now Divided Between The Modern Districts Oetylos And Gythion. It Contained Over A Hundred ...
Maine
Maine, Is The Most Northeasterly State Of The United States Of America And The Largest State In New England. It Lies Between And 27' 33" N. And Between 66° 56' 48" And 6' 41" W. And Is Bounded On The North-west By Quebec; North And East By New Brunswick; South-south-east ...
Maine De Biran
Maine De Biran, Francois-pierre-gon Thier (1766-1824), French Philosopher, Was Born At Bergerac, On Nov. 29, 1766. The Name Maine He Assumed (some Time Before 1787) From An Estate Called Le Maine, Near Mouleydier. After Studying Under The Doctrinaires Of Perigueux, He Entered The King's Life-guards, And Was Present At Versailles ...
Mainpuri
Mainpuri, A Town And District Of British India, In The Agra Division Of The United Provinces. The Town (pop. [1931], 16,483) Consists Of Two Separate Portions, Mainpuri Proper And Mukhamganj. Holkar Plundered And Burned Part Of The Town In 1804, But Was Repulsed By The Local Militia. Since The British ...
Maintenance And Champerty
Maintenance And Champerty. In English Law Maintenance Is The Maintaining Or Assisting A Party, With Money Or Otherwise, To Prosecute Or Defend An Action In Which The Main Tainer Has No Legitimate Interest. The Law Allows A Master To Assist His Servant, Near Relations To Support Each Other, The Charitable ...
Mainz
Mainz (fr. Mayence), A City And Episcopal See Of Germany, Situated On The Left Bank Of The Rhine, Which Is Here Crossed By Three Bridges, Almost Opposite The Influx Of The Main, In The Republic Of Hesse, And At The Junction Of The Important Main Lines Of Railway From Cologne ...
Maize Or Indian Corn
Maize Or Indian Corn, Zea Mays (from Or Et.6., Which Appears To Have Been "spelt," Triticum Spelta, According To The Description Of Theophrastus), A Plant Of The Tribe Maydeae Of The Family Gramineae Or Grasses. Composition. ...
Majesty
Majesty, Dignity, Greatness, A Term Especially Used To Ex Press The Dignity And Power Of A Sovereign. This Application Is To Be Traced To The Use Of Maiestas In Latin To Express The Supreme Sovereign Dignity Of The Roman State, The Maiestas Republicae Or Populi Romani, Hence Maiestatem Laedere Or ...
Major
Major (or Mair), John Scottish Theolog Ical And Historical Writer, Was Born At Gleghornie, Near North Ber Wick. He Studied At Cambridge And In Paris, Where He Graduated Master Of Arts In 1496. At St. Andrew's University George Buchanan Was One Of His Pupils. He Maintained The Scotist Position, That ...
Major_2
Major (lat. For "greater"), A Word Used, Both As A Substan Tive And Adjective, For That Which Is Greater Than Another In Size, Quality, Degree, Importance, Etc. ; Often Opposed Correlatively To That Which Is "minor" In The Same Connotation. In The Cate Gorical Syllogism In Logic, The "major Term" ...
Majorca
Majorca, The Largest Of The Group Of Spanish Islands In The Mediterranean Sea Known As The Balearic Islands (q.v.). Pop. (1930) 302,134; Area, 43o Sq. Miles. On The North-west The Coast Is Precipitous, But On The Other Sides It Is Low And Sloping. On The North-east The Chief Bays Are ...
Makran Or Mekran
Makran Or Mekran, A Province Of Baluchistan, Fring Ing The Arabian Sea From Persia Almost To Sind For About 200 M. It Is Subject To The Khan Of Kalat Under British Political Super Vision. Total Area, 23,269 Sq.m. ; Total Population (1931), 68,462. The Long Lateral Valley Of Kej Is ...
Malabar
Malabar, A District Of British India, In The Madras Presi Dency. Geographically The Name Is Sometimes Extended To The Entire Western Coast Of The Peninsula. Properly It Should Apply To The Strip Below The Ghats, Which Is Inhabited By People Speaking The Malayalam Language, A Branch Of The Dravidian Stock, ...
Malacca
Malacca, A Town On The West Coast Of The Malay Peninsula, In 2° 14' N., 102° 12' E., Which, With The Territory Immediately Around And Behind It Forms One Of The Straits Settlements, And Gives Its Name To The Straits That Divide Sumatra From The Malay Peninsula. Malacca Is Administered ...
Malachi
Malachi, The Name Assigned To The Last Book Of The Old Testament In English (the Last Of The "prophets" In The Hebrew Bible), Which According To The Title (mal. I. I) Contains The "word Of Yahweh To Israel By The Hand Of Malachi." In Form The Word Means "my Messenger." ...
Malachite
Malachite, A Bright Green Mineral, Consisting Of A Basic Copper Carbonate, It Belongs To The Mono Clinic System, But Rarely Forms Good Crystals, Occurring Mostly As Nodular, Botryoidal Or Reniform Masses, With Pronounced Radial And Concentric Structure, Successive Layers Often Varying Much In Colour. It May Also Be Quite Compact ...
Malacostraca
Malacostraca, The Largest Sub-class Of The Crustacea (q.v.), Including The Lobsters, Crawfish, Crabs, Shrimps, Prawns, Beach-fleas, Sow-bugs And Various Other Crustaceans. They May Be Briefly Defined As Crustacea Having The Body Composed Of Nine Teen Somites, All, Typically, Bearing Appendages, The Trunk-limbs Differentiated Into Two Series, A Thoracic Of Eight ...
Malaga
Malaga, A Maritime Province Of Spain, One Of The Eight Modern Subdivisions Of Andalusia; Bounded On The West By Cadiz, North By Seville And Cordova, East By Granada, And South By The Mediterranean Sea. Pop. (193o), 613,16o; Area, 2,812 Square Miles. The Northern Half Of Malaga Belongs To The Anda ...
Malaga_2
Malaga, The Capital Of The Province Of Malaga, An Epis Copal See, And, Next To Barcelona, The Most Important Seaport Of Spain, Finely Situated On The Mediterranean Coast, At The Southern Base Of The Axarquia Hills And At The Eastern Extremity Of The Fer Tile Vega (plain) Of Malaga In ...
Malar
Malar, A Lake Of Sweden, Extending 73 M. Westward From Stockholm, Which Lies At Its Junction With The Saltsjo, An Arm Of The Baltic Sea. The Height Of The Lake Normally Only Reaches 2 Ft. Above Sea-level, And Its Outflow Is Sometimes Reversed. The Area Is 449 Sq.m., And The ...
Malaria
Malaria (syn. Ague, Intermittent [and Remittent] Fever, Marsh Fever, Jungle Fever, Hill Fever), A Disease Caused By The Presence Of Special Micro-parasites In The Blood, Conveyed To Man By Anopheline Mosquitoes And Characterized By Exacerbations At Regular Intervals, The So-called "ague Fit." The Ague Fit Begins With Chilliness, Increasing Until ...
Malatia Malatieh Or
Malatia (malatieh Or Asvuzu), The Chief Town Of A Vilayet In Asia Minor, On The Samsun-sivas-diarbekr Road, Alti Tude 2,900 Ft., Situated About Io M. S.w. Of The Junction Of The Tokhma Su (med. Kubakib) With The Euphrates, Near The South End Of A Fertile Plain, And At The Northern ...
Malay Archipelago
Malay Archipelago, The Largest Group Of Islands In The World, Lying South-east Of Asia And North And North-west Of Australia. It Includes The Sunda Islands, The Moluccas, New Guinea And The Philippine Islands, But Excludes The Andaman Nicobar Group. The Equator Passes Through The Middle Of The Archipelago; It Successively ...
Malay Language
Malay Language. ,having Been The Common Me Dium Of Intercourse In The Malay Archipelago For More Than Four Centuries Past, Malay Is For Practical Purposes The Most Im Portant Of The Indonesian Languages. But It Is Not The Most Typical One, For Its Morphological System Has Been Much Simpli Fied, ...
Malay Peninsula
Malay Peninsula (called By Malays Tanah Malayu, I.e., Malay Land), Projects Into The China Sea, And Forms The Most Southerly Portion Of The Continent Of Asia. Geographically, It Begins At The Isthmus Of Kra, O° N., At Which Point It Is Only Between 6o And 7o M. Wide, And The ...
Malay States British
Malay States (british). The Native States Of The Malay Peninsula Under British Protection Are Divided Into Two Groups: (i) Federated, And (2) Unfederated. (for Information Concerning The Botany, Geology, Etc., Of The Malay States, See The Federated States (area 27,506 Sq.m.), Under The Protection Of Great Britain, But Not British ...
Malays
Malays, The Name Given By Europeans To The People Calling Themselves Orang Malaya, I.e., Malayan Folk, Who Are The Domi Nant Race Of The Malay Peninsula And The Malay Archipelago, And To The Brown Races Which Inhabit The Portion Of Asia South Of Siam And Indo-china, And The Islands From ...
Maldive Islands
Maldive Islands, An Archipelago Of Coral Islets In The Indian Ocean, Forming A Chain Between 7° 6' N. And O° 42' S. It Consists Of Seventeen Atolls With An Immense Number Of Islands, Of Which Some Three Hundred Are Inhabited. In The Extreme South Are The Isolated Atolls Of Addu ...
Maldon
Maldon, A Market Town, Municipal Borough And Port, In Essex, England, On The South Side Of The Blackwater, 43 M. E.n.e. From London By A Branch From Witham Of The L.n.e. Railway. Pop. (1931) 6,559. At Maldon (maelduna, Melduna, Mealdon Or Meaudon), Finds Of Prehistoric Objects Indicate Early Settlement. An ...
Malines
Malines (flemish, Mechelen), An Ancient And Important City, And The Seat Since 1559 Of The Only Belgian Archbishopric. Pop. (1930) 60,438. It Is On The Dyle In The Province Of Antwerp, About Half-way Between Antwerp And Brussels. The Archbishop Is The Primate Of The Country. The Archbishop's Palace Is In ...
Mallow
Mallow, Botanically Malva, The Typical Genus Of The Family Malvaceae, Embracing About 3o Species Of Annual And Perennial Herbaceous Plants, Widely Distributed Throughout The Northern Hemisphere. The Mallows Possess The Reniform One-celled Anthers Which Specially Characterize The Malvaceae (q.v.). The Petals Also Are United By Their Base To The Tube ...
Malmesbury
Malmesbury, A Market Town And Municipal Borough Of Wiltshire, England, 944 M. W. Of London By The Great Western Railway. Pop. (1931) 2,334. Maildulphus, A Scottish Or Irish Monk, Built A Hermitage Near The Site Of The Modern Malmes Bury (maildulphi-urbs, Maldelmesburh, Malmesbiri) About 635, And Formed The Nucleus Of ...
Malmo
Malmo, A Seaport Of Sweden, Chief Town Of The District (ian) Of Malmohus, On A Small Bay Of The Sound, 384 M. S.s.w. Of Stockholm By Rail. Pop. (i800), 38,054; Malmo (malmhauge, Malmey, Malmoye, Malmoughe ), Some Times Called Ancona Scanorum Or Ellenbogen, First Appears In History About The Middle ...
Malonic Acid
Malonic Acid Crystallizes In Large Colourless Plates, Dis Solving Readily In Water, Alcohol Or Ether, And Melts At 135.6° C. Although The Sparingly Soluble Calcium Malonate Occurs In Beet Root, The Acid Itself, Is Generally Produced By Laboratory Methods, Such As The Oxidation Of Malic Acid (q.v.) Or The Hydrolysis ...
Malplaquet
Malplaquet, A Village Of France In The Department Of The Nord, Close To The Belgian Frontier And About Lc) M. S. By E. Of Mons, Famous As The Scene Of The Battle, September 1709, Between The Allies Under The Duke Of Marlborough And Prince Eugene And The French Commanded By ...
Malt
Malt, The Name Given To Grain In Which Germination Has Been Caused To Proceed To A Certain Stage And Has Then Been Arrested By The Removal Of Water And The Application Of Heat. During This Limited Germination Enzymes Are Developed (see Fermentation), And The Constituents Of The Modified So That ...
Malta
Malta. The Maltese Islands Are Situated Between Europe And Africa, In The Central Channel Which Connects The Eastern And Western Basins Of The Mediterranean Sea. The Group Belongs To The British Empire And Consists Of Malta, 91 Sq.m., Gozo (q.v.) 20 Sq.m., Comino, R Sq.m., And The Uninhabited Rocks Called ...
Malvaceae
Malvaceae, In Botany A Large And Economically Important Family Of Flowering Plants. It Contains 45 Genera With About 900 Species, And Occurs In All Regions Except The Coldest, The Number Of Species Increasing As We Approach The Tropics. The Most Conspic Uously Useful Plant Is Cotton (gossypium). It Is Represented ...
Malvasia
Malvasia (gr. Illonemvasia, "city Of The Single Ap Proach"; Ital. Napoli Di Malvasia; Turk. Mengeshe Or Beneshe) On The East Coast Of The Morea, Contiguous To The Site Of The Ancient Epidaurus Liniera (q.v.), Of Which It Took The Place; One Of The Principal Fortresses And Commercial Centres Of The ...
Malwa
Malwa, An Historic Province Of India, Which Has Given Its Name To One Of The Political Agencies Into Which Central India Is Divided. Strictly, The Name Is Confined To The Hilly Table-land, Bounded S. By The Vindhyan Range, Which Drains North Into The River Chambal; But It Has Been Extended ...
Mammalia
Mammalia, A Term Invented By Linnaeus (1758) To Include That Class Of Animals In Which The Young Are Brought Forth Alive And Nourished With Milk From The Mother's Breasts (mammae). Typical Examples Are The Dog, Cow, Rabbit, Monkey, Man. Whales Are Also Mammals, Although Externally Fish-like In Appearance. Hair (q.v.) ...