AVIGNON 149 AZORES

AVIGNON

149

AZORES

"birdless." Its gloomy and awful appearance made it the center of almost all the stories of the ancients about the world of shades. Here was Homer's and Vergil's entrance into the lower world, and here were the Elysian fields, the cave of Hecate and the grotto of the Cumsean Sibyl. Agrippa connected it with the Lucrine Lake and the sea, making it a sort of harbor; but the volcanic upheaval of Monte Nuovo, in 1358, again made Avernus an inland lake. On its east side are the ruins of a temple of Apollo, and on its south side what is shown as the grotto of the Sibyl.

Avignon (ã-ven-yōN'), a city in Provence, France, is on the left bank of the Rhone. Its streets are narrow and crooked, and it is still surrounded by high walls. Here is the cathedral of Notre Dame, dating back to the nth century. There are so many churches and convents that Avignon has been called the city of bells. It has manufactures of paper, leather, silk, iron, etc., and is famous for its garden produce, fruit, wine and honey. Here the great Italian poet, Petrarch, lived for some years, and here in a church that is still pointed out, he first saw Laura, the lady to whom he wrote his beautiful sonnets. In the middle ages Avignon belonged • to the popes, and here Clement V and six of his successors lived. Here also lived the anti-popes for forty years. Population, 51,000. A'von. There are several rivers of this name in England, Scotland, Wales and France. The most noted is called Upper Avon, which gains its importance from passing Stratford, the birthplace of Shakespeare. It rises in Northamptonshire, and flows southwest till it joins the Severn at Tewkesbury. It is about 100 miles long.

Ax'il (in plants). The upper angle formed by a leaf and the stem axis on which it is inserted. It is in the axils that branches normally arise.

Aylesworth, Hon. Allen Bristol, K. C, educated at Toronto University. A distinguished lawyer. One of His Majesty's Commissioners in the Alaska Boundary case. Elected to the Canadian House of Commons in 1905, a prominent member of the Laurier government. Appointed Postmaster General in 1905, and Minister of Justice in 1906. One of the ablest and most influential members of the Laurier administration.

Aylmer {al'nwr), Col. the Hon. Matthew, Adjutant General of Militia (Canada). Eldest son of Lord Aylmer. Born in province of Quebec in 1842. Educated in Montreal and at Trinity College, Dublin. Entered the army as Ensign in Her Majesty's 7th Royal Fusiliers then quaitered at Malta (1864). Retired from the Imperial Service

a, a, axils

in 1870. In 1896 he became Adjutant General of the Militia of the Dominion. Was second in command of all the colonial forces that took part in the Diamond Jubilee celebration in England. A thorough soldier and successful administrator.

Azalea (a-zal'ya), a flowering plant belonging to the Heath family, closely related

to the rhododendron. It covers. mountain slopes, is a native of the countries bordering on the Black Sea, and abounds in North America. They are among the most orna-mental and beautiful of flowering shrubs, and are well represented by native forms in our eastern mountain regions. In the flowering season they are often completely covered with showy flowers of various bright colors. The pink azalea, often called the wild honeysuckle, is distributed from Maine to Illinois and south to the Gulf of Mexico. It is a shrub from two to six feet high, the flowers grow in clusters, bloom in April and May, giving rosy hue to swamp and moist wood. Closely related to this is the clammy azalea or white honeysuckle, a shrub from three to ten feet high, bearing fragrant white blossoms in early summer. It is seen as a rule in swsmps along the coast, found from Maine to Florida and westward to Texas. Decking the mountains of Georgia is the smooth or tree azalea, with June flowers of rare fragrance and beauty. The azalea is highly prized as a garden flower in Europe. European horticulturists were quick to appreciate Its beauty. It is the national flower of Flanders.

Azari'ah, the tenth king of. Judah, also called Uzziah, who began to reign about 809 B. C. It is also the name of one of the prophet Daniel's three friends, whose name was changed to Abednego. It is a common name among the Jews. The period of azariah's reign is 792-740 B. C.

Azores (a-zõrz'), a group of Portuguese islands in the mid-Atlantic, 800 miles west of Portugal. Carthaginian coins have been found on the islands, showing that the hardy sailors of Carthage must have been there. Edrisi, an Arab geographer, knew them before 1200, and an Italian map of 13 51 represents them unmistakably. The islands were taken possession of by the Portuguese in 1431-1453 There are many hawks here, and the name Azores is from a Portuguese word, meaning hawks Their area is 919 square miles, or considerably smaller than

AZALEA