Encyclopaedia Britannica Volume 4, Slice 1 Part 4

BITTER, KARL THEODORE FRANCIS (1867- ), American sculptor, was born in Vienna on the 6th of December 1867. After studying art there, in 1889 he removed to the United States, where he became naturalized. In America he gained great popularity as a sculptor, and in 1906-1907 was president of the National Sculpture Society, New York. Among his princ.i.p.al works are: the Astor memorial gates, Trinity church, New York; "Elements Controlled and Uncontrolled," on the Administration Building at the Chicago Exposition; a large relief, "Triumph of Civilization," in the waiting-room of the Broad Street station of the Pennsylvania railway in Philadelphia; decorations for the Dewey Naval Arch in New York City; the "Standard Bearers," at the Pan-American Exposition grounds; a sitting statue and a bust of Dr Pepper, provost of the University of Pennsylvania; and the Villard and Hubbard memorials in the New York chamber of commerce.

BITTERFELD, a town of Germany, in the Prussian province of Saxony, 26 m.

N. from Leipzig by rail, on the river Mulde, and an important junction of railways from Leipzig and Halle to Berlin. Pop. (1900) 11,839. It manufactures drain-pipes, paper-roofing and machinery, and has saw-mills. Several coal-mines are in the vicinity. The town was built by a colony of Flemish immigrants in 1153. It was captured by the landgrave of Meissen in 1476, and belonged thenceforth to Saxony, until it was ceded to Prussia in 1815. Owing to its pleasant situation and accessibility, it has become a favourite residence of business men of Leipzig and Halle.

BITTERLING (_Rhodeus amarus_), a little carp-like fish of central Europe, belonging to the Cyprinid family. In it we have a remarkable instance of symbiosis. The genital papilla of the female acquires a great development during the breeding season and becomes produced into a tube nearly as long as the fish itself; this acts as an ovipositor by means of which the comparatively few and large eggs (3 millimetres in diameter) are introduced through the gaping valves between the branchiae of pond mussels (_Unio_ and _Anodonta_), where, after being inseminated, they undergo their development, the fry leaving their host about a month later. The mollusc reciprocates by throwing off its embryos on the parent fish, in the skin of which they remain encysted for some time, the period of reproduction of the fish and the mussel coinciding.

BITTERN, a genus of wading birds, belonging to the family _Ardeidae_, comprising several species closely allied to the herons, from which they differ chiefly in their shorter neck, the back of which is covered with down, and the front with long feathers, which can be raised at pleasure.

They are solitary birds, frequenting countries possessing extensive swamps and marshy grounds, remaining at rest by day, concealed among the reeds and bushes of their haunts, and seeking their food, which consists of fish, reptiles, insects and small quadrupeds, in the twilight. The common bittern (_Botaurus stellaris_) is nearly as large as the heron, and is widely distributed over the eastern hemisphere. Formerly it was common in Britain, but extensive drainage and persecution have greatly dimished its numbers and it is now only an uncertain visitor. Not a winter pa.s.ses without its appearing in some numbers, when its uncommon aspect, its large size, and beautifully pencilled plumage cause it to be regarded as a great prize by the lucky gun-bearer to whom it falls a victim. Its value as a delicacy for the table, once so highly esteemed, has long vanished. The old fable of this bird inserting its beak into a reed or plunging it into the ground, and so causing the booming sound with which its name will always be a.s.sociated, is also exploded, and nowadays indeed so few people in Britain have ever heard its loud and awful voice, which seems to be uttered only in the breeding-season, and is therefore unknown in a country where it no longer breeds, that incredulity as to its booming at all has in some quarters succeeded the old belief in this as in other reputed peculiarities of the species. The bittern in the days of falconry was strictly preserved, and afforded excellent sport. It sits crouching on the ground during the day, with its bill pointing in the air, a position from which it is not easily roused, and even when it takes wing, its flight is neither swift nor long sustained. When wounded it requires to be approached with caution, as it will then attack either man or dog with its long sharp bill and its acute claws. It builds a rude nest among the reeds and flags, out of materials which surround it, and the female lays four or five eggs of a brownish olive. During the breeding season it utters a booming noise, from which it probably derives its generic name, _Botaurus_, and which has made it in many places an object of superst.i.tious dread. Its plumage for the most part is of a pale buff colour, rayed and speckled with black and reddish brown. The American bittern (_Botaurus lentiginosus_) is somewhat smaller than the European species, and is found throughout the central and southern portions of North America. It also occurs in Britain as an occasional straggler. It is distinguishable by its uniform greyish-brown primaries, which want the tawny bars that characterize _B.

stellaris_. Both species are good eating.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Bittern.]

BITTERN (from "bitter"), the mother liquor obtained from sea-water or brines after the separation of the sodium chloride (common salt) by crystallization. It contains various magnesium salts (sulphate, chloride, bromide and iodide) and is employed commercially for the manufacture of Epsom salts (magnesium sulphate) and bromine. The same term is applied to a mixture of qua.s.sia, iron sulphate, _cocculus indicus_, liquorice, &c., used in adulterating beer.

BITTERS, the name given to aromatized (generally alcoholic) beverages containing a bitter substance or substances, used as tonics, appetizers or digestives. The bitterness is imparted by such substances as bitter orange rind, gentian, rhubarb, qua.s.sia, cascarilla, angostura, quinine and cinchona. Juniper, cinnamon, carraway, camomile, cloves and other flavouring agents are also employed in conjunction with the bitter principles, alcohol and sugar. Some bitters are prepared by simple maceration and subsequent filtration (see LIQUEURS), others by the more complicated distillation process. Those prepared by the latter process are the finer commercial articles. Bitters are usually sold under the name of the substance which has been used to give them the predominant flavour, such as orange, angostura or peach bitters, &c. The alcoholic strength of bitters varies, but is generally in the neighbourhood of 40% of alcohol. Some bitters, although possessing tonic properties, may be regarded as beverages pure and simple, notwithstanding the fact that they are seldom consumed in an undiluted state; others again, are obviously medicinal preparations and should be treated as such.

BITUMEN, the name applied by the Romans to the various descriptions of natural hydrocarbons, the word _petroleum_ not being used in cla.s.sical Latin. In its widest sense it embraces the whole range of these substances, including _natural gas_, the more or less liquid descriptions of _petroleum_, and the solid forms of _asphalt, albert.i.te, gilsonite_ or _uintahite, elaterite, ozokerite_ and _hatchett.i.te_. To distinguish bitumen intermediate in consistency between asphalt and the more liquid kinds of crude petroleum, the term _maltha_ (Latin) is frequently employed. The bitumens of chief commercial importance may be grouped under the three headings of (1) _natural gas_, (2) _petroleum_, and (3) _asphalt_, and will be found fully described under these t.i.tles.

In the scriptures there are numerous references to bitumen, among which the following may be quoted:--In Genesis ix. 3, we are told that in the building of the tower of Babel "slime had they for mortar," and in Genesis xiv. 10, that the vale of Siddim "was full of slime-pits," the word _slime_ in the latter quotation from our version appearing as _bitumen_ in the Vulgate. Herodotus alludes to the use of the bitumen brought down by the Is, a tributary of the Euphrates, as mortar in building the walls of Babylon. Diodorus, Curtius, Josephus, Bochart and others make similar mention of this use of bitumen, and Vitruvius tells us that it was employed in admixture with clay.

In its various forms, bitumen is one of the most widely distributed of substances. It occurs, though sometimes only in small quant.i.ty, in almost every part of the globe, and throughout the whole range of geological strata, from the Laurentian rocks to the most recent members of the Quaternary period. Although the gaseous and liquid forms of bitumen may be regarded as having been formed in the strata in which they are found or as having been received into such strata shortly after formation, the semi-solid and solid varieties may be considered to have been produced by the oxidation and evaporation of liquid petroleum escaping from underlying or better preserved deposits into other strata, or into fissures where atmospheric action and loss of the more volatile const.i.tuents can take place. It should, however, be stated that there is some difference of opinion as to the precise manner of production of some of the solid forms of bitumen, and especially of ozokerite.

(B. R.)

BITURIGES, a Celtic people, according to Livy (v. 34) the most powerful in Gaul in the time of Tarquinius Priscus. At some period unknown they split up into two branches--Bituriges Cubi and Bituriges Vivisci. The name is supposed to mean either "rulers of the world" or "perpetual kings."

The Bituriges Cubi, called simply Bituriges by Caesar, in whose time they acknowledged the supremacy of the Aedui, inhabited the modern diocese of Bourges, including the departments of Cher and Indre, and partly that of Allier. Their chief towns were Avaric.u.m (Bourges), Argentomagus (Argenton-sur-Creuse), Neriomagus (Neris-les-Bains), Noviodunum (perhaps Villate). At the time of the rebellion of Vercingetoix (52 B.C.), Avaric.u.m, after a desperate resistance, was taken by a.s.sault, and the inhabitants put to the sword. In the following year, the Bituriges submitted to Caesar, and under Augustus they were incorporated (in 28 B.C.) in Aquitania. Pliny (_Nat. Hist._ iv. 109) speaks of them as _liberi_, which points to their enjoying a certain amount of independence under Roman government. The district contained a number of iron works, and Caesar says they were skilled in driving galleries and mining operations.

The Biturgies Vivisci occupied the strip of land between the sea and the left bank of the Garonne, comprising the greater part of the modern department of Gironde. Their capital was Burdigala (Bordeaux), even then a place of considerable importance and a wine-growing centre. Like the Cubi, they also are called _liberi_ by Pliny.

See A. Desjardins, _Geographie historique de la Gaule romaine_, ii.

(1876-1893); A. Longnon, _Geographie de la Gaule on VI^e siecle_ (1878); A. Hohler, _Alt-celtischer Sprachschatz_; T.R. Holmes, _Caesar's Conquest of Gaul_ (1899).

BITZIUS, ALBRECHT (1797-1854), Swiss novelist, best known by his pet name of "Jeremias Gotthelf," was born on the 4th of October 1797 at Morat, where his father was pastor. In 1804 the home was moved to Utzenstorf, a village in the Bernese Emmenthal. Here young Bitzius grew up, receiving his early education and consorting with the boys of the village, as well as helping his father to cultivate his glebe. In 1812 he went to complete his education at Bern, and in 1820 was received as a pastor. In 1821 he visited the university of Gottingen, but returned home in 1822 to act as his father's a.s.sistant. On his father's death (1824) he went in the same capacity to Herzogenbuchsee, and later to Bern (1829). Early in 1831 he went as a.s.sistant to the aged pastor of the village of Lutzelfluh, in the Upper Emmenthal (between Langnau and Burgdorf), being soon elected his successor (1832) and marrying one of his granddaughters (1833). He spent the rest of his life there, dying on the 22nd of October 1854, and leaving three children (the son was a pastor, the two daughters married pastors). His first work, the _Bauernspiegel_, appeared in 1837. It purported to be the life of Jeremias Gotthelf, narrated by himself, and this name was later adopted by the author as his pen name. It is a living picture of Bernese (or, strictly speaking, Emmenthal) village life, true to nature, and not attempting to gloss over its defects and failings. It is written (like the rest of his works) in the Bernese dialect of the Emmenthal, though it must be remembered that Bitzius was not (like Auerbach) a peasant by birth, but belonged to the educated cla.s.ses, so that he reproduces what he had seen and learnt, and not what he had himself personally experienced. The book was a great success, as it was a picture of real life, and not of fancifully beribboned 18th-century villagers. Among his later tales are the _Leiden und Freuden eines Schulmeisters_ (1838-1839), _Uli der Knecht_ (1841), with its continuation, _Uli der Pachter_ (1849), _Anne Babi Jowager_ (1843-1844), _Kathi die Gross.m.u.tter_ (1847), _Die Kaserei in der Vehfreude_ (1850), and the _Erlebnisse eines Schuldenbauers_ (1854). He published also several volumes of shorter tales. One slight drawback to some of his writings is the echo of local political controversies, for Bitzius was a Whig and strongly opposed to the Radical party in the canton, which carried the day in 1846.

Lives by C. Manuel, in the Berlin edition of Bitzius's works (Berlin, 1861), and by J. Ammann in vol. i. (Bern, 1884) of the _Sammlung Bernischer Biographien_. His works were issued in 24 vols. at Berlin, 1856-1861, while 10 vols., giving the original text of each story, were issued at Bern, 1898-1900 (edition not to be completed).

(W. A. B. C.)

BIVOUAC (a French word generally said to have been introduced during the Thirty Years' War, perhaps derived from _Beiwacht_, extra guard), originally, a night-watch by a whole army under arms to prevent surprise. In modern military parlance the word is used to mean a temporary encampment in the open field without tents, as opposed to "billets" or "cantonment" on the one hand and "camp" on the other. The use of bivouacs permits an army to remain closely concentrated for all emergencies, and avoids the necessity for numerous wagons carrying tents. Constant bivouacs, however, are trying to the health of men and horses, and this method of quartering is never employed except when the military situation demands concentration and readiness. Thus the outposts would often have to bivouac while the main body of the army lay in billets.

BIWA, a lake in the province of Omi, j.a.pan. It measures 36 m. in length by 12 m. in extreme breadth, has an area of 180 sq. m., is about 330 ft.

above sea-level, and has an extreme depth of some 300 ft. There are a few small islands in the lake, the princ.i.p.al being Chikubu-shima at the northern end.

Tradition alleges that Lake Biwa and the mountain of Fuji were produced simultaneously by an earthquake in 286 B.C. On the west of the lake the mountains Hiei-zan and Hira-yama slope down almost to its margin, and on the east a wide plain extends towards the boundaries of the province of Mino. It is drained by a river flowing out of its southern end, and taking its course into the sea at Osaka. This river bears in succession the names of Seta-gawa, Uji-gawa and Yodo-gawa. The lake abounds with fish, and the beauty of its scenery is remarkable. Small steamboats ply constantly to the points of chief interest, and around its sh.o.r.es are to be viewed the _Omi-no-hakkei_, or "eight landscapes of Omi"; namely, the lake silvering under an autumn moon as one looks down from Ishi-yama; the snow at eve on Hira-yama; the glow of sunset at Seta; the groves and cla.s.sic temple of Mii-dera as the evening bell sounds; boats sailing home from Yabase; cloudless peaks at Awazu; rain at nightfall over Karasaki; and wild geese sweeping down to Katata. The lake is connected with Kyoto by a ca.n.a.l constructed in 1890, and is thus brought into water communication with Osaka.

BIXIO, NINO (1821-1873), Italian soldier, was born on the 2nd of October 1821. While still a boy he was compelled by his parents to embrace a maritime career. After numerous adventures he returned to Italy in 1846, joined the Giovine Italia, and, on 4th November 1847, made himself conspicuous at Genoa by seizing the bridle of Charles Albert's horse and crying, "Pa.s.s the Ticino, Sire, and we are all with you." He fought through the campaign of 1848, became captain under Garibaldi at Rome in 1849, taking prisoners an entire French battalion, and gaining the gold medal for military valour. In 1859 he commanded a Garibaldian battalion, and gained the military cross of Savoy. Joining the Marsala expedition in 1860, he turned the day in favour of Garibaldi at Calatafimi, was wounded at Palermo, but recovered in time to besiege Reggio in Calabria (21st of August 1860), and, though again wounded, took part in the battle of Volturno, where his leg was broken. Elected deputy in 1861, he endeavoured to reconcile Cavour and Garibaldi. In 1866, at the head of the seventh division, he covered the Italian retreat from Custozza, ignoring the Austrian summons to surrender. Created senator in February 1870, he was in the following September given command of a division during the movement against Rome, took Civita Vecchia, and partic.i.p.ated in the general attack upon Rome (20th September 1870). He died of cholera at Achin Bay in Sumatra _en route_ for Batavia, whither he had gone in command of a commercial expedition (16th December 1873).

BIZERTA (properly p.r.o.nounced Ben Zert; Fr. _Bizerte_), a seaport of Tunisia, in 37 17' N., 9 50' E. Pop. about 12,000. Next to Toulon, Bizerta is the most important naval port of France in the Mediterranean.

It occupies a commanding strategical position in the narrowest part of the sea, being 714 m. E. of Gibraltar, 1168 m. W.N.W. of Port Said, 240 m. N.W. of Malta, and 420 m. S. by E. of Toulon. It is 60 m. by rail N.N.W. of Tunis. The town is built on the sh.o.r.es of the Mediterranean at the point where the Lake of Bizerta enters the sea through a natural channel, the mouth of which has been ca.n.a.lized. The modern town lies almost entirely on the north side of the ca.n.a.l. A little farther north are the ancient citadel, the walled "Arab" town and the old harbour (disused). The present outer harbour covers about 300 acres and is formed by two converging jetties and a breakwater. The north jetty is 4000 ft. long, the east jetty 3300 ft., and the breakwater--which protects the port from the prevalent north-east winds--2300 ft. long.

The entrance to the ca.n.a.l is in the centre of the outer harbour. The ca.n.a.l is 2600 ft. long and 787 ft. wide on the surface. Its banks are lined with quays, and ships drawing 26 ft. of water can moor alongside.

At the end of the ca.n.a.l is a large commercial harbour, beyond which the channel opens into the lake--in reality an arm of the sea--roughly circular in form and covering about 50 sq. m., two-thirds of its waters having a depth of 30 to 40 ft. The lake, which merchant vessels are not allowed to enter, contains the naval port and a.r.s.enal. There is a torpedo and submarine boat station on the north side of the channel at the entrance to the lake, but the princ.i.p.al naval works are at Sidi Abdallah at the south-west corner of the lake and 10 m. from the open sea. Here is an enclosed basin covering 123 acres with ample quayage, dry docks and everything necessary to the accommodation, repair, revictualling and coaling of a numerous fleet. Barracks, hospitals and waterworks have been built, the military town, called Ferryville, being self-contained.

Fortifications have been built for the protection of the port. They comprise (a) the older works surrounding the town; (b) a group of coast batteries on the high ground of Cape Bizerta or Guardia, 4 m.

north-north-west of the town; these are grouped round a powerful fort called Jebel Kebir, and have a command of 300 to 800 ft. above sea-level; (c) another group of batteries on the narrow ground between the sea and the lake to the east of the town; the highest of these is the Jebel Tuila battery 265 ft. above sea-level.

The LAKE OF BIZERTA, called Tinja by the Arabs, abounds in excellent fish, especially mullets, the dried roe of which, called _botargo_, is largely exported, and the fishing industry employs a large proportion of the inhabitants. The western sh.o.r.e of the lake is low, and in many places is covered with olive trees to the water's edge. The south-eastern sh.o.r.es are hilly and wooded, and behind them rises a range of picturesque hills. A narrow and shallow channel leads from the western side of the lake into another sheet of water, the Lake of Ishkul, so called from Jebel Ishkul, a hill on its southern bank 1740 ft. high. The Lake of Ishkul is nearly as large as the first lake, but is very shallow. Its waters are generally sweet.

Bizerta occupies the site of the ancient Tyrian colony, Hippo Zarytus or Diarrhytus, the harbour of which, by means of a s.p.a.cious pier, protecting it from the north-east wind, was rendered one of the safest and finest on this coast. The town became a Roman colony, and was conquered by the Arabs in the 7th century. The place thereafter was subject either to the rulers of Tunis or of Constantine, but the citizens were noted for their frequent revolts. They threw in their lot (c. 1530) with the pirate Khair-ed-Din, and subsequently received a Turkish garrison. Bizerta was captured by the Spaniards in 1535, but not long afterwards came under the Tunisian government. Centuries of neglect followed, and the ancient port was almost choked up, though the value of the fisheries saved the town from utter decay. Its strategical importance was one of the causes which led to the occupation of Tunisia by the French in 1881. In 1890 a concession for a new ca.n.a.l and harbour was granted to a company, and five years later the new port was formally opened. Since then the ca.n.a.l has been widened and deepened, and the naval port at Sidi Abdallah created.

BIZET [ALEXANDRE CeSAR LeOPOLD] GEORGES (1838-1875), French musical composer, was born at Bougival, near Paris, on the 25th of October 1838, the son of a singing-master. He displayed musical ability at an early age, and was sent to the Paris Conservatoire, where he studied under Halevy and speedily distinguished himself, carrying off prizes for organ and fugue, and finally in 1857, after an ineffectual attempt in the previous year, the Grand Prix de Rome for a cantata called _Cloris et Clotilde_. A success of a different kind also befell him at this time.

Offenbach, then manager of the Theatre des Bouffes-Parisiens, had organized a compet.i.tion for an operetta, in which young Bizet was awarded the first prize in conjunction with Charles Lecocq, each of them writing an operetta called _Docteur Miracle_. After the three years spent in Rome, an obligation imposed by the French government on the winners of the first prize at the Conservatoire, Bizet returned to Paris, where he achieved a reputation as a pianist and accompanist. On the 23rd of September 1863 his first opera, _Les Pecheurs de perles_, was brought out at the Theatre Lyrique, but owing possibly to the somewhat uninteresting nature of the story, the opera did not enjoy a very long run. The qualities displayed by the composer, however, were amply recognized, although the music was stated, by some critics, to exhibit traces of Wagnerian influence. Wagnerism at that period was a sort of spectre that haunted the imagination of many leading members of the musical press. It sufficed for a work to be at all out of the common for the epithet "Wagnerian" to be applied to it. The term, it may be said, was intended to be condemnatory, and it was applied with little understanding as to its real meaning. The score of the _Pecheurs de perles_ contains several charming numbers; its dreamy melodies are well adapted to fit a story laid in Eastern climes, and the music reveals a decided dramatic temperament. Some of its dances are now usually introduced into the fourth act of _Carmen_.