Page:Collier's New Encyclopedia v. 01.djvu/119

AKBAR exculpated himself with an oath; but the anger of the goddess at last overtook him, and he perished in the waves of the sea.

AKBAR (äk´bar) [i. e., "the Great," his proper name being Jelal-el-din-Mohammed], Mogul Emperor of India, the greatest Asiatic monarch of modern times. His father, Humayun, was deprived of the throne by usurpers, and had to retire for refuge into Persia; and it was on the way thither, in the town of Amarkot, that Akbar was born in 1542. Humayun recovered the throne of Delhi after an exile of 12 years; but died within a year. The young prince at first committed the administration to a regent-minister, Beiram; but, finding his authority degenerating into tyranny, he shook it off at the age of 18 and took the power into his own hands. In 10 or 12 years Akbar's empire embraced the whole of India N. of the Vindhya mountains, but in southern India he was less successful. He promoted commerce by constructing roads, establishing a uniform system of weights and measures, and a vigorous police. He exercised the utmost vigilance over his viceroys of provinces and other officers to see that no extortion was practiced and that justice was impartially administered to all classes of his subjects. For a born Mohammedan, the tolerance with which he treated other religions was wonderful. He was fond of inquiries as to religious beliefs; and Portuguese missionaries from Goa were sent at his request to give him an account of the Christian faith. He even attempted to promulgate a new religion of his own. Literature received the greatest encouragement. Schools were established for the education both of Hindus and Mohammedans; and numbers of Hindu works were translated from Sanskrit into Persian. Akbar died in 1605.

AKED, CHARLES FREDERIC, a Baptist clergyman; born in Nottingham, England, in 1864. He was educated at the Midland Baptists' College and the University College, Nottingham, and entered the ministry in 1886. After serving as pastor in several places in England, he became pastor of Pembroke Chapel at Liverpool in 1890. Here he attracted great attention through his powerful sermons on social and religious subjects. He was called to the pastorate of the Fifth Avenue Baptist Church of New York in 1907, remaining there until 1911, when he became pastor of the First Congregational Church of San Francisco, where he remained until 1915. He was well known as a lecturer and preacher. He wrote "The Courage of the Coward" (1905), "Old Events and Modern Meanings" (1908), "The Divine Drama of Job" (1913).

À KEMPIS, THOMAS. See KEMIS.

AKENSIDE, MARK, an English poet, born at Newcastle-on-Tyne, Nov. 9, 1721. Studied at first theology, then medicine in Edinburgh and in Leyden. He practiced medicine with poor success at first, but slowly gained eminence, and in 1761 was appointed physician to the queen. His literary fame rests on the "Pleasures of the Imagination," a didactic poem (1744, remodeled and enlarged 1757 and 1765). He died in London, June 23, 1770.

AKERS, BENJAMIN PAUL, an American sculptor, born in 1825. Studied in Florence and was especially noted for the rapidity of his work. His best known statues are "Una and the Lion," "Elizabeth of Hungary," "Morning," "Evening," "Diana and Endymion," "Paolo and Francesca," and "The Dead Pearl Diver." He died in May, 1866.

AKRON, city and county-seat of Summit co., O.; on the Baltimore and Ohio, the Erie, the Northern Ohio, and the Akron, Canton and Youngstown railroads, and the Ohio and Erie canal; 40 miles S. E. of Cleveland. It is surrounded by many fresh- water lakes; is the seat of Akron University (Universalist), and has several National banks, numerous manufactories, daily, weekly, and monthly periodicals. In the decade 1910-1920 the city increased its industrial importance greatly. It became the center of the rubber-making industry of the United States. Other industries, connected especially with the automobile industry, also became established. This condition is reflected in the greatly increased population. Pop. (1910) 09,067; (1920) 208,435.

AKRON, MUNICIPAL UNIVERSITY OF, an institution of higher learning in Akron, O., founded in 1872 as Buchtel College. In 1913 the college was transferred to the city of Akron as the nucleus of a municipal university, which came into existence on Jan. 1, 1914. The name of Buchtel College is retained for the College of Liberal Arts. There are departments of co-operative engineering and home economics. In 1919 there were in the university 454 students and 30 instructors. President P. R. Colby, Ph. D.

AKSU, a town of Chinese Turkestan, at the southern base of the Thian-shan mountains, formerly the capital of a separate khanate. In 1867 it became a