Page:Collier's New Encyclopedia v. 01.djvu/538

LEFT BASILICATA 438 BASQUES basilicas in Rome, e. g., in the subter- ranean Church of San Clemente, the early development of the Christian ar- rangement from the Roman is still to be seen. Many of the oldest and most splen- did of the Roman churches are built on the plan of the basilica, and are called basilicas in consequence. BASILICATA, the ancient Lucania, in south Italy, composed solely of the province of Potenza; so called after the Emperor Basilius II., who reconquered it from the Saracens and Lombards in the 11th century. It is mountainous, several peaks rising to upward of 4,500 feet (Monte Pollino, 7,375 feet). The Apen- nines here divide into two parts, which branch off to the E. and W. From these the rivers Bradano, Basento, Salan- drella, Agri, and Sinni, take their source, and, after draining this fertile district, fall into the Gulf of Taranto in the Ionian Sea, There are also many lakes, some of volcanic origin. The chief are Monticchio, Pesole, Maorno, and Santa Palagina. The bulk of the people are poor and ignorant, and talk a dialect called basilisco. Its coast line is for the most part marshy, and, as a con- sequence, unhealthf ul. The products are varied. On the slopes of the Apennines, forests and pasture grounds are numer- ous, and the chestnuts plentiful. In the vast plains that extend to Apulia and Calabria wheat is the principal product, while toward Melfi and the neighborhood of Melfi it is noted for its excellent wine. The orange and lemon grow well nearer the coast. Among other products are cotton, flax, silk, honey, wax, liquorice, dried fruit, saffron, tobacco, etc. There are marble quarries at Avigliano, La- tronico, Muro, Lucano, and Picerno; chalk at Mauro Forte and Montemuro; transparent quartz at Lagorgero; tufa at Matera; and excellent lignite at San Chirico Raparo and Rotonda. Capital, Potenza (pop. 20,000). Area, 3,855 square miles. Pop. about 500,000. BASILICON, a name of several oint- ments, the chief ingredients of which are wax, pitch, resin, and olive oil. BASILISCUS, an Emperor of the East; lived in the 5th century. He was the brother of Leo's wife, Verina. As commander of a large armament sent against the Vandals, he was defeated (468) by Genseric. In 474 he usurped the throne; but in 476 was defeated, de- posed, and imprisoned by Zeno. BASKERVILLE, CHARLES, an Amer- ican chemist, born in Noxubee co., Miss., in 1870. He graduated from the Uni- versity of Virginia in 1890 and carried on post-graduate courses in Germany. He filled various chairs in the department of chemistry in the University of North Carolina from 1891 to 1904, and in the latter year was appointed professor of chemistry and director of the College of the City of New York. He was the dis- coverer of several new elements includ- ing carolinium and berzellum, and car- ried on important investigations in the chemistry of anesthetics. He was a member of many chemical societies. His writings on chemical subjects include "School Chemistry" (1898); "Radium and Its Application in Medicine" (1909) ; "Municipal Chemistry"; and many ar- ticles in scientific magazines. He was the inventor of several processes for the refining of oil. BASKET, originally a light and airy vessel made of plaited osiers, twigs, or similar flexible material, much used in domestic arrangements. The baskets made by the old inhabitants of Great Britain were so good that they became celebrated at Rome. BASKET BALL, an indoor game played upon a circumscribed space on a floor, usually by five players on each side. At each end of this playing space a bas- ket is placed at a height of about 10 feet. The ball is round, somewhat lighter than a football, and is passed from one player to another by throwing, or striking with the hands only; the ultimate object being to lodge it in the opponent's basket, which action counts one point. The rules as to interference, playing out of bounds, etc., are adapted from those of football. BASLE. See BASEL. BASQUES, or BISCAYANS (in their own language, Euscaldunac), a remark- able race of people dwelling partly in the S. W. corner of France, but mostly in the N. of Spain adjacent to the Pyrenees. They are probably descendants of the ancient Iberi, who occupied Spain before the Celts. They preserve their ancient language, former manners, and national dances, and make admirable soldiers, es- pecially in guerrilla warfare. Their lan- guage is highly polysynthetic, and no connection between it and any other lan- guage has as yet been made out. There are four principal dialects, which are not only distinguished by their pronuncia- tion and grammatical structure, but dif- fer even in their vocabularies. The Basques (about 700,000) occupy in Spain the provinces of Biscay, Guipuz- coa, and Alava; in France parts of the departments of the Upper and Lower Pyrenees, Ariege, and Upper Garonne. Sone 200,000 are said to have emigrated