Page:Collier's New Encyclopedia v. 01.djvu/567

BEES' WAX BEES' WAX, the wax of bees, used by them for constructing their cells. It is a secretion elaborated within the body of the animal from the saccharine matter of honey, and extruded in plates from beneath the rings of the abdomen.

BEET, the English name of the beta, a genus of plants belonging to the order chenopodiaceæ (chenopods). Beta vulgaris, or common beet, is cultivated to be used in the manufacture of sugar, the green topped variety being preferred for the purpose. The small red, the Castelnaudary, and other varieties, are used, either raw or boiled, as salad. Much of the beet root sugar is made, not from the beta vulgaris, but from the B. cicla, the white beet, called also the chard, or Sicilian beet. (Cicla, in the specific name, means Sicilian.)

BEETHOVEN, LUDWIG VAN (bātō'ven, or bã'tō-ven), one of the greatest musical composers of modern times, was born in Bonn, in 1770. His genius was very early displayed, and his musical education was begun by his father, and continued by the court organist, who introduced him to the works of Sebastian Bach and Handel. About 1790, he settled in Vienna, where Mozart quickly recognized his marvelous powers. When about 40 years of age, he was attacked with deafness, which lasted through life. He became, gradually, the victim of morbid irritability and hopeless melancholy, ending in confirmed hypochondria, and, finally, dropsy and delirium He continued to compose, however, long after he had ceased to hear himself play. He died unmarried, in Vienna, March 26, 1827. The works of Beethoven are very numerous, and in every variety of style —orchestral, chamber music, pianoforte and vocal music. Among the most celebrated are the onera of "Fidelio"; the oratorio of the "Mount of Olives"; the cantata "Adelaide"; "Sinfonia Eroica" ("Heroic Symphony"); "Sinfonia Pastorale" ("Pastoral Symphony"); "Concerto in C Minor"; "Sonata Pathétique" and the "Sonata with Funeral March." Vast power, intense passion, and infinite tenderness are manifested in all his compositions, which abound no less in sweetest melodies than in grand and complicated harmonies. A statue of Beethoven, by Hähnel, was erected at Bonn, in 1845.

BEETLE, any member of the enormously large order of insects called by Other States. naturalists coleoptera, meaning sheathed wings. They have four wings, the inferior pair, which are membranous, being protected by the superior pair, which are horny.

BEET ROOT, the root of the beet (beta vulgaris); a valuable food, owing to a large amount of sugar it contains. Nearly all the sugar used in France is made from the beet, and in this country many of the sugar refiners use it in their sugar factories. In Germany, a coarse spirit is manufactured from the beet, a large proportion of which is imported into other countries and made into methylated spirit. Beet root contains 10 per cent. of sugar, and about 2 per cent. of nitrogenous matters. It was formerly used to adulterate coffee.

BEET SUGAR, the sugar obtained from the beet; similar to cane sugar; but inferior in sweetening power. Beet root contains an average of about 10 per cent. of saccharine matter; sugar cane, 18 per cent. Of the varieties, the white Slevig beet is the richest.

The beet sugar industry was started by Marggraf, in Germany, in 1747, who was the first to discover that sugar could be extracted from the common beet. The first factory for its manufacture was erected by Achard, at Kunern, in Silesia, in 1802. Napoleon issued an imperial decree in the early part of his reign establishing this industry in France. In 1830, attempts were made in the United States to introduce the cultivation of the sugar beet. It was not, however, till 1876 that the first successful beet sugar factory was built, being erected in Alvarado, Cal. Others soon followed and the business has now become an important industry.

The following shows the production of beet sugar in Europe, as officially reported for 1919-1920 (in tons of 2,240 pounds):

The following shows the production of beet sugar in the United States, as officially reported for 1919 (in tons of 2,000 pounds):

BEGAS, REINHOLD, a German sculptor, born in 1831. He studied in Germany and in Rome. His work cre- 31—Vol. I—Cyc