Page:Collier's New Encyclopedia v. 07.djvu/208

LEFT PEBBLE 156 PECOS RIVER the bands vary in number, increasing with the age of the animal. It is noc- turnal, swift of foot, and a good bur- rower. Its flesh is said to resemble suck- ing pig in flavor. PEBBLE, or PEBBLESTONE, a name given to roundish nodules and geodes, especially of siliceous minerals, such as rock crystal, agate, etc.; but commonly and more correctly applied to small frag- ments of rocks and minerals which have become rounded and water worn, like the shingle forming the beach on a seashore. Thus, pebbles may be composed of any rock or mineral. Pebbles of gold are known by the name of nuggets or pepitas. The term pebble, among opticians, gener- ally means the transparent and colorless rock crystal or quartz (pure silica) which is used as a substitute for glass in spectacles. PECAN, or PECAN NUT, a species of hickory {Gary a olivieforniis) and its fruit, growing in North America. It is a large tree, with hard, very tough wood, pinnate leaves, and catkins of small flow- ers. The nut has a thin yellowish-brown shell, and is of a sweet and agreeable flavor. Pecan nut oil is used as a sub- stitute for olive oil. PECCARY, the popular name for two species of small suilline mammals from the New World, so nearly allied that they breed freely in captivity, but never produce more than two at a birth. The collared peccary {Dicotyles torquatus) PECCARY ranges from Arkansas S. to the Rio Negro, and seldom attacks other animals. The white-lipped peccary (D. labiatus) is rarely met with N. of British Hon- duras or S. of Paraguay. It associates in large droves, is very pugnacious, and does not hesitate to attack man. Both are omnivorous, and possess a gland in the middle of the back, secreting a musky substance, which taints the meat if not speedily removed after death. PECHILI, GULF OF, a land-locked extension of the Yellow Sea, between the base of the Korean peninsula and the Chinese province of Shan-tung, into which the Pei-ho discharges. PECK, a dry measure of two gallons, or eight quarts, for grain, pulse, etc.; the fourth part of a bushel. So, a great deal, number, or quantity. PECK, ANNIE SMITH, an American mountain climber, born in Providence, R. I. She graduated from the University of Michigan in 1878. She studied archae- ology in Athens and for several years taught in preparation schools. She was also professor of Latin in Purdue Uni- versity and of Smith College. In 1895 she climbed the Matterhorn and several other difficult peaks in Europe, She also climbed several of the highest mountains in Central and South America. She made explorations in Peru and climbed the highest peak of the Raura Range. In 1908 she succeeded in ascending Mt. Huascaran, Peru, the highest point in America yet attained by any American. She also climbed several other moun- tains in Peru which have never before been ascended. She is a prolific writer and her works include "A Search for the Apex of America" (1911); "The South American Tour" (1914). She has re- ceived many medals from foreign coun- tries and is a member of the Royal Geo- graphic Society. PECKHAM, RUFUS WILLIAM, an American lawyer. He was born at Al- bany, N. Y., in 1838, and was admitted to the bar in 1859, serving for three years as district attorney of Albany co. After a varied career as lawyer, he be- came in 1883 associate judge of the State Supreme Court, and, from 1886, of the Court of Appeals in New York, and finally, in 1895, of the United States Supreme Court. His judgments in the Addystton Pipe and other cases riveted national attention. He died in 1909. PECKHAM, RUFUS WILLIAM, an English statesman; youngest son of Sir Robert Peel; born in 1829. He was edu- cated at Eton and Oxford; entered Par- liament as member for Warwick and Leamington in 1865; was parliamentary secretary to the Poor-law Board (1868- 1871); secretary to the Board of Trade (1871-1873) ; patronage secretary to the treasury (1873-1874) ; under-secretary for the Home Department (1880) ; and on the retirement of Sir Henry Brand (Viscount Hampden) in 1884, became speaker of the House of Commons. He was created 1st Viscount Peel in 1895. He died in 1912. PECOS RIVER, a river of New Mex- ico and Texas, which has a S. E. course