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LEFT VICTOKIA 213 VICTOBIA BEOIA trading post in 1843. It was the head- quarters of the Pacific sealing fleet till that industry was greatly reduced by the Bering Sea regulations. It became the capital of the province of British Colum- bia on the confederation with the Dom- inion of Canada in 1871. Pop. (1891) 16,841; (1901) 20,816; (1920) about 55,000. VICTOBIA, in Roman mythology, one of the deities of the Romans, called by the Greeks Nike. She was sister of Strength and Valor, and was one of the attendants of Jupiter. Sylla raised her a temple at Rome, and instituted festi- vals in her honor. She was represented with wings, crowned with laurel, and holding the branch of a palm tree in her hand. VICTOBIA CBOSS, an English naval and military decoration instituted by royal warrant, Jan. 29, 1856, and bestowed for "conspicuous bri'-'-ery or devotion" to the country in the presence of the enemy. It is the most coveted of all British decorations, and is open to VICTORIA CROSS all officers and men of the regular, auxiliary, and reserve forces. It con- sists of a bronze Maltese cross with the royal crest in the center, and under- neath an escrol bearing the inscription, "For Valour." It is worn attached to the breast by a blue ribbon in the case of the navy, and a red in the case of the army. For every additional act of bravery an additional clasp may be added. The cross carries with it a spe- cial pension of $50 a year, and each additional clasp an additional pension of $25 a year. VICTOBIA NYANZA, a great fresh- water lake in east central Africa, situated on the equator; area, over 30,- 000 square miles. It lies about 3,880 feet above sea-level. The geological evi- dence points to the origin of its basin having taken place at a very remote period, a number of terrace-like faults along the W. shores suggesting a series of immense landslips as a probable cause of tlie formation of the hollow which now contains the lake. The traces of volcanic action do not seem sufficient to account for so large a depression. The prevailing rocks are gneiss and schists, with porphyritic granite at the S. extremity, and some lava and iron- stone toward the N. The igneous area is, upon the whole, barren and desolate looking, the remainder of the basin be- ing clothed with luxurious tropical flora, exceedingly varied in character. This variety is, perhaps, most strikingly ex- hibited on som-e of the islands. The fauna is also varied, the number of alligators frequenting the waters being very large. Hippopotami, though less frequently met with, are exceedingly fierce, and are held in great dread by the native boatmen. The water is good and fresh, though somewhat insipid to taste, and frequently assumes a dirty white color. The lake is drained by the Nile, and its chief feeders are the Ka- jera, the Nzoia, the Shimiyu, and the Katonga. The lake, whose native name is Ukerewe, was discovered by Speke in 1858, visited by him and Grant in 1861-1862, and subsequently partly ex- plored by Stanley (1875), Mackay, Thomson, and others. VICTOBIA BEGIA, a genus of Euryalidse, akin to Euryale, from which it differs by the sepals being deciduous, by the petals gradually passing into stamens, and by the cells of the ovary being more numerous. Species, one or three. The type is VictoHa regia, named by Lindley after Queen Victoria. It is the most magnificent of all known water lilies, and is the more acceptable that it came from a region in which it had been supposed that no Nymphsea- cese occurred. It was first discovered by the botanist Haenke in 1801; Bonpland afterward met with it. Orbigny, in 1828, sent home specimens to Paris; others also subsequently saw it grow- ing, but it excited no attention till, in 1837, Sir Robert Schomburgk found it in the Berbice river in British Guiana. The rootstock is thick and fleshy, the leaf-stalks prickly, the leaf peltate, its