Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 14.djvu/118

 106 K I Z K L A extremely aborted condition of the wings, the position_of the nostrils almost at the tip of the maxilla and the absence of an after-shaft in the feathers, are characters nearly as manifest, and others not less determinative though more recondite will be found on examination. The Kiwis are peculiar to New Zealand, and it is believed that A. mantelli is the representative in the North Island of the southern A. australis, both being of a dark reddish-brown, longitudinally striped with light yellowish-brown, while A. oiveni, of a light greyish-brown transversely barred with black, is said to occur in both islands. About the size of a large domestic Fowl, they are birds of nocturnal habit, sleeping, or at least inactive, by day, feeding mostly on earth-worms, but occasionally swallowing berries, though in captivity they will eat flesh suitably minced. Mr Buller writes (B. Neiv Zealand, p. 362) : &quot;The Kiwi is in some measure compensated for the absence of wings by its swiftness of foot. When running it makes wide strides and carries the body in an oblique position, with the neck stretched to its full extent and inclined forwards. In the twilight it moves about cautiously and as noiselessly as a rat, to which, in deed, at this time it bears some outward resemblance. In a quiescent posture, the body generally assumes a perfectly rotund appearance ; and it sometimes, but only rarely, supports itself by resting the point of its bill on the ground. It often yawns when disturbed in the daytime, gaping its mandibles in a very grotesque manner. When provoked it erects the body, and, raising the foot to the breast, strikes downwards with considerable force and rapidity, thus using its sharp and powerful claws as weapons of defence. . . . While hunt ing for its food the bird makes a continual sniffing sound through the nostrils, which are placed at the extremity of the upper mandible. Whether it is guided as much by touch as by smell I cannot safely say ; but it appears to me that both senses are used in the action. That the sense of touch is highly developed seems quite certain, because the bird, although it may not be audibly sniffing, will always first touch an object with the point of its bill, whether in the act of feeding or of surveying the ground ; and when shut up in a cage or confined in a room it may be heard, all through the night, tapping softly at the walls. ... It is interesting to wntch the bird, in a state of freedom, foraging for worms, which constitute its principal food : it moves about with a slow action of the body ; and the long, flexible bill is driven into the soft ground, generally home to the very root, and is either immediately withdrawn with a worm held at the extreme tip of the mandibles, or it is gently moved to and fro, by an action of the head and neck, the body of the bird being perfectly steady. It is amusing to observe the extreme care and deliberation with which the bird draws the worm from its hiding-place, coaxing it out as it were by degrees, instead of pulling roughly or breaking it. On getting the worm fairly out of the ground, it throws up its head with a jerk, and swallows it whole.&quot; The foregoing extract refers to A. mantelli, but there is little doubt of the remarks being equally applicable to A. australis, and probably also to A. oweni, though the different proportion of the bill in the last points to some diversity in the mode of feeding. Did space allow much more should be said of the Kiwis perhaps to ornithologists the most interesting group of birds now existing, and the more interesting in regard to the melancholy doom of extinc tion which almost inevitably awaits them. (A. N.) KIZLIAR, KIZLYAB, or KIZLAE, a town of Russia, in the government of Stavropol, 325 miles east of the government town, in the low-lying delta of the river Terek, about 35 miles from the shores of the Caspian. It lies to the left of the main stream between two of the larger secondary branches, and the whole is subject to flooding. The town proper, which spreads out round the citadel, has its Tartar, Georgian, and Armenian quarters ; the Russians for the most part live in the soldiers &quot; sloboda &quot; or village. Of the public buildings it is sufficient to mention the Greek cathedral, dating from 1786; the Greek nunnery of the Elevation of the Cross, founded by the Georgian chief Daniel in 1736; the Armenian church of SS. Peter and Paul, remarkable for its size and riches. The population, which has increased from 8309 in 1861 to 9176 in 1872, is mainly supported by the gardens and vineyards irrigated by canals fed by the river. A Government vineyard and school of viticulture are situated 3 miles from the town. About 1,200,000 gallons of Kizliar wine are sold annually at the fair of Nizhni Novgorod. Kizliar is mentioned as early as 1616, but the most notable accession of inhabitants (Armenians, Georgians, and Persians) took place in 1715 ; and its importance as a fortress dates from 1736, when it received the garrison formerly stationed at Sv. Kresta on the Sulak in Daghestan. In 1785 it was made a district town. The incursion of Kazni Mulla in 1821, and the inundation in 1863, are the chief facts of more recent note. The fortress is no longer kept in repair. KLADNO, a mining town in the district of Smichov, Bohemia, lies about 15 miles west-north-west of Prague, with which it is connected by the Buschtierad line of rail way. There are few buildings of special interest, and the importance of the town is mainly due to the wealth of its iron-mines and coal-fields, which afford employment for some three thousand men. The average annual yield of iron is from 25,000 to 30,000 tons, and of coal 300,000 tons. About 2 miles to the north is the imperial chateau of Buschtierad. Population in 1880, 14,085. KLAGENFURT, capital of the duchy of Carinthia, Austria, and seat of the provincial administration, financial direction, and court of appeal, is situated upon a plain at an elevation of 1450 feet above the sea-level, and about 40 miles north-north-west of Laibach, with which, as with Vienna, Gratz, Innsbruck, and other centres, it is connected by railway, in 46 37 N. lat., 14 19 E. long. Klagenfurt is for the most part well and symmetrically built, and comprises an inner town quadrangular in form, and four suburbs St Veit (north), Viktring (south), Vblkermarkt (east), and Yillach (west), the last communicating with Lake Worth by means of the Lend Canal. Among the more noteworthy edifices are the parish church of St /Egidius (erected 1709), with a tower 298 feet in height; the cathedral of SS. Peter and Paul (1582-93, burnt 1723, restored 1725) ; the churches of the Benedictines (1613), of the Capuchins (1646), and of the order of St Elizabeth (1710); and the fine structure standing in the Villach suburb, and belonging to the Protestant community. To these must be added the palace of the prince bishop of Gurk, originally built for the sisters of the emperor Joseph II., and containing in its chapel some fine fresco paintings completed in 1798 by the Carinthian artist Joseph von Pichler ; the municipal hospital ; the lunatic asylum ; the burg or castle, existing in its present form since 1777 ; and the Landhaus or house of assembly, dating from the end of the 14th century, and containing a museum of natural history, and the Klagenfurt Historical Society s library, and collection of minerals, antiquities, seals, paintings, and sculptures. The most interesting public monument is the great Lindwurm or Dragon, standing in the principal square (1590). Among the many educational establishments of Klagenfurt are an upper and lower gymnasium with public library ; a theological seminary for priests ; mon astic and conventual houses ; agricultural, industrial, technical, and mining schools ; and an asylum for the instruction of the deaf and dumb. The industrial establish ments comprise factories for the preparation of white lead, tobacco, woollen cloth, muslins, silk fabrics, and leather ; also machine and iron foundries. Klagenfurt possesses, moreover, several banks, a chamber of industry and commerce, a central board of mining control, and a few scientific associations. The transit trade, which is con siderable owing to the wealth of the mineral products of the province, is much facilitated by the position of Klagen furt at a junction of the Crown-Prince-Rudolph and Austrian Southern Railways. The civil population in 1880 was 16,592; with the military, it was 18,749.