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THUCYDIDES

1908

TIBET

give expression to its feelings it shows itself a true cousin to the wrens, but variously shows relationship to the true thrushes. This bird is widely distributed, a familiar summer resident, its joyous song familiar and well-prized. The nest is built in the ground or in a low bush. It is a bulky structure of twigs, rootlets and leaves lined with horse-hair and feathers. The brown thrasher is accused of being a fruit-thief, but in return for tribute levied he destroys many baneful insects. The jolly lay is poured forth from topmost branch of thickset haunt.

Thucydides (thu-sid'i-dez), the great historian of the Peloponnesian War, was an Athenian, born probably in 471 B. C. He owned goldmines in Thrace, and was one of the few who recovered from the terrible plague at Athens. He was in com-l mand of an Athenian squadron in 424, when summoned to Amphipolis to save it from falling into the hands of the Spartans, but arrived on the evening of the day on which the place surrendered. For this failure Thucydides was exiled. According to his own account this exile lasted 20 years. It seems certain that he died a violent death, but when or how is not known. Hardly any literary work has received higher praise than the great work of Thucydides. It is remarkable for its truthfulness and f r the short, simple and realistic way in which he has recorded facts that must have taken months to gather, sift and decide upon. Macaulay repeatedly said that no historian need ever hope to eqtml Thucydides. See Fyffe's Primer of Greek History.

Thug, meaning a cheat, is the name of a religious brotherhood in India, which in honor of the goddess Kali commits murders and Itves chiefly from the plunder got from its victims. Thugs usually band in gangs of ten to fifty or more, and travel, if wealthy enough, on horseback with tents, under the guise of traders. Each gang has its leader; its teacher; its entrappers; its stranglers; and its grave-diggers. They inveigle travelers to join them on the plea of safety, or lie in wait for them. When the victim is strangled and robbed, his body is buried in an out-of-the-way place, and is sometimes mutilated. Thugs also infest the rivers. They are superstitious, ar«d never commit murder unless all omens are favorable. It was not till 1831 that energetic measures were taken to stop these practices, but thuggee, as it is called, has not yet wholly disappeared.

Thur'man, Allen Qranbery, an American statesman, was born at Lynchburg, Va.t

Nov. 13, 1813. When six years old, his family moved to Ohio. He became a lawyer and was chosen a representative in the 29th Congress. In 1851 he was made judge of the supreme court of Ohio, serving as chief -justice from 1854 to 1856. He ran for governor of Ohio in 1867. During his two terms as United States senator (1869-81) he was one of the ablest and most prominent members of that body. In 1888 Thurman ran for vice-president on the Democratic ticket with Cleveland. He died on Dec. 12, 1895.

Thyrsus (ther'sus), a compound raceme or panicle in which a compact, pyramidal cluster of flowers is formed, as in the lilac or a bunch of grapes. See INFLORESCENCE.

Ti'ber, a famous Italian river, rises in the Apennines, passes through Rome, and falls into the Mediterranean by two mouths near Ostia, after a course of 230 miles. Between Lodi and Passo del Forello are rapids, and here the river runs through a narrow gorge for several miles. The Tiber is navigable for ships to Rome, 18 miles from its mouth, where it is 500 feet wide, and for boats of light draught to the mouth of the Neva, 72 miles further up. The Tiber has always been noted for its yellow color, which comes from the yellow clay through which it passes. Besides Rome, the chief city on its banks is Perugia. Steps have been taken to deepen and otherwise improve the Tiber's course.

Tiberius (ti-be'ri-us), emperor of Rome, was born on Nov. 16, 42 B. C. As the stepson of Augustus he was adopted by that emperor, and saw service at the head of the legions on the outposts of the empire. He was popular with Augustus, the soldiers and the people, and was married to Julia, the emperor's daughter. He ascended the throne in 14 A. D., and, according to Mommsen, was the best of the emperors. Tacitus grossly misrepresented his character and life. When power fell into the hands of ^Elius Sejanus, a Roman knight and a commander of the Prastorian guards, a man of ability, Sejanus ruled well, though he murdered leading citizens, pouring tales of conspiracy into the ears of Tiberius. But Sejanus could not hide his ambition to become emperor in name as well as fact, and fell in 31 A. D. There has been an almost complete reversal of the unjust verdict of history on Tiberius. It is recognized that he ruled the people well, though the Roman court suffered injustice at his hands in retaliation for the disloyalty of the old aristocracy. Consult Mommsen's Roman Provinces; Beesley's Catiline, Clodius and Tiberius; Duruy's History of Rome, and Tarver's Tiberius. It was in the reign of Tiberius that Christ was crucified at Jerusalem. The emperor died on March 16, 37 A. D.

Tibet or Thibet (tib'et) is the southeastern portion of the vast central plain of

THUCYDIDES