Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume I.djvu/357

 ALLIGATOR ALLIX 333 mainder being devoured by the male alligators, and by various ravenous fishes ; while multi- tudes are destroyed in the egg by the vultures. The alligators never leave the fresh water, while the crocodiles frequent the mouths of the large rivers, and swim out into the open sea, passing between different islands at consider- able distances. So perfect a characteristic is this of the two genera, that the animal of the "West India islands, which swims out into the salt water, is distinctly a crocodile, varying from all the other American species, and exhibiting the modifications which belong only by right to those of the old world. The principal species are : 1. The alligator, properly so called, cro- codilw lucius of Cuvier, alligator Mississippien- sis of Gray, inhabiting the waters of the south- ern states. It grows to the size of 14 or 15 feet ; its head -is one seventh of the entire length, and half as broad at the articulation of the jaws as it is long. It has these distinguish- ing modifications from the crocodiles : The snout is flattened on its upper surface, and slightly turned upward at the extremity ; its sides are nearly parallel, and the nose forms a regular parabolic curve. It is from this simi- larity to the head of a pike that it has its name lucius. It is said to be far more fierce and voracious than the South Ameri<|an species, often seizing and destroying men and large land animals, the bodies of which it conceals under the banks until they begin to putrefy, when it draws them ashore and devours them ; for its teeth, unfitted for mastication, cannot cut the flesh in its sound state. The female of this species is remarkable for her maternal at- tention to her young, never losing sight of her nest until the little alligators are released from the shell. Bartram, the American naturalist, found great numbers of these reptiles in a mineral spring near the Mosquito river, Florida, though the water at its exit from the earth was nearly at the boiling point, and strongly impregnated with copper and vitriol. 2. The cayman, alligator palpebrosus. This species is distinguished by its bony eyebrows, which form knobs as large as the fists of a man. Its toes are almost entirely free from connecting membranes, and its skull has no post-orbital apertures. It is smaller and less fierce than the others of its genus ; and the female takes, no heed to her eggs when they are once de- posited. This is the alligator of Guiana and Surinam. 3. The alligator of Brazil, alligator trigonatm, a variety of the above species, dis- tinguishable from it by a long ridge between the orbits running toward the snout, a notch in the posterior margin of the skull, and a peculiar arrangement of the cervical plates. 4. The jacari, alligator sclerops. This is the alligator of all tropical America, particularly numerous in Brazil. Its head is more elongated than that of the North American alligator, the sides converging toward the snout so as to form nearly an isosceles triangle. The bones of the skull have a rough scabrous appearance, as if diseased; and the orbits of the eye are sur- rounded by prominent rims of bone, connected by a ridge between the orbits, constituting to- gether the resemblance of a pair of spectacles, whence its name. It grows to a very large size, attaining even to 18 feet, its length being more than eight times that of the head. It never attacks men, or even dogs, whether on land or in passing rivers, unless in the neighbor- hood of its nest ; nor does it- then prey on the carcasses, feeding only on fish and water fowl. The bony armor of all the species is their protection against all enemies. It is proof against the rifle ball, which can only take effect when it strikes the eye, or the unarmed skin on the belly and about the insertion of the fore legs. The construction of this armor, how- ever, prevents them from turning rapidly when on dry land, so that their pursuit is easily avoided. Their flesh, and even their eggs, al- though both have a strong musky flavor, are said to be both wholesome and nutritious. The American alligators have neither their allied protector bird, the spur-winged dotterel, nor their characteristic enemy, the ichneumon, which protect or assail the crocodile of the Nile. The hideous aspect, disgusting habits, abominable smell, and odious roar of these reptiles have rendered them objects of undue apprehension. (See CBOCODILE.) ALLINGHA9I, William, a British poet, born at Ballyshannon in Ireland about 1828. His father, a banker in his native town, gave him a good education in Irish schools ; and he early showed a taste for. literary pursuits, contribut- ing to various periodicals. In 1850 he publish- ed a volume of poems, which he dedicated to Leigh Hunt, who had long appreciated and encouraged his work. In 1854 he published "Day and Night Songs," of which an enlarged edition, illustrated by artists of note, appeared the next year. In 1864 he published a poem in twelve chapters, entitled "Laurence Bloom- field in Ireland ; " but it is by his short lyrics that he is best known. He has for some years held a government appointment in the English customs service, and he has also been since 1864 in receipt of a literary pension. He has edited "The Ballad Book." ALLIX, Pierre, a French Protestant divine, born in Alencon in 1631, died in London, March 3, 1717. While pastor of a reformed congregation at Charenton he assisted Claude in preparing a new French version of the Bible, and acquired some celebrity by a controversy with Bossuet. On the revocation of the edict of Nantes he took refuge in England, estab- lished a French congregation .in conformity with the Anglican church, and in 1690 was appointed by Bishop Burnet treasurer of Salis- bury cathedral. He made several attempts, in Holland, Switzerland, and Germany, to cement a more perfect union among the reformed churches. Besides a number of theological and critical works in French and Latin, he wrote in English (of which he was an excellent