Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume I.djvu/799

 AROOSTOOK ARRAN- 763 convention of 1867 is now administered by the king of Prussia), on the Aar, 12 m. N. of Wai- deck ; pop. in 1867, 2,148. The palace contains many works of art and a library of 30,000 vol- umes. In the parish church are statues by Rauch, and by Kaulbach, who was born here. AROOSTOOK, a county comprising the N. and N. E. portions of Maine, and bordering on the provinces of Quebec and New Brunswick; area, 6,800 sq. m. ; pop. in 1870, 29,609. The surface is undulating, with a few mountain peaks, the loftiest of which are Chase's Mount and Mars Hill. The St. John's river forms the N. boundary and flows through the W. part of the county, and is navigable for vessels of 50 tons. It is also watered by the Aroostook, a W. tributary of the St. John's, Allagash, Mat- tawamkeag, and several smaller rivers ; and there are many small lakes and ponds. The soil is generally very fertile, but a great part of the surface is still covered by pine forests. In 1870 the county produced 46,946 bushels of wheat, 532,151 of oats, 360,450 of buckwheat, 380,701 of potatoes, 48,052 tons of hay, 86,- 173 Ibs. of wool, 523,510 of butter, and 53,- 186 of maple sugar. Capital, Houlton. ARPAI), the Magyar national hero, son of Al- mos, who led the Magyars into Hungary, died, after a reign of about 18 years, in 907. He completed the conquest begun by his father, carried on wars with the Bulgarians and Mo- ravians, conquered Transylvania, Croatia, and Slavonia, and made predatory incursions into Germany and northern Italy. He also suc- cessfully began the organization of his country. His only surviving son, Zoltan, continued the 'Arpad dynasty, which in 1000 assumed the royal dignity, and in 1301 became extinct in the male line with Andrew III. ARPINO (anc. Arpinum}, a town of S. Italy, in the province of Terra di Lavoro, 8 m. S. of Sora ; pop. about 6,500. It has manufactures of woollen cloth, paper, and parchment. It was originally a town of the Volsci, and sub- sequently of the Samnites, from whom it was wrested by the Romans in 304 B. C. It is the birthplace of Marius and Cicero, whose brother Quintus had a celebrated villa called Arcanum. ARPINO, Giuseppe Cesari d'. See CESAKI. AKPIMM. See ARPINO. ARQUA, or Arqnata, a village of northern Italy, among the Euganean hills, 12 in. S. W. of Padua; pop. 2,600. It is famous for con- taining the house and tomb of Petrarch. He died here at his villa in July, 1374, and was laid in a sarcophagus of red marble, raised on four pilasters, on an elevated base. ARRACK (Arabic, literally perspiration), a strong spirituous liquor distilled from fer- mented rice and from toddy, the fermented sap of the cocoanut tree, and also from rice and sugar or rice and molasses fermented with cocoanut juice. The word is used as a generic term for all distilled liquors, as there are ar- racks of grapes, berries, figs, dates, and even of wild flowers, hi various parts of the East. Arrack is sometimes made by adding different bitter principles and mastic to the fermenting liquor, putting it into leather bottles, and allow- ing it to undergo slow fermentation under the earth for a year, and then subjecting it to a crude distillation. It is largely imitated in various parts of Germany and Holland. The arrack of commerce is derived from Batavia, Goa, Ceylon, Madras, and .Colombo. The best arrack in the Levant is obtained from the island of Scio. In order to prepare it for the long voy- age some oil is added, which on the addition of warm water often imparts a disagreeable oily taste and smell. It is used in the composition of punch and for medical and culinary pur- poses. Anise seed and various aromatic herbs are sometimes steeped in it to improve its flavor. ARRAN, an island forming part of the Scotch county of Bute, and lying in the great bay between the peninsula of Cantyre and the main coast of Scotland, 5 m. E. of the former, from which it is separated by Kilbrannan sound, and 13m. W. of the latter, from which it is sepa- rated by the frith of Clyde. Its greatest length is about 21 m., greatest width about 12 m. The surface is high and rocky, and the scenery wild and picturesque. In the N. part the rugged mountain Goatfell rises to a height of 2,865 ft. The coast rises in many places into bold basaltic cliffs ; in others it is low and sandy. The island, of which a large portion is the property of the duke of Hamilton, is divided into two parishes, Kilmory and Kil- bride ; total pop. about 5,500, supported by the products of small farms, and by trifling local industries. The three villages are Brodick, Lamlash, and Shedog. Many ancient monu- ments, supposed to have been erected by the Druids, are found in Arran. Gaelic is the ordinary language of the people, though English is generally understood. ARRAN, Isles of, three small islands lying at the entrance of Galway bay, off" the W. coast of Ireland ; total area, about 18 sq. m. The largest is Inishmore, the northern island ; the next in size, Inishmain, lies in the centre ; and the southern one is called Inishere. They are low and barren, producing only potatoes and the most hardy grain ; yet the greater part of their surface, which is divided into plots gene- rally less than an acre in extent, is under cul- tivation by a wretched population of about 3,200, who live in miserable huts. On one of the northern cliff's of Inishmore stands a very ancient fort built by the Belgse, it is supposed, early in the 1st century. Other structures of equal age are found in all three islands ; and there are also numerous ruins of the oratories, dwellings, and churches of early Irish hermits, many of whom retired to these isolated places in the 6th and 7th centuries, giving to Inish- more especially the name of Arran of the Saints (Aran-na-naomJi). The Irish earls of Arran take their title from these islands. ARRAN, Earl of, the title of the holders of the Scotch peerage of Arran, created for Sir Thomas