Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume VII.djvu/160

 152 vessel. This led to experiments upon the growth of plants, especially ferns, in close cases, and re- sulted in establishing the fact that these plants would not only grow under such conditions, but that most ferns would flourish much better than in the open air. Wardian cases, which resulted from this discovery, are now in gen- eral use for the cultivation of ferns, and are among the most popular as they are the most beautiful of household ornaments. FEROJV, Firmin Eloi, a French painter, born in Paris, Dec. 1, 1802. He studied under Gros, and received the great prize in 1825 for his picture of "Damon and Pythias." Among his subsequent works are "Hannibal in the Alps" (1833), "The Resurrection of Lazarus " (1835), and " Christ arrested by Judas " and "Souvenir of Tunis" (1855). Many of his pictures are in the museum of Versailles, and he was a favorite painter of Louis Philippe and his sons; but his reputation has declined. FEROZEPOOR, a town of British India, in the Punjaub, about 3 m. S. of the river Ghara, 45 m. S. S. E. of Lahore ; pop. about 10,000. The ruins which surround it show that it was once a large city. It came into pos- session of the British in 1835, since when it has been greatly improved, and bids fair to become of considerable military and commer- cial importance. In May, 1857, during the sepoy rebellion, a regiment of- native infantry revolted, but were driven out of the fort by a handful of Europeans, and fled after plundering and burning the houses, hospitals, and church. In August following a regiment of cavalry re- volted, but after killing several persons were repulsed and dispersed. J EUR AM), Antoine Francois Claude, count, a French politician and historian, born in Paris, July 4, 1751, died there, Jan. 17, 1825. At the age of 18 years he was admitted a counsellor in the parliament of Paris by special dispen- sation. He left Paris in 1789, and attached himself to the prince of Conde ; and after the death of Louis XVI. he was appointed a mem- ber of the council of regency. He returned to France in 1801, devoted himself to litera- ture, and published a work, on which he had been long engaged, entitled De Vesprit de Vhistoire, which was a bold defence of abso- lute monarchy. He was engaged to complete Rulhiere's unfinished Histoire de Vanarchie de Pologne et du demembrement de cette repu- ~blique ; but the imperial police prevented the publication on the ground that the work be- longed to the government, it having been ori- ginally written for the instruction of Louis XVL, then dauphin. After the restoration of the Bourbons he was appointed minister of state and postmaster general. He was a mem- ber of the academy, and author of several dra- matic and a large number of political works, the latter of which were conservative and many of them reactionary in their tendency. FERRARA. I. A province of Italy, formerly a part of the Papal States, bounded N. by FERRARA the main branch of the Po, which divides it from Lombardy, E. by the Adriatic, S. by the provinces of Ravenna and Bologna, and W. by Modena, from which it is partly separated by the river Panaro ; area, 1,009 sq. m. ; pop. in 1871, 215,369. The surface is flat, and in many parts below the level of the Po, and protected from inundation by embank- ments along the river. A considerable portion of the E. part of the province is almost con- stantly under water. In June, 1872, there was a terrible inundation by which 20,000 people were rendered homeless. The soil is rich and fertile, but the vast swamps render the atmosphere more or less unwholesome, especially in summer. The chief products are grain, rice, flax, hemp, wine, olives, and silk. Extensive pastures favor the rearing of cattle, and the fisheries are of some importance. The - province formerly constituted the greater part of the duchy of Ferrara, which was ruled by the house of Este from the early part of the 13th century to 1598, when it was annexed to the Papal States. In 1796 it was taken by the French and formed part first of the Cisal- pine republic, and afterward of the kingdom of Italy, till 1814, when it was restored to the pope, with the exception of a small portion between the Po di Goro and the Po della Maestra, which was secured to Austria by the congress of Vienna, together with the right of garrisoning the citadel of Ferrara. The province was governed by a papal legate or cardinal, and was called a legation, until No- vember, 1850, when it came under the admin- istration of an inferior prelate. In June, 1859, the Austrian troops were withdrawn from the capital, and in March, 1860, it was annexed to the kingdom of Sardinia. The principal towns besides the capital are Lugo, Cento, Bagnacavallo, and Comacchio, the last a forti- fied town, situated on an island in the midst of extensive swamps, and noted for its fish- eries, which are celebrated by Tasso and Ari- osto. II. A city, capital of the province, situ- ated in a flat unhealthy country, only about 7 ft. above the level of the sea, on the left bank of the Volano, branch of the Po, about 5 m. S. of the main channel of that river, 26 m. N. E. of Bologna and 88 m. N. W. of Ravenna ; pop. as a commune, in 1871, 72,447, of whom less than one half were in the city proper. Ferrara was a small village until the beginning of the 7th century, when it was walled by the exarch of Ravenna. The bishopric of Fer- rara dates from 661, the archbishopric from 1735. A general council was convened here in 1438, but was removed to Florence. (See ETTGENIUS IV., and FLORENCE, COUNCIL OF.) Under the rule of the princes of Este the city gained great importance, especially in the 16th century, when it was celebrated for learning, poetry, art, and the refinement and splendor of its ducal court. In the 15th century it was famous for its school of painting. In the early part of the 16th it gave an asylum to Calvin