Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume VII.djvu/546

 534 FUNGIBLE FUR thor, gives a popular account of the microscopic fungi. FUNGIBLE, a word supposed to be derived from the phrase functionem recipere, in the civil law. It is not much known in English law, but is often used in French and Scotch law, and has recently been introduced into American legal language. It is used to mean what we have no other word for, that is, res quoB pondere, numero, et mensura constant (1 Bell's "Commentaries," p. 255), or things which may be returned or replaced by any others of the same kind, in contradistinction from those which must be returned or deliv- ered specifically. Thus money is nearly al- ways a fungible, because so much paid in any way that is a legal tender satisfies a claim for it. But it might happen that A lent B cer- tain specific coins, for a specific purpose, which were to be specifically returned ; and these would not be fungibles. If one lent to another corn, or meat, or manure, to be used, and re- turn to be made in a like quantity of things of like quality, they would all be fungibles. FUR, the covering of certain animals, espe- cially such as inhabit the lands or waters of cold countries, distinguished from hair by its greater fineness and softness; also the skins of such animals dressed with the fur on. Be- fore being dressed the skins are known in commerce as peltry. Fur is used especially for winter clothing, for which it is well adapted not merely by reason of its warmth and dura- bility, but also on account of its great beauty. Skins of animals were among the first mate- rials used for clothing. The ancient Assyrians used the soft skins of animals to cover the couches or the ground in their tents ; and the Israelites employed skins which were dyed red as ornamental hangings for the tabernacle. The ancient heroes of the Greeks and Romans are represented as being clothed in skins ; but the Romans of later periods regarded the clothing as that of barbarous times and peo- ple, associating it with the habits of the savage tribes on their eastern and northern frontiers. In the 2d or 3d century fur dresses appear to have been in use and in high estimation with the Romans. The fur of the beaver was in use, either in the skin or for manufacturing fabrics, in the 4th century ; the animal was known as the Pontic dog. The sable of the far-off regions of Siberia was not known till tiveness of that region in furs that chiefly prompted the Russians to its conquest. In the early periods furs appear to have constituted the whole riches of the northern countries; they were the principal if not the only ex- ports; taxes were paid with them, and they were the medium of exchange. In the llth century furs had become fashionable through- out Europe. The art of dyeing them was prac- tised in the 12th century, chiefly red. Richard I. of England and Phillip II. of France, in order to check the growing extravagance in their use, resolved, in the crusade about the end of the 12th century, that neither should wear ermine, sable, or other costly furs. Louis IX. followed their example in the next century, when the extravagance had grown to such a pitch that 746 ermines were required for the lining of one of his surcoats. In these times the use of the choicer furs was restricted to the royal families and the nobility, and the fashion extended to the princes of less civil- ized nations, if it was not indeed originally adopted from them. In 1272 Marco Polo ob- served that the tents of the khan of Tartary were lined with rich skins. In 1337 the use of furs, which had become common in Eng- land, was prohibited by Edward III. to all persons not able to expend 100 per annum. The early trade of western Europe in furs was through the Hanse merchants on the south coast of the Baltic, who received them from the ports of Livonia. In the 16th century a direct trade was opened between the English and Russians; and a company of the former, protected by the czar, established posts on the White sea with a warehouse at Moscow, whence they sent parties to Persia and the countries on the Caspian. Ivan the Terrible sent presents of beautiful furs to Queen Mary and to Queen Elizabeth ; but the latter pro- hibited the wearing of any but native furs, and the trade was abandoned. Siberia was about this time conquered by the Russians, and its tribute was paid in furs. This country also furnished large quantities to China ; but the choicest kinds were taken to Moscow and Nizhni Novgorod for the use of the princes and nobles of Russia, Turkey, and Persia. The set- tlers of North America early learned the value of the furs of the numerous animals which peopled the rivers, lakes, and forests. They collected the skins in abundance, and found an increasing demand for them with every new arrival from the mother country. The Indians were stimulated by trifling compensation to pursue their only congenial peaceful occupa- tion. The Frenchmen, readily assimilating to the Indian habits, became themselves hunters and explorers ; and the classes of voyageurs and coureurs des ~bois, to which this trade gave rise, became the pioneers of all the new settlements. To protect and control the trade, forts were soon required in the Indian territory. That established at Mackinaw became an important central point. The value of this trade early engaged the attention of wealthy and influ- ential persons connected with the government of Great Britain, as Prince Rupert, the duke of Albemarle, the earl of Craven, Lord Ash- ley, and others. After a successful enter- prise in which they had embarked they ob- tained from Charles II. in 1670 a charter of incorporation, giving to them full possession of the territory within the entrance of Hud- son strait not already granted to other subjects, or possessed by those of any other Christian prince or state. In this was included the mo-
 * many centuries later ; but it was the produc-