Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XI.djvu/553

 MILDEW MILETUS 535 from that upon the grape, spherotheca pannosa. A similar blight comes upon hop vines, often seriously affecting the crop. Cucumbers, let- tuce, and other succulent vegetables are injured in a similar manner in unfavorable seasons; and in this country a late crop of peas is al- most impossible by reason of an erysipJie which covers the foliage in such abundance that the plants appear as if dusted with a white pow- der ; the European pea mildew or blight is E. Martii, but we are not aware that our species has been identified as the same. The pea is also attacked by another fungus, peronospora Pea Mildew (Leaflet natural size, Fungus magnified). vicice. Near large cities immense quantities of lettuce are forced under glass, to supply the demand during winter ; were there no difficul- ties to contend with, this would be an exceed- ingly profitable culture, but often the grower finds his crop, just as it is nearly ready for mar- ket, rendered almost worthless by the advent of a mildew or mould. Peronospora ganglifor- mis is one of the destructive lettuce fungi, but it is probably not the only one. As with other plants under glass, lettuce is usually attacked by mildew after a sudden change of tempera- ture, and all the grower can do is to preserve the proper conditions of heat and moisture as preventives, for when it is established there is no remedy. The most important of these mi- nute fungi is the wheat mildew, or rust as it is more generally called in this country, puc- cinia graminis, of which figures are given in the article FUNGI. This obstacle to successful wheat growing has been known from very early times, but its real nature was only dis- covered early in the present century. With a view to destroy any spores that may be with the grain, it is common to treat the seed wheat with a solution of sulphate of copper. There is scarcely a cultivated or wild plant which is not in some seasons the host of these fun- gi, which are so minute that their structure can only be seen by the aid of strong magni- fiers; in one sense they are among the most important plants to the cultivator, and often determine his success or failure; the minute mildew of the grape in the wine regions of Europe has brought ruin to whole neighbor- hoods and driven families to emigration. Another set of fungi attacks dead vegetable matter. When linen or cotton fabrics are kept in a damp place or laid away before they are perfectly dry, they become covered with dark ipots which the "housekeeper knows as mil- dew ; this is a species of cladosporium, which in some of its forms attacks the leaves of the apple and pear, and also produces the dark Paper Mildew (magnified). blotches sometimes found on otherwise fair specimens of the fruit. Paper, whether upon damp walls or stored in a damp place, is at- tacked by a chcetomium, an ascotricha, or some other form of mildew, and similar fungi appear upon damp plastered walls. (See FUNGI.) MILE (Lat. mille passuum, 1,000 paces of 5 ft. each), a measure of length or distance. According to the estimates of the length of the Roman foot, the ancient mile must have been 1,614 or 1,618 English yards, while the English statute mile amounts to 1,760 yards or 5,280 ft. There are 69-16 statute miles to a degree of the equator, and the English geo- graphical mile is -^ of a degree, or 1'1527 statute mile. The distance expressed by the term mile varies ; the following are its values in some countries: COUNTRIES. Yard*. Statute miles. Modern Roman mile. 1628 0-925 Irish mile 2,240 1-273 6859 8-89T German geographical mile 8237 4-611 Swiss mile 9,168 5-201 German long mile 10,126 5-753 Swedish mile 11 700 6-648 MILETUS, an ancient city of Asia Minor, sit- uated in the northern part of Caria, but politi- cally belonging to the Ionian confederacy. It stood at the northern extremity of a promon- tory formed by the Grium range, opposite Priene and the headland of Mycale, and commanding the entrance of the Latmic bay, into which the Mseander flowed. Miletus had four harbors, protected by a group of islands, the principal of which was Lade. It is difficult to determine the precise position of the now ruined city, owing to the continued changes produced in the bay and its surroundings by the action of the Msean- der, which, bringing down immense masses of soil, has filled up the northern portion of the water basin, and changed Lade and the other islands into parts of the continent. The terri- tory of Miletus extended round the bay as far as the promontory of Mycale on the north and Cape Posidium on the south. The earliest in- habitants were Carians, Leleges, and Cretans, and it derived its historical name from Mile- tus, a leader of the latter, being also called