Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XII.djvu/710

 696 ORKNEY ISLANDS ORLEANS nual temperature is 45. Until recently agri- culture has been neglected, and the manufacture of kelp, the fisheries, and pasturage have been prominent. Much less kelp is produced than formerly, and more land has been brought un- der cultivation. The small native breeds of cattle, sheep, and ponies have been improved by the introduction of new stock. Rabbits and poultry are numerous, game abounds, and in the season of incubation the cliffs swarm with sea fowl. The cod and herring fisheries are very productive, and large numbers of lobsters are exported. The leading manufac- ture, employing about 2,000 girls, is straw plait for bonnets ; some linen and woollen goods are made; and boat building and sail and cordage making are among the industries. Tne value of the exports, the chief of which are fish and cattle, is about 200,000 a year. The Orkneys, with Shetland, form a district returning one member to parliament. Pomo- na, or Mainland, the principal island, is 24 m. long, with a breadth of from 3 to 15 m. ; area, about 150 sq. m. The coast is broken up with bold cliffs, but has several good harbors. The surface is moor and moss, with much good pasturage, and a few fertile valleys. On the shore of Lake Stennis, between Kirkwall and Stromness, is a remarkable group of 70 or 80 large symmetrical standing stones, in two sep- arate circles of 100 ft. and 360 ft. diameter, the largest stones in the smaller circle. There are several smaller lakes. Kirkwall, the capi- tal (pop. in 1871, 3,434), is a very ancient place, but has many new and handsome shops and houses. The principal building is the cathe- dral of St. Magnus, founded in 1138; it is a superb structure of red sandstone in the mixed Gothic and Saxon style, and the choir is used as a parish church. There are also a Presby- terian church, a grammar and other schools, town hall, two libraries, and several charities. Adjoining the cathedral are the ruins of the bishop's and the earl's palaces, and the mu- seum contains numerous ancient relics. The most remarkable discovery, made in 1858, con- sisted of massive pins, brooches, bracelets, and other ornaments, and silver coins which are believed to have been contemporaneous with the earliest kings in Scottish or Scandinavian history. Kirkwall has a good harbor and a considerable export trade. Stromness, on the S. W. side of the island, 12 m. from Kirk- wall (pop. 1,619), is important for its fisher- ies, and has a convenient and commodious harbor. The red sandstone in the vicinity abounds in rare fossils. The same Celtic peo- ple who colonized S. and N. Britain were the original inhabitants of the Orkneys. The isl- ands were visited by Agricola, A. D. 84, and were afterward favorite resorts of the piratical Northmen. In 876 Harald Harfager subdued both the Orkneys and the Hebrides. On his return to Norway he conferred the administra- tion of his conquest on Ronald, the father of Rollo, the ancestor of "William the Conqueror. In 920 Sigurd, the brother of Ronald, receiver this dominion from him, and afterward added to it considerable territory on the mainland of Scotland ; and the two brothers thus became the founders of a long line of Scandinavian earls who affected the style of independent princes. In 1098 they became subject to the Norwegian crown. When James III. of Scot- land married Margaret of Denmark (1469), he obtained the Orkney and Shetland islands as security for her dowry ; and as they were never ransomed, they have ever since apper- tained to Scotland. ORLEINAIS, an ancient province of France, near the centre of the country, bounded N. E. by lie de France, E. by Champagne and Bur- gundy, S. by Berry, W. by Touraine, Maine, and Perche, and N. W. by Normandy. Be- sides Orl6anais proper, it included the districts of Blaisois, Vend6mois, Dunois, Sologne, Gati- nais, Beauce or Pays Chartrain, and Perche- Gouet. It was originally the country of the Carnutes and Senones. It was watered by the Loire, Loiret, Loir, Eure, Cher, Beuvron, Yonne, Essonne, and Loing. It has been di- vided into the three departments of Loir-et- Cher, Eure-et-Loir, and Loiret. ORLEANS. I. A N. county of Vermont, bor- dering on Canada, watered by the Black, Bar- ton, Clyde, Lamoille, and Missisque rivers; area, 700 sq. m. ; pop. in 1870, 13,364. It has an uneven surface, and lies between the E. and W. ranges of the Green mountains. Numer- ous small lakes or ponds are scattered over its surface, and Lake Memphremagog extends some distance within its borders. It is in- tersected by the Connecticut and Passumpsic Rivers railroad. The chief productions in 1870 were 56,432 bushels of wheat, 54,589 of Indian corn, 369,319 of oats, 21,376 of barley, 38,796 of buckwheat, 598,307 of potatoes, 1,738,526 Ibs. of butter, 67,079 of cheese, 110,476 of wool, 254,429 of hops, 1,025,502 of maple sugar, and 68,757 tons of hay. There were 5,184 horses, 14,125 milch cows, 1,961 working oxen, 8,037 other cattle, 22,432 sheep, and 3,636 swine; 11 manufactories of carriages and wagons, 6 of sash, doors, and blinds, 13 of starch, 1 of wool- len goods, 7 wool-carding and cloth-dressing establishments, 6 tanneries, and 36 saw mills. Capital, Irasburg. II. A N. W. county of New York, bordering on Lake Ontario, and watered by Oak Orchard, Johnson's, and Sandy creeks ; area, 405 sq. m. ; pop. in 1870, 27,689. Its surface is traversed E. and W. by the lake and mountain ridges which divide it into three level or gently undulating plateaus, and the soil is generally fertile. The Erie canal and the New York Central railroad intersect it. The chief productions in 1870 were 550,046 bushels of wheat, 306,972 of Indian corn, 430,768 of oats, 142,785 of barley, 23,063 of buckwheat, 245,097 of potatoes, 134,760 of peas and beans, 793,562 Ibs. of butter, 266,282 of wool, 58,258 of to- bacco, 68,242 of hops, 25,031 of flax, and 38,- 996 tons of hay. There were 883 horses, 7,731