Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XIII.djvu/70

 PAPYRUS PARA on a smooth flat surface and covered with a second layer placed at right angles to them, after which they were pressed so as to cause the different laminas to adhere to each other and form a single sheet, which was then dried in the sun. Pliny says the laminae were made adhesive by wetting them with Nile water, to which he ascribes a glutinous quality, but their own sticky sap was sufficient to hold them to- gether. In the Roman times a thin sizing was used for this purpose. The sheets were finally beaten smooth with a mallet and polished with a piece of ivory or a shell. The breadth of the sheet was limited by the length of the papy- rus slips, but its length could be extended in- definitely by placing numbers of the laminae beside each other. When finished, the papy- rus was rolled upon a wooden cylinder (sea- pus), the ends of wh'teh projecting beyond the edges of the sheet were neatly finished and ornamented. Various qualities of papy- rus were manufactured, of which, according to Pliny, the hieratic, 11 digits in width, used for the sacred books, was formerly the best ; but under the Roman domination two finer kinds of 13 digits' breadth, the Augustine and Livian, were made. Another quality, the Fan- man, 10 digits wide, was manufactured from an inferior grade. The Saitic papyrus, made in the nome of that name, was of cheap qual- ity, and the Tanitic was so poor as to be sold by weight. An eighth grade, not more than six fingers wide, was used only for wrapping paper. In the reign of Claudius the papyrus was greatly improved in fineness, strength, and color, by putting a new layer of the best leaves over a sheet of coarser quality. The papyrus rolls taken from the Egyptian tombs differ in size and in quality, being from 4 to 18 in. in breadth, and varying in texture and color from a coarse yellowish brown, in which the fibre is visible, to a fine silky material of smooth surface and light color. In 1753 several hun- dred papyri were taken from an excavation at Herculaneum, a part of which are Greek and a part Latin manuscripts. The former are from 8|- to 12 in. in width, and the latter wider. They are nearly reduced to carbon, and the pages are quite black, the letters being distin- guishable only in a favorable light. The ut- most care, patience, and ingenuity have been devoted to unrolling and deciphering them, but with results that scarcely repaid the trou- ble, as no works of any consequence have yet been recovered. Attention was first called to the papyri of Egypt when the history and an- tiquities of that country were developed by the French expedition. A great number have since been exhumed, and through their deci- pherment much light has been shed on the history, manners and customs, and literature of Egypt. Papyrus was used for writing at a very remote period in Egypt, as early probably as the third or fourth dynasty. It was an ar- ticle of commerce before the time of Herodo- tus, but it did not come into universal use in Greece before the time of Alexander. Under his successors it was one of the chief articles of Egyptian commerce. The plant was raised also, according to some authorities, in Calabria and Apulia, and in the marshes of the Tiber ; but according to others, the Romans only re- manufactured and improved the papyrus im- ported from Egypt. In the time of the repub- lic great numbers of hieratic papyri which had been written upon were sent from Alexandria to Rome, where they were cleaned and pre- pared anew for writing. Under Augustus the trade in both books and papyrus was very large. In the reign of Tiberius the demand often exceeded the supply, and it was neces- sary to appoint a committee of the senate to regulate its distribution. In the 7th century the conquest of Egypt by the Saracens put an end to the export, and western Europe was obliged to supply its place with parchment and vellum until the introduction of paper, although papyrus was occasionally used for several centuries after. To this general sub- stitution of parchment, and the transferring to it of works written on the perishable papyrus, is due in a great measure the preservation of ancient literature. (See EGYPT, LANGUAGE AND LITEEATUEE OF, and MANUSCBIPT.) PARi) or GrJio Par, a N". E. province of Bra- zil, bounded K by Guiana, K E. by the Atlan- tic, S. E. by Maranhao and Goyaz, S. by Mat- to Grosso, and W. by Amazonas ; area, 460,- 000 sq. m. ; pop. in 1871, 320,000. The coast, which is about 600 m. long in a straight line, comprises the most irregular portion of the Brazilian seaboard, being indented with numer- ous bays and inlets, the principal of which is the vast embouchure of the Amazon with its hundred islands, the most noteworthy of these being Maraj6, Caviana, and Maxiana. The in- terior is described as a vast plain intersected by mighty rivers, and with but few hills, save in the 1ST. E. and S. "W. corners, those in the former region being the more elevated. The Almeirim hills on the left bank of the Ama- zon, some 200 m. from its mouth, are of sin- gular formation, perfectly level on the top, and separated by wide openings with smooth sides. Their height is estimated at 1,800 ft. above the level of the river. Besides the Amazon, the more important rivers are the Tocantins, Araguay, Xingu, Tapajos, Trom- betas, Oyapok, Araguary, Gurupi, Maju, Ca- pim, Acara, Anapu, Pacaja, Anajas, Guama, Para, and Guajara. The climate is not gen- erally unhealthy, especially in the comdrcas or districts of Braganca and Cameta. On the Amazon rain falls almost every afternoon. The soil is fertile, and the vegetation the rich- est and most varied in the world. The pri- meval forests present inexhaustible supplies of timber and precious woods, including the va- rious species of jacarandd or rosewood, the itauba or stonewood, pao ferro or ironwood, 300 or 400 kinds of palms and medicinal trees, dye woods, &c. (See BEAZIL.) The chief culti-