Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XVI.djvu/548

 528 WEBSTER area, about 325 sq. m. ; pop. in 1870, 4,677, of whom 2,238 were colored. The surface is undulating and the soil fertile. The chief pro- ductions in 1870 were 1,421 bushels of wheat, 86,810 of Indian corn, 11,041 of sweet pota- toes, 14,958 Ibs. of butter, and 8,167 bales of cotton. There were 270 horses, 580 milch cows, I,3o5 other cattle, 458 sheep, and 4,625 swine. Capital, Preston. III. A N. W. parish of Louisiana, bordering on Arkansas; area, about 550 sq. m. ; pop. in 1875, 9,522, of whom 6,282 were colored. It is intersected from N. to S. by Bayou Daachite, which empties into Lake Bistineau in the S. part. The surface is rolling, and consists largely of prairies; the soil is productive. Capital, Minden. IV. A N. W. county of Kentucky, bounded N. E. by Green river, and drained by its tributaries ; area, about 290 sq. m. ; pop. in 1870, 10,937, of whom 1,355 were colored. It has a diversified surface and a fertile soil. The Green river is rendered navigable by slackwater improve- ments. The St. Louia and Southeastern rail- road crosses the E. part. The chief produc- tions in 1870 were 39,771 bushels of wheat, 221,679 of Indian corn, 21,765 of oats, 9,602 of Irish and 7,310 of sweet potatoes, 42,660 Ibs. of butter, 21,994 of wool, 8,511,649 of tobacco, and 1,379 tons of hay. There were 2,965 horses, 2,233 milch cows, 2,931 other cattle, 10,549 sheep, and 16,673 swine. Capital, Dixon. V. A central county of Iowa, inter- sected by the Des Moines river, and also drained by Lizard river and other branches of that stream; area, 1,080 sq. m. ; pop. in 1870, 10,- 484. The surface is diversified by prairie and woodland, and the soil is tolerably fertile. It is traversed by the Des Moines Valley and the Illinois Central railroads. The chief produc- tions in 1870 were 155,885 bushels of wheat, 801,176 of Indian corn, 98,763 of oats, 25,528 of potatoes, 221,990 Ibs. of butter, 8,829 of wool, and 23,378 tons of hay. There were 2,435 horses, 2,357 milch cows, 4,087 other cattle, 3,160 sheep, and 8,304 swine. Capital, Fort Dodge. VI. A S. county of Nebraska, intersected by Republican river, and bordering on Kansas ; area, 576 sq. m. ; pop. in 1870, 16; in 1875, 2,590. The surface consists chiefly of undulating prairies ; the soil is pro- ductive. Capital, Red Cloud. VII. A 8. W. county of Missouri, drained by several branches of the Gasconade and White rivers ; area, about 575 sq. m. ; pop. in 1870, 10,434, of whom 248 were colored. The surface is undulating and the soil fertile. Iron ore is found. The At- lantic and Pacific railroad passes through it. The chief productions in 1870 were 73,581 bushels of wheat, 288,918 of Indian corn, 76,- 568 of oats, 17,872 of potatoes, 97,765 Ibs. of butter, 18,538 of wool, 148,162 of tobacco, and 1,746 tons of hay. There were 8,318 horses, 2,487 milch cows, 4,883 other cattle, 10,545 sheep, and 15,985 swine; 8 wool-card- ing and cloth-dressing establishments, 5 flour mills, and 4 saw mills. Capital, Marshfield. WEBSTER, Benjamin, an English actor, born in Bath, Sept. 8, 1800. He was educated for the navy, and also studied music, but in 1825 went upon the stage in London. In 1887 he became manager of the Haymarket theatre, and during his lesseeship expended annually large sums for original works by Bulwer, Knowles, Jerrold, and others, which were brought out at his theatre, where at the same time appeared Macready, Wallack, Farren, Miss Faucit, and other eminent actors. Subsequently he had ,the management of the Adelphi theatre. In 1858 he built the new Adelphi theatre, which is still under his management (1876). In 1866 he became also lessee of the Olympic. He is president of 'the new dramatic college. His most successful parts are Lavater, Tartuffe, Belphegor, Triplet, and Pierre Lereux in the " Poor stroller9 -" WKBSTEK, Daniel, an American statesman, born in Salisbury (now Franklin), N. H., Jan. 18, 1782, died at Marshfield, Mass., Oct. 24, 1852. He was the second son of Ebenezer Webster and his second wife, Abigail Eastman. (See WEBSTEB, EBENEZER.) The schools on the frontier in his childhood (Salisbury being then the furthest settlement toward Canada in this part of New England) were very indif- ferent ; and the best part of his early educa- tion was probably derived from his father and mother. In 1796 he was sent to the Phillips Exeter academy. While there, as he relates, he could never muster courage to make a declamation, but in other respects he gave de- cided promise of future eminence. In Feb- ruary, 1797, he was placed in the family of the Rev. Samuel Wood, of the town of Boscawen, and in the autumn entered Dartmouth college, where he partly supported himself and aided his elder brother Ezekiel to prepare for col- lege by teaching school in winter. . He read widely, especially in history and general Eng- lish literature, laid a good foundation in the ancient languages, which enabled him to read the Latin classics with pleasure through life, and delivered addresses before the college soci- eties, some of which found their way into print. By the close of his first year he had shown himself decidedly the foremost man of his class, and that position he held through his whole college course. He graduated in 1801, and immediately entered the law office of Thomas W. Thompson, his father's next-door neighbor, who was afterward a congressman and United States senator. From January to September, 1802, he was principal of the Frye- burg academy, Maine, at a salary of $350 a year, which he supplemented by copying for the register of deeds, filling two folio volumes. He afterward remained with Mr. Thompson till February, 1804, when he went to Boston and through a friend procured the charge of a school for his brother Ezekiel. With the aid which the latter was thus enabled to afford him, he entered the office of Mr. Christopher Gore, afterward governor of Massachusetts and