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AKHUND OF SWAT. country of Swat, on the borders of India and Afghanistan, was the resort of numerous pilgrimages to consult him on (|ueslions of every kind. For lialf a century the Kn^lish (lovernmcnt assiduously watched tliis man, who possessed a power which no other |>erson in Asia lould pretend to wield; but the Akbund gen- erally kept on friendly terms with the Enplish. In 1S77, the Ameer of Afghanistan songlit his advice in regard to the proper course in the Kus- so-Turkish Var.

AKIB, a'k.b'. Lk Kmuun. The pseudonym under which Voltaire i)ublished in ITlU his Ser-

AKIBA, BEN JOSEPH, ake'ba ben jo'/.ef. between Russia and Turkey in lS2(i. famous rabbi and head of a rabbinical schoid at AKKESHI, or AKISHI, a-ke'shf. A town l'.(>ne-Barak, near JalVa. who tlourislicd in the of .lapan, situated on the southern coast of Yezo, tirsl and second centuries a.d. Although be be- on the Akkeshi Bay. It is famous for its oyster I

gan the study of the law at a comparatively ad- vanced age, he rose to a prominent position among the rabbis of his day by virtue of his learning and acumen, and many are the stories and legends told about his early struggles and iinal success. He laid the basis of the "Mishiia" by beginning the systematization of .lewish oral law, and his collection became known as the Mishna of Rabbi Akiba. His inlluence as a teacher upon the founders of the Mishna was also very great, and it was he likewise who, to a large degiee, advanced the peculiar biblical exe- gesis which is a characteristic fiviture of Tal- mudic literature. Ilis scholarship did not weaken Akiba's interest in the political all'airs of the day. He was involved in tlic great Jew- i-.li revolt against Rome, arrayed liinisclf on the side of Bar-Cochba, or Bar-Cochebas, the pre- tended Messiah, and acted for a time as his armor-bearer. lie was captured by the Romans and i>ut to death c. l.'ij ..|). witJi great tortures, liut bore his pains with wonderful fortitude. Legends gathered around the career of Akiba, and, like Moses, he is reported to have been 120 years old at death. His grave, shown at Tibe- rias, became a place of devout pilgrimage.

AKITA, a-ke'ta, or KUBOTA, koohr/ta. A town of Japan, the capital of tlic prefecture of the same name, situated on the western coast of Hiinshiu, near the Hacliiro l.agoon (Map: .r:i|Ki!i. I8, 2!),477.

AKKA, iiklcfl. A pygmy tribe or race, now living in the forests of British East Africa, aliout long. 25° E. In heiglit, the Akka
 * iverage about 4 feet 6 inches; color, yellow

brown; features, negroid. They are extremely I'tiring and do not mix with neighboring tribes, though usually they live near, and are under the protection of, the tall negroes. Their houses are dome-shaped, arranged in ii circle, with the communal conking (ire in the centre. Though dwarfs in stature, they do iu)t hesitate to attack large game with poisoned arrows, the python being their favorite quarry. Their food is jirin- cipally nuts and berries. The .kka tribe pre- sents a difficult ethnological ])robleni, next to nothing being known of their language and cus- toms. Consult: Schweinfurth. Iltiirt of Africa (London. 1873); Denikcr, l><in:i of Man (Lon- don. 1900).

AKKAD, iik'kad or ak'kad. See AccAn.

AKKEEMAN, iik'ker-miin'. Formerly a for- tress, now the chief town of a district in the (Jovernmcnt of Bessarabia, Russia, at the mouth of the Dneister, 12 miles from the Black Sea and about 30 miles from (Jdcssa (Map: Russia, C 5). It was the Alba Julia of the Romans. The chief industry of the town is the raising of fruits, es- pecially of grapes, there being no less than 2000 gardens within the city proper, l)esides numerous other beautiful ones which surround the town. An annual fair is held here during the month of December. The harbor is accessible to large steamers, and the town has regular steamship comnuinication with Odessa, to which it exports ,„i,ii ,hi h'ahl,i„ M;ih—h<Hluil dc flh-brcu. salt, fish, wools, and wines. A treaty was signed

beds and contains an oyster-canning establish- ment.

AKKRA, ;-i-kr;i'. or ACCRA. The chief town of the British West .fricaii colony of the Gold Coast (Map: Africa. 1) 4). It has a salubrious climate, being separated from the interior of the colony by mountain chains. It extends for about three miles along the coast, and is divided into the four ports of .lames Town. I'ssher Town, 'N^ic- toriaborg, and Cliristiansborg, the latter being the seat of the government. Although the num- ber of Europeans is comparatively small, the town bears strong marks of European inlluence. It has several churches, a bank, a club house, and a number of European .shops. The population, including the suburbs, is about 20,000.

AK'MOLINSK'.. Russian territory, con- stituting the northeast and largest section of the Kirghiz Steppes in Russian Asia (Map: .sia, F 3). " It lies between the L"ln-Tai and Isliim rivers on the west and the Irtvsh on the north- east. Area, about 22.^,000 square miles. The entire territory is divided into three sections, greatly differing in their geological aspect. The northern part is a rather low ])lain. with many salt lakes and salt pits. The middle section, cros.sed by hillocks, is habitable in parts only. Here are centred the mineral resources of the territory, consisting principally of gold, copper, and coal. The southern portion is a waterless desert-steppe, and is known under the name of Bcdnak-Dola. meaning "the hungry st(>ppe." Its climate is very severe; it is extremely hot in the summer, and there are ejiidemics of malaria and diarrhcea. Its principal industries are the grow- ing of flax and tobacco, cattle raising, fishing, an<l, in some localities, hunting. The mining in- dtistry is but little developed. Its population increased from 403.400 in 1SS7 to S7,000 in 1807: about two-thirds of the people are no- madic. The principal towns are Akmolinsk, Omsk, Atbassar, anil I'etropavlovsk.

AKOI'METOI. See Acwmet.e.

AK'RAGAS (Ok. ■AKpayac). The ancient Oreek name of the Sicilian city Oirgenti. See AclilCEXTLM.

AK'RON. A manufacturing city and railroad centre, the county seat of Summit County, Ohio., It was founded in 182."). and incorporated as a town in 1830. It is 3;') mill's south of Cleveland, on the Ohio Canal and the Erie, the Baltimore and Ohio, the IViinsylvania. and other railways. The city is surrounded by a chain of lakes, where hotels, etc., have been estab-