Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 01.djvu/461

ALOST. five gates, whose finest buildiiif; is the church of St. Jliutin, an imfinished edifice, in late Gothic style, one of the grandest in Belgium, and con- taining a famous painting b}' Rubens, "St. Roch Beseeching Our Saviour to Stay the Plague of Alost," and also the mausoleum of Thierry Mar- tens, who was born here, and who introduced the art of printing into Belgium in 1475. Alost has a town hall (built about 1200), a col- lege, a hospital, the royal school for 450 sons of military men, and an academy of design, etc. Its industries are weaving in silk, wool, and cotton, fiax-spinning, lace-making, and it has a thriving trade in hops and grain. Pop., 1900, 30,100. ALOY'SIA. See LipriA.

ALP, iilp; ALB, alb (Swabian) (Lat. alpes, perhaps of Celtic origin; Gael, ulp, rock, cliff), also called the Rauhe Alb or Swabian .Jura. A chain of mountains about 70 miles in length, and from 12 to 15 miles in breadth, extending northeast and southwest, and forming a water- shed between the Xeckar and the Danube. It lies almost entirely within the kingdom of Wiirttem- berg, but crosses Hohenzollern, and is situated from 50 to 100 miles east of the Black Forest; but presents a totally different appearance from the latter region, on account of its being clothed with forests of hard wood instead of pine. It forms a table-land intersected by a few narrow, deep valleys. The average height of the system is rather more than 2000 feet. On the north it descends to the Neckar in ridges of rocky cliffs and abrupt pointed headlands, but on the south it gradually slopes away to the level of the valley of the Danube. The scenery is often very pic- turesque, for the sharp, precipitous crags are frequently crowned with the riiins of the strong- holds of some of the famous old German fami- lies, such as the Hohenzollerns, Hohenstaufens, etc. The geological formations of the Swabian Alps are limestones of ilesozoic age, which, though regularly stratified, have been folded to a considerable extent. Caverns of a very remark- able character abound. The valleys at the base of the hills are fertile, and produce abundance of wine and fruit, but the high tableland lias an ex- tremely poor and barren soil. The word Alp is sometimes applied to the green pasture lands on the slopes of the mountains in Switzerland. ALPACA, or PA'CO (Ar. al, the + Peruv. jidcd ). One of the four cameloid mammals of the Andean region, known zoologically as Lanm pacos. It is smaller than the llama, and more nearly resembles the vicuna, although now con- sidered to have been, like the llama, derived from theguanaco. (SeeLLAMA.) Its form is very sheep- like, except for the long, erectly carried head; and, although wild ones exist, it is mainly known in great, semi-domesticated flocks kept by the Peruvian mountain Indians for the sake of the wool. These flocks graze on the pastures of the loftiest valleys, almost at the snow-line, which seem to be the natural home of the animal, and where they have formed interesting instincts and habits of vigilance and protection against sudden storms and snowfalls. These flocks are said to be so careful to keep together that it is impos- sible to separate a full-grown individual, so that none can be truly tamed which is not taken when vcrj' young. Once a j'ear the Indians drive their flocks to stone inclosures or huts, and shear the wool, after which the flocks are again turned loose. This custom is prehistoric, and Squier says that many of the shearing huts about Lake Titicaca have stood there since long before the Spanish conquest. The alpaca is known from the equator to Tierra del Fuego, but is most com- mon in Peru and Chile; its flesh is well liked as food, and the animal is occasionally used as a beast of burden. The alpaca's coat consists of a thick growth of woolly hair, varying from black to gray oryellowish, and reaching, when unshorn, a length of some two feet. The annually shorn fleece is about eight inches in length. The fibre is small but strong, elastic, very lustrous and silky, and highly valued for weaving warm and fine cloth. The natives of the Andes have made use of it from time immemorial for their pon- chos or blankets, remains of which have been found in the oldest graves of the period of the Incas; but it was not until 1830 that the wool began to be exported to Europe and the manufac- ture of alpaca shawls, cloth, etc., regularly be- gan. This was due to the sagacity and energy of Sir Titus Salt, whose mills at Saltaire, England, are regarded as the foremost in Great Britain. Now the imports of alpaca wool into Europe and America number many millions of pounds an- nually; but not all of the so-called alpaca cloth is really manufactured from that wool alone, or even in part. See Guanaco; Llama; and Vi- cuna, and plate of Camels and Llamas.

Attempts have been made to introduce the alpaca into Europe, but not with satisfactory results. The considerable flock formerly exist- ing in the Pyrenees seems to have disappeared. Similarly, the costly trial of acclimatizing them in Australia has failed. An attempt was made in 1S21 to introduce the alpaca into the United States; a fund was raised, and in 1857 a cargo of them was shipped to Baltimore; but the result showed that they could not be acclimatized.

ALP-ARSLAN, illp'iir-slan' (Strong Lion) (1028-72). A Seljuk sultan. He was born in Turkestan about 1028, and succeeded Togrul Beg as ruler of the Seljuk realm in 1003. His flrst act was to unite the whole of his dominions in one kingdom. He embraced Mohammedanism, and took the surname of Alp-Arslan (Strong I. ion), his real name being Muliammad Ghiyath- ijd-Din abu Khvajah. The Caliph of Bagdad gave him the title of Adhad-ud-Din (Defender of the Faith), and decreed that prayer might be made in his name. He had an excellent vizier, Nizam-ul-Mulk, who was the founder of all the colleges and academies in the kingdom. From 1064 to 1071 Alp-Arslan pursued the course of his conquests, and ruled from the Tigris to the Oxus. In 10G5 and 1008 he invaded Armenia and Georgia, at that time Christian kingdoms. He next proceeded against the Greeks, who, under their brave Emperor, Romanus IV., had thrice driven the Turks beyond the Euphrates. In August, 1071, a bloody battle was fought near the- fortress of Malaskerd. between the towns of Van and Erzerum. Alp-Arslan gained the victory. The Greek Emperor was taken prisoner, and ob- tained his liberty only by the payment of an enormous ransom. In th3 following year, .lp- Arslan invaded Turkestan, but he perished at Berzem, in Turkestan, by the poniard of Yussuf Kothual, whom he had condemned to death. He was buried at Merv. ALPEIIA. A city and the county seat of Alpena Co., Mich., 110 miles north of Bay City, on Thunder Bay, and the Detroit and Mackinaw