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ALPS. edelrue, and the world famed edelweiss are among the beautiful flowering plants of the region. Shrubs, such as the juniper, dwarf willow, and dwarf rhododendron, also occur in some places in profusion. Above the highest altitude of flowering plants and stunted shrub growth, from 10,000 to 12,000 feet, algæ, mosses, and lichens are the only vegetable life. There is not, however, a uniform flora at the same altitude in all parts of the Alpine region. Some species are indeed common in the appropriate climatic zone throughout the whole region; but, on the other hand, some species are limited to the west Alps, while others are peculiar to the north, south, or east Alps. Some of the arctic plants are so narrowly limited in distribution as to be found only on certain mountain groups.

The list of writings relating to the Alps is a very long one, and embraces important works in all of the principal languages of Western Europe, French, German, Italian, and English. In fact, no other single region has been so much written about from a geographical point of view. For a detailed knowledge of the Alps, the publications of the various Alpine Clubs offer the richest sources of information. The chief of these clubs are: The English Alpine Club (organized in 1857), publishes The Alpine Journal (London), Deutscher (1869) und österreichischer (1862) Alpen-Verein (fused, 1874), 1800 members: Zeitschrift des Deutschen und Oesterreichischen Alpen-Vereins and Mittheilungen (Vienna); Club Alpin Suisse (1863), Annuaire and L'echo des Alpes (Geneva); Club Alpino Italiano (1863), Rivista mensile and Bollettino; Der österreichische Touristen-Club (1869), Oesterreicheische Touristen-Zeitung (Vienna); Le Club Alpin Français (1874), Bulletin mensuel and Annuaire (Paris); Der Verein der Naturfreunde (1877); Der Oesterreichische Alpen-Club (1878), Oesterreichische Alpen-Zeitung (Vienna); Le Club Alpin International à Nice (1879); Der Alpen-Club Salzburg (1880); Sannthaler Alpen-Club (1880); Der Touristen-Verein Hermagor (1882); La Società degli Alpinisti Triestini (Roveredo). For the best general description of the combined features of the Alps, consult: F. Umlauft, The Alps, translated by Louisa Brough (London, 1889); T. G. Bonney, The Alpine Regions of Switzerland and Neighboring Countries (London, 1868); J. Tvndall, The Glaciers of the Alps (London, 1896); J. Tyndall, Hours of Exercise in the Alps (London, 1873); Rambert, Les Alpes Suisses, 5 volumes (Geneva. 1866-74); Desor, De l'orographie des Alpes (Neuchâtel, 1862); C. Lentheric, L'homme devant les Alpes (Paris, 1896); E. Suess, Die Entstehung der Alpen (Vienna, 1875); Schaubach, Die deutschen Alpen, 5 volumes (Jena, 1865-71); Studer, Ueber Eis und Schnee (Berne, 1896); Berlepsch, Die Alpen in Natur- und Lebensbildern (Jena, 1885); Noë. Deutsches Alpenbuch, 6 volumes (Glogau, 1875-88); Schlagintweit, Untersuchungen über die physikalische Geographie und Geologie der Alpen (Leipzig, 1850-54); Tschudi, Das Tierleben der Alpenwelt (Leipzig, 1892); Grube, Alpenwanderungen (Leipzig, 1886); Güssfeldt, In den Hochalpen (Berlin, 1892); Conway, The Alps from End to End (London, 1895); Conway and Coolidge, Climbers' Guide to the Alps (London, 1890-93), which contains a bibliography; Whymper, Scrambles Among the Alps (London, 1893); Neumayr, Erdgeschichte (Leipzig, 1885-87); Suess, Das Antlitz der Erde (Prague, 1883-88).

ALPUJARRAS, al'poo-Hii'ras (Ar. al, the + basharat, herbage). A mountainous region in Andalusia, Spain, running parallel to the Sierra Nevada on its southern side (Map: Spain, D 4). It is remarkable for its narrow, deep-cut, and romantic valleys. The inhabitants are in part of Moorish descent, large numbers of Moors having taken refuge here after the fall of the kingdom of Granada.

AL-RAKIM, al ril-kem'. A name in the Koran (Sura xviii. 8), connected with the tale of the "Seven Sleepers." It is commonly understood to apply to the dog that guarded the "Sleepers" in their cave. But it has also been variously understood to mean the cave itself, or the valley wherein the cave was situated, or, again, the tablet set up over the entrance of the cave, enumerating the names of the slumbering occupants. See.

AL'REDUS, or AL'FRED..

ALSACE-LORRAINE, al'sas'lSr'ran' (Ger. Elsass-Lothringen; Elsass, ancient Alsatia, from the river Ill + Ger. Sasse, settler, ten- ant; Lothringen, the realm of Lothaire, grand- son of Charlemagne). An imperial territory (Reichsland) occupying the southwestern end of the German Empire, and bounded by the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg. the Rhine prov- ince of Prussia, and the Rhine Palatinate on the north, Baden on the east, Switzerland on the south, and France on the west. Its area is 5603 square miles. It is divided into the dis- tricts of Upper Alsace, Lower Alsace, and Lor- raine, the last being but a fragment of the old Lorraine. Alsace is bounded by the Rhine on the east and the Vosges on the west. By far the larger part of the country is flat or only slightly elevated. The eastern part of it is an extensive plain, slightly inclined toward the Rhine, where it occasionally passes into swamps and marshes. The western part is traversed by the Vosges, which attain their greatest elevation in Alsace, the Sulzer Belchen (Ballon de Guebwiller) ris- ing to a height of nearly 4700 feet above the sea. German Lorraine is a plateau region. The off- shoots of the Jura where they enter Alsace are about 2500 feet high. Alsace-Lorraine belongs entirely to the basin of the Rhine. The Ill, a tributary of the latter, rises at the southern end of Alsace and runs in a northerly direction almost through its entire length. In the north. Alsace is watered by the Zorn, Moder, and a few other tributaries of the Rhine: while the western part of Lorraine is crossed by the Moselle. The lakes are generally small, and some are used for irrigation and to furnish water power. The cli- mate is mild, with a slight difference between the plains and the mountainous regions; the respective average summer temperatures of the two regions being 61° F. and 58°, and those for the winter being 30° and 37°. Strass- burg has an average yearly temperature of 50° while in Metz it is about" 48.5°. The rainfall is abundant.

The soil of the country is well adapted for agriculture, and is in some parts extremely fertile. The mountainous region is devoted almost exclusively to the cultivation of fruit and the vine, which grows as high as 1300 feet above the sea. The southern end of Upper Alsace