Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 02.djvu/502

BALM. able and somewhat exhilarating beverage called Balm Wine. The leaves and tops are used in medicine under the name of Melissa, or Balm. For medicinal use, the herb should be cut before the appearance of the flowers, which begin to expand in July. It is nearly inodorous when dry. The taste is somewhat austere and slightly aromatic. Balm has scarcely any therapeutic value. The quantity of oil contained in it is not more than sufficient to communicate a pleas- ant flavor to the infusion, which forms an excel- lent drink in febrile complaints, and when taken warm tends to promote the operation of diapho- retic medicines. A variety of the common cat- mint (Nepeta cataria), with a smell like that of Balm, is often mistaken for it. Moldavian Balm (Dracocephalum Moldavicum) is a native of the country from which it derives its name, and of Siberia, etc.: an annual plant, having, when fresh, a smell like that of Balm, but less pleasant. It is much used in Germany for flavoring. Bastard Balm (Melittis melissophyllum), a native of the south of England and of many parts of Europe, is a very beautiful plant, which, when dried, has a delightful fragrance and retains it long. In the United States Collinsonia Canadensis is called Horse-Balm; and Monarda didyna, Tea-Balm. All these are of the natural order Labiatæ.

BALMACEDA, bal'ma-sa'Da, (1840-91). A Chilean statesman. He was born at Santiago, studied there at the Seminario Concilias, became a leader in the Liberal Club de la Reforma, and in Congress rose to be par- liamentary chief of the Progressive party. In 1882 he was appointed Minister of the Interior, and in 1885 Minister of Foreign Affairs. He was elected President in 1886, and forthwith in- augurated an era of public improvement, during which laws were liberalized, railroads were built, and the system of public education was widely extended. Nevertheless, this policy eventually alienated from him all save those directly inter- ested in office. In 1890 he was suspected of scheming to effect the election as his successor of Señor San Fuentes, a politician generally dis- tasteful to all parties, and occasion was thus afforded for open dissatisfaction. When he had thereupon proceeded to appoint an unpopular ministry and dissolve Congress, a revolutionary junta was formed and civil war began (January 7, 1891). After the utter defeat of the Govern- ment troops near Valparaiso (August 7), Bal- maceda sought refuge in the Argentine Legation, Santiago, where, on September 18, he committed suicide. See, section on History.

BALME (billm). (OF., neck or gorge of balsam). A mountain pass in the Alps, situated on the frontier of France and Switzerland, in the northern part of the Mont Blanc system, through which passes the bridle-path from Chamonix to Martigny. It lies at an altitude of 7221 feet. It is noted for its fine view.

BALMES, biil'mes, sometimes written BALMEZ, (1810-48). A Spanish ecclesiastic, philosopher, and publicist, born at Vich, Catalonia. After studying at the University of Cervera he became a priest (1833), but passed his life in teaching, travel, and study. His fame rests upon his El Protestantismo comparado con el Calolicismo en sus relaciones con la civilizacion europea (6th ed., Madrid, 1875; orig. Barcelona, 2d ed., 1844-45; Eng. trans, from the French, Paris, 1842-44, London, 1849; 10th ed., Baltimore. 1868), which is a very able defense of the Roman Church. Other writings of his (in English translation) are The Foundations of Religion Explained (London, 1858) and Letters to a Skeptic on Religious Matters (Dublin, 1875). For his biography, consult Blanche-Raffin, J. Balmez, sa vie et ses ouvrages (Paris, 1849).

BALM-OF-GILEAD. See.

BALMORAL (balmor'al) CASTLE (Gæl. baile, dwelling, town + morail, majestic). A royal residence situated on the river Dee, about a mile west of Crathie in West Aberdeenshire, Scotland (Map: Scotland, E 2). The estate, which now comprises 40,000 acres of beautiful grounds, was purchased by the Prince Consort in 1848, and received subsequent additions. In 1853-55, the old building, not being large enough, was replaced by a handsome granite castle built in the Scottish baronial style, and furnished and decorated in accordance with Highland tastes. The castle consists of two separate blocks of buildings united by wings and a massive tower 35 feet square, rising to a height of 80 feet, surmounted by a turret 20 feet high. It has a straggling rather than an imposing appearance, but commands a magniflcent prospect. It was the autumnal residence of Queen Victoria, and the cairns which crown most of the hills around are memorials of her friends. Balmoral is the occasional residence of Edward VII. and Queen Alexandra, who effected important alterations in its interior decorations and furnishings. The castle can be visited by special order, when the royal family is not in residence.

BALMUNG, bal'mung. The name of Siegfried's sword in the Nibelungenlied. Originally the ancestral blade of the Nibelungs, it was presented to him by the generous Shilbung and Nibelung, whom straightway he thanklessly slew.

BALNAVES, bal-uav'es, (?-1579), of Halhill, a Scottish reformer. He was born at Kirkcaldy in Fifeshire, and educated at Saint Andrews and at Cologne, where he was imbued with the teachings of Lutheranism. On his return to Scotland, he studied law. James V. made him a senator of the College of Justice in 1538, and when Arran took up the regency, he was made deputy-keeper of the privy seal (1542). In the following year he was imprisoned for a time on account of his Protestantism, which became all the more active by these attempts at repression. Suspected of complicity in Cardinal Beaton's murder, he was declared a traitor and excommunicated. He fled to the castle of Saint Andrews, and when it was captured by the French was sent to France with Knox and others as a prisoner of war. Here he wrote a treatise on justification, which was published after his death by Knox, with a laudatory preface, under the title of The Confession of Faith (Edinburgh, 1584; reprinted, London, 1831). When Mary of Guise assumed the regency in 1556, Balnaves's forfeiture was rescinded. He returned to Scotland and took an active part in public affairs, as a commissioner to settle the Treaty of Berwick (1559-60) and to revise the Book of Discipline (1563), and as an assessor with the regent Murray to inquiry into the charges against Mary in connection with Darnley's murder (1568). He