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BARRAS. the sections with merciloss di^ichiirpics of artillery. The Directory heinjr appointed in November, 1795, Barras was nominated one of the five members, and in this capacity he procnred the nomination of Bonaparte as commander-in-chief of the army in Italy. It was he who arranged the marriage of Bonaparte with the widow Beauharnais. On 18th Fruetidor (see Fructi- liOK; France), Septeinher 4, 17!)7, when the Royalist intrigues were crushed by Napoleon, he was again invested with the dictatorship. His authority now became preponderant in the Directory, and he alTected the pomp of a king, and began to give splendid entertainments in the Palace of the Luxembourg. This continued for about two years, till the decline of the power of the Directory. After the .30th Prairial (June 18, 1799), Siey^s and he had the whole executive power in their hands; and wliile Barras secretly negotiated, it is said, with the Biuirbon princes, demanding a large reward for their restoration, Sieyfes. in secret understanding with Bonaparte, brought about the Revolution of ISth Brumaire (November 9. 1799), which replaced the Directory by the Consulate. Not- withstanding the favors he had formerly con- ferred on Bona])arte, he was now, perha])s un- avoidably, an object of suspicion to him ; was compelled to remove from the neighliorliood of Paris; resided in Brussels, then in ilarseilles; was banished to Rome, and then sent to Jlont- pellier, being kept imder constant surveillance of the police, and actually found to have been engaged in conspiracies for the restoration of the Bourbons. After the Restoration he re- turned to Paris and purchased an estate in the neighborhood, where he died. After remain- ing inaccessible for nearly seventy years, his memoirs were published in Paris and New York, lS9.')-9(i. They are of the first importance in throwing light on the history of the Revolution.

BAR'RATRY (Fr. harateria. Low Lat. iara- ttiriii ; cf. Eng. barter, OF. barater, barrier, to deceive, cheat, barter). At the common law, the offense of frequently stirring up groundless suits and quarrels. Connuon barratry is rated as a public nuisance, and is punishable, gen- erally, as a misdemeanor. It is not a crime for a man to bring frequent lawsuits without suc- cess, unless they are vexatious and without, rea- sonable cause. Nor does the institution or in- stigation of a single groundless and malicious suit make the wrongdoer a conuiiou barrator, although his act may amount to the oti'cnse of champerty (q.v.) or maintenance (q.v.), and may render him liable to a civil action for damages. In order to convict him of barratry, proof nuist be given that he has excited ground- less litigation in at least three instances. If the offender is an attorney, he may be disbarred as well as punished criminally. Consult Pol- hick and Jlaitland. Hisforii of EiifiliKh Laiv {2d ed.. Cambridge, Eng.. and Boston, 1899).

Barratry. In maritime law barratry is any wrongful act willfully committed by the master or crew of a vessel with intent to defraiid the owner or charterer; every palpable violation by him or them of trust to the prejudice of the ship and cargo. Negligence does not amount to barratry, unless it is so gross as to consti- tute fraud. Barratry may be insured against. In hUls of hiding it is excepted frequently from the shipowner's liability. In the absence of such exception, the shipowner is liable for the barratry of his agents and servants to the cargo owner. A willful breach of blockade, or sailing out of port without paying port dues, whereby the ship and cargo become liable to forfeiture, is barratrous. Consult Arnould, Treatise on the Law of Marine Insurance and Ai^erage (7th ed., London, 1901).

BARRE, bar're. A city in Washington Count}', Vt., (i miles southeast of Montpelier, on the Vermont Central and the Montpelier and Wells River railroads (Ma]): Vermont, E 5). It is widely noted for its large granite inter- ests, and contains the French Public Library, Goddard Seminary, and Spaulding High School. Barre was settled about 17S8, was organized as a town in 1793, and was chartered as a city in 1894. Under the charter of 1895, the govern- ment is vested in a maj-or, elected annually, and a city council, of which the mayor is a member. The citv owns and operates its water-i,Vorks. Population, in 1890, 4146; in 1900, 8448.

BARRE, blir'ra. An important group of trilies of Araw.akan stock, occupying the Upper Rio Negro in northwestern Brazil, and the Casi- quiari, Ouainia, and Atabapo, in the adjacent region of Venezuela. Owing to their superior activity and aggressiveness, they are said to be absorbing the neighboring tribes, so that within the last century their language has be- come general throughout a wide area.

BARRE, bar, Antoine Joseph le FfcvRE de LA. See La Barre.

BARRE, (1726-1802). A British offi- cer and politician, born at Dublin. He was a lievitenant - colonel in Wolfe's army, and was wounded at the capture of Quebec in 1759. He was cho.sen to Parliament in 1761, and attracted attention by a violetit personal attack upon Pitt, who led the opposition to Bute's administration. He opposed the Stamp Act in 1765, supported the appeal of the Colonies, and strenuously de- fended the American cause, for years making himself conspicuous in the various debates by his remarkable powers of invective. The "Sons of Libert}'" derived their name from a chance allu- sion to the Americans in one of his speeches. He held various offices of importance, and was in Parliament until 1790, when he retired in conse- quence of blindness resulting from his wound received at Quebec. He was among those to whom the authorship of the Junius Letters was attributed.

BAR'REL (It. barile: Fr. baril = barrique, Gael, haraill, Ir. bairile, Slav, barilo). Pri- marily, a large vessel for holding liquids, and then a certain measure, but varying in every locality and almost for every liquid. In the old English measures, the barrel contained 31^,^ gallons of wine, 32 of ale, and 36 of beer, the wine gallon itself differing from that of ale and beer. In imperial gallons, their contents would be: Old wine barrel = 26 Vj, gall.: ale barrel, 31%: beer, 36^4. The Italian barile varies from 7 to 31 English gallons; the French barrique of Bordeaux = 228 French litres = 50 English gallons. Four barriques make a tonneau. In many cases, barrel signifies a certain tceight or other quantity of goods usually sold in casks called barrels. In the United States, flour and beef are sold on the large scale in barrels. A bar- rel of flour must contain 196 pounds; of beef,