Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 02.djvu/799

BEHRISCH. also subsequently referred to him in most friendly terms in Dichtung und Wahrheit, and in his talks with Eckermann. A number of Goethe's letters to him are to be found in Vol. VII. of the Goethe-Jahrbuch (Frankfort, 1886). For his biography, consult Hosäus (Dessau, 1883).

BEIJEREN, bl'er-cn, or BEYEREN, (c.1620—). A Dutch painter of still-life. He was born at The Hague, where he was master of the guild in 1640. Many of his works, which are considered among the finest specimens of their kind, are preserved at the museums of Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Frankfort, Berlin, Lille, Vienna, and Budapest; at the Dresden, Hanover, and Schwerin galleries, and at the Hermitage, Saint Petersburg.

BEIJERLAND, bl'er-l;t. An island of the Province of South Holland, Netherlands, situated at the mouth of the Maas or Meuse, south of the Island of Ijsselmonde. It is very fertile, produces large quantities of flax, and is named after Sabina of Bavaria, whose husband, the Count of Egmont, began the construction of the island's dikes in 1557. Population, 13,300.

BEILAN, ba-lan'. A small town of Syria, situated a few miles from Alexandretta (q.v.), near the Beilan Pass, which separates the mountain ranges of Amanus and Rhesus, and is supposed to be the Pylæ Syriæ (Syrian Gates) of antiquity, probably used by Alexander and the Crusaders (Map: Turkey in Asia, G 4). The town has a good climate and an excellent water-supply, and is used as a summer resort by the European colony of Alexandretta. Its population is about 5000.

BEILSTEIN, bll'stin, (1838—). A Russian chemist, born in Saint Petersburg. He studied chemistry in Heidelberg, Göttingen, Munich, and Paris, and in 1860 became Wöhler's assistant at Göttingen. In 1866 he was made professor of chemistry at the Institute of Technology in Saint Petersburg. He has carried out a number of original investigations in organic and analytical chemistry, and wrote Anleitung zur qualitativen chemischen Analyse (Leipzig, 1867; several German editions of this work and translations into other European languages have been published); and Die chemische Grossindustrie auf der Weltausstellung in Wien 1873 (Leipzig, 1873). Beilstein's Handbuch der organischen Chemie (1st ed., Hamburg, 1880-83) is indispensable to the chemical investigator, and is well known to every student of organic chemistry. A third edition of this voluminous work was begun in 1893, and in 1901 a supplementary volume, edited by Paul Jacobson, was published by the German Chemical Society.

BEIRA, bil'ra (Port., shore, strand, bank, from Gael, bior, water). A province of Portugal, bounded by Spain and the Atlantic on the east and west, respectively, the river Douro on the north, and the provinces of Alemtejo and Estremadura on the south (Map: Portugal, B 2). Area, 9248 square miles. The coast land is flat, but the elevation gradually rises from the northern frontier, the interior being traversed by a number of mountain chains, not exceeding 7000 feet in their highest summits. The province is drained by a number of small rivers, mostly tributaries of the Douro, and contains many mineral springs. The soil is mostly stony with the exception of the coast land. Agriculture, stock-raising, and fishing are the chief industries, while manufactures are unimportant. The transportation facilities are inadequate, and the commerce is insignificant. For administrative purposes Beira is divided into the five districts of Aveiro, Viseu, Coimbra, Guarda, and Castello Braneo. Population, in 1890, 1,450,441; in 1900, 1,518,406.

BEIRAM, Ijfi'rani. A Turkish word designating the two great Mohammedan festivals: (1) The Lesser Beiram, held for from one to three days at the end of the fasting month, Ramadan. (2) The Greater Beiram, held for four days, seventy days later.

BEIRUT, I)a'root or ba-root', or BEYRUT (anciently, Berytiis:, Gk. BTipuris, Beryiofs, the city of wells, from Heb., Ar. feeer, hir, well ) . Capital of the vilayet of the same name in Syria, Asiatic Turkey, and the chief seaport of Syria (Map; Turkey in Asia, F 6). It is situ- ated on the western coast, on the slopes of the Ras Beirut and Saint Dimitri, about 90 miles by rail northwest of Damascus. It consists of the old town, which is ill-built and unattractive, and a number of suburbs, with fine streets and houses and many features of a modern city. The climate is moderate and healthful, and with its good water-supply Beirut is regarded as one of the most healthful places of Asiatic Turkey. In its numerous business houses, European schools, and churches, Beirut shows the effect of European influences, while its Oriental character- istics are becoming less perceptible. There are 23 mosques and 38 Christian churches of differ- ent denominations, the chief mosque being a former church built by the Crusaders. Beirut has numerous educational institutions, main- tained chiefly by missions, among which the French are the most influential, their language being almost exclusively that of the Christian population. The city contains also the Syrian Protestant College (American).

The industrial and commercial growth of Beirut has been more rapid than that of any other city of Asiatic Turkey. Silk and cotton fabrics, as well as gold and silver articles, are the chief manufactures. The region around Beirut yields large quantities of silk, cotton, and tobacco for export, while the chief imports are foodstuffs and articles of apparel. The total value of the imports aggregates about $7,000,000 annually, as against $3,600,000 of exports. The harbor of Beirut is deficient both in size and in depth, and heavier vessels are compelled to anchor outside. Regular steam communication is maintained with Great Britain, Austria-Hungary, and a few other European countries, while the coastwise transportation is effected chiefly by Turkish sailing vessels. Beirut is the seat of a pasha, a Greek bishop, a Maronite archbishop, and a Papal delegate. The United States has a consular representative. The population is estimated at 120,000, of which only about 30 per cent, is Mohammedan. The number of Europeans is about 4300.

Beirut, mentioned in Egyptian inscriptions as early as the Fifteenth Century B.C., is the Berothai of the Bible and the Berytus of the classical writers. Under the Roman emperors it was the seat of a celebrated school of law. It was besieged and captured by Baldwin I., King of Jerusalem, in 1110. In 1840 it was bombarded and taken by the English fleet, under Sir C. Napier.