Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 02.djvu/861

BENICIA years, and a city council. Population, in 1890, 2301 ; in 1900, 2751.

BENICIA BOY. A nickname popularly ap- plied (from his residence in California) to .John C. Heenan, the pugilist, whose fight with Sayers is memorable in the history of the sport. See Boxing.

BENI-HASSAN, ba'nc-lilis'san, or HASAN (Ar. belli, sons, descendants, tribe + //u.vs((» ) • A small village in Central Kgj'pt, latitude 27° 53' N., longitude 30° 55' E., on the right bank of the Nile. The place is famous for the rock- hewn tombs, 39 in number, which are cut in the calcareous stone of the mountain, in the near vicinity, and are fine examples of Egj'ptian ar- chitectural art. They are sepulchres of the an- cient nomarchs who niled the district imder the Middle Empire (about B.C. 2000). The walls of some of the larger tombs are covered with paint- ings and hieroglyphic inscriptions. The former represent varied scenes of ancient Egyptian life, while the inscriptions form a most important source of information for the history of the Twelfth Dynasty. In recent years the mural decorations have been nuich injured by relic- hunters. All that remains has been carefully copied, under the auspices of the Egypt Explora- tion Fund, and published in the Publications of the Arcliwolofiical (Surrey of Egypt, Vols. I., II., V. (London, is92. 1893, 1896).

BENI-ISRAEL, ba'ne-iz'ra-el (Heb., Sons of Israel ). The name of a group of people of Jew- ish origin, settled in the west of India, who, while acknowledging the law of Moses, conform in many respects to the religious customs of the Hindus, by whom they are surrounded. They abstain from the flesh of unclean animals and are strict observers of the Sabbath. A few of their learned men know Heljrew, but the great major- ity are ignorant of the Old Testament. Their whole number is estimated at 5000. Their origi- nal settlement was at Xavagaum, about 30 miles from Bombay, where they were protected by the native princes; they have spread through the maritime ])arts of the Konkan, and some of them are now to be found in Bombay itself. Their features exhibit a resenddance to those of the Arabian Jews. Of their early history and the time of their settlement in India little is known, though it is probable that they came to India before the Jews of Cochin. It has been said that they assumed the name Beni-Israel because that of Jehudim (.Jews) was distasteful to Moham- medans; but these and similar stories which make them out to be descendants of the supposed lost tribes have no historical value. Their com- munities are governed by a iiiiikadilaiii or head man of their own number, and their religious assemblies are presided over by a cadi, who also performs circumcision and other rites.

BENI-ISRAEL. A diminutive antelope CNeo- trariiis Siilfiiiiiiif;) . allied to the duikerboks, and common in Abyssinia and along the Red Sea. It is variously called omdigdig, madoqua, hegoleh, and Salt's antelope. In .southern Abyssinia (.Somaliland) a closely related species. Kirk's antelo]ie {Xeotraf/us Kirki), is extremely numer- ous. They run by long bounds, utter shrill cries, and their flesh has an unpleasant, musky flavor. BENIN, be-nen' (from Lat. benignus, kind, good, benign). A former kingdom of Africa, in- eluded, since 1897, in the Niger Coast Protecto- rate. It is bounded by the Niger, Dahomey, and the Bight of Benin (q.v.) (Map: Africa, E 4). The name was formerly applied to the entire coast of tapper Ciiiinea from the estuary of the Volta to that of the Niger, which is also known under the name of Slave Coast (q.v.). The shores are generally low and indented, and the climate unhealtliy. The soil is very fertile, and produces rice, yams, and all other products char- acteristic of Upper Guinea; the interior is well wooded. The chief article of trade is palm-oil. The population of the coast regions consists of .lakris, who are mostly engaged in trade. The inhabitants are little advanced beyond the sav- age state, and the sacrifice of human beings as a religious custom is of frequent occurrence. The town of T^enin, in the eastern part of the region, lias an estimated population of 15,000. Benin is supposed to have been discovered by the Portu- guese navigator Diogo Cam in 1484. At the end of the Eighteenth Century several French settlements were established near the estuary of the Niger, but were soon destroyed by the British. At that time Benin was the centre of the slave-trade, which was suppressed by the British. Benin was declared a British posses- sion in 1885, but for a long time the authority of the British was merely nominal. In 1897 Benin was incorporated in the Niger Coast Pro- tectorate, and a British Resident placed at the capital. Consult: Roth, Notes on Benin Cus- toms (Leyden, 1898) ; "Primitive Art from Benin," in No. 15 The studio (London, 1898).

BENIN, Bight of. A name applied to that portion of tlie Gulf of Guinea (q.v.) which extends along the so-called Slave Coast of Africa, from Cape Formosa, the chief mouth of the Niger, westward to Cape Saint Paul, a distance of 500 miles by coast-line (Map: .frica, E 4). The bay is bordered by numerous lagoons, and re- ceives the discharge from a number of rivers. On account of its winds, it is dangerous for ship- ping. The shores are unhealthy.

BENIOWSKY, ben'yov-ski. Count Moritz August vox (1741-80). A Hungarian adven- turer, born at Verbo, He served in the Austrian Army during the Seven Years' War, joined the Polish Confederation, was captured by the Rus- sians, and was e.xiled to Kamchatka, whence he escaped to France, Sent by the French Govern- n;ent to establish a colony in Aladagascar, he caused himself to be proclaimed king by sev- eral native tribes, and was subsequently killed in a battle with troops sent against him by the governor of the He de France. His Memoirs and Travels, edited by Nicholson and Magelhan, ap- peared at London in 1790.

BENI-SUEF, ba'ne-s«af. A town of Cen- tral Egj-pt, capital of the Province oi" Beni-Suef. It is situated on the right bank of the Nile, about 70 miles south of Cairo by rail (Jlap: Egypt, E 3). It is the entrepot of all the produce of the fertile valley of Fayum, and has cotton-mills operated by the State. Population, about 10,000.

BENITIER, bi'ne'tyA'. See Holy - Water Vase.

BEN'JAMIN. The eponymous ancestor of the tribe of Benjamin. According to biblical tradition, he is the younger son of Jacob and Rachel (Gen. xxxv. IS), named by his mother