Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 02.djvu/870

BENTHOS. Below low tide is the zone of constant submergence, and here the benthos finds its richest development. Red, brown, and green algæ, and sometimes other plants, grow in vast profusion. In the upper parts of this zone the brown and green alga; often dominate, while red algæ dominate at greater depths. Deeper in the water all of these large plants cease.

The ecology of the benthos has been studied by Berthold and Kjellman. In the Mediterranean there are seasons which are determined by light, surface forms vegetating early in the year, while the algæ of deeper waters vegetate in summer. One of the surprises of the northern seas is the rich development of plant life, the brown algæ being particularly common. Here the seasons depend rather upon heat than light. Most of the benthonic lithophytes have well-developed hold-fast organs ('haptera') attaching them to rocks, and many forms are provided with bladders which permit free floating in the water.

Less conspicuous than the rock plants are the plants attached to loose soil. A few algæ like Cauierpa are classed here, but perhaps the most prominent plant of this group is the eel-grass (Zostera), which often forms vast submarine meadows. The benthos of fresh waters is not well developed, or, if present, has a different ecology. See ;.

BEN'TINCK, Lord (1774-1839). A British army officer and Gover- nor-General of India. He was born September 14, 1774, the second son of the third Duke of Portland, and became an ensign in the Cold- stream Guards in 1791. Having served with dis- tinction in Flanders, Italy, and Egypt, he was, in 1803, appointed Governor of Madras, where he advocated several useful reforms. His proscrip- tion of beards and the wearing of turbans and earrings by the sepoys when on duty was said to have caused the mutiny and massacre at Vel- lore, and he was recalled. In August, 1808, he was placed on the staff of the army in Portugal under Sir Harry Burrard. Selected to proceed on an important mission to the supreme Junta of Spain, he accompanied the army under Sir John Moore in its retreat, and at Corunna eonnnauded a brigade. He next commanded a division of Wellington's army, and shortly after was sent as British Minister to the Court of Sicily, and commander-in-chief of the British forces in that island. At the head of an expedition, he landed in Catalonia in July, 1813, penetrated to Va- lencia, and afterwards laid siege to Tarragona, but was repulsed at Villa Franca. Early in 1814. quitting Sicily, he repaired to Tuscany, published at Florence a proclamation inviting the Italians to shake off the French yoke, and afterwards made himself master of Genoa. At the end of the war he lived in retirement during thirteen years. In 1827 he was appointed Gov- ei-nor-General of India, where, profiting by his prior experience, he pursued a peaceful and pop- ular policy, his administration being especially marked by the abolition of suttee (q.v.), and by the opening up of internal communications. as well as by the establishment of the overland route. After his return to England, in 1835, he was elected a member of Parliament for Glasgow. He died in Paris, June 17, 1839. Consult Boulger, Lord William Cavendish Bentinck (Oxford, 1892).

BENTINCK, Lord (1802-48). An English states- man and sportsman, widely known as Lord George Bentinck. The third son of the fourth Duke of Portland, he was born at Welbeck Abbey, February 27, 1802, and entered the army when young. For three years after Canning became Premier, Lord George was his private secretary. He was distinguished for his skill in every sport, and became famous for the purification that ensued in the corrupt practices of the turf, through the reforms that he instituted. In 1826 he was elected member of Parliament for Lynn-Regis, and sat for that borough till his death. At first, attached to no party, he voted for Catholic emancipation and for the principle of the Reform Bill. A determined opponent of Sir Robert Peel, on the formation of that statesman's Ministry in December, 1834, he and his friend Lord Stanley, afterwards Earl of Derby, with some adherents, formed a separate section in the House of Commons. On the resignation of Sir Robert Peel in April following, Lord George openly joined the great Conservative Party, which acknowledged that statesman as its head, and he adhered to it for nearly eleven years. When Peel introduced his free-trade measures in 1845 a large portion of his supporters seceded, and Lord George became the leader of the Protectionists. Although a poor speaker, he was a master of figures and detail. His acute logic was damaging to the Government of Sir Robert Peel, and contributed in no small degree to hasten its downfall. A champion of religious liberty. Lord George supported the bill for the removal of the Jewish disabilities, and recommended the payment of the Roman Catholic clergy by the landowners of Ireland. He died suddenly from rupture of the heart, September 21, 1848, while crossing the park at Welbeck Abbey. Consult B. Disraeli, Lord George Bentinck: A Political Biography (London, 1851).

BENTIVOGLIO, ben'te-vO'lyd, Giovanni (c. 1438-1508). An Italian ruler, born at Bo- logna. He usurped the control of the Republic of Bologna, which he held from 1462 to 1506. Like many of the despots of the time, he was cruel, but a patron of the fine arts.

BENTIVOGLIO, (1579-1644). An Italian prelate and historian, born at Ferrara. He studied at Padua, and became papal nuncio to Flanders, and later to France. In 1621 he attained the dignity of cardinal, and in 1641 was appointed to the bishopric of Terracina. He was expected to succeed Urban VIII. as Pope, but died before the election was held. He wrote Della guerra di Fiandria (1632-39) and other works.

BENT'LEY, Richard (1662-1742). An Eng- lish critic and scliolar. He was born at Oulton, in Yorkshire, January 27, 1662. In 1676 he en- tered Saint John's College, Cambridge, in the humble capacity of subsizar. Little is known of his university career, except that he showed early a strong taste for the cultivation of ancient learning. At the usual time, he took the degree of bachelor of <arts, and on leaving the university he was appointed bend master of the grammar school of Spalding, Lincolnshire. About a year afterwards he resigned this situation to become tutor to the son of Dr. Stillingfleet, then dean of Saint Paul's, and subsequently Bishop of Wor-