Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 03.djvu/19

BETROTHAL. the cohaliitation that makes tlie marriage." Consult PoUoek and ilaitland, History of Enfilish Laic (2d ed., London and Boston, 1809) ; and the authorities referred to under the title ^SLvbbiage.

BETROTHED, betrotht'. The. ( 1 ) A novel hy Scott (1S25). The scene is laid in the time of Henry II. Eveline Berenger was betrothed to her guardian, the Constable of Chester. She was in love with his young kinsman, Damian de Lacy. The Constable, after testing the honor of Damian severely, by putting Eveline in his charge, releases her from her betrothal, and she marries her younger lover. ( 2 ) A novel by ^Man- zoni, published 182.5-27. (3) An opera by Pe- trella. produced in 1869, at Lecco.

BETSIMISARAKA, bet-se'me-sa-ra'ka. The mixed Polynesian people of ^Madagascar living on the eastern side of the island.

BET'SY AND I ARE OUT. A popular poem by Will Carleton (1872), iirst published in the Toledo Blade, and followed bv Betsy and I Hade Up.

BETTELHEIM, bet'fl-him, Axtox (1851—). An Austrian author, born in Vienna, and educat- ed in that city, and in Munich. He published an excellent biographical work on Beaumarchais (1886), and subsequently devoted himself almost exclusively to biographical writing, publishing the collection Fiihrende (leister, to which he con- tributed the notable biography of Anzengruber. Berthold Auerbaeh selected him as the publisher of his posthumous works and as his biographer. Among his latest collective works are Deutsche Geisteshelden (1895), and Deutsches Jahrbuch und Deutsche yekrologie. Vols. I. to IV. (1897- 19001.

BET'TERTON, Thomas (1635-1710). An English actor. He was bom in Westminster and apprenticed by his father to a bookseller, by whose formation of a theatrical troupe Betterton seems to have been introduced to his profession. In 1661 he became a member of Sir William Dav- enant's company at the Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre, and quickly became a favorite. The best contemporary judges, such as Addison, Cibber, etc., bear admiring witness to the dramatic power of his impersonations, which overcame the nat- ural disadvantages of a low voice, small eyes, and an ungainly figure. The range of his repertory was wide, including many of Shakespeare's plays and a great variety of contemporary pieces. His Hamlet, to which Mrs. Saunderson, his future wife, played Ophelia, was considered especially fine. Charles II. thought so highly of him that, for the acting of Alvaro in Love and Honor, he is said to have lent him his coronation suit. Early in his career he was sent, by the King's wish, to Paris to study the French sUige, with a view to improvement in the English, a visit which brought the young dramatist into contact with the work of Moli&re. His private charac- ter was highly estimable, cheerful, modest, and generous. After a retirement of many years, it became known that his circumstances were very straitened, and it was determined to give him a public benefit. On April 7, 1709, the spirited veteran (then in his 74th year) ap- peared with immense Mat at the Haymarket Theatre in the youthful part of Valentine, in Congreve's Love for Love. His last appearance wag in a similar benefit three davs before his death, as Melantius, in the Maid's Tragedy, of Beaumont and Fletcher. He was buried in the cloister of Westminster Abbey; an event which Steele commemorates in the Tatler (No. 167). As a writer, Betterton published a number of comedies adapted from earlier plays. Mrs. Bet- terton took almost the same rank among con- temporary actresses that her husband did among actors. Consult: Howe, Thomas Betterton, Emi- nent Actor vSeries (London, 1891) ; The Life and Times of that Excellent and Renowned Actor, Thomas Betterton, by the Author of the Lives of ilrs. Abingdon, etc. (London, 1888) ; Doran, Annals of the English Stage, Vol. I. (London, 1888) ; Downes, Eoscius Anglicanus (London, 1886) ; Genest, Histori/ of the English Htage, Vol. L (Bath, 1832); 'and Gait, Lives of the Players (London, 1835).

BETTINELLI, bet'te-nel'U, Savebio (1718- 1808). An Italian critic and writer on aesthetics. He was born at Mantua, and after journeying with the Jesuits taught successively at Brescia, at Venice, at Parma, and at Modena. His prin- cipal works were II risorgimento d'ltalia negli studii delle arti e nei costumi dopo il mille ( 1775- 86) J on the renaissance of art and literature in Italy, and Lettere Virgiliane, which aroused much criticism on account of its attacks on Dante. Bettinelli's collected works were pub- lished under the title L'Abbate Bettinelli, Opere edite e hiedite, 24 vols. (1799-1802). Consult G. F. Napione, Vita dell' Ahbate S. Bettinelli (Turin, 1819).

BET'TING {bet, shortened, from abet. OF. abeter, to incite, instigate, deceive, from a [Lat. ad'i, to + beter, Icel. beita, to bait, to cause to bite), or Wagebixg. Agreements to give money or money's worth upon the determination or ascertainment of an uncertain event were both in England and in the United States enforceable by the common law. They fall into two classes: those made entirely for sport, and those in which the uncertain event afl'ects or results from a business transaction. St-atutory limitations were early imposed upon contracts by way of gam- ing or wagering, and in 1848 (8 and 9 Vict. c. 109) all such contracts were declared void in England. Similar statutes were passed by most of the L'nited States at aliout the same period. A majority of them also have constitutional provisions against legalizing lotteries, while New York forbids the Legislature to legalize any kind of gambling. So, in the United States, money lent with the intention of enabling the borrower to make a wager cannot be recovered, since wa- gers are illegal, not merely void. Of the second class, the most important are stock-exchange transactions and marine, fiie, and life insurance. Marine and fire insurance contracts are essen- tially contracts of indemnity, since contemplat- ing a specified loss, and all are held valid where the insurer possesses an insurable interest. In stock exchange transactions the test is whether delivery is contemplated. 'Bucket-shop deals,' or mere wagers on the rise and fall of prices, or de.alings in 'futures,' are illegal, but contracts for future delivery are valid whether the seller has the goods or not, and option contracts, whether 'puts,' 'calls,' or 'straddles,' are not per se gam- bling contracts. Where the force of the eon- tract does not show a wager, it will generally be presumed to be valid. See Gambling.