Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 03.djvu/230

BLUEBEARD. his opera bouffe, Barie-Bleue, in 1866; and the younger Coleman brought out Bluebeard: or. Fe- male Curiosity (1798). Consult: Wilson, Hluc- heard: A Coiitrihution to Histort/ and Folklore (Xew York. 18!)<J); Hartland. "The Forbidden ( liair.ber," in Folklore Journal (London, 1885); Abbe Bossard, Gilles de Jiais dit Barbe-Bleue (Paris, 1886); Perrault, Contcs de ma mere VOi/c. tr. by Somber, ed. Lef^vre (Paris, 1875).

BLUE BEECH. See Hobxbeam.

BLUEBELL. A name given to Campanula rotundifolia. a plant indigenous to Europe, Si- beria, and North America, on account of its bell- shaped flowers of blue color. The specific name, 'rotundifolia' seems inappropriate to this species, unless the root-leaves are seen, the stem-leaves being linear or lanceolate. These flowers are often found among snow and ice, and are be- lieved to generate enough heat by their growth to melt their way through their cold surround- ings. The names Hairbell and Harebell are also given this species. For illustration, see Camel- lia.

BLUEBILL. A scaup duck. See Scaup.

BLUEBIRD. A small, widely distributed and familiar North American thrush {fiialia sialis), which is much the same sort of favorite in the United States that the redbreast is in England; it is, indeed, locally known as 'blue robin.' Except in the Southern States, it is chiefly known as a summer bird of passage, ap- pearing very early in spring, and visiting again "the box in the garden, or the hole in the old apple-tree, the cradle of some generations of an- cestors." In size the bluebird is much smaller than most of the other tlirushes, being about seven inches long. The upper parts are rich sky-blue, the throat and breast reddish chest- nut, and the belly white. The female is duller in color than the male. The bluebird lays five or six pale-blue eggs, and often has two broods in the season. Its song is 'a soft, agree- able warble.' The male is remarkalily attentive to his mate, and both exhibit extraordinary courage in driving away intruders from the vi- cinity of their nest; yet it is greatly disturbed, and in some places has been nearly expelled from villages, by the English sparrows. See Plate of SoNG-BlRDS accompanying Thbusu. In the Eocky ^Mountains and westward its place is taken by very simihir species, differing chiefly in the absence of chestnut on the bi-east. Several other birds prevailingly blue receive the name in other lands, such as the Oriental 'fairy bluebirds' of the genus Irena, especially Jrena puelUi, one of the East Indian bulbuls. BLUEBIRD, The. A translation of one of Mme. d'Aulnoy's fairy-tales. Prince Charming is changed into a bhu'bird, because he will not nuirry the uglier of two sisters. The good offices of a more powerful enchantress restore him to his former api)earance and to the arms of the beautiful sister. The French story was written about 1700, and was probably suggested by one of Stra])arola's tales.

BLUE BOOK. A term broadly applied to published reports on special topics issued by the legislature of a country, or more commonly by the various executive dei)artments of a gov- ernment. Specifically, the name is given to publications of this character printed by the British Government for the information of Par- liament. They are commonly bound in blue covers. In the same manner. France luis its Yellow Books, Italj' its tireen Books, and Spain its Red Books. In the United States, the name Blue Book is given to the published lists of Gov- ernment employes and to the uumual of regula- tions for the navy, while the foreign diplomatic correspondence is usually jiublishcd in Red Books.

BLUEBOTTLE. A plant. See Centaurea.

BLUEBOTTLE. Any large flesh-fly, pre- vailingly blue; as, especially, Lucilia ea-sar of the northern United States. For habits, see Flesh- Flv.

BLUE BOY, The. A famous painting by Gainsborougli, now in Grosvenor House, London. Its date is 1770, and it represents a lad, clad in blue satin, in the fashion of the Sixteenth Cen- tui-j-, with a landscape for the background. BLUEBUCK. The pigmy antelope ( Cepha- lolopliux pugmaus), of Natal, one of the smallest of the duikerboks. "These tiny creatures," says Lydekker. "which swarm in the Natal jungles, and stand only 13 inches at the shoulder, are smaller and lighter in build than a hare, and are of a blue mouse-color, with the tiny straight horns scarcely showing above the tuft of hair." They feed mostly on berries and leaves, and are extremely active and agile, even climbing trees of a favorable character. For an extensive account of the habits of these and related spe- cies, consult Proeeedint/s of the Zoological So- ciety of London (1899," p. 830). See DllKER.

BLUE CARDINAL. See Lobelia.

BLUE-COAT SCHOOL. A nickname for Clirist's Hospital, London, suggested by the long blue cotton coat worn by its students. Originally it was of russet, but after the first year ( 1552) it was changed to its present color. See Chrlst's Hospital.

BLUE-EYE (the bird is blue-faced). A beau- tiful species of lioney-eater {Entomyza eyanotis), abundant in New .Soutli Wales. It is a bold, spirited, and graceful bird, with the habits and food of the honey-eaters, and frequenting euca- lyiitus-trees. It prefers, whenever it can, to de- posit its eggs on the big, deserted, dome-shaped nest of a related starling-like bird (I'omatoxto- mus temporalis); never icithin the dome, but in a neat round depicssiou on top. Consilt Gould, Birds of Auslnilid (London, 1842-50).

BLUE'FIELDS', or BLEWFIELDS. A river of the Mosquito Reservation. Nicaragua, Central .Vmcrica. It rises on the cnstem slope of the mountains in the Dejiartment of Clion- tales. flows generally eastward, and empties into the Bluefields Lagoon, an arm of the t'aribbean Sea. It is navigable for large steamers a dis- tance <if about 05 miles from its mouth. BLUEFIELDS. A seaport town of Nicara- gua, on the Mosquito Coast, near the mouth of the Bluefields Kiver, in the Bluefields Lagoon. It is the seat of a United States consular agency and of a Moravian mission (Map: Cen- tral America, F 4). The land-lockeil harbor af- fonled by the lagoon is connected by regular steamship lines with ports of the United States, anil is of considerable commercial importance, having a trade in bananas and other tropical