Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 03.djvu/604

* BBOCADE. 528 BROCKET. BROCADE' (Sp. hrocado. It. hroccafo : cf. Yr. Iiiorlnr. to stitch, embroidpr). A wnven fabric of silk on which figures are formed l)y the tVireads of the warp or woof l)einj.' rai>ed so as to ])roduce the required pattern. Brocades have long been inanufarlurcd in Oriental countries, and in Europe since the thirteenth century. The earlier and richer brocades were composed in part of gold and silver threads, and the name is often applied to the simplest silk fabrics thus enriched. BROCAGE, brr.k'aj. The equivalent of brokrr- agr. Sec Broker. BRO'CATEL. A coarse fabric of silk and wool or silk and cotton with figured designs resembling those of brocade, used largely for tapestry and upholstery. The term is also applied to a damask .satin in which the .satin oniamentation is on a less sheeny ground of the same color. BROCCHI, brok'ke. Giovanni Battista ( 177:2-lS2i>) . An Italian natui-alist. He was born in Bassano, studied in Pisa, Rome, and Venice, and was professor of botany in Brescia, but devoted himself largely to geologj'. In 1809 he was made inspector of mines in ililan. In 1822 he went to Egypt, and two years later Mehemet Ali made him one of a commission to organize the Province of Senar: but he soon fell a victim to the climate of Khartum. He pub- lished several important works on archa-ology, mineralogy, agricultural chemistry, and botany. BROCCOLI. A variety of cauliflower (q.v.), BROCK, Sir Isaac (1769-1812), An English soldici-. known as the 'Hero of Upper Canada.' He was born on the island of Guernsey, entered the British Army as an ensign at the age of 15, and rai)idly rose by purchase, in accordance with the custom of the time, to the rank of lieutenant- colonel. He commanded his regiment in the expedition to North Holland in 1799, partici- pating in the battle of Egmont-op-Zee, and sub- sequently, on board the fleet of Parker and Kelson, in the naval battle of Copenhagen. He served in Canada from 1802 to 1805, when he went to England on leave; but returned in 1806, on account of the threatened hostilities between England and the United States, and connuanded for a time at Quebec. In 1810 he was placed in command of all troops in Upper Canada, and in addition was soon afterwards appointed pro- visional Licutenant-tiovernor of the province. In 1811 lie was raised to the rank of major-general. Upon the outbreak of the War of 1812 he made energetic preparations to repel the tlireatened invasion of Canada by an American force under Gen. William Hull, and on August 16. 1812, cap- tured Detroit, Hull surrendering, against the remonstrances of his officers, without offering any substantial resistance. (See Hull. Wil- liam.) For this success Brock was made an extra Knight of the Bath. On October l."?, dur- ing the American attack upon tjueenstown, he fell mortally wounded at the head of his troops, liis last words being, "Never mind me; push on the York 'olunteers." Soon after his death a public monument was erected in Saint Paul's. London, with money appropriated by the House of Commons. Brock was buried in one of the bastions of Kort George, but in 1824 his remains were removed to Quccnstown Heights, where a monument costing £3000 had lieen erected by order of the Provincial Legislature. This monu- ment 'as destroyed by a -fanatic in 1840; and in July, 1841. a mass-meeting, attended by more than 8000 people, and presided over by the Lieutenant-Governor of Upper Canada, was held on the Heights, and the sum of £5000 was voted for the erecting of a new memorial. The present monument is a tall shaft surmounted by a statue of Brock. Consult Tuppcr, lAfe and Corre- spondence of Sir Isaac Brock (London and Guernsey, 1845; 2d edition, much enlarged, 1847), BROCK, Thomas (1847—). An English sculptor. He became a pupil of J. H. Foley (q.v.) and afterwards his assistant, completing, after Foley's death, many of his works, among others the O'Connell ilonument in Dublin. The bust of Longfellow in Westminster Abbey was by him. He was elected an associate of the Royal Academy in 1883, and a Royal Academi- cian in 1891. BROCK'EN {Mons Bructenis, MeUbocus of the ancient Romans), popularly known as the Blocksberg. The highest summit of the Harz Mountains. It is situated in Prussia, about 20 miles west-southwest of Halberstadt, and has an elevation of 3747 feet above the sea ( Map : Prus- sia. D 3). The mountain is very frequently veiled in mist, and is celebrated for the phenome- non known as the Brockenffespenst ('spectre of the Brocken'), which is nothing more than the shadows of men, houses, and other objects thrown upon the misty eastern horizon by the light of sunset. The mountain is very much frequented on account of fine views obtained from its sum- mit, which has a hotel and observatory, and is reached by a railway line constructed in 1898. BROOKES, brOk'es, Barthold Heinrich (1680-1747). A German poet, born in Ham- burg. He studied at the University of Halle, and afterwards at that of Leaden. He assisted in founding (1716) the "Patriotic Society,' and in 1724-26 published Dcr Patriot (4 vols.). In his works he turns, with a simple religious faith, from the stilted conventionalism of the poetry of his day to the appreciation of nature, then but slightly understood. Particularly deserving of citation is his collection Irdisches Vergniigen in Oott (9 vols., Hamburg, 1721-48) ; new- abridged edition by Stiehler (Leipzig, 1887). Consult Brandt's Life (Innsbriick, 1878). A BROCKKT. BROCKET (Fr. brocart, from OF. broc, Fr. broche, spit, tine: cf. OF. broquct, dim. of broc). A book name of certain South American deer,