Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 06.djvu/617

* DURATION. 539 DTJRER. in these plants, however, the critical point is not fully expressed when these terms are employed. IX'Oiduous forms may be delined as plants which shed Iheir or<;ans, and especially leaves, rej^- larly : whereas evergreens are those plants which shed their leaves irregularly. Evergreen leaves are much longer lived than deciduous leaves. The significance of these types will be discussed under the head of Fobest (q.v.l. The duration of stems depends largely on their structural na- ture : in tenii>erate climates most aerial her- baceous steins are annual, whereas woody stems are perennial. Flowers, in contrast to other organs, have an ephemeral duration. There seems thus to be a harmonious relation between duration and structure, organs with long life having resistant structures, while short-lived or- gans are commonly delicate. See Forest; Stem; VEGETATn-E Prop.g.tiox ; Bienni.l; Annual; Perennial. DURAZZO. dw-nit'so (Turk. Durls. Slav. Dralch, .lbanian Duressi, from Lat. Dyrrhnchium, from Gk. Av/'>pix'"''t froi] ^va-, ili/s-, bad + pil-jviiai, rhrijnitnai, to break, in allusion to the surf on the peninsula ) . A decayed maritime town of European Turkey, in the Tilayet of Scutari (Albania), built on the rocky peninsula of Pelu, in the Adriatic, about no miles south of Scutari (ilap: Turkey in Europe, B 4). It is surrounded by dilapidated old walls. The town has been the seat of a Catholic archbishop since the days of Justinian. The harbor has been silted up. Du- razzo exports to Austria-Hinigary wool, raw silk, and some grain. Population, about 1200. Durazzo is the ancient Epidamnus, which was founded in B.C. 625 by a band of Corcyrieans and Corinthians. Epidamnus became a great and populous city, but was much harassed by internal party strifes, the banishment of its aristocratic element in B.C. 4.36. and the consequent dispute regarding authority between Corcyra and Cor- inth being one of the causes which led up to the Peloponnesian War. It passed to the Romans in B.C. 220. and its name was changed to Dyrrha- ehium. It later became the seat of a Roman colony, and an important landing-place for those sailing from Brundusiuni, in Italy, to Greece. Dyrrhachium was the starting-point of the Via Egnatia, leading to Byzantium. Here Pom- pey was for some time beleaguered by C.Tsar. About the end of the fourth century it became the capital of the Byzantine Eparchy of New Epirus. The town was taken by the Ostrogoths, Bulgarians, and Xormans. and in the latter part of the iliddle .ges belonged successively to the House of Anjou (then ruling in Naples) and to Venice, from whom it was wrested bv the Turks in l.iOl. DURBAKT, derHi.an. The only seaport of Natal, and. next to Port Elizabeth, the most important seaport in British South Africa (Map: Cape Colony, O 6). It is situated in about latitude 30° S. and longitude 31° E., at the head of the landlocked Bay of Natal, the southern end of which is marked by the fortified "BlufT' and its lighthoiise. Durban's public buildings include a town hall, a museum, a library, ami a theatre: and it has street rail- ways. The centre of the town is occupied by the public gardens: there are also botanical gardens, two parks and a race-course. Water is brought from a river 1,5 miles distant. The climate, al- VOL. VI.— 36. though exceedingly hot during one or two months in the summer, is on the whole not unhealthful. The harbor, greatly improved by extensive modirn works, is well protected, and sutliciently deep for vessels of heavy draught. The annual shipping of the port amounts to over 1,200.000 tons, and the total value of the commerce (mostly im- ports) is over .$30,000,000 per annum. Besides its good harbor, Durban derives much importance on account of its ])osition as the terminus of two railway lines leading into the Orange River and Transvaal colonies. The population of the town increased from 4991 in 1886 to 36,014 in 1891 and 55,731 in 1900. Durban was founded by the Dutch in 1S23, and received its present name from Sir .James D'Urban. Consult Ingram, Story of an African Seaport: Hifitori) of the Port and Borough of Durban (London, 1900). DURBAR, der'bllr (Pers. darbar, audience). A Hindustani word signifying a court or place of judgment, in which are decided, or from which are promulgated, affairs of importance to the State or tribe. It is customary throughout India, Afghanistan, and parts of Persia, for rulers, governors, or chiefs to give audience to distin- guished visitors in 'durbar,' as well as to ratify treaties or make important agreements. The British Viceroy and all other British governors in India follow the native custom, in accordance with which Queen Victoria was proclaimed Em- press at a magnificent durbar held on the ridge at Delhi in 1877, and King Edward VII. as Em- peror in 1902. The term 'durbar' is also applied to the room or place of audience. DURBIN, dernjin, John Price (1800-76). An American clergyman, born in Bourbon County, Ky. At an early age he entered the Methodist ministry, but while preaching pursued a cour.se of study, and in 1825 graduated at Cincinnati College." He was chaplain to the United States Senate in 1831, was editor of the Christian Ad- vocate and Journal in 1833, and in 1834 became president of Dickinson College. From 1850 to 1872 he was secretary of the Missionary Society, which owes much of its success to his e.xertions. He published Observations in Europe. Princi- pallfi in France and Great Britain (1844), and a similar work on Palestine, Syria, and Egypt ( 1845) . Consult Roche, Life of John P. Durbin (New York, 1879). DUR'DEN, Dame. The name of a conscien- tious housewife in a well-known old English ballad, and hence applied as an afTcctionate nickname to Esther Summerson in Dickens's BIral: flonse. DtJREN. di.i'rcn. An ancient town of Rhenish Prussia, situated on the Roer, IS miles east of Ai.x-la-Chapelle (Map: Prussia, B 3). Diiren has manufactures of woolen cloths, iron and steel ware, paper, soap, leather, oil, sugar, and needles. Its Gothic Cluirch of Saint. na, contain- ing relics of the saint, attracts many pilgrims. The tovm hall has a fine assembly room. There are also at Diiren a numlx'r of collect inns of antiquities and a municipal library. Population, in 1300, 21.721: in 1900, 27,171. Here Charle- magne, on his way to attack the Saxons, held diets in a.d. 775 and 779. DtTRER, do'rer. Ai.nRECiiT ( 147 11. 523). A German painter, engraver, and designer of the Franconian school, the greatest master, all things