Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 06.djvu/832

* EIDER. 720 EIGENMANN. and Northwestern America, and the spectacled eider Urctonctfa Fischeri), which seems to be contiiied to the northwest coast of America. The now extinct Labrador duck was nearly related to them. EiDEB-DOWif. The down from the breast of an eider, and taken from its nest, or from the body of a dead bird for commercial use. The eiders nestle iipou coasts, seeking nooks and crannies in which to hide their treasures. As is the habit of many ducks, the mother begins, as soon as the eggs come, to pluck the easily re- moved down from her breast with which to cover them during her absences, thus both blanketing and concealing them. This down is mouse-gray and of the exquisitely soft texture vvliich makes it so valuable. Formerly, as still in Greenland, which furnishes perhaps the larg- est i)art of the down sent to market, the down was taken from the wild nests found on coasts. (Jradually a certain measure of jjrotection was introduced in some European countries. The next movement was to dig a great number of con- venient little hollows or chambers in the soil and among the rocks of sea-fronting hills — accommo- dations which the ducks were quick to take ad- vantage of. Many such eider-folds exist in Nor- way and Iceland, and are regarded as property. The eggs and downi are quietly taken from each nest at inten'als of a few days by the owners of the 'eider-fold,' until the limit of the bird's endurance has been reached, when she is permit- ted to hatch a few eggs, in order to maintain the race. About half a pound of eider-down is said to be obtained annually from each nest, but this is much reduced by cleaning. Down taken from birds which have been killed is inferior in qual- ity to that obtained from the nests. The latter is known in commerce as 'live' down, the former as 'dead' down. The elasticity of the down is sucli that three-quarters of an ounce of it will fill a large hat. while two or tliree ]iounds of it may be pressed into a ball and held in the hand. Its use is most extensive in Germany for stuffing bed-coverings. EIFEL, i'fcl. The. A bleak and barren pla- teau situated in the Rhine Province, in Southwest- ern Prussia, between the Ithine on the east, the Eoer on the west, and the Sloselle on the south (Map: Prussia, B 3). It is in extent 40 miles by 20; the elevation averages from 1500 to 2000 feet, but an extreme altitude of nearly 2500 feet is reached. Its surface is diversified by de- pressions and ridges that show plainly its vol- canic origin. The plateau belongs to the Devo- nian formation, and the volcanic eruptions have brought near the surface in some portions a limestone that is particularly rich in fossils. Above this, in some parts, is foiuul another for- mation, containing considerable quantities of zinc and lead. In the south, colored sandstone adds variety to the scenery. In the lower val- leys fruit and grain are ciiltivated. but above 1700 feet the climate is so raw that little grows besides heather. Grazing is extensively carried on in this region. EIFFEL, a'fel', Alexandre Gust.w-e (18.32 — ). A French engineer. He was born at Dijon. December 15, 1S."?2: studied at the Fcnle Ten- trale ; and in 1858 constructed the iron bridge over the Garonne at Bordeaux, and later the lofty and graceful bridge over the Douro at Oporto; also the remarkable viaducts of Garabit in Can- tal, and of Montlucon ; the designs for the locks of the Panama Canal : the frame on which Bartholdi's statue of 'Liberty Enlightening the World' was built ; and the celebrated Eilfel Tower (q.v.), on the completion of which he was made an officer of the Legion of Honor. In 1893 he was sentenced to fine and imprisonment for com- plicity in the Panama Canal frauds, but the sen- tence was annulled by the Court of Cassation. EIFFEL TOWER. A colossal structure erect- ed in the Champs de JIars. at Paris, by the famcms engineer Ouslave Eiffel (q.v.). It was completed March 31, 1889, in time to serve as one of the notable features of the exposition of that year. The lower section of the tower consists of four built-up iron cohnnns. each of which consi.sts of four smaller columns, resting on masonry piers, and giving a supjiorting base 330 feet square. Around each of the four piers is a masonn- wall 85 feet sciuare and about 30 feet high, out of which the piers seem to spring. The four main colunms curve toward each other until they unite in a single column, 620 feet above the ground. The piers are connected hy arches some distance above the ground. There are platforms at the 189 feet, the 380 feet, and the 906 feet levels, which are reached bj' elevators as well as by stairs. Beyond the third platform a spiral staircase, which is not open to the pub- lic, ascends to the top of the tower, which is 984 feet (300 meters) above the gi-ound. In each of the four piers there are elevators; but two of these run to the first platform only, and the other two .stop at ■ the second platform. A third set of elevators runs between the second and third platfonns. or 526 feet, one elevator making half the distance and the other the remainder. Each of these ele- vators may carry sixty-three persons. Otis eleva- tors, American make, run from the ground to the second platform. On the first platform, which has a floor space of 38,000 square feet, or nearly an acre, there were four restaurants at the time of the exposition. Search-lights are mounted near the top of (lie tower, and here is a meteorological observatory, with physical and biological labora- tories. The view from the Eiffel Tower extends to a distance of about 85 miles. In the construc- tion of the tower some 7000 tons of iron were used ; and the cost was estimated at considerably over $1,000,000, of which about $292,000 was voted by the Government, while the remain- der was supplied by M. Eiffel, who trusted for his reimbursement to the receipts from admission fees during the twenty years for which he is entitled to the profits of the tower. The profits for the year 1889 alone nearly paid for the cost of the tower. EIGENMANN, I'gcnmAn- C^RL H. (18fi3-). An American zoiilogist. born at Flehingen, Ger- many. He graduated in 1886 at Indiana Pni- versity (Bloomington), studied at Harvard, and was connected with the biological laboratory at San Diego. Cal., and the marine biological laborator:*' at Wood's Holl, Mass. In 1890. 1891, and 1892 he made scientific explorations in Dakota, ^lontana. Idaho. Oregon. California, and the western part of Canncla for the British Museum. He was appointed professor of zoology at Indiana University in 1891, and founded there