Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 16.djvu/152

* PLOTINUS. 122 PLOVER. 270, at Puteoli (now Pozzuoli), when sixty-six years of af,'e. Plotiiuis's system was based chiefly on Plato's theorem of the ideas; only that while Plato as- sumed the ideas to be Die link between the visible and the invisible, nrbetween the supreme Deity and the world, Plotinus held the doctrine of emana- tion, that is, the constant transmission of powers from the absolute to the creation, through sev- eral agencies, the first of which is 'pure intelli- gence.' whence Mows the "soul of the world,' wftence, again, the soUls of 'men' and 'animals.' and hnally 'matter' itself. -Men tlius belong to two worlds, that of the .senses and that of pure intelligence. It depends ujion ourselves, how- ever, to which of the two worlds we direct our thoughts most and finally belong. The ordinary virtues, as justice, moderation, valor, and the like, are only the beginning and very first prejia- ration to our elevation into the spiritual realm : purification, or the exercise of purifying virtues, is a further step, to which we attain partly through mathematics and dialectic; and the abandonment of all earthly interests for those of intellectual nieditatu)n is the nearest approach to the goal. The higher our soul rises in this sphere of intellect, the deeper it sinks into the ocean of the good and the pure, until at last its union with God is complete, and it is no longer thought but vision and ecstasies which pervade it. He held a mysteriois belief in a kind of metempsy- chosis, by which souls, not sullicicntly purified during life, return after death, and inhaliit. ac- cording to their bent, men, animals, or even plants. He further held views of his own re- specting gods and demons, whom he divided into difTereiit classes, according to their degrees; and .professed faith in mantic. astrology, and magic, the conviction of the truth of which sciences he derived from his theory of the harmony in the intellectual world rellccted by tile material world. Yet it is clear frniii his dii'ta on these subjects that he did not believe in these so-called sciences in the gross sense of the herd, bit that he had a vague knowledge of those nnstcrious laws of attraction and repulsion which go through na- ture. Plotinus's ])liilosopliy. which, as it were, tried to combine all the systems of Anaxagoras, Pnrmenides. the Pythagoreans. Plato, and Socra- tes, and the Stoa into one. was the last and bold- est attempt of the ancient (ireek world to explain the mystery of the creation and of existence. Its influence upon modern i>hilosnphy is remarkable. From Spinoza to Schelling. the reminiscences of Plotinus, irrespective of the drift of particular parts of their systems, recur constantly. See Neo-Pi.atoxism. Plotinus's works were well-nigh forgotten, when Marsilius Fieinus first published a Latin paraphrase of them (Florence, 1492). which was followed by the rtlilio prhucps of the original (Basel. 1.580 and 1(51,5). The first critical edi- tion, however, is due to Crcuzcr (Oxford, 1,S.'?,5. 3 vols.). Others are those of Diibner (Paris, 1855), KirchhofT (lS.5(i), and Volkmann (Leip- zig. 1R8.3-84). Parts of his works were trans- lated into German bv Engelhard (1820): into English bv Taylor (1704 and 1817) : into French by Bouillct (1861). Consult: Kirchner. /lie Philonophie den Plotinv.i (Halle, 1854) ; Richter. Keuplatonifiche Stitdicn (ih., 184-f)7) : Bren- ning. Die Lehre rom Schiincn bei Plotin (Giit- tingen, 1864); Kleist, Plotinische Studien (Hei- BEAK OF TUE (JOLDEN CLOVEB. delbcrg. 1883) ; PisTios, Die Tugcndkhre des Plotin (Leipzig, 1895). PLOUG, plu. P.uoio C.RL (1813-94). A Dan- ish poet and politician, born in Kolding. As editor of the Fadrthiiid (the Fatherland) from lh41 to 1881, he used his pen to uphold the na- tional Scandinavian spirit. He was a member of the constitutional convention in 1848-49. and from 1854 to 18.57 of the Folkcthing. Uis popu- lar student songs were jjublished under a pen- name as Poiil Rytters }'iscr up 'ers (1847), and in 18(>1 his complete poems, tStimlede Digte, a])- pearcd. His later volumes of verse, erotic and patriotic, wore Nyete flaiiye og Digte (1869). .Vi/c Digte (1883), and the posthumous Eflcr- todtr Digte (1895). PLOVER (OF. plovirr, Fr. pluvier, from ML. pJiiriniiis, ])lover, from Lat. pUtvia, rain, from pluere, to rain; connected with Cik. wXtiv, picin, Skt. j>lti, pill, to swim, and ultinuitely with Litli. pliisli, Lett, pludct, AS. flcuslrnt, (JHG. //ioc-oji. Ger. //ics.scM. to flow; so called because the bird appearsduring the rainy season). .liniicoline bird of the subfamily Charadriinie, of the large shore- bird family Charadriidic, having a bill somewhat like that of a pigeon, with a con-, ,'^'~ """"-^^ vex horny ternnnal / "--. portion, behind which it is con- tracted; the legs' u o t ' cry long, naked a little above the tarsal joint ; the wings rather long and pointed, the first quill-feather the longest; and usually only three toes. The spe- cies are about CO in number, found in every quarter of the globe, and many are migra- tory and of very wide range. They chiefly fiecjucnt low moist grounds, where they con- gregate in flocks, and feed on worms, insects, and the like, and some of them are table deli- cacies. The golden or yellow ])lover (Chnrudriun dominiciis) is 11 inches long, blackish, speckled with yellow at the tips and edges of the feath- ers; the throat, breast, and belly 1)lack in sum- mer, whitish in winter. It is a bird of passage in the L'nited States, breeds in the far north, and winters in Central and South America, going even as far as Patagonia. In the Eastern l'nited States it is more common in fall than in s])ring. It makes an artless nest, little more than a slight depression of the ground, and lays four eggs. The parent birds show great an.victy for the pro- tection of their young, and use various strata- gems to divert the attention of an enemy. The ge- nus .Egialitis comprises the ringed plovers, much smaller birds, characterized by their dark neck bands. The ringed plover (.T^gialilis liiaticuln) is foimd in (ireenland :inil the .rctic regions of America, but is most abundant in the northerly parts of the Old World. It occurs at almost ail seasons on sandv and shingly flats, from which the sea retires at ebb-tide. It is often to be seen also on the banks of large rivers, lakes, and ponds. It is gravish-brown above, whitish beneath, with a collar of white round the neck, and below it a black — in winter, a brown — collar; the head marked with black and white; a white bar on the wing. In the United States six species exist, all