Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 20.djvu/577

* WHITE MOUNTAINS. 487 WHITE SEA. timber line. Resides the main notch there are several otlior deep river valleys which give the group a more rugged character tlian that of the average Appalachian mountain scenery; indeed, east of the Rocky ilountains tlu> White Mountains are equaled in height and niggedness only by the Black and Unaka Mountains of North Carolina. Of the narrow waterways the )>est known is the 'Flume,' at Franeonia Notch. The varied scenery has for over a century attracted large numbers of visitors, and the region is now easily accessible through several lines of railroad which penetrate to the heart of the mountains. There is a short rack and pinion road to the summit of Mount Washington. One of the most celebrated natural features of the region is the "Old Man of the Mountain," a remarkably regular human jjrofile 80 feet higli formed by three out-jutting rocks on Profile Mountain. The White Mountains are noted as a resort of hay-fever patients, most of whom find more or less relief. Among the towns and resorts of the region are Lancaster, Littleton, Bethlehem, Gorham, North Conway, and Berlin. The last named is a busy industrial town, manu- facturing great quantities of wood-pulp. WHITE PLAINS. The county-seat of West- chester Count}'. N. Y., 22 miles northeast of the centre of New York City, on the Harlem Division of the New York Central and Hudson Kiver Rail- road ( Map : New York, G 4 ). It has many at- tractive residences, a ])ublic library, and the West- chester County Law Library. Bloomingdale Asylum for the Insane occupies a fine site over- looking the village. The government is vested in a president, chosen biennially, and a uni- cameral council. The water-works are owned and operated by the uumicipality. Population, in 1890, 4042 f in 1900. 7809. Here on October 28, 1776, during the Revolu- tionary War, was fought the battle of White Plains, or Chatterion Hill. On October 121h Gen- eral Howe occupied Throggs Neck in Westchester County, but was held here for six days by an American force on the mainland, wliile Wash- ington rapidly evacuated all of Manhattan Isl- and, except Fort Washington, and on the 23d concentrated his forces at White Plains. Howe, unable to make a rear attack, sent 4000 men against the outpost on Chatterton Hill, west of the Bronx River, and compelled the 1400 Americans stationed here under General Mc- Dougall to w-ithdraw to Washington's camp, the English losing 229 men, and the Americans about 140. Howe delayed his attack on the main Amer- ican army, and on the evening of the .31st Washington took up an unassailable position at North Castle. White Plains was incorporated as a town in 1788. Consult an article "White Plains in the Revolution," in the Maijazine of American Hisfori/, vol. xxviii.; and Shonnard and Spooner. Histori/ of Westchester County (New York, 1900). WHITE PRECIPITATE, or Ammoniated Mercuby. a white pulverulent compound pre- pared by precipitating mercuric chloride with ammonium hydrate. It is official in the Phar- macopceia, and is used externally in the form of an ointment for skin diseases. WHITE QUEEN, The. An occasional epi- thet of Mary Queen of Scots, on account of the white mourning assumed for her husband. WHITE RIVER. A river of Arkansas (Map: Arkansas, D 3). It rises in the Ozark Mountains in the northwe.stcrn part of the State, and flows first n<u-theast into Missouri, then, returning into Arkansas, it flows southeast till it empties into the Jlissi.ssippi through several channels, .some of which unite with the mouth channels of the Arkansas River. Its length is about 800 miles. After leaving the Ozark high- lands it flows through an extensive low and marshy forest region in which it throws oil" a number of bayous, and during high water over- flows its banks. It is navigable by river steam- ers to Batesville, about 380 miles. WHITE RIVER. The chief tributary of the Wabash in Indiana (Map: Indiana, B 4). It is formed by two main branches, the Kast and the West Fork, which rise near the eastern boundary of the State, and flow southwest to their cun- fluence on the border of Pike County. The united stream continues the .southwest direction 50 miles to its junction with the Wabash op- posite Jlount Carmel, HI. Total length, includ- ing the West Fork, 3.50 miles. The chief city on the 'Vest Fork is lndi;uia polls, but the river is navigable only to Martinsville, some distance below the capital, and on the East Fork to Rock- ford. WHITE RIVER. A tributary of the Mis- souri. It rises in the northwestern part of Nebraska, and after a northeasterly and then easterly course through South Dakota, empties into the Missouri near Oaconia (Map: South Dakota, E 6). It flows through the Bad Lands. Length, 325 miles. WHITERUMP, or Spot-Rump. The Hud- son ian gndw it. See God wit. WHITE RUSSIA. A term indefinitely used of portions of Western Russia, and indicating only a general ethnographic division. The name was given by Catharine 11. to the governments of Vitebsk and Mohilev, but was abolished as a political designation by Nicholas I. WHITES. See Leucorrhcea. WHITE SEA (Russian Bieloye More). A large arm of the Arctic Ocean extending south- westward into Northern Russia as far as the 64th parallel of latitude (Map: Russia, E 1). It consists of an outer portion, 150 miles long and 75 miles wide, between the Kanin and the Kola peninsulas, and an inner portion, 150 by 250 miles, separated from the former by a strait 100 miles long and 35 miles wide. The inner portion consists of three large bays or .sections, Kandalak Bay in the northwest, and Dvina and Onega Bays in the southeast. The principal rivers entering the White Sea are the Dvina, the Mezen. and the Onega, all from the southeast but the sea receives the surplus waters of a large number of lakes dotting the low and level coast region to the west. In the north and east the country is higher and the coasts are bolder. In spite of the fact that the White Sea is ice-bound from September to June, while dense fogs are freqiient. the volume of trade and navigation is considerable. The Chief port is Archangel, on the Dvina delta. By means of canals connecting the Dvina with the Volga and the latter with the Dnieper a continuous waterway is establi.shed between the White Sea and the Caspian and Black seas.