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PIANO 239 PIAVE RIVER BATTLES cio Farnese. Manufactures of silks, cot- tons, pottery, hats, etc., are carried on. The more notable facts in the history of Piacenza have been its capture by the Gauls in 200 and by Totila in 546, the meeting here of two Church councils in 1095 and 1132, its active zeal as a mem- ber of the Lombard League in the 12th century, the sacking of it by Francesco Sforza in 1447, and its union with Parma. Pop. about 40,000. PIANO (Italian), in music, a term meaning soft, or low; used in contra- distinction to forte. Pianissimo, the su- perlative of piano. PIANOFORTE (Italian ptano=soft, an! forte = strong, loud; so-called from its producing both soft and loud ef- fects), a musical instrument, the sounds of which are produced by blows from hammers, acted on by levers called keys. Originally the strings were placed in a small and portable box, and struck by hammers held in the hands. In this early shape, known as the "dulcimer," the instrument can be traced in nearly every part of the globe, and it now sur- vives, almost in its original form, both in Europe and Asia. The dulcimer was also called psaltery, sautrie, or sawtry. The name given to the first instrument with keys acting on hammers was clavi- cytherium, or keyed cithara, which was introduced in the 15th, or early in the 16th century; next came the clavichord, or clarichord, sometimes called mono- chord, in which quills plucked the strings; the Virginal (g. v.) soon fol- lowed; this was succeeded by the spinet, of similar construction but generally tri- angular in shape; then came the harpsi- chord, a vast improvement on its prede- cessors, having a more extended compass and often two manuals. The earliest form of pianoforte, early in the 18th cen- tury, was perhaps, in some respects, in- ferior to a fine harpsichord, but it pos- sessed the elements of expansion, as now exhibited in a modern grand trichord pianoforte of more than seven octaves compass, with every gradation of sound. PIASSABA, or PIASSAVA, a strong vegetable fiber imported from Brazil, and largely used for making brooms. It is chiefly obtained from palms such as Attalea funifera and Leopoldinia pias- saba. The fiber proceeds from the de- caying leaves, the petioles of which sep- arate at the base into long, coarse, pen- dulous fringes. It was first utilized in England, and the consumption is now large. Other European countries also consume considerable quantities. PIASTER, or PIASTRE, a coin of various values. The gold piaster of Turkey = 4.4c. ; the silver piaster = 4.35c.; the Egyptian piaster = 4.9c. ; the Spanish piaster is synonymous with the United States dollar. The old Italian piaster was equivalent to about 89 cents. PIATT, JOHN JAMES, an American poet; born in James' Mills, Ind., March 1, 1835. He entered journalism; became clerk of the United States Treasury De- partment and of the House of Repre- sentatives; and from 1882 to 1893 was consul at Cork, Ireland. His works in- clude: "Poems of Two Friends" (1860), with W. D. Howells; "The Nests at Washington" (1864), with Mrs. Piatt; "Poems in Sunshine and Firelight" (1866); "Western Windows" (1869); "Idyls and Lyrics of the Ohio Valley" (1884) ; "At the Holy Well"; "The Hes- perian Tree" (1900). Died 1917. PIATJHI, or PIAITHY (pe-ou-e), a state of Brazil, bounded by the Atlantic and the states of Ceara, Pernambuco, Bahia, and Maranhao, from which lat- ter it is separated by the Parnahyba; area, 116,490 square miles. Pop. about 5-0,000. Its coast line is not above 10 miles in length. The soil, generally com- posed of alluvium, is of great natural fertility; but there is very little agricul- ture. The rearing of cattle, esteemed the best in Brazil, constitutes the prin- cipal source of wealth. Capital, There- zina; port, Parnahyba. PIAVE RIVER, BATTLES OF THE. The river, one of the largest in Italy, takes its rise in the Venetian Alps, flows southeast, then southwest, emptying into the Gulf of Venice, a few miles west of the city. Its flow is regulated by a num- ber of floodgates, and along its lower portion is too wide to be crossed except i by ferry or bridge. The Piave Valley was the scene of some of the most desperate fighting on the Italian front during the war against Austria-Hungary and Germany; par- ticularly during the year 1917. In October of that year the Italian lines were advanced as far as the Tyrolean, Carnia and Izonzo regions. In the lat- ter part of that month, the Austrians, heavily re-enforced by armies from the Russian front, began a strong offensive against the Italians, beginning along the Izonzo front, von Mackensen being in command of the Teutonic forces. By October 26 the Italians were in rapid retreat, losing territory which had cost them months of effort and hard fighting. Two days later the Italians were driven back on the Tagliamento river. So alarming was the situation that Anglo- French re-enforcements were hurried from France to stiffen the Italian resist