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PRUDHON 367 PRUSSIA York. His works include: "Handbook of Pathological Anatomy and Histology" (1835), with F. Delafield; "Story of the Bacteria" (1889); "Dust and its Dan- gers" (1891); "Water and Ice" (1891); "An Elder Brother to the Cliff Dweller" (1897); "Under the Spell of the Grand Cafion" (1898); "On the Great Ameri- can Plateau" (1907). PBUD'HON, PIERRE, a French paint- er; born in Cluny, France, April 4, 1758; studied art at Dijon and in Rome, where he came under the influence of Correggio and of Leonardo. He latterly settled in Paris, where he became famous by his "Truth descending from Heaven," "Psyche carried off by Zephyr." "Crime pursued by Justice and Divine Ven- geance," etc. He died in Paris, Feb. 16, 1823. PRUNE, the dried fruit of Primus domestica, especially of the varieties called St. Catherine and green gage. They contain a large proportion of sugar, etc., so that brandy can be dis- tilled from them. PRUNELLA, a smooth, dark-colored, woolen stuff, used as lasting, for making the uppers of shoes and gaiters, and for clergymen's gowns. Also spelled pru- nello. PRUNING, the act of lopping or cut- ting off what is superfluous; specifically, the act of lopping or cutting off superflu- ous branches or shoots of trees, etc., with a view to strengthening those that are left, or to bringing the tree or plant to a particular form. In falconry, that which is cast off by a bird when it prunes its feathers; refuse, leavings. PRUSSIA, the largest and most power- ful State of the German republic; occu- pying a N. central portion of the Euro- pean continent; between lat. 49° and 56° N., and Ion. 6° and 23° E.; bounded on the N. by the Baltic and Denmark; on the E. by Russia and Poland; on the S. by Bohemia, Bavaria. Wiirttemberg and Baden; and on the W. by Belgium and the Netherlands. From the extreme E. frontier of Prussia to Aix-la-Chapelle, the distance is about 775 miles, and from the promontory on the Baltic above Stral- sund, to the extreme S. frontier, of Sile- sia, the distance is 404 miles. The length of the coast line is about 250 miles on the North Sea, and 750 miles on the Baltic. The following islands belong to Prussia: Rugen, Fehmarn, Alsen, Heligoland and the Frisian Islands. Total area, before the World War, 134,- 650 square miles; total ponulation about 40,000,000. As a result of the Peace Treaty of Versailles, Prussia lost certain parts of Posen, Silesia, East and West Prussia, Schleswig, and the Rheinland, amounting to some 31,000 square miles with almost 8,000,000 inhabitants and reducing its area to about 103,000 square miles and its population to about 32,000,000. Political Divisions. — Prussia before the World War was administratively divided into 14 provinces, which were again subdivided mto 35 government dis- tricts, with the principality of Hohen- zollern, the cradle of the royal family. The provinces were as follows, with pop- ulation in 1910: Rhine (Rheinland), 7,120,519; Silesia (Schlesien), 5,226,311 ; Brandenburg, 4,093,007; Westphalia (Westfalen), 4,125,904; Saxony (Sach- sen), 3,088,778; Hanover (Hannover), 2,942,546; East Prussia (Ostpreussen), 2,064,368; Posen, 2,100,044; Hesse-Nas- sau, 2,220,956; Berlin, 2,070,695; Pome- rania (Pommern), 1,716,481; West Prussia (Westpreussen) , 1,703,042; Schleswig-Holstein, 1,619,673; and Ho- henzollern, 71,009. The principal cities with population for 1910 are: Berlin, 2,- 064,153; Breslau, 519,929; Cologne, 511,- 042; Frankfort-on-the-Main, 414,406 Hanover, 299,753; Magdeburg, 279,644 Diisseldorf, 356,733; Stettin, 234,033 Charlottenburg, 304,280 ; Konigsberg, 248,059. Topography. — The surface of the kingdom is generally level, sloping in the N. to the sea, and forming part of the great N. plain of Europe. The S. and S. W. parts of the kingdom are hilly, or even mountainous. The principal ranges are the Sudetic, the Thuringian, the Hartz, the Teutoburgerwald, the Weser, the Taunus and the Westerwald. The province of Hohenzollern is in the Swabian Alps. Prussia is well watered. The Rhenish provinces are traversed by the Rhine, while the E. frontier is partly formed by the Weser. The Elbe inter- sects the Saxon provinces; the Oder, which is almost entirely a Prussian river, runs through the whole extent of the monarchy, from the S. frontier of Silesia to the isle of Usedom, where it falls into the Baltic. Polish Prussia (or Posen) is watered by the Wartha; West Prussia by the Vistula; and Ducal or East Prussia by the Pregel and Nie- men. Besides the above, there are many other large streams, as the Ems, Moselle, Spree, Havel, Netze, etc. Ow- ing to the flatness of the country through which they flow, none of the great rivers are interrupted by cataracts, and they are all navigable — the Rhine, Elbe, and Vistula, throughout their whole course in the Prussian dominions; the Oder for barges as far as Ratibor in southern