Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 8.djvu/163

this war the king's quarter was bombarded and laid in ruins by the British, June 13, 1873. The population of Elmina is about 10,000.

ELMIRA, a city of the United States, capital of Chemung county New York, is situated in a fertile valley on the Chemung river, and on the Erie and Northern Central railroads, 274 miles W.N.W. of New York. By the Chemung Canal it is connected with Seneca Lake, 20 miles distant, and by the Junction Canal with the interior of Pennsylvania. Its principal buildings are the fine courthouse, the female college, attended by about 120 students, the high and normal schools, and the free academy. It has iron and steel works, breweries, tanneries, and manufactories of boots and shoes, edge tools, and pianos. Elmira was settled in 1788, was incorporated as a village under the name of New Town in 1815, received its present name in 1823, and obtained a city charter in 1864. The population in 1870 was 15,863.

EL-OBEID, Lobeid, or Obeidh, the chief town of the country of Kordofan, in Africa, and the seat of an Egyptian governor, is situated at a height of 1700 feet above the sea, at the foot of Jebel Kordofan, about 150 miles west of the Bahr-el Abiad, or White Nile, in 13° 15′ N. lat. and 30° 7′ E. long. It is scattered over a large area, and in fact consists of several distinct townships, each inhabited by a different race. Most of the houses are mere mud huts, which require to be rebuilt or extensively repaired every year after the rainy season; but, besides the governor's residence, there are three barracks, a gun-powder magazine, a hospital, and six mosques. Strong fences of thorny brushwood have to be maintained by every household as a protective against the wild beasts that invade the town by night. Though the wells have been sunk to a depth of nearly 100 feet, water is frequently scarce. The inhabitants make plaited work of palm-leaf fibres and beautiful silver filigree; and a considerable trade is carried on in gum, gold, and ivory with Darfur and other neighbouring countries. The population is estimated at from 12,000 to 20,000.

ELOI, St (588–659), originally a goldsmith, but afterwards bishop of Noyon, was born at Cadillac, near Limoges, in 588. Having manifested at an early age a decided talent for the art of design, he was placed by his parents with the master of the mint at Limoges, where he made rapid progress in goldsmith's work. He became coiner to Clotaire II. of France, and treasurer to his successor Dagobert. Bath kings intrusted him with important works, among which were the composition of the has—reliefs which ornament the tomb of St Germain, bishop of Paris, and the execution (for Clotaire) of two chairs. of gold, adorned with jewels, which at that time were reckoned chefs-(louvre. Though he was amassing great wealth, Eloi acquired a distaste for a worldly life, and resolved to become a priest. At first he retired to a monastery, but in 640 was raised to the bishopric cf Noyon. He made frequent missionary excursions to the pagans of Brabant, and also founded a great many monasteries and churches. He died 1st December 659.

His life has been written by his friend and contemporary St Ouen; and a French translation of this life by the Abbé La Roque, together with 16 homilies said to have been written by St Eloi, was published at Paris in 1693.

EL PASO, or El Paso Del Norte, a town of Mexico, in the state of Chihuahua, situated on the Rio Grande, in a narrow valley near the frontier of New Mexico, 340 miles W.S.W. of Santa Fe, 31° 42' N. lat., 106° 40' W. long. The name is often applied to a whole group of small settlements on the Rio Grande, but belongs properly to the largest of their number, which owes its origin to the establishment of a military post. It is situated in the chief thoroughfare between New Mexico and Chihuahua. The town is a mere collection of brick huts without windows, and with earthen floors. In the district the vine is largely cultivated, and wine and brandy are manufactured. On account of the fertility of the soil the inhabitants enjoy an abundance of material luxuries, but they are totally ignorant of most of the appliances of civilized life. The population is about 6000.

ELPHINSTONE, The Honourable Mountstuart (1779–1859), an eminent Indian statesman, fourth son of the eleventh Baron Elphinstone in the peerage of Scotland, was born in 1779. Having received an appointment in the civil service of the East India Company, of which one of his uncles was a director, he reached Calcutta iii the beginning of 1796. After filling several subordinate posts, he was appointed in 1801 assistant to the British resident at Poonah, at the court of the Peishwa, the most powerful of the Mahratta princes. Here he obtained his first opportunity of distinction, being attached in the capacity of diplomatist to the mission of Sir Arthur Wellesley to the Mahrattas. When, on the failure of negotiations, war broke out, Elphinstone, though a civilian, acted as virtual aide-de-camp to General Wellesley. He was present at the battle of Assaye, and displayed such courage and knowledge of tactics throughout the whole campaign that Wellesley told him he had mistaken his profession, and that he ought to have been a soldier. In 1806, when the war closed, he was appointed British resident at Nagpore. Here, the times being uneventful and his duties light, he occupied much of his leisure in reading classical and general literature, and acquired those studious habits which clung to him throughout life. In 1808 he was placed at the head of a most important political mission to Central Asia, being appointed the first British envoy to the court of Cabul, with the object of securing a friendly alliance with the Afghans in view of a possible French invasion. The negotiations, protracted and difficult, resulted in a treaty securing what the English wished; but it proved of little value, partly because the danger of invasion had passed away, and partly because the Shah Shuja was driven from the throne by his brother before it could be ratified. The most valuable permanent result of the embassy was the literary fruit it bore several years afterwards iii Elphinstone's great work on Cabul. After spending about a year in Calcutta arranging the report of his mission, Elphinstone was appointed in 1811 to the important and difficult post of resident at Poonah. The difficulty arose from the general complication of Mahratta politics, and especially from the weak and treacherous character of the Peishwa, which Elphinstone rightly read from the first. While the mask of friendship was kept up Elphinstone carried out the only suitable policy, that of vigilant quiescence, with admirable tact and patience; when in 1817 the mask was thrown aside and the Peishwa ventured to declare war, the English resident proved for the second time the truth of Wellesley's assertion that he was born a soldier. Though his own account of his share in the campaign is characteristically modest, one can gather from it that the success of the English troops was chiefly owing to his assuming the command at an important crisis during the battle of Kirkee. When Poonali fell he humanely exerted himself with almost complete success to prevent a seemingly inevitable sack of the town by the incensed soldiers. The Peishwa being driven from his throne, his territories were annexed to the British dominions, and Elphinstone was nominated commissioner to administer them. He discharged the responsible task with rare judgment and ability. The characteristic feature of his policy was his scrupulous regard for the customs, interests, and wishes of the native population, in so far as these were