WRITING
2113
WU
Comparative Anatomy of Vertebraia and Zoology j or High Schools.
Wright, Wilbur. With his brother Orville he was the first to make aviation a practical art and commercial success. They long worked in secret and their ability to flyinaheavier-than-air machine,was doubted until demonstrated in public in this country and in France. Both won many prizes at home and abroad, and in 1909 Congress awarded them a gold medal "in recognition of their courage, ability and success in navigating the air." They abandoned actual flying in 1910 and devoted themselves to the manufacture of aeroplanes. Wilbur Wright died at Dayton, May 30, 1912. He was born in 1867 on a farm in Henderson Co., Ind.
Writ'ing, the expression of thoughts by characters to make them known to others, is found in many forms. The hieroglyphic or pictorial writing, in which the idea is expressed by a picture, which afterward became a sign, was common in Egypt, Assyria and Mexico. The invention of the alphabet, which is the basis of the modern art of writing, is ascribed to the Phoenicians, who are thought to have taken some of the signs used in the hieroglyphic writing of Egypt and made of them the characters which represent the sounds of the voice as we now find them in alphabets. The Latin letters were introduced into England by the Romans, and what is called Roman-Saxon writing prevailed until the Saxon became general in the time of Alfred. Norman writing came with William the Conqueror, and the Gothic, Old-English and English court-hand followed. The direction of the writing varies in different nations; the Mexican picture-writing begins at the bottom, the Chinese and Japanese write in columns, beginning at the top and going from right to left; and Hebrew is written from right to left. The materials used were various, including papyrus, parchment and paper, and the instruments have also varied from the stylus and quill to the modern pen and typewriter. See CUNEIFORM and PENMANSHIP.
Wiirttemberg (v$rt'tem-berg), a kingdom of the German empire, is in the southern part of Germany, separated from Switzerland by Lake Constance. Its greatest length is 139 miles and its width 105, with an area of 7,5 3 4 square miles. The Black Forest is on the western border; and the Swabian Alps cross the country for 80 miles, dividing it into the valley of the Danube and the valley of the Neckar, which are the principal rivers. The climate is mild in the Neckar valley, but cold in the mountains. It is an agricultural country, with extensive orchards, gardens and vineyards; and the grains, hay and fruits are the main products. There is but little coal, but extensive peat-beds, fire-clay, iron, salt,
gypsum and tourmaline are found, In 1905 the value of the mineral products in the kingdom was 3,237,800 marks. The state railways in 1906 had a total length of 1,219 miles. There are manufactures of linen, woolen, cotton and silk goods. Beer-breweries and brandy-distilleries are numerous, and 215,500,000 bottles of beer have been used in a year in the country — 125 bottles for each person. The government is a hereditary monarchy. In the empire Wiirttemberg has four votes in the bundesrat or federal council and 17 representatives in the reichstag or congress. Education is compulsory, and there must be at least one school in every commune. Recent official reports show that there is no person in the kingdom over ten years old who cannot read and write. The educational system is completed by the University of Tubingen (q. v.), founded in 1477. Wiirttemberg joined the German empire in 1871. The capital is Stuttgart (population 285,589). Population of Wiirttemberg 2,435,611
Wiirzburg (vurts'bobrg), a city of Bavaria, is in a beautiful valley on Main River. Among the noticeable buildings are the episcopal palace, one of the most magnificent royal houses in the world, the large Julius Hospital, the cathedral, rebuilt in the nth century, and the beautiful Marien Kappelle, with 14 statues of the 15th century. The university, founded in 1582, has medical and law schools and musical departments, the medical school being connected with the hospital and having a high reputation. There also are gymnasial, agricultural and trade schools and a Roman Catholic seminary. The manufactures are woolen goods, mirrors, leather, tobacco and wines. Population 84,387-
Wu, Ting Fang, Chinese diplomat and statesman, was born near Canton in China in 1842, and educated at St. Paul's College in Hong Kong, where he practiced for a time as a lawyer and acted as interpreter in the law-courts for the provincial government. From 1874 to 1877 he was in England, where he studied law at Lincoln's Inn, London, and was called to the English bar. On his return to China the Peking government became interested in him, and through the influence of Marquis Li he was appointed a member of the latter's official staff, and later took part in effecting the treaty of Shimonoseki, which concluded the Chino-Japanese War. At Peking he served in other official capacities until 1896, when he was appointed minister to the United States. In the latter capacity, while in this country, he unsuccessfully opposed the re-enactment, without modifications, of the Chinese Exclusion Act. In 1902 he returned to China, being summoned to aid in negotiating
