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esteem and friendship for him that he earnestly urged and at length induced him to take up his residence at court and become his preceptor in the sciences. Alcuin accord ingly instructed Charlemagne and his family in rhetoric, logic, mathematics, and divinity. He particularly distin guished himself by his writings in defence of the orthodox faith against the adoptionLsts, Felix, bishop of Urgel, and Elipandus, archbishop of Toledo, convincing the former of his error after a six days debate at Aix-la- Chapelle (799), and treating the latter in the most con ciliatory manner ; and on more than one occasion he was employed in important missions between Charlemagne and Offa, king of Mercia. " France," says one of our best writers of literary history, with some degree of truth, " is indebted to Alcuin for all the polite learning it boasted of in that and the following ages. The universities of Paris, Tours, Fulden, Soissons, and many others, owe to him their origin and increase, those of which he was not the superior and founder being at least enlightened by his doctrine and example, and enriched by the benefits he procured for them from Charlemagne." Alcuin, it is alleged, however, forbade the reading of the classical poets. In 790 he went to England in the capacity of ambassador, and returned to France in 792, never again to visit his native land. After Alcuin had spent many years in the most intimate familiarity with the greatest prince of his age, he at length, in 801, with great difficulty, obtained leave to retire from court to the abbey of St Martin at Tours, of which he had been appointed the head by Charlemagne in 796. Here he remained and taiight till his death in 804. In his retirement he kept up a constant correspondence with Charlemagne, which displays, on the part of both, an ardent love of learning and religion, and great zeal and earnestness in contriving and executing noble designs for their advancement. Alcuin composed many treatises on a great variety of subjects, in a style much superior in purity and elegance to that of most writers of the age in which he flourished. His works were collected and published by Duchesne, in 1 vol. folio, Paris, 1617: a better edition is that of Froben, 2 vols. folio, Ratisbon, 1777. They consist of (1) Tracts upon Scripture ; (2) Tracts upon doctrine, discipline, and morality (3) Historical treatises, letters, and poems. It is not improbable that Alcuin was the writer of the famous Caroline Books, issued under the name of Charlemagne, which denounced as idolatrous every form of image-worship. A Life of Alcuin, by Lorenz, was published at Halle in 1829, and appeared in an English translation, by Slee, in 1837. ALCYONIUS, or ALCIONIUS, PETRUS, a learned Italian, born at Venice in 1487 (died 1527). Distin guished as a classical scholar, he was employed for some time by Aldus Manutius as a corrector of the press, and in 1522 was appointed professor of Greek at Florence through the influence of Giulio de Medici. When the latter became pope, under the title of Clement VII., in 1523, Alcyonius followed him. to Rome, and remained there until his death. Alcyonius published at Venice, in 1521, a Latin translation of several of the works of Aristotle, which was ehown by the Spaniard Sepulveda to be very incorrect. He wrote a dialogue entitled Medices Legatus, sive de Exilio, in connection with which he was charged with plagiarism by his personal enemy, Paulus Manutius. The accusation, which Tiraboschi has shown to be groundless, bore that he had taken the finest passages in the work from Cicero s De Gloria, and that he had then destroyed the only existing copy of the original in order to escape detection. Two orations on the taking of Rome by Charles V., and another on the knights who perished at the siege of Rhodes, are also ascribed to Alcyonius. -A L D ALDAN, a river of Siberia, in the government of Yakutsk, which rises about 55 N. lat., and 125 E. long., and after flowing more than 300 miles in a north-east direction, turns to the north-west, joining the Lena about 100 miles below Yakutsk. It has a total length of over 500 miles, for a considerable part of which it is navigable. ALDAN MOUNTAINS, the name usually applied to a branch of the Stanovoi mountains, which strikes off from the main chain in the direction of the Aldan river, or to a part of this range. According to some geographers, however, the continuation of the Stanovoi range to Behring Strait, or even the whole mountain system of eastern Siberia, ought to receive the name. ALDBOROUGH, a town of England, in the West Riding of Yorkshire, 16 miles W.N.W. of York. It formerly returned two members to parliament, but was disfranchised by the Reform Act of 1832. The place is remarkable only from its numerous ancient remains. It was the Isurium of the Romans, and here and in the neighbourhood the remains of aqueducts, spacious build ings, and tesselated pavements have been found, as well as numerous implements, coins, and urns. Population (1871) of the parish, which extends into the North Riding, 2165 ; of the town, 502. ALDEBURGH, or ALDBOROUGH, a market-town and watering-place in the county of Suffolk, 25 miles E.N.E. of Ipswich. The borough was incorporated by a charter of King Edward VI., and in former times was a place of considerable extent ; but the old town was gradually sub merged by the encroachments of the sea. Further destruc tion is now stayed by the accumulated sandbanks, and the place has become a favourite resort of summer visitors. Fishing affords employment to many of the inhabitants. The town is noted as the birthplace of the poet Crabbe, who was born here on 24th December 1754. A marble bust of the poet has been placed in the parish church. Aldeburgh was formerly a parliamentary borough, but was disfranchised by the Reform Act of 1832. Population of the parish in 1871, 1990. ALDEGREVER, or ALDEGRAF, HEINRICH, a German painter and engraver, born in 1502 at Paderborn, from which he removed in early life to Soest. From the close resemblance of his style to that of his master, Albert Diirer, he has sometimes been called the Albert of West phalia. His numerous engravings, chiefly from his own designs, are delicate and minute, though somewhat hard in style, and entitle him to a place in the front rank of the so-called "Little Masters." Specimens of his painting are exceedingly rare. The genuineness of the works in the Vienna and Munich collections attributed to him is at least doubtful, the only unchallenged example being a portrait in the gallery at Berlin. Aldegrever died about the year 1562. ALDER, a genus of plants (Alnus) belonging to the order Betulacece, the best known of which is the common alder (A. glutinosa). This tree thrives best in moist soils, has a shrubby appearance, and grows, under favourable circumstances, to a height of 40 or 50 feet. Under water the wood is very durable, and it is therefore used for piles. The supports of the Rialto at Venice, and many biiildings at Amsterdam, are of alder-wood. Furniture is sometimes made from the wood, and it supplies excellent charcoal for gunpowder. The bark is astringent ; it is used as a gargle, and also in tanning and dyeing. ALDERMAN, a word derived from the Anglo-Saxon ealdorman, compounded of the comparative degree of the adjective eald (old) and man. The term implies the pos session of an office of rank or dignity; and among the Anglo-Saxons, earls, governors of provinces, and other
persons of distinction received this title. Thus we read
