lieved to be the blue rock-pigeon; but there is reason to doubt this. Pigeon-breeding has been engaged in throughout Europe and eastern countries for centuries. It is a favorite pastime in the United States. A great range of variation has been produced by breeding. Some of the more conspicuous varieties are the fan-tail with large spreading tail; the pouter, with inflated breast; the tumbler; carrier; trumpeter; barb; and jacobin. Darwin made use of pigeons in observing the changes produced in animals under domestication, through the influence of artificial selection. The breed which is called the carrier pigeon, or the homing pigeon, is employed for carrying messages. There is no real distinction between doves and pigeons.
Pig′ments, the color materials of painting. It is necessary to distinguish these from dyeing colors. Pigments are insoluble, and, mixed in oil or water or other liquid, are used for painting. Dye-stuffs are held in solution as tinctorial substances. A pigment must have covering power, that is, it must cover and conceal with an opaque covering the surface on which it is spread. When dry, it must have durability; must resist the air. It should also dry quickly. Pigments for artistic work need to be prepared with more care and of better material, if possible, than pigments for mechanical purposes. A house can be repainted, but a madonna cannot be. Artists' pigments are ground to a finer powder than ordinary paints.
Pike, a ravenous fresh-water fish, with long slender body, broad snout and large mouth. There are five species of the pike family. One inhabits the fresh waters of both continents; the other four are American species. The muskallunge, attaining a length of eight feet, is the finest and largest of the pikes. It is found in the Great Lake region and, occasionally, in the Ohio valley. The smaller varieties are commonly called pickerel in the United States. All rank high as food.
Pike's Peak, a peak of the Rocky Mountains, 65 miles south of Denver in Colorado, discovered by Captain (afterwards General) Z. M. Pike in 1806. It is 14,134 feet high. A railway from Manitou to the top, nine miles in length, was constructed in 1891.
Pi′late, Pon′tius, the Roman procurator of Judæa, who, after his most solemn assertions of the innocence of Christ, yielded to the demands of His accusers and gave Him up to be crucified. There are quite a number of traditions as to Pilate's end: He committed suicide; he was beheaded by Nero; he embraced Christianity. In the Ethiopic church he is celebrated as a saint. One legend tells how his body was thrown into the Tiber, making an overflow, another that the body was carried to Mount Pilatus and there sunk securely in the deep pool on its top. But here again it made storms arise, and every year the devil on Good Friday lifts him out of the pool and places him on the judgment-seat, where he washes his hands anew. In the Greek church Pilate's wife has been canonized as a saint. His era is the first half of the 1st century.
Pile-Driver, a machine for driving piles. The ordinary form consists of a heavy iron weight which can be raised vertically from 10 to 40 feet between upright guides and then be released to fall on the pile beneath. The common weight of the ram is from 1,000 to 2,000 pounds, but weights of 4,000 pounds and over are occasionally used. It usually is lifted by a wire-rope, which is wound on a drum revolved by a small steam-engine, the ram being released when the desired height is reached. In the Vulcan-Nasmyth steam pile-driver a hammer is attached directly to the rod of a piston which works in a vertical steam cylinder. The admission of the steam to the cylinder causes reciprocating hammering, the number and character of the blows being regulated by an adjustable valve-gear. Another form of pile-driver is the gunpowder pile. In this the explosive force of gunpowder confined in a suitable mortar is used to drive the pile.
Pileus (pī′le-ŭs), the spreading cap-like portion of a mushroom or toadstool. See Basidomycetes.
Pilgrim Fathers, the founders of the first English colony settling in Massachusetts. This colony belonged to a sect of separatists originating in Yorkshire, England, who, previous to sailing for the New World, had spent some time as exiles for religion's sake in Holland. The company, numbering 100 men, women and children, set sail from Plymouth, England, Sept. 6, 1620, bound for Hudson River. But after a long and stormy voyage they were driven on the bleak and desolate shores of Cape Cod. They landed on Dec. 21, 1620, at a place to which they gave the name of Plymouth.(q. v.) A monument to their memory has been erected there. Before landing they drew up and signed a compact of government, which is regarded as the first written constitution we have an historical account of.
Pilgrim's Progress. This famous masterpiece was composed by John Bunyan (1628-88), a tinker of Bedfordshire, England. Having become converted to intense faith in the free-church point of view, he began to preach and was arrested for delivering sermons without a license. He was confined in Bedford Jail for over eleven years (1660-72), and during this period composed Pilgrim's Progress. This is an easily interpreted allegory describing the spiritual experiences of Christian, the pious man, on the way to the heavenly Jerusa-
