SYRACUSE
1861
SYRIA
and four principal hospitals, and each has its training-school for nurses. Carnegie Library has 75,000 volumes, aside from those in substations, and is free to all. In the Court of Appeals is a library of value, supported by the state. Syracuse was first settled by an Indian trader in 1787. In 1780 it was called Salt Point, and the manufacture of salt begun by white settlers. The place was soon called Salina, and grew slowly until it was incorporated as a village in 1825. In 1847 Salina and Syracuse, which were rival villages, were united under the name of Syracuse. Population 137,249. See SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY.
Syracuse or Siracusa, a city, once the largest city of Sicily, its walls being 22 miles around and its inhabitants numbering anywhere from 500,000 to 1,000,000, It was formed of five towns, and sometimes was called Pentapolis. Ortygia, the first part of Syracuse, was built on a small island, connected with the mainland by a causeway. The modern city is fortified, and has palaces, churches, convents and a fine cathedral, built on the site of the ancient temple of Minerva. There are many ruins of the ancient city — the old theater, cut out of the rocks, with sixty rows of seats, for 24,000 spectators; ancient quarries, 60 to 80 feet deep, sometimes used as prisons, one of them being called The Ear of Diony-sius; a great aqueduct; and extensive catacombs. The fountain of Arethusa, on the island of Ortygia, has been restored by the city. The trade is in wine, brandy, oil, fruits, salt, saltpeter and sulphur. Syracuse was founded by the Corinthians in 734 B. C., and grew rapidly, sending out several colonies. The government was in the hands of a few leading families, and in 487, after a revolution in which the people had driven them out, they returned, and Gelon, the despot or tyrant, became master of Syracuse. He was a great ruler and the city prospered under him, as also under the reign of Hiero, his successor. In 466 Thrasybulus was expelled, and the city enjoyed a free government for 60 years, during which it was victorious over Athens. Diony-sius restored the "tyranny," strengthened the city, and overcame Carthage. In 212 B, C. the city, which had joined the Carthaginians, was conquered by the Romans. It was burnt by the Saracens in 878, and has been three times nearly destroyed by earthquakes. Population 32,030. See SICILY.
Syracuse Uniyer'sity, Syracuse, N. Y., a coeducational institution, has colleges of liberal arts, applied science, fine arts, medicine and laws. It stands on a hill overlooking Onondaga Lake, was founded by Methodists in 1870, and has a hall of languages, Holsen Observatory and a library containing Ranke, the great German historian's, fine historical collection. The faculty number 240, the students 3,248 and the
library 90,000 volumes. The productive funds amount to $2,045,351, and in 1907 the income was $826,167.
Syria (str't-d), division of Turkey, lying on the Mediterranean Sea between Asia Minor and Arabia, including 114,530 square miles. The country is crossed from north to south by a double mountain-chain, Lebanon, the highest part having its summit 10,000 feet above the sea. The valley between the two ranges, Lebanon and Anti-Libanus, is about 2,300 feet above the sea, and was the site of the cities of Heliorjolis and Baalbek. This valley separates into two parts, through one of which the Leontes River makes its way to the Mediterranean, while the other descends rapidly to the valley of the Jordan. At the Lake of Tiberias the valley is 650 feet below the level of the sea, and at the Dead Sea, 60 miles below, it is 1,300 feet below sea-level. The region around the Dead Sea is full of salt and without vegetation. The coast is broken by the bays of Tripoli, Beirut, Acre and Saida. The Jordan, Litany (Leontes), Asi (Orontes), Barada and Awaj (the Abana and Pharpar of the Bible) are the principal rivers, with the Euphrates on the eastern border. The plains of Esdraelon, Sharon and Gaza are level tracts, and the region around Damascus is a sandy desert in which are the ruins of Palmyra. Iron, quicksilver, coal, salt and bitumen are the minerals. The climate varies from the cool summers of the slopes of Lebanon to the tropical heat of the Jordan valley, with a dry season from April to October. In spite of imperfect methods and ancient implements in agriculture, the crops are large. Wheat, barley, rice, cotton, hemp, indigo and tobacco are important crops, while all kinds of fruit are grown. Vineyards coyer the hills, and forests of cedar and pine the mountains. The horses are very strong and handsome; the broad-tailed sheep is found here only; cattle are small and poor; and wild animals abound in the mountains. Manufactures are unimportant, though the rearing of silk-worms is carried on extensively. Its chief city is Damascus, with a population of 350,000.
The people are of many races and sects. The Mohammedans are mostly Arabs, though there is a small proportion of Turks, the ruling race. The Mohammedans, Druses, Maronites, adherents of the Greek church, Armenians, Catholics, Protestants and Jews represent the religious divisions. The schools are carried on mainly by the Greeks, Catholics and, especially, by the American Protestant missionaries, who founded the Presbyterian college at Beirut. The Syriac language belongs to the Semitic group, and is an Aramaic dialect. Ancient Syriac still is the sacred language of the remnants of the Christian churches of Syria and Asia Minor, though it practically is a dead Ian-
