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AIDAN, ST. AIKIN 213 AID t, St., an Irish missionary to the North- umbrians, died Aug. 81, 651. He was sent into Forthumbria at the request of King Os- wald about 635, and appointed bishop, with a see at Lindisfarne, where he established the monastic rule of St. Columbanus. With the assistance of the king, who acted as his inter- preter, he founded the church in Northumbria. IIH. I. A Turkish province, one of the eyalets of Asia Minor, embracing ancient Lydia, Caria, the western part of Lycia, and southwestern Phrygia ; pop. 450,000. II. A city (surnamed Ouzel Huaar, beautiful castle), capi- tal of the province, about 57 m. S. E. of Smyr- na ; pop. upward of 40,000, chiefly Turks. It is picturesquely situated on the Mseander, and built out of the ruins of ancient Tralles, which was situated on the plateau of the Messogis above the town. Its important trade in cot- ton, figs, and other products has become still more active since the recent completion of the Smyrna- Aidin railway. The city is noted for its animation, and possesses many khans, ba- zaars, mosques, and palaces, as well as some interesting ruins. The American missionaries at Smyrna have a sub-mission here. AIGUEBELLE, a small town of France, in- Sa- voy, on the left side of the river Arc, 15 m. E. of Chambery, where the Spanish and French forces gained a victory over the troops of the king of Sardinia in 1742. It is near the begin- ning of the road which Napoleon built over Mont Cenis. AIGUEBELLE, Panl Alexandra Nevene d', a Franco-Chinese naval commander, born in France, Jan. 7, 1831. He entered the French navy in 1846, rose to the rank of lieutenant in 1858, and afterward entered the Chinese ser- vice, distinguishing himself in 1862-'4 against the Taepings. Admiral Protet and the captains of artillery Lebreton and De Moidry having been successively killed by their own raw troops, D'Aiguebelle became chief commander of the Franco-Chinese corps, compelled the in- surgents to evacuate several towns, and cap- tured Hangchow (1864). In 1865 he was made an officer of the legion of honor by the French government, while the Chinese raised him to the rank of a mandarin of the first class. He established with the aid of M. Gic- quel the arsenal of Foo-chow-foo, and enabled the Chinese in less than three years to con- struct all kinds of European vessels. The first Chinese man-of-war is said to have been launched under D'Aiguebelle's auspices, June 2, 1869, on which occasion he was appointed grand admiral of the Chinese fleet. AIGUILLE (Fr., needle), a name given to cer- tain narrow and sharp-pointed peaks of the Alps, some of which rise to a great height. Also the special name of a mountain in Isere, France, between Grenoble and Gap, 6,500 feet high, which is inaccessible and called one of the seven wonders of Dauphind. AIGUILLON, Armand Vignerot Dnplessis Richelieu due d', minister of foreign affairs under Louis XV., born in 1720, died in 1782. When in 1758 the English made a descent upon the coast of Brittany, the duke, who was governor of the province, threw himself into a mill, whereupon La Chalotais perpetrated his cele- brated witticism, that D'Aiguillon had covered himself, not with glory, but with flour. On the accession of Louis XVI. he was replaced by Vergennes, and lived thenceforth in obscu- rity. During his ministry (177l-'4), which he owed to his accomplishments as a courtier and the favor of the king's mistress, Mme. Du- barry, the first partition of Poland took place. Louis XV., speaking of this act, so disastrous to the interests of France, exclaimed, " If Choiseul had been here, this partition would not have taken place." AIGUES-MORTES (Lat. Aqua Mortuce, dead waters), a town of France, department of Gard, 3 m. from the Mediterranean and 20 in. S. 8. W. of Nimes; pop. in 1866, 3,932. It owes ite name to the malarious marshes which surround it, and over which it is approached by a raised causeway. In the middle ages it had a com- modious port and ship canal, where Louis XII. embarked his army for the crusades in 1248 and 1270; but they have long been filled up with sand. Several fruitless attempts have been made to restore them, the last by Napo- leon I. The walls and towers then built around the town are the best preserved of any in France. In the vicinity are the immense salines of Peccais, and their products, as well as fresh and salted fish, are shipped through canals to the coast and interior. AIKEN, a township and village in Aiken coun- ty (recently formed), S. C., on the S. C. rail- road, 120 m. N. W. of Charleston, and 17 m. E. N. E. of Augusta, Ga. ; pop. in 1870, 2,259, of whom 1,096 were colored. The surrounding country is somewhat hilly, the ground high, and the air dry and healthful. The climate in winter is mild, and in summer salubrious. Aiken has recently been much resorted to by consumptives and other invalids. AIKIN. I. John, an English author, son of Dr. John Aikin, tutor in divinity at the dis- senters' academy in Warrington, born in Lei- cestershire, Jan. 15, 1747, died Dec. 7 f> 1822. In 1798 he gave up the medical profession for literary pursuits. The best known of his works, in which he was assisted by his sister, Mrs. Barbauld, is "Evenings at Home," a se- lection of instructive essays and anecdotes for children (revised by Cecil Hartley, 1865). This is still popular, and has been translated into every European language. He was lite- rary editor of the "Monthly -Magazine" for the first 10 years after its establishment in 1796, and in 1811 was editor of Dodsley's " Annual Register." His works are very nu- merous. The principal are: "Biographical Memoirs of Medicine in Great Britain from the Time of Henry VIII." ; "The Calendar of the Year," afterward republished as "The Natural History of the Year," remarkable for its con-