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BETANgOS BETHANY 593 Germany under the command of Repnin. Soon after he occasioned the ruin of Lestocq, his former patron. Through his influence the Russian troops supported Austria against Fred- erick the Great in the seven years' war ; but their commander, Apraxin, suddenly retired to Russia, and this occasioned the fall of Bestu- zheff, who was suspected of having recalled him in the interest of a political intrigue. (See APBAXIN.) He was degraded, but Catharine II. in 1762 restored him to liberty and to his previous social position, creating him a field marshal. He is regarded as the inventor of a preparation known in medicine under the name of tinctura tonica Bestusewi. IJKTAM OS, Domingo de, a Spanish missionary, born in Leon late in the 15th century, died in Valladolid in August, 1549. He studied law at Salamanca, joined the Benedictines in Rome, and lived for a time as a hermit at Somma near Naples. In 1514 he went to Hispaniola, ac- quired the Indian languages, and endeavored to save the natives from Spanish cruelty. Subsequently he labored among the Indians in Mexico and Guatemala, where he established convents. His representations led Paul III. to promulgate a bull in 1537 reminding all Christians that pagan Indians were their brethren, and should not be hunted down like wild beasts. Betancos refused the bish- opric of Guatemala, and remained simply pro- vincial of his order. He died shortly after his return to Spain. BETEL NUT, a name inaccurately applied to the nut of the areca palm (areca catechu), be- cause, though sold separately, it is used for chewing in combination with the leaf of the betel pepper (piper betle). The habit of chew- ing this compound has extended from the isl- ands of the Malay archipelago, where it is chiefly found, to the continent of Asia, and its Betel Pepper (Piper betle). use is now universal from the Red sea to Ja- pan. Its preparation for nse is very simple : the nut is sliced and wrapped in the leaf, with a little quicklime to give it a flavor. All class- es, male and female, are in the habit of chewing it, and think it improves the digestion. It gives to the tongue and lips a scarlet hue, and in time turns the teeth perfectly black. The Malays have a hideous appearance from its use, but the Chinese are very careful to remove the stain from the teeth. Persons of rank often carry it prepared for use in splendid cases worn at the girdle, and offer it to each other as people of Europe or America offer snuff. BETHAM, Sir William, an English antiquary, born at Stradbroke, Suffolk, in 1779, died at Blackrock, near Dublin, Oct. 23, 1853. His father, the Rev. William Betham, was the author of " Genealogical Tables of the Sove- reigns of the World " (folio, 1795) and of a "Baronetage" (5 vols. 4to, 1801-'5). The son was brought up as a printer, and his first liter- ary employment was revising a portion of Gough's edition of Camden. In 1805 he be- came clerk and afterward deputy of Sir Charles Fortescue, and in 1820 succeeded him as Ulster king of arms. In 1812 he had been appointed genealogist of the order of St. Patrick and knighted. He was also deputy keeper of the records of Dublin. Among his works are: " Irish Antiquarian Researches " (2 parts, Dublin, 1826-'7) ; " Dignities, Feudal and Par- liamentary " (1830) ; "Origin and History of the Constitution of England " (1830) ; " The Gael and the Cymbri" (1834); and " Etrnria Celtica: Etruscan Literature and Antiquities Investigated " (2 vols. 8vo, 1842). BETHANY, a village of ancient Palestine, on the E. slope of the mount of Olives, 3 m. from Je- Bethany. rusalem, mentioned in the New Testament as the place where Christ was anointed, often lodged, and raised Lazarns from the dead, and near which the ascension took place. It is now a desolate and dirty hamlet of about 20 families, called by the Arabs El-Azariyeh, or, according to Lindsay, Lazarieh. The monks and Mo- hammedans point out various objects of curios- ity, among which are a ruined tower which they say was the house of Mary and Martha, and the tomb of Lazarus, a deep vault in the