Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume VII.djvu/166

158 FESSLER Landsassen (10 vols., Leipsic, 1812-'2o). He also wrote several historical novels, and works relating to oriental languages and philosophy, freemasonry, and literature, and an autobiog- raphy (RucJcblicke aufmeine siebzigjahrige Pit- gerschaft, Breslau, 1826 ; 2d ed., 1851). I KSSLKK, Joseph, an Austrian prelate, born at Lochau, Tyrol, Dec. 2, 1813. In 1837 he was ordained priest in Brixen, and devoted himself to teaching. He was professor of his- tory and canon law for eleven years in the seminary of Brixen, and for four years in the university of Vienna, where he filled for four years more the newly established chair on the "Decretals." In 1861 the pope summoned him to Rome, and employed him in managing the affairs of the eastern churches, appointing him also consultor of the Propaganda on orien- tal rites. The bishop of Brixen at the same time named him his vicar general. Pius IX. nominated him, April 7, 1862, bishop of Nyssa in partibus; and on March 27, 1865, he was made bishop of St. Polten in Lower Austria. His long studies and labors on patrology, church history, and canon law, as well as in all that relates to -the holding of diocesan, provincial, and general councils, caused the pope to desig- nate him in 1869 as secretary of the council of the Vatican. FETH ALI, Fntteh ill, Fateh All, or Fath' AH, shah of Persia, called before his -accession Baba Khan, born about 1762, died in 1834. In 1797 he succeeded his uncle, Aga Mohammed, found- er of the Kadjar dynasty, after having put down several claimants to the throne. In 1799 Col. Malcolm was sent by the governor general of India on a mission to Feth Ali, and concluded a treaty by which the latter was to attack Khorasan and Afghanistan, and receive subsidies from England for that purpose. In 1803 war broke out between Persia and Russia for the possession of Georgia, whose ruler had transferred his allegiance from the former to the latter power. In 1805 Napoleon offered Feth Ali his alliance and protection in the prosecution of the war, and in 1807 sent Gen. Gardanne as ambassador to Persia. The treaty of Tilsit having, however, put an end to hostili- ties between France and Russia, the Persian king abandoned the French alliance for that of the English ; but he was obliged in 1813 by the successes of the Russians to yield Georgia to the czar by treaty. In 1821 a war broke out between Persia and the Ottoman empire on account of the extortions and oppressions practised by Turkish functionaries upon Per- sian pilgrims, and was terminated in 1823 by a treaty favorable to Persia. In 1826 Feth Ali, thinking to profit by the death of the czar Alexander, and to reconquer Georgia, declared war against the Russians ; but his army, com- manded by his favorite son Abbas Mirza, was vanquished by Gen. Paskevitch, and he was forced in 1828 to abandon Persian Armenia to Russia, and to make the Aras the boundary of his dominions. He amused himself in his leisure FETICHISM with writing verses, and left a collection of odes and songs. He had 500 females in his harem, and in 1826 is said to have had 81 sons and 53 daughters. He was succeeded by his grandson Mohammed, the son of Abbas Mirza, who died shortly before his father. FETIALES, or Feciales, in ancient Rome, a college of priests, consisting of 20 members be- longing to the noblest families, who held office for life, with power to fill vacancies in their number, and whose duty it was to carry the complaints and grievances of the Roman people before the magistrates and rulers of offending cities and tribes, to ask redress, to declare in case of refusal whether there was sufficient reason for hostilities, to perform the religious rites of warning the enemy, of declaration of war, and of ratification of peace, and to watch over the strict observance of treaties. This in- stitution is believed to have existed among the people of Etruria. Its introduction at Rome is attributed by some to Numa, by others to An- cus Marcius. When the policy of Rome be- came that of continual conquest, the institution lost its influence, preserving only its religious character. The etymology of the term is un- certain. It has been variously derived from the Latin words fides, fcedus, ferio, and facio, and the Greek <$[u. FETICHISM, Feticism, or Fetishism (Port, fei- tipao, magic ; perhaps connected with the Lat. fasdnum, a bewitching), the religious worship of material things (fetiches) as the abodes of spirits. It is the lowest of the forms of wor- ship found among uncivilized tribes, and exists especially among the negroes in Africa/ There are two kinds of fetiches, natural and artificial. Among the former are celebrated rocks, par- ticularly high mountain peaks where the light- ning is supposed to dwell; single trees, and more frequently whole forests ; many animals, as serpents, one of which has its own temple, where the snakes are kept by priestesses; snails, crocodiles (with the Ashantees), goats, sheep, &c. Usefulness and hurtfulness seem to have often dictated their selection, but not al- ways. Artificial fetiches are either public, preserved by priests, or private, purchasable from them usually at a very high price. Kings and princes have large collections of fetiches, and every family has at least one. They are hereditary, and either hung up in the dwell- ings or worn on the neck or elsewhere, and even fastened on domestic animals. Occa- sionally t^ey are made in rude imitation of the human form, and the public fetiches are some- times of gold and very large. The worship- pers provide their fetiches liberally with food, but if their prayers are not granted they fre- quently throw them away, or beat them to pieces. They have also festivals and sacrifices. For the latter the victims are oxen, swine, and other animals ; but sometimes criminals, pris- oners, or persons of the lowest classes of the tribe are immolated. The festivals are gene- rally attended by excess in drinking, thefts,