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MARDIN id his abilities as a statesman were called into requisition upon many other questions. In March, 1853, he was appointed by President Pierce secretary of state, and in the latter part of that year he greatly distinguished himself at home and abroad by his correspondence with the Austrian government on the subject of the release of Martin Koszta by Capt. Ingraham of the United States navy. (See INGRAHAM, DUNCAN NATHANIEL.) Besides his Koszta let- ter, his state papers on Central American af- fairs, on the enlistment question, on the Danish Sound dues, and on many other topics of na- tional interest, exhibited his remarkable ability as a writer, statesman, and diplomatist. He retired from office on the inauguration of Mr. Buchanan, March 4, 1857, and just four months later died suddenly while lying on his bed read- ing. He left a reputation among his country- men of all parties as a statesman of the highest order of abilities. MABDIN, a town of Asiatic Turkey, in the vilayet of Diarbekir, 350 m. N. W. of Bag- dad; pop. about 12,000. It is situated on a rocky eminence, more than 2,000 ft. above the level of the sea. Near it is a Jacobite monas- tery, said to have a large library, containing works in 12 different languages. The town is the seat of a United Syrian and a Chaldean bishop, and of a flourishing Protestant mission. It has several mosques and churches, and man- ufactories of linen, cotton, and leather. MARDOMCS. See GEEECE, vol. viii., pp. 189, 190. MAREtfME (sing, maremma, a salt marsh), tracts of marshy country in some parts of mid- dle Italy, on the Mediterranean coasts, especial- ly from the mouth of the Cecina to Orbetello, which are extremely unhealthy from midsum- mer to the middle of autumn. During this pe- riod it is dangerous to spend even a single night in the Maremma ; those who do so are almost surely attacked by fever. There is nothing apparent in the air, either to sight or smell, to account for this insalubrity ; on the contrary, the atmosphere seems to be remarkably clear and pure. The malaria does not proceed from the water of the marshes, for it is equally vir- ulent on dry elevations, and has been attrib- uted to unhealthy exhalations of sulphur and alum in the soil. In ancient times the Cam- pagna di Roma, which is now almost deserted in consequence of the malaria, was cultivated like a garden, and was the seat of a dense pop- ulation. The city of Rome itself has been in- vaded by the mephitic air, and the malarious fever prevails in some of the streets. The Maremme, in different basins, occupy altogether an area of nearly 1,000 sq. m. Of late years efforts, which to some extent have been success- ful, have been made to redeem the marshes by drainage, banking in the lakes, planting trees, and bringing the ground into tillage. MARENCO, Carlo, an Italian dramatist, born at Cassolo, Piedmont, May 1, 1800, died in Sa- vona, Sept. 20, 1843. He took his degree in MARENZIO 153 jurisprudence at Turin in 1818, but became famous in 1828 by his drama, Bondelmonte. His Famiglia Foscari is especially admired. He spent most of his life at Ceva, excepting shortly before his death, when the government appointed him to a public office at Savona. His posthumous Tragedie inedite, edited by G. Prati (Florence, 1856), contain several poems. MARE1VGO, a W. county of Alabama, bounded W. by the Toinbigbee river, which unites with the Black Warrior on the N. W. ; area, 975 sq. m. ; pop. in 1870, 26,151, of whom 20,058 were colored. It has a nearly level surface ; the soil is very fertile, and a tract known as the " Canebrake " is among the most produc- tive cotton land in the south. The chief pro- ductions in 1870 were 598,938 bushels of In- dian corn, 38,691 of sweet potatoes, 164,931 Ibs. of butter, and 23,614 bales of cotton. There were 1,377 horses, 3,629 mules and asses, 4,116 milch cows, 8,315 other cattle, 1,763 sheep, and 16,531 swine. Capital, Linden. MAREAGO, a village of Piedmont, Italy, on the river Bormida, 2 m. S. E. of Alessandria, situated on an extensive plain of the same name, where a victory was gained by Bona- parte over the Austrian general Melas, June 14, 1800. Bonaparte, having crossed the Great St. Bernard in the latter part of May and over- run a large portion of Lombardy, entered the plain of Marengo with the object of prevent- ing Melas, who had concentrated his forces at Alessandria, from escaping him by a march southward to Genoa. On the morning of June 14 the village of Marengo was occupied by two French divisions under Victor. Melas attacked them with 31,000 men and 200 can- non, and at 11 o'clock, when Bonaparte ar- rived, Victor's divisions with Lannes's corps were in full retreat. The fugitives, reanimated by the presence of Bonaparte, rallied and kept the Austrians in check. At 4 P. M. Desaix's corps, which was on the road to Novi, and had been hurriedly recalled, arrived on the field and took position on the left, while Victor and Lannes reformed on the right, with Marmont's masked battery in the rear. Thus reenforced, Bonaparte turned the tide and completely over- whelmed the Austrians, the younger Keller- mann's cavalry charge deciding the day. The Austrians lost 7,000 killed and wounded, 3,000 prisoners, 20 pieces of artillery, and 8 stand- ards. The French, who brought about 28,000 men into the field, lost about 7,000 in killed (including Desaix) and wounded and 1,000 pris- oners. An armistice followed, by the terms of which the Austrians were allowed to retire beyond the Mincio on condition of giving up all their fortified places in Italy west of that river. MARENZIO, Lut-a, an Italian composer, born near Brescia about 1550, died Aug. 22, 1599. His parents were poor, and he received instruc- tion from the parish priest and the chapel- master at Brescia. His first collection of mad- rigals brought him into notice, and he was en- gaged in the service of the king of Poland.