ADELPHI THE'ATRE. A theatre on the Strand. London, more fully designated the Royal Adelphi Theatre. It dates from 1806, but was rebuilt on a larger scale in 1858. It was known chiefly for its melodramas and farces.
ADEXTHOS, or ADEL'PHI. The latest of
the si.x; extant comedies of Terence (q.v.). It
was produced in l(iO B.C. at the funeral games
of L. ^'Emilius Paulus, and was derived chiefly
from the 'AiSfXjio/, Adelphoi ("Brothers") of
Menander, but also in part from the 'Zvranod-
V7iaKovTc(, Synapothtitskontes ("Dying Togeth-
er") of Diphilus. M_pli&re is said to have owed
to it the idea of his Ecole dcs maris.
ADELSBERG, ii'dels-berK ( Sloven. Pa5?o/na) .
A small market town of the Austrian crown-
land of Carniola, about 50 miles east-northeast
of Triest by rail. It is famous for its wonder-
ful stalactite cavern, the largest in Europe and
one cf the finest known. It may be explored for
more than two miles, and is penetrated for about
800 yards by the river Poik. which then dis-
appears in the bowels of the earth. The cav-
ern consists of several different chambers. The
largest is the Franz Josef and Elisabeth
grotto. 223 yards in length by 214 yards in
breadth. The stalactite and .stalagmite forma-
tions are particularly notable for their beauty
and variety.
ADELUNG, ii'de-lung, Friedrich von (1768-
1843). A German philologist. He was born at
Stettin, studied philosophy and jurisprudence at
Leipzig, went later on to Russia, and was tutor
to the grand duke, later Czar Nicholas. In 1824
he was appointed director of the Oriental Insti-
tute, at St. Petersburg, and in 1825 president of
the Academy of Sciences. He is chiefly known
for his researches respecting foreign sources for
Russian history, the most important results of
which are embodied in the Kritisch-littcrarische
Uebersicht der Reisenden in HussUiiid his 1700
{ 1846 ) . He also wrote on Sanskrit language and
literature such volumes as Yersuch einer Litteratur drr hitinskritsprache (1830).
ADELUNG, .Joii.vNN Christoph (1732-
1806). A distinguished German linguist and
lexicograplier. He was born at Spantekow,
Pomerania: was a journalist and autlior at
Leipzig from 1761 to 1787, and from 1787 until
his death chief librarian of the Electoral library
at Dresden. He is principally known for his
historico-critical studies of the German language.
His chief works are his Wiirterbuch der hoch-
dcutscJwn Miindtirt (Dictionarv of High Ger-
man, 1774-1S02). in which he took Dr. .Tohnson
as his model, and his Ueber den deutschen S'til
(17SO-8U).
ADEMP'TION (Lat. adimere, to take away).
The destruction of a legacy either by voluntary
act of the testator, or by loss or destruction of
the thing bequeathed. The term is properly
used only in connection with legacies, although
it is sometimes used interchangeably with ad-
vancement (q.v.), and some courts" also treat
the term as synonymous with satisfaction. If a
testator in loco parentis, before his death, made
a gift to his legatee of the same kind as the
legacy, the presumption is that the gift was
made as part of, or in place of, the legacy; and
it is. therefore, adeemed pro tanto. Specific
legacies may be adeemed by the sale or aliena-
tion of the property bequeathed, or by its loss or
destruction, and general legacies may be adeemed
by lack of sufficient assets to pay them. See
article Leg.cy.
ADEN, ii'dcn or a'den. A peninsula and town
near the southwestern end of Arabia, situated in
lat. 12° N., and long. 45° 5' E., and connected
with the mainland by a narrow sand.v isthmus
(Map: Asia, 7). In a broader 'sense the
name of Aden is applied to the whole British
territory in that part of Arabia, which includes,
besides the peninsula and the isthmus, also ,a
small strip of territory on the mainland with a
total area of about 75 square miles. The penin-
sula proper is of volcanic origin and reaches in
the peak of Jebel Shan-shan an altitude of 1775
feet above the sea. The climate of the region
is healthful, but the scarcity of rain makes the
cultivation of the soil impossible, so that all the
necessaries of life have to be imported. Water
is obtained partly from the wells within the
crater in which the town of Aden is situated, and
partly from the hills, where it is collected dur-
ing the rainfall and conducted into cisterns. The
town of Aden is strongly fortified. The most
populous settlements are Steamer Point and
Shaikh Othman on the mainland. There are two
harbors, but only one of them. Aden Back Bay,
on the western side of the peninsula, is of any
commercial importance. Owing to its favorable
location, Aden was of considerable Importance
already in Roman times, when it was an entrepot
for the trade between the Roman Empire and the
east. In the beginning of the sixteenth century
it was taken by the Portuguese, who were suc-
ceeded by the Turks in 1535. From the seven-
teenth century until the British occupation,
Aden was under the rule of the Sultan of Sena
and some native chiefs. In 1839 it was captured
by the British as a punishment for the maltreat-
ment to which the crew of a shipwrecked British
vessel had been subjected by the natives in 1837.
Together with the island of Perim, Aden con-
stitutes a dependency of the Bombay presidency,
and is now regarded as a very important coaling
station. The population of Aden, which was at
one time reduced by internal disorder to less than
1000, is now over 41,000, and the import trade
amounted to over $16,000,000 in 1898-99, while
the value of the exports for the same year was
about $13,000,000. The chief articles of export
are coffee, gums, hides, skins, piece goods, and
tobacco. The administration of the territory is
in the hands of a political Resident, who is also
the military commander. An extensive territory
in Arabia, officially reckoned a British protector-
ate, the Somali coast, and the island of Socotra
are administrated from Aden. Consult: F. M.
Hunter, Aden (London, 1877).
ADENEZ, a'd' nfi', or ADANS LE ROI,
a'diiN' Ic rwii', also written Adenks and Adenet. A trouv&re of the thirteenth centurv. He is first known as a minstrel at the court of Henry III., Duke of Brabant, whose reign ended in 1261. Later he was for a time in the service of Guv de Dampierre, Count of Flanders : then he went to France, where he was in high favor with thf
royal family. His surname of le Roi is commonly understood to have come from the authority which he exercised as leader of the minstrels at the Brahantine court. His greatest work is the Ch'omndrs (of which an edition was published in two volumes, Brussels. 1863-66), a long poetical romance. Previously he had written, on the
