is very small. The amount of work which must ordinarily be expended in diminishing the volume of a gas is also insignificant compared to that required in the case of liquids or solids. An- other characteristic property of gases is their capacity of mixing with one another in all pro- portions. Gases may be said to be matter in a highly rarefied state, their specific gravity being ordinarily very small compared to that of liquids or of solids. According to the molecular theory, the distances between their particles are very great, and therefore the particles exert very little action upon one another. See Molecules — Mo- lecular Weights.
2. The volume of a liquid varies but little with the external conditions: very great pressures, for instance, will cause but a slight diminution of the volume of a liquid. Like gases, however, liquids have no shape of their own, and they readily assume the shape of the vessel contain- ing them. Certain pairs of liquids (for instance, alcohol and water) are capable, like gases, of mixing in all proportions: others (for instance, carbolic acid and water) dissolve in each other to a limited extent; still others (for instance, carbon di-sulphide and water) are practically insoluble in each other. The molecules of a body in th.e liquid state are much nearer to one another than those of a gas, and consequently are capable of exerting upon one another con- siderable attraction.
3. In the case of solids, not only the volume, but also the shape, cannot be easily changed. Very little is as yet known of the molecular con- stitution of solids. Concerning the mutual solu- bility of solids, see Solutions and Isomorphism. Consult: J. D. van der Waals, La continuité des états gazeux et liquides (in French, Paris, 1894; in German, Leipzig, 1899-1900).
A'GIAS (Gk. Ἀγίας). An ancient Greek cyclic poet of Trœzen, who lived about 740 B.C. His chief work was Νόστοι, Nostoi, or the History of the Return of the Achæan Heroes from Troy. Only fragments of the poem have been preserved.
AGIB, a'gib.
The name of two characters in the Arabian Nights. (1) In the History of the Three Calendars, the third calendar, whose marvelous adventures began with his shipwreck on the lode-stone mountain. (2) In The Story of Noureddin Ali and Bedreddin Hassan, the son of
the latter.
AGINCOURT. a'zhfiN'koor',
or AZINCOURT. A village in the department of Pas-de-Calais, France, celebrated for the splendid victory over the French gained by Henry V. of England on St. Crispin's Day, October 25, 1415. Reviving the ancient claim of the Plantagenets to the French throne, Henry had invaded France and taken Harfleur: but disease and privations in his small army determined him to return to England for reinforcements. Setting out for Calais, he forded the Somme with great difficulty, only to find a French army of 50,000 men blocking his way. Henry offered advantageous terms, to save his 14,000 men from destruction; but the French were so confident of annihilating the weakened English troops that they would hear of nothing but absolute surrender. Between two woods, near the villages of Agincourt and Tramecourt, the English placed themselves, in sullen desperation. The French, mainly Armagnac soldiery and men-at-arms, were drawn up in two lines, cavalry in front, infantry behind. As the English marched forward, the enemy's cavalry, peers and knights of France, charged to meet them. But the loamy ground held their horses' feet, and the rain of English cloth-yard arrows poured upon rider and horse, broke the front rank, which in confusion retreated on the second line, breaking that too. The English archers, with billhook and hatchet, dashed in among the heavily encumbered men-at-arms and slaughtered them in great numbers, turning the fighting into a butchery. Those of the enemy who could, ran; the rest perished. The French nobility was almost annihilated in this battle; among the 10,000 dead being the Constable d'Albret, the commander of the French force, six dukes and princes, and numberless lords and knights of lesser degree. The English lost 1000 men, among them the Duke of York. Consult Nicolas, History of the Battle of Agincourt (London, 1833).
AGIO, uj'i-6 or a'ji-o.
An Italian word, signifying "accommodation," first used in Italy to denote the premium taken by money-changers in giving gold for silver, on account of the greater convenience of gold for transport. The same word is now used in particular to denote the difference in the value of a metallic currency and the paper money representing it; also the variations from fixed pars or rates of exchange. It corresponds very nearly to the English word "premium."
AGIRA, a-je'ra,
formerly San Filipo d'Argirò. A city in Sicily, 2130 feet above the sea, 45 miles northwest of Catania (Map: Italy, J 10). It has the ruins of a Norman castle, sulphur mines, and marble quarries. The historian Diodorus (q.v.), who was born here, credits it with having been honored by a visit from Hercules, but now St. Philip has succeeded the heathen god as the tutelary genius of the city. Four miles to the north is Gagliano, where 300 French knights were ambushed in 1300. Pop., 14,000.
A'GIS (Gk. Ἄγις). The name of several kings of Sparta. (1) Son of Eurysthenes and founder of the family of the Agidæ. According to one account, he conquered Helos and established the order of the Helots. (2) Son of Archidamus II., and king from 427 or 426 to 400 or 399 B.C. He was one of the best kings of Sparta and one of the most distinguished men of his time. He took an active part in the Peloponnesian War, several times invaded Attica, and defeated the Athenians and their allies at the battle of Mantinea, in 418 B.C. It was said that Alcibiades seduced Timæa, the wife of Agis, and in consequence of this report, Leotychides, Timæa's son, was excluded from the throne in favor of Agesilaüs. (3) Son of Archidamus III.. and king from 338 to 331 B.C. He tried to overthrow the Macedonian power in Europe while Alexander the Great was in Asia, but was defeated and killed in battle by Antipater in 331 B.C. (4) Son of Eudamidus II., and king from 244 to 240 B.C. He tried to
reëstablish the institutions of Lycurgus and reform the Spartan State, but, being opposed by the wealthy classes, was thrown into prison and put to death. Consult Plutarch, Life of Agis and Barran, Histoire d'Agis IV. (Paris, 1817).
AGIST'MENT (O. F. agister, Lat. ad, to + O. F. gister, to assign a lodging, from giste, Fr. gite, an abode, resting-place). The common contract of bailment (q.v.), whereby a person
