worked himself, and so resigned his professor- ship. When the Wollner edict of 1788 against rationalism appeared he ridiculed it, anony- mously, but was condemned to a year's im- prisonment at Magdeburg. He employed his leisure in writing his autobiography, which is not noted for veracity (1790). Released, in 1790, he opened an inn at Halle, and gave him- self up to riotous living. He then wrote the best book of the many he produced, System der moralischen Religion (1719). He died at Halle, April 23, 1792. For his biography consult J. Leyser, F. Bahrdt sein VerliMltniss zum Philanthropismus und zur neuern Piida- gogik (2d ed., Neustadt, 1870).
BAHREIN (ba-ran') ISLANDS (Ar. Bahrein, two seas). A group of islands under British protection, situated in latitude 26° N. and longitude 50° 40' E., on the western side of the Persian Gulf, and Iving mostly within the bay to
the north and west of the Katar Peninsula
(Map: Asia, E 6). The chief island, called Bahr-
ein, or Aval, has a north and south extent of 25
miles and a greatest breadth east and west of 9
miles: and while having Hat, .sandy coasts, yet is
hilly in the interior. The soil is generally fertile,
and the frequency of springs permits the some-
what e.tcnsive growing of Eastern tropical fruit,
such as figs and dates, and of grains, particularly
wlieat and barley. The pearl fisheries, on banks
submerged from" 50 to 200 feet below the sea-
level, and extending for a distance of nearly 125
miles along the shore, form an important indus-
try. Bahrein possesses two cities of consider-
able size; Manama (25,000), the chief trading
centre: and Moharek (22,000), the capital city.
These islands have long been important trading
points. Population, about 70,000.
BAHR-EL-GHAZAL, bar'el-ga-zjil' ( Ar.,
the river of gazelles). The name given to two
rivers and their valleys in Central Africa. The
first issues from the eastern end of Lake Chad,
and after a northeasterly course of about 300
miles through a little-known desert region, loses
its waters in the marsliy district of the Bodele
in latitude 16° N. The" second river rises near
the northeastern boundary of the Congo Free
State, and after a northeasterly course, during
which it receives the waters of several tribu-
taries, unites with the Bahr-el-Jebel and joins at
Sobat the White Nile or Eahr-el-Abiad, of which
it is one of the principal affluents.
BAIÆ, bi'e, now Baja. A famous watering-
place of the ancient Romans, situated on a beau-
tiful bay in Campania, west of Pueoli (now
Pozzuoli') and north of Cape Miseno. It was
renowned for its lovely climate and scenery, its
warm sulphur springs," and its excellent sea-food,
especiallv the oysters of the neighboring Lucrine
T>ake. M'any w-ealthy Romans had villas here, and
the shore i"s dotted to-day with the remains of
ancient houses, baths, and temples. Even under
the Republic Baiic was notorious for its loose
morals, and under the Emperors life there was
marked by extreme luxury and sensuality. With
the decline of the Roman'power Bai;c rapidly lost
its importance, and was finally abandoned be-
cause of its malarious atmosphere. Recently it
has attained some importance as a war harbor.
BAIER, bl'er, JoHANN Wiliielm (1647-95).
A Lutheran divine. His Compendium Theologice
PositiviB (Jena, 1686; many edd., rep., Saint
Louis, Mo., 1882), was long the principal man-
ual used by Lutheran divinity students.
BAÏ'F, ba'ef, Jean Antoine de (1532-89). A French poet, born at Venice. He was a member of the Pleiade ( see Pleiades ) , and is perhaps best known for his unsuccessful attempt to
introduce into French poetry the rhjnneless verse
(t'crs mesures) of the ancients. For the promo-
tion of this, and of a further design for the sim-
plification of French orthography, he founded an
"Academie de poesie et de musique' (1567-84).
His Poesies choisies have been edited by Beeq de
Fouqui^res (1874), and his Mimes, enseigne-
ments, et proverbes by Blanehemain (1880).
Consult Nagel, Die metrisclien Verse J. A. de
Ba'ifs (Leipzig, 1878).
BAIKAL, bl'kiil' (Turk., Tatar 601", rich +
kal, kid. lake, sea: Mongol, Dalai-'Sor, holy
sea ) . The third lake in point of size in Asia,
and the largest fresh-water lake of the Conti-
nent: situated in the south of Siberia, in the
Government of Irkutsk, on the line of the Si-
berian Railway, in latitude 51° to 55° N., lon-
gitude 103° to 110° E. (Map: Asia, K 3).
It is crescent-shaped, covers an area of 13.000
square miles, and has a shore-line of 1000 miles.
Its length is 390 miles, and its breadth from 20
to 50 miles; height above the sea, 1513 feet;
greatest depth, off its southwest shore, about
4500. The bottom of the lake is, therefore, about
2900 feet beneath the level of the ocean. Its
waters are clear and transparent. The Baikal
Mountains, a spur of the Altai, inclose the lake,
which is fed by numerous streams, the chief of
which are the Sclenga and Bargusin. Its outlet
is by the Lower Angara, a chief tributary of the
Yenisei. Baikal has several islands, the largest
of which is Olkhon. Petroleum wells, mineral and
hot springs are foiuid in the vicinity of the lake,
and the region is subject to violent earthquakes.
Baikal forms an important link in the chain of
communication between Russia and China, and
has two conuuercial ports. Of recent years
steamboats have given a considerable impetus
to its trade. Its sturgeon, salmon, and fresh-
water seal fisheries are valuable, and large quan-
tities of other fish are also taken. A peculiar
fish, called the golomTika (Comcphorus Bciical-
ensis), which is almost one mass of fat, yielding
train-oil, was at one time caught in inunense
numbers, but is now rather scarce. The surface
of the lake is frozen from November to April}
but traffic is carried on over the ice. Besides
the Russians settled on the banks of the Selenga
and Angara, the shores of Lake Baikal are also
inhabited by tribes of the Buryats and Tin-
guses. Consult Drizhenko, "Exploration of Lake
Baikal," in Geographical Journal, Vol. II. (Lon-
don, 1898).
BAIKIE, ba'ki, William Balfour (1825-64).
An English naturalist, traveler, and philologist. He was born at Kirkwall, Orkney, joined the British Navy, and was made surgeon and naturalist to the Niger Expedition in 1854. The
senior officer died before reaching Africa, and Baikie took command and explored the Niger for 2.W miles. In 1857 he was sent on a second expedition, but his vessel was wrecked, and all his companions returned to England. He settled for a time, with none but native assistants, at the confluence of the Binue and the Niger. Within five years he opened the Niger to navi-
