9 vols., 1897 et seq.), at once the most extensive and the most distinguished exposition of the subject. In 1860 his Kants Leben und die Grundlagen seiner Lehre lent the first real impulse to the so-called ‘return to Kant.’ Important among his further publications are: Schiller als Philosoph (2d ed. 1891-92); Lessings Nathan der Weise (1896); Baruch Spinozas Leben und Charakter (1865); Goethe-Schriften (1895-1900); Shakespeare's Hamlet (1896); and several ‘Festreden,’ such as Goethe in Heidelberg (1899).
FISCHER, Ludwig Hans (1848—). An Austrian landscape painter and etcher, born at Salzburg. A pupil, at the Vienna Academy, of Lichtenfels in painting, of Jacoby in engraving, and of Unger in etching, he completed his studies traveling in Italy, Spain, North Africa, Egypt, and India, and afterwards settled in Vienna. Besides a number of oil paintings, he executed for the Museum of Natural History nine decorative landscapes (1889). Among a series of etchings and engravings the cycle “Historical Landscapes from Austria-Hungary” is his most remarkable production. He also painted many excellent water-colors, and published Die Technik der Aquarellmalerei (7th ed. 1898).
FISCHER, fḗ′shắ′, Paul Henri (1835-93). A French paleontologist and naturalist, born in Paris. Having obtained his doctorate in sciences and in medicine, he was appointed assistant in paleontology at the Museum of Natural History. In 1872 he became assistant naturalist at the same institution. He was at different times president of the Société Géologique de France and the Société Zoologique de France, and in 1880 was a member of the commission for submarine dredging. From 1856 he edited, with Bernardi, the Journal de conchyliologie. His publications include Fauna conchyliologique marine de la Gironde et du sud-ouest de la France (1865; enlarged by a Supplément in 1875), Recherches sur les Actinies des côtes oceaniques de France (1876), and a Manuel de conchyliologie (1885).
FISCHER, fĭsh′ẽr, Theobald (1846—). A German geographer, born at Kirchsteitz, Germany, and educated at Heidelberg, Halle, Bonn, and Vienna. He was professor of geography at Kiel from 1879 to 1883, when he took the same chair at Marburg. In 1886 he visited the Tunisian Sahara, and in 1888 made a tour through Morocco and Algeria. In addition to numerous contributions to scientific periodicals, his publications include: Raccolta dei mappemondi e carte nautiche del XIII. al XVI. secolo (10 atlases, containing 79 leaves, 1881); Beiträge zur Geschichte der Erdkunde und der Kartographie in Italien im Mittelalter (1886); “Die südeuropäischen Halbinseln,” in Kirchhoff's Unser Wissen von der Erde, vol. iii. (1892).
FISCHER VON ERLACH, fṓn ĕr′läG, Johann Bernhard (1656-1723). An Austrian architect, born at Gratz. He studied in Rome, and his work shows the influence of Bernini. He built the Chateau of Schönbrunn, the summer residence of the Austrian Court; the churches of Saint Charles Borromeo and of Saint Peter; and the palace of Prince Eugene, all in Vienna. He was at work on his history of architecture, Entwurf einer historischen Architectur (1721), at the time of his death. Joseph Emanuel (1695-1742), his son, finished the work left uncompleted by his father, and was a remarkable hydraulic engineer.
FISCHER VON WALDHEIM, vält′hīm, Gotthelf (1771-1853). A Russian physician and naturalist, born at Waldheim, Saxony. After holding a professorship at Mainz, he accepted a call to Moscow (1803), where he became professor of natural history and director of the university museum devoted to that branch of science. In 1808 he founded the Society of Naturalists at Moscow. He published numerous works on comparative anatomy, on the nutrition of plants, and on galvanism. One of the most important of these is the Bibliographia Palæontologica Animalium Systematica (2d ed. 1834).
FISH (AS. fisc, Ger. Fisch; connected with Lat. piscis, Olr. iasc, fish). A backboned animal which lives in water, breathes by means of gills, and possesses paired fins. Such animals constitute the class Pisces, but popularly the term ‘fish’ includes, in addition to the above, certain other lower vertebrates, the lancelets (Leptocardii) and the round-mouths (Cyclostomata), not to mention the ignorant error of speaking of whales, etc., as ‘fish.’
TOPOGRAPHY OF A FISH.
| 1, Dorsal fin; 2, adipose fin; 3, caudal fin (tail); 4, anal fin; 5, pectoral fin (paired); 6, ventral fin (paired); 7, mandible (lower jaw); 8, maxillary (upper jaw); 9, operculum (gill-cover); 10, branchiostegals; 11, caudal peduncle; 12, lateral line; 13, series of crosswise scales at the point usually counted; 14, snout (nose); 15, eye; 16, head; 17, depth; 18, base of caudal fin; 19, distance from snout to nape or occiput. |
Form. It is almost
impossible to describe
the form of a fish in
terms that would
include all the different
varieties, notwithstanding
the fact that the
group as a whole
presents a greater
uniformity of form than
other vertebrate groups,
for instance, birds. The
majority, however, have
a more or less elongated
body, tapering at both
ends. The variations in
form can usually be
correlated with the habits
of the fish. The great variety of habitats into
which the fish have been crowded, and to which
they have become adapted, has resulted in great
