overed with
a long soft silky wool, of which textile fabrics are woven; in appearance
resembles a sheep, but is larger in size, and has a long erect neck with
a handsome head.

ALP-ARSLAN (Brave Lion), a sultan of the Seljuk dynasty in Persia,
added Armenia and Georgia to his dominions (1030-1072).

ALPES, three departments in SE. France: the BASSES-A, in NE.
part of Provence, bounded by Hautes-Alpes on the N. and Var on the S.,
sterile in the N., fertile in the S., cap. Digne; HAUTES-A., forming
part of Dauphine, traversed by the Cottian Alps, climate severe, cap.
Gap; A. MARITIMES, E. of the Basses-A., bordering on Italy and the
Mediterranean, made up of the territory of Nice, ceded by Italy, and of
Monaco and Var; cap. Nice.

ALPHE`US, a river in the Peloponnesus, flowing west, with its source
in Arcadia; also the name of the river-god enamoured of the nymph
Arethusa, and who pursued her under the sea as far as Sicily, where he
overtook her and was wedded to her.

ALPINE CLUB, a club of English gentlemen devoted to mountaineering,
first of all in the Alps, members of which have successfully addressed
themselves to attempts of the kind on loftier mountains.

ALPINE PLANTS, plants whose natural habitat approaches the line of
perpetual snow.

ALPS, THE, the vastest mountain system in Europe; form the boundary
between France, Germany, and Switzerland on the N. and W., and Italy on
the S., their peaks mostly covered with perpetual snow, the highest being
Mont Blanc, within the frontiers of France. According to height, they
have been distributed into _Fore, Middle_, and _High:_ the Fore rising to
the limit of trees; the Middle, to the line of perpetual snow; and the
High, above the snow-line. In respect of range or extent, they have been
distributed into _Western, Middle_, and _Eastern:_ the Western, including
the Maritime, the Cottian, the Dauphine, and the Graian, extend from the
Mediterranean to Mont Blanc; the Middle, including the Pennine and
Bernese, extend from Mont Blanc to the Brenner Pass; and the Eastern,
including the Dolomite, the Julian, and the Dinaric, extend from the
Brenner and Hungarian plain to the Danube. These giant masses occupy an
area of 90,000 sq. m., and extend from the 44th to the 48th parallel of
latitude.

ALPUJAR`RAS, a rich and lovely valley which stretches S. from the
Sierra Nevada in Spain.

ALRUNA-WIFE, the household goddess of a German family.

ALSACE-LORRAI