REQUISITION 



1978 



RESTIGOUCHE RIVER 



in the Republican ranks, resulting in the defec- 

 tion of Theodore Roosevelt and his adherents 

 and the organization of the Progressive party. 

 In 1916 the tariff was not an issue; Woodrow 

 Wilson was reflected on his record of the pre- 

 ceding four years; the people endorsed his at- 

 titude toward the War of the Nations. W.F.Z. 



REQUISITION, rek wi zish' un. See EXTRA- 

 DITION . 



RESACA DE LA PALM A, rasah'kah da lah 

 pahl'mah, BATTLE OF, an engagement between 

 American and Mexican troops in Cameron 

 County, Texas, following which Congress de- 

 clared war on Mexico (see MEXICAN WAR). 

 The battle, which occurred on May 9, 1846, was 

 a victory for the United States. General Zach- 

 ary Taylor commanded the American force, 

 numbering 2.300, and the 5,000 Mexicans were 

 led by General Arista. Resaca de la Pal ma is 

 a ravine four miles north of Brownsville. The 

 battle was fought in disputed territory, as 

 Mexico claimed as its northern boundary line 

 the Nueces River, instead of the Rio Grande. 

 The day before this battle another was fought 

 at Palo Alto (see PALO ALTO, BATTLE OF). 



RESERVOIR, rez'ervoir, in its broadest 

 sense, a large receptacle for storing liquids or 

 gases, but in the sense in which the term is 

 ordinarily used it is a large receptacle for stor- 

 ing water to be used in irrigation, for city pur- 

 poses or for power to operate machinery. A 

 lake is a natural reservoir, and some cities ob- 

 tain their entire water supply from lakes. Glas- 

 gow, Scotland, obtains its water from Lock 

 Katrine, and Lake Michigan constitutes the 

 source from which the people of cities along 

 its shores obtain their supply. A cistern is a ' 

 very small reservoir for storing rain water for 

 family use. 



An artificial reservoir for public use is made 

 by constructing a dam across a narrow valley 

 or by excavating a basin in a comparatively 

 level tract of land. The greatest of engineering 

 skill is often required in its construction. 

 The site should be selected with care, if the 

 water is to be used for household purposes. 

 The sources from which the reservoir is to be 

 filled should be free from animal and vegetable 

 impurities, and the ground which is to form 

 the basin should be cleaned of all vegetation 

 and soil containing animal and vegetable mat- 

 ter. A concrete bottom is an additional protec- 

 tion against contamination of the water. Since 

 animal and vegetable matter are sources of 

 disease-bearing germs, every precaution should 

 be taken to keep the water free from them. 



Reservoirs made by excavation are usually sur- 

 rounded by fences to protect them from in- 

 truders. 



Some of the largest reservoirs for impound- 

 ing water for city use are the Croton and 

 Ashokon reservoirs which supply New York 

 City, and the reservoir of the Metropolitan 

 Water Supply District of Boston. Some small 

 cities have their water stored in large tanks 

 supported upon high, steel framework so that 

 the pressure will be sufficient to force the water 

 to the tops of the highest buildings. These 

 tanks, called standpipes, were formerly very 

 common in level sections, but they have not 

 always met expectations; the water pressure 

 has often been too low. 



The largest reservoirs are those for storing 

 water for irrigation. In the United States the 

 construction of the works connected with large 

 irrigation projects is under the direct control of 

 the United States Reclamation Service. See 

 IRRIGATION ; WATERWORKS. 



RESINS, rez'inz, a class of vegetable sub- 

 stances used extensively in the preparation of 

 varnishes, and to some extent in medicine. A 

 familiar method of classification divides them 

 into three classes: (1) those which exude from 

 plants spontaneously or from cuts made in 

 stems and branches; (2) those extracted from 

 the wood by the use of hot alcohol or other 

 solvent, and (3) fossil resins, such as gum copal 

 and amber (which see). A typical resin is 

 transparent or translucent, yellowish or brown- 

 ish in color, insoluble in water, but soluble in 

 alcohol, ether and volatile oils. It melts and 

 burns easily and can be charged with negative 

 electricity by friction. Resins are found in 

 those substances known as gum resins (which 

 see), such as asafetida, aloes and myrrh, and 

 in balsams, a group of liquid or half-solid sub- 

 stances including benzoin and storax. When 

 combined with essential oils they are known as 

 oleoresins. The common resin of commerce, 

 which exudes from several species of pine, is 

 described under the heading ROSIN. 



RESPIRATION, res pi ra' shun. See BREATH 

 AND BREATHING. 



RESTIGOUCHE RIVER, restigoosh', a 

 small Canadian river, forming a part of the 

 boundary between the provinces of Quebec and 

 New Brunswick. It is probably the most fa- 

 mous trout and salmon stream in the world. 

 Like the Miramichi and other rivers in this 

 part of the Dominion, it flows through territory 

 much of which is still wild, and offers great 

 inducements to the sportsman as well as the 



