NIGHT-HERON NILSSON. 



61 



diminutive beak, and very wide gaping mouth not' 



garnished with bristles. 



The plumage is of varie- 



gated dark colors, with 



a white throat-bar and 



white spots on the wings 



and tail in the male, 



these white marks being 



buff in the female. 



The night-hawk is found 



over nearly all of North 



America, and is com- 



monly seen towards 



evening circling high in 



the air in pursuit of in- 



sects with a bold and 



buoyant flight, occasion- 



ally uttering a charac- 



teristic note. It nests 



on the ground and lays 



two dark mottled eggs. 



The bird is 9 or 10 inches 



long and nearly two feet 



in extent of wings. 



There are other species 



N.ght-Hawk. 



Frotn 



and varieties of C'hor- 

 ili'i/i.i which receive the name of night-hawk. (E. C.) 



NIGHT-HERON is the name of several different 

 kinds of herons belonging to the family Anlrithe, and 

 to the genera NyctiarJea and tfyctkerodiuM, found in 

 most temperate and tropical countries and somewhat 



Night-Ilf roll. 

 From CUUM' Check Lut </ AW/< American BirtU. 



nocturnal or crepuscular in their habits. The common 

 species of Europe is A 7 ! nyclicorax or ,V. i/rixm ; and 

 from this the night heron of the United States is 

 scarcely specifically distinct. The latter is abundant 

 in many parts of the United States, and in some is 

 known as the qua-bird or squawk, from its hoarse, 

 guttural erics. It breeds on trees in swamps in large 

 heronries, sometimes of hundreds of pairs, and lays 

 2ori> creeni>h eggs. The adult birds are dark glossy 

 green on the head and back, elsewhere mostly bluish- 

 gvay or lavender, with 2 or 3 long white slender 

 plumes springing from the back of the head. The 

 lull is stout ami the let's comparatively short. The 

 length is al*>ut two feet, the extent 4 feet. The ycl- 

 luw-erowned night-heron is Nycthemdius iW<'-i/x, 

 quite distinct from the former and a more southerly 

 bird, seldom seen even in the Middle States. It 18 

 uC the same size as the former and similar in haliits, 

 but the coloration is peculiar. (E. C.) 



NIGHTINGALE, Fi.oiiF.NTE, renowned for her 

 cervices to the sick and wounded, was Ixirn at Florence, 

 Italy, May 4, lM.'0. Her father, William K. Shore, a 

 banker of Sheffield, had assumed the name Night- 

 ingale on inheriting the estate of Peter Nightingale 

 She was carefully educated and early showed special 

 fondness and aptitude for nursing the sick. In 1849 

 slie went to Germany to obtain the usual training of 

 <leaii>nesses in I'a.-tov Fliediier s school ;it Kai>env(Tl h 

 Her description ot thi.- school puhli.-hetl in 18.00 helped 



to make it widely known in England. She then took 

 charge of an infirmary for governesses in London, but 

 the revelation of the sufferings of the English army 

 in the Crimea in 1854 called her to her most important 

 work. At the request of the Secretary ot \\ ar she 

 went as superintendent of a band of female volunteer 

 nurses, and opened a hospital at Scutari. The imme- 

 diate success of her volunteer movement broke down 

 the barriers raised by the jealousy of army officers. 

 She was made superintendent ot all the hospitals on 

 the Bosphorus and subsequently in the Crimea, Over 

 all the difficulties of her self-imposed task her genius 

 triumphed and brought order out' of confusion, but 

 her health finally gave way. Returning to England in 

 1856, she received the thanks of the nation. Besides 

 other marks of honor a fund of 50,000 was raised 

 which, at her request, was devoted to founding a school 

 of nurses under her direction. In 18(>2 she was com- 

 missioned by the government to examine and report 

 upon the sanitary state of the army in India. Though 

 precluded by the state of her health from active work, 

 she still observes with interest the labors of others in 

 her chosen field. She has published several hand- 

 books, among which are Notes on Nursing (1850); 

 Notes on Hospitals (1859) ; Notes on Lying-in Institu- 

 tions (1871) ; and Life or Death in India (1874). 



NIHILISM. SeeBAKCNiN. 



NILES, HKZEKIAH (1777-1839). journalist, was 

 born in Chester co., Pa., Oct. 10, 1777. He became a 

 printer and was partner in a publishing firm at Wil- 

 mington, Del., in 1800. He afterwards edited a paper 

 at Baltimore and in 1811 he founded there the weekly 

 .\Y/i.<' Jtegixter, which he edited until 1836. The his- 

 torical information contained in it was considered so 

 valuable that the Register from 1812 to 1827 was re- 

 pulilished in 32 volumes, and a continuation was after- 

 wards made to June, 1849, making in all 76 volumes. 

 Niles also published Principles and Acts of the Revo- 

 lution (1822). He died at Wilmington, Del., April 2, 

 1839. 



N ILSSON, CHRISTINE, a Swedish vocalist, was born 

 at Ilussaby, Aug. 3, 1843, of a peasant family. Her 

 father had charge of the music at the village church, 

 and she early displayed great musical ability. Her 

 violin-playing and singing at a village fair attracted 

 Count Thornerhjelm, and by his aid she received a 

 complete education at Stockholm under Berwald and 

 at Paris under Masse and Wartel. She made her d<S- 

 but in Trat-ifitn Oct. 27, 1864. She afterwards ap- 

 peared in the Mai fie Fluff, in Martha, Don Juan, and 

 other operas. In 1867 she visited London and was 

 received with great applause, appearing in Tratiata 

 and afterwards as Marguerite in Gounod's Faust. In 

 1868 she took part in the Handel celebration at the 

 Crystal Palace. She came to America in September, 

 1870, but did not appear in opera until the following 

 year, when she achieved a remarkable success. In 

 July, 1872, she was married in London to Auguste 

 Rouzaud, a French merchant. She afterwards ap- 

 peared for a short season at St. Petersburg and in 1873 

 returned to the United States. Her husband died in 

 1882, and she afterwards resumed her concerts. Her 

 voice is noted for its purity, sweetness, and flexibility. 

 She is an excellent actress both in tragic and in comic 

 parts. 



NILSSON, SWEN (1787-1883), a Swedish naturalist 

 and archaeologist, was born near Landscrona, March 8, 

 1787. He was educated at the University of Lund, 

 and there beeame in J812 instructor in natural history 

 and afterwards overseer of the Zoological Museum. 

 In 1828 he was placed in charge of the Museum of the 

 Academy of Sciences at Stockholm, and after arrang- 

 ing this he returned in 1831 to Lund, where he was 

 professor of zoology until 1856. He died there, Nov. 

 .'in. lss:{. II is principal works are Ornithologia Sue- 

 dc'i (> vols., IXI7-2I) ; Skaadtnavuk Fauna (4 yols.. 

 ]s-_'i t-.v>). the illustrations to the latter being published 

 separately. Other works were devoted to the mollusks, 



