NITROUS OXIDE 



NOBILITY 



511 



able apple odour, and having a specific gravity 

 of -900. It boils at 64-4 (18 C. ), and is highly 

 inflammable. It is readily soluble in alcohol and 

 glycerine, less so in water. It is very liable to 

 decomposition, becoming acid on keeping. It may 

 be prepared by the action of sulphuric acid and 

 alcohol on nitrite of potash. In itself it is of little 

 importance, but on account of its relation to the 

 sweet spirits of nitre or spirit of nitrous ether is 

 one of the most important drugs. It was for long 

 thought that the virtues of this valuable remedy 

 were proportionally due to the nitrous ether pres- 

 ent, and attention was directed to the preparation 

 of the pure gulistance. When this was adminis- 

 tered in the form of solution of the strength of 

 sweet spirits of nitre, it was found that its action 

 was different from and inferior to that of the latter. 

 The sweet spirits of nitre contains in addition 

 aldehyde and paraldehyde, and it is believed that 

 to these we must ascribe much of its virtue. Be 

 this as it may, the legal test is based on the 

 presence of some etherial Ixxly, presumably nitrite 

 of ethyl, and yet many a sample may be efficacious 

 and fail to satisfy the standard test. The spirit 

 should be freshly made, IKJ kept in well-closed 

 bottles, and should not be acid. Its specific 

 gravity should not exceed '845, as an admixture of 

 water tends towards decomposition. It may be 

 prepared by the action of nitric and sulphuric acids 

 on alcohol'in the presence of copper, but manufac- 

 turers attain the same end by other processes. It 

 i> used, in conjunction with other medicines, as a 

 diuretic, especially in the dropsy which follows 

 scarlatina ; and it is employed, in combination 

 with acetate of ammonia and tartarised antimony, 

 in febrile affections. The dose in febrile cases is 

 from half a drachm to a couple of drachms ; while 

 for a diuretic two or three drachms should be 

 given. 

 Nitrons Oxide. See NITROGEN. 



Mt/srli, KARL LUDWIO, a Protestant theo- 

 logian, was born 6tb August 1751 at Wittenberg, 

 laboured as pastor and superintendent, liecame in 

 1790 a professor at Wittenberg, and in 1813 director 

 of the seminary for preachers there. Here he died, 

 5th Uecemlwr 1831. He wrote two works on revela- 

 tion. KARL IMMANUEL NITZSCH, his son, was 

 born at ISorna, in Saxony, 21st September 1787, 

 studied at Wittenl>crg, preached there, and olieyed 

 a call to a chair at Bonn in 1822. Here he laboured 

 assiduouslv till 1847, when he went to Berlin as suc- 

 cessor to \larheineke, as well as university preacher 

 and consistorial councillor. Here he died, 21st 

 August 1868. Nitzsch was the most prominent sup- 

 porter of the Union (see LUTIIKRAXS), ami in the- 

 ology he was an independent supporter of Schleier- 

 macher'sopinions. Ilcstiltonlinatcd dogma to ethics, 

 and was one of the leaders of the ' Verinittelungs- 

 thcnlogie' the broad evangelical school. Of his 

 books the chief are System tier Christlichen Lehre 

 (1829; Eng. trans. 1849), Pratdische Theoloaie (3 

 vols. 1847-B7), Akademische Vortrtige iiber Christ* 

 lii-l,e Glaubenslehre (1H58), several volumes of ser 

 ni'in*. and Gtsammelte Abhandlunyen (2 vols. 1870). 

 See the studies by Beyschlag (2d ed. Halle, 1882) 

 and Hermens ( Barmen, 1886). GREGOR WILHELM 

 NlTZSCH, philologist, a brother of the preceding, 

 was born at Wittenberg, 22d November 1790. He 

 studied in his native town, fought as a volunteer 

 at Leipzig, )>ecame in 1827 professor at Kiel, in 

 IS.V2 at Leipzig, and died there, 22d July 1861. 

 His studies were mainly devoted to the Homeric 

 poems, and the defence of their unity of origin. 

 Of his writings may lie named Erkliirende Anmerk- 

 iinyrn ztt llnmcrs Or/i/ssee (1826-40), Meletemata 

 de Hittorin Homeri ( 1830-37 ), ami I>ie Sagenpoesie 

 tier Oriechen (1852). See the study by Liibker 



Jena, 1864). KARL WII.HELM NITZSCH, son 

 if the preceding, was born at Zerbst, 22d December 

 818, studied at Kiel and Berlin, became in 1844 

 jxtra-onlinary, in 1858 ordinary professor at Kiel, 

 n 1862 at Konigsherg, in 1872 at Berlin, and 

 died 20th June 1880. His writings embrace his- 

 orieal studies on Polybius (1842) and the Gracchi 

 1847), Die BomiscItc'Ainialistik (1873), Deutsche 

 Sttulien (1879), as well as the posthumous history 

 of the German people to the peace of Augsburg, 

 edited by Matthai (3 vols. 1883-85), and a history 

 of the Roman republic, edited by Thonret (2 

 vols. 1884-85). FRIEDKICH AUGUST BERTHOLD 

 NITZSCH, theologian, son of Karl Immanuel, was 

 >orn at Bonn, 19th February 1832, studied at 

 l$erlin, Halle, and Bonn, and became in 1868 pro- 

 : essor of Theology at Giessen, in 1872 at Kiel. 

 His writings include Das System deslioethius( 1860), 

 ti'i-iimlru* der Christliclirn Dogmengeschichte ( 1870), 

 Luther und Aristoteles ( 1883). 



Nivelles (Flem. A'ycel), a town in the Belgian 



Jrovince of Brabant, on the Thines, 19 miles by rail 

 . of Brussels. Its line Romanesque church ( 1045) 

 contains the relics of Pepin's daughter, St Gertrude. 

 In 1381 the townsfolk of Ghent were defeated here 

 by Count Louis of Flanders, and 6000 burned in a 

 monastery. Nivelles has manufactures of cotton, 

 pa|>er, lace, &c. Pop. 10,788. 



\ivcrnais. formerly a province in the middle 

 of France, nearly corresponding to the present 

 department of Nievre. Its towns enjoyed inuni- 

 eipal privileges at a very early period. The 

 principal landowners were the counts, afterwards 

 dukes, of Nevers, who held under their vassalage 

 more than 1800 fiefs. 



Nix, NlXIE, a class, mostly malignant, of 

 northern water-spirits. See DEMONOLOGY. 

 Nizam's Dominions. See HYDERABAD. 

 Noah. See DELUGE. 



Noaillcs, a distinguished French family which 

 dates from the llth century, and played an ini- 

 portant part in history from the reign of Louis 

 XIV. to the Revolution. Antoine (1504-62) was 

 ambassador in England in 15f>3-56, and admiral of 

 France. Anne Jules ( 1650-1708), son of the first 

 duke, commanded against the Huguenots and in 

 Spain during the war of the Spanish succession, 

 and was made marshal ; whilst his brother, Louis 

 Antoine ( 1651-1729), was Archbishop of Paris from 

 1695 till his death, and was made cardinal in 1700. 

 The third duke, Adrien Maurice ( 1678-1766)_, won 

 the marshal's baton in the ware of Louis XV. in 

 Spain, Italy, and Germany. The fifth duke, Paul 

 Francois (1739-1824), attained eminence as a 

 chemist and was elected to the Academy of 

 Sciences in 1777 ; his brother, Emmanuel Marie 

 Louis (1743-1822), was French ambassador at 

 Amsterdam (1770-76), London (1776-83), and 

 Vienna ( 1783-92). The sixth duke, Paul ( 1802-85), 

 wrote historical works, and was elected to Chateau- 

 briand's chair in the Academy in 1849. His second 

 son, Emmanuel Victorien (born 1830), was am- 

 bassador at Washington (1872), Rome (1873), and 

 Constantinople ( 1882-86), and has written works on 

 the history and literature of Poland. A grandson 

 of the third duke, Louis Marie ( 1756-1804), served 

 in America under his brother-in-law Lafayette, 

 embraced for a while the French Revolution, and 

 defended San Domingo against the British. 



Noblle Offlcilim. the term used in the law of 

 Scotland to denote the high prerogative right of 

 the Court of Session to exercise jurisdiction in 

 certain cases as, for example, to appoint a judicial 

 factor to young children or to lunatics. 



Nobility, that distinction of rank in civil 

 society which raises a man above the condition of 



