

WAAO, RIVER. 



WALDKOiC. 



low 



The hicuMt summit* of the Vo-sge* are coin preheuded in a triangular 

 tatm, of which the a|*x may be fixed at Sohirmeck, in the valley of 

 tew Bntchr, iu th north-carteru corner of the department of Vosges, 

 ad the angle* of the Iwsa at 1'iombii-rw, ia the department of \ 

 and Uamnx, in that of Haut-Khin. I u this triangular apace the rocks 

 an crutalline, intermingled with sedimentary formations belonging 

 to the Uan-'ition lerie*. They comprehend granite, gneiss, mica-slate 

 (but in amall quantity), lienite, porphyry, serpentine, talcose-slate, 

 clay-tUte, grauwacke', granular aud compact limestone, and the forma- 

 tions of the oarboniferous group. They ordinarily present rounded 

 ummiu, called by the inhabitant* of the district ' ballon*,' or balls. 

 They abound with spring* and with deposits of peat, which are met 

 with at various elevations. The transition rocks appear but rarely 

 beyond the limit* of the space defined above. 



The three aide* of the triangle above defined are skirted by ranges, 

 more or let* continuous, of mountains of a character altogether different, 

 of square form and more horizontal outline. These are composed of 

 * reddish quartzose sandstone, known as the sandstone of the Vosges. 

 On the south side of the triangle the sandstone range is narrow and 

 much interrupted. On the east side this sandstone is deeply inter- 

 MoUd by valley* opening towards the Rhine. On the north-west of 

 the triangle the sandstone occupies a much larger space and descends 

 more gradually toward the plain of Lorraine. North of Scldrmeck, as 



fur in the parallel of Mannheim, this sandstone forms the mass of the 

 Vosges, anil present* a range of heights of tolerably uniform elevation, 

 .!i--. (ml breadth. 



The Vosges yield a variety of valuable minerals. Coal is found in 

 various parts. Iron-ore is obtained, and a great number of iron-works 

 are established in the neighbouring country. Other metallic ores 

 found are copper, lead, manganese, aud arsenic. 



The summits of the Vosgea are covered with snow during a part of 

 the year. The greater part of the mountains are wooded to a certain 

 height ; their summits are covered with large spaces of green turf, to 

 which, during six months of the year herds of cows are led to graze. 

 The herdsmen dwell in huts, and make cheeses like those of Qruyere. 

 The forests are chiefly composed of firs, pines, oaks, and chestnut- 

 trees. The variety of vegetation which the mountains present renders 

 them interesting to the botanist: and though little visited by thu 

 picturesque tourist, they present, in spots remote from the principal 

 roads, scenery which may vie with that of Switzerland. Wine is grown 

 iu those parts of the mountains which present a favourable aspect. 



VOVES. [EUBE-ET-LOIRE.] 



VUAXDUK. [CosxiA.] 



VUKOWAH. [BOUTU.J 



VULIANO. [Lu>ARi 



w 



WAAO, RIVER. [AusTBiA.] 

 WAAL. [NETHERLANDS; RIIIXE.] 

 WABASH. [INDIANA ; MISSISSIPPI, River.] 

 WAIiUKSDON. [BUCKINGHAMSHIRE.] 

 WADEBRIDGE. [CORNWALL.] 

 WAIDHOFX. [ENS.] 



WAIGATZ, a large island in the Russian government of Archangel, 

 situated in the Frozen Ocean at the entrance of the Oulf of Kara. It 

 is separated by the Strait of Waigatz from the continent, und by the 

 Strait of Woronowskai from the island of Nova Zembla. It lies between 

 7* 20' and 63 6' N. lat, 57 30' and 59 25' K. long. It is desolate, 

 rocky, without wood, and almost without vegetation ; but abounds in 

 far-Waring animal.", snipes, plovers, and fish, and is inhabited by a few 

 families of Samoiedes, and frequented by the Russians for the sports of 

 hunting and fishing. The Strait of Waigatz was discovered by the 

 Dutch in 1594. 



\V A I N FLEET. [LINCOLNSHIRE.] 

 WAIT/ EX. [HUNGARY.] 



. WAKKFIELD, the capital of the West Riding of Yorkshire, a 

 market-town, municipal and parliamentary borough, and the seat of a 

 Poor-Law Union, in the parish of Wakefield, is situated on the left 

 bauk of the river CJ.Kr, in 53* 41' N. lat, 1 30' W. long., distant 

 27 miles S.W. by S. from York, and 182 miles N.N.W. from London 

 by road and by the Oreat Northern railway. The population of the 

 municipal and the parliamentary boroughs, which are co-extensive, 

 066 in 1851. The borough ia governed by 8 aldermen and 24 

 councillors, one of whom is mayor ; and returns one member to the 

 Imperial Parliament The living is a vicarage in the archdeaconry of 

 Craven and dioceso of Ripon. Wakefield 1'oor-Law Union contains 

 18 parishes and township*, with an area of 34,662 acres, and a 

 Imputation in 1S51 of 47,355. 



Wakel.cM is a very ancient town. The Romans appear to have had 

 a station iu the township of Stanley, where some years since several 

 moulds for coining their money (in some of which the coin was still 

 remaining iu tie matrix) were found iu a field ; they are now deposited 

 in the BnlUh Museum. A battle was fought at Wakefield in 1460, 

 between the YorkUts and Lancastrians, at which Richard, duke of 

 -..: :: Edward IV., was slain. An an.-icnt chapel (' of our 

 Lady ') occupie* the site of one built by Edward I1L The building 

 project* over and partly rest* on the starlings of the bridge. The 

 bridge has ci^ht arches, and was built in the reign of Edward IIL 

 The town of Wakefield is paved, lighted with gas, and well supplied 

 n water. The suburb called 8t John's, at the northern cxtr. -mity 

 the town, consist* of handsome house*, with shrubberies, &c. A 

 et-crow of the Doric order was erected early iu the last century, 

 with an open colonnade supporting a dome, the interior of which 

 a spacious room for public business. The public rooms in 

 Wood-strwt, built by subscription, comprise a library and news-room, 

 with apartments for lectures, concerts, and assemblies. A corn- 

 exchange was erected in 1823, and another on a larger scale was 

 tot business in 1887. The Tammy Hall, 210 feet long and 

 d, eractod many year* aj;o as a place of sale for light 

 Icn fabric., has been converted into a power-loom factory for 

 tub. The mort important public buildings are those belonging to 

 the county and the West Riding. The registeroffice was established 

 in 1704, for the reguter of deeds relating to landed property. The 

 court-house WM erected in 1806. The house of correction is a very 

 lUnmve pile. About a mile N.E. from the town is the West Riding 

 Lunatic Asylum, erected in 1817, but since considerably enlarged. 



The parish church, of which the oldest part was erected in 1470, is 

 156 feet long and 69 feet wide, with a tower surmounted with an 

 octagonal spire 228 feet high. St. John's church was erected iu 1795, 

 and made parochial in 1815. Trinity church, opened in 1839, aud 

 St Andrew's church, Warrengate Head, are the other churches of the 

 Establishment. The Independents and the Wesleyan Methodists 

 have each two chapels ; aud the Baptists, Quakers, Unitarians, Roman 

 Catholics, and Primitive Methodists have one each. There are a 

 Grammar school; a Green-Coat Charity school; National, British, 

 and Infant schools ; and the West Riding Proprietary school. There 

 are a literary and philosophical society, a subscription library, a 

 theatre, a savings bank, a mechanics institute, almshouses, and a 

 dispensary and house of recovery. 



The manufacture of woollen stuffs, which was once extensively 

 pursued at Wakefield, is now almost entirely removed to Bradford 

 and Halifax ; but the woollen-cloth manufacture, and the spinning of 

 woollen- and worsted-yarn, are carried on to some extent The dyeing 

 of woollen-stuffs is important as a branch of industry. There are 

 rope-works, brick-kilns, iron-foundries, breweries, ship-yards, starch- 

 works, and copperas-works. The town is connected with a very rich 

 and extensive district by numerous lines of river and canal navigation. 

 [YORKSHIRE.] From the agricultural districts Wakefield receives large 

 quantities of corn aud wool ; and coal aud other commodities are 

 exported to London, and to Lincolnshire, Norfolk, and Suffolk. The 

 corn-market, held on Friday, is of great importance ; it has frequently 

 happened that for weeks in succession the quantity sold at Wakefield 

 has exceeded the quantity sold at Mark Laue. Malt is made at Wake- 

 field to a very large extent. The wool-fairs are on a large scale ; and 

 on alternate Wednesdays there is a great cattle and sheep fair. There 

 are fairs in July and November for horses, cattle, and pedlery. A 

 county court is held in the town. 



WAKKRING, GREAT. [ESSEX.] 



WAKHAN. [BADAKSHAN.] 



WALCHEREN. [ZEALAND.] 



WALDAI. [Novpooiiou.] 



WALDECK, a principality in the north of Germany, consists of 

 two parts : 1, the principality of Waldeck, which is situated between 

 51 4' and 51 31' N. lat., 8 31' and 9" 12' E. long., and bounded 

 W. aud N. by Westphalia, E. und S. by Hesse-Darmstadt ; 2, the prin- 

 cipality of Pyrmont, which is situated on the left bank of the Weser, 

 between the territories of Lippe, Hanover, and Prussia. The area of 

 the whole is 459 square miles, of which 427 belong to Waldeck. It is 

 a mountainous country, consisting of chains or of detached masses, 

 without any wide valleys : it is perhaps the most elevated region of 

 Western Germany. There is no large river, but there are several 

 small streams. The climate is cold, but the air is pure and healthy. 

 The soil is in general stony aud sterile, yet corn, potatoes, anil fl;ix are 

 raised sufficient for the consumption. There is a great quantity of 

 timber, but there is no opportunity for exporting it. In some parts 

 of the country there are good pastures, in which numerous herds of 

 horned cattle are fed, aud considerable quantities of butter and cheese 

 are made. Sheep and swine are kept in great numbers. The minerals 

 are copper, iron, lead, alabaster, marble, slate, freestone, aud salt. 

 The inhabitants manufacture some coarse woollen cloths, plush stock- 

 ings, aud sufficient linen for their own use. In Pyruiont there are five 

 villages, the inhabitants of which derive their principal subsistence 

 from the manufacture of thread stockings, which they export iu large 

 quantities. The population in 1852 amounted to 9,697, of whom 

 63,074 belonged to Waldeck. The prince and the great majority of 



