MIRZA 



5448 



MISERICORD1A 



the same manner as ferro-man- 

 ganese, and is called mirror-iron 

 because its brilliant faces suggest 

 small mirrors, when the metal is 

 broken. See Bessemer Process ; 

 Siemens Process ; Steel. 



Mirza. Persian title. After the 

 name, it denotes a prince ; before 

 the name, it is the usual title for 

 officials and scholars. The vision 

 of Mirza is the title of one of 

 Addison's best-known Spectator 

 essays. 



Mirzapur. Dist. and town of 

 India, in the United Provinces, in 

 the Benares division. The dist. 

 lies mostly S. of the Ganges and 

 includes part of the Son valley and 

 part of the N. face of the Deccan 

 plateau. Rice, wheat, and millet 

 are the chief crops. The town is 

 situated on the Ganges, about mid- 

 way between Allahabad and Ben- 

 ares, is a grain and cotton market, 

 and manufactures shellac. There 



Larceny Acts. One form of mis- 

 appropriation, however, is not lar- 

 ceny, though it is a crime punish- 

 able by imprisonment ; and that 

 is where a servant gives his 

 master's corn, hay, etc., to the 

 master's horses, etc., without the 

 master's authority (Misappropri- 

 ation by Servants Act, 1863). The 

 object of this statute is to prevent 

 a servant who has stolen his 

 master's corn, etc., from saying, 

 " I gave it to the horses under my 

 charge." 



Miscarriage. Expulsion of the 

 foetus or immature offspring before 

 the end of the 28th week of preg- 

 nancy. After that date the term 

 "premature labour" is employed 

 if the delivery occurs before the 

 full time. Some authorities employ 

 the term abortion for expulsion of 

 the foetus before quickening has 

 occurred, and miscarriage for ex- 

 pulsion after that date ; but for 



forming the W. side of the Gulf of 

 Pozzuoli, about 10 m. W. of 

 Naples. It terminates in Cape 

 Miseno, and contains the village 

 so-named, which stands near the 

 site of the ancient Misenum. Porto 

 di Miseno, the fine natural harbour 

 on the N., and that called Mare 

 Morto on the N.E., were formed 

 about 30 B.C., into a great naval 

 station for the Roman fleet. Re- 

 mains of moles, a theatre and baths, 

 etc. exist. Tiberius died here. 

 Misenum was pillaged and des- 

 troyed by the Saracens in 890. 



Miserere. The Latin title and 

 the first word of Psalm li. (Eng. 

 Have mercy), one of the seven 

 penitential psalms (in the vulgate, 

 Ps. 1.). In the Book of Common 

 Prayer it is said kneeling at the 

 Commination service. 



Miserere, MISERICORD OK 

 PATIENCE. In ecclesiastical archi- 

 tecture, a hinged seat of a stall 



Miserere in Henry Til's Chapel, Westminster Abbey. The carving depicts the Judgement of Solomon ; the left group 



represents the women contending over the live child ; on the right is seen the mother of the dead child substituting her 



baby for the living one ; in the centre is Solomon on his throne delivering judgement 



are fine bathing ghats. Only a 

 quarter of the total area is culti- 

 vated. Dist., area 5,233 sq. m. ; 

 pop. 1,071,000. Town, pop. 32,300. 



Misanthrope, LE. Five-act 

 comedy by Moliere, produced at 

 the Palais-Royal, Paris, June 4, 

 1666. Its slender plot concerns 

 the unsuccessful suit of the mis- 

 anthropic Alceste for the hand of 

 the worldly-minded but not wholly 

 unlovable Celimene. While reflect- 

 ing the essential barbarism of the 

 court life of the period, it touches 

 deep veins of human interest, and 

 is usually regarded as Moliere's 

 greatest work, though not the most 

 popular of his comedies. Alceste 

 was acted by Moliere ; Celimeno 

 by his wife. Le Misanthrope pro- 

 vided the groundwork for Wycher- 

 ley's The Plain Dealer, 1674. 



"Misappropriation. In English 

 law, wrongful conversion to their 

 own use, by trustees or other 

 persons, of property entrusted to 

 their care. This is a form of lar- 



purposes this distinction is 

 not recognized. See Abortion. 



Mischabel. Mountain mass of 

 the Pennine Alps (q.v.) in the can- 

 ton of Valais, Switzerland. It lies 

 between Monte Rosa and Visp, and 

 two of its peaks, the Dom and the 

 Taeschhorn, rise to 14,941 ft. and 

 14,758 ft. respectively. The Mis- 

 chabel Joch is a pass between the 

 latter mountain and Alphubel, 

 leading from Zermatt to Fee at an 

 alt. of 12,650 ft. 



> Misdemeanour. In English 

 law, a crime punishable on indict- 

 ment which is not a felony. There 

 is no distinction of principle ; be- 

 cause a felony is not necessarily 

 more serious hi itself than a mis- 

 demeanour. Thus, larceny is a 

 felony, while perjury is only a mis- 

 demeanour. A conviction for a 

 misdemeanour never involved for- 

 feiture of land or goods, as a con- 

 viction for felony did. 



Miseuo (anc. Misenum Pro- 

 montorium). Volcanic peninsula 



ceny, and is punishable under the of Italy, in the prov. of Naples, 



in church, which can be lifted 

 and leant against the back of the 

 stall. On its under side is a bracket 

 which provides a higher rest for 

 the occupant of the stall. This 

 feature was introduced for the 

 benefit of aged ecclesiastics who 

 might be fatigued by long stand- 

 ing. The under-bracket is often 

 finely carved ; as in the misereres 

 of Henry VII's chapel, Westmins- 

 ter Abbey. 



Misericordia OR BROTHERS OF 

 MERCY. Guild or brotherhood of 

 laymen, founded at Florence in 

 1244 for the purpose of providing 

 decent burial for the poor. The 

 brothers undertook the entire cost 

 and arrangements of the funerals, 

 acting themselves as bearers. They 

 rendered very valuable services 

 during the epidemic of plague in 

 1348-49; and they adopted a 

 kind of monastic garb with a hood 

 covering all the face except the 

 eyes, lest they should be recog- 

 nized and rewarded. See Italy; 

 Monasticism. 



