OLGA 



given off, which pass through the 

 cribriform plate of the ethmoid 

 bone, and terminate in the olfactory 

 mucous membrane in the upper 

 part of the nose and nasal septum. 

 See Nerve ; Nose. 



Olga (d. 968). Russian saint. 

 She was the peasant wife of Igor, 

 third grand duke of Russia, who 

 first met her while hunting, and 

 married her about 913. She be- 

 came regent for her son, Sviat- 

 oslav, and is said to have been a 

 capable ruler. After Igor's death, 

 946, she carried out a terrible ven- 

 geance on the Drevliens, who were 

 guilty of his death. She went to 

 Constantinople, where she was 

 baptized and received the name of 

 Helen. She was canonised by the 

 Greek Church. Her feast day is 

 July 11, O.S. 



Olhao. Seaport of Portugal, in 

 the prov. of Faro. It stands on the 

 S. coast in a garden-like region, 

 facing the Atlantic. 6 m. by rly. E. 

 of Faro,. It is noted for its sardine 

 fisheries and canning houses, and 

 engages in boat-building and the 

 manufacture of cordage and sails, 

 exporting figs, almonds, carobs, 

 chestnut, cork, sumach, baskets, 

 and tunny fish. Pop. 10,000. 



Olibanum Tree (Boswellia 

 serrata). Small evergreen tree of 

 the natural order Burseraceae, 



Olibanum Tree. Foliage and fruit 



of the East Indian evergreen. Inset, 



flower sprays 



native of the East Indies. Its leaves 

 are divided into two rows of oval- 

 oblong leaflets with saw-toothed 

 edges. The small white flowers are 

 borne in sprays. From the bark 

 exudes a resinous gum, olibanum, 

 believed to be the frankincense 

 of the ancients. It is astringent 

 and stimulant, but is chiefly em- 

 ployed as incense. According to 

 some authorities true frankincense 

 is the product of B. carteri, an 

 African species. 



Olifants. Name of several 

 rivers in S. Africa, of which the 

 following are the chief: (1) River 



5838 



rising in the moun tarns N.E. of 

 Cape Town and flowing about 

 150 m. N.W. to the Atlantic. It 

 supplies irrigation water to Van 

 Rhyn's Dorp. (2) River rising in 

 the Kareebergen, Cape Province, 

 and flowing N.W. into Great Bush- 

 manland. (3) Tributary of the 

 Gouritz river, Cape Province, flow- 

 ing W. from the neighbourhood of 

 Uniondale. (4) Tributary of the 

 Limpopo, rising in the neighbour- 

 hood of Ermelo, S.E. Transvaal, 

 and running N. and then E. to the 

 Limpopo, which it enters in Gaza- 

 land, Portuguese East Africa. 



Oligarchy (Greek oligoi, few; 

 archein, to rule). Political term, 

 meaning government by the few. 

 It was used by Aristotle to de- 

 scribe a perverted form of aristo- 

 cracy ; it was government by the 

 few in their own interests, whereas 

 aristocracy was government by the 

 best men in the public interest. 

 Some of the city states of Greece 

 had an oligarchical government, 

 and so had Venice and other 

 Italian republics. A well-known 

 British example was the Whig 

 oligarchy created by the events of 

 1 688. See Government ; Politics. 



Oligocene System (Greek 

 oligon, a little ; kainos, new). In 

 geology, a subdivision of the 

 Tertiary period of time. It was the 

 epoch which followed the Eocene 

 and preceded the Miocene. Rocks 

 of the Oligocene system are found 

 in wide areas in Central and S. 

 Europe, and in the Isle of Wight 

 and Hampshire in England. In N. 

 America the rocks are found in the 

 famous White River formations of 

 Colorado, and also in the North - 

 West Territory of Canada, etc. 

 Oligocene rocks consist of lime- 

 stones, grits, shales, conglomerates, 

 and marls, and fresh and salt water 

 sand, etc. They are rich in fossil 

 remains, including that of the three- 

 toed horse, Mesohippus, crocodiles, 

 turtles, large land snails, many 

 insects, etc. The gypsum of Mont- 

 martre, the millstone grits of Mont- 

 morency, the lignite deposits at 

 Halle, etc., all belong to the Oligo- 

 cene system. See Eocene ; Miocene. 



Oligoclase (Gr. oligon, little ; 

 klasis, fracture). In geology, name 

 given to one of the plagioclase or 

 soda lime felspars found in granite, 

 rhyolite, etc. It is a calcium alu- 

 minium silicate, white with occa- 

 sional grey, green, or red shades, 

 and has a vitreous lustre. Varieties 

 of oligoclase containing finely 

 scattered grains of iron oxide are 

 polished to make the gems known 

 as sun stones. Oligoclase is found 

 in Europe and N. America. 



Olinda. City of Brazil, in the 

 state of Pernambuco. It stands 

 on the coast, 4 m. by tramway 



Laurence Oliphant, 

 Scottish Jacobite 



OLIPHANT 



N. of Recife or Pernambuco, of 

 whose wealthy classes it was long a 

 favourite residence. It has a 

 cathedral and other fine churches, 

 botanical gardens, colleges, law 

 school, and a wireless telegraphy 

 station. It was founded in 1535, 

 and was the capital of the state 

 for over 200 years, until super- 

 seded by Recife. Pop. 8,000. 



Oliphant, LAURENCE (1691- 

 1767). Scottish Jacobite. A 

 member of the family of Oliphant 



^^PRBMOH^^M of Gask, pro- 



I minent Perth- 

 Ik ^ shire royalists, 

 1 he took part in 

 * the rising of 

 1715, and be- 

 came laird of 

 Gask on his 

 father's death. 

 1732. He ac- 

 companied 

 Charles Ed- 

 ward in the '45, and, with his son 

 Laurence (1724-92), fought at 

 Prestonpans, Falkirk, and Culloden. 

 After Culloden father and son es- 

 caped abroad and the estate was 

 forfeited. He returned to Scot- 

 land in 1763, his lands having 

 meanwhile been purchased on his 

 behalf from the crown, and died in 

 Jan., 1767. See Nairne, Baroness. 



Oliphant, LAURENCE (1829- 

 88). British author. He was born 

 at Cape Town, a son of the attor 

 ney-general of __ 

 Cape Colony, * 

 educated in 

 Ceylon, and 

 practised a t 

 the colonial 

 bar for a brief 

 period. In 1853 

 he became pri- 

 vate secretary 

 to the earl of 

 Elgin, govern- 

 or-general of Canada, and took part 

 hi the negotiations leading up to 

 the reciprocity treaty with the 

 United States. Leaving the diplo- 

 matic service, he sat in Parlia- 

 ment for three years without 

 making any particular mark. In 

 1867 he fell under the influence of 

 Thomas Lake Harris (q.v. ), and 

 for a short time joined his religious 

 community at Brocton, N.Y. 

 Oliphant afterwards acted as 

 correspondent for The Times in the 

 Franco-Prussian War, and inter- 

 ested himself in a scheme for 

 settling the Jews in Palestine. He 

 died Dec. 23, 1888. Among his works 

 are several books descriptive of his 

 travels ; Piccadilly, 1870, a brilliant 

 book of satirical observations ; 

 the mystical Sympneumata, 1885 ; 

 and Scientific Religion, 1888. His 

 Life was written by a distant 

 relative, Margaret O. Oliphant. 



Laurence Oliphant, 

 British author 



