PRAEFECT 



to the bar in 1829, he entered 

 Parliament as Conservative mem- 

 ber for St. Germans. Afterwards 

 he represented Great Yarmouth, 

 1835-37, and Aylesbury from 1837 

 until his death from consumption, 

 July 15, 1839. Praed's genius was 

 for light verse, in which he gave 

 full play to his brilliant wit. 

 Among his more serious efforts is 

 the Red Fisherman, a poem of 

 considerable imaginative power. 

 An authorised edition of his poems, 

 with a memoir by Derwent Cole- 

 ridge, appeared in 1864. Pron. Prade. 



Praefect (Lat. praefedus, set 

 over). Title held by various officials 

 appointed by superior authority, 

 not chosen by the people, in the 

 Roman constitution. Under the 

 kings the praejectus urbi was de- 

 puty governor of the city for the 

 king during his absence, and under 

 the republic was appointed by the 

 consul who last left the city ; under 

 the empire the title was revived 

 for an official with extensive police 

 powers and jurisdiction. 



Military praefects were the com- 

 mander of the imperial bodyguard, 

 camp praefects, of whom each legion 

 had one, the commander of the 

 engineers, and for the navy fleet 

 praefects, as distinct from ship 

 commanders. An important official 

 in imperial times was the praefect 

 of Egypt, first appointed by 

 Augustus. See Prefect. 



Praemunire, STATUTES OF. In 

 English history, name given to 

 certain statutes originally directed 

 against the power of the papacy in 

 England. The name is corrupted 

 from the opening words ( Praemonere 

 facias, cause to be forewarned) of 

 writs against offences of contempt 

 against the crown, and attempts to 

 encroach on the powers of the 

 crown. The first statute, though 

 not so called, of the nature of 

 Praemunire was that of Edward I, 

 1306, laying down that no tax im- 

 posed by religious authority should 

 be sent out of the realm. 



The statute of Edward III, 1353, 

 was directed against the papacy, 

 and forbade that matters falling 

 within the jurisdiction of the king's 

 courts should be taken before any 

 foreign court. The most important 

 statute of Praemunire is that of 

 Richard II, 1392, which imposed the 

 penalty of forfeiture on those who 

 should bring into the kingdom any 

 papal bulls, rescripts, etc., without 

 the king's sanction. Later, Prae- 

 munire was directed aguinst several 

 miscellaneous offences, e.v. the as- 

 sertion that Parliament could act 

 independently of the sovereign, 

 L661. SeeWolsey. 



Praeneste. Ancient city 'of 

 Latium, now represented by Pales- 

 trina (q.n.). It lay about 22 m. 



63O8 



E. of Rome, on the borders of the 

 country of the Aequi, and was 

 traditionally believed to have been 

 founded by Caeculus.son of Vulcan, 

 its original name being Stephane. 

 Built at the foot of a commanding 

 hill crowned by a fortress, it had 

 considerable strategic importance. 

 It sided with the Latin League 

 against Rome, but was overcome 

 by Camillus, 380 B.C. Captured 

 from Marius by Sulla's lieutenant, 

 Lucretius Ofella, 82 B.C.. its terri- 

 tory was divided among the 

 victor's soldiery, and it later be- 

 came a favourite resort. 



The superb Temple of Fortune, 

 built on the terraced hill, stood 

 where the modern town stands, and 

 was famed for its oracle. Claudius 

 Aelianus, the 3rd century writer on 

 natural history, was horn here. 

 Among archaeological discoveries 

 of importance have been, in 1773, 

 the Roman calendar, known as the 

 Fasti Praenestini, and, in 1886, the 

 Fibula Praenestina, a gold brooch 

 inscribed with early Latin of 

 probably the 6th century B.C. See 

 Phoenicia. 



Praesepe (Lat., a manger). In 

 astronomy, a star cluster in the 

 constellation of Cancer. To the 

 naked eye it appears as a misty 

 patch of light, and from its shape 

 is popularly known as the beehive. 

 In the telescope it is resolved into 

 a number of stars. Pron. preeseepy. 



Praesodymium. One of the 

 rare metallic elements. Its chemi- 

 cal symbol is Pr; atomic weight, 

 144'3 ; specific gravity, 6 - 475 ; 

 melting point, 940 C. (1,724 F.). 

 It is obtained from certain rare 

 earths by electrolysis of the fused 

 chloride. See Neodymium. 



Praetor. Second in dignity 

 among the magistrates of the 

 Roman republic, the consuls being 

 first. The duties of the praetor 

 urbanus were chiefly legal. He had 

 jurisdiction in all civil cases among 

 Roman citizens. On entering his 

 year of office he published an edict 

 setting forth the principles which 

 were to regulate his decisions. 

 These edicts were the foundation 

 of the Roman civil law. There were 

 stlsopraetores militares charged with 

 the administration of provinces. 

 The praetors were preceded by 

 lictors. See Imperium ; Lictor. 



Praetorian Guard. Household 

 troops of the Roman Empire. In 

 the time of Augustus they com- 

 prised nine cohorts of 1.000 men 

 each. The Praetorians played a 

 prominent part in the many re- 

 volutions which made and unmade 

 emperors. See Rome. 



Pragmatic Sanction (Gr. 

 pragma, act, business). Term 

 used in Roman law and afterwards 

 in European politics for a decision 



dealing with a public matter af- 

 fecting the state as a whole. 



Th> best known is the one by 

 which the emperor Charles VI, 

 being without sons, attempted to 

 secure his lands for his daughter 

 Maria Theresa. First put forward 

 in 1713, it was accepted by the 

 diets of his Austrian lands and 

 nearly all the sovereigns of Europe, 

 but when he died it was forgotten, 

 and the War of the Austrian Suc- 

 cession was the result. Other 

 Pragmatic Sanctions include one 

 issued by Charles VII of France in 

 1438, ordering the reform of the 

 Gallican Church, and one issued by 

 the emperor Charles V in 1547. 

 See Frederick II. 



Pragmatism. Philosophical 

 term of American origin, .the idea 

 of which was due to C. S. Pierce, 

 and the first use of the word to 

 William James. It signifies an 

 empiricism which considers the 

 practical value, the consequences 

 and bearing upon human interests 

 of an assertion or conception, to 

 be the criterion of its truth. See 

 Bergsen, H. ; Empiricism : James, 

 W. ; Philosophy. 



Prague (Ger. Prag; Czech, 

 Praha). Capital of the republic of 

 Czecho-Slovakia, in Bohemia. 

 Situated on the 

 Moldau (Vltava) 

 in a narrow val- 

 ley, the city has 

 spread on to the 

 neighbouring 

 heights. On the 

 left bank high 

 above the city is 

 the Hradcany, 



Prague arms 



the castle of the former kings of 

 Bohemia. The old town on the 

 bank 

 the 



Praetorian Guard, 

 from a has relief 



Louvre, Par is 



right 

 contains 

 Grosser Ring, 

 the chief 

 square, where 

 are the fine 

 town hall, the 

 Kinsky Palace 

 with its excel- 

 lent library, 

 and the old 

 Hussitechurch, 

 the Ty n 

 Church. 



The Cathe- 

 dral, begun in 

 1344, occupies 

 the site of 

 a building 

 erected by S. 

 Wenceslaus in 

 935. The Cle- 

 mentinum is a 

 block of bar- 

 oque erections 

 due to the Jesu- 

 its, 1653-1726, 

 comprising 



