PYRAZOLE 



6420 



PYRENEES 



Pyrenees. 



La Cirque de Qavarnie, a water-worn valley or gully on tbe French 

 side of tbe mountains 



Pyrazole. Organic chemical 

 with a carbon-nitrogen ring forma- 

 tion, the simplest synthesis of 

 which is carried out by combining 

 acetylene with diazomethane. Py- 

 razole is a weak base of great 

 stability. From it are derived pyra- 

 zoline and pyrazolidine, the latter 

 being the group to which belongs 

 antipyrine or phenyldimethyl- 

 pyrazolone. The yellow dye-stuff 

 tartrazine is a pyrazolone. 



Pyrene. Hydrocarbon obtained 

 by the destructive distillation of 

 coal and wood, and as a by-product 

 in the smelting of mercury ores. 

 It is a white crystalline body which 

 forms a characteristic picrate, 

 crystallising in long, lustrous red 

 needles. 



Pyrenees (Fr. Pyrenees ; Sp. 

 Pirineos). Mountain range of S.W. 

 Europe, dividing France from 

 Spain. Extending from Cabo de 

 Creus on the Mediterranean to 

 Fuenterrabia on the Bay of Biscay, 

 its length is 270 m. and breadth 

 between 25 m. and 90 m. The W. 

 continuation of the mt. system 

 which trends almost due W. along 

 the Biscayan borders of Spain is 

 known as the Cantabrian Mts. 



The highest point of the Pyrenees 

 proper reaches an alt. of 11,168 ft. 

 in Mt. Aneto or Pic de Nethou. 

 The mean height is only 3,930 ft. 

 for the whole range : the highest 

 peaks are not on the axis, but rise 

 from great transverse ridges, which, 

 with the numerous valleys running 

 at right angles to the chain, con- 

 stitute one of its chief features. 

 The line of perpetual snow is 

 high, ranging from 8,800 ft. on 

 the N. side to 9,200 ft. on the S. 

 Another peculiarity is the great, 

 deep, water-worn gullies, called 

 cirques (Sp. olios, pots), such as the 



Cirque de Gavarnie (q.v.). Towards 

 the Atlantic the average alt. de- 

 creases, and by the shores both of 

 the Bay of Biscay and of the Medi- 

 terranean a low, fairly level tract 

 admits of easy passage between 

 France and the peninsula. 



The Pyrenean chain is some- 

 times divided into three sections : 

 the Central Pyrenees between the 

 Pic des Escaliers and the Col de la 

 Perche, and the Western and 

 Eastern Pyrenees, lying either side 

 of these points. Most of the highest 

 peaks are found in the central sec- 

 tion. Next to the Maladetta or Pic 

 de Nethou (q.v. ), the loftiest crests 

 are the Pic des Possets (11,047 ft.), 

 Monte Perdido (10,997 ft.), Vig- 

 nemale (10,794 ft.), Marbore 

 (10,673 ft. ), Pic du Midi (9,466 ft. ), 

 and Canigou (9,137 ft.). Apart 

 from the high-roads and rlys. from 

 Bayonne to San Sebastian, and 

 from Perpignan to Figueras, there 

 are only two carriageways across 

 the Pyrenees, though there are 

 some fifty footways. The oldest 

 pass, on the Roman road from 

 Saragossa to Oloron, is the Col de 

 Somport, via Jaca and Canfranc ; 

 the other, the Col de la Perche, 

 leads from Villefranche to the Segre 

 valley. One of the most frequented 

 is that from St. Jean de Pied de 

 Fort to Pampeluna. The pass from 

 Perpignan to Figueras was traversed 

 by Hannibal in 218 B.C. An inter- 

 national rly. line is being con- 

 structed through the tunnel of 

 Canfranc. 



Mainly of granite formation, 

 there are signs of volcanic up- 

 heaval, and there are strata of 

 Silurian deposits and Cretaceous 

 limestones of the Eocene period. 

 Copper, silver, lead, coal, lignite, 

 and iron are found. The mines of 



the Pyrenees were known to the 

 Carthaginians and Romans, and 

 several are still worked. Thermal 

 and mineral springs abound. Noted 

 resorts close to or on the moun- 

 tains are Gavarnie, Pau, Cauterets, 

 Tarbes, Lourdes, Bagneres-de- 

 Bigorre, Luz, and Bagneres-de- 

 Luchon. A number of rivers have 

 their source in the Pyrenees, the 

 chief of which are the Aude, 

 Garonne, and the Adour on the 

 N., and the Aragon, Segre, Llobre- 

 gat, and the Noguera on the S. 

 There are many forests, of fir, 

 pine, box, and, on the lower slopes, 

 evergreen oaks. Plants grow up to 

 a line some 500 ft. higher than in 

 the Alps. Wild animals include the 

 bear, lynx, wild cat, chamois, wolf, 

 boar, deer, and ibex. Generally 

 speaking, the Franco-Spanish fron- 

 tier coincides with the line of the 

 highest peaks. The tiny republic of 

 Andorra (q.v. ) lies within the range. 

 See Histoire des Peuples et des Etats 

 Pyrencens, J. E. M. Cenac-Moncart, 

 I860; Book of the Pyrenees, S. 

 Baring-Gould, 1907 ; The Pyrenees. 

 H. Belloc, 1909. 



Pyrenees, PEACE OF THE. Treaty 

 signed in Nov., 1659, between 

 France and Spain. The treaty of 

 Westphalia had put an end to the 

 European war except as regards 

 hostilities between these two 

 countries, and in 1659 Mazarin 

 met the Spanish minister on the 

 Isle of Pheasants in the Bidassoa. 

 just beneath the Pyrenees. 



The treaty signed there provided 

 for mutual restorations of territory, 

 but its main advantages were 

 secured by France, who obtained 

 Artois and a number of fortresses 

 in Flanders and Luxemburg, thus 

 strengthening her N.E. frontier. 

 Ypres, Fumes, and some other 

 places were, however, returned to 

 Spain. France gave up Lorraine 

 to its exiled duke, but retained 

 his other duchy of Bar and several 

 other concessions in this eastern 

 area. As Roussillon was ceded to 

 France the Pyrenees became 

 the boundary between the two 

 countries. In Italy, France sur- 

 rendered all her conquests in Lom- 

 bardy and Savoy, except only 

 Pinerole. See France : History. 



Pyrenees-Orientales. South- 

 ern dept. of France. Its area is 

 1,598 sq. m. Bounded S. by Spain 

 and E. by the Mediterranean, its 

 chief rivers are the Ariege, Aude, 

 Tet, Tech, and Agly, and it in- 

 cludes Mont Canigou (9,137 ft.), 

 the most easterly peak of the 

 Pyrenees. There are several lakes, 

 the most important being the Etang 

 de Leucate. Iron, copper, lead, and 

 granite are mined, choice fruits 

 are grown, and the vines yield red 

 and muscatel wine. Perpignan is 



