BURGLARY 



1003 



BURGUNDY 



BURGLARY, bur'glari. In criminal law 

 burglary is defined as "the breaking and en- 

 tering by night into thfc dwelling house of 

 another, with intent to commit a felony." En- 

 tering into a house or building through an 

 open doorway with intent to steal does not 

 constitute burglary, but is classed as robbery 

 f)T larceny. "Breaking" must occur to place 

 the felony in the criminal division of burglary. 

 What constitutes breaking is open to various 

 constructions, but it is usually held that such 

 breaking need not be accompanied by vio- 

 lence. The opening of a window by sliding 

 the catch without damage to glass or frame- 

 work is sufficient "breaking" to come within 

 the meaning of the law. The usual punish- 

 ment for burglary is imprisonment for a term 

 not exceeding twenty years. In most countries 

 the killing of a burglar in self-defense or in 

 defense of family or property is not a crime. 

 In England, however, the law regards such 

 killing as manslaughter, but extenuating cir- 

 cumstances may be pleaded to avoid punish- 

 ment. See FELONY; ROBBERY; LARCENY; MAN- 

 SLAUGHTER. 



BUR'GOMASTER, or BURGERMEISTER, 

 bur' germy' ster, the title of the chief magis- 

 trate of a city or large town in Germany and 

 the Netherlands. The burgomaster is practi- 

 cally the same officer as the English and Amer- 

 ican mayor, French maire and Scottish provost. 

 He is a salaried official. To attain the posi- 

 tion one must have had some legal training, 

 must possess a thorough grasp of economic 

 science, good business ability, practical sense 

 and a fairly-broad general knowledge. The 

 burgomaster directs policies in finance, com- 

 mercial enterprise, education, relief of the 

 poor, social reform, and must know how to 

 manage men. He is elected by the municipal 

 body, but in most parts of Germany the gov- 

 ernment reserves the right to accept or reject 

 the people's choice. A study of the prepara- 

 tion and career of the burgomaster explains 

 why German cities are so well-governed, and 

 carries a lesson which American municipalities 

 have not yet heeded. However, a movement 

 in the direction of greater efficiency in Ameri- 

 can civil administration is seen in the em- 

 ployment of city managers (see CITY MAN- 

 AGER) . 



About the year 1905 a comic opera, The 

 Burgomaster, held the attention of the pub- 

 lic. Peter Stuyvesant, the Dutch governor of 

 New York, was the leading character, but there 

 was no attempt at character drawing. 



BURGOYNE, burgoin', JOHN (1722-1792), 

 known to fame as an English general of the 

 Revolutionary War, but also a successful dram- 

 atist. After serving in various parts of the 

 world, he was in 1777 appointed commander 

 of an army against the Americans. His tak- 

 ing of Ticonderoga was considered a tragedy 

 by Americans, but his later defeats overbal- 

 anced this victory. A part of his army fought 

 a battle at Hubbardton, a detachment of his 

 Hessians was defeated at Bennington, Vt., and 

 on October 17 Burgoyne himself, after a furi- 

 ous battle, was forced to surrender with his 

 whole army at Saratoga, which meant the 

 turning point of the war. So important were 

 the effects of this conflict that it has been 

 termed one of the "fifteen decisive battles of 

 the world." He was coldly received on his 

 return to England and deprived of his com- 

 mand, but upon change of Ministry was ap- 

 pointed commander-in-chief in Ireland. Later 

 he occupied himself mainly with the writing 

 of comedies, including The Maid of the Oalcs, 

 The Lord of the Manor, and The Heiress, a 

 play that still holds the English stage. See 

 REVOLUTIONARY WAR IN AMERICA; FIFTEEN 

 DECISIVE BATTLES. 



BURGUNDY, bur' gun di, a name which in 

 medieval and early modern times denoted a 

 varying territory, first a kingdom, then a duchy, 

 and finally a province of France which be- 

 came famous for its red wines. The Burgun- 

 dians, from whom 

 the name was taken, 

 were a Germanic 

 people who early in 

 the fifth century 

 crossed into Gaul 

 and set up a king- 

 dom there. A cen- 

 tury later they were 

 conquered by the 

 Franks, but the 

 Frankish Burgundy 

 was not quite the 

 same in area as the 



original kingdom. 



, __. Limits of the province 



The Treaty of Ver- at time of Its greatest ex- 

 dun in 843 split the tent - about 1477 ' 

 territory, and by the close of the ninth cen- 

 tury there were two Burgundies existing side 

 by side. 



In 937 these united to form the kingdom of 

 Aries, but a small portion in the northwest re- 

 mained independent and took the name of the 

 Duchy of Burgundy. France gradually acquired 



BURGUNDY 



