GAUNTLET 



2408 



GAUZE 



through Italy and sacked and burned Rome 

 (390 B. c.). The northern part of the peninsula 

 they continued to hold, and thus there came 

 into existence a Cisalpine or "this-side-the- 

 Alps" Gaul, as distinguished from Transalpine 

 or "beyond-the-Alps" Gaul. In the third cen- 

 tury B. c. other tribes invaded Greece and 

 Macedonia and finally crossed into Asia Minor, 

 where under the closely similar name of Gala- 

 tians they long retained their race character- 

 istics. 



Even brave and warlike as they were, they 

 were no match for the organized forces of 

 Rome, which began to force the Gauls little 

 by little farther and farther northward, until 

 at last they passed out of Italy altogether or 

 submitted and became peaceful subjects of 

 the republic. Still they were too powerful, 

 however, for Rome to desire them as a neigh- 

 bor just beyond the Alps, and Roman in- 

 vasions into Transalpine Gaul began. During 

 the second century B. c. the Romans made 

 themselves masters of the strip along the sea, 

 from the Alps to the Pyrenees, but not until 

 the time of Julius Caesar did all Gaul come 

 under Roman sway. From 58 to 50 B. c. Caesar 

 carried on one campaign after another, and the 

 battles were hard-fought, for the Gauls were 

 no unworthy adversaries. "The bravest are 

 the Belgians," wrote Caesar, and this tribute, 

 in its original Latin form of Fortissimi sunt 

 Belgae, was the inscription chosen for the pro- 

 posed monument to the Belgians during the 

 War of the Nations. The popular name for 

 the part of Gaul won for Rome by Caesar 

 was "Long-haired Gaul," because the Gauls 

 did not keep their locks shorn. 



During the time of Augustus, Gaul became 

 an integral part of the Roman Empire and 

 was organized in four provinces; this division 

 persisted for four centuries. Later the history 

 of the Gauls merged in that of other peoples 

 the Goths, the Burgundians and the Franks; 

 and in time, out of the conflict the modern 

 French nation was born. A.MC c. 



GAUNTLET, gahnt'let. In the thirteenth 

 century knights and soldiers began to wear 

 a heavy leather glove covered with little plates 

 of iron to match the rest of their armor. These 

 were called gauntlets, and they were used 

 throughout the Middle Ages. We still hear 

 people use the expression, "throw down the 

 gauntlet," which means "declare a challenge." 

 When a man in medieval times considered that 

 some one had wronged him, he would at once 

 throw his glove, or gauntlet, down before him. 



The enemy, if possessed of the spirit of his 

 day, would pick it up, as it was a challenge 

 to fight, and the two men would arrange a 

 time for battle. The battle was regulated by 



GAUNTLETS OF THE FOURTEENTH 

 CENTURY 



fixed rules and was considered a legal trial. 

 Whoever won was thought to be in the right, 

 for it was believed that God gave the inno- 

 cent strength to defeat the guilty. 



GAUR, gowr, or GOUR, a wild ox of India, 

 supposed to be the largest existing species of 

 wild cattle. Specimens have been found whose 

 horns measured thirty-nine inches in length 

 by nineteen inches at the base. This, how- 

 ever, exceeds the average. The gaur is shining, 

 blackish-brown in color, with pure white lower 

 legs. It is a most desirable object of rifle 

 sport in India, must be stalked on foot, and 

 when cornered is extremely ferocious. Not- 

 withstanding its fierceness when charged, it 

 rarely attacks human beings except in self- 

 defense. The semicivilized hill tribes of India 

 have tamed it to a certain extent, although it 

 has never been fully domesticated, and they 

 also use it for food. 



GAUZE, gawz, a light, transparent fabric, 

 originally made of silk, but now manufactured 

 from linen or cotton, the characteristic feature 

 of which is its openness of texture. The word 

 is apparently of Eastern origin, related to the 

 Persian gazi, a thin, coarse, cotton cloth; but 

 another interesting supposition is that it takes 

 its name from the Syrian city of Gaza, where 

 it is said to have first been made. The open 

 texture of gauze is due to the manner of 

 weaving; the warp threads (those that run 

 lengthwise of the cloth) are not only crossed 



