MIMICRY 



3814 



MINAS BAY 



its surface ; a frame for holding a sheet of paper 

 coated on one side with paraffin; a stylus for 

 writing, a bed plate, and an inked roller. The 

 prepared paper is laid upon the steel plate wax 

 side up, and the stencil made by writing on the 

 paper with the stylus, the steel plate cutting 

 through the paper so that ink passes through. 

 The stencil is placed in a frame attached to the 

 bed plate by hinges. The bed plate consists of 

 a frame holding the steel plate and a piece of 

 slate, upon which the paper to receive the print 

 is laid. The copy is made by passing the inked 

 roller over the stencil, using enough pressure to 

 force the ink through. By working carefully 

 several hundred copies can be made from one 

 stencil. 



The original mimeograph is now seldom used. 

 The typewriter has taken the place of the cor- 

 rugated steel plate and the stylus, and a cylin- 

 der to which the stencil is fastened and which 

 contains an automatic inking device takes the 

 place of the old frame and bed plate. As the 

 cylinder revolves, the paper to be printed is fed 

 into the machine. A mimeograph of this pat- 

 tern operated by an electric motor will print 

 5,000 copies an hour. 



The mimeograph is also used for making 

 copies of drawings, report blanks and other 

 forms. A device known as the mimeoscope is 

 designed especially for this work. Prices of 

 mimeographs range from $15 for the old-style 

 pattern to $160 for the most complete machine 

 with an electric motor. 



MIMICRY, mim'ikri, a term frequently used 

 for protective coloration or protective resem- 

 blance, with reference to certain insects, birds, 

 etc. It is described under the title PROTECTIVE 

 .COLORATION. 



MIN'ARET, a slender structure of stone or 

 brick, forming the tower of a mosque. It con- 

 sists of several stories marked by balconies, is 

 cylindrical or polygonal in shape and terminates 

 in a pinnacle or small dome. Each 'mosque has 

 one or more minarets; the mosque at Mecca 

 has the exceptional number of seven. The Mo- 

 hammedan's call to prayer is not by bell, but 

 by the voice of an official termed muezzin (see 

 below). The minarets of Spain, Egypt, Syria, 

 India, Persia and Turkey, constructed between 

 the thirteenth and sixteenth centuries, are among 

 the most beautiful and original works of East- 

 ern architecture. 



Muezzin, muez'in. Five times daily the de- 

 vout Mohammedan, wherever he may be, turns 

 towards Mecca and prays, and the muezzin is 

 the one whose duty it is to call the time for 



these prayers. He stands on the balcony sur- 

 rounding the minaret, or prayer tower of the 

 mosque, or if this is small and has no such 

 tower, he stands at the side of the building. At 

 dawn, at noon, at four in the afternoon, at sun- 

 set and at nightfall, the muezzin calls to prayer, 

 each time saying, "Allah is great. I testify that 



THE CALL TO PRAYER 



Mohammed is the Apostle of Allah. Come to 

 prayers. Come to salvation. There is no god 

 but Allah." It is an honor to hold the office of 

 muezzin, and one who does so is assured of 

 heaven. 



MINAS BAY, or BASIN OF MINAS, me' 

 nahs, the name of the southeast inlet of the 

 Bay of Fundy, extending into Nova Scotia 

 about fifty-five miles. On the south shore of 

 this bay is situated the village of Grand Pre, 

 celebrated in Longfellow's beautiful Evangeline. 

 The tides rush into Minas Bay with great force, 

 sometimes, at the equinoxes, reaching a height 

 of sixty to seventy feet. In Halifax harbor, on 

 the southeastern coast of Nova Scotia, the 

 spring tides rise only to a height of six to nine 

 feet. The principal river emptying into Minas 

 Bay is the Avon, on whose banks are situated 

 Windsor and other flourishing towns. See 



EVAXGELINE. 



