﻿3S3 



KAISARITEH. 



KAMTCHATKA. 



3M 



Cairo still maintains the reputation of being the best school of 

 Arabic literature ; and for Mohammedan theology and jurisprudence 

 the fame of its professors remains unrivalled. Schools for children 

 are very numerous : almost every mosque has a koottab, or day-school, 

 attached to it, in which children are instructed in reading the ' Koran,' 

 and, if required, in writing and arithmetic. The schoolmasters are 

 mostly persons of very little learning. Those youths who propose to 

 devote themselves to religious employment or the learned professions 

 pursue their studies in a great college attached to the mosque of El 

 Azhar, which has a considerable library. The instruction is given 

 gratuitously. The number of students is about 1500, from almost all 

 parts of the Mohammedan world. Mehemet Ali having seized the 

 lands of the mosques, the Azhar has scarcely any revenue ; the pro- 

 fessors therefore are obliged to subsist by teaching in private houses, 

 by copying books, and on the presents which they receive from the 

 wealthy. Besides this college or university, there are, an elementary 

 school of ai-ta aud sciences at Casr-el-Ain, a school of administration 

 to instruct those who are designed for civil offices, and a school of 

 artillery and engineering. In the city there are also four primai-y 

 schools, a magnetic observatory, a theatre, several hofpital!?, and a 

 lunatic asylum. 



Cairo was founded in the reign of Moez Ledinillah, fourth Mahadi, 

 and first Fatimite Khalif of Egypt, about a.d. 970. It was called 

 Masr-el-Kahirah, and became immediately the capital of Egypt and 

 the residence of the khalifa. After the destruction of Fostat by the 

 Crusaders the city increased rapidly in size and population. It was 

 taken by Schirkouh, general of the Sultan of Damascus, in 1169, and 

 soon after Saladin, who succeeded his uncle in the command in Egypt, 

 surrounded Cairo with walls and built the citadel. Under Saladin 

 and his successors Cairo became one of the finest and most commercial 

 cities in the world, a sort of central mart for the products of the 

 east and west. Its capture by the Turks in 1507, and the discovery 

 of the way to India by the Cape of Good Hope, put an end to its 

 prosperity. Under Mehemet Ali and his successors the city has 

 recovered considerably in population and appearance ; but its trade is 

 comparatively insignificant, Alexandria being now the commercial capital 

 of Egypt. Mnrzuk, Sennaar, and Darfur send a few kafilahs yearly to 

 Cairo, exchanging slaves and raw produce for manufactured goods. 



(Lane, Account of the Mannert and Customs of the Modem E'jyptians ; 

 Wilkinson; Minutoli; VlsLn&t, Ilistoire de la JUgfniration de C Jifftfpte ; 

 L'Art de Virifier les Dates.) 



KAISARIYEH, a town in Asia Minor, is situated in a plain to the 

 north of the Eijish-Dagh (the ancient Argscus) in about 38" 41' 

 y. lat, 35° 25' E. long., and has a populatioa variously estimated at 

 25,000, 40,000, and 50,000, consisting of Turks, Greeks, aud Arme- 

 nians. The plain is laid out in com-flelds, and screened on the east 

 and west by low hills covered with gardens and vineyards, and the 

 whole neighbourhood abounds with volcanic deposits. The town is 

 surrounded by an old walled moat, and further defended by an old 

 citadel partly in ruins. The houses, which are from 8000 to 10,000 in 

 number, are built of stone and lime, but many of them have a cracked 

 and dilapidated appearance caused by the frequent earthquakes. The 

 streets are narrow and dirty, the squares and market-places also 

 abound with filth ; and the naturally healthy climate is poisoned by 

 the absence of all sanitary arrangements. The bazaars are extensive 

 and well supplied with European manufnctured goods, woollens, 

 silks, hardware, iron, &c. The Armenian merchants display their 

 wares in a large place called the Vizir Khan ; these consist of hard- 

 ware, snuff-boxes, glass beads. Red Sea shells for ornamentation, 

 paper, cards, padlocks, &c. Of native articles exposed for sale the 

 chief are yellow berries, which are grown in the plains of Ctesarea, 

 wool, gall nuts, goats' -hair, tragacanth, cotton, skins, furs, sultana 

 raisins «nd other fruits, madder and other dyestuBs. Among the 

 principal structures in the town are the mosques, the convent of Siddi- 

 Battal, and some mausoleums. The Armenians have a bishop and 

 two churches in Kaisariyeh ; the Greeks also have a church. The 

 manufactured products of the town are chiefly yellow marocco leather, 

 cotton-stufKi, and cotton-yam. 



Kaisariyeh iu site and sound is identical with the ancient Ccesareia, 

 the capital of Cappadocia, which was originally called Mazaca. The 

 plain in which it stands is watered by the Melas, now called the 

 Kara-su, which was dammed up by king Ariarathes to form a lake 

 a little above its entrance into the Halys (not Euphrates as 

 erroneously stated by Strabo). Mazaca was called also Eusebeia, and 

 numerous coins with this epigraph have been found on the site. It 

 was Vakeu by Tigranes and its inhabitants carried off to his new 

 capital '^^pranocerta. When Cappadocia was made a Roman province 

 in the rogn of the emperor Tiberias, Mazaca was named Cxaareiii. 

 It became a place of great importance in the later times of the empire. 

 When taken by Sapor in the reign of Valerian (about a.d. 259) it 

 had a population of 400,000. In the reign of Justinian the walls 

 were repaired. There are many ruins and heaps of rubbish of ancient 

 ■tmctnres about the town. 



Csesareia gave title to a Christian bishop from an early period of 

 the Church ; it is the birthplace of St. Basil the Great, who became 

 bishop of Csesareia a.d. 370. 



(Strabo; Suidas ; Entropius; Hamilton, }{eiearclus in Asia Minor ; 

 IHclionan/ of Cheek and Roman Geograyky.) 



0100. DIV. VOL. IU. 



KALENBERG. [Hauover.] 



KALGUJEW, a considerable island in the circle of Mezen, in the 

 Russian government of Archangel, lies between 68° and 69° 40' N. lat., 

 47° 30'and48° 10' E. long.,and is about 66 miles iu breadth. The surface 

 is undulating ; it has some low mountains, which rise iu the centre, two 

 small rivers, and several brooks of fresh water. The surface is covered 

 with mosses ; there are also extensive morasses. The ground bears 

 nothing but berries, some antiscorbutic plants, and stimted bushes. 

 The surrounding sea is shallow, but swarms with fish; the coast 

 abounds iu seals, walrusses, and other such animals. The cliflfe are 

 covered with an incredible number of sea-birds ; the interior is full of 

 polar bears, foxes, 4c. It is only frequented by fishermen and seal- 

 hunters from Mezen and Archangel. The little island of Plokti-Kockti 

 and some others arc near to Kalgujew. 



KALMAR [Calsiab.] 



KALMUCKS. [Rcssia.] 



K.^LU'QA, a government of European Russia, lying between 

 53° 24' and 55° 21' N. lat., 33' 20' and 37° E. long., is bounded W. and 

 N. W. by Smolensk, N.E. by Moskwa, E. by Tula, and S. by Orel. The area 

 measures 12,134 square miles. The population in 1846 was 1,006,400. 

 The surface is level, but here and there broken by a low hill or tho 

 woo<led banks of the numerous rivers that flow through it. "Forests 

 cover about half the area, the arable lands about one-third. The soil 

 for the most part is sandy clay. The Oka aud its numerous feeders 

 are the principal rivera. There are lakes and marshes in the centre 

 and west of the government. The rivers, several of which are navigable 

 for bai^s, or available for floating timber, are frozen from November 

 to March. The soil of Kaluga being generally poor requires abundance 

 of manure: the chief products arc rye, oats, barley, wheat, hemp, 

 and flax. Barely enough for the consumption is produced. Horses 

 and homed cattle are scarce. Horticulture is carefully attended to. 

 The mineral products are bog-iron, millstones, lime, gypsum, and 

 turf. There are several great iron-forges. The manufactures of 

 distilled spirits, coarse woollens, linen, sail-cloth, calico, silk, velvet, 

 riband', leather, paper, and glass are important. Kaluga, the capital of 

 the govemment, is situated in 54° 30' N. lat., 36° 5' E. long., on 

 the Oka, and has 32,345 inhabitants. It is surrounded with a rampart 

 converted into a public walk. Tho streets are narrow, and for tho 

 most part consist of wooden houses. The best buildings are tho 

 bishop's palace, the residence of the governor, and the principal 

 church. Hemp-seed, hemp, flax, linseed, honey, and wax are largely 

 exported. 



KAMENITZ. [Cboatia.1 



KAMPEN. [OVEEYSSEL.] 



KAMTCHATKA, a peninsula projecting from the north-eastern 

 part of Asia into the Pacific Ocean, in a direction nearly due south, 

 lies between SI* and 63° N. lat, 155° and 165° E. long. Its length 

 is above 800 miles, and its width varies between 30 aud 120 miles. 

 Its area is stated to be about 80,000 square miles. 



Its southern extremity. Cape Lopatka, is a low and narrow tongue of 

 land (5 1 ° N. lat.), which widens as it proceeds northward, and gradually 

 rises into mountains. The country south of 53° 5' N. lat. is covered 

 with hills and mountains, which are rocky and barren, and only in 

 some inconsiderable valleys clothed with creeping cedar, willow, and 

 stunted birch. At about 53° 5' N. lat. is a mountain-knot, whence 

 issue two ranges, one running due north, and the other north-east. 

 These ranges inclose the vale of the river Kamtchatka. The western 

 range, which first runs nearly due north, declines afterwards to 

 north-north-east, and in that direction traverses the whole length of 

 the peninsula, joining north of it the eastern branches of tho Aldan 

 Mountains. It does not appear to contain high summits, and its mean 

 elevation probably does not rise above the line of trees, which in this 

 country is about 3000 feet above the sea. But the range running east 

 of the river Kamtchatka is distinguished by several high summits, 

 which are of volcanic origin, and most of them still are active. The 

 highest, from south to north, are the Awatchanskaja, which rises to 

 about 9500 feet; the Tolbatchiiiskaja, which attains 8346 feet; tho 

 Kliootchewskaja, the highest of all, rising to 15,825 feet; and the 

 Shiwelutohkajii, whose highest summit is 10,591 feet above the sea- 

 leveL These volcanoes constitute the northern extremity of that 

 extensive series which incloses the eastern coast of Asia, and, traversing 

 the islands of Japan and the Philippines, probably has a connection 

 with another series of volcanoes which traverses the Sunda and 

 Molucca islands from east to west. 



The mountains approach close to the eastern coast, which is com- 

 posed of high rocks, rugged cliffs, and bold promontories, forming 

 numerous inlets, the entrances to which are blocked up by reefs of 

 rocks. The mountains are mostly covered with trees, which grow to 

 a considerable height towards the south, but diminish in size to tho 

 northward. Numerous rocks are scattered in the sea at a distance of 

 from one to three miles from the shores ; some of them are only 

 discernible by the breakers, while others tower up to a considerable 

 height. The depth of the sea varies considerably and suddenly from 

 30 to 90 fiithoms and more. Earthquakes are frequent, and some- 

 times very violent. 



The western districts along the Sea of Okhotsk, or Tarakai, north 

 of the mountain-knot, are uniformly low and sandy to a distance of 

 about 25 or 30 miles inland. They produce only willow, alder, and 



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