sent mun. bor. Is divided into 3 wards, and governed by 6 aldermen (one of whom is mayor) and 18 councillors: it has a commission of the peace under a recorder. Corporation revenue, in 1839, about 1,400l. Assízes are held in Lent, and summer; and the quarter sessions

on

Jan. 4., April 5., June 28., and Oct. 19. The wapentake court of Lonsdale, for debts under 40s., is held on the first Wed. in each month; and the bor. court sits every fourth Thursday for the recovery of debts to any amount incurred within the borough. The right to send representatives to parliament was first exercised in 1293 (23 Edward I.), but it ceased in 1359, and was not resumed till 1547, since which Lancaster has regularly sent 2 mems to the H. of C. Previously to the Reform Act, the right of election was vested in the freemen and inhabs. The limits of the old parl. bor. were extended by the Boundary Act, so as to include parts of the townships of Skerton and Bulk. Registered electors, in 1839-40, 1311. Lancaster has 2 weekly markets on Wednesday and Saturday, but chiefly on the latter; and fairs are held 1st May, 5th July, and 10th October, for cattle and cheese.

Lancaster is supposed to have been a Roman station. Urns, altars, and other antiquities have been discovered, and the affix caester given by the Saxons, serves to confirm the fact. The Normans found the town in a state of decay; the ancient city reduced to a village, and the Roman castrum little better than a ruin. It was given by William the Conqueror to Roger de Poictou, who built a castle on the site of the ruined castrum: a flourishing town soon gathered round; the burgesses of Lancaster acquired extensive privileges from their lords, and it continued to increase in importance. King John conferred "the honour of Lancaster" on his favourite Gilbert Fitz-Reinfrede, and gave it a charter. The first earl of Lancaster was created in 1266; and in 1351, Henry Earl of Derby was advanced, by special charter, to the title and dignity of Duke of Lancaster, with power to have a chancery in the county, and "to enjoy all other liberties and regalities belonging to a Count Palatine." John of Gaunt, fourth son of Edward III. married Blanch, the duke's daughter, and, by virtue of this alliance, succeeded to the title. His son, Henry of Bolingbroke, first Earl of Derby, and afterwards Duke of Hereford, became Duke of Lancaster on his father's death in 1398, and finally King of England in 1399, from which time to the present this duchy has been associated with the regal dignity. Lancaster espoused the royalist cause during the parliamentary war, and was visited by the Jacobite troops in the rebellions of 1715 and 1745. (Baines's Lancashire, vol. ii.; Parl. and Off. Reports; Private Inform.)

LANCASTER, a town of the U. States of N. America, Pennsylvania, cap. co. of its own name, near Conestoga Creek, a tributary of the Susquehanna, 56 m. W. by N. Philadelphia. Pop. (1830), 7,704. It is pleasant, healthy, and flourishing, in a fertile, and highly cultivated vicinity. Its streets are regular; the houses are chiefly of brick and stone, and many are spacious and elegant. There are numerous places of public worship, 3 of which are for Germans; a courthouse, gaol, 3 banks, several charitable and religious societies, an academy for the classics and English literature; a school of mutual instruction, and several other schools. The pop. is mostly of German descent; and some of the newspapers are in the German language. Lancaster has been long famous for its manufacture of rifle muskets, and the excellence of the stage coaches built in it. It has also manufactures of stock ings, saddlery, hats, nails, hand-screws, and other tools, &c.; and many breweries, distilleries, tanneries, and potteries. Its general trade is extensive: it is connected with Philadelphia and Harrisburg by railroads, and with the Susquehanna below Columbia by a canal. It is the seat of the district judicial court for the S. division of the co. (Encyc. Amer.; Amer. Almanac; Stuart's America, &c.; Murray's Encyc., Amer. ed.)

LANCIANO, a town of the Neapolitan dominions, prov. Abruzzo Citra, cap. dist. and cant., or circondario, 6 m. from the Adriatic, and 18 m. S. Pescara. Pop. (ex. circ.) in 1832, 11,883. It is built on the summit of three hills, in a healthy and pleasant situation; and has a cathedral, several churches and convents, an archbishop's palace, a diocesan seminary, and other schools, a tribunal of primary jurisdiction, &c. This is a very ancient city; and in the middle ages it was distinguished by its proficiency in manufactures, and by the extent of the commerce carried on at its fairs; but these have both greatly declined. (Del Re,

Descrizione delle Due Sicilie, ii. 391, &c.)

LANDAFF, or LLANDAFF, (Lian-Tâf, church of the Taf,) a town and par. of S. Wales, co. Glamorgan, hund. Kibber, on the W. bank of the Tâf, 2 m. N. W. Cardiff, and 27 m. W. Bristol. Area of par., 2,386 acres. Pop., in 1831, including the hamlets of Canton, Elay, Fairwater and Gabalfa, 1,299. The town is at present little more than an inconsiderable village, with about a dozen respectable

residences, and several cottages; nor would it be worth notice, except from its being a bishop's see, and containing a handsome cathedral. This sacred edifice, was built early in the 12th century on the site of one still more ancient; but its W. end, with its fine front, and rich Norman doorways, and elegant pinnacled towers, has been allowed to fall into decay. The cathedral now comprises a choir, short nave and transepts: its total length, from E. to W., including the Ladye-chapel be. hind the altar, is 263 ft., breadth of the body 65 ft., and height, from the floor to the centre of the roof, 119 ft. Very extensive repairs, but in very bad taste, were effected in 1751, at an expense of 7,000l. The new front, built about 80 ft. within the original Norman W. end, has a Venetian window, Ionic pilasters, and flower-pot jars on the parapet; and till lately the fine Gothic altar was enclosed within a Grecian portico. The chapter house, S. of the church, is in the decorated English style, with a central pillar; but it is fast falling into the same ruinous condition as the monuments and the episcopal palace, which were defaced and all but destroyed by Owen Glendwr. The choral services have been disused for some years, and the building is now employed as a parish church, the service being occasionally in the Welsh language. The see of Llandaff (created in the 6th century), comprises all the county in which it is situated, and Monmouthshire, except 7 pars. It is the poorest of all the English bishoprics, the annual income, including preferments, at an average of the 3 years ending with 1831, being only 9247.; and it has, consequently, been hitherto held in commendam with the deanery of St. Paul's, London, and the rectory of Bedwas. On the first avoidance of the see, however, the sum of 3,150/. is to be paid out of the episcopal augmentation fund, to raise the income to 4,2007., and a further allowance of 300l, is to be made till the residence be restored. The patronage of the see comprises the cathedral appoint ments with 8 livings, and the chapter comprises 11 dignitaries, besides the bishop: there are also 2 vicarschoral. Llandaff has no market, and is wholly dependent for its supplies on Cardiff, except for vegetables, which it sends in considerable quantities to that market, Cattle fairs, Feb. 9. and Whit-Monday, well attended. (Nicholson's Cambrian Guide; Parl. Rep., &c.)

LANDAU, a strongly fortified town belonging to the German confederation, in Rhenish Bavaria, on the Queich, a tributary of the Rhine, 54 m. S. by W. May ence, and 46 m. N.N.E. Strasburg. Pop., according to Berghaus, 6,100 exclusive of the Bavarian garrison of 6,000 men. This fortress is considered a chef-d'œuvre of Vauban, who commenced the construction of its works in 1680. It is an octagon, with seven bastions, as many demi-lunettes, and several other outworks: its ditches are filled from the Queich. The barracks and magazine are bomb-proof. The town was almost entirely consumed by fire in 1686, since which, it has been regularly laid out, and has some good public edifices, including the principal church with a lofty tower, two convents, the town-hall, court of justice, and a civil and military hospital. In the centre of the town is a spacious parade ground. Some extensive vinegar factories have been established here within the last few years. The gates are closed at an early hour, after which, neither ingress nor egress is permitted.

The history of Landau is little else than that of a succession of sieges, blockades, captures, and other military events. It was founded by the Emperor Rodolph, of Hapsburg, and made a free town of the empire in the 14th century. During the 30 years' war, it was repeatedly taken and re-taken by the Swedes, Imperialists, French, &c., and in the 18th century it was many times taken or besieged by the French and Germans. It was generally held by the French from the peace of Nimeguen, in 1680 to 1815, when it was restored to Germany by the second treaty of Paris. (Schreiber, Guide du Rhin, 71, 72.; Berghaus; Stein; &c.)

LANDERNEAU, a town and river-port of France, dép. Finistère, on the Elorn, 12 m. E.N.E. Brest. Pop. (1836) 4,035. It is ill-built, and badly paved; but its quays are good, and its port admits vessels of from 300 to 400 tons. It has a large and fine marine hospital, formerly an Ursuline convent, and considerable manufactures of linen cloth and leather.

LANDES, a dep. of France, and one of the largest, though the poorest, in the kingdom, reg. S.W., chiefly between lat. 43° 30' and 44° 30 N., and long. 007' and 1° 32' W., having N. Gironde, E. Lot-et-Garonne and Gers, S. Basses Pyrenées, and W. the Bay of Biscay. Length and greatest breadth about 70 m. each. Area, 915,139 hect. Pop. (1836) 284,918. This dep. derives its name from an extensive tract of heath, marsh, and other waste land, with a loose sandy soil, about 300 ft. above the level of the sea, termed the "Landes," which occupies 731,142 hect., or nearly 4-5ths of its total surface, besides a considerable portion of the adjacent dep. of the Gironde. This extensive and almost desert plain is for the most part a dead flat, interspersed with

1

LANDSBERG.

patches of pasture or cultivated land, clumps of pines, scattered habitations of a miserable kind, and a few wretched hamlets; and bounded towards the sea by a chain of dunes or sandy downs, inside which is a suc. cession of lagoons frequently communicating with each other, and occasionally with the sea by openings between the dunes. The dunes extend along the shore nearly from the mouth of the Gironde to the Pyrenees, forming a chain from 140 to 150 m. in length, by about 5 m. in width and from 100 to 150 ft. in height. They consist of loose shifting sand thrown up by the sea. They are continually changing in form and position, according to the prevalent winds; but have a general tendency to move easterly, in which direction they are said to advance about 25 yards a year; and in process of time they would infallibly overspread the whole country, unless arrested and fixed by planting them with pines or other trees, as Is done in Holland. Occasionally immense masses of sand have shifted their position through the agency of tempests, as in the African and Arabian deserts. The church and a considerable part of the village of Mimizan was overwhelmed by an inundation of this sort. The increase of the duncs having prevented the egress into the sea of many small rivulets, the lagoons have been formed, the largest of which is 7 m. in length and about as many in width. These also continue to extend, since the shifting sands have been gradually shallowing the channels by which they communicate with the sea. The surface of the " "Landes" is usually parched and arid, except for about four months of the year, when the rains form extensive pools in its depressed portions, varying to the depth of several feet. These are often covered with sand carried over them by the wind, when they are called blouses, and are exceedingly dangerous to strangers. To avoid such dangers, and to travel more speedily through the loose soil, the inhab. use long staffs having notches for the feet 1, 2, or 3 ft. above their lower extremity; so that a person of ordinary stature, when in walking order, has at a distance the appearance of a giant 8 ft. high. The inhab. are very expert at the use of these singular helps to locomotion. The Adour, and its tributary the Midouze, bound the "Landes" to the S.E., and form the N. limit of the fertile portion of this dep. The soil is there light, but productive. Maize, millet, wheat, rve, saffron, hemp, flax, &c., are grown: in the arrond. St. Sever, about 250,000 kilog. of linseed-oil are produced annually, and about 320,000 hectol. of wine, certain kinds of which, termed the vins de sables, rival some of the growths of the Gironde. The culture of the mulberry is on the increase. Agriculture is exceedingly backward. The "Landes" are mostly appropriated to the rearing of sheep, of which, in 1830, the dep. had 400,000. The lower classes in the "Landes" appear to be very wretched. Shut out from communication with the more civilised parts of the kingdom by the absence of great roads, they live in a half-savage state, clothed chiefly in sheep-skins, on which or on straw they usually lie at night. Their food is principally maize or rye bread, with pilchards, which are prized in proportion to their rancidity; naize or millet porridge, and pea-soup with sour lard and some spice, to which they occasionally add garlic or a little fried bacon. They are grossly ignorant, and degraded both physically and mentally. In 1835, of 40,446 properties subject to the contribution foncière, 14,870 were assessed at less than 5 fr., 5,978 at from 5 to 10 fr., and 6,166 at from 10 to 20 fr. Goats, hogs, and poultry are frequently kept by the peasantry, and bees are numerous. The pine forests furnish abundance of deals, pitch, tar, rosin, &c.; and coal, iron ore, potters' clay, &c. are met with. Manufactures unimportant; some smelting furnaces and forges, employing about 500 hands, and some tanneries, oil-mills, and glass and earthenware factories, comprise almost all the manufacturing establishments. The trade of the dep. is chiefly in cattle, wines, timber, and agricultural produce. Landes is divided into 3 arronds., and sends 3 mems. to the Cham. of Dep. Number of electors (1838-39) 1,145. Chief towns, Mont-de-Marsan, the cap., St. Sever, and Dax. Total public revenue (1831) 3,585,980 fr.; expen. diture, 2,576,700 fr.: leaving a surplus of more than 1,000,400 fr., a large sum, considering the poverty of the dep. (Hugo, art. Landes; French Official Tables, &c.)

LANDSBERG, a town of the Prussian dom., prov. Brandenburg, gov. Frankfort, cap. circ., on the Warta, a tributary of the Netz, here crossed by an excellent bridge, 38 m. N.E. Frankfort on the Oder. Pop., in 1838, according to Berghaus, 9,970, but it is stated by Von Zedlitz (Der Preussische Staat, ii. 218.) to be nearly 12,000, among whom are many Jews. Landsberg is di vided into the Old and New Town, and has several suburbs. It is walled, and is one of the best built towns in the prov. It has several churches, a house of correction, the inmates of which are made to support themselves by the manufacture of woollen cloths, an hospital, an orphan asylum, a high school, &c. It is a principal mart for corn and wool, the greater part of the produce of

Pomerania, the Neumark, and W. Prussia being brought thither for export by the Oder. The town has also brisk manufactures of woollen goods, leather, and paper, and numerous breweries and distilleries. Landsberg is the seat of a circle assembly, a circle and town tribunal of the first class, boards of taxation, forest economy, and agriculture, and the superintendency of the drainage of the vale of the Warta. (Deichhauptmannschaft für das Wartebruch.) The town was repeatedly taken and retaken by the Swedes and the Imperialists in the 30 years' war. (Von Zedlitz; Berghaus, &c.)

LANDSCRONA, a fortified sea-port town of Sweden, prov. Malmæ, on a tongue of land projecting into the Sound, 16 m. N.E. Copenhagen; lat. 55° 51′ 58′′ N.; long. 12° 49′ 47′′ E. Pop. 3,870. It has strong walls, a citadel, and other works; is well laid out, and has a safe and well sheltered harbour, with 20 ft. water.

LAND'S END, a headland at the W. extremity of the co. Cornwall, celebrated as being the most westerly land in England; lat. 50° 4' 8" N., long. 5° 41' 31" W. It is formed of granite cliffs, which rise about 60 ft. above the level of the sea. These assume, in some places, the appearance of shafts, and are as regular as if they had been cut by the chisel. About 1 m. W. from the Land's End, are the rocks called the Longships, on the largest of which is a light-house, with a fixed light, having the lantern elevated 88 ft. above high water mark.

LANDSHUT, a town of Bavaria, circ. Lower Bavaria, on the Isar, 38 m. N.E. Münich. Pop. 8,000. It is divided into an old and a new town, has a suburb on an island in the Isar, with which it is united by two bridges, and is partly surrounded by old walls and ditches. It consists of two principal and many smaller streets; the houses, which are of brick, are mostly environed by gardens. The town has a very picturesque appearance, from the antique architecture of its buildings, and the number of its towers and spires; that of St. Martin's church being one of the loftiest in Germany. It has an old castle, the residence of the dukes of Bavaria in the 13th century; a Cistercian abbey, in which they were buried, a royal palace, an old townhall, an hospital for decayed citizens, 2 other hospitals, 3 convents, a lyceum, gymnasium, chirurgical and ecclesiastical seminaries, and various other schools. In 1800, the university of Ingolstadt was removed thither; but in 1826 it was transferred to Münich, since which Landshut has declined. It still, however, has manufactures of woollen cloths, stockings, tobacco, paper, cards, &c., with numerous distilleries and breweries, and some trade in corn, cattle, and wool. (Berghaus; Stein, &c.)

LANE-END. See POTTERIES.

LANGELAND, an island of the Danish archipelago, in the Baltic, between Laland and Funen, extending from lat. 54° 43' to 55° 20′ N., and between long. 10° 40′ and 11° E. Length N.N.E. to S.S.W. 32 m.; average breadth 24 m. Area about 80 sq. m. Pop. about 17,000. Its shores are generally uniform, except on the W., where they are broken by numerous inlets. Its surface is more elevated than that of the adjacent islands, but it is generally quite flat. Climate healthy. Chief products, corn, potatoes, fruits, and flax. A good many cattle are reared, and the fisheries are productive. Rudkiöbing, on the W. coast, with 1,580 inhab., is the chief town, and centre of the trade, which is tolerably active. (Dict. Géog., &c.)

LANGENSALZA, a town of Prussian Saxony, gov. Erfurt, cap. circ. of its own name, on the Salza, 194 m. N. W. Erfurt. Pop. (1838) 7,142. It is well built, walled, and further defended by a castle; and has 4 churches, 4 hospitals, a lazaretto, an orphan asylum, a high school, a public library, and a theatre. It is the seat of a district council, a board of taxation, judicial courts for the town and circle, the Thuringian Agronomical Society, &c. It has manufactures of various descriptions of woollen, linen, and cotton fabrics, a saltpetre factory, with dyeing houses, breweries, distilleries, and paper mills. (Von Zedlitz, Der Preussische Staat; Berghaus; Horschelmann, Stein, &c.)

LANGHOLM, a bor. of barony and market-town of Scotland, co. Dumfries, in the bosom of a wooded valley on the Esk, and on the line of the road between Edinburgh and Carlisle, 211 m. N. by W. the latter, and 59 m. S. by E. the former. Pop. of town, in 1831, 2,264; of town and parish 2,676. It is intersected by the Esk, New Langholm (founded in 1778), being on the W. side of the river. The latter is regularly built, of a triangular form. The old town consists chiefly of one street on the line of the road. In it are the town-hall and gaol, ornamented with a spire, and the par. church. There are, also, chapels belonging respectively to the Associate Synod and Relief. The communication between the different parts of the bor. is maintained by a fine bridge. There are nine schools in the parish, of which two are endowed; total average attendance, 275. There are two subscription libraries, to one of which the late Thomas Telford, the celebrated engineer, a native of the district, bequeathed 1,000%. William Julius Mickle, the translator of the Lusiad, was a native of the bor.; and Sir John and Sir Pultney Malcolm were born in the neighbourhood.

The poor are supported partly by church collections and partly by assessment.

A cotton mill driven by water, erected in 1789, gave, in 1835, employment to about 100 persons; but at present (1840) it is suspended. There are in the town above 300 weavers, of which 50 are employed in the stocking trade; there are also two small woollen mills, with a distillery, brewery, and two branch banks.

Langholm was created a burgh of barony in 1610. Gilnockie Tower, the residence of "Johnie Armstrong," the famous border freebooter in the time of James V., is in the neighbourhood, but has long been in ruins. (New Stat. Acc. of Scotland, Dumfries-shire, p. 416.)

LANGRES (an. Andematunum, and Civitas Lingonum), a town of France, dép. Haute-Marne, being the largest and most populous town in the dep., though not its cap.: it is, however, the cap. of an arrond., and occupies, next to Briançon, the highest elevation of any town in the kingdom, 18 m. S.S.E. Chaumont, and 39 m. N.N.E. Dijon. Pop. in 1836 (ex. com.), 6,191. It is surrounded with walls, flanked by towers, and is well built, its streets being regular, wide, and clean. The principal public edifice of Langres, its ancient cathedral, has a choir, the peristyle of which, of the Corinthian order, is supposed to have formed part of a Roman temple: the edifice itself, though of uncertain date, is very ancient, excepting the grand entrance, constructed in the 18th century. The bishopric of Langres was founded as early as the 3d century. Langres has a handsome town-hall, a theatre, a public library with 3,000 vols., a school of drawing, several hospitals, and a fine public promenade. It is distinguished by its cutlery, which is its chief branch of industry.

The Lingones are noticed by Cæsar as being attached to the Romans (De Bello Gallico, lib. 1. 26. 40.); they afterwards became fæderati, or allies of the Romans; and their city is characterised by Frontinus as opulentissima. (Lib. iv. cap. 3.) Among the remains of antiquity of which it has still to boast, are several triumphal arches; one of which, now included in the town-walls, supposed to have been erected in honour of the two Gordians, circa anno 240, has a frieze on its entablature, indicating a high state of the arts. It suffered numerous disasters in the dark ages; being taken and burnt by Attila, and again destroyed by the Vandals in 407. Louis VII. annexed it to the French crown. Diderot was a native of Langres, where he first saw the light, in 1712. (Hugo, art. Haute Marne, &c.; D'Anville, Notice de l'Ancienne Gaule, p. 417.)

LANGUEDOC, one of the old provs. of France, in the S. part of the kingdom, now distributed among the deps. of Ardèche, Aude, Gard, Haute Garonne, Herault, Haute-Loire, Lozère, and Tarn.

LANNION, a town and river port of France, dép. Côtes-du-Nord, cap. arrond., on the Guer, 35 m. W.N.W. St. Brieuc. Pop. (1836) 5,286. It is ill built and triste; its port on the river is bordered by a spacious quay, but within the last 40 years vessels of 250 tons have been unable to come up to the latter. It has a church erected in the 12th century, two hospitals, barracks, and a communal college; it is the seat of a sub-prefecture, and a court of primary jurisdiction, and has manufactures of linen fabrics, and an active trade in agricultural produce. LANZEROTA, one of the Canary Islands, which see. LAODICEA AD LYCUM, an ancient city of Phrygia, in Asia Minor, chiefly interesting as being the site of one of the seven primitive Christian churches, on the Lycus, a tributary of the Meander, 120 m. E.S.E. Smyrna, lat. 37° 56' N., long. 290 15 N. The site of this town, once ranking as the second in Phrygia, is marked only by the deserted ruins of public buildings; and hence the neighbouring hamlet, inhabited only by a few squalid Turks, has received the name of Eski-hissar, "old castle." (Elliott's Travels, ii. 97.) The remains are very extensive; and the whole surface within the walls is strewed with pedestals and fragments, indicating by their size and workmanship the former luxury and magni. ficence of the city. The largest ruin is that of an oblong amphitheatre, having an area of 1,000 sq. ft. Many of the seats are still in tolerable preservation, and at the W. end is a vaulted passage about 140 ft. long, and designed for the horses and chariots entering the arena. A Greek inscription on the mouldings informs us that it was completed in the reign of the emperor Vespasian, A. D. 82, after having occupied twelve years in building. There are re. mains also of an odeum, two theatres, and a fabric which Chandler supposed had been a senate-house and exchange. The soil in and about the city is hard, dry, and porous, bearing many indications of an igneous origin; and Laodicea has at many different times suffered greatly from earthquakes.

Laodicea, so called from the wife of its founder, Antiochus II., was long an inconsiderable place, not. withstanding the beneficence of Hiero, Zeno the phi

losopher, and his son Polemo. After its sufferings, however, in a siegeby Mithridates, the Romans strengthened and enlarged it, so that at length, about the Christian æra, it became, next to Apamea Cibotos, the largest city of Phrygia, and vied in importance with the cities on the coast. There can be little doubt that it was visited by St. Paul in the course of his missionary tour through Asia Minor, and perhaps the Christian converts of Laodicea, as well as those of Colossa and Hierapolis (Pambouk), both neighbouring towns, were the results of the apostle's preaching. In the epistle to the Colossians (iv. 16.) mention is made of an epistle to the Laodiceans; and though some critics have maintained that it is identical with that to the Ephesians, the more probable conjecture is that it has not come down to us. The persecution which raged in Asia Minor during the latter part of the first century tended somewhat to abate the zeal of the Laodicean Christians, and hence the rebuke in the Revelations. Of the subsequent his. tory of this city for several centuries we know little: it was generally in a prosperous condition under the Roman emperors, and was flourishing even in 1190, when Frederic Barbarossa visited it on his way to the third crusade. Soon afterwards, however, it was repeatedly attacked and ravaged by the Turks, and finally came into their hands in the beginning of the 14th century, since which it has been a mere ruin, "wretched and miserable, and poor and naked." (Rev. iii. 14-22.)

Laodicea ad Lycum must not be confounded with Laodicea combusta (now Ladik), 19 m. N.W. Konieh, also a considerable city, of which there are extensive ruins. (Chandler, i. 259.; Elliott, ii. 97.)

LAODICEA AD MARE, in Syria. (See LATAKIA.) LAON (Lat. Landunum), a town of France, dép. Aisne, of which it is the cap., on the summit of a steep hill, 52 m. W.S.W. Mezieres, and 74 m. N.E. Paris. Lat. 49° 33′ 54′′ N., long. 3° 37′ 27′′ E. Pop. in 1836, ex com., 7,826. The town is about 1 m. in length, narrow in the centre, expanded at either extremity, and surrounded by old walls, flanked with numerous small towers. Except its main street, it is ill built and triste; but it has pleasant promenades, a healthy situation, and fertile neighbourhood. It has a large Gothic cathedral, with 4 towers, rebuilt in 1114; a large old abbey, now occupied by the prefecture; a public library, comprising 17,000 vols.; extensive barracks, a remarkable leaning tower, 2 hospitals, a town hall, communal college, theatre, dépôt de mendicité, &c. It is the seat of a tri bunal of original jurisdiction; and has manufactures of nails, leather, copperas, earthenware, &c. Coarse woollens, and some other articles, are made in the dépôt de mendicité.

Laon has been sometimes supposed, but on no good grounds, to occupy the site of the Bibraz mentioned by Cæsar. (See AUTUN, Vol. 1. 255.) In the middle ages it was distinguished by its industry and wealth; its bishopric was one of the most lucrative in the kingdom; and the position and importance of the town made it be regarded as a kind of second capital. It was, however, far more distinguished by the spirit which animated its inhabitants, and by their persevering efforts to emancipate themselves from the feudal tyranny of their bishops, and to establish a municipal government and the regular administration of justice under magistrates of their own selection. They succeeded in establishing a government of this sort so early as the year 1110; and maintained it, at the cost of many great sacrifices, for above two centuries, or till 1331, when it was finally abolished by a royal ordonnance. (For an account of the commune of Laon, see the interesting and instructive work of M. Thierry, Lettres sur l'Histoire de France, Nos. 16-18.) Laon was, in 1814, the scene of some severe fighting between the French and the allies. The Prussians under Blucher having occupied the town, their position was unsuccessfully attacked on the 9th of March, by the French, under Napoleon; and the Prussians having cut to pieces and dispersed the corps of Marmont during the night, Napoleon was obliged to withdraw from before the town on the 11th. (Hugo, art. Aisne.)

LAOS, or the SHAN COUNTRY, a country of India beyond the Brahmaputra, which may be roughly estimated to extend between lat. 150 and 24 N., and long. 98° and 106° E.; having N. the Chinese prov. Yun-nan; W. the Birmese Empire, from which it is separated by the Than-lweng river; S. the Tenasserim provs., Siam and Camboja; and E. Tonquin and Cochin China, from which a lofty mountain chain divides it. Our knowledge of this extensive region is extremely limited; and what little we do know relates almost exclusively to N. Laos, or the portion bordering on the Birmese and Chinese empires. The country appears to be comprised in the basins of two large rivers, the Menam, which afterwards waters Siam, and the Menamkong, or river of Camboja, in the middle portion of its course. The Laos territories formerly comprised 8 or 9 larger and several smaller distinct states; but of late the Siamese have conquered most of these, and the rest are

principally tributary to the surrounding nations, espe- | belonging partly to Russia, and partly to Sweden, be

The government is what is commonly, though incor-summ rectly, called an hereditary despotism. The king is assisted by 4 councillors. The laws, derived from the Institutes of Menu, are administered by the councillors, under whom are 8 inferior judges. Their general tenor is the same as that of the Siamese laws, but they are not generally enforced with so much rigour. Unlike most E. countries, the people have a right of property in the soil, and may dispose of it at pleasure: waste land may be occupled by any one, and if he cultivate it, he establishes a right to its exclusive possession. In N. Laos, a small military force is kept up. The Shans are said by Kempfer to resemble the southern Chinese; but Captain Low thinks them more analogous to the Birmese; to whose dress, habits, customs, &c. their own are very similar. Various books have been written in the Shan language, which is little different from the Pali: it is written in a character similar to the Birmese.

Some of the most striking and venerated Buddhist temples are said to exist in this country. The most noted is that of Nang-rung, N. W. of Zimmai, the cap. of N. Laos. The chief city of S. Laos, Lanchang, is reported to be both populous and comparatively well built. The inhab. assert that they are the stock whence the Siamese sprung, and this the fatter do not hesitate to acknowledge. The emigration of the Siamese southward from Laos is conjectured by Captain Low to have been about the year 638. (Low's Hist. of Tenasserim, in Journ. of Royal Asiatic Soc. v. 245-263.; Crawfurd's Embassy to Siam; Hamilton's E. I. Gaz., &c.)

The vegetable productions of the maritime and mountainous district differ as widely as the climate. In the low country, particularly near the shores of the Gulph of Bothnia, are large forests of spruce, Scotch fir, and other resinous trees; potatoes, turnips, and other vegetables, are cultivated; and roses, carnations, &c., deck the gardens during the brief months of summer. In a colder region the spruce disappears, the Scotch fir being the only tree of that class that braves its severity. It, in its turn, declines in vigour, till it totally disappears; and its place is supplied by the birch, which again yields to the Saliz glauca, a plant unknown in Britain, and peculiar to cold climates. The Rubus Chamamorus, Rubus arcticus, and other berry-bearing plants, are here numerous, and support even an additional degree of cold; but we arrive soon after at a climate where nothing is to be seen but a few of the hardiest plants, such as the dwarf birch, with the Saliz laponica, Orchis hyperborea, and other trees and shrubs peculiar to the country. A few mosses still keep their ground; but before reaching the point of perpetual congelation, there is here, as in other countries quite destitute of every species of vegetation, neither plant nor animal to be seen. en. The rein-deer's lichen is of a bright yellow colour, which, as the plant withers,

LAPLAND, the most northerly country of Europe; becomes snow-white; it thrives better near the fir forests for the natives to cast a hood over the head, neck, and shoulders, leaving only a small opening, through which they see and breathe.

than in the loftier regions of birches, and a plain covered | velling, and exposed to the winter blast, it is customary with this moss forms a Lapland meadow. It is the winter food of the cattle, and, when ground, is used as flour by the inhab. Rich pastures also are furnished by the bear's moss (Muscus polytricha), which, on account of its softness and elasticity, is made into beds and mattresses, alleged by travellers to be superior to any in Europe. The root of the Angelica, and the stem of the Fonchus, are used as food, and of all the grains barley is that which thrives best; but the potato yields a surer harvest, and, if generally cultivated, might afford sufficient sustenance for the inhabs. The turnip and cabbage, introduced by the Russians, succeed well on the low lands. The best agriculturists are the Finnish colonists, who have raised corn at Alten, in lat. 70°, which may safely be pronounced the N. limit of husbandry; but tillage, generally, is in a very backward state.

Among the animals of Lapland, the rein-deer is the most valuable. It serves as the principal beast of burden; its milk is highly valued; its filesh supplies the chief nourishment of the people during a part of the year; its sinews are made into thread; its horns into spoons, and other domestic utensils; and its skin furnishes a great part of their dress. The rein-deer bears a great resemblance to the stag, but is much smaller, being in general only four feet in height from the foot to the top of the back, and but two feet long in the body. It is remarkable equally for the elegance of its shape, the beauty of its palmated horns, and the ease with which it supports itself during a long winter of nine months. In summer it feeds on grass, and is extremely fond of the herb called the great water-horse tail; but in winter it refuses hay, and obtains its whole nourishment from the rein-deer moss. It thrives best in the cold dry regions of central Lapland, where numerous herds roam at large the whole year round, under the care of shepherds assisted by dogs. The rein-deer, indeed, form the chief wealth of the natives. The poorer classes have from 50 to 200; the middle classes from 300 to 700; and the affluent often above 1,000 head. The females are driven home morning and evening to be milked, and yield about as much milk as the goat. Horses, oxen, goats, and sheep are common; and in the forests are bears, gluttons, wolves, elks, hares, martens, squirrels, and lemming-rats. Birds of passage arrive in flocks every summer; capercailies, grouse, partridges, and aquatic fowl, are very plentiful near the coast, and lammergeyers and eagles soar nearly to the line of petual snow. The rivers are stored with salmon, her ring, and other fish; and in July and Aug. insects abound in such enormous quantities, that Wahlenberg has supposed that their dead bodies serve as an excellent manure for the soil.

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The Laplanders, who call themselves Same, are most probably a tribe of Tschoude or Finns, though difference of situation has, in the course of ages, produced a fundamental difference of character. The Finns, an indus trious though unpolished race, were encouraged to form colonies in Lapland about a century ago; and their number has since increased rapidly, while that of the Laplanders has been stationary, perhaps on the decline. Of the 27,000 inhabitants of Norwegian Lapland, there are not, it is thought, above 6,000 Laplanders. They have swarthy complexions, black short hair, wide mouths, hollow cheeks, and long and pointed chins. They are strong, active, and hardy; but they suffer much from disease, and few live beyond fifty. Dis. honesty is general among them, and dram-drinking is often carried to a fatal excess. They were not converted to Christianity till the 17th century. Those of the Russian province are professedly of the Greek church, while those subject to Sweden are Lutherans. But notwithstanding the efforts of the missionaries, they are still very ignorant both of the doctrines and duties of

Christianity, and retain many heathen superstitions.

The rein-deer Laplauders live either wholly or principally on the produce of their herds, building their rude huts during summer in the moss pastures of the elevated country, and in winter on the level tracts inhabited by other nations; but the fishing Laplanders confine themselves to the banks of lakes and rivers, and catch fish and beavers, which, as well as skins and venison, they exchange with the Russians and Swedes for spirituous liquors, meal, salt, and tobacco.

The language of the Laplanders is a Finnish dialect; but it contains so many obsolete and foreign words, that they are not intelligible by the inhabitants of Finland, nor indeed can the tribes in one part understand the language spoken by those of another. The Laponic has been mixed more than the other Finnish tongues with the German and Scandinavian, and hence its principal roots and derivations bear much less affinity with those in the languages of Upper Asia. (Malte-Brun, Géog. Univ.; Schnitzler, La Russie, p. 606, &c.)

LAR, a town of Persia, cap. of the prov. of Laristan, 130 m. W.N.W. Gombroon, and 182 m. S.E. Shiraz; lat. 27° 30′ N., long. 52° 45′ E. Pop. 12,000.? It stands at the foot of a range of hills in an extensive plain, covered with palm trees. The houses generally are commodious and neatly furnished, and there are several handsome public buildings. The governor's house, in the middle of the city, is surrounded by a strong wall, flanked with towers. The bazaar, which is in good repair, is alleged to be the best structure of the kind in Persia: it is very ancient, and built on a similar plan to that of Shiraz, but on a much greater scale, with loftier arches, greater length and breadth, and superior workmanship. The castle, on the top of a hill, overlooking the town, is now in ruins. Rain-water being the only water to be found in this parched and arid country, is collected during the wet season in large cisterns, similar to those in the island of Ormuz.

Lar was formerly the capital of an Arabic kingdom destroyed by Shah Abbas II. It is at present in a state of decay; but it still manufactures fire-arms, gunpowder, and cotton fabrics, exchanged at Shiraz and Gombroon for coffee, sugar, Indian silks, and European merchandise. (Kinneir, p. 83.)

LARGS, a bor. of barony, and sea-port of Scotland, co. Ayr, beautifully situated on a bay of the same name, and overhung on the land side by richly-wooded hills, 22 m., dir. dist. by land, W. by S. Glasgow, and 40 m. by water. Stationary pop. 1,200; but in summer, there are sometimes 1,000 visiters at sea-bathing. It has an elegant suite of public baths, with a reading-room and library, and various circulating libraries. Though not built on any regular plan, it contains many excellent and substantial houses. The par. church, with its spire and clock, is eminently conspicuous. Many gentlemen's seats are in the neighbourhood.

Largs is celebrated in history as the scene of a great battle, fought in 1263, between Haco, king of Norway, and the troops of Alexander II., in which the former was signally defeated. The cairns and tumuli, erected by permission of the conquerors, by the Norwegians over their slain, are still visible on the S. side of the village. LARISSA (Turk. Yenitcher), a town of European Turkey, prov. Trikala, 25 m. N.W. Volo, and 70m. E.S.E. Yanina; lat. 39°52′ N., long. 22° 40′ 15′′ E. Pop according to Holland, 20,000, though but little stress can be laid on this statement. It is a walled town, and is situated on the Selembria (an. Pencius), crossed here by a bridge of 10 arches. This river approaches it through a tract of woodland, almost concealing it from view, and then flows close at the foot of a convent of Dervishes, two large Turkish mosques, and several groups of lofty buildings, soon after disappearing among the woods. The winter floods, which come down from the mountains with great force, frequently occasion great damage to the clay-built houses in the lower part of the town. Internally, Larissa is mean and irregular; near its centre is an open space, having some good bazaars; but the streets are generally ill built, narrow, and filthy; and both houses and people seem to be in the most abject condition. Besides the mosques, there is a Greek metropolitan church; and these, with some baths and a khan, constitute all the public buildings of the place. There is very little trade, and the bazaars are ill supplied with manufactured goods. The plains surrounding Larissa consist of a fine alluvial soil, and are extremely fertile. They produce large crops of Indian corn, wheat, and tobacco; and northward are rich sheep pastures. In fact, there wants nothing but good go

The clothing of these half-civilized tribes is abun-vernment and good laws to render Larissa and its vicinity

dantly coarse, consisting of a woollen cap, a coat commonly of sheep skin, with the wool inwards, and a great coat, either of kersey, or of rein-deer skin, with the hair outwards. They have no stockings, but a kind of pantaloons of coarse cloth, or tanned leather, fitted close to the legs; their shoes are made of rein-deer's skin, the sole being taken from the forehead, and the upper leather from the legs. The women dress nearly in the

same manner, but with the addition of some rude ornaments; and, in the case of the more affluent, of mantles and aprons of Russia linen or cotton. These, and leather for the boots of the men, are obtained in the petty traffic of the Laplanders with the Swedes. When tra

industrious, rich, and populous; but no improvement of any kind need be expected under the worn out, imbecile despotism of Turkey.

If Holland and Dodwell be correct in their opinion, that the modern Larissa occupies the site of the ancient city of the same name, it is of very high antiquity, claiming, in competition with Phthia, the honour of being the birth-place of Achilles, hence called Larissean, and being probably identical with the Πελάσει κον "Άργος mentioned by Homer in his catalogue of the Greek forces. (Il. B. 681.) At a subsequent period it acquired some celebrity from its adoption of the demo cratical form of government, and from its zealous support