Por'to Maurizio, a sea-port town of northern Italy, cap. of a prov. of the same name; pop. 6,256. Por'to No'vo, a town in the Madras Presidency of India, situated on the Coromandel coast. Both the Danes and the Dutch had formerly a factory here. The place is celebrated for a battle on July 1, 1781, when Sir Eyre Coote defeated Hyder Ali. Pop. 7,182.

Port Orchard, a naval station, and cap. of Kitsap Co., Wash., on Port Orchard Bay, 18 m. W. of Seattle. Congress has appropriated $700,000 for a dry-dock 600 ft. long.

Por'to Ri'co, an island in the West Indies belonging to Spain. It is in size somewhat less than Jamaica, being 100 m. from E. to W., 40 m. from N. to S., and is traversed from E. to W. by a range of mountains 1,500 ft. in average h., though rising in one peak 3,678 ft. above the level of the sea. The soil is remarkably fertile. Area 3,600 m., pop. 625,000. The frequent changes in the executive government of P. R. do not appear to affect its commercial stability. The commerce of the island is almost wholly in the hands of foreigners and Spaniards from the Peninsula. A deep-sea cable now unites P. R. with Europe, America, and the other Antilles.

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Portraiture is said to have arisen through the tracing with a coal a lover's head on the wall. Portrait statues were discovered in Lower Egypt by Mariette, dating from the third dynasty, but the earliest painted portraits known are those of Alexander and Antigonus, made by Apelles. Little mains of Greek P., but the Romans were very fond of this art, and the majority of Roman marbles are portrait busts or statues. Portraits were introduced by Giotto and other painters into religious pictures at the revival of painting in Italy, Raphael and his contemporaries bringing the art to perfection. Velasquez was the greatest of Spanish portrait painters, and the Dutch and German artists, especially Rembrandt and Holbein, were distinguished for their portraits. English P. owed its origin to the Dutch artists, Samuel Cooper being among the earliest native miniature painters, and Sir Joshua Reynolds holding the highest rank in portraits. France has never had a great artist in portraits, though David 1748-1825, Gérard 1770-1827, and Ingres 1781-1867, have excelled in the art. Copley, b. in Boston 1737, was the first Amer. portrait painter, and was followed by Gilbert Stuart and John Trumbull. The best-known names of our own times are Leslie, Tully, Inman, Harding, Huntington, Baker, and Page.

Port'reeve, a principal magistrate in a maritime town. This was the early name of the officer afterward called mayor in London and elsewhere.

Port Republic, a village of Va., at which Stonewall Jackson won a battle, June 8, 1862; pop. 200.

Port Rich'mond, a village in the Borough of Richmond, New York city; pop. 6,290. Aaron Burr died here in 1836. Port Roy'al, a village of S. C., at which the Spaniards made their earliest settlement; also noted for many of the events connected with the late civil war; pop. 1,500.

Port Royal-des-Champs, a convent of Cistercian nuns, near Versailles, which obtained much celebrity during the 17th c. It was founded for nuns by a member of the family of Montmorenci in the early part of the 13th c., and soon after the establishment obtained from the pope the privilege of receiving lay persons, who, without taking monastic vows, desired to live in religious retirement. This portion of the P. R. institute in later times became of great importance. See JANSEN, CORNELIUS.

Port Said, a town of Egypt, at the junction of the Suez Canal with the Mediterranean; pop. 8,671, about half Europeans. It has grown up since the beginning of the canal in 1859. The pop. was at one time 14,000, but has declined since its completion in 1869. The inner harbor, on Lake Menzalah, contains vast dock-yards. About 1,000 ships, chiefly steamers, enter the port annually.

Port'sea Island, a small island on the S. coast of Hampshire, Eng., has on its W. side Portsmouth Harbor, on its S.-E. side Langston Harbor, on its E. side Chichester Harbor, and is separated from the main-land on the N. by a narrow channel, crossed by several bridges. It is 4 m. 1. by 2 to 3 m. w., and contains the important towns of Portsea and Portsmouth.

Ports'mouth, a city and port of entry, one of the capitals of Rockingham Co., N. H., the only sea-port in the State, on the S. side of the Piscataqua River, 3 m. from the sea and 56 m. by rail N. by E. of Boston. It stands on a beautiful peninsula formed by the Piscataqua. Its quietness and quaintness, and the pleasant drives and fine beaches in the

Arms of Portugal.

Ports'mouth, the chief naval arsenal of Great Britain and an important sea-port in the S. of Hampshire, stands on the S.-W. shore of Portsea Island, at the entrance to Portsmouth Harbor, and opposite the town of Gosport, with which it communicates by means of a steam-bridge. Formidable batteries defend the harbor, and bastioned ramparts, faced with masonry, planted with trees, and surrounded by trenches and outworks, inclose the town. Pop. 159,255. Por'tugal, the most W. kingdom of Europe, a part of the great Spanish peninsula. Its greatest 1. from N. to S. is 368 m., and its average w. from E. to W. about 100 m. The kingdom of P. proper is bounded by the Atlantic on the S. and W., and by Spain on the N. and E. The islands belonging to P. are the Azores, 966 sq. m., pop. 259,800; Madeira, etc., 317 sq. m., pop. 130,584. The total area of the home territories of P. is, therefore, 37,793 sq. m.; the pop. is about 4,708,178. The colonial possessions of P. are: In Africa-Cape Verde Islands, 1,680 sq. m., pop. 90,704; Senegambia, 35,437.50 sq. m., pop. 8,500; islands of SanThome and Principe, off Guinea, 448.56 sq. m., pop. 23,681; Ajuda, 12 sq. m., pop. 700; Angola, Benguela, 200,602.50 sq. m., pop. 2,000,000; Mozambique and dependencies, 288,500 sq. m., pop. 300,000. In Asia-Goa, Salcete, 1,440.6 sq. m., pop. 474,234; Damao, Diu, 94.08 sq. m., pop. 53,283; in the Indian Archipelago, 2,877 sq. m., pop. 250,000; Macao, 11.76 sq. m., pop. 100,000. Topography.-The highest mountain range is the Serra de Estrella, which, passing from N.-N.-E. to S.-S.-W., through Beira and Estremadura, terminates in the steep acclivities of Cintra and Cap la Rocca, near Lisbon. The principal chain, which is also known as the Serra da Junto, merges in a series of ridges, which cover a tract 30 m. in 1. between the Tagus and the sea. Another mountain range, named the Serra de Calderao and the Serra de Monchique, but constituting a mere continuation of the Spanish Sierra Morena, crosses the S. part of P. from E. to W., and terminates in its most S. promontory of Cape St. Vincent. The principal rivers enter P. from Spain. Of these the largest are the Guadiana, which, leaving Spain near Badajoz, forms in part the boundary between the S. provinces of the neighboring kingdom; while the Minho and Douro, flowing W., form a part of the boundary in the N. and N.-E. Ethnology.-The Portuguese are mainly the descendants of the ancient Celtic inhabitants of Iberia. Thick-set and lightcomplexioned, they differ no less in appearance than in language from the swart, stately Spaniard, whom they resemble so closely in the love of ceremony and display, in dignified suavity of manner, and confirmed indolence of life. As a

rule, the people, urban as well as rural, are dirty, ignorant, and superstitious, but the peasants of the uplands are distinguished by superior vigor and self-reliance. In the S. a large infusion of Arab blood shows itself in the tall, lithe figure, and dusky, well-cut face. Music is the only fine art in which excellence is attained by the Portuguese. Climate and Productions.-The vicinity to the Western Ocean tempers the climate of P., and exempts it from the dry heat by which Spain is visited. The great inequalities of the surface produce, however, great diversities of climate. The mean annual temperature of P. at Lisbon is 61° Fahr. The natural products correspond to the diversity of the physical and climatic conditions, for while barley, oats, wheat, maize, flax, and hemp are grown in the more elevated tracts, rice is cultivated in the lowlands, the oak thrives in the N., the chestnut in the central, and the cork, date, and Amer. aloe in the S. parts, while every species of European and various kinds of semi-tropical fruits and vegetables are grown in different parts of the country. The commercial industry of the country falls very far below its physical capabilities, and

royalty, which was given to Count Henri, the husband of Alonso's natural daughter. Henri was made governor of the whole district between Minho and Tagus, and died in 1114. Alfonso I. defeated a large Saracen army in the plain of Ourique, Alemtejo, in 1139, took the great stronghold of Santarem, and with the aid of a fleet of English, German, and Flemish crusaders carried Lisbon itself by siege in 1147. Before his death, in 1185, he had kindled the fire of patriotic loyalty in the nation, which his sword had extended to the Mediterranean Sea. The Burgundian dynasty founded by him continued to rule P. till 1580. The war with the Infidels was continued by Alfonso's immediate successors, and Alfonso III. was called the Restorer, on account of his reconquest of Algarve. His son Dinis, the founder of the university at Lisbon, and a liberal patron of learning, laid the foundation of the commercial greatness of P. in the next century. The following reign, that of Alfonso IV., was taken up mainly with Castilian and Moslem wars. Pedro I., son of Alfonso, is chiefly remembered for his secret marriage with Ines de Castro, which led to such a tissue of crimes. With Fernando I., whose whole reign was a struggle for the Castilian crown, the direct male Burgundian line became extinct in 1383. Henrique the Navigator gathered together voyagers and men of science and sent forth the various expeditions which explored the W. coast of Africa, and discovered the Azores, Madeiras, Canaries, Cape Verde, and other islands. The prince bore the expense of these expeditions till a national interest was awakened in the West African trade. Maritime discovery and colonization continued during the reign of Alfonso V., and culminated during that of João II., one of the ablest of Portuguese monarchs. In 1486-87 Bartholomeo-Diaz doubled the Cape of Good Hope, and sailed along the Kafir coast as far as the Great Fish River in two small vessels fitted out by João. In 1495 Manoel succeeded João, and in his reign Vasco de Gama made his famous voyage to India, and Cabral discovered Brazil, (1500.) The great navigator Magalhaens was a Portuguese. The cradle of discovery and home of commerce, P. at this period attained its greatest intellectual eminence. Its plate and goldsmith's work had great artistic value, its Burgundian Gothic style in architecture was noted for nobility of proportion and richness of tracery, and, above all, its glory had been sung in the Lusiads of Camoens. When João III. ascended the throne in 1521 P. was one of the first kingdoms in Europe, and Lisbon one of the wealthiest cities; but in 1536 the Inquisition was put in force against the Jews, and this was followed by the first admission of the Jesuits. Under their influence João's grandson Sebastian, a youth of 14 yrs., started on a Quixotic expedition to Africa against the Infidels, which ended in the defeat of the Portuguese and the loss of their king at Alcazar in 1578. Cardinal Henrique, Sebastian's uncle, reigned only till 1580, and his death marks the extinction of the old Burgundian line. The nation clung to the hope that Sebastian was still alive in the hands of the Infidels and would return, but meantime numerous aspirants were struggling for the throne, and eventually Philip II. of Spain annexed P. to his own dominions. P. was now worse ruled than ever, and was burdened with much of the expense and misery of the Spanish wars in Germany and the Netherlands. Moreover, as a penalty of its identification with Spain, it lost to the Dutch great part of its foreign possessions. But at last, after a shameful union of 60 yrs., P. regained its liberty by a conspiracy which placed João de Bragança, a descendant of the royal family, on the throne in 1640. After a war which lasted till 1668 Spain ceded all claims to P. by the treaty of Lisbon. The Dutch also restored Brazil to the Portuguese, and in 1683 a commercial alliance was entered into with England; but nothing could bring back to P. her old prosperity. In the reign of José I. the minister Pombal effected certain reforms and procured the expulsion of the Jesuits in 1759. But P. lapsed into maladministration during the reign of Maria Isabella, (1777-89.) In the war between France and Spain João VI. was ordered by Napoleon to seize the British merchandise in P., and on his refusal was declared to have forfeited the throne. He solicited the protection of England, and, setting sail with his family, transferred the seat of government to Rio de Janeiro in 1807. The French occupied P., but were forced to withdraw on their defeat at Vimiera by the English and Portuguese allies, under Sir Arthur Wellesley, in 1808. Wellington's defense of the triple lines of Torres Vedras against Marshal Massena (1810) completed the deliverance of P. from Napoleon's tyranny. João continuing to reside in Brazil, a revolution took place at Lisbon in 1820, when without bloodshed a constitu

Oporto and Lisbon are the only centers of manufacture and trade. The exports, which consist almost entirely of wine, fruits, oil, and cork, are chiefly sent to Great Britain and the colonies. Religion and Government.-P. belongs almost exclusively to the Church of Rome, and shows little toleration of other creeds. At Lisbon and Oporto Protestant places of worship are, however, sanctioned by the government. P. is a constitutional monarchy, the crown being hereditary alike in the female and male lines. The houses of representatives are called Cortes, and consist of the Camaras dos Pares and the Camaras dos Diputados, the former composed of grandees, chosen for life by the sovereign, and the latter of 107 members, elected by voters. The monarch is assisted by a cabinet of six ministers of state and a council composed of members chosen for life. History.-The name P. is a corrupted form of that of the hill fort, Portus Cale, which stood on the S. bank of the Douro, and is now one of the suburbs of Oporto, ("the harbor.") The Carthaginians under Hamilcar subdued the region, and were followed by the Romans. In the 5th c. A.D. Lusitania, like the rest of the peninsula, was overrun by the Visigoths, and in the 8th c. was conquered by the Arabs. The warlike Fernando, King of Leon and Castile, in the course of marauding expeditions conquered and occupied the important city and stronghold of Coimbra in 1064. His son Alonso IV. seized his brother's territory of Galicia, which included part of the N. of P. Meanwhile the long wars were attracting to the Christian courts and camps of Spain the flower of European chivalry. Two knights of the house of Burgundy, Counts Raymond and Henri, acquired the highest favor with Alonso. Count Raymond received, with the hand of the king's daughter the government of Galicia and P., but after a terrible defeat near Lisbon, in 1095, he was deemed too weak to hold the outlying vice

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himself all the ordinary uses of which such external nature is capable. If it is land, he reaps the fruits, and excludes all other persons from interfering with his operations; if it is a chattel, he keeps it under his exclusive control. Possession, therefore, is nothing but the legal result of the relation of property.

Post'age Stamps. The system of prepaying postage by means of small adhesive labels sold to the public by the government was first advocated by Rowland Hill in 1837, and was adopted by the British Post-office in 1840. They were introduced into the U. S. in 1847. The first adhesive stamp issued by Great Britain consisted of a profile of the queen, with the word "Postage " above and the value below. The German states seem to have a preference for numerals of value surrounded by inscriptions. Many countries have adopted the national arms as the principal design of their P. S. More varieties of P. S. have been issued, and a greater number have been in use at one time, in the U. S. than in any other country; the whole number issued is about 200, of which 127 have been in use at one time. The collecting of P. S. as objects of curiosity, called Philately, has been extensively pursued by many; there are books upon it, and special periodicals in various countries and languages. See POST-OFFICE.

Poste Restante, (Fr. "to remain at the post-office till called for,") a usual mode of addressing letters to persons who are merely traveling in, or passing through, a country in which they have no fixed residence.

Post'ern, in Fortification, a small doorway communicating usually through the flank of a bastion between the fort and the ditch. Its object is to afford unseen egress to troops marched out to relieve sentries on the external works, and to make sallies.

Post'humous Child, one born after its father's death, or taken from the dead body of its mother, is considered in law as born at the death of its parent, and thus eligible for the inheritance of land and personal estate.

Post'ing, the forwarding of passengers from place to place by means of relays of horses. The application of the same words-post and postmaster-to the transmission of letters and to the stations where post-horses are kept is, both on the continent of Europe and in Britain, a source of ambiguity. P. was long in Britain, as it is yet in most parts of the Continent, a government monopoly.

Postique, an ornament in sculpture, marble, etc., applied or added after the work is otherwise finished.

Postlim'iny, a law term signifying return from capture and restoration to political rights. The law was originally Roman, and has not much application in modern times.

Post'master-Gen'eral, in the U. S. and in England the name of the cabinet officer who presides over the Post-office Department of the government, and who controls the postal service of the country. See POST-OFFICE.

Post-mill, a form of wind-mill that rests on a vertical axis firmly fastened to the ground, and capable of being turned by a lever as the direction of the wind varies.

Post-mor'tem, (Lat. "after death,") as a P. examination, (see NECROPSY,) or P. wounds, a variety of poisoned wounds, arising from the inoculation of a virus derived from the dead bodies of men or animals.

Post-mill.

Post-nup'tial Con'tract means, in Scotch law, an agreement, or, as it is called in England, a settlement, made between husband and wife after the marriage has taken place, with a view to affect the property of the parties, and generally to make provision for the wife and children.

Post-o'bit, a bond of security given by heirs and others entitled to reversionary interests, whereby, in consideration of a sum of money presently advanced, the debtor binds himself to pay a much larger sum after the death of some person or himself. Whenever, as is not unusual, the payment is uncertain, and depends on the obliger outliving somebody else, very high interest is required, or, rather, a very much larger sum is agreed to be repaid than what is advanced.

Post-of'fice, a place for the reception of letters and the management of the various departments connected with their dispatch and conveyance. The name originated in the posts placed at intervals along the roads of the Roman Empire, where couriers were kept in readiness to bear dispatches and intelligence; but the posts of ancient times were never used for the conveyance of private correspondenee. The first letter-post seems to have been established in the Hanse towns

in the early part of the 13th c. A line of letter-posts fol. lowed, connecting Austria with Lombardy, in the reign of the Emperor Maximilian, which are said to have been organized by the princes of Thurn and Taxis; and the representatives of the same house established another line of posts from Vienna to Brussels, connecting the most distant parts of the dominions of Charles V. This family continue to the present day to hold certain rights with regard to the German postal system, their posts being entirely distinct from those established by the crown, and sometimes in rivalry to them. In England, in early times, both public and private letters were sent by messengers, who, in the reign of Henry III., wore the royal livery. They had to provide themselves with horses until the reign of Edward I., when posts were established where horses were to be had for hire. Edward IV., when engaged in war with Scotland, had dispatches conveyed to his camp with great speed by means of a system of relays of horses, which, however, fell into disuse on the restoration of peace. Camden mentions the office of "Master of the Postes" as existing in 1581, but the duties of that officer were probably connected exclusively with the supply of posthorses. The posts were meant for the conveyance of government dispatches alone, and it was only by degrees that permission was extended to private individuals to make use of them. A foreign post for the conveyance of letters between London and the Continent seems to have been established by foreign merchants in the 15th c.; and certain disputes which arose between the Flemings and Italians, regarding the right of appointing a postmaster, and were referred to the privy council, led to the institution of a "chief postmaster," who should have charge both of the English and the foreign post. In 1524 the French posts were permitted to carry other letters than those of the king and nobles. In Peru, in 1527, the Spanish invaders found a regular system of posts in operation. The complete organization of a system of postal communication in England did not take place till the reign of James I., who, soon after his accession, constituted the office of postmaster of England for foreign parts, and appointed Matthew Le Quester the first postmaster. In 1644 Edmund Prideaux was appointed master of the posts, and first established a weekly conveyance of letters into all parts of the kingdom. In 1656 an act was passed to settle the postage of England, Scotland, and Ireland. The postage on a single letter varied from 2d. for 7 m. and under to 14d. for more than 300 m. These rates were not materially changed till 1840, and operated as an almost prohibitory tariff on letters through the mails. The franking privilege, which at an early period had been granted to members of Parliament and officers of the government, was much abused. Fast mail coaches were introduced in 1784. In 1837 Rowland Hill published a pamphlet on P. reform; his plan was adopted by Parliament in 1839, and went into operation in 1840 under the supervision of its originator. Its principal provisions were the reduction of all inland postage to a uniform rate, 1d. for a single half ounce; the entire abolition of the franking priv ilege; the dispatch of the mails at more frequent periods; and increased speed in the delivery of letters. To these were subsequently added payment by stamps and prepayHill's system led to a marked increase in the amount of mail matter transmitted and in the revenues of the government. The head of the British P. department is the postmaster-general, who is always a peer of the realm and generally a cabinet minister. The Amer. P. is one of our earliest institutions, and was provided for by legislation in Mass. 1639, and in Va. 1657. A monthly post from New York to Boston was established 1672. Benjamin Franklin was the first U. S. Postmaster-Gen., the establishment of a general P. being one of the first acts of the Continental Congress. For many yrs. the high rates of postage not only prevented much letterwriting, but also caused the sending of letters chiefly by private hand or by express. But since 1845 the introduction of cheap postage has completely revolutionized our system. Nearly 1,000,000,000 letters and circulars, besides newspa pers and magazines, are distributed annually through 60,000 offices in the U. S. In 150 towns and cities delivery is free and self-sustaining. The increase of the service for the fiscal yr. ending 1890 was nine per cent.; our postage is two cents per ounce on letters, one cent for two ounces on circulars, and one cent per pound for newspapers. Owing to the cheap rate of postage on the latter, and the long routes over which the P. must transport mail matter, this branch of the service is not self-supporting. A method of taking the mails from a crane on which they are hung without stopping the trains, the sorting of letters en route, etc., has greatly shortened the

ment.