Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 4.djvu/223

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BOW—BOX
181

gains a " double spare," his bowling is over for that roll, and he is entitled to add whatever number of pins he knocks down with the iirst two balls of the next roll to the ten already down. Should he gain another double spare with the first ball of the succeeding roll he has to wait for the first ball of a third roll before the total score for the first roll can be ascertained, and so on in succes sion. Accordingly, should a player obtain a double spare in each roll or ten in all his total reaches 300, the highest attainable. If a double spare be scored with the first ball of the tenth roll, the player is entitled to bowl his two remaining balls at once as he has no further rolls to play. Should he knock down all the pins with the first two balls of a roll, he gains a " single spare," his bowling is over for that roll, and he is in a similar manner entitled to add whatever number of pins he knocks clown with the first ball of the next roll to the ten already down. The technical name for this method of scoring is " counting old and new." There are a few ten-pin alleys in London and the suburbs, but the pastime is not much practised in England. The rules will be found in The Modern Pocket

lloyle, New York.
(h. f. w.)

BOWRING, Sir John, an eminent English linguist, translator, political economist, and miscellaneous writer, was born at Exeter, October 17, 1792. He was a de scendant of an old Puritan family ; and he became in early life an ardent disciple in the school of utilitarianism and philosophical radicalism, whose prophet was Jeremy Bentham. He did not, however, share his master s con tempt for poetry and the belles lettres, but was a diligent student of literature and foreign languages, especially those of Eastern Europe. His attainments as a linguist were of remarkable extent. He stated that he knew two hundred languages and could speak one hundred. This, of course, does not mean more than that he had some slight acquaintance with them ; but it is certain that he had a pretty good knowledge of forty, and these were languages of various classes. This gives him a place, with Mezzofanti and Von Gabelentz, among the greatest linguists of the world. The first fruits of his study of foreign literature appeared in Specimens of the Russian. Poets, published in two volumes in 1821-23. These were speedily followed by Batavian Anthology (1824), Ancient Poetry and Romances of Spain (182 4), Specimens of the Polish Poets, and Servian Popular Poetry, both in 1827. During this period he began to contribute to the newly-founded West minster Review, of which he was appointed editor in 1825. By his contributions to the Review he obtained consider able reputation as political economist and parliamentary reformer. He advocated in its pages the cause of free trade long before it was popularized by the eloquence of Richard Cobden and John Bright. He pleaded earnestly in be half of parliamentary reform, Catholic emancipation, and popular education. In 1828 he visited Holland, and during his stay there the university of Groningcn conferred on him the degree of doctor of laws. In the following year he was in Denmark, occupying himself with prepara tions for the publication of a collection of Scandinavian poetry. Bowring, who had been the trusted friend of Bentham during his life, was appointed his literary executor, and was charged with the task of preparing a collected edition of his works. This appeared in eleven volumes in the years 1833 and 1839. Meanwhile Bowring had entered Parliament in 1835 as member for Kilmarnock ; and in the following year he was appointed head of a Government commission to be sent to France to inquire into the actual state of commerce between the two countries. He was engaged in similar investigations in Switzerland, Italy, Syria, and some of the German States. The results of these missions appeared in a series of reports laid before the House of Commons. After a retirement of four years he sat in Parliament from 1811 till 1849 as member for Bolton. During this busy period he found leisure for literature, and published in 1843 a translation of the Manuscript of the Queen s Court, a collection of old Bohemian lyrics, &c. In 1849 he was appointed British consul at Hong-Kong, and superintendent of trade in China, a post which he held for four years. After his return he distinguished himself as an advocate of the decimal system, and published a work entitled, The Decimal System in Numbers, Coins, and Accounts (1854). The introduction of the florin as a preparatory step was chiefly due to his efforts. Knighted in 1854, he was again sent the same year to Hong-kong as governor, invested with the supreme military and naval power. It was dining his governorship that a dispute broke out with the Chinese ; and the irritation caused by his " spirited" or high-handed policy led to the second war with China. In 1855 he visited Siam, and negotiated with the king a treaty of commerce. After the usual five years of service he retired and received a pension. His last employment by the English Government was as a commissioner to Italy in 1861, to report on our commercial relations with the new kingdom. Sir John Bowring subsequently accepted the appointment of minister plenipotentiary and envoy extra ordinary from the Hawaiian Government to the courts of Europe, and in this capacity negotiated treaties with Belgium, Holland, Italy, Spain, and Switzerland. In addition to the works already named he published Poetry of the Magyars (1830) ; Cheskian Anthology (1832) The Kingdom and People of Siam (1859) ; a translation of Peter Schlemihl ; translations from the Hungarian poet, Alexander Petbfi (1 866) ; and various pamphlets. He was elected F.l.l.S. and F.R.G.S., and received the decorations of several foreign orders of knighthood. Bowring was twice married; his second wife survived him, with several sons, who have attained distinction in various fields. He died at Clarcmont, near Exeter, November 23, 1872.

BOXWOOD, the wood obtained from the Euphorbiaceous

genus Buxus, the principal species being the well-known tree or shrub, B. sempervirens, the common box, in general use for borders of garden walks, ornamental parterres, &c. The other source of the ordinary boxwood of commerce is J). balearica, which yields the variety known as Turkey boxwood. The common box is grown throughout Great Britain, in the southern part of the European continent generally, and it appears to extend through Persia into India, where it is found growing on the slopes of the "Western Himalayas. Only a very small proportion of the wood suitable for industrial uses is now obtained in Great Britain. The box is a very slow growing plant, adding not more than 1J or 2 inches to its diameter in twenty years, and on an average attaining only a height of 1C feet, with a mean diameter of 10J- inches. The leaves of this species are small, oval, leathery in texture, and of a deep glossy green colour. B. balearica is a tree of considerable size, attaining to a height of 80 feet, with leaves three times larger than those of the common box. It is a native of the islands of the Mediterranean, and grows in Turkey, Asia Minor, and around the shores of the Black Sea, and is supposed to be the chief source of the boxwood which comes into European commerce by way of Constantinople. The wood of both species possesses a delicate yellow colour ; it is very dense in structure and has a fine uniform grain, which gives it unique value for the purposes of the wood- engraver. In addition to the ever-increasing demand for the wood by engravers, a very large amount is used in the manufacture of measuring rules, various mathematical instruments, flutes and other musical instruments, as well

as for turning into many minor articles, and for inlaying,