ATBARA ATHA BEN HAKEM 51 of Rome. After the death of his brother-in- law, Ataulphus marched into Gaul, carrying with him captive Placidia, the si^fcer of the em- peror Ilonorius. The Gallic provinces of the empire were then in dispute hetween Jovinus and Honorius. Ataulphus offered to treat with Jovinus, but being repulsed made similar pro- posals to Ilonorius, and defeated and slew Jo- vinus. Honorius, however, would not be rec- onciled with the abductor of his sister, and Constantius, to whom Placidia had been es- poused, harassed the Gothic kingdom, until in 414 the barbarians were compelled to with- draw, burning Bordeaux as they left, and cross- ing the Pyrenees into Spain. Ataulphus was assassinated by one of his equerries. ATBARA, the principal eastern affluent of the Nile, rising in Abyssinia. (See NILE, and ABYSSINIA.) ATCUAFALAYA, a river and bayou of Louisi- ana, connecting with the Mississippi near the mouth of the Red river, but receiving very little of its waters except in time of flood. Its course is nearly south to Lake Chetimaches or Grand lake, through which it passes, and from which, in a greatly enlarged stream, it discharges itself into Atchafalaya bay. Its name signifies lost river, and it is supposed by geographers to have formed the old bed of the Red river. The Teche and Courtableau are its principal tributaries. Its whole course is about 260 m. ATCHISON. I. A county forming the N. W. extremity of Missouri, lying along the left bank of the Missouri river, bounded E. by the Noda- way and drained by the Tarkeo and Nishna- batona rivers; area, 675 sq. m. ; pop. in 1870, 8,440, of whom 34 were colored. In 1870 the county produced 45,117 bushels of wheat, 1,312,030 of Indian corn, 69,666 of oats, 18,266 Ibs. of wool, 127,826 of butter, and 6,110 gal- lons of wine. Capital, Rockport. II. A N. E. county of Kansas, separated from Missouri by the Missouri river ; area, 424 sq. m. ; pop. in 1870, 15,507. In 1870 the county produced 123,745 bushels of wheat, 619,447 of Indian corn, 96,012 of oats, 78,721 of potatoes, 23,239 tons of hay, 513,864 Ibs. of butter, 207,839 of tobacco, and 201,593 of wool. Building stone is abundant. The central branch of the Union Pacific railroad passes through the county. Capital, Atchison. ATCHISON, a city of Kansas, capital of Atchi- son co., situated on the W. bank of the Mis- souri river, at the extreme point of the " Great Western Bend," about 25 m. above Leaven- worth ; pop. in 1870, 7,054. It is an important railway centre, being the terminus of four roads : the Central Branch of the Union Pacific ; the Missouri Pacific ; the Kansas City, St. Jo- seph, and Council Bluffs, connecting it with the Hannibal and St. Joseph ; and the Atchison and Nebraska. The city contains 5 churches, 9 schools, 3 banks, 2 newspaper offices, a large furniture manufactory, flour mills, and planing mills. The central school building, just com- pleted at a cost of $45,000, is one of the finest in the state. ATCHISON, David R., an American politician, born at Frogtown, Fayette county, Ky., Aug. 11, 1807. He was a lawyer in Clay county, Mo., when he was elected to the state legis- lature in 1834, and in 1841 was made .judge of the circuit court for Platte county. From 1841 to 1855 he was a member of the United States senate, at first acting with the party opposed to the extension of slavery into the northern territories, but suddenly changing his policy in 1849. In 1854 he became prominent in the legislation for the organization of Kan- sas and Nebraska, advocating the repeal of the Missouri compromise. After the expira- tion of his term in the senate he became a pro- slavery leader in the conflict on and near the Kansas border in 1856-'7. Since that time Mr. Atchison has not appeared in public life. ATE, a Greek deity, daughter of Eris or of Zeus. In the tragic poets she is the punisher of those who perpetrate crime ; in the epic she is the instigator of gods and men to deeds which superinduce misfortunes. In this char- acter she persuaded Jupiter to take an oath, which afterward enabled Juno to transfer to Eurystheus the power that had been intended for Hercules. When Jupiter perceived what he had done, he cast Ate from Olympus. ATELLA, an ancient Oscan town of Cam- pania, midway between Naples and Capua, the inhabitants of which were executed, sold as slaves, or expelled by the Romans in 211 B. C., for having been the first to declare for the Carthaginians after the battle of Cannae. In the days of Cicero the town had recovered its prosperity, though it was classed by Strabo among the smaller towns of Campania. In early Christian times it became an episcopal see, and continued as such till the 9th cen- tury, but was then much dilapidated. In 1030 the inhabitants were removed to the neighbor- ing town of Aversa, near which some remains still exist. Atella is celebrated in Roman liter- ature through the Atellana fabulce, also called ludi Osci, farces or comedies in the Oscan dia- lect. They were at one time highly popular in Rome. No entire play has come down to us. ATH, or ,'Elh. a city of Belgium, in the prov- ince of Hainault, on the river Dender, 30 m. W. S. W. of Brussels; pop. in 1866, 8,260. It has a tower built in 1150, a handsome town hall, a college, orphan asylum, &c. It has manu- factures of linen, woollen, and cotton fabrics, of hats and gloves, bleaching and dyeing es- tablishments, and breweries ; and it is the seat of a considerable trade. It once had fortifica- tions, but they were demolished in 1830. ATHA BEN III k m. or Alhakem ibn Alia, sur- named Mokanna (the veiled), a Moslem im- postor, born at Merv, Khorasan, killed about 780. He was by trade a fuller. He pretended to be the embodiment of the living spirit of God, and by his knowledge of philosophy and chemistry was enabled to perform wonders
