WILMOT PROVISO. 545 WILSON. sovereignty (q.v. ). Those wlio, like Wilmot, were unwilling to accept this doctrine split off from the jjnrty. The princi|ilc contained in the proviso continued to be a burning issue even after its temporary rejection. Attempts were made to apply the principle in organizing the terrilnry 1h:il was acquired from Mexico, and it formed llie liasis, in part, of the Free- Soil Party, and later of the Repuldiean Party. It was rejected in the Compromise of 18.50, and its previois application in the Mis- souri t'onipromise (q.v.) of 1.S20 was wip<'d out by the Kansas- XcbrasUa liill (q.v.) of 18.i4; and in the famous case of Drcd Scott it was held to be out of harmony with the Constitution. Ulti- mately, however, it was established by the act of .Tune 10, 18(52, which forbade slavery in "any of the territories of the I'nited States now existing, or which may at any time hereafter be acquired." Consult: Wilson, Rise and Fall of the Slave Power (Boston, 1872-77); Schouler, History of the United States of Amer- ica Under the Canstitution (New York, new ed. 1890) : Von Hoist, Constitutional and Po- litical IJistorii of the United Slates (Chicago, new ed. 1800) ; and Stephens, Constitutional yieir of the Late War Between the States (Phil- adelphia, 1868-70). WILNA, vll'na, R.bbi Elias (1720-07). A name ap]ilied to Elijah or Elias ben Solomon, one of the greatest of Hebrew scholars, born at Wilna (Yilna), in Lithuania: also known as Elijah Gaon and The C^aon of Wilna. As a child he displayed remarkable gifts of memory and reasoning powers, and, beginning the study of the Talmud at tlic age of seven, he speedily mastered the subject. He was almost entirely self-taught, and to this was probably due the originality of metliod which he applied to Tal- mudic study. Unlike most Talmudists. whose efforts were directed to weaving aliout the text elaborate webs of the most subtle casuistry lead- ing nowhere in particular, he made it his chief object always' to arrive at the simple meaning of words. He even applied, in .some degree, the methods of philology and higher criticism to the emendation nf the Talmudic text, and at a time when the Talmud was practically the exclusive subject of study among the -Tews, he laid great stress on the value of the biblical literature and the importance of Hebrew grammar. He went further still in advocating the cultivation of the profane sciences, a view at that time amounting almost to heresy, and himself did work of a very high order in the fields of mathematics and astronomy. He had also a great fondness for the Cabbala, With the exception of .some travels in his youth he spent his entire life in semi-seclu- sion at Wilna, declining numerous calls which his great reputation brought him, and content to impart instruction in grauuuar, the Bible, and the ilishna to a select number of pupils. The only event of moment in his life was his struggle with the Chasidim (q,v,), of whom he was one of the most inveterate persecutor*: he repeatedly excommunicated them and forbade intermarriage with them. He w'rote conunentaries in every classic field of Hebrew literature, none of which, however, were published during his lifetime. These include commenta'ries on the Pentateuch, the Prophets and the Hagiographa, on portions of the Babvlonian and Jerusalem Talmud, and on the Halacha, Ilaggada, and Cabbala (qq.v.), e,g. the Shnlehan Aruch and the Zoliar. He wa:, also tin? authcjr of a Hebrew grannnar and treatises on geometry, algebra, trigonometry, and astronomy. WIL'SON. • The county-seat of Wilson County, N. ('., 44 miles east by south of Raleigh, on the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad (Map: North Carolina, E 2). The district is engaged in farming and cotton-growing, and especially in the cultivation of tobacco. The industrial establishments of the town include cotton and Hour mills, carriage and wagon factories, found- lies and machine shops, lumber mills, etc. The water-works and the (deitiic light plant are the property of the immicipalitv. Population, in 1800. 212(i; in 1000, ;i.52:). WILSON, ALEXAxnEii ( 17(;(!-18l:i) . An American ornithologist, born at Paisle}', in Scotland. He worked for some time as a weaver, and then became a peddler. In 1700 he pub- lished a voknnc of jjoems, the third edition of which appeared in 1791. In the following year he puhli-.hcd anonymously ^yatly and Meg, the authorsliip of which was by some ascribed to Robert Burns. A little later he got into trouble by writing a satire upon an individual in Pais- ley, and after his release sailed for America. He arrived at Newcastle, Del,, .July 14, 1794, and thence walked to Philadelphia, For several years he wm-ked as a weaver, peddler, and school teacher; but having made the acquaintance of the naturalist William Bartram. he became inter- ested in the drawing of birds, and evolved a plan to illustrate the ornithology of the United States. In 1804, partly to collect material, he and two friends walked to Niagara, and he gave an account of the trip in a poem called "The Foresters," published in the Portfolio. Two years afterwards he began to assist in editing the American edition of Rees's Cyclopaedia . and was thereby given an opportunity to proceed w'ith his scheme of publishing his American Ornithology, the first volume of which appeared in 1808, and the second in 1810. In order to collect material for the other volumes, he traveled in various parts of the country. After his return he com- pleted five more volumes, but died in August, 1813. Volumes eight and nine of his work were brought out under the editorsliip of Cieorge Ord in 1814, and four supplementary volumes were afterwards published by Prince Charles Lucien Bonaparte. Editions of their united works were published by Jameson (4 vols.. London. 18.31), Jariline (3 vols,, ib,, 1832), and repeatedly after- wards. Another, edited by Sir William .Jardine, with a memoir of Wilson, was published in the following year in three volumes. Wilson's Mis- cellaneous Prose Works and Poems, edited by the Rev. Alexander Grosart, with a memoir, were published in two volumes at Paisley in 1876. Wilson's scientific work Avas not systematic, but his descriptions were good, his pictures were su- perior to most of those of his day, and as a pioneer in his chosen field he is deserving of high honor. Consult: Brightwell, Difficulties Over- come, Scenes in the Life of .Alexander Wilson (London. 1860) ; Paton, Alexander ^Yilson, the Ornithologist (ib., 18G3) ; and his Life by Wil- liam Peabody in Sparks's Library of American Biography (1834-56), vol. ii.
