Aus'ten, Jane, a famous English novelist, was born in 1775 in Hampshire, England. Her acquaintance with English literature was considerable, and she was an especial favorite with her young friends because of her ability to make up long arid interesting stories for their amusement. Her first novel, Sense and Sensibility, appeared anonymously in 1811. Others of her works are Pride and Prejudice Mansfield Park, Emma. Northanger Abbey and Persuasion. Her works deal entirely with domestic life, and her characters are taken from the English middle class. Miss Austen is especially noted for the delicacy and aptness ot her descriptions of character and life. She died in 1817. See Prof. Goldwin Smith's Life of Jane Austen in the Great Writers' Series.
Austerlitz (as'tēr-lĭts), a town in Moravia, Austria-Hungary, situated on the Littawa River, is celebrated because of the victory there of Napoleon over the Russians and Austrians. December 2, 1805. After Napoleon had captured Vienna, in the middle of November, 1805, he took up his quarters with about 75,000 men, at Brünn, the capital of Moravia. The Austrian and Russian forces, about 85,000 strong, commanded by their two emperors, were at Olmütz, northeast of Brünn. The French occupied a high piece of ground, partly surrounded by swamps and woods. At about seven in the morning of December 2d, the allied forces advanced against the right wing of the French army, but Napoleon ordered an instant attack on their flank, and completely defeated them after a hard contest. While part of the a1lies were retreating across a frozen lake, Napoleon's artillery broke the ice and nearly 2,000 men were drowned. At Austerlitz Russia and Austria lost about 30,000 men in killed, wounded and prisoners, while the French loss was about 12,000. After the battle the Peace of Presburg was signed, and the Russian emperor was forced to return to his empire.
Aus'tin, Alfred, English poet-laureate (1896-1913), in succession to Lord Tennyson, was born at Headingley, near Leeds, England, May 30, 1835, and educated at Stonyhurst College and at St. Mary's College, Oscott. In 1853 he took his degree at London University, and was called to the bar of the Inner Temple. In 1861 he first showed his bent toward literature by the publication of some minor poems, followed by the volumes entitled The Human Tragedy, Savonarola, The Tower of Babel, Prince Lucifer, Fortunatus the Pessimist, The Garden that I Love, In Veronica's Garden, Lamia's Winter Quarters, England's Darling and At the Gate of the Convent. A collected edition of his poems has appeared in six volumes. He never practiced law but did journalistic work as a newspaper correspondent, and critic, writing largely for the London Standard and Quarterly Review, and founding and editing for a time, in conjunction with W. J. Courthope, the National Review.
Austin, Minn., a city, the county seat of Mower County, on Red Cedar River and on the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul and the Chicago Great Western Railroads, situated about 100 miles south of St. Paul. It is the seat of the Southern Minnesota Normal College and has, besides a Carnegie Public Library, a number of fine churches, schools, city and county buildings and an attractive city park. It is the center of a fertile agricultural region, and has a growing trade, which includes meat-packing products and those of its flour mills, creameries, brick, tile and cement works, besides live stock, wheat, flax, barley, butter and other dairy products, etc. Population, 6,960.
Austin, Stephen Fuller, son of Moses Austin, the Texan pioneer, and himself founder of the state of Texas, was born at Austinville, Va., November 3, 1793, and died at Columbia, Texas, December 25, 1836. Taking up the work of his father, who died in 1821, he obtained from the Mexican government a confirmation of the grant to his father; he built up at Austin, Texas, a thriving settlement, while he pacified those Indians that threatened trouble. In the thirties the colony became restive under Mexican rule, and he, siding with the revolutionists, was for a time imprisoned. On being liberated he actively took up arms against the Mexicans, and, calling General Sam Houston to his aid, he committed himself to the project of Texan independence. In 1835 he was a commissioner to the United States to secure the recognition of Texas, but that object was as yet distant, and he died before seeing his cherished designs fulfilled.
Austin, the capital of Texas, stands on the left bank of the Colorado River. The river here breaks through a range of hills upon which the city is built. On Capitol Hill stands the magnificent state capitol, built of Texas marble, at a cost of 3,000,000 acres of state land. From this point broad avenues extend north, south, east and west. Austin is an important railroad point, and the market center of a rich agricultural district. It is the seat of the University of Texas, endowed and maintained by legislative grants, with 71 instructors and an attendance of 1,000 students. Here are also located St. Edward's College, St. Mary's Academy, Tillotson College and other academies and seminaries; also the state asylums for the blind, insane, and deaf and dumb. Population, 29,860.
Australa'sia, meaning Southern Asia, includes Australia and the neighboring islands—Tasmania, New Zealand, Papua,
