with the capital at Kuching (population, 9,000), and that of the southern and eastern, with its capital at Banjermassin (population, 30,000). Borneo was discovered by the Portuguese in 1518, and the Dutch visited the island in 1598, and in the 17th century made a settlement there. Population estimated at 500,000.
Bos'nia, Herzegovina and Novi-Bazar are provinces in the northwest of the Balkan Peninsula, formerly under Turkish rule, but now, by the treaty of Berlin in 1878, turned over to the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, of which it now forms a part. The joint area of the three is 23,570 square miles, about the size of West Virginia, and the population is over a million and a half. Bosnia is mountainous, covered with forests, and interspersed with beautiful valleys. Numerous rivers flow northward and join the Save, which forms the northern boundary. The capital is Bosna Serai or Serajevo, with a population of 38,000. The people are mainly Slavs, divided by religion into Mohammedans, Roman Catholics and Orthodox Greeks.
Bosporus or Bosphorus meaning oxford, from the legend that Io swam across it in the form of a cow, is the channel that separates Europe from Asia and connects the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmora. It was more particularly called the Thracian Bosporus to distinguish it from other straits to which the same name had been given. Throughout its length the strait has on either side seven bays or gulfs, with corresponding promontories on the other side. One of these gulfs, often called the Golden Horn, forms the harbor of Constantinople. The Bosporus is about seventeen miles long and from a third of a mile to two miles broad, with an average depth of about 180 feet. The banks are richly dotted with cypress, laurels and ancient plane trees, and covered with palaces, villages, villas and gardens. It was at the middle of this strait that Darius made his bridge of boats when he marched against the Scythians. The Bosporus has long been under the control of Turkey, and by common consent of the European powers, is closed to all but her own war vessels, though the sultan may open them to his allies in time of war.
Boston, the capital of Massachusetts, the chief city of New England and the fifth largest city of the United States, stands at the western end of Massachusetts Bay, at the mouths of the Charles and Mystic Rivers. Founded in 1630, it was first called Trimountain from the three hills which then formed a marked feature of the landscape. Since that time it has taken a prominent part in the history of America. Here was published the first regular newspaper (1704), and the same
Puritan spirit which led to the punishment here of heretics, Quakers and witches, contributed largely to the determined opposition to the oppressive measures of England which resulted in the Revolution. The Boston Massacre and the destruction of
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the British taxed tea in the harbor are famous. Otis, Hancock, Samuel Adams and Warren were all Boston men. Boston has also done much for the literature and culture of America. Longfellow and Lowell, Whittier and Emerson, Hawthorne and Holmes, Thoreau and Parkman, Motley and Prescott dwelt in or near the Puritan City.
Boston has a fine system of parks, Franklin park being the largest (500 acres). These parks are connected by miles of wide and handsome boulevards. Boston Common (42 acres) and the public gardens are greatly enjoyed by the people, because situated in the center of the business section of the city. The metropolitan park commission has secured and opened to the public a system of parks around Boston, including the Blue Hills Reservation, Middlesex Fells, Revere and Nantasket Beaches, tracts along several rivers, ponds and brooks, to the extent of nearly 10,000 acres and costing over five million dollars. The estimated area of the city is 42 square miles. In 1872 the city was visited by a destructive fire, which destroyed over 75 million dollars worth of property in the business section; but the evidences of this destruction have long since disappeared, and a new face was soon put upon the city's aspect. Among the historic buildings of the city are the State House, Christ Church, the old South Church, Faneuil Hall, called the Cradle of Liberty, and King's Chapel. The later noted buildings include Tremont Temple, the Roman Catholic cathedral, the Museum of Fine Arts, the Museum of
