Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 03.djvu/169

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BLACK FRIDAY. 141 BLACK HILLS. BLACK FRIDAY. The n.ime applied to two disastrous days iu the financial history of the United States. On Friday. September 24, 180'.', a panic was caused in Wall Street by the effort of Fisk and tiould to corner the gold market, gold rising to lli.'i 1-3, and on Friday, September 10, 1S73, occurred in the Xew York Stock Exchange the great financial crash which »as followed by the widespread "panic of 1873.' For "Black Friday' of IStill, consult an article in The YaJe Review', Vol. 111. (Xew Haven, 1896). In England the name Black Friday is given to December (3, 1745, the day on which news reached London that the Pretender had arrived at Derby; again. Jlay 11, 1866, when the failure of Overend i- Gurney (on the previous day) brought on a most disastrous financial panic. See .Julgar's Short History of Panirs (Xew York, 1893). Good Friday is also known as Black Friday in the Western Church, because on that day clerical vestments and altar draperies are black. BLACK GAME, or Heath Game. See Black- cock. BLACK GUARDS. A name originally ap- plied to the scullions and lower servants of the English Court, who were clothed in black gar- ments. Gibbon says '"those who carried coals to the kitchen, rode with the pots and pans, and were in derision called the Black Guards." The title is recognized in an official proclamation of 1683, which begins, ""Whereas, a sort of vicious, idle, and niasterless bores and rogues, commonly called the Black Ciuard, with divers other lewd and loose fellows," etc. BLACK GUM, or SouB Guil. The popu- lar name of the yssa multiflora, the Hornpipe of Xew England, and Pepperidge and Tupelo of our Middle and Southern States. It grows in thick forests, has crooked branches, and is densely covered with bright-green leaves in tufts at the ends of the branches : bears flowers of greenish hue, ovoid fruits, becoming blue-black as they ripen ; wood close-grained and very tough, but not durable. The timber is used for hubs of wheels and in other places where splitting is to be avoided. It is an ornamental tree in England. BLACK HAWK (1767-1838). A celebrated chief of the Sac Indians. In 1788 he succeeded his father as head chief of the Sacs. In 1804 the Sacs and Foxes agreed, for an annuity of $1000, to give up to the United States their lands east of the ilississippi; but Black Hawk promptly repudiated this arrangement, and in the War of 1812 took part against the Americans. The ces- sion of the disputed territory was again provided for by treaties in 181.5 and 1810, the latter being signed by Black Hawk; and in 1823 the majority of the Sacs and Foxes, under Keokuk (q.v. ), moved across the Mississippi, a new treaty being signed at Prairie du C'hien, on .July 15, 1830. When the whites began to occupy the vacated lands. Black Hawk threatened retaliation, and by crossing the ilississippi with a small force in .June, 1831, precipitated the Black Hawk War. The Indians were defeated by General Dodge, near the Wisconsin River, on .July 21, 18.32, and by General .tkinson, at the Bad .xe River, August 1-2, and Black Hawk surrendered on Au- gust 27. He and nine other warriors were held for a time as hostages, and after being taken to several Eastern cities, were confined in Fortress Monroe until -June 8, 1833. The Sacs and Foxes under Keokuk soon moved to a reservation near Fort Des iloines. where Black Hawk died. Oc- tober 18, 1838. Consult: Patterson, Life (Bos- ton, 1834); Drake. Life (Cincinnati, 1846). Also consult an article, '"Story of the Black Hawk War," by Thwailes, in Vol. XII. of the Colleetions of the Wisconsin Historical Society (Madison. 1885—). BLACK HAWK WAR. See Black Hawk. BLACKHEAD. (1) A scaup-duck. See Sc.l p. (2) A minnow {Pimephalcs iiromelas) . (3) A minute blemish in the skin, making a dark spot : a comedo. BLACKHEAD (so named becau.se the dis- ease aft'ects the color of the head), or Extero- iiEPATiTis. A malignant, contagious disease of turkeys, due to the attack of a protozoan parasite (Amoeba melear/ridis) . Birds attacked by the disease show loss of appetite, weakness, and emaciation. Dian"h(Ea is a pronounced and eon.stant symptom. Discolorations of the head frequently occur in the acute stages. Y'oung birds seem to be most susceptible to the disease. Little success has attended remedial treatment of blackhead. Reliance must be placed for the most part on prevention, for which purpose roosting- places and feeding-grounds should be thoroughly disinfected by means of carbolic acid or other chemicals. Blackhead appears chiefly in July and August, and at the approach of winter. Turkeys apparently resist the disease better in warm, di-y weatlicr than in wet weather. BLACKHEATH. An elevated, open com- mon, and a favorite holiday resort for London- ers, in Kent, England, 5 miles southeast of Lon- don, bordering on Cireenwich Park. It co"ers 267 acres, commands a fine view" of gi"eat extent, and being a healthful tract, many villas have been built on its margin. The Roman road to Dover crosses it. Blackheath was formerly the scene of several insurrections, including those of Wat Tyler (1381) and .Jack Cade (1450), and was also a noted place for highwa^^nen. Consult Drake, History of Blackheath (London, 1886). BLACK HILLS. A name applied at various times to dili'ereut sections of country lying be- tween the Missouri River and the Rocky Jloun- tains. but now used only to indicate a moun- tainous region partly in northeastern Wyoming, but principally in South Dakota (Map; South Dakota, Bo). They cover a total area of about 0000 square miles, 1893 square miles of which have been set apart by the United States (Gov- ernment as a forest reserve. (See Forest Ee- .SEKVES.) They are drained and nearly sur- rounded by the two main forks of the Cheyenne River (q.v.). Their altitude ranges from be- tween 2500 and 3000 feet at their base, to the summit of Harney Peak, 7210 feet in height. The mount;iins were formed by a local ui)lift, which raised the Archa'an and later formations into a concentric fold. The Black Hills district was first partly explored in 1874 by an expedition inder General Custer, when gold was discovere<I. In 1876, after some hostilities, a treaty made with the Sioux Indians opened the country to settlement, and Deadwood. Central City, Lead City, and other towns grew up very rapidly. The Black Hills constitute one of the richest gold- mining districts in the United States. Silver.cop- per, tin, and iron ores also occur within their