Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 03.djvu/351

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BOPP. 311 BOKAGE. recast, was published in 1857, and a third was published after his death in 18G8-71). An Eng- lish translation by Kastwick was published in 3 vols., 1845-50. In his honor the BoppStifluiiff, lor the promotion of the study of comparative philology, was founded in Berlin in IStiG. His library was purchased by Cornell University. He died October 23, 1SG7. BOPPARD, bop'part (ancient Bodobriga) . A town in the District of Saint Goar, Prussia, on the left bank of the Rhine, i) miles south of Cob- lenz. It is an ancient and picturesque walled town with dark, narrow streets and mediaeval timbered houses. Among its notable buildings are the old castle of the Archbishops of Treves, the tower of which is now utilized for the law- courts; the Pfarrkirche in late Romanesque, dat- ing from the Twelfth Century; the Gothic Car- nieliterkirehe of the Thirteenth Century contain- ing interesting sculpture and paintings, and the famous hydropathic establishment, the Marien- berg, occupying a former Benedictine nunnery. Boppard is of Celtic origin ; it was fortified by the Romans as a depot for their sliugers, "Balis- tarii Bodobricae." and important remains of Ro- man walls and fortifications exist. Boppard was a free Imperial city in the Twelfth Century, and many councils were held there. Population, in 1000. 5806. BOB, bOr. PiETER Christiaexszoox (1559- lt)35). A Dutch historian, born in Utrecht. He studied history extensively, and in 1015 was ap- pointed historiographer of Holland and West Friesland. His most important work is the Oorsprong, begin, ende vervolii tier iiedrrlaiidsche Oorlogen (The Causes, Beginning, and Course of the Wars of the Netherlands." 1679) , in the preparation of most of which he had access to the archives of the Dutch States. In style, the work is little more than a monotonous chronicle, but as a sourcebook it is highly valued. BCRA. The north wind of Southern Europe. BORA, Kath.rixa von (1499-1.552). The wife of Luther, daughter of Anna, of the Haug- witz family. She was bom at Klein-Laussig, near Bitterfeld, Saxony, on January 29, 1499. When 10 years old, she entered the Cistercian Convent of Nimptsch or Ximbschen, near Grim- ma. Becoming acquainted with Luther's doc- trines, she found herself very unhappy in her monastic life; and finally, along with eight other nuns, whose relatives, like her own. refused to listen to them, she fled from the convent, with the knowledge of Luther and the active assistance of I-eonard Koppe, a memljer of the city council of Torgau on the nights of April 4 and" 5, 1523. They arrived in Wittenberg on April 7. Luther took up a collection for them and wrote to their relatives, who declined to receive them. He then arranged for them to live with honorable people. Katharina became an inmate in the house of the burgomaster Reichenbach. Luther, through his friend, Nicholas von ,msdorf, minister in Wit- tenberg, ofl'ered her the hand of Dr. Kaspar Glaz, pastor in Orlaniiinde. .She declined this proposal, but declared herself ready to marry Von Amsdorf. or Luther himself, who had al- ready laid aside his monastic dress, and was living by himself in the deserted Augustinian monastery. There her marriage with Luther took place on .Tune 13, 1525. The ceremony was performed by Bugenhagen, the city pastor, in the presence of a few friends. There was a wedding breakfast the next morning, also, with a small company; but on .June 27 there was a more formal celebration of the event, to which Luther's parents. Katharina's companions in flight, and other friends of both parties, were present. In his wife Luther found an afl'ectionatc and faithful helpmeet. Six cliildrcn were born to them: (1) Hans, or Johannes, born June 7, 1526; (2) Elizabeth, born Decend)er 10, 1527, died August 3, 1528; (3) Magdalena. born May 4, 1529, died October 20. 1542; (4) Martin, borii November 7, 1531; (5) Paulus. born .January 28, 1533; (6) Margareta. born December 17, 1534. After Luther's death the Elector of Sax- ony and Cliristian III. of Denmark contributed from time to time to Katharina's support. She was involved in the losses and disasters of the Schmalkald War. and was for a while veiy poor. She fled from Wittenberg to Torgau to avoid the plague, but on the way met with an accident, and sickened and died at Torgau on December 20, 1552. For her life, consult: F. G. Hofmann (Leipzig. 1845) ; A. Stein, pseudonym for H. Nietschmami (H.alle. 1879; 3d ed., "l886); A. Thoma (Berlin, 1900). BORACHIO, bo-rii'eho. A base character in Shakespeare's Much Ado About Ifothing. He is a follower of Don John, and gives the slanderous evidence against the Lady Hero, on which part of the plot hinges. He is the lover of Margaret, the latter's waiting-woman. BORACIC (bo-ras'ik) ACID. See Boric Acid. BO'RACITE (from borax). A magnesium ehluroborate that crystallizes both in the iso- metric and the tetrahedral systems. It is usu- ally white, although sometimes found in gray, yellow, or green shades, due probably to slight impurities. The principal localities in which it is obtained are in the vicinity of Liineburg, Han- over, in Holstein, several places in France, and in Stassfurt, Prussia, where a massive variety occurs. It has been prepared artificially by Heintz. BORAGE, bur'aj (Low Lat. horrago, from horrit, hurra, rough hair), Borago. A genus (jf plants of the natural order Boraginacea;, hav- ing a wheel-shaped corolla, the mouth of which is closed with five teeth, and forked filaments, of which the inner arm bears the anther, the anthers connivent around the style, in the form of a cone. The species are few, chiefly natives of the countries around the Mediterranean Sea. The common borage (Borngo ofjicinalis) is found in waste places in many parts of Europe, and is pretty frequent — perhaps naturalized — in Great Britain, and introduced into various parts of th^ United States. It is a plant of rather coarse appearance, with a stout, erect herbaceous stem, one to two feet high, somewhat branched; the lower leaves elliptical, obtuse, tapering to the base; the stem, leaves, flower-stalks, and calyx rough with hairs. The flowers are more than half an inch broad, of a beautiful blue color. Borage was formerly nnich cultiv:ited and highly esteemed, being reckoned among the 'cordial' flowers, and supposed to possess exhilarating qualities, for which it no longer receives credit, 'riie belief in its virtues was at one time ex- tremely prevalent in England, and its use accord- ingly universal. The flowers were put into