BUTANE. 724 BUTLEB. BIT'TANE (from Lat. htilyrum; see Butter) and I SOBU'TANE. Two gaseous coiiipoiuuls of carbon and hydrogen similar to marsh-gas. They are isomeric, i.e. they liave the same molec- ular formula ((.",H,„). yet differ in their physical and clicmical properties. Butane is one of the gases found dissolved in crude petroleum. BTJTCH'EE., Samvei, Hexry (1S.')0— ). A British classical scholar. He was born in Dublin, studied at Marlborough College, and then became i fellow of Trinity (.'ollege. Cambridge ( 1874-70), and fellow and lecturer in University College, Ox- ford (1S7C-82). He became professor of Greek at the University of Edinburgh in 1882, succeed- ing .John Stuart Blackie. Yith Andrew Lang, he published an admirable prose translation of the Odyssey (187!)). His own published works include a small volume on Demosthenes (1881) : Home .■1.^7*fc^s of the ij'reek Oenius (1801) ; and Aristotle's Theory of Poetry and the Fine Arts, with a Critical Text and Translation of the Poetics (18!t5). BUTCHEE-BIRD. A shrike, so called from its habit of hanging up on thorns, fence-posts,
- tc., the animals it captures for food. A belief in
Kurope that these victims numbered nine in each place gave it the German name 'nine-killer.' See Shrike. BUTE, biit (from Gael. 6(r/;i. 6o?7i, 5i(f, dwell- ing, Engl, booth, referring to the cell of Saint Brandon ) . An island in the Firth of Clyde, forming, with Arran, o miles southwest, and some smaller islands, the County of Bute, Scot- land (Map: Scotland, C 4). It is separated from the coast of Argjde by a strait less than 1 mile wide, called the Kyles of Bute. It is about 10 miles long, from 1^ to O'/i miles broad, with an area of CO square miles. The surface to the north js high, rugged, and barren; in the centre and south, low and undulating, and comparatively fertile. The highest point rises 875 feet. The coast is rocky and has some bays. The island has several small lakes. The climate is milder than in any other part of Scotland, and is much re- sorted to by invalids. The chief town is Rothesay (q.v. ) . Most of the island belongs to the Marquis of Bute, Whose beautiful seat. Mount Stuart, is about 4 miles south from Rothesay. Among its antiquities are Rothesay Castle, Karnes Castle, Kilmorie Castle, Saint Blaine's Chapel, Dun- gyle, a remarkable vitrified fort on a high crag on the southwest coast, and the Devil's Cauldron, a circular erection, the original purpose of which is unknown. Bute .and the neighboring isles were for nianv centuries subject to the Norwegians. Population, in 1891, 11,740; in inOl, 12,174. BUTE, John Stuart, third Earl of (1713-02). A British statesman whom Wilkes reviled, at whom .Junius thundered, and against whom Chatham declaimed as "one behind the throne greater than the throne itself." He was born in Ediid)urgh, May 25, 171.3, and succeeded to the peerage' in 172.1. He was educated at Eton and early showed a taste for mathematics, mechanics, and natural science, especially botany. About 1737 he attracted the favorable notice of Fred- crick, Prince of Wales, who ai)pointed him a lord of the bedchamber. After the death of the Prince he became Groom of the Stole to his son, afterwards George 111., over whose mind he ob- tained a strong influence. In March, 1701, he fcccame Secretary of State, and was Premier from May, 1702, to April, 1703. His Government was one of the most unpopular that ever held office in Britain, its fundamental j'rinciple being royal autocracy, with an executive government of ol>e- dient servants. In peril from mob violence, he re- signed, but was always hated for his influence over the King. He devoted himself to the sci- entific pursuits which had early attracted him ; was a liberal patron of literature and art, and left an immense lilirary, a fine collection of as- tronomical and philosophical instruments, and a gallery of splendid pictures, preserved to this day. He died March 10, 1792, in his seventy- eighth year, from the effects of a fall from a elift' while botanizing. BUTEA (Neo-Lat., from John, Earl of Bute). A genus of plants of the order Legu- niinosa". The best -known species are Butea frondosa and Butea superba, natives of India: the former are very widely diffused throughout that country, generally appearing as a sort of shrub in the neighborhood of villages, but in the jungles growing into a small tree. These trees present a gorgeous sight when covered with racemes of large, deep-scarlet tlowers. They have trifoliate leaves, with roundish leaflets, velvety beneath. They yield a resinous exuda- tion, which occurs in the form of lurid red tears, often covering the twigs, and is one of the kinds of lac brought to the market in India. Butea frondosa is called the Dhak or Pulas tree in In- dia. The bark and roots are very fibrous, and the strong fibre is used for calking boats, rope- making, etc. The flowers, called t<?esoo or kee- soo, yield a beautiful yellow or orange dye. The gum exuded by Butea frondosa is said to contain more than 70 per cent, tannin. BUTESHIRE, but'sher. A county in the west midland division of Scotland, comprising the isles of Bute (q.v.), Arran (q.v.), and the Cimibraes, Holy Isle, Pladda, Inchmarnoch, and other smaller islands (Map: Scotland, C 4). Area of the whole, 218 square miles, of which about one-sixth is cidtivated. The county town is Rothesay, in the island of Bute. Population, chiefly engaged in fishing, in 1801, 11,800; in 1851," 16,000; in 1891, 18,404; in 1901, 18,800. BUTIN, by'tfm', Ultsse Louis Auguste (1838-83). A French artist, born at Saint Quentin, Aisne. He studied under Picot and Pils. His works are genre subjects, usually studies of fisher folk, and the following in this manner are notable: "Les Jlouli&res iV Viller- ville" (1874) ; "Le Depart" (1881) ; -'La Pf-che," "L'Attente," "Jj<! Cabistan" (1870), and "L'En- terrement d'un Matelot :^ Villerville " (1878), in the Luxembourg. BUT'LER. A borough and county-seat of Butler County, Pa., on Coneepicnessing Creek, 31 miles north of Pittsburg, and on the Penn- sylvania, the Pittsburg and Western, the Buf- falo, Rochester and Pittsl)urg, and the Besse- mer and Lake Erie railroads (Map: Pennsyl- vania, B 3). The surrounding country is rich in oil, natural gas, coal, and iron. Glass manu- facture, including bottles and plate glass, is the chief industry; there are also planing-mills, flour-mills, and manufactories of silk, carriages, white lead, and oil-well tools. Extensive steel- car works are in course of erection. Butler has a fine court-house and a well-equipped, thougli
