Romans, and the son of Zeus and Electra, the daughter of Atlas. He emigrated from Samothrace (according to some accounts, from Arcadia, or Crete), and settled in Phrygia in the country which was afterward called Troas. Here he built a city, which, from him, was called Dardanum, or Dardanus, and introduced the worship of Athena (Minerva).

Dardistan, där-dis-tän, the name given to a region of central Asia, bordering on Baltistan, the northwest portion of Cashmere. This country, which consists of lofty mountains, is little known, and its limits are variously given; but its interest depends mainly on the fact that its inhabitants, the Dards, are an Aryan people, speaking a Sanskritic tongue mixed with Persian words. They have been called "Stray Aryans in Tibet," and are Moslems converted from Buddhism at a comparatively recent period. The rajah of Cashmere is constantly endeavoring to subject them completel to his authority. The chief districts are Hasora, Gilghit, and Tassin; some authorities also include Chitral in Dardistan.

Dare, Virginia, first child of English parents in the New World: b. Roanoke August 1587, and named after the district of Virginia. She was the granddaughter of John White, who was governor of the colony sent by Sir Walter Raleigh to found an agricultural state, which sailed from Plymouth, 26 April 1587, and reached the shores of Virginia in July of the same year. White's daughter was married to Mr. Dare, who was one of the assistants of the governor, and Virginia was born about a month after the arrival of the expedition.

other are

Darfur, där'foor, or Darfoor (Country of the Fur, a tribe of negroes), a region of central Africa, occupying a large portion of the area between Abyssinia and Bornou, and forming part of the Egyptian Sudan. It may be considered as lying between lat. 10° and 16° N., and lon. 22° and 28° E.; area, 150,000 square miles. On the east it has Kordofan; on the west, Wadai; on the north, the desert; while the regions to the south are occupied by barbarous nations. The most important physical feature is the Djebel Marrah, a chain of mountains near the centre of the country, of a crescent form, lying north and south and reaching the height of 6,000 feet. Some of the peaks are extinct volcanoes. There subordinate chains and elevated masses. There seem to be no permanent streams, the water-courses being filled only temporarily. The country belongs mainly to the Nile basin, partly to that of Lake Chad. Large portions of it are barren or are covered with verdure only in the rainy season. The inhabitants are of various races, some of them of the negro type, others having little of the negro character, and a considerable number being Arabs. The Fur or For, who give name to the country, inhabit the mountainous central parts, and are of a brownish-black color with negro features. Mohammedanism is the religion of the country, and to it is due what little civilization the people possess; but the natives are still semi-barbarous. Their occupation is chiefly agriculture. A few of the mechanical arts are carried on, and in particular the people manufacture a considerable variety of articles, including cotton goods, pottery, leather, lanceheads, etc. Their houses are rudely constructed

of clay and reeds, and with scanty accommodation. Among the exports the most important are camels, ivory, the horns, teeth, and hide of the rhinoceros and hippopotamus, ostrich feathers, gum, and copper. The imports comprise beads, glass, arms, light cloths of different kinds, silks, shoes, and other manufactured articles. Darfur was an independent kingdom till annexed by Egypt in 1874. During the ascendency of the Mahdi and us successor it was independent; but it is now recognized as within the "sphere of influence" of Great Britain. The capital is El Fâsher. Pop. 4,000,000.

D'Argenson, Marc Pierre, märc pē-ar därzhän-sên, Comte, French statesman: b. 1696; d. Paris 1764. He was the younger son of the Marquis d'Argenson (1652-1721), who created the secret police and established the lettres de cachet. He became war minister in 1743, at a time when the very political existence of France was imperiled, and by his vigor and lucky choice of generals changed the fortunes of the war in the course of a single year. After the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748), he devoted himself to the improvement of the military system, and in 1751 established the Ecole Militaire. Diderot and D'Alembert dedicated to him their an illustrious patron of literature. great 'Encyclopédie'; and to Voltaire, whose fellow-student he had been, he furnished materials for his Siècle de Louis XIV. In 1757 he was banished to his estate by the machinations of Madame Pompadour; but on her death he returned to Paris.

He was

Dargomyzhsky, där-go-mizh'ske, or Dargomijsky, Alexander Sergievitch, Russian composer: b. village of government of Toula, 2 Feb. 1813; d. St. Petersburg 29 Jan. 1869. He composed the music for the libretto of Louise Bertin, many piano pieces, 100 romances, 'Esmeralda,' which Victor Hugo wrote for airs, and duets for the voice, symphonic and choral fantasies and a "cantata-ballet," called The Festival of Bacchus,' besides the opera of La Roussalka, his happiest effort, given at St. Petersburg in 1856. After this he tried tion of his opera, The Guest of Peter,' which to form a new school, dying before the complewas finished by friends and given in 1872 with

out much success.

Daric, dǎr'ik, properly Daricus (Gr. dapetxós), an ancient Persian coin of pure gold, specimens of which are still preserved in several European collections, bearing on one side the image of a kneeling archer, on the other that of a royal palla. It was known to the Greeks, Romans, and Jews; the latter used it after the Babylonian captivity, under the reign of the Persians, and called it adarkon or darkemon (mentioned in the first book of Chronicles, by Esdras and Nehemiah). Its value was equal to 20 silver drachmæ, or 16 shillings 3 pence; 3,000 being equal (according to Xenophon) to 10 talents. Its name is variously derived from that of King Darius Hystaspes, who regulated the Persian currency, and from several Persian words meaning king, palace, and bow. The so-called silver darics were not designated by this name in antiquity.

Darien, dā'ri-ěn, Ga., city, county-seat of McIntosh County; on the Altamaha River, and the Darien & Western Railroad; about 65 miles southwest of Savannah, and about 10 miles

from the ocean. Lumber, rice, and vegetables are sent from here to the markets along the coast. Pop. (1910) 1,391.

Darien, dă'ri-ěn, Sp. dä-re-an', The Colony of, established by the Spaniards on the Gulf of Urabá (See GULF OF DARIEN), in the first decade of the 16th century, was the centre from which exploring expeditions were sent out until Panamá was founded in 1519. A notary of Triana, named Bastidas, sailed along the Caribbean coast of the isthmus in 1501, Balboa being one of his companions. At the end of 1502 and beginning of 1503 Columbus carefully examined the region immediately west of this gulf. In 1508 the king granted to Nicuesa the territory from the Gulf of Darien to Cape Gracias á Dios; to Ojeda, the territory from the Gulf of Darien to Cape de la Vela. The dividing line was more precisely fixed by the grantees, who agreed that it should be the Atrato River. (See DARIEN, GULF OF.) In the event the only permanent settlements were made near this river and the gulf into which it flows. Ojeda first landed at Cartagena (1509), where his expedition endured great hardships. Removing thence to the eastern side of the Gulf of Urabá, he built the fort called San Sebastian, which he entrusted to Francisco Pizarro, and then returned to the West Indies. Pizarro, Balboa, and all who remained alive set sail for Cartagena once more. There they were met by Enciso, with re-enforcements from San Domingo, and after some hesitation, crossed the gulf to the western shore, where the colony of Santa Maria de la Antigua del Darien was established in 1510. Balboa gained ascendency by recommending the selection of this place (which he had visited with Bastidas), and became the leading spirit in the undertakings which followed the expedition to Dabaiba, the crossing of the isthmus, etc. (see Balboa).

ure.

Nicuesa's expedition, though it started under brighter auspices, resulted in a lamentable failIts courtly leader, after losing nearly all his followers near Cape Nombre de Dios, was forced to put to sea in a boat that could not outlive a single storm-practically condemned to death by the authorities at Darien, whom he had offended. In 1514 Pedrarias Davila superseded Balboa as governor. Five years later Panamá was founded; the capital was established on the Pacific coast; exploration northward and southward began along the shores of the newly discovered ocean; the isthmian traffic sought and found an easier route, better harbors, and a less deadly climate at a distance from the Gulf of Urabá. Darien was abandoned. See CENTRAL AMERICA; SOUTH AMERICA.

Darien, Gulf of, also called The Gulf of Urabá, an extension of the Caribbean Sea forming a wedge-shaped indentation in the northern coast of Colombia; of great width between Colón and Cartagena, but narrowing toward the south until it becomes an estuary of the Atrato River. A distinction to be commended on the ground of convenience is that which would restrict the name Urabá to the southern portion, which is about 7 miles wide by 30 long. Some of the earliest Spanish settlements, at the beginning of the 16th century, were located on the Gulf of Urabá (see DARIEN, THE COLONY OF); the region has not prospered, however, owing to the lack of good

harbors; to the extremely unhealthful, hot, and damp climate of the coast at this point; and the diversion of isthmian traffic to Colón and Parana.

Darien, Isthmus of, the neck of land uniting South and Central America; more specifically, the lower portion which is narrowed between the gulfs of Urabá and San Miguel, while its prolongation on the northwest, between the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Panamá, is called the Isthmus of Panamá. It is traversed by the Cordillera de Baudó. Its principal rivers are the Tuira (also called Darien), which rises in the heights of Aspaves, receives the waters of a number of tributaries, and flows into the Gulf of San Miguel, and the Atrato, which comes out of the department of Cauca and empties into the Gulf of Urabá. In regard to the climate on the coast, see DARIEN, GULF OF A Colombian official publication says: "The interior of the Isthmus of Darien is very sickly, and only the negroes and Indian half-breeds can stand its excessively rainy climate, hot and damp, and its atmosphere, which the marshes make malarious. Though about the Darien cordillera the temperature is milder, it cannot be said that the region is salubrious; and it will never be until the great woods and groves shall have disappeared." The woods in question, especially in South Darien, are of excellent quality and colossal growth, constituting a source of wealth. Gold is obtained from the rivers Balsas and Marca, and the mines of Cana or Espiritu Santo, near the Tuira River, were famous in the old days. For other natural resources, etc., see PANAMÁ, Department OF; for historical sketch, see DARIEN, THE COLONY.

Darien River, the name sometimes given to two streams in the Republic of Colombia: (1) A river emptying into the Gulf of Urabá, on the banks of which Balboa and others founded in 1510 the town of Antigua del Darien (see DARIEN, THE COLONY); (2) the Tuira River (see DARIEN, ISTHMUS OF).

Darien Scheme, a celebrated financial project, conceived and set afloat by William Paterson, a Scotchman, toward the close of the 17th century. It is said that he was originally a buccaneer, that he was a clergyman, and that he was a merchant; the probabilities are on the side of the last assertion, as he possessed a wide knowledge of commerce and finance. He was undoubtedly a man of an original mind, and of a bold and enterprising disposition. He was the first projector of the Bank of England, and being defrauded of his just recompense by those who adopted his plans, he resolved to confine his future schemes to the benefit of his native country. On his original and ostensible design of establishing an East India trade in Scotland, he ingrafted the secret and magnificent plan of forming an emporium on each side of the Isthmus of Darien or Panama, for the trade of the opposite continents. According to his idea, the manufactures of Europe were to be sent to the Gulf of Darien, and thence conveyed by land across the ridge of mountains that intersect the isthmus, where they were to be exchanged for the produce of South America and of Asia; and thus, to use his own emphatic language, he would wrest the keys of the world from Spain. In order to attract encouragement and support, he proposed to render his settlement a free port,

of Darius neighed first the next morning. Darius was therefore saluted king, and the nation approved the choice. His reign was marked by many important events. The city of Babylon revolted, partly on account of burdensome impositions of tribute, and partly because the royal residence, under Cyrus, had been transferred thence to Susa. Darius besieged the city nearly two years without success, and was on the point of abandoning the siege when Zopyrus, one of his generals, by a heroic sacrifice, placed the city in his possession. After the subjection of Babylon Darius undertook an expedition, with an army of 700,000 men, against the Scythians on the Danube, who enticed him so far into their inhospitable country by their pretended flight, that he succeeded with difficulty in extricating himself and his army, after suffering great losses. Leaving a part of his forces under the command of Megabyzus in Thrace, to conquer that country and Macedonia, he returned with the remainder to Asia, to recruit at Sardis. In the year_501 B.C. a disturbance at Naxos, in which the Persians had taken part, occasioned a revolt of the Ionian cities, which the Athenians endeavored to promote, but which was suppressed by the capture and punishment of Miletus in 496. To revenge himself upon the Athenians, Darius sent Mardonius with an army, by the way of Thrace and Macedonia, against Greece, and prepared a fleet to make a descent upon its coasts. But his ships were scattered and destroyed by a storm in doubling Mount Athos, and the army was almost entirely cut to pieces by the Thracians. Darius, however, collected another army of 500,000 men, and fitted out a second fleet of 600 ships. Naxos was conquered, and Eretria, in Euboea, sacked. Thence the army under Datis and Artaphernes proceeded to Attica, and was led by Hippias to the plains of Marathon. The Athenians had in vain besought assistance from their neighbors, and were obliged to depend upon their own resources alone. They marched forth, 10,000 strong, under the command of Miltiades, to meet the Persian army, and animated by the reflection that they were fighting for freedom and their country, obtained a complete victory (490 B.C.); This prince did much to improve the internal administration of his kingdom. In the year 508 B.C. he sent his admiral, Scylax, to explore the river Indus, and he encouraged commerce and arts by useful institutions and laws.

2. DARIUS II., king of Persia (surnamed Nothos, or the Bastard, by the Greeks): d. 404 B.C. He was an illegitimate son of Artaxerxes I. (Longimanus). He ascended the throne in 423, and suppressed several rebellions of his satraps: but Amyrtæus succeeded in maintaining himself in independent possession of Egypt, which had revolted in 414. His son Cyrus is familiar to us through Xenophon's 'Anabasis.'

3. DARIUS III., king of Persia (surnamed Codomannus). He was the great-grandson of Darius II., and the 12th and last king of Persia. He ascended the throne when 336 B.C., the kingdom had been weakened by luxury and the tyranny of the satraps under his predecessors, and could not resist the attacks of a powerful invader. Such was Alexander of Macedon; and the army sent against him by Darius was totally routed on the banks of the Granicus, in Asia Minor. Darius then advanced with 400,000 soldiers, to the plains

of Mesopotamia. The Grecian mercenaries advised him to await the enemy here, as the level country would enable him to draw out his outforces to advantage; but Darius hastened forward to meet Alexander in the mountainous Cilicia. Darius was a second time totally routed, near the Issus 333 B.C. He himself escaped, under cover of the night, to the mountains. His mother, his wife, and three of his children fell into the hands of the conqueror, who treated them with great generosity. Darius was so far from being discouraged by these defeats that he wrote a haughty letter to Alexander, in which he offered him a ransom for the prisoners, and invited him to a new engagement, or, if he did not choose that, granted him permission to retire into Macedonia. Alexander then laid siege to Tyre, on which Darius wrote him another letter, offering him not only the title of king, which he had before refused to do, but also 10,000 talents ransom, and all the countries of Asia as far as the Euphrates, together with his daughter, Statira, in marriage. These propositions, however, were unavailing. Alexander subjected Egypt, and the two armies met between Arbela and Gaugamela, and after a bloody engagement Darius was compelled to seek safety in flight (331 B.C.). Alexander took possession of his capital, Susa, captured Persepolis, and reduced all Persia. Darius fled to the northern provinces, where he was seized by Bessus, one of his satraps, and afterward murdered.

Darjeeling, där-jēl'ing, Darjiling, or Dorjilling (the diamond thunderbolt land), (1) a district of India, in the extreme north of the province of Bengal; area 1,234 square miles. It lies on the southern slope of the Himalayas, and consists partly of mountain and valley, partly of a terai or marshy strip below the mountains, some of which are over 10,000 feet high. Coffee, cinchona, rice, and cotton are raised, and the cultivation of the tea-plant is rapidly extending; about 65,000 acres are now in tea plantations. Pop. about 233,400. (2) The chief town in this district is Darjeeling, a celebrated sanatory station, and for several months of the year the residence of the lieutenant-governor and his staff. The Darjeeling & Himalayan Railroad connects it with Calcutta. Pop. 13,037.

extend from the fall of the Roman empire, 475 Dark Ages, The, a period supposed to A.D., to the revival of literature on the discovery the limits too finely, say 700 years (450 to 1150). of the Pandects at Amalfi in 1137. Not to draw The Middle Ages may be extended to about 1550, covering from 10 to II centuries.

Dark and Bloody Ground, The, a name frequently appied to the State of Kentucky. It is said to be a translation of the Indian words "Kain-tuk-ee," though some authorities claim that they signify "At the head of the river." The epithet was originally bestowed because the region was the scene of many sanguinary conflicts between the redmen of the northern and southLater the constant feuds between ern tribes. white settlers and the aborigines rendered the phrase peculiarly appropriate to this locality.

Dark Continent, The, Africa, in allusion to the almost total ignorance concerning the people and geography of its interior which until quite recently prevailed in Europe and America. See AFRICA,