are published in England, France, and Germany, and translations of two of his novels and several of his short stories have appeared in the "Revue des deux Moiides."
ALDRIDGE, Ira, negro tragedian, known as the
"African Roscius," d. in Lodez, Poland, 7 Aug., 1867. The place and date of his birth are unknown. Some biographers say he was born in Bellair, near Baltimore, about 1810 ; that he was a mulatto, apprenticed to a ship-carpenter; acquired a knowledge of German from German immigrants;
accompanied Edmiuid Kean to England as his servant, where his natural talent for the stage was cultivated; and subsequently returned to the
United States, where, in 1880-31, he appeared on the stage m Baltimore, but was not successful; then returned to England and began a career of
fame. Other biographers, claiming to be better informed, say that he was born in New York city about 1805, that his fathei- was a full-blooded negro, a native chieftain of Senegal, who came to the United States, was converted and educated, and became the pastor of a colored church in New
York. He intended that his son Ira should follow
the same profession, but the boy had a passion for
the stage, and demonstrated his ability in successful amateur performances. His father disapproved of his course, and sent him to England to be educated for the ministry. The son obeyed for a time, but his fondness for the stage soon took him away from his books. After some time spent in preparation, he made his début at the Royalty theatre in
London as Othello, where he met with immediate
success. In England he was generally preferred in
those plays to which his color was ajipropriate.
He was highly appreciated by Edmund Kean, and
appeared at Belfast as Othello to Kean's Iago. As
an interpreter of Shakespeare he was very generally
regarded as one of the be-t and most faithful. He
appeared at Co vent Garden as Othello in 1833, and
at the Surrey theatre in 1848. In 1852 he visited
Germany, where he played three years, and in 1857
the king of Sweden invited him to visit Stockholm. On the continent he ranked as one of the
ablest tragedians of his time. Honors were showered upon him wherever he appeared. He was
presented by the king of Prussia with the first-
class medal of arts and sciences, accompanied by
an autograph letter from the emperor of Austria;
the Grand Cross of Leopold ; a similar decoration
from the emperor of Russia; and a magnificent
Maltese cross, with the medal of merit, from the
city of Berne. Similar honors were conferred on
him by other crowned heads of Europe. He was
made a member of the Prussian academy of arts
and sciences, and holder of the large gold medal;
member of the imperial and arch-ducal institution
of our lady of the manger in Austria; of the Russian hof-versamlung of Riga; honorary member of the imperial academy of arts and sciences in St.
Petersburg, and many others. His head was of uncommon size, measuring twenty-three and a half inches in circumference. He left a widow, an
English lady, in London. At the time of his death
he was on his way to fill a professional engagement in St. Petersburg.
ALEGRE, Francisco J., Mexican author, b.
in Vera Cruz, 13 Nov.. 1729 ; d. 16 Aug., 1788. He
was a Jesuit priest, and taught philosophy in Havana for seven years, and afterward canon law in
Yucatan. And after finishing the " Historia de la
Provincia de la Compania de Jesiis en la Nueva España," which Father Francisco Florencia had left incomplete, he went to Bologna, Italy, where
he was in charge of a school for young Mexican
Jesuits until his death. Alegre was author oi
twenty-three works, most of them in Latin, on
rhetoric, mathematics, theology, history, and the
Latin and Greek classics. Besides the Spanish and
Mexican languages, he knew to perfection Latin, Greek, English, French, and Italian.
ALEMANY, Joseph Sadoc, archbishop, b. in
Vich, in Catalonia, Spain, in 1814. He entered the Dominican order at the age of fifteen, and studied
in the convents of Trumpt and Garona. He was
ordained at Viterbo, Italy, in 1837, remained a
year and a half at Viterbo as sub-master of novices,
and was then a])pointed assistant pastor of the
church of Minerva, in Rome, which office he continued to discharge up to 1841, when he volunteered for the American mission. After performing missionary duties in Nashville and Memphis,
he was made provincial of the order in the state
of Ohio in 1847. He attended the general chapter of the Dominicans in Italy in 1850, when his
abilities attracted the attention of the papal court,
and he was appointed bishop of Monterey the same
year, and was consecrated in the church of San
Carlo by Cardinal Franzoni. He at once left Rome,
bringing with him some members of his order of
both sexes, through whose agency he has founded
several educational institutions in California. He
was translated to the see of San Francisco in 1853,
being its first archbishop. He resigned his archi-episcopal office in 1883, with the object of devoting the rest of his life to the reorganization of his
order in Spain, and went to reside in a Dominican convent in Valencia. He is the author of a "Life of Saint Dominick."
ALENÇA, José Martiniano d' (ah-lane'-sa),
Brazilian jurist, b. in Ceai'a in 1829 ; d. in Rio de Janeiro, 12 Dec, 1877. His law studies were pursued at Sao Paulo, and on their completion he went
to Rio, where he became a frequent contributor to the journals of that city. He also wrote dramas and romances, some of which are based upon the
Indian legends current in Brazil, and rank among the finest literary productions of the empire. In 1868 he was elected deputy for Ceara to represent the conservative party, and entered the cabinet as
minister of justice. Two years later, when a candidate for senator, he was returned as one of the "triple list," but was not confirmed by the emperor. His reputation at the bar is one of the most brilliant in the history of his country. His poem "Iracema," and his romances of "Guarany" and
"Urabijara," are the best known of his literary productions.
ALENCASTRE NOROÑA Y SILVA, Fernando (ah-len-kas'-tra), duke of Linares, 35th viceroy of Mexico, where he assumed command, 15 Jan., 1711. The same year snow fell for the first
time recorded in Mexico, and there was a destructive earthquake. Alencastre showed himself most liberal and charitable toward the sufferers by the
earthquake, as well as during the terrible famine and epidemic that scourged the country four years later. He established in Nuevo Leon a colony
called San Felipe de Linares, and soon after this he left Mexico, 16 Aug., 1716.
ALEXANDER, Abraham, statesman, b. in North Carolina in 1718; d. near Charlotte, 23 April, 1786. He represented Mecklenburg co. in the colonial legislature prior to 1775, and when, early in 1775, Joseph Martin, the royalist governor, attempted to prevent a free expression of opinion, the people of the county met in the court-house at Charlotte, at the summons of Col. Thos. Polk, and elected Mr. Alexander permanent chairman. The dates of the preliminary meetings are not known
