ROTTI 128 ROUGET DE LISLE has been chiefly developed since 1830. Pop. (1919) 506,067. ROTTI, an island in the Indian Archi- pelago, belonging to the Dutch; S. W. of Timor. It is 36 miles in length (650 square miles), and has a population of 80,000. The surface, though hilly, is nowhere more than 800 feet above the sea, and the fertile soil produces a rich vegetation. ROTTLERA, a genus of Ewphorbiacese. R. tinctoria is a tree very common in India, and occurring also in the Indian Archipelago, Australia, and Arabia. The three-lobed fruit is covered with a red mealy powder called in India kamala. As people in India occasionally paint their faces with the red powder, the tree itself is sometimes called the monkey- faced tree. It is used in the N. W. prov- inces of India for tanning leather. It yields a clear limpid oil, useful as a cathartic. ROTUMAH, an island in the South Pacific, annexed to the Fiji Islands by Great Britain in 1881; distant about 300 miles N. N. W. from the nearest island of that group, of which it is a depend- ency; area, 14 square miles; pop. 2,300, all Christians. ROTJBAIX, a town of France, in the department of Nord; 6 miles N. E. of Lille; is a highly important seat of the French textile industry, remarkable for its rapid growth, most of it being not more than 50 years old. Woolens, cot- tons, and silk or mixed stuffs are chiefly made; also beet sugar, machinery, etc. During the World War it saw much fighting and suffered severely. Pop. about 122,000. ROUBLE, the unit of the Russian money system. The silver rouble before the World War was equivalent to about 80^ cents in United States gold. _ Half and quarter roubles were coined in sil- ver, also gold coins of nominally five roubles (demi-imperials) and three rou- bles (imperial ducats). Paper roubles are the principal money in circulation. Normally a paper rouble is worth about 49 cents. The rouble is divided into 100 kopeks. ROUEN, a city of France, capital of the department of Seine-Inferieure, and formerly of the province of Normandy, on the Seine, 44 miles from its mouth, and 86 miles N. W. of Paris. It is situate on the right bank of the Seine, in a fer- tile, pleasant, and varied country. The streets, though in general straight, are narrow and dirty, and some of the houses are of wood. The most agree- able part of the town is that which ad- joins the Seine. The public buildings of interest are, the cathedral, containing many old monuments, and one of the finest specimens of Gothic architecture in France; the Church of St. Ouen, like- wise a fine Gothic building, situate nearly in the center of the town; and that of St. Maclou, considered a master- piece of its kind. There are two bridges over the Seine, one of stone, another of iron, connecting the town with the sub- urb of St. Sever; also various literary societies and schools, an academy of belles-lettres, a society of agriculture and the arts, a central school, classes for medicine and surgery, a navigation and drawing school, together with a public library, a collection of paintings and natural history and a botanical garden. Manufactures cotton goods, woolens, lin- ens, iron ware, paper, hats, pottery, wax, cloth, and sugar refineries. Dyeing, both of woolens and cotton, is also con- ducted with care and success. Rouen has frequently been taken and retaken. In 1419 it was taken by Henry V., and Joan of Arc was, in 1431, burned here. A statue to her memory has been erected on the spot. It is the birthplace of the two Corneilles, and of Fontenelle and Boieldieu. Pop. about 120,000. ROUGE, in ordinary language, a cos- metic prepared from the dried flowers of Carthamus tinctorius, and used to im- part artificial bloom to the cheeks or lips. Jeweler's rouge: an impalpable preparation of oxide of iron, obtained by gently heating the yellow oxalate of iron till it decomposes, carbonic acid escaping, and only a red powder being left. It is used for polishing silver, and for this purpose should be_ of the finest quality. Many cheaper varieties are sold under this name. ROUGE ET NOIR (French, "red and black"), Trente-un ("31"), or Trente et Quarante ("30 and 40"), a modern game of chance, played by the aid of packs of cards on a table covered with green cloth. ROUGET DE LISLE, CLAUDE JOSEPH, a French song-writer; born in Lons-le-Saulnier, France, May 10, 1760. He composed both words and music of "The Marseillaise," when he was an offi- cer of engineers at Strasburg on the night of April 25, 1792. It first ap- peared under the title of "Song of the Army of the Rhine." He wrote several other fragments of songs, included in his "Fifty French Songs, Words of Various Authors, Set to Music by Rouget de Lisle" (1825) ; and other poems, stories, and plays, of but little merit. He died in Choisy-le-Roi, June 26 or 27, 1836.
