family was gradually admitted. Their position was partly determined by A. H. Garrod, who, having obtained examples for dissection, in a communication to the Zoological Society of London, printed in its Proceedings for 1876, proved (pp. 512, 515) that the Pittidae belonged to that section of Passerine birds which he named Mesomyodi, since their syrinx, like that of the Tyrannidae (see King-Bird), has its muscles attached to the middle of its half-rings, instead of to their extremities as in the higher Passerines or Acromyodi. They are now placed as a separate family Pittidae of the Clamatores division of the Anisomyodine Passeres. There are about fifty species, divided into a number of genera, confined to the Old World, and ranging from India and North China to Australia, New Guinea and New Britain, with one species in West Africa, the greatest number being found in Borneo and Sumatra. Few birds can vie with the pittas in brightly-contrasted coloration. Deep velvety black, pure white and intensely vivid scarlet, turquoise-blue and beryl-green—mostly occupying a considerable extent of surface—are found in a great many of the species—to say nothing of other composite or intermediate hues; and, though in some a modification of these tints is observable, there is scarcely a trace of any blending of shade, each patch of colour standing out distinctly. This is perhaps the more remarkable as the feathers have hardly any lustre to heighten the effect produced, and in some species the brightest colours are exhibited by the plumage of the lower parts of the body. Pittas vary in size from that of a jay to that of a lark, and generally have a strong bill, a thick-set form, which is mounted on rather high legs with scutellated “tarsi,” and a very short tail. In many of the forms there is little or no external difference between the sexes.
Placed originally among the Pittidae, but now created to form an allied family Philepittidae, is the genus Philepitta, consisting of two species peculiar to Madagascar. The two species which compose it have little outward resemblance to the pittas, not having the same style of coloration and bein apparently of more arboreal habits. The sexes differ greatly in plumage, and the males have the skin round the eyes bare of feathers and carunculated. (A. N.)
PITTACUS, of Mytilene in Lesbos (c. 650–570 B.C.), one of the Seven Sages of Greece. About 611, with the assistance of the brothers of the poet Alcaeus, he overthrew Melanchrus, tyrant of Lesbos. In a war (606) between the Mytilenaeans and Athenians for the possession of Sigeum on the Hellespont he slew the Athenian commander Phrynon in single combat. In 589 his fellow citizens entrusted Pittacus with despotic power (with the title of Aesymnetes) for the purpose of protecting them against the exiled nobles, at the head of whom were Alcaeus and his brother Antimenides. He resigned the government after holding it for ten years, and died ten years later. According to Diogenes Laërtius, who credits him with an undoubtedly spurious letter to Croesus (with whom his connexion was probably legendary), Pittacus was a writer of elegiac poems, from which he quotes five lines. His favourite sayings were: “It is hard to be good,” and “Know when to act.”
See Herodotus v. 27, 94; Diog. Laërt i. 4; Lucian, Macrobii, 18; Strabo xiii. 600, 617–618; Aristotle, Politics, ii. 12, iii. 14; T. Bergk, Poetae lyrici graeci.
PITTANCE (through O. Fr. pitance, from Lat. pietas, loving-kindness), properly a gift to the members of a religious house for masses, consisting usually of an extra allowance of food or wine on occasions such as the anniversary of the donor’s death, festivals and the like. The word was early transferred to a charitable donation and to any small gift of food or money.
PITT-RIVERS, AUGUSTUS HENRY LANE-FOX (1827–1900), English soldier and archaeologist, son of W. A. Lane-Fox, was born on the 14th of April 1827. It was not till 1880 that he assumed the name of Pitt-Rivers, on inheriting the Dorsetshire and Wiltshire estates of his great-uncle, the second Lord Rivers. Educated at Sandhurst, he received a commission in the Grenadier Guards in 1845, being captain 1850, lieutenant-colonel 1857, colonel 1867, major-general 1877 and lieutenant-general 1882. He served in the Crimean War, and was at the Alma and the siege of Sebastopol. His talent for experimental research was utilized in investigation into improvements of the army rifle, and he was largely responsible for starting the Hythe School of Musketry. It is not, however, for his military career, but for his work as an anthropologist and archaeologist, that General Pitt-Rivers will be remembered. His interest in the evolution of the rifle early extended itself to other weapons and instruments in the history of man, and he became a collector of articles illustrating the development of human invention. His collection became famous, and, after being exhibited in 1874–1875 at the Bethnal Green Museum, was presented in 1885 to the university of Oxford. When, in 1880, General Pitt-Rivers obtained possession of his great-uncle’s estates—practically untouched by the excavator since they had been the battleground of the West Saxons, the Romans and the Britons—he devoted himself to exploring them. His excavations round Rushmore resulted in valuable “finds”; he founded a local museum and published several illustrated volumes. As a scientific archaeologist he attained high rank. Oxford gave him the D.C.L. in 1886; he was president of the Anthropological Institute, and F.R.S. He married, in 1855, Alice Margaret, daughter of the second Lord Stanley of Alderley, and had a numerous family; his second daughter became in 1884 the wife of Sir John Lubbock (Lord Avebury). General Pitt-Rivers died at Rushmore on the 4th of May 1900.
PITTSBURG, a city of Crawford county, Kansas, U.S.A., about 130 m. S. of Kansas City. Pop. (1880), 624; (1890), 6697; (1900) 10,112, of whom 860 were foreign-born; (1910 census), 14,755. It is situated at the intersection of four great railway systems—the Atchison Topeka & Santa Fe, the St Louis & San Francisco, the Kansas City Southern (which maintains shops here), and the Missouri Pacific, and is served by inter-urban electric railways. The city is the seat of the State Manual Training Normal School (1903) and of the Pittsburg Business College. Pittsburg is situated near the lead and zinc region of south-east Kansas and south-west Missouri, is in the midst of a large and rich bituminous coalfield, and lies near natural gas and oil fields. Among the manufactures are zinc spelter—there are large smelters here—clay products (chiefly vitrified brick, sewer pipe and tile; the clay being obtained from a great underlying bed of shale), blasting powder, packing-house products and planing-mill products. The total value of the city's factory products in 1905 was $1,824,929. Pittsburg was settled about 1879, was chartered as a city in 1880, and became a city of the first class in 1908.
PITTSBURG, or Pittsburgh,[1] the second largest city of Pennsylvania, U.S.A., and the county-seat of Allegheny county, on the Allegheny, Monongahela and Ohio rivers, 440 m. by rail W. by S. of New York City, 360 m. W. by N. of Philadelphia, 368 m. N.W. of Washington and 468 m. E. by S. of Chicago. Pop. (1890), 238,617;[2] (1900), 321,616, of whom 84,878 were foreign-born, 17,040 were negroes and 154 were Chinese; (1910 census, after the annexation of Allegheny), 533,905. Of the 84,878 foreign-born in 1900, 21,222 were natives of Germany, 18,620 of Ireland, 8902 of England, 6243 of Russian Poland, 5709 of Italy, 4107 of Russia, 3553 of Austria, 3515 of German Poland, 2539 of Wales, 2264 of Scotland, 2124 of Hungary, 1072 of Sweden and 1023 of Austrian Poland. Area (including Allegheny, annexed in 1906), 40.67 sq. m. Pittsburg is served by the Pennsylvania (several divisions), the Baltimore & Ohio, the Pittsburg & Lake Erie (controlled by the New York Central System), the Pittsburg, Cincinnati, Chicago & St Louis (controlled by the Pennsylvania Company), the Pittsburg, Chartiers & Youghiogheny (controlled jointly by the two preceding railways; 21 m. of track), the Buffalo, Rochester & Pittsburg, and the Wabash-Pittsburg Terminal (60 m. to Pittsburg Junction, Ohio; controlled by the Wabash railway), and the Pittsburg Terminal (also controlled by the Wabash and operating the
