Rue ; the distinction between the two portions being well marked by their physical features. Upper Auvergne is rugged and mountainous, and is covered with evidences of volcanic activity, while Lower Auvergne consists largely of fertile and well-watered expanses. In climate, too, there is a marked difference ; the former suffering from violent extremes, and the latter enjoying a mild and equable temperature. The whole district is largely agricultural, and special attention is paid to the rearing of cattle, horses, and mules. The mountains are rich in minerals, such as iron, lead, copper, and coal ; and numerous medi cinal springs are scattered along their slopes. The inhabi tants, who to a certain extent are the descendants of the ancient Arverni, are a strong, ungainly race, habituated to toilsome labour. For a long time they have been accus tomed to leave their homes for the purpose of seeking their fortunes abroad, returning after they have acquired a competency. Spain was at one period a favourite resort, but the current of emigration is now principally towards Paris or the Belgian towns. In Paris alone it has been calculated that the Auvergnats number 50,000. They speak a distinct dialect, and are also recognised by their pronunciation. A closer resemblance to Latin, and the presence of many sounds, such as ts, tz, dj, which are foreign to ordinary French, are among the most striking features of the patois; the vocabulary also contains words introduced by the English at the time of their occupation of the country in the 14th century. Of the existing literature a con siderable proportion is spurious. Auvergne was early raised to the rank of a countship, and passed into the hands of various families, the most important of which is known as La Tour d Auvergne. It was finally united to the crown by Louis XIII. Of the numerous books which have been written on this interesting province, the following may be mentioned : Aigneperse, Petit Diet, des parsonnages d Auvergne, 1850; Michel, L ancicnne Auvergne, 3 vols. fol. ; Imberdis, L Auvergne historique, and Hist, des (jucrres rclig. en Auvergne pendant Ics XVI e et XVII e sieclcs ; Allard, Les caux thermo-mincrales d Auvergne.
AUXENTIUS of Cappadocia was an Arian theologian
of some eminence. When Constantino deposed the ortho
dox bishops who resisted, Auxentius was installed into the
seat of Dionysius, bishop of Milan, and came to be regarded
as the great opponent of the Nicene doctrine in the
West. So prominent did he become, that he was specially
mentioned by name in the condemnatory decree of the
synod which Damasus, bishop of Rome, convened in
defence of the Nicene doctrine. When the orthodox
emperor Valentinian ascended the throne, Auxentius was
left undisturbed in his diocese, but his theological doctrines
were publicly attacked by Hilarius of Poitiers. The chief
source of information about him is the Liber contra Aiixen-
tium in the Benedictine edition of the works of Hilarius.
AUXERRE (the ancient Autissiodurum), a town of France, in the department of Yonne, situated on the banks of the Yonne, in a wine-producing district, and built in an antique fashion. Its cathedral is one of the finest Gothic buildings in the country, and its episcopal palace, now used as a prefecture, will bear comparison with any. It has several normal schools, a college founded by the famous Jacques Amyot (who was a native of the town, and died there in 1593), a society of agriculture, botanic garden, museum, theatre, an extensive and valuable library, &c. The Yonne is navigable from a little above the town. Besides trade in wine and in firewood, there are manufactures of cloths, druggets, serges, cotton and woollen stockings, and some considerable tanneries. Population, 15,497.
AUXONNE (formerly Assonium, i.e., ad Sonam, from its position on the Saone), a city of France, in the arrondissement of Dijon and department of Côte d'Or. It is strongly fortified, and possesses an old castle, an arsenal, and a school of artillery. Besides their manufactures of cloth and serges, the inhabitants carry on by the river considerable traffic with Lyons in wine, grain, and wood. Long. 5° 24′ E., lat. 47° 13′ N. Population, 5911.
AVA, the former capital of the Burman empire, lies in
21 52 N. Iat, and 96 1 E. long. It is situated on the
Irawadi, which is here 3282 feet broad, and which, making
a bend out of its ordinary course, flows past the city on the
north. On the east it has the river Myt-nge, a rapid stream
450 feet broad, which flows into the Irawadi close under
its walls. From this river a canal has been dug, through
which its waters flow on the south-east angle of the city,
and are again brought into the same river. On the south
flows the deep and rapid torrent of the Myt-tha, an offshoot
of the Myt-nge, which, falling into the Irawadi, forms the
defence both of the south and of the west face of the town.
It is divided into the upper and lower, or the lesser and
the larger town, both of which are fortified.
The brick wall that surrounds the city is 15 J feet in height and 10 feet in thickness, on the inside of which is thrown up a bank of earth, forming an angle of 45 degrees. There is a ditch round the outer wall which is inconsiderable, and in the dry season fordable in every part. The lesser town is chiefly occupied by the royal palace, the hall of justice, the council chamber, the arsenal, and the habitations of a few courtiers of distinction. A strong well- built wall of more solid construction than the outer wall of the city, and about 20 feet high, encloses the square in which these buildings are situated, and on the outside is a teak-wood stockade of the same height. The ditch which surrounds the lesser town is, moreover, deeper and broader than that of the city, and when full is not to be forded. There are, however, three causeways across, which com municate with the adjacent country. The circumference of the city, excluding the suburbs, is about 5J miles, but over this exten sive area the houses are but thinly scattered ; some quarters are, indeed, wholly destitute of habitations, and have the appearance merely of neglected commons. In general the dwellings of the inhabitants are of the most miserable sort, being mere huts thatched with grass. "Wretched as are such habitations to European eyes, the poorer classes are perhaps as well lodged here as in any other parts of Asia. Their sleeping-places are elevated 2 or 3 feet from the ground. Some of the houses of the chiefs are constructed of planks, and tiled ; but there are not, according to Mr Crawford, more than half-a-dozen edifices built of brick and mortar. Ava, like all the other Burmese towns, is adorned with numerous temples, of which the gilded spires, rising aloft, present on a distant view of the place a splendid and imposing appearance, which is far from being realised on a nearer inspection. The largest of these temples contains two distinct edifices, one ill the ancient, the other in a modern form ; the former containing an image of Gautama, not of marble, as Symes supposes, but of sandstone. It is in a sitting posture, and is 24 feet in height. The head is 8 feet in diameter. There is another very large temple, and a third named the "Beautiful." The one called Maong-Eatna is of great celebrity ; it is the one in which the public officers of the government take, with the most solemn forms, the oath of allegiance. The temple called Maha-mrat-muni had an addition made to it some years ago, of which Mr Crawford mentions that the numerous and richly- gilded pillars and splendid ceiling exceeded anything that was to be seen without the palace. Ava contains eleven markets or bazars, composed of thatched huts and sheds, which, however, are well supplied with all that is necessary for the wants of the people. Besides native commodities, there are exposed in these markets the produce of China and Lao, with British cottons, woollens, glass, and earthenware. The Burman monasteries are mostly built of wood ; and of those composed of more solid materials, a few ancient ones are nearly all that are to be seen. The only exception is a monastery, built some years ago by the queen, adjoining the palace an unshapely fabric of immense size, but a very conspicuous object.
This former capital of the Burman dominions compre hends, according to the political divisions of that empire, the town of Sagaing, on the opposite shore of the Irawadi, and the town of Amarapura, 4 miles to the east. The town of Sagaing extends along the Irawadi for more than a mile and a half, but is of inconsiderable breadth. It consists of mean houses thinly scattered among gardens and orchards, the principal trees in the latter consisting of fine old tamarinds. Over the site of the town and its
environs are scattered innumerable temples, some of them
