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This is a scanned image from The New Student's Reference Work, 1914. Please help to proofread the OCR text below.
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Page 1348 : NICE — NICKEL
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appropriation from Congress of $100,000,000, with provision for government supervision. Failing in this, the work ceased, and finally the concession from the government of Nicaragua lapsed. In 1897 the United States government took up the question of the construction of a canal, and a commission was appointed to survey and report the most practicable route and estimate the cost of construction. In 1899 a new commission was authorized to make further inquiry and report, considering both the Nicaragua and the Panama route. The Nicaragua route was recommended, and the cost of the canal was estimated at $118,000,000 to $135,000,000. In 1903, however, the Panama (q. v.) route was adopted, the United States purchasing the properties of the Panama Canal Company for $40,000,000.
Nice (nēs), a French seaport and the largest town of the Alpes-Maritimes department of France, lies on the coast 140 miles from Marseilles. Owing to its southern sea-exposure and shelter by the hills on the north, it has long been a famous winter resort for invalids. The city is divided into three parts — the New Town, the Old Town and the Port. The chief public buildings are the cathedral, church of Nôtre Dame, natural history museum, art gallery, library, observatory and casino. Its main export is olive-oil. The town was founded by a colony from Massalia (Marseilles) and became subject to Rome in the 5th century B. C. It once was in the hands of the Saracens, and after being an independent city acknowledged the counts of Provence and the house of Savoy in 1388. In 1543 it was pillaged by the Turks, and in 1860 was finally ceded to France by Sardinia. In 1887 it was visited by a destructive earthquake. Population 142,940. See Nash’s Guide to Nice.
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Nicholas, St., the patron saint of [[../Russia, Empire of|Russia]], whose life is wrapped in obscurity. He is supposed to have lived about 300 A. D. He was bishop of Mira in Lycia, and was imprisoned under Diocletian and released under Constantine. In Catholic countries St. Nicholas is especially the patron of the young and particularly of scholars. In England his feast was publicly celebrated in ancient times. Santa Claus is a corruption of the name, introduced into England from America; the old Dutch settlers of New York kept a Santa Claus holiday. St. Nicholas also was the patron of merchants, sailors and travelers; and, as he was prayed to for protection against robbers, the term “clerks of St. Nicholas” came, oddly enough, to be a cant name for robbers.
Nicias (nish′ i-as), an Athenian statesman and general of the Peloponnesian war, was the son of the wealthy Niceratus. After the death of Pericles, he was the political opponent of Cleon and later of Alcibiades. In 427 B. C. he defeated the Spartans and Corinthians, and ravaged Minoa, Melos and Locris. In 424 he ravaged Cythera and part of Laconia. In 415 he was appointed one of the commanders against Sicily, and in the autumn laid siege to Syracuse. At first successful, later his fleet was destroyed, his army began a retreat, and he was captured and put to death in 413 B. C. See Plutarch’s Life of Nikias (edited by H. A. Holden).
Nick′el, a malleable, ductile and tenacious grayish-white metal, was discovered by Cronsted in 1751, but was long before that time used in alloys by the Chinese. Yet previous to 1879 it, being difficult of fusing, was only used as an alloy in German silver. In that year Fleitmann discovered that mixed with ⅛ of one per cent. of [[../Magnesium|magnesium]] it could be easily rolled and drawn. The metal does not readily alter by expo-
