218 NEILGHERRY HILLS a member of the national academy of design. In 1872 he visited England. Among his pic- tures are " The Artist's Dream," " The Captive Huguenot," " Gertrude of Wyoming," " Hia- watha and Minnehaha," and " Pocahontas." NEILGHERRY HILLS (Sansk.^ Nilgiri, blue mountains), a group of mountains in southern India, comparatively isolated from the other mountain systems of the country, but connected by an elevated ridge with the adjacent table land of Mysore, and thus with the Western Ghauts, and by hill ranges also with the East- ern. They are situated between lat. 11 10' and 11 38' K, and Ion. 76 30' and 77 10' E., in the W. part of the province of Madras, of which they form a political district (pop. in 1872, 50,194). The region to which they be- long was transferred to the British in 1799 on the downfall of Tippoo Sahib. At an elevation of 5,000 ft. the group has a maximum length of 42 m. measured from N". E. to S. W., and aver- ages 14 m. in width. Its general outline is tri- angular, with one side fronting Mysore and the other Malabar. On the south, at Palghat, the Neilgherries overlook the pass known as the gap of Coimbatore, which separates them from the hill region at the S. extremity of the peninsnla. The surface of the mountains varies greatly in aspect and elevation, from undulating slopes and low ridges to grand peaks of lofty height. The highest is Dodabetta, 8,760 ft. above the sea, which was long supposed to be the loftiest summit in India S. of the Himalaya, but is now known to be surpassed by a mountain in the Annimalli range further S., which is a few hundred feet higher. Of the other peaks in the Neilgherry hills, five are more than 8,000 ft. high, four exceed 7,000 ft., and there are six over 6,000 ft. Granite is the prevailing geolo- gical formation, and the soil generally is black, rich, and fertile. Peat occurs in some locali- ties. The unhealthy forest belt at the base of the group was long an obstacle to exploration ; it is the haunt of numerous wild beasts, inclu- ding the elephant and the tiger. In the hills the wood districts are open and park-like, while at the higher elevations is a well watered grass country with the vegetation of the temperate zone. The native Todas of this region differ both in appearance and language from all other races in India. They are tall and well formed, with light complexions and strongly marked Jewish features. Infanticide and polygamy prevail among them. A Hindoo tribe known as the Badakars, however, constitutes a pros- perous, influential, and numerous portion of the population. Several other tribes are met with, sunk in the depths of degradation and superstition. The most important pursuit in the Neilgherry district is the cultivation of cin- chona, introduced by the British government in 1860, and now also carried on by private planters. In 187l-'2 the government planta- tions covered 950 acres, and contained more than 2,500,000 plants, which yielded 72,983 Ibs. of bark. There is also a government teak plan- NELSON tation ; and magnificent plantations of Austra- lian gum trees (eucalyptus) have been formed under the direction of the Madras forest de- partment. The principal European station is at Utakamund, a small town 7,300 ft. above the sea, in lat. 11 24' K, Ion. 76 47' E., near the centre of the group. NEISSE, a fortified town of Prussian Silesia, on the southern Neisse at its confluence with the Biela, 30 m. S. W. of Oppeln ; pop. in 1871, 19,376. The fortress, one of the most impor- tant in Prussia, was built by Frederick the Great. The town is clean and well built, and contains two Lutheran and eight Roman Cath- olic churches, a Roman Catholic gymnasium and other schools, several manufactories of lin- ens and woollens, arms, and gunpowder, and a number of distilleries. Neisse was besieged three times in 1428 by the Hussites, taken by Frederick the Great in 1741, unsuccessfully besieged by the Austrians in 1758, and reduced by the French in 1807. In February, 1873, it was proposed to dismantle the fortifications. NELATON, Angnste, a French surgeon, born in Paris, June 17, 1807, died there, Sept. 21, 1873. He studied under Dupuytren, took his degree in 1836, and was surgeon of prominent hospitals, adjunct professor in the faculty of Paris from 1839 to 1851, and subsequently regular profes- sor of clinical surgery till 1867. In 1868 he was made senator, lie was also a member of the academy, and the favorite surgeon of Napo- leon III. He invented a remarkable method for the immediate extraction of calculi, distinct from all the processes of lithotrity, and effected many successful operations in this and other branches of his profession. With Velpeau and others he published Rapport sur les pr ogres de la cUrurgie (1867) ; but his principal work is Elements de pathologie chirurgicale (5 vols., 1844-'60; 2d ed., 1867-'70), of^ which vol. v., and according to some authorities also vol. iv., were written by Dr. A. Jamain. NELSON. I. A central county of Virginia, bordered S. E. by the James river and N. W. by the Blue Ridge, and drained by the Rock- fish, Rock, and Tye rivers ; area, 340 sq. m. ; pop. in 1870, 13,898, of whom. 6,312 were colored. The surface is hilly and the soil fer- tile. A canal extending along the James river connects it with Richmond, and it is intersected by the Washington City, Virginia Midland, and Great Southern railroad. The chief produc- tions in 1870 were 77,106 bushels of wheat, 186,858 of Indian corn, 98,771 of oats, 12,707 of Irish and 4,374 of sweet potatoes, 1,199,182 Ibs. of tobacco, 6,629 of wool, 111,524 of but- ter, and 5,122 gallons of sorghum molasses. There were 1,952 horses, 2,246 milch cows, 707 working oxen, 3,073 other cattle, 3,048 sheep, and 8,423 swine. Capital, Lovingston. II. A central county of Kentucky, drained bj Rolling fork and Beech fork of Salt river; area, about 350 sq. m. ; pop. in 1870, 14,804, of whom 3,918 were colored. It has an undu- lating surface and a fertile soil, especially to-
