MENELAUS. 314 MENEPTAH. books, under the title Sphwrica. The latter, al- though not now extunt in Greek, is known in Ara- bic and Hebrew, and in several Latin translations. It is a treatise on spherical triangles, with respect not to their solution, but to their geometric properties. One of the most interesting proposi- tions is that concerning a spherical triangle cut by a transversal, the corresponding i)roposition for plane triangles being stated a.s a lemma. This theorem, known by the name of Jlenelaus, as- serts that if the lines of the three sides of a triangle be cut by a transversal, the product of three segments which have no common extremity is equal to the prodiict of the other three. For spherical triangles "the chords of three segments doubled' replaces "three .segments.' The proposi- tion was often called in the Middle Ages the regula scjc (juantitatum. KEIT'ELEK, or, more correctly, ^Ie.mlek (1844 — ). A King of Abyssinia, born in Anko- bar, where his father. Ailu Jlalakoth, was crow^^ prince of the Kingdom of Shoa. After his fath- er's death in lS.i.5, Menelek was for ten years interned in Gojam by his father's rival, Theodore, ■who attempted to make peace with him by giving him his daughter to wife. But in 1805 he es- caped to Shoa, where he managed to establish him- self.tluinks to England's interference in Abyssinia, and as King (or Ras) of Shoa had little trouble in defeating the son of John, Ras of Tigr^, in 1880 and in coming to the -Vbyssinian throne, to ■which he claimed a family right by his descent from King Solomon. For the mo.st part friendh' to Enropcan civilization, Menelek was in many respects a savage. But he showed remarkable ability in bringing his army to a high pitch of boldness. England's intervention between Italy and Abyssinia had already checked an open break, but when Italy claimed a prntcctorate Itv the Treaty of Ucliali, ilenelek jirotested in 18!1.'3. and in 18'.I0 by the victory at .Vdowa forced Italy to sign the Peace of Addis Abeba, thus giving up all claim to a protectorate. He came to a complete understanding with Great Britain in 1808. See AllYSSIMA. MENENDEZ DE AVILES, nu'inanMAth dA a'v*-las', Pedro (1510-74). The founder of Saint Augustine, Fla. He was born at Avi- lOs, in .st>irias. Spain. Philip II, placed him in coMunand of the llect which escorted the treasure vessels to and from the West Indies. Scouring a grant of Florida with the title of Adclantado or fiovernor. he set sail. .Tune 20, 15(;5. willi nineteen vessels carrying fifteen hun- Urcil settlers, with orders to occupy the country and expel the French, who were making this their headquarters for privateering. On Saint Augus- tine's day, August 28th, Menendez discovered the harbor, on whose shores, on September 0th, he began to build a fort, around which the present city of that name has grown up. Here the French llngnenols under Ribaut (q.v.) attacked him. but n hurricane <Irove them olT, and before they could retnni to Iheir setdeinenl at Fort Caroline on the Saint .lohn's River. Menendez attacked that post and massacred one hundred and forty-two of the garrison. The French fleet meanwhile had ^>fim wrecked, and the crews were forced to sur- render to Menendez, who put a hundred and eighty of them to death. In 1507 Menendez re- turned to Spain, and during hi-i absence, in .pril, 15C8, his colony was attacked bv a French fleet under Dominique de Gourges. who hanged a num- ber of Spaniards. Meanwjiile Jlenendez had al- ready started back, sailing from San Lucas on March lythwitli supplies and reinforcements. with which he reestablished Saint Augustine. He had been appointed Governor of Cuba, anil his eli'orta during the next few years were mainly devoted to that island and the gulf mainland. In 1570 he sent an expedition to the Chesapeake, which ascended the Potomac and built a chapel on the Rappahannock, where the party were killed by the Indians. In 1572 Menendez revisited Florida and went on to the Chesapeake, where he cap- tured several Indians supposed to have taken part in the massacre of his colony two years previously, and lianged tliem. Philip II. soon after this recalled him to Spain, where he died at Santandcr. September 17. 1574. MENENDEZ Y PELAYO, raa-ni 'dath « pu-Ui'vo, iLvacELi.xo (1850 — ). A Spanish man of letters, born in the District of Santander, November .3. 1850; he studied there ami at the imiversities of Barcelona and iladrid. When but twenty-two years old he was apjiointed to a chair of philosophy and letters in the University of Madrid, and at the age of twcnty-tive he wa» admitted into the Spanish Academy. He relin- quisheil his chair at the university after more than twenty years' service to become director of the Bil)lioteca Xacional. ilenendez y Pelayo is a humanist in letters and one of the most capable critics that Europe has produced in modern times. His works are as remarkable for their finish of form as they are for solidity of content, and give amjjle proof of the author's I)alriotism and respect for the institutions and traditions of his country. Menendez y Pelayo's literary activity began with the Estiirlios critirot sohre cscritorcfi mnntaHefies (Santander, 1876), and the treatise. Horacio en Efipnuti (2d ed. Madrid, 1885). The volume Calderon ;/ xu tcatro (Madrid, 1881) contains lectures delivered upon the occasion of the centenary of the great dram- atist. Various essays that had done iluty as prefaces to books or as critiques were gathered together into the volume entitled Esliidiox (It crilica lilcrnria (Madrid. 1884). Religious dis- cussiims play no small part in the nolewnrthy Historitt dc los hctrrodo.rnfi fspaTiolcfi (1880-81), and his aesthetically critical temperament U nowhere better exhibited than in the series of volumes constituting the Hiatoria de las idma est(!tieas en K.iiiitiin (1884-01). His verse, which is graceful, also dis])lays well the erudition of the man, as may be se<>n in the collection Odai, epifiiohtfi 1/ li'dtrrfliits (18S.1). MENEP'TAH. or MERNEPTAH (Egyp- tian Merien-Pliih, 'Beloved of Ptah': Lat. Am- enephlhes : Gk.Wiifitye(p$lt. Ammenephthis), A king of Egypt, the son and successor of Rameses il. fq.v. ). He reigned for some twenty years about the miilille of the thirteenth century n.c. and. in the fifth year of his n-ign, repelled a formidable invasion of Libyans and pirates. He built largely at Tanis, and left monuments in various parts "of Egypt. Formerly there seemed to he gooil grounds for identifying this King with the Pharaoh of the Exodus, but an inscription, dis- covered in 1800. mentions Israel as settled in Palestine in the fifth year of Meneptah's reign, and the identification' is therefore impossible. The text of this interesting inscription, which
