[Portia], the rich heiress in the "Merchant of Venice," whose destiny in marriage depended, as ordained by her father, on the discretion of the wooer to choose the one of the three caskets that contained her portrait.
[Portland], 1, the largest city (50) and principal seaport of Maine, stands on a peninsula in Casco Bay, 108 in. NE. of Boston by rail. It has extensive wharfs, dry-docks, and grain-elevators, engineer shops, shoe-factories, and sugar-refineries. Settled as an English colony in 1632, it was ravaged by fire in 1866. Longfellow was born here. 2, largest city (90) in Oregon, on the Willamette River, nearly 800 m. N. of San Francisco; is a handsome city, with numerous churches and schools; there are iron-foundries, mechanics' shops, canneries, and flour-mills; railway communication connects it with St. Paul and Council Bluffs, and the river being navigable for deep-sea steamers, it is a thriving port of entry.
[Portland, Isle of], a rocky peninsula in the SW. of Dorsetshire, connected by Chesil Bank and the Mainland; is famous as the source of great quantities of fine building limestone; here is also a convict-prison opened 1848, accommodating 1500 prisoners.
[Portland Vase], an ancient cinerary urn of dark blue glass ornamented with Greek mythological figures carved in a layer of white enamel found near Rome about 1640, and which came into the possession of the Portland family in 1787, and is now in the British Museum. It is ten inches high and seven inches round.
[Porto Rico] (814), a West Indian island, half the size of Wales, 75 m. E. of Hayti, is well watered and very fertile. Ranges of hills run from E. to W., and are covered with valuable timber. Sugar, coffee, and rice are the principal crops; tobacco and tropical fruits are grown; cattle and horses are reared. Textile goods, hardware, and provisions are imported; the exports are sugar, coffee, tobacco, and cattle. The capital is St. John's (24), Mayaguez (27), and Ponce (40), the other towns. The island was discovered by Columbus, who called it Hispaniola, in 1493. Colonised by Spain in 1510, it attempted unsuccessfully to gain independence in 1820-23. The abolition of slavery in 1873, and the growth of population, marked the remainder of its history as a Spanish colony. It was seized by the United States in the war of 1898.
[Portobello] (8), a Midlothian watering-place on the Firth of Forth, 3 m. E. of Edinburgh, with which it is now incorporated for municipal purposes; has a fine esplanade and promenade pier, and manufactures of pottery, bricks, and bottles.
[Portsmouth], 1, largest city (10) of New Hampshire, and only seaport in the State, on the Piscataqua River, 3 m. from the ocean; is by rail 57 m. NE. of Boston, a handsome old town and favourite watering-place; near it is a U.S. navy-yard. 2, (12), On the Ohio River, in Ohio; is the centre of an extensive iron industry. 3, (13), Seaport and naval station on the Elizabeth River, Virginia.
[Portsmouth] (159), the most important British naval station, a seaport and market-town, is situated on Portsea Island, on the coast of Hants, 15 m. SE. of Southampton. It is an unimposing town, but strongly fortified. St. Thomas's and Garrison Chapel are old churches with historical associations. The naval dockyards contain 12 docks lined with masonry, vast store-houses, wood-mills, anchor-forges, and building-slips. Some of the docks are roofed over, as also is a large building-slip on which four vessels may be constructed at once. The harbour can receive the largest war-vessels, and in Spithead roadstead 1000 ships can anchor at once. The trade of Portsmouth is dependent on the dockyards. It owes its defences to Edward IV. Elizabeth, and William III. It was the scene of Buckingham's assassination and of the loss of the Royal George. Three novelists were born here—Dickens, Meredith, and Besant.
[Portugal] (5,000), a country as large as Ireland, bounded on the S. and W. by the Atlantic, on the N. and E. by Spain, from which at different places it is separated by the rivers Minho, Douro, Tagus, and Guadiana; consists of the Atlantic slopes of the great peninsular tableland, and has a moist, warm atmosphere, heavy rains, and frequent fogs. The above rivers and the Mondego traverse it; their valleys are fertile, the mountain slopes covered with forests. In the N. the oak abounds, in the centre the chestnut, in the S. cork-trees and palms. Agriculture, carried on with primitive implements, is the chief industry. Indian corn, wheat, and in the S. rice, are extensively grown; the vine yields the most valuable crops, but in the N. it is giving place to tobacco. There are a few textile factories. The largest export is wine; the others, cork, copper ore, and onions, which are sent to Great Britain, Brazil, and France. The principal imports, iron, textiles, and grain. The capital is Lisbon, on the Tagus, one of the finest towns in the world. Oporto, the chief manufacturing centre, and second city for commerce, is at the mouth of the Douro. Braga was once the capital. Coimbra, on the Mondego, is the rainiest place in Europe. There are good roads between the chief towns, 1200 m. of railway and 3000 m. of telegraph. The people are a mixed race, showing traces of Arab, Berber, and Negro blood, with a predominance of northern strains. They are courteous and gentle; the peasantry hard-working and thrifty. Roman Catholic is the national faith, but they are tolerant of other religions. The language is closely akin to Spanish. Education is backward. The Government is a limited monarchy, there being two houses of Parliament—Peers and Deputies. The Azores and Madeira are part of the kingdom; there are colonies in Africa and Asia, in which slavery was abolished only in 1878. The 14th and 15th centuries saw the zenith of Portugal's fortunes. At that time, in strict alliance with England, she raised herself by her enterprise to the foremost maritime and commercial power of Europe; her navigators founded Brazil, and colonised India. Diaz in 1487 discovered and Vasco da Gama in 1497 doubled the Cape of Good Hope. In 1520 Magellan sailed round the world; but in the 16th century the extensive emigration, the expulsion of the Jews, the introduction of the Inquisition, and the spread of Jesuit oppression, led to a speedy downfall. For a time she was annexed to Spain. Regaining her independence, she threw herself under the protection of England, her traditional friend, during the Napoleonic struggle. She is now an inconsiderable power, commercially thriving, politically restless, financially unsound.
[Poseidon], in the Greek mythology the god of the sea, a son of Kronos and Rhea, and brother of Zeus, Pluto, Hera, Hestia, and Demeter; had his home in the sea depths, on the surface of which he appeared with a long beard, seated in a chariot drawn by brazen-hoofed horses with golden manes, and wielding a trident, which was the symbol of his power, exercised in production of earthquake and storms. See [Pluto].