[Algæ], sea-weeds and plants of the same order under fresh water as well as salt; they are flowerless, stemless, and cellular throughout.
[Algar`di], an Italian sculptor of note, born at Bologna; his greatest work is an alto-relievo, the largest existing, of Pope Leo restraining Attila from marching on Rome (1602-1654).
[Algaro`tti, Francesco], a clever Italian author, born at Venice, whom, for his wit, Frederick the Great was attached to and patronised, "one of the first beaux esprits of the age," according to Wilhelmina, Frederick's sister. Except his wit, it does not appear Frederick got much good out of him, for the want of the due practical faculty, all the faculty he had having evaporated in talk (1712-1764).
[Algar`ve] (240), the southernmost province of Portugal, hilly, but traversed with rich valleys, which yield olives, vines, oranges, &c.
[Algebra], a universal arithmetic of Arabian origin or Arabian transmission, in which symbols are employed to denote operations, and letters to represent number and quantity.
[Alge`ria], in the N. of Africa, belongs to France, stretches between Morocco on the W. and Tripoli and Tunis on the E., the country being divided into the Tell along the sea-coast, which is fertile, the Atlas Highlands overlooking it on the S., on the southern slopes of which are marshy lakes called "shotts," on which alfa grows wild, and the Sahara beyond, rendered habitable here and there by the creation of artesian wells; its extent nearly equal in area to that of France, and the population numbers about four millions, of which only a quarter of a million is French. The country is divided into Departments, of which Algiers, Oran, and Constantine are the respective capitals. It has been successively under the sway of the Carthaginians, the Romans, the Vandals, the Arabs, the Byzantines, and the Berbers, which last were in the 16th century supplanted by the Turks. At the end of this period it became a nest of pirates, against whom a succession of expeditions were sent from several countries of Europe, but it was only with the conquest of it by the French in 1830 that this state of things was brought to an end.
[Algesi`ras] (12), a town and port in Spain on the Bay of Gibraltar, 5 m. across the bay; for centuries a stronghold of the Moors, but taken from them by Alfonso IX. after a siege of twenty months.
[Algiers`] (75), the capital of Algeria, founded by the Arabs in 935, called the "silver city," from the glistening white of its buildings as seen sloping up from the sea, presenting a striking appearance, was for centuries under its Bey the head-quarters of piracy in the Mediterranean, which only began to cease when Lord Exmouth bombarded the town and destroyed the fleet in the harbour. Since it fell into the hands of the French the city has been greatly improved, the fortifications strengthened, and its neighbourhood has become a frequent resort of English people in winter.
[Algine], a viscous gum obtained from certain sea-weeds, used as size for textile fabrics, and for thickening soups and jellies.
[Algo`a Bay], an inlet at the E. of Cape Colony, 20 m. wide, on which Port Elizabeth stands, 425 m. E. of the Cape of Good Hope.