Æolian Harp, or Æolus' Harp, a musical instrument, generally consisting of a box of thin fibrous wood (often of deal), to which are attached from eight to fifteen fine catgut strings or wires, stretched on low bridges at either end, and tuned in unison. Its length is made to correspond with the size of the window or other aperture in which it is intended to be placed. When the wind blows athwart the strings it produces very beautiful sounds, sweetly mingling all the harmonic tones, and swelling or diminishing according to the strength or weakness of the blast.
Æolians (Gr. Aioleis), one of the four races into which the ancient Greeks were divided, originally inhabiting the district of Æŏlis, in Thessaly, from which they spread over other parts of Greece. In early times they were the most numerous and powerful of the Hellenic races, chiefly inhabiting Northern Greece and the western side of Peloponnesus, though latterly a portion of them went to Lesbos and Tenedos and the north-west shores of Asia Minor, where they possessed a number of cities. Their language, the Æolian dialect, was one of the three principal dialects of the Greek. It was cultivated for literary purposes chiefly at Lesbos, and was the dialect in which Alcæus and Sappho wrote.
Æol′ipile (Lat. Æŏli pila, the ball of Æŏlus), a spherical vessel of metal, with a pipe of small aperture, through which the vapour of heated water in the ball passes out with considerable noise; or having two nozzles so placed that the steam rushing out causes it to revolve on the principle of the Barker's mill. It was known to the ancient Greeks.
Æ′olus, in Greek mythology, the god of the winds, which he kept confined in a cave in the Æolian Islands, releasing them when he wished or was commanded by the superior gods.
Æ′on, a Greek word signifying life, an age, and sometimes eternity, but used by the Gnostics to express spirits or powers that had emanated from the Supreme Mind before the beginning of time. They held both Christ and the Holy Spirit to be æons; but as they denied the divine origin of the books of Moses, they said that the spirit which had inspired him and the prophets was not that exalted æon whom God sent forth after the ascension of Christ, but an æon very much inferior, and removed at a great distance from the Supreme Being.
Æpyor′nis, a genus of gigantic birds whose remains have been found in Madagascar, where they are supposed to have lived perhaps not longer than 200 years ago. It had three toes, and is classed with the cursorial birds (ostrich, &c.). Its eggs measured 14 inches in length, being about six times the bulk of those of the ostrich. The bird which laid them may well have been the roc of Eastern tradition.
Æ′qui, an ancient people of Italy, conspicuous in the early wars of Rome, and inhabiting the mountain district between the upper valley of the Anio (Teverone) and Lake Fucĭnus. They were probably akin to the Volscians, with whom they were in constant alliance. They were defeated by Cincinnatus in 458 B.C., and again by the dictator Postumius Tubertus in 428 B.C., and were finally subdued about 304-302 B.C. Soon after they were admitted to Roman citizenship.
A′erated Bread, bread which receives its sponginess or porosity from carbonic acid supplied artificially, and not produced by the fermentation caused by leaven or yeast.
A′erated Waters, waters impregnated with carbonic acid gas, and forming effervescing beverages. Some mineral waters are naturally aerated, as Vichy, Apollinaris, Rosbach, &c.; others, especially such as are used for medicinal purposes, are frequently aerated to render them more palatable and exhilarating. Water simply aerated, as soda-water, or aerated and flavoured with lemon or fruit syrups, is largely used, especially in summer, as a refreshing beverage. There are numerous varieties of apparatus for manufacturing aerated waters. The essential parts of an aerated-water machine are a generator in which the gas is produced, a vessel containing the water to be impregnated, and an apparatus for forcing the gas into the water. This last may be effected by force-pumps or by the high pressure of the impregnating gas itself. The quantity of gas with which the water is charged is usually equal to a pressure of 5 atmospheres. See also Mineral Waters.—Cf. W. Kirkby, Evolution of Artificial Mineral Waters.
Aerial Ropeways or Cableways, a means of transport or carriage in which a great rope or cable, elevated above the ground on fixed supports, is made use of in conveying from place to place materials or articles of various kinds. Such a cable may be said to serve the purpose of a rail, from which are suspended the carriages, buckets, or carriers of whatever sort are employed to convey the materials dealt with, the cable being actuated by means of a steam-engine and winding-gear of suitable construction. Such cables are now much used in carrying materials