Volume 3, Part 1, Slice 2 Part 39 (1/2)

BAN, a word taken from the root of a verb common to many Teutonic languages and meaning originally ”to proclaim” or ”to announce.” The Late Lat. form of the word is _bannum_.

In the laws of the Franks and kindred tribes the word had three main uses: first in the general sense of a proclamation, secondly, for the fine incurred for disobeying such proclamation, and thirdly for the district over which proclamations were issued.

It was the frequent use of proclamations or bans, commanding or forbidding certain actions under a threat of punishment, which caused the second of these uses to arise out of the first, as the idea of wrong-doing became a.s.sociated with the proclamation or ban. This _bannum dominic.u.m_, as it was called, was employed by all feudal lords, from the king downwards, against offenders, and played an important part in the administration of justice in feudal times. It usually took the form of an order to make some amend for wrong-doing, which, if not complied with, was followed by the withdrawal of all protection from the offender, _i.e._ by outlawry.

After the break-up of the Carolingian empire another use of the word arose in France. ”Ban” had occasionally been used in a restricted sense referring only to the summons calling out the host; and as France became separated from the Empire, French law and custom seized upon this use, and soon the men liable to military service were known as ”the ban.” A variant form of this word was _heriban_ or _ariban_, and it is possible that some confusion between the early syllables of this word and the word _arriere_ led to a distinction between the _ban_ and the _arriere-ban_ or _retro-bannum_. At all events this distinction arose; the _ban_ referring to the va.s.sals called out by the king, and the _arriere-ban_ to the sub-va.s.sals called upon by the va.s.sals in their turn. As in England, the liability to military service was often commuted for a monetary payment, and there were various exemptions. In the 17th and 18th centuries the ban and arriere-ban were lacking in discipline when called out, and were last summoned in 1758.

Local levies, however, called out between this date and the Revolution were sometimes referred to by these names.

In the medieval Empire and in Germany the word ”ban” retained the special sense of punishment. The German equivalent of ban is _Acht_, and the sentence soon became practically one of outlawry. Connected possibly with the power enjoyed in earlier times by the a.s.semblies of freemen of outlawing an offender, it was frequently used by the emperor, or German king, and the phrase ”under the ban” is very common in medieval history.

The execution of this sentence of placing an offender under the imperial ban, or _Reichsacht_, was usually entrusted to some prince or n.o.ble, who was often rewarded with a portion of the outlaw's lands. It was, however, only a serious punishment when the king or his supporters were strong enough to enforce its execution. Employed not only against individuals but also against towns and districts, it was sometimes divided into the _Acht_ and the _Oberacht_, _i.e._ partial or complete outlawry. Doc.u.ments of the time show that the person placed under the imperial ban drew down absolute dest.i.tution upon his relatives and frequently death upon himself. At first this sentence was the act of the [v.03 p.0305] emperor or king himself, but as the Empire became more German, and its administration less personal, it was entrusted to the imperial aulic council (_Reichshofrat_), and to the imperial court of justice or imperial chamber (_Reichskammergericht_).

These courts were deprived of this power in 1711, retaining only the right of suggesting its use. The imperial ban had, however, been used for the last time in 1706, when Maximilian Emanuel, elector of Bavaria, was placed under it.

There are many other uses of the word in the sense of a prohibition. In earlier French law the ban of wine or _bannum vini_, was the exclusive right of a lord to sell wine during a stated number of days, and the ban of March and April forbade the pasturing of cattle in certain fields during these months. There were also other similar uses dating from feudal times.

In modern French law the phrase _rupture de ban_ described, previous to 1885, the departure without notice of any released criminal living under the special surveillance of the police. The French government still retains the rights of appointing an obligatory place of residence for any criminal, and any escape from this place is a _rupture de ban_. A Scandinavian use of the word gives it the sense of a curse. This usage mingling with the use which spiritual lords shared with temporal lords of issuing the ban over their dependents, has become in a special sense ecclesiastical, and the sentence of excommunication is frequently referred to as ”under the papal ban.” The word is also used in this way by Shakespeare and Milton. The modern English use of the phrase ”under the ban” refers to any line of conduct condemned by custom or public opinion. In its earlier and general sense as a proclamation, the ban may be said to have been suspended by the writ. The word, however, survives in the sense of a proclamation in the ”banns of marriage” (_q.v._).

The Persian word _ban_, meaning lord or master, was brought into Europe by the Avars. It was long used in many parts of south-eastern Europe, especially in southern Hungary, to denote the governors of military districts called _banats_, and is almost equivalent to the German _margrave_. After enjoying very extensive powers the bans were gradually reduced, both in numbers and importance. Since 1868, however, the governor of Croatia and Slavonia has been known as the ban of Croatia, Slavonia and Dalmatia, but his duties are civil and not military. He is appointed by the emperor of Austria, as king of Hungary, and has a seat in the upper house of the Hungarian parliament.

See Du Cange, _Glossarium_, tome i. (Niort, 1883); H. Brunner, _Grundzuge der deutschen Rechtsgeschichte_ (Leipzig, 1901); E. P. Boutaric, _Inst.i.tutions militaires de la France_ (Paris, 1863); Pere G. Daniel, _Histoire de la milice francaise_ (Paris, 1721).

BANANA, a gigantic herbaceous plant belonging to the genus _Musa_ (nat.

ord. Musaceae). It is perennial, sending up from an underground root-stock an apparent stem 15 or 20 ft. high, consisting of the closely-enveloped leaf-sheaths, the corresponding blades, each sometimes 10 ft. in length, forming a spreading crown. A true stem develops at the flowering period; it grows up through the hollow tube formed by the sheaths, emerges above and bears a large number of inconspicuous tubular flowers closely crowded in the axils of large, often brightly-coloured, protecting bracts. The fruits form dense cl.u.s.ters.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Banana (_Musa sapientum_).]

The genus _Musa_ contains about 40 species, widely distributed throughout the tropics of the Old World, and in some cases introduced into the New World. In many parts of the tropics they are as important to the inhabitants as are the grain plants to those living in cooler regions. They are most successfully cultivated in a hot, damp, tropical climate. The northern limit of their cultivation (usually _Musa Cavendis.h.i.+_) is reached in Florida, south of 29 lat., the Canary Islands, Egypt and south j.a.pan, the southern limit in Natal and south Brazil. There has been considerable discussion as to whether the banana was growing in America before the discovery of the New World. It has been suggested that it may have been carried by ocean currents or in some earlier intercourse between the Old and New Worlds. The evidence, however, of its existence in America at the time of the discovery of the new continent is not very definite. The unripe fruit is rich in starch, which in ripening changes into sugar. The most generally used fruits are derived from _Musa paradisiaca_, of which an enormous number of varieties and forms exist in cultivation. The sub-species _sapientum_ (formerly regarded as a distinct species _M.

sapientum_) is the source of the fruits generally known in England as bananas, and eaten raw, while the name plantain is given to forms of the species itself _M. paradisiaca_, which require cooking. The species is probably a native of India and southern Asia. Other species which are used as fruits are _M. ac.u.minata_ in the Malay Archipelago, _M. Fehi_ in Tahiti, and _M. Cavendis.h.i.+_, the so-called Chinese banana, in cooler countries; the fruit of the last-named has a thinner rind and a delicate, fragrant flesh. The species, the fruits of which require cooking, are of much greater importance as an article of food. These often reach a considerable size; forms are known in East Africa which attain nearly 2 ft. in length with the thickness of a man's arm. A form of _M. corniculata_, from Cochin China and the Malay Archipelago, produces only a single fruit, which, however, affords an adequate meal for three men. The hardly-ripe fruit is stewed whole or cut in slices and roasted or baked.

Banana-meal is an important food-stuff; the fruit is peeled and cut in strips, which are then dried and pounded in a mortar. In East Africa and elsewhere, an intoxicating drink is prepared from the fruit. The root-stock which bears the leaves is, just before the flowering period, soft and full of starch, and is sometimes used as food, as in the case of the Abyssinian species, _M. Ensete_.

The leaves cut in strips are plaited to form mats and bags; they are also largely used for packing and the finer ones for cigarette papers. Several species yield a valuable fibre, the best of which is ”Manila hemp” (_q.v._) from _M. textilis_.

The following is the composition of the flour, according to Hutchison: water, 13%; proteid, 4%; fat, 0.5%; carbohydrates, 80%; salts, 2.5%. It would require about eighty bananas of average size to yield the amount of energy required daily, and about double that number to yield the necessary amount of proteid. Hence the undue abdominal development of those who live mainly on this article of diet (Hutchison). In recent years the cultivation of the banana in Jamaica for the American and also for the English market has been greatly developed.

BANAS, or BUNAS, the name of three rivers of India. (1) A river of Rajputana, which rises in the Aravalli range in Udaipur, drains the Udaipur valley, and after a course of 300 m. flows into the Chambal. (2) A river of the Shahabad district of Bengal, which forms the drainage channel between the Arrah ca.n.a.l and the Sone ca.n.a.ls system, and finally falls into the Gangi nadi. (3) A river of Chota Nagpur in Bengal, which rises in the state of Chang Bhakar and falls into the Sone near Rampur.

BANAT (Hungarian Bansag), a district in the south-east of Hungary, consisting of the counties of Torontal, Temes and Kra.s.so-Szoreny. The term, in Hungarian, means generally a frontier province governed by a _ban_ and is equivalent to the German term _Mark_. There were in Hungary several banats, which disappeared during the Turkish wars, as the banat of Dalmatia, of Slavonia, of Bosnia and of Croatia. But when the word is used without any other qualification, it indicates the Temesvar banat, which strangely acquired this t.i.tle after the peace of Pa.s.sarowitz (1718), though it was never governed by a _ban_. The Banat is bounded E. by the Transylvanian Alps, S. by the Danube, W. by the Theiss and N. by the Maros, and has an [v.03 p.0306] area of 11,260 sq. m. It is mountainous in the south and south-east, while in the north, west and south-west it is flat and in some places marshy. The climate, except in the marshy parts, is generally healthy. It is well-watered, and forms one of the most fertile districts of Hungary. Wheat, barley, oats, rye, maize, flax, hemp and tobacco are grown in large quant.i.ties, and the products of the vineyards are of a good quality. Game is plentiful and the rivers swarm with fish.

The mineral wealth is great, including copper, tin, lead, zinc, iron and especially coal. Amongst its numerous mineral springs, the most important are those of Mehadia, with sulphurous waters, which were already known in the Roman period as the _Thermae Herculis_. The Banat had in 1900 a population of 1,431,329 inhabitants. According to nationality there were 578,789 Rumanians, 362,487 Germans, 251,938 Servians and 170,124 Magyars.

The chief town is Temesvar (pop. 53,033), and other places of importance are Versecz (25,199), Lugos (16,126), Nagybecskerek (26,407), Nagykikinda (24,843) and Pancsova (19,044).

The Banat was conquered by the Turks in 1552, and remained a Turkish sanjak (province) till 1716, when Prince Eugene of Savoy liberated it from the Turkish yoke. It received the t.i.tle of Banat after the peace of Pa.s.sarowitz (1718), and remained under a military administration until 1751, when Maria Theresa introduced a civil administration. During the Turkish occupation the district was nearly depopulated, and allowed to lie almost desolate in marsh and heath and forest. Count Claudius Mercy (1666-1734), who was appointed governor of Temesvar in 1720, took numerous measures for the regeneration of the Banat. The marshes near the Danube and Theiss were cleared, roads and ca.n.a.ls were built at great expense of labour, German artisans and other settlers were attracted to colonize the district, and agriculture and trade encouraged. Maria Theresa also took a great interest in the Banat, colonized the land belonging to the crown with German peasants, founded many villages, encouraged the exploitation of the mineral wealth of the country, and generally developed the measures introduced by Mercy. In 1779 the Banat was again incorporated with Hungary. After the revolution of 1848-1849, the Banat together with another county (Bacs) was separated from Hungary, and created into a distinctive Austrian crown land, but in 1860 it was definitely incorporated with Hungary.

See Leonhard Bohm, _Geschichte des Temeser Banats_ (2 vols., Leipzig, 1861); Johann Heinrich Schwicker, _Geschichte des Temeser Banats_ (Pest, 1872).

BANATE (a corruption of Panaiti, their real name), or BANNOCK, as they are now usually called, a tribe of North American Indians of Shoshonean stock.

They were sometimes known as ”Robber Indians.” Their former range was southern Idaho and eastern Oregon. They are now divided between the Fort Hall and Lemhi reservations, Idaho. They were generally friendly with the whites, but in 1866 and in 1877-78 there were serious outbreaks. They number about 500.

BANBRIDGE, a town of Co. Down, Ireland, in the west parliamentary division, on the Bann, 23 m. S.W. of Belfast on a branch of the Great Northern railway, standing on an eminence. Pop. of urban district (1901) 5006. To mitigate a steep ascent, a central carriage-way, 200 yds, long, is cut along the main street to a depth of 15 ft., the opposite terraces being connected by a bridge. Banbridge is an entirely modern town. It is the princ.i.p.al seat of the linen trade in the county, and has extensive cloth and thread factories, bleachfields and chemical works. A memorial in Church Square commemorates the Franklin expedition to the discovery of the North-West Pa.s.sage, and in particular Captain Francis Crozier, who was born at Banbridge in 1796 and served on the expedition.

BANBURY, a market-town and munic.i.p.al borough in the Banbury parliamentary division of Oxfords.h.i.+re, England, on the river Cherwell and the Oxford ca.n.a.l, 86 m. N.W. of London by the northern line of the Great Western railway. Pop. (1901) 12,968. The ca.n.a.l communicates northward with the Grand Junction and Warwick ca.n.a.ls, and there are branch lines of the Great Central railway to the main line at Woodford, and of the London & North-Western railway to Bletchley. The town is the centre of a rich agricultural district, and there is a large manufacture of agricultural implements; while other industries include rope and leather works and brewing. Banbury cakes, consisting of a case of pastry containing a mixture of currants, have a reputation of three centuries' standing. A magnificent Gothic parish church was destroyed by fire and gunpowder in 1790 to make way for a building of little merit in Italian style. The ancient Banbury Cross, celebrated in a familiar nursery rhyme, was destroyed by Puritans in 1610. During the 17th century the inhabitants of Banbury seem to have been zealous Puritans, and are frequently satirized by contemporary dramatists.

At a somewhat earlier period the grammar school, now extinct, was of such repute as to be chosen as the model for the const.i.tution of the school of St Paul's. A school of science was erected in 1861, and there is a munic.i.p.al secondary and technical school. Some fine old timbered houses remain in the streets. Of the castle built in 1125 there are only the barest traces. Wroxton Abbey, 2 m. N.W., shows slight remains of the original Augustinian priory; but the present beautiful gabled building, picturesquely situated, dates mainly from 1618. Broughton Castle, 2 m.