renounced idolatry, and some American missiona-
ries are settled amongst them. They are said to
be naturally mild, friendly, and hospitable to
strangers. The king and chiefs ceded this island
to Great Britain in 1704. Long. 156. 0. W., lat.

19. 28. N.

Oxbow, p.v. Jefferson Co. N. Y. 180 m. N. W.
Albany.

Oxford, the capital of Oxfordshire, Eng. and a
bishop’s see. It is seated at the conflux of the
Cherwell with the Thames, and has a canal to
Braunston, in Northamptonshire. The city, with
the suburbs, is of a circular form, 3 m. in cir-
cumference, and was anciently surrounded by
walls, of which some remains are yet to be seen ;
as also of its extensive castle, the tower of which
now serves for a county gaol. It has, besides the
cathedral, 13 parish churches, a number of dis-
senting chapels, a famous university, a noble
market-place, and a magnificent bridge. The uni-
versity is generally supposed to have been a sem-
inary for learning before the time inf Alfred, al-
though it owed its revival and consequence to his
liberal patronage. Here are 20 colleges and four
halls, several of which stand in the streets, and
give the city an air of magnificence. The col-
leges are provided with sufficient revenues for the
maintenance of a master, fellow, and students.
In the halls the students live, either wholly, or in
part, at their own expense. The colleges are,
University, Baliol,Merton,Exeter, Oriel,Queen’s,
New, Lincoln, All Souls, Magdalen, Brazen Nose,
Corpus Christi, Christ Church, Trinity, St. John
Baptist, Jesus, Wadham, Pembroke, Worcester,
and Hertford. Of these, the most ancient is Uni-
versity College, founded before the year 872 ; and
to Christ Church College, begun by cardinal Wol-
sey and finished by Henry VlIL, belongs the
cathedral. The halls are Alban, Edmund, New
Inn, and St. Mary Magdalen. Among the libra-
ries in the university, the most distinguished is
the Bodleian (founded by Sir Thomas Bodley),
those of All Soul’s College, Christ Church,
Queen’s, New, St. John, Exeter, and Corpus
Christi.

Among other public buildings are the theatre,
the Ashmolean museum, the Clarendon printing-
house, the Radcliffe infirmary, and an observatory.
Magdalen bridge, besides the beauty of its archi-
tecture, has this singularity, that more than half
of it is-f>n dry ground, and the rest covers two
small stripes of the Cherwell; this bridge is 526
feet long. At Oxford, king John, compelled by
his barons, summoned a parliament to meet in
1258, the proceedings of which were so disorder-
ly that it was afterwards known by the name of
the Mad Parliament. Charles I. assembled a
parliament here in 1625, in consequence of the
plague then raging in London ; and in 1644 he
summoned such of the members of both houses
as were devoted to his interests : these were se-
ceders from the parliament then sitting at West-
minster. This city was distinguished for its at-
tachment to that unfortunate king, who here
held his court during the whole civil war. With-
out the town are many ruins of the fortifications
erected in that war. Oxford is governed by a
mayor, dependent on the chancellor and vice-
chancellor of the university, and sends four mem-
bers to parliament, two for the university and two
for the city. 50 m. S. by E. of Coventry and 55
W. N. W. of London. Long. 1. 15. W., lat. 51.

46. N.

Oxfordshire, a county of England, bounded E.

hy Buckinghamshire, W. by Gloucestershire, S.
by Berkshire, and N. by Warwickshire and
Northamptonshire. The extreme length is 48 m.
and breadth 38, but its form is very irregular. It
contains 450,000 acres, is divided into 14 him
dreds and 207 parishes, has one city and 12 mar-
ket towns and sends nine members to parliament
The soil though various, is fertile in corn and
grass. The S. part, especially on the borders of
Buckinghamshire, is hilly and woody, having a
continuation of the Chiltern hills running through
it. The N. W. part is also elevated and stony.
The middle is, in general, a rich country, watered
by numerous streams running from N. to S., and
terminating in the Thames. Of these the most
considerable are the Windrush, Evenlode, Cher-
well, and Tame ; the last, although an inconsider-
able rivulet, has obtained some importance from
having been supposed to give name to the Thames.
The products of Oxfordshire are chiefly those
common to the Midland farming counties ; and a
great improvement has taken -place of late years
in the agricultural system. Its hills yield ochre,
pipe-clay, and other earths, useful for various pur-
poses. Corn and malt are conveyed from it by
the Thames to the metropolis; and the Oxford
Canal affords a direct water communication with
Liverpool, Manchester, and the Wednesbury col-
lieries, as well as with London and Bristol.

Oxford, a county of Maine. Pop. 35,217. Paris
is the capital. Also a county of Upper Canada
on the Thames and Grand rivers.

Oxford, ph. Worcester Co. Mass. 55 m. S. W.
Boston. Pop. 2,034; p.v. Penobscot Co. Me.; ph.
New Haven Co. Conn. 12 m. N. W. New Haven.
Pop. 1,762; ph. Chenango Co. N. Y. 110 m. W
Albany. Pop. 2,947. Also towns and villages in
Sussex Co. N. J., Philad.,Chester and Adams Cos.
Pa. Caroline Co. Va., Granville Co. N.C., Tus-
carawas, Coshocton and Guernsey Cos. Ohio.

Oxford, ph. Talbot Co. Vlaryi. 50 m. S. E.
Baltimore. It is a port of entry, and one of the
largest commercial towns in the eastern part of the
state.

Oxford, ph. Butler Co. Ohio. Pop. 2,900. The
whole township belongs to the Miami University,
established here. This institution was founded in
1824. It has 11 instructers and 82 students. The
libraries have 2,200 volumes.

Oye, a town ofFrance, department ofthe straits
cf Calais, 7 m. N. E. of Calais.

Oyonaz a town of France in the department ot
Ain, 8 m N. ofNantua.

Oyster Bay, ph. Queens Co. N. Y. on Long Isl-
and. Pop. 5,193.

Oyster Ponds, p.v. Suffolk Co. N. Y. on Long
Island.

Ozama, a river of Hispaniola, formed by the
confluence of two streams which unite about
a league above St Domingo, In rainy seasons it is
of considerable size, and is very convenient for
bringing down the produce from the interior. It
runs into the sea below St. Domingo.

Ozark Mountains, a range extending from the
central parts ofthe state of Missouri south-wester-
ly toward the Mexican territories. It is crossed
by the Arkansas and Red rivers. The northern
part is most elevated ; but little is known of any
part of these mountains.

Ozwiczin, a town of Poland, covered on one
side by a great morass, and on ihe other defend-
ed by a castle, whose walls are of wood. It is
situate on the Weitschel, 34 m. W of Cracow
Long. 19 10 E., lat. 50. 10. N