V A AST, ST., a town of France, department of
Manche, with a small harbour and some salt
works, 14 m. E. S. E. of Cherburg.

Vabres, a town in the department of Aveiron.
It has manufactures of serges, dimities, and cot-
tons, and stands at the conflux of two small riv-
ers that flows into the Tarn 30 m. S. S. E. of
Rodez and 32 E. of Alby.

Vacha, a town of Germany, in Saxe-Weimar,
on the river Werra, 16 m. W. S. W. of Eisen-
bach.

Vache, an island of the W. Indies, of a triangu-
lar form, 24 m. in circuit. It is 12 m. from the
S. coast of St. Domingo, opposite St. Louis.

Vacheluse, one of the Lipari Islands, 3 m. S.
of Stromboli.

Vada, a town of Tuscany, at the mouth of the
CeCini, 26 m. S. S. E. of Leghorn.

Vadacurry or Vadaghery,' a town of Hindoos-
tan, in Malabar, with a neat fort on the top of a
hill. It is a place of considerable trade, and
stands on the sea coast, at the N. end of a long
inland navigation, 12 m. S. S. E. of Tellichery.

Vadin, a town of Bessarabia, situate on the
Danube, 92 m. W. of Nicopoli.

Vado, a town of the Sardinian States, in the
territory of Genoa, on a bay of the Mediterrane-
an, 3 m. S. of Savona and 24 S. W. of Genoa.

Vadestein, a town in Sweden, in E. Gothland,
where the kings of Sweden had a palace, now in
ruins. It is seated on the lake Wetter, near the
river Motala, 32 m. W. of Nordkioping.

Vadutz, a town and castle of Germany, in the
principality of Lichtenstein,26 m. S. of Lindau.

Vaena, a town of Spain, in Andalusia, seated
on the Castro, 23 m. S. E. of Cordova.

Vaihend, a town of Persia, in Segestan, on a
river of the same name 40 m. E. S. E. of Arok-
hage.

Vaighingen, a town of Germany, in Wurtem-
berg, seated on the Enz, 18 m. N. N. W. of Stutt
gard.

Vaison, a town of France department of Vau-
cluse, noted as the birth-place of Trogus Pompe-
us, the Roman Historian. It is seated on a
mountain, near the river Oreze, and the ruins of
ancient Vaison, which was one of the largest
cities of the Gauls. 22 m. N. E. of Avignon and
23 S. S. E. of Montelimar.

Val, a village of the Netherlands, 3 m. W. of
Maestricht, where in 1744 marshal Saxe obtained
a victory over the duke of Cumberland.

Val di Demona, a province in the N. E. angle
of Sicily. It means the valley of demons, and is
so called because Mount iEtna is situate in this
province, which occasioned ignorant and super-
stitious people, at the time of its fiery eruptions,
to believe it was a chimney of hell. The capital
is Messina.

Val di Mazara, a province in the W. angle of
Sicily, so called from the town of Mazara.¹ It
contains Palermo, the capital of the whole isl-
and.

Val di JVoto, a province in the S. E. angle of
Sicily, so called from the town of Noto, its capi-
tal.

Valais, a canton of Switzerland, which consists
of a valley 100 m. long and 20 broad, between
ridges of very high mountains, among which are
the Great St. Bernard, Grimsel, Furca, and others
whose summits are never free from snow. The
S. chain separates it from the Milanese, Piedmont,
and Savoy ; the N. divides it from the canton of
Bern. The country is divided into Uppei and
Lower Valais. The former reaches from Mount
Furca, its E. boundary, to thevxe2x80x9ever Morge, below
Sion, and the latter from that river to St. Gingou,
on the lake of Geneva. A country consisting of
plains, elevated valleys, and lofty mountains,
must necessarily exhibit a great variety of cli-
mates and prospects. The productions must vary
also according to its singular diversity of climates ;
for strawberries, cherries, plums, pears, and
grapes, in their natural growth, may be tasted in
the same day. It has more than sufficient wine
and corn for interior consumption, the soil in the
midland and lower districts being exceedingly
rich and fertile ; but, in the more elevated parts,
barley is the only grain that can be cultivated
with success. The inhabitants profess the Roman
Catholic religion, and the lower class are ex-
tremely indolent and dirty ; they have no manu-
factures of any consequence. In 1802 the Valais
was constituted an independent republic, under
the guarrantee ofFrance, Switzerland, and Italy ;
but in 1814 it was annexed to Switzerland. Sion
is the capital.

Valckowar, a town of Sclavonia, seated on the
Walpo, near its conflux with the Danube, 70 m.
W. N.W. of Belgrade.

Valdai, a town of Russia, in the government
of Novogorod, on the side of a lake of the same
name. The lake is 20 m. in circumference, and
lias an island in the middle, on which is a con-
vent surrounded bv trees. The town contains
several brick buildings ; and the wooden houses
are more decorated than the generality of Russian
cottages. It is 72 m. S'. E. of Novogorod. Long.

33. 44. E., lat. 57. 50. N.

Valdasnes, a town of Portugal in Tras os
Montes. 9 m. E. S. E. of Mirandela.

Valdeburon, a town of Spain, in Leon, near the
source of the Esla, 38 m. N. E. of Leon.

Valdecubras, a town of Spain, in New Castile,
10 m. N. N. E. of Cuenza.

Valdecona, a town of Spain, in Catalonia, 15
m. S. by W. of Tortosa.

Valdemoro, a town of Spain in New Castile, 13
m. S. of Madrid.

Valdivia or Baldivia, a sea-port of Chile, built
in 1552, by the Spanish general Valdivia, after he
had conquered the country. It is surrounded by
walls built of earth, and defended by several forts
and batteries ; the entrance of the harbour has
also numerous pieces of cannon on each side. In
the vicinity are many gold mines It stands on
a bay of the Pacific Ocean, 200 m. S. of Concep-
cion. Long. 73. 10. W., lat. 39. 40. S.

Valence, a city ofFrance, capital of the depart
ment of Drome, and a bishop’s see, with a citadel
and a school of artillery. It is surrounded by
walls ; and the greatest part of the public places
and many private houses, are adorned with foun
tains. Besides the handsome cathedral, there