Radie!_

acid- that

with the ordinary

3904

Radcliffe

s occurs natural!) along
(dcxtroj form uf tartaric
iicifi, and also aaults when tartaric acid is ob-
tained synthetically. See TARTARIC ACID.

Rachel, vrifo of the patriarch Jacob, was a
daughter of Laban, \vho demanded of Jacob
fourteen years service for her. She was the
nether of Joseph and Benjamin. See JACOB.

Rachel, Eiisa (1821-58), French actress,
\vas born of Jewish parents, named Felix, in
Switzerland. In 1837 she appeared at the
Gymnase in La Vendecnne, and next year be-
gan her career at the Francois as Camille in
Corneille's tragedy of Horace. Supreme in the
classical dramas of Corneille, Racine and Vol-
taire, she excelled by dint of will, intellect,
facial expression, and beauty of tone. Her
two greatest parts were Phedrc (1843) anc*
Adricnne Lccouvrcur (1849).

Rachmaninov, Sergei Vasilyevitch
(1873-1943), Russian composer and pianist.
After years devoted to composition and to
teaching in a school in Moscow, he was con-
ductor of the Moscow Private Opera (1897-
99) and of the Moscow Imperial Theatre
(1904-06). He subsequently played and con-
ducted in other European cities and in Amer-
ica. In addition to Aleko, he composed the
operas The Niggardly Knight and Francesco,
da Rimini; three symphonies,* four piano-
forte concertos and numerous other pieces.

Racine, city, Wisconsin, county seat of
Racine co., on Lake Michigan, 22 m. s.e. of
Milwaukee; p. 67,195.

Racine, Jean (1639-99), French drama-
tist. In Paris he made the acquaintance of La
Fontaine, Moliere, and Boileau, the four
writers forming what is known as the 'quar-
tette of the Rue de la Colombia1,' which
proved so influential in French letters. Mean-
time his Odes to the king—in particular La
&enow6e aux Muses—had attracted the mon-
arch's attention, and a pension was assigned
him (1664). The first result of Racine's con-
nection with Moliere was the production of
La Th&aide by the latter in June, 1664. Ra-
cine's second acted play, Alexander the Great,
was produced by MoKere's company in De-
cember, 1665. During the next thirteen years
Racine produced his greatest work. His plays
followed in this order: Andromaque (1667);
Les PIMeun (1668), a delightful little com-
edy of satire against lawyers, which Moliere
was the first to appreciate; Britannicus
(1669), which Voltaire styled la piece des
connazsseurs'; BdrSnke (1670); Bajazet
(1672); Mithridate (1673); Iphigtnie
(1675), a masterpiece of pathos; and PhUre

(1077;, man clous representation of a human
agony. In 1689 he wrote Esther, in answer to
a req'uest from Madame de Maintenon for a
play suitable for her girls at Saint-Cyr.
Athalie followed in 1691.

Racing. See Yacht, Track and Field
Athletics, Rowing, Horseracing.

Rack, an instrument of torture, consisting
of a frame on which the victim was strapped,
while his limbs were extended by a windlass
at each end until his joints were dislocated,
or he succumbed from the pain.

Rackets, or Racquets, a wall game,
somewhat similar to FIVES, except that it is
played with a racquet and not with the
gloved hand. The game is played with a
racket similar to a tennis racket but with a
longer handle, and a hard ball.

Rackham, Arthur (1867-1939), British
illustrator and water color artist, was born in
London.

Radar (abb. of Radio detecting and rang-
ing), a locator using ultra-high frequency
radio waves. Called the greatest secret
weapon of W. W. II, it was announced in
1943, although it had been in use since 1940-
41, when it won the Battle of Britain. Radar
sends out short radio waves (they travel
186,000 m. a sec.), which search the air for
many miles up and around, through fog,
smoke, rain, or snow. When the waves strike
a ship or airplane they bounce back and flash
their findings on the radar plotting board.
They tell altitude, speed, and course of ap-
proaching ship or plane, thus making it pos-
sible to bomb successfully unseen targets as
well as warning of an enemy's approach. Ra-
dar was discovered in 1922 by the Am. scien-
tists Dr. A. Hoyt Taylor and Leo C. Young.
Gen. Electric and Bell Telephone scientists
assisted in its development, and much basic
research was done by the Bureau of Stand-
ards' radio division. In Br. the radio locator,
as the Br. call it, was developed in 1935, and
within two years was in day-and-night secret
production. Radar warned of the approach of
Jap planes at Pearl Harbor, but was disre-
garded. The Radiation Laboratory at Mass.
Inst, of Tech. became world's center of
knowledge in radar during W. W. II; 900
scientists and 9000 workmen worked there in
secrecy for five yrs. Among other uses of
radar developed was the Loran long-range
navigation system to replace the stars as
navigational aids.

Radcliffe, Mrs, Ann (1764-1823), English
novelist, was born in London, The Romance
of the Forest (1791) established her position,