Bitsch by the French in 1624, had been destroyed when it was
restored to Lorraine in 1698. This was restored and strengthened in 1740
into a fortress that proved impregnable in all succeeding wars. The
attack upon it by the Prussians in 1793 was repulsed; in 1815 they had
to be content with blockading it; and in 1870, though it was closely
invested by the Germans after the battle of Worth, it held out until the
end of the war. A large part of the fortification is excavated in the
red sandstone rock, and rendered bomb-proof; a supply of water is
secured to the garrison by a deep well in the interior.

BITTER, KARL THEODORE FRANCIS (1867- ), American sculptor, was born in
Vienna on the 6th of December 1867. After studying art there, in 1889 he
removed to the United States, where he became naturalized. In America he
gained great popularity as a sculptor, and in 1906-1907 was president of
the National Sculpture Society, New York. Among his principal works are:
the Astor memorial gates, Trinity church, New York; "Elements Controlled
and Uncontrolled," on the Administration Building at the Chicago
Exposition; a large relief, "Triumph of Civilization," in the
waiting-room of the Broad Street station of the Pennsylvania railway in
Philadelphia; decorations for the Dewey Naval Arch in New York City; the
"Standard Bearers," at the Pan-American Exposition grounds; a sitting
statue and a bust of Dr Pepper, provost of the University of
Pennsylvania; and the Villard and Hubbard memorials in the New York
chamber of commerce.

BITTERFELD, a town of Germany, in the Prussian province of Saxony, 26 m.
N. from Leipzig by rail, on the river Mulde, and an important junction
of railways from Leipzig and Halle to Berlin. Pop. (1900) 11,839. It
manufactures drain-pipes, paper-roofing and machinery, and has
saw-mills. Several coal-mines are in the vicinity. The town was built by
a colony of Flemish immigrants in 1153. It was captured by the landgrave
of Meissen in 1476, and belonged thenceforth to Saxony, until it was
ceded to Prussia in 1815. Owing to its pleasant situation and
accessibility, it has become a favourite residence of business men of
Leipzig and Halle.

BITTERLING (_Rhodeus amarus_), a little carp-like fish of central
Europe, belonging to the Cyprinid family. In it we have a remarkable
instance of symbiosis. The genital papilla of the female acquires a
great development during the breeding season and becomes