BIDA, an inland town of Africa, situated in about N. lat. 9° 5' and E. long. 6° 5', sixteen miles N. of the Biver Niger or Quorra, and lying N.N.W. of the town of Egga. Bida, which was visited by Dr Baikie in 1862, is a large town, the capital of the kingdom of Nupe.

BIDDLE, John, frequently called the father of English Unitarianism, was born in 1615 at Wotton-under-Edge in Gloucestershire. He was educated at the grammar school of his native town, and then proceeded to Magdalen Hall, Oxford. He graduated as bachelor of arts in 1638 and as master in 1641, and was then appointed to the mastership of the free school in the city of Gloucester. While conducting this school in an admirable manner he diligently prosecuted his theological studies; and the results he arrived at were of such a nature as to draw down upon him the reprobation of the civic authorities. He circulated privately a tract called Twelve Arguments drawn out of Scripture, wherein the commonly-received opinion touching the deity of the Holy Spirit is clearly and fully refuted; and towards the close of 1645 he was summoned before the Parliamentary committee then sitting at Gloucester. By them he was committed to prison, though he was at the time labouring under a dangerous fever. He was released on bail after an imprisonment of some duration, and was then called before the Parliament, which desired to inquire into his views. After tedious proceedings Biddle was committed to custody, in which he remained for five years. During that time the Assembly of Divines at Westminster had discussed his opinions, and in defence he published his Twelve Arguments. The book was at once ordered by Parliament to be seized and burned by the hangman. Notwithstanding this, Biddle issued two tracts, one a Confession of Faith with regard to the Holy Trinity, the other Testimonies of Irenaeus, <kc., concerning the one God and the Persons of the Holy Trinity. These were suppressed by Government, and the Assembly of Divines eagerly pressed for the passing of an /let by which heretics like Biddle ...

BIDEFOKD, a municipal borough, market-town, and seaport, in the county of Devon, eight miles S.W. of Barnstaple, with which it is connected by railway. It is situated on the slopes of two hills which rise from the banks of the River Torridge, near its confluence with the Taw, about four miles from the sea. The two portions of the town are united by a bridge of fourteen arches, built, it is said, in the 14th century, and widened in 1864. The bridge forms a favourite promenade, and is endowed for its repair with lands that produce an annual rent of £300 or £400. Many of the houses in the town are built in the ancient fashion with bricks and wooden framework. The old church of St Mary, with the exception of the tower, was taken down and rebuilt in 1864, and the town-hall is also of modern erection. In addition to these buildings Bideford possesses several large churches and schools, a union workhouse, assembly-rooms, a hospital for aged poor, a reading-room, and a literary and scientific institution. Bideford was already a place of some size under the Saxons, received the right of holding a market in 1271, and was made a free borough in 1573. In the 16th and 17th centuries it was a place of great trade, and in some respects was only exceeded by Exeter and London. The weaving of silk was introduced in 1650, and after the revocation of the Edict of Nantes received extensive development from some French refugees. Bideford now manufactures earthen wares, ropes, sails, and leather, builds ships, and has a considerable trade both domestic and foreign. Vessels of 500 tons can come up to its quay. It exports oak-bark, grain, and its own manufactures, and imports timber from Canada and the Baltic, with fruits, wines, and brandies from the south of Europe. The value of its imports ...