Thomson, Edward, D.D., a bishop of the Meth- odist Episcopal Church, was born at Portsea, England, Oct. 12, 1810, and, with his father's family, came to America in 1818, settling, in 1820, in AVooster, O. He studied medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, re- ceiving his diploma when nineteen years of age, and commenced his practice. In December, 1831, he was converted, and, although brought up a Baptist, entered the Methodist Episcopal Church, and was admitted into the Annual Conference in 1832. After filling appoint- ments in Norwalk, Sandusky City, Cincinnati, and Woos- ter, he was transferred to the Michigan Conference, and stationed at Detroit. From 1838 to 1843 he had charge of the Norwalk Seminary ; in 1844 he was elected editor of the Ladies' Repository ; in 1846 president of the Ohio Wesleyan University, where he remained till 1860, when he was elected editor of the N. Y. Christian Advocate and Journal. In 1864 he was elected to the office of bishop, in which capacitj' he made his first offi- cial visit to India. He died of pneumonia at Wheeling, W. Va., March 22, 1870. His published works are. Ed- ucational Essays (new ed. by D. W. Clark, D.D., Cincin- nati, 1856, l2mo) -.—Letters from Europe: — Moral and Religious Essays : — Biographical and Incidental Sketch- ■ es. See Allibone, Diet, of Brit, and A mer. A uthors, s. v. ; Simpson, Cyclop, of Methodisin, s. v.
Thondracians, an Armenian sect, founded by Scm- bat about A.D. 840, and taking its name fromThon- drac, where he established himself. A Paulician by birth and education, he formed the acq\iaintance of Medshusic, a Persian physician and astronomer, whose inriuence led him to attempt a combination of Parseeism
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ami Christianity. This sect, thnnrrh mectinc; with no | favor from the bishops, continually revived, and spreail \vi(lely in .Vrmenia. At one time in particular, about A.U. 1002, ii made the most alarmini;- progress, when it was joineil by bishop Jacob, spiritual licad of the prov- ince of Harkh. lie was noted for the austerity of his life, and botli he and his followers denounced the false conlidenoe which was placed in masses, oblations, alms, and Church prayers; and lie declared himself opposed to the animal sacritiee in the Armenian Churcli. He was taken by tiie catholicos, branded with the heretical mark, proclaimed a heretic, thrown into a dungeon, from which he escajied, but was tinally killed. Many of the reports respecting the doctrines and morals of the Thon- dracians, coming as they do from their enemies, are doubtless false, or at least exaggerated. See Neander, ///*■/. of//u' Christ. Church, iii, 5K8 sq.
Thor, the god of thunder, in Northern mythology, was, next to Odin, the highest and most feared of the gods. His parents were Odin and Frigga. His wives were the beautiful gold -haired Sif, by whom he had two sons, Loride and Mode ; and the Jotes maiden Jarn- saxa, a giantess of such beauty that Thor, although a sworn enemy of the Jotes, could not refrain from mak- ing her his wife. She i)ore hitn his favorite son Magni, wiio was most like his father in courage and strength. Terrible is the flight of Thor through the heavens, roll- ing, thundering behind the clouds. Still more terrible is he when he has buckled his girdle Jlegingjardar about him, which gives him double strength. Thus ready, grasping with his iron gloves the hammer iMjiilnir, he appears as an annihilator among the enemies of the gods. Thor's kingdom is called Thrudvangr; and the paluce in his realm, Bilskirnir, is the largest that was ever built, and contains five hundred and forty halls. There is no one so wise as to be able to state all of Thor's deeds, and a day would be too short to mention them all. The most remarkable, however, are the following : In com- pany with his two bucks and the evil Loki, he made a journey. Towards evening they came to a certain man whom they asked for a niglit's lodging. Here Thor killed his bucks and ordered them to be fried, and then invited his host and family to partake of the repast, warning them, however, not to devour the bones, but to place them on the spread-out hides of the bucks. Be- fiire start hig farther on his journey the following morn- ing, Tlior bewitched the hides with his mighty ham- mer, and the bucks immediately came to life, fresh and young, with the exception that one of them limped, be- cause Thialti, the host's son, had broken the bone of his foot in order to get at the marrow. Now Thor, en- raged, threatened to kill the whole family; but he al- lowed himself to be pacified, when the father offered him both his children, Thialti and Kiiskva, as servants, whom Tlior carried away on his journey. They lodged in the iron glove of the giant Utgartsloki, who accom- panied Thor under the false name of Skirner, and sought to dissuade Thor from journeying towards his (Urgartsldki's) castle. This, however, was useless, and the trilling hindrances with which Utgartsloki sought to obstruct his path — for example, tying together his cloak-sack, in which the provisions were kept — made Thor the more zealous. Thor attempted, at three dif ferent times, to break the giant's forehead, but without success. Finally they separated, and Thor continued his journey with his bucks and servants. About noon he noticed, in a large plain, a castle which w.as so high that it was impossible for Thor to look over it. The travellers arrived at a garden gate; and as Thor found it locked and was unable to open it, they managed to get through the space between the bars. Inside they found a spacious hall, in which there were seated upon two benches a great number of giants. King Utgartslo- ki, distinguished by his height and dignity, sat in the centre, but he did not even seem to notice the strangers, who saluted him. He only remarked, " This small fel low, I think, is .\ukathor. Perhaps you are greater than