Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 17.djvu/112

RHETOBIC. 96 RHEUMATISM. the sound of the thins signified as 'rat-tat-tat,' 'bow-wow.' Pcrsonificdiioii or prosopujHiia is the rci)rc.'i(>nta1ion of inanimate objects as living be- ings, as "Xeeessity is the mother of invention." RHETT, ret, RoiiERT Baknwell (1800-70). An Amcrieau politician, l)orn at Beaufort, S. C. His name was originally Smith, but after enter- ing public life he changed it for that of a promi- nent colonial ancestor. He received a liberal education, studied law, and in 1820 became a member of the State Legislature. In IS.'Ji he was elected .ttorne.v-General of the State, and during the Nullification agitationattracted wide attention by his radical advocacy of the theory of State's rights, in which he outstripped Calhoun himself. In the fall of 1836 he was elected as a Democrat to Congress, sitting by reelection until 1840, and taking a leading part in the acrimoniois slavery debates. In 18.50 he was elected United States Senator to fill the vacancy caused by the death of John C. Calhoini and took his seat .January 6, 18.51. He at once took the most extreme position in regard to slavery, and stoutly opposed all com])romises as only temporary expedients to put off for a short time the inevitable secession. In the heated campaign of the year 1852 he advo- cated the immediate withdrawal of South Caro- lina from the Union without consultation with other Southern States. The Union candidates were generally successful at the ensuing election. Rhett took the defeat as a personal rel)uke, re- signed his seat in the Senate, and retired to his plantation. In the Charleston Mercury, in which he purchased a controlling interest, he continued to advocate his extreme views, and in 1800 again came into prominence as one of the most radical members of the South Carolina convention which adopted the ordinance of secession, and was the author of its address to the people. In the Montgomery convention which met to organize a provisional government for the seceding States he was one of the most active delegates, and was chairman of the committee which rejiorted the Confederate Constitution. Subsequently he was elected a mendjer of the Lower House of the Con- federate Congress. After the war he settled in Louisiana. RHEUMATISM (Lat. rheumatismus, from Gk. pcf^aTicr/n^s, liability to rheum, a flux, from pevfiaTl^eadai, rheumatizesthai, to have a flux, from pevfui. rlieuma, flux, flow, from peic, rhein, iSkt. srii. to flow). An acute or chronic disease characterized by painful local inflammations. It may be divided for convenience of description into the articular (that involving the joints) and the muscular varieties. Either form may be acute or chronic. Acute articular rheumatism is a constitutional disease, not contagious, and characterized by fever, pain, and inflammation in and around the joints and a tendency to in- volvement of the pericardium and endocardivmi. The joints are apt to be attacked in succession. Rheumatism is a disease of moist and temperate climates, and the acute articular form usually occurs in young adults, although children are not by any means exempt. The close analogy that exists between acute rheumatism and certain of the infectious diseases has led many investigators to believe that it is due to a specific germ, in spite of the fact that no microorganism has as yet been found constantly associated with the disease. A more generally accepted theory is that it is due to some morbid material produced in the system as a result of defective metabolism. It has been suggested that this material is lactic acid. Others believe that the disease is due essentially to some nervous dis- turbance. The inuMcdiate exciting causes are ex- posure to wet and cold, or a chilling of the body such as occurs from sitting in a draught. The symptoms often begin quite suddenly, at night, with pain and stiffness in the joints, with nausea and vomiting, followed by all the manifestations of a high fever. The latter may reach as high as 108° F. in severe cases. The pulse is compara- tively slow, tlicre is great thirst, profuse acid sweats, and the urine becomes high-colored, scanty, and abnormally acicL The affected joints are painful and tender, hot, red, and swollen. Swelling is apt to be most apparent in joints scantily covered with muscle, viz. the knee, wrist, elbow, ankle, and the joints of the hands and feet. One or more joints may be affected, and the disease travels from joint to joint. Acute rheumatism is distinguished by the number and severity of its complications. These afl'cct prin- cipally the serous membranes of the body. Peri- carditis (q.v.) is a connnon complication. En- docarditis (q.v.), which often results in chronic cardiac trouble, is also of frequent occurrence. Pleurisy (q.v.) with eft'usion is often seen in as- sociation with pericarditis. Less often, bron- chitis, pneumonia, and inflammation of the cere- bral arteries occur. In itself, acute articular rheumatism is not a fatal disease, and the ma- jority of cases recover within a week or ten days. Relai)ses, however, often occur, and weeks or months may elapse before entire cure is attained. Chronic (irticiilar rheumatism may result from an acute attack, but most frequently it arises independently in persons of advanced middle age. The causative elements are similar to those of the acute form, but the onset is insidious. It is most apt to attack those whose occupation exposes them to cold and damp. The joints gradually be- come painful and stifT, and the condition varies from time to time. It is worse in the morning and is aggravated by damp weather. Late in the disease the joints become greatly distorted and ankylosis may supervene. Muscular rheumatism is an affection of the vol- untary muscles and of the fasciiie and periosteum to which they are attached. It is inflammatory in character" and may be acute or chronic. In contrast to the articular variety, muscular rheu- matism is never complicated by cardiac disease. It is a malady of adult life; is almost always due to cold and damp; and one attack predisposes to another. The first attack is generally acute. The onset is sudden with pain in the affected muscles, with slight tenderness, and considerable stiffness and difficulty of movement, by which the pain is increased. Fever is absent or slight. The acute attack lasts about a week. When the disease reaches the chronic stage the attacks return fre- quently and finally become constant and aggra- vated when the weather is damp. Tliis form of rheumatism is prone to involve particular groups of muscles, and different names have been ap- plied to it according to its location. When situ- ated in the occipitofrontal muscles it is called cephalodynin and may be mistaken for neuralgia of the trifacial or occipital nerves. The eye or jaw muscles may be affected, giving rise to pain when these parts are used. Torticollis (wry-