Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 17.djvu/636

SAPPOBO. 570 SABACENS. nl>ori"iiies, and a botanical saideii. The nianu- factiiriiig cstiiblishnionts include saw, (lour, and siiyar mills and a llax factory. Sapporo owes its importance to its connection with the coloniza- tion of Vezo, since 1S70. Population, in 1898, 37AS± SAP'KOPHYTE (from Gk. (rairp6s, sapros, rotten + <Pvt6i', phjilon, plant). A plant which contains no chloroiihvU ami which derives its nourishment from dead oif;anie matter. Sapro- phytes are among the active agents which rid the earth of the remains of animals and plants, which would otherwise accumulate. Among flowering jjlants there are some symbiotic sapro- phytes such as Indian pijie (Monotropa), and certain orchids (as Corallorhiza) . These grow in rich humus, the underground ])nrtinns general- ly associated with a fungous mycelium. (See Mycohiii/a.) Among tlu- ferns and their allies the sajiropliytic habit has also been developed to some extent ; but saju-ophytism is best illustrated among the fungi, where entire groups exhibit this mode of life. Sec Symbiosis. SAPSUCKER. Any of various American woodpeckers alleged to suck the sap of trees; properly the yellow-bellied woodpecker {Uphy- rapicus variiis) . which breeds in Canada and migrates through the I'nited States in spring and autunui. It is of medium size, black above, with white markings and a white rump; forehead, crown, cliin. and throat crimson in the male, less so in the female; breast with a broad black patdi ; belly pale suliihur-yellow. These colors are highly variable. It has the habit of pecking sqtiarish lioles in great number in the spring, in the bark of sweet-sapped trees, eating to some extent the new wood beneath, and the sap, and catching the insects attracted by the sweet ex- udation. Us breeding habits are similar to those of woodpeckers generally. Several other species of the genus are known in the West, that com- mon on the Pacitie coast (Spyrapicus ruber) having the whole head, neck, and chest of the l^ibyan desert, about three miles from the river. It stands in the midst of the ancient necropolis of Jlemphis (q.v. ), and around it are some of tlie most interesting monuments in Egypt. Saciipira means, in Arabic, 'hawk's nest.' but the word is probably a corrujition of the old Egyptian name containing the name of Sokar, llie Memphitic god of the dead. In the inunediate vicinity of the village, and to the west of it, are the pyramids of Pepi I. and his son Jler-en-Re, of the Sixth Dynasty; that of Pepi II., another son of Pepi I., lies a little farther south. To the north are the ])yraniids of Teti, the founder of the Sixth Dynasty, and of Unas, the last King of the Fifth Dynasty. All these pyramids were opened i»18Sl, and the walls of their sepulchral chambers were found to be covered with long inscriptions of a religious character. Between the pyramids of Unas and Teti lies the great step-pyramid of Saqqara, which has been attributed to King Zoser. and, if this be true, it is undoubtedly the oldest pyramid in existence. It consists of six stages, is about 190 feet in height, and contains numerous corridors and chambers. Near it are the subterranean tombs of the Apis bulls and the remains of the Serapeum (q.v.). In this vicinity are the tombs of a number of nobles of the Fifth and Sixth Dj'nasties. They are of great architectural interest and their inner walls are covered with reliefs and paintings giving vivid illustrations of Egyptian life and customs under the Old Empire. Consult: Lepsius, DenkmiiU-r (Berlin. 1849.58) ; Wilkinson, Manners and Cus- toms of the Ancient Egyptians (London, 1878). SABA, sii'ra. A town of Panay, Philippine Islands, in the Province of Iloilo, situated 3 miles northwest of Concepcion (Map: Philippine Islands, H 8). Population, estimated, in 1899, 10,9.50. S AKABANDE ( Fr. sarahande, from Sp. sarch handii, probably from Pers. sarband, fillet, from sar, head -|- band, bond). Originally, a slow dance said to be of Saracenic origin ; and hence a adults of both sexes red. See Woodpecker; and ^^^^^ pj^^g ^j nnisic. of deliberat'e character, and consult authorities there cited. .^^.j^j^ ^ peculiar rhythm, in three-quarter time, SAPTARSHI. sap-tar'she (Skt., the seven the accent being placed on the second crotchet of sages, seven bright stars of Ursa Major). A each measure. The sarabande forms an essential system of reckoning time in India, especially in part of the suites written by Handel, Sebastian Kashmir, although formerly current also in Bach, and others of the old masters, for the Multan and elsewhere. It is based on the theory harpischord or clavichord. All extra movements that the seven Rishis (the seven bright stars of were inserted after the sarabande. The dance Ursa Major) move through the zodiac in 2700 became popular in Europe in the sixteenth cen- years, at the rate of one nakshatra, or twenty- tury, but it was bitterl.y attacked by Cervantes seventh of the ecliptic, each century. In ordinary and other Spanish writers for its indecency, and reckoning the hundreds are omitted. In calcula- Philip II. suppressed it for a time. A modified tion 47 must be added to the Saptarshi year to find the corresponding Saka (q.v.) year, and 24- 25 to determine the Christian equivalent. Con- sult Sewell and Dikshit. The Indian Calendar (London. 1896). SAPUCAIA NUT (Brazilian name). The seed of Lecythis OUaria. a lofty Brazilian tree, of the natural order LecythidaceEe. The urn- shaped fruit as large as a child's head, which opens by a deciduous lid, contains several oval, somewhat pointed, slightly bent seeds or nuts, as in the case of the allied Brazil nut (q.v.), which is inferior in flavor but is far more ex- tensively exported. SAQQABA, sak-ka'ni, or SAKKARA. An Egyptian village on the left bank nf the Nile, in latitude 29° 52' N., situated on the edse of the form of it, however, was introduced in France, and in England it became a popular country dance. SARACENS (OF. sarracen, sarracin, sarra- zen. Tr. sarrasin, from Lat. Saraceni, from Gk. Sopa/c7)f6s, Sarakenos, Saracen, from Ar. SarqJn, pi. of sarqty, from Sarq, rising sun, from sara<ia, to rise). A name variously employed by medi.T- val writers to designate the Mohammedans of Syria and Palestine, the Arabs generally, or the Arab-Berber races of Northern Africa, who con- quered Spain and Sicily and invaded France. At a later date it was employed as a synonym for infidel nations against whom crusades were preached, and was thus applied to the Seljuks of Iconium. the Turks, and others. The name appeared as early as the first century of the