Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 17.djvu/802

SCTJRVT. 728 SCYLLA AND CHARYBDIS. sailors were compelled to subsist on long voy- ages. Since the iK-ginning of the ninoteentli cen- tury sea scurvy lias become comparatively rare. The shorter vovages of modern times, owing to the introduction of steam, and the compulsory carrying of fresh meat, vegetables, and lemon or lime juice, have made the disease almost un- known at sea, although it is still found on land among garrisons and in prisons, in staiviiig. iso- lated conununities, and among improi)erly fed infants. Scurvy generally comes on slowly, with loss of color, weakness and apathy, and pains in the back and limbs. in a week or more small hemorrhages (petechia-) occur under the skin in various parts of the body. The spots are small, red or reddish brown, some of them resembling bruises. Later there may be seen large ex- travasations of blood into the eyelids, and tense brawny swellings will be found at the bend of the elbows or knees, in front of the tibia, and under the angle of the jaw, due to the effusion of blood or serum into or between the soft tissues and the bones. The gums become swollen, spongy, ul- cerated, and bleed at the slightest touch. The teeth may loosen or even fall out. It is a curious fact that in toothless infants and elderly persons the gums are but little afl'ected. When the dis- ease has lasted for some time the patient has a sallow, bloated look, is short of breath, subject to fainting spells, and quite unable to exert him- self mentally or physically. Xose-bleed and swelling of the feet often occur. An atl'ectioii of the vision known as hcmcnilopia may be an early symptom. This consists of entire blindness in the dusk or darkness, without interference with the sight during the day. Death takes place after several weeks from exhaustion or hemor- rhage unless suitable treatment is instituted. Children from six months to two years old are sometimes attacked with scorbutus {infatitile scurvy or Barlow's disease), the essential lesion of which is a subperiosteal hemorrhage, which causes thickening and tenderness algng the shafts of the bones. It occurs as a result of exclusive feeding with condensed milk, the various pre- pared infant's foods, or sterilized milk. The disease is often associated with rickets, and is characterized by an eartliy pallor, spongy and bleeding gums, after dentition, and the swelling of the limbs referred to above. Treatment depends on the use of an abundance of fresh vegetable food, such as onions, mashed potatoes, cabbage, lettuce, and spinach, with fresh meat, and the administration of lime, lemon, or orange juice in doses of three or four ounces daily. In infants the orange juice and the restoration of a diet suitable to the age w'ill be sufficient. 'hen the mouth is sore and masti- cation is impossible, milk, beef tea. broth, and eggs may be given. For the prevention of scurvy in time of war, or on shipboard or in places where fresh food is scarce, canned vegetables will take the place of fresh to a great extent. In addition to these, an ounce of lemon juice daily, or the addition of the malates, citrates, tartrates, and lactates of potassium to the food or drink will be found efficient preventives. The law requires merchant ships to serve lime juice to each man daily after ten days at sea. This is mixed with a small percentage of brandy, whisky, or other liquor. SCURVY-GRASS (Cochkuiia). A genus of small annual, biennial, or rarely perennial plants of the natural order Crucifera; with an acrid bit- ing taste, due to the pungent volatile oil char- acteristic of horse-radish. Common scurvy- grass (Cochlearia o/licinalis) , which is sometimes a foot high, is a very variable, widely distributed plant in rocky and muddy places, on high mountains, in Arctic regions, and on seashores throughout the world, it was formerly valued by sailors as a preventive of or remedy for scurvy. SCUTAGE, or ESCUAGE (Lat. scutum, shield I . A pecuniary tax .sometimes levied by the Crown, in feudal times, as a substitute for the personal service of the vassal. SCUTARI, skoo'ta-re (Turk. Ishkodra). A town of Albania, the capital of the Turkish Vila- yet of Scutari, situated at the southern end of the Lake of Scutari, 12 miles from the Adriatic (Map: Balkan Peninsula, B 3). It is a forti- ■ lied town dominated by a citadel. It has some manufactories, a bazaar, and yards for build- ing coasting vessels. There is an export trade in skins, woolens, sumach, and grain. Scutari, the ancient Scodra, fell into the hands of the Romans in B. c. 168. At the close of the iliddle .Ages it was in the hands of the Venetians. In 1477 it withstood an eight months' siege by the Sultan ilohammed II., but two years later was ceded to the Porte. Population, "about 30.000. SCUTARI (Turk. Uskudar). A town of Asia Minor, on the eastern shore of the Bosporus, op- posite Constantinople, of which it is a suburb (Map: Turkey in Asia, C 2). It contains sev- eral mosques, bazaars, baths, colleges, and schools. There are manufactures of silks, cotton fabrics, and leather. Scutari is the rendezvous and starting point of caravans trading with the interior of Asia. It has long been famed for its extensive cemeteries, adorned with magnificent cypresses, the chosen resting-place of many of tiie Turks of Constantinople. The town acquired notoriety during the Russian War (185.3-56), when the enormous barracks built by Sultan ilahmud were occupied by the English troops, and formed the scene of Lady Nightingale's la- bors. Scutari occupies the site of the ancient Chrysopolis. About two miles to the south lies .the village of Kadikiii. the ancient Chalcedon. Population, estimated at 80,000. SCYLAX, sllaks (Lat., from Gk. SmXaf, .S7,-)/;(/j-) . A Greek geographer of the sixth cen- tury B.C. Herodotus (4. 44) says that he was sent by Darius Hystaspis. probably about B.C. 508, to explore the lower course of the Indus, and then sailed west through the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea, completing the voyage in thirty months. The Periplus now extant and bearing the name of Seylax (edited by Fabricius, 1883) is almost certainly of the fourth century B.C. SCYLLA (sil'l.i) AND CHARYBDIS, ka rib'- ilis ( Lat,, from Gk. 2/«'>XXa, Ski/Ud, and Xdpi</3Sis, Charybdis) . Two sea monsters described in the Odi/ssei/ (xii. 73 flf. ), personifications of the dan- ,sers of navigation near rocks and eddies. Scylla is described as dwelling in a cave in a precipitous clitT. a monster with twelve feet, and six long necks, each bearing a head with three rows of teeth. With these she devours any prey that comes within reach, and snatches six men from