This page has been proofread, but needs to be validated.
PHYSHARMONICA—PHYSIOCRATIC SCHOOL
548


of the leaf is protected by similar structures. Within this gall the stock-mother lives and surrounds herself with numerous parthenogenetically produced eggs—sometimes as many as two hundred in a single gall; these eggs give birth after six or eight days to a numerous progeny (gallicola), some of which form new galls and multiply in the leaves, whilst others descend to the roots and become the root-dwelling forms already described. The galls and the gall-producing form are much commoner in America than in the Old World.

The particular species of phylloxera which attacks the vine is a native of the United States, probably originating among the wild vines of the Colorado district. It was first observed in 1856 by Asa Fitch (1809–1878), who did not suspect its mischief, and called it Pemphigus vitifoliae. In 1863 it was independently discovered by Westwood in an English vinery at Hammersmith; he was ignorant of Fitch's observation, and called it Peritymbia. vitisana. From 1858 to 1863 there were many importations of American vines for grafting purposes to Bordeaux, Roquemaure and other parts of France, England, Ireland, Germany, Portugal, &c. It is practically certain that the deadly phylloxera was imported on these plants. A year or two later certain vine-growers in the South of France began to complain of the new vine-disease. M. Delorme, of Arles, in 1865, appears to have been the first who recognized its novelty and had a presentiment of disaster. The disease steadily spread outwards in concentric circles from its first place of lodgment near Roquemaure. Within two or three years whole departments were infested. In 1866 a second centre of infection made its appearance near Bordeaux. The vine-growers were at their wits' end to account for this new plague, which threatened to be even more costly than the oïdium. The completeness of the ruin which threatened them may be illustrated by the statistics for a single commune, that of Graveson, whose average annual production of wine in the years 1865–1867 was about 220,000 gallons. In 1868 this fell to 121,000 gallons, in 1869 to 48,400 gallons, in 1870 to 8800 gallons, and by 1873 to 1100 gallons.

In 1868 Planchon proved that the disease was due to a new species of phylloxera, which was invariably found on the roots of the affected vines, and to which he accordingly gave the prophetic name of Phylloxera vastatrix. During the next ten years a series of students, of whom only Riley and Balbiani need be mentioned here, worked out the natural history of Phylloxera vastatrix, and proved its identity with the American grape-louse. Its devastations rapidly assumed gigantic proportions. In France, where the disease was by far the most prevalent-owing in great part to the obstinacy with which the vine-growers at first refused to take any reasonable precautions against its spread—M. Lalande, president of the chamber of commerce at Bordeaux, in 1888 calculated the direct loss to the country by the phylloxera at 10 milliards (£400,000,000), or double the indemnity which had been paid to Germany in 1871!

The phylloxera has made its appearance in almost every vine growing country in the world. Thus it appeared in Austria-Hungary in 1868; in Italy, in spite of the frantic efforts made—as in other countries—to keep it out by strict legislation against the import of vines, in 1879; in Russia in 1880; in Germany, on the Rhine and Moselle, and in Switzerland in 1872; in Madeira, Spain and Portugal, about 1876. The pest even crossed the oceans, and appeared in Australia, at Geelong, about 1880; it has since twice broken out in Victoria, and has ravaged the vineyards of South Australia and New South Wales. At the Cape, in spite of a long endeavour to prohibit the import of the phylloxera, it appeared about 1884. In 1885 it crossed the Mediterranean to Algeria. There was only one country where its ravages were long unimportant; that was its home in the United States, where the native vines had become, by the operation of natural selection, immune to its attacks. Yet no imported vine has ever lived there more than five years, and in 1890 the phylloxera crossed the Rocky Mountains, and seriously damaged the vineyards of California, where it had previously been unknown.

Three different methods of fighting the pest have been successfully adopted. One is to kill the phylloxera itself; another, to destroy it along with the infected vines, and plant fresh and healthy plants; the third, to adapt the secular therapeutics of nature, and to introduce American vines which a long acquaintance with the phylloxera has made immune to its ravages. Insecticides, of which the bisulphide of carbon (CS2) and the sulpho-carbonate of potassium (KSCS2) remain in use, were injected into the earth to kill the phylloxera on the roots of the vine. These methods were chiefly advocated in vineyards of the first class, where it was worth while to spend a good deal of money and labour to preserve the old and famous vines: the Chateau Leoville Poyferré and Clos Vougeot are instances. Some good judges attribute the peculiar and not unpleasing flavour of certain clarets of 1888 to means thus adopted to kill the phylloxera. The second plan was largely adopted in Switzerland and on the Rhine, where measures resembling those taken with cattle suspected of anthrax were applied to all diseased vineyards. The third plan, which consists in replanting the affected vineyard with American vines—such as the Vitis labrusea, V. riparia, V. rupestris or V. monticola—has proved the most generally successful.

A very good bibliography will be found in Les Insectes de la vigne, by Professor Majet of Montpellier (1890), which is the best book on the subject. Reference may also be made to the classic memoirs of Planchon, culminating in Les Mœurs de la phylloxera de la vigne (1877); Dreyfus, Uber Phylloxerznen (1889); Lichtenstein, Histoire du phylloxera; the Rapports annuels à la commission supérteure du phylloxera; and the excellent Report on Phylloxera drawn up by the Hon. J. W. Taverner (Victoria, 1899, No. 68).  (W. E. G. F.) 


PHYSHARMONICA, a keyboard instrument fitted with free-reeds, a kind of harmonium much used in Germany. The physharmonica resembles a small harmonium, but is differentiated from it by having no stops; being without percussion action, it does not speak readily or clearly. As in the harmonium, the bellows are worked by the feet by an alternate movement, which also affords a means of varying the dynamic force of the tone according as more or less energetic pedalling increases or decreases the pressure of the wind supply. The physharmonica was invented in 1818 by Anton Häckel, of Vienna; in the original instrument the bellows were placed right and left immediately under the shallow wind-chest, and were worked by means of pedals connected by stout wire. A specimen, having a compass of four octaves and a very sweet tone, is preserved in the collection of Paul de Wit, formerly in Leipzig, now transferred to Cologne.  (K. S.) 


PHYSICAL PHENOMENA, in the terminology of spiritualism and psychical research, molar or molecular phenomena in the physical world not traceable to ordinary causes and referred to the action of spirits or of mediums in abnormal psychical states. Among the phenomena or alleged phenomena are: materialization, levitation or elongation of the medium; passage of matter through matter, alteration of weight in a balance, tying of knots in an endless cord, apports (objects brought from a distance) and movements of objects (telekinesis); the production of writing, imprints of plaster or other objects; raps, voices and other sounds, including music; spirit photographs; lights and perfumes. To these may be added immunity against the effects of fire and the untying of ropes.

Analogous phenomena are found in many parts of the world (see Poltergeist; Firewalking); spectral lights are associated with the tombs of Mahommedan saints, with Buddhist shrines, with religious revivals, with Red Indian and other magicians, &c., and as sporadic phenomena in the Highlands and Norway. Levitation is asserted of Australian wizards, the rope trick of Eskimo angekoks; glyphs and direct writing are found in Mexican and Tibetan cults.

See F. Podmore, Modern Spiritualism; F. W. H. Myers, Human Personality, ii. 506; Journal S. P. R., vi. 309 sq.  (N. W. T.) 


PHYSIOCRATIC SCHOOL, the name given to a group of French economists and philosophers. The heads of the school were François Quesnay (q.v.) and Jean Claude Marie Vincent, sieur de Gournay (1712–1759). The principles of the school had been put forward in 1755 by R. Cantillon, a French merchant of Irish extraction (Essai sur la nature du commerce en général). whose biography W. S. Jevons has elucidated, and whom he regards as the true founder of political economy; but it was in the hands of Quesnay and Gournay that they acquired a systematic form, and became the creed of a united group of thinkers