Page:Cyclopaedia, Chambers - Supplement, Volume 2.djvu/598

 S Y N

SYN

mily error he run into, was the making too many genera. Pontedera has rendered the method of this clafs very eafy and clear, though he found it very confufed. Linnm Gen. Plant, p. 373. SYNGNATHUS, in ichthyology, the name of a genus of fifties, the characters of which are thefe. The coverings of the gills are on each fide compofed of a thin and fingle bony lamella j the head is oblong and comprefTed; the jaws are clofed up at the fides j and the mouth is only capable of opening at the extremity of the fnout. The body is long and very (lender ; the fhape is fometimes roundifh, but more ufually angular. The fins are in moft fpecies four in num- ber, but in fome only one. The fpecies of this genus, enumerated by Artedi, are four,

1. The fquare-bodied fyngnathus, having no fin at the tail. -This is the creature called the hippocampus by authors.

2. The cyYmdric Jyngnatbus without any breaft, or tail fins. This is the acus lumbriciformis of Mr. Ray. 3. The fyn- gnathus with the middle of the body heptagonal, and with a pinnated tail. This is the acus Arijlotelis fpecies altera major of Willughby. 4. The fyngnathus with the middle of the body hexangular, and a pinnated tail. This is the common acus Ariflotells, In the diftinguifhing this genus, the num- ber of the incifures, in the body of the feveral fpecies, is to be carefully attended to. Artedi^ Gen. Pifc.

The name fyngnathus is of Grecian origin, and is formed of the word ««, which in compofition iignifies the fame as the Latin con, together, and yva&o?, a jaw. It is given to this fifh from that remarkable ftruiture of its mouth, by which the jaws are made to grow together, and the very end of the mouth only opens.

SYNGNOME, £s»£qM, in rhetoric, the fame with concejfwn. See Concession, Cycl.

SYNNAS, or Synnadium marmor, in the writings of the antients, the name of a fpecies of marble ufed in the larger buildings of the Romans. It is by fome confounded with the docimenum marmor, with which the temple of Jupiter, erected by Adrian, was built ; but this is erroneous, fince that elegant marble was always charactered as perfectly white, without blcmiin j and this was always fpotted, and clouded with black, infomuch that fome writers have called it by an epithet, expreffing thofe variegations, maculoja fynnas.

SYNNEUROSIS, in anatomy, a kind of articulation of the bones, performed by the intervention of ligaments.

SYNOCHA, (Cycl.) in medicine, the name of a fpecies of fever, of which authors diftinguifh two kinds, the fimple, and the compound. The fimple fynocha is very rare in our parts of the world. The compound one is a mixed difeafe of the fynocbal and ordinary continued fever, and has been called by fome the putrid fever, and fynocha putrida by the antient mediral writers.

Signs of it. The fynocha always feizes people at once with a violent heat, without thofe fhiverings which frequently attend the firft attacks of other fevers. It is attended with a violent thirft, an univerfal languor, and lafiitude of the limbs; and often with anxieties, fighings, and fufTocative difficulties of breathing. Acute and violent pains are felt in the head, with a tumid rednefs of the face and eyes, noifes in the ears, vertigos, and eternal reftlefsnefs and toiling about in the bed, with wildneffes in the thoughts. The urine from the firft is red and pellucid ; it rarely admits of any breaking, or depofits any fediment before the fourth day, then it frequently precipitates a reddifh matter. There is generally an obftinate coftivenefs, and fpafmodic tenfions of the back and limbs are ufually very painfully felt during the whole time of the difeafe. The feventh day generally brings on a crlfis in this difeafe, which in young people is ufually by an haemorrhage of the nofe, in older by profufe fweats. The perfons moft fubjeit to this difeafe are thofe of a plethoric habit, who eat high-feafoned foods, and ufe little exercife ; and efpecially fuch as have had any habitual evacuation of blood ftopt upon them. It is more frequent in the fpring and autumn, than at other feafons. Junker's Confp. Med. p. 267.

Caufes of it. Thefe are principally violent and unaccuftomed exercife, drinking large quantities of fpirituous liquors, long watchings, immoderate paffions, violent fweatings from hot medicines, and fudden cooling the body when very hot, by drinking large draughts of cold water, or other weak li- quors. All thefe occafion the fever, by affeiting the pletho- ric habit of the perfon ; but this, which is the general and original ban's of the diftemper, is ufually brought on by omiflion of ufual bleedings at fpring and autumn, and other feafons, by fuppreflions of accuftomed haemorrhages by the nofe, and by ftoppages of the menftrual, or hemorrhoidal evacuations.

Prognofiics in it. The fynochal fever, in itfelf, is feldom at- tended with any great danger ; and when the crifis happens by profufe fweats, or by an haemorrhage, on the feventh day, there is no fear of any ill accidents : but if this time pafs without a crifis, and the congeftions remain, young perfons are ufually thrown into a violent phrenitis, and older ones into foporous affections ; -and even in fome cafes, where the crifis comes regularly on by haemorrhages, there is danger from its being too great in quantity, and too

much Impairing the ftrength of the patient. There rhuft be great caution, however, ufed in affwaging this haemor-" rhage, if that be found necefiary, fince, when it is impru* dently done, it often brings on terrible obftructions in the vifcera, and hectics, dropfies, and cachectic complaints* that are very difficult to get rid of. The critical haemor- rhage is known to be coming on by a ftricture and itching of the nofe, an intenfe pain in the head, a rednefs of the eyes and face, and a ringing in the ears. Very frequently, alfo, the crifis is predicted by a remarkable perturbation of mind, but this is not the peculiar fymptom of the hasmorrhage, but happens as often, when it is by fweat. Often there is a dripping of blood from the nofe on the fourth day ; and in this cafe, if nature be not difturbed, there will certainly be a farther bleeding on the feventh day. Complaints of an anxiety and uneafinefs about the breaft prefage an unhappy- event. Other very bad fymptoms, alfo, are involuntary tears, great reftlefsnefs, no relief from fleep, and the ap- pearance of livid, or brown fpots. The thick ftate of the blood, in this fever, makes it very eafily pafs into flow con- tinued fevers and hectics ; and fometimes, when the crifis does not come on at the feventh day, and there appear clouds in the urine, it appears afterwards on the fourteenth day. Method of cure. Bleeding is always necefiary in the firft ftages of this fever, before the figns of coition appear in the urine i after this the violent emotions of the blood are to be quelled by nitrous and acid medicines, as the juice of lemons : to thefe muft be added reft, and a frequent drinking of warm and weak liquors. The bowels, if much bound, muft be gently loofened by an emollient clyfter; and after the cri- fis, fome gentle purgatives muft be given to clear the pri- ma? viae. Bleeding is not to be ordered after the figns of coition appear in the urine, for it often prevents the critical haemorrhage, and renders the patient foporous, or delirious ; and in the compound, or putrid fynochal fever, the patient is not to be blooded at all. Volatile falts are given by fome in this cafe, but very improperly, for they always are at- tended with mifchief, and often occafion cachectic tumors- Symptomatic quinfeys often attend this difeafe, and are to be relieved by gargarifms, rendered aftringent by an ad- mixture of terra Japonica, or the like medicines ; and in this particular cafe, wine is to be more cautioufly forbid than at other times. Junker's Confp. Med. p. 266. SYNODON, in zoology, a name given by feveral authors to a fifti caught in the Mediterranean, and more commonly known by the name of dentex. Aldrovand. de Pifc. lib. 1. cap. 12. See Dentex. SYNODONTIDES, in natural hiftory, the name of a ftone defcribed by the antients, and faid to be taken out of the head of the fifh, called by them fynodentis, the dentex of the moderns. See Dentex. SYNONYMA. The perplexity in the writings of the anti- ents, arifing from the ufe of /yncnymous, as well as homo- nymous terms, is very great, when they ufe the fame word as the name of two different things. The whole value of the accounts they have left us is loft, by our not being able to diftinguifh which of the two they mean. The great fource of this confufion has been in the love of fecrets in medicine, which prevailed as ftrongly among the antients, as it does among the moderns. In order to con- ceal the remedies they ufed, they often gave them new names, and often (which was worfe) ufed for them the names of other things.

Thus they called the pine-tree ite-a, the univerfally received name of the willow, and fo in many other inftances ; from which we have, at this time, the fame word in ufe in diffe- rent authors, as the name of different things. Galen gives a prefcription for baldnefs, in which almoft all the ingredients are called by names wholly different from thofe that the reft of the world knew them by at that time, and by that means patted upon the vulgar for new-difco- vered medicines, t he bay-tree is there called ladsnis. The bear amorpbon brephos, from the ftory of its young cubs be- ing ihapelefs till licked into form by the mother bear. The ladanum, or labdanum, is called apotragopogon, becaufe of its being gathered from the beards of goats. And the adarce is called pericalamltis, from its being found concreted about a reed.

The compofition of Philo, called cbolice, given in the fame author, is thus given in the ^enigmatical manner by the fame means. The more learned and ingenuous people of thefe ages detefted this idle practice, and gave all things their common names ; but as the abfurdities of one man will ge- nerally find followers in others of the fame ftamp, though the phyficians difcarded the practice, the fuccecding race of chemifts, famous for their love of fecrets, continued and improved it to fo great a degree, that were there writings of any value, it would be wholly impoffible, in many of them, ever to arrive at the author's meaning. See Synony- mous, Cycl.

The Arabian writers have fallen more into the ufe of fyno- nymsy and that in a more erroneous manner than any other authors. If two things have happened to b.e called by the -

fame