Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 8.djvu/499

Rh E P I E P I 479 Sinngedichte bears witness to this peculiarity, which is ex emplified equally by the rude priameln, or prceameln, of the 13th and 14th centuries and the polished lines of Goethe and Schiller. Logau published his Deutsche Sinngetichte Drey Tausend in 1654, and Veruicke no fewer than six volumes of Utberscliriften oder Epigrammata in 1C97 ; Kastner s Sinngedichte appeared in 1782, and Haug and Weisseu a Epigrammatische Anthologie in 1804. Kleist, Opitz, Gleim, Hagedorn, Klopstock, and A. W. Schlegel all possess some reputation as epigrammatists ; Lessing is facile princeps in the satirical style ; and Herder has the honour of having enriched his language with much of what is best from Oriental and classical sources. It is often by no means easy to trace the history of even a single epigram, and the investigator soon leurns to be cautious of congratulating himself on the attainment of a genuine original. The same point, refurbished and fitted anew to its tiny shaft, has been shot again and again by laughing cupids or fierce-eyed furies in many a frolic and many a fray. During the period when the epigram was the favourite form in Germany, Gervinus tells us how the works, not only of the Greek and Roman writers, but of Neo-Latinists, Spaniards, Dutchmen, Frenchmen, Englishmen, and Poles were ransacked and plundered ; and the same process of pillage has gone on in a more or less modified degree in other times and countries. Very noticeable often are the modifications of tone and expres sion occasioned by national and individual characteristics: the simplicity of the prototype may become common-place in the imitation, the sublime be distorted into the gro tesque, the pathetic degenerate into the absurdly senti mental; or on the other hand, an unpromising motif may be happily developed into unexpected beauty. A good illustration of the variety with which the same epigram may be translated and travestied is afforded by a little volume published in Edinburgh in 1808, under the title of Lucubrations on the Epigram Ei Kal Ei 5e 5e? trad Ti 5e7 /J.a6f7y ; tfv fj.adf tv a 5e? iraQfiv, abis T)&amp;gt; -rb jJ.ci.Qtlv a 5 $* fj.a6e7y, yap traQflv The two collections of epigrams most accessible to the English reader are Booth s Epigrams, Ancient and Modern, 1863, and Dodd s The Epigrammatists, 1870. In the appendix to the latter is a pretty full bibliography, to which the following list may serve as a supplement : Thomas Corrseus, De toto co poematis gencre quod epigramma dicitur, Venice, 1569, Bologna, 1590; Cottunius, De Conficiendo epigrammate, Bologna, 1632 ; Vincentius Gall as, Opusculum de epigrammate, Milan, 1641; Vavassor, De epigram- mate liber, Paris, 1669 ; Gedankt, von dcutschen Epigrammatibus, Leipsic, 1698; Doctissimorum nostra estate italorum epigrammata: Flaminii Molcce, Naugerii, Cottce, Lampridii, Sadolcti, et aliorum, cura Jo. Gagncei, Paris, c. 1550 ; Brugiere de Barante, Rccueil dcs jtlus belles epigrammes dcs poStes fran^aia, 2 vols., Paris, 1698 ; Chr. Aug. Heumann, Anthologia Latino,: hoc est, epigrammata partim a priscis partim junioribus a poetis, Hanover, 1721 ; Fayolle, Acon- tologie ou diction/wire d 1 epigrammes, Paris, 1817; Geijsbeck, Epi- grammatische Antliologie, Sauvage, Les guepes gauloises: petit cncij- clopedie des meillcurs epigrammes, &amp;lt;kc., depuis Clemeiit Marotjusqu 1 aux poetes de nos jours, 1859 ; La recreation et passe-temps dcs tristes: rccucil d epigrammes et de petits contes en vers reimprime sur I tdition de Rouen 1595, &c., Paris, 1863. A large number of epi grams and much miscellaneous information in regard to their ongin, application, and translation is scattered through Notes and Queries. A pleasant anonymous article on the subject is printed in The Quarterly Review, No. 233. EPILEPSY (from coupon, and A.a/&amp;gt;i/3avo&amp;gt;, to seize), syno nym, Falling Sickness. The term as generally understood is applied to a nervous disorder characterized by a fit of sudden loss of consciousness, attended with convulsions. There may, however, exist manifestations of epilepsy much less marked than this, yet equally characteristic of the disease ; while, on the other hand, it is to be borne in mind that many other attacks of a convulsive nature have the term &quot; epileptic &quot; or &quot; epileptiform &quot; applied to them quite erroneously, as they can in no strictly scientific sense be held to be epilepsy. Epilepsy was well known in ancient times, and was re garded as a special infliction of the gods, hence the names morbus sacer, morbus divus. It was also termed morbus Herculeus, from Hercules having been supposed to have been epileptic, and morbus comitialis, from the circum stance that when any member of the forum was seized with an epileptic fit the assembly was broken up. Morbus ca- ducus, morbus lunaticus astralis, morbus demoniacus, morbus major, were all terras employed to designate epilepsy. The forms which this disease manifests have been dif ferently described by different writers, but there are two well-marked varieties of the epileptic seizure, either of which may exist alone, or both may be found to occur together in the same individual. To these the terms epilepsia gravior and epilepsia mitior, le grand mal and le petit mal, are usually applied. The former of these, if not the more common, is at least that which attracts most attention, being what is generally known as an epileptic fit. Although in most instances such an attack comes on suddenly, it is in many cases preceded by certain premoni tory indications or warnings, which may be present for a greater or less time previously. These are of very varied character, and may be in the form of some temporary change in the disposition, such as unusual depression or elevation of spirits, or of some alteration in the look. Besides these general symptoms, there are frequently peculiar sensations which immediately precede the onset of the fit, and to such the name of &quot; aura epileptica &quot; is applied. In its strict sense this term refers to a feeling of a breath of air blowing upon some part of the body, and passing upwards towards the head. This sensation, however, is not a common one, and the term has now come to be applied to any peculiar feeling which the patient experiences as a precursor of the attack. The so-called &quot; aura &quot; may be of mental character, in the form of an agonizing feeling of momentary duration ; of sensorial character, in the form of pain in a limb or in some internal organ, such as the stomach, or morbid feeling connected with the special senses ; or, further, of motorial character, in the form of contractions or trembling in some of the muscles. When such sensations affect a limb, the employment of firm com pression by the hand or by a ligature occasionally succeeds in warding off an attack. The aura may be so distinct and of such duration as to enable the patient to lie down, or seek a place of safety before the fit comes on. The seizure is usually preceded by a loud scream or cry, which is not to be ascribed, as was at one time supposed, to terror or pain, but is due to the convulsive action of the muscles of the larynx, and the expulsion of a column of air through the narrowed glottis. If the patient is stand ing he immediately falls, and often sustains serious injury. Unconsciousness is complete, and the muscles generally are in a state of stiffness or tonic contraction, which will usually be found to affect those of one side of the body in particular. The head is turned by a series of jerks towards one or other shoulder, the breathing is for the moment arrested, the countenance first pale then livid, the pupils dilated, and the pulse rapid. This, the first stage of the fit, generally lasts for about half a minute, and is followed by the state of clonic (i.e., tumultuous) spasm of the muscles, in which the whole body is thrown into violent agitation, occasionally so great that bones may be fractured or dis located. The eyes roll wildly, the teeth are gnashed together, and the tongue and cheeks are often severely bitten. The breathing is noisy and laborious, and foam (often tinged with blood) issues from the mouth, while the contents of the bowels- and bladder are ejected. The aspect of the patient in this condition is shocking