Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XIV.djvu/87

 PULCI PULSE 79 laski's legion. With this he marched, in Feb- ruary, 1779, to South Carolina, reached Charles- ton May 8, and vigorously opposed the project of surrendering the place to the British army then before the city. On May 11 he attacked with his legion the British advance guard, and was repulsed with considerable loss in killed, wounded, and prisoners, he himself escaping with difficulty to the American lines. In Sep- tember the French under Count d'Estaing and the Americans prepared to besiege Savannah. On Oct. 9 it was determined to carry the town by assault. Pulaski was placed at the head of the French and American cavalry, and during the engagement received a mortal wound. He was taken on board the brig Wasp, which lay in the Savannah river, died after lingering two days, and was buried in the river. A monu- ment to his memory voted by congress has never been erected, but one was raised by the citizens of Georgia in Savannah. PULCI, Lnigi, an Italian poet, born in Flor- ence in 1431, died there in 1487. He held an inferior office under the republic, and was one of those for whom Lorenzo de' Medici kept a place at his table. His Morgante Maygiore, treating the legend of Charlemagne and his paladins, was first published in Florence in 1481. One canto of it was translated into English by Lord Byron. Pulci also wrote sonnets and other short pieces. PULKOVA. See OBSERVATORY. PULLEY. See MECHANICS, vol. xi., p. 327. PULMONAR1A. See LUNGWORT. PULQUE, an aboriginal Mexican name for the fermented juice of agave Americana, the American aloe, maguey, or century plant (see AGAVE), which is cultivated in southern Mexico, as well as in Central and South America, for this and other products. The plant can- not be utilized for pulque until it has com- pleted its growth and is about to flower, a time which varies with the soil and location from 5 to 15 years. The sap stored up in the long and very fleshy leaves for the rapid development of the flower stalk abounds in sugar and mucilage. As soon as there are in- dications of the shooting up of a flower stalk from the centre of the plant, the central leaves and forming bud are cut out, a cavity being formed in their place, into which the sap will flow ; the cavity is shaded by drawing over some of the outer leaves and tying their points. A vigorous plant will yield about two gallons a day for four or five months ; as it quickly ferments, the juice is gathered from the plant three times a day in earthen jars, which are emptied into reservoirs made of raw hide tacked to a wooden frame. A portion of the juice is disposed of as pulque, i. e., simply fer- mented, while the greater part is distilled to form a strong alcoholic liquor, called pulque brandy, aguardiente, mezcal, and by other names. Pulque is a favorite drink with the Mexicans, and in the towns is sold in the market places and at shops called pulquerias, 690 VOL. xiv. 6 where the strong liquor is also kept. Taken in an early stage of fermentation, when the liquid is brisk with the bubbles of carbonic acid that are given off, pulque is a pleasant drink, not unlike spruce beer; but if allowed to complete its fermentation, which it does in three or four days, and reach the condition in which Mexicans like it best, no uneducated stomach can tolerate it; it contracts the odor of putrid animal matter from the skin in which it is fermented, and is exceedingly repulsive. Among the Mexicans the pulque from certain localities or plantations is especially esteemed, as among Europeans preference is given to the wine of certain vineyards. When the flow of sap ceases, the plant dies, but not without hav- ing formed innumerable offsets by means of which the plantation may be renewed. PULSATILLA. See ANEMONE. PULSE (Lat. pulsare, to beat), the throbbing of the arteries caused by the intermitting im- pulses communicated to the blood by the heart's contractions, propagated as a wave by the elasticity of the arteries, perceptible to the touch in all but the smallest vessels, and visi- ble when they are superficial or exposed ; the pulsation being nearly synchronous with the contraction of the left ventricle. At each pul- sation the capacity of the artery is augmented by an increase of diameter and by a partial elongation, the vessel being thereby lifted from its bed ; this increase has been estimated for the carotid artery as -fa part, but this can be only an approximation. The pulsation of the larger arteries in the immediate neighborhood of the chest, as for example the carotids, is perceptibly synchronous with that of the heart ; but for those at a distance, a slight in- terval of time is required for its propagation. Thus the pulse of the radial artery at the wrist is sensibly later than that of the heart, and that of the posterior tibial artery, at the ankle joint, later still. But this interval in each instance is very short, and requires care- ful attention to be distinguished. The pulse is liable to vary, within the limits of health, from the diversities of age, sex, stature, muscular exertion, condition of the mind, state of the digestive process, and period of the day. The following table is given by Carpenter as an ap- proximation to the average frequency of the pulse per minute at different ages: In the foetus 140 to 150 Newly born infant 180 to 140 During the 1st year 115 to 180 " 2d u 100 to 115 3d " 95 to 105 " 7th to 14th year 80 to 90 " 14th to 21st " 75 to 85 " 21st to 60th " 70 to 75 In old age 75 to 80 According to Dr. Guy, the pulse of the adult female usually exceeds that of the adult male of the same age by 10 to 14 beats a minute; according to Volkmann, the pulse is less fre- quent as the stature is greater, about four beats for half a foot in height. It is well known