Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 01.djvu/104

ACCIPITRES. ACCIP'ITRES (Lat. plural of accipiter, the common hawk), or Rapaces, or Raptores. See Bird of Prey. ACCIUS. See Attius. AC'CLAMA'TION (Lat. acclamatio, a calling to, from ad, to + clamare, to shout, call). An expression of opinion of any assembly by means of the voice. Among the Romans, acclamation was varied in both form and purpose. At marriages the spectators would shout "Io Hymen," "Hymenæe," or "Talassio." A victorious army or leader was greeted with "Io triumphe." In the theatre, approbation for the play was asked by the actor speaking the closing words, who added "Plaudite." In the senate, opinions were expressed and votes passed in such forms as "Omnes. omnes," "Æquum est," "Iustum est," etc.; and the praises of the Emperor were cele- brated in certain prearranged sentences which seem to have been chanted by the whole body of senators. At first the acclamation which greeted the works of poets and authors recited in public was genuine: but the modern rlnf/ne was early introduced by rich pretenders to literary al)ility who kept paid applauders not only for them- selves, but lent them to their friends. Nero gave a specimen when he caused 5000 chosen knights and commoners at a given signal to chant his praises in the theatre; they were called "Augus- tiani," and were conducted by a regular music- master. In the early times of the Christian Church it was not unconuuon for a congregation to express their approbation of a favorite preacher during the course of his sermon, and in this manner Chrysostom was frequently inter- rupted. In ecclesiastical councils voting by ac- clamation is very common, the division being usually put in the form "placet" or "non-placet."

ACCLI'MATIZA'TION. The adaptation of a species or race to a climate different from that to which it has previously been accustomed. Acclimatization is often confused with naturali- zation (q.v.), but naturalization is rather the establishment of a species in a new country, and does not necessarily imply a slow adjustment to conditions that are at first injurious, as is the case in acclimatization. Naturalization may take place without any real acclimatization, as when the new country is climatically like the old. This case is illustrated by the large number of plants which have spread eastward or westward along parallels of latitude. Again, acclimatization may occur without naturalization. This is well illustrated by the large number of plants that are hardy, and yet rarely, if ever, run wild; probably the struggle for existence is so keen that such plants fail to establish themselves spontaneously. Still again, naturalization may accompany acclimatization, as in the case of plants that migrate along meridians.

The term acclimatization is employed by the zoölogists in a somewhat broader sense, especially when referring to the adaptation of marine organisms to new conditions of existence. In the latter case climatic changes are relatively unimportant factors. The changes in the character of the water, as respects temperature, contained food supply, marine currents, and pressure as determined by depth, are the influential factors.

. The most obvious examples of acclimatization are found in cultivated plants. While the original stock as well as the home of most cereals is not definitely known, it is believed that most of them have come from warm, temperate or semi-tropical countries. They have now become fully acclimatized in far northern regions; indeed, some varieties of wheat, barley, etc., flourish even better in cold, temperate districts than in their original home. The peach is believed to grow farther north now than in the days of the ancient Greeks. Evidences of acclimatization apart from man's influence are not wanting; for example, it has been shown that plants grown from seeds that mature at high altitudes are hardier than those grown from seeds that mature at low altitudes.

One of the most interesting results of acclimatization is the change of the plant periods. In Finland and northern Norway barley ripens in 89 days, while 100 days are required in southern Sweden. Varieties of corn which ripen in New York in 93 days require 105 days in Texas. Interesting but not altogether harmonious results have been obtained from deciduous plants taken from temperate into tropical evergreen regions. In most plants the leafless period is shortened, and in some cases (notoriously in the peach tree) it is eliminated altogether, the plant becoming an evergreen. Schimper has observed another change, viz., the gradual loss of rhythmic growth: trees of temperate climes becoming in this respect more and more similar to native tropical trees.

In some cases the capacity for acclimatization is incomplete, i.e., plants are unable to adjust all of their structures and functions to a new climate. This lack of adjustment is seen in some plants of warm regions which, when transported to cool regions, vegetate well but fail to ripen wood. Many plants that can perform all their vegetative functions may still be unable to mature seeds; this is true not only of plants taken into cooler climates, but also in some cases of plants transported into warmer climates. Some species occurring naturally in Spitzbergen are said never to ripen seed; since their reproduction is now wholly vegetative, their original appearance in that region must necessarily have been at a period when the climate was much warmer than at present.

Darwin and others have discussed the influence of individual variation as compared with variation through offspring on the acclimatization of a species. There can be but little doubt of the gradual adaptation of a race through the natural selection of the hardiest individuals of each generation. Darwin also believed in the power of an individual to become acclimatized. The Wyoming experiment station reports that potatoes from the same stock endure in the uplands frosts that would destroy them in the lowlands. This favors the idea of individual acclimatization. Oranges, however, propagate hardier forms by seeds than by grafts, which shows that gradual acclimatization through off-spring may be more important. Northern-grown seeds are preferred by farmers, partly because plants grown from them mature sooner than from home-grown seeds. In a few generations, however, this hereditary peculiarity is lost, and a new supply becomes necessary. It should be borne in mind that many of the above statements are based on imperfect observations, and that there is the greatest need for careful experiment in this field.

The capacity of adapting them-