Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 04.djvu/359

* CASTOR AND POLLUX. 307 CASTREN. place in 1871. It was usod as a place of deposit for valuable articles and contained the standards of weights and measures. CASTO'BEUM (Lat., Gk. Kaaripioi; ka^to- ri'iit, r:<loT. from Ka(TTup, hnstOr, beaver). A substance secreted in two i)aired <rlandilar sacs, closely connected with the organs of re[)roduc- tion in both sexes of the beaver, and at one time held in high repute in medicine, although now- chiedy used by perfumers, when any can be ob- tained for market from the disapjioaring ani- mals. It was well known to the ancients. From the time of Hippocrates it was regarded as hav- ing a specific influence over the uterus, and was esteemed valuable in hysteria, catalepsy, and other spasmodic diseases. It has always been considered by trappers one of the most powerful of bait scents, under the name "barkstone." CASTOR'ID.a; (XeoLat. nom. pi., from Gk. Kd(Truip, l-(islijr. beaver) . The Beaver family, ^ee liK-WEn. CASTOR OIL (so called from its fancied resemblance to eastoreum ) . A fixed oil obtained from the seeds of liicinns communis (Linne), which is cultivated in India. In extracting the oil, the seeds are first bruised between heay rol- lers, and then pressed in hempen bags under a hy- draulic or screw press. The best variety of oil is thus obtained by pressure in the cold, and is known as cold-draicn castor oil; but if the bruised and pressed seeds be afterwards steamed or heated, and again pressed, a second quality of oil is obtained, which is apt to become par- tially solid or frozen in cold weather. In either ease the cnide oil is heated with water to 21^° V. (100° C), which coagulates and separates the albumen and other impurities. Exposure to the sun's light bleaches the oil, and this proc- ess is resorted to on a large scale. lien pure and cold-drawn, castor oil is of a light-yellow color: but when of an inferior quality, it has a greenish, and occasionally a brownish, tinge. It is somewhat thick and viscid. Its specific gravity is high for an oil. being about .960. It is miscible with alcohol and ether. Reduced to a temperature of — l.i" C. it becomes solid; exposed to the air, it very slowly becomes ran- cid, then dry and bard, and serves as a connect- ing link between the drving and non-drying oils. It has a nauseous smell, and an acrid, disagree- able, and sickening taste, which may be over- come liy the addition of a little magnesia. The [irincijial acid present in it is ricinoleic acid, C'lsHi.Oj, which is allied to oleic acid. It also contains palmitin, stearin, mj'ristin, and an acrid principle. Castor oil is largely used in medicine and the arts. As a simple purgative it acts in about five hours and empties the large intes- tines. Its secondary eflect is sedative and slightly constipating. It is not suited for con- tinued or repeated use, but should be employed in an emergency, or occasionally, for a single result. It is very useful in diarrhoea due to eating indigestible or irritative sul)stanccs, in the constipation of alcoholism, as well as of pregnancy, and in inflammatory diseases of the kidneys or of the generative organs. It may be administered in orange-juice, or flavored with oil of bitter almonds, or it may be given in cof- fee or in soda-water. Pharmacists dispense it in soft, elastic capsules of gelatin, thus obvi- ating the disagreeable smell and taste. Tlie adulterations of castor oil may be vari- ous. Several of the fixed oils, including lard, may be employed. The best test of its purity is its complete solubility in its own volume of alcohol, a test which other iixe, and a native of tropical Asia and .Africa which has become natural- ized in most tropical and subtropical coun- tries, and which is cultivated also in temperate climates. In the warmer clim;ites it is a peren- nial, and occurs as a small tree; but it does not endure frost, and becomes an annual in tem- ]ierate regions. It was loiowTi to the ancient Egyptians, as its seeds have been found in their tombs, and to the Romans, from whom we have the generic name Ricintis. There are many dis- tinct forms of the plant, some of which have been described as species, but they arc now gen- erally all regarded as varieties of a singh^ spe- cies. These forms differ in stature, shape, and color of the leaves, and are very popular for ornamental planting. The leaves are large and broad, from one to two feet or even more in diam- eter, and jjalmately cleft. The flowers arc ii- sexiial, and both male and female flowers are borne upon the same plant. The fruit is a spiny capsule containing one seed in each of its three divisions. The seeds are oval, from one-third to one-half inch long, and often beautifully varie- gated. They are chiefly valued for the oil they yield, the common castor oil (q.v. ). which is so generally used as a purgative, and which also series for lighting and lubricating purposes. The plant is cultivated for this oil in the United States, mainly in Kansas, Illinois, and Missouri, and in southern Europe. .4sia, South .America, the est Indies, and other tropical and warm temperate countries. The pomace which remains after the oil has been extracted from the seed is a valuable nitrogenous fertilizer. For illustration, see Plate of C.l.bash, etc. CASTRATION (Fr., Lat. caslratio. from cnnliarr. to emasculate; Slrt. mstra, knife). The removal of the essential organs of generation in animals. In males castration consists in tak- ing away the testicles. Tn females, castration or spaying consists in removing the ovaries. The purpose of castration is, generally, to make domestic animals more docile and more valu- able for meat, as well as to restrict unlimited reproduction. These advantages are counter- balanced, at least in part, by the fact that cas- tration diminishes the powers of endurance and the quickness of the intelligence. Castration may be performed at almost any age. but the effects of it arc more pronounced if it is per- formed before the ago of puberty. In surgery, castration is sometimes rendered necessary by disease of the testicle. In the female, the opera- lion is known as oiiphorectomy. See Eunuch. CASTREN, ka-stran'. Matthias AlexaxdeI! (i8l;!-.52). .4n eminent Finnish philologist. He was born at Tcrvola. December 2. ISLS. received his earliest in-itruction in the town of TorneA, and afterwards studied at Helsingfors. .houl the year 18.'!8 he undertook a pedestrian excursion