Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 10.djvu/28

* HEBOIDES. 16 HERON. of the epistles are believcJ to In- tlie work of imitators. HER'OIN. A derivative of iiiorpliiiu'. It is a white, iT.vslalliiii', neutral, slightly bitter pow- der. It "is only slightly soluble in water, but freely so when a dilute acid is added. The use of the drug in medicine practically dates from 18!IH. and there is still a diversity of M|iini(in as to its action and value. Us analgesic elTect is inferior to that of morphine or codeine, but it may be used as a substitute when these are not well tolerated. It seems to be chielly of value in allaying cough. Kor the relief of dys]iii<ea it is somclinies etlectual. having given good rcj^ults in eases due to asthma, cardiac ililalatiou. aneurism of the aorta, and ura-mia. It has been claimed that heroin is to tlie respiratory system what digitalis is to the heart. The dose should always be small, and it should be used with the same caution as other derivatives of opium. A single dose of two and one-half grains has been followed by great exhaustion, trembling, diminished tem- perature, a thready pulse of 140, contraction of the pupil, and impaired vision. Recovery fol- lowed the administration of caffeine. H£R0LD, A'riV. Loris .Joseph Feriii.naxd ( I71'l-I8:i.'i I . . Krcnch dramatic composer, born in Paris. .Mthcmgh bis father was a mu- sician, lie discouraged bis son's musical ambi- tions, and it was only after his father's death (1802) that the boy was able to fol- low his natural bent. In ISOfi he entered the Paris Conservatory, winning first prize for piano- playing in 1810, and the Prix de Rome in 1812 with bis cantata Mile, de Ui Vallii-rc. .-Vfter studying in Rome for three years he went to Xapics, producing there, in 1815. his first opera. La riiorentu di Enrico Qiiinto. His next three or four operas, given in Paris, were successful, but, owing to poor libretti, were followed by a series of failures which for a time discouraged the composer. In 1828 Hfrold was elected a member of the T^egion of Honor, flis best works. ilarie (182G). Zanipn (1831), and Le prf aiix clerrs (1832), are compositions of genuine merit, and still hold the boards in France and Germany. Consult .Touvin. IK-rold. sa vie et ses auvres (Paris. 1808). HERON (OF. hairoii, heron. Ft. h6ron. Prov. aifiroii, heron, from OHG. heifiir, heron, AS. hi- goro : connected with AS. Itcagra. OS. hreiera, MHO. reif/rr. tier. Hrihrr. heron. Skt. hrnkana, hrnkara. partridge, and Lat. crocire. Ok. Kpi^tiv krizein. to seree<>h, Ooth. Iirnpn. cry, OHl!. hruom. mom. Oer. liuhm, fame, .S. hror. Eng. rook). A bird of the genus .Ardea (and allied genera), of the family .4rdeid:r and suborder Herodii. Tliis family includes also bitterns and night-herons. In it the bill is long, compressed, and sharp; the tail short, the legs and the toes long and slender, the wings long. Those peculiar patches of soft, oily feathers called 'powder-down' tracts are al- ways present — three pairs in the true herons, one on the brea.st. one on the rump, and one under the thighs. In the herons — in which genus are included the species commonly designated egrets (q.v.). which differ only in unimportant particu- lars of plumage — the bill is slender hut strong, forming a compressed and lengthened cone: the plumage is beautiful, but seldom exhibits very gay colors, white, brown, hiack, and slate-color, finely blended, being generally predominant. Al- though the se.xcs usually are alike in color, few birds show greater variety of plumage than the herons, for the breeding plumage is much finer than that of the remainder of the year, and the young are usually very dilferent from the adults. Furthermore, a number of species are dichro- matic; that is, some specimens show one type of coloration and other s|>ecimens another type, abso- lutely without regard to age. season, or sex. ( Si'c UuiiUDMATi.sM I.N BiRus.) In the herons, one of the color phases is generally pure white ; the other phase is more or less colored, and is always re- nuirkahly dilTerent. (For the use of the plumage of certain herons as an ornament of costume and in millinery, which has led to their extinction in some regions, see Aiuret. ) The body is small in proportion to the length of the neck and limbs; the neck is long, and. except in flight, is usually held curved. In flight the heron carries the neck, head, and long bill in a straight line l)efore the body, and the long legs in like manner stretched out behind. Herons feed mostly on fish, frogs, and other aquatic animals, and may be seen, par- ticularly very early in the morning and late in the evening, standing patiently motionless in some shallow water, at the margin of a lake or stream, or on the seashore, waiting till prey come within reach. In default of their ordinary food, however, herons sometimes prey on young birds, reptiles, and the smaller mammalia. They usu- ally go forth singly in quest of prey, but are mostly gregarious in their nidification. The nests are usually built in trees, of coarse sticks with little lining. The eggs are three or four, in color blue or bluish green, without spots. Sec Colored Plate of Egos of Water ad Game BIRD.S. Herons are widely distributed over the glolM^, but are especially abundant in the tropics and warm temperate zones. Some seventy-five spe- cies are known, of which about a dozen occur in the I'nitod States. The great blue heron (.irdcci hcrodias) is about four feet in length from the point of the bill to the end of the tail, and nearly six feet across the wings. It is of a delicate srray color oil the upper parts, except the quill-feathers, which are black, and the tail, which is deep slate- color. This common heron generally builds its nest in a high tree, and many nests are some- times to be seen in a single tree. In northern parts of the continent the heron is known only as a summer bird of passage, but it remains in the Southern United States all the year. Its geographical range extends over most parts of the New World north of the equator. Herons were formerly in great esteem for the table, although now disregarded. The common heron (.irdea cinera) of Europe is very similar to the great blue heron, but has the tibiic white instead of chestnut. It is famous as the game which was most eagerly sought in falconry. Other well- known .American herons are the little green heron (.irdea virescen.i). which is only about a foot and a half long, the prevailing colors dark green and brown, abundant throughout the United States and a little beyond, both north and south ; the night-heron (yyeticorax ttyctirorax. var. 7ia'riu.i). a mere variety of the European night- heron, found throughout the United States and Canada. (See Kight-Hfron. ) The white heron {.irdea eijretta) and the snowy heron {..irdea candidissima) are southern species, always pure